bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Age-Specific Correlates of Child Growth
Authors: Rieger Matthias , Trommlerová Sofia Karina
Published: January 2016

Growth faltering describes a widespread phenomenon that height- and weight-for-age of children in developing countries collapse rapidly in the first two years of life. We study age-specific correlates of child nutrition using Demographic and Health Surveys from 56 developing countries to shed light on the potential drivers of growth faltering. Applying nonparametric techniques and exploiting within-mother variation, we find that maternal and household factors predict best the observed shifts and bends in child nutrition age curves. The documented interaction between age and maternal characteristics further underlines the need not only to provide nutritional support during the first years of life but also to improve maternal conditions.
Mild cognitive impairment and dementia prevalence: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Neurocognitive Study
Authors: Knopman David S. , Gottesman Rebecca F. , Sharrett Albert Richey , Wruck Lisa M. , Windham Beverly Gwen , Coker Laura , Schneider Andrea L.C. , Hengrui Sun , Alonso Alvaro , Coresh Josef , Albert Marilyn S. , Mosley Thomas H.
Published: January 2016

Introduction

We examined prevalence of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and dementia in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Neurocognitive study.

Methods

Beginning in June, 2011, we invited all surviving ARIC participants to undergo cognitive, neurologic, and brain imaging assessments to diagnose MCI or dementia and assign an etiology for the cognitive disorder.

Results

Of 10,713 surviving ARIC participants (age range, 69–88 years), we ascertained cognitive diagnoses in 6471 in person, 1966 by telephone interviews (participant or informant), and the remainder by medical record review. The prevalence of dementia was 9.0% and MCI 21%. Alzheimer's disease (AD) was the primary or secondary etiology in 76% of dementia and 75% of MCI participants. Cerebrovascular disease was the primary or secondary etiology in 46% of dementia and 32% of MCI participants.

Discussion

MCI and dementia were common among survivors from the original ARIC cohort. Nearly 30% of the ARIC cohort received diagnoses of either dementia or MCI, and for the majority of these individuals, the etiologic basis was attributed to AD.
Active Surveillance Cultures and Decolonization to Reduce Staphylococcus aureus Infections in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Popoola Victor O. , Colantuoni Elizabeth , Suwantarat Nuntra , Pierce Rebecca , Carroll Karen C. , Aucott Susan W. , Milstone Aaron M.
Published: January 2016

BACKGROUND

Staphylococcus aureus is a common cause of healthcare-associated infections in neonates.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the impact of methicillin-susceptible S. aureus (MSSA) decolonization on the incidence of MSSA infection and to measure the prevalence of mupirocin resistance.

METHODS

We retrospectively identified neonates admitted to a tertiary care neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) from April 1, 2011, through September 30, 2014. We compared rates of MSSA-positive cultures and infections before and after implementation of an active surveillance culture and decolonization intervention for MSSA-colonized neonates. We used 2 measurements to identify the primary outcome, NICU-attributable MSSA: (1) any culture sent during routine clinical care that grew MSSA and (2) any culture that grew MSSA and met criteria of the National Healthcare Safety Network’s healthcare-associated infection surveillance definitions. S. aureus isolates were tested for mupirocin susceptibility. We estimated incidence rate ratios using interrupted time-series models.

RESULTS

Before and after the intervention, 1,523 neonates (29,220 patient-days) and 1,195 neonates (22,045 patient-days) were admitted to the NICU, respectively. There was an immediate reduction in the mean quarterly incidence rate of NICU-attributable MSSA-positive clinical cultures of 64% (incidence rate ratio, 0.36 [95% CI, 0.19–0.70]) after implementation of the intervention, and MSSA-positive culture rates continued to decrease by 21% per quarter (incidence rate ratio, 0.79 [95% CI, 0.74–0.84]). MSSA infections also decreased by 73% immediately following the intervention implementation (incidence rate ratio, 0.27 [95% CI, 0.10–0.79]). No mupirocin resistance was detected.

CONCLUSION

Active surveillance cultures and decolonization may be effective in decreasing S. aureus infections in NICUs.

Infect. Control Hosp. Epidemiol. 2016;37(4):381–387
“Their Only Words of English Were ‘Thank You’”: Rights, Gratitude and ‘Deserving’ Hungarian Refugees to Britain in 1956
Authors: Taylor Becky
Published: January 2016

The Soviet invasion of Hungary in late October 1956 resulted in the exodus of approximately two hundred thousand Hungarians, of whom approximately twenty-one thousand came to Britain within a matter of weeks. This article historicizes the process of reception and resettlement of Hungarian refugees in Britain. Through exploring the rhetoric used and attitudes displayed during the reception and resettlement process, it considers if and how legally recognized rights established for refugees under the 1951 UN Convention mediated their arrival and treatment. It finds a failure of a new discourse of rights to permeate the language surrounding their reception. Instead, well-worn tropes of the generosity of the British and their traditions of tolerance and hospitality were deployed consistently at national and local levels. This had the effect of implying that entry to Britain was a privilege and one not to be abused, and it marginalized refugees who failed to conform to particular expectations. The article argues that tying attitudes toward Hungarian refugees—variously positioned as “grateful” or “ungrateful”—can be usefully understood within the context of broader conceptions of the “deserving” and “undeserving” poor and their relationship with the (welfare) state. Consequently, along with exploring the experiences of reception and resettlement of Hungarians in 1956/7 the article contributes to understandings of behavior, rights, and welfare in postwar Britain.
The Phantom Airship Panic of 1913: Imagining Aerial Warfare in Britain before the Great War
Authors: Holman Brett
Published: January 2016

