bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of Sexual Transmission to Sex-specific Attack Rates in Zika Epidemics
Authors: de Barros Ana Carolina W.G. , Santos Kaline G. , Massad Eduardo , Coelho Flávio Codeço
Published: June 2018

In 2015 and 2016 South America went through the largest Zika epidemic in recorded history. One important aspect of this epidemic was the impact on newborns due to the effect of Zika on development of the central nervous system leading to severe malformations. Another aspect of the Zika epidemic which became evident from the data was the importance of the sexual route of transmission leading to increased risk for women. Here propose a mathematical model for the transmission of the Zika virus including sexual transmission via all forms of sexual contact, as well as simplified vector transmission, assuming a constant availability of mosquitoes. From this model we derive an expression forℛ0which can be used to study and analyze the relative contributions of the different routes of Zika transmission and the male to female sexual transmission route vis-a-vis vectorial transmission. We also fit the model to data from the 2016 Zika epidemic in Rio de Janeiro, to estimate the values of key parameters of the model.
Attitudes, Perceptions and Barriers to Research and Publishing among Research and Teaching Staff: A Case Study
Authors: Okoduwa Stanley I.R. , Abe James O. , Samuel Blessing I. , Chris Aimee O. , Oladimeji Richard A. , Idowu Olanipekun O. , Okoduwa Ugochi J.
Published: June 2018

Background

The economic development of any nation is centered on research. Unfortunately, research activities had suffered serious setback in tertiary research institutions in Nigeria. This study explores the attitudes, perceptions and barriers to research and publishing among academic staff in Nigerian Institute of Leather and Science Technology, (NILEST) Zaria Nigeria.

Method

A structured self-administered questionnaire was distributed among 130 research and teaching staff at the various Directorates in NILEST. Data are presented in frequencies and percentages for questionnaire responses.

Result

Exactly 93.85%of the questionnaires were validated for the study which included 81.15% male and 18.85% female. The participant were researchers (26.23%), lecturers (31.15%), Technologist (20.49%) and Instructors (22.13%). The majority of participant agreed that research is important for the institute (90.98%). A total of 81.15% believed that conducting research should be mandatory for all academic staff. Only 44.26% was self-reported to have ongoing research. Some of the obstacles reported to have prevented research activities included: lack of funding (72.13%), lack of professional mentorship (84.43%) and inadequate research facilities (89.34%). Participants without a single published paper were 54.545%. Some of the reasons given for not having published papers were “no writing experience (95.65%), high publishing fee (79.71%) and long waiting period for peer review (97.10%)”. The suggestions to improve research status by respondents included“ provision of research grants/funds (92.62%), provision of internet facilities (95.10%), mandatory publication (26.23%) and appropriate mentorship (34.43%).

Conclusion

Majority of the respondents believed that research is relevant, only a few were engaged in active research and published articles as evidence. It is therefore recommended that policy makers should devise strategies to focus on active research activities in order to achieve the desire research mandate and goal of institutions in the development of the nation’s economy.
Spike burst–pause dynamics of Purkinje cells regulate sensorimotor adaptation
Authors: Luque Niceto R. , Naveros Francisco , Carrillo Richard R. , Ros Eduardo , Arleo Angelo
Published: June 2018

Cerebellar Purkinje cells mediate accurate eye movement coordination. However, it remains unclear how oculomotor adaptation depends on the interplay between the characteristic Purkinje cell response patterns, namely tonic, bursting, and spike pauses. Here, a spiking cerebellar model assesses the role of Purkinje cell firing patterns in vestibular ocular reflex (VOR) adaptation. The model captures the cerebellar microcircuit properties and it incorporates spike-based synaptic plasticity at multiple cerebellar sites. A detailed Purkinje cell model reproduces the three spike-firing patterns that are shown to regulate the cerebellar output. Our results suggest that pauses following Purkinje complex spikes (bursts) encode transient disinhibition of targeted medial vestibular nuclei, critically gating the vestibular signals conveyed by mossy fibres. This gating mechanism accounts for early and coarse VOR acquisition, prior to the late reflex consolidation. In addition, properly timed and sized Purkinje cell bursts allow the ratio between long-term depression and potentiation (LTD/LTP) to be finely shaped at mossy fibre-medial vestibular nuclei synapses, which optimises VOR consolidation. Tonic Purkinje cell firing maintains the consolidated VOR through time. Importantly, pauses are crucial to facilitate VOR phase-reversal learning, by reshaping previously learnt synaptic weight distributions. Altogether, these results predict that Purkinje spike burst-pause dynamics are instrumental to VOR learning and reversal adaptation.

