bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Erfassung der pneumologisch-fachärztlichen Versorgungsstrukturen für Patienten mit interstitiellen Lungenerkrankungen in Nordrhein-Westfalen
Authors: Hagmeyer L. , Haidl P. , Westhoff M. , Schulte W. , Randerath W. , Lorenz J.
Published: May 2018

Ziel der Studie Erfassung der Versorgungsrealität von interstitiellen Lungenerkrankungen (ILD) in Nordrhein-Westfalen.

Methodik Die Westdeutsche Gesellschaft für Pneumologie erfasste ILD-Schwerpunktstandorte mittels postalischer Abfrage. Struktur- und Prozessqualität wurden in einem Fragebogen evaluiert.

Ergebnisse 49 Standorte wurden registriert, 46 stellten ihre Standortdaten zur Verfügung (15 Facharztpraxen, 34 pneumologische Krankenhausabteilungen). Im Median werden in den Praxen im Jahr 360 ILD-Patienten gesehen (26 % Erstdiagnosen), in den Krankenhäusern 105 ILD-Patienten (63 % Erstdiagnosen). 10 Standorte stellen über 100 ILD-Erstdiagnosen pro Jahr. Die Praxen berichten im Median 50 Bronchoskopien im Jahr, die Krankenhäuser im Median 1396. 78 % der Standorte partizipieren an einer interdisziplinären ILD-Fallkonferenz.

Schlussfolgerung In Nordrhein-Westfalen existieren mehrere ILD-Versorgungsstandorte mit hoher Expertise. Ambulant erfolgt v. a. das Monitoring von ILD-Patienten, stationär werden eher komplexe ILD-Erstabklärungen oder ungewöhnliche Verläufe betreut. Standorte mit einem realen regionalen ILD-Versorgungsauftrag sollten in ihrer Weiterentwicklung gefördert werden.
Need For Long-Term Care in Children is Increasingly Caused by Disorders of Psychological Development. Changes in the Care Causing Diagnoses According to German Social Code (SGB XI) Between 2009–2014
Authors: Beck-Ripp Julia Christiane , Dressel Holger
Published: May 2018

Aim of the study There is an ongoing discussion on the increasing number of children with mental and developmental disorders, with some even needing long-term care according to the German Social Code XI. This study was performed to identify the main diagnoses justifying such care in children and to analyse their prevalence over time.

Methods The diagnoses justifying long-term care were evaluated using care assessments of Bavarian children and adolescents between 2009 to 2014 by the medical service of statutory health insurance.

Results Over the years investigated, the percentage of assessments due to a mental and behavioural disorder rose significantly from 36.2 to 42.2%. Since 2012, the most common diagnose changed from Down's syndrome to pervasive developmental disorders with marked increase of also mixed specific developmental disorders. In new applications for nursing insurance services the proportion of pervasive developmental disorders rose gradually from 151 in 2010 to 254 in 2014. During the whole period of time, the overall care dependency in children seemed to be stable.

Conclusions These observations might rather be influenced by altered awareness of health and illness, increasing readiness to seek help with psychological or developmental impairments as well as changed diagnostic criteria than by a steady increase in affected individuals.
Assistierte Heimdialyse
Authors: Kitsche Benno
Published: May 2018

Stellen wir uns gleich zu Beginn folgende selbstkritische Frage: Können wir im Zuge des demografischen Wandels unsere Patienten noch adäquat und nach ihren
Bedürfnissen behandeln? Schon jetzt und im Hinblick auf die zu erwartende Entwicklung der ansteigenden Zahl dialysepflichtiger Patienten bei gleichzeitiger
Abnahme der Zahl an nephrologischem Fachpersonal (Ärzte und Pflegekräfte) wird es höchste Zeit, Strukturen zu entwickeln, die mögliche alternative
Versorgungsformen unterstützen. Hier wäre zu diskutieren, ob bereits regional erprobte Versorgungsmodelle wie die assistierte Dialyse in der Umsetzung mit
interdisziplinären Teams flächendeckend ausgebaut werden sollten.
Treatment of Single Cords in Dupuytren Disease with Collagenase Clostridium Histolyticum: Study of a Cohort with Follow-up at 1 Year
Authors: Manent Bistué Ignasi , Suau Mateu Sonia , López Louzao Ana Maria , Caputo Pier Claudio , Rodriguez Roiz Víctor , De Villasante Jirón Ignasi , Del Valle Jou Montserrat
Published: May 2018

Objective The purpose of the present work was to assess the effectiveness of collagenase Clostridium histolyticum in patients with Dupuytren disease with single cords and assess the recurrence rate in the first year after the treatment.

Material and Methods In this classic cohort study, a total of 53 patients (50 of them male) with a mean age of 68 years were studied who had been diagnosed with Dupuytren disease located in the metacarpophalangeal joint, in single cords, with more than 40° of extension loss. They were given an injection of collagenase C. histolyticum and later manipulation under locoregional anesthesia. The loss of extension was evaluated after a week and at the 1st, 3rd, 6th and 12th months. The effectiveness was analyzed with basis on the results of the Student t-test for paired data, as well as those of the effect size (ES) test.

Results An important and statistically significant correlation was found for the loss of cord extension in the metacarpophalangeal joint (t = 32.113; p < 0.01; ES = 4.11; standardized response mean [SRM] = 4.15).

