bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Trafficking of phosphatidylinositol by phosphatidylinositol transfer proteins
Authors: Cockcroft Shamshad
Published: August 2015

PtdIns is synthesized at the endoplasmic reticulum and its intracellular distribution to other organelles can be facilitated by lipid transfer proteins [PITPs (phosphatidylinositol transfer proteins)]. In this review, I summarize the current understanding of how PITPs are regulated by phosphorylation, how can they dock to membranes to exchange their lipid cargo and how cells use PITPs in signal transduction and membrane delivery. Mammalian PITPs, PITPα and PITPβ, are paralogous genes that are 94% similar in sequence. Their structural design demonstrates that they can sequester PtdIns or PtdCho (phosphatidylcholine) in their hydrophobic cavity. To deliver the lipid cargo to a membrane, PITP has to undergo a conformational change at the membrane interface. PITPs have a higher affinity for PtdIns than PtdCho, which is explained by hydrogen-bond contacts between the inositol ring of PtdIns and the side-chains of four amino acid residues, Thr59, Lys61, Glu86 and Asn90, in PITPs. Regardless of species, these residues are conserved in all known PITPs. PITP transfer activity is regulated by a conserved serine residue (Ser166) that is phosphorylated by protein kinase C. Ser166 is only accessible for phosphorylation when a conformational change occurs in PITPs while docking at the membrane interface during lipid transfer, thereby coupling regulation of activity with lipid transfer function. Biological roles of PITPs include their ability to couple phospholipase C signalling to neurite outgrowth, cell division and stem cell growth.
The relationship between intracellular second messengers and platelet secretion
Authors: KNIGHT D. E. , SCRUTTON M. C.
Published: August 2015

Abbreviations used: PAF, platelet-activating factor; [Ca]i, cytosolic Ca2+ concentration; OAG, 1-oleyl-2-acetylglycerol; TPA, 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate; [1,2-diocylglycerol]i, cytosolic 1,2-diacylglycerol concentration, BAPTA, bis(O-aminophenoxy)ethane-N,N,N',N'-tetra-acetic acid; IMBX, 3-isobutyl-1-methylxanthine.
How to design photonic crystal LEDs with artificial intelligence techniques
Authors: Mirjalili S.M. , Mirjalili S. , Mirjalili S.Z.
Published: August 2015

The use of multi‐objective optimisation techniques in the field of artificial intelligence for designing photonic crystal (PhC) light‐emitting diodes (LEDs) is proposed. The extraction ratio and Purcell factor are first identified and considered as the main objectives when designing such LEDs. These two objectives are then optimised simultaneously even though both are in conflict. The proposed method is developed within a framework and applied to a case study. A comparative study shows that the optimised PhC LEDs completely outperform current works in the literature. These results are obtained by just tuning the PhC structural parameters, which can be considered as a substantial achievement in this field.
Quantised kernel least mean square with desired signal smoothing
Authors: Xu Xiguang , Qu Hua , Zhao Jihong , Yang Xiaohan , Chen Badong
Published: August 2015

The quantised kernel least mean square (QKLMS) is a simple yet efficient online learning algorithm, which reduces the computational cost significantly by quantising the input space to constrain the growth of network size. The QKLMS considers only the input space compression and assumes that the desired outputs of the quantised data are equal to those of the closest centres. In many cases, however, the outputs in a neighbourhood may have big differences, especially when the underlying system is disturbed by impulsive noises. Such fluctuation in desired outputs may seriously deteriorate the learning performance. To address this issue, a simple online method is proposed to smooth the desired signal within a neighbourhood corresponding to a quantisation region. The resulting algorithm is referred to as the QKLMS with desired signal smoothing. The desirable performance of the new algorithm is confirmed by Monte Carlo simulations.
Robust one‐step ahead state predictor using adaptive proportional–integral observer
Authors: Kim Seok‐Kyoon , Lee Kyo‐Beum
Published: August 2015

This study presents an adaptive one‐step ahead state predictor for a class of uncertain non‐linear systems including power electronic systems such as power converters and motor drives. The proposed predictor is designed using an adaptive proportional–integral observer design method with σ‐modification so that it robustly estimates the real state without steady‐state estimation errors. The simulation and experiment results demonstrate that the proposed method effectively predicts the one‐step ahead state in the presence of parameter variations.
Hospitality studies: escaping the tyranny?
Authors: Lashley Conrad
Published: August 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to explore current strands in hospitality management education and research, and suggest that future programs should reflect a more social science informed content.

Design/methodology/approach

– The paper reviews current research in hospitality management education and in the study of hospitality and hospitableness. It is, therefore, essentially a literature review, but founded on a variety of research insights gained by the author.

Findings

– Some have argued that the hospitality management education is currently dominated by the tyranny of relevance. Yet, the study of hospitableness in wider social settings has much to offer to both students and their future employers. This paper suggests there is need to allow for more flexibility in the curriculum so as to be less concerned with immediate relevance of content and more concerned with developing graduates who are critical and analytical thinkers.

Research limitations/implications

– It is not founded on primary research per se, but reflects upon a number of formal studies about the nature of the field, the preferred learning styles of students and nature of hospitableness.

