bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experiences of Counsellors Providing Online Chat Counselling to Young People
Authors: Dowling Mitchell J. , Rickwood Debra J.
Published: January 2014

Online counselling is a rapidly growing field and, while there is emerging evidence of its comparative effectiveness, there has been little research into what techniques are being applied in practice and which clients will most likely benefit from this medium. Using a focus group methodology, this study examines the experiences of 19 online clinicians employed by a youth mental health service, investigating their perception of online clients, views on their counsellor roles, the approaches and techniques they employ, and the unique aspects of counselling in an online environment. Overall, online clinicians perceived their clients as presenting with highly complex problems and a high level of psychological distress. They noted online clients would most often use the service once or twice, and that some would use online chat as an adjunct to face-to-face counselling. The online clinicians described various roles, including: assessments, gatekeeping, providing emotional support, and therapeutic interventions. According to the online clinicians, they used a variety of techniques online, but favoured person-centred techniques, as these helped keep the clients engaged with the service. Areas of further research and implications for practice are discussed.
Common Law, Judicial Precedents and the Nigerian Receivership Procedure
Authors: Adebola Bolanle
Published: January 2014

Before the enactment of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 1990, receivership in Nigeria was governed by case law, informal rules (of practice) and the Companies Decree 1968. Nigerian judges were heavily influenced by British case law, precedents were British and the Nigerian Companies Decree was a transplant of the British Companies Act 1948. Against this background, the Supreme Court of Nigeria delivered the Intercontractors decisions in 1988, which subsequently governed the nature, status and powers of Nigerian receivers. In 1990, CAMA introduced a more robust receivership regime which prescribed the nature, status and powers of the receiver, reversing some of the Intercontractors principles. However, the courts, particularly the Supreme Court, failed to enforce the relevant provisions of CAMA or to examine the applicability of the Intercontractors principles that they conscientiously enforced. This article examines the validity of the Intercontractors principles and their continued relevance under CAMA 2004.
“Savages of Southern Sunshine”: Racial Realignment of the Seminoles in the Selling of Jim Crow Florida
Authors: KNIGHT HENRY
Published: January 2014

In the late nineteenth century, white land and tourism promoters invested in the selling of Florida to American migrants and winter visitors began to recast the Seminoles. From being feared and denigrated as mixed-race killers, associated with runaway slaves, who had defied earlier US attempts to remove them to the West, the Seminoles were “realigned” by boosters into praiseworthy specimens of moral and racial purity. According to promoters, the Seminoles were now human emblems of the Florida wilderness, but also pure-blood primitives. As such, they fitted much better with the Jim Crow ideals of benign racial separation. Although neither smooth nor complete, this process of racial realignment transformed the Seminoles from terrifying threat to marketable curiosity, easing the incorporation of the Seminoles into the selling of south Florida.
Case-based reasoning and system design: An integrated approach based on ontology and preference modeling
Authors: Romero Bejarano Juan Camilo , Coudert Thierry , Vareilles Elise , Geneste Laurent , Aldanondo Michel , Abeille Joël
Published: January 2014

This paper addresses the fulfillment of requirements related to case-based reasoning (CBR) processes for system design. Considering that CBR processes are well suited for problem solving, the proposed method concerns the definition of an integrated CBR process in line with system engineering principles. After the definition of the requirements that the approach has to fulfill, an ontology is defined to capitalize knowledge about the design within concepts. Based on the ontology, models are provided for requirements and solutions representation. Next, a recursive CBR process, suitable for system design, is provided. Uncertainty and designer preferences as well as ontological guidelines are considered during the requirements definition, the compatible cases retrieval, and the solution definition steps. This approach is designed to give flexibility within the CBR process as well as to provide guidelines to the designer. Such questions as the following are conjointly treated: how to guide the designer to be sure that the requirements are correctly defined and suitable for the retrieval step, how to retrieve cases when there are no available similarity measures, and how to enlarge the research scope during the retrieval step to obtain a sufficient panel of solutions. Finally, an example of system engineering in the aeronautic domain illustrates the proposed method. A testbed has been developed and carried out to evaluate the performance of the retrieval algorithm and a software prototype has been developed in order to test the approach. The outcome of this work is a recursive CBR process suitable to engineering design and compatible with standards. Requirements are modeled by means of flexible constraints, where the designer preferences are used to express the flexibility. Similar solutions can be retrieved even if similarity measures between features are not available. Simultaneously, ontological guidelines are used to guide the process and to aid the designer to express her/his preferences.
Dynamic scheduling of manufacturing systems using machine learning: An updated review
Authors: Priore Paolo , Gómez Alberto , Pino Raúl , Rosillo Rafael
Published: January 2014

A common way of dynamically scheduling jobs in a manufacturing system is by implementing dispatching rules. The issues with this method are that the performance of these rules depends on the state the system is in at each moment and also that no “ideal” single rule exists for all the possible states that the system may be in. Therefore, it would be interesting to use the most appropriate dispatching rule for each instance. To achieve this goal, a scheduling approach that uses machine learning can be used. Analyzing the previous performance of the system (training examples) by means of this technique, knowledge is obtained that can be used to decide which is the most appropriate dispatching rule at each moment in time. In this paper, a literature review of the main machine learning based scheduling approaches from the last decade is presented.
Optimization of multiple responses in the Taguchi method using fuzzy regression
Authors: Al-Refaie Abbas
Published: January 2014

