bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Identification of circular RNAs in porcine sperm and evaluation of their relation to sperm motility
Authors: Gòdia Marta , Castelló Anna , Rocco Martina , Cabrera Betlem , Rodríguez-Gil Joan Enric , Balasch Sam , Lewis Craig , Sánchez Armand , Clop Alex
Published: May 2020

Circular RNAs (circRNAs) are emerging as a novel class of noncoding RNAs which potential role as gene regulators is quickly gaining interest. circRNAs have been studied in different tissues and cell types across several animal species. However, a thorough characterization of the circRNAome in ejaculated sperm remains unexplored. In this study, we profiled the sperm circRNA catalogue using 40 porcine ejaculates. A complex population of 1,598 circRNAs was shared in at least 30 of the 40 samples. Generally speaking, the predicted circRNAs presented low abundances and were tissue-specific. Around 80% of the circRNAs identified in the boar sperm were reported as novel. Results from abundance correlation between circRNAs and miRNAs together with the prediction of microRNA (miRNA) target sites in circRNAs suggested that circRNAs may act as miRNA sponges. Moreover, we found significant correlations between the abundance of 148 exonic circRNAs and sperm motility parameters. Two of these correlations, involving ssc_circ_1458 and ssc_circ_1321, were confirmed by RT-qPCR using 36 additional samples with extreme and opposite sperm motility values. Our study provides a thorough characterization of circRNAs in sperm and suggests that circRNAs hold potential as noninvasive biomarkers for sperm quality and male fertility.
Finite deformation elastography of articular cartilage and biomaterials based on imaging and topology optimization
Authors: Cai Luyao , Nauman Eric A. , Pedersen Claus B. W. , Neu Corey P.
Published: May 2020

Tissues and engineered biomaterials exhibit exquisite local variation in stiffness that defines their function. Conventional elastography quantifies stiffness in soft (e.g. brain, liver) tissue, but robust quantification in stiff (e.g. musculoskeletal) tissues is challenging due to dissipation of high frequency shear waves. We describe new development of finite deformation elastography that utilizes magnetic resonance imaging of low frequency, physiological-level (large magnitude) displacements, coupled to an iterative topology optimization routine to investigate stiffness heterogeneity, including spatial gradients and inclusions. We reconstruct 2D and 3D stiffness distributions in bilayer agarose hydrogels and silicon materials that exhibit heterogeneous displacement/strain responses. We map stiffness in porcine and sheep articular cartilage deep within the bony articular joint space in situ for the first time. Elevated cartilage stiffness localized to the superficial zone is further related to collagen fiber compaction and loss of water content during cyclic loading, as assessed by independent T2 measurements. We additionally describe technical challenges needed to achieve in vivo elastography measurements. Our results introduce new functional imaging biomarkers, which can be assessed nondestructively, with clinical potential to diagnose and track progression of disease in early stages, including osteoarthritis or tissue degeneration.
Clinical utility and cost-effectiveness of bacterial 16S rRNA and targeted PCR based diagnostic testing in a UK microbiology laboratory network
Authors: Aggarwal Dinesh , Kanitkar Tanmay , Narouz Michael , Azadian Berge S. , Moore Luke S. P. , Mughal Nabeela
Published: May 2020

16S ribosomal-ribonucleic acid polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and targeted PCR aid microbiological diagnosis in culture-negative clinical samples. Despite routine clinical use, there remains a paucity of data on their effectiveness across a variety of clinical sample types, and cost-effectiveness. In this 4 year multicentre retrospective observational study, all clinical samples referred for 16S PCR and/or targeted PCR from a laboratory network serving seven London hospitals were identified. Laboratory, clinical, prescribing, and economic variables were analysed. 78/607 samples were 16S PCR positive; pus samples were most frequently positive (29/84; p < 0.0001), and CSF least (8/149; p = 0.003). 210/607 samples had targeted PCR (361 targets requested across 23 organisms) with 43/361 positive; respiratory samples (13/37; p = 0.01) had the highest detection rate. Molecular diagnostics provided a supportive microbiological diagnosis for 21 patients and a new diagnosis for 58. 14/91 patients with prescribing information available and a positive PCR result had antimicrobial de-escalation. For culture-negative samples, mean cost-per-positive 16S PCR result was £568.37 and £292.84 for targeted PCR, equating to £4041.76 and £1506.03 respectively for one prescription change. 16S PCR is more expensive than targeted PCR, with both assisting in microbiological diagnosis but uncommonly enabling antimicrobial change. Rigorous referral pathways for molecular tests may result in significant fiscal savings.
Middle Miocene long-term continental temperature change in and out of pace with marine climate records
Authors: Methner Katharina , Campani Marion , Fiebig Jens , Löffler Niklas , Kempf Oliver , Mulch Andreas
Published: May 2020

