bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
EGFL7 Antagonizes NOTCH Signaling and Represents a Novel Therapeutic Target in Acute Myeloid Leukemia
Authors: Bill Marius , Pathmanathan Aparna , Karunasiri Malith , Shen Changxian , Burke Matthew H. , Ranganathan Parvathi , Papaioannou Dimitrios , Zitzer Nina C. , Snyder Katiri , LaRocco Allison , Walker Allison E. , Brannan Zachary J. , Nalin Ansel P. , Freud Aharon G. , Dikov Mikhail M. , Zhang Xiaoli , Bloomfield Clara D. , Garzon Ramiro , Dorrance Adrienne M.
Published: October 2019

Purpose:

EGF-like domain 7 (EGFL7) is a secreted protein and recently has been shown to play an important role in acute myeloid leukemia (AML); however, the underlying mechanism by which EGFL7 promotes leukemogenesis is largely unknown.

Experimental Design:

Using an antibody interaction array, we measured the ability of EGFL7 to bind directly approximately 400 proteins expressed by primary AML blasts. Primary patient samples were stimulated in vitro with recombinant EGFL7 (rEGFL7) or anti-EGFL7 blocking antibody to assess alterations in downstream signaling and the ability to effect blast differentiation and survival. We treated three independent AML models with anti-EGFL7 or IgG1 control to determine whether anti-EGFL7 could prolong survival in vivo.

Results:

We found EGFL7 significantly binds several signaling proteins important for normal and malignant hematopoiesis including NOTCH. Stimulation of AML blasts with rEGFL7 reduced NOTCH intracellular domain and NOTCH target gene expression while treatment with an anti-EGFL7 blocking antibody resulted in reactivation of NOTCH signaling, increased differentiation, and apoptosis. Competitive ligand-binding assays showed rEGFL7 inhibits DELTA-like (DLL) 4-mediated NOTCH activation while anti-EGFL7 combined with DLL4 significantly increased NOTCH activation and induced apoptosis. Using three different AML mouse models, we demonstrated that in vivo treatment with anti-EGFL7 alone results in increased survival.

Conclusions:

Our data demonstrate that EGFL7 contributes to NOTCH silencing in AML by antagonizing canonical NOTCH ligand binding. Reactivation of NOTCH signaling in vivo using anti-EGFL7 results in prolonged survival of leukemic mice, supporting the use of EGFL7 as a novel therapeutic target in AML.
Tumor-Specific Regulatory T Cells from the Bone Marrow Orchestrate Antitumor Immunity in Breast Cancer
Authors: Ge Yingzi , Böhm Hans-Henning , Rathinasamy Anchana , Xydia Maria , Hu Xiaoying , Pincha Mudita , Umansky Ludmila , Breyer Christopher , Hillier Michael , Bonertz Andreas , Sevko Alexandra , Domschke Christoph , Schuetz Florian , Frebel Helge , Dettling Steffen , Herold-Mende Christel , Reissfelder Christoph , Weitz Jürgen , Umansky Viktor , Beckhove Philipp
Published: October 2019

Endogenous antitumor effector T-cell responses and immune-suppressive regulatory T cells (Treg) critically influence the prognosis of patients with cancer, yet many of the mechanisms of how this occurs remain unresolved. On the basis of an analysis of the function, antigen specificity, and distribution of tumor antigen–reactive T cells and Tregs in patients with breast cancer and transgenic mouse tumor models, we showed that tumor-specific Tregs were selectively activated in the bone marrow (BM) and egressed into the peripheral blood. The BM was constantly depleted of tumor-specific Tregs and was instead a site of increased induction and activity of tumor-reactive effector/memory T cells. Treg egress from the BM was associated with activation-induced expression of peripheral homing receptors such as CCR2. Because breast cancer tissues express the CCR2 ligand CCL2, the activation and egress of tumor antigen–specific Tregs in the BM resulted in the accumulation of Tregs in breast tumor tissue. Such immune compartmentalization and redistribution of T-cell subpopulations between the BM and peripheral tissues were achieved by vaccination with adenoviral vector–encoded TRP-2 tumor antigen in a RET transgenic mouse model of spontaneous malignant melanoma. Thus, the BM simultaneously represented a source of tumor-infiltrating Tregs and a site for the induction of endogenous tumor-specific effector T-cell responses, suggesting that both antitumor immunity and local immune suppression are orchestrated in the BM.
Treatment with Mesenchymal Stem Cells Improves Renovascular Hypertension and Preserves the Ability of the Contralateral Kidney to Excrete Sodium
Authors: Varela Vanessa Araujo , Oliveira-Sales Elizabeth B. , Maquigussa Edgar , Borges Fernanda T. , Gattai Pedro P. , Novaes Antonio da S. , Shimoura Caroline G. , Campos Ruy R. , Boim Mirian A.
Published: October 2019

