bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Decolonization, Environmentalism and Nationalism in Australia and South Africa
Authors: Bennett Brett M
Published: April 2017

Decolonization influenced the rise of environmental activism and thought in Australia and South Africa in ways that have been overlooked by national histories of environmentalism and imperial histories of decolonization. Australia and South Africa’s political and cultural movement away from Britain and the Commonwealth during the 1960s is one important factor explaining why people in both countries created more, and more important, public indigenous botanic gardens than anywhere else in the world during that decade. Effective decolonization from Britain also influenced the rise of indigenous gardening and the growing popularity of native gardens at a critical period in gardening and environmental history. Most facets of contemporary gardening—using plants indigenous to the site or region, planting drought-tolerant species, and seeing gardens as sites to help conserve regional and national flora—can be dated to the 1960s and 1970s. The interpretation advanced here adds to historical research tracing how the former Commonwealth settler colonies experienced effective decolonization in the same era. This article expands the focus of research on decolonization to include environmentalism. The interpretation of the article also augments national environmental histories that have hitherto downplayed the influence of decolonization on the rise of environmentalism. Putting decolonization into the history of the rise of environmental thought and action sheds light on why people in contemporary Australia and South Africa are so passionate about protecting indigenous flora and fauna, and so worried about threats posed by non-native invasive species.
The Statistical Table as Colonial Knowledge
Authors: Rowse Tim
Published: April 2017

The statistical table is one expression of the settler colonial capacity and willingness to enumerate colonized “peoples” as “populations.” By examining four tables—from 1763, 1828, 1848, and 1850—in Canada, New Zealand, and Australia this paper illustrates the emergence of this powerful technique of representation during the same a period in which European states were developing their capacity to represent the social in statistical terms. In the colonial context, the rise of the notion of a “population” whose characteristics could be averaged contributed to the specifically administrative eclipse of native sovereignty, paralleling the jural/political demise of native sovereignty.
The Dido Story in Accounts of Early Modern European Imperialism—An Anthology
Authors: Newman Andrew
Published: April 2017

This anthology of excerpts from histories and travel accounts composed during the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries features representations of indigenous oral traditions about the founding of European colonies in Sri Lanka, Melaka, Gujarat, Cambodia, Manila, Jakarta, Taiwan, New York, and the Cape of Good Hope. According to these accounts, the colonists first requested as much land as the hide of an ox could cover, and then cut that hide into strips and claimed all the land they could encircle. The “oxhide measure” is a widely-attested folkloric motif. The introduction, however, questions assumptions about the unreliability of oral traditions and looks to history instead of folklore for an explanation for the colonial parallels. It proposes that Portuguese, Spanish, and Dutch colonists performed the “hide trick” in emulation of the classical story of the Phoenician Queen Dido’s founding of Carthage.
The Pagan King Replies: An Indian Perspective on the Portuguese Arrival in India
Authors: Prange Sebastian R.
Published: April 2017

This article recommends a virtually unknown manuscript on the early Portuguese presence in India to wider scholarly attention. Dubbed here the Wye manuscript, this text purports to be an English translation of a sixteenth-century Malayalam history that was produced at the court of the ruler of Calicut. The South Indian kingdom of Calicut was central to Portugal’s project of monopolizing the region’s all-important pepper trade; the Wye manuscript therefore holds the promise of adding an Indian perspective to a history that has been written largely on the basis of European sources. This article examines the external and internal evidence for the author’s claim of having translated the text from an original palm-leaf manuscript held by members of Calicut’s royal family. An analysis of its content shows significant overlap with an Arabic history of the sixteenth century; a comparison of their similarities and differences suggests a number of insights into the processes of composition and revision of both the Malayalam and Arabic texts. Last, and most important, the Wye manuscript is transcribed in full in the hope of stimulating further discussion and study.
Transition of Credit Organizations: Caste Bankers in Colonial India
Authors: Mukherjee Anirban
Published: April 2017

This paper looks at the evolution of business practice of indigenous banking groups in colonial India. Specifically, it studies why in the early twentieth century, the Indian banking caste Nattukottai Chettiar moved from caste-based banking to joint stock banking. The paper argues that caste-based banking had two advantages over joint stock banking—caste-based monitoring of agents and reciprocity-based informal insurance within the caste. In the early twentieth century with the improvement of communication technology and expanding global trade, the caste banking lost both the edges. This prompted some of the caste bankers to move to joint stock banking. I provide a theoretical structure explaining the transition and provide evidence from archival and secondary sources in support of my theory.
Partisanship and Unreformed Bureaucracy: The Drivers of Election Fraud in Sweden, 1719–1908
Authors: Teorell Jan
Published: April 2017

This paper explains election fraud historically in the case of Sweden, drawing on original data from second-instance election petitions filed in 1719–1908. These petitions reveal systematic procedural violations committed by local election officials toward the end of the Age of Liberty in the eighteenth century. By the mid-nineteenth century, however, fraud had been largely purged from Swedish elections, and most petitions instead concerned unclear regulations pertaining to suffrage and eligibility criteria. I argue that this development cannot be explained by changes in electoral rules, the degree of competitiveness, or shifts in economic development or inequality. Instead, the ebb and flow of electoral fraud in Sweden could best be understood as stemming from the professionalization of the bureaucracy in combination with the extent to which elections were partisan. This novel mechanism for generating election fraud is corroborated qualitatively in a within-case longitudinal analysis and from quantitative data on city elections in 1771. I argue that similar processes may explain the rise and fall of election fraud historically in other established Western democracies, such as Britain and the United States.
Stream Network Geometry Correlates with Climate
Authors: Cook Terri
Published: April 2017

