bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Host and ecology both play a role in shaping distribution of digenean parasites of New Zealand whelks (Gastropoda: Buccinidae: Cominella)
Authors: DONALD KIRSTEN M. , SPENCER HAMISH G.
Published: June 2016

Digenean parasites infecting four Cominella whelk species (C. glandiformis, C. adspersa, C. maculosa and C. virgata), which inhabit New Zealand's intertidal zone, were analysed using molecular techniques. Mitochondrial 16S and cytochrome oxidase 1 (COI) and nuclear rDNA ITS1 sequences were used to infer phylogenetic relationships amongst digenea. Host species were parasitized by a diverse range of digenea (Platyhelminthes, Trematoda), representing seven families: Echinostomatidae, Opecoelidae, Microphallidae, Strigeidae and three, as yet, undetermined families A, B and C. Each parasite family infected between one and three host whelk species, and infection levels were typically low (average infection rates ranged from 1·4 to 3·6%). Host specificity ranged from highly species-specific amongst the echinostomes, which were only ever observed infecting C. glandiformis, to the more generalist opecoelids and strigeids, which were capable of infecting three out of four of the Cominella species analysed. Digeneans displayed a highly variable geographic range; for example, echinostomes had a large geographic range stretching the length of New Zealand, from Northland to Otago, whereas Family B parasites were restricted to fairly small areas of the North Island. Our results add to a growing body of research identifying wide ranges in both host specificity and geographic range amongst intertidal, multi-host parasite systems.
Comparative pathogenesis of eosinophilic meningitis caused by Angiostrongylus mackerrasae and Angiostrongylus cantonensis in murine and guinea pig models of human infection
Authors: AGHAZADEH MAHDIS , HARVIE MARINA C. , OWEN HELEN C. , VERÍSSIMO CAROLINA , ALAND KIERAN V. , REID SIMON A. , TRAUB REBECCA J. , McMANUS DONALD P. , McCARTHY JAMES S. , JONES MALCOLM K.
Published: June 2016

This study investigated comparatively the pathogenicity of experimental infection of mice and guinea pigs, with Angiostrongylus mackerrasae and the closely related species A. cantonensis. Time course analyses showed that A. mackerrasae causes eosinophilic meningitis in these hosts, which suggests that the species has the potential to cause meningitis in humans and domestic animals. Both A. mackerrasae and the genetically similar A. cantonensis caused eosinophilic meningitis in mice at two time points of 14 and 21 days post infection (dpi). The brain lesions in mice infected with A. mackerrasae were more granulomatous in nature and the parasites were more likely to appear degenerate compared with lesions caused by A. cantonensis. This may indicate that the mouse immune system eliminates A. mackerrasae infection more effectively. The immunologic responses of mice infected with the two Angiostrongylus species was compared by assessing ex vivo stimulated spleen derived T cells and cytokines including interferon-gamma, interleukin 4 and interleukin 17 on 14 and 21 dpi. The results were similar for mice infected with A. cantonensis and A. mackerrasae. Serum from the infected animals with either A. cantonensis or A. mackerrasae recognized total soluble antigen of A. cantonensis female worms on Western blot.
Linguistic structure emerges through the interaction of memory constraints and communicative pressures
Authors: Lewis Molly L. , Frank Michael C.
Published: June 2016

If memory constraints were the only limitation on language processing, the best possible language would be one with only one word. But to explain the rich structure of language, we need to posit a second constraint: the pressure to communicate informatively. Many aspects of linguistic structure can be accounted for by appealing to equilibria that result from these two pressures.
The bottleneck may be the solution, not the problem
Authors: Lotem Arnon , Kolodny Oren , Halpern Joseph Y. , Onnis Luca , Edelman Shimon
Published: June 2016

As a highly consequential biological trait, a memory “bottleneck” cannot escape selection pressures. It must therefore co-evolve with other cognitive mechanisms rather than act as an independent constraint. Recent theory and an implemented model of language acquisition suggest that a limit on working memory may evolve to help learning. Furthermore, it need not hamper the use of language for communication.
Memory limitations and chunking are variable and cannot explain language structure
Authors: MacDonald Maryellen C.
Published: June 2016

Both the Now-or-Never bottleneck and the chunking mechanisms hypothesized to cope with it are more variable than Christiansen & Chater (C&C) suggest. These constructs are, therefore, too weak to support C&C's claims for the nature of language. Key aspects of the hierarchical nature of language instead arise from the nature of sequencing of subgoals during utterance planning in language production.
Horizons on Spiritual Direction
Authors: Schneiders Sandra M.
Published: June 2016

When I undertook to teach a course on spiritual direction in 1976 I discovered that there were practically no books in English available on the subject. John McNeill's classic work in comparative history had been reprinted. Merton's little essay, already fifteen years old and more monastic in approach than was suitable for my students was still available. Jean Laplace's substantively excellent, but somewhat old-fashioned and clerical, treatment of the subject had just been translated from the French. With these exceptions, almost all useful material on the topic of spiritual direction was in the form of articles on specific aspects of this ministry appearing with increasing frequency in periodicals devoted to spirituality and religious life.

