bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The impact of flake tool attributes and butcher experience on carcass processing time and efficiency during experimental butchery trials
Authors: Merritt Stephen R. , Peters Kara D.
Published: December 2018

Butchery involves using tools to process animal carcasses during consumption of tissue packages, and this technological adaptation has a deep connection with evolving human dietary ecology. Studying butchery informs archaeological inferences about lithic artefact function and site formation and describes skeletal traces of carcass consumption, which may corroborate the butchery function of certain tools. Diverse methodologies including subjective personal observations and well‐controlled experiments that investigate abstracted slicing mechanics or realistic butchery scenarios provide mixed conclusions about which kinds of tools are more efficient for butchery and whether their archaeological traces can be discriminated. Much less analytical attention is devoted to investigating whether a butcher's experience using stone tools to process carcasses impacts their performance, which may confound experimental assessment of how tool attributes are related to butchery efficiency. These experiments examine butchery performance in two novices over 40 goat forelimb and hindlimb trials where a single flake was used to deflesh and disarticulate a limb. By measuring butchery performance as defleshing efficiency (the amount of meat removed per second) and the time necessary to disarticulate limb elements, we demonstrate that in general, both butchers performed similarly when butchering forelimbs and hindlimbs and did not exhibit a strong learning curve of performance improvement. As well, flake weight, size, and cutting edge length were positively related to defleshing efficiency and negatively related to disarticulation time, suggesting that larger flakes are better butchery tools. Our results suggest that anatomical differences between forelimbs and hindlimbs did not impact butchery timing or efficiency and butchery performance is similar across novices. To maximize comparability of experimental butchery results, we encourage future research to examine butchery performance with respect to animal or tissue package size and investigate how butcher experience impacts performance.
Bimetallic ions synergistic cross‐linking high‐strength rapid self‐healing antibacterial hydrogel
Authors: Wang Shuxue , Lv Yuanfei , Feng Shuangjiang , Li Qiurong , Zhang Tao
Published: December 2018

In this work, a novel PAA‐Fe3+‐Al3+ hydrogel with triple network structure (TN) was synthesized via bimetallic ions synergistic cross‐linking strategy. As‐synthesized samples were characterized by scanning electron microscope, Fourier transform infrared analysis, and X‐ray diffractometer. The relevant experiment results demonstrated that the hydrogel can rapidly self‐heal in ambient temperature without any external stimulus with 95% healing efficiency in 60 s. Simultaneously, the relatively rapid self‐healing of PAA‐Fe3+‐Al3+ polymer can be obtained through the coordination of metal ions with the COO− in PAA and the oxygen of agar in the TN hydrogel system. And the prepared hydrogels demonstrate excellent mechanical properties—high tensile strength (the tensile strain ≈ 1.011 mm/mm, tensile stress ≈ 0.34 MPa) and large elasticity (the elongation at break ≈ 74%). Especially, the antimicrobial activity of the novel hydrogel against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli bacteria was investigated using the inhibition zone method, showing remarkable antibacterial activity. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 59:919–927, 2019. © 2018 Society of Plastics Engineers
From active plasmonic devices to plasmonic molecular electronics
Authors: Lacroix Jean‐Christophe , van Nguyen Quynh , Ai Yong , van Nguyen Quyen , Martin Pascal , Lacaze Pierre‐Camille
Published: December 2018

This work is mainly focused on studies combining plasmonic nanostructures and π‐conjugated systems. It describes active molecular plasmonic devices in which π‐conjugated molecules and polymers, grafted on gold nanoparticles, are used to tune the plasmonic properties of metal nanostructures. It also explores two emerging research fields, i.e. plasmonic electrochemistry and plasmonic molecular electronics. In the former, electrochemical reactions are controlled and triggered by plasmons which yield various light‐induced electrochemical reactions at the nanoscale. In the latter, one combines molecular plasmonics and molecular electronics in plasmonic molecular devices. © 2018 Society of Chemical Industry
Influence of NaCl/urea on the aggregation behavior of dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride and sodium dodecyl sulfate at varying temperatures and compositions: Experimental and theoretical approach
Authors: Mahbub Shamim , Rub Malik Abdul , Hoque Md. Anamul , Khan Mohammed Abdullah
Published: December 2018

Aggregation behavior of the anionic surfactant sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) and the cationic surfactant dodecyltrimethylammonium chloride (DTAC) has been studied by conductivity measurement in aqueous/urea/NaCl medium. The deviation of experimentally executed critical micelle concentration (cmc) from their respective ideal values (cmcid) signifies the interaction between the studied surfactants. The experiments were performed at different temperatures in order to estimate different thermodynamic parameters. The negative values of Gibbs free energy (ΔGmo) point out the feasibility of the micellization behavior of the mixed systems as well as validate the feasibility of SDS‐DTAC interactions. The micellar mole fraction (X1) and the activity coefficients (f1 and f2) on the basis of different proposed model (Rubingh, Motomura, & Rodenas) and ideal mole fraction (Xid) were estimated, and obtained results illustrate the high contribution of DTAC in the mixed micellization, which exacerbates with the increase of the mole fraction of the DTAC. The interaction parameter (β) has also been investigated to get detailed insights of the interactions between the surfactants by concerning theoretical model proposed by Rubingh. The ΔGex values were attained to be negative at all α1 and temperatures, showing that mixed micelles are more stable than micelles of individual surfactants.
Immunoproteomic Identification of Noncarbohydrate Antigens Eliciting Graft‐Specific Adaptive Immune Responses in Patients with Bovine Pericardial Bioprosthetic Heart Valves
Authors: Gates Katherine V. , Xing Qi. , Griffiths Leigh G.
Published: December 2018

Purpose

This case‐control retrospective discovery study is to identify antigenic bovine pericardium (BP) proteins that stimulate graft‐specific humoral immune response in patients implanted with glutaraldehyde fixed bovine pericardial (GFBP) heart valves.

