bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Potential influence of the corpus luteum on circulating reproductive and volume regulatory hormones, angiogenic and immunoregulatory factors in pregnant women
Authors: Conrad Kirk P. , Graham Georgia M. , Chi Yueh-Yun , Zhai Xiaoman , Li Minjie , Williams R. Stan , Rhoton-Vlasak Alice , Segal Mark S. , Wood Charles E. , Keller-Wood Maureen
Published: August 2019

Cardiovascular function is impaired and preeclampsia risk elevated in women conceiving by in vitro fertilization (IVF) in the absence of a corpus luteum (CL). Here, we report the serial evaluation of hormones and other circulating factors in women who conceived with (or without) IVF. After a prepregnancy baseline, the study participants ( n = 19–24/cohort) were evaluated six times during pregnancy and once postpartum (~1.6 yr). IVF pregnancies were stratified by protocol and CL number, i.e., ovarian stimulation (>1 CL) or hypothalamic-pituitary suppression (0 CL) versus spontaneous conceptions (1 CL). Results include the following: 1) relaxin was undetectable throughout pregnancy (including late gestation) in the 0 CL cohort, but markedly elevated in ~50% of women in the >1 CL cohort; 2) progesterone, plasma renin activity, and aldosterone transiently surged at 5–6 gestational weeks in the >1 CL group; 3) soluble vascular endothelial growth factor-1 (sFLT-1) abruptly increased between 5–6 and 7–9 gestational weeks in all three participant cohorts, producing a marked elevation in sFLT-1/PLGF (placental growth factor) ratio exceeding any other time point during pregnancy; 4) sFLT-1 was higher throughout most of gestation in both IVF cohorts with or without abnormal obstetrical outcomes; 5) during pregnancy, C-reactive protein (CRP) increased in 0 and 1 CL, but not >1 CL cohorts; and 6) plasma protein, but not hemoglobin, was lower in the >1 CL group throughout gestation. The findings highlight that, compared with spontaneously conceived pregnancy, the maternal milieu of IVF pregnancy is not physiologic, and the specific perturbations vary according to IVF protocol and CL status.
Long Noncoding RNA MIR17HG Promotes Colorectal Cancer Progression via miR-17-5p
Authors: Xu Jie , Meng Qingtao , Li Xiaobo , Yang Hongbao , Xu Jin , Gao Na , Sun Hao , Wu Shenshen , Familiari Giuseppe , Relucenti Michela , Zhu Haitao , Wu Jiong , Chen Rui
Published: August 2019

Immune dysregulation plays a vital role in colorectal cancer initiation and progression. Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNA) exhibit multiple functions including regulation of gene expression. Here, we identified an immune-related lncRNA, MIR17HG, whose expression was gradually upregulated in adjacent, adenoma, and colorectal cancer tissue. MIR17HG promoted tumorigenesis and metastasis in colorectal cancer cells both in vitro and in vivo. Mechanistically, MIR17HG increased the expression of NF-κB/RELA by competitively sponging the microRNA miR-375. In addition, RELA transcriptionally activated MIR17HG in a positive feedback loop by directly binding to its promoter region. Moreover, miR-17-5p, one of the transcribed miRNAs from MIR17HG, reduced the expression of the tumor suppressor B-cell linker (BLNK), resulting in increased migration and invasion of colorectal cancer cells. MIR17HG also upregulated PD-L1, indicating its potential role in immunotherapy. Overall, these findings demonstrate that MIR17HG plays an oncogenic role in colorectal cancer and may serve as a promising therapeutic target.

Significance:

These findings provide mechanistic insight into the role of the lncRNA MIR17HG and its miRNA members in regulating colorectal cancer carcinogenesis and progression.
AMPK Alpha-1 Intrinsically Regulates the Function and Differentiation of Tumor Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells
Authors: Trillo-Tinoco Jimena , Sierra Rosa A. , Mohamed Eslam , Cao Yu , de Mingo-Pulido Álvaro , Gilvary Danielle L. , Anadon Carmen M. , Costich Tara Lee , Wei Sheng , Flores Elsa R. , Ruffell Brian , Conejo-Garcia José R. , Rodriguez Paulo C.
Published: August 2019

Myeloid-derived suppressor cells (MDSC) represent a primary mechanism of immune evasion in tumors and have emerged as a major obstacle for cancer immunotherapy. The immunoinhibitory activity of MDSC is tightly regulated by the tumor microenvironment and occurs through mechanistic mediators that remain unclear. Here, we elucidated the intrinsic interaction between the expression of AMP-activated protein kinase alpha (AMPKα) and the immunoregulatory activity of MDSC in tumors. AMPKα signaling was increased in tumor-MDSC from tumor-bearing mice and patients with ovarian cancer. Transcription of the Ampkα1-coding gene, Prkaa1, in tumor-MDSC was induced by cancer cell–derived granulocyte–monocyte colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF) and occurred in a Stat5–dependent manner. Conditional deletion of Prkaa1 in myeloid cells, or therapeutic inhibition of Ampkα in tumor-bearing mice, delayed tumor growth, inhibited the immunosuppressive potential of MDSC, triggered antitumor CD8+ T-cell immunity, and boosted the efficacy of T-cell immunotherapy. Complementarily, therapeutic stimulation of AMPKα signaling intrinsically promoted MDSC immunoregulatory activity. In addition, Prkaa1 deletion antagonized the differentiation of monocytic-MDSC (M-MDSC) to macrophages and re-routed M-MDSC, but not granulocytic-MDSC (PMN-MDSC), into cells that elicited direct antitumor cytotoxic effects through nitric oxide synthase 2-mediated actions. Thus, our results demonstrate the primary role of AMPKα1 in the immunosuppressive effects induced by tumor-MDSC and support the therapeutic use of AMPK inhibitors to overcome MDSC-induced T-cell dysfunction in cancer.