In reality, the behavior of processes is sometimes vague and the observed data is irregular. This research proposes an approach for optimizing fuzzy multiple responses using fuzzy regression. In this approach, each response repetition is transformed into a signal to noise ratio then modeled using statistical multiple regression. A trapezoidal fuzzy regression model is formulated for each response utilizing the statistical regression coefficients. The most desirable response values and the deviation function are determined for each response. Finally, four optimization models are formulated for the trapezoidal membership fuzzy number to obtain the optimal factor level at each number. Two case studies are adopted for illustration, where excluding response fuzziness will result in misleading optimal factor settings if solved by the traditional optimization techniques. In conclusion, the proposed approach based on fuzzy regression approach can successfully optimize fuzzy multiple responses in a wide range of manufacturing applications on the Taguchi's method. Moreover, compared to other approaches, such as data envelopment analysis and grey relational analysis, the proposed approach has the distinct advantage of being able to generate models using only a small number of experimental data sets and minimizing inherent variations.
Elaborating intersection and union types
Authors: DUNFIELD JANA
Published: January 2014

Designing and implementing typed programming languages is hard. Every new type system feature requires extending the metatheory and implementation, which are often complicated and fragile. To ease this process, we would like to provide general mechanisms that subsume many different features. In modern type systems, parametric polymorphism is fundamental, but intersection polymorphism has gained little traction in programming languages. Most practical intersection type systems have supported only refinement intersections, which increase the expressiveness of types (more precise properties can be checked) without altering the expressiveness of terms; refinement intersections can simply be erased during compilation. In contrast, unrestricted intersections increase the expressiveness of terms, and can be used to encode diverse language features, promising an economy of both theory and implementation. We describe a foundation for compiling unrestricted intersection and union types: an elaboration type system that generates ordinary λ-calculus terms. The key feature is a Forsythe-like merge construct. With this construct, not all reductions of the source program preserve types; however, we prove that ordinary call-by-value evaluation of the elaborated program corresponds to a type-preserving evaluation of the source program. We also describe a prototype implementation and applications of unrestricted intersections and unions: records, operator overloading, and simulating dynamic typing.
Proof-producing translation of higher-order logic into pure and stateful ML
Authors: MYREEN MAGNUS O. , OWENS SCOTT
Published: January 2014

The higher-order logic found in proof assistants such as Coq and various HOL systems provides a convenient setting for the development and verification of functional programs. However, to efficiently run these programs, they must be converted (or ‘extracted’) to functional programs in a programming language such as ML or Haskell. With current techniques, this step, which must be trusted, relates similar looking objects that have very different semantic definitions, such as the set-theoretic model of a logic and the operational semantics of a programming language. In this paper, we show how to increase the trustworthiness of this step with an automated technique. Given a functional program expressed in higher-order logic, our technique provides the corresponding program for a functional language defined with an operational semantics, and it provides a mechanically checked theorem relating the two. This theorem can then be used to transfer verified properties of the logical function to the program. We have implemented our technique in the HOL4 theorem prover, translating functions to a subset of Standard ML, and have applied the implementation to examples including functional data structures, a parser generator, cryptographic algorithms, a garbage collector and the 500-line kernel of the HOL light theorem prover. This paper extends our previous conference publication with new material that shows how functions defined in terms of a state-and-exception monad can be translated, with proofs, into stateful ML code. The HOL light example is also new.
International Terrorism and Human Rights
Authors: MENON Sundaresh
Published: January 2014

Following the attacks of September 11, 2001, a line was crossed in the history of terrorism and political violence—many things we had until then taken for granted were lost. This paper analyzes the relationship between international terrorism and human rights and examines how these two concepts—which some suggest are antithetical—might appropriately be spoken of in the same breath even in the aftermath of those terrible attacks. The overarching thesis is that counter-terror efforts must be approached in a way that endeavours to achieve a positive relation to, and co-existence with, the system of human rights at both international and national levels. In this connection, Singapore's approach to counter-terrorism will be considered, providing food for thought on how far it achieves a balance between security and liberty.
Fine-scale nutrient and carbonate system dynamics around cold-water coral reefs in the northeast Atlantic
Authors: Findlay Helen S. , Hennige Sebastian J. , Wicks Laura C. , Navas Juan Moreno , Woodward E. Malcolm S. , Roberts J. Murray
Published: January 2014

Ocean acidification has been suggested as a serious threat to the future existence of cold-water corals (CWC). However, there are few fine-scale temporal and spatial datasets of carbonate and nutrients conditions available for these reefs, which can provide a baseline definition of extant conditions. Here we provide observational data from four different sites in the northeast Atlantic that are known habitats for CWC. These habitats differ by depth and by the nature of the coral habitat. At depths where CWC are known to occur across these sites the dissolved inorganic carbon ranged from 2088 to 2186 μmol kg−1, alkalinity ranged from 2299 to 2346 μmol kg−1 and aragonite Ω ranged from 1.35 to 2.44. At two sites fine-scale hydrodynamics caused increased variability in the carbonate and nutrient conditions over daily time-scales. The observed high level of variability must be taken into account when assessing CWC sensitivities to future environmental change.
A geometrical approach explains Lake Ball (Marimo) formations in the green alga, Aegagropila linnaei
Authors: Togashi Tatsuya , Sasaki Hironobu , Yoshimura Jin
Published: January 2014