Experimental design

Banked serum is collected from age‐ and sex‐matched patients who received either a GFBP or mechanical heart valve replacement. Serum IgG is isolated and used to generate poly‐polyclonal antibody affinity chromatography columns from each patient. Native and deglycosylated BP protein extracts are separately added to individual patient affinity chromatography columns, with unbound proteins washed through the column. Proteins captured in the affinity chromatography columns are submitted for proteomic identification. Differences between GFBP and mechanical heart valve replacement recipients are analyzed with Gaussian linearized modeling.

Results

Carbohydrate antigens overwhelm protein capture in the column, requiring BP protein deglycosylation prior to affinity chromatography. Nineteen BP protein antigens, which stimulated graft‐specific IgG production, are identified in patients who received GFBP valve replacements. Identified antigens are significantly over‐represented for calcium‐binding proteins.

Conclusions and clinical relevance

Patients implanted with GFBP valves develop a graft‐specific humoral immune response toward BP protein antigens, with 19 specific antigens identified in this work. The molecular functions of over‐represented antigens, specifically calcium‐binding proteins, may aid in understanding the underlying factors that contribute to structural valve deterioration.
Use of electromyographic signals for characterization of voluntary coughing in humans with and without spinal cord injury—A systematic review
Authors: Macedo Felipe Soares , da Rocha Adson Ferreira , Miosso Cristiano Jacques , Mateus Sergio Ricardo Menezes
Published: December 2018

Introduction

Individuals with spinal cord injury (SCI) frequently have an ineffective cough ability due to dysfunctions in expiratory muscles. In such cases, several articles have reported the occurrence of residual muscular activity in muscles that are accessory to coughing. The knowledge about this activity may be useful for building cough assistance devices. The goal of this review is to investigate and to describe the electromyographic signals generated during voluntary coughing in healthy people and in patients with SCI.

Methods

Two researchers performed, blindly and independently, a systematic review of the following databases: PubMed, PEDro, LILACS, and Science Direct. We conducted the searches using descriptors in English, Portuguese, and Spanish, with no limitations regarding the publication year. The review included articles describing experiments performed in humans and with the use of electromyographic signals in the analysis of voluntary coughing.

Results

Among the 156 initially found articles, only nine had results that described the study of electromyographic signals associated with voluntary coughing. The results showed evidence that, during voluntary coughing, electromyographic signals are generated both in expiratory and accessory muscles in healthy subjects. In individuals with SCI below the 5th cervical level (C5), the electromyographic signal appeared only in the clavicular portion of the pectoralis major, especially in the explosive cough phase.

Conclusion

Our evaluation of the current literature shows that, according to the analysed studies, the electromyographic signals are more pre‐eminent in the expiratory phase of the pectoralis major, during voluntary cough of individuals with SCI (C5–T12).
Design and comparison of some Shewhart‐type schemes for simultaneous monitoring of Weibull parameters
Authors: Gong Min , Mukherjee Amitava
Published: December 2018

Weibull distribution is one of the most important probability models used in modeling time between events, system reliability, and particle sizes, among others. Therefore, efficiently and consequently monitoring certain changes in Weibull process is considered as an important research topic. Various statistical process monitoring schemes have been developed for monitoring different process parameters, including some for Weibull parameters. Most of these schemes are, however, designed to monitor and control a single process parameter, although there are two important model parameters for Weibull distribution. Recently, several researchers studied various schemes for jointly monitoring the mean and variance of a normally distributed process using a single plotting statistic. Nevertheless, there is still dearth of researches in joint monitoring of non‐normal process parameters. In this context, we develop some control schemes for simultaneously monitoring the scale and shape parameters of processes that follow the Weibull distribution. Implementation procedures are developed, and performance properties of various proposed schemes are investigated. We also offer an illustrative example along with a summary and recommendations.
Etiology of acute viral respiratory infections common in Pakistan: A review
Authors: Naz Riffat , Gul Asma , Javed Urooj , Urooj Alina , Amin Sidra , Fatima Zareen
Published: December 2018

