bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Effect of upper airway on tracheobronchial fluid dynamics
Authors: Kim Minsuok , Collier Guilhem J. , Wild Jim M. , Chung Yongmann M.
Published: June 2018

The upper airways play a significant role in the tracheal flow dynamics. Despite many previous studies, however, the effect of the upper airways on the ventilation distribution in distal airways has remained a challenge. The aim of this study is to experimentally and computationally investigate the dynamic behaviour in the intratracheal flow induced by the upper respiratory tract and to assess its influence on the subsequent tributaries. Patient‐specific images from 2 different modalities (magnetic resonance imaging of the upper airways and computed tomography of the lower airways) were segmented and combined. An experimental phantom of patient‐specific airways (including the oral cavity, larynx, trachea, down to generations 6‐8) was generated using 3D printing. The flow velocities in this phantom model were measured by the flow‐sensitised phase contrast magnetic resonance imaging technique and compared with the computational fluid dynamics simulations. Both experimental and computational results show a good agreement in the time‐averaged velocity fields as well as fluctuating velocity. The flows in the proximal trachea were complex and unsteady under both lower‐ and higher‐flow rate conditions. Computational fluid dynamics simulations were also performed with an airways model without the upper airways. Although the flow near the carina remained unstable only when the inflow rate was high, the influence of the upper airways caused notable changes in distal flow distributions when the 2 airways models were compared with and without the upper airways. The results suggest that the influence of the upper airways should be included in the respiratory flow assessment as the upper airways extensively affect the flows in distal airways and consequent ventilation distribution in the lungs.
Online scheduling of deadline‐constrained bag‐of‐task workloads on hybrid clouds
Authors: Peláez Víctor , Campos Antonio , García Daniel F. , Entrialgo Joaquín
Published: June 2018

The advent of hybrid cloud technologies and public Infrastructures as a Service (IaaS) allows service developers to offer services to their customers with little upfront investment and to adapt services to different workload sizes. The problem of minimizing the costs of the hired public infrastructure while providing the quality of service needed by the final customer arises when using hybrid clouds. Several scheduling strategies have been proposed to solve this problem for services dealing with deadline‐constrained bag‐of‐tasks workloads. Most of these solutions do not consider the variable performance of the clouds, the provisioning delay of virtual machine instances that affects the elasticity, and the impracticality of having good processing time estimations in real systems. We propose a scheduler algorithm that overcomes previous limitations and can minimize the cost of the infrastructure while maximizing the number of deadlines met by the service. Our solution can work autonomously by using sampled observations of the processing times and considers the heterogeneity and the provisioning time of the virtual machine instances. An evaluation was conducted by simulating different scenarios and workload types. Simulation results show that our solution obtains better or similar results than previous techniques in most scenarios in terms of deadlines met.
A client‐server JavaScript code rewriting‐based framework to detect the XSS worms from online social network
Authors: Gupta Shashank , Gupta B.B. , Chaudhary Pooja
Published: June 2018

This article presents a client‐server JavaScript code rewriting‐based framework that protects and preserves the privacy of online users against XSS worms on Online Social Network (OSN). The server‐side generates an estimation graph which is explored for extracting the JavaScript code and shifts such code in a separate file. This shifting is done for completely isolating the untrusted JavaScript code and data. The client‐side performs runtime monitoring of the dynamic JavaScript code to recognize the tainted flow of untrusted JavaScript variables. The context of such dynamic tainted variables is determined, for performing the string analysis to examine whether it may be considered as vulnerable point or not. Finally, decoding operation is performed on the obfuscated malicious JavaScript code and the JavaScript code embedded in the parameter values of HTTP request. If match is found, then XSS attack vector is present. Otherwise, it is not. The authors have developed their prototype on the Java development framework and have estimated the malicious script alleviation capability of this proposed work on tested web applications (Humhub, Elgg, WordPress, Joomla, Drupal).
Retracted: Study on measurement reliability based on Liu estimator
Authors: Huang Jiewu , Ma Lie , Li Rong
Published: June 2018

Retraction: Huang J, Ma L, Li R. Study on measurement reliability based on Liu estimator. Concurrency Computat Pract Exper. 2019;31:e4709. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpe.4709 The above article, published online on 31st May 2018 in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), has been retracted by agreement between the authors, the journal Editor, Professor Geoffrey Fox, and John Wiley and Sons Ltd. The retraction has been agreed due to a reversal of the Liu and OLS estimators resulting in foundational errors that are beyond the scope of an erratum.
Quantitative Assessment of Xenon Exchange Kinetics with Cucurbit[6]uril in Physiological Saline
Authors: Korchak Sergey , Riemer Thomas , Kilian Wolfgang , Mitschang Lorenz
Published: June 2018