With the appearance the following year of Kenneth Leech's very fine study, Soul Friend, perhaps still the best overall treatment available, a veritable publishing phenomenon began. In the last five years dozens of full-length books and a number of long essays as well as various collections of articles on spiritual direction have appeared. In what follows I will attempt to describe and evaluate this phenomenon by briefly commenting on a number of recent books on the subject of spiritual direction.
Theology and Spirituality: Strangers, Rivals, or Partners?
Authors: Schneiders Sandra M.
Published: June 2016

After tracing the history of the term “spirituality” and the discipline of spirituality up to the mid-twentieth century, this article describes the contemporary understanding of spirituality as lived religious experience and of the academic discipline which studies this subject. This phenomenology of the discipline grounds a position on the relationship between lived spirituality and theology on the one hand, and the academic disciplines of spirituality and theology on the other.
Source and risk factors of a cutaneous anthrax outbreak, Jiangsu, Eastern China, 2012
Authors: HU J. L. , CUI L. L. , BAO C. J. , TAN Z. M. , RUTHERFORD S. , YING L. , ZHANG M. L. , ZHU F. C.
Published: June 2016

Anthrax is still a severe public health problem and threat to human health. A cutaneous anthrax outbreak occurred in Jiangsu Province, a non-endemic anthrax region of eastern China, from July to August 2012. Epidemiological and laboratory investigation were initiated to trace the source of infection and identify the risk factors of the outbreak. On 25 July 2012, 17 persons were exposed to a sick cow, which had been imported from northeast China a few days previously. Of the 17 exposed, eight developed symptoms between 1 and 8 days and were diagnosed as cutaneous anthrax cases. Three main genes of Bacillus anthracis were detected from both human and cow meat samples, indicating that the outbreak was associated with this infected cow. A retrospective cohort study showed that contact with blood and presence of skin damage contributed to the case infection with B. anthracis. The outbreak highlights the need to enhance quarantine for imported livestock, which should have been vaccinated prior to importation, the significance of education for high-risk individuals, and training for primary healthcare workers even in anthrax-free areas.
Time to seroconversion of HBsAg to anti-HBs in individuals who lost HBsAg during follow-up
Authors: ROUSHAN M. R. H. , MOHAMMADPOUR M. , BAIANY M. , SOLEIMANI S. , BIJANI A.
Published: June 2016

To determine the time to appearance of antibody against hepatitis B surface antigen (anti-HBs) after clearance of hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg) in chronically infected individuals, we followed up 3963 cases with positive antibody against hepatitis B e antigen (anti-HBe) from 1991 to 2014. Of these, 101 (67 males, 34 females) lost HBsAg. These serocleared cases were checked every 6-month interval regarding HBsAg, anti-HBs, liver function tests, and liver sonography. Hepatitis B virus DNA was assessed at the time of seroclearance or the appearance of anti-HBs. The mean age of these patients at entry to this study was 34·4 ± 13 years. The mean follow-up duration until seroclearance of HBsAg was 6·6 ± 4·3 years. After the mean follow-up of 43·7 ± 45 months, anti-HBs appeared in 64 (63·4%) cases. The cumulative probabilities of anti-HBs appearance for 2, 5 and 10 years were 24·3%, 58% and 78·2%, respectively. The appearance of anti-HBs was associated with age ⩾35 years and seroclearance of HBsAg (hazard ratio 1·96, 95% confidence interval 1·32–3·38, P = 0·016) but not with sex. The results show that anti-HBs may develop in 78·2% of cases within 10 years of HBsAg clearance. Age ⩾35 years at HBsAg loss was associated with earlier development of anti-HBs.
Towards a descriptive theory of cb0-spaces
Authors: SELIVANOV VICTOR
Published: June 2016

The paper tries to extend some results of the classical Descriptive Set Theory to as many countably basedT0-spaces (cb0-spaces) as possible. Along with extending some central facts about Borel, Luzin and Hausdorff hierarchies of sets we also consider the more general case ofk-partitions. In particular, we investigate the difference hierarchy ofk-partitions and the fine hierarchy closely related to the Wadge hierarchy.
Adult ADHD and Depressive Disorders: Prevalence, Significance, and Clinical Presentation
Authors: Rostain Anthony L.
Published: June 2016

Adult attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) and the spectrum of depressive disorders have high overlapping prevalence rates. Rates of depression in adults with ADHD and rates of ADHD in depressed adults provide an important epidemiologic background for clinicians treating either or both of these populations. There is a distinctive phenomenology of ADHD and depression, and distinctive diagnostic issues that present with the coexistence of these two disorders.
Assessment of the rain drop inertia effect for radar-based turbulence intensity retrievals
Authors: Oude Nijhuis Albert C.P. , Yanovsky Felix J. , Krasnov Oleg , Unal Christine M.H. , Russchenberg Herman W.J. , Yarovoy Alexander
Published: June 2016

A new model is proposed on how to account for the inertia of scatterers in radar-based turbulence intensity retrieval techniques. Rain drop inertial parameters are derived from fundamental physical laws, which are gravity, the buoyancy force, and the drag force. The inertial distance is introduced, which is a typical distance at which a particle obtains the same wind velocity as its surroundings throughout its trajectory. For the measurement of turbulence intensity, either the Doppler spectral width or the variance of Doppler mean velocities is used. The relative scales of the inertial distance and the radar resolution volume determine whether the variance of velocities is increased or decreased for the same turbulence intensity. A decrease can be attributed to the effect that inertial particles are less responsive to the variations of wind velocities. An increase can be attributed to inertial particles that have wind velocities corresponding to an average of wind velocities over their backward trajectories, which extend outside the radar resolution volume. Simulations are done for the calculation of measured radar velocity variance, given a 3-D homogeneous isotropic turbulence field, which provides valuable insight in the correct tuning of parameters for the new model.
Memory for Radio Advertisements: the Effect of Program and Typicality
Authors: Martín-Luengo Beatriz , Luna Karlos , Migueles Malen
Published: June 2016

