bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Splicing-Dependent Subcellular Targeting of Borna Disease Virus Nucleoprotein Isoforms
Authors: Kojima Shohei , Sato Ryo , Yanai Mako , Komatsu Yumiko , Horie Masayuki , Igarashi Manabu , Tomonaga Keizo
Published: December 2018

Borna disease virus (BoDV) is a highly neurotropic RNA virus that belongs to the orthobornavirus genus. A zoonotic orthobornavirus that is genetically related to BoDV has recently been identified in squirrels, thus increasing the importance of understanding the replication and pathogenesis of orthobornaviruses. BoDV replicates in the nucleus and uses alternative mRNA splicing to express viral proteins. However, it is unknown whether the virus uses splicing to create protein isoforms with different functions. The present study demonstrated that the nucleoprotein transcript undergoes splicing and produces four new isoforms in coordination with alternative usage of translation initiation codons. The spliced isoforms showed a distinct intracellular localization, including in the endoplasmic reticulum, and recombinant viruses lacking the splicing signals replicated more efficiently than the wild type. The results provided not only a new regulation of BoDV replication but also insights into how RNA viruses produce protein isoforms from small genomes.
Porcine Hemagglutinating Encephalomyelitis Virus Activation of the Integrin α5β1-FAK-Cofilin Pathway Causes Cytoskeletal Rearrangement To Promote Its Invasion of N2a Cells
Authors: Lv Xiaoling , Li Zi , Guan Jiyu , Hu Shiyu , Zhang Jing , Lan Yungang , Zhao Kui , Lu Huijun , Song Deguang , He Hongbin , Gao Feng , He Wenqi
Published: December 2018

PHEV, a member of the
Coronaviridae
family, is a typical neurotropic virus that primarily affects the nervous system of piglets to produce typical neurological symptoms. However, the mechanism of nerve damage caused by the virus has not been fully elucidated. Actin is an important component of the cytoskeleton of eukaryotic cells and serves as the first obstacle to the entry of pathogens into host cells. Additionally, the morphological structure and function of nerve cells depend on the dynamic regulation of the actin skeleton. Therefore, exploring the mechanism of neuronal injury induced by PHEV from the perspective of the actin cytoskeleton not only helps elucidate the pathogenesis of PHEV but also provides a theoretical basis for the search for new antiviral targets. This is the first report to define a mechanistic link between alterations in signaling from cytoskeleton pathways and the mechanism of PHEV invading nerve cells.
Coadministration of CH31 Broadly Neutralizing Antibody Does Not Affect Development of Vaccine-Induced Anti-HIV-1 Envelope Antibody Responses in Infant Rhesus Macaques
Authors: Dennis Maria , Eudailey Joshua , Pollara Justin , McMillan Arthur S. , Cronin Kenneth D. , Saha Pooja T. , Curtis Alan D. , Hudgens Michael G. , Fouda Genevieve G. , Ferrari Guido , Alam Munir , Van Rompay Koen K. A. , De Paris Kristina , Permar Sallie , Shen Xiaoying
Published: December 2018

Our study is the first to evaluate the impact of passive infusion of a broadly neutralizing antibody in newborns on thede novodevelopment of antibody responses following active vaccinations in infancy. We demonstrated the safety and the feasibility of bnAb administration to achieve biologically relevant levels of the antibody and showed that the passive infusion did not impair thede novoantibody production following HIV-1 Env vaccination. Our study paves the way for further investigations of the combination strategy using passive plus active immunization to provide protection of infants born to HIV-1-positive mothers over the entire period of risk for mother-to-child transmission.
Influenza Virus Infection Enhances Antibody-Mediated NK Cell Functions via Type I Interferon-Dependent Pathways
Authors: Jegaskanda Sinthujan , Vanderven Hillary A. , Tan Hyon-Xhi , Alcantara Sheilajen , Wragg Kathleen M. , Parsons Matthew S. , Chung Amy W. , Juno Jennifer A. , Kent Stephen J.
Published: December 2018

Protection from severe influenza may be assisted by antibodies that engage NK cells to kill infected cells through ADCC. Studies have primarily focused on antibodies that have ADCC activity, rather than the capacity of NK cells to become activated and mediate ADCC during an influenza virus infection. We found that type I interferon released in response to influenza virus infection primes NK cells to become highly reactive to anti-influenza virus ADCC antibodies. Enhancing the capacity of NK cells to mediate ADCC could assist in controlling influenza virus infections.
Complete Genome Sequence of the Polymyxin E (Colistin)-Producing
Paenibacillus
sp. Strain B-LR
Authors: Salsano Caroline , Didelot Sandrine , Tambadou Fatoumata , Caradec Thibault , Sopéna Valérie , Barthélémy Cyrille , Thiéry Valérie , Chevrot Romain
Published: December 2018

Paenibacillus
bacteria are recovered from varied niches, including human lung, rhizosphere, marine sediments, and hemolymph. Paenibacilli can have plant growth-promoting activities and be antibiotic producers.
First Genome Sequence of Newcastle Disease Virus of Genotype VIIi from Jordan
Authors: Ababneh Mustafa , Ferreira Helena L. , Khalifeh Mohammad , Suarez David L. , Afonso Claudio L.
Published: December 2018

