bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pseudofolliculitis barbae: understanding the condition and the role of facial grooming
Authors: Gray J. , McMichael A. J.
Published: May 2016

Pseudofolliculitis barbae (PFB) is an inflammatory condition of the beard area, with a high prevalence in men of subequatorial African ancestry and, to a much lesser extent, Indo‐Europeans. But it can affect both men and women of all ethnicities. Invariably reported as being associated with shaving, recent evidence suggests a strong genetic component in patients with persistent PFB. There is a lack of robust clinical evidence to support recommendations to avoid or curtail shaving or to shave with a single‐blade razor. There is recent clinical evidence that PFB is not exacerbated by daily shaving with a multiblade razor as part of a regimen. Further, there is preliminary evidence that a daily shaving regimen, which includes pre‐shave hydration and post‐shave moisturization, may be beneficial. To develop evidence‐based initial management strategies for PFB, there is a requirement for more randomized blinded clinical trials comparing the use of multi‐ and single‐edge razors, different shaving techniques, shaving frequencies and pre‐ and post‐shaving cosmetic products.
The effect of carrageenan and gelatine hydrosols incorporated with acidic electrolysed water on surface microbiota and quality changes on pork meat
Authors: Brychcy Ewa , Król Żaneta , Kulig Dominika , Jarmoluk Andrzej
Published: May 2016

The aim of the study was to determine antimicrobial efficiency of carrageenan and gelatine hydrosols containing acidic electrolysed water (AEW) on surface microbiota of meat and evaluate possible quality changes in raw meat after treatment with experimental AEW‐containing hydrosols. Microbiological examination of meat samples covered with AEW‐containing hydrosols (total number of microorganisms, yeast and moulds, and psychrotrophs) was performed. To evaluate quality changes, haem pigments, colour, thiobarbituric acid‐reactive substances (TBARS), antioxidant capacity and preliminary sensory evaluations were performed. Treatment with AEW‐containing hydrosols causes improvement in microbiological quality of meat samples. The treatment with AEW‐containing hydrosols significantly influenced the variability of myoglobin forms of tested meat samples. Changes in L*a*b* colour parameters were found and favourably affected sensory evaluation of meat quality, especially for samples treated with AEW and gelatine‐containing hydrosols. The TBARS values of all AEW–sols‐treated samples were in the range of 0.30–0.39 mg malondialdehyde kg−1. Radical scavenging (DPPH) and reducing ability (FRAP) assays confirmed that process of electrolysis significantly improved antioxidant activity of modified meat samples compared to treatment with hydrosols containing nonelectrolysed salt solutions. Obtained results suggest that hydrosols incorporated with AEW may be used for food preservation because of their antimicrobial activity and positive impact on quality factors of raw meat.
The Bagautdinov dressing method: negative pressure wound therapy in a patient with an allergy to acrylate adhesive
Authors: Daar David A , Wirth Garrett A , Evans Gregory RD , Carmean Melissa , Gordon Ian L
Published: May 2016

Current embodiments of negative pressure wound therapy (NPWT) create a hermetically sealed chamber at the surface of the body using polyurethane foam connected to a vacuum pump, which is then covered by a flexible adhesive drape. Commercially available NPWT systems routinely use flexible polyethylene films that have a sticky side, coated with the same acrylate adhesives used in other medical devices such as ECG leads and grounding pads. Severe reactions to the acrylate adhesives in these other devices, although uncommon, have been reported. We describe the case of a 63‐year‐old woman with an intractable leg ulcer resulting from external‐beam radiotherapy (XRT). Treatment with a standard commercial NPWT system induced severe inflammation of the skin in direct contact with drape adhesive. We successfully administered prolonged, outpatient NPWT to the patient using an alternative method (first described by Bagautdinov in 1986), using plain polyethylene film and petrolatum. The necessary hermetic seal is achieved by smearing the skin with petrolatum before applying the polyethylene film and activating the vacuum pump. The Bagautdinov method is a practical solution to the problem of adapting NPWT to patients with contact sensitivity or skin tears related to the adhesive compounds in the flexible drapes. Its use of a circumferential elastic wrap to maintain constant pressure on the seal probably limits the Bagautdinov technique to the extremities.
Genes under weaker stabilizing selection increase network evolvability and rapid regulatory adaptation to an environmental shift
Authors: Laarits T. , Bordalo P. , Lemos B.
Published: May 2016

Regulatory networks play a central role in the modulation of gene expression, the control of cellular differentiation, and the emergence of complex phenotypes. Regulatory networks could constrain or facilitate evolutionary adaptation in gene expression levels. Here, we model the adaptation of regulatory networks and gene expression levels to a shift in the environment that alters the optimal expression level of a single gene. Our analyses show signatures of natural selection on regulatory networks that both constrain and facilitate rapid evolution of gene expression level towards new optima. The analyses are interpreted from the standpoint of neutral expectations and illustrate the challenge to making inferences about network adaptation. Furthermore, we examine the consequence of variable stabilizing selection across genes on the strength and direction of interactions in regulatory networks and in their subsequent adaptation. We observe that directional selection on a highly constrained gene previously under strong stabilizing selection was more efficient when the gene was embedded within a network of partners under relaxed stabilizing selection pressure. The observation leads to the expectation that evolutionarily resilient regulatory networks will contain optimal ratios of genes whose expression is under weak and strong stabilizing selection. Altogether, our results suggest that the variable strengths of stabilizing selection across genes within regulatory networks might itself contribute to the long‐term adaptation of complex phenotypes.
The effect of soy or isoflavones on homocysteine levels: a meta‐analysis of randomised controlled trials
Authors: Song X. , Zeng R. , Ni L. , Liu C.
Published: May 2016

Background

The present study aimed to evaluate the effect of soy or isoflavones on blood homocysteine levels via a systematic review and meta‐analysis.

