bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Functional significance of transgelin‐2 in uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Yakabe Kazuyuki , Murakami Akihiro , Kajimura Takuya , Nishimoto Yuki , Sueoka Kotaro , Sato Shun , Nawata Shugo , Sugino Norihiro
Published: February 2016

Aim

Transgelin‐2 (TAGLN2) has previously been found to be highly expressed in uterine cervical squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) tissues by proteomic analyses. The present study investigated the role of TAGLN2 in the malignant behaviors of cervical SCC cells in vitro and in vivo, and the clinical significance of TAGLN2 using immunohistochemistry for human cervical SCC tissues.

Methods

Antisense (AS) constructs of TAGLN2 cDNA (AS clones) and the empty vector (control clone) were transfected into a human uterine SCC cell line (SKG IIIa), and malignant behaviors were analyzed in vitro. In an in vivo experiment, 107 cells of the AS and control clones were subcutaneously inoculated into female BALB/c nude mice. In immunohistochemistry with anti‐TAGLN2 antibodies for human cervical SCC, FIGO stage IA and IB (n = 75), the expression patterns of TAGLN2 were divided into two groups: weak and strong. The relation between expression pattern and prognosis was analyzed.

Results

Suppression of TAGLN2 inhibited cancer cell migration and secretion of matrix metalloproteinases. Tumors in the control clone group continued to grow, whereas those in the AS clone group clearly stopped growing. Six weeks after injection, the tumor size was significantly smaller in the AS clone group than in the control clone group. Immunohistochemistry revealed that the strong pattern was associated with poor overall survival compared with the weak pattern by the Kaplan–Meier method.

Conclusion

TAGLN2 plays functional roles in the progression of cervical SCC. Suppression of TAGLN2 may be a new strategy for the treatment of cervical SCC.
Correlation between transvaginal ultrasound measured endometrial thickness and histopathological findings in Turkish women with abnormal uterine bleeding
Authors: Ozer Alev , Ozer Serdar , Kanat‐Pektas Mine
Published: February 2016

Aim

The present study aims to determine how transvaginal ultrasonography and histopathological examination findings are correlated in a cohort of premenopausal and postmenopausal Turkish women with abnormal uterine bleeding.

Methods

This is a retrospective review of 350 Turkish women who underwent transvaginal ultrasonography and suction curettage as a result of abnormal uterine bleeding.

Results

Sonographic appearance of the endometrium was normal in 244 patients (69.7%), while homogeneous thickening was detected in 47 patients (13.4%) and cystic thickening in 21 patients (6.0%). A sonographic diagnosis of endometrial polyp was made in 38 patients (10.9%). Histopathological analysis of endometrial samplings revealed proliferative endometrium (36%), secretory endometrium (24.6%), decidualization (10.9%), endometrial polyp (8.3%), endometritis (6.8%), endometrial hyperplasia (4.6%), irregular shedding (3.7%), atrophic endometrium (3.1%), endometrial cancer (1.1%) and placental retention (0.9%). The sonographic and histopathological findings correlated significantly (χ2 = 122 768, P = 0.001; r = 0.215, P = 0.001). Approximately 51% of the women with homogeneous endometrial thickening had proliferative endometrium. Only 44.7% of the women with ultrasonographically visualized endometrial polyps had histopathologically diagnosed endometrial polyps. Nearly 57% of the women with cystic endometrial thickening had proliferative endometrium.

Conclusion

If there is no facility for hysteroscopy or hysteroscopy‐guided endometrial biopsy for women with abnormal uterine bleeding, transvaginal ultrasonography findings can be efficiently used to make a preliminary diagnosis and, thus, notify the pathologists.
Isolated pregnancy‐induced anti‐thrombin deficiency in a woman with twin pregnancy
Authors: Kawabata Kosuke , Morikawa Mamoru , Yamada Takahiro , Minakami Hisanori
Published: February 2016

A woman with twin pregnancy had a gradual decline in anti‐thrombin (AT) activity from 72% at gestational week (GW) 29–3/7, to 53% at GW31–2/7, and to 41% at GW32–2/7, at which time hypertension (148/90 mmHg) and proteinuria (protein‐to‐creatinine ratio [P/Cr], 0.79 mg/mg) developed in the presence of normal platelet count (159 × 109/L) and serum aspartate aminotransferase/lactate dehydrogenase (22/164 IU/L). AT product was given three times to maintain AT activity >50% and blood pressure was maintained below 155/95 mmHg with no treatment, but generalized edema with a weekly weight gain of 4.9 kg and increased proteinuria (to P/Cr, 7.6 mg/mg) required cesarean section at GW33–3/7. This case highlights the occurrence of pregnancy‐induced AT deficiency alone in the absence of any other abnormality, including hypertension, proteinuria, or thrombocytopenia. Measurement of AT activity was considered helpful for determination of the appropriate time for delivery in this patient.
Why Firms Delay Reaching True Sustainability
Authors: Shevchenko Anton , Lévesque Moren , Pagell Mark
Published: February 2016