A "big data" analysis of nearly 1 million river junctions in the contiguous United States shows that branching angles in dendritic drainages vary systematically between humid and arid regions.
Amphibian skin microbiota exhibits temporal variation in community structure but stability of predicted Bd-inhibitory function
Authors: Bletz Molly C , Perl R G Bina , Bobowski Bianca T C , Japke Laura M , Tebbe Christoph C , Dohrmann Anja B , Bhuju Sabin , Geffers Robert , Jarek Michael , Vences Miguel
Published: April 2017

Host-associated microbiomes are increasingly recognized to contribute to host disease resistance; the temporal dynamics of their community structure and function, however, are poorly understood. We investigated the cutaneous bacterial communities of three newt species, Ichthyosaura alpestris, Lissotriton vulgaris and Triturus cristatus, at approximately weekly intervals for 3 months using 16S ribosomal RNA amplicon sequencing. We hypothesized cutaneous microbiota would vary across time, and that such variation would be linked to changes in predicted fungal-inhibitory function. We observed significant temporal variation within the aquatic phase, and also between aquatic and terrestrial phase newts. By keeping T. cristatus in mesocosms, we demonstrated that structural changes occurred similarly across individuals, highlighting the non-stochastic nature of the bacterial community succession. Temporal changes were mainly associated with fluctuations in relative abundance rather than full turnover of bacterial operational taxonomic units (OTUs). Newt skin microbe fluctuations were not correlated with that of pond microbiota; however, a portion of community variation was explained by environmental temperature. Using a database of amphibian skin bacteria that inhibit the pathogen Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), we found that the proportion of reads associated with ‘potentially’ Bd-inhibitory OTUs did not vary temporally for two of three newt species, suggesting that protective function may be maintained despite temporal variation in community structure.
Bacterial carbon use plasticity, phylogenetic diversity and the priming of soil organic matter
Authors: Morrissey Ember M , Mau Rebecca L , Schwartz Egbert , McHugh Theresa A , Dijkstra Paul , Koch Benjamin J , Marks Jane C , Hungate Bruce A
Published: April 2017

Microorganisms perform most decomposition on Earth, mediating carbon (C) loss from ecosystems, and thereby influencing climate. Yet, how variation in the identity and composition of microbial communities influences ecosystem C balance is far from clear. Using quantitative stable isotope probing of DNA, we show how individual bacterial taxa influence soil C cycling following the addition of labile C (glucose). Specifically, we show that increased decomposition of soil C in response to added glucose (positive priming) occurs as a phylogenetically diverse group of taxa, accounting for a large proportion of the bacterial community, shift toward additional soil C use for growth. Our findings suggest that many microbial taxa exhibit C use plasticity, as most taxa altered their use of glucose and soil organic matter depending upon environmental conditions. In contrast, bacteria that exhibit other responses to glucose (reduced growth or reliance on glucose for additional growth) clustered strongly by phylogeny. These results suggest that positive priming is likely the prototypical response of bacteria to sustained labile C addition, consistent with the widespread occurrence of the positive priming effect in nature.
Expression patterns of elemental cycling genes in the Amazon River Plume
Authors: Satinsky Brandon M , Smith Christa B , Sharma Shalabh , Landa Marine , Medeiros Patricia M , Coles Victoria J , Yager Patricia L , Crump Byron C , Moran Mary Ann
Published: April 2017

Metatranscriptomics and metagenomics data sets benchmarked with internal standards were used to characterize the expression patterns for biogeochemically relevant bacterial and archaeal genes mediating carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus and sulfur uptake and metabolism through the salinity gradient of the Amazon River Plume. The genes were identified in 48 metatranscriptomic and metagenomic data sets summing to >500 million quality-controlled reads from six locations in the plume ecosystem. The ratio of transcripts per gene copy (a direct measure of expression made possible by internal standard additions) showed that the free-living bacteria and archaea exhibited only small changes in the expression levels of biogeochemically relevant genes through the salinity and nutrient zones of the plume. In contrast, the expression levels of genes in particle-associated cells varied over orders of magnitude among the stations, with the largest differences measured for genes mediating aspects of nitrogen cycling (nifH, amtB and amoA) and phosphorus acquisition (pstC, phoX and phoU). Taxa varied in their baseline gene expression levels and extent of regulation, and most of the spatial variation in the expression level could be attributed to changes in gene regulation after removing the effect of shifting taxonomic composition. We hypothesize that changes in microbial element cycling along the Amazon River Plume are largely driven by shifting activities of particle-associated cells, with most activities peaking in the mesohaline regions where N2 fixation rates are elevated.
Retrograde transport of TrkB-containing autophagosomes via the adaptor AP-2 mediates neuronal complexity and prevents neurodegeneration
Authors: Kononenko Natalia L. , Claßen Gala A. , Kuijpers Marijn , Puchkov Dmytro , Maritzen Tanja , Tempes Aleksandra , Malik Anna R. , Skalecka Agnieszka , Bera Sujoy , Jaworski Jacek , Haucke Volker
Published: April 2017

