bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Spatial Effects of Livestock Farming on Human Infections With Shiga Toxin‐Producing Escherichia coli O157 in Small but Densely Populated Regions: The Case of the Netherlands
Authors: Mulder A. C. , van de Kassteele J. , Heederik D. , Pijnacker R. , Mughini‐Gras L. , Franz E. 
Published: October 2020

AbstractThe role of environmental transmission of typically foodborne pathogens like Shiga toxin‐producing Escherichia coli (STEC) O157 is increasingly recognized. To gain more insights into spatially restricted risk factors that play a role in this transmission, we assessed the spatial association between sporadic STEC O157 human infections and the exposure to livestock (i.e. small ruminants, cattle, poultry, and pigs) in a densely populated country: the Netherlands. This was done for the years 2007–2016, using a state‐of‐the‐art spatial analysis method in which hexagonal areas with different sizes (90, 50, 25 and 10 km2) were used in combination with a novel probability of exposure metric: the population‐weighted number of animals per hexagon. To identify risk factors for STEC O157 infections and their population attributable fraction (PAF), a spatial regression model was fitted using integrated nested Laplace approximation (INLA). Living in hexagonal areas of 25, 50 and 90 km2 with twice as much population‐weighted small ruminants was associated with an increase of the incