bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
microRNA-875-5p plays critical role for mesenchymal condensation in epithelial-mesenchymal interaction during tooth development
Authors: Funada Keita , Yoshizaki Keigo , MIyazaki Kanako , Han Xue , Yuta Tomomi , Tian Tian , Mizuta Kanji , Fu Yao , Iwamoto Tsutomu , Yamada Aya , Takahashi Ichiro , Fukumoto Satoshi
Published: March 2020

Epithelial-mesenchymal interaction has critical roles for organ development including teeth, during which epithelial thickening and mesenchymal condensation are initiated by precise regulation of the signaling pathway. In teeth, neural crest-derived mesenchymal cells expressed PDGF receptors migrate and become condensed toward invaginated epithelium. To identify the molecular mechanism of this interaction, we explored the specific transcriptional start sites (TSSs) of tooth organs using cap analysis of gene expression (CAGE). We identified a tooth specific TSS detected in the chromosome 15qD1 region, which codes microRNA-875 (mir875). MiR875-5p is specifically expressed in dental mesenchyme during the early stage of tooth development. Furthermore, PRRX1/2 binds to the mir875 promoter region and enhances the expression of mir875. To assess the role of miR875-5p in dental mesenchyme, we transfected mimic miR875-5p into mouse dental pulp (mDP) cells, which showed that cell migration toward dental epithelial cells was significantly induced by miR875-5p via the PDGF signaling pathway. Those results also demonstrated that miR875-5p induces cell migration by inhibiting PTEN and STAT1, which are regulated by miR875-5p as part of post-transcriptional regulation. Together, our findings indicate that tooth specific miR875-5p has important roles in cell condensation of mesenchymal cells around invaginated dental epithelium and induction of epithelial-mesenchymal interaction.
Ribitol enhances matriglycan of α-dystroglycan in breast cancer cells without affecting cell growth
Authors: Lu Pei J. , Tucker Jason D. , Branch Elizabeth K. , Guo Fei , Blaeser Anthony R. , Lu Qi L.
Published: March 2020

The laminin-binding glycan (matriglycan) on α-dystroglycan (α-DG) enables diverse roles, from neuronal development to muscle integrity. Reduction or loss of matriglycan has also been implicated in cancer development and metastasis, and specifically associated with high-grade tumors and poor prognoses in breast cancers. Hyperglycosylation of α-DG with LARGE overexpression is shown to inhibit cancer cell growth and tumorigenicity. We recently demonstrated that ribitol, considered to be a metabolic end-product, enhances matriglycan expression in dystrophic muscles in vivo. In the current study, we tested the hypothesis that ribitol could also enhance matriglycan expression in cancer cells. Our results showed for the first time that ribitol is able to significantly enhance the expression of matriglycan on α-DG in breast cancer cells. The ribitol effect is associated with an increase in levels of CDP-ribitol, the substrate for the ribitol-5-phosphate transferases FKRP and FKTN. Direct use of CDP-ribitol is also effective for matriglycan expression. Ribitol treatment does not alter the expression of FKRP, FKTN as well as LARGEs and ISPD which are critical for the synthesis of matriglycan. The results suggest that alteration in substrates could also be involved in regulation of matriglycan expression. Interestingly, expression of matriglycan is related to cell cycle progression with highest levels in S and G2 phases and ribitol treatment does not alter the pattern. Although matriglycan up-regulation does not affect cell cycle progression and proliferation of the cancer cells tested, the novel substrate-mediated treatment opens a new approach easily applicable to experimental systems in vivo for further exploitation of matriglycan expression in cancer progression and for therapeutic potential.
Deforestation in Colombian protected areas increased during post-conflict periods
Authors: Clerici N. , Armenteras D. , Kareiva P. , Botero R. , Ramírez-Delgado J. P. , Forero-Medina G. , Ochoa J. , Pedraza C. , Schneider L. , Lora C. , Gómez C. , Linares M. , Hirashiki C. , Biggs D.
Published: March 2020

Protected areas (PAs) are a foundational and essential strategy for reducing biodiversity loss. However, many PAs around the world exist on paper only; thus, while logging and habitat conversion may be banned in these areas, illegal activities often continue to cause alarming habitat destruction. In such cases, the presence of armed conflict may ultimately prevent incursions to a greater extent than the absence of conflict. Although there are several reports of habitat destruction following cessation of conflict, there has never been a systematic and quantitative “before-and-after-conflict” analysis of a large sample of PAs and surrounding areas. Here we report the results of such a study in Colombia, using an open-access global forest change dataset. By analysing 39 PAs over three years before and after Colombia’s peace agreement with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), we found a dramatic and highly significant increase in the deforestation rate for the majority of these areas and their buffer zones. We discuss the reasons behind such findings from the Colombian case, and debate some general conservation lessons applicable to other countries undergoing post-conflict transitions.
Cytotoxicity, fluorescence tagging and gene-expression study of CuInS/ZnS QDS - meso (hydroxyphenyl) porphyrin conjugate against human monocytic leukemia cells
Authors: Tsolekile Ncediwe , Nahle Sara , Zikalala Nkosingiphile , Parani Sundararajan , Sakho El Hadji Mamour , Joubert Olivier , Matoetoe Mangaka C. , Songca Sandile P. , Oluwafemi Oluwatobi S.
Published: March 2020

