bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ac102 Participates in Nuclear Actin Polymerization by Modulating BV/ODV-C42 Ubiquitination during Autographa californica Multiple Nucleopolyhedrovirus Infection
Authors: Zhang Yongli , Hu Xue , Mu Jingfang , Hu Yangyang , Zhou Yuan , Zhao He , Wu Chunchen , Pei Rongjuan , Chen Jizheng , Chen Xinwen , Wang Yun
Published: April 2018

As a virus-encoded actin nucleation promoting factor (NPF), P78/83 induces actin polymerization to assist in Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) propagation. According to our previous study, although P78/83 actively undergoes ubiquitin-independent proteasomal degradation, AcMNPV encodes budded virus/occlusion derived virus (BV/ODV)-C42 (C42), which allows P78/83 to function as a stable NPF by inhibiting its degradation during viral infection. However, whether there are other viral proteins involved in regulating P78/83-induced actin polymerization has yet to be determined. In this study, we found that Ac102, an essential viral gene product previously reported to play a key role in mediating the nuclear accumulation of actin during AcMNPV infection, is a novel regulator of P78/83-induced actin polymerization. By characterizing an
ac102
knockout bacmid, we demonstrated that Ac102 participates in regulating nuclear actin polymerization as well as the morphogenesis and distribution of capsid structures in the nucleus. These regulatory effects are heavily dependent on an interaction between Ac102 and C42. Further investigation revealed that Ac102 binds to C42 to suppress K48-linked ubiquitination of C42, which decreases C42 proteasomal degradation and consequently allows P78/83 to function as a stable NPF to induce actin polymerization. Thus, Ac102 and C42 form a regulatory cascade to control viral NPF activity, representing a sophisticated mechanism for AcMNPV to orchestrate actin polymerization in both a ubiquitin-dependent and ubiquitin-independent manner.

IMPORTANCE
Actin is one of the most functionally important proteins in eukaryotic cells. Morphologically, actin can be found in two forms: a monomeric form called globular actin (G-actin) and a polymeric form called filamentous actin (F-actin). G-actin can polymerize to form F-actin, and nucleation promoting factor (NPF) is the initiator of this process. Many viral pathogens harness the host actin polymerization machinery to assist in virus propagation. Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) induces actin polymerization in host cells. P78/83, a viral NPF, is responsible for this process. Previously, we identified that BV/ODV-C42 (C42) binds to P78/83 and protects it from degradation. In this report, we determined that another viral protein, Ac102, is involved in modulating C42 ubiquitination and, consequently, ensures P78/83 activity as an NPF to initiate actin polymerization. This regulatory cascade represents a novel mechanism by which a virus can harness the cellular actin cytoskeleton to assist in viral propagation.
Molecular Basis of Unusually High Neutralization Resistance in Tier 3 HIV-1 Strain 253-11
Authors: Moyo Thandeka , Ereño-Orbea June , Jacob Rajesh Abraham , Pavillet Clara E. , Kariuki Samuel Mundia , Tangie Emily N. , Julien Jean-Philippe , Dorfman Jeffrey R.
Published: April 2018

Understanding the mechanisms used by HIV-1 to evade antibody neutralization may contribute to the design of a high-coverage vaccine. The tier 3 virus 253-11 is poorly neutralized by subtype-matched and subtype C sera, even compared to other tier 3 viruses, and is also recognized poorly by V3/glycan-targeting monoclonal antibodies (MAbs). We found that sequence polymorphisms in the V3 loop and N-linked glycosylation sites contribute only minimally to the high neutralization resistance of 253-11. Interestingly, the 253-11 membrane-proximal external region (MPER) is rarely recognized by sera in the context of the wild-type virus but is commonly recognized in the context of an HIV-2 chimera, suggesting steric or kinetic hindrance of binding to MPER in the native envelope (Env). Mutations in the 253-11 MPER, which were previously reported to increase the lifetime of the prefusion Env conformation, affected the resistance of 253-11 to antibodies targeting various epitopes on HIV-1 Env, presumably destabilizing its otherwise stable, closed trimer structure. To gain insight into the structure of 253-11, we constructed and crystallized a recombinant 253-11 SOSIP trimer. The resulting structure revealed that the heptad repeat helices in gp41 are drawn in close proximity to the trimer axis and that gp120 protomers also showed a relatively compact disposition around the trimer axis. These observations give substantial insight into the molecular features of an envelope spike from a tier 3 virus and into possible mechanisms that may contribute to its unusually high neutralization resistance.