This paper explores a discrepancy between what the literature says about sustainability and how sustainability is actually practiced. Our analysis reveals that we are in a transition era in which firms incrementally offset – rather than eliminate – their negative impacts on the environment and society. We also argue that external stakeholders have yet to create the conditions that would compel firms to become truly sustainable. We further find that a firm's response to external pressure to become truly sustainable greatly depends on its capabilities. For large firms, the decision to become truly sustainable is driven by their ability to manage external stakeholders’ expectations, with the most innovative of large firms remaining unsustainable even in the long term. In contrast, small innovative firms guide their decision‐making based on their internal readiness to change and therefore will be the first to reach true sustainability. Finally, and regardless of size, firms that lack an innovation capability are unlikely to become truly sustainable; they will struggle to survive the transition era.
No Ethics Without Things
Authors: George Kenneth M.
Published: February 2016

Just as recognition and pursuit of the human good take place in language and action, so too do they unfold in encounter with the material and visual. The ethical crises, projects, and striving we see in everyday religious life are worked out not just in the intersubjective play and politics of language but also in encounter with, in dwelling with, material and visual substances and forms. This essay considers the material conditions that make possible the “ethical pleasures” sought by Indonesian painter A. D. Pirous in making and displaying contemporary works of “Islamic art,” most especially works that make “visual recitation” of passages from the Qur'an.
A Response to “Participation: A Religious Worldview” by James M. Gustafson
Authors: Schweiker William
Published: February 2016

This response offers an interpretation of James Gustafson's “Participation: A Religious Worldview,” which thinks with Gustafson on the theme of “participation,” while highlighting points where my own thoughts diverge from his. The essay begins by drawing the reader's attention to Gustafson's style, arguing that the simple elegance of his writing constitutes part of his larger claim about the need to remove ourselves from the center of our thought. Next, the essay analyzes Gustafson's use of “participation” by putting it in context and connecting it with his broader methodology. Finally, I draw the reader's attention to important loci in the text in order to show how Gustafson's essay helps address various extant misinterpretations of his thought but also to point to ways in which my “thinking with” Gustafson leads me to think otherwise than he does.
Rethinking Moral Agency in Markets: A Book Discussion on Behavioral Economics
Authors: McRorie Christina
Published: February 2016

Recent work in behavioral economics and psychology provides valuable resources for religious ethicists. This book discussion examines contributions by Cass Sunstein, Daniel Kahneman, George Akerlof and Rachel Kranton, Uri Gneezy and John A. List, and Douglas Hough. This literature raises important questions about ethical decision‐making, moral agency and responsibility, and the ethics of life in global capitalism. It also opens up promising areas for interdisciplinary dialogue between economics and religious studies. This book discussion concludes that religious ethicists have much to contribute to the conversations about moral anthropology that are now being held in behavioral economic research, and to the broader political economic debates in which this research participates.
Between the Law: The Unmaking of Empire and Law's Imperial Amnesia
Authors: Koga Yukiko
Published: February 2016

Asian victims of Japanese imperialism have filed lawsuits against the Japanese government and corporations since the 1990s, which became prime sites for redress decades after Japan's defeat in World War II. As this ethnography demonstrates, this process paradoxically exposes a legal lacuna within this emergent transnational legal space, with plaintiffs effectively caught between the law, instead of standing before the law. Exploring this absence of law, I map out a post‐imperial legal space, created through the erasure of imperial and colonial subjects in the legal framework after empire. Between the law is an optic that makes visible uneven legal terrains that embody temporal and spatial disjuncture, rupture, and asymmetry. The role of law in post‐imperial transitions remains underexplored in literatures on transnational law, legal imperialism, postcolonialism, and transitional justice. I demonstrate how, at the intersection of law and economy, post‐imperial reckoning is emerging as a new legal frontier, putting at stake law's imperial amnesia.
Re-Claiming Disability: Identity, Procedural Justice, and the Disability Determination Process
Authors: Dorfman Doron
Published: February 2016

This research highlights the crucial role of an intimate link between a disabled person's self-identity and the perceived fairness of legal procedures. In doing so, it brings to the foreground a wholly ignored aspect of procedural justice. Earlier researchers have failed to delve into the role identity politics plays in the relationship between the institutions and the beneficiaries of their services, and the way different members of a group understand and define themselves. This research explores the way people with disabilities in the United States, with different kinds of disability identities, experience and evaluate the procedure of claiming Social Security benefits. The findings suggest that disabled people who identified with the social model of disability (as opposed to the medical-individual models) hold a critical view of the procedure for retaining benefits. They felt they had no control over it, could not voice their opinions, were mistreated by representatives, and had to present an image that was not necessarily true of their disability. They also saw the procedure as discouraging them from participating fully in the labor market, and consequently integrating better in society, an idea that was not present among disabled people who identify with medical-individual models. Exposing this relationship between the way people perceive themselves and the way they experience and evaluate legal procedures can contribute to the creation of better policies, while improving communication between the state and members of the disability community, along with other marginalized groups.
Ontogenic variation and effect of collection procedure on leaf biomechanical properties of Mediterranean seagrass Posidonia oceanica (L.) Delile
Authors: de los Santos Carmen B. , Vicencio‐Rammsy Bárbara , Lepoint Gilles , Remy François , Bouma Tjeerd J. , Gobert Sylvie
Published: February 2016