Methods

Pubmed, Embase, Web of Science and the Cochrane Library (up to 16 December 2015) were used for the literature review. Only randomised controlled trials were included. The primary outcome was the standard mean difference (SMD) of blood homocysteine levels between the experimental and control groups.

Results

Nineteen randomised controlled studies were included for qualitative analysis. Eighteen studies were included in the data synthesis. Soy or isoflavones were found to have no effect on homocysteine levels, with a SMD of −0.21 (95% confidence interval = −0.43 to 0.00, I2=67.7%, random effect model). No publication bias was found among those studies (P = 0.296 for Egger's test, and P = 0.198 for Begg's test).

Conclusions

Soy or isoflavones were not found to be associated with a reduction in homocysteine levels. Further studies might still be needed in carefully selected populations.
Differential effects of BDNF and neurotrophin 4 (NT4) on endocytic sorting of TrkB receptors
Authors: Proenca Catia C. , Song Minseok , Lee Francis S.
Published: May 2016

Neurotrophins are a family of growth factors playing key roles in the survival, development, and function of neurons. The neurotrophins brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and NT4 both bind to and activate TrkB receptors, however, they mediate distinct neuronal functions. The molecular mechanism of how TrkB activation by BDNF and NT4 leads to diverse outcomes is unknown. Here, we report that BDNF and NT4 lead to differential endocytic sorting of TrkB receptors resulting in diverse biological functions in cultured cortical neurons. Fluorescent microscopy and surface biotinylation experiments showed that both neurotrophins stimulate internalization of TrkB with similar kinetics. Exposure to BDNF for 2–3 h reduced the surface pool of TrkB receptors to half, whereas a longer treatment (4–5 h) with NT4 was necessary to achieve a similar level of down‐regulation. Although BDNF and NT4 induced TrkB phosphorylation with similar intensities, BDNF induced more rapid ubiquitination and degradation of TrkB than NT4. Interestingly, TrkB receptor ubiquitination by these ligands have substantially different pH sensitivities, resulting in varying degrees of receptor ubiquitination at lower pH levels. Consequently, NT4 was capable of maintaining longer sustained downstream signaling activation that correlated with reduced TrkB ubiquitination at endosomal pH. Thus, by leading to altered endocytic trafficking itineraries for TrkB receptors, BDNF and NT4 elicit differential TrkB signaling in terms of duration, intensity, and specificity, which may contribute to their functional differences in vivo.

image

The neurotrophins, brain‐derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) and neurotrophin‐4 (NT4), both bind to and activate TrkB receptors, however, they mediate distinct neuronal functions. Here, we propose that BDNF and NT4 lead to differential endocytic sorting of TrkB receptors resulting in diverse biological functions. BDNF induces more rapid ubiquitination and degradation of TrkB than NT4. Consequently, NT4 is capable of maintaining more sustained signaling downstream of TrkB receptors.
Ties That Bind: How Business Connections Affect Mutual Fund Activism
Authors: CVIJANOVIĆ DRAGANA , DASGUPTA AMIL , ZACHARIADIS KONSTANTINOS E.
Published: May 2016

We investigate whether business ties with portfolio firms influence mutual funds' proxy voting using a comprehensive data set spanning 2003 to 2011. In contrast to prior literature, we find that business ties significantly influence promanagement voting at the level of individual pairs of fund families and firms after controlling for Institutional Shareholder Services (ISS) recommendations and holdings. The association is significant only for shareholder‐sponsored proposals and stronger for those that pass or fail by relatively narrow margins. Our findings are consistent with a demand‐driven model of biased voting in which company managers use existing business ties with funds to influence how they vote.
Credit Rationing, Income Exaggeration, and Adverse Selection in the Mortgage Market
Authors: AMBROSE BRENT W. , CONKLIN JAMES , YOSHIDA JIRO
Published: May 2016

We examine the role of borrower concerns about future credit availability in mitigating the effects of adverse selection and income misrepresentation in the mortgage market. We show that the majority of additional risk associated with “low‐doc” mortgages originated prior to the Great Recession was due to adverse selection on the part of borrowers who could verify income but chose not to. We provide novel evidence that these borrowers were more likely to inflate or exaggerate their income. Our analysis suggests that recent regulatory changes that have essentially eliminated the low‐doc loan product would result in credit rationing against self‐employed borrowers.
Is Your Spouse More Likely to Divorce You if You Are the Older Partner?
Authors: England Paula , Allison Paul D. , Sayer Liana C.
Published: May 2016