Respiratory infections, especially those of the lower respiratory tract, remain a foremost cause of mortality and morbidity of children greater than 5 years in developing countries including Pakistan. Ignoring these acute‐level infections may lead to complications. Particularly in Pakistan, respiratory infections account for 20% to 30% of all deaths of children. Even though these infections are common, insufficiency of accessible data hinders development of a comprehensive summary of the problem. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence rate in various regions of Pakistan and also to recognize the existing viral strains responsible for viral respiratory infections through published data. Respiratory viruses are detected more frequently among rural dwellers in Pakistan. Lower tract infections are found to be more lethal. The associated pathogens comprise respiratory syncytial virus (RSV), human metapneumovirus (HMPV), coronavirus, enterovirus/rhinovirus, influenza virus, parainfluenza virus, adenovirus, and human bocavirus. RSV is more dominant and can be subtyped as RSV‐A and RSV‐B (BA‐9, BA‐10, and BA‐13). Influenza A (H1N1, H5N1, H3N2, and H1N1pdm09) and Influenza B are common among the Pakistani population. Generally, these strains are detected in a seasonal pattern with a high incidence during spring and winter time. The data presented include pneumonia, bronchiolitis, and influenza. This paper aims to emphasise the need for standard methods to record the incidence and etiology of associated pathogens in order to provide effective treatment against viral infections of the respiratory tract and to reduce death rates.
A General Two‐Step Strategy–Based High‐Throughput Screening of Single Atom Catalysts for Nitrogen Fixation
Authors: Ling Chongyi , Ouyang Yixin , Li Qiang , Bai Xiaowan , Mao Xin , Du Aijun , Wang Jinlan
Published: December 2018

Electrocatalytic or photocatalytic N2 reduction holds great promise for green and sustainable NH3 production under ambient conditions, where an efficient catalyst plays a crucial role but remains a long‐standing challenge. Here, a high‐throughput screening of catalysts for N2 reduction among (nitrogen‐doped) graphene‐supported single atom catalysts is performed based on a general two‐step strategy. 10 promising candidates with excellent performance are extracted from 540 systems. Most strikingly, a single W atom embedded in graphene with three C atom coordination (W1C3) exhibits the best performance with an extremely low onset potential of 0.25 V. This study not only provides a series of promising catalysts for N2 fixation, but also paves a new way for the rational design of catalysts for N2 fixation under ambient conditions.
Graduated Punishments in Public Good Games
Authors: van der Made Allard
Published: December 2018

I explain the ubiquitous use of graduated punishments by studying a repeated public good game in which a social planner imperfectly monitors agents to detect shirkers. Agents’ cost of contributing is private information and administering punishments is costly. Using graduated punishments can be optimal for two reasons. It increases the price of future wrongdoing (temporal spillover effect) and it can lead to bad types revealing themselves (screening effect). The temporal spillover effect is always present if graduated punishments prevail, but screening need not occur if agents face a finite horizon. Whether or not a screening effect is exploited has a substantial impact on both outcomes and actual punishments. If the temporal spillover effect is sufficiently strong, then first‐time shirkers are merely warned.
Enhancing Solar‐Driven Water Splitting with Surface‐Engineered Nanostructures
Authors: Shen Shaohua , Lindley Sarah A. , Dong Chung‐Li , Chen Eefei , Lu Ying‐Rui , Zhou Jigang , Hu Yongfeng , Wheeler Damon A. , Guo Penghui , Zhang Jin Z. , Kliger David S. , Mao Samuel S.
Published: December 2018

Functional nanoscale interfaces that promote the transport of photoexcited charge carriers are fundamental to efficient hydrogen production during photoelectrochemical (PEC) splitting of water. Here, the realization of a functional one‐dimensional nanostructure achieved through surface engineering of hematite (α‐Fe2O3) nanorods with a TiO2 overlayer is reported. The surface‐engineered hematite nanostructure exhibits significantly improved PEC performance as compared to untreated α‐Fe2O3, with an increase in the maximum incident photon‐to‐current efficiency (IPCE) of nearly 400% at 350 nm. While addition of the TiO2 overlayer did not alter the lifetime of photoexcited charge carriers, as evidenced from transient absorption spectroscopy, it is found that the presence of TiO2 could enhance oxygen electrocatalysis by interfacial electron enrichment, largely attributed to enhanced O(2p)−Fe(3d) hybridization. Moreover, the interfacial electronic structure revealed from XANES measurements of the α‐Fe2O3/TiO2 nanorods suggests that photoexcited holes in α‐Fe2O3 may efficiently transfer through the TiO2 overlayer to the electrolyte while electrons migrate to the external circuit along the one‐dimensional nanorods, thereby promoting charge separation and enhancing PEC splitting of water.
Doping‐Free White Organic Light‐Emitting Diodes
Authors: Luo Dongxiang , Xiao Peng , Liu Baiquan
Published: December 2018

Doping‐free white organic light‐emitting diodes (WOLEDs) have great potential to the next‐generation solid‐state lighting and displays due to the excellent properties, such as high efficiency, bright luminance, low power consumption, simplified structure and low cost. In this account, our recent developments on doping‐free WOLEDs have been summarized. Firstly, fundamental concepts of doping‐free WOLEDs have been described. Then, the effective strategies to develop doping‐free WOLEDs have been presented. Particularly, the manipulation of charges and excitons distribution in different kinds of doping‐free WOLEDs have been highlighted, including doping‐free fluorescent/phosphorescent hybrid WOLEDs, doping‐free thermally activated delayed fluorescent WOLEDs and doping‐free phosphorescent WOLEDs. In the end, an outlook for the future development of doping‐free WOLEDs have been clarified.
Strings with non-relativistic conformal symmetry and limits of the AdS/CFT correspondence
Authors: Harmark Troels , Hartong Jelle , Menculini Lorenzo , Obers Niels A. , Yan Ziqi
Published: December 2018

