Category: Statistics

Ann Parasitol. 2021;67(3):445-453. doi: 10.17420/ap6703.357.

ABSTRACT

Hydatidosis is a disease caused by the larval stage of Echinococcus granulosus, which has great importance in medicine and veterinary medicine. Protoscolices (PSCs) of fertile hydatid cysts play a critical role in secondary echinococcosis after surgery. Fertile cysts were acquired from infected sheep at the local municipal abattoir in Ahvaz, southwest of Iran. PSCs were obtained aseptically and transferred to 10 different culture media and kept at 4°C and 37°C to determine the duration of PSCs’ survival. Then, 2000 live PSCs from each of the culture media were injected into the peritoneal cavity of BALB/c mice. After five months, the mice were evaluated in terms of cyst number, size, and weight. The highest PSCs survival time at 4°C was related to RPMI-1640 medium and cyst fluid for 50 and 45 days, respectively. Also, at 37°C, the longest survival time of PSCs was related to cyst fluid and RPMI-1640 media for 30 and 29 days, respectively. The highest level of infection and median cyst number was observed in mice received PSCs from the RPMI-1640 medium at 4°C, and the highest level of infection in mice at 37°C was related to the DMEM low glucose (L) medium. The current study indicated that 4°C was a more suitable temperature for in vitro storage of live PSCs. The maximum amount of infection was observed in mice received PSCs from the RPMI-1640 medium at 4°C. The present study is the first attempt to compare the ability of PSCs to generate hydatid cysts in mice after being cultured in different media and at various temperatures.

PMID:34953119 | DOI:10.17420/ap6703.357

J Food Sci. 2021 Dec 25. doi: 10.1111/1750-3841.16013. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The pericarp of Citrus reticulata “Chachi” (CRCP) is used as nutritional food and traditional medicine in China, usually harvested at three periods, namely, immature (CRCP-G1), semi-mature (CRCP-G2), and fully mature (CRCP-G3). Traditionally, if the CRCP is stored for a longer period, then the quality will be better. In this study, the dynamic variation of phytochemical and volatile compounds was profiled in the same batches of CRCP during 2 years of storage. Results illustrated that most of the phytochemical compounds showed a decreasing trend during storage, that is, total flavonoids, total phenolic acids, hesperidin, 3,5,6,7,8,3′,4′-heptamethoxyflavone, 5-hydroxy-6,7,8,3′,4′-pentamethoxyflavone, synephrine, and limonin. The ferulic acid increased significantly, whereas no significant changes were observed in the total polymethoxyflavones, nobiletin, and tangeretin after 2 years of storage. In addition, we found that the extraction yield of volatile oil decreased significantly in CRCP-G1 during storage, and the herb odors were enhanced with the increase of phenols and esters. No significant difference in the extraction yield of volatile oil of CRCP-G2 and CRCP-G3 was found after 2 years of storage, but the citrus-like notes were increased with the promoted generation of alkenes. In particular, the multivariate statistical analysis indicated that 7 volatiles showed a higher level after 1 year of storage, whereas 11 volatiles decreased and 4 volatiles increased after 2 years of storage, respectively. This study could show the early aging mechanism of CRCP harvested at different periods and provide a scientific guidance in the storage of CRCP. PRACTICAL APPLICATION: This study indicated a comprehensive method for rapid analysis of phytochemical and volatile compounds in pericarp of Citrus reticulata ”Chachi” (Rutaceae) (CRCP) harvested at different periods during 2 years of storage. The results obtained from this study would be valuable for revealing the early aging mechanism and sustainable storage of CRCP.

PMID:34953087 | DOI:10.1111/1750-3841.16013

Microsc Res Tech. 2021 Dec 25. doi: 10.1002/jemt.23999. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Palyno-anatomical characterization of some selected species of Boraginaceae and Fabaceae using light microscopy (LM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was conducted. Six species of them belongs to four genera of family Boraginaceae and other six species belongs to four genera of Fabaceae. The current study aimed to investigate palyno-anatomical features for correct identification and taxonomic significance. Pollen grains were acetolyzed and observed both qualitatively and quantitatively through light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy. Statistical data was analyzed through cluster analysis which categorized plants into clusters. Principal component analysis (PCA) was carried out to illustrate morphological variation among selected plant species. Studied plant species showed variation in shape, size, aperture type, exine ornamentation of pollen, size and shape of epidermal cells, types of stomata, guard cells, subsidiary cells and trichome types. Exine thickness was recorded maximum 2.30 ± 0.1 μm in Lablab purpureus and minimum 1.05 ± 0.2 in Gastrocotyle hispida. PCA summarized 73.78% of accumulative variance. Trichome index was observed highest 62% on the adaxial surface of Heliotropium europaeum and lowest 21% on adaxial surface of L. purpureus. These findings reinforce the importance of palyno-anatomical features in the characterization and identification of taxa. It was concluded that description of palyno-anatomical characteristics presented in this study, highly contribute to our knowledge for correct identification of plant species.