Reconstructing long-term continental temperature change provides the required counterpart to age equivalent marine records and can reveal how terrestrial and marine temperatures were related during times of extreme climate change such as the Miocene Climatic Optimum (MCO) and the following Middle Miocene Climatic Transition (MMCT). Carbonate clumped isotope temperatures (T(Δ47)) from 17.5 to 14.0 Ma Central European paleosols (Molasse Basin, Switzerland) display a temperature pattern during the MCO that is similar to coeval marine temperature records. Maximum temperatures in the long-term soil T(Δ47) record (at 16.5 and 14.9 Ma) lag maximum ocean bottom water temperatures, lead global ice volume, and mark the initiation of minimum global ice volume phases. The suggested onset of the MMCT, deduced by a marked and rapid decline in Molasse Basin soil temperatures is coeval with cooling reported in high-latitudinal marine records. This is best explained by a change in the seasonal timing of soil carbonate formation that was likely driven by a modification of rainfall seasonality and thus by a major reorganization of mid-latitude atmospheric circulation across Central Europe. In particular, our data suggest a strong climate coupling between the North Atlantic and Central Europe already in the middle Miocene.
Longitudinal Study of Oral Microbiome Variation in Twins
Authors: Freire Marcelo , Moustafa Ahmed , Harkins Derek M. , Torralba Manolito G. , Zhang Yun , Leong Pamela , Saffery Richard , Bockmann Michelle , Kuelbs Claire , Hughes Toby , Craig Jeffrey M. , Nelson Karen E.
Published: May 2020

Humans are host to a multitude of microorganisms that rapidly populate the body at birth, subject to a complex interplay that is dependent on host genetics, lifestyle, and environment. The host-associated microbiome, including the oral microbiome, presents itself in a complex ecosystem important to health and disease. As the most common chronic disease globally, dental caries is induced by host-microbial dysbiosis in children and adults. Multiple biological and environmental factors are likely to impact disease predisposition, onset, progression, and severity, yet longitudinal studies able to capture these influences are missing. To investigate how host genetics and environment influenced the oral microbial communities over time, we profiled supragingival plaque microbiomes of dizygotic and monozygotic twins during 3 visits over 12-months. Dental plaque DNA samples were amplified by targeting the 16S rRNA gene V4 region, and microbial findings were correlated with clinical, diet and genetic metadata. We observed that the oral microbiome variances were shaped primarily by the environment when compared to host genetics. Among the environmental factors shaping microbial changes of our subjects, significant metadata included age of the subject, and the age by which subjects initiated brushing habits, and the types of actions post-brushing. Relevant heritability of the microbiome included Actinomyces and Capnocytophaga in monozygotic twins and Kingella in dizygotic twins. Corynebacterium and Veillonella abundances were associated with age, whereas Aggregatibacter was associated with younger subjects. Streptococcus abundance showed an inverse association over time, and Selenomonas abundances increased with brushing frequency per day. Unraveling the exact biological mechanisms in caries has the potential to reveal novel host-microbial biomarkers, pathways, and targets important to effective preventive measures, and early disease control in children.
Information Cascades and the Collapse of Cooperation
Authors: Yang Guoli , Csikász-Nagy Attila , Waites William , Xiao Gaoxi , Cavaliere Matteo
Published: May 2020

In various types of structured communities newcomers choose their interaction partners by selecting a role-model and copying their social networks. Participants in these networks may be cooperators who contribute to the prosperity of the community, or cheaters who do not and simply exploit the cooperators. For newcomers it is beneficial to interact with cooperators but detrimental to interact with cheaters. However, cheaters and cooperators usually cannot be identified unambiguously and newcomers’ decisions are often based on a combination of private and public information. We use evolutionary game theory and dynamical networks to demonstrate how the specificity and sensitivity of those decisions can dramatically affect the resilience of cooperation in the community. We show that promiscuous decisions (high sensitivity, low specificity) are advantageous for cooperation when the strength of competition is weak; however, if competition is strong then the best decisions for cooperation are risk-adverse (low sensitivity, high specificity). Opportune decisions based on private and public information can still support cooperation but suffer of the presence of information cascades that damage cooperation, especially in the case of strong competition. Our research sheds light on the way the interplay of specificity and sensitivity in individual decision-making affects the resilience of cooperation in dynamical structured communities.
Accuracy and Effectiveness of Mammography versus Mammography and Tomosynthesis for Population-Based Breast Cancer Screening: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Giampietro Rodrigo Rosa , Cabral Marcos Vinicius Gama , Lima Silvana Andrea Molina , Weber Silke Anna Theresa , dos Santos Nunes-Nogueira Vania
Published: May 2020

We proposed to compare the accuracy and effectiveness of digital breast tomosynthesis (DBT), plus digital or synthetic mammography, with digital mammography alone in women attending population-based breast cancer screenings. We performed a systematic review and included controlled studies comparing DBT with digital mammography for breast cancer screening. Search strategies were applied to the MEDLINE, Embase, LILACS, and CENTRAL databases. With moderate quality of evidence, in 1,000 screens, DBT plus digital mammography increased the overall and invasive breast cancer rates by 3 and 2 (RR 1.36, 95% CI 1.18 to 1.58 and RR 1.51, 95% CI 1.27 to 1.79, respectively). DBT plus synthetic mammography increased both overall and invasive breast cancer rates by 2 (RR 1.38, 95% CI 1.24 to 1.54 and RR 1.37, 95% CI 1.22 to 1.55, respectively). DBT did not improve recall, false positive and false negative rates. However due to heterogeneity the quality of evidence was low. For women attending population-based breast cancer screenings, DBT increases rates of overall and invasive breast cancer. There is no evidence with high or moderate quality showing that DBT compared with digital mammography decreases recall rates, as well as false positive and false negative rates.
The establishment of a fungal consortium in a new winery
Authors: Abdo Hany , Catacchio Claudia Rita , Ventura Mario , D’Addabbo Pietro , Alexandre Hervé , Guilloux-Bénatier Michèle , Rousseaux Sandrine
Published: May 2020