Conclusion Collagenase is an injectable treatment, which is not very aggressive compared with surgery and is effective for the loss of extension in the metacarpophalangeal region secondary to single cord in Dupuytren disease during the first year.
Adequacy of Fixed-Dose Heparin Infusions for Venous Thromboembolism Prevention after Microsurgical Procedures
Authors: Prazak Ann , Agarwal Jayant , Goodwin Isak , Rockwell W. , Pannucci Christopher , Bertolaccini Corinne
Published: May 2018

Background In microvascular surgery, patients often receive unfractionated heparin infusions to minimize risk for microvascular thrombosis. Patients who receive intravenous (IV) heparin are believed to have adequate prophylaxis against venous thromboembolism (VTE). Whether a fixed dose of IV heparin provides detectable levels of anticoagulation, or whether the “one size fits all” approach provides adequate prophylaxis against VTE remains unknown. This study examined the pharmacodynamics of fixed-dose heparin infusions and the effects of real-time, anti-factor Xa (aFXa) level driven heparin dose adjustments.

Methods This prospective clinical trial recruited adult microvascular surgery patients placed on a fixed-dose (500 units/h) unfractionated heparin infusion during their initial microsurgical procedure. Steady-state aFXa levels, a marker of unfractionated heparin efficacy and safety, were monitored. Patients with out-of-range aFXa levels received protocol-driven real-time dose adjustments. Outcomes of interest included aFXa levels in response to heparin 500 units/h, number of dose adjustments required to achieve goal aFXa levels, time to reach goal aFXa level, and 90-day clinically relevant bleeding and VTE.

Results Twenty patients were recruited prospectively. None of 20 patients had any detectable level of anticoagulation in response to heparin infusions at 500 units/h. The median number of dose adjustments required to reach goal level was five, and median weight-based dose to reach goal level was 11.8 units/kg/h. Real-time dose adjustments significantly increased the proportion of patients with in-range levels (60 vs. 0%, p = 0.0001). The 90-day VTE rate was 5% and 90-day clinically relevant bleeding rate was 5%.

Conclusions Fixed-dose heparin infusions at a rate of 500 units/h do not provide a detectable level of anticoagulation after microsurgical procedures and are insufficient for the majority of patients who require VTE prophylaxis. Weight-based heparin infusions at 10 to 12 units/kg/h deserve future study in patients undergoing microsurgical procedures to increase the proportion of patients receiving adequate VTE prophylaxis.
Wave number selection in the presence of noise: Experimental results
Authors: Zhilenko Dmitry , Krivonosova Olga , Gritsevich Maria , Read Peter
Published: May 2018

In this study, we consider how the wave number selection in spherical Couette flow, in the transition to azimuthal waves after the first instability, occurs in the presence of noise. The outer sphere was held stationary, while the inner sphere rotational speed was increased linearly from a subcritical flow to a supercritical one. In a supercritical flow, one of two possible flow states, each with different azimuthal wave numbers, can appear depending upon the initial and final Reynolds numbers and the acceleration value. Noise perturbations were added by introducing small disturbances into the rotational speed signal. With an increasing noise amplitude, a change in the dominant wave number from m to m ± 1 was found to occur at the same initial and final Reynolds numbers and acceleration values. The flow velocity measurements were conducted by using laser Doppler anemometry. Using these results, the role of noise as well as the behaviour of the amplitudes of the competing modes in their stages of damping and growth were determined.
Understanding transient uncoupling induced synchronization through modified dynamic coupling
Authors: Ghosh Anupam , Godara Prakhar , Chakraborty Sagar
Published: May 2018

An important aspect of the recently introduced transient uncoupling scheme is that it induces synchronization for large values of coupling strength at which the coupled chaotic systems resist synchronization when continuously coupled. However, why this is so is an open problem? To answer this question, we recall the conventional wisdom that the eigenvalues of the Jacobian of the transverse dynamics measure whether a trajectory at a phase point is locally contracting or diverging with respect to another nearby trajectory. Subsequently, we go on to highlight a lesser appreciated fact that even when, under the corresponding linearised flow, the nearby trajectory asymptotically diverges away, its distance from the reference trajectory may still be contracting for some intermediate period. We term this phenomenon transient decay in line with the phenomenon of the transient growth. Using these facts, we show that an optimal coupling region, i.e., a region of the phase space where coupling is on, should ideally be such that at any of the constituent phase point either the maximum of the real parts of the eigenvalues is negative or the magnitude of the positive maximum is lesser than that of the negative minimum. We also invent and employ a modified dynamics coupling scheme—a significant improvement over the well-known dynamic coupling scheme—as a decisive tool to justify our results.
Quantitative photoacoustic elasticity and viscosity imaging for cirrhosis detection
Authors: Wang Qian , Shi Yujiao , Yang Fen , Yang Sihua
Published: May 2018

