bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Simple Drought‐Sensitive Model for Leaf : Stem Partitioning of Wheat
Authors: Ratjen A. M. , Neukam D. , Kage H.
Published: February 2016

We investigated the leaf : stem partitioning of winter wheat (Triticum aestivum L. varieties ‘Dekan’ and ‘Batis’) with and without drought influence. Irrigated and drought‐stressed winter wheat, grown in a rainout shelter in 2009/10 and 2013/14, were sampled during shoot elongation phase at the experimental Farm Hohenschulen located in Northern Germany. The data set contains leaf (DML) and stem dry masses (DMS), as well as measured water contents for several soil layers. A reduced relative dry matter allocation to leaves was observed under drought stress. Our results clearly show that, if simulated leaf : stem partitioning is not sensitive to drought, this will cause a positive bias in simulated leaf and a negative bias in simulated stem dry matter under water‐limited conditions. This is in accordance with previous studies which revealed that crop simulators often overestimate the impact of drought on light‐use efficiency, whereas the consequences on leaf area development are underestimated. However, the drought stress‐induced shift in leaf : stem partitioning is yet not considered by most common wheat crop simulators. Our aim was to fill the gap in simulation of drought stress implications on leaf area development. A simple allometric model for leaf : stem partitioning () was parameterized. Starting from the allometric leaf : stem relationship observed under optimum water supply, a correction term was introduced, which allows to adapt the partitioning to drought stress conditions. The lg‐transformed root‐weighted soil water potential in the rooting zone (lgψroot, lg(hPa)), calculated as a function of measured water contents and simulated root distribution, was used as a drought stress indicator. The linear correction term assumes an increase of the stem fraction, proportional to the difference between lgψroot and a drought stress threshold (pFcrit, lg(hPa)). The analysis revealed that the shift in allometric partitioning towards stem fraction starts with lgψroot greater than 1.92 [lg(hPa)]. The slope of the relative increase of dry matter allocated to the stem fraction was determined with 0.26 [lg(hPa)−1]. Both parameters of the correction term were found to be highly significant. Implications for crop modelling are discussed.
Thermal Exposure Effects on the Strength and Microstructure of a Novel Mullite Fiber
Authors: Almeida Renato S. M. , Bergmüller Eduardo L. , Eggert Bruno G. F. , Tushtev Kamen , Schumacher Thomas , Lührs Hanna , Clauß Bernd , Grathwohl Georg , Rezwan Kurosch
Published: February 2016

The mechanical behavior of the novel fiber CeraFib75 after various thermal exposures is examined. This fully crystalline mullite fiber was developed to exceed the thermal stability of commercially available oxide fibers. Therefore, heat treatments at temperatures ranging from 1000°C to 1400°C for 25 h were performed and results compared to the well‐established Nextel™ 720 fibers. Mechanical characterization was realized with bundle tensile tests using acoustic emission sensors to determinate the fiber failure distributions. Investigations showed that the initial fiber microstructure of mullite grains with traces of alumina transforms starting at 1200°C. Changes include dissociation of the alumina‐rich mullite phase and grain growth. Thus, strength reduction is measured as a result of these microstructure transformations. Remarkably, at 1400°C, fibers become more fragile and Weibull statistics can no longer describe the failure distribution. A relation between the distribution shape and the load redistribution capability of fibers is suggested. This is more pronounced for Nextel™720 fibers, which present much bigger grains and retain only 10% of their original strength. However, CeraFib75 fibers are more stable and exhibit a strength retention of 50% at the same conditions, which is attributed to the higher amount of mullite phase.
Geographical variation of body size in sigmodontine rodents depends on both environment and phylogenetic composition of communities
Authors: Maestri Renan , Luza André Luís , de Barros Lurdiana Dayse , Hartz Sandra Maria , Ferrari Augusto , de Freitas Thales Renato Ochotorena , Duarte Leandro D. S.
Published: February 2016

Aim

Body size variation in animal assemblages is a widely addressed pattern in biogeographical studies, and is affected by both environmental gradients and phylogenetic constraints. However, no study has yet explored to what extent the association between body size variation and environmental gradients across broad spatial scales is influenced by the biogeographical distribution of different phylogenetic lineages. In this study, we discriminate the influences of environmental variables and phylogenetic community composition on body size variation in South American sigmodontine rodents.

Location

South America.

Methods

We computed the mean body mass of sigmodontine species co‐occurring in 1 × 1° cells across South America. For each cell we recorded mean values for three environmental variables. We characterized the phylogenetic composition of sigmodontine assemblages within each cell using phylogenetic fuzzy‐weighting and principal coordinates of phylogenetic structure (PCPS). We then partitioned out the influence of environmental factors and the phylogenetic community composition on mean body size.

Results

Mean body size variation was mostly explained by shared influence of phylogenetic community composition (PCPS) and environmental factors (68%), while exclusive influence ofPCPSwas low (19%), and of environment was even lower (0.47%). Increases in body size were related to increases in annual mean temperature, and the influence of environment on body size was mediated by the distribution of sigmodontine lineages across South America.