IMPORTANCE
HIV-1 isolates that are highly resistant to broadly neutralizing antibodies could limit the efficacy of an antibody-based vaccine. We studied 253-11, which is highly resistant to commonly elicited neutralizing antibodies. To further understand its resistance, we made mutations that are known to delay fusion and thus increase the time that the virus spends in the open conformation following CD4 binding. Interestingly, we found that these mutations affect the 253-11 envelope (Env) spike before CD4 binding, presumably by destabilizing the trimer structure. To gain further information about the structure of the 253-11 Env trimer, we generated a recombinant 253-11 SOSIP trimer. The crystal structure of the SOSIP trimer revealed that the gp41 helices and the gp120 protomers were drawn in toward the center of the molecule compared to most solved HIV-1 Env structures. These observations provide insight into the distinct molecular features of a tier 3 envelope spike.
MYR1-Dependent Effectors Are the Major Drivers of a Host Cell’s Early Response to
Toxoplasma
, Including Counteracting MYR1-Independent Effects
Authors: Naor Adit , Panas Michael W. , Marino Nicole , Coffey Michael J. , Tonkin Christopher J. , Boothroyd John C.
Published: April 2018

The obligate intracellular parasite
Toxoplasma gondii
controls its host cell from within the parasitophorous vacuole (PV) by using a number of diverse effector proteins, a subset of which require the aspartyl protease 5 enzyme (ASP5) and/or the recently discovered MYR1 protein to cross the PV membrane. To examine the impact these effectors have in the context of the entirety of the host response to
Toxoplasma
, we used RNA-Seq to analyze the transcriptome expression profiles of human foreskin fibroblasts infected with wild-type RH (RH-WT), RHΔ
myr1
, and RHΔ
asp5
tachyzoites. Interestingly, the majority of the differentially regulated genes responding to
Toxoplasma
infection are MYR1 dependent. A subset of MYR1 responses were ASP5 independent, and MYR1 function did not require ASP5 cleavage, suggesting the export of some effectors requires only MYR1. Gene set enrichment analysis of MYR1-dependent host responses suggests an upregulation of E2F transcription factors and the cell cycle and a downregulation related to interferon signaling, among numerous others. Most surprisingly, “hidden” responses arising in RHΔ
myr1
- but not RH-WT-infected host cells indicate counterbalancing actions of MYR1-dependent and -independent activities. The host genes and gene sets revealed here to be MYR1 dependent provide new insight into the parasite’s ability to co-opt host cell functions.

IMPORTANCE
Toxoplasma gondii
is unique in its ability to successfully invade and replicate in a broad range of host species and cells within those hosts. The complex interplay of effector proteins exported by
Toxoplasma
is key to its success in co-opting the host cell to create a favorable replicative niche. Here we show that a majority of the transcriptomic effects in tachyzoite-infected cells depend on the activity of a novel translocation system involving MYR1 and that the effectors delivered by this system are part of an intricate interplay of activators and suppressors. Removal of all MYR1-dependent effectors reveals previously unknown activities that are masked or hidden by the action of these proteins.
Analysis of bond-slip and transverse dissipative energies in confined reinforcing bars
Authors: Erfanian Armin , Elwi Alaa E.
Published: April 2018

A finite element approach for the analysis of straight and bent reinforcing bars in confined concrete under monotonic loading is presented. This type of anchorage is mostly found in joints. Bond and transverse dissipative energies are included. The proposed approach predicts the capacity, bond, slip, strains, and stresses along the bars in curved and straight configurations. This method can be used to predict bar pullout behavior. Various bond-slip models and test results are available in the literature. Many of the current approaches do not consider the plastic stage bond, transverse pressure, and large deformations. These shortcomings are resolved in this research. A simplified but effective approach is proposed for plastic stage bond. Internal and external transverse pressures are addressed presenting a mathematically sound incremental procedure. These solutions are appended to the existing nonlinear strategies to accommodate large deformations. Comparison with published experimental results demonstrates the accuracy of the proposed method.
Single-Cell Recordings to Target the Anterior Nucleus of the Thalamus in Deep Brain Stimulation for Patients with Refractory Epilepsy
Authors: Schaper Frédéric L. W. V. J. , Zhao Yan , Janssen Marcus L. F. , Wagner G. Louis , Colon Albert J. , Hilkman Danny M. W. , Gommer Erik , Vlooswijk Mariëlle C. G. , Hoogland Govert , Ackermans Linda , Bour Lo J. , Van Wezel Richard J. A. , Boon Paul , Temel Yasin , Heida Tjitske , Van Kranen-Mastenbroek Vivianne H. J. M. , Rouhl Rob P. W.
Published: April 2018

Deep brain stimulation (DBS) of the anterior nucleus of the thalamus (ANT) is a promising treatment for patients with refractory epilepsy. However, therapy response varies and precise positioning of the DBS lead is potentially essential for maximizing therapeutic efficacy. We investigate if single-cell recordings acquired by microelectrode recordings can aid targeting of the ANT during surgery and hypothesize that the neuronal firing properties of the target region relate to clinical outcome. We prospectively included 10 refractory epilepsy patients and performed microelectrode recordings under general anesthesia to identify the change in neuronal signals when approaching and transecting the ANT. The neuronal firing properties of the target region, anatomical locations of microelectrode recordings and active contact positions of the DBS lead along the recorded trajectory were compared between responders and nonresponders to DBS. We obtained 19 sets of recordings from 10 patients (five responders and five nonresponders). Amongst the 403 neurons detected, 365 (90.6%) were classified as bursty. Entry into the ANT was characterized by an increase in firing rate while exit of the ANT was characterized by a decrease in firing rate. Comparing the trajectories of responders to nonresponders, we found differences neither in the neuronal firing properties themselves nor in their locations relative to the position of the active contact. Single-cell firing rate acquired by microelectrode recordings under general anesthesia can thus aid targeting of the ANT during surgery, but is not related to clinical outcome in DBS for patients with refractory epilepsy.
Scaling Up Parallel Computation of Tiled QR Factorizations by a Distributed Scheduling Runtime System and Analytical Modeling
Authors: Zheng Weijian , Song Fengguang , Lin Lan , Chen Zizhong
Published: April 2018

