bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The impact of cumulative stress on asthma outcomes among urban adolescents
Authors: Miadich Samantha A. , Everhart Robin S. , Greenlee Jessica , Winter Marcia A.
Published: March 2020

Introduction

Many families living in low‐income, urban areas experience a number of stressors (e.g., poverty, neighborhood stress, family functioning) that place adolescents at risk for worse asthma outcomes. Adolescents may face additional challenges (e.g., peer pressure, school stress) that add to their overall stress and influence their disease care and health outcomes. The current study examined the impact of a cumulative risk model of stressors including poverty, neighborhood stress, school stress, peer pressure, and caregiver‐adolescent conflict on asthma outcomes (e.g., emergency department [ED] visits, asthma control, quality of life [QOL]) among urban adolescents (13–17 years).

Methods

Data were collected from 61 urban families of adolescents with asthma (54.1% female; 93.4% African American) in the United States. Caregivers and adolescents completed questionnaires assessing stressors and asthma outcomes separately during a research session.

Results

Cumulative risk was significantly associated with worse adolescent QOL and asthma control, and more ED visits. The cumulative risk index was also a more robust predictor of QOL and asthma control than any one individual predictor. Poverty, neighborhood stress, and school stress emerged as individual predictors of ED visits. Further, adolescents with well‐controlled asthma had significantly lower neighborhood and school‐related stress scores.

Conclusions

Findings suggest that beyond the risk conferred by individual risk factors, an accumulation of stress can have an especially negative impact on asthma outcomes for urban adolescents. Future intervention work aimed at improving asthma outcomes should consider incorporating strategies for minimizing overlapping sources of stress in adolescents’ daily lives.
Risk factors for nonclosure of defunctioning stoma and stoma‐related complications among low rectal cancer patients after sphincter‐preserving surgery
Authors: Zhang Lin , Zheng Wei , Cui Jian , Wu Yun‐Long , Xu Tian‐Lei , Zhang Hai‐Zeng
Published: March 2020

Background

Defunctioning stoma is widely used to reduce anastomotic complications in rectal cancer surgery. However, the complications of stoma and stoma reversal surgery should not be underestimated. Furthermore, in some patients, stoma reversal failed. Here, we investigated the complications of defunctioning stoma surgery and subsequent reversal surgery and identify risk factors associated with the failure of getting stoma reversed.

Methods

In total, 154 patients who simultaneously underwent low anterior resection and defunctioning stoma were reviewed. Patients were divided into two groups according to whether their stoma got reversed or not. The reasons that patients received defunctioning stoma and experienced stoma‐related complications and the risk factors for failing to get stoma reversed were analysed.

Results

The mean follow‐up time was 47.54 (range 4.0–164.0) months. During follow‐up, 19.5% of the patients suffered stoma‐related long‐term complications. Only 79 (51.3%) patients had their stomas reversed. The morbidity of complications after reversal surgery was 45.6%, and these mainly consisted of incision‐related complications. Multivariate analyses showed that pre‐treatment comorbidity (HR = 3.17, 95% CI 1.27–7.96, P = 0.014), postoperative TNM stage (HR = 2.55, 95% CI 1.05–6.18, P = 0.038), neoadjuvant therapy (HR = 2.75, 95% CI 1.07–7.05, P = 0.036), anastomosis‐related complications (HR = 4.52, 95% CI 1.81–11.29, P = 0.001), and disease recurrence (HR = 24.83, 95% CI 2.90–213.06, P = 0.003) were significant independent risk factors for a defunctioning stoma to be permanent.

Conclusions

Defunctioning stoma is an effective method to reduce symptomatic anastomotic leakage, but the stoma itself and its reversal procedure are associated with high morbidity of complications, and many defunctioning stomas eventually become permanent. Therefore, surgeons should carefully assess preoperatively and perform defunctioning stomas in very high risk patients. In addition, doctors should perform stoma reversal surgery more actively to prevent temporary stomas from becoming permanent.
Self-nudging and the citizen choice architect
Authors: REIJULA SAMULI , HERTWIG RALPH
Published: March 2020

This article argues that nudges can often be turned into self-nudges: empowering interventions that enable people to design and structure their own decision environments – that is, to act as citizen choice architects. Self-nudging applies insights from behavioral science in a way that is practicable and cost-effective, but that sidesteps concerns about paternalism or manipulation. It has the potential to expand the scope of application of behavioral insights from the public to the personal sphere (e.g., homes, offices, families). It is a tool for reducing failures of self-control and enhancing personal autonomy; specifically, self-nudging can mean designing one's proximate choice architecture to alleviate the effects of self-control problems, engaging in education to understand the nature and causes of self-control problems and employing simple educational nudges to improve goal attainment in various domains. It can even mean self-paternalistic interventions such as winnowing down one's choice set by, for instance, removing options. Policy-makers could promote self-nudging by sharing knowledge about nudges and how they work. The ultimate goal of the self-nudging approach is to enable citizen choice architects’ efficient self-governance, where reasonable, and the self-determined arbitration of conflicts between their mutually exclusive goals and preferences.
Agent-Relative Reasons as Second-Order Value Responses
Authors: Löschke Jörg
Published: March 2020

