bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Geniculate neuralgia: a systematic review
Authors: Tang I P , Freeman S R , Kontorinis G , Tang M Y , Rutherford S A , King A T , Lloyd S K W
Published: May 2014

Objective:

To systematically summarise the peer-reviewed literature relating to the aetiology, clinical presentation, investigation and treatment of geniculate neuralgia.

Data sources:

Articles published in English between 1932 and 2012, identified using Medline, Embase and Cochrane databases.

Methods:

The search terms ‘geniculate neuralgia’, ‘nervus intermedius neuralgia’, ‘facial pain’, ‘otalgia’ and ‘neuralgia’ were used to identify relevant papers.

Results:

Fewer than 150 reported cases were published in English between 1932 and 2012. The aetiology of the condition remains unknown, and clinical presentation varies. Non-neuralgic causes of otalgia should always be excluded by a thorough clinical examination, audiological assessment and radiological investigations before making a diagnosis of geniculate neuralgia. Conservative medical treatment is always the first-line therapy. Surgical treatment should be offered if medical treatment fails. The two commonest surgical options are transection of the nervus intermedius, and microvascular decompression of the nerve at the nerve root entry zone of the brainstem. However, extracranial intratemporal division of the cutaneous branches of the facial nerve may offer a safer and similarly effective treatment.

Conclusion:

The response to medical treatment for this condition varies between individuals. The long-term outcomes of surgery remain unknown because of limited data.
Biomarkers of healthy ageing: expectations and validation
Authors: Martin-Ruiz Carmen , von Zglinicki Thomas
Published: May 2014

The challenge of devising a set of biomarkers capable of measuring the ageing rate in human subjects was articulated long ago. In recent years, progress in the basic biology of ageing suggests the realistic possibility of preventive or restaurative interventions that may extend healthy lifespan in mammals including human subjects. Specifically, frailty is being increasingly recognised as a clinically relevant syndrome that may be therapeutically addressed. This greatly enhances the need for sensitive and specific biomarkers of healthy ageing that are validated in both experimental animals and, importantly, in human subjects over the whole age range. Here, we will discuss the present challenges and requirements for biomarker validation in human subjects. We propose the central requirements for a validated biomarker of healthy ageing as: (i) better predictive power than chronological age for multiple dimensions of ageing; (ii) identification of the age range in which the marker is informative; (iii) establishment of sensitivity/specificity as indicators of its predictive power at the level of the individual; (iv) minimisation of methodological variation between laboratories.
Gut microbiota in older subjects: variation, health consequences and dietary intervention prospects
Authors: O'Connor Eibhlís M. , O'Herlihy Eileen A. , O'Toole Paul W.
Published: May 2014

Alterations in intestinal microbiota composition and function have been linked to conditions including functional gastrointestinal disorders, obesity and diabetes. The gut microbiome encodes metabolic capability in excess of that encoded by the human genome, and bacterially produced enzymes are important for releasing nutrients from complex dietary ingredients. Previous culture-based studies had indicated that the gut microbiota of older people was different from that of younger adults, but the detailed findings were contradictory. Small-scale studies had also shown that the microbiota composition could be altered by dietary intervention or supplementation. We showed that the core microbiota and aggregate composition in 161 seniors was distinct from that of younger persons. To further investigate the reasons for this variation, we analysed the microbiota composition of 178 elderly subjects for whom the dietary intake data were available. The data revealed distinct microbiota composition groups, which overlapped with distinct dietary patterns that were governed by where people lived: at home, in rehabilitation or in long-term residential care. These diet–microbiota separations correlated with cluster analysis of NMR-derived faecal metabolites and shotgun metagenomic data. Major separations in the microbiota correlated with selected clinical measurements. It should thus be possible to programme the microbiota to enrich bacterial species and activities that promote healthier ageing. A number of other studies have investigated the effect of certain dietary components and their ability to modulate the microbiota composition to promote health. This review will discuss dietary interventions conducted thus far, especially those in elderly populations and highlight their impact on the intestinal microbiota.
Building an African Department of History at Makerere, 1950–1972
Authors: Sicherman Carol
Published: May 2014

Once upon a time, in the euphoric 1960s, a new generation of historians of Africa undertook to write the history of Africa and Africans through the ages, overturning previous Western suppositions that Africa had no precolonial history worth investigating. As J.D. Hargreaves has written, they were “excited by the challenge to apply their craft to the continent which Hegel had judged ‘no historical part of the world’.” Among the explorers of the largely unmapped territories of prccoloniai history were members of the Makerere Department of History and their students, many of whom were to become professional historians. This essay sketches the construction of a modern Department of History at Makerere, a task requiring a new curriculum and a new staff.