Originality/value

– The paper suggests changes to the current curriculum that may, or may not, result in name changes to programs studying hospitality and preparing the sector’s future management personnel.
Multiple environmental drivers structure plant traits at the community level in a pyrogenic ecosystem
Authors: Ames Gregory M. , Anderson Steven M. , Wright Justin P.
Published: August 2015

Trait‐based approaches offer a way to predict changes in community structure along environmental gradients using measurable properties of individuals. Promoted as being generalizable across systems, trait‐based approaches benefit from information about the environmental drivers of trait variation, how they interact and how they change with scale. However, for most diverse, natural communities, it is largely unknown whether the relationships between leaf‐level traits and interacting environmental drivers (e.g. fire, water availability) are influenced by the scale of trait aggregation.

We show that landscape‐level differences in community composition in a diverse, fire‐dependent pine savanna are explained by a small subset of species groups that are strongly correlated with soil moisture and elevation, but are insensitive to the time since the last fire.

We used a trait‐based approach to show that significant variation in the community‐weighted mean (CWM) of specific leaf area (SLA) and leaf dry matter content (LDMC), two traits known to drive community structure and function, was explained by a small set of factors including the time since the last fire, soil moisture, precipitation and Shannon diversity.

We show that statistical inference about the environmental drivers of community traits is radically altered when using CWMs computed with landscape‐level rather than plot‐level means, even over modest spatial scales.

Synthesis: Environmental drivers of community composition across the landscape differed from those explaining trait composition. CWM traits were strongly influenced by interactions between drivers. Fire, in particular, strongly mediated the effect of other environmental variables on LDMC, showing that strong environmental gradients cannot be considered independently when assessing their effects on functional traits. The importance of environmental variables such as fire was lost when using landscape‐level trait means, highlighting the importance of local trait variation. This suggests caution when using traits from distant populations to make inferences about local processes, especially across strong gradients.
Ambient temperature, body condition and sibling rivalry explain feather corticosterone levels in developing black kites
Authors: López‐Jiménez Lidia , Blas Julio , Tanferna Alessandro , Cabezas Sonia , Marchant Tracy , Hiraldo Fernando , Sergio Fabrizio
Published: August 2015

In birds, the steroid hormone corticosterone (CORT) is considered a major mediator in a number of physiological mechanisms and behaviours critical for the regulation of an organism's energy balance. However, the question of whether the way in which circulating plasma CORT is incorporated into feathers actually reflects this regulation, and consequently whether feather CORT (CORT‐F) measures allow to make inferences on past levels of energetic demands (also known as the allostatic load), remains unclear. While previous studies have yielded promising results, the technique still wants further study and validation in a wider range of bird species, across life‐history stages and under different ecological situations.

Here, we tested whether CORT‐F levels in a sample of 427 nestling black kites (Milvus migrans) reflected interindividual variation in a number of environmental, social and physiological variables known to elevate allostatic load during development.

We found that nestlings exposed to low ambient temperatures exhibited high CORT‐F, suggesting that feathers registered the expected rise in circulating CORT levels inducing thermogenesis in response to cold stress.

CORT‐F was also negatively related to body condition, supporting the notion that allostasis becomes less affordable as energy stores become depleted.

Finally, CORT‐F also reflected brood hierarchy rank, with subordinate chicks exhibiting the highest levels, followed by first‐hatched (dominant) chicks and lastly singleton nestlings. Moreover, CORT‐F levels in nestlings from multiple‐chick broods (but not in singletons) declined with age, mirroring the dynamics of establishment and stabilization of sibling hierarchies in black kites.

Altogether, our results underscore the potential of using CORT‐F to infer allostatic load in wild avian populations and their potential power as indicator tools in conservation biology.
Immunosenescence and the ability to survive bacterial infection in the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum
Authors: Khan Imroze , Prakash Arun , Agashe Deepa
Published: August 2015

In most animals, ageing is associated with a decline in immune function (immune senescence). However, different components of the immune system seem to age differentially, and many studies do not measure the ultimate fitness consequences of immune function after infection. Previous work shows that immune function may be traded off with other fitness components such as reproduction. It is possible that age alters the nature of these trade‐offs, particularly in conjunction with factors such as gender and mating that can also affect investment in immune function.

We tested the impact of age, sex and mating on post‐infection survivorship in Tribolium castaneum flour beetles, as well as the components of baseline constitutive innate immunity and external (secreted) immune function in uninfected individuals. We also tested whether the reproductive ability of uninfected females is traded off with immune function (baseline innate and external immunity) and post‐infection survivorship across age groups.

We found that age, sex and mating significantly affected immune components and infection outcome, although the magnitude and nature of the impact varied in each case. We found that older beetles were more susceptible to infection by the pathogen Bacillus thuringiensis even though major components of the constitutive innate immune defence (antibacterial and phenoloxidase activity) remained unchanged or improved with age. Thus, these aspects of innate immunity cannot explain the observed decline in post‐infection survival of older beetles. We did not find trade‐offs between the reproductive ability of uninfected females and their immune function. In contrast to innate immunity, external immunity showed an overall decline with age but was also affected by sex and mating. Finally, we show that bacterial infection alters external immunity via complex interactions between age, sex and mating status.