Elasticity and viscosity assessments are essential for understanding and characterizing the physiological and pathological states of tissue. In this work, by establishing a photoacoustic (PA) shear wave model, an approach for quantitative PA elasticity imaging based on measurement of the rise time of the thermoelastic displacement was developed. Thus, using an existing PA viscoelasticity imaging method that features a phase delay measurement, quantitative PA elasticity imaging and viscosity imaging can be obtained in a simultaneous manner. The method was tested and validated by imaging viscoelastic agar phantoms prepared at different agar concentrations, and the imaging data were in good agreement with rheometry results. Ex vivo experiments on liver pathological models demonstrated the capability for cirrhosis detection, and the results were consistent with the corresponding histological results. This method expands the scope of conventional PA imaging and has potential to become an important alternative imaging modality.
Linear conduction in N-type organic field effect transistors with nanometric channel lengths and graphene as electrodes
Authors: Chianese F. , Candini A. , Affronte M. , Mishra N. , Coletti C. , Cassinese A.
Published: May 2018

In this work, we test graphene electrodes in nanometric channel n-type Organic Field Effect Transistors (OFETs) based on thermally evaporated thin films of the perylene-3,4,9,10-tetracarboxylic acid diimide derivative. By a thorough comparison with short channel transistors made with reference gold electrodes, we found that the output characteristics of the graphene-based devices respond linearly to the applied bias, in contrast with the supralinear trend of gold-based transistors. Moreover, short channel effects are considerably suppressed in graphene electrode devices. More specifically, current on/off ratios independent of the channel length (L) and enhanced response for high longitudinal biases are demonstrated for L down to ∼140 nm. These results are rationalized taking into account the morphological and electronic characteristics of graphene, showing that the use of graphene electrodes may help to overcome the problem of Space Charge Limited Current in short channel OFETs.
Graphene quantum blisters: A tunable system to confine charge carriers
Authors: Abdullah H. M. , Van der Donck M. , Bahlouli H. , Peeters F. M. , Van Duppen B.
Published: May 2018

Due to Klein tunneling, electrostatic confinement of electrons in graphene is not possible. This hinders the use of graphene for quantum dot applications. Only through quasi-bound states with finite lifetime has one achieved to confine charge carriers. Here, we propose that bilayer graphene with a local region of decoupled graphene layers is able to generate bound states under the application of an electrostatic gate. The discrete energy levels in such a quantum blister correspond to localized electron and hole states in the top and bottom layers. We find that this layer localization and the energy spectrum itself are tunable by a global electrostatic gate and that the latter also coincides with the electronic modes in a graphene disk. Curiously, states with energy close to the continuum exist primarily in the classically forbidden region outside the domain defining the blister. The results are robust against variations in size and shape of the blister which shows that it is a versatile system to achieve tunable electrostatic confinement in graphene.
Microfluidic flow-based platforms for induction and analysis of dynamic shear-mediated platelet activation—Initial validation versus the standardized hemodynamic shearing device
Authors: Dimasi Annalisa , Roka-Moiia Yana , Consolo Filippo , Rasponi Marco , Fiore Gianfranco B. , Slepian Marvin J , Redaelli Alberto
Published: May 2018

A microfluidic flow-based platform (μFP), able to stimulate platelets via exposure of shear stress patterns pertinent to cardiovascular devices and prostheses, was compared to the Hemodynamic Shearing Device (HSD)—a state-of-the-art bench-top system for exposure of platelets to defined levels and patterns of shear. Platelets were exposed to time-varying shear stress patterns in the two systems; in detail, platelets were recirculated in the μFP or stimulated in the HSD to replicate comparable exposure time. Shear-mediated platelet activation was evaluated via (i) the platelet activity state assay, allowing the measurement of platelet-mediated thrombin generation and associated prothrombotic tendencies, (ii) scanning electron microscopy to evaluate morphological changes of sheared platelets, and (iii) flow cytometry for the determination of platelet phosphatidylserine exposure as a marker of shear activation. The results revealed good matching and comparability between the two systems, with similar trends of platelet activation, formation of microaggregates, and analogous trends of activation marker exposure for both the HSD and microfluidic-stimulated samples. These findings support future translation of the microfluidic platform as a Point-of-Care facsimile system for the diagnosis of thrombotic risk in patients implanted with cardiovascular devices.
Measuring order in disordered systems and disorder in ordered systems: Random matrix theory for isotropic and nematic liquid crystals and its perspective on pseudo-nematic domains
Authors: Zhao Yan , Stratt Richard M.
Published: May 2018

Surprisingly long-ranged intermolecular correlations begin to appear in isotropic (orientationally disordered) phases of liquid crystal forming molecules when the temperature or density starts to close in on the boundary with the nematic (ordered) phase. Indeed, the presence of slowly relaxing, strongly orientationally correlated, sets of molecules under putatively disordered conditions (“pseudo-nematic domains”) has been apparent for some time from light-scattering and optical-Kerr experiments. Still, a fully microscopic characterization of these domains has been lacking. We illustrate in this paper how pseudo-nematic domains can be studied in even relatively small computer simulations by looking for order-parameter tensor fluctuations much larger than one would expect from random matrix theory. To develop this idea, we show that random matrix theory offers an exact description of how the probability distribution for liquid-crystal order parameter tensors converges to its macroscopic-system limit. We then illustrate how domain properties can be inferred from finite-size-induced deviations from these random matrix predictions. A straightforward generalization of time-independent random matrix theory also allows us to prove that the analogous random matrix predictions for the time dependence of the order-parameter tensor are similarly exact in the macroscopic limit, and that relaxation behavior of the domains can be seen in the breakdown of the finite-size scaling required by that random-matrix theory.
Hamiltonian adaptive resolution molecular dynamics simulation of infrared dielectric functions of liquids
Authors: Wang C. C. , Tan J. Y. , Liu L. H.
Published: May 2018