In late 1912 and early 1913, people all over Britain reported seeing airships in the night sky, yet there were none. It was widely assumed that these “phantom airships” were German Zeppelins, testing British defenses in preparation for the next war. The public and press responses to the phantom airship sightings provide a glimpse of the way that aerial warfare was understood before it was ever experienced in Britain. Conservative newspapers and patriotic leagues used the sightings to argue for a massive expansion of Britain's aerial forces, which were perceived to be completely outclassed by Germany's in both number and power. In many ways this airship panic was analogous to the much better known 1909 dreadnought panic. The result was the perfect Edwardian panic: the simultaneous culmination of older fears about Germany and the threat of espionage, invasion, and, above all, the loss of Britain's naval superiority. But, in reality, there was little understanding about the way that Zeppelins would be used against Britain in the First World War—not to attack its arsenals and dockyards, but to bomb its cities.
Voices from the Far North: Pauper Letters and the Provision of Welfare in Sutherland, 1845–1900
Authors: Jones Peter , King Steven
Published: January 2016

This article explores the changing relationship between paupers and the parish authorities in Tongue, in the far north of Scotland, between the passing of the Scottish New Poor Law in 1845 and the end of the nineteenth century. It does so by focusing on Scottish pauper letters and petitions for relief. Such sources, though relatively abundant in the archives, have so far been ignored by welfare historians. The article begins with a discussion of the trials of Tongue's poor crofting community in the early years of the century, the impact of widespread land clearance, and the dislocation of long-established communities. Following on from this, through a close reading of pauper appeals alongside other official sources the authors demonstrate that, despite persistent hardship and inadequate resources, the relationship between paupers and the parish authorities changed markedly over the period. An attitude of supplication and entreaty, rooted in Highland traditions of deference and reflective of a rigid social hierarchy, gave way to a clear sense of entitlement and an expectation that paupers' appeals would—indeed, must—be heard toward the end of the century. This fundamental shift mirrored, and was profoundly influenced by, wider agitation among crofting communities for change.
Gauge condition for studying intrinsic magnetospheres
Authors: Mendoza Miller , Morales John
Published: January 2016

We propose an analytical model based on the solution of the magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) equations for studying intrinsic magnetospheres. For this purpose, we introduce a new gauge condition for the electromagnetic vector potential, which simplifies the solution of this complex system of nonlinear equations. Using this model, we analyse the deformation of the terrestrial magnetic field due to the presence of the solar wind. By comparing the results with experimental observations, we find that our model reproduces with good agreement the geometrical configuration of the magnetosphere, and that the solar wind should have a finite conductivity. This model could also be used to perform linear stability analysis of fluid and magnetic instabilities. Finally, our solution is not limited to magnetospheric configurations but also applies to a steady-state incompressible and irrotational flow with large plasma parameter and small velocity fluctuations.
Steady-State Response to Periodic Excitation in Fractional Vibration System
Authors: Huang C. , Duan J.-S.
Published: January 2016

The steady-state response to periodic excitation in the linear fractional vibration system was considered by using the fractional derivative operator . First we investigated the response to the harmonic excitation in the form of complex exponential function. The amplitude-frequency relation and phase-frequency relation were derived. The effect of the fractional derivative term on the stiffness and damping was discussed. For the case of periodic excitation, we decompose the periodic excitation into a superposition of harmonic excitations by using the Fourier series, and then utilize the results for harmonic excitations and the principle of superposition, where our adopted tactics avoid appearing a fractional power of negative numbers to overcome the difficulty in fractional case. Finally we demonstrate the proposed method by three numerical examples.
Landscape development and settlement history of the Vecht area (722–1122)
Authors: Buitelaar A.L.P. , Borger Guus J.
Published: January 2016

Based on historical evidence a description in broad outline is provided of landscape and settlement development in the Vecht area north of Utrecht for the period 722–1122 AD. Although the fluvial activity of the Vecht channel was reduced from about 2300 BP onwards, the river retained its economic importance as a shipping route in Early Medieval times according to the appearance of mintage and the spread of tollhouses. In the 8th century the Vecht still was seen as a river and as a branch of the Rhine. At that time the Vecht river discharged into a stretch of water that was named Almeer and was characterised as stagnant. The Almeer is regarded as the successor of Lake Flevo, mentioned by classical authors. Since this body of water is indicated asstagnum, it is unlikely that the water level in the southern part of the Almeer was affected by the Vlie tidal inlet in the north at that time. At the end of the 10th century the Almeer already had substantial dimensions. The building of dikes on the southern forelands of the Zuiderzee and the IJ-Lake started at least about 1200 AD. At the beginning of the timeline, settlement was limited to the natural levees of the river Vecht and its distributaries. The reclamation of the vast peatlands on both sides of the river started around the middle of the 11th century. The opening up of new areas for agriculture and settlement was accompanied by a transformation of the social fabric. In association with the pattern of land division historical information is used to indicate some of the changes that occurred in the Vecht area during that period. The drive to further intensify land use resulted in 1122 AD in the decision to build a dike on the northern bank of the Lower Rhine, since the Vecht is a blind arm of the river Rhine.
A major ‘plateau’ in the radiocarbon time-scale at c. 9650 b.p.: the evidence from Star Carr (North Yorkshire)
Authors: Mellars Paul
Published: January 2016

