生信网-文献期刊

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Janssen R, Schomburg C, Prpic NM

2. Promoting teaching innovation of Chinese public-school teachers by team temporal leadership: The mediation of job autonomy and the moderation of work stress.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Li K, Zhu G.

3. Effectiveness of Chinese pine (Pinus tabulaeformis) plantation at reducing runoff and erosion rates in Anjiagou Watershed in Semi-arid Region of Gansu, China.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Hu Y, Tian Q, Zhang J

China's Loess Plateau regions have experienced severe soil erosion for many decades due to fragmented landscapes, steep slopes, and concentrated rainfall storm-events. Restoring sub-optimal or marginal farming fields, mostly on steep, hilly terrain, to plantation forests has been a long-standing strategic policy in China aimed at rehabilitating degraded environments and reducing soil and water erosion. While there are numerous studies that have focused on the effects of forests at controlling soil erosion at relatively short time scales, few have addressed longer-term effects of plantation forests on reducing runoff and the mechanisms that inhibit erosion. Chinese pine (Pinus tabulaeformis) has been widely planted in abandoned or reclaimed lands that were formerly farmed in Northwest China; however, there is limited knowledge about the effectiveness of the tree species at reducing soil and water erosion. In this study, we examined reduction rates of runoff and erosion by Chinese pine plantation in comparison with agricultural land as a control (i.e., wheat, a dominant agricultural commodity in the region), based on long-term monitoring of modified standard erosion plots with slopes of 10°, 15°, and 20°. Results showed that as the slope of the land increased, rates of erosion increased for both plantation and agricultural land use. However, the runoff and soil erosion rates under Chinese pine plantation forest were about 11% and 60% lower, respectively, than those under agricultural land use of the same slope. Scaling with the slope, the highest reduced runoff and erosion rates by Chinese pine forest were 17% and 72%, respectively, on 20° slope. Also, it was found that runoff rates from the forested land were positively related to erosive rainfall (i.e., rainfall when runoff generated), and varied with forest canopy coverage. The rates of runoff and erosion can be well model led with multiple regression models. Taken together, this study provides insight into the importance and potential of Chinese pine plantations in the conservation of soil and water in China's Loess Plateau.

4. How representative are student convenience samples? A study of literacy and numeracy skills in 32 countries.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Wild H, Kyröläinen AJ, Kuperman V.

5. Closing the gender gap in entrepreneurship: The importance of skill variety.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Krieger A, Block J, Stuetzer M

6. Awareness and knowledge associated to Human papillomavirus infection among university students in Morocco: A cross-sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

El Mansouri N, Ferrera L, Kharbach A

7. Molecular and electrophysiological features of GABAergic neurons in the dentate gyrus reveal limited homology with cortical interneurons.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Perrenoud Q, Leclerc C, Geoffroy H

8. Nasopharyngeal swabs vs. saliva sampling for SARS-CoV-2 detection: A cross-sectional survey of acceptability for caregivers and children after experiencing both methods.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Gagnon F, Bhatt M, Zemek R

9. Magnetic alignment in free-ranging Indian Leopard (Panthera pardus fusca).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Yosef R, Kumbhojkar S, Gurjar B

10. Direct addition of poly-lysine or poly-ethylenimine to the medium: A simple alternative to plate pre-coating.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Faussner A, Deininger MM, Weber C

11. The association between Alu hypomethylation and the severity of hypertension.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Thongsroy J, Mutirangura A.

12. A low-cost, open-source centrifuge adaptor for separating large volume clinical blood samples.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Haque ME, Marriott L, Naeem N

13. The dynamics of ideology drift among U.S. Supreme Court justices: A functional data analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Zhou X, Müller HG.

14. Assessment of left atrial fibrosis progression in canines following rapid ventricular pacing using 3D late gadolinium enhanced CMR images.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Farrag NA, Thornhill RE, Prato FS

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) is associated with extracellular matrix (ECM) remodelling and often coexists with myocardial fibrosis (MF); however, the causality of these conditions is not well established. OBJECTIVE: We aim to corroborate AF to MF causality by quantifying left atrial (LA) fibrosis in cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) images after persistent rapid ventricular pacing and subsequent AF using a canine model and histopathological validation. METHODS: Twelve canines (9 experimental, 3 control) underwent baseline 3D LGE-CMR imaging at 3T followed by insertion of a pacing device and 5 weeks of rapid ventricular pacing to induce AF (experimental) or no pacing (control). Following the 5 weeks, pacing devices were removed to permit CMR imaging followed by excision of the hearts and histopathological imaging. LA myocardial segmentation was performed manually at baseline and post-pacing to permit volumetric %MF quantification using the image intensity ratio (IIR) technique, wherein fibrosis was defined as pixels > mean LA myocardium intensity + 2SD. RESULTS: Volumetric %MF increased by an average of 2.11 ± 0.88% post-pacing in 7 of 9 experimental dogs. While there was a significant difference between paired %MF measurements from baseline to post-pacing in experimental dogs (P = 0.019), there was no significant change in control dogs (P = 0.019 and P = 0.5, Wilcoxon signed rank tests). The median %MF for paced animals was significantly greater than that of non-paced dogs at the 5-week post-insertion time point (P = 0.009, Mann Whitney U test). Histopathological imaging yielded an average %MF of 19.42 ± 4.80% (mean ± SD) for paced dogs compared to 1.85% in one control dog. CONCLUSION: Persistent rapid ventricular pacing and subsequent AF leads to an increase in LA fibrosis volumes measured by the IIR technique; however, quantification is limited by inherent image acquisition parameters and observer variability.

15. Evaluation of risk adjustment performance of diagnosis-based and medication-based comorbidity indices in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Guo Ie H, Tang CH, Sheu ML

OBJECTIVES: This study assessed risk adjustment performance of six comorbidity indices in two categories of comorbidity measures: diagnosis-based comorbidity indices and medication-based ones in patients with chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). METHODS: This was a population-based retrospective cohort study. Data used in this study were sourced from the Taiwan National Health Insurance Research Database. The study population comprised all patients who were hospitalized due to COPD for the first time in the target year of 2012. Each qualified patient was individually followed for one year starting from the index date to assess two outcomes of interest, medical expenditures within one year after discharge and in-hospital mortality of patients. To assess how well the added comorbidity measures would improve the fitted model, we calculated the log-likelihood ratio statistic G2. Subsequently, we compared risk adjustment performance of the comorbidity indices by using the Harrell c-statistic measure derived from multiple logistic regression models. RESULTS: Analytical results demonstrated that that comorbidity measures were significant predictors of medical expenditures and mortality of COPD patients. Specifically, in the category of diagnosis-based comorbidity indices the Elixhauser index was superior to other indices, while the RxRisk-V index was a stronger predictor in the framework of medication-based codes, for gauging both medical expenditures and in-hospital mortality by utilizing information from the index hospitalization only as well as the index and prior hospitalizations. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, this work has ascertained that comorbidity indices are significant predictors of medical expenditures and mortality of COPD patients. Based on the study findings, we propose that when designing the payment schemes for patients with chronic diseases, the health authority should make adjustments in accordance with the burden of health care caused by comorbid conditions.

16. How many people is the COVID-19 pandemic pushing into poverty? A long-term forecast to 2050 with alternative scenarios.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Moyer JD, Verhagen W, Mapes B

17. Phenotypic and genotypic characterisation of thymine auxotrophy in Escherichia coli isolated from a patient with recurrent bloodstream infection.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Jakovljev A, Afset JE, Haugum K

INTRODUCTION: Thymine auxotrophic in vitro mutants of Escherichia coli were first reported in the mid-20th century. Later, thymine-dependent clinical strains of E. coli as well as other Enterobacterales, Enterococcus faecalis and Staphylococcus aureus have been recognized as the cause of persistent and recurrent infections. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to characterize the phenotype and investigate the molecular basis of thymine auxotrophy in ten E. coli isolates obtained at different time points from a patient with recurrent bloodstream infection (BSI) due to a chronic aortic graft infection treated with Trimethoprim/sulfamethoxazole (TMP-SMX). METHODS: Clinical data was obtained from hospital records. Growth characterization and antimicrobial susceptibility testing to TMP-SMX was performed on M9 agar and in MH broth with different thymine concentrations (0.5, 2, 5, 10 and 20 μg/mL), on Mueller-Hinton (MH) and blood agar. Whole genome sequencing (WGS) was performed on all E. coli isolates. RESULTS: E. coli were isolated from ten consecutive BSI episodes from a patient with chronic aortic graft infection. Six of these isolates were resistant to TMP-SMX when assayed on blood agar. Growth experiments with added thymine confirmed that these isolates were thymine-dependent (thy-), and revealed growth defects (slower growth rate and smaller colony size) in these isolates relative to thy+ isolates (n = 4). WGS indicated that all isolates were of the same clonal lineage of sequence type 7358. Genomic analysis revealed a G172C substitution in thyA in all TMP-SMX resistant isolates, while mutations affecting genes involved in the deoxyribose salvage pathway (deoB and deoC) were identified in eight isolates. CONCLUSION: This case highlights the risk of resistance development to TMP-SMX, especially for long-term treatment, and the possible pitfalls in detection of growth-deficient subpopulations from chronic infections, which could lead to treatment failure.

18. A label-free and low-power microelectronic impedance spectroscopy for characterization of exosomes.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Shi L, Esfandiari L.

19. Assessment of the adverse pregnancy outcomes and its associated factors among deliveries at Debre Berhan Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northeast Ethiopia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Tadese M, Dagne K, Wubetu AD

BACKGROUND: Adverse pregnancy outcomes are the main causes of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality and long-term physical and psychological sequels in low- and middle-income countries, particularly in Africa and Asia. In Ethiopia, maternal mortality remained high despite the country's maximum effort. This study aimed to assess adverse pregnancy outcomes and associated factors among deliveries at Debre Berhan Comprehensive Specialized Hospital, Northeast Ethiopia. METHODS: A retrospective cross-sectional study was done among deliveries at Debre Berhan Comprehensive Specialized Hospital from January 1, 2017, to December 31, 2018. The data was collected using a structured and pre-tested questionnaire by reviewing labor and delivery service log books and admission or discharge registration books. The data were entered into a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet and analyzed using SPSS version 25. Logistic regression analysis was computed to identify independent predictors of pregnancy complications. RESULT: In this study, the magnitude of adverse pregnancy outcomes was 28.3%, 95% CI (25.7-30.9). The most frequently recorded obstetric complications were obstructed labor (7.4%), retained placenta (5.3%), and hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (2.4%). Whereas stillbirths (10%), malpresentation (3%), and prematurity (2.3%) frequently occurred fetal/neonatal complications. There were 29 maternal deaths and the possible causes of death were obstructed labor (51.7%), hemorrhage (44.7%), eclampsia (24.1%), and sepsis (6.9%). Home delivery (AOR (CI = 4.12 (2.30-7.15) and low birth weight (AOR (CI = 1.63 (1.36-1.96) were significant associates of adverse pregnancy outcomes. CONCLUSION: The magnitude of adverse pregnancy outcomes was high. Obstructed labor, retained placenta, hypertension in pregnancy, malpresentation, prematurity, and stillbirth are the commonest adverse pregnancy outcomes. Place of delivery and birth weight were independent predictors of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Institutional delivery, early detection and management of complications, and adequate nutrition and weight gain during pregnancy should be encouraged to minimize the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes.

20. Sib-pair subgroup familial type 1 diabetes mellitus in children in the state of Qatar.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Afyouni H, Haris B, Syed N

21. A randomised controlled trial to test the effects of fish aggregating devices (FADs) and SBC activities promoting fish consumption in Timor-Leste: A study protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Tilley A, Byrd KA, Pincus L

Timor-Leste is one of the world's most malnourished nations where micronutrient-deficient diets are a contributing factor to the prevalence of child stunting, currently estimated to be 45.6% of children under five. Fish are an important source of nutrients and one that may assist the country's predominantly rural population of agriculturalists to exit poverty and malnutrition. However, a small national fishing fleet producing low catch volumes places fish out of reach of most inland and upland populations where it is needed most. Fish consumption is very low in rural, inland areas compared to coastal, regional, and global averages. This study is a one-year, partially masked, cluster-randomized controlled trial among families living in rural, inland Timor-Leste. We aim to test and compare the effects of two treatments, alone and in combination, on the frequency and volume of household fish consumption in rural, inland areas as a proxy for improved dietary diversity and micronutrient intake. Treatment 1 is the installation of nearshore, moored fish aggregating devices (FADs) to improve catch rates with existing fishing gears. Treatment 2 is a social and behaviour change (SBC) activity to promote fish consumption. Villages in inland communities will be randomized to receive treatment 1, treatment 2, both treatments, or neither treatment. Data will be collected at baseline (prior to the rollout of the treatments) and endline. Our study will determine the impact of an improved supply of fish, along with nutrition-oriented SBC activities, on the fish purchasing and consumption practices of rural, inland households. Findings from this study are urgently needed by Small Island Developing States to guide policy and investment decisions on how best to improve households' diets using locally available, nutrient-dense foods such as fish. Investments such as these are needed to break the cycle of malnutrition. This trial is registered at clinicaltrials.gov (NCT04729829). Trial registration: Trial registered at clinicaltrials.gov Identifier: NCT04729829.

22. Study protocol of guided mobile-based perinatal mindfulness intervention (GMBPMI) - a randomized controlled trial.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Ng SM, Leng LL, Chan KP

BACKGROUND: Psychological distress is a common occurrence among women during the perinatal period. Maternal psychological distress (MPS) can also have a negative influence on neonatal outcomes such as infant health, child development or mother-child interaction. Hence, interventions to improve mental wellbeing during this period are vital. Mindfulness based intervention (MBI) has been found to be effective in reducing psychological distress. Delivery of MBI via the internet, making it accessible and inexpensive, is showing a promising positive effect in reducing psychological distress. A randomized control trial with sufficient power is required to confirm its positive effect among pregnant women. The positive effects of MBI have been found to be associated with heart rate variability (HRV) biofeedback; however, the efficacy of MBI on HRV has been rarely studied among pregnant women. Also, the potential association of HRV with MBI and psychological wellbeing needs further examination. This research aims to test the effectiveness of guided mobile-based perinatal mindfulness intervention (GMBPMI) among pregnant women experiencing psychological distress during the pre- and post-natal period, as well as examining the efficacy of GMBPMI on HRV. METHOD: This study is a randomized controlled trial that follows a parallel design. Consenting pregnant women in their second trimester (between 12th and 20th week gestation) will be randomly assigned to an intervention group (GMBPMI) or a control group (psychoeducation). The intended sample size is 198, with 99 participants in each group. Three levels of outcomes will be measured at baseline, post intervention in both the intervention and control groups, and at 36-week gestation and five-week postpartum. The primary outcomes include maternal psychological stress, mindfulness and positive appraisal HRV. Secondary outcomes are psychological and physical wellbeing. Tertiary outcomes include obstetric and neonatal outcomes, and social support. Analyses will follow an intention-to-treat method and repeated measures MANOVA will be conducted to compare changes in primary and secondary outcomes. A series of mixed-effects models will be fitted to assess the mediation effects. DISCUSSION: This trial expects to increase understanding of GMBPMI on HRV and psychological wellbeing for pregnant women, with extended support in both pre-and post-natal periods. The study could also potentially provide evidence for delivery of cost-effective and accessible services to pregnant women. TRIAL REGISTRATION: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04876014, registered on 30 March 2021. Protocol Version 1.0., 10 May 2021.

23. Optimization of water and land allocation in salinity and deficit- irrigation conditions at farm level in Qazvin plain.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Bulukazari S, Babazadeh H, Ebrahimipak N

Improper extraction of water from resources especially in arid and semi-arid regions leads to a decrease in the quality of water and soil resources. In such areas, management activities such as increasing water productivity in agricultural sector would be a key step towards sustainable development. Therefore, water resources management to improve the allocation of limited water supplies is essential. In this study, a non-linear programming optimization model have been combined with a AquaCrop model to determine the optimal water and land allocation considering the quality issues of both water and soil resources with focusing on enhancing agriculture water productivity. For this purpose, the spatial variations of chemical and physical properties of soil in the Qazvin plain were taken into account. The soil of study site was divided into three salinity classes, and three weather conditions were identified by Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI). Moreover, five irrigation strategies were modeled under each weather condition. To understand the response of major crops under cultivation to water and salinity, the AquaCrop model was calibrated and validated (2005-2020) and utilized in the objective function. Accordingly, the production functions of the different products were obtained, and the cultivation area as well as amount of water consumption of the crops were optimized by using the target functions of maximum net income and maximum water use efficiency. The results showed that the model is capable of simulating crop yield in salinity and water deficit conditions. The coefficient of determination (R2) for barley, wheat and maize was equal to 0.86, 0.92, and 0.96, respectively. Findings reveal that total irrigation water could be reduced by 20% on average without profit reduction when compared to the profit of the present situation. Total economic profit could be increased by 18% on average through the optimization of water allocation and cropping pattern with the same water supply amount as that of the current situation. Also, the water productivity increased between 12 to 30% under these conditions. Therefore, the proposed model can efficiently optimize the amount of irrigation water and cultivation area on a regional scale considering salinity conditions.

24. Dementia risk and dynamic response to exercise: A non-randomized clinical trial.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Vidoni ED, Morris JK, Palmer JA

BACKGROUND: Physical exercise may support brain health and cognition over the course of typical aging. The goal of this nonrandomized clinical trial was to examine the effect of an acute bout of aerobic exercise on brain blood flow and blood neurotrophic factors associated with exercise response and brain function in older adults with and without possession of the Apolipoprotein epsilon 4 (APOE4) allele, a genetic risk factor for developing Alzheimer's. We hypothesized that older adult APOE4 carriers would have lower cerebral blood flow regulation and would demonstrate blunted neurotrophic response to exercise compared to noncarriers. METHODS: Sixty-two older adults (73±5 years old, 41 female [67%]) consented to this prospectively enrolling clinical trial, utilizing a single arm, single visit, experimental design, with post-hoc assessment of difference in outcomes based on APOE4 carriership. All participants completed a single 15-minute bout of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise. The primary outcome measure was change in cortical gray matter cerebral blood flow in cortical gray matter measured by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) arterial spin labeling (ASL), defined as the total perfusion (area under the curve, AUC) following exercise. Secondary outcomes were changes in blood neurotrophin concentrations of insulin-like growth factor-1 (IGF-1), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and brain derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF). RESULTS: Genotyping failed in one individual (n = 23 APOE4 carriers and n = 38 APOE4 non-carriers) and two participants could not complete primary outcome testing. Cerebral blood flow AUC increased immediately following exercise, regardless of APOE4 carrier status. In an exploratory regional analyses, we found that cerebral blood flow increased in hippocampal brain regions, while showing no change in cerebellum across both groups. Among high inter-individual variability, there were no significant changes in any of the 3 neurotrophic factors for either group immediately following exercise. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings show that both APOE4 carriers and non-carriers show similar effects of exercise-induced increases in cerebral blood flow and neurotrophic response to acute aerobic exercise. Our results provide further evidence that acute exercise-induced increases in cerebral blood flow may be regional specific, and that exercise-induced neurotrophin release may show a differential effect in the aging cardiovascular system. Results from this study provide an initial characterization of the acute brain blood flow and neurotrophin responses to a bout of exercise in older adults with and without this known risk allele for cardiovascular disease and Alzheimer's disease. TRIAL REGISTRATION: Dementia Risk and Dynamic Response to Exercise (DYNAMIC); Identifier: NCT04009629.

25. Development and test-retest reliability of a screening tool for axial spondyloarthritis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Shridharmurthy D, Lapane KL, Khan S

BACKGROUND: People with axial Spondyloarthritis (axSpA) suffer from lengthy diagnostic delays of ~7 years. The usage of screening tools to identify axSpA patients in primary care can reduce diagnostic delays by facilitating early referral to rheumatologic care. The purpose of this study was to examine the psychometric properties of a potential screening tool for patients with axSpA. METHOD: Content validity was evaluated by soliciting feedback from 7 rheumatologists regarding the relevance and content representativeness of the proposed screening questions. For the test-retest study, participants ≥18 years of age with chronic back pain (≥3 months) without a diagnosis of mechanical or inflammatory back pain (n = 91) were e-recruited through ResearchMatch. Participation included completing identical baseline and follow-up questionnaires ~14 days apart. Weighted quadratic kappa was used to measure test-retest reliability between the two ratings of the ordinal scales. Construct validity was examined using exploratory factor analysis (EFA) and items with factor loadings ≥0.6 were extracted. Scale dimensionality and simplified factorial solutions were measured using Kaiser's criteria (Eigenvalue >1). Cronbach's alpha was used to measure internal consistency. RESULTS: Most participants were women, non-Hispanic white, and had at least some college education, with a mean age of 45 years. On average, the age at onset of back pain was 31 years. Eleven questions yielded test-retest reliabilities ranging from 0.6 to 0.76. Results from EFA extracted two factors relating to: 1) how pain affects daily life functioning and 2) whether pain improves with movement. Internal consistency was high for questions evaluating how pain affects life, with a Cronbach's alpha of 0.81. Following assessment for validity and reliability, the questionnaire was revised to create the 6-item screening tool. CONCLUSIONS: The 6-item SpA-SED screening tool designed to identify potential cases of axSpA was found to have good test-retest reliability and high internal consistency.

26. Catch the star! Spatial information activates the manual motor system.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Miklashevsky A.

27. Floating sphere assay: A rapid qualitative method for microvolume analysis of gelation.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Tay UJ, Goh M, Wen Hui JC

28. The associations between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and physical fitness in young, middle-aged, and older adults: A protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Bizzozero-Peroni B, Brazo-Sayavera J, Martínez-Vizcaíno V

INTRODUCTION: A healthy diet and high health-related physical fitness levels may be part of an overall healthy lifestyle. The relationship between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and physical fitness levels has been analyzed in several studies. However, no studies have synthesized evidence on this relationship throughout adulthood. Moreover, in addition to the overall Mediterranean dietary pattern, the associations of individual components of the Mediterranean diet with physical fitness indicators are also unclear. METHODS: This protocol for a systematic review and meta-analysis was conducted according to the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis for Protocols statement and the Cochrane Collaboration Handbook. Systematic literature searches will be performed in the MEDLINE (PubMed), Scopus, Web of Science, SPORTDiscus and Cochrane CENTRAL databases to identify studies published up to 31 January 2022. The inclusion criteria will comprise observational studies and randomized controlled trials reporting the associations between adherence to the Mediterranean diet and physical fitness levels on general healthy or unhealthy adults (≥18 years). When at least five studies addressing the same outcome are available, meta-analysis will be carried out to estimate the standardized mean difference of physical fitness according to the adherence to Mediterranean diet. Subgroup analyses will be performed according to the characteristics of the population, the individual dietary components of the Mediterranean diet and physical fitness parameters as long as there are sufficient studies. ETHICS AND DISSEMINATION: This systematic review and meta-analysis protocol is designed for updating evidence on the associations between adherence to overall Mediterranean diet (and specific Mediterranean foods) and physical fitness levels in young, middle-aged, and older adults. Findings from this review may have implications for public health. The results will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publication, conference presentation, and infographics. No ethical approval will be required since only published data will be used. PROSPERO REGISTRATION NUMBER: CRD42022308259.

29. A study on the influence mechanism of CBDC on monetary policy: An analysis based on e-CNY.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Yang J, Zhou G.

30. Accuracy and consistency of intensity-based deformable image registration in 4DCT for tumor motion estimation in liver radiotherapy planning.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Tascón-Vidarte JD, Stick LB, Josipovic M

31. Protection provided by vaccination, booster doses and previous infection against covid-19 infection, hospitalisation or death over time in Czechia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Berec L, Šmíd M, Přibylová L

32. Association of hepatitis C virus infection status and genotype with kidney disease risk: A population-based cross-sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Chen YC, Wang HW, Huang YT

BACKGROUND: Whether there is difference in kidney disease risk between chronic hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection and resolved HCV infection remains inconclusive. Additionally, the impact of different HCV genotypes on kidney disease risk is relatively unknown. Accordingly, we conducted a population-based cross-sectional study to investigate the association of HCV infection status and genotype on kidney disease risk. METHODS: The study population were adult participants of 1999-2018 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey in the United States. Chronic and resolved infection were defined as HCV seropositivity with and without detectable HCV RNA, respectively. HCV genotypes were classified into genotype 1, genotype 2, and other genotypes. Prevalent estimated glomerular filtration rate < 60 ml/min/1.73 m2 or urinary albumin creatinine ratio ≥ 30 mg/g was defined as kidney disease. RESULTS: The average age of study population (n = 44,998) was 46.7±17.0 years with 49.8% being males. Compared with individuals without HCV infection (n = 44,157), those with resolved (n = 255) or chronic HCV infection (n = 586) had higher prevalence of kidney disease: 14.8%, 23.5%, and 20.1%, respectively (p<0.001). After adjusting for potential confounders, we found that both resolved (adjusted OR: 1.40, 95% CI: 1.02-1.93) and chronic HCV infection (adjusted OR: 1.26, 95% CI: 1.01-1.57) correlated to increased kidney disease risk compared with no HCV infection. Additionally, individuals with HCV genotype 1 (adjusted OR: 1.41, 95% CI: 1.09-1.82) but not genotype 2 or other genotypes had greater kidney disease risk compared with no HCV infection. Furthermore, we observed that genotype 1 had 2-fold higher kidney disease risk (adjusted OR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.07-4.53) compared with non-genotype 1 HCV infection. CONCLUSION: Both resolved and chronic HCV infection, particularly genotype 1, were associated with higher kidney disease risk.

33. Effects of multigenerational imidacloprid and thiamethoxam stress on metabolism and physiology of Aphis glycines Matsumura (Hemiptera: Aphididae).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Zhang A, Zhou W, Wu D

34. Comparison of Seegene Anyplex II HPV28 assay with BD Onclarity HPV assay for human papillomavirus genotyping.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Kim M, Kim J, Park NJ

35. Performance of an electronic health record-based predictive model to identify patients with atrial fibrillation across countries.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Mokgokong R, Schnabel R, Witt H

BACKGROUND: Atrial fibrillation (AF) burden on patients and healthcare systems warrants innovative strategies for screening asymptomatic individuals. OBJECTIVE: We sought to externally validate a predictive model originally developed in a German population to detect unidentified incident AF utilising real-world primary healthcare databases from countries in Europe and Australia. METHODS: This retrospective cohort study used anonymized, longitudinal patient data from 5 country-level primary care databases, including Australia, Belgium, France, Germany, and the UK. The study eligibility included adult patients (≥45 years) with either an AF diagnosis (cases) or no diagnosis (controls) who had continuous enrolment in the respective database prior to the study period. Logistic regression was fitted to a binary response (yes/no) for AF diagnosis using pre-determined risk factors. RESULTS: AF patients were from Germany (n = 63,562), the UK (n = 42,652), France (n = 7,213), Australia (n = 2,753), and Belgium (n = 1,371). Cases were more likely to have hypertension or other cardiac conditions than controls in all validation datasets compared to the model development data. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve in the validation datasets ranged from 0.79 (Belgium) to 0.84 (Germany), comparable to the German study model, which had an area under the curve of 0.83. Most validation sets reported similar specificity at approximately 80% sensitivity, ranging from 67% (France) to 71% (United Kingdom). The positive predictive value (PPV) ranged from 2% (Belgium) to 16% (Germany), and the number needed to be screened was 50 in Belgium and 6 in Germany. The prevalence of AF varied widely between these datasets, which may be related to different coding practices. Low prevalence affected PPV, but not sensitivity, specificity, and ROC curves. CONCLUSIONS: AF risk prediction algorithms offer targeted ways to identify patients using electronic health records, which could improve screening number and the cost-effectiveness of AF screening if implemented in clinical practice.

36. Community succession and straw degradation characteristics using a microbial decomposer at low temperature.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Zhang X, Borjigin Q, Gao J

37. Associations of bacterial enteropathogens with systemic inflammation, iron deficiency, and anemia in preschool-age children in southern Ghana.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Lambrecht NJ, Bridges D, Wilson ML

Anemia remains a pervasive public health problem among preschool-age children in Ghana. Recent analyses have found that anemia in Ghanaian children, particularly in Southern regions, is largely attributable to infectious causes, rather than nutritional factors. Infections with enteropathogens can reduce iron absorption and increase systemic inflammation, but few studies have examined direct links between enteropathogens and anemia. This study investigated associations between detection of individual bacterial enteropathogens and systemic inflammation, iron deficiency, and anemia among 6- to 59-month-old children in Greater Accra, Ghana. Serum samples were analyzed from a cross-sectional sample of 262 children for concentrations of hemoglobin (Hb), biomarkers of systemic inflammation [C-reactive protein (CRP) and α-1-acid glycoprotein (AGP)], and biomarkers of iron status [serum ferritin (SF) and serum transferrin receptor (sTfR)]. Stool samples were analyzed for ten bacterial enteropathogens using qPCR. We estimated associations between presence of each enteropathogen and elevated systemic inflammation (CRP > 5 mg/L and AGP > 1 g/L), iron deficiency (SF < 12 μg/L and sTfR > 8.3 mg/L) and anemia (Hb < 110 g/L). Enteropathogens were detected in 87% of children's stool despite a low prevalence of diarrhea (6.5%). Almost half (46%) of children had anemia while one-quarter (24%) had iron deficiency (low SF). Despite finding no associations with illness symptoms, Campylobacter jejuni/coli detection was strongly associated with elevated CRP [Odds Ratio (95% CI): 3.49 (1.45, 8.41)] and elevated AGP [4.27 (1.85, 9.84)]. Of the pathogens examined, only enteroinvasive Escherichia coli/Shigella spp. (EIEC/Shigella) was associated with iron deficiency, and enteroaggregative Escherichia coli (EAEC) [1.69 (1.01, 2.84)] and EIEC/Shigella [2.34 (1.15, 4.76)] were associated with anemia. These results suggest that certain enteroinvasive pathogenic bacteria may contribute to child anemia. Reducing exposure to enteropathogens through improved water, sanitation, and hygiene practices may help reduce the burden of anemia in young Ghanaian children.

38. Thinking globally to improve care locally: A Delphi study protocol to achieve international clinical consensus on best-practice end-of-life communication with adolescents and young adults with cancer.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 8

Sansom-Daly UM, Wiener L, Darlington AS

For the sizeable subset of adolescents and young adults whose cancer is incurable, developmentally appropriate end-of-life discussions are critical. Standards of care for adolescent and young adult end-of-life communication have been established, however, many health-professionals do not feel confident leading these conversations, leaving gaps in the implementation of best-practice end-of-life communication. We present a protocol for a Delphi study informing the development and implementation of clinician training to strengthen health-professionals' capacity in end-of-life conversations. Our approach will inform training to address barriers to end-of-life communication with adolescents and young adults across Westernized Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Global Accord countries. The Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Global Accord team involves 26 investigators from Australia, New Zealand, the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom. Twenty-four consumers, including adolescents and young adults with cancer history and carers, informed study design. We describe methodology for a modified Delphi questionnaire. The questionnaire aims to determine optimal timing for end-of-life communication with adolescents and young adults, practice-related content needed in clinician training for end-of-life communication with adolescents and young adults, and desireability of evidence-based training models. Round 1 involves an expert panel of investigators identifying appropriate questionnaire items. Rounds 2 and 3 involve questionnaires of international multidisciplinary health-professionals, followed by further input by adolescents and young adults. A second stage of research will design health-professional training to support best-practice end-of-life communication. The outcomes of this iterative and participatory research will directly inform the implementation of best-practice end-of-life communication across Adolescent and Young Adult Cancer Global Accord countries. Barriers and training preferences identified will directly contribute to developing clinician-training resources. Our results will provide a framework to support further investigating end-of-life communication with adolescents and young adults across diverse countries. Our experiences also highlight effective methodology in undertaking highly collaborative global research.

39. Applicability of hyperspectral imaging during salinity stress in rice for tracking Na+ and K+ levels in planta.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Pabuayon ICM, Pabuayon ILB, Singh RK

The ratio of Na+ and K+ is an important determinant of the magnitude of Na+ toxicity and osmotic stress in plant cells. Traditional analytical approaches involve destructive tissue sampling and chemical analysis, where real-time observation of spatio-temporal experiments across genetic or breeding populations is unrealistic. Such an approach can also be very inaccurate and prone to erroneous biological interpretation. Analysis by Hyperspectral Imaging (HSI) is an emerging non-destructive alternative for tracking plant nutrient status in a time-course with higher accuracy and reduced cost for chemical analysis. In this study, the feasibility and predictive power of HSI-based approach for spatio-temporal tracking of Na+ and K+ levels in tissue samples was explored using a panel recombinant inbred line (RIL) of rice (Oryza sativa L.; salt-sensitive IR29 x salt-tolerant Pokkali) with differential activities of the Na+ exclusion mechanism conferred by the SalTol QTL. In this panel of RILs the spectrum of salinity tolerance was represented by FL499 (super-sensitive), FL454 (sensitive), FL478 (tolerant), and FL510 (super-tolerant). Whole-plant image processing pipeline was optimized to generate HSI spectra during salinity stress at EC = 9 dS m-1. Spectral data was used to create models for Na+ and K+ prediction by partial least squares regression (PLSR). Three datasets, i.e., mean image pixel spectra, smoothened version of mean image pixel spectra, and wavelength bands, with wide differences in intensity between control and salinity facilitated the prediction models with high R2. The smoothened and filtered datasets showed significant improvements over the mean image pixel dataset. However, model prediction was not fully consistent with the empirical data. While the outcome of modeling-based prediction showed a great potential for improving the throughput capacity for salinity stress phenotyping, additional technical refinements including tissue-specific measurements is necessary to maximize the accuracy of prediction models.