Cucurbit[6]uril and xenon form supramolecular complexes that are of great potential for biosensing by NMR. This host‐guest system acts alike a signaler in sensors facilitating the ultrasensitive detection of biomarkers by saturation transfer of chemically exchanging, hyperpolarized 129Xe. Here, the exchange process is evaluated by NMR exchange spectroscopy utilizing the preparation of anti‐parallel longitudinal magnetization with respect to free and host‐bound xenon and the variation of xenon concentration. Evidence for dissociative as well as degenerate exchange mechanisms is revealed by a linear regression analysis of the determined exchange rates resulting in rate coefficients of 1131±11 s−1 (2390±70 s−1) and 108500±4900 M−1 s−1 (174200±13900 M−1 s−1), respectively, and an affinity constant of 289±8 M−1 (278±14 M−1) in physiological saline at 298 K (310 K). The results elucidate the supramolecular exchange and underpin the high efficacy for biosensing of this host‐guest system. The approach is generally applicable to enhanced host‐xenon exchange dynamics, yet slow on the NMR timescale, for quantitative kinetics and biosensing analyses.
Linking stream ecosystem integrity to catchment and reach conditions in an intensively managed forest landscape
Authors: Erdozain Maitane , Kidd Karen , Kreutzweiser David , Sibley Paul
Published: June 2018

Forests are vital to maintaining headwater stream integrity in forested biomes, which ensures the delivery of aquatic ecosystem services downstream. Forest harvesting, however, can alter land–water linkages and compromise stream integrity. Historically, the main effects of forestry on streams have been documented by studies that used relatively few (mainly abiotic) indicators and which focused on single harvesting events. However, forest management is expected to intensify in the future to meet increasing global wood demand and it is likely that our present understanding does not adequately capture the cumulative effects that streams will be subjected to under intensive forest management. To address this, we assessed the effects of varying forest management intensities on the integrity of 15 forest headwater streams in northwestern New Brunswick, Canada. We used a comprehensive approach to link multiple biotic and abiotic indicators of stream ecosystem integrity to reach‐ and catchment‐level characteristics including forest management (e.g., cumulative harvesting over time, road density, forest condition). Most indicators detected the gradient in forest management intensity with abiotic indicators responding most strongly. Streams in catchments with highest management intensity (especially road density) tended to have higher fine inorganic sediment deposition and entrainment, water cations and carbon, dissolved organic matter humification, and water temperature. These abiotic differences were associated with higher biofilm biomass and shredder densities, but lower leaf decomposition. Evidence from our multi‐indicator approach elucidated a potential effects pathway of higher inorganic sediment content in biofilms of organic matter potentially limiting or altering its use by microbial and benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) communities and resulting in reduced leaf decomposition rates. Overall, this study shows that current best management practices in an intensively managed watershed (and legacy effects from past management such as older road systems) do not fully protect against an increased delivery of terrestrial materials to streams with resulting habitat and biotic changes, but that they are mostly effective at preventing the impairment of BMI communities.
Empirical correspondence between trophic transfer efficiency in freshwater food webs and the slope of their size spectra
Authors: Mehner Thomas , Lischke Betty , Scharnweber Kristin , Attermeyer Katrin , Brothers Soren , Gaedke Ursula , Hilt Sabine , Brucet Sandra
Published: June 2018

The density of organisms declines with size, because larger organisms need more energy than smaller ones and energetic losses occur when larger organisms feed on smaller ones. A potential expression of density‐size distributions are Normalized Biomass Size Spectra (NBSS), which plot the logarithm of biomass independent of taxonomy within bins of logarithmic organismal size, divided by the bin width. Theoretically, the NBSS slope of multi‐trophic communities is exactly −1.0 if the trophic transfer efficiency (TTE, ratio of production rates between adjacent trophic levels) is 10% and the predator‐prey mass ratio (PPMR) is fixed at 104. Here we provide evidence from four multi‐trophic lake food webs that empirically estimated TTEs correspond to empirically estimated slopes of the respective community NBSS. Each of the NBSS considered pelagic and benthic organisms spanning size ranges from bacteria to fish, all sampled over three seasons in 1 yr. The four NBSS slopes were significantly steeper than −1.0 (range −1.14 to −1.19, with 95% CIs excluding −1). The corresponding average TTEs were substantially lower than 10% in each of the four food webs (range 1.0% to 3.6%, mean 1.85%). The overall slope merging all biomass‐size data pairs from the four systems (−1.17) was almost identical to the slope predicted from the arithmetic mean TTE of the four food webs (−1.18) assuming a constant PPMR of 104. Accordingly, our empirical data confirm the theoretically predicted quantitative relationship between TTE and the slope of the biomass‐size distribution. Furthermore, we show that benthic and pelagic organisms can be merged into a community NBSS, but future studies have yet to explore potential differences in habitat‐specific TTEs and PPMRs. We suggest that community NBSS may provide valuable information on the structure of food webs and their energetic pathways, and can result in improved accuracy of TTE‐estimates.
Transition Metal Mediated C–H Activation of 2‐Pyrones, 2‐Pyridones, 2‐Coumarins and 2‐Quinolones
Authors: Prendergast Aisling M. , McGlacken Gerard P.
Published: June 2018

C–H activation has emerged as a viable alternative to traditional C–C bond forming reactions such as the Suzuki–Miyaura, Stille, Negishi and others. However, C–H activation is rarely employed in total synthesis or fine chemical manufacture, particularly as an end‐game strategy. This may be due to the harsh conditions typically required. For C–H activation to become a truly useful and versatile methodology, conditions must emerge which are applicable to compounds with multiple functionalities. In this review, we hope to inspire the chemistry community to focus their efforts on milder conditions for C–H activation and cross‐dehydrogenative coupling. To this end, we have focused on describing C–H activation as it has been applied to several classes of biologically interesting, but chemically sensitive motifs: the 2‐pyrones, 2‐pyridones, 2‐coumarins and 2‐quinolones.
Lewis Base Catalyzed Intramolecular Reduction of Salicylaldehydes by Pinacol‐Derived Chlorohydrosilane
Authors: Assoah Benedicta , Vale João R. , Kalenius Elina , Veiros Luis F. , Candeias Nuno R.
Published: June 2018

