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Comp Biochem Physiol Part D Genomics Proteomics 2021 Mar 28;39:100828. Epub 2021 Mar 28.

Fishery College, Zhejiang Ocean University, Zhoushan, Zhejiang 316022, China. Electronic address:

Little is known about the mechanisms underlying the relationship between genetic variation and the adaptation of Oratosquilla oratoria populations to different habitat temperature. Here, the genome-wide genetic information of three O. oratoria populations were obtained by IIB restriction site-associated DNA (2b-RAD) sequencing and 2403 single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were identified. Read More

Environ Int 2021 Mar 26;153:106540. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Environmental and Public Health Analytical Chemistry, Research Institute for Pesticides and Water, University Jaume I, Castellón, Spain; Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Electronic address:

The COVID-19 outbreak has forced countries to introduce severe restrictive measures to contain its spread. In particular, physical distancing and restriction of movement have had important consequences on human behaviour and potentially also on illicit drug use and supply. These changes can be associated with additional risks for users, in particular due to reduced access to prevention and harm reduction activities. Read More

Sleep Med Rev 2021 Mar 13;57:101466. Epub 2021 Mar 13.

Department of Neurology, Medical University Innsbruck, Austria. Electronic address:

We sought to gain a better understanding of the relationship between epilepsy and sleep quality and daytime sleepiness by performing a literature search of PubMed for case-control studies that compared patients with epilepsy to controls and reported the Pittsburgh sleep quality index (PSQI) and/or the Epworth sleepiness scale (ESS). Study-specific mean differences in the PSQI and ESS between cases and controls were extracted from the publications and pooled using random-effects meta-analysis. Twenty-five studies (2964 cases, 5232 controls) were included. Read More

Prev Vet Med 2021 Mar 26;190:105339. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Institute of Molecular Genetics of National Research Centre «Kurchatov Institute», Kurchatov Sq 2, 123182, Moscow, Russia; Nanodiagnostics, Ltd., Kurchatov Sq 2, 123182, Moscow, Russia. Electronic address:

Feline haemoplasma infection studies are lacking in Russia. This retrospective study was conducted to estimate the prevalence of feline haemoplasmas in domestic cats in the Moscow region, Russia. A risk of haemoplasma coinfection with feline leukemia virus (FeLV) and feline immunodeficiency virus (FIV) was also determined. Read More

Addict Behav 2021 Mar 26;119:106922. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Rowan University, United States. Electronic address:

Despite a large body of work exploring associations between perceived norms and drinking and norms-based interventions for drinking, less work has examined moderators of associations between norms and drinking outcomes to determine potential sub-groups that might benefit most from brief norms-based interventions. The present study investigates shyness as a moderator of associations between drinking norms and alcohol use. We hypothesized that shyness would moderate associations between drinking norms and alcohol use such that individuals who are higher in shyness might be more sensitive to social influence and thus show stronger associations between drinking norms and alcohol use. Read More

Public Health 2021 Apr 7;193:139-145. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

School of Economics and Resource Management, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, China. Electronic address:

Objectives: Approximately 165 million children aged <5 years are at risk of low height-for-age. This study explored whether water quality and distance to water source affected short- and long-term growth, and the critical time windows of such effects.

Study Design: This study used data from the China Health and Nutrition Survey (CHNS), which was a cohort study performed in 15 Chinese provinces. Read More

J Anxiety Disord 2021 Apr 3;80:102389. Epub 2021 Apr 3.

The University of Memphis, 400 Innovation Drive, Memphis, TN 38152, United States.

The present study explored rape acknowledgment among 131 college women survivors of rape utilizing three subgroups: acknowledged rape, unacknowledged rape, and ambivalent acknowledgment. Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters and parameters of victimization and were compared between the subgroups. Of the participants, 28. Read More

Neuroimage Clin 2021 Mar 27;30:102645. Epub 2021 Mar 27.

Department of Psychology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA; Department of Psychiatry, and Behavioral Neuroscience, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL, USA.

Much of social cognition requires making inferences about the mental and emotional states of others. Moreover, understanding the emotions of others is an important foundation for moral decision-making. Psychopathy is associated with both aberrant emotional understanding and atypical hemodynamic responses when viewing and evaluating morally laden social interactions. Read More

Phys Med 2021 Apr 7;84:41-49. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Instituto de Física Enrique Gaviola (IFEG), CONICET, Córdoba, Argentina; Laboratorio de Investigación e Instrumentación en Física Aplicada a la Medicina e Imágenes por Rayos X, FAMAF-UNC, Córdoba, Argentina; Centro de Física e Ingeniería en Medicina - CFIM & Departamento de Ciencias Físicas, Universidad de La Frontera, Temuco, Chile.

