bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Tolerance of young allis shad Alosa alosa (Clupeidae) to oxy‐thermic stress
Authors: Baumann Loïc , Vega Joanna , Philip Joris , Polese Fabien , Vétillard Fabrice , Pierre Maud , Le Barh Romaric , Jatteau Philippe , Bardonnet Agnès , Acolas Marie‐Laure
Published: September 2020

The ecology of the young stages of allis shad Alosa alosa is poorly documented, although they can be exposed to many pressures during their freshwater phase and their downstream migration. When passing through systems such as the Gironde‐Garonne‐Dordogne watershed (GGD, SW France), they can be subjected to high temperatures and low levels of oxygen (hypoxia). The aim of this work is to assess the tolerance of young Alosa alosa at four ages (c. 10, 30, 60 and 85 days old) by challenging them to different temperatures (18, 22, 26 and 28°C) together with decreasing oxygen saturation levels (from 100% to 30%). Survival of the 10‐day‐old individuals was not influenced by oxy‐thermic conditions, but high stress levels were detected and perhaps this age class was too fragile regarding the constraint of the experimental design. Survival at 30 and at 60 days old was negatively influenced by the highest temperatures tested alone (from 26°C and from 28°C, respectively) but no effect was detected at 85 days old up to 28°C. A combined effect of temperature and oxygen level was highlighted, with heat accelerating survival decrease when associated with oxygen level depletion: essentially, survival was critical (<50%) at 30 days old at temperature ≥22°C together with 30% O2; at 60 days old, at temperature = 28°C with 30% O2; at 85 days old, at temperature ≥26°C with ≤40% O2. Tolerance to oxy‐thermic pressures appeared to be greater among the migratory ages (60 and 85 days old) than among the 30‐day‐old group. Based on environmental data recorded in the GGD system and on our experimental results, an exploratory analysis allowed a discussion of the possible impact of past oxy‐thermic conditions on the local population dynamics between 2005 and 2018. The oxy‐thermic conditions that may affect Alosa alosa at ages when they migrate downstream (60 and 85 days old) were not frequently recorded in this period, except in cases of extreme episodes of heat together with hypoxia that occurred in some years, in summertime in the turbidity maximum zone of the Gironde estuary (particularly in the year 2006). Interestingly, oxy‐thermic conditions that are likely to threaten the 30‐day‐old individuals occurred more frequently in the lower freshwater parts of the GGD system between the years 2005 and 2018. In the context of climate change, a general increase in temperature is predicted, as well as more frequent and severe hypoxic events, therefore we suggest that local Alosa alosa population recruitment could encounter critical oxy‐thermic conditions more frequently in the future if no adaptive management of water resources occurs.
Molecular and histopathological characterization of Photobacterium damselae in naturally and experimentally infected Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)
Authors: El‐Son Mai A. M. , Elbahnaswy Samia , Ibrahim Iman
Published: September 2020

Mass mortality has occurred among cultured Nile tilapia, Oreochromis niloticus, on fish farms in Manzala, Dakahlia province, Egypt, in the summer season, 2019. Moribund fish were reported with deep ulcers, septicaemic lesions and sampled for bacterial isolation. In this study, most isolates were subjected to bacteriological examination, antibiotic sensitivity test, 16S rRNA gene sequencing and histopathological examination. Following isolate identification, intraperitoneal challenge of Nile tilapia with a bacterial suspension 2 × 106 CFU/ml was performed. Samples from liver, spleen and kidney were collected for histological and biochemical analysis. The results showed a high similarity (99%) to Photobacterium damselae strains using phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA. P. damselae exhibited resistance to amoxicillin and erythromycin, as well it was highly sensitive to chloramphenicol and doxycycline. Moreover, haemorrhage, oedema, hemosiderosis and melanomacrophage activation in the liver and head kidney of infected fish were detected by light and electron microscopy. Also, significant higher levels of CAT and SOD in the spleen and head kidney, as well as the serum levels of NO were observed in experimentally challenged O. niloticus, compared to the control fish. Our data identified P. damselae for the first time from infected Nile tilapia, describing its sensitivity to a variety of antibiotics, histopathological alterations and oxidative stress impact, and it could be useful indicators for understanding P. damselae pathogenesis, which might provide a preventive efficacy for P. damselae.
Investigation of the histological and textural properties of chicken breast thawed by high voltage electric field
Authors: Rahbari Mahshid , Hamdami Nasser , Mirzaei Habibollah , Jafari Seid Mahdi
Published: September 2020

Our aim was to study the possible changes in texture and microstructure of chicken breast during high voltage electric field (HVEF) thawing. The HVEF was applied at 1.5, 2.25, and 3 kV/cm electrical field strengths for thawing of chicken breast cubes (2 × 2 × 2 cm3), in a designed multiple needle‐plate electrode system. The hardness was increased first at a higher voltage (from 1.5 to 2.25 kV/cm), then decreased at 3 kV/cm; the lowest hardness and highest springiness were observed in control sample with the maximum thawing time, that can be associated with protein denaturation results. The samples thawed under 1.5 kV/cm showed a lower texture destruction; in the histological sections of the thawed sample under 2.25 kV/cm, the fibrils remained relatively intact without any gaps; however, the largest deformation and loss of collagen fibrillation network was related to the control and the samples thawed under 3 kV/cm, possibly due to the great degree of protein denaturation. Color parameters showed that the L* and b* values increased by raising the voltage, and a* value dropped significantly, at higher voltages. Applying a desirable voltage and electrode distance for creating electric field can decrease the structural damages resulting from protein denaturation during the conventional thawing.

