Notes

Video laryngoscopy is associated with improved upon first-pass intubation accomplishment in contrast to direct laryngoscopy throughout crisis section shock patients.
Environmental pollution caused by human activities in the Yangtze River Basin (YRB), especially nitrogen pollution, has always been a hot topic. High-intensity anthropogenic nitrogen (AN) inputs have undergone some changes on account of environmental management practices in the YRB. We used the latest statistical data (2000-2017) to estimate spatiotemporal heterogeneity of AN inputs across the YRB, characterize hotspots of AN inputs, and predict the future trend, which is critical to meet nitrogen management challenges. We found agricultural sources were major contributors to nitrogen inputs (more than 70%) in the YRB. Due to the reduction in agricultural fertilizers use in China, AN inputs had gradually decreased from a peak of 19.0 Tg/yr in 2014 after a rapid growth period. Additionally, the nitrogen flux in sub-catchments and from various sources indicated an increasing distribution characteristic from the upper reaches to the lower reaches. Hotspots of AN inputs were mainly concentrated in the Sichuan Basin and the Middle-Lower Yangtze Plain (more than 50 tons/km2), however, growth rates were relatively low or even negative. STIRPAT model showed population size was the most important factor affecting AN loads. Although the growth rate would slow down in the future, AN loads would be maintained at a high level. Besides, aquaculture had become an important source of potential nitrogen growth in the whole basin, although the contribution was relatively small at present. Controlling nitrogen loads in hotspots and avoiding high inputs of new nitrogen sources should be the focus of future nitrogen environmental management.Mineral processing, pyro- and hydrometallurgical processes of auriferous sulfide ores and porphyry copper deposits (PCDs) generate arsenopyrite-rich wastes. These wastes are disposed of into the tailings storage facilities (TSF) in which toxic arsenic (As) is leached out and acid mine drainage (AMD) is generated due to the oxidation of arsenopyrite (FeAsS). To suppress arsenopyrite oxidation, this study investigated the passivation of arsenopyrite by forming ferric phosphate (FePO4) coating on its surface using ferric-catecholate complexes and phosphate simultaneously. Ferric iron (Fe3+) and catechol form three types of complexes (mono-, bis-, and triscatecholate complexes) depending on the pH, but mono-catecholate complex (i.e.,[Fe(cat)]+) became unstable in the presence of phosphate because the chemical affinity of Fe3+-PO43- is most probably stronger than that of Fe3+-catechol in [Fe(cat)]+. When two or more catechol molecules were coordinated with Fe3+ (i.e., [Fe(cat)2]- and [Fe(cat)3]3-), however, these complexes were stable irrespective of the presence of phosphate. The treatment of arsenopyrite with [Fe(cat)2]- and phosphate could suppress its oxidation due to the formation of FePO4 coating, evidenced by SEM-EDX and XPS analyses. The mechanism of FePO4 coating formation by [Fe(cat)2]- and phosphate was confirmed by linear sweep voltammetry (LSV) (1) [Fe(cat)2]- was oxidatively decomposed and (2) the resultant product (i.e., [Fe(cat)]+) reacts with phosphate, resulting in the formation of FePO4.In this study, magnetic Cu and Ni bimetallic particles embedded carbon sheets, namely as C@Cu-Ni, was derived via calcining a mixture of Cu-MOFs and Ni-MOFs (mass ratio = 46) under N2 protection and served as a catalyst for the degradation of 2,4,6-trichlorophenol (2,4,6-TCP) by peroxymonosulfate (PMS). The results showed that more than 98.5% of 2,4,6-TCP (10 mg L-1) was rapidly decomposed at initial pH = 5, PMS = 1 mM and catalyst dosage = 0.1 g L-1 within 30 min, accompanied by 42.47% removal of total organic carbon (TOC). This fully confirmed that C@Cu-Ni possessed excellent catalytic performance for PMS activation. The radical quenching experiments and electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) investigation testified that the reactive oxygen species (ROS) included SO4•-, •OH, O2•- radicals and singlet oxygen (1O2), which were responsible for the rapid degradation of 2,4,6-TCP. Among them, O2•-and 1O2 played a decisive role. Cyclic voltammograms (CV) and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) revealed that C@Cu-Ni material possessed superior electrical conductivity and electron transfer, improving its catalytic activity. What is more, C@Cu-Ni displayed excellent stability and could be consecutively used for five times without any decline of catalytic performance. The main intermediates of the 2,4,6-TCP degradation were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS) and possible pathways of 2,4,6-TCP degradation were further proposed. The extraordinary stability and superior catalytic activity of C@Cu-Ni coupled with its easy separation from wastewater due to magnetism suggest that the newly synthesized material may offer a promising alternative approach to efficiently degrade organic pollutants by PMS.Pyriproxyfen is a biorational insecticide from IGR family, used worldwide against several economic pests. To evaluate the risk of pyriproxyfen resistance in dusky cotton bug, Oxycarenus hyalinipennis Costa (Hemiptera Lygaeidae), a major concern for cotton producers, and to formulate strategies effective to tackle resistance, a field collected population was selected with pyriproxyfen under laboratory conditions using seed-dip method. A resistant strain designated as Pyr-SEL (G18) was developed after repeatedly selecting O. hyalinipennis with pyriproxyfen over eighteen generations. Thereafter, fitness costs, realized heritability (h2) and cross-resistance were investigated. As a result of selection, Pyr-SEL (G18) developed a very high level of resistance (resistance ratio = 464.23-fold) compared with the susceptible strain unselected over twenty generations Un-SEL (G20). The Pyr-SEL (G18) conferred strong cross-resistance to bifenthrin (146.59-fold), lambda-cyhalothrin (132.96-fold) and fenoxycarb (91.06-fold), whereas showed moderate cross-resistance to diafenthiuron (28.86-fold) and fipronil (22.73-fold). The h2 estimate was 0.16 in Pyr-SEL (G18). The developmental duration of O. hyalinipennis pre-adult prolonged, but traits of λ, r and R0 reduced in Pyr-SEL (G18) compared with the Un-SEL (G20). Also, the population projection obtained lower population size for Pyr-SEL (G18) than Un-SEL (G20). Fitness studies revealed that high resistance development to pyriproxyfen lowered the relative fitness of Pyr-SEL (G18) (Rf = 0.38) compared with the Un-SEL (G20). These findings may be practically valuable in tackling O. hyalinipennis resistance for better pest management.The rise of electronic waste (e-waste) generation around the globe has become a major concern in recent times and its recycling is mostly focused on the recovery of valuable metals, such as gold, silver, and copper, etc. However, e-waste consists of a significant weight fraction of plastics (25-30%) which are either discarded or incinerated. There is a growing need for recycling of these e-waste plastics. The majority of them are made from high-quality polymers (composites), such as acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS), high impact polystyrene (HIPS), polycarbonate (PC), polyamide (PA), polypropylene (PP) and epoxies. These plastics are often contaminated with hazardous materials, such as brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and heavy metals (such as Pb and Hg). Under any thermal stress (thermal degradation), the Br present in the e-waste plastics produces environmentally hazardous pollutants, such as hydrogen bromide or polybrominated diphenyl ethers/furans (PBDE/Fs). The discarded plastics can lead to the leaching of toxins into the environment. It is important to remove the toxins from the e-waste plastics before recycling. This review article gives a detailed account of e-waste plastics recycling and recovery using thermochemical processes, such as extraction (at elevated temperature), incineration (combustion), hydrolysis, and pyrolysis (catalytic/non catalytic). A basic framework of the existing processes has been established by reviewing the most interesting findings in recent times and the prospects that they open in the field recycling of e-waste plastics.
Professional drivers are exposed inside their vehicles to high levels of air pollutants due to the considerable time they spend close to motor vehicle emissions. Little is known about ultrafine particles (UFP) or black carbon (BC) adverse respiratory health effects compared to the regulated pollutants.