Over the past 10-20 years archaeologists have become familiar with the problems of potential ‘aberrations’ in the radiocarbon time-scale, arising from factors such as the varying rates of production of I4C in the upper atmosphere, or from the delayed cycling of ‘fossil’ carbon in the overall carbon reservoir. In some cases these aberrations can lead to dramatic ‘wiggles’ in the radiocarbon calibration curves, while in other cases (as, for example, during the Iron Age, around 700 BC) they can lead to substantial ‘plateaux’ during which measured radiocarbon dates show no detectable change over periods of several centuries (Pearson & Stuiver 1986; Stuiver & Pearson 1986).
WEATHERING THE STORM: LEGALITY AND LEGAL IMPLICATIONS OF THE SAUDI-LED MILITARY INTERVENTION IN YEMEN
Authors: Ruys Tom , Ferro Luca
Published: January 2016

On 26 March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition launched ‘Operation Decisive Storm’ on the territory of the Republic of Yemen following a request by that country's beleaguered government. Although it received no prior fiat from the UN Security Council and took place amidst a civil war, the intervention met with approval from numerous States, with only few critical sounds. Closer scrutiny nonetheless reveals that the self-defence justification, which is primarily relied upon, does not provide a convincing legal basis for the operation. Moreover, the intervention is problematical from the perspective of the intervention by invitation doctrine and undeniably exposes its indeterminacy and proneness to abuse.
ADDRESSING ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS THROUGH TRADE: A CASE FOR EXTRATERRITORIALITY?
Authors: Cooreman Barbara
Published: January 2016

In the absence of stringent and coordinated international action, States might seek alternatives to promote environmental protection unilaterally. Trade measures may be tools to promote environmental protection in other countries through the means of trade restrictions based on the process and production methods of a good (PPMs), but can they be used to protect global environmental concerns? PPMs are considered to be controversial because of their extraterritorial character. Inspired by other fields of law where an extraterritorial application of laws is accepted, such as competition law and international human rights law, this paper proposes a systematic approach to assess the acceptability of extraterritorial trade measures with an environmental objective within the scope of the general exceptions of the GATT. This contribution purports to answer whether the WTO forms a stumbling block for States to address global environmental concerns through trade.
REPRESENTING IGNORANCE
Authors: Hardin Russell
Published: January 2016

If we wish to assess the morality of elected officials, we must understand
their function as our representatives and then infer how they can fulfill this
function. I propose to treat the class of elected officials as a profession,
so that their morality is a role morality and it is functionally determined.
If we conceive the role morality of legislators to be analogous to the ethics
of other professions, then this morality must be functionally defined by the
purpose that legislators are to fulfill once in office. Hence, the role
morality of legislators will largely be determined by our theory of
representation. We will need not a normative account of their role, but
an empirical explanatory account. In David Hume's terms, the
morality of role holders is one of “artificial” duties,
that is to say, duties defined by their functional fit with the
institutional purposes of a profession. Our most difficult problem,
therefore, is to understand the role of our elected representatives.
Freeze, Flight, Fight, Fright, Faint: Adaptationist Perspectives on the Acute Stress Response Spectrum
Authors: Bracha H. Stefan
Published: January 2016

This article reviews the existing evolutionary perspectives on the acute stress response habitual faintness and blood-injection-injury type-specific phobia (BIITS phobia). In this article, an alternative evolutionary perspective, based on recent advances in evolutionary psychology, is proposed. Specifically, that fear–induced faintness (eg, fainting following the sight of a syringe, blood, or following a trivial skin injury) is a distinctHomo sapiens-specific extreme-stress survival response to an inescapable threat. The article suggests that faintness evolved in response to middle paleolithic intra-group and inter-group violence (of con-specifics) rather than as a pan-mammalian defense response, as is presently assumed. Based on recent literature, freeze, flight, fight, fright, faint provides a more complete description of the human acute stress response sequence than current descriptions. Faintness, one of three primary physiological reactions involved in BIITS phobia, is extremely rare in other phobias. Since heritability estimates are higher for faintness than for fears or phobias, the author suggests that trait-faintness may be a useful complement to trait-anxiety as an endophenotype in research on the human fear circuitry. Some implications for the forthcomingDiagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Editionas well as for clinical, health services, and transcriptomic research are briefly discussed.
The hydrogen-bond network of water supports propagating optical phonon-like modes
Authors: Elton Daniel C. , Fernández-Serra Marivi
Published: January 2016

The local structure of liquid water as a function of temperature is a source of intense research. This structure is intimately linked to the dynamics of water molecules, which can be measured using Raman and infrared spectroscopies. The assignment of spectral peaks depends on whether they are collective modes or single-molecule motions. Vibrational modes in liquids are usually considered to be associated to the motions of single molecules or small clusters. Using molecular dynamics simulations, here we find dispersive optical phonon-like modes in the librational and OH-stretching bands. We argue that on subpicosecond time scales these modes propagate through water’s hydrogen-bond network over distances of up to 2 nm. In the long wavelength limit these optical modes exhibit longitudinal–transverse splitting, indicating the presence of coherent long-range dipole–dipole interactions, as in ice. Our results indicate the dynamics of liquid water have more similarities to ice than previously thought.
Controlling Gaussian and mean curvatures at microscale by sublimation and condensation of smectic liquid crystals
Authors: Kim Dae Seok , Cha Yun Jeong , Kim Mun Ho , Lavrentovich Oleg D. , Yoon Dong Ki
Published: January 2016

