bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
How dependent were the ‘dependent poor’? Poor relief and the life-course in Terling, Essex, 1762–1834
Authors: FRENCH HENRY
Published: August 2015

Despite the volume of research on the Old Poor Law, only in the last two decades have detailed local studies begun to assess the impact of relief payments across the life-courses of individuals. Their conclusions have been mixed. While many have found that the rural labouring poor of southern England were increasingly frequent recipients of poor relief after the 1780s, recent studies have indicated that ‘dependence’ on relief was generally intermittent, not permanent. Based on a new dataset for the Essex village of Terling, this study sets individual life-histories within the broader chronology of change to show how young, able-bodied men and women became relief recipients much more often after 1795 than they had before.
The usual suspect: worker migration and law enforcement in mid-nineteenth-century Anatolia
Authors: PAZ OMRI
Published: August 2015

Trials held in Anatolia around the mid-nineteenth century suggest that labour migrants became ‘the usual suspects’ in felony cases. Since the 1980s, a significant body of work on migration has emerged. Uncovering the voices of individual migrants has been a major endeavour of these studies. By following a legal case concerning one labour immigrant, and applying the methods of microhistory, this article aims to show how a socio-legal reading of migration is useful in reconstructing the history of immigrants, especially in the nineteenth century, when migration became a legal issue. Second, the article aims to demonstrate the potential of diaspora theory for analysing and explaining the experience of labour immigrants from the Balkans and the Aegean Islands during the nineteenth century, among them the protagonist of this paper.
Granaries (pósitos): a source of finance for Spain's small farmers, 1900–1950
Authors: MARTÍNEZ-SOTO ÁNGEL PASCUAL , MARTÍNEZ-RODRÍGUEZ SUSANA
Published: August 2015

Under the Ancien Régime in Spain local granaries (in Spanish, pósitos) acted as welfare institutions designed to help small farmers in times of crisis. During the first third of the twentieth century they were subject to an intense reorganisation in Spain and this transformed them into the only microfinance institution to which a significant part of the country's rural population had access. However, as the granaries were beginning to get their finances in order, the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War (1936–1939) and the ensuing change in political regime meant that from 1950 onwards they found themselves relegated to the financial margins. The longevity of the granaries makes them an interesting example of a type of financial institution that was able to adapt to different political regimes by changing the way they operated while maintaining their core objective of supporting small farmers.
Preface
Authors: DEZANI MARIANGIOLA , MANTACI SABRINA , SCIORTINO MARINELLA
Published: August 2015

This special issue of Mathematical Structures in Computer Science is devoted to the fourteenth Italian Conference on Theoretical Computer Science (ICTCS) held at University of Palermo, Italy, from 9th to 11th September 2013. ICTCS is the conference of the Italian Chapter of the European Association for Theoretical Computer Science and covers a wide spectrum of topics in Theoretical Computer Science, ranging from computational complexity to logic, from algorithms and data structure to programming languages, from combinatorics on words to distributed computing. For this reason, the contributions here included come from very different areas of Theoretical Computer Science. In fact this special issue is motivated by the desire to give people who have presented their ideas at the 14th ICTCS the opportunity to publish papers on their work. Submitted papers have been subject to a careful and severe reviewing process and 11 of them were selected for this special issue.
War, monetary reforms and the Belgian art market, 1945–1951
Authors: David Géraldine , Oosterlinck Kim
Published: August 2015

To investigate the link between monetary reforms and prices on the art market, this article focuses on the aftermath of the Gutt plan, a monetary purge implemented in Belgium just after World War II. On the basis of an original database of close on 3,000 artworks sold between 1945 and 1951, this article shows that, following the implementation of the Gutt plan, real prices on the art market experienced a massive drop suggesting that real prices on the art market are significantly influenced by money supply.
Preliminary Investigation into the Role of Physiotherapists in Disaster Response
Authors: Harrison Rosalind M.
Published: August 2015

Introduction:

Increasingly, disasters and disaster response have become prominent issues in recent years. Despite their involvement, there have been almost no investigations into the roles of physiotherapists in emergency disaster responses.Additionally, physiotherapists are not employed in emergency disaster response by many of the principal non-governmental organizations supplying such care, although they are included in military responses in the United States and United Kingdom, and in Disaster Medical Assistance Teams in the US.This paper, based on a small qualitative study, focuses on the potential role and nature of input of physiotherapists in disaster response.

Methods:

A qualitative approach was chosen due to the emergent nature of the phenomenon. Four physiotherapists, all of whom had been involved in some type of disaster response, agreed to participate. Semi-structured telephone interviews were used to explore participants' experiences following disaster response, and to gain ideas about future roles for physiotherapists. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and later analyzed using coding and categorization of data.

Results:

Four main themes emerged: (1) descriptions of disasters; (2) current roles of the physiotherapist; (3) future roles of physiotherapists; and (4) overcoming barriers. Although all four physiotherapists had been ill-prepared for disaster response, they took on multiple roles, primarily in organization and treatment. However, participants identified several barriers to future involvement, including organizational and professional barriers, and gave suggestions for overcoming these.