Implementing parallel software for QR factorizations to achieve scalable performance on massively parallel manycore systems requires a comprehensive design that includes algorithm redesign, efficient runtime systems, synchronization and communication reduction, and analytical performance modeling. This paper presents a piece of tiled communication-avoiding QR factorization software that is able to scale efficiently for matrices with general dimensions. We design a tiled communication-avoiding QR factorization algorithm and implement it with a fully distributed dynamic scheduling runtime system to minimize both synchronization and communication. The whole class of communication-avoiding QR factorization algorithms uses an important parameter of D (i.e., the number of domains), whose best solution is still unknown so far and requires manual tuning and empirical searching to find it. To that end, we introduce a simplified analytical performance model to determine an optimal number of domains D[Formula: see text]. The experimental results show that our new parallel implementation is faster than a state-of-the-art multicore-based numerical library by up to 30%, and faster than ScaLAPACK by up to 30 times with thousands of CPU cores. Furthermore, using the new analytical model to predict an optimal number of domains is as competitive as exhaustive searching, and exhibits an average performance difference of 1%.
Pauli energy spectrum for twist-deformed spacetime
Authors: Daszkiewicz Marcin
Published: April 2018

In this paper, we define the Pauli Hamiltonian function for the twist-deformed N-enlarged Newton–Hooke spacetime provided by M. Daszkiewicz [Mod. Phys. Lett. A 27, 1250083 (2012)]. Further, we derive its energy spectrum, i.e. we find the corresponding eigenvalues as well as the proper eigenfunctions.
Search for geo-neutrinos and rare nuclear processes with Borexino
Authors: Caminata Alessio , Davini Stefano , Di Noto Lea , Pallavicini Marco , Testera Gemma , Zavatarelli Sandra
Published: April 2018

Borexino was designed to measure solar neutrinos in the MeV or sub-MeV energy range. The unprecedented radiopurity of the detector has allowed the detection of geo-neutrinos and the determination of competitive limits on the rate of rare or forbidden processes. In this paper, we review the basic principle of neutrinos and antineutrinos detection in Borexino and we describe the results of the geo-neutrinos measurements and their implications. Then we summarize the search for Borexino events correlated with gamma ray bursts and for axion induced signals, and the limits achieved on Pauli forbidden transitions and on the electron charge conservation.
Laguerre-Intersection Method for Implicit Solvation
Authors: Hummel Michelle Hatch , Yu Bihua , Simmerling Carlos , Coutsias Evangelos A.
Published: April 2018

Explicit solvent molecular dynamics simulations of a macromolecule are slow as the number of solvent atoms considered typically increases by order of magnitude. Implicit methods introduce surface-dependent corrections to the force field, gaining speed at the expense of accuracy. Properties such as molecular interface surfaces, volumes and cavities are captured by Laguerre tessellations of macromolecules. However, Laguerre cells of exterior atoms tend to be overly large or unbounded. Our method, the inclusion-exclusion based Laguerre-Intersection method, caps cells in a physically accurate manner by considering the intersection of the space-filling diagram with the Laguerre tessellation. We optimize an adjustable parameter, the weight, to ensure the areas and volumes of capped cells exposed to solvent are as close as possible, on average, to those computed from equilibrated explicit solvent simulations. The contact planes are radical planes, meaning that as the solvent weight is varied, interior cells remain constant. We test the consistency of our model using a high-quality trajectory of HIV-protease, a dimer with flexible loops and open-close transitions. We also compare our results with interval-arithmetic Gauss-Bonnet based method. Optimal solvent parameters quickly converge, which we use to illustrate the increased fidelity of the Laguerre-Intersection method over two recently proposed methods as compared to the explicit model.
Non-Dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II-Induced Neural-Supported Prediction of Water Quality with Stability Analysis
Authors: Chatterjee Sankhadeep , Sarkar Sarbartha , Dey Nilanjan , Sen Soumya
Published: April 2018

Water is one of the most important necessities for human survival. In municipal corporation areas, water quality affects a large part of the population. Good quality water supply is an imperative parameter that influences individuals’ health. Automated accurate water quality determination becomes an urgent necessity. Detecting the drinking water quality can prevent such scenarios prior to the critical stage. Recent research works have achieved reasonable success in predicting the water quality by deploying several machine learning-based techniques and utilising different aspects to analyse water quality. The accuracy levels of already proposed models are to be improved, keeping in mind the sensitivity of the problem domain. In the current work, Non-dominated Sorting Genetic Algorithm-II (NN-NSGA-II) was employed to train the artificial neural network (ANN) to improve its performance over its traditional counterparts. The proposed model gradually minimises two different objective functions, namely the root mean square error (RMSE) and Maximum Error (ME) in order to find the optimal weight vector for the ANN. The proposed model was compared with another two well-established models namely ANN trained with Genetic Algorithm (NN-GA) and ANN trained with Particle Swarm Optimisation (NN-PSO) in terms of accuracy, precision, recall, [Formula: see text]-Measure, Matthews correlation coefficient (MCC) and Fowlkes–Mallows (FM) index. Furthermore, a data perturbation-based stability analysis is proposed to test the stability of the proposed method. The simulation results established superior accuracy of NN-NSGA-II over the other models.
RABBIT’S HEALTH AND ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF EXPLOITATION TREATED BIODEGRADABLE POLLUTION WATER BY JOHKASOU SYSTEM
Authors: Osman A. H. , El Miniawy Hala M. F. , Zakia A. M. , Mahmoud A. M. , Mohamed M. H. , Khattab A. M. , Zaki Ewiss M. A.
Published: April 2018

