bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pathogenicity and Aggressiveness of Three Alternaria spp. on Potato Foliage in the U.S. Northwest
Authors: Tymon Lydia S. , Cummings Thomas F. , Johnson Dennis A.
Published: November 2015

Alternaria spp. were collected from potato foliage showing symptoms of early blight and brown spot in the Columbia Basin, WA and Bonners Ferry and Rupert, ID between 2009 and 2011. The aggressiveness of three Alternaria spp. on potato was quantified on nonwounded and wounded detached leaves of ‘Russet Norkotah’ potato; wounded detached leaves of ‘Alturas’, ‘Ranger Russet’, ‘Russet Burbank’, and ‘Umatilla Russet’; and whole plants of Russet Norkotah. Mean infection frequencies (MIF) and area under the lesion expansion curve (AULEC) were significantly greater for Alternaria solani (P = 0.0072 and 0.0002, respectively) than for A. arborescens or A. arbusti on nonwounded leaves. Wounding of tissue significantly increased MIF and AULEC for A. arbusti (P = 0.008 and 0.0047, respectively) and AULEC for A. arborescens (P = 0.01) relative to nonwounded tissue. AULEC did not differ significantly among the three Alternaria spp. when inoculated onto wounded foliage of whole plants (P = 0.34); the AULEC of whole plants was positively and significantly correlated with AULEC on detached leaves (P = 0.03). Umatilla Russet was the most susceptible and Russet Burbank was the least susceptible based on MIF and AULEC for all three pathogen species. Results indicate that A. solani was the more aggressive pathogen of potato in the Columbia Basin, because both A. arborescens and A. arbusti require wounds and A. arbusti lesions do not expand significantly in comparison with A. solani or A. arborescens following inoculation.
Metabarcoding Analysis ofPhytophthoraDiversity Using Genus-Specific Primers and 454 Pyrosequencing
Authors: Prigigallo Maria I. , Abdelfattah Ahmed , Cacciola Santa O. , Faedda Roberto , Sanzani Simona M. , Cooke David E. L. , Schena L.
Published: November 2015

A metabarcoding method based on genus-specific primers and 454 pyrosequencing was utilized to investigate the genetic diversity of Phytophthora spp. in soil and root samples of potted plants, from eight nurseries. Pyrosequencing enabled the detection of 25 Phytophthora phylotypes distributed in seven different clades and provided a much higher resolution than a corresponding cloning/Sanger sequencing approach. Eleven of these phylotypes, including P. cactorum, P. citricola s.str., P. palmivora, P. palmivora-like, P. megasperma or P. gonapodyides, P. ramorum, and five putative new Phytophthora species phylogenetically related to clades 1, 2, 4, 6, and 7 were detected only with the 454 pyrosequencing approach. We also found an additional 18 novel records of a phylotype in a particular nursery that were not detected with cloning/Sanger sequencing. Several aspects confirmed the reliability of the method: (i) many identical sequence types were identified independently in different nurseries, (ii) most sequence types identified with 454 pyrosequencing were identical to those from the cloning/Sanger sequencing approach and/or perfectly matched GenBank deposited sequences, and (iii) the divergence noted between sequence types of putative new Phytophthora species and all other detected sequences was sufficient to rule out sequencing errors. The proposed method represents a powerful tool to study Phytophthora diversity providing that particular attention is paid to the analysis of 454 pyrosequencing raw read sequences and to the identification of sequence types.
Impact of Perioperative Epidural Placement on Postdischarge Opioid Use in Patients Undergoing Abdominal Surgery
Authors: Ladha Karim S. , Patorno Elisabetta , Liu Jun , Bateman Brian T.
Published: November 2015

AbstractAbstract

In a review of over 6,400 patients who underwent open abdominal surgery, propensity-matched analysis showed no effect of use of epidural analgesia on time to discontinuation of opioids after hospital discharge or dose of opioids administered in the first 90 days after discharge.

Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text.

Background

Opioids play a crucial role in providing analgesia throughout the perioperative period; however, patients may become persistent users of these medications months after surgery. Epidurals have been posited to prevent the development of persistent pain, but there are little data on the effect of epidurals on persistent opioid use.

Methods

This study was conducted using a claims database of a large, nationwide commercial health insurer. Opioid-naive patients who underwent open abdominal surgery from January 2004 to December 2013 were included in the study. Propensity scores for epidural placement were calculated accounting for demographic characteristics, resource utilization, and comorbid conditions (including medical, psychiatric, and pain conditions). Time-to-event analysis was used with the primary outcome defined as 30 days without filling an opioid prescription after discharge. In addition, total morphine equivalents dispensed within 90 days of discharge were also calculated for each patient.

Results

A total of 6,432 patients were included in the final propensity score–matched cohort. The Cox proportional hazards ratio was 0.96 (95% CI, 0.91 to 1.01; P = 0.0910) for the relation between epidural placement and time till a 30-day gap without filling an opioid prescription. There was no difference in the total morphine equivalents dispensed within 90 days of discharge between the groups (P = 0.7670).