Makerere began in 1922 as a government technical school for Africans. Courses in medicine and teacher training soon replaced the original more “vocational” instruction in carpentry, surveying, mechanics, and the like. The next several decades saw an evolution into a “higher college,” preparing students from all over East Africa for examinations leading to university degrees. By the late 1930s, a top-level commission recommended fulfilment of an early forecast that Makerere would one day become a university college. In the meantime, as World War II put off any substantial changes, it loomed ever greater as the legendary “mountain” that only the best could ascend. In 1950, finally fulfilling the forecast, Makerere joined in a Special Relationship with the University of London to become the University College of East Africa.
Were There Large States in the Coastal Regions of Southeast Africa Before the Rise of the Zulu Kingdom?
Authors: Etherington Norman
Published: May 2014

The Zulu kingdom holds a special place in both popular culture and historical scholarship. Zulu—a famous name, easy to spell and pronounce—is as recognizably American as gangster rap. The website of the “Universal Zulu Nation” (www.hiphopcity.com/zulu_nation/) explains that as “strong believers in the culture of hiphop, we as Zulus … will strive to do our best to uplift ourselves first, then show others how to uplift themselves mentally, spiritually, physically, economically and socially.” The Zulu Nation lists chapters in New York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Washington, Miami, Virginia Beach, Los Angeles, Detroit, New Haven, Hartford, New Jersey, and Texas. Mardi Gras in New Orleans has featured a “Zulu Parade” since 1916. The United States Navy underscores its independence from Britain by using “Zulu time” instead of Greenwich Mean Time. Not to be outdone, the Russian Navy built “Zulu Class” submarines in the 1950s and Britain's Royal Navy built a “Tribal Class Destroyer,” HMS Zulu. The common factor linking black pride, Africa, and prowess in war is the Zulu kingdom, a southeast African state that first attained international fame in the 1820s under the conqueror Shaka, “the black Napoleon.” His genius is credited with innovations that reshaped the history of his region. “Rapidly expanding his empire, Shaka conquered all, becoming the undisputed ruler of the peoples between the Pongola and Tugela Rivers … In hand-to-hand combat the short stabbing spear introduced by Shaka, made the Zulus unbeatable.” In South Africa Shaka's fame continues to outshine all other historical figures, including Cecil Rhodes and Paul Kruger. A major theme park, “Shakaland,” commemorates his life and Zulu culture. A plan was unveiled in 1998 to erect a twenty-story high statue of the Zulu king in Durban Harbor that would surpass the ancient Colossus of Rhodes.
Ghanaian Christianity and Popular Entertainment: Full Circle
Authors: Collins John
Published: May 2014

In this paper I look at the relationship between Christianity and popular entertainment in Ghana over the last 100 years or so. Imported Christianity was one of the seminal influences on the emergence of local popular music, dance, and drama. But Christianity in turn later became influenced by popular entertainment, especially in the case of the local African separatist churches that began to incorporate popular dance music, and in some cases popular theatre. At the same time unemployed Ghanaian commercial performing artists have, since the 1980s, found a home in the churches. To begin this examination of this circular relationship between popular entertainment and Christianity in Ghana we first turn to the late nineteenth century.

The appearance of transcultural popular performance genres in southern and coastal Ghana in the late nineteenth century resulted from a fusion of local music and dance elements with imported ones introduced by Europeans. Very important was the role of the Protestant missionaries who settled in southern. Ghana during the century, establishing churches, schools, trading posts, and artisan training centers. Through protestant hymns and school songs local Africans were taught to play the harmonium, piano, and brass band instruments and were introduced to part harmony, the diatonic scale, western I- IV- V harmonic progressions, the sol-fa notation and four-bar phrasing.

There were two consequences of these new musical ideas. Firstly a tradition of vernacular hymns was established from the 1880s and 1890s, when separatist African churches (such as the native Baptist Church) were formed in the period of institutional racism that followed the Berlin Conference of 1884/85. Secondly, and of more importance to this paper, these new missionary ideas helped to establish early local popular Highlife dance music idioms such as asiko (or ashiko), osibisaaba, local brass band “adaha” music and “palmwine” guitar music. Robert Sprigge (1967:89) refers to the use of church harmonies and suspended fourths in the early guitar band Highlife composition Yaa Amponsah, while David Coplan (1978:98-99) talks of the “hybridisation” of church influences with Akan vocal phrasing and the preference of singing in parallel thirds and sixths in the creation of Highlife.
African Music in the World and Traditional Music Section at the British Library Sound Archive
Authors: Fargion Janet Topp
Published: May 2014

It is widely accepted that the development of recording technology played an important role in the development of ethnomusicology as a discipline. For the first time, from the late nineteenh century, music could be recorded for use in scientific comparison and analysis. Jaap Kunst once wrote: “ethnomusicology could never have grown into an independent science if the gramophone had not been invented.” But the significance of recorded performance—the most objective way of capturing oral tradition—for the understanding of all aspects of culture must not be underestimated, particularly, but not exclusively, for nonliterate societies. “Oral tradition should be central to students of culture, of ideology, of society, of psychology, of art, and … of history.” And sound archives should be perceived as essential to research, “equivalent to libraries in other disciplines insofar as their importance in research is concerned.”

Almost immediately after the advent of recording technology in the late 1870s, sound archives began to emerge: the first in Europe was the Phonogrammarchiv of the Austrian Academy of Science in 1899. Britain came late to the field: the British Institute of Recorded Sound was established with private funds only in 1947; it received its first grant-in-aid in the 1960s and in 1983 it became part of the British Library, known as the National Sound Archive.
A Report on Some Archives in Equatoria Province, Sudan
Authors: Hødnebø Kjell
Published: May 2014

Equatoria Province is the southernmost province in the Sudan. The province contains six districts, with each district having its own District Administration Archives situated in the District headquarters. Bigger towns or villages in the province have in addition their own Rural Council Archives arising from the Town Councils established in the late 1940s. There is normally only one Town Council in each district, situated in the town of the District headquarters. In some places the District Archives and the Rural Council Archives consist of files and boxes in different corners of the same storeroom and administered by the same clerk.

