bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impacts of Human Behavioral Heterogeneity on the Benefits of Probabilistic Flood Warnings: An Agent‐Based Modeling Framework
Authors: Du Erhu , Rivera Samuel , Cai Ximing , Myers Laura , Ernest Andrew , Minsker Barbara
Published: October 2016

Flood forecasts and warnings are intended to reduce flood‐related property damages and loss of human life. Considerable research has improved flood forecasting accuracy (e.g., more accurate prediction of the occurrence of flood events) and lead time. However, the delivery of improved forecast information alone is not necessarily sufficient to reduce flood damage and loss of life, as people have varying responses and reactions to flood warnings. This study develops an agent‐based modeling framework that evaluates the impacts of heterogeneity in human behaviors (i.e., variation in behaviors in response to flood warnings), as well as residential density, on the benefits of flood warnings. The framework is coupled with a traffic model to simulate evacuation processes within a road network under various flood warning scenarios. The results show the marginal benefit associated with providing better flood warnings is significantly constrained if people behave in a more risk‐tolerant manner, especially in high‐density residential areas. The results also show significant impacts of human behavioral heterogeneity on the benefits of flood warnings, and thus stress the importance of considering human behavioral heterogeneity in simulating flood warning‐response systems. Further study is suggested to more accurately model human responses and behavioral heterogeneity, as well as to include more attributes of residential areas to estimate and improve the benefits of flood warnings.
Prospective Analysis of Behavioral Economic Predictors of Stable Moderation Drinking Among Problem Drinkers Attempting Natural Recovery
Authors: Tucker Jalie A. , Cheong JeeWon , Chandler Susan D. , Lambert Brice H. , Pietrzak Brittney , Kwok Heather , Davies Susan L.
Published: October 2016

Background

As interventions have expanded beyond clinical treatment to include brief interventions for persons with less severe alcohol problems, predicting who can achieve stable moderation drinking has gained importance. Recent behavioral economic (BE) research on natural recovery has shown that active problem drinkers who allocate their monetary expenditures on alcohol and saving for the future over longer time horizons tend to have better subsequent recovery outcomes, including maintenance of stable moderation drinking. This study compared the predictive utility of this money‐based “Alcohol‐Savings Discretionary Expenditure” (ASDE) index with multiple BE analogue measures of behavioral impulsivity and self‐control, which have seldom been investigated together, to predict outcomes of natural recovery attempts.

Methods

Community‐dwelling problem drinkers, enrolled shortly after stopping abusive drinking without treatment, were followed prospectively for up to a year (N = 175 [75.4% male], M age = 50.65 years). They completed baseline assessments of preresolution drinking practices and problems, analogue behavioral choice tasks (Delay Discounting, Melioration‐Maximization, and Alcohol Purchase Tasks), and a Timeline Followback interview including expenditures on alcohol compared to voluntary savings (ASDE index) during the preresolution year.

Results

Multinomial logistic regression models showed that, among the BE measures, only the ASDE index predicted stable moderation drinking compared to stable abstinence or unstable resolutions involving relapse. As hypothesized, stable moderation was associated with more balanced preresolution allocations to drinking and savings (odds ratio = 1.77, 95% confidence interval = 1.02 to 3.08, p < 0.05), suggesting it is associated with longer‐term behavior regulation processes than abstinence.

Conclusions

The ASDE's unique predictive utility may rest on its comprehensive representation of contextual elements to support this patterning of behavioral allocation. Stable low‐risk drinking, but not abstinence, requires such regulatory processes.
A revision of the flat bark beetle genus Platisus Erichson, 1842 (Coleoptera: Cucujidae)
Authors: Marris John W M
Published: October 2016

The Platisus Erichson fauna of Australia and New Zealand is revised. Six species are recorded, described and illustrated. A key to species is provided. One new species, Platisus vespertinus sp. nov., is described from New South Wales, South Australia, Victoria and Western Australia. This is the first Platisus species known from Western Australia. Platisus bicolor (Olliff, 1885) is removed from synonomy with Platisus coloniarius (Olliff, 1885), which is reinstated in the genus Cucujus. Platisus integricollis Reitter, 1879 is synonymised with P. angusticollis Reitter, 1879. Cucujus coloniarius is provisionally synonymised with the Himalayan species Cucujus bicolor Smith, 1851. Lectotypes are designated for Platisus angusticollis Reitter, 1879, Platisus integricollis Reitter, 1879, Platisus obscurus Erichson, 1842, Ipsaphes bicolor Olliff, 1885, Ipsaphes moerosus Pascoe, 1863, and Cucujus coloniarius Olliff, 1885.
Writing Ourselves In: Researcher Reflexivity in Ethnographic and Multimodal Methods for Understanding What Counts, to Whom, and How We Know
Authors: Anderson Kate T. , Stewart Olivia G. , Abdul Aziz Masturah Binte
Published: October 2016

Researcher reflexivity shapes what and how we know, because the background against which something becomes a site for analysis, and through which we position knowledge about it, result from our researcher gaze. We examine here an adolescent‐produced multimodal story according to three different researcher gazes across space and time. By sidestepping a singular attribution of knowing what counts, our intercontextual analysis constructs different epistemological viewpoints on this multimodal story and contexts of its creation.
Genome‐wide copy number variation in the bovine genome detected using low coverage sequence of popular beef breeds,
Authors: Keel B. N. , Keele J. W. , Snelling W. M.
Published: October 2016

