bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
La antropología del estado desde Akhil Gupta: a propósito de Red Tape. Burocracia, violencia estructural y pobreza en India.
Authors: Arias Vanegas Julio
Published: September 2016

La antropología del estado desde  Akhil Gupta: a propósito de Red Tape.  Burocracia, violencia estructural y  pobreza en India.
Embodying a caring science: An ethnographic analysis of the communicative practices of a Colombian trans-woman scientist in the media
Authors: Pérez-Bustos Tania
Published: September 2016

This paper analyzes the communicative practices of a Colombian trans-woman scientist, biologist Brigitte Baptiste, when she speaks publicly about environmental issues on different media platforms. In the analysis, I explore the implications of Baptiste’s public presence for the imaginaries of readers and journalists regarding science, scientists and trans-people in Colombia. Leaning on certain feminist critiques of science, I analyze communicative practices as matters of care. Throughout the analysis, I find that care in Baptiste’s public presence is performed through the ways in which she connects biodiversity and sexual diversity, thinking with trans-women’s experiences to transgress the borders of science and connect it to activism and public service. I conclude that Baptiste’s public presence in Colombia is an exceptional example of gender diversity acceptance in the present, though it does represent a speculative commitment towards embracing diversity in general in the future.
Más allá de la gubernamentalidad: políticas de colonización y desarrollo rural en el piedemonte caqueteño (1960-1980)
Authors: Martínez Basallo Sandra Patricia
Published: September 2016

Las políticas públicas se inscriben dentro de formas de gubernamentalidad específicas en tanto se articulan a determinados proyectos de gobierno. Aunque estas políticas pueden tener una función instrumental en la legitimación de un proyecto de dominación estatal, su efectividad no es algo que pueda darse por sentado; ellas toman formas sociales dependiendo de los contextos particulares en los que son implementadas, así como de las disímiles lecturas e interpretaciones que tanto sus destinatarios como quienes las adelantan, hacen de las mismas. A la luz del estudio de caso de los programas de colonización y desarrollo rural ejecutados entre 1960 y 1980 por la Caja Agraria y el Incora en el piedemonte caqueteño, veremos cómo las prácticas desplegadas por los colonos y funcionarios implicados en la puesta en operación de estos programas pueden terminar subvirtiendo sus propósitos iniciales, imprimiéndoles de esta manera, giros inesperados.
Migraciones y cuidados. La enfermería como opción laboral de mujeres migrantes en la ciudad de Buenos Aires
Authors: Mallimaci Barral Ana Inés
Published: September 2016

Este trabajo, intenta ser un aporte al análisis de la circulación laboral de las mujeres migrantes en la ciudad de Buenos Aires entre empleos de cuidados, en particular del empleo doméstico a la enfermería. Si bien existe un importante desarrollo de trabajos que ahondan en la relación entre enfermería y migración, la mayor parte de ellos analizan la migración de enfermeras en contextos de globalización y su impacto para los servicios de salud de los países de origen y de destino. Este artículo se sitúa en otro espacio interpretativo analizando la elección de la enfermería como carrera por parte de la población migrante que ya residía en la Argentina.Para ello se detallan las especificidades históricas de la migración en Argentina y el rol de las mujeres en ella, se exponen algunos elementos conceptuales sobre la noción de cuidados elegida y se presentan los primeros resultados de la investigación a partir del análisis del significado de la enfermería como empleo de cuidado en Argentina, su resignificación como empleo valorado desde la perspectiva de las mujeres migrantes y la perdurabilidad estigmas que deslegitiman la presencia de mujeres migrantes enfermeras.
Reflexiones críticas sobre las Alianzas Público-Privadas (APP) como instrumentos de respuesta frente a catástrofes socio-naturales
Authors: Vergara Saavedra Paulina , Araya Orellana Juan Pablo , Donoso Zamorano Sebastián , Fuster Farfán Xenia
Published: September 2016

La presente investigación reflexiona desde una perspectiva crítica las alianzas público-privadas como instrumento exitoso ante catástrofes socio-naturales en Chile, en las localidades de Constitución y Llico afectadas por el terremoto y maremoto 2010. La evidencia recogida indicaría que, si bien las APP han sido percibidas positivamente por la población como respuesta durante la emergencia, existe descontento por la aplicación de estos instrumentos en el modelo de reconstrucción post-desastre. Lo anterior se explicaría principalmente por los escasos canales de participación ciudadana en el diseño del proceso, y la asimetría de poder entre privados y ciudadanía, ya que los primeros definieron los alcances de la reconstrucción en el territorio, al parecer con el propósito de satisfacer sus intereses. Pese a los indicadores oficiales de eficiencia, las APP han generado importantes problemas y costos, que finalmente son asumidos por el Estado.
Development a projection ion beam instrument that uses a gas ion source for metal-contamination-free microsampling
Authors: Shichi Hiroyasu , Tomimatsu Satoshi
Published: September 2016

The authors have developed a metal-contamination-free ion beam instrument with a duoplasmatron that serves as a gas ion source and a projection ion beam optical system that generates a shaped gas ion beam. The luminance of the duoplasmatron ion source is low. However, a projection ion beam optical system can increase the ion current with sharp beam edge profiles enough for microsampling fabrication. A metal-contamination-free shaped gas beam can be used to achieve clean inline sampling and wafer return strategy. The irradiation system of the instrument has three electrostatic lenses, an E × B mass separator, and a mechanism for bending the ion beam to prevent neutral particles from irradiating the samples. The instrument also has a gas flow system for ion beam assisted deposition and a needle transport system for microsampling. Experiments using a prototype implementation demonstrated that microsampling can be achieved by using shaped gas ion beams.
Dynamics and acoustics of a spherical bubble rising under gravity in an inviscid liquid
Authors: Riccardi Giorgio , De Bernardis Enrico
Published: September 2016

