bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Improved animal genetics deliver low emissions development in East Africa’s dairy sector
Authors: Hawkins James , Komarek Adam , Kihoro Esther M , Nicholson Charles F , Omore Amos , Schoneveld George C , Yesuf Gabriel U , Ericksen Polly J , Rufino Mariana 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Smallholder farm-households produce most of the crop and livestock products consumed in developing countries. Equitable transitions to low emissions food production will depend on policies that promote a reduction of greenhouse gases (GHGs) whilst improving these farmers’ livelihoods. Here, using survey data and simulation modelling, we show that Tanzania’s public programme to reduce import dependence through efficiency gains in the dairy sector increases farmer incomes (+12-20%) whilst reducing GHG emissions consistent with the Nationally Determined Contributions pledge (21-39%). Scenario analysis demonstrates that incrementally higher proportions of improved cattle (Bos taurus crosses) in the herd lead to greater reductions in GHGs over the Baseline, whilst benefitting producers through higher marketable surpluses and household income. As East Africa has the highest population density of indigenous Bos indicus cattle in Africa, genetic gains will be a key lever for reconciling food sovereignty with climate mitigation pledges throughout the region.
Volatile Scents Preference of Crab Spiders (Ebrechtella Tricuspidata) for Host Flowers
Authors: LI ZICHANG , SU QICHEN , ZHAO YAO , YUN YUELI , Peng Yu 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Chemical signals are important to all living organisms, especially to plants which don’t have vision or mobility. Plant volatiles participate in the competition between plants, herbivores and predators; meanwhile, the tritrophic interactions promote the evolution of plant volatiles. To our knowledge, spiders are common predators in the interactions, but only few studies have begun to investigate what floral volatiles do to spiders. Here, we used Ebrechtella tricuspidata and their common host flowers (tulips) found in our previous field survey to determine the volatile scent preference of spiders for host flowers. Eight main floral volatile scent compounds of tulips were picked out and tested in dual choice behavioural assays. E. tricuspidata showed a significant avoidance of α-pinene and no preference for limonene, β-ocimene, linalool, benzaldehyde, benzyl-alcohol, methyl-salicylate, or 2-phenylethanol. The results illustrate that facultative flower visitor E. tricuspidata is not popular among some kinds of tulip. This probably represents a typical response: facultative flower visitors cannot tolerate all defensive floral volatile scents. Compared with previous studies, we detect that the same floral volatile scent compound has different effects on different spiders, indicating that floral volatile scent compounds attract and reject spiders with specificity and they evolved for different functions and targets. However, this is a preliminary study on the effects of chemical signals on plant-spider interactions, both chemical and physical signals should be considered in future research.
How are left-sided rib fractures associated with splenectomy in cases of splenic injury? A multicentre cohort study from urban India.
Authors: Banker Amay , Wärnberg Martin Gerdin , Gadgil Anita , Sarang Bhakti , Prajapati Ramlal , Soni Kapildev , Khajanchi Monty 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Background
Any fracture to the rib cage, particularly the left sided ribs, implies a high impact trauma and higher predisposition to splenic injury. Our hypothesis is that injuries causing fractures to the left sided ribs may indicate a high-grade splenic injury which may require splenectomy. This would help the surgeon working in rural and limited resource settings, to plan splenectomy in hemodynamically stable patients with an undetermined grade of splenic injury. With this hypothesis in mind, we aimed to determine how fractures to the left sided ribs, in cases of splenic injury, are associated with splenectomy.
Methods
We performed a subgroup analysis of patients with splenic injury from a prospective trauma registry study named ‘Towards Improved Trauma Care Outcomes’ in India. Categorical variables were analyzed using the chi square test and a binary logistic regression was developed to assess the significance of continuous variables.
Results
During the study period, a total of 16047 patients were included. Of these, 267 patients suffered from splenic injury and 70 patients required splenectomy. Fractures of the left sided ribs was not associated with splenectomy. Injury severity score (ISS), a lower systolic blood pressure and oxygen saturation at arrival, requirement of blood transfusions within 24 hours of admission and a higher grade of splenic injury (grade 4 and grade 5) were associated with splenectomy.