Newcastle disease virus (NDV) was detected by reverse transcriptase PCR (RT-PCR) from total RNA isolated from a chicken spleen of a backyard flock in Jordan. The complete coding genome sequence of NDV/chicken/Jordan/J11-spleen/2018 was obtained with MiSeq (Illumina) sequencing.
Complete Genome Sequences of Spondweni Viruses Isolated between 1958 and 1960
Authors: Jansen van Vuren Petrus , Kgaladi Joe , Patharoo Venessa , Paweska Janusz T.
Published: December 2018

Here, we report the complete genome sequences of 14 Spondweni viruses isolated in South Africa and Mozambique between 1958 and 1960. The sequences comprise 13 mosquito isolates and 1 human isolate following a documented laboratory infection.
Whole-Genome Sequence of a Novel Sequence Type 3136 Carbapenem-Resistant Klebsiella pneumoniae Strain Isolated from a Hospitalized Patient in Durban, South Africa
Authors: Ramsamy Yogandree , Mlisana Koleka P. , Allam Mushal , Ismail Arshad , Singh Ravesh , Amoako Daniel G. , Essack Sabiha Y.
Published: December 2018

Here, we describe the genome sequence of a novel sequence type 3136 (ST3136)
Klebsiella pneumoniae
strain isolated in South Africa. The 5,574,236-bp genome harbored 23 resistance determinants and 12 virulence factors that are of cardinal importance to infections.
The Draft Genome Sequence of
Burkholderia
sp. Strain Nafp2/4-1b Confirms Its Ability To Produce the Plant Growth-Promoting Traits Pyoverdine Siderophores, 1-Aminocyclopropane-1-Carboxylate Deaminase, and the Phytohormone Auxin
Authors: Hassen Ahmed Idris , Khambani L. S. , Swanevelder Z. H.
Published: December 2018

Burkholderia
sp. strain Nafp2/4-1b is a rhizobacterium isolated from the rhizosphere of grassland in South Africa.
Draft Genome Sequence of a Bovine Enterovirus Isolate Recovered from Sewage in Nigeria
Authors: Faleye T. O. C. , Adewumi O. M. , Olayinka O. A. , Donbraye E. , Oluremi B. , George U. E. , Arowolo O. A. , Omoruyi E. C. , Ifeorah M. I. , Oyero A. O. , Adeniji J. A.
Published: December 2018

We describe the draft genome of a bovine enterovirus (EV) isolate recovered from sewage in Nigeria. This isolate replicates on both RD and L20B cell lines but is negative for all EV screens in use by the Global Poliovirus Eradication Initiative (GPEI).
Daytime variation of perioperative myocardial injury in non-cardiac surgery and effect on outcome
Authors: du Fay de Lavallaz Jeanne , Puelacher Christian , Lurati Buse Giovanna , Bolliger Daniel , Germanier Dominic , Hidvegi Reka , Walter Joan Elias , Twerenbold Raphael , Strebel Ivo , Badertscher Patrick , Sazgary Lorraine , Lampart Andreas , Espinola Jaqueline , Kindler Christoph , Hammerer-Lercher Angelika , Thambipillai Saranya , Guerke Lorenz , Rentsch Katharina , Buser Andreas , Gualandro Danielle , Jakob Marcel , Mueller Christian
Published: December 2018

Objective

Recently, daytime variation in perioperative myocardial injury (PMI) has been observed in patients undergoing cardiac surgery. We aim at investigating whether daytime variation also occurs in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery.

Methods

In a prospective diagnostic study, we evaluated the presence of daytime variation in PMI in patients at increased cardiovascular risk undergoing non-cardiac surgery, as well as its possible impact on the incidence of acute myocardial infarction (AMI), and death during 1-year follow-up in a propensity score–matched cohort. PMI was defined as an absolute increase in high-sensitivity cardiac troponin T (hs-cTnT) concentration of ≥14 ng/L from preoperative to postoperative measurements.

Results

Of 1641 patients, propensity score matching defined 630 with similar baseline characteristics, half undergoing non-cardiac surgery in the morning (starting from 8:00 to 11:00) and half in the afternoon (starting from 14:00 to 17:00). There was no difference in PMI incidence between both groups (morning: 50, 15.8% (95% CI 12.3 to 20.3); afternoon: 52, 16.4% (95% CI 12.7 to 20.9), p=0.94), nor if analysing hs-cTnT release as a quantitative variable (median morning group: 3 ng/L (95% CI 1 to 7 ng/L); median afternoon group: 2 ng/L (95% CI 0 to 7 ng/L; p=0.16). During 1-year follow-up, the incidence of AMI was 1.2% (95% CI 0.4% to 3.2%) among morning surgeries versus 4.1% (95% CI 2.3% to 6.9%) among the afternoon surgeries (corrected HR for afternoon surgery 3.44, bootstrapped 95% CI 1.33 to 10.49, p log-rank=0.03), whereas no difference in mortality emerged (p=0.70).

Conclusions

Although there is no daytime variation in PMI in patients undergoing non-cardiac surgery, the incidence of AMI during follow-up is increased in afternoon surgeries and requires further study.