Soft materials with layered structure such as membranes, block copolymers and smectics exhibit intriguing morphologies with nontrivial curvatures. Here, we report restructuring the Gaussian and mean curvatures of smectic A films with free surface in the process of sintering, that is, reshaping at elevated temperatures. The pattern of alternating patches of negative, zero and positive mean curvature of the air–smectic interface has a profound effect on the rate of sublimation. As a result of sublimation, condensation and restructuring, initially equilibrium smectic films with negative and zero Gaussian curvature are transformed into structures with pronounced positive Gaussian curvature of layers packing, which are rare in the samples obtained by cooling from the isotropic melt. The observed relationship between the curvatures, bulk elastic behaviour and interfacial geometries in sintering of smectic liquid crystals might pave the way for new approaches to control soft morphologies at micron and submicron scales.
Mieap-regulated mitochondrial quality control is frequently inactivated in human colorectal cancer
Authors: Kamino H , Nakamura Y , Tsuneki M , Sano H , Miyamoto Y , Kitamura N , Futamura M , Kanai Y , Taniguchi H , Shida D , Kanemitsu Y , Moriya Y , Yoshida K , Arakawa H
Published: January 2016

Mieap, a p53-inducible protein, controls mitochondrial quality by repairing or eliminating unhealthy mitochondria. BNIP3 and NIX are critical mediators for the Mieap-regulated mitochondrial quality control. Mieap suppresses murine intestinal tumor via its mitochondrial quality control function. To explore the role of the Mieap-regulated mitochondria quality control function in colorectal cancer patients, we examined the statuses of p53, Mieap, BNIP3 and NIX in 57 primary colorectal cancer tissues. Promoter methylation of the Mieap and BNIP3 genes was found in 9% and 47% of colorectal cancer cases, respectively, whereas p53 mutation was found in more than 50% of colorectal cancer tissues lacking methylation of the Mieap and BNIP3 promoters, implying that the p53/Mieap/BNIP3-regulated mitochondria quality control pathway is inactivated in more than 70% of colorectal cancer patients. In LS174T colorectal cancer cells, hypoxia activated the Mieap-regulated mitochondria quality control function. Knockdown of p53, Mieap or BNIP3 in LS174T cells severely impaired the hypoxia-activated function, leading to the accumulation of unhealthy mitochondria and increase of mitochondrial reactive oxygen species generation. The mitochondrial reactive oxygen species generated by unhealthy mitochondria in the p53/Mieap/BNIP3-deficient cells remarkably enhanced cancer cell migration and invasion under hypoxic condition. These results suggest that the Mieap-regulated mitochondria quality control has a critical role in colorectal cancer suppression in the in vivo hypoxic tumor microenvironment.
Plasmon-photon conversion to near-infrared emission from Yb3+: (Au/Ag-nanoparticles) in tungsten-tellurite glasses
Authors: Rivera V. A. G. , Ledemi Yannick , Pereira-da-Silva Marcelo A. , Messaddeq Younes , Marega Jr Euclydes
Published: January 2016

This manuscript reports on the interaction between 2F5/2→2F7/2 radiative transition from Yb3+ ions and localized surface plasmon resonance (from gold/silver nanoparticles) in a tungsten-tellurite glass. Such an interaction, similar to the down-conversion process, results in the Yb3+ emission in the near-infrared region via resonant and non-resonant energy transfers. We associated such effects with the dynamic coupling described by the variations generated by the Hamiltonian HDC in either the oscillator strength, or the local crystal field, i.e. the line shape changes in the emission band. Here, the Yb3+ ions emission is achieved through plasmon-photon coupling, observable as an enhancement or quenching in the luminescence spectra. Metallic nanoparticles have light-collecting capability in the visible spectrum and can accumulate almost all the photon energy on a nanoscale, which enable the excitation and emission of the Yb3+ ions in the near-infrared region. This plasmon-photon conversion was evaluated from the cavity’s quality factor (Q) and the coupling (g) between the nanoparticles and the Yb3+ ions. We have found samples of low-quality cavities and strong coupling between the nanoparticles and the Yb3+ ions. Our research can be extended towards the understanding of new plasmon-photon converters obtained from interactions between rare-earth ions and localized surface plasmon resonance.
Sex differences in behavioural and neural responsiveness to mate calls in a parrot
Authors: Eda-Fujiwara Hiroko , Satoh Ryohei , Hata Yuka , Yamasaki Marika , Watanabe Aiko , Zandbergen Matthijs A. , Okamoto Yasuharu , Miyamoto Takenori , Bolhuis Johan J.
Published: January 2016

