bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A 5‐year community program in Singapore to prevent cognitive decline
Authors: Ng Ted Kheng Siang , Feng Lei , Chua Ru Yuan , Goh Lee Gan , Kua Ee Heok , Mahendran Rathi 
Published: August 2022

AbstractIntroductionThere is a scarcity of naturalistic follow‐up studies on cognitive stimulating activities (CSAs), particularly in a real‐world setting and over long‐term. We thus investigated a pooled novel CSA intervention to prevent cognitive decline amongst community‐dwelling older adults without dementia.MethodsNested within a community‐based longitudinal follow‐up cohort study of community‐dwelling and multi‐ethnic older adults (N = 991), a subset of the cohort (n = 264) underwent four single‐blinded randomized controlled trials involving four novel CSAs, including mindfulness, horticulture, art therapy, and choral singing. At the cohort's 5‐year follow‐up, we examined if involvements in the CSAs improved cognition, compared to controls (n = 727). The primary outcomes were changes in global cognition and specific cognitive domain scores measured by the mini‐mental state examination (MMSE). Exploratory subgroup analyses stratified by baseline cognitive status and the number of CSAs were also conducted.ResultsCompared to the control group, there was a small improvement in the CSA group on the total MMSE score (d = 0.108) and MMSE‐immediate recall score (d = 0.199). Furthermore, subgroup analyses revealed medium effect sizes of improvements (d = 0.420) in cognitive domains in mild cognitive impairment (MCI) (vs. cognitively healthy) and those involved in two CSAs (vs. one CSA).DiscussionIn summary, a CSA intervention improved cognition. MCI and those involved in two CSAs gained greater benefits from the CSAs. These sustained improvements in cognitive functions could have a significant impact on delaying or preventing dementia.
New data on relevant ancient Egyptian wooden artifacts: Identification of wooden species and study of the state of conservation with multidisciplinary analyses
Authors: Geweely Neveen , Abu Taleb Amira , Ibrahim Shimaa , Grenni Paola , Caneva Giulia , Galotta Giulia , Abdallah Medhat , Atwa Dina , Plaisier Jasper , Antonelli Federica 
Published: August 2022

AbstractWood species identification and characterization of its weathering processes are crucial steps in the scientific approach of conservation of wooden cultural heritage. Many precious wooden objects of ancient Egypt are largely present in museums, nevertheless relatively little information is available concerning the nature of timber used and on their status of conservation. To address this gap, the wooden species of three relevant archaeological wood objects (statue, box, and coffin) arising from different Egyptian archaeological sites dated from the Old Kingdom (2,686–2,181 BC) to New Kingdom (1,550–1,069 BC) were deeply studied. Five hardwood and softwood species were identified belonging toTamarix mannifera,T. gennessarensis,Ficus sycomorus,Vachellia nilotica, andCedrussp. Such data confirmed the recurrence ofVachelliaandTamarixamong the most common timbers found in ancient Egypt. Scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform spectroscopy, and synchrotron x‐ray radiation diffraction were conducted to evaluate the archaeological wood deterioration. The formation of microcracks, biological degradation patterns (fungal colonization), or chemical characterization (accumulation of salts on and in‐between wooden cells) were detected. SEM micrographs showed the presence of fungal hyphae and conidial spores on the wooden cells. Significant changes in the chemical wood composition and decrease in the crystallinity index were detected.
Phase Ib study of eltrombopag and azacitidine in patients with high‐risk myelodysplastic syndromes and related disorders (the ELASTIC study)
Authors: Sternberg Alexander , Boucher Rebecca , Coulthard Helen Chantal , Raghavan Manoj , Culligan Dominic , Jackson Aimee , Cargo Catherine , Dennis Mike , Metzner Marlen , O'Sullivan Jennifer , Moore Rachel , Bowen David , Vyas Paresh 
Published: August 2022