Our work uncovers novel interactions between age, sex and mating that can determine the evolution and outcome of immunosenescence by affecting the time course of relative investment in different immune and fitness components.
Nordic Research on Political Behaviour
Authors: von Schoultz Åsa
Published: August 2015

This review article sets out to give an overarching presentation of Nordic research on political behaviour, which has constituted a vital subfield within Nordic political science since the 1950s. The aim of the article is to give the reader a sense of what characterises the development within the field and to point towards interesting research worth further exploring. The review covers some notes on the general progress within the field, a bibliographic analysis of publication patters complemented by a presentation of the dominating themes of research, and a discussion of methodological advancements. Research within the field rests on the strong legacy of the Norwegian scholar Stein Rokkan and the early influence of the behaviouralism and American research. The biographical analysis does, however, clearly demonstrate the leading position of Danish scholars in terms of both qualitative and quantitative indicators. From a methodological perspective, researchers within the region can be described as early adapters. The electoral programmes established in the middle of the 1950s in Sweden and Norway are among the oldest in the world, following on from the pioneering efforts of the United States which stretch back to 1948. Furthermore, recent years have brought about a significant increase in experimental research. Thematically, the research agenda has been dominated by, but not restricted to, electoral research. Sophisticated knowledge of how voters think and act at elections, but also of the changing role and behaviour of citizens within the Nordic sphere, has been developed over time.
Establishing the Limits of TrueAllele® Casework: A Validation Study
Authors: Greenspoon Susan A. , Schiermeier‐Wood Lisa , Jenkins Brad C.
Published: August 2015

The limits of the expert system, TrueAllele® Casework (TA), were explored using challenging mock casework profiles that included 17 single‐source and 18 two‐, 15 three‐ and 7 four‐person DNA mixtures. The sensitivity (ability to detect a minor contributor) of the TA analysis process was examined by challenging the system with mixture DNA samples that exhibited allelic and locus dropout and other stochastic effects. The specificity (ability to exclude nondonors) was rigorously tested by interrogating TA derived genotypes with 100 nondonor profiles. The accuracy with which TA estimated mixture weights of contributors to the two‐person mixtures was examined. Finally, first‐degree relatives of donors were used to assess the ability of the system to exclude close relatives. TA demonstrated great accuracy, sensitivity, and specificity. TA correctly assigned mixture weights and excluded nearly all first‐degree relatives. This study demonstrates the analysis power of the TrueAllele® Casework system.
The Use of Femoral Neck Axis Length to Estimate Sex and Ancestry
Authors: Meeusen Rebecca A. , Christensen Angi M. , Hefner Joseph T.
Published: August 2015

Having multiple reliable methods of estimating sex and ancestry from various skeletal features increases the likelihood of identifying skeletal remains. Femoral neck axis length (FNAL), as measured in living individuals, has been shown to vary by sex and ancestry. FNAL has not, however, been previously measured directly from skeletonized remains and investigated for its potential use in forensic anthropological applications. This research proposes a method for measuring FNAL from skeletal remains, determines the reliability and repeatability of the measurement, and assesses the validity of FNAL in sex and ancestry estimation. Results showed low interobserver error in the measurement of FNAL (TEM = 0.33 mm, R = 0.99). Significant differences in FNAL were found between sexes as well as between American Black, American White, and Native American groups. FNAL can correctly classify sex in ~86% of all cases and is considered valuable to sex estimation. The value of FNAL to ancestry estimation, however, is considered limited.
Adult Behcet's disease in Iran: analysis of 6075 patients
Authors: Davatchi Fereydoun , Chams‐Davatchi Cheyda , Shams Hormoz , Nadji Abdolhadi , Faezi Tahereh , Akhlaghi Massoomeh , Sadeghi Abdollahi Bahar , Ashofteh Farimah , Ghodsi Zahra , Mohtasham Negin , Shahram Farhad
Published: August 2015

Introduction

This is an analysis of adult Behcet's disease (BD) in Iran, from the Iran Registry of 7187 BD patients, gathered from 1975 to 2014, among which 6075 were adults (84.5%).

Patients

Patients were seen by a multidisciplinary team of experts. The diagnosis was by expert opinion, not by any specific classification/diagnosis criteria. However, 96.8% of them were classified by the International Criteria for Behcet's Disease (ICBD). Adult BDs were patients who had their first manifestation at the age of 16 or later.

