Category: Nevin Manimala

Eur Arch Otorhinolaryngol. 2023 Feb 15. doi: 10.1007/s00405-023-07870-9. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: To investigate the relationship between cell content and histopathological features of parathyroid lesions and 18F-FCH uptake intensity on PET/CT images.

METHODS: Patients with primary hyperparathyroidism (age > 18) who were referred to 18F-FCH PET/CT were involved. All patients underwent parathyroidectomy. Correlation of SUVmax with following factors were statistically analysed: serum PTH, Ca, P levels and histopathological parameters, total absolute amounts of chief cell, oxyphyllic cell and clear cell components calculated by the multiplication of the volume of the parathyroid lesion and the percentage of each type of cell content (called as Absolute_chief, Absolute_oxyphyllic and Absolute_clear reflecting the total amount of each cell group).

RESULTS: A total of 34 samples from 34 patients (6M, 28F, mean age: 53.32 ± 15.15, min: 14, max: 84) who had a positive 18F-FCH PET/CT localizing at least one parathyroid lesion were involved. In the whole study group, SUVmax was found to be correlated with the greatest diameter and volume of the lesion and Absolute_chief (p = 0.004, p = 0.002 and p = 0.035, respectively). In the subgroup analysis of 28 samples with longest diameter > 1 cm, the correlation between SUVmax and Absolute_chief remained significant (p = 0.036) and correlation between SUVmax and volume and longest diameter became stronger (p = 0.011 and p > 0.001, respectively). No correlation was found between SUVmax and Absolute_oxyphyllic or Absolute_clear.

CONCLUSIONS: There might be a relationship between 18F-FCH uptake intensity and chief cell content in patients with parathyroid adenoma. Further studies with larger patient groups would be beneficial to support the data.

PMID:36790722 | DOI:10.1007/s00405-023-07870-9

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Feb 15. doi: 10.1007/s11356-023-25808-w. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Recycling agents provide better additions of reclaimed asphalt pavement (RAP) in the production of new asphalt mixtures. Alternative and residual materials that have the potential as asphalt binder viscosity reducers have gained visibility in the field of paving due to the perspective of circular economy in recycled mixtures. Soybean oil sludge fatty acid is a material produced from soybean oil sludge, a waste generated in the soybean oil refining step. Thus, this paper investigated the physical, chemical, and rheological effects of the asphalt binder PG 64-XX modified by the fatty acid of soybean oil sludge in the contents of 6% and 7% by weight of the binder. The modified binder samples were submitted to penetration tests, softening point, rotational viscosity, performance grade (PG), before and after short-term aging (RTFO), and multiple stress creep and recovery (MSCR). A control asphalt mixture and recycled asphalt mixtures produced with 40% RAP and fatty acid-modified binders were subjected to tensile strength, induced moisture damage, resilient modulus, and fatigue life. A Student’s t statistical test verified the significance of the data, as well as the estimation of production costs of these asphalt mixtures. The use of the fatty acid significantly reduced the stiffness and viscosity of the control asphalt binder, decreasing the mixing temperatures at 14 °C and 17 °C to 6% and 7%, respectively. Using higher fatty acid contents from soybean oil sludge significantly improved the performance of recycled mixtures in tensile strength, moisture damage, and fatigue life. The production cost of recycled asphalt mixtures was lower than that of the control mixture.

PMID:36790704 | DOI:10.1007/s11356-023-25808-w

Environ Sci Pollut Res Int. 2023 Feb 15. doi: 10.1007/s11356-023-25790-3. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The application of spatiotemporal functional analysis techniques in environmental pollution research remains limited. As a result, this paper suggests spatiotemporal functional data clustering and visualization tools for identifying temporal dynamic patterns and spatial dependence of multiple air pollutants. The study uses concentrations of four major pollutants, named particulate matter (PM2.5), ground-level ozone (O₃), carbon monoxide (CO), and sulfur oxides (SO₂), measured over 37 cities in Yemen from 1980 to 2022. The proposed tools include Fourier transformation, B-spline functions, and generalized-cross validation for data smoothing, as well as static and dynamic visualization methods. Innovatively, a functional mixture model was used to capture/identify the underlying/hidden dynamic patterns of spatiotemporal air pollutants concentration. According to the results, CO levels increased 25% from 1990 to 1996, peaking in the cities of Taiz, Sana’a, and Ibb before decreasing. Also, PM2.5 pollution reached a peak in 2018, increasing 30% with severe concentrations in Hodeidah, Marib, and Mocha. Moreover, O₃ pollution fluctuated with peaks in 2014-2015, 2% increase and pollution rate of 265 Dobson. Besides, SO₂ pollution rose from 1997 to 2010, reaching a peak before stabilizing. Thus, these findings provide insights into the structure of the spatiotemporal air pollutants cycle and can assist policymakers in identifying sources and suggesting measures to reduce them. As a result, the study’s findings are promising and may guide future research on predicting multivariate air pollution statistics over the analyzed area.

