bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Crystallization and preliminary X-ray crystallographic analysis of a nonstructural protein 15 mutant fromHuman coronavirus 229E
Authors: Huo Tong , Liu Xiang
Published: August 2015

Nonstructural protein 15 (nsp15), also called endoribonuclease, is a gene product of open reading frame 1b (ORF 1b) in coronaviruses. It is an important enzyme in the transcription/replication process involved in discontinuous negative-strand RNA synthesis. In this work, mutants of nsp15 fromHuman coronavirus 229E(HCoV-229E) were made based on structural analysis of the homologous nsp15s inSevere acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus(SARS-CoV) andMouse hepatitis virus(MHV). The I26A/N52A mutant of nsp15 was overexpressed, purified and crystallized, and this mutant led to a trimeric form rather than hexamers or monomers. Crystals of trimeric nsp15 were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method using polyethylene glycol as a precipitant and diffracted to 2.5 Å resolution. The crystals belonged to space groupC2221, with unit-cell parametersa= 85.9,b= 137.5,c= 423.1 Å, α = β = γ = 90°.
Structure of the 14-3-3ζ–LKB1 fusion protein provides insight into a novel ligand-binding mode of 14-3-3
Authors: Ding Sheng , Zhou Ruiqing , Zhu Yaqin
Published: August 2015

The 14-3-3 proteins are a family of highly conserved proteins that play key roles in many cellular processes. The tumour suppressor LKB1 regulates cell polarity, cell growth and energy metabolism. 14-3-3 proteins bind to LKB1 and suppress its functions. Previously, preliminary crystallographic data for the 14-3-3ζ–LKB1 fusion protein have been reported. Here, the crystal structure of this fusion protein was solved and a novel potential binding mode of 14-3-3 to its ligands was found.
Crystallization and crystallographic studies of kallistatin
Authors: Lin Fang , Zhou Aiwu , Wei Zhenquan
Published: August 2015

Kallistatin is a serine protease inhibitor (serpin) which specifically inhibits human tissue kallikrein; however, its inhibitory activity is inhibited by heparin. In order to elucidate the underlying mechanism, recombinant human kallistatin was prepared inEscherichia coliand the protein was crystallized by the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion method. X-ray diffraction data were collected to 1.9 Å resolution. The crystals were found to belong to space groupP61, with unit-cell parametersa= 113.51,b= 113.51,c= 76.17 Å. Initial analysis indicated that the crystallized kallistatin was in a relaxed conformation, with its reactive-centre loop inserted in the central β-sheet.
Crystals of the Arp2/3 complex in two new space groups with structural information about actin-related protein 2 and potential WASP binding sites
Authors: Jurgenson Christopher T. , Pollard Thomas D.
Published: August 2015

Co-crystals of the bovine Arp2/3 complex with the CA motif from N-WASP in two new space groups were analyzed by X-ray diffraction. The crystals in the orthorhombic space groupP212121contained one complex per asymmetric unit, with unit-cell parametersa= 105.48,b= 156.71,c= 177.84 Å, and diffracted to 3.9 Å resolution. The crystals in the tetragonal space groupP41contained two complexes per asymmetric unit, with unit-cell parametersa=b= 149.93,c = 265.91 Å, and diffracted to 5.0 Å resolution. The electron-density maps of both new crystal forms had densities for small segments of subdomains 1 and 2 of Arp2. Both maps had density at the binding site on Arp3 for the C-terminal EWE tripeptide from N-WASP and a binding site proposed for the C motif of N-WASP in the barbed-end groove of Arp2. The map from the tetragonal crystal form had density near the barbed end of Arp3 that may correspond to the C helix of N-WASP. The noise levels and the low resolution of the maps made the assignment of specific molecular structures for any of these CA peptides impossible.
Cleavage of nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide by the ribosome-inactivating protein fromMomordica charantia
Authors: Vinkovic M. , Dunn G. , Wood G. E. , Husain J. , Wood S. P. , Gill R.
Published: August 2015

The interaction of momordin, a type 1 ribosome-inactivating protein fromMomordica charantia, with NADP+and NADPH has been investigated by X-ray diffraction analysis of complexes generated by co-crystallization and crystal soaking. It is known that the proteins of this family readily cleave the adenine–ribose bond of adenosine and related nucleotides in the crystal, leaving the product, adenine, bound to the enzyme active site. Surprisingly, the nicotinamide–ribose bond of oxidized NADP+is cleaved, leaving nicotinamide bound in the active site in the same position but in a slightly different orientation to that of the five-membered ring of adenine. No binding or cleavage of NADPH was observed at pH 7.4 in these experiments. These observations are in accord with current views of the enzyme mechanism and may contribute to ongoing searches for effective inhibitors.
Expression, purification, crystallization and X-ray diffraction studies of the molecular chaperone prefoldin fromHomo sapiens
Authors: Aikawa Yoshiki , Kida Hiroshi , Nishitani Yuichi , Miki Kunio
Published: August 2015

Proper protein folding is an essential process for all organisms. Prefoldin (PFD) is a molecular chaperone that assists protein folding by delivering non-native proteins to group II chaperonin. A heterohexamer of eukaryotic PFD has been shown to specifically recognize and deliver non-native actin and tubulin to chaperonin-containing TCP-1 (CCT), but the mechanism of specific recognition is still unclear. To determine its crystal structure, recombinant human PFD was reconstituted, purified and crystallized. X-ray diffraction data were collected to 4.7 Å resolution. The crystals belonged to space groupP21212, with unit-cell parametersa= 123.2,b= 152.4,c= 105.9 Å.
Crystallization and X-ray diffraction analysis of a putative bacterial class I labdane-related diterpene synthase
Authors: Serrano-Posada Hugo , Centeno-Leija Sara , Rojas-Trejo Sonia , Stojanoff Vivian , Rodríguez-Sanoja Romina , Rudiño-Piñera Enrique , Sánchez Sergio
Published: August 2015

