bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Production, Characterization, and Evaluation of Pellets from Rice Harvest Residues
Authors: Moliner Cristina , Lagazzo Alberto , Bosio Barbara , Botter Rodolfo , Arato Elisabetta
Published: January 2020

Pellets from residues from rice harvest (i.e., straw and husk) were produced and their main properties were evaluated. Firstly, rice straw pellets were produced at lab scale at varying operational conditions (i.e., load compression and wt % of feeding moisture content) to evaluate their suitability for palletization. Successively, rice straw and husk pellets were commercially produced. All the samples were characterized in terms of their main physical, chemical, and physico-chemical properties. In addition, axial/diametral compression and durability tests were performed to assess their mechanical performance. All the analyzed properties were compared with the established quality standards for non-woody pellets. In general, rice straw pellets presented suitable properties for their use as pelletized fuels. Rice husk pellets fell out of the standards in recommended size or durability and thus preliminary treatments might be required prior their use as fuels.
Expansion of High Efficiency Region of Wind Energy Centrifugal Pump Based on Factorial Experiment Design and Computational Fluid Dynamics
Authors: Li Wei , Ji Leilei , Shi Weidong , Zhou Ling , Chang Hao , Agarwal Ramesh K.
Published: January 2020

The wind energy pump system is a new green energy technology. The wide high efficiency region of pump is of great significance for energy conservation of wind power pumping system. In this study, factorial experiment design (FED) and computational fluid dynamics (CFD) are employed to optimize the hydraulic design of wind energy centrifugal pump (WECP). The blade outlet width b2, blade outlet angle β2, and blade wrap angle ψ are chosen as factors of FED. The effect of the factors on the efficiency under the conditions of 0.6Qdes, 0.8Qdes, 1.0Qdes, and 1.4Qdes is systematically analyzed. The matching feature of various volute tongue angle with the optimized impeller is also investigated numerically and experimentally. After the optimization, the pump head changes smoothly during full range of flow condition and the high efficiency region is effectively improved. The weighted average efficiency of four conditions increases by 2.55%, which broadens the high efficiency region of WECP globally. Besides, the highest efficiency point moves towards the large flow conditions. The research results provide references for expanding the efficient operation region of WECP.
Electrical Insulator Fault Forecasting Based on a Wavelet Neuro-Fuzzy System
Authors: Frizzo Stefenon Stéfano , Zanetti Freire Roberto , dos Santos Coelho Leandro , Meyer Luiz Henrique , Bartnik Grebogi Rafael , Gouvêa Buratto William , Nied Ademir
Published: January 2020

The surface contamination of electrical insulators can increase the electrical conductivity of these components, which may lead to faults in the electrical power system. During inspections, ultrasound equipment is employed to detect defective insulators or those that may cause failures within a certain period. Assuming that the signal collected by the ultrasound device can be processed and used for both the detection of defective insulators and prediction of failures, this study starts by presenting an experimental procedure considering a contaminated insulator removed from the distribution line for data acquisition. Based on the obtained data set, an offline time series forecasting approach with an Adaptive Neuro-Fuzzy Inference System (ANFIS) was conducted. To improve the time series forecasting performance and to reduce the noise, Wavelet Packets Transform (WPT) was associated to the ANFIS model. Once the ANFIS model associated with WPT has distinct parameters to be adjusted, a complete evaluation concerning different model configurations was conducted. In this case, three inference system structures were evaluated: grid partition, fuzzy c-means clustering, and subtractive clustering. A performance analysis focusing on computational effort and the coefficient of determination provided additional parameter configurations for the model. Taking into account both parametrical and statistical analysis, the Wavelet Neuro-Fuzzy System with fuzzy c-means showed that it is possible to achieve impressive accuracy, even when compared to classical approaches, in the prediction of electrical insulators conditions.
Prediction of Reservoir Quality from Log-Core and Seismic Inversion Analysis with an Artificial Neural Network: A Case Study from the Sawan Gas Field, Pakistan
Authors: Qiang Zhang , Yasin Qamar , Golsanami Naser , Du Qizhen
Published: January 2020

This paper presents a novel approach that aims to predict better reservoir quality regions from seismic inversion and spatial distribution of key reservoir properties from well logs. The reliable estimation of lithology and reservoir parameters at sparsely located wells in the Sawan gas field is still a considerable challenge. This is due to three main reasons: (a) the extreme heterogeneity in the depositional environments, (b) sand-shale intercalations, and (c) repetition of textural changes from fine to coarse sandstone and very coarse sandstone in the reservoir units. In this particular study, machine learning (ML) inversion algorithm was selected to predict the spatial variations of acoustic impedance (AI), porosity, and saturation. While trained in a supervised mode, the support vector machine (SVM) inversion algorithm performed effectively in identifying and mapping individual reservoir properties to delineate and quantify fluid-rich zones. Meanwhile, the Sequential Gaussian Simulation (SGS) and Gaussian Indicator Simulation (GIS) algorithms were employed to determine the spatial variability of lithofacies and porosity from well logs and core analyses data. The calibration of the detailed spatial variations from post-stack seismic inversion using SVM and wireline logs data indicated an appropriate agreement, i.e., variations in AI is related to the variations in reservoir facies and parameters. From the current study, it was concluded that in a highly heterogeneous reservoir, the integration of SVM and GIS algorithms is a reliable approach to achieve the best estimation of the spatial distribution of detailed reservoir characteristics. The results obtained in this study would also be helpful to minimize the uncertainty in drilling, production, and injection in the Sawan gas field of Pakistan as well as other reservoirs worldwide with similar geological settings.
Simplified Sensorless Current Predictive Control of Synchronous Reluctance Motor Using Online Parameter Estimation
Authors: Farhan Ahmed , Abdelrahem Mohamed , Saleh Amr , Shaltout Adel , Kennel Ralph
Published: January 2020