SummaryTreating adverse risk myelodysplastic syndromes with azacitidine exacerbates thrombocytopenia. We report a study of eltrombopag in combination with azacitidine using a 3 + 3 cohort design. Patients with baseline platelets of <150 × 109/l received eltrombopag ranging from 25 to 300 mg. An 8‐day pre‐phase of eltrombopag was followed by two cycles of combined therapy. Amongst 31 patients, there were no dose‐limiting toxicities. The maximum tolerated dose (MTD) was 300 mg. Transient increases in bone marrow blasts at day 8 were common but no patient had protocol‐defined progression following eltrombopag monotherapy. Marrow response rates after three and six treatment cycles were 32% and 29% respectively. In all, 70% of patients treated below and 36% treated at the MTD achieved a modified International Working Group 2006 platelet response at the end of cycle two. Of the platelet transfusion independent patients at baseline, 67% treated at the MTD became transfusion dependent during the first two cycles of treatment. Apart from lack of disease progression, our findings concur with a previously reported Phase III study (A StUdy of eltromboPag in myelodysPlastic SyndrOmes Receiving azaciTidine [SUPPORT]). We conclude that eltrombopag/azacitidine is safe in terms of conventional measures defined by adverse‐event reporting. However, in light of SUPPORT and our own descriptive findings regarding efficacy, further combination studies in high‐risk disease should be considered with caution.
Students' perceptions, educational challenges and hope during the COVID‐19 pandemic
Authors: Bryce Crystal I. , Fraser Ashley M. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractIntroductionThe COVID‐19 pandemic has disrupted the lives of US students both at home and at school. Little is known regarding how adolescents perceive COVID‐19 has impacted (both positively and negatively) their academic and social lives and how protective factors, such as hope, may assist with resilience. Importantly, not all pandemic experiences are necessarily negative, and positive perceptions, as well as potential protective factors, are key to understanding the pandemic's role in students' lives.MethodUtilizing quantitative and qualitative approaches, the present study descriptively examined 726 6th through 12th grade (51% female, 53% White) students' perceptions of how COVID‐19 related to educational and life disruptions, and positive aspects of their lives, within the United States. Analyses additionally explored the role of pre‐pandemic hope in improving feelings of school connectedness during the pandemic.ResultsResults showed that most students felt that switching to online learning had been difficult and their education had suffered at least moderately, with a sizeable proportion of students feeling less academic motivation compared with last year. When asked to share qualitative answers regarding perceived challenges and positive aspects of life, themes were consistent with quantitative perceptions. Students' pre‐pandemic hope positively predicted students' feelings of school connectedness.ConclusionsFindings paint a complex picture of youth's COVID‐19 experiences and have implications for proactive ways to support students as COVID‐19 continues to affect daily life and educational structures and practices.
Development of categorical speech perception in Mandarin‐speaking children and adolescents
Authors: Feng Yan , Peng Gang 
Published: August 2022