We examined the influence of the type of radio program on the memory for radio advertisements. We also investigated the role in memory of the typicality (high or low) of the elements of the products advertised. Participants listened to three types of programs (interesting, boring, enjoyable) with two advertisements embedded in each. After completing a filler task, the participants performed a true/false recognition test. Hits and false alarm rates were higher for the interesting and enjoyable programs than for the boring one. There were also more hits and false alarms for the high-typicality elements. The response criterion for the advertisements embedded in the boring program was stricter than for the advertisements in other types of programs. We conclude that the type of program in which an advertisement is inserted and the nature of the elements of the advertisement affect both the number of hits and false alarms and the response criterion, but not the accuracy of the memory.
ROS homeostasis and metabolism: a dangerous liason in cancer cells
Authors: Panieri E , Santoro M M
Published: June 2016

Tumor cells harbor genetic alterations that promote a continuous and elevated production of reactive oxygen species. Whereas such oxidative stress conditions would be harmful to normal cells, they facilitate tumor growth in multiple ways by causing DNA damage and genomic instability, and ultimately, by reprogramming cancer cell metabolism. This review outlines the metabolic-dependent mechanisms that tumors engage in when faced with oxidative stress conditions that are critical for cancer progression by producing redox cofactors. In particular, we describe how the mitochondria has a key role in regulating the interplay between redox homeostasis and metabolism within tumor cells. Last, we will discuss the potential therapeutic use of agents that directly or indirectly block metabolism.
PAX7 is a required target for microRNA-206-induced differentiation of fusion-negative rhabdomyosarcoma
Authors: Hanna J A , Garcia M R , Go J C , Finkelstein D , Kodali K , Pagala V , Wang X , Peng J , Hatley M E
Published: June 2016

Rhabdomyosarcoma (RMS) is the most common soft tissue sarcoma of childhood. RMS can be parsed based on clinical outcome into two subtypes, fusion-positive RMS (FP-RMS) or fusion-negative RMS (FN-RMS) based on the presence or absence of either PAX3-FOXO1 or PAX7-FOXO1 gene fusions. In both RMS subtypes, tumor cells show histology and a gene expression pattern resembling that of developmentally arrested skeletal muscle. Differentiation therapy is an attractive approach to embryonal tumors of childhood including RMS; however, agents to drive RMS differentiation have not entered the clinic and their mechanisms remain unclear. MicroRNA-206 (miR-206) expression increases through normal muscle development and has decreased levels in RMS compared with normal skeletal muscle. Increasing miR-206 expression drives differentiation of RMS, but the target genes responsible for the relief of the development arrest are largely unknown. Using a combinatorial approach with gene and proteomic profiling coupled with genetic rescue, we identified key miR-206 targets responsible for the FN-RMS differentiation blockade, PAX7, PAX3, NOTCH3, and CCND2. Specifically, we determined that PAX7 downregulation is necessary for miR-206-induced cell cycle exit and myogenic differentiation in FN-RMS but not in FP-RMS. Gene knockdown of targets necessary for miR-206-induced differentiation alone or in combination was not sufficient to phenocopy the differentiation phenotype from miR-206, thus illustrating that miR-206 replacement offers the ability to modulate a complex network of genes responsible for the developmental arrest in FN-RMS. Genetic deletion of miR-206 in a mouse model of FN-RMS accelerated and exacerbated tumor development, indicating that both in vitro and in vivo miR-206 acts as a tumor suppressor in FN-RMS at least partially through downregulation of PAX7. Collectively, our results illustrate that miR-206 relieves the differentiation arrest in FN-RMS and suggests that miR-206 replacement could be a potential therapeutic differentiation strategy.
MicroRNA-155 facilitates skeletal muscle regeneration by balancing pro- and anti-inflammatory macrophages
Authors: Nie M , Liu J , Yang Q , Seok H Y , Hu X , Deng Z-L , Wang D-Z
Published: June 2016

Skeletal muscle has remarkable regeneration capacity and regenerates in response to injury. Muscle regeneration largely relies on muscle stem cells called satellite cells. Satellite cells normally remain quiescent, but in response to injury or exercise they become activated and proliferate, migrate, differentiate, and fuse to form multinucleate myofibers. Interestingly, the inflammatory process following injury and the activation of the myogenic program are highly coordinated, with myeloid cells having a central role in modulating satellite cell activation and regeneration. Here, we show that genetic deletion of microRNA-155 (miR-155) in mice substantially delays muscle regeneration. Surprisingly, miR-155 does not appear to directly regulate the proliferation or differentiation of satellite cells. Instead, miR-155 is highly expressed in myeloid cells, is essential for appropriate activation of myeloid cells, and regulates the balance between pro-inflammatory M1 macrophages and anti-inflammatory M2 macrophages during skeletal muscle regeneration. Mechanistically, we found that miR-155 suppresses SOCS1, a negative regulator of the JAK-STAT signaling pathway, during the initial inflammatory response upon muscle injury. Our findings thus reveal a novel role of miR-155 in regulating initial immune responses during muscle regeneration and provide a novel miRNA target for improving muscle regeneration in degenerative muscle diseases.
Ambiphilic boron in 1,4,2,5-diazadiborinine
Authors: Wang Baolin , Li Yongxin , Ganguly Rakesh , Hirao Hajime , Kinjo Rei
Published: June 2016