Abstract

We find a Polyakov-type action for strings moving in a torsional Newton-Cartan geometry. This is obtained by starting with the relativistic Polyakov action and fixing the momentum of the string along a non-compact null isometry. For a flat target space, we show that the world-sheet theory becomes the Gomis-Ooguri action. From a target space perspective these strings are non-relativistic but their world-sheet theories are still relativistic. We show that one can take a scaling limit in which also the world-sheet theory becomes non-relativistic with an infinite-dimensional symmetry algebra given by the Galilean conformal algebra. This scaling limit can be taken in the context of the AdS/CFT correspondence and we show that it is realized by the ‘Spin Matrix Theory’ limits of strings on AdS5 × S
5. Spin Matrix theory arises as non-relativistic limits of the AdS/CFT correspondence close to BPS bounds. The duality between non-relativistic strings and Spin Matrix theory provides a holographic duality of its own and points towards a framework for more tractable holographic dualities whereby non-relativistic strings are dual to near BPS limits of the dual field theory.
Rotating traversable wormholes in AdS
Authors: Caceres Elena , Misobuchi Anderson Seigo , Xiao Ming-Lei
Published: December 2018

Abstract

In this work we explore the effect of rotation in the size of a traversable wormhole obtained via a double trace boundary deformation. We find that at fixed temperature the size of the wormhole increases with the angular momentum J/M ℓ. The amount of information that can be sent through the wormhole increases as well. However, for the type of interaction considered, the wormhole closes as the temperature approaches the extremal limit. We also briefly consider the scenario where the boundary coupling is not spatially homogeneous and show how this is reflected in the wormhole opening.
Dark side of the seesaw
Authors: Bhattacharya Subhaditya , de Medeiros Varzielas Ivo , Karmakar Biswajit , King Stephen F. , Sil Arunansu
Published: December 2018

Abstract

In an attempt to unfold (if any) a possible connection between two apparently uncorrelated sectors, namely neutrino and dark matter, we consider the type-I seesaw and a fermion singlet dark matter to start with. Our construction suggests that there exists a scalar field mediator between these two sectors whose vacuum expectation value not only generates the mass of the dark matter, but also takes part in the neutrino mass generation. While the choice of Z
4 symmetry allows us to establish the framework, the vacuum expectation value of the mediator field breaks Z
4 to a remnant Z
2, that is responsible to keep dark matter stable. Therefore, the observed light neutrino masses and relic abundance constraint on the dark matter, allows us to predict the heavy seesaw scale as illustrated in this paper.The methodology to connect dark matter and neutrino sector, as introduced here, is a generic one and can be applied to other possible neutrino mass generation mechanism and different dark matter candidate(s).
Multiple-Partner Fertility in the United States: A Demographic Portrait
Authors: Monte Lindsay M.
Published: December 2018

Multiple-partner fertility (MPF) occurs when a person has biological children with more than one partner. The 2014 Survey of Income and Program Participation (SIPP), a nationally representative panel study of individuals and households in the United States, is the first such survey to include a direct question about whether respondents are MPF parents. Understanding the prevalence of such families is important given the known socioeconomic correlates of MPF and the ramifications of entering MPF for both individuals and families. In this study, the new SIPP data are used to generate key benchmarks for a national sample, present subpopulation estimates, and describe the sample of adults with children by multiple partners.
Hospital length of stay and healthcare costs among African American women due to obesity and diabetic conditions in United States: A model for correlation studies comparing ethnicity, co‐morbidities and hospital resources
Authors: Moss Terris R.
Published: December 2018

Objective

To examine obesity and diabetes associations with United States hospital use and healthcare costs for African American women, to explore the relationship between co‐morbidities of interest (obesity and diabetes) and hospital resources [length of stay (LOS) and costs].

Methods

A retrospective, correlation, quantitative analysis for lengths of hospital stay and cost among adult African American women categorized according to their weight status with type 2 diabetes. Healthcare Cost and Utilization Project (HCUP) data which contains the Nationwide Inpatient Sample was used. Focused on 803,163 African American, female inpatients between the ages of 21 and 55 in the United States from 2008 to 2010. Researcher explored the relationship between individual health factors of interest (obesity and diabetes) and the effects on hospital LOS and healthcare costs. All statistical analysis will be performed using Stata v12. All inferential tests will be two‐sided and will utilize a 95% significance level. Two separate multiple regressions will be used.

Results

A total of 758,874 records were retained for analysis. The patients in the weighted population ranged in age from 21 to 55 years. The patient LOS ranged from 0 to 333 days. The patients had approximately 2 procedures on average, and presented with approximately 3 chronic conditions on average. The total charges (Cost) ranged from 106 to over 1 million US dollars. The size and direction of the relationship between LOS, healthcare costs and the independent variables of diabetes and obesity suggests that both LOS and health care cost decreased for African American female patients with diabetes or obesity. There is a statistically significant relationship between at least one of the individual health factors of interest (obesity and diabetes) and hospital LOS (F = 13,394.00, P < 0.0005, R2 = 0.440) and hospital costs (F = 10,171.23, P < 0.0005, R2 = 0.502).