Main conclusions

Environment alone was not sufficient to explain body size variation in sigmodontine assemblages. Rather, environmental gradients interacted with historical processes to determine body size variation in the Neotropical assemblages. These results have implications for the way we think of body size gradients across species assemblages, because any gradient in a trait may be a result of differences in the biogeographical distribution of lineages across space, which should be considered in an explicit context.
Physical barriers and environmental gradients cause spatial and temporal genetic differentiation of an extensive algal bloom
Authors: Godhe Anna , Sjöqvist Conny , Sildever Sirje , Sefbom Josefin , Harðardóttir Sara , Bertos‐Fortis Mireia , Bunse Carina , Gross Susanna , Johansson Emma , Jonsson Per R. , Khandan Saghar , Legrand Catherine , Lips Inga , Lundholm Nina , Rengefors Karin E. , Sassenhagen Ingrid , Suikkanen Sanna , Sundqvist Lisa , Kremp Anke
Published: February 2016

Aim

To test if a phytoplankton bloom is panmictic, or whether geographical and environmental factors cause spatial and temporal genetic structure.

Location

Baltic Sea.

Method

During four cruises, we isolated clonal strains of the diatom Skeletonema marinoi from 9 to 10 stations along a 1132 km transect and analysed the genetic structure using eight microsatellites. Using F‐statistics and Bayesian clustering analysis we determined if samples were significantly differentiated. A seascape approach was applied to examine correlations between gene flow and oceanographic connectivity, and combined partial Mantel test and RDA based variation partitioning to investigate associations with environmental gradients.

Results

The bloom was initiated during the second half of March in the southern and the northern‐ parts of the transect, and later propagated offshore. By mid‐April the bloom declined in the south, whereas high phytoplankton biomass was recorded northward. We found two significantly differentiated populations along the transect. Genotypes were significantly isolated by distance and by the south–north salinity gradient, which illustrated that the effects of distance and environment were confounded. The gene flow among the sampled stations was significantly correlated with oceanographic connectivity. The depletion of silica during the progression of the bloom was related to a temporal population genetic shift.

Main conclusions

A phytoplankton bloom may propagate as a continuous cascade and yet be genetically structured over both spatial and temporal scales. The Baltic Sea spring bloom displayed strong spatial structure driven by oceanographic connectivity and geographical distance, which was enhanced by the pronounced salinity gradient. Temporal transition of conditions important for growth may induce genetic shifts and different phenotypic strategies, which serve to maintain the bloom over longer periods.
Exogenous pulmonary surfactant prevents the development of intra‐abdominal adhesions in rats
Authors: Schanaider Alberto , Cotta‐Pereira Ricardo , Silva Paulo C. , Macedo‐Ramos Hugo , Silva Johnatas D. , Teixeira Pedro A. C. , Pannain Vera L. N. , Rocco Patricia R. M. , Baetas‐da‐Cruz Wagner
Published: February 2016

Intra‐abdominal adhesions are major post‐operative complications for which no effective means of prevention is available. We aimed to evaluate the efficacy of exogenous pulmonary surfactant administration in the prevention of post‐operative abdominal adhesions. Rats were randomly assigned to undergo laparotomy (L) or gastroenterostomy (GE) and then treated with surfactant (groups L‐S and GE‐S, respectively). Intra‐abdominal adhesions, collagen fibre content, metalloproteinase (MMP)‐9, expression of growth factors (TGF‐β, KGF and VEGF), type III procollagen (PCIII) and pro‐caspase 3, as well as isolectin B4 and ED1‐positive cells expressing MMP‐9, were evaluated. Groups treated with surfactant (GE‐S and L‐S) exhibited fewer adhesions. A significant reduction in collagen fibre content was observed in GE‐S compared to GE animals (P < 0.001). In situ and gelatin zymography analysis showed higher MMP‐9 expression and activity in the GE‐S group compared to the GE group (P < 0.05). ED1‐positive cell counts were significantly higher in the GE‐S group (P < 0.001) than in the GE group. Virtually all cells positive for ED1 were MMP‐9+. Double‐labelling of MMP‐9 with IB4 showed no significant differences between GE‐S and GE groups. TGF‐β, KGF, PCIII and pro‐caspase‐3 mRNA expression decreased significantly in GE‐S compared to GE animals (P < 0.05). Surfactant administration also reduced apoptosis in the GE‐S group. These findings suggest that surfactant reduces the intra‐abdominal adhesions triggered by laparotomy and gastrointestinal anastomosis, thus preventing fibrosis formation at the peritoneal surfaces. This preclinical study suggests an innovative treatment strategy for intra‐abdominal adhesions with surfactant and to endorse its putative mechanism of action.
Rapid aberration measurement with pixelated detectors
Authors: LUPINI A.R. , CHI M. , JESSE S.
Published: February 2016

Aberration‐corrected microscopy in a scanning transmission electron microscope requires the fast and accurate measurement of lens aberrations to align or ‘tune’ the corrector. Here, we demonstrate a method to measure aberrations based on acquiring a 4D data set on a pixelated detector. Our method is compared to existing procedures and the choice of experimental parameters is examined. The accuracy is similar to existing methods, but in principle this procedure can be performed in a few seconds and extended to arbitrary order. This method allows rapid measurement of aberrations and represents a step towards more automated electron microscopy.
Epigenetic Control of the Vasopressin Promoter Explains Physiological Ability to Regulate Vasopressin Transcription in Dehydration and Salt Loading States in the Rat
Authors: Greenwood M. P. , Greenwood M. , Gillard B. T. , Loh S. Y. , Paton J. F. R. , Murphy D.
Published: February 2016