Conclusions

Epidural placement was not protective against persistent opioid use in a large cohort of opioid-naive patients undergoing abdominal surgery. This finding does not detract from the other potential benefits of epidural placement. More research is needed to understand the mechanism of persistent opioid use after surgery and its prevention.
GNAS Mutations in Fibrous Dysplasia: A Comparative Study of Standard Sequencing and Locked Nucleic Acid PCR Sequencing on Decalcified and Nondecalcified Formalin-fixed Paraffin-embedded Tissues
Authors: Jour George , Oultache Alifya , Sadowska Justyna , Mitchell Talia , Healey John , Nafa Khedoudja , Hameed Meera
Published: November 2015

It is well known that fibrous dysplasia (FD) is characterized by the presence of activating mutations involving G-nucleotide binding protein-α subunit (GNAS) involving codon R201 and rarely codon 227 with a mutation frequency between 45% and 93%. Herein, we investigate the sensitivity of detection of GNAS mutations in exons 8 and 9 using a standard and a highly sensitive locked nucleic acid polymerase chain reaction (LNA-PCR) sequencing in 52 cases of FD. In view of the recent report of GNAS mutations in a small number of low-grade osteosarcomas, we also tested in addition 12 cases of low-grade osteosarcomas. GNAS exon 8 mutations p.R201H (31%), p.R201C (15%), and p.R201S (2%) were identified in 50% of FD cases. LNA-PCR sequencing identified only 1 positive case within the mutation negative cases tested by standard PCR and Sanger sequencing. No mutations were identified in any of the low-grade osteosarcomas by standard and LNA-PCR sequencing. There was no association between age, site, size, specimen type, and mutational status. No exon 9 or codon 227 mutations were identified in any of tested cases. There was a significant difference in the sensitivity of the assay between decalcified and nondecalcified FDs (31% vs. 70%, P=0.002). LNA-PCR has no added value in enhancing detection sensitivity for GNAS mutations in FD. In addition to decalcification, innate somatic mosaicism contributes to the decreased sensitivity in mutation detection.
Hepatocyte Nuclear Factor-1β Expression in Clear Cell Renal Cell Carcinoma and Urothelial Carcinoma With Clear Cell Features: A Potential Diagnostic Pitfall
Authors: Hanley Krisztina Z. , Cohen Cynthia , Osunkoya Adeboye O.
Published: November 2015

Introduction:

Distinguishing primary ovarian clear cell carcinoma (CCC) from other tumors with clear cell features can be challenging. Hepatocyte nuclear factor-1β (HNF-1β) is a sensitive and specific marker for ovarian CCC. Immunohistochemical studies have shown HNF-1β positivity in a substantial proportion of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (RCC), hepatocellular carcinomas, and clear cell pancreatic adenocarcinoma. This study was designed to evaluate the role of HNF-1β in differentiating ovarian CCC from metastatic RCC and urothelial carcinoma (UC) with clear cell features.

Materials and Methods:

Formalin-fixed paraffin-embedded tissue microarrays of 103 clear cell RCC, 8 UC with clear cell features, and 15 ovarian CCC were studied using an HNF-1β antibody. Nuclear staining intensity and percentage of positively stained cells were assessed and scored from 0 to 3. Percentage of positive staining was scored based on the proportion of tumor cells stained.

Results:

Sixty-three of 103 (61.2%) of clear cell RCC were positive for HNF-1β. Staining intensity was weak in 32 of 103 cases (31.6%), moderate in 21 of 103 cases (20.4%), and strong in 10 to 103 cases (9.7%).

Six of 8 (75%) UC with clear cell features showed positive staining predominantly in clear cell areas.

All 15 cases of ovarian CCC were positive for HNF-1β.

Discussion:

Overall 61.2% of clear cell RCC and 75% of UC were immunopositive with HNF-1β in our study. HNF-1β has a limited utility in differentiating CCC of the genitourinary system from an ovarian primary.
Point-of-Care Ultrasound to Diagnose Infantile Parotid Hemangioma
Authors: Crow Elizabeth , Kang Tarina L.
Published: November 2015

Soft tissue masses are common in the pediatric population and may represent a broad range of conditions. Point-of-care ultrasound can be used for rapid visualization and assessment of soft tissue masses in the emergency setting. We report a case of a pediatric head and neck mass in which point-of-care ultrasound was used to identify an infantile parotid hemangioma.
Unlocking the potential of supported liquid phase catalysts with supercritical fluids: low temperature continuous flow catalysis with integrated product separation
Authors: Franciò Giancarlo , Hintermair Ulrich , Leitner Walter
Published: November 2015