We aimed to study the short-term associations between UFP and BC concentrations inside vehicles and (1) the onset of mucosal irritation and (2) the acute changes in lung function of Parisian taxi drivers during a working day.

An epidemiological study was carried out on 50 taxi drivers in Paris. UFP and BC were measured inside their vehicles with DiSCmini® and microAeth®, respectively. On the same day, the frequency and the severity of nose, eye, and throat irritations were self-reported by each participant and a spirometry test was performed before and after the work shift. Multivariate analysis was used to evaluate the associations between in-taxis UFP and BC concentrations and mucosal irritation and lunstudy is the first to show a significant association, within a short-period of time, between in and vehicle UFP exposure and acute respiratory effects in professional drivers.
To our knowledge, our study is the first to show a significant association, within a short-period of time, between in and vehicle UFP exposure and acute respiratory effects in professional drivers.
Pro-inflammatory conditions such as air pollution might induce biological ageing. However, the available evidence on such an impact in children is still very scarce. We studied in primary schoolchildren the association of ambient residential air pollution exposure with telomere length (TL) and mitochondrial DNA content (mtDNAc), two important targets of the core axis of ageing.

Between 2012 and 2014, buccal TL and mtDNAc were repeatedly assessed using qPCR in 197 Belgian primary schoolchildren (mean age 10.3 years) as part of the COGNAC study. At the child's residence, recent (week), sub-chronic (month) and chronic (year) exposure to nitrogen dioxide (NO
), particulate matter ≤ 2.5 µm (PM
) and black carbon (BC) were estimated using a high resolution spatiotemporal model. A mixed-effects model with school and subject as random effect was used while adjusting for a priori chosen covariates.

An interquartile range (IQR) increment (1.9 µg/m
) in chronic PM
exposure was associated with a 8.9% (95% CI -child's shorter buccal TL and lower mtDNAc, while traffic-related pollutants (BC and NO2) showed recent effects on telomere biology. Our data add to the literature on air pollution-induced effects of TL and mtDNAc, two measures part of the core axis of cellular ageing, from early life onwards.Neurocognitive cognitive deficits including working memory (WM) impairment is a key component of schizophrenia (SCZ). Though a prefrontal cortex (PFC) abnormality is recognised to contribute to WM impairment, the exact nature of its neurobiological basis in SCZ is not well established. Functional near infra-red spectroscopy (fNIRS) is an emerging low-cost neuroimaging tool to study neuro-hemodynamics. In this background, we examined the hemodynamic activity during a WM task in schizophrenia using fNIRS. fNIRS was acquired during computerised N-back (zero-, one- & two-back) task in 15 SCZ patients and compared with 22 healthy controls. Performance in N-back test were calculated using signal detection theory alongside the mean reaction times. Concentration and latencies of oxy-, deoxy-, and totalhaemoglobin, and oxygen saturation were computed from 8*8 optodes positioned over bilateral PFC. SCZ performed poorly as measured by most of the WM parameters (p  zero back, BA10, ρ = 0.70, p = 0.004) and better performance in two back (false alarm rate, ρ = 0.61, p = 0.015). A delayed but compensatory hyperactivation of right frontopolar cortex noted in SCZ may underlie the WM deficit in SCZ. Future studies are recommended to replicate the role of right frontopolar cortex in WM using larger samples and systematically explore the effect of antipsychotics on them.
To evaluate whether pupillary abnormalities would correlate with the severity of encephalopathy in critically ill cirrhotic patients.