Author Summary

Cerebellar Purkinje cells regulate accurate eye movement coordination. However, it remains unclear how cerebellar-dependent oculomotor adaptation depends on the interplay between Purkinje cell characteristic response patterns: tonic, high-frequency bursting, and post-complex spike pauses. We explore the role of Purkinje spike burst-pause dynamics in VOR adaptation. A biophysical model of Purkinje cell is at the core of a spiking network model, which captures the cerebellar microcircuit properties and incorporates spike-based synaptic plasticity mechanisms at different cerebellar sites. We show that Purkinje spike burst-pause dynamics are critical for (1) gating the vestibular-motor response association during VOR acquisition; (2) mediating the LTD/LTP balance for VOR consolidation; (3) reshaping synaptic efficacy distributions for VOR phase-reversal adaptation; (4) explaining the reversal VOR gain discontinuities during sleeping.
Representational structure or task structure? Bias in neural representational similarity analysis and a Bayesian method for reducing bias
Authors: Cai Ming Bo , Schuck Nicolas W. , Pillow Jonathan W. , Niv Yael
Published: June 2018

The activity of neural populations in the brains of humans and animals can exhibit vastly different spatial patterns when faced with different tasks or environmental stimuli. The degree of similarity between these neural activity patterns in response to different events is used to characterize the representational structure of cognitive states in a neural population. The dominant methods of investigating this similarity structure first estimate neural activity patterns from noisy neural imaging data using linear regression, and then examine the similarity between the estimated patterns. Here, we show that this approach introduces spurious bias structure in the resulting similarity matrix, in particular when applied to fMRI data. This problem is especially severe when the signal-to-noise ratio is low and in cases where experimental conditions cannot be fully randomized in a task. We propose Bayesian Representational Similarity Analysis (BRSA), an alternative method for computing representational similarity, in which we treat the covariance structure of neural activity patterns as a hyper-parameter in a generative model of the neural data. By marginalizing over the unknown activity patterns, we can directly estimate this covariance structure from imaging data. This method offers significant reductions in bias and allows estimation of neural representational similarity with previously unattained levels of precision at low signal-to-noise ratio. The probabilistic framework allows for jointly analyzing data from a group of participants. The method can also simultaneously estimate a signal-to-noise ratio map that shows where the learned representational structure is supported more strongly. Both this map and the learned covariance matrix can be used as a structured prior for maximuma posterioriestimation of neural activity patterns, which can be further used for fMRI decoding. We make our tool freely available in Brain Imaging Analysis Kit (BrainIAK).

Author summary

We show the severity of the bias introduced when performing representational similarity analysis (RSA) based on neural activity pattern estimated within imaging runs. Our Bayesian RSA method significantly reduces the bias and can learn a shared representational structure across multiple participants. We also demonstrate its extension as a new multi-class decoding tool.
Heterozygote Advantage Can Explain the Extraordinary Diversity of Immune Genes
Authors: Siljestam Mattias , Rueffler Claus
Published: June 2018

The majority of highly polymorphic genes are related to immune functions and with over 100 alleles within a population, genes of the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) are the most polymorphic loci in vertebrates. How such extraordinary polymorphism arose and is maintained is controversial. One possibility is heterozygote advantage (HA), which can in principle maintain any number of alleles, but biologically explicit models based on this mechanism have so far failed to reliably predict the coexistence of significantly more than ten alleles. We here present an eco-evolutionary model showing that evolution can result in the emergence and maintenance of more than 100 alleles under HA if the following two assumptions are fulfilled: first, pathogens are lethal in the absence of an appropriate immune defence; second, the effect of pathogens depends on host condition, with hosts in poorer condition being affected more strongly. Thus, our results show that HA can be a more potent force in explaining the extraordinary polymorphism found at MHC loci than currently recognized.
Biological motion as an innate perceptual mechanism driving social affiliation
Authors: Larsch Johannes , Baier Herwig
Published: June 2018

Collective behavior, such as shoaling in teleost fish, is driven by the perceptual recognition of conspecific animals. Because social interactions are mutual, it has been difficult to disentangle the exact sensory cues that trigger affiliation in the first place from those that are emitted by receptive and responsive shoal mates. Here we overcome this challenge in a virtual reality assay in zebrafish. We discovered that simple visual features of conspecific biological motion provide an irresistible shoaling cue. Individual juvenile fish interact with circular black dots projected onto a screen, to the same extent as they do with real conspecifics, provided these virtual objects mimic the characteristic kinetics of zebrafish swim bouts. Other naturalistic cues previously implicated in shoaling, such as fish-like shape, pigmentation pattern, or non-visual sensory modalities are not required. During growth, the animals’ stimulus preferences shift gradually, matching self-like kinetics, even in fish raised in isolation. Virtual group interactions and our multi-agent model implementation of this perceptual mechanism demonstrate sufficiency of kinetic cues to drive assortative shoaling, a phenomenon commonly observed in field studies. Coordinated behavior can emerge from autonomous interactions, such as collective odor avoidance inDrosophila, or from reciprocal interactions, such as the codified turn-taking in wren duet singing. We found that individual zebrafish shoal autonomously without evidence for a reciprocal choreography. Our results reveal individual-level, innate perceptual rules of engagement in mutual affiliation and provide experimental access to the neural mechanisms of social recognition. (239/250 words max)

