bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Sequential Self-Folding Structures by 3D Printed Digital Shape Memory Polymers
Authors: Mao Yiqi , Yu Kai , Isakov Michael S. , Wu Jiangtao , Dunn Martin L. , Jerry Qi H.
Published: September 2015

Folding is ubiquitous in nature with examples ranging from the formation of cellular components to winged insects. It finds technological applications including packaging of solar cells and space structures, deployable biomedical devices and self-assembling robots and airbags. Here we demonstrate sequential self-folding structures realized by thermal activation of spatially-variable patterns that are 3D printed with digital shape memory polymers, which are digital materials with different shape memory behaviors. The time-dependent behavior of each polymer allows the temporal sequencing of activation when the structure is subjected to a uniform temperature. This is demonstrated via a series of 3D printed structures that respond rapidly to a thermal stimulus and self-fold to specified shapes in controlled shape changing sequences. Measurements of the spatial and temporal nature of self-folding structures are in good agreement with the companion finite element simulations. A simplified reduced-order model is also developed to rapidly and accurately describe the self-folding physics. An important aspect of self-folding is the management of self-collisions, where different portions of the folding structure contact and then block further folding. A metric is developed to predict collisions and is used together with the reduced-order model to design self-folding structures that lock themselves into stable desired configurations.
Peri-implantation lethality in mice carrying megabase-scale deletion on 5qc3.3 is caused by Exoc1 null mutation
Authors: Mizuno Seiya , Takami Kohei , Daitoku Yoko , Tanimoto Yoko , Dinh Tra Thi Huong , Mizuno-Iijima Saori , Hasegawa Yoshikazu , Takahashi Satoru , Sugiyama Fumihiro , Yagami Ken-ichi
Published: September 2015

We found a novel spontaneous mouse mutant with depigmentation in the ventral body, which we called White Spotting (WS) mouse. Genetic investigation revealed deletion of a > 1.2-Mb genomic region containing nine genes (Kit, Kdr, Srd5a3, Tmeme165, Clock, Pdcl2, Nmu, Exoc1 and Cep135). We designated this mutant allele KitWS. Interestingly, homozygous mutants (KitWS/WS) showed a peri-implantation lethal phenotype. Expression analyses of these nine genes in blastocysts suggested that Exoc1 was a prime candidate for this phenotype. We produced Exoc1 knockout mice and the same peri-implantation lethal phenotype was seen in Exoc1−/− embryos. In addition, the polygenic effect without Exoc1 was investigated in genome-edited KitWE mice carrying the Mb-scale deletion induced by the CRISPR/Cas9 system. As KitWE/WE embryos did not exhibit the abnormal phenotype, which was seen in KitWS/WS. We concluded that peri-implantation lethality in KitWS/WS was caused by a monogenic defect of Exoc1.
Exploring novel mechanistic insights in Alzheimer’s disease by assessing reliability of protein interactions
Authors: Malhotra Ashutosh , Younesi Erfan , Sahadevan Sudeep , Zimmermann Joerg , Hofmann-Apitius Martin
Published: September 2015

Protein interaction networks are widely used in computational biology as a graphical means of representing higher-level systemic functions in a computable form. Although, many algorithms exist that seamlessly collect and measure protein interaction information in network models, they often do not provide novel mechanistic insights using quantitative criteria. Measuring information content and knowledge representation in network models about disease mechanisms becomes crucial particularly when exploring new target candidates in a well-defined functional context of a potential disease mechanism. To this end, we have developed a knowledge-based scoring approach that uses literature-derived protein interaction features to quantify protein interaction confidence. Thereby, we introduce the novel concept of knowledge cliffs, regions of the interaction network where a significant gap between high scoring and low scoring interactions is observed, representing a divide between established and emerging knowledge on disease mechanism. To show the application of this approach, we constructed and assessed reliability of a protein-protein interaction model specific to Alzheimer’s disease, which led to screening and prioritization of four novel protein candidates. Evaluation of the identified candidates showed that two of them are already followed in clinical trials for testing potential AD drugs.
Cooling field and temperature dependent exchange bias in spin glass/ferromagnet bilayers
Authors: Rui W. B. , Hu Y. , Du A. , You B. , Xiao M. W. , Zhang W. , Zhou S. M. , Du J.
Published: September 2015

We report on the experimental and theoretical studies of cooling field (HFC) and temperature (T) dependent exchange bias (EB) in FexAu1 − x/Fe19Ni81 spin glass (SG)/ferromagnet (FM) bilayers. When x varies from 8% to 14% in the FexAu1 − x SG alloys, with increasing T, a sign-changeable exchange bias field (HE) together with a unimodal distribution of coercivity (HC) are observed. Significantly, increasing in the magnitude of HFC reduces (increases) the value of HE in the negative (positive) region, resulting in the entire HE ∼ T curve to move leftwards and upwards. In the meanwhile, HFC variation has weak effects on HC. By Monte Carlo simulation using a SG/FM vector model, we are able to reproduce such HE dependences on T and HFC for the SG/FM system. Thus this work reveals that the SG/FM bilayer system containing intimately coupled interface, instead of a single SG layer, is responsible for the novel EB properties.
Integrated information storage and transfer with a coherent magnetic device
Authors: Jia Ning , Banchi Leonardo , Bayat Abolfazl , Dong Guangjiong , Bose Sougato
Published: September 2015