The rising motion and the acoustic emission of a pulsating spherical gas/vapour bubble in an isochoric, inviscid liquid are investigated. The motion is driven by the uniform and constant force field due to the gravity. The liquid is assumed at rest at the initial time. Unlike previous work on this subject, the mass of the bubble is not neglected, so that the bubble motion is accurately simulated also in the presence of large volume variations. After developing the relationships between the bubble motion to the liquid flow, a system of two nonlinear ordinary differential equations (ODEs) for the radius and the position of the center of mass of the bubble is written. The near-field pressure disturbance produced in the liquid by the bubble motion is evaluated by means of elliptic integrals and an efficient approximation of it free from these special functions is also used. The numerical integration of the ODE system allows one to evaluate the acoustic signal. This is carried out with the above mentioned approximation, and several features of it are demonstrated through the study of a sample flow.
Congress faces a lengthy science to-do list
Authors:   Science's News Staff
Published: September 2016

2017 spending to be delayed.
Dawn arrives at Ceres: Exploration of a small, volatile-rich world
Authors: Russell C. T. , Raymond C. A. , Ammannito E. , Buczkowski D. L. , De Sanctis M. C. , Hiesinger H. , Jaumann R. , Konopliv A. S. , McSween H. Y. , Nathues A. , Park R. S. , Pieters C. M. , Prettyman T. H. , McCord T. B. , McFadden L. A. , Mottola S. , Zuber M. T. , Joy S. P. , Polanskey C. , Rayman M. D. , Castillo-Rogez J. C. , Chi P. J. , Combe J. P. , Ermakov A. , Fu R. R. , Hoffmann M. , Jia Y. D. , King S. D. , Lawrence D. J. , Li J.-Y. , Marchi S. , Preusker F. , Roatsch T. , Ruesch O. , Schenk P. , Villarreal M. N. , Yamashita N.
Published: September 2016

On 6 March 2015, Dawn arrived at Ceres to find a dark, desiccated surface punctuated by small, bright areas. Parts of Ceres’ surface are heavily cratered, but the largest expected craters are absent. Ceres appears gravitationally relaxed at only the longest wavelengths, implying a mechanically strong lithosphere with a weaker deep interior. Ceres’ dry exterior displays hydroxylated silicates, including ammoniated clays of endogenous origin. The possibility of abundant volatiles at depth is supported by geomorphologic features such as flat crater floors with pits, lobate flows of materials, and a singular mountain that appears to be an extrusive cryovolcanic dome. On one occasion, Ceres temporarily interacted with the solar wind, producing a bow shock accelerating electrons to energies of tens of kilovolts.
Induced pluripotent stem cells, past and future
Authors: Papapetrou Eirini P.
Published: September 2016

Ten years ago, a method to reprogram cells to a pluripotent state changed biomedical research
Synergistic Neutralization of Pertussis Toxin by a Bispecific Antibody
In Vitro
and
In Vivo
Authors: Wagner Ellen K. , Wang Xianzhe , Bui Andre , Maynard Jennifer A.
Published: September 2016

Bispecific antibodies are a rapidly growing class of therapeutic molecules, originally developed for the treatment of cancer but recently explored for the treatment of autoimmune and infectious diseases.
Bordetella pertussis
is a reemerging pathogen, and several of the key symptoms of infection are caused by the pertussis toxin (PTx). Two humanized antibodies, hu1B7 and hu11E6, bind distinct epitopes on PTx and, when coadministered, mitigate disease severity in murine and baboon models of infection. Here we describe the generation of a bispecific human IgG1 molecule combining the hu1B7 and hu11E6 binding sites via a knobs-in-holes design. The bispecific antibody showed binding activity equivalent to that of the antibody mixture in a competition enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). A CHO cell neutralization assay provided preliminary evidence for synergy between the two antibodies, while a murine model of PTx-induced leukocytosis definitively showed synergistic neutralization. Notably, the bispecific antibody retained the synergy observed for the antibody mixture, supporting the conclusion that synergy is due to simultaneous blockade of both the catalytic and receptor binding activities of pertussis toxin. These data suggest that a hu1B7/hu11E6 bispecific antibody is a viable alternative to an antibody mixture for pertussis treatment.
Culture of Urine Specimens by Use of chromID CPS Elite Medium Can Expedite Escherichia coli Identification and Reduce Hands-On Time in the Clinical Laboratory
Authors: Yarbrough Melanie L. , Wallace Meghan A. , Marshall Cynthia , Mathias Erin , Burnham Carey-Ann D.
Published: September 2016