40. Cilostazol effectiveness in reducing drug-coated stent restenosis in the superficial femoral artery: The ZERO study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Miura T, Miyashita Y, Hozawa K

41. Fluoroscopic lumbar transforaminal epidural steroid injections for recurrent herniated intervertebral disc after discectomy: Effectiveness and outcome predictors.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Um MK, Lee E, Lee JW

42. Simplifying MS1 and MS2 spectra to achieve lower mass error, more dynamic range, and higher peptide identification confidence on the Bruker timsTOF Pro.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Wilding-McBride D, Dagley LF, Spall SK

For bottom-up proteomic analysis, the goal of analytical pipelines that process the raw output of mass spectrometers is to detect, characterise, identify, and quantify peptides. The initial steps of detecting and characterising features in raw data must overcome some considerable challenges. The data presents as a sparse array, sometimes containing billions of intensity readings over time. These points represent both signal and chemical or electrical noise. Depending on the biological sample's complexity, tens to hundreds of thousands of peptides may be present in this vast data landscape. For ion mobility-based LC-MS analysis, each peptide is comprised of a grouping of hundreds of single intensity readings in three dimensions: mass-over-charge (m/z), mobility, and retention time. There is no inherent information about any associations between individual points; whether they represent a peptide or noise must be inferred from their structure. Peptides each have multiple isotopes, different charge states, and a dynamic range of intensity of over six orders of magnitude. Due to the high complexity of most biological samples, peptides often overlap in time and mobility, making it very difficult to tease apart isotopic peaks, to apportion the intensity of each and the contribution of each isotope to the determination of the peptide's monoisotopic mass, which is critical for the peptide's identification. Here we describe four algorithms for the Bruker timsTOF Pro that each play an important role in finding peptide features and determining their characteristics. These algorithms focus on separate characteristics that determine how candidate features are detected in the raw data. The first two algorithms deal with the complexity of the raw data, rapidly clustering raw data into spectra that allows isotopic peaks to be resolved. The third algorithm compensates for saturation of the instrument's detector thereby recovering lost dynamic range, and lastly, the fourth algorithm increases confidence of peptide identifications by simplification of the fragment spectra. These algorithms are effective in processing raw data to detect features and extracting the attributes required for peptide identification, and make an important contribution to an analytical pipeline by detecting features that are higher quality and better segmented from other peptides in close proximity. The software has been developed in Python using Numpy and Pandas and made freely available with an open-source MIT license to facilitate experimentation and further improvement (DOI 10.5281/zenodo.6513126). Data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD030706.

43. In silico analyses of leptin and leptin receptor of spotted snakehead Channa punctata.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Bakshi A, Rai U.

The present study, in addition to molecular characterization of leptin (lepa) and its receptor (lepr) of spotted snakehead Channa punctata, is focussed on physicochemical, structural, evolutionary and selection pressure analyses which are poorly elucidated in teleosts in spite of that existence of these genes is well reported in several fish species. The putative full-length Lep and Lepr of C. punctata showed conserved structural and functional domains, especially the residues responsible for structural integrity and signal transduction. Conversely, residues predicted essential for Lep-Lepr interaction displayed divergence between teleosts and tetrapods. Impact of substitutions/deletions predicted using protein variation effect analyser tool highlighted species specificity in ligand-receptor interaction. Physicochemical properties of ligand and receptor predicted for the first time in vertebrates revealed high aliphatic and instability indices for both Lepa and Lepr, indicating thermostability of proteins but their instability under ex vivo conditions. Positive grand average of hydropathy score of Lepa suggests its hydrophobic nature conjecturing existence of leptin binding proteins in C. punctata. In addition to disulphide bonding, a novel posttranslational modification (S-126 phosphorylation) was predicted in Lepa of C. punctata. In Lepr, disulphide bond formation and N-linked glycosylation near WSXWS motif in ECD, and phosphorylation at tyrosine residues in ICD were predicted. Leptin and its receptor sequence of C. punctata cladded with its homolog from C. striata and C. argus of order Anabantiformes. Leptin system of Anabantiformes was phylogenetically closer to that of Pleuronectiformes, Scombriformes and Perciformes. Selection pressure analysis showed higher incidence of negative selection in teleostean leptin genes indicating limited adaptation in their structure and function. However, evidence of pervasive and episodic diversifying selection laid a foundation of co-evolution of Lepa and Lepr in teleosts.

44. Amputation-specific and generic correlates of participation among Veterans with lower limb amputation.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Erbes CR, Ferguson J, Yang K

45. Factors associated with the risk of upper respiratory tract bacterial infections among HIV-positive patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Skrzat-Klapaczyńska A, Paciorek M, Horban A

BACKGROUND: The risk and characteristics of upper respiratory tract (URT) bacterial infections (URT-BI) among HIV (+) patients is understudied. We analyzed factors associated with its occurrence and the spectrum of culturable pathogens among patients routinely followed at the HIV Out-Patient Clinic in Warsaw. METHODS: All HIV (+) patients with available URT swab culture were included into analyses. Patients were followed from the day of registration in the clinic until first positive URT swab culture or last clinical visit from January 1, 2007 to July 31, 2016. Cox proportional hazard models were used to identify factors associated with positive URT swabs culture (those with p<0.1 in univariate included into multivariable). RESULTS: In total 474 patients were included into the analyses, 166 with culturable URT swab. In general, 416 (87.8%) patients were male, 342 (72.1%) were infected through MSM contact, 253 (53.4%) were on antiretroviral therapy. Median follow-up time was 3.4 (1.3-5.7) years, age 35.2 (30.6-42.6) years and CD4+ count 528 (400-685) cells/μl. The most common cultured bacteria were S. aureus (40.4%) and S. pyogenes (13.9%) (Table 1). Patients with culturable URT-BI were more likely to be MSM (68.5% vs 78.9%; p<0.016), have detectable viral load (20.9% vs 12.0%; p<0.0001) and CD4+ cell count <500 cells/μl (55.2% vs 39.0%; p = 0.003) (Table 2). In multivariate survival analyses detectable viral load (HR3.13; 95%Cl: 2.34-4.19) and MSM (1.63;1.09-2.42) were increasing, but older age (0.63;0.58-0.69, per 5 years older) and higher CD4+ count (0.90;0.85-0.95, per 100 cells/μl) decreasing the risk of culturable URT-BI (Table 2). CONCLUSIONS: Culturable URT-BI are common among HIV-positive patients with high CD4+ count. Similarly to general population most common cultured bacteria were S. aureus and S. pyogenes. Risk factors identified in multivariate survival analysis indicate that younger MSM patients with detectable HIV viral load are at highest risk. In clinical practice this group of patients requires special attention.

46. The influence of receiving real-time visual feedback on breathing during treadmill running to exhaustion.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Passafiume JA, Glover NA, Crecelius AR

47. Prevalence and determinants of obesity and abdominal obesity among rural workers in Southeastern Brazil.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Cattafesta M, Petarli GB, Zandonade E

48. Methods for characterizing pollen fitness in Cannabis sativa L.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Wizenberg SB, Dang M, Campbell LG.

49. Sleep quality and associated factors among adult hypertensive patients attending a chronic follow up care clinic in northwest Amhara regional state referral hospitals, Northwest Ethiopia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Ayanaw T, Temesgen M, Azagew AW

INTRODUCTION: Sleep plays an essential role in every individual's life since it contributes greatly to their well-being and health. Poor sleep quality is one of the most common consequences of hypertension (HTN), which is a leading public health problem. In Ethiopia, it is the main health concern among hypertension patients. Thus, in the study area, there is limited information regarding the investigation of sleep quality among hypertension patients. Therefore, this study aimed to assess sleep quality and associated factors among adult hypertensive patients attending a chronic follow up care clinic in northwest Amhara regional state referral hospitals, Northwest Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among adult HTN patients from March 15/2021 to May 15/2021 in Northwest Amhara Regional State Referral Hospitals. A systematic random sampling method was used to select the study participants. A face-to-face interviewer-administered questionnaire with chart review was used. The Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) for assessing sleep quality was used in this study. A binary logistic regression was used to see the association between dependent and independent variables. Variables having a p-value < 0.05 with a 95% CI were considered statistically significant in the multivariable logistic regression analysis. RESULTS: In this study, 563 hypertensive patients were included, with a response rate of 96.9%. The overall prevalence of poor sleep quality was 37.7% (95% CI: 33.4%-41.6%). Female gender (AOR = 2.55, 95% CI: 1.55-4.18), age ≥ 65 years (AOR = 4.07, 95% CI: 2.07-7.97), overweight (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2 (AOR = 1.68, 95% CI: 1.06-2.65), WHO stage II hypertension (AOR = 1.78, 95% CI:1.01-3.12), poor physical activity (AOR = 2.39, 95% CI:1.41-4.05), participants who had depression (AOR = 2.03,95% CI:1.24-3.34) and participants who had anxiety (AOR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.16-3.03) were factors associated with poor sleep quality. CONCLUSIONS: In this study, more than one-third of the study participants had poor sleep quality. Female gender, age ≥ 65 years, overweight (BMI) ≥ 25 kg/m2, stage II hypertension, physical inactivity, depression, and anxiety were all associated with poor sleep quality. Managing depression and anxiety disorders, encouraging physical activity, and providing health education about weight loss are all necessary for HTN patients.

50. Hemodynamic and analgesic effect of intrathecal fentanyl with bupivacaine in patients undergoing elective cesarean section; a prospective cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 7

Ebrie AM, Woldeyohanis M, Abafita BJ

51. Does a smart business environment promote corporate investment? a case study of Hangzhou.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Yin JH, Song HY, Zeng KX.

As a result of business environment reforms in China's Hangzou, the cost of business has reduced, the confidence of Hangzhou enterprises has survived the COVID-19 outbreak, and foreign investment continues to increase. Nevertheless, Hangzhou's business environment has shortcomings, such as insufficient technology, talent, and intelligent infrastructure. Two unresolved questions persist: (i) Has the smart business environment stimulated corporate investment by reducing system costs and boosting corporate confidence? (ii) How do the commercial climate's shortcomings impact the relationship between the intelligent business environment and business costs/confidence? We examined the impact of a local smart business environment on the corporate investment scale in Hangzhou using factor analysis, cluster analysis, linear regression, and path analyses of data from 297 firm managers. Smart governance improved public administration, financing, and rule of law. The business environment promoted investment by increasing business confidence and decreasing institutional costs. Weak intelligent property protection and legal fairness hindered the positive influence of smart governance on business confidence and system costs. This is the first study combining business environment, smart city, and smart governance concepts to analyze the influence of local smart business environments on business confidence, institutional costs, and investment. Our conclusion on the limitation effect of intelligent business environment on enterprise investment attempts to inspire further research on the intersection of business environments and smart cities. The law of intelligent business environment attracting investment obtained in the context of China, the largest developing country with diversified economic development, is of great significance for other developing countries. Countries can attract investment and promote economic development through intelligent governance. Developing countries should construct smart service platforms, coordinate supervision of public credit, reduce financing constraint, construct a government under the rule of law, improve the quality of land management, and protect intellectual property rights.

52. How do high-performance work systems affect work fatigue: The mediating effect of job responsibility and role overload.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Jiandong S, Fan X, Haitian L.

53. A systematic review and meta-analysis of preanalytical factors and methodological differences influencing the measurement of circulating vascular endothelial growth factor.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Sjöbom U, Nilsson AK, Gyllensten H

BACKGROUND: Intraocular treatment with antibodies targeting vascular endothelial growth factor (anti-VEGF) inhibits pathological vessel growth in adults and preterm infants. Recently, concerns regarding the impact of anti-VEGF treatment on systemic VEGF levels in preterm infants have been raised. Earlier studies suggest that preanalytical and methodological parameters impact analytical VEGF concentrations, but we have not found a comprehensive systematic review covering preanalytical procedures and methods for VEGF measurements. OBJECTIVE: This review aimed to evaluate the most critical factors during sample collection, sample handling, and the analytical methods that influence VEGF levels and therefore should be considered when planning a prospective collection of samples to get reproducible, comparable results. MATERIAL AND METHODS: PubMed and Scopus databases were searched 2021/Nov/11. In addition, identification of records via other methods included reference, citation, and Google Scholar searches. Rayyan QCRI was used to handle duplicates and the selection process. Publications reporting preanalytical handling and/or methodological comparisons using human blood samples were included. Exclusion criteria were biological, environmental, genetic, or physiological factors affecting VEGF. The data extraction sheets included bias assessment using the QUADAS-2 tool, evaluating patient selection, index-test, reference standard, and flow and timing. Concentrations of VEGF and results from statistical comparisons of analytical methods and/or preanalytical sample handling and/or different sample systems were extracted. The publications covering preanalytical procedures were further categorized based on the stage of the preanalytical procedure. Meta-analysis was used to visualize VEGF concentrations among healthy individuals. The quality of evidence was rated according to GRADE. RESULTS: We identified 1596 publications, and, after the screening process, 43 were considered eligible for this systematic review. The risk of bias estimation was difficult for 2/4 domains due to non-reported information. Four critical steps in the preanalytical process that impacted VEGF quantification were identified: blood drawing and the handling before, during, and after centrifugation. Sub-categorization of those elements resulted in nine findings, rated from moderate to very low evidence grade. The choice of sample system was the most reported factor. VEGF levels (mean [95% CI]) in serum (n = 906, 20 publications), (252.5 [213.1-291.9] pg/mL), were approximated to ninefold higher than in plasma (n = 1122, 23 publications), (27.8 [23.6-32.1] pg/mL), based on summarized VEGF levels with meta-analysis. Notably, most reported plasma levels were below the calibration range of the used method. CONCLUSION: When measuring circulating VEGF levels, choice of sample system and sample handling are important factors to consider for ensuring high reproducibility and allowing study comparisons. Protocol: CRD42020192433.

54. Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing the effectiveness of physical exercise and melatonin supplement on treating sleep disturbance in children with autism spectrum disorders.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Tse ACY, Lee PH, Lau EYY

BACKGROUND: Previous study showed that both melatonin supplement and physical exercise intervention could improve sleep quality in children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) with the increase in endogenous melatonin level. However, none of the studies have directly compared the effectiveness between the two interventions on treating sleep disturbance in children with ASD. Without direct comparison, we do not know which intervention is better. Thus, we designed a study to compare which intervention is more effective to treat sleep disturbance in children with ASD and to examine whether the combination of the two could be the most efficacious. We present a protocol for conducting a randomized controlled trial to compare the effectiveness of physical exercise and melatonin supplement on treating sleep disturbance in children with ASD. STUDY DESIGN: The proposed study will be a four-group randomised control trial (RCT) design, with equal allocation of participants to the three intervention groups and one control group. METHODS: All eligible participants will be randomly allocated to a morning jogging group, a melatonin supplement group, a combination group and a control group. Changes in sleep quality will be monitored through actigraphic assessment and parental sleep logs. Melatonin levels represented by 6-sulfoxymelatonin will be measured from the participants' 24-h and the first morning void urinary samples. All the assessments will be carried out before the intervention (T1), in the mid of the study (5 weeks after the commencement of the study) (T2) and after the 10-week intervention (T3). Level of statistical significance will be set at 5% (i.e. p < .05). The results of this trial will be submitted for publication in peer-reviewed journal. FINDINGS: The findings will provide evidence to determine whether physical exercise or melatonin supplement or the combination of interventions is the most effective to treat sleep disturbance in children with ASD.

55. Small sight-Big might: Economic impact of bird tourism shows opportunities for rural communities and biodiversity conservation.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Schwoerer T, Dawson NG.

56. Genotype-by-environment interaction and genetic dissection of heartwood color in Cryptomeria japonica based on multiple common gardens and quantitative trait loci mapping.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Mori H, Ueno S, Ujino-Ihara T

The heartwood color of a major plantation tree Cryptomeria japonica shows high variability among clones and cultivars, and brighter heartwood has higher value in the usage of non-laminated wood such as in traditional construction, which makes heartwood color an important trait in breeding of this species. However, the genetic basis of the interactions between genetics and the environment on heartwood color has been understudied while these are necessary for effective breeding programs in multiple environmental condition. The objectives of the present study were to evaluate the effects of genetics and environments on heartwood color and how they interact in contrasting environments, and to identify genomic regions controlling heartwood color in C. japonica across multiple environments. Heartwood color in terms of L*a*b* color space and spectral reflectance was measured in common gardens established in three contrasting sites. Quantitative trait loci (QTL) that affect heartwood color were identified using previously constructed highly saturated linkage maps. Results found that heartwood color was largely genetically controlled, and genotype-by-environment interaction explained one-third of the total genetic variance of heartwood color. The effect of the environment was small compared to the effect of genetics, whereas environmental effects largely varied among heartwood color traits. QTL analysis identified a large number of QTLs with small to moderate effects (phenotypic variation explained of 6.6% on average). Some of these QTLs were stably expressed in multiple environments or had pleiotropic effects on heartwood color and moisture content. These results indicated that genetic variation in phenotypic plasticity plays an important role in regulating heartwood color and that the identified QTLs would maximize the breeding efficiency of heartwood color in C. japonica in heterogeneous environments.

57. Assessment of multidrug-resistant Listeria monocytogenes in milk and milk product and One Health perspective.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Kayode AJ, Okoh AI.

The occurrence and the antibiogram signatures of Listeria monocytogenes (Lm) recovered from 65 milk samples and its products within the Eastern Cape province were examined. The EN ISO 11290:2017 procedures Parts 1 and 2 described by the International Organization for Standardization for the enumeration and isolation of Lm was adopted for the study. Lm was detected in 18.46% of all the samples examined, and the strains recovered from the samples belong to serotypes 4b and 1/2b. The virulence determinants including prfA, plcA, plcB, inlA, inlC, hly, mpl, actA, inlJ and inlB were detected in all the isolates. About 95.24% of the studied Lm isolates demonstrated potential capacity for biofilm formation. The antibiogram profile revealed high resistance against sulfamethoxazole (71.43%), trimethoprim (52.86%); erythromycin, cefotetan and oxytetracycline (42.86% respectively). About 85.71% exhibited multiple antibiotic resistance phenotypes against the test antibiotics. The resistance determinants encoding resistance against the β-lactamase antibiotics [such as the blaTEM, blaSHV, blaTEM variants (TEM-1 and TEM-2) and the blaZ], the tetracycline resistance genes (including tetA, tetD, tetG and tetM and tetK) were detected among resistant isolates. In addition, the aminoglycoside resistance gene aph (3)-IIa (aphA2)a was detected only in one isolate. Finally, the sulfonamide resistance genes including the sul2 and the sul1 genes were the most frequently observed among Lm isolates. Generally, 71.43% of all Lm isolates recovered from the samples investigated harboured one or more resistance genes encoding resistance against various antibiotics. The antibiogram signatures of Lm isolates observed in this study is an indication that empirical treatment of listeriosis may be challenging in the future as the pathogen may obliterate the success of antibiotics. We, therefore, advocate for the recognition of the One Health approach to ensuring food safety and curbing the spread of antimicrobial resistance in food.

58. Physiological responses of Amaranthus cruentus L. to drought stress under sufficient- and deficient-nitrogen conditions.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Cechin I, da Silva LP, Ferreira ET

59. Daily physical activity is negatively associated with thyroid hormone levels, inflammation, and immune system markers among men and women in the NHANES dataset.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Klasson CL, Sadhir S, Pontzer H.

60. FUCCItrack: An all-in-one software for single cell tracking and cell cycle analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Taïeb HM, Bertinetti L, Robinson T

61. Pseudomonas aeruginosa clinical blood isolates display significant phenotypic variability.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Scheffler RJ, Bratton BP, Gitai Z.

62. Digging in a 120 years-old lunch: What can we learn from collection specimens of extinct species?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Pinho CJ, Roca V, Perera A

63. Plastics are a new threat to Palau's coral reefs.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Béraud E, Bednarz V, Otto I

64. A qualitative examination of the factors affecting the adoption of injury focused wearable technologies in recreational runners.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 6

Lacey A, Whyte E, O'Keeffe S

65. Association between timed up and go test and future incidence of disability: A nationwide representative longitudinal study in Korea.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Son KY, Shin DW, Lee JE

Although previous studies examined the association between mobility and disability, they have used either subjective measure disability such as activity of daily living or instrumental activity of daily living or indirect measure such as long-term care service use with small size of participants. This study aimed to examine the association between timed up and go (TUG) test and disability incidence with national disability registration data in Korea longitudinally, by using a national representative sample. We used the National Health Insurance Service-National Health Screening Cohort (NHIS-HEALS) database of National Health Information Database. The NHIS-HEALS dataset includes disability information of National Screening Programme participants, including registration date and type of disability, which is merged from Korean National Disability Registry (KNDR). We used Cox proportional hazard models to evaluate the association between TUG and disability incidence. We constructed three models with different levels of adjustment; Model 3 was a fully adjusted model. We conducted subgroup analysis according to the risk factors for disability. The study population comprised 81,473 participants; 86 of them were newly registered to KNDR, which were observed during a mean follow-up of 4.1 ± 2.6 (maximum, 8.9) years. For 334,200.9 person-year (PY) follow-up, the disability incidence rate was 0.208 per 1,000 PY. Disability incidence was significantly higher in participants with abnormal TUG results than in those with normal TUG results. (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 1.600, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.036-2.472). In subgroup analysis, the disability incidence increased in participants of normal cognition, without obesity or without cardiovascular (CV) disease. Increased incidence in disability was noted in participants with abnormal TUG results. The increase was more evident for participants with normal cognition, without obesity or CV disease.

66. Analyzing technology acceptance and perception of privacy in ambient assisted living for using sensor-based technologies.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Wilkowska W, Offermann J, Spinsante S

67. Item-level psychometrics of the Ascertain Dementia Eight-Item Informant Questionnaire.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Ham Y, Bae S, Lee H

68. A blockchain-based certifiable anonymous E-taxing protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Niu H, Li T, Gong X.

69. Drug-susceptible tuberculosis treatment outcomes and its associated factors among inmates in prison settings in Bauchi State, Nigeria, 2014-2018.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Amede PO, Adedire E, Usman A

Tuberculosis (TB) is a contagious disease and its transmissibility is increased in congregate settings. TB incidence rates are five-to-fifty times higher among inmates in prison settings than the general population which has a direct impact on the outcome of TB treatment. There is paucity of information on TB treatment outcomes and its associated factors in Nigerian prison settings. We therefore assessed TB treatment outcomes among inmates in prison settings in Bauchi State, Nigeria. We conducted a retrospective data analysis of inmates with TB in the five-main prison settings in Bauchi State. We extracted socio-demographic, clinical and treatment outcome characteristics from TB treatment register of inmates treated for TB between January 2014 and December 2018, using a checklist. We calculated the TB treatment success rate (TSR) and explored the relationship between the TSR and socio-demographic and clinical characteristics. Related variables were modelled in multiple logistic regression to identify factors associated with TSR at 5% level of significance. All 216 inmates were male with mean (SD) age of 37.6±11.4 years. Seventy-six (35.2%) were cured, 61 (28.2%) completed treatment, 65 (30.1%) were transferred-out without evaluation and 14 (6.5%) died. Overall TSR was 72.9%. Factors associated with successful-treatment-outcome were age, weight, imprisonment duration and HIV status. The results indicate that inmates who are 20-29 years are at least ten times more likely to be successful (aOR = 10.5; 95%CI: 3.2-35.1) than inmates who are 55 years or older. Inmates who are 30-39 years are about four times more likely to be successful than inmates who are 55 years or older (aOR = 4.2; 95% CI: 1.3-13.1). In general, the younger an inmate, the more successful he is. Inmates with pretreatment-weight; 55kg or more are 13 times more likely to be successful (aOR = 13.3; 95%CI: 6.0-29.6) than inmates with weight below 55kg. Inmates who were imprisoned for 2 years or less are about three times more likely to be successful (aOR = 2.6; 95%CI: 1.3-5.4) than inmates who were imprisoned for more than 2 years and HIV negative inmates were three times more likely to succeed (aOR = 3.3; 95%CI:1.4-7.8) than inmates who were HIV positive. We recommended that to improve TB treatment outcome among inmates; age, duration-of-imprisonment, weight and TB/HIV co-infection should be the major consideration during pretreatment, psychological and nutritional counselling and a tracking-system be developed by the authority to follow-up inmates transferred-out to other health facilities to ensure they complete the treatment and outcomes evaluated.

70. The leap to ordinal: Detailed functional prognosis after traumatic brain injury with a flexible modelling approach.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 5

Bhattacharyay S, Milosevic I, Wilson L

When a patient is admitted to the intensive care unit (ICU) after a traumatic brain injury (TBI), an early prognosis is essential for baseline risk adjustment and shared decision making. TBI outcomes are commonly categorised by the Glasgow Outcome Scale-Extended (GOSE) into eight, ordered levels of functional recovery at 6 months after injury. Existing ICU prognostic models predict binary outcomes at a certain threshold of GOSE (e.g., prediction of survival [GOSE > 1]). We aimed to develop ordinal prediction models that concurrently predict probabilities of each GOSE score. From a prospective cohort (n = 1,550, 65 centres) in the ICU stratum of the Collaborative European NeuroTrauma Effectiveness Research in TBI (CENTER-TBI) patient dataset, we extracted all clinical information within 24 hours of ICU admission (1,151 predictors) and 6-month GOSE scores. We analysed the effect of two design elements on ordinal model performance: (1) the baseline predictor set, ranging from a concise set of ten validated predictors to a token-embedded representation of all possible predictors, and (2) the modelling strategy, from ordinal logistic regression to multinomial deep learning. With repeated k-fold cross-validation, we found that expanding the baseline predictor set significantly improved ordinal prediction performance while increasing analytical complexity did not. Half of these gains could be achieved with the addition of eight high-impact predictors to the concise set. At best, ordinal models achieved 0.76 (95% CI: 0.74-0.77) ordinal discrimination ability (ordinal c-index) and 57% (95% CI: 54%- 60%) explanation of ordinal variation in 6-month GOSE (Somers' Dxy). Model performance and the effect of expanding the predictor set decreased at higher GOSE thresholds, indicating the difficulty of predicting better functional outcomes shortly after ICU admission. Our results motivate the search for informative predictors that improve confidence in prognosis of higher GOSE and the development of ordinal dynamic prediction models.

71. Distribution of human papillomavirus genotypes by severity of cervical lesions in HPV screened positive women from the ESTAMPA study in Latin America.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Correa RM, Baena A, Valls J

72. The spatial heterogeneity of the impact of PM2.5 on domestic tourism flows in China.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Zhu N, Luo Y, Luo F

73. IL-6 is involved in thoracic ossification of the ligamentum flavum.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Huang AY, Shu L, Chen Z

74. Efficacy and safety of ruxolitinib for steroid-refractory graft-versus-host disease: Systematic review and meta-analysis of randomised and non-randomised studies.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Zhang MY, Zhao P, Zhang Y

BACKGROUND: Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) for haematological disorders. Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), a cause of morbidity and mortality is treated with corticosteroids. However, patients with steroid-refractory GVHD after HSCT have a poor prognosis. Ruxolitinib, a selective Janus kinase inhibitor, is a novel treatment strategy for steroid-refractory GVHD. OBJECTIVES: To assess the efficacy of ruxolitinib for the treatment of steroid-refractory GVHD and analyse its adverse effects. STUDY DESIGN: Meta-analysis. SEARCH METHODS: Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) and non-RCTs of ruxolitinib-based therapy in patients with steroid-refractory GVHD were found in the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, EMBASE, PubMed, and Web of Science in March 2021. Outcomes included overall response rate, survival, and adverse effects. The Methodological Index for Non-randomised Studies (MINORS) and the Cochrane collaboration risk-of-bias tool were used to assess methodological quality. Funnel plots, Egger's test, and the trim and fill method were used to assess publication bias. RESULTS: In total, 1470 studies were identified; 19 studies (17 non-RCTs, 2 RCTs) involving 1358 patients met our inclusion criteria. Survival rates at the longest follow-up in non-RCTs, were 57.5% (95% CI 46.9-67.4) and 80.3% (95% CI 69.7-87.9) for acute GVHD (aGVHD) and chronic GVHD (cGVHD), respectively. In non-RCTs, the overall response was 74.9% (95% CI 66.6-81.8, I2 = 49%) in aGVHD and 73.1% (95% CI 62.5-81.6, I2 = 49%) in cGVHD. In aGVHD, the response rates were gastrointestinal, 61.4-90.2%; skin, 52.5-80.6%; and liver, 41.8-71.8%. In cGVHD, the response rates were gastrointestinal, 30.1-70.4%; skin, 30.1-84.4%; lung, 27.0-83.0%; and mouth 3.5-98.1%. In addition, a lower aGVHD grade and moderate cGVHD were associated with a better clinical response. Common adverse events were cytopenia and infectious complications. CONCLUSIONS: Our systematic review and meta-analysis indicated that ruxolitinib therapy could be a potentially effective and safe treatment for patients with steroid-refractory GVHD.

75. Viraemic-time predicts mortality among people living with HIV on second-line antiretroviral treatment in Myanmar: A retrospective cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Mesic A, Decroo T, Mar HT

INTRODUCTION: Despite HIV viral load (VL) monitoring being serial, most studies use a cross-sectional design to evaluate the virological status of a cohort. The objective of our study was to use a simplified approach to calculate viraemic-time: the proportion of follow-up time with unsuppressed VL above the limit of detection. We estimated risk factors for higher viraemic-time and whether viraemic-time predicted mortality in a second-line antiretroviral treatment (ART) cohort in Myanmar. METHODS: We conducted a retrospective cohort analysis of people living with HIV (PLHIV) who received second-line ART for a period >6 months and who had at least two HIV VL test results between 01 January 2014 and 30 April 2018. Fractional logistic regression assessed risk factors for having higher viraemic-time and Cox proportional hazards regression assessed the association between viraemic-time and mortality. Kaplan-Meier curves were plotted to illustrate survival probability for different viraemic-time categories. RESULTS: Among 1,352 participants, 815 (60.3%) never experienced viraemia, and 172 (12.7%), 214 (15.8%), and 80 (5.9%) participants were viraemic <20%, 20-49%, and 50-79% of their total follow-up time, respectively. Few (71; 5.3%) participants were ≥80% of their total follow-up time viraemic. The odds for having higher viraemic-time were higher among people with a history of injecting drug use (aOR 2.01, 95% CI 1.30-3.10, p = 0.002), sex workers (aOR 2.10, 95% CI 1.11-4.00, p = 0.02) and patients treated with lopinavir/ritonavir (vs. atazanavir; aOR 1.53, 95% CI 1.12-2.10, p = 0.008). Viraemic-time was strongly associated with mortality hazard among those with 50-79% and ≥80% viraemic-time (aHR 2.92, 95% CI 1.21-7.10, p = 0.02 and aHR 2.71, 95% CI 1.22-6.01, p = 0.01). This association was not observed in those with viraemic-time <50%. CONCLUSIONS: Key populations were at risk for having a higher viraemic-time on second-line ART. Viraemic-time predicts clinical outcomes. Differentiated services should target subgroups at risk for a higher viraemic-time to control both HIV transmission and mortality.

76. COVID-19 pneumonia: Prediction of patient outcome by CT-based quantitative lung parenchyma analysis combined with laboratory parameters.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Do TD, Skornitzke S, Merle U

77. Starch-based NP act as antigen delivery systems without immunomodulating effect.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Fasquelle F, Dubuquoy L, Betbeder D.

78. Association of TLR9-1237T>C; rs5743836 polymorphism with increased risk of Hodgkin's lymphoma: A case-control study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Al-Khatib S, Shabaneh A, Abdo N

79. Beyond arboviruses: A multicenter study to evaluate differential diagnosis of rash diseases and acute febrile illness cases in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Alves ADR, Raposo JV, de Sousa RMP

INTRODUCTION: A wide variety of viruses can cause rash diseases (RDs) or acute febrile illness (AFIs) in children, adolescents and adults; however, approximately 19% of RD cases and 40% of AFI cases remain without a defined etiology. Parvovirus B19 (B19V) and herpesvirus infection can also cause RD and/or AFI, and in some risk groups, these infections can become persistent (or latent) and may require hospital treatment. Since these infections do not have mandatory reporting, they can be hidden by other diseases, such as those caused by arboviruses (e.g., dengue virus). In this context, the aim of this study was to pursue the differential laboratory diagnoses of B19V and herpesvirus infections in patients with RD and AFI, without a defined etiology, seen in hospitals and/or reference centers for infectious diseases in Rio de Janeiro. METHODS: A total of 114 participants were enrolled in the study, including 54 children and 60 adults. B19V infection was assessed by real-time PCR (qPCR) and ELISA (anti-B19V IgM and IgG). EBV was assessed through qPCR, and betaherpesviruses (HCMV, HHV-6 and HHV-7) were assessed through multiplex qPCR. Sociodemographic and clinical data were obtained from the medical record data of these participants. RESULTS: The median age of children with RD was 2 years (interquartile range (IQR): 5), and 55.6% were male. Among adults with AFI, the median age was 38 years (IQR: 21), and 56.7% were female. Regarding RD patients, viral prevalence (and load) were 5.5%(104IU/mL), 3.4%(104IU/mL), 5.5%(104IU/mL) and 11.1%(105IU/mL) for B19V, EBV, HCMV and HHV-6 infection, respectively, and in AFI patients they were 6.6%(105IU/mL), 1.6%(103IU/mL), 3.3%(104IU/mL) for B19V, HCMV and HHV-6, respectively. HHV-7 was not detected in RD or AFI patients. CONCLUSION: These results suggest the importance of including B19V and herpesviruses in the differential laboratory diagnoses for patients with RD and AFI, not only for epidemiological purposes but also for the proper management of the patient.

80. The evolution and co-evolution of a primary care cancer research network: From academic social connection to research collaboration.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Vermond D, de Groot E, Sills VA

81. The influence of metformin transporter gene SLC22A1 and SLC47A1 variants on steady-state pharmacokinetics and glycemic response.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Ningrum VDA, Sadewa AH, Ikawati Z

82. Determinants of personal vaccination hesitancy before and after the mid-2021 COVID-19 outbreak in Taiwan.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Lee HW, Leng CH, Chan TC.