Quantum systems are inherently dissipation-less, making them excellent candidates even for classical information processing. We propose to use an array of large-spin quantum magnets for realizing a device which has two modes of operation: memory and data-bus. While the weakly interacting low-energy levels are used as memory to store classical information (bits), the high-energy levels strongly interact with neighboring magnets and mediate the spatial movement of information through quantum dynamics. Despite the fact that memory and data-bus require different features, which are usually prerogative of different physical systems – well isolation for the memory cells and strong interactions for the transmission – our proposal avoids the notorious complexity of hybrid structures. The proposed mechanism can be realized with different setups. We specifically show that molecular magnets, as the most promising technology, can implement hundreds of operations within their coherence time, while adatoms on surfaces probed by a scanning tunneling microscope is a future possibility.
Targeted Knockdown of the Kinetochore Protein D40/Knl-1 Inhibits Human Cancer in a p53 Status-Independent Manner
Authors: Urata Yuri N. , Takeshita Fumitaka , Tanaka Hiroki , Ochiya Takahiro , Takimoto Masato
Published: September 2015

The D40 gene encodes a kinetochore protein that plays an essential role in kinetochore formation during mitosis. Short inhibitory RNA against D40, D40 siRNA, has been shown to deplete the D40 protein in the human cancer cell line HeLa, which harbors wild-type p53 and this activity was followed by the significant inhibition of cell growth and induction of apoptotic cell death. The p53-null cancer cell line, PC-3M-luc, is also sensitive to the significant growth inhibition and cell death induced by D40 siRNA. The growth of PC-3M-luc tumors transplanted into nude mice was inhibited by the systemic administration of D40 siRNA and the atelocollagen complex. Furthermore, D40 siRNA significantly inhibited growth and induced apoptotic cell death in a cell line with a gain-of-function (GOF) mutation in p53, MDA-MB231-luc and also inhibited the growth of tumors transplanted into mice when administered as a D40 siRNA/atelocollagen complex. These results indicated that D40 siRNA induced apoptotic cell death in human cancer cell lines and inhibited their growth in vitro and in vivo regardless of p53 status. Therefore, D40 siRNA is a potential candidate anti-cancer reagent.
Delivery of Alginate Scaffold Releasing Two Trophic Factors for Spinal Cord Injury Repair
Authors: Grulova I. , Slovinska L. , Blaško J. , Devaux S. , Wisztorski M. , Salzet M. , Fournier I. , Kryukov O. , Cohen S. , Cizkova D.
Published: September 2015

Spinal cord injury (SCI) has been implicated in neural cell loss and consequently functional motor and sensory impairment. In this study, we propose an alginate -based neurobridge enriched with/without trophic growth factors (GFs) that can be utilized as a therapeutic approach for spinal cord repair. The bioavailability of key GFs, such as Epidermal Growth factor (EGF) and basic Fibroblast Growth Factor (bFGF) released from injected alginate biomaterial to the central lesion site significantly enhanced the sparing of spinal cord tissue and increased the number of surviving neurons (choline acetyltransferase positive motoneurons) and sensory fibres. In addition, we document enhanced outgrowth of corticospinal tract axons and presence of blood vessels at the central lesion. Tissue proteomics was performed at 3, 7 and 10 days after SCI in rats indicated the presence of anti-inflammatory factors in segments above the central lesion site, whereas in segments below, neurite outgrowth factors, inflammatory cytokines and chondroitin sulfate proteoglycan of the lectican protein family were overexpressed. Collectively, based on our data, we confirm that functional recovery was significantly improved in SCI groups receiving alginate scaffold with affinity-bound growth factors (ALG +GFs), compared to SCI animals without biomaterial treatment.
Understanding Mechanical Response of Elastomeric Graphene Networks
Authors: Ni Na , Barg Suelen , Garcia-Tunon Esther , Macul Perez Felipe , Miranda Miriam , Lu Cong , Mattevi Cecilia , Saiz Eduardo
Published: September 2015

Ultra-light porous networks based on nano-carbon materials (such as graphene or carbon nanotubes) have attracted increasing interest owing to their applications in wide fields from bioengineering to electrochemical devices. However, it is often difficult to translate the properties of nanomaterials to bulk three-dimensional networks with a control of their mechanical properties. In this work, we constructed elastomeric graphene porous networks with well-defined structures by freeze casting and thermal reduction and investigated systematically the effect of key microstructural features. The porous networks made of large reduced graphene oxide flakes (>20 μm) are superelastic and exhibit high energy absorption, showing much enhanced mechanical properties than those with small flakes (<2 μm). A better restoration of the graphitic nature also has a considerable effect. In comparison, microstructural differences, such as the foam architecture or the cell size have smaller or negligible effect on the mechanical response. The recoverability and energy adsorption depend on density with the latter exhibiting a minimum due to the interplay between wall fracture and friction during deformation. These findings suggest that an improvement in the mechanical properties of porous graphene networks significantly depend on the engineering of the graphene flake that controls the property of the cell walls.
Dual response to nest flooding during monsoon in an Indian ant
Authors: Kolay Swetashree , Annagiri Sumana
Published: September 2015

Flooding causes destruction of shelter and disruption of activity in animals occupying subterranean nests. To ensure their survival organisms have evolved various responses to combat this problem. In this study we examine the response of an Indian ant, Diacamma indicum, to nest flooding during the monsoon season. Based on characterization of nest location, architecture and the response of these ants to different levels of flooding in their natural habitat as well as in the laboratory, we infer that they exhibit a dual response. On the one hand, the challenges presented by monsoon are dealt with by occupying shallow nests and modifying the entrance with decorations and soil mounds. On the other hand, inundated nests are evacuated and the ants occupy shelters at higher elevations. We conclude that focused studies of the monsoon biology of species that dwell in such climatic conditions may help us appreciate how organisms deal with and adapt to, extreme seasonal changes.
Secreted tyrosine sulfated-eIF5A mediates oxidative stress-induced apoptosis
Authors: Seko Yoshinori , Fujimura Tsutomu , Yao Takako , Taka Hikari , Mineki Reiko , Okumura Ko , Murayama Kimie
Published: September 2015