Hamiltonian adaptive resolution scheme (H-AdResS), which allows to simulate materials by treating different domains of the system at different levels of resolution, is a recently proposed atomistic/coarse-grained multiscale model. In this work, a scheme to calculate the dielectric functions of liquids on account of H-AdResS is presented. In the proposed H-AdResS dielectric-function calculation scheme (DielectFunctCalS), the corrected molecular dipole moments are calculated by multiplying molecular dipole moment by the weighting fraction of the molecular mapping point. As the widths of all-atom and hybrid regions show different degrees of influence on the dielectric functions, a prefactor is multiplied to eliminate the effects of all-atom and hybrid region widths. Since one goal of using the H-AdResS method is to reduce computational costs, widths of the all-atom region and the hybrid region can be reduced considering that the coarse-grained simulation is much more timesaving compared to atomistic simulation. Liquid water and ethanol are taken as test cases to validate the DielectFunctCalS. The H-AdResS DielectFunctCalS results are in good agreement with all-atom molecular dynamics simulations. The accuracy of the H-AdResS results, together with all-atom molecular dynamics results, depends heavily on the choice of the force field and force field parameters. The H-AdResS DielectFunctCalS allows us to calculate the dielectric functions of macromolecule systems with high efficiency and makes the dielectric function calculations of large biomolecular systems possible.
Boundary layers at the interface of two different shear flows
Authors: Weidman Patrick D. , Wang C. Y.
Published: May 2018

We present solutions for the boundary layer between two uniform shear flows flowing in the same direction. In the upper layer, the flow has shear strength a, fluid density ρ1, and kinematic viscosity ν1, while the lower layer has shear strength b, fluid density ρ2, and kinematic viscosity ν2. Similarity transformations reduce the boundary-layer equations to a pair of ordinary differential equations governed by three dimensionless parameters: the shear strength ratio γ = b/a, the density ratio ρ = ρ2/ρ1, and the viscosity ratio ν = ν2/ν1. Further analysis shows that an affine transformation reduces this multi-parameter problem to a single ordinary differential equation which may be efficiently integrated as an initial-value problem. Solutions of the original boundary-value problem are shown to agree with the initial-value integrations, but additional dual and quadruple solutions are found using this method. We argue on physical grounds and through bifurcation analysis that these additional solutions are not tenable. The present problem is applicable to the trailing edge flow over a thin airfoil with camber.
Automatic cell fusion via optically-induced dielectrophoresis and optically-induced locally-enhanced electric field on a microfluidic chip
Authors: Hsiao Yu-Chun , Wang Chih-Hung , Lee Wen-Bin , Lee Gwo-Bin
Published: May 2018

Cell fusion technology has been exploited in a wide variety of biomedical applications, and physical, chemical, and biological approaches can all be used to fuse two different types of cells; however, no current technique is adept at inducing both cell pairing and fusion at high efficiencies and yields. Hence, we developed a new method featuring the use of optically induced dielectrophoresis (ODEP) in conjunction with an optically induced, locally enhanced electric field for accurate and automatic cell pairing and fusion on a microfluidic device. After pairing cells via ODEP, a locally enhanced electric field generated by “virtual electrodes” by projecting light patterns was enacted to induce a proper transmembrane potential at the cell contact area such that cell fusion could be triggered by white light exposure. As a fusion yield of 9.67% was achieved between Pan1 and A549 cells, we believe that this may be a promising technique for automatically fusing different cell types.
Modeling growth kinetics of thin films made by atomic layer deposition in lateral high-aspect-ratio structures
Authors: Ylilammi Markku , Ylivaara Oili M. E. , Puurunen Riikka L.
Published: May 2018

The conformality of thin films grown by atomic layer deposition (ALD) is studied using all-silicon test structures with long narrow lateral channels. A diffusion model, developed in this work, is used for studying the propagation of ALD growth in narrow channels. The diffusion model takes into account the gas transportation at low pressures, the dynamic Langmuir adsorption model for the film growth and the effect of channel narrowing due to film growth. The film growth is calculated by solving the diffusion equation with surface reactions. An efficient analytic approximate solution of the diffusion equation is developed for fitting the model to the measured thickness profile. The fitting gives the equilibrium constant of adsorption and the sticking coefficient. This model and Gordon's plug flow model are compared. The simulations predict the experimental measurement results quite well for Al2O3 and TiO2 ALD processes.
Independent indistinguishable quantum light sources on a reconfigurable photonic integrated circuit
Authors: Ellis D. J. P. , Bennett A. J. , Dangel C. , Lee J. P. , Griffiths J. P. , Mitchell T. A. , Paraiso T.-K. , Spencer P. , Ritchie D. A. , Shields A. J.
Published: May 2018

We report a compact, scalable, quantum photonic integrated circuit realised by combining multiple, tuneable InGaAs/GaAs quantum dot single photon sources with a silicon oxynitride waveguide circuit. Each waveguide in the circuit is addressed by a separate, electrically controlled quantum dot-containing diode. We show that the quantum dot emission from neighbouring diodes can be independently tuned to degeneracy using the Stark Effect and that the resulting photon streams are indistinguishable. This enables on-chip Hong-Ou-Mandel-type interference, as required for many photonic quantum information processing schemes.
Thermal effects on current-related skyrmion formation in a nanobelt
Authors: Zhao Xuebing , Wang Shasha , Wang Chao , Che Renchao
Published: May 2018