Background: Mesenchymal stem cells (MSC) improve renal function and renovascular hypertension in the 2-kidney 1-clip model (2K-1C). While MSC play an immunomodulatory role, induce neoangiogenesis, and reduce fibrosis, they do not correct sodium loss by the contra­lateral kidney. Objectives: We investigated the tubular function of both stenotic and contralateral kidneys and the effect of MSC treatment by evaluating diuresis, natriuresis, and the expression of the main water and sodium transporters. Method: Adult Wistar rats were allocated into four groups: control (CT), CT+MSC, 2K-1C, and 2K-1C+MSC. MSC (2 × 105) were infused through the tail vein 3 and 5 weeks after clipping. Systolic blood pressure (SBP) was monitored weekly by plethysmography. Six weeks after clipping, 24-hour urine and blood samples were collected for biochemical analysis. Gene expression of the Na/H exchanger-3, epithelial sodium channel, Na/K-ATPase, Na/K/2Cl cotransporter, and aquaporins 1 and 2 (AQP1 and AQP2) were analyzed by RT-PCR. Intrarenal distribution of AQP1 and AQP2 was analyzed by immunohistochemistry. Results: In hypertensive 2K-1C animals, MSC prevented additional increases in BP. AQP1, but not AQP2, was suppressed in the contralateral kidney, resulting in significant increase in urinary flow rate and sodium excretion. Gene expressions of sodium transporters were similar in both kidneys, suggesting that the high perfusing pressure in the contralateral kidney was responsible for increased natriuresis. Contralateral hypertensive kidney showed signs of renal deterioration with lower GFR in spite of normal RPF levels. Conclusions: MSC treatment improved renal function and enhanced the ability of the contralateral kidney to excrete sodium through a tubular independent mechanism contributing to reduce SBP.
Fluid-Structure Interaction Simulation of Blood Flow and Cerebral Aneurysm: Effect of Partly Blocked Vessel
Authors: Saeedi Milad , Shamloo Amir , Mohammadi Ariz
Published: October 2019

In this study, using fluid-structure interaction (FSI), 3-dimensional blood flow in an aneurysm in the circle of Willis – which is located in the middle cerebral artery (MCA) – has been simulated. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effect of a partly blocked vessel on an aneurysm. To achieve this purpose, two cases have been investigated using the FSI method: in the first case, an ideal geometry of aneurysm in the MCA has been simulated; in the second case, modeling is performed for an ideal geometry of the aneurysm in the MCA with a partly blocked vessel. All boundary conditions, properties and modeling methods were considered the same for both cases. The only difference between the two cases was that part of the MCA parent artery was blocked in the second case. In order to consider the hyperelastic property of the wall and the non-Newtonian properties of the blood, the Mooney-Rivlin model and the Carreau model have been used, respectively. In the second case, the Von Mises stress in the peak systole is 26% higher than in the first case. With regard to the high amount of Von Mises stress, the risk of rupture of the aneurysm is higher in this case. In the second case, the maximum wall shear stress (WSS) is 12% higher than in the first case. And maximum displacement in the second case is also higher than in the first. So, the risk of growth of the aneurysm is higher in cases with a partly blocked vessel.
In Search of Imprints Left by the Impairment of Nephrogenesis
Authors: Minuth Will W.
Published: October 2019

Clinical aspects dealing with the impairment of nephrogenesis in preterm and low birth weight babies were intensely researched. In this context it was shown that quite different noxae can harm nephron formation, and that the morphological damage in the fetal kidney is rather complex. Some pathological findings show that the impairment leads to changes in developing glomeruli that are restricted to the maturation zone of the outer cortex in the fetal human kidney. Other data show also imprints on the stages of nephron anlage including the niche, the pretubular aggregate, the renal vesicle, and comma- and S-shaped bodies located in the overlying nephrogenic zone of the rodent and human kidneys. During our investigations it was noticed that the stages of nephron anlage in the fetal human kidney during the phase of late gestation have not been described in detail. To contribute, these stages were recorded along with corresponding images. The initial nephron formation in the rodent kidney served as a reference. Finally, the known imprints left by the impairment in both specimens were listed and discussed. In sum, the relatively paucity of data on nephron formation in the fetal human kidney during the late phase of gestation is a call to start with intense research so that concepts for a therapeutic prolongation of nephrogenesis can be designed.
Midstream Clean-Catch Urine Culture Obtained by Stimulation Technique versus Catheter Specimen Urine Culture for Urinary Tract Infections in Newborns: A Paired Comparison of Urine Collection Methods
Authors: Altuntas Nilgun , Alan Basak
Published: October 2019

Objective: The group of Herreros Fernández developed a new, safe, quick, and successful technique for collecting midstream clean-catch urine(MS-CCU) in newborns based on bladder stimulation and lumbar paravertebral massage maneuvers. The purpose of this study was to compare the contamination rates of catheter specimen urine (CSU) and MS-CCU by a lumbar/sacral stimulation technique in newborns. Materials and Methods: Full-term newborns ranging in age from 2 to 28 days who needed an investigation for a presumed urinary tract infection (UTI) were included in the study. Two samples, MS-CCU by lumbar/sacral stimulation technique and CSU, were collected consecutively for each patient. Suitable samples were obtained from 90 patients. Results: The contamination rate in MS-CCU cultures (n = 24/90, 26.66%) was higher than in CSU cultures (n = 9/90, 10%), and the difference was statistically significant (p = 0.039). Thirteen patients had UTI according to both samples (14.14%). In urine analysis, while there was no statistically significant difference in bacteriuria (p = 0.61) and nitrite positivity (p = 0.14) between patients with and without UTI, pyuria (p = 0.01) and leukocyte esterase positivity (p = 0.01) were higher in patients with UTI, and the difference was statistically significant. Conclusion: The contamination rate in MS-CCU cultures was two and a half times greater than in the CSU culture samples. Thus, MS-CCU cannot replace the catheter for the diagnosis of UTI.
Chronic Testosterone Deprivation Sensitizes the Middle-Aged Rat Brain to Damaging Effects of Testosterone Replacement
Authors: Smith Charity , Contreras-Garza Jo , Cunningham Rebecca L. , Wong Jessica M. , Vann Philip H. , Metzger Daniel , Kasanga Ella , Oppong-Gyebi Anthony , Sumien Nathalie , Schreihofer Derek A.
Published: October 2019