Oxidative stress plays a critical role in ischemia/reperfusion-injury, atherosclerosis and aging. It causes cell damage that leads to apoptosis via uncertain mechanisms. Because conditioned medium from cardiac myocytes subjected to hypoxia/reoxygenation induces extensive apoptosis of cardiac myocytes under normoxia, we hypothesized that a humoral factor released from the hypoxic/reoxygenated cardiac myocytes mediates apoptosis. We identified an apoptosis-inducing humoral factor in the hypoxia/reoxygenation-conditioned medium. Here, we found that eIF5A undergoes tyrosine sulfation in the trans-Golgi and is rapidly secreted from cardiac myocytes in response to hypoxia/reoxygenation; then, eIF5A induces apoptosis by acting as a pro-apoptotic ligand. The apoptosis of cardiac myocytes induced by hypoxia/reoxygenation or ultraviolet irradiation was suppressed by anti-eIF5A neutralizing monoclonal antibodies (mAbs) in vitro. Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (but not ischemia alone) markedly increased the plasma levels of eIF5A and treatment with anti-eIF5A neutralizing mAbs significantly reduced myocardial injury. These results identify an important, novel specific biomarker and a critical therapeutic target for oxidative stress-induced cell injury.
Geranylgeranylacetone selectively binds to the HSP70 of Helicobacter pylori and alters its coccoid morphology
Authors: Grave Ewa , Yokota Shin-ichi , Yamamoto Soh , Tamura Arisa , Ohtaki-Mizoguchi Takako , Yokota Kenji , Oguma Keiji , Fujiwara Kazuhiko , Ogawa Nobuaki , Okamoto Tomoya , Otaka Michiro , Itoh Hideaki
Published: September 2015

Geranylgeranylacetone (GGA) is used to treat patients suffering from peptic ulcers and gastritis. We examined the effect of GGA on Helicobacter pylori, which is a causative factor of gastrointestinal diseases. Previously, we have reported that GGA binds specifically to the molecular chaperone HSP70. In this paper, we report that GGA bounds to H. pylori HSP70 (product of the DnaK gene) with 26-times higher affinity than to human HSP70 and induced large conformational changes as observed from surface plasmon resonance and circular dichroism. Binding of GGA suppressed the activity of the H. pylori chaperone. GGA also altered several characteristics of H. pylori cells. GGA-treated cells elicited enhanced interleukin-8 production by gastric cancer cell lines and potentiated susceptibility to complement as compared to untreated cells. GGA also caused morphological alterations in H. pylori as reflected in fewer coccoid-like cells, suggesting that GGA converts H. pylori to an actively dividing, spiral state (vegetative form) from a non-growing, coccoid state. This morphological conversion by GGA resulted in accelerated growth of H. pylori. These results suggest a model in which GGA sensitizes H. pylori to antibiotic treatment by converting the cells to an actively growing state.
Revealing the nanoparticles aspect ratio in the glass-metal nanocomposites irradiated with femtosecond laser
Authors: Chervinskii S. , Drevinskas R. , Karpov D. V. , Beresna M. , Lipovskii A. A. , Svirko Yu. P. , Kazansky P. G.
Published: September 2015

We studied a femtosecond laser shaping of silver nanoparticles embedded in soda-lime glass. Comparing experimental absorption spectra with the modeling based on Maxwell Garnett approximation modified for spheroidal inclusions, we obtained the mean aspect ratio of the re-shaped silver nanoparticles as a function of the laser fluence. We demonstrated that under our experimental conditions the spherical shape of silver nanoparticles changed to a prolate spheroid with the aspect ratio as high as 3.5 at the laser fluence of 0.6 J/cm2. The developed approach can be employed to control the anisotropy of the glass-metal composites.
Functional and structural properties of a novel cellulosome-like multienzyme complex: efficient glycoside hydrolysis of water-insoluble 7-xylosyl-10-deacetylpaclitaxel
Authors: Dou Tong-Yi , Luan Hong-Wei , Ge Guang-Bo , Dong Ming-Ming , Zou Han-Fa , He Yu-Qi , Cui Pan , Wang Jia-Yue , Hao Da-Cheng , Yang Shi-Lin , Yang Ling
Published: September 2015

Cellulosome is a kind of multienzyme complex that displays high activity, selectivity and stability. Here, we report a novel, non-cellulolytic, cellulosome-like multienzyme complex that produced by theCellulosimicrobium cellulanswild-type strain F16 isolated from soil microflora. This multienzyme complex, with excellent catalytic efficiency ofkcat13.2 s−1to remove the C-7 xylosyl group from 7-xylosyl-10-deacetylpaclitaxel (10-DAXP), has an outstanding tolerance against organic solvents and an excellent general stability, with the long half-life of 214 hours. This cellulosome-like multienzyme complex has a novel structure distinct from the well-documented ones. The key catalytic subunit responsible for the β-xylosidase activity against 10-DAXP is identified to be a novel protein, indicating a new glycoside hydrolase (GH) family. The pioneering work described here offers a novel nanoscale biocatalyst for the production of biofuels and chemicals from renewable plant-based natural resources.
Bacterial inhibition potential of 3D rapid-prototyped magnesium-based porous composite scaffolds–an in vitro efficacy study
Authors: Ma Rui , Lai Yu-xiao , Li Long , Tan Hong-lue , Wang Jia-li , Li Ye , Tang Ting-ting , Qin Ling
Published: September 2015