Leaf mechanical traits are important to understand how aquatic plants fracture and deform when subjected to abiotic (currents or waves) or biotic (herbivory attack) mechanical forces. The likely occurrence of variation during leaf ontogeny in these traits may thus have implications for hydrodynamic performance and vulnerability to herbivory damage, and may be associated with changes in morphologic and chemical traits. Seagrasses, marine flowering plants, consist of shoot bundles holding several leaves with different developmental stages, in which outer older leaves protect inner younger leaves. In this study we examined the long‐lived seagrass Posidonia oceanica to determine ontogenic variation in mechanical traits across leaf position within a shoot, representing different developmental stages. Moreover, we investigated whether or not the collection procedure (classical uprooted shoot versus non‐destructive shoot method: cutting the shoot without a portion of rhizome) and time span after collection influence mechanical measurements. Neither collection procedure nor time elapsed within 48 h of collection affected measurements of leaf biomechanical traits when seagrass shoots were kept moist in dark cool conditions. Ontogenic variation in mechanical traits in P. oceanica leaves over intermediate and adult developmental stages was observed: leaves weakened and lost stiffness with aging, while mid‐aged leaves (the longest and thickest ones) were able to withstand higher breaking forces. In addition, younger leaves had higher nitrogen content and lower fiber content than older leaves. The observed patterns may explain fine‐scale within‐shoot ecological processes of leaves at different developmental stages, such as leaf shedding and herbivory consumption in P. oceanica.
Characterization of Mason Gully (H5): The second recovered fall from the Desert Fireball Network
Authors: Dyl Kathryn A. , Benedix Gretchen K. , Bland Phil A. , Friedrich Jon M. , Spurný Pavel , Towner Martin C. , O'Keefe Mary Claire , Howard Kieren , Greenwood Richard , Macke Robert J. , Britt Daniel T. , Halfpenny Angela , Thostenson James O. , Rudolph Rebecca A. , Rivers Mark L. , Bevan Alex W. R.
Published: February 2016

Mason Gully, the second meteorite recovered using the Desert Fireball Network (DFN), is characterized using petrography, mineralogy, oxygen isotopes, bulk chemistry, and physical properties. Geochemical data are consistent with its classification as an H5 ordinary chondrite. Several properties distinguish it from most other H chondrites. Its 10.7% porosity is predominantly macroscopic, present as intergranular void spaces rather than microscopic cracks. Modal mineralogy (determined via PS‐XRD, element mapping via energy dispersive spectroscopy [EDS], and X‐ray tomography [for sulfide, metal, and porosity volume fractions]) consistently gives an unusually low olivine/orthopyroxene ratio (0.67−0.76 for Mason Gully versus ~1.3 for typical H5 ordinary chondrites). Widespread “silicate darkening” is observed. In addition, it contains a bright green crystalline object at the surface of the recovered stone (diameter ≈ 1.5 mm), which has a tridymite core with minor α‐quartz and a rim of both low‐ and high‐Ca pyroxene. The mineralogy allows the calculation of the temperatures and ƒ(O2) characterizing thermal metamorphism on the parent body using both the two‐pyroxene and the olivine‐chromite geo‐oxybarometers. These indicate that MG experienced a peak metamorphic temperature of ~900 °C and had a similar ƒ(O2) to Kernouvé (H6) that was buffered by the reaction between olivine, metal, and pyroxene. There is no evidence for shock, consistent with the observed porosity structure. Thus, while Mason Gully has some unique properties, its geochemistry indicates a similar thermal evolution to other H chondrites. The presence of tridymite, while rare, is seen in other OCs and likely exogenous; however, the green object itself may result from metamorphism.
Rb‐Sr and Sm‐Nd isotopic and REE studies of igneous components in the bulk matrix domain of Martian breccia Northwest Africa 7034
Authors: Nyquist Laurence E. , Shih Chi‐Yu , McCubbin Francis M. , Santos Alison R. , Shearer Charles K. , Peng Zhan X. , Burger Paul V. , Agee Carl B.
Published: February 2016

The bulk matrix domain of the Martian breccia NWA 7034 was examined petrographically and isotopically to better understand the provenance and age of the source material that make up the breccia. Both 147Sm‐143Nd and 146Sm‐142Nd age results for mineral separates from the bulk matrix portion of breccia NWA 7034 suggest that various lithological components in the breccia probably formed contemporaneously ~4.44 Ga ago. This old age is in excellent agreement with the upper intersection ages (4.35–4.45 Ga) for U‐Pb discordia and also concordia defined by zircon and baddeleyite grains in matrix and igneous‐textured clasts. Consequently, we confirm an ancient age for the igneous components that make up the NWA 7034 breccia. Substantial disturbance in the Rb‐Sr system was detected, and no age significance could be gleaned from our Rb‐Sr data. The disturbance to the Rb‐Sr system may be due to a thermal event recorded by bulk‐rock K‐Ar ages of 1.56 Ga and U‐Pb ages of phosphates at about 1.35–1.5 Ga, which suggest partial resetting from an unknown thermal event(s), possibly accompanying breccia formation. The NWA 7034 bulk rock is LREE enriched and similar to KREEP‐rich lunar rocks, which indicates that the earliest Martian crust was geochemically enriched. This enrichment supports the idea that the crust is one of the enriched geochemical reservoirs on Mars that have been detected in studies of other Martian meteorites.
Ethnic belonging of the children born out of rape in postconflict Bosnia‐Herzegovina and Rwanda
Authors: Hamel Marie‐Eve
Published: February 2016

