bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Serine-arginine protein kinase 1 regulates Ebola virus transcription
Authors: Takamatsu Yuki , Krähling Verena , Kolesnikova Larissa , Halwe Sandro , Lier Clemens , Baumeister Stefan , Noda Takeshi , Biedenkopf Nadine , Becker Stephan
Published: July 2019

Ebola virus (EBOV) causes a severe and often fatal disease for which no approved vaccines or antivirals are currently available. EBOV transcription requires the sequential phosphorylation and dephosphorylation of the viral transcription factor VP30. While dephosphorylation is carried out by phosphatases PP2A and PP1, the VP30-specific kinase is unknown. Here, we report that serine-arginine protein kinase 1 and 2 (SRPK1 and SRPK2) phosphorylate serine-29 of VP30, which is located in an N-terminal R26xxS29motif. Interaction with VP30 via the R26xxS29motif recruits SRPK1 into EBOV-induced inclusion bodies, the sites of viral RNA synthesis and an inhibitor of SRPK1/SRPK2 downregulates primary viral transcription. When the SRPK1 recognition motif of VP30 was mutated in a recombinant EBOV, virus replication was severely impaired. It is presumed that the interplay between SRPK1 and PP2A in the EBOV inclusions provides a comprehensive regulatory circuit to ensure the activity of VP30 in EBOV transcription.
Phenotypic and functional characterization of corneal endothelial cells during in vitro expansion
Authors: Frausto Ricardo F. , Swamy Vinay S. , Peh Gary S. L. , Boere Payton M. , Hanser E. Maryam , Chung Doug. D. , George Benjamin L. , Morselli Marco , Kao Liyo , Azimov Rustam , Wu Jessica , Pellegrini Matteo , Kurtz Ira , Mehta Jodhbir S. , Aldave Anthony J.
Published: July 2019

The advent of cell culture-based methods for the establishment and expansion of human corneal endothelial cells (CEnC) has provided a source of transplantable corneal endothelium, with a significant potential to challenge the one donor-one recipient paradigm. However, concerns over cell identity remain, and a comprehensive characterization of the cultured CEnC across serial passages has not been performed. To this end, we compared two established CEnC culture methods by assessing the transcriptomic changes that occur during in vitro expansion. In confluent monolayers, low mitogenic culture conditions preserved corneal endothelial cell state identity better than culture in high mitogenic conditions. Expansion by continuous passaging induced replicative cell senescence. Transcriptomic analysis of the senescent phenotype identified a cell senescence signature distinct for CEnC. We identified activation of both classic and new cell signaling pathways that may be targeted to prevent senescence, a significant barrier to realizing the potential clinical utility of in vitro expansion.
Resolving heterogeneous high-mass macromolecular machineries by Orbitrap-based single particle charge detection mass spectrometry
Authors: Wörner Tobias P. , Snijder Joost , Bennett Antonette , Agbandje-McKenna Mavis , Makarov Alexander A. , Heck Albert J.R.
Published: July 2019

Here we show that single particle charge-detection mass spectrometry (CD-MS) can be performed on a ubiquitous Orbitrap mass analyser and applied to the analysis of high-mass (megadalton) heterogeneous biomolecular assemblies. We demonstrate that single particle high-mass ions can survive in the Orbitrap for seconds, whereby their measured signal amplitudes scale linearly with charge state over the entire m/z range. Orbitrap based single particle CD-MS can be used to resolve mixed ion populations, accurately predict charge states, and consequently also the mass of the ions. We successfully applied CD-MS to challenging natural and biotherapeutic protein assemblies, such as IgM oligomers, designed protein nano-cages, ribosome particles and intact, empty- and genome-loaded Adeno-associated virus particles. Single particle CD-MS combined with native MS on existing Orbitrap platforms will greatly expand its application, especially in the mass analysis of megadalton heterogeneous biomolecular assemblies.
At what spatial scales are alternative stable states relevant in highly interconnected ecosystems?
Authors: Karatayev Vadim A. , Baskett Marissa L.
Published: July 2019

Whether ecosystems recover from disturbance depends on the presence of alternative stable states, which are theoretically possible in simple models of many systems. However, definitive empirical evidence for this phenomenon remains limited to demographically closed ecosystems such as lakes. In more interconnected systems such as temperate rocky reefs, the local relevance of alternative stable states might erode as immigration overwhelms local feedbacks and produces a single stable state. At larger spatial scales, dispersal might counter localized disturbance and feedbacks to synchronize states throughout a region. Here, we quantify how interconnectedness affects the relevance of alternative stable states using dynamical models of California rocky reef communities that incorporate observed environmental stochasticity and feedback loops in kelp-urchin-predator interactions. Our models demonstrate the potential for localized alternative states despite high interconnectedness likely due to feedbacks affecting dispersers as they settle into local communities. Regionally, such feedbacks affecting settlement can produce a mosaic of alternative stable states that span local (10-20km) scales despite the synchronizing effect of long-distance dispersal. The specific spatial scale and duration of each state predominantly depend on the scales of environmental variation and on local dynamics (here, fishing). Model predictions reflect observed scales of community states in California rocky reefs and suggest how alternative states co-occur in the wide array of marine and terrestrial systems with settlement feedbacks.
Dosage compensation plans: protein aggregation provides additional insurance against aneuploidy
Authors: Samant Rahul S. , Masto Vincent B. , Frydman Judith
Published: August 2019

