bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
What is the potential for disrupting the university?
Authors: Abeles Tom P.
Published: June 2017

Purpose

After three centuries, the second major transformation from the original Bologna institution is changing, but theory-induced blindness is forcing a major disruption rather than a gradual change. This conceptual paper aims to identify the pressures and the needed restructuring occurring to both the physical campus and the embodiment of the function of the faculty and the institution.

Design/methodology/approach

The university in its current form is economically unsustainable. It is an impractical structure for creating new knowledge and for transmitting such knowledge. It needs to respond to changes in education, to demands of those seeking or underwriting the purpose and particularly to the advances in the areas of information and communication technology and artificial intelligence systems.

Findings

Education, pre-kindergarten through adult, is becoming continuous and seamless across time and knowledge creation and acquisition. Universities, with exceptions, cannot stand alone as creators and adjudicators of valid knowledge either within the current idea of education or separate from knowledge creation outside of academia.

Originality/value

Those individuals within academia have a significant investment in the current system. Like many in other industries, the changes are producing changes and stress that will take time to respond, particularly as those who are now entering already will have the prerequisite capabilities to adapt and accelerate the change.
Why student needs
Authors: Hines Andy , Suarez Juan
Published: June 2017

Purpose

This paper aims to provide the rationale for the Students Needs 2025 & Beyond study. Its key purpose was to support the development of an organizational innovation function and to identify potential disruptions or surprises.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper is an introduction that supports the collection of articles to follow.

Findings

The paper points out three ways in which this study took a unique view of higher education, ultimately focused around a theme of focusing on student rather than institutional needs. It recommends four ways in which the study could be used by the client organization, centered on aiding its innovation function.

Research limitations/implications

This paper is an introduction to the research.

Practical implications

The paper is intended for educators, researchers and administrators to gain a better understanding of the student perspective on what they will need from higher education.

Originality/value

This paper introduces the study that took the perspective of the students in looking at the future of higher education, in contrast to most studies emphasizing the perspective of the institution.
MiR‐195 promotes abdominal aortic aneurysm media remodeling by targeting Smad3
Authors: Liang Bing , Che Jianbo , Zhao Hui , Zhang Zhi , Shi Gongning
Published: June 2017

Introduction

MiR‐195 has been implicated in the development of abdominal aortic aneurysms (AAA). However, the underlying mechanisms have not been fully addressed.

Aim

To explore the roles of miR‐195 in regulating the proliferation and apoptosis of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMCs), as well as its molecular basis in vitro.

Methods

qRT‐PCR was used to determine the expression levels of miR‐195 and Smad3 in aortic media specimens or VSMCs. Western blot was performed to detect the protein levels of Smad3, osteopontin (OPN), and collagen III in aortic media specimens and VSMCs. Luciferase reporter assay was applied to confirm the target of miR‐195 in VSMCs. Proliferation and apoptosis of VSMCs were measured by MTT and flow cytometry, respectively.

Results

In comparison with the normal controls, the levels of miR‐195, OPN, and collagen III were significantly increased in AAA tissue. Smad3 was validated to be a direct target of miR‐195. miR‐195 inhibited proliferation and induced apoptosis of VSMCs, which was abated by Smad3 overexpression. Expression of OPN and collagen III was improved in VSMCs after transfection with miR‐195 mimics, while up‐regulation of Smad3 reversed this effect.

Conclusion

MiR‐195 promotes media remodeling by targeting Smad3 in AAA progression. This study suggests that miR‐195 contributes to the pathogenesis of AAA and reveals a new targeted therapy strategy for AAA patients.
Anti‐liberalism Pushes Back
Authors: Owen John M.
Published: June 2017

Europe is besieged from within and without by anti‐liberal threats. The rise within Europe of populist‐nationalist parties and renewed jihadist attacks interact with pressure from Putin's Russia, Erdogan's Turkey, and actual and aspiring despotisms in Muslim‐majority countries. To varying degrees these threats are reactions to the effects of 21st‐century liberalism on societies. Liberalism always has been chiefly concerned to safeguard individual autonomy or self‐legislation, but the content of autonomy has shifted over two centuries. First‐stage liberalism saw the chief threat to autonomy as the state; second‐stage, as capital; the third‐stage version now ascendant sees traditional norms and institutions as the main menace. Third‐stage liberalism in Europe (and elsewhere) distributes power towards ‘symbolic analysts’ and away from those adept at services or manual labour. Thus the anti‐liberal backlash: within Europe large numbers of people find themselves less autonomous, in the older senses of the word, and ambivalent about the newer notion of autonomy; while on Europe's periphery many find certain features of liberal societies unappealing and threatening. Defending liberalism will require not only devoting more resources to national security and mitigating the disruptions of economic openness, but revisiting what individual autonomy ought to mean in the 21st‐century world.
Brazilian melon landraces resistant to Podosphaera xanthii are unique germplasm resources
Authors: Nunes E.W.L.P. , Esteras C. , Ricarte A.O. , Martínez‐Perez E. , Gómez‐Guillamón M.L. , Nunes G.H.S. , Picó M.B.
Published: June 2017

Podosphaera xanthii is the most important causal agent of powdery mildew in melon, a crop ranked within the most economically important species worldwide. The best strategy to face this fungus disease, which causes important production losses, is the development of genetically resistant cultivars. Genetic breeding programmes require sources of resistance, and a few ones have been reported in melon, mostly in Momordica and Acidulus horticultural groups. However, the existence of many races that reduces the durability of the resistance makes necessary to find new resistant genotypes with different genetic backgrounds.

