bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
The Institutional Framework as a competitiveness factor in Latin America
Authors: Llanos Reynoso Luis Felipe , Brown del Rivero Alfonso , Fuentes Castro Hugo Javier
Published: May 2020

This document objective is to analyze the performance of selected Latin American countries in relation to their institutional framework, that is to say their legal systems, rules, norms and other regulatory provisions. These elements define, to large extent, the functioning and performance of markets linked to good and services, labor and financial systems. Specifically, by means of a factorial analysis along with a clustering process, the most significant explanatory variables on the trend and behavior of six out of 12 pillars for competitiveness as stated by the World Economic Forum have been identified and, likewise, the countries have been classified into a homogenous regional subgroups according to their performance.
Moderating Effects of Transforming High-Potential Local Employees for Reverse Adaptation, through the Lens of Absorptive Capacity: The Case of Hi Tech in Egypt
Authors: Shabban Abdo Said , Edgar David , Kamel Gamal
Published: May 2020

The purpose of this research is to provide new insights into the moderating effects that enable an MNE operating in Egypt to learn to attract, motivate, transform and develop its high-potential local employees for reverse adaptation so as to fit a global mind-set elsewhere in the organisation’s global positions. The methodology uses semi-structured story-based interviews to explore the significance of moderating effects and practices of absorptive capacity and reverse adaptation in Hi Tech in Egypt. The findings reveal the interrelated components that lead to reverse adaptation and how continuous management development is intermediated by learning and well-bonded reciprocity of relationships, amid continuous management development, transformation, and reverse adaptation. This virtuous cycle acts as an integrated adaptation learning loop that supports the process of transformation. The findings refute the linearity of the absorptive capacity model as the transformation stage does not appear to mediate the model but precedes other steps within it. Moreover, it was concluded that the model did not end in achieving the competitive advantage phase. Instead reverse adaptation, as a by-product, acted as a trigger for knowledge acquisition. The originality here is based on a greater understanding of the moderating effects that mediate the relationship between reverse adaptation and the transformation stage of absorptive capacity theory. This allows awareness of how, in the case of the Hi Tech in Egypt, the global mindset is delivered and offers valuable contributions to theory and practice. As reverse adaptation is a nascent multidisciplinary phenomenon for research, the paper also suggests a research agenda for researchers in the area of international management.
Rekenen en rekenschap
Authors: Helwig Petra
Published: May 2020

Rekenen en rekenschap – Algoritmes en de Archiefwet

Binnen de overheid neemt semigeautomatiseerde besluitvorming toe. Parallel daaraan is er steeds meer aandacht voor eisen aan onderliggende algoritmes. Een daarvan is dat algoritmes die de overheid gebruikt bij (deels) geautomatiseerde besluitvorming, transparant en uitlegbaar horen te zijn. Dat past bij een transparante overheid en is ook het recht van individuele burgers voor wie een besluit potentieel rechtsgevolgen heeft. Een gemeente zal een betrokkene bijvoorbeeld moeten informeren waarom hij of zij wordt ‘geprofileerd’ als mogelijke uitkeringsfraudeur. Bij het transparant maken van algoritmes kan niet altijd worden volstaan met een beroep op de kennis van direct betrokkenen, zoals programmeurs. Dit artikel betoogt dat daarom ‘iets’ van gebruikte algoritmes opgenomen zal moeten worden in het archief van de organisatie en moeten worden beheerd in lijn met de Archiefwet. Voor wat dat dan concreet betekent, worden enkele richtingen verkend maar er is nog veel uit te zoeken. De Inspectie Overheidsinformatie en Erfgoed ziet hier, als toezichthouder op de Archiefwet, ook voor zichzelf een rol en zal de ontwikkelingen nader volgen.
Tussen recht en datawetenschap
Authors: Stoepker Giel , Stoepker Ivo
Published: May 2020

Tussen recht en datawetenschap – Toezicht door voorspellende algoritmische modellen

Datawetenschap is voor het recht van groot belang. De daaruit voortvloeiende voorspellende algoritmische modellen kunnen worden gebruikt om toezicht uit te oefenen, bijvoorbeeld of geen uitkeringsfraude wordt gepleegd. Vaak leveren de inzichten uit de datawetenschap goede voorspellingen op over mogelijke fraudegevallen. In de praktijk zijn er toch problemen, bijvoorbeeld met de steekproef en de data op basis waarvan voorspellingen worden gedaan. Dat probleem is sterker aanwezig naarmate de gebruikte modellen complexer zijn. In deze bijdrage wordt op deze problemen ingegaan en wordt betoogd dat menselijk handelen van groot belang is wanneer gebruik wordt gemaakt van voorspellende modellen.
White spruce enrichment planting in boreal mixedwoods as influenced by localized site preparation: 11-year update
Authors: Delmaire Myriam , Thiffault Nelson , Thiffault Evelyne , Bouliane Julie
Published: May 2020