The toxicity of heavy metals present in binary semiconductor nanoparticles also known as quantum dots (QDs) has hindered their wide applications hence the advent of non-toxic ternary quantum dots. These new group of quantum dots have been shown to possess some therapeutic action against cancer cell lines but not significant enough to be referred to as an ideal therapeutic agent. In this report, we address this problem by conjugating red emitting CuInS/ZnS QDs to a 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(3-hydroxyphenyl)porphyrin -photosensitizer for improved bioactivities. The glutathione capped CuInS/ZnS QDs were synthesized in an aqueous medium using a kitchen pressure cooker at different Cu: In ratios (1:4 and 1:8) and at varied temperatures (95 °C, 190 °C and 235 °C). Optical properties show that the as-synthesized CuInS/ZnS QDs become red-shifted compared to the core (CuInS) after passivation with emission in the red region while the cytotoxicity study revealed excellent cell viability against normal kidney fibroblasts (BHK21). The highly fluorescent, water-soluble QDs were conjugated to 5,10,15,20-tetrakis(3-hydroxyphenyl)porphyrin (mTHPP) via esterification reactions at room temperature. The resultant water-soluble conjugate was then used for the cytotoxicity, fluorescent imaging and gene expression study against human monocytic leukemia cells (THP-1). Our result showed that the conjugate possessed high cytotoxicity against THP-1 cells with enhanced localized cell uptake compared to the bare QDs. In addition, the gene expression study revealed that the conjugate induced inflammation compared to the QDs as NFKB gene was over-expressed upon cell inflammation while the singlet oxygen (1O2) study showed the conjugate possessed large amount of 1O2, three times than the bare porphyrin. Thus, the as-synthesized conjugate looks promising as a therapeutic agent for cancer therapy.
Enhancement of soybean nodulation by seed treatment with non–thermal plasmas
Authors: Pérez-Pizá María Cecilia , Cejas Ezequiel , Zilli Carla , Prevosto Leandro , Mancinelli Beatriz , Santa-Cruz Diego , Yannarelli Gustavo , Balestrasse Karina
Published: March 2020

Soybean (Glycine max (L.) Merrill) is one of the most important crops worldwide providing dietary protein and vegetable oil. Most of the nitrogen required by the crop is supplied through biological N2 fixation. Non-thermal plasma is a fast, economical, and environmental-friendly technology that can improve seed quality, plant growth, and crop yield. Soybean seeds were exposed to a dielectric barrier discharge plasma operating at atmospheric pressure air with superimposed flows of O2 or N2 as carrying gases. An arrangement of a thin phenolic sheet covered by polyester films was employed as an insulating barrier. We focused on the ability of plasma to improve soybean nodulation and biological nitrogen fixation. The total number of nodules and their weight were significantly higher in plants grown from treated seeds than in control. Plasma treatments incremented 1.6 fold the nitrogenase activity in nodules, while leghaemoglobin content was increased two times, indicating that nodules were fixing nitrogen more actively than control. Accordingly, the nitrogen content in nodules and the aerial part of plants increased by 64% and 23%, respectively. Our results were supported by biometrical parameters. The results suggested that different mechanisms are involved in soybean nodulation improvement. Therefore, the root contents of isoflavonoids, glutathione, auxin and cytokinin, and expansin (GmEXP1) gene expression were determined. We consider this emerging technology is a suitable pre-sowing seed treatment.
Taste recognition through tarsal gustatory sensilla potentially important for host selection in leaf beetles (Coleoptera: Chrysomelidae)
Authors: Yosano Shun , Kutsuwada Yasuhiko , Akatsu Minami , Masuta Shuhei , Kakazu Rei , Masuoka Naoshi , Matsuda Kazuhiro , Hori Masatoshi
Published: March 2020

It is well known that Diptera and Lepidoptera can recognize tastes through their legs, which allows them to select suitable hosts. In Coleoptera, the largest insect order, however, the role of the legs in taste recognition to aid in host selection is unclear. In the present study, we investigated taste recognition through the legs of Chrysomelidae, Coleoptera. Through morphological observations, we found that all subfamilies of Chrysomelidae exhibit gustatory sensilla in the distal leg segment, i.e., the tarsus. In contrast, we did not find evidence of these sensilla in the species that we examined from four families of Coleoptera. We confirmed that different tastes, i.e., sweet, bitter, and leaf surface wax, were received through the tarsal sensilla of Chrysomelidae by recording the electrophysiological responses of the sensilla. Further, we found that Galerucella grisescens (Chrysomelidae) can respond to different tastes used in the electrophysiological tests using only their tarsi, whereas Henosepilachna vigintioctomaculata (Coccinellidae), lacking tarsal gustatory sensilla, did not exhibit similar responses. Our results suggest that although tarsal taste recognition is not common throughout Coleopteran species, it may be a common feature in Chrysomelidae, and tarsal gustation may play an important role in host selection in this family.
Impact of Overweight/Obesity on Clinical Outcomes of Patient with Vasospastic Angina: From the Vasospastic Angina in Korea Registry
Authors: Lee Min-Ho , Jo Sang-Ho , Kwon Seongsoon , Park Byung Won , Bang Duk Won , Hyon Min Su , Baek Sang Hong , Han Seung Hwan , Her Sung-Ho , Shin Dong Il , Kim Sung-Eun , Seo Won-Woo
Published: March 2020