A newly developed stable chlorohydrosilane derived from pinacol is herein described. This was successfully used in the reduction of salicylaldehydes in reasonable to excellent yields (51–97 %). The ability of the hydrosilane to react as a reducing agent is increased upon the in situ formation of a trialkoxyhydrosilane and activation with a Lewis base, as further indicated by density functional theory studies. 1,3‐Dimethyl‐3,4,5,6‐tetrahydro‐2(1H)‐pyrimidinone (DMPU) was identified to be a suitable catalyst for this metal‐free reduction, promoting the regio‐ and chemoselective reduction of aldehydes in ortho‐position to phenols, despite the presence of vicinal ketones. The performance of pinacol‐derived chlorohydrosilane in the reduction of salicylaldehydes was further observed to be superior to that of well‐established commercially available chlorohydrosilanes.
A little bird told me…: Consequences of holding an implicit association between women and birds
Authors: Columb Corey , Plant E. Ashby
Published: June 2018

Past research has shown that humans possess implicit associations that, when activated, affect subsequent behavior. In three studies, we demonstrated a novel implicit association held by some men: an association between women and birds. Additionally, we demonstrated three consequences of possessing and activating a Women–Birds association. For those who strongly associated women and birds, activating the association caused an increase in dehumanization of women, perceptions of female incompetence, and sexist hiring decisions. Perceptions of female incompetence mediated the effect of Women–Birds implicit association activation on sexist hiring decisions. These findings provide insight into a potential cause of bias toward women that should be accounted for when attempting to reduce discrimination toward women and speak to the need for careful consideration when making analogies linking social groups to animals or objects.
Multivariate left‐censored Bayesian modeling for predicting exposure using multiple chemical predictors
Authors: Groth Caroline P. , Banerjee Sudipto , Ramachandran Gurumurthy , Stenzel Mark R. , Stewart Patricia A.
Published: June 2018

Environmental health exposures to airborne chemicals often originate from chemical mixtures. Environmental health professionals may be interested in assessing exposure to one or more of the chemicals in these mixtures, but often, exposure measurement data are not available, either because measurements were not collected/assessed for all exposure scenarios of interest or because some of the measurements were below the analytical methods' limits of detection (i.e., censored). In some cases, based on chemical laws, two or more components may have linear relationships with one another, whether in single or multiple mixtures. Although bivariate analyses can be used if the correlation is high, correlations are often low. To serve this need, this paper develops a multivariate framework for assessing exposure using relationships of the chemicals present in these mixtures. This framework accounts for censored measurements in all chemicals, allowing us to develop unbiased exposure estimates. We assessed our model's performance against simpler models at a variety of censoring levels and assessed our model's 95% coverage. We applied our model to assess vapor exposure from measurements of three chemicals in crude oil taken on the Ocean Intervention III during the Deepwater Horizon oil spill response and cleanup.
On achieving throughput optimality with energy prediction–based power allocation in 5G networks
Authors: Gardazi Syed Fasih Ali , Ahmad Rizwan , Qureshi Hassaan Khaliq , Ahmed Waqas
Published: June 2018

The expected presence of huge number of low data rate devices in 5G/beyond 5G networks can compromise its overall capacity and cause an increase in carbon footprint. With continuous improvement in radio access technologies, these low data rate devices can be offloaded to self sustainable small cells operating in spectrum extensions (licensed/unlicensed). To ensure self‐sustainability and end‐to‐end connectivity of these low data rate devices naturally calls for energy harvesting (EH)–based cooperative communication solution. Therefore, in this paper, we propose an energy prediction–based power allocation (EPPA) policy to improve the utilization of intermittent EH arrivals to maximize throughput. Moreover, EH predictions are obtained through the training of an M‐order Markov model, which are further used to derive estimated throughput optimal (EPPA‐NO) and suboptimal (EPPA‐I) power allocation/data rate selection policies. An EPPA‐K scheme with exact knowledge of future arrivals are used as an upper bound to benchmark the performance of EPPA‐NO and EPPA‐I in terms of throughput, delay, energy consumption per bit, and respective complexity. It is observed that the performance of these schemes is highly dependent on the prediction accuracy. To this end, we further propose a learning‐based weighted linear regression scheme. For an energy‐constrained scenario, using weighted linear regression further improves energy efficiency over EPPA‐NO and EPPA‐I and reaches within 1% of EPPA‐K for a buffer size of 700 bits.
Multi‐technical analysis on the antioxidative capacity and total phenol contents of 94 traditional Chinese dietary medicinal herbs
Authors: He Fangting , Chen Jiayi , Dong Ke , Leng Yun , Xu Jiayi , Hu Pengwei , Yao Yuqin , Xiong Jingyuan , Pei Xiaofang
Published: June 2018

Dietary medicinal herbs (DMHs) are superior reservoirs for natural antioxidants and safe for long‐term consumption. Chinese government recently announced an official list of traditional Chinese DMHs to support civil health promotion. However, antioxidative capacity (AOC) and total phenol contents (TPC) of these listed herbs were not comprehensively and systematically evaluated. In this study, AOC of 94 listed DMHs in water extract were investigated by three techniques including radical scavenging and ferric reducing antioxidative power. The results showed that emblic leafflower, rose, and clove possessed the highest AOC, while TPC was significantly correlated with AOC. While traditional Chinese medicines are categorized by the nature of Yin‐Yang, this study demonstrated that Yin DMHs are statistically correlated with high AOC.