Agent-relative reasons are an important feature of any nonconsequentialist moral theory. Many authors think that they cannot be accommodated within a value-first theory that understands all value as agent-neutral. In this paper, I offer a novel explanation of agent-relative reasons that accommodates them fully within an agent-neutral value-first view. I argue that agent-relative reasons are to be understood in terms of second-order value responses: when an agent acts on an agent-relative reason, she responds appropriately to the agent-neutral value of her own appropriate response to some agent-neutral value. This view helps reconcile important elements of deontology and consequentialism.
FRIEZE PATTERNS WITH COEFFICIENTS
Authors: CUNTZ MICHAEL , HOLM THORSTEN , JØRGENSEN PETER
Published: March 2020

Frieze patterns, as introduced by Coxeter in the 1970s, are closely related to cluster algebras without coefficients. A suitable generalization of frieze patterns, linked to cluster algebras with coefficients, has only briefly appeared in an unpublished manuscript by Propp. In this paper, we study these frieze patterns with coefficients systematically and prove various fundamental results, generalizing classic results for frieze patterns. As a consequence, we see how frieze patterns with coefficients can be obtained from classic frieze patterns by cutting out subpolygons from the triangulated polygons associated with classic Conway–Coxeter frieze patterns. We address the question of which frieze patterns with coefficients can be obtained in this way and solve this problem completely for triangles. Finally, we prove a finiteness result for frieze patterns with coefficients by showing that for a given boundary sequence there are only finitely many (nonzero) frieze patterns with coefficients with entries in a subset of the complex numbers without an accumulation point.
An integrative influence of saline water irrigation and fertilization on the structure of soil bacterial communities
Authors: Chen L. J. , Li C. S. , Feng Q. , Wei Y. P. , Zhao Y. , Zhu M. , Deo R. C.
Published: March 2020

Although numerous studies have investigated the individual effects of salinity, irrigation and fertilization on soil microbial communities, relatively less attention has been paid to their combined influences, especially using molecular techniques. Based on the field of orthogonal designed test and deoxyribonucleic acid sequencing technology, the effects of saline water irrigation amount, salinity level of irrigation water and nitrogen (N) fertilizer rate on soil bacterial community structure were investigated. The results showed that the irrigation amount was the most dominant factor in determining the bacterial richness and diversity, followed by the irrigation water salinity and N fertilizer rate. The values of Chao1 estimator, abundance-based coverage estimator and Shannon indices decreased with an increase in irrigation amount while increased and then decreased with an increase in irrigation water salinity and N fertilizer rate. The highest soil bacterial richness and diversity were obtained under the least irrigation amount (25 mm), medium irrigation water salinity (4.75 dS/m) and medium N fertilizer rate (350 kg/ha). However, different bacterial phyla were found to respond distinctively to these three factors: irrigation amount significantly affected the relative abundances of Proteobacteria and Chloroflexi; irrigation water salinity mostly affected the members of Actinobacteria, Gemmatimonadetes and Acidobacteria; and N fertilizer rate mainly influenced the Bacteroidetes' abundance. The results presented here revealed that the assessment of soil microbial processes under combined irrigation and fertilization treatments needed to be more careful as more variable consequences would be established by comparing with the influences based on an individual factor, such as irrigation amount or N fertilizer rate.
Morphological borrowing from English to Norwegian: The enigmatic non-possessive -s
Authors: Andersen Gisle , Graedler Anne-Line
Published: March 2020

With increased lexical influence and general English competence among Norwegian language users, the association of the suffix -swith the category of plural appears to be expanding. This article explores the occurrence and productivity of non-possessive -sin contemporary Norwegian, a feature which incorporates several phenomena. Our aim is to chart the lexico-grammatical categories instantiated by this morpho-phonological segment in light of the previous literature on Anglicisms in Norwegian and on the basis of empirical evidence from present-day language use. The article presents a corpus-based survey of categories where non-possessive -soccurs (i) as the plural marker of Anglicisms, e.g.drinks; (ii) in colloquialisms such asdritings‘dead drunk’ – a combination of a domestic noun and English (or Norwegian) -ing+ non-possessive -sreanalysed into an adjectival stem; (iii) in nouns likeen caps‘a (baseball) cap’, where it has lost its plurality marking function and become part of the lexical stem; and (iv) sporadically as a plurality marker of domestic or non-English words, e.g.temas. The variability in presence vs. absence of -sis further explored in four case studies dedicated to different stages of borrowing.
Competition, production efficiency and yield stability of finger millet and legume additive design intercropping
Authors: Bitew Yayeh , Alemayehu Getachew , Adgo Enyew , Assefa Alemayehu
Published: March 2020

Currently, the unchecked increase in human population results in increased demand for agricultural lands. Growing two or more crops simultaneously is one of the mechanisms to reduce this problem. A field experiment was conducted in northwestern Ethiopia during 2017 and 2018 cropping seasons. Two legume crops [haricot bean (Phaseolus vulgaris) and lupine (Lupinus angustifolius)] were intercropped with finger millet (Eleusine coracana) using two intercrop planting methods (row and mixture) and three finger millet-legume planting ratios (100.0%:75.0%, 100.0%:50.0% and 100.0%:25.0% of the respective recommended seed rate of sole crops). Two sole crop finger millets (planted in rows and broadcast) and two sole legume crops (haricot bean and lupine) were included as checks. The experiment comprised a randomized complete block design with three replications. Results indicated intercropped finger millet and total land output yield from finger millet-haricot bean row intercropping at a 100:50 planting ratio and sole finger millet planted in a row improved better yield stability. Finger millet-haricot bean row intercropping at a 100:50 planting ratio also resulted in higher grain yields of the component crops, area time equivalent ratio (1.34), relative production (38.1%) and economic (314.0%) efficiencies with a relatively lower component crop competitive ratio. Thus, this cropping system offered increased productivity and economic return and is a viable option for increasing household food security.
A Library of Elastic Tensors for Lowermost Mantle Seismic Anisotropy Studies and Comparison With Seismic Observations
Authors: Creasy Neala , Miyagi Lowell , Long Maureen D.
Published: March 2020

