bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Maternal betaine suppresses adrenal expression of cholesterol trafficking genes and decreases plasma corticosterone concentration in offspring pullets
Authors: Abobaker Halima , Hu Yun , Omer Nagmeldin A. , Hou Zhen , Idriss Abdulrahman A. , Zhao Ruqian
Published: November 2019

Background

Laying hens supplemented with betaine demonstrate activated adrenal steroidogenesis and deposit higher corticosterone (CORT) in the egg yolk. Here we further investigate the effect of maternal betaine on the plasma CORT concentration and adrenal expression of steroidogenic genes in offspring pullets.

Results

Maternal betaine significantly reduced (P < 0.05) plasma CORT concentration and the adrenal expression of vimentin that is involved in trafficking cholesterol to the mitochondria for utilization in offspring pullets. Concurrently, voltage-dependent anion channel 1 and steroidogenic acute regulatory protein, the two mitochondrial proteins involved in cholesterol influx, were both down-regulated at mRNA and protein levels. However, enzymes responsible for steroid syntheses, such as cytochrome P450 family 11 subfamily A member 1 and cytochrome P450 family 21 subfamily A member 2, were significantly (P < 0.05) up-regulated at mRNA or protein levels in the adrenal gland of pullets derived from betaine-supplemented hens. Furthermore, expression of transcription factors, such as steroidogenic factor-1, sterol regulatory element-binding protein 1 and cAMP response element-binding protein, was significantly (P < 0.05) enhanced, together with their downstream target genes, such as 3-hydroxy-3-methyl-glutaryl-coenzyme A reductase, LDL receptor and sterol regulatory element-binding protein cleavage-activating protein. The promoter regions of most steroidogenic genes were significantly (P < 0.05) hypomethylated, although methyl transfer enzymes, such as AHCYL, GNMT1 and BHMT were up-regulated.

Conclusions

These results indicate that the reduced plasma CORT in betaine-supplemented offspring pullets is linked to suppressed cholesterol trafficking into the mitochondria, despite the activation of cholesterol and corticosteroid synthetic genes associated with promoter hypomethylation.
Gut microbiome and CAR-T therapy
Authors: Abid Muhammad Bilal , Shah Nirav N. , Maatman Theresa C. , Hari Parameswaran N.
Published: November 2019

Considerable progress has been made in cancer therapeutics recently with targeted strategies that are efficacious and less toxic. Immunotherapy and chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cells are increasingly being evaluated in a variety of tumors in the relapsed/refractory as well as frontline disease settings, predominantly in hematologic malignancies (HM). Despite impressive outcomes in select patients, there remains significant heterogeneity in clinical response to CAR T-cells. The gut microbiome has emerged as one of the key host factors that could potentially be modulated to enhance responses to immunotherapy. Several recent human studies receiving immunotherapy showed a significantly superior response and survival in patients with the more diverse gut microbiome. Currently, it is unknown if gut microbiota modulates anti-tumor responses to CAR T-cells. Based on molecular and immunological understanding, we hypothesize that strategically manipulating gut microbiota may enhance responses to CAR T-cells. In this review, we further discuss resistance mechanisms to CAR T-cells in HM, potential approaches to overcome resistance by harnessing gut microbiota and other related novel strategies.
Genetic variants of VEGFR-1 gene promoter in acute myocardial infarction
Authors: Wang Haihua , Zhang Shufang , Wang Na , Zhang Jie , Chen Mingkai , He Xiaohui , Cui Yinghua , Pang Shuchao , Yan Bo
Published: November 2019

Background

Coronary artery disease (CAD) including acute myocardial infarction (AMI) is a common complex disease caused by atherosclerosis. Vascular epithelial growth factor receptor-1 (VEGFR-1) stimulates angiogenesis and vascular permeability, and functions as a decoy to sequester VEGF and prevent initiation of intracellular signaling. VEGFR-1 knockout mice exhibit significantly higher mortality due to heart failure, cardiac hypertrophy, and cardiac dysfunction. An evident increase in macrophage infiltration and cardiac fibrosis are also observed after transverse aortic constriction. Therefore, VEGFR-1 gene variants may be involved in CAD. In this study, VEGFR-1 gene promoter was genetically and functionally analyzed in large cohorts of AMI patients and ethnic-matched controls.

Results

A total of 16 DNA sequence variants (DSVs) including six single-nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were found in the VEGFR-1 gene promoter and 5′-untranslated region. Five novel DSVs and one SNP were only identified in AMI patients group. These DSVs and SNP significantly altered the transcriptional activity of the VEGFR-1 gene promoter in both HEK-293 and H9c2 cells (P < 0.05). Further electrophoretic mobility shift assay indicated that the DSVs and SNPs evidently affected the binding of transcription factors.

Conclusions

The genetic variants in VEGFR-1 gene identified in AMI patients may alter the transcriptional activity of the VEGFR-1 gene promoter and change VEGFR-1 level, contributing to AMI development.
Surgical restoration of drop-hand syndrome with tendon transfer in patients injured in the Syrian civil war
Authors: Ucak Murat
Published: November 2019

Background

The radial nerve is one of the most common war-related injury sites due to penetrating cutting tool injuries or gunshot wounds, resulting in drop-hand syndrome. The aim of this study was to evaluate the outcomes of tendon transfer in patients with drop-hand syndrome who had been injured in the Syrian Civil War.