Introduction: An increasing number of middle-aged men are being screened for low testosterone levels and the number of prescriptions for various forms of testosterone replacement therapy (TRT) has increased dramatically over the last 10 years. However, the safety of TRT has come into question with some studies suggesting increased morbidity and mortality. Objective: Because the benefits of estrogen replacement in postmenopausal women and ovariectomized rodents are lost if there is an extended delay between estrogen loss and replacement, we hypothesized that TRT may also be sensitive to delayed replacement. Methods: We compared the effects of testosterone replacement after short-term (2 weeks) and long-term testosterone deprivation (LTTD; 10 weeks) in middle-aged male rats on cerebral ischemia, oxidative stress, and cognitive function. We hypothesized that LTTD would increase oxidative stress levels and abrogate the beneficial effects of TRT. Results: Hypogonadism itself and TRT after short-term castration did not affect stroke outcome compared to intact rats. However, after long-term hypogonadism in middle-aged male Fischer 344 rats, TRT exacerbated the detrimental behavioral effects of experimental focal cerebral ischemia, whereas this detrimental effect was prevented by administration of the free-radical scavenger tempol, suggesting that TRT exacerbates oxidative stress. In contrast, TRT improved cognitive performance in non-stroked rats regardless of the length of hypogonadism. In the Morris water maze, peripheral oxidative stress was highly associated with decreased cognitive ability. Conclusions: Taken together, these data suggest that TRT after long-term hypogonadism can exacerbate functional recovery after focal cerebral ischemia, but in the absence of injury can enhance cognition. Both of these effects are modulated by oxidative stress levels.
ApoE (Apolipoprotein E) in Brain Pericytes Regulates Endothelial Function in an Isoform-Dependent Manner by Modulating Basement Membrane Components
Authors: Yamazaki Yu , Shinohara Mitsuru , Yamazaki Akari , Ren Yingxue , Asmann Yan W. , Kanekiyo Takahisa , Bu Guojun
Published: October 2019

Objective:

The ε4 allele of the
APOE
gene (
APOE4
) is the strongest genetic risk factor for Alzheimer disease when compared with the common ε3 allele. Although there has been significant progress in understanding how apoE4 (apolipoprotein E4) drives amyloid pathology, its effects on amyloid-independent pathways, in particular cerebrovascular integrity and function, are less clear.

Approach and Results:

Here, we show that brain pericytes, the mural cells of the capillary walls, differentially modulate endothelial cell phenotype in an apoE isoform-dependent manner. Extracellular matrix protein induction, tube-like structure formation, and barrier formation were lower with endothelial cells cocultured with pericytes isolated from apoE4-targeted replacement (TR) mice compared with those from apoE3-TR mice. Importantly, aged apoE4-targeted replacement mice had decreased extracellular matrix protein expression and increased plasma protein leakages compared with apoE3-TR mice.

Conclusions:

ApoE4 impairs pericyte-mediated basement membrane formation, potentially contributing to the cerebrovascular effects of apoE4.
Diabetes Mellitus Severity and a Switch From Using Lipoprotein Lipase to Adipose‐Derived Fatty Acid Results in a Cardiac Metabolic Signature That Embraces Cell Death
Authors: Puri Karanjit , Lal Nathaniel , Shang Rui , Ghosh Sanjoy , Flibotte Stephane , Dyer Roger , Hussein Bahira , Rodrigues Brian
Published: October 2019

Background

Fatty acid (
FA
) provision to the heart is from cardiomyocyte and adipose depots, plus lipoprotein lipase action. We tested how a graded reduction in insulin impacts the source of
FA
used by cardiomyocytes and the cardiac adaptations required to process these
FA
.

Methods and Results

Rats injected with 55 (D55) or 100 (D100) mg/kg streptozotocin were terminated after 4 days. Although D55 and D100 were equally hyperglycemic, D100 showed markedly lower pancreatic and plasma insulin and loss of lipoprotein lipase, which in D55 hearts had expanded. There was minimal change in plasma
FA
in D55. However, D100 exhibited a 2‐ to 3‐fold increase in various saturated, monounsaturated, and polyunsaturated
FA
in the plasma. D100 demonstrated dramatic cardiac transcriptomic changes with 1574 genes differentially expressed compared with only 49 in D55. Augmented mitochondrial and peroxisomal β‐oxidation in D100 was not matched by elevated tricarboxylic acid or oxidative phosphorylation. With increasing
FA
, although control myocytes responded by augmenting basal respiration, this was minimized in D55 and reversed in D100. Metabolomic profiling identified significant lipid accumulation in D100 hearts, which also exhibited sizeable change in genes related to apoptosis and terminal deoxynucleotidyl transferase dUTP nick‐end labeling–positive cells.