Sexual violence has been used as a weapon of war in ethnic conflicts, and forced impregnations have been central to this strategy. Scholars however disagree on whether the cultural assimilation to the maternal group influences these children's identities, or whether they are perceived as belonging to the enemy group (Carpenter; Nikolic‐Ristanovic). Drawing on preliminary qualitative findings collected in 2013 in Rwanda and Bosnia‐Herzegovina, this paper analyses the ethnic identification imposed by the enemy group, the mothers and their community on the children born out of rape. It first explores how the mothers' ethnic identities are often subordinated to their fathers' ethnic background, and how this then justifies their social exclusion from their maternal ethnic group. This paper suggests that sexual violence is extremely effective in ensuring the continuation of the ethnic conflict in the aftermath of the violence by attacking the children's senses of belonging.
Recurrent ischemic stroke and palmoplantar pustulosis caused by occult postoperative infective endocarditis
Authors: Gon Yasufumi , Sakaguchi Manabu , Mochizuki Hideki
Published: February 2016

Stroke is occasionally the first manifestation of occult infective endocarditids. Although infective endocarditids commonly presents acutely, infective endocarditids remains a diagnostic challenge in a patient with few symptoms or culture‐negative endocarditis. Here, we present a 74‐year‐old Japanese woman with recurrent ischemic stroke and palmoplantar pustulosis caused by occult postoperative infective endocarditids. She had undergone an operation for mitral regurgitation, mitral annuloplasty, 4 years before admission. Intriguingly, our patient suffered from intractable palmoplantar pustulosis after cardiac surgery, but the patient's cutaneous manifestations completely resolved after treatment of occult postoperative infective endocarditids. In patients with unexplained intermittent fever and palmoplantar pustulosis after cardiac surgery, clinicians need to consider the possibility of occult postoperative infective endocarditids.
Endoplasmic reticulum stress participates in inflammation‐accelerated, lipid‐mediated injury of human glomerular mesangial cells
Authors: Yang Haiping , Cui Jingjing , Shi Jing , Yang Baohui , Wang Mo , Wu Daoqi , Zhang Gaofu , Liu Wei , Li Qiu
Published: February 2016

Aim

The mechanism of lipid‐mediated injury of human glomerular mesangial cells (HMCs) remains unclear. We investigated the association between endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress and lipid‐mediated injury in HMCs in vitro and the potential efficacy of a therapeutic approach targeting ER stress.

Methods

Human glomerular mesangial cells were exposed to low‐density lipoprotein (LDL) and/or interleukin‐1β (IL‐1β). For evaluation of whether ER stress participates in lipid‐mediated injury to HMCs, HMCs were pretreated with tunicamycin or treated with sodium 4‐phenylbutyrate (4‐PBA).

Results

Incubation of HMCs with LDL + IL‐1β significantly increased lipid accumulation and induced phenotypic changes. ER stress was induced in lipid‐loaded HMCs, as indicated by upregulation of glucose‐regulated protein 78 (GRP78) and protein kinase RNA‐like ER kinase (PERK) proteins. Moreover, persistent ER stress increased expression of nuclear factor (NF)‐κB p65 protein, fibronectin, and α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA) mRNA partly through the PERK − eukaryotic initiation factor‐2α (eIF2α) pathway. Preconditioning with ER stress by tunicamycin and inhibition of ER stress by 4‐PBA both reversed the phenotypic changes and decreased lipid accumulation and inflammatory cytokine secretion by the PERK − eIF2α pathway.

Conclusion

These data provide evidence that ER stress participates in inflammation associated with lipid‐induced injury of HMCs. Modulation of ER stress may be a novel therapeutic approach for combating lipid‐induced injury of HMCs.
Muscle strength, mobility, quality of life and falls in patients on maintenance haemodialysis: A prospective study
Authors: Wang Amanda Y , Sherrington Catherine , Toyama Tadashi , Gallagher Martin P , Cass Alan , Hirakawa Yochiro , Li Qiang , Sukkar Louisa , Snelling Paul , Jardine Meg J
Published: February 2016

Aim

The aim is to explore (i) the relationship between quality of life and physical parameters (muscle strength and mobility) among people undergoing maintenance haemodialysis; (ii) changes in strength and mobility over time and predictors of changes; and (iii) whether strength and mobility were associated with falls.

Methods

We recruited 51 maintenance haemodialysis patients to a prospective longitudinal study. Baseline quality of life was assessed using the SF‐36 physical component summary and mental component summary scores. Muscle strength (ankle dorsiflexion strength measured with a hand‐held dynamometer), mobility (short physical performance battery) and falls history were assessed at baseline, 12 and 36 months. Associations between variables at baseline were assessed with linear regression models. Changes in physical parameters were evaluated with paired t‐tests and prediction of falls assessed by negative binominal regression.