Ecosystem-based management aims to maintain the natural proportion of native species over a given landscape. White spruce (Picea glauca (Moench) Voss) is a species sensitive to environmental conditions; it is especially demanding in terms of nutrients and its regeneration is negatively affected by clearcut harvesting. Its proportion is now significantly lower than what it was in the preindustrial forests of Québec (Canada). As a native species in boreal Québec, efforts to maintain its proportion in the landscape are undertaken for white spruce, but little is known about the best practices to maximize establishment success of seedlings planted in the balsam fir (Abies balsamea)–white birch (Betula papyrifera) bioclimatic domain. Our general objective was to identify planting practices as related to microsite treatment that favour white spruce sapling survival and size after 11 growing seasons following enrichment planting of sites harvested by mechanized careful logging in an ecosystem-based management context. We also aimed at comparing white spruce performance with that of black spruce (Picea mariana (Mill.) BSP), a native species that is less sensitive to abiotic stress. Finally, we wanted to assess stand composition at this juvenile stage, as a function of microsite treatment and planted species. Localized site preparation did not significantly affect growth or survival for white spruce compared to control conditions. Furthermore, localized site preparation did not increase the proportion of white and black spruce, as evaluated by basal area. Our results suggest that white spruce can be successfully established in enrichment planting in fir-dominated boreal forests, without site preparation.
Overweight and obesity – the scale of the phenomenon and risk factors
Authors: Gromek Natalia
Published: May 2020

Obesity and overweight are classified as lifestyle diseases of the 21st century. Their universality justifies the need to identify the factors which contribute to excessive body weight. The aim of the paper is to determine the scale of the overweight and obesity phenomenon in European countries and, as mentioned above, to identify the factors contributing to it. The research examined socio-economic factors, fruit and vegetable consumption, sugar and fat consumption, smoking tobacco and alcohol consumption, length of sleep and time spent in front of the TV, energy dose supplied by food and the level of physical activity. The study uses the BMI (body mass index), which is the elementary determiner of the regularity or irregularity of body weight. The analysis is based on the data from the OECD bases for 2013–2015 and from Eurostat for 2014. The applied Spearman correlation revealed statistically significant, strong dependencies among the explanatory variables (i.e. between the consumption of fruit per capita and the consumption of fat per capita, between the income per capita and regular sports activity, between the fat consumption per capita and the level of education, and between the level of education and the consumption of fruit and vegetables per capita). The results of the factor analysis demonstrated that in European countries, the phenomenon of excessive body weight is caused by lack of physical activity.
Introduction: The Study of Laughter in the Mao Era
Authors: Zhu Ping
Published: May 2020

In the famous xiangsheng 相聲‎ (cross talk) “The Study of Laughter” (“Xiao de yanjiu” 笑的研究‎, 1958),1 which had been performed by celebrated comedian duo Hou Baolin 侯寶林‎ and Guo Quanbao 郭全寶‎ since the late 1950s, Hou promotes xiangsheng as an art of laughter that can boost people’s physical well-being. Citing contemporary medical sciences and the Chinese proverb “A good laugh makes one younger” (Xiaoyixiao, shaoyishao ...
Humor, Vernacularization, and Intermedial Laughter in Maoist Pingtan
Authors: Guo Li
Published: May 2020

This chapter explores how humor in Maoist pingtan tales facilitated the vernacularization of the tastes and practices of popular culture, and revamped pingtan into an ideal media of socialist new comedy. Adaptations of pingtan tales through film, folk performances, and radio broadcasted songs facilitated the vernacularization of new notions of the self and the nation, generated intermedial laughter in various taste cultures and media territories, and instigated the individuals’ negotiation and interaction with multivalent socio-political ideals. Guo argues that vernacularization of Maoist pingtan, which allowed multiple styles to bleed into this classic storytelling art, was a process of necessity and accommodation in Maoist China when revolutionary linguistic codes are transposed into traditional arts, as well as the shifting relationships between individuals and the nation-state community.
Ma Ji’s “Ode to Friendship” and the Failures of Revolutionary Language
Authors: Coderre Laurence
Published: May 2020

In 1973, China Records released a new xiangsheng, or “crosstalk”: “Ode to Friendship” (Youyi
song), performed by Ma Ji (1934-2006) and Tang Jiezhong (1932-) of the Central Broadcasting Cultural Work Troupe. The piece showcased the People’s Republic of China’s current involvement in the building of the Tanzania-Zambia railroad, a project meant to free landlocked Zambia from its trade reliance on Rhodesia (Zimbabwe) and South Africa. “Ode to Friendship” sought to promote this involvement by exploiting the problems of translation that necessarily manifest themselves in the actual practice of global socialist revolution. This chapter focuses on moments of translingual (Chinese-English and Chinese-Swahili) mismatch in “Ode to Friendship” as comically productive instances when language falls intentionally short of revolutionary ideals in the very name of revolution. I argue that the piece as a whole is an exercise in the careful negotiation, management, and instrumentalization of linguistic failure. As much as “Ode to Friendship” attempts to harness the power of nonsense and miscommunication, however, it also reminds us that even the language of socialist revolution has its limits.
Asserting Uyghur Identity from China’s “Central Plains”
Authors: Grose Timothy
Published: May 2020

