bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Comparative analyses of caste, sex, and developmental stage‐specific transcriptomes in two Temnothorax ants
Authors: Gstöttl Claudia , Stoldt Marah , Jongepier Evelien , Bornberg‐Bauer Erich , Feldmeyer Barbara , Heinze Jürgen , Foitzik Susanne
Published: March 2020

Social insects dominate arthropod communities worldwide due to cooperation and division of labor in their societies. This, however, makes them vulnerable to exploitation by social parasites, such as slave‐making ants. Slave‐making ant workers pillage brood from neighboring nests of related host ant species. After emergence, host workers take over all nonreproductive colony tasks, whereas slavemakers have lost the ability to care for themselves and their offspring. Here, we compared transcriptomes of different developmental stages (larvae, pupae, and adults), castes (queens and workers), and sexes of two related ant species, the slavemaker Temnothorax americanus and its host Temnothorax longispinosus. Our aim was to investigate commonalities and differences in group‐specific transcriptomes, whereupon across‐species differences possibly can be explained by their divergent lifestyles. Larvae and pupae showed the highest similarity between the two species and upregulated genes with enriched functions of translation and chitin metabolism, respectively. Workers commonly upregulated oxidation‐reduction genes, possibly indicative of their active lifestyle. Host workers, but not workers of the slavemaker, upregulated a “social behavior” gene. In slavemaker queens and workers, genes associated with the regulation of transposable elements were upregulated. Queens of both species showed transcriptomic signals of anti‐aging mechanisms, with hosts upregulating various DNA repair pathways and slavemaker queens investing in trehalose metabolism. The transcriptomes of males showed enriched functions for quite general terms realized in different genes and pathways in each species. In summary, the strong interspecific commonalities in larvae, pupae, and workers were reflected in the same enriched Gene Ontology (GO) terms. Less commonalities occurred in the transcriptomes of queens and males, which apparently utilize different pathways to achieve a long life and sperm production, respectively. We found that all analyzed groups in this study show characteristic GO terms, with similar patterns in both species.
Dissociation proneness and pain hyposensitivity in current and remitted borderline personality disorder
Authors: Chung Boo Young , Hensel Saskia , Schmidinger Ilinca , Bekrater‐Bodmann Robin , Flor Herta
Published: March 2020

Background

Stress‐related dissociation has been shown to negatively co‐vary with pain perception in current borderline personality disorder (cBPD). While remission of the disorder (rBPD) is associated with normalized pain perception, it remains unclear whether dissociation proneness is still enhanced in this group and how this feature interacts with pain sensitivity.

Methods

Twenty‐five cBPD patients, 20 rBPD patients and 24 healthy controls (HC) participated in an experiment using the script‐driven imagery approach. We presented a personalized stressful and neutral narrative. After listening to the scripts, dissociation and heat pain thresholds (HPT) were assessed.

Results

Compared to HC, cBPD patients showed enhanced dissociation and exhibited significantly enhanced HPT in the neutral condition, whereas rBPD participants were in between. After listening to the stress script, both clinical groups exhibited enhanced dissociation scores. Current BPD participants responded with significantly higher HPT, whereas rBPD only showed a trend in the same direction. However, both BPD groups showed significantly increased HPT compared to the HC in the stress condition, but did not differ from each other. Dissociation proneness correlated significantly positively with pain hyposensitivity only in cBPD.

Conclusion

Dissociation proneness is enhanced in both BPD groups. This feature is clearly positively related to pain hyposensitivity in cBPD, but not in rBPD. However, the data indicate that stress causes the pain perception in rBPD to drift away from that obtained in HC. These results highlight the volatile state of BPD remission and might have important implications for the care of BPD patients in the remitted stage.

Significance

Both current (cBPD) and remitted borderline personality disorder (rBPD) patients show enhanced proneness to dissociation. This feature is significantly linked with pain hyposensitivity in cBPD in a paradigm that induces stress using a script‐driven imagery approach, whereas this connection cannot be observed in rBPD. However, in the stress compared to the neutral condition, rBPD participants also show pain hyposensitivity compared to healthy controls. This study provides new insights into the pain processing mechanisms of BPD and its remission.
Borate‐containing background electrolytes to improve CE separation in bare capillaries
Authors: Dolnik Vladislav
Published: March 2020

The paper describes how borate‐containing BGEs modify ζ‐potential and so EOF in bare fused silica capillaries. This surface modification can be used to suppress EOF and improve the separation performance of CZE including capillary sieving electrophoresis (CSE). Boric acid forms complexes with polysaccharides used as sieving matrices in CSE and other compounds containing hydroxyl groups, including polyol bases such as Tris, triethanolamine, and Bis‐Tris propane. High concentration of boric acid in BGEs leads to a strong interaction of boric acid with the silica surface of the capillary wall and this suppresses or even completely eliminates ζ‐potential and EOF. Using a polyol base with several charge‐carrying amino groups, such as Bis‐Tris propane, can actually reverse EOF. We demonstrate the use of various borate‐containing BGEs in bare fused silica capillaries for size‐separation of DNA fragments, size‐separation of proteins by SDS CSE, and also by CZE in the absence of any sieving matrix.
Model‐based method with nonlinear ultrasonic system identification for mechanical structural health assessment
Authors: Chen Hanxin , Huang Lang , Yang Liu , Chen Yongting , Huang Jinmin
Published: March 2020