This paper is considered as a part of a multi-disciplinary analysis “Application of Decentralized On-Site Water Treatment System in Egypt for Use in Agriculture and Producing Safe Animal Proteins”. The project aimed to investigate the environmental impact of implementing sewage water before and after treatment using the effluent of the on-site decentralized Japanese’ Johkasou system. Blood chemistry of liver and kidney enzymes revealed significant increase in the fourth week in comparison with groups of treated and tap water. On the other hand, ALT and AST levels have no statistical differences between treated and tap water reared animals. The progressive pathological lesions were noted in 100% and 70% untreated water groups.

The benefit of Johkasou system model CE10 in treatment of sewage water and suitability for rearing of animals is demonstrated.
Quantification of Effects of Ridge and Valley Topography on the Rayleigh Wave Characteristics
Authors: Narayan J. P. , Kumar A.
Published: April 2018

The effects of ridge and valley on the characteristics of Rayleigh waves are presented in this paper. The research work carried out has been stimulated by the day by day increase of long-span structures in the hilly areas which are largely affected by the spatial variability in ground motion caused by the high-frequency Rayleigh waves. The Rayleigh wave responses of the considered triangular and elliptical ridge and valley models were computed using a fourth-order accurate staggered-grid viscoelastic P-SV wave finite-difference (FD) program. The simulated results revealed very large amplification of the horizontal component and de-amplification of the vertical component of Rayleigh wave at the top of a triangular ridge and de-amplification of both the components at the base of the triangular valley. The observed amplification of both the components of Rayleigh wave in front of elliptical valley was larger than triangular valley models. A splitting of the Rayleigh wave wavelet was inferred after interaction with ridge and valley. It is concluded that the large-scale topography acts as a natural insulator for the surface waves and the insulating capacity of the valley is more than that of a ridge. This insulation phenomenon is arising due to the reflection, diffraction and splitting of the surface wave while moving across the topography. It is concluded that insulating potential of the topography for the Rayleigh waves largely depends on their shape and shape-ratio.
Optimal investment risks management strategies of an economy in a financial crisis
Authors: Nkeki Charles I.
Published: April 2018

In this paper, we consider a strategic management of investment risks of an economy that faces financial crisis. The assets consider are multiple stocks and multiple fixed assets. Asset of the economy is a linear combination of portfolio weights and the expected stock returns plus a linear combination of the price of fixed and quantities of assets. Also, the debt profile, consumption and income growth of the economy are studied. The resulting optimization problem was solved by the method of Lagrangian multiplier. The aims of this paper are to determine the (i) mean–variance investment portfolio of the economy, (ii) optimal investment of the economy, (ii) optimal debt ratio of the economy, (iii) efficient frontier for the economy (iv) global minimum risks in the investment portfolio. Empirical results using real data collected from Nigerian Stock Exchange are considered.
An analytical solution for the HJB equation arising from the Merton problem
Authors: Zhu Song-Ping , Ma Guiyuan
Published: April 2018

In this paper, an analytical solution for the well-known Hamilton–Jacobi–Bellman (HJB) equation that arises from the Merton problem subject to general utility functions is presented for the first time. The solution presented in this paper is written in the form of a Taylor’s series expansion and constructed through the homotopy analysis method (HAM). The fully nonlinear HJB equation is decomposed into an infinite series of linear PDEs which can be solved analytically. Four examples are presented with the first two cases showing the accuracy of our solution approach; while the last two demonstrating its versatility.
Finite element based Monte Carlo simulation of options on Lévy driven assets
Authors: Karlsson Patrik
Published: April 2018

This paper extends the simulation algorithm by Andreasen and Huge (2011) to the simulation of option prices and deltas on Lévy driven assets where the simulation is performed relying on the inverse transition matrix of the discretized partial integro differential equation (PIDE). We demonstrate how one can get accurate prices and deltas of European options on VG and CGMY via Monte Carlo simulations.
Route-Based Signal Preemption Control of Emergency Vehicle
Authors: Mu Haibo , Song Yubo , Liu Linzhong
Published: April 2018

This paper focuses on the signal preemption control of emergency vehicles (EV). A signal preemption control method based on route is proposed to reduce time delay of EV at intersections. According to the time at which EV is detected and the current phase of each intersection on the travelling route of EV, the calculation methods of the earliest start time and the latest start time of green light at each intersection are given. Consequently, the effective time range of green light at each intersection is determined in theory. A multiobjective programming model, whose objectives are the minimal residence time of EV at all intersections and the maximal passing numbers of general society vehicles, is presented. Finally, a simulation calculation is carried out. Calculation results indicate that, by adopting the signal preemption method based on route, the delay of EV is reduced and the number of society vehicles passing through the whole system is increased. The signal preemption control method of EV based on route can reduce the time delay of EV and improve the evacuation efficiency of the system.
Spinal Accessory Nerve Duplication: A Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Papagianni Eleni , Kosmidou Panagiota , Fergadaki Sotiria , Pallantzas Athanasios , Skandalakis Panagiotis , Filippou Dimitrios
Published: April 2018