An extremely rare alga, Aegagropila linnaei, is known for its beautiful spherical filamentous aggregations called Lake Ball (Marimo). It has long been a mystery in biology as to why this species forms 3D ball-like aggregations. This alga also forms two-dimensional mat-like aggregations. Here we show that forming ball-like aggregations is an adaptive strategy to increase biomass in the extremely limited environments suitable for growth of this alga. We estimate the maximum biomass attained by ball colonies and compare it to that attained by mat colonies. As a result, a ball colony can become larger in areal biomass than the mat colony. In the two large ball colonies studied so far, they actually have larger biomasses than the mat colonies. The uniqueness of Lake Balls in nature seems to be due to the rarity of such environmental conditions. This implies that the conservation of this alga is difficult, but important.
Age-dependent postoperative cognitive impairment and Alzheimer-related neuropathology in mice
Authors: Xu Zhipeng , Dong Yuanlin , Wang Hui , Culley Deborah J. , Marcantonio Edward R. , Crosby Gregory , Tanzi Rudolph E. , Zhang Yiying , Xie Zhongcong
Published: January 2014

Post-operative cognitive dysfunction (POCD) is associated with increased cost of care, morbidity and mortality. However, its pathogenesis remains largely to be determined. Specifically, it is unknown why elderly patients are more likely to develop POCD and whether POCD is dependent on general anesthesia. We therefore set out to investigate the effects of peripheral surgery on the cognition and Alzheimer-related neuropathology in mice with different ages. Abdominal surgery under local anesthesia was established in the mice. The surgery induced post-operative elevation in brain β-amyloid (Aβ) levels and cognitive impairment in the 18 month-old wild-type and 9 month-old Alzheimer's disease transgenic mice, but not the 9 month-old wild-type mice. The Aβ accumulation likely resulted from elevation of beta-site amyloid precursor protein cleaving enzyme and phosphorylated eukaryotic translation initiation factor 2α. γ-Secretase inhibitor compound E ameliorated the surgery-induced brain Aβ accumulation and cognitive impairment in the 18 month-old mice. These data suggested that the peripheral surgery was able to induce cognitive impairment independent of general anesthesia and that the combination of peripheral surgery with aging- or Alzheimer gene mutation-associated Aβ accumulation was needed for the POCD to occur. These findings would likely promote more research to investigate the pathogenesis of POCD.
Genetic Influences on Receptive Joint Attention in Chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes)
Authors: Hopkins William D. , Keebaugh Alaine C. , Reamer Lisa A. , Schaeffer Jennifer , Schapiro Steven J. , Young Larry J.
Published: January 2014

Despite their genetic similarity to humans, our understanding of the role of genes on cognitive traits in chimpanzees remains virtually unexplored. Here, we examined the relationship between genetic variation in the arginine vasopressin V1a receptor gene (AVPR1A) and social cognition in chimpanzees. Studies have shown that chimpanzees are polymorphic for a deletion in a sequence in the 5′ flanking region of the AVPR1A, DupB, which contains the variable RS3 repetitive element, which has been associated with variation in social behavior in humans. Results revealed that performance on the social cognition task was significantly heritable. Furthermore, males with one DupB+ allele performed significantly better and were more responsive to socio-communicative cues than males homozygous for the DupB- deletion. Performance on a non-social cognition task was not associated with the AVPR1A genotype. The collective findings show that AVPR1A polymorphisms are associated with individual differences in performance on a receptive joint attention task in chimpanzees.
In situ molecular imaging of a hydrated biofilm in a microfluidic reactor by ToF-SIMS
Authors: Hua Xin , Yu Xiao-Ying , Wang Zhaoying , Yang Li , Liu Bingwen , Zhu Zihua , Tucker Abigail E. , Chrisler William B. , Hill Eric A. , Thevuthasan Theva , Lin Yuehe , Liu Songqin , Marshall Matthew J.
Published: January 2014

A novel microfluidic reactor for biofilm growth was constructed to enablein situchemical imaging of hydrated biofilms using ToF-SIMS.
Study of degradation mechanisms of cyclobenzaprine by LC-MS/MS
Authors: Liu Yan , Zhao Dantong , Zhao Zhongxi (Zack)
Published: January 2014

A systematic forced degradation study of cyclobenzaprine for the elucidation of the degradation mechanism was carried out to support the new formulation development.
A portable and quantitative enzyme immunoassay of neuron-specific enolase with a glucometer readout
Authors: Fu Xiaohong , Feng Xueru , Xu Kun , Huang Rong
Published: January 2014

A portable and quantitative enzyme immunoassay with a glucometer readout was developed for the sensitive monitoring of neuron-specific enolase (NSE, as a model analyte) in a high-binding polystyrene 96-well microtiter plate (MTP), conjugated with monoclonal mouse anti-human NSE antibody (mAb1).
Colorimetric detection of quaternary ammonium surfactants using citrate-stabilized gold nanoparticles (Au NPs)
Authors: Zheng Li-Qing , Yu Xiao-Dong , Xu Jing-Juan , Chen Hong-Yuan
Published: January 2014