Urine is one of the most common specimen types submitted to the clinical microbiology laboratory; the use of chromogenic agar is one method by which the laboratory might expedite culture results and reduce hands-on time and materials required for urine culture analysis. The objective of our study was to compare chromID CPS Elite (bioMérieux), a chromogenic medium, to conventional primary culture medium for evaluation of urine specimens. Remnant urine specimens (
n
= 200) were inoculated into conventional media and into chromID CPS Elite agar (chromID). The time to identification and consumables used were documented for both methods. Clinically significant pathogen(s) were recovered from 51 cultures using conventional media, with
Escherichia coli
being the most frequently recovered organism (
n
= 22). The rate of exact uropathogen agreement between conventional and chromogenic media was 82%, while overall categorical agreement was 83.5% The time interval between plating and final organism identification was decreased with chromID agar versus conventional media for
E. coli
(mean of 24.4 h versus 27.1 h,
P
< 0.001). Using chromID, clinically significant cultures required less hands-on time per culture (mean of 1 min and 2 s [1:02 min]) compared to conventional media (mean of 1:31 min). In addition, fewer consumables (2.4 versus 3.3 sticks and swabs) and rapid biochemical tests (1.0 versus 1.9) were necessary using chromID versus conventional media. Notably, antimicrobial susceptibility testing demonstrated good overall agreement (97.4%) between the chromID and conventional media for all antibiotics tested. chromID CPS Elite is accurate for uropathogen identification, reduces consumable usage, and may expedite the identification of
E. coli
in clinical specimens.
Direct Comparison of Alere i and cobas Liat Influenza A and B Tests for Rapid Detection of Influenza Virus Infection
Authors: Nolte Frederick S. , Gauld Lori , Barrett Susan B.
Published: September 2016

We compared two rapid, point-of care nucleic acid amplification tests for detection of influenza A and B viruses (Alere i [Alere] and cobas Liat [Roche Diagnostics]) with the influenza A and B virus test components of the FilmArray respiratory panel (BioFire Diagnostics) using 129 respiratory specimens collected in universal viral transport medium (80 influenza A virus and 16 influenza B virus positive) from both adult and pediatric patients. The sensitivities of the Alere test were 71.3% for influenza A virus and 93.3% for influenza B virus, with specificities of 100% for both viruses. The sensitivities and specificities of the Liat test were 100% for both influenza A and B viruses. The poor sensitivity of the Alere test for detection of influenza A virus was likely due to a study set that included many low-positive samples that were below its limit of detection.
Intracerebral Inoculation of Mouse-Passaged Saffold Virus Type 3 Affects Cerebellar Development in Neonatal Mice
Authors: Kotani Osamu , Suzuki Tadaki , Yokoyama Masaru , Iwata-Yoshikawa Naoko , Nakajima Noriko , Sato Hironori , Hasegawa Hideki , Taguchi Fumihiro , Shimizu Hiroyuki , Nagata Noriyo
Published: September 2016

Saffold virus (SAFV), a human cardiovirus, is occasionally detected in infants with neurological disorders, including meningitis and cerebellitis. We recently reported that SAFV type 3 isolates infect cerebellar glial cells, but not large neurons, in mice. However, the impact of this infection remained unclear. Here, we determined the neuropathogenesis of SAFV type 3 in the cerebella of neonatal ddY mice by using SAFV passaged in the cerebella of neonatal BALB/c mice. The virus titer in the cerebellum increased following the inoculation of each of five passaged strains. The fifth passaged strain harbored amino acid substitutions in the VP2 (H160R and Q239R) and VP3 (K62M) capsid proteins. Molecular modeling of the capsid proteins suggested that the VP2-H160R and VP3-K62M mutations alter the structural dynamics of the receptor binding surface via the formation of a novel hydrophobic interaction between the VP2 puff B and VP3 knob regions. Compared with the original strain, the passaged strain showed altered growth characteristics in human-derived astroglial cell lines and greater replication in the brains of neonatal mice. In addition, the passaged strain was more neurovirulent than the original strain, while both strains infected astroglial and neural progenitor cells in the mouse brain. Intracerebral inoculation of either the original or the passaged strain affected brain Purkinje cell dendrites, and a high titer of the passaged strain induced cerebellar hypoplasia in neonatal mice. Thus, infection by mouse-passaged SAFV affected cerebellar development in neonatal mice. This animal model contributes to the understanding of the neuropathogenicity of SAFV infections in infants.

IMPORTANCESaffold virus (SAFV) is a candidate neuropathogenic agent in infants and children, but the neuropathogenicity of the virus has not been fully elucidated. Recently, we evaluated the pathogenicity of two clinical SAFV isolates in mice. Similar to other neurotropic picornaviruses, these isolates showed mild infectivity of glial and neural progenitor cells, but not of large neurons, in the cerebellum. However, the outcome of this viral infection in the cerebellum has not been clarified. Here, we examined the tropism of SAFV in the cerebellum. We obtained anin vivo-passaged strain from the cerebella of neonatal mice and examined its genome and its neurovirulence in the neonatal mouse brain. The passaged virus showed high infectivity and neurovirulence in the brain, especially the cerebellum, and affected cerebellar development. This unique neonatal mouse model will be helpful for elucidating the neuropathogenesis of SAFV infections occurring early in life.
Virologic Differences Do Not Fully Explain the Diversification of Swine Influenza Viruses in the United States
Authors: Fabrizio Thomas P. , Sun Yilun , Yoon Sun-Woo , Jeevan Trushar , Dlugolenski Daniel , Tripp Ralph A. , Tang Li , Webby Richard J.
Published: September 2016