PMID:36790700 | DOI:10.1007/s11356-023-25790-3

Am J Biol Anthropol. 2023 Jan;180(1):207-215. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.24660. Epub 2022 Nov 20.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: Height is a complex, highly heritable polygenic trait subject to both genetic composition and environmental influences. Recent studies suggest that a large proportion of height heritability is determined by the cumulative effect of many low allele frequency variants across the genome. Previous research has also identified an inverse relationship between height and runs of homozygosity (ROH); however, this has yet to be examined within African populations. We aim to identify this association within the Himba, an endogamous Namibian population who are recently bottlenecked, resulting in elevated haplotype sharing and increased homozygosity.

MATERIALS AND METHODS: Here, we calculate the fraction of the genome composed of long runs of homozygosity (F_ROH) in a sample of 245 adults and use mixed effects models to assess its effect on height.

RESULTS: We find that Himba adults exhibit increased homozygosity. However, in contrast to previous studies in other populations, we do not find a significant effect of F_ROH on height within the Himba. We further estimated heritability of height, noting both an enrichment of distant relatives and greater developmental homogeneity across households; we find that hg2=0.59 (SE ± 0.146), comparable to estimates reported in Europeans.

DISCUSSION: Our results may be due to other environmental variables we were not able to include, measurement error, or low statistical power, but may also imply that phenotypic expression resulting from increased homozygosity may vary from population to population.

PMID:36790690 | DOI:10.1002/ajpa.24660

Am J Biol Anthropol. 2022 Oct;179(2):184-210. doi: 10.1002/ajpa.24605. Epub 2022 Aug 15.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: This study examines dental morphology trait prevalence among three southern Naga groups and compares them to 10 ethnic groups from other regions of South Asia to accomplish two objectives: assess the biological relationship of these Tibeto-Burman-speakers to speakers of non-Tibeto-Burman languages in other South Asian regions, and determine which traits distinguish northeast Indians from other South Asians.

METHODS: Dental morphology traits were scored with the Arizona State University Dental Anthropology System. Tooth-trait combinations were evaluated for significant inter-trait correlation and intra-trait correspondence within dental fields. Comparisons were based on simple trait prevalence and with Smith’s MMD. Affinities based on the former were accomplished with correspondence analysis and principal components analysis. Affinities based on the latter were undertaken with neighbor-joining cluster analysis and multidimensional scaling.

RESULTS: After elimination due to inter-trait correlations and uniform prevalence, biodistances based on the remaining 17 tooth-trait combinations identify significant differences between northeast Indians and other South Asian ethnic groups due to high frequencies of shoveling on the maxillary incisors and Cusp 6 on the mandibular molars coupled with low frequencies of Carabelli’s trait and Cusp 5 on UM1 and UM2, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS: Patterns of biodistances obtained from dental morphology are consilient with those obtained from DNA indicating statistically significant differences between northeast Indians from members of ethnic groups of other regions of South Asia. Researchers should explore the sex-specific patterns. Biodistances should not be limited to “key” teeth within dental fields, for in almost every case traits present on mesial and distal teeth yield non-redundant information.

PMID:36790681 | DOI:10.1002/ajpa.24605

Qual Life Res. 2023 Feb 15. doi: 10.1007/s11136-023-03365-6. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: In this study, it was aimed to compare the administration of chemotherapy drugs via venous port catheter and peripheral vein in metastatic colon cancer patients in terms of quality of life and treatment costs.

METHODS: The research was carried out in a university hospital in Turkey. The population of the study consists of 130 patients with metastatic colon cancer who were treated with chemotherapy. The sample of the study consists of 103 participants. During the data collection phase of the study, three data collection tools were used: demographic information form, EOTC QLQ-30 quality of life scale and invoices for treatments. Data were analyzed using Microsoft Office Excel and IBM SPSS 20 package programs.

RESULTS: In the study, 71.8% of the participants received chemotherapy with a venous port catheter, 65% for more than 3 months, 56.3% in the day unit. As a result of the study, it was found that there were no significant differences in the quality of life (except social function) according to the chemotherapy method. In addition, when the research results are examined in terms of cost, statistically significant differences were found in the treatment cost (except total costs excluding drugs) according to the chemotherapy application method.

CONCLUSION: In line with these results, it is thought that when choosing the chemotherapy application method, factors such as the treatment duration of the patients, the ease of opening the vascular access, and the patient’s psychological state should be taken into consideration.

