bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pharmacological polysulfide suppresses glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in an ATP-sensitive potassium channel-dependent manner
Authors: Shoji Tomohiro , Hayashi Mikio , Sumi Chisato , Kusunoki Munenori , Uba Takeo , Matsuo Yoshiyuki , Kimura Hideo , Hirota Kiichi 
Published: December 2019

AbstractHydrogen sulfide (H2S) is an endogenous gaseous transmitter synthesized in various cell types. It is well established that H2S functions in many physiological processes, including the relaxation of vascular smooth muscle, mediation of neurotransmission, regulation of inflammation, and modulation of insulin signaling. In recent years, it has been revealed that polysulfides, substances with a varying number of sulfur atoms (H2Sn), are generated endogenously from H2S in the presence of oxygen. A series of studies describes that sulfane sulfur has the unique ability to bind reversibly to other sulfur atoms to form hydropersulfides and polysulfides, and that polysulfides activate ion channels and promote calcium influx. Furthermore, polysulfides regulate tumor suppressor activity, promote the activation of transcription factors targeting antioxidant genes and regulate blood pressure by vascular smooth muscle relaxation. Insulin secretion from pancreatic β cells plays a critical role in response to increased blood glucose concentration. H2S has emerged as an important regulator of glycemic control and exhibits characteristic regulation of glucose homeostasis. However, the effects of polysulfides on glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) are largely unknown. In this study, we demonstrated that pharmacological polysulfide salts including Na2S2, Na2S3, and Na2S4 considerably inhibit GSIS in mouse and rat pancreatic β-cell-derived MIN6 and INS-1 cell lines, and that the effect is dependent on the activation of ATP-sensitive potassium channels. In addition, we demonstrated that a mixture of Na2S and diethylamine NONOate inhibits GSIS in a similar way to the pharmacological administration of polysulfide salts.
The relationship between the gut microbiome and mild cognitive impairment in patients without dementia: a cross-sectional study conducted in Japan
Authors: Saji Naoki , Murotani Kenta , Hisada Takayoshi , Tsuduki Tsuyoshi , Sugimoto Taiki , Kimura Ai , Niida Shumpei , Toba Kenji , Sakurai Takashi 
Published: December 2019

AbstractRecent studies have revealed an association between the dysregulation of the gut microbiome and dementia. However, whether this dysregulation is associated with mild cognitive impairment (MCI), an early stage of cognitive decline, in patients without dementia remains unclear. We performed a cross-sectional analysis to determine the association between the gut microbiome and MCI. Data, including patient demographics, risk factors, cognitive function, and brain imaging, were collected. The gut microbiome was assessed through terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis. Multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify factors independently associated with MCI. Graphical modelling was used to illustrate mutual associations between MCI and identified factors. We analysed 82 patients, 61 of whom exhibited MCI. Patients with MCI had a higher prevalence of Bacteroides. Furthermore, patients with more Bacteroides were more likely to present with white matter hyperintensity and high voxel-based specific regional analysis system for Alzheimer’s Disease (VSRAD) scores, indicating cortical and hippocampal atrophy. A multivariable logistic regression analysis revealed that a greater prevalence of Bacteroides was independently associated with MCI. Graphical modelling also showed a close association between Bacteroides and MCI. In conclusion, an increased prevalence of Bacteroides is independently associated with the presence of MCI in patients without dementia.
Optimization of heterotrophic cultivation of Chlorella sp. HS2 using screening, statistical assessment, and validation
Authors: Kim Hee Su , Park Won-Kun , Lee Bongsoo , Seon Gyeongho , Suh William I. , Moon Myounghoon , Chang Yong Keun 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThe heterotrophic cultivation of microalgae has a number of notable advantages, which include allowing high culture density levels as well as enabling the production of biomass in consistent and predictable quantities. In this study, the full potential of Chlorella sp. HS2 is explored through optimization of the parameters for its heterotrophic cultivation. First, carbon and nitrogen sources were screened in PhotobioBox. Initial screening using the Plackett-Burman design (PBD) was then adopted and the concentrations of the major nutrients (glucose, sodium nitrate, and dipotassium phosphate) were optimized via response surface methodology (RSM) with a central composite design (CCD). Upon validation of the model via flask-scale cultivation, the optimized BG11 medium was found to result in a three-fold improvement in biomass amounts, from 5.85 to 18.13 g/L, in comparison to a non-optimized BG11 medium containing 72 g/L glucose. Scaling up the cultivation to a 5-L fermenter resulted in a greatly improved biomass concentration of 35.3 g/L owing to more efficient oxygenation of the culture. In addition, phosphorus feeding fermentation was employed in an effort to address early depletion of phosphate, and a maximum biomass concentration of 42.95 g/L was achieved, with biomass productivity of 5.37 g/L/D.
Triple-marker cardiac MRI detects sequential tissue changes of healing myocardium after a hydrogel-based therapy
Authors: van den Boomen Maaike , Kause Hanne B. , van Assen Hans C. , Dankers Patricia Y. W. , Bouten Carlijn V. C. , Vandoorne Katrien 
Published: December 2019