PMID:34953111 | DOI:10.1002/jemt.23999

Birth Defects Res. 2021 Dec 25. doi: 10.1002/bdr2.1978. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Spina bifida is the most common neural tube defect. It has been associated with increased mortality, disability, and may require lifelong medical care. Higher-level lesions have been shown to be associated with increased mortality in infants with spina bifida.

METHODS: A study was conducted using data from infants with myelomeningocele and related spina bifida reported to the New York State Birth Defects Registry for birth years 2008 through 2017. Descriptive statistics were conducted. Cox regression was used to calculate adjusted hazard ratios for mortality by age one, by lesion level. Hazard ratios were adjusted for birthweight and maternal race/ethnicity.

RESULTS: Overall survival at age one was 90.7%. Cervical-level lesions had an increased risk of mortality compared to lumbar-level lesions (HR 8.32; 95% CI: 2.56, 27.05). No statistically significant associations were found for sacral-level lesions compared to lumbar-level lesions.

CONCLUSION: These results suggest that infants with cervical-level spina bifida have a higher risk of death by age one than those with other lesion levels.

PMID:34953067 | DOI:10.1002/bdr2.1978

Nurs Open. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1002/nop2.1164. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

AIM: This study investigated the status of job burnout, work-related depression and job satisfaction among neurological and neurosurgical nurses in Poland.

DESIGN: A cross-sectional and multicentre study.

METHODS: The sample consisted of 206 neurological and neurosurgical nurses, all of whom completed a self-report questionnaire designed by the authors.

RESULTS: The results revealed a work-related burnout incidence of 32%, colleague-related burnout incidence of 44.2% and patient-related burnout incidence of 22.8%. Nurses working in neurological departments were statistically over three times more likely to struggle with colleague-related burnout than nurses working in neurosurgical departments were. Further, work-related burnout was higher in people aged above 54 years than those in the youngest age category. Nonetheless, 71.8% of the nurses expressed satisfaction with their work. In sum, our results indicated that job burnout is common among registered nurses and that personal (age) and workplace (type of ward, distance to work, experience and shift work) factors contributed to symptoms of burnout.

PMID:34953049 | DOI:10.1002/nop2.1164

J Appl Clin Med Phys. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1002/acm2.13509. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

This study compared sensitivity encoding (SENSE) and compressed sensing sensitivity encoding (CS-SENSE) for phase oversampling distance and assessed its impact on image quality and image acquisition time. The experiment was performed with a large diameter phantom using 16-channel anterior body coils. All imaging data were divided into three groups according to the parallel imaging technique and oversampling distances: groups A (SENSE with phase oversampling distance of 150 mm), B (CS-SENSE with phase oversampling distance of 100 mm), and C (CS-SENSE with phase oversampling distance of 75 mm). No statistically significant differences were observed among groups A, B, and C regarding both T2 and T1 turbo spin-echo (TSE) sequences using an acceleration factor (AF) of 2 (p = 0.301 and 0.289, respectively). In comparison with AF 2 of group A, the scan time of AF 2 of groups B and C was reduced by 11.2% and 23.5% (T2 TSE) and 15.8% and 22.7% (T1 TSE), respectively, while providing comparable image quality. Significant image noise and aliasing artifact were more evident at AF ≥ 2 in group A compared with groups B and C. CS-SENSE with a less phase oversampling distance can reduce image acquisition time without image quality degradation compared with that of SENSE, despite the increase in aliasing artifact as the AF increased in both CS-SENSE and SENSE.

PMID:34953027 | DOI:10.1002/acm2.13509

J Cell Mol Med. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1111/jcmm.17120. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The overall survival of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) patients remains poor. To improve patient outcomes, effective diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for GBM are needed. In this study, we first applied bioinformatic analyses to identify biomarkers for GBM, focusing on SOX (sex-determining region on the Y chromosome (SRY)-related high mobility group (HMG) box) B1 family members. The ONCOMINE, GEPIA, LinkedOmics and CCLE databases were used to assess mRNA expression levels of the SOX B1 family members in different cancers and normal tissue. Further bioinformatic analysis was performed using the ONCOMINE database in combination with the LinkedOmics data set to identify the prognostic value of SOX B1 family members for GBM. We found mRNA expression levels of all tested SOX B1 genes were significantly increased in GBM. In the LinkedOmics database, increased expression of SOX3 indicated a better overall survival. In GEPIA databases, increased expression of all SOX B1 family members suggested an improved overall survival, but none of them were statistically different. Then, Transwell assays and wound healing were employed to evaluate the motility and invasive captivity of U251 cells when silencing SOX2 and SOX3. We found exogenous inhibition of SOX2 appeared to reduce the migration and invasion of U251 cells in vitro. Collectively, our research suggested that SOX2 might serve as a cancer-promoting gene to identify high-risk GBM patients, and SOX3 had the potential to be a prognostic biomarker for GBM patients.