Boranes have long been known as the archetypal Lewis acids owing to an empty p-orbital on the boron centre. Meanwhile, Lewis basic tricoordinate boranes have been developed in recent years. Here we report the synthesis of an annulated 1,4,2,5-diazadiborinine derivative featuring boron atoms that exhibit both Lewis acidic and basic properties. Experimental and computational studies confirmed that two boron atoms in this molecule are spectroscopically equivalent. Nevertheless, this molecule cleaves C–O, B–H, Si–H and P–H bonds heterolytically, and readily undergoes [4+2] cycloaddition reaction with non-activated unsaturated bonds such as C=O, C=C, C≡C and C≡N bonds. The result, thus, indicates that the indistinguishable boron atoms in 1,4,2,5-diazadiborinine act as both nucleophilic and electrophilic centres, demonstrating ambiphilic nature.
Erratum: Genetic link between renal birth defects and congenital heart disease
Authors: San Agustin Jovenal T. , Klena Nikolai , Granath Kristi , Panigrahy Ashok , Stewart Eileen , Devine William , Strittmatter Lara , Jonassen Julie A. , Liu Xiaoqin , Lo Cecilia W. , Pazour Gregory J.
Published: June 2016

Nature Communications 7 Article number:11103 (2016); Published 22 March 2016; Updated 8 June 2016 In Fig. 6 of this Article, defects in the tectonic complex were inadvertently labelled during the production process as causing postnatal, rather than prenatal cysts. The correct version of the figure appears below.
Tree aboveground carbon storage correlates with environmental gradients and functional diversity in a tropical forest
Authors: Shen Yong , Yu Shixiao , Lian Juyu , Shen Hao , Cao Honglin , Lu Huanping , Ye Wanhui
Published: June 2016

Tropical forests play a disproportionately important role in the global carbon (C) cycle, but it remains unclear how local environments and functional diversity regulate tree aboveground C storage. We examined how three components (environments, functional dominance and diversity) affected C storage in Dinghushan 20-ha plot in China. There was large fine-scale variation in C storage. The three components significantly contributed to regulate C storage, but dominance and diversity of traits were associated with C storage in different directions. Structural equation models (SEMs) of dominance and diversity explained 34% and 32% of variation in C storage. Environments explained 26–44% of variation in dominance and diversity. Similar proportions of variation in C storage were explained by dominance and diversity in regression models, they were improved after adding environments. Diversity of maximum diameter was the best predictor of C storage. Complementarity and selection effects contributed to C storage simultaneously, and had similar importance. The SEMs disengaged the complex relationships among the three components and C storage, and established a framework to show the direct and indirect effects (via dominance and diversity) of local environments on C storage. We concluded that local environments are important for regulating functional diversity and C storage.
Microdevice for plasma separation from whole human blood using bio-physical and geometrical effects
Authors: Tripathi Siddhartha , Kumar Y. V. BalaVarun , Agrawal Amit , Prabhakar Amit , Joshi Suhas S.
Published: June 2016

In this research work, we present a simple and efficient passive microfluidic device for plasma separation from pure blood. The microdevice has been fabricated using conventional photolithography technique on a single layer of polydimethylsiloxane, and has been extensively tested on whole blood and enhanced (upto 62%) hematocrit levels of human blood. The microdevice employs elevated dimensions of about 100 μm; such elevated dimensions ensure clog-free operation of the microdevice and is relatively easy to fabricate. We show that our microdevice achieves almost 100% separation efficiency on undiluted blood in the flow rate range of 0.3 to 0.5 ml/min. Detailed biological characterization of the plasma obtained from the microdevice is carried out by testing: proteins by ultra-violet spectrophotometric method, hCG (human chorionic gonadotropin) hormone, and conducting random blood glucose test. Additionally, flow cytometry study has also been carried on the separated plasma. These tests attest to the high quality of plasma recovered. The microdevice developed in this work is an outcome of extensive experimental research on understanding the flow behavior and separation phenomenon of blood in microchannels. The microdevice is compact, economical and effective, and is particularly suited in continuous flow operations.
Patterns of taxonomic, phylogenetic diversity during a long-term succession of forest on the Loess Plateau, China: insights into assembly process
Authors: Chai Yongfu , Yue Ming , Liu Xiao , Guo Yaoxin , Wang Mao , Xu Jinshi , Zhang Chenguang , Chen Yu , Zhang Lixia , Zhang Ruichang
Published: June 2016

Quantifying the drivers underlying the distribution of biodiversity during succession is a critical issue in ecology and conservation and also can provide insights into the mechanisms of community assembly. Ninety plots were established in the Loess Plateau region of northern Shaanxi in China. The taxonomic and phylogenetic (alpha and beta) diversity were quantified within six succession stages. Null models were used to test whether phylogenetic distance observed differed from random expectations. Taxonomic beta diversity did not show a regular pattern, while phylogenetic beta diversity decreased throughout succession. The shrub stage occurred as a transition from phylogenetic overdispersion to clustering either for NRI (Net Relatedness Index) or betaNRI. The betaNTI (Nearest Taxon Index) values for early stages were on average phylogenetically random, but for the betaNRI analyses, these stages were phylogenetically overdispersed. Assembly of woody plants differed from that of herbaceous plants during late community succession. We suggest that deterministic and stochastic processes respectively play a role in different aspects of community phylogenetic structure for early succession stage and that community composition of late succession stage is governed by a deterministic process. In conclusion, the long-lasting evolutionary imprints on the present-day composition of communities arrayed along the succession gradient.
Foci of cyclin A2 interact with actin and RhoA in mitosis
Authors: Loukil Abdelhalim , Izard Fanny , Georgieva Mariya , Mashayekhan Shaereh , Blanchard Jean-Marie , Parmeggiani Andrea , Peter Marion
Published: June 2016

