PLOS ONE Alerts: New Articles

1. Correction: Prophylactic versus Therapeutic Fingolimod: Restoration of Presynaptic Defects in Mice Suffering from Experimental Autoimmune Encephalomyelitis

   by Tommaso Bonfiglio, Guendalina Olivero, Elisa Merega, Silvia Di Prisco, Cristina Padolecchia, Massimo Grilli, Marco Milanese, Lorenzo Di Cesare Mannelli, Carla Ghelardini, Giambattista Bonanno, Mario Marchi, Anna Pittaluga

2. Second victim syndrome in intensive care unit healthcare workers: A systematic review and meta-analysis on types, prevalence, risk factors, and recovery time

   by Kazuaki Naya, Gen Aikawa, Akira Ouchi, Mitsuki Ikeda, Ayako Fukushima, Shuhei Yamada, Megumi Kamogawa, Shun Yoshihara, Hideaki Sakuramoto

   Introduction

   Patient safety incidents, including medical errors and adverse events, frequently occur in intensive care units, leading to a significant psychological burden on healthcare workers. This burden results in second victim syndrome, which impacts the psychological and psychosomatic well-being of these workers. However, a systematic review focusing specifically on this condition among intensive care unit healthcare workers is lacking. Therefore, we aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the occurrence of second victim syndrome among intensive care unit healthcare workers, including the types, prevalence, risk factors, and recovery time associated with this condition.

   Methods

   We conducted a comprehensive search of the MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO, and Igaku Chuo Zasshi databases. The eligibility criteria encompassed retrospective, prospective, and cross-sectional studies and controlled trials, with no language restrictions. Data on the type, prevalence, risk factors, and recovery time of second victim syndrome were extracted and pooled. Prevalence estimates from the included studies were combined using a random-effects meta-analytic model.

   Results

   Of the 2,245 records retrieved, 16 potentially relevant studies were identified. Following full-text evaluation, five studies met the inclusion criteria and were included in the review. The findings revealed that 58% of intensive care unit healthcare workers experienced second victim syndrome. Frequent symptoms included guilt (12–68%), anxiety (38–63%), anger at self (25–58%), and lower self-confidence (7–58%). However, specific risk factors exclusive to intensive care unit healthcare workers were not identified in the review. Furthermore, approximately 20% of individuals took more than a year to recover or did not recover at all from the second victim syndrome.

   Conclusions

   Thus, this condition is prevalent among intensive care unit healthcare workers and may persist for extended periods, potentially exceeding a year. The risk factors for second victim syndrome in the intensive care unit setting are unclear and require further investigation.

3. China’s new urban clusters strategy for coordinated economic growth: Evidence from the sports industry

   by Lide Su, AGUDAMU, Yuqian Liu, Yang Zhang

   In 2014, the Chinese government unveiled the New Urbanization Plan and Document No. 46, which profoundly influenced the development trajectory of the regional economy and sports industry. Using the coupling coordination model, this study aimed to assess the development progress of the sports industry and urban clusters economy. This study sampled Greater Bay Area urban clusters (GBAUC) and Yangtze River Delta urban clusters (YRDUC). The statistics covered one year after the release of the policies to date. We developed a total of 15 macro indicators to evaluate the sports industry and urban cluster economy as two distinct, yet interdependent, economic systems. Using the entropy weight method, we determined the standardized values and weights for the two systems before calculating the coupling coordination degree (D). Between 2015 and 2021, the sampled sports industry and urban clusters economy exhibited coordinated high growth across all economic metrics, with multiple sports industry metrics exhibiting double-digit growth. In 2015, both showed extreme imbalance: D of GBAUC = 0.092, D of YRDUC = 0.091. In 2017, both improved to bare coordination: D of GBAUC = 0.600, D of YRDUC = 0.566. In 2019, both reached well coordination: D of GBAUC = 0.851, D of YRDUC = 0.814. By 2021, both achieved quality coordination: D of GBAUC = 0.990, D of YRDUC = 1. This study provides the first evidence from the sports industry that China’s new urbanization model and Document No. 46 are highly effective for synergistic regional economic growth.
4. Establishing an online resource to facilitate global collaboration and inclusion of underrepresented populations: Experience from the MJFF Global Genetic Parkinson’s Disease Project