Clinical trial registration

NCT02573532;Results.
Phase Space Structure and Transport in a Caldera Potential Energy Surface
Authors: Katsanikas Matthaios , Wiggins Stephen
Published: December 2018

We study phase space transport in a 2D caldera potential energy surface (PES) using techniques from nonlinear dynamics. The caldera PES is characterized by a flat region or shallow minimum at its center surrounded by potential walls and multiple symmetry related index one saddle points that allow entrance and exit from this intermediate region. We have discovered four qualitatively distinct cases of the structure of the phase space that govern phase space transport. These cases are categorized according to the total energy and the stability of the periodic orbits associated with the family of the central minimum, the bifurcations of the same family, and the energetic accessibility of the index one saddles. In each case, we have computed the invariant manifolds of the unstable periodic orbits of the central region of the potential, and the invariant manifolds of the unstable periodic orbits of the families of periodic orbits associated with the index one saddles. The periodic orbits of the central region are, for the first case, the unstable periodic orbits with period 10 that are outside the stable region of the stable periodic orbits of the family of the central minimum. In addition, the periodic orbits of the central region are, for the second and third cases, the unstable periodic orbits of the family of the central minimum and for the fourth case the unstable periodic orbits with period 2 of a period-doubling bifurcation of the family of the central minimum. We have found that there are three distinct mechanisms determined by the invariant manifold structure of the unstable periodic orbits that govern the phase space transport. The first mechanism explains the nature of the entrance of the trajectories from the region of the low energy saddles into the caldera and how they may become trapped in the central region of the potential. The second mechanism describes the trapping of the trajectories that begin from the central region of the caldera, their transport to the regions of the saddles, and the nature of their exit from the caldera. The third mechanism describes the phase space geometry responsible for the dynamical matching of trajectories originally proposed by Carpenter and described in [Collins et al., 2014] for the two-dimensional caldera PES that we consider.
Response Analysis of van der Pol Vibro-Impact System with Coulomb Friction Under Gaussian White Noise
Authors: Su Meng , Xu Wei , Yang Guidong
Published: December 2018

In this paper, the stationary response of a van der Pol vibro-impact system with Coulomb friction excited by Gaussian white noise is studied. The Zhuravlev nonsmooth transformation of the state variables is utilized to transform the original system to a new system without the impact term. Then, the stochastic averaging method is applied to the equivalent system to obtain the stationary probability density functions (pdfs). The accuracy of the analytical results obtained from the proposed procedure is verified by those from the Monte Carlo simulation based on the original system. Effects of different damping coefficients, restitution coefficients, amplitudes of friction and noise intensities on the response are discussed. Additionally, stochastic P-bifurcations are explored.
Single Crystal-Lattice-Shaped Chaotic and Quasi-Periodic Flows with Time-Reversible Symmetry
Authors: Cang Shijian , Li Yue , Wang Zenghui
Published: December 2018

In the literature, there are few conservative chaotic systems which are not obviously conservative according to their equations. This paper reports a 3D time-reversible symmetric chaotic system without equilibrium. The matrix form of the new system shows that there exists a Hamiltonian, which can exhibit interesting spatial structures (isosurfaces) controlled by different initial conditions. Numerical results shows that different initial conditions lead to different dynamical behaviors, such as quasi-periodic motion and conservative chaos. Moreover, the chaotic trajectories, visually, entwine around a isosurface and form a complicated topological structure like a single crystal lattice.
Complex Similarity and Fluctuation Dynamics of Financial Markets on Voter Interacting Dynamic System
Authors: Li Rui , Wang Jun , Wang Guochao
Published: December 2018

A financial price dynamics is developed based on the voter interacting system, in an attempt to investigate and reproduce the complex similarity and the fluctuation dynamics of financial markets. The complexity-invariance distance (CID) is applied to study the similarity of each stock pairs. A simple classification of seven real indexes and the simulated data is obtained according to the CID values for each stock pairs. The corresponding multiscale dynamical behaviors of CID values are also studied by combining CID with the multiscale method. Further, the similarity of the newest data and the historical data of the returns is investigated by a novel auto-CID analysis, and a corresponding exponent relationship is exhibited. Moveover, the cross correlation function (CCF) is applied to study the correlation of each stock pairs and the causalities of these stock pairs are investigated by the Granger causality method. Besides, the complexity and the randomness of fluctuations of returns, surrogate returns, shuffled returns and intrinsic mode functions (derived from empirical mode decomposition) are also explored at different thresholds with Lempel–Ziv complexity. The empirical study shows complex similarity and similar random property between the proposed price model and the real stock markets, which exhibits that the proposed model is feasible to some extent.
Period Addition Phenomenon and Chaos Control in a ZAD Controlled Boost Converter
Authors: Vergara Perez Dario Del Cristo , Trujillo Simeon Casanova , Hoyos Velasco Fredy Edimer
Published: December 2018

In this paper, we present an analytical, numerical, and experimental description of the period addition phenomenon in a dynamical system arising from a boost converter controlled by ZAD strategy. The ideal model is presented, and compared with a model that includes parasitic resistances. We show the presence of chaos in the two systems, which is controlled by TDAS. In particular, numerical simulation shows the chaos control zone is greater in the system with internal resistances.
Chemotaxis Effect on Algae by Inorganic Polymer Flocculants: Backward Bifurcations and Traveling Wave Solutions
Authors: Wang Wei , Ma Wanbiao , Feng Zhaosheng
Published: December 2018