Gene dosage alterations caused by aneuploidy are a common feature of most cancers yet pose severe proteotoxic challenges. Therefore, cells have evolved various dosage compensation mechanisms to limit the damage caused by the ensuing protein level imbalances. For instance, for heteromeric protein complexes, excess nonstoichiometric subunits are rapidly recognized and degraded. In this issue of Genes & Development, Brennan et al. (pp. 1031–1047) reveal that sequestration of nonstoichiometric subunits into aggregates is an alternative mechanism for dosage compensation in aneuploid budding yeast and human cell lines. Using a combination of proteomic and genetic techniques, they found that excess proteins undergo either degradation or aggregation but not both. Which route is preferred depends on the half-life of the protein in question. Given the multitude of diseases linked to either aneuploidy or protein aggregation, this study could serve as a springboard for future studies with broad-spanning implications.
Combinatorial use of communication technologies in organizations
Authors: Zhu Yaguang
Published: August 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to critique and extend contemporary scholarship on information and communication technologies (ICTs). This paper argues that the focus on the selection and use of a single communication medium limits the understanding of current ICT use in organizations. A combinatorial perspective is needed to capture the complexities of multiple ICTs use for achieving communication goals and completing tasks.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper addresses the trending phenomenon of combinatorial use of ICTs by offering a critical review of the theoretical studies and empirical research in scholarly books and journals and deriving novel theoretical research questions that set the stage for future studies.

Findings

This paper identifies how combinatorial ICT use as a perspective that uniquely elucidates ICT use in organizations, clarifies key terms used in previous research and proposes theoretical and operational recommendations for researchers and corporate practitioners who are interested in studying the combinatorial use of ICTs.

Originality/value

This paper highlights that understanding the combinatorial use ICTs in complex work environments could have significant implications for productivity and efficiency of individuals and corporations. This paper serves as a catalyst for on-going research conversations regarding combinatorial ICT use, while assisting organizational communication researchers and practitioners in describing, theorizing and advancing ICT implementation, use and outcomes.
Resistance toward dominant US work practices in emerging markets
Authors: Sinha Paresha N. , Bathini Dharma Raju
Published: August 2019

Purpose

The purpose of this study is to apply the dominance effect theory and postcolonial notions of “otherness” to critically study the enactment of mimicry at IndianBread, an Indian fast-food chain that has adopted work practices typically found in US fast-food multinational enterprises (MNEs).

Design/methodology/approach

The authors used an interpretive sensemaking case study approach and collected qualitative data drawing on observations, notes from the company policy manual and in-depth interviews with eight staff at an IndianBread outlet. Data were also collected during informal interactions with staff at three other IndianBread outlets. The analysis focused on the enactment of mimicry and studied the postcolonial dynamics between managers and migrant workers to explain their resistance to the adoption of US work practices.

Findings

Work practices of US fast-food MNEs such as the standardization of workers’ appearance and basic “Englishization” such as greeting customers in English had been adopted at the IndianBread outlet. However, migrant workers resisted enforcement by contesting the superiority and relevance of these US work practices. The workers’ resistance was accommodated by local managers to pacify and retain them.

Research limitations/implications

The analysis contributes to a deeper understanding of the dynamics of resistance to the dominant influence of US work practices in emerging market firms. It expands current notions of “otherness” by presenting the perspective of “local” managers and migrant workers. The authors show how worker resistance embedded in their “identity work” involves contesting notions of “inferiority” of local work practices and selves. In the case of managers, accommodating resistance maintains their “legitimacy of dominance”. To that end, the study explains how the need to mimic US work practices is enforced, contested and ultimately diluted in competitive local firms in rising India.

Practical implications

The organizationally grounded data show how managerial accommodation of workers’ resistance to US practices creates a more flexible working environment that dilutes migrant workers’ sensitivity to their exploitation at the fast-food outlet.

Social implications

The findings identify the link between mimicry and resistance by the “other,” the ambivalence of the colonizing agent and the ongoing material exploitation within emerging economies.

Originality/value

To that end, the study explains how the need to mimic the US work practices is enforced, contested and ultimately diluted in the context of the competitive local firms in India.
Pre‐hospital outcomes of adult out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest of presumed cardiac aetiology in Queensland, Australia (2002–2014): Trends over time
Authors: Pemberton Katherine , Bosley Emma , C Franklin Richard , Watt Kerrianne
Published: July 2019

Objective

To describe temporal trends in incidence of pre‐hospital outcomes from adult out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) of presumed cardiac aetiology attended by Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) paramedics between 2002 and 2014, by age, gender, geographical remoteness and socio‐economic status.