Conclusions:

The participants had participated in disaster response, but in ill-defined roles, indicating a need for a greater understanding of disaster response among the physiotherapy community and by organizations supplying such care. The findings of this study have implications for such organizations in terms of employing skilled physiotherapists in order to improve disaster response. In future disasters, physiotherapy will be of benefit in treating and preventing rescue worker injury and treating musculoskeletal, critical, respiratory, and burn patients.
DISENCHANTED RELIGION AND SECULAR ENCHANTMENT INA CHRISTMAS CAROL
Authors: Taft Joshua
Published: August 2015

The Victorian agehas long been considered a time of disenchantment. Beginning with Max Weber's seminal “Science as a Vocation,” secularization theory has argued that belief within modernity is marked by “rationalization and intellectualization and, above all, by the ‘disenchantment of the world’” (155). In this account, modernization makes the “enchanted” world fall apart, changing it from a realm of “mysterious incalculable forces” into an empty space governed by nothing more than “technical means and calculations” (139). Religion, this narrative claims, inevitably fades away. It may attempt to survive disenchantment by downplaying its supernatural roots, but this rationalized religion nevertheless gives way to secularism. And although recent scholarship has challenged the assertion that the Victorian age simply marked the decline of faith, the disenchantment narrative remains a powerful one; even critics who dispute aspects of the theory acknowledge its force. Colin Jager'sThe Book of God, for instance, describes Weber's narrative of disenchantment as “a powerful account of the way in which science gradually demystifies the universe” (18), and George Levine'sDarwin Loves Youconcedes that Weber's work, whatever its flaws, survives because it was “fashioned so powerfully and convincingly” (xiv).
PRE-RAPHAELITISM, SCIENCE, AND THE ARTS INTHE GERM
Authors: Holmes John
Published: August 2015

In her landmark study,The Art of the Pre-Raphaelites, Elizabeth Prettejohn identifies “the burgeoning Victorian interest in the sciences” as one of Pre-Raphaelite art's “most important contemporary contexts” (251). Many critics have seen the at times remorseless detail of early Pre-Raphaelite painting and poetry as analogous to science. As Tim Barringer puts it, “The attention which hard-edged Pre-Raphaelite naturalism of the 1850s paid to observing the individual object encapsulates [science's] questioning, empirical spirit” (16). A major exhibition of Pre-Raphaelite landscape painting in London, Berlin, and Madrid in 2004 to 2005 paid close attention to geology, meteorology, and natural history (Staley et al.). There have been a growing number of studies of specific aspects of the relationship between Pre-Raphaelitism and science, with individual chapters or articles published on Pre-Raphaelitism and phrenology (Grilli), physiognomy (Hartley 80–109) and ethnography (Pointon), and on specific painters, including John Everett Millais (Codell) and John Brett (Payne 104–23). Through this work, recent critics have begun to rediscover the relationship between Pre-Raphaelitism and science which Victorian critics favourable to the movement saw as fundamental to it (see also Rosenfeld). Writing in theFortnightly Reviewin 1867, Sidney Colvin remarked that “the scientific spirit, coupled with the disgust of earnest men at academic pretensions and their reaction from academic principles, constituted the very essence of præ-Raphaelitism” (470–71).
ON PRINT CULTURE: MEDIATION, PRACTICE, POLITICS, KNOWLEDGE
Authors: Leckie Barbara
Published: August 2015

In 2001 Laurel Brakewrote an article entitled “On Print Culture: The State We're In.” Now, almost fifteen years later, where does the term “print culture” stand in relation to Victorian studies? Brake was both brave and wise in her speculations. She knew very well that terminology – and fields and theories – have lives of their own and yet that sometimes someone has to step forward and try on certain names for size, make a pitch for style and fit and function. Brake took that risk in her endorsement of print culture. This essay considers the ways in which print culture has resonated in the intervening years by reviewing both books that have engaged productively with the term and books that have not used the term and yet are working under its umbrella.
Novel Super-Fast Three-Dimensional SEM Image Simulation
Authors: Cizmar P. , Frase C.G. , Bosse H.
Published: August 2015

Extended abstract of a paper presented at Microscopy and Microanalysis 2013 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, August 4 – August 8, 2013.
American World Order: The End of the ‘End of History’
Authors: CHUGROV SERGEY
Published: August 2015

It seems that everyone has already realized that our world enters a period of fundamental changes and the formation of a new world order. Today, the question of how the modern world will develop is one of the most vital problems of international relations. Therefore, I want to once again prudently refer to the books by J. John Ikenberry and Acharya Amitav on the American World Order (AWO)? Both books represent a lucid, intelligent, and thought-provoking analysis of tectonic transformations in the world as well as a subtle foresight of certain trends.
Asian Multilateralism in the Age of Japan's ‘New Normal’: Perils and Prospects
Authors: TAN SEE SENG
Published: August 2015

This paper makes three related points. First, Japan has played an instrumental role in helping to define the shape and substance of multilateralism in Asia in ways deeper than scholarly literature on Asia's regional architecture has allowed. A key driving force behind Japan's contributions is the perceived utility of multilateralism in facilitating Japan's engagement of and/or balancing against China. Second, Japan has been able to achieve this because of the United States' support for Asian multilateralism and Japanese security interests. In the immediate post-Cold War period, Japan facilitated US participation in regional arrangements such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation and the ASEAN Regional Forum. But Japanese ambivalence over its dependence on the United States was also apparent in Tokyo's attempts to exclude Washington from the newly formed East Asia Summit in late 2005, despite Japan's felt need to balance China. Japan's reliance on quiet diplomacy and an implicit regional leadership has equally been instrumental to its achievements in regional integration. Third, in the light of Japan's longstanding aim to become a normal military power and adopt a more assertive policy toward China, Japan‒US security ties are likely to deepen with negative consequences for Asian multilateralism. However, if its ties with China and South Korea worsen over their islands disputes in the East China Sea, Japan risks undermining its relations with the United States. How Japan balances its normalization with a continued engagement with multilateralism could be key to a stable and secure Asia.
Presidentialization of Japanese Politics? Examining Political Leader Evaluations and Vote Choice
Authors: JOU WILLY , ENDO MASAHISA
Published: August 2015