Obesity is associated with a high risk of morbidity and mortality in the general population and is a major independent risk factor for cardiovascular disease. We sought to evaluate the effect of overweight/obesity on clinical outcomes of patients with vasospastic angina (VA) at 1-year follow-up. The VA-KOREA (Vasospastic Angina in Korea) registry was a cohort of 11 centers from 2010 to 2015. The primary endpoint was a composite of cardiac death (CD), new-onset arrhythmia, and acute coronary syndrome (ACS). Using the body mass index (BMI) cut-off for Asians, 517 patients with definite VA were divided into either an overweight/obese (BMI ≥ 23 kg/m2) group (n = 378) or a normal weight (BMI 18.5–22.9 kg/m2) group (n = 139). The overweight/obese group showed a significantly lower rate of the primary endpoint composite (2.4% vs 7.9%, p = 0.004) and ACS (0.8% vs 4.3%, p = 0.007) than the normal weight group in the crude population. Similarly, in propensity-score matched analysis, the overweight/obese group showed a significantly lower rate of the primary endpoint composite (2.3% vs 8.4%, p = 0.006) and ACS (1.1% vs 4.6%, p = 0.035) than the normal weight group. However, there were no significant differences in CD and new-onset arrhythmia between the two groups in both the crude and propensity-score matched population. Independent predictors of the primary endpoint were overweight/obesity and dyslipidemia. In patients with VA, the overweight/obese group was associated with a favorable 1-year primary endpoint and the difference was mainly driven by the lower rate of ACS compared with the normal weight group.
Modeling current and future global distribution of Chrysomya bezziana under changing climate
Authors: Hosni Eslam M. , Nasser Mohamed G. , Al-Ashaal Sara A. , Rady Magda H. , Kenawy Mohamed A.
Published: March 2020

In the last few years, significant changes in climate have had a disparate effect on biodiversity. The influences of these changes are random and unpredictable. The resurgence of insect pests, especially of medical and veterinary importance, often corresponds with climate changes. The Old World screwworm, Chrysomya bezziana, is one of the most important myiasis-causing flies that parasitize warm-blooded animals in the Eastern Hemisphere. We used a spatial distribution modeling approach to estimate the consequences of climatic changes on the potential geographic distribution of this insect throughout the world currently and in the future. A Maxent model used occurrence data from 104 localities and 19 climatic factors to predict the suitable habitat regions throughout the world. Two representative concentration pathways 2.6 and 8.5, were used to forecast the future distribution of C. bezziana in 2050 and 2070. The Maxent model for C. bezziana provided a satisfactory result, with a high value of the Area Under Curve equal to 0.855 (±0.001). Furthermore, the True Skilled Statistics value is equal to 0.67. These values indicate the significant influence on the model of the ecology of this fly species. Jackknife test indicated that temperature variables play a significant role in C. bezziana dynamics. The resultant models indicated the areas at risk of invasion by potential serious medical/veterinary issues, especially in countries with a large livestock production.
A new rapid treatment of human hair for elemental determination by inductively coupled mass spectrometry
Authors: Astolfi Maria Luisa , Protano Carmela , Marconi Elisabetta , Massimi Lorenzo , Brunori Marco , Piamonti Daniel , Migliara Giuseppe , Vitali Matteo , Canepari Silvia
Published: March 2020

Advancements in sample preparation for performing elemental analysis are coming from the dissemination of microwave-assisted procedures, but there is still room for improvements by looking for fast and easily applicable procedures.
Assembly of FN-silk with laminin-521 to integrate hPSCs into a three-dimensional culture for neural differentiation
Authors: Åstrand Carolina , Chotteau Veronique , Falk Anna , Hedhammar My
Published: March 2020

The functionalized recombinant spider silk protein FN-silk can self-assemble into a 3D microfiber network. When combined with recombinant laminin521 it provides a 3D culture system suitable for expansion of hPSCs and following neural differentiation.
A fluorescent nanobiosensor for the facile analysis of m6A RNA demethylase activity
Authors: Yim Seo-Hee , Cha Hyung Jin , Park Se-Jin , Yim Yeajee , Woo Jae-Sung , Min Dal-Hee
Published: March 2020

A fluorescent nanobiosensor for efficient quantitative analysis of the cancer-associated, m6A RNA demethylase ALKBH5 activity is developed, which shows high potential for robust anticancer drug screening against m6A RNA demethylase.
Semiconducting few-layer PdSe2 and Pd2Se3: native point defects and contacts with native metallic Pd17Se15
Authors: Xu Xintong , Robertson John , Li Huanglong
Published: March 2020

Defect landscapes of semiconducting few-layer palladium–selenides and the their contact properties with native Pd17Se15 metal guide their developmental electronic applications.
Kinetic study of the methane dry (CO2) reforming reaction over the Ce0.70La0.20Ni0.10O2−δcatalyst
Authors: Pino Lidia , Italiano Cristina , Laganà Massimo , Vita Antonio , Recupero Vincenzo
Published: March 2020

The kinetic behaviour of the Ce0.70La0.20Ni0.10O2−δcatalyst during the methane dry reforming reaction was investigated in a fixed bed reactor in the temperature range of 923–1023 K with the partial pressure of CH4and CO2ranging between 5 and 50 kPa.
Effects of Ni loading on the physicochemical properties of NiOx/CeO2catalysts and catalytic activity for NO reduction by CO
Authors: Zhang Shuhao , Lee Jaeha , Kim Do Heui , Kim Taejin
Published: March 2020

The NO reduction by CO reaction was investigated using NiOx/CeO2catalysts with different Ni loadings. Surface NiOxcontrols the catalytic activity which was related to the molecular structure and reducibility of the catalysts.
Aging induced changes in ice nucleation activity of combustion aerosol as determined by near edge X-ray absorption fine structure (NEXAFS) spectroscopy
Authors: Mahrt Fabian , Alpert Peter A. , Dou Jing , Grönquist Philippe , Arroyo Pablo Corral , Ammann Markus , Lohmann Ulrike , Kanji Zamin A.
Published: March 2020

