Standard Nomenclature Research Articles

Nomenclatural standards of black currant cultivars bred by Sverdlovsk Horticultural Breeding Station. Part I

In the herbarium of cultivated plants of the world, their wild relatives and weeds (WIR) a collection of nomenclatural standards for cultivars of domestic breeding is being created. Nomenclatural standards are carriers of the authenticity of the genetic information of the breeding achievements and should be kept indefinitely in the scientific herbarium collection. A herbarium sample collected with the direct participation of an expert, which can be the author of the cultivar or official representative of the author's breeding organization, is designated as the nomenclature standard. The nomenclatural standard confirms the originality of the cultivar, protects the copyright of its creators. The article publishes the nomenclature standards of 10 black currant (Ribes nigrum L.) cultivars, bred at Sverdlovsk Horticultural Breeding Station from 1983 to 1997 and included into the State Register of Breeding Achievements: Akkord (WIR-54112), Vasilisa (WIR-54115), Vympel (WIR-54118), Globus (WIR-54119), Dobry Dzhinn (WIR-54121), Pilot (WIR-54127), Slavyanka (WIR-54129), Udalets (WIR-54132), Fortuna (WIR-54133), Shaman (WIR-54134). In addition to the description of the nomenclature standards, the distinctive taxonomic and economically valuable traits of each cultivar are given. Herbarium samples of nomenclature standards are made in accordance with the recommendations of the International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants (ICNCP), registered in the database "VIR Herbarium" and included in the Herbarium of cultivated plants of the world, their wild relatives and weeds (WIR).

NR2F1 database: 112 variants and 84 patients support refining the clinical synopsis of Bosch-Boonstra-Schaaf optic atrophy syndrome.

Pathogenic variants of the nuclear receptor subfamily 2 group F member 1 gene (NR2F1) are responsible for Bosch-Boonstra-Schaaf optic atrophy syndrome (BBSOAS), an autosomal dominant disorder characterized by optic atrophy associated with developmental delay and intellectual disability, but with a clinical presentation which appears to be multifaceted. We created the first public locus-specific database dedicated to NR2F1. All variants and clinical cases reported in the literature, as well as new unpublished cases, were integrated into the database using standard nomenclature to describe both molecular and phenotypic anomalies. We subsequently pursued a comprehensive approach based on computed representation and analysis suggesting a refinement of the BBSOAS clinical description with respect to neurological features and the inclusion of additional signs of hypotonia and feeding difficulties. This database is fully accessible for both clinician and molecular biologists and should prove useful in further refining the clinical synopsis of NR2F1 as new data is recorded.

Improving High-Level Thinking Skills in Students Through Powtoon-Based Animation Video Media

Students are less able to optimize higher-order thinking skills. There are still many students who are confused in working on problems related to higher thinking skills. This paper provides a template for preparing papers for electronic production of the Journal of Education Technology. A well-prepared abstract enables the reader to identify the basic content of a document quickly and accurately, to determine its relevance to their interests, and thus to decide whether to read the document in its entirety. The Abstract should be informative and completely self-explanatory, provide a clear statement of the problem, the proposed approach or solution, and point out major findings and conclusions. The Abstract should be 150 to 250 words in length. The abstract should be written in the past tense. Standard nomenclature should be used and abbreviations should be avoided. No literature should be cited. The keyword list provides the opportunity to add keywords, used by the indexing and abstracting services, in addition to those already present in the title. Judicious use of keywords may increase the ease with which interested parties can locate our article.

Artificial Intelligence for Computer Vision in Surgery: A Call for Developing Reporting Guidelines.

Artificial Intelligence for Computer Vision in Surgery: A Call for Developing Reporting Guidelines.