In recent years, inorganic polymer flocculants have been developed into a new type of water treatment reagents, which are more efficient than traditional inorganic flocculants and much cheaper than organic polymer flocculants. Based on the mechanism of inorganic polymer flocculants, a diffusive model is proposed to study the chemotaxis effect on algae. The chemotaxis flux of algae depends on not only its own density, but also the density of flocculants and the density gradient of flocculants. For the spatially heterogeneous model in the absence of chemotaxis, threshold dynamics can be expressed by the basic reproduction number [Formula: see text] which describes the average number of new population generated by initial fertile algae individuals. Further, the phenomenon of backward and forward bifurcations, local asymptotic stability properties and the existence of traveling wave solutions are studied for the spatially homogeneous model in the presence of chemotaxis. Our results suggest that reducing [Formula: see text] to be smaller than one may not be sufficient to eradicate the algae. Numerical analysis reveals that the minimal wave speed may be linearly deterministic in the absence of chemotaxis, while it is not linearly deterministic in the presence of chemotaxis.
Design and SOPC-Based Realization of a Video Chaotic Secure Communication Scheme
Authors: Chen Ping , Yu Simin , Chen Baoju , Xiao Liangshan , Lü Jinhu
Published: December 2018

This paper proposes a new approach for hardware realization based on a system with programmable chip (SOPC) technology. The main feature of the SOPC-based scheme is that it can make full use of both FPGA and ARM, where the FPGA is used for video capturing, displaying, encrypting and decrypting, the ARM is adopted for TCP/IP protocol, Ethernet sending and receiving. SOPC technology gives full play to the advantages of both FPGA and ARM that complement each other, leading to better real-time performance and is more convenient for hardware realization. In addition, some results of security analysis are also given. Hardware realization results verify the feasibility and effectiveness of the proposed SOPC-based approach.
Detecting Determinism in Time Series with Complex Networks Constructed Using a Compression Algorithm
Authors: Corrêa Débora C. , Walker David M. , Small Michael
Published: December 2018

The properties of complex networks derived from applying a compression algorithm to time series subject to symbolic ordinal-based encoding is explored. The information content of compression codewords can be used to detect forbidden symbolic patterns indicative of nonlinear determinism. The connectivity structure of ordinal-based compression networks summarized by their minimal cycle basis structure can also be used in tests for nonlinear determinism, in particular, detection of time irreversibility in a signal.
You Cannot Improve What You Do not Measure
Authors: Boutros Andrew , Yazdanshenas Sadegh , Betz Vaughn
Published: December 2018

Recently, deep learning (DL) has become best-in-class for numerous applications but at a high computational cost that necessitates high-performance energy-efficient acceleration. The reconfigurability of FPGAs is appealing due to the rapid change in DL models but also causes lower performance and area-efficiency compared to ASICs. In this article, we implement three state-of-the-art computing architectures (CAs) for convolutional neural network (CNN) inference on FPGAs and ASICs. By comparing the FPGA and ASIC implementations, we highlight the area and performance costs of programmability to pinpoint the inefficiencies in current FPGA architectures. We perform our experiments using three variations of these CAs for AlexNet, VGG-16 and ResNet-50 to allow extensive comparisons. We find that the performance gap varies significantly from 2.8× to 6.3×, while the area gap is consistent across CAs with an 8.7 average FPGA-to-ASIC area ratio. Among different blocks of the CAs, the convolution engine, constituting up to 60% of the total area, has a high area ratio ranging from 13 to 31. Motivated by our FPGA vs. ASIC comparisons, we suggest FPGA architectural changes such as increasing DSP block count, enhancing low-precision support in DSP blocks and rethinking the on-chip memories to reduce the programmability gap for DL applications.
Lightening the Load with Highly Accurate Storage- and Energy-Efficient LightNNs
Authors: Ding Ruizhou , Liu Zeye , Blanton R. D. (Shawn) , Marculescu Diana
Published: December 2018

Hardware implementations of deep neural networks (DNNs) have been adopted in many systems because of their higher classification speed. However, while they may be characterized by better accuracy, larger DNNs require significant energy and area, thereby limiting their wide adoption. The energy consumption of DNNs is driven by both memory accesses and computation. Binarized neural networks (BNNs), as a tradeoff between accuracy and energy consumption, can achieve great energy reduction and have good accuracy for large DNNs due to their regularization effect. However, BNNs show poor accuracy when a smaller DNN configuration is adopted. In this article, we propose a new DNN architecture, LightNN, which replaces the multiplications to one shift or a constrained number of shifts and adds. Our theoretical analysis for LightNNs shows that their accuracy is maintained while dramatically reducing storage and energy requirements. For a fixed DNN configuration, LightNNs have better accuracy at a slight energy increase than BNNs, yet are more energy efficient with only slightly less accuracy than conventional DNNs. Therefore, LightNNs provide more options for hardware designers to trade off accuracy and energy. Moreover, for large DNN configurations, LightNNs have a regularization effect, making them better in accuracy than conventional DNNs. These conclusions are verified by experiment using the MNIST and CIFAR-10 datasets for different DNN configurations. Our FPGA implementation for conventional DNNs and LightNNs confirms all theoretical and simulation results and shows that LightNNs reduce latency and use fewer FPGA resources compared to conventional DNN architectures.
High-Efficiency Convolutional Ternary Neural Networks with Custom Adder Trees and Weight Compression
Authors: Prost-Boucle Adrien , Bourge Alban , Pétrot Frédéric
Published: December 2018