AbstractRegenerative therapies based on injectable biomaterials, hold an unparalleled potential for treating myocardial ischemia. Yet, noninvasive evaluation of their efficacy has been lagging behind. Here, we report the development and longitudinal application of multiparametric cardiac magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to evaluate a hydrogel-based cardiac regenerative therapy. A pH-switchable hydrogel was loaded with slow releasing insulin growth factor 1 and vascular endothelial growth factor, followed by intramyocardial injection in a mouse model of ischemia reperfusion injury. Longitudinal cardiac MRI assessed three hallmarks of cardiac regeneration: angiogenesis, resolution of fibrosis and (re)muscularization after infarction. The multiparametric approach contained dynamic contrast enhanced MRI that measured improved vessel features by assessing fractional blood volume and permeability*surface area product, T1-mapping that displayed reduced fibrosis, and tagging MRI that showed improved regional myocardial strain in hydrogel treated infarcts. Finally, standard volumetric MRI demonstrated improved left ventricular functioning in hydrogel treated mice followed over time. Histology confirmed MR-based vessel features and fibrotic measurements. Our novel triple-marker strategy enabled detection of ameliorated regeneration in hydrogel treated hearts highlighting the translational potential of these longitudinal MRI approaches.
PPIP5K2 and PCSK1 are Candidate Genetic Contributors to Familial Keratoconus
Authors: Khaled Mariam Lofty , Bykhovskaya Yelena , Gu Chunfang , Liu Alice , Drewry Michelle D. , Chen Zhong , Mysona Barbara A. , Parker Emily , McNabb Ryan P. , Yu Hongfang , Lu Xiaowen , Wang Jing , Li Xiaohui , Al-Muammar Abdulrahman , Rotter Jerome I. , Porter Louise F. , Estes Amy , Watsky Mitchell A. , Smith Sylvia B. , Xu Hongyan , Abu-Amero Khaled K. , Kuo Anthony , Shears Stephen B. , Rabinowitz Yaron S. , Liu Yutao 
Published: December 2019

AbstractKeratoconus (KC) is the most common corneal ectatic disorder affecting >300,000 people in the US. KC normally has its onset in adolescence, progressively worsening through the third to fourth decades of life. KC patients report significant impaired vision-related quality of life. Genetic factors play an important role in KC pathogenesis. To identify novel genes in familial KC patients, we performed whole exome and genome sequencing in a four-generation family. We identified potential variants in the PPIP5K2 and PCSK1 genes. Using in vitro cellular model and in vivo gene-trap mouse model, we found critical evidence to support the role of PPIP5K2 in normal corneal function and KC pathogenesis. The gene-trap mouse showed irregular corneal surfaces and pathological corneal thinning resembling KC. For the first time, we have integrated corneal tomography and pachymetry mapping into characterization of mouse corneal phenotypes which could be widely implemented in basic and translational research for KC diagnosis and therapy in the future.
Ganglioside GM2, highly expressed in the MIA PaCa-2 pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma cell line, is correlated with growth, invasion, and advanced stage
Authors: Sasaki Norihiko , Hirabayashi Kenichi , Michishita Masaki , Takahashi Kimimasa , Hasegawa Fumio , Gomi Fujiya , Itakura Yoko , Nakamura Naoya , Toyoda Masashi , Ishiwata Toshiyuki 
Published: December 2019