Practical Applications

Tenderness, toughness and color of meat are among the most important factors in terms of consumer acceptance. It seems the HVEF process modifies the texture of muscles by influencing the denaturation of myofibrillar and sarcoplasmic proteins, which is characterized by texture analysis test. On the other hand, the visualization of muscle fiber destruction is possible by using histological investigations. In this research, the effect of HVEF thawing on both the texture and microstructure of chicken has not been focused. The main purpose of this paper was to study the possible changes made in the texture and microstructure of chicken breast during HVEF thawing, and comparison with changes resulted from conventional thawing.
Generalizability of Blood Pressure Lowering Trials to Older Patients: Cross‐Sectional Analysis
Authors: Sheppard James P. , Lown Mark , Burt Jenni , Temple Eleanor , Lowe Rebecca , Ashby Hannah , Todd Oliver , Allen Julie , Ford Gary A. , Fraser Rosalyn , Heneghan Carl , Hobbs F.D. Richard , Jowett Sue , Little Paul , Mant Jonathan , Mollison Jill , Payne Rupert , Williams Marney , Yu Ly‐Mee , McManus Richard J.
Published: September 2020

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES

Randomized controlled trials are used to inform clinical guidelines on the management of hypertension in older adults, but it is unclear to what extent these trials represent the general population attending routine clinical practice. This study aimed to define the proportion and characteristics of patients eligible for hypertension trials conducted in older people.

DESIGN

Cross‐sectional study.

SETTING

A total of 24 general practices in England.

PARTICIPANTS

Anonymized electronic health record data from all individuals aged 80 and older.

MEASUREMENTS

Descriptive statistics were used to define the proportion and characteristics of patients eligible for two previous medication intensification trials (HYVET, SPRINT) and one medication reduction trial (OPTiMISE). A logistic regression model was constructed to estimate predictors of eligibility for each trial.

RESULTS

Of 15,376 patients identified, 268 (1.7%; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.5–2.0%), 5,290 (34.4%; 95%CI = 33.7–35.2%), and 3,940 (25.6%; 95%CI = 24.9–26.3%) were eligible for the HYVET, SPRINT, and OPTiMISE trials, respectively. Between 5.6% and 30.7% of exclusions from each trial were due to eligibility criteria excluding those with high or uncontrolled blood pressure. Frailty (odds ratio [OR] = .44; 95%CI = .36–.54 [OPTiMISE]), cardiovascular polypharmacy (OR = .61; 95%CI = .55–.68 [SPRINT]) and multimorbidity (OR = .72; 95%CI = .64–.82 [SPRINT]) were associated with a lower likelihood of being eligible for one or more of the trials.

CONCLUSION

A possible unintended consequence of blood pressure criteria used by trials attempting to answer different primary questions is that for many older patients, no trial evidence exists to inform treatment decisions in routine practice. Caution should be exercised when applying results from existing trials to patients with frailty or multimorbidity.
MiR‐95‐5p involves in the migration and invasion of trophoblast cells by targeting low density lipoprotein receptor‐related protein 6
Authors: Ni Huijie , Wang Xiao , Qu Hongmei , Gao Xueli , Yu Xiaoyan
Published: September 2020

Aims

Low density lipoprotein receptor‐related protein 6 (LRP6) has been demonstrated to control trophoblast cell invasion, but its regulatory gene remains undefined. In this study, microRNA (miR) regulating LRP6 were explored to elucidate the potential mechanism of preeclampsia (PE).

Methods

Firstly, the expression of LRP6 in PE tissues was detected by immunohistochemical staining and quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction (qRT‐PCR) assay. Prediction software predicted that LRP6 might be the target gene of miR‐95‐5p, and verified by double‐luciferase reporter analysis. qRT‐PCR assay measured the expression of miR‐95‐5p in PE tissues and trophoblast cell lines. Then, we transfected miR‐95‐5p mimic, inhibitor, LRP6, or mimic plus LRP6 into trophoblast cell lines, and analyzed their influences on cell migration and invasion by wound healing and Transwell experiments. The expressions of matrix metalloproteinase (MMP)‐2, MMP‐9 and tissue inhibitors of metalloproteinase (TIMP)‐1 in transfected cells were examined by western blot (WB) analysis.

Results

LRP6 was low‐expressed in PE tissues, while miR‐95‐5p expression was high‐expressed. MiR‐95‐5p negatively regulated the LRP6 expression in trophoblast cells. Both up‐regulated LRP6 and down‐regulated miR‐95‐5p can not only promote the migration and invasion of trophoblast cells, but also raised the expressions of MMP‐2 and MMP‐9 and inhibited the expression of TIMP‐1. The over‐expression of miR‐95‐5p suppressed the metastasis of trophoblast cells and rescued LRP6‐induced increase of MMP‐2 and MMP‐9 and reduction of TIMP‐1.

Conclusion

MiR‐95‐5p involved in the migration and invasion of trophoblast cells by targeting LRP6, which might be a potential therapeutic target for PE.
The Effect of Aging on the Roughness and Bacterial Adhesion of Lithium Disilicate and Zirconia Ceramics
Authors: Matalon Shlomo , Safadi Dana , Meirowitz Avi , Ormianer Zeev
Published: September 2020

Purpose

This in vitro study was designed to compare bacterial adhesion to zirconia versus lithium disilicate crowns after artificial aging.