We report an in-situ Lorentz transmission electron microscopy (LTEM) investigation to study the thermal effects on the generation of magnetic skyrmions within a nanobelt. Under an action of a moderate current pulse, magnetic skyrmions appear even in the temperature range far below the critical temperature and even at zero field. Finite element simulation reveals that the Joule heating plays an essential role in this behavior. Our results also uncover the importance of the cooling conditions in the current-related in situ LTEM research.
Dynamic switching enables efficient bacterial colonization in flow
Authors: Kannan Anerudh , Yang Zhenbin , Kim Minyoung Kevin , Stone Howard A. , Siryaporn Albert
Published: May 2018

Significance

Bacteria colonize surfaces and form dense biofilm communities in natural and infection settings where flow is present. The physical mechanisms that give rise to the spatial organization of biofilms in flow are not understood. Here, we show that the bacterium
Pseudomonas aeruginosa
uses a process that we have termed dynamic switching to efficiently disperse throughout a flow network and maximize spatial colonization. This process dictates the spatial organization of cells during the transition from individual cells to multicellular biofilm communities. Thus, dynamic switching establishes the initial organizational structure of biofilms. The motion of many eukaryotic cell types can be described by dynamic switching, which suggests a general role of this process in a broad range of cellular systems.
The geometric blueprint of perovskites
Authors: Filip Marina R. , Giustino Feliciano
Published: May 2018

Significance

Perovskites constitute one of the most versatile and chemically diverse families of crystals. In perovskites the same structural template supports a staggering variety of properties, from metallic, insulating, and semiconducting behavior to superconducting, ferroelectric, ferromagnetic, and multiferroic phases. Approximately 2,000 perovskites are currently known. In this work we revisit the century-old model proposed by Goldschmidt to predict the formability of perovskites in the key of modern inferential statistics and internet data mining. We demonstrate that the nonrattling rule postulated by Goldschmidt can predict the stability of perovskites with a success rate of 80%. Using this tool we predict the existence of 90,000 hitherto unknown perovskites.
Codon usage of highly expressed genes affects proteome-wide translation efficiency
Authors: Frumkin Idan , Lajoie Marc J. , Gregg Christopher J. , Hornung Gil , Church George M. , Pilpel Yitzhak
Published: May 2018

Significance

Highly expressed genes are encoded by codons that correspond to abundant tRNAs, a phenomenon thought to ensure high expression levels. An alternative interpretation is that highly expressed genes are codon-biased to support efficient translation of the rest of the proteome. Until recently, it was impossible to examine these alternatives, since statistical analyses provided correlations but not causal mechanistic explanations. Massive genome engineering now allows recoding genes and examining effects on cellular physiology and protein translation. We engineered the
Escherichia coli
genome by changing the codon bias of highly expressed genes. The perturbation affected the translation of other genes, depending on their codon demand, suggesting that codon bias of highly expressed genes ensures translation integrity of the rest of the proteome.
Wireless, intraoral hybrid electronics for real-time quantification of sodium intake toward hypertension management
Authors: Lee Yongkuk , Howe Connor , Mishra Saswat , Lee Dong Sup , Mahmood Musa , Piper Matthew , Kim Youngbin , Tieu Katie , Byun Hun-Soo , Coffey James P. , Shayan Mahdis , Chun Youngjae , Costanzo Richard M. , Yeo Woon-Hong
Published: May 2018

Significance

We introduce a soft, low-profile, intraoral electronics that offers continuous real-time monitoring of sodium intake via long-range wireless telemetry. The stretchable, hybrid electronic system integrates chip-scale components and microstructured sodium sensors with stretchable interconnects, together in an ultrasoft, breathable, microporous membrane. The quantitative computational and experimental studies of antenna performance optimize the wireless electronics, offering consistent functionality with minimal loss during multimodal deformation. Examples of in vivo study with human subjects demonstrate a highly sensitive, real-time quantification of sodium intake.
Deubiquitinating enzyme USP3 controls CHK1 chromatin association and activation
Authors: Cheng Yu-Che , Shieh Sheau-Yann
Published: May 2018

Significance

It has been known for some time that ATM and RAD3-related kinase (ATR) phosphorylates and activates checkpoint kinase 1 (CHK1) in response to DNA damage. However, how CHK1 is targeted to chromatin and how it is released has not been fully deciphered. Previously we demonstrated that CHK1 K63-linked ubiquitination contributes to its chromatin association and activation. The study presented here highlights the involvement of ubiquitin-specific protease 3 (USP3) in removing the K63-linked ubiquitin chain, thus allowing not only the release of CHK1 from chromatin but also the access of its substrates. Together our studies have revealed a stepwise regulation of CHK1 in DNA damage response.
Linked genetic variation and not genome structure causes widespread differential expression associated with chromosomal inversions
Authors: Said Iskander , Byrne Ashley , Serrano Victoria , Cardeno Charis , Vollmers Christopher , Corbett-Detig Russell
Published: May 2018