The exact mechanism for lowermost mantle seismic anisotropy remains unknown; however, work on the elasticity and deformation of lower mantle materials has constrained a few possible options. The most probable minerals producing anisotropy are bridgmanite, postperovskite, and ferropericlase. While there is an extensive literature on the elasticity and deformation of lower mantle minerals, we create a comprehensive uniform database of D″ anisotropy scenarios. In order to characterize a range of the possible fabrics for D″ anisotropy, we carry out VPSC (visco‐plastic self‐consistent modeling) to predict textures for each proposed mineral and dominant slip system. We numerically deform each mineral under different geometrical scenarios: simple shear, pure shear, and extension. By using published single crystal elasticity values, we produce a library of 336 candidate elastic tensors. We used the elastic tensor library to revisit previously published D″‐associated seismic anisotropy studies for crossing raypaths (Siberia, North America, the Afar region of Africa, and Australia). While we cannot identify a single, unique mechanism that explains all of these data sets, we find that postperovskite (dominant slip on [100](010) or [100](001)) and periclase (dominant slip on {100}<011>) provide the best fit to the observations and suggest reasonable shear directions for each region of interest. Bridgmanite generally provides a poor fit to the observations; however, we cannot completely rule out any particular model. As the number of anisotropy observations for D″ increases, this elastic tensor library will be helpful for observational seismologists in identifying possible mechanisms of anisotropy and shear directions at in the lowermost mantle.
Preterm white matter injury: ultrasound diagnosis and classification
Authors:   eurUS.brain group, Agut Thais , Alarcon Ana , Cabañas Fernando , Bartocci Marco , Martinez-Biarge Miriam , Horsch Sandra
Published: March 2020

White matter injury (WMI) is the most frequent form of preterm brain injury. Cranial ultrasound (CUS) remains the preferred modality for initial and sequential neuroimaging in preterm infants, and is reliable for the diagnosis of cystic periventricular leukomalacia. Although magnetic resonance imaging is superior to CUS in detecting the diffuse and more subtle forms of WMI that prevail in very premature infants surviving nowadays, recent improvement in the quality of neonatal CUS imaging has broadened the spectrum of preterm white matter abnormalities that can be detected with this technique. We propose a structured CUS assessment of WMI of prematurity that seeks to account for both cystic and non-cystic changes, as well as signs of white matter loss and impaired brain growth and maturation, at or near term equivalent age. This novel assessment system aims to improve disease description in both routine clinical practice and clinical research. Whether this systematic assessment will improve prediction of outcome in preterm infants with WMI still needs to be evaluated in prospective studies.
Deviations in early hippocampus development contribute to visual hallucinations in schizophrenia
Authors: Cachia Arnaud , Cury Claire , Brunelin Jérôme , Plaze Marion , Delmaire Christine , Oppenheim Catherine , Medjkane François , Thomas Pierre , Jardri Renaud
Published: March 2020

Auditory hallucinations (AHs) are certainly the most emblematic experiences in schizophrenia, but visual hallucinations (VHs) are also commonly observed in this developmental psychiatric disorder. Notably, several studies have suggested a possible relationship between the clinical variability in hallucinations′ phenomenology and differences in brain development/maturation. In schizophrenia, impairments of the hippocampus, a medial temporal structure involved in mnesic and neuroplastic processes, have been repeatedly associated with hallucinations, particularly in the visual modality. However, the possible neurodevelopmental origin of hippocampal impairments in VHs has never been directly investigated. A classic marker of early atypical hippocampal development is incomplete hippocampal inversion (IHI). In this study, we compared IHI patterns in healthy volunteers, and two subgroups of carefully selected schizophrenia patients experiencing frequent hallucinations: (a) those with pure AHs and (b) those with audio–visual hallucinations (A+VH). We found that VHs were associated with a specific IHI pattern. Schizophrenia patients with A+VH exhibited flatter left hippocampi than patients with pure AHs or healthy controls. This result first confirms that the greater clinical impairment observed in A+VH patients may relate to an increased neurodevelopmental weight in this subpopulation. More importantly, these findings bring crucial hints to better specify the sensitivity period of A+VH-related IHI during early brain development.
Dimensionality reduction reveals fine-scale structure in the Japanese population with consequences for polygenic risk prediction
Authors: Sakaue Saori , Hirata Jun , Kanai Masahiro , Suzuki Ken , Akiyama Masato , Lai Too Chun , Arayssi Thurayya , Hammoudeh Mohammed , Al Emadi Samar , Masri Basel K. , Halabi Hussein , Badsha Humeira , Uthman Imad W. , Saxena Richa , Padyukov Leonid , Hirata Makoto , Matsuda Koichi , Murakami Yoshinori , Kamatani Yoichiro , Okada Yukinori
Published: March 2020