Aim of the present study is to expand our knowledge of the anatomy of the 11th cranial nerve and discuss the clinical importance and literature pertaining to accessory nerve duplication. We present one case of duplicated spinal accessory nerve in a patient undergoing neck dissection for oral cavity cancer. The literature review confirms the extremely rare diagnosis of a duplicated accessory nerve. Its clinical implication is of great importance. From this finding, a further extension to our knowledge of the existing anatomy is proposed.
Reliability-Centered Maintenance: Analyzing Failure in Harvest Sugarcane Machine Using Some Generalizations of the Weibull Distribution
Authors: Ramos Pedro L. , Nascimento Diego C. , Cocolo Camila , Nicola Márcio J. , Alonso Carlos , Ribeiro Luiz G. , Ennes André , Louzada Francisco
Published: April 2018

We considered five generalizations of the standard Weibull distribution to describe the lifetime of two important components of sugarcane harvesting machines. The harvesters considered in the analysis harvest an average of 20 tons of sugarcane per hour and their malfunction may lead to major losses; therefore, an effective maintenance approach is of main interest for cost savings. For the considered distributions, mathematical background is presented. Maximum likelihood is used for parameter estimation. Further, different discrimination procedures were used to obtain the best fit for each component. At the end, we propose a maintenance scheduling for the components of the harvesters using predictive analysis.
Scalable Parallel Algorithm of Multiple-Relaxation-Time Lattice Boltzmann Method with Large Eddy Simulation on Multi-GPUs
Authors: Xu Lei , Song Anping , Zhang Wu
Published: April 2018

The lattice Boltzmann method (LBM) has become an attractive and promising approach in computational fluid dynamics (CFD). In this paper, parallel algorithm of D3Q19 multi-relaxation-time LBM with large eddy simulation (LES) is presented to simulate 3D flow past a sphere using multi-GPUs (graphic processing units). In order to deal with complex boundary, the judgement method of boundary lattice for complex boundary is devised. The 3D domain decomposition method is applied to improve the scalability for cluster, and the overlapping mode is introduced to hide the communication time by dividing the subdomain into two parts: inner part and outer part. Numerical results show good agreement with literature and the 12 Kepler K20M GPUs perform about 5100 million lattice updates per second, which indicates considerable scalability.
Stenotrophomonas maltophiliaNecrotizing Soft Tissue Infection in an Immunocompromised Patient
Authors: Stens Oleg , Wardi Gabriel , Kinney Matthew , Shin Stephanie , Papamatheakis Demosthenes
Published: April 2018

Introduction. To report on the first recorded case of necrotizing soft tissue infection (NSTI) in an immunocompromised individual caused byStenotrophomonas maltophiliain the Western Hemisphere and highlight the challenges that medical providers face in promptly diagnosing and treating NSTI in this highly vulnerable patient population.Case Presentation. We report a case of NSTI caused byS. maltophiliain a neutropenic patient admitted for treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia. The patient presented with laboratory and clinical findings atypical for a NSTI that may have confounded its diagnosis and delayed surgical intervention. Despite aggressive medical care and surgical debridement, the patient unfortunately passed away due to overwhelming septic shock.Conclusions. Providers should consider atypical organisms as causative in NSTI in immunocompromised patients and recognize that these patients may present without classic clinical and laboratory findings.
Altered Feeding Behaviors and Adiposity Precede Observable Weight Gain in Young Rats Submitted to a Short-Term High-Fat Diet
Authors: Andrich David E. , Melbouci Lilya , Ou Ya , Leduc-Gaudet Jean-Philippe , Chabot François , Lalonde François , Lira Fábio Santos , Gaylinn Bruce D. , Gouspillou Gilles , Danialou Gawiyou , Comtois Alain-Steve , St-Pierre David H.
Published: April 2018

Information regarding the early effects of obesogenic diets on feeding patterns and behaviors is limited. To improve knowledge regarding the etiology of obesity, young male Wistar rats were submitted to high-fat (HFD) or regular chow diets (RCDs) for 14 days. Various metabolic parameters were continuously measured using metabolic chambers. Total weight gain was similar between groups, but heavier visceral fat depots and reduced weight of livers were found in HFD rats. Total calorie intake was increased while individual feeding bouts were shorter and of higher calorie intake in response to HFD. Ambulatory activity and sleep duration were decreased in HFD rats during passive and active phase, respectively. Acylated and unacylated ghrelin levels were unaltered by the increased calorie intake and the early changes in body composition. This indicates that at this early stage, the orexigenic signal did not adapt to the high-calorie content of HFD. We hereby demonstrate that, although total weight gain is not affected, a short-term obesogenic diet alters body composition, feeding patterns, satiation, ambulatory activity profiles, and behaviours in a young rat model. Moreover, this effect precedes changes in weight gain, obesity, and ensuing metabolic disorders.
A Rare Case of Clear Cell Carcinoma, Müllerian Type in the Renal Pelvis of a 21-Year-Old Woman
Authors: Perez Diandra , Naous Rana
Published: April 2018