The biodiversity and evolution of fungal communities were monitored over a period of 3 vintages in a new winery. Samples were collected before grape receipt and 3 months after fermentation from 3 different wine related environments (WRE): floor, walls and equipment and analyzed using Illumina Mi-Seq. Genera of mold and filamentous fungi (294), non-enological (10) and wine-associated yeasts (25) were detected on all WREs before the arrival of the first harvest. Among them, genera likeAlternariaandAureobasidiumpersisted during two vintages. Therefore, these genera are not specific to winery environment and appear to be adapted to natural or anthropic environments due to their ubiquitous character. Some genera likeCandidawere also detected before the first harvest but only on one WREs, whereas, on the other WREs they were found after the harvest. The ubiquitous character and phenotypic traits of these fungal genera can explain their dynamics. After the first harvest and during 3 vintages the initial consortium was enriched by oenological genera likeStarmerellaintroduced either by harvest or by potential transfers between the different WREs. However, these establishing genera, includingSaccharomyces, do not appear to persist due to their low adaptation to the stressful conditions of winery environment.
Immunity to vector saliva is compromised by short sand fly seasons in endemic regions with temperate climates
Authors: Oliveira Fabiano , Giorgobiani Ekaterina , Guimarães-Costa Anderson B. , Abdeladhim Maha , Oristian James , Tskhvaradze Lamzira , Tsertsvadze Nikoloz , Zakalashvili Mariam , Valenzuela Jesus G. , Kamhawi Shaden
Published: May 2020

Individuals exposed to sand fly bites develop humoral and cellular immune responses to sand fly salivary proteins. Moreover, cellular immunity to saliva or distinct salivary proteins protects against leishmaniasis in various animal models. In Tbilisi, Georgia, an endemic area for visceral leishmaniasis (VL), sand flies are abundant for a short period of ≤3 months. Here, we demonstrate that humans and dogs residing in Tbilisi have little immunological memory to saliva ofP. kandelakii, the principal vector of VL. Only 30% of humans and 50% of dogs displayed a weak antibody response to saliva after the end of the sand fly season. Likewise, their peripheral blood mononuclear cells mounted a negligible cellular immune response after stimulation with saliva. RNA seq analysis of wild-caughtP. kandelakiisalivary glands established the presence of a typical salivary repertoire that included proteins commonly found in other sand fly species such as the yellow, SP15 and apyrase protein families. This indicates that the absence of immunity toP. kandelakiisaliva in humans and dogs from Tbilisi is probably caused by insufficient exposure to sand fly bites. This absence of immunity to vector saliva will influence the dynamics of VL transmission in Tbilisi and other endemic areas with brief sand fly seasons.
Aging with Toxoplasma gondii results in pathogen clearance, resolution of inflammation, and minimal consequences to learning and memory
Authors: McGovern Kathryn E. , Cabral Carla M. , Morrison Helena W. , Koshy Anita A.
Published: May 2020

Persistent inflammation has been identified as a contributor to aging-related neurodegenerative disorders such as Alzheimer’s disease. Normal aging, in the absence of dementia, also results in gradual cognitive decline and is thought to arise, in part, because of a chronic pro-inflammatory state in the brain.Toxoplasma gondiiis an obligate intracellular parasite that establishes a persistent, asymptomatic infection of the central nervous system (CNS) accompanied by a pro-inflammatory immune response in many of its hosts, including humans and rodents. Several studies have suggested that the inflammation generated by certain strains ofT. gondiiinfection can be neuroprotective in the context of a secondary insult like beta-amyloid accumulation or stroke. Given these neuroprotective studies, we hypothesized that a prolonged infection withT. gondiimay protect against age-associated decline in cognition. To test this hypothesis, we infected young adult mice with either of two genetically distinct, persistentT. gondiistrains (Prugniaud/type II/haplogroup 2 and CEP/type III/haplogroup 3) and monitored mouse weight, survival, and learning and memory over the ensuing 20 months. At the end of the study, we evaluated CNS inflammation and parasite burden in the surviving mice. We found that parasite infection had no impact on age-associated decline in learning and memory and that by 20 months post infection, in the surviving mice, we found no evidence of parasite DNA, cysts, or inflammation in the CNS. In addition, we found that mice infected with type III parasites, which are supposed to be less virulent than the type II parasites, had a lower rate of long-term survival. Collectively, these data indicate thatT. gondiimay not cause a life-long CNS infection. Rather, parasites are likely slowly cleared from the CNS and infection and parasite clearance neither positively nor negatively impacts learning and memory in aging.
3D-MCN: A 3D Multi-scale Capsule Network for Lung Nodule Malignancy Prediction
Authors: Afshar Parnian , Oikonomou Anastasia , Naderkhani Farnoosh , Tyrrell Pascal N. , Plataniotis Konstantinos N. , Farahani Keyvan , Mohammadi Arash
Published: May 2020