In this work, Brazilian germplasm, together with a set of Indian landraces, and the COMAV's (Institute for the Conservation and Breeding of Agricultural Biodiversity) melon core collection, representing the whole variability of the species, were assessed for resistance against some common races in Spain and Brazil and genotyped with a 123‐SNP (single nucleotide polymorphisms) genotyping platform to study the molecular relationships of the resistant accessions. In the first experiment, carried out in Valencia (Spain) in 2013, seventy‐nine melon accessions were evaluated using artificial inoculation. Five accessions selected as resistant were also evaluated against races 1, 3, and 5 in Mossoró (Brazil, 2015) and against race 3.5 in Valencia (2016) under greenhouse conditions, and under four field conditions in Brazil. The accessions, AL‐1, BA‐3, CE‐3, and RN‐2, within the Brazilian collection, presented resistance against all the races of P. xanthii assayed in all conditions tested. AL‐1, CE‐3 and RN‐2 were molecularly more similar to wild agrestis and Acidulus melons from Asia and Africa, while BA‐3 grouped with Momordica types. Molecular analysis also confirmed that these new Brazilian sources of resistance differ from those previously reported, constituting interesting materials to encourage genetic breeding programmes, especially in Brazil and Spain.
Multiple Dimensions of Bureaucratic Discrimination: Evidence from German Welfare Offices
Authors: Hemker Johannes , Rink Anselm
Published: June 2017

A growing experimental literature uses response rates to fictional requests to measure discrimination against ethnic minorities. This article argues that restricting attention to response rates can lead to faulty inferences about substantive discrimination depending on how response dummies are correlated with other response characteristics. We illustrate the relevance of this problem by means of a conjoint experiment among all German welfare offices, in which we randomly varied five traits and designed requests to allow for a substantive coding of response quality. We find that response rates are statistically indistinguishable across treatment conditions. However, putative non‐Germans receive responses of significantly lower quality, potentially deterring them from applying for benefits. We also find observational evidence suggesting that discrimination is more pronounced in welfare offices run by local governments than in those embedded in the national bureaucracy. We discuss implications for the study of equality in the public sphere.
But Some of Us Are Broke: Race, Gender, and the Neoliberalization of the Academy
Authors: Navarro Tami
Published: June 2017

Anthropologists have paid increasing attention to neoliberalism in our research, yet we have been less willing to apply this lens to our own academic positioning and the ways these roles are shaped by privatization and market models. Lives and livelihoods in the American academy are increasingly determined by neoliberalism, and it is vital that we be both reflexive about and engaged around our positions within this project. This article explores the divides that separate various forms of academic labor (secure versus nonsecure, contract, etc.) as well as the raced and gendered implications of these tracks—in particular, the stark ways in which neoliberal transformations negatively affect women of color in the academy. [neoliberalism, academy, race, gender, contingent labor]
Astroglial vesicular network: evolutionary trends, physiology and pathophysiology
Authors: Zorec R. , Parpura V. , Verkhratsky A.
Published: June 2017

Intracellular organelles, including secretory vesicles, emerged when eukaryotic cells evolved some 3 billion years ago. The primordial organelles that evolved in Archaea were similar to endolysosomes, which developed, arguably, for specific metabolic tasks, including uptake, metabolic processing, storage and disposal of molecules. In comparison with prokaryotes, cell volume of eukaryotes increased by several orders of magnitude and vesicle traffic emerged to allow for communication between distant intracellular locations. Lysosomes, first described in 1955, a prominent intermediate of endo‐ and exocytotic pathways, operate virtually in all eukaryotic cells including astroglia, the most heterogeneous type of homeostatic glia in the central nervous system. Astrocytes support neuronal network activity in particular through elaborated secretion, based on a complex intracellular vesicle network dynamics. Deranged homeostasis underlies disease and astroglial vesicle traffic contributes to the pathophysiology of neurodegenerative (Alzheimer's disease, Huntington's disease), neurodevelopmental diseases (intellectual deficiency, Rett's disease) and neuroinfectious (Zika virus) disorders. This review addresses astroglial cell‐autonomous vesicular traffic network, as well as its into primary and secondary vesicular network defects in diseases, and considers this network as a target for developing new therapies for neurological conditions.
Archipelagic genes: Medical travel as a creative response to limitations and remoteness in the Maldives
Authors: Knoll Eva‐Maria
Published: June 2017