In recent years, the impact of party leaders on voting behavior has attracted increasing attention, leading some scholars to identify a phenomenon of ‘presidentialization’. Many extant studies of this topic in Japan are limited to one or two electoral cycles. In order to trace long-term trends, this paper analyses longitudinal survey data to investigate the existence and magnitude of the effect party leader evaluations exert on vote choice in Japan. Empirical results show that while only dominant and forceful personalities substantially influenced voters' likelihood of supporting their parties in the 1980s and 1990s, by the 2000s assessments of most major party leaders had a significant impact on their parties' electoral performance. In short, party leaders affect vote choice due not to their personalities, but instead to the position they hold. We also test the hypotheses that the association between leader appraisal and voting behavior would be particularly conspicuous among voters who lack party identification and those who are most heavily exposed to media reportage. Analysis reveals that (1) independent voters are not more likely to vote on the basis of leader evaluations than partisans; (2) a leader effect is found more frequently among voters with greater exposure to election coverage on television.
No effect of artificial gravity on lung function with exercise training during head-down bed rest
Authors: Su Longxiang , Guo Yinghua , Wang Yajuan , Wang Delong , Liu Changting
Published: August 2015

The aim of this study is to explore the effectiveness of microgravity simulated by head-down bed rest (HDBR) and artificial gravity (AG) with exercise on lung function. Twenty-four volunteers were randomly divided into control and exercise countermeasure (CM) groups for 96 h of 6° HDBR. Comparisons of pulse rate, pulse oxygen saturation (SpO2) and lung function were made between these two groups at 0, 24, 48, 72, 96 h. Compared with the sitting position, inspiratory capacity and respiratory reserve volume were significantly higher than before HDBR (0° position) (P< 0.05). Vital capacity, expiratory reserve volume, forced vital capacity, forced expiratory volume in 1 s, forced inspiratory vital capacity, forced inspiratory volume in 1 s, forced expiratory flow at 25, 50, and 75%, maximal mid-expiratory flow and peak expiratory flow were all significantly lower than those before HDBR (P< 0.05). Neither control nor CM groups showed significant differences in pulse rate, SpO2, pulmonary volume and pulmonary ventilation function over the HDBR observation time. Postural changes can lead to variation in lung volume and ventilation function, but a HDBR model induced no changes in pulmonary function and therefore should not be used to study AG countermeasures.
Depletion of IL‐2 receptor β‐positive cells protects from diabetes in non‐obese diabetic mice
Authors: Brauner Hanna , Hall Håkan T , Flodström‐Tullberg Malin , Kärre Klas , Höglund Petter , Johansson Sofia
Published: August 2015

The destruction of β‐cells in type 1 diabetes (T1D) progresses silently until only a minor fraction of the β‐cells remain. A late acting therapy leading to the prevention of further β‐cell killing would therefore be desirable. CD122, the β chain of the interleukin‐2 receptor, is highly expressed on natural killer (NK) cells and on a subpopulation of CD8 T cells. In this study, we have treated non‐obese diabetic (NOD) mice with a depleting antibody against CD122. The treatment protected from diabetes, even when initiated just before disease onset. The degree of leukocyte infiltration into islets was unaffected by the treatment, further supporting effectiveness late in the disease process. It effectively removed all NK cells from the spleen, pancreas and pancreatic lymph nodes and abolished NK cell activity. Interestingly, despite the lack of CD122 expression on CD8 T cells in the pancreas, the overall frequency of CD8 cells decreased in this organ, whereas it was unaffected in the spleen. T cells were also still capable to respond against a foreign antigen. Conclusively, targeting of CD122+ cells could represent a novel treatment strategy against T1D.
Dielectrophoretic manipulation of the mixture of isotropic and nematic liquid
Authors: Kim Soo-Dong , Lee Bomi , Kang Shin-Woong , Song Jang-Kun
Published: August 2015

In various applications involving liquid crystals, the manipulation of the nanoscale molecular assembly and microscale director alignment is highly useful. Here we show that a nematic–isotropic mixture, a unique bi-liquid system, has potential for the fabrication of microstructures having an ordered phase within a disordered phase, orvice versa. The volume expansion and shrinkage, migration, splitting, mergence and elongation of one phase within the other are easily accomplished via thermal treatment and dielectrophoretic manipulation. This is particularly achievable when one phase is suspended in the middle. In that case, a highly biased ordered-phase preference of surfaces, that is, the nematic-philic nature of a polyimide layer and the nematic-phobic nature of a self-assembled monolayer of chlorosilane derivatives, is used. Further, by combining this approach with photopolymerization, the patterned microstructure is solidified as a patterned polymer film having both isotropic and anisotropic molecular arrangements simultaneously, or as a template with a morphological variation.
Pannexin 1 channels regulate leukocyte emigration through the venous endothelium during acute inflammation
Authors: Lohman Alexander W. , Leskov Igor L. , Butcher Joshua T. , Johnstone Scott R. , Stokes Tara A. , Begandt Daniela , DeLalio Leon J. , Best Angela K. , Penuela Silvia , Leitinger Norbert , Ravichandran Kodi S. , Stokes Karen Y. , Isakson Brant E.
Published: August 2015