Copy number variations (CNVs) are large insertions, deletions or duplications in the genome that vary between members of a species and are known to affect a wide variety of phenotypic traits. In this study, we identified CNVs in a population of bulls using low coverage next‐generation sequence data. First, in order to determine a suitable strategy for CNV detection in our data, we compared the performance of three distinct CNV detection algorithms on benchmark CNV datasets and concluded that using the multiple sample read depth approach was the best method for identifying CNVs in our sequences. Using this technique, we identified a total of 1341 copy number variable regions (CNVRs) from genome sequences of 154 purebred sires used in Cycle VII of the USMARC Germplasm Evaluation Project. These bulls represented the seven most popular beef breeds in the United States: Hereford, Charolais, Angus, Red Angus, Simmental, Gelbvieh and Limousin. The CNVRs covered 6.7% of the bovine genome and spanned 2465 protein‐coding genes and many known quantitative trait loci (QTL). Genes harbored in the CNVRs were further analyzed to determine their function as well as to find any breed‐specific differences that may shed light on breed differences in adaptation, health and production.
Chinese Stock Market Return Predictability: Adaptive Complete Subset Regressions
Authors: Chen Keqi , Chen Rui , Zhang Xueyong , Zhu Min
Published: October 2016

This paper proposes a new combination framework to explore the Chinese stock market return predictability. While most well‐known predictor variables and simple combinations fail to beat the historical average benchmark, our adaptive complete subset regressions deliver statistically and economically significant out‐of‐sample performance. The subset, in which each regression includes five predictors, produces a significant statistic of 8.00% for January 2006 to September 2014. A mean‐variance investor who uses the adaptive subset regressions forecasts, instead of the historical average forecasts, can obtain sizable utility gains of 7.60% per annum. The results of our paper suggest that there is significant predictability in the Chinese aggregate stock market portfolio.
Alpha‐gal is a possible target of IgE‐mediated reactivity to antivenom
Authors: Fischer J. , Eberlein B. , Hilger C. , Eyer F. , Eyerich S. , Ollert M. , Biedermann T.
Published: October 2016

Background

Antivenoms are mammalian immunoglobulins with the ability to neutralize snake venom components and to mitigate the progression of toxic effects. Immediate hypersensitivity to antivenoms often occurs during the first administration of these heterologous antibodies. A comparable clinical situation occurred after introduction of cetuximab, a chimeric mouse–human antibody, for cancer treatment. The carbohydrate epitope galactose‐alpha‐1,3‐galactose, located on the Fab region of cetuximab, was identified as the target responsible for IgE reactivity.

Objective

To investigate whether serum IgE antibodies directed to the α‐gal epitope are associated with hypersensitivity to equine antivenoms.

Methods

Antivenoms were screened for α‐gal epitopes via immunoblot and in comparison with cetuximab and pork kidney by IgE reactivity assays. Basophil activation tests were used to investigate reactivity to antivenoms in samples from 20 patients with specific IgE antibodies to α‐gal and 10 controls. Additional IgE detection, IgE inhibition, ImmunoCAP inhibition, and skin prick tests were performed using samples from selected patients.

Results

Both antivenoms and cetuximab induced positive skin prick test results in patients with sIgE to α‐gal. Alpha‐gal epitopes were detected by immunoblotting on antivenoms. Measurements of IgE reactivity and ImmunoCAP inhibition indicated that the antivenoms contained lower α‐gal contents than cetuximab. Deglycosylation assays and IgE inhibition tests confirmed that IgE‐mediated reactivity to antivenom is associated with α‐gal. Antivenoms, pork kidney, and cetuximab activated basophils from patients with IgE to α‐gal.

Conclusion

Alpha‐gal is a potential target of IgE‐mediated reactivity to equine antivenom and a possible cause of the high incidence of hypersensitivity reactions during the first application of equine antivenom.
Dynamic changes of the intraocular pressure and the pressure of cerebrospinal fluid in nonglaucomatous neurological patients
Authors: González‐Camarena Pedro Iván , San‐Juan Daniel , González‐Olhovich Irene , Rodríguez‐Arévalo David , Lozano‐Elizondo David , Trenado Carlos , Anschel David J.
Published: October 2016

Purpose

To describe the dynamic changes of the intraocular pressure (IOP) and intracranial pressure (ICP) with normal or pathological values (intracranial hypertension) in nonglaucomatous neurological patients during lumbar punction (LP).

Methods

Case–control study, prospective measurement of tonometry in both groups referred for LP. Intraocular pressure, ICP and translaminar pressure difference (TPD) were compared pre‐ and post‐LP.

Results

Thirty‐six patients (72 eyes) with mean age of 38.5 (16–64) years and BMI of 26.81 kg/m2 were analysed. The initial mean ICP was 12.81 (± 6.6) mmHg. The mean TPD before and after the LP was 1.48 mmHg and 0.65 mmHg, respectively. The mean IOP of both eyes decreased to 0.8 mmHg post‐LP in patients with pathological ICP (p = 0.0193) and normal ICP (p = 0.006).