Influenza A(H1N1) viruses entered the U.S. swine population following the 1918 pandemic and remained genetically stable for roughly 80 years. In 1998, there was an outbreak of influenza-like illness among swine that was caused by A(H3N2) viruses containing the triple reassortant internal gene (TRIG) cassette. Following the TRIG cassette emergence, numerous reassortant viruses were isolated in nature, suggesting that the TRIG virus had an enhanced ability to reassort compared to the classical swine virus. The present study was designed to quantify the relative reassortment capacities of classical and TRIG swine viruses. Reverse genetic viruses were generated from the classical H1N1 virus A/swine/MN/37866/1999 (MN/99), the TRIG virus A/swine/NC/18161/2002 (NC/02), and a seasonal human H3N2 virus, A/TX/6/1996 (TX/96), to measurein vitroreassortment and growth potentials. After coinfection with NC/02 or MN/99 plus TX/96, H1/H3 double-positive cells were identified. Delayed TX/96 infection was fully excluded by both swine viruses. We then analyzed reassortant H3 viruses. Seventy-seven of 81 (95.1%) TX/96-NC/02 reassortants contained at least one polymerase gene segment from NC/02, whereas only 34 of 61 (55.7%) MN/99-TX/96 reassortants contained at least one polymerase gene segment from MN/99. Additionally, 38 of 81 (46.9%) NC/02-TX/96 reassortants contained all NC/02 polymerase gene segments, while none of the MN/99-TX/96 reassortants contained all MN/99 polymerase genes. There were 21 H3 reassortants between MN/99 and TX/96, compared to only 17 H3 reassortants between NC/02 and TX/96. Overall, the results indicate that there are no distinct differences in the ability of the TRIG to reassort with a human virus compared to the classical swine virus.

IMPORTANCEThere appear to be no differences in the abilities of classical swine and TRIG swine viruses to exclude a second virus, suggesting that under the right circumstances both viruses have similar opportunities to reassort. The increased percentage of TRIG polymerase gene segments in reassortant H3 viruses indicates that these viruses may be more compatible with gene segments from other viruses; however, this needs to be investigated further. Nevertheless, the classical swine virus also showed the ability to reassort, suggesting that factors other than reassortment capacity alone are responsible for the different epidemiologies of TRIG and classical swine viruses. The post-TRIG diversity was likely driven by increased intensive farming practices rather than virologic properties. Our results indicate that host ecology can be a significant factor in viral evolution.
Effect of Host Species on Topography of the Fitness Landscape for a Plant RNA Virus
Authors: Cervera Héctor , Lalić Jasna , Elena Santiago F.
Published: September 2016

Adaptive fitness landscapes are a fundamental concept in evolutionary biology that relate the genotypes of individuals to their fitness. In the end, the evolutionary fate of evolving populations depends on the topography of the landscape, that is, the numbers of accessible mutational pathways and possible fitness peaks (i.e., adaptive solutions). For a long time, fitness landscapes were only theoretical constructions due to a lack of precise information on the mapping between genotypes and phenotypes. In recent years, however, efforts have been devoted to characterizing the properties of empirical fitness landscapes for individual proteins or for microbes adapting to artificial environments. In a previous study, we characterized the properties of the empirical fitness landscape defined by the first five mutations fixed during adaptation of tobacco etch potyvirus (TEV) to a new experimental host,
Arabidopsis thaliana
. Here we evaluate the topography of this landscape in the ancestral host
Nicotiana tabacum
. By comparing the topographies of the landscapes for the two hosts, we found that some features remained similar, such as the existence of fitness holes and the prevalence of epistasis, including cases of sign and reciprocal sign epistasis that created rugged, uncorrelated, and highly random topographies. However, we also observed significant differences in the fine-grained details between the two landscapes due to changes in the fitness and epistatic interactions of some genotypes. Our results support the idea that not only fitness tradeoffs between hosts but also topographical incongruences among fitness landscapes in alternative hosts may contribute to virus specialization.

IMPORTANCE
Despite its importance for understanding virus evolutionary dynamics, very little is known about the topography of virus adaptive fitness landscapes, and even less is known about the effects that different host species and environmental conditions may have on this topography. To bridge this gap, we evaluated the topography of a small fitness landscape formed by all genotypes that result from every possible combination of the first five mutations fixed during adaptation of TEV to the novel host
A. thaliana
. To assess the effect that host species may have on this topography, we evaluated the fitness of every genotype in both the ancestral and novel hosts. We found that both landscapes share some macroscopic properties, such as the existence of holes and being highly rugged and uncorrelated, yet they differ in microscopic details due to changes in the magnitude and sign of fitness and epistatic effects.
New Insights into the Formation of Viable but Nonculturable Escherichia coli O157:H7 Induced by High-Pressure CO
2
Authors: Zhao Feng , Wang Yongtao , An Haoran , Hao Yanling , Hu Xiaosong , Liao Xiaojun
Published: August 2016

The formation of viable but nonculturable (VBNC)
Escherichia coli
O157:H7 induced by high-pressure CO
2
(HPCD) was investigated using RNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) transcriptomics and isobaric tag for relative and absolute quantitation (iTRAQ) proteomic methods. The analyses revealed that 97 genes and 56 proteins were significantly changed upon VBNC state entry. Genes and proteins related to membrane transport, central metabolisms, DNA replication, and cell division were mainly downregulated in the VBNC cells. This caused low metabolic activity concurrently with a division arrest in cells, which may be related to VBNC state formation. Cell division repression and outer membrane overexpression were confirmed to be involved in VBNC state formation by homologous expression of
z2046
coding for transcriptional repressor and
ompF
encoding outer membrane protein F. Upon VBNC state entry, pyruvate catabolism in the cells shifted from the tricarboxylic acid (TCA) cycle toward the fermentative route; this led to a low level of ATP. Combating the low energy supply, ATP production in the VBNC cells was compensated by the degradation of
l
-serine and
l
-threonine, the increased AMP generation, and the enhanced electron transfer. Furthermore, tolerance of the cells with respect to HPCD-induced acid, oxidation, and high CO
2
stresses was enhanced by promoting the production of ammonia and NADPH and by reducing CO
2
production during VBNC state formation. Most genes and proteins related to pathogenicity were downregulated in the VBNC cells. This would decrease the cell pathogenicity, which was confirmed by adhesion assays. In conclusion, the decreased metabolic activity, repressed cell division, and enhanced survival ability in
E. coli
O157:H7 might cause HPCD-induced VBNC state formation.