Soot particles aged in acidic aqueous solutions reveal significantly enhanced ice nucleating activity.
Influence of lateral methyl/chloro substituents on the liquid crystalline and photoswitching behaviour of bent-core mesogens bearing azobenzene wings: synthesis and characterization
Authors: Turlapati Srikanth , B. N. Sunil , Vishwakarma Vinod Kumar , Achalkumar Ammathnadu S. , Hegde Gurumurthy
Published: March 2020

Herein, we report selectively designed, synthesized and characterized bent-core molecules bearing methyl and chloro substituents at the lateral positions on the phenyl rings of the azobenzene wings for optical storage device applications.
Creating and screening natural product libraries
Authors: Wilson Brice A. P. , Thornburg Christopher C. , Henrich Curtis J. , Grkovic Tanja , O'Keefe Barry R.
Published: March 2020

The National Cancer Institute of the United States (NCI) has initiated a Cancer Moonshot program entitled the NCI Program for Natural Product Discovery.
Loops versus lines and the compression stiffening of cells
Authors: Gandikota M. C. , Pogoda Katarzyna , van Oosten Anne , Engstrom T. A. , Patteson A. E. , Janmey P. A. , Schwarz J. M.
Published: March 2020

Compression stiffening (CS) of a cytoskeletal cortex loop enclosing an area-conserving viscous interior is consistent with whole-cell AFM experiments. A network of fibers (lines) with area-conserving loops also achieves CS by exciting bending modes.
Thermo-photo catalytic CO2 hydrogenation over Ru/TiO2
Authors: Wang Chunling , Fang Siyuan , Xie Songhai , Zheng Ying , Hu Yun Hang
Published: March 2020

It is attractive to convert CO2 greenhouse gas into valuable compounds via photocatalysis with solar energy.
Benzonitrile and dicyanocarbazole derived electron transport type host materials for improved device lifetime in blue thermally activated delayed fluorescent organic light-emitting diodes
Authors: Byeon Sung Yong , Lee Kyung Hyung , Lee Jun Yeob
Published: March 2020

The electron transport host materials derived from dibenzofuran, benzonitrile and dicyanocarbazole units showed high triplet energy above 3.0 eV, high efficiency over 20% and 31 h lifetime up to 75% of initial luminance at 500 cd m−2.
Towards simultaneous quantification of protease inhibitors and inflammatory biomarkers in serum for people living with HIV
Authors: Wang Pengyi , Venuto Charles S. , Cha Raymond , Miller Benjamin L.
Published: March 2020

Detecting small and big molecules together: simultaneous quantification of protease inhibitor (DRV) and inflammatory biomarker in serum by Arrayed Imaging Reflectometry (AIR).
Development and characterisation of a cascade of moving baffle oscillatory crystallisers (CMBOC)
Authors: Raval Vishal , Siddique Humera , Brown Cameron J. , Florence Alastair J.
Published: March 2020

A novel four stage Cascade of Moving Baffle Oscillatory Crystallisers (CMBOC) is developed, characterised and implemented for continuous crystallisation of pharmaceuticals.
Highly-efficient Ru/Al–SBA-15 catalysts with strong Lewis acid sites for the water-assisted hydrogenation of p-phthalic acid
Authors: Mao Cong , Zheng Jingwei , Matsagar Babasaheb M. , Kankala Ranjith Kumar , Ahamad Tansir , Yang Yucheng , Wu Kevin C.-W. , Zhang Xueqin
Published: March 2020

A Ru/Al–SBA-15 catalyst with excess Lewis acid sites displayed excellent efficiency (100%), high cis-isomer selectivity (84%), and exceptional stability towards hydrogenation of p-phthalic acid in water.
Construction of heterostructure based on hierarchical Bi2MoO6 and g-C3N4 with ease for impressive performance in photoelectrocatalytic water splitting and supercapacitor
Authors: Murugan C. , Karnan M. , Sathish M. , Pandikumar A.
Published: March 2020

This work demonstrates the formation of g-C3N4/Bi2MoO6 heterostructure for water splitting and supercapacitor; which shows highest PEC efficiency and symmetric device delivered a energy density and power density of 47 W h kg−1 and 4.5 kW kg−1.
High molecular weight polyethylenes of narrow dispersity promoted using bis(arylimino)cyclohepta[b]pyridine-cobalt catalystsortho-substituted with benzhydryl & cycloalkyl groups
Authors: Han Mingyang , Zhang Qiuyue , Oleynik Ivan I. , Suo Hongyi , Solan Gregory A. , Oleynik Irina V. , Ma Yanping , Liang Tongling , Sun Wen-Hua
Published: March 2020

The depicted cobalt precatalysts, prepared using a one pot strategy, can form highly active catalysts at temperatures between 50 °C and 60 °C and can mediate the formation of linear PEs displaying high molecular weights and narrow dispersities.
Boronic, diboronic and boric acid esters of 1,8-naphthalenediol – synthesis, structure and formation of boronium salts
Authors: Manankandayalage Chamila P. , Unruh Daniel K. , Krempner Clemens
Published: March 2020

New 1,8-naphthalenediolate supported boronic, diboronic and boric acid esters and boronium salts have been synthesized and structurally characterized.
A kinetic and mechanistic study of analogous bifunctional dialkylamine platinum(ii) complexes
Authors: Olusegun Moses Ariyo , Reddy Desigan , Jaganyi Deogratius
Published: March 2020

A comparative substitution behaviour of isomeric cis/trans-platinum(ii) complexes.
Regioisomeric monopyridine-functionalized triarylethene: small AIEgens with isomeric effect and an efficient platform for the selective and sensitive detection of Pd2+ and Fe3+
Authors: Mukherjee Atasi , Chakravarty Manab
Published: March 2020

