bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
1700 nm optical coherence microscopy enables minimally invasive, label-free, in vivo optical biopsy deep in the mouse brain
Authors: Zhu Jun , Freitas Hercules Rezende , Maezawa Izumi , Jin Lee-way , Srinivasan Vivek J.
Published: July 2021

In vivo, minimally invasive microscopy in deep cortical and sub-cortical regions of the mouse brain has been challenging. To address this challenge, we present an in vivo high numerical aperture optical coherence microscopy (OCM) approach that fully utilizes the water absorption window around 1700 nm, where ballistic attenuation in the brain is minimized. Key issues, including detector noise, excess light source noise, chromatic dispersion, and the resolution-speckle tradeoff, are analyzed and optimized. Imaging through a thinned-skull preparation that preserves intracranial space, we present volumetric imaging of cytoarchitecture and myeloarchitecture across the entire depth of the mouse neocortex, and some sub-cortical regions. In an Alzheimer’s disease model, we report that findings in superficial and deep cortical layers diverge, highlighting the importance of deep optical biopsy. Compared to other microscopic techniques, our 1700 nm OCM approach achieves a unique combination of intrinsic contrast, minimal invasiveness, and high resolution for deep brain imaging.
Unlocking the future of optical security with metasurfaces
Authors: Jang Jaehyuck , Badloe Trevon , Rho Junsuk
Published: July 2021

The complex degrees of freedom of light, such as amplitude, phase, polarization, and orbital angular momentum, make it a prime candidate for use in optical security and encryption. By exploiting the unique characteristics of metasurfaces, exciting new optical security platforms have been demonstrated.
A novel dephosphorylation targeting chimera selectively promoting tau removal in tauopathies
Authors: Zheng Jie , Tian Na , Liu Fei , Zhang Yidian , Su Jingfen , Gao Yang , Deng Mingmin , Wei Linyu , Ye Jingwang , Li Honglian , Wang Jian-Zhi
Published: July 2021

Intraneuronal accumulation of hyperphosphorylated tau is a hallmark pathology shown in over twenty neurodegenerative disorders, collectively termed as tauopathies, including the most common Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Therefore, selectively removing or reducing hyperphosphorylated tau is promising for therapies of AD and other tauopathies. Here, we designed and synthesized a novel DEPhosphorylation TArgeting Chimera (DEPTAC) to specifically facilitate the binding of tau to Bα-subunit-containing protein phosphatase 2A (PP2A-Bα), the most active tau phosphatase in the brain. The DEPTAC exhibited high efficiency in dephosphorylating tau at multiple AD-associated sites and preventing tau accumulation both in vitro and in vivo. Further studies revealed that DEPTAC significantly improved microtubule assembly, neurite plasticity, and hippocampus-dependent learning and memory in transgenic mice with inducible overexpression of truncated and neurotoxic human tau N368. Our data provide a strategy for selective removal of the hyperphosphorylated tau, which sheds new light for the targeted therapy of AD and related-tauopathies.
Metabolic reprogramming in prostate cancer
Authors: Ahmad Fahim , Cherukuri Murali Krishna , Choyke Peter L.
Published: July 2021

Although low risk localised prostate cancer has an excellent prognosis owing to effective treatments, such as surgery, radiation, cryosurgery and hormone therapy, metastatic prostate cancer remains incurable. Existing therapeutic regimens prolong life; however, they are beset by problems of resistance, resulting in poor outcomes. Treatment resistance arises primarily from tumour heterogeneity, altered genetic signatures and metabolic reprogramming, all of which enable the tumour to serially adapt to drugs during the course of treatment. In this review, we focus on alterations in the metabolism of prostate cancer, including genetic signatures and molecular pathways associated with metabolic reprogramming. Advances in our understanding of prostate cancer metabolism might help to explain many of the adaptive responses that are induced by therapy, which might, in turn, lead to the attainment of more durable therapeutic responses.
Novel FOXM1 inhibitor identified via gene network analysis induces autophagic FOXM1 degradation to overcome chemoresistance of human cancer cells
Authors: Chesnokov Mikhail S. , Halasi Marianna , Borhani Soheila , Arbieva Zarema , Shah Binal N. , Oerlemans Rick , Khan Irum , Camacho Carlos J. , Gartel Andrei L.
Published: July 2021

FOXM1 transcription factor is an oncogene and a master regulator of chemoresistance in multiple cancers. Pharmacological inhibition of FOXM1 is a promising approach but has proven to be challenging. We performed a network-centric transcriptomic analysis to identify a novel compound STL427944 that selectively suppresses FOXM1 by inducing the relocalization of nuclear FOXM1 protein to the cytoplasm and promoting its subsequent degradation by autophagosomes. Human cancer cells treated with STL427944 exhibit increased sensitivity to cytotoxic effects of conventional chemotherapeutic treatments (platinum-based agents, 5-fluorouracil, and taxanes). RNA-seq analysis of STL427944-induced gene expression changes revealed prominent suppression of gene signatures characteristic for FOXM1 and its downstream targets but no significant changes in other important regulatory pathways, thereby suggesting high selectivity of STL427944 toward the FOXM1 pathway. Collectively, the novel autophagy-dependent mode of FOXM1 suppression by STL427944 validates a unique pathway to overcome tumor chemoresistance and improve the efficacy of treatment with conventional cancer drugs.
ATF5, a putative therapeutic target for the mitochondrial DNA 3243A > G mutation-related disease
Authors: Gao Xinpei , Jiang Zhixin , Yan Xinfeng , Liu Jiping , Li Fengwen , Liu Peng , Li Jialu , Wei Yuehua , Sun Yi Eve , Zhang Yinan , Wang Congrong
Published: July 2021