The second chapter assesses the effectiveness of the program in meeting its political goals and argues that Uyghur Xinjiang Class graduates embrace an ethno-national identity in contradistinction to a corporate Chinese identity. This identity, expressed through renewed efforts to practice Islam, the insistence on speaking Uyghur, and the reluctance to befriend Han Chinese classmates, persists after the Xinjiang Class. Paradoxically, these assertions of “Uyghurness” would not be possible if these students did not already embrace a state-defined “Chinese” identity.
The Disappointing Road Home
Authors: Grose Timothy
Published: May 2020

Chapter Four follows Xinjiang Class graduates’ return to Xinjiang. Contrary to the political goals of the program, few of its graduates return to the region with the intention of serving the Party. More often, institutional restraints that cripple mobility in China, unrelenting pressure from family members, and inconveniences adhering to Islamic practices in inner China compel these individuals to return. The return, however, only marks the beginning of a sometimes frustrating process of reintegration. The second part of this chapter describes how these young adults reacclimate to daily life in Xinjiang. Uyghurs Xinjiang Class graduates often feel marginalized upon returning, but re-establish a genuine sense of belonging after a period of readjustment. However, my female informants, who are often expected to conform to rigidly defined gender roles, tend to find this readjustment process more discouraging than men.
‘Folk’ Cemeteries, Assembly and Territorial Geography in Early Anglo-Saxon England
Authors: Brookes Stuart
Published: May 2020

This chapter examines the evidence for open-air assembly places existing at cemeteries of the 5th and 6th centuries in eastern and southern England. Contrasts are drawn between the types of cemetery (i.e. primarily inhumation or cremation), and types of legal assembly taking place at these sites. A small number of associated sites are identified and discussed, but it is argued that in general ‘folk’ cemeteries were not reused by later Anglo-Saxon communities as places of legal assembly. Examination of the available evidence identifies some of the features of palimpsest landscapes and attempts to provide an explanation for their continued significance through the early medieval period. Particular emphasis is given in this discussion to the role of elite power, and its appropriation of the symbolic landscape.
Cooking-Pit Sites as Assembly Sites: Lunde in Vestfold, South-East Norway—A Regional Assembly Site in the Early Iron Age?
Authors: Ødegaard Marie
Published: May 2020

This chapter discusses large cooking-pit sites as remains of large-scale gatherings, and investigates whether they could have functioned as early assembly sites. Three such locations in Vestfold county, south-east Norway, are discussed, with a particular focus on one of them, Lunde—one of Northern Europe’s largest cooking-pit sites. This chapter examines the possible relationship between them, medieval thing sites and later administrative areas. Cooking-pit sites fall out of use around ad 600, a change that corresponds with several cultural-historical transformations in Scandinavia. The different integrated components of the sites—cultic, juridical and military functions—were divided spatially at that time, perhaps as a result of changing social structures and establishment of petty kingdoms in Eastern Norway. In time, however, royal control over the thing organisation grew increasingly, leading to more formalised systems of governance and administration.
Houses of Representatives? Courtyard Sites North of the Polar Circle: Reflections on Communal Organisation from the Late Roman Period to the Viking Age
Authors: Iversen Frode
Published: May 2020

This chapter deals with the geographical organisation of the thing-system of Northern Europe prior to the state-formation processes in the 9th and 10th centuries ad. The courtyard sites (ad 200–900) of Hålogaland, Norway are interpreted as an early form of legal, cultic and military assembly sites and their size and location are discussed in relation to administrative landscapes (thing-units) reconstructed on the basis of later written sources (ad 1150–1560s). There is a remarkable correlation between the number of houseplots and the number of administrative units in the areas in question. This new discovery has far-reaching implications for understanding the age and formation processes of administrative legal landscapes on the fringes of Northern Europe.
Community Meetings in Early Medieval Castile
Authors: Escalona Julio
Published: May 2020

Local community meetings have long been considered an essential component in the institutional development of the medieval kingdom of León and Castile. Yet the early medieval phases of that development are often seen from a teleological perspective, as the formative phase of the more developed and better-known central and later medieval municipal assemblies. This chapter intends to explore the Castilian local community meetings of the period up to AD 1038 in themselves, as a fundamental aspect of the structuring of local sociability, regardless of subsequent evolutions. Building upon the evidence of the preserved charters from this period, the vocabulary, functions and location of such meetings are discussed, along with their scale: whether neighbouring communities engaged in assemblies at a supralocal scale and whether local meetings could acquire a supralocal dimension in certain circumstances.
The Language of Justice in Northern Iberia Before AD 1000
Authors: Davies Wendy
Published: May 2020

This chapter represents an examination of the nature of the records that describe judicial court procedure in northern Iberia in the 9th and 10th centuries. It reveals that most records do not derive from court proceedings but from subsequent construction, sometimes for very partial reasons. This allows us a better understanding of process on the ground and some perception of the power relations that derive from controlling the record.
Making Provincial Kingship in Early Ireland: Cashel and the Creation of Munster
Authors: Gleeson Patrick
Published: May 2020

This chapter explores the development of a kingdom of Munster through the lens of the evolution of the Rock of Cashel, Co. Tipperary. Traditionally regarded as the provincial capital of Munster from at least the beginning of the early medieval period, it is argued instead that the provincial status of the Rock emerged out of political discourses associated with the creation of a kingdom of Munster during the 7th to 9th centuries. Alternative seas of kingship, rivals to Cashel and the politics associated with these early centres of kingship are explored with reference to their wider implications for provincial models of later prehistoric and early medieval Ireland.
Spatial Configurations of Power in Anglo-Saxon England: Sidelights on the Relationships between Boroughs, Royal Vills and Hundreds
Authors: Reynolds Andrew
Published: May 2020