Solution-phase catalysis using molecular transition metal complexes is an extremely powerful tool for chemical synthesis and a key technology for sustainable manufacturing. However, as the reaction complexity and thermal sensitivity of the catalytic system increase, engineering challenges associated with product separation and catalyst recovery can override the value of the product. This persistent downstream issue often renders industrial exploitation of homogeneous catalysis uneconomical despite impressive batch performance of the catalyst. In this regard, continuous-flow systems that allow steady-state homogeneous turnover in a stationary liquid phase while at the same time effecting integrated product separation at mild process temperatures represent a particularly attractive scenario. While continuous-flow processing is a standard procedure for large volume manufacturing, capitalizing on its potential in the realm of the molecular complexity of organic synthesis is still an emerging area that requires innovative solutions. Here we highlight some recent developments which have succeeded in realizing such systems by the combination of near- and supercritical fluids with homogeneous catalysts in supported liquid phases. The cases discussed exemplify how all three levels of continuous-flow homogeneous catalysis (catalyst system, separation strategy, process scheme) must be matched to locate viable process conditions.
Synthesis of higher alcohols from CO
2
hydrogenation over a PtRu/Fe
2
O
3
catalyst under supercritical condition
Authors: He Zhenhong , Qian Qingli , Zhang Zhaofu , Meng Qinglei , Zhou Huacong , Jiang Zhiwei , Han Buxing
Published: November 2015

Hydrogenation of CO
2
to alcohols is of great importance, especially when producing higher alcohols. In this work, we synthesized heterogeneous PtRu/Fe
2
O
3
, in which the Pt and Ru bimetallic catalysts were supported on Fe
2
O
3
. The catalyst was used to catalyse CO
2
hydrogenation to alcohols. It was demonstrated that the activity and selectivity could be tuned by the bimetallic composition, and the catalyst with a Pt to Ru molar ratio of 1:2 (Pt
1
Ru
2
/Fe
2
O
3
) had high activity and selectivity at 200°C, which is very low for heterogeneous hydrogenation of CO
2
to produce higher alcohols. The conversion and the selectivity increased with increasing pressures of CO
2
and/or H
2
. The catalyst could be reused at least five times without any obvious change in activity or selectivity.
Green solvent for green materials: a supercritical hydrothermal method and shape-controlled synthesis of Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles
Authors: Zhu Yuanzheng , Takami Seiichi , Seong Gimyeong , Dejhosseini Mehdi , Hossain Muhammad Zamir , Noguchi Takio , Hojo Daisuke , Aoki Nobuaki , Aida Tsutomu , Adschiri Tadafumi
Published: November 2015

This paper describes a supercritical hydrothermal synthesis method as a green solvent process, along with products based on this method that can be used as green materials that contribute to solving environmental problems. The first part of this paper summarizes the basics of this method, including the mechanism of the reactions, specific features of the supercritical state for nanoparticle synthesis, the continuous flow-type reactor and applications; this provides a better understanding of the suitability of this method to synthesize green materials. The second part of the paper describes the method used to synthesize Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles, which show an extremely high oxygen storage capacity, suggesting their high potential as an environmental catalyst. Transmission electron microscopy and scanning electron microscope images showed octahedral Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles with sizes of 15–30 nm and cubic Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles with sizes of 5–8 nm. Octahedral Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles exposing (111) facets and cubic Cr-doped CeO
2
nanoparticles exposing (100) facets were determined by high-resolution transmission electron microscopy and selected area electron diffraction. The X-ray diffraction peaks shifted to a high angle because the radius of the Cr ion is smaller than that of the Ce ion.
Supercritical water oxidation for the destruction of hazardous waste: better than incineration
Authors: Al-Duri Bushra , Alsoqyani Faihan , Kings Iain
Published: November 2015

Supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) is an advanced process mainly employed for the treatment of hazardous stable wastes, otherwise treatable by incineration. It is based on the unique properties of water above its critical point (
T
c
=675 K,
P
c
=22.2 MPa), making it a superior reaction medium for the destruction of all organics in the presence of oxygen. This work presents preliminary laboratory scale studies on SCWO of nitrogen (N)-containing hazardous hydrocarbons, with a view to enhancing the process performance, using available reagents and non-complex reactor design. This article investigates the destruction of dimethylformamide (DMF), carried out in a continuous (plug flow) reactor system. SCWO of DMF was enhanced by (i) a split-oxidant system, where stoichiometric oxidant was divided between two inlet ports at various ratios and (ii) the addition of isopropyl alcohol (IPA) as a co-fuel, premixed with the feedstock. Testing a range of temperatures, initial DMF concentrations, oxidant ratios, IPA ratios and oxidant split ratios, selected results were presented in terms of % total organic carbon and % N removal. Reaction kinetics were studied and showed a dramatic decrease in the activation energy upon adding IPA. Split-oxidant-feeding enhancement depended on the split ratio and secondary feed position.
Green process for green materials: viable low-temperature lipase-catalysed synthesis of renewable telechelics in supercritical CO
2
Authors: Curia S. , Barclay A. F. , Torron S. , Johansson M. , Howdle S. M.
Published: November 2015

We present a novel near-ambient-temperature approach to telechelic renewable polyesters by exploiting the unique properties of supercritical CO
2
(scCO
2
). Bio-based commercially available monomers have been polymerized and functional telechelic materials with targeted molecular weight prepared by end-capping the chains with molecules containing reactive moieties in a one-pot reaction. The use of scCO
2
as a reaction medium facilitates the effective use of
Candida antarctica
Lipase B (CaLB) as a catalyst at a temperature as low as 35°C, hence avoiding side reactions, maintaining the end-capper functionality and preserving the enzyme activity. The functionalized polymer products have been characterized by
1
H nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy, matrix-assisted laser desorption/ionization–time-of-flight mass spectrometry, gel permeation chromatography and differential scanning calorimetry in order to carefully assess their structural and thermal properties. We demonstrate that telechelic materials can be produced enzymatically at mild temperatures, in a solvent-free system and using renewably sourced monomers without pre-modification, by exploiting the unique properties of scCO
2
. The macromolecules we prepare are ideal green precursors that can be further reacted to prepare useful bio-derived films and coatings.
Recent demography drives changes in linked selection across the maize genome
Authors: Beissinger Timothy M. , Wang Li , Crosby Kate , Durvasula Arun , Hufford Matthew B. , Ross-Ibarra Jeffrey
Published: November 2015