Practical application: In this study, AOC and TPC of 94 traditional Chinese DMHs were documented systematically. Emblic leafflower, rose and clove were shown to possess the highest AOC. TPC in traditional Chinese DMHs was significantly correlated with the AOC, while DMHs with Yin characteristic might be used as an indicator to identify potential antioxidative herbs.
Iodine consumption and cognitive performance: Confirmation of adequate consumption
Authors: Choudhry Hani , Nasrullah Md.
Published: June 2018

Iodine, a dynamic nutrient present in thyroid hormones, is responsible for regulating thyroid function, supporting a healthy metabolism, and aiding growth and development. Iodine is also essential for brain development during specific time windows influencing neurogenesis, neuronal and glial cell differentiation, myelination, neuronal migration, and synaptogenesis. About 1.5 billion people in 130 countries live in areas at risk of iron deficiencies (IDs). Reduced mental ability due to IDs occurs in almost 300 million people. Ensuring the consumption of minimum recommended daily allowances of iodine remains challenging. The effects of ID disorders range from high mortality of fetuses and children to inhibited mental development (cretinism). Poor socioeconomic development and impaired school performance are also notable. Currently, ID disorders are the single greatest contributor to preventable brain damage in fetuses and infants and arrested psychomotor development in children. Iodized salt may help fulfill iodine requirements. Increases in food salt iodization programs can help overcome ID disorders. Dietary plans can be well adjusted to incorporate iodinated foods. Maternal iodine supplementation for offspring requires adequate attention. Fruits, vegetables, bread, eggs, legumes (beans and peas), nuts, seeds, seafood, lean meats and poultry, and soy products provide small quantities of iodine. Nutrient‐dense foods containing essential vitamins and minerals such as iodine may confer positive effects. To some extent, fortified foods and daily dietary supplements can be provided for different nutrients including iodine; otherwise, iodine may be consumed in less than the recommended amounts. This review focuses on aspects of adequate iodine consumption to avoid cognitive impairments.
Overview of current research work at the Chair of Subsurface Engineering at Montanuniversitaet Leoben
Authors: Galler Robert , Wenighofer Robert , Gehwolf Paul , Stoxreiter Thomas , Schuller Erik , Pittino Gerhard , Darmaev Enkhe
Published: June 2018

The Chair of Subsurface Engineering at the Montanuniversitaet Leoben is part of the Department of Mineral Resources Engineering. Regarding research and development, the chair cooperates with several departments of the university, such as the Departments of Petroleum Engineering, Environmental and Energy Technology, Product Engineering and Polymer Engineering. In addition to the construction of the ZAB, a research and development but also training and education centre at the Styrian Erzberg, some other research projects at the chair have recently been reported in this journal. These include, for example, research on segmental lining design in collaboration with with the ÖBB‐Infrastruktur AG, and also topics such as disc force and face monitoring systems for TBMs. This research is deliberately not discussed here; rather research is reported that has received less attention lately. This includes further developments mainly relating to laboratory tests, the research field of rockfall simulations, international research cooperations, and also work on BIM implementation at the ZAB‐Zentrum am Berg.
Current research by ÖBB Infrastruktur AG on scale monitoring without track closures
Authors: Schachinger Tobias , Zagar Bernhard , Schwab Christian , Saliger Florian , Stur Michael
Published: June 2018

In water pressure‐relieved rail tunnels, calcium carbonate scaling occurs in tunnel drain pipes. This scaling is caused by the surrounding geology, groundwater or the use of building materials containing cement. If the amount of scale becomes excessive, the drains have to be be cleaned to prevent an increase of the water pressure on the tunnel lining, which can cause damage to the tunnel structure or water ingress. At the moment, the growth of scale in tunnel drainage can only be monitored by camera surveys. This requires closure of the track or the whole tunnel and causes a massive operational restriction. Therefore the ÖBB‐Infrastruktur AG project ”Task Force Drainage“ is looking for ways to monitor the growth of scale without any operating restrictions. Among other measures, an FFG project has been launched, and international knowledge transfer is taking place in the context of Shift2Rail. Various sensors and measuring methods are currently being examined regarding their suitability for this research question, examples including the measurement of differences in electrical resistance and acoustic measurement methods.
Hospitalisation and surgery: Is exposure associated with increased subsequent depressive symptoms? Evidence from The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA)
Authors: O'Brien Helen , Scarlett Siobhan , O'Hare Celia , Ni Bhriain Siobhan , Kenny Rose Anne
Published: June 2018

Background

The dramatic shift in the global population demographic has led to increasing numbers of older people undergoing hospitalisation and surgical procedures. While necessary, these exposures may lead to an increase in depressive symptoms.