Bone infections are common in trauma-induced open fractures with bone defects. Therefore, developing anti-infection scaffolds for repairing bone defects is desirable. This study develoepd novel Mg-based porous composite scaffolds with a basal matrix composed of poly(lactic-co-glycolicacid) (PLGA) and tricalcium phosphate (TCP). A unique low-temperature rapid prototyping technology was used to fabricate the scaffolds, including PLGA/TCP (PT), PLGA/TCP/5%Mg (PT5M), PLGA/TCP/10%Mg (PT10M) and PLGA/TCP/15%Mg (PT15M). The bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation of Staphylococcus aureus were evaluated. The results indicated that the Mg-based scaffolds significantly inhibited bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation compared to PT and the PT10M and PT15M exhibited significantly stronger anti-biofilm ability than PT5M. In vitro degratation tests revealed that the degradation of the Mg-based scaffolds caused an increase of pH, Mg2+ concentration and osmolality and the increased pH may be one of the major contributing factors to the antibacterial function of the Mg-based scaffolds. Additionally, the PT15M exhibited an inhibitory effect on cell adhesion and proliferation of MC3T3-E1 cells. In conclusion, the PLGA/TCP/Mg scaffolds could inhibit bacterial adhesion and biofilm formation and the PT10M scaffold was considered to be an effective composition with considerable antibacterial ability and good cytocompatibility.
Stacked 3D RRAM Array with Graphene/CNT as Edge Electrodes
Authors: Bai Yue , Wu Huaqiang , Wang Kun , Wu Riga , Song Lin , Li Tianyi , Wang Jiangtao , Yu Zhiping , Qian He
Published: September 2015

There are two critical challenges which determine the array density of 3D RRAM: 1) the scaling limit in both horizontal and vertical directions; 2) the integration of selector devices in 3D structure. In this work, we present a novel 3D RRAM structure using low-dimensional materials, including 2D graphene and 1D carbon nanotube (CNT), as the edge electrodes. A two-layer 3D RRAM with monolayer graphene as edge electrode is demonstrated. The electrical results reveal that the RRAM devices could switch normally with this very thin edge electrode at nanometer scale. Meanwhile, benefited from the asymmetric carrier transport induced by Schottky barrier at metal/CNT and oxide/CNT interfaces, a selector built-in 3D RRAM structure using CNT as edge electrode is successfully fabricated and characterized. Furthermore, the discussion of high array density potential is presented.
A unified data representation theory for network visualization, ordering and coarse-graining
Authors: Kovács István A. , Mizsei Réka , Csermely Péter
Published: September 2015

Representation of large data sets became a key question of many scientific disciplines in the last decade. Several approaches for network visualization, data ordering and coarse-graining accomplished this goal. However, there was no underlying theoretical framework linking these problems. Here we show an elegant, information theoretic data representation approach as a unified solution of network visualization, data ordering and coarse-graining. The optimal representation is the hardest to distinguish from the original data matrix, measured by the relative entropy. The representation of network nodes as probability distributions provides an efficient visualization method and, in one dimension, an ordering of network nodes and edges. Coarse-grained representations of the input network enable both efficient data compression and hierarchical visualization to achieve high quality representations of larger data sets. Our unified data representation theory will help the analysis of extensive data sets, by revealing the large-scale structure of complex networks in a comprehensible form.
Pressure-induced electronic phase separation of magnetism and superconductivity in CrAs
Authors: Khasanov Rustem , Guguchia Zurab , Eremin Ilya , Luetkens Hubertus , Amato Alex , Biswas Pabitra K. , Rüegg Christian , Susner Michael A. , Sefat Athena S. , Zhigadlo Nikolai D. , Morenzoni Elvezio
Published: September 2015

The recent discovery of pressure (p) induced superconductivity in the binary helimagnet CrAs has raised questions on how superconductivity emerges from the magnetic state and on the mechanism of the superconducting pairing. In the present work the suppression of magnetism and the occurrence of superconductivity in CrAs were studied by means of muon spin rotation. The magnetism remains bulk up to p "Equation missing" 3.5 kbar while its volume fraction gradually decreases with increasing pressure until it vanishes at p "Equation missing" 7 kbar. At 3.5 kbar superconductivity abruptly appears with its maximum Tc "Equation missing" 1.2 K which decreases upon increasing the pressure. In the intermediate pressure region (3.5 "Equation missing" p "Equation missing" 7 kbar) the superconducting and the magnetic volume fractions are spatially phase separated and compete for phase volume. Our results indicate that the less conductive magnetic phase provides additional carriers (doping) to the superconducting parts of the CrAs sample thus leading to an increase of the transition temperature (Tc) and of the superfluid density (ρs). A scaling of ρs with "Equation missing" as well as the phase separation between magnetism and superconductivity point to a conventional mechanism of the Cooper-pairing in CrAs.
Water use efficiency of China’s terrestrial ecosystems and responses to drought
Authors: Liu Yibo , Xiao Jingfeng , Ju Weimin , Zhou Yanlian , Wang Shaoqiang , Wu Xiaocui
Published: September 2015