The authors assessed how the relative age of spouses affects whether men or women initiate a divorce, using data from the National Survey of Families and Households. Ex‐spouses' reports of who left generally agreed, but not always, so the analysis used a latent class model embedded in an event‐history model with competing risks that the woman leaves the man or the man leaves the woman. Support was not found for the hypothesis that age heterogamy itself increases the odds of divorce: Even large age differences did not make men more likely to leave younger wives, and women's exits were as likely when the marriage is homogamous as when she was older. The main conclusion is that both men and women are more likely to leave if their spouse is older than they are. The effects were stronger for men, but the gender difference in effect size was not statistically significant.
Evaluation of a novel point‐of‐care test for active matrix metalloproteinase‐8: agreement between qualitative and quantitative measurements and relation to periodontal inflammation
Authors: Lorenz K. , Keller T. , Noack B. , Freitag A. , Netuschil L. , Hoffmann T.
Published: May 2016

Background and Objectives

Severe periodontitis affects about 10% of the world population. In addition, associations between periodontitis and systemic diseases exist. Therefore, the diagnosis should be made quickly and at an early stage. Matrix metalloproteinase‐8 (MMP‐8) is the most prominent collagenase found in inflamed periodontal tissues. Its active form (aMMP‐8) is increasingly used as a diagnostic biomarker. Aim of the present study is to evaluate the diagnostic accuracy of a novel aMMP‐8 point‐of‐care (POC) test in comparison to the standard laboratory test to diagnose the disease rapidly and reliably.

Material and Methods

In a prospective, mono‐center, double‐blinded, case–control study, participants with healthy gums (n= 35), gingivitis (n= 60) and periodontitis (n= 35) were investigated before and after therapy. Beside clinical variables for plaque and inflammation, aMMP‐8 concentrations were determined in oral rinsing specimens by the enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) and by POC. Positive and negative percent agreements with their exact one‐sided lower 95% confidence limits were calculated.

Results

Of 130 participants, 111 finished the study. Overall, positive percent agreements were 75.8% (57.7–88.9) before treatment and 73.7% (56.9–86.6) after treatment. Negative percent agreements were 92.8% (85.7–97.0) before and 93.3% (85.1–97.8) after treatment. Positive test results (POC and ELISA) ranged from 5.7% to 8.6% in healthy patients, 25.0–29.8% in patients with gingivitis and 40.0–48.1% in patients with periodontitis. Patients who had positive aMMP‐8 test results (POC) showed higher scores for plaque and inflammation.

Conclusions

The novel POC test to detect aMMP‐8 has proved to agree strongly with the standard method, ELISA. The test can be recommended to screen patients at risk for periodontitis in dental offices, at the general practitioner and at specialists for associated diseases.
Climate Politics in the Anthropocene and Environmentalism Beyond Nature and Culture in Brazilian Amazonia
Authors: Rojas David
Published: May 2016

This article examines the work of a group of scientists who contributed to influential climate policy approaches while taking part in groundbreaking research on climate transformations. The scientists promoted a policy approach known as REDD+, which was designed to slow climate change by paying forest landholders to not cut their forests. These scientists also made important contributions to the science of the Anthropocene, which is premised on the idea that humanity has become a geological force that is transforming the planet in disruptive ways. I argue that their science and policy efforts are at odds with anthropological critiques that view environmentalists as experts who see themselves as bearing exceptional “cultural” capacities and therefore as capable of protecting or improving “Nature.” In a region of Amazonia, the science of the Anthropocene and the associated REDD+ projects moved beyond ontological understandings that divide the world into the opposing spheres of Nature and Culture. The scientists did not see themselves as inhabiting a “cultural” sphere from which they could protect Amazonia as a “natural” object, but rather they used REDD+ projects to immerse themselves in what they felt were irreversible, uncontrollable, and disruptive socioenvironmental transformations.
What Is Carbon Dioxide? When Is Carbon Dioxide?
Authors: Günel Gökçe
Published: May 2016

In this article, I focus on carbon capture and storage (CCS), a controversial climate change mitigation technology that operates by collecting carbon dioxide from point sources and depositing it in underground locations, such as depleting oil reservoirs. Specifically, I investigate the ways in which certain CCS professionals imagine and demand a reconceptualization of carbon dioxide: not as waste or as dangerous material that should be taxed and exchanged in carbon markets, but as a neutral gas that can be bought and sold as a commodity, and perhaps used as a drilling additive for the oil and gas industry. CCS professionals suggest that carbon dioxide has multiple legal, political, and chemical meanings and existences across different points on a CCS network, and they acknowledge how this condition makes it difficult to produce the molecule as a commodity characterized by exchange and commensurability. In studying the commodification of carbon dioxide, I show how these professionals do not intend to create “sameness” across the market, but instead wish to commodify the molecule through “linking” various versions of carbon dioxide together. By tracking carbon dioxide as it moves within a CCS network, I explore the moral logics of CCS technologies, which obscure how energy‐intensive models of life triggered climate change in the first place.
The Making and Unmaking of Patent Ownership: Technicalities, Materialities, and Subjectivities
Authors: Foster Laura A.
Published: May 2016

