bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Atypical mitochondrial inheritance patterns in eukaryotes
Authors: Breton Sophie , Stewart Donald T.
Published: September 2015

Mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) is predominantly maternally inherited in eukaryotes. Diverse molecular mechanisms underlying the phenomenon of strict maternal inheritance (SMI) of mtDNA have been described, but the evolutionary forces responsible for its predominance in eukaryotes remain to be elucidated. Exceptions to SMI have been reported in diverse eukaryotic taxa, leading to the prediction that several distinct molecular mechanisms controlling mtDNA transmission are present among the eukaryotes. We propose that these mechanisms will be better understood by studying the deviations from the predominating pattern of SMI. This minireview summarizes studies on eukaryote species with unusual or rare mitochondrial inheritance patterns, i.e., other than the predominant SMI pattern, such as maternal inheritance of stable heteroplasmy, paternal leakage of mtDNA, biparental and strictly paternal inheritance, and doubly uniparental inheritance of mtDNA. The potential genes and mechanisms involved in controlling mitochondrial inheritance in these organisms are discussed. The linkage between mitochondrial inheritance and sex determination is also discussed, given that the atypical systems of mtDNA inheritance examined in this minireview are frequently found in organisms with uncommon sexual systems such as gynodioecy, monoecy, or andromonoecy. The potential of deviations from SMI for facilitating a better understanding of a number of fundamental questions in biology, such as the evolution of mtDNA inheritance, the coevolution of nuclear and mitochondrial genomes, and, perhaps, the role of mitochondria in sex determination, is considerable.
Liquid noble gases for dark matter searches: An updated survey
Authors: Bernabei R. , Belli P. , Incicchitti A. , Cappella F. , Cerulli R.
Published: September 2015

An updated technical and methodological comparison of liquid noble gas experiments is presented with particular attention to the low energy physics application of double-phase noble gas detectors in direct Dark Matter investigations.
Multi-fractal analysis for vehicle distribution based on cellular automation model
Authors: Zhang Yong , Li Shi-Gao
Published: September 2015

It is well known that traffic flow presents multi-fractal characteristics at time scales. The aim of this study is to test its multi-fractality at spacial scales. The vehicular cellular automation (CA) model is chosen as a tool to get vehicle positions on a single lane road. First, multi-fractal of vehicle distribution is checked, and multi-fractal spectrums are plotted. Second, analysis results show that the width of a multi-fractal spectrum expresses the ratio of the maximum to minimum densities, and the height difference between the left and right vertexes represents the relative size between the numbers of sections with the maximum and minimum densities. Finally, the effects of the random deceleration probability and the average density on homogeneity of vehicle distribution are analyzed. The results show that random deceleration increases the ratio of the maximum to minimum densities, and deceases the relative size between the numbers of sections with the maximum and minimum densities, when the global density is limited to a specific range. Therefore, the multi-fractal spectrum can be used to quantify the homogeneity of spacial distribution of traffic flow.
Homotopical Khovanov homology
Authors: Manturov Vassily Olegovich , Nikonov Igor Mikhailovich
Published: September 2015

We modify the definition of the Khovanov complex for oriented links in a thickening of an oriented surface to obtain a triply graded homological link invariant with a new homotopical grading.
Healthy older humans exhibit augmented carotid-cardiac baroreflex sensitivity with aspirin during muscle mechanoreflex and metaboreflex activation
Authors: Drew Rachel C. , Blaha Cheryl A. , Herr Michael D. , Stocker Sean D. , Sinoway Lawrence I.
Published: September 2015

Low-dose aspirin inhibits thromboxane production and augments the sensitivity of carotid baroreflex (CBR) control of heart rate (HR) during concurrent muscle mechanoreflex and metaboreflex activation in healthy young humans. However, it is unknown how aging affects this response. Therefore, the effect of low-dose aspirin on carotid-cardiac baroreflex sensitivity during muscle mechanoreflex with and without metaboreflex activation in healthy older humans was examined. Twelve older subjects (6 men and 6 women, mean age: 62 ± 1 yr) performed two trials during two visits preceded by 7 days of low-dose aspirin (81 mg) or placebo. One trial involved 3 min of passive calf stretch (mechanoreflex) during 7.5 min of limb circulatory occlusion (CO). In another trial, CO was preceded by 1.5 min of 70% maximal voluntary contraction isometric calf exercise (mechanoreflex and metaboreflex). HR (ECG) and mean arterial blood pressure (MAP; Finometer) were recorded. CBR function was assessed using rapid neck pressure application (+40 to −80 mmHg). Aspirin significantly decreased baseline thromboxane B2 production by 83 ± 4% ( P < 0.05) but did not affect 6-keto-PGF1α. After aspirin, CBR-HR maximal gain and operating point gain were significantly higher during stretch with metabolite accumulation compared with placebo (maximal gain: −0.23 ± 0.03 vs. −0.14 ± 0.02 and operating point gain: −0.11 ± 0.03 vs. −0.04 ± 0.01 beats·min−1·mmHg−1 for aspirin and placebo, respectively, P < 0.05). In conclusion, these findings suggest that low-dose aspirin augments CBR-HR sensitivity during concurrent muscle mechanoreflex and metaboreflex activation in healthy older humans. This increased sensitivity appears linked to reduced thromboxane sensitization of muscle mechanoreceptors, which consequently improves CBR-HR control.
Design of Automatic Extraction Algorithm of Knowledge Points for MOOCs
Authors: Chen Haijian , Han Dongmei , Dai Yonghui , Zhao Lina
Published: September 2015