Labdane-related diterpenoids are natural products with potential pharmaceutical applications that are rarely found in bacteria. Here, a putative class I labdane-related diterpene synthase (LrdC) identified by genome mining in a streptomycete was successfully crystallized using the microbatch method. Crystals of the LrdC enzyme were obtained in a holo form with its natural cofactor Mg2+(LrdC-Mg2+) and in complex with inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi) (LrdC-Mg2+–PPi). Crystals of native LrdC-Mg2+diffracted to 2.50 Å resolution and belonged to the trigonal space groupP3221, with unit-cell parametersa = b = 107.1,c= 89.2 Å. Crystals of the LrdC-Mg2+–PPicomplex grown in the same conditions as the native enzyme with PEG 8000 diffracted to 2.36 Å resolution and also belonged to the trigonal space groupP3221. Crystals of the LrdC-Mg2+–PPicomplex grown in a second crystallization condition with PEG 3350 diffracted to 2.57 Å resolution and belonged to the monoclinic space groupP21, with unit-cell parametersa= 49.9,b= 104.1,c= 66.5 Å, β = 111.4°. The structure was determined by the single-wavelength anomalous dispersion (SAD) technique using the osmium signal from a potassium hexachloroosmate (IV) derivative.
Crystal structure of an unknown solvate of {2,2′-[ethane-1,2-diylbis(nitrilomethanylylidene)]diphenolato-κ4O,N,N′,O′}(N-ferrocenylisonicotinamide-κN1)cobalt(II): a CoII–salen complex that forms hydrogen-bonded dimers
Authors: Brautigam Bryan , Herholdt Chelsea , Farnsworth William , Brudi Ellen , McDonald Eric , Wu Guang , Contakes Stephen
Published: August 2015

The title compound, [CoFe(C5H5)(C16H14N2O2)(C11H9N2O)], was prepared as an air-stable red–brown solid by mixing equimolar amounts of {2,2′-[ethane-1,2-diylbis(nitrilomethanylylidene)]diphenolato}cobalt(II) andN-ferrocenylisonicotinamide in dry dichloromethane under nitrogen and was characterized by ESI–MS, IR, and single-crystal X-ray diffraction. The structure at 100 K has triclinic (P-1) symmetry and indicates that the complex crystallizes as a mixture of λ and δ conformers. It exhibits the expected square pyramidal geometry about Co, and forms hydrogen-bonded dimers through amide N—H groups and phenolate O atoms on an adjacent molecule. The involvement of only half of the salen ring structure in hydrogen-bonding interactions results in slight folding of the salen ring away from the pyridine coordination site in the δ conformer with an inter-salicylidene fold angle of 9.9 (7)°. In contrast, the λ conformer is nearly planar. The dimers pack into an open structure containing channels filled with highly disordered solvent molecules. These solvent molecules' contributions to the intensity data were removed with the SQUEEZE procedure [Spek (2015).Acta Cryst.C71, 9–18] available inPLATON.
Crystal structure of dichlorido(4,11-dimethyl-1,4,8,11-tetraazabicyclo[6.6.2]hexadecane)iron(III) hexafluoridophosphate
Authors: Funwie Neil L. , Cain Amy N. , Fanning Brian Z. , Hageman Serena A. , Mullens Malorie , Roberts Travis K. , Turner Daniel J. , Valdez Cammi N. , Vaughan Robert W. , Ermias Henok G. , Silversides Jon D. , Archibald Stephen J. , Hubin Timothy J. , Prior Timothy J.
Published: August 2015

The title compound, [FeCl2(C14H30N4)]PF6, contains Fe3+coordinated by the four nitrogen atoms of an ethylene cross-bridged cyclam macrocycle and twocischloride ligands in a distorted octahedral environment. In contrast to other similar compounds this is a monomer. Intermolecular C—H...Cl interactions exist in the structure between the complex ions. Comparison with the mononuclear Fe2+complex of the same ligand shows that the smaller Fe3+ion is more fully engulfed by the cavity of the bicyclic ligand. Comparison with the μ-oxido dinuclear complex of an unsubstituted ligand of the same size demonstrates that the methyl groups of 4,11-dimethyl-1,4,8,11-tetraazabicyclo[6.6.2]hexadecane prevent dimerization upon oxidation.
The crystal structures of six (2E)-3-aryl-1-(5-halogenothiophen-2-yl)prop-2-en-1-ones
Authors: Naik Vasant S. , Yathirajan Hemmige S. , Jasinski Jerry P. , Smolenski Victoria A. , Glidewell Christopher
Published: August 2015