AbstractGangliosides, a group of glycosphingolipids, are known to be cell surface markers and functional factors in several cancers. However, the association between gangliosides and pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) has not been well elucidated. In this study, we examined the expression and roles of ganglioside GM2 in PDAC. GM2+ cells showed a higher growth rate than GM2− cells in the adherent condition. When GM2– and GM2+ cells were cultured three-dimensionally, almost all cells in the spheres expressed GM2, including cancer stem cell (CSC)-like cells. A glycolipid synthesis inhibitor reduced GM2 expression and TGF-β1 signaling in these CSC-like cells, presumably by inhibiting the interaction between GM2 and TGFβ RII and suppressing invasion. Furthermore, suppression of GM2 expression by MAPK inhibition also reduced TGF-β1 signaling and suppressed invasion. GM2+ cells formed larger subcutaneous tumors at a high incidence in nude mice than did GM2– cells. In PDAC cases, GM2 expression was significantly associated with younger age, larger tumor size, advanced stage and higher histological grade. These findings suggest that GM2 could be used as a novel diagnostic and therapeutic target for PDAC.
Small nutrient molecules in fruit fuel efficient digestion and mutualism with plants in frugivorous bats
Authors: Moreno S. Andrea , Gelambi Mariana , Biganzoli Alejandro , Molinari Jesús 
Published: December 2019

AbstractFrugivorous bats often possess short intestines, and digest rapidly. These characters are thought to be weight-saving adaptations for flight. The hypothesis that they limit digestive efficiency was tested by assaying glucose and protein in fecal samples of a free-ranging bat, and in fruit of its main food plant. To assure the correct calculation of digestive efficiencies, seeds were used as a mass marker for nutrients in fruit and feces. Glucose represents 32.86%, and protein 0.65%, of the nutrient content of fruit. Digestive efficiencies for these nutrients respectively are 92.46% and 84.44%, clearly negating the hypothesis for glucose. Few studies have quantified protein in fruit. Instead, “crude protein”, a dietary parameter solely based on nitrogen determinations, is used as a surrogate of protein content. This study shows that, for fruit consumed by bats, crude protein estimates typically are much greater than true protein values, implying that a large fraction of the crude protein reported in previous studies consists of free amino acids. The rapid digestion of frugivores has the potential to limit protein digestion, thus it may require free amino acids for efficient assimilation of nitrogen; therefore, the crude protein approach is inadequate for the fruit that they consume because it does not differentiate free amino acids from protein. Adding simple sugars and free amino acids, instead of protein, to fruit reduce metabolic costs for plants. Direct assimilation of these small nutrient molecules increases digestive and foraging efficiencies. Both factors contribute to the persistence of the mutualism between plants and frugivores, with community-wide repercussions.
Validation of peripheral arterial tonometry as tool for sleep assessment in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease
Authors: Holmedahl Nils Henrik , Fjeldstad Odd-Magne , Engan Harald , Saxvig Ingvild West , Grønli Janne 
Published: December 2019