Autophagosomes primarily mediate turnover of cytoplasmic proteins or organelles to provide nutrients and eliminate damaged proteins. In neurons, autophagosomes form in distal axons and are trafficked retrogradely to fuse with lysosomes in the soma. Although defective neuronal autophagy is associated with neurodegeneration, the function of neuronal autophagosomes remains incompletely understood. We show that in neurons, autophagosomes promote neuronal complexity and prevent neurodegeneration in vivo via retrograde transport of brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)-activated TrkB receptors. p150Glued/dynactin-dependent transport of TrkB-containing autophagosomes requires their association with the endocytic adaptor AP-2, an essential protein complex previously thought to function exclusively in clathrin-mediated endocytosis. These data highlight a novel non-canonical function of AP-2 in retrograde transport of BDNF/TrkB-containing autophagosomes in neurons and reveal a causative link between autophagy and BDNF/TrkB signalling.
Prediction of intrinsic two-dimensional ferroelectrics in In2Se3 and other III2-VI3 van der Waals materials
Authors: Ding Wenjun , Zhu Jianbao , Wang Zhe , Gao Yanfei , Xiao Di , Gu Yi , Zhang Zhenyu , Zhu Wenguang
Published: April 2017

Interest in two-dimensional (2D) van der Waals materials has grown rapidly across multiple scientific and engineering disciplines in recent years. However, ferroelectricity, the presence of a spontaneous electric polarization, which is important in many practical applications, has rarely been reported in such materials so far. Here we employ first-principles calculations to discover a branch of the 2D materials family, based on In2Se3 and other III2-VI3 van der Waals materials, that exhibits room-temperature ferroelectricity with reversible spontaneous electric polarization in both out-of-plane and in-plane orientations. The device potential of these 2D ferroelectric materials is further demonstrated using the examples of van der Waals heterostructures of In2Se3/graphene, exhibiting a tunable Schottky barrier, and In2Se3/WSe2, showing a significant band gap reduction in the combined system. These findings promise to substantially broaden the tunability of van der Waals heterostructures for a wide range of applications.
Simulation of the NMR response in the pseudogap regime of the cuprates
Authors: Chen Xi , LeBlanc J. P. F. , Gull Emanuel
Published: April 2017

The pseudogap in the cuprate high-temperature superconductors was discovered as a suppression of the Knight shift and spin relaxation time measured in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) experiments. However, theoretical understanding of this suppression in terms of the magnetic susceptiblility of correlated itinerant fermion systems was so far lacking. Here we study the temperature and doping evolution of these quantities on the two-dimensional Hubbard model using cluster dynamical mean field theory. We recover the suppression of the Knight shift and the linear-in-T spin echo decay that increases with doping. The relaxation rate shows a marked increase as T is lowered but no indication of a pseudogap on the Cu site, and a clear downturn on the O site, consistent with experimental results on single layer materials but different from double layer materials. The consistency of these results with experiment suggests that the pseudogap is well described by strong short-range correlation effects.
Genome-wide identification of inter-individually variable DNA methylation sites improves the efficacy of epigenetic association studies
Authors: Hachiya Tsuyoshi , Furukawa Ryohei , Shiwa Yuh , Ohmomo Hideki , Ono Kanako , Katsuoka Fumiki , Nagasaki Masao , Yasuda Jun , Fuse Nobuo , Kinoshita Kengo , Yamamoto Masayuki , Tanno Kozo , Satoh Mamoru , Endo Ryujin , Sasaki Makoto , Sakata Kiyomi , Kobayashi Seiichiro , Ogasawara Kuniaki , Hitomi Jiro , Sobue Kenji , Shimizu Atsushi
Published: April 2017

Epigenome-wide association studies, which searches for blood-based DNA methylation signatures associated with environmental exposures and/or disease susceptibilities, is a promising approach to a better understanding of the molecular aetiology of common diseases. To carry out large-scale epigenome-wide association studies while avoiding false negative detection, an efficient strategy to determine target CpG sites for microarray-based or sequencing-based DNA methylation profiling is essentially needed. Here, we propose and validate a hypothesis that a strategy focusing on CpG sites with high DNA methylation level variability may attain an improved efficacy. Through whole-genome bisulfite sequencing of purified blood cells collected from > 100 apparently healthy subjects, we identified ~2.0 million inter-individually variable CpG sites as potential targets. The efficacy of our strategy was estimated to be 3.7-fold higher than that of the most frequently used strategy. Our catalogue of inter-individually variable CpG sites will accelerate the discovery of clinically relevant DNA methylation biomarkers in future epigenome-wide association studies.
Latent virus reactivation in astronauts on the international space station
Authors: Mehta Satish K. , Laudenslager Mark L. , Stowe Raymond P. , Crucian Brian E. , Feiveson Alan H. , Sams Clarence F. , Pierson Duane L.
Published: April 2017