Materials and Methods

Seventy‐five discs were tested in this study: 25 Cr‐Co base metal discs (control), 25 zirconia discs, and 25 lithium disilicate discs. Each sample was polished and glazed appropriately. The discs were subjected to 1000 thermal cycles between 5 and 55°C, whereby samples stayed in the bath for 20 seconds, at each temperature. Then, 10 µL of Streptococcus sanguinis suspension was placed on the discs. The samples were scanned for surface roughness before and after aging, and after incubation. Sp and Sa were measured with a confocal, visible light disk‐scanning system (Sa expresses the difference in height of each point compared to the arithmetical mean of the surface. Sp is the height of the highest peak within the defined area). Optical density of the discs was evaluated by a spectrophotometer. One‐way ANOVA was performed to assess differences after aging and incubation.

Results

Statistical analysis showed significant differences (p = 0.02) in surface roughness between the Cr‐Co base metal, zirconia and lithium disilicate before and after aging. The mean Sa was 0.36 ± 0.12 µm, 0.638 ± 0.24 µm, and 1.23 ± 0.42 µm, respectively. Lithium disilicate had the highest surface roughness values. There was a significant difference (p = 0.001) after incubation. The mean and standard deviation surface roughness of Cr‐Co base metal, zirconia and lithium disilicate were 0.99 ± 0.49 µm, 1.40 ± 0.46 µm, and 2.44 ± 1.21 µm, respectively.

While no significant differences were found in the accumulation of S. sanguinis between zirconia and lithium disilicate, there was a significant difference (p = 0.02) in the optical density between these 2 test groups and the control group (metal). The optical density of metal (0.94 ± 0.15) was higher than for lithium disilicate (0.74 ± 0.10) and zirconia (0.75 ± 0.08). There was no statistical difference in bacterial adherence between lithium disilicate and zirconia.

Conclusion

Dental crown materials differed significantly in terms of surface roughness and bacterial adhesion between Cr‐Co base metal and zirconia and lithium disilicate. After aging and bacterial adherence, the zirconia discs had the smoothest surface, with similar bacterial accumulation as lithium disilicate; suggesting that lithium disilicate may be less sensitive to bacterial adhesion than zirconia.
Prevalence and risk factors of pre‐schoolers' fine motor delay within vulnerable Australian communities
Authors: Strooband Karel F B , de Rosnay Marc , Okely Anthony D
Published: September 2020

Aim

This study examined the prevalence and risk factors of fine motor delay in Australian pre‐school children from low‐income communities.

Methods

Children from the Early Start Baseline Study completed the Ages and Stages Questionnaire (3rd edn.). Age, sex, executive function and family characteristics were assessed and associations with fine motor skills analysed.

Results

Data were available for 700 children (Mage 54.0 ± 8.6 months, 53.1% boys) of which 77.4% were typically developing, 12.1% at risk and 10.4% delayed for fine motor skill. Children had higher odds of being delayed if they were male (odds ratio (OR) 3.30, 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.22–4.90) or indigenous (OR 3.31, 95% CI 2.12–5.16) and had lower self‐regulatory (OR 2.17, 95% CI 1.31–3.58). Higher vocabulary (OR 0.92, 95% CI 0.89–0.94), higher family income (OR 0.22, 95% CI 0.05–0.90) and family education (OR 0.25, 95% CI 0.08–0.74) were associated with lower odds of delay.

Conclusion

Almost one in four children from vulnerable communities experience fine motor difficulties, highlighting the importance of early screening and targeting key child and environmental risk factors.
Grazing livestock increases both vegetation and seed bank diversity in remnant and restored grasslands
Authors: Kapás Rozália E. , Plue Jan , Kimberley Adam , Cousins Sara A.O.
Published: September 2020

Questions

Restoring grasslands is of great importance to biodiversity conservation to counteract widespread, ongoing losses of plant species diversity. Using source populations in remnant habitats and increasing functional connectivity mediated by grazing animals within and between habitats can benefit grassland restoration efforts. Here we investigate how grazing contributes to vegetation and seed bank diversity and composition in remnant and restored grassland communities in fragmented landscapes.

Location

Stockholm archipelago, Sweden.

Methods

We investigated the effects of the presence or absence of grazing animals as potential elements of functional connectivity on grassland species composition in both the vegetation layer and in the seed bank. Species inventory and seed bank sampling were carried out in 2 m × 2 m plots in remnant grassland habitats and adjacent restored grasslands on former arable fields.

Results

Species composition varied between remnant and restored grasslands, with management‐dependent species more common in remnant grasslands. Remnant habitats with active grazing management contained a higher number of species in both the vegetation and seed bank compared to restored grasslands, but grazing reduced dispersal limitation from higher distance to source populations for specialist species. Where grazing was absent fewer plant species occurred in both the vegetation and in the seed bank.