Feminist sociolegal studies have recently taken up the technicalities of doctrines, documents, and regulations to better understand the law. In an affiliated move, feminist science studies turned to the materialities of theories, practices, and nonhuman organisms to make critical sense of science. These methodological turns focus not on gender, per se, but on precise mechanisms of law and science that structure, reinforce, and reconfigure power and inequality. Drawing on these methodological approaches, this article attends to the technicalities and materialities of patent ownership and benefit sharing in South Africa in regards to San peoples’ struggles over the patenting of the Hoodia gordonii plant. An examination of patent documents, benefit‐sharing agreements, legislative appendixes, and the biology of plants generates an understanding of how patent ownership, rather than being natural or value‐neutral, is a historical and sociocultural process shaping, refashioning, and being inscribed across multiple scales of nation‐state jurisdictions, divergent ways of knowing, and biochemical orderings of plants.
Private Tutoring: Evidence from India
Authors: Azam Mehtabul
Published: May 2016

Drawing on the nationally representative “Participation and Expenditure in Education” surveys, we document the incidence and cost of private tutoring at different stages of schooling over the last two decades in India. As private tutoring involves two decisions: (1) whether to take private tuition or not, and (2) how much to spend on private tutoring conditional on positive decision in (1), we analyze the determinants of the two decisions separately using a Hurdle model. We find that private tutoring is not a new phenomenon in India: a significant proportion of students at each stage of schooling took private tutoring even in 1986/87, and there has been no dramatic increase in those proportions. Students from urban areas, private schools, and from better economic backgrounds are more likely to take private tutoring. Furthermore, the demand for private tutoring is inelastic at each stage of schooling, which implies that private tutoring is a necessary good in the household consumption basket. We also find evidence of pro‐male bias in both decisions regarding private tutoring.
How Significant Is Sub‐Saharan Africa's Demographic Dividend for Its Future Growth and Poverty Reduction?
Authors: Ahmed S. Amer , Cruz Marcio , Go Delfin S. , Maliszewska Maryla , Osorio‐Rodarte Israel
Published: May 2016

Sub‐Saharan Africa will be undergoing substantial demographic changes over the next 15 years with the rising working‐age share of its population. The opportunity of African countries to convert these changes into demographic dividends for growth and poverty reduction will depend on several factors. The outlook will likely be good if African countries can continue the gains already made under better institutions and policies, particularly those affecting the productivity of labor, such as educational outcomes. If African countries can continue to build on the hard‐won development gains, the demographic dividend could account for 11–15% of gross domestic product (GDP) volume growth by 2030, while accounting for 40–60 million fewer poor in 2030. The gains can become more substantial with better educational outcomes that allow African countries to catch up to other developing countries. If the skill share of Africa's labor supply doubles because of improvements in educational attainment, from 25 to about 50% between 2011 and 2030, then the demographic dividends can expand the regional economy additionally by 22% by 2030 relative to the base case and reduce poverty by an additional 51 million people.
Production and management of cattle manure in the UK and implications for land application practice
Authors: Smith K. A. , Williams A. G.
Published: May 2016

A review of livestock and manure management across the UK was undertaken as part of a wider study of important factors impacting on greenhouse and other gaseous emissions from agriculture. All major livestock sectors were covered by the review, but only data on cattle manure are reported in this study. Cattle manure comprises 67 Mt (80%) of the total 83 Mt of UK annual livestock manure production during the housing period. Overall, about 47% of total UK cattle manure production was estimated to be as undiluted slurry and 53% as solid, mainly straw‐based farmyard manure (FYM). Survey data suggested important regional differences in cattle manure management across the UK; examples include the predominance of slurry in SW Scotland, N Ireland and to a lesser extent, in Wales, compared to the continued importance of straw‐based FYM systems in England. Survey data on land application of manures from the British Survey of Fertiliser Practice (BSFP) generally showed the expected distribution of cattle manure application timings, dominated by crop sowing/establishment or growth patterns. However, in recent years, an apparent increase in land spreading in February–April, with less application in November–January is encouraging, the trend towards spring/early summer spreading of cattle slurry suggesting greater appreciation of its value as a nutrient source. BSFP returns on manure application techniques have also shown increasing uptake of shallow injection of cattle slurry, from <1% (2004) to 10% (2013) and for increasing rapid (<6 h) incorporation of FYM, from 3% (2007) to 14% (2013).
Surface passivation of Fe3O4 nanoparticles with Al2O3 via atomic layer deposition in a rotating fluidized bed reactor
Authors: Duan Chen-Long , Deng Zhang , Cao Kun , Yin Hong-Feng , Shan Bin , Chen Rong
Published: May 2016