Methods

Cases included in this retrospective cohort study were identified from the QAS OHCA Registry. Included cases were linked with Queensland Hospital Admitted Patient Data Collection and Queensland Death Registry. Population data were obtained from the Australian Bureau of Statistics to calculate incidence rates for each year. Analyses were undertaken by four mutually exclusive pre‐hospital outcomes: (i) no resuscitation (No‐Resus); (ii) resuscitation, no pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation (No‐ROSC); (iii) resuscitation, pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation not sustained to hospital (Unsustained‐ROSC); and (iv) resuscitation, pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation sustained to hospital (Sustained‐ROSC). Trends over time were analysed for crude and specific rates for total OHCA events and for each outcome.

Results

Between 2002 and 2014, there were 30 560 OHCA cases. Crude incidence significantly increased over time for No‐Resus and Sustained‐ROSC, and significantly decreased for No‐ROSC. These trends were reflected in major cities, inner and outer regional areas. There was a significant increase in Sustained‐ROSC in remote areas, and no significant trends in very remote areas.

Conclusion

Incidence of withholding resuscitation and ROSC sustained to hospital have independently increased over time. Factors of middle age, more rural location and lower socio‐economic status should all be targeted in the development and implementation of future strategies.
Epidemiology of pre‐hospital outcomes of out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest in Queensland, Australia
Authors: Pemberton Katherine , Bosley Emma , Franklin Richard C , Watt Kerrianne
Published: July 2019

Objective

To describe incidence in pre‐hospital outcomes of adult out‐of‐hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) of presumed cardiac aetiology, attended by Queensland Ambulance Service (QAS) paramedics between 2002 and 2014, by age, gender, geographical remoteness and socio‐economic status.

Methods

The QAS OHCA Registry was used to identify cases, which was then linked with Queensland Hospital Admitted Patient Data Collection and Queensland Death Registry. Population data were obtained for each calendar year by age and gender from the Australian Bureau of Statistics in order to calculate incidence rates. Four mutually exclusive pre‐hospital outcomes were analysed: (i) no resuscitation (No‐Resus); (ii) resuscitation, no pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation (No‐ROSC); (iii) resuscitation, pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation not sustained to hospital (Unsustained‐ROSC); and (iv) resuscitation, pre‐hospital return of spontaneous circulation sustained to hospital (Sustained‐ROSC).

Results

Over the 13 years, there were 30 560 OHCA cases for analyses. Incidence was significantly greater in males than females and incrementally increased with age, for each outcome. Incidence of total OHCA events generally increased as remoteness increased (major cities: 72.39 per 100 000 [95% CI 71.35–73.45]; very remote: 87.01 per 100 000 [95% CI 78.03–95.98]). There was an inverse association between incidence of OHCA events and socio‐economic status (SEIFA 1 and 2: 81.34 per 100 000 [95% CI 79.28–83.40]; SEIFA 9 and 10: 61.57 per 100 000 [95% CI 59.67–63.46]).

Conclusion

Rural‐specific strategies should be continued. Prevention and management strategies for OHCA targeting lower socio‐economic groups require focus.
Daring to be wise: We are black boxes, and artificial intelligence will be the solution
Authors: Gutenstein Marc
Published: July 2019

Emergency physicians seek wisdom through personal resilience, deliberate reasoning, clinical consensus and reflective practice. However, there is a limit to how useful psychological training, clinical guidelines and audit initiatives can be in the face of inherent human fallibility, increasing system complexity and escalating demand. Wisdom may be more easily attained through the careful design of new technology and this should be a priority for the emergency medicine community.
Audit Adjustments and Public Sector Audit Quality
Authors: Greenwood Margaret , Zhan Ruijia
Published: July 2019

In the context of austerity‐inspired reforms to public audit in England we investigate the extent to which audit firms mitigate management bias in public sector financial reports. A substantial body of literature finds that both public and not‐for‐profit managers manage ‘earnings’ to report small surpluses close to zero by managing deficits upwards and surpluses downwards. Under agency theory, auditors acting in the interests of their principal(s) would tend to reverse this bias. We exploit privileged access to pre‐audit financial statements in the setting of the English National Health Service (NHS) to investigate the impact of audit adjustments on the pre‐audit financial statements of English NHS Foundation Trusts over the period 2010–2011 to 2014–2015. We find evidence that auditors act to reverse management bias in the case of Trusts with a pre‐audit deficit, but find no evidence that this is the case for Trusts with a pre‐audit surplus. In the case of Trusts in surplus, these findings are consistent with auditors’ interests being aligned with management, rather than principals.
Fishing for the facts: river dolphin bycatch in a small‐scale freshwater fishery in Bangladesh
Authors: Dewhurst‐Richman N. I. , Jones J. P. G. , Northridge S. , Ahmed B. , Brook S. , Freeman R. , Jepson P. , Mahood S. P. , Turvey S. T.
Published: August 2019