IMPORTANCE
Escherichia coli
O157:H7 has been implicated in large foodborne outbreaks worldwide. It has been reported that the presence of as few as 10 cells in food could cause illness. However, the presence of only 0.73 to 1.5 culturable
E. coli
O157:H7 cells in salted salmon roe caused infection in Japan. Investigators found that
E. coli
O157:H7 in the viable but nonculturable (VBNC) state was the source of the outbreak. So far, formation mechanisms of VBNC state are not well known. In a previous study, we demonstrated that high-pressure CO
2
(HPCD) could induce the transition of
E. coli
O157:H7 into the VBNC state. In this study, we used RNA-Seq transcriptomic analysis combined with the iTRAQ proteomic method to investigate the formation of VBNC
E. coli
O157:H7 induced by HPCD treatment. Finally, we proposed a putative formation mechanism of the VBNC cells induced by HPCD, which may provide a theoretical foundation for controlling the VBNC state entry induced by HPCD treatment.
Extreme Dysbiosis of the Microbiome in Critical Illness
Authors: McDonald Daniel , Ackermann Gail , Khailova Ludmila , Baird Christine , Heyland Daren , Kozar Rosemary , Lemieux Margot , Derenski Karrie , King Judy , Vis-Kampen Christine , Knight Rob , Wischmeyer Paul E.
Published: September 2016

Critical illness may be associated with the loss of normal, “health promoting” bacteria, allowing overgrowth of disease-promoting pathogenic bacteria (dysbiosis), which, in turn, makes patients susceptible to hospital-acquired infections, sepsis, and organ failure. This has significant world health implications, because sepsis is becoming a leading cause of death worldwide, and hospital-acquired infections contribute to significant illness and increased costs. Thus, a trial that monitors the ICU patient microbiome to confirm and characterize this hypothesis is urgently needed. Our study analyzed the microbiomes of 115 critically ill subjects and demonstrated rapid dysbiosis from unexpected environmental sources after ICU admission. These data may provide the first steps toward defining targeted therapies that correct potentially “illness-promoting” dysbiosis with probiotics or with targeted, multimicrobe synthetic “stool pills” that restore a healthy microbiome in the ICU setting to improve patient outcomes.
Wyoming on the run—Toward final Paleoproterozoic assembly of Laurentia
Authors: Kilian Taylor M. , Chamberlain Kevin R. , Evans David A.D. , Bleeker Wouter , Cousens Brian L.
Published: September 2016

Paleoproterozoic suture zones mark the formation of supercontinent Nuna and provide a record of North America’s assembly. Conspicuously young ages (ca. 1.715 Ga) associated with deformation in southeast Wyoming craton argue for a more protracted consolidation of Laurentia, long after peak metamorphism in the Trans-Hudson orogen. Using paleomagnetic data from the newly dated 1899 ± 5 Ma Sourdough mafic dike swarm (Wyoming craton), we compare the relative positions of Wyoming, Superior, and Slave cratons before, during, and after peak metamorphism in the Trans-Hudson orogen. With these constraints, we refine a collisional model for Laurentia that incorporates Wyoming craton after Superior and Slave cratons united, redefining the Paleoproterozoic sutures that bind southern Laurentia.
The origin of Earth’s first continents and the onset of plate tectonics
Authors: Hastie Alan R. , Fitton J. Godfrey , Bromiley Geoffrey D. , Butler Ian B. , Odling Nicholas W.A.
Published: September 2016

The growth and recycling of continental crust has resulted in the chemical and thermal modification of Earth’s mantle, hydrosphere, atmosphere, and biosphere for ∼4.0 b.y. However, knowledge of the protolith that gave rise to the first continents and whether the environment of formation was a subduction zone still remains unknown. Here, tonalite melts are formed in high P-T experiments in which primitive oceanic plateau starting material is used as an analogue for Eoarchean (3.6–4.0 Ga) oceanic crust generated at early spreading centers. The tonalites are produced at 1.6–2.2 GPa and 900–950 °C and are mixed with slab-derived aqueous fluids to generate melts that have compositions identical to that of Eoarchean continental crust. Our data support the idea that the first continents formed at ca. 4 Ga and subsequently, through the subduction and partial melting of ∼30–45-km-thick Eoarchean oceanic crust, modified Earth’s mantle and Eoarchean environments and ecosystems.
Criticality in the planform behavior of the Ganges River meanders
Authors: Carling P.A. , Gupta N. , Atkinson P.M. , He Huang Qing
Published: September 2016