The complex social and administrative fabric of Anglo-Saxon England existed largely without urban environments. Based upon patterns of naming, this chapter examines relationships between local administrative districts (hundreds) and central places, arguing for the long-term persistence of pre-urban modes of social organisation in Anglo-Saxon England. Following a review of urban development in Anglo-Saxon England, neglected material is brought to bear on long-standing notions of urbanism which emphasise the progressive nucleation of social and administrative functions as a linear measure of social complexity. A new perspective is offered here which emphasises the limited extent of urban development in England before the 12th century and the robust nature of non-urban social complexity as a social system. Overall, the applicability of measures of social and administrative complexity drawn from ‘primary’ complex societies is questioned and a plea is made for approaching European post-Roman societies on their own terms rather than by comparison with ancient and classical ones.
The Anglosphere beyond Security
Authors: Vucetic Srdjan
Published: May 2020

Contemporary Anglospherism – a convenient shorthand for recent calls for more cooperation and unity between select English-speaking polities – draws considerable potency from the existence of the Five Eyes network, ABCANZ and many institutions and practices that constitute the Anglosphere in security. For some, the connection is self-evident and should be made explicit: ‘we’ are already glued together in security, so why not build a zone of free movement in goods, services and labour, too? The mutual constitution of these two Anglospheres – political Anglospherism on the one hand and the Anglosphere in security on the other – is more than a century old but remains poorly understood. In this chapter I perform three tasks set out to interrogate this relationship. First, I provide a genealogy of the Anglosphere and of the nearby ‘CANZUK Union’. Next, I map out the Anglosphere in security, probing the depth and frequency of coordination and cooperation among Five Eyes states since the Second World War. I then argue that the deep origins of the Anglosphere in security lie in late nineteenth-century inter-racial politics.
Underwriting Brexit: The European Union in the Anglosphere Imagination
Authors: Baxendale Helen , Wellings Ben
Published: May 2020

In the eyes of senior Brexiteers, the Anglosphere constituted a familiar and appropriate international grouping for post-Brexit Britain. Strikingly similar views about the European Union also emanated from Anglosphere enthusiasts outside Europe, highlighting the role of the European Union (EU) as an ‘other’ against which the Anglosphere was cast. These detractors’ views of the European project fed into the Brexit referendum campaign. They helped create a distinctively Anglo-British Anglosphere resting on three pillars: parliamentary sovereignty, the memory of empire, and twentieth-century conflict, underpinned by a meta-narrative concerning the emergence and export of a particular form of liberty. By establishing the salience of the Anglosphere idea in right- and left-leaning newspapers since 1999 and by examining the discursive co-constitution of the Anglosphere and the EU during the 2016 referendum, this chapter illustrates how senior Brexiteers offered the Anglosphere as a vision of an alternative political community to the European Union.
PREDICTING SUCCESS OF ICT PROJECTS THROUGH ARTIFICIAL NEURAL NETWORKS
Authors: MOURONTE LÓPEZ MARY LUZ
Published: May 2020

There are different kinds of Artificial Neural Networks (ANN): Feed-Forward (FF), Radial Basis Function (RBF), Multi-Layer Perceptron (MLP), Convolutional, Recurrent Neural Network (RNN), Modular, Sequence-To-Sequence Models, which have different fields of application. In this research, which arose from the requirement to optimize the business results of a large company in the Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) sector, the possibilities of success of any ICT project through the use of ANN are estimated.
Serial Dual Mediating Effects of Preschoolers’ Executive Functions and Counterfactual Thinking on Relationship between Maternal Reflective Functioning and Preschoolers’ Higher-order Thinking
Authors: Lee Yoonjeong , Lim Jiyoung
Published: May 2020

This study examined the dual mediating effects of preschoolers’ executive function and counterfactual thinking in the relationship between maternal reflective functioning and preschoolers’ higher-order thinking. Participants included 293 preschoolers and their mothers in Daegu city and Gyeongsang province. The mothers completed questionnaires regarding their reflective functioning, preschoolers’ executive function, and creative thinking. Teachers completed questionnaires regarding preschoolers’ critical thinking and caring thinking. Preschoolers’ counterfactual thinking was measured by interviews. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and Pearson correlation analysis with SPSS 25.0. Path analysis and bootstrapping were used with AMOS 25.0 program. Also, specific indirect effect were analyzed using AMOS user-defined estimand function. The primary results of this study are as follows. Maternal reflective functioning had an indirect effect on preschoolers’ critical thinking and caring thinking through preschoolers’ executive function and counterfactual thinking; however, maternal reflective functioning had no indirect effect on preschoolers’ creative thinking through preschoolers’ executive function and counterfactual thinking. This study revealed that maternal reflective functioning and preschoolers’ executive function and counterfactual thinking need to be considered simultaneously to explain the level of preschoolers’ higher-order thinking. The results highlight the dual mediating effects of preschoolers’ executive function and counterfactual thinking in the relationship between maternal reflective functioning and preschoolers’ higher-order thinking.
Body Image Dissatisfaction and Self-esteem among Korean Pre- and Early Adolescent Girls and Boys: A Five-year Longitudinal Panel Study
Authors: Park Woochul
Published: May 2020