Significance Statement

Social affiliation is ubiquitous in the animal kingdom, but fundamental sensory cues driving group formation remain elusive. During swarm behavior, for example, individuals dynamically exchange sensory cues with their neighbors, presenting an intertwined choreography opaque to formal analysis of causal stimulus-response relationships. Using a virtual interaction assay for psychophysical analysis, we solved this issue and identify biological motion as the irresistible trigger of social affiliation in zebrafish,Danio rerio. Given that many species form groups including shoals, flocks and herds, perceptual mechanisms of social recognition and their underlying neural circuits are likely shared across vertebrates. The identification of fundamental affiliation-inducing cues is a prerequisite for relating individual-level sensory-motor transformations to collective behavior. (112/120 words max)
G-quadruplex DNA drives genomic instability and represents a targetable molecular abnormality in ATRX-deficient malignant glioma
Authors: Wang Yuxiang , Yang Jie , Wu Wei , Shah Rachna , Danussi Carla , Riggins Gregory J. , Kannan Kasthuri , Sulman Erik P. , Chan Timothy A. , Huse Jason T.
Published: June 2018

Mutational inactivation ofATRX(α-thalassemia mental retardation X-linked) represents a defining molecular alteration in large subsets of malignant glioma. Yet the pathogenic consequences of ATRX deficiency remain unclear, as do tractable mechanisms for its therapeutic targeting. Here we report that ATRX loss in isogenic glioma model systems induces replication stress and DNA damage by way of G-quadruplex (G4) DNA secondary structure. Moreover, these effects are associated with the acquisition of disease-relevant copy number alterations over time. We then demonstrate, bothin vitroandin vivo, that ATRX deficiency selectively enhances DNA damage and cell death following chemical G4 stabilization. Finally, we show that G4 stabilization synergizes with other DNA-damaging therapies, including ionizing radiation, in the ATRX-deficient context. Our findings reveal novel pathogenic mechanisms driven by ATRX deficiency in glioma, while also pointing to tangible strategies for drug development.
Nominally non-responsive frontal and sensory cortical cells encode task-relevant variables via ensemble consensus-building
Authors: Insanally Michele N. , Carcea Ioana , Field Rachel E. , Rodgers Chris C. , DePasquale Brian , Rajan Kanaka , DeWeese Michael R. , Albanna Badr F. , Froemke Robert C.
Published: June 2018

Neurons recorded in behaving animals often do not discernibly respond to sensory input and are not overtly task-modulated. These nominally non-responsive neurons are difficult to interpret and are typically neglected from analysis, confounding attempts to connect neural activity to perception and behavior. Here we describe a trial-by-trial, spike-timing-based algorithm to reveal the hidden coding capacities of these neurons in auditory and frontal cortex of behaving rats. Responsive and nominally non-responsive cells contained significant information about sensory stimuli and behavioral decisions, and network modeling indicated that nominally non-responsive cells are important for task performance. Sensory input was more accurately represented in frontal cortex than auditory cortex, via ensembles of nominally non-responsive cells coordinating the behavioral meaning of spike timings on correct but not error trials. This unbiased approach allows the contribution of all recorded neurons - particularly those without obvious task-modulation - to be assessed for behavioral relevance on single trials.
Understanding trivial challenges of microbial genomics: An assembly example
Authors: Lariviere Delphine , Mei Han , Freeberg Mallory , Taylor James , Nekrutenko Anton
Published: June 2018

The perceived “simplicity” of bacterial genomics (these genomes are small and easy to assemble) feeds the decentralized state of the field where computational analysis standards have been slow to evolve. This situation has a historical explanation. In cases of human, mouse, fly, worm and other model organisms there have been large sustained multinational genome sequencing efforts and analysis consortia such as the 1,000 genomes, ENCODE, modENCODE, GTEx and others. These resulted in development and proliferation of common tools, workflows, and data standards. This is not the case in microbiology. After the development of highly parallel sequencing methodologies in mid-2000s bacterial genomes no longer required initiatives of such scale. The flipside of this is the extreme heterogeneity of approaches to many well established microbial genomic analysis problems such as genome assembly. While competition amongst different methods is good, we argue that the quality of data analyses will improve if cutting edge tools are more accessible and microbiologists become more computationally savvy. Here we use genome assembly as an example to highlight current challenges and to provide a possible solution.
Parent-of-origin-dependent nucleosome organization correlates with genomic imprinting in maize
Authors: Dong Xiaomei , Chen Jian , Li Tong , Li En , Zhang Xiangbo , Zhang Mei , Song Weibin , Zhao Haiming , Lai Jinsheng
Published: June 2018