Medical travel has become a self‐evident and intrinsic part of the medical landscape in the Republic of Maldives. This article raises the question of how exactly this has emerged as part of today's reality. The analysis describes the unfolding of a pronounced Maldivian medical travel culture by focusing on a particularly pressing health issue. The population of the Maldives has to face the world's highest prevalence of beta‐thalassaemia, a genetic disorder affecting the body's ability to create red blood cells. The country's 300:1 sea to land ratio, however, with its small population of 340 000 scattered over 200 islands is a challenging context for the curative and preventive measures in thalassaemia governance. The article follows the trail of thalassaemia‐related intra‐archipelagic and extra‐archipelagic medical travel of patients and clients requesting a blood transfusion, iron monitoring, bone marrow transplantation and prenatal diagnostic services. It discusses medical travel organised as a biosocial group activity, financed by insurance and religious bodies while interacting with the migration of health professionals.
Long‐term outcome of concurrent chemoradiotherapy with elective nodal irradiation for inoperable esophageal cancer
Authors: Jing Zhao , Chen Tian , Zhang Xuebang , Wu Shixiu
Published: June 2017

Elective nodal irradiation (ENI) might improve overall survival in patients with inoperable esophageal cancer. We conducted a retrospective analysis to assess the long‐term survival and toxicity of esophageal cancer patients treated with ENI versus conventional‐field irradiation (CFI). All data in the present study were based on our institutional experience from 2000 to 2005 of patients with inoperable esophageal cancer treated with ENI or CFI plus two concurrent cycles of paclitaxel/cisplatin. Based on the inclusion and exclusion criteria, 89 patients were included in the analysis. Of these patients, 51 were treated with ENI, whereas 38 were treated with CFI. For the per‐protocol population, the patients in the ENI group significantly improved in terms of their 10‐year disease‐specific overall survival (43.1% vs 10.5%, P = 0.019), 10‐year disease‐free survival (36.7% vs 10.2%, P = 0.040) and 10‐year local recurrence‐free survival (47.2% vs 17.2%, P = 0.018) compared with the CFI group. Aside from radiation esophagitis, the incidence of grade 3 or greater acute toxicities did not differ between the two groups. Multivariate analysis showed that radiation field, tumor length and clinical stage were independent prognostic factors associated with OS. Concurrent chemoradiotherapy with ENI improves both disease‐specific overall survival and loco‐regional control in patients with inoperable esophageal cancer receiving per‐protocol treatment. The regimen has a manageable tolerability profile.
Protein and modified vaccinia virus Ankara-based influenza virus nucleoprotein vaccines are differentially immunogenic in BALB/c mice
Authors: Altenburg A F , Magnusson S E , Bosman F , Stertman L , de Vries R D , Rimmelzwaan G F
Published: June 2017

Because of the high variability of seasonal influenza viruses and the eminent threat of influenza viruses with pandemic potential, there is great interest in the development of vaccines that induce broadly protective immunity. Most probably, broadly protective influenza vaccines are based on conserved proteins, such as nucleoprotein (NP). NP is a vaccine target of interest as it has been shown to induce cross-reactive antibody and T cell responses. Here we tested and compared various NP-based vaccine preparations for their capacity to induce humoral and cellular immune responses to influenza virus NP. The immunogenicity of protein-based vaccine preparations with Matrix-M™ adjuvant as well as recombinant viral vaccine vector modified Vaccinia virus Ankara (MVA) expressing the influenza virus NP gene, with or without modifications that aim at optimization of CD8+ T cell responses, was addressed in BALB/c mice. Addition of Matrix-M™ adjuvant to NP wild-type protein-based vaccines significantly improved T cell responses. Furthermore, recombinant MVA expressing the influenza virus NP induced strong antibody and CD8+ T cell responses, which could not be improved further by modifications of NP to increase antigen processing and presentation.
Predicting and Assessing Progress in the Restoration of Ecosystems
Authors: Sinclair A.R.E. , Pech Roger P. , Fryxell John M. , McCann Kevin , Byrom Andrea E. , Savory C. John , Brashares Justin , Arthur Anthony D. , Catling Peter C. , Triska Maggie D. , Craig Michael D. , Sinclair Tim J.E. , McLaren Jennie R. , Turkington Roy , Beyers Rene L. , Harrower William L.
Published: June 2017

Restoration of degraded landscapes has become necessary to reverse the pervasive threats from human exploitation. Restoration requires first the monitoring of progress toward any chosen goals to determine their resilience and persistence, and second to conduct in a comparable adjacent area but with less human impact the restoration of trophic structures and ecosystem processes to act as reference systems (controls) with which we compare the viability of the chosen goal. We present here the rationale and a method for predicting the trajectory of restoration and assessing its progress toward a predetermined state, the endpoint, using a restoration index. This assessment of restoration requires that we know when a predetermined endpoint has been achieved and whether the envisioned community of species and their interactions can be restored. The restoration index can use species’ presence or density, and the rate of change of ecosystem processes. The index applies to trophic levels, functional groups, successional stages, alternative states, and novel ecosystems. Also, our method allows measurement of the resilience of ecosystems to disturbance, a desired property for conservation and management. We provide global examples to illustrate these points.
Multi‐Type, Multi‐Zone Facility Location
Authors: Heyns Andries M. , van Vuuren Jan H.
Published: June 2017