Regioisomeric monopyridine functionalized triarylethenes are established as small AIEgens. These compounds are utilized to detect Fe+3 and Pd+2 selectively in nM range. The detection is further extended for the on-site applications.
Cathodic electrodeposition of zinc–zinc phosphate–calcium phosphate composite coatings on pure iron for biodegradable implant applications
Authors: A. Adhilakshmi , K. Ravichandran , T. S. N. Sankara Narayanan
Published: March 2020

Faster degradation of iron based degradable implants in physiological media, particularly during the initial stages of implantation, poses difficulties in directly using them for clinical applications.
Less known facts and findings about TiO2nanotubes
Authors: Tsuchiya Hiroaki , Schmuki Patrik
Published: March 2020

TiO2nanotubes: Less known facts and findings which are dictating growth and applications are highlighted – this involves: spaced tubes, alloy anodization, particle decoration, substrate dependent growth and nanotwin grain boundaries.
Pressure tuned photoluminescence and band gap in two-dimensional layered g-C3N4: the effect of interlayer interactions
Authors: Hu Kuo , Yao Mingguang , Yang Zhenxing , Xiao Guanjun , Zhu Luyao , Zhang Hua , Liu Ran , Zou Bo , Liu Bingbing
Published: March 2020

We show that the photoluminescence (PL) emission color of few layered g-C3N4 (FL-CN) can be tuned from blue to yellow and anomalous PL enhancement occurs by applying pressure.
Indole-bridged bisphosphine-monoxide palladium catalysts for ethylene polymerization and copolymerization with polar monomers
Authors: Li Kangkang , Ye Junhao , Wang Zhen , Mu Hongliang , Jian Zhongbao
Published: March 2020

Novel indole-based C–N-bridged bisphosphine-monoxide palladium catalysts enable ethylene polymerization with completely different activities and molecular weights and copolymerization with polar comonomers.
Facile fabrication of a hybrid polymer electrolyte via initiator-free thiol–ene photopolymerization for high-performance all-solid-state lithium metal batteries
Authors: Zuo Cai , Zhou Binghua , Jo Ye Hyang , Li Sibo , Chen Gong , Li Shaoqiao , Luo Wen , He Dan , Zhou Xingping , Xue Zhigang
Published: March 2020

The article reports the facile fabrication of a solid polymer electrolyte via initiator-free thiol–ene photopolymerization for all-solid-state lithium metal batteries.
Coral-like ZnFe2O4–ZnO mesoporous heterojunction architectures: synthesis and enhanced sensing properties for triethylamine
Authors: Yang Tianye , Yang Xiaodong , Zhu Mingming , Zhao Hongwei , Zhang Mingzhe
Published: March 2020

A unique coral-like ZnFe2O4–ZnO heterojunction architecture based sensor has been synthesized and shows excellent sensing performance for TEA with a particularly fast response time of 0.9 s.
A study of the mechanism of small-molecule soybean-protein-derived peptide supplement to promote sleep in a mouse model
Authors: Yi Guofu , Safdar Bushra , Zhang Yihao , Li You , Liu Xinqi
Published: March 2020

Here, the effects of dietary supplementation with small-molecule soybean-protein-derived peptide (SBP) on sleep duration in mice are described.
Correction: Composition design, electrical properties, and temperature stability in (1 − x)K0.44Na0.56Nb0.96Sb0.04O3-xBi0.45La0.05Na0.5ZrO3 lead-free ceramics
Authors: Ma Jian , Wu Juan , Wu Bo
Published: March 2020

Correction for ‘Composition design, electrical properties, and temperature stability in (1 − x)K0.44Na0.56Nb0.96Sb0.04O3-xBi0.45La0.05Na0.5ZrO3 lead-free ceramics’ by Jian Ma et al., RSC Adv., 2018, 8, 29871–29878.
Solvent-free rapid synthesis of porous CeWOx by a mechanochemical self-assembly strategy for the abatement of NOx
Authors: Liu Jixing , Cheng Huifang , Tan Junbin , Liu Bing , Zhang Zihao , Xu Haidi , Zhao Minjie , Zhu Wenshuai , Liu Jian , Zhao Zhen
Published: March 2020

Porous CeWOx catalysts with impressive specific surface areas and deNOx activity were constructed by a rapid and solvent-free strategy.
Ru-doped, oxygen-vacancy-containing CeO2 nanorods toward N2 electroreduction
Authors: Ding Yu , Huang Linsong , Zhang Junbo , Guan Anxiang , Wang Qihao , Qian Linping , Zhang Lijuan , Zheng Gengfeng
Published: March 2020

Ru cluster-doped, oxygen vacancy-rich CeO2 (Ru/CeO2-VO) nanorods were developed as an efficient N2 reduction electrocatalyst, which were beneficial for N2 adsorption and activation.
Modular microcarrier technologies for cell-based bone regeneration
Authors: Nweke Chukwuma E. , Stegemann Jan P.
Published: March 2020

This review on osteogenic microcarriers outlines effective fabrication tools, material design properties, and applications for modular bone regenerative substrates.
Multi-signal amplification electrochemical DNA biosensor based on exonuclease III and tetraferrocene
Authors: Yin Zhaojiang , Cui Hanfeng , Shu Qingxia , Jin Chen , Lin Yan , Su Jia , Huang HuiLian , Liao Fusheng , Ma Guangqiang , Hong Nian , Jiang Yunfeng , Fan Hao
Published: March 2020