Genetic diversity is shaped by the interaction of drift and selection, but the details of this interaction are not well understood. The impact of genetic drift in a population is largely determined by its demographic history, typically summarized by its long-term effective population size (Ne). Rapidly changing population demographics complicate this relationship, however. To better understand how changing demography impacts selection, we used whole-genome sequencing data to investigate patterns of linked selection in domesticated and wild maize (teosinte). We produce the first whole-genome estimate of the demography of maize domestication, showing that maize was reduced to approximately 5% the population size of teosinte before it experienced rapid expansion post-domestication to population sizes much larger than its ancestor. Evaluation of patterns of nucleotide diversity in and near genes shows little evidence of selection on beneficial amino acid substitutions, and that the domestication bottleneck led to a decline in the efficiency of purifying selection in maize. Young alleles, however, show evidence of much stronger purifying selection in maize, reflecting the much larger effective size of present day populations. Our results demonstrate that recent demographic change — a hallmark of many species including both humans and crops — can have immediate and wide-ranging impacts on diversity that conflict with would-be expectations based onNealone.
Wikidata: A platform for data integration and dissemination for the life sciences and beyond
Authors: Mitraka Elvira , Waagmeester Andra , Burgstaller-Muehlbacher Sebastian , Schriml Lynn M. , Su Andrew I. , Good Benjamin M.
Published: November 2015

Wikidata is an open, Semantic Web-compatible database that anyone can edit. This ‘data commons’ provides structured data for Wikipedia articles and other applications. Every article on Wikipedia has a hyperlink to an editable item in this database. This unique connection to the world’s largest community of volunteer knowledge editors could help make Wikidata a key hub within the greater Semantic Web. The life sciences, as ever, faces crucial challenges in disseminating and integrating knowledge. Our group is addressing these issues by populating Wikidata with the seeds of a foundational semantic network linking genes, drugs and diseases. Using this content, we are enhancing Wikipedia articles to both increase their quality and recruit human editors to expand and improve the underlying data. We encourage the community to join us as we collaboratively create what can become the most used and most central semantic data resource for the life sciences and beyond.
Effective QTL Discovery Incorporating Genomic Annotations
Authors: Wen Xiaoquan
Published: November 2015

Mapping molecular QTLs has emerged as an important tool for understanding the genetic basis of cell functions. With the increasing availability of functional genomic data, it is natural to incorporate genomic annotations into QTL discovery. In this paper, we describe a novel method, named TORUS, for integrative QTL discovery. Using hierarchical modeling, our approach embeds a rigorous enrichment analysis to quantify the enrichment level of each annotation in target QTLs. This enrichment information is then used to identify QTLs by up-weighting the genetic variants with relevant annotations using a Bayesian false discovery rate control procedure. Our proposed method only requires summary-level statistics and is highly efficient computationally: it runs one-hundred times faster than the current gold-standard QTL discovery approach that relies on permutations. Through simulation studies, we demonstrate that the proposed method performs accurate enrichment analysis and controls the desired type I error rate while greatly improving the power of QTL discovery when incorporating informative annotations. Finally, we analyze the recently released expression-genotype data from 44 human tissues generated by the GTEx project. By integrating the simple annotation of SNP distance to transcription start sites, we discover more genes that harbor expression-associated SNPs in all 44 tissues, with an average increase of 1,485 genes.
Appetitive but not aversive olfactory conditioning modifies antennal movements in honeybees
Authors: Cholé Hanna , Junca Pierre , Sandoz Jean-Christophe
Published: November 2015

In honeybees, two olfactory conditioning protocols allow the study of appetitive and aversive Pavlovian associations. Appetitive conditioning of the proboscis extension response (PER) involves associating an odor, the conditioned stimulus (CS) with a sucrose solution, the unconditioned stimulus (US). Conversely, aversive conditioning of the sting extension response (SER) involves associating the odor CS with an electric or thermal shock US. Each protocol is based on the measure of a different behavioral response (proboscis versus sting) and both only provide binary responses (extension or not of the proboscis or sting). These limitations render the measure of the acquired valence of an odor CS difficult without testing the animals in a freely moving situation. Here, we studied the effects of both olfactory conditioning protocols on the movements of the antennae, which are crucial sensory organs for bees. As bees’ antennae are highly mobile, we asked whether their movements in response to an odorant change following appetitive or aversive conditioning and if so, do odor-evoked antennal movements contain information about the acquired valence of the CS? We implemented a tracking system for harnessed bees’ antennal movements based on a motion capture principle at a high frequency rate. We observed that differential appetitive conditioning had a strong effect on antennal movements. Bees responded to the reinforced odorant with a marked forward motion of the antennae and a strong velocity increase. Conversely, differential aversive conditioning had no associative effect on antennal movements. Rather than revealing the acquired valence of an odorant, antennal movements may represent a novel conditioned response taking place during appetitive conditioning and may provide a possible advantage to bees when foraging in natural situations.
Repeated stimulation of cultured networks of rat cortical neurons induces parallel memory traces
Authors: le Feber Joost , Witteveen Tim , van Veenendaal Tamar M. , Dijkstra Jelle
Published: November 2015