Conclusions

There is evidence of racial and ethnic disparities in health care quality in hospital treatment of African American patients. After accounting for social determinants and insurance statuses, African Americans may receive lower‐quality care than the population at large. African Americans are admitted to the hospital, but services and LOS are shorter than the general population partially due to disparities in evaluating and offering treatment.
Electrocardiographic disturbances in children with systemic lupus erythematosus
Authors: AlTwajery Mohammed , AlMane Waleed , Al-Mayouf Sulaiman M
Published: December 2018

Background:

Conduction disturbances other than heart block related to neonatal lupus are rarely explored and reported in children with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE).

Objective:

To report the electrocardiographic (ECG) abnormalities in children with SLE and assess whether anti-Ro/SSA antibodies and hydroxychloroquine are associated with the rhythm disturbances.Methods:This cross-sectional retrospective study comprised patients with SLE who had regular followup in the Pediatric Lupus Clinic at King Faisal Specialist Hospital and Research Center-Riyadh. All enrolled patients were evaluated with regard to demographics, age at disease onset, disease duration, clinical and laboratory variables including autoantibodies, disease activity using SLEDAI disease activity index, and medications. An expert pediatric cardiologist reviewed the ECG findings of all enrolled patients independently without knowing the clinical status of the patients.

Results:

A total of 41 (35 females, 6 males) unselected patients with SLE with a mean age of 12.8 (2.5) years and mean follow-up duration of 4 (3) years completed the evaluation. The most frequent manifestations were renal disease (65.8%), followed by musculoskeletal (46.3%), hematological (41.5%), and cardiac involvement (19.5%). Thirty-two had active disease (SLEDAI >4), and the mean of SLEDAI was 9.2 (6.2). ECG abnormalities were seen in 12 patients (29.3%); these changes included ST-T changes (9.8%), right bundle branch block (7.3%), 4 prolonged QT interval (9.8%), and low QRS voltage (2.4%). Thirty- seven (90.3%) patients were on hydroxychloroquine, and 9 patients (22%) had positive anti-Ro/SSA antibodies. ECG abnormalities were associated significantly with anti-Ro/SSA antibodies (P< .05) and a low platelet count (P< .5) but had no association with other autoantibodies, hydroxychloroquine, or SLEDAI score.

Conclusion:

Children with SLE with anti-Ro/SSA antibodies are probably prone to heart conduction abnormalities. However, the heart rate and QT interval were affected by hydroxychloroquine. A larger prospective study is required to allow more definitive conclusions.
Continental Philosophy of Religion
Authors: Burns Elizabeth
Published: December 2018

This Element presents key features from the writings on religion of twelve philosophers working in or influenced by the continental tradition (Hegel, Kierkegaard, Nietzsche, Heidegger, Rosenzweig, Tillich, Derrida, Caputo, Levinas, Hadot, Jantzen, and Anderson). It argues for a hybrid methodology which enables transformational religious responses to the problems associated with human existence (the existential problems of meaning, suffering, and death) to be supported both by reasoned argument and by revelation, narrative philosophy, and experiential verification.
Stability of flow through deformable channels and tubes: implications of consistent formulation
Authors: Patne Ramkarn , Shankar V.
Published: December 2018

The present study is aimed at assessing the existing results concerning the stability of canonical shear flows in channels and tubes with deformable walls, in light of consistent formulations of the nonlinear solid constitutive model and linearised interface conditions at the fluid–solid interface. We show that a class of unstable shear-wave modes at low Reynolds number, predicted by previous studies for pressure-driven flows through neo-Hookean tubes and channels, is absent upon use of consistent interfacial conditions. Furthermore, we analyse the consequences of the change in solid model on the stability of the canonical shear flows by using both neo-Hookean and Mooney–Rivlin models. We show that the salient features of the stability of the system are adequately captured by a consistent formulation of the neo-Hookean solid model, thus precluding the need to employ more detailed solid models. The stability analysis of planar flows past a neo-Hookean solid subjected to three-dimensional disturbances showed that two-dimensional disturbances are more unstable than the corresponding three-dimensional disturbances within the consistent formulations. We show that prior inconsistent formulations of the solid constitutive equation predict a physically spurious spanwise instability in disagreement with experiments thereby demonstrating their inapplicability to predict instabilities in flow past deformable solid surfaces. Using the consistent formulation, the present work provides an accurate picture, over a range of Reynolds numbers, of the stability of canonical shear flows through deformable channels and tubes. Importantly, it is shown how inconsistencies in either the bulk constitutive relation or in the linearisation of the interface conditions can separately lead to physically spurious instabilities. The predictions of this work are relevant to experimental studies in flow through deformable tubes and channels in the low and moderate Reynolds number regime.
Ein Schlaganfall trifft auch Angehörige
Authors: Marenitz Elisabeth
Published: December 2018

Zusammenfassung. Angehörige werden in der Rehabilitation als wichtige Partner der Betroffenen gesehen. Gleichzeitig sind sie selbst durch den Schlaganfall emotional betroffen. Das frühzeitige Einbinden von Angehörigen in den Rehabilitationsprozess sowie eine intensive Unterstützung und Beratung und Edukation ist daher sinnvoll und notwendig. Um dies zu ermöglichen, wurde im KH Hietzing mit Neurologischem Zentrum Rosenhügel, Wien, ein Schulungskonzept für Pflegende entwickelt.
Dark and Peculiar
Authors: Međedović Janko , Knežević Goran
Published: December 2018