Significance:

AMPKα1 regulates the immunosuppressive activity and differentiation of tumor-MDSC, suggesting AMPK inhibition as a potential therapeutic strategy to restore protective myelopoiesis in cancer.
Herbal Medicine Containing Aristolochic Acid and the Risk of Primary Liver Cancer in Patients with Hepatitis C Virus Infection
Authors: Chen Chi-Jen , Yang Yao-Hsu , Lin Meng-Hung , Lee Chuan-Pin , Tsan Yu-Tse , Lai Ming-Nan , Yang Hsiao-Yu , Doyle Pat , Ho Wen-Chao , Chen Pau-Chung
Published: August 2019

Background:

We investigated the association between taking herbal medicine (HM) containing aristolochic acid (AA) and the risk of primary liver cancer (PLC) among patients with hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection.

Methods:

This is a prospective study for the long-term follow-up of a nationwide population-based cohort of patients ages 18 years or older diagnosed with HCV infection during 1997 to 2010. A total of 223,467 HCV-infected patients were identified using the National Health Insurance Research Database in Taiwan. The use of HM containing AA was evaluated among patients who had visited traditional Chinese medicine clinics beginning from 1997 to 1 year prior to the diagnosis of PLC or dates censored (2003). We tracked each individual patient from 1997 to 2013 to identify incident cases of PLC since 1999.

Results:

During the follow-up period of 3,052,132 person-years, we identified 25,502 PLC cases; this corresponded to an overall incidence rate of 835.5 PLCs per 100,000 person-years. The adjusted HRs were 1.21 [95% confidence interval (CI), 1.18–1.24], 1.48 (95% CI, 1.37–1.59), 1.50 (95% CI, 1.34–1.68), and 1.88 (95% CI, 1.61–2.19) for estimated AA usage groups: 1 to 250, 251 to 500, 501 to 1,000, and more than 1,000 mg, respectively, relative to no AA exposure (reference group).

Conclusions:

The current findings suggest that among HCV-positive patients, increasing exposure to AA poses an increased risk of acquiring PLC.

Impact:

AA may increase the risk of PLC in HCV-positive populations.
The CHK1 Inhibitor Prexasertib Exhibits Monotherapy Activity in High-Grade Serous Ovarian Cancer Models and Sensitizes to PARP Inhibition
Authors: Parmar Kalindi , Kochupurakkal Bose S. , Lazaro Jean-Bernard , Wang Zhigang C. , Palakurthi Sangeetha , Kirschmeier Paul T. , Yang Chunyu , Sambel Larissa A. , Färkkilä Anniina , Reznichenko Elizaveta , Reavis Hunter D. , Dunn Connor E. , Zou Lee , Do Khanh T. , Konstantinopoulos Panagiotis A. , Matulonis Ursula A. , Liu Joyce F. , D'Andrea Alan D. , Shapiro Geoffrey I.
Published: August 2019

Purpose:

PARP inhibitors are approved for the treatment of high-grade serous ovarian cancers (HGSOC). Therapeutic resistance, resulting from restoration of homologous recombination (HR) repair or replication fork stabilization, is a pressing clinical problem. We assessed the activity of prexasertib, a checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) inhibitor known to cause replication catastrophe, as monotherapy and in combination with the PARP inhibitor olaparib in preclinical models of HGSOC, including those with acquired PARP inhibitor resistance.

Experimental Design:

Prexasertib was tested as a single agent or in combination with olaparib in 14 clinically annotated and molecularly characterized luciferized HGSOC patient-derived xenograft (PDX) models and in a panel of ovarian cancer cell lines. The ability of prexasertib to impair HR repair and replication fork stability was also assessed.

Results:

Prexasertib monotherapy demonstrated antitumor activity across the 14 PDX models. Thirteen models were resistant to olaparib monotherapy, including 4 carrying BRCA1 mutation. The combination of olaparib with prexasertib was synergistic and produced significant tumor growth inhibition in an olaparib-resistant model and further augmented the degree and durability of response in the olaparib-sensitive model. HGSOC cell lines, including those with acquired PARP inhibitor resistance, were also sensitive to prexasertib, associated with induction of DNA damage and replication stress. Prexasertib also sensitized these cell lines to PARP inhibition and compromised both HR repair and replication fork stability.

Conclusions:

Prexasertib exhibits monotherapy activity in PARP inhibitor–resistant HGSOC PDX and cell line models, reverses restored HR and replication fork stability, and synergizes with PARP inhibition.
Phase I/Ib Study of Pembrolizumab Plus Vorinostat in Advanced/Metastatic Non–Small Cell Lung Cancer
Authors: Gray Jhanelle E. , Saltos Andreas , Tanvetyanon Tawee , Haura Eric B. , Creelan Ben , Antonia Scott J. , Shafique Michael , Zheng Hong , Dai Wenjie , Saller James J. , Chen Zhihua , Tchekmedyian Nishan , Goas Kristen , Thapa Ram , Boyle Theresa A. , Chen Dung-Tsa , Beg Amer A.
Published: August 2019

Purpose:

Histone deacetylase inhibitors (HDACi) enhance tumor immunogenicity through several mechanisms and may improve response to immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs). In a phase I/Ib trial, we tested the oral HDACi vorinostat combined with the programmed cell death protein 1 inhibitor pembrolizumab in advanced/metastatic non–small cell lung cancer.