The diversity in our genome is crucial to understanding the demographic history of worldwide populations. However, we have yet to know whether subtle genetic differences within a population can be disentangled, or whether they have an impact on complex traits. Here we apply dimensionality reduction methods (PCA,t-SNE, PCA-t-SNE, UMAP, and PCA-UMAP) to biobank-derived genomic data of a Japanese population (n = 169,719). Dimensionality reduction reveals fine-scale population structure, conspicuously differentiating adjacent insular subpopulations. We further enluciate the demographic landscape of these Japanese subpopulations using population genetics analyses. Finally, we perform phenome-wide polygenic risk score (PRS) analyses on 67 complex traits. Differences in PRS between the deconvoluted subpopulations are not always concordant with those in the observed phenotypes, suggesting that the PRS differences might reflect biases from the uncorrected structure, in a trait-dependent manner. This study suggests that such an uncorrected structure can be a potential pitfall in the clinical application of PRS.
The secreted protease Adamts18 links hormone action to activation of the mammary stem cell niche
Authors: Ataca Dalya , Aouad Patrick , Constantin Céline , Laszlo Csaba , Beleut Manfred , Shamseddin Marie , Rajaram Renuga Devi , Jeitziner Rachel , Mead Timothy J. , Caikovski Marian , Bucher Philipp , Ambrosini Giovanna , Apte Suneel S. , Brisken Cathrin
Published: March 2020

Estrogens and progesterone control breast development and carcinogenesis via their cognate receptors expressed in a subset of luminal cells in the mammary epithelium. How they control the extracellular matrix, important to breast physiology and tumorigenesis, remains unclear. Here we report that both hormones induce the secreted protease Adamts18 in myoepithelial cells by controlling Wnt4 expression with consequent paracrine canonical Wnt signaling activation. Adamts18 is required for stem cell activation, has multiple binding partners in the basement membrane and interacts genetically with the basal membrane-specific proteoglycan, Col18a1, pointing to the basement membrane as part of the stem cell niche. In vitro, ADAMTS18 cleaves fibronectin; in vivo, Adamts18 deletion causes increased collagen deposition during puberty, which results in impaired Hippo signaling and reduced Fgfr2 expression both of which control stem cell function. Thus, Adamts18 links luminal hormone receptor signaling to basement membrane remodeling and stem cell activation.
Runx-mediated regulation of CCL5 via antagonizing two enhancers influences immune cell function and anti-tumor immunity
Authors: Seo Wooseok , Shimizu Kanako , Kojo Satoshi , Okeke Arinze , Kohwi-Shigematsu Terumi , Fujii Shin-ichiro , Taniuchi Ichiro
Published: March 2020

CCL5 is a unique chemokine with distinct stage and cell-type specificities for regulating inflammation, but how these specificities are achieved and how CCL5 modulates immune responses is not well understood. Here we identify two stage-specific enhancers: the proximal enhancer mediates the constitutive CCL5 expression during the steady state, while the distal enhancer located 1.35 Mb from the promoter induces CCL5 expression in activated cells. Both enhancers are antagonized by RUNX/CBFβ complexes, and SATB1 further mediates the long-distance interaction of the distal enhancer with the promoter. Deletion of the proximal enhancer decreases CCL5 expression and augments the cytotoxic activity of tissue-resident T and NK cells, which coincides with reduced melanoma metastasis in mouse models. By contrast, increased CCL5 expression resulting from RUNX3 mutation is associated with more tumor metastasis in the lung. Collectively, our results suggest that RUNX3-mediated CCL5 repression is critical for modulating anti-tumor immunity.
Ionic amplifying circuits inspired by electronics and biology
Authors: Lucas Rachel A. , Lin Chih-Yuan , Baker Lane A. , Siwy Zuzanna S.
Published: March 2020

Integrated circuits are present in all electronic devices, and enable signal amplification, modulation, and relay. Nature uses another type of circuits composed of channels in a cell membrane, which regulate and amplify transport of ions, not electrons and holes as is done in electronic systems. Here we show an abiotic ionic circuit that is inspired by concepts from electronics and biology. The circuit amplifies small ionic signals into ionic outputs, and its operation mimics the electronic Darlington amplifier composed of transistors. The individual transistors are pores equipped with three terminals including a gate that is able to enrich or deplete ions in the pore. The circuits we report function at gate voltages < 1 V, respond to sub-nA gate currents, and offer ion current amplification with a gain up to ~300. Ionic amplifiers are a logical step toward improving chemical and biochemical sensing, separations and amplification, among others.
High-quality photonic entanglement out of a stand-alone silicon chip
Authors: Oser Dorian , Tanzilli Sébastien , Mazeas Florent , Alonso-Ramos Carlos , Le Roux Xavier , Sauder Grégory , Hua Xin , Alibart Oliver , Vivien Laurent , Cassan Éric , Labonté Laurent
Published: March 2020