In this paper, a simplified efficient method for sensorless finite set current predictive control (FSCPC) for synchronous reluctance motor (SynRM) based on extended Kalman filter (EKF) is proposed. The proposed FSCPC is based on reducing the computation burden of the conventional FSCPC by using the commanded reference currents to directly calculate the reference voltage vector (RVV). Therefore, the cost function is calculated for only three times and the necessity to test all possible voltage vectors will be avoided. For sensorless control, EKF is composed to estimate the position and speed of the rotor. Whereas the performance of the proposed FSCPC essentially necessitates the full knowledge of SynRM parameters and provides an insufficient response under the parameter mismatch between the controller and the motor, online parameter estimation based on EKF is combined in the proposed control strategy to estimate all parameters of the machine. Furthermore, for simplicity, the parameters of PI speed controller and initial values of EKF covariance matrices are tuned offline using Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO). To demonstrate the feasibility of the proposed control, it is implemented in MATLAB/Simulink and tested under different operating conditions. Simulation results show high robustness and reliability of the proposed drive.
Bio-Crude Production through Aqueous Phase Recycling of Hydrothermal Liquefaction of Sewage Sludge
Authors: Shah Ayaz A. , Toor Saqib S. , Seehar Tahir H. , Nielsen Rasmus S. , H. Nielsen Asbjørn , Pedersen Thomas H. , Rosendahl Lasse A.
Published: January 2020

Hydrothermal liquefaction (HTL) is a promising technology for the production of bio-crude. However, some unresolved issues still exist within HTL, which need to be resolved before its promotion on a commercial scale. The management of the aqueous phase is one of the leading challenges related to HTL. In this study, the sewage sludge has been liquefied at 350 °C with and without catalyst (K2CO3). Subsequently, aqueous phase recycling was applied to investigate the effect of recycling on bio-crude properties. Obtained results showed that the energy recovery in the form of bio-crude increased by 50% via aqueous phase recirculation, whereas nitrogen content in the bio-crude was approximately doubled after eight rounds of recycling. GCMS characterization of the aqueous phase indicated acetic acid as a major water-soluble compound, which employed as a catalyst (0.56 M), and resulted in a negligible increase in bio-crude yield. ICP-AES highlighted that the majority of the inorganics were transferred to the solid phase, while the higher accumulation of potassium and sodium was found in the aqueous phase via successive rounds of recycling.
Biophysical Gradients and Performance of Whitebark Pine Plantings in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem
Authors: Laufenberg David , Thoma David , Hansen Andrew , Hu Jia
Published: January 2020

Research Highlights: The efficacy of planting for restoration is important for ecosystem managers. Planting efforts represent an opportunity for conserving and managing species during a population crisis. Background and Objectives: Federal agencies have been planting whitebark pine (WBP), an important subalpine species that is late to mature and long-lived, for three decades in the Greater Yellowstone Ecosystem (GYE). These efforts have been met with varying success, and they have not been evaluated beyond the first five years post-planting. Ecosystem managers will continue to plant WBP in the GYE for years to come, and this research helps to inform and identify higher quality habitat during a period of changing climate and high GYE WBP mortality rates. Materials and Methods: We use a combination of field sampling and a water balance model to investigate local biophysical gradients as explanatory variables for WBP performance at twenty-nine GYE planting sites. Results: We found that the WBP growth rate was positively correlated with actual evapotranspiration (AET) and was greatest when cumulative growing season AET was above 350 mm. Growth rate was not strongly affected by competition at the levels found in this study. However, site density change over time was negatively affected by mean growing season temperature and when more than five competitors were present within 3.59 m radius. Conclusions: If they make it to maturity, trees that are planted this season will not begin to produce cones until the latter half of this century. We recommend planting efforts that optimize AET for growth rate objectives, minimize water deficit (WD) that cause stress and mortality, and removing competitors if they exceed five within a short distance of seedlings.
Strategies for Modeling Regeneration Density in Relation to Distance from Adult Trees
Authors: Moreno-Fernández Daniel , Ledo Alicia , Cañellas Isabel , Montes Fernando
Published: January 2020