Despite the advances in automatic lung cancer malignancy prediction, achieving high accuracy remains challenging. Existing solutions are mostly based on Convolutional Neural Networks (CNNs), which require a large amount of training data. Most of the developed CNN models are based only on the main nodule region, without considering the surrounding tissues. Obtaining high sensitivity is challenging with lung nodule malignancy prediction. Moreover, the interpretability of the proposed techniques should be a consideration when the end goal is to utilize the model in a clinical setting. Capsule networks (CapsNets) are new and revolutionary machine learning architectures proposed to overcome shortcomings of CNNs. Capitalizing on the success of CapsNet in biomedical domains, we propose a novel model for lung tumor malignancy prediction. The proposed framework, referred to as the 3D Multi-scale Capsule Network (3D-MCN), is uniquely designed to benefit from: (i) 3D inputs, providing information about the nodule in 3D; (ii) Multi-scale input, capturing the nodule’s local features, as well as the characteristics of the surrounding tissues, and; (iii) CapsNet-based design, being capable of dealing with a small number of training samples. The proposed 3D—MCN architecture predicted lung nodule malignancy with a high accuracy of 93.12%, sensitivity of 94.94%, area under the curve (AUC) of 0.9641, and specificity of 90% when tested on the LIDC-IDRI dataset. When classifying patients as having a malignant condition (i.e., at least one malignant nodule is detected) or not, the proposed model achieved an accuracy of 83%, and a sensitivity and specificity of 84% and 81% respectively.
A new framework for growth curve fitting based on the von Bertalanffy Growth Function
Authors: Lee Laura , Atkinson David , Hirst Andrew G. , Cornell Stephen J.
Published: May 2020

All organisms grow. Numerous growth functions have been applied to a wide taxonomic range of organisms, yet some of these models have poor fits to empirical data and lack of flexibility in capturing variation in growth rate. We propose a new VBGF framework that broadens the applicability and increases flexibility of fitting growth curves. This framework offers a curve-fitting procedure for five parameterisations of the VBGF: these allow for different body-size scaling exponents for anabolism (biosynthesis potential), besides the commonly assumed 2/3 power scaling, and allow for supra-exponential growth, which is at times observed. This procedure is applied to twelve species of diverse aquatic invertebrates, including both pelagic and benthic organisms. We reveal widespread variation in the body-size scaling of biosynthesis potential and consequently growth rate, ranging from isomorphic to supra-exponential growth. This curve-fitting methodology offers improved growth predictions and applies the VBGF to a wider range of taxa that exhibit variation in the scaling of biosynthesis potential. Applying this framework results in reliable growth predictions that are important for assessing individual growth, population production and ecosystem functioning, including in the assessment of sustainability of fisheries and aquaculture.
Simulation and Experimental Study on Doubled-Input Capacitively Coupled Contactless Conductivity Detection of Capillary Electrophoresis
Authors: Wang Chunling , Xing Haoyang , Zheng Baozhan , Yuan Hongyan , Xiao Dan
Published: May 2020

In this contribution, we optimize the structure of double-input capacitively coupled contactless conductivity detector (DIC4D) that proposed before by our group and successfully applied it in the capillary electrophoresis of inorganic ion analysis. Furthermore, we present the detail theoretical analysis and simulation to exploring the working mechanism of DIC4D. Compared with C4D, under identical experimental conditions and by using the same current-to-voltage converter, both the theoretical and experimental results suggest that the effectiveness and feasibility of DIC4D. The improved DIC4D diminished the baseline drift effects in C4D, provides lower noise, higher sensitivity and notably stable baseline. The LODs of DIC4D are 1.0 μM for K+and 1.5 μM for Li+(S/N = 3). DIC4D provides a better linear relationship (R = 0.997 and 0.998 for K+and Li+, respectively) with the range of 2.0 μM ~ 2.5 mM.
Chronic Sympathetic Hyperactivity Triggers Electrophysiological Remodeling and Disrupts Excitation-Contraction Coupling in Heart
Authors: Joca Humberto C. , Santos‐Miranda Artur , Joviano-Santos Julliane V. , Maia-Joca Rebeca P. M. , Brum Patricia C. , Williams George S. B. , Cruz Jader S.
Published: May 2020

The sympathetic nervous system is essential for maintenance of cardiac function via activation of post-junctional adrenergic receptors. Prolonged adrenergic receptor activation, however, has deleterious long-term effects leading to hypertrophy and the development of heart failure. Here we investigate the effect of chronic adrenergic receptors activation on excitation-contraction coupling (ECC) in ventricular cardiomyocytes from a previously characterized mouse model of chronic sympathetic hyperactivity, which are genetically deficient in the adrenoceptor α2A and α2C genes (ARDKO). When compared to wild-type (WT) cardiomyocytes, ARDKO displayed reduced fractional shortening (~33%) and slower relaxation (~20%). Furthermore, ARDKO cells exhibited several electrophysiological changes such as action potential (AP) prolongation (~50%), reduced L-type calcium channel (LCC) current (~33%), reduced outward potassium (K+) currents (~30%), and increased sodium/calcium exchanger (NCX) activity (~52%). Consistent with reduced contractility and calcium (Ca2+) currents, the cytosolic Ca2+ ([Ca2+]i) transient from ARDKO animals was smaller and decayed slower. Importantly, no changes were observed in membrane resting potential, AP amplitude, or the inward K+ current. Finally, we modified our existing cardiac ECC computational model to account for changes in the ARDKO heart. Simulations suggest that cellular changes in the ARDKO heart resulted in variable and dyssynchronous Ca2+-induced Ca2+ release therefore altering [Ca2+]i transient dynamics and reducing force generation. In conclusion, chronic sympathetic hyperactivity impairs ECC by changing the density of several ionic currents (and thus AP repolarization) causing altered Ca2+ dynamics and contractile activity. This demonstrates the important role of ECC remodeling in the cardiac dysfunction secondary to chronic sympathetic activity.
Effect of a novel synbiotic on Streptococcus mutans
Authors: Bijle Mohammed Nadeem , Neelakantan Prasanna , Ekambaram Manikandan , Lo Edward C. M. , Yiu Cynthia Kar Yung
Published: May 2020