Conclusions

We found a statistically significant decrease of the IOP post‐LP compared to the pre‐LP in both groups, being higher in patients with pathological ICP. There were no significant differences of the IOP in patients with normal versus pathological ICP pre‐LP/post‐LP; neither was found a correlation between ICP and IOP.
Retinal oxygen saturation before and after glaucoma surgery
Authors: Nitta Eri , Hirooka Kazuyuki , Shimazaki Takeru , Sato Shino , Ukegawa Kaori , Nakano Yuki , Tsujikawa Akitaka
Published: October 2016

Purpose

This study compared retinal vessel oxygen saturation before and after glaucoma surgery.

Methods

Retinal oxygen saturation in glaucoma patients was measured using a non‐invasive spectrophotometric retinal oximeter. Adequate image quality was found in 49 of the 108 consecutive glaucoma patients recruited, with 30 undergoing trabeculectomy, 11 EX‐PRESS and eight trabeculotomy. Retinal oxygen saturation measurements in the retinal arterioles and venules were performed at 1 day prior to and at approximately 10 days after surgery. Statistical analysis was performed using a Student's t‐test.

Results

After glaucoma surgery, intraocular pressure (IOP) decreased from 19.8 ± 7.7 mmHg to 9.0 ± 5.7 mmHg (p < 0.001). Although oxygen saturation in retinal arterioles remained unchanged before and after surgery (104.7 ± 10.6% before and 105.4 ± 9.3% after surgery, p = 0.58), the oxygen saturation in the venules increased from 54.9 ± 7.4% to 57.4 ± 5.7% (p = 0.01).

Conclusion

Intraocular pressure (IOP) decreases caused by glaucoma surgery had an effect on the retinal venous oxygen saturation.
Reader Reaction on Estimation of Treatment Effects in All-Comers Randomized Clinical Trials with a Predictive Marker
Authors: Korn Edward L. , Freidlin Boris
Published: October 2016

For a fallback randomized clinical trial design with a marker, Choai and Matsui (2015, Biometrics 71, 25–32) estimate the bias of the estimator of the treatment effect in the marker-positive subgroup conditional on the treatment effect not being statistically significant in the overall population. This is used to construct and examine conditionally bias-corrected estimators of the treatment effect for the marker-positive subgroup. We argue that it may not be appropriate to correct for conditional bias in this setting. Instead, we consider the unconditional bias of estimators of the treatment effect for marker-positive patients.
A Subgroup Cluster-Based Bayesian Adaptive Design for Precision Medicine
Authors: Guo Wentian , Ji Yuan , Catenacci Daniel V. T.
Published: October 2016

In precision medicine, a patient is treated with targeted therapies that are predicted to be effective based on the patient's baseline characteristics such as biomarker profiles. Oftentimes, patient subgroups are unknown and must be learned through inference using observed data. We present SCUBA, a Subgroup ClUster-based Bayesian Adaptive design aiming to fulfill two simultaneous goals in a clinical trial, 1) to treatments enrich the allocation of each subgroup of patients to their precision and desirable treatments and 2) to report multiple subgroup-treatment pairs (STPs). Using random partitions and semiparametric Bayesian models, SCUBA provides coherent and probabilistic assessment of potential patient subgroups and their associated targeted therapies. Each STP can then be used for future confirmatory studies for regulatory approval. Through extensive simulation studies, we present an application of SCUBA to an innovative clinical trial in gastroesphogeal cancer.
Alternating Logistic Regressions with Improved Finite Sample Properties
Authors: Perin Jamie , Preisser John S.
Published: October 2016

Alternating logistic regressions is an estimating equations procedure used to model marginal means of correlated binary outcomes while simultaneously specifying a within-cluster association model for log odds ratios of outcome pairs. A recent generalization of alternating logistic regressions, known as orthogonalized residuals, is extended to incorporate finite sample adjustments in the estimation of the log odds ratio model parameters for when there is a moderately small number of clusters. Bias adjustments are made both in the sandwich variance estimators and in the estimating equations for the association parameters. The proposed methods are demonstrated in a repeated cross-sectional cluster trial to reduce underage drinking in the United States, and in an analysis of dental caries incidence in a cluster randomized trial of 30 aboriginal communities in the Northern Territory of Australia. A simulation study demonstrates improved performance with respect to bias and coverage of their estimators relative to those based on the uncorrected orthogonalized residuals procedure.
Towards an event stratigraphy for Baltic Sea sediments deposited since AD 1900: approaches and challenges
Authors: Moros Matthias , Andersen Thorbjørn J. , Schulz‐Bull Detlef , Häusler Katharina , Bunke Dennis , Snowball Ian , Kotilainen Aarno , Zillén Lovisa , Jensen Jørn B. , Kabel Karoline , Hand Ines , Leipe Thomas , Lougheed Bryan C. , Wagner Bernd , Arz Helge W.
Published: October 2016