The placement of facilities according to spatial and/or geographic requirements is a popular problem within the domain of location science. Objectives that are typically considered in this class of problems include dispersion, median, center, and covering objectives—and are generally defined in terms of distance or service‐related criteria. With few exceptions, the existing models in the literature for these problems only accommodate one type of facility. Furthermore, the literature on these problems does not allow for the possibility of multiple placement zones within which facilities may be placed. Due to the unique placement requirements of different facility types—such as suitable terrain that may be considered for placement and specific placement objectives for each facility type—it is expected that different suitable placement zones for each facility type, or groups of facility types, may differ. In this article, we introduce a novel mathematical treatment for multi‐type, multi‐zone facility location problems. We derive multi‐type, multi‐zone extensions to the classical integer‐linear programming formulations involving dispersion, centering and maximal covering. The complexity of these formulations leads us to follow a heuristic solution approach, for which a novel multi‐type, multi‐zone variation of the non‐dominated sorting genetic algorithm‐II algorithm is proposed and employed to solve practical examples of multi‐type, multi‐zone facility location problems.
Bringing complexity and convergence governance to consumer policy
Authors: McGregor Sue L. T.
Published: June 2017

Consumer policy is already being shaped by a combination of governance models. This position paper argues that complexity‐oriented convergence models are a timely addition. Modern day consumer policy is characterized as interactive and integrative, replete with shifting boundaries and coalitions and evolving roles for each of state, market and society. This paper focused on governance in the consumer policy arena, arguing that this process needs to acknowledge and reconcile complexity. After describing the basic tenets of complexity theory, two characteristics of contemporary tri‐sector interaction (i.e., sector blurring and sector distortion) were discussed. These boundary characteristics necessitate the need for approaches that can accommodate complexity during consumer policy governance. Three examples of the latter were profiled: sector convergence, network governance and cross‐sector governance. These conceptualizations accommodate the dynamics, complexity and emergence of contemporary consumer policy governance.
Beyond topology: coevolution of structure and flux in metabolic networks
Authors: Morrison E. S. , Badyaev A. V.
Published: June 2017

Interactions between the structure of a metabolic network and its functional properties underlie its evolutionary diversification, but the mechanism by which such interactions arise remains elusive. Particularly unclear is whether metabolic fluxes that determine the concentrations of compounds produced by a metabolic network, are causally linked to a network's structure or emerge independently of it. A direct empirical study of populations where both structural and functional properties vary among individuals’ metabolic networks is required to establish whether changes in structure affect the distribution of metabolic flux. In a population of house finches (Haemorhous mexicanus), we reconstructed full carotenoid metabolic networks for 442 individuals and uncovered 11 structural variants of this network with different compounds and reactions. We examined the consequences of this structural diversity for the concentrations of plumage‐bound carotenoids produced by flux in these networks. We found that concentrations of metabolically derived, but not dietary carotenoids, depended on network structure. Flux was partitioned similarly among compounds in individuals of the same network structure: within each network, compound concentrations were closely correlated. The highest among‐individual variation in flux occurred in networks with the strongest among‐compound correlations, suggesting that changes in the magnitude, but not the distribution of flux, underlie individual differences in compound concentrations on a static network structure. These findings indicate that the distribution of flux in carotenoid metabolism closely follows network structure. Thus, evolutionary diversification and local adaptations in carotenoid metabolism may depend more on the gain or loss of enzymatic reactions than on changes in flux within a network structure.
What hospitals need to know about guidelines—A mixed‐method analysis of guideline implementation in Dutch hospitals
Authors: Blume Louise H. K. , van Weert Nico J. H. W. , Busari Jamiu O. , Stoopendaal Annemiek M. V. , Delnoij Diana M. J.
Published: June 2017

Rationale, aims and objectives

This study provides insight into how Dutch hospitals ensure that guidelines are used in practice and identifies what key messages other hospitals can learn from existing practices. We examine current practices in handling compliance and, therefore, focus on hospitals that reported that they do not experience problems in the implementation of guidelines.

Method

A survey of Dutch hospital boards and 9 semistructured interviews were conducted with a purposive sample of 3 hospitals. Interviews were held with 3 representatives of each hospital, specifically, with a member of the board of directors, a member of the executive medical staff, and the manager of the quality and safety department.

Results

Hospitals find guidelines necessary and useful. Hospitals have the power to improve implementation if boards of directors and medical staff are committed, intrinsically motivated, cooperate with each other, and use guidelines pragmatically. Even then, they prioritize guidelines, as resources are scarce. Despite their good work, all hospitals in this study appeared to struggle to adhere to guidelines.

Conclusions

If hospitals experience problems with guideline implementation, they tend to focus more on external expectations, leading to defensive behaviour. Hospitals that do not experience implementation problems focus more on integrating guidelines into their own policies.
Maintenance diets following rapid weight loss in obstructive sleep apnea: a pilot 1‐year clinical trial
Authors: Cayanan Elizabeth A. , Marshall Nathaniel S. , Hoyos Camilla M. , Phillips Craig L. , Serinel Yasmina , Wong Keith K. H. , Yee Brendon J. , Grunstein Ronald R.
Published: June 2017