The synthesis of arginine vasopressin (AVP) in the supraoptic nucleus (SON) and paraventricular nucleus (PVN) of the hypothalamus is sensitive to increased plasma osmolality and a decreased blood volume, and thus is robustly increased by both dehydration (increased plasma osmolality and decreased blood volume) and salt loading (increased plasma osmolality). Both stimuli result in functional remodelling of the SON and PVN, a process referred to as functional‐related plasticity. Such plastic changes in the brain have recently been associated with altered patterns of DNA methylation at CpG (cytosine‐phosphate‐guanine) residues, a process considered to be important for the regulation of gene transcription. In this regard, the proximal Avp promoter contains a number of CpG sites and is recognised as one of four CpG islands for the Avp gene, suggesting that methylation may be regulating Avp transcription. In the present study, we show that, in an immortalised hypothalamic cell line 4B, the proximal Avp promoter is highly methylated, and treatment of these cells with the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor 5‐Aza‐2′‐deoxycytidine to demethylate DNA dramatically increases basal and stimulated Avp biosynthesis. We report no changes in the expression of DNA methyltransferases, Dnmt1 and Dnmt3a, whereas there is decreased expression of the demethylating enzyme ten‐eleven‐translocation 2, Tet2, in the SON by dehydration and salt loading. We found higher methylation of the SON Avp promoter in dehydrated but not salt‐loaded rats. By analysis of individual CpG sites, we observed hypomethylation, hypermethylation and no change in methylation of specific CpGs in the SON Avp promoter of the dehydrated rat. Using reporter gene assays, we show that mutation of individual CpGs can result in altered Avp promoter activity. We propose that methylation of the SON Avp promoter is necessary to co‐ordinate the duel inputs of increased plasma osmolality and decreased blood volume on Avp transcription in the chronically dehydrated rat.
Adolescent Abstention From Delinquency: Examining the Mediating Role of Time Spent With (Delinquent) Peers
Authors: Mercer Natalie , Keijsers Loes , Crocetti Elisabetta , Branje Susan , Meeus Wim
Published: February 2016

Research consistently identifies a group of adolescents who refrain from minor delinquency entirely. Known as abstainers, studying these adolescents is an underexplored approach to understanding adolescent minor delinquency. In this paper, we tested hypotheses regarding adolescent delinquency abstention derived from the developmental taxonomy model and social control theory in 497 adolescents (283 boys) aged 13–18 comparing three groups of adolescents: abstainers, experimenters, and a delinquent group. We found that the relation between adolescent abstention and personal characteristics (i.e., conscientiousness and anxiety) was (partially) mediated by the amount of time spent with peers. Furthermore, the level of best friend delinquency moderated the relation between time spent with peers and delinquency abstention. Results support aspects of both theoretical frameworks.
Adolescent Life Stress and the Cortisol Awakening Response: The Moderating Roles of Attachment and Sex
Authors: Miller Kelly F. , Margolin Gayla , Shapiro Lauren Spies , Timmons Adela C.
Published: February 2016

This longitudinal study investigated how past versus current life stresses relate to adolescents' cortisol awakening response (CAR), an index of hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal activity. Ninety‐nine adolescents reported previous year life stress at ages 12 and 18. At the second assessment, participants also provided self‐reports of parent and peer attachment and 3 days of cortisol samples. Current stress was associated with heightened CAR for both males and females, whereas past stress was associated with attenuated CAR for males. Attachment to peers buffered the relationship between past stress and attenuated CAR for all adolescents; attachment to parents was a buffer for male adolescents only. Results demonstrate the protective roles of adolescent relationships and highlight sex differences in biopsychosocial development across adolescence.
Performance of rapid diagnostic tests for the detection of antibodies to hepatitis C virus in whole blood collected on dried blood spots
Authors: Poiteau L. , Soulier A. , Rosa I. , Roudot‐Thoraval F. , Hézode C. , Pawlotsky J.‐M. , Chevaliez S.
Published: February 2016

Rapid diagnostic tests (RDTs) represent an attractive alternative to enzyme immunoassays. A total of 207 individuals, including 68 HCV‐seronegative subjects, 10 patients with resolved infection and 129 patients with chronic HCV infection, were studied. The specificity of RDT detection of anti‐HCV antibodies in whole blood was 100% with the four RDTs tested: OraQuick® HCV Rapid Antibody Test, First Response HCV Card Test, ASSURE HCV Rapid Test and MultiSure HCV Antibody Assay. Their diagnostic sensitivity varied between 98.6% and 100%. RDT detection of anti‐HCV antibody in whole blood collected on dried blood spots appears to be a promising new tool for broadscale screening of HCV infection in high‐ to medium‐risk populations.
Hepatic expression of proteasome subunit alpha type‐6 is upregulated during viral hepatitis and putatively regulates the expression of ISG15 ubiquitin‐like modifier, a proviral host gene in hepatitis C virus infection
Authors: Broering R. , Trippler M. , Werner M. , Real C. I. , Megger D. A. , Bracht T. , Schweinsberg V. , Sitek B. , Eisenacher M. , Meyer H. E. , Baba H. A. , Weber F. , Hoffmann A.‐C. , Gerken G. , Schlaak J. F.
Published: February 2016