A new and efficient signal marker, 3,5-bis(3,5-bisferrocenethoxybenzyloxy)benzoic acid, was firstly synthesized and used for labeling. Construct a homogeneous electrochemical sensor with Exo III assisting the target cycle.
Theranostics system caged in human serum albumin as a therapy for breast tumors
Authors: Wang Qingbing , Guo Xiaoxia , Chen Yi , Wu Zhiyuan , Zhou Yu , Sadaf Saima , Han Liang , Ding Xiaoyi , Sun Tao
Published: March 2020

Biomimetic materials are attracting increasing attention in the field of drug delivery due to their low immunogenicity, good biocompatibility and degradability.
Photo-crosslinkable second order nonlinear AB2-type monomers: convenient synthesis and enhanced NLO thermostability
Authors: Wang Ruifang , Cheng Ziyao , Deng Xiaocong , Zhao Wenjing , Li Qianqian , Li Zhen
Published: March 2020

Photo-crosslinkable second order nonlinear AB2-type monomers: convenient synthesis and enhanced NLO thermostability.
Design of functional composite and all-inorganic nanostructured materials via infiltration of polymer templates with inorganic precursors
Authors: Berman Diana , Shevchenko Elena
Published: March 2020

Robust and efficient approaches for the synthesis of materials with structure, porosity, and composition controlled at the nanoscale are highly important for a wide range of applications.
Biochemical adaptations in white adipose tissue following aerobic exercise: from mitochondrial biogenesis to browning
Authors: McKie Greg L. , Wright David C.
Published: March 2020

Our understanding of white adipose tissue (WAT) biochemistry has evolved over the last few decades and it is now clear that WAT is not simply a site of energy storage, but rather a pliable endocrine organ demonstrating dynamic responsiveness to the effects of aerobic exercise. Similar to its established effects in skeletal muscle, aerobic exercise induces many biochemical adaptations in WAT including mitochondrial biogenesis and browning. While past research has focused on the regulation of these biochemical processes, there has been renewed interest as of late given the potential of harnessing WAT mitochondrial biogenesis and browning to treat obesity and type II diabetes. Unfortunately, despite increasing evidence that innumerable factors, both exercise induced and pharmacological, can elicit these biochemical adaptations in WAT, the underlying mechanisms remain poorly defined. Here, we begin with a historical account of our understanding of WAT exercise biochemistry before presenting detailed evidence in favour of an up-to-date model by which aerobic exercise induces mitochondrial biogenesis and browning in WAT. Specifically, we discuss how aerobic exercise induces increases in WAT lipolysis and re-esterification and how this could be a trigger that activates the cellular energy sensor 5′ AMP-activated protein kinase to mediate the induction of mitochondrial biogenesis and browning via the transcriptional co-activator peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma co-activator-1 alpha. While this review primarily focuses on mechanistic results from rodent studies special attention is given to the translation of these results, or lack thereof, to human physiology.
Disfluencies and Strategies Used by People Who Stutter During a Working Memory Task
Authors: Arongna  , Sakai Naomi , Yasu Keiichi , Mori Koichi
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Working memory (WM) deficits are implicated in various communication disorders, including stuttering. The reading span test (RST) measures WM capacity with the dual task of reading sentences aloud and remembering target words. This study demonstrates a difference in strategy between people who stutter (PWS) and people who do not stutter (PWNS) in performing the RST. The impact of the effective strategy and the stuttering-like disfluencies during the RST were investigated.

Method

Twenty-six PWS and 24 people who do not stutter performed the RST and a simple reading aloud task. After the RST, they were asked which strategy (“imagery” or “rehearsal”) they had used in order to remember the target words during the task.

Results

The proportion of those who used an “imagery” strategy during the RST was significantly smaller in the PWS group. However, the RST scores of those who used an “imagery” strategy were significantly higher than the RST scores of those who used a “rehearsal” strategy in both groups. The “rehearsal” users were asked to undertake one more RST with an “imagery” strategy, which resulted in an increased score for both groups. The disfluency frequency of the PWS group was significantly reduced during the RST than during the oral reading task, irrespective of the employed strategy.

Conclusions

PWS tended to use the less effective verbal “rehearsal” strategy during the RST. The differential effects of switching strategies on the measured WM capacity and on the disfluency rate suggest that the enhanced fluency during the RST would be mostly attributable to the reduced attention to speech motor control. Therefore, the use of the “imagery” strategy and focusing on the contents of communication, away from speech motor control, should help PWS communicate better in daily conversation.
Machine-Scored Syntax: Comparison of the CLAN Automatic Scoring Program to Manual Scoring
Authors: Roberts Jenny A. , Altenberg Evelyn P. , Hunter Madison
Published: March 2020

Purpose

The results of automatic machine scoring of the Index of Productive Syntax from the Computerized Language ANalysis (CLAN) tools of the Child Language Data Exchange System of TalkBank (MacWhinney, 2000) were compared to manual scoring to determine the accuracy of the machine-scored method.

Method

Twenty transcripts of 10 children from archival data of the Weismer Corpus from the Child Language Data Exchange System at 30 and 42 months were examined. Measures of absolute point difference and point-to-point accuracy were compared, as well as points erroneously given and missed. Two new measures for evaluating automatic scoring of the Index of Productive Syntax were introduced: Machine Item Accuracy (MIA) and Cascade Failure Rate— these measures further analyze points erroneously given and missed. Differences in total scores, subscale scores, and individual structures were also reported.