Patients and Methods:

Patients received intravenous pembrolizumab (200 mg every 3 weeks) plus oral vorinostat (200 or 400 mg/day). Primary endpoint was safety/tolerability. Secondary endpoints included response rate, progression-free survival, disease control rate (DCR), and overall survival. Tumor gene expression changes, T-cell density, and myeloid cell levels were studied in serial tissue specimens.

Results:

Thirty-three patients were treated (13 in phase I, 20 in phase Ib). In phase I, both ICI-naïve and ICI-pretreated patients were enrolled to determine dose-limiting toxicities (DLT). No DLTs were observed, and the recommended phase I dose was pembrolizumab 200 mg and vorinostat 400 mg. Any-grade adverse events were mainly fatigue (33%) and nausea/vomiting (27%). Of six ICI-naïve and 24 ICI-pretreated patients evaluable for response, four (13%) had partial response [two confirmed, one unconfirmed with subsequent prolonged stable disease (SD), one unconfirmed with subsequent progressive disease (PD)], 16 (53%) had SD, and 10 (33%) had PD for a DCR of 67%. In the ICI-pretreated cohort, three patients (one confirmed, two unconfirmed) had partial response and 10 had SD. Pretreatment CD8+ T-cell presence in tumor stromal regions was associated with treatment benefit.

Conclusions:

Pembrolizumab plus vorinostat was well tolerated and demonstrated preliminary antitumor activity despite progression on prior ICI treatment.
FGF401, A First-In-Class Highly Selective and Potent FGFR4 Inhibitor for the Treatment of FGF19-Driven Hepatocellular Cancer
Authors: Weiss Andreas , Adler Flavia , Buhles Alexandra , Stamm Christelle , Fairhurst Robin A. , Kiffe Michael , Sterker Dario , Centeleghe Mario , Wartmann Markus , Kinyamu-Akunda Jacqueline , Schadt Heiko S. , Couttet Philippe , Wolf Armin , Wang Youzhen , Barzaghi-Rinaudo Patrizia , Murakami Masato , Kauffmann Audrey , Knoepfel Thomas , Buschmann Nicole , Leblanc Catherine , Mah Robert , Furet Pascal , Blank Jutta , Hofmann Francesco , Sellers William R. , Graus Porta Diana
Published: August 2019

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is the most common primary malignancy of the liver and it is the third leading cause of cancer-related deaths worldwide. Recently, aberrant signaling through the FGF19/FGFR4 axis has been implicated in HCC. Here, we describe the development of FGF401, a highly potent and selective, first in class, reversible-covalent small-molecule inhibitor of the kinase activity of FGFR4. FGF401 is exquisitely selective for FGFR4 versus the other FGFR paralogues FGFR1, FGFR2, FGFR3, and all other kinases in the kinome. FGF401 has excellent drug-like properties showing a robust pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamics/efficacy relationship, driven by a fraction of time above the phospho-FGFR4 IC90 value. FGF401 has remarkable antitumor activity in mice bearing HCC tumor xenografts and patient-derived xenograft models that are positive for FGF19, FGFR4, and KLB. FGF401 is the first FGFR4 inhibitor to enter clinical trials, and a phase I/II study is currently ongoing in HCC and other solid malignancies.
Eccentric Activation Patterns in the Left Ventricular Outflow Tract during Idiopathic Ventricular Arrhythmias Originating From the Left Ventricular Summit
Authors: Yamada Takumi , Kumar Vineet , Yoshida Naoki , Doppalapudi Harish
Published: August 2019

Background:

Idiopathic ventricular arrhythmias (VAs) originating from the left ventricular summit (LVS) can be ablated from the great cardiac vein and remote endocardial sites. The ablation sites are determined by mapping in the great cardiac vein and left ventricular outflow tract. This study investigated whether that mapping could accurately predict the sites of LVS-VA origins.

Methods:

We studied 26 consecutive patients with idiopathic LVS-VA origins that were identified in the basal and apical LVS in 15 and 11 patients, respectively.

Results:

Radiofrequency catheter ablation of the apical LVS-VAs was successful in the great cardiac vein in 9 patients and in the apical LV outflow tract in 2. That of the basal LVS-VAs was successful in the aortomitral continuity in 9 patients, at the junction of the left and right coronary cusps in 4, and in the left coronary cusp in 2. Three apical LVS-VAs exhibited an eccentric endocardial activation pattern that was from the basal to apical LV outflow tract. In 11 basal LVS-VAs, the activation pattern was eccentric because the ventricular activation within the great cardiac vein in the apical LVS was earlier than that in the basal LV outflow tract. In 2 basal LVS-VAs, the activation pattern was eccentric because a relatively early ventricular activation was recorded at multiple sites away from the successful ablation site.

Conclusions:

Eccentric activation patterns often occurred during idiopathic LVS-VAs, which could mislead the catheter ablation of those VAs. Understanding such eccentric activation patterns was suggested to be able to improve the outcomes of the catheter ablation of those VAs by the anatomic approach.
Impact of Cumulative Smoking Exposure on Subclinical Degenerative Aortic Valve Disease in Apparently Healthy Male Workers
Authors: Yamaura Yasuko , Watanabe Nozomi , Shimaya Maki , Tomita Yasuhiko , Fukaya Takashi , Yoshida Kiyoshi
Published: August 2019

Background:

Little is known regarding the impact of cumulative smoking exposure and smoking cessation on subclinical degenerative aortic valve (DAV) disease.