Cyclin A2 is a key player in the regulation of the cell cycle. Its degradation in mid-mitosis depends primarily on the ubiquitin-proteasome system (UPS), while autophagy also contributes. However, a fraction of cyclin A2 persists beyond metaphase. In this work, we focus on cyclin A2-rich foci detected in mitosis by high resolution imaging and analyse their movements. We demonstrate that cyclin A2 interacts with actin and RhoA during mitosis and that cyclin A2 depletion induces a dramatic decrease in active RhoA in mitosis. Our data suggest cyclin A2 participation in RhoA activation in late mitosis.
Endophenotype Network Models: Common Core of Complex Diseases
Authors: Ghiassian Susan Dina , Menche Jörg , Chasman Daniel I. , Giulianini Franco , Wang Ruisheng , Ricchiuto Piero , Aikawa Masanori , Iwata Hiroshi , Müller Christian , Zeller Tania , Sharma Amitabh , Wild Philipp , Lackner Karl , Singh Sasha , Ridker Paul M. , Blankenberg Stefan , Barabási Albert-László , Loscalzo Joseph
Published: June 2016

Historically, human diseases have been differentiated and categorized based on the organ system in which they primarily manifest. Recently, an alternative view is emerging that emphasizes that different diseases often have common underlying mechanisms and shared intermediate pathophenotypes, orendo(pheno)types. Within this framework, a specific disease’s expression is a consequence of the interplay between the relevant endophenotypes and their local, organ-based environment. Important examples of such endophenotypes are inflammation, fibrosis, and thrombosis and their essential roles in many developing diseases. In this study, we construct endophenotype network models and explore their relation to different diseases in general and to cardiovascular diseases in particular. We identify the local neighborhoods (module) within the interconnected map of molecular components, i.e., the subnetworks of the human interactome that represent theinflammasome, thrombosome,andfibrosome. We find that these neighborhoods are highly overlapping and significantly enriched with disease-associated genes. In particular they are also enriched with differentially expressed genes linked to cardiovascular disease (risk). Finally, using proteomic data, we explore how macrophage activation contributes to our understanding of inflammatory processes and responses. The results of our analysis show that inflammatory responses initiate from within the cross-talk of the three identified endophenotypic modules.
Analysis of miRNAs and their target genes associated with lipid metabolism in duck liver
Authors: He Jun , Wang Weiqun , Lu Lizhi , Tian Yong , Niu Dong , Ren Jindong , Dong Liyan , Sun Siwei , Zhao Yan , Chen Li , Shen Jianliang , Li Xiuhong
Published: June 2016

Fat character is an important index in duck culture that linked to local flavor, feed cost and fat intake for costumers. Since the regulation networks in duck lipid metabolism had not been reported very clearly, we aimed to explore the potential miRNA-mRNA pairs and their regulatory roles in duck lipid metabolism. Here, Cherry-Valley ducks were selected and treated with/without 5% oil added in feed for 2 weeks, and then fat content determination was performed on. The data showed that the fat contents and the fatty acid ratios of C17:1 and C18:2 were up-regulated in livers of oil-added ducks, while the C12:0 ratio was down-regulated. Then 21 differential miRNAs, including 10 novel miRNAs, were obtain from the livers by sequencing, and 73 target genes involved in lipid metabolic processes of these miRNAs were found, which constituted 316 miRNA-mRNA pairs. Two miRNA-mRNA pairs including one novel miRNA and one known miRNA, N-miR-16020-FASN and gga-miR-144-ELOVL6, were selected to validate the miRNA-mRNA negative relation. And the results showed that N-mir-16020 and gga-miR-144 could respectively bind the 3′-UTRs of FASN and ELOVL6 to control their expressions. This study provides new sights and useful information for future research on regulation network in duck lipid metabolism.
hSSB1 (NABP2/OBFC2B) is regulated by oxidative stress
Authors: Paquet Nicolas , Adams Mark N. , Ashton Nicholas W. , Touma Christine , Gamsjaeger Roland , Cubeddu Liza , Leong Vincent , Beard Sam , Bolderson Emma , Botting Catherine H. , O’Byrne Kenneth J. , Richard Derek J.
Published: June 2016

The maintenance of genome stability is an essential cellular process to prevent the development of diseases including cancer. hSSB1 (NABP2/ OBFC2A) is a critical component of the DNA damage response where it participates in the repair of double-strand DNA breaks and in base excision repair of oxidized guanine residues (8-oxoguanine) by aiding the localization of the human 8-oxoguanine glycosylase (hOGG1) to damaged DNA. Here we demonstrate that following oxidative stress, hSSB1 is stabilized as an oligomer which is required for hSSB1 to function in the removal of 8-oxoguanine. Monomeric hSSB1 shows a decreased affinity for oxidized DNA resulting in a cellular 8-oxoguanine-repair defect and in the absence of ATM signaling initiation. While hSSB1 oligomerization is important for the removal of 8-oxoguanine from the genome, it is not required for the repair of double-strand DNA-breaks by homologous recombination. These findings demonstrate a novel hSSB1 regulatory mechanism for the repair of damaged DNA.
Free-Standing Organic Transistors and Circuits with Sub-Micron Thicknesses
Authors: Fukuda Kenjiro , Sekine Tomohito , Shiwaku Rei , Morimoto Takuya , Kumaki Daisuke , Tokito Shizuo
Published: June 2016