The structures of six chalcones containing 5-halogenothiophen-2-yl substituents are reported: (2E)-1-(5-chlorothiophen-2-yl)-3-(4-ethylphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one, C15H13ClOS, (I), and (2E)-1-(5-bromothiophen-2-yl)-3-(4-ethylphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one, C15H13BrOS, (II), are isostructural in space groupP-1, while (2E)-1-(5-chlorothiophen-2-yl)-3-(4-ethoxyphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one, C15H13ClO2S, (III), and (2E)-1-(5-bromothiophen-2-yl)-3-(4-ethoxyphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one C15H13BrO2S, (IV), are isostructural in space groupP21/c. There are no hydrogen bonds of any kind in the structures of compounds (I) and (II), but in the structures of compounds (III) and (IV), the molecules are linked intoC(7) chains by means of C—H...O hydrogen bonds. In the structure of (2E)-3-(4-bromophenyl)-1-(5-chlorothiophen-2-yl)prop-2-en-1-one, C13H8BrClOS, (V), there are again no hydrogen bonds nor π–π stacking interactions but in that of (2E)-1-(5-bromothiophen-2-yl)-3-(3-methoxyphenyl)prop-2-en-1-one, C14H11BrO2S, (VI), the molecules are linked intoC(5) chains by C—H...O hydrogen bonds. In each of compounds (I)–(VI), the molecular skeletons are close to planarity, and there are short halogen...halogen contacts in the structures of compounds (II) and (V) and a short Br...O contact in the structure of compound (VI). Comparisons are made with the structures of some similar compounds.
Understanding trust
&
commitment of individual saving customers in Islamic banking
Authors: Sumaedi Sik , Juniarti Rosa P , Bakti I Gede Mahatma Yuda
Published: August 2015

Purpose

– This paper aims to examine the relationship among trust, commitment and ego involvement and their impacts on word-of-mouth communication (WOM) for individual saving customers in Islamic banking.

Design/methodology/approach

– The conceptual model and the hypotheses are formulated based on trust and commitment theory, organizational commitment theory, social judgment theory and the results of previous empirical studies on buyer–seller marketing relationship in business-to-customer (B2C) markets. Quantitative research methodology was performed to examine the model and the hypotheses. The data were collected using survey with questionnaire. The respondents of the survey are 100 Islamic banking individual saving customers. Multiple regression analysis was used to test the proposed model and the hypotheses.

Findings

– The research results show that affective commitment has a positive and significant impact on WOM, while normative commitment and calculative commitment have no significant impact on WOM. Ego involvement has a positive and significant impact on trust, normative commitment, calculative commitment and affective commitment. However, trust does not have a significant impact on calculative commitment, normative commitment and affective commitment.

Research limitations/implications

– This research was only conducted in one Islamic bank in Indonesia. The data collection using the convenience sampling method as well as the use of a small sample size caused the limitation of the research results in representing across the retail customer of the bank. This study can be replicated with a larger sample size and by involving more Islamic banks to examine the stability of the findings.

Practical implications

– The research results indicate that ego involvement has an important role in shaping trust and commitment of Islamic banking individual saving customers. Given this, the managements of Islamic banks need to ensure that the banks they have managed are relevant, important and appropriate with the values espoused by their individual customers.

Originality/value

– This study is important because of the limited literature which discusses relationship marketing in the context of Islamic banking. Furthermore, this research has a novelty on the inclusion of ego involvement in explaining trust and commitment. The use of commitment as a multi-attribute construct also enriches the literature on buyer–seller marketing relationship in B2C markets due to the limited literature that addresses commitment as a multi-attribute construct.
Determining value in a complex service setting
Authors: Plewa Carolin , Sweeney Jillian C. , Michayluk David
Published: August 2015

Purpose

– The purpose of this paper is to capture the richness of customer perceived value by determining its benefit and cost dimensions in a complex service setting. Perceived value is argued as equivalent to value-in-use; that is value that emerges for or is created by the customer.

Design/methodology/approach

– A series of in-depth interviews was conducted with a diverse group of clients of financial planning services as well as with financial planners in Australia.

Findings

– Six benefit and four cost dimensions of complex service are identified, namely expertise, education, motivation, support, relationship and convenience benefits, as well as monetary, time and effort, emotional and lifestyle costs. The results also indicate proposed outcomes of these dimensions, along with relevant moderators, leading to a broad conceptual framework for future empirical validation.

Originality/value

– This study contributes to the sparse conceptual development of value perceptions, or value-in-use, in a complex service context. In particular, the authors identify the benefit and cost dimensions, specifically addressing aspects of value that are linked to the long-term relationship between provider and customer. The authors also develop a conceptual model of value, including both outcomes and situational moderators of the various value dimensions. Finally, the conceptualization of perceived value is discussed with respect to the value co-creation literature.
Masterful words: musicianship and ethics in learning the ney
Authors: Senay Banu
Published: August 2015

Unlike in some recent anthropological writings that show the insignificance of verbal or overt instruction in the process of skill acquisition, talk is, in vital ways, constitutive of the practice of ney (reed flute) learning that I discuss here. What is it about masterful speech that makes it such a compelling vehicle for musical education? To address this question, the article presents a number of key processes that sohbet (or conversation) is designed to facilitate in learners: new skills of hearing and musical understanding; extra‐musical sensibilities germane to becoming a skilled ney‐player; and communal affections between those participating in the listening act. It is argued that when all of these combine, certain ethical dispositions are fostered in learners’ moral selves, enabling new ways of relating to others and to the city.
Moving in time, out of step: mimesis as moral breakdown in European re‐enactments of the North American Indian Woodland
Authors: Kalshoven Petra Tjitske
Published: August 2015

What constitutes a dance step executed just right? Does its success reside in its faithfulness to an ‘original’ model or script or in a feeling experienced by the dancer interpreting the model in a new context? This is the kind of epistemological, and moral, dilemma that was often voiced during my fieldwork amongst Indianists, amateurs involved in re‐enactment of Native American lifeworlds on European soil. In Indianism, museum‐quality replicas made by and worn on European bodies function as heuristic tools in exploring ‘what life was really like’ in other times and places. Focusing on Woodland Indianist performances and replicas in a variety of European settings, I suggest that Indianism, as an amateur engagement with re‐imaginings and reifications of the North American Indian, faces constant moral breakdown because of its unease with the transformative nature of mimesis.
Liquid sight, thing‐like words, and the precipitation of knowledge substances in Cuban espiritismo
Authors: Espírito Santo Diana
Published: August 2015