Reconstructions of environmental changes at sub‐decadal to decadal resolution based on central Baltic Sea sediments rely on accurate and precise high‐resolution sediment depth/age relationships. A model chronology for Baltic Sea sediments is presented here based on established historical records of anthropogenic radionuclides (137Cs/241Am/bomb14C), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), lead (Pb) and stable lead isotope (206/207Pb ratios), and radionuclide 210Pb and 14C decay dating methods. Marker horizons consisting of chemical precipitates formed by documented Major Baltic Inflow (MBIs) events and an extended diatom bloom period were also integrated into the model. The main time markers in Baltic Sea sediments that formed during the last 120 years were the following: (i) the deepest observation of 210Pbunsupp. (marking the 210Pb dating horizon) and departure of Hg from natural background levels at c. AD 1900; (ii) first detectable presence of PCBs at AD 1935; (iii) radionuclide production (i.e. 241Am) due to nuclear weapons testing between AD 1954 and AD 1975, with a peak in AD 1963; (iv) maximum heavy metal and PCB concentrations in the AD 1960s/1970s; (v) the Chernobyl nuclear accident in AD 1986 as a sharp 137Cs increase; (vi) exceptionally strong diatom blooms with a massive diatom layer found in the Eastern Gotland Basin in AD 1988–1990; and (vii) characteristic manganese‐carbonate layers in the deeper central basins formed by MBIs in AD 1993 and AD 2003. A precise and accurate sediment depth/age relationship can only be achieved in restricted areas of the Baltic Sea where continuous sedimentation has prevailed and there has been limited postdepositional disturbance. We demonstrate that parallel Hg and 137Cs measurements can be used to assess the quality of sediment sequences for high‐resolution environmental reconstructions. We show examples of sediment profiles that conform to the historical record, and examples from Western Baltic Sea areas where it appears to be impossible to establish accurate geochronologies.
The suppression of bromodomain and extra‐terminal domain inhibits vascular inflammation by blocking NF‐κB and MAPK activation
Authors: Huang Mingcheng , Zeng Shan , Zou Yaoyao , Shi Maohua , Qiu Qian , Xiao Youjun , Chen Guoqiang , Yang Xiuyan , Liang Liuqin , Xu Hanshi
Published: October 2016

Background and Purpose

There is increasing evidence indicating that bromodomain and extra‐terminal domain (BET) proteins play a critical role in the regulation of immune and inflammatory responses; however, their contribution to vascular inflammation has not yet been elucidated. In this study, we investigated the effect of inhibiting BET bromodomain on vascular inflammation and the underlying mechanisms.

Experimental Approach

HUVECs were isolated from fresh umbilical cords. JQ1, a specific BET bromodomain inhibitor, and Brd shRNA were used to evaluate the regulation of the BET proteins in vascular inflammation. Leukocyte adhesion to HUVECs was measure by an adhesion assay. Western blot or immunohistochemical analysis was used to detect the protein expression. Real‐time PCR was used to evaluate mRNA expression. Leukocyte accumulation in vivo was determined by an acute lung inflammation model.

Key Results

BET bromodomain inhibition suppressed the expression of adhesion molecules induced by TNF‐α‐ or LPS, including ICAM‐1, VCAM‐1 and E‐selectin, and inhibited leukocyte adhesion to activated HUVEC monolayers. Treatment with JQ1 also attenuated the LPS‐induced accumulation of leukocytes and expression of endothelial adhesion molecules in the acute lung inflammation model in vivo. Furthermore, BET bromodomain inhibition reduced the activity of p38 and JNK MAPKs and NF‐κB in TNF‐α‐stimulated HUVECs. TNF‐α‐induced NF‐κB activation was also blocked by inhibitors of p38 (SB203580) or JNK (SP600125).

Conclusions and Implications

BET bromodomain is important for regulating endothelial inflammation. Strategies targeting endothelial BET bromodomain may provide a new therapeutic approach for controlling inflammatory‐related diseases.
Distribution, physiology and pharmacology of relaxin‐3/RXFP3 systems in brain
Authors: Ma Sherie , Smith Craig M , Blasiak Anna , Gundlach Andrew L
Published: October 2016

Relaxin‐3 is a member of a superfamily of structurally‐related peptides that includes relaxin and insulin‐like peptide hormones. Soon after the discovery of the relaxin‐3 gene, relaxin‐3 was identified as an abundant neuropeptide in brain with a distinctive topographical distribution within a small number of GABAergic neuron populations that is well conserved across species. Relaxin‐3 is thought to exert its biological actions through a single class‐A GPCR – relaxin‐family peptide receptor 3 (RXFP3). Class‐A comprises GPCRs for relaxin‐3 and insulin‐like peptide‐5 and other peptides such as orexin and the monoamine transmitters. The RXFP3 receptor is selectively activated by relaxin‐3, whereas insulin‐like peptide‐5 is the cognate ligand for the related RXFP4 receptor. Anatomical and pharmacological evidence obtained over the last decade supports a function of relaxin‐3/RXFP3 systems in modulating responses to stress, anxiety‐related and motivated behaviours, circadian rhythms, and learning and memory. Electrophysiological studies have identified the ability of RXFP3 agonists to directly hyperpolarise thalamic neurons in vitro, but there are no reports of direct cell signalling effects in vivo. This article provides an overview of earlier studies and highlights more recent research that implicates relaxin‐3/RXFP3 neural network signalling in the integration of arousal, motivation, emotion and related cognition, and that has begun to identify the associated neural substrates and mechanisms. Future research directions to better elucidate the connectivity and function of different relaxin‐3 neuron populations and their RXFP3‐positive target neurons in major experimental species and humans are also identified.