The administration and filing systems have been inherited from the Condominium Period (1898-1956). Condominium administrative papers and public documents are thus incorporated in the papers used by the present administration. There is no sharp division between pre- and post-indepandent administrative papers; both are written in English (with a little interlude of Arabic in the 1960s) and many of the pre-independent files are still in use. In both the District and Rural Council Archives some of the files not in use are “closed.” At the time of my visit the Sudan Government had just started to bring in the closed District files to Juba, where they are under the care of the Southern Regional Ministry of Information and Culture. The open District files are under the District Commisioner, from whom permission to consult them must be obtained.

After the establishment of the new Southern Regional Government in 1973, administration at the provincial level was changed. The Condominium papers from Equatoria Province were closed and made the responsibility of the Regional Ministry of Information and Culture. Thus the Condominium Archives at the Province level are not incorporated into the present administration files to the same extent as they are at the District and Town level.
An outbreak of enterotoxigenicEscherichia coli(ETEC) infection in Norway, 2012: a reminder to consider uncommon pathogens in outbreaks involving imported products
Authors: MacDONALD E. , MØLLER K. E. , WESTER A. L. , DAHLE U. R. , HERMANSEN N. O. , JENUM P. A. , THORESEN L. , VOLD L.
Published: May 2014

We investigated an outbreak of gastroenteritis following a Christmas buffet served on 4–9 December 2012 to ~1300 hotel guests. More than 300 people were reported ill in initial interviews with hotel guests. To identify possible sources of infection we conducted a cohort investigation through which we identified 214 probable cases. Illness was associated with consumption of scrambled eggs (odds ratio 9·07, 95% confidence interval 5·20–15·84). Imported chives added fresh to the scrambled eggs were the suspected source of the outbreak but were unavailable for testing. EnterotoxigenicEscherichia coli(ETEC) infection was eventually confirmed in 40 hotel guests. This outbreak reinforces that ETEC should be considered in non-endemic countries when the clinical picture is consistent and common gastrointestinal pathogens are not found. Following this outbreak, the Norwegian Food Safety Authority recommended that imported fresh herbs should be heat-treated before use in commercial kitchens.
Influenza season 2012–2013 in Europe: moderate intensity, mixed (sub)types
Authors: SNACKEN R. , BROBERG E. , BEAUTÉ J. , LOZANO J. E. , ZUCS P. , AMATO-GAUCI A. J.
Published: May 2014

This paper summarizes influenza activity in the European Union/European Economic Area (EU/EEA) in 2012–2013. The influenza season 2012–2013 in Europe lasted from early December to late April. Overall the severity of the season could be described as moderate, based on the ILI/ARI consultation rates and the percentage of sentinel specimens positive for influenza compared to previous seasons. Both influenza A and B viruses circulating accounted for 47% and 53% of positive sentinel specimens, respectively, with both A(H1) and A(H3) varying for dominance. Compared to outpatients, the proportion of laboratory-confirmed influenza hospitalized cases infected by A(H1N1)pdm09 was significantly higher in middle-aged patients (33%vs. 17%,χ2 = 66·6,P < 0·01). Despite a relatively good match between vaccine and circulating strains, vaccine effectiveness was estimated to be moderate.
Sidgwick on Consequentialism and Deontology: A Critique
Authors: HURKA THOMAS
Published: May 2014

InThe Methods of EthicsHenry Sidgwick argued against deontology and for consequentialism. More specifically, he stated four conditions for self-evident moral truth and argued that, whereas no deontological principles satisfy all four conditions, the principles that generate consequentialism do. This article argues that both his critique of deontology and his defence of consequentialism fail, largely for the same reason: that he did not clearly grasp the concept W. D. Ross later introduced of a prima facie duty or duty other things equal. The moderate deontology Ross's concept allows avoids many of Sidgwick's objections. And Sidgwick's statements of his own axioms equivocate in exactly the same way for which he criticized deontological ones. Only if they are read as other things equal can they seem intuitive and earn widespread agreement; but that form is too weak to ground consequentialism. And in the form that does yield consequentialism they are neither intuitive nor widely accepted. Sidgwick's arguments against a rival view and for his own were, in multiple ways, unfair.
Foetal supraventricular tachycardia with hydrops fetalis: a role for direct intraperitoneal amiodarone
Authors: Kang Sok-Leng , Howe David , Coleman Matthew , Roman Kevin , Gnanapragasam James
Published: May 2014

Introduction: Persistent foetal tachyarrythmias complicated by hydrops fetalis carry a poor prognosis, with foetal death reported in excess of a quarter despite treatment. We present our experience with direct intraperitoneal amiodarone administration in eight hydropic foetuses with resistant supraventricular tachycardia. Methods: Amiodarone was injected slowly into foetal peritoneal cavity under ultrasound guidance. All mothers were loaded with oral amiodarone before the procedure and maintained on it. The procedure was repeated guided by foetal rhythm. Result: All eight cases had severe hydrops with a median foetal heart rate of 255 bpm (range 240–300 bpm), and the median gestational age was 27+1 weeks (range 21–33+3 weeks) at presentation. In six cases, the average time for supraventricular tachycardia to revert to sinus rhythm from the first procedure was 11.5 days. In one case, intravascular injection of amiodarone into the umbilical vein was performed before intraperitoneal injection, which resulted in conversion to sinus rhythm sustained until delivery. In the last case, supraventricular tachycardia and severe hydrops persisted and the baby was delivered 5 days later at 34 weeks’ gestation. Hydrops resolved in five foetuses with a mean resolution time of 28.4 days. The mean gestational age at delivery was 34+5 days and seven of eight cases survived beyond the neonatal period with good postnatal outcomes. Conclusion: Intraperitoneal administration of amiodarone is a relatively simple and effective strategy in refractory supraventricular tachycardia complicated by severe hydrops. The intraperitoneal route assures delivery of the drug to the severely hydropic foetus and enables a bolus dose to be delivered for sustained absorption.
Large Amplatzer atrial septal occluder in growing children: an echographic study
Authors: Raboisson Marie-Josée , Hugues Nicolas , Dahdah Nagib , Brassard Myriam , Lapierre Chantale , Miró Joaquim
Published: May 2014