Longitudinal studies have shown mixed findings on the association between body image dissatisfaction and self-esteem among adolescents. This study examined the longitudinal, reciprocal influences between body image dissatisfaction and self-esteem among Korean pre- and early adolescents by using nationally representative longitudinal panel data from the Korean Youth Panel Study (KYPS). Analyses based on 2,230 participants indicated that girls’ body image dissatisfaction was significantly higher than boys’. The trajectory of body image dissatisfaction increased sharply during pre- and early adolescence, but stabilized afterwards for both boys and girls. Self-esteem deteriorated rapidly initially, but began to recover as adolescent girls and boys matured. Structural equation modeling showed that reciprocal influences between body image dissatisfaction and self-esteem were detected for boys. Body image dissatisfaction among girls predicted self-esteem during the entire period, while the opposite direction from self-esteem to body image dissatisfaction emerged two years later. The present study found that, during pre- and early adolescence, body image dissatisfaction and self-esteem develop in a circular fashion by forming a vicious cycle. Implications for the development of intervention and prevention programs are discussed in consideration of age and gender.
Flash MX 2004: Apuesta por los estándares
Authors: Moncho Vicent
Published: May 2020

El lanzamiento de Flash MX 2004 supone una actualización realmente interesante del lenguaje ActionScript. Comercialmente se pasa de la versión 1.0 a la nueva versión 2.0, donde la compatibilidad hacia atrás no está asegurada y por tanto es necesario analizar detenidamente las nuevas características del lenguaje. Por tanto, en este artículo se van a presentar algunas de las principales novedades a tener en cuenta.
Infectious diseases surveillance of the Iberian ibex (Capra pyrenaica victoriae) in Western Spain: health and conservation implications
Authors: Calero-Bernal Rafael , García-Moreno Antonio , González-Barrio David , Nieto-Rodríguez Juan Miguel , Fernández-Llarío Pedro , Hermoso de Mendoza Javier , Habela Miguel Ángel
Published: May 2020

A survey was conducted between 2004 and 2011 to identify potential pathogens present in the main subpopulation of Iberian ibex subspecies Capra pyrenaica victoriae, located in Gredos Mountain range in Western Spain. Samples were collected from 144 animals and subjected to specific procedures to detect the presence of, or evidence of exposure to, viral, bacterial and parasitic agents. A wide diversity of parasites was found, including 17 species of gastrointestinal nematodes and lungworms, nine species of Coccidia and three of Cestoda. Overall, 54% (75/138) of animals were parasitized by ticks (Rhipicephalus bursa, Ixodes ricinus, Haemaphysalis sulcata, and Hyalomma marginatum marginatum). Null detection of Sarcoptes scabiei mites, causal agent of sarcoptic mange, must be highlighted. Serological assays revealed exposure to Babesia ovis (43%, 56/129), Neospora caninum (13%, 14/108), Oestrus spp. (10%, 4/42), Coxiella burnetii (10%, 5/50), Mycobacterium bovis (6%, 3/50), and Toxoplasma gondii (3%, 4/137). We did not detect the presence of antibodies against Chlamydia psittaci, Brucella spp., Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis, Visna-Maedi virus and Bluetongue virus. Despite the fact that major pathogens for animal health were not evidenced, the implementation of periodic passive surveillance programs directed to both wildlife and livestock is highly desirable to predict outbreaks that may compromise survival of such wild goat subspecies.
A moth odorant receptor highly expressed in the ovipositor is involved in detecting host-plant volatiles
Authors: Li Rui-Ting , Huang Ling-Qiao , Dong Jun-Feng , Wang Chen-Zhu
Published: May 2020

Antennae are often considered to be the nostrils of insects. Here, we sequenced the transcriptome of the pheromone gland-ovipositor complex of Helicoverpa assulta and discovered that an odorant receptor (OR) gene, HassOR31, had much higher expression in the ovipositor than in antennae or other tissues. To determine whether the ovipositor was involved in odorant detection, we co-expressed HassOR31 and its co-receptor, HassORco, in a Xenopus oocyte model system, and demonstrated that the OR was responsive to 12 plant odorants, especially Z-3-hexenyl butyrate. These odorants elicited electrophysiological responses of some sensilla in the ovipositor, and HassOR31 and HassORco were co-expressed within ovipositor sensilla. Two oviposition preference experiments showed that female moths lacking antennae still preferentially selected oviposition sites containing plant volatiles. We suggest that the expression of HassOR31 in the ovipositor of H. assulta helps females to determine precise egg-laying sites in host plants.
Bioinformatics analyses of retinoblastoma reveal the retinoblastoma progression subtypes
Authors: Cao Manjing , Wang Sha , Zou Jing , Wang Wanpeng
Published: May 2020

Introduction

Retinoblastoma (RB) is one common pediatric malignant tumor with dismal outcomes. Heterogeneity of RB and subtypes of RB were identified but the association between the subtypes of RB and RB progression have not been fully investigated.