Very low energy diets (VLED) appear to be the most efficacious dietary‐based obesity reduction treatments in obstructive sleep apnea (OSA); however, effective weight loss maintenance strategies remain untested in this condition. Our study aimed to assess the feasibility, tolerability and efficacy of two common maintenance diets during a 10‐month follow‐up period after rapid weight loss using a 2‐month VLED. In this two‐arm, single‐centre, open‐label pilot trial, obese adult OSA patients received a 2‐month VLED before being allocated to either the Australian Guide to Healthy Eating diet (AGHE) or a low glycaemic index high‐protein diet (LGHP). Outcomes were measured at 0, 2 and 12 months. We recruited 44 patients [113.1 ± 19.5 kg, body mass index (BMI): 37.2 ± 5.6 kg m−2, 49.3 ± 9.2 years, 12 females]. Twenty‐four patients were on continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) or mandibular advancement splint (MAS) therapy for OSA. Forty‐two patients completed the VLED. The primary outcome of waist circumference was reduced by 10.6 cm at 2 months [95% confidence interval (CI): 9.2–12.1], and patients lost 12.9 kg in total weight (95% CI: 11.2–14.6). There were small but statistically significant regains in waist circumference between 2 and 12 months [AGHE = 3.5 cm (1.3–5.6) and LGHP = 2.8 cm (0.6–5.0]. Other outcomes followed a similar pattern of change. After weight loss with a 2‐month VLED in obese patients with OSA, a structured weight loss maintenance programme incorporating commonly used diets was feasible, tolerable and efficacious for 10 months. This programme may be deployed easily within sleep clinics; however, future research should first test its translation within general clinical practice.
The influence of rapid growth on sodium salicylate pharmacokinetics in male turkeys
Authors: Poźniak B. , Motykiewicz‐Pers K. , Grabowski T. , Świtała M.
Published: June 2017

The aim of this study was to assess the influence of growth on the pharmacokinetics of sodium salicylate (SS) in male turkeys. SS was administered intravenously at a dose of 50 mg/kg. Plasma drug concentrations were assessed by high‐performance liquid chromatography, and pharmacokinetic parameters were calculated by noncompartmental analysis. As the age increased from 6 to 13 weeks (body weight increase from 2.35 to 9.43 kg), median body clearance decreased from 1.34 to 0.87 ml/min/kg. This caused a significant increase in the median mean residence time from 3.42 to 4.44 hr. Elimination phase proved to be biphasic and two elimination half‐lives (T1/2el) were distinguished. Whereas T1/2el1 was found to increase with age by 128%, T1/2el2 represented a later but faster and less age‐dependent phase of elimination (increase by 56% in the respective groups). Volume of distribution decreased with age. These effects may lead to different therapeutic response to SS in turkeys of different age and body weights.
Effects of aspirin dose escalation on platelet function and urinary thromboxane and prostacyclin levels in normal dogs
Authors: McLewee N. , Archer T. , Wills R. , Mackin A. , Thomason J.
Published: June 2017

Established “low” aspirin dosages inconsistently inhibit platelet function in dogs. Higher aspirin dosages consistently inhibit platelet function, but are associated with adverse effects. The objectives of this study were to use an escalation in dosage to determine the lowest aspirin dosage that consistently inhibited platelet function without inhibiting prostacyclin synthesis. Eight dogs were treated with five aspirin dosages: 0.5 mg/kg q24h, 1 mg/kg q24h, 2 mg/kg q24h, 4 mg/kg q24h and 10 mg/kg q12h for 7 days. Utilizing aggregometry and a whole‐blood platelet function analyzer (PFA‐100), platelet function was evaluated before and after treatment. Urine 11‐dehydro‐thromboxane‐B2 (11‐dTXB2) and 6‐keto‐prostaglandin‐F1α (6‐keto‐PGF1α), were measured. Compared to pretreatment, there were significant post‐treatment decreases in the maximum aggregometry amplitude and increases in the PFA‐100 closure times for all dosages expect 0.5 mg/kg q24h. There was no difference in amplitude or closure time among the 2 mg/kg q24h, 4 mg/kg q24h, and 10 mg/kg q12h dosages. Compared to pretreatment values, there was a significant decrease in urinary 11‐dTXB2‐to‐creatinine and 6‐keto‐PGF1α‐to‐creatinine ratios, but there was no dose‐dependent decrease for either metabolite. An aspirin dosage of 2 mg/kg q24h consistently inhibits platelet function without decreasing prostacyclin synthesis significantly more than lower aspirin dosages.
Genomic footprints of adaptation in a cooperatively breeding tropical bird across a vegetation gradient
Authors: Termignoni‐García Flavia , Jaramillo‐Correa Juan P. , Chablé‐Santos Juan , Liu Mark , Shultz Allison J. , Edwards Scott V. , Escalante‐Pliego Patricia
Published: June 2017

Identifying the genetic basis of phenotypic variation and its relationship with the environment is key to understanding how local adaptations evolve. Such patterns are especially interesting among populations distributed across habitat gradients, where genetic structure can be driven by isolation by distance (IBD) and/or isolation by environment (IBE). Here, we used variation in ~1,600 high‐qualitySNPs derived from paired‐end sequencing of double‐digest restriction site‐associatedDNA(ddRAD‐Seq) to test hypotheses related toIBDandIBEin the Yucatan jay (Cyanocorax yucatanicus), a tropical bird endemic to the Yucatán Peninsula. This peninsula is characterized by a precipitation and vegetation gradient—from dry to evergreen tropical forests—that is associated with morphological variation in this species. We found a moderate level of nucleotide diversity (π = .008) and little evidence for genetic differentiation among vegetation types. Analyses of neutral and putatively adaptiveSNPs (identified by complementary genome‐scan approaches) indicate thatIBDis the most reliable explanation to account for frequency distribution of the former, whileIBEhas to be invoked to explain those of the later. These results suggest that selective factors acting along a vegetation gradient can promote local adaptation in the presence of gene flow in a vagile, nonmigratory and geographically restricted species. The putative candidateSNPs identified here are located within or linked to a variety of genes that represent ideal targets for future genomic surveys.
Experimental test of genetic rescue in isolated populations of brook trout
Authors: Robinson Zachary L. , Coombs Jason A. , Hudy Mark , Nislow Keith H. , Letcher Benjamin H. , Whiteley Andrew R.
Published: June 2017