Vocalisation in songbirds and parrots has become a prominent model system for speech and language in humans. We investigated possible sex differences in behavioural and neural responsiveness to mate calls in the budgerigar, a vocally-learning parrot. Males and females were paired for 5 weeks and then separated, after which we measured vocal responsiveness to playback calls (a call of their mate versus a call of an unfamiliar conspecific). Both sexes learned to recognise mate calls during the pairing period. In males, but not females, mate calls evoked significantly fewer vocal responses than unfamiliar calls at one month after separation. Furthermore, in females, there was significantly greater molecular neuronal activation in response to mate calls compared to silence in the caudomedial mesopallium (CMM), a higher-order auditory region, in both brain hemispheres. In males, we found right-sided dominance of molecular neuronal activation in response to mate calls in the CMM. This is the first evidence suggesting sex differences in functional asymmetry of brain regions related to recognition of learned vocalisation in birds. Thus, sex differences related to recognition of learned vocalisations may be found at the behavioural and neural levels in avian vocal learners as it is in humans.
PARP6 is a Regulator of Hippocampal Dendritic Morphogenesis
Authors: Huang Jeffrey Y. , Wang Kang , Vermehren-Schmaedick Anke , Adelman John P. , Cohen Michael S.
Published: January 2016

Mono-ADP-ribosylation (MARylation) of mammalian proteins was first described as a post-translational modification catalyzed by bacterial toxins. It is now known that endogenous MARylation occurs in mammalian cells and is catalyzed by 11 members of the poly-ADP-ribose polymerase (PARP) family of proteins (17 in humans). The physiological roles of these PARPs remain largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that PARP6, a neuronally enriched PARP that catalyzes MARylation, regulates hippocampal dendrite morphogenesis, a process that is critical for proper neural circuit formation during development. Knockdown of PARP6 significantly decreased dendritic complexity in embryonic rat hippocampal neurons in culture and in vivo. Expression of wild-type PARP6 increased dendritic complexity; conversely, expression of a catalytically inactive PARP6 mutant, or a cysteine-rich domain deletion mutant that has significantly reduced catalytic activity, decreased dendritic complexity. The identification of PARP6 as a regulator of dendrite morphogenesis supports a role for MARylation in neurons during development.
Photoluminescence and electronic transitions in cubic silicon nitride
Authors: Museur Luc , Zerr Andreas , Kanaev Andrei
Published: January 2016

A spectroscopic study of cubic silicon nitride (γ-Si3N4) at cryogenic temperatures of 8 K in the near IR - VUV range of spectra with synchrotron radiation excitation provided the first experimental evidence of direct electronic transitions in this material. The observed photoluminescence (PL) bands were assigned to excitons and excited "Equation missing" and "Equation missing" centers formed after the electron capture by neutral structural defects. The excitons are weakly quenched on neutral "Equation missing" and strongly on charged "Equation missing" defects. The fundamental band-gap energy of 5.05 ± 0.05 eV and strong free exciton binding energy ~0.65 eV were determined. The latter value suggests a high efficiency of the electric power transformation in light in defect-free crystals. Combined with a very high hardness and exceptional thermal stability in air, our results indicate that γ-Si3N4 has a potential for fabrication of robust and efficient photonic emitters.
Cryotherapy Reduces Inflammatory Response Without Altering Muscle Regeneration Process and Extracellular Matrix Remodeling of Rat Muscle
Authors: Vieira Ramos Gracielle , Pinheiro Clara Maria , Messa Sabrina Peviani , Delfino Gabriel Borges , Marqueti Rita de Cássia , Salvini Tania de Fátima , Durigan Joao Luiz Quagliotti
Published: January 2016

The application of cryotherapy is widely used in sports medicine today. Cooling could minimize secondary hypoxic injury through the reduction of cellular metabolism and injury area. Conflicting results have also suggested cryotherapy could delay and impair the regeneration process. There are no definitive findings about the effects of cryotherapy on the process of muscle regeneration. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the effects of a clinical-like cryotherapy on inflammation, regeneration and extracellular matrix (ECM) remodeling on the Tibialis anterior (TA) muscle of rats 3, 7 and 14 days post-injury. It was observed that the intermittent application of cryotherapy (three 30-minute sessions, every 2 h) in the first 48 h post-injury decreased inflammatory processes (mRNA levels of TNF-α, NF-κB, TGF-β and MMP-9 and macrophage percentage). Cryotherapy did not alter regeneration markers such as injury area, desmin and Myod expression. Despite regulating Collagen I and III and their growth factors, cryotherapy did not alter collagen deposition. In summary, clinical-like cryotherapy reduces the inflammatory process through the decrease of macrophage infiltration and the accumulation of the inflammatory key markers without influencing muscle injury area and ECM remodeling.
Detachment of surface membrane invagination systems by cationic amphiphilic drugs
Authors: Osman Sangar , Taylor Kirk A. , Allcock Natalie , Rainbow Richard D. , Mahaut-Smith Martyn P.
Published: January 2016

Several cell types develop extensive plasma membrane invaginations to serve a specific physiological function. For example, the megakaryocyte demarcation membrane system (DMS) provides a membrane reserve for platelet production and muscle transverse (T) tubules facilitate excitation:contraction coupling. Using impermeant fluorescent indicators, capacitance measurements and electron microscopy, we show that multiple cationic amphiphilic drugs (CADs) cause complete separation of the DMS from the surface membrane in rat megakaryocytes. This includes the calmodulin inhibitor W-7, the phospholipase-C inhibitor U73122 and anti-psychotic phenothiazines. CADs also caused loss of T tubules in rat cardiac ventricular myocytes and the open canalicular system of human platelets. Anionic amphiphiles, U73343 (a less electrophilic U73122 analogue) and a range of kinase inhibitors were without effect on the DMS. CADs are known to accumulate in the inner leaflet of the cell membrane where they bind to anionic lipids, especially PI(4,5)P2. We therefore propose that surface detachment of membrane invaginations results from an ability of CADs to interfere with PI(4,5)P2 interactions with cytoskeletal or BAR domain proteins. This establishes a detubulating action of a large class of pharmaceutical compounds.
Multi-scale Characterisation of the 3D Microstructure of a Thermally-Shocked Bulk Metallic Glass Matrix Composite
Authors: Zhang Wei , Bodey Andrew J. , Sui Tan , Kockelmann Winfried , Rau Christoph , Korsunsky Alexander M. , Mi Jiawei
Published: January 2016