Although performing inference with artificial neural networks (ANN) was until quite recently considered as essentially compute intensive, the emergence of deep neural networks coupled with the evolution of the integration technology transformed inference into a memory bound problem. This ascertainment being established, many works have lately focused on minimizing memory accesses, either by enforcing and exploiting sparsity on weights or by using few bits for representing activations and weights, to be able to use ANNs inference in embedded devices. In this work, we detail an architecture dedicated to inference using ternary {−1, 0, 1} weights and activations. This architecture is configurable at design time to provide throughput vs. power trade-offs to choose from. It is also generic in the sense that it uses information drawn for the target technologies (memory geometries and cost, number of available cuts, etc.) to adapt at best to the FPGA resources. This allows to achieve up to 5.2k frames per second per Watt for classification on a VC709 board using approximately half of the resources of the FPGA.
Phys-MAPS: a programmatic physiology assessment for introductory and advanced undergraduates
Authors: Semsar Katharine , Brownell Sara , Couch Brian A. , Crowe Alison J. , Smith Michelle K. , Summers Mindi M. , Wright Christian D. , Knight Jennifer K.
Published: December 2018

We describe the development of a new, freely available, online, programmatic-level assessment tool, Measuring Achievement and Progress in Science in Physiology, or Phys-MAPS ( http://cperl.lassp.cornell.edu/bio-maps ). Aligned with the conceptual frameworks of Core Principles of Physiology, and Vision and Change Core Concepts, Phys-MAPS can be used to evaluate student learning of core physiology concepts at multiple time points in an undergraduate physiology program, providing a valuable longitudinal tool to gain insight into student thinking and aid in the data-driven reform of physiology curricula. Phys-MAPS questions have a modified multiple true/false design and were developed using an iterative process, including student interviews and physiology expert review to verify scientific accuracy, appropriateness for physiology majors, and clarity. The final version of Phys-MAPS was tested with 2,600 students across 13 universities, has evidence of reliability, and has no significant statement biases. Over 90% of the physiology experts surveyed agreed that each Phys-MAPS statement was scientifically accurate and relevant to a physiology major. When testing each statement for bias, differential item functioning analysis demonstrated only a small effect size (<0.008) of any tested demographic variable. Regarding student performance, Phys-MAPS can also distinguish between lower and upper division students, both across different institutions (average overall scores increase with each level of class standing; two-way ANOVA, P < 0.001) and within each of three sample institutions (each ANOVA, P ≤ 0.001). Furthermore, at the level of individual concepts, only evolution and homeostasis do not demonstrate the typical increase across class standing, suggesting these concepts likely present consistent conceptual challenges for physiology students.
An inducible knockout of Dicer in adult mice does not affect endurance exercise-induced muscle adaptation
Authors: Oikawa Satoshi , Lee Minjung , Motohashi Norio , Maeda Seiji , Akimoto Takayuki
Published: December 2018

The contractile and metabolic properties of adult skeletal muscle change in response to endurance exercise. The mechanisms of transcriptional regulation in exercise-induced skeletal muscle adaptation, including fiber-type switching and mitochondrial biogenesis, have been investigated intensively, whereas the role of microRNA (miRNA)-mediated posttranscriptional gene regulation is less well understood. We used tamoxifen-inducible Dicer1 knockout (iDicer KO) mice to reduce the global expression of miRNAs in adult skeletal muscle and subjected these mice to 2 wk of voluntary wheel running. Dicer mRNA expression was completely depleted in fast-twitch plantaris muscle after tamoxifen injection. However, several muscle-enriched miRNAs, including miR-1 and miR-133a, were reduced by only 30–50% in both the slow and fast muscles. The endurance exercise-induced changes that occurred for many parameters (i.e., fast-to-slow fiber-type switch and increases in succinate dehydrogenase, respiratory chain complex II, and citrate synthase activity) in wild type (WT) also occurred in the iDicer KO mice. Protein expression of myosin heavy chain IIa, peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ coactivator-1α, and cytochrome c complex IV was also increased in the iDicer KO mice by the voluntary running. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in oxygen consumption rate in the isolated mitochondria between the WT and iDicer KO mice. These data indicate that muscle-enriched miRNAs were detectable even after 4 wk of tamoxifen treatment and there was no apparent specific endurance-exercise-induced muscle phenotype in the iDicer KO mice.
Nudel involvement in the high-glucose-induced epithelial-mesenchymal transition of tubular epithelial cells
Authors: Zhang Wei , Xing Lingling , Xu Lu , Jin Xiaoxue , Du Yunxia , Feng Xiaojuan , Liu Shuxia , Liu Qingjuan
Published: December 2018

Nudel is a newly discovered factor related to cell migration. The tubular epithelial-mesenchymal transition (EMT) includes four steps: the loss of the adhesive properties of epithelial cells, the acquisition of a mesenchymal cell phenotype, the destruction of the tubular basal membrane, and the migration into the renal interstitium. The purpose of this study was to investigate the role of Nudel in the high-glucose-induced EMT of tubular epithelial cells. Human renal proximal tubular epithelial cells (HKCs) were treated with Nudel shRNA to clarify the role and mechanism of Nudel in tubular EMT induced by high glucose. We found that Nudel was expressed at a high level in high-glucose-stimulated HKCs, and the expression of Nudel was associated with the activation of signal transducer and activator of transcription 3. After transfection with Nudel shRNA, we detected the expression levels of E-cadherin, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and the Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome family of proteins (including WASP, N-WASP, WAVE1, WAVE2, and WAVE3) via assay. Cell migration was analyzed by the scratching method. The results showed that high glucose downregulated E-cadherin expression, upregulated α-SMA expression, and promoted the migration of HKCs. The expression levels of N-WASP, WAVE1, and WAVE2 were also elevated in HKCs treated with high glucose. All changes induced by high glucose were ameliorated by Nudel depletion. We conclude that Nudel participates in the transition and the migration of tubular epithelial cells via the regulation of WASP family proteins.
Shoulder reflexes integrate elbow information at “long-latency” delay throughout a corrective action
Authors: Kurtzer Isaac L.
Published: December 2018