Reactivation of latent herpes viruses was measured in 23 astronauts (18 male and 5 female) before, during, and after long-duration (up to 180 days) spaceflight onboard the international space station . Twenty age-matched and sex-matched healthy ground-based subjects were included as a control group. Blood, urine, and saliva samples were collected before, during, and after spaceflight. Saliva was analyzed for Epstein–Barr virus, varicella-zoster virus, and herpes simplex virus type 1. Urine was analyzed for cytomegalovirus. One astronaut did not shed any targeted virus in samples collected during the three mission phases. Shedding of Epstein–Barr virus, varicella-zoster virus, and cytomegalovirus was detected in 8 of the 23 astronauts. These viruses reactivated independently of each other. Reactivation of Epstein–Barr virus, varicella-zoster virus, and cytomegalovirus increased in frequency, duration, and amplitude (viral copy numbers) when compared to short duration (10 to 16 days) space shuttle missions. No evidence of reactivation of herpes simplex virus type 1, herpes simplex virus type 2, or human herpes virus 6 was found. The mean diurnal trajectory of salivary cortisol changed significantly during flight as compared to before flight (P = 0.010). There was no statistically significant difference in levels of plasma cortisol or dehydoepiandosterone concentrations among time points before, during, and after flight for these international space station crew members, although observed cortisol levels were lower at the mid and late-flight time points. The data confirm that astronauts undertaking long-duration spaceflight experience both increased latent viral reactivation and changes in diurnal trajectory of salivary cortisol concentrations.
Effectiveness and success factors of educational inhaler technique interventions in asthma & COPD patients: a systematic review
Authors: Klijn Sven L. , Hiligsmann Mickaël , Evers Silvia M. A. A. , Román-Rodríguez Miguel , van der Molen Thys , van Boven Job F. M.
Published: April 2017

With the current wealth of new inhalers available and insurance policy driven inhaler switching, the need for insights in optimal education on inhaler use is more evident than ever. We aimed to systematically review educational inhalation technique interventions, to assess their overall effectiveness, and identify main drivers of success. Medline, Embase and CINAHL databases were searched for randomised controlled trials on educational inhalation technique interventions. Inclusion eligibility, quality appraisal (Cochrane’s risk of bias tool) and data extraction were performed by two independent reviewers. Regression analyses were performed to identify characteristics contributing to inhaler technique improvement. Thirty-seven of the 39 interventions included (95%) indicated statistically significant improvement of inhaler technique. However, average follow-up time was relatively short (5 months), 28% lacked clinical relevant endpoints and all lacked cost-effectiveness estimates. Poor initial technique, number of inhalation procedure steps, setting (outpatient clinics performing best), and time elapsed since intervention (all, p < 0.05), were shown to have an impact on effectiveness of the intervention, explaining up to 91% of the effectiveness variation. Other factors, such as disease (asthma vs. chronic obstructive pulmonary disease), education group size (individual vs. group training) and inhaler type (dry powder inhalers vs. pressurised metered dose inhalers) did not play a significant role. Notably, there was a trend (p = 0.06) towards interventions in adults being more effective than those in children and the intervention effect seemed to wane over time. In conclusion, educational interventions to improve inhaler technique are effective on the short-term. Periodical intervention reinforcement and longer follow-up studies, including clinical relevant endpoints and cost-effectiveness, are recommended.
Demonstration of quantum advantage in machine learning
Authors: Ristè Diego , da Silva Marcus P. , Ryan Colm A. , Cross Andrew W. , Córcoles Antonio D. , Smolin John A. , Gambetta Jay M. , Chow Jerry M. , Johnson Blake R.
Published: April 2017

The main promise of quantum computing is to efficiently solve certain problems that are prohibitively expensive for a classical computer. Most problems with a proven quantum advantage involve the repeated use of a black box, or oracle, whose structure encodes the solution. One measure of the algorithmic performance is the query complexity, i.e., the scaling of the number of oracle calls needed to find the solution with a given probability. Few-qubit demonstrations of quantum algorithms, such as Deutsch–Jozsa and Grover, have been implemented across diverse physical systems such as nuclear magnetic resonance, trapped ions, optical systems, and superconducting circuits. However, at the small scale, these problems can already be solved classically with a few oracle queries, limiting the obtained advantage. Here we solve an oracle-based problem, known as learning parity with noise, on a five-qubit superconducting processor. Executing classical and quantum algorithms using the same oracle, we observe a large gap in query count in favor of quantum processing. We find that this gap grows by orders of magnitude as a function of the error rates and the problem size. This result demonstrates that, while complex fault-tolerant architectures will be required for universal quantum computing, a significant quantum advantage already emerges in existing noisy systems.
Thought disorder measured as random speech structure classifies negative symptoms and schizophrenia diagnosis 6 months in advance
Authors: Mota Natália B. , Copelli Mauro , Ribeiro Sidarta
Published: April 2017