In recent years, Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) are very popular among college students and have a powerful impact on academic institutions. In the MOOCs environment, knowledge discovery and knowledge sharing are very important, which currently are often achieved by ontology techniques. In building ontology, automatic extraction technology is crucial. Because the general methods of text mining algorithm do not have obvious effect on online course, we designed automatic extracting course knowledge points (AECKP) algorithm for online course. It includes document classification, Chinese word segmentation, and POS tagging for each document. Vector Space Model (VSM) is used to calculate similarity and design the weight to optimize the TF-IDF algorithm output values, and the higher scores will be selected as knowledge points. Course documents of “C programming language” are selected for the experiment in this study. The results show that the proposed approach can achieve satisfactory accuracy rate and recall rate.
Nanostructured Polypyrrole Powder: A Structural and Morphological Characterization
Authors: Sanches Edgar A. , Alves Scarlat F. , Soares Juliana C. , da Silva Arnaldo M. , da Silva Cristina G. , de Souza Sérgio M. , da Frota Hidembergue O.
Published: September 2015

Polypyrrole (PPY) powder was chemically synthesized using ferric chloride (FeCl3) and characterized by X‐ray diffraction (XRD), Le Bail Method, Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR), and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). XRD pattern showed a broad scattering of a semicrystalline structure composed of main broad peaks centered at 2θ = 11.4°, 22.1°, and 43.3°. Crystallinity percentage was estimated by the ratio between the sums of the peak areas to the area of amorphous broad halo due to the amorphous phase and showed that PPY has around 20 (1)%. FTIR analysis allowed assigning characteristic absorption bands in the structure of PPY. SEM showed micrometric particles of varying sizes with morphologies similar to cauliflower. Crystal data (monoclinic, space group P 21/c, a = 7.1499 (2) Å, b = 13.9470 (2) Å, c = 17.3316 (2) Å, α = 90 Å, β = 61.5640 (2) Å and γ = 90 Å) were obtained using the FullProf package program under the conditions of the method proposed by Le Bail. Molecular relaxation was performed using the density functional theory (DFT) and suggests that tetramer polymer chains are arranged along the “c” direction. Average crystallite size was found in the range of 20 (1) Å. A value of 9.33 × 10−9 S/cm was found for PPY conductivity.
Long Noncoding RNAs as New Architects in Cancer Epigenetics, Prognostic Biomarkers, and Potential Therapeutic Targets
Authors: Meseure Didier , Drak Alsibai Kinan , Nicolas Andre , Bieche Ivan , Morillon Antonin
Published: September 2015

Recent advances in genome-wide analysis have revealed that 66% of the genome is actively transcribed into noncoding RNAs (ncRNAs) while less than 2% of the sequences encode proteins. Among ncRNAs, high-resolution microarray and massively parallel sequencing technologies have identified long ncRNAs (>200 nucleotides) that lack coding protein function. LncRNAs abundance, nuclear location, and diversity allow them to create in association with protein interactome, a complex regulatory network orchestrating cellular phenotypic plasticity via modulation of all levels of protein-coding gene expression. Whereas lncRNAs biological functions and mechanisms of action are still not fully understood, accumulating data suggest that lncRNAs deregulation is pivotal in cancer initiation and progression and metastatic spread through various mechanisms, including epigenetic effectors, alternative splicing, and microRNA-like molecules. Mounting data suggest that several lncRNAs expression profiles in malignant tumors are associated with prognosis and they can be detected in biological fluids. In this review, we will briefly discuss characteristics and functions of lncRNAs, their role in carcinogenesis, and their potential usefulness as diagnosis and prognosis biomarkers and novel therapeutic targets.
Exploiting Language Models to Classify Events from Twitter
Authors: Vo Duc-Thuan , Hai Vo Thuan , Ock Cheol-Young
Published: September 2015

Classifying events is challenging in Twitter because tweets texts have a large amount of temporal data with a lot of noise and various kinds of topics. In this paper, we propose a method to classify events from Twitter. We firstly find the distinguishing terms between tweets in events and measure their similarities with learning language models such as ConceptNet and a latent Dirichlet allocation method for selectional preferences (LDA-SP), which have been widely studied based on large text corpora within computational linguistic relations. The relationship of term words in tweets will be discovered by checking them under each model. We then proposed a method to compute the similarity between tweets based on tweets’ features including common term words and relationships among their distinguishing term words. It will be explicit and convenient for applying to k-nearest neighbor techniques for classification. We carefully applied experiments on the Edinburgh Twitter Corpus to show that our method achieves competitive results for classifying events.
Highly Sensitive Electrochemical Sensor for the Determination of 8-Hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine Incorporating SWCNTs-Nafion Composite Film
Authors: Yang Lingfei , Wang Bing , Qi Honglan , Gao Qiang , Li Chen-zhong , Zhang Chengxiao
Published: September 2015