Objectives

To determine whether hospitalisation or hospitalisation with surgery under general anaesthesia is associated with an increase in depressive symptoms in adults over the age of 50.

Methods

Depressive symptoms were assessed using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale in 8036 individuals at waves 1 and 2 of The Irish Longitudinal Study on Ageing (TILDA), 2 years apart. Mixed‐effects models were used to investigate the hypothesis after adjustment for risk factors for depression and potential confounders.

Results

During the 12 months preceding wave 1, a total of 459 participants were hospitalised (mean age, 67.0; 55.3% female), and a further 548 participants (mean age, 64.6; 51.8% female) were hospitalised and underwent surgery with general anaesthesia; 6891 (mean age, 63.5; 54.3% female) were not hospitalised. Analysis of waves 1 and 2 data using mixed‐effects models demonstrated that there was a 7% increased adjusted incidence rate of depressive symptoms (IRR [95% CI] = 1.07 [1.02‐1.11]) in the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale in the hospitalisation group and a 4% increased adjusted incidence rate of depressive symptoms (IRR [95% CI] = 1.04 [1.00‐1.08]) in the surgery group compared with those with no hospitalisation.

Conclusion

Hospitalisation and hospitalisation with surgery and general anaesthesia are associated with increased depressive symptoms. This is the first time a longitudinal population‐representative study has demonstrated this relationship for both exposures simultaneously.
Associations between ZnT3, tau pathology, agitation, and delusions in dementia
Authors: Whitfield David R. , Francis Paul T. , Ballard Clive , Williams Gareth
Published: June 2018

Objective

Neuropsychiatric symptoms such as agitation and delusions occur frequently in Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease and represent significant burden and unmet treatment need. The underlying aetiology remains poorly understood.

Methods

We used a multidimensional linear model to look for associations between measurements of agitation, delusions, amyloid, tau and α‐synuclein pathology, and synaptic proteins (ZnT3, PSD95, synaptophysin, and β‐III‐tubulin) across multiple brain regions in post‐mortem tissue from a cohort of 130 Lewy body dementia and Alzheimer's disease patients and non‐demented controls.

Results

We found both agitations and delusions to be significantly associated with increased tau pathology and decreased levels of ZnT3. ZnT3 packages Zn2+ into synaptic vesicles to be released as a long‐term modulator of synaptic activity.

Conclusions

Our finding adds to the evidence that zinc modulating compounds are of interest for treatment or symptomatic relief in these dementias.
Risk premia and seasonality in commodity futures
Authors: Hevia Constantino , Petrella Ivan , Sola Martin
Published: June 2018

We develop and estimate a multifactor affine model of commodity futures that allows for stochastic seasonality. We document the existence of stochastic seasonal fluctuations in commodity futures and that properly accounting for the cost‐of‐carry curve requires at least three factors. We estimate the model using data on heating oil futures and analyze the contribution of the factors to risk premia. Correctly specifying seasonality as stochastic is important to avoid erroneously assigning those fluctuations to other risk factors. We also estimate a nonlinear version of the model that imposes the zero lower bound on interest rates and find similar results.
Suppression of Bone Resorption by miR-141 in Aged Rhesus Monkeys
Authors: Yang Shihua , Zhang Wenhui , Cai Mingxiang , Zhang Yuanxu , Jin Fujun , Yan Sen , Baloch Zulqurain , Fang Zhihao , Xue Senren , Tang Rongping , Xiao Jia , Huang Qunshan , Sun Yao , Wang Xiaogang
Published: June 2018

Aging-related osteoporosis (OP) is considered a serious public health concern. Approximately 30% of postmenopausal women suffer from OP; more than 40% of them risk fragility fractures. Multiple drugs have been prescribed to treat OP, but they are not ideal because of low cure rates and adverse side effects. miRNA-based gene therapy is a rapidly developing strategy in disease treatment that presents certain advantages, such as large-scale production capability, genetic safety, and rapid effects. miRNA drugs have been used primarily in cancer treatments; they have not yet been reported as candidates for osteoclast-targeted-OP treatment in primates. Their therapeutic efficacy has been limited by several shortcomings, such as low efficiency of selective delivery, insufficient expression levels in targeting cells, and unexpected side effects. Here, we identify miR-141 as a critical suppressor of osteoclastogenesis and bone resorption. The expression levels of miR-141 are positively correlated with BMD and negatively correlated with the aging of bones in both aged rhesus monkeys (Macaca mulatta) and osteoporotic patients. Selective delivery of miR-141 into the osteoclasts of aged rhesus monkeys via a nucleic acid delivery system allowed for a gradual increase in bone mass without significant effects on the health and function of primary organs. Furthermore, we found that the functional mechanism of miR-141 resides in its targeting of two osteoclast differentiation players, Calcr (calcitonin receptors) and EphA2 (ephrin type-A receptor 2 precursor). Our study suggests that miRNAs, such as miR-141, could play a crucial role in suppressing bone resorption in primates and provide reliable experimental evidence for the clinical application of miRNA in OP treatment. © 2018 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
HOTAIR enhanced paclitaxel and doxorubicin resistance in gastric cancer cells partly through inhibiting miR‐217 expression
Authors: Wang Hui , Qin Rong , Guan Aoran , Yao Ying , Huang Yun , Jia Hongping , Huang Weikang , Gao Jianpeng
Published: June 2018