Background: Lesions of adjacent structures have been reported after closure of large atrial septal defects with the Amplatzer septal occluder. In children, growth of the heart should modify the initial relationship between the device and surrounding structures. Aim: To compare the relationship between large Amplatzer septal occluder and adjacent cardiac structures at short-, mid-, and long-term follow-up in at-risk paediatric population using echocardiography. Methods: A total of 25 children (4.6±2.9 years old, 18 girls) with the largest atrial septal defect devices implanted between 1997 and 2002 were enrolled prospectively for complete echocardiogram 17.8±10.5 months (mid-term follow-up) and 8.8±0.9 years (long-term follow-up) after the procedure. Results were compared with the echocardiogram carried out 2.1±3.4 days after the procedure (short-term follow-up). Results: The minimal distance between the left disk and the mitral valve increased: 1.4±2.0 mm at short-term and 5.1±2.3 mm at long-term follow-up (p<0.05), leading to less contact between the disk and the anterior leaflet and less mitral regurgitation (10 at short-term, 4 at long-term follow-up, p<0.05). The number of devices straddling the aorta decreased from 17 to 12 at long-term follow-up (p<0.05). There was protrusion of disk in the venous structure in seven patients on the first echocardiogram, which disappeared at long-term follow-up. Conclusion: Although frequently in close contact with the aortic root, mitral valve, or venous returns, large devices tend to centre and move away from the surrounding structures, with decreased risk for long-term distortion.
Electrolyte screening in the evaluation of prolonged QTc interval
Authors: Rometo Allison B. , Beerman Lee , Arora Gaurav
Published: May 2014

We present a case of a previously healthy adolescent male for outpatient evaluation of prolonged QT interval. He was ultimately found to have acquired QT interval prolongation secondary to hypocalcaemia related to undiagnosed hypoparathyroidism. This case report highlights the importance of routine electrolyte analysis, even in the outpatient setting, during initial diagnostic workup for QT interval prolongation.
The Concept of Law in Natural, Technical and Social Systems
Authors: Mainzer Klaus
Published: May 2014

In the classical tradition, natural laws were considered as eternal truths of the world. Galileo and Newton even proclaimed them as ‘thoughts of God’ represented by mathematical equations. In Kantian tradition, they became categories of the human mind. David Hume criticized their ontological status and demanded their reduction to habituations of sentiments and statistical correlations of observations. In mainstream twentieth-century century science, laws were often understood as convenient instruments only, or even deconstructed in Feyerabend's ‘anything goes’. However, the Newtonian paradigm of mathematical laws and models seems also to be extended to the life sciences (e.g. systems biology). Parallel to the developments in the natural sciences, a change of public meaning regarding laws in society can be observed over the last few centuries. In economics, experimental, statistical, and behavioural approaches are favoured. In any case, the ontological basis of laws, sometimes blamed as ‘Platonism’, seems to be lost. At the beginning of the twenty-first century, the question arises: Are laws still important concepts of science? What is their contemporary meaning and task in different disciplines? Are there already alternative concepts or do laws remain an essential concept of science? In the following, we consider (1) the universal concept of laws; (2) the dynamical concept of laws; (3) their applications in natural and technical systems; (4) their applications in social and economic systems; and finally (5), we emphasize the instrumental concept of laws.
Laws in Physics
Authors: Frisch Mathias
Published: May 2014

This paper critically discusses different philosophical conceptions of laws of nature by examining how putative laws are treated in physical theorizing. These different conceptions are, first, views that take laws to be metaphysically basic; second, Humean views, which take laws to be reducible to patterns of instantiations of non-modal properties; and, third, a cluster of conventionalist or instrumentalist views that understand laws as part of the epistemic toolkit for building models and a reflection of a particular perspective of investigation. I argue that scientific practice best supports a moderate version of the third view: while the laws of physics do not form a single tightly organized axiomatic structure and there exists a multiplicity of frameworks in which putative laws are justified by their predictive use and relevance in a particular context, general overarching principles nevertheless play an important role in physics and provide some integration of different domains.
Synthetic Biology – Towards an Engineering Science
Authors: Weitze Marc-denis , Pühler Alfred
Published: May 2014

The new research field of synthetic biology is emerging from molecular biology, chemistry, biotechnology, information technology and engineering. This paper describes synthetic biology as a ‘Science of the Artificial’ and identifies structural features of engineering sciences that can be applied to this new kind of biology as opposed to traditional biology. The search for laws already in traditional biology has been difficult. In Synthetic Biology, action and application stand in the foreground and laws increasingly lose ground as a meaningful concept.
Can Psychological Interventions Reduce Perfectionism? A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
Authors: Lloyd Samantha , Schmidt Ulrike , Khondoker Mizanur , Tchanturia Kate
Published: May 2014