Conventional methods for the structural nondestructive testing (NDT) such as pulsed eddy current (PEC), ultrasonic detection (UT), and so on are based on the output signal interpretation technique of the NDT system to extract the features to assess the structural health. In this article, a novel NDT method for the structural health monitoring from the different perspective is proposed, which is based on the structural system model between the exciting input and output response. Nonlinear autoregressive moving average with exogenous inputs (NARMAX) is used to establish the time domain model between the input signal and the output response. Frequency response (FRF) of NARMAX model from the time domain data is proposed to obtain the indicators to assess the structural health. The effectiveness and advantage of the proposed method are tested with two sets of experimental data by comparison with the existing method.
The effect of Quinoa flour and enzymes on the quality of gluten‐free bread
Authors: Azizi Saadat , Azizi Mohammad Hossein , Moogouei Roxana , Rajaei Peyman
Published: March 2020

Gluten‐free products usually are produced by refined flours such as rice and corn flour, which the bran is separated during processing. These flours are not nutritionally as rich as gluten containing products. Moreover, gluten‐free bread has several technical problems such as unfavorable texture, low volume, quick staling, and weaker color and taste compared with the wheat flour products. In this research, gluten‐free bread with various substitution of quinoa (0%, 15%, and 25%) was produced and the effects of lipase and protease enzymes on the quality of bread were investigated. The gluten‐free bread properties like physicochemical properties, rheological properties, and bread microstructure were evaluated. Moreover, the sensorial properties were assessed. The results have demonstrated that gluten‐free bread with quinoa flour has favorable properties. Also, lipase and protease enzymes could improve the quality of the bread containing quinoa. Protease and lipase enzymes increased the bread volume, specifically in sample containing 15% quinoa substitution. Moreover, the staling was delayed in sample 25% quinoa substitution. The bread was accepted by consumers, and the highest score belonged to 25% substitution of quinoa flour.
An efficient and high quality medical CT image enhancement algorithm
Authors: Li Zhi , Jia Zhenhong , Yang Jie , Kasabov Nikola
Published: March 2020

Aiming at the process of medical diagnosis, many problems such as unclear images and low contrast are often caused by noise and interference in the process of medical image acquisition and transmission. This article proposes a new image enhancement method that combines the wavelet domain with the spatial domain. First, we input two identical images (Both of the identical images are original images.) in which the first image is enhanced by histogram equalization. Then, the two images are divided into four sub‐images by a two‐dimensional wavelet transform. The average of the low‐frequency coefficients of the low‐frequency sub‐images of the two images is taken as the low‐frequency coefficients of the final reconstruction. Second, aiming at the problem that the contrast may be too low, the fourth high‐frequency sub‐image is blurred (sharpened) twice. The fourth high‐frequency sub‐image after blurring is denoised by median filtering. Finally, the four sub‐images are fused to obtain the enhanced image. The experimental results show that the peak signal‐to‐noise ratio, structural similarity, and processing time of the proposed algorithm are better than those of other contrast algorithms, especially the processing time. These objective indicators show that the proposed algorithm can not only effectively suppress noise but also significantly enhance the contrast. Subjectively, compared with other algorithms, the proposed algorithm achieves a better visual effect and greatly reduces the processing time.
Adipose depot gene expression and intelectin‐1 in the metabolic response to cancer and cachexia
Authors: Miller Janice , Dreczkowski Gillian , Ramage Michael I. , Wigmore Stephen J. , Gallagher Iain J. , Skipworth Richard J.E.
Published: March 2020

Background

Cancer cachexia is a poorly understood metabolic consequence of cancer. During cachexia, different adipose depots demonstrate differential wasting rates. Animal models suggest adipose tissue may be a key driver of muscle wasting through fat–muscle crosstalk, but human studies in this area are lacking. We performed global gene expression profiling of visceral (VAT) and subcutaneous (SAT) adipose from weight stable and cachectic cancer patients and healthy controls.

Methods

Cachexia was defined as >2% weight loss plus low computed tomography‐muscularity. Biopsies of SAT and VAT were taken from patients undergoing resection for oesophago‐gastric cancer, and healthy controls (n = 16 and 8 respectively). RNA was isolated and reverse transcribed. cDNA was hybridised to the Affymetrix Clariom S microarray and data analysed using R/Bioconductor. Differential expression of genes was assessed using empirical Bayes and moderated‐t‐statistic approaches. Category enrichment analysis was used with a tissue‐specific background to examine the biological context of differentially expressed genes. Selected differentially regulated genes were validated by qPCR. Enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for intelectin‐1 was performed on all VAT samples. The previously‐described cohort plus 12 additional patients from each group also had plasma I = intelectin‐1 ELISA carried out.