Fisheries bycatch is a primary driver of cetacean declines, especially for threatened freshwater cetaceans. However, information on the factors influencing cetacean susceptibility to bycatch in small‐scale fisheries is limited, impeding development of evidence‐based conservation strategies. We conducted 663 interviews with fishers from southern Bangladesh to investigate the influence of net and set characteristics on seasonal bycatch rates of Ganges River dolphins Platanista gangetica gangetica and assess the sustainability of annual mortality levels. Between October 2010–October 2011, 170 bycatch events (and a minimum of 14 mortalities) were reported, 89% of which occurred in gillnets. The probability of bycatch increased as water depth declined, and as net mesh size increased. While the number of recorded bycatch incidents was higher in gillnets, risk of mortality was greater in set bagnets. Our mortality estimate indicates that fisheries‐related bycatch currently exceeds the sustainable limit recommended by the International Whaling Commission by 3.5 times. Numerous regulations have been developed to improve the productivity of commercially important fisheries, and if regulations were effectively enforced, these may also reduce river dolphin bycatch.
Finding a home: Developmental and neurobiological perspectives on cultural models
Authors: Bonn Gregory
Published: August 2019

This article looks at cultural models in the light of human development, and neurobiological findings in motivation, learning, and cognition. It is argued that at the individual level, the acquisition of cultural models relies on several innate, neurobiologically based motivational, learning, and cognitive systems. These are: (a) a primary motivation to form social bonds which is driven by affect; (b) highly specialized social learning circuits, involving, but not limited to, mirror neuron systems, that facilitate the encoding of social information through implicit, embodied, imitational learning processes; and (c) the formation of culturally based templates for behavior and cognition centered around structures, collectively known as the “default mode network,” which is essential to self‐understanding, autobiographical memory, social cognition, prospection, and theory‐of‐mind. Cultural models, it is argued, are acquired through innate motivational processes that tie the individual emotionally to a secure base of familiar people and customs. This instinctual desire for proximity to others facilitates the efficient, largely implicit, patterning of knowledge and expectations. Shared knowledge and expectations, in turn, create a common, mostly implicit or unconscious, experience of subjectivity within groups. This allows each individual to automatically and effortlessly interact with similarly enculturated others.
Sentinel lymph node biopsy in patients with malignant melanoma: analysis of post‐operative complications
Authors: Solari Nicola , Bertoglio Sergio , Boscaneanu Alexandru , Minuto Michele , Reina Simona , Palombo Denise , Bruzzi Paolo , Cafiero Ferdinando
Published: August 2019

Background

This study investigates the incidence of post‐operative complications and risk factors of sentinel lymph node biopsy (SLNB) in melanoma patients.

Methods

A retrospective cohort study was conducted at a single cancer institution on 408 consecutive SLNBs.

Results

Fifty‐five post‐operative complications occurred in 39 (9.5%) patients and included: wound infection in 24 (5.9%), seroma and lymphorrhea in 15 (3.7%), wound dehiscence in seven (1.7%), lymphocele in six (1.5%) and others in three (0.7%). Univariate analysis failed to identify possible risk factors (i.e. gender, age, lymph node region, number of excised lymph nodes, Breslow index, pT levels, comorbidities, length of surgery and hospital stay). Metastatic sentinel nodes occurred in four of 135 (3%) patients with thin melanoma (Breslow <1 mm) and in 68 of 262 (25.9%) patients with Breslow >1 mm.

Conclusion

For patients with thin melanoma in whom the incidence of lymph node metastasis is low, the reported post‐operative morbidity of almost 10% of SLNB highlights the need for careful patient selection.
Clinical measurements of normative subjective cyclotorsion and cyclofusion in a healthy adult population
Authors: Flodin Sara , Pansell Tony , Rydberg Agneta , Andersson Grönlund Marita
Published: July 2019

Purpose

To investigate normative subjective cyclotorsion values and cyclofusion ranges in a healthy adult population.

Methods

A cross‐sectional investigation was performed in 120 healthy, non‐strabismic adults, 60 men and 60 women in the age range of 18–69 years. All subjects were assessed for cyclotorsion using the synoptophore and the single Maddox rod (SMR) methods. Cyclofusion was investigated with the synoptophore in 60 of the subjects.

Results

All age groups showed low values of subjective torsion, mainly excyclotorsion with mean values of −1 degree for both methods. Reference ranges of cyclotorsion were between −0.7 and −1.5 degrees for the SMR method and between −0.7 and −1.4 degrees using the synoptophore method. There were no significant differences between gender (p = 0.48), but the effect of age was significant for both methods (p = 0.026) demonstrating a slight increase in excyclotorsion with age. Cyclofusion showed a total mean amplitude of 16 degrees, the fusion range was +7 degrees of incyclotorsion to −9 degrees of excyclotorsion.