Iron(II,III) oxide (Fe3O4) nanoparticles have shown great promise in many magnetic-related applications such as magnetic resonance imaging, hyperthermia treatment, and targeted drug delivery. Nevertheless, these nanoparticles are vulnerable to oxidation and magnetization loss under ambient conditions, and passivation is usually required for practical applications. In this work, a home-built rotating fluidized bed (RFB) atomic layer deposition (ALD) reactor was employed to form dense and uniform nanoscale Al2O3 passivation layers on Fe3O4 nanoparticles. The RFB reactor facilitated the precursor diffusion in the particle bed and intensified the dynamic dismantling of soft agglomerates, exposing every surface reactive site to precursor gases. With the aid of in situ mass spectroscopy, it was found that a thicker fluidization bed formed by larger amount of particles increased the residence time of precursors. The prolonged residence time allowed more thorough interactions between the particle surfaces and the precursor gas, resulting in an improvement of the precursor utilization from 78% to nearly 100%, even under a high precursor feeding rate. Uniform passivation layers around the magnetic cores were demonstrated by both transmission electron microscopy and the statistical analysis of Al mass concentrations. Individual particles were coated instead of the soft agglomerates, as was validated by the specific surface area analysis and particle size distribution. The results of thermogravimetric analysis suggested that 5 nm-thick ultrathin Al2O3 coatings could effectively protect the Fe3O4 nanoparticles from oxidation. The x-ray diffraction patterns also showed that the magnetic core crystallinity of such passivated nanoparticles could be well preserved under accelerated oxidation conditions. The precise thickness control via ALD maintained the saturation magnetization at 66.7 emu/g with a 5 nm-thick Al2O3 passivation layer. This good preservation of the magnetic properties with superior oxidation resistance will be beneficial for practical magnetic-based applications.
Auditory detection of non-speech and speech stimuli in noise: Native speech
advantage
Authors: Huo Shuting , Tao Sha , Wang Wenjing , Li Mingshuang , Dong Qi , Liu Chang
Published: May 2016

Detection thresholds of Chinese vowels, Korean vowels, and a complex tone, with harmonic and noise carriers were measured in noise for Mandarin Chinese-native listeners. The harmonic index was calculated as the difference between detection thresholds of the stimuli with harmonic carriers and those with noise carriers. The harmonic index for Chinese vowels was significantly greater than that for Korean vowels and the complex tone. Moreover, native speech sounds were rated significantly more native-like than non-native speech and non-speech sounds. The results indicate that native speech has an advantage over other sounds in simple auditory tasks like sound detection.
Moxifloxacin Improves Treatment Outcomes in Patients with Ofloxacin-Resistant Multidrug-Resistant Tuberculosis
Authors: Chien Jung-Yien , Chien Shun-Tien , Chiu Wei-Yih , Yu Chong-Jen , Hsueh Po-Ren
Published: May 2016

It is unclear whether the use of moxifloxacin (MFX), a newer synthetic fluoroquinolone, results in better outcomes in patients with ofloxacin (OFX)-resistant multidrug-resistant tuberculosis (MDR-TB). During the period from April 2006 to December 2013, a total of 2,511 patients with culture-confirmed tuberculosis (TB) were treated at a TB referral hospital in southern Taiwan. Of the 2,511 patients, 325 (12.9%) had MDR-TB, and of those 325 patients, 81 (24.9%) had OFX-resistant MDR-TB and were included in the study. Among the 81 patients with OFX-resistant MDR-TB, 50 (61.7%) were successfully treated and 31 (38.3%) had unfavorable outcomes, including treatment failure (
n
= 25; 30.9%), loss to follow-up (
n
= 2; 2.5%), and death (
n
= 4; 4.9%). Patients treated with MFX had a significantly higher rate of treatment success (77.3% versus 43.2%; odds ratio [OR] = 4.46, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.710 to 11.646,
P
= 0.002) than patients not treated with MFX, especially among those infected with MFX-susceptible isolates (40.7%) or isolates with low-level resistance to MFX (28.4%). Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that treatment with MFX (adjusted odds ratio = 6.54, 95% CI = 1.44 to 29.59,
P
= 0.015) was the only independent factor associated with treatment success. Mutation at codon 94 in the
gyrA
gene was the most frequent mutation (68.0%) associated with high-level MFX resistance. Multivariate Cox proportional hazards regression analysis showed that treatment with MFX was also an independent factor associated with early culture conversion (hazard ratio = 3.12, 95% CI = 1.48 to 6.54,
P
= 0.003). Our results show that a significant proportion of OFX-resistant MDR-TB isolates were susceptible or had low-level resistance to MFX, indicating that patients with OFX-resistant MDR-TB benefit from treatment with MFX.
The MisR Response Regulator Is Necessary for Intrinsic Cationic Antimicrobial Peptide and Aminoglycoside Resistance in Neisseria gonorrhoeae
Authors: Kandler Justin L. , Holley Concerta L. , Reimche Jennifer L. , Dhulipala Vijaya , Balthazar Jacqueline T. , Muszyński Artur , Carlson Russell W. , Shafer William M.
Published: May 2016