AbstractAlthough children develop categorical speech perception at a very young age, the maturation process remains unclear. A cross‐sectional study in Mandarin‐speaking 4‐, 6‐, and 10‐year‐old children, 14‐year‐old adolescents, and adults (n = 104, 56 males, all Asians from mainland China) was conducted to investigate the development of categorical perception of four Mandarin phonemic contrasts: lexical tone contrast Tone 1‐2, vowel contrast /u/−/i/, consonant aspiration contrast /p/−/ph/, and consonant formant transition contrast /p/−/t/. The results indicated that different types of phonemic contrasts, and even the identification and discrimination of the same phonemic contrast, matured asynchronously. The observation that tone and vowel perception are achieved earlier than consonant perception supports the phonological saliency hypothesis.
National Survey of United Kingdom Paediatric Allergy Services
Authors: Wells Rosy , McKay Cathy , Makwana Nick , Vyas Deepan , Vaughan Sophie , Christopher Anne , Thomas Lucy , Primett Misbah , Diwakar Lavanya , Alvis Shamir , Perkin Michael R. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractBackgroundComprehensive national assessments of paediatric allergy services are rarely undertaken, and have never been undertaken in the United Kingdom. A 2006 survey estimated national capacity at 30,000 adult or paediatric new allergy appointments per year and identified 58 hospital clinics offering a paediatric allergy service.ObjectiveThe UK Paediatric Allergy Services Survey was the first comprehensive assessment of UK paediatric allergy service provision.MethodsAll 450 UK hospitals responded to a survey. Paediatric allergy services are provided in 154 lead hospitals with 75 further linked hospitals. All 154 lead paediatric allergy services completed a detailed questionnaire between February 2019 and May 2020.ResultsThe 154 paediatric allergy services self‐define as secondary (126/154, 82%) or tertiary (28/154, 18%) level services. The annual capacity is 85,600 new and 111,400 follow‐up appointments. Fifty‐eight percent (85/146) of services offer ≤10 new appointments per week (no data provided from 8 services—2 no response, 6 unknown) and 50% (70/139) of the services undertaking challenges undertake ≤2 food or drug challenges per week (no data from 3 challenge services). Intramuscular adrenaline is rarely used during challenges—median annual frequency 0 in secondary services and 2 in tertiary services. Allergen‐specific immunotherapy is offered in 39% (60/154) of services, with 71% (41/58) of these centres treating ≤10 patients per annum (no data from 2 immunotherapy services). The 12 largest services see 31% of all new paediatric allergy appointments, undertake 51% of new immunotherapy patient provision and 33% of food or drug challenges. Seventy percent (97/126) of secondary and all tertiary services are part of a regional paediatric allergy network. Only nine services offer immunotherapy for any food (3 for peanut), 10 drug desensitization and 18 insect venom immunotherapy.ConclusionsThere has been a fourfold increase in paediatric allergy clinics and an approximately sevenfold increase in new patient appointment numbers in the United Kingdom over the past 15 years. Most services are small, with significant regional variation in availability of specific services such as allergen immunotherapy. Our findings emphasize the need for national standards, local networks and simulation training to ensure consistent and safe service provision.
The use of MRI in a tertiary smell and taste clinic: Lessons learned based on a retrospective analysis
Authors: Hutson Kristian , Kumaresan Kala , Johnstone Laura , Philpott Carl 
Published: August 2022

AbstractBackgroundOlfactory dysfunction (OD) is a common but underreported problem that can significantly impact a patient's quality of life. OD is prevalent in over 5% of the adult population and can be broadly categorised into conductive and sensorineural causes. Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) can form part of the diagnostic work up, although its exact role is often debated.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to evaluate the value of MRI in managing patients with OD.Design/MethodA retrospective analysis of the records of patients presenting to a national smell and taste clinic over a 5‐year period was performed. Variables included demographics, endoscopic findings, final diagnosis, psychophysical smell test and imaging results.ResultsA total of 409 patients, with an age range of 10–93 years, underwent clinical assessment and smell testing, of which 172 patients (42%) had MRI scans. Imaging in younger age‐groups was associated with a higher rate of positive findings, however identifiable causes for OD were recorded across the range. MRI provided both diagnostic and prognostic information in those with idiopathic, traumatic and congenital causes of OD. For example, MRI provided information on the extent or absence of gliosis in those with a head trauma history allowing further treatment and prognosis.ConclusionWe recommend the adjunct use of MRI in patients with a clear history and examination findings of head injury, congenital cases and in apparent idiopathic cases. MRI should be requested to compliment clinical findings with a view to aiding decision‐making on treatment and prognosis independent of patient's age.
The Role of Language Switching During Cross‐Talk Between Bilingual Language Control and Domain‐General Conflict Monitoring
Authors: Jiao Lu , Timmer Kalinka , Liu Cong , Chen Baoguo 
Published: August 2022