Inflammatory cell recruitment to local sites of tissue injury and/or infection is controlled by a plethora of signalling processes influencing cell-to-cell interactions between the vascular endothelial cells (ECs) in post-capillary venules and circulating leukocytes. Recently, ATP-sensitive P2Y purinergic receptors have emerged as downstream regulators of EC activation in vascular inflammation. However, the mechanism(s) regulating cellular ATP release in this response remains elusive. Here we report that the ATP-release channel Pannexin1 (Panx1) opens downstream of EC activation by TNF-α. This process involves activation of type-1 TNF receptors, recruitment of Src family kinases (SFK) and SFK-dependent phosphorylation of Panx1. Using an inducible, EC-specific Panx1 knockout mouse line, we report a previously unidentified role for Panx1 channels in promoting leukocyte adhesion and emigration through the venous wall during acute systemic inflammation, placing Panx1 channels at the centre of cytokine crosstalk with purinergic signalling in the endothelium.
Association of chromosome 5q21.3 polymorphisms with the exploratory eye movement dysfunction in schizophrenia
Authors: Ma Yuanlin , Li Jun , Yu Hao , Wang Lifang , Lu Tianlan , Pan Chao , Han Yonghua , Zhang Dai , Yue Weihua
Published: August 2015

Schizophrenia patients show abnormalities in many eye movement tasks. Among them, exploratory eye movements (EEM) dysfunction seems to be specific to schizophrenia. However the mechanism of EEM disturbances in schizophrenia patients remains elusive. We investigate the relationship between EEM and single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) or genes to identify susceptibility loci for EEM in schizophrenia. We firstly performed EEM test, then performed a genome-wide association study (GWAS) and gene-based association study of EEM in 128 individuals with schizophrenia and 143 healthy control subjects. Comparing to healthy controls, schizophrenia patients show significant decrease in NEF (22.99 ± 3.96 vs. 26.02 ± 5.72, P <0.001), TESL (368.78 ± 123.57 vs. 603.12 ± 178.63, P <0.001), MESL (16.86 ± 5.27 vs. 24.42 ± 6.46, P <0.001), RSS (8.22 ± 1.56 vs. 10.92 ± 1.09, P <0.001) and CSS (5.06 ± 0.97 vs. 6.64 ± 0.87, P <0.001). Five SNPs of the MAN2A1, at 5q21.3, were associated with EEM abnormalities (deceased CSS) and satisfied the criteria of GWAS significance threshold. One is localized near 5’-UTR (rs17450784) and four are in intron (rs1438663, rs17162094, rs6877440 and rs10067856) of the gene. Our findings suggest that the identified loci may control the schizophrenia-related quantitative EEM trait. And the identified gene, associated with the EEM phenotype, may lead to new insights into the etiology of schizophrenia.
Dissipative Continuous Spontaneous Localization (CSL) model
Authors: Smirne Andrea , Bassi Angelo
Published: August 2015

Collapse models explain the absence of quantum superpositions at the macroscopic scale, while giving practically the same predictions as quantum mechanics for microscopic systems. The Continuous Spontaneous Localization (CSL) model is the most refined and studied among collapse models. A well-known problem of this model and of similar ones, is the steady and unlimited increase of the energy induced by the collapse noise. Here we present the dissipative version of the CSL model, which guarantees a finite energy during the entire system’s evolution, thus making a crucial step toward a realistic energy-conserving collapse model. This is achieved by introducing a non-linear stochastic modification of the Schrödinger equation, which represents the action of a dissipative finite-temperature collapse noise. The possibility to introduce dissipation within collapse models in a consistent way will have relevant impact on the experimental investigations of the CSL model and therefore also on the testability of the quantum superposition principle.
Validated prediction of pro-invasive growth factors using a transcriptome-wide invasion signature derived from a complex 3D invasion assay
Authors: Oehrle Bettina , Burgstaller Gerald , Irmler Martin , Dehmel Stefan , Grün Jessica , Hwang Tiffany , Krauss-Etschmann Susanne , Beckers Johannes , Meiners Silke , Eickelberg Oliver
Published: August 2015

The invasion of activated fibroblasts represents a key pathomechanism in fibrotic diseases, carcinogenesis and metastasis. Invading fibroblasts contribute to fibrotic extracellular matrix (ECM) formation and the initiation, progression, or resistance of cancer. To construct transcriptome-wide signatures of fibroblast invasion, we used a multiplex phenotypic 3D invasion assay using lung fibroblasts. Microarray-based gene expression profiles of invading and non-invading fibroblasts demonstrated that 1,049 genes were differentially regulated (>1.5-fold). Unbiased pathway analysis (Ingenuity) identified significant enrichment for the functional clusters ‘invasion of cells’, ‘idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis’ and ‘metastasis’. Matrix metalloprotease 13 (MMP13), transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1, Caveolin (Cav) 1, Phosphatase and Tensin Homolog (Pten) and secreted frizzled-related protein (Sfrp) 1 were among the highest regulated genes, confirmed by qRT-PCR and Western Blotting. We next performed in silico analysis (Ingenuity Pathway Analysis) to predict mediators that induced fibroblast invasion. Of these, TGFβ1, epidermal growth factor (EGF), fibroblast growth factor (FGF) 2 and platelet-derived growth factor (PDGF)-BB were tested in our 3D invasion assay and found to significantly induce invasion, thus validating the transcriptome profile. Accordingly, our transcriptomic invasion signature describes the invading fibroblast phenotype in unprecedented detail and provides a tool for future functional studies of cell invasion and therapeutic modulation thereof using complex phenotypic assays.
Social Eavesdropping in Zebrafish: Tuning of Attention to Social Interactions
Authors: Abril-de-Abreu Rodrigo , Cruz José , Oliveira Rui F.
Published: August 2015