Conclusion
In contradiction to our initial hypothesis, we found that left sided rib fractures were not significantly associated with splenectomy. Grade of splenic injury was an important determinant of splenectomy.
Contemporary aetiology of Heart Failure in a Teaching Hospital in Ghana: a prospective study
Authors: Agyekum Francis , Ankomaba Folson Aba , Asare Bernard Yeboah-Asiamah , Doku Alfred , Kpodonu John , Okine Rafiq , Fokuoh Forster , Akamah Joseph Atiah 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Background
Heart failure (Heart Failure) is recognized as a global public health disease associated with high morbidity and mortality. It is suggested that the main underlying causes of HF in developing countries differ from those identified in well-resourced countries. This study therefore presents the cardiovascular risk factors and the causes of HF among admitted patients in a teaching Hospital in Ghana.
Method
The study prospectively recruited 140 consecutive patients admitted for heart failure at the Medical department of the Korle Bu Teaching Hospital from March to October, 2014. The study evaluated the cardiovascular risk factors and the aetiologies of heart failure, and compared the risk factors and aetiologies with patient’s age and gender.
Results
The mean age of the study participants was 51.3 ± 16.8 years. The commonest cardiovascular risk factors observed were hypertension (46.5%), history of previous HF (40.7%), excessive alcohol use (38.6%), and family history of heart disease (29.3%); predominantly hypertension (68.3%). The major causes of HF were hypertensive heart disease (30.7%), dilated cardiomyopathy (29.3%), ischaemic heart disease (13.6%) and valvular heart disease (12.9%). HF caused by hypertensive heart disease (88.4% vs 11.6%; p = 0.015), dilated cardiomyopathy (58.5% vs 41.5%; p = 0.004) and ischaemic heart disease (100.0% vs 0.0%; p = 0.004) were high in patients aged 40 years and above compared to those below 40 years.
Conclusion
The major causes of heart failure in adults admitted to Korle Bu Teaching Hospital were hypertensive heart disease, dilated cardiomyopathy, ischaemic heart disease and valvular heart disease significantly high among patients aged 40 years and above. The main cardiovascular risk factors identified among the heart failure patients were hypertension, excessive alcohol use, family history of heart disease and personal history of previous heart failure diagnosis.
Refractory/relapse thrombocytopenia in a patient with Evans’ syndrome successfully treated with zanubrutinib
Authors: Li Menguan , Liu Liu , Ding Bingjie , Xia Ao , Han Yu , Song Xuewen , Song Yongping , Wei Xudong , Zhou Hu 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Methods
We report a case of a 15-year-old Chinese girl with Evans’ syndrome who presented with refractory/relapse thrombocytopenia successfully treated with zanubrutinib. There is no published cases of treating refractory/relapse thrombocytopenia with zanubrutinib, a second-generation selective covalent Inhibitor of Bruton's Tyrosine Kinase, in Evans’ syndrome.
Results
Despite the initial treatment with Dexamethasone, Recombinant human thrombopoietin, Thrombopoietin receptor agonist (Eltrombopag /Avatrobopa), immunoglobulin, Rituximab, immunosuppressants (Cyclosporine/Azathioprine /Sirolimus) and Splenectomy, our patient relapsed and finally applied zanubrutinib which resulted in successful remission. ES case treated on zanubrutinib without adverse effects. The patient had dramatic and long-lasting recovery that started following the drug. Clinical trials to assess the role of zanubrutinib in ES treatment are warranted.
Discussion
We conclude by reviewing the cases of refractory/relapse Evans’ syndrome and review the application of BTK Inhibitors for the treatment of autoimmune diseases in medical practice. Ours is the first published case of using covalent Inhibitor of BTK in refractory/relapse Evans’ syndrome and contributes to the literature on the successful use of zanubrutinib in clinical practice.
Conclusion
The zanubrutinib may be a feasible therapeutic option for patients with Evans’ syndrome who do not respond well to traditional therapies.
IL-17A–responsive neutrophils expressing CD49d and VEGFR1 promote synovium lesions by enhancing the migratory and invasion behavior of synovial fibroblasts at the early stage of rheumatoid arthritis
Authors: Li Yanhong , Luo Yubin , Chen Tao , Cao Luyang , Yang Hang , Zhang Qiuping , Zhao Yi , Liu Yi , Muñoz Luis E. 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Background
Emerging evidences indicate there are different subsets of neutrophils whose biological functions vary in different physiological or pathological status. However, the function of the neutrophil subsets in the etiology of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is rarely reported.