Results

Males constituted 56% (male/female ratio 1.3/1). The mean age at onset was 28.3 ± 8.7, mean duration 10.8 ± 8.2, and mean follow‐up 5.0 ± 6.3. Oral aphthosis was seen in 97.5%, genital aphthosis 65.7%, skin manifestations 64.6% (pseudofolliculitis 53.2%, erythema nodosum 23.9%), ocular manifestations 58.1% (anterior uveitis 41.1%, posterior uveitis 45%, retinal vasculitis 33.6%, cataract 24.4%), joint manifestations 39.4% (arthralgia 18.9%, monoarthritis 9.1%, oligoarthritis 17.8%, ankyloing spondylitis 2%), gastrointestinal manifestations 7% (gastroduodenitis 2.3%, peptic ulcer 1.2%, diarrhea 2.1%, rectorrhagia 1.0%, abdominal pain‐nausea 1.8%), neurological manifestations 10.6% (central 3.7%, peripheral 0.3%, headache 7.6%), vessel involvement (large vessel 1.7% with large vein thrombosis 1.1% and arterial involvement 0.7%, phlebitis 6.6%, superficial phlebitis 2.3%), epididymitis 4.6%, pulmonary manifestations 1% and cardiac manifestations 0.6%. Positive pathergy test was seen in 52.3%, human leukocyte antigen (HLA)‐B5 in 54%, HLA‐B51 in 48.9%, and high erythrocyte sedimentation rate in 52.8% of patients. By International Study Group (ISG) criteria 77.9% were classified, compared to ICBD revised criteria with 96.9%. The specificity of ISG was 99.2% and ICBD 97.2%.

Conclusion

Results are near the nationwide surveys from Japan, China, Korea and Germany.
hemX is required for production of 2‐ketogluconate, the predominant organic anion required for inorganic phosphate solubilization by Burkholderia sp. Ha185
Authors: Hsu Pei‐Chun Lisa , Condron Leo , O'Callaghan Maureen , Hurst Mark R. H.
Published: August 2015

The bacterium Burkholderia sp. Ha185 readily solubilizes inorganic phosphate by releasing the low molecular weight organic anion, 2‐ketogluconate. Using random transposon mutagenesis and in silico analysis, a mutation that caused almost complete abolition of phosphate solubilization was located within hemX, which is part of the hem operon. Burkholderia sp. Ha185 HemX is a multidomain protein, predicted to encode a bifunctional uroporphyrinogen‐III synthetase/uroporphyrin‐III C‐methyltransferase, which has not previously been implicated in phosphate solubilization. Complementation of hemX restored the ability of the mutant to solubilize phosphate in both plate and liquid cultures. Based on a combination of organic‐anion profiling, quantitative polymerase chain reaction and in silico analyses, hemX was confirmed to be solely responsible for hydroxyapatite solubilization in Burkholderia sp. Ha185. It is proposed that the biosynthesis of a yet to be determined redox cofactor by HemX is the main pathway for generating 2‐ketogluconate via a haem‐dependent gluconate 2‐dehydrogenase in Burkholderia sp. Ha185.
Oral antineoplastic agents: how do we care about adherence?
Authors: Barillet Marie , Prevost Virginie , Joly Florence , Clarisse Bénédicte
Published: August 2015

Aims

Oral therapies, including hormone‐based or targeted therapies, have recently taken an increasing place in cancer treatment. In this context, a state of the art of the available studies dealing with the adherence of adult patients to oral anticancer treatment is warranted. The purpose of this review is to address (i) the association between assessment methods and measured adherence, (ii) the putative factors related to adherence and (iii) new ways of improving adherence to oral cancer therapies.

Methods

We conducted a literature‐based narrative review of studies obtained from Pubmed using medical subject heading terms and free‐text terms combining concepts related to oral anticancer medication and adherence.

Results

The analysis is based on 48 studies published since 1990, mostly assessing hormone‐based therapy in breast cancer and targeted therapies in chronic myeloid leukaemia. Various methods of adherence were reported including self‐report, medication measurement or combinations of methods. Adherence rates were found to vary from 14% to 100%. Beside patient related‐factors, adherence rate discrepancies were found to be dependent on the method used. Furthermore, there was no consensual definition of adherence even regarding the same methods, some of them tolerating a period of interruption during the treatment period. Finally, several studies addressing persistence found a progressive decrease in adherence with time.

Conclusion

Adherence to novel oral therapies is a major issue and further research is warranted to standardize adherence assessment in clinical studies better and to define better the most appropriate approaches to improve long term adherence in oncology practice.
Efficacy and safety of silodosin in the medical expulsion therapy for distal ureteral calculi: a systematic review and meta‐analysis
Authors: Huang Wei , Xue Peng , Zong, Huantao , Zhang Yong
Published: August 2015

Aims

Using a selective α‐adrenoceptor blocker for medical expulsive therapy (MET) is an effective treatment approach widely used for ureteral stones. The aim of the review was to assess the efficacy and safety of silodosin in medical expulstion therapy compared with placebo and tamsulosin.

Methods

A systematic search was performed in PubMed, Cochrane Library and Embase to identify randomized controlled trials that compared silodosin with a placebo or tamsulosin for ureteral calculi.