Purpose: Dosimetry of ionizing radiation quantifies the energy deposited by an incident beam to the medium. This study presents the relative response of two types of gel dosimeters describing their differences by estimating radiation chemical yields produced in water radiolysis.

Methods: Two types of gel dosimeter were used, namely an acid ferrous ion solution infused with xylenol orange known as Fricke gel and a polymer gel based on acrylamide and N,N'-methylenebis(acrylamide) known as PAGAT. Read More

Gait Posture 2021 Mar 24;86:292-298. Epub 2021 Mar 24.

University of Maryland School of Medicine, Department of Physical Therapy & Rehabilitation Science, Baltimore, MD, 21201, United States. Electronic address:

Background: Stand-to-sit (StandTS) movement is an important functional activity that can be challenging for older adults due to age-related changes in neuromotor control. Although trunk flexion, eccentric contraction of the rectus femoris (RF), and coordination of RF and biceps femoris (BF) muscles are important to the StandTS task, the effects of aging on these and related outcomes are not well studied.

Research Question: What are the age-related differences in trunk flexion, lower extremity muscle activation patterns, and postural stability during a StandTS task and what is the relationship between these variables?

Methods: Ten younger and ten older healthy adults performed three StandTS trials at self-selected speeds. Read More

Cognition 2021 Apr 7;212:104709. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Laboratory of Psychophysics, Brain Mind Institute, École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), Lausanne, Switzerland.

Perception depends not only on the current sensory input but also on the preceding history of stimuli. In serial dependence (SD), for example, the orientation of a Gabor patch is mistakenly reported as more similar to previous trials than it actually is. This bias is typically observed for moderate orientation differences (<45°) and extends over a few trials in the past. Read More

J Environ Manage 2021 Apr 7;289:112479. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

School of Metallurgy and Environment, Central South University, Changsha, 410083, China. Electronic address:

Gypsum amendment is widely used to resolve alkalinity issues and implement sustainable management for bauxite residue disposal areas (BRDAs). Amended BRDAs under natural conditions suffer from long-term erosion processes. Nevertheless, the effect of erosion on amendment efficacy is rarely assessed. Read More

Int J Pediatr Otorhinolaryngol 2021 Mar 23;144:110686. Epub 2021 Mar 23.

Paediatric Research Group, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of Tromsø-Arctic University of Norway, Postboks 6050 Langnes, 9037, Tromsø, Norway; Department of Paediatrics and Adolescence Medicine, University Hospital of North Norway, 9038 Tromsø, Norway. Electronic address:

Objectives: Extended high frequency (EHF) audiometry is the recommended method for monitoring oxotoxic hearing loss in children. This study aims to provide high quality reference audiological data for the EHF range in healthy children.

Methods: Participants were 126 healthy schoolchildren between 6 and 14 years of age. Read More

Early Hum Dev 2021 Mar 26;157:105362. Epub 2021 Mar 26.

Center for Human Development, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0115, United States of America; Department of Psychiatry, University of California, San Diego, 9500 Gilman Drive, La Jolla, CA 92093-0603, United States of America. Electronic address:

Background: Children born preterm are at risk for difficulties in executive function (EF), however there are limited tools to assess EF in young children and it is not fully understood how these early deficits are related to emerging academic skills.

Aims: To examine (a) early EF differences in young children born preterm, (b) how a measure of behavioral self-regulation correlates with other measures of EF in children born preterm, and (c) how this measure relates to academic outcomes in children born preterm.

Study Design: Longitudinal cohort study. Read More

Soc Sci Med 2021 Apr 1;277:113889. Epub 2021 Apr 1.

University of Bergen, Faculty of Psychology, Department of Psychosocial Science, Christies gate 12, 5015, Bergen, Norway. Electronic address:

Objective: This study investigates how Syrian refugees explain and prefer to seek help for symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression.