Research Highlights: We proposed new methodologies for the spatial analysis of regeneration processes and compared with existing approaches. Background and Objectives: Identifying the spatial relationship between adult trees and new cohorts is fundamental to understanding the dynamics of regeneration and therefore helps us to optimize the stand density and natural regeneration when undertaking regeneration fellings. Most of the statistical approaches analyzing the spatial dependence between adult trees and new individuals (seedlings or saplings) require a complete census and mapping of all individuals. However, approaches considering individuals grouped into sampling points or subplots (i.e., density data) are limited. In this study, we reviewed and compared approaches (intertype point pattern analyses and a generalized additive model) to describe the spatial relationship between adult trees and density regeneration in a Pinus sylvestris L. monospecific stand in Spain. We also proposed a new approach (intertype mark variance function) to disentangle the effect of the tree-size on sapling density and the effect of the spatial pattern. Materials and Methods: To this end, we used a half-hectare plot in which all the individuals of P. sylvestris have been mapped and measured. Results: Our results indicated that sapling distribution was related to distance from the adult trees, thus displaying distance-dependence patterns, but it was not related to the size of the adult trees. The intertype mark correlation function was an useful tool to distinguish the effect of the marks (sapling density and tree size) from the effect of the spatial pattern of the classes (trees cohorts in our case). Conclusions: The largest number of saplings was found with increased distance between adult trees (>11 m), and the generalized additive model may be useful to explain spatial relationships between adult trees and regenerating cohorts when other measured biotic variables (e.g., soil stoniness, etc.) and repeated measurements are available.
Microbiological and Metagenomic Analysis to Assess the Effect of Container Material on the Microbiota of Feta Cheese during Ripening
Authors: Spyrelli Evgenia , Stamatiou Anastasios , Tassou Chrysoula , Nychas George-John , Doulgeraki Agapi
Published: January 2020

The aim of the present study was to assess the influence of ripening container’s material on the bacterial diversity of Feta cheese PDO (Protected Designation of Origin). The microbiota of fresh and mature cheese produced in plastic and stainless steel container was monitored by microbial enumeration and 16s rRNA gene sequencing. According to the obtained results, lactic acid bacteria (LAB) was the dominant microbiota of fresh and mature cheese. Metagenomics data revealed that fresh cheese was dominated by Lactococcus followed by members of Enterobacteriaceae family and Pseudomonas. Similarly, Lactococcus was the most abundant genus detected in mature cheese (54 days and 120 days), regardless of the container’s material. In both fresh and mature cheese, species of Pseudomonas, Streptococcus, Acinetobacter, Lactobacillus, Flavobacterium, and Carnobacterium were detected. The abundance of Enterobacteriaceae, Moraxellaceae and Pseudomonadaceae in mature cheese ripened in stainless steel container seems to be numerically reduced after 120 days of storage compared to the cheese ripened in plastic container but not significant differences were observed (p > 0.05). In conclusion, metagenomic analysis suggests that ripening container’s material does not affect the microbial community responsible for the ripening of feta cheese PDO.
Modern Technologies and Their Influence in Fermentation Quality
Authors: Benito Santiago
Published: January 2020

Since the beginning of enology and fermentation research, wine quality has been parametrized from a chemical and sensory point of view [...]
Geocentric Spherical Surfaces Emulating the Geostationary Orbit at Any Latitude with Zenith Links
Authors: Matricciani Emilio
Published: January 2020

According to altitude, the orbits of satellites constellations can be divided into geostationary Earth orbit (GEO), medium Earth orbit (MEO), and low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations. We propose to use a Walker star constellation with polar orbits, at any altitude, to emulate the geostationary orbit with zenith paths at any latitude. Any transmitter/receiver will be linked to a satellite as if the site were at the equator and the satellite at the local zenith. This constellation design can have most of the advantages of the current GEO, MEO, and LEO constellations, without having most of their drawbacks. Doppler phenomena are largely minimized because the connected satellite is always seen almost at the local zenith. The extra free-space loss, due to the fixed pointing of all antennas, is at most 6 dBs when the satellite enters or leaves the service area. The connections among satellites are easy because the positions in the orbital plane and in adjacent planes are constant, although with variable distances. No steering antennas are required. The tropospheric propagation fading and scintillations are minimized. Our aim is to put forth the theoretical ideas about this design, to which we refer to as the geostationary surface (GeoSurf) constellation.
Steganalysis of Quantization Index Modulation Steganography in G.723.1 Codec
Authors: Wu Zhijun , Li Rong , Yin Panpan , Li Changliang
Published: January 2020

Steganalysis is used for preventing the illegal use of steganography to ensure the security of network communication through detecting whether or not secret information is hidden in the carrier. This paper presents an approach to detect the quantization index modulation (QIM) of steganography in G.723.1 based on the analysis of the probability of occurrence of index values before and after steganography and studying the influence of adjacent index values in voice over internet protocol (VoIP). According to the change of index value distribution characteristics, this approach extracts the distribution probability matrix and the transition probability matrix as feature vectors, and uses principal component analysis (PCA) to reduce the dimensionality. Through a large amount of sample training, the support vector machine (SVM) is designed as a classifier to detect the QIM steganography. The speech samples with different embedding rates and different durations were tested to verify their impact on the accuracy of the steganalysis. The experimental results show that the proposed approach improves the accuracy and reliability of the steganalysis.
Nasal Microbiota Modifies the Effects of Particulate Air Pollution on Plasma Extracellular Vesicles
Authors: Mariani Jacopo , Favero Chiara , Carugno Michele , Pergoli Laura , Ferrari Luca , Bonzini Matteo , Cattaneo Andrea , Pesatori Angela Cecilia , Bollati Valentina
Published: January 2020