Water use efficiency (WUE) measures the trade-off between carbon gain and water loss of terrestrial ecosystems and better understanding its dynamics and controlling factors is essential for predicting ecosystem responses to climate change. We assessed the magnitude, spatial patterns and trends of WUE of China’s terrestrial ecosystems and its responses to drought using a process-based ecosystem model. During the period from 2000 to 2011, the national average annual WUE (net primary productivity (NPP)/evapotranspiration (ET)) of China was 0.79 g C kg−1 H2O. Annual WUE decreased in the southern regions because of the decrease in NPP and the increase in ET and increased in most northern regions mainly because of the increase in NPP. Droughts usually increased annual WUE in Northeast China and central Inner Mongolia but decreased annual WUE in central China. “Turning-points” were observed for southern China where moderate and extreme droughts reduced annual WUE and severe drought slightly increased annual WUE. The cumulative lagged effect of drought on monthly WUE varied by region. Our findings have implications for ecosystem management and climate policy making. WUE is expected to continue to change under future climate change particularly as drought is projected to increase in both frequency and severity.
Pelagic photoferrotrophy and iron cycling in a modern ferruginous basin
Authors: Llirós Marc , García–Armisen Tamara , Darchambeau François , Morana Cédric , Triadó–Margarit Xavier , Inceoğlu Özgül , Borrego Carles M. , Bouillon Steven , Servais Pierre , Borges Alberto V. , Descy Jean–Pierre , Canfield Don E. , Crowe Sean A.
Published: September 2015

Iron-rich (ferruginous) ocean chemistry prevailed throughout most of Earth’s early history. Before the evolution and proliferation of oxygenic photosynthesis, biological production in the ferruginous oceans was likely driven by photoferrotrophic bacteria that oxidize ferrous iron {Fe(II)} to harness energy from sunlight and fix inorganic carbon into biomass. Photoferrotrophs may thus have fuelled Earth’s early biosphere providing energy to drive microbial growth and evolution over billions of years. Yet, photoferrotrophic activity has remained largely elusive on the modern Earth, leaving models for early biological production untested and imperative ecological context for the evolution of life missing. Here, we show that an active community of pelagic photoferrotrophs comprises up to 30% of the total microbial community in illuminated ferruginous waters of Kabuno Bay (KB), East Africa (DR Congo). These photoferrotrophs produce oxidized iron {Fe(III)} and biomass and support a diverse pelagic microbial community including heterotrophic Fe(III)-reducers, sulfate reducers, fermenters and methanogens. At modest light levels, rates of photoferrotrophy in KB exceed those predicted for early Earth primary production and are sufficient to generate Earth’s largest sedimentary iron ore deposits. Fe cycling, however, is efficient and complex microbial community interactions likely regulate Fe(III) and organic matter export from the photic zone.
Early amplitude-integrated electroencephalography predicts brain injury and neurological outcome in very preterm infants
Authors: Song Juan , Xu Falin , Wang Laishuan , Gao Liang , Guo Jiajia , Xia Lei , Zhang Yanhua , Zhou Wenhao , Wang Xiaoyang , Zhu Changlian
Published: September 2015

Early amplitude-integrated electroencephalography (aEEG) has been widely used in term infants with brain injury to predict neurodevelopmental outcomes; however, the prognostic value of early aEEG in preterm infants is unclear. We evaluated how well early aEEG could predict brain damage and long-term neurodevelopmental outcomes in very preterm infants compared with brain imaging assessments. We found that severe aEEG abnormalities (p = 0.000) and aEEG total score < 5 (p = 0.006) within 72 h after birth were positively correlated with white-matter damage, but aEEG abnormalities were not associated with intracranial hemorrhage (p = 0.186). Severe abnormalities in aEEG recordings, head ultrasound and cranial magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) were all positively correlated with poor outcome at 18 months corrected age. The predictive power of poor outcomes of the aEEG and MRI combination was the same as the aEEG, MRI and head ultrasound combination with a sensitivity of 52.4%, specificity of 96.2%, positive predictive value of 78.6% and negative predictive value of 88.4%. These results indicate that severely abnormal aEEG recordings within 72 h after birth can predict white-matter damage and long-term poor outcomes in very preterm infants. Thus aEEG can be used as an early marker to monitor very preterm infants.
Proteomic approaches for profiling negative fertility markers in inferior boar spermatozoa
Authors: Kwon Woo-Sung , Oh Shin-Ae , Kim Ye-Ji , Rahman Md Saidur , Park Yoo-Jin , Pang Myung-Geol
Published: September 2015

The ability to predict male fertility is of paramount importance for animal breeding industries and for human reproduction. Conventional semen analysis generally provides information on the quantitative parameters of spermatozoa, but yields no information concerning its functional competence. Proteomics have identified candidates for male fertility biomarkers, but no studies have clearly identified the relationship between the proteome and sperm fertility. Therefore, we performed a proteomic analysis to investigate small and large litter size boar spermatozoa and identify proteins related to male fertility. In this study, 20 proteins showed differential expression levels in small and large litter size groups. Nineteen of these proteins exhibited decreased expression in large litter size samples and increased expression in the small litter group. Interestingly, only one protein was highly expressed in the large litter size spermatozoa. We then identified signaling pathways associated with the differentially expressed protein markers. Glutathione S-transferase Mu3 and glutathione peroxidase 4 were related to the glutathione metabolic pathway and arginine vasopressin receptor 2 was linked to vasopressin R2/STAT. In summary, this is the first study to consider negative fertility biomarkers and the identified proteins could potentially be used as biomarkers for the detection of inferior male fertility.
Simvastatin may induce insulin resistance through a novel fatty acid mediated cholesterol independent mechanism
Authors: Kain Vasundhara , Kapadia Bandish , Misra Parimal , Saxena Uday
Published: September 2015