Methods: We conducted five semi-structured focus group interviews based on a vignette-technique with Syrian refugees (n = 21 men, n = 10 women). The vignettes describe a fictional person suffering from symptoms of PTSD or depression in line with DSM-5 and ICD-10 criteria. Read More

Appl Ergon 2021 Apr 7;94:103418. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Obstetric and Gynecology Division, Shamir Medical Center, Assaf Harofeh Campus, Tzrifin, 730000, Israel. Electronic address:

Shared perceptions of a task among those responsible for its completion are important for achieving successful outcomes. This study proposes a framework for eliciting various aspects of team members' "mental models" (TMMs) of complex medical tasks. The intention is to provide 'proof of concept' for a methodology to measure similarities and differences between team members' perceptions of selected attributes of the task. Read More

Chemosphere 2021 Apr 3;278:130484. Epub 2021 Apr 3.

Department of Occupational Health, School of Public Health, Shanxi Medical University, China; Key Lab of Environmental Hazard and Health of Shanxi Province, Shanxi Medical University, China; Key Lab of Cellular Physiology of Education Ministry, Shanxi Medical University, China. Electronic address:

Aluminium (Al), not essential for biological activities, accumulates in the tissues. It exerts toxic effects on the nervous system, inducing in humans' irreversible cognitive impairment. In this study, a cluster sampling method was used to observe the cognitive function of long-term occupational Al-exposed workers in a large Al factory, and determine the expression of peripheral blood tumour necrosis factor receptor 1 (TNFR1), receptor-interacting protein 1 (RIP1), and RIP3. Read More

J Surg Res 2021 Apr 7;264:236-241. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Department of Pediatric Surgery, Houston, Texas; Center for Surgical Trials and Evidence-based Practice, the McGovern Medical School at The University of Texas-Houston, Houston, Texas. Electronic address:

Background: Although physiologic differences exist between younger and older children, pediatric trauma analyses are weighted toward older patients. Trauma-induced coagulopathy, determined by rapid thrombelastography (rTEG), is a predictor of outcome in trauma patients, but the significance of rTEG values among very young trauma patients remains unknown. Our objective was to identify the prehospital or physiologic factors, including rTEG values, that were associated with mortality in trauma patients younger than 5 y old. Read More

Sci Total Environ 2021 Mar 29;782:146819. Epub 2021 Mar 29.

Deakin University, Centre for Integrative Ecology, School of Life and Environmental Sciences, 221 Burwood Hwy, Burwood, VIC 3125, Australia.

Wetland ecosystems are critical to the regulation of the global carbon cycle, and there is a high demand for data to improve carbon sequestration and emission models and predictions. Decomposition of plant litter is an important component of ecosystem carbon cycling, yet a lack of knowledge on decay rates in wetlands is an impediment to predicting carbon preservation. Here, we aim to fill this knowledge gap by quantifying the decomposition of standardised green and rooibos tea litter over one year within freshwater and coastal wetland soils across four climates in Australia. Read More

Sci Total Environ 2021 Mar 22;782:146643. Epub 2021 Mar 22.

IIHR-Hydroscience & Engineering, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA; Iowa Geological Survey, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa, USA.

There is an ongoing need to increase our understanding of the sources and timing of stream nitrate loads across agricultural watersheds in Iowa as water quality improvement strategies are implemented. The goal of this study was to model the relationship between nitrate load and the two components of streamflow (i.e. Read More

Sci Total Environ 2021 Mar 29;782:146830. Epub 2021 Mar 29.

Institute of Coastal Environmental Pollution Control, Ministry of Education Key Laboratory of Marine Environment and Ecology, and College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Ocean University of China, Qingdao 266100, China. Electronic address:

Microplastics in bivalves have caused widespread concern due to their potential health risk to humans. In this study, microplastics in the digestive systems of four locally cultured bivalve species (scallop Chlamys farreri, mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis, oyster Crassostrea gigas, and clam Ruditapes philippinarum) in Qingdao, China, were analyzed and detected in 233 out of 290 bivalve samples (80%) over four seasons. The microplastic abundance in four species of bivalves ranged between 0. Read More

Clin Gastroenterol Hepatol 2021 Apr 7. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Department of Internal Medicine III, Division of Gastroenterology and Hepatology, Medical University of Vienna, Währinger Gürtel 18-20, Vienna, Austria.