Results

Fifty and 34 patients completed 12 and 36 month follow‐ups, respectively. Baseline mobility but not muscle strength correlated with physical component summary (P = 0.01 and P = 0.23, respectively). Neither baseline mobility nor muscle strength correlated with mental component summary. At 12 months, muscle strength and mobility had significantly deteriorated (mean ankle dorsiflexion strength 11.0 lb (SD 1.5) from 14.0 lb (SD 2.2), P < 0.01; short physical performance battery 8.5 (SD 2.8) from 9.3 (SD 2.6), P < 0.01). Falls at 12 and 36 months were predicted by baseline mobility (P = 0.06 and P = 0.02, respectively) but not muscle strength.

Conclusion

Physical parameters appear to be associated with meaningful patient outcomes and showed measurable deterioration over relatively short time frames. Interventions, with the potential to slow physical decline in people receiving maintenance dialysis, such as exercise programmes, warrant further investigation.
Community‐acquired acute kidney injury: A challenge and opportunity for primary care in kidney health
Authors: Mesropian Paul Der , Othersen Jennifer , Mason Darius , Wang Jeffrey , Asif Arif , Mathew Roy O
Published: February 2016

Community‐acquired acute kidney injury (CA‐AKI) has been found to be a common event in the population. Current incidence estimates are not available, but evaluations of severe elevations in serum creatinine indicate that incidence can be as high as 989 cases per million population in those older than 80 years. Data on risk factors are limited, but older age and higher comorbid illness burden, especially diabetes and cardiovascular disease, seem to be more common in patients who suffer CA‐AKI. In addition to being more common than hospital‐acquired AKI, the long‐term sequelae of CA‐AKI seem to be just as severe, including renal disease progression and mortality. Efforts to better understand the aetiology of CA‐AKI and how ultimately to prevent the development of this condition will need to be taken. In the meantime, a concerted effort by general internists and nephrologists will be needed to prevent CA‐AKI in the highest risk patients and thus limit the poor outcomes associated with this entity.
High‐resolution manometry in patients with eosinophilic esophagitis under topical steroid therapy—a prospective observational study (HIMEOS‐study)
Authors: Nennstiel S. , Bajbouj M. , Becker V. , Slotta‐Huspenina J. , Wagenpfeil S. , Schmid R. M. , Schlag C.
Published: February 2016

Background

In eosinophilic esophagitis (EoE), dysphagia, which might reflect esophageal dysmotility, is the most common symptom. High‐resolution manometry (HRM) has become widely accepted for evaluating esophageal motility disorders, but to date has been sparsely examined in EoE patients, particularly under therapy. The aim of this study was to evaluateHRMin symptomatic EoE‐patients under topical steroid treatment.

Methods

In this prospective observational study, symptomatic EoE patients receivedHRM‐examinations before and after 8 weeks of topical steroid treatment with budesonide. AllHRM‐abnormalities were assessed and interpreted according to the Chicago classification. The primary endpoint was the influence of topical steroid treatment on the intrabolus pressure (IBP). Clinical symptoms, endoscopic findings and histological esophageal eosinophilic load were also reported.

Key Results

Twenty symptomatic EoE patients were included. Overall success of budesonide therapy was 85% regarding complete histologic remission and 80% regarding complete clinical remission. High‐resolution manometry showed abnormal esophageal motility in 35% of patients at baseline, which was resolved after therapy in 86% of these patients. Most frequentHRM‐findings were early pan‐esophageal pressurizations and weak persitalsis. There was no significant reduction of theIBPunder therapy (before: 12.5 ± 4.9 mmHg, after: 10.9 ± 2.9 mmHg;p= 0.119).

Conclusions & Inferences

Although dysphagia is the leading symptom of EoE,HRMis able to identify esophageal motility disorders in only some EoE patients. Observed motility disorders resolve after successful treatment in almost all of these patients. Intrabolus pressure does not seem an optimal parameter for the monitoring of successful treatment response in EoE patients.
Abscisic acid regulates root growth under osmotic stress conditions via an interacting hormonal network with cytokinin, ethylene and auxin
Authors: Rowe James H. , Topping Jennifer F. , Liu Junli , Lindsey Keith
Published: February 2016

Understanding the mechanisms regulating root development under drought conditions is an important question for plant biology and world agriculture.

We examine the effect of osmotic stress on abscisic acid (ABA), cytokinin and ethylene responses and how they mediate auxin transport, distribution and root growth through effects on PIN proteins. We integrate experimental data to construct hormonal crosstalk networks to formulate a systems view of root growth regulation by multiple hormones.

Experimental analysis shows: that ABA‐dependent and ABA‐independent stress responses increase under osmotic stress, but cytokinin responses are only slightly reduced; inhibition of root growth under osmotic stress does not require ethylene signalling, but auxin can rescue root growth and meristem size; osmotic stress modulates auxin transporter levels and localization, reducing root auxin concentrations; PIN1 levels are reduced under stress in an ABA‐dependent manner, overriding ethylene effects; and the interplay among ABA, ethylene, cytokinin and auxin is tissue‐specific, as evidenced by differential responses of PIN1 and PIN2 to osmotic stress.