Linked Articles

This article is part of a themed section on Recent Progress in the Understanding of Relaxin Family Peptides and their Receptors. To view the other articles in this section visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/bph.v174.10/issuetoc
Examining dental expenditure and dental insurance accounting for probability of incurring expenses
Authors: Teusner Dana , Smith Valerie , Gnanamanickam Emmanuel , Brennan David
Published: October 2016

Objectives

There are few studies of dental service expenditure in Australia. Although dental insurance status is strongly associated with a higher probability of dental visiting, some studies indicate that there is little variation in expenditure by insurance status among those who attend for care. Our objective was to assess the overall impact of insurance on expenditures by modelling the association between insurance and expenditure accounting for variation in the probability of incurring expenses, that is dental visiting.

Methods

A sample of 3000 adults (aged 30–61 years) was randomly selected from the Australian electoral roll. Dental service expenditures were collected prospectively over 2 years by client‐held log books. Questionnaires collecting participant characteristics were administered at baseline, 12 months and 24 months. Unadjusted and adjusted ratios of expenditure were estimated using marginalized two‐part log‐skew‐normal models. Such models accommodate highly skewed data and estimate effects of covariates on the overall marginal mean while accounting for the probability of incurring expenses.

Results

Baseline response was 39%; of these, 40% (n = 438) were retained over the 2‐year period. Only participants providing complete data were included in the analysis (n = 378). Of these, 68.5% were insured, and 70.9% accessed dental services of which nearly all (97.7%) incurred individual dental expenses. The mean dental service expenditure for the total sample (those who did and did not attend) for dental care was AUS$788. Model‐adjusted ratios of mean expenditures were higher for the insured (1.61; 95% CI 1.18, 2.20), females (1.38; 95% CI 1.06, 1.81), major city residents (1.43; 95% CI 1.10, 1.84) and those who brushed their teeth twice or more a day (1.50; 95% CI 1.15, 1.96) than their respective counterparts.

Conclusion

Accounting for the probability of incurring dental expenses, and other explanatory factors, insured working‐aged adults had (on average) approximately 60% higher individual dental service expenditures than uninsured adults. The analytical approach adopted in this study is useful for estimating effects on dental expenditure when a variable is associated with both the probability of visiting for care, and with the types of services received.
T cell receptor repertoires after adoptive transfer of expanded allogeneic regulatory T cells
Authors: Theil A , Wilhelm C , Kuhn M , Petzold A , Tuve S , Oelschlägel U , Dahl A , Bornhäuser M , Bonifacio E , Eugster A
Published: October 2016

Regulatory T cell (Treg) therapy has been exploited in autoimmune disease, solid organ transplantation and in efforts to prevent or treat graft-versus-host disease (GVHD). However, our knowledge on the in-vivo persistence of transfused Treg is limited. Whether Treg transfusion leads to notable changes in the overall Treg repertoire or whether longevity of Treg in the periphery is restricted to certain clones is unknown. Here we use T cell receptor alpha chain sequencing (TCR-α-NGS) to monitor changes in the repertoire of Treg upon polyclonal expansion and after subsequent adoptive transfer. We applied TCR-α-NGS to samples from two patients with chronic GVHD who received comparable doses of stem cell donor derived expanded Treg. We found that in-vitro polyclonal expansion led to notable repertoire changes in vitro and that Treg cell therapy altered the peripheral Treg repertoire considerably towards that of the infused cell product, to different degrees, in each patient. Clonal changes in the peripheral blood were transient and correlated well with the clinical parameters. We suggest that T cell clonotype analyses using TCR sequencing should be considered as a means to monitor longevity and fate of adoptively transferred T cells.
A preliminary study of new single polymorphisms in the T helper type 17 pathway for psoriasis in the Korean population
Authors: Kim S Y , Hur M S , Choi B G , Kim M J , Lee Y W , Choe Y B , Ahn K J
Published: October 2016

Psoriasis is a polygenic and multi-factorial disease showing ethnic differences in terms of its severity and frequency. Therapies targeting interleukin (IL)−17A, IL-17 receptor (IL-17R) and Janus kinases (JAKs) are in clinical development for the treatment of psoriasis, and their success suggests the essential role of these molecules in psoriasis. To investigate the genetic susceptibility in T helper type 17 (Th17) cell signal transduction pathways for promoting psoriasis, we performed candidate gene and linkage disequilibrium analysis. In 208 patients and 266 normal controls, we analysed 31 single nucleotide polymorphisms in 12 genes (CAMP, IL17A, IL17F, IL17RA, IL22, JAK1, JAK2, JAK3, STAT3, TLR7, TLR9 and TYK2; abbreviations: CAMP, human cathelicidin antimicrobial peptide; STAT-3, signal transducer and activator of transcription 3; TLR, Toll-like receptor; TYK2, tyrosine kinase 2). Patients with psoriasis showed a strong association for IL17F rs763780 [odds ratio (OR) = 3·27, P = 0·04], which results in a histidine-to-arginine substitution, and JAK2 rs2274471 (OR = 2·66, P = 0·02). In addition, JAK2 rs7849191 showed a protective pattern, met the significance threshold (OR = 0·77, P = 0·05) and showed a tendency for an inverse association with the frequency of early-onset psoriasis under age 40 years (P = 0·07). In haplotype analysis, JAK1 rs310241A/rs2780889T showed a protective effect (OR = 0·73, P = 0·03) in psoriasis. In conclusion, we report two new psoriasis-susceptibility loci, in IL17F and JAK2, as well as a newly identified late-onset associated protective JAK2 locus and a protective JAK1 haplotype in the Korean population.
Extracting Sharp Features from RGB‐D Images
Authors: Cao Y‐P. , Ju T. , Xu J. , Hu S‐M.
Published: October 2016