This article argues that in Cuban Creole espiritismo practices, ritually generated ‘knowledge’ has ontological, rather than just epistemological, effects, independent of the role of cognition. I will show that knowledge is experienced as a fluid, moving ‘substance’ external to the body that can accumulate, weigh down, hang suspended, and dissipate; it is also responsive to mediums‘ descriptive speech, becoming an object of vision‐knowledge at the same time that it is seen and spoken of collectively. I will also show that the circulation of knowledge ‘substances’ should be seen not as metaphorical but as tied to processes of making people, and ask whether knowledge can figure not just as something intersubjective or relational but as something substantive, even physiological.
The death of a drum: objects, persons, and changing social form on the Rai Coast of Papua New Guinea
Authors: Leach James
Published: August 2015

Slit‐gong drums, made and used as part of affinal exchange relations on the Rai Coast of Papua New Guinea, are considered to be a kind of person. They cannot be extracted from the kin formations in which they came into being because they are part of the transformed relations that their manufacture effects. In an unprecedented event in 2010, a large slit‐gong used by a local community school was attacked during a dispute. In light of this, I examine irreplaceability and substitutability in relation to persons on the Rai Coast and explore what the attack implies about the changing status of objects and things under new economic and social conditions.
Troubled landscapes, troubling anthropology: co‐presence, necessity, and the making of ethnographic knowledge
Authors: Chua Liana
Published: August 2015

If ‘co‐presence is a condition of [anthropological] inquiry’ (Fabian), what sort of knowledge does it produce? I explore this question through an ethnography of a ‘troubled landscape’ in Malaysian Borneo: a lush, hilly region that has been the site of a dam construction and resettlement project since the late 2000s. My article uses the notion of co‐presence as both a lens through which to explore the predicaments of the four small communities affected by the scheme and a reflexive device that underscores the embeddedness of the ethnographic encounter in a larger relational field – one characterized as much by chance and necessity as it is by anthropologists’ intellectual agendas. In the process, I seek to trouble some of the methodological and ethical issues posed by anthropology's recent ‘ontological turn’, notably the long‐standing questions of what it means to ‘take seriously’ and how ethnography and the ethnographer are implicated in this project.
Determinants of Private Long‐Term Care Insurance Purchase in Response to the Partnership Program
Authors: Lin Haizhen , Prince Jeffrey T.
Published: August 2015

Objective

To assess three possible determinants of individuals' response in their private insurance purchases to the availability of the Partnership for Long‐Term Care (PLTC) insurance program: bequest motives, financial literacy, and program awareness.

Data Sources

The health and retirement study (HRS) merged with data on states' implementation of the PLTC program.

Study Design

Individual‐level decision on private long‐term care insurance is regressed on whether the PLTC program is being implemented for a given state‐year, asset dummies, policy determinant variable, two‐way and three‐way interactions of these variables, and other controls, using fixed effects panel regression.

Data Extraction Methods

Analysis used a sample between 50 and 69 years of age from 2002 to 2010, resulting in 12,695 unique individuals with a total of 39,151 observations.

Principal Findings

We find mild evidence that intent to bequest influences individual purchase of insurance. We also find that program awareness is necessary for response, while financial literacy notably increases responsiveness.

Conclusions

Increasing response to the PLTC program among the middle class (the stated target group) requires increased efforts to create awareness of the program's existence and increased education about the program's benefits, and more generally, about long‐term care risks and needs.
Three‐dimensional in vitro measurements of tooth wear using fluoridated dentifrices
Authors: Al‐Mashhadani A , Plygkos I , Bozec L , Rodriguez JM
Published: August 2015

Background

The aim of this study was to compare differences in wear of human enamel and dentine in vitro using a 3D measurement method comparing silica versus non‐silica containing fluoridated dentifrices (Colgate Total™ [CT] or Fluor Protector Gel™ [FPG]).

Methods

Mounted native enamel (n = 36) and polished dentine (n = 36) samples were subjected to 10 wear cycles. Each cycle consisted of: (1) 1 hour remineralization in artificial saliva (AS); (2) 10 minute erosion (0.3% citric acid; pH = 2.8); (3) 2 minute toothbrush abrasion in AS (G1, control) or a slurry of 3:1 by weight of AS:dentifrice (G2 = CT; G3 = FPG) under a load of 2 N. Each group contained 12 enamel and 12 dentine samples. Paired pre‐ and post‐wear scans made with a contacting scanner were digitally superimposed using ball bearings as datum.

Results

Mean and (SD) enamel wear was G1 = 21.9 μm (6.4); G2 = 15.2 μm (2.8); G3 = 16.9 μm (3.2). Enamel wear was not different between dentifrices (p = 0.99). Both dentifrices resulted in less enamel wear compared to the control (p < 0.05). Dentine wear was G1 = 41.3 μm (8.1); G2 = 29.1 μm (4.4); G3 = 22.1 μm (3.5). Differences in measurements were observed between dentifrices and control (p < 0.05) and between dentifrices (p = 0.014) with FPG showing less dentine wear than CT.