AbstractObstructive sleep apnea (OSA) worsens outcomes in Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and reduced sleep quality is common in these patients. Thus, objective sleep monitoring is needed, but polysomnography (PSG) is cumbersome and costly. The WatchPAT determines sleep by a pre-programmed algorithm and has demonstrated moderate agreement with PSG in detecting sleep stages in normal subjects and in OSA patients. Here, we validated WatchPAT against PSG in COPD patients, hypothesizing agreement in line with previous OSA studies. 16 COPD patients (7 men, mean age 61 years), underwent simultaneous overnight recordings with PSG and WatchPAT. Accuracy in wake and sleep staging, and concordance regarding total sleep time (TST), sleep efficiency (SE), and apnea hypopnea index (AHI) was calculated. Compared to the best fit PSG score, WatchPAT obtained 93% sensitivity (WatchPAT = sleep when PSG = sleep), 52% specificity (WatchPAT = wake when PSG = wake), 86% positive and 71% negative predictive value, Cohen’s Kappa (κ) = 0.496. Overall agreement between WatchPat and PSG in detecting all sleep stages was 63%, κ = 0.418. The mean(standard deviation) differences in TST, SE and AHI was 25(61) minutes (p = 0.119), 5(15) % (p = 0.166), and 1(5) (p = 0.536), respectively. We conclude that in COPD-patients, WatchPAT detects sleep stages in moderate to fair agreement with PSG, and AHI correlates well.
Assessment of Aggregation Frameworks for Composite Indicators in Measuring Flood Vulnerability to Climate Change
Authors: Il Choi Hyun 
Published: December 2019

AbstractThe IPCC Third Assessment Report presents a conceptual framework for vulnerability to climate change with the three attribute components of exposure, sensitivity, and coping. Since the vulnerability assessments have been conducted mainly by the composite indicators aggregated from the IPCC’s components, it is necessary to assess aggregation frameworks for constructing the composite indicators that have an influence on vulnerability assessment outcomes. This study therefore investigates the robustness of assessment outcomes for flood vulnerability to climate change through a comparative analysis of the six vulnerability indicators aggregated from the IPCC’s components by the conventional aggregation frameworks. The comparative analysis has been illustrated through both the possible combinations of reference values for vulnerability attribute components and a case study on the flood vulnerability assessment to climate change for coastal areas in the Republic of Korea. The study demonstrates that there can be large fluctuations and reversals in ranking orders across the six vulnerability outcomes by different aggregation frameworks. It concludes that for flood vulnerability assessment to climate change in coastal areas, the vulnerability indicator needs to be aggregated by a multiplicative utility function from all the three assessment components with positive elasticity to vulnerability.
Monocytes undergo multi-step differentiation in mice during oral infection by Toxoplasma gondii
Authors: Detavernier Aurélie , Azouz Abdulkader , Shehade Hussein , Splittgerber Marion , Van Maele Laurye , Nguyen Muriel , Thomas Séverine , Achouri Younes , Svec David , Calonne Emilie , Fuks François , Oldenhove Guillaume , Goriely Stanislas 
Published: December 2019

AbstractMonocytes play a major role in the defense against pathogens. They are rapidly mobilized to inflamed sites where they exert both proinflammatory and regulatory effector functions. It is still poorly understood how this dynamic and exceptionally plastic system is controlled at the molecular level. Herein, we evaluated the differentiation process that occurs in Ly6Chi monocytes during oral infection by Toxoplasma gondii. Flow cytometry and single-cell analysis revealed distinct activation status and gene expression profiles in the bone marrow, the spleen and the lamina propria of infected mice. We provide further evidence that acquisition of effector functions, such as the capacity to produce interleukin-27, is accompanied by distinct waves of epigenetic programming, highlighting a role for STAT1/IRF1 in the bone marrow and AP-1/NF-κB in the periphery. This work broadens our understanding of the molecular events that occur in vivo during monocyte differentiation in response to inflammatory cues.
Empirical Evaluation of Computer-Adaptive Alternate Short Forms for the Assessment of Anomia Severity
Authors: Hula William D. , Fergadiotis Gerasimos , Swiderski Alexander M. , Silkes JoAnn P. , Kellough Stacey 
Published: December 2019

Purpose
The purpose of this study was to verify the equivalence of 2 alternate test forms with nonoverlapping content generated by an item response theory (IRT)–based computer-adaptive test (CAT). The Philadelphia Naming Test (PNT; Roach, Schwartz, Martin, Grewal, & Brecher, 1996)was utilized as an item bank in a prospective, independent sample of persons with aphasia.

Method
Two alternate CAT short forms of the PNT were administered to a sample of 25 persons with aphasia who were at least 6 months postonset and received no treatment for 2 weeks before or during the study. The 1st session included administration of a 30-item PNT-CAT, and the 2nd session, conducted approximately 2 weeks later, included a variable-length PNT-CAT that excluded items administered in the 1st session and terminated when the modeled precision of the ability estimate was equal to or greater than the value obtained in the 1st session. The ability estimates were analyzed in a Bayesian framework.