Methods

Four public datasets were downloaded from Gene expression omnibus and normalization was performed to remove batch effect. Two public datasets were explored to obtain the RB progression gene signatures by differentially expression analysis while another two datasets were iterated for RB subtypes identification using consensus clustering. After the RB progressive subtype gene signatures were identified, we tested the diagnostic capacity of these gene signatures by receiver operation curve.

Results

Three hundreds and forty six genes that were enriched in cell cycle were identified as the progression signature in RB from two independent datasets. Four subtypes of RB were stratified by consensus clustering. A total of 21 genes from RB progression signature were differentially expressed between RB subtypes. One subtype with low expression cell division genes have less progression of all four subtypes. A panel of five RB subtype genes (CLUL1, CNGB1, ROM1, LRRC39 and RDH12) predict progression of RB.

Conclusion

Retinoblastoma is a highly heterogeneous tumor and the level of cell cycle related gene expression is associated with RB progression. A subpopulation of RB with high expression of visual perception has less progressive features. LRRC39 is potentially the RB progression subtype biomarker.
VIRdb: a comprehensive database for interactive analysis of genes/proteins involved in the pathogenesis of vitiligo
Authors: Srivastava Priyansh , Choudhury Alakto , Talwar Mehak , Mohanty Sabyasachi , Narad Priyanka , Sengupta Abhishek
Published: May 2020

Vitiligo is a chronic asymptomatic disorder affecting melanocytes from the basal layer of the epidermis which leads to a patchy loss of skin color. Even though it is one of the neglected disease conditions, people suffering from vitiligo are more prone to psychological disorders. As of now, various studies have been done in order to project auto-immune implications as the root cause. To understand the complexity of vitiligo, we propose the Vitiligo Information Resource (VIRdb) that integrates both the drug-target and systems approach to produce a comprehensive repository entirely devoted to vitiligo, along with curated information at both protein level and gene level along with potential therapeutics leads. These 25,041 natural compounds are curated from Natural Product Activity and Species Source Database. VIRdb is an attempt to accelerate the drug discovery process and laboratory trials for vitiligo through the computationally derived potential drugs. It is an exhaustive resource consisting of 129 differentially expressed genes, which are validated through gene ontology and pathway enrichment analysis. We also report 22 genes through enrichment analysis which are involved in the regulation of epithelial cell differentiation. At the protein level, 40 curated protein target molecules along with their natural hits that are derived through virtual screening. We also demonstrate the utility of the VIRdb by exploring the Protein–Protein Interaction Network and Gene–Gene Interaction Network of the target proteins and differentially expressed genes. For maintaining the quality and standard of the data in the VIRdb, the gold standard in bioinformatics toolkits like Cytoscape, Schrödinger’s GLIDE, along with the server installation of MATLAB, are used for generating results. VIRdb can be accessed through “http://www.vitiligoinfores.com/”.
SMRT sequencing of the full-length transcriptome of the Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae)
Authors: Yang Hongjun , Xu Danping , Zhuo Zhihang , Hu Jiameng , Lu Baoqian
Published: May 2020

Background

Red palm weevil Rhynchophorus ferrugineus (Coleoptera: Curculionidae) is one of the most destructive insects for palm trees in the world. However, its genome resources are still in the blank stage, which limits the study of molecular and growth development analysis.

Methods

In this study, we used PacBio Iso-Seq and Illumina RNA-seq to first generate transcriptome from three developmental stages of R. ferrugineus (pupa, 7th larva, female and male) to increase our understanding of the life cycle and molecular characteristics of R. ferrugineus.

Results

A total of 63,801 nonredundant full-length transcripts were generated with an average length of 2,964 bp from three developmental stages, including the 7th instar larva, pupa, female adult and male adult. These transcripts showed a high annotation rate in seven public databases, with 54,999 (86.20%) successfully annotated. Meanwhile, 2,184 alternative splicing (AS) events, 2,084 transcription factors (TFs), 66,230 simple sequence repeats (SSR) and 9,618 Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) were identified. In summary, our results provide a new source of full-length transcriptional data and information for the further study of gene expression and genetics in R. ferrugineus.
Transcriptome profiling of avian pathogenicEscherichia coliand the mouse microvascular endothelial cell line bEnd.3 during interaction
Authors: Wang Peili , Meng Xia , Li Jianji , Chen Yanfei , Zhang Dong , Zhong Haoran , Xia Pengpeng , Cui Luying , Zhu Guoqiang , Wang Heng
Published: May 2020

Background

Avian pathogenicEscherichia coli(APEC), an important extraintestinal pathogenicE. coli, causes colibacillosis, an acute and mostly systemic disease involving multiple organ lesions such as meningitis. Meningitis-causing APEC can invade the host central nervous system by crossing the blood–brain barrier (BBB), which is a critical step in the development of meningitis. However, the bacteria-host interaction mechanism in this process remains unclear.

Methods

In this study, we examinedE. coliand bEnd.3 cells transcriptomes during infection and mock infection to investigate the global transcriptional changes in both organisms using RNA sequencing approach.