Conclusions

FPG offered protection against erosive/abrasive tooth wear in dentine compared to CT. FPG did not offer such protective effect on enamel wear.
Efficacy of on‐demand treatment in reducing morbidity in patients with hereditary angioedema due to C1 inhibitor deficiency
Authors: Zanichelli A. , Mansi M. , Azin G. M. , Wu M. A. , Periti G. , Casazza G. , Vacchini R. , Suffritti C. , Cicardi M.
Published: August 2015

Background

Angioedema due to hereditary deficiency of C1 inhibitor causes temporarily disability. Guidelines recommend early on‐demand treatment of attacks to reduce morbidity. In this prospective observational study, we evaluated the efficacy of on‐demand approach.

Methods

From January 2009 to August 2014, data on attacks and treatments were collected from 227 patients from our centre in Milan.

Results

A total of 4244 attacks were reported; 50% were treated with approved therapies (pdC1‐INH or icatibant), 15% were with tranexamic acid, and 35% were not treated. Attack locations were peripheral cutaneous (46%), abdominal (34%), multiple (12%), facial (5%) and laryngeal (3%). Attack severities were moderate (48%), mild (28%) and severe (24%). Median attack duration (data available for 2393 attacks) with approved therapies was 10 h, significantly shorter than without treatment (45 h) or with tranexamic acid (38 h). Most of the treatments were self‐administered: 93% with icatibant and 59% with pd‐C1‐INH. Median attack duration with icatibant was 8 and 11.5 h with pd‐C1 INH. Median time from onset of symptoms to drug administration was 1 h with icatibant and 2 h with pd‐C1INH and median time from drug administration to complete resolution was 5.5 and 8 h, respectively. Second treatment was required in 12.7% of icatibant‐treated attacks and in 1.9% of pdC1‐INH‐treated attacks.

Conclusion

This study provides evidence that on‐demand treatment is effective in reducing disease‐related morbidity. The use of on‐demand treatment in Italy has increased up to 50% of attacks in the last years, reflecting a better adherence to international guidelines.
Epicutaneous immunotherapy with a hypoallergenic Bet v 1 suppresses allergic asthma in a murine model
Authors: Siebeneicher S. , Reuter S. , Wangorsch A. , Krause M. , Foetisch K. , Heinz A. , Naito S. , Reuter A. , Taube C. , Vieths S. , Scheurer S. , Toda M.
Published: August 2015

Background

Due to reduced allergic potency, hypoallergenic variants have been suggested as safer and potentially more efficacious alternative to the corresponding wild‐type allergens in allergen‐specific immunotherapy. Here, we aimed at investigating the efficacy of recombinant Bet v 1B2, a hypoallergenic folding variant of Bet v 1, in epicutaneous immunotherapy to suppress asthmatic features using a murine model of birch pollen allergy.

Methods and Results

Before, or after sensitization with rBet v 1 plus ALUMW and intranasal challenges with birch pollen extract, BALB/c mice received epicutaneous immunization (EPI) with rBet v 1, or rBet v 1B2 on their depilated back. Prophylactic EPI with rBet v 1B2, but not with rBet v 1, suppressed serum levels of Bet v 1‐specific IgE antibodies and reduced the number of eosinophils and the concentrations of Th2 cytokines in bronchoalveolar lavage. In an established allergic condition, serum levels of Bet v 1‐specific IgE antibodies were similar between PBS‐treated control mice and EPI‐treated mice. However, therapeutic EPI with rBet v 1B2, but not with rBet v 1, significantly suppressed the development of airway inflammation and lung function impairment.

Conclusion

This study is the first to show the effect of therapeutic EPI with a recombinant form of a hypoallergenic folding variant on the suppression of asthmatic features. Our results suggest that rBet v 1B2 along with its reduced IgE‐binding capacity could be a preferred therapeutic allergen than wild‐type rBet v 1 in epicutaneous immunotherapy of birch pollen‐induced allergic asthma, in particular due to a lower risk of allergic side effect.
Determinants of anterior chamber depth in a large Caucasian population and agreement between intra‐ocular lens Master and Pentacam measurements of this variable
Authors: Fernández‐Vigo José Ignacio , Fernández‐Vigo José Ángel , Macarro‐Merino Ana , Fernández‐Pérez Cristina , Martínez‐de‐la‐Casa Jose Maria , García‐Feijoó Julian
Published: August 2015

Purpose

To establish the main determinants of anterior chamber depth (ACD) in Caucasian subjects and examine agreement between IOL Master® (Carl Zeiss, Meditec) and Pentacam® (Oculus Inc.) ACD measurements.

Methods

In a cross‐sectional study, 1006 right eyes of 1006 healthy subjects were subjected to a general ophthalmologic examination using the Pentacam®, IOLMaster® and OCT RTVue® (Optovue Inc.). The variables recorded were age, sex, intra‐ocular pressure, spherical refractive error, axial length (AL), central corneal thickness, corneal diameter, iris thickness, and anterior chamber depth, volume and angle (ACA). The effects of these variables on ACD were analysed by multivariate linear regression.

Results

Mean age was 49.1 years (range 18–84); 61% were women. In 98.3% of the eyes, ACD could be measured using the IOL Master and in 98% the Pentacam was used to give mean depths of 3.30 ± 0.42 mm and 3.35 ± 0.43 mm, respectively, for the two instruments. Agreement between these devices was high. In men, ACD was 0.13 mm on average deeper than in women (p < 0.001). ACD was correlated with ACA, AL, corneal diameter, spherical refractive error and age (p < 0.001). Five variables – age, sex, spherical error, corneal diameter and ACA – were able to explain 74.1% of the variation produced in ACD (R2 = 0.741; p < 0.001), among which age emerged as the main determinant (partial R2 = 0.279; p < 0.001).