The interferon‐stimulated gene 15 (ISG15) plays an important role in the pathogenesis of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection. ISG15‐regulated proteins have previously been identified that putatively affect this proviral interaction. The present observational study aimed to elucidate the relation between ISG15 and these host factors during HCV infection. Transcriptomic and proteomic analyses were performed using liver samples of HCV‐infected (n = 54) and uninfected (n = 10) or HBV‐infected controls (n = 23). Primary human hepatocytes (PHH) were treated with Toll‐like receptor ligands, interferons and kinase inhibitors. Expression of ISG15 and proteasome subunit alpha type‐6 (PSMA6) was suppressed in subgenomic HCV replicon cell lines using specific siRNAs. Comparison of hepatic expression patterns revealed significantly increased signals for ISG15, IFIT1, HNRNPK and PSMA6 on the protein level as well as ISG15, IFIT1 and PSMA6 on the mRNA level in HCV‐infected patients. In contrast to interferon‐stimulated genes, PSMA6 expression occurred independent of HCV load and genotype. In PHH, the expression of ISG15 and PSMA6 was distinctly induced by poly(I:C), depending on IRF3 activation or PI3K/AKT signalling, respectively. Suppression of PSMA6 in HCV replicon cells led to significant induction of ISG15 expression, thus combined knock‐down of both genes abrogated the antiviral effect induced by the separate suppression of ISG15. These data indicate that hepatic expression of PSMA6, which is upregulated during viral hepatitis, likely depends on TLR3 activation. PSMA6 affects the expression of immunoregulatory ISG15, a proviral factor in the pathogenesis of HCV infection. Therefore, the proteasome might be involved in the enigmatic interaction between ISG15 and HCV.
Natural killer cells in highly exposed hepatitis C‐seronegative injecting drug users
Authors: Mina M. M. , Cameron B. , Luciani F. , Vollmer‐Conna U. , Lloyd A. R. ,   the HITS‐p investigators
Published: February 2016

Injecting drug use remains the major risk factor for hepatitis C (HCV) transmission. A minority of long‐term injecting drug users remain seronegative and aviraemic, despite prolonged exposure to HCV – termed highly exposed seronegative subjects. Natural killer (NK) cells have been implicated in this apparent protection. A longitudinal nested, three group case–control series of subjects was selected from a prospective cohort of seronegative injecting drug users who became incident cases (n = 11), remained seronegative (n = 11) or reported transient high‐risk behaviour and remained uninfected (n = 11). The groups were matched by age, sex and initial risk behaviour characteristics. Stored peripheral blood mononuclear cells were assayed in multicolour flow cytometry to enumerate natural killer cell subpopulations and to assess functional activity using Toll‐like receptor ligands before measurement of activation, cytokine production and natural cytotoxicity receptor expression. Principal components were derived to describe the detailed phenotypic characteristics of the major NK subpopulations (based on CD56 and CD16 co‐expression), before logistic regression analysis to identify associations with exposed, seronegative individuals. The CD56dimCD16+ (P = 0.05, OR 6.92) and CD56dimCD16− (P = 0.05, OR 6.07) principal components differed between exposed, seronegative individuals and pre‐infection samples of the other two groups. These included CD56dimCD16+ and CD56dimCD16− subsets with CD56dimCD16+ IFN‐γ and TNF‐α on unstimulated cells, and CD56dimCD16− CD69+, CD107a+, IFN‐γ and TNF‐α following TLR stimulation. The cytotoxic CD56dim NK subset thus distinguished highly exposed, seronegative subjects, suggesting NK cytotoxicity may contribute to protection from HCV acquisition. Further investigation of the determinants of this association and prospective assessment of protection against HCV infection are warranted.
The role of distance and habitat specificity in bryophyte and perennial seed plant metacommunities in arid scrubland fragments
Authors: Granzow‐de la Cerda Íñigo , Arellano Gabriel , Brugués Montserrat , Solà‐López Albert
Published: February 2016

Questions

What are the relative roles of (1) environmental niche partitioning (especially along soil chemistry gradients), (2) effective dispersal, and (3) landscape characteristics in structuring species assemblies of bryophyte and seed plant metacommunities?

Location

Ebro river basin, NE Spain.

Methods

We sampled biological soil crust (BSC) bryophytes and perennial seed plants from 54 plots in ten fragments of native vegetation from two contiguous landscapes with contrasting agricultural matrix types. Each plot was characterized with respect to soil electrical conductivity (EC, a proxy for presence of gypsum and halite), pH, vegetation cover and aspect. We used unconstrained ordinations to find the main floristic gradients and evaluated their relationship with environmental variables using Kendall correlations. We studied the spatial structure of floristic dissimilarities for bryophyte and seed plant communities by using multiple regression models on distance matrices (MRM), and individual species' responses by estimating species' densities along environmental gradients. We estimated effective isolation between plots within landscapes by means of partial MRM.

Results

We found 60 bryophyte and 57 seed plant species. Compositional dissimilarities were spatially structured. DCA showed clear floristic segregation of the two landscapes. The soil EC gradient was the main variable explaining compositional variation in both plant metacommunities, followed by soil pH. The effect of geographic distance between plots differed significantly between landscapes and matrix types, and was larger for seed plants than for bryophytes.