Methods:

We examined associations of smoking status, cigarette-years of smoking, and years since quitting smoking with subclinical DAV disease defined by echocardiography.

Results:

Of 756 apparently healthy male workers, 154 had DAV including 63 with DAV with ≥2 leaflets calcification (DAV ≥2 cal). Compared with never smokers, ever smokers had higher risk of DAV and DAV ≥2 cal; odds ratios (95% CI) were 2.883 (1.800–4.618) (
p
<0.001) and 5.281 (2.297–12.138) (
p
<0.001), respectively. Both current and former smokers had dose-dependent relationships of cigarette-years on DAV and DAV ≥2 cal (
P
for trend, <0.001 for both DAV, in both smokers). In current smokers with >400–≤800 and with >800 cigarette-years, odds ratios (95%CIs) were 3.201 (1.690–6.063) (
p
<0.001) and 5.326 (2.800–10.053) (
p
<0.001) for DAV, 7.460 (2.828–19.680) (
p
<0.001) and 8.397 (3.146–22.414) (
p
<0.001) for DAV ≥2 cal, respectively. In former smokers with >800 cigarette-years, odds ratios (95%CI) were 3.780 (1.970–7.254) (
p
<0.001) for DAV, 10.035 (3.801–26.496) (
p
<0.001) for DAV ≥2 cal. Compared with current smokers, former smokers with quitting smoking >10 years had significantly lower risk of DAV and DAV ≥2 cal.

Conclusions:

In apparently healthy male workers, DAV disease was strongly associated with smoking. Cumulative smoking exposure was associated with dose-dependent relationship on subclinical DAV disease both in current smokers and former smokers.
apoB/apoA‐I Ratio and Lp(a) Associations With Aortic Valve Stenosis Incidence: Insights From the EPIC‐Norfolk Prospective Population Study
Authors: Zheng Kang H. , Arsenault Benoit J. , Kaiser Yannick , Khaw Kay‐Tee , Wareham Nicholas J. , Stroes Erik S. G. , Boekholdt S. Matthijs
Published: August 2019

Background

Apolipoprotein B/apolipoprotein A‐I (apoB/apoA‐I) ratio and lipoprotein(a) (Lp[a]) are associated with aortic valve stenosis (
AVS
) disease progression. Clinical characteristics such as age, sex, and presence of concomitant coronary artery disease may strongly modify these associations; however, these effects have not been well defined in longitudinal studies. We set out to assess these associations between apoB/apoA‐I ratio, Lp(a), and
AVS
incidence in a large population study.

Methods and Results

We analyzed data from 17 745 participants (mean age, 59.2±9.1 years; men, 44.9%) in the
EPIC
‐Norfolk (European Prospective Investigation Into Cancer in Norfolk Prospective Population Study) population study in whom apoB/apoA‐I and Lp(a) levels were measured. Participants were identified as having incident
AVS
if they were hospitalized or died with
AVS
as an underlying cause. After a median follow‐up of 19.8 years (17.9–21.0 years) there were 403 (2.2%) incident cases of
AVS
. The hazard ratio for
AVS
risk was 1.30 (95%
CI
, 1.19–1.41;
P
<0.001) per SD increase in apoB/apoA‐I. Adjusting for age, sex, and coronary artery disease, there was no significant association between apoB/apoA‐I and
AVS
incidence (hazard ratio, 1.06; 95%
CI
, 0.97–1.17 [
P
=0.215]). Elevated Lp(a) (>50 mg/
dL
) remained an independent risk factor for
AVS
after adjustment for age, sex, low‐density lipoprotein cholesterol, and concomitant coronary artery disease (hazard ratio, 1.70; 95%
CI
, 1.33–2.19 [
P
<0.001]).

Conclusions

In this population study, apoB/apoA‐I ratio was associated with risk of
AVS
incidence, especially in younger and female participants and those without concomitant coronary artery disease. Lp(a) was an independent risk factor for
AVS
incidence. Interventional trials are needed to investigate whether modulating apoB/apoA‐I or lowering Lp(a) can prevent or slow down
AVS
.
Revision of the pilophorine plant bug genus Pherolepis Kulik, 1968 (Hemiptera: Heteroptera: Miridae: Phylinae)
Authors: ZHANG XU , LIU GUO-QING
Published: August 2019

Pherolepis Kulik is reviewed. Seven species are recognized, of which three species, Pherolepis longipilus, P. nigrinus, and P. robustus are described as new. Habitus photographs, illustrations of male and female genitalic structures, and scanning electron micrographs of morphological structures are provided. The key of Pherolepis, and extensive host and distributional information is provided. All type specimens are deposited in the Institute of Entomology, Nankai University, Tianjin, China.
New Asian Hydroscapha, with comments on male-female association of co-occuring species (Coleoptera, Myxophaga, Hydroscaphidae)
Authors: FIKÁČEK MARTIN , ŠÍPKOVÁ HANA
Published: August 2019