Based on the hydrophobic effect inducing the aggregation of Au NPs, a rapid and low-cost colorimetric method for detection of quaternary ammonium surfactants using citrate-stabilized AuNPs was developed.
Geometric switching of linear to area negative thermal expansion in uniaxial metal–organic frameworks
Authors: Collings Ines E. , Tucker Matthew G. , Keen David A. , Goodwin Andrew L.
Published: January 2014

The direction of anisotropic negative thermal expansion switches for the two quartzlike metal–organic frameworks deuterium indium terephthalate and zinc isonicotinate; we show this inversion to be geometric, rather than chemical, in origin.
Adsorption and UV/Visible photocatalytic performance of BiOI for methyl orange, Rhodamine B and methylene blue: Ag and Ti-loading effects
Authors: Park Yohan , Na Yulyi , Pradhan Debabrata , Min Bong-Ki , Sohn Youngku
Published: January 2014

Adsorption and UV/visible photocatalytic activity of echinoid-like Ag and Ti-loaded BiOI were tested for methyl orange, Rhodamine B and methylene blue.
Synthesis and characterization of oxygen-functionalised-NHC silver(i) complexes and NHC transmetallation to nickel(ii)
Authors: Hameury Sophie , de Frémont Pierre , R. Breuil Pierre-Alain , Olivier-Bourbigou Hélène , Braunstein Pierre
Published: January 2014

New silver(i) complexes bearing alcohol- or ether-functionalized NHCs were synthesized and characterized by X-ray diffraction. Their NHC transmetallation ability was assessed and gave rise to a Ni(ii) bis(NHC) complex in the case of the ether-functionalisation.
Substituent-controlled preference of carbonyl group–metal coordination in d8metal complexes with non-symmetric pentadentate ligands. Structural and stereochemical aspects
Authors: Han Jianlin , Ono Taizo , Uekusa Hidehiro , Klika Karel D. , Soloshonok Vadim A.
Published: January 2014

The sidearm substitution of chirally switchable Ni(ii) and Pd(ii) complexes permits stereochemical inclinations to be controlled in the solid state.
Au nanoparticles on citrate-functionalized graphene nanosheets with a high peroxidase-like performance
Authors: Chen Xiaomei , Tian Xiaotian , Su Bingyuan , Huang Zhiyong , Chen Xi , Oyama Munetaka
Published: January 2014

Citrate-functionalized GNs were introduced as the support for AuNPs. Taking the advantages of GNs with large surface area and citrate ions with more carboxyl groups, the AuNPs/Cit-GNs composite exhibits high peroxidase-like catalytic ability.
Highly efficient photocatalysts constructed by rational assembly of dual-cocatalysts separately on different facets of BiVO4
Authors: Li Rengui , Han Hongxian , Zhang Fuxiang , Wang Donge , Li Can
Published: January 2014

Rational construction of dual cocatalysts corresponding to different facets with photogenerated charge separation.
Biocatalysis in bio-derived solvents: an improved approach for medium optimisation
Authors: Paggiola Giulia , Hunt Andrew J. , McElroy Con R. , Sherwood James , Clark James H.
Published: January 2014

An improved multi-parameter approach to the correlation of enzymatic activity and solvent properties is proposed.
A procedure for the preparation of Ti-Beta zeolites for catalytic epoxidation with hydrogen peroxide
Authors: Tang Bo , Dai Weili , Sun Xiaoming , Guan Naijia , Li Landong , Hunger Michael
Published: January 2014

Ti-Beta zeolite prepared via a reproducible and scalable two-step post-synthesis strategy is a robust catalyst for the epoxidation of unsaturated ketones with hydrogen peroxide.
General synthesis of noble metal (Au, Ag, Pd, Pt) nanocrystal modified MoS2 nanosheets and the enhanced catalytic activity of Pd–MoS2 for methanol oxidation
Authors: Yuwen Lihui , Xu Fei , Xue Bing , Luo Zhimin , Zhang Qi , Bao Biqing , Su Shao , Weng Lixing , Huang Wei , Wang Lianhui
Published: January 2014

Noble metal nanoparticle modified MoS2 nanosheets were prepared and Pd–MoS2 was explored as an enhanced electrocatalyst for methanol oxidation.
Determination of the loading and stability of Pd in an arborescent copolymer in ethanol by microplasma-optical emission spectrometry
Authors: Nguon Olivier , Gauthier Mario , Karanassios Vassili
Published: January 2014

A novel microplasma-OES system was used to determine the concentration of Pd stabilized by a dendritic (arborescent) copolymer in ethanol.
Methane hydroxylation using light energy by the combination of thylakoid and methane monooxygenase
Authors: Ito Hidehiro , Mori Fumiya , Tabata Kenji , Okura Ichiro , Kamachi Toshiaki
Published: January 2014

We construct a photoinduced methane hydroxylation system by the combination of thylakoid and methane monooxygenase from Methylosinus trichosporium OB3b.
Iron catalyzed efficient synthesis of 2-arylbenzothiazoles from benzothiazole and olefins using environmentally benign molecular oxygen as oxidant
Authors: Khemnar Ashok B. , Bhanage Bhalchandra M.
Published: January 2014

An efficient protocol for iron catalyzed arylation of benzothiazole with olefins has been developed using molecular oxygen as a greener oxidant.
Synthetic oligodeoxynucleotide purification by capping failure sequences with a methacrylamide phosphoramidite followed by polymerization
Authors: Pokharel Durga , Yuan Yinan , Fueangfung Suntara , Fang Shiyue
Published: January 2014