The mitochondrial DNA m.3243A > G mutation is well-known to cause a variety of clinical phenotypes, including diabetes, deafness, and osteoporosis. Here, we report isolation and expansion of urine-derived stem cells (USCs) from patients carrying the m.3243A > G mutation, which demonstrate bimodal heteroplasmy. USCs with high levels of m.3243A > G mutation displayed abnormal mitochondrial morphology and function, as well as elevated ATF5-dependent mitochondrial unfolded protein response (UPRmt), together with reduced Wnt/β-catenin signaling and osteogenic potentials. Knockdown of ATF5 in mutant USCs suppressed UPRmt, improved mitochondrial function, restored expression of GSK3B and WNT7B, and rescued osteogenic potentials. These results suggest that ATF5-dependent UPRmt could be a core disease mechanism underlying mitochondrial dysfunction and osteoporosis related to the m.3243A > G mutation, and therefore could be a novel putative therapeutic target for this genetic disorder.
A major quantitative trait locus affecting resistance to Tilapia lake virus in farmed Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus)
Authors: Barría Agustin , Trịnh Trọng Quốc , Mahmuddin Mahirah , Peñaloza Carolina , Papadopoulou Athina , Gervais Ophelie , Chadag V. Mohan , Benzie John A. H. , Houston Ross D.
Published: July 2021

Enhancing host resistance to infectious disease has received increasing attention in recent years as a major goal of farm animal breeding programs. Combining field data with genomic tools can provide opportunities to understand the genetic architecture of disease resistance, leading to new opportunities for disease control. In the current study, a genome-wide association study was performed to assess resistance to the Tilapia lake virus (TiLV), one of the biggest threats affecting Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus); a key aquaculture species globally. A pond outbreak of TiLV in a pedigreed population of the GIFT strain was observed, with 950 fish classified as either survivor or mortality, and genotyped using a 65 K SNP array. A significant QTL of large effect was identified on chromosomeOni22. The average mortality rate of tilapia homozygous for the resistance allele at the most significant SNP (Pvalue = 4.51E−10) was 11%, compared to 43% for tilapia homozygous for the susceptibility allele. Several candidate genes related to host response to viral infection were identified within this QTL, includinglgals17,vps52, andtrim29. These results provide a rare example of a major QTL affecting a trait of major importance to a farmed animal. Genetic markers from the QTL region have potential in marker-assisted selection to improve host resistance, providing a genetic solution to an infectious disease where few other control or mitigation options currently exist.
Advancing diagnostic performance and clinical usability of neural networks via adversarial training and dual batch normalization
Authors: Han Tianyu , Nebelung Sven , Pedersoli Federico , Zimmermann Markus , Schulze-Hagen Maximilian , Ho Michael , Haarburger Christoph , Kiessling Fabian , Kuhl Christiane , Schulz Volkmar , Truhn Daniel
Published: July 2021

Unmasking the decision making process of machine learning models is essential for implementing diagnostic support systems in clinical practice. Here, we demonstrate that adversarially trained models can significantly enhance the usability of pathology detection as compared to their standard counterparts. We let six experienced radiologists rate the interpretability of saliency maps in datasets of X-rays, computed tomography, and magnetic resonance imaging scans. Significant improvements are found for our adversarial models, which are further improved by the application of dual-batch normalization. Contrary to previous research on adversarially trained models, we find that accuracy of such models is equal to standard models, when sufficiently large datasets and dual batch norm training are used. To ensure transferability, we additionally validate our results on an external test set of 22,433 X-rays. These findings elucidate that different paths for adversarial and real images are needed during training to achieve state of the art results with superior clinical interpretability.
Boosting photoelectrochemical efficiency by near-infrared-active lattice-matched morphological heterojunctions
Authors: Liu Guo-Qiang , Yang Yuan , Li Yi , Zhuang Taotao , Li Xu-Feng , Wicks Joshua , Tian Jie , Gao Min-Rui , Peng Jin-Lan , Ju Huan-Xin , Wu Liang , Pan Yun-Xiang , Shi Lu-An , Zhu Haiming , Zhu Junfa , Yu Shu-Hong , Sargent Edward H.
Published: July 2021

Photoelectrochemical catalysis is an attractive way to provide direct hydrogen production from solar energy. However, solar conversion efficiencies are hindered by the fact that light harvesting has so far been of limited efficiency in the near-infrared region as compared to that in the visible and ultraviolet regions. Here we introduce near-infrared-active photoanodes that feature lattice-matched morphological hetero-nanostructures, a strategy that improves energy conversion efficiency by increasing light-harvesting spectral range and charge separation efficiency simultaneously. Specifically, we demonstrate a near-infrared-active morphological heterojunction comprised of BiSeTe ternary alloy nanotubes and ultrathin nanosheets. The heterojunction’s hierarchical nanostructure separates charges at the lattice-matched interface of the two morphological components, preventing further carrier recombination. As a result, the photoanodes achieve an incident photon-to-current conversion efficiency of 36% at 800 nm in an electrolyte solution containing hole scavengers without a co-catalyst.
An antisite defect mechanism for room temperature ferroelectricity in orthoferrites
Authors: Ning Shuai , Kumar Abinash , Klyukin Konstantin , Cho Eunsoo , Kim Jong Heon , Su Tingyu , Kim Hyun-Suk , LeBeau James M. , Yildiz Bilge , Ross Caroline A.
Published: July 2021