We examined the effect of L-arginine - (i) on the growth of L. rhamnosus GG (LrG) and (ii) combined LrG synbiotic on the growth of cariogenic S. mutans. Viability of LrG was assessed using MTT/XTT assays, confocal imaging with ADS activity measurement. The effect of L-arginine (0.5%/1%/2%) (2×/24 h) with LrG on S. mutans was evaluated by measuring the colony forming units, biofilm biomass, real-time qPCR and confocal imaging. The pH of the spent media was measured immediately and 24 h post-treatment with assessment of lactic acid. The LrG viability was highest with 2% L-arginine (p < 0.001). Confocal imaging showed that 2% L-arginine increased biofilm thickness of LrG. The 2% L-arginine and LrG synbiotic significantly inhibited the growth of S. mutans (p < 0.001) reducing the viable counts (p = 0.002) and biofilm biomass (p < 0.001). The pH of spent media was the highest when treated with 2% L-arginine and LrG synbiotic (p < 0.001) with no difference between post-treatment and 24 h post-treatment (p > 0.05). Conversely, the 2% L-arginine and LrG synbiotic showed the lowest lactic acid production (p < 0.001). This study demonstrated that L-arginine enhanced the growth of LrG. The 2% L-arginine and LrG synbiotic synergistically inhibits the growth of S. mutans with significant potential to develop as an anti-caries regimen.
Effects of Structural Factors of Hydrated TiO2 on Rutile TiO2 Pigment Preparation via Short Sulfate Process
Authors: Tian Congxue
Published: May 2020

The structural factors such as crystal structure, particle size distribution and impurity content of hydrated TiO2 had great effects on the structures and pigment properties of the rutile TiO2. The rutile TiO2 white pigment was prepared via the Short Sulfate Process from low concentration industrial TiOSO4 solution. In order to produce rutile TiO2 pigment with good structures and excellent pigment properties, the crystal size of the hydrated TiO2 should be controlled less than 8.9 nm and as close as possible to 7.9 nm, which could effectively promote the phase transformation and crystal growth of the rutile TiO2. The appropriate particle size distribution of hydrated TiO2 had obvious effects on obtaining rutile TiO2 with narrower particle size distribution and near 0.20 µm. It was best to adjust the hydrolysis conditions to reduce the specific surface area of the hydrated TiO2 so as to reduce the iron ion impurity adsorption.
Automated abnormality classification of chest radiographs using deep convolutional neural networks
Authors: Tang Yu-Xing , Tang You-Bao , Peng Yifan , Yan Ke , Bagheri Mohammadhadi , Redd Bernadette A. , Brandon Catherine J. , Lu Zhiyong , Han Mei , Xiao Jing , Summers Ronald M.
Published: May 2020

As one of the most ubiquitous diagnostic imaging tests in medical practice, chest radiography requires timely reporting of potential findings and diagnosis of diseases in the images. Automated, fast, and reliable detection of diseases based on chest radiography is a critical step in radiology workflow. In this work, we developed and evaluated various deep convolutional neural networks (CNN) for differentiating between normal and abnormal frontal chest radiographs, in order to help alert radiologists and clinicians of potential abnormal findings as a means of work list triaging and reporting prioritization. A CNN-based model achieved an AUC of 0.9824 ± 0.0043 (with an accuracy of 94.64 ± 0.45%, a sensitivity of 96.50 ± 0.36% and a specificity of 92.86 ± 0.48%) for normal versus abnormal chest radiograph classification. The CNN model obtained an AUC of 0.9804 ± 0.0032 (with an accuracy of 94.71 ± 0.32%, a sensitivity of 92.20 ± 0.34% and a specificity of 96.34 ± 0.31%) for normal versus lung opacity classification. Classification performance on the external dataset showed that the CNN model is likely to be highly generalizable, with an AUC of 0.9444 ± 0.0029. The CNN model pre-trained on cohorts of adult patients and fine-tuned on pediatric patients achieved an AUC of 0.9851 ± 0.0046 for normal versus pneumonia classification. Pretraining with natural images demonstrates benefit for a moderate-sized training image set of about 8500 images. The remarkable performance in diagnostic accuracy observed in this study shows that deep CNNs can accurately and effectively differentiate normal and abnormal chest radiographs, thereby providing potential benefits to radiology workflow and patient care.
Influenza infection rewires energy metabolism and induces browning features in adipose cells and tissues
Authors: Ayari Asma , Rosa-Calatrava Manuel , Lancel Steve , Barthelemy Johanna , Pizzorno Andrés , Mayeuf-Louchart Alicia , Baron Morgane , Hot David , Deruyter Lucie , Soulard Daphnée , Julien Thomas , Faveeuw Christelle , Molendi-Coste Olivier , Dombrowicz David , Sedano Laura , Sencio Valentin , Le Goffic Ronan , Trottein François , Wolowczuk Isabelle
Published: May 2020

Like all obligate intracellular pathogens, influenza A virus (IAV) reprograms host cell’s glucose and lipid metabolism to promote its own replication. However, the impact of influenza infection on white adipose tissue (WAT), a key tissue in the control of systemic energy homeostasis, has not been yet characterized. Here, we show that influenza infection induces alterations in whole-body glucose metabolism that persist long after the virus has been cleared. We report depot-specific changes in the WAT of IAV-infected mice, notably characterized by the appearance of thermogenic brown-like adipocytes within the subcutaneous fat depot. Importantly, viral RNA- and viral antigen-harboring cells are detected in the WAT of infected mice. Using in vitro approaches, we find that IAV infection enhances the expression of brown-adipogenesis-related genes in preadipocytes. Overall, our findings shed light on the role that the white adipose tissue, which lies at the crossroads of nutrition, metabolism and immunity, may play in influenza infection.
Correcting the formalism governing Bloch Surface Waves excited by 3D Gaussian beams
Authors: Baida Fadi I. , Bernal Maria-Pilar
Published: May 2020