Results

Eight publications involving a total of 1048 patients were used in the analysis, which compared silodosin with placebo and tamsulosin. We found that silodosin was effective in treating ureteral calculi in our meta‐analysis and was superior to tamsulosin in its efficacy. The expulsion rate of all ureteral stones (OR 1.59, 95% CI 1.08, 2.36, P = 0.02), the expulsion rate of distal ureteral stones (OR 2.82, 95% CI 1.70, 4.67, P < 0.0001) and the expulsion time (days) of distal ureteral stones (standard mean difference (SMD) −4.71, 95% CI −6.60, −2.83, P < 0.00001) indicated that silodosin was more effective than the placebo. Moreover, expulsion rate (OR 2.54, 95% CI 1.70, 3.78, P < 0.00001), expulsion time (days) (SMD −2.64, 95% CI −3.64, −1.64, P < 0.00001) and pain episodes (P < 0.00001) indicated that silodosin was more effective than the tamsulosin. Even though silodosin had a significant increase in abnormal ejaculation compared with tamsulosin, no significant differences were observed for complications (OR 1.00, 95% CI 0.58, 1.74, P = 1.00).

Conclusions

This meta‐analysis indicated that silodosin was superior to placebo or tamsulosin in the efficacy for distal ureteral calculi with better control of pain. The safety profile of silodosin was similar to tamsulosin though retrograde ejaculation was worse for silodosin use. We conclude that silodosin might have potential as a MET for ureteral stones.
Adverse reactions to snake antivenom, and their prevention and treatment
Authors: de Silva H. Asita , Ryan Nicole M. , de Silva H. Janaka
Published: August 2015

Antivenom is the mainstay of treatment of snakebite envenoming. However, adverse reactions to snake antivenom that is available are common in many parts of the world where snakebite is prevalent. Both acute (anaphylactic or pyrogenic) and delayed (serum sickness type) reactions occur. Acute reactions are usually mild but severe systemic anaphylaxis may develop, often within an hour or so of exposure to antivenom. Serum sickness after antivenom has a delayed onset between 5 and 14 days after its administration. Ultimately, the prevention reactions will depend mainly on improving the quality of antivenom. Until these overdue improvements take place, doctors will have to depend on pharmacological prophylaxis, where the search for the best prophylactic agent is still on‐going, as well as careful observation of patients receiving antivenom in preparation for prompt management of acute as well as delayed reactions when they occur.
Pharmacokinetics in neonatal prescribing: evidence base, paradigms and the future
Authors: O'Hara Kate , Wright Ian M. R. , Schneider Jennifer J. , Jones Alison L. , Martin Jennifer H.
Published: August 2015

Paediatric patients, particularly preterm neonates, present many pharmacological challenges. Due to the difficulty in conducting clinical trials in these populations dosing information is often extrapolated from adult populations. As the processes of absorption, distribution, metabolism and excretion of drugs change throughout growth and development extrapolation presents risk of over or underestimating the doses required. Information about the development these processes, particularly drug metabolism pathways, is still limited with weight based dose adjustment presenting the best method of estimating pharmacokinetic changes due to growth and development. New innovations in pharmacokinetic research, such as population pharmacokinetic modelling, present unique opportunities to conduct clinical trials in these populations improving the safety and effectiveness of the drugs used. More research is required into this area to ensure the best outcomes for our most vulnerable patients.
Supporting Breastfeeding Establishment among Socially Disadvantaged Women: A Meta‐Synthesis
Authors: MacVicar Sonya , Kirkpatrick Pamela , Humphrey Tracy , Forbes‐McKay Katrina E.
Published: August 2015

Background

Many women from socially disadvantaged groups discontinue breastfeeding in the early postnatal period before lactation is fully established. This suggests that existing health service practices do not adequately meet the breastfeeding support needs of this population. The aim of this meta‐synthesis is to review the literature exploring how women from socioeconomically deprived backgrounds experience breastfeeding establishment and to identify factors associated with supportive practice.

Methods

The meta‐synthesis includes qualitative studies exploring the perception of women from disadvantaged groups of in‐hospital and professionally led interventions to support the establishment of breastfeeding. Searches were conducted for studies published between 1992 and 2013; after critical appraisal, eight studies were retained.

Results

Three overarching themes of the influences on maternal perception of the efficacy of breastfeeding support were identified. These included practical skill and knowledge of the breastfeeding process, the influence of psychological factors on perceived breastfeeding ability, and the provision of a person‐centered approach to infant feeding support.

Conclusions

The findings illustrate that the factors associated with supportive breastfeeding practice are extensive, complex, and interrelated. Strategies which enable mothers to gain confidence in their ability to successfully breastfeed by acquiring technical expertise, which offer positive encouragement, and which are culturally specific are more likely to be perceived as supportive by women from socially disadvantaged groups.
Analysis and synthesis of 3D shape families via deep‐learned generative models of surfaces
Authors: Huang Haibin , Kalogerakis Evangelos , Marlin Benjamin
Published: August 2015