Single-phase multiferroic materials that allow the coexistence of ferroelectric and magnetic ordering above room temperature are highly desirable, motivating an ongoing search for mechanisms for unconventional ferroelectricity in magnetic oxides. Here, we report an antisite defect mechanism for room temperature ferroelectricity in epitaxial thin films of yttrium orthoferrite, YFeO3, a perovskite-structured canted antiferromagnet. A combination of piezoresponse force microscopy, atomically resolved elemental mapping with aberration corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy and density functional theory calculations reveals that the presence of YFe antisite defects facilitates a non-centrosymmetric distortion promoting ferroelectricity. This mechanism is predicted to work analogously for other rare earth orthoferrites, with a dependence of the polarization on the radius of the rare earth cation. Our work uncovers the distinctive role of antisite defects in providing a mechanism for ferroelectricity in a range of magnetic orthoferrites and further augments the functionality of this family of complex oxides for multiferroic applications.
Broadly cross-reactive human antibodies that inhibit genogroup I and II noroviruses
Authors: Alvarado Gabriela , Salmen Wilhelm , Ettayebi Khalil , Hu Liya , Sankaran Banumathi , Estes Mary K. , Venkataram Prasad B. V. , Crowe James E.
Published: July 2021

The rational development of norovirus vaccine candidates requires a deep understanding of the antigenic diversity and mechanisms of neutralization of the virus. Here, we isolate and characterize a panel of broadly cross-reactive naturally occurring human monoclonal IgMs, IgAs and IgGs reactive with human norovirus (HuNoV) genogroup I or II (GI or GII). We note three binding patterns and identify monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) that neutralize at least one GI or GII HuNoV strain when using a histo-blood group antigen (HBGA) blocking assay. The HBGA blocking assay and a virus neutralization assay using human intestinal enteroids reveal that the GII-specific mAb NORO-320, mediates HBGA blocking and neutralization of multiple GII genotypes. The Fab form of NORO-320 neutralizes GII.4 infection more potently than the mAb, however, does not block HBGA binding. The crystal structure of NORO-320 Fab in complex with GII.4 P-domain shows that the antibody recognizes a highly conserved region in the P-domain distant from the HBGA binding site. Dynamic light scattering analysis of GII.4 virus-like particles with mAb NORO-320 shows severe aggregation, suggesting neutralization is by steric hindrance caused by multivalent cross-linking. Aggregation was not observed with the Fab form of NORO-320, suggesting that this clone also has additional inhibitory features.
Exposure–lag response of smoking prevalence on lung cancer incidence using a distributed lag non-linear model
Authors: Smith Daniel Robert , Behzadnia Alireza , Imawana Rabbiaatul Addawiyah , Solim Muzammil Nahaboo , Goodson Michaela Louise
Published: July 2021

The prevalence of smokers is a major driver of lung cancer incidence in a population, though the “exposure–lag” effects are ill-defined. Here we present a multi-country ecological modelling study using a 30-year smoking prevalence history to quantify the exposure–lag response. To model the temporal dependency between smoking prevalence and lung cancer incidence, we used a distributed lag non-linear model (DLNM), controlling for gender, age group, country, outcome year, and population at risk, and presented the effects as the incidence rate ratio (IRR) and cumulative incidence rate ratio (IRRcum). The exposure–response varied by lag period, whilst the lag–response varied according to the magnitude and direction of changes in smoking prevalence in the population. For the cumulative lag–response, increments above and below the reference level was associated with an increased and decreased IRRcum respectively, with the magnitude of the effect varying across the lag period. Though caution should be exercised in interpretation of the IRR and IRRcum estimates reported herein, we hope our work constitutes a preliminary step towards providing policy makers with meaningful indicators to inform national screening programme developments. To that end, we have implemented our statistical model a shiny app and provide an example of its use.
C-terminal domain small phosphatase 1 (CTDSP1) regulates growth factor expression and axonal regeneration in peripheral nerve tissue
Authors: Gervasi Noreen M. , Dimtchev Alexander , Clark Desraj M. , Dingle Marvin , Pisarchik Alexander V. , Nesti Leon J.
Published: July 2021

Peripheral Nerve Injury (PNI) represents a major clinical and economic burden. Despite the ability of peripheral neurons to regenerate their axons after an injury, patients are often left with motor and/or sensory disability and may develop chronic pain. Successful regeneration and target organ reinnervation require comprehensive transcriptional changes in both injured neurons and support cells located at the site of injury. The expression of most of the genes required for axon growth and guidance and for synapsis formation is repressed by a single master transcriptional regulator, the Repressor Element 1 Silencing Transcription factor (REST). Sustained increase of REST levels after injury inhibits axon regeneration and leads to chronic pain. As targeting of transcription factors is challenging, we tested whether modulation of REST activity could be achieved through knockdown of carboxy-terminal domain small phosphatase 1 (CTDSP1), the enzyme that stabilizes REST by preventing its targeting to the proteasome. To test whether knockdown of CTDSP1 promotes neurotrophic factor expression in both support cells located at the site of injury and in peripheral neurons, we transfected mesenchymal progenitor cells (MPCs), a type of support cells that are present at high concentrations at the site of injury, and dorsal root ganglion (DRG) neurons with REST or CTDSP1 specific siRNA. We quantified neurotrophic factor expression by RT-qPCR and Western blot, and brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) release in the cell culture medium by ELISA, and we measured neurite outgrowth of DRG neurons in culture. Our results show that CTDSP1 knockdown promotes neurotrophic factor expression in both DRG neurons and the support cells MPCs, and promotes DRG neuron regeneration. Therapeutics targeting CTDSP1 activity may, therefore, represent a novel epigenetic strategy to promote peripheral nerve regeneration after PNI by promoting the regenerative program repressed by injury-induced increased levels of REST in both neurons and support cells.
Inference of malaria reproduction numbers in three elimination settings by combining temporal data and distance metrics
Authors: Routledge Isobel , Unwin H. Juliette T. , Bhatt Samir
Published: July 2021