Conclusion

Our results show that grazing livestock play a key role in facilitating both spatial and temporal dispersal in fragmented grasslands. This results in increased species diversity in the vegetation and the seed bank of grazed grasslands compared to those maintained by mowing only. Functional connectivity provided by grazing management increases the possibility for species establishment from both the below‐ground seed bank and the surrounding landscape, thus increasing the resilience of plant communities against disturbances or climatic changes.
A drift‐barrier model drives the genomic landscape of a structured bacterial population
Authors: Gardon Hélène , Biderre‐Petit Corinne , Jouan‐Dufournel Isabelle , Bronner Gisèle
Published: September 2020

Bacterial populations differentiate over time and space to form distinct genetic units. The mechanisms governing this diversification are presumed to result from the ecological context of living units to adapt to specific niches. Recently, a model assuming the acquisition of advantageous genes among populations rather than whole genome sweeps has emerged to explain population differentiation. However, the characteristics of these exchanged, or flexible, genes and whether their evolution is driven by adaptive or neutral processes remain controversial. By analysing the flexible genome of single‐amplified genomes of co‐occurring populations of the marine Prochlorococcus HLII ecotype, we highlight that genomic compartments – rather than population units – are characterized by different evolutionary trajectories. The dynamics of gene fluxes vary across genomic compartments and therefore the effectiveness of selection depends on the fluctuation of the effective population size along the genome. Taken together, these results support the drift‐barrier model of bacterial evolution.
A recently isolated human commensal Escherichia coli ST10 clone member mediates enhanced thermotolerance and tetrathionate respiration on a P1 phage‐derived IncY plasmid
Authors: Kamal Shady Mansour , Cimdins‐Ahne Annika , Lee Changhan , Li Fengyang , Martín‐Rodríguez Alberto J. , Seferbekova Zaira , Afasizhev Robert , Wami Haleluya Tesfaye , Katikaridis Panagiotis , Meins Lena , Lünsdorf Heinrich , Dobrindt Ulrich , Mogk Axel , Römling Ute
Published: September 2020

The ubiquitous human commensal Escherichia coli has been well investigated through its model representative E. coli K‐12. In this work, we initially characterized E. coli Fec10, a recently isolated human commensal strain of phylogroup A/sequence type ST10. Compared to E. coli K‐12, the 4.88 Mbp Fec10 genome is characterized by distinct single‐nucleotide polymorphisms and acquisition of genomic islands. In addition, E. coli Fec10 possesses a 155.86 kbp IncY plasmid, a composite element based on phage P1. pFec10 harbours multiple cargo genes such as coding for a tetrathionate reductase and its corresponding regulatory two‐component system. Among the cargo genes is also the Transmissible Locus of Protein Quality Control (TLPQC), which mediates tolerance to lethal temperatures in bacteria. The disaggregase ClpGGI of TLPQC constitutes a major determinant of the thermotolerance of E. coli Fec10. We confirmed stand‐alone disaggregation activity, but observed distinct biochemical characteristics of ClpGGI‐Fec10 compared to the nearly identical Pseudomonas aeruginosa ClpGGI‐SG17M. Furthermore, we noted a unique contribution of ClpGGI‐Fec10 to the exquisite thermotolerance of E. coli Fec10, suggesting functional differences between both disaggregases in vivo. Detection of thermotolerance in 10% of human commensal E. coli isolates hints to the successful establishment of food‐borne heat‐resistant strains in the human gut.
Identification of Avramr1 from Phytophthora infestans using long read and cDNA pathogen‐enrichment sequencing (PenSeq)
Authors: Lin Xiao , Song Tianqiao , Fairhead Sebastian , Witek Kamil , Jouet Agathe , Jupe Florian , Witek Agnieszka I. , Karki Hari S. , Vleeshouwers Vivianne G. A. A. , Hein Ingo , Jones Jonathan D. G.
Published: September 2020

Potato late blight, caused by the oomycete pathogen Phytophthora infestans, significantly hampers potato production. Recently, a new Resistance to Phytophthora infestans (Rpi) gene, Rpi‐amr1, was cloned from a wild Solanum species, Solanum americanum. Identification of the corresponding recognized effector (Avirulence or Avr) genes from P. infestans is key to elucidating their naturally occurring sequence variation, which in turn informs the potential durability of the cognate late blight resistance. To identify the P. infestans effector recognized by Rpi‐amr1, we screened available RXLR effector libraries and used long read and cDNA pathogen‐enrichment sequencing (PenSeq) on four P. infestans isolates to explore the untested effectors. Using single‐molecule real‐time sequencing (SMRT) and cDNA PenSeq, we identified 47 highly expressed effectors from P. infestans, including PITG_07569, which triggers a highly specific cell death response when transiently coexpressed with Rpi‐amr1 in Nicotiana benthamiana, suggesting that PITG_07569 is Avramr1. Here we demonstrate that long read and cDNA PenSeq enables the identification of full‐length RXLR effector families and their expression profile. This study has revealed key insights into the evolution and polymorphism of a complex RXLR effector family that is associated with the recognition by Rpi‐amr1.
Impact of visual features on capture of Aedes aegypti with host decoy traps (HDT)
Authors: Tang J. Y. , Kosgei J. , Ochomo E. , Ndenga B. A. , Ghiaseddin R. , Lobo N. F. , Hawkes F. M. , O'Tousa J. E.
Published: September 2020