Background:Perfectionism is implicated in a range of psychiatric disorders, impedes treatment and is associated with poorer treatment outcomes.Aims:The aim of this systematic review and meta-analysis was to summarize the existing evidence for psychological interventions targeting perfectionism in individuals with psychiatric disorders associated with perfectionism and/or elevated perfectionism.Method: Eight studies were identified and were analysed in meta-analyses. Meta-analyses were carried out for the Personal Standards and Concern over Mistakes subscales of the Frost Multi-Dimensional Perfectionism Scale (FMPS) and the Self Orientated Perfectionism and Socially Prescribed Perfectionism subscales of the Hewitt and Flett MPS (HMPS) in order to investigate change between pre and postintervention.Results:Large pooled effect sizes were found for the Personal Standards and Concern over Mistakes subscales of the FMPS and the Self Orientated Perfectionism subscale of the HMPS, whilst a medium sized effect was found for change in Socially Prescribed Perfectionism. Medium pooled effect sizes were also found for symptoms of anxiety and depression.Conclusions:There is some support that it is possible to significantly reduce perfectionism in individuals with clinical disorders associated with perfectionism and/or clinical levels of perfectionism. There is also some evidence that such interventions are associated with decreases in anxiety, depression, eating disorder and obsessive compulsive symptoms. Further research is needed in order to investigate the optimal dosage and format of such interventions as well as into specific disorders where there is a lack of evidence for their effectiveness.
Group versus Individual Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Depressed Adolescents
Authors: O’Shea Gabrielle , Spence Susan H. , Donovan Caroline L.
Published: May 2014

Background: This study adds to the limited evidence concerning the benefits of Interpersonal Psychotherapy (IPT) with depressed adolescents. It evaluates the long-term effects of group versus individual delivery of this treatment approach. Aims: To conduct a small-scale examination of the long-term efficacy of group versus individual delivery of IPT for depressed adolescents. Method: Thirty-nine adolescents, aged 13–19 years, with a primary diagnosis of Major Depressive Disorder, were randomly assigned in blocks to either group or individual delivery of IPT. Standardized clinical interview and questionnaire assessments were conducted at pre- and posttreatment, and 12-month follow-up. Results: Intent-to-treat (ITT) analyses indicated significant improvements in depression, anxiety, youth-reported internalizing problems, and global functioning from pre- to posttreatment for those receiving IPT, with no significant differences in outcome between group and individual formats of delivery. Improvements were maintained at 12-month follow-up. Completer analyses also revealed significant and sustained improvements on these measures for those receiving IPT, with no differences in outcome between therapy formats for most measures. Individual IPT showed significantly greater improvements than group IPT in parent-reported internalizing problems for the completer but not the ITT analyses. Conclusions: Both individual and group formats of IPT offer promise in producing long-term benefits in the treatment of depression among adolescents.
Knowing What to Do in Social Situations
Authors: van der Linden Dimitri , Oostrom Janneke K. , Born Marise Ph. , Van der Molen Henk T. , Serlie Alec W.
Published: May 2014

Two studies examined the general factor of personality (GFP) in relationship to performance on video-based situational tests measuring social knowledge and skills. Study 1 (N = 180 candidates of an assessment center) showed that high-GFP individuals were better able to indicate the appropriate social behavior in a situational judgment test. Moreover, in that study, high-GFP participants were also rated higher by others on leadership skills. Study 2 (N = 153 psychology students) showed that the GFP was related to actual display of social behavior in a situational webcam test. In both studies, high-GFP individuals reported more leadership experience in organizations. These findings support the idea of the GFP as a substantive personality factor that may also be relevant for personnel selection.
Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungal communities are phylogenetically clustered at small scales
Authors: Horn Sebastian , Caruso Tancredi , Verbruggen Erik , Rillig Matthias C , Hempel Stefan
Published: May 2014

Next-generation sequencing technologies with markers covering the full Glomeromycota phylum were used to uncover phylogenetic community structure of arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) associated with Festuca brevipila. The study system was a semi-arid grassland with high plant diversity and a steep environmental gradient in pH, C, N, P and soil water content. The AMF community in roots and rhizosphere soil were analyzed separately and consisted of 74 distinct operational taxonomic units (OTUs) in total. Community-level variance partitioning showed that the role of environmental factors in determining AM species composition was marginal when controlling for spatial autocorrelation at multiple scales. Instead, phylogenetic distance and spatial distance were major correlates of AMF communities: OTUs that were more closely related (and which therefore may have similar traits) were more likely to co-occur. This pattern was insensitive to phylogenetic sampling breadth. Given the minor effects of the environment, we propose that at small scales closely related AMF positively associate through biotic factors such as plant-AMF filtering and interactions within the soil biota.
Exercise training reduces resting heart rate via downregulation of the funny channel HCN4
Authors: D’Souza Alicia , Bucchi Annalisa , Johnsen Anne Berit , Logantha Sunil Jit R.J. , Monfredi Oliver , Yanni Joseph , Prehar Sukhpal , Hart George , Cartwright Elizabeth , Wisloff Ulrik , Dobryznski Halina , DiFrancesco Dario , Morris Gwilym M. , Boyett Mark R.
Published: May 2014