Individual-level geographic information about malaria cases, such as the GPS coordinates of residence or health facility, is often collected as part of surveillance in near-elimination settings, but could be more effectively utilised to infer transmission dynamics, in conjunction with additional information such as symptom onset time and genetic distance. However, in the absence of data about the flow of parasites between populations, the spatial scale of malaria transmission is often not clear. As a result, it is important to understand the impact of varying assumptions about the spatial scale of transmission on key metrics of malaria transmission, such as reproduction numbers. We developed a method which allows the flexible integration of distance metrics (such as Euclidian distance, genetic distance or accessibility matrices) with temporal information into a single inference framework to infer malaria reproduction numbers. Twelve scenarios were defined, representing different assumptions about the likelihood of transmission occurring over different geographic distances and likelihood of missing infections (as well as high and low amounts of uncertainty in this estimate). These scenarios were applied to four individual level datasets from malaria eliminating contexts to estimate individual reproduction numbers and how they varied over space and time. Model comparison suggested that including spatial information improved models as measured by second order AIC (ΔAICc), compared to time only results. Across scenarios and across datasets, including spatial information tended to increase the seasonality of temporal patterns in reproduction numbers and reduced noise in the temporal distribution of reproduction numbers. The best performing parameterisations assumed long-range transmission (> 200 km) was possible. Our approach is flexible and provides the potential to incorporate other sources of information which can be converted into distance or adjacency matrices such as travel times or molecular markers.
Silica nanoparticles as pesticide against insects of different feeding types and their non-target attraction of predators
Authors: Thabet Ahmed F. , Boraei Hessien A. , Galal Ola A. , El-Samahy Magdy F. M. , Mousa Kareem M. , Zhang Yao Z. , Tuda Midori , Helmy Eman A. , Wen Jian , Nozaki Tsubasa
Published: July 2021

The agricultural use of silica (SiO2) nanoparticles (NPs) has the potential to control insect pests while the safety and tritrophic effects on plants and beneficial natural enemies remains unknown. Here, we evaluate the effects of silica NPs on insect pests with different feeding niches, natural enemies, and a plant. Silica NPs were applied at different concentrations (75–425 mg/L) on field-cultivated faba bean and soybean for two growing seasons. The faba bean pests, the cowpea aphidAphis craccivoraand the American serpentine leafminerLiriomyza trifolii, and the soybean pest, the cotton leafwormSpodoptera littoralis, were monitored along with their associated predators. Additional laboratory experiments were performed to test the effects of silica NPs on the growth of faba bean seedlings and to determine whether the rove beetlePaederus fuscipesis attracted to cotton leafworm-infested soybean treated with silica NPs. In the field experiments, silica NPs reduced the populations of all three insect pests and their associated predators, including rove beetles, as the concentration of silica NPs increased. In soybean fields, however, the total number of predators initially increased after applying the lowest concentration. An olfactometer-based choice test found that rove beetles were more likely to move towards an herbivore-infested plant treated with silica NPs than to a water-treated control, suggesting that silica NPs enhance the attraction of natural enemies via herbivore-induced plant volatiles. In the laboratory, while silica NPs inhibited the development of faba bean roots at 400 mg/L, they did not affect germination percentage, germination time, shoot length, or vigor index compared to the control.
Substrate reduction therapy for Krabbe disease and metachromatic leukodystrophy using a novel ceramide galactosyltransferase inhibitor
Authors: Babcock Michael C. , Mikulka Christina R. , Wang Bing , Chandriani Sanjay , Chandra Sundeep , Xu Yue , Webster Katherine , Feng Ying , Nelvagal Hemanth R. , Giaramita Alex , Yip Bryan K. , Lo Melanie , Jiang Xuntian , Chao Qi , Woloszynek Josh C. , Shen Yuqiao , Bhagwat Shripad , Sands Mark S. , Crawford Brett E.
Published: July 2021

Krabbe disease (KD) and metachromatic leukodystrophy (MLD) are caused by accumulation of the glycolipids galactosylceramide (GalCer) and sulfatide and their toxic metabolites psychosine and lysosulfatide, respectively. We discovered a potent and selective small molecule inhibitor (S202) of ceramide galactosyltransferase (CGT), the key enzyme for GalCer biosynthesis, and characterized its use as substrate reduction therapy (SRT). Treating a KD mouse model with S202 dose-dependently reduced GalCer and psychosine in the central (CNS) and peripheral (PNS) nervous systems and significantly increased lifespan. Similarly, treating an MLD mouse model decreased sulfatides and lysosulfatide levels. Interestingly, lower doses of S202 partially inhibited CGT and selectively reduced synthesis of non-hydroxylated forms of GalCer and sulfatide, which appear to be the primary source of psychosine and lysosulfatide. Higher doses of S202 more completely inhibited CGT and reduced the levels of both non-hydroxylated and hydroxylated forms of GalCer and sulfatide. Despite the significant benefits observed in murine models of KD and MLD, chronic CGT inhibition negatively impacted both the CNS and PNS of wild-type mice. Therefore, further studies are necessary to elucidate the full therapeutic potential of CGT inhibition.
Aerosol microphysics and chemistry reveal the COVID19 lockdown impact on urban air quality
Authors: Eleftheriadis Konstantinos , Gini Maria I. , Diapouli Evangelia , Vratolis Stergios , Vasilatou Vasiliki , Fetfatzis Prodromos , Manousakas Manousos I.
Published: July 2021