Previous studies have demonstrated a progression of function when healthy subjects counter a sudden mechanical load. Short-latency reflexes are linked to local stretch of the particular muscle and its antagonist. Long-latency reflexes integrate stretch information from both local sources and muscles crossing remote joints appropriate for a limb’s mechanical interactions. Unresolved is how sensory information is processed throughout the corrective response, since capabilities at some time can be produced by circuits acting at that delay and at briefer delays. One possibility is that local abilities are always expressed at a short-latency delay and integrative abilities are always expressed at a long-latency delay. Alternatively, the neural circuits may be altered over time, leading to a temporal shift in expressing certain abilities; a refractory period could retard integrative responses to a second perturbation, whereas priming could enable integrative responses at short latency. We tested between these three hypotheses in a shoulder muscle by intermixing trials of step torque with either torque pulses ( experiment 1) or double steps of torque ( experiment 2). The second perturbation occurred at 35, 60, and 110 ms after the first perturbation to probe processing throughout the corrective action. The second perturbation reliably evoked short-latency responses in the shoulder muscle linked to only shoulder motion and long-latency responses linked to both shoulder and elbow motion. This pattern is best accounted by the continuous action of controllers with fixed functions.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY Sudden displacement of the limb evokes a short-latency reflex, 20–50 ms, based on local muscle stretch and a long-latency reflex based on integrating muscle stretch at different joints. A novel double-perturbation paradigm tested if these abilities are temporally conserved throughout the corrective response or are shifted (retarded or delayed) due to functional changes in the responsible circuits. Multi-joint integration was reliably expressed at a long-latency delay consistent with the continuous operation of circuits with fixed abilities.
Cardiac Vagus and Exercise
Authors: Gourine Alexander V. , Ackland Gareth L.
Published: December 2018

Lower resting heart rate and high autonomic vagal activity are strongly associated with superior exercise capacity, maintenance of which is essential for general well-being and healthy aging. Recent evidence obtained in experimental studies using the latest advances in molecular neuroscience, combined with human exercise physiology, physiological modeling, and genomic data suggest that the strength of cardiac vagal activity causally determines our ability to exercise.
Identification of molecular signatures of cystic fibrosis disease status with plasma-based functional genomics
Authors: Levy Hara , Jia Shuang , Pan Amy , Zhang Xi , Kaldunski Mary , Nugent Melodee L. , Reske Melissa , Feliciano Rachel A. , Quintero Diana , Renda Michael M. , Woods Katherine J. , Murkowski Kathy , Johnson Keven , Verbsky James , Dasu Trivikram , Ideozu Justin Eze , McColley Susanna , Quasney Michael W. , Dahmer Mary K. , Avner Ellis , Farrell Philip M. , Cannon Carolyn L. , Jacob Howard , Simpson Pippa M. , Hessner Martin J.
Published: December 2018

Although cystic fibrosis (CF) is attributed to dysfunction of a single gene, the relationships between the abnormal gene product and the development of inflammation and progression of lung disease are not fully understood, which limits our ability to predict an individual patient’s clinical course and treatment response. To better understand CF progression, we characterized the molecular signatures of CF disease status with plasma-based functional genomics. Peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) from healthy donors were cultured with plasma samples from CF patients ( n = 103) and unrelated, healthy controls ( n = 31). Gene expression levels were measured with an Affymetrix microarray (GeneChip Human Genome U133 Plus 2.0). Peripheral blood samples from a subset of the CF patients ( n = 40) were immunophenotyped by flow cytometry, and the data were compared with historical data for age-matched healthy controls ( n = 351). Plasma samples from another subset of CF patients ( n = 56) and healthy controls ( n = 16) were analyzed by multiplex enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for numerous cytokines and chemokines. Principal component analysis and hierarchical clustering of induced transcriptional data revealed disease-specific plasma-induced PBMC profiles. Among 1,094 differentially expressed probe sets, 51 genes were associated with pancreatic sufficient status, and 224 genes were associated with infection with Pseudomonas aeruginosa. The flow cytometry and ELISA data confirmed that various immune modulators are relevant contributors to the CF molecular signature. This study provides strong evidence for distinct molecular signatures among CF patients. An understanding of these molecular signatures may lead to unique molecular markers that will enable more personalized prognoses, individualized treatment plans, and rapid monitoring of treatment response.
Numerical Modeling on Hydraulic Fracturing in Coal‐Rock Mass for Enhancing Gas Drainage
Authors: Yuan Zhigang , Shao Yaohua
Published: December 2018