Methods
The presence of CD49d+VEGFR1+Ly6G+ neutrophil in blood, joint and bone marrow (BM) were determined in Collagen-induced arthritis (CIA) mice. CD49d−VEGFR1−PMN, CD49d+VEGFR1−PMN and CD49d+VEGFR1+PMN were isolated. The effect of IL-17A on CD49d and VEGFR1 expression was investigated in vitro. WT and IL-17A−/− mice were immunized with bovine type II collagen. Disease activity was evaluated using clinical score and diameter of ankle. The level of MMP-3 and MMP-13 were detected by ELISA. The expression of CD49d+VEGFR1+PMN in RA patients and healthy individual (HC) were determined by flow cytometer.
Results
We identified a unique CD49d+VEGFR1+neutrophil subset and investigated them in the pathogenesis of RA. The proportion of this neutrophil subset changed dynamically during the arthritis development. In vivo and in vitro experiments indicated the increased CD49d+VEGFR1+neutrophil population was IL-17A-dependent. CD49d+VEGFR1+neutrophils, localized in the inflamed synovium of CIA mice, possessed pro-inflammatory features with elevated expressions of TNF-α, VEGF, IL-18, CXCL9, CCL3 and CCL4. CD49d+VEGFR1+neutrophils promote the migration and the invasion ability of fibroblast like-synoviocytes (FLS), accompanied with a significant elevation in MMP-3 and MMP-13 release.
Conclusion
We identified a unique neutrophil subset with high expression of CD49d and VEGFR1, which are induced by IL-17A in RA. This unique subset plays a critical role in synovium pathogenesis by activating FLS at the early stage of RA.
Safety and efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with chronic hepatitis B virus infection
Authors: Liu Qixin , Shen Liangfang , Wei Rui , He Yuxiang , Zhou Qin , Tan Xiao , Shen Lin , Huang Xinqiong 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Purpose To explore the safety and efficacy of immune checkpoint inhibitors in nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection.Methods We conducted a retrospective study of nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with HBV infection who received immune checkpoint inhibitors at our medical centre from 1 February 2017, to 30 November 2021. The primary endpoint was treatment-related adverse events and the secondary endpoint was tumour response and survival outcome.Results Nineteen eligible patients were selected and all patients tested positive for hepatitis B surface antigen. Five patients received Sintilimab, four received Nivolumab, three received Camrelizumab, three received Toripalimab, three received Penpulimab and only one received Pembrolizumab. None of the patients in the study experienced HBV reactivation or treatment-related deaths. The adverse reactions were mild in general, primarily grade 1; only leukopenia, lymphocytopenia, thrombocytopenia, neutrophilia, ALT increase and AST increase were grade 3. The objective response rate was 77.8% and the disease control rate was 88.9%. The median overall survival (OS) of all patients was 14.4 months and the median progression-free survival (PFS) was 10.4 months. The 1-year PFS and 1-year OS were 47.4% and 52.6%, respectively. Subgroup analysis revealed that immunotherapy as a first-line treatment improved patient OS.Conclusion Immunotherapy is safe and effective for nasopharyngeal carcinoma patients with HBV infection. Regular monitoring of HBV biomarkers and anti-viral prophylaxis should not exclude this particular population from receiving immunotherapy indications in clinical practice or clinical trials.