During systems consolidation, memories are spontaneously replayed favoring information transfer from hippocampus to neocortex. However, at present no empirically supported mechanism to accomplish a transfer of memory from hippocampal to extra-hippocampal sites has been offered. We used cultured neuronal networks on multielectrode arrays and small-scale computational models to study the effect of memory replay on the formation of memory traces. We show that input-deprived networks develop an activity⇔connectivity balance where dominant activity patterns support current connectivity. Electrical stimulation at one electrode disturbs this balance and induces connectivity changes. Intrinsic forces in recurrent networks lead to a new equilibrium with activity patterns that include the stimulus response. The new connectivity is no longer disrupted by this stimulus, indicating that networks memorize it. A different stimulus again induces connectivity changes upon first application but not subsequently, demonstrating the formation of a second memory trace. Returning to the first stimulus does not affect connectivity, indicating parallel storage of both traces. A computer model robustly reproduced experimental results, suggesting that spike-timing-dependent plasticity and short time depression suffice to store parallel memory traces, even in networks without particular circuitry constraints.
Seeding for sirtuins: microseed matrix seeding to obtain crystals of human Sirt3 and Sirt2 suitable for soaking
Authors: Rumpf Tobias , Gerhardt Stefan , Einsle Oliver , Jung Manfred
Published: November 2015

Sirtuins constitute a family of NAD+-dependent enzymes that catalyse the cleavage of various acyl groups from the ∊-amino group of lysines. They regulate a series of cellular processes and their misregulation has been implicated in various diseases, making sirtuins attractive drug targets. To date, only a few sirtuin modulators have been reported that are suitable for cellular research and their development has been hampered by a lack of structural information. In this work, microseed matrix seeding (MMS) was used to obtain crystals of human Sirt3 in its apo form and of human Sirt2 in complex with ADP ribose (ADPR). Crystal formation using MMS was predictable, less error-prone and yielded a higher number of crystals per drop than using conventional crystallization screening methods. The crystals were used to solve the crystal structures of apo Sirt3 and of Sirt2 in complex with ADPR at an improved resolution, as well as the crystal structures of Sirt2 in complex with ADPR and the indoles EX527 and CHIC35. These Sirt2–ADPR–indole complexes unexpectedly contain two indole molecules and provide novel insights into selective Sirt2 inhibition. The MMS approach for Sirt2 and Sirt3 may be used as the basis for structure-based optimization of Sirt2/3 inhibitors in the future.
Crystallization behaviour of glyceraldehyde dehydrogenase fromThermoplasma acidophilum
Authors: Iermak Iuliia , Degtjarik Oksana , Steffler Fabian , Sieber Volker , Kuta Smatanova Ivana
Published: November 2015

The glyceraldehyde dehydrogenase fromThermoplasma acidophilum(TaAlDH) is a microbial enzyme that catalyzes the oxidation of D-glyceraldehyde to D-glycerate in the artificial enzyme cascade designed for the conversion of glucose to the organic solvents isobutanol and ethanol. Various mutants ofTaAlDH were constructed by a random approach followed by site-directed and saturation mutagenesis in order to improve the properties of the enzyme that are essential for its functioning within the cascade. Two enzyme variants, wild-typeTaAlDH (TaAlDHwt) and an F34M+S405N variant (TaAlDH F34M+S405N), were successfully crystallized. Crystals ofTaAlDHwt belonged to the monoclinic space groupP1211 with eight molecules per asymmetric unit and diffracted to a resolution of 1.95 Å.TaAlDH F34M+S405N crystallized in two different space groups: triclinicP1 with 16 molecules per asymmetric unit and monoclinicC121 with four molecules per asymmetric unit. These crystals diffracted to resolutions of 2.14 and 2.10 Å for theP1 andC121 crystals, respectively.
Production, crystallization and X-ray diffraction analysis of the protease CT441 fromChlamydia trachomatis
Authors: Kohlmann Friedrich , Shima Kensuke , Rupp Jan , Solbach Werner , Hilgenfeld Rolf , Hansen Guido
Published: November 2015

The prokaryotic obligate intracellular pathogenChlamydia trachomatisis the most prevalent cause of preventable blindness, affecting approximately six million people worldwide. In addition,C. trachomatisis the most commonly reported sexually transmitted pathogen in Europe and the US, causing pelvic inflammation, ectopic pregnancy and infertility. As in other intracellular pathogens, proteases play crucial roles during most stages of the complex life cycle ofChlamydia. CT441 is a chlamydial protease that has been reported to interfere with oestrogen signalling of the host cell. Here, the recombinant production, purification and crystallization of an inactive variant of CT441, designated CT441° (active-site Ser455 replaced by Ala), are described. CT441° was crystallized in space groupP22121, with unit-cell parametersa= 86.7,b= 184.0,c= 209.6 Å. A complete diffraction data set was collected to a resolution of 2.95 Å.
Structure of Spo0M, a sporulation-control protein fromBacillus subtilis
Authors: Sonoda Yo , Mizutani Kimihiko , Mikami Bunzo
Published: November 2015