Genomic imprinting refers to allele-specific expression of genes depending on their parental origin. Nucleosomes, the fundamental units of chromatin, play a critical role in gene transcriptional regulation. However, it remains unknown whether differential nucleosome organization is related to the allele-specific expression of imprinted genes. Here, we generated a genome-wide map of allele-specific nucleosome occupancy in maize endosperm and presented an integrated analysis of its relationship with parent-of-origin-dependent gene expression and DNA methylation. We found that ∼2.3% of nucleosomes showed significant parental bias in maize endosperm. The parent-of-origin-dependent nucleosomes mostly exist as single isolated nucleosomes. Parent-of-origin-dependent nucleosomes were significantly associated with the allele-specific expression of imprinted genes, with nucleosomes positioned preferentially in the promoter of nonexpressed alleles of imprinted genes. Furthermore, we found that most of the paternal specifically positioned nucleosomes (pat-nucleosomes) were associated with parent-of-origin-dependent differential methylated regions, suggesting a functional link between the maternal demethylation and the occurrence of pat-nucleosome. Maternal specifically positioned nucleosomes (mat-nucleosomes) were independent of allele-specific DNA methylation but seem to be associated with allele-specific histone modification. Our study provides the first genome-wide map of allele-specific nucleosome occupancy in plants and suggests a mechanistic connection between chromatin organization and genomic imprinting.
De novo MYH9 mutation in congenital scalp hemangioma
Authors: Fomchenko Elena I. , Duran Daniel , Jin Sheng Chih , Dong Weilai , Erson-Omay E. Zeynep , Antwi Prince , Allocco August , Gaillard Jonathan R. , Huttner Anita , Gunel Murat , DiLuna Michael L. , Kahle Kristopher T.
Published: June 2018

Congenital hemangiomas are tumor-like vascular malformations with poorly understood pathogenesis. We report the case of a neonate with a massive congenital scalp hemangioma that required urgent neurosurgical removal on the second day of life because of concern for high-flow arteriovenous shunting. Exome sequencing identified a rare damaging de novo germline mutation in MYH9 (c.5308C>T, p.[Arg1770Cys]), encoding the MYH9 nonmuscle myosin IIA. MYH9 has a probability of loss-of-function intolerance (pLI) score of >0.99 and is highly intolerant to missense variation (z score = 5.59). The p.(Arg1770Cys) mutation substitutes an evolutionarily conserved amino acid in the protein's critical myosin tail domain and is predicted to be highly deleterious by SIFT, PolyPhen-2, MetaSVM, and CADD. MYH9 is a known regulator of cytokinesis, VEGF-regulated angiogenesis, and p53-dependent tumorigenesis. These findings reveal a novel association of germline de novo MYH9 mutation with congenital hemangioma.
From one-sized to over-individualized? Service logic’s value creation
Authors: Eriksson Erik Masao , Nordgren Lars
Published: June 2018

Purpose

There is a current trend in healthcare management away from produced and standardized one-size-fits-all processes toward co-created and individualized services. The purpose of this paper is to increase understanding of the value concept in healthcare organization and management by recognizing different levels of value (private, group and public) and the interconnectedness among these levels.

Design/methodology/approach

The paper uses social constructionism as a lens to problematize the individualization of service logic’s value concept. Theories from consumer culture theory/transformative service research and public management add group and public levels of value to the private level.

Findings

An intersubjective (rather than subjective) approach to value creation entails the construction and sharing of value perceptions among groups of people. Such an approach also implies that group members may face similar barriers in their value creation efforts.

Practical implications

Healthcare management should be aware of the inherent individualism of service logic and, consequently, the need to balance private value with group and public levels of value.

Social implications

Identifying and addressing disadvantaged groups and the reasons for their disadvantaged positions is important in order to enhance the individual’s value creation prerequisites as well as to address public and societal values, such as equal/equitable health(care).

Originality/value

It is important to complement service logic’s value creation with group and public levels in order to understand the complexity and interconnectedness of value and the creation thereof.
The health care home in New Zealand: rolling out a new model of primary health care
Authors: Cumming Jacqueline , Dunn Phoebe , Middleton Lesley , O’Loughlin Claire
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to report on the origins, development and early impacts of a Health Care Home (HCH) model of care being rolled out around New Zealand (NZ).

Design/methodology/approach

This paper draws on a literature review on HCHs and related developments in primary health care, background discussions with key players, and a review of significant HCH implementation documents.

Findings

The HCH model of care is emerging from the sector itself and is being tailored to local needs and to meet the needs of local practices. A key focus in NZ seems to be on business efficiency and ensuring sustainability of general practice – with the assumption that freeing up general practitioner time for complex patients will mean better care for those populations. HCH models of care differ around the world and NZ needs its own evidence to show the model’s effectiveness in achieving its goals.

Research limitations/implications

It is still early days for the HCH model of care in NZ and the findings in this paper are based on limited evidence. Further evidence is needed to identify the model’s full impact over the next few years.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first to explore the HCH model of care in NZ.
Driving forces and structural changes of China as a market provider for Korea
Authors: Feng Yongqi , Zhang Tianshu
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to provide a better understanding of the driving forces and structural changes of China as a market provider for Korea. This paper gives the answers for the following questions: How do China’s final demands trigger the growth of its imports from Korea? And what’s the impact of China’s final demands on the import in different industries?