The mechanism of how hydraulic fracturing influences gas drainage in coal‐rock mass is still not clear due to its complex mechanism. In this work, statistical distributions are firstly introduced to describe heterogeneity of coal‐rock mass; a novel simultaneously coupled mathematical model, which can describe the fully coupled process including seepage‐damage coupling during hydraulic fracturing process and subsequent gas flow during gas drainage process, is established; its numerical implementation procedure is coded into a Matlab program to calculate the damage variables, and it partly uses COMSOL solver to obtain numerical solutions of governing equations with damage‐flow coupling; the mathematical model and its implementation are validated for initial damage pressure and mode of a single solid model without considering flow‐damage coupling, as well as fracture initiation pressure and influence of heterogeneity on damage evolution of hydraulic fracturing considering flow‐damage coupling; and finally, based on an engineering practice of hydraulic fracturing with two boreholes, the mechanism of how hydraulic fracturing influences gas drainage is investigated, numerical simulation results indicate that coal‐rock mass pore‐fissure structure has been improved, and there would exist a gas migration channel with characteristics of higher porosity and lower stresses, which demonstrates significant effects and mechanism of hydraulic fracturing on improving coal‐rock permeability and enhancing gas drainage. The research results provide a guide for operation of hydraulic fracturing and optimal layout of gas drainage boreholes.
Damage Evolution of Steel‐Polypropylene Hybrid Fiber Reinforced Concrete: Experimental and Numerical Investigation
Authors: Xu Lihua , Wei Cuimei , Li Biao
Published: December 2018

This paper presents an experimental investigation on the stress‐strain behavior and damage evolution of steel‐polypropylene hybrid fiber reinforced concrete (HFRC) with different fiber types, volume fractions, and aspect ratios. The damage evolution laws of HFRC were obtained using uniaxial cyclic compression and tension tests. The results show that the addition of hybrid fiber has a significant synergetic effect on the mechanical behavior of concrete. The peak strength, peak strain, toughness, and postpeak ductility of HFRC under both tension and compression are improved, and the damage accumulation and stiffness degradation are alleviated by increasing volume fractions of SF and PF, as well as aspect ratios of SF. Moreover, the steel fiber volume fraction shows a more pronounced effect than that of other considered factors on the enhancement of cyclic mechanical parameters of HFRC. Based on the unloading stiffness degradation process, analytical equations were, respectively, proposed to generalize the damage progression of HFRC under compression and tension, with the effects of hybrid fiber taken into consideration. Finally, the proposed uniaxial damage evolution equations combined with the calibrated concrete damaged plasticity (CDP) model in ABAQUS were used to predict the responses of HFRC materials and structural members subjected to shear and seismic loads. The comparisons between the numerical predictions and experimental results show a good agreement.
Simultaneous Generation of Optimum Pavement Clusters and Associated Performance Models
Authors: Khadka Mukesh , Paz Alexander , Arteaga Cristian , Hale David K.
Published: December 2018

With regard to developing pavement performance models (PPMs), the existing state-of-the-art proposes Clusterwise Linear Regression (CLR) to determine the pavement clusters and associated PPMs simultaneously. However, the approach does not determine optimal clustering to minimize error; that is, the number of clusters and explanatory variables are prespecified to determine the corresponding coefficients of the PPMs. In addition, existing formulations do no address issues associated with overfitting as there is no limit to include parameters in the model. In order to address this limitation, this paper proposes a mathematical program within the CLR approach to determine simultaneously (1) an optimal number of clusters, (2) assignment of segments into clusters, and (3) regression coefficients for all prespecified explanatory variables required to minimize the estimation error. The Bayesian Information Criteria is proposed to limit the number of optimal clusters. A simulated annealing coupled with ordinary least squares was used to solve the mathematical program.
A Simple Approach to Bioconjugation at Diverse Levels: Metal-Free Click Reactions of Activated Alkynes with Native Groups of Biotargets without Prefunctionalization
Authors: Hu Xianglong , Zhao Xueqian , He Benzhao , Zhao Zheng , Zheng Zheng , Zhang Pengfei , Shi Xiujuan , Kwok Ryan T. K. , Lam Jacky W. Y. , Qin Anjun , Tang Ben Zhong
Published: December 2018

The efficient bioconjugation of functional groups/molecules to targeted matrix and bio-related species drives the great development of material science and biomedicine, while the dilemma of metal catalysis, uneasy premodification, and limited reaction efficiency in traditional bioconjugation has restricted the booming development to some extent. Here, we provide a strategy for metal-free click bioconjugation at diverse levels based on activated alkynes. As a proof-of-concept, the abundant native groups including amine, thiol, and hydroxyl groups can directly react with activated alkynes without any modification in the absence of metal catalysis. Through this strategy, high-efficient modification and potential functionalization can be achieved for natural polysaccharide, biocompatible polyethylene glycol (PEG), synthetic polymers, cell penetrating peptide, protein, fast whole-cell mapping, and even quick differentiation and staining of Gram-positive bacteria, etc. Therefore, current metal-free click bioconjugation strategy based on activated alkynes is promising for the development of quick fluorescence labeling and functional modification of many targets and can be widely applied towards the fabrication of complex biomaterials and future
in vivo
labeling and detection.
Status of Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) Services Utilization and Factors Affecting PMTCT Service Uptake by Pregnant Women Attending Antenatal Care Clinic in Selected Health Facilities of Afar Regional State, Ethiopia
Authors: Akal Chalachew Genet , Afework Dessie Tegegne
Published: December 2018