Methods

This level-II, prospective, comparative study included 13 civilians injured in the Syrian Civil War 2015 and 2017. The palmaris longus tendon was used for transfer to the extensor pollicis longus for thumb extension. The pronator teres was transferred to the extensor carpi radialis brevis for wrist extension. The flexor carpi radialis was transferred to the extensor digiti communis for 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th finger extension. All outcomes of thumb abduction and extension, wrist extension, wrist flexion, and finger extension were assessed.

Results

There was a high level of radial nerve injury in all patients included in the study. The time from injury to treatment ranged from 1.5 months to 9 months. The mechanism of injury most commonly observed was a gunshot wound, which was observed in 8 patients (61.5%), followed by a penetrating cutting tool injury (n = 3; 23.1%) and humerus fracture (n = 2; 15.4%).

Conclusions

In radial nerve injuries, successful results can be achieved with tendon transfer. All patients regained thumb abduction of up to approximately 60°. All the patients were able to bend the wrist, grip, and extend the fingers while in wrist flexion, neutral wrist and wrist extension positions. Although the reason for the radial injury varied, the postoperative outcomes were good for all patients, and the rehabilitation period progressed successfully in patients who underwent tendon transfer repair within 90 days of injury.
PPI in research: a reflection from early stage researchers
Authors: Biggane Alice M. , Olsen Maria , Williamson Paula R.
Published: November 2019

Background

The importance of patient and public involvement (PPI) in the design and conduct of health research projects is gaining widespread recognition; however, it is still a developing area. Furthermore, PPI in methodological health research can help increase research value Thus, it is of great importance that researchers, especially early stage researchers continue to discuss and learn about the future challenges and opportunities of PPI.

Objective

With this commentary, we aim to disseminate i) key messages from a recent PPI training event and ii) discuss what early stage researchers (ESRs) in the “Methods in Research on Research” (MiRoR) project can do to improve our current and future work by considering and incorporating PPI.

Main body

The latest MiRoR network meeting held at the University of Split in Croatia (2nd-3rd October), included a PPI training session with presentations from Mr. Stephens a patient, about “Waste in research” and Dr. Westmore a funder on “Research integrity”, followed by smaller round-table discussions. This provided early stage researchers (ESRs) with an opportunity to discuss and explore the benefits and challenges of PPI in research, and the appropriate questions and research that is required for improving the implementation of PPI in clinical research.

Conclusion

As with intervention research, PPI is also important for methodological research since this will help to increase both the value, integrity and quality of research.

By providing early stage researchers with appropriate educational, interactive and real-world training, this will introduce the various merits and challenges associated with PPI in early-stage research.
Energy enhanced tissue texture in spectral computed tomography for lesion classification
Authors: Gao Yongfeng , Shi Yongyi , Cao Weiguo , Zhang Shu , Liang Zhengrong
Published: November 2019

Tissue texture reflects the spatial distribution of contrasts of image voxel gray levels, i.e., the tissue heterogeneity, and has been recognized as important biomarkers in various clinical tasks. Spectral computed tomography (CT) is believed to be able to enrich tissue texture by providing different voxel contrast images using different X-ray energies. Therefore, this paper aims to address two related issues for clinical usage of spectral CT, especially the photon counting CT (PCCT): (1) texture enhancement by spectral CT image reconstruction, and (2) spectral energy enriched tissue texture for improved lesion classification. For issue (1), we recently proposed a tissue-specific texture prior in addition to low rank prior for the individual energy-channel low-count image reconstruction problems in PCCT under the Bayesian theory. Reconstruction results showed the proposed method outperforms existing methods of total variation (TV), low-rank TV and tensor dictionary learning in terms of not only preserving texture features but also suppressing image noise. For issue (2), this paper will investigate three models to incorporate the enriched texture by PCCT in accordance with three types of inputs: one is the spectral images, another is the co-occurrence matrices (CMs) extracted from the spectral images, and the third one is the Haralick features (HF) extracted from the CMs. Studies were performed on simulated photon counting data by introducing attenuation-energy response curve to the traditional CT images from energy integration detectors. Classification results showed the spectral CT enriched texture model can improve the area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) score by 7.3%, 0.42% and 3.0% for the spectral images, CMs and HFs respectively on the five-energy spectral data over the original single energy data only. The CM- and HF-inputs can achieve the best AUC of 0.934 and 0.927. This texture themed study shows the insight that incorporating clinical important prior information, e.g., tissue texture in this paper, into the medical imaging, such as the upstream image reconstruction, the downstream diagnosis, and so on, can benefit the clinical tasks.
Temporal stability of the rumen microbiota in beef cattle, and response to diet and supplements
Authors: Snelling Timothy J. , Auffret Marc D. , Duthie Carol-Anne , Stewart Robert D. , Watson Mick , Dewhurst Richard J. , Roehe Rainer , Walker Alan W.
Published: November 2019

Background

Dietary intake is known to be a driver of microbial community dynamics in ruminants. Beef cattle go through a finishing phase that typically includes very high concentrate ratios in their feed, with consequent effects on rumen metabolism including methane production. This longitudinal study was designed to measure dynamics of the rumen microbial community in response to the introduction of high concentrate diets fed to beef cattle during the finishing period.