In this retrospective study, we enrolled adult cirrhotic patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit undergoing automated pupillometry assessment within the first 72h since ICU admission. Encephalopathy was assessed with West-Haven classification and Glasgow Coma Scale. Pupillometry-derived variables were also correlated with biological variables, including ammonium, renal function or inflammatory parameters, measured on the day of pupillary assessment.

A total of 62 critically ill cirrhotic patients (Age 61 [52-68] years; 69% male) were included. Median GCS and West-Haven classification were 14 [11-15] and 1 [0-3], respectively. There was a significant although weak correlation between GCS and constriction velocity (CV; R2=0.1; p=0.017). We observed significant differences in CV and DV values among different levels of West-Haven classification. When only patients with encephalopathy (n=42) or severe HE (n=18) were considered, a weak correlation between GCS and worst CV was observed. When patients receiving sedatives or opioids were excluded, no significant correlation between pupillometry and clinical variables was observed.

Pupillary function assessed by the automated pupillometry was poorly associated with encephalopathy scales in cirrhotic patients.
Pupillary function assessed by the automated pupillometry was poorly associated with encephalopathy scales in cirrhotic patients.Patients with prolonged disorders of consciousness (PDOC) are often unable to communicate their state of consciousness. Determining the latter is essential for the patient's care and prospects of recovery. Auditory stimulation in combination with neural recordings is a promising technique towards an objective assessment of conscious awareness. Here, we investigated the potential of complex, acoustic stimuli to elicit EEG responses suitable for classifying multiple subject groups, from unconscious to responding. We presented naturalistic auditory textures with unexpectedly changing statistics to human listeners. Awake, active listeners were asked to indicate the change by button press, while all other groups (awake passive, asleep, minimally conscious state (MCS), and unresponsive wakefulness syndrome (UWS)) listened passively. We quantified the evoked potential at stimulus onset and change in stimulus statistics, as well as the complexity of neural response during the change of stimulus statistics. On the group level, onset and change potentials classified patients and healthy controls successfully but failed to differentiate between the UWS and MCS groups. Conversely, the Lempel-Ziv complexity of the scalp-level potential allowed reliable differentiation between UWS and MCS even for individual subjects, when compared with the clinical assessment aligned to the EEG measurements. The accuracy appears to improve further when taking the latest available clinical diagnosis into account. In summary, EEG signal complexity during onset and changes in complex acoustic stimuli provides an objective criterion for distinguishing states of consciousness in clinical patients. These results suggest EEG-recordings as a cost-effective tool to choose appropriate treatments for non-responsive PDOC patients.
The discovery of two immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies against aquaporin 4 (anti-AQP4) and myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein (anti-MOG) has led to the distinction of the disorders anti-AQP4 immunoglobulin G positive neuromyelitis spectrum disorder (AQP4-IgG+ NMOSD) and anti-MOG associated disorder (MOGAD). Different clinical and radiological features have been proposed to distinguish these two demyelinating CNS diseases.

This is a single-center retrospective review at the University of Florida (UF) including all patients with the diagnostic code ICD G36 ("other acute disseminated demyelination") from October 2015 to January 2020 (n=141) and all charts included in the clinical NMOSD database of the UF Division of Neuroimmunology (n=36). A total of 151 cases were reviewed for presence of anti-MOG and anti-AQP4 antibodies and NMOSD diagnostic criteria. Differences in MOGAD and AQP4-IgG+ NMOSD were compared.

Of the 151 reviewed patient charts, 11 were consistent with MOGAD and 43 with AQP4-IgG+ NMOSD. Pat36.4%] vs. 4/43 [7%]; p=0.045). Disability as calculated on the Expanded Disability Status Scale was less severe in MOGAD compared to AQP-IgG+ NMOSD (most severe presentation 5 [2-7] vs. 7 [1-10]; p=0.015; most recent assessment 2 [0-5] vs. 5 [0-10]; p=0.045) and patients were more likely to respond to treatment of acute attacks with corticosteroids and/or plasmapheresis (Clinical Global Impression-Global Change scale 1 [1-4] vs. 3 [1-6]; p=0.001).