Conclusions

Subjective reference ranges for cyclotorsion and cyclofusion reveal that low values of torsion are to be expected upon clinical investigation in non‐strabismic adult individuals. Values outside of the reference range may be indicators of possible binocular abnormalities or physiological variations. The cyclotorsional measurements and prevalence in this adult population group can be regarded as normative data in clinical settings.
A Meta‐Analysis of the Relationship Between Experiential Learning and Learning Outcomes
Authors: Burch Gerald F. , Giambatista Robert , Batchelor John H. , Burch Jana J. , Hoover J. Duane , Heller Nathan A.
Published: July 2019

Experiential learning activities have been used for over 40 years with the hope that they increase students learning. However, a definitive study that showed their overall effectiveness has not been produced. The purpose of this study is to address this gap in the literature. This meta‐analysis examined a 43‐year span and identified 13,626 journal articles, dissertations, thesis articles, and conference proceedings written about experiential learning and found only 89 of these studies contained empirical data with both a treatment and control group. Meta‐analysis of these studies show that students experienced superior learning outcomes when experiential pedagogies were employed. Further, learning outcomes were almost a half standard deviation higher (d = .43) in classes employing experiential learning pedagogies versus traditional learning environments. This review definitively, and quantitatively, shows the importance of experiential learning activities. We use these results to discuss future research areas that need to be addressed based on our analysis of potential moderators and provide recommendations on how to best employ experiential learning pedagogies.
Identification of the pathotype of Synchytrium endobioticum, causal agent of potato wart disease, present in Georgia
Authors: Sikharulidze Z. V. , Ghoghoberidze S. Y. , Mentink N. M. , Meparishvili G. V. , Tsetskhladze Ts. M. , van Leeuwen G. C. M.
Published: July 2019

Potato wart is one of the most important quarantine diseases of potato in the world. In Georgia, symptoms of wart were first seen in 2009–2013 during observations on potato in home gardens in Khulo district, although they may have been present since 2006. However, potato wart presence was only confirmed by PCR in 2013. Isolates pw13N and pw13 of Synchytrium endobioticum collected from the infested area of the village Didadjara, Khulo municipality were tested using laboratories in Georgia and the Netherlands in the framework of collaboration between scientists of Batumi State University and the National Plant Protection organization of the Netherlands. Additionally, pot tests were carried out in Georgia. Based on the results obtained, the pathotype found in Georgia is not known from Europe, and based on its reactions this pathotype resembles pathotype 38 (Nevşehir) detected in (the non‐European part of) Turkey.
Text analytics for big data using rough–fuzzy soft computing techniques
Authors: Al‐Maitah Mohammed
Published: July 2019

Text mining or analytics is important for various applications such as market analysis and biomedical purposes because it enables the efficient retrieval of information from large datasets. During the analysis, increasing the dimensionality of the data reduces the performance of an entire system because doing so may retrieve irrelevant text, which creates errors. Therefore, this paper introduces big data and data mining techniques to analyse large volumes of information while mining texts, emails, blogs, online forums, news, and call centre documents. Initially, the data are collected from various sources that contain noise, which is removed by applying normalization techniques. Data mining techniques eliminate the irrelevant information and noise, and the relevant features are selected using the rough set‐based particle swarm optimization algorithm. The selected features are formed as a cluster using a fuzzy set with the particle swarm optimization algorithm, which improves the efficiency of the mining process. Then, the efficiency of the system is evaluated using the University of California Irvine Machine Learning Repository knowledge process mining database, along with the sum of the intra cluster distances, the mean squared error rate, and the accuracy.
Understandings of disease among Pacific peoples with diabetes and end‐stage renal disease in New Zealand
Authors: Schmidt‐Busby Jacqueline , Wiles Janine , Exeter Daniel , Kenealy Timothy
Published: August 2019

Background

Compared with New Zealand Europeans, Pacific peoples in New Zealand develop type 2 diabetes at a higher rate and a younger age, and have 3.8 times higher incidence of end‐stage renal disease (ESRD).

Objective

To investigate contextual factors that shape understandings of disease for Pacific peoples with diabetes and ESRD.

Methods

Focussed ethnography. In‐depth interviews were conducted with 16 Pacific people on haemodialysis for diabetic ESRD, in Auckland, New Zealand. Study participants aged between 30 and 69 years old were of Samoan, Cook Islander, Tongan, Niuean or Tokelauan ethnicity. Thematic analysis was used to code and identify themes.

Results

Participants were embedded in a multigenerational legacy of diabetes. The limited diabetes‐related education of earlier generations influenced how future generations behaved and understood diabetes. Perceptions were compounded by additional factors including the invisibility of early‐stage diabetes; misunderstandings of health risks during communication with health providers; and misunderstandings of multiple conditions’ symptoms and management. Participants had limited engagement with health services until their diagnosis of ESRD acted as a trigger to change this behaviour. However, this trigger was not effective in itself—rather, it was in combination with relevant education delivered in a way that made sense to participants, given their current understandings.

Conclusions

Illness representations drive choices and behaviours with respect to self‐management of diabetes and engagement with health services. Diabetes is often present in multiple generations of Pacific people; therefore, illness representations are developed and shared within a family. Changing illness representations requires engagement with the individual within a family context.
Chemical composition and antimicrobial activity against food‐related microorganisms of different essential oils from Lebanon
Authors: Fancello Francesco , El Beyrouthy Marc , Iriti Marcello , El Khoury Madona , Bou Zeidan Marc , Zara Severino
Published: August 2019

Essential oils (EOs) have long been recognized for their medicinal properties. Application of EOs in food preservation has gained recent interest as natural alternatives to conventional chemicals. Even though the properties of EOs are extensively documented, their effect on several food‐related microorganisms is yet to be explored. In this study, six EOs were extracted by hydrodistillation and analyzed using GC/MS techniques, and then antimicrobial activity was tested against microorganisms of food interests through minimal inhibitory concentration (MIC) techniques. Both Coridothymus capitatus and Origanum syriacum EOs showed an antifungal activity (MIC ≤ 0.625 μL/mL). Interestingly all foodborne pathogens tested were sensitive to C. capitatus EO and two of them, Staphylococcus aureus and Listeria monocytogenes, to O. syriacum EO (MIC ≤ 1.25 μL/mL) while the beneficial food‐related bacteria (Lactobacillus sp.) were not affected (MIC ± 10 μL/mL). Finally, Cinnamomum zeylanicum EO showed a broader antimicrobial activity on all microorganisms analyzed.