Results

The 2 test versions correlated highly (
r
= .89) and obtained means and standard deviations that were not credibly different from one another. The correlation and error variance between the 2 test versions were well predicted by the IRT measurement model.

Discussion
The results suggest that IRT-based CAT alternate forms may be productively used in the assessment of anomia. IRT methods offer advantages for the efficient and sensitive measurement of change over time. Future work should consider the potential impact of differential item functioning due to person factors and intervention-specific effects, as well as expanding the item bank to maximize the clinical utility of the test.

Supplemental Material

https://doi.org/10.23641/asha.11368040
Research on a hybrid excitation PM synchronous generator with stator third harmonic winding excitation
Authors: Xia Yonghong , Wen Zijian , Zhu Ziqiang , Zhong Shihua , Chen Ying , Zhang Jingming 
Published: December 2019

This study presents a hybrid excitation permanent magnet synchronous generator (HEPMSG) with a stator third harmonic winding to solve the problems of adjusting the air‐gap magnetic field of the permanent magnet synchronous machine (PMSM) and simplify the excitation system structure. The electromotive force (EMF) of the stator third harmonic winding, induced by the inherent third harmonic magnetic field in the air gap, provides the adjustable field current for the rotor field winding via the controllable rectification. The proposed machine structure is described, and the generation mechanism and the excitation principle of the stator third harmonic EMF are analysed. The conditions for maximum excitation current output are discussed, and the integrated design methods of the stator third harmonic winding and the rotor excitation winding are described. Based on the finite element method, the performances of the third harmonic excitation system are numerically compared for different stator third harmonic windings, and the open‐circuit voltage regulation characteristics under different control angles are analysed. A 2.5 kW HEPMSG prototype with a stator third harmonic winding is manufactured and tested. The predicted and experimental results are in good agreement, which verifies the correctness of the excitation principle of the proposed HEPMSG.
Argument structure, conceptual metaphor and semantic change
Authors: Johnson Cynthia A. , Kerkhof Peter Alexander , Kulikov Leonid , Le Mair Esther , Barðdal Jóhanna 
Published: December 2019

AbstractIn contrast to grammaticalization studies of lexical verbs changing into auxiliaries, the realm of semantic changes associated with lexical verbs is an understudied area of historical semantics. We concentrate on the emergence of verbs of success from more semantically concrete verbs, uncovering six conceptual metaphors which all co-occur with non-canonical encoding of subjects in Indo-European. Careful scrutiny of the relevant data reveals a semantic development most certainly inherited from Indo-European; hence, we reconstruct adat-‘succeeds’ construction at different levels of schematicity for Proto-Indo-European, including a novel reconstruction of a conceptual metaphor,success is motion forward, and the mapping between this metaphor and the verb-class-specific argument structure construction. Hence, this article offers a systematic analysis of regularity in semantic change, highlighting the importance of predicate and argument structure for lexical semantic developments.
The role of frequency of use in lexical change
Authors: Wilson Fiona M. , Pappas Panayiotis A. , Mooers Arne O. 
Published: December 2019

AbstractBased on the number of words per meaning across the Indo-European Swadesh list,Pagel et al. (2007)suggest that frequency of use is a general mechanism of linguistic evolution. We test this claim using within-language change. From the IDS (Key & Comrie 2015) we compiled a comparative word list of 1,147 cognate pairs for Classical Latin and Modern Spanish, and 1,231 cognate pairs for Classical and Modern Greek. We scored the amount of change for each cognate pair in the two language histories according to a novel 6-point scale reflecting increasing levels of change from regular sound change to external borrowing. We find a weak negative correlation between frequency of use and lexical change for both the Latin-Spanish and Classical-Modern Greek language developments, but post hoc tests reveal that low frequency of use of borrowed words drive these patterns, casting some doubt on frequency of use as a general mechanism of language change.