The study confirms that simultaneous bilateral optic neuritis, presence of optic disc edema, transverse myelitis with conus involvement and a less severe disease course are distinctive features of MOGAD.
The study confirms that simultaneous bilateral optic neuritis, presence of optic disc edema, transverse myelitis with conus involvement and a less severe disease course are distinctive features of MOGAD.Corona Virus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a new illness caused by a novel coronavirus, severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). With the increasing number of confirmed cases and the accumulating clinical data, a broad spectrum of neurological complications has been reported in the literature, including encephalopathy, stroke, Guillain-Barré syndrome, meningo-encephalitis, acute necrotizing hemorrhagic encephalopathy, and inflammatory central nervous system syndromes. Here, we describe the case of a 38-year-old woman presenting with longitudinally extensive transverse myelitis, revealed by bilateral lower limb weakness, decreased sensation below the Th4 level and urinary retention, and occuring 15 days after she had been diagnosed with COVID-19.Omsk hemorrhagic fever virus (OHFV) is the etiological agent of Omsk hemorrhagic fever, a disease described in the 1940s in Western Siberia. However, until now, it has been represented in GenBank by just four complete genome sequences, which do not reflect the real genetic diversity of the virus in nature. In this study, we analyzed the molecular variability and genetic structure of OHFV based on 20 complete genome sequences, fifteen of which were obtained for the first time. All these sequences belong to virus strains isolated at different times from three regions of Western Siberia. The results suggest that the genetic diversity of OHFV is significantly wider than previously thought and is represented by at least three subtypes, rather than two. This broadens our understanding of the evolutionary history of OHFV. Also, it is argued that the OHFV reference strain Bogoluvovska (NC_005062) is actually a Kubrin strain and that either cross-contamination or a laboratory error was the cause of this.The genus Borrelia encompasses 50 spirochetal species, several of which are pathogenic and have been detected in a wide range of mammals, especially rodents and cervids. Although the order Chiroptera is the second most diverse mammalian order, and borreliosis represents a human and veterinary health problem in endemic countries, few studies have previously reported infections of Borrelia in these flying mammals. For this reason, the aim of the present study was to detect the presence of, and to analyze the diversity of Borrelia species in several bat species from Mexico. A total of 69 bats belonging to 11 species were collected and molecular detection of Borrelia was performed by amplifying three genes using specific primers. Only five individuals of four bat species (Saccopteryxbilineata, Choeroniscus godmani, Sturnira parvidens and Lasiurus cinereus) tested positive for Borrelia DNA. We now show the first Borrelia record in Mexican bats from two different ecosystems, where previously several potential vector species of the genus Ixodes and Ornithodoros had been reported. The Borrelia sequences obtained from the bats revealed two new putative lineages, one from the relapsing fever group and the second one belonging to the Borrelia burgdorferi s.l. complex, both of which are related to zoonotic species. These results highlight the importance of bats as potential hosts of Borrelia, and the imperative need of active surveillance in flying mammals in order to understand their potential role in the life cycle of this bacteria genus.The genus Rickettsia encompasses 35 valid species of intracellular, coccobacilli bacteria that can infect several eukaryotic taxa, causing multiple emerging and re-emerging diseases worldwide. This work aimed to gather and summarise the current knowledge about the genus Rickettsia in Mexico, updating the taxonomy of the bacteria and their hosts by including all the records available until 2020, to elucidate host-parasite relationships and determine the geographical distribution of each Rickettsia species present in the country. Until now, 14 species of Rickettsia belonging to four groups have been recorded in Mexico. These species have been associated with 26 arthropod species (14 hard ticks, three soft ticks, two sucking lice, and seven fleas) and 17 mammal species distributed over 30 states in Mexico. This work highlights the high biological inventory of rickettsias for Mexico and reinforces the need to approach the study of this group from a One Health perspective.Rhipicephalus microplus is responsible for high economic losses in livestock and its control has become difficult due to the establishment of tick populations resistant to commercial acaricides. This study aimed to evaluate the in vitro larvicidal effect of the alkaloids berberine and piperine, and also to investigate their inhibitory mechanisms against the acetylcholinesterase enzyme. The effects of the alkaloids on larvae were observed through the immersion test at the following concentrations 1.5; 3; 6; 12; 16 and 24 mM. Berberine and piperine presented larvicidal activity greater than 95 %, not differing from 100 % for the positive fipronil control (p > 0.05). Of the two alkaloids, piperine had a lower effective concentration (EC), with an EC50 of 6.04 mM. The acetylcholinesterase enzyme used in the study was obtained from R. microplus larvae (RmAChE) and the anticholinesterase activity was determined spectrophotometrically. The highest anticholinesterase activity, measured as inhibition concentration (IC), was observed for berberine (IC50 = 88.13 μM), while piperine showed lower activity (IC50 > 200 μM). Docking studies in RmAChE, followed by 10 ns molecular dynamics simulation, suggest that berberine stabilizes the RmAChE at lower Root-Mean-Square Deviation (RMSD) than Apo protein. Few hydrogen-bond interactions between berberine and RmAChE residues were balanced by hydrophobic and π-type interactions. Berberine fills preferentially the peripheral anionic site (PAS), which correlates with its non-competitive mechanism. These results suggest that berberine and piperine alkaloids have an in vitro acaricidal action on R. microplus larvae, and the likely mechanism of action of berberine is related to RmAChE inhibition when accessing the PAS residues. These findings could help the study of new natural products that could inhibit RmAChE and aid in the