Endurance athletes exhibit sinus bradycardia, that is a slow resting heart rate, associated with a higher incidence of sinus node (pacemaker) disease and electronic pacemaker implantation. Here we show that training-induced bradycardia is not a consequence of changes in the activity of the autonomic nervous system but is caused by intrinsic electrophysiological changes in the sinus node. We demonstrate that training-induced bradycardia persists after blockade of the autonomous nervous systemin vivoin mice andin vitroin the denervated sinus node. We also show that a widespread remodelling of pacemaker ion channels, notably a downregulation of HCN4 and the corresponding ionic current,If. Block ofIfabolishes the difference in heart rate between trained and sedentary animalsin vivoandin vitro. We further observe training-induced downregulation of Tbx3 and upregulation of NRSF and miR-1 (transcriptional regulators) that explains the downregulation of HCN4. Our findings provide a molecular explanation for the potentially pathological heart rate adaptation to exercise training.
Mutation in VPS35 associated with Parkinson’s disease impairs WASH complex association and inhibits autophagy
Authors: Zavodszky Eszter , Seaman Matthew N.J. , Moreau Kevin , Jimenez-Sanchez Maria , Breusegem Sophia Y. , Harbour Michael E. , Rubinsztein David C.
Published: May 2014

Endosomal protein sorting controls the localization of many physiologically important proteins and is linked to several neurodegenerative diseases. VPS35 is a component of the retromer complex, which mediates endosome-to-Golgi retrieval of membrane proteins such as the cation-independent mannose 6-phosphate receptor. Furthermore, retromer is also required for the endosomal recruitment of the actin nucleation promoting WASH complex. The VPS35 D620N mutation causes a rare form of autosomal-dominant Parkinson’s disease (PD). Here we show that this mutant associates poorly with the WASH complex and impairs WASH recruitment to endosomes. Autophagy is impaired in cells expressing PD-mutant VPS35 or lacking WASH. The autophagy defects can be explained, at least in part, by abnormal trafficking of the autophagy protein ATG9A. Thus, the PD-causing D620N mutation in VPS35 restricts WASH complex recruitment to endosomes, and reveals a novel role for the WASH complex in autophagosome formation.
Cascading ecological effects of eliminating fishery discards
Authors: Heath Michael R. , Cook Robin M. , Cameron Angus I. , Morris David J. , Speirs Douglas C.
Published: May 2014

Discarding by fisheries is perceived as contrary to responsible harvesting. Legislation seeking to end the practice is being introduced in many jurisdictions. However, discarded fish are food for a range of scavenging species; so, ending discarding may have ecological consequences. Here we investigate the sensitivity of ecological effects to discarding policies using an ecosystem model of the North Sea—a region where 30–40% of trawled fish catch is currently discarded. We show that landing the entire catch while fishing as usual has conservation penalties for seabirds, marine mammals and seabed fauna, and no benefit to fish stocks. However, combining landing obligations with changes in fishing practices to limit the capture of unwanted fish results in trophic cascades that can benefit birds, mammals and most fish stocks. Our results highlight the importance of considering the broader ecosystem consequences of fishery management policy, since species interactions may dissipate or negate intended benefits.
Exchanging Ohmic Losses in Metamaterial Absorbers with Useful Optical Absorption for Photovoltaics
Authors: Vora Ankit , Gwamuri Jephias , Pala Nezih , Kulkarni Anand , Pearce Joshua M. , Güney Durdu Ö.
Published: May 2014

Using metamaterial absorbers, we have shown that metallic layers in the absorbers do not necessarily constitute undesired resistive heating problem for photovoltaics. Tailoring the geometric skin depth of metals and employing the natural bulk absorbance characteristics of the semiconductors in those absorbers can enable the exchange of undesired resistive losses with the useful optical absorbance in the active semiconductors. Thus, Ohmic loss dominated metamaterial absorbers can be converted into photovoltaic near-perfect absorbers with the advantage of harvesting the full potential of light management offered by the metamaterial absorbers. Based on experimental permittivity data for indium gallium nitride, we have shown that between 75%–95% absorbance can be achieved in the semiconductor layers of the converted metamaterial absorbers. Besides other metamaterial and plasmonic devices, our results may also apply to photodectors and other metal or semiconductor based optical devices where resistive losses and power consumption are important pertaining to the device performance.
Coupling of Two Non-processive Myosin 5c Dimers Enables Processive Stepping along Actin Filaments
Authors: Gunther Laura K. , Furuta Ken'ya , Bao Jianjun , Urbanowski Monica K. , Kojima Hiroaki , White Howard D. , Sakamoto Takeshi
Published: May 2014

Myosin 5c (Myo5c) is a low duty ratio, non-processive motor unable to move continuously along actin filaments though it is believed to participate in secretory vesicle trafficking in vertebrate cells. Here, we measured the ATPase kinetics of Myo5c dimers and tested the possibility that the coupling of two Myo5c molecules enables processive movement. Steady-state ATPase activity and ADP dissociation kinetics demonstrated that a dimer of Myo5c-HMM (double-headed heavy meromyosin 5c) has a 6-fold lower Km for actin filaments than Myo5c-S1 (single-headed myosin 5c subfragment-1), indicating that the two heads of Myo5c-HMM increase F-actin-binding affinity. Nanometer-precision tracking analyses showed that two Myo5c-HMM dimers linked with each other via a DNA scaffold and moved processively along actin filaments. Moreover, the distance between the Myo5c molecules on the DNA scaffold is an important factor for the processive movement. Individual Myo5c molecules in two-dimer complexes move stochastically in 30–36 nm steps. These results demonstrate that two dimers of Myo5c molecules on a DNA scaffold increased the probability of rebinding to F-actin and enabled processive steps along actin filaments, which could be used for collective cargo transport in cells.
Design principles for single standing nanowire solar cells: going beyond the planar efficiency limits
Authors: Zeng Yang , Ye Qinghao , Shen Wenzhong
Published: May 2014