Due to the growing number of publications and applications based on the exploitation of Bloch Surface Waves and the numerous errors and approximations that are used to evaluate their properties, we judge important for the successful interpretation and understanding of experiments to implement an adapted formalism allowing to extract the relevant information. Through comprehensive calculations supported by an analytical development, we establish generalized formula for the propagation length and the Goos-Hänchen shift, which are different from what is usually employed in the literature. The relative errors in the estimation of these two quantities are evaluated to vary between 50% and 200%. The effect due to a slight deviation of the angle of incidence or of the beam-waist position with respect to the structure are studied showing high effects on the Bloch Surface Waves properties. This formalism is adapted to any polarization-dependent Lorentzian-shape resonant structures illuminated by a polarized Gaussian beam.
Intermolecular cross-correlations in the dielectric response of glycerol
Authors: Gabriel Jan Philipp , Zourchang Parvaneh , Pabst Florian , Helbling Andreas , Weigl Peter , Böhmer Till , Blochowicz Thomas
Published: May 2020

We suggest a way to disentangle self- from cross-correlations in the dynamic susceptibility of the glass former glycerol by combining dielectric relaxation (BDS) with light scattering (DDLS), field cycling NMR, and shear compliance (SC) data.
Infrared spectroscopy of live cells from a flowing solution using electrically-biased plasmonic metasurfaces
Authors: Kelp Glen , Li Joy , Lu Junlan , DiNapoli Nicholas , Delgado Robert , Liu Chao , Fan Donglei , Dutta-Gupta Shourya , Shvets Gennady
Published: May 2020

Microfluidics, dielectrophoresis (DEP) and metasurface-enhanced infrared reflection spectroscopy (MEIRS) are combined for capturing and rapid spectroscopy of live cells.
Describing the public perception of chemistry on twitter
Authors: Guerris Manuel , Cuadros Jordi , González-Sabaté Lucinio , Serrano Vanessa
Published: May 2020

The public image of chemistry is a relevant issue for chemical stakeholders. It has been studied throughout history by means of document analysis and more recently through surveys. Twitter, a worldwide online social network, is based on spontaneous opinions. We tried to identify the public perception of chemistry on Twitter, what it explains, and which sentiments are perceived. We gathered 256 833 tweets between 1st January 2015 and 30th June 2015 containing the words “chemistry”, “chemical” or “chem”. We cleaned and filtered them down to 50 725 tweets with textual information in English and clustered them using spherical k-means. The resulting clusters were categorised according to six topics by 18 chemistry experts. The prevailing topics were the learning environment topic, related to activities and tasks in chemistry courses, and the human activity topic, referring to facts and news about the chemical industry. The scientific knowledge topic, concerning communication of chemistry knowledge, only accounted for a small percentage of the tweets. We classified the tweets of most relevant topics based on their sentiment values and obtained more positive than negative perceptions. Nevertheless, the analysis of the unigrams and bigrams word clouds revealed a significant presence of chemophobia-related terms in the human activity topic, both in positive and negative classified tweets. It also revealed specific elements of chemistry courses negatively perceived in the learning environment topic.
DNA-Programmed plasmonic ELISA for the ultrasensitive detection of protein biomarkers
Authors: Cheng Yu-Hong , Tang Hao , Yu Ru-Qin , Jiang Jian-Hui
Published: May 2020

We report a novel DNA-programmed plasmonic enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) for the ultrasensitive detection of protein biomarkers with the naked eye.
Ni–PC@SBA-15 derived from nano-sized Ni-MOF-74 confined in SBA-15 as a highly active catalyst for gas phase catalytic hydrodechlorination of 1,2-dichloroethane
Authors: Ning Xin , Deng Dongzhi , Fu Heyun , Qu Xiaolei , Xu Zhaoyi , Zheng Shourong
Published: May 2020

A novel Ni-porous carbon composite confined in SBA-15 was fabricated for highly effective and selective gas phase catalytic hydrodechlorination of 1,2-dichloroethane.
Mechanoresponsive turn-on phosphorescence by a desymmetrization approach
Authors: Tani Yosuke , Komura Mao , Ogawa Takuji
Published: May 2020

Mechanoresponsive turn-on of room-temperature phosphorescence of a metal-free organic 1,2-diketone is reported. Desymmetrization selectively modifies the emission of the crystal.
Multi-modal control over the assembly of a molecular motor bola-amphiphile in water
Authors: Xu Fan , Pfeifer Lukas , Stuart Marc C. A. , Leung Franco King-Chi , Feringa Ben L.
Published: May 2020

We report multi-modal-control over the assembly behaviour of a first-generation molecular motor bola-amphiphile in water by light, pH and the choice of counter-ions.
A closed-shell monomeric rhenium(1−) anion provided by m-terphenyl isocyanide ligation
Authors: Salsi Federico , Neville Michael , Drance Myles , Hagenbach Adelheid , Chan Chinglin , Figueroa Joshua S. , Abram Ulrich
Published: May 2020