Results

In VAT vs. SAT comparisons, there were 2101, 1722, and 1659 significantly regulated genes in the cachectic, weight stable, and control groups, respectively. There were 2200 significantly regulated genes from VAT in cachectic patients compared with controls. Genes involving inflammation were enriched in cancer and control VAT vs. SAT, although different genes contributed to enrichment in each group. Energy metabolism, fat browning (e.g. uncoupling protein 1), and adipogenesis genes were down‐regulated in cancer VAT (P = 0.043, P = 5.4 × 10−6 and P = 1 × 10−6 respectively). The gene showing the largest difference in expression was ITLN1, the gene that encodes for intelectin‐1 (false discovery rate‐corrected P = 0.0001), a novel adipocytokine associated with weight loss in other contexts.

Conclusions

SAT and VAT have unique gene expression signatures in cancer and cachexia. VAT is metabolically active in cancer, and intelectin‐1 may be a target for therapeutic manipulation. VAT may play a fundamental role in cachexia, but the down‐regulation of energy metabolism genes implies a limited role for fat browning in cachectic patients, in contrast to pre‐clinical models.
Assessing transgender and gender non‐conforming pedigree nomenclature in current genetic counselors’ practice: The case for geometric inclusivity
Authors: Sheehan Elizabeth , Bennett Robin L. , Harris Miles , Chan‐Smutko Gayun
Published: March 2020

Healthcare professionals rely on national organizations for guidance; the National Society of Genetic Counselors (NSGC) and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) have differing guidelines for acceptable pedigree symbols to represent transgender patients and minimal recommendations for gender non‐conforming (GNC) patients. Inconsistency in accepted pedigree symbols to represent these patients is a barrier to providing them appropriate care. We assess variability in pedigree practice among genetic counselors and students, as well as reported education on serving the needs of the transgender and GNC communities, through a survey distributed through NSGC. Participants felt symbols similar to NSGC’s (41.1%) and NCCN’s (29.7%) recommendations for transgender patients are appropriate and emphasized a desire to affirm gender identity. We identified greater variability in symbols representing a GNC patient; 19.2% of participants selected ‘other’, explaining they were unsure of the appropriate choice. A high interest (99%) in further training demonstrates a recognition of education as an effective strategy for improving awareness and competency. Promotion of existing resources could help address the fact that 81% of participants were unaware of any standardized symbols used to represent transgender individuals. Creating affirming, standardized pedigree nomenclature is necessary for appropriate and consistent care.
Impaired lipolysis in propionic acidemia: A new metabolic myopathy?
Authors: Storgaard Jesper H. , Madsen Karen L. , Løkken Nicoline , Vissing John , van Hall Gerrit , Lund Allan M. , Ørngreen Mette C.
Published: March 2020

The objective of this study was to investigate the fat and carbohydrate metabolism in a patient with propionic acidemia (PA) during exercise by means of indirect calorimetry and stable isotope technique. A 34‐year‐old patient with PA performed a 30‐minute submaximal cycle ergometer test. Data were compared to results from six gender‐ and age‐matched healthy controls. Main findings are that the patient with PA had impaired lipolysis, blunted fatty acid oxidation, compensatory increase in carbohydrate utilization, and low work capacity. Our findings indicate that PA should be added to the list of metabolic myopathies.
Perceived Cognitive Diversity and Creativity: A Multilevel Study of Motivational Mechanisms and Boundary Conditions
Authors: Kim Tae‐Yeol , David Emily M. , Liu Zhiqiang
Published: March 2020

Adopting a motivational perspective on creativity, we theorized when and how perceived cognitive diversity in teams was associated with creativity by focusing on the mediating role of intrinsic motivation and the moderating role of learning orientation. We further expanded our contribution by examining these relationships at both the individual and team levels. We used a sample of 382 Chinese employee–supervisor pairs nested within 106 teams to test our hypotheses. The results revealed that, at both the individual and team levels, learning goal orientation significantly moderated the positive association between perceived cognitive diversity and intrinsic motivation such that the latter relationship became stronger as learning goal orientation increased. Furthermore, our findings confirmed that learning goal orientation enhanced the indirect positive relationship between perceived cognitive diversity and creativity through intrinsic motivation.
Tutorial: Development and Implementation of a Multidisciplinary Preoperative Nutrition Optimization Clinic
Authors: Williams David G. A. , Villalta Elizabeth , Aronson Solomon , Murray Sutton , Blitz Jeanna , Kosmos Virginia , Wischmeyer Paul E. ,   the Duke Perioperative Enhancement Team (POET)
Published: March 2020