Drug resistance is a big obstacle for clinical anti‐tumor treatment outcome. However, the role of HOTAIR in drug resistance in gastric cancer (GC) remains unknown. In this study, we showed that overexpression of HOTAIR enhanced paclitaxel and doxorubicin resistance in GC cells. Furthermore, the expression of HOTAIR was upregulated in GC tissues and higher expression of HOTAIR was associated with late stage. In addition, we showed that miR‐217 expression was lower in GC tissues compared with the paired non‐tumour tissues and downregulated expression of miR‐217 was correlated with late stage. Interestingly, the expression of miR‐217 was negatively correlated with HOTAIR expression in GC tissues. Ectopic expression of HOTAIR increased GC cell proliferation, cell cycle, and migration. Elevated expression of HOTAIR suppressed miR‐217 expression and enhanced GPC5 and PTPN14 expression. Furthermore, we demonstrated that overexpression of miR‐217 suppressed paclitaxel and doxorubicin resistance in GC cells. Ectopic expression of HOTAIR promoted drug resistance and increased GC cell proliferation, cell cycle, and migration by targeting miR‐217. These data suggested that overexpression of HOTAIR enhanced paclitaxel and doxorubicin resistance in GC cells through inhibiting miR‐217 expression.
A minireview of E4BP4/NFIL3 in heart failure
Authors: Velmurugan Bharath Kumar , Chang Ruey‐Lin , Marthandam Asokan Shibu , Chang Chih‐Fen , Day Cecilia‐Hsuan , Lin Yueh‐Min , Lin Yuan‐Chuan , Kuo Wei‐Wen , Huang Chih‐Yang
Published: June 2018

Heart failure (HF) remains a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. The primary cause identified for HF is impaired left ventricular myocardial function, and clinical manifestations may lead to severe conditions like pulmonary congestion, splanchnic congestion, and peripheral edema. Development of new therapeutic strategies remains the need of the hour for controlling the problem of HF worldwide. Deeper insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in etiopathology of HF indicate the significant role of calcium signaling, autocrine signaling pathways, and insulin‐like growth factor‐1 signaling that regulates the physiologic functions of heart growth and development such as contraction, metabolism, hypertrophy, cytokine signaling, and apoptosis. In view of these facts, a transcription factor (TF) regulating the myriad of these signaling pathways may prove as a lead candidate for development of therapeutics. Adenovirus E4 promoter‐binding protein (E4BP4), also known as nuclear‐factor, interleukin 3 regulated (NFIL3), a type of basic leucine zipper TF, is known to regulate the signaling processes involved in the functioning of heart. The current review discusses about the expression, structure, and functional role of E4BP4 in signaling processes with emphasis on calcium signaling mechanisms, autocrine signaling, and insulin‐like growth factor II receptor–mediated processes regulated by E4BP4 that may regulate the pathogenesis of HF. We propose that E4BP4, being the critical component for the regulation of the above signaling processes, may serve as a novel therapeutic target for HF, and scientific investigations are merited in this direction.
Time‐dependent contribution of BMP, FGF, IGF, and HH signaling to the proliferation of mesenchymal stroma cells during chondrogenesis
Authors: Fischer Jennifer , Knoch Natalie , Sims Tanja , Rosshirt Nils , Richter Wiltrud
Published: June 2018

Early loss of up to 50% of cells is common for in vitro chondrogenesis of mesenchymal stromal cells (MSC) in pellet culture, reducing the efficacy and the tissue yield for cartilage engineering. Enhanced proliferation could compensate for this unwanted effect, but relevant signaling pathways remain largely unknown. The aim of this study was to identify the contribution of bone morphogenetic protein (BMP), fibroblast growth factor (FGF), insulin‐like growth factor (IGF), and hedgehog (HH) signaling toward cell proliferation during chondrogenesis and investigate whether a further mitogenic stimulation is possible and promising. Human MSC were subjected to chondrogenesis in the presence or absence of pathway inhibitors or activators up to Day 14 or from Days 14 to 28, before proliferation, DNA and proteoglycan content were quantified. [3H]‐thymidine incorporation revealed arrest of proliferation on Day 3, after which cell division was reinitiated. Although BMP signaling was essential for proliferation throughout chondrogenesis, IGF signaling was relevant only up to Day 14. In contrast, FGF and HH signaling drove proliferation only from Day 14 onward. Early BMP4, IGF‐1, or FGF18 treatment neither prevented early cell loss nor allowed further mitogenic stimulation. However, application of the HH‐agonist purmorphamine from Day 14 increased proliferation 1.44‐fold (p < 0.05) and late BMP4‐application enhanced the DNA and proteoglycan content, with significant effects on tissue yield. Conclusively, a differential and phase‐dependent contribution of the four pathways toward proliferation was uncovered and BMP4 treatment was promising to enhance tissue yield. Culture forms less prone to size limitations by nutrient/oxygen gradients and a focus on early apoptosis prevention may be considered as the next steps to further enhance chondrocyte formation from MSC.
Structural and functional characterization of peptide YY on feeding in Schizothorax davidi
Authors: Zhou Chaowei , Lei Luo , Yuan Dengyue , Deng Xingxing , Ye Hua , Luo Hui , Fang Jiayang , Yang Minmin , Li Yan , Zhang Chi , Zhou Jianshe , Wang Jian , Zeng Benhe , Zhu Chengke , Li Baohai , Zheng Zonglin
Published: June 2018