Four syntopically co-occuring species of the genus Hydroscapha LeConte, 1874 are recorded at three adjacent hygropetric localities in the Indian state of Meghalaya (Khasi Hills). Association of males with conspecific females was recognized as a crucial problem for the taxonomic treatment of these taxa. Antennal morphology and abundance data of all collected morphotypes and their presence/absence at each locality were used for this association; most of these data are, however, shown as insufficient for a reliable association due to intraspecific variability (in the case of antennal morphology) or incomplete knowledge of seasonal dynamics (in the case of relative abundance of males versus females). Utilizing male characters separately from those of females is suggested as a possible solution. Following this approach, updated identification keys for males and females of Asian Hydroscapha and tables summarizing useful diagnostic characters are provided. Disadvantages of this approach are also discussed. The examined samples include two species described as new (Hydroscapha khasiorum sp.n. and H. rajani sp.n.) and H. monticola Löbl, 1994, which is recorded in India for the first time. A fourth species currently represented by one specimen only is left unidentified.
A new Neotropical species of the genus Parochlus Enderlein, 1912 (Chironomidae: Podonominae) and new distribution in Argentina
Authors: RODRÍGUEZ MARIANA S. , PAGGI ANALÍA C. , MEDINA ANA
Published: August 2019

Adults and immatures of Parochlus carolinae n. sp. are described and figured. The specimens were collected from a stream and a river in the pampasic hills system in the centre-northern part of the San Luis Province, Argentina. The adult male is distinct in having hairy eyes. The pupa differs from other known species of the genus by the structure of the thoracic horn and the arrangement of setae on the anal spurs. The distribution of the genus Parochlus Enderlein is widened from an austral Andean Parochlus proper zone to a subtropical zone with Brazilian fauna.
Cladistic analysis of Thoreyella and related genera (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae: Pentatominae: Procleticini)
Authors: BERNARDES JORGE L. C. , SCHWERTNER CRISTIANO F. , GRAZIA JOCÉLIA
Published: August 2019

In this paper, the monophyly of the genus Thoreyella Spinola was tested, and a hypothesis of relationships among its species is proposed. Four known species of Thoreyella and two new species, as well as species of three other genera of Procleticini (Neoderoploa Pennington, Lobepomis Berg, and Procleticus Berg), were treated as the ingroup. The new species of Thoreyella will be published elsewhere. Two species of Dendrocoris were used for outgroup comparison. A cladistic analysis of 38 morphological characters supported a hypothesis of common ancestry for Thoreyella and the three genera of Procleticini included in the ingroup. The results also showed Thoreyella as a monophyletic taxon, and its sister group relationship with the monophyletic group including Neoderoploa, Lobepomis, and Procleticus. The geographical distribution of these taxa is discussed.
A review of the soldier flies (Diptera: Stratiomyidae) of Sardinia
Authors: MASON FRANCO , ROZKOŠNÝ RUDOLF , HAUSER MARTIN
Published: August 2019

All published records on Stratiomyidae from Sardinia were critically evaluated and extensive, recently collected material (more than 500 specimens) was identified. The present review of the soldier flies from Sardinia includes 27 species. Nemotelus niloticus Olivier, 1811 is newly recorded from Europe and Italy, and Lasiopa pseudovillosa Rozkošný, 1983 and Zabrachia tenella (Jaennicke, 1866) are newly recorded from Sardinia. Nemotelus brachystomus Loew, 1846 and N. leucorhynchus Costa, 1884 are proposed as new synonyms of N. notatus Zetterstedt, 1842. Beris hyaliniventris Costa, 1857, the types of which could not be found, is removed from synonymy with Chorisops tibialis (Meigen, 1820) and declared as species incertae sedis. Brief comments are made on the zoogeography of Sardinian soldier flies.
Trichrysis baratzsensis sp. nov. (Hymenoptera: Chrysididae) from Sardinia
Authors: STRUMIA FRANCO
Published: August 2019

Trichrysis baratzsensis sp. nov., from Lago Baratz (Sassari province, Sardinia), is described and compared with all other Palaearctic congeners. A key for the identification of Mediterranean Trichrysis species is also provided.
Release call of Bokermannohyla ibitipoca Caramaschi & Feio, 1990 (Anura, Hylidae)
Authors: PEREIRA ELVIS ALMEIDA , FOLLY HENRIQUE , LACERDA JOÃO VICTOR ANDRADE , REBOUÇAS RAONI
Published: August 2019

Bokermannohyla ibitipoca is a small-sized hylid frog (males reaching up to 43 mm in snout-vent length) of the B. circumdata group (Faivovich et al. 2005). This species was described from the Ibitipoca State Park (Municipality of Lima Duarte) in southern Minas Gerais, at the elevation of 1200 m. Bokermannohyla ibitipoca is restricted to the Mantiqueira Complex area (Caramaschi & Feio, 1990), where it occurs in primary and secondary gallery forests. This species is found on the ground or on the leaf-litter near water and uses permanent streams for calling and reproduction. Here, we quantitatively describe the release call of B. ibitipoca, with comments on similarity to its advertisement call. Although used less frequently than advertisement calls, release calls have been used to diagnose species and infer phylogenetic relationships (Sullivan & Malmos, 1994; Stöck et al. 2000; di Tada et al. 2001; Wogel et al. 2004; Márquez & Eekhout 2006; Oliveira et al. 2012; Sanabria & Quiroga 2012; Grenat & Martino 2013).
New species of the tribe Trechini from China (Coleoptera: Carabidae)
Authors: BELOUSOV IGOR A. , KABAK ILYA I. , LIANG HONGBIN
Published: August 2019