Although much is known about surgical risk, little evidence exists regarding how best to proactively address preoperative risk factors to improve surgical outcomes. Preoperative malnutrition is a widely prevalent and modifiable risk factor in patients undergoing surgery. Malnutrition prior to surgery portends significantly higher postoperative mortality, morbidity, length of stay, readmission rates, and hospital costs. Unfortunately, perioperative malnutrition is poorly screened for and remains largely unrecognized and undertreated—a true “silent epidemic” in surgical care. To better address this silent epidemic of surgical nutrition risk, here we describe the rationalization, development, and implementation of a multidisciplinary, registered dietitian–driven, preoperative nutrition optimization clinic program designed to improve perioperative outcomes and reduce cost. Implementation of this novel Perioperative Enhancement Team (POET) Nutrition Clinic required a collaboration among many disciplines, as well as an identified need for multidimensional scheduling template development, data tracking systems, dashboard development, and integration of electronic health records. A structured malnutrition risk score (Perioperative Nutrition Screen score) was developed and is being validated. A structured malnutrition pathway was developed and is under study. Finally, the POET Nutrition Clinic has established a novel role for a perioperative registered dietitian as the integral point person to deliver perioperative nutrition care. We hope this structured model of perioperative nutrition assessment and optimization will allow for wide implementation and generalizability in other centers worldwide to improve recognition and treatment of perioperative nutrition risk.
Thin‐layer chromatography‐bioautographic method for the detection of arginase inhibitors
Authors: Attia Rym , Zedet Andy , Bourjot Mélanie , Skhiri Eya , Messaoud Chokri , Girard Corine
Published: March 2020

Arginase represents a promising therapeutic target for various pathologies including inflammatory, cardiovascular, and parasitic diseases or cancers. In the current work, we report, for the first time, about the development of a thin‐layer chromatography‐based bioautography which can be used to rapidly detect arginase inhibitors in complex matrices such as plant extracts. The assay is based on the detection of urea produced by arginase using the coloring reagent α‐isonitrosopropiophenone, resulting in the formation of a pink background on thin‐layer chromatography plates. The assay conditions were optimized in order to provide sufficient contrast between the pink colored thin‐layer chromatography plate and the clearer zones generated by the presence of arginase inhibitors. Different parameters were tested, such as incubation time and temperature, atmospheric conditions, as well as substrate and enzyme concentrations. This technique makes it possible to detect 0.1 μg of a known arginase inhibitor, Nω‐hydroxy‐nor‐Arginine, after it has been spotted, either pure or mixed with a Myrtus communis methanolic fruit extract, and the plate has been developed in an appropriate solvent. The newly developed method was used to reveal the presence of an inhibitor in hempseed cakes (Cannabis sativa L.).
Supercritical fluid chromatography in chiral separations: Evaluation of equivalency of polysaccharide stationary phases
Authors: Jakubec Pavel , Douša Michal , Nováková Lucie
Published: March 2020

Nine different chiral columns based on covalently immobilized or coated tris(3,5‐dimethylphenylcarbamate) cellulose and amylose have been explored. We evaluated their respective enantioselective potential including the enantioseparation and qualitative characteristics of peaks. The generic screening conditions were using gradient elution from 5 to 40% organic modifier/CO2 during 3 min with about 40 enantiomer pairs. Primary screening was carried out using ten different mobile phases varying in type of additives while using one representative amylose‐ and one cellulose‐based column. The complete evaluation of all nine columns was then carried out using three best performing organic modifiers: (1) methanol + 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid + 0.1% diethylamine, (2) isopropanol + 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid + 0.1% diethylamine, and (3) methanol + 0.1% ammonium hydroxide. Equivalency of different columns with the same chiral selector was not confirmed. Columns with the same stationary phase but different supports or manufacturing methods displayed differences in enantioselectivity and general performance. The similarity corresponded to 62 and 63% for the three cellulose‐coated columns taking CEL1 as the reference. The similarity was 67% for the pair of amylose‐based coated columns. For immobilized columns, the similarity was 69 and 59% for celluloses and amyloses pairs, respectively. The best performing column based on success rate of enantioseparation was Chiralcel OD‐3 when using methanol + 0.1% trifluoroacetic acid and 0.1% diethylamine combined additive.
Parental Wartime Deployment and Socioemotional Adjustment in Early Childhood: The Critical Role of Military Parents’ Perceived Threat During Deployment
Authors: Hajal Nastassia J. , Aralis Hilary J. , Kiff Cara J. , Wasserman Melissa M. , Paley Blair , Milburn Norweeta G. , Mogil Catherine , Lester Patricia
Published: March 2020

Infants, toddlers, and preschool‐aged children have unique developmental needs that render them vulnerable to challenges associated with parental military service. We used a sample of military‐connected families with 3–6‐year‐old children (N = 104) to examine associations among children's socioemotional development and fathers’ trauma‐related deployment experiences, including perceived threat during deployment and exposure to combat and the aftermath of battle. Of these potential stressors, only paternal perceived threat during deployment was significantly associated with measures of mother‐reported child adjustment. Fathers’ perceived threat during deployment was associated with child behavior problems even after accounting for demographic variables and current paternal symptoms of posttraumatic stress, depression, and anxiety, β = .36, p = .007. The association between fathers’ perceived threat during deployment and child behavior problems was mediated by several family processes related to emotion socialization, including father‐reported sensitive parenting, indirect effect (IE) B = 0.106, 95% CI [0.009, 0.236]; parent–child dysfunctional interaction, IE B = 0.119, 95% CI [0.014, 0.252]; and mother‐reported family emotional responsiveness, IE B = 0.119, 95% CI [0.011, 0.258]. Implications for future research on the intergenerational transmission of traumatic stress as well as prevention and intervention efforts for military‐connected families with young children are discussed.
Business process modeling in aquaculture for environmental sustainability and fish traceability: A case study in Italian region
Authors: Corallo Angelo , Latino Maria Elena , Menegoli Marta , Cataldo Marco
Published: March 2020