Clear Cell Carcinomas of Müllerian origin are extremely rare within the upper urinary system. Their morphology is identical to that of the Clear Cell Carcinomas of the female genital tract. When they arise in the urinary tract, it is thought to be due to ectopic Müllerian embryogenesis. Here, we present a case of a 21-year-old woman with a Clear Cell Carcinoma, Müllerian type, arising from the renal pelvis. Histologically, it consisted of tubulopapillary architecture with associated foamy macrophages and a mucinous background. The neoplastic cells exhibited variably sized round nuclei with prominent nucleoli, eosinophilic to vacuolated cytoplasm with occasional intracytoplasmic mucin vacuoles, and a hobnail appearance. Immunohistochemical stains showed that the neoplastic cells were positive for Pax-8, p53, CK7, HMWK 903, and INI-1 and focally positive for p504s (AMACR). The neoplastic cells were negative for GATA-3, CK5/CK6, p63, CK20, and CDX-2 immunostains, ruling out urothelial or enteric phenotype. Additional immunostains performed by an outside institution showed that the neoplastic cells were positive for HNF-1β. The overall morphology and immunophenotype were consistent with Clear Cell Carcinoma of Müllerian origin arising from the renal pelvis. Follow-up revealed no metastasis or other tumor sites, supporting that this was the primary location.
Analysis on Influential Functions in the Weighted Software Network
Authors: He Haitao , Shan Chun , Tian Xiangmin , Wei Yalei , Huang Guoyan
Published: April 2018

Identifying influential nodes is important for software in terms of understanding the design patterns and controlling the development and the maintenance process. However, there are no efficient methods to discover them so far. Based on the invoking dependency relationships between the nodes, this paper proposes a novel approach to define the node importance for mining the influential software nodes. First, according to the multiple execution information, we construct a weighted software network (WSN) to denote the software execution dependency structure. Second, considering the invoking times and outdegree about software nodes, we improve the method PageRank and put forward the targeted algorithm FunctionRank to evaluate the node importance (NI) in weighted software network. It has higher influence when the node has lager value of NI. Finally, comparing the NI of nodes, we can obtain the most influential nodes in the software network. In addition, the experimental results show that the proposed approach has good performance in identifying the influential nodes.
Relationship between High Temperature and Formation of Chalkiness and Their Effects on Quality of Rice
Authors: Nevame A. Y. M. , Emon R. M. , Malek M. A. , Hasan M. M. , Alam Md. Amirul , Muharam Farrah Melissa , Aslani Farzad , Rafii M. Y. , Ismail M. R.
Published: April 2018

Occurrence of chalkiness in rice is attributed to genetic and environmental factors, especially high temperature (HT). The HT induces heat stress, which in turn compromises many grain qualities, especially transparency. Chalkiness in rice is commonly studied together with other quality traits such as amylose content, gel consistency, and protein storage. In addition to the fundamental QTLs, some other QTLs have been identified which accelerate chalkiness occurrence under HT condition. In this review, some of the relatively stable chalkiness, amylose content, and gel consistency related QTLs have been presented well. Genetically, HT effect on chalkiness is explained by the location of certain chalkiness gene in the vicinity of high-temperature-responsive genes. With regard to stable QTL distribution and availability of potential material resources, there is still feasibility to find out novel stable QTLs related to chalkiness under HT condition. A better understanding of those achievements is essential to develop new rice varieties with a reduced chalky grain percentage. Therefore, we propose the pyramiding of relatively stable and nonallelic QTLs controlling low chalkiness endosperm into adaptable rice varieties as pragmatic approach to mitigate HT effect.
Osteomyelitis in Cat-Scratch Disease: A Never-Ending Dilemma—A Case Report and Literature Review
Authors: Donà D. , Nai Fovino L. , Mozzo E. , Cabrelle G. , Bordin G. , Lundin R. , Giaquinto C. , Zangardi T. , Rampon O.
Published: April 2018

Background. We performed a review of published case studies of osteomyelitis associated with cat-scratch disease to consolidate existing information on clinical presentation, diagnostic tools, therapy, and outcome, as well as presenting a case of disseminated cat-scratch disease in a 12-year-old female with skull osteomyelitis and spleen involvement.Methods. A search for articles indexed in PubMed, Embase, and Google Scholar was performed with the search terms “Bartonella,” “bone,” “osteomyelitis,” “osteolytic,” and “cat-scratch disease” limited to the immunocompetent pediatric population and articles in English.Results. 51 cases were identified. The average age was 7.8 years with equal sex distribution. Fever (84.3%), often with a prolonged course (64.7%), and osteoarticular pain (88.2%) were the most common clinical findings. Lymphadenopathy was present in 64.7% of patients. Vertebral body was mainly involved (51.9%). MRI (50%) and bone scintigraphy (48.1%) were favored to confirm osteomyelitis, while serology was the preferred microbiological diagnostic. Various antibiotics were prescribed in combined or sequential regimens, with median duration of therapy of 23 days. About 12.5% of patients did not receive any treatment. Most patients had excellent prognosis; in particular, all patients not receiving any therapy showed complete recovery and no recurrence of symptoms.Conclusions.Bartonella henselaeshould be considered in differential diagnosis of localized lymphadentitis. Osteoarticular pain or limitation during cat-scratch disease in children should always be investigated for bone spreading. Owing to good prognosis, invasive procedures to obtain the bone material should be avoided. Serology is the gold standard diagnostic tool and MRI is the best radiographic technique to define bone and surrounding tissue involvement. Treatment represents a never-ending dilemma: surgical intervention or use of antibiotics is still controversial, and more studies are needed to define the best antimicrobial regimen.
Stochastic Geometry Analysis of Downlink Spectral and Energy Efficiency in Ultradense Heterogeneous Cellular Networks
Authors: Lei Jiaqi , Chen Hongbin , Zhao Feng
Published: April 2018