We present a method for joint analysis and synthesis of geometrically diverse 3D shape families. Our method first learns part‐based templates such that an optimal set of fuzzy point and part correspondences is computed between the shapes of an input collection based on a probabilistic deformation model. In contrast to previous template‐based approaches, the geometry and deformation parameters of our part‐based templates are learned from scratch. Based on the estimated shape correspondence, our method also learns a probabilistic generative model that hierarchically captures statistical relationships of corresponding surface point positions and parts as well as their existence in the input shapes. A deep learning procedure is used to capture these hierarchical relationships. The resulting generative model is used to produce control point arrangements that drive shape synthesis by combining and deforming parts from the input collection. The generative model also yields compact shape descriptors that are used to perform fine‐grained classification. Finally, it can be also coupled with the probabilistic deformation model to further improve shape correspondence. We provide qualitative and quantitative evaluations of our method for shape correspondence, segmentation, fine‐grained classification and synthesis. Our experiments demonstrate superior correspondence and segmentation results than previous state‐of‐the‐art approaches.
Texture Mapping Real‐World Objects with Hydrographics
Authors: Panozzo Daniele , Diamanti Olga , Paris Sylvain , Tarini Marco , Sorkine Evgeni , Sorkine‐Hornung Olga
Published: August 2015

In the digital world, assigning arbitrary colors to an object is a simple operation thanks to texture mapping. However, in the real world, the same basic function of applying colors onto an object is far from trivial. One can specify colors during the fabrication process using a color 3D printer, but this does not apply to already existing objects. Paint and decals can be used during post‐fabrication, but they are challenging to apply on complex shapes. In this paper, we develop a method to enable texture mapping of physical objects, that is, we allow one to map an arbitrary color image onto a three‐dimensional object. Our approach builds upon hydrographics, a technique to transfer pigments printed on a sheet of polymer onto curved surfaces. We first describe a setup that makes the traditional water transfer printing process more accurate and consistent across prints. We then simulate the transfer process using a specialized parameterization to estimate the mapping between the planar color map and the object surface. We demonstrate that our approach enables the application of detailed color maps onto complex shapes such as 3D models of faces and anatomical casts.
Tight Relaxation of Quadratic Matching
Authors: Kezurer Itay , Kovalsky Shahar Z. , Basri Ronen , Lipman Yaron
Published: August 2015

Establishing point correspondences between shapes is extremely challenging as it involves both finding sets of semantically persistent feature points, as well as their combinatorial matching. We focus on the latter and consider the Quadratic Assignment Matching (QAM) model. We suggest a novel convex relaxation for this NP‐hard problem that builds upon a rank‐one reformulation of the problem in a higher dimension, followed by relaxation into a semidefinite program (SDP). Our method is shown to be a certain hybrid of the popular spectral and doubly‐stochastic relaxations of QAM and in particular we prove that it is tighter than both.

Experimental evaluation shows that the proposed relaxation is extremely tight: in the majority of our experiments it achieved the certified global optimum solution for the problem, while other relaxations tend to produce sub‐optimal solutions. This, however, comes at the price of solving an SDP in a higher dimension. Our approach is further generalized to the problem of Consistent Collection Matching (CCM), where we solve the QAM on a collection of shapes while simultaneously incorporating a global consistency constraint. Lastly, we demonstrate an application to metric learning of collections of shapes.
Perfect Matching Quad Layouts for Manifold Meshes
Authors: Razafindrazaka Faniry H. , Reitebuch Ulrich , Polthier Konrad
Published: August 2015

This paper introduces a new approach to automatically generate pure quadrilateral patch layouts on manifold meshes. The algorithm is based on a careful construction of a singularity graph of a given input frame field or a given periodic global parameterization. A pure quadrilateral patch layout is then derived as a constrained minimum weight perfect matching of that graph. The resulting layout is optimal relative to a balance between coarseness and geometric feature alignment. We formulate the problem of finding pure quadrilateral patch layouts as a global optimization problem related to a well‐known concept in graph theory. The main advantage of the new method is its simplicity and its computation speed. Patch layouts generated by the present algorithm are high quality and are very competitive compared to current state of the art.
A one‐dimensional homologically persistent skeleton of an unstructured point cloud in any metric space
Authors: Kurlin V.
Published: August 2015

Real data are often given as a noisy unstructured point cloud, which is hard to visualize. The important problem is to represent topological structures hidden in a cloud by using skeletons with cycles. All past skeletonization methods require extra parameters such as a scale or a noise bound. We define a homologically persistent skeleton, which depends only on a cloud of points and contains optimal subgraphs representing 1‐dimensional cycles in the cloud across all scales. The full skeleton is a universal structure encoding topological persistence of cycles directly on the cloud. Hence a 1‐dimensional shape of a cloud can be now easily predicted by visualizing our skeleton instead of guessing a scale for the original unstructured cloud. We derive more subgraphs to reconstruct provably close approximations to an unknown graph given only by a noisy sample in any metric space. For a cloud of n points in the plane, the full skeleton and all its important subgraphs can be computed in time O(n log n).
Epigenetic deregulations in chordoma
Authors: Yu Xin , Li Zheng
Published: August 2015

Chordoma is a rare type of malignant bone tumour arising from remnant notochord and prognosis of patients with it remains poor as its molecular and genetic mechanisms are not well understood. Increasing evidence has demonstrated that epigenetic mechanisms (DNA methylation, histone modification and nucleosome remodelling), play a crucial role in the pathogenesis of many diseases. Aberrant epigenetic patterns are present in patients with chordoma, indicating a potential role for epigenetic mechanisms inthis malignancy. Furthermore, epigenetic alterations may provide novel biomarkers for diagnosis and prognosis as well as therapeutic targets for treatment. In this review, we discuss relevant epigenetic findings associated with chordoma, and their potential application for diagnosis, prognosis and treatment.
Fenofibrate Attenuates Neutrophilic Inflammation in Airway Epithelia: Potential Drug Repurposing for Cystic Fibrosis
Authors: Stolarz Amanda J. , Farris Ryan A. , Wiley Charla A. , O'Brien Catherine E. , Price Elvin T.
Published: August 2015