Long-Term Outcomes of Pediatric Idiopathic Intermediate Uveitis

To describe the course of childhood-onset intermediate uveitis without associated systemic disease, and investigate determinants of outcomes. A retrospective clinical cohort study METHODS: This study was conducted in an institutional setting. A total of 125 children (221 eyes) aged 16 years and less participated. Outcomes of interest were visual acuity, severity of inflammation, and the occurrence of sight-threatening complications. Variables examined included age and clinical findings at presentation, treatment, and duration of follow-up. Multivariable analysis was undertaken to investigate potential predictors of outcomes. The median follow-up duration was 57 months. At presentation, best-corrected visual acuity worse than 20/160 was recorded in 11 (4.4%) eyes and significant vitreous haze (≥2+Standardisation of Uveitis Nomenclature (SUN)) in 35 (14%) eyes. Corticosteroid-sparing agents were used in 41 children (33%), with methotrexate most commonly used (27 children, 21.6%). The most frequent complications were raised intraocular pressure (n=65; 29.4%), cataract (n=41; 18.5%), and cystoid macular edema (n=29; 13.1%). At the last visit, 116 (92.8%) patients achieved best-corrected vision of 20/40 or better with quiescent uveitis. The absence of the use of a steroid-sparing immunomodulatory agent was the strongest predictive factor for the development of new macular edema (odds ratio=6.3, 95% CI=2.3-16.9, P < .001) or glaucoma (odds ratio=6.6, 95% CI=2.5-17.9, P < .001) over the period of observation. The visual outcomes of childhood-onset idiopathic intermediate uveitis are favorable. The frequency of sight-threatening sequelae of inflammation, which confer a lifelong risk of further visual loss, is high. The use of immunomodulatory therapy is associated with a lower risk of developing macular edema and ocular hypertension.

Feasibility and safety of percutaneous image-guided cryoablation of abdominal wall endometriosis.

To evaluate the feasibility and safety of percutaneous image-guided cryoablation of abdominal wall endometriosis (AWE). A retrospective review of percutaneous cryoablation (CT or MR) of AWE was performed from January 2018 to December 2020. Eighteen patients were identified from an internal percutaneous ablation database. Technical success, complications, and outcomes were analyzed according to standard nomenclature. Patients comprised 18 females (mean age 36.9years) who underwent 18 cryoablation procedures to treat 23 AWE deposits. Three of the 18 cases were performed under MR guidance, while the remaining 15 employed CT guidance. Technical success was achieved in all 18 cases (100%). Fifteen of 18 patients (83%) had biopsy proven AWE deposits prior to treatment. Hydrodisplacement was used to displace adjacent bowel, bladder, or neurovascular structures in 13/18 cases (72%). The mean number of probes used per case was 3. Sixteen of 23 (70%) of AWE deposits had imaging follow-up (median 85days). Of the 16 lesions with imaging follow-up, 15 (94%) demonstrated no residual enhancement or T1 hyperintensity at the treatment site and 1 lesion (6%) demonstrated residual/progressive disease. At clinical follow-up, 13 of 14 (93%) patients reported improvement in AWE-related symptoms. Eleven patients had clinically documented pain scores before and after ablation and all demonstrated substantial symptomatic improvement. No society of interventional radiology (SIR) major complications were observed. Percutaneous cryoablation of AWE is feasible with a favorable safety profile. Further longitudinal studies are needed to document durable response over time.

Review: Cataloguing Culture: Legacies of Colonialism in Museum Documentation, by Hannah Turner

Review: <i>Cataloguing Culture: Legacies of Colonialism in Museum Documentation</i>, by Hannah Turner

Enhancing Precision Medicine: A Big Data-Driven Approach for the Management of Genomic Data

The management of the exponential growth of data that Next Generation Sequencing techniques produce has become a challenge for researchers that are forced to delve into an ocean of complex data in order to extract new insights to unravel the secrets of human diseases. Initially, this can be faced as a Big Data-related problem, but the genomic data have particular and relevant challenges that make them different from other Big Data working domains. Genomic data are much more heterogeneous; they are spread in hundreds of repositories, represented in multiple formats, and have different levels of quality. In addition, getting meaningful conclusions from genomic data requires considering all of the relevant surrounding knowledge that is under continuous evolution. In this scenario, the precise identification of what makes Genome Data Management so different is essential in order to provide effective Big Data-based solutions. Genomic projects require dealing with the technological problems associated with data management, nomenclature standards, and quality issues that only robust Information Systems that use Big Data techniques can provide. The main contribution of this paper is to present a Big Data-driven approach for managing genomic data, that is adapted to the particularities of the domain and to show its applicability to improve genetic diagnoses, which is the core of the development of accurate Precision Medicine.