Air pollution exposure has been linked to modifications of both extracellular vesicle (EV) concentration and nasal microbiota structure (NMB), which might act as the respiratory health gatekeeper. This study aimed to assess whether an unbalanced NMB could modify the effect of particulate matter (PM) exposure on plasmatic EV levels. Due to two different NMB taxonomical profiles characterized by a widely different relative abundance of the Moraxella genus, the enrolled population was stratified into Mor− (balanced NMB) and Mor+ (unbalanced NMB) groups (Moraxella genus’s cut-off ≤25% and >25%, respectively). EV features were assessed by nanoparticle tracking analysis (NTA) and flow-cytometry (FC). Multivariable analyses were applied on EV outcomes to evaluate a possible association between PM10 and PM2.5 and plasmatic EV levels. The Mor− group revealed positive associations between PM levels and plasmatic CD105+ EVs (GMR = 4.39 p = 0.02) as for total EV count (GMR = 1.92 p = 0.02). Conversely, the Mor+ group showed a negative association between exposure and EV outcomes (CD66+ GMR = 0.004 p = 0.01; EpCAM+ GMR = 0.005 p = 0.01). Our findings provide an insight regarding how a balanced NMB may help to counteract PM exposure effects in terms of plasmatic EV concentration. Further research is necessary to understand the relationship between the host and the NMB to disentangle the mechanism exerted by inhaled pollutants in modulating EVs and NMB.
A Dynamic Spatio-Temporal Analysis of Urban Expansion and Pollutant Emissions in Fujian Province
Authors: Zhao Shen , Dong Guanpeng , Xu Yong
Published: January 2020

Urbanization processes at both global and regional scales are taking place at an unprecedent pace, leading to more than half of the global population living in urbanized areas. This process could exert grand challenges on the human living environment. With the proliferation of remote sensing and satellite data being used in social and environmental studies, fine spatial- and temporal-resolution measures of urban expansion and environmental quality are increasingly available. This, in turn, offers great opportunities to uncover the potential environmental impacts of fast urban expansion. This paper investigated the relationship between urban expansion and pollutant emissions in the Fujian province of China by building a Bayesian spatio-temporal autoregressive model. It drew upon recently compiled pollutant emission data with fine spatio-temporal resolution, long temporal coverage, and multiple sources of remote sensing data. Our results suggest that there was a significant relationship between urban expansion and pollution emission intensity—urban expansion significantly elevated the PM2.5 and NOx emissions intensity in Fujian province during 1995–2015. This finding was robust to different measures of urban expansion and retained after controlling for potential confounding effects. The temporal evolution of pollutant emissions, net of covariate effects, presented a fluctuation pattern rather than a consistent trend of increasing or decreasing. Spatial variability of the pollutant emissions intensity among counties was, however, decreasing steadily with time.
Politically Motivated Internet Addiction: Relationships among Online Information Exposure, Internet Addiction, FOMO, Psychological Well-being, and Radicalism in Massive Political Turbulence
Authors: Tang Gary , Hung Eva , Au-Yeung Ho-Kong , Yuen Samson
Published: January 2020

This research examines the mediating role of the tendency for Internet addiction, fear of missing out (FOMO), and psychological well-being in the relationship between online exposure to movement-related information and support for radical actions. A questionnaire survey that targets tertiary students was conducted during the Anti-Extradition Law Amendment Bill (Anti-ELAB) Movement (N = 290). The findings reveal the mediating effect of Internet addiction and depression on the main relationship. These findings enrich the literature of political communication by addressing the political impact of Internet use beyond digital architecture. From the perspective of psychology, this research echoes the literature that concerns depression symptoms driven by a protest environment. Radical political attitudes driven by depression during protests should also be concerned based on the findings of this survey.
Impacts of Environmental Changes on Well-Being in Indigenous Communities in Eastern Canada
Authors: Fuentes Laura , Asselin Hugo , Bélisle Annie Claude , Labra Oscar
Published: January 2020

Climate change and natural resource exploitation can affect Indigenous people’s well-being by reducing access to ecosystem services, in turn impeding transmission of traditional knowledge and causing mental health problems. We used a questionnaire based on the Environmental Distress Scale (EDS) and the Connor–Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10) to examine the impacts of environmental changes on 251 members of four Indigenous communities in the eastern Canadian boreal forest. We also considered the potential mitigating effects of sociodemographic characteristics (i.e., age, gender, parenthood, and time spent on the land) and protective factors (i.e., health, quality of life, resilience, life on the land, life in the community, and support from family and friends). Using linear regression, model selection, and multi-model inference, we show that the felt impacts of environmental changes increased with age but were lower for participants with higher quality of life. The effect of resilience was opposite to expectations: more resilient participants felt more impacts. This could be because less resilient individuals ceased to go on the land when environmental changes exceeded a given threshold; thus, only the most resilient participants could testify to the impacts of acute changes. Further research will be needed to test this hypothesis.
Nrf2 Activation and Its Coordination with the Protective Defense Systems in Response to Electrophilic Stress
Authors: Unoki Takamitsu , Akiyama Masahiro , Kumagai Yoshito
Published: January 2020