In chronic psychotic patients, word graph analysis shows potential as complementary psychiatric assessment. This analysis relies mostly on connectedness, a structural feature of speech that is anti-correlated with negative symptoms. Here we aimed to verify whether speech disorganization during the first clinical contact, as measured by graph connectedness, can correctly classify negative symptoms and the schizophrenia diagnosis 6 months in advance. Positive and negative syndrome scale scores and memory reports were collected from 21 patients undergoing first clinical contact for recent-onset psychosis, followed for 6 months to establish diagnosis, and compared to 21 well-matched healthy subjects. Each report was represented as a word-trajectory graph. Connectedness was measured by number of edges, number of nodes in the largest connected component and number of nodes in the largest strongly connected component. Similarities to random graphs were estimated. All connectedness attributes were combined into a single Disorganization Index weighted by the correlation with the positive and negative syndrome scale negative subscale, and used for classifications. Random-like connectedness was more prevalent among schizophrenia patients (64 × 5% in Control group, p = 0.0002). Connectedness from two kinds of memory reports (dream and negative image) explained 88% of negative symptoms variance (p < 0.0001). The Disorganization Index classified low vs. high severity of negative symptoms with 100% accuracy (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 1), and schizophrenia diagnosis with 91.67% accuracy (area under the receiver operating characteristic curve = 0.85). The index was validated in an independent cohort of chronic psychotic patients and controls (N = 60) (85% accuracy). Thus, speech disorganization during the first clinical contact correlates tightly with negative symptoms, and is quite discriminative of the schizophrenia diagnosis.
Alice-Bob Physics: Coherent Solutions of Nonlocal KdV Systems
Authors: Lou S. Y. , Huang Fei
Published: April 2017

In natural and social science, many events happened at different space-times may be closely correlated. Two events, A (Alice) and B (Bob) are defined correlated if one event is determined by another, say, $${\boldsymbol{B}}=\hat{{\boldsymbol{f}}}A$$
B
=

f
ˆ

A
for suitable $$\hat{{\boldsymbol{f}}}$$

f
ˆ

operators. Taking KdV and coupled KdV systems as examples, we can find some types of models (AB-KdV systems) to exhibit the existence on the correlated solutions linked with two events. The idea of this report is valid not only for physical problems related to KdV systems but also for problems described by arbitrary continuous or discrete models. The parity and time reversal symmetries are extended to shifted parity and delayed time reversal. The new symmetries are found to be useful not only to establish AB-systems but also to find group invariant solutions of numerous AB-systems. A new elegant form of the N-soliton solutions of the KdV equation and then the AB-KdV systems is obtained. A concrete AB-KdV system derived from the nonlinear inviscid dissipative and barotropic vorticity equation in a β-plane channel is applied to the two correlated monople blocking events which is responsible for the snow disaster in the winter of 2007/2008 happened in Southern China.
Pestalotiopsis and allied genera from Camellia, with description of 11 new species from China
Authors: Liu Fang , Hou Lingwei , Raza Mubashar , Cai Lei
Published: April 2017

A total of 124 Pestalotiopsis-like isolates associated with symptomatic and asymptomatic tissues of Camellia sinensis and other Camellia spp. from eight provinces in China were investigated. Based on single- and multi-locus (ITS, TEF, TUB2) phylogenies, as well as morphological characters, host associations and geographical distributions, they were classified into at least 19 species in three genera, i.e. Neopestalotiopsis, Pestalotiopsis and Pseudopestalotiopsis. Eight novel species in Pestalotiopsis and three novel species in Pseudopestalotiopsis were described. Our data suggested that the currently widely used loci in Pestalotiopsis-like genera do not consistently provide stable and sufficient resolution tree topologies, especially for Neopestalotiopsis. Moreover, the number, branch pattern and length of the conidial basal appendages were revealed to be phylogenetically informative characters in Pestalotiopsis.
Apple pomace improves the quality of pig manure aerobic compost by reducing emissions of NH3 and N2O
Authors: Mao Hui , Zhang Teng , Li Ronghua , Zhai Bingnian , Wang Zhaohui , Wang Quan , Zhang Zengqiang
Published: April 2017

In this study, the effects of apple pomace (AP) addition (0%, 5%, 10%, and 20% on a dry weight basis, named as control, AP1, AP2, and AP3) and citric acid (CA) addition on nitrogen conservation were investigated during aerobic composting of pig manure. Gaseous emissions of NH3 and N2O were inhibited by AP and CA addition, with AP’s effect greater. The inhibition improved with increasing AP addition. The AP3 treatment was the most effective on NH3 adsorption and transformation to $${{\bf{NH}}}_{{\bf{4}}}^{{\boldsymbol{+}}}$$

NH

4

+

-N, improved with subsequent transformation to $${{\bf{NO}}}_{{\bf{3}}}^{{\boldsymbol{-}}}$$

NO

3

−

-N, and inhibition of N2O and $${{\bf{NO}}}_{{\bf{2}}}^{{\boldsymbol{-}}}$$

NO

2

−

production. Compared with control, AP3 showed the highest inhibition of accumulated NH3 and N2O emission, by 57% and 24%, respectively, and with a 19% increase of total Kjeldahl nitrogen in the compost. The further pot experiment proved the application of the AP amendment compost could improve the yield and trace element nutrient accumulation in Chinese cabbage when planted in a typical Zn-deficient soil. This study illustrates that AP application benefits both compost nitrogen conservation and fertilizer quality.
Silicon Solar Cells on Glass with Power Conversion Efficiency above 13% at Thickness below 15 Micrometer
Authors: Sonntag Paul , Preissler Natalie , Bokalič Matevž , Trahms Martina , Haschke Jan , Schlatmann Rutger , Topič Marko , Rech Bernd , Amkreutz Daniel
Published: April 2017