Combining experimental analysis with network construction reveals that ABA regulates root growth under osmotic stress conditions via an interacting hormonal network with cytokinin, ethylene and auxin.
Mitochondrial gamma carbonic anhydrases are required for complex I assembly and plant reproductive development
Authors: Fromm Steffanie , Braun Hans‐Peter , Peterhansel Christoph
Published: February 2016

Complex I of the mitochondrial electron transport chain (mETC) in plants contains an extra domain that is made up from proteins homologous to prokaryotic gamma‐carbonic anhydrases (γCA). This domain has been suggested to participate in complex I assembly or to support transport of mitochondrial CO2 to the chloroplast.

Here, we generated mutants lacking CA1 and CA2 – two out of three CA proteins in Arabidopsis thaliana. Double mutants were characterized at the developmental and physiological levels. Furthermore, the composition and activity of the mETC were determined, and mutated CA versions were used for complementation assays.

Embryo development of double mutants was strongly delayed and seed development stopped before maturation. Mutant plants could only be rescued on sucrose media, showed severe stress symptoms and never produced viable seeds. By contrast, callus cultures were only slightly affected in growth. Complex I was undetectable in the double mutants, but complex II and complex IV were upregulated concomitant with increased oxygen consumption in mitochondrial respiration. Ectopic expression of inactive CA variants was sufficient to complement the mutant phenotype.

Data indicate that CA proteins are structurally required for complex I assembly and that reproductive development is dependent on the presence of complex I.
Bark thickness across the angiosperms: more than just fire
Authors: Rosell Julieta A.
Published: February 2016

Global variation in total bark thickness (TBT) is traditionally attributed to fire. However, bark is multifunctional, as reflected by its inner living and outer dead regions, meaning that, in addition to fire protection, other factors probably contribute to TBT variation.

To address how fire, climate, and plant size contribute to variation in TBT, inner bark thickness (IBT) and outer bark thickness (OBT), I sampled 640 species spanning all major angiosperm clades and 18 sites with contrasting precipitation, temperature, and fire regime.

Stem size was by far the main driver of variation in thickness, with environment being less important. IBT was closely correlated with stem diameter, probably for metabolic reasons, and, controlling for size, was thicker in drier and hotter environments, even fire‐free ones, probably reflecting its water and photosynthate storage role. OBT was less closely correlated with size, and was thicker in drier, seasonal sites experiencing frequent fires. IBT and OBT covaried loosely and both contributed to overall TBT variation. Thickness variation was higher within than across sites and was evolutionarily labile.

Given high within‐site diversity and the multiple selective factors acting on TBT, continued study of the different drivers of variation in bark thickness is crucial to understand bark ecology.
Symptoms suggestive of cow's milk allergy in infancy and pediatric inflammatory bowel disease
Authors: Virta Lauri J. , Kautiainen Hannu , Kolho Kaija‐Leena
Published: February 2016

Background

Risk factors of pediatric inflammatory bowel disease (PIBD) are incompletely understood. Recently, we reported that among patients with PIBD, a previous diagnosis of cow's milk allergy (CMA) and asthma occurred more frequently than among age‐ and sex‐matched peers. We tested at a national level the hypothesis that CMA is associated with the risk of contracting PIBD.

Methods

A nationwide birth cohort (n = 225,041), including all Finnish children born between 1999 and 2002, was followed up until July 1, 2014. We identified all children with a diagnosis of CMA, asthma, and PIBD from a national register; the data were based on certificates, including diagnostic criteria. The 95% confidence intervals (CI) for the incidence rates per 100,000 person‐years were calculated assuming a Poisson distribution.

Results

We identified 7,910 infants with CMA yielding a cumulative incidence of 3.5% by 2 years of age. The cumulative incidence of PIBD was 0.14% (n = 316) and that of asthma 6.6% (14,807). Children with CMA were more likely to develop PIBD than non‐CMA children, incidence ratio 2.6 (95% CI 1.7–3.8). Children with a diagnosis of CMA contracted PIBD at a younger age than the respective non‐CMA group (9 vs. 11 years, p < 0.05). The risk was more evident for ulcerative colitis than for Crohn's disease. The association between CMA and asthma was stronger than that between CMA and PIBD.

Conclusions

CMA in infancy is associated with subsequent development of asthma and PIBD. This suggests that in a subgroup of patients, CMA may share underlying background with PIBD, warranting thorough follow‐up.
Cesarean section delivery and development of food allergy and atopic dermatitis in early childhood
Authors: Papathoma Evangelia , Triga Maria , Fouzas Sotirios , Dimitriou Gabriel
Published: February 2016

Background

Delivery by Cesarean section (CS) may predispose to allergic disorders, presumably due to alterations in the establishment of normal gut microbiota in early infancy. In this study, we sought to investigate the association betweenCSand physician‐diagnosed food allergy and atopic dermatitis during the first 3 years of life, using data from a homogeneous, population‐based, birth cohort.

Methods

A total of 459 children born and cared for in the same tertiary maternity unit were examined at birth and followed up at 1, 6, 12, 18, 24, 30 and 36 months of age. Participants with symptoms suggestive of food allergy or atopic dermatitis were evaluated by a pediatric allergy specialist to confirm the diagnosis based on well‐defined criteria.