Mixed isocyanide/carbonyl complexes with rhenium in the oxidation states “+1”, “0” and “−1” were prepared assisted by a sterically encumbered.
R-Substituent induced structural diversity, synergistic effect and highly selective luminescence sensing for Fe3+ detection by post-synthetically modified Cd-MOFs
Authors: Liu Qing , Tan Jing-Yi , Zhang Jian-Yong , Zhang Na , Deng Wei
Published: May 2020

Six Cd2(OCO)2 cluster based MOFs involving 5-substituted isophthalic acid and n-TPT ligands have been characterized. Cd-MOF-4 can be functionalized by Eu3+ ions by PSMs, which shows highly selective and sensitive to Fe3+ ion in aqueous solution.
Design of catalysts comprising a nickel core and ceria shell for hydrogen production from plastic waste gasification: an integrated test for anti-coking and catalytic performance
Authors: Wu Shan-Luo , Kuo Jia-Hong , Wey Ming-Yen
Published: May 2020

A novel core–shell catalyst with high coking resistance ability was applied for hydrogen production from plastic waste.
Deoxydehydration of 1,4-anhydroerythritol over anatase TiO2(101)-supported ReOx and MoOx
Authors: Xi Yongjie , Lauterbach Jochen , Pagan-Torres Yomaira , Heyden Andreas
Published: May 2020

Heterogeneously catalyzed deoxydehydration (DODH) ordinarily occurs over oxide supported ReOx sites. A comparably high activity of MoOx/TiO2(101) suggests that it is a promising low-cost DODH catalyst that can replace Re-based catalysts.
An iron variant of the Noyori hydrogenation catalyst for the asymmetric transfer hydrogenation of ketones
Authors: Huo Shangfei , Wang Qingwei , Zuo Weiwei
Published: May 2020

A new type of iron catalyst that structurally mimics the Noyori hydrogenation catalyst can catalyze the asymmetric transfer hydrogenation of ketones.
Correction: C–H nickellation of phenol-derived phosphinites: regioselectivity and structures of cyclonickellated complexes
Authors: Mangin Loïc P. , Zargarian Davit
Published: May 2020

Correction for ‘C–H nickellation of phenol-derived phosphinites: regioselectivity and structures of cyclonickellated complexes’ by Loïc P. Mangin et al., Dalton Trans., 2017, 46, 16159–16170, DOI: 10.1039/C7DT03403B.
Ingestion of collagen hydrolysates alleviates skin chronological aging in an aged mouse model by increasing collagen synthesis
Authors: Zhang Ling , Zhang Siqi , Song Hongdong , Li Bo
Published: May 2020

Ingestion of collagen hydrolysates alleviates skin chronological agingviaactivating the TGF-β/Smad pathway to increase collagen synthesis.
Machine learning-aided quantification of antibody-based cancer immunotherapy by natural killer cells in microfluidic droplets
Authors: Sarkar Saheli , Kang Wenjing , Jiang Songyao , Li Kunpeng , Ray Somak , Luther Ed , Ivanov Alexander R. , Fu Yun , Konry Tania
Published: May 2020

Comparative proteomic profiling and development of convolution neural network algorithm for quantifying discrete target interaction by engineered NK cells in microfluidic droplets.
Quantitative analysis of phase topology evolution during three-phase displacements in porous media
Authors: Osei-Bonsu Kofi , Khorsandi Saeid , Piri Mohammad
Published: May 2020

Normalized Euler characteristic characterize the difference in the phase topology captured at two different stages of the experiment.
Self-powered integrated system of a strain sensor and flexible all-solid-state supercapacitor by using a high performance ionic organohydrogel
Authors: Huang Jianren , Peng Shuijiao , Gu Jianfeng , Chen Guoqi , Gao Jianhong , Zhang Jin , Hou Linxi , Yang Xiaoxiang , Jiang Xiancai , Guan Lunhui
Published: May 2020

A self-powered integrated strain sensor system which could be attached to the human body to detect human motion was developed.
Ice recrystallisation inhibiting polymer nano-objects via saline-tolerant polymerisation-induced self-assembly
Authors: Georgiou Panagiotis G. , Kontopoulou Ioanna , Congdon Thomas R. , Gibson Matthew I.
Published: May 2020

Saline-tolerant PISA synthesis is developed, to generate poly(vinyl alcohol) based nanoparticles, which are potent ice recrystallisation inhibitors.
Identification of copper-regulated proteins in an oceanic diatom, Thalassiosira oceanica 1005
Authors: Kong Liangliang , Price Neil M
Published: May 2020

Copper (Cu) is an essential cofactor of photosynthetic and respiratory redox proteins in phytoplankton and a scarce resource in parts of the open sea. Although its importance for growth is well recognized, the molecular mechanisms by which phytoplankton respond and acclimate to Cu deficiency are not well known. In this study, we identified the dominant Cu-regulated proteins and measured key physiological traits of Thalassiosira oceanica (CCMP 1005) under Cu-limiting and sufficient conditions. Growth limitation of T. oceanica occurred at environmentally relevant Cu concentrations (1 nM) as a result of decreased photosynthetic efficiency (ΦPSII). In Cu-limited cells, levels of plastocyanin decreased by 3-fold compared to Cu-replete cells and rates of maximum photosynthetic electron transport were reduced. Proteins associated with light harvesting complexes also declined in response to Cu limitation, presumably to adjust to reduced photosynthetic electron flow and to avoid photodamage to the photosystems. Key enzymes involved in carbon and nitrogen assimilation were down-regulated in low-Cu cells, as were steady state rates of C and N uptake. Relatively fewer proteins were up-regulated by Cu limitation, but among them were two enzymes involved in fatty acid oxidation (FAO). The increase in FAO may be a sign of increased turnover of cellular lipids caused by damage from oxidative stress. A putative transcription factor containing three, repetitive methionine motifs (MpgMgggM; MpgMggM) increased significantly in Cu-limited cells. The collective results provide a general description of how plastocyanin-dependent diatoms adjust metabolism to cope with chronic Cu deficiency.
Investigation on carrier mobility when comparing nanostructures and bands manipulation
Authors: Hou Zhenghao , Xiao Yu , Zhao Li-Dong
Published: May 2020