Semiconductor nanowires (NWs) have long been used in photovoltaic applications but restricted to approaching the fundamental efficiency limits of the planar devices with less material. However, recent researches on standing NWs have started to reveal their potential of surpassing these limits when their unique optical property is utilized in novel manners. Here, we present a theoretical guideline for maximizing the conversion efficiency of a single standing NW cell based on a detailed study of its optical absorption mechanism. Under normal incidence, a standing NW behaves as a dielectric resonator antenna and its optical cross-section shows its maximum when the lowest hybrid mode (HE11δ) is excited along with the presence of a back-reflector. The promotion of the cell efficiency beyond the planar limits is attributed to two effects: the built-in concentration caused by the enlarged optical cross-section and the shifting of the absorption front resulted from the excited mode profile. By choosing an optimal NW radius to support the HE11δ mode within the main absorption spectrum, we demonstrate a relative conversion-efficiency enhancement of 33% above the planar cell limit on the exemplary a-Si solar cells. This work has provided a new basis for designing and analyzing standing NW based solar cells.
Spin transport properties of triarylamine-based nanowires
Authors: Bhattacharya Sandip , Akande Akinlolu , Sanvito Stefano
Published: May 2014

Triarylamine-derivatives can self-assemble upon light irradiation in one-dimensional nanowires with remarkable hole transport properties. Here we present the spin transport properties of these nanowires evaluated from a rigorous multiscale procedure.
Cytochrome P450 enzyme functionalized-quantum dots as photocatalysts for drug metabolism
Authors: Xu Xuan , Qian Jing , Yu Jiachao , Zhang Yuanjian , Liu Songqin
Published: May 2014

A light-controlled drug metabolism system was successfully designed by using cytochrome P450 2C9 (CYP2C9) functionalized CdTe QDs as photocatalysts.
Photoresponsive liquid crystals based on halogen bonding of azopyridines
Authors: Chen Yinjie , Yu Haifeng , Zhang Lanying , Yang Huai , Lu Yunfeng
Published: May 2014

A series of photoresponsive halogen-bonded liquid crystals (LCs) were successfully constructed using molecular halogen and azopyridine compounds, which show interesting properties of photoinduced phase transition upon UV irradiation.
The direct growth of a WO3 nanosheet array on a transparent conducting substrate for highly efficient electrochromic and electrocatalytic applications
Authors: Cai Guo-fa , Tu Jiang-ping , Zhou Ding , Li Lu , Zhang Jia-heng , Wang Xiu-li , Gu Chang-dong
Published: May 2014

Vertically aligned WO3 nanosheet films are produced via a hydrothermal method. The WO3 nanosheet films exhibit significant optical modulation, fast switching speed, high coloration efficiency and excellent cycling performance. Outstanding electrocatalysis is also achieved by the films.
Coordination assembly of Borromean structures
Authors: Pan Mei , Su Cheng-Yong
Published: May 2014

The state-of-art advances in the assembly of coordination supramolecular structures featuring Borromean topological character have been introduced.
Mixing the spacers in azacryptands: effects on halide recognition
Authors: Bergamaschi Greta , Boiocchi Massimo , Perrone Maria Lucia , Poggi Antonio , Viviani Ivan , Amendola Valeria
Published: May 2014

Replacement of just one spacer in dicopper cryptates drastically alters the cavity's shape, thus affecting halide recognition.
Nanostructured manganese oxide/carbon nanotubes, graphene and graphene oxide as water-oxidizing composites in artificial photosynthesis
Authors: Najafpour Mohammad Mahdi , Rahimi Fahime , Fathollahzadeh Maryam , Haghighi Behzad , Hołyńska Małgorzata , Tomo Tatsuya , Allakhverdiev Suleyman I.
Published: May 2014

Nano-sized Mn oxide/carbon nanostructures as water-oxidizing catalyts are reported.
High-order harmonic spectroscopy for molecular imaging of polyatomic molecules
Authors: Negro M. , Devetta M. , Faccialá D. , De Silvestri S. , Vozzi C. , Stagira S.
Published: May 2014

High-order harmonic generation is a powerful and sensitive tool for probing atomic and molecular structures, combining in the same measurement an unprecedented attosecond temporal resolution with a high spatial resolution of the order of an angstrom. Imaging of the outermost molecular orbital by high-order harmonic generation has been limited for a long time to very simple molecules, like nitrogen. Recently we demonstrated a technique that overcame several of the issues that have prevented the extension of molecular orbital tomography to more complex species, showing that molecular imaging can be applied to a triatomic molecule like carbon dioxide. Here we report on the application of such a technique to nitrous oxide (N2O) and acetylene (C2H2). This result represents a first step towards the imaging of fragile compounds, a category which includes most of the fundamental biological molecules.
Hybrid polymer thin films with a lanthanide–zeolite A host–guest system: coordination bonding assembly and photo-integration
Authors: Hao Ji-Na , Yan Bing
Published: May 2014