Genetic rescue is an increasingly considered conservation measure to address genetic erosion associated with habitat loss and fragmentation. The resulting gene flow from facilitating migration may improve fitness and adaptive potential, but is not without risks (e.g., outbreeding depression). Here, we conducted a test of genetic rescue by translocating ten (five of each sex) brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) from a single source to four nearby and isolated stream populations. To control for the demographic contribution of translocated individuals, ten resident individuals (five of each sex) were removed from each recipient population. Prior to the introduction of translocated individuals, the two smallest above‐barrier populations had substantially lower genetic diversity, and all populations had reduced effective number of breeders relative to adjacent below‐barrier populations. In the first reproductive bout following translocation, 31 of 40 (78%) translocated individuals reproduced successfully. Translocated individuals contributed to more families than expected under random mating and generally produced larger full‐sibling families. We observed relatively high (>20%) introgression in three of the four recipient populations. The translocations increased genetic diversity of recipient populations by 45% in allelic richness and 25% in expected heterozygosity. Additionally, strong evidence of hybrid vigour was observed through significantly larger body sizes of hybrid offspring relative to resident offspring in all recipient populations. Continued monitoring of these populations will test for negative fitness effects beyond the first generation. However, these results provide much‐needed experimental data to inform the potential effectiveness of genetic rescue‐motivated translocations.
Multifunctional enzymes from reduced genomes – model proteins for simple primordial metabolism?
Authors: Seelig Burckhard
Published: June 2017

Billions of years of evolution have yielded today's complex metabolic networks driven by efficient and highly specialized enzymes. In contrast, the metabolism of the earliest cellular life forms was likely much simpler with only a few enzymes of comparatively low activity. It has been speculated that these early enzymes had low specificities and in turn were able to perform multiple functions. In this issue of Molecular Microbiology, Ferla et al. describe examples of enzymes that catalyze chemically distinct reactions while using the same active site. Most importantly, the authors demonstrated that the comparatively weak activities of these multifunctional enzymes are each physiologically relevant. These findings contrast with simply promiscuous enzyme activities, which have been described numerous times but are not physiologically relevant. Ferla et al. elegantly combined initial bioinformatics searches for enzyme candidates with sound kinetic measurements, evolutionary considerations and even structural discussions. The phenomenon of multifunctionality appears to be a mechanism for bacteria with reduced genomes to compensate for their lack of certain enzymes. In the broader context of evolution, these organisms could be considered living model systems to study features of long‐extinct early cellular life.
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from unrelated donors in children with DOCK8 deficiency
Authors: Uygun Dilara Fatma K. , Uygun Vedat , Reisli İsmail , Keleş Sevgi , Özen Ahmet , Yılmaz Mustafa , Sayar Esra H. , Daloğlu Hayriye , Öztürkmen Seda I. , Çakı Suar , Karasu Gülsün T. , Yeşilipek Akif
Published: June 2017

DIDS is a unique form of combined immune deficiency characterized by an unusual susceptibility to cutaneous viral infections, severe allergies with eosinophilia and elevated immunoglobulin E titers, autoimmunity, and cancer. HSCT is considered the standard of care for this deadly disease. We have retrospectively analyzed the outcome of allogeneic HSCT from unrelated donors in patients with DIDS. Data from four patients, with five transplants, are presented. All patients received transplants from unrelated donors' BM, except for one patient who received a cord blood transplant. The conditioning regimens were based on myeloablative protocols for BM derived transplants; a NM regimen was pursued for the patient who received a cord blood transplant, which resulted in graft rejection. Although recurrent pneumonia and skin infections resolved immediately after transplantation, all patients subsequently developed human herpesvirus infection, including cutaneous herpetic lesions, cytomegalovirus reactivation, and zona zoster, which could be attributed to the use of ATG. Despite the presence of serious morbidities prior to transplantation, all patients recovered successfully. DIDS can be successfully treated with allogeneic HSCT from unrelated donors following a myeloablative conditioning regimen, with a reasonable safety profile.
Emotional labor and professional practice in sports medicine and science
Authors: Hings R. F. , Wagstaff C. R. D. , Thelwell R. C. , Gilmore S. , Anderson V.
Published: June 2017