Abstract. Earlier research suggested that militant extremists could have certain aspects of psychopathic and psychotic characteristics. Relying on these studies, we investigated whether the Militant Extremist Mind-Set (MEM) could be explained by psychopathy, sadism, and Disintegration (psychosis proneness), as subclinical manifestations of amoral, antisocial, and psychotic-like traits. In Study 1 (306 undergraduate students), it was shown that sadistic and psychopathic tendencies were related to Proviolence (advocating violence as a means for achieving a goal); psychopathic and disintegrative tendencies were associated to the Vile World (belief in a world as a corrupted and vile place), while Disintegration was the best predictor of Divine Power (relying on supernatural forces as a rationale for extremist acts). In Study 2 (147 male convicts), these relations were largely replicated and broadened by including implicit emotional associations to violence in the study design. Thus, while Proviolence was found to be related to a weakened negative emotional reaction to violent pictures, Vile World was found to be associated with stronger negative emotions as a response to violence. Furthermore, Proviolence was the only MEM factor clearly differentiating the sample of convicts from male students who participated in Study 1. Results help extend current understanding about personal characteristics related to militant extremism.
How Much Information Is Required to Well Constrain Local Estimates of Future Precipitation Extremes?
Authors: Li Chao , Zwiers Francis , Zhang Xuebin , Li Guilong
Published: December 2018

Global warming is expected to increase the amount of atmospheric moisture, resulting in heavier extreme precipitation. Various studies have used the historical relationship between extreme precipitation and temperature (temperature scaling) to provide guidance about precipitation extremes in a future warmer climate. Here we assess how much information is required to robustly identify temperature scaling relationships, and whether these relationships are equally effective at different times in the future in estimating precipitation extremes everywhere across North America. Using a large ensemble of 35 North American regional climate simulations of the period 1951–2100, we show that individual climate simulations of length comparable to that of typical instrumental records are unable to constrain temperature scaling relationships well enough to reliably estimate future extremes of local precipitation accumulation for hourly to daily durations in the model's climate. Hence, temperature scaling relationships estimated from the limited historical observations are unlikely to be able to provide reliable guidance for future adaptation planning at local spatial scales. In contrast, well‐constrained temperature scaling relations based on multiple regional climate simulations do provide a feasible basis for accurately projecting precipitation extremes of hourly to daily durations in different future periods over more than 90% of the North American land area.
Microstructures, Water Contents, and Seismic Properties of the Mantle Lithosphere Beneath the Northern Limit of the Hangay Dome, Mongolia
Authors: Demouchy S. , Tommasi A. , Ionov D. , Higgie K. , Carlson R. W.
Published: December 2018

To constrain the deformation, thermal evolution, and seismic properties of the mantle lithosphere beneath the Hangay Dome, we have analyzed the microstructures, crystal preferred orientations (CPO), and hydrogen concentrations of olivine and pyroxenes of 50 mantle xenoliths carried up by Cenozoic basalts from Zala, Haer, and Shavaryn‐Tsaram from Tariat, Mongolia. Most xenoliths are medium‐ to coarse‐grained spinel‐lherzolites, but four contain garnet + spinel. Coarse granular, highly annealed microstructures predominate. The microstructures are associated with well‐developed CPO, typical of deformation under high temperature, moderate pressure, and dry conditions. The hydrogen concentrations in olivine, orthopyroxene, and clinopyroxene are low and range around 5, 75, and 147 ppm H2O wt, respectively. Together, microstructures and CPO indicate that ductile deformation was followed by static recrystallization, which has annealed the microstructures but preserved the CPO and, hence, the anisotropy of physical properties. Lack of correlation between annealing and equilibrium temperatures suggest that the annealing is due to a long quiescence episode since the last deformation episode. Here, there is not evidence that the formation of Hangay Dome is associated with recent deformation in the lithospheric mantle. Calculated seismic properties show moderate seismic anisotropy, with fast propagation of P waves and polarization of S waves parallel to the flow direction and low birefringence for S waves propagating obliquely to the flow plane. The results are consistent with weak P wave anomalies but not with the strong low S wave velocity anomalies predicted by some tomographic models or with the high conductivity inferred from magnetotelluric data for the lithospheric mantle beneath the Hangay Dome.
Increased Occurrence of Record‐Wet and Record‐Dry Months Reflect Changes in Mean Rainfall
Authors: Lehmann J. , Mempel F. , Coumou D.
Published: December 2018

Climate change alters the hydrological cycle, which is expected to increase the risk of heavy rainfall events and prolonged droughts. Sparse rainfall data, however, have made it difficult to answer the question of whether robust changes can already be seen in the short observational time period. Here we use a comprehensive statistical tool to quantify changes in record‐breaking wet and dry months. The global‐mean number of record‐wet months has significantly increased over the recent decades and is now nearly 20% higher than would be expected in a stationary climate with no long‐term trends. This signal primarily comes from pronounced changes in the northern middle to high latitudes where the occurrence of record‐wet months has increased by up to 37% regionally. The tropics have seen opposing trends: More record‐wet months in Southeast Asia in contrast to more record‐dry months in Africa. These changes are broadly consistent with observed trends in mean rainfall.
Heterogeneous Changes in Western North American Glaciers Linked to Decadal Variability in Zonal Wind Strength
Authors: Menounos B. , Hugonnet R. , Shean D. , Gardner A. , Howat I. , Berthier E. , Pelto B. , Tennant C. , Shea J. , Noh Myoung‐Jong , Brun F. , Dehecq A.
Published: December 2018