Synthetic oligodeoxynucleotides are simply purified by capping failure sequences with a methacrylamide phosphoramidite, co-polymerization with N,N-dimethylacrylamide and extraction with water.
Preparation, characterization and in vitro osteoblast growth of waste-derived biomaterials
Authors: Rojo Eduardo Saez , Ramos Milagros , Yates Malcolm , Martin-Luengo Ma Angeles , Martínez Serrano Ana Maria , Civantos Ana , López-Lacomba Jose Luis , Reilly Gwendolen , Vervaet Chris , Tarterra Jaume Lluis , Luis Benet Fité , Argomaniz Lorena Vega
Published: January 2014

Preparation, characterization and in vitro osteoblast growth of beer bagasse derived biomaterial.
A simple ternary non-ionic templating system for preparation of complex hierarchically meso–mesoporous silicas with 3D-interconnected large mesopores
Authors: Wang Wei , Qi Huan , Long Haibo , Wang Xiaoyang , Ru Hongqiang
Published: January 2014

It is for the first time demonstrated that clew-like silica particles with complex hierarchically meso–mesoporous structures can be prepared via a simple TEOS/HCl(aq.)/P123 ternary non-ionic templating system.
Porous Li2C8H4O4 coated with N-doped carbon by using CVD as an anode material for Li-ion batteries
Authors: Zhang Haiquan , Deng Qijiu , Zhou Aijun , Liu Xingquan , Li Jingze
Published: January 2014

N-doped carbon coated lithium terephthalate (Li2C8H4O4) porous microspheres were applied as advanced organic anodes for low cost lithium ion batteries, showing improved coulombic efficiencies in the first cycle as well as enhanced rate performances.
A study of the superior electrochemical performance of 3 nm SnO2 nanoparticles supported by graphene
Authors: Chen Yu , Song Bohang , Chen Rebecca Meiting , Lu Li , Xue Junmin
Published: January 2014

An anode consisting of ultra-small SnO2 nanoparticles (∼3 nm) and graphene delivers increasing capacity upon cycling, up to 1813 mA h g−1 under 2000 mA g−1.
Graphene oxide and Ag engulfed TiO2 nanotube arrays for enhanced electron mobility and visible-light-driven photocatalytic performance
Authors: Sim Lan Ching , Leong Kah Hon , Ibrahim Shaliza , Saravanan Pichiah
Published: January 2014

GO–Ag–TNTs, a ternary composite was synthesized. Both Ag and GO well contributed to enhance the photocatalytic activity in the visible region.
Stepwise assembled nickel–cobalt-hydroxide hetero-accumulated nanocrystalline walls on reduced graphene oxide/nickel foams: an adjustable interface design for capacitive charge storage
Authors: Qian Zhongyu , Peng Tao , Qu Liangti , Wang Jun , Wang Peng
Published: January 2014

Evaporation-induced nickel–cobalt-hydroxide hetero-accumulated nanocrystalline walls on reduced graphene oxide/nickel foams are afforded by different Ni-doping levels and dipping numbers.
Oxygen reduction in the nanocage of metal–organic frameworks with an electron transfer mediator
Authors: Jiang Min , Li Liangjun , Zhu Dandan , Zhang Hongyu , Zhao Xuebo
Published: January 2014

A stable highly porous metal–organic framework (MOF) layer on reduced graphene oxide immobilized glassy carbon electrode shows good electrocatalytic activity for oxygen reduction reaction.
Extracellular domains play different roles in gap junction formation and docking compatibility
Authors: Bai Donglin , Wang Ao Hong
Published: January 2014

GJ (gap junction) channels mediate direct intercellular communication and play an important role in many physiological processes. Six connexins oligomerize to form a hemichannel and two hemichannels dock together end-to-end to form a GJ channel. Connexin extracellular domains (E1 and E2) have been shown to be important for the docking, but the molecular mechanisms behind the docking and formation of GJ channels are not clear. Recent developments in atomic GJ structure and functional studies on a series of connexin mutants revealed that E1 and E2 are likely to play different roles in the docking. Non-covalent interactions at the docking interface, including hydrogen bonds, are predicted to form between interdocked extracellular domains. Protein sequence alignment analysis on the docking compatible/incompatible connexins indicate that the E1 domain is important for the formation of the GJ channel and the E2 domain is important in the docking compatibility in heterotypic channels. Interestingly, the hydrogen-bond forming or equivalent residues in both E1 and E2 domains are mutational hot spots for connexin-linked human diseases. Understanding the molecular mechanisms of GJ docking can assist us to develop novel strategies in rescuing the disease-linked connexin mutants.
TALE proteins bind to both active and inactive chromatin
Authors: Scott James N. F. , Kupinski Adam P. , Kirkham Christopher M. , Tuma Roman , Boyes Joan
Published: January 2014