Molecular responses mediated by sensor proteins are important for biological defense against electrophilic stresses, such as xenobiotic electrophile exposure. NF-E2-related factor 2 (Nrf2) has an essential function as a master regulator of such cytoprotective molecular responses along with sensor protein Kelch-like ECH-associated protein 1. This review focuses on Nrf2 activation and its involvement with the protective defense systems under electrophilic stresses integrated with our recent findings that reactive sulfur species (RSS) mediate detoxification of electrophiles. The Nrf2 pathway does not function redundantly with the RSS-generating cystathionine γ-lyase pathway, and vice versa.
Beneficial Effects of SREBP Decoy Oligodeoxynucleotide in an Animal Model of Hyperlipidemia
Authors: An Hyun-Jin , Kim Jung-Yeon , Gwon Mi-Gyeong , Gu Hyemin , Kim Hyun-Ju , Leem Jaechan , Youn Sung Won , Park Kwan-Kyu
Published: January 2020

Hyperlipidemia is a chronic disorder that plays an important role in the development of cardiovascular diseases, type II diabetes, atherosclerosis, hypertension, and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease. Hyperlipidemias have created a worldwide health crisis and impose a substantial burden not only on personal health but also on societies and economies. Transcription factors in the sterol regulatory element binding protein (SREBP) family are key regulators of the lipogenic genes in the liver. SREBPs regulate lipid homeostasis by controlling the expression of a range of enzymes required for the synthesis of endogenous cholesterol, fatty acids, triacylglycerol, and phospholipids. Thereby, SREBPs have been considered as targets for the treatment of metabolic diseases. The aim of this study was to investigate the beneficial functions and the possible underlying molecular mechanisms of SREBP decoy ODN, which is a novel inhibitor of SREBPs, in high-fat diet (HFD)-fed hyperlipidemic mice. Our studies using HFD-induced hyperlipidemia animal model revealed that SREBB decoy ODN inhibited the increased expression of fatty acid synthetic pathway, such as SREBP-1c, FAS, SCD-1, ACC1, and HMGCR. In addition, SREBP decoy ODN decreased pro-inflammatory cytokines, including TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-8, and IL-6 expression. These results suggest that SREBP decoy ODN exerts its anti-hyperlipidemia effects in HFD-induced hyperlipidemia mice by regulating their lipid metabolism and inhibiting lipogenesis through inactivation of the SREPB pathway.
Small RNA and mRNA Sequencing Reveal the Roles of microRNAs Involved in Pomegranate Female Sterility
Authors: Chen Lina , Luo Xiang , Yang Xuanwen , Jing Dan , Xia Xiaocong , Li Haoxian , Poudel Krishna , Cao Shangyin
Published: January 2020

Female sterility is a key factor restricting plant reproduction. Our previous studies have revealed that pomegranate female sterility mainly arose from the abnormality of ovule development. MicroRNAs (miRNAs) play important roles in ovule development. However, little is known about the roles of miRNAs in female sterility. In this study, a combined high-throughput sequencing approach was used to investigate the miRNAs and their targeted transcripts involved in female development. A total of 103 conserved and 58 novel miRNAs were identified. Comparative profiling indicated that the expression of 43 known miRNAs and 14 novel miRNAs were differentially expressed between functional male flowers (FMFs) and bisexual flowers (BFs), 30 known miRNAs and nine novel miRNAs showed significant differences among different stages of BFs, and 20 known miRNAs and 18 novel miRNAs exhibited remarkable expression differences among different stages of FMFs. Gene ontology (GO) analyses of 144 predicted targets of differentially expressed miRNAs indicated that the “reproduction process” and “floral whorl development” processes were significantly enriched. The miRNA–mRNA interaction analyses revealed six pairs of candidate miRNAs and their targets associated with female sterility. Interestingly, pg-miR166a-3p was accumulated, whereas its predicted targets (Gglean012177.1 and Gglean013966.1) were repressed in functional male flowers (FMFs), and the interaction between pg-miR166a-3p and its targets (Gglean012177.1 and Gglean013966.1) were confirmed by transient assay. A. thaliana transformed with 35S-pre-pg-miR166a-3p verified the role of pg-miR166a-3p in ovule development, which indicated pg-miR166a-3p’s potential role in pomegranate female sterility. The results provide new insights into molecular mechanisms underlying the female sterility at the miRNA level.
Combined Metabolome and Transcriptome Analyses Reveal the Effects of Mycorrhizal Fungus Ceratobasidium sp. AR2 on the Flavonoid Accumulation in Anoectochilus roxburghii during Different Growth Stages
Authors: Zhang Ying , Li Yuanyuan , Chen Xiaomei , Meng Zhixia , Guo Shunxing
Published: January 2020