Statins are a class of oral drugs that are widely used for treatment of hypercholesterolemia. Recent clinical data suggest that chronic use of these drugs increases the frequency of new onset diabetes. Studies to define the risks of statin-induced diabetes and its underlying mechanisms are clearly necessary. We explored the possible mechanism of statin induced insulin resistance using a well-established cell based model and simvastatin as a prototype statin. Our data show that simvastatin induces insulin resistance in a cholesterol biosynthesis inhibition independent fashion but does so by a fatty acid mediated effect on insulin signaling pathway. These data may help design strategies for prevention of statin induced insulin resistance and diabetes in patients with hypercholesterolemia.
Ultralight metal foams
Authors: Jiang Bin , He Chunnian , Zhao Naiqin , Nash Philip , Shi Chunsheng , Wang Zejun
Published: September 2015

Ultralight (<10 mg/cm3) cellular materials are desirable for thermal insulation; battery electrodes; catalyst supports; and acoustic, vibration, or shock energy damping. However, most of these ultralight materials, especially ultralight metal foams, are fabricated using either expensive materials or complicated procedures, which greatly limit their large-scale production and practical applications. Here we report a simple and versatile method to obtain ultralight monolithic metal foams. These materials are fabricated with a low-cost polymeric template and the method is based on the traditional silver mirror reaction and electroless plating. We have produced ultralight monolithic metal foams, such as silver, nickel, cobalt and copper via this method. The resultant ultralight monolithic metal foams have remarkably low densities down to 7.4 mg/cm3 or 99.9% porosity. The metal foams have a long flat stress-train curve in compression tests and the densification strain εD of the Ni/Ag foam with a porosity of 99.8% can reach 82%. The plateau stress σpl was measured and found to be in agreement with the value predicted by the cellular solids theory.
Priming effect of 13C-labelled wheat straw in no-tillage soil under drying and wetting cycles in the Loess Plateau of China
Authors: Liu Enke , Wang Jianbo , Zhang Yanqing , Angers Denis A. , Yan Changrong , Oweis Theib , He Wenqing , Liu Qin , Chen Baoqing
Published: September 2015

The objectives of this study were to determine the effects of drying and wetting (DW) cycles on soil organic carbon (SOC) mineralisation and on the priming effect (PE) induced by the addition of 13C-labelled wheat straw to long-term no-tillage (NT) and conventional-tillage (CT) soils. We observed that the SOC mineralisation rate in rewetted soils was greater than that in soils that were kept at constant water content. The proportion of CO2 derived from the straw declined dramatically during the first 10 days. The priming direction was first positive and then became slightly negative. The PE was higher under DW cycles than under constant water content. There was no significant effect of the tillage system on the SOC mineralisation rate or PE. The data indicate that the DW cycles had a significant effect on the SOC mineralisation rate and on the PE, demonstrating a positive combined effect between wheat straw and moisture fluctuations. Further research is needed to study the role of microbial communities and C pools in affecting the SOC mineralisation response to DW cycles.
Identification of residues important for substrate uptake in a glucose transporter from the filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei
Authors: Zhang Weixin , Cao Yanli , Gong Jing , Bao Xiaoming , Chen Guanjun , Liu Weifeng
Published: September 2015

The glucose transporter is an important player in cell metabolism that mediates the intracellular uptake of glucose. Here, we characterized the glucose transporter Stp1 from the filamentous fungus Trichoderma reesei. The individual substitution of several conserved residues for Ala in Stp1 corresponding to those interacting with D-glucose in the xylose/H+ symporter XylE inflicted contrasting effects on its ability to support the growth of an hxt-null yeast on glucose. The targeted change of Phe 50, proximal to the substrate-binding site, was also found to exert a profound effect on the activity of Stp1. In contrast with the charged residues, the substitution of Phe 50 with either the hydrophilic residues Asn and Gln or the small residues Gly and Ala significantly enhanced the transport of glucose and its fluorescent analogue, 2-NBDG. On the other hand, a variant with the three substitutions I115F, F199I and P214L displayed remarkably improved activity on glucose and 2-NBDG transport. Further analysis indicated that the combined mutations of Ile 115 and Pro 214, positioned on the lateral surface of the Stp1 N-domain, fully accounted for the enhanced transport activity. These results provide insight into the structural basis for glucose uptake in fungal sugar transporters.
Microdissection of Human Esophagogastric Junction Wall with Phase-contrast X-ray CT Imaging
Authors: Zhang Jianfa , Zhou Guangzhao , Tian Dongping , Lin Runhua , Peng Guanyun , Su Min
Published: September 2015

Phase-contrast x-ray imaging using an x-ray interferometer has great potential to reveal the structures inside soft tissues, because the sensitivity of this method to hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen is about 1000 times higher than that of the absorption-contrast x-ray method. In this study, we used phase-contrast X-ray CT to investigate human resected esophagogastric junction. This technology revealed the three-layer structure of the esophagogastric junction wall—mucous, submucosa and muscular layers. The mucous and muscular layers were clearly separated by a loose submucosa layer with a honeycomb appearance. The shape of the mucous and muscular layers was intact. The boundary between the mucous and submucosa layers was distinct, as was the border of the muscular and submucosa layers. The surface of the esophagogastric junction was displayed clearly through 3D reconstruction. The technology might be helpful in the diagnosis of esophagogastric junction lesion, especially for the early adenocarcinoma.
Modeling the interplay between the HIF-1 and p53 pathways in hypoxia
Authors: Zhou Chun-Hong , Zhang Xiao-Peng , Liu Feng , Wang Wei
Published: September 2015