The host decoy trap (HDT) is a surveillance trap that presents a combination of heat, visual and odour stimuli to attract bloodmeal‐seeking mosquitoes. Here we employed a semi‐field study to demonstrate the role of the visual attributes present on the HDT on the effectiveness of Aedes aegypti capture. Our results show that the HDT is an effective means of capturing Ae. aegypti mosquitoes in semi‐field conditions, with a per trial capture rate of up to 69% across four visually distinct HDTs. The solid black coloured HDT captured more mosquitoes than HDTs with black‐white stripes, black‐white checkerboard patches or solid white colour by a factor of 1.9, 1.7 and 1.5, respectively. In all cases, mosquito capture was not evenly distributed on the HDT surface, with captures on the HDT's outer downwind half, away from the odour delivery, exceeding captures on the inner upwind half. We conclude that the solid black surface of the original HDT design is more effective than the other surfaces (white or black/white patterns) for the capture of Ae. aegypti. Our results demonstrate that mosquito attraction to the thermal and odorant cues of the HDT is modulated by visual information.
Identification of intrinsic primary afferent neurons in mouse jejunum
Authors: Melo Carina Guimarães de Souza , Nicolai Evan N. , Alcaino Constanza , Cassmann Tiffany J. , Whiteman Sara T. , Wright Alec M. , Miller Katie E. , Gibbons Simon J. , Beyder Arthur , Linden David R.
Published: September 2020

Background

The gut is the only organ system with intrinsic neural reflexes. Intrinsic primary afferent neurons (IPANs) of the enteric nervous system initiate intrinsic reflexes, form gut‐brain connections, and undergo considerable neuroplasticity to cause digestive diseases. They remain inaccessible to study in mice in the absence of a selective marker. Advillin is used as a marker for primary afferent neurons in dorsal root ganglia. The aim of this study was to test the hypothesis that advillin is expressed in IPANs of the mouse jejunum.

Methods

Advillin expression was assessed with immunohistochemistry and using transgenic mice expressing an inducible Cre recombinase under the advillin promoter were used to drive tdTomato and the genetically encoded calcium indicator GCaMP5. These mice were used to characterize the morphology and physiology of advillin‐expressing enteric neurons using confocal microscopy, calcium imaging, and whole‐cell patch‐clamp electrophysiology.

Key Results

Advillin is expressed in about 25% of myenteric neurons of the mouse jejunum, and these neurons demonstrate the requisite properties of IPANs. Functionally, they demonstrate calcium responses following mechanical stimuli of the mucosa and during antidromic action potentials. They have Dogiel type II morphology with neural processes that mostly remain within the myenteric plexus, but also project to the mucosa and express NeuN and calcitonin gene‐related peptide (CGRP), but not nNOS.

Conclusions and Inferences

Advillin marks jejunal IPANs providing accessibility to this important neuronal population to study and model digestive disease.
Trehalose 6‐phosphate promotes seed filling by activating auxin biosynthesis
Authors: Meitzel Tobias , Radchuk Ruslana , McAdam Erin L. , Thormählen Ina , Feil Regina , Munz Eberhard , Hilo Alexander , Geigenberger Peter , Ross John J. , Lunn John E. , Borisjuk Ljudmilla
Published: September 2020

Plants undergo several developmental transitions during their life cycle. One of these, the differentiation of the young embryo from a meristem‐like structure into a highly specialized storage organ, is believed to be controlled by local connections between sugars and hormonal response systems. However, we know little about the regulatory networks underpinning the sugar–hormone interactions in developing seeds.

By modulating the trehalose 6‐phosphate (T6P) content in growing embryos of garden pea (Pisum sativum), we investigate here the role of this signaling sugar during the seed‐filling process.

Seeds deficient in T6P are compromised in size and starch production, resembling the wrinkled seeds studied by Gregor Mendel. We show also that T6P exerts these effects by stimulating the biosynthesis of the pivotal plant hormone, auxin. We found that T6P promotes the expression of the auxin biosynthesis gene TRYPTOPHAN AMINOTRANSFERASE RELATED2 (TAR2), and the resulting effect on auxin concentrations is required to mediate the T6P‐induced activation of storage processes.

Our results suggest that auxin acts downstream of T6P to facilitate seed filling, thereby providing a salient example of how a metabolic signal governs the hormonal control of an integral phase transition in a crop plant.
Light and abscisic acid interplay in early seedling development
Authors: Yadukrishnan Premachandran , Datta Sourav
Published: September 2020

Abscisic acid (ABA) plays a crucial role in plant development, regulating germination, seedling development and stomatal movements, especially under adverse conditions. Light interacts with the ABA signalling pathway to fine tune these processes. Here, we provide an overview of the recent investigations on ABA–light interplay during early plant development after germination. We discuss the multilayered and reciprocal interactions between ABA signalling components and several light signalling modulators, including photoreceptors, transcription factors and posttranslational modifiers. ABSCISIC ACID INSENSITIVE5 acts as a central convergence point for these interactions during postgermination seedling development. ABA also regulates the adaptation of seedlings to challenging light environments. Furthermore, we enlist the role of ABA–light cross‐talk in regulating seedling establishment in crops and highlight open questions for future investigations.
Balloon cell nevus in children: Report of three cases of the scalp and review
Authors: Micali Giuseppe , Verzì Anna Elisa , Puglisi Davide F. , Quattrocchi Enrica , Caltabiano Rosario , Lacarrubba Francesco
Published: September 2020