Three tricolor luminous materials based on novel transparent hybrid films of polymer–lanthanide–zeolite A were assembled. The white light emission from the tricolor luminous materials can be tuned easily by adjusting the different concentrations of the doped ions and the excitation wavelength.
The Aβ peptide forms non-amyloid fibrils in the presence of carbon nanotubes
Authors: Luo Jinghui , Wärmländer Sebastian K. T. S. , Yu Chien-Hung , Muhammad Kamran , Gräslund Astrid , Pieter Abrahams Jan
Published: May 2014

We investigated the effect of hydrophobic SWNTs on the structure, solubility, and aggregation of the Aβ peptide.
Quantitative synchrotron X-ray fluorescence study of the penetration of transferrin-conjugated gold nanoparticles inside model tumour tissues
Authors: Liu Tianqing , Kempson Ivan , de Jonge Martin , Howard Daryl L. , Thierry Benjamin
Published: May 2014

Quantitative synchrotron X-ray fluorescence study of the penetration of transferrin-conjugated gold nanoparticles inside multicellular tumour spheroids.
A mitochondria-targeted turn-on fluorescent probe based on a rhodol platform for the detection of copper(i)
Authors: Taki Masayasu , Akaoka Kazushi , Mitsui Koji , Yamamoto Yukio
Published: May 2014

A new spirocyclized rhodol-based fluorescent probe has been developed for detecting mitochondrial Cu+.
Rhodium(iii)-catalyzed regioselective C2-amidation of indoles with N-(2,4,6-trichlorobenzoyloxy)amides and its synthetic application to the development of a novel potential PPARγ modulator
Authors: Shi Jingjing , Zhao Guanguan , Wang Xiaowei , Xu H. Eric , Yi Wei
Published: May 2014

Here an efficient rhodium(iii)-catalyzed C2-amidation of indoles and its synthetic application to a new PPARγ modulator have been developed.
HF-assisted one-step synthesis of pompon-like/chip-like FeSe2 particles and their superamphiphobic/antireflective property
Authors: Yu Jing , Wang Huijie , Yin Naiqiang , Xu Xiaoliang
Published: May 2014

This paper describes a method for controlling the shape of FeSe2 particles with the assistance of HF.
Reduction intermediates of graphene oxide for low temperature reduction electrode material
Authors: Ahn Sung Il , Kim Kukjoo , Kim Jun Young , Kim Eun Se , Han Ji Ye , Eom Ji Won , Choi Kyeong-Keun , Park Jung-Chul , Kim Sung-Hoon , Jeong Euh Duck , Choi Kyung Cheol
Published: May 2014

Graphene oxide (GO) with an abnormal structure was isolated in alcoholic solvent.
New product from old reaction: uniform magnetite nanoparticles from iron-mediated synthesis of alkali iodides and their protection from leaching in acidic media
Authors: Pogorilyi R. P. , Melnyk I. V. , Zub Y. L. , Carlson S. , Daniel G. , Svedlindh P. , Seisenbaeva G. A. , Kessler V. G.
Published: May 2014

Magnetic material stable to acid leaching was produced by silica coating of byproduct from the industrial synthesis of alkali iodides.
Cholinium ionic liquids as cheap and reusable catalysts for the synthesis of coumarins via Pechmann reaction under solvent-free conditions
Authors: Zhang Yuehua , Zhu Anlian , Li Qianqian , Li Lingjun , Zhao Yang , Wang Jianji
Published: May 2014

Ionic liquid [N112OH][HSO4] was found to be an efficient and reusable catalyst for Pechmann reaction under solvent-free conditions. UV-vis studies suggested that the high catalytic performance of this catalyst was mainly due to its ability to increase the content of keto tautomer of ethyl acetoacetate.
N-Methylbenzoaza-18-crown-6-ether derivatives as efficient alkali metal cations sensors: the dipole moment and first hyperpolarizability
Authors: Gao Ying , Sun Shi-Ling , Xu Hong-Liang , Zhao Liang , Su Zhong-Min
Published: May 2014

1-Li+, 1-Na+ and 1-K+ complexes formed by N-methylbenzoaza-18-crown-6-ether derivatives with one alkali metal cation were investigated. Their dipole moments and first hyperpolarizabilities take on opposite trends with increasing the atomic number.
Benzoyl methyl phosphate as an efficient reagent for the selective monobenzoylation of N-Bz-FTY720
Authors: Hikawa Hidemasa , Hamada Maiko , Yokoyama Yuusaku , Azumaya Isao
Published: May 2014

A novel and efficient method for the selective monobenzoylation of N-Bz-FTY720 with benzoyl methyl phosphate (BMP) promoted by Zn(OAc)2 and Cs2CO3 was developed. Benzoyl methyl phosphate plays an important role as a biomimetic acylating agent for the monobenzoylation of 1,3-diols.
Effects of fluorine ions on the formation and photocatalytic activities of SnO2 nanoparticles with small sizes
Authors: Hao Tingting , Cheng Guoe , Ke Hanzhong , Zhu Yujie , Fu Yangming
Published: May 2014

SnO2 nanoparticles with small sizes were synthesized by a simple hydrothermal route with different dosages of fluorine ions.