Aquaculture is an expansion industry and has the potential to satisfy the worldwide demand of fish production related to the global population growth. Technological and methodological innovations are necessary not only to optimize the production but also to assure its sustainability. The paper describes a system to be placed in sea aquaculture plants, in order to improve the enterprise sustainability from environmental, economic and ethical points of view. The system is composed by several devices which work following Internet of Things paradigm, and it is able to solve practical issues emerged from a case study in south of Italy. The data collected by the system, conveniently enriched by other specific information, will be used for traceability purpose, in order to satisfy the market needs of Food Citizenship. The system' devices, the production processes (as‐is and to‐be), the plant maintenance process (as‐is) and the traced data are described. So, the research follow‐ups are discussed.
RELEARNING HOW TO DRIVE
Authors: Hu‐Chan Maya
Published: March 2020

The author notes that one trait that successful leaders have in common is the ability to save and honor face for others. “Saving Face” is a universal concept, beyond its origins in China, and it is a key factor in leadership for building positive relationships, motivating and rewarding others. Leaders can navigate through a new or unfamiliar situation and still manage to save and protect face; an ability the author calls, “Relearning how to drive.” For instance, working in a new environment is a lot like driving in a foreign country for the first time. Go on autopilot too quickly can lead to a loss of face, whether it's a new team or a new country you're working in. A detailed corporate example is provided about a videoconference with managers from a factory in Dongguan, China, illustrating a concept the author refers to as The Cultural Iceberg. The BUILD model is also outlined, with five keys that are crucial building blocks to forming strong, productive business relationships: Benevolence and Accountability, Understanding, Interacting, Learning, and Delivery. Leaders can view complex issues in a multicultural business environment from four different perspectives: first person, second person, meta position, and helicopter.
Ancient dental pulp: Masterpiece tissue for paleomicrobiology
Authors: Mai Ba Hoang Anh , Drancourt Michel , Aboudharam Gérard
Published: March 2020

Introduction

Dental pulp with special structure has become a good reference sample in paleomicrobiology‐related blood‐borne diseases, many pathogens were detected by different methods based on the diagnosis of nucleic acids and proteins.

Objectives

This review aims to propose the preparation process from ancient teeth collection to organic molecule extraction of dental pulp and summary, analyze the methods that have been applied to detect septicemic pathogens through ancient dental pulps during the past 20 years following the first detection of an ancient microbe.

Methods

The papers used in this review with two main objectives were obtained from PubMed and Google scholar with combining keywords: “ancient,” “dental pulp,” “teeth,” “anatomy,” “structure,” “collection,” “preservation,” “selection,” “photography,” “radiography,” “contamination,” “decontamination,” “DNA,” “protein,” “extraction,” “bone,” “paleomicrobiology,” “bacteria,” “virus,” “pathogen,” “molecular biology,” “proteomics,” “PCR,” “MALDI‐TOF,” “LC/MS,” “ELISA,” “immunology,” “immunochromatography,” “genome,” “microbiome,” “metagenomics.”

Results

The analysis of ancient dental pulp should have a careful preparation process with many different steps to give highly accurate results, each step complies with the rules in archaeology and paleomicrobiology. After the collection of organic molecules from dental pulp, they were investigated for pathogen identification based on the analysis of DNA and protein. Actually, DNA approach takes a principal role in diagnosis while the protein approach is more and more used. A total of seven techniques was used and ten bacteria (Yersinia pestis, Bartonella quintana, Salmonella enterica serovar Typhi, Salmonella enterica serovar Paratyphi C, Mycobacterium leprae, Mycobacterium tuberculosis, Rickettsia prowazeki, Staphylococcus aureus, Borrelia recurrentis, Bartonella henselae) and one virus (Anelloviridae) were identified. Y. pestis had the most published in quantity and all methods were investigated for this pathogen, S. aureus and B. recurrentis were identified by three different methods and others only by one. The combining methods interestingly increase the positive rate with ELISA, PCR and iPCR in Yersinia pestis diagnosis. Twenty‐seven ancient genomes of Y. pestis and one ancient genome of B. recurrentis were reconstructed. Comparing to the ancient bone, ancient teeth showed more advantage in septicemic diagnosis. Beside pathogen identification, ancient pulp help to distinguish species.

Conclusions

Dental pulp with specific tissue is a suitable sample for detection of the blood infection in the past through DNA and protein identification with the correct preparation process, furthermore, it helps to more understand the pathogens of historic diseases and epidemics.
Adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells seeded onto a decellularized nerve allograft enhances angiogenesis in a rat sciatic nerve defect model
Authors: Mathot Femke , Rbia Nadia , Bishop Allen T. , Hovius Steven E. R. , Shin Alexander Y.
Published: March 2020

Purpose

Adipose derived mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are hypothesized to supplement tissues with growth factors essential for regeneration and neovascularization. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of MSCs with respect to neoangiogenesis when seeded onto a decellularized nerve allograft in a rat sciatic nerve defect model.