development of new acaricides.Bovine theileriosis, caused by the Theileria orientalis complex, causes a mild persistent infection with the severity dependent on the infecting genotype and host exposure status. Clinical theileriosis was first detected on the Northern Tablelands of NSW in 2009 and a high prevalence of infection in cattle reported in 2013. However, the parasite was not genotyped and likely vectors not investigated. In response to ongoing clinical cases, here we identify the Theileria genotypes present in the region and potential vectors. Genotype-specific multiplex qPCR of 90 blood samples from eight farms revealed a 100 % prevalence of T. orientalis in individual cattle with concurrent infection with all three genotypes present in 73 % of cases. The prevalence of the pathogenic genotype (Ikeda) differed significantly between farms; however, the level of parasitemia was not affected by genotype or associated with clinical disease. Parasitaemia levels were higher in heifers than cows. Questing tick collection on six of the farms between November 2017 and May 2019 yielded 358 questing ticks from one farm, all of which were morphologically identified as Haemaphysalis bancrofti. Larvae accounted for 59 % of the ticks followed by nymphs (34 %) and adults (7%). Theileria was detected only in nymphs with Ikeda and Buffeli genotypes each being detected in one of four pools of ticks. The high prevalence of co-infection with three genotypes of T. orientalis indicates that they are now endemic in the region and confirms the lack of cross-protection between genotypes. This is the first detection of T. orientalis in questing H. bancrofti ticks indicating that it may be a vector for T. orientalis in this region. However, the high prevalence of bovine infection is at odds with the absence of captured ticks or history of tick infestation on five of the six farms raising the possibility that other vectors or transmission pathways play key roles.Crimean-Congo hemorrhagic fever (CCHF) is a tick-borne viral disease in the old continents, in many countries south of the 50 °North Parallel. The agent is known to be the most prevalent and major cause of severe and fatal human hemorrhagic diseases among the tick-borne viruses, and is the second most widespread of all medically critical arboviruses following dengue. Members of the Hyalomma genus are mainly involved in the natural transmission of the CCHF virus (CCHFV); of those, H. marginatum is known to be the primary vector of the disease in the Western Palaearctic. In general, epidemiological studies have been based on serological detections in the hosts and/or virus screening of ticks collected from the hosts. To the best of our knowledge, only a few studies have been carried out to screen the virus in unfed, questing field ticks. Nevertheless, detection of the virus in questing ticks is known to be a crucial parameter to determine the possible vector roles of the ticks and to understand the ecological dynamics of related diseases. In this study, 200 (75 males,125 females) questing H. marginatum adults collected from the field in nine villages in Thrace, located in the European part of Turkey, were screened individually for CCHFV using nested PCR. As a result, 103 (51.5 %) ticks were determined as positive with various strains of CCHFV. High positivity in questing vectors in a region where a significantly lower number of human cases have been encountered suggests that there should be some region-specific drivers that are effective in the natural dynamics of the disease. Detailed etiological and epidemiological studies are needed to reveal the possible reason for this unexpected discrepancy.A loss of hearing in early life leads to diversifications of important white matter networks. Previous studies related to WM alterations in adult deaf individuals mainly involved univariate analysis of fractional anisotropy (FA) data and volumetric analysis, which yielded inconsistent results. To address this issue, we investigated the FA value alterations in 38 prelingual adult deaf individuals and compared the results with those obtained from the same number of adults with normal hearing by using univariate (tract-based spatial statistics) and multivariate (source-based morphometry) methods. The findings from tract-based spatial statistics suggested an increased FA value in regions such as the left cingulate gyrus, left inferior frontal occipital fasciculus, left inferior longitudinal fasciculus and superior corona radiata; however, the results indicated a decreased FA value in the left planum temporale of adult deaf individuals. While source-based morphometry analysis outlined higher FA values in regions such as bilateral lingual gyrus, bilateral cerebellum, bilateral putamen and bilateral caudate, a considerable decrease was observed in the bilateral superior temporal region of the deaf group. These alterations in multiple neural regions might be linked to the compensatory cross-modal reorganizations attributed to early hearing loss.Positive vs. negative intense-facial expressions are difficult to explicitly distinguish; yet, whether they dissociate when subliminally presented remains unclear. Through three experiments using affective priming paradigms, we assessed how intense facial expressions, when presented briefly (17 ms) and masked, influenced following neutral ambiguous words (Experiment 1) or visible facial expressions (Experiments 2&3). We also compared these results with those of using normal facial expressions as primes in each experiment. All experiments indicated masked affective priming effects (biasing valence judgement of neutral words or facilitating reaction time to faces with the same valence as the prime) in normal facial expression, but not those intense ones. Experiment 3 using event related potentials (ERPs) further revealed that two ERP components N250 and LPP were consistent with behavioral changes in the normal condition (larger when valences of primes and targets were different), but inconsistent in the intense condition. Taken together, our results provided behavioral and neural evidence for distinctive processing between normal and intense facial expressions under masked condition.
Being faced with death and caring for dying patients is one of the most difficult aspects of the nursing profession. As they are the nurses of the future, it is important to prepare nursing students for this difficult role so that they are able to provide a qualified caring service. Ensuring nursing students are given a qualified education plays a key role in nursing education.