83. Survival status and predictors of neonatal mortality among neonates admitted to Neonatal Intensive care Unit (NICU) of Wollega University referral hospital (WURH) and Nekemte Specialized hospital, Western Ethiopia: A prospective cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Tolossa T, Wakuma B, Mengist B

BACKGROUND: The neonatal period is the most vulnerable time for survival in which children face the highest risk of dying in their lives. Neonatal mortality (NM) remains a global public concern, especially in sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. Although, better progress has been made in reducing NM before 2016, Ethiopia is currently one of the top ten countries affected by NM. Studies are limited to secondary data extraction in Ethiopia which focus only on survival status during admission, and no study has been conducted in the study area in particular. OBJECTIVE: To assess the survival status and predictors of neonatal mortality among neonates admitted to the NICU of WURH and Nekemte Specialized Hospital, Western Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based prospective cohort study was conducted among a cohort of 412 neonates admitted to the NICU of WURH and Nekemte Specialized Hospital from September 1, 2020 to December 30, 2020. All neonates consecutively admitted to the NICU of the two hospitals during the study period were included in the study. Data entry was performed using Epidata version 3.0 and the analysis was performed using STATA version 14. A Kaplan Meier survival curve was constructed to estimate the cumulative survival probability. A cox proportional hazards regression model was used to identify the predictors of NM. Hazard Ratios with 95% CI were computed and all the predictors associated with the outcome variable at p-value ≤ 0.05 in the multivariable cox proportional hazards analysis were declared as a significant predictor of NM. RESULTS: A total of 412 neonates were followed for a median of 27 days with an IQR of 22-28 days. During the follow-up period, a total of 9249 person day observations (PDO) were detected. At the end of follow-up, 15.3% of neonates died with an overall incidence rate of death 6.81/1000 PDO. The median time to death was 10 days, and the highest incidence rate of death was observed during the first week of the neonatal period. The study found that rural residence (AHR = 2.04, 95%CI: 1.14, 3.66), lack of ANC visits (AHR = 7.77, 95%CI: 3.99, 15.11), neonatal hypothermia (AHR = 3.04, 95%CI: 1.36, 6.80), and delayed initiation of breastfeeding (AHR = 2.26, 95% CI: 1.12, 4.56) as independent predictors of NM. However, a decreased number of pregnancies decrease the risk of NM. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The incidence rate of neonatal death was high particularly in the first week of life in the study area. The study found that lack of ANC visit, neonatal hypothermia, increased number of pregnancies, rural residence, and delayed initiation of breastfeeding positively predicted NM. Therefore, there is a need to encourage programs that enhance ANC visits for pregnant mothers and community-based neonatal survival strategies, particularly for countryside mothers.

84. Comparative performance of two automated machine learning platforms for COVID-19 detection by MALDI-TOF-MS.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Rashidi HH, Pepper J, Howard T

85. The Streptococcus agalactiae R3 surface protein is encoded by sar5.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Basson A, Olaisen C, Selvik LK

86. Competencies of health personnel for the practice of health literacy in Brazil: A Delphi consensus survey.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Cesar FCR, Sousa TF, Alves AG

87. Low risk of acquiring melioidosis from the environment in the continental United States.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 29

Hall CM, Romero-Alvarez D, Martz M

88. Life satisfaction analysis between occupational balance (OB) group and occupational imbalance (OI) group.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Cha YJ.

89. Using deep learning to predict outcomes of legal appeals better than human experts: A study with data from Brazilian federal courts.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Jacob de Menezes-Neto E, Clementino MBM.

90. Complete chloroplast genomes and phylogeny in three Euterpe palms (E. edulis, E. oleracea and E. precatoria) from different Brazilian biomes.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Francisconi AF, Cauz-Santos LA, Morales Marroquín JA

The Brazilian palm fruits and hearts-of-palm of Euterpe edulis, E. oleracea and E. precatoria are an important source for agro-industrial production, due to overexploitation, conservation strategies are required to maintain genetic diversity. Chloroplast genomes have conserved sequences, which are useful to explore evolutionary questions. Besides the plastid DNA, genome skimming allows the identification of other genomic resources, such as single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), providing information about the genetic diversity of species. We sequenced the chloroplast genome and identified gene content in the three Euterpe species. We performed comparative analyses, described the polymorphisms among the chloroplast genome sequences (repeats, indels and SNPs) and performed a phylogenomic inference based on 55 palm species chloroplast genomes. Finally, using the remaining data from genome skimming, the nuclear and mitochondrial reads, we identified SNPs and estimated the genetic diversity among these Euterpe species. The Euterpe chloroplast genomes varied from 159,232 to 159,275 bp and presented a conserved quadripartite structure with high synteny with other palms. In a pairwise comparison, we found a greater number of insertions/deletions (indels = 93 and 103) and SNPs (284 and 254) between E. edulis/E. oleracea and E. edulis/E. precatoria when compared to E. oleracea/E. precatoria (58 indels and 114 SNPs). Also, the phylogeny indicated a closer relationship between E. oleracea/E. precatoria. The nuclear and mitochondrial genome analyses identified 1,077 SNPs and high divergence among species (FST = 0.77), especially between E. edulis and E. precatoria (FST = 0.86). These results showed that, despite the few structural differences among the chloroplast genomes of these Euterpe palms, a differentiation between E. edulis and the other Euterpe species can be identified by point mutations. This study not only brings new knowledge about the evolution of Euterpe chloroplast genomes, but also these new resources open the way for future phylogenomic inferences and comparative analyses within Arecaceae.

91. Nearshore marine biodiversity of Osa Peninsula, Costa Rica: Where the ocean meets the rainforest.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Friedlander AM, Ballesteros E, Breedy O

Osa Peninsula in remote southwest Costa Rica harbors 2.5% of global terrestrial biodiversity in only 1,200 km2 and has the largest remaining tract of Pacific lowland wet forest in Mesoamerica. However, little is known about the marine ecosystems of this diverse region. Much of the coastline consists of soft sediment exposed to strong wave action. Three major hard bottom habitat types define this region, including: 1) coral reefs around Isla del Caño Biological Reserve, a no-take marine protected area (MPA) of 52 km2, 2) coastal rocky reefs and islets along the peninsula, including Corcovado National Park, and 3) submerged pinnacles just outside the Isla del Caño MPA. Average coral cover at Isla del Caño was 21%, composed primarily of Porites lobata and Pocillopora elegans. In contrast, coastal rocky reefs were dominated by turf algae (39.8%) and macroalgae (20.7%) with low coral cover (1.1%). Submerged pinnacles were dominated by crustose coralline algae (33.3%) and erect coralline algae (25.7%). Fish assemblage characteristics (species richness, abundance, biomass) were significantly higher at the pinnacles compared to the other habitats and was dominated by schooling species such as Haemulon steindachneri, and the herbivores Kyphosus ocyurus, and Acanthurus xanthopterus. Top predators, primarily Triaenodon obesus, Caranx sexfasciatus, and Lutjanus argentimaculatus, were also most abundant at these pinnacles and accounted for the largest differences in fish trophic structure among habitats. Despite Isla del Caño being fully protected from fishing, biomass was similar to fished areas along the coast and lower than the adjacent submerged pinnacles outside the reserve. Similarly, Corcovado National Park includes 20.3 km2 of no-take MPAs; however, there is limited enforcement, and we noted several instances of fishing within the park. The unique configuration of healthy offshore coral reefs and pinnacles connected to coastal habitats provides corridors for many species including large predators such as sharks and other marine megafauna, which warrants additional protection.

92. High-throughput image-based plant stand count estimation using convolutional neural networks.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Khaki S, Pham H, Khalilzadeh Z

93. Enhancing the scalability of distance-based link prediction algorithms in recommender systems through similarity selection.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Su Z, Huang Z, Ai J

94. Markers of neutrophil activation and neutrophil extracellular traps in diagnosing patients with acute venous thromboembolism: A feasibility study based on two VTE cohorts.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Smith P, Rosell A, Farm M

95. Effect of game-based high-intensity interval training program on the executive function of children with ADHD: Protocol of a randomized controlled trial.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Sun F, Chow GC, Yu CC

BACKGROUND: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a common developmental disorder in childhood, with a 5%-6% worldwide prevalence. Children with ADHD often demonstrate impaired executive function, which is closely related to the development of the commonly observed behavioral problems such as inattention, impaired inhibition, and hyperactivity. The purpose of this study is to examine whether a game-based high-intensity interval training (HIIT) program can improve the executive function of children with ADHD, compared with a traditional structured aerobic exercise program and a non-treatment control group. METHODS/DESIGN: A total of 42 children with ADHD will be recruited to participate in this three-arm school-based randomized controlled trial. An 8-week specially designed game-based HIIT (GameHIIT) program and a traditional game-based structured aerobic exercise (GameSAE) program will be delivered to those children randomly assigned to these two intervention groups, while the children in the control group will maintain their regular physical activity over the same period. A number of outcome measures including executive function, cerebral hemodynamic response, physical activity, physical fitness, and enjoyment and adherence to the intervention will be assessed for both groups at baseline (T0), immediately after the intervention period (T1), and after the follow-up period (T2). DISCUSSION: HIIT has recently emerged as a feasible and efficacious strategy for increasing physical health outcomes and cognitive function, including executive function, in healthy young people. However, research has yet to investigate whether the executive function of children with ADHD can be effectively enhanced through HIIT. If, as hypothesized, GameHIIT program improves outcomes for children with ADHD, the present research will inform the development of targeted exercise programs that can be more broadly used with this particular population.

96. Superior reproducibility and repeatability in automated quantitative pupillometry compared to standard manual assessment, and quantitative pupillary response parameters present high reliability in critically ill cardiac patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Nyholm B, Obling L, Hassager C

97. Smoking in the workplace: A study of female call center employees in South Korea.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Oh H, Boo S.

98. Evaluating the appropriateness of laboratory testing and antimicrobial use in South African children hospitalized for community-acquired infections.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Mapala L, Bekker A, Dramowski A.

INTRODUCTION: Community acquired infection (CAI) is the leading indication for paediatric hospitalization in South Africa. METHODS: We conducted secondary data analysis of prospective, consecutive paediatric admissions to Tygerberg Hospital (May 2015-November 2015). Clinical characteristics, admission diagnosis, appropriateness of diagnostic tests, use of antimicrobial prescriptions, hospital outcome and costs were analyzed. RESULTS: CAI episodes were documented in (364/451; 81%) children admitted to the general paediatric ward; median age 4.8 months (Interquartile range, IQR, 1.5-17.5) and weight 5.4kg (IQR, 3.6-9.0). Male gender predominated (210/364; 58%), and Human Immunodeficiency Virus infection prevalence was 6.0% (22/364). Common CAI types included respiratory tract infections (197; 54%), gastroenteritis (51; 14%), and bloodstream infections (33; 9%). Pre-hospital antibiotics (ceftriaxone) were given to 152/364 (42%). Of 274 blood cultures and 140 cerebrospinal fluid samples submitted, 5% and 2% respectively yielded a pathogen. Common CAI antibiotic treatment regimens included: ampicillin alone (53%); ampicillin plus gentamicin (25%) and ampicillin plus cefotaxime (20%). Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) was found in 39% of the children investigated for pneumonia. Most antibiotic prescriptions (323/364; 89%) complied with national guidelines and were appropriately adjusted based on the patient's clinical condition and laboratory findings. The overall estimated cost of CAI episode management ZAR 22,535 (≈1423 USD) per CAI admission episode. Unfavourable outcomes were uncommon (1% died, 4% required re-admission within 30 days of discharge). CONCLUSION: CAI is the most frequent reason for hospitalization and drives antimicrobial use. Improved diagnostic stewardship is needed to prevent inappropriate antimicrobial prescriptions. Clinical outcome of paediatric CAI episodes was generally favourable.

99. Development, characterization and In-vitro evaluation of guar gum based new polymeric matrices for controlled delivery using metformin HCl as model drug.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Ashames A, Ullah K, Al-Tabakha M

100. Quantifying the effect of Warmblood Fragile Foal Syndrome on foaling rates in the German riding horse population.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Wobbe M, Reinhardt F, Reents R

Awareness of breeders of Warmblood Fragile Foal Syndrome (WFFS) increased after a widely discussed case in the USA in 2018. The hereditary connective tissue disorder, first described by a US research group in 2011 and for which a commercial genetic test exists since 2013, is caused by a point mutation in the PLOD1 gene, inherited autosomal recessively. Extension of molecular genetic testing and reporting of test results of organized horse breeders to their studbooks implies new opportunities for analyses. In Germany, data are centrally accessible through the integrated equine data base allowing comprehensive and population-wide investigation of the role of WFFS. The objective of this study was statistical testing for associations between WFFS and reproductive performance of German riding horses and quantifying possible differences between WFFS carriers and non-carriers, also in respect of performance traits. For this purpose, covering data from 2008 to 2020 were provided by ten German studbooks, so almost 400,000 coverings and resulting foaling rates were available for multiple analyses of variance with general and mixed linear models using procedures GLM, MIXED and HPMIXED of SAS software (version 9.2). Published breeding values of stallions were used for respective comparisons of riding horse performance. Assuming a WFFS carrier frequency of 9.5-15.0% in Warmblood horses, Hardy Weinberg principle implied an expected difference of 2.4-3.7% in the foaling rates of carrier and non-carrier stallions. Our results provided statistical evidence of detrimental effects of WFFS on the reproductive performance of Warmblood horses with about 2.7% lower average foaling rate in carriers of the mutant allele than in WFFS free sires, if mated to an average mare population. Indications of favorable dressage performance of WFFS carriers were found. Reported WFFS cases indicate only the tip of the iceberg and assessing the impact of WFFS on reproduction requires consideration of premature foal losses.

101. Antifungal therapy in the management of fungal secondary infections in COVID-19 patients: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Sah SK, Shariff A, Pathakamuri N

OBJECTIVES: The prevalence of fungal secondary infections among COVID-19 patients and efficacy of antifungal therapy used in such patients is still unknown. Hence, we conducted this study to find the prevalence of fungal secondary infections among COVID-19 patients and patient outcomes in terms of recovery or all-cause mortality following antifungal therapy (AFT) in such patients. METHODS: We performed a comprehensive literature search in PubMed®, Scopus®, Web of Sciences™, The Cochrane Library, ClinicalTrial.gov, MedRxiv.org, bioRxiv.org, and Google scholar to identify the literature that used antifungal therapy for the management fungal secondary infections in COVID-19 patients. We included case reports, case series, prospective & retrospective studies, and clinical trials. Mantel Haenszel random-effect model was used for estimating pooled risk ratio for required outcomes. RESULTS: A total of 33 case reports, 3 case series, and 21 cohort studies were selected for final data extraction and analysis. The prevalence of fungal secondary infections among COVID-19 patients was 28.2%. Azoles were the most commonly (65.1%) prescribed AFT. Study shows that high survival frequency among patients using AFT, received combination AFT and AFT used for >28 days. The meta-analysis showed, no significant difference in all-cause mortality between patients who received AFT and without AFT (p = 0.17), between types of AFT (p = 0.85) and the duration of AFT (p = 0.67). CONCLUSION: The prevalence of fungal secondary infections among COVID-19 patients was 28.2%. The survival frequency was high among patients who used AFT for fungal secondary infections, received combination AFT and AFT used for >28 days. However, meta-analysis results found that all-cause mortality in COVID-19 patients with fungal secondary infections is not significantly associated with type and duration of AFT, mostly due to presence of confounding factors such as small number of events, delay in diagnosis of fungal secondary infections, presence of other co-infections and multiple comorbidities.

102. Policies on mental health in the workplace during the COVID-19 pandemic: A scoping review.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Villarreal-Zegarra D, Reátegui-Rivera CM, Sabastizagal-Vela I

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic has had a profound impact on both mental health and working conditions. Workplaces are conducive spaces for implementing strategies and interventions to promote mental health. In addition to this, they are preventing, identifying, and managing mental disorders effectively. Although international agencies have identified some guidelines for the management of mental health in the workplace in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, a more precise characterization of both the components of the policies, their implementation, and evidence of the outcome is required to provide useful information for decision-makers. OBJECTIVES: This study aims to synthesize scientific information regarding national and local policies focusing on preventing or improving, directly or indirectly, mental health problems in the workplace during COVID-19 pandemic. METHODS: Our study is a scoping review. The Scopus, Web of Science, and Embase databases and PubMed search engine were used. Original and reviewed articles published from January 1, 2020 to October 14, 2021 were included in the research. Articles with abstract or full text in English, Spanish, German and Portuguese were also included. Our strategy is based on identifying policies (intervention) which focuses on directly or indirectly preventing or ameliorating mental health problems in the workplace during COVID-19 pandemic (participants). RESULTS: A total of 6,522 records were identified, and only four studies were included in the scoping review, which were of low quality. That is, we found limited evidence evaluating mental health policies using primary or secondary data (empirical evaluation). Among the policies that have been identified are the increase of mental health resources, the promotion of mental health and self-care support programs, and the reduction of barriers to access to mental health treatment. CONCLUSION: Our research finds that there is limited evidence available to evaluate national and local policies aimed at directly or indirectly preventing or ameliorating mental health problems at work during COVID-19 pandemic. This forces decision-makers to use different criteria to guide the allocation of resources and budgets. Therefore, there is a need for health intelligence teams in health systems to be able to assess the impact of policies as an important input for decision-makers.

103. Mesostats-A multiplexed, low-cost, do-it-yourself continuous culturing system for experimental evolution of mesocosms.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Hansson EM, Childs DZ, Beckerman AP.

104. Determinants of time to full enteral feeding achievement among infants with birth weight 1000-2000g admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit of public hospitals in Hawassa city, Sidama region Ethiopian, 2019: A retrospective cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Tewoldie MT, Girma M, Seid H.

BACKGROUND: Nutritional care during the neonatal period is a cornerstone towards achieving optimal care. However, very limited data is available on optimizing parenteral and enteral nutrition that directly affects infant survival among Ethiopian neonates. Therefore, the objective of this study is to identify determinants of time to full enteral feeding achievement among low-birth-weight neonates admitted to neonatal intensive care units of public hospitals in Hawassa city. METHODS: A facility-based retrospective cohort study was conducted in Adare general hospital and Hawassa University's comprehensive specialized hospital from August 2018 to 2019. Charts of infants with a birth weight of 1000-2000g (n = 273) neonates who were admitted to the neonatal intensive care unit (ICU) were reviewed. The sample size for each hospital was allocated proportionally and subjects were selected by using a simple random sampling technique. Data were entered using Epi. data version 3.1, and analysis was performed using SPSS version 20. Kaplan-Meier estimator and a Cox proportional hazard model were used. RESULT: The mean (SD) age when an enteral feed (trophic feeding) was first commenced was 2.13(1.373) days. The median time to achieve full enteral feeding was 8 days with IQR (7-10 days). Gestational age reduces the time to full enteral feeding by 18.8% for each additional week of gestation (AHR = 0.812, p-value = 0.003). The time to achieve full enteral feeding was shorter by 70.4% among neonates who were small for gestational age, as compared with that appropriate for gestational age (AHR = 0.296, p-value<0.001). CONCLUSION: According to this study, the time that the neonate takes to achieve full enteral feeding was relatively short. Gestational age and weight for gestational were the determinants for time to full enteral feeding achievement. Further research needs to be conducted to explore further, in addition to current findings.

105. Coagulation abnormalities in children with uncorrected congenital heart defects seen at a teaching hospital in a developing country.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Majiyagbe OO, Akinsete AM, Adeyemo TA

106. Lifestyle and socioeconomic determinants of diabetes: Evidence from country-level data.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Richards SE, Wijeweera C, Wijeweera A.

OBJECTIVE: The objectives of the study is to investigate the global socioeconomic risk factors associated with diabetes prevalence using evidence from available country-level data. DESIGN: A cross-sectional study based on (2010 & 2019) countrywide Health Nutrition and Population Statistics data. POPULATION: People ages 20-79 who have diabetes. SETTING: One hundred and thirty-two countries or territories in the world. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: Diabetes prevalence rates were determined from (2010 & 2019) countrywide Health Nutrition and Population Statistics (Health Stats, World Bank Group). RESULTS: In 2010, a 1% increase in per capita income and total tobacco consumption is associated with a 0.92% (95% CI 0.64% to 1.19%) and 0.02% (95% CI 0.006% to 0.047%) increase in diabetes prevalence respectively; and a 1% increase in alcohol consumption is associated with a -0.85% (95% CI -1.17% to -0.53%) decrease in diabetes prevalence. Statistically significant socioeconomic and lifestyle indices positively associated with diabetes prevalence included gross national income; overweight prevalence (BMI>25 kg/m2); and tobacco consumption. Statistically significant inverse associations with global diabetes prevalence included total population size; unemployment and alcohol consumption. The 2019 data was removed due to sparsity of data. CONCLUSION: Statistically significant global lifestyle and socioeconomic determinants of diabetes prevalence include alcohol consumption; tobacco consumption; overweight prevalence; per capita income; total population and unemployment rates. Determinants of diabetes include modifiable risk factors which are consistent at both the micro and macro level and include tobacco consumption and overweight prevalence. Factors which are non-modifiable and warrant further investigation include total population and unemployment rates, which were inversely associated with diabetes prevalence and are a product of other underlying factors. Other determinants such as alcohol consumption was also inversely associated with diabetes prevalence, but has been observed to have both negative and positive associations with diabetes at the micro-level. These associations were dependent upon the amount of alcohol consumed. Global cut-off point of alcohol consumption is critical to establish global policies to reduce diabetes prevalence. Overall, the use of cross-sectional based study for country level aggregate data is a critical tool that should be considered when making global joint strategies or policies against diabetes in both data analysis and decision making.

107. Development of an advance directive 'communication tool' relevant for patients with advanced cancer in six European countries: Experiences from the ACTION trial.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Arnfeldt CM, Groenvold M, Johnsen AT

BACKGROUND: The ACTION trial evaluated the effect of a modified version of the Respecting Choices´ advance care planning programme in patients with advanced cancer in six European countries. For this purpose, an advance directive acceptable for all six ACTION countries to be used for documenting the wishes and preferences of patients and as a communication tool between patients, their caregivers and healthcare staff, was needed. AIM: To describe the development of a multinational cancer specific advance directive, the ´My Preferences form´, which was first based on the 2005 Wisconsin 'Physician Orders of Life Sustaining Treatment´ Form, to be used within the ACTION trial. METHODS: Framework analysis of all textual data produced by members of the international project team during the development of the ACTION advance directives (e.g. drafts, emails, meeting minutes…). SETTING/PARTICIPANTS: ACTION consortium members (N = 28) with input from clinicians from participating hospitals (N = 13) and ´facilitators´ (N = 8) who were going to deliver the intervention. RESULTS: Ten versions of the ACTION advance directive, the ´My Preferences form´, were developed and circulated within the ACTION consortium. Extensive modifications took place; removal, addition, modification of themes and modification of clinical to lay terminology. The result was a thematically comprehensive advance directive to be used as a communication tool across the six European countries within the ACTION trial. CONCLUSION: This article shows the complex task of developing an advance directive suitable for cancer patients from six European countries; a process which required the resolution of several cross cultural differences in law, ethics, philosophy and practice. Our hope is that this paper can contribute to a deeper conceptual understanding of advance directives, their role in supporting decision making among patients approaching the end of life and be an inspiration to others wishing to develop a disease-specific advance directive or a standardised multinational advance directive.

108. Now you see it, now you don't: Relevance of threat enhances social anxiety-linked attentional bias to angry faces, but relevance of neutral information attenuates it.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Vogt J, Dodd HF, Parker A

109. The percentage of CD39+ monocytes is higher in pregnant COVID-19+ patients than in nonpregnant COVID-19+ patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Cérbulo-Vázquez A, García-Espinosa M, Briones-Garduño JC

110. Analyzing biomarker discovery: Estimating the reproducibility of biomarker sets.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Forouzandeh A, Rutar A, Kalmady SV

111. Magnitude and factors associated with treatment non-adherence among patients with depressive disorders at St. Amanuel Mental Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2019: A cross sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Alemayehu Y, Asfaw H, Girma M.

BACKGROUND: Inadequate adherence to treatment is among the main underlying causes of depression becoming a chronic problem. In developing countries due to limited access to health care, inaccurate diagnoses, and scarcity of medications, poor adherence may become an even larger obstacle in the treatment of depression. The current study aims to assess the magnitude and factors related to treatment non-adherence among patients with depressive disorders. OBJECTIVE: To assess the magnitude and factors associated with treatment non adherence among patients with depressive disorders at St. Amanuel Mental Specialized Hospital, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 2019. METHODS: A hospital-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 415 respondents using systematic random sampling technique. Medication adherence was assessed by using Medication Adherence Rating Scale. Data was entered to Epi-data version 3.1 and analyzed using SPSS version 20. Binary logistic analysis was done and P-values less than 0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: The prevalence of treatment non-adherence among patients with depressive disorders was 26% (95%CI; 21.2, 32.5). Previous suicide attempt (AOR = 3.05, 95%CI; 1.82, 5.12), medication side effects (AOR = 2.46, 95%CI; 1.47, 4.11), moderate to high self-stigma (AOR = 2.60, 95%CI; 1.45, 4.66), and poor quality of life (AOR = 2.47, 95%CI; 1.42, 4.28) were significantly associated with treatment non-adherence among patients with depressive disorders. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION: Treatment non-adherence is a common problem among patients being treated for depressive disorders. Previous suicide attempts, medication side effects, moderate to high self-stigma, and poor quality of life were significantly associated with treatment non-adherence. Appropriate interventions should be developed to promote measures to facilitate adherence in this group of patients, and address the associated factors when applicable.

112. Geneticin reduces mRNA stability.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Durmaz YT, Shatadal A, Friend K.

113. Comparison of short-term clinical outcomes between low-dose prasugrel and clopidogrel as part of triple antithrombotic therapy in patients requiring oral anticoagulant therapy and percutaneous coronary intervention.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Kitahara H, Tateishi K, Shiko Y

BACKGROUND: Triple antithrombotic therapy, including dual antiplatelet therapy and oral anticoagulant (OAC), is recommended for a short-term period after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) in patients requiring anticoagulation therapy. The purpose of this study was to compare in-hospital clinical outcomes between low-dose prasugrel (3.75 mg/day) and clopidogrel, as part of triple antithrombotic therapy, using a large database in Japan. METHODS: Patients with ischemic heart disease who underwent PCI between January 2015 and December 2019, and were prescribed triple therapy with aspirin, a P2Y12 inhibitor (clopidogrel or low-dose prasugrel), and OAC (direct oral anticoagulant: DOAC or vitamin K antagonist: VKA), were selected from the Diagnosis Procedure Combination database. The primary outcome was in-hospital mortality. The secondary outcomes were myocardial infarction, ischemic stroke, bleeding stroke, gastrointestinal bleeding, and blood transfusion. RESULTS: Overall, 5,777 patients were eligible in this analysis. The patients were divided into 4 subgroups according to the type of P2Y12 inhibitor and OAC: clopidogrel/DOAC (n = 1,628), clopidogrel/VKA (n = 1,334), prasugrel/DOAC (n = 1,607), and prasugrel/VKA (n = 1,208). There was no significant difference in the incidence of death and gastrointestinal bleeding among the 4 subgroups. The prasugrel/DOAC group had significantly lower incidence of MI (OR 0.566, 95% CI 0.348-0.921). The incidence of ischemic stroke was significantly lower in the prasugrel/DOAC group (OR 0.701, 95% CI 0.502-0.979), and significantly higher in the clopidogrel/VKA group (OR 1.680, 95% CI 1.273-2.216). Need for blood transfusion was less frequent in the prasugrel/DOAC group (OR 0.729, 95% CI 0.598-0.890), and more frequent in both the clopidogrel/VKA group (OR 1.424, 95% CI 1.187-1.708) and the prasugrel/VKA group (OR 1.633, 95% CI 1.367-1.950). CONCLUSIONS: Combination of low-dose prasugrel and DOAC was associated with lower incidence of MI, ischemic stroke, and blood transfusion. Low-dose prasugrel may be feasible as part of triple therapy in patients undergoing PCI.

114. Intraoperative hemoadsorption in high-risk patients with infective endocarditis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Haidari Z, Demircioglu E, Boss K

BACKGROUND: Postoperative sepsis is an important cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with infective endocarditis undergoing surgical therapy. Blood purification using hemoadsorption therapy shows promising results in the treatment of sepsis. In this study, the clinical effects of intraoperative hemoadsorption in high-risk patients with infective endocarditis were evaluated. METHODS: Eligible candidates were high-risk patients with infective endocarditis undergoing cardiac surgery between January 2014 and December 2019. Patients with intraoperative hemoadsorption (hemoadsorption) were compared to patients without hemoadsorption (control). The endpoints were the incidence of postoperative sepsis, sepsis-associated death and in-hospital mortality. Additionally, postoperative vasopressor need, systemic vascular resistance indices and Sequential Organ Failure Assessment (SOFA) scores were compared. RESULTS: After propensity score matching, 70 high-risk patients were included. Postoperative sepsis occurred in 14 patients in the hemoadsorption group and in 16 patients in the control group, p = 0.629. Four patients died due to postoperative sepsis in the hemoadsorption group, while 11 postoperative septic patients died in the control group, p = 0.041. In-hospital mortality was 34% in the hemoadsorption group versus 43% in the control group, p = 0.461. On ICU-admission and the first postoperative day, the cumulative vasopressor need was 0.17 versus 0.25 μg/kgBW/min, p = 0.123 and 0.06 versus 0.11 μg/kgBW/min, p = 0.037, and the systemic vascular resistance index was 1448 versus 941 dyn·s·cm-5, p = 0.013 and 1156 versus 858 dyn·s·cm-5, p = 0.110 in the hemoadsorption versus control group, respectively. Postoperative course of SOFA score normalized significantly (p = 0.01) faster in the hemoadsorption group. CONCLUSIONS: In high-risk cardiac surgical patients with infective endocarditis, intraoperative hemoadsorption significantly reduced sepsis-associated mortality. Furthermore, intraoperative hemoadsorption resulted in significant faster recovery of hemodynamics and organ function. Intraoperative hemoadsorption seems to attenuate the severity of postoperative sepsis.

115. Malaria prevalence and risk factors among patients visiting Mizan Tepi University Teaching Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Duguma T, Tekalign E, Muleta D

BACKGROUND: Ethiopia is among sub-Saharan African countries with a high number of malaria cases each year, with most of the landmass favoring the breeding of the vectors. There have been extensive efforts to control and prevent the transmission of malaria, which is part of the country's prevention-based health policy. OBJECTIVE: This study aimed to determine malaria prevalence and associated risk factors among patients visiting Mizan-Tepi University Teaching Hospital (MTUTH). MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was conducted from September to December 2021 among patients visiting MTUTH, Southwest Ethiopia. A pretested structured questionnaire was used to collect sociodemographic data, and a capillary blood sample was collected after obtaining written informed consent from the study participants. The data were entered into Epi-data manager (v4.0.2.101) and analyzed with SPSS version 25.0, with a P-value of < 0.05 set as a significance. RESULTS: A total of 439 patients participated, of which 20.7% (91) were positive for malaria parasites, with a higher prevalence observed among the age group interval of 25-34 years (5.5%). Inadequate access to insecticide-treated bed net (ITN) 23.9% (105) and a low level of ITN usage 20.5% (90) were recorded. Patients living in areas of stagnant water were more likely to get infected with the malaria parasite (AOR = 16.191, 95% CI: 9.137, 28.692) compared to those who live away from stagnant water, and individuals living in houses not sprayed with insecticides were more susceptible to malaria infection (AOR = 0.215, 95% CI: 0.128, 0.360). CONCLUSION: The overall malaria prevalence in this study was 20.7% (91), which proves that malaria remains a major threat to the communities in the study area, with Plasmodium falciparum contributing to most of the cases. Improving the habits of ITN usage and indoor residual spray through health education may help to reduce the impact of malaria in the study area.

116. Time to recovery of neonatal sepsis and determinant factors among neonates admitted in Public Hospitals of Central Gondar Zone, Northwest Ethiopia, 2021.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Oumer M, Abebaw D, Tazebew A.

BACKGROUND: Neonatal sepsis is a leading cause of neonatal morbidity and mortality, particularly in developing countries. Time to recovery is an indicator of the severity of sepsis, and risk factors varied significantly according to study population and settings. Moreover, published literature regarding the time to recovery of neonatal sepsis is scarce. OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study was to assess the time to recovery of neonatal sepsis and determinant factors among neonates admitted in the Public Hospitals of Central Gondar Zone, Northwest Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based prospective follow-up study design was conducted among 631 neonates with sepsis. A structured, pre-tested, interviewer-administered questionnaire was used. The median time to recovery, life-table, the Kaplan Meier curve, and the log-rank test were computed. Both bi-variable and multivariable Cox regression models were applied to analyze the data. RESULTS: Of all septic neonates, 511 successfully recovered. They were followed for a total of 4,740-neonate day's observation and the median time to recovery was 7 days (IQR = 5-10 days). After adjusting for covariates, intrapartum fever (AHR = 0.69, 95%CI: 0.49, 0.99), induced onset of labor (AHR = 0.68, 95%CI: 0.49, 0.94), chest indrawing (AHR = 0.67, 95%CI: 0.46, 0.99), late onset sepsis (AHR = 0.55, 95%CI: 0.40, 0.75), non-oral enteral feeding (AHR = 0.38, 95%CI: 0.29, 0.50), assisted with bag and mask (AHR = 0.72, 95%CI: 0.56, 0.93), normal birth weight (AHR = 1.42, 95%CI: 1.03, 1.94), gestational age of 37-42 weeks (AHR = 1.93, 95%CI: 1.32, 2.84), septic shock (AHR = 0.08, 95%CI: 0.02, 0.39), infectious complications (AHR = 0.42, 95%CI: 0.29, 0.61), being in critical conditions (AHR = 0.68, 95%CI: 0.52, 0.89), and early recognition of illness (AHR = 1.83, 95%CI: 1.27, 2.63) were independently associated with the time to recovery of neonatal sepsis. CONCLUSIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS: The time to recovery of this study was moderately acceptable as compared to the previous studies. The above-mentioned factors could be used for the early identification of neonates with sepsis at risk for protracted illness and it could guide prompt referral to higher centers in primary health sectors. This also will provide prognostic information to clinicians and families as longer recovery time has economic and social implications in our country.