Group living animals may eavesdrop on signalling interactions between conspecifics in order to collect adaptively relevant information obtained from others, without incurring in the costs of first-hand information acquisition. This ability (aka social eavesdropping) is expected to impact Darwinian fitness and hence predicts the evolution of cognitive processes that enable social animals to use public information available in the environment. These adaptive specializations in cognition may have evolved both at the level of learning and memory mechanisms and at the level of input mechanisms, such as attention, which select the information that is available for learning. Here we used zebrafish to test if attention in a social species is tuned to the exchange of information between conspecifics. Our results show that zebrafish are more attentive towards interacting (i.e. fighting) than towards non-interacting pairs of conspecifics, with the exposure to fighting not increasing activity or stress levels. Moreover, using video playbacks to manipulate form features of the fighting fish, we show that during the assessment phase of the fight, bystanders’ attention is more driven by form features of the interacting opponents; whereas during the post-resolution phase, it is driven by biological movement features of the dominant fish chasing the subordinate fish.
Giant paramagnetic Meissner effect in multiband superconductors
Authors: da Silva R. M. , Milošević M. V. , Shanenko A. A. , Peeters F. M. , Aguiar J. Albino
Published: August 2015

Superconductors, ideally diamagnetic when in the Meissner state, can also exhibit paramagnetic behavior due to trapped magnetic flux. In the absence of pinning such paramagnetic response is weak and ceases with increasing sample thickness. Here we show that in multiband superconductors paramagnetic response can be observed even in slab geometries and can be far larger than any previous estimate - even multiply larger than the diamagnetic Meissner response for the same applied magnetic field. We link the appearance of this giant paramagnetic response to the broad crossover between conventional Type-I and Type-II superconductors, where Abrikosov vortices interact non-monotonically and multibody effects become important, causing unique flux configurations and their locking in the presence of surfaces.
Sodium-driven energy conversion for flagellar rotation of the earliest divergent hyperthermophilic bacterium
Authors: Takekawa Norihiro , Nishiyama Masayoshi , Kaneseki Tsuyoshi , Kanai Tamotsu , Atomi Haruyuki , Kojima Seiji , Homma Michio
Published: August 2015

Aquifex aeolicus is a hyperthermophilic, hydrogen-oxidizing and carbon-fixing bacterium that can grow at temperatures up to 95 °C. A. aeolicus has an almost complete set of flagellar genes that are conserved in bacteria. Here we observed that A. aeolicus has polar flagellum and can swim with a speed of 90 μm s−1 at 85 °C. We expressed the A. aeolicus mot genes (motA and motB), which encode the torque generating stator proteins of the flagellar motor, in a corresponding mot nonmotile mutant of Escherichia coli. Its motility was slightly recovered by expression of A. aeolicus MotA and chimeric MotB whose periplasmic region was replaced with that of E. coli. A point mutation in the A. aeolicus MotA cytoplasmic region remarkably enhanced the motility. Using this system in E. coli, we demonstrate that the A. aeolicus motor is driven by Na+. As motor proteins from hyperthermophilic bacteria represent the earliest motor proteins in evolution, this study strongly suggests that ancient bacteria used Na+ for energy coupling of the flagellar motor. The Na+-driven flagellar genes might have been laterally transferred from early-branched bacteria into late-branched bacteria and the interaction surfaces of the stator and rotor seem not to change in evolution.
Methanogenesis from wastewater stimulated by addition of elemental manganese
Authors: Qiao Sen , Tian Tian , Qi Benyu , Zhou Jiti
Published: August 2015

This study presents a novel procedure for accelerating methanogenesis from wastewater by adding elemental manganese into the anaerobic digestion system. The results indicated that elemental manganese effectively enhanced both the methane yield and the production rate. Compared to the control test without elemental manganese, the total methane yield and production rate with 4 g/L manganese addition increased 3.4-fold (from 0.89 ± 0.03 to 2.99 ± 0.37 M/gVSS within 120 h) and 4.4-fold (from 6.2 ± 0.1 to 27.2 ± 2.2 mM/gVSS/h), respectively. Besides, more acetate consumption and less propionate generation were observed during the methanogenesis with manganese. Further studies demonstrated that the elemental manganese served as electron donors for the methanogenesis from carbon dioxide and the final proportion of methane in the total generated gas with 4 g/L manganese addition reached 96.9%, which was 2.1-fold than that of the control (46.6%).
Structure-based Mechanistic Insights into Terminal Amide Synthase in Nosiheptide-Represented Thiopeptides Biosynthesis
Authors: Liu Shanshan , Guo Heng , Zhang Tianlong , Han Li , Yao Pengfei , Zhang Yan , Rong Naiyan , Yu Yi , Lan Wenxian , Wang Chunxi , Ding Jianping , Wang Renxiao , Liu Wen , Cao Chunyang
Published: August 2015