A cohort of 50 beef steers were fed either of two basal diet formulations consisting of approximately 10:90 or 50:50 forage:concentrate ratios respectively. Nitrate and oil rich supplements were also added either individually or in combination. Digesta samples were taken at time points over ~ 200 days during the finishing period of the cattle to measure the adaptation to the basal diet and long-term stability of the rumen microbiota.

Results

16S rRNA gene amplicon libraries were prepared from 313 rumen digesta samples and analysed at a depth of 20,000 sequences per library. Bray Curtis dissimilarity with analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) revealed highly significant (p < 0.001) differences in microbiota composition between cattle fed different basal diets, largely driven by reduction of fibre degrading microbial groups and increased relative abundance of an unclassifiedGammaproteobacteriaOTU in the high concentrate fed animals. Conversely, the forage-based diet was significantly associated with methanogenic archaea. Within basal diet groups, addition of the nitrate and combined supplements had lesser, although still significant, impacts on microbiota dissimilarity compared to pre-treatment time points and controls. Measurements of the response and stability of the microbial community over the time course of the experiment showed continuing adaptation up to 25 days in the high concentrate groups. After this time point, however, no significant variability was detected.

Conclusions

High concentrate diets that are typically fed to finishing beef cattle can have a significant effect on the microbial community in the rumen. Inferred metabolic activity of the different microbial communities associated with each of the respective basal diets explained differences in methane and short chain fatty acid production between cattle. Longitudinal sampling revealed that once adapted to a change in diet, the rumen microbial community remains in a relatively stable alternate state.
Seismic attribute selection for machine-learning-based facies analysis
Authors: Qi Jie , Zhang Bo , Lyu Bin , Marfurt Kurt
Published: November 2019

Interpreters face two main challenges in seismic facies analysis. The first challenge is to define, or “label,” the facies of interest. The second challenge is to select a suite of attributes that can differentiate a target facies from the background reflectivity. Our key objective is to determine which seismic attributes can best differentiate one class of chaotic seismic facies from another using modern machine-learning technology. Although simple 1D histograms provide a list of candidate attributes, they do not provide insight into the optimum number or combination of attributes. To address this limitation, we have conducted an exhaustive search whereby we represent the target and background training facies by high-dimensional Gaussian mixture models (GMMs) for each potential attribute combination. The first step is to choose candidate attributes that may be able to differentiate chaotic mass-transport deposits and salt diapirs from the more conformal, coherent background reflectors. The second step is to draw polygons around the target and background facies to provide the labeled data to be represented by GMMs. Maximizing the distance between all GMM facies pairs provides the optimum number and combination of attributes. We use generative topographic mapping to represent the high-dimensional attribute data by a lower dimensional 2D manifold. Each labeled facies provides a probability density function on the manifold that can be compared to the probability density function of each voxel, providing the likelihood that a given voxel is a member of each of the facies. Our first example maps chaotic seismic facies associated with the development of salt diapirs and minibasins. Our second example successfully delineates karst collapse underlying a shale resource play from north Texas.
Effects of Dapagliflozin on Endothelial Dysfunction in Type 2 Diabetes With Established Ischemic Heart Disease (EDIFIED)
Authors: Zainordin Nur Aisyah , Hatta Sharifah Faradilla Wan Muhamad , Mohamed Shah Fatimah Zaherah , Rahman Thuhairah Abdul , Ismail Nurhuda , Ismail Zaliha , Abdul Ghani Rohana
Published: November 2019

Objectives

To evaluate the effect of the sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 inhibitor (SGLT2-I) dapagliflozin on endothelial function in patients with high-risk type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM).

Methods

This was a prospective, double-blind, randomized, placebo-controlled, clinical trial of patients with T2DM with underlying ischemic heart disease who were receiving metformin and insulin therapy (n = 81). After 12-weeks of additional therapy with either dapagliflozin (n = 40) or placebo (n = 41), systemic endothelial function was evaluated by change in flow-mediated dilation (ΔFMD), change in nitroglycerin-mediated dilation (ΔNMD) and surrogate markers including intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM-1), endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), high-sensitivity C-reactive protein (hs-CRP), and lipoprotein(a) (Lp[a]). Glycemic and lipid profiles were also measured.

Results

The dapagliflozin group demonstrated significant reductions of hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) and fasting blood glucose (FBG) compared to the placebo group (ΔHbA1c –0.83 ± 1.47% vs –0.16 ± 1.25%, P = 0.042 and ΔFBG vs –0.73 ± 4.55 mmol/L vs –1.90 ± 4.40 mmol/L, P = 0.015, respectively). The placebo group showed worsening of ΔFMD while the dapagliflozin group maintained similar measurements pre- and posttherapy (P = not significant). There was a reduction in ICAM-1 levels in the dapagliflozin group (–83.9 ± 205.9 ng/mL, P < 0.02), which remained unchanged in the placebo group (–11.0 ± 169.1 ng/mL, P = 0.699). Univariate correlation analysis revealed a significant negative correlation between HbA1c and ΔFMD within the active group.