117. The footprint of campaign strategies in Farsi Twitter: A case for 2021 Iranian presidential election.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Mohammadi S, Moradi P, Firouzabadi SM

118. Aqueous extracts of Urtica dioica (stinging nettle) leaf contain a P2-purinoceptor antagonist-Implications for male fertility.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Eise NT, Simpson JS, Thompson PE

119. Prediction of hand, foot, and mouth disease epidemics in Japan using a long short-term memory approach.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 28

Yoshida K, Fujimoto T, Muramatsu M

120. Primary stability of multi-hole cups compared to plate osteosynthesis in osteoporotic anterior column and posterior hemi-transverse acetabular fractures-A biomechanical comparison.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Höch A, Reise R, Pieroh P

121. Evaluation of the use of GeneXpert MTB/RIF in a zone with high burden of tuberculosis in Thailand.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Pongpeeradech N, Kasetchareo Y, Chuchottaworn C

GeneXpert MTB/RIF is a reliable molecular diagnostic tool capable of detecting Mycobacterium tuberculosis (MTB) and identifying genetic determinants of rifampicin (RIF) resistance. This study aimed to assess physicians' diagnostic decision-making processes for TB based on GeneXpert MTB/RIF results and how this affected the initiation of multidrug resistance (MDR) treatment. This study employed a mixed method: data were collected retrospectively from the medical records of TB patients and in-depth interviews were conducted with healthcare workers in areas with a high TB burden in Thailand. A total of 2,030 complete TB records from 2 patient groups were reviewed, including 1443 suspected cases with negative smear results and 587 with high risk of MDR-TB. GeneXpert MTB/RIF was routinely used to assist the physicians in their decision-making for the diagnosis of pulmonary tuberculosis (PTB) and the initiation of MDR-TB treatment. The physicians used it as a "rule-in test" for all patients with negative chest X-rays (CXR) and smear results, to ensure timely treatment. Approximately one-fourth of the patients with negative CXR/smear and GeneXpert MTB/RIF results were diagnosed with PTB by the physicians, who based their decisions on other evidence, such as clinical symptoms, and did not use GeneXpert MTB/RIF as a "rule-out test." GeneXpert MTB/RIF proved effective in early detection within a day, thereby radically shortening the time required to initiate second-line drug treatment. Despite its high sensitivity for detecting PTB and MDR-TB, GeneXpert MTB/RIF had contradictory results (false positive and/or false negative) for 21.8% of cases among patients with negative smear results and 41.1% of cases among patients with high risk of MDR-TB. Therefore, physicians still used the results of other conventional tests in their decision-making process. It is recommended that GeneXpert MTB/RIF should be established at all points of care and be used as the initial test for PTB and MDR-TB diagnosis.

122. Iron overload phenotypes and HFE genotypes in white hemochromatosis and iron overload screening study participants without HFE p.C282Y/p.C282Y.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Barton JC, Barton JC, Acton RT.

BACKGROUND: Screening program participants with iron overload (IO) phenotypes without HFE p.C282Y/p.C282Y are incompletely characterized. METHODS: We studied white participants who had IO phenotypes without p.C282Y/p.C282Y in post-screening clinical examinations (CE). We defined IO phenotypes as a) elevated serum ferritin (SF) and transferrin saturation (TS) at screening and CE, and b) absence of IO treatment, anemia, transfusion >10 units, alcohol intake >30 g/d, hepatitis B or C, and pregnancy. We defined IO-related disease as elevated alanine or aspartate aminotransferase (ALT/AST) or swelling/tenderness of 2nd/3rd metacarpophalangeal (MCP) joints. All participants had HFE p.C282Y and p.H63D genotyping. RESULTS: There were 32 men and 26 women (mean age 54±16 y). Median food/supplemental iron intakes were 14.3/0.0 mg/d. Relative risks of HFE genotypes were 12.9 (p.C282Y/p.H63D), 3.0 (p.H63D/p.H63D), 1.9 (p.C282Y/wt), 0.9 (p.H63D/wt), and 0.5 (wt/wt) compared to 42,640 white screening participants without IO phenotypes or p.C282Y/p.C282Y. Regression on SF revealed positive associations: MCV (p = 0.0006; β coefficient = 0.4531); swelling/tenderness of MCP joints (p = 0.0033; β = 0.3455); and p.H63D/wt (p = 0.0015; β = 0.4146). IO-related disease (18 elevated ALT/AST, one swelling/tenderness of MCP joints) occurred in 19 participants (7 men, 12 women). Median MCV was higher in participants with IO-related disease (97 fL vs. 94 fL; p = 0.0007). Logistic regression on IO-related disease revealed a significant association with diabetes (p = 0.0416; odds ratio 18.9 (95% confidence interval 1.0, 341.1)). CONCLUSIONS: In the present 58 screening program participants who had IO phenotypes without HFE p.C282Y/p.C282Y, relative risks of HFE genotypes p.C282Y/p.H63D, p.H63D/p.H63D, and p.C282Y/wt were significantly higher than in 42,640 white screening participants with neither IO phenotypes nor p.C282Y/p.C282Y. SF was significantly associated with MCV, swelling/tenderness of 2nd/3rd MCP joints, and p.H63D/wt. IO-related disease was significantly associated with MCV and diabetes.

123. Preoperative risk assessment and spirometry is a cost-effective strategy to reduce post-operative complications and mortality in Mexico.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Mares-Gutiérrez Y, Salinas-Escudero G, Aracena-Genao B

124. Assessing breast cancer awareness on reproductive age women in West Badewacho Woreda, Hadiyya Zone, South Ethiopia; Community based cross- sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Funga ML, Dilebo ZD, Shuramo AG

125. Evaluation of ocular biometry in the Japanese population using a multicenter approach: Prospective observational study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Kawamorita T, Uozato H, Oshika T

126. Disruptions, restorations and adaptations to health and nutrition service delivery in multiple states across India over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020: An observational study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Avula R, Nguyen PH, Ashok S

BACKGROUND: Modeling studies estimated severe impacts of potential service delivery disruptions due to COVID-19 pandemic on maternal and child nutrition outcomes. Although anecdotal evidence exists on disruptions, little is known about the actual state of service delivery at scale. We studied disruptions and restorations, challenges and adaptations in health and nutrition service delivery by frontline workers (FLWs) in India during COVID-19 in 2020. METHODS: We conducted phone surveys with 5500 FLWs (among them 3118 Anganwadi Workers) in seven states between August-October 2020, asking about service delivery during April 2020 (T1) and in August-October (T2), and analyzed changes between T1 and T2. We also analyzed health systems administrative data from 704 districts on disruptions and restoration of services between pre-pandemic (December 2019, T0), T1 and T2. RESULTS: In April 2020 (T1), village centers, fixed day events, child growth monitoring, and immunization were provided by <50% of FLWs in several states. Food supplementation was least disrupted. In T2, center-based services were restored by over a third in most states. Administrative data highlights geographic variability in both disruptions and restorations. Most districts had restored service delivery for pregnant women and children by T2 but had not yet reached T0 levels. Adaptations included home delivery (60 to 96%), coordinating with other FLWs (7 to 49%), and use of phones for counseling (~2 to 65%). Personal fears, long distances, limited personal protective equipment, and antagonistic behavior of beneficiaries were reported challenges. CONCLUSIONS: Services to mothers and children were disrupted during stringent lockdown but restored thereafter, albeit not to pre-pandemic levels. Rapid policy guidance and adaptations by FLWs enabled restoration but little remains known about uptake by client populations. As COVID-19 continues to surge in India, focused attention to ensuring essential services is critical to mitigate these major indirect impacts of the pandemic.

127. Model-based stationarity filtering of long-term memory data applied to resting-state blood-oxygen-level-dependent signal.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Bansal IR, Ashourvan A, Bertolero M

Resting-state blood-oxygen-level-dependent (BOLD) signal acquired through functional magnetic resonance imaging is a proxy of neural activity and a key mechanism for assessing neurological conditions. Therefore, practical tools to filter out artefacts that can compromise the assessment are required. On the one hand, a variety of tailored methods to preprocess the data to deal with identified sources of noise (e.g., head motion, heart beating, and breathing, just to mention a few) are in place. But, on the other hand, there might be unknown sources of unstructured noise present in the data. Therefore, to mitigate the effects of such unstructured noises, we propose a model-based filter that explores the statistical properties of the underlying signal (i.e., long-term memory). Specifically, we consider autoregressive fractional integrative process filters. Remarkably, we provide evidence that such processes can model the signals at different regions of interest to attain stationarity. Furthermore, we use a principled analysis where a ground-truth signal with statistical properties similar to the BOLD signal under the injection of noise is retrieved using the proposed filters. Next, we considered preprocessed (i.e., the identified sources of noise removed) resting-state BOLD data of 98 subjects from the Human Connectome Project. Our results demonstrate that the proposed filters decrease the power in the higher frequencies. However, unlike the low-pass filters, the proposed filters do not remove all high-frequency information, instead they preserve process-related higher frequency information. Additionally, we considered four different metrics (power spectrum, functional connectivity using the Pearson's correlation, coherence, and eigenbrains) to infer the impact of such filter. We provided evidence that whereas the first three keep most of the features of interest from a neuroscience perspective unchanged, the latter exhibits some variations that could be due to the sporadic activity filtered out.

128. Surface pre-reacted glass-ionomer eluate protects gingival epithelium from penetration by lipopolysaccharides and peptidoglycans via transcription factor EB pathway.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 27

Takeuchi H, Kato Y, Sasaki N

129. Prognostic role of PD-L1 expression in patients with salivary gland carcinoma: A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Wu L, Jiang C, Zhu Z

BACKGROUND: Although programmed cell death-ligand 1 (PD-L1) has been recognized as a potential marker in several cancers, the relationship between PD-L1 expression and survival in patients with salivary gland carcinoma (SGC) has remained unclear. We aimed to evaluate the association of PD-L1 expression with clinicopathological features and prognosis in SGC patients. METHODS: The databases Ovid Medline, PubMed, Scopus, and EMBASE were searched for relevant studies that detected PD-L1 expression in SGC. The meta-analysis was performed according to the preferred reporting items for systematic reviews and meta-analyses (PRISMA), and the reporting recommendations for tumor marker prognostic studies (REMARK) was used to assess the quality of research eligible for this meta-analysis. Included studies were assessed using the Quality in Prognosis Studies (QUIPS) tool. Odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were calculated to estimate the correlation between PD-L1 expression and clinicopathological features. Hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% CI were applied to assess the association between PD-L1 expression and survival outcomes of patients. RESULTS: A total of ten studies (including 952 patients with SGC) were evaluated. The meta-analysis showed that positive PD-L1 expression in SGC was significantly associated with male patients, older age, Tumor stage, lymph node metastasis, high pathological grade, and non-adenoid cystic carcinoma subtype. The pooled data demonstrated that high PD-L1 expression was associated with poor overall survival and disease-free survival. There was no significant correlation between PD-L1 expression and progression-free survival or disease-specific survival of SGC patients. CONCLUSION: According to the meta-analysis, positive PD-L1 expression may play an important role as an effective marker of poor prognosis in patients with SGC. However, large-scale, prospective investigations are still needed to confirm the findings. The assessment of PD-L1 expression may aid in the personalized management of SGC.

130. Cerebrospinal fluid features in comatose survivors of cardiac arrest: A pilot study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Paul M, Benghanem S, Merceron S

131. Association between retinal sensitivity and the presence of quiescent choroidal neovascularization in pachychoroid diseases.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Ozawa R, Azuma K, Nomura Y

132. Oropouche virus infection in patients with acute febrile syndrome: Is a predictive model based solely on signs and symptoms useful?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Durango-Chavez HV, Toro-Huamanchumo CJ, Silva-Caso W

133. Clinical profile of HIV-infected adults receiving a holistic approach of care model in Nakawa, Kampala District.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Sendaula E, Buwembo M, Opio D.

People Living with HIV (PLHIV) are often dealing with a range of issues that make life more difficult because of the limited emotional, spiritual, psychological, social, physical and clinical support which consequently lead to poor physical health and quality of life. The holistic care of individuals infected with HIV/AIDS involves promoting psychological and physiological well-being as well as fostering socio-cultural relationships and supporting the fulfillment of spiritual aspirations. We conducted a retrospective cross-sectional study among HIV-infected patients receiving a holistic approach of care model from January 2015 to December 2018 in Kampala district, Uganda. The study involved adult individuals aged 18 and above from whom demographics and other information were obtained. All eligible participants were selected using stratified random sampling from the parishes and systematic random sampling to select study participants. We investigated the clinical profile and the factors associated with viral load suppression among HIV-infected patients receiving a holistic approach of care model in Kampala District. The data was analyzed using STATA version 13. 0. Results: A total of 910 patients were enrolled. 676 (74.3%) were female; 453 (49.8%) were between 18 and 39 years. 324 (35.6%) were either overweight or obese. 769 (84.5%) had viral load beyond detectable limits, 904 (99.3%) were adhering to HIV treatment. 867(95.3%) were virally suppressed. The age group 40-59 years (Adjusted Odds Ratio (aOR) = 2.85, 95% Confidence Interval (CI):1.36-5.97, P = 0.005) and good adherence (aOR = 12.9, 95%CI:1.86-81.07, P = 0.009) were significantly associated with viral load suppression. Conclusion: The holistic care model supports patients in all facets of their lives, resulting into improved treatment outcomes. Our findings show that age and adherence are linked to viral load suppression among HIV-infected adults receiving a holistic approach of care model.

134. Influences of parental monitoring and school connectedness on age at first sexual debut among unmarried female youth in Bedele town, Ethiopia: A survival analysis of timing using accelerated failure time model.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Debele GR, Tsegaye D, Gemechu T

BACKGROUND: The age of first sexual debut among youth continues to attract interest as it marks the start of their exposure to a variety of sexual and reproductive health problems. Parental monitoring (PM) and school connectedness (SC) has been found to have an effect on this problem. Despite this fact, there is a dearth of literature on implications of PM and SC on age at first sexual debut in Ethiopia. Therefore, this paper examined the influences of PM and SC age at first sexual debut among female youth. METHODS: A retrospective follow-up study was conducted on 470 randomly selected female youth in Bedele town, Oromia regional state, southwest Ethiopia from February 1 to March 30, 2021. The age at first sexual debut was asked in full years for respondents who ever engaged in sexual debut at a time of data collection. Data were entered using Epi-Data version 4.6 and analyzed using Stata version 14. All variables at P-values less than 0.2 in bivariable analysis were exported to multivariable analysis. Multivariable Accelerated Failure Time (AFT) regression analyses using Weibull distribution were used to examine the association of age at first sexual debut with PM and SC at 5% level of significance. RESULTS: Overall, 132(28.1%) youths were begun sexual activities of which 79.54% was an early (vaginal penetrative sex before 18 years old). The incidence rate was 15.58/1000 PY with 95% CI of [13.14, 18.47]. The result shows that, female youth start first sexual debut as early as 10 year and mean age was 16.89±2.82. Only 27.97% of those who began sexual debut used contraception during first sex. Multivariable Weibull AFT regression analyses adjusted for different variables showed that high PM (Adjusted Time Ratio (ATR) 1.13: 95%CI; [1.04, 1.21]) and good SC (ATR: 1.14: 95% CI; [1.06, 1.22] significantly delays the age at first sexual debut. CONCLUSIONS: Overall, four out of every five premarital sexual activities were early sexual debuts. High PM and high SC significantly decrease early sexual debut by delaying the age of sexual initiation. Therefore, family and school involvement focused on PM and SC of the youth is recommended as an important mechanism for preventing youths' risky sexual behaviour, including early sexual debut.

135. Species specific morphological alterations in liver tissue after biliary occlusion in rat and mouse: Similar but different.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Richter B, Sänger C, Mussbach F

BACKGROUND: The selection of the appropriate species is one of the key issues in experimental medicine. Bile duct ligation is the mostly used experimental model in rodents to explore special aspects of occlusive cholestasis. We aimed to clarify if rats or mice are suitable for the same or different aspects in cholestasis research. METHODS: We induced biliary occlusion by ligation and transection of the common bile duct (tBDT) in rats and mice (each n = 25). Recovery from surgical stress was assessed by daily scoring (stress score, body weight). At five different time points (days 1, 3, 7, 14, 28 after tBDT) we investigated hepatic morphometric and architectural alterations (Haematoxylin-Eosin staining, Elastica van Gieson staining) and the proliferative activities of parenchyma cells (Bromodeoxyuridine staining); as well as established systemic markers for liver synthesis, hepatocellular damage and renal dysfunction. RESULTS: We found substantial differences regarding survival (rats: 100%, 25/25 vs. mice 92%, 22/25, p = 0.07) and body weight gain (p<0.05 at postoperative days 14 and 28 (POD)). Rats showed a faster and progressive hepatobiliary remodelling than mice (p<0.05 at POD 7+14+28), resulting in: i) stronger relative loss of hepatocellular mass (rats by 31% vs. mice by 15% until POD 28; p<0.05 at POD 7+14+28); ii) rapidly progressing liver fibrosis (p<0.05 at POD 14); iii) a faster and stronger proliferative response of parenchyma cells (hepatocytes: p<0.05 at POD 1+14+18; cholangiocytes: p<0.05 at POD 1+3+7+28); and iv) only tiny bile infarcts compared to mice (p<0.05 at POD 1+3+7+14). Both species showed comparable elevated markers of hepatocellular damage and serum bilirubin. CONCLUSION: The key difference between rats and mice are the severity and dynamics of histological alterations, possibly accounting for their different susceptibilities for (septic) complications with low survival (mice).

136. A human model of bilateral pulmonary vein sampling to assess the effects of one-lung ventilation on neutrophil function.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Funston W, Ruchaud-Sparagano MH, Scott J

BACKGROUND: Neutrophil activation drives lung complications after cardiopulmonary bypass (CPB). Evidence suggests the healthy, ventilated lung may beneficially re-condition pro-inflammatory neutrophils. However, evidence in humans is lacking, due to a paucity of good models. CPB with simultaneous central venous and bilateral pulmonary vein sampling provides an opportunity to model effects of one-lung ventilation. The study's primary objectives were to establish a model of intra-operative, bilateral pulmonary vein sampling and to determine whether neutrophil function differed after passing through inflated or deflated lungs. METHODS: Seventeen patients having "on pump" coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) with one-lung ventilation (in two cohorts with tidal volume 2ml kg-1 and FiO2 0.21, or tidal volume 4 ml kg-1 and FiO2 0.5 respectively) were recruited. Cohort 1 consisted of 9 patients (7 male, median age 62.0 years) and Cohort 2 consisted of 8 male patients (median age 65.5 years). Recruitment was via prospective screening of scheduled elective and non-elective CABG procedures with cardiopulmonary bypass. Each patient had five blood samples taken-central venous blood pre-operatively; central venous blood pre-CPB; central venous blood post-CPB; pulmonary venous blood draining the ventilated lung post-CPB; and pulmonary venous blood draining the deflated lung post-CPB. Neutrophil phagocytosis and priming status were quantified. Plasma cytokines were measured. RESULTS: Phagocytosis and priming were not significantly different in neutrophils returning from the ventilated lung as compared to the non-ventilated lung. Plasma IL-6, IL-8 and IL-10 were significantly elevated by CPB. CONCLUSIONS: The intra-operative, bilateral pulmonary vein sampling model provides unique opportunities to assess biological effects of interventions to one lung, with the other lung acting as an internal control. Single-lung ventilation during CPB had no significant effects on neutrophil function.

137. Broad Whitefish (Coregonus nasus) isotopic niches: Stable isotopes reveal diverse foraging strategies and habitat use in Arctic Alaska.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Leppi JC, Rinella DJ, Wipfli MS

Understanding the ecological niche of some fishes is complicated by their frequent use of a broad range of food resources and habitats across space and time. Little is known about Broad Whitefish (Coregonus nasus) ecological niches in Arctic landscapes even though they are an important subsistence species for Alaska's Indigenous communities. We investigated the foraging ecology and habitat use of Broad Whitefish via stable isotope analyses of muscle and liver tissue and otoliths from mature fish migrating in the Colville River within Arctic Alaska. The range of δ13C (-31.8- -21.9‰) and δ15N (6.6-13.1‰) across tissue types and among individuals overlapped with isotope values previously observed in Arctic lakes and rivers, estuaries, and nearshore marine habitat. The large range of δ18O (4.5-10.9‰) and δD (-237.6- -158.9‰) suggests fish utilized a broad spectrum of habitats across elevational and latitudinal gradients. Cluster analysis of muscle δ13C', δ15N, δ18O, and δD indicated that Broad Whitefish occupied four different foraging niches that relied on marine and land-based (i.e., freshwater and terrestrial) food sources to varying degrees. Most individuals had isotopic signatures representative of coastal freshwater habitat (Group 3; 25%) or coastal lagoon and delta habitat (Group 1; 57%), while individuals that mainly utilized inland freshwater (Group 4; 4%) and nearshore marine habitats (Group 2; 14%) represented smaller proportions. Otolith microchemistry confirmed that individuals with more enriched muscle tissue δ13C', δD, and δ18O tended to use marine habitats, while individuals that mainly used freshwater habitats had values that were less enriched. The isotopic niches identified here represent important foraging habitats utilized by Broad Whitefish. To preserve access to these diverse habitats it will be important to limit barriers along nearshore areas and reduce impacts like roads and climate change on natural flow regimes. Maintaining these diverse connected habitats will facilitate long-term population stability, buffering populations from future environmental and anthropogenic perturbations.

138. Minority stress theory applied to conception, pregnancy, and pregnancy loss: A qualitative study examining LGBTQ+ people's experiences.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Lacombe-Duncan A, Andalibi N, Roosevelt L

Many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender (trans), queer, and other sexual and gender minority (LGBTQ+) people desire to conceive children. Yet, LGBTQ+ peoples' experiences are scant in reproductive health literature, particularly around pregnancy loss-a stigmatized and distressing pregnancy outcome. Informed by minority stress theory, this qualitative study aimed to explore the experiences of multi-level stigma and resilience among LGBTQ+ people in the context of conception, pregnancy, and loss. Seventeen semi-structured individual interviews (25-70 minutes) were conducted (2019) with a purposive sample of LGBTQ+ people in the United States (U.S.) who had experienced pregnancy loss (n = 14) or in an intimate partnership in which a pregnancy was lost (n = 3) in the last two years. Transcribed interviews were analyzed thematically. Participants described the profound sadness of pregnancy loss due to unique challenges of LGBTQ+ conception. Multiple types of stigma manifested at intrapersonal (e.g., anticipated sexual stigma upon disclosure), interpersonal (e.g., unsolicited advice about conception decisions), and structural levels (e.g., differential requirements to access conception compared to heterosexual/cisgender couples). Resilience was also seen individually (e.g., purposeful disclosure of conception, pregnancy, and loss), relationally (e.g., connecting with other LGBTQ+ community members), and collectively (e.g., creating/engaging in LGBTQ+-specific conception, pregnancy, and loss online spaces). LGBTQ+ people experience minority stressors of multi-level stigmatization throughout the pregnancy process, which limits their access to social support after experiencing pregnancy loss. However, individual, relational, and collective resilience strategies abound in response. Thus, minority stress theory can also be applied to recognize strengths-based and affirming approaches to reproductive healthcare for LGBTQ+ people.

139. Association between visceral fat and influenza infection in Japanese adults: A population-based cross-sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Kinoshita K, Ozato N, Yamaguchi T

140. Short chain fatty acid, acetate restores ovarian function in experimentally induced PCOS rat model.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Olaniyi KS, Bashir AM, Areloegbe SE

141. Buckling suppression of a thin-walled Miura-origami patterned tube.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Liu Y, Cai J, Feng J.

142. Efficacy analysis of new copper complex for visible light (455, 530 nm) radical/cationic photopolymerization: The synergic effects and catalytic cycle.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Lin JT, Lalevee J, Cheng DC.

143. Unraveling the genomic regions controlling the seed vigour index, root growth parameters and germination per cent in rice.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 26

Barik SR, Pandit E, Sanghamitra P

144. Scientific collaboration, research funding, and novelty in scientific knowledge.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Shin H, Kim K, Kogler DF.

145. Urogenital schistosomiasis prevalence and diagnostic performance of urine filtration and urinalysis reagent strip in schoolchildren, Ethiopia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Deribew K, Yewhalaw D, Erko B

BACKGROUND: Urogenital schistosomiasis has been known to be endemic in several lowland areas of Ethiopia. It is caused by Schistosoma haematobium and causes considerable public health problems to schoolchildren. Ethiopia, after mapping the distribution of the disease (2013 to 2015), launched school-based mass deworming program to treat schoolchildren for schistosomiasis and soil-transmitted helminthiasis (STH) across the country since 2015. However, there is no recent information about the prevalence of the disease among schoolchildren in the current study areas. Diagnostic performance of urine filtration method and urinalysis reagent strip is also lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to determine the prevalence of urogenital schistosomiasis in schoolchildren, and to evaluate diagnostic performance of urine filtration and urinalysis reagent strip in Amibara, Kurmuk and Abobo districts, Ethiopia. METHODS: Across-sectional study was conducted involving 1,171 schoolchildren in Abobo, Amibara and Kurmuk districts from October, 2020 to January, 2021. The study participants were selected using random sampling technique. From each study participant, 10 ml urine samples were collected and examined using urine filtration method and urinalysis reagent strip. Data obtained from the survey were entered into Microsoft Excel 2010 and analysed with SPSS version 20.0. Data was summarized using descriptive statistics. Chi-square, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression and Pearson correlation test were used to measure associations between urogenital schistosomiasis, age, sex and haematuria. Odds ratio was used to measure strengths of association between variables. Agreement between urine filtration method and urinalysis reagent strip was determined using Kappa statistics. P-value < 0.05 at 95% CI was considered as statistically significant. RESULTS: Among the 1,171 urine samples from schoolchildren examined by urine filtration method, 143 (12.2%) were S.haematobium egg positive. Out of 143 positive children 126(88.1%) were lightly infected and 17 (11.9%) were heavily infected. Among the total of 1,171 urine samples tested by dipstick, 264(22.5%) were positive for haematuria. Prevalence of urogenital schistosomiasis by both urine filtration and urinalysis reagent strip method was higher in Abobo than Hassoba (Amibara) and Kurmuk (P< 0.001). The number of egg counts (intensity of infections) were significantly correlated with intensity of haematuria (r = 0.6, P < 0.001). Egg-positive children had significantly higher risk of having haematuria compared to S. haematobium egg negative children (OR; 6.96; 95%CI: 4.98, 8.940). Compared to urine filtration method, the sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value (PPV) and negative predictive values (NPV) of urinalysis reagent strip were 99.3%, 88.1%, 53.8% and 99.8%, respectively. Furthermore, its positive likelihood ratio (PLR) and negative likelihood ratio (NLR) were 8.34 and 0.008, respectively. The accuracy index and diagnostic odds ratio (DOR) of reagent strip were 0.89 and 1054, respectively. The agreement level between urine filtration methods and urinalysis reagent strip for detecting urogenital schistosomiasis was substantial (Kappa = 0.64). CONCLUSION: This study showed that urogenital schistosomiasis was prevalent in schoolchildren in Abobo, Hassoba and Kurmuk districts. Urogenital schistosomiasis prevalence in Hassoba-bure and Kurmuk falls under low category whereas moderate in Abobo and is almost four times compared to Kurmuk and Hassoba-bure. Chemotherapy is needed in schoolchildren in such endemic areas and other measures like access to safe water, improved sanitation, hygiene, and health education should be implemented to control and prevent schistosomiasis effectively. The sensitivity, specificity, positive and negative predictive values of urinalysis reagent strip were higher and could serve as alternative for mass screening of urogenital schistosomiasis, for surveillance and evaluation of schistosomiasis intervention programs.

146. Stunting among children under two years in Indonesia: Does maternal education matter?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Laksono AD, Wulandari RD, Amaliah N

147. DES-Amyloidoses "Amyloidoses through the looking-glass": A knowledgebase developed for exploring and linking information related to human amyloid-related diseases.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Bajic VP, Salhi A, Lakota K

148. Prevalence and risk factors of malaria and anaemia and the impact of preventive methods among pregnant women: A case study at the Akatsi South District in Ghana.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Ahadzie-Soglie A, Addai-Mensah O, Abaka-Yawson A

AIM: This study aimed to ascertain the prevalence and risk factors of malaria and anaemia as well as the impact of preventive methods among pregnant women at the Akatsi South District Hospital of Ghana. SUBJECTS AND METHODS: A hospital based cross-sectional study using simple random sampling technique was conducted among 200 pregnant women receiving antenatal care and laboratory services at the Akatsi District Hospital from May 2016 to July 2016. A semi-structured questionnaire was administered to obtain participants' malaria preventive methods in addition to demographic and gestational details. Participants' hemoglobin and malaria status were assessed using one milliliter (1 ml) whole blood collected from each participant following standard procedures. Factors that produced a p-value of ≤0.2 from the univariate model were included in the final model. Association between potential covariates and the outcomes was assessed using multivariate logistic regression. The Clopper-Pearson test statistic was used to determine the 95% confidence intervals of the outcome variables of interest. We also estimated the population attributable fraction (PAF) of anaemia due to malaria by substituting the adjusted relative risk estimates (RRi) (using the adjrr command in STATA) of anaemia due to malaria into the category-specific attributable formula. P-values of <0.05 were considered statistically significant. RESULTS: Prevalence of anaemia in pregnancy (AiP), malaria in pregnancy (MiP) and AiP/MiP comorbidity was 63.5% (95% CI:56.4-70.2), 11.0% (96% CI:7.0-16.2) and 10.5% (95% CI:6.6-15.6) respectively. Prevalence rates of AiP (66.7%) and MiP (18.5%) predominated among pregnant women aged < 20 years. PAF of AiP due to MiP was 34.5% (95% CI:23.8-43.6). High use of IPTp-SP, 64.0% (95% CI:56.9-70.6) and LLIN, 90.0% (95% CI:85.0-93.8) was observed in this study. Only 42.0% (95% CI:35.1-49.2) used repellent. Not being on the IPTp-SP program posed a 11.70 times risk of MiP (95% CI:2.32-58.96; p = 0.003) compared to pregnant women on the IPTp-SP program. Similarly, not sleeping under LLIN posed an 8.07 times risk of MiP (95% CI:1.98-32.2; p = 0.004) compared to pregnant women who slept under LLIN. Meanwhile, being positive for MiP posed a 12.10 times risk (95% CI:1.35-85.06; p = 0.025) of AiP compared to those negative for malaria whereas failure to attend ANC as scheduled posed 6.34 times risk (95% CI:1.81-22.19; p = 0.004) of AiP among the pregnant women studied. CONCLUSION: The prevalence of MiP and AiP among pregnant women in the Akatsi South District remains a great concern. High utilization of IPTp-SP and LLIN was observed with a resultant positive effect on malaria prevalence among pregnant women. Improved access to IPTp-SP and LLIN is hence encouraged to help further diminish the risk of malaria infection amongst pregnant women in the District.

149. How does risk information dissemination affect risk contagion in the interbank market?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Li Z, Liu X.

150. Developing a decision instrument to guide abdominal-pelvic imaging of blunt trauma patients: Methodology and protocol of the NEXUS abdominal-pelvic imaging study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Raja AS, Rodriguez RM, Gupta M

Although computed tomography (CT) of the abdomen and pelvis (A/P) can provide crucial information for managing blunt trauma patients, liberal and indiscriminant imaging is expensive, can delay critical interventions, and unnecessarily exposes patients to ionizing radiation. Currently no definitive recommendations exist detailing which adult blunt trauma patients should receive A/P CT imaging and which patients may safely forego CT. Considerable benefit could be realized by identifying clinical criteria that reliably classify the risk of abdominal and pelvic injuries in blunt trauma patients. Patients identified as "very low risk" by such criteria would be free of significant injury, receive no benefit from imaging and therefore could be safely spared the expense and radiation exposure associated with A/P CT. The goal of this two-phase nationwide multicenter observational study is to derive and validate the use of clinical criteria to stratify the risk of injuries to the abdomen and pelvis among adult blunt trauma patients. We estimate that nation-wide implementation of a rigorously developed decision instrument could safely reduce CT imaging of adult blunt trauma patients by more than 20%, and reduce annual radiographic charges by $180 million, while simultaneously expediting trauma care and decreasing radiation exposure with its attendant risk of radiation-induced malignancy. Prior to enrollment we convened an expert panel of trauma surgeons, radiologists and emergency medicine physicians to develop a consensus definition for clinically significant abdominal and pelvic injury. In the first derivation phase of the study, we will document the presence or absence of preselected candidate criteria, as well as the presence or absence of significant abdominal or pelvic injuries in a cohort of blunt trauma victims. Using recursive partitioning, we will examine combinations of these criteria to identify an optimal "very low risk" subset that identifies injuries with a sensitivity exceeding 98%, excludes injury with a negative predictive value (NPV) greater than 98%, and retains the highest possible specificity and potential to decrease imaging. In Phase 2 of the study we will validate the performance of a decision rule based on these criteria among a new cohort of patients to ensure that the criteria retain high sensitivity, NPV and optimal specificity. Validating the sensitivity of the decision instrument with high statistical precision requires evaluations on 317 blunt trauma patients who have significant abdominal-pelvic injuries, which will in turn require evaluations on approximately 6,340 blunt trauma patients. We will estimate potential reductions in CT imaging by counting the number of abdominal-pelvic CT scans performed on "very low risk" patients. Reductions in charges and radiation exposure will be determined by respectively summing radiographic charges and lifetime decreases in radiation morbidity and mortality for all "very low risk" cases. Trial registration: Clinicaltrials.gov trial registration number: NCT04937868.