Significance

Chromosomal inversions are among the primary drivers of genome structure evolution and are thought to be favored by natural selection because they suppress recombination between co-adapted genes. However, dramatically reorganizing the genome could also have its own functional implications. In natural inversions, genome structure and allelic content are inextricably linked, and quantifying their relative contributions is crucial for understanding genome structure evolution. Here, we use genome engineering tools to construct synthetic inversions whose structures mimic natural inversions. We find that synthetic inversions do not influence gene expression, while natural inversions influence expression genome-wide. Our results indicate that genetic variation associated with inversions has widespread
cis
and
trans
regulatory effects and support evolutionary models wherein natural selection maintains co-adapted variation.
Physics of lumen growth
Authors: Dasgupta Sabyasachi , Gupta Kapish , Zhang Yue , Viasnoff Virgile , Prost Jacques
Published: May 2018

Significance

The development of intercellular cavities (lumens) is a ubiquitous mechanism to form complex tissue structures in organisms. The generation of Ciona Notochord, the formation of Zebrafish vasculature, or the formation of bile canaliculi between hepatic cells constitute a few examples. Lumen growth is governed by water intake that usually results from the creation of a salt concentration difference (osmotic gradients) between the inside and the outside of the lumen. During morphogenesis or in diseases, lumens can also leak due to improper maturation of the cell junctions that seal them. In this paper, we theoretically describe different conditions and dynamical regimes of lumen growth based on the balance of osmotic pressure, fluid intake, and paracellular leak.
Origin of radiation tolerance in amorphous Ge
2
Sb
2
Te
5
phase-change random-access memory material
Authors: Konstantinou Konstantinos , Lee Tae Hoon , Mocanu Felix C. , Elliott Stephen R.
Published: May 2018

Significance

Radiation-hard nonvolatile memories are in high demand by the space community for implementation in solid-state data recorders. In phase-change memories, binary data are represented as changes in structural phase rather than by stored electrical charge; thus, these devices are supposed to be tolerant to ionizing radiation effects. In addition, they feature high cycling capability and large scaling potential. We present ab initio calculations of radiation damage in amorphous phase-change materials. The glass shows a recovery from the damage imposed during ion irradiation, as it manages to maintain its amorphous network. Our simulations manifest the remarkable ability of Ge
2
Sb
2
Te
5
phase-change random-access memory material to be radiation-tolerant, hence indicating its potential applications in future space and other radiation-present environments.
Precise detection of de novo single nucleotide variants in human genomes
Authors: Gómez-Romero Laura , Palacios-Flores Kim , Reyes José , García Delfino , Boege Margareta , Dávila Guillermo , Flores Margarita , Schatz Michael C. , Palacios Rafael
Published: May 2018

Significance

The precise location of variants in the human genome is of utmost importance. We present a unique approach, coverage-based single nucleotide variant (SNV) identification (COBASI), which uses only perfect matches between the reads of a sequence project and a reference genome to detect and accurately identify de novo SNVs. From the perfect matches, a representation of the read coverage per nucleotide along the genome, the variation landscape, is generated. SNVs are then pinpointed as significant changes in coverage and de novo SNVs can be identified with high precision. The performance of COBASI was analyzed using simulations and experimentally validated by sequencing de novo SNVs identified from a parent–offspring trio. We propose this pipeline as a useful tool for different genomic applications.
P
II
-like signaling protein SbtB links cAMP sensing with cyanobacterial inorganic carbon response
Authors: Selim Khaled A. , Haase Florian , Hartmann Marcus D. , Hagemann Martin , Forchhammer Karl
Published: May 2018

Significance

Life on Earth depends on photosynthetic CO
2
fixation to form organic carbon. This process evolved in cyanobacteria and was later conveyed to eukaryotes, giving rise to plastids in algae and plants. To cope with low atmospheric CO
2
concentrations that developed over the course of evolution, cyanobacteria evolved a CO
2
-concentrating mechanism (CCM), which elevates CO
2
levels in the vicinity of RubisCO, the key enzyme of CO
2
fixation. Here we describe a conserved cyclic AMP receptor protein, SbtB, which participates in the sensing of fluctuating C
i
levels to regulate the cyanobacterial CCM system. SbtB represents a new principle of C
i
sensing, which is important for acclimation to varying C
i
regimes in the ecological niches of cyanobacteria.
Farnesoid X receptor is essential for the survival of renal medullary collecting duct cells under hypertonic stress
Authors: Xu Sujuan , Huang Shizheng , Luan Zhilin , Chen Tingyue , Wei Yuanyi , Xing Miaomiao , Li Yaqing , Du Chunxiu , Wang Bing , Zheng Feng , Wang Nanping , Guan Youfei , Gustafsson Jan-Åke , Zhang Xiaoyan
Published: May 2018

Significance

As a ligand-activated transcription factor, farnesoid X receptor (FXR) is abundantly expressed in the liver and small intestine, where it plays an important role in the maintenance of bile acid, lipid, and glucose homeostasis. Increasing evidence is emerging that FXR may be a critical regulatory factor in renal physiology and pathophysiology. The present study demonstrates an essential role of FXR in promoting cell survival of medullary collecting duct cells under hypertonic stress and identifies FXR-induced TonEBP expression and activation as an underlying mechanism. This work provides an insight into the role of FXR in renal urine concentration.
Genomic integration of ERRγ-HNF1β regulates renal bioenergetics and prevents chronic kidney disease
Authors: Zhao Juanjuan , Lupino Katherine , Wilkins Benjamin J. , Qiu Chengxiang , Liu Jian , Omura Yasuhiro , Allred Amanda L. , McDonald Caitlin , Susztak Katalin , Barish Grant D. , Pei Liming
Published: May 2018