Conclusion

A 12-week therapy with dapagliflozin, in addition to insulin and metformin therapies, in high-risk patients resulted in significant reductions in HbA1c, FBG, and surrogate markers of the endothelial function. Although the dapagliflozin group demonstrated a significant association between reduction in HbA1c and improvement in FMD, there was no significant difference in FMD between the 2 groups.
Preliminary evaluation of a Trypanosoma brucei FG-GAP repeat containing protein of mitochondrial localization
Authors: Namyanja Monica , Xu Zhi-Shen , Mugasa Claire Mack , Lun Zhao-Rong , Matovu Enock , Chen Zhengjun , Lubega George W.
Published: November 2019

Background: Trypanosoma brucei, a causative agent of African Trypanosomiasis, is known to cross the blood brain barrier during the second stage of the disease. It was previously suggested that this parasite crosses the blood brain barrier in a manner similar to that of lymphocytes. This would imply that trypanosomes possess integrins that are required to interact with adhesion molecules located on the blood brain barrier microvascular endothelial cells, as a first step in traversal. To date, no T. brucei integrin has been described. However, one T. brucei putative FG-GAP repeat containing protein (typical of integrins) encoded by the Tb927.11.720 gene, was predicted to be involved in cell-cell/cell-matrix adhesion. Therefore, this study sought to characterize a putative FG-GAP repeat containing protein (FG-GAP RCP) and to determine its cellular localization as a basis for further exploration of its potential role in cell-cell or cell-matrix adhesion.

Methods: In this study, we successfully cloned, characterized, expressed and localized this protein using antibodies we produced against its VCBS domain in T. brucei.

Results: Contrary to what we initially suspected, our data showed that this protein is localized to the mitochondria but not the plasma membrane. Our data showed that it contains putative calcium binding motifs within the FG-GAP repeats suggesting it could be involved in calcium signaling/binding in the mitochondrion of T. brucei.

Conclusion: Based on its localization we conclude that this protein is unlikely to be a trypanosomal integrin and thus that it may not be involved in traversal of the blood brain barrier. However, it could be involved in calcium signaling in the mitochondrion.
Anaemia in solitary acyanotic ventricular septal defect in comorbid with pneumonia or pulmonary hypertension: A retrospective study of 75 paediatric cases
Authors: Changwe Geoffrey Joseph , Zhang Haizhou , Li Hongxin , Farhaj Zeeshan , Tewara Marlvin Anemey , Zhang Wenlong , Zou Chengwei
Published: November 2019

Background: Ventricular septal defects (VSD) are the second commonest congenital heart defects after bicuspid aortic valve. When left unrepaired, they can undergo spontaneous closure or elicit a spectrum of complications including pneumonia (PNA) or pulmonary hypertension (PH) with subsequent anaemia. In this retrospective study, we aim to establish and compare the prevalence of anaemia in patients with solitary acyanotic VSD in comorbid with PNA or PH.

Methods: A total of 75 case files of patients with solitary acyanotic VSD, who underwent surgical closure or device occlusion had haemoglobin level analysed prior to the procedure. The cohort included patients with (history of) PNA and PH, and asymptomatic. The cohort included 27 females and 48 males with mean age and weight of 8.3±5.72 (3-24) months and 5.9±3.9 (2.7-17.8) kilograms, respectively. Depending on  associated complication and age, the cohort was divided: PNA (A), PH (B) and Control (C); and (I) young children (≥3-6≤) and (II) older children (>6-≤24) months. We used 95 and 105 grams per litre as haemoglobin lower threshold level for (I) and (II), respectively.

Results: According to data analysis 27 patients (36%) in total had anaemia. Of the anaemia cohort 16 (59.3%) had PNA, 9 (33.3%) PH and 2 (7.4%) were asymptomatic. Of the cohort, 42 were young children, with anaemia prevalence of 19/42 (45.2%), while 24.2% of the older children had anaemia. Intergroup ANOVA independent sample t-test was significant (p<0.05). In addition, intergroup Tukey HSD test for haemoglobin: A/B (p>0.05), A/C (p<0.01), B/C (p<0.01).

 Conclusion: Paediatric patients with acyanotic VSD in comorbid with PNA or PH are 8 and 4 times more susceptible to develop anaemia compared to asymptomatic counterparts. Susceptibility is even higher among young children (3-6months). However, a prospective study is needed to validate our findings.
Recent advances in developing disease resistance in plants
Authors: Sharma Anuj , Jones Jeffrey B. , White Frank F.
Published: November 2019

Approaches to manipulating disease resistance in plants is expanding exponentially due to advances in our understanding of plant defense mechanisms and new tools for manipulating the plant genome. The application of effective strategies is only limited now by adoption of rapid classical genetic techniques and the acceptance of genetically engineered traits for some problems. The use of genome editing and cis-genetics, where possible, may facilitate applications that otherwise require considerable time or genetic engineering, depending on settling legal definitions of the products. Nonetheless, the variety of approaches to developing disease resistance has never been greater.
Molecular characterization of Pasteurella multocida pfhaB1 gene fragment from buffalo and cattle isolates from Nusa Tenggara Timur Indonesia
Authors: Karni Ine , Handijatno Didik , Suwanti Lucia Tri , Kusnoto Kusnoto , Rahmahani Jola , Tyasningsih Wiwiek
Published: November 2019