Air quality in urban areas and megacities is dependent on emissions, physicochemical process and atmospheric conditions in a complex manner. The impact on air quality metrics of the COVID-19 lockdown measures was evaluated during two periods in Athens, Greece. The first period involved stoppage of educational and recreational activities and the second severe restrictions to all but necessary transport and workplace activities. Fresh traffic emissions and their aerosol products in terms of ultrafine nuclei particles and nitrates showed the most significant reduction especially during the 2nd period (40–50%). Carbonaceous aerosol both from fossil fuel emissions and biomass burning, as well as aging ultrafine and accumulation mode particles showed an increase of 10–20% of average before showing a decline (5 to 30%). It is found that removal of small nuclei and Aitken modes increased growth rates and migration of condensable species to larger particles maintaining aerosol volume.
Impact of train/test sample regimen on performance estimate stability of machine learning in cardiovascular imaging
Authors: Singh Vikash , Pencina Michael , Einstein Andrew J. , Liang Joanna X. , Berman Daniel S. , Slomka Piotr
Published: July 2021

As machine learning research in the field of cardiovascular imaging continues to grow, obtaining reliable model performance estimates is critical to develop reliable baselines and compare different algorithms. While the machine learning community has generally accepted methods such as k-fold stratified cross-validation (CV) to be more rigorous than single split validation, the standard research practice in medical fields is the use of single split validation techniques. This is especially concerning given the relatively small sample sizes of datasets used for cardiovascular imaging. We aim to examine how train-test split variation impacts the stability of machine learning (ML) model performance estimates in several validation techniques on two real-world cardiovascular imaging datasets: stratified split-sample validation (70/30 and 50/50 train-test splits), tenfold stratified CV, 10 × repeated tenfold stratified CV, bootstrapping (500 × repeated), and leave one out (LOO) validation. We demonstrate that split validation methods lead to the highest range in AUC and statistically significant differences in ROC curves, unlike the other aforementioned approaches. When building predictive models on relatively small data sets as is often the case in medical imaging, split-sample validation techniques can produce instability in performance estimates with variations in range over 0.15 in the AUC values, and thus any of the alternate validation methods are recommended.
Fishers' perception of the interaction between the South American sea lions and the Chinook salmon fishery in southern Chile
Authors: Sanguinetti M. , Cid-Aguayo B. , Guerrero A. , Durán M. , Gomez-Uchida D. , Sepúlveda M.
Published: July 2021

We studied how the South American sea lion (SASL, Otaria flavescens) interacts with the operation of an artisanal fishery of Chinook salmon, a non-native species in Chile, using a combination of biological and social approaches, including a valuation by fishers about this interaction. During austral summer of 2019, an observer onboard artisanal fishing boats characterized the attack behavior of SASLs to gillnet-captured Chinook salmon during 33 hauls and analyzed which factors may affect the intensity of attacks. To analyze the relationship between fishers and SASLs, a Likert scale about the perception and views about nature was applied. A total of 23 interviews—including 35 open and 16 closed questions—with fishers were conducted to describe how they perceived the interactions with SASLs. Interactions with SASLs were recorded in 35% of the fishing events and varied depending on both operational factors, such as the number of boats, as well as environmental factors, such as moon’s luminosity. Even though SASL interactions resulted in seven fish (~ 70 kg) damaged of a total catch of 2815 kg (2.5%) during the survey, boats with a damaged catch by SASL lost up to 11% of their revenue. This is consistent with 87% of the interviewed fishers who considered that the conflict with the SASL negatively impacts their activity and results in economic losses. A negative perception towards SASLs likely results from personal experience and revenue loss, even though impacts of SASL interactions at the scale of the entire fishery may be less important. While older fishers with less formal education have a productivist and instrumental focus, younger fishers with a more sustainable and conservationist view of fishing offer an opportunity to lead an improved local understanding of the relationship between salmon, SASLs, and humans.
HIV envelope antigen valency on peptide nanofibers modulates antibody magnitude and binding breadth
Authors: Fries Chelsea N. , Chen Jui-Lin , Dennis Maria L. , Votaw Nicole L. , Eudailey Joshua , Watts Brian E. , Hainline Kelly M. , Cain Derek W. , Barfield Richard , Chan Cliburn , Moody M. Anthony , Haynes Barton F. , Saunders Kevin O. , Permar Sallie R. , Fouda Genevieve G. , Collier Joel H.
Published: July 2021