Bulk metallic glass matrix composites (BMGMCs) are a new class of metal alloys which have significantly increased ductility and impact toughness, resulting from the ductile crystalline phases distributed uniformly within the amorphous matrix. However, the 3D structures and their morphologies of such composite at nano and micrometre scale have never been reported before. We have used high density electric currents to thermally shock a Zr-Ti based BMGMC to different temperatures and used X-ray microtomography, FIB-SEM nanotomography and neutron diffraction to reveal the morphologies, compositions, volume fractions and thermal stabilities of the nano and microstructures. Understanding of these is essential for optimizing the design of BMGMCs and developing viable manufacturing methods.
MicroRNA-induced negative regulation of TLR-5 in grass carp, Ctenopharyngodon idella
Authors: Xu Xiao-Yan , Shen Yu-Bang , Fu Jian-Jun , Yu Hong-Yan , Huang Wen-Ji , Lu Li-Qun , Li Jia-Le
Published: January 2016

MicroRNAs (miRNAs) are endogenous small non-coding RNAs that play crucial roles in numerous biological processes. However, the role of miRNAs in antibacterial defence in fish has not been fully determined. Here, we identified that nine miRNAs are differentially expressed in kidney between susceptible and resistant grass carp strains. Analysis of spatial and temporal miRNA expression patterns suggests that cid-miRn-115 and miR-142a-3p are potential regulators of anti-bacterial activity. Overexpressing of cid-miRn-115 and miR-142a-3p results in a visible change in Ctenopharyngodon idella kidney (CIK) cells immune effector activity. Bioinformatics analysis and overexpressing assay shows that cid-miRn-115 and miR-142a-3p directly regulate tlr5 expression. cid-miRn-115 and miR-142a-3p overexpressing leads to a significant decrease in tlr5 expression in CIK, thereby repressing its downstream genes, such as il-1β, il-8 and tnf-α. These findings provide a novel insight into the determination of anti-bacterial compounds in grass carp.
Emulating short-term synaptic dynamics with memristive devices
Authors: Berdan Radu , Vasilaki Eleni , Khiat Ali , Indiveri Giacomo , Serb Alexandru , Prodromakis Themistoklis
Published: January 2016

Neuromorphic architectures offer great promise for achieving computation capacities beyond conventional Von Neumann machines. The essential elements for achieving this vision are highly scalable synaptic mimics that do not undermine biological fidelity. Here we demonstrate that single solid-state TiO2 memristors can exhibit non-associative plasticity phenomena observed in biological synapses, supported by their metastable memory state transition properties. We show that, contrary to conventional uses of solid-state memory, the existence of rate-limiting volatility is a key feature for capturing short-term synaptic dynamics. We also show how the temporal dynamics of our prototypes can be exploited to implement spatio-temporal computation, demonstrating the memristors full potential for building biophysically realistic neural processing systems.
Focal Lesions in Fatty Liver: If Quantitative Analysis Facilitates the Differentiation of Atypical Benign from Malignant Lesions
Authors: Shan Quan-Yuan , Chen Li-Da , Zhou Lu-Yao , Wang Zhu , Liu Guang-Jian , Huang Yang , Li Wei , Liu Jin-ya , Xie Xiao-yan , Lu Ming-de , Liu Jie , Wang Wei
Published: January 2016

To evaluate the diagnostic performance of quantitative analysis as an adjunctive diagnostic tool to contrast-enhanced ultrasound (US) for the differentiation of atypical benign focal liver lesions (FLLs) from malignancies in fatty liver. Twenty-seven benign FLLs and fifty-six malignant FLLs that appeared hyper-enhanced during the arterial phase with washout in the portal or late phase in fatty liver were analyzed. Chi-square tests and logistic regression were applied to identify the specific features. Three sets of criteria were assigned: 1) all FLLs subjected to routine contrast-enhanced US; 2) all FLLs subjected to quantification analysis and contrast-enhanced US; and 3) parts of FLLs that could not be diagnosed using contrast-enhanced US (n = 66, 75.9%) but instead were diagnosed using parametric features. The sensitivity, specificity, accuracy and area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of the three sets of criteria were analyzed. The AUCs of the criterion set 2 were significantly higher than those of criterion set 1 (0.904 versus 0.792, P = 0.008). Criterion set 3 showed a relatively high sensitivity (90.2%) with a relatively high AUC (0.845). The quantification analysis offers improved diagnostic performance for the differential identification of atypical benign FLLs from malignancies in fatty liver.
Galangin sensitizes TRAIL-induced apoptosis through down-regulation of anti-apoptotic proteins in renal carcinoma Caki cells
Authors: Han Min Ae , Lee Dong Hee , Woo Seon Min , Seo Bo Ram , Min Kyoung-jin , Kim Shin , Park Jong-Wook , Kim Sang Hyun , Choi Yung Hyun , Kwon Taeg Kyu
Published: January 2016