Methods

Allograft nerves were harvested from Sprague–Dawley rats and decellularized. MSCs were obtained from Lewis rats. 10 mm sciatic nerve defects in Lewis rats were reconstructed with reversed autograft nerves, decellularized allografts, decellularized allografts seeded with undifferentiated MSC or decellularized allografts seeded with differentiated MSCs. At 16 weeks, the vascular surface area and volume were evaluated.

Results

The vascular surface area in normal nerves (34.9 ± 5.7%), autografts (29.5 ± 8.7%), allografts seeded with differentiated (38.9 ± 7.0%) and undifferentiated MSCs (29.2 ± 3.4%) did not significantly differ from each other. Unseeded allografts (21.2 ± 6.2%) had a significantly lower vascular surface area percentage than normal nonoperated nerves (13.7%, p = .001) and allografts seeded with differentiated MSCs (17.8%, p = .001). Although the vascular surface area was significantly correlated to the vascular volume (r = .416; p = .008), no significant differences were found between groups concerning vascular volumes. The vascularization pattern in allografts seeded with MSCs consisted of an extensive nonaligned network of microvessels with a centripetal pattern, while the vessels in autografts and normal nerves were more longitudinally aligned with longitudinal inosculation patterns.

Conclusions

Neoangiogenesis of decellularized allograft nerves was enhanced by stem cell seeding, in particular by differentiated MSCs. The pattern of vascularization was different between decellularized allograft nerves seeded with MSCs compared to autograft nerves.
A tribological model for geometrically structured anisotropic surfaces in a covariant form
Authors: Michaloudis G. , Konyukhov A. , Gebbeken N.
Published: March 2020

This contribution proposes a tribological model within a three‐dimensional contact formulation considering structural anisotropy of the contact interface. A simple elastoplastic constitutive law is adopted for the description of the behavior on the anisotropic contact interface. Starting with the establishment of the thermodynamic framework of the contact problem, the dissipative, irreversible process is described. By applying the principle of maximum dissipation, the evolution equations and the expressions of the tangential contact forces for the cases of sticking and sliding are obtained and, subsequently, formulated in algorithmic form, in order to enable their implementation into finite element codes. The anisotropic behavior is incorporated through the definition of a tensor of anisotropy. The form of this tensor is defined in a general curvilinear coordinate system. The cases of both constant and nonconstant anisotropic tensor are studied. The analytical solution of a numerically computed problem, serves the validation of the proposed model.
Leader's spiritual intelligence and religiousness: Skills, factors affecting, and their effects on performance (a qualitative study by grounded theory)
Authors: Al Eid Nawal A. , Arnout Boshra A. , Almoied Ayed A.
Published: March 2020

Spiritual intelligence has received increasing quantitative research interest, while there is still no attention regarding to investigate spiritual intelligence with applying qualitative methods, especially grounded theory design. This study aimed to detect the skills, affecting factors, and the effects of spiritual intelligence and religiousness on performance. The qualitative analysis of the data collected through the in‐depth interview of the participants after encoding and classification, and the continuous comparison of the data by encoding and data by axes, resulted in these data can be coded in three axes: leader's spiritual intelligence skills, factors that affect leader's spiritual intelligence, and the effects of leader's spiritual intelligence on performance. The results revealed that there are five skills of leader's spiritual intelligence: work‐life balance skill, consists of (5) sub‐skills, leadership transcendence skill includes (6) sub‐skills, leadership meaning and purpose production skill includes (4) sub‐skills, leadership mindfulness skill consists of (9) sub‐skills, and the fifth skill is leadership virtue behavior includes (8) sub‐skills. And also, the results indicated that there are many factors that impact the leader's spiritual intelligence, were classified into three objects: personal (three factors), social and family (two factors), and work factors (4 factors). All participants were agreed unanimously that the leader's spiritual intelligence and religiousness are determined and affect the performance of the leader and his subordinates, these were classified into two objects: The first object is a leader's work‐performance, consisting of (16) indicators, and the second object is a workers performance includes (12) indicators. In light of these results, the study recommended the necessity of developing leaders' awareness of the importance of passion of spiritual intelligence skill and their impacts on performance. Thus, these findings shed new light on the importance of developing leaders' spiritual intelligence skills to resolve leadership problems, and increasing productivity, creativity, and well‐being among leaders and workers in Arab World.
Active transport of rhodamine 123 by the human multidrug transporter P‐glycoprotein involves two independent outer gates
Authors: Nasim Fauzia , Schmid Diethart , Szakács Gergely , Sohail Azmat , Sitte Harald H. , Chiba Peter , Stockner Thomas
Published: March 2020