Results

When APEC infected the bEnd.3 cells, several significant changes in the expression of genes related to cell junctional complexes, extracellular matrix degradation, actin cytoskeleton rearrangement, immune activation and the inflammatory response in bEnd.3 cells were observed as compared to the mock infection group. Thus, the immune activation of bEnd.3 cells indicated that APEC infection activated host defenses. Furthermore, APEC may exploit cell junction degradation to invade the BBB. In addition, amino acid metabolism and energy metabolism related genes were downregulated and the protein export pathway related genes were upregulated in APEC cultured with bEnd.3 cells, compared to that in control. Thus, APEC may encounter starvation and express virulence factors during incubation with bEnd.3 cells.

Conclusion

This study provides a comprehensive overview of transcriptomic changes that occur during APEC infection of bEnd.3 cells, and offers insights into the bacterial invasion strategies and the subsequent host defense mechanism.
Development and validation of a prognostic nomogram to predict overall survival and cancer-specific survival for patients with anaplastic thyroid carcinoma
Authors: Gui Weiwei , Zhu Weifen , Lu Weina , Shang Chengxin , Zheng Fenping , Lin Xihua , Li Hong
Published: May 2020

Background

Anaplastic thyroid carcinoma (ATC) is a rare malignant tumor with a poor prognosis. However, there is no useful clinical prognostic predictive tool for ATC so far. Our study identified risk factors for survival of ATC and created a reliable nomogram to predict overall survival (OS) and cancer-specific survival (CSS) of patients with ATC.

Methods

A total of 1,404 cases of ATC diagnosed between 1983 and 2013 were extracted from on the Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results database based on our inclusion criteria. OS and CSS were compared among patients between each variable by Kaplan–Meier methods. The Cox proportional hazards model was used to evaluate multiple prognostic factors and obtain independent predictors. All independent risk factors were included to build nomograms, whose accuracy and practicability were tested by concordance index (C-index), calibration curves, ROC curves, DCA, net reclassification improvement (NRI) and integrated discrimination improvement (IDI).

Results

Historic stage, tumor size, surgery and radiotherapy were independent risk factors associated with ATC according to multivariate Cox regression analysis of OS. However, gender was also an important prognostic predictor in CSS besides the factors mentioned above. These characteristics were included in the nomograms predicting OS and CSS of patients with ATC. The nomograms predicting OS and CSS performed well with a C-index of 0.765 and 0.773. ROC curves, DCA, NRI and IDI suggested that the nomogram was superior to TNM staging and age.

Conclusion

The proposed nomogram is a reliable tool based on the prediction of OS and CSS for patients with ATC. Such a predictive tool can help to predict the survival of the patients.
Extensive protein expression changes induced by pamidronate in RAW 264.7 cells as determined by IP-HPLC
Authors: Lee Sang Shin , Kim Soung Min , Kim Yeon Sook , Lee Suk Keun
Published: May 2020

Background

Bisphosphonate therapy has become a popular treatment for osteoporosis, Paget’s disease, multiple myeloma, osteogenesis imperfecta, myocardial infarction, and cancer despite its serious side effects. Bisphosphonate-induced molecular signaling changes in cells are still not clearly elucidated.

Methods

As bisphosphonates are primarily engulfed by macrophages, we treated RAW 264.7 cells (a murine macrophage cell line) with pamidronate and investigated global protein expressional changes in cells by immunoprecipitation high performance liquid chromatography (IP-HPLC) using 218 antisera.

Results

Pamidronate upregulated proliferation-activating proteins associated with p53/Rb/E2F and Wnt/β-catenin pathways, but downregulated the downstream of RAS signaling, pAKT1/2/3, ERK-1, and p-ERK-1, and subsequently suppressed cMyc/MAX/MAD network. However, in situ proliferation index of pamidronate-treated RAW264.7 cells was slightly increased by 3.2% vs. non-treated controls. Pamidronate-treated cells showed increase in the expressions of histone- and DNA methylation-related proteins but decrease of protein translation-related proteins. NFkB signaling was also suppressed as indicated by the down-regulations of p38 and p-p38 and the up-regulation of mTOR, while the protein expressions related to cellular protection, HSP-70, NRF2, JNK-1, and LC3 were upregulated. Consequently, pamidronate downregulated the protein expressions related to immediate inflammation,cellular differentiation, survival, angiogenesis, and osteoclastogenesis, but upregulated PARP-1 and FAS-mediated apoptosis proteins. These observations suggest pamidronate affects global protein expressions in RAW 264.7 cells by stimulating cellular proliferation, protection, and apoptosis but suppressing immediate inflammation, differentiation, osteoclastogenesis, and angiogenesis. Accordingly, pamidronate appears to affect macrophages in several ways eliciting not only its therapeutic effects but also atypical epigenetic modification, protein translation, RAS and NFkB signalings. Therefore, our observations suggest pamidronate-induced protein expressions are dynamic, and the affected proteins should be monitored by IP-HPLC to achieve the therapeutic goals during treatment.
Areais da Ribanceira: comunidade tradicional e território em Imbituba-SC
Authors: De Oliveira Elisa Quint de Souza , Martins Pedro , Antunes Douglas Ladik
Published: May 2020