TALE (transcription activator-like effector) proteins can be tailored to bind to any DNA sequence of choice and thus are of immense utility for genome editing and the specific delivery of transcription activators. However, to perform these functions, they need to occupy their sites in chromatin. In the present study, we have systematically assessed TALE binding to chromatin substrates and find that in vitro TALEs bind to their target site on nucleosomes at the more accessible entry/exit sites, but not at the nucleosome dyad. We show further that in vivo TALEs bind to transcriptionally repressed chromatin and that transcription increases binding by only 2-fold. These data therefore imply that TALEs are likely to bind to their target in vivo even at inactive loci.
Structure of cyclin G-associated kinase (GAK) trapped in different conformations using nanobodies
Authors: Chaikuad Apirat , Keates Tracy , Vincke Cécile , Kaufholz Melanie , Zenn Michael , Zimmermann Bastian , Gutiérrez Carlos , Zhang Rong-guang , Hatzos-Skintges Catherine , Joachimiak Andrzej , Muyldermans Serge , Herberg Friedrich W. , Knapp Stefan , Müller Susanne
Published: January 2014

GAK (cyclin G-associated kinase) is a key regulator of clathrin-coated vesicle trafficking and plays a central role during development. Additionally, due to the unusually high plasticity of its catalytic domain, it is a frequent ‘off-target’ of clinical kinase inhibitors associated with respiratory side effects of these drugs. In the present paper, we determined the crystal structure of the GAK catalytic domain alone and in complex with specific single-chain antibodies (nanobodies). GAK is constitutively active and weakly associates in solution. The GAK apo structure revealed a dimeric inactive state of the catalytic domain mediated by an unusual activation segment interaction. Co-crystallization with the nanobody NbGAK_4 trapped GAK in a dimeric arrangement similar to the one observed in the apo structure, whereas NbGAK_1 captured the activation segment of monomeric GAK in a well-ordered conformation, representing features of the active kinase. The presented structural and biochemical data provide insight into the domain plasticity of GAK and demonstrate the utility of nanobodies to gain insight into conformational changes of dynamic molecules. In addition, we present structural data on the binding mode of ATP mimetic inhibitors and enzyme kinetic data, which will support rational inhibitor design of inhibitors to reduce the off-target effect on GAK.
Supramolecular membrane-associated assemblies of RNA metabolic proteins in Escherichia coli
Authors: Hoch Philipp G. , Hartmann Roland K.
Published: January 2014

Controlled RNA degradation is known to be achieved via the exosome in Eukarya and Archaea, and the RNA degradosome in Bacteria. In this issue of the Biochemical Journal, Taghbalout et al. demonstrate in Escherichia coli that many additional proteins of the RNA degradation and processing network co-localize with the RNA degradosome in supramolecular structures. The latter appear as extended cytoplasmic membrane-associated assemblies that coil around the periphery of the cell when visualized by immunofluorescence microscopy. The co-localizing ensemble of RNA metabolic proteins includes RNaseE, PNPase (polynucleotide phosphorylase), the DEAD-box RNA helicase RhlB, the oligo-RNase Orn, RNases II and III, PAP I [poly(A) polymerase I], RppH (RNA pyrophosphohydrolase), proteins RraA and RraB that are negative regulators of RNaseE, and the RNA chaperone Hfq. Not all cellular RNA-binding proteins associate with these structures, as shown for EF-Tu (elongation factor Tu) and Rho helicase. Formation of the supramolecular architecture was shown to not be dependent on two other known cytoskeletal systems or on RNA de novo synthesis or nucleoid positioning within the cell. This novel dimension of compartmentalization in bacteria that lack classic cell compartments opens new perspectives on how RNA homoeostasis is achieved, organized and regulated in bacteria such as E. coli.
The yeast 14-3-3 proteins BMH1 and BMH2 differentially regulate rapamycin-mediated transcription
Authors: Trembley Michael A. , Berrus Hunter L. , Whicher Jonathan R. , Humphrey-Dixon Emily L.
Published: January 2014

14-3-3 proteins are highly conserved and have been found in all eukaryotic organisms investigated. They are involved in many varied cellular processes, and interact with hundreds of other proteins. Among many other roles in cells, yeast 14-3-3 proteins have been implicated in rapamycin-mediated cell signalling. We determined the transcription profiles of bmh1 and bmh2 yeast after treatment with rapamycin. We found that, under these conditions, BMH1 and BMH2 are required for rapamycin-induced regulation of distinct, but overlapping sets of genes. Both Bmh1 and Bmh2 associate with the promoters of at least some of these genes. BMH2, but not BMH1, attenuates the repression of genes involved in some functions required for ribosome biogenesis. BMH2 also attenuates the activation of genes sensitive to nitrogen catabolite repression.
Bidirectional string assembling systems
Authors: Kutrib Martin , Wendlandt Matthias
Published: January 2014

We introduce and investigate several variants of a bidirectional string assembling
system, which is a computational model that generates strings from copies of assembly
units. The underlying mechanism is based on two-sided piecewise assembly of a
double-stranded sequence of symbols, where the upper and lower strand have to match. The
generative capacities and the relative power of the variants are our main interest. In
particular, we prove that bidirectional string assembling system generate languages not
represented as any finite concatenation of one-sided string assembling systems. The latter
build an infinite, strict and tight concatenation hierarchy. Moreover, it is shown that
even the strongest system in question can only generate NL languages, while there are
unary regular languages that cannot be derived. Furthermore, a finite strict hierarchy
with respect to the different variants considered is shown and closure properties of the
languages generated are presented.
Computational Study of P3HT/C60-Fullerene Miscibility
Authors: Huang David M.
Published: January 2014