The fruitful association of quantum and integrated photonics holds the promise to produce, manipulate, and detect quantum states of light using compact and scalable systems. Integrating all the building blocks necessary to produce high-quality photonic entanglement in the telecom-wavelength range out of a single chip remains a major challenge, mainly due to the limited performance of on-chip light rejection filters. We report a stand-alone, telecom-compliant device that integrates, on a single substrate, a nonlinear photon-pair generator and a passive pump-rejection filter. Using standard channel-grid fiber demultiplexers, we demonstrate the first entanglement qualification of such an integrated circuit, showing the highest raw quantum interference visibility for time-energy entangled photons over two telecom-wavelength bands. Genuinely pure, maximally entangled states can therefore be generated thanks to the high-level of noise suppression obtained with the pump filter. These results will certainly further promote the development of more advanced and scalable photonic-integrated quantum systems compliant with telecommunication standards.
A global database of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition
Authors: van den Hoogen Johan , Geisen Stefan , Wall Diana H. , Wardle David A. , Traunspurger Walter , de Goede Ron G. M. , Adams Byron J. , Ahmad Wasim , Ferris Howard , Bardgett Richard D. , Bonkowski Michael , Campos-Herrera Raquel , Cares Juvenil E. , Caruso Tancredi , de Brito Caixeta Larissa , Chen Xiaoyun , Costa Sofia R. , Creamer Rachel , da Cunha e Castro José Mauro , Dam Marie , Djigal Djibril , Escuer Miguel , Griffiths Bryan S. , Gutiérrez Carmen , Hohberg Karin , Kalinkina Daria , Kardol Paul , Kergunteuil Alan , Korthals Gerard , Krashevska Valentyna , Kudrin Alexey A. , Li Qi , Liang Wenju , Magilton Matthew , Marais Mariette , Martín José Antonio Rodríguez , Matveeva Elizaveta , Mayad El Hassan , Mzough E. , Mulder Christian , Mullin Peter , Neilson Roy , Nguyen T. A. Duong , Nielsen Uffe N. , Okada Hiroaki , Rius Juan Emilio Palomares , Pan Kaiwen , Peneva Vlada , Pellissier Loïc , da Silva Julio Carlos Pereira , Pitteloud Camille , Powers Thomas O. , Powers Kirsten , Quist Casper W. , Rasmann Sergio , Moreno Sara Sánchez , Scheu Stefan , Setälä Heikki , Sushchuk Anna , Tiunov Alexei V. , Trap Jean , Vestergård Mette , Villenave Cecile , Waeyenberge Lieven , Wilschut Rutger A. , Wright Daniel G. , Keith Aidan M. , Yang Jiue-in , Schmidt Olaf , Bouharroud R. , Ferji Z. , van der Putten Wim H. , Routh Devin , Crowther Thomas W.
Published: March 2020

As the most abundant animals on earth, nematodes are a dominant component of the soil community. They play critical roles in regulating biogeochemical cycles and vegetation dynamics within and across landscapes and are an indicator of soil biological activity. Here, we present a comprehensive global dataset of soil nematode abundance and functional group composition. This dataset includes 6,825 georeferenced soil samples from all continents and biomes. For geospatial mapping purposes these samples are aggregated into 1,933 unique 1-km pixels, each of which is linked to 73 global environmental covariate data layers. Altogether, this dataset can help to gain insight into the spatial distribution patterns of soil nematode abundance and community composition, and the environmental drivers shaping these patterns.
Generation of a murine SWATH-MS spectral library to quantify more than 11,000 proteins
Authors: Zhong Chuan-Qi , Wu Jianfeng , Qiu Xingfeng , Chen Xi , Xie Changchuan , Han Jiahuai
Published: March 2020

Targeted SWATH-MS data analysis is critically dependent on the spectral library. Comprehensive spectral libraries of human or several other organisms have been published, but the extensive spectral library for mouse, a widely used model organism is not available. Here, we present a large murine spectral library covering more than 11,000 proteins and 240,000 proteotypic peptides, which included proteins derived from 9 murine tissue samples and one murine L929 cell line. This resource supports the quantification of 67% of all murine proteins annotated by UniProtKB/Swiss-Prot. Furthermore, we applied the spectral library to SWATH-MS data from murine tissue samples. Data are available via SWATHAtlas (PASS01441).
Comparative genomic analysis and mosquito larvicidal activity of four Bacillus thuringiensis serovar israelensis strains
Authors: Alves Giselly B. , Melo Fernando L. , Oliveira Eugenio E. , Haddi Khalid , Costa Lara T. M. , Dias Marcelo L. , Campos Fabrício S. , Pereira Eliseu J. G. , Corrêa Roberto F. T. , Ascêncio Sergio D. , Santos Gil R. , Smagghe Guy , Ribeiro Bergmann M. , Aguiar Raimundo W. S.
Published: March 2020

Bacillus thuringiensis serovar israelensis (Bti) is used to control insect vectors of human and animal diseases. In the present study, the toxicity of four strains of Bti, named T0124, T0131, T0137, and T0139, toward Aedes aegypti and Culex quinquefasciatus larvae was analyzed. The T0131 strain showed the highest larvicidal activity against A. aegypti (LC50 = 0.015 µg/ml) and C. quinquefasciatus larvae (LC50 = 0.035 µg/ml) when compared to the other strains. Furthermore, the genomic sequences of the four strains were obtained and compared. These Bti strains had chromosomes sizes of approximately 5.4 Mb with GC contents of ~35% and 5472–5477 putative coding regions. Three small plasmids (5.4, 6.8, and 7.6 kb) and three large plasmids (127, 235, and 359 kb) were found in the extrachromosomal content of all four strains. The SNP-based phylogeny revealed close relationship among isolates from this study and other Bti isolates, and SNPs analysis of the plasmids 127 kb did not reveal any mutations in δ-endotoxins genes. This newly acquired sequence data for these Bti strains may be useful in the search for novel insecticidal toxins to improve existing ones or develop new strategies for the biological control of important insect vectors of human and animal diseases.
Acute Restraint Stress Evokes Anxiety-Like Behavior Mediated by Telencephalic Inactivation and GabAergic Dysfunction in Zebrafish Brains
Authors: Assad Nadyme , Luz Waldo Lucas , Santos-Silva Mateus , Carvalho Tayana , Moraes Suellen , Picanço-Diniz Domingos Luiz Wanderley , Bahia Carlomagno Pacheco , Oliveira Batista Evander de Jesus , da Conceição Passos Adelaide , Oliveira Karen Renata Herculano Matos , Herculano Anderson Manoel
Published: March 2020