Human P‐glycoprotein (P‐gp) is a multispecific drug‐efflux transporter, which plays an important role in drug resistance and drug disposition. Recent cryo‐electron microscopy structures confirmed its rotationally symmetric architecture, which allows dual interaction with ATP and substrates. We here report the existence of two distinct, symmetry‐related outer gates. Experiments were aided by availability of the X‐ray structure of a homodimeric eukaryotic homolog of P‐gp from red alga (CmABCB1), which defined the role of an apical tyrosine residue (Y358) in outer gate formation. We mutated analogous tyrosine residues in each half of the human full‐length transporter (Y310, Y953) to alanine. These mutants were introduced in engineered transporters which bind rhodamine 123 in one of two symmetry‐related binding modes only. Outer gate dysfunction was detected by a loss of active transport characteristics, while these mutants retained the ability for outward downhill transport. Our data demonstrate that symmetric tyrosine residues Y310 and Y953 are involved in formation of two distinct symmetry‐related outer gates, which operate contingent on the rhodamine 123 binding mode. Hence, the rotationally symmetric architecture of P‐gp, which determines duality in ATP binding and rhodamine 123 interaction, also forms the basis for the existence of two independently operating outer gates.
Street canyon ventilation: Combined effect of cross‐section geometry and wall heating
Authors: Fellini Sofia , Ridolfi Luca , Salizzoni Pietro
Published: March 2020

Understanding the dynamics of mass exchange between a street canyon and the overlying atmosphere is crucial to predict air quality in urban areas. Despite the large number of studies on this topic, there are many aspects that still need to be clarified. Among these, one is certainly the role of thermal stratification in street canyon ventilation. In order to fill this gap, this study evaluates how the combined effect of street canyon geometry, wall roughness and differential heating of the building facades influences pollutant dispersion within the canyon and out of it. The study was carried out in a wind tunnel, adopting an idealized urban geometry made up of square bars placed normal to the wind direction. The boundary conditions inside the canyon were modified by heating its windward and leeward walls, by changing its aspect ratio and by introducing roughness elements at the walls. A passive scalar was injected from a line source at ground level. The flow and concentration fields were measured in a cross‐section of the canyon. Characteristic exchange velocities within the canyon and towards the external flow were estimated comparing the experimental data with an analytical model for the cavity wash‐out. Results show that the transition from one recirculating cell to two counter‐rotating cells inhibits canyon ventilation, with a consequent increase in pollutant concentration at the pedestrian level. This transition occurs as the cavity aspect ratio increases and is facilitated by adding roughness elements at the windward wall. Heating the leeward wall has negligible effects on canyon ventilation. Heating the windward wall accelerates pollutant removals in square cavities, while it contributes to a worsening of air quality in narrow cavities. Finally, the wash‐out times of the cavity are discussed in terms of a relative contribution of the mean advective motion and its turbulent counterpart.
Parameter estimation for block‐oriented nonlinear systems using the key term separation
Authors: Ji Yan , Zhang Chen , Kang Zhen , Yu Tao
Published: March 2020

This article considers the parameter estimation problems of block‐oriented nonlinear systems. By using the key term separation, the system output is represented as a linear combination of unknown parameters. We give a key term separation auxiliary model gradient‐based iterative (KT‐AM‐GI) identification algorithm and propose a key term separation auxiliary model three‐stage gradient‐based iterative (KT‐AM‐3S‐GI) identification algorithm by using the hierarchical identification principle. Meanwhile, the multiinnovation theory is used to derived the key term separation auxiliary model three‐stage multiinnovation gradient‐based iterative (KT‐AM‐3S‐MIGI) algorithm. The analysis shows that compared with the KT‐AM‐GI algorithm, the KT‐AM‐3S‐GI algorithm can improve the parameter estimation accuracy and reduce the computational burden. In addition, the KT‐AM‐3S‐MIGI can give more accurate parameter estimates than the KT‐AM‐3S‐GI algorithm and can track time‐varying parameters based on the dynamical window data. This work provides a reference for improving the identification performance of multiinput nonlinear output‐error systems or multivariable nonlinear systems. The simulation results confirm the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm.
An examination of the temporal order of helping behaviours and emotional exhaustion
Authors: Jang Seulki , Allen Tammy D. , Kim Eunsook , Cho Seonghee
Published: March 2020

An emerging body of research has investigated the relationship between helping (as a type of organizational citizenship behaviour) and emotional exhaustion (as an aspect of employee health). Research has demonstrated a significant relationship between helping and emotional exhaustion, but the theoretical arguments for the causal direction vary across studies. Specifically, some researchers have conceptualized helping as an outcome of emotional exhaustion, while others have regarded helping as a predictor of emotional exhaustion. This lack of theoretical clarity in directionality hinders the field's ability to summarize existing empirical findings cohesively and elucidate theoretical mechanisms. Therefore, this study attempts to clarify the theoretical directionality between helping and emotional exhaustion using four waves of data collected at 6‐month intervals. Autoregressive cross‐lagged analyses with auto‐correlations revealed that more helping was associated with less future emotional exhaustion from Wave 1 to Wave 2, but from Wave 2 to Wave 3, the directionality reversed, as less emotional exhaustion significantly predicted more future helping, and from Wave 3 to Wave 4, both prediction directions were no longer significant. The findings suggest that helping and emotional exhaustion reciprocally affect each other, though the reciprocal pattern may disappear across time. The present study sheds light on the theoretical relationship between helping and emotional exhaustion, and provides theoretical and practical implications.
Application of security reference architecture to Big Data ecosystems in an industrial scenario
Authors: Moreno Julio , Gómez Javier , Serrano Manuel A. , B. Fernandez Eduardo , Fernández‐Medina Eduardo
Published: March 2020