Nosiheptide is a parent compound of thiopeptide family that exhibit potent activities against various bacterial pathogens. Its C-terminal amide formation is catalyzed by NosA, which is an unusual strategy for maturating certain thiopeptides by processing their precursor peptides featuring a serine extension. We here report the crystal structure of truncated NosA1-111 variant, revealing three key elements, including basic lysine 49 (K49), acidic glutamic acid 101 (E101) and flexible C-terminal loop NosA112-151, are crucial to the catalytic terminal amide formation in nosiheptide biosynthesis. The side-chain of residue K49 and the C-terminal loop fasten the substrate through hydrogen bonds and hydrophobic interactions. The side-chain of residue E101 enhances nucleophilic attack of H2O to the methyl imine intermediate, leading to Cα-N bond cleavage and nosiheptide maturation. The sequence alignment of NosA and its homologs NocA, PbtH, TpdK and BerI and the enzymatic assay suggest that the mechanistic studies on NosA present an intriguing paradigm about how NosA family members function during thiopeptide biosynthesis.
Crystal structure of E. coli endonuclease V, an essential enzyme for deamination repair
Authors: Zhang Zhemin , Jia Qian , Zhou Chun , Xie Wei
Published: August 2015

Endonuclease V (EndoV) is a ubiquitous protein present in all three kingdoms of life, responsible for the specific cleavages at the second phosphodiester bond 3’ to inosine. E. coli EndoV (EcEndoV) is the first member discovered in the EndoV family. It is a small protein with a compact gene organization, yet with a wide spectrum of substrate specificities. However, the structural basis of its substrate recognition is not well understood. In this study, we determined the 2.4 Å crystal structure of EcEndoV. The enzyme preserves the general ‘RNase H-like motif’ structure. Two subunits are almost fully resolved in the asymmetric unit, but they are not related by any 2-fold axes. Rather, they establish “head-to-shoulder” contacts with loose interactions between each other. Mutational studies show that mutations that disrupt the association mode of the two subunits also decrease the cleavage efficiencies of the enzyme. Further biochemical studies suggest that EcEndoV is able to bind to single-stranded, undamaged DNA substrates without sequence specificity and forms two types of complexes in a metal-independent manner, which may explain the wide spectrum of substrate specificities of EcEndoV.
Effective W-state fusion strategies for electronic and photonic qubits via the quantum-dot-microcavity coupled system
Authors: Han Xue , Hu Shi , Guo Qi , Wang Hong-Fu , Zhu Ai-Dong , Zhang Shou
Published: August 2015

We propose effective fusion schemes for stationary electronic W state and flying photonic W state, respectively, by using the quantum-dot-microcavity coupled system. The present schemes can fuse a n-qubit W state and a m-qubit W state to a (m + n − 1)-qubit W state, that is, these schemes can be used to not only create large W state with small ones, but also to prepare 3-qubit W states with Bell states. The schemes are based on the optical selection rules and the transmission and reflection rules of the cavity and can be achieved with high probability. We evaluate the effect of experimental imperfections and the feasibility of the schemes, which shows that the present schemes can be realized with high fidelity in both the weak coupling and the strong coupling regimes. These schemes may be meaningful for the large-scale solid-state-based quantum computation and the photon-qubit-based quantum communication.
Glucose recovery from aqueous solutions by adsorption in metal–organic framework MIL-101: a molecular simulation study
Authors: Gupta Krishna M. , Zhang Kang , Jiang Jianwen
Published: August 2015

A molecular simulation study is reported on glucose recovery from aqueous solutions by adsorption in metal-organic framework MIL-101. The F atom of MIL-101 is identified to be the most favorable adsorption site. Among three MIL-101-X (X = H, NH2 or CH3), the parent MIL-101 exhibits the highest adsorption capacity and recovery efficacy. Upon functionalization by -NH2 or -CH3 group, the steric hindrance in MIL-101 increases; consequently, the interactions between glucose and framework become less attractive, thus reducing the capacity and mobility of glucose. The presence of ionic liquid, 1-ethyl-3-methyl-imidazolium acetate, as an impurity reduces the strength of hydrogen-bonding between glucose and MIL-101 and leads to lower capacity and mobility. Upon adding anti-solvent (ethanol or acetone), a similar adverse effect is observed. The simulation study provides useful structural and dynamic properties of glucose in MIL-101 and it suggests that MIL-101 might be a potential candidate for glucose recovery.
A room-temperature sodium rechargeable battery using an SO2-based nonflammable inorganic liquid catholyte
Authors: Jeong Goojin , Kim Hansu , Sug Lee Hyo , Han Young-Kyu , Hwan Park Jong , Hwan Jeon Jae , Song Juhye , Lee Keonjoon , Yim Taeeun , Jae Kim Ki , Lee Hyukjae , Kim Young-Jun , Sohn Hun-Joon
Published: August 2015

Sodium rechargeable batteries can be excellent alternatives to replace lithium rechargeable ones because of the high abundance and low cost of sodium; however, there is a need to further improve the battery performance, cost-effectiveness and safety for practical use. Here we demonstrate a new type of room-temperature and high-energy density sodium rechargeable battery using an SO2-based inorganic molten complex catholyte, which showed a discharge capacity of 153 mAh g−1 based on the mass of catholyte and carbon electrode with an operating voltage of 3 V, good rate capability and excellent cycle performance over 300 cycles. In particular, non-flammability and intrinsic self-regeneration mechanism of the inorganic liquid electrolyte presented here can accelerate the realization of commercialized Na rechargeable battery system with outstanding reliability. Given that high performance and unique properties of Na–SO2 rechargeable battery, it can be another promising candidate for next generation energy storage system.
Novel mechanism of gene transfection by low-energy shock wave
Authors: Hoon Ha Chang , Cheol Lee Seok , Kim Sunghyen , Chung Jihwa , Bae Hasuk , Kwon Kihwan
Published: August 2015