A major challenge in developing an effective vaccine against HIV-1 is the genetic diversity of its viral envelope. Because of the broad range of sequences exhibited by HIV-1 strains, protective antibodies must be able to bind and neutralize a widely mutated viral envelope protein. No vaccine has yet been designed which induces broadly neutralizing or protective immune responses against HIV in humans. Nanomaterial-based vaccines have shown the ability to generate antibody and cellular immune responses of increased breadth and neutralization potency. Thus, we have developed supramolecular nanofiber-based immunogens bearing the HIV gp120 envelope glycoprotein. These immunogens generated antibody responses that had increased magnitude and binding breadth compared to soluble gp120. By varying gp120 density on nanofibers, we determined that increased antigen valency was associated with increased antibody magnitude and germinal center responses. This study presents a proof-of-concept for a nanofiber vaccine platform generating broad, high binding antibody responses against the HIV-1 envelope glycoprotein.
Social cognition in individuals born preterm
Authors: Pavlova Marina A. , Galli Jessica , Zanetti Federica , Pagani Federica , Micheletti Serena , Rossi Andrea , Sokolov Alexander N. , Fallgatter Andreas J. , Fazzi Elisa M.
Published: July 2021

Faces hold a substantial value for effective social interactions and sharing. Covering faces with masks, due to COVID-19 regulations, may lead to difficulties in using social signals, in particular, in individuals with neurodevelopmental conditions. Daily-life social participation of individuals who were born preterm is of immense importance for their quality of life. Here we examined face tuning in individuals (aged 12.79 ± 1.89 years) who were born preterm and exhibited signs of periventricular leukomalacia (PVL), a dominant form of brain injury in preterm birth survivors. For assessing the face sensitivity in this population, we implemented a recently developed experimental tool, a set of Face-n-Food images bordering on the style of Giuseppe Arcimboldo. The key benefit of these images is that single components do not trigger face processing. Although a coarse face schema is thought to be hardwired in the brain, former preterms exhibit substantial shortages in the face tuning not only compared with typically developing controls but also with individuals with autistic spectrum disorders. The lack of correlations between the face sensitivity and other cognitive abilities indicates that these deficits are domain-specific. This underscores impact of preterm birth sequelae for social functioning at large. Comparison of the findings with data in individuals with other neurodevelopmental and neuropsychiatric conditions provides novel insights into the origins of deficient face processing.
Exercise intolerance in volume overload heart failure is associated with low carotid body mediated chemoreflex drive
Authors: Andrade David C. , Díaz-Jara Esteban , Toledo Camilo , Schwarz Karla G. , Pereyra Katherin V. , Díaz Hugo S. , Marcus Noah J. , Ortiz Fernando C. , Ríos-Gallardo Angélica P. , Ortolani Domiziana , Del Rio Rodrigo
Published: July 2021

Mounting an appropriate ventilatory response to exercise is crucial to meeting metabolic demands, and abnormal ventilatory responses may contribute to exercise-intolerance (EX-inT) in heart failure (HF) patients. We sought to determine if abnormal ventilatory chemoreflex control contributes to EX-inT in volume-overload HF rats. Cardiac function, hypercapnic (HCVR) and hypoxic (HVR) ventilatory responses, and exercise tolerance were assessed at the end of a 6 week exercise training program. At the conclusion of the training program, exercise tolerant HF rats (HF + EX-T) exhibited improvements in cardiac systolic function and reductions in HCVR, sympathetic tone, and arrhythmias. In contrast, HF rats that were exercise intolerant (HF + EX-inT) exhibited worse diastolic dysfunction, and showed no improvements in cardiac systolic function, HCVR, sympathetic tone, or arrhythmias at the conclusion of the training program. In addition, HF + EX-inT rats had impaired HVR which was associated with increased arrhythmia susceptibility and mortality during hypoxic challenges (~ 60% survival). Finally, we observed that exercise tolerance in HF rats was related to carotid body (CB) function as CB ablation resulted in impaired exercise capacity in HF + EX-T rats. Our results indicate that: (i) exercise may have detrimental effects on cardiac function in HF-EX-inT, and (ii) loss of CB chemoreflex sensitivity contributes to EX-inT in HF.
Impact of modified albumin–bilirubin grade on survival in patients with HCC who received lenvatinib
Authors: Tada Toshifumi , Kumada Takashi , Hiraoka Atsushi , Atsukawa Masanori , Hirooka Masashi , Tsuji Kunihiko , Ishikawa Toru , Takaguchi Koichi , Kariyama Kazuya , Itobayashi Ei , Tajiri Kazuto , Shimada Noritomo , Shibata Hiroshi , Ochi Hironori , Yasuda Satoshi , Toyoda Hidenori , Fukunishi Shinya , Ohama Hideko , Kawata Kazuhito , Tani Joji , Nakamura Shinichiro , Nouso Kazuhiro , Tsutsui Akemi , Nagano Takuya , Takaaki Tanaka , Itokawa Norio , Okubo Tomomi , Arai Taeang , Imai Michitaka , Joko Kouji , Koizumi Yohei , Hiasa Yoichi ,   Real-life Practice Experts for HCC (RELPEC) Study Group and the HCC 48 Group (hepatocellular carcinoma experts from 48 clinics in Japan)
Published: July 2021