Both the hypoxia-inducible factor-1 (HIF-1) and tumor suppressor p53 are involved in the cellular response to hypoxia. How the two transcription factors interact to determine cell fates is less well understood. Here, we developed a network model to characterize crosstalk between the HIF-1 and p53 pathways, taking into account that HIF-1α and p53 are targeted for proteasomal degradation by Mdm2 and compete for binding to limiting co-activator p300. We reported the network dynamics under various hypoxic conditions and revealed how the stabilization and transcriptional activities of p53 and HIF-1α are modulated to determine the cell fate. We showed that both the transrepression and transactivation activities of p53 promote apoptosis induction. This work provides new insight into the mechanism for the cellular response to hypoxia.
Dimerization of lipocalin allergens
Authors: Niemi Merja H. , Rytkönen-Nissinen Marja , Miettinen Ilja , Jänis Janne , Virtanen Tuomas , Rouvinen Juha
Published: September 2015

Lipocalins are one of the most important groups of inhalant animal allergens. The analysis of structural features of these proteins is important to get insights into their allergenicity. We have determined two different dimeric crystal structures for bovine dander lipocalin Bos d 2, which was earlier described as a monomeric allergen. The crystal structure analysis of all other determined lipocalin allergens also revealed oligomeric structures which broadly utilize inherent structural features of the β-sheet in dimer formation. According to the moderate size of monomer-monomer interfaces, most of these dimers would be transient in solution. Native mass spectrometry was employed to characterize quantitatively transient dimerization of two lipocalin allergens, Bos d 2 and Bos d 5, in solution.
Differential interaction of Apolipoprotein-E isoforms with insulin receptors modulates brain insulin signaling in mutant human amyloid precursor protein transgenic mice
Authors: Chan Elizabeth S , Chen Christopher , Cole Gregory M , Wong Boon-Seng
Published: September 2015

It is unclear how human apolipoprotein E4 (ApoE4) increases the risk for Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Although Aβ levels can lead to insulin signaling impairment, these experiments were done in the absence of human ApoE. To examine ApoE role, we crossed the human ApoE-targeted replacement mice with mutant human amyloid precursor protein (APP) mice. In 26 week old mice with lower Aβ levels, the expression and phosphorylation of insulin signaling proteins remained comparable among APP, ApoE3xAPP and ApoE4xAPP mouse brains. When the mice aged to 78 weeks, these proteins were markedly reduced in APP and ApoE4xAPP mouse brains. While Aβ can bind to insulin receptor, how ApoE isoforms modulate this interaction remains unknown. Here, we showed that ApoE3 had greater association with insulin receptor as compared to ApoE4, regardless of Aβ42 concentration. In contrast, ApoE4 bound more Aβ42 with increasing peptide levels. Using primary hippocampal neurons, we showed that ApoE3 and ApoE4 neurons are equally sensitive to physiological levels of insulin. However, in the presence of Aβ42, insulin failed to elicit a downstream response only in ApoE4 hippocampal neurons. Taken together, our data show that ApoE genotypes can modulate this Aβ-mediated insulin signaling impairment.
Spatio-temporal distribution of human lifespan in China
Authors: Wang Shaobin , Luo Kunli , Liu Yonglin
Published: September 2015

Based on the data of latest three Chinese population censuses (1990–2010), four lifespan indicators were calculated: centenarians per one hundred thousand inhabitants (CH); longevity index (LI); the percentage of the population aged at least 80 years (ultra-octogenarian index, UOI) and life expectancy at birth (LEB). The spatio-temporal distributions of data at Chinese county level show that high-longevity areas (high values of CH and LI) and low-longevity areas (low CH and LI values) both exhibit clear non-uniformity of spatial distribution and relative immobility through time. Contrarily, the distribution of UOI and LEB shows a decline from the east to the west. The spatial autocorrelation analyses indicate less spatial dependency and several discontinuous clusters regions of high-CH and LI areas. The factors of temperature, topography and wet/dry climate lack of significant influence on CH and LI. It can be inferred that, in addition to genetic factor and living custom, some unique and long-term environmental effects may be related with high or low values of CH and LI.
Pathway optimization by re-design of untranslated regions for L-tyrosine production in Escherichia coli
Authors: Cheol Kim Seong , Eun Min Byung , Gyu Hwang Hyun , Woo Seo Sang , Yeol Jung Gyoo
Published: September 2015

L-tyrosine is a commercially important compound in the food, pharmaceutical, chemical and cosmetic industries. Although several attempts have been made to improve L-tyrosine production, translation-level expression control and carbon flux rebalancing around phosphoenolpyruvate (PEP) node still remain to be achieved for optimizing the pathway. Here, we demonstrate pathway optimization by altering gene expression levels for L-tyrosine production in Escherichia coli. To optimize the L-tyrosine biosynthetic pathway, a synthetic constitutive promoter and a synthetic 5′-untranslated region (5′-UTR) were introduced for each gene of interest to allow for control at both transcription and translation levels. Carbon flux rebalancing was achieved by controlling the expression level of PEP synthetase using UTR Designer. The L-tyrosine productivity of the engineered E. coli strain was increased through pathway optimization resulting in 3.0 g/L of L-tyrosine titer, 0.0354 g L-tyrosine/h/g DCW of productivity and 0.102 g L-tyrosine/g glucose yield. Thus, this work demonstrates that pathway optimization by 5′-UTR redesign is an effective strategy for the development of efficient L-tyrosine-producing bacteria.
RBMMMDA: predicting multiple types of disease-microRNA associations
Authors: Chen Xing , Clarence Yan Chenggang , Zhang Xiaotian , Li Zhaohui , Deng Lixi , Zhang Yongdong , Dai Qionghai
Published: September 2015