Two new species of the tribe Trechini Bonelli, 1810 are described from the Hengduan Mountains in Sichuan and Yunnan provinces, China: Agonotrechus spinangulus sp. n. (from the Kangwu Pass, Liziping Town, Muli County, southern Sichuan) and Sinotrechiama yunnanus sp. n. (from the Xiaobaicaoling Pass, Santai Town, Dayao County, Yunnan). A new collecting site (Yizi Pass between Meigu County and Ebian County, Sichuan) is provided with some data on morphological variation for one more species, Protrechiama crassipes (Uéno, 1997), known so far only from the two female specimens of the type series. These new findings significantly expand our knowledge of the above three genera. Sinotrechiama yunnanus sp. n. is the first member of the genus found outside of Sichuan Province.
Family type and parents’ time with children: Longitudinal evidence for Denmark
Authors: Fallesen Peter , Gähler Michael
Published: August 2019

Parental time with children is important for children’s developmental outcomes. Family type may affect the amount of time parents can and will invest in children. Using time-use panel data obtained from two waves of the Danish Time Use Survey, linked with administrative records, the study shows that parental family type had a substantial impact on the time parents spent with children. When controlling for constant unobserved individual traits, likely to affect both time-use and family type, differences in time-use increase, indicating positive selection into non-intact family types. Single parents and parents in reconstituted families spent less time on developmental activities, such as talking, reading and playing with the child, whereas parents living in reconstituted families also spent less time on non-developmental activities, such as transporting the child or performing basic childcare. Based on our findings, there are indications that cross-sectional results showing little difference in parents’ involvement in children across family types partly emanate from differential selection in family types.
Influence of Attentional Focus Instructions on Motor Performance Among Adolescents With Severe Visual Impairment
Authors: McNamara Scott W. T. , Becker Kevin A. , Weigel William , Marcy Peter , Haegele Justin
Published: August 2019

Substantial research has demonstrated that an external (vs. internal) attentional focus enhances motor performance among various populations. Interest has recently grown in examining the effects of attentional focus among individuals with visual impairments (VI), and, to date, research results have been conflicting with some studies supporting a potential benefit to an external focus among adults with VI, while a study of children with severe VI was inconclusive regarding this benefit. The present investigation compared the effects of an internal versus an external attentional focus on a discrete throwing task among adolescents with severe VI. We recruited 13 participants with a visual acuity score of less than 6/60 and had them throw a Goalball (25 cm ball with bells often used in competitive sports designed for people with VI) as fast as possible for three familiarization trials, three internal focus trials, and three external focus trials. These participants threw the ball with significantly higher velocity when using an external focus than in other conditions, indicating a benefit from an external focus for this population when performing this discrete task.
Direct and Indirect Effects of Trait and State Gratitude on Health-Related Quality of Life in a Prospective Design
Authors: McGuire Adam P. , Szabo Yvette Z. , Murphy Karly M. , Erickson Thane M.
Published: August 2019

Gratitude has been consistently linked to well-being, but its influence on health-related functioning is not well understood. Furthermore, research suggests the need to differentiate between-person and within-person effects of personality characteristics, and research on gratitude and health has not typically done so. This prospective study aimed to (1) differentiate the unique effects of trait and state gratitude on health-related quality of life (HRQoL) and (2) test state gratitude as a mediator between baseline trait gratitude and subsequent HRQoL. Undergraduate participants ( N = 141) completed a trait gratitude measure at baseline and then repeated measures of weekly state gratitude and HRQoL over eight weeks. Multilevel models examined baseline trait gratitude, state gratitude averaged across the study (person aggregate) as between-person individual differences, and within-person variability in state gratitude (person-centered) as predictors of HRQoL, as well as the indirect effect of trait gratitude on HRQoL via state gratitude. Greater aggregate and person-centered state gratitude each predicted higher HRQoL. Baseline trait gratitude did not have a significant direct effect but prospectively predicted higher HRQoL via higher weekly state gratitude. Results suggest that understanding effects of gratitude on health-related perceptions requires accounting for both between-person individual differences and within-person fluctuation in state gratitude.
Assembling street vending
Authors: Taheri Tafti Mojgan
Published: August 2019

Current scholarship on street vending in cities of the global south have mainly focused on street vendors and their politics of resistance against the state’s revanchist and exclusionary policies. This article draws from, and seeks to contribute to, this literature by considering the strategies of, and the shifting associations between, a broader range of agents – in addition to street vendors themselves – and the ways they shape and reshape street vending as a performed and diversely constituted practice. The article examines how the embedded relationships between agents including various state entities, shopkeepers and street vendors, as well as city buildings, infrastructure and policies, have been shaping geographically uneven and spatially differentiated forms, intensity and distribution of street vending in three different locations in Tehran. To make this argument, the article draws on assemblage thinking for framing the processes and trajectories through which urban street vending is being (re)territorialised and de-territorialised. The article demonstrates that moving beyond the dichotomised analysis of power relationships between the state and vendors matters for a better understanding of street vending practices as the local articulations of the fragmented, multi-scaled and multi-sited networks of associations that are stitched into different places in the city and shape diverse socio-material formations of street vending.
Falling stars and sinking ships: Framing and metaphor in cartoons about Brexit
Authors: Godioli Alberto , Pedrazzini Ana
Published: August 2019

The present study provides a systematic analysis of 119 satirical cartoons on Brexit, published by European and non-European artists between 23 May and 30 June 2016. Particular attention is paid to the cartoonists’ use of ‘metaphor scenarios’ (Musolff, 2017) and their role in framing the causes and consequences of Brexit. Our analysis yielded the following key findings: (1) Most cartoons take a generic stance against or in favour of Brexit, without directly engaging with specific arguments. (2) Several Remain and Leave cartoons engage with the same scenarios, turning them against each other through the rhetorical strategy known as trumping. (3) Personification is far more frequently used to depict the UK than the EU; this may be due to the greater difficulty of representing the EU through one single character. (4) In most Remain cartoons, metaphor scenarios point towards extreme and irreversible outcomes for the UK, thus mirroring the hyperbolic rhetoric used by Leave supporters.
Memory crisis: The Shoah within a collective European memory
Authors: van der Poel Stefan
Published: August 2019