Design/methodology/approach

Based on the Multi-Regional Input-Output model and World Input-Output Table database, this paper constructs the non-competitive imports input-output (IO) table of China to Korea. According to this table, we can calculate the induced imports coefficient and comprehensive induced import coefficients of China’s four final demands for imports from Korea in the 56 industries in China.

Findings

Among the four driving forces, the strongest one is changes in inventories and valuables. The impact of final consumption expenditure and fixed capital formation is much lower than that of changes in inventories and valuables, but they have a broader impact for the 56 industries. This paper finds out the China’s import induction of the final demands to Korea peaked in 2005 and 2010 and decreased greatly in 2014, so the position of China as market provider for Korea will no longer rise substantially, contrarily it will be in a steady state.

Originality/value

First, this paper constructs the non-competitive IO table to analyze the market provider issues between two countries and provides practical ways and methods for studies on the issues of imports and market provider. Second, this paper investigates the different roles of four final demands on driving force of China as market provider for Korea and the structural changes of China as a market provider for Korea among 56 industries from 2000 to 2014.
The effects of Paris agreements on Korean economy and trade analyzed by the computational general equilibrium method considering firm’s heterogeneity
Authors: Roh Jae-whak , Kim Hyunjae
Published: June 2018

Purpose

During the Paris Convention, Korean Government made commitment to curb carbon emission by 37 percent by the year of 2030. Since then there has been constant debate, both in media and academia, as to whether attempts to reduce carbon emission would spell the concomitant economic slowdown. The purpose of this paper is to build a Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model to see the effects of emission decrease on Korea economy.

Design/methodology/approach

To answer the above question, we build a comprehensive framework to gauge the economic impact of Paris Convention through the lens of Computable General Equilibrium (CGE) model using Armington and Melitz model.

Findings

Contrary to conventional wisdom, Korea’s economic performance in terms of welfare remains robust when the carbon emission is reduced. Broadly speaking, Korea’s welfare does not contract significantly in part due to expansion at the export market. For instance, the energy intensive industry (EIT) is affected most directly from the Paris Convention commitment and yet it experiences growth in export. On the contrary, the authors find that the general economic impact on Korea’s output is negative. The additional experiment using Melitz model shows that as the carbon reduction is enforced, both the number and the average productivity of the exporting firms increase in the EIT sector, which the authors refer in the paper as the “Melitz Effect.”

Practical implications

This paper shows that what can be occurred in Korean industries by emission decrease commitment.

Social implications

One byproduct from restricting carbon emission is the surge in the electricity price. This is due to the fact that industries have to shift away from traditional fuels such as oil to electricity for energy. Therefore the authors propose that industrial policies aimed at balancing electricity price should accompany the plan to reduce carbon emission.

Originality/value

For Korean economy, the effects of emission reduction is researched using Armington and Melitz model at the same time. Especially, this is the first research case using the Melitz model in this Korean topic.
Lessons in disaster management as learned from Korean NGOs
Authors: Ha Kyoo-Man
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to improve the role of emergent Korean non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in disaster management by comparing general-goal NGOs and specific-goal NGOs, and ultimately goal provide lessons for international NGOs.

Design/methodology/approach

This study used quantitative research to analyze the issue through an international perspective. The hypothesis drafted was that if general-goal NGOs do not perform as well as specific-goal NGOs under actual conditions, their performance will have international implications. The two types of NGOs were systematically contrasted with reference to their social and political practices or culture through three variables: stakeholders, finance and strategies.

Findings

The main finding or recommendation is that general-goal NGOs have to be transformed into specific-goal NGOs for effective disaster management, not only in Korea but also in the international community.

Originality/value

When reflecting that almost no research has dared to look into the topic on the role or the type of disaster management NGOs in Korea, this paper has potential value as a pioneer study.
Tensions in ethnographic observation: overt or covert?
Authors: Strudwick Ruth
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to reflect on the tensions between being covert and overt during ethnographic observations. The example of an ethnographic study of the culture in a diagnostic imaging department will be used to provide examples.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is a reflection on an ethnographic study, focussing on the participant observation.

Findings

This paper discusses the author’s reflections on the covert and overt nature of ethnographic observation.

Originality/value

The discussion is of value to all ethnographic researchers who experience this tension.
Analysis of time dependent thermal properties for high rates in selective laser sintering
Authors: Wudy Katrin , Drexler Maximilian , Lanzl Lydia , Drummer Dietmar
Published: June 2018

Purpose

The thermal history during laser exposure determines part properties in selective laser sintering (SLS). The purpose of this study is to introduce a new measurement technique based on a CO2 laser unit combined with a high-speed DCS. A first comparison of the thermal history during laser exposure measured with Laser-high-speed-(HS)-differential scanning calorimetry-(DSC) and in SLS process is shown.

Design/methodology/approach

This Laser-HS-DSC allows an imitation of the SLS-process in a very small scale, as the sample is directly heated by a CO2 laser. For this study, the laser power and the impact time is varied for determining temperature and achieved heating rates. Consequently, the temperature levels measured by the Laser-HS-DSC are compared with measurements in SLS-process.