Significance

Renal epithelial cells (RECs) contain abundant mitochondria that are essential to support renal reabsorption of electrolytes, glucose, and amino acids. However, it remains poorly understood how mitochondrial metabolism is coordinated with kidney reabsorptive functions. Here we show that deletion of estrogen-related receptor gamma (ERRγ) in RECs results in severe renal mitochondrial and reabsorptive dysfunction with fluid-filled cysts. ERRγ directly regulates mitochondrial metabolism and cooperates in regulating renal reabsorption genes with hepatic nuclear factor 1 beta (HNF1β), mutations of which cause strikingly similar renal dysfunction and cysts in animals and humans. These findings reveal a role for ERRγ in simultaneously coordinating a transcriptional program of renal energy-generating mitochondrial and energy-consuming reabsorptive functions relevant to kidney disease.
Integrin α4β7 switches its ligand specificity via distinct conformer-specific activation
Authors: Wang ShiHui , Wu ChenYu , Zhang YueBin , Zhong QingLu , Sun Hao , Cao WenPeng , Ge GaoXiang , Li GuoHui , Zhang X. Frank , Chen JianFeng
Published: May 2018

Chemokine (C-C motif) ligand 25 (CCL25) and C-X-C motif chemokine 10 (CXCL10) induce the ligand-specific activation of integrin α4β7 to mediate the selective adhesion of lymphocytes to mucosal vascular addressin cell adhesion molecule-1 (MAdCAM-1) or vascular cell adhesion molecule-1 (VCAM-1). However, the mechanism underlying the selective binding of different ligands by α4β7 remains obscure. In this study, we demonstrate that CCL25 and CXCL10 induce distinct active conformers of α4β7 with a high affinity for either MAdCAM-1 or VCAM-1. Single-cell force measurements show that CCL25 increases the affinity of α4β7 for MAdCAM-1 but decreases its affinity for VCAM-1, whereas CXCL10 has the opposite effect. Structurally, CCL25 induces a more extended active conformation of α4β7 compared with CXCL10-activated integrin. These two distinct intermediate open α4β7 conformers selectively bind to MAdCAM-1 or VCAM-1 by distinguishing their immunoglobulin domain 2. Notably, Mn2+ fully opens α4β7 with a high affinity for both ligands. Thus, integrin α4β7 adopts different active conformations to switch its ligand-binding specificity.
Electrical Properties of an m × n Hammock Network*
Authors: Tan Zhen , Tan Zhi-Zhong , Zhou Ling
Published: May 2018

Electrical property is an important problem in the field of natural science and physics, which usually involves potential, current and resistance in the electric circuit. We investigate the electrical properties of an arbitrary hammock network, which has not been resolved before, and propose the exact potential formula of an arbitrary m × n hammock network by means of the Recursion-Transform method with current parameters (RT-I) pioneered by one of us [Z. Z. Tan, Phys. Rev. E
91
(2015) 052122], and the branch currents and equivalent resistance of the network are derived naturally. Our key technique is to setting up matrix equations and making matrix transformation, the potential formula derived is a meaningful discovery, which deduces many novel applications. The discovery of potential formula of the hammock network provides new theoretical tools and techniques for related scientific research.
Utilization of Formal Support Services for Elder Abuse: Do Informal Supporters Make a Difference?
Authors: Burnes David , Breckman Risa , Henderson Charles R , Lachs Mark S , Pillemer Karl
Published: May 2018

Background and Objectives

Few elder abuse (EA) victims ever seek or receive assistance from formal support services designed to mitigate risk and harm of revictimization. This study examined whether the presence of third-party “concerned persons” in victims’ personal social networks plays a role in enabling formal support service utilization.

Research Design and Methods

A representative population-based survey administered to adults (n = 800) in New York State identified 83 EA cases from the past year. Penalized likelihood logistic regression was used to examine the relationship between availability of a concerned person and victim formal support services usage.

Results

EA victims who had a concerned person in their personal life were significantly more likely to use formal EA support services than victims without a concerned person. EA victims who lived with their perpetrator were significantly less likely to use formal services.

Discussion and Implications

Third-party concerned persons represent a critical population to target in efforts designed to promote EA victim help-seeking.
BPX preconditioners for isogeometric analysis using analysis-suitable T-splines
Authors: Cho Durkbin , Vázquez Rafael
Published: May 2018

We propose and analyse optimal additive multilevel solvers for isogeometric discretizations of scalar elliptic problems for locally refined T-meshes. Applying the refinement strategy in Morgenstern & Peterseim (2015, Analysis-suitable adaptive T-mesh refinement with linear complexity. Comput. Aided Geom. Design, 34, 50–66) we can guarantee that the obtained T-meshes have a multilevel structure and that the associated T-splines are analysis suitable, for which we can define a dual basis and a stable projector. Taking advantage of the multilevel structure we develop two Bramble-Pasciak-Xu (BPX) preconditioners: the first on the basis of local smoothing only for the functions affected by a newly added edge by bisection and the second smoothing for all the functions affected after adding all the edges of the same level. We prove that both methods have optimal complexity and present several numerical experiments to confirm our theoretical results and also to compare the practical performance of the proposed preconditioners.
A semismooth Newton method with analytical path-following for the $H^1$-projection onto the Gibbs simplex
Authors: Adam L , Hintermüller M , Surowiec T M
Published: May 2018