Results

Mean absolute point difference between machine and hand scoring was 3.65, point-to-point agreement was 72.6%, and MIA was 74.9%. There were large differences in subscales, with Noun Phrase and Verb Phrase subscales generally providing greater accuracy and agreement than Question/Negation and Sentence Structures subscales. There were significantly more erroneous than missed items in machine scoring, attributed to problems of mistagging of elements, imprecise search patterns, and other errors. Cascade failure resulted in an average of 4.65 points lost per transcript.

Conclusions

The CLAN program showed relatively inaccurate outcomes in comparison to manual scoring on both traditional and new measures of accuracy. Recommendations for improvement of the program include accounting for second exemplar violations and applying cascaded credit, among other suggestions. It was proposed that research on machine-scored syntax routinely report accuracy measures detailing erroneous and missed scores, including MIA, so that researchers and clinicians are aware of the limitations of a machine-scoring program.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.11984364
Prosody Dominates Over Semantics in Emotion Word Processing: Evidence From Cross-Channel and Cross-Modal Stroop Effects
Authors: Lin Yi , Ding Hongwei , Zhang Yang
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Emotional speech communication involves multisensory integration of linguistic (e.g., semantic content) and paralinguistic (e.g., prosody and facial expressions) messages. Previous studies on linguistic versus paralinguistic salience effects in emotional speech processing have produced inconsistent findings. In this study, we investigated the relative perceptual saliency of emotion cues in cross-channel auditory alone task (i.e., semantics–prosody Stroop task) and cross-modal audiovisual task (i.e., semantics–prosody–face Stroop task).

Method

Thirty normal Chinese adults participated in two Stroop experiments with spoken emotion adjectives in Mandarin Chinese. Experiment 1 manipulated auditory pairing of emotional prosody (happy or sad) and lexical semantic content in congruent and incongruent conditions. Experiment 2 extended the protocol to cross-modal integration by introducing visual facial expression during auditory stimulus presentation. Participants were asked to judge emotional information for each test trial according to the instruction of selective attention.

Results

Accuracy and reaction time data indicated that, despite an increase in cognitive demand and task complexity in Experiment 2, prosody was consistently more salient than semantic content for emotion word processing and did not take precedence over facial expression. While congruent stimuli enhanced performance in both experiments, the facilitatory effect was smaller in Experiment 2.

Conclusion

Together, the results demonstrate the salient role of paralinguistic prosodic cues in emotion word processing and congruence facilitation effect in multisensory integration. Our study contributes tonal language data on how linguistic and paralinguistic messages converge in multisensory speech processing and lays a foundation for further exploring the brain mechanisms of cross-channel/modal emotion integration with potential clinical applications.
OCPAN: multi‐person pose estimation with more attention on residual information
Authors: Lin Hsinchuan , Zhu Jiaying , Hu Haifeng
Published: March 2020

Redundant information generated in the process of feature fusion and residual information always remain challenging in multi‐person pose estimation. In this Letter, the authors present an optimised cascaded pyramid attention network composed of two novel modules to reduce the redundant information and highlight the residual information for more accurate results. The first module, called channel optimisation module (COM), optimises the channel at different levels. The proposed COM consisting of convolution layers and two pooling layers performs on the feature maps Conv‐25 of different resolution to reduce the redundant information after convolution operation. The second module, called residual attention bottleneck module (RABM), highlights the residual information in the bottleneck. Through adopting the attention mechanism in the bottleneck, RABM performs a significant role in reducing the redundant information. In contrast to the previous work, they attach more attention to residual information, helping to tackle the challenging problem for the ‘hard’ keypoints. By merging COM and RABM into Cascaded Pyramid Network, the authors' method achieves competitive results of 74.6 AP on the COCO keypoint benchmark, outperforming the state‐of‐the‐art results.
Dual priority: a real‐time and integrated, device‐and‐network‐centric wireless network selection
Authors: Venkataraman Hrishikesh , Harshini Komali
Published: March 2020

Over the last 5–7 years, with the proliferation of mobile computing devices, there has been a tremendous increase in data usage by mobile subscribers. This has quite often resulted in network congestion, forcing the operators to either increase the available bandwidth or reduce the data‐rate per subscriber. To overcome this problem, network operators have been deploying different radio access networks, including Wi‐Fi and small cells across their coverage areas. In order to remain always best connected, several techniques have been proposed over the period for efficient network selection. All these techniques can be broadly categorised into either device‐centric or network‐centric solutions. However, both device‐centric and network‐centric solutions have their disadvantages. In this study, a ‘dual priority’ scheme is proposed and developed that takes into account the preferences of both the subscribers and the network operator. Notably, the proposed ‘dual priority’ scheme offers a combined decision for the efficient handover of subscribers from cellular to Wi‐Fi. In this work, every device has its own mechanism of ranking its preferred networks, after which the network takes the decision for offload based on the preferences and its resource availability. It has been observed that the proposed dual priority scheme results in up‐to three times reduction in the time taken for offloading decision as compared to state‐of‐the‐art network‐centric solutions.
Efficient linearisation technique for crosstalk and power amplifier non‐linearity suitable for massive MIMO transmitters
Authors: Jaraut Praveen , Rawat Meenakshi , Ghannouchi Fadhel M.
Published: March 2020