A hallmark of cystic fibrosis (CF) lung disease is neutrophilic airway inflammation. Elevated neutrophil counts have been associated with decreased forced expiratory volume in 1 second and poor clinical measures in patients with CF. Interleukin 8 (IL‐8), epithelial neutrophil activating protein 78 (ENA‐78), tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF‐α), granulocyte macrophage colony‐stimulating factor (GM‐CSF), and granulocyte colony‐stimulating factor (G‐CSF) contribute to neutrophil activation and disease pathogenesis in the airways of patients with CF. Drugs that modify the production of these chemokines in the airways could potentially benefit CF patients. Thus, we determined the effects of fenofibrate on their production in cell populations obtained from the airways. Human small airway epithelial cells and CF bronchial epithelial cells were treated with IL‐1β to induce inflammation. We cotreated the cells with fenofibrate at concentrations ranging from 10 to 50 μM to determine if this drug could attenuate the inflammation. IL‐8, ENA‐78, TNF‐α, GM‐CSF, and G‐CSF production were measured from the cell culture supernates by ELISA. ANOVA statistical testing was conducted using SPSS 17.0. IL‐1β increased the production of each of the chemokines by several fold. Fenofibrate reduced IL‐1β induced production of each of these neutrophilic chemokines at the concentrations used. IL‐1β increases the production of neutrophilic chemokines in airway epithelial cells. Cotreatment with fenofibrate blunts these processes. Fenofibrate should be explored as a therapeutic option to modulate the abundant neutrophilic inflammation observed in CF.
Bioenergy and climate change mitigation: an assessment
Authors: Creutzig Felix , Ravindranath N. H. , Berndes Göran , Bolwig Simon , Bright Ryan , Cherubini Francesco , Chum Helena , Corbera Esteve , Delucchi Mark , Faaij Andre , Fargione Joseph , Haberl Helmut , Heath Garvin , Lucon Oswaldo , Plevin Richard , Popp Alexander , Robledo‐Abad Carmenza , Rose Steven , Smith Pete , Stromman Anders , Suh Sangwon , Masera Omar
Published: August 2015

Bioenergy deployment offers significant potential for climate change mitigation, but also carries considerable risks. In this review, we bring together perspectives of various communities involved in the research and regulation of bioenergy deployment in the context of climate change mitigation: Land‐use and energy experts, land‐use and integrated assessment modelers, human geographers, ecosystem researchers, climate scientists and two different strands of life‐cycle assessment experts. We summarize technological options, outline the state‐of‐the‐art knowledge on various climate effects, provide an update on estimates of technical resource potential and comprehensively identify sustainability effects. Cellulosic feedstocks, increased end‐use efficiency, improved land carbon‐stock management and residue use, and, when fully developed, BECCS appear as the most promising options, depending on development costs, implementation, learning, and risk management. Combined heat and power, efficient biomass cookstoves and small‐scale power generation for rural areas can help to promote energy access and sustainable development, along with reduced emissions. We estimate the sustainable technical potential as up to 100 EJ: high agreement; 100–300 EJ: medium agreement; above 300 EJ: low agreement. Stabilization scenarios indicate that bioenergy may supply from 10 to 245 EJ yr−1 to global primary energy supply by 2050. Models indicate that, if technological and governance preconditions are met, large‐scale deployment (>200 EJ), together with BECCS, could help to keep global warming below 2° degrees of preindustrial levels; but such high deployment of land‐intensive bioenergy feedstocks could also lead to detrimental climate effects, negatively impact ecosystems, biodiversity and livelihoods. The integration of bioenergy systems into agriculture and forest landscapes can improve land and water use efficiency and help address concerns about environmental impacts. We conclude that the high variability in pathways, uncertainties in technological development and ambiguity in political decision render forecasts on deployment levels and climate effects very difficult. However, uncertainty about projections should not preclude pursuing beneficial bioenergy options.
Burden of influenza‐associated deaths in the Americas, 2002–2008
Authors: Cheng Po‐Yung , Palekar Rakhee , Azziz‐Baumgartner Eduardo , Iuliano Danielle , Alencar Airlane P. , Bresee Joseph , Oliva Otavio , de Souza Maria de Fatima Marinho , Widdowson Marc‐Alain
Published: August 2015

Background

Influenza disease is a vaccine‐preventable cause of morbidity and mortality. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) region has invested in influenza vaccines, but few estimates of influenza burden exist to justify these investments. We estimated influenza‐associated deaths for 35 PAHO countries during 2002–2008.