This study was conducted to determine the effect of a creative drama education program on first year nursing students' attitudes toward caring for dying patients.

This study was designed according to a quasi-experimental model with a pretest-posttest control group.

A medium-sized urban university school of nursing in Turkey.

Forty (n=40) first grade Bachelor of Nursing Science (BSN) students.

A personal data form, Frommelt Attitude Scale for Caring for Dying (FATCOD), and Individual Patient Feedback Form for Creative Drama Education were used to collect the study data. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, the Wilcoxon Signed Rank test, and the Mann-Whitney U test.

The intervention group's mean posttest FATCOD score (112.45±8.43) was higher than that of the control group (105.35±8.67), and this difference was found to be statistically significant (U=111.500; p=0.017). There was a non-significant difference between the intervention (97.90±8.25) and control group (101.55±7.41) in the pretests (U=148.500; p=0.163).

Compared with the expression technique, creative drama education was found to be a more effective method for developing students' attitudes toward caring for dying individuals.
Compared with the expression technique, creative drama education was found to be a more effective method for developing students' attitudes toward caring for dying individuals.In the Wnt canonical pathway, Wnt3A has been known to stabilize β-catenin. In the non-canonical Wnt signaling pathway, Wnt is known to activate Rho GTPases. The correlation between canonical and non-canonical pathways by Wnt signaling, however, has not been well elucidated. Here, we identified that Wnt3A promoted superoxide generation, leading to Tyr42 phosphorylation of RhoA through activations of c-Src and Rho-dependent coiled coil kinase 2 (ROCK2) and phosphorylation of p47phox, a component of NADPH oxidase. Wnt3A also induced accumulation of β-catenin along with activations of RhoA and ROCK1. Concurrently, ROCK1 was able to phosphorylate GSK-3β at Ser9, which phosphorylated Src at Ser51 and Ser492 residues, leading to Src inactivation through dephosphorylation of Tyr416 during the late period of Wnt3A treatment. Meanwhile, p-Tyr42 RhoA bound to β-catenin via the N-terminal domain of β-catenin, thereby leading to the nuclear translocation of p-Tyr42 RhoA/β-catenin complex. Notably, p-Tyr42 RhoA as well as β-catenin was associated with the promoter of Vim, leading to increased expression of vimentin. In addition, stomach cancer patients harboring higher expressed p-Tyr42 Rho levels revealed the much poorer survival probability. Therefore, we propose that p-Tyr42 RhoA is crucial for transcriptional regulation of specific target genes in the nucleus by binding to their promoters and involved in tumorigenesis.Historically, some forensic practitioners and policy makers have viewed the use of photography in forensic documentation for adult victims of sexual assault as controversial. Some argue that diagrams and verbal descriptions of injury are sufficient, suggesting that sexual assault victims are so traumatised at time of examination that they are not able to provide valid consent, that the imaging process itself is humiliating, and that any decision to have photographs taken might be later regretted. Objectively, a patient capable of consenting to a forensic examination has an equal capacity to consent for forensic imaging, even when this involves sensitive areas of the body, and the process of forensic photography is not inherently problematic. Literature on forensic photography is sparse, particularly from the patient perspective. Our Forensic Medical Unit is in an excellent position to investigate this issue, as it is one of the few services in Australia that routinely offers sexual assault forensic photography the images had been taken. 4.7% [n = 5] expressed some doubt about whether they had made the right decision. A similar pattern of responses was observed at follow-up which occurred, on average, seven weeks post examination. 72% [n = 26/36] said they did not think about the photographs at all or did so rarely. While 14% [n = 5/36] said they thought about them a fair bit or a lot of the time, most stated they had no concerns regarding the images that had been taken. Given its evidentiary salience and other benefits, such as its potential to promote greater transparency in the provision of forensic opinions and its usefulness in teaching, this study supports the case for the routine use of forensic photography in adult Sexual Assault Units more broadly.UNGG cladding nuclear wastes constitute a huge volume of Mg-based materials that raises economic and safety concerns, particularly due to their radioactivity coupled to the potential generation of H2 gas under deep underground disposal. Their significant decontamination would result in more secure and less expensive storage, with a better containment of the separated long-lived radioisotopes that could enter in a classical channel. Sonication of genuine UNGG cladding materials and simulants at 345 kHz in 0.01 M oxalic acid solution (20 °C) allowed the structuring of their surfaces with the observation of homogeneously distributed craters of 20-40 µm in diameter. After a thorough characterization and comparison of the ultrasound effects generated at the surface, the various samples were artificially contaminated and characterized before sonication. The complete and rapid sonochemical decontamination of Mg-based materials was then observed, in addition to the removal of the carbon layer promoting corrosion on the inner UNGG cladding. The extension of sonication allows the neo-formed brucite (Mg(OH)2) and zirconium-based phases to accumulate on the surface, thus contributing in a slight but continuous surface recontamination process. This phenomenon results from the re-adsorption of uranyl cations from the solution which can be avoided by optimizing the duration of treatment.
The prevalence of sleep-disordered breathing is high in children with Down syndrome. Although the association between sleep-disordered breathing and developmental delay and behavioral abnormalities are proven among typically developing children, there are few such studies of children with Down syndrome. This study assesses the relationship between the severity of sleep apnea and development and behavioral abnormalities in individuals with Down syndrome.

In a cross-sectional prospective study, 53 children with Down syndrome were assessed for sleep-disordered breathing by overnight polysomnography. Behavior was assessed using Child Behavior Checklist (CBCL) and developmental quotient (DQ) using Developmental Profile 3. The association between various domains of behavior and development with the Apnea-Hypopnea Index (AHI) was assessed using Spearman rank correlation. Multiple linear regression assessed the independent effects of various factors on development and behavior.

Of 53 subjects (three to 11.8yearof OSA, children with Down syndrome have more behavioral abnormalities, especially attention deficit and hyperactivity, and also have poorer development scores.
Autoimmune encephalitis (AE) and acute disseminated encephalomyelitis (ADEM) are immune-mediated brain conditions that can cause substantial neurological sequalae. Data describing the clinical characteristics, treatments, and neurological outcomes for these conditions are needed.

This is a single-center retrospective review of children diagnosed with AE or ADEM over a nine-year period with discharge outcomes measured by the Modified Rankin Score.