Results

The rate ofCSwas 50.8% (n = 233). Food allergy was diagnosed in 24 participants (5.2%) while atopic dermatitis was diagnosed in 62 children (13.5%). Cesarean section (OR3.15; 95%CI1.14–8.70), atopic dermatitis of the child (OR3.01; 95%CI1.18–7.80), parental atopy (OR4.33; 95%CI1.73–12.1), and gestational age (OR1.57; 95%CI1.07–2.37) were significant and independent predictors of food allergy. Children with at least one allergic parent delivered byCShad higher probability of developing food allergy compared with vaginally delivered children of non‐allergic parents (OR10.0; 95%CI3.06–32.7). Conversely, the effect ofCSon atopic dermatitis was not significant (OR1.35; 95%CI0.74–2.47).

Conclusions

Delivery byCSpredisposes to the development of food allergy but not atopic dermatitis in early childhood. Cesarean section delivery seems to upregulate the immune response to food allergens, especially in children with allergic predisposition.
Understanding without Justification or Belief
Authors: Dellsén Finnur
Published: February 2016

In recent years there has been a resurgence of interest among epistemologists in the nature of understanding, with some authors arguing that understanding should replace knowledge as the primary focus of epistemology. But what is understanding? According to what is often calledthe standard view, understanding is a species of knowledge. Although this view has recently been challenged in various ways, even the critics of the standard view have assumed that understanding requires justification and belief. I argue that it requires neither. If sound, these arguments have important upshots not only for the nature of understanding, but also for its distinctive epistemic value and its role in contemporary epistemology.
Salvation and Religious Diversity: Christian Perspectives
Authors: Vainio Olli‐Pekka
Published: February 2016

This article examines how Christian soteriology has responded to religious diversity. Classical versions of Christianity typically insist on conscious and explicit faith as a necessary requirement for salvation. However, from the beginning, this demand has been mitigated, and different arguments have been provided to ensure the possibility of salvation of those who are outside the church proper. In the first centuries of Christianity, the focus was on those who had been born before the Christian era or were otherwise unable to participate in Christian fellowship. More recently, the discussion has centred on the spiritual and epistemic integrity of different religions.
Combining QMRA and Epidemiology to Estimate Campylobacteriosis Incidence
Authors: Evers Eric G. , Bouwknegt Martijn
Published: February 2016

The disease burden of pathogens as estimated by QMRA (quantitative microbial risk assessment) and EA (epidemiological analysis) often differs considerably. This is an unsatisfactory situation for policymakers and scientists. We explored methods to obtain a unified estimate using campylobacteriosis in the Netherlands as an example, where previous work resulted in estimates of 4.9 million (QMRA) and 90,600 (EA) cases per year. Using the maximum likelihood approach and considering EA the gold standard, the QMRA model could produce the original EA estimate by adjusting mainly the dose‐infection relationship. Considering QMRA the gold standard, the EA model could produce the original QMRA estimate by adjusting mainly the probability that a gastroenteritis case is caused by Campylobacter. A joint analysis of QMRA and EA data and models assuming identical outcomes, using a frequentist or Bayesian approach (using vague priors), resulted in estimates of 102,000 or 123,000 campylobacteriosis cases per year, respectively. These were close to the original EA estimate, and this will be related to the dissimilarity in data availability. The Bayesian approach further showed that attenuating the condition of equal outcomes immediately resulted in very different estimates of the number of campylobacteriosis cases per year and that using more informative priors had little effect on the results. In conclusion, EA was dominant in estimating the burden of campylobacteriosis in the Netherlands. However, it must be noted that only statistical uncertainties were taken into account here. Taking all, usually difficult to quantify, uncertainties into account might lead to a different conclusion.
Attacker Deterrence and Perceived Risk in a Stackelberg Security Game
Authors: Ridinger Garret , John Richard S. , McBride Michael , Scurich Nicholas
Published: February 2016

In Stackelberg security games, a defender must allocate scarce resources to defend against a potential attacker. The optimal defense involves the randomization of scarce security resources, yet how attackers perceive the risk given randomized defense is not well understood. We conducted an experiment where attackers chose whether to attack or not attack targets protected by randomized defense schemes, the key treatment variable being whether the defender picks one target at random to guard or imperfectly guards all targets. The two schemes are expected‐payoff equivalent, and when provided separately we found no effect of having one scheme or the other. Yet, when both are present, we found that subjects had a preference for the fixed scheme, a preference that cannot be reduced to differences in beliefs. Overall, our results suggest that understanding how individuals perceive risk is vital to understand the behavior of attackers.
Can Belief in a Just World Buffer Mood and Career Prospects of People in Need of Risk Protection? First Experimental Evidence
Authors: Nudelman Gabriel , Otto Kathleen , Dalbert Claudia
Published: February 2016