Spo0M is a sporulation-control protein that is thought to play an essential role in the early stage of endospore formation. While little is known about the functions of Spo0M, a recent phylogenetic study suggests that, based on its amino-acid sequence, Spo0M might belong to the arrestin clan. The crystal structure of the Spo0M protein was determined at a resolution of 2.3 Å. Ten amino acids at the end of the N-terminus were removed to improve the thermal stability of the purified Spo0M protein and the crystal structure of Spo0M was determined by SAD. Spo0M has a well conserved N-terminal domain with an arrestin-like fold, which consists of a β-strand sandwich structure. Surprisingly, the C-terminal domain of Spo0M, which has no structural homology to arrestin-clan proteins, bears significant structural similarity to the FP domain of the human PI31 protein. In addition, Spo0M harbours a potential polar-core structure connecting the N- and C-terminal domains with several salt bridges, as seen in the crystal structures of arrestin and VPS26. The structure reported here constitutes the first structural information on a bacterial protein that shares significant structural homology to members of the arrestin clan and the FP domain.
Combining dehydration, construct optimization and improved data collection to solve the crystal structure of a CRM1–RanGTP–SPN1–Nup214 quaternary nuclear export complex
Authors: Monecke Thomas , Dickmanns Achim , Weiss Manfred S. , Port Sarah A. , Kehlenbach Ralph H. , Ficner Ralf
Published: November 2015

High conformational flexibility is an intrinsic and indispensable property of nuclear transport receptors, which makes crystallization and structure determination of macromolecular complexes containing exportins or importins particularly challenging. Here, the crystallization and structure determination of a quaternary nuclear export complex consisting of the exportin CRM1, the small GTPase Ran in its GTP-bound form, the export cargo SPN1 and an FG repeat-containing fragment of the nuclear pore complex component nucleoporin Nup214 fused to maltose-binding protein is reported. Optimization of constructs, seeding and the development of a sophisticated protocol including successive PEG-mediated crystal dehydration as well as additional post-mounting steps were essential to obtain well diffracting crystals.
Crystal structure of triaqua(2,6-dimethylpyrazine-κN4)bis(thiocyanato-κN)manganese(II) 2,5-dimethylpyrazine disolvate
Authors: Suckert Stefan , Wöhlert Susanne , Jess Inke , Näther Christian
Published: November 2015

In the crystal structure of the title complex, [Mn(NCS)2(C6H8N2)(H2O)3]·2C6H8N2, the MnIIcation is coordinated by two terminallyN-bonded thiocyanate anions, three water molecules and one 2,6-dimethylpyrazine ligand within a slightly distorted N3O3octahedral geometry; the entire complex molecule is generated by the application of a twofold rotation axis. The asymmetric unit also contains an uncoordinating 2,5-dimethylpyrazine ligand in a general position. Obviously, the coordination to the 2,6-dimethylpyrazine ligand is preferred because coordination to the 2,5-dimethylpyrazine is hindered due to the bulky methyl group proximate to the N atom. The discrete complexes are linked by water-O—H...N(2,6-dimethylpyzazine/2,5-dimethylpyzazine) hydrogen bonding, forming a three-dimensional network. In the crystal, molecules are arranged in a way that cavities are formed in which unspecified, disordered solvent molecules reside. These were modelled employing the SQUEEZE routine inPLATON[Spek (2015).Acta Cryst. C71, 9–18]. The composition of the unit cell does not take into account the presence of the unspecified solvent.
Crystal structure of bis(4-acetylanilinium) tetrachloridocobaltate(II)
Authors: Thairiyaraja Manickam , Elangovan Arumugam , Shanmugam Ramasamy , Selvaraju Kuthambalam , Thamotharan Subbiah
Published: November 2015

The structure of the title salt, (C8H10NO)2[CoCl4], is isotypic with the analogous cuprate(II) structure. The asymmetric unit contains one 4-acetylanilinium cation and one half of a tetrachloridocobaltate(II) anion for which the CoIIatom and two Cl−ligands lie on a mirror plane. The Co—Cl distances in the distorted tetrahedral anion range from 2.2519 (6) to 2.2954 (9) Å and the Cl—Co—Cl angles range from 106.53 (2) to 110.81 (4)°. In the crystal, cations are self-assembled by intermolecular N—H...O hydrogen-bonding interactions, leading to aC(8) chain motif with the chains running parallel to thebaxis. π–π stacking interactions between benzene rings, with a centroid-to-centroid distance of 3.709 Å, are also observed along this direction. The CoCl42−anions are sandwiched between the cationic chains and interact with each other through intermolecular N—H...Cl hydrogen-bonding interactions, forming a three-dimensional network structure.
META-RELQUAL construct validation: a South African study
Authors: Mpinganjira Mercy , Svensson Göran , Mysen Tore
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to test a measurement model of a META-RELQUAL construct based upon South African business-supplier relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

– Data were collected using computer-assisted telephone interviews. The sampling frame consisted of the top 500 South African companies based on revenue. A total of 232 fully completed questionnaires were obtained representing a response rate of 46.4 per cent.