Balloon cell nevus (BCN) is a histopathological variant of cutaneous acquired melanocytic nevi characterized by junctional and/or dermal nests of large cells with a clear and foamy cytoplasm which has rarely been described in children. Three cases of BCN firstly reported on the scalp in two pediatric patients are presented along with a literature review. Dermoscopy is particularly indicated in those pigmented lesions showing a yellowish hue, in ruling out in real time those disorders that may clinically be similar such as xanthogranuloma and sebaceous nevus, and to suggest the diagnosis of BCN. The final diagnosis, however, is established by histopathological examination.
A coordinated approach to improving pediatric heart transplant waitlist outcomes: A summary of the ACTION November 2019 waitlist outcomes committee meeting
Authors: Hollander Seth A. , Nandi Deipanjan , Bansal Neha , Godown Justin , Zafar Farhan , Rosenthal David N. , Lorts Angela , Jeewa Aamir ,   the ACTION Network
Published: September 2020

The number of children needing heart transplantation continues to rise. Although improvements in heart failure therapy, particularly durable mechanical support, have reduced waitlist mortality, the number of children who die while waiting for a suitable donor organ remains unacceptably high. Roughly, 13% of children and 25% of infants on the heart transplant waitlist will not survive to transplantation. With this in mind, the Advanced Cardiac Therapies Improving Outcomes Collaborative Learning Network (ACTION), through its Waitlist Outcomes Committee, convened a 2‐day symposium in Ann Arbor, Michigan, from 2‐3 November 2019, to better understand the factors that contribute to pediatric heart transplant waitlist mortality and to focus future efforts on improving the organ allocation rates for children needing heart transplantation. Using improvement science methodology, the heart failure‐transplant trajectory was broken down into six key steps, after which modes of failure and opportunities for improvement at each step were discussed. As a result, several projects aimed at reducing waitlist mortality were initiated.
Environmental health nursing education: One school’s journey
Authors: McElroy Katie G. , Gilden Robyn , Sattler Barbara
Published: September 2020

Nurse educators have long recognized the need for an increased focus on environmental health education in nursing. For decades, schools of nursing have answered the call to action put forth by the Institute of Medicine and the American Nurses Association to incorporate environmental health content into nursing curricula. This article details the experiences of faculty and staff at the University of Maryland School of Nursing as they launched a national environmental health nursing organization, developed individual undergraduate elective courses on environmental health and climate change, and created a post‐baccalaureate certificate program. We also report student registration and evaluation data from five environmental health courses over 10 years. Five hundred five undergraduate and 291 graduate nursing students from a variety of programs received formal environmental health education. Relevance of content was consistently highly rated, ranging from 4.17 to 4.61 out of 5, and students completed projects on a wide range of environmental health topics. Graduates of the certificate program have greatly impacted their communities in the areas of nursing practice, education, and policy.
Molecular characterization of disease resistance in Brassica juncea – The current status and the way forward
Authors: Inturrisi Fabian C. , Barbetti Martin J. , Tirnaz Soodeh , Patel Dhwani A. , Edwards David , Batley Jacqueline
Published: September 2020

Brassica juncea (Indian mustard) is an economically important cultivated annual crop worldwide. However, there are a number of important diseases affecting B. juncea, including blackleg (Leptosphaeria maculans, L. biglobosa), sclerotinia stem rot (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum), white rust (Albugo candida), alternaria blight (Alternaria brassicae, A. brassicicola, A. raphani), downy mildew (Hyaloperonospora brassicae), white leaf spot (Neopseudocercosporella capsellae), clubroot (Plasmodiophora brassicae), powdery mildew (Erysiphe cruciferarum), Turnip yellows virus (formerly Beet western yellows virus), Cauliflower mosaic virus, Turnip mosaic virus, and leaf blight (Pseudomonas syringae). This paper reviews what is currently known about disease resistance in B. juncea, including the mechanism of resistance and molecular markers associated with disease resistance, that can be used to develop improved B. juncea cultivars through marker‐assisted selection (MAS). It also highlights how MAS, phenotypic selection, and transgenics provide pathways to validate candidate genes as functional resistance genes and new resources for breeding programmes for elite B. juncea cultivars. In addition, this review of disease resistance in B. juncea, together with the release of the B. juncea genome, will guide further discovery and identification of resistance genes and consequent substantial improvement in crop protection.
The Retraction of Policy Benefits across US Federal Agencies: Programmatic Cutbacks and Executive Control of US Federal Grant Retrenchments
Authors: Krause George A. , Zarit Matthew
Published: September 2020

This study analyzes an important and overlooked aspect of cutback budgeting affecting US federal agencies − reductions to existing US federal grant awards. Because presidents face incentives for both executive accountability and effective administration, we predict that public agencies which are more responsive to presidential goals, as well as those led by more capable agency heads, shall experience less severe grant retrenchments. Statistical analysis of approximately 745,000 grant retrenchments for the 1988–2008 period reveals that the distribution of these programmatic cutbacks is consistent with enhancing executive accountability, while also favoring policy effectiveness. Agencies led by chief executives with considerable managerial‐specific expertise are associated with only increased reductions in grant retrenchments for small programmatic cuts to existing grants. These findings illustrate how presidents’ strategy of executive administration seeks to limit programmatic cutbacks for more responsive federal agencies, and also for public organizations whose leaders exhibit higher levels of policy‐specific expertise.
Maintaining population health in low‐ and middle‐income countries during the COVID‐19 pandemic: Why we should be investing in Community Health Workers
Authors: Palafox Benjamin , Renedo Alicia , Lasco Gideon , Palileo‐Villanueva Lia , Balabanova Dina , McKee Martin
Published: September 2020