During infection, the sexually transmitted pathogen
Neisseria gonorrhoeae
(the gonococcus) encounters numerous host-derived antimicrobials, including cationic antimicrobial peptides (CAMPs) produced by epithelial and phagocytic cells. CAMPs have both direct and indirect killing mechanisms and help link the innate and adaptive immune responses during infection. Gonococcal CAMP resistance is likely important for avoidance of host nonoxidative killing systems expressed by polymorphonuclear granulocytes (e.g., neutrophils) and intracellular survival. Previously studied gonococcal CAMP resistance mechanisms include modification of lipid A with phosphoethanolamine by LptA and export of CAMPs by the MtrCDE efflux pump. In the related pathogen
Neisseria meningitidis
, a two-component regulatory system (2CRS) termed MisR-MisS has been shown to contribute to the capacity of the meningococcus to resist CAMP killing. We report that the gonococcal MisR response regulator but not the MisS sensor kinase is involved in constitutive and inducible CAMP resistance and is also required for intrinsic low-level resistance to aminoglycosides. The 4- to 8-fold increased susceptibility of
misR
-deficient gonococci to CAMPs and aminoglycosides was independent of phosphoethanolamine decoration of lipid A and the levels of the MtrCDE efflux pump and seemed to correlate with a general increase in membrane permeability. Transcriptional profiling and biochemical studies confirmed that expression of
lptA
and
mtrCDE
was not impacted by the loss of MisR. However, several genes encoding proteins involved in membrane integrity and redox control gave evidence of being MisR regulated. We propose that MisR modulates the levels of gonococcal susceptibility to antimicrobials by influencing the expression of genes involved in determining membrane integrity.
Gastroenvironmental distress: metaphorical antecedents of the gut microbiome
Authors: Ahuja Nitin K , Ahuja Amisha
Published: May 2016

The human gut has been viewed for centuries as a potential mediator of systemic disease. The theory of autointoxication, which found its clearest articulation in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, focused on altered bowel habits as the cause of widespread physical decay and advocated for the pursuit of health through regular defecation. More recently, under the banner of the microbiome, research on commensal bacteria makes a similar case for associations between alimentary dynamics and illness manifestations far outside the gastrointestinal tract. Surface distinctions between these two conceptual frameworks are apparently antipodal, the former championing emptiness and sterility, the latter abundance and restoration. Within both models, however, persists a common anxiety about the detrimental effects of civilisation on the body in relation to the natural world. As scientific understanding of the microbiome continues to mature, acknowledging the historical and moral parameters of its borrowed ecological idiom may facilitate critical distinctions between what is true and what feels like it should be.
POLICY BRIEF: IMBALANCES WILL CONTINUE TO RULE OVER THE GLOBAL ECONOMY
Authors: MOELLER JOERGEN OERSTROEM
Published: May 2016

Global debt will keep growth subdued over the next decade. Falling work force will move labor intensive manufacturing out of China and into South Asia. Investment, not consumption, will be the main driver of growth, which primarily will take place in Asia and probably also Africa. New institutional frameworks such as AIIB emerge, but they will operate inside the existing global order. Falling albeit still tangible Chinese saving combined with fading interest for US treasury bonds will pose an awkward dilemma for US monetary policy. Under such circumstances current savings–investment balances will continue to rule the global economy.
Integrated environmental modelling: achieving the vision
Authors: Moore R. V. , Hughes A. G.
Published: May 2016

Integrated environmental modelling (IEM) is a recent phenomenon that offers the opportunity to solve complex environmental problems. Whilst it has made great strides in recent years, there are still challenges to be met before IEM is universally accepted and used. This paper describes the current state of IEM and sets out a roadmap for achieving its full potential. A multidisciplinary, multi-agency approach will be required, the main goals of which are to: (1) raise awareness and build confidence in IEM; (2) ensure availability and accessibility of IEM techniques, tools and standards; (3) establish a minimum set of standards; (4) build the IEM skills base; (5) establish an underpinning research and development (R&D) programme; (6) co-ordinate and promote collaboration; and (7) foster IEM use by government, industry and the public. Once these goals have been achieved, then IEM can be deployed to help resolve currently intractable environmental issues, and the IEM methodology can be transferred to other fields.
Vertebrate palaeontology in Central America: a narrative and analytical history
Authors: Lucas Spencer G. , Alvarado Guillermo E.
Published: May 2016

Central American vertebrate fossils are primarily of late Cenozoic age and represent all of the major taxonomic groups of vertebrates. The vertebrate fossils of Central America play an important part in understanding the great American biotic interchange after the closure of the Panamanian isthmus. We divide the narrative history of vertebrate palaeontology in Central America into three periods: earliest discoveries (1858–1936); a developing record (1937–80); and a vertebrate palaeontological renaissance (1980–present). An analytical history, applying the ‘model’ proposed by Basalla of how science diffuses into any non-European nation, indicates a poor fit of Central American vertebrate palaeontology to this ‘model’. Central American vertebrate palaeontology mostly remains in the first phase of Basalla's ‘model’, primarily providing vertebrate fossils for study by palaeontologists in the USA; phase 2 (colonial science) was essentially skipped and phase 3 (establishment of an independent scientific programme) is in an early stage. The development of vertebrate palaeontology in Central America better fits the idea that all three phases of Basalla's ‘model’ are ongoing and intermingled. Vertebrate palaeontology is a science of little economic significance and this largely explains its slow development in Central America, where political instabilities and economic disadvantages have long affected the development of science.
The Radical-Pair Mechanism of Magnetoreception
Authors: Hore P. J. , Mouritsen Henrik
Published: May 2016