Influencing factors of humanistic care ability and its dimensions among mental health workers: an online cross-sectional study
Authors: Liu Xiaolin , Zhu Hongjin 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Background: In psychiatric services, humanistic care ability significantly affects the quality of therapeutic relationship and thus affects therapeutic outcomes of patients. Mental health workers may face more obstacles in humanistic care during the COVID-19 pandemic, we aimed to explore the level of humanistic care ability among mental health workers and its potential influencing factors.Method(s) An online cross-sectional survey was conducted among 262 mental health workers working in Chongqing, China, from December 2020 to January 2021. Data were collected by the Caring Ability Inventory (CAI), the Psychological Capital Questionnaire (PCQ-24) and the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire-Revised, Short Scale for Chinese (EPQ-RSC). Multiple linear regression analysis was used to explore the influencing factors of humanistic care ability.Results Mental health workers’ humanistic care ability was at a low level, with a score of 186.47 ± 21.34. Psychological capital was positively associated with humanistic care ability (β[95%CI] = 0.411 [0.464, 0.772], p<0.001) and its two dimensions (cognition: β[95%CI] = 0.514 [0.304, 0.465], p<0.001; patience: β[95%CI] = 0.478 [0.171, 0.283], p<0.001). Psychoticism was negatively associated with humanistic care ability (β[95%CI] = -0.277 [-5.179, -2.513], p<0.001) and its three dimensions (cognition: β[95%CI] = -0.124 [-1.567, -0.165], p<0.05; courage: β[95%CI] = -0.166 [-1.698, -0.316], p<0.01; patience: β[95%CI] = -0.185 [-1.330, -0.358], p<0.01). Extroversion was positively associated with humanistic care ability (β[95%CI] = 0.189 [0.686, 2.080], p<0.001) and its two dimensions (cognition: β[95%CI] = 0.188 [0.323, 1.051], p<0.001; courage: β[95%CI] = 0.268 [0.496, 1.230], p<0.001). Neuroticism was negatively associated with humanistic care ability (β[95%CI] = -0.130[-1.366, -0.193], p<0.01) and its one dimension (courage: β[95%CI] = -0.252 [-0.977, -0.352], p<0.001).Conclusion(s) Research has found that the humanistic care ability of mental health workers is at a low level, and psychological capital and personality traits are significant factors influencing the humanistic care ability and its sub-dimensions. Interventions to improve psychological capital of mental health workers or to promote the change of personality traits that they want are recommended, thereby promoting humanistic practice.
Development of User-Participating Spatial Information Service Based on Digital Map
Authors: YOOJOONGOCK  
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Recently, user-participating spatial information service is being developed with which users can directly enter, share, and utilize their interested information about any particular topic in the web map using a web or smart phone in their personal area. However, previous user-participating spatial information service dealt with only the location information expressed with points, not any spatial information expressed with polylines and polygons. Also, as they developed services based on the web map provided by GOOGLE, VWORLD, NAVER, and DAUM, it was not easy to utilize other spatial information that had existed before in connection. This means that previous user-participating spatial information service did have a limitation that it used spatial information limitedly regardless of the user’s demand. Therefore, this study aims to suggest the concept of user-participating spatial information service with which users can create, edit, or save spatial information they intend to generate newly and also spatial information in the forms of points, polylines, and polygons which the previous digital map implies based on the digital map and also realize the service prototype based on the web. This is expected to be used as related research for the developer intending to develop user-participating spatial information service to use spatial information more widely.
Peptide Isolated from Noni Seeds Confers Gastroprotective Effect by Improving Inflammation and Oxidative Stress in Mice
Authors: Nogueira Francisca Cristiane , Costa Andréa Santos , Campos Dyély de Carvalho Oliveira , Silva Rodolpho Glauber Guedes , Franco Álvaro Xavier , Soares Pedro Marcos Gomes , Rocha Raquel de Oliveira , Damasceno Renan Oliveira Silva , de Alencar Nylane Maria Nunes , Souza Marcellus Henrique Loiola Ponte , de Oliveira Hermógenes David 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Plant molecules are continuously investigated to prevent and treat inflammatory and ulcerative disorders associated with the gastrointestinal tract, such as gastritis, colitis, mucositis, and ulcer. However, most of the work published is devoted to investigating the therapeutic properties of secondary plant metabolites. This work investigated the gastroprotective activity of a lipid transfer protein isolated from Morinda citrifolia L., named McLTP1, when orally administered to mice, from the perspective of its use as a novel peptide-based drug for the prevention and treatment of ulcerative gastric lesions. Pretreatment with McLTP1 at different doses (4, 8, or 16 mg/kg) reduced ethanol-induced gastric lesions (p < 0.05) in 40%, 84%, and 88%, respectively. In ethanol-induced gastric lesions, it was demonstrated alterations in levels of GSH (↑100%; p < 0.05) and a reduction by 45% in the levels of MDA (p < 0.05) after McLTP1 administration (8 mg/kg). McLTP1 showed an anti-inflammatory effect through the modulation of the cytokines IL- 10 (↑33%) and TNF-α (↓54%) and was able to reduce MPO levels (↓95%) in the gastric tissue. Besides, the gastroprotective of McLTP1 also involves the production of nitric oxide. The present findings reveal that McLTP1 has a gastroprotective effect dependent, at least in part, on its anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects.