An efficient, function-space-based second-order method for the $H^1$-projection onto the Gibbs simplex is presented. The method makes use of the theory of semismooth Newton methods in function spaces as well as Moreau–Yosida regularization and techniques from parametric optimization. A path-following technique is considered for the regularization parameter updates. A rigorous first- and second-order sensitivity analysis of the value function for the regularized problem is provided to justify the update scheme. The viability of the algorithm is then demonstrated for two applications found in the literature: binary image inpainting and labeled data classification. In both cases, the algorithm exhibits mesh-independent behavior.
Earnings Losses and Labor Mobility Over the Life Cycle
Authors: Jung Philip , Kuhn Moritz
Published: May 2018

Large and persistent earnings losses following displacement have adverse consequences for the individual worker and the macroeconomy. Leading models cannot explain their size and disagree on their sources. Two mean-reverting forces make earnings losses transitory in these models: search as an upward force allows workers to climb back up the job ladder, and separations as a downward force make nondisplaced workers fall down the job ladder. We show that job stability at the top rather than search frictions at the bottom is the main driver of persistent earnings losses. We provide new empirical evidence on heterogeneity in job stability and develop a life-cycle search model to explain the facts. Our model offers a quantitative reconciliation of key stylized facts about the U.S. labor market: large worker flows, a large share of stable jobs, and persistent earnings shocks. We explain the size of earnings losses by dampening the downward force. Our new explanation highlights the tight link between labor market mobility and earnings dynamics. Regarding the sources, we find that over 85% stem from the loss of a particularly good job at the top of the job ladder. We apply the model to study the effectiveness of two labor market policies, retraining and placement support, from the Dislocated Worker Program. We find that both are ineffective in reducing earnings losses in line with the program evaluation literature.
The many Faces of Human Sociality: Uncovering the Distribution and Stability of Social Preferences
Authors: Bruhin Adrian , Fehr Ernst , Schunk Daniel
Published: May 2018

We uncover heterogeneity in social preferences with a structural model that accounts for outcome-based and reciprocity-based social preferences and assigns individuals to endogenously determined preferences types. We find that neither at the aggregate level nor when we allow for several distinct preference types do purely selfish types emerge, suggesting that other-regarding preferences are the rule and not the exception. There are three temporally stable other-regarding types. When ahead, all types value others' payoffs more than when behind. The first, strongly altruistic type puts a large weight on others' payoffs even when behind and displays moderate levels of reciprocity. The second, moderately altruistic type also puts positive weight on others' payoff, yet at a lower level, and displays no positive reciprocity. The third, behindness averse type puts a large negative weight on others' payoffs when behind and is selfish otherwise. In addition, we show that individual-specific estimates of preferences offer only very modest improvements in out-of-sample predictions compared to our three-type model. Thus, a parsimonious model with three types captures the bulk of the information about subjects' social preferences.
Acute kidney injury following coronary revascularization procedures in patients with advanced CKD
Authors: Gaipov Abduzhappar , Molnar Miklos Z , Potukuchi Praveen K , Sumida Keiichi , Szabo Zoltan , Akbilgic Oguz , Streja Elani , Rhee Connie M , Koshy Santhosh K G , Canada Robert B , Kalantar-Zadeh Kamyar , Kovesdy Csaba P
Published: May 2018

Background

Previous studies reported that compared with percutaneous coronary interventions (PCIs), coronary artery bypass grafting (CABG) is associated with a reduced risk of mortality and repeat revascularization in patients with mild to moderate chronic kidney disease (CKD) and end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Information about outcomes associated with CABG versus PCI in patients with advanced stages of CKD is limited. We evaluated the incidence and relative risk of acute kidney injury (AKI) associated with CABG versus PCI in patients with advanced CKD.

Methods

We examined 730 US veterans with incident ESRD who underwent a first CABG or PCI up to 5 years prior to dialysis initiation. The association of CABG versus PCI with AKI was examined in multivariable adjusted logistic regression analyses.

Results

A total of 466 patients underwent CABG and 264 patients underwent PCI. The mean age was 64 ± 8 years, 99% were male, 20% were African American and 84% were diabetic. The incidence of AKI in the CABG versus PCI group was 67% versus 31%, respectively (P < 0.001). The incidence of all stages of AKI were higher after CABG compared with PCI. CABG was associated with a 4.5-fold higher crude risk of AKI {odds ratio [OR] 4.53 [95% confidence interval (CI) 3.28–6.27]; P < 0.001}, which remained significant after multivariable adjustments [OR 3.50 (95% CI 2.03–6.02); P < 0.001].

Conclusion

CABG was associated with a 4.5-fold higher risk of AKI compared with PCI in patients with advanced CKD. Despite other benefits of CABG over PCI, the extremely high risk of AKI associated with CABG should be considered in this vulnerable population when deciding on the optimal revascularization strategy.