Findings

The influence of laser power and impact time on resulting maximum temperatures und heating rates during laser exposure are investigated. With increasing laser power and impact time the maximum temperature rises up to approximately 450°C without material degradation. The heating rate increases up to an impact time of 3 ms and stays almost equal for higher durations.

Research limitations/implications

The Laser-HS-DSC experiments are based on few particles limiting a complete comparison with SLS process. In SLS, one volume element is exposed several times. In this study the PA12 material was exposed only once.

Originality/value

For the first time, laser sintering experiments can be transferred to a laboratory scale to analyze the influence of laser exposure on resulting temperature field during laser exposure without superimposing effects.
Challenges in preparing the dietetics workforce of the future: An exploration of dietetics educators’ experiences
Authors: Morgan Kate , Reidlinger Dianne P. , Sargeant Sally , Crane Linda , Campbell Katrina L.
Published: June 2018

Aim

Dietetics educators represent a small but influential workforce group that has experienced significant change in recent years. The workforce development challenges faced by this group have been largely unexplored. The present study aimed to explore the experiences of, and challenges faced by, academic dietetics educators in preparing dietitians for the workforce.

Methods

The approach taken in the present study was informed by qualitative description. Fifteen dietetics educators employed by 13 universities across Australia were purposively sampled. In‐depth, semi‐structured interviews conducted via telephone (n = 12) or face‐to‐face (n = 3) were digitally recorded then transcribed verbatim. Data were managed with NVivo and inductively analysed using open coding. Codes were condensed into themes through an iterative process involving multiple researchers.

Results

The overarching theme of ‘aiming for a moving target’ was underpinned by the themes of: (i) striving for betterment; (ii) bridging dissonance and (iii) distressing impossibilities. Interviewees described how they were driven to enhance the preparation of dietitians but acknowledged disparity between what graduates are being prepared for and what they need to be prepared for. Heightened expectations of others, professional constraints and a lack of collegiality among the profession were among the challenges that manifested in a sense of frustration, concern and isolation.

Conclusions

Dietetics educators are motivated to shape and enhance the future profession. However, they face numerous challenges in their efforts to prepare graduates who are well‐equipped for increasingly diverse dietetics practice. Strong leadership, academic collaboration and greater engagement of the broader workforce are required for the benefit of the entire profession.
Overexpression of Nmnat3 efficiently increases NAD and NGD levels and ameliorates age‐associated insulin resistance
Authors: Gulshan Maryam , Yaku Keisuke , Okabe Keisuke , Mahmood Arshad , Sasaki Tsutomu , Yamamoto Masashi , Hikosaka Keisuke , Usui Isao , Kitamura Tadahiro , Tobe Kazuyuki , Nakagawa Takashi
Published: June 2018

Nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NAD) is an important cofactor that regulates various biological processes, including metabolism and gene expression. As a coenzyme, NAD controls mitochondrial respiration through enzymes of the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle, β‐oxidation, and oxidative phosphorylation and also serves as a substrate for posttranslational protein modifications, such as deacetylation and ADP‐ribosylation by sirtuins and poly(ADP‐ribose) polymerase (PARP), respectively. Many studies have demonstrated that NAD levels decrease with aging and that these declines cause various aging‐associated diseases. In contrast, activation of NAD metabolism prevents declines in NAD levels during aging. In particular, dietary supplementation with NAD precursors has been associated with protection against age‐associated insulin resistance. However, it remains unclear which NAD synthesis pathway is important and/or efficient at increasing NAD levels in vivo. In this study, Nmnat3 overexpression in mice efficiently increased NAD levels in various tissues and prevented aging‐related declines in NAD levels. We also demonstrated that Nmnat3‐overexpressing (Nmnat3 Tg) mice were protected against diet‐induced and aging‐associated insulin resistance. Moreover, in skeletal muscles of Nmnat3 Tg mice, TCA cycle activity was significantly enhanced, and the energy source for oxidative phosphorylation was shifted toward fatty acid oxidation. Furthermore, reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation was significantly suppressed in aged Nmnat3 Tg mice. Interestingly, we also found that concentrations of the NAD analog nicotinamide guanine dinucleotide (NGD) were dramatically increased in Nmnat3 Tg mice. These results suggest that Nmnat3 overexpression improves metabolic health and that Nmnat3 is an attractive therapeutic target for metabolic disorders that are caused by aging.
Hand–foot skin reaction predicts treatment outcome of pazopanib in patients with metastatic soft tissue sarcoma: A multicenter study in the Asian population
Authors: Huang Pei‐Wei , Chou Wen‐Chi , Shen Wen‐Chi , Hung Chia‐Yen , Huang Kuan‐Gen , Su Yu‐Li , Lu Chang‐Hsien , Liu Chien‐Ting , Chang Yueh‐Shih , Liau Chi‐Ting
Published: June 2018

Aim

Pazopanib is a multitargeted tyrosine kinase inhibitor used as a standard treatment for chemotherapy‐refractory recurrent or metastatic soft tissue sarcoma. This study aimed to evaluate the efficacy and safety of pazopanib for treatment of metastatic soft tissue sarcoma in the Asian population.