Acute stress is an important factor in the development of anxiety disorders. Zebrafish are an organism model widely used by studies that aim to describe the events in the brain that control stress-elicited anxiety. The goal of the current study was to evaluate the pattern of cell activation in the telencephalon of adult zebrafish and the role of the GABAergic system on the modulation of anxiety-like behavior evoked by acute restraint stress. Zebrafish that underwent acute restraint stress presented decreased expression of the c-fos protein in their telencephalon as well as a significant decrease in GABA release. The data also supports that decreased GABA levels in zebrafish brains have diminished the activation of GABAA receptors eliciting anxiety-like behavior. Taken together these findings have helped clarify a neurochemical pathway controlling anxiety-like behavior evoked by acute stress in zebrafish while also opening the possibility of new perspective opportunities to use zebrafish as an animal model to test anxyolitic drugs that target the GABAergic system.
A minimalistic model of bias, polarization and misinformation in social networks
Authors: Sikder Orowa , Smith Robert E. , Vivo Pierpaolo , Livan Giacomo
Published: March 2020

Online social networks provide users with unprecedented opportunities to engage with diverse opinions. At the same time, they enable confirmation bias on large scales by empowering individuals to self-select narratives they want to be exposed to. A precise understanding of such tradeoffs is still largely missing. We introduce a social learning model where most participants in a network update their beliefs unbiasedly based on new information, while a minority of participants reject information that is incongruent with their preexisting beliefs. This simple mechanism generates permanent opinion polarization and cascade dynamics, and accounts for the aforementioned tradeoff between confirmation bias and social connectivity through analytic results. We investigate the model’s predictions empirically using US county-level data on the impact of Internet access on the formation of beliefs about global warming. We conclude by discussing policy implications of our model, highlighting the downsides of debunking and suggesting alternative strategies to contrast misinformation.
Fully Untethered Battery-free Biomonitoring Electronic Tattoo with Wireless Energy Harvesting
Authors: Alberto José , Leal Cristina , Fernandes Cláudio , Lopes Pedro A. , Paisana Hugo , de Almeida Aníbal T. , Tavakoli Mahmoud
Published: March 2020

Bioelectronics stickers that interface the human epidermis and collect electrophysiological data will constitute important tools in the future of healthcare. Rapid progress is enabled by novel fabrication methods for adhesive electronics patches that are soft, stretchable and conform to the human skin. Yet, the ultimate functionality of such systems still depends on rigid components such as silicon chips and the largest rigid component on these systems is usually the battery. In this work, we demonstrate a quickly deployable, untethered, battery-free, ultrathin (~5 μm) passive “electronic tattoo” that interfaces with the human skin for acquisition and transmission of physiological data. We show that the ultrathin film adapts well with the human skin, and allows an excellent signal to noise ratio, better than the gold-standard Ag/AgCl electrodes. To supply the required energy, we rely on a wireless power transfer (WPT) system, using a printed stretchable Ag-In-Ga coil, as well as printed biopotential acquisition electrodes. The tag is interfaced with data acquisition and communication electronics. This constitutes a “data-by-request” system. By approaching the scanning device to the applied tattoo, the patient’s electrophysiological data is read and stored to the caregiver device. The WPT device can provide more than 300 mW of measured power if it is transferred over the skin or 100 mW if it is implanted under the skin. As a case study, we transferred this temporary tattoo to the human skin and interfaced it with an electrocardiogram (ECG) device, which could send the volunteer’s heartbeat rate in real-time via Bluetooth.
Genetic Spectrum of EYS-associated Retinal Disease in a Large Japanese Cohort: Identification of Disease-associated Variants with Relatively High Allele Frequency
Authors: Yang Lizhu , Fujinami Kaoru , Ueno Shinji , Kuniyoshi Kazuki , Hayashi Takaaki , Kondo Mineo , Mizota Atsushi , Naoi Nobuhisa , Shinoda Kei , Kameya Shuhei , Fujinami-Yokokawa Yu , Liu Xiao , Arno Gavin , Pontikos Nikolas , Kominami Taro , Terasaki Hiroko , Sakuramoto Hiroyuki , Katagiri Satoshi , Mizobuchi Kei , Nakamura Natsuko , Mawatari Go , Kurihara Toshihide , Tsubota Kazuo , Miyake Yozo , Yoshitake Kazutoshi , Iwata Takeshi , Tsunoda Kazushige ,   JEGC study group, Nishimura Toshihide , Hayashizaki Yoshihide , Shimozawa Nobuhiro , Horiguchi Masayuki , Yamamoto Shuichi , Kuze Manami , Machida Shigeki , Shimada Yoshiaki , Nakamura Makoto , Fujikado Takashi , Hotta Yoshihiro , Takahashi Masayo , Mochizuki Kiyofumi , Murakami Akira , Kondo Hiroyuki , Ishida Susumu , Nakazawa Mitsuru , Hatase Tetsuhisa , Matsunaga Tatsuo , Maeda Akiko , Noda Kosuke , Tanikawa Atsuhiro , Yamamoto Syuji , Yamamoto Hiroyuki , Araie Makoto , Aihara Makoto , Nakazawa Toru , Sekiryu Tetsuju , Kashiwagi Kenji , Kosaki Kenjiro , Piero Carninci , Fukuchi Takeo , Hayashi Atsushi , Hosono Katsuhiro , Mori Keisuke , Tanaka Kouji , Furuya Koichi , Suzuki Keiichirou , Kohata Ryo , Yanagi Yasuo , Minegishi Yuriko , Iejima Daisuke , Suga Akiko , Rossmiller Brian P. , Pan Yang , Oshima Tomoko , Nakayama Mao , Yamamoto Megumi , Minematsu Naoko , Mori Daisuke , Kijima Yusuke , Kurata Kentaro , Yamada Norihiro , Itoh Masayoshi , Kawaji Hideya , Murakawa Yasuhiro
Published: March 2020