Practical Applications

Essential oils from Lebanese plants could be used to selectively control foodborne pathogens, including fungi and bacteria. These essential oils could represents an alternative to conventional anti microbials as they did not affect benefiacial food‐related bacteria.
Cytological differentiation between benign and malignant perianal gland proliferative lesions in dogs: a preliminary study
Authors: Sabattini S. , Renzi A. , Rigillo A. , Scarpa F. , Capitani O. , Tinto D. , Brenda A. , Bettini G.
Published: August 2019

Objectives

To evaluate the diagnostic utility of individual cytological criteria and their best combination to differentiate benign from malignant perianal gland proliferative lesions in dogs.

Materials and Methods

Retrospective study of cytological samples of canine perianal gland proliferative lesions that had subsequent histopathological confirmation.

Results

Seventy‐seven perianal gland nodules from 56 dogs were included. Histologically, lesions were diagnosed as hyperplasia (n=2), adenoma (n=53), epithelioma (n=6) and carcinoma (n=16). Of the 28 cytological criteria assessed, 13 showed promise for distinguishing benign from malignant lesions. A diagnostic algorithm with an 87% accuracy (sensitivity, 90.9%; specificity, 85.4%) was developed from these data.

Clinical Significance

Cytological evaluation can provide useful information for presurgical differentiation between benign and malignant hepatoid gland proliferative lesions. The proposed algorithm must be validated and tested for reproducibility in further, preferably larger, series of cases.
Does insomnia predict a high risk of cancer? A systematic review and meta‐analysis of cohort studies
Authors: Shi Tingting , Min Min , Sun Chenyu , Zhang Yun , Liang Mingming , Sun Yehuan
Published: July 2019

Recently, emerging studies on the relationship between insomnia, the most common sleep disorder, and cancer have been published, but with inconsistent results. With the development of society and the accelerated pace of life, more and more people experience insomnia. Therefore, it is important to clarify the association. Relevant literature was obtained through a search of seven databases and supplementary searches. After a strict screening, eight cohort studies (seven prospective and one retrospective) involving 578,809 participants and 7,451 cancer events were incorporated into our analysis. The results demonstrate a modest 24% overall increased risk of cancer for individuals with insomnia in comparison to those without insomnia. The sensitivity analysis shows that the correlation between the two is stable. Subgroup analyses show that the risk of developing cancer was significantly higher in studies conducted in women (HR = 1.24; 95% CI, 1.01–1.53), but not in men (HR = 1.28; 95% CI, 0.90–1.80). Similarly, in terms of specific cancer types, the pooled HR was only significantly higher in thyroid cancer (HR = 1.36; 95% CI, 1.12–1.65) and not in other types of cancer (p > 0.05). Our findings suggest that insomnia may serve as an early warning sign of the onset of cancer and provide an opportunity for early detection and early intervention. Our findings should be treated with caution because of the limited number of included studies and potential bias. More additional studies are warranted to provide more information on the carcinogenic effect of insomnia.
Effects of deep sedation on sleep in critically ill medical patients on mechanical ventilation
Authors: Jean Raymonde , Shah Purav , Yudelevich Eric , Genese Frank , Gershner Katherine , Levendowski Daniel , Martillo Miguel , Ventura Iazsmin , Basu Anirban , Ochieng Pius , Gibson Charlisa D.
Published: July 2019

Atypical EEG patterns not consistent with standard sleep staging criteria have been observed in medical intensive care unit (ICU) patients. Our aim was to examine the relationship between sleep architecture and sedation in critically ill mechanically ventilated patients pre‐ and post‐extubation. We performed a prospective observational repeated measures study where 50 mechanically ventilated patients with 31 paired analyses were examined at an academic medical centre. The sleep efficiency was 58.3 ± 25.4% for intubated patients and 45.6 ± 25.4% for extubated patients (p = .02). Intubated patients spent 76.33 ± 3.34% of time in non‐rapid eye movement (NREM) sleep compared to 64.66 ± 4.06% of time for extubated patients (p = .02). REM sleep constituted 1.36 ± 0.67% of total sleep time in intubated patients and 2.06 ± 1.09% in extubated patients (p = .58). Relative sleep atypia was higher in intubated patients compared to extubated patients (3.38 ± 0.87 versus 2.79 ± 0.42; p < .001). Eleven patients were sedated with propofol only, 18 patients with fentanyl only, 11 patients with fentanyl and propofol, and 10 patients had no sedation. The mean sleep times on “propofol”, “fentanyl”, “propofol and fentanyl,” and “no sedation” were 6.54 ± 0.64, 4.88 ± 0.75, 6.20 ± 0.75 and 4.02 ± 0.62 hr, respectively. The sigma/alpha values for patients on “propofol”, “fentanyl”, “propofol and fentanyl” and “no sedation” were 0.69 ± 0.04, 0.54 ± 0.01, 0.62 ± 0.02 and 0.57 ± 0.02, respectively. Sedated patients on mechanical ventilation had higher sleep efficiency and more atypia compared to the same patients following extubation. Propofol was associated with higher sleep duration and less disrupted sleep architecture compared to fentanyl, propofol and fentanyl, or no sedation.
Experimental and numerical simulations of the hydraulic flushing of reservoir sedimentation for planning and design of a hydropower project
Authors: Isaac Neena , Eldho T. I.
Published: July 2019