Conclusions

With increasing severity of diabetes mellitus, when the diabetic heart is unable to control its own
FA
supply using lipoprotein lipase, it undergoes dramatic reprogramming that is linked to handling of excess
FA
that arise from adipose tissue. This transition results in a cardiac metabolic signature that embraces mitochondrial
FA
overload, oxidative stress, triglyceride storage, and cell death.
Computed Tomography Angiography Collateral Profile Is Directly Linked to Early Edema Progression Rate in Acute Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Broocks Gabriel , Kemmling Andre , Meyer Lukas , Nawabi Jawed , Schön Gerhard , Fiehler Jens , Kniep Helge , Hanning Uta
Published: October 2019

Background and Purpose—

Poor collateral flow is associated with poor clinical outcome in acute ischemic stroke and may indicate futile recanalization after successful thrombectomy. Pronounced early formation of cerebral ischemic edema may be the link between poor collateral status and declined functional outcome, but this relationship has not been investigated yet. We hypothesized that collateral status is associated with early lesion water uptake as quantitative marker for edema progression.

Methods—

One hundred seventy-six patients with middle cerebral artery stroke who underwent mechanical thrombectomy were analyzed. Status of cerebral collateral circulation (collaterals status [CS]) was derived using an established 5-point scoring system in admission computed tomography angiography, and good collaterals were defined as CS 3 to 4. Ischemic brain edema dynamics were quantified using early edema progression rate (EPR). EPR was derived from quantitative lesion water uptake in admission computed tomography divided by time from symptom onset to imaging. Good clinical outcome was defined as modified Rankin Scale score 0 to 2 after 90 days.

Results—

The median EPR was 1.4% per hour (interquartile range, 0.5–3.5%) in patients with good collaterals, which was lower than the median EPR in patients with poor collaterals of 5.8% per hour (interquartile range, 2.1–5.9%;
P
<0.0001). In multivariable regression analysis, lower CS was significantly and independently associated with higher EPR (1.6% EPR per 1-point CS;
P
=0.002). A higher EPR was associated with reduced likelihood of good clinical outcome: odds ratio 0.87; (95% CI, 0.76–0.99;
P
=0.03).

Conclusions—

Patients with poor CS had significantly higher EPR, which was associated with worse clinical outcome. These patients might benefit from adjuvant antiedematous treatment.
Mathematical Generality, Letter-Labels, and All That
Authors: Acerbi F.
Published: October 2019

This article focusses on the generality of the entities involved in a geometric proof of the kind found in ancient Greek treatises: it shows that the standard modern translation of Greek mathematical propositions falsifies crucial syntactical elements, and employs an incorrect conception of the denotative letters in a Greek geometric proof; epigraphic evidence is adduced to show that these denotative letters are ‘letter-labels’. On this basis, the article explores the consequences of seeing that a Greek mathematical proposition is fully general, and the ontological commitments underlying the stylistic practice.
What Are the Wages of Justice? Rethinking the Republic’s Division of Goods
Authors: Anderson Merrick
Published: October 2019

A growing number of scholars have seen that the Republic’s division of goods includes goods which possess value δι᾽ αὑτό in virtue of some of their causal effects. Building on this, I argue that goods, including justice, which are valuable διὰ τὰ γιγνόµενα ἀπ’ αὐτοῦ (and whose effects can contribute to the value a good has δι᾽ αὑτό) are so in virtue of a limited class of beneficial effects: those that depend on the recognition of other agents. This way of dividing goods explains why Socrates legitimately invokes some effects of justice in his demonstration that justice is valuable δι᾽ αὑτό.
A new species of Basilaphelenchus Pedram, Kanzaki, Giblin-Davis & Pourjam, 2018 (Aphelenchoidea: Tylaphelenchinae), from natural forests of Golestan province, Iran
Authors: Aliramaji Farzad , Mirzaie Fouladvand Zeinab , Pourjam Ebrahim , Mortazavi Parnaz , Jahanshahi Afshar Farahnaz , Kanzaki Natsumi , Giblin-Davis Robin M. , Pedram Majid
Published: October 2019

Two populations of an aphelenchoidid nematode were recovered from natural forests in Golestan province, Iran. Both populations resembled each other morphologically. The females of the first population, from rotten wood of Fagus orientalis in Golestan National Park, measured 294-338 μm long, and females of the second population, from forests of Ramian county, measured 365-464 μm long. A reverse taxonomic approach, based upon SSU and LSU phylogenies using a maximal number of Aphelenchoididae genera, revealed the two isolates to be conspecific and representatives of a new species of Basilaphelenchus. Basilaphelenchus magnabulbus n. sp. is described and illustrated herein and is mainly characterised by the unique form of the metacorpus, this being elongate and filling the corresponding body region similar to the common form in other aphelenchoidids (vs smaller with well posteriorly located small valve in previously described species of the genus). The new species has an elevated lip region, fine stylet with three elongate posteriorly directed knobs, female tail elongate conoid and ventrally bent, and male tail short conical with three pairs of caudal papillae. It was morphologically compared with four previously known species of the genus, viz., B. persicus, B. brevicaudatus, B. gorganensis and B. grosmannae, and three species of Aphelenchoides having a broadly similar morphology.
Addressing Domestic Regulation Affecting Trade in Services in CETA, CPTPP, and USMCA: Revolution or Timid Steps?
Authors: Ortino Federico , Lydgate Emily
Published: October 2019