8-Hydroxy-2′-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG) is a typical biomarker of oxidative DNA damage and has attracted much attention in recent years since the level of 8-OHdG in body fluids is typically associated with various diseases. In this work, a simple and highly sensitive electrochemical sensor for the determination of 8-OHdG was fabricated incorporating single wall carbon nanotubes- (SWCNTs-) Nafion composite film coated on glassy carbon electrode. Nafion was chosen as an optimal adhesive agent from a series of adhesive agents and acted as a binder, enrichment, and exclusion film. Due to the strong cation-exchange ability of Nafion and the outstanding electronic properties of SWCNTs, the prepared SWCNTs-Nafion film can strongly enhance the electrochemical response to oxidation of 8-OHdG and efficiently alleviate the interferences from uric acid and ascorbic acid. The oxidation peak currents are linear with the concentration of 8-OHdG in the range of 0.03 to 1.25 μM with a detection limit of 8.0 nM (S/N = 3). This work demonstrates that SWCNTs-Nafion film can improve the sensitivity, selectivity, reproducibility, and stability, making it an ideal candidate for electrochemical detection of 8-OHdG.
Transponder Designs for Harmonic Radar Applications
Authors: Rasilainen Kimmo , Viikari Ville V.
Published: September 2015

This work presents a review on the concept of harmonic or secondary radar, where a tag or transponder is used to respond at a harmonic multiple of the incoming interrogation signal. In harmonic radar, the tag is called a harmonic transponder and the necessary frequency multiplication is implemented using a nonlinear element, such as a Schottky diode. Different applications and operating frequencies of harmonic transponders are presented, along with various tag design aspects. The designer may have to deal with certain tradeoffs during the design with respect to a number of transponder properties, and the role of these tradeoffs is also considered. Additionally, techniques usable for characterization of harmonic transponders are discussed.
Reliability Analysis of Damaged Beam Spectral Element with Parameter Uncertainties
Authors: Machado M. R. , Dos Santos J. M. C.
Published: September 2015

The paper examines the influence of uncertainty parameters on the wave propagation responses at high frequencies for a damaged beam structure in the structural reliability context. The reliability analyses were performed using the perturbation method, First-Order Reliability Method (FORM), and response surface method (RSM) which were compared with Monte Carlo simulation (MCS) under the spectral element method environment. The simulated results were performed to investigate the effects of material property and geometric uncertainties on the response at high frequency modes, such as the computational efficiency of reliability methods. For the first time, the spectral element method is used in the context of reliability analysis at medium and high frequency bands applied to damage detection. It has shown the effects of parameters uncertainty on the dynamic beam response due on an impulsive load and the robustness of each method. Numerical examples in a bending vibrating beam with random parameters are performed to verify the computational efficiency of the present study.
Effect of Dead Load on Dynamic Characteristics of Rotating Timoshenko Beams
Authors: Yin Yan-Qi , Zhang Bo , Li Yue-ming , Lu Wei-Zhen
Published: September 2015

The dynamic characteristics of a rotating cantilever Timoshenko beam under dead load are investigated in this paper. Considering the predeformation caused by dead load and centrifugal force, governing equation of rotating cantilever Timoshenko beam is derived based on Hamilton’s principle, and the influence of the load on natural vibration is revealed. A suit of modal experimental apparatus for cantilever beam is designed and used to test the natural frequencies under the dead load, and the natural frequencies under rotation condition are calculated with a commercial finite element code. Both the experimental result and numerical result are utilized to compare with the present theoretical result, and the results obtained by present modeling method show a good agreement with those obtained from the experiment and finite element method. It is found that the natural frequencies of cantilever beam increase with both the dead load and the rotating speed.
Collagen and Elastic Fiber Content Correlation Analysis between Horizontal and Vertical Orientations of Skin Samples of Human Body
Authors: Kumar Naveen , Kumar Pramod , Nayak Badagabettu Satheesha , Kudva Ranjini , Surendran Sudarshan , Adiga Murali
Published: September 2015

Background. Unequal distribution of dermal collagen and elastic fibers in different orientations of skin is reported to be one of the multifocal causes of scar related complications. Present study is to understand the correlation pattern between collagen in horizontal (CH) and in vertical (CV) directions as well as that of elastic in horizontal (EH) and vertical (EV) directions.Materials and Method. A total of 320 skin samples were collected in two orientations from suprascapular, anterior chest, lateral chest, anterior abdominal wall, and inguinal regions of 32 human cadavers. Spearman correlation coefficient (r) was calculated between the variables (CH,CV,EH, andEV).Results. Significant positive correlation betweenCHandCV, and betweenEHandEVobserved in all 5 areas tested. A negative correlation betweenCVandEVat suprascapular, lateral chest, and inguinal regions and negative correlation betweenCHandEHat anterior chest and anterior abdominal wall have been identified.Conclusion. Knowledge of asymmetric content of dermal collagen and elastic fibers together with the varied strength and degree of association in the given area provides guidelines to the dermatologists and aesthetic surgeons in placing elective incisions in the direction maximally utilizing the anatomical facts for aesthetically pleasing result.
Protective Effect of Triptolide against Glomerular Mesangial Cell Proliferation and Glomerular Fibrosis in Rats Involves the TGF-β1/Smad Signaling Pathway
Authors: Cao Yingjie , Huang Xinzhong , Fan Yaping , Chen Xiaolan
Published: September 2015