Several studies have demonstrated that the neuropeptide peptide YY (PYY) plays an important role in feeding in mammals and fish. However, thus far, the feeding regulation function of PYY in Schizothorax davidi has not been well understood. Here, we identified the full‐length cDNA sequence of PYY in S. davidi for the first time. S. davidi PYY contains 803 bp nucleotides including a 328 bp 3′ untranslated region (UTR), a 181 bp 5′ UTR, and a 294 bp open reading frame encoding a peptide of 97 amino acids. S. davidi PYY expression was observed in almost all tissues, with the highest expression detected in the hypothalamus. PYY mRNA expression in the hypothalamus was significantly elevated after a meal (P < 0.01), and significantly decreased after fasting (P < 0.01). PYY expression levels were increased sharply following refeeding after 9 days (P < 0.01), suggesting that it might function as a satiety factor in S. davidi.
Overdiagnosis or not? 2017 ACC/AHA high blood pressure clinical practice guideline: Consequences of intellectual conflict of interest
Authors: Miyazaki Kei
Published: June 2018

American Heart Association/the American College of Cardiology and nine other professional organizations have issued a new hypertension clinical practice guideline (CPG) on November 2017, which has lowered the hypertension threshold to 130/80 mmHg. American Academy of Family Medicine has decided to not endorse this new CPG for various reasons including flaws in CPG development process and a limited additional benefit for lower treatment targets. The major concern was intellectual conflict of interest (COI). Substantial weight was given to SPRINT trial, which provided the basis for the recommended change in blood pressure targets. It is a serious intellectual COI that the Chair of the SPRINT trial steering committee was commissioned as chair of the guideline panel. The new threshold would lead to 46 percent of the U.S. adult population being categorized as having hypertension, while using the previous threshold that figure would be 32 percent. Should we call this change as overdiagnosis?
Testing the ab initio quantum‐scattering calculations for the D2–He benchmark system with stimulated Raman spectroscopy
Authors: Martínez Raúl Z. , Bermejo Dionisio , Thibault Franck , Wcisło Piotr
Published: June 2018

This work presents a comparison between experimental and calculated values for the collisional line broadenings and shifts of theS0(0),S0(1), andS0(2) lines of the rotational Raman spectrum of D2perturbed by He at 77, 195, and 300 K. The pure rotational Raman spectra were obtained by means of a stimulated Raman spectroscopy experimental setup. Close coupling dynamical calculations were performed on the most recent ab initio H2–He potential energy surface. The resulting scattering matrix elements implemented in the general Hess method allow us to provide pressure broadening, pressure shifting, and Dicke coefficients from 10 to 400 K. Experimental and calculated values agree well with each other.
SERS detection of food contaminants by means of portable Raman instruments
Authors: Pilot Roberto
Published: June 2018

Surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) has been emerging as a powerful tool for the detection of a variety of analytes due to its very high sensitivity and fingerprinting recognition capabilities. Technological progresses in the equipment for Raman analysis are contributing to its transition from a technically demanding research method to a more widely available analytical technique. In particular, the commercialization of portable or handheld instruments has opened up the possibility of performing in situ analysis. In this review, a selection of the SERS substrates that are expected to be more suitable for use in combination with portable instruments is presented: Substrates are compared, for example, in terms of performance, reproducibility, ease of fabrication, and surface area. Moreover, this paper provides a survey of the current diffusion of portable Raman instruments in the SERS detection of food contaminants: The investigation of several analytes is summarized (mainly toxins, virus, bacteria, pesticides, forbidden food dyes, and preservatives), reporting on the limits of detection and on the eventual coupling with concentration or separation techniques. A brief perspective on possible future developments of the SERS detection with portable instruments is also provided.
Short‐term fallow in extensive upland shifting cultivation systems of Northern Lao PDR: Its role in soil fertility restoration
Authors: Hepp Catherine M. , de Neergaard Andreas , Bruun Thilde Bech
Published: June 2018

Shifting cultivation, a land use strategy of often resource‐poor households, centers around the management practice of leaving land fallow for up to 20 years to restore soil fertility. Global pressures, for example, conservation policies or population increase, are in some areas restricting fallow duration to lengths theoretically considered insufficient for soil fertility restoration, which has however been difficult to document empirically. Thus, our main objective was to explore the role of short‐term fallow in soil fertility restoration in a shifting cultivation system in Northern Lao PDR with a 4‐year longitudinal study of nine upland fields left fallow after a single upland rice cropping. During the first fallow year, surface soil carbon, nitrogen, and permanganate‐oxidizable carbon (Pox‐C) levels increased an average of 1.06%, 0.06%, and 169 mg kg−1, respectively, after which levels plateau or decline. This trend is ascribed to the organic material input from crop residue and fallow vegetation and was not observed at a 10 cm depth where the major source of organic material is root residue. At this depth, carbon and nitrogen levels gradually declined with an increase only during the second fallow year. It is concluded that the fallowing effect on carbon sequestration, and indirectly soil fertility, depends on how far a soil is removed from its inherent carbon equilibrium level and sequestration capacity. Furthermore, we find that although Pox‐C likely reflects a labile soil carbon pool, the advantage lies with the method itself as it requires low resources, thus has potential for locally based monitoring of soil fertility.
Derivation of regional risk screening values and intervention values for cadmium‐contaminated agricultural land in the Guizhou Plateau
Authors: Zhang Sha , Song Jing , Cheng Yinwen , McBride Murray B.
Published: June 2018