Extracorporeal shock wave (SW) therapy has been studied in the transfection of naked nucleic acids into various cell lines through the process of sonoporation, a process that affects the permeation of cell membranes, which can be an effect of cavitation. In this study, siRNAs were efficiently transfected into primary cultured cells and mouse tumor tissue via SW treatment. Furthermore SW-induced siRNA transfection was not mediated by SW-induced sonoporation, but by microparticles (MPs) secreted from the cells. Interestingly, the transfection effect of the siRNAs was transferable through the secreted MPs from human umbilical vein endothelial cell (HUVEC) culture medium after treatment with SW, into HUVECs in another culture plate without SW treatment. In this study, we suggest for the first time a mechanism of gene transfection induced by low-energy SW through secreted MPs and show that it is an efficient physical gene transfection method in vitro and represents a safe therapeutic strategy for site-specific gene delivery in vivo.
An optimised direct lysis method for gene expression studies on low cell numbers
Authors: Viet-Phuong Le Anh , Huang Dexing , Blick Tony , Thompson Erik W. , Dobrovic Alexander
Published: August 2015

There is increasing interest in gene expression analysis of either single cells or limited numbers of cells. One such application is the analysis of harvested circulating tumour cells (CTCs), which are often present in very low numbers. A highly efficient protocol for RNA extraction, which involves a minimal number of steps to avoid RNA loss, is essential for low input cell numbers. We compared several lysis solutions that enable reverse transcription (RT) to be performed directly on the cell lysate, offering a simple rapid approach to minimise RNA loss for RT. The lysis solutions were assessed by reverse transcription quantitative polymerase chain reaction (RT-qPCR) in low cell numbers isolated from four breast cancer cell lines. We found that a lysis solution containing both the non-ionic detergent (IGEPAL CA-630, chemically equivalent to Nonidet P-40 or NP-40) and bovine serum albumin (BSA) gave the best RT-qPCR yield. This direct lysis to reverse transcription protocol outperformed a column-based extraction method using a commercial kit. This study demonstrates a simple, reliable, time- and cost-effective method that can be widely used in any situation where RNA needs to be prepared from low to very low cell numbers.
Glyphosate-based herbicides reduce the activity and reproduction of earthworms and lead to increased soil nutrient concentrations
Authors: Gaupp-Berghausen Mailin , Hofer Martin , Rewald Boris , Zaller Johann G.
Published: August 2015

Herbicide use is increasing worldwide both in agriculture and private gardens. However, our knowledge of potential side-effects on non-target soil organisms, even on such eminent ones as earthworms, is still very scarce. In a greenhouse experiment, we assessed the impact of the most widely used glyphosate-based herbicide Roundup on two earthworm species with different feeding strategies. We demonstrate, that the surface casting activity of vertically burrowing earthworms (Lumbricus terrestris) almost ceased three weeks after herbicide application, while the activity of soil dwelling earthworms (Aporrectodea caliginosa) was not affected. Reproduction of the soil dwellers was reduced by 56% within three months after herbicide application. Herbicide application led to increased soil concentrations of nitrate by 1592% and phosphate by 127%, pointing to potential risks for nutrient leaching into streams, lakes, or groundwater aquifers. These sizeable herbicide-induced impacts on agroecosystems are particularly worrisome because these herbicides have been globally used for decades.
Bifunctional Mesoporous Carbon Nitride: Highly Efficient Enzyme-like Catalyst for One-pot Deacetalization-Knoevenagel Reaction
Authors: Zhong Lin , Anand Chokkalingam , Lakhi Kripal Singh , Lawrence Geoffrey , Vinu Ajayan
Published: August 2015

Recently, mesoporous carbon nitride (MCN) has aroused extensive interest for its potential applications in organocatalysis, photo- and electrochemistry and CO2 capture. However, further surface functionalization of MCN for advanced nanomaterials and catalysis still remains very challenging. Here we show that acidic carboxyl groups can be smoothly introduced onto the surface of well-ordered MCN without annihilation between the introduced acid groups and MCN’s inherent basic groups through a facile UV light oxidation method. The functionalization generates a novel bifunctional nanocatalyst which offers an enzyme-like catalytic performance in the one-pot deacetalization-Knoevenagel reaction of benzaldehyde dimethylacetal and malononitrile with 100% conversion and more than 99% selectivity due to the cooperative catalysis between the acid and base groups separated on the surface of the catalyst. The results provide a general method to create multifunctional nanomaterials and open new opportunities for the development of high efficient catalyst for green organic synthesis.
Conserved features in TamA enable interaction with TamB to drive the activity of the translocation and assembly module
Authors: Selkrig Joel , Belousoff Matthew J. , Headey Stephen J. , Heinz Eva , Shiota Takuya , Shen Hsin-Hui , Beckham Simone A. , Bamert Rebecca S. , Phan Minh-Duy , Schembri Mark A. , Wilce Matthew C.J. , Scanlon Martin J. , Strugnell Richard A. , Lithgow Trevor
Published: August 2015