Biallelic variants in the EYS gene are a major cause of autosomal recessive inherited retinal disease (IRD), with a high prevalence in the Asian population. The purpose of this study was to identify pathogenic EYS variants, to determine the clinical/genetic spectrum of EYS-associated retinal disease (EYS-RD), and to discover disease-associated variants with relatively high allele frequency (1%-10%) in a nationwide Japanese cohort. Sixty-six affected subjects from 61 families with biallelic or multiple pathogenic/disease-associated EYS variants were ascertained by whole-exome sequencing. Three phenotype groups were identified in EYS-RD: retinitis pigmentosa (RP; 85.94%), cone-rod dystrophy (CORD; 10.94%), and Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA; 3.12%). Twenty-six pathogenic/disease-associated EYS variants were identified, including seven novel variants. The two most prevalent variants, p.(Gly843Glu) and p.(Thr2465Ser) were found in 26 and twelve families (42.6%, 19.7%), respectively, for which the allele frequency (AF) in the Japanese population was 2.2% and 3.0%, respectively. These results expand the phenotypic and genotypic spectrum of EYS-RD, accounting for a high proportion of EYS-RD both in autosomal recessive RP (23.4%) and autosomal recessive CORD (9.9%) in the Japanese population. The presence of EYS variants with relatively high AF highlights the importance of considering the pathogenicity of non-rare variants in relatively prevalent Mendelian disorders.
Migration tracking reveals geographic variation in the vulnerability of a Nearctic-Neotropical migrant bird
Authors: Humple Diana L. , Cormier Renée L. , Richardson T. Will , Burnett Ryan D. , Seavy Nathaniel E. , Dybala Kristen E. , Gardali Thomas
Published: March 2020

We compared the vulnerability of a Nearctic-Neotropical migrant (Swainson’s Thrush, Catharus ustulatus) for three geographically-defined breeding populations in California by linking breeding and wintering regions, estimating migration distances, and quantifying relative forest loss. Using data from light-level geolocator and GPS tags, we found that breeding birds from the relatively robust coastal population in the San Francisco Bay area wintered predominantly in western Mexico (n = 18), whereas the far rarer breeding birds from two inland populations that occur near one another in the Sierra Nevada and southern Cascades mountain ranges migrated to farther wintering destinations, with birds from the Lassen region (n = 5) predominantly going to Central America and birds from the Tahoe region (n = 7) predominantly to South America. Landscape-level relative forest loss was greater in the breeding and wintering regions of the two Cascade-Sierra populations than those of coastal birds. Longer migration distances and greater exposure to recent forest loss suggest greater current vulnerability of Cascade-Sierra birds. Our results demonstrate that for some species, quantifying migration distances and destinations across relatively small distances among breeding populations (in this case, 140–250 km apart) can identify dramatically different vulnerabilities that need to be considered in conservation planning.
Transformation Foci in IDH1-mutated Gliomas Show STAT3 Phosphorylation and Downregulate the Metabolic Enzyme ETNPPL, a Negative Regulator of Glioma Growth
Authors: Leventoux N. , Augustus M. , Azar S. , Riquier S. , Villemin J. P. , Guelfi S. , Falha L. , Bauchet L. , Gozé C. , Ritchie W. , Commes T. , Duffau H. , Rigau V.  , Hugnot J. P.
Published: March 2020

IDH1-mutated gliomas are slow-growing brain tumours which progress into high-grade gliomas. The early molecular events causing this progression are ill-defined. Previous studies revealed that 20% of these tumours already have transformation foci. These foci offer opportunities to better understand malignant progression. We used immunohistochemistry and high throughput RNA profiling to characterize foci cells. These have higher pSTAT3 staining revealing activation of JAK/STAT signaling. They downregulate RNAs involved in Wnt signaling (DAAM2, SFRP2), EGFR signaling (MLC1), cytoskeleton and cell-cell communication (EZR, GJA1). In addition, foci cells show reduced levels of RNA coding for Ethanolamine-Phosphate Phospho-Lyase (ETNPPL/AGXT2L1), a lipid metabolism enzyme. ETNPPL is involved in the catabolism of phosphoethanolamine implicated in membrane synthesis. We detected ETNPPL protein in glioma cells as well as in astrocytes in the human brain. Its nuclear localization suggests additional roles for this enzyme. ETNPPL expression is inversely correlated to glioma grade and we found no ETNPPL protein in glioblastomas. Overexpression of ETNPPL reduces the growth of glioma stem cells indicating that this enzyme opposes gliomagenesis. Collectively, these results suggest that a combined alteration in membrane lipid metabolism and STAT3 pathway promotes IDH1-mutated glioma malignant progression.
Computer aided detection of tuberculosis on chest radiographs: An evaluation of the CAD4TB v6 system
Authors: Murphy Keelin , Habib Shifa Salman , Zaidi Syed Mohammad Asad , Khowaja Saira , Khan Aamir , Melendez Jaime , Scholten Ernst T. , Amad Farhan , Schalekamp Steven , Verhagen Maurits , Philipsen Rick H. H. M. , Meijers Annet , van Ginneken Bram
Published: March 2020