Conclusions

Age, sex, spherical error, corneal diameter and ACA correlate highly with ACD and together serve to explain much of its variation. When used to measure ACD, the IOLMaster and Pentacam show excellent agreement.
Alcohol consumption is higher among left‐behind Chinese children whose parents leave rural areas to work
Authors: Jiang Shan , Chu Jie , Li Cuicui , Medina Alexis , Hu Qiongwei , Liu Jing , Zhou Chengchao
Published: August 2015

Aim

Over the past few decades, a large number of rural residents have migrated to cities in China and left their children behind. This study estimated how many 10‐ to 14‐year‐old children in rural Anhui drank alcohol and examined the association between parental migration and children's alcohol use.

Methods

A cross‐sectional study was conducted in six cities in Anhui between July and August 2012. All participants had lived in the study villages for at least six months during the previous year and were interviewed face‐to‐face using a standardised questionnaire.

Results

More than half (57%) of the 1367 subjects were left‐behind children, 43% lived with both parents and 9.6% currently drank alcohol. When we controlled for other variables, the rate of alcohol use was statistically higher among left‐behind children if both parents had migrated (14.0%) than among children living with both parents (7.8%) (p = 0.002). Boys, children with siblings and those with a poorer academic performance were more likely to drink.

Conclusion

Children in rural China were more likely to drink if both their parents had migrated in search of work. School‐based interventions could help to reduce alcohol use among rural left‐behind children, especially boys.
Respiratory illness contributed significantly to morbidity in children born extremely premature or with extremely low birthweights in 1999–2000
Authors: Skromme Kaia , Leversen Katrine Tyborg , Eide Geir Egil , Markestad Trond , Halvorsen Thomas
Published: August 2015

Aim

This study investigated respiratory morbidity and risk factors during the first five years of life after extremely preterm birth.

Methods

Paediatric assessments and parental questionnaires were obtained at two and five years of age in this national prospective cohort of 372 Norwegian children born during 1999–2000 at a gestational age of <28 weeks or birthweight <1,000 grams.

Results

Paediatric assessments were obtained for 100% and 82% of the children at two and five years of age and completed questionnaires for 71% and 76%, respectively. Total readmission rates decreased from 49 to 14% at one to five years, and readmissions for respiratory causes fell from 31 to 3%. Bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) or gestational age was not associated with readmissions for respiratory causes in multiple logistic regression models. However, both BPD and gestational age ≤25 weeks was associated with wheezing during the first year and the use of asthma medication during the first two years. BPD was associated with asthma medication between three and five years but not significantly at five years.

Conclusion

Respiratory morbidity decreased during the first five years of life but was still more common than expected. It was unrelated to BPD and gestational age at five years of age.
Differences in the ARID‐1 alpha expressions in squamous and adenosquamous carcinomas of uterine cervix
Authors: Solakoglu Kahraman Dudu , Diniz Gulden , Sayhan Sevil , Ayaz Duygu , Uncel Melek , Karadeniz Tugba , Akman Tulay , Ozdemir Aykut
Published: August 2015

AT‐rich interactive domain 1A (ARID1A) is a tumor suppressor gene involved in chromatin remodeling which encodes ARID1A (BAF250a) protein. Recent studies have shown the loss of ARID1A expression in several types of tumors. This retrospective study was designed to evaluate the differences in tissue expressions of ARID1A in a spectrum of cervical neoplasms. Cervical intraepithelial neoplasms, invasive squamous or adenosquamous carcinomas were identified in 100 patients recently diagnosed as cervical neoplasms based on pathology databases. In this series, there were 29 low‐ and 29 high‐grade cervical intraepithelial neoplasms, 27 squamous cell carcinomas, and 15 adenosquamous carcinomas. Mean age of the patients was 47.8 ± 13 years (20–80 years). It was determined that the expression of ARID1A was statistically significantly down‐regulated in adenosquamous carcinomas when compared with non‐invasive or invasive squamous cell carcinomas (p = 0.015). Lower levels of the ARID1A expression were detected in cases with adenosquamous carcinomas (60%), low‐ or high‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesion (SIL) (31%), and squamous cell carcinomas (18.5%). Our findings have demonstrated the presence of a correlation between ARID1A expression and adenomatous differentiation of uterine squamous cell carcinomas. Therefore, ARID1A gene may suggestively have a role in the pathogenesis of cervical adenosquamous carcinomas.
Loss of B cell regulatory function is associated with delayed healing in patients with tibia fracture
Authors: Yang Shufeng , Ding Wei , Feng Dapeng , Gong Haiyang , Zhu Dongmei , Chen Bin , Chen Jianmin
Published: August 2015

The process of bone regeneration after fracture is a complex and well‐orchestrated process usually requiring 3–12 weeks. A subset of patients, however, exhibit delayed healing time and even incomplete restoration of the normal bone structure. Although the precise mechanism is unknown, studies have shown that smurf1 may play a role during the process. Here, we sought to determine the involvement of the immune system in impaired bone healing. We found that immediately after fracture, the B‐cell composition was shifted toward increased frequency of plasmablasts and decreased frequency of naïve B cells, reflecting higher inflammatory status. The percentage of CD19+CD24+CD38+ regulatory B cells was also upregulated in response to bone fracture. The production of IL‐10, a pivotal cytokine in regulatory B‐cell function, was upregulated in all patients. Interestingly, the increase in IL‐10 production was only sustained throughout the healing course in normal healing patients but not in delayed healing patients. Rather, delayed healing patients downregulated B‐cell IL‐10 secretion early and had reduced level of regulatory B‐cell activity. Together, these data revealed a role of regulatory B cells in the endogenous bone regeneration process and an alternation in B‐cell‐mediated regulation in delayed healing patients.
Laparoscopic repair of a Bochdalek hernia in an adult woman
Authors: Sutedja Barlian , Muliani Yenny
Published: August 2015