151. Investigating racial bias within Australian rules football commentary.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

MacLeod SA, Newall PWS.

152. Post-vaccination antibody evaluation for nosocomial SARS-CoV-2 delta variant breakthrough infection.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Goto T, Tani N, Ikematsu H

Waning humoral immunity after mRNA vaccination against severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) is a significant problem for public health. Breakthrough infection in hospitals over several months after vaccination has not been fully characterized, especially against the delta (B.1.617.2) variant. Here, we describe an outbreak in our hospital in September of 2021, mainly through serological evaluation of the breakthrough infection. This retrospective observational study was done at an emergency and acute care hospital with 204 beds and 486 staff members where most staff members (92.6%) had had their second BNT162b2 vaccination by May of 2021. The peri-infection anti-spike RBD protein IgG (anti-S IgG) titers (lowest values between 11 days before and 7 days after onset or diagnosis) of serum samples from the breakthrough-infected persons were quantified. We also logarithmically estimated the anti-S IgG titers during the exposure period in September of uninfected staff members from their samples collected in May and December 2021. Whole-genome sequencing was done on obtained samples. In this outbreak, twelve persons (ten inpatients and two staff members) were diagnosed with SARS-CoV-2 infection by Loop-Mediated Isothermal Amplification (LAMP) or RT-PCR, eight of whom had been vaccinated twice. Peri-infection anti-S IgG titers could be determined in seven of the eight breakthrough cases, with a geometric mean titer (GMT) of 1,034 AU/ml (95% confidence interval [CI], 398 to 2,686). Among 289 uninfected staff members with data from the two sampling points, the GMT of the estimated anti-S IgG titers during the exposure period in 51 staff members, who were working at the outbreak ward and potentially exposed but uninfected, and 238 other unexposed staff members were 1,458 AU/ml (95% CI, 1,196 to 1,777) and 1,628 AU/ml (95% CI, 1,500 to 1,766), respectively. All viruses from the eight samples for which whole-genome sequencing was available were identified as delta variants. Of the infected persons, one remained asymptomatic throughout the course of treatment, and eleven had an illness of mild to moderate severity, including ten who received monoclonal antibody cocktail (Casirivimab/imdevimab) therapy. Measurement and estimation of anti-spike antibody levels after SARS-CoV-2 vaccination would be helpful for evaluating the risk of breakthrough infection and for determining the necessity of booster vaccination.

153. An electronic transition-based bare bones particle swarm optimization algorithm for high dimensional optimization problems.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Tian H, Guo J, Xiao H

154. Food security management in developing countries: Influence of economic factors on their food availability and access.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Bozsik N, Cubillos T JP, Stalbek B

155. Autism-spectrum traits in neurotypicals predict the embodiment of manipulation knowledge about object concepts: Evidence from eyetracking.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Davis CP, Eigsti IM, Healy R

Sensorimotor-based theories of cognition predict that even subtle developmental motor differences, such as those characterizing autism spectrum disorder (ASD), impact how we represent the meaning of manipulable objects (e.g., faucet). Here, we test 85 neurotypical participants, who varied widely on the Adult Autism Spectrum Quotient (AQ), a measure intended to capture variability in ASD characteristics in the general adult population (participant scores were all below the clinical threshold for autism). Participants completed a visual world eyetracking task designed to assess the activation of conceptual representations of manipulable objects. Participants heard words referring to manually manipulable objects (e.g., faucet) while we recorded their eye movements to arrays of four objects: the named object, a related object typically manipulated similarly (e.g., jar), and two unrelated objects. Consistent with prior work, we observed more looks to the related object than to the unrelated ones (i.e., a manipulation-relatedness effect). This effect likely reflects the overlapping conceptual representations of objects sharing manipulation characteristics (e.g., faucet and jar), due to embodied sensorimotor properties being part of their representations. Critically, we observed-among typically developed young adults-that as AQ scores increased, manipulation-relatedness effects decreased. In contrast, in a visual control condition, in which a target object was paired with related objects of a similar shape (e.g., snake and rope), relatedness effects increased with AQ scores. The results show that AQ scores can predict variation in how object-concept representations are activated for typically developed individuals. More speculatively, they are consistent with the hypothesis that in individuals with ASD, differences in object-concept representations emerge at least in part via differences in sensorimotor experience.

156. Diversity impact on organizational performance: Moderating and mediating role of diversity beliefs and leadership expertise.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Turi JA, Khastoori S, Sorooshian S

157. Comparing timelines and evidence available to support new TB, HIV, and HCV drug approvals: The same, only different.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

LaHood A, Rahman R, McKenna L

BACKGROUND: Tuberculosis (TB), human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), and hepatitis C virus (HCV) share a global presence and propensity to disproportionately affect marginalized populations. However, over recent decades, many fewer drugs have been brought to market for TB than for the others. Although three new anti-TB drugs have been approved in the US or Europe in the last 10 years, uptake of these drugs has been limited. Using case examples of drugs developed recently for TB, HIV, and HCV, we explore possible reasons. We examine the use and effect of regulatory pathways intended to address weak economic incentives in the face of urgent, unmet needs; evaluate the extent of data underpinning authorizations for these indications; document development timelines and evidence available at the time of each approval; consider explanations for observed differences; and discuss the implications for clinical guidelines and use. METHODS AND FINDINGS: For each indication, we selected two drugs: one recently approved and one approved between 2012 and 2014, when the first new anti-TB drug from a novel class in more than 40 years received marketing authorization. We calculated time from first published peer-reviewed evidence of activity to date of approval; the number of phase 1, 2, and 3 trials; the number of trial participants randomized to treatment arms containing the drug; and the total number of participants in each trial from the individual drug approval packages. We found that the two TB drugs took longer to gain approval (8.0 and 19.2 years for bedaquiline and pretomanid, respectively) despite availing of special regulatory pathways meant to expedite approval, when compared to the HIV (2.6 years for dolutegravir and 4.7 years for doravirine) and HCV drugs (3.2 and 1.6 years for sofosbuvir and glecaprevir/pibrentasvir, respectively). Moreover, fewer participants were studied prior to TB drug approvals (380 and 879) than prior to approvals for HIV (1598 and 979) and for HCV (2291 and 2448) drugs. CONCLUSIONS: The dramatic disparities observed in TB drug development reaffirm the importance of several actions. Increased investment in TB research and development is necessary to rapidly advance drugs through the pipeline. Development plans and partnerships must provide safety and efficacy evidence on combinations and durations that are relevant to real-world use in heterogeneous populations. Reliable, validated surrogate markers of relapse-free cure are essential to decrease the duration and cost of TB treatment trials and increase the confidence and speed with which new regimens can advance. Lastly, regulators and normative bodies must maintain high evidentiary standards for authorization while ensuring timely and broad approval for TB drugs and regimens.

158. Investigation on Pollution Control Device (PCD) in iron foundry industry to reduce environmental chemicals.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 25

Ramaswamy K, Jule LT, N N

159. Improving extractive document summarization with sentence centrality.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Gong S, Zhu Z, Qi J

160. The peripheral blood mononuclear cells preparation and the hematology of Varanus salvator.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Thanasak J, Tansatit T, Taowan J

161. Covid and mental health in America.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Blanchflower DG, Bryson A.

162. Effect of switching from nucleos(t)ide maintenance therapy to PegIFN alfa-2a in patients with HBeAg-positive chronic hepatitis B: A randomized trial.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Woo HY, Heo J, Tak WY

163. Testing for Benford's Law in very small samples: Simulation study and a new test proposal.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Cerasa A.

164. Translation, cross-cultural adaptation, and validation of the Chinese version of self-efficacy and attitudes for providing Mouth Care scale.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Chen L, Gu L, Li X

BACKGROUND: In recent years, oral care for older people has received extensive attention in long-term care facilities. The Self-Efficacy for Providing Mouth Care (SE-PMC) and Attitudes for Providing Mouth Care (A-PMC) scale evaluated the self-efficacy and attitude of nursing staff while providing oral care. However, whether this scale is valid and reliable for Chinese nursing staff in China remains unverified. This study aims to translate the English version of SE-PMC and A-PMC into Chinese and determine their reliability and validity. METHODS: After obtaining the author's consent, the procedure for a double-back translation and cross-cultural adaptation was conducted to develop the Chinese version of SE-PMC and A-PMC. The validity and reliability of the Chinese version of SE-PMC and A-PMC were evaluated in a cross-sectional observational study with 852 nurses from 42 Geriatric Care Facilities (GCFs). Exploratory factor analysis (EFA) (n = 427) and confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) (n = 425) were conducted to test the construct validity and quality of the factor structures. We applied the item discrimination test and homogeneity test for item analysis. Cronbach's alpha coefficient and split-half coefficient were adopted to evaluate internal consistency. RESULTS: The Chinese version of SE-PMC (11 items, 3 factors) and A-PMC (11 items, 2 factors) included 22 items, reflecting adequate construct validity and reliability. In addition, test-retest reliability was 0.809 for SE-PMC and 0.811 for A-PMC, evincing good stability. The Cronbach's α coefficient of SE-PMC was 0.831, with each factor ranging from 0.793~0.906. The Cronbach's α coefficient of the A-PMC was 0.768, with each factor ranging from 0.814~0.824. Item-Content Validity Index (I-CVI) of SE-PMC and A-PMC ranged from 0.84 ~1.00 and 0.82~1.00, respectively. CONCLUSION: The Chinese version of SE-PMC and A-PMC was validated as a reliable assessment tool to evaluate the self-efficacy and attitude of nursing staff in GCFs for providing oral care in China.

165. Ligamentization of the reconstructed ACL differs between the intraarticular and intraosseous regions: A quantitative assessment using UTE-T2* mapping.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Yoshimizu R, Nakase J, Okuda M

166. Hospital length of stay among children with and without congenital anomalies across 11 European regions-A population-based data linkage study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Urhoj SK, Tan J, Morris JK

BACKGROUND: Congenital anomalies are a leading cause of childhood morbidity, but little is known about the long-term outcomes. OBJECTIVE: To quantify the burden of disease in childhood for children with congenital anomalies by assessing the risk of hospitalisation, the number of days spent in hospital and proportion of children with extended stays (≥10 days). METHODS: European population-based record-linkage study in 11 regions in eight countries including children with congenital anomalies (EUROCAT children) and without congenital anomalies (reference children) living in the same regions. The children were born between 1995 and 2014 and were followed to their tenth birthday or 31/12/2015. European meta-analyses of the outcome measures were performed by two age groups, <1 year and 1-4 years. RESULTS: 99,416 EUROCAT children and 2,021,772 reference children were linked to hospital databases. Among EUROCAT children, 85% (95%-CI: 79-90%) were hospitalised in the first year and 56% (95%-CI: 51-61%) at ages 1-4 years, compared to 31% (95%-CI: 26-37%) and 25% (95%-CI: 19-31%) of the reference children. Median length of stay was 2-3 times longer for EUROCAT children in both age groups. The percentages of children with extended stays (≥10 days) in the first year were 24% (95%-CI: 20-29%) for EUROCAT children and 1% (95%-CI: 1-2%) for reference children. The median length of stay varied greatly between congenital anomaly subgroups, with children with gastrointestinal anomalies and congenital heart defects having the longest stays. CONCLUSIONS: Children with congenital anomalies were more frequently hospitalised and median length of stay was longer. The outlook improves after the first year. Parents of children with congenital anomalies should be informed about the increased hospitalisations required for their child's care and the impact on family life and siblings, and they should be adequately supported.

167. The association of different target temperatures in targeted temperature management with neurological outcome after out-of-hospital cardiac arrest based on a prospective multicenter observational study in Korea (the KORHN-PRO registry): IPTW analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Kim HJ, Youn CS, Park KN

168. Temporal relationships among role stress, staff burnout, and residents' behavioral problems: A 2-year longitudinal study in child care homes in Hong Kong.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Fong TCT, Ho RTH, Fong JCY.

169. Structural insights into the RNA interaction with Yam bean Mosaic virus (coat protein) from Pachyrhizus erosus using bioinformatics approach.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Acharya V, Arutselvan R, Pati K

Plants are constantly threatened by a virus infection, i.e., Potyviruses, the second largest genus of plant viruses which results in several million-dollar losses in various essential crops globally. Yam bean (Pachyrhizus erosus) is considered to be one of the essential tuberous legume crops holding a great potential source of starch. Yam Bean Mosaic Virus (YBMV) of Potyvirus group belonging to the family potyviridae affects Yam bean and several angiosperms both in the tropical and sub-tropical regions causing large economical losses in crops. In this study, we attempted to understand the sequence-structure relationship and mode of RNA binding mechanism in YBMV CP using in silico integrative modeling and all-atoms molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. The assembly of coat protein (CP) subunits from YBMV and the plausible mode of RNA binding were compared with the experimental structure of CP from Watermelon mosaic virus potyvirus (5ODV). The transmembrane helix region is present in the YBMV CP sequence ranging from 76 to 91 amino acids. Like the close structural-homolog, 24 CPs monomeric sub-units formed YBMV a conserved fold. Our computational study showed that ARG124, ARG155, and TYR151 orient towards the inner side of the virion, while, THR122, GLN125, SER92, ASP94 reside towards the outer side of the virion. Despite sharing very low sequence similarity with CPs from other plant viruses, the strongly conserved residues Ser, Arg, and Asp within the RNA binding pocket of YBMV CP indicate the presence of a highly conserved RNA binding site in CPs from different families. Using several bioinformatics tools and comprehensive analysis from MD simulation, our study has provided novel insights into the RNA binding mechanism in YBMV CP. Thus, we anticipate that our findings from this study will be useful for the development of new therapeutic agents against the pathogen, paving the way for researchers to better control this destructive plant virus.

170. Dose dependence of Phasmarhabditis isolates (P. hermaphrodita, P. californica, P. papillosa) on the mortality of adult invasive white garden snails (Theba pisana).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Schurkman J, De Ley IT, Dillman AR.

171. Utilizing virtual experiments to increase understanding of discrepancies involving in vitro-to-in vivo predictions of hepatic clearance.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Krishnan P, Smith AK, Ropella GEP

Predictions of xenobiotic hepatic clearance in humans using in vitro-to-in vivo extrapolation methods are frequently inaccurate and problematic. Multiple strategies are being pursued to disentangle responsible mechanisms. The objective of this work is to evaluate the feasibility of using insights gained from independent virtual experiments on two model systems to begin unraveling responsible mechanisms. The virtual culture is a software analog of hepatocytes in vitro, and the virtual human maps to hepatocytes within a liver within an idealized model human. Mobile objects (virtual compounds) map to amounts of xenobiotics. Earlier versions of the two systems achieved quantitative validation targets for intrinsic clearance (virtual culture) and hepatic clearance (virtual human). The major difference between the two systems is the spatial organization of the virtual hepatocytes. For each pair of experiments (virtual culture, virtual human), hepatocytes are configured the same. Probabilistic rules govern virtual compound movements and interactions with other objects. We focus on highly permeable virtual compounds and fix their extracellular unbound fraction at one of seven values (0.05-1.0). Hepatocytes contain objects that can bind and remove compounds, analogous to metabolism. We require that, for a subset of compound properties, per-hepatocyte compound exposure and removal rates during culture experiments directly predict corresponding measures made during virtual human experiments. That requirement serves as a cross-system validation target; we identify compound properties that enable achieving it. We then change compound properties, ceteris paribus, and provide model mechanism-based explanations for when and why measures made during culture experiments under- (or over-) predict corresponding measures made during virtual human experiments. The results show that, from the perspective of compound removal, the organization of hepatocytes within virtual livers is more efficient than within cultures, and the greater the efficiency difference, the larger the underprediction. That relationship is noteworthy because most in vitro-to-in vivo extrapolation methods abstract away the structural organization of hepatocytes within a liver. More work is needed on multiple fronts, including the study of an expanded variety of virtual compound properties. Nevertheless, the results support the feasibility of the approach and plan.

172. Kinetics of Bovine leukemia virus aspartic protease reveals its dimerization and conformational change.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Fló M, Carrión F, Olivero-Deibe N

173. Human T-Lymphotropic virus type 1 and human immunodeficiency virus co-infection in rural Gabon.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 22

Mouinga-Ondémé A, Boundenga L, Koumba Koumba IP

174. MicroRNA profiles for different tissues from calves challenged with Mycoplasma bovis or challenged with Mycoplasma bovis and bovine viral diarrhea virus.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Casas E, Falkenberg SM, Dassanayake RP

175. Incidence, predictors and re-treatment outcomes of recurrent myopic choroidal neo-vascularization.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Jain M, Narayanan R, Jana P

OBJECTIVES: To evaluate incidence, predictors, and re-treatment outcome of recurrent myopic choroidal neovascularization (m-CNV). METHODS: Retrospective consecutive observational series. From year 2014 to 2019, 167 eyes of 167 patients of treatment naïve m-CNV were enrolled. 59 and 108 eyes were treated with intra-vitreal ranibizumab and bevacizumab mono-therapy, respectively. Recurrence was defined as re-appearance of CNV activity, confirmed on optical coherence tomography (OCT) after at least 3 months of cessation of anti-VEGF therapy. Incidence of recurrence, predictors and re-treatment outcomes were studied. RESULTS: Overall, mean age and spherical equivalence (SE) was 47.95 ± 14.72 years and -12.19 ± 4.93 D respectively. Males constituted 50.9%. 44 eyes (26.4%) had a recurrence during a mean follow up of 16.5 ± 12.86 months. Kaplan-Meier survival analysis showed the risk of recurrence was 8, 26 and, 33.6% at 6, 12 and 18 months, respectively. Age (p = 0.511), gender (p = 0.218), SE (p = 0.092), anti-VEGF (p = 0.629) and baseline BCVA (p = 0.519) did not influence recurrence. Number of injections administered to control the disease in the first episode was the only significant predictor of recurrence (Cox Proportional Hazard Ratio 2.89-3.07, 95% Confidence Interval: 1.28-7.45; p = 0.005). At 12 months, eyes requiring one injection in first episode had a recurrence rate of 12% versus 45% in eyes requiring 3 or more injections in the first episode. A mean number of 1.9 additional injections per eye was needed during re-treatment. Final BCVA in the recurrence group was similar to that of non-recurrence group (0.53 ± 0.40 versus 0.55 ± 0.36 LogMAR; p = 0.755). Baseline BCVA (p = 0.0001) was the only predictor of final visual outcome irrespective of anti-VEGF drug (p = 0.38). CONCLUSION: Eyes requiring greater number of injections for disease control in first episode are "at risk" of early m-CNV recurrence. However, recurrence does not adversely affect visual outcome, if treated adequately.

176. Reference curve sampling variability in one-sample log-rank tests.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Danzer MF, Feld J, Faldum A

177. Ultrasonographic and cytologic assessments of follicular neoplasms of the thyroid: Predictive features differentiating follicular carcinoma from follicular adenoma.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Ahn HS, Kim HS, Hong MJ.

178. Predicting age and gender from network telemetry: Implications for privacy and impact on policy.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Kuang L, Pobbathi S, Mansury Y

The systematic monitoring of private communications through the use of information technology pervades the digital age. One result of this is the potential availability of vast amount of data tracking the characteristics of mobile network users. Such data is becoming increasingly accessible for commercial use, while the accessibility of such data raises questions about the degree to which personal information can be protected. Existing regulations may require the removal of personally-identifiable information (PII) from datasets before they can be processed, but research now suggests that powerful machine learning classification methods are capable of targeting individuals for personalized marketing purposes, even in the absence of PII. This study aims to demonstrate how machine learning methods can be deployed to extract demographic characteristics. Specifically, we investigate whether key demographics-gender and age-of mobile users can be accurately identified by third parties using deep learning techniques based solely on observations of the user's interactions within the network. Using an anonymized dataset from a Latin American country, we show the relative ease by which PII in terms of the age and gender demographics can be inferred; specifically, our neural networks model generates an estimate for gender with an accuracy rate of 67%, outperforming decision tree, random forest, and gradient boosting models by a significant margin. Neural networks achieve an even higher accuracy rate of 78% in predicting the subscriber age. These results suggest the need for a more robust regulatory framework governing the collection of personal data to safeguard users from predatory practices motivated by fraudulent intentions, prejudices, or consumer manipulation. We discuss in particular how advances in machine learning have chiseled away a number of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) articles designed to protect consumers from the imminent threat of privacy violations.

179. Individual and community-level determinates of risky sexual behaviors among sexually active unmarried men: A multilevel analysis of 2016 Ethiopian Demographic and Health Survey.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Diress G, Adane S, Linger M

BACKGROUND: In Ethiopia, HIV/AIDS continues to be a major public health problem mostly due to the high prevalence of risky sexual behaviors. However, research on risky sexual behavior and its determinants among unmarried men (never married, widowed, and divorced) who are highly vulnerable to risky sexual behavior was limited. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the magnitude of risky sexual behavior and its determinants among non-married men using a nationally representative sample. METHODS: The analysis was done on 5680 sexually active unmarried men aged 15-59 years using data from the 2016 Ethiopia Demographic Health Survey (EDHS). The main outcome variable was risky sexual behavior which defined as having at least one of the following: multiple sexual partners; initiation of sex before the age of 18 years; inconsistent condom use in the last 12 months; alcohol consumption at last sex. Multivariable generalized linear mixed-effects regression was employed to identify variables associated with risky sexual behavior. RESULT: The overall magnitude of risky sexual behavior was 26.9% (95% CI; 25.7, 28.0). Currently employed (AOR = 2.49, 95% CI = 1.64-3.77), history of HIV testing (AOR = 2.51, 95% C = 1.95-3.23), drinking alcohol almost every day (AOR = 5.49, 95 CI = 2.73-11.02), and using Internet daily (AOR = 1.99, 95% CI = 1.06-3.74) increase the odds of risky sexual behavior. Whereas, primary education (AOR = 0.44, 95% CI = 0.32-0.61), secondary education level (AOR = 0.46, 95% CI = 0.29-0.72) and a high proportion of community-level media exposure (AOR = 0.42, 95% CI = 0.12-0.75) decrease the odds of risky sexual behavior. CONCLUSION: In general, a significant proportion of sexually active unmarried men in Ethiopia have practiced risky sexual behavior. An intervention should be designed which are against the factors found to increase the odds of risky sexual behavior to reduce the incidence of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

180. Analysis of epidemiological association patterns of serum thyrotropin by combining random forests and Bayesian networks.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Becker AK, Ittermann T, Dörr M

181. A comprehensive approach to predicting weight gain and therapy response in psychopharmacologically treated major depressed patients: A cohort study protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Simon MS, Barton BB, Glocker C

BACKGROUND: A subgroup of patients with Major Depressive Disorder shows signs of low-grade inflammation and metabolic abberances, while antidepressants can induce weight gain and subsequent metabolic disorders, and lacking antidepressant response is associated with inflammation. OBJECTIVES: A comprehensive investigation of patient phenotypes and their predictive capability for weight gain and treatment response after psychotropic treatment will be performed. The following factors will be analyzed: inflammatory and metabolic markers, gut microbiome composition, lifestyle indicators (eating behavior, physical activity, chronotype, patient characteristics (childhood adversity among others), and polygenic risk scores. METHODS: Psychiatric inpatients with at least moderate Major Depressive Disorder will be enrolled in a prospective, observational, naturalistic, monocentric study using stratified sampling. Ethical approval was obtained. Primary outcomes at 4 weeks will be percent weight change and symptom score change on the Montgomery Asberg Depression Rating Scale. Both outcomes will also be binarized into clinically relevant outcomes at 5% weight gain and 50% symptom score reduction. Predictors for weight gain and treatment response will be tested using multiple hierachical regression for continuous outcomes, and multiple binary logistic regression for binarized outcomes. Psychotropic premedication, current medication, eating behavior, baseline BMI, age, and sex will be included as covariates. Further, a comprehensive analysis will be carried out using machine learning. Polygenic risk scores will be added in a second step to estimate the additional variance explained by genetic markers. Sample size calculation yielded a total amount of N = 171 subjects. DISCUSSION: Patient and physician expectancies regarding the primary outcomes and non-random sampling may affect internal validity and external validity, respectively. Through the prospective and naturalistic design, results will gain relevance to clinical practice. Examining the predictive value of patient profiles for weight gain and treatment response during pharmacotherapy will allow for targeted adjustments before and concomitantly to the start of treatment.

182. Carers' and health workers' perspectives on malnutrition in infants aged under six months in rural Ethiopia: A qualitative study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Jibat N, Rana R, Negesse A

OBJECTIVES: Supporting small and nutritionally at-risk (potentially malnourished) infants under six months is a global health priority, albeit with a weak evidence-base. To inform policy and research in this area, we aimed to assess the perceptions and understanding of infant malnutrition and its management among carers, communities, and healthcare workers in rural Ethiopia. METHODS: We conducted in-depth and key-informant interviews, from May-August 2020 in Jimma Zone and Deder District, Ethiopia. We used purposive sampling to recruit the participants. Interviews were transcribed into Amharic or Afaan Oromo and then translated into English. Atlas ti-7 was used to support data analysis. Findings were narrated based on the different themes arising from the interviews. RESULTS: Carers/community members and healthcare workers reported on five different themes: 1) Perceptions about health and well-being: an 'ideal infant' slept well, fed well, was active and looked 'fat'; 2)Perceptions of feeding: overall knowledge of key recommendations like exclusive breastfeeding was good but practices were suboptimal, notably a cultural practice to give water to young infants; 3)Awareness about malnutrition: a key limitation was knowledge of exactly how to identify small and nutritionally at-risk infants; 4) Reasons for malnutrition: levels of understanding varied and included feeding problems and caregiver's work pressures resulting in the premature introduction of complementary feeds; 5) Perceptions about identification & treatment: carers prefer treatment close to home but were concerned about the quality of community-based services. CONCLUSION: To succeed, research projects that investigate programes that manage small and nutritionally at-risk infants under six months should understand and be responsive to the culture and context in which they operate. They should build on community strengths and tackle misunderstandings and barriers. Interventions beyond just focusing on knowledge and attitude of the carers and health workers are necessary to tackle the challenges around infants under 6 months of age at risk of malnutrition. Moreover, stakeholders beyond the health sector should also be involved in order to support the infants under 6 months and their mothers as some of the key reasons behind the at-risk infants are just beyond the capacity of the health sector or health system. Our list of themes could be used to inform infant nutrition work not just in Ethiopia but also in many others.

183. I just felt supported": Transgender and non-binary patient perspectives on receiving transition-related healthcare in family planning clinics.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Ingraham N, Fox L, Gonzalez AL

184. Effectiveness of couple education and counseling on knowledge, attitude and uptake of cervical cancer screening service among women of child bearing age in Southern Ethiopia: A cluster randomized trial protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Ayanto SY, Belachew T, Wordofa MA.

BACKGROUND: Cervical cancer occurred nearly in 570 000 women and 311 000 women died from the disease worldwide in 2018. Of the new cases diagnosed globally in 2012, approximately 85% of the burden took place in low- and middle-income countries. Human Papilloma virus is the necessary cause for the development of cervical cancer and the majority of these infections resolves naturally but progress to precancerous lesions whenever there is persistence and delay in treatment. Majority of the cervical cancer cases, over 80% in sub-Saharan Africa including Ethiopia, have been detected at a late stage mainly due to poor early preventive measures. Therefore, utilization of early preventive measures could increase timely detection and treatment of precancerous changes and significantly reduce morbidity & mortality due to advanced disease. METHODS: In this interventional study we will randomly assign 16 clusters (kebeles) in to the intervention and the control arm using block randomization. The study will employ a cluster randomized controlled trial. Women are eligible to participate in this study when they satisfy certain eligibility criteria; being in the age range of 30-49 years, no history of hysterectomy, did not receive cervical cancer or pre-cancer treatment and non-pregnant. Home based couple education and counseling will be provided to the eligible participants within the intervention group, while the control group receives standard of care. Base line and end line surveys will be completed by interviewing 288 eligible women to evaluate the effect of couple education and counseling on the knowledge, attitude and cervical cancer screening uptake. Generally the intervention lasts for six months. The results of baseline & end line surveys will be compared between the groups to determine the effectiveness of the intervention. Blinding is not possible due to the clustering of the trial arms. DISCUSSION: Findings of the study will inform the regional or national scale up of the intervention modality to achieve the screening targets set by the Ethiopian government and world health organization. TRIAL REGISTRATION: PACTR, PACTR202108529472385. Registered on 05 August 2021, https://pactr.samrc.ac.za/TrialDisplay.aspx?TrialID=16037.

185. Physical strain while wearing personal radiation protection systems in interventional radiology.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Koenig AM, Schweer A, Sasse D

186. Motivations and barriers for healthy participants to participate in herbal remedy clinical trial in Tanzania: A qualitative study based on the theory of planned behaviour.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Kassimu KR, Milando FA, Omolo JJ

BACKGROUND: The success of any randomized clinical trial relies on the willingness of people to be recruited in the trial. However, 90% of all clinical trials worldwide have been reported to have failed to recruit the required number of trial participants within the scheduled time. This study aimed to qualitatively explore the motivations and barriers for healthy participants to participate in herbal remedy clinical trials in Tanzania. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study used a qualitative descriptive research design based on the theory of planned behaviour. A total of five Focus Group Discussions (FGD) were conducted at Bagamoyo Clinical Trial Facility from 29 to 30 May 2021. Each group consisted of 5 to 10 participants. The participants of the study were 30 healthy males aged 18 to 45 male who participated in the clinical trial that evaluated the safety, tolerability, and efficacy of Maytenus Senegalensis. The focus group discussions were recorded audio-recorded. Verbatim transcription and thematic analysis were performed on the data. RESULTS: The prominent motivations mentioned were the opportunity for self-development, altruism, flexible study visit schedule, and financial compensation. Furthermore, the Participants' mothers and friends were reported as those most likely to approve of participation in an herbal remedy. The most mentioned barriers were inconvenience related to time commitment requirements, possible side effects, inflexible study visit schedule, and having other commitments. Moreover, the participants' father was reported to be more likely to disapprove of participation in a clinical trial of herbal remedy clinical trial. CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study showed that the motivations and barriers of healthy participants to participate in clinical trials of herbal remedies are varied and that participants are motivated by more than financial gains. The identified motivations and barriers can be used as a guideline to improve the design of recruitment and retention strategies for herbal remedy clinical trials.

187. Epigenetic and transcriptome responsiveness to ER modulation by tissue selective estrogen complexes in breast epithelial and breast cancer cells.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Messier TL, Boyd JR, Gordon JAR

188. Adolescent's time use and skills development: Do cognitive and non-cognitive skills differ?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Hoorani BH, Krishnakumar J, Anand P.

189. Productivity, nutrient use efficiency, energetic, and economics of winter maize in south India.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Hulmani S, Salakinkop SR, Somangouda G.

The winter maize area is rapidly spreading in south India in response to rising demand from the poultry and fish feed industries due to the absence of major environmental constraints. Further farmers' are using the winter environment to expand maize area and production. Hence there is immense potential to increase the area under winter maize cultivation. There were no planned field experiments to explore and optimize the right time of sowing and quantity of fertilizer to be added previously due to the presence of negligible winter maize area. Farmers used to cultivate maize as per their choice of sowing time with the application of a quantity of fertilizer recommended for rainy season maize. There were no efforts made towards working on economic analysis including energy budgeting. And hence the investigation was conducted with the objective to explore the optimal planting period and fertilizer levels for winter maize through economic and energy budgeting. Planting windows (1st week of October, 2nd week of October, 3rd week of October, 4th week of October, and 5th week of October) and fertility levels (100 percent recommended dose of fertilizer (RDF), 150 percent RDF, and 200 percent RDF) were used as factors in Factorial Randomized Complete Block Design (RCBD) with three replications. The present investigation revealed that significantly higher winter maize productivity was achieved from the first and second week of October planting along with the application of 200% RDF (recommended dose of fertilizer) followed by 150% RDF. Planting of winter maize during the first week of October recorded significantly higher grain yield (8786kg ha-1) and stover yield (1220 kg ha-1) and was found on par with sowing during the second week of October. Among fertility levels, significantly higher grain yield (8320 kg ha -1) and stover yield (1195 kg ha-1) was recorded with the application of 200% RDF and were found on par with the application of 150% RDF. Further interaction effect showed that higher dry matter production, more days for physiological maturity, higher accumulation of growing degree days, photothermal units, and heliothermal units were recorded from crops planted during the first and second week of October along with the application of either 200% or 150% RDF. However, higher nutrient use efficiency was recorded from the first and second week of October planted crop supplied with lower fertility level (100% RDF). Similarly, significantly higher net returns and gross returns, output energy, net energy, and specific energy were higher from crops planted during the first week of planting along with the application of 200% RDF. Whereas, energy use efficiency and energy productivity were higher with the first week of October planted crop applied with 100% RDF. From the overall interaction, it is recommended to plant winter maize during the first fortnight of October with the application of 150 percent RDF for sustaining higher maize productivity, energy output, and economics in the maize growing area of south India.

190. An empirical analysis of social public resources digital sharing system: Dissipative structure theory.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Li S, Jiang F.