We investigated the impact on survival of modified albumin–bilirubin (mALBI) grade versus Child–Pugh classification in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) who received lenvatinib. A total of 524 patients with HCC who received lenvatinib were included. Univariate analysis showed that mALBI grade 2b/3 and Child–Pugh class B/C were significantly associated with survival [hazard ratio (HR), 2.471; 95% confidence interval (CI), 1.944–3.141 and HR, 2.178; 95%CI, 1.591–2.982]. In patients with a Child–Pugh score of 5, multivariate analysis showed that mALBI grade 2b/3 was independently associated with survival (HR, 1.814; 95%CI, 1.083–3.037). Conversely, among patients with mALBI grade 1/2a, there was no difference in survival between those with a Child–Pugh class of 5 or 6 (p = 0.735). Time-dependent receiver operating characteristic analysis showed that the ALBI score predicted survival better than the Child–Pugh score. The optimal cut-off value of the ALBI score for predicting survival was nearly the same as the value separating mALBI grades 2a and 2b. In conclusion, the mALBI grade was a better predictor of survival than the Child–Pugh classification in patients with unresectable HCC who received lenvatinib therapy.
Strain hardening recovery mediated by coherent precipitates in lightweight steel
Authors: Kim Sung-Dae , Park Seong-Jun , Jang Jae hoon , Moon Joonoh , Ha Heon-Young , Lee Chang-Hoon , Park Hyungkwon , Shin Jong-Ho , Lee Tae-Ho
Published: July 2021

We investigated the effect of κ-carbide precipitates on the strain hardening behavior of aged Fe–Mn-Al-C alloys by microstructure analysis. The κ-carbides-strengthened Fe–Mn-Al-C alloys exhibited a superior strength-ductility balance enabled by the recovery of the strain hardening rate. To understand the relation between the κ-carbides and strain hardening recovery, dislocation gliding in the aged alloys during plastic deformation was analyzed through in situ tensile transmission electron microscopy (TEM). The in﻿ situ TEM results confirmed the particle shearing mechanism leads to planar dislocation gliding. During deformation of the 100 h-aged alloy, some gliding dislocations were strongly pinned by the large κ-carbide blocks and were prone to cross-slip, leading to the activation of multiple slip systems. The abrupt decline in the dislocation mean free path was attributed to the activation of multiple slip systems, resulting in the rapid saturation of the strain hardening recovery. It is concluded that the planar dislocation glide and sequential activation of slip systems are key to induce strain hardening recovery in polycrystalline metals. Thus, if a microstructure is designed such that dislocations glide in a planar manner, the strain hardening recovery could be utilized to obtain enhanced mechanical properties of the material.
Effects of wood ash and N fertilization on soil chemical properties and growth of Zelkova serrata across soil types
Authors: An Ji Young , Park Byung Bae
Published: July 2021

Wood ash generated as a by-product of biomass combustion can be a sustainable and reasonable approach to counteract acidification and correct nutrient deficiency in forest soils. We investigated the influence of wood ash (WA) and combined WA + N (nitrogen) on soil chemical properties, growth and foliar nutrients of Zelkova serrata and their potential as a soil amender across different soil types. We applied four levels of WA (0, 5, 10, and 20 Mg ha−1) and two levels of N fertilizer (0 and 150 kg ha−1) across three different soil types: landfill saline (LS) soil, forest infertile (FI) soil, and forest acidic (FA) soil. The WA generally improved soil pH, organic matter, available P, exchangeable cations (K+, Na+, Ca2+, and Mg2+), and EC of the three soils, but its ameliorating and neutralizing effects were predominant in FA soil. N fertilizer was more effective in improving plant growth, especially for biomass production in LS and FI soils. WA application significantly increased biomass production when it was applied over 5 Mg ha−1 in FA soil, but higher dose rate of WA (i.e. 20 Mg ha−1) seems to pose negative effects. Foliar P, K, and Ca concentrations also tended to increase with the increasing amount of WA. Therefore, lower dosage of WA without N can be applied as a soil amender to counteract forest soil acidity and improve plant growth and foliar nutrient concentration, whereas N fertilizer without WA can be added to correct nutrient soil deficiencies in landfill and infertile soils. This study should enhance our understanding of WA as a sustainable and reasonable approach to counteract acidification and correct nutrient deficiency in forest soils.
Morphological response accompanying size reduction of belemnites during an Early Jurassic hyperthermal event modulated by life history
Authors: Nätscher Paulina S. , Dera Guillaume , Reddin Carl J. , Rita Patrícia , De Baets Kenneth
Published: July 2021

One of the most common responses of marine ectotherms to rapid warming is a reduction in body size, but the underlying reasons are unclear. Body size reductions have been documented alongside rapid warming events in the fossil record, such as across the Pliensbachian-Toarcian boundary (PToB) event (~ 183 Mya). As individuals grow, parallel changes in morphology can indicate details of their ecological response to environmental crises, such as changes in resource acquisition, which may anticipate future climate impacts. Here we show that the morphological growth of a marine predator belemnite species (extinct coleoid cephalopods) changed significantly over the PToB warming event. Increasing robustness at different ontogenetic stages likely results from indirect consequences of warming, like resource scarcity or hypercalcification, pointing toward varying ecological tolerances among species. The results of this study stress the importance of taking life history into account as well as phylogeny when studying impacts of environmental stressors on marine organisms.
Phase analysis on the error scaling of entangled qubits in a 53-qubit system
Authors: Huang Wei-Jia , Chien Wei-Chen , Cho Chien-Hung , Huang Che-Chun , Huang Tsung-Wei , Tan Seng Ghee , Cao C. , Zeng Bei , Chang Ching-Ray
Published: July 2021