Community health workers in low‐ and middle‐income country primary health care systems are well suited to perform essential functions on the frontlines of Covid‐19 pandemic responses. However, clear and coordinated guidance, updated infection control training, and reliable access to personal protective equipment must be ensured in order to deploy them safely and effectively. With these additional responsibilities, community health workers must also be supported to ensure that hard‐fought gains in population health, including progress on non‐communicable diseases, are sustained throughout the pandemic.
SERVICE-ORIENTED DESIGN MEASUREMENT AND THEORETICAL VALIDATION
Authors: Mohammed Elhag Arafat Abdulgader , Mohamad Radziah
Published: September 2020

As software systems become more and more complex over time, software quality accordingly becomes increasingly important. Service-Oriented Computing (SOC) paradigm is one of the established paradigms used for building and developing flexible, reusable, rapid and low cost software products. Consequently, the use of SOC to develop software systems is increasing. Software quality measurement has considerable importance in the context of SOC since it determines how the quality requirements for composite service should be achieved. As a result, several quality metrics for composite service design were proposed. However, these metrics were constructed based on previous development approaches, give insufficient focus and need modification to be applied to service-oriented systems. Furthermore, the existing metrics do not consider the composite service as building blocks and also they do not consider the indirect relationships. In this paper, a quality measurement for composite service-oriented design is proposed, with the aim of increasing reusability and decreasing the complexity of design. The paper begins with proposing a set of metrics to measure the quality of composite service design. Then, the proposed metrics are validated theoretically to check its usability and applicability for composite service. The results show that the proposed metrics are able to measure the quality of composite service design.
Metabolic Fluxes of Nitrogen and Pyrophosphate in Chemostat Cultures of Clostridium thermocellum and Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum
Authors: Holwerda Evert K. , Zhou Jilai , Hon Shuen , Stevenson David M. , Amador-Noguez Daniel , Lynd Lee R. , van Dijken Johannes P.
Published: September 2020

This study discusses the fate of pyrophosphate in the metabolism of two thermophilic anaerobes that lack a soluble irreversible pyrophosphatase as present in
Escherichia coli
but instead use a reversible membrane-bound proton-pumping enzyme. In such organisms, the charging of tRNA with amino acids may become more reversible. This may contribute to the observed excretion of amino acids during sugar fermentation by
Clostridium thermocellum
and
Thermoanaerobacterium saccharolyticum
. Calculation of the energetic advantage of reversible pyrophosphate-dependent glycolysis, as occurs in
Clostridium thermocellum
, could not be properly evaluated, as currently available genome-scale models neglect the anabolic generation of pyrophosphate in, for example, polymerization of amino acids to protein. This anabolic pyrophosphate replaces ATP and thus saves energy. Its amount is, however, too small to cover the pyrophosphate requirement of sugar catabolism in glycolysis. Consequently, pyrophosphate for catabolism is generated according to ATP + P
i
 → ADP + PP
i
.
A Key Motif in the Cholesterol-Dependent Cytolysins Reveals a Large Family of Related Proteins
Authors: Evans Jordan C. , Johnstone Bronte A. , Lawrence Sara L. , Morton Craig J. , Christie Michelle P. , Parker Michael W. , Tweten Rodney K.
Published: September 2020

The cholesterol-dependent cytolysins’ pore-forming mechanism relies on the ability to sense the completion of the oligomeric prepore structure and initiate the insertion of the β-barrel pore from the assembled prepore structure. These studies show that a conserved motif is an important component of the sensor that triggers the prepore-to-pore transition and that it is conserved in a large family of previously unidentified CDC-like proteins, the genes for which are present in a vast array of microbial species that span most terrestrial environments, as well as most animal and human microbiomes. These studies establish the foundation for future investigations that will probe the contribution of this large family of CDC-like proteins to microbial survival and human disease.
THE E-LEADERSHIP LINKING INTER-ORGANISATIONAL COLLABORATION AND AMBIDEXTROUS INNOVATION
Authors: BEN SEDRINE DOGHRI SINDA , HORCHANI SAMAH CHEMLI , MOUELHI MERIEM
Published: September 2020

This research investigates the effect of inter organisational collaboration on ambidextrous innovation, in Tunisian virtual companies, and the moderating role of e-leadership. To achieve the purpose, a quantitative study was conducted on 217 virtual team members. The data analysis was conducted via the structural equation modelling method. The empirical study revealed that customer, competitor and supplier coordination have a significant impact on exploitation innovation. The results also confirm that customer coordination has an effect on exploration innovation. By the way, the coordination effect with competitors and suppliers on exploration innovation is not significant. The e-leadership moderation is confirmed on verified links. The research path revealed a scarcity of research done on the relations between the variables study. The mediating effects of the e-leadership on the dependent and independent variables have never been explored earlier. The study makes an original contribution to the field of knowledge for practitioners and academicians.
Managing Machine Learning Workflow Components
Authors: Moreno Marcio , Lourenço Vítor , Fiorini Sandro Rama , Costa Polyana , Brandão Rafael , Civitarese Daniel , Cerqueira Renato
Published: September 2020