Western North American (WNA) glaciers outside of Alaska cover 14,384 km2 of mountainous terrain. No comprehensive analysis of recent mass change exists for this region. We generated over 15,000 multisensor digital elevation models from spaceborne optical imagery to provide an assessment of mass change for WNA over the period 2000–2018. These glaciers lost 117 ± 42 gigatons (Gt) of mass, which accounts for up to 0.32 ± 0.11 mm of sea level rise over the full period of study. We observe a fourfold increase in mass loss rates between 2000–2009 [−2.9 ± 3.1 Gt yr−1] and 2009–2018 [−12.3 ± 4.6 Gt yr−1], and we attribute this change to a shift in regional meteorological conditions driven by the location and strength of upper level zonal wind. Our results document decadal‐scale climate variability over WNA that will likely modulate glacier mass change in the future.
GIT1 contributes to autophagy in osteoclast through disruption of the binding of Beclin1 and Bcl2 under starvation condition
Authors: Zhao Shu-Jie , Kong Fan-Qi , Cai Wei , Xu Tao , Zhou Zhi-Min , Wang Zi-Bin , Xu An-Di , Yang Ya-Qing , Chen Jian , Tang Peng-Yu , Wang Qian , Cheng Lin , Luo Yong-Jun , Zhou Zheng , Li Lin-Wei , Huang Yi-Fan , Zhao Xuan , Yin Guo-Yong , Xue Ming-Xin , Fan Jin
Published: December 2018

Approximately 10–15% of all bone fractures do not heal properly, causing patient morbidity and additional medical care expenses. Therefore, better mechanism-based fracture repair approaches are needed. In this study, a reduced number of osteoclasts (OCs) and autophagosomes/autolysosomes in OC can be observed in GPCR kinase 2-interacting protein 1 (GIT1) knockout (KO) mice on days 21 and 28 post-fracture, compared with GIT1 wild-type (GIT1 WT) mice. Furthermore, in vitro experiments revealed that GIT1 contributes to OC autophagy under starvation conditions. Mechanistically, GIT1 interacted with Beclin1 and promoted Beclin1 phosphorylation at Thr119, which induced the disruption of Beclin1 and Bcl2 binding under starvation conditions, thereby, positively regulating autophagy. Taken together, the findings suggest a previously unappreciated role of GIT1 in autophagy of OCs during fracture repair. Targeting GIT1 may be a potential therapeutic approach for bone fractures.
RNA helicases mediate structural transitions and compositional changes in pre-ribosomal complexes
Authors: Brüning Lukas , Hackert Philipp , Martin Roman , Davila Gallesio Jimena , Aquino Gerald Ryan R. , Urlaub Henning , Sloan Katherine E. , Bohnsack Markus T.
Published: December 2018

Production of eukaryotic ribosomal subunits is a highly dynamic process; pre-ribosomes undergo numerous structural rearrangements that establish the architecture present in mature complexes and serve as key checkpoints, ensuring the fidelity of ribosome assembly. Using in vivo crosslinking, we here identify the pre-ribosomal binding sites of three RNA helicases. Our data support roles for Has1 in triggering release of the U14 snoRNP, a critical event during early 40S maturation, and in driving assembly of domain I of pre-60S complexes. Binding of Mak5 to domain II of pre-60S complexes promotes recruitment of the ribosomal protein Rpl10, which is necessary for subunit joining and ribosome function. Spb4 binds to a molecular hinge at the base of ES27 facilitating binding of the export factor Arx1, thereby promoting pre-60S export competence. Our data provide important insights into the driving forces behind key structural remodelling events during ribosomal subunit assembly.
Genome-wide DNA Methylation and RNAseq Analyses Identify Aberrant Signalling Pathways in Focal Cortical Dysplasia (FCD) Type II
Authors: Dixit Aparna Banerjee , Sharma Devina , Tripathi Manjari , Srivastava Arpna , Paul Debasmita , Prakash Deepak , Sarkar Chitra , Kumar Krishan , Banerjee Jyotirmoy , Chandra P. Sarat
Published: December 2018

Focal cortical dysplasia (FCD) is one of the most common pathologies associated with drug-resistant epilepsy (DRE). The pharmacological targets remain obscured, as the molecular mechanisms underlying FCD are unclear. Implications of epigenetically modulated aberrant gene expression in disease progression are reported in various DRE pathologies except FCD. Here we performed genome-wide CpG-DNA methylation profiling by methylated DNA immunoprecipitation (MeDIP) microarray and RNA sequencing (RNAseq) on cortical tissues resected from FCD type II patients. A total of 19088 sites showed altered DNA methylation in all the CpG islands. Of these, 5725 sites were present in the promoter regions, of which 176 genes showed an inverse correlation between methylation and gene expression. Many of these 176 genes were found to belong to a cohesive network of physically interacting proteins linked to several cellular functions. Pathway analysis revealed significant enrichment of receptor tyrosine kinases (RTK), EGFR, PDGFRA, NTRK3, and mTOR signalling pathways. This is the first study that investigates the epigenetic signature associated with FCD type II pathology. The candidate genes and pathways identified in this study may play a crucial role in the regulation of the pathogenic mechanisms of epileptogenesis associated with FCD type II pathologies.
Targeted expression of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin improves the production of tropane alkaloids in Hyoscyamus niger hairy roots
Authors: Guo Zhiying , Tan Hexin , Lv Zongyou , Ji Qian , Huang Yuxiang , Liu Jingjing , Chen Donghong , Diao Yong , Si Jinping , Zhang Lei
Published: December 2018