Hydropower projects located on rivers transporting heavy sediment loads require design and operation criteria based on sediment management as a means of sustaining the project life. Sediment management is achieved by designing projects as a run‐of‐the‐river scheme, with provision for drawdown flushing, noting hydraulic model simulations are essential for optimizing the design of these projects. Sediment deposition levels are generally predicted with long‐term simulations using 1‐D numerical models, as well as experiments with scaled physical models that simulate drawdown flushing. The present study presents experiments with scaled model and 3‐D numerical model simulations conducted for hydraulic flushing of a reservoir. Experiments were conducted for various durations and discharges to finalize the intake alignment and optimize the flushing. The results of the 3‐D numerical model simulations are in agreement with the results of the experimental study (4%–6% variation). The results also indicate a combination of a 1‐D numerical model for sedimentation and a 3‐D numerical model for flushing can be effectively used to simulate the sedimentation and flushing of reservoirs during the planning and design stages.
Restorative Utopias: The Settlers and the Bible
Authors: Gordon Liran Shia , Ohana David
Published: August 2019

The attitude to the Bible is a seismograph for scrutinizing the attitude of Zionism, in general, and that of the settlers, in particular, to their ideological and political worldview. To where in the Bible are the settlers returning? To the Land of Canaan, to the land of the Patriarchs, or perhaps to the Kingdom of David? And what is the meaning of this return? It is not only the land that is basic to this question, but the relationship of the Land of Israel to the people of Israel. In this article, we will mainly address the radical theological facets of the settler movement, not the proponents of Greater Israel. Our article will focus on the replication of settler theology from the first stage of Gush Emunim (The Bloc of the Faithful) and the act of settlement, which in the opinion of the settlers is in accord with the continuation and completion of the Zionist project, to a more metaphysical phase, in which the centrality of the act of settlement gives way to Hassidic or kabbalistic thinking. The models which we present make possible a fresh look at the utopian thinking and radical theology that are nourished by the settler movement and reflect a new, non‐homogeneous stage.
Post‐conflict stabilization in Africa
Authors: Hoeffler Anke
Published: July 2019

Peace is fragile, about half of all peace episodes break down within the first eight post‐conflict years. In Sub‐Saharan Africa this risk is even higher. Using survival analysis this paper suggests that while it is difficult to find correlates of peace stabilization, there are some policy relevant results. How a conflict ends is important. Negotiated settlements are fragile but the chances of peace surviving can be significantly improved through the deployment ofUNpeacekeeping operations. This also appears to be the case for Sub‐Saharan Africa but case study evidence suggests that peacekeepers face particularly complex situations in the region and should therefore be well resourced in order to increase their chance of success
Unveiling the Endogenous Relationship Between Technical Efficiency and Value Creation in Mergers and Acquisitions in Nigeria
Authors: Akpan Mfon , Wanke Peter , Chen Zhongfei , Antunes Jorge Moreira
Published: July 2019

There is a growing literature on how the beneficial impacts of horizontal mergers and acquisitions (M&A) should be measured. Thus far, however, there have been few studies addressing endogeneity between technical efficiency and value creation: they tend to present a bidirectional and simultaneous relationship. This research contributes to the debate by investigating the impact of voluntary horizontal M&A on these metrics in Nigeria between 1995 and 2012, in light of the individual performance of bidders, targets, and the resulting corporate companies. First, technical efficiency, technology gap ratio, and returns‐to‐scale estimates were computed based on a meta‐frontier DEA approach, together with a set of contextual variables that encompass performance indicators which reflect the value creation process. Then, robust regressions were used to discriminate these efficiency estimates in terms of such business‐related variables, correcting for endogeneity and controlling for industry and trend effects. The results reveal that these contextual variables significantly impact virtual efficiency and returns‐to‐scale levels, and that there is a trade‐off between efficiency and value creation at some point in the merging process. Managerial implications are derived.
Force Barrier for Lipid Sorting in the Formation of Membrane Nanotubes
Authors: Tang Xingyi , Wang Jianxiang , Yi Xin
Published: August 2019