Although it has been known for almost half a century that migratory birds can detect the direction of the Earth's magnetic field, the primary sensory mechanism behind this remarkable feat is still unclear. The leading hypothesis centers on radical pairs—magnetically sensitive chemical intermediates formed by photoexcitation of cryptochrome proteins in the retina. Our primary aim here is to explain the chemical and physical aspects of the radical-pair mechanism to biologists and the biological and chemical aspects to physicists. In doing so, we review the current state of knowledge on magnetoreception mechanisms. We dare to hope that this tutorial will stimulate new interdisciplinary experimental and theoretical work that will shed much-needed additional light on this fascinating problem in sensory biology.
The Evolution of Brachiopoda
Authors: Carlson Sandra J.
Published: May 2016

Brachiopods are (perhaps all too) familiar to any geology student who has taken an invertebrate paleontology course; they may well be less familiar to biology students. Even though brachiopods are among the most significant components of the marine fossil record by virtue of their considerable diversity, abundance, and long evolutionary history, fewer than 500 species are extant. Reconciling the geological and biological perspectives is necessary in order to test hypotheses, not only about phylogenetic relationships among brachiopods but also about their spectacular decline in diversity in the end-Permian mass extinction, which permanently reset their evolutionary trajectory. Studying brachiopod ontogeny and development, population genetics, ecology, physiology, and biogeography, as well as molecular systematics and phylogenomics, enables us to better understand the context of evolutionary processes over the short term. Investigating brachiopod morphological, taxonomic, and stratigraphic records over the Phanerozoic Eon reveals historical patterns of long-term macroevolutionary change, patterns that are simply unknowable from a biological perspective alone.
Fundamental Properties of One-Dimensional Zinc Oxide Nanomaterials and Implementations in Various Detection Modes of Enhanced Biosensing
Authors: Hahm Jong-in
Published: May 2016

Recent bioapplications of one-dimensional (1D) zinc oxide (ZnO) nanomaterials, despite the short development period, have shown promising signs as new sensors and assay platforms offering exquisite biomolecular sensitivity and selectivity. The incorporation of 1D ZnO nanomaterials has proven beneficial to various modes of biodetection owing to their inherent properties. The more widely explored electrochemical and electrical approaches tend to capitalize on the reduced physical dimensionality, yielding a high surface-to-volume ratio, as well as on the electrical properties of ZnO. The newer development of the use of 1D ZnO nanomaterials in fluorescence-based biodetection exploits the innate optical property of their high anisotropy. This review considers stimulating research advances made to identify and understand fundamental properties of 1D ZnO nanomaterials, and examines various biosensing modes utilizing them, while focusing on the unique optical properties of individual and ensembles of 1D ZnO nanomaterials specifically pertaining to their bio-optical applications in simple and complex fluorescence assays.
Measuring the Hydrodynamic Size of Nanoparticles Using Fluctuation Correlation Spectroscopy
Authors: Dominguez-Medina Sergio , Chen Sishan , Blankenburg Jan , Swanglap Pattanawit , Landes Christy F. , Link Stephan
Published: May 2016

Fluctuation correlation spectroscopy (FCS) is a well-established analytical technique traditionally used to monitor molecular diffusion in dilute solutions, the dynamics of chemical reactions, and molecular processes inside living cells. In this review, we present the recent use of FCS for measuring the size of colloidal nanoparticles in solution. We review the theoretical basis and experimental implementation of this technique and its advantages and limitations. In particular, we show examples of the use of FCS to measure the size of gold nanoparticles, monitor the rotational dynamics of gold nanorods, and investigate the formation of protein coronas on nanoparticles.
From Sole Investigator to Team Scientist: Trends in the Practice and Study of Research Collaboration
Authors: Leahey Erin
Published: May 2016

This article reviews trends in the practice and study of research collaboration, focusing on journal publications in academic science. I briefly describe the different styles and types of collaboration and then focus on the drivers of the trend toward increased collaboration and on its consequences for both individual researchers and science more generally. Scholarship on collaboration seems partial to delineating its benefits; this review highlights the increasing body of research that focuses instead on the possible costs of collaboration. The synthesis reveals several topics that are ripe for investigation, including the impact of collaboration on the contributing authors and their work, the use of multiple methods and measures, and research integrity. I applaud a few recent efforts to overcome the perennial file-drawer problem by gaining access to collaborations that do not result in publication and thus are typically removed from public review and the research analyst's eye.
Association, Service, Market: Higher Education in American Political Development
Authors: Stevens Mitchell L. , Gebre-Medhin Ben
Published: May 2016

US higher education has enjoyed growing attention from social scientists and historians. We integrate recent scholarship by framing a political and historical sociology of the sector. We show how higher education has been central to projects of nation building and social provision throughout the course of American political development. US higher education has three institutional configurations: an associational one, defined by voluntary intermural organizations; a national service one, defined by massive government patronage; and a market one, defined by competition for students, patrons, and prestige. Continuity and change over time may be understood with the theoretical tools of historical sociology: path dependence, coalescence, and robust action. Our review substantiates assertions of deep turbulence in US higher education at present and calls for a closer integration of scholarship on state building and social stratification to inform the future. [ Erratum ]
Sodium nitrate co-ingestion with protein does not augment postprandial muscle protein synthesis rates in older, type 2 diabetes patients
Authors: Kouw Imre W. K. , Cermak Naomi M. , Burd Nicholas A. , Churchward-Venne Tyler A. , Senden Joan M. , Gijsen Annemarie P. , van Loon Luc J. C.
Published: May 2016