The critical point of planform transition from straight to meandering in the wandering Ganges River is identifiable. Recent remote-sensing data indicate that four similar meanders cut off, or attempted to cut off, after ∼31–35 yr, primarily due to channel aggradation. As main channels aggrade, sinuosity is maximized for broad channel widths and small radii of curvature and relaxes for bends of greater radii. Maximized form resistance occurs close to self-organized criticality and promotes cutoffs. Avulsions lead to main channel narrowing and prevent further bend tightening, relaxing the system by reducing sinuosity. Thus, the wandering river oscillates in space and time across the transition from a more ordered to a more chaotic state. Planform behavior is described by the Jerolmack-Mohrig mobility number and the Parker stability criterion, which well define meanders behavior as they approach criticality and then relax via partial or completed avulsions. The results have significance for river engineering and river network and stratigraphic modeling. Such an approach could be of practical value when predicting the behaviors of other major wandering rivers.
Young man with dyspnoea for 6 months; presenting with subacute tracheal obstruction due to leiomyoma
Authors: Idrees Farah , Fatimi Saulat Husnain , Pervez Shahid
Published: September 2016

Tracheal leiomyoma is a rare benign tumour with less than a 100 cases reported in the literature. We report a case of leiomyoma initially presenting and being treated as asthma until it lead to life-threatening tracheal obstruction, requiring immediate surgical intervention.
Paget's disease with craniofacial and skeletal bone involvement
Authors: Rai Narendra Prakash , Anekar Jayaprasad , Mustafa Shabil Mohamed , Devang Divakar Darshan
Published: September 2016

Paget's disease is a metabolic disorder of bone caused due to defect in the remodelling process and is very common in western countries but is very rare in Asians and Africans. It was first described by a British scientist Sir James Paget in 1877. It can be monostotic or polyostotic depending on the number of bones involved. It most commonly affects older people of more than 50 years. Disease involvement can be symptomatic or asymptomatic depending on the extent of the disease process. Diagnosis of Paget's disease can be made by raised serum alkaline phosphatase levels, radiological examination and by radioisotope bone scans.
OCT angiography in the management of choroidal neovascular membrane secondary to Sorsby fundus dystrophy
Authors: Mohla Aditi , Khan Kamron , Kasilian Melissa , Michaelides Michel
Published: September 2016

We describe the management of a woman aged 52 years with molecularly confirmed Sorsby fundus dystrophy, who presented with acute visual deterioration in her right eye. Fundus examination identified a right macular lesion suggestive of a choroidal neovascular membrane (CNVM). Optical coherence tomography angiography (OCTA) confirmed the presence of a CNVM. She was treated with 2 monthly intravitreal injections of bevacizumab, associated with OCTA evidence of regression of the CNVM and improvement in her visual acuity. OCTA is a novel, non-invasive method of imaging the retinal vasculature. Images are acquired rapidly, with no associated side effects, offering advantages over the current gold standard technique—fundus fluorescein angiography.
Plasma glucose and insulin response to two oral nutrition supplements in adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Huhmann Maureen B , Smith Kristen N , Schwartz Sherwyn L , Haller Stacie K , Irvin Sarah , Cohen Sarah S
Published: September 2016

Objective

The purpose of this clinical trial was to compare the glucose usage of two oral nutritional supplement (ONS) products and to assess whether a diabetes-specific formulation provides improved glucose stabilization and management compared with a standard formula.

Research design and methods

A total of 12 subjects with type 2 diabetes (7 males and 5 females) completed a randomized, cross-over design trial. Each subject consumed isocaloric amounts of either the standard ONS or the diabetes-specific formula ONS on different dates, 1 week apart. Glucose and insulin measures were recorded at baseline, and 10, 20, 30, 60, 90, 120, 150, 180, 210 and 240 min after the beverage was consumed and then used to calculate area under the curve (AUC) for each subject.

Results

The mean glucose AUC was lower in the diabetes-specific ONS group than in the standard group (p<0.0001), but there was not a significant difference observed for mean insulin AUC (p=0.068). A sensitivity analysis of the mean insulin AUC measures was performed by removing a potential outlier from the analysis, and this resulted in a significant difference between the groups (p=0.012). First-phase insulin measures and an insulinogenic index calculated for the beverages showed no significant differences.

Conclusions

On the basis of the results of this trial of 12 subjects, the diabetes-specific ONS appears to provide better glucose maintenance in persons with type 2 diabetes when compared to the standard formula ONS.

Trial registration number

NCT02612675.
Characteristics, treatment and in-hospital outcomes of patients with STEMI in a metropolitan area of a developing country: an initial report of the extended Jakarta Acute Coronary Syndrome registry
Authors: Dharma Surya , Andriantoro Hananto , Purnawan Ismi , Dakota Iwan , Basalamah Faris , Hartono Beny , Rasmin Ronaly , Isnanijah Herawati , Yamin Muhammad , Wijaya Ika Prasetya , Pratama Vireza , Gunawan Tjatur Bagus , Juwana Yahya Berkahanto , Suling Frits R W , Witjaksono A M Onny , Lasanudin Hengkie F , Iskandarsyah Kurniawan , Priatna Hardja , Tedjasukmana Pradana , Wahyumandradi Uki , Kosasih Adrianus , Budhiarti Imelda A , Pribadi Wisnoe , Wirianta Jeffrey , Lubiantoro Utojo , Pramesti Rini , Widowati Diah Retno , Aminda Sissy Kartini , Basalamah M Abas , Rao Sunil V
Published: September 2016

Objective

We studied the characteristics of patients with ST segment elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI) after expansion of a STEMI registry as part of the STEMI network programme in a metropolitan city and the surrounding area covering ∼26 million inhabitants.