This paper analyses the memory crisis resulting from conflicting perceptions of the Shoah in Western and Central Europe. To clarify this memory crisis, crucial aspects of these divergent perceptions will be discussed. From the Western perspective, there is a strong tendency to underline the universal meaning and importance of the Shoah, and to institutionalize this in UN and EU resolutions and declarations. From an Eastern perspective, this process of globalizing Shoah discourse is often considered to be a Western preoccupation and as just another mechanism to promulgate further Western cultural domination. In Central Europe the supposed singularity of the Shoah is not only often doubted, but the focus is shifted far more on to processing communism and identity-based policies. To clarify and illustrate how the Shoah is reflected on in historical debates and the public domain, recent Polish and Hungarian monuments, museums, literature and films are discussed.
A discourse analysis of Ebola in South African newspapers (2014–2015)
Authors: Moodley Prevan , Lesage Schvaughn Sandrine
Published: August 2019

The 2014 Ebola outbreak in three African states transformed the virus into a social reality in which media representations contributed to globalised hysteria and had rhetorical effects. This study investigated representations of the Ebola virus/disease in South African news reports (March 2014–June 2015). Four discourses were found to operate within the globalised social context: threat to humanity, predation, invasion, and conspiracy. The South African reportage framed Ebola as a predator and criminal rather than using stock warfare imagery. Representations indicated alignment with phobic high-income countries and colonial hegemony.
The Effects of Speaker Group Membership and Stereotypes on Responses to Accumulated Underaccommodation
Authors: Gasiorek Jessica , Dragojevic Marko
Published: August 2019

This study explored the role of social group membership and stereotypes in evaluating accumulated underaccommodation (i.e., repeated, insufficiently adjusted communication). Participants ( N = 229) engaged in three tasks in which they received underaccommodative instructions from another individual, ostensibly a young adult or an older adult. Consistent with hypotheses, speakers’ social group membership predicted stereotype content (with older adults stereotyped as warmer and more competent); warmth (but not competence) stereotypes, in turn, predicted inferred motive (directly) and perceived accommodation (indirectly) for the initial task, which in turn predicted ratings for subsequent tasks. Group membership also affected overall speaker evaluations.
Insights into inflammasome and its research advances in cancer
Authors: Cao Xinyu , Xu Jia
Published: August 2019

Inflammation has long been proven to engage in tumor initiation and progression. Inflammasome, as a member of innate immunity-induced host defense inflammation, also plays critical roles in cancer. Inflammasome is a multiprotein complex responding to pathogen-associated molecular patterns and damage-associated molecular patterns. It is composed of receptors such as NOD-like receptors and AIM2-like receptors, adaptor protein ASC, and effector caspase-1, which can process proinflammatory cytokines interleukin (IL)–1β and IL-18. It has been reported that upregulated inflammasome activity is correlated to various types of cancers including breast cancer, gastric cancer, brain tumor, and malignant prostate, while inflammasomes also have a protective role in colitis-associated cancer. Autophagy, an intracellular recycling process for maintaining homeostasis, is deemed to contribute to the underlying mechanism of its dual roles in cancer. It has been found that distinct tumor stages and different isotypes of caspases involved in the inflammasome pathway can affect the roles of inflammasome in cancer. In this review, we update the latest evidence of inflammasome roles in cancer and novel inflammasome pathway-targeting agents for immunotherapy and discuss future research directions of inflammasome-based target therapy.
The role of affect in practicing a musical instrument: A systematic review of the literature
Authors: Mazur Zofia , Laguna Mariola
Published: August 2019

Affect impacts people’s cognitive processes as well as provides the energy to pursue goals and engage in actions. Research suggests that affect might influence instrumental learning behavior. This review aims to summarize the existing literature concerning the relationship between affect and instrumental practice. In order to determine the role of affect in undertaking instrumental practice and in engagement in practice, we conducted a systematic search via electronic databases and reference lists; we also hand-searched the key journals. Studies were included in the review if they concerned both affect and practicing behavior in musicians and instrumental students across all age groups and if the relationships between the two constructs were investigated. We focused on individual instrumental practice in the classical repertoire. Eleven studies met our inclusion criteria. They reported quantitative relationships between affect and the amount of practice or qualitatively described the role of affect in practice engagement. The results of this systematic review show that practicing a musical instrument is associated with different types of affect—practice-related, performance-related, and context-free affect. Further investigation of affect in the context of music learning may inform future interventions for instrumentalists motivating them to practice.
Predicting musical taste: Relationships with personality aspects and political orientation
Authors: Devenport Scott P , North Adrian C
Published: August 2019