Under hypoxic conditions, the expression of Vitreoscilla hemoglobin (VHb) in plants is proposed to increase the productivity of certain oxygen-requiring metabolic pathways by promoting the delivery of oxygen. Tropane alkaloids (TAs) are a class of important plant secondary metabolites with significant medicinal value; the final step in their biosynthesis requires oxygen. Whether heterologous expression of VHb, especially in different subcellular compartments, can accelerate the accumulation of TAs is not known. Herein, the effect of heterologous expression of VHb in different subcellular locations on the TA profile of H. niger hairy roots was investigated. The targeted expression of VHb in the plastids (using pVHb-RecA construct), led to the accumulation of 197.68 μg/g hyoscyamine in the transgenic H. niger hairy roots, which was 1.25-fold of the content present in the lines in which VHb expression was not targeted, and 3.66-fold of that present in the wild type (WT) lines. The content of scopolamine was increased by 2.20- and 4.70-fold in the pVHb-RecA transgenic lines compared to that in the VHb transgenic and WT lines. Our results demonstrate that VHb could stimulate the accumulation of TAs in the transgenic H. niger hairy roots. Quantitative RT-PCR analysis revealed that the expression of key genes involved in TA biosynthesis increased significantly in the VHb transgenic lines. We present the first description of a highly efficient strategy to increase TA content in H. niger. Moreover, our results also shed light on how the production of desired metabolites can be efficiently enhanced by using more accurate and appropriate genetic engineering strategies.
lncRNA profile study reveals the mRNAs and lncRNAs associated with docetaxel resistance in breast cancer cells
Authors: Huang Peide , Li Fengyu , Li Lin , You Yuling , Luo Shizhi , Dong Zhensheng , Gao Qiang , Wu Song , Brünner Nils , Stenvang Jan
Published: December 2018

Resistance to adjuvant systemic treatment, including taxanes (docetaxel and paclitaxel) is a major clinical problem for breast cancer patients. lncRNAs (long non-coding RNAs) are non-coding transcripts, which have recently emerged as important players in a variety of biological processes, including cancer development and chemotherapy resistance. However, the contribution of lncRNAs to docetaxel resistance in breast cancer and the relationship between lncRNAs and taxane-resistance genes are still unclear. Here, we performed comprehensive RNA sequencing and analyses on two docetaxel-resistant breast cancer cell lines (MCF7-RES and MDA-RES) and their docetaxel-sensitive parental cell lines. We identified protein coding genes and pathways that may contribute to docetaxel resistance. More importantly, we identified lncRNAs that were consistently up-regulated or down-regulated in both the MCF7-RES and MDA-RES cells. The co-expression network and location analyses pinpointed four overexpressed lncRNAs located within or near the ABCB1 (ATP-binding cassette subfamily B member 1) locus, which might up-regulate the expression of ABCB1. We also identified the lncRNA EPB41L4A-AS2 (EPB41L4A Antisense RNA 2) as a potential biomarker for docetaxel sensitivity. These findings have improved our understanding of the mechanisms underlying docetaxel resistance in breast cancer and have provided potential biomarkers to predict the response to docetaxel in breast cancer patients.
Integrated analysis of microRNA and mRNA expression profiles in splenomegaly induced by non-cirrhotic portal hypertension in rats
Authors: Saruwatari Junji , Dong Chao , Utsumi Teruo , Tanaka Masatake , McConnell Matthew , Iwakiri Yasuko
Published: December 2018

The spleen plays an important role in the immune and hematopoietic systems. Splenomegaly is a frequent consequence of portal hypertension, but the underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms remain to be fully elucidated. In this study, we have performed a whole-genome microarray analysis combined with histological examination in enlarged spleens isolated from rats with partial portal vein ligation (PPVL) surgery to provide comprehensive profiles of microRNAs and their target mRNAs with a focus on their potential biological functions. A total of 964 mRNAs and 30 microRNAs showed significant differential expression in the spleens of PPVL rats compared to rats undergoing a sham procedure. Twenty-two down-regulated microRNAs were associated with significantly increased genes highly involved in fibrogenic activity and cell proliferation/migration (e.g., Ctgf, Serpine1, Col1a1). Consistently, histological analyses demonstrated increased splenic fibrosis and cell proliferation in the spleens of PPVL rats. Eight up-regulated microRNAs were associated with suppression of genes that are related to interferon-mediated antiviral activity in innate immune responses (e.g., Irf7, Dhx58). In conclusion, we determined a specific microRNA-mRNA network potentially implicated in the tissue fibrosis and cell proliferation in portal hypertension-induced splenomegaly. Our findings provide new insight into the mechanisms for regulation of spleen structure and function.