Big Data environments are typically very complex ecosystems; this means that implementing them is complicated. One possible technique with which to address this complexity is the use of abstraction. Reference architecture (RA) can be useful for an improved understanding of the main components of Big Data. Herein, we propose a security RA that includes the management of security concerns and provides the main elements of a Big Data ecosystem. Application of this architecture to real‐world scenarios facilitates its refinement and improves its usefulness. In this article, we present a case study of a real‐world Big Data ecosystem implemented in a banking environment. This ecosystem was developed by everis, an NTT company with which we collaborated for this study. To conduct this validation case study, a map was established between the elements of the Big Data ecosystem implemented and our proposal. Consequently, a series of valuable lessons that can improve both our architecture and the security of the Big Data environment were obtained. These include recommendations for a set of best practices such as the use of security patterns.
Effect of Crystalline and Double Helical Structures on the Resistant Fraction of Autoclaved Corn Starch with Different Amylose Content
Authors: Soler Adrian , Mendez‐Montealvo Guadalupe , Velazquez‐Castillo Rodrigo , Hernández‐Gama Regina , Osorio‐Diaz Perla , Velazquez Gonzalo
Published: March 2020

The aim of this work is to investigate the effect of the crystalline and the double helical structures on the resistant starch (RS) fraction of autoclaved corn starch with different amylose content. Normal (NS) and high amylose (HS) corn starches are modified by autoclaving at 105, 120, and 135 °C. Autoclaving causes structure disorganization in NS or structural rearrangements in HS. The RS increases from 2.1% to 5.5% in NS autoclaved at 135 °C and from 12.7% to 30.2% in HS autoclaved at 120 °C. The RS is correlated to Te in NS (r = 0.73) and HS (r = 0.79), indicating that the double helical crystallites with high thermal stability (Te = 176.8–193.6 °C) are responsible for the increase of RS. In autoclaved HS, the RS is correlated to the degree of order (DO) (r = 0.82) suggesting that the strengthened associations between double helices contribute to the RS formation. The results lead to the possibility of controlling the resistance by modifying the starch structure using autoclaving process. This research highlights that the organization of the double helical structure is more important than the crystalline order to form resistant corn starch.
The origin of allotetraploid Lepisorus inaequibasis (Polypodiaceae) and paternal bias in its morphology and abiotic niche
Authors: Zhao Cun‐Feng , Wei Ran , Xiang Qiao‐Ping , Zhang Xian‐Chun
Published: March 2020

Lepisorus inaequibasis is thought to be of hybrid origin due to its leaf shape and sporangia being intermediate between those of its putative progenitors. Subsequent molecular studies have supported its hybrid origin, but its progenitors have not been determined. Here, we performed molecular phylogenetic analysis, flow cytometry (FCM), morphological character observation, and ecological niche modelling (ENM) to elucidate the origin of L. inaequibasis. The phylogenetic trees inferred from single‐copy nuclear genes (pgiC and gapCp “short”) confirm the hybrid origin of L. inaequibasis from Lepisorus waltonii and Lepisorus jakonensis. Chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) phylogeny indicates that L. jakonensis is the maternal progenitor. All populations of L. inaequibasis share a single cpDNA haplotype identical to the lineage of L. jakonensis in the central Himalayas; thus, we hypothesize that L. inaequibasis originated in the central Himalaya region and dispersed to east Himalaya and Hengduan Mountain regions. Based on FCM, L. inaequibasis is tetraploid, while its progenitors are diploid. Principal component analysis of rhizome scales and observations of sporangial annuli indicated a high degree of morphological similarity between L. inaequibasis and its paternal progenitor species, L. waltonii. The ENM results showed that L. inaequibasis has a relatively high niche identity value with L. waltonii. Therefore, we conclude that L. inaequibasis is an allotetraploid that originated through hybridization between the diploid species L. waltonii and L. jakonensis. This allotetraploid species shows clear paternal bias in both its morphological characters and its ecological niche.
Faith, fictionalism and bullshit
Authors: Scott Michael ,   Philosophy Documentation Center
Published: March 2020

According to a simple formulation of doxasticism about propositional faith, necessarily faith that p requires belief that p. Support of doxasticism is long-standing and was rarely a matter of dispute until William Alston (1996) proposed that that the content of propositional faith need not be believed if it is accepted. Subsequently non-doxastic theories that reject the belief requirement have proliferated and have come to dominate literature in the field. This paper aims to redress the balance by identifying a dilemma for non-doxasticism that comes into view when we draw out the implications of non-doxasticism for the interpretation of affirmations of religious propositional faith. One horn of this dilemma commits non-doxasticists to hermeneutic fictionalism: a substantive, contentious and little explored theory about religious discourse. The other appears to render the affirmation of faith prima facie bullshitting, leading to problems about the integrity of religious discourse and its speakers.