Anoectochilus roxburghii is a traditional Chinese herb with high medicinal value, with main bioactive constituents which are flavonoids. It commonly associates with mycorrhizal fungi for its growth and development. Moreover, mycorrhizal fungi can induce changes in the internal metabolism of host plants. However, its role in the flavonoid accumulation in A. roxburghii at different growth stages is not well studied. In this study, combined metabolome and transcriptome analyses were performed to investigate the metabolic and transcriptional profiling in mycorrhizal A. roxburghii (M) and non-mycorrhizal A. roxburghii (NM) growth for six months. An association analysis revealed that flavonoid biosynthetic pathway presented significant differences between the M and NM. Additionally, the structural genes related to flavonoid synthesis and different flavonoid metabolites in both groups over a period of six months were validated using quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) and high-performance liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS). The results showed that Ceratobasidium sp. AR2 could increase the accumulation of five flavonol-glycosides (i.e., narcissin, rutin, isorhamnetin-3-O-beta-d-glucoside, quercetin-7-O-glucoside, and kaempferol-3-O-glucoside), two flavonols (i.e., quercetin and isorhamnetin), and two flavones (i.e., nobiletin and tangeretin) to some degrees. The qRT-PCR showed that the flavonoid biosynthetic genes (PAL, 4CL, CHS, GT, and RT) were significantly differentially expressed between the M and NM. Overall, our findings indicate that AR2 induces flavonoid metabolism in A. roxburghii during different growth stages, especially in the third month. This shows great potential of Ceratobasidium sp. AR2 for the quality improvement of A. roxburghii.
Claudin-1, A Double-Edged Sword in Cancer
Authors: Bhat Ajaz A. , Syed Najeeb , Therachiyil Lubna , Nisar Sabah , Hashem Sheema , Macha Muzafar A. , Yadav Santosh K. , Krishnankutty Roopesh , Muralitharan Shanmugakonar , Al-Naemi Hamda , Bagga Puneet , Reddy Ravinder , Dhawan Punita , Akobeng Anthony , Uddin Shahab , Frenneaux Michael P. , El-Rifai Wael , Haris Mohammad
Published: January 2020

Claudins, a group of membrane proteins involved in the formation of tight junctions, are mainly found in endothelial or epithelial cells. These proteins have attracted much attention in recent years and have been implicated and studied in a multitude of diseases. Claudins not only regulate paracellular transepithelial/transendothelial transport but are also critical for cell growth and differentiation. Not only tissue-specific but the differential expression in malignant tumors is also the focus of claudin-related research. In addition to up- or down-regulation, claudin proteins also undergo delocalization, which plays a vital role in tumor invasion and aggressiveness. Claudin (CLDN)-1 is the most-studied claudin in cancers and to date, its role as either a tumor promoter or suppressor (or both) is not established. In some cancers, lower expression of CLDN-1 is shown to be associated with cancer progression and invasion, while in others, loss of CLDN-1 improves the patient survival. Another topic of discussion regarding the significance of CLDN-1 is its localization (nuclear or cytoplasmic vs perijunctional) in diseased states. This article reviews the evidence regarding CLDN-1 in cancers either as a tumor promoter or suppressor from the literature and we also review the literature regarding the pattern of CLDN-1 distribution in different cancers, focusing on whether this localization is associated with tumor aggressiveness. Furthermore, we utilized expression data from The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) to investigate the association between CLDN-1 expression and overall survival (OS) in different cancer types. We also used TCGA data to compare CLDN-1 expression in normal and tumor tissues. Additionally, a pathway interaction analysis was performed to investigate the interaction of CLDN-1 with other proteins and as a future therapeutic target.
Influence of Sex on Urinary Organic Acids: A Cross-Sectional Study in Children
Authors: Caterino Marianna , Ruoppolo Margherita , Villani Guglielmo Rosario Domenico , Marchese Emanuela , Costanzo Michele , Sotgiu Giovanni , Dore Simone , Franconi Flavia , Campesi Ilaria
Published: January 2020

The characterization of urinary metabolome, which provides a fingerprint for each individual, is an important step to reach personalized medicine. It is influenced by exogenous and endogenous factors; among them, we investigated sex influences on 72 organic acids measured through GC-MS analysis in the urine of 291 children (152 males; 139 females) aging 1–36 months and stratified in four groups of age. Among the 72 urinary metabolites, in all age groups, 4-hydroxy-butirate and homogentisate are found only in males, whereas 3-hydroxy-dodecanoate, methylcitrate, and phenylacetate are found only in females. Sex differences are still present after age stratification being more numerous during the first 6 months of life. The most relevant sex differences involve the mitochondria homeostasis. In females, citrate cycle, glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism, alanine, aspartate, glutamate, and butanoate metabolism had the highest impact. In males, urinary organic acids were involved in phenylalanine metabolism, citrate cycle, alanine, aspartate and glutamate metabolism, butanoate metabolism, and glyoxylate and dicarboxylate metabolism. In addition, age specifically affected metabolic pathways, the phenylalanine metabolism pathway being affected by age only in males. Relevantly, the age-influenced ranking of metabolic pathways varied in the two sexes. In conclusion, sex deeply influences both quantitatively and qualitatively urinary organic acids levels, the effect of sex being age dependent. Importantly, the sex effects depend on the single organic acid; thus, in some cases the urinary organic acid reference values should be stratified according the sex and age.
iPSC-Derived MSCs Versus Originating Jaw Periosteal Cells: Comparison of Resulting Phenotype and Stem Cell Potential
Authors: Umrath Felix , Weber Marbod , Reinert Siegmar , Wendel Hans-Peter , Avci-Adali Meltem , Alexander Dorothea
Published: January 2020