Classical molecular dynamics simulations and statistical thermodynamics are used to investigate the miscibility of blends of the conjugated polymer poly(3-hexylthiophene) (P3HT) and fullerene C60 for blend ratios typically used in organic photovoltaic devices over a range of temperatures. Depending on which of two slightly different simulation force fields is used, the calculations suggest that amorphous P3HT/fullerene blends are either miscible or immisicble under typical processing conditions. The former result is consistent with recent experiments and suggests that experimentally observed nano-scale phase separation is driven by polymer or fullerene crystallisation. But the inconsistency between the different force fields indicates that these blends are close to phase coexistence between the separated and homogeneously mixed phases and suggests that care must be taken in interpreting simulation data on P3HT/fullerene blends. These findings have implications for organic photovoltaics, in which the microstructure of conjugated-polymer/fullerene blends plays a crucial role in device performance.
Drought resistance and soil water extraction of a perennial C4 grass: contributions of root and rhizome traits
Authors: Zhou Yi , Lambrides Christopher J. , Fukai Shu
Published: January 2014

Previously, we showed that genotypic differences in soil water extraction were associated with drought response, but we did not study underground root and rhizome characteristics. In this study, we demonstrate a similar relationship between drought resistance and soil water extraction but investigate the role of underground organs. Eighteen bermudagrass genotypes (Cynodon spp.) from four climatic zones were assessed under continuous drought at two locations with contrasting soils and climates. The criterion for drought resistance was the duration required to reach 50% green cover (GC50) after water was withheld. GC50, physiological traits, rhizome dry matter (RhDM), root length density (RLD) and average root diameter (ARD) were determined in both locations; water extraction was measured in one location. Large genotypic variation for drought resistance was observed in both locations, with GC50 being 187–277 days in a clay soil and 15–27 days in a sandy soil. Drought-resistant genotypes had greater soil water extraction and a higher water uptake rate. GC50 was correlated with relative water content (r = 0.76), canopy temperature differential (r = –0.94) and photosynthetic rate (r = 0.87) measured during drought; RhDM (r = 0.78 to ~0.93) before and after drought; and ARD after drought (r = 0.82 to ~0.94); GC50 was not correlated with RLD. Ecotypes collected from the Australian Mediterranean zone had superior drought resistance and were characterised by a large rhizome network. This is the first comprehensive study with perennial C4 grasses describing the association between water extraction, root distribution, rhizomes and drought resistance.
Service providers’ experiences and needs in working with refugees in the Geelong region: a qualitative study
Authors: Jewson Ashlee , Lamaro Greer , Crisp Beth R. , Hanna Lisa , Taket Ann
Published: January 2014

Service providers in Geelong, one of the priority locations for the resettlement of refugees in regional Australia, were interviewed to explore their perceptions of the health and wellbeing needs of refugees, and the capacity of service providers in a regional area to meet these. In all, 22 interviews were conducted with health and human service professionals in a range of organisations offering refugee-specific services, culturally and linguistically diverse (CALD) services in general, and services to the wider community, including refugees. The findings revealed that a more coordinated approach would increase the effectiveness of existing services; however, the various needs of refugees were more than could be met by organisations in the region at current resource levels. More staff and interpreting services were required, as well as professional development for staff who have had limited experience in working with refugees. It should not be assumed that service needs for refugees resettled in regional Australia will be the same as those of refugees resettled in capital cities. Some services provided in Melbourne were not available in Geelong, and there were services not currently provided to refugees that may be critical in facilitating resettlement in regional and rural Australia.
Control processes in voluntary and explicitly cued task switching
Authors: Masson Michael E. J. , Carruthers Sarah
Published: January 2014

Explicitly cued task switching slows performance relative to performing the same task on consecutive trials. This effect appears to be due partly to more efficient encoding of the task cue when the same cue is used on consecutive trials and partly to an additional task-switching process. These components were examined by comparing explicitly cued and voluntary task switching groups, with external cues presented to both groups. Cue-switch effects varied in predictable ways to dissociate explicitly cued and voluntary task switching, whereas task-switch effects had similar characteristics for both instructional groups. The data were well fitted by a mathematical model of task switching that included a cue-encoding mechanism (whereby cue repetition improves performance) and an additional process that was invoked on task-switch trials. Analyses of response-time distributions suggest that this additional process involves task-set reconfiguration that may or may not be engaged before the target stimulus is presented.
A genome-wide screen identifies conserved protein hubs required for cadherin-mediated cell–cell adhesion
Authors: Toret Christopher P. , D’Ambrosio Michael V. , Vale Ronald D. , Simon Michael A. , Nelson W. James
Published: January 2014

Cadherins and associated catenins provide an important structural interface between neighboring cells, the actin cytoskeleton, and intracellular signaling pathways in a variety of cell types throughout the Metazoa. However, the full inventory of the proteins and pathways required for cadherin-mediated adhesion has not been established. To this end, we completed a genome-wide (∼14,000 genes) ribonucleic acid interference (RNAi) screen that targeted Ca2+-dependent adhesion in DE-cadherin–expressing Drosophila melanogaster S2 cells in suspension culture. This novel screen eliminated Ca2+-independent cell–cell adhesion, integrin-based adhesion, cell spreading, and cell migration. We identified 17 interconnected regulatory hubs, based on protein functions and protein–protein interactions that regulate the levels of the core cadherin–catenin complex and coordinate cadherin-mediated cell–cell adhesion. Representative proteins from these hubs were analyzed further in Drosophila oogenesis, using targeted germline RNAi, and adhesion was analyzed in Madin–Darby canine kidney mammalian epithelial cell–cell adhesion. These experiments reveal roles for a diversity of cellular pathways that are required for cadherin function in Metazoa, including cytoskeleton organization, cell–substrate interactions, and nuclear and cytoplasmic signaling.
Genome maintenance in pluripotent stem cells
Authors: Weissbein Uri , Benvenisty Nissim , Ben-David Uri
Published: January 2014