Triptolide as a main active ingredient ofTripterygium wilfordiiis known to be exerting anti-inflammatory, marked immunosuppressive, and podocyte-protective effects. In this study, we investigated the protective effect of triptolide in kidney disease. Rat glomerular mesangial cells were randomly divided into three groups: (1) control group, (2) TGF-β1 (10 μg/mL) group, and (3) triptolide group (triptolide 10 μg/L + TGF-β1 10 μg/L). Sixty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into three groups: (1) control group, (2) chronic serum sickness glomerulonephritis model group, and (3) triptolide (0.2 mg/kg·d) group. Reverse transcription PCR was used to assess Ski and Smad3 mRNA expression in the mesangial cells and renal tissues. Western blotting was used to determine Ski and Smad3 protein expressions. Laser confocal fluorescence microscopy was used to observe the subcellular localization of Smad3 and Ski proteins in the mesangial cells. Triptolide inhibited the TGF-β1-induced proliferation of mesangial cells. It significantly upregulated Ski protein expression and downregulated Smad3 mRNA and protein expressions in a time-dependent manner. Laser confocal fluorescence microscopy detected high Smad3 fluorescence intensity in the cytoplasm and low Smad3 and high Ski fluorescence intensity in the nucleus. By upregulating Ski protein expression triptolide decreased the extent of fibrosis by affecting the TGF-β1/Smad3 signaling pathway.
Multifeature Extreme Ordinal Ranking Machine for Facial Age Estimation
Authors: Zhao Wei , Wang Han , Huang Guang-Bin
Published: September 2015

Recently the state-of-the-art facial age estimation methods are almost originated from solving complicated mathematical optimization problems and thus consume huge quantities of time in the training process. To refrain from such algorithm complexity while maintaining a high estimation accuracy, we propose a multifeature extreme ordinal ranking machine (MFEORM) for facial age estimation. Experimental results clearly demonstrate that the proposed approach can sharply reduce the runtime (even up to nearly one hundred times faster) while achieving comparable or better estimation performances than the state-of-the-art approaches. The inner properties of MFEORM are further explored with more advantages.
Bilateral Vestibular Hypofunction: Challenges in Establishing the Diagnosis in Adults
Authors: van de Berg Raymond , van Tilburg Mark , Kingma Herman
Published: September 2015

Bilateral vestibular hypofunction (BVH) probably represents a heterogeneous disorder with different types of clinical pictures, with and without vertigo. In spite of increasingly sophisticated electrophysiological testing, still many challenges are met when establishing a diagnosis of BVH. Here, we review the main challenges, which are a reflection of its often difficult clinical presentation and the lack of diagnostic standards regarding the implementation and interpretation of vestibular tests. These challenges show that there is an urgent need for standardization. The resulting decisions should be used for the development of uniform diagnostic criteria for BVH, which are, at present, not yet available.
Vestibular Implants: 8 Years of Experience with Electrical Stimulation of the Vestibular Nerve in 11 Patients with Bilateral Vestibular Loss
Authors: Guinand Nils , van de Berg Raymond , Cavuscens Samuel , Stokroos Robert J. , Ranieri Maurizio , Pelizzone Marco , Kingma Herman , Guyot Jean-Philippe , Perez-Fornos Angelica
Published: September 2015

Background: The concept of the vestibular implant is primarily to artificially restore the vestibular function in patients with a bilateral vestibular loss (BVL) by providing the central nervous system with motion information using electrical stimulation of the vestibular nerve. Our group initiated human trials about 10 years ago. Methods: Between 2007 and 2013, 11 patients with a BVL received a vestibular implant prototype providing electrodes to stimulate the ampullary branches of the vestibular nerve. Eye movements were recorded and analyzed to assess the effects of the electrical stimulation. Perception induced by electrical stimulation was documented. Results: Smooth, controlled eye movements were obtained in all patients showing that electrical stimulation successfully activated the vestibulo-ocular pathway. However, both the electrical dynamic range and the amplitude of the eye movements were variable from patient to patient. The axis of the response was consistent with the stimulated nerve branch in 17 out of the 24 tested electrodes. Furthermore, in at least 1 case, the elicited eye movements showed characteristics similar to those of compensatory eye movements observed during natural activities such as walking. Finally, diverse percepts were reported upon electrical stimulation (i.e., rotatory sensations, sound, tickling or pressure) with intensity increasing as the stimulation current increased. Conclusions: These results demonstrate that electrical stimulation is a safe and effective means to activate the vestibular system, even in a heterogeneous patient population with very different etiologies and disease durations. Successful tuning of this information could turn this vestibular implant prototype into a successful artificial balance organ.
INTEGRAÇÃO TERRITORIAL NA AMÉRICA DO SUL: UMA ANÁLISE DOS PROJETOS DE INFRAESTRUTURA DOS PORTFÓLIOS DA IIRSA/COSIPLAN
Authors: Souza Vitor Hélio Pereira de , Silveira Márcio Rogério
Published: September 2015