The aim of this study was to explore how sport medicine and science practitioners manage their emotions through emotional labor when engaging in professional practice in elite sport. To address the research aim a semistructured interview design was adopted. Specifically, eighteen professional sport medicine and science staff provided interviews. The sample comprised sport and exercise psychologists (n=6), strength and conditioning coaches (n=5), physiotherapists (n=5), one sports doctor and one generic sport scientist. Following a process of thematic analysis, the results were organized into the following overarching themes: (a) factors influencing emotional labor enactment, (b) emotional labor enactment, and (c) professional and personal outcomes. The findings provide a novel contribution to understanding the professional demands faced by practitioners and are discussed in relation to the development of professional competencies and the welfare and performance of sport medics and scientists.
Executive function and theory of mind as predictors of socially withdrawn behavior in institutionalized children
Authors: Selcuk Bilge , Yavuz H. Melis , Etel Evren , Harma Mehmet , Ruffman Ted
Published: June 2017

False‐belief understanding and executive functions are two main sociocognitive abilities reliably linked to child social competence. Although institution‐reared children are especially at risk for behavioral problems and cognitive delays, the role that executive function and false‐belief understanding might play in the social withdrawal of institutionalized children has not been examined. The current study used two‐wave data to investigate the concurrent and longitudinal relations of social withdrawal with executive function and false‐belief understanding in institutionalized children; it also allowed investigation of the directionality between executive function and false‐belief understanding. Data were collected from 66 Turkish children (T1 M = 57.83 months, SD = 9.20; T2 M = 69.58 months, SD = 8.45) residing in institutions, at two time points, approximately 1 year apart. We measured false‐belief understanding and executive function via individual assessments, and social withdrawal via care provider reports at both time points. Results showed that both executive function and false‐belief understanding increased between T1 and T2, while social withdrawal did not show a significant change. Path analysis revealed that when T1 age and language were controlled, T1 executive function predicted T2 executive function, and in turn, T2 executive function predicted lessened social withdrawal at T2. In addition, T1 executive function predicted T2 false‐belief understanding. T1 false‐belief understanding was not related to T2 false‐belief understanding, executive function, or social withdrawal. Findings suggested that executive function is an important predictor of social withdrawal in high‐risk populations.
Multicentre evaluation of the new ORTHO VISION® analyser
Authors: Lazarova E. , Scott Y. , van den Bos A. , Wantzin P. , Atugonza R. , Solkar S. , Carpio N.
Published: June 2017

SUMMARY

Background

Implementation of fully automated analysers has become a crucial security step in the blood bank; it reduces human errors, allows standardisation and improves turnaround time (TAT).

Objectives

We aimed at evaluating the ease of use and the efficiency of the ORTHO VISION® Analyser (VISION) in comparison to the ORTHO AutoVue® Innova System (AutoVue) in six different laboratories.

Methods

After initial training and system configuration, VISION was used in parallel to AutoVue following the daily workload, both automates being based on ORTHO BioVue® System column agglutination technology. Each participating laboratory provided data and scored the training, system configuration, quality control, maintenance and system efficiency. A total of 1049 individual samples were run: 266 forward and reverse grouping and antibody screens with 10 urgent samples, 473 ABD forward grouping and antibody screens with 22 urgent samples, 160 ABD forward grouping, 42 antibody screens and a series of 108 specific case profiles.

Results

The VISION instrument was more rapid than the AutoVue with a mean performing test time of 27·9 min compared to 36 min; for various test type comparisons, the TAT data obtained from VISION was shorter than that from AutoVue. Moreover, VISION analysed urgent STAT samples faster. Regarding the ease of use, VISION was intuitive and user friendly.

Conclusions

VISION is a robust, reproducible system performing the most types of analytical determinations needed for pre‐transfusion testing today, thus accommodating a wide range of clinical needs. VISION brings appreciated new features that could further secure blood transfusions.
Restoration of pharyngeal dilator muscle force in dystrophin‐deficient (mdx) mice following co‐treatment with neutralizing interleukin‐6 receptor antibodies and urocortin 2
Authors: Burns David P. , Rowland Jane , Canavan Leonie , Murphy Kevin H. , Brannock Molly , O'Malley Dervla , O'Halloran Ken D. , Edge Deirdre
Published: June 2017

New Findings

What is the central question of this study?

We previously reported impaired upper airway dilator muscle function in the mdx mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Our aim was to assess the effect of blocking interleukin‐6 receptor signalling and stimulating corticotrophin‐releasing factor receptor 2 signalling on mdx sternohyoid muscle structure and function.

What is the main finding and its importance?

The interventional treatment had a positive inotropic effect on sternohyoid muscle force, restoring mechanical work and power to wild‐type values, reduced myofibre central nucleation and preserved the myosin heavy chain type IIb fibre complement of mdx sternohyoid muscle. These data might have implications for development of pharmacotherapies for DMD with relevance to respiratory muscle performance.