The number of international agreements purporting to liberalise trade, mainly focused on reducing protectionist measures through the imposition of general principles, has increased greatly over the last 25 years. More recently, the United States and the European Union (EU) concluded comprehensive agreements covering trade in goods, trade in services, and foreign investment. This article inquires whether, and the extent to which, such agreements represent a departure from previous practice. It focuses on (a) the instruments employed to address domestic regulation affecting trade in services and (b) three specific agreements concluded between 2016 and 2018: the EU-Canada Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement, the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, and the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. While these recent Preferential Trade Agreements put forward novel approaches to regulatory diversity affecting trade in services, it is too early to ascertain whether these will have any ground-breaking impact in terms of services trade liberalisation.
The Labour Rights Agenda in Free Trade Agreements
Authors: Harrison James
Published: October 2019

This article explores the implications of the proliferation of labour provisions in free trade agreements (FTAs) in recent years. It reviews a relatively new form of empirical scholarship on the effectiveness of US and EU labour provisions. In doing so, it helps to identify a large gap between, on the one hand, the rhetoric of policymakers on the importance of such provisions and, on the other, the reality of what they achieve in practice. Reform efforts on both sides of the Atlantic are then examined to find that these also contain major deficiencies. The article therefore asks whether the ineffectiveness of the labour rights agenda in FTAs should be seen as part of a burgeoning class critique of trade policy. In the current political climate, it also suggests that the deficiencies identified, and how they should be resolved, require far greater engagement from both mainstream academia and trade policy communities.
In vitro shoot growth and adventitious rooting of Wikstroemia gemmata depends on light quality
Authors: Verstraeten I. , Buyle H. , Werbrouck S. , Van Labeke M.C. , Geelen D.
Published: October 2019

In vitro propagation of the ornamentally interesting species Wikstroemia gemmata is limited by the recalcitrance to form adventitious roots. In this article, two strategies to improve the rooting capacity of in vitro microcuttings are presented. Firstly, the effect of exogenous auxin was evaluated in both light and dark cultivated stem segments and also the sucrose-content of the medium was varied in order to determine better rooting conditions. Secondly, different spectral lights were evaluated and the effect on shoot growth and root induction demonstrated that the exact spectral composition of light is important for successful in vitro growth and development of Wikstroemia gemmata. We show that exogenous auxin cannot compensate for the poor rooting under unfavorable light conditions. Adapting the culture conditions is therefore paramount for successful industrial propagation of Wikstroemia gemmata.
A Taste for Criticism: ‘Buon Gusto’ and the Reform of Historical Scholarship in the Early Eighteenth-Century Italian Republic of Letters
Authors: Mithen Nicholas
Published: October 2019

Historians of scholarship and intellectual historians have recently been paying more attention to the social and epistemic conditioning of scholarly production. Informed by the history of science, such scholarship has shed light upon how knowledge production changed over time, and how its ‘legislation’, ‘administration’, and ‘institutionalisation’ varied in different contexts. This article explores the reform of intellectual culture in the early eighteenth-century Italian republic of letters, as a case-study in the application of such emergent methodologies. From around 1700, a nexus of ethical, aesthetical and epistemological ideals began to crystallize on the Italian peninsula, codified under the concept of ‘buon gusto’ or ‘good taste’. ‘Buon gusto’ became a point of reference for individual scholars, scholarly communities and literary journals seeking to reform scholarly practice. This led to the normalization of historical criticism as the dominant scholarly mode among Italian scholars by the mid-eighteenth century.
Two new species of Lasianthus (Rubiaceae) from Hoang Lien National Park, northern Vietnam

Authors: DANG VAN-SON , NAIKI AKIYO
Published: October 2019

Two new species, Lasianthus fansipanensis V.S. Dang & Naiki and Lasianthus sapaensis V.S. Dang & Naiki (sect. Nudiflorae), were discovered in the Hoang Lien National Park of northern Vietnam and are here described and illustrated. Colour photographs, preliminary conservation assessment, and tables comparing these two new species against two closely related species are also presented.
Nomenclatural novelties in Baccharis subgen. Molina (Asteraceae, Astereae)

Authors: HEIDEN GUSTAVO
Published: October 2019

The number of species recognized in Baccharis Linnaeus (1753: 860), a Neotropical genus characterized by the tufted indumentum of leaves and stems and by the unisexual florets generally in separate specimens (Müller 2006), ranges from 354 (Müller 2013) to ca. 500 species (Malagarriga 1976). The infrageneric classification (Heiden 2014, Heiden & Pirani 2016) currently recognizes seven subgenera: Baccharis subgen. Baccharis, Baccharis subgen. Coridifoliae (Giuliano in Giuliano & Freire 2011: 339) Heiden in Heiden & Pirani (2016: 286), Baccharis subgen. Heterothalamulopsis (Deble et al. 2004: 1) Heiden in Heiden & Pirani (2016: 287), Baccharis subgen. Heterothalamus (Lessing 1830: 145) Heiden in Heiden & Pirani (2016: 288), Baccharis subgen. Molina (Persoon 1807: 424) Heering (1904: 40), Baccharis subgen. Oblongifoliae (Candolle 1836: 416) Heiden in Heiden & Pirani (2016: 289), and Baccharis subgen. Tarchonanthoides Heering (1904: 26).
Molecular systematics of the heteronemertean genus Dushia (Nemertea, Pilidiophora), with descriptions of D. wijnhoffae sp. nov. and D. nigra species complex comb. nov.
Authors: HOOKABE NATSUMI , SCHWARTZ MEGAN L. , KAJIHARA HIROSHI , NORENBURG JON L.
Published: October 2019