The age-related anabolic resistance to protein ingestion is suggested to be associated with impairments in insulin-mediated capillary recruitment and postprandial muscle tissue perfusion. The present study investigated whether dietary nitrate co-ingestion with protein improves muscle protein synthesis in older, type 2 diabetes patients. Twenty-four men with type 2 diabetes (72 ± 1 yr, 26.7 ± 1.4 m/kg2 body mass index, 7.3 ± 0.4% HbA1C) received a primed continuous infusion of l-[ring-2H5]phenylalanine and l-[1-13C]leucine and ingested 20 g of intrinsically l-[1-13C]phenylalanine- and l-[1-13C]leucine-labeled protein with (PRONO3) or without (PRO) sodium nitrate (0.15 mmol/kg). Blood and muscle samples were collected to assess protein digestion and absorption kinetics and postprandial muscle protein synthesis rates. Upon protein ingestion, exogenous phenylalanine appearance rates increased in both groups ( P < 0.001), resulting in 55 ± 2% and 53 ± 2% of dietary protein-derived amino acids becoming available in the circulation over the 5h postprandial period in the PRO and PRONO3 groups, respectively. Postprandial myofibrillar protein synthesis rates based on l-[ring-2H5]phenylalanine did not differ between groups (0.025 ± 0.004 and 0.021 ± 0.007%/h over 0–2 h and 0.032 ± 0.004 and 0.030 ± 0.003%/h over 2–5 h in PRO and PRONO3, respectively, P = 0.7). No differences in incorporation of dietary protein-derived l-[1-13C]phenylalanine into de novo myofibrillar protein were observed at 5 h (0.016 ± 0.002 and 0.014 ± 0.002 mole percent excess in PRO and PRONO3, respectively, P = 0.8). Dietary nitrate co-ingestion with protein does not modulate protein digestion and absorption kinetics, nor does it further increase postprandial muscle protein synthesis rates or the incorporation of dietary protein-derived amino acids into de novo myofibrillar protein in older, type 2 diabetes patients.
Age-related impairments in skeletal muscle PDH phosphorylation and plasma lactate are indicative of metabolic inflexibility and the effects of exercise training
Authors: Consitt Leslie A. , Saxena Gunjan , Saneda Alicson , Houmard Joseph A.
Published: May 2016

The purpose of this study was to determine whether plasma lactate and skeletal muscle glucose regulatory pathways, specifically PDH dephosphorylation, are impaired during hyperinsulinemic conditions in middle- to older-aged individuals and determine whether exercise training could improve key variables responsible for skeletal muscle PDH regulation. Eighteen young (19–29 yr; n = 9 males and 9 females) and 20 middle- to older-aged (57–82 yr; n = 10 males and 10 females) individuals underwent a 2-h euglycemic hyperinsulinemic clamp. Plasma samples were obtained at baseline and at 30, 50, 90, and 120 min for analysis of lactate, and skeletal muscle biopsies were performed at 60 min for analysis of protein associated with glucose metabolism. In response to insulin, plasma lactate was elevated in aged individuals when normalized to insulin action. Insulin-stimulated phosphorylation of skeletal muscle PDH on serine sites 232, 293, and 300 decreased in young individuals only. Changes in insulin-stimulated PDH phosphorylation were positively related to changes in plasma lactate. No age-related differences were observed in skeletal muscle phosphorylation of LDH, GSK-3α, or GSK-3β in response to insulin or PDP1, PDP2, PDK2, PDK4, or MPC1 total protein. Twelve weeks of endurance- or strength-oriented exercise training improved insulin-stimulated PDH dephosphorylation, which was related to a reduced lactate response. These findings suggest that impairments in insulin-induced PDH regulation in a sedentary aging population contribute to impaired glucose metabolism and that exercise training is an effective intervention for treating metabolic inflexibility.
Radiographic Follow-Up during Orthodontic Treatment for Early Diagnosis of Sequential Supernumerary Teeth
Authors: Suga Selma Sano , Kruly Paula de Castro , Garrido Talissa Mayer , Matumoto Marise Sano Suga , Suga Uhana Seifert Guimarães , Terada Raquel Sano Suga
Published: May 2016

Most supernumerary teeth are impacted and asymptomatic.Objective.The aim of this paper is to describe two cases of sequential development of supernumerary teeth in the mandibular premolar region, identified during orthodontic treatment.Reports.The first case describes the radiographic follow-up of a female patient that presented a supernumerary tooth at the age of 9 years and 10 months in the right mandibular premolar region, followed by a further supernumerary tooth in the left mandibular premolar region identified at the age of 11 years and 3 months. In the second case, the radiographic follow-up of a male patient demonstrated 3 supernumerary teeth in the premolar region at the age of 16 years. During orthognathic surgery planning at the age of 20 years and 5 months, a supplemental supernumerary tooth was found in the left mandibular region.Conclusion.Considering the late developing of supernumerary premolars, appropriate follow-up with panoramic radiographs of patients with previous experience of supernumerary teeth is essential for early diagnosis of supplemental premolars to prevent possible complications.