The energy efficiency (EE) is a key metric of ultradense heterogeneous cellular networks (HCNs). Earlier works on the EE analysis of ultradense HCNs by using the stochastic geometry tool only focused on the impact of the base station density ratio and ignored the function of different tiers. In this paper, a two-tier ultradense HCN with small-cell base stations (SBSs) and user equipments (UEs) densely deployed in a traditional macrocell network is considered. Firstly, the performance of the ultradense HCN in terms of the association probability, average link spectral efficiency (SE), average downlink throughput, and average EE is theoretically analyzed by using the stochastic geometry tool. Then, the problem of maximizing the average EE while meeting minimum requirements of the average link SE and average downlink throughput experienced by UEs in macrocell and small-cell tiers is formulated. As it is difficult to obtain the explicit expression of average EE, impacts of the SBS density ratio and signal-to-interference-plus-noise ratio (SINR) threshold on the network performance are investigated through numerical simulations. Simulation results validate the accuracy of theoretical results and demonstrate that the maximum value of average EE can be achieved by optimizing the SBS density ratio and the SINR threshold.
Optimal Rational Approximations by the Modified Fourier Basis
Authors: Poghosyan Arnak V. , Bakaryan Tigran K.
Published: April 2018

We consider convergence acceleration of the modified Fourier expansions by rational trigonometric corrections which lead to modified-trigonometric-rational approximations. The rational corrections contain some unknown parameters and determination of their optimal values for improved pointwise convergence is the main goal of this paper. The goal was accomplished by deriving the exact constants of the asymptotic errors of the approximations with further elimination of the corresponding main terms by appropriate selection of those parameters. Numerical experiments outline the convergence improvement of the optimal rational approximations compared to the expansions by the modified Fourier basis.
Vehicle-to-Vehicle Radio Channel Characteristics for Congestion Scenario in Dense Urban Region at 5.9 GHz
Authors: Shui Yishui , Li Fang , Yu Junyi , Chen Wei , Li Changzhen , Yang Kun , Chang Fuxing
Published: April 2018

This paper reports the results of a car-following measurement of the wireless propagation channel at 5.9 GHz on a seriously congested urban road in Wuhan, China. The small-scale amplitude-fading distribution was determined to be a Ricean distribution using the Akaike information criterion. This result shows that this car-following scenario can be regarded as a line-of-sight radio channel. Moreover, the statistical K-factor features follow a Gaussian distribution. According to the power delay profile and average power delay profile, we found that street buildings in this dense urban environment contributed to very strong reflection phenomena. The impact of a powerful reflection is analyzed through path loss, delay, and Doppler spreads in the channel statistical properties. In the frequency domain, we observe a U-shape delay-Doppler spectrum that proved that the dense urban scenario consists of scattering channels. All these results are summarized in tabular form that will be useful in the modeling of vehicle-to-vehicle wireless communication systems.
Decision Tree-Based Contextual Location Prediction from Mobile Device Logs
Authors: Xia Linyuan , Huang Qiumei , Wu Dongjin
Published: April 2018

Contextual location prediction is an important topic in the field of personalized location recommendation in LBS (location-based services). With the advancement of mobile positioning techniques and various sensors embedded in smartphones, it is convenient to obtain massive human mobile trajectories and to derive a large amount of valuable information from geospatial big data. Extracting and recognizing personally interesting places and predicting next semantic location become a research hot spot in LBS. In this paper, we proposed an approach to predict next personally semantic place with historical visiting patterns derived from mobile device logs. To address the problems of location imprecision and lack of semantic information, a modified trip-identify method is employed to extract key visit points from GPS trajectories to a more accurate extent while semantic information are added through stay point detection and semantic places recognition. At last, a decision tree model is adopted to explore the spatial, temporal, and sequential features in contextual location prediction. To validate the effectiveness of our approach, experiments were conducted based on a trajectory collection in Guangzhou downtown area. The results verified the feasibility of our approach on contextual location prediction from continuous mobile devices logs.
A Semianalytical Solution of the Fractional Derivative Model and Its Application in Financial Market
Authors: Song Lina
Published: April 2018