Reliability of Aqueous Flare Measurements During Uveitis by a Spot Fluorometer

Purpose: To evaluate the reliability of intensity of light scatter (ILS) for diagnosing mild-to-moderate uveitis, which is difficult to score by the subjective standardized uveitis nomenclature (SUN) grading. Methods: ILS (in millivolts) was measured in healthy subjects and uveitis patients by a custom-made Spot fluorometer. The reliability was assessed by noise analysis of the instrument using turbid samples and intra- and interobserver variabilities. Results: ILS increased with the severity of inflammation: healthy (0.1498 ± 0.0564) and SUN0 (0.1590 ± 0.0564) < SUN1+ (0.2050 ± 0.0887) < SUN2+ (0.4283 ± 0.1895). The increase in ILS was more significant between healthy and SUN1+ (P < 0.0001) compared to the difference between SUN0 and SUN1+ (P = 0.0006). The instrument noise was small (σ = 0.002). Intraobserver measurements revealed no variability (P > 0.98) between measurements and predicted repeatability coefficients of 0.0754, 0.0522, and 0.0532 in healthy, SUN0, and SUN1+, respectively. Interobserver measurements also showed no variability (P > 0.88) and predicted intraclass correlation coefficient > 0.63 in healthy and uveitis subjects. Conclusions: The fluorometer enables precise measurement of ILS with negligible instrument noise, and the measurements are unaffected by intra- and interobserver variabilities. However, the difference in mean ILS between SUN0 and SUN1+ is greater than the instrument noise and comparable to intra- and interobserver variabilities. Thus, ILS measurements are likely impacted by blinking, eye movements, and focusing jitter. The impact of these factors must be reduced before using the fluorometer to distinguish mild-to-moderate uveitis.

International Consensus Statement for Recommended Terminology Describing Hysteroscopic Procedures

To develop a consensus statement of recommended terminology to use for describing different aspects of hysteroscopic procedures that can be uniformly used in clinical practice and research. Open forum discussion followed by online video meetings. International community of hysteroscopy experts PATIENTS: Not applicable. Series of online video meetings to complete a previously established agenda until a final agreement for standardized nomenclature was obtained. The adoption and implementation of a common terminology to standardize reporting of hysteroscopic procedures was proposed to cover five domains: pain management, healthcare setting, model of care, type of hysteroscopic procedure and the hysteroscopic approach to the uterine cavity. A final agreement was obtained after 3 online video meetings. Hysteroscopy is the gold standard technique for the evaluation and management of uterine disorders. A clear definition and understanding of the terminology used to describe hysteroscopic procedures is lacking. The production of this international consensus statement for terminology to describe hysteroscopic procedures, covering pain management, setting, model of care, type of procedure and hysteroscopic approach, has the potential to enable more effective communication for both clinical and research purposes with the ultimate aim of improving patient care and clinical outcomes.

A novel biome concept and classification system based on bioclimate and vegetation – a Neotropical assay

The knowledge of biomes as large-scale ecosystem units has benefited from advances in the ecological and evolutionary sciences. Despite this, a universal biome classification system that also allows a standardized nomenclature has not yet been achieved. We propose a comprehensive and hierarchical classification method and nomenclature to define biomes based on a set of bioclimatic variables and their corresponding vegetation structure and ecological functionality. This method uses three hierarchical biome levels: Zonal biome (Macrobiome), Biome and Regional biome. Biome nomenclature incorporates both bioclimatic and vegetation characterization (i.e. formation). Bioclimate characterization basically includes precipitation rate and thermicity. The description of plant formations encompasses vegetation structure, physiognomy and foliage phenology. Since the available systems tend to underestimate the complexity and diversity of tropical ecosystems, we have tested our approach in the biogeographical area of the Neotropics. Our proposal includes a bioclimatic characterization of the main 16 Neotropical plant formations identified. This method provides a framework that (1) enables biome distribution and changes to be projected from bioclimatic data; (2) allows all biomes to be named according to a globally standardized scheme; and (3) integrates various ecological biome approaches with the contributions of the European and North American vegetation classification systems. Taxonomic reference: Jørgensen et al. (2014). Dedication: This work is dedicated to the memory of and in homage to Prof. Dr. Salvador Rivas-Martínez.

Specificities of Oral Verrucous Carcinoma: Case Report and Literature Review

Introduction: Verrucous carcinoma of the oral mucosa recurs locally but does not metastasize in the absence of an invasive squamous cell carcinoma component. Clinical Observation: We report a case of an oral verrucous carcinoma in 67-year-old male patient causing bone invasion and bilateral lymph node metastasis despite the absence of a clear squamous cell carcinoma component. Discussion: Some verrucous carcinomas show dysplasia with very minor component of conventional squamous cell carcinoma. Currently, there is great challenge in diagnosing those “in between” tumor type because of the lack of standard nomenclature and studies assessing their clinical behavior.

Ultrasound-guided parasternal blocks: techniques, clinical indications and future prospects.