Bochdalek hernia (BH) is a congenital defect of the diaphragm that usually presents in the neonatal period with life threatening cardiorespiratory distress. It is rare for BH to remain silent until adulthood. A 51‐year‐old woman presented with progressive dyspnea and abdominal symptoms, but without a history of trauma. The diagnosis of BH was made based on chest X‐ray and CT. The hernia was repaired by the laparoscopic technique, and the patient made an uneventful recovery. This report validates the feasibility of laparoscopic repair of BH in an adult, which should be within the capability of an advanced laparoscopic surgeon.
Urgent laparoscopic mesh splenopexy for torsion of wandering spleen and distal pancreas: A case report
Authors: Torri Fabio , Parolini Filippo , Vanzetti Enrico , Milianti Susanna , Cheli Maurizio , Alberti Daniele
Published: August 2015

Wandering spleen is a condition in which an incomplete fusion of the splenic ligaments allows the spleen to move within the abdomen, predisposing it to splenic torsion along its vascular pedicle. Torsion of a wandering spleen is an uncommon occurrence, especially in children, and associated torsion of the distal pancreas is even more unusual, with only four cases having been reported in adults. Non‐specific clinical presentation makes radiologic evaluation essential in order to obtain a diagnosis and to send the patient for early surgery before life‐threatening complications arise. Here we present a rare case of torsion of wandering spleen together with volvulus of the distal pancreas in a 13‐year‐old girl. In this case, prompt radiological assessment allowed for an early diagnosis, and the patient was successfully treated with urgent laparoscopic derotation of both the spleen and the distal pancreas as well as mesh splenopexy. To the best of our knowledge, this procedure has never been described in a pediatric setting.
Laparoscopic surgery for sigmoidocutaneous fistula due to diverticulitis: A case report
Authors: Hidaka Eiji , Nakahara Kenta , Maeda Chiyo , Takehara Yusuke , Ishida Fumio , Kudo Shin‐ei
Published: August 2015

Sigmoidocutaneous fistulas due to sigmoid colon diverticulitis are very rare. Here we report a case in which laparoscopic sigmoidectomy was used to successfully treat a sigmoidocutaneous fistula due to diverticulitis. A 41‐year‐old man was admitted to our hospital because of redness and swelling of the left inguinal skin. Enhanced abdominal CT revealed a subcutaneous abscess in the left lower abdomen. Percutaneous drainage was performed, and fistulography revealed a fistula between the sigmoid colon and left inguinal skin. Therefore, a sigmoidocutaneous fistula was diagnosed, and laparoscopic sigmoidectomy and fistulectomy were performed. The sigmoid colon had several diverticula, and a pathological examination revealed that the sigmoidocutaneous fistula was due to diverticulitis. The postoperative course was uneventful, and the patient was discharged on postoperative day 8. In cases of sigmoidocutaneous fistula, laparoscopic treatment can be safely performed.
Retroperitoneal schwannoma between the inferior vena cava and the abdominal aorta resected by laparoscopic surgery: A case report
Authors: Nishizawa Nobuyuki , Kumamoto Yusuke , Hirata Mitsuhiro , Watanabe Masahiko
Published: August 2015

A 22‐year‐old woman presented with backache. Imaging analysis revealed a retroperitoneal tumor, 40 mm in diameter, surrounded by the abdominal aorta, inferior vena cava, caudate lobe of liver, and the left renal vein. The tumor consisted of multilocular cystic parts, and a solid part showed contrast enhancement. The possibility of malignancy could not be excluded, so we planned a laparoscopic tumorectomy. After placement of a transjugular vascular sheath for an occlusion balloon catheter in the inferior vena cava, the operation was performed with six ports. There was a strong fibrotic adhesion between the tumor and the abdominal aorta, with other weak adhesions. The tumor was successfully resected by a laparoscopic operation with minimal bleeding. The histopathological diagnosis was a benign schwannoma. This case demonstrates that a retroperitoneal tumor adjacent to major vessels can be resected safely by laparoscopic surgery if the surgeon is especially careful of the possibility of accidental bleeding.
Laparoscopic anterior pelvic exenteration for locoregionally advanced rectal cancer directly invading the urinary bladder: A case report of low anterior resection with en bloc cystectomy for sphincter preservation
Authors: Ishizaki Hidenobu , Nakashima Shinya , Hamada Takeomi , Nishida Takahiro , Maehara Naoki , Ikeda Takuto , Tsukino Hiromasa , Mukai Shoichiro , Kamoto Toshiyuki , Kondo Kazuhiro
Published: August 2015

Laparoscopic multi‐visceral resection in patients with T4 colorectal cancer remains controversial. A 73‐year‐old man was admitted to the hospital for rectosigmoid cancer directly invading the urinary bladder trigone without distant metastasis. We successfully performed complete resection by laparoscopic anterior pelvic exenteration while preserving the anus. After laparoscopic mobilization of the rectum, urinary bladder, and prostate, the urethra and urethral catheter were dissected to reveal the lower rectum. By pulling the urethral catheter toward the head, the prostate was excised retrogradely from the lower rectum anterior wall. The lower rectum was resected and anastomosed by the double stapling technique with a safe distal margin from the tumor. Pathological findings of the resected specimen indicated no residual tumor in the surgical margin. There was no evidence of recurrence 34 months after surgery. En bloc, R0, laparoscopic anterior pelvic exenteration for T4 rectal cancer is feasible. However, further studies with long‐term follow‐up are required to resolve oncological outcomes.
Improving transport container design to reduce broiler chicken PSE (pale, soft, exudative) meat in Brazil
Authors: Spurio Rafael S. , Soares Adriana L. , Carvalho Rafael H. , Silveira Junior Vivaldo , Grespan Moisés , Oba Alexandre , Shimokomaki Massami
Published: August 2015