Liquid phase crystallized silicon on glass with a thickness of (10–40) μm has the potential to reduce material costs and the environmental impact of crystalline silicon solar cells. Recently, wafer quality open circuit voltages of over 650 mV and remarkable photocurrent densities of over 30 mA/cm2 have been demonstrated on this material, however, a low fill factor was limiting the performance. In this work we present our latest cell progress on 13 μm thin poly-crystalline silicon fabricated by the liquid phase crystallization directly on glass. The contact system uses passivated back-side silicon hetero-junctions, back-side KOH texture for light-trapping and interdigitated ITO/Ag contacts. The fill factors are up to 74% and efficiencies are 13.2% under AM1.5 g for two different doping densities of 1 · 1017/cm3 and 2 · 1016/cm3. The former is limited by bulk and interface recombination, leading to a reduced saturation current density, the latter by series resistance causing a lower fill factor. Both are additionally limited by electrical shading and losses at grain boundaries and dislocations. A small 1 × 0.1 cm2 test structure circumvents limitations of the contact design reaching an efficiency of 15.9% clearly showing the potential of the technology.
Novel metrics to measure coverage in whole exome sequencing datasets reveal local and global non-uniformity
Authors: Wang Qingyu , Shashikant Cooduvalli S. , Jensen Matthew , Altman Naomi S. , Girirajan Santhosh
Published: April 2017

Whole Exome Sequencing (WES) is a powerful clinical diagnostic tool for discovering the genetic basis of many diseases. A major shortcoming of WES is uneven coverage of sequence reads over the exome targets contributing to many low coverage regions, which hinders accurate variant calling. In this study, we devised two novel metrics, Cohort Coverage Sparseness (CCS) and Unevenness (UE) Scores for a detailed assessment of the distribution of coverage of sequence reads. Employing these metrics we revealed non-uniformity of coverage and low coverage regions in the WES data generated by three different platforms. This non-uniformity of coverage is both local (coverage of a given exon across different platforms) and global (coverage of all exons across the genome in the given platform). The low coverage regions encompassing functionally important genes were often associated with high GC content, repeat elements and segmental duplications. While a majority of the problems associated with WES are due to the limitations of the capture methods, further refinements in WES technologies have the potential to enhance its clinical applications.
EBV based cancer prevention and therapy in nasopharyngeal carcinoma
Authors: Cao Ya
Published: April 2017

Epstein–Barr virus is an important cancer causing virus. Nasopharyngeal carcinoma is an infection-related cancer strongly driven by Epstein–Barr virus. In this cancer model, we identified the major host targets of latent membrane protein 1 which is a driving oncogene encoded by Epstein–Barr virus in latency infection. latent membrane protein 1 activates several oncogenic signaling axes causing multiple malignant phenotypes and therapeutic resistance. Also, Epstein–Barr virus up-regulates DNA methyltransferase 1 and mediates onco-epigenetic effects in the carcinogenesis. The collaborating pathways activated by latent membrane protein 1 constructs an oncogenic signaling network, which makes latent membrane protein 1 an important potential target for effective treatment or preventive intervention. In Epstein–Barr virus lytic phase, the plasma level of Epstein–Barr virus DNA is considered as a distinguishing marker for nasopharyngeal carcinoma in subjects from healthy high-risk populations and is also a novel prognostic marker in Epstein–Barr virus-positive nasopharyngeal carcinoma. Now the early detection and screening of the lytic proteins and Epstein–Barr virus DNA have been applied to clinical and high-risk population. The knowledge generated regarding Epstein–Barr virus can be used in Epstein–Barr virus based precision cancer prevention and therapy in the near future.
Inhibition of Mcl-1 enhances cell death induced by the Bcl-2-selective inhibitor ABT-199 in acute myeloid leukemia cells
Authors: Luedtke Daniel A , Niu Xiaojia , Pan Yihang , Zhao Jianyun , Liu Shuang , Edwards Holly , Chen Kang , Lin Hai , Taub Jeffrey W , Ge Yubin
Published: April 2017

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is a serious disease. The 5-year survival rates remain frustratingly low (65% for children and 26% for adults). Resistance to frontline chemotherapy (usually cytarabine) often develops; therefore a new treatment modality is needed. Bcl-2 family proteins play an important role in balancing cell survival and apoptosis. The antiapoptotic Bcl-2 family proteins have been found to be dysregulated in AML. ABT-199, a BH3 mimetic, was developed to target antiapoptotic protein Bcl-2. Although ABT-199 has demonstrated promising results, resistance occurs. Previous studies in AML show that ABT-199 alone decreases the association of proapoptotic protein Bim with Bcl-2, but this is compensated by increased association of Bim with prosurvival protein Mcl-1, stabilizing Mcl-1, resulting in resistance to ABT-199. In this study, we investigated the antileukemic activity of the Mcl-1-selective inhibitor A-1210477 in combination with ABT-199 in AML cells. We found that A-1210477 synergistically induced apoptosis with ABT-199 in AML cell lines and primary patient samples. The synergistic induction of apoptosis was decreased upon Bak, Bax and Bim knockdown. While A-1210477 treatment alone also increased Mcl-1 protein levels, combination with ABT-199 reduced binding of Bim to Mcl-1. Our results demonstrate that sequestration of Bim by Mcl-1, a mechanism of ABT-199 resistance, can be abrogated by combined treatment with the Mcl-1 inhibitor A-1201477.
Comments on ”Evidence of the hydrogen release mechanism in bulk MgH2”
Authors: Surrey Alexander , Nielsch Kornelius , Rellinghaus Bernd
Published: April 2017