Understanding lipid sorting of multicomponent cell membranes associated with tubular deformation is of essential importance to many cell activities such as filopodial growth and protein-mediated vesiculation. Here, we conduct theoretical analysis to investigate how the membrane tubulation induced by an external pulling force over a finite region is regulated by the coupling between the lipid composition and the membrane bending rigidity and tension. It is shown that the presence of the lipid-disordered phase facilitates the nanotube formation by reducing the force barrier. As the pulling region size and the membrane tension increase, the membrane tubulation becomes discontinuous regardless of the coupling effect. The direct proportional relationships between the maximum pulling force and size of pulling region at different coupling scenarios are identified. Analytical solutions for the linear force-extraction relation and the membrane configurations in the early stage of the membrane extraction are obtained. Our results indicate that in the case of a relatively small pulling region, the coupling between the membrane composition and mechanical properties plays an important role in regulating the membrane extraction, and such an effect due to the phase separation diminishes gradually as the pulling region enlarges and the force barrier becomes dominated by a large pulling region.
U.S. suspicions rankle Chinese scientists
Authors: Normile Dennis
Published: August 2019

Many academics dismiss conspiracy claims and worry about impacts on research.
China's CRISPR revolution
Authors: Cohen Jon
Published: August 2019

Editing of plant, animal, and human genomes has never been easier, as this country's scientists are rapidly demonstrating.
Contrasting genomic shifts underlie parallel phenotypic evolution in response to fishing
Authors: Therkildsen Nina O. , Wilder Aryn P. , Conover David O. , Munch Stephan B. , Baumann Hannes , Palumbi Stephen R.
Published: August 2019

Parallel and idiosyncratic fish adaptation

Fish populations respond rapidly to fishing pressure. Within a handful of generations, marked phenotypic change can occur—often to smaller body sizes, because it is the big fish that are usually extracted. Therkildsen
et al.
examined wild ancestor fish lineages and found that polygenic mechanisms underpin this rapid evolutionary capacity (see the Perspective by Jørgensen and Enberg). Phenotypic change happened in two ways: first, by multiple small parallel changes in hundreds of unlinked genes associated with growth variation in the wild, and second, by shifts in large blocks of linked genes, causing large allele frequency changes at some loci.

Science
, this issue p.
487
; see also p.
443
Hydraulic fracturing and active coarsening position the lumen of the mouse blastocyst
Authors: Dumortier Julien G. , Le Verge-Serandour Mathieu , Tortorelli Anna Francesca , Mielke Annette , de Plater Ludmilla , Turlier Hervé , Maître Jean-Léon
Published: August 2019

The making of a lumen

During the early days of mammalian development, the formation and positioning of a fluid-filled lumen, the blastocoel, defines the first axis of embryo symmetry. Dumortier
et al.
describe how a blastocoel lumen arises from the hydraulic fracturing of cell-cell contacts into hundreds of micrometer-size water pockets that then form a single large lumen (see the Perspective by Arroyo and Trepat). The authors characterized the process of lumen formation mechanically and molecularly and were able to manipulate the first axis of symmetry of the mammalian embryo experimentally. Thus, fluid dynamics plays a key role in the embryo and may play a similar role in the formation of other biological cavities.

Science
, this issue p.
465
; see also p.
442
Responding (appropriately) to religious patients: a response to Greenblum and Hubbard’s ‘Public Reason’ argument
Authors: Colgrove Nick
Published: August 2019

Jake Greenblum and Ryan K Hubbard argue that physicians, nurses, clinical ethicists and ethics committee members should not cite religious considerations when helping patients (or their proxies) make medical decisions.i They provide two arguments for this position: The Public Reason Argument and the Fiduciary Argument. In this essay, I show that the Public Reason Argument fails. Greenblum and Hubbard may provide good reason to think that physicians should not invoke their own religious commitments as reasons for a particular medical decision. But they fail to show that it is wrong for physicians to cite the patient’s own religious commitments as reasons for a particular decision. As such, if Greenblum and Hubbard’s thesis is to survive, the Fiduciary Argument (or some unmentioned argument) will have to do the bulk of the work.
Salt anomalies in potash beds of the Esterhazy Member, Devonian Prairie Evaporite Formation, Saskatchewan, Canada
Authors: Cisyk David E.
Published: August 2019

The Esterhazy Member of the western Canada Prairie Evaporite has been mined underground for sylvite (KCl) since the early 1960s. Although the geology of the Esterhazy Member ore body is largely considered a regional flat lying continuous series of thin potash hosting beds, there are numerous occurrences where the ore has been either replaced or removed leaving behind uneconomical halite-rich sections. An explanation of the underlying controls on the formation of these salt anomalies has been somewhat elusive although the overwhelming assumption remains that these features developed in lows on a salina. This paper proposes that salt anomalies formed because of two processes, early compaction of carbonate shoals of the Winnipegosis Formation and tectonics that resulted in multiple stages of block movement during the deposition of the upper Prairie Evaporite. Since these two processes can result in a significantly different size to a salt anomaly, encountering one or the other type can have a significant effect on the economics of the ore body. This paper looks at some of the geological methods that might provide geologists with means to predicting salt anomalies.