PMID:36790666 | DOI:10.1007/s11136-023-03365-6

Hemodial Int. 2023 Feb 14. doi: 10.1111/hdi.13069. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

INTRODUCTION: We evaluated the effects of pre-analytical care on total carbon dioxide (tCO₂ ) in hemodialysis patients, as calculated by blood gas analysis (ctCO₂ ) or measured by an enzymatic assay (mtCO₂ ).

METHODS: Blood samples were collected via vascular access before dialysis sessions. For blood gas analysis, eight aliquots were collected, refrigerated or non-refrigerated, and analyzed at 0, 4, 8, and 24 h after collection. A blood sample was then collected for the enzymatic method and distributed into 14 aliquots. Half of the aliquots were refrigerated. The samples analyzed at time point 0 were centrifuged immediately. The remaining aliquots of both the refrigerated and non-refrigerated clusters were centrifuged before storage. Samples were analyzed at 4, 8, and 24 h post-collection.

FINDINGS: By blood gas analysis, no significant change was found in bicarbonate values over time, either in the non-refrigerated or refrigerated samples. ctCO₂ values during the experiment showed a minor but statistically significant increase of questionable clinical relevance in both non-refrigerated and refrigerated aliquots. In the enzymatic assay, the reduction in mtCO₂ levels during the experiment was negligible. The median absolute reductions at the end of the experiment were 1.77, 1.21, 1.04, and 1.12 mmol/L for the non-centrifuged/non-refrigerated, centrifuged/non-refrigerated, non-centrifuged/refrigerated, and centrifuged/refrigerated aliquots, respectively.

DISCUSSION: Our results suggest that measured or calculated tCO₂ levels of capped and cooled samples are adequate for analyzing the acid-base status of hemodialysis patients, even when such determination is not performed immediately after collection.

PMID:36788419 | DOI:10.1111/hdi.13069

J Pak Med Assoc. 2023 Feb;73(Suppl 1)(2):S9-S13. doi: 10.47391/JPMA.AKUS-02.

ABSTRACT

OBJECTIVES: To assess knowledge and awareness of dental healthcare professionals on dental stem cells.

METHODS: A questionnaire survey-based study was conducted using Google forms on a sample of 69 dental healthcare professionals (DHCP) from September – October 2022, after obtaining ethical approval. A validated questionnaire was used to assess the knowledge and awareness of dental healthcare professionals on stem cells, which was then divided into three sections. The section A was about demographic statistics, section B assessed knowledge and awareness regarding dental stem cells and section C consisted of 5 score VAS scale to assess the acceptability of future research and increase implication of dental stem cells (DSC) among DHCP. The frequency of each question was reported in percentages. To assess the difference of knowledge and awareness of DSC among different specialties of DHCP, one-way ANOVA test was applied and incase of significant results pairwise comparison was performed by post-hoc Tukey test.

RESULTS: Mean scores of knowledge and awareness of DSC among female DHCP were 54.26 ± 11.73 and males were 53.50 ±8.19. There was a statistically significant difference of knowledge (p= 0.02) among different dental healthcare professionals. On pairwise comparison by post-hoc Tukey HSD we found statistically significant difference (p = 0.03) of knowledge and awareness of dental stem cells among general dentists and operative dentistry specialists.

CONCLUSIONS: We found poor knowledge and awareness of dental healthcare professionals regarding dental stem cells. However, operative and endodontic specialty had more awareness on dental stem cells as compared to any other specialty. There was positive approach for further future researches on stem cells.

PMID:36788385 | DOI:10.47391/JPMA.AKUS-02

Biometrics. 2023 Feb 14. doi: 10.1111/biom.13841. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Researchers across a wide array of disciplines are interested in finding the most influential subjects in a network. In a network setting, intervention effects and health outcomes can spill over from one node to another through network ties, and influential subjects are expected to have a greater impact than others. For this reason, network research in public health has attempted to maximize health and behavioral changes by intervening on a subset of influential subjects. Although influence is often defined only implicitly in most of the literature, the operative notion of influence is inherently causal in many cases: influential subjects are those we should intervene on to achieve the greatest overall effect across the entire network. In this work, we define a causal notion of influence using potential outcomes. We review existing influence measures, such as node centrality, that largely rely on the particular features of the network structure and/or on certain diffusion models that predict the pattern of information or diseases spreads through network ties. We provide simulation studies to demonstrate when popular centrality measures can agree with our causal measure of influence. As an illustrative example, we apply several popular centrality measures to the HIV risk network in the Transmission Reduction Intervention Project and demonstrate the assumptions under which each centrality can represent the causal influence of each participant in the study. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

PMID:36788358 | DOI:10.1111/biom.13841

Leukemia. 2023 Feb 14. doi: 10.1038/s41375-023-01839-7. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:36788337 | DOI:10.1038/s41375-023-01839-7