191. Prevalence of visual impairment and associated factors among children in Ethiopia: Systematic review and meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Anley DT, Anteneh RM, Tegegne YS

INTRODUCTION: Visual impairment is a major public health problem in developing countries where there is no enough health-care service. It has a significant impact on the affected child's psychological, educational and socioeconomic experiences, during childhood and beyond. Therefore, the aim of this review was to estimate the pooled prevalence of visual impairment and its associated factors among children in Ethiopia. METHOD: This systematic review and meta-analysis was designed based on the PRISMA guidelines. Relevant published articles in Ethiopia from 2011-2021 were searched in PubMed/Medline, HINARI, Google scholar, and conference paper and thesis or research final reports were accessed from Ethiopian Universities' repositories. Data was extracted in Microsoft excel by using JBI data extraction checklist. The pooled prevalence and odds ratio of associated factors with their 95% CI was computed by using STATA 14/SE software. A fixed effect meta-analysis model was employed for a Cochrane Q test statistic and I2 test showed there was no heterogeneity in the included studies. RESULT: A total of 7,647 children from nine studies were included in this study. The overall prevalence of visual impairment among children in Ethiopia was 7% (95% CI: 6, 7%). The pooled prevalence of visual impairment by region was almost similar in Ethiopia. However, there was no significant association between the identified factors and visual impairment among children. But the result showed that being males (AOR 0.642, 95% CI: 0.357-1.156), Children in the age of 10-13 years (AOR 0.224, 95% CI: 0.046-1.102) and 14-18 years (AOR 0.508, 95% CI: 0.102-2.534) were found to be less likely to have visual impairment. On the other hand, children of parents with visual impairment (AOR 1.820, 95% CI: 0.381-8.698) more likely to have visual impairment. CONCLUSION: Visual impairment among children in Ethiopia is still a public health problem one year later to VISION 2020, a global initiative aimed to eliminate avoidable blindness. All most one out of fourteen children in Ethiopia had visual impairment. Therefore, the government of Ethiopia should focus on effective, efficient, comprehensive eye health care services by integrating with the national health system to prevent avoidable visual impairment among children.

192. What influences individuals to invest in improved sanitation services and hygiene behaviours in a small town? A formative research study in Babati, Tanzania.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Malima G, Mshida H, Machunda R

193. Translation and performance of the Finnish Diabetes Risk Score for detecting undiagnosed diabetes and dysglycaemia in the Indonesian population.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Rokhman MR, Arifin B, Zulkarnain Z

A diabetes risk score cannot directly be translated and applied in different populations, and its performance should be evaluated in the target population. This study aimed to translate the Finnish Diabetes Risk Score (FINDRISC) instrument and compare its performance with the modified version for detecting undiagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and dysglycaemia among the Indonesian adult population. Forward and backward translations were performed and followed by cultural adaptation. In total, 1,403 participants were recruited. The FINDRISC-Bahasa Indonesia (FINDRISC-BI) was scored according to the original FINDRISC instrument, while a Modified FINDRISC-BI was analyzed using a specific body mass index and waist circumference classification for Indonesians. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve, sensitivity, specificity, and the optimal cut-offs of both instruments were estimated. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for detecting undiagnosed T2DM was 0.73 (0.67-0.78) for the FINDRISC-BI with an optimal cut-off score of ≥9 (sensitivity = 63.0%; specificity = 67.3%) and 0.72 (0.67-0.78) for the Modified FINDRISC-BI with an optimal cut-off score of ≥11 (sensitivity = 59.8%; specificity = 74.9%). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for detecting dysglycaemia was 0.72 (0.69-0.75) for the FINDRISC-BI instrument with an optimal cut-off score of ≥8 (sensitivity = 66.4%; specificity = 67.0%), and 0.72 (0.69-0.75) for the Modified FINDRISC-BI instrument with an optimal cut-off score ≥9 (sensitivity = 63.8%; specificity = 67.6%). The Indonesian version of the FINDRISC instrument has acceptable diagnostic accuracy for screening people with undiagnosed T2DM or dysglycaemia in Indonesia. Modifying the body mass index and waist circumference classifications in the Modified FINDRISC-BI results in a similar diagnostic accuracy; however, the Modified FINDRISC-BI has a higher optimal cut-off point than the FINDRISC-BI. People with an above optimal cut-off score are suggested to take a further blood glucose test.

194. The association of sun exposure, ultraviolet radiation effects and other risk factors for pterygium (the SURE RISK for pterygium study) in geographically diverse adult (≥40 years) rural populations of India -3rd report of the ICMR-EYE SEE study group.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Tandon R, Vashist P, Gupta N

195. Bone marrow involvement in patients with metastatic castration sensitive prostate cancer.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Shahait M, Abu-Hijlih R, Salamat A

196. Challenges to communicating the Undetectable equals Untransmittable (U=U) HIV prevention message: Healthcare provider perspectives.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Grace D, Stewart M, Blaque E

Undetectable equals Untransmittable", or U=U, is a public health message designed to reduce HIV stigma and help communicate the scientific consensus that HIV cannot be sexually transmitted when a person living with HIV has an undetectable viral load. Between October 2020-February 2021 we conducted 11 in-depth interviews and 3 focus groups with diverse HIV/STI service providers (nurses, public health workers, physicians, frontline providers, and sexual health educators) in Ontario, Canada (n = 18). Our objective was to understand how U=U was communicated to sexual health service users in healthcare interactions. Interview questions were embedded in a larger study focused on improving access to HIV/STI testing. Transcripts were transcribed verbatim and analysed following grounded theory. Most providers emphasized the significance of U=U as a biomedical advancement in HIV prevention but had some challenges communicating U=U in everyday practice. We discovered four interrelated barriers when communicating the U=U message: (1) provider-perceived challenges with "zero risk" messaging (e.g., wanting to "leave a margin" of HIV risk); (2) service users not interested in receiving sexual health information (e.g., in order to provide "client centered care" some providers do not share U=U messages if service users are only interested in HIV/STI testing or if other discussions must be prioritized); (3) skepticism and HIV stigma from service users (e.g., providers explained how the hesitancy of some service users accepting the U=U message was shaped by a legacy of HIV prevention messages and persistent HIV stigma); and (4) need for more culturally appropriate resources (e.g., communities other than sexual and gender minority men; non-English speaking service users; that account for broader legal context). We discuss ways to overcome barriers to communicating the U=U message as well as the limitations and potential unintended consequences of U=U framings in the context of unequal access to HIV prevention and treatment.

197. The Executive Branch decisions in Brazil: A study of administrative decrees through machine learning and network analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Ribeiro AL, Araújo OR, Oliveira LB

This paper dissects the potential of state-of-the-art computational analysis to promote the investigation of government's administrative decisions and politics. The Executive Branch generates massive amounts of textual data comprising daily decisions in several levels and stages of the law and decree-making processes. The use of automated text analysis to explore this data based on the substantive interests of scholars runs into computational challenges. Computational methods have been applied to texts from the Legislative and Judicial Branches; however, there barely are suitable taxonomies to automate the classification and analysis of the Executive's administrative decrees. To solve this problem, we put forward a computational framework to analyze the Brazilian administrative decrees from 2000 to 2019. Our strategy to uncover the contents and patterns of the presidential decree-making is developed in three main steps. First, we conduct an unsupervised text analysis through the LDA algorithm for topic modeling. Second, building upon the LDA results, we propose two taxonomies for the classification of decrees: (a) the ministerial coauthorship of the decrees to map policy areas and (b) the decrees' fields of law based on a tagging system provided by the Brazilian Senate. Using these taxonomies, we compare the performance of three supervised text classification algorithms: SVM, Convolutional Neural Network, and Hierarchical Attention Network, achieving F1-scores of up to 80% when automatically classifying decrees. Third, we analyze the network generated by links between decrees through centrality and clustering approaches, distinguishing a set of administrative decisions related to the president's priorities in the economic policy area. Our findings confirm the potential of our computational framework to explore N-large datasets, advance exploratory studies, and generate testable propositions in different research areas. They advance the monitoring of Brazil's administrative decree-making process that is shaped by the president's priorities and by the interplay among cabinet members.

198. Factors associated with comorbidity of diarrhoea and acute respiratory infections among children under five years in Ghana.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Afrifa-Anane GF, Kyei-Arthur F, Agyekum MW

199. Alteration of osteoclast activity in childhood cancer survivors: Role of iron and of CB2/TRPV1 receptors.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Rossi F, Tortora C, Di Martino M

200. Incidence, prevalence, and national burden of interstitial lung diseases in India: Estimates from two studies of 3089 subjects.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Dhooria S, Sehgal IS, Agarwal R

201. Beyond body size-new traits for new heights in trait-based modelling of predator-prey dynamics.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Wootton KL, Curtsdotter A, Jonsson T

Food webs map feeding interactions among species, providing a valuable tool for understanding and predicting community dynamics. Using species' body sizes is a promising avenue for parameterizing food-web models, but such approaches have not yet been able to fully recover observed community dynamics. Such discrepancies suggest that traits other than body size also play important roles. For example, differences in species' use of microhabitat or non-consumptive effects of intraguild predators may affect dynamics in ways not captured by body size. In Laubmeier et al. (2018), we developed a dynamic food-web model incorporating microhabitat and non-consumptive predator effects in addition to body size, and used simulations to suggest an optimal sampling design of a mesocosm experiment to test the model. Here, we perform the mesocosm experiment to generate empirical time-series of insect herbivore and predator abundance dynamics. We minimize least squares error between the model and time-series to determine parameter values of four alternative models, which differ in terms of including vs excluding microhabitat use and non-consumptive predator-predator effects. We use both statistical and expert-knowledge criteria to compare the models and find including both microhabitat use and non-consumptive predator-predator effects best explains observed aphid and predator population dynamics, followed by the model including microhabitat alone. This ranking suggests that microhabitat plays a larger role in driving population dynamics than non-consumptive predator-predator effects, although both are clearly important. Our results illustrate the importance of additional traits alongside body size in driving trophic interactions. They also point to the need to consider trophic interactions and population dynamics in a wider community context, where non-trophic impacts can dramatically modify the interplay between multiple predators and prey. Overall, we demonstrate the potential for utilizing traits beyond body size to improve trait-based models and the value of iterative cycling between theory, data and experiment to hone current insights into how traits affect food-web dynamics.

202. Monitoring of cherry flowering phenology with Google Trends.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Shin N, Kotani A, Tei S

203. The metabolic hormone adiponectin affects the correlation between nutritional status and pneumococcal vaccine response in vulnerable indigenous children.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Siegers KE, van Herwaarden AE, de Waard JH

204. Influence of broodmare aging on its offspring's racing performance.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Inoue S.

Maternal aging has negative influences on the development and racing performance of their offspring in racehorses. However, the mechanism by which pregnancy at old age reduces the race performance of the offspring is unknown. Here, two hypotheses were posited: 1) Foals born to older mares are more likely to have muscular, skeletal, and cognitive disadvantages (direct effects). 2) Foals born to older mares are more likely to be affected by non-physiological factors correlating with the mare's age, such as the quality of sires (e.g. low-quality sires are likely to be chosen as partners of older broodmares). To test these hypotheses, the effect of the broodmare's age on the offspring's racing performance was examined, while controlling for the effects of the stallion's quality, age, and ID, offspring's sex, trainer, and the location of the training center. Information of racehorses registered to the Japan Racing Association were collected from the Japan Bloodhorse Breeders' Association website. Overall, results showed that the racing performance of horses born from older mares was lower than that of horses born from younger mares. However, generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) indicated that the quality of sires was significantly associated with the offspring's racing performance, rather than the broodmare's age itself. Furthermore, the age of broodmares was negatively correlated with the quality of sires, although the variance inflation factor was low. Therefore, the effect of maternal aging was negligible or only limited, and rather, the sire's quality had an important influence on the offspring's racing performance. Low quality sires, or cheap stallions in other words, are likely to be chosen as partners of older blood-mares, which may have reproductive risks such as lower fertility and higher rate of miscarriages. The present study suggests that the conventional belief that racehorses born from older mares show lower performance may not always be accurate.

205. Different stages of emotional prosody processing in healthy ageing-evidence from behavioural responses, ERPs, tDCS, and tRNS.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Maltezou-Papastylianou C, Russo R, Wallace D

206. Physical activity and sitting time changes in response to the COVID-19 lockdown in England.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 21

Bailey DP, Wells AV, Desai T

To reduce the spread of the novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), national governments implemented measures to limit contact between citizens. This study evaluated changes in physical activity and sitting in response to the first COVID-19 lockdown in England and factors associated with these changes. A cross-sectional online survey-based study collected data from 818 adults between 29 April and 13 May 2020. Participants self-reported demographic information, physical activity and sitting for a 'typical' week before and during lockdown. Participants were grouped into low, moderate and high physical activity, and low and high (≥8 hours/day) sitting. Paired samples t-tests compared physical activity (MET-min/week) before and during lockdown. Pearson's Chi-squared evaluated the proportion of participants in the physical activity and sitting categories. Logistic regression explored associations of demographic and behavioural factors with physical activity and sitting during lockdown. Walking and total physical activity significantly increased during lockdown by 241 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 176, 304) MET-min/week and 302 (CI: 155, 457) MET-min/week, respectively (P < 0.001). There was a 4% decrease in participants engaging in low physical activity and a 4% increase in those engaging in high physical activity from before to during lockdown (P < 0.001). The proportion engaging in high sitting increased from 29% to 41% during lockdown (P < 0.001). Lower education level (odds ratio [OR] = 1.65, P = 0.045) and higher BMI (OR = 1.05, P = 0.020) were associated with increased odds of low physical activity during lockdown, whereas non-White ethnicity (OR = 0.24, P = 0.001) was associated with reduced odds. Younger age was associated with increased odds of high sitting (OR = 2.28, P = 0.008). These findings suggest that physical activity and sitting both increased during lockdown. Demographic and behavioural factors associated with low physical activity and high sitting have been identified that could inform intervention strategies during situations of home confinement.

207. The public's attitude to and acceptance of periodic doses of the COVID-19 vaccine: A survey from Jordan.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Abuhammad S, Khabour OF, Alzoubi KH

208. Game modelling and stability strategy research on distributed leadership pattern: A tripartite evolutionary game perspective.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Lyu L, Cui Z, Zhang H.

209. Trends in COVID-19 patient characteristics in a large electronic health record database in the United States: A cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Liang C, Ogilvie RP, Doherty M

BACKGROUND: Electronic health record (EHR) databases provide an opportunity to facilitate characterization and trends in patients with COVID-19. METHODS: Patients with COVID-19 were identified based on an ICD-10 diagnosis code for COVID-19 (U07.1) and/or a positive SARS-CoV-2 viral lab result from January 2020 to November 2020. Patients were characterized in terms of demographics, healthcare utilization, clinical comorbidities, therapies, laboratory results, and procedures/care received, including critical care, intubation/ventilation, and occurrence of death were described, overall and by month. RESULTS: There were 393,773 patients with COVID-19 and 56,996 with a COVID-19 associated hospitalization. A greater percentage of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 relative to all COVID-19 cases were older, male, African American, and lived in the Northeast and South. The most common comorbidities before admission/infection date were hypertension (40.8%), diabetes (29.5%), and obesity (23.8%), and the most common diagnoses during hospitalization were pneumonia (59.6%), acute respiratory failure (44.8%), and dyspnea (28.0%). A total of 85.7% of patients hospitalized with COVID-19 had CRP values > 10 mg/L, 75.5% had fibrinogen values > 400 mg/dL, and 76.8% had D-dimer values > 250 ng/mL. Median values for platelets, CRP, lactate dehydrogenase, D-dimer, and fibrinogen tended to decrease from January-March to November. The use of chloroquine/hydroxychloroquine during hospitalization peaked by March (71.2%) and was used rarely by May (5.1%) and less than 1% afterwards, while the use of remdesivir had increased by May (10.0%) followed by dexamethasone by June (27.7%). All-cause mortality was 3.2% overall and 15.0% among those hospitalized; 21.0% received critical care and 16.0% received intubation/ventilation/ECMO. CONCLUSIONS: This study characterizes US patients with COVID-19 and their management during hospitalization over the first eleven months of this disease pandemic.

210. DAB-quant: An open-source digital system for quantifying immunohistochemical staining with 3,3'-diaminobenzidine (DAB).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Patel S, Fridovich-Keil S, Rasmussen SA

211. Correlation between tear film lipid layer thickness and transepidermal water loss from the ocular area in patients with dry eye disease and in healthy controls.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Yoon DY, Hee Eun J, Hyon JY.

212. Synthesis and preclinical application of a Prussian blue-based dual fluorescent and magnetic contrast agent (CA).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Hegedűs N, Forgách L, Kiss B

213. Belt and road initiative as a catalyst of infrastructure development: Assessment of resident's perception and attitude towards China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Mahmood S, Ali G, Menhas R

214. Detection of changes in literary writing style using N-grams as style markers and supervised machine learning.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Ríos-Toledo G, Posadas-Durán JPF, Sidorov G

The analysis of an author's writing style implies the characterization and identification of the style in terms of a set of features commonly called linguistic features. The analysis can be extrinsic, where the style of an author can be compared with other authors, or intrinsic, where the style of an author is identified through different stages of his life. Intrinsic analysis has been used, for example, to detect mental illness and the effects of aging. A key element of the analysis is the style markers used to model the author's writing patterns. The style markers should handle diachronic changes and be thematic independent. One of the most commonly used style marker in extrinsic style analysis is n-gram. In this paper, we present the evaluation of traditional n-grams (words and characters) and dependency tree syntactic n-grams to solve the task of detecting changes in writing style over time. Our corpus consisted of novels by eleven English-speaking authors. The novels of each author were organized chronologically from the oldest to the most recent work according to the date of publication. Subsequently, two stages were defined: initial and final. In each stage three novels were assigned, novels of the initial stage corresponded to the oldest and those at the final stage to the most recent novels. To analyze changes in the writing style, novels were characterized by using four types of n-grams: characters, words, Part-Of-Speech (POS) tags and syntactic relations n-grams. Experiments were performed with a Logistic Regression classifier. Dimension reduction techniques such as Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and Latent Semantic Analysis (LSA) algorithms were evaluated. The results obtained with the different n-grams indicated that all authors presented significant changes in writing style over time. In addition, representations using n-grams of syntactic relations have achieved competitive results among different authors.

215. Which interventions may improve bracing compliance in adolescent idiopathic scoliosis? A systematic review and meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Li X, Huo Z, Hu Z

This review aimed to systematically review and meta-analyze the effects of interventions in improving bracing compliance among adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) patients. Eight databases were searched from their inception to April 2022. The eligibility criteria included controlled studies that used any type of intervention to enhance bracing compliance in braced AIS patients. Two researchers independently screened articles and extracted data based on the PICO (participant, intervention, comparator, and outcome) framework. Quality appraisal of included studies was performed using GRADE (overall assessment), and the risk of bias was assessed with Cochrane RoB Tool 2 for randomized controlled trials (RCT) and ROBINS-I for non-RCT studies. The primary outcome was bracing compliance and secondary outcomes included Cobb Angle and measurements for quality of life. Six eligible studies involving 523 participants were included. All studies were evaluated as low or very low quality with a high risk of bias. Four types of interventions were identified, including sensor monitoring (n = 2, RCTs), auto-adjusted brace (n = 1, RCT), more intensive or collaborated medical care (n = 2), and psychosocial intervention (n = 1). A meta-analysis of 215 patients from the three RCTs suggested that the compliance-enhancing intervention group had 2.92 more bracing hours per day than the usual care control (95%CI [1.12, 4.72], P = 0.001). In subgroup analysis, sensor monitoring significantly improved bracing wearing quantity compared to usual care (3.47 hours/day, 95%CI [1.48, 5.47], P = 0.001), while other aforementioned interventions did not show a significant superiority. Compliance-enhancing interventions may be favorable in preventing curve progression and promoting quality of life, but the improvements cannot be clarified according to limited evidence. In conclusion, although the results of this study suggested that sensor monitoring may be the most promising approach, limited high-quality evidence precludes reliable conclusions. Future well-designed RCTs are required to confirm the actual benefit of compliance-improving interventions in clinical practice.

216. Pregnancy outcomes after SARS-CoV-2 infection by trimester: A large, population-based cohort study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Fallach N, Segal Y, Agassy J

217. Correlation between clinical presentations, radiological findings and high risk histopathological features of primary enucleated eyes with advanced retinoblastoma at Queen Sirikit National Institute of Child Health: 5 years result.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Surukrattanaskul S, Keyurapan B, Wangtiraumnuay N.

PURPOSE: To evaluate the correlation between clinical presentations, radiological findings and high risk histopathological features of primary enucleated eyes in patients with advanced retinoblastoma at a tertiary child hospital in Thailand. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We retrospectively reviewed the medical records of patients who were treated with primary enucleation of tumor eyes between 2015-2020. Demographic data, radiological assessment, and histopathological findings were collected. The association between clinical presentations and high-risk histopathological features in the primary enucleated eyes were evaluated. The radiological findings, which showed characteristic of high risk features, were compared with the histopathological findings. RESULTS: Thirty-three enucleated eyes were enrolled in this study. The mean age at diagnosis was 23.12 months. Most patients had unilateral group E retinoblastoma, with no difference in sex and laterality of the eye. Leukocoria was the most common presentation, followed by proptosis and uveitis. Older age at presentation were statistically associated with post laminar cribrosa optic nerve invasion (P-value 0.0027) and high-risk histopathological features in enucleated eyes (P-value 0.0032). Clinical presentations with proptosis were statistically associated with post laminar cribrosa optic nerve invasion, while leukocoria and uveitis were statistically associated with anterior segment invasion. Unifocal intraocular mass with necrosis was the most common histopathological finding. High-risk features were found in 45% of primary enucleated eye. The sensitivity and specificity of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for detected optic nerve invasion in retinoblastoma patients were 75% and 54%, respectively. CONCLUSION: Patients with unilateral retinoblastoma who presented with older age related to high-risk features after enucleation. Ophthalmic examination with slitlamp is the best way for detection of anterior segment invasion. Choroidal invasion was unable to predict with clinical presentation. MRI was the better imaging for detection of post laminar cribrosa optic nerve invasion.

218. Age-specific growth and maturity estimates for the flatback sea turtle (Natator depressus) by skeletochronology.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Turner Tomaszewicz CN, Avens L, Seminoff JA

To address a major knowledge gap for flatback sea turtles (Natator depressus), a species endemic to Australia and considered 'Data Deficient' for IUCN Red List assessment, we present the first-ever skeletochronology-derived age and growth rate estimates for this species. Using a rare collection of bone samples gathered from across northern Australia, we applied skeletochronology and characterized the length-at-age relationship, established baseline growth rates from the hatchling to adult life stages, and produced empirical estimates of age-at- and size-at-sexual-maturation (ASM, SSM). We analyzed humeri from 74 flatback sea turtles ranging in body size from 6.0-96.0 cm curved carapace length (CCL), and recovered from Western Australia (n = 48), Eastern Australia (n = 13), central Australia (n = 8; Northern Territory n = 3, the Gulf of Carpentaria n = 5), and unknown locations (n = 5). We identified the onset of sexual maturity for 29 turtles, based on rapprochement growth patterns in the bones. Estimates for ASM ranged from 12.0 to 23.0 years (mean: 16.3 ± 0.53 SE), SSM ranged from 76.1 to 94.0 cm CCL (mean: 84.9 ± 0.90 SE), and maximum observed reproductive longevity was 31 years for a 45-year old male flatback. Growth was modeled as a smoothing spline fit to the size-at-age relationship and at the mean SSM (84.9 cm CCL) corresponded with a spline-predicted maturity age of 18 years (95% CI: 16 to 24), while mean nesting sizes reported in the literature (86.4 to 94 cm CCL) corresponded to estimated ages of 24+ years. A bootstrapped von Bertalanffy growth model was also applied and showed consistencies with the spline curve, yielding an estimated upper size limit, Linf, at 89.2 ± 0.04 cm (95% CI: 85.5 to 95.9 cm) with the intrinsic growth rate parameter, k, at 0.185 ± 0.0004 (0.16 to 0.22); at the same mean SSM (84.9 cm CCL) the estimated ASM was 16.3 ± 0.05 years (95% CI: 12.8 to 27.7 years). Lastly, four of the samples analyzed were collected from deceased adult females that had previous sizes known from on-going mark/recapture studies at nesting sites in Western Australia. The paired CCL data (measured at nesting and back-calculated) did not significantly differ (p = 0.875). This first skeletochronology study for flatback sea turtles generates valuable empirical estimates for ongoing conservation and management efforts.

219. Integrated remote sensing and field-based approach to assess the temporal evolution and future projection of meanders: A case study on River Manu in North-Eastern India.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Debnath J, Meraj G, Das Pan N

220. A proposal of a new automated method for SfM/MVS 3D reconstruction through comparisons of 3D data by SfM/MVS and handheld laser scanners.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Kaneda A, Nakagawa T, Tamura K

221. The impact of climatic factors on tick-related hospital visits and borreliosis incidence rates in European Russia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 20

Georgiades P, Ezhova E, Räty M

222. A protocol to gather, characterize and analyze incoming citations of retracted articles.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 19

Heibi I, Peroni S.

223. A randomised, prospective and head-to-head comparison of [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 and [18F]PSMA-1007 for the detection of recurrent prostate cancer in PSMA-ligand PET/CT-Protocol design and rationale.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 19

Alberts I, Bütikofer L, Rominger A

BACKGROUND: A number of radiopharmaceuticals are available for the detection of recurrent prostate cancer (rPC), but few comparative imaging trials have been performed comparing them. In particular, there are no prospective head-to-head comparisons of the recently introduced [18F]PSMA-1007 to the existing standard of care [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11. The purpose of this trial is to establish the non-inferiority of the new radiopharmaceutical in terms of the rate of PET-positive findings and to obtain an intra-individual comparison of accuracy and radiopharmaceutical kinetics. METHODS: In this cross-over trial we will randomise 100 individuals to receive either first a standard-of-care PET/CT using [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 followed by an additional [18F]PSMA-1007 PET/CT within 2 weeks, or vice-versa. Inclusion criteria include patients 18 years and older with biochemical recurrence of prostate cancer following radical prostatectomy, defined as two consecutive prostate specific antigen (PSA) levels > 0.2 ng/ml. Detection rate at the patient-based level is the primary end-point. Each scan will be interpreted by a panel of six independent and masked readers (three for [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 and three for [18F]PSMA-1007) which consensus majority in cases of discrepancy. To confirm the PET-positivity rate at a patient based level, follow up at 6 months following the first scan will be performed to a composite standard of truth. Secondary endpoints shall include an intra-individual comparison of radiopharmaceutical-kinetics, per-region detection rate and positive predictive value. DISCUSSION: This is the first randomised prospective comparative imaging trial to compare the established [68Ga]Ga-PSMA-11 with [18F]PSMA-1007 and will determine whether the new radiopharmaceutical is non-inferior to the established standard-of-care in terms of patient-level detection rate. CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION: Registered with and approved by the regional ethics authority #2020-02903 (submitted 09.12.2020, approval 16.12.2021) and the regulatory authority SwissMedic 2020DR2103. Registered with ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier NCT05079828 and additionally in a national language in the Swiss National Clinical Trials Portal (SNCTP).

224. The impact of cognitive impairment of individuals with Parkinson's disease on their caregivers' mental health: A systematic review protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 19

Golińska PB, Bieleninik Ł, Harciarek M

INTRODUCTION: Parkinson's disease is a motor disease, the second most common neurodegenerative disorder with cardinal symptoms including bradykinesia, rigidity, and rest tremor accompanied by cognitive difficulties. The caregivers play a crucial role for individuals with Parkinson's disease; however, many of them may suffer from high caregiver burden and mental health deterioration. This protocol of a systematic review presents a methodology of the review about the impact of cognitive impairment of individuals with Parkinson's disease on their caregivers' mental health. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Research will be identified by combining electronic databases searching and hand searching. The following databases will be included: Medline, PsycInfo, Web of Sciences, Cochrane, CINAHL, Embase and Scopus. The inclusion and exclusion criteria followed to PECOS model. The population of informal caregivers is defined as family members providing care on a patient with Parkinson's disease. Exposure is linked with the evaluation of a cognitive functioning and outcome is defined as mental health among caregivers of individuals with Parkinson's disease. We will include two types of studies: observational and intervention. Both, screening and eligibility will be done by two independent reviewers. Study quality will be assessed by two authors independently. Data will be extracted by two reviewers independently and will follow a pre-pilot extraction form. Any discrepancies will be resolved by discussion or/and consultation with another reviewer. The synthesis without meta-analysis (SWiM) guidelines will be used to report on included studies data. The metanalysis with usage the statistical software R version 4.1.2 (2021-11-01) "Bird Hippie" and R metaphor package 3.0-2 of will be conducted if possible. DISCUSSION: The goal of this systematic review is to present the association between caregivers' mental health problems and their proteges' cognitive impairment. It will enable to identify the gaps in literature and its methodology giving the suggestions for further research. PROTOCOL REGISTRATION: Protocol registration number in PROSPERO: CRD42022296670.

225. A 7-min halftime jog mitigated the reduction in sprint performance for the initial 15-min of the second half in a simulated football match.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 19

Bang S, Park J.

226. Appetite regulating genes in zebrafish gut; a gene expression study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 19

Ahi EP, Brunel M, Tsakoumis E

The underlying molecular pathophysiology of feeding disorders, particularly in peripheral organs, is still largely unknown. A range of molecular factors encoded by appetite-regulating genes are already described to control feeding behaviour in the brain. However, the important role of the gastrointestinal tract in the regulation of appetite and feeding in connection to the brain has gained more attention in the recent years. An example of such inter-organ connection can be the signals mediated by leptin, a key regulator of body weight, food intake and metabolism, with conserved anorexigenic effects in vertebrates. Leptin signals functions through its receptor (lepr) in multiple organs, including the brain and the gastrointestinal tract. So far, the regulatory connections between leptin signal and other appetite-regulating genes remain unclear, particularly in the gastrointestinal system. In this study, we used a zebrafish mutant with impaired function of leptin receptor to explore gut expression patterns of appetite-regulating genes, under different feeding conditions (normal feeding, 7-day fasting, 2 and 6-hours refeeding). We provide evidence that most appetite-regulating genes are expressed in the zebrafish gut. On one hand, we did not observed significant differences in the expression of orexigenic genes (except for hcrt) after changes in the feeding condition. On the other hand, we found 8 anorexigenic genes in wild-types (cart2, cart3, dbi, oxt, nmu, nucb2a, pacap and pomc), as well as 4 genes in lepr mutants (cart3, kiss1, kiss1r and nucb2a), to be differentially expressed in the zebrafish gut after changes in feeding conditions. Most of these genes also showed significant differences in their expression between wild-type and lepr mutant. Finally, we observed that impaired leptin signalling influences potential regulatory connections between anorexigenic genes in zebrafish gut. Altogether, these transcriptional changes propose a potential role of leptin signal in the regulation of feeding through changes in expression of certain anorexigenic genes in the gastrointestinal tract of zebrafish.

227. Practices of herbal management of malaria among trading mothers in Shai Osudoku District, Accra.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Appiah EO, Appiah S, Oti-Boadi E

228. Corporate social responsibility and corporate financialization-Based on information effect and reputation insurance effect.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Lei L, Zheng D, Chen X.

229. Modeling a session of subject-system interaction in a wireless communication infrastructure with a mixed resource.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Kovtun V, Izonin I, Gregus M.

230. Who is seeking help for psychological distress associated with the COVID-19 pandemic? Characterization of risk factors in 1269 participants accessing low-threshold psychological help.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Hilbert K, Boeken O, Asbrand J

BACKGROUND: The COVID-19 pandemic and accompanying restrictions are associated with substantial psychological distress. However, it is unclear how this increased strain translates into help-seeking behavior. Here, we aim to characterize those individuals who seek help for COVID-19 related psychological distress, and examine which factors are associated with their levels of distress in order to better characterize vulnerable groups. METHODS: We report data from 1269 help-seeking participants subscribing to a stepped-care program targeted at mental health problems due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Sample characteristics were compared to population data, and linear regression analyses were used to examine which risk factors and stressors were associated with current symptom levels. RESULTS: Seeking for help for COVID-19 related psychological distress was characterized by female gender, younger age, and better education compared to the general population. The majority reported mental health problems already before the pandemic. 74.5% of this help-seeking sample also exceeded clinical thresholds for depression, anxiety, or somatization. Higher individual symptom levels were associated with higher overall levels of pandemic stress, younger age, and pre-existing mental health problems, but were buffered by functional emotion regulation strategies. CONCLUSIONS: Results suggest a considerable increase in demand for mental-healthcare in the pandemic aftermath. Comparisons with the general population indicate diverging patterns in help-seeking behavior: while some individuals seek help themselves, others should be addressed directly. Individuals that are young, have pre-existing mental health problems and experience a high level of pandemic stress are particularly at-risk for considerable symptom load. Mental-healthcare providers should use these results to prepare for the significant increase in demand during the broader aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic as well as allocate limited resources more effectively.

231. Introducing riskCommunicator: An R package to obtain interpretable effect estimates for public health.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Grembi JA, Rogawski McQuade ET.

232. Method for detecting acetylated PD-L1 in cell lysates by immunoprecipitation and western blot analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Middleton-Davis F, Davis A, Middleton K.

233. Alterations in the molecular composition of COVID-19 patient urine, detected using Raman spectroscopic/computational analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Robertson JL, Senger RS, Talty J

We developed and tested a method to detect COVID-19 disease, using urine specimens. The technology is based on Raman spectroscopy and computational analysis. It does not detect SARS-CoV-2 virus or viral components, but rather a urine 'molecular fingerprint', representing systemic metabolic, inflammatory, and immunologic reactions to infection. We analyzed voided urine specimens from 46 symptomatic COVID-19 patients with positive real time-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) tests for infection or household contact with test-positive patients. We compared their urine Raman spectra with urine Raman spectra from healthy individuals (n = 185), peritoneal dialysis patients (n = 20), and patients with active bladder cancer (n = 17), collected between 2016-2018 (i.e., pre-COVID-19). We also compared all urine Raman spectra with urine specimens collected from healthy, fully vaccinated volunteers (n = 19) from July to September 2021. Disease severity (primarily respiratory) ranged among mild (n = 25), moderate (n = 14), and severe (n = 7). Seventy percent of patients sought evaluation within 14 days of onset. One severely affected patient was hospitalized, the remainder being managed with home/ambulatory care. Twenty patients had clinical pathology profiling. Seven of 20 patients had mildly elevated serum creatinine values (>0.9 mg/dl; range 0.9-1.34 mg/dl) and 6/7 of these patients also had estimated glomerular filtration rates (eGFR) <90 mL/min/1.73m2 (range 59-84 mL/min/1.73m2). We could not determine if any of these patients had antecedent clinical pathology abnormalities. Our technology (Raman Chemometric Urinalysis-Rametrix®) had an overall prediction accuracy of 97.6% for detecting complex, multimolecular fingerprints in urine associated with COVID-19 disease. The sensitivity of this model for detecting COVID-19 was 90.9%. The specificity was 98.8%, the positive predictive value was 93.0%, and the negative predictive value was 98.4%. In assessing severity, the method showed to be accurate in identifying symptoms as mild, moderate, or severe (random chance = 33%) based on the urine multimolecular fingerprint. Finally, a fingerprint of 'Long COVID-19' symptoms (defined as lasting longer than 30 days) was located in urine. Our methods were able to locate the presence of this fingerprint with 70.0% sensitivity and 98.7% specificity in leave-one-out cross-validation analysis. Further validation testing will include sampling more patients, examining correlations of disease severity and/or duration, and employing metabolomic analysis (Gas Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry [GC-MS], High Performance Liquid Chromatography [HPLC]) to identify individual components contributing to COVID-19 molecular fingerprints.