Throughout the chicken production chain, transport from farm to the commercial abattoir is one of the most critical sources of stress, particularly heat stress. The aim of this work was to describe the performance of a new prototype truck container designed to improve the microenvironment and reduce the incidence of pale, soft and exudative (PSE) meat and dead on arrival (DOA) occurrences. Experiments were carried out for four different conditions: regular and prototype truck, both with and without wetting loaded cages at the farm (for bird thermal stress relief) just before transporting. While there was no difference in the DOA index (P ≥ 0.05), the prototype truck caused a reduction (P < 0.05) in the occurrence of PSE meat by 66.3% and 49.6% with and without wetting, respectively. The results of this experiment clearly revealed a low‐cost solution for transporting chickens that yields better animal welfare conditions and improves meat quality.
Oral antibiotics enhance antibody responses to keyhole limpet hemocyanin in orally but not muscularly immunized chickens
Authors: Murai Atsushi , Kitahara Kazuki , Okumura Shouta , Kobayashi Misato , Horio Fumihiko
Published: August 2015

Recent studies have emphasized the crucial role of gut microbiota in triggering and modulating immune response. We aimed to determine whether the modification of gut microbiota by oral co‐administration of two antibiotics, ampicillin and neomycin, would lead to changes in the antibody response to antigens in chickens. Neonatal chickens were given or not given ampicillin and neomycin (0.25 and 0.5 g/L, respectively) in drinking water. At 2 weeks of age, the chicks were muscularly or orally immunized with antigenic keyhole limpet hemocyanin (KLH), and then serum anti‐KLH antibody levels were examined by ELISA. In orally immunized chicks, oral antibiotics treatment enhanced antibody responses (IgM, IgA, IgY) by 2–3‐fold compared with the antibiotics‐free control, while the antibiotics did not enhance antibody responses in the muscularly immunized chicks. Concomitant with their enhancement of antibody responses, the oral antibiotics also lowered the Lactobacillus species in feces. Low doses of antibiotics (10‐fold and 100‐fold lower than the initial trial), which failed to change the fecal Lactobacillus population, did not modify any antibody responses when chicks were orally immunized with KLH. In conclusion, oral antibiotics treatment enhanced the antibody response to orally exposed antigens in chickens. This enhancement of antibody response was associated with a modification of the fecal Lactobacillus content, suggesting a possible link between gut microbiota and antibody response in chickens.
Effects of summer heat stress on physiological variables, ovulation and progesterone secretion in Pelibuey ewes under natural outdoor conditions in an arid region
Authors: Macías‐Cruz Ulises , Gastélum Miguel A. , Álvarez Francisco D. , Correa Abelardo , Díaz Raúl , Meza‐Herrera César A. , Mellado Miguel , Avendaño‐Reyes Leonel
Published: August 2015

Ten non‐lactating multiparous Pelibuey breed ewes were housed in a corral to evaluate the effects of summer thermal stress on physiologic variables, estrous behavior, ovulation and corpus luteum functionality under natural conditions of an arid region. In summer and autumn, daily estrous detection with a ram fitted with an apron and blood sample collections were performed during two natural estrous cycles. An environment of heat stress was detected in summer and thermoneutral in autumn. Rectal temperature and respiratory frequency were greater (P < 0.01) in summer than in autumn during the morning and afternoon. Season did not affect (P > 0.05) live weight, body condition, length of estrous cycle or percentage of ewes in estrous and ovulating. Compared with autumn, serum progesterone concentrations in summer decreased (P < 0.05) between days 8 and 14 of the estrous cycle. It is concluded that under outdoor conditions of arid regions, while estrous and ovulatory activities of Pelibuey ewes were not affected by summer thermal stress, the corpus luteum functionality was decreased.
Effect of farm characteristics and practices on hygienic quality of ovine raw milk used for artisan cheese production in central Italy
Authors: Carloni Elisa , Petruzzelli Annalisa , Amagliani Giulia , Brandi Giorgio , Caverni Francesco , Mangili Piermario , Tonucci Franco
Published: August 2015

A survey on ovine dairy farms directly transforming own‐produced milk, in the Italian Marche region, was carried out to assess flock and milking practices that may influence milk hygienic‐sanitary conditions. A census survey established that 24 dairy farms were located in this region. Bulk milk samples were collected throughout the milking period in each dairy farm in 2013. Analyzed variables were: (i) chemical parameters such as fat, protein and lactose content, dry matter and pH; and (ii) total bacterial (TBC) and somatic cell counts (SCC). Chemical parameter values were in agreement with published data while, geometric mean (GM) log10 SCC was 5.91 and TBC GM was 57 978 colony forming units/mL, in compliance with Eropean Union criteria. A positive correlation was found between SCC and TBC when GMs of all farm data were considered (Spearman's rho = 0.7925; P = 0.0001). Statistical analysis did not show significant correlation between SCC or TBC GM and dairy farm principal characteristics. Although SCC levels detected in the present study should suggest the need to implement mastitis control programs, Marche's dairy sheep flocks revealed a good hygienic condition level. This is an important aspect in implementing safety for end users of the final product.