Design

Retrospective cohort study.

Setting

Emergency department of 56 health centres.

Participants

3015 patients with acute coronary syndrome, of which 1024 patients had STEMI.

Main outcome measure

Characteristics of reperfusion therapy.

Results

The majority of patients with STEMI (81%; N=826) were admitted to six academic percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) centres. PCI centres received patients predominantly (56%; N=514) from a transfer process. The proportion of patients receiving acute reperfusion therapy was higher than non-reperfused patients (54% vs 46%, p<0.001), and primary PCI was the most common method of reperfusion (86%). The mean door-to-device (DTD) time was 102±68 min. In-hospital mortality of non-reperfused patients was higher than patients receiving primary PCI or fibrinolytic therapy (9.1% vs 3.2% vs 3.8%, p<0.001). Compared with non-academic PCI centres, patients with STEMI admitted to academic PCI centres who underwent primary PCI had shorter mean DTD time (96±44 min vs 140±151 min, p<0.001), higher use of manual thrombectomy (60.2% vs13.8%, p<0.001) and drug-eluting stent implantation (87% vs 69%, p=0.001), but had similar use of radial approach and intra-aortic balloon pump (55.7% vs 67.2%, and 2.2% vs 3.4%, respectively). In patients transferred for primary PCI, TIMI risk score ≥4 on presentation was associated with a prolonged door-in to door-out (DI-DO) time (adjusted OR 2.08; 95% CI 1.09 to 3.95, p=0.02).

Conclusions

In the expanded JAC registry, a higher proportion of patients with STEMI received reperfusion therapy, but 46% still did not. In developing countries, focusing the prehospital care in the network should be a major focus of care to improve the DI-DO time along with improvement of DTD time at PCI centres.

Trial registration number

NCT02319473.
Community paediatric respiratory infection surveillance study protocol: a feasibility, prospective inception cohort study
Authors: Anderson Emma C , Ingle Suzanne Marie , Muir Peter , Beck Charles , Finn Adam , Leeming John Peter , Cabral Christie , Kesten Joanna May , Hay Alastair D
Published: September 2016

Introduction

Paediatric respiratory tract infections (RTIs) are common reasons for primary care consultations and antibiotic prescribing. Locally relevant syndromic and microbiological surveillance information has the potential to improve the care of children with RTIs by normalising illness (parents) and reducing uncertainty (clinicians). Currently, most RTI studies are conducted at the point of healthcare service consultation, leaving the community burden, microbiology, symptom duration and proportion consulting largely unknown. This study seeks to establish the feasibility of (mainly online) participant recruitment and retention, and the acceptability/comparability of parent versus nurse-collected microbiological sampling, to inform the design of a future surveillance intervention study. Evidence regarding consultation rates and symptom duration is also sought.

Methods and analysis

A community-based, feasibility prospective inception cohort study, recruiting children aged ≥3 months and <16 years and their parents via general practitioner surgery invitation letter, aiming to collect data on 300 incident RTIs by July 2016. Following informed consent, parents provide baseline (demographic) data online, and respond to weekly emails to confirm the absence/presence of new RTI symptoms. Once symptomatic, parents provide daily data online (RTI symptoms, school/day-care attendance, time off work, health service use, medication), and a research nurse visits to collect clinical examination data and microbiological (nasal and saliva) swabs. Parents are invited to provide symptomatic (at nurse visit, but without nurse assistance) and asymptomatic (alone) swabs on recovery. A review of primary care medical notes will gather medical history, health service utilisation, referral and antibiotic prescribing rates. Feasibility will be assessed using recruitment and retention rates, data completeness; and acceptability by quantitative survey and qualitative interviews. Symptomatic parent and nurse swab pairs will be compared for microbe isolation.
Too hot to handle?
Authors: Campbell Madeleine
Published: September 2016

THIS series gives readers the opportunity to consider and contribute to discussion of some of the ethical dilemmas that can arise in veterinary practice. Each month, a case scenario is presented, followed by discussion of some of the issues involved.

In addition, a possible way forward is suggested; however, there is rarely a cut‐and‐dried answer in such cases, and readers may wish to suggest an alternative approach. This month's dilemma, ‘Too hot to handle?’, was submitted and is discussed by Madeleine Campbell. Readers with comments to contribute are invited to send them as soon as possible, so that they can be considered for publication in the next issue. Discussion of the dilemma ‘A request for euthanasia: handling the client’, which was published in the July/August issue of In Practice, appears on page 415.

The series is being coordinated by Steven McCulloch, a practising vet with a PhD in the ethics of veterinary policy. It is hoped it will provide a framework that will help practitioners find solutions when facing similar dilemmas.
Mechanisms of hydrocephalus after intraventricular haemorrhage in adults
Authors: Bu Yaoyao , Chen Meiyuan , Gao Ting , Wang Xiao , Li Xuting , Gao Feng
Published: September 2016

Intraventricular haemorrhage (IVH) is defined as the eruption of blood in the cerebroventricular system and occurs mostly secondary to intracerebral haemorrhage (ICH) in adults. Hydrocephalus is a severe complication of IVH that can serve as an independent predictor of increased mortality. In this mini-review, we focus on the mechanisms of hydrocephalus after adult IVH, including blood-clot blockage, barrier impairment, inflammation and blood components, and attempt to reconcile the current research findings into a unified framework. We expect our theoretical framework to help guide future clinical and basic research leading to improved monitoring and intervention for IVH and subsequent hydrocephalus.
Appropriate management of asymptomatic carotid stenosis
Authors: Spence J David , Song Hongsong , Cheng Guanliang
Published: September 2016