Findings

– The findings show satisfactory goodness-of-fit measures for the model tested. All the requirements for convergent, discriminant and nomological validity as well as construct reliability were achieved satisfactorily.

Practical implications

– The study provides a framework of constructs that South African business managers need to take into consideration in order to establish and maintain good relations with their suppliers.

Originality/value

– This study contributes to theory on relationship marketing and presents the first tested measurement model of the META-RELQUAL construct in Africa.
Sustainability of fiscal policy in an oil-rich economy: the case of Nigeria
Authors: Akanbi Olusegun Ayodele
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the sustainability of fiscal policy in Nigeria by disaggregating the economy into oil and non-oil segments.

Design/methodology/approach

– Owing to the enormous influence of the oil revenue, the study distinguishes between the oil and non-oil fiscal balances. In addition, it abstracted from the endogenous macroeconomic environment, therefore, fiscal policy sustainability is investigated on the basis of the responses of the government primary balance to changes in deficits and debt levels. The models are estimated with time-series data from 1970 to 2011 using the Johansen estimation techniques.

Findings

– The results from the estimations performed suggest that government responds more to deficit targets than debt targets. However, this differs in the non-oil segment, as the fiscal policy actions of government do not consistently respond to either deficit or debt targets. Given this, the overall economy and the oil segment have revealed a strong fiscal sustainability over the years while fiscal policy is unsustainable in the non-oil segment.

Research limitations/implications

– The major limitation of this study is the unavailability of data on government expenditure resulting from oil revenue. Therefore, it would be imperative to reinvestigate the specifications adopted in this study in follow-up studies.

Practical implications

– The study includes implications for policy makers, especially in Nigeria and other oil-producing countries, to detect the extent to which the economy should rely on the oil revenue stream as the main source of revenue to government. The proceeds from the oil endowment have not yet trickled down to the rest of the economy where real economic activity could be carried out which would eventually lead to more tax revenue for the government.

Originality/value

– To assess the sustainability of fiscal policy in an oil-rich economy such as Nigeria, it is imperative to detect the influence of oil funds on both government revenue streams and expenditure decisions. This study has made this distinction.
Unemployment in Ghana: a cross sectional analysis from demand and supply perspectives
Authors: Baah-Boateng William
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to analyse the causes of unemployment in Ghana from both labour demand and supply perspectives based on most recent cross sectional data set from one nationally representative household survey and a baseline survey for Millennium Development Support.

Design/methodology/approach

– A logit regression estimation technique is applied to two different household survey data sets of 2008 and 2013 to capture the effect of labour demand and supply on unemployment.

Findings

– Using education and age as capability variables to represent supply factors, unemployment is found to increase with education, and declines with age, confirming higher unemployment rate among the youth, than the old. The paper also observes strong influence of demand factors on unemployment based on relatively higher incidence of unemployment fulltime jobseekers relative to part-time jobseekers and seekers of formal or wage-employment and self-employment or SMEs compared with those seeking any job. Other factors such as the individual’s reservation wage, marital status, sex and poverty status as well as their rural-urban location are also found to cause unemployment in Ghana.

Practical implications

– Unemployment as a result of the inability of individuals to obtain a job of their choice in the midst of strong economic growth in Ghana suggests weak employment content of growth. In contrast, an increasing phenomenon of unemployment with education also reflects a problem of skill mismatch between skills churn out by education and training institutions and skills requirement by firms in the labour market.

Originality/value

– The originality of the paper and its contribution to existing literature largely emanate from the inclusion of demand factors in a cross sectional analysis of causes of unemployment.
Trade and stock management to achieve national food security in India and China?
Authors: Dev S. Mahendra , Zhong Funing
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– China and India have to provide food security to 1.36 billion and 1.25 billion populations, respectively. The purpose of this paper is to address the roles of trade and stock management in achieving food security in these countries, such as the impacts of trade on consumer and producer prices and incomes of farmers and others and implications for food security, and the impact of stock management on price stability, availability, access and nutrition.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper is based on secondary data and literature on these issues. It compares the policy tools of trade and stock management used in India and China for food security purpose, in terms of long-term efficiency, in order to provide better understanding on how to achieve food security through public interventions.

Findings

– Although stock is an important tool for food security, it is likely to be costly if used for price support and redistribution purposes. Trade might provide cheap food to enhance access to food, the impact on domestic producers and the volatility in world market may lead to serious problems. A carefully designed policy combining stock management and trade may help achieving food security.

Research limitations/implications

– This paper relies on existing literature of current issues and policies, and tries to conduct comparative study on India and China, the two largest countries in the world. The scale and depth of the study are restricted by authors’ knowledge, hence may not be adequate in addressing those important issues.