The biogenesis of membranes from constituent proteins and lipids is a fundamental aspect of cell biology. In the case of proteins assembled into bacterial outer membranes, an overarching question concerns how the energy required for protein insertion and folding is accessed at this remote location of the cell. The translocation and assembly module (TAM) is a nanomachine that functions in outer membrane biogenesis and virulence in diverse bacterial pathogens. Here we demonstrate the interactions through which TamA and TamB subunits dock to bridge the periplasm and unite the outer membrane aspects to the inner membrane of the bacterial cell. We show that specific functional features in TamA have been conserved through evolution, including residues surrounding the lateral gate and an extensive surface of the POTRA domains. Analysis by nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy and small angle X-ray scattering document the characteristic structural features of these POTRA domains and demonstrate rigidity in solution. Quartz crystal microbalance measurements pinpoint which POTRA domain specifically docks the TamB subunit of the nanomachine. We speculate that the POTRA domain of TamA functions as a lever arm in order to drive the activity of the TAM, assembling proteins into bacterial outer membranes.
Formation of highly toxic hydrogen cyanide upon ruby laser irradiation of the tattoo pigment phthalocyanine blue
Authors: Schreiver Ines , Hutzler Christoph , Laux Peter , Berlien Hans-Peter , Luch Andreas
Published: August 2015

Since laser treatment of tattoos is the favored method for the removing of no longer wanted permanent skin paintings, analytical, biokinetics and toxicological data on the fragmentation pattern of commonly used pigments are urgently required for health safety reasons. Applying dynamic headspace—gas chromatography with mass spectrometric detection (DHS—GC/MS) and comprehensive two-dimensional gas chromatography coupled to time-of-flight mass spectrometry (GCxGC—ToF-MS), we identified 1,2-benzene dicarbonitrile, benzonitrile, benzene and the poisonous gas hydrogen cyanide (HCN) as main fragmentation products emerging dose-dependently upon ruby laser irradiation of the popular blue pigment copper phthalocyanine in suspension. Skin cell viability was found to be significantly compromised at cyanide levels of ≥1 mM liberated during ruby laser irradiation of >1.5 mg/ml phthalocyanine blue. Further, for the first time we introduce pyrolysis-GC/MS as method suitable to simulate pigment fragmentation that may occur spontaneously or during laser removal of organic pigments in the living skin of tattooed people. According to the literature such regular tattoos hold up to 9 mg pigment/cm2skin.
Systematic adjustment of charge densities and size of polyglycerol amines reduces cytotoxic effects and enhances cellular uptake
Authors: Hellmund Markus , Achazi Katharina , Neumann Falko , Thota Bala N. S. , Ma Nan , Haag Rainer
Published: August 2015

Excessive cationic charge density of polyplexes during cellular uptake is still a major hurdle for gene delivery. A systematic study on cytotoxic effects caused by effective charge density related to size showed moderate loaded hPG amines to be higher potential as low/high ones.
Enantio- and diastereoselective synthesis of γ-amino alcohols
Authors: Verkade Jorge M. M. , Quaedflieg Peter J. L. M. , Verzijl Gerard K. M. , Lefort Laurent , van Delft Floris L. , de Vries Johannes G. , Rutjes Floris P. J. T.
Published: August 2015

Two complementary catalytic diastereoselective methods for the synthesis of N-PMP-protected γ-amino alcohols from the corresponding ketones have been developed.
A remarkable enhancement of selectivity towards versatile analytes by a strategically integrated H-bonding site containing phase
Authors: Mallik Abul K. , Qiu Hongdeng , Kuwahara Yutaka , Takafuji Makoto , Ihara Hirotaka
Published: August 2015

An l-glutamide-derived newly designed and synthesized organic phase showed high selectivity in both RPLC and HILIC mode separation.
Versatile strategy for the divergent synthesis of linear oligosaccharide domain variants of Quillaja saponin vaccine adjuvants
Authors: Fernández-Tejada Alberto , Tan Derek S. , Gin David Y.
Published: August 2015

Development of new, synthetically accessible linear oligosaccharide domain variants of the saponin immunoadjuvant QS-21 through a versatile, divergent synthetic approach.
Catalytic transfer hydrogenation and anticancer activity of arene–ruthenium compounds incorporating bi-dentate precursors
Authors: Chang Yu-Hsiang , Leu Wohn-Jenn , Datta Amitabha , Hsiao Hung-Chang , Lin Chia-Her , Guh Jih-Hwa , Huang Jui-Hsien
Published: August 2015

A series of arene–Ru compounds were synthesized and their catalytic transfer hydrogenation and anticancer activity towards human hormone-refractory prostate cancer were investigated.
Salts of highly fluorinated weakly coordinating anions as versatile precursors towards hydrogen storage materials
Authors: Starobrat A. , Tyszkiewicz M. J. , Wegner W. , Pancerz D. , Orłowski P. A. , Leszczyński P. J. , Fijalkowski K. J. , Jaroń T. , Grochala W.
Published: August 2015

Metathetic reactions using salts of highly-fluorinated weakly coordinating anions permit synthesis of high-purity hydrogen storage materials.
Nanostructured cobalt hydroxide thin films as high performance pseudocapacitor electrodes by graphene oxide wrapping
Authors: Bae Sangmi , Cha Ji-Hyun , Lee Jong Hyeon , Jung Duk-Young
Published: August 2015

Thin cobalt hydroxide nanoplates on nickel electrode exhibit a high specific capacitance and good cyclic stability due to fast electrolyte diffusion in their nanostructures and GO wrapping.
Poly(ε-caprolactone) microfiber meshes for repeated oil retrieval
Authors: Hersey J. S. , Yohe S. T. , Grinstaff M. W.
Published: August 2015

A biodegradable, reusable, and microfiber poly(ε-caprolactone) electrospun absorbent is described for separating oil (crude/processed) and water (deionized/seawater) mixtures.