234. Perspectives and experiences of Covid-19: Two Irish studies of families in disadvantaged communities.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Leitão C, Shumba J, Quinn M.

The Covid-19 pandemic has been recognised to affect families' socio-emotional well-being. Collecting the views of families in diverse socio-economic contexts can contribute to understanding their specific needs and resources in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic. The overarching objective of the current research was to explore the views and experiences of families in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic, who were living in the Republic of Ireland, including in areas designated as disadvantaged. In Study 1, the objective was to explore changes, difficulties, and concerns experienced by parents of children up to six years old during the pandemic, and related associations with socio-demographic characteristics. Data were collected from 168 parents/carers via an online questionnaire, and examined using conceptual content analysis. The most frequently identified experiences related to restrictions, social isolation, negative impacts on parents' emotional and psychological well-being, negative impacts on children's emotional well-being and development, concerns with physical health, uncertainty about the future, and positive changes regarding family time and activities. Associations were found with parents' age and work situation, and family's income and composition. In Study 2, the objective was to explore the views of children, parents, and service providers about the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on families' life, and relevant supports. Data were collected from 50 children aged between eight and 17 years old, 17 parents, and 20 service providers through focus group discussions, and examined using thematic analysis. The participants reported experiences related to challenges with online education, uncertainty regarding children's education, food poverty, and children's socio-emotional health. The findings of both studies reinforced the importance of implementing measures to promote parents' and children's socio-emotional well-being, combat educational inequalities, and ensure economic and employment security.

235. Improvement of the fuel properties of dairy manure by increasing the biomass-to-water ratio in hydrothermal carbonization.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Aliyu M, Iwabuchi K, Itoh T.

236. Psychometric properties and cultural adaptation of "LifeConScale" -Life Conditions Scale for Adolescents.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Sánchez-Hernando B, Gasch-Gallén Á, Antón-Solanas I

237. Exploring genotype by environment interaction on cassava yield and yield related traits using classical statistical methods.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 18

Bakare MA, Kayondo SI, Aghogho CI

Variety advancement decisions for root quality and yield-related traits in cassava are complex due to the variable patterns of genotype-by-environment interactions (GEI). Therefore, studies focused on the dissection of the existing patterns of GEI using linear-bilinear models such as Finlay-Wilkinson (FW), additive main effect and multiplicative interaction (AMMI), and genotype and genotype-by-environment (GGE) interaction models are critical in defining the target population of environments (TPEs) for future testing, selection, and advancement. This study assessed 36 elite cassava clones in 11 locations over three cropping seasons in the cassava breeding program of IITA based in Nigeria to quantify the GEI effects for root quality and yield-related traits. Genetic correlation coefficients and heritability estimates among environments found mostly intermediate to high values indicating high correlations with the major TPE. There was a differential clonal ranking among the environments indicating the existence of GEI as also revealed by the likelihood ratio test (LRT), which further confirmed the statistical model with the heterogeneity of error variances across the environments fit better. For all fitted models, we found the main effects of environment, genotype, and interaction significant for all observed traits except for dry matter content whose GEI sensitivity was marginally significant as found using the FW model. We identified TMS14F1297P0019 and TMEB419 as two topmost stable clones with a sensitivity values of 0.63 and 0.66 respectively using the FW model. However, GGE and AMMI stability value in conjunction with genotype selection index revealed that IITA-TMS-IBA000070 and TMS14F1036P0007 were the top-ranking clones combining both stability and yield performance measures. The AMMI-2 model clustered the testing environments into 6 mega-environments based on winning genotypes for fresh root yield. Alternatively, we identified 3 clusters of testing environments based on genotypic BLUPs derived from the random GEI component.

238. Measuring health literacy: A systematic review and bibliometric analysis of instruments from 1993 to 2021.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Tavousi M, Mohammadi S, Sadighi J

BACKGROUND: It has been about 30 years since the first health literacy instrument was developed. This study aimed to review all existing instruments to summarize the current knowledge on the development of existing measurement instruments and their possible translation and validation in other languages different from the original languages. METHODS: The review was conducted using PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and Google Scholar on all published papers on health literacy instrument development and psychometric properties in English biomedical journals from 1993 to the end of 2021. RESULTS: The findings were summarized and synthesized on several headings, including general instruments, condition specific health literacy instruments (disease & content), population- specific instruments, and electronic health. Overall, 4848 citations were retrieved. After removing duplicates (n = 2336) and non-related papers (n = 2175), 361 studies (162 papers introducing an instrument and 199 papers reporting translation and psychometric properties of an original instrument) were selected for the final review. The original instruments included 39 general health literacy instruments, 90 condition specific (disease or content) health literacy instruments, 22 population- specific instruments, and 11 electronic health literacy instruments. Almost all papers reported reliability and validity, and the findings indicated that most existing health literacy instruments benefit from some relatively good psychometric properties. CONCLUSION: This review highlighted that there were more than enough instruments for measuring health literacy. In addition, we found that a number of instruments did not report psychometric properties sufficiently. However, evidence suggest that well developed instruments and those reported adequate measures of validation could be helpful if appropriately selected based on objectives of a given study. Perhaps an authorized institution such as World Health Organization should take responsibility and provide a clear guideline for measuring health literacy as appropriate.

239. Association of the PROGINS PgR polymorphism with susceptibility to female reproductive cancer: A meta-analysis of 30 studies.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Zhou C, Zou X, Wen X

AIMS: The progesterone response of the nuclear progesterone receptor plays an important role in the female reproductive system. Changes in the function of the progesterone receptor gene may increase the risk of reproductive cancer. The present study performed a meta-analysis to examine whether the progesterone receptor gene PROGINS polymorphism was a susceptibility factor for female reproductive cancer. MATERIALS AND METHODS: We searched the PubMed, Cochrane Library, Web of Science and EMBASE databases for literature on PROGINS polymorphisms and female reproductive cancer published before September 2020. We evaluated the risk using odds ratios [ORs] and 95% confidence intervals via fixed effects models and random-effects models, which were calculated for all five genetic models. We grouped the analyses by race, cancer, and HWE. RESULTS: Thirty studies comprised of 25405 controls and 19253 female reproductive cancer cases were included in this meta-analysis. We observed that the Alu insertion polymorphism and the V660L polymorphism were significantly associated with female reproductive cancer in the allele and dominant genetic models. The allele genetic model and (Alu-insertion polymorphism: OR = 1.22, 95% CI = 1.02-1.45; V660L polymorphism: OR = 1.02, 95% CI = 1.00-1.13) dominant genetic model (Alu-insertion polymorphism: OR = 1.27, 95% CI = 1.03-1.58; V660L polymorphism: OR = 1.10, 95% CI = 1.011.19) demonstrated a significantly increased risk of female reproductive cancer. A subgroup analysis according to ethnicity found that the Alu insertion was associated with female reproductive cancer incidence in white (Allele model: OR = 1.21, 95% CI = 1.00-1.45; Heterozygous model: OR = 3.44, 95% CI = 1.30-9.09) and Asian (Dominant model: OR = 3.12, 95% CI = 1.25-7.79) populations, but the association disappeared for African and mixed racial groups. However, the V660L polymorphism was significantly associated with female reproductive cancer in the African (Allele model: OR = 2.52, 95% CI = 1.14-5.56; Heterozygous model: OR = 2.83, 95% CI = 1.26-6.35) and mixed racial groups (Dominant model: OR = 1.28, 95% CI = 1.01-1.62). Subgroup analysis by cancer showed that the PROGINS polymorphism increased the risk of cancer in the allele model, dominant mode and heterozygous model, but the confidence interval for this result spanned 1 and was not statistically significant. This sensitivity was verified in studies with HWE greater than 0.5. CONCLUSION: Our meta-analysis showed that the progesterone receptor gene Alu insertion and the V660L polymorphism contained in the PROGINS polymorphism were susceptibility factors for female reproductive cancer.

240. The socio-economic and health effects of COVID-19 among rural and urban-slum dwellers in Ghana: A mixed methods approach.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Aberese-Ako M, Immurana M, Dalaba MA

BACKGROUND: Vulnerable populations such as rural and urban-slum dwellers are more likely to suffer greatly from the deleterious effects of the novel Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). However, in Ghana, most COVID-19 mitigating packages are not focused on vulnerable populations. METHODS: Concurrent mixed methods design was used to examine the socio-economic and health effects of COVID-19 among rural and urban-slum dwellers in Ghana. Four hundred respondents were sampled for the quantitative arm of the study, while 46 In-depth Interviews (IDIs) were conducted with community members and government officials. Sixty-four community members participated in Focus Group Discussions (FGDs) and non-participant observation was carried out for three months. Quantitative data were analysed using frequencies, percentages, Pearson Chi2 and ordered logistic regression. Interviews were recorded using digital recorders and later transcribed. Transcribed data (IDIs, FGDs) and observation notes were uploaded onto a computer and transferred to qualitative software NVivo 12 to support thematic coding and analysis. RESULTS: Majority of the respondents confirmed the deleterious socio-economic and health effects of COVID-19 on jobs and prices of food. Other effects were fear of visiting a health facility even when unwell, depression and anxiety. Young people (18-32 years), males, urban-slum dwellers, married individuals, the employed and low-income earners (those who earn GHC10/$1.7 to GHC100/ $17), were more likely to suffer from the socio-economic and health effects of COVID-19. Urban-slum dwellers coped by relying on family and social networks for food and other basic necessities, while rural dwellers created locally appropriate washing aids to facilitate hand washing in the rural communities. CONCLUSION: COVID-19 and the government's mitigation measures had negative socio-economic and health effects on vulnerable communities. While vulnerable populations should be targeted for the government's COVID-19 mitigating packages, special attention should be given to young people (18-32 years), males, urban-slum dwellers, married individuals and low-income earners. Communities should be encouraged to maintain coping strategies adopted even after COVID-19.

241. Association of cytochromes P450 3A4*22 and 3A5*3 genotypes and polymorphism with response to simvastatin in hypercholesterolemia patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Elalem EG, Jelani M, Khedr A

BACKGROUNDS: Inter-individual variability in response to statin was mainly due to genetic differences. This study aimed to investigate the association of CYP3A4*22 (rs35599367), CYP3A5*3 (rs776746) single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) with response to simvastatin in hypercholesterolemia patients conducted at King Abdulaziz University hospital (KAUH) in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. PATIENTS AND METHODS: A total of 274 participants were registered in the current study. Hypercholesterolemic patients taking simvastatin 20 mg (n = 148) and control subjects (n = 126) were tested for rs35599367 and rs776746 genotypes using Custom Taqman ® Assay Probes. Response to simvastatin in these patients was assessed by determination of low density lipoprotein (LDL-C), total cholesterol (TC) and by measuring statin plasma levels using Liquid Chromatography-Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS). RESULTS: None of the participants carried a homozygous CYP3A4*22 mutant genotype, while 12 (4.4%) individuals had a heterozygous genotype and 262 (95.6%) had a wild homozygous genotype. The CYP3A5*3 allele was detected in the homozygous mutant form in 16 (5.8%) individuals, while 74 (27.0%) individuals carried the heterozygous genotype and 184 (67.2%) carried the wildtype homozygous genotype. Of the patient group, 15 (11%) were classified as intermediate metabolizers (IMs) and 133 (89%) as extensive metabolizers (EMs). Plasma simvastatin concentrations for the combined CYP3A4/5 genotypes were significantly (P<0.05) higher in the IMs group than in the EMs group. TC and plasma LDL-C levels were also significantly (P<0.05) higher in IMs than in EMs. CONCLUSION: The present study showed associations between CYP3A4*22 (rs35599367) and CYP3A5*3 (rs776746) SNP combination genotypes with response to statins in hypercholesterolemia. Patients who had either a mutant homozygous allele for CYP3A5*3 or mutant homozygous and heterozygous alleles for CYP3A4*22 showed increased response to lower TC and LDL-C levels.

242. Physical activity, sedentary behaviors and all-cause mortality in patients with heart failure: Findings from the NHANES 2007-2014.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Kim Y, Canada JM, Kenyon J

243. Individual level peer interventions for gay and bisexual men who have sex with men between 2000 and 2020: A scoping review.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Freestone J, Siefried KJ, Prestage G

244. Functional changes in hemostasis during asexual and sexual parasitemia in a controlled human malaria infection.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Huang S, van der Heijden W, Reuling IJ

245. There is no smoke without fire: How frequency information and the experience attribution make negative online restaurant reviews more harmful.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Trzebiński W, Marciniak B.

246. Environmental impact of single-use, reusable, and mixed trocar systems used for laparoscopic cholecystectomies.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Boberg L, Singh J, Montgomery A

INTRODUCTION: Climate change is one of the 21st century's biggest public health issues and health care contributes up to 10% of the emissions of greenhouse gases in developed countries. About 15 million laparoscopic procedures are performed annually worldwide and single-use medical equipment is increasingly used during these procedures. Little is known about costs and environmental footprint of this change in practice. METHODS: We employed Life Cycle Assessment method to evaluate and compare the environmental impacts of single-use, reusable, and mixed trocar systems used for laparoscopic cholecystectomies at three hospitals in southern Sweden. The environmental impacts were calculated using the IMPACT 2002+ method and a functional unit of 500 procedures. Monte Carlo simulations were used to estimate differences between trocar systems. Data are presented as medians and 2.5th to 97.5th percentiles. Financial costs were calculated using Life Cycle Costing. RESULTS: The single-use system had a 182% higher impact on resources than the reusable system [difference: 5160 MJ primary (4400-5770)]. The single-use system had a 379% higher impact on climate change than the reusable system [difference: 446 kg CO2eq (413-483)]. The single-use system had an 83% higher impact than the reusable system on ecosystem quality [difference: 79 PDF*m2*yr (24-112)] and a 240% higher impact on human health [difference: 2.4x10-4 DALY/person/yr (2.2x10-4-2.6x10-4)]. The mixed and single-use systems had a similar environmental impact. Differences between single-use and reusable trocars with regard to resource use and ecosystem quality were found to be sensitive to lower filling of machines in the sterilization process. For ecosystem quality the difference between the two were further sensitive to a 50% decrease in number of reuses, and to using a fossil fuel intensive electricity mix. Differences regarding effects on climate change and human health were robust in the sensitivity analyses. The reusable and mixed trocar systems were approximately half as expensive as the single-use systems (17360 € and 18560 € versus 37600 €, respectively). CONCLUSION: In the Swedish healthcare system the reusable trocar system offers a robust opportunity to reduce both the environmental impact and financial costs for laparoscopic surgery.

247. Managing incontinence in low-and middle income-countries: A qualitative case study from Pakistan.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Ansari Z, White S.

BACKGROUND: Incontinence is a complex health and social issue, which involves the involuntary loss of urine or faeces or both. Individuals with disabilities are particularly vulnerable to incontinence. The management of incontinence has largely been overlooked in low and middle-income settings (LMICs). This study aimed to explore the incontinence management strategies employed by disabled people with severe incontinence and their caregivers in Sindh Province, Pakistan. METHODS: Incontinence management was explored through in-depth interviews with people with incontinence (PWI) and their caregivers, photovoice, and a market survey and product attribute assessment. Data was analysed thematically through inductive coding and evaluated against existing disability and caregiver frameworks. RESULTS: Incontinence management affected all aspects of daily life for PWI and caregivers. Effective management of incontinence was prioritised because caregivers viewed it to be part of their familial duty and a requirement for the household to remain pure in the eyes of God. Coping strategies included strict adherence to routines, reducing food and drink intake, creative uses of locally available natural resources, and a heavy reliance on soap and water for maintaining hygiene. Products such as adult diapers were largely unavailable, costly and were not deemed suitable for regular use. There were no social or medical interventions in the region to support incontinence management. The main impacts of incontinence on the household were social isolation, stigma, role shifts within the family, the development of physical ailments among caregivers, and decreased income. CONCLUSION: The complex health, psychological, social, economic, and cultural impacts of incontinence are exacerbated in LMICs due a lack of recognition of the condition, the absence of social or medical interventions and limited access to basic WASH infrastructure, and assistive devices or products. Appropriate solutions need to be developed in partnership with PWI and caregivers and need to be contextualised, affordable and sustainable.

248. Decision support through risk cost estimation in 30-day hospital unplanned readmission.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Arnal L, Pons-Suñer P, Navarro-Cerdán JR

249. Prevalence of Cryptococcus gattii in Ugandan HIV-infected patients presenting with cryptococcal meningitis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Wembabazi A, Nassozi DR, Akot E

INTRODUCTION: Cryptococcal meningitis (CM) is a life threatening disease and leading cause of opportunistic fungal-related mortality in HIV/AIDS. Most CM infections are caused by C. neoformans species complexes but the prevalence of Cryptococcus gattii species complexes in Uganda is unknown however, it is known in a few other parts of Africa. We estimated the prevalence of C. gattii in patients living with HIV and a diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis in Uganda. METHODS: Cryptococcus isolates (n = 200) obtained from cerebrospinal fluid of patients with CM recruited at the Infectious Diseases Institute, Kampala, Uganda, were tested by phenotypic methods. The Cryptococcus isolates were sub-cultured on Sabouraud Dextrose Agar plates for 48 hours. The yeast colonies were examined by India ink stain, urea hydrolysis, and C. gattii was identified by blue pigmentation on CGB agar. The results were analyzed for frequency of C. gattii. Patient demographic characteristics were collected from the case record forms. RESULTS: From the 200 patients' case record forms, 87 (43.5%) were female and 113 (56.5%) were male. The median age was 35 (19-64) years. Most patients, 93% (187/200) were from Central Uganda in the districts of Kampala and Wakiso. 97.51% (157/161) of the patients had absolute CD4 lymphocyte counts of less than 200 cells per cubic millimeter; 1.86% (3/161) 200-350 cells per cubic millimeter and 0.62% (1/161) above 500 cells per cubic millimeter. 45.4% (74/163) were not yet on HAART and 54.6% (89/163) were on HAART. 66.7% (58/87) had poor adherence to HAART treatment and 33.3% (29/87) had reported good adherence to HAART treatment. A total of 200 clinical isolates of Cryptococcus isolates were tested. No (0% (0/200) C. gattii was identified among the Cryptococcus isolates. CONCLUSION: In this study among patients living with HIV and a diagnosis of cryptococcal meningitis in Uganda, we found no C. gattii infections.

250. Embryonic manipulations modulate differential expressions of heat shock protein, fatty acid metabolism, and antioxidant-related genes in the liver of heat-stressed broilers.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Ncho CM, Goel A, Gupta V

In this study, the effects of in ovo feeding of γ-aminobutyric acid (GABA) and embryonic thermal manipulation (TM) on plasma biochemical parameters, organ weights, and hepatic gene expression in broilers exposed to cyclic heat stress (32 ± 1°C for 8 days) (HS) were investigated. A total of 175 chicks were assigned to five treatments: chicks hatched from control eggs (CON); chicks hatched from control eggs but exposed to HS (CON+HS); chicks hatched from eggs injected at 17.5 days of incubation with 0.6mL of 10% GABA and exposed to HS (G10+HS); chicks hatched from thermally manipulated eggs (39.6°C, 6h/d from embryonic days 10 to 18) and exposed to HS (TM+HS); chicks hatched from eggs that received both previous treatments during incubation and exposed to HS (G10+TM+HS). Results revealed that on day 36 post-hatch, hepatic NADPH oxidase 1 (P = 0.034) and 4 (P = 0.021) genes were downregulated in the TM+HS and G10+TM+HS compared to the CON+HS group. In addition, while acetyl-CoA carboxylase gene expression was reduced (P = 0.002) in the G10+TM group, gene expression of extracellular fatty acid-binding protein and peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ was lower (P = 0.045) in the TM+HS group than in the CON+HS group. HS led to higher gene expression of heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) and 90 (HSP90) (P = 0.005, and P = 0.022). On the other hand, the TM+HS group exhibited lower expression of both HSP70 (P = 0.031) and HSP90 (P = 0.043) whereas the G10+TM+HS group had a reduced (P = 0.016) HSP90 expression compared to the CON+HS. MANOVA on different gene sets highlighted an overall lower (P = 0.034) oxidative stress and lower (P = 0.035) heat shock protein expression in the G10+TM+HS group compared to the CON+HS group. Taken together, the current results suggest that the combination of in ovo feeding of GABA with TM can modulate HSPs and antioxidant-related gene expression in heat-stressed broilers.

251. Visual occlusion effects on youth football players' performance during small-sided games.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Santos S, Gonçalves B, Coutinho D

This study aimed to explore how youth players' physical, technical and positional performance may be affected by visual occlusion when playing under different SSG pitch sizes. Under-15 players performed two experimental scenarios: a) normal situation, without visual occlusion; b) visual occlusion, by using an eye patch in the eye corresponding to the dominant foot. These scenarios were tested in a small (40x30m) and a larger pitch (50x35m). Players' positional data was used to compute tactical and time-motion variables. In addition, technical analysis was comprised using video footage. Playing with visual occlusion in the larger pitch size induced higher distance covered while walking but lower running distance (p < .05). Although no statistically significant effects were identified between the normal and visual occlusion conditions for the tactical behaviour and technical performance a lower number of successful passes (small to moderate effect sizes) and higher regularity in the distance to the opponent's team centroid (moderate effect size) were found with visual occlusion. Players covered more distance and achieved higher maximum speed in the larger compared to the small pitch (moderate to large effect size, p < .05), while also increasing their distance to both team's centroid and increasing the regularity to these distances (moderate to large effect size, p < .05). Overall, despite similar effects for tactical and technical variables, some important practical information can be depicted. Accordingly, coaches may use the visual occlusion to promote more stable and regular behaviors while decreasing the physical demands. Larger pitches may be used to increase the distance between players' and teams, as well as to induce higher physical load in both the normal and visual occlusion conditions. From the technical perspective, coaches may design smaller pitches to emphasize the use of the non-dominant foot during the occlusion scenario and promote the pass during the normal scenario.

252. The spatio-temporal features of perceived-as-genuine and deliberate expressions.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Namba S, Nakamura K, Watanabe K.

253. Knowledge of diabetes and associated factors in rural Eastern Cape, South Africa: A cross sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Owolabi EO, Goon DT, Ajayi AI

BACKGROUND: Diabetes management is complex and requires several lifestyle modifications and engagement in self-management behaviours to prevent complications and to improve health outcomes. Adequate disease knowledge is required in order to engage in appropriate self-management behaviours. Yet, patients' knowledge of diabetes and associated factors are scarcely investigated. Context-specific data on diabetes knowledge are crucial for designing appropriate interventions for improving knowledge and treatment outcomes. This study examined the level of diabetes knowledge and its associated factors among persons with diabetes in Eastern Cape Province, South Africa. METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional study among 399 individuals attending diabetes care at six randomly selected primary healthcare facilities in Eastern Cape. Demographic data were obtained through questionnaire interviews while diabetes knowledge was assessed using the validated Michigan Diabetes Knowledge Test questionnaire. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used to assess the mean diabetes knowledge and its associated factors. RESULTS: Participants' median age was 63 (IQR: 54-70) years, and the median diabetes duration was 6 (IQR: 3-13) years. From a total score of 20, participants' knowledge of diabetes ranged from 0 to 17 with an average score of 7.5 (SD±2.2). After controlling for relevant covariates, being employed was positively associated with higher diabetes knowledge (p<0.001). However, health facility level was negatively associated with diabetes knowledge (p = 0.001). Participants receiving care at the community healthcare centres had a lower level of diabetes knowledge compared to those receiving care at the primary healthcare clinics. CONCLUSION: There was a low level of knowledge on the various components of diabetes management among individuals with diabetes in this setting. Therefore, context-specific interventions to improve the knowledge of diabetes is required and should target unemployed individuals and the community health centres in the region.

254. Could the type and severity of gross lesions in pig lymph nodes play a role in the detection of Mycobacterium avium?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Kaczmarkowska A, Didkowska A, Brzezińska S

255. Interventional therapy of extracranial arteriovenous malformations of the head and neck-A systematic review.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 15

Lilje D, Wiesmann M, Hasan D

OBJECTIVES: The primary aim of this study was to conduct a meta-analysis of the literature on interventional treatment for patients with extracranial AVM of the head and neck to identify a superior treatment. The secondary aim was to evaluate the methodological quality of associated articles published between 2000-2020. METHODS: The literature search was conducted on PubMed, Embase, the Cochrane Library, and scholar.google.com. Studies, meeting the acceptable reference standard underwent meta-analysis. All identified literature underwent methodological quality analysis. RESULTS: Of 1560 screened articles, 56 were included in the literature review. Appropriate diagnostic tests were reported in 98% of included articles. 13% of included articles did not specify the embolization agent. Outcome analysis varied throughout. 45% of the authors used radiographic imaging for follow-up. 77% specified the span of follow-up of their entire patient collective. Two articles met the inclusion criteria for meta-analysis. Curing rate of transarterial ethanol embolization for intraosseous AVM was 83% with a complication rate of 58%. Curing rate of ethanol combined with NBCA or Onyx in soft tissue AVM was 18% with a complication rate of 87%. CONCLUSION: Our literature review revealed an absence of treatment or reporting standards for extracranial AVM of the head and neck. The meta-analysis is comprised of two articles and methodological quality is heterogeneous. We recommend implementing consistent reporting standards to facilitate comparability of studies and to provide robust data for the development of an evidence-based treatment strategy. ADVANCES IN KNOWLEDGE: Meta-analysis showed a favorable radiological outcome for intraosseous AVM when treated with intraarterial ethanol embolization. Our analysis demonstrated that the published data on extracranial AVMs of the head and neck is lacking in consistency and quality, prompting agreement for the need of standardized reporting on AVM treatments.

256. Association between MTHFR (677C>T and 1298A>C) polymorphisms and psychiatric disorder: A meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Meng X, Zheng JL, Sun ML

257. Iodine images in dual energy CT: A monocentric study benchmarking quantitative iodine concentration values of the healthy liver.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Beck S, Jahn L, Deniffel D

258. Association between dental caries and Helicobacter pylori infection in Japanese adults: A cross-sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Iwai K, Azuma T, Yonenaga T

259. The use of virtual reality in studying prejudice and its reduction: A systematic review.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Tassinari M, Aulbach MB, Jasinskaja-Lahti I.

260. Magnesium impairs Candida albicans immune evasion by reduced hyphal damage, enhanced β-glucan exposure and altered vacuole homeostasis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Hans S, Fatima Z, Ahmad A

261. Optimising care coordination strategies for physical activity referral scheme patients by Australian health professionals.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Albert FA, Malau-Aduli AEO, Crowe MJ

262. Processing incomplete questionnaire data into continuous digital biomarkers for addiction monitoring.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Zetterström A, Dahlberg G, Lundqvist S

263. Automatic analysis of cochlear response using electrocochleography signals during cochlear implant surgery.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Wijewickrema S, Bester C, Gerard JM

264. Metagenomic analysis of the dynamical conversion of photosynthetic bacterial communities in different crop fields over different growth periods.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Cheng JE, Su P, Zhang ZH

265. Prevalence and associated risk factors of burnout amongst veterinary students in Ghana.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Emikpe BO, Asare DA, Emikpe AO

266. Appropriateness of indirect markers of muscle damage following lower limbs eccentric-biased exercises: A systematic review with meta-analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Chalchat E, Gaston AF, Charlot K

267. Determination of spider mite abundance in soil of field-grown cucumbers and in plants under predatory mite pressure in invasive infestations using HRM real-time PCR assay.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Kersten AK, Büttner C, Lentzsch P.

268. Portable wireless and fibreless fNIRS headband compares favorably to a stationary headcap-based system.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Friesen CL, Lawrence M, Ingram TGJ

269. Super-resolution analysis of PACSIN2 and EHD2 at caveolae.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Nishimura T, Suetsugu S.

270. Biocidal action, characterization, and molecular docking of Mentha piperita (Lamiaceae) leaves extract against Culex quinquefasciatus (Diptera: Culicidae) larvae.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Iqbal A, Qureshi NA, Alhewairini SS

Mosquitoes are found in tropical and subtropical areas and are the carriers of a variety of diseases that are harmful to people's health. e.g., malaria, filariasis, chikungunya, dengue fever, etc. Although several insecticides are available, however, due to insect resistance and environmental hazards, more eco-friendly chemicals are needed for insect control. So, the current research was planned to explore the prospective of Mentha piperita to be used for the formulation of larvicides against mosquito Culex quinquefasciatus. The ethanolic and water extracts of M. piperita leaves were prepared using the soxhlet apparatus. The extracts were dried and subjected to prepare five concentrations multiple of 80 ppm. Each concentration was applied for its larvicidal efficacy setting an experiment (in triplicate) in plastic containers of 1000 ml with extracts, 30 larvae of all four instars separately, and fed with dog biscuits along with controls. Observations were taken after each 12 hrs. till 72 hrs. The antioxidant perspective of M. piperita was determined by DPPH radical scavenging, total antioxidant capacity, and ferric reducing power assays. Using brine shrimp lethality bioactivity, the cytotoxic study was perceived. Standard techniques were used to classify the M. piperita extract using preliminary qualitative and quantitative phytochemicals, UV-Vis spectroscopy, FT-IR, and GC-MS analysis. M. piperita ethanolic leaves extract after 24 hrs. of exposure in 400 ppm showed 93% (LC50 = 208.976 ppm) mortality in ethanolic extract and 80% (LC90 = 246.900 ppm) in the water extract. In treated larvae, biochemical examination revealed a substantial (P<0.05) decrease in proteins, carbohydrates, and fat contents. The ethanol extract of M. piperita was the most efficient, killing brine shrimp nauplii in 50% to 90% of cases. TAC (125.4 3.5gAAE/mg DW) and FRP (378.1 1.0gAAE/mg DW) were highest in the ethanolic extract of M. piperita. The presence of medicinally active components such as alkaloids, carbohydrates, flavonoids, and others in M. piperita leaves extract in ethanol was discovered. The UV-Vis spectrum showed two peaks at 209.509 and 282.814 nm with the absorption of 2.338 and 0.796 respectively. The FT-IR consequences exhibited the occurrence of alcohols, alkanes, aldehyde, aromatic rings, ether linkage, ester, and halo- compounds. The GC-MS analysis according to peak (%) area and retention time showed ten phytochemicals consisting of six major and four minor compounds. Among all the compounds, 1, 2-benzene dicarboxylic acid, and 3-ethyl-5, 5-dimethyl -6-phenyl bound well to the NS3 protease domain with PDB ID: 2FOM. Hence, for the prevention of health hazards and mosquito control, M. Piperita is a potential source of chemicals for insecticide formulation.

271. The effect of levocarnitine supplementation on dialysis-related hypotension: A systematic review, meta-analysis, and trial sequential analysis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Chewcharat A, Chewcharat P, Liu W

BACKGROUND: Dialysis patients have been shown to have low serum carnitine due to poor nutrition, deprivation of endogenous synthesis from kidneys, and removal by hemodialysis. Carnitine deficiency leads to impaired cardiac function and dialysis-related hypotension which are associated with increased mortality. Supplementing with levocarnitine among hemodialysis patients may diminish incidence of intradialytic hypotension. Data on this topic, however, lacks consensus. METHODS: We conducted electronic searches in PubMed, Embase and Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials from January 1960 to 19th November 2021 to identify randomized controlled studies (RCTs), which examined the effects of oral or intravenous levocarnitine (L-carnitine) on dialysis-related hypotension among hemodialysis patients. The secondary outcome was muscle cramps. Study results were pooled and analyzed utilizing the random-effects model. Trial sequential analysis (TSA) was performed to assess the strength of current evidence. RESULTS: Eight trials with 224 participants were included in our meta-analysis. Compared to control group, L-carnitine reduced the incidence of dialysis-related hypotension among hemodialysis patients (pooled OR = 0.26, 95% CI [0.10-0.72], p = 0.01, I2 = 76.0%). TSA demonstrated that the evidence was sufficient to conclude the finding. Five studies with 147 participants showed a reduction in the incidence of muscle cramps with L-carnitine group (pooled OR = 0.22, 95% CI [0.06-0.81], p = 0.02, I2 = 74.7%). However, TSA suggested that further high-quality studies were required. Subgroup analysis on the route of supplementation revealed that only oral but not intravenous L-carnitine significantly reduced dialysis-related hypotension. Regarding dose and duration of L-carnitine supplementation, the dose > 4,200 mg/week and duration of at least 12 weeks appeared to prevent dialysis-related hypotension. CONCLUSION: Supplementing oral L-carnitine for at least three months above 4,200 mg/week helps prevent dialysis-related hypotension. L-carnitine supplementation may ameliorate muscle cramps. Further well-powered studies are required to conclude this benefit.

272. Practical and psychosocial challenges faced by caregivers influence the acceptability of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis preventive therapy for young children.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Wademan DT, Hoddinott G, Purchase SE

273. Reaching and engaging people: Analyzing tweeting practices of large U.S. police departments pre- and post- the killing of George Floyd.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Dong B, Wu X.