Almost all regions in Nusa Tenggara Timur East Nusa Tenggara (NTT) Province Indonesia are endemic areas of Haemorragic Septicaemia (HS), which is caused by Pasteurella multocida  (P. multocida ) Serotypes B: 2. The fragment  pfhaB1gene is one of the virulence factors of P. multocida.The objective of this study was to determaine the phylogenetic, homology of P. multocidapfhaB1gene fragment of isolatedfrom Buffalo and Cattle in NTT. The P. multocida isolateswere re-cultured and further microscopic examined the biochemical tests, PCR, sequencing, homology, and phylogenetic relatedness test. P. multocida was observed as gram negative, coccobacilus, no growth on MacConkey Agar, does not produce H2S and gas, nonmotile and indole positive, does not produce urease enzymes, does not use citrate as a carbon source, does not ferment maltose and lactose but it does ferment glucose, sucrose and mannitol. ThepfhaB1gene fragmentfrom buffalo and cattle NTT isolates and also Katha strain vaccine showed DNA band 506 bp. P.multocida isolates from buffalo and cattle in NTT have 91% - 99% score homology with the comparative isolate. The isolate P. multocida from buffalo and cattle in NTT are in one cluster and their phylogenetic relatedness is close to isolates from Iran and India. It is concluded that the  pfhaB1gene fragmentof P. multocida from buffalo and cattle isolates have phylogenetic relatedness close and homolog with the other comparative isolates.    Keywords: Haemorrhagic Septicaemia; Nusa Tenggara Timur; Pasteurella multocida;  pfhaB1gene
Documenting life in the era of climate change: Huang Hsin-yao’s Nimbus and Taivalu
Authors: Chang Chia-ju
Published: November 2019

What can the poetic or experimental mode of documentary contribute to the discourses of the New Taiwan Documentaries, particularly the ones that address everyday eco-disasters in the Pacific Rim during the climate change era? In this article, I use Huang Hsin-yao’s Daishui yun (Nimbus) (2009) and Shenmei zhi dao (Taivalu: Taiwan vs. Tuvalu) (2010) as case studies of what I call ‘cli-fi ethnographic documentary’. These documentaries demonstrate that the employment of the poetic documentary mode, as a filmic strategy, provides a different outlet to address the tension, for example, between planetary suffering, eco-aesthetics, human psychological adaptability and environmental justice. Here the Taiwanese directors dare to imagine a broader, deep-time, more-than-human multispecies world, affect and aesthetics, while not eschewing the question of justice, accountability and causality.
Isolation and characterization of avian coronavirus from healthy Eclectus parrots (Eclectus roratus) from Indonesia
Authors: Suryaman G. K. , Soejoedono R. D. , Setiyono A. , Poetri O. N. , Handharyani E.
Published: November 2019

Background and Aim: Avian coronavirus has a wide range of hosts, from chickens and turkeys to wild birds. This virus causes an economically and, possibly, environmentally, important loss in the poultry industry. Therefore, research into the avian coronavirus in various species of birds is required. The Eclectus parrot (Eclectus roratus) is an endemic bird to Indonesia and Northern Australia and often kept as pets. At present, there has been limited information about avian coronavirus infection among birds. This study aimed to determine the presence of and to characterize avian coronavirus isolated from Eclectus parrots in Indonesia. Materials and Methods: Cloacal swab samples were taken from 10 healthy Eclectus parrots (E. roratus). Each isolate was propagated into specific pathogen-free embryonated chicken eggs. The presence of avian coronavirus was determined using three sets of primers targeting the 3' untranslated region (3'-UTR) of avian coronavirus (UTR41+/11–), the N gene of the infectious bronchitis virus (IBVN+/–), and the S1 gene of the IBV (XCE2+/XCE2–). The infectious bronchitis vaccine strain H120 was used as a positive control. Resulting positive bands were sequenced for the S1 gene. Results: None of the isolates was positive for the 3'-UTR, four isolates were positive for the N gene of infectious bronchitis, and two isolates were positive for the S1 gene of the IBV. However, only one isolate (parrot/Indonesia/BX9/16) was sequenced for the partial S1 gene with primers XCE2+/XCE2–. The partial nucleotide sequence of this isolate showed 100% homology with the IBV GI-13 lineage, specifically with a field isolate of the 4/91 variant 1 Israel and the 4/91 vaccine on the hypervariable region 3 site of the S1 gene. Conclusion: An IB-like avian coronavirus was isolated from healthy Eclectus parrots. Our results indicate that IBV has a wide range of hosts, which prompt the need to understand the interspecies connection of this virus better.
Role of calcium ions and cyclic nucleotides in regulation of somatotroph functional activity in rats of different age
Authors: Fedotov V. P. , Gudoshnikov V. I. , Mamayeva T. V.
Published: November 2019

Somatotropic hormone (STH) biosynthesis and secretion were studied in primary adenohypophyseal cultures of neonatal, prepubertal, and adult rats. It was shown by disc PAAG electrophorqsiS of products synthesized in incubation of neonatal rat hypophyseal cells that L-'4C leucin incorporates predominantly in the STH containing fraction. The share of prelabeled STH secreted into the culture virtually did not depend on the age of animals, this indicating the maturity of mechanisms of basal somatotroph secretion as early as in the neonatal period of development. Ca-regulating agents (ionophore A23187, EGTA) caused quantitatively similar changes of somatotroph secretory activity in cultures of hypophyseal cells from rats of different ages. At the same time, clear-cut age-specific features of stimulating effect of dibutyryl derivatives of cAMP and cGMP on secretion of immunoreactive STH were detected. The results indicate that somatotropic function in neonatal hypophysis is a dominant one and demonstrates increased reactivity to secretogenic action of cyclic nucleotide analogs.
Effect of islet cell culture xenotransplantation on alloxan diabetes course in rats fed diets with different protein content
Authors: Sadykova R. Ye. , Skaletsky N. N. , Dreval A. V. , Kirsanova L. A. , Shishko P. I.
Published: November 2019