PMID:34953010 | DOI:10.1111/jcmm.17120

Integr Environ Assess Manag. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1002/ieam.4571. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The Clean Water Act requires states to develop methods for assessing water quality. Assessment methods serve as decision-making procedures for including waterbodies on the Section 303(d) List of Impaired Waters. We used 17 years of ambient water quality data to explore statistical analyses for assessment methods that are representative of New York’s waterbodies. Power analyses were performed to determine how many samples are needed to evaluate exceedances of water quality criteria using one sample t-tests in lakes and flowing waters. Results suggest 6 samples for lakes and 8 samples for flowing waters are needed to obtain at least 80% power, which is less samples than most other types of statistical assessment methodologies. This lower number was possible because the power analysis was applied to the actual variability found in monitoring data to calculate the effect size as opposed to more conservative statistical estimates based on random data. Water quality criteria can have different analysis requirements such as single samples or means above the threshold, so we compared how many impairments would occur in the dataset if the 6 or 8 samples were assessed as two single exceedances or a mean above the water quality criteria. Because the power analysis gives no indication of the time frame of when samples should be collected, the inter and intra-annual variability of the data was assessed to determine whether sampling over a growing season in one year or sampling over multiple years is more representative of the water quality status. Results showed that data collected over the growing season captured more variability in water quality data than data collected over multiple years in both waterbody types. With the prevalence of regulatory agencies having large, historical datasets rising, it would be possible for other agencies to apply these types of analyses to their assessment methodologies. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.

PMID:34953017 | DOI:10.1002/ieam.4571

Hum Brain Mapp. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1002/hbm.25758. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Understanding how brain activity translates into behavior is a grand challenge in neuroscientific research. Simultaneous computational modeling of both measures offers to address this question. The extension of the dynamic causal modeling (DCM) framework for blood oxygenation level-dependent (BOLD) responses to behavior (bDCM) constitutes such a modeling approach. However, only very few studies have employed and evaluated bDCM, and its application has been restricted to binary behavioral responses, limiting more general statements about its validity. This study used bDCM to model reaction times in a spatial attention task, which involved two separate runs with either horizontal or vertical stimulus configurations. We recorded fMRI data and reaction times (n= 26) and compared bDCM with classical DCM and a behavioral Rescorla-Wagner model using Bayesian model selection and goodness of fit statistics. Results indicate that bDCM performed equally well as classical DCM when modeling BOLD responses and as good as the Rescorla-Wagner model when modeling reaction times. Although our data revealed practical limitations of the current bDCM approach that warrant further investigation, we conclude that bDCM constitutes a promising method for investigating the link between brain activity and behavior.

PMID:34953009 | DOI:10.1002/hbm.25758

J Vet Intern Med. 2021 Dec 24. doi: 10.1111/jvim.16341. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Rabacfosadine (RAB, Tanovea-CA1) is a novel chemotherapy agent conditionally approved for the treatment of lymphoma in dogs.

HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To determine the efficacy and safety of RAB in dogs with lymphoma.

ANIMALS: One hundred and fifty-eight client-owned dogs with naïve or relapsed multicentric lymphoma were prospectively enrolled from January to October 2019.

METHODS: Dogs were randomized to receive RAB or placebo at a 3 : 1 ratio. Treatment was given every 21 days for up to 5 treatments. Study endpoints included progression-free survival (PFS), overall response rate (ORR) at a given visit, best overall response rate (BORR), and percent progression free 1 month after treatment completion. Safety data were also collected.

RESULTS: The median PFS was significantly longer in the RAB group compared to placebo (82 vs 21 days; P < .0001, HR 6.265 [95% CI 3.947-9.945]). The BORR for RAB-treated dogs was 73.2% (50.9% complete response [CR], 22.3% partial response [PR]) and 5.6% (0% CR, 5.6% PR) for placebo-treated dogs (P < .0001). One month after the last treatment, 37 RAB-treated dogs (33%) were progression free compared with no placebo-treated dogs (P < .0001). The most common adverse events observed in the RAB group were diarrhea (87.5%), decreased appetite (68.3%), and vomiting (68.3%) and were generally low grade and reversible. Serious adverse events were reported in 24 RAB-treated (20%) and 5 placebo-treated dogs (13%).

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Rabacfosadine demonstrated statistically significant antitumor efficacy in dogs with lymphoma when administered every 21 days for up to 5 treatments as compared to placebo.

PMID:34952995 | DOI:10.1111/jvim.16341