AbstractThe relationship between bilingual language control and executive control is debated. The present study investigated the effect of short‐term language switching in a comprehension task on executive control performance in unbalanced bilinguals. Participants were required to perform a context task and an executive control task (i.e., flanker task) in sequence. A picture‐word matching task created different language contexts in Experiment 1 (i.e., L1, L2, and dual‐language contexts). By modifying the color‐shape switching task, we created different contexts that do not involve language processing in Experiment 2 (i.e., color, shape, and dual context). Experiment 1 showed overall faster responses (in both congruent and incongruent trials) in the flanker task after a language switching context than after single (L1 or L2) contexts. This suggests that the language switching in a comprehension task affected general monitoring performance. By contrast, the nonlinguistic contexts in Experiment 2 did not affect flanker performance. This provides further evidence for the crucial role of language processing during switching to elicit short‐term adaptions on domain‐general conflict monitoring. Overall, our findings add to the previous studies by showing cross‐talk between bilingual language control and domain‐general conflict monitoring when language switching occurs in a comprehension task.
The role of transesophageal echocardiography in guiding heart donation after circulatory death
Authors: Vandenbriele Christophe , Brouckaert Janne , Hans Grégory , Tchana‐Sato Vincent , Vandendriessche Katrien , Gunst Jan , Ancion Arnaud , Van Cleemput Johan , Ledoux Didier , Rex Steffen , Neyrinck Arne , Rega Filip 
Published: August 2022

AbstractHeart donation after circulatory death (DCD) can significantly expand the heart donor pool, helping to overcome the problem of organ shortage and the increase in waiting list mortality and morbidity. To improve the outcome of DCD heart transplantation, thoraco‐abdominal normothermic regional perfusion (TA‐NRP) can be performed by selectively restoring circulation followed by in vivo functional heart assessment. Here, we report on the use of periprocedural transoesophageal echocardiography (TOE) as a minimally invasive cardiac assessment tool during different stages of a DCD heart procurement procedure using TA‐NRP. We conclude that TOE is a valuable method to assess the donor heart for transplantation eligibility before and after withdrawal of life‐sustaining therapy and during subsequent TA‐NRP.
Sebaceous gland atrophy in seborrheic dermatitis of the scalp; a pilot study
Authors: Nagrani Neha S. , Goldberg Lynne J. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractBackgroundSebaceous gland (SG) atrophy is well‐documented in scalp lesions of psoriasis and has been considered as an important clue to psoriatic alopecia. However, its specificity for psoriasis has been questioned over the years. We hypothesize that SG atrophy is not specific for psoriasis and looked for its presence in biopsies of seborrheic dermatitis of the scalp.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective study of biopsy specimens of clinically suspected and histopathologically proven seborrheic dermatitis of the scalp for changes in SGs between January 1, 2014 and August 6, 2021.ResultsSGs lobules were smaller and narrower in five of the six cases of seborrheic dermatitis, and SG atrophy was present in four out of six cases.ConclusionsSG atrophy is observed in seborrheic dermatitis and is not specific for psoriasis or psoriatic alopecia.
Global habitat loss of a highly migratory predator, the blue marlin (Makaira nigricans)
Authors: Dale Jonathan J. , Brodie Stephanie , Carlisle Aaron B. , Castleton Michael , Hazen Elliott L. , Bograd Steven J. , Block Barbara A. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractAimClimate change is driving the redistribution of species throughout the oceans. However, the speed and magnitude of species responses, including shifts in their distribution, are variable and species specific. Quantifying the effect of environmental conditions on species distributions is crucial to informing management and conservation efforts. Blue marlin (Makaira nigricans) is a wide‐ranging top predator occurring circumglobally in tropical and subtropical waters and is heavily impacted by international longline fisheries. This study aimed to predict the global distribution of blue marlin and characterize the effects of climate variability thereon.LocationGlobal.MethodsTo conduct this study, pop‐up satellite archival tags (n = 144) deployed by recreational anglers through a global citizen science programme were used to generate a large tracking data set (14,928 days, 210,983 km from deployment to pop‐up locations) of blue marlin movement across three ocean basins. State‐space modelled tracking position estimates were used to create a species distribution model to represent global habitat suitability for blue marlin. Habitat suitability was determined by fitting a generalized additive mixed model (GAMM) as a function of environmental covariates which was used to predict monthly global blue marlin habitat from 2000 to 2016.ResultsBlue marlin habitat preference had the strongest association with sea surface temperature. Seasonal variation in blue marlin habitat occurs primarily at the latitudinal edges of the distribution range. Over the duration of the study, 96% of core habitat declined in suitability, with a concurrent poleward increase in suitability of marginal habitat.Main ConclusionsThis study highlights the successful application of citizen‐based science to develop a long‐term global telemetry dataset. The present‐day loss of highly suitable habitat suggests ocean warming may be making equatorial waters less suitable even to highly mobile species. Blue marlin is likely to respond by following preferred habitat as it shifts poleward.
Biological and molecular characterization of Cladosporium sp. and Acremonium zeylanicum as biocontrol agents of Aphis fabae in a tri‐trophic system
Authors: Mousavi Khaled , Rajabpour Ali , Parizipour Mohamad Hamed Ghodoum , Yarahmadi Fatemeh 
Published: August 2022