Conclusions

Only a handful of BSC bryophyte species can be regarded as either true gypsofuges or true gypsophiles. Gypsophilous bryophytes are fewer and less strongly associated with gypsum‐rich sites than co‐existing perennial seed plants. Overall, BSC bryophyte communities vary less over similar distances than corresponding seed plant communities, most likely due to higher dispersal ability. We argue that the topographically complex landscape of a less modified agricultural matrix imposes more ‘friction’ to bryophyte dispersal than a smoother landscape with a more intensely human‐modified matrix. Effective conservation of fragmented arid agricultural landscapes must take into account the sensitivity of the biota to fragment intrinsic conditions, the properties and the management practices that shaped the landscape.
The Role of Inhibitory Control in Second Language Phonological Processing
Authors: Darcy Isabelle , Mora Joan C. , Daidone Danielle
Published: February 2016

This study investigated the role of inhibition in second language (L2) learners’ phonological processing. Participants were Spanish learners of L2 English and American learners of L2 Spanish. We measured inhibition through a retrieval‐induced inhibition task. Accuracy of phonological representations (perception and production) was assessed through a speeded ABX categorization task and a delayed sentence repetition task. We used a measure of L2 vocabulary size to tease out L2 proficiency effects. Higher inhibitory control was related to lower error rate in segmental perception. Inhibition was also related to consonant but not to vowel production accuracy. These results suggest a potential role for inhibition in L2 phonological acquisition, with inhibition enhancing the processing of phonologically relevant acoustic information in the L2 input, which in turn might lead to more accurate L2 phonological representations.

Open Practices

This article has been awarded an Open Materials badge. All materials are publicly accessible in the IRIS digital repository at http://www.iris‐database.org. Learnmore about the Open Practices badges from the Center for Open Science:https://osf.io/tvyxz/wiki
Social Movements and the Politics of Bureaucratic Rights Enforcement: Insights from the Allocation of Disability Rights in France
Authors: Revillard Anne
Published: February 2016

While research on legal mobilization shows how social movements contribute to the definition and implementation of rights, it remains excessively centered on litigation to the detriment of administrative rights enforcement. This article maps out how street-level bureaucracies impact rights enforcement by distinguishing between allocation, access, and process, and analyzes how social movements intervene in these three aspects. It then focuses on allocation, using the case of French disability policy to analyze the forms of advocacy deployed by movement actors who take part in the rights allocation process at the local level. The article argues that conformity to institutional norms derives not so much from a pressure to conform as from the knowledge and experience of the limited means locally available to make rights effective. Further, it shows how advocacy is reframed from the defense of individual claims to a role of scrutiny and control of the bureaucratic allocation of rights.
Gait analysis of patients with Parkinson's disease using a portable triaxial accelerometer
Authors: Okuda Shiho , Takano Shin , Ueno Masao , Hara Yoshiaki , Chida Yasushi , Ikkaku Tomoko , Kanda Fumio , Toda Tatsushi
Published: February 2016

Background

Gait disturbance is a major problem for Parkinson's disease patients.

Aim

We examined the nature of parkinsonian gait using a triaxial accelerometer, and elucidated differences as compared with healthy adults.

Methods

A total of 16 patients with idiopathic Parkinson's disease, 14 healthy young adults and 10 healthy older adults took part in the study. The accelerometer was placed at the level of the L4 spinous process and the participants were instructed to walk along a 30‐m horizontal walkway. Gait speed and acceleration were analyzed on the middle 10 m. Acceleration data were obtained by using the root mean square of acceleration in three directions as the mean acceleration value.

Results

Gait speed and mean acceleration had a high correlation in healthy young and older adults, but not in the Parkinson's disease patients. Gait speed in the Parkinson's disease patients was significantly slower than that in the healthy older adults (P < 0.05). Evaluations of each component of acceleration showed that the mediolateral component in the patients was significantly high as compared with that in the healthy older adults (P < 0.05), although the vertical and anteroposterior components were not different between the Parkinson's disease patients and healthy adults.

Conclusions

Gait speed in Parkinson's disease patients is significantly slower than that in healthy older adults. Furthermore, it is suggested that gait in Parkinson's disease patients swings in a more bilateral manner as compared with the gait in normal controls.
Analysis of non‐parkinsonian tremor with complicated pathophysiology viewed from brain activities monitored during thalamotomy
Authors: Narabayashi Yohsuke , Oshima Tomokazu
Published: February 2016

Background

In the procedure of thalamotomy, we mark the targets by thalamic 13−27‐Hz β‐band and 3−7‐Hz τ‐range hyperactivities as representing parkinsonian rigidity and tremor, respectively.

Aim

We tested the validity of these thalamic markers in surgically treated non‐parkinsonian patients with tremor of complicated pathophysiology.

Methods

As the cases with tremor, but no thalamic τ‐range hyperactivities, we selected four of the 23 previously studied non‐parkinsonian patients; examined the shoulder, neck, face and limb electromyograms, brain local field potentials, and multiple unit spikes; and rated the local field potentials in the bands of 3–7, 7–13, 13–27 and 27–80 Hz.

Results

Tremor rated as moderate in the present study was postural, kinetic, intentional, ballistic, or myoclonic, or of some combined nature with irregular rhythms at variable frequencies widely ranging in 1–13 Hz. Tremor accompanied motor hyperactivities and thalamic β‐band hyperactivities, but not τ‐range activities. The β‐band hyperactivities and high neural noise occurred in the caudate nucleus, thalamic ventroanterior nucleus, nucleus ventralis lateralis and nucleus ventralis intermedius. The thalamic β‐band hyperactivities were not accompanied by rigidity in three of the patients. The four patients were thus atypical when compared with the other non‐parkinsonian and parkinsonian patients. Yet, thalamotomy alleviated tremor and concurrent motor hyperactivities.