The realization of wearable electronic devices with extremely thin and flexible form factors has been a major technological challenge. While substrates typically limit the thickness of thin-film electronic devices, they are usually necessary for their fabrication and functionality. Here we report on ultra-thin organic transistors and integrated circuits using device components whose substrates that have been removed. The fabricated organic circuits with total device thicknesses down to 350 nm have electrical performance levels close to those fabricated on conventional flexible substrates. Moreover, they exhibit excellent mechanical robustness, whereby their static and dynamic electrical characteristics do not change even under 50% compressive strain. Tests using systematically applied compressive strains reveal that these free-standing organic transistors possess anisotropic mechanical stability and a strain model for a multilayer stack can be used to describe the strain in this sort of ultra-thin device. These results show the feasibility of ultimate-thin organic electronic devices using free-standing constructions.
Cinnamaldehyde and allopurinol reduce fructose-induced cardiac inflammation and fibrosis by attenuating CD36-mediated TLR4/6-IRAK4/1 signaling to suppress NLRP3 inflammasome activation
Authors: Kang Lin-Lin , Zhang Dong-Mei , Ma Chun-Hua , Zhang Jian-Hua , Jia Ke-Ke , Liu Jia-Hui , Wang Rong , Kong Ling-Dong
Published: June 2016

Fructose consumption induces metabolic syndrome to increase cardiovascular disease risk. Cinnamaldehyde and allopurinol possess anti-oxidative and anti-inflammatory activity to relieve heart injury in metabolic syndrome. But the mechanisms of fructose-induced cardiac injury and cardioprotective effects of cinnamaldehyde and allopurinol are not completely understood. In this study, fructose-fed rats displayed metabolic syndrome with elevated serum ox-LDL, cardiac oxidative stress, inflammation and fibrosis. Scavenger receptor CD36, Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4), TLR6, IL-1R-associated kinase 4/1 (IRAK4/1), nucleotide-binding domain (NOD)-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome, interleukin-1β, transforming growth factor-β (TGF-β), drosophila mothers against DPP homolog (Smad) 2/3 phosphorylation and Smad4 were increased in animal and H9c2 cell models. These pathological processes were further evaluated in ox-LDL or fructose-exposed H9c2 cells pretreated with ROS scavenger and CD36 specific inhibitor, or IRAK1/4 inhibitor and transfected with CD36, NLRP3, or IRAK4/1 siRNA, demonstrating that NLPR3 inflammasome activation through CD36-mediated TLR4/6-IRAK4/1 signaling may promote cardiac inflammation and fibrosis. Cinnamaldehyde and allopurinol reduced cardiac oxidative stress to suppress NLPR3 inflammasome activation and TGF-β/Smads signaling by inhibiting CD36-mediated TLR4/6-IRAK4/1 signaling under fructose induction. These results suggest that the blockage of CD36-mediated TLR4/6-IRAK4/1 signaling to suppress NLRP3 inflammasome activation by cinnamaldehyde and allopurinol may protect against fructose-induced cardiac inflammation and fibrosis.
Biological Nitrogen Removal through Nitritation Coupled with Thiosulfate-Driven Denitritation
Authors: Qian Jin , Zhou Junmei , Zhang Zhen , Liu Rulong , Wang Qilin
Published: June 2016

A novel biological nitrogen removal system based on nitritation coupled with thiosulfate-driven denitritation (Nitritation-TDD) was developed to achieve a high nitrogen removal rate and low sludge production. A nitritation sequential batch reactor (nitritation SBR) and an anoxic up-flow sludge bed (AnUSB) reactor were applied for effective nitritation and denitritation, respectively. Above 75% nitrite was accumulated in the nitritation SBR with an influent ammonia loading rate of 0.43 kg N/d/m3. During Nitritation-TDD operation, particle sizes (d50) of the sludge decreased from 406 to 225 um in nitritation SBR and from 327–183 um in AnUSB reactor. Pyrosequencing tests revealed that ammonium-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) population was stabilized at approximately 7.0% (calculated as population of AOB-related genus divided by the total microbial population) in the nitritation SBR. In contrast, nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) population decreased from 6.5–0.6% over the same time, indicating the effective nitrite accumulation in the nitritation SBR. Thiobacillus, accounting for 34.2% in the AnUSB reactor, was mainly responsible for nitrogen removal via autotrophic denitritation, using an external source of thiosulfate as electron donor. Also, it was found that free nitrous acid could directly affect the denitritation activity.
Oestrogen and parathyroid hormone alleviate lumbar intervertebral disc degeneration in ovariectomized rats and enhance Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity
Authors: Jia Haobo , Ma Jianxiong , Lv Jianwei , Ma Xinlong , Xu Weiguo , Yang Yang , Tian Aixian , Wang Ying , Sun Lei , Xu Liyan , Fu Lin , Zhao Jie
Published: June 2016