Sharp edges are important shape features and their extraction has been extensively studied both on point clouds and surfaces. We consider the problem of extracting sharp edges from a sparse set of colour‐and‐depth (RGB‐D) images. The noise‐ridden depth measurements are challenging for existing feature extraction methods that work solely in the geometric domain (e.g. points or meshes). By utilizing both colour and depth information, we propose a novel feature extraction method that produces much cleaner and more coherent feature lines. We make two technical contributions. First, we show that intensity edges can augment the depth map to improve normal estimation and feature localization from a single RGB‐D image. Second, we designed a novel algorithm for consolidating feature points obtained from multiple RGB‐D images. By utilizing normals and ridge/valley types associated with the feature points, our algorithm is effective in suppressing noise without smearing nearby features.
MicroRNA‐203 inhibits tumour growth and metastasis through PDPN
Authors: Wang L. , Mou Y. , Meng D. , Sun Y. , Chen X. , Yang X. , Jia C. , Song X. , Li X.
Published: October 2016

Objective

MicroRNAs play an important role in regulating hypopharyngeal cancer development. miR‐203 has been previously shown to possess antitumour capabilities in many cancers, but not in hypopharyngeal cancer.

Design

Using human normal and hypopharyngeal cancer specimens, we explored the expression levels of miR‐203 in the two groups and further correlated them with different stages of cancer and lymph node metastasis.

Setting and participants

Applying human pharynx FaDu cancer cells and lentiviral transduction technique, we investigated the effects of miR‐203 on cancer cell viability, migration and invasion. Moreover, we studied the novel relationship between miR‐203 and podoplanin (PDPN) in hypopharyngeal cancer.

Results

The downregulated levels of miR‐203 in human hypopharyngeal cancer tissues were associated with advanced cancer stages and lymph node metastasis. High levels of miR‐203 inhibited cell viability, migration and invasion of hypopharyngeal cancer cells. Further studies suggested miR‐203 directly targeted and inhibited PDPN expression. PDPN silencing suppresses hypopharyngeal cancer cell abilities. In addition, PDPN overexpression was able to reverse miR‐203 inhibitory effects on cell viability, migration and invasion.

Conclusion

PDPN acts as an oncogene to promote hypopharyngeal cancer cell viability, migration and invasion. miR‐203 directly targets PDPN to suppress its expression, thus exerting inhibitory effects on cancer metastasis.
The influences and outcomes of phonological awareness: a study of MA, PA and auditory processing in pre‐readers with a family risk of dyslexia
Authors: Law Jeremy M , Wouters Jan , Ghesquière Pol
Published: October 2016

The direct influence of phonological awareness (PA) on reading outcomes has been widely demonstrated, yet PA may also exert indirect influence on reading outcomes through other cognitive variables such as morphological awareness (MA). However, PA's own development is dependent and influenced by many extraneous variables such as auditory processing, which could ultimately impact reading outcomes. In a group of pre‐reading children with a family risk of dyslexia and low‐risk controls, this study sets out to answer questions surrounding PA's relationship at various grain sizes (syllable, onset/rime and phoneme) with measures of auditory processing (frequency modulation (FM) and an amplitude rise‐time task (RT)) and MA, independent of reading experience. Group analysis revealed significant differences between high‐ and low‐risk children on measures of MA, and PA at all grain sizes, while a trend for lower RT thresholds of high‐risk children was found compared with controls. Correlational analysis demonstrated that MA is related to the composite PA score and syllable awareness. Group differences on MA and PA were re‐examined including PA and MA, respectively, as control variables. Results exposed PA as a relevant component of MA, independent of reading experience.
What It's Like To Have a Cognitive Home
Authors: Duncan Matt
Published: October 2016

Many people believe that the mind is an epistemic refuge of sorts. The idea is that when it comes to certain core mental states, one's being in such a state automatically puts one in a position to know that one is in that state. This idea has come under attack in recent years. One particularly influential attack comes from Timothy Williamson (2000), who argues that there is no central core of states or conditions—mental or otherwise—to which we are guaranteed epistemic access. In Williamson's words, we are cognitively homeless. In this paper I will argue that Williamson's argument for the conclusion that we are cognitively homeless fails. Then I will show that there is a class of phenomenal states that constitutes a substantial cognitive refuge. When all is said and done, I will have both defended and shed light on our cognitive home.
Nietzsche, Nature, Nurture
Authors: Ridley Aaron
Published: October 2016

Nietzsche claims that we are fated to be as we are. He also claims, however, that we can create ourselves. To many commentators these twin commitments have seemed self‐contradictory or paradoxical. The argument of this paper, by contrast, is that, despite appearances, there is no paradox here, nor even a tension between Nietzsche's two claims. Instead, when properly interpreted these claims turn out to be intimately related to one another, so that our fatedness (and our acknowledgement of our fatedness) emerges as integral to our capacity to become self‐creators. The paper also offers, in the course of undermining a false alternative that is deeply entrenched in the philosophical tradition, a reading of Nietzsche's doctrine of amor fati that actually – and perhaps uniquely – makes full sense of section 276 of The Gay Science, the chief source for this aspect of his thought.
Diversity and detections of Phytophthora species from trade and non‐trade environments in Ireland
Authors: O'Hanlon R. , Choiseul J. , Corrigan M. , Catarame T. , Destefanis M.
Published: October 2016