Practical implications

– Both India and China are undergoing policy review regarding food security, under pressures in domestic market and from multi-nation negotiations. This study may provide better understandings of the issues related to policy reform and trade negotiation.

Originality/value

– Though a large portion of factual materials are adopted from existing literature and statistics, the analyses are those of authors.
Farmer organizations in China and India
Authors: Huang Zuhui , Vyas Vijay , Liang Qiao
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– Agriculture sectors in China and India are going through rapid changes. There is a shift in demand pattern, significant changes in the supply chain, greater competition due to opening up of the domestic and external markets and fuller integration with rest of the economy. These developments have impacted traditional agriculture and its institutional underpinning. Latter are being transformed and new institutions are coming into existence. The paper aims to discuss these issues.

Design/methodology/approach

– This paper discusses the changes in economy and the agricultural sector, explores institutional responses in terms of various producer organizations in the two countries, and examines their adequacy for the coming phase of agricultural development in China and India.

Findings

– The co-existence of various farmer organizations will sustain for a long period in both China and India. Overall, they have benefitted agriculture producers, and more particularly the surplus generating farmers. However, the incompatibility between these and the vast and growing small farm sector is not disappearing. Next set of institutional reforms should address this critical question of “reaching the unreached.”

Originality/value

– China and India are the world’s two largest countries in terms of population as well as agricultural population. They share a lot of common features. This paper discusses the changes in agricultural sector, explores institutional responses in terms of farmer organizations, and examines their adequacy for the coming phase of agricultural development in China and India, which has never been seen before.
The contingent impacts of market and nonmarket ties on the exchange relationship formation
Authors: Lee Khan-Pyo , Choi Seong-Jin
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to present inter-firm networks in China by examining the impacts of previous market ties, nonmarket ties, and more importantly their interaction on the formation of exchange relationships.

Design/methodology/approach

– The authors test their hypotheses using inter-firm exchange relationships between 19 automakers and 312 suppliers in China. The authors conducted empirical tests with multilevel logit model.

Findings

– The authors find that both previous nonmarket ties and market ties have positive impacts on the formation of the next exchange relationships, while market ties and nonmarket ties are substitutes in the exchange relationships formation.

Originality/value

– This paper provides unique theoretical framework on how firms in emerging markets promote the knowledge exchange with help of market and nonmarket ties. Especially, our findings on the substitute effects between networks have important practical implications to understand the historical development of exchange relationship in transition economies, such as in China.
The effects of ethical work climate on organizational commitment in Taiwanese Military units
Authors: Hung Ying-Cheng , Tsai Tsung-Ying , Wu Yu-Fen
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to examine the relationship between overall ethical work climate (EWC) and overall organizational commitment (OC) and test the effects of types of EWC on three components of OC in Taiwanese military context.

Design/methodology/approach

– A literature review on EWC and OC provides the basis for the research model and hypotheses. A self-completion questionnaire survey, involving 508 respondents (92.36 per cent response rate) from military officers in Taiwan included both full-time training officers of the National Defense University and officers of Department of Defense. The authors use statistical analysis, including hierarchical regression and structural equation model to test hypotheses about the relationships above.

Findings

– The results indicated that overall EWC and some climate types significantly positively or negatively influenced overall OC, affective commitment, continuance commitment and normative commitment.

Practical implications

– The findings can provide helpful perspectives on management and organizations of benefit to scholars and policy-makers to make ethical policy in military organizations. In addition, suggesting for military leaders to foster some types of ethical climates to prevent low OC.

Originality/value

– Theoretically, the paper serves as a pioneer research for testing the concept of influence of EWC on OC and shows the effects of types of EWC on three components of OC in military context. Practically, the results and recommendations in the paper will be useful to those involved in the field of management in Taiwan military organizations.
Domains and opportunities in knowledge and aerospace management in China
Authors: Wu Weiwei , Yu Bo , Spender John- Christopher
Published: November 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to introduce and explore the creation, transfer, diffusion and application of knowledge in the Chinese context and the Chinese aerospace management modes, methodologies and mechanism, etc., based on the successful managerial experience of China’s aerospace. The paper then illustrates the current research domains and the future research opportunities in knowledge and aerospace management in China.

Design/methodology/approach

– Review and reflection.

Findings

– The Chinese knowledge management theory has achieved great development, the focus of which covers the whole chain from knowledge creation, knowledge transfer, knowledge sharing to knowledge application. However, Chinese aerospace management studies seem not so systematic, although some successful managerial practices and theories are being introduced. There is an opportunity to construct the Chinese aerospace management theory due to its features with general implications to high technology industries in China. Especially, integrating knowledge and aerospace, or studying aerospace from the perspective of knowledge, is a promising way of formulating a logic for deciphering China’s aerospace. It is also anticipated that qualitative methodology and Chinese traditional philosophy will be more popular in Chinese management studies.

Originality/value

– This paper, by introducing some new research in knowledge management and aerospace management in China, outlines the current situations of Chinese knowledge and aerospace management research and sheds lights on the future research in aspects of research topics, research methodologies and Chinese traditional philosophy. For the first time, this paper provides the basic logic of Chinese knowledge management research and integrates Chinese aerospace management studies to reveal to the world the uniqueness and facts of China’s aerospace industry.