   by Eva-Juliane Vollstedt, Harutyun Madoev, Anna Aasly, Azlina Ahmad-Annuar, Bashayer Al-Mubarak, Roy N. Alcalay, Victoria Alvarez, Ignacio Amorin, Grazia Annesi, David Arkadir, Soraya Bardien, Roger A. Barker, Melinda Barkhuizen, A. Nazli Basak, Vincenzo Bonifati, Agnita Boon, Laura Brighina, Kathrin Brockmann, Andrea Carmine Belin, Jonathan Carr, Jordi Clarimon, Mario Cornejo-Olivas, Leonor Correia Guedes, Jean-Christophe Corvol, David Crosiers, Joana Damásio, Parimal Das, Patricia de Carvalho Aguiar, Anna De Rosa, Jolanta Dorszewska, Sibel Ertan, Rosangela Ferese, Joaquim Ferreira, Emilia Gatto, Gençer Genç, Nir Giladi, Pilar Gómez-Garre, Hasmet Hanagasi, Nobutaka Hattori, Faycal Hentati, Dorota Hoffman-Zacharska, Sergey N. Illarioshkin, Joseph Jankovic, Silvia Jesús, Valtteri Kaasinen, Anneke Kievit, Peter Klivenyi, Vladimir Kostic, Dariusz Koziorowski, Andrea A. Kühn, Anthony E. Lang, Shen-Yang Lim, Chin-Hsien Lin, Katja Lohmann, Vladana Markovic, Mika Henrik Martikainen, George Mellick, Marcelo Merello, Lukasz Milanowski, Pablo Mir, Özgür Öztop-Çakmak, Márcia Mattos Gonçalves Pimentel, Teeratorn Pulkes, Andreas Puschmann, Ekaterina Rogaeva, Esther M. Sammler, Maria Skaalum Petersen, Matej Skorvanek, Mariana Spitz, Oksana Suchowersky, Ai Huey Tan, Pichet Termsarasab, Avner Thaler, Vitor Tumas, Enza Maria Valente, Bart van de Warrenburg, Caroline H. Williams-Gray, Ruey-Mei Wu, Baorong Zhang, Alexander Zimprich, Justin Solle, Shalini Padmanabhan, Christine Klein

   Parkinson’s disease (PD) is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative disorder, currently affecting ~7 million people worldwide. PD is clinically and genetically heterogeneous, with at least 10% of all cases explained by a monogenic cause or strong genetic risk factor. However, the vast majority of our present data on monogenic PD is based on the investigation of patients of European White ancestry, leaving a large knowledge gap on monogenic PD in underrepresented populations. Gene-targeted therapies are being developed at a fast pace and have started entering clinical trials. In light of these developments, building a global network of centers working on monogenic PD, fostering collaborative research, and establishing a clinical trial-ready cohort is imperative. Based on a systematic review of the English literature on monogenic PD and a successful team science approach, we have built up a network of 59 sites worldwide and have collected information on the availability of data, biomaterials, and facilities. To enable access to this resource and to foster collaboration across centers, as well as between academia and industry, we have developed an interactive map and online tool allowing for a quick overview of available resources, along with an option to filter for specific items of interest. This initiative is currently being merged with the Global Parkinson’s Genetics Program (GP2), which will attract additional centers with a focus on underrepresented sites. This growing resource and tool will facilitate collaborative research and impact the development and testing of new therapies for monogenic and potentially for idiopathic PD patients.
5. Linear epitope mapping in the E and NS1 proteins of dengue and Zika viruses: Prospection of peptides for vaccines and diagnostics

   by Victor Hugo Aquino, Marcilio J. Fumagalli, Angélica Silva, Bento Vidal de Moura Negrini, Alejandra Rojas, Yvalena Guillen, Cynthia Bernal, Luiz Tadeu Moraes Figueiredo

   The arrival of the Zika virus (ZIKV) in dengue virus (DENV)-endemic areas has posed challenges for both differential diagnosis and vaccine development. Peptides have shown promise in addressing these issues. The aim of this study was to identify the linear epitope profile recognized by serum samples from dengue and Zika patients in the E and NS1 proteins of DENV and ZIKV. This cross-sectional study included individuals of all ages with laboratory-confirmed DENV and ZIKV infections, who were selected through convenience sampling. The serum samples from dengue and Zika patients detected epitopes evenly distributed across the viral proteins in a peptide microarray platform. However, several epitopes were located within “epitope hotspots”, characterized by clusters of peptides recognized in more than 30% of the sub-arrays analyzed using individual or pooled serum samples. The serum samples from dengue and Zika patients showed a high level of cross-reactivity with peptides in the DENV and ZIKV proteins. Analysis using an additional peptide microarray platform, which contained peptides selected based on the results of the initial screening, revealed that two DENV and one ZIKV peptide, highly specific to their related viruses, were located within the epitope hotspots; however, they presented low detection rates (32.5, 35.0, and 28.6%, respectively). In addition, two DENV peptides detected at similarly high rates by both dengue and Zika patients were also found within the epitope hotspots. These hotspots contain several immunodominant epitopes that are recognized by a larger number of individuals when compared to 15-amino acid (aa) sequence peptides. Thus, epitope hotspots may have greater potential to serve as antigens in diagnostic tests and vaccine development than peptides composed of only 15 amino acids.