The genus Phytophthora is one of the genera of organisms that poses the most threat to plant health worldwide. Statutory monitoring for Phytophthora species focuses on the species regulated in the European Union and recommended for regulation by EPPO (Plant Health Directive 2000/29 EC and the EPPO A2 List). This research provides details of the Phytophthora species detected from trade and non‐trade environments in Ireland between 2013 and 2015. The results of statutory surveys for the regulated species Phytophthora ramorum, Phytophthora kernoviae and Phytophthora lateralis from 2003 to 2015 are also presented. Testing of more than 11 000 samples was carried out using morphological and/or DNA identification with specifically designed Phytophthora conserved primers. This led to the detection of 19 species and 3 informally designated taxa of Phytophthora, including 8 new records for Ireland. Eight species were found in both trade and non‐trade locations, and three informally designated taxa were also detected. Phytophthora ramorum was found on the most hosts (30 hosts), followed by Phytophthora syringae (6 hosts) and Phytophthora kernoviae (3 hosts). Rhododendron was the host on which Phytophthora species were most frequently detected (12 Phytophthora species). The role of the plant trade in spreading invasive Phytophthora species is discussed.
Ramex‐Forum: a tool for displaying and analysing complex sequential patterns of financial products
Authors: Tiple Pedro , Cavique Luis , Cavalheiro Marques Nuno
Published: October 2016

Financial data provides a valuable up‐to‐date knowledge of the world economy. However, it is presented in extremely large data volumes, in diverse formats, and is constantly being updated at a high speed. The Ramex‐Forum algorithm is oriented to guide financial experts in finding new and relevant information. We present a sensitivity analysis and new visualizations using an improved version of the Ramex‐Forum algorithm. The proposed algorithm is applied to two case studies – the petroleum production chain and the European financial institutions risk analysis. Different combinations of parameters and new ways to visualize data are used. Results highlight the importance of Ramex‐Forum for analysing relevant relationships in price variations in financial markets.
Longitudinal Effects of Latino Parent Cultural Stress, Depressive Symptoms, and Family Functioning on Youth Emotional Well‐Being and Health Risk Behaviors
Authors: Lorenzo‐Blanco Elma I. , Meca Alan , Unger Jennifer B. , Romero Andrea , Szapocznik José , Piña‐Watson Brandy , Cano Miguel Ángel , Zamboanga Byron L. , Baezconde‐Garbanati Lourdes , Des Rosiers Sabrina E. , Soto Daniel W. , Villamar Juan A. , Lizzi Karina M. , Pattarroyo Monica , Schwartz Seth J.
Published: October 2016

U.S. Latino parents can face cultural stressors in the form of acculturative stress, perceived discrimination, and a negative context of reception. It stands to reason that these cultural stressors may negatively impact Latino youth's emotional well‐being and health risk behaviors by increasing parents' depressive symptoms and compromising the overall functioning of the family. To test this possibility, we analyzed data from a six‐wave longitudinal study with 302 recently immigrated (<5 years in the United States) Latino parents (74% mothers, Mage = 41.09 years) and their adolescent children (47% female, Mage = 14.51 years). Results of a cross‐lagged analysis indicated that parent cultural stress predicted greater parent depressive symptoms (and not vice versa). Both parent cultural stress and depressive symptoms, in turn, predicted lower parent‐reported family functioning, which mediated the links from parent cultural stress and depressive symptoms to youth alcohol and cigarette use. Parent cultural stress also predicted lower youth‐reported family functioning, which mediated the link from parent cultural stress to youth self‐esteem. Finally, mediation analyses indicated that parent cultural stress predicted youth alcohol use by a way of parent depressive symptoms and parent‐reported family functioning. Our findings point to parent depressive symptoms and family functioning as key mediators in the links from parent cultural stress to youth emotional well‐being and health risk behaviors. We discuss implications for research and preventive interventions.
Hyperprolactinemia in end‐stage renal disease and effects of frequent hemodialysis
Authors: Lo Joan C. , Beck Gerald J. , Kaysen George A. , Chan Christopher T. , Kliger Alan S. , Rocco Michael V. , Chertow Glenn M. ,   for the FHN Study
Published: October 2016

Introduction: End‐stage renal disease is associated with elevations in circulating prolactin concentrations, but the association of prolactin concentrations with intermediate health outcomes and the effects of hemodialysis frequency on changes in serum prolactin have not been examined.

Methods: The FHN Daily and Nocturnal Dialysis Trials compared the effects of conventional thrice weekly hemodialysis with in‐center daily hemodialysis (6 days/week) and nocturnal home hemodialysis (6 nights/week) over 12 months and obtained measures of health‐related quality of life, self‐reported physical function, mental health and cognition. Serum prolactin concentrations were measured at baseline and 12‐month follow‐up in 70% of the FHN Trial cohort to examine the associations among serum prolactin concentrations and physical, mental and cognitive function and the effects of hemodialysis frequency on serum prolactin.