The authors present data- on the protective effect of newborn rabbits pancreatic islet cell culture xenotransplantation of Langerhans islets P-cells of rats with alloxan diabetes. This effect was the most marked in rats fed diets with normal or increased protein content. The authors discuss a possible stimulating effect of rabbit islet cell culture xenooransplantation on regeneration processes in recipient rat pancreatic islets. This effect was better pronounced in rats kept on rations with increased protein content. Further experiments will help more accuretaly define the indications for therapy of insulindependent diabetes mellitus by xenokansplantations of islet cell cultures.
Polarization fluoroimmunoassays of progesterone
Authors: Kolosova A. Yu. , Yeremin S. A. , Gavrilova Ye. M. , Yegorov A. M.
Published: November 2019

A quick reliable homogenous polarization fluoroimmunoassay (PFIA) of progesterone was developed. The assay is carried out with Abbott TDx (USA) polarization fluorometer and it takes 5-7 min to analyze 10 samples by this method. The range of progesterone concentrations determined is 1 to 1000 ng/ml. Fluorescein labeled progesterone-3-carbo- xymethyloxime which was used as tracer (labeled antigen) during analysis has been synthesized and purified. Two types of PFIA were developed: one making use of rabbit antiserum to progesterone-3-carboxymethyloxime conjugated with bovine serum albumin (BSA) or keyhole limpet hemocianin (KLH), in the other antiserum to progesterone-11-hemisuccinate-BSA (or KLH) is used. Different combinations of the tracer and antibodies were used. The sensitivity of heterologous PFIA (with antibodies to immunogen heteroioguos to tracer by structure) was higher than that of homologous PFIA. The test is sufficienctly sensitive and specific. The method is particularly valuable for determination of progesterone in model solutions (using buffer standards).
Limited mobility of the joints: a complication of diabetes mellitus in children and adolescents
Authors: Lebedev N. B. , Kuraeva T. L.
Published: November 2019

The incidence of a specific complication, limited mobility of the joints (mainly of interphalangeal joints of the hand), was estimated in 108 patients aged 6 to 22 with insulin-dependent diabetes of 5 and more years duration. It was found to be high: 44%. This complication more frequently develops in cases of poor metabolic control and longer disease duration. Limited mobility of the joints in children and adolescents with insulin-dependent diabetes permits predict in them with a 50% probability early manifestations of retinopathy and nephropathy. A classification of this complication by three degrees is offered.
Computer-aided tomographic diagnosis of retrosternal goiter
Authors: Dedov I. I. , Bukhman A. I. , Putina T. V. , Serpukhovitin S. Yu.
Published: November 2019

The authors analyze the results of computer-aided tomographic (CAT) diagnosis in 25 patients with restrosternal goiter. They claim that CAT is a method of choice in the preoperative diagnosis of retrosternal goiter, permitting the solution of a problem on the volume of surgical intervention and of the type of anesthesia. CAT helps specify the site, size, and dissemination of goiter beyond the sternum and assess its relations with the adjacent organs and tissues.
Glycolysis intensity and activities of energy metabolism enzymes in the rat brain during repeated exposure to hypoglycemic doses of insulin
Authors: Telushkin P. K. , Potapov P. P.
Published: November 2019

Renewable conditions of hypoglycemia are a frequent complication in the treatment of diabetes mellitus, determine the clinic of pancreatic insulinomas, are observed in diseases of the kidneys, liver, gastrointestinal tract and alcoholism, leading to the development of posthypoglycemic encephalopathy. At the same time, a single, even severe, insulin coma is accompanied by reversible metabolic changes in the brain.

Therefore, the pathological features of metabolism in the nervous tissue, which are the result of repeated hypoglycemia, in particular possible disturbances in energy metabolism, require further study.

In this work, we studied the main ways of glucose metabolism - the intensity of glycolysis and glycogenolysis, the activity of Krebs cycle dehydrogenases, alanine and aspartate aminotransferases in the rat brain in setting of multiple hypoglycemia.
The lipid transporting system and its hormonal regulations in youths suffering from obesity
Authors: Sokolov Ye. I. , Dvoryashina I. V. , Perova N. V. , Melkina O. Ye. , Chudakova I. A.
Published: November 2019

The type and degree of changes in the lipid transporting system of blood plasma and levels of hormonal provision of the regulatory processes in juvenile obesity of different degrees were under study. A single fat food loading was used to detect the precursors or latent forms of disorders in lipoprotein spectrum and their hormone regulators. A total of 35 obese patients aged 16 to 18 and 30 age-matched healthy youths were examined. Analysis of the baseline values showed increased levels of apolipoprotein B, cholesterol, triglycerides, insulin, and reduced levels of apolipoprotein Al, high-density lipoprotein cholesterol in obese youths vs. controls. A atherogenic pattern of changes in the lipoprotein and apolipoprotein spectra of the plasma of obese youths was clearly seen under conditions of fat food loading, these changes being associated with disordered insulin reaction to intake if exogenous fat. The examinees suffering from obesity a varying degree, mainly from the ab- dominant variant, presented with a complex of interrelated metabolic disorders (hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance, dyslipoproteinemias), the metabolic X syndrome, this referring them to a group at risk of developing atherosclerosis, essential hypertension, diabetes mellitus irrespective of the degree of general obesity.
A AGRICULTURA DO AGRONEGÓCIO E SUA RELAÇÂO COM A INTOXICAÇÃO AGUDA POR AGROTÓXICOS NO BRASIL
Authors: Lara Stephanie Sommerfeld de , Pignati Wanderlei Antonio , Pignatti Marta Gislene , Leão Luís Henrique da Costa , Machado Jorge Mesquita Huet
Published: November 2019