The mdx mouse model of Duchenne muscular dystrophy shows evidence of impaired pharyngeal dilator muscle function. We hypothesized that inflammatory and stress‐related factors are implicated in airway dilator muscle dysfunction. Six‐week‐old mdx (n = 26) and wild‐type (WT; n = 26) mice received either saline (0.9% w/v) or a co‐administration of neutralizing interleukin‐6 receptor antibodies (0.2 mg kg−1) and corticotrophin‐releasing factor receptor 2 agonist (urocortin 2; 30 μg kg−1) over 2 weeks. Sternohyoid muscle isometric and isotonic contractile function was examined ex vivo. Muscle fibre centronucleation and muscle cellular infiltration, collagen content, fibre‐type distribution and fibre cross‐sectional area were determined by histology and immunofluorescence. Muscle chemokine content was examined by use of a multiplex assay. Sternohyoid peak specific force at 100 Hz was significantly reduced in mdx compared with WT. Drug treatment completely restored force in mdx sternohyoid to WT levels. The percentage of centrally nucleated muscle fibres was significantly increased in mdx, and this was partly ameliorated after drug treatment. The areal density of infiltrates and collagen content were significantly increased in mdx sternohyoid; both indices were unaffected by drug treatment. The abundance of myosin heavy chain type IIb fibres was significantly decreased in mdx sternohyoid; drug treatment preserved myosin heavy chain type IIb complement in mdx muscle. The chemokines macrophage inflammatory protein 2, interferon‐γ‐induced protein 10 and macrophage inflammatory protein 3α were significantly increased in mdx sternohyoid compared with WT. Drug treatment significantly increased chemokine expression in mdx but not WT sternohyoid. Recovery of contractile function was impressive in our study, with implications for Duchenne muscular dystrophy. The precise molecular mechanisms by which the drug treatment exerts an inotropic effect on mdx sternohyoid muscle remain to be elucidated.
Glass eels (
Anguilla anguilla
) have a magnetic compass linked to the tidal cycle
Authors: Cresci Alessandro , Paris Claire B. , Durif Caroline M. F. , Shema Steven , Bjelland Reidun M. , Skiftesvik Anne Berit , Browman Howard I.
Published: June 2017

Glass eels have a magnetic compass, and their orientation abilities are linked to their endogenous circatidal clock.
Polymeric lithography editor: Editing lithographic errors with nanoporous polymeric probes
Authors: Rajasekaran Pradeep Ramiah , Zhou Chuanhong , Dasari Mallika , Voss Kay-Obbe , Trautmann Christina , Kohli Punit
Published: June 2017

Molecular editing at the submicrometer scale using optical feedback–facilitated polymer probes.
Ferroelastic modulation and the Bloch formalism
Authors: Mascarenhas Angelo , Fluegel Brian , Bhusal Lekhnath
Published: June 2017

A lattice modulated by a purely geometrical potential leads to localized states or to spiral states for electrons and photons.
A general strategy to synthesize chemically and topologically anisotropic Janus particles
Authors: Fan Jun-Bing , Song Yongyang , Liu Hong , Lu Zhongyuan , Zhang Feilong , Liu Hongliang , Meng Jingxin , Gu Lin , Wang Shutao , Jiang Lei
Published: June 2017

A general emulsion interfacial polymerization strategy opens a new avenue for the large-scale synthesis of “god” Janus particles.
Electronic structure of aqueous solutions: Bridging the gap between theory and experiments
Authors: Pham Tuan Anh , Govoni Marco , Seidel Robert , Bradforth Stephen E. , Schwegler Eric , Galli Giulia
Published: June 2017

A predictive and efficient computational framework for describing the electronic properties of aqueous solutions is presented.
A modular yeast biosensor for low-cost point-of-care pathogen detection
Authors: Ostrov Nili , Jimenez Miguel , Billerbeck Sonja , Brisbois James , Matragrano Joseph , Ager Alastair , Cornish Virginia W.
Published: June 2017

A yeast-based dipstick biosensor enables low-cost, on-site surveillance of pathogens.
Controlled hydroxyapatite biomineralization in an ~810 million-year-old unicellular eukaryote
Authors: Cohen Phoebe A. , Strauss Justin V. , Rooney Alan D. , Sharma Mukul , Tosca Nicholas
Published: June 2017

New analyses show that 811 million-year-old microfossils from the Yukon are the oldest evidence of eukaryotic biomineralization.
Flexible ferroelectric element based on van der Waals heteroepitaxy
Authors: Jiang Jie , Bitla Yugandhar , Huang Chun-Wei , Do Thi Hien , Liu Heng-Jui , Hsieh Ying-Hui , Ma Chun-Hao , Jang Chi-Yuan , Lai Yu-Hong , Chiu Po-Wen , Wu Wen-Wei , Chen Yi-Chun , Zhou Yi-Chun , Chu Ying-Hao
Published: June 2017

A flexible ferroelectric memory element based on oxide heteroepitaxy has been demonstrated with superior performance.
Buckyball sandwiches
Authors: Mirzayev Rasim , Mustonen Kimmo , Monazam Mohammad R. A. , Mittelberger Andreas , Pennycook Timothy J. , Mangler Clemens , Susi Toma , Kotakoski Jani , Meyer Jannik C.
Published: June 2017

A two-dimensional petri dish of fullerenes in a graphene wrap allows electron microscopy observation of atomic-scale dynamics.
Ligand binding to a G protein–coupled receptor captured in a mass spectrometer
Authors: Yen Hsin-Yung , Hopper Jonathan T. S. , Liko Idlir , Allison Timothy M. , Zhu Ya , Wang Dejian , Stegmann Monika , Mohammed Shabaz , Wu Beili , Robinson Carol V.
Published: June 2017

Drug binding to the P2Y
1
receptor prevents phosphorylation and competes with an endogenous ligand.