Conclusion

Non‐parkinsonian tremor in the four patients was related to β‐band hyperactivities, and elevating neural noise in wide regions of the basal ganglia and thalamus. Thalamotomy was effective by eventually abolishing ventralis lateralis with β‐band hyperactivities and high noise that was involved as a part of the widely distributed pathophysiology of these patients.
Comparison of instructor‐led versus peer‐led debriefing in nursing students
Authors: Roh Young Sook , Kelly Michelle , Ha Eun Ho
Published: February 2016

Despite its widespread support, the most effective simulation‐based debriefing method has little evidence to support its efficacy. In this study, we compared the effect of peer‐led and instructor‐led debriefing among nursing students. The study was conducted with a non‐equivalent control group using a pretest–post‐test design. A convenience sample of third‐year nursing students was used for the study, where 65 students enrolled in a 2‐week clinical placement rotation were randomly assigned to the instructor‐led group or peer‐led group. The quality of cardiopulmonary resuscitation skills, satisfaction with simulation, and quality of debriefing in the peer‐led group were compared to those in the instructor‐led group. Group differences at each testing interval were analyzed using independent t‐test. Nursing students in the instructor‐led debriefing group showed better subsequent cardiopulmonary resuscitation performance, more satisfaction with simulation experience, and higher debriefing scores compared to the peer‐led group. From our study, instructor‐led debriefing is an effective method in improving skills performance, inducing favorable satisfaction, and providing better quality of debriefing among nursing students.
Characterization of IRE1 ribonuclease‐mediated mRNA decay in plants using transient expression analyses in rice protoplasts
Authors: Hayashi Shimpei , Wakasa Yuhya , Ozawa Kenjirou , Takaiwa Fumio
Published: February 2016

In some eukaryotes, endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress induces regulated inositol‐requiring enzyme 1 (IRE1)‐dependent decay (RIDD) of mRNAs. Recently, the expression levels of the mRNAs encoding some secretory proteins were reported to be downregulated by RIDD in the vegetative tissues of plants. However, the characteristics of plant RIDD have been insufficiently investigated due to difficulty of in planta analyses.

Here, the RIDD susceptibilities of various mRNAs that are difficult to analyze in planta were examined using transient expression analyses of rice protoplasts.

In this system, the mRNAs encoding three rice seed storage proteins (SSPs) – namely α‐globulin, 16‐kDa prolamin and 10‐kDa prolamin – were downregulated in response to ER stress. The rapid ER stress‐induced degradation of these mRNAs was repressed in cells in which the ribonuclease activity of IRE1 was specifically abolished by genome editing, suggesting that the mRNAs encoding certain SSPs are strong targets of RIDD. Furthermore, we investigated whether these RIDD targets are substrates of the IRE1 ribonuclease using a recombinant IRE1 protein, and identified candidate IRE1‐mediated cleavage sites.

Overall, the results demonstrate the existence of a post‐transcriptional mechanism of regulation of SSPs, and illustrate the basic and multifaceted characteristics of RIDD in higher plants.
Cisgenesis and genome editing: combining concepts and efforts for a smarter use of genetic resources in crop breeding
Authors: Cardi Teodoro
Published: February 2016

Plant genetic resources (PGR) represent valuable sources of genetic variability for crop breeding. The development of novel biotechnologies is necessary for increasing the efficiency of their use in pre‐breeding and breeding work. The genome sequencing of hundreds of genotypes and the mining of allele diversity in major crops and populations of landraces and wild relatives allow the isolation of genes underlying characters of interest and their precise modification or transfer into targeted varieties. The technological developments and applications of new plant breeding techniques (NPBT) that maximize the similarity with gene transfer by crossing (cisgenesis/intragenesis) or the accuracy of biotechnological approaches (genome editing) are reviewed. Their potentialities and current limitations as well as the possible advantages of using them separately or combined for the exploitation of PGR in crop breeding are also discussed. Above‐mentioned NPBT tackle some objections to the application of biotechnologies in agriculture and are under review worldwide to assess the possible exclusion from the current regulation systems for genetically modified plants.
Application of Deuteporfin in the Metastatic Lymph Node Mapping of Pancreatic Cancer: An in vivo Study
Authors: Yu Xinzhe , Yao Lie , Di Yang , He Hang , Li Xiaoxia , Zhang Chun , Fu Deliang , Jin Chen , Li Ji
Published: February 2016

For most cancer patients, the presence of metastatic lymph nodes usually indicates regional recurrence and poor prognosis. Therefore, lymph node mapping is a requisite for disease staging, prognosis prediction and decision making in the treatment of cancer. Deuteporfin, a second‐generation photosensitizer, has a maximum excitation wavelength that can reach the near infrared (NIR) region (650–700 nm). We aimed to take advantage of these aspects of deuteporfin and use it as a fluorescent probe for metastatic lymph node mapping in vivo using NIR fluorescent imaging. In our study, we further investigated whether a photosensitizer could be used as a tracer for metastatic lymph node mapping of pancreatic cancer based on previous reports. Compared to normal tissues, tumor tissues including primary tumors and metastatic lymph nodes had a higher uptake ability of deuteporfin (P < 0.05). Our research confirmed this targeting property of deuteporfin using in vivo fluorescent imaging. Consistent with observations from in vivo imaging experiments, frozen sections of metastatic lymph nodes intuitively displayed significantly higher and wider distributions of deuteporfin than normal sections.
Community participation and ecological criteria for selecting species and restoring natural capital with native species in the Sahel
Authors: Sacande Moctar , Berrahmouni Nora
Published: February 2016