Background And Aims: Comparative effectiveness have become increasingly important to help position therapies for inflammatory bowel disease. We compared the efficacy and rapidity of onset of action of infliximab vs. ustekinumab induction therapy for moderate to severe biologic-naïve Crohn's disease (CD) using patient-level data from randomized controlled trials. Read More

J Biomed Inform 2021 Apr 7:103777. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Department of Biomedical Informatics, Vanderbilt University Medical Center, Nashville, TN2525 West End Ave, Suite 1475 Nashville, TN USA 37203.

From the start of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, researchers have looked to electronic health record (EHR) data as a way to study possible risk factors and outcomes. To ensure the validity and accuracy of research using these data, investigators need to be confident that the phenotypes they construct are reliable and accurate, reflecting the healthcare settings from which they are ascertained. We developed a COVID-19 registry at a single academic medical center and used data from March 1 to June 5, 2020 to assess differences in population-level characteristics in pandemic and non-pandemic years respectively. Read More

Environ Toxicol Pharmacol 2021 Apr 7:103656. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Department of Neurobiology and Behavior, University of California Irvine, Irvine, CA, 92697, USA. Electronic address:

Evidence in humans suggests a correlation between nicotine smoking and severe respiratory symptoms with COVID-19 infection. In lung tissue, angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2) appears to mechanistically underlie viral entry. Here, we investigated whether e-cigarette vapor inhalation alters ACE2 and nicotinic acetylcholine receptor (nAChR) expression in male and female mice. Read More

Photodiagnosis Photodyn Ther 2021 Apr 7:102286. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Department of Medical Microbiology, School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran; Fellowship in Clinical Laboratory Sciences, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran. Electronic address:

Background: In this study, the ability of antimicrobial photodynamic therapy (aPDT) as a treatment approach and adjuvant therapy using Curcumin-Poly (Lactic-co-Glycolic Acid) nanoparticles (Cur@PLGA-NPs) to inactivate Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) in plasma was investigated. Furthermore, to verify whether the quality requirement of aPDT-treated plasma is acceptable, the differences of the levels of clotting factors, total plasma proteins, and anti-A and/or anti-B antibodies titrations in plasma of patient before and after aPDT treatment were investigated.

Materials And Methods: Cur@PLGA-NPs was synthesized using Electrospinning process and characterized by different analysis including Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM), Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM), and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy assays. Read More

Clin Microbiol Infect 2021 Apr 7. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Institute of Microbiology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Ljubljana, Ljubljana, Slovenia.

Objectives: Seroprevalence surveys provide crucial information on cumulative SARS-CoV-2 exposure. This Slovenian nationwide population study is the first longitudinal 6-month serosurvey using probability-based sample across all age categories.

Methods: Each participant supplied two blood samples: 1,316 samples in April 2020 (first round) and 1,211 in October/November 2020 (second round). Read More

Neuroscience 2021 Apr 7. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Graduate Program in Developmental and Brain Sciences, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA; Psychology Department, University of Massachusetts Boston, Boston, MA 02125, USA. Electronic address:

Neuronal excitability and susceptibility to excitotoxic damage can be sex-specific, with neurons from males usually being more 'easily excitable' compared to neurons from females, especially during development. Increased excitability at an individual neuronal level can lead to the formation of hyperexcitable neuronal networks, which, consequently can make the brain more seizure prone. Both animal and clinical data suggest that males experience more frequent and severe seizures than do females. Read More

Genomics 2021 Apr 7. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Departament of Zoology, Genetics and Physical Anthropology, Faculty of Biology, Universidade de Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain. Electronic address:

Background: Understanding sex determination (SD) across taxa is a major challenge for evolutionary biology. The new genomic tools are paving the way to identify genomic features underlying SD in fish, a group frequently showing limited sex chromosome differentiation and high SD evolutionary turnover. Turbot (Scophthalmus maximus) is a commercially important flatfish with an undifferentiated ZW/ZZ SD system and remarkable sexual dimorphism. Read More

Neurotoxicol Teratol 2021 Apr 7:106980. Epub 2021 Apr 7.

Drug Design and Pharmacology, Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, University of Copenhagen,Copenhagen, Denmark 2100. Electronic address:

Using drugs of abuse while pregnant has tremendous negative consequences for the offspring, including an enhanced risk for substance use disorder (SUD). This vulnerability suggests that gestational exposure to drugs alters the developmental trajectory of neurons important in SUD processes, which could lead to later life changes in responsiveness to motivationally salient stimuli. The laterodorsal tegmentum (LDT) gates the behaviorally relevant firing pattern signaling stimuli saliency in mesoaccumbal circuits. Read More