A pulverização de agrotóxicos em larga escala nos monocultivos agrícolas expõe cotidianamente a população residente e trabalhadores a possíveis envenenamentos agudos e/ou crônicos. O objetivo deste trabalho é descrever as intoxicações por agrotóxicos ocorridas no Brasil, Unidades Federadas e especificamente Mato Grosso, e correlacionar esses registros com o uso e exposição ambiental a agrotóxicos pulverizados nas lavouras. Trata-se de um estudo epidemiológico, descritivo e ecológico-analítico. Para observar a associação entre os indicadores ambientais e de saúde, foi utilizado a correlação linear de Spearman. Mapas foram criados usando Sistemas de Informação Geográficos. As intoxicações por agrotóxicos ocuparam o segundo lugar dentre todas exógenas e a letalidade a primeira posição. Os envenenamentos por agrotóxicos agrícolas dobraram de valor no período de 2007-2016. O Mato Grosso, Paraná e Rio Grande do Sul foram destaque para o uso de agrotóxicos, enquanto que Espirito Santo, Tocantins e Paraná para as maiores incidências de intoxicação. A correlação foi positiva e significante entre o agravo, o consumo e exposição ambiental a agrotóxicos nas Unidades Federadas e municípios de Mato Grosso. Conclui-se que nas regiões com elevada produção agrícola e pulverização de agrotóxicos também ocorre as maiores incidências de intoxicação. Devido o risco do agravo gerar sequelas temporárias, permanentes e óbitos em trabalhadores e população, a Vigilância em Saúde deve desenvolver ações contínuas para reduzir a exposição aos produtos, e consequentemente, evitar a ocorrência de intoxicações.
Pengembangan Kawasan Riverfront di Sungai Banjir Kanal Timur Kota Semarang dengan Konsep Eco-Riverwalk Village (Studi Kasus : Kelurahan Mlatiharjo, Kecamatan Semarang Timur)
Authors: Subianto M.H. , Prayogo P. , Gustina R.D. , Syahrani A. , Sihaloho D.A. , Nurrokhmi R. , Royson R.J. , Debby T.R. , Haulah L. , Hapsari D.O. , Syahlisben R.
Published: November 2019

Semarang city has two canals which was developed to decrease the flood risk happened since 19th century, those are known as Banjir Kanal Timur (BKT) and Banjir Kanal Barat (BKB). Both canals which are made connected to Sungai Garang are served as primary drainages that flow directly to the sea. The weak regulation of limitation zone (e.g. riverfront) caused many violations done by people around the area by built houses or places for working along BKT riverfront. Many buildings are made as houses (i.e. commonly used by the poor) drives domestic waste dumped in the river. This is one of many driving forces caused flooding in Semarang City (i.e. the nature factor is erosion happen in BKT river upstream). Those problems caused sedimentation in BKT downstream and indirectly caused the water spilled to the settlement around the river. The development by Eco-Riverwalk Village Concept are implemanted as an effort to improve the ecology aspect in riverfront area by build a linear park as a new identity of Kelurahan Mlatiharjo Riverfront. Linear park is the implemantation of ‘riverwalk’ concept (i.e. the walkable zone along the river) and improve the aesthetic value in case study area.
Model-free control for distributed stream data processing using deep reinforcement learning
Authors: Li Teng , Xu Zhiyuan , Tang Jian , Wang Yanzhi
Published: November 2019

In this paper, we focus on general-purpose
Distributed Stream Data Processing Systems (DSDPSs)
, which deal with processing of unbounded streams of continuous data at scale distributedly in real or near-real time. A fundamental problem in a DSDPS is the scheduling problem (i.e., assigning workload to workers/machines) with the objective of minimizing average end-to-end tuple processing time. A widely-used solution is to distribute workload evenly over machines in the cluster in a round-robin manner, which is obviously not efficient due to lack of consideration for communication delay. Model-based approaches (such as queueing theory) do not work well either due to the high complexity of the system environment.

We aim to develop a novel model-free approach that can learn to well control a DSDPS from its experience rather than accurate and mathematically solvable system models, just as a human learns a skill (such as cooking, driving, swimming, etc). Specifically, we, for the first time, propose to leverage emerging Deep Reinforcement Learning (DRL) for enabling model-free control in DSDPSs; and present design, implementation and evaluation of a novel and highly effective DRL-based control framework, which minimizes average end-to-end tuple processing time by jointly learning the system environment via collecting very limited runtime statistics data and making decisions under the guidance of powerful Deep Neural Networks (DNNs). To validate and evaluate the proposed framework, we implemented it based on a widely-used DSDPS, Apache Storm, and tested it with three representative applications: continuous queries, log stream processing and word count (stream version). Extensive experimental results show 1) Compared to Storm's default scheduler and the state-of-the-art model-based method, the proposed framework reduces average tuple processing by 33.5% and 14.0% respectively on average. 2) The proposed framework can quickly reach a good scheduling solution during online learning, which justifies its practicability for online control in DSDPSs.
Smoke
Authors: Psallidas Fotis , Wu Eugene
Published: November 2019