Galangin, bioflavonoids, has been shown anti-cancer properties in various cancer cells. In this study, we investigated whether galangin could enhance TRAIL-mediated apoptosis in TRAIL resistant renal carcinoma Caki cells. Galangin alone and TRAIL alone had no effect on apoptosis, while combined treatment with galangin and TRAIL significantly induced apoptosis in renal carcinoma (Caki, ACHN and A498) but not normal cells (normal mouse kidney cells and human normal mesangial cells). Galangin induced down-regulation of Bcl-2 protein at the transcriptional level via inhibition of NF-κB activation but not p53 pathway. Furthermore, galangin induced down-regulation of cFLIP, Mcl-1 and survivin expression at the post-translational levels and the over-expression of Bcl-2, cFLIP, Mcl-1 and survivin markedly reduced galangin-induced TRAIL sensitization. In addition, galangin increased proteasome activity, but galangin had no effect on expression of proteasome subunits (PSMA5 and PSMD4). In conclusion, our investigation suggests that galangin is a potent candidate for sensitizer of TRAIL resistant cancer cell therapy.
Functional Analysis of Esterase TCE2 Gene from Tetranychus cinnabarinus (Boisduval) involved in Acaricide Resistance
Authors: Shi Li , Wei Peng , Wang Xiangzun , Shen Guangmao , Zhang Jiao , Xiao Wei , Xu Zhifeng , Xu Qiang , He Lin
Published: January 2016

The carmine spider mite, Tetranychus cinnabarinus is an important pest of crops and vegetables worldwide and it has the ability to develop resistance against acaricides rapidly. Our previous study identified an esterase gene (designated TCE2) over-expressed in resistant mites. To investigate this gene’s function in resistance, the expression levels of TCE2 in susceptible, abamectin-, fenpropathrin- and cyflumetofen-resistant strains were knocked down (65.02%, 63.14%, 57.82% and 63.99%, respectively) via RNA interference. The bioassay data showed that the resistant levels to three acaricides were significantly decreased after the down-regulation of TCE2, indicating a correlation between the expression of TCE2 and the acaricide-resistance in T. cinnabarinus. TCE2 gene was then re-engineered for heterologous expression in Escherichia coli. The recombinant TCE2 exhibited α-naphthyl acetate activity (483.3 ± 71.8 nmol/mg pro. min−1) and the activity of this enzyme could be inhibited by abamectin, fenpropathrin and cyflumetofen, respectively. HPLC and GC results showed that 10 μg of the recombinant TCE2 could effectively decompose 21.23% fenpropathrin and 49.70% cyflumetofen within 2 hours. This is the first report of a successful heterologous expression of an esterase gene from mites. This study provides direct evidence that TCE2 is a functional gene involved in acaricide resistance in T. cinnabarinus.
Coalescence-Induced Jumping of Multiple Condensate Droplets on Hierarchical Superhydrophobic Surfaces
Authors: Chen Xuemei , Patel Ravi S. , Weibel Justin A. , Garimella Suresh V.
Published: January 2016

Coalescence-induced jumping of condensate droplets from a superhydrophobic surface with hierarchical micro/nanoscale roughness is quantitatively characterized. Experimental observations show that the condensate droplet jumping is induced by coalescence of multiple droplets of different sizes and that the coalesced droplet trajectories typically deviate from the surface normal. A depth-from-defocus image processing technique is developed to track the out-of-plane displacement of the jumping droplets, so as to accurately measure the droplet size and velocity. The results demonstrate that the highest jumping velocity is achieved when two droplets coalesce. The jumping velocity decreases gradually with an increase in the number of coalescing droplets, despite the greater potential surface energy released upon coalescence. A general theoretical model that accounts for viscous dissipation, surface adhesion, line tension, the initial droplet wetting states and the number and sizes of the coalescing droplets is developed to explain the trends of droplet jumping velocity observed in the experiments.
Genetic alterations in fatty acid transport and metabolism genes are associated with metastatic progression and poor prognosis of human cancers
Authors: Nath Aritro , Chan Christina
Published: January 2016

Reprogramming of cellular metabolism is a hallmark feature of cancer cells. While a distinct set of processes drive metastasis when compared to tumorigenesis, it is yet unclear if genetic alterations in metabolic pathways are associated with metastatic progression of human cancers. Here, we analyzed the mutation, copy number variation and gene expression patterns of a literature-derived model of metabolic genes associated with glycolysis (Warburg effect), fatty acid metabolism (lipogenesis, oxidation, lipolysis, esterification) and fatty acid uptake in >9000 primary or metastatic tumor samples from the multi-cancer TCGA datasets. Our association analysis revealed a uniform pattern of Warburg effect mutations influencing prognosis across all tumor types, while copy number alterations in the electron transport chain gene SCO2, fatty acid uptake (CAV1, CD36) and lipogenesis (PPARA, PPARD, MLXIPL) genes were enriched in metastatic tumors. Using gene expression profiles, we established a gene-signature (CAV1, CD36, MLXIPL, CPT1C, CYP2E1) that strongly associated with epithelial-mesenchymal program across multiple cancers. Moreover, stratification of samples based on the copy number or expression profiles of the genes identified in our analysis revealed a significant effect on patient survival rates, thus confirming prominent roles of fatty acid uptake and metabolism in metastatic progression and poor prognosis of human cancers.
Effects of sediment influx on the settlement and survival of canopy-forming macrophytes
Authors: Watanabe Hayato , Ito Miku , Matsumoto Akira , Arakawa Hisayuki
Published: January 2016