Combining community needs and preferences with dryland plant expertise in order to select suitable native species for large‐scale natural capital restoration is the approach that has been successful in the Sahel as part of Africa's Great Green Wall program. In order to increase plant diversity and restore degraded land, we investigated four cross‐border regions of Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, all located in dryland ecosystems of the Sahel. In 120 beneficiary village communities, with a total population of over 50,000 farmers, including 51% women, participatory diagnostic meetings were conducted, leading to the selection of 193 plant species, most of which were mainly used for food, medicine, fodder, and fuel. Of these, 170 were native and considered suitable for enriching and restoring those village lands. The most environmentally well‐adapted and economically relevant species were prioritized, quality seeds were collected, and nursery seedlings produced under technical supervision of villages. From 2013 to 2015, 55 woody and herbaceous species were planted to initiate restoration of 2,235 ha of degraded land. On average, 60% of seedlings survived and grew well in the field after three rainy seasons. Due to its multiple uses, including gum arabic production, Acacia senegal was preferred by local people in most cases, accounting for 30% of seedlings planted. Such promising results, in an effort to restore degraded land for and with the help of thousands of farmers, could not have been achieved without the combination of scientific plant expertise and efficient rural capacity development, underpinned by high levels of community engagement.
Discourse, Strategy, and Practice of Urban Resilience against Flooding
Authors: Su Yu-Shou
Published: February 2016

Resilience discourse is shifting the very meaning of “resilience” from “bouncing back” to “bouncing forward” in the twenty-first century. International policies have provoked cities to play a proactive role in applying land-use and environmental planning strategies for disaster resilience. Strategies of urban flood resilience include prevention, accommodation, fortification, protection, retreat, and green infrastructure. In general, four models of resilience against flooding are primarily adopted: the structure model, the non-structure model, the land-use and environmental planning model, and the retreat planning model. Results indicate that planning more space for the river, wetland planning, polder and retention areas, and permeable surface design do matter in reducing flood risks. Additionally, urban growth management, directing developments and populations away from floodplains, could reduce flood risks and damages. Finally, in retreat model, urban resilience stresses retreat and evacuation to reduce flood damages. Retreat strategies and alternatives, such as property buyouts, relocations, new towns for accommodations, and land swaps for less risky areas, could be applied in helping to achieve urban flood resilience.
Assessment of Long-Term Creep Rupture Strength of T91 Steel by Multiregion Rupture Data Analysis
Authors: Maruyama K. , Nakamura J. , Yoshimi K.
Published: February 2016

Creep rupture strength of creep strength enhanced ferritic steels is often overestimated, and its evaluated value has been reduced repeatedly. In this paper, the cause of the overestimation is discussed, and the creep rupture strength of T91 steel is assessed with its updated creep rupture data. Effects of residual Ni concentration on the creep rupture strength and necessity of F factor in T91 steel are also discussed. Decrease in activation energy Q for rupture life in long-term creep is the cause of the overestimation, since conventional time–temperature parameter (TTP) methods cannot deal with the change in Q. Due to the decrease in Q, long-term creep rupture strength evaluated decreases as longer-term data points are added or shorter-term data points are discarded in the conventional TTP analysis. The long-term region with small values of activation energy and stress exponent is named region L2 in this paper. Region L2 appears in all the heats of T91 steel and plate products of Gr.91 steel. Since service conditions of the T91 steel are usually in region L2, the creep rupture strength under the service conditions should be evaluated from the rupture data in region L2 only. The 5 × 105 hrs rupture strength at 550 °C decreases from 129 MPa (evaluated from the whole data of T91 steel) to 79 MPa (evaluated from the data in region L2 only) with increasing cut-off time for data selection. The 105 hrs rupture strength at 600 °C also decreases from 87 MPa (whole data) to 70 MPa (region L2 only) despite sufficient number of long-term data points at 600 °C. Careful consideration on the data selection is necessary in evaluation of creep rupture strength of the T91 steel. A multiregion rupture data analysis (MRA) is helpful to select data points belonging to region L2.
Bilateral and symmetric isolated dorsospinal arteries with prominent anterior radiculomedullary contribution
Authors: Orru’ Emanuele , Gailloud Philippe
Published: February 2016

We present the case of a 15-year-old girl with a left T7 spinal epidural arteriovenous fistula (SEAVF), in whom bilateral and symmetric isolated T9 dorsospinal arteries (DAs) were incidentally documented, each providing a significant contribution to the anterior spinal artery. Recognizing the existence of isolated DAs of direct aortic origin is critical, both for the diagnostic evaluation and for the management of spinal vascular diseases. Notably, isolated DAs tend to branch off significant radiculomedullary arteries, which vascularize the normal spinal cord but have also been shown to supply spinal vascular malformations.
Co-occurrence of biphenotypic acute leukaemia, glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency and haemoglobin E trait in a single child
Authors: Mallick Debkrishna , Thapa Rajoo , Biswas Biswajit
Published: February 2016

