•The paper presents a longitudinal analysis of the content and topics of the journal technological forecasting and social change.•There are clear bureaus or tranches of literature in the journal ...corresponding to its long-term mission of technological forecasting and of technology assessment.•The paper demonstrates the use of the non-negative matrix factorization technique on text data.•The paper demonstrates a hierarchical structure of topics is present in the technological forecasting and social change literature, and that this hierarchical structure can be identified through introspection of topic analysis matrices.
This article examines the knowledge structure of the journal Technology Forecasting and Social Change (TFSC) from its inception in 1969 until 2020. In this paper we argue that the structure of knowledge in the field of technological forecasting is more complex than a topic model – a bag of words – can in fact effectively reveal. Therefore we propose and demonstrate a hierarchical model that selectively combines topics at varying levels of generality. The resultant analysis, which is based on non-negative matrix factorization, reveals four distinct branches of technology forecasting work, composed of seven distinct topics. Each topic and branch are examined individually through a detailed examination of terms and keywords. Representative works and authors in each of the branches are also identified. The method enables the examination of the complex structure of knowledge in a scientific journal in a succinct representation. The resultant analysis can assist future researchers, enabling them to better position their work, and to better identify the key references across the various subject silos.
The field of expertise extraction utilizes published research enabling communities to highlight and identify the skills of researchers within specific scientific domains. This can be useful for ...evaluating research performance, and in the case of rising stars, in identifying top scientific talent. Previous research has harvested a range of publication indicators in an effort to identify expertise and talent. These include content indicators, citation metrics, and also the position of a researcher within a full collaboration network of scientists. The existing mechanism of expertise extraction utilizes all papers attributed to a scientific author, thereby potentially neglecting their specific or specialized expertise. Here we show that a tensor decomposition technique when applied to the problem addresses a number of useful problems. This includes better identification of individual expertise, as well as an integrated appraisal of an author’s role in an extended scientific network. The technique will afford new analyses of knowledge production which consider specialisation and diversity as core elements for further analysis. More generally the tensor decomposition techniques presented in this paper can be applied to a range of scientometric problems where multi-modal data is encountered.
Staphylococcus aureus is a leading cause of bacteremia in hospitalized patients. Whether or not S. aureus bacteremia (SAB) is associated with clonality, implicating potential nosocomial transmission, ...has not, however, been investigated. Herein, we examined the epidemiology of SAB using whole genome sequencing (WGS). 152 SAB isolates collected over the course of 2015 at a single large Minnesota medical center were studied. Staphylococcus protein A (spa) typing was performed by PCR/Sanger sequencing; multilocus sequence typing (MLST) and core genome MLST (cgMLST) were determined by WGS. Forty-eight isolates (32%) were methicillin-resistant S. aureus (MRSA). The isolates encompassed 66 spa types, clustered into 11 spa clonal complexes (CCs) and 10 singleton types. 88% of 48 MRSA isolates belonged to spa CC-002 or -008. Methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) isolates were more genotypically diverse, with 61% distributed across four spa CCs (CC-002, CC-012, CC-008 and CC-084). By MLST, there was 31 sequence types (STs), including 18 divided into 6 CCs and 13 singleton STs. Amongst MSSA isolates, the common MLST clones were CC5 (23%), CC30 (19%), CC8 (15%) and CC15 (11%). Common MRSA clones were CC5 (67%) and CC8 (25%); there were no MRSA isolates in CC45 or CC30. By cgMLST analysis, there were 9 allelic differences between two isolates, with the remaining 150 isolates differing from each other by over 40 alleles. The two isolates were retroactively epidemiologically linked by medical record review. Overall, cgMLST analysis resulted in higher resolution epidemiological typing than did multilocus sequence or spa typing.
Using a rapid bacterial lysis method, the Check MDR CT103 and CT103 XL microarrays demonstrated accuracies of 98.1% and 94.2%, respectively, for detection of known resistance genes in 108 ...multidrug-resistant Gram-negative bacilli. In 45 isolates, 49 previously unrecognized extended-spectrum β-lactamase or plasmid AmpC targets were detected and confirmed by conventional PCR.