Pluripotent stem cells (PSCs) must maintain their proper genomic content in order to preserve appropriate self-renewal and differentiation capacities. However, their prolonged in vitro propagation, as well as the environmental culture conditions, present serious challenges to genome maintenance. Recent work has been focused on potential means to alleviate the genomic insults experienced by PSCs, and to detect them as soon as they arise, in order to prevent the detrimental consequences of these genomic aberrations on PSC application in basic research and regenerative medicine.
Jonathon Howard: Motor proteins go walkabout
Authors: Sedwick Caitlin
Published: January 2014

Howard studies motor proteins and how they shape cell behaviors.
Apoptosome and inflammasome: conserved machineries for caspase activation
Authors: Chai Jijie , Shi Yigong
Published: January 2014

Apoptosome and inflammasome are multimeric protein complexes that mediate the activation of specific caspases at the onset of apoptosis and inflammation. The central component of apoptosome or inflammasome is a tripartite scaffold protein, exemplified by Apaf-1 and NLRC4, which contains an amino-terminal homotypic interaction motif, a central nucleotide-binding oligomerization domain and a carboxyl-terminal ligand-sensing domain. In the absence of death cue or an inflammatory signal, Apaf-1 or NLRC4 exists in an auto-inhibited, monomeric state, which is stabilized by adenosine diphosphate (ADP). Binding to an apoptosis- or inflammation-inducing ligand, together with replacement of ADP by adenosine triphosphate (ATP), results in the formation of a multimeric apoptosome or inflammasome. The assembled apoptosome and inflammasome serve as dedicated machineries to facilitate the activation of specific caspases. In this review, we describe the structure and functional mechanisms of mammalian inflammasome and apoptosomes from three representative organisms. Emphasis is placed on the molecular mechanism of caspase activation and the shared features of apoptosomes and inflammasomes.
China's funding system and research innovation
Authors: Qiu Jane
Published: January 2014

In the past decade, China's total expenditure on research and development (R&D) has been increasing by about 20% per year. And the total output of scientific research from China has not failed to impress: a 2011 study by Britain's Royal Society found that, in 2004–08, the country produced 10% of the world's published scientific articles, putting it second after the United States.

But a study conducted by the World Bank and China's State Council concluded in the year 2012 that Chinese research quality falls short. It noted that the country produces relatively few high-impact articles, and that the majority of Chinese patents constitute minor novelties rather than genuine innovations.

So what has gone wrong? And what needs to be changed to spur innovation in China significantly? In a forum organized by National Science Review, its executive associate editor Mu-ming Poo asked four leading scientists in China.

Yadong Li

Chemist of Tsinghua University in Beijing (Courtesy of Yadong Li)

Yi Rao

Biologist of Peking University in Beijing (Courtesy of Yi Rao)

Dingsheng Wang

Physicist of Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Beijing (Courtesy of Dingsheng Wang)

Pinxian Wang

Geologist of Tongji University in Shanghai (Courtesy of Pinxian Wang)

Mu-ming Poo (Chair)

Neuroscientist of Institute of Neuroscience, Chinese Academy of Sciences in Shanghai (Courtesy of Mu-ming Poo)
Preliminary X-ray crystallographic analysis of glutathione transferase zeta 1 (GSTZ1a-1a)
Authors: Boone Christopher D. , Zhong Guo , Smeltz Marci , James Margaret O. , McKenna Robert
Published: January 2014

Glutathione transferase zeta 1 (GSTZ1-1) is a homodimeric enzyme found in the cytosol and mitochondrial matrix of the liver and other tissues. It catalyzes the glutathione-dependent isomerization of maleylacetoacetate to fumarylacetoacetate in the tyrosine catabolic pathway and can metabolize small halogenated carboxylic acids. GSTZ1a-1a crystals diffracted to a resolution of 3.1 Å and belonged to space group P1, with unit-cell parameters a = 42.0, b = 49.6, c = 54.6 Å, α = 82.9, β = 69.9, γ = 73.4°, with a calculated Matthews coefficient of 2.1 Å3 Da−1 assuming a dimer in the crystallographic asymmetric unit. Refinement of the structure is currently in progress.
Crystallization and preliminary X-ray characterization of MutT2, MSMEG_5148 from Mycobacterium smegmatis
Authors: Arif S. M. , Sang P. B. , Varshney U. , Vijayan M.
Published: January 2014

Crystallization of MutT2, MSMEG_5148 from Mycobacterium smegmatis, has been carried out and the crystals have been characterized using X-ray diffraction. Matthews coefficient calculation suggests the possibility of one protein molecule in the asymmetric unit of the orthorhombic unit cell, space group P21212 or P2122. Solution of the structure of the protein by molecular replacement using the known three-dimensional structure of a bacterial Nudix hydrolase is envisaged.