No ano 2000, foi lançada a Iniciativa para a Integração da Infraestrutura Regional Sul-americana (IIRSA), incorporada no ano de 2008 ao Conselho Sul-americano de Infraestrutura e Planejamento (COSIPLAN), iniciativas que retomaram o ideário integracionista latino-americano pelo prisma territorial. Desta maneira, este artigo objetivou compreender como ocorreu a distribuição espacial, setorial e subsetorial das obras e investimentos em infraestrutura de integração entre os países da América do Sul, por meio de uma análise exploratória dos Portfólios Gerais da IIRSA e do COSIPLAN, para o período do ano de 2000 a 2011
Fios emaranhados: (des)enlaces biográficos no documentário Elena
Authors: Moraes Emanuella Leite Rodrigues de , Oliveira Marinyze Prates de
Published: September 2015

Este trabalho analisa questões pertinentes ao processo criador no filme documentário Elena (Petra Costa, 2012), cuja narrativa é tecida por meio de histórias que conectam o mundo das irmãs Elena e Petra. A reconstrução imagético-discursiva do caminho trilhado pela irmã mais velha, por parte da diretora, autora, narradora e protagonista Petra, traça uma espécie de cartografia dos espaços, objetos, memórias, afetos e desejos vivenciados por ambas.
De dia Deng Xiaoping, de noite Deng Lijun: música e memória em Plataforma
Authors: Mello Cecília
Published: September 2015

Este artigo é dedicado à relação intermidiática entre o cinema e a música pop em mandarim no filme Plataforma (Zhantai, 2000) do cineasta chinês Jia Zhang-ke. Um dos principais diretores do cinema mundial contemporâneo, Jia é considerado o maior expoente da Sexta Geração do cinema chinês, também conhecida como a “geração urbana” por seu enfoque na vida e na paisagem das cidades em constante mutação da China atual. As diversas canções que pontuam o filme, que traça um panorama das transformações ocorridas no país durante a década de 1980 a partir da história de uma trupe de artistas itinerantes, são por um lado fragmentos da memória individual e autoral de Jia, transformados em peças importantes no seu empenho de reconstrução de uma memória coletiva através do cinema. Por outro lado, e para além de seu valor memorial, o impacto dessas canções nos anos 1980 e 1990 na China continental está relacionado, em grande medida, ao seu caráter de novidade, tanto por virem do exterior (principalmente de Hong Kong e Taiwan) quanto por empregarem a enunciação na primeira pessoa do singular, algo ausente nas canções revolucionárias chinesas ubíquas até então. Assim, a hipótese a ser explorada é de que a inclusão de canções pop em Plataforma se manifesta como uma marca autoral complexa relacionada à emergência e valorização do indivíduo no panorama das recentes mudanças econômicas e sociais da China continental. 
AS NOVAS MODALIDADES DE CONTRATAÇÃO PELA ADMINISTRAÇÃO PÚBLICA: O CASO DA LOCAÇÃO DE ATIVOS
Authors: Spörl João Paulo Imparato , Nogueira Luíza Souto
Published: September 2015

O presente artigo visa analisar o contrato de locação de ativos, como se dá a sua celebração pela Administração Pública e quais as vantagens para ela advindas dessa espécie negocial, o que será feito por meio do estudo de suas peculiaridades e enquadramento legal. A partir da análise do contrato de leasing, celebrado no âmbito do direito privado, é possível perceber que o contrato de locação de ativos, apesar da nomenclatura, se caracteriza como uma avença atípica celebrada pelo Poder Público que em muito se aproxima da operação de arrendamento mercantil firmada entre particulares.
Typification of names in the group Coerulans of the genus Sesleria (Poaceae)
Authors: Kuzmanovic Nevena , Barina Zoltan , Šida Otakar , Lakušić Dmitar
Published: September 2015

In this paper we typify and discuss twelve names belonging to group Coerulans in the genus Sesleria (Poaceae). The holotype is established for S. tenerrima, and lectotypes are designated for the names S. bielzii, S. coerulans, S. coerulans var. borsae, S. comosa, S. klasterskyi, S. korabensis var. mrkvickana, S. krajinae, S. orbelica and S. orbelica var. pirinensis. Neotypes are selected for the names S. comosa var. weberii and S. haynaldiana. Images are provided for nine specimens selected here as types that are not available online. Previously published typifications for other names in the Coerulans group are summarized.
Two new species of the genus Prosopistoma (Ephemeroptera: Prosopistomatidae) from Iraq and Algeria
Authors: BOJKOVÁ JINDŘIŠKA , SOLDÁN TOMÁŠ
Published: September 2015

In addition to the three so far known species of Prosopistoma Latreille, 1833 from West Palaearctic region, P. pennigerum (Müller, 1785), P. oronti Alouf, 1977 and P. orhanelicum Dalkıran, 2009, two new species are described based on larvae. Prosopistoma helenae sp. n. has been found in Iraq (Tigris River in Mosul) and Prosopistoma alaini sp. n. in Algeria (Oued Isser, Sidi Abdelli). Critical distinguishing characters of all West-Palaearctic species of Prosopistoma are discussed in detail.
Biological and Environmental Controls on Evaporative Fractions at AmeriFlux Sites
Authors: Zhou Chunlüe , Wang Kaicun
Published: September 2015