Machine Learning Workflows (MLWfs) have become an essential and disruptive approach in problem-solving over several industries. However, the development process of MLWfs may be complex, time-consuming, and error-prone. To handle this problem, we introduce machine learning workflow management (MLWfM) as a technique to aid the development and reuse of MLWfs and their components through three aspects: representation, execution, and creation. We introduce our approach to structure MLWfs’ components and metadata in order to aid component retrieval and reuse of new MLWfs. We also consider the execution of these components within a tool. A hybrid knowledge representation, called Hyperknowledge, frames our methodology, supporting the three MLWfM’s aspects. To validate our approach, we show a practical use case in the Oil & Gas industry. In addition, to evaluate the feasibility of the proposed technique, we create a dataset of MLWfs executions and discuss the MLWfM’s performance in loading and querying this dataset.
A Hybrid Recommender System for Rating Prediction of Arabic Reviews
Authors: Harrag Fouzi , Al-Salman Abdulmalik Salman , Alquahtani Alaa
Published: September 2020

Recommender systems nowadays are playing an important role in the delivery of services and information to users. Sentiment analysis (also known as opinion mining) is the process of determining the attitude of textual opinions, whether they are positive, negative or neutral. Data sparsity is representing a big issue for recommender systems because of the insufficiency of user rating or absence of data about users or items. This research proposed a hybrid approach combining sentiment analysis and recommender systems to tackle the problem of data sparsity problems by predicting the rating of products from users’ reviews using text mining and NLP techniques. This research focuses especially on Arabic reviews, where the model is evaluated using Opinion Corpus for Arabic (OCA) dataset. Our system was efficient, and it showed a good accuracy of nearly 85% in predicting the rating from reviews.
Holistic geoethical slope portfolio risk assessment
Authors: Oboni Franco , Oboni César Henri
Published: September 2020

Landslides of natural and man-made slopes represent hazardous geomorphological processes that contribute to highly variable risks. Their consequences generally include loss of life and infrastructural, environmental and cultural assets damage.

Prioritizing and mitigating slope risks in a sustainable manner, while considering climate change, is related to geoethics, as any misallocation of resources will likely lead to increased risk to the public.

Until recently there was little recognition of the causes and global impacts of human actions. Today, threat-denying humans can be identified as acting inappropriately and ultimately unethically. Sustainable risk management and ethical issues should be discussed simultaneously to avoid the ‘discipline silo trap’ and hazardous omissions.

This contribution discusses slope risk management at various scales, i.e. how to ensure better allotment of mitigative funds while complying with sustainability goals and geoethical requirements. In 1987, the World Commission on Environment and Development published a report (also known as the Brundtland Report (Brundtland 1987. World Commission on Environment and Development Report)) that defined sustainable development as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

The three case histories discussed in this contribution show how sustainability and ethics can be fostered by using rational, repeatable, transparent quantitative risk assessment applicable at the local scale as well as on a large scale.
Traffic Efficiency Applications over Downtown Roads
Authors: Younes Maram Bani , Boukerche Azzedine
Published: September 2020

Vehicular network technology is frequently used to provide several services and applications for drivers on road networks. The proposed applications in the environment of road networks are classified into three main categories based on their functions: safety, traffic efficiency, and entertainment. The traffic efficiency services are designed to enhance the moving fluency and smoothness of traveling vehicles over the road network. The grid layout architecture of the downtown areas provides several routes toward any targeted destination. Moreover, since several conflicted traffic flows compete at the road intersections, many vehicles have to stop and wait for safe situations to pass the road intersection without coming into conflict with other vehicles. The traffic efficiency applications in this scenario are designed to select the most efficient path for vehicles traveling toward their targeted destination/destinations. Moreover, other applications aimed to decrease the queuing delay time for vehicles at road intersections. In this article, we review several recently proposed mechanisms that worked to enhance the fluency of traffic over downtown road networks and point to the expected future trends in this field.
A Study of Friend Abuse Perception in Facebook
Authors: Talukder Sajedul , Carbunar Bogdan
Published: September 2020

Social networks like Facebook provide functionality that can expose users to abuse perpetrated by their contacts. For instance, Facebook users can often access sensitive profile information and timeline posts of their friends and also post abuse on the timeline and news feed of their friends. In this article, we introduce AbuSniff, a system to identify Facebook friends perceived to be abusive or strangers and protect the user by restricting the access to information for such friends. We develop a questionnaire to detect perceived strangers and friend abuse. We train supervised learning algorithms to predict questionnaire responses using features extracted from the mutual activities with Facebook friends. In our experiments, participants recruited from a crowdsourcing site agreed with 78% of the defense actions suggested by AbuSniff, without having to answer any questions about their friends. When compared to a control app, AbuSniff significantly increased the willingness of participants to take a defensive action against friends. AbuSniff also increased the participant self-reported willingness to reject friend invitations from strangers and abusers, their awareness of friend abuse implications, and their perceived protection from friend abuse.
COVID-19 and Higher Education in Latin America: Challenges and possibilities in the transition to online education
Authors: Salto Dante
Published: September 2020

The COVID-19 pandemic challenges higher-education institutions in Latin America. Switching from face-to-face to online instruction has profound implications regarding access in a strikingly unequal geographical region. The article highlights that the pandemic may have lasting consequences in the ways we understand the provision of higher education in Latin America. The increasing volatile and uncertain scenario requires institutions, educators, and students to adapt to the new normal shortly.