Mother-to-child transmission (MTCT) is the predominant way for children to acquire human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection worldwide including Ethiopia. Thus, objective of this study was to determine the status of prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) services utilization and factors affecting PMTCT utilization in health facilities of Afar region, Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2014 to April 2015 taking 347 pregnant women and 22 health care providers. Data were collected using a questioner prepared separately for pregnant women and health care providers involved in PMTCT service delivery. Data were analyzed using SPSS considering P value <0.05 statistical significant. The study indicated that the PMTCT service utilization was 67.7%. The study also showed that there is statistically significant association in using PMTCT service with women education level, monthly income, and residence around PMTCT site. Though not statistically significant, excess waiting time, limited physical access to PMTCT sites, and transportation problem were identified as barriers for PMTCT service utilization by pregnant women. Though knowledge of mothers on MTCT of HIV and PMTCT service utilization in agropostural community of Afar region was promising, there were also different barriers identified hindering PMTCT utilization. Thus, we recommend “Wored” and zonal health office to create awareness on significance of PMTCT service in the community, enhance accessibility of PMTCT sites, provide up-to-date trainings for health care providers, and ensure constant supply for PMTCT service.
Feasibility Study of the Time Reversal Symmetry Tests in Decay of Metastable Positronium Atoms with the J-PET Detector
Authors: Gajos A. , Curceanu C. , Czerwiński E. , Dulski K. , Gorgol M. , Gupta-Sharma N. , Hiesmayr B. C. , Jasińska B. , Kacprzak K. , Kapłon Ł. , Kisielewska D. , Korcyl G. , Kowalski P. , Kozik T. , Krzemień W. , Kubicz E. , Mohammed M. , Niedźwiecki Sz. , Pałka M. , Pawlik-Niedźwiecka M. , Raczyński L. , Raj J. , Rudy Z. , Sharma S. , Shivani  , Shopa R. , Silarski M. , Skurzok M. , Wiślicki W. , Zgardzińska B. , Zieliński M. , Moskal P.
Published: December 2018

This article reports on the feasibility of testing of the symmetry under reversal in time in a purely leptonic system constituted by positronium atoms using the J-PET detector. The present state of T symmetry tests is discussed with an emphasis on the scarcely explored sector of leptonic systems. Two possible strategies of searching for manifestations of T violation in nonvanishing angular correlations of final state observables in the decay of metastable triplet states of positronium available with J-PET are proposed and discussed. Results of a pilot measurement with J-PET and assessment of its performance in reconstruction of three-photon decays are shown along with an analysis of its impact on the sensitivity of the detector for the determination of T-violation sensitive observables.
Contribution of Imaging in the Diagnosis of Cholangiocarcinoma in Choledochal Cyst
Authors: Akanni Djivèdé Witchékpo Maurice Mohamed , N’zi Kouassi Paul , Savi de Tové Kofi-Mensa , Petrovai Laura
Published: December 2018

The choledochal cyst is a rare congenital malformation of the bile ducts. It is considered as a precancerous state. The incidence of cancer in choledochal cyst increases with age and occurs around 32 years old. Therefore, young adults are often involved. In adults, clinical signs are rare and unspecific. We are reporting here the case of a cholangiocarcinoma in choledochal cyst in young adult diagnosed by ultrasonography, CT scan, and MRI and confirmed by histopathological examination.
A Method for Improving UWB Indoor Positioning
Authors: Hao Zhanjun , Li Beibei , Dang Xiaochao
Published: December 2018

The existing positioning methods that use received signal strength indication (RSSI) and channel state information (CSI) may suffer from multipath and shadowing in a complex wireless environment, which can result in more positioning errors. This paper proposes a method for accurate multilabel positioning in the non-line-of-sight (NLOS) environment. First, the position is roughly estimated using the orthogonal variable spreading factor (OVSF-TH) algorithm, which can automatically match the signal interference. The ultra-wideband (UWB) spectral density and pulse amplitude in the time domain are used to determine the direction of the label and enhance estimation of the mobile label direction. Then, the location of the tag is obtained by triangulation, and a coordinate-based coordinate estimation method is proposed to calculate the relative displacement of multiple tags to determine the label position. Finally, by setting up a real experimental environment, the influence of the number of base stations on the accuracy and the performance of the localization method under different circumstances are analyzed. The theoretical analysis and experimental results show that the method is simple to deploy, inexpensive, and very accurate in terms of positioning, having a clearly effective indoor positioning accuracy. Compared with other existing positioning methods, this method can achieve more accurate positioning. Moreover, it has important theoretical and practical applicability because of the reliability and accuracy of indoor positioning in an NLOS environment.
Recent Investigations of Phase Change Materials Use in Solar Thermal Energy Storage System
Authors: Mao Qianjun , Liu Ning , Peng Li
Published: December 2018

Solar thermal energy storage (TES) is an efficient way to solve the conflict between unsteady input energy and steady output energy in concentrating solar power plant. The latent heat thermal energy storage (LHTES) system is a main method of storing thermal energy using phase change materials (PCMs). Thermal properties, that is, melting points and latent heat, are the key parameters of PCMs for the TES system. In this paper, the PCMs are classified into inorganic and organic by the chemical composition, and according to the melting point, the inorganic PCMs can be divided into three contributions: low‐temperature heat storage (less than 120°C), medium‐temperature heat storage (120–300°C), and high‐temperature heat storage (more than 300°C). The present article focuses mainly on the recent investigations on the melting point and latent heat of PCMs via DSC setup in the solar TES systems. The results can provide a good reference for the selection and utilization of PCMs in the solar TES systems.