Fractional differential equation has been introduced to the financial theory, which presents new ideas and tools for the theoretical researches and the practical applications. In the work, an approximate semianalytical solution of the time‐fractional European option pricing model is derived using the method of combining the enhanced technique of Adomian decomposition method with the finite difference method. And then the result is introduced in China’s financial market. The work makes every effort to test the feasibility of the fractional derivative model in the actual financial market.
Oxidative Stress, Apoptosis, and Mitochondrial Function in Diabetic Nephropathy
Authors: Sifuentes-Franco Sonia , Padilla-Tejeda Diego Enrique , Carrillo-Ibarra Sandra , Miranda-Díaz Alejandra Guillermina
Published: April 2018

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is the second most frequent and prevalent complication of diabetes mellitus (DM). The increase in the production of oxidative stress (OS) is induced by the persistent hyperglycemic state capable of producing oxidative damage to the macromolecules (lipids, carbohydrates, proteins, and nucleic acids). OS favors the production of oxidative damage to the histones of the double-chain DNA and affects expression of the DNA repairer enzyme which leads to cell death from apoptosis. The chronic hyperglycemic state unchains an increase in advanced glycation end-products (AGE) that interact through the cellular receptors to favor activation of the transcription factor NF-κB and the protein kinase C (PKC) system, leading to the appearance of inflammation, growth, and augmentation of synthesis of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in DN. The reactive oxygen species (ROS) play an important role in the pathogenesis of diabetic complications because the production of ROS increases during the persistent hyperglycemia. The primary source of the excessive production of ROS is the mitochondria with the capacity to exceed production of endogenous antioxidants. Due to the fact that the mechanisms involved in the development of DN have not been fully clarified, there are different approaches to specific therapeutic targets or adjuvant management alternatives in the control of glycemia in DN.
Acute Seronegative Toxoplasma gondii Hepatitis Allergic to First-Line Treatment
Authors: De la Garza-Salazar Fernando , Cortéz-Hernández Carlos Alejandro , Decanini-Arcaute Horacio , Camacho-Ortiz Adrián
Published: April 2018

Toxoplasma gondii infects up to one-third of the world’s population, making it the protozoan that most infects people worldwide. Among the forms of presentation of toxoplasmosis, hepatitis is probably the least frequent with only a few case reports in the world’s medical literature. Despite the fact that the first diagnostic test is the serology using the ELISA technique because its sensitivity is close to 100% in our case, it was reported negative. The biopsy gave the definitive diagnosis, and we were able to start treatment immediately. Although the first line of treatment is sulfadiazine and pyrimethamine, our sulfate allergic patient received an alternative regimen of doxycycline, clindamycin, and azithromycin with a good response. This is the only case of Toxoplasma hepatitis reported in Mexico and the only one in the world with negative serology with a good response to second-line treatment.
Development and Performance Evaluation of Light Shelves Using Width‐Adjustable Reflectors
Authors: Lee Heangwoo , Park Seonghyun , Seo Janghoo
Published: April 2018

In recent years, there has been an increase in the consumption of energy for lighting purposes, which has led to an increase in the number of studies being conducted on this subject. Most studies have focused on light shelves, which are daylighting systems used for reducing the lighting energy required for the interiors of buildings. However, the existing light shelves cannot actively deal with external environmental factors, which often lead to an infringement of the right to light during the night when the performance of the light shelf deteriorates. Therefore, in this study, we propose a light shelf with a width‐adjustable reflector and verify its validity using a testbed. The reflector of the proposed light shelf system is modularized so that the length can be adjusted in stages. The optimum width of the light shelf is calculated in terms of the energy reduction and uniformity ratio improvement, and the obtained optimum width is varied depending on the season. We find that the width‐adjustable reflector can save 20% and 21.6% more lighting energy than light shelves with fixed reflector widths of 0.3 m and 0.6 m, respectively.
Outcomes of a Clinical Pathway for Pleural Disease Management: “Pleural Pathway”
Authors: Mummadi Srinivas R. , Hahn Peter Y.
Published: April 2018

Background and Objectives. Clinical pathways are evidence based multidisciplinary team approaches to optimize patient care. Pleural diseases are common and accounted for 3.4 billion US $ in 2014 US inpatient aggregate charges (HCUPnet data). An institutional clinical pathway (“pleural pathway”) was implemented in conjunction with a dedicated pleural service. Design, implementation, and outcomes of the pleural pathway (from August 1, 2014, to July 31, 2015) in comparison to a previous era (from August 1, 2013, to July 31, 2014) are described. Methods. Tuality Healthcare is a 215-bed community healthcare system in Hillsboro, OR, USA. With the objective of standardizing pleural disease care, locally adapted British Thoracic Society guidelines and a centralized pleural service were implemented in the “pathway” era. System-wide consensus regarding institutional guidelines for care of pleural disease was achieved. Preimplementation activities included training, acquisition of ultrasound equipment, and system-wide education. An audit database was set up with the intent of prospective audits. An administrative database was used for harvesting outcomes data and comparing them with the “prior to pathway” era. Results. 54 unique consults were performed. A total of 55 ultrasound examinations and 60 pleural procedures were performed. All-cause inpatient pleural admissions were lower in the “pathway” era (n=9) compared to the “prior to pathway” era (n=17). Gains in average case charges (21,737$ versus 18,818.2$/case) and average length of stay (3.65 versus 2.78 days/case) were seen in the “pathway” era. Conclusion. A “pleural pathway” and a centralized pleural service are associated with reduction in case charges, inpatient admissions, and length of stay for pleural conditions.