Given the complex geology of karst terrain, regional geochemical cadmium (Cd) anomalies, and widespread man‐made soil contamination across the Guizhou Plateau, proper decision‐making models are needed for soil zonal management to lower risks of exceedances of contaminants, especially Cd, in agricultural produce. We conducted agricultural field investigations (n = 240) to characterize distribution of soil Cd and its relationship with soil types and soil properties. Additional 70 typical soils with differing soil types and properties were used in greenhouse experiments to derive reliable Cd soil–vegetable relationships and develop regional soil criteria. A soil type‐dependent soil Cd anomaly and a soil pH‐dependent Cd distribution in soils were identified, and Carbonati‐Udic Argosols had the highest soil Cd (mean 0.92 mg·kg−1) and relatively higher soil pH. High geochemically reactive Cd fraction in soil, with the superposition of elevated soil acidification, posed serious environmental risks. The bioaccumulation of Cd in Brassica p., a cruciferous crop, was controlled by the Cd (bio)availability in soil, which was strongly affected by soil pH. An extended Freundlich‐type model and a polynomial surface model can precisely predict the bioaccumulation of Cd. However, the latter was more suitable for deriving local soil criteria as it was less sensitive to soil pH, thus avoiding overprotection and underprediction at low and high soil pH ranges, respectively. Risk screening values were derived by accounting for model uncertainties and indicated that 93% of agricultural soils were safe for growing vegetables. Our findings can support farmers and policymakers in safe use of Cd‐contaminated croplands.
Breaking the Axial Diffraction Limit: A Guide to Axial Super‐Resolution Fluorescence Microscopy
Authors: Liu Wenjie , Toussaint Kimani C. , Okoro Chukwuemeka , Zhu Dazhao , Chen Youhua , Kuang Cuifang , Liu Xu
Published: June 2018

Optical microscopy is a powerful tool for understanding the fundamentals of the microscopic world. However, for centuries its resolving ability remained limited by the optical diffraction limit. Super‐resolution fluorescence microscopy (SRFM) has been introduced to break the diffraction limit and significantly expand the fields in which optical microscopy can be applied. Unfortunately, SRFM contributes little towards axial resolution enhancement, rendering observation of the axial and three‐dimensional structures of biological tissues difficult; this may yield a misunderstanding of intracellular interactions. Based on the existing literature, the development of axial SRFM is still behind that of lateral SRFM. In light of this, this Review presents a comprehensive summary of the principles, development, characteristics, and applications of existing techniques for improving the axial resolution. This Review will provide a guide to researchers and promote further development of related technology.
Dual‐Crosslinked Amorphous Polysaccharide Hydrogels Based on Chitosan/Alginate for Wound Healing Applications
Authors: Hu Yang , Zhang Zhenyan , Li Yang , Ding Xiaokang , Li Dawei , Shen Chuanan , Xu Fu‐Jian
Published: June 2018

Development of advanced wound dressing materials with rapid healing rates is in urgent demand for wound cares. A suitable microenvironment will promote cell proliferation and migration, which benefits to early wound healing and prevents inflammations and scars. In this work, N‐carboxymethyl chitosan‐ and alginate‐based hydrogels are prepared via both electrostatic interaction and divalent chelation with epidermal growth factor (EGF) payload to promote the cell proliferation and wound healing. The dual‐crosslinked hydrogels are investigated in terms of rheology, water retention ability, and the release rate of EGF. Moreover, such amorphous hydrogel can promote cell proliferation and accelerate wound healing. The present study demonstrates that dual‐crosslinked polysaccharide hydrogels are promising in wound care management.
Complex roles of the old drug aspirin in cancer chemoprevention and therapy
Authors: Hua Hui , Zhang Hongying , Kong Qingbin , Wang Jiao , Jiang Yangfu
Published: June 2018

The nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory agent aspirin is widely used for preventing and treating cardiovascular and cerebrovascular diseases. In addition, epidemiologic evidences reveal that aspirin may prevent a variety of human cancers, while data on the association between aspirin and some kinds of cancer are conflicting. Preclinical studies and clinical trials also reveal the therapeutic effect of aspirin on cancer. Although cyclooxygenase is a well‐known target of aspirin, recent studies uncover other targets of aspirin and its metabolites, such as AMP‐activated protein kinase, cyclin‐dependent kinase, heparanase, and histone. Accumulating evidence demonstrate that aspirin may act in different cell types, such as epithelial cell, tumor cell, endothelial cell, platelet, and immune cell. Therefore, aspirin acts on diverse hallmarks of cancer, such as sustained tumor growth, metastasis, angiogenesis, inflammation, and immune evasion. In this review, we focus on recent progress in the use of aspirin for cancer chemoprevention and therapy, and integratively analyze the mechanisms underlying the anticancer effects of aspirin and its metabolites. We also discuss mechanisms of aspirin resistance and describe some derivatives of aspirin, which aim to overcome the adverse effects of aspirin.