Nanostructuring as an effective strategy to reduce thermal conductivity was well developed to enhance thermoelectric performance in the past decades.
Visible-light-mediated borylation of aryl and alkyl halides with a palladium complex
Authors: Zhao Jia-Hui , Zhou Zhao-Zhao , Zhang Yue , Su Xuan , Chen Xi-Meng , Liang Yong-Min
Published: May 2020

Palladium catalyzed visible-light-mediated borylation of inactivated aryl and alkyl halides is reported; the method provided high yields and excellent functional group compatibility.
A novel one-pot method for the stereoselective synthesis of tetrahydropyrimidinones in a low melting mixture
Authors: Devi Pramila , Lambu Mallikharjuna Rao , Baskaran Sundarababu
Published: May 2020

A metal free method for the stereoselective synthesis of tetrahydropyrimidinone from a vinyl arene has been developed using a low melting mixture as a novel reaction medium.
Synthesis of hydrophilic caged DAG-lactones for chemical biology applications
Authors: Kobayakawa Takuya , Takano Hikaru , Ishii Takahiro , Tsuji Kohei , Ohashi Nami , Nomura Wataru , Furuta Toshiaki , Tamamura Hirokazu
Published: May 2020

8-Azacoumarin-4-ylmethyl-type PPGs: The synthesized caged-DAG-lactones with 8-aza-Bhc and 8-aza-Ihc groups showed the enhancement of hydrophilicity and the highest photolytic efficiency among existent caged-DAG-lactones.
Reversible-deactivation radical polymerization of cyclic ketene acetals
Authors: Jackson Alexander W.
Published: May 2020

This review discusses the history of reversible-deactivation radical ring-opening polymerization of cyclic ketene acetals, focusing on the preparation of degradable complex polymeric architectures.
New synthesis of 2-aroylbenzothiazoles via metal-free domino transformations of anilines, acetophenones, and elemental sulfur
Authors: Huynh Tien V. , Doan Khang V. , Luong Ngoc T. K. , Nguyen Duyen T. P. , Doan Son H. , Nguyen Tung T. , Phan Nam T. S.
Published: May 2020

A new synthesis of 2-aroylbenzothiazoles via iodine-promoted domino transformations of anilines, acetophenones, and elemental sulfur was demonstrated.
A simple fluorescent probe for detection of Ag+ and Cd2+ and its Cd2+ complex for sequential recognition of S2−
Authors: Li Shengling , Cao Duanlin , Ma Wenbing , Hu Zhiyong , Meng Xianjiao , Li Zhichun , Yuan Changchun , Zhou Tao , Han Xinghua
Published: May 2020

A fluorescent probe for detection of Ag+ and Cd2+ and its Cd2+ complex for sequential recognition of S2−.
Compatibilization of porphyrins for use as high permittivity fillers in low voltage actuating silicone dielectric elastomers
Authors: Gale Cody B. , Brook Michael A. , Skov Anne Ladegaard
Published: May 2020

Derivatization of the porphyrin TPMP improves its dispersion in silicone dielectric elastomers, resulting in materials capable of achieving high actuations at low voltages.
Multiple-responsive supramolecular vesicle based on azobenzene–cyclodextrin host–guest interaction
Authors: Wang Jiao , Wang Ting , Liu Xiaohui , Lu Yan , Geng Jingjing
Published: May 2020

A quintuple-responsive vesicle system was successfully fabricated by simply mixing HPB with an equal amount of β-CD.
Cloud-inspired multiple scattering for light intensified photochemical flow reactors
Authors: Zheng Lu , Xue Hansong , Wong Wai Kuan , Cao Hui , Wu Jie , Khan Saif A.
Published: May 2020

A novel photoflow reactor that mimics how nature accelerates photochemistry in the clouds.
Impact of arithmetic automaticity on students' success in second-semester general chemistry
Authors: Powell Cynthia B. , Simpson Joseph , Williamson Vickie M. , Dubrovskiy Anton , Walker Deborah Rush , Jang Ben , Shelton G. Robert , Mason Diana
Published: May 2020

Completion of a first-semester chemistry (Chem I) course lays the foundation for understanding second-semester chemistry (Chem II) topics. The purpose of this study is to evaluate the influence of basic arithmetic skills on students’ Chem II success in understanding mathematics-grounded concepts (e.g., solutions and aqueous reactions, kinetics, equilibrium, acids and bases, solubility and equilibria, thermodynamics, electrochemistry, and nuclear chemistry). Previous studies suggest a strong correlation between arithmetic preparation and performance in general chemistry courses, though few have focused on the second-semester course. In this investigation, researchers from six higher-education institutions in Texas, USA of different sizes and with student bodies of different diversities have collaborated to determine whether the Math-Up Skills Test (MUST) is able to reliably identify at-risk students from a population ofn= 1599 at the beginning of a Chem II course.