We have studied carefully the behaviors of entangled qubits on the IBM Rochester with various connectivities and under a “noisy” environment. A phase trajectory analysis based on our measurements of the GHZ-like states is performed. Our results point to an important fact that entangled qubits are “protected” against environmental noise by a scaling property that impacts only the weighting of their amplitudes. The reproducibility of most measurements has been confirmed within a reasonably short gate operation time. But there still are a few combinations of qubits that show significant entanglement evolution in the form of transitions between quantum states. The phase trajectory of an entangled evolution, and the impact of the sudden death of GHZ-like states and the revival of newly excited states are analyzed in details. All observed trajectories of entangled qubits arise under the influences of the newly excited states in a “noisy” intermediate-scale quantum (NISQ) computer.
Environmental DNA reveals the fine-grained and hierarchical spatial structure of kelp forest fish communities
Authors: Lamy Thomas , Pitz Kathleen J. , Chavez Francisco P. , Yorke Christie E. , Miller Robert J.
Published: July 2021

Biodiversity is changing at an accelerating rate at both local and regional scales. Beta diversity, which quantifies species turnover between these two scales, is emerging as a key driver of ecosystem function that can inform spatial conservation. Yet measuring biodiversity remains a major challenge, especially in aquatic ecosystems. Decoding environmental DNA (eDNA) left behind by organisms offers the possibility of detecting species sans direct observation, a Rosetta Stone for biodiversity. While eDNA has proven useful to illuminate diversity in aquatic ecosystems, its utility for measuring beta diversity over spatial scales small enough to be relevant to conservation purposes is poorly known. Here we tested how eDNA performs relative to underwater visual census (UVC) to evaluate beta diversity of marine communities. We paired UVC with 12S eDNA metabarcoding and used a spatially structured hierarchical sampling design to assess key spatial metrics of fish communities on temperate rocky reefs in southern California. eDNA provided a more-detailed picture of the main sources of spatial variation in both taxonomic richness and community turnover, which primarily arose due to strong species filtering within and among rocky reefs. As expected, eDNA detected more taxa at the regional scale (69 vs. 38) which accumulated quickly with space and plateaued at only ~ 11 samples. Conversely, the discovery rate of new taxa was slower with no sign of saturation for UVC. Based on historical records in the region (2000–2018) we found that 6.9 times more UVC samples would be required to detect 50 taxa compared to eDNA. Our results show that eDNA metabarcoding can outperform diver counts to capture the spatial patterns in biodiversity at fine scales with less field effort and more power than traditional methods, supporting the notion that eDNA is a critical scientific tool for detecting biodiversity changes in aquatic ecosystems.
Use of a real-life practical context changes the relationship between implicit body representations and real body measurements
Authors: De Coster Lize , Sánchez-Herrero Pablo , López-Moreno Jorge , Tajadura-Jiménez Ana
Published: July 2021

A mismatch exists between people’s mental representations of their own body and their real body measurements, which may impact general well-being and health. We investigated whether this mismatch is reduced when contextualizing body size estimation in a real-life scenario. Using a reverse correlation paradigm, we constructed unbiased, data-driven visual depictions of participants’ implicit body representations. Across three conditions—own abstract, ideal, and own concrete body—participants selected the body that looked most like their own, like the body they would like to have, or like the body they would use for online shopping. In the own concrete condition only, we found a significant correlation between perceived and real hip width, suggesting that the perceived/real body match only exists when body size estimation takes place in a practical context, although the negative correlation indicated inaccurate estimation. Further, participants who underestimated their body size or who had more negative attitudes towards their body weight showed a positive correlation between perceived and real body size in the own abstract condition. Finally, our results indicated that different body areas were implicated in the different conditions. These findings suggest that implicit body representations depend on situational and individual differences, which has clinical and practical implications.
Periodontal inflamed surface area is associated with hs-CRP in septuagenarian Japanese adults in cross-sectional findings from the SONIC study
Authors: Miki Koji , Kitamura Masahiro , Hatta Kodai , Kamide Kei , Gondo Yasuyuki , Yamashita Motozo , Takedachi Masahide , Nozaki Takenori , Fujihara Chiharu , Kashiwagi Yoichiro , Iwayama Tomoaki , Takahashi Toshihito , Sato Hitomi , Murotani Yuki , Kabayama Mai , Takeya Yasushi , Takami Yoichi , Akasaka Hiroshi , Yamamoto Koichi , Sugimoto Ken , Ishizaki Tatsuro , Masui Yukie , Rakugi Hiromi , Ikebe Kazunori , Murakami Shinya
Published: July 2021

Periodontal disease is a chronic inflammatory condition that affects various peripheral organs. The periodontal inflamed surface area (PISA) quantifies periodontitis severity and the spread of inflammatory wounds. This study aimed to investigate the association between PISA and high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), a systemic inflammation marker. This study included 250 community-dwelling septuagenarians (69–71 years). We collected information on their medical (e.g., diabetes and dyslipidemia) and dental examinations (e.g., measurement of the probing pocket depth). Generalized linear model analysis was used to explore the association between PISA and hs-CRP levels. There was a significant difference in hs-CRP levels between groups with PISA ≥ 500 and < 500 (p = 0.017). Moreover, the generalized linear model analysis revealed a significant association between PISA and hs-CRP levels (risk ratio = 1.77; p = 0.033) even after adjusting other factors. Further, we found a correlation between PISA and hs-CRP (Spearman’s rank correlation coefficient, rs = 0.181; p = 0.023). Our findings suggest that PISA is an effective index for estimating the effect of periodontitis on the whole body, enabling medical-dental cooperation.