Methods

Fifty patients with chemotherapy‐refractory recurrent or metastatic soft tissue sarcoma, who had received pazopanib treatment between 2015 and 2016 were enrolled. We reviewed patients’ clinical characteristics and studied survival outcomes following pazopanib treatment.

Results

Median follow‐up was 5.7 months. Seven patients were still on pazopanib by the end of this study and the disease had progressed in the other 43 patients, leading to 23 deaths. We found that despite treatment more than half the patients experienced disease progression (56% vs 14% partial response and 30% stable disease). The median progression‐free survival and overall survival was 3.1 and 11.0 months, respectively. Multivariate analysis identified good Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group performance status (0 or 1) and occurrence of hand–foot skin reaction as independent factors associated with better outcome. Hand–foot skin reaction was 32% in our cohort and the median onset time was 4 (1.00–8.29) weeks. It had dose‐dependent effect by clinical observation.

Conclusions

Our study showed that the incidence rate of hand–foot skin reaction in Taiwan is higher than western population, and it is an independent predictive factor for better treatment outcomes.
The Two Income‐Participation Gaps
Authors: Ojeda Christopher
Published: June 2018

Scholars have long attributed the income‐participation gap—which is the observation that the rich participate in politics more than the poor—to income‐based differences in the resources, recruitment, mobilization, and psychology underpinning political behavior. I argue that these explanations require a longer time horizon than the empirical evidence permits. Education, for example, typically ends in young adulthood and so cannot logically mediate the effect of income on participation in late adulthood. To resolve this temporal problem, I propose that there are two income‐participation gaps: one based on current economic status and another on childhood economic history. I situate this argument in a developmental framework and present evidence for it using six studies. The results, while mixed at times, indicate that there are two gaps, that the size of each gap changes over the life course, and that their joint effect creates a larger income‐participation gap than estimated by prior research.
Isolation and molecular analysis of circulating tumor cells from lung cancer patients using a microfluidic chip type cell sorter
Authors: Watanabe Masaru , Kenmotsu Hirotsugu , Ko Ryo , Wakuda Kazushige , Ono Akira , Imai Hisao , Taira Tetsuhiko , Naito Tateaki , Murakami Haruyasu , Abe Masato , Endo Masahiro , Nakajima Takashi , Koh Yasuhiro , Takahashi Toshiaki
Published: June 2018

Circulating tumor cells (CTCs) are a tumor‐derived material utilized for liquid‐based biopsy; however, capturing rare CTCs for further molecular analysis remains technically challenging, especially in non‐small‐cell lung cancer. Here, we report the results of a clinical evaluation of On‐chip Sort, a disposable microfluidic chip‐based cell sorter, for capture and molecular analysis of CTCs from patients with lung adenocarcinoma. Peripheral blood was collected from 30 metastatic lung adenocarcinoma patients to enumerate CTCs using both On‐chip Sort and CellSearch in a blind manner. Captured cells by On‐chip Sort were subjected to further molecular analysis. Peripheral blood samples were also used for detection of EGFR mutations in plasma using droplet digital PCR. Significantly more CTCs were detected by On‐chip Sort (22/30; median 5; range, 0–18 cells/5 mL blood) than by CellSearch (9/30; median, 0; range, 0–12 cells/7.5 mL) (P < 0.01). Thirteen of 30 patients who had a negative CTC count by CellSearch had a positive CTC count by On‐chip Sort. EGFR mutations in CTCs captured by On‐chip Sort were observed in 40.0% (8/20) of patients with EGFR‐mutated primary tumor. EGFR mutations were often observed in 53.3% (8/15) of patients detected in plasma DNA. Expressions of EGFR and vimentin protein on CTCs were also successfully assessed using On‐chip Sort. These results suggest that On‐chip Sort is an efficient method to detect and capture rare CTCs from patients with lung adenocarcinoma that are undetectable with CellSearch. Mutation detection using isolated CTCs remains to be further tackled (UMIN000012488).
Guided self‐help to manage binge eating in a dietetic‐led community weight management service
Authors: Traviss‐Turner G. D. , Philpot U. , Wilton J. , Green K. , Heywood‐Everett S. , Hill A. J.
Published: June 2018