274. Identification of multiple raisins by feature fusion combined with NIR spectroscopy.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Zhang Y, Yang Y, Ma C

275. Exploring the trend in religious diversity: Based on the geographical perspective.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Lin X, Chen Q, Wei L

276. Knowledge, attitudes and practices of community treatment supporters administering multidrug-resistant tuberculosis injections: A cross-sectional study in rural Eswatini.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Peresu E, Heunis JC, Kigozi NG

277. Molecular and clinical profiling in a large cohort of Asian Indians with glycogen storage disorders.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Kumar TV, Bhat M, Narayanachar SG

278. cacna2d3, a voltage-gated calcium channel subunit, functions in vertebrate habituation learning and the startle sensitivity threshold.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Santistevan NJ, Nelson JC, Ortiz EA

279. Feature-level ensemble approach for COVID-19 detection using chest X-ray images.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 14

Ho TKK, Gwak J.

280. Assessment of the consistency of health and demographic surveillance and household survey data: A demonstration at two HDSS sites in The Gambia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Jasseh M, Rerimoi AJ, Reniers G

OBJECTIVE: To assess whether an adapted Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) like cross-sectional household survey with full pregnancy histories can demonstrate the validity of health and demographic surveillance (HDSS) data by producing similar population structural characteristics and childhood mortality indicators at two HDSS sites in The Gambia-Farafenni and Basse. METHODS: A DHS-type survey was conducted of 2,580 households in the Farafenni HDSS, and 2,907 in the Basse HDSS. Household members were listed and pregnancy histories obtained for all women aged 15-49. HDSS datasets were extracted for the same households including residency episodes for all current and former members and compared with the survey data. Neonatal (0-28 days), infant (<1 year), child (1-4 years) and under-5 (< 5 years) mortality rates were derived from each source by site and five-year periods from 2001-2015 and by calendar year between 2011 and 2015 using Kaplan-Meier failure probabilities. Survey-HDSS rate ratios were determined using the Mantel-Haenszel method. RESULTS: The selected households in Farafenni comprised a total population of 27,646 in the HDSS, compared to 26,109 captured in the household survey, implying higher coverage of 94.4% (95% CI: 94.1-94.7; p<0.0001) against a hypothesised proportion of 90% in the HDSS. All population subgroups were equally covered by the HDSS except for the Wollof ethnic group. In Basse, the total HDSS population was 49,287, compared to 43,538 enumerated in the survey, representing an undercount of the HDSS by the survey with a coverage of 88.3% (95% CI: 88.0-88.6; p = 1). All sub-population groups were also under-represented by the survey. Except for the neonatal mortality rate for Farafenni, the childhood mortality indicators derived from pregnancy histories and HDSS data compare reasonably well by 5-year periods from 2001-2015. Annual estimates from the two data sources for the most recent quinquennium, 2011-2015, were similar in both sites, except for an excessively high neonatal mortality rate for Farafenni in 2015. CONCLUSION: Overall, the adapted DHS-type survey has reasonably represented the Farafenni HDSS database using population size and structure; and both databases using childhood mortality indicators. If the hypothetical proportion is lowered to 85%, the survey would adequately validate both HDSS databases in all considered aspects. The adapted DHS-type sample household survey therefore has potential for validation of HDSS data.

281. SARS-CoV-2 testing strategies for outbreak mitigation in vaccinated populations.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Kumar CK, Balasubramanian R, Ongarello S

282. Identification of the shared gene signatures and pathways between polycystic ovary syndrome and endometrial cancer: An omics data based combined approach.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Miao C, Chen Y, Fang X

283. Increase in short telomeres during the third trimester in human placenta.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Edelson PK, Sawyer MR, Gray KJ

284. The exceptionally high diversity of small carnivorans from the Late Miocene hominid locality of Hammerschmiede (Bavaria, Germany).

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Kargopoulos N, Valenciano A, Abella J

285. Polygenic score for Alzheimer's disease identifies differential atrophy in hippocampal subfield volumes.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Kannappan B, Gunasekaran TI, Te Nijenhuis J

286. The role of patients in the governance of a sustainable healthcare system: A scoping review.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Aggarwal M, Gill S, Siddiquei A

Patients, healthcare providers and insurers need a governance framework to establish the 'rules of use' to deliver more responsible use of services. The objective of this review was to provide an overview of frameworks and analyze the definitions of patient accountability to identify themes and potential gaps in the literature. Fifteen bibliographic databases were searched until July 2021. This included: MEDLINE, EMBASE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, SPORTDiscus, Allied and Complementary Medicine Database, Web of Science, HealthSTAR, Scopus, ABI/INFORM Global, Cochrane Library, ERIC, International Bibliography of the Social Sciences, Sociological Abstracts, Worldwide Political Science Abstracts and International Political Science Abstracts. Searches were also completed in Google Scholar. Inclusion criteria included articles focused on accountability of patients, and exclusions included articles that were not available, not written in English, with missing information, and commentaries or editorials. In total, 85530 unique abstracts were identified, and 27 articles were included based on the inclusion criteria. The results showed that patient accountability is rarely used and poorly defined. Most studies focused on what patients should be held to account for and agreed that patients should be responsible for behaviours that may contribute to adverse health outcomes. Some studies promoted a punitive approach as a mechanism of enforcement. Most studies argued for positive incentives or written agreements and contracts. While many studies recognized the value of patient accountability frameworks, there was a concern that these frameworks could further exacerbate existing socioeconomic disparities and contribute to poor health-related behaviours and outcomes (e.g., stigmatizing marginalized groups). Shared models of accountability between patients and healthcare providers or patients and communities were preferred. Before committing to a patient accountability framework for improving patient health and sustaining a healthcare system, the concept must be acceptable and reasonable to patients, providers, and society as a whole.

287. Isolation and characterization of Yersinia enterocolitica from foods in Apulia and Basilicata regions (Italy) by conventional and modern methods.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Mancini ME, Beverelli M, Donatiello A

Yersiniosis is the third most reported food-borne zoonosis in Europe. The aim of the present study was to perform the search for Yersinia enterocolitica in food samples collected from Apulia and Basilicata regions (Southern Italy) and to characterize any isolates by classical and modern analytical methods. A total of 130 samples were analyzed between July 2018 and July 2019: most of them were raw milk and dairy products made from it. Furthermore, 8 out of 130 samples were individual milk samples collected from bovines reared in a Brucella-free farm which showed false positive serological reaction for brucellosis due to the presence of pathogenic Y. enterocolitica O:9 biotype 2 in faeces. The Real Time PCR targeting the ail gene and the culture method were performed to detect pathogenic Y. enterocolitica. Isolates were subjected to API 20E (Biomerieux) and MALDI-TOF MS (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption Ionization Time-of-Flight) for species identification. All samples were negative for the ail gene. The culture method allowed to isolate suspicious colonies from 28 samples. The API 20E system and the MALDI-TOF MS technique identified 20 Y. enterocolitica and 1 Y. intermedia in a concordant way. The remaining 7 strains were all identified as Y. enterocolitica by the API 20E system, while the MALDI-TOF MS recognized 4 Y. intermedia, 1 Y. bercovieri and 2 Y. massiliensis. Genotypic characterization of the discordant strains was performed by rMLST and it confirmed the MALDI-TOF MS' results. Only non-pathogenic Y. enterocolitica biotype 1A strains were found, although with a non-negligible prevalence (P = 0.15 with CI 95% = ± 0.06). This study indicates a poor circulation of pathogenic Y. enterocolitica in food products made and marketed in the investigated areas. However, the small number of samples, insufficient for some food categories such as meat and vegetable, does not allow to exclude the presence of pathogenic strains at all.

288. University students' help seeking intention for depression from health professionals; a cross sectional study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Lemma A, Minichil W, Salelew E

OBJECTIVES: To assess University students' intention to seek help for depression from health professional and associated factors among University of Gondar students, Northwest, Ethiopia. METHODS: An institution-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 487 students. Multistage sampling technique was used to select study participants. Self-administered questionnaire was employed to collect the data. General help seeking questionnaire with major depressive disorder case vignette was used to assess students' intention to seek help for depression. The collected data was analyzed using SPSS version 20. Simple and multiple linear regression analysis were performed to identify factors for intention to seek help for depression. Association was described by using adjusted unstandardized β coefficient along with 95% confidence interval. Finally, P-values < 0.05 in adjusted analysis were taken as a cut off for significant association. RESULTS: The mean score of intention to seek help from health professionals was 3.84 (±0.76)with a range of (1 "very unlikely" to 5 "very likely"). About 67.8% of the study participants would seek help from health professionals if they would have depressive symptoms which was depicted in the case vignette. In the multiple linear regression analyses, student age (unstandardized ß = 0.07, 95% CI: (0.05, 0.10)), good attitude towards seeking professional help (ß = 0.03, 95% CI: (0.02, 0.04)) were factors positively associated with intention to seek help. CONCLUSION: The current study showed that more than three-fifth of the study participants reported they were likely or very likely to seek help for depression from health professionals. Increased age and favorable attitude were factors associated with intention to seek help for depression. Working on awareness creation and attitude change towards depression would be necessary to increase students' intention to seek help for depression from health professional.

289. To Zoom or not to Zoom: A longitudinal study of UK population's activities during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Li L, Sullivan A, Musah A

This longitudinal study determines the frequency and way of people doing activities from Spring 2020 to Summer 2021 during different phases of the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK. Six online surveys were carried out between April 2020 and July 2021. 4,992 participants were engaged in the cross-sectional study and 203 participants who provided repeat responses were included in the subset sample of prospective cohort analysis. Primary outcomes measured were the frequency and the mode of doing the activities (online or in-person) across sixteen selected activity groups, as defined by the UK National Time Use Survey. The results show that cultural activities, spending time with others, and travelling, were the activities with the largest proportions of frequency and mode changes. The most significant changes occurred from March to June 2020, a period that included the first lockdown. Survey results from this period show a significant decrease among most of the sixteen measured activities. From March to October 2020, a period which spans the first lockdown and its subsequent ease of restrictions, showed the most significant shift from accessing activities in-person to online. Despite 'Freedom Day', the July 19th 2021 date in which all restrictions were abolished, it was found that people do cultural activities and group activities at a significantly lower frequency than before the pandemic. In addition, despite a lack of restrictions after this date, more than half of participants access many activities, such as spending time with others, shopping, work and studying, online or hybrid. This study provides an invaluable insight into understanding how people in the UK changed their lifestyle, including what activities they do, and how they accessed those activities in light of the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health policy implemented to address the pandemic. These results may serve as unique evidence for policymakers.

290. Cultural similarity and impartiality on voting bias: The case of FIFA's World's Best Male Football Player Award.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 13

Johnson MR, McCarthy IP.

291. Comparison of cardiorespiratory and anesthetic effects of ketamine-midazolam-xylazine-sufentanil and tiletamine-zolazepam-xylazine in miniature pigs.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Zhang Z, Bai H, Zhang B

292. The association between psychological burden related to COVID-19 and addictive social media use: Testing the mediational role of anxious affect.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Vally Z, Helmy M.

293. Incidence, recurring admissions and mortality of severe bacterial infections and sepsis over a 22-year period in the population-based HUNT study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Liyanarachi KV, Solligård E, Mohus RM

294. Mechanisms of azole antifungal resistance in clinical isolates of Candida tropicalis.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Paul S, Shaw D, Joshi H

295. A double scrambling-DNA row and column closed loop image encryption algorithm based on chaotic system.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Ran W, Wang E, Tong Z.

296. Willingness to receive COVID-19 vaccine and associated factors among adult chronic patients. A cross-sectional study in Northwest Ethiopia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Tegegne MD, Girma S, Mengistu S

BACKGROUND: People with pre-existing chronic diseases are more likely to acquire COVID-19 infections, which can be fatal, and die from COVID-19 illness. COVID-19 vaccination will benefit those at a higher risk of developing complications and dying from the disease. This study aimed to determine chronic patients' willingness to receive a COVID-19 vaccine and the factors that influence their willingness. METHOD: An institutional-based cross-sectional study was conducted among 423 adult chronic patients in the University of Gondar specialized hospital outpatient departments. The participants were chosen using systematic random sampling methods with an interval of 5. Face-to-face interviews were used to collect data from eligible respondents. Epi-data version 4.6 and SPSS version 25 were used for the data entry data analysis. Bivariable and multivariable binary logistic regression analyses were used to evaluate the relationship between the dependent and independent factors. An odds ratio with 95 percent confidence intervals and a P-value was used to determine the association's strength and statistical significance. RESULT: Out of 401 respondents, 219 (54.6%) with [95% CI (49.7-59.5%)] of study participants were willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccination. Being a healthcare worker (AOR = 2.94, 95% CI: 1.24-6.96), Lost family members or friends due to COVID-19 (AOR = 2.47, 95% CI: 1.21-5.00), good knowledge about COVID-19 vaccine (AOR = 2.44, 95% CI: 1.37-4.33), favorable attitude towards COVID-19 vaccine (AOR = .8.56 95% CI: 4.76-15.38), perceived suitability of the COVID-19 infection (AOR = 2.94, 95% CI: 1.62-5.33) and perceived benefit of the COVID-19 vaccine (AOR = 1.89, 95% CI: 1.08-3.31), were found to be a significant association with the willingness to receive the COVID-19 vaccine among chronic patients. CONCLUSION: This study confirms that around 55% of adult chronic patients were willing to receive the COVID-19 vaccine. Providing health education for chronic patients to emphasize the knowledge and attitude of the COVID-19 vaccine and raise patients' perceived risk of COVID-19 and the benefit of the COVID-19 vaccine could be recommended to improve their willingness to COVID-19 vaccination.

297. Potential and challenges for an integrated management of tuberculosis, diabetes mellitus, and hypertension: A scoping review protocol.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Widyaningsih V, Febrinasari RP, Sari V

298. Morindone from Morinda citrifolia as a potential antiproliferative agent against colorectal cancer cell lines.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Chee CW, Zamakshshari NH, Lee VS

299. Different phylotypes of Cutibacterium acnes cause different modic changes in intervertebral disc degeneration.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Lan W, Wang X, Tu X

BACKGROUND: The contribution of Cutibacterium acnes (C. acnes) infection to intervertebral disc degeneration (IDD) and the antibiotic therapy has evoked several controversies in recent years. While some microbiology studies report bacterial disc infection within IDD patients, others attribute the positive results to contamination during prolonged cultures. In addition to the clinical controversy, little was known about the mechanism of C. acnes-caused Modic changes (MCs) if C. acnes was the pathogenic factor. OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to investigate the inflammatory mechanism of MCs induced by different phylotypes of C. acnes in patients with IDD. METHODS: Specimens from sixty patients undergoing microdiscectomy for disc herniation were included, C. acnes were identified by anaerobic culture, followed by biochemical and PCR-based methods. The identified species of C. acnes were respectively inoculated into the intervertebral discs of rabbits. MRI and histological change were observed. Additionally, we detected MMP expression in the rabbit model using reverse transcription-quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR). RESULTS: Of the 60 cases, 18 (30%) specimens were positive for C. acnes, and we identified 4 of 6 defined phylogroups: IA, IB, II and III. The rabbits that received Type IB or II strains of C. acnes showed significantly decreased T1WI and higher T2WI at eighth weeks, while strain III C. acnes resulted in hypointense signals on both T1WI and T2WI. Histological examination results showed that all of the three types of C. acnes could cause disc degeneration and endplates rupture. Moreover, endplate degeneration induced by type IB or II strains of C. acnes is related with MMP13 expression. Meanwhile, strain III C. acnes might upregulated the level of MMP3. CONCLUSION: This study suggested that C. acnes is widespread in herniated disc tissues. Different types of C. acnes could induce different MCs by increasing MMP expression.

300. A rapid and accurate method for estimating the erythrocyte sedimentation rate using a hematocrit-corrected optical aggregation index.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Higuchi M, Watanabe N.

301. Establishing the content of gender stereotypes across development.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 12

Sullivan J, Ciociolo A, Moss-Racusin CA.

302. An improved pairing-free certificateless aggregate signature scheme for healthcare wireless medical sensor networks.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 11

Zhou L, Yin X.

303. Environmental effects on the spread of the Neolithic crop package to South Asia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 11

Gregorio de Souza J, Ruiz-Pérez J, Lancelotti C

The emergence of Neolithic economies and their spread through Eurasia was one of the most crucial transitions of the Holocene, with different mechanisms of diffusion-demic, cultural-being proposed. While this phenomenon has been exhaustively studied in Europe, with repeated attempts to model the speed of Neolithic diffusion based on radiocarbon dates, much less attention has been devoted to the dispersal towards the East, and in particular to South Asia. The Neolithic in the latter region at least partly derived from southwest Asia, given the presence of "founder crops" such as wheat and barley. The process of their eastward diffusion, however, may have been significantly different to the westward dispersal, which was mainly due to demic diffusion, as local domesticates were already available and farming was already practiced in parts of South Asia. Here, we use radiocarbon dates specifically related to the spread of the southwest Asian Neolithic crops to model the speed of dispersal of this agricultural package towards South Asia. To assess potential geographical and environmental effects on the dispersal, we simulate different speeds depending on the biomes being crossed, employing a genetic algorithm to search for the values that most closely approach the radiocarbon dates. We find that the most important barrier to be crossed were the Zagros mountains, where the speed was lowest, possibly due to topography and climate. A large portion of the study area is dominated by deserts and shrublands, where the speed of advance, albeit closer to the range expected for demic diffusion, was lower than observed in Europe, which can also potentially be attributed to environmental constraints in the adaptation of the crops. Finally, a notable acceleration begins in the Indus valley, exceeding the range of demic diffusion in the tropical and subtropical environments east of the Indus. We propose that the latter is due to the rapid diffusion among populations already familiar with plant cultivation.

304. Clinical, radiological and pathological characteristics of moderate to fulminant psittacosis pneumonia.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 11

Li X, Xiao T, Hu P

BACKGROUND: Psittacosis pneumonia is a community-acquired pneumonia caused by Chlamydia psittaci. It is usually under-diagnosed due to its atypical clinical presentation and lack of routine laboratory tests. METHODS: To better understand the clinical features, 52 patients diagnosed with psittacosis pneumonia by metagenomic next-generation sequencing (mNGS) were enrolled in this study. The clinical, radiological and pathological characteristics were retrospectively analyzed. RESULTS: The onset of psittacosis pneumonia in this study occurred all year round, with a peak from December to January. Most of the patients were 51-80 years old. About 65.38% of patients had a history of exposure to poultry or parrots. Abnormalities of multiple clinical signals were detected in these patients. Elevated levels of neutrophil ratio, C-reactive protein, erythrocyte sedimentation rate, and procalcitonin were detected in most patients. Radiological evidence revealed air-space consolidation or ground-glass opacities in lungs of all patients, which is the typical feature of psittacosis pneumonia. In addition, hyperemia, swelling of bronchial mucosa, and bronchial patency were detected by bronchoscopy in all patients, and bronchial sub-mucosal edema, inflammatory cells infiltration and alveolar epithelial hyperplasia were identified in the bronchial mucosa and alveolar tissue. Beta-lactam antibiotics were administered for empirical treatment before mNGS in 17 patients but showed no improvement. The treatment was switched to doxycycline or moxifloxacin immediately since psittacosis pneumonia were suspected and confirmed by mNGS detection (within 48 hours). After receiving adjustment of treatment, 94.23% (49/52) of patients were cured successfully. CONCLUSIONS: In conclusion, mNGS may be a promising approach for clinical diagnosis of psittacosis. For patients with a history of exposure to birds, hyperpyrexia, nonproductive cough, multiple elevated inflammatory markers, and air-space consolidation in lung, psittacosis pneumonia should be considered, especially when beta-lactam antibiotics showed limited efficacy.

305. Using natural language processing to identify acute care patients who lack advance directives, decisional capacity, and surrogate decision makers.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 11

Song J, Topaz M, Landau AY

The prevalence of patients who are Incapacitated with No Evident Advance Directives or Surrogates (INEADS) remains unknown because such data are not routinely captured in structured electronic health records. This study sought to develop and validate a natural language processing (NLP) algorithm to identify information related to being INEADS from clinical notes. We used a publicly available dataset of critical care patients from 2001 through 2012 at a United States academic medical center, which contained 418,393 relevant clinical notes for 23,904 adult admissions. We developed 17 subcategories indicating reduced or elevated potential for being INEADS, and created a vocabulary of terms and expressions within each. We used an NLP application to create a language model and expand these vocabularies. The NLP algorithm was validated against gold standard manual review of 300 notes and showed good performance overall (F-score = 0.83). More than 80% of admissions had notes containing information in at least one subcategory. Thirty percent (n = 7,134) contained at least one of five social subcategories indicating elevated potential for being INEADS, and <1% (n = 81) contained at least four, which we classified as high likelihood of being INEADS. Among these, n = 8 admissions had no subcategory indicating reduced likelihood of being INEADS, and appeared to meet the definition of INEADS following manual review. Among the remaining n = 73 who had at least one subcategory indicating reduced likelihood of being INEADS, manual review of a 10% sample showed that most did not appear to be INEADS. Compared with the full cohort, the high likelihood group was significantly more likely to die during hospitalization and within four years, to have Medicaid, to have an emergency admission, and to be male. This investigation demonstrates potential for NLP to identify INEADS patients, and may inform interventions to enhance advance care planning for patients who lack social support.

306. Analysis of clinical trial registry entry histories using the novel R package cthist.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Carlisle BG.

307. Explosive and implosive root concepts: An analysis of music moods rooted by two influential rap artists.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Nagayama S, Mitsuhashi H.

308. Research on performance and dynamic competency evaluation of bid evaluation experts based on weight interval number.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Li T, Li G, Zhang M

PURPOSE/SIGNIFICANCE: In the past many years, some scholars have studied bid evaluation experts, such as the behavior of bid evaluation experts. However, previous research ignores the performance and competency of bid evaluation experts, so this paper aims to provide a theoretical basis for incentive and constraint mechanism and hierarchical or dynamic management of bid evaluation experts by implementing performance and dynamic competency evaluation of bid evaluation experts. METHOD/PROCESS: Firstly, the evaluation index system of performance and dynamic competency of bid evaluation experts is preliminarily constructed by referring to relevant literature, and then the constructed evaluation index was modified and improved by consulting relevant stakeholders' experts. Secondly, considering the hesitation and consistency of expert weighting, the calculation method of expert weight coefficient and index score interval number is improved. Based on the theory of weight interval number, the corresponding mathematical optimization model is constructed to calculate the index weight according to the purpose of performance judgment and dynamic competency clustering of bid evaluation experts. Finally, the data of performance and dynamic competency of bid evaluation experts is obtained by questionnaire survey, and the empirical analysis was carried out by simulating the bid evaluation experts consistent with the actual situation. RESULTS/CONCLUSION: After improving the calculation method of index score interval number, and then calculating index weight interval number through index score interval number, the length of index weight interval number can be decreased and the calculation accuracy of index weight interval number can be increased. In addition, the index weight calculated by the constructed mathematical optimization model can make the intra-class discrimination smaller and the inter-class discrimination larger. Finally, some suggestions are also provided for the management of bid evaluation experts.

309. Factors that affect migratory Western Atlantic red knots (Calidris canutus rufa) and their prey during spring staging on Virginia's barrier islands.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Heller EL, Karpanty SM, Cohen JB

Understanding factors that influence a species' distribution and abundance across the annual cycle is required for range-wide conservation. Thousands of imperiled red knots (Calidris cantus rufa) stop on Virginia's barrier islands each year to replenish fat during spring migration. We investigated the variation in red knot presence and flock size, the effects of prey on this variation, and factors influencing prey abundance on Virginia's barrier islands. We counted red knots and collected potential prey samples at randomly selected sites from 2007-2018 during a two-week period during early and peak migration. Core samples contained crustaceans (Orders Amphipoda and Calanoida), blue mussels (Mytilus edulis), coquina clams (Donax variabilis), and miscellaneous prey (horseshoe crab eggs (Limulus polyphemus), angel wing clams (Cyrtopleura costata), and other organisms (e.g., insect larvae, snails, worms)). Estimated red knot peak counts in Virginia during 21-27 May were highest in 2012 (11,959) and lowest in 2014 (2,857; 12-year peak migration [Formula: see text] = 7,175, SD = 2,869). Red knot and prey numbers varied across sampling periods and substrates (i.e., peat and sand). Red knots generally used sites with more prey. Miscellaneous prey ([Formula: see text] = 2401.00/m2, SE = 169.16) influenced red knot presence at a site early in migration, when we only sampled on peat banks. Coquina clams ([Formula: see text] = 1383.54/m2, SE = 125.32) and blue mussels ([Formula: see text] = 777.91/m2, SE = 259.31) affected red knot presence at a site during peak migration, when we sampled both substrates. Few relationships between prey and red knot flock size existed, suggesting that other unmeasured factors determined red knot numbers at occupied sites. Tide and mean daily water temperature affected prey abundance. Maximizing the diversity, availability, and abundance of prey for red knots on barrier islands requires management that encourages the presence of both sand and peat bank intertidal habitats.

310. Construction of a competency evaluation index system for front-line nurses during the outbreak of major infectious diseases: A Delphi study.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Bai X, Gan X, Yang R

INTRODUCTION: As the frequency of infectious diseases rises, it's more important than ever to pay attention to the competency level of front-line nurses as the primary force in front-line rescue, which has an impact on the quality of anti-epidemic response. This paper aims to construct the competency evaluation index system for front-line nurses during the outbreak of major infectious diseases. MATERIALS AND METHODS: This study combined literature review, critical incident technique interviews, and semi-structured in-depth interviews, as well as two rounds of Delphi expert correspondence, to construct a competence evaluation index system for front-line nurses during the outbreak of major infectious diseases. The study used purposive sampling to select 26 experts from 11 provinces and cities across China to conduct two rounds of Delphi expert consultation, and the indicators were selected based on the mean importance score > 3.5 and the coefficient of variation < 0.25, and the weights of the indicators were calculated by the Analytic Hierarchy Process. The effective recovery rates of the two rounds of correspondence questionnaires were 93.1% and 96%. RESULTS: The effective recovery rates of the two rounds of correspondence questionnaires were 93.1% and 96%, the authority coefficients of experts were 0.96 and 0.98, the Kendall's coordination coefficients of the first, second, and third level indexes were 0.281, 0.132, and 0.285 (P < 0.001), 0.259, 0.158, and 0.415 (P < 0.001). The final index system includes 4 primary indicators (Knowledge System of Infectious Diseases, Nursing Skills for Infectious Diseases, Related Professional Abilities for Infectious Diseases, and Comprehensive Quality), 10 secondary indicators, and 64 tertiary indicators. CONCLUSION: The competency evaluation index system of front-line nurses during the outbreak of major infectious diseases is scientific, reasonable, and practical, which can provide a scientific basis for nursing managers to accurately understand, describe, analyze, and evaluate the competence level of nursing staff and scientifically implement the allocation of human resources in the future, as well as serve as a content framework for subsequent training programs.

311. Graphical analysis of guideline adherence to detect systemwide anomalies in HIV diagnostic testing.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Hauser RG, Bhargava A, Brandt CA

312. A pilot phase Ib/II study of whole-lung low dose radiation therapy (LDRT) for the treatment of severe COVID-19 pneumonia: First experience from Africa.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Saleh M, Sharma K, Shah J

BACKGROUND: Low dose radiation therapy (LDRT) has been used for non-malignant conditions since early 1900s based on the ability of single fractions between 50-150 cGy to inhibit cellular proliferation. Given scarcity of resources, poor access to vaccines and medical therapies within low and middle income countries, there is an urgent need to identify other cost-effective alternatives in management of COVID-19 pneumonia. We conducted a pilot phase Ib/II investigator-initiated clinical trial to assess the safety, feasibility, and toxicity of LDRT in patients with severe COVID-19 pneumonia at the Aga Khan University Hospital in Nairobi, Kenya. Additionally, we also assessed clinical benefit in terms of improvement in oxygenation at day 3 following LDRT and the ability to avoid mechanical ventilation at day 7 post LDRT. METHODS: Patients with both polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and high-resolution computer tomogram (HRCT) confirmed severe COVID-19 pneumonia, not improving on conventional therapy including Dexamethasone and with increasing oxygen requirement were enrolled in the study. Patients on mechanical ventilation were excluded. Eligible patients received a single 100cGy fraction to the whole lung. In the absence of any dose limiting toxicity the study proposed to treat a total of 10 patients. The primary endpoints were to assess the safety/feasibility, and toxicity within the first 24 hours post LDRT. The secondary endpoints were to assess efficacy of LDRT at Day 3, 7, 14 and 28 post LDRT. RESULTS: Ten patients were treated with LDRT. All (100%) of patients were able to complete LDRT without treatment related SAE within the first 24 hours post treatment. None of the patients treated with LDRT experienced any acute toxicity as defined by change in clinical and respiratory status at 24hr following LDRT. Majority (90%) of patients avoided mechanical ventilation within 7 days of LDRT. Four patients (40%) demonstrated at least 25% improvement in oxygen requirements within 3 days. Six patients (60%) were discharged and remained off oxygen, whereas four progressed and died (1 due to sepsis and 3 in cytokine storm). Median time to discharge (n = 6) was 16.5 days and median time to death (n = 4) was 11.0 days. Patients who ultimately died showed elevated inflammatory markers including Ferritin, CRP and D-dimers as compared to those who were discharged alive. CONCLUSION: LDRT was feasible, safe and shows promise in the management of severe COVID-19 pneumonia including in patients progressing on conventional systemic treatment. Additional phase II trials are warranted to identify patients most likely to benefit from LDRT.

313. Seasonal roost selection and activity of a remnant population of northern myotis in Pennsylvania.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Lewis MA, Turner GG, Scafini MR

The decline in northern myotis (Myotis septentrionalis) populations due to the disease white-nose syndrome (WNS) has led to the species receiving federal protection in the United States and Canada, requiring conservation of critical habitats. However, considerably more is known about summer habitat preferences of northern myotis compared to late summer through winter. Our goal was to describe the seasonal presence and habitat use of a remnant colony of northern myotis in central Pennsylvania. We radio-tagged 31 northern myotis and established 6 acoustic monitoring stations to document activity from 2017-2021. We found that roost trees used during the maternity season by reproductive females were occupied by bats during both summer (21 June-14 August) and autumn (15 August-31 October), indicating similar habitat use patterns between seasons. During this time, both males and females preferred to roost in dead and declining trees. No other variable influenced male use, but females also preferred trees located close to water and in forest stands with higher basal area than randomly located trees. Northern myotis with active transmitters never left the study area and were tracked to roosts until early November. During October and November, a female and male were tracked to an underground network of air-filled voids (the Milieu Souterrain Superficiel) we presume to be a hibernaculum. Northern myotis calls were recorded outside this roost between March and October, and bats were observed emerging from this roost during spring and autumn but not summer. Acoustic activity at this site exhibited a seasonal pattern that differed from acoustic activity near roost trees and foraging areas, with a peak of activity during late summer when northern myotis are known to swarm. These data show that northern myotis maternity roosts are used extensively outside of summer and may be vulnerable to forestry practices that occur even outside of the pup-rearing season. These data also support the growing evidence that some northern myotis hibernate outside of caves and mines.

314. Comparison of storage and lignin accumulation characteristics between two types of snow pea.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Li X, Wang J, Qu Y

315. Detection of Fusarium infected seeds of cereal plants by the fluorescence method.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Dorokhov A, Moskovskiy M, Belyakov M

316. Agreement between maximum and mean handgrip strength measurements in cancer patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

de Almeida Marques R, de Souza VF, do Rosario TC

317. Single-cell specific and interpretable machine learning models for sparse scChIP-seq data imputation.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Albrecht S, Andreani T, Andrade-Navarro MA

MOTIVATION: Single-cell Chromatin ImmunoPrecipitation DNA-Sequencing (scChIP-seq) analysis is challenging due to data sparsity. High degree of sparsity in biological high-throughput single-cell data is generally handled with imputation methods that complete the data, but specific methods for scChIP-seq are lacking. We present SIMPA, a scChIP-seq data imputation method leveraging predictive information within bulk data from the ENCODE project to impute missing protein-DNA interacting regions of target histone marks or transcription factors. RESULTS: Imputations using machine learning models trained for each single cell, each ChIP protein target, and each genomic region accurately preserve cell type clustering and improve pathway-related gene identification on real human data. Results on bulk data simulating single cells show that the imputations are single-cell specific as the imputed profiles are closer to the simulated cell than to other cells related to the same ChIP protein target and the same cell type. Simulations also show that 100 input genomic regions are already enough to train single-cell specific models for the imputation of thousands of undetected regions. Furthermore, SIMPA enables the interpretation of machine learning models by revealing interaction sites of a given single cell that are most important for the imputation model trained for a specific genomic region. The corresponding feature importance values derived from promoter-interaction profiles of H3K4me3, an activating histone mark, highly correlate with co-expression of genes that are present within the cell-type specific pathways in 2 real human and mouse datasets. The SIMPA's interpretable imputation method allows users to gain a deep understanding of individual cells and, consequently, of sparse scChIP-seq datasets. AVAILABILITY AND IMPLEMENTATION: Our interpretable imputation algorithm was implemented in Python and is available at https://github.com/salbrec/SIMPA.

318. Clinical and survival differences during separate COVID-19 surges: Investigating the impact of the Sars-CoV-2 alpha variant in critical care patients.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Ritchie AI, Kadwani O, Saleh D

319. Does knowing the influenza epidemic threshold has been reached influence the performance of influenza case definitions?

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Soldevila N, Toledo D, Martínez A

320. Use of an efficient unbiased estimator for finite population mean.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Shabbir J, Onyango R.

321. Performance of NUTRIC score to predict 28-day mortality in critically ill patients after replacing APACHE II with SAPS 3.

PLoS One

2022 Jul 1

Souza IAO, Ribeiro PC, Jonckheer J

Newmer生物

Newmer生物