The heteronemertean genus Dushia Corrêa, 1963 was established for what was identified as D. atra (Girard, 1851) (originally Meckelia atra) based on material from littoral, shallow waters in Curaçao, while the nominal species Meckelia atra was originally described from deep water off Florida Cape. In this paper, we conclude that the type species for Dushia has been misidentified. Based on specimens from the Caribbean, we establish D. wijnhoffae Schwartz & Norenburg sp. nov. to represent the true identity of the genus, according to Article 70.3.2 of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature; Meckelia atra should be regarded as a nomen dubium. While the genus has remained monotypic since its establishment, our molecular analysis discovered a second member—or rather a group of members—from the West Pacific. This ‘group of members’, herein termed Dushia nigra (Stimpson, 1855) species complex comb. nov., involves i) at least two genetically separated biological entities, 0.136–0.148 (p-distance) and 0.152–0.168 (K2P) apart in terms of 513-bp COI sequences, which we interpret as likely to represent cryptic species, ii) three color forms, orange, brown, and black, with the last one occurring most frequently, and iii) four nominal species, Meckelia nigra Stimpson, 1855 (now Cerebratulus niger), Meckelia rubella Stimpson, 1855 (now Cerebratulus rubellus), Micrura formosana Yamaoka, 1939, and Micrura japonica Iwata, 1952. At present, however, we have no objective ground as to which of the four potentially available names (i.e., formosana, japonica, nigra, and rubella) should be allotted to the two cryptic species discovered in the analysis, because i) a single locality can harbor two cryptic species, ii) a single cryptic species may contain three different color morphs (i.e., orange, brown, black), and iii) no data from the type localities for these four nominal species are available at the moment. Our multi-locus analysis of heteronemerteans—for which 16S rRNA, COI, 18S rRNA, 28S rRNA, histone H3 genes are available in public databases—shows that Dushia wijnhoffae sp. nov. and Dushia nigra species complex comb. nov. form a clade, which is closely related to Gorgonorhynchus albocinctus Kajihara, 2015 and an undetermined heteronemertean that has been misidentified as Cerebratulus leucopsis (Coe, 1901). Members of Dushia thus show a vicariant Caribbean–West-Pacific distribution, indicating that the lineage predates the rise of the Isthmus of Panama.
A new centipede Schendylops Cook from eastern Brazil: the first troglobitic geophilomorph for South America (Geophilomorpha, Schendylidae)
Authors: NUNES GABRIELLE ABREU , CHAGAS-JR AMAZONAS , BICHUETTE MARIA ELINA
Published: October 2019

Schendylops janelao sp. n. is described from a limestone cave located in eastern Brazil. There are several reports of geophilomorphs in Brazilian caves, however, the new species represents the first troglobite species for South America and the first for Gruta do Janelão Cave, northern Minas Gerais State. Schendylops janelao sp. n. is described based on a male specimen and differs from its congeners by a combination of 10 characters. We discuss the character-states related to subterranean life and the conservation status of the species.
Dynamic Determinants of Access to Weapons: Global Evidence
Authors: Asongu Simplice A. , Nnanna Joseph
Published: October 2019

This study investigates the determinants of and persistence in access to weapons using a global sample of 163 countries for the period 2010–2015. The empirical evidence is based on the generalized method of moments. Hysteresis in access to weapons is consistently more apparent in countries with below-median levels in access to weapons compared to their counterparts with above-median levels in access to weapons. The hysteresis hypothesis within this context is the propensity of past values of access to weapons to influence future values of access to weapons. Factors that consistently drive access to weapons are: perceptions of crime, criminality, conflict intensity, political instability, military expenditure, violent demonstrations and terrorism. The effects of these drivers are contingent on initial levels of access to weapons. Policy recommendations for managing access to weapons are discussed.

JEL: H56, L64, K42, P50
Public administration sustainability and its organizational basis
Authors: Trondal Jarle
Published: October 2019

Benefiting from a novel data set spanning nearly half a century, this study probes the sustainability of public governance. Theoretically, it examines how sustainable public governance rests on its organizational fabric. The study illuminates how organizational factors systematically influence decision-making behaviour and thus public governance sustainability. Moreover, the study argues that since organizational structure is amendable to deliberate manipulative change, it may thus be an important design instrument of the context of choice in public governance. Accordingly, the article offers an avenue to build bridges between the academic and practitioner worlds of public administration. Empirically and methodologically, the study offers: a novel large- N (13,173) and longitudinal data set that spans five observation points in 1976, 1986, 1996, 2006 and 2016; nine surveys at ministry and agency levels; and several generations of government officials. Taken together, the data set demonstrates that both administrative sustainability in public administration and sustainable public governance rest on its organizational fabric.

Points for practitioners

A sustainable public administration is a necessary condition for public service delivery. Based on observations that span 40 years (1976 to 2016), this study offers an opportunity to systematically trace public governance processes over half a century. Second, this study examines how sustainable public governance rests on its organizational fabric. Organizational factors systematically influence decision-making behaviour and arguably influence administrative governance. Moreover, organizational structure is amendable to deliberate manipulative change and may thus be an important design instrument of the context of choice in public governance. As such, the article offers an avenue to build bridges between the academic and practitioner worlds of public administration.
Defining body-weight reduction as a humane endpoint: a critical appraisal
Authors: Talbot Steven R , Biernot Svenja , Bleich Andre , van Dijk Roelof Maarten , Ernst Lisa , Häger Christine , Helgers Simeon Oscar Arnulfo , Koegel Babette , Koska Ines , Kuhla Angela , Miljanovic Nina , Müller-Graff Franz-Tassilo , Schwabe Kerstin , Tolba Rene , Vollmar Brigitte , Weegh Nora , Wölk Tjark , Wolf Fabio , Wree Andreas , Zieglowski Leonie , Potschka Heidrun , Zechner Dietmar
Published: October 2019