AbstractEntomopathogenic fungi (EPF) are the most important category of microbial agents and considered to be crucial elements in biological control. In this study, two species of EPF, Cladosporium sp. AF98 (Ascomycota: Davidiellaceae) and Acremonium zeylanicum IR87 (Petch) W. Gams & H.C. Evans (Ascomycota: Hypocreaceae), were isolated from infected individuals of the citrus cottony scale, Pulvinaria aurantia Cockerell (Hemiptera: Coccidae), and the melon aphid, Aphis gossypii Glover (Hemiptera: Aphididae), respectively. Based on the nucleotide sequence of the ribosomal DNA, the fungal isolates were subjected to molecular identification and phylogenetic analysis. Pathogenicity of the fungal isolates to the black bean aphid, Aphis fabae Scopoli, was evaluated under laboratory conditions. Both fungal isolates caused considerable aphid mortality and no significant differences were observed in pathogenicity of the isolates. The severity of the fungal isolate effect on the aphid increased as the conidial concentration increased. Time was found to be a more important factor than conidia concentration in isolate efficacy. Olfactory experiments indicated that Lysiphlebus fabarum Marshall (Hymenoptera: Braconidae, Aphidiinae), an important parasitoid wasp of A. fabae, can detect cues from the fungus‐infected aphids and can avoid them. Therefore, fungal isolates have considerable potential for the microbiological control of the aphid and are also compatible with other means of biological control of the pest.
Distinct disease trajectories in frontotemporal dementia–motor neuron disease and behavioural variant frontotemporal dementia: A longitudinal study
Authors: Long Zhe , Irish Muireann , Hodges John R. , Piguet Olivier , Burrell James R. 
Published: August 2022

AbstractBackground and purposeThe heterogeneity of cognitive and behavioural disturbances in frontotemporal dementia–motor neuron disease (FTD‐MND), and clinical differences between FTD‐MND and FTD subtypes, have been illustrated cross‐sectionally. This study aimed to examine the FTD‐MND disease trajectory by comparing clinical features of FTD‐MND and the behavioural variant FTD (bvFTD) longitudinally.MethodsNeuropsychological and disease severity assessments were conducted in a cohort of FTD‐MND (baseline, n = 42; follow‐up, n = 18) and bvFTD (baseline, n = 116; follow‐up, n = 111) using a longitudinal, case–control design. Age‐, sex‐, and education‐matched controls (n = 52) were recruited. Predictors of clinical progression were analyzed. Voxel‐based morphometry analysis was undertaken to investigate the progression of brain atrophy.ResultsAt baseline, FTD‐MND was characterized by semantic and general cognition deficits, whereas bvFTD had greater behavioural disturbances. General cognition and language deteriorated in FTD‐MND when followed longitudinally. Language deficits at baseline predicted cognitive deterioration and disease progression and correlated with progressive atrophy of language regions. Further deterioration in behaviour was evident in bvFTD over time. The rate of disease progression (i.e., general cognition, semantic association, and disease severity) was significantly faster in FTD‐MND than in bvFTD.ConclusionsFTD‐MND and bvFTD appear to have distinct disease trajectories, with more rapid progression in FTD‐MND. Language impairments should be closely monitored in FTD‐MND as potential predictors of cognitive deterioration and disease progression.