Knowledge of the evaporative fraction (EF: the ratio of latent heat flux to the sum of sensible and latent heat fluxes) and its controls is particularly important for accurate estimates of water flux, heat exchange, and ecosystem response to climatic changes. In this study, the biological and environmental controls on monthly EF were evaluated across 81 AmeriFlux sites, mainly in North America, for 2000–12. The land-cover types of these sites include forest, shrubland, grassland, and cropland, and the local climates vary from humid to arid. The results show that vegetation coverage, indicated by the normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI), has the best agreement with EF (site-averaged partial correlation coefficient ρ = 0.53; significance level p < 0.05) because of vegetation transpiration demand. The minimum air temperature is closely related to EF (site-averaged ρ = 0.51; p < 0.05) because of the inhibition of respiratory enzyme activity. Relative humidity, an indicator of surface aridity, shows a significant positive correlation with EF (site-averaged ρ = 0.46; p < 0.05). The impacts of wind speed and diurnal air temperature range on EF depend on land-cover types and are strong over grasslands and cropland. From these findings, empirical methods were established to predict monthly EF using meteorological data and NDVI. Correlation coefficients between EF estimates and observations range from 0.80 to 0.93, with root-mean-square errors varying from 0.09 to 0.12. This study demonstrates the varying controls on EF across different landscapes and enhances understanding of EF and its dynamics under changing climates.
Quality of Participation in Youth Organizations: Relationships With Identity and Sense of Sociopolitical Control
Authors: Martínez M. Loreto , Loyola Luis Ignacio , Cumsille Patricio
Published: September 2015

Through a cross-sectional design, this study examines whether practices of active participation (AP; that is, opportunities for decision making and leadership) and quality of relationships (QR) established between members of youth organizations (i.e., affective and instrumental support) relate to dimensions of youth’s identity (i.e., personal purpose, personal meaning) and sense of sociopolitical control (i.e., leadership, political efficacy). Participants ( n = 347; 17-26 years) were drawn from 38 youth organizations in two regions of Chile. Results from multiple regression models controlling for demographics, length of involvement, and aim of the organization yielded significant interactions between QR and practices of AP on both indicators of identity and political efficacy. Only length of involvement in the organization was related to leadership outcomes. Findings highlight the powerful effects of the quality of the relational context of youth programs and organizations to actualize the benefits of AP.
Travel Channel Meets Discovery Channel or How Tourism Can Encourage Better Export Performance and Diversification in Nepal
Authors: Reis Jose Guilherme , Varela Gonzalo
Published: September 2015

Entering and surviving in export markets is a costly process that involves learning about the existence of foreign demand, ‘discovering’ production costs, building up reputation, succeeding in product branding to reduce competitive pressures and to upgrade quality to serve demanding international clients, and remaining competitive in the marketplace. This article argues that tourism alleviates some of these costs by providing an inexpensive platform for cost discovery and by acting as an accessible ‘in-house’ trade fair for domestic producers. It combines product-level data on world and Nepal’s exports with Nepalese data on tourist inflows, and macro-indicators on relative prices. For tourism-related goods, it reveals a positive association between tourist inflows from given destinations with future merchandise exports to those destinations, while no association is found for goods unrelated to tourism. The results suggest spillovers from tourism into merchandise export performance and diversification and gains from cooperation between tourism and export promotion.
Ancient gene duplications have shaped developmental stage-specific expression in Pristionchus pacificus
Authors: Baskaran Praveen , Rödelsperger Christian , Prabh Neel , Serobyan Vahan , Markov Gabriel V. , Hirsekorn Antje , Dieterich Christoph
Published: September 2015

Background

The development of multicellular organisms is accompanied by gene expression changes in differentiating cells. Profiling stage-specific expression during development may reveal important insights into gene sets that contributed to the morphological diversity across the animal kingdom.

Results

We sequenced RNA-seq libraries throughout a developmental timecourse of the nematode Pristionchus pacificus. The transcriptomes reflect early larval stages, adult worms including late larvae, and growth-arrested dauer larvae and allowed the identification of developmentally regulated gene clusters. Our data reveals similar trends as previous transcriptome profiling of dauer worms and represents the first expression data for early larvae in P. pacificus. Gene expression clusters characterizing early larval stages show most significant enrichments of chaperones, while collagens are most significantly enriched in transcriptomes of late larvae and adult worms. By combining expression data with phylogenetic analysis, we found that developmentally regulated genes are found in paralogous clusters that have arisen through lineage-specific duplications after the split from the Caenorhabditis elegans branch.

Conclusions

We propose that gene duplications of developmentally regulated genes represent a plausible evolutionary mechanism to increase the dosage of stage-specific expression. Consequently, this may contribute to the substantial divergence in expression profiles that has been observed across larger evolutionary time scales.
Determination of nonlinear genetic architecture using compressed sensing
Authors: Ho Chiu Man , Hsu Stephen DH
Published: September 2015

Background

One of the fundamental problems of modern genomics is to extract the genetic architecture of a complex trait from a data set of individual genotypes and trait values. Establishing this important connection between genotype and phenotype is complicated by the large number of candidate genes, the potentially large number of causal loci, and the likely presence of some nonlinear interactions between different genes. Compressed Sensing methods obtain solutions to under-constrained systems of linear equations. These methods can be applied to the problem of determining the best model relating genotype to phenotype, and generally deliver better performance than simply regressing the phenotype against each genetic variant, one at a time. We introduce a Compressed Sensing method that can reconstruct nonlinear genetic models (i.e., including epistasis, or gene-gene interactions) from phenotype-genotype (GWAS) data. Our method uses L1-penalized regression applied to nonlinear functions of the sensing matrix.