Massive multi‐input–multi‐output (MIMO) is expected to be an eminent technique to meet the demands of high system capacity and data rates of wireless networks in 5G wireless communication. However due to inherent imperfections of the transmitter such as power‐amplifier (PA) non‐linearity and crosstalk, practically, the signal quality suffers and does not reap sufficient benefits from the various MIMO techniques. Digital predistortion (DPD) is a popular technique for single‐input–single‐output transmission to enhance signal quality. This study examines the issue of high DPD's complexity in mitigating imperfections in MIMO transmitters. This work proposes a less complex, novel DPD model for linearising large‐scale MIMO transmitters along with its characterisation procedure. The proof‐of‐concept is provided with the measurement setup containing 41 MIMO transmitters in the presence of non‐linear crosstalk, linear crosstalk, and strong PA non‐linearity. The proposed model performs comparably to the state‐of‐art DPD models like parallel Hammerstein and dual‐input crosstalk mismatch with lower number of floating‐point operations (flops). The proposed model improves adjacent channel power ratio up to  dBc and error vector magnitude up to 1.08% for LTE signal of 40 MHz bandwidth.
Analysis and optimisation of a bearingless induction motor's suspension force and unbalanced magnetic pulling force mathematical model
Authors: Yang Zebin , Ding Qifeng , Sun Xiaodong , Zhao Qian , Luo Jiasheng
Published: March 2020

Aiming at the problem that the two general mathematical models of suspension force and unbalanced magnetic pulling force (UMPF) are affected by the actual factors of a bearingless induction motor, a non‐linear model fitting method is proposed. Firstly, by finite element method (FEM), the coupling influence of the torque winding and suspension winding is taken into account, and the maximum voltage of the latter is obtained. Secondly, considering the motor magnetic saturation and combing the least squares method (LSM), the suspension force is estimated by a binary function. Similarly, considering the magnetic saturation and cogging effect, the UMPF is estimated by a ternary function. Finally, comparing the fitting precision under different orders, the two functions with their smallest errors are obtained, and the two original linear models are optimised, respectively. The theoretical study and experimental results show that the motor based on the optimised non‐linear model control system has a better suspension performance.
Crowd intelligence for sustainable futuristic intelligent transportation system: a review
Authors: Chandra Shit Rathin
Published: March 2020

Connected vehicles and fully automated driving systems are the main objectives of the future transportation system. A safe interactive system that interacts with people and things is essential to achieve these objectives. In this context, a crowd intelligence system plays a key role in interactive system development. Crowd intelligence is a combined method of data collection, integration and analysis from devices such as the smartphones, wearables, vehicles and a wide range of Internet of Things applications to use them as sensors. This collective feedback‐driven interactive method is opportunistic for the development of the future transportation system. In this study, a survey is conducted considering crowd‐intelligence techniques for the transportation system. From this survey, various challenges of the intelligent transportation system have been outlined and crowd‐intelligent solutions have been discussed. A layered structure of transportation system architecture is suggested considering various problems in each layer and its crowd‐intelligent solutions. The crowd‐intelligence‐based mobility, traffic control, traffic prediction, parking solutions have been discussed in this survey. Moreover, the importance of crowd‐intelligent techniques and its applicability is discussed for sustainable development of futuristic transport infrastructure.
Aluminium alloy processed by square‐column composite structure and its anti‐icing characteristics
Authors: Wan Yanling , Zhang Meng , Dong Bin , Yu Huadong
Published: March 2020

To prepare surfaces with stable anti‐icing properties, square‐column micro/nanocomposite structures were fabricated using wire‐cut electrical discharge machining. Smooth and hydrophobic/superhydrophobic surfaces were tested for wettability and were subjected to mechanistic analysis. Droplets were found to produce an ‘air cushion effect’ upon contact with the microstructure, which reduced the contact area between the droplets and the aluminium substrate and increased the contact angle of the droplets on the surface. The icing experiment quantitatively evaluated the anti‐icing performance of the surfaces by observing the cooling time and out‐of‐phase icing time of water droplets. It was found that the anti‐icing effect is influenced by the wettability of the material and that the superhydrophobic surface has excellent anti‐icing properties. Combined with the one‐dimensional heat transfer theory for analysing the mechanism of icing, the results show that the ‘air cushion’ reduces the heat transfer between the solid and liquid and increases the thermodynamic barrier to ice core formation. The stability of the sample surface was tested by icing‐melting experiments and friction experiments, and the test piece exhibited stable wettability and anti‐icing performance.
Targeted nanocarriers for mitogen‐activated protein kinase inhibitor delivery to treat coronary artery spasm
Authors: Li Ke , Wang Lin , Xu Cangbao , Zhang Yaping , Cheng Fan , Shao Lingqiao , Jia Min , Li Xueping , Zhan Wenhua
Published: March 2020

Coronary artery spasm (CAS) causes serious ischaemic cardiac disease. The hyper‐reactivity of vascular smooth muscle cells, which ascribe the up‐regulation of endothelin receptor B type, is a key abnormality responsible for the pathological constriction of arteries in CAS. In this study, the nanocarriers were prepared and optimised for the delivery of U0126, which is an inhibitor of the mitogen‐activated protein kinase, to treat pathological constriction of arteries. First, cationic amphipathic starch and hyaluronic acid were used in the encapsulation of U0126 to form U0126 nanoparticles (NPs). The shape of the U0126 NPs was spherical with a typical core–shell structure. The size was 94.1 ± 10.2 nm and the zeta potential was −20.3 ± 5.1 mV. Maximal encapsulation efficiencies and drug loading of U0126 in the NPs were 96.2 ± 3.1 and 8.2 ± 2.5%, respectively. U0126 NPs showed very great stability and could perform an effective targeted delivery. An arterial tissue culture model was used in the investigation of anti‐constriction. In comparison with treatment with the free drug, the U0126 NPs significantly decreased the effective dosage, enhanced the effect of anti‐constriction, and down‐regulated the endothelin type B receptor in the culture model. These results suggest that U0126 NPs have a significant potential for the treatment of CAS.