In many animal experiments scientists and local authorities define a body-weight reduction of 20% or more as severe suffering and thereby as a potential parameter for humane endpoint decisions. In this study, we evaluated distinct animal experiments in multiple research facilities, and assessed whether 20% body-weight reduction is a valid humane endpoint criterion in rodents. In most experiments (restraint stress, distinct models for epilepsy, pancreatic resection, liver resection, caloric restrictive feeding and a mouse model for Dravet syndrome) the animals lost less than 20% of their original body weight. In a glioma model, a fast deterioration in body weight of less than 20% was observed as a reliable predictor for clinical deterioration. In contrast, after induction of chronic diabetes or acute colitis some animals lost more than 20% of their body weight without exhibiting major signs of distress. In these two animal models an exclusive application of the 20% weight loss criterion for euthanasia might therefore result in an unnecessary loss of animals. However, we also confirmed that this criterion can be a valid parameter for defining the humane endpoint in other animal models, especially when it is combined with additional criteria for evaluating distress. In conclusion, our findings strongly suggest that experiment and model specific considerations are necessary for the rational integration of the parameter ‘weight loss’ in severity assessment schemes and humane endpoint criteria. A flexible implementation tailored to the experiment or intervention by scientists and authorities is therefore highly recommended.
Magnetic fluid seal critical pressure calculation based on numerical simulations
Authors: Szczęch Marcin
Published: October 2019

Magnetic fluid seals are among the most common ferrofluid applications. One interesting area is the use of numerical simulations to determine the critical pressure, which is a basic parameter determining the possible range of seal operating pressures. The purpose of this study is to present the method of critical pressure calculations in magnetic fluid seals based on magnetic field numerical simulations, which will provide better results than the methods used previously. It is a relatively simple method and can help to reduce the difference between simulations and experiments. Different seal stage shapes, such as symmetric trapezoidal, asymmetric trapezoidal, and rectangular, were taken into account. The research shows that an increase in the magnetic fluid volume applied at the seal stage and a magnetic saturation increase in the seal gap allow the manufacturing inaccuracy influence to be reduced, meaning that the difference between the simulation and experiment results is smaller. In addition, in this paper, the pressure transfer mechanism between liquid rings of the multistage seal is analyzed to show its influence on the critical pressure value calculated based on simulations.
Private government, property rights and uncertain neighbourhood externalities: Evidence from gated communities
Authors: Turnbull Geoffrey K , Zahirovic-Herbert Velma
Published: October 2019

Economists traditionally view public and private land use regulation as alternatives to each other. An alternative view argues that public and private regulation are not equally suited to accomplish the same outcomes. In particular, government regulation is easily changed while private regulation is not, making the latter better suited to control future externality risk. One implication of the alternative view is that more risk-averse households are drawn to gated neighbourhoods while their less risk-averse counterparts are not. This paper exploits exogenous differences in neighbourhood amenity uncertainty created by public school attendance zone changes to test this prediction of the alternative view. The results show that greater exogenous amenity uncertainty yields stronger house price capitalisation in gated subdivisions than in open neighbourhoods, a pattern consistent with the risk-aversion sorting hypothesis. The results are robust and are consistent with the key implication of the alternative view of private regulation.
Negotiating polyvocal strategies: Re-reading de Certeau through the lens of urban planning in South Africa
Authors: Andres Lauren , Jones Phil , Denoon-Stevens Stuart Paul , Lorena Melgaço
Published: October 2019

The Practice of Everyday Life (de Certeau M (1984) The Practice of Everyday Life. Berkeley, CA: University of California Press) has become a canonical text in urban studies, with de Certeau’s idea of tactics having been widely deployed to understand and theorise the everyday. Tactics of resistance were contrasted with the strategies of the powerful, but the ways in which these strategies are operationalised were left ambiguous by de Certeau and have remained undertheorised since. We address this lacuna through an examination of the planning profession in South Africa as a lieu propre– a strategic territory with considerable power to shape urban environments. Based on a large interview data set examining practitioner attitudes toward the state of the profession in South Africa, this paper argues that the strategies of the powerful are themselves subject to negotiation. We trace connections with de Certeau’s earlier work to critique the idea that strategies are univocal. We do this by examining how the interests of different powerful actors can come into conflict, using the planning profession as an exemplar of how opposing strategies must be mediated in order to secure changes in society.
From Universalizing Transparency to the Interplay of Transparency Matrices: Critical insights from the emerging social credit system in China
Authors: Hansen Hans Krause , Weiskopf Richard
Published: October 2019

Building on research on organizational transparency and surveillance, mediated visibility and Foucauldian dispositional analytics, we develop the concept of transparency matrices for studying the interplay of mediating technologies and normative arrangements in the formation of transparency as a heterogeneous regime of visibility. Using the emerging and controversial social credit system in China as a critical case, we make two contributions. First, we enrich the conceptual vocabulary for the study of transparency as a dynamic multiplicity with varying power effects in different contexts, challenging in this way universalizing and otherwise reductive notions of transparency. Second, by emphasizing the operation of several coexisting matrices we provide a novel way of approaching the ‘post panoptic’ condition which can account not only for the power effects of different modalities of transparency, but also for the instabilities and potential openings that are generated by their interplay. Transparency is heterogeneous, irreducible to a single reality and open to future becoming.
Use of Nasal Pathology in the Derivation of Inhalation Toxicity Values for Hydrogen Sulfide
Authors: Dorman David C.
Published: October 2019