An estimated 30% of patients accessing community weight management services experience symptoms of binge eating disorder (BED). Guided self‐help (GSH) is the recommended first line of treatment for BED. This study is a preliminary investigation into the effectiveness of GSH delivered by dietitians for patients with binge eating within a weight management service and a consideration of the association between wellbeing, therapeutic relationship and outcomes. The study was conducted as a single group, pre‐ and post‐intervention study with 24 patients reporting symptoms of binge eating who completed the self‐help manual with guidance from a trained community dietitian. Primary outcomes were eating disorder psychopathology and behaviours (Eating Disorder Evaluation Questionnaire), depression and anxiety. Principle results showed a significant reduction on all subscales of eating disorder psychopathology, anxiety and depression. There was a reduction in loss of control over eating but the 40% reduction in binge episodes was not statistically significant. Mid‐treatment sessional ratings were positively associated with outcome. In conclusion, the GSH intervention was appropriate for dietitian delivery to patients with obesity and binge eating behaviour. This research indicates potential for other dietetic‐led weight management services to deliver such interventions and support patients with binge eating accessing their service.
The relationship of Type 1 diabetes self‐management barriers to child and parent quality of life: a US cross‐sectional study
Authors: Saoji N. , Palta M. , Young H. N. , Moreno M. A. , Rajamanickam V. , Cox E. D.
Published: June 2018

Aim

Families of children and adolescents with Type 1 diabetes experience self‐management challenges that negatively impact diabetes control. This study assesses whether self‐management challenges are also associated with quality of life (QOL) for children and adolescents with Type 1 diabetes and their parents.

Methods

Children aged 8–12 years (n = 135), adolescents aged 13–16 years (n = 132) and their parents completed QOL assessments (diabetes‐specific QOL from the PedsQL Diabetes Module or the Family Impact Module, both scaled 0–100) and a validated survey of up to six self‐management barriers [PRISM; scaled 1 (low) to 5 (high)]. Regression coefficients were calculated to assess the association of self‐management barriers with child and adolescent diabetes‐specific QOL or parent QOL, including interaction effects to assess the stability of the associations.

Results

Mean duration of diabetes was 4.7 years for children and 6.1 years for adolescents. The majority of children and adolescents did not meet target values for glycaemic control. All barriers but one (Healthcare Team Interactions) were associated with lower diabetes‐specific QOL for children and adolescents, as well as lower QOL for parents (all P < 0.05). Barrier scores that were 1 unit higher were associated with diabetes‐specific QOL that was 3.7–5.1 points lower for children and 5.8–8.8 points lower for adolescents, as well as QOL that was 6.0–12.6 points lower for parents. Diabetes‐specific QOL was most strongly associated with ‘Denial of Disease and Its Consequences’ for children and with ‘Regimen Pain and Bother’ for adolescents. Parent QOL was most strongly associated with ‘Understanding and Organizing Care’. Associations were stable across numerous demographic and disease factors.

Conclusions

Single‐unit differences in self‐management barrier scores are associated with clinically meaningful differences in QOL for children and parents. Interventions specifically tailored to address individual self‐management barriers may improve both diabetes control and QOL.
Next‐generation conservation genetics and biodiversity monitoring
Authors: Hunter Margaret E. , Hoban Sean M. , Bruford Michael W. , Segelbacher Gernot , Bernatchez Louis
Published: June 2018

This special issue of Evolutionary Applications consists of 10 publications investigating the use of next‐generation tools and techniques in population genetic analyses and biodiversity assessment. The special issue stems from a 2016 Next Generation Genetic Monitoring Workshop, hosted by the National Institute for Mathematical and Biological Synthesis (NIMBioS) in Tennessee, USA. The improved accessibility of next‐generation sequencing platforms has allowed molecular ecologists to rapidly produce large amounts of data. However, with the increased availability of new genomic markers and mathematical techniques, care is needed in selecting appropriate study designs, interpreting results in light of conservation concerns, and determining appropriate management actions. This special issue identifies key attributes of successful genetic data analyses in biodiversity evaluation and suggests ways to improve analyses and their application in current population and conservation genetics research.
Regional comparisons of walking or bicycling for fun or exercise and for active transport in a nationally distributed sample of community‐based youth
Authors: Saunders R. P. , Dowda M. , McIver K. , Pate R. R. ,   on behalf of the Healthy Communities Study Team
Published: June 2018

Background

Physical activity helps prevent excessive weight gain in youth. Few studies have examined regional variations in common activities, walking and bicycling.

Objective

The primary aim was to examine participation in previous 7‐day walking/bicycling for active transport and for fun/exercise by region, gender and age groups.

Methods

Children (n = 2693) from 130 diverse, geographically distributed US communities reported participation in previous 7‐day walking/bicycling. Mixed model ANOVAs were used to compare walking/bicycling by region, gender and age groups using Healthy Communities Study data.

Results

Walking/bicycling for fun/exercise was higher in the Midwest, South and West compared with the Northeast, with the same regional patterns for boys, girls and 9–11‐year olds. Walking/bicycling to non‐school destinations was higher in the Midwest compared with the South and Northeast, with the same pattern for girls and 9–11‐year olds. Walking/bicycling to school was higher Midwest, Northeast and West compared with the South, with similar patterns for girls and 12–15‐year olds.

Conclusions

Walking/bicycling for fun/exercise and to non‐school destinations had higher prevalence than active transport to school. The Northeast reported lower walking/bicycling for fun/exercise; the South and Northeast reported lower walking/bicycling to non‐school destinations. Program/policy initiatives should consider contextual demographic influences, as well as purpose/destination of walking/bicycling.