Acute leukaemias occur as the result of clonal expansion subsequent to transformation and arrest at a normal differentiation stage of haematopoietic precursors, which commit to a single lineage, such as myeloid or B-lymphoid or T-lymphoid cells. Biphenotypic acute leukaemia (BAL) constitutes a biologically different group of leukaemia arising from a precursor stem cell and co-expressing more than one lineage specific marker. The present report describes a child with unusual co-occurrence of biphenotypic (B-precursor cell and Myeloid) acute leukaemia, haemoglobin E trait and glucose 6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G6-PD) deficiency. To the best of our knowledge, this constellation of haematological conditions in a single child has never been described before.
Application of herb chronology: Annual fertilization and climate reveal annual ring signatures within the roots of US tallgrass prairie plants
Authors: Dee Justin R. , Palmer Michael W.
Published: February 2016

The relatively new field of herbaceous root chronology (“herb chronology”) uses the annual rings of secondary xylem in roots of perennial forbs to analyze belowground secondary growth as a function of annual growth environment. By using three tallgrass forb species from long-term experiments within Konza prairie of northeastern Kansas (USA), we aimed to find the effects of fertilization, growing season temperature, and precipitation on annual secondary growth. For two of the three species, we found annual rings were significantly larger among plots that were fertilized annually with phosphorus or nitrogen + phosphorus in contrast to unfertilized control plots. Rings also had significant variation with climatic variables. We found a consistent negative correlation with early season temperature for each species. However, early growing season precipitation proved to be far less consistent, with positive correlations only found in a few cases between species. Overall, we conclude that annual rings in these select tallgrass prairie species may not carry reliable climatic signatures; rather site-specific ecological factors, such as aboveground competition with neighbors, may be more important for annual ring patterns. In our discussion we propose a framework to help better disentangle the effects of site or climatic factors that may affect herbaceous annual ring variation.
The acidity of β-phosphoglucomutase monofluoromethylenephosphonate ligands probed by NMR spectroscopy and quantum mechanical methods
Authors: Forget Stephanie M. , Bushnell Eric A.C. , Boyd Russell J. , Jakeman David L.
Published: February 2016

We recently described the binding of 1-β-phosphonomethylene-1-deoxy-d-glucopyranose, (S)-1-β-phosphonofluoromethylene-1-deoxy-D-glucopyranose (βG1CFSP), and (R)-1-β-phosphonofluoromethylene-1-deoxy-d-glucopyranose (βG1CFRP) to the enzyme β-phosphoglucomutase as transition state analogues of phosphoryl transfer through formation of stable MgF3− and AlF4− complexes (Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 2014, 111, 12384). Herein, we describe in detail the five-fold difference in acidity (pKa2) for the (S)- and (R)-configured diastereomeric fluorophosphonates through a series of NMR spectroscopy experiments. The differences in acidity were corroborated using computational quantum mechanical calculations to determine structures of lowest energy conformers and provide insight into why the (S) isomer is substantially more acidic.
Sterile neutrino dark matter from freeze-in
Authors: Shakya Bibhushan
Published: February 2016

A sterile neutrino is a well-motivated and widely studied dark matter (DM) candidate. The most straightforward realization of sterile neutrino DM, through the Dodelson–Widrow (DW) mechanism, is now ruled out by a combination of X-ray and Lyman-[Formula: see text] measurements. An alternative production mechanism that is becoming increasingly popular in the literature is the freeze-in mechanism, involving frameworks where a feeble coupling to a particle — usually a scalar beyond the Standard Model — in the thermal bath results in a gradual accumulation of the sterile neutrino DM abundance. This paper reviews the various motivations for realizing such frameworks in the literature, their common characteristic features and phenomenological signatures.
Yang–Mills for historians and philosophers
Authors: Crease R. P.
Published: February 2016

The phrase “Yang–Mills” can be used (1) to refer to the specific theory proposed by Yang and Mills in 1954; or (2) as shorthand for any non-Abelian gauge theory. The 1954 version, physically speaking, had a famous show-stopping defect in the form of what might be called the “Pauli snag,” or the requirement that, in the Lagrangian for non-Abelian gauge theory the mass term for the gauge field has to be zero. How, then, was it possible for (1) to turn into (2)? What unfolding sequence of events made this transition possible, and what does this evolution say about the nature of theories in physics? The transition between (1) and (2) illustrates what historians and philosophers a century from now might still find instructive and stimulating about the development of Yang–Mills theory.
Modified tunneling radiation of the scalar particles and Dirac particles from a five-dimensional black hole
Authors: Feng Zhongwen , Zhu Xiaodan , Li Guoping , Fang Weijing , Zu Xiaotao
Published: February 2016

Incorporating the generalized uncertainty principle (GUP) into the tunneling mechanism, we have studied the tunneling radiation of the scalar particles and fermions from the five-dimensional Schwarzschild–Tangherlini black hole. The results showed that the GUP corrected temperatures do not only depend on the mass of ST black hole, but are also affected by the gravity effects correction [Formula: see text]. Besides, the [Formula: see text] slows down the Hawking temperature increasing and causes the existence of remnants in black hole evaporation.
Aharonov–Bohm types of phases in Maxwell and Yang–Mills field theories
Authors: McKellar Bruce H. J.
Published: February 2016

I review the topological phases of the Aharonov–Bohm type associated with Maxwell and Yang–Mills fields.