Background. The value of rapid, panel-based molecular diagnostics for positive blood culture bottles (BCBs) has not been rigorously assessed. We performed a prospective randomized controlled trial ...evaluating outcomes associated with rapid multiplex PCR (rmPCR) detection of bacteria, fungi, and resistance genes directly from positive BCBs. Methods. A total of 617 patients with positive BCBs underwent stratified randomization into 3 arms: standard BCB processing (control, n = 207), rmPCR reported with templated comments (rmPCR, n = 198), or rmPCR reported with templated comments and real-time audit and feedback of antimicrobial orders by an antimicrobial stewardship team (rmPCR/AS, n = 212). The primary outcome was antimicrobial therapy duration. Secondary outcomes were time to antimicrobial de-escalation or escalation, length of stay (LOS), mortality, and cost. Results. Time from BCB Gram stain to microorganism identification was shorter in the intervention group (1.3 hours) vs control (22.3 hours) (P < .001). Compared to the control group, both intervention groups had decreased broad-spectrum piperacillin-tazobactam (control 56 hours, rmPCR 44 hours, rmPCR/AS 45 hours; P = .01) and increased narrow-spectrum β-lactam (control 42 hours, rmPCR 71 hours, rmPCR/AS 85 hours; P = .04) use, and less treatment of contaminants (control 25%, rmPCR 11%, rmPCR/AS 8%; P = .015). Time from Gram stain to appropriate antimicrobial de-escalation or escalation was shortest in the rmPCR/AS group (de-escalation: rmPCR/AS 21 hours, control 34 hours, rmPCR 38 hours, P < .001; escalation: rmPCR/AS 5 hours, control 24 hours, rmPCR 6 hours, P = .04). Groups did not differ in mortality, LOS, or cost. Conclusions. rmPCR reported with templated comments reduced treatment of contaminants and use of broad-spectrum antimicrobials. Addition of antimicrobial stewardship enhanced antimicrobial de-escalation. Clinical Trials Registration. NCT01898208.
Increasing antimicrobial resistance and medical device-related infections have led to a renewed interest in phage therapy as an alternative or adjunct to conventional antimicrobials. Expanded access ...and compassionate use cases have risen exponentially but have varied widely in approach, methodology, and clinical situations in which phage therapy might be considered. Large gaps in knowledge contribute to heterogeneity in approach and lack of consensus in many important clinical areas. The Antibacterial Resistance Leadership Group (ARLG) has convened a panel of experts in phage therapy, clinical microbiology, infectious diseases, and pharmacology, who worked with regulatory experts and a funding agency to identify questions based on a clinical framework and divided them into three themes: potential clinical situations in which phage therapy might be considered, laboratory testing, and pharmacokinetic considerations. Suggestions are provided as answers to a series of questions intended to inform clinicians considering experimental phage therapy for patients in their clinical practices.
The detection of pathogens associated with gastrointestinal disease may be important in certain patient populations, such as immunocompromised hosts, the critically ill, or individuals with prolonged ...disease that is refractory to treatment. In this study, we evaluated two commercially available multiplex panels (the FilmArray gastrointestinal GI panel BioFire Diagnostics, Salt Lake City, UT and the Luminex xTag gastrointestinal pathogen panel GPP Luminex Corporation, Toronto, Canada) using Cary-Blair stool samples (n = 500) submitted to our laboratory for routine GI testing (e.g., culture, antigen testing, microscopy, and individual real-time PCR). At the time of this study, the prototype (non-FDA-cleared) FilmArray GI panel targeted 23 pathogens (14 bacterial, 5 viral, and 4 parasitic), and testing of 200 μl of Cary-Blair stool was recommended. In contrast, the Luminex GPP assay was FDA cleared for the detection of 11 pathogens (7 bacterial, 2 viral, and 2 parasitic), but had the capacity to identify 4 additional pathogens using a research-use-only protocol. Importantly, the Luminex assay was FDA cleared for 100 μl raw stool; however, 100 μl Cary-Blair stool was tested by the Luminex assay in this study. Among 230 prospectively collected samples, routine testing was positive for one or more GI pathogens in 19 (8.3%) samples, compared to 76 (33.0%) by the FilmArray and 69 (30.3%) by the Luminex assay. Clostridium difficile (12.6 to 13.9% prevalence) and norovirus genogroup I (GI)/GII (5.7 to 13.9% prevalence) were two of the pathogens most commonly detected by both assays among prospective samples. Sapovirus was also commonly detected (5.7% positive rate) by the FilmArray assay. Among 270 additional previously characterized samples, both multiplex panels demonstrated high sensitivity (>90%) for the majority of targets, with the exception of several pathogens, notably Aeromonas sp. (23.8%) by FilmArray and Yersinia enterocolitica (48.1%) by the Luminex assay. Interestingly, the FilmArray and Luminex panels identified mixed infections in 21.1% and 13.0% of positive prospective samples, respectively, compared to only 8.3% by routine methods.
PDF