Fascial plane blocks represent anesthetic procedures performed to manage perioperative and chronic pain. Recently, many fascial blocks techniques have been described increasing their field of applications. They offer anesthetic and analgesic efficacy, easy of execution and low risk of complications. The newest techniques recently described are the ultrasound parasternal blocks (US-PSB) which provide analgesia to the antero-medial chest wall. In particular, the antero-medial chest wall blocks are performed to provide analgesia and anesthesia in several and different surgeries such as median sternotomy, breast surgery, implantable cardioverter-defibrillator implantation and in the management of acute and chronic pain. The nervous target for these blocks is represented by the anterior branches of the intercostal nerves which enter the intercostal (ICM) and pectoralis major (PMM) muscles innervating the antero-medial region of chest wall, the main cause of poststernotomy pain. Local anesthetic is injected deep to PMM and superficial to the ICM or between the internal thoracic muscle (IIM) and transversus thoracis muscle (TTM). So, essentially these blocks may be described as superficial or deep parasternal-intercostal plane blocks, based on where the target nerves are hunted. Even if they all provide analgesia to the antero-medial chest wall, the anatomical injection site represents the main peculiarity that differentiates these techniques. To date, a common nomenclature for antero-medial chest wall blocks or parasternal-intercostal plane blocks is not yet well defined and a standardized nomenclature is needed to ensure an adequate communication among anesthesiologists.

Same-Day versus Next-Day Dexamethasone Intracanalicular Insert Administration for Inflammation and Pain Control Following Cataract Surgery: A Retrospective Analysis.

BackgroundThe dexamethasone 0.4mg intracanalicular insert (Dextenza, Ocular Therapeutix, Bedford, MA) is approved for control of postoperative pain and inflammation following ocular surgery. This study compared pain and inflammation resolution following phacoemulsification in eyes that received the insert immediately postoperatively versus the next day.MethodsThis was a retrospective analysis of existing electronic health records. Consecutive qualifying eyes were included for analysis. All patients received perioperative antibiotics and nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs. Pain and inflammation were assessed at baseline and on postoperative days 1, 7, and 30. Pain was assessed by dichotomous patient report (present/absent). Anterior chamber cell (0, 0.5+, 1–4+) and flare (0–4+) were graded using the Standardization of Uveitis Nomenclature rubric.ResultsData from 17 eyes of 17 subjects were analyzed; 8 received the insert immediately postoperative and 9 in the office the next day. In both groups, trace cell was present in all eyes at day 1 and had resolved in all but 1 eye in each group at days 7 and 30. Flare was absent in all eyes at every time point, and transient pain was reported in a single same-day eye on day 7. No insert-related adverse events were observed, and no eyes required rescue corticosteroid therapy or insert removal.ConclusionSimilar rates of inflammation and pain resolution after phacoemulsification were observed with the dexamethasone intracanalicular insert placed either immediately postoperatively or the next day.

Immunomodulation and TNF-α inhibition for tubulointerstitial nephritis and uveitis syndrome: a case series

Tubulointerstitial nephritis and uveitis (TINU) syndrome combines acute inflammatory nephritis (AIN) and uveitis. Uveitis in TINU often requires systemic immunomodulatory therapy (IMT), including steroid-sparing agents. Although common for other noninfectious uveitides, the use of tumor necrosis factor-α inhibitors (TNFi) in TINU has seldom been described. This retrospective case series included patients <18years of age with TINU followed at our tertiary care pediatric hospital. Disease characteristics at time of diagnosis and subsequent ophthalmological and rheumatologic evaluations were extracted from the record. AIN was defined as the presence of abnormal renal function and urinalysis or renal biopsy findings consistent with TINU. Uveitis grading, site of inflammation, inactivity, and flare were defined according to Standardization of Uveitis Nomenclature. A total of 10 patients (median age, 12.3years; 6 females) were included. AIN preceded uveitis onset in 6 patients. Uveitis was bilateral at onset in 7 patients. Uveitis inactivity was achieved with systemic corticosteroids (CS) in 2 and with mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) in 3 patients. Because of persistent ocular inflammation, despite CS and IMT, 4 patients were treated with TNFi. All rapidly achieved uveitis quiescence and maintained prolonged inactivity under combined treatment with TNFi and MMF. Most patients in our study cohort required a steroid-sparing immunomodulator to achieve and maintain uveitis control. In the 50% of the cohort in whom conventional IMTs were inadequate, TNFi were able to maintain quiescence. TNF inhibition might be a useful treatment in IMT-refractory uveitis in TINU patients.