Kelp forests on coastal rocky shores are negatively impacted by sudden sediment loads that can occur with storms and floods. Using laboratory experiments, we studied the effects of sediment deposition on the survival of the large brown algaEisenia bicyclisjuveniles (zoospores and gametophytes) to quantify the potential impacts of particulate matter on kelp forests. The zoospore adhesion rate and the gametophyte survival and growth rates all declined markedly with increasing sediment load, particularly with smaller particle diameter. Using experimental results, we derived an equation to calculate the rate of initial kelp depletion with sediment load based on the quantity and size distribution of sediment particles. The equation enabled the estimation ofE. bicyclisdepletion rates in the field by measurement of particle quantity and diameter distribution of sediments on the reef substrate.
Telomerase reverse transcriptase acts in a feedback loop with NF-κB pathway to regulate macrophage polarization in alcoholic liver disease
Authors: Wu Xiao-qin , Yang Yang , Li Wan-xia , Cheng Ya-hui , Li Xiao-feng , Huang Cheng , Meng Xiao-ming , Wu Bao-ming , Liu Xin-hua , Zhang Lei , Lv Xiong-wen , Li Jun
Published: January 2016

Activation of Kupffer cells (KCs) plays a central role in the pathogenesis of alcoholic liver disease (ALD). C57BL/6 mice fed EtOH-containing diet showed a mixed induction of hepatic classical (M1) and alternative (M2) macrophage markers. Since telomerase activation occurs at critical stages of myeloid and lymphoid cell activation, we herein investigated the role of telomerase reverse transcriptase (TERT), the determining factor of telomerase, in macrophage activation during ALD. In our study, TERT expression and telomerase activity (TA) were remarkably increased in liver tissue of EtOH-fed mice. Moreover, EtOH significantly up-regulated TERT in isolated KCs and RAW 264.7 cells and LPS induced TERT production in vitro. These data indicate that up-regulation of TERT may play a critical role in macrophages during ALD. Furthermore, loss- and gain-of-function studies suggested that TERT switched macrophages towards M1 phenotype by regulating NF-κB signaling, but had limited effect on M2 macrophages polarization in vitro. Additionally, PDTC, a chemical inhibitor of NF-κB, could dramatically down-regulate TERT expression and the hallmarks of M1 macrophages. Therefore, our study unveils the role of TERT in macrophage polarization and the cross-talk between TERT and p65, which may provide a possible explanation for the ethanol-mediated hepatic proinflammatory response and M1 macrophage polarization.
Noisy decision thresholds can account for suboptimal detection of low coherence motion
Authors: Price Nicholas S. C. , VanCuylenberg John B.
Published: January 2016

Noise in sensory signals can vary over both space and time. Moving random dot stimuli are commonly used to quantify how the visual system accounts for spatial noise. In these stimuli, a fixed proportion of “signal” dots move in the same direction and the remaining “noise” dots are randomly replotted. The spatial coherence, or proportion of signal versus noise dots, is fixed across time; however, this means that little is known about how temporally-noisy signals are integrated. Here we use a stimulus with low temporal coherence; the signal direction is only presented on a fraction of frames. Human observers are able to reliably detect and discriminate the direction of a 200 ms motion pulse, even when just 25% of frames within the pulse move in the signal direction. Using psychophysical reverse-correlation analyses, we show that observers are strongly influenced by the number of near-target directions spread throughout the pulse and that consecutive signal frames have only a small additional influence on perception. Finally, we develop a model inspired by the leaky integration of the responses of direction-selective neurons, which reliably represents motion direction and which can account for observers’ sub-optimal detection of motion pulses by incorporating a noisy decision threshold.
Self-Limiting Layer Synthesis of Transition Metal Dichalcogenides
Authors: Kim Youngjun , Song Jeong-Gyu , Park Yong Ju , Ryu Gyeong Hee , Lee Su Jeong , Kim Jin Sung , Jeon Pyo Jin , Lee Chang Wan , Woo Whang Je , Choi Taejin , Jung Hanearl , Lee Han-Bo-Ram , Myoung Jae-Min , Im Seongil , Lee Zonghoon , Ahn Jong-Hyun , Park Jusang , Kim Hyungjun
Published: January 2016

This work reports the self-limiting synthesis of an atomically thin, two dimensional transition metal dichalcogenides (2D TMDCs) in the form of MoS2. The layer controllability and large area uniformity essential for electronic and optical device applications is achieved through atomic layer deposition in what is named self-limiting layer synthesis (SLS); a process in which the number of layers is determined by temperature rather than process cycles due to the chemically inactive nature of 2D MoS2. Through spectroscopic and microscopic investigation it is demonstrated that SLS is capable of producing MoS2 with a wafer-scale (~10 cm) layer-number uniformity of more than 90%, which when used as the active layer in a top-gated field-effect transistor, produces an on/off ratio as high as 108. This process is also shown to be applicable to WSe2, with a PN diode fabricated from a MoS2/WSe2 heterostructure exhibiting gate-tunable rectifying characteristics.