Results

The computational and data resource requirements for our method are similar to those necessary for reconstruction of linear genetic models (or identification of gene-trait associations), assuming a condition of generalized sparsity, which limits the total number of gene-gene interactions. An example of a sparse nonlinear model is one in which a typical locus interacts with several or even many others, but only a small subset of all possible interactions exist. It seems plausible that most genetic architectures fall in this category. We give theoretical arguments suggesting that the method is nearly optimal in performance, and demonstrate its effectiveness on broad classes of nonlinear genetic models using simulated human genomes and the small amount of currently available real data. A phase transition (i.e., dramatic and qualitative change) in the behavior of the algorithm indicates when sufficient data is available for its successful application.

Conclusion

Our results indicate that predictive models for many complex traits, including a variety of human disease susceptibilities (e.g., with additive heritability h2~0.5), can be extracted from data sets comprised of n  ?~100s individuals, where s is the number of distinct causal variants influencing the trait. For example, given a trait controlled by ~10 k loci, roughly a million individuals would be sufficient for application of the method.
Ultrasound diagnostics in phlebology
Authors: Schimmelpfennig J. , Schimmelpfennig L. , Mendoza E.
Published: September 2015

Since the introduction of the Doppler effect into clinical practice for the diagnosis of vascular and cardiac diseases, the technology has developed considerably. From the pencil probe (CW Doppler) to black and white duplex, PW Doppler, which was incorporated into a B-mode image, to colour duplex ultrasound (CDU) and beyond to more recent developments, such as power duplex and B-mode flow imaging. These terms are frequently confused with each other and medical reports refer to CDU as “venous Doppler” or “ultrasound of the leg veins”. This short outline attempts to clarify each term briefly in words and images.
Are side effects always undesirable?
Authors: Zimbelmann M. , Kahle B. , Cordes J.
Published: September 2015

Introduction: The endovenous thermal ablation of the great saphenous vein due to varicosis changes the blood circulation in the groin. This could affect the venous drainage of the penis, especially the drainage of the corpus spongiosum over the external pudendal vein. There are a few cases in our clinic until now which had an enhanced swelling of the glans penis beside an erection.

Objective: Is the enhancement of penile swelling caused by the targeted thermal ablation of the GSV without affecting the saphenofemoral tributaries in the groin?

Material and Methods: To verify this enhanced swelling of the glans penis and change in the erectile function we want to ask 56 patients with a modified IIEF questionnaire.

The IIEF is a validated questionnaire with a additional question for the swelling of the glans. We check the reliability of the additional question with 16 healthy males.

Possible results: Hypothesis 1 (H+): There is an improvement of the erectile function. Hypothesis 2 (H-): There is a decrease of the erectile function. Hypothesis 3 (H0): There is no change of the erectile function. Schedule: 1.

Preliminary assessment: Sept. 2014: ethical approval, Reliability of the additional question. 2. Main assessment: Oct. 2014 to May 2016. 3. Analysis of the data: May 2016 to Aug. 2016 4. Report of data: August 2016.
Students´ Attitude to Psychological and Pedagogical Training in Medical School
Authors: ����������  , Pleshkunova A. , ���������  , Vasileva E. , �������  , Tagaeva T.
Published: September 2015

The article shows the need for diagnostic of medical students� attitudes to psychological and pedagogical training in order to improve its quality and

to give students a reflexive situation intended for accepting the understanding of the importance of psychological and pedagogical competency in the

structure of professional medical practice. Authors provide the results of research aimed at studying the medical school students� attitude to psychological

and educational training.
Maintain your work–life balance
Authors: Oshikanlu Ruth
Published: September 2015

The population to whom we provide a health visiting service continues to grow and so do their needs; but if you are feeling stressed at work how can you regain balance? If you are not, how can you ensure that you continue to maintain balance?
Nutritional considerations to maximise fertility performance in dairy farms — metabolic disease
Authors: Gammon Dan
Published: September 2015

This is the third article in a series outlining the pertinent nutritional considerations for maximising fertility performance in dairy cows. This article will cover details of: the interactions between the physiological pathways for metabolic and reproductive control/signalling; detrimental impacts on fertility performance of excessive negative energy balance (NEB) and subsequent lipid metabolism; the impact and mechanisms of hypocalcaemia on reproductive performance; and guidelines for monitoring metabolic parameters and intervention levels.