Based on their meta-analysis, Schäfer and Mehlhorn argue that the weak relationships identified indicate that personality is a poor predictor of musical taste. The present research challenged this by measuring personality aspects rather than the Big Five domains and also political orientation. A sample of 157 university students aged 17 to 55 years ( M = 24.60, SD = 7.63) completed measures of musical taste (Short Test of Musical Preference [STOMP-R]), personality (Big Five Aspects Scale [BFAS]), and political orientation (International Personality Item Pool [IPIP] Liberalism). Responses to the STOMP-R produced four factors, labeled Intense, Rhythmic, Established, and Mainstream music. Hierarchical multiple regression indicated that, in comparison to domains ( R2 range = .12–.23, p < .05), aspects of personality were better predictors of musical taste for three of four musical dimensions ( R2 range = .20–.28, p < .05). Both the aspect and domain models included political orientation. Conflicting correlational relationships within domains were responsible for weaker relationships at the domain level. Aspects of intellect, openness, assertiveness, compassion, politeness, and also political orientation were unique predictors of musical taste across the four dimensions. Personality aspects and political orientation were superior predictors of musical taste in comparison to personality domains. Future research should investigate these aspect-level relationships in more diverse samples.
Control strategies for frequency regulation in microgrids: A review
Authors: Veronica A Jeya , Kumar N Senthil
Published: August 2019

The electric power generation over the past decade has moved from conventional fossil fuel-fired thermal power plants to tiny-scale system generating power through distributed generation units. A group of such distributed generation units and loads are termed as microgrids. Microgrids can be located near the load centers to supply the load without any loss of power. Frequency regulation in a microgrid operating in autonomous mode is critical because of the intermittent nature of the renewable sources employed. To maintain the frequency regulation within a tolerance limit in a microgrid, proper control schemes have to be adopted in order to increase or decrease the real power generation. Hence, this article explores and presents a critical review of different types of control strategies employed for frequency regulation in microgrids.
What If Psychology Took Intersectionality Seriously? Changing How Psychologists Think About Participants
Authors: McCormick-Huhn Kaitlin , Warner Leah R. , Settles Isis H. , Shields Stephanie A.
Published: August 2019

Using intersectionality to change how psychologists think about the demographic profile of their participants is one readily available change that psychologists across the discipline can implement to improve psychological science. In this article, we aim to provide a guide for psychologists who are not already engaged with feminist practices and/or are unsure of how an intersectional approach to participants applies to their research. We argue that by engaging with four perspective shifts of intersectional thinking: multidimensionality, dynamic construction, structural power, and outcomes of systemic disadvantage and advantage, psychologists can more accurately represent the “person” that psychology, as a discipline, seeks to understand. We suggest changes at the researcher, journal, and grant-making agency levels to support an intersectional reconceptualization of participants. As psychology continues to change, in order to foster reproducible science practices and research with relevance to real-world problems, there is opportunity to promote discipline-level change that would take intersectionality seriously.
A new concept of advanced management of hazardous waste in the Republic of Korea
Authors: Choi Hyeong-Jin , Choi Yong , Rhee Seung-Whee
Published: August 2019

In order to activate the recycling of hazardous wastes, the hazardous characteristics of wastes should be removed or stabilized. However, most recyclers in recycling companies do not understand how to remove the hazardous characteristics in wastes with the proper technology. The aim of a new form of advanced management of hazardous waste is to inform recyclers and operators in industries about hazardous characteristics and the treatment methods required for all management processes, from waste generation to final treatment. In a new method of advanced management of hazardous wastes, chemicals in the waste should be initially examined at the generation source in each industry to create a chemical catalogue. Since hazardous characteristics can be determined by a chemical catalogue obtained from the waste, the hazardous characteristics of wastes can be established and considered when choosing the proper treatment method. Then, the categories of waste treatment methods for each hazardous characteristic can be introduced for generators to treat hazardous wastes properly. Therefore, it is possible to create a link between the source and the final treatment of hazardous wastes using a new concept of industry (In), waste (W), hazardous chemicals and their hazardous characteristics (Ha) and treatment methods (T). This new concept of the “InWhat” system, which includes all management processes in Korea, from waste generation to final treatment, will be proposed as a tool in the advanced management of hazardous wastes.
Strategic challenges of newspaper publishing in an international perspective
Authors: Kolo Castulus
Published: August 2019

An analysis of newspaper industries in their national contexts exhibits strategic clusters of similar challenges, imposed by digital transformation and socio-economic change. While growth of media in general, newspaper reach, and Internet penetration are dominant factors framing the prosperity of newspaper publishing, dynamics of digital revenues from advertising and circulation still vary substantially also within such clusters. Only in very few countries, publishers achieve to collectively combine (still) growing overall revenues with advanced digital transformation.
Prognostication Accuracy, Confidence, and Decisional Conflict Across Training Levels of Internal Medicine Providers
Authors: Namavar Aram A. , Vangala Sitaram , Pietras Christopher , Dowling Erin P.
Published: August 2019

Context:

Providing patient care at the end of a patient’s life is a humbling and sacred experience for both patient and provider. Without a truthful and meaningful conversation about end-of-life care preferences, the care that is delivered may not be the care that the patient prefers.

Objectives:

Determine if there is a relationship between level of training, confidence, and presence of decisional conflict in making an accurate prognosis for 2 standardized cases. Additionally, we evaluated the correctness of the prognosis as measured against survival outcomes for patients with similar diagnoses.

Methods:

Decisional conflict was measured with the SURE tool, a validated 4-item tool that has been used in assessing for the presence of decisional conflict.

Results:

Following analysis of data, it was found that providers with no decisional conflict were much more likely to be attendings with more than 5 years’ experience. Providers were more conflicted overall when confronted with a case with a more grave prognosis. It was determined that providers with a lower level of training were more likely to have decisional conflict.

Conclusions:

Provider confidence increases and decisional conflict decreases as one increases their level of training. However, the degree in which the provider is correct in their prognosis does not change as one increases their level of training. These findings have broad implications on patients, providers, and the health-care system.