There is a growing interest in the automated analysis of chest X-Ray (CXR) as a sensitive and inexpensive means of screening susceptible populations for pulmonary tuberculosis. In this work we evaluate the latest version of CAD4TB, a commercial software platform designed for this purpose. Version 6 of CAD4TB was released in 2018 and is here tested on a fully independent dataset of 5565 CXR images with GeneXpert (Xpert) sputum test results available (854 Xpert positive subjects). A subset of 500 subjects (50% Xpert positive) was reviewed and annotated by 5 expert observers independently to obtain a radiological reference standard. The latest version of CAD4TB is found to outperform all previous versions in terms of area under receiver operating curve (ROC) with respect to both Xpert and radiological reference standards. Improvements with respect to Xpert are most apparent at high sensitivity levels with a specificity of 76% obtained at a fixed 90% sensitivity. When compared with the radiological reference standard, CAD4TB v6 also outperformed previous versions by a considerable margin and achieved 98% specificity at the 90% sensitivity setting. No substantial difference was found between the performance of CAD4TB v6 and any of the various expert observers against the Xpert reference standard. A cost and efficiency analysis on this dataset demonstrates that in a standard clinical situation, operating at 90% sensitivity, users of CAD4TB v6 can process 132 subjects per day at an average cost per screen of $5.95 per subject, while users of version 3 process only 85 subjects per day at a cost of $8.38 per subject. At all tested operating points version 6 is shown to be more efficient and cost effective than any other version.
Subwavelength-scale nanorods implemented hexagonal pyramids structure as efficient light-extraction in Light-emitting diodes
Authors: Park Jae Yong , Kim Buem Joon , Yoo Chul Jong , Dong Wan Jae , Lee Illhwan , Kim Sungjoo , Lee Jong-Lam
Published: March 2020

Subwavelength-scale nanorods were implemented on the hexagonal pyramid of photochemically etched light-emitting diodes (LEDs) to improve light extraction efficiency (LEE). Sequential processes of Ag deposition and inductively coupled plasma etching successfully produce nanorods on both locally unetched flat surface and sidewall of hexagonal pyramids. The subwavelength-scale structures on flat surface offer gradually changed refractive index, and the structures on side wall of hexagonal pyramid reduce backward reflection, thereby enhancing further enhancement of the light extraction efficiency. Consequently, the nanorods implemented LED shows a remarkable enhancement in the light output power by 14% compared with that of the photochemically etched LEDs which is known to exhibit the highest light output power. Theoretical calculations using a rigorous coupled wave analysis method reveal that the subwavelength-scale nanorods are very effective in the elimination of TIR as well as backward reflections, thereby further enhancing LEE of the LEDs.
First mussel settlement observed in Antarctica reveals the potential for future invasions
Authors: Cárdenas Leyla , Leclerc Jean-Charles , Bruning Paulina , Garrido Ignacio , Détrée Camille , Figueroa Alvaro , Astorga Marcela , Navarro Jorge M. , Johnson Ladd E. , Carlton James T. , Pardo Luis
Published: March 2020

Global biodiversity is both declining and being redistributed in response to multiple drivers characterizing the Anthropocene, including synergies between biological invasions and climate change. The Antarctic marine benthos may constitute the last biogeographic realm where barriers (oceanographic currents, climatic gradients) have not yet been broken. Here we report the successful settlement of a cohort of Mytilus cf. platensis in a shallow subtidal habitat of the South Shetland Islands in 2019, which demonstrates the ability of this species to complete its early life stages in this extreme environment. Genetic analyses and shipping records show that this observation is consistent with the dominant vectors and pathways linking southern Patagonia with the Antarctic Peninsula and demonstrates the potential for impending invasions of Antarctic ecosystems.
Inhibition of the activity of HIV-1 protease through antibody binding and mutations probed by molecular dynamics simulations
Authors: Badaya Apoorva , Sasidhar Yellamraju U.
Published: March 2020

HIV-1 protease is an essential enzyme in the life cycle of the HIV-1 virus. The conformational dynamics of the flap region of the protease is critical for the ligand binding mechanism, as well as for the catalytic activity. The monoclonal antibody F11.2.32 raised against HIV-1 protease inhibits its activity on binding. We have studied the conformational dynamics of protease in its free, inhibitor ritonavir and antibody bound forms using molecular dynamics simulations. We find that upon Ab binding to the epitope region (residues 36–46) of protease, the overall flexibility of the protease is decreased including the flap region and the active site, which is similar to the decrease in flexibility observed by inhibitor binding to the protease. This suggests an allosteric mechanism to inhibit protease activity. Further, the protease mutants G40E and G40R are known to have decreased activity and were also subjected to MD simulations. We find that the loss of flexibility in the mutants is similar to that observed in the protease bound to the Ab/inhibitor. These insights highlight the role played by dynamics in the function of the protease and how control of flexibility through Ab binding and site specific mutations can inhibit protease activity.