Methods

Annually, PAHO countries report registered deaths. We used respiratory and circulatory (R&C) codes from seven countries with distinct influenza seasonality and high‐quality mortality data to estimate influenza‐associated mortality rates by age group (0–64, 65–74, and ≥75 years) with a Serfling regression model or a negative binomial model. We calculated the percent of all R&C deaths attributable to influenza by age group in these countries (etiologic fraction) and applied it to the age‐specific mortality in 13 countries with good mortality data but poorly defined seasonality. Lastly, we grouped the remaining 15 countries into WHO mortality strata and applied the age and mortality stratum‐specific rate of influenza mortality calculated from the 20 countries. We summed each country's estimate to arrive at an average total annual number and rate of influenza deaths in the Americas.

Results

For the 35 PAHO countries, we estimated an annual mean influenza‐associated mortality rate of 2·1/100 000 among <65‐year olds, 31·9/100 000 among those 65–74 years, and 161·8/100 000 among those ≥75 years. We estimated that annually between 40 880 and 160 270 persons (mean, 85 100) die of influenza illness in the PAHO region.

Conclusion

Influenza remains an important cause of mortality in the Americas.
Retrospective public health impact of a quadrivalent influenza vaccine in the United States
Authors: Crépey Pascal , de Boer Pieter T. , Postma Maarten J. , Pitman Richard
Published: August 2015

Introduction

Vaccination is an effective preventive strategy against influenza. However, current trivalent influenza vaccines (TIVs) contain only one of the two influenza B lineages that circulate each year. Vaccine mismatches are frequent because predicting which one will predominate is difficult. Recently licensed quadrivalent influenza vaccines (QIVs) containing the two B lineages should address this issue. Our study estimates their impact by assessing what would have been the US public health benefit of routinely vaccinating with QIV in 2000–2013.

Methods

We developed a dynamic compartmental model that accounts for interactions between influenza B lineages (natural or vaccine‐induced) and simulates the multiyear influenza dynamics for 2000–2013. Age‐structured population dynamics, vaccine efficacy (VE) per strain, and weekly ramp‐up of vaccination coverage are modeled. Sensitivity analyses were performed on VE, duration of immunity, and levels of vaccine‐induced cross‐protection between B lineages.

Results

Assuming a cross‐protection of 70% of the VE of the matched vaccine, the model predicts 16% more B lineage cases prevented by QIV. Elderly (≥65 years) and young seniors (50–64 years) benefit most from QIV, with 21% and 18% reductions in B lineage cases. Reducing cross‐protection to 50%, 30%, and 0% of the VE of the matched vaccine improves the relative benefit of QIV to 25%, 30%, and 34% less B lineage cases.

Conclusion

Using a dynamic retrospective framework with real‐life vaccine mismatch, our analysis shows that QIV routine vaccination in the United States has the potential to substantially reduce the number of influenza infections, even with relatively high estimates of TIV‐induced cross‐protection.
The Global Influenza Initiative recommendations for the vaccination of pregnant women against seasonal influenza
Authors: Macias Alejandro E. , Precioso Alexander R. , Falsey Ann R. ,   the Global Influenza Initiative
Published: August 2015

There is a heavy disease burden due to seasonal influenza in pregnant women, their fetuses, and their newborns. The main aim of this study was to review and analyze current evidence on safety, immunogenicity, and clinical benefits of the inactivated influenza vaccine (IIV) in pregnant women. Current evidence shows that in pregnant women, the seasonal and pandemic IIVs are safe and well tolerated. After vaccination, pregnant women have protective concentrations of anti‐influenza antibodies, conferring immunogenicity in newborns. The best evidence, to date, suggests that influenza vaccination confers clinical benefits in both pregnant women and their newborns. Vaccination with either the seasonal or pandemic vaccine has been shown to be cost‐effective in pregnancy. There are scarce data from randomized clinical trials; fortunately, new phase 3 clinical trials are under way. In the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, data suggest that the greatest clinical benefit for infants occurs if the IIV is administered within the first weeks of availability of the vaccine, at the beginning of the influenza season, regardless of the pregnancy trimester. The optimal timing to vaccinate pregnant women who live in tropical regions is unclear. Based on evaluation of the evidence, the Global Influenza Initiative (GII) recommends that to prevent seasonal influenza morbidity and mortality in infants and their mothers, all pregnant women, regardless of trimester, should be vaccinated with the IIV. For countries where vaccination against influenza is starting or expanding, the GII recommends that pregnant women have the highest priority.
Romalpa and Contractual Innovation
Authors: Davey James , Kelly Cliona
Published: August 2015

Socio‐legal studies have given relatively little attention to the mechanisms by which change occurs to the boilerplate that constitute modern contracts. Contrary to the impression left by neo‐classical contract theory (and its descendant, Chicago School law and economics), contracts are not routinely revised to provide an optimal solution. As recent empirical studies show, change is sporadic, even within high‐value contracts drafted by expert practitioners. Improvements to contractual form only arise after some external shock, which reveals the weakness in the prior norm. In the first application of this principle within the United Kingdom, the article considers the reputed rapid change in ‘retention of title’ clauses in sales transactions in the mid‐1970s, and identifies the factors, and personalities, that led to such rapid legal innovation and change.