With modern intensive medical therapy, the annual risk of ipsilateral stroke in patients with asymptomatic carotid stenosis (ACS) is now down to ∼0.5%. Despite this, there is a widespread practice of routine intervention in ACS with carotid endarterectomy (CEA) and stenting (CAS). This is being justified on the basis of much higher risks with medical therapy in trials conducted decades ago, compared with lower risks of intervention in recent trials with no medical arm. Such extrapolations are invalid. Although recent trials have shown that after subtracting periprocedural risks the outcomes with CEA and CAS are now comparable to medical therapy, the periprocedural risks still far outweigh the risks with medical therapy. In the asymptomatic carotid trial (ACT) 1 trial, the 30-day risk of stroke or death was 2.9% with CAS and 1.7% with CEA. In the CREST trial, the 30-day risk of stroke or death among asymptomatic patients was 2.5% for stenting and 1.4% for endarterectomy. Thus, intensive medical therapy is much safer than either CAS or CEA. The only patients with ACS who should receive intervention are those who can be identified as being at high risk. The best validated method is transcranial Doppler embolus detection. Other approaches in development for identifying vulnerable plaques include intraplaque haemorrhage on MRI, ulceration and plaque lucency on ultrasound, and plaque inflammation on positron emission tomography/CT. Intensive medical therapy for ACS includes smoking cessation, a Mediterranean diet, effective blood pressure control, antiplatelet therapy, intensive lipid-lowering therapy and treatment with B vitamins (with methylcobalamin instead of cyanocobalamin), particularly in patients with metabolic B12deficiency. A new strategy called ‘treating arteries instead of risk factors’, based on measurement of carotid plaque volume, is promising but requires validation in randomised trials.
Concentrating on zoo and wildlife species
Authors: Hydeskov Helle , Jayson Stephanie
Published: September 2016

Helle Hydeskov and Stephanie Jayson are European College of Zoological Medicine residents on new three‐year training programmes being run jointly by the Zoological Society of London and the Royal Veterinary College. Here, they explain what motivated them to take up their residencies
An Image Stitching Algorithm Based on Histogram Matching and SIFT Algorithm
Authors: Zhang Jing , Chen Guangxue , Jia Zhaoyang
Published: September 2016

Image stitching among images that have significant illumination changes will lead to unnatural mosaic image. An image stitching algorithm based on histogram matching and scale-invariant feature transform (SIFT) algorithm is brought out to solve the problem in this paper. First, histogram matching is used for image adjustment, so that the images to be stitched are at the same level of illumination, then the paper adopts SIFT algorithm to extract the key points of the images and performs the rough matching process, followed by RANSAC algorithm for fine matches, and finally calculates the appropriate mathematical mapping model between two images and according to the mapping relationship, a simple weighted average algorithm is used for image blending. The experimental results show that the algorithm is effective.
SO(4) group structure for a motivated QCD Hamiltonian: Analytic and Tamm–Dancoff solutions
Authors: Yepez-Martinez Tochtli , Civitarese Osvaldo , Hess Peter O.
Published: September 2016

Starting from the QCD Hamiltonian written in the canonical Coulomb gauge formalism, we developed a mapping onto an SO(4) representation which is suitable for the description of the QCD spectra at low energies. The mapping does not break the flavor symmetry and it preserves the singlet-colorless structure of the states. We present and discuss the structure of integer and half-integer-spin states with masses below 2 GeV. Finally, we extend the formalism in order to include particle–hole-like correlations in building excitations.
Repeated Bidding Games with Incomplete Information and Bounded Values: On the Exponential Speed of Convergence
Authors: Sandomirskaia Marina
Published: August 2016

We consider the repeated zero-sum bidding game with incomplete information on one side with non-normalized total payoff. De Meyer and Marino [(2005) Continuous versus discrete market game, Cowles Foundation Discussion Paper 1535] and Domansky and Kreps [(2005) Repeated games with asymmetric information and random price fluctuations at finance markets, Proc. Appl. Ind. Math. 12(4), 950–952 (in Russian)] investigated a game [Formula: see text] modeling multistage bidding with asymmetrically informed agents and proved that for this game [Formula: see text] converges to a finite limit [Formula: see text], i.e., the error term is [Formula: see text]. In this paper, we show that for this example [Formula: see text] converges to the limit exponentially fast. For this purpose we apply the optimal strategy [Formula: see text] of insider in the infinite-stage game obtained by Domansky [(2007) Repeated games with asymmetric information and random price fluctuations at finance markets, Int. J. Game Theor. 36(2), 241–257] to the [Formula: see text]-stage game and deduce that it is [Formula: see text]-optimal with [Formula: see text] exponentially small.
Schwarzschild instanton in emergent gravity
Authors: Chanda Sumanto , Guha Partha , Roychowdhury Raju
Published: September 2016

In the bottom-up approach of emergent gravity, we attempt to find symplectic gauge fields emerging from Euclidean Schwarzschild instanton, which is studied as electromagnetism defined on the symplectic space [Formula: see text]. Geometrical engineering with the emergent metric sets up the Seiberg–Witten map between commutative and non-commutative gauge fields, preparing the ground for the evaluation of topological invariants in terms of the underlying gauge theory quantities.