FloCan—A Revised Checklist for the Flora of the Canary Islands

The flora of the Canary Islands has been subject to botanical studies for more than 200 years. Several biodiversity databases are available for the archipelago. However, there are various drivers of change in real biodiversity and the knowledge about it constantly needs to be kept track of. Island floras are both: exposed to species loss and to species introductions, either through natural processes or by anthropogenic drivers. Additionally, the evolution of endemic plant species plays a substantial role. Endemic species are sensitive to population decline due to small population sizes and possible low competitiveness against incoming species. Additionally, there is continuous progress in systematics and taxonomy. Species names or their taxonomic attribution can be modified. Here, we check published plant lists for the Canary Islands and literature, and compile currently accepted taxa into an updated checklist. For this FloCan checklist, several sources were compiled, checked for completeness and quality, and their taxonomy was updated. We illustrate how far plant names are considered in regional or global databases. This work represents the current state of knowledge on Canary Island plant diversity, including introduced and recently described taxa. We provide a comprehensive and updated basis for biogeographical and macroecological studies. Particularly, the number of non-native species is being extended substantially. The adaptation to standard international nomenclature supports integration into large-scale studies.

Principles of resilient coding for plant ecophysiologists.

Plant ecophysiology is founded on a rich body of physical and chemical theory, but it is challenging to connect theory with data in unambiguous, analytically rigorous and reproducible ways. Custom scripts written in computer programming languages (coding) enable plant ecophysiologists to model plant processes and fit models to data reproducibly using advanced statistical techniques. Since many ecophysiologists lack formal programming education, we have yet to adopt a unified set of coding principles and standards that could make coding easier to learn, use and modify. We identify eight principles to help in plant ecophysiologists without much programming experience to write resilient code: (i) standardized nomenclature, (ii) consistency in style, (iii) increased modularity/extensibility for easier editing and understanding, (iv) code scalability for application to large data sets, (v) documented contingencies for code maintenance, (vi) documentation to facilitate user understanding; (vii) extensive tutorials and (viii) unit testing and benchmarking. We illustrate these principles using a new R package, {photosynthesis}, which provides a set of analytical and simulation tools for plant ecophysiology. Our goal with these principles is to advance scientific discovery in plant ecophysiology by making it easier to use code for simulation and data analysis, reproduce results and rapidly incorporate new biological understanding and analytical tools.

The Capitalinian: The First Geological Age of the Anthropocene

Assuming that the Anthropocene will soon be officially designated as the earth's current epoch, there remains the question of the geological age with which the Anthropocene begins. Adopting the standard nomenclature for the naming of geological ages, the term Capitalinian is proposed as the most appropriate name for the new geological age, conforming to the historical period that environmental historians see as commencing around 1950, in the wake of the Second World War, the rise of multinational corporations, and the unleashing of the process of decolonization and global development.

A Taxonomy for Patient-Ventilator Interactions and a Method to Read Ventilator Waveforms.

Mechanical ventilators display detailed waveforms which contain a wealth of clinically relevant information. Although much has been written about interpretation of waveforms and patient-ventilator interactions, variability remains on the nomenclature (multiple and ambiguous terms) and waveform interpretation. There are multiple reasons for this variability (legacy terms, language, multiple definitions). In addition, there is no widely accepted systematic method to read ventilator waveforms. We propose a standardized nomenclature and taxonomy along with a method to interpret mechanical ventilator displayed waveforms.

Tractography dissection variability: What happens when 42 groups dissect 14 white matter bundles on the same dataset?

White matter bundle segmentation using diffusion MRI fiber tractography has become the method of choice to identify white matter fiber pathways in vivo in human brains. However, like other analyses of complex data, there is considerable variability in segmentation protocols and techniques. This can result in different reconstructions of the same intended white matter pathways, which directly affects tractography results, quantification, and interpretation. In this study, we aim to evaluate and quantify the variability that arises from different protocols for bundle segmentation. Through an open call to users of fiber tractography, including anatomists, clinicians, and algorithm developers, 42 independent teams were given processed sets of human whole-brain streamlines and asked to segment 14 white matter fascicles on six subjects. In total, we received 57 different bundle segmentation protocols, which enabled detailed volume-based and streamline-based analyses of agreement and disagreement among protocols for each fiber pathway. Results show that even when given the exact same sets of underlying streamlines, the variability across protocols for bundle segmentation is greater than all other sources of variability in the virtual dissection process, including variability within protocols and variability across subjects. In order to foster the use of tractography bundle dissection in routine clinical settings, and as a fundamental analytical tool, future endeavors must aim to resolve and reduce this heterogeneity. Although external validation is needed to verify the anatomical accuracy of bundle dissections, reducing heterogeneity is a step towards reproducible research and may be achieved through the use of standard nomenclature and definitions of white matter bundles and well-chosen constraints and decisions in the dissection process.