Research indicates that individuals high in belief in a just world (BJW) are confident that they will not fall victim to unforeseeable disasters. The current study tested the hypothesis that BJW acts as buffer that serves to sustain mood and career prospects of those in need of risk protection. Threat was manipulated by confronting participants with risks regarding their career outlook, and individual differences in threat perception were measured by degree of uncertainty tolerance. As hypothesized, BJW helped protect the mood of participants threatened by serious career‐related risks who were unable to tolerate uncertainty. The finding supported the buffer hypothesis regarding mood, but not career prospects, possibly due to a more conscious mindset or variability in self‐efficacy. However, BJW was overall positively associated with career prospects. Moreover, it was suggested that BJW can also serve as a personal resource, not only protecting from risk, but also enhancing mood among those with high uncertainty tolerance.
Classification of Non-Parametric Regression Functions in Longitudinal Data Models
Authors: Vogt Michael , Linton Oliver
Published: February 2016

We investigate a longitudinal data model with non-parametric regression functions that may vary across the observed individuals. In a variety of applications, it is natural to impose a group structure on the regression curves. Specifically, we may suppose that the observed individuals can be grouped into a number of classes whose members all share the same regression function. We develop a statistical procedure to estimate the unknown group structure from the data. Moreover, we derive the asymptotic properties of the procedure and investigate its finite sample performance by means of a simulation study and a real data example.
Detection of Change in the Spatiotemporal Mean Function
Authors: Gromenko Oleksandr , Kokoszka Piotr , Reimherr Matthew
Published: February 2016

The paper develops inferential methodology for detecting a change in the annual pattern of an environmental variable measured at fixed locations in a spatial region. Using a framework built on functional data analysis, we model observations as a collection of function-valued time sequences available at many sites. Each sequence is modelled as an annual mean function, which may change, plus a sequence of error functions, which are spatially correlated. The tests statistics extend the cumulative sum paradigm to this more complex setting. Their asymptotic distributions are not parameter free because of the spatial dependence but can be effectively approximated by Monte Carlo simulations. The new methodology is applied to precipitation data. Its finite sample performance is assessed by a simulation study.
Modelling Across Extremal Dependence Classes
Authors: Wadsworth J. L. , Tawn J. A. , Davison A. C. , Elton D. M.
Published: February 2016

Different dependence scenarios can arise in multivariate extremes, entailing careful selection of an appropriate class of models. In bivariate extremes, the variables are either asymptotically dependent or are asymptotically independent. Most available statistical models suit one or other of these cases, but not both, resulting in a stage in the inference that is unaccounted for but can substantially impact subsequent extrapolation. Existing modelling solutions to this problem are either applicable only on subdomains or appeal to multiple limit theories. We introduce a unified representation for bivariate extremes that encompasses a wide variety of dependence scenarios and applies when at least one variable is large. Our representation motivates a parametric model that encompasses both dependence classes. We implement a simple version of this model and show that it performs well in a range of settings.
The effect of cadence on the muscle‐tendon mechanics of the gastrocnemius muscle during walking
Authors: Brennan S. F. , Cresswell A. G. , Farris D. J. , Lichtwark G. A.
Published: February 2016

Humans naturally select a cadence that minimizes metabolic cost at a constant walking velocity. The aim of this study was to examine the effects of cadence on the medial gastrocnemius (MG) muscle and tendon interaction, and examine how this might influence lower limb energetics. We hypothesized that cadences higher than preferred would increase MG fascicle shortening velocity because of the reduced stride time. Furthermore, we hypothesized that cadences lower than preferred would require greater MG fascicle shortening to achieve increased muscle work requirements. We measured lower limb kinematics and kinetics, surface electromyography of the triceps surae and MG fascicle length, via ultrasonography, during walking at a constant velocity at the participants' preferred cadence and offsets of ±10%, ±20%, and ±30%. There was a significant increase in MG fascicle shortening with decreased cadence. However, there was no increase in the MG fascicle shortening velocity at cadences higher than preferred. Cumulative MG muscle activation per minute was significantly increased at higher cadences. We conclude that low cadence walking requires more MG shortening work, while MG muscle and tendon function changes little for each stride at higher cadences, driving up cumulative activation costs due to the increase in steps per minute.
Submarine landslides caused by seamounts entering accretionary wedge systems
Authors: Ruh Jonas B.
Published: February 2016

Seamounts entering active subduction zone trenches initially collide with the frontal sedimentary accretionary wedges resulting in severe deformation of the overriding plate. A typical feature of this deformation is the occurrence of submarine landslides due to gravitational instabilities. Such landslides have been reported from the Middle America and Hikurangi trenches and potentially generate tsunami waves. Yet, the dynamics of accretionary wedges during seamount indentation, and landsliding as a mechanical response in particular, have not been investigated qualitatively. Here, I use 3D high‐resolution numerical experiments to model the collision of conical and flat‐topped seamounts into accreting sedimentary sequences. Results show that the topographical evolution of an accretionary wedge mainly depends on the volume of the entering seamount and not on its height. Submarine landslides occur only if seamounts are not completely buried by the sedimentary sequence, and the volume of the avalanche is roughly correlated with the seamount volume overtopping the incoming sediments.
Using pig die and simulation to explore probability and expected values
Authors: Hildreth Laura A. , Green Jennifer L.
Published: February 2016

We present a variant of the Game of Pig to introduce the concepts of probability, simulation and expected value.