Granulosa cell mevalonate pathway abnormalities contribute to oocyte meiotic defects
Authors: Liu Chuanming , Zuo Wu , Yan Guijun , Wang Shanshan , Sun Simin , Li Shiyuan , Tang Xinyi , Li Yifan , Cai Changjun , Wang Haiquan , Liu Wenwen , Fang Junshun , Zhang Yang , Zhou Jidong , Zhen Xin , Feng Tianxiang , Hu Yali , Wang Zhenbo , Li Chaojun , Bian Qian , Sun Haixiang , Ding Lijun 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
The mechanisms of aging-related oocyte meiotic defects and low competence remain elusive. Hi-C and SMART-seq revealed aging-related decreases in chromosome condensation, particularly for genomic regions proximal to the centromeres in metaphase I aged oocytes. Further transcriptomic analysis of oocyte-surrounding granulosa cells (GCs) showed that oocyte meiotic maturation was accompanied by robust increases in mevalonate (MVA) pathway gene expression in GCs, which was largely downregulated in aged GCs. Suppression of MVA metabolism in GCs with statins resulted in marked meiotic defects in young cumulus-oocyte complexes (COCs). Conversely, supplementation with the MVA metabolite geranylgeraniol ameliorated meiotic defects in aged COCs. Meanwhile, geranylgeraniol also activated LHR/EGF signaling in aged GCs and then enhanced the meiosis-associated gene expression in oocytes. Generally, the MVA pathway in GCs is a critical regulator of meiotic maturation in oocytes.
Tiller estimation method using deep neural networks
Authors: Kinose Rikuya , Utsumi Yuzuko , Iwamura Masakazu , Kise Koichi 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
Background: A tiller is a branch on a grass plant, and the number of tillers is one of the most important determinants of yield. Traditionally, the tiller number is usually counted by hand, and so an automated approach is necessary for high-throughput phenotyping. Conventional methods use heuristic features to estimate the tiller number. Based on the successful application of DNNs in the field of computer vision, the use of DNN-based features instead of heuristic features is expected to improve the estimation accuracy. However, as DNNs generally require large volumes of data for training, it is difficult to apply them to estimation problems for which large training datasets are unavailable. In this paper, we use two strategies to overcome the problem of insufficient training data: the use of a pretrained DNN model and the use of pretext tasks for learning the feature representation. We extract features using the resulting DNNs and estimate the tiller numbers through a regression technique.
Results: We conducted experiments using a dataset of Setaria viridis. Experiments show that the proposed methods using a pretrained model and specific pretext tasks achieve better performance than the conventional method. The best mean absolute error between the hand-labeled and estimated tiller numbers by the proposed method is 0.57.
Conclusions: We realized applying DNN methods to tiller number estimation methods by using pretext tasks. The proposed method outperformed the conventional approach.
Diversity of indoor wood decaying fungi in Poland
Authors: Andres Bogusław Adam , Krajewski Krzysztof J. , Betlej Izabela 
Published: April 2022

Abstract
This paper presents the results of research on the diversity of wood-rot fungi found in buildings and outdoor wooden engineering structures in Poland. A total of 47 species and genera of wood-rot fungi from Basidiomycota (19 brown rot fungi, 28 white rot fungi) and 1 genus from Ascomycota (1 fungus which does not cause wood decay) was found in damaged buildings. The greatest number of wood-rot fungi was reported on outdoor wooden engineering structures (33 species), followed by unoccupied residential buildings (30 species). The lowest diversity was found in occupied residential buildings (20 species). A total of 34 species and genera of fungi were found in all examined structures, out of which 17 species caused brown rot, 16 caused white rot, and 1 did not cause wood decay.