The effect of an electron beam induced dehydrogenation of MgH2 in the transmission electron microscope (TEM) is largely underestimated by Nogita et al., and led the authors to a misinterpretation of their TEM observations. Firstly, the selected area diffraction (SAD) pattern is falsely interpreted. A re-evaluation of the SAD pattern reveals that no MgH2 is present in the sample, but that it rather consists of Mg and MgO only. Secondly, the transformation of the sample upon in-situ heating in the TEM cannot be ascribed to dehydrogenation, but is rather to be explained by the (nanoscale) Kirkendall effect, which leads to the formation of hollow MgO shells without any metallic Mg in their cores. Hence, the conclusions drawn from the TEM investigation are invalid, as the authors apparently have never studied MgH2.
Demonstration of a Three-dimensional Negative Index Medium Operated at Multiple-angle Incidences by Monolithic Metallic Hemispherical Shells
Authors: Yeh Ting-Tso , Huang Tsung-Yu , Tanaka Takuo , Yen Ta-Jen
Published: April 2017

We design and construct a three-dimensional (3D) negative index medium (NIM) composed of gold hemispherical shells to supplant an integration of a split-ring resonator and a discrete plasmonic wire for both negative permeability and permittivity at THz gap. With the proposed highly symmetric gold hemispherical shells, the negative index is preserved at multiple incident angles ranging from 0° to 85° for both TE and TM waves, which is further evidenced by negative phase flows in animated field distributions and outweighs conventional fishnet structures with operating frequency shifts when varying incident angles. Finally, the fabrication of the gold hemispherical shells is facilitated via standard UV lithographic and isotropic wet etching processes and characterized by μ-FTIR. The measurement results agree the simulated ones very well.
Disulfide-induced self-assembled targets: A novel strategy for the label free colorimetric detection of DNAs/RNAs via unmodified gold nanoparticles
Authors: Shokri Ehsan , Hosseini Morteza , Davari Mehdi D. , Ganjali Mohammad R. , Peppelenbosch Maikel P. , Rezaee Farhad
Published: April 2017

A modified non-cross-linking gold-nanoparticles (Au-NPs) aggregation strategy has been developed for the label free colorimetric detection of DNAs/RNAs based on self-assembling target species in the presence of thiolated probes. Two complementary thiol- modified probes, each of which specifically binds at one half of the target introduced SH groups at both ends of dsDNA. Continuous disulfide bond formation at 3′ and 5′ terminals of targets leads to the self-assembly of dsDNAs into the sulfur- rich and flexible products with different lengths. These products have a high affinity for the surface of Au-NPs and efficiently protect the surface from salt induced aggregation. To evaluate the assay efficacy, a small part of the citrus tristeza virus (CTV) genome was targeted, leading to a detection limit of about 5 × 10−9 mol.L−1 over a linear ranged from 20 × 10−9 to 10 × 10−7 mol.L−1. This approach also exhibits good reproducibility and recovery levels in the presence of plant total RNA or human plasma total circulating RNA extracts. Self-assembled targets can be then sensitively distinguished from non-assembled or mismatched targets after gel electrophoresis. The disulfide reaction method and integrating self-assembled DNAs/RNAs targets with bare AuNPs as a sensitive indicator provide us a powerful and simple visual detection tool for a wide range of applications.
Assessment of Conjunctival Microvascular Hemodynamics in Stages of Diabetic Microvasculopathy
Authors: Khansari Maziyar M. , Wanek Justin , Tan Michael , Joslin Charlotte E. , Kresovich Jacob K. , Camardo Nicole , Blair Norman P. , Shahidi Mahnaz
Published: April 2017

Diabetes impairs the microcirculation and function of various vital tissues throughout the body. The conjunctival microcirculation can be non-invasively imaged and thus enables assessment of microvascular hemodynamics. In this study, alterations in conjunctival microvascular hemodynamics were quantitatively assessed at stages of increasing diabetic microvasculopathy based on diabetic retinopathy (DR). Subjects were categorized into non-diabetic control (C, N = 34), no clinically visible DR (NDR, N = 47), non-proliferative DR (NPDR, N = 45), and proliferative DR (PDR, N = 35). Conjunctival hemodynamic descriptors, namely vessel diameter (D), blood velocity (V), blood flow (Q), wall shear rate (WSR), and wall shear stress (WSS) were measured in arterioles and venules, and compared between DR and C subjects using generalized linear mixed models. In arterioles, V, WSR, and WSS were lower in NDR (P ≤ 0.01). V was lower in NDR than NPDR and PDR subjects (P ≤ 0.02). In venules, D was higher in NDR and NPDR (P ≤ 0.03), while V was lower in PDR (P = 0.04). Venular V and Q were higher in NPDR than PDR subjects (P ≤ 0.04). WSR and WSS were lower in all stages of DR (P ≤ 0.05), suggestive of the potential of WSS as a marker of diabetic microvasculopathy. Quantitative assessment of conjunctival hemodynamics can potentially be useful for evaluation of diabetic microvasculopathy.
Correction: Corrigendum: Effects of silk fibroin in murine dry eye
Authors: Kim Chae Eun , Lee Ji Hyun , Yeon Yeung Kyu , Park Chan Hum , Yang JaeWook
Published: April 2017