Induced pluripotent stem cell-derived mesenchymal stem cell-like cells (iMSCs) are considered to be a promising source of progenitor cells for approaches in the field of bone regeneration. In a previous study, we described the generation of footprint-free induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) from human jaw periosteal cells (JPCs) by transfection of a self-replicating RNA (srRNA) and subsequent differentiation into functional osteogenic progenitor cells. In order to facilitate the prospective transfer into clinical practice, xeno-free reprogramming and differentiation methods were established. In this study, we compared the properties and stem cell potential of the iMSCs produced from JPC-derived iPSCs with the parental primary JPCs they were generated from. Our results demonstrated, on the one hand, a comparable differentiation potential of iMSCs and JPCs. Additionally, iMSCs showed significantly longer telomere lengths compared to JPCs indicating rejuvenation of the cells during reprogramming. On the other hand, proliferation, mitochondrial activity, and senescence-associated beta-galactosidase (SA-β-gal) activity indicated early senescence of iMSCs. These data demonstrate the requirement of further optimization strategies to improve mesenchymal development of JPC-derived iPSCs in order to take advantage of the best features of reprogrammed and rejuvenated cells.
TGF-β/Smad3 Signalling Modulates GABA Neurotransmission: Implications in Parkinson’s Disease
Authors: Muñoz Mª , de la Fuente Nerea , Sánchez-Capelo Amelia
Published: January 2020

γ-Aminobutiryc acid (GABA) is found extensively in different brain nuclei, including parts involved in Parkinson’s disease (PD), such as the basal ganglia and hippocampus. In PD and in different models of the disorder, an increase in GABA neurotransmission is observed and may promote bradykinesia or L-Dopa-induced side-effects. In addition, proteins involved in GABAA receptor (GABAAR) trafficking, such as GABARAP, Trak1 or PAELR, may participate in the aetiology of the disease. TGF-β/Smad3 signalling has been associated with several pathological features of PD, such as dopaminergic neurodegeneration; reduction of dopaminergic axons and dendrites; and α-synuclein aggregation. Moreover, TGF-β/Smad3 intracellular signalling was recently shown to modulate GABA neurotransmission in the context of parkinsonism and cognitive alterations. This review provides a summary of GABA neurotransmission and TGF-β signalling; their implications in PD; and the regulation of GABA neurotransmission by TGF-β/Smad3. There appear to be new possibilities to develop therapeutic approaches for the treatment of PD using GABA modulators.
Mild Hyperthermia Aggravates Glucose Metabolic Consequences in Repetitive Concussion
Authors: Blaya Meghan , Truettner Jessie , Zhao Weizhao , Bramlett Helen , Dietrich William Dalton
Published: January 2020

Traumatic brain injury (TBI) is one of the leading causes of mortality and disability around the world. Mild TBI (mTBI) makes up approximately 80% of reported cases and often results in transient psychological abnormalities and cognitive disruption. At-risk populations for mTBI include athletes and other active individuals who may sustain repetitive concussive injury during periods of exercise and exertion when core temperatures are elevated. Previous studies have emphasized the impact that increased brain temperature has on adverse neurological outcomes. A lack of diagnostic tools to assess concussive mTBI limits the ability to effectively identify the post-concussive period during which the brain is uniquely susceptible to damage upon sustaining additional injury. Studies have suggested that a temporal window of increased vulnerability that exists corresponds to a period of injury-induced depression of cerebral glucose metabolism. In the current study, we sought to evaluate the relationship between repetitive concussion, local cerebral glucose metabolism, and brain temperature using the Marmarou weight drop model to generate mTBI. Animals were injured three consecutive times over a period of 7 days while exposed to either normothermic or hyperthermic temperatures for 15 min prior to and 1 h post each injury. A 14C-2-deoxy-d-glucose (2DG) autoradiography was used to measure local cerebral metabolic rate of glucose (lCMRGlc) in 10 diverse brain regions across nine bregma levels 8 days after the initial insult. We found that repetitive mTBI significantly decreased glucose utilization bilaterally in several cortical areas, such as the cingulate, visual, motor, and retrosplenial cortices, as well as in subcortical areas, including the caudate putamen and striatum, compared to sham control animals. lCMRGlc was significant in both normothermic and hyperthermic repetitive mTBI animals relative to the sham group, but to a greater degree when exposed to hyperthermic conditions. Taken together, we report significant injury-induced glucose hypometabolism after repetitive concussion in the brain, and additionally highlight the importance of temperature management in the acute period after brain injury.
Effect of Drought Stress during Soybean R2–R6 Growth Stages on Sucrose Metabolism in Leaf and Seed
Authors: Du Yanli , Zhao Qiang , Chen Liru , Yao Xingdong , Zhang Huijun , Wu Junjiang , Xie Futi
Published: January 2020