To investigate the mitigation effect and mechanism of oestrogen and PTH on disc degeneration in rats after ovariectomy, as well as on Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity, thirty 3-month-old rats were ovariectomized and divided into three groups. Ten additional rats were used as controls. Eight weeks later, the rats were administered oestrogen or PTH for 12 weeks and then discs were collected for tests. Results showed that nucleus pulposus cells in the Sham group were mostly notochord cells, while in the OVX group, cells gradually developed into chondrocyte-like cells. Oestrogen or PTH could partly recover the notochord cell number. After ovariectomy, the endplate roughened and endplate porosity decreased. After oestrogen or PTH treatment, the smoothness and porosity of endplate recovered. Compared with the Sham group, Aggrecan, Col2a and Wnt/β-catenin pathway expression in OVX group decreased and either oestrogen or PTH treatment improved their expression. The biomechanical properties of intervertebral disc significantly changed after ovariectomy and oestrogen or PTH treatment partly recovered them. Disc degeneration occurred with low oestrogen and the underlying mechanisms involve nutrition supply disorders, cell type changes and decreased Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity. Oestrogen and PTH can retard disc degeneration in OVX rats and enhance Wnt/β-catenin pathway activity in nucleus pulposus.
Elevation of brain glucose and polyol-pathway intermediates with accompanying brain-copper deficiency in patients with Alzheimer’s disease: metabolic basis for dementia
Authors: Xu Jingshu , Begley Paul , Church Stephanie J. , Patassini Stefano , McHarg Selina , Kureishy Nina , Hollywood Katherine A. , Waldvogel Henry J. , Liu Hong , Zhang Shaoping , Lin Wanchang , Herholz Karl , Turner Clinton , Synek Beth J. , Curtis Maurice A. , Rivers-Auty Jack , Lawrence Catherine B. , Kellett Katherine A. B. , Hooper Nigel M. , Vardy Emma R. L. C. , Wu Donghai , Unwin Richard D. , Faull Richard L. M. , Dowsey Andrew W. , Cooper Garth J. S.
Published: June 2016

Impairment of brain-glucose uptake and brain-copper regulation occurs in Alzheimer’s disease (AD). Here we sought to further elucidate the processes that cause neurodegeneration in AD by measuring levels of metabolites and metals in brain regions that undergo different degrees of damage. We employed mass spectrometry (MS) to measure metabolites and metals in seven post-mortem brain regions of nine AD patients and nine controls, and plasma-glucose and plasma-copper levels in an ante-mortem case-control study. Glucose, sorbitol and fructose were markedly elevated in all AD brain regions, whereas copper was correspondingly deficient throughout (all P < 0.0001). In the ante-mortem case-control study, by contrast, plasma-glucose and plasma-copper levels did not differ between patients and controls. There were pervasive defects in regulation of glucose and copper in AD brain but no evidence for corresponding systemic abnormalities in plasma. Elevation of brain glucose and deficient brain copper potentially contribute to the pathogenesis of neurodegeneration in AD.
Rapid diagnosis of lymph node metastasis in breast cancer using a new fluorescent method with γ-glutamyl hydroxymethyl rhodamine green
Authors: Shinden Yoshiaki , Ueo Hiroki , Tobo Taro , Gamachi Ayako , Utou Mitsuaki , Komatsu Hisateru , Nambara Sho , Saito Tomoko , Ueda Masami , Hirata Hidenari , Sakimura Shotaro , Takano Yuki , Uchi Ryutaro , Kurashige Junji , Akiyoshi Sayuri , Iguchi Tomohiro , Eguchi Hidetoshi , Sugimachi Keishi , Kubota Yoko , Kai Yuichiro , Shibuta Kenji , Kijima Yuko , Yoshinaka Heiji , Natsugoe Shoji , Mori Masaki , Maehara Yoshihiko , Sakabe Masayo , Kamiya Mako , Kakareka John W. , Pohida Thomas J. , Choyke Peter L. , Kobayashi Hisataka , Ueo Hiroaki , Urano Yasuteru , Mimori Koshi
Published: June 2016

Sentinel lymph node biopsy is performed as a standard procedure in breast cancer surgery, and the development of quick and simple methods to detect metastatic lesions is in high demand. Here, we validated a new fluorescent method using γ-glutamyl hydroxymethyl rhodamine green to diagnose metastatic lymph nodes in breast cancer. One hundred and forty-nine lymph nodes from 38 breast cancer patients were evaluated in this study. Comparison of fluorescent and pathological images showed that this fluorescent method was successful for visualizing breast cancer cells in lymph nodes. This method had a sufficiently high sensitivity (97%), specificity (79%) and negative predictive value (99%) to render it useful for an intraoperative diagnosis of cancer. These preliminary findings suggest that this novel method is useful for distinguishing non-cancerous specimens from those in need of careful examination and could help save time and cost for surgeons and pathologists.
Fast 180° magnetization switching in a strain-mediated multiferroic heterostructure driven by a voltage
Authors: Peng Ren-Ci , Hu Jia-Mian , Momeni Kasra , Wang Jian-Jun , Chen Long-Qing , Nan Ce-Wen
Published: June 2016

Voltage-driven 180° magnetization switching provides a low-power alternative to current-driven magnetization switching widely used in spintronic devices. Here we computationally demonstrate a promising route to achieve voltage-driven in-plane 180° magnetization switching in a strain-mediated multiferroic heterostructure (e.g., a heterostructure consisting of an amorphous, slightly elliptical Co40Fe40B20 nanomagnet on top of a Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 film as an example). This 180° switching follows a unique precessional path all in the film plane and is enabled by manipulating magnetization dynamics with fast, local piezostrains (rise/release time <0.1 ns) on the Pb(Zr,Ti)O3 film surface. Our analyses predict ultralow area energy consumption per switching (~0.03 J/m2), approximately three orders of magnitude smaller than that dissipated by current-driven magnetization switching. A fast overall switching time of about 2.3 ns is also demonstrated. Further reduction of energy consumption and switching time can be achieved by optimizing the structure and material selection. The present design provides an additional viable route to realizing low-power and high-speed spintronics.
Prognostic risk model development and prospective validation among patients with cervical cancer stage IB2 to IIB submitted to neoadjuvant chemotherapy
Authors: Huang Kecheng , Sun Haiying , Li Xiong , Hu Ting , Yang Ru , Wang ShaoShuai , Jia Yao , Chen Zhilan , Tang Fangxu , Shen Jian , Qin Xiaomin , Zhou Hang , Yang Runfeng , Gui Juan , Wang Lin , Zhao Xiaolin , Zhang Jincheng , Liu Jiong , Guo Lili , Li Shuang , Wang Shixuan
Published: June 2016