Nasal pathology can play an important role in the risk assessment process. For example, olfactory neuron loss (ONL) is one of the most sensitive end points seen in subchronic rodent hydrogen sulfide (H2S) studies and has been used by several agencies to derive health-protective toxicity values. Alternative methods that rely on computational fluid dynamics (CFD) models to account for the influence of airflow on H2S-induced ONL have been proposed. The use of CFD models result in toxicity values that are less conservative than those obtained using more traditional methods. These alternative approaches rely on anatomy-based CFD models. Model predictions of H2S delivery (flux) to the olfactory mucosal wall are highly correlated with ONL in rodents. Three major areas of focus for this review include a brief description of nasal anatomy, H2S-induced ONL in rodents, derivation of a chronic inhalation reference concentration for H2S, and the use of CFD models to derive alternative toxicity values for this gas.
Justice, power and informal settlements: Understanding the juridical view of property rights in Central Asia
Authors: Sanghera Balihar
Published: October 2019

The article examines how judges and lawyers struggle to legitimise and normalise private property rights against attempts by poor and migrant groups to politicise housing and social needs in Central Asia. It discusses the juridical understanding of justice and equality in relation to property rights violations on the outskirts of major cities in Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan. It argues that the juridical system is central in construing property rights and obligations, and in so doing social inequalities are legitimised and naturalised in a neoliberalising post-Soviet space. The article uses the concepts of ‘the moral economy’ and ‘the juridical field’ to examine how judges and lawyers justify and normalise their ways of interpreting and ordering the social world.
Validation of diffuse correlation spectroscopy against 15O-water PET for regional cerebral blood flow measurement in neonatal piglets
Authors: Giovannella Martina , Andresen Bjørn , Andersen Julie B , El-Mahdaoui Sahla , Contini Davide , Spinelli Lorenzo , Torricelli Alessandro , Greisen Gorm , Durduran Turgut , Weigel Udo M , Law Ian
Published: October 2019

Diffuse correlation spectroscopy (DCS) can non-invasively and continuously asses regional cerebral blood flow (rCBF) at the cot-side by measuring a blood flow index (BFI) in non-traditional units of cm2/s. We have validated DCS against positron emission tomography using 15 O-labeled water (15O-water PET) in a piglet model allowing us to derive a conversion formula for BFI to rCBF in conventional units (ml/100g/min). Neonatal piglets were continuously monitored by the BabyLux device integrating DCS and time resolved near infrared spectroscopy (TRS) while acquiring 15 O-water PET scans at baseline, after injection of acetazolamide and during induced hypoxic episodes. BFI by DCS was highly correlated with rCBF (R = 0.94, p < 0.001) by PET. A scaling factor of 0.89 (limits of agreement for individual measurement: 0.56, 1.39)×109× (ml/100g/min)/(cm2/s) was used to derive baseline rCBF from baseline BFI measurements of another group of piglets and of healthy newborn infants showing an agreement with expected values. These results pave the way towards non-invasive, cot-side absolute CBF measurements by DCS on neonates.
Creative placemaking and the cultural projectariat: Artistic work in the wake of Hull City of Culture 2017
Authors: Umney Charles , Symon Graham
Published: October 2019

Cultural work attracts much sociological interest and is often seen as typifying ‘precarity’. However, this scholarship rarely examines how ‘placemaking’ policy interventions affect the concrete conditions of cultural work. We study a major recent public/private policy intervention in the United Kingdom: Hull City of Culture 2017. This intervention embodied a multifaceted set of policy logics, combining the desire to boost arts participation, with a market-facing imperative to bolster the city’s ‘brand’. We examine what happened to the city’s ‘cultural projectariat’ (meaning those workers whose career depends on assembling sequences of discrete, time-limited funded cultural projects) during this event. The influx of funds created opportunities for good-quality work, but specific sources of insecurity persisted and in certain respects intensified: including the need for significant unpaid work and permanent competition for resources. City of Culture’s nature as a market-oriented ‘placemaking’ intervention limits its capacity to ameliorate the conditions of cultural work, which has to be conceived as a policy end in itself if conditions of the cultural projectariat are to be improved.
Enhancing Students’ Biology Learning by Using Augmented Reality as a Learning Supplement
Authors: Weng Cathy , Otanga Sarah , Christianto Samuel Michael , Chu Regina Ju-Chun
Published: October 2019

The purpose of this study was to investigate the effects of augmented reality (AR) technology on students’ learning outcomes (measured according to Bloom’s cognitive levels) and attitude toward biology. The print book was redesigned by integrating a form of AR into it. A quasi-experimental pretest and posttest designs were used to test the effectiveness of the developed book on learning outcomes and attitude toward biology. In addition, the students’ opinions about the AR technology and the redesigned book were collected. In all, 68 ninth-grade students participated in the study. They were divided into the experimental group, who used the print book and the AR technology as a learning supplement, and the control group, who used the print book only. The results indicated that using AR technology may have the potential to enhance students’ learning outcomes at the analyzing level and their learning attitudes toward biology. The students mentioned that AR could be effective in terms of enhancing their biology learning.