Sucrose is the main photosynthesis product of plants and the fundamental carbon skeleton monomer and energy supply for seed formation and development. Drought stress induces decreased photosynthetic carbon assimilation capacity, and seriously affects seed weight in soybean. However, little is known about the relationship between decreases in soybean seed yield and disruption of sucrose metabolism and transport balance in leaves and seeds during the reproductive stages of crop growth. Three soybean cultivars with similar growth periods, “Shennong17”, “Shennong8”, and “Shennong12”, were subjected to drought stress during reproductive growth for 45 days. Drought stress significantly reduced leaf photosynthetic rate, shoot biomass, and seed weight by 63.93, 33.53, and 41.65%, respectively. Drought stress increased soluble sugar contents, the activities of sucrose phosphate synthase, sucrose synthase, and acid invertase enzymes, and up-regulated the expression levels of GmSPS1, GmSuSy2, and GmA-INV, but decreased starch content by 15.13% in leaves. Drought stress decreased the contents of starch, fructose, and glucose in seeds during the late seed filling stages, while it induced sucrose accumulation, which resulted in a decreased hexose-to-sucrose ratio. In developing seeds, the activities of sucrose synthesis and degradation enzymes, the expression levels of genes related to metabolism, and the expression levels of sucrose transporter genes were enhanced during early seed development under drought stress; however, under prolonged drought stress, all of them decreased. These results demonstrated that drought stress enhances the capacity for unloading sucrose into seeds and activated sucrose metabolism during early seed development. At the middle and late seed filling stages, sucrose flow from leaves to seeds was diminished, and the balance of sucrose metabolism was impaired in seeds, resulting in seed mass reduction. The different regulation strategies in sucrose allocation, metabolism, and transport during different seed development stages may be one of the physiological mechanisms for soybean plants to resist drought stress.
Metformin Mitigates Nickel-Elicited Angiopoietin-Like Protein 4 Expression via HIF-1α for Lung Tumorigenesis
Authors: Kang Yu-Ting , Hsu Wen-Cheng , Ou Chu-Chyn , Tai Hui-Chun , Hsu Hui-Ting , Yeh Kun-Tu , Ko Jiunn-Liang
Published: January 2020

Nickel (Ni), which is a carcinogenic workplace hazard, increases the risk of lung cancer. Angiopoietin-like protein 4 (ANGPTL4) is a multifunctional cytokine that is involved in both angiogenesis and metastasis, but its role in lung cancer is still not clear. In this study, we assessed the role of ANGPTL4 in lung carcinogenesis under nickel exposure and investigated the effects of the antidiabetic drug metformin on ANGPTL4 expression and lung cancer chemoprevention. Our results showed that ANGPTL4 is increased in NiCl2-treated lung cells in a dose- and time-course manner. The expression of ANGPTL4 and HIF-1α induced by NiCl2 were significantly repressed after metformin treatment. The downregulation of HIF-1α expression by ROS savenger and HIF-1α inhibitor or knockdown by lentiviral shRNA infection diminished NiCl2-activated ANGPTL4 expression. Chromatin immunoprecipitation and the luciferase assay revealed that NiCl2-induced HIF-1α hypoxia response element interactions activate ANGPTL4 expression, which is then inhibited by metformin. In conclusion, the increased presence of ANGPTL4 due to HIF-1α accumulation that is caused by nickel in lung cells may be one mechanism by which nickel exposure contributes to lung cancer progression. Additionally, metformin has the ability to prevent NiCl2-induced ANGPTL4 through inhibiting HIF-1α expression and its binding activity. These results provide evidence that metformin in oncology therapeutics could be a beneficial chemopreventive agent.
Jasmonic Acid Signaling Pathway in Response to Abiotic Stresses in Plants
Authors: Ali Md. Sarafat , Baek Kwang-Hyun
Published: January 2020

Plants as immovable organisms sense the stressors in their environment and respond to them by means of dedicated stress response pathways. In response to stress, jasmonates (jasmonic acid, its precursors and derivatives), a class of polyunsaturated fatty acid-derived phytohormones, play crucial roles in several biotic and abiotic stresses. As the major immunity hormone, jasmonates participate in numerous signal transduction pathways, including those of gene networks, regulatory proteins, signaling intermediates, and proteins, enzymes, and molecules that act to protect cells from the toxic effects of abiotic stresses. As cellular hubs for integrating informational cues from the environment, jasmonates play significant roles in alleviating salt stress, drought stress, heavy metal toxicity, micronutrient toxicity, freezing stress, ozone stress, CO2 stress, and light stress. Besides these, jasmonates are involved in several developmental and physiological processes throughout the plant life. In this review, we discuss the biosynthesis and signal transduction pathways of the JAs and the roles of these molecules in the plant responses to abiotic stresses.
Influence of Cardiometabolic Risk Factors on Platelet Function
Authors: Barale Cristina , Russo Isabella
Published: January 2020

Platelets are key players in the thrombotic processes. The alterations of platelet function due to the occurrence of metabolic disorders contribute to an increased trend to thrombus formation and arterial occlusion, thus playing a major role in the increased risk of atherothrombotic events in patients with cardiometabolic risk factors. Several lines of evidence strongly correlate metabolic disorders such as obesity, a classical condition of insulin resistance, dyslipidemia, and impaired glucose homeostasis with cardiovascular diseases. The presence of these clinical features together with hypertension and disturbed microhemorrheology are responsible for the prothrombotic tendency due, at least partially, to platelet hyperaggregability and hyperactivation. A number of clinical platelet markers are elevated in obese and type 2 diabetes (T2DM) patients, including the mean platelet volume, circulating levels of platelet microparticles, oxidation products, platelet-derived soluble P-selectin and CD40L, thus contributing to an intersection between obesity, inflammation, and thrombosis. In subjects with insulin resistance and T2DM some defects depend on a reduced sensitivity to mediators—such as nitric oxide and prostacyclin—playing a physiological role in the control of platelet aggregability. Furthermore, other alterations occur only in relation to hyperglycemia. In this review, the main cardiometabolic risk factors, all components of metabolic syndrome involved in the prothrombotic tendency, will be taken into account considering some of the mechanisms involved in the alterations of platelet function resulting in platelet hyperactivation.