This study was designed to develop a risk model for disease recurrence among cervical cancer patients who underwent neoadjuvant chemotherapy and radical surgery. Data for 853 patients were obtained from a retrospective study and used to train the model and then data for 447 patients from a prospective cohort study were employed to validate the model. The Cox regression model was used for calculating the coefficients of the risk factors. According to risk scores, patients were classified into high-, intermediate- and low-risk groups. There were 49 (49/144, 34%) recurrences observed in the high-risk group (with a risk score ≥ 2.65), compared with 3 (3/142, 2%) recurrences in the low-risk group (with a risk score < 0.90). Disease-free survival (DFS) was significantly different (log-rank p < 0.001) among the three risk groups; the risk model also revealed a significant increase in the accuracy of predicting 5-year DFS with the area under the ROC curve (AUC = 0.754 for risk model vs 0.679 for FIGO stage system); the risk model was also validated with data from the prospective study (log-rank p < 0.001, AUC = 0.766). Both high-risk and intermediate-risk patients can be more effectively identified by this risk model.
Forced rather than voluntary exercise entrains peripheral clocks via a corticosterone/noradrenaline increase in PER2::LUC mice
Authors: Sasaki Hiroyuki , Hattori Yuta , Ikeda Yuko , Kamagata Mayo , Iwami Shiho , Yasuda Shinnosuke , Tahara Yu , Shibata Shigenobu
Published: June 2016

Exercise during the inactive period can entrain locomotor activity and peripheral circadian clock rhythm in mice; however, mechanisms underlying this entrainment are yet to be elucidated. Here, we showed that the bioluminescence rhythm of peripheral clocks in PER2::LUC mice was strongly entrained by forced treadmill and forced wheel-running exercise rather than by voluntary wheel-running exercise at middle time during the inactivity period. Exercise-induced entrainment was accompanied by increased levels of serum corticosterone and norepinephrine in peripheral tissues, similar to the physical stress-induced response. Adrenalectomy with norepinephrine receptor blockers completely blocked the treadmill exercise-induced entrainment. The entrainment of the peripheral clock by exercise is independent of the suprachiasmatic nucleus clock, the main oscillator in mammals. The present results suggest that the response of forced exercise, but not voluntary exercise, may be similar to that of stress and possesses the entrainment ability of peripheral clocks through the activation of the adrenal gland and the sympathetic nervous system.
Overexpression of HSPA1A enhances the osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells via activation of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway
Authors: Zhang Wei , Xue Deting , Yin Houfa , Wang Shengdong , Li Chao , Chen Erman , Hu Dongcai , Tao Yiqing , Yu Jiawei , Zheng Qiang , Gao Xiang , Pan Zhijun
Published: June 2016

HSPA1A, which encodes cognate heat shock protein 70, plays important roles in various cellular metabolic pathways. To investigate its effects on osteogenic differentiation of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (BMSCs), its expression level was compared between undifferentiated and differentiated BMSCs. Rat HSPA1A overexpression in BMSCs increased osteoblast-specific gene expression, alkaline phosphatase activity and mineral deposition in vitro. Moreover, it upregulated β-catenin and downregulated DKK1 and SOST. The enhanced osteogenesis due to HSPA1A overexpression was partly rescued by a Wnt/β-catenin inhibitor. Additionally, using a rat tibial fracture model, a sheet of HSPA1A-overexpressing BMSCs improved bone fracture healing, as determined by imaging and histological analysis. Taken together, these findings suggest that HSPA1A overexpression enhances osteogenic differentiation of BMSCs, partly through Wnt/β-catenin.
Association of androgen with gender difference in serum adipocyte fatty acid binding protein levels
Authors: Hu Xiang , Ma Xiaojing , Pan Xiaoping , Luo Yuqi , Xu Yiting , Xiong Qin , Bao Yuqian , Jia Weiping
Published: June 2016

Clinical investigations have indicated women have higher levels of adipocyte fatty acid binding protein (A-FABP) than men. The present study aimed to identify factors related to gender difference in serum A-FABP levels. A total of 507 participants (194 men, 132 premenopausal women, and 181 postmenopausal women) were enrolled in the present study. Serum A-FABP levels increased in the order from men to premenopausal women to postmenopausal women in both body mass index categories (<25.0 and ≥25.0 kg/m2; all P < 0.05). Multiple stepwise regression analyses showed that after adjustment for factors related to serum A-FABP levels, the trunk fat mass was an independent and positive factor of serum A-FABP levels. For men, total testosterone was associated independently and inversely with serum A-FABP levels. For pre- and postmenopausal women, bioavailable testosterone and total testosterone were independent and positive factors associated with serum A-FABP levels, respectively. The present study demonstrated that the androgen was correlated with the serum A-FABP levels negatively in men, but positively in women. With these effects on the fat content, especially trunk fat, androgen might contribute to the gender difference in serum A-FABP levels.