Findings: Among 177 Daily Trial and 60 Nocturnal Trial participants with baseline serum prolactin measurements, the median serum prolactin concentration was 65 ng/mL (25th–75th percentile 48–195 ng/mL) and 81% had serum prolactin concentrations >30 ng/mL. While serum prolactin was associated with sex (higher in women), we observed no association between baseline serum prolactin and age, dialysis vintage, and baseline measures of physical, mental and cognitive function. Furthermore, there was no significant effect of hemodialysis frequency on serum prolactin in either of the two trials.

Discussion: Serum prolactin concentrations were elevated in the large majority of patients with ESRD, but were not associated with several measures of health status. Circulating prolactin levels also do not appear to decrease in response to more frequent hemodialysis over a one‐year period.
Amitriptyline Dose and Treatment Outcomes in Specialty Headache Practice: A Retrospective Cohort Study
Authors: Doyle Strauss Lauren , Weizenbaum Emma , Loder Elizabeth W. , Rizzoli Paul B.
Published: October 2016

Objective

To characterize treatment patterns and real world outcomes in headache patients treated with amitriptyline in an academic headache center.

Design and methods

A retrospective chart review identified 178 patients in our center who were given a new prescription for amitriptyline in treatment of headache, and who were seen in follow‐up within one year. Charts were reviewed to identify dosing patterns (initial and maximum dose) and persistence, patient‐reported headache benefit, and reported side effects. Variables assessed in relation to medication use were comorbid psychiatric disease, headache characteristics, and prior use of a preventive medication.

Results

We followed patients for an average of 6.5 months. Initial and maximum prescribed amitriptyline doses were characterized as: “very low” (≤10 mg daily), “low” (11–25 mg daily), and “traditional” (≥25 mg daily). The initial dose of amitriptyline ranged from 2.5 to 50 mg daily, though most patients were started on a dose of 10 mg daily (112/178, 63%). Approximately 3/4 of the patients were found to have improvement (134/178) and 85% (129/151) were still taking amitriptyline at the last follow‐up appointment. Maximum dosing ranged from 2.5 to 100 mg daily with most patients taking 10–25 mg (86/146, 58%). The most commonly reported adverse effect was daytime fatigue (17/151, 11%). There did not appear to be any effect from gender, ethnicity, race, diagnosis of sleep apnea, chronicity of migraine, presence of aura on our outcome measures.

Conclusion

Our study supports the common clinical practice of using low doses of amitriptyline to treat chronic headache disorders and suggests that it was effective and well tolerated at doses lower than those used in many clinical trials. Use of low dosage amitriptyline may also improve medication persistence, an important clinical consideration in the management of this common and chronic condition. A subgroup of patients may experience a dramatic benefit from amitriptyline and this could warrant further investigation.
Desegregation's Architects: Education Parks and the Spatial Ideology of Schooling
Authors: Erickson Ansley T.
Published: October 2016

From the early 1960s through the early 1970s, a new idea drew the interest of local leaders and national networks of educators seeking to further desegregation but concerned about how to do so within the bounds of white resistance. Huge single- or multischool campuses, called education parks, would draw students from broad geographical areas and facilitate desegregation. But in the design and location choices for these imagined (but often not realized) education parks, desegregation advocates revealed a spatial ideology of schooling that reflected both a rejection of racialized black spaces and an antiurban, modernist aesthetic. Beyond recognizing the place of spatial ideology in desegregation advocacy, this article suggests that historians of education listen for ideas about space and their impact in other areas of educational history.
The Dynamics of Service User Participation and Compliance in Community Justice Settings
Authors: UGWUDIKE PAMELA
Published: October 2016

This article draws on insights from within and beyond the parameters of criminal justice research, and from key models of community justice supervision, to illuminate the dynamics of service user participation and compliance in community justice settings. In doing so, the article provides a multifaceted analysis of how service user participation in setting the goals of supervision intersects with factors that could engender compliance. It identifies these factors as: service user agency; positive self‐identity; empowerment; self‐efficacy; and responsive services. Several complexities vitiate service user participation. The article proposes the co‐production of compliance as an antidote that can neutralise the complexities.
Size and material of model parasitic eggs affect the rejection response of Western Bonelli's Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli
Authors: Roncalli Gianluca , Ibáñez‐Álamo Juan Diego , Soler Manuel
Published: October 2016

Given the high costs of brood parasitism, avian hosts have adopted different defences to counteract parasites by ejecting the foreign egg or by deserting the parasitized nest. These responses depend mainly on the relative size of the host compared with the parasitic egg. Small hosts must deal with an egg considerably larger than their own, so nest desertion becomes the only possible method of egg rejection in these cases. The use of artificial model eggs made of hard material in egg‐recognition experiments has been criticized because hard eggs underestimate the frequency of egg ejection. However, no available studies have investigated the effect of softer material. Here, we test the potential effect of size of dummy parasitic eggs in relation to egg‐rejection behaviour (egg ejection and nest desertion rates) in Western Bonelli's Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli, a small host, using plasticine non‐mimetic eggs of three different sizes. In addition, we tested the potential effect of material, comparing ejection and desertion responses between real and plasticine eggs. As predicted, small eggs were always ejected, whereas nest desertion occurred more frequently with large eggs, thus suggesting that nest desertion occurs because of the constraints imposed by the large eggs. We found that plasticine may misrepresent the responses to experimental parasitism, at least in small host species, because this material facilitates egg ejection, provoking a decrease in nest desertion rate. Thus, particular caution is needed in the interpretation of the results in egg‐rejection experiments performed using dummy eggs made of soft materials.