The author would refer readers to the first article in this series ( Gammon, 2015 ) for practical advice on rationing and nutritional recommendations to manage body condition score, ensure provision of adequate macro (energy (fat and starch)) components of diets to avoid excessive NEB, lipid metabolism and to Gammon (2014) for more detail on the prevention of hypocalcaemia.
Optimising the use of MRI in the management of foot lameness in the horse
Authors: Smith Meredith A
Published: September 2015

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is well recognised as a gold standard diagnostic imaging modality used in human and veterinary medicine worldwide. Within the veterinary field, the particular use of MRI varies between species, and in the horse, for many practical reasons, MRI is predominantly used to investigate lameness within the distal limb. This article serves to place the use of MRI in the horse into context for veterinary practitioners unfamiliar with the modality — with particular reference to MRI of the equine foot — as this region is by far the most common source of lameness in horses, and for this reason is the region most commonly imaged in MR systems.
Is it time to shake off the shackles of Ofsted?
Authors: Bannister Nick
Published: September 2015

Headteachers complain about a stifling accountability culture that quells risk-taking and doesn't truly measure what schools do for their pupils. But is there anything schools can do to change things? Nick Bannister takes a look at a growing grass-roots movement
BEBIDA LÁCTEA COM LEITE CAPRINO E SORO CAPRINO É ALTERNATIVA PARA APROVEITAMENTO DA POLPA DE UMBU
Authors: Araújo Nkarthe Guerra , Barbosa Fabrizio Fonseca
Published: September 2015

Esta pesquisa teve por objetivo desenvolver e avaliar a aceitação e intenção de compra de duas formulações de bebidas lácteas fermentadas elaboradas com umbus, soro caprino e leite caprino, visando agregar maior valor econômico às três matérias-primas. Os tratamentos constaram da variação nas concentrações de soro caprino (28,5% e 44%) e leite caprino (44% e 28,5%) respectivamente. A polpa foi previamente analisada e apresentou 15,21 mg/100g de ácido ascórbico. As bebidas lácteas fermentadas apresentaram características microbiológicas dentro do estabelecido pela legislação. Verificou-se que não houve diferença significativa (p > 0,05) para os atributos cor, aroma e consistência de ambas, entretanto, os atributos sabor e aceitação global foram significativamente afetados. A formulação com 28,5% de soro caprino e 44% de leite caprino apresentou as melhores médias a partir de 10 dias, sendo aceita até 25 dias de armazenamento.
Qui A Connu Lolita: Who Killed Lolita? A Review
Authors: Brookes Chris
Published: September 2015

The brilliant and disturbing work Qui a Connu Lolita? (Who Knew Lolita?), or as it is more provocatively titled in the authors' English translation Who Killed Lolita?, starts with a precis: voices tell us there have been three deaths, of a mother and her two children, the bodies found in their Marseilles apartment two months later.
This is a composition for radio, not a collection of easy evidence for a police dossier. Who did kill Lolita? Who is to blame? The program draws its power from suggestion, like footnotes plucked from a subterranean soundtrack. It poses uncomfortable questions and leaves the listener to find answers, if any there be, and to harken to voices whispering from the shadows which hint at psychological depression, at pride, at faith, hope and charity. Church bells function to create beats, and they establish the rhythm of scenes, but tellingly (tollingly?), they also suggest and judge. The pace is deliciously careful, pausing all along to invite the listener in to the program, leaving wide spaces for the imagination. The more people we hear from, the more murky the mystery becomes.
Long after hearing a powerful documentary feature, what is it you most remember about it? The atmospherics, a sound, a striking image, a provocatively posed question that can't be avoided, yet has no simple answer? Many moments in Lolita may transport you into another realm of listening, a heightened sense of wonder at the producers' skills. I'll point your attention to just two gob-smacking scenes which got under my skin, and will stay with me forever. Qui a Connu Lolita/Who Killed Lolita? is a deeply fascinating work. Listen, and you will never forget it.
Little War on the Prairie: an auto-critique
Authors: Biewen John
Published: September 2015

Using RadioDoc Review’s suggested criteria for evaluating a radio documentary, John Biewen delivers an auto-critique of his own program, Little War on the Prairie. It tells the story of the U.S.-Dakota War, a bloody Plains Indian war that broke out in the summer of 1862 in southern Minnesota. That six-week conflict took the lives of hundreds of people, perhaps a thousand, a larger death toll than in the better-known bloodlettings at Little Big Horn or Wounded Knee. Most of the dead were white settlers, though the U.S. government’s reprisals in the aftermath of the war killed up to several thousand Dakota Indians. A grim highlight of that payback was the simultaneous hanging of thirty-eight Dakota warriors, the largest mass execution in U.S. history, on the day after Christmas, 1862, in Mankato, Minnesota. Which happens to be Biewen’s hometown. Yet the story was not well known there – and Biewen seeks to find out why. Little War on the Prairie aired on This American Life (2012), whose host, Ira Glass, was also its primary editor.
Download full article with audio link embedded.
Development and characterization of superparamagnetic coatings
Authors: Kuschnerus I. , Lüdtke-Buzug K.
Published: September 2015

Since 2005, Magnetic Particle Imaging (MPI) is handled as a key technology with great potential in medical applications as an imaging method [1]. The superparamagnetic iron oxide nanoparticles (SPIONs) which are already used as a tracer in MPI, combined with various polymers, are being investigated in order to enhance this potential. A combination of polymers such as polyethylene (PE) and polyurethane (PU) and SPIONs could be used as a coating for medical devices, or added to semi-rigid polyurethane for the production of surgical instruments [2]. This would be of great interest, since the method provides high sensitivity with simultaneous high spatial resolution and three-dimensional imaging in real time. Therefore various superparamagnetic coatings were developed, tested and characterized. Finally SPIONs and various polymers were combined directly and used for MPI-compatible models.