Data lineage describes the relationship between individual input and output data items of a workflow and is an integral ingredient for both traditional (e.g., debugging or auditing) and emergent (e.g., explanations or cleaning) applications. The core, long-standing problem that lineage systems need to address---and the main focus of this paper---is to quickly capture lineage across a workflow in order to speed up future queries over lineage. Current lineage systems, however, either incur high lineage capture overheads, high lineage query processing costs, or both. In response, developers resort to manual implementations of applications that, in principal, can be expressed and optimized in lineage terms. This paper describes S
moke
, an in-memory database engine that provides both fast lineage capture and lineage query processing. To do so, S
moke
tightly integrates the lineage capture logic into physical database operators; stores lineage in efficient lineage representations; and employs optimizations if future lineage queries are known up-front. Our experiments on microbenchmarks and realistic workloads show that S
moke
reduces the lineage capture overhead and lineage query costs by multiple orders of magnitude as compared to state-of-the-art alternatives. On real-world applications, we show that S
moke
meets the latency requirements of interactive visualizations (e.g., < 150ms) and outperforms hand-written implementations of data profiling primitives.
A Late Composition Dedicated to Nergal
Authors: Cecilia Ludovica
Published: November 2019

This article treats a composition that was probably dedicated to Nergal, a god with a long cultic tradition in ancient Mesopotamia who was mainly related to war and death. The text was first edited by Böhl (1949; 1953: 207–216, 496–497), followed by Ebeling (1953: 116–117). Later, Seux (1976: 85–88) and Foster (2005: 708–709) translated and commented upon it. I will present a new reading of the invocation on the tablet’s upper edge, which confirms that the tablet originated in Uruk during the Hellenistic period. Furthermore, I will discuss the many Neo-Babylonian and Late Babylonian grammatical elements of this composition. The high frequency of these elements, typical of the vernacular language, is unusual for a literary text and suggests that not only the tablet, but also the composition of the text stems from the first millennium BCE, and perhaps, just like the tablet, from Hellenistic Uruk. The purpose of this contribution is, therefore, to show through an analysis of this text, that the conservative and poetic literary language was reworked and adapted to the cultural situation of the late period in Mesopotamian literary production.
Trema orientalis (Linn.) leaves promotes anticancer activity in Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) in Swiss albino mice
Authors: Kabir Masnoon , AL-Noman Abdullah , Dash Biplab Kumar , Hasan Mahmudul , Akhter Shahina , Rahman Mashiar
Published: November 2019

Background

The in vivo anticancer effect of the Trema orientalis leaves crude methanol extract (TLME) was screened against Ehrlich ascites carcinoma (EAC) in Swiss albino mice.

Materials and methods

The cytotoxic activity of TLME was determined in vitro by the 3-(4,5-dimethyl-2-thiazolyl)-2,5-diphenyl-2H-tetrazolium bromide (MTT) assay. The growth inhibitory activity and morphological alterations were determined by the hemocytometer counting of the EAC cells using trypan blue dye. The apoptotic cells were assessed by DAPI (4′,6-diamidino-2-phenylindole) staining. The hematological and biochemical parameters of experimental mice were also estimated.

Results

After treatment with the TLME, the viable tumor cell count, morphological changes and nuclear damages of the EAC cells were observed along with the hematological parameters of the experimental mice. The LD50 of TLME was 3120.650 mg/kg body weight, and this extract was proven to be safe at a dose of as high as 800 mg/kg body weight. The oral administration of the TLME at 400 mg/kg body weight resulted in approximately 59% tumor cell growth inhibition compared with the control mice, with considerable apoptotic features, including membrane blebbing, chromatin condensation, nuclear fragmentation and aggregation of the apoptotic bodies in DAPI staining under a fluorescence microscope. The TLME also dose-dependently restored the altered hematological parameters to approximately normal levels. The TLME exhibited bolstering cytotoxic effect against the EAC cell with the IC50 value of 29.952 ± 1.816 μg/mL.

Conclusion

The TLME has potential as a natural anti-cancer product with apoptosis induction property and cytotoxicity against carcinoma cells.
Selective tuning of optical modes in a silicon comb-like photonic crystal cavity
Authors: Clementi Marco , Barone Andrea , Fromherz Thomas , Gerace Dario , Galli Matteo
Published: November 2019

Realizing multiply resonant photonic crystal cavities with large free spectral range is key to achieve integrated devices with highly efficient nonlinear response, such as frequency conversion, four-wave mixing, and parametric oscillation. This task is typically difficult owing to the cavity modes’ sensitivity to fabrication disorder, which makes it hard to reliably achieve a comb-like spectrum of equally spaced modes even when a perfect matching is theoretically predicted. Here we show that a comb-like spectrum of up to eight modes with very high quality factor and diffraction limited volumes can be engineered in the bichromatic-type potential of a two-dimensional photonic crystal cavity fabricated in a thin silicon membrane. To cope with the tight tolerance in terms of frequency spacings and resonance linewidths, we develop a permanent post-processing technique that allows the selective tuning of individual confined modes, thus achieving an almost perfect frequency matching of high Q resonances with record finesse in silicon microresonators. Our experimental results are extremely promising in view of ultra-low power nonlinear photonics in silicon.