Accumulating evidences have shown that plenty of miRNAs play fundamental and important roles in various biological processes and the deregulations of miRNAs are associated with a broad range of human diseases. However, the mechanisms underlying the dysregulations of miRNAs still have not been fully understood yet. All the previous computational approaches can only predict binary associations between diseases and miRNAs. Predicting multiple types of disease-miRNA associations can further broaden our understanding about the molecular basis of diseases in the level of miRNAs. In this study, the model of Restricted Boltzmann machine for multiple types of miRNA-disease association prediction (RBMMMDA) was developed to predict four different types of miRNA-disease associations. Based on this model, we could obtain not only new miRNA-disease associations, but also corresponding association types. To our knowledge, RBMMMDA is the first model which could computationally infer association types of miRNA-disease pairs. Leave-one-out cross validation was implemented for RBMMMDA and the AUC of 0.8606 demonstrated the reliable and effective performance of RBMMMDA. In the case studies about lung cancer, breast cancer and global prediction for all the diseases simultaneously, 50, 42 and 45 out of top 100 predicted miRNA-disease association types were confirmed by recent biological experimental literatures, respectively.
Increased frequency of circulating Tc22/Th22 cells and polyfunctional CD38− T cells in HIV-exposed uninfected subjects
Authors: Oliveira Luanda M. S. , Lima Josenilson F. , Cervantes Cesar A. C. , S. Casseb Jorge , Mendonça Marcelo , Duarte Alberto J. S. , Sato Maria N.
Published: September 2015

Some individuals are resistant to HIV-1 infection despite repeated exposure to the virus, suggesting the presence of a complex antiviral response. Innate factors like IL-22 exert gut mucosal protection and polyfunctional T cells have been associated with low progression in HIV infection; therefore, we evaluated the frequencies of CD4+ and CD8+ T cell-secreting cytokines, including Tc22/Th22 cells and polyfunctional T cells in HIV-1-exposed uninfected individuals (EUs), their HIV-1-infected partners and healthy controls. EUs exhibited an increased frequency of p15 Gag CD4+ IL-22+ secreting T cells, whereas HIV-infected partners demonstrated a high frequency of CD4+ IL-17+ T cells in response to p24. Similar responses of Th22 and Tc22 cells to Gag peptides and Staphylococcal enterotoxin B (SEB) stimulation were detected in the serodiscordant couples. However, polyfunctionality in HIV subjects was associated with an HIV Gag response of CD38+ T cells, whereas polyfunctionality for EUs was induced upon SEB stimulation by CD38- T cells. EUs demonstrated the presence of Tc22/Th22 cells and polyfunctional CD38- T cells with a low activation profile. These data suggest that SEB-induced polyfunctional CD4+ and CD8+ T cells together with Tc22/Th22 cells in EU individuals can provide an immunological advantage in the response to pathogens such as HIV-1.
4MBA-labeled Ag-nanorod aggregates coated with SiO2: synthesis, SERS activity, and biosensing applications
Authors: Lai Wei , Zhou Jun , Liu Yanting , Jia Zhenhong , Xie Shusen , Petti Lucia , Mormile Pasquale
Published: September 2015

A new nanostructure, silica-coated Ag nanorods (NRs) aggregate with 4-mercaptobenzoic acid molecules (4MBA-Ag NRs@SiO2), was prepared by a seed-mediated growth method and a modified Stöber method.
Live cell tracking of symmetry break in actin cytoskeleton triggered by abrupt changes in micromechanical environments
Authors: Inoue S. , Frank V. , Hörning M. , Kaufmann S. , Yoshikawa H. Y. , Madsen J. P. , Lewis A. L. , Armes S. P. , Tanaka M.
Published: September 2015

Stimulus responsive hydrogels and live cell imaging allow for the quantitative parameterization of symmetry breaking in remodelling actin cytoskeleton.
A novel Pd–Cu–Zr hydrogen separation membrane with a high tolerance to sulphur poisoning
Authors: Nayebossadri S. , Speight J. D. , . Book D
Published: September 2015

The effects of the addition of small amount of Zr (less than 2 at%) to the fcc phase of the Pd–Cu hydrogen separation alloy were investigated.
A dendritic β-galactosidase-responsive folate–monomethylauristatin E conjugate
Authors: Alsarraf Jérôme , Péraudeau Elodie , Poinot Pauline , Tranoy-Opalinski Isabelle , Clarhaut Jonathan , Renoux Brigitte , Papot Sébastien
Published: September 2015

We designed a dendritic folate–drug conjugate allowing the β-galactosidase-catalysed release of two MMAE molecules inside folate receptor-positive cancer cells.
Accordion-like swelling of layered perovskite crystals via massive permeation of aqueous solutions into 2D oxide galleries
Authors: Song Yeji , Iyi Nobuo , Hoshide Tatsumasa , Ozawa Tadashi C. , Ebina Yasuo , Ma Renzhi , Miyamoto Nobuyoshi , Sasaki Takayoshi
Published: September 2015

Platelet crystals of a layered perovskite enormously swelled in a tetrabutylammonium hydroxide solution, producing unique columnar shaped crystals with a water content of >90 wt%.
Ratiometric oxygen sensing using lanthanide luminescent emitting interfaces
Authors: Lehr Joshua , Tropiano Manuel , Beer Paul D. , Faulkner Stephen , Davis Jason J.
Published: September 2015

Herein we describe the first example of a ratiometric lanthanide luminescent oxygen sensing interface.