Scientific Reports 7: Article number: 44364; published online: 10 March 2017; updated: 07 April 2017 This Article contains an error in the Acknowledgements section: “This study was supported by a grant from the Korea Healthcare Technology R&D Project of the Ministry of Health and Welfare Affairs, Republic of Korea (Grant No.
Decoding Network Structure in On-Chip Integrated Flow Cells with Synchronization of Electrochemical Oscillators
Authors: Jia Yanxin , Kiss István Z.
Published: April 2017

The analysis of network interactions among dynamical units and the impact of the coupling on self-organized structures is a challenging task with implications in many biological and engineered systems. We explore the coupling topology that arises through the potential drops in a flow channel in a lab-on-chip device that accommodates chemical reactions on electrode arrays. The networks are revealed by analysis of the synchronization patterns with the use of an oscillatory chemical reaction (nickel electrodissolution) and are further confirmed by direct decoding using phase model analysis. In dual electrode configuration, a variety coupling schemes, (uni- or bidirectional positive or negative) were identified depending on the relative placement of the reference and counter electrodes (e.g., placed at the same or the opposite ends of the flow channel). With three electrodes, the network consists of a superposition of a localized (upstream) and global (all-to-all) coupling. With six electrodes, the unique, position dependent coupling topology resulted spatially organized partial synchronization such that there was a synchrony gradient along the quasi-one-dimensional spatial coordinate. The networked, electrode potential (current) spike generating electrochemical reactions hold potential for construction of an in-situ information processing unit to be used in electrochemical devices in sensors and batteries.
Cost-Effectiveness of Administering Rituximab for Steroid-Dependent Nephrotic Syndrome and Frequently Relapsing Nephrotic Syndrome: A Preliminary Study in Japan
Authors: Takura Tomoyuki , Takei Takashi , Nitta Kosaku
Published: April 2017

With regard to the use of rituximab for patients with steroid-dependent nephrotic syndrome and frequently relapsing nephrotic syndrome, not only has the regimen not been clinically verified but also there is a lack of health economics evidence. Therefore, we conducted a prospective clinical study on 30 patients before (with steroids and immunosuppressants) and after introducing rituximab therapy. Relapse rates and total invoiced medical expenses were selected as the primary endpoints for treatment effectiveness and treatment costs, respectively. As secondary endpoints, cost-effectiveness was compared before and after administering rituximab in relation to previous pharmacotherapy. The observation period was 24 months before and after the initiation of rituximab. We showed that there was a statistically significant improvement in the relapse rate from a mean of 4.30 events before administration to a mean of 0.27 events after administration and that there was a significantly better prognosis in the cumulative avoidance of relapse rate by Kaplan–Meier analysis (p < 0.01). Finally, the total medical costs decreased from 2,923 USD to 1,280 USD per month, and the pre–post cost-effectiveness was confirmed as dominant. We, therefore, conclude that treatment with rituximab was possibly superior to previous pharmacological treatments from a health economics perspective.
Origami-based cellular metamaterial with auxetic, bistable, and self-locking properties
Authors: Kamrava Soroush , Mousanezhad Davood , Ebrahimi Hamid , Ghosh Ranajay , Vaziri Ashkan
Published: April 2017

We present a novel cellular metamaterial constructed from Origami building blocks based on Miura-ori fold. The proposed cellular metamaterial exhibits unusual properties some of which stemming from the inherent properties of its Origami building blocks, and others manifesting due to its unique geometrical construction and architecture. These properties include foldability with two fully-folded configurations, auxeticity (i.e., negative Poisson’s ratio), bistability, and self-locking of Origami building blocks to construct load-bearing cellular metamaterials. The kinematics and force response of the cellular metamaterial during folding were studied to investigate the underlying mechanisms resulting in its unique properties using analytical modeling and experiments.
Discovery of new muscarinic acetylcholine receptor antagonists from Scopolia tangutica
Authors: Du Nana , Liu Yanfang , Zhang Xiuli , Wang Jixia , Zhao Jianqiang , He Jian , Zhou Han , Mei Lijuan , Liang Xinmiao
Published: April 2017

Scopolia tangutica (S. tangutica) is a traditional Chinese medicinal plant used for antispasmodics, anesthesia, analgesia and sedation. Its pharmacological activities are mostly associated with the antagonistic activity at muscarinic acetylcholine receptors (mAchRs) of several known alkaloids such as atropine and scopolamine. With our recent identification of four hydroxycinnamic acid amides from S. tangutica, we hypothesized that this plant may contain previously unidentified alkaloids that may also contribute to its in vivo effect. Herein, we used a bioassay-guided multi-dimension separation strategy to discover novel mAchR antagonists from S. tangutica. The core of this approach is to use label-free cell phenotypic assay to first identify active fractions, and then to guide purification of active ligands. Besides four tropanes and six cinnamic acid amides that have been previously isolated from S. tangutica, we recently identified two new tropanes, one new cinnamic acid amide, and nine other compounds. Six tropane compounds purified from S. tangutica for the first time were confirmed to be competitive antagonists of muscarinic receptor 3 (M3), including the two new ones 8 and 12 with IC50 values of 1.97 μM and 4.47 μM, respectively. Furthermore, the cinnamic acid amide 17 displayed 15-fold selectivity for M1 over M3 receptors. These findings will be useful in designing lead compounds for mAchRs and elucidating mechanisms of action of S. tangutica.