A trajetória de uma comunidade tradicional do Município de Imbituba, localizado no sul de Santa Catarina, é analisada sob a ótica da exclusão do direito à terra, perdida para grandes projetos de desenvolvimento ligados ao complexo portuário daquela cidade. A modificação e restruturação da localidade foram iniciadas na década de 1970 e abarcavam a área de entorno do porto. A implementação dos projetos transformou as terras ocupadas por agricultores itinerantes, pescadores artesanais e extrativistas de butiá em terras privadas, não obstante o fato de o direito das comunidades tradicionais ter sido reconhecido pela Constituição Federal de 1988 e por outros dispositivos jurídicos. A questão de que se parte é: por que a Comunidade Tradicional dos Areais da Ribanceira não possui regularizadas as terras que ocupa há mais de um século? O referencial teórico se apoia nos conceitos de território e povos tradicionais desde uma perspectiva sócio-antropológica. A metodologia é qualitativa e se baseia em pesquisa documental e observação participante, complementada com entrevistas e histórias de vida. Conclui-se que o desrespeito à lei prejudica a reprodução dos conhecimentos tradicionais, impede o livre acesso aos recursos naturais e impossibilita a preservação de importantes ecossistemas da região sul catarinense.
“Banco de Tempo-Florianópolis”: análise das características socioeconômicas de seus membros
Authors: Romanello Michele , Schneider Muller Pereira Ribas Kamila
Published: May 2020

Um tipo interessante de moeda social é o “tempo”, o qual pode ser utilizado como moeda em uma determinada comunidade por meio de um Banco de Tempo. Analisando uma das primeiras experiências de banco de tempo desenvolvidas no Brasil, o “Banco de Tempo-Florianópolis” (BTF), o artigo tem como objetivo principal analisar as características socioeconômicas dos membros que dele participam. Utilizando-se a regressão logística, foi possível demostrar que os membros do BTF têm características socioeconômicas distintas em comparação com os moradores da cidade de Florianópolis: indivíduos do sexo feminino, mais jovens, não brancos, ocupados, trabalhando no setor informal, com um nível de educação superior e com uma renda mensal maior têm maior probabilidade de serem membros do BTF. Os resultados podem ser úteis às administrações dos bancos de tempo para criar organizações com membros mais homogêneos do ponto de vista socioeconômico.
Optiwave Refractive Analysis (ORA)
Authors: Dhull Chirakshi , Gaur Sandhya , Khokhar Sudarshan
Published: May 2020

In the current era, there is increasing demand for optimal refractive outcomes following cataract surgery. Optical methods have been identified as a gold standard for Intraocular lens (IOL) power calculation but there is always a scope of improvement. Intraoperative wavefront aberrometry with devices such as Optiwave refractive analysis (ORA) calculates IOL power on the basis of lower order aberrations intraoperatively. This provides an alternate method for IOL calculation.
3GPP Enhancements for Television Services: LTE‐Based 5G Terrestrial Broadcast
Authors: Gomez‐Barquero David , Gimenez Jordi J. , Beutler Roland
Published: May 2020

The provision of terrestrial broadcast services using 3GPP technologies was enabled for the first time in LTE Advanced Pro Release (Rel‐) 14, in which the evolved Multimedia Broadcast Multicast Service (eMBMS) technology was enhanced to fulfill a wide set of requirements input by the broadcast industry. During the Enhancements for Television (EnTV) work item in Rel‐14, several modifications were realized affecting system architecture, core, and radio access, which include, an interface to grant control to broadcasters to establish audiovisual services, an application programming interface for developers to simplify access to eMBMS procedures, or a transparent delivery mode with native content formats, among others. At the radio layer, dedicated carriers with 100% broadcast content allocation, and also new OFDM numerologies to support larger intersite distances in Single Frequency Networks (SFNs), were enabled. The most significant change was the so‐called receive‐only mode which enables devices receiving broadcast content without the need for uplink capabilities, SIM cards, or network subscriptions, i.e. free‐to‐air reception.

In Rel‐16, 3GPP carried out a study item to evaluate EnTV Rel‐14 against the terrestrial broadcast requirements for 5G defined in 3GPP TR 38.913. Two requirements were detected as not met: the ability to support SFNs with cell radii of up to 100 km and mobile reception with speeds up to 250 km h−1. A Rel‐16 work item standardized further improvements while taking into account practical considerations such as implementation complexity and performance. The improved system is known as LTE‐based 5G Terrestrial Broadcast, and also with the popular name 5G Broadcast.
Posttranslational modification of Elongation Factor P from Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Golubev Alexander , Negroni Luc , Krasnovid Filipp , Validov Shamil , Yusupova Gulnara , Yusupov Marat , Usachev Konstantin
Published: May 2020

Antibiotic‐resistant Staphylococcus aureus is becoming a major burden on health care systems in many countries, necessitating the identification of new targets for antibiotic development. Elongation Factor P (EF‐P) is a highly conserved elongation protein factor that plays an important role in protein synthesis and bacteria virulence. EF‐P undergoes unique posttranslational modifications in a stepwise manner to function correctly, but experimental information on EF‐P posttranslational modifications is currently lacking for S. aureus. Here, we expressed EF‐P in S. aureus to analyze its posttranslational modifications by mass spectrometry and report experimental proof of 5‐aminopentanol modification of S. aureus EF‐P.