Seventy-five patients (23 with ADEM and 52 with AE) were identified. Patients with ADEM had a higher percentage of abnormal magnetic resonance imaging findings (100% vs 60.8%;P< 0.001) and a shorter time from symptom onset to diagnosis (6 vs 14 days;P= 0.024). Oligoclonal bands and serum and cerebrospinal fluid inflammatory indices were higher in patients with AE. Nearly all patients received corticosteroids followed by plasmapheresis or intravenous immunoglobulin, and treatment strategies did not differ significantly between groups. Second-line immune theraability was common at hospital discharge.
The aim of this study is to examine the association between traumatic brain injury (TBI) and school readiness using a nationally representative sample of preschool-aged children in the United States.

Using data on 15,402 preschool-aged children (ages three to fiveyears) from the 2016 to 2018 cohorts of the National Survey of Children's Health, this study investigates the association between lifetime measure of TBI in children and four domains of school readiness early learning skills, self-regulation, social-emotional development, and physical health/motor development.

Among this sample of preschool-aged children, 252 (1.64%) had experienced a TBI during their lifetime. Within school readiness domains, TBI was associated with a 62% to 99% increase in the rate of needs support/at-risk items and a 129% to 322% increase in the rate of at-risk items, contingent on the exact domain examined. Additional analyses reveal that, net of covariates, TBI reduced the predicted probability of being on-track across all four domains from approximately 0.424 for children with no history of TBI to 0.224 for children with a history of TBI.

A history of TBI was associated with reductions in school readiness within and across domains. Facilitating better communication between parents, pediatricians, and schools about both TBI and responses to TBI may result in the implementation of services and individualized, tailored instructional approaches that can improve educational outcomes.
A history of TBI was associated with reductions in school readiness within and across domains. Facilitating better communication between parents, pediatricians, and schools about both TBI and responses to TBI may result in the implementation of services and individualized, tailored instructional approaches that can improve educational outcomes.
We summarize the long-term motor outcome and disability level in a cluster of pediatric patients with acute flaccid myelitis (AFM) associated with the enterovirus D68 outbreak in 2015.

This is a nationwide follow-up questionnaire analysis study. Clinical data including the motor function (manual muscle strength test) and other neurological symptoms were collected at the acute (nadir), recovery (sixmonths), and chronic (threeyears) stages. We use the Barthel index, which measures 10 variables describing activity of daily living and mobility to assess the disability level.

Clinical data of 33 patients with AFM (13 females, 20 males; median age=4.1years) were available. Among patients with tetraplegia or triplegia, paraplegia, and monoplegia at the acute stage, two of seven, four of thirteen, and two of thirteen exhibited complete recovery without paralysis; of those five of seven, eight of thirteen, and two of thirteen showed improvement with lesser limb involvement at the chronic stage, respectively. Nine patients (27%) demonstrated improvement at the recovery-to-chronic period. All six patients with positive isolation of enterovirus D68 from biological samples at the acute stage showed persistent motor deficits. Other neurological findings had better prognosis than motor weakness. Better Barthel index score at the chronic stage was observed (P<0.001; median difference [95% confidence interval], 53 [40 to 63]), implying an improved disability level even in patients with persistent motor deficits.

AFM has a high rate of persistent motor deficits showing one- to two-limb paralysis. Disability level of patients with AFM, however, generally improved at the three-year time point.
AFM has a high rate of persistent motor deficits showing one- to two-limb paralysis. Disability level of patients with AFM, however, generally improved at the three-year time point.Over that last decade, coupling multiple strand displacement approaches with high throughput sequencing have resulted in the identification of genomes of diverse groups of small circular DNA viruses. Using a similar approach but with recovery of complete genomes by PCR, we identified a diverse group of single-stranded viruses in yellow-bellied marmot (Marmota flaviventer) fecal samples. From 13 fecal samples we identified viruses in the family Genomoviridae (n = 7) and Anelloviridae (n = 1), and several others that ware part of the larger Cressdnaviricota phylum but not within established families (n = 19). There were also circular DNA molecules identified (n = 4) that appear to encode one viral-like gene and have genomes of less then 1545 nts. This study gives a snapshot of viruses associated with marmots based on fecal sampling.The progression pattern of neurological disability among patients with anti-myelin oligodendrocyte glycoprotein antibody-associated disorders (MOGAD) was evaluated. Neurological disability was evaluated annually for 408 person-years in 50 patients. More than 30% of the patients had clinical relapses in the first 5 years. Disability progression independent of relapse activity (PIRA) was not seen, whereas a stepwise disability progression was observed after clinical attacks in some instances. Disability worsening was more frequent after relapses than after the onset episode (p less then 0.01). Similar to patients with anti-aquaporin-4 antibodies, attack-related stepwise disability progression without PIRA is typical in MOGAD, suggesting the importance of relapse prevention.
To develop a scale that measures attitudes towards vaginal birth after caesarean (VBAC) among clinicians.

A cross sectional survey among midwives (n=58) and obstetricians (n=51). A 23-item "Hannover Clinicians' Attitudes towards VBAC scale" (HCAV-scale) was developed. Indicators of reliability and validity were assessed, including item-to-total correlation, Cronbach alpha coefficient and factor analysis.

The response rate was 35.3% (n=109). The HCAV-scale showed high construct validity and high internal consistency. The Cronbach alpha coefficient of the 23 items was 0.87 (n=89), indicating good internal consistency of the items. Exploratory factor analysis resulted in factor loadings between 0.34 and 0.70; all 23 items loaded above 0.3 on one factor, providing evidence that the scale can be conceptualized as one-dimensional.

The HCAV-scale is a reliable and valid tool to assess clinicians' favourable attitudes towards VBAC. The scale can be used to assess how attitudes of clinicians might contribute to institutional variations in VBAC rates, and has the potential to enhance inter-professional understanding and collaboration around VBAC and quality of care for childbearing people with a previous caesarean.
The HCAV-scale is a reliable and valid tool to assess clinicians' favourable attitudes towards VBAC. The scale can be used to assess how attitudes of clinicians might contribute to institutional variations in VBAC rates, and has the potential to enhance inter-professional understanding and collaboration around VBAC and quality of care for childbearing people with a previous caesarean.Desmoplastic Small Round Cell Tumors (DSRCTs) are an entity of rare, aggressive soft tissue sarcomas described by Gerald and Rosai in 1989. It predominantly affects male adolescents and young adults, with a peak incidence between an age of 20 and 30 years. Typically, DSRCT demonstrate as multiple small tumor nodules within the abdominal cave, retroperitoneum and pelvis. In more than 50% of the cases, the neoplasm presents metastatic at the timepoint of diagnosis. Histologically, DSRCTs have a characteristic morphology with sharply demarcated islands of uniform small round cells in abundant desmoplastic stroma organized in loose extracellular matrix. Immunohistochemistry reveals a polyphenotypic differentiation with co-expression of epithelial, myogenic, mesenchymal and neural markers. The morphology is highly variable and can hinder diagnosis. The most consistent molecular characteristic of DSRCT is the reciprocal t(11;22)(p13q12) translocation. This mutation leads to a formation of the EWSR1-WT1 fusion oncogene, which encodes for a chimeric protein with transcriptional regulatory activity and is regarded as driving source of the disease. To date, there is no standardized concept for clinical management, staging and treatment. Patients receive an aggressive multimodal therapeutic approach consisting of chemotherapy, radical surgical procedures, hyperthermic, intraperitoneal chemotherapy (HIPEC) and radiation. New targeted therapies are used in experimental settings as salvage therapy. So far, none of these therapies showed significant long-term success. This review gives an overview of diagnostic difficulties and pitfalls, discusses therapeutic strategies and highlights options for clinical management.Antibodies specific to phage virions have been observed many times, both in animals and in humans. Phages induce the T-dependent type of immune response, which is fundamental for immunological memory and long retention of abilities to recognize and respond to foreign epitopes. Experimental models have shown that phage-specific antibodies can be devastating for a phage in vivo. Observations from phage treatment in humans demonstrate however that antibodies do not necessarily hinder phage therapy. Controlling effective doses may help in controlling the immune response to phage and to create 'therapeutic windows' for the phage. Phage therapy design may also benefit from understanding phage antigenicity and predicting possible cross-reactions between antibodies specific to different phages.Operating speed is often used to evaluate consistency in road geometric design. In the China, the Specifications for Highway Safety Audit includes a spot-based speed model that predicts operating speed by dividing the road into homogeneous segments and observing the speeds at sparsely spaced spots. This paper presents a continuous speed model as a more representative alternative for roads with complex alignments, and can be applied to tunnel sections as one general model. The model considers the road geometric characteristics not only at the vehicle's current position, but also in its neighborhood by including the effects of adjacent segments. Before such a model can be confidently used, however, its transferability must be confirmed for roads other than those used for the model's development. This study therefore used data collected at two freeways to demonstrate transferability, as well as the advantages of the continuous speed model over the spot-based model. Results of the spot-based model showed large prediction errors, and changes in the predicted speeds along the road were abrupt and discontinuous. On the other hand, the continuous model's prediction errors were smaller and the predicted speed profile was, as expected, continuous. The continuous model performed well at estimating operating speed on the studied freeway and, most importantly, it can predict operating speeds for out-of-sample roads of the same type as the studied roads. That is, it passed the transferability test. This finding opens an opportunity for evaluating roads in the design stage while minimizing the number of costly driving simulation experiments. Transferring a continuous speed model is a recommended alternative, particularly when high-priced construction is required for roads with challenging conditions such as mountainous terrain.Oxytocin has drawn significant research attention for its role in modulating mammalian social behavior. Despite generally conserved roles, oxytocin can function differently even in closely related species. Previous studies have shown that bonobos and chimpanzees, humans' two closest relatives, demonstrate considerable behavioral differences, including that bonobos look more at others' eyes than chimpanzees. Oxytocin is known to increase attention to another's eyes in many mammalian species (e.g. dogs, monkeys, and humans), yet this effect has not been tested in any nonhuman great ape species. This study examined how intranasally-administered oxytocin affects eye contact in bonobos and chimpanzees using eye tracking. Following administration of either oxytocin or saline control with a nebulizer, chimpanzees (n = 6) and bonobos (n = 5) were shown images of conspecific faces while their eye movement was recorded. Oxytocin changed the eye-looking behavior of bonobos and chimpanzees differently. We found that oxytocin increased eye contact in bonobos but not chimpanzees; while one chimpanzee showed an increase, interestingly, 5 out of 6 chimpanzees showed decreased looking to the eyes compared to the mouth, suggesting moderate eye avoidance. Given the importance of eye contact in their social interactions, our results suggest that oxytocin may play modulatory roles in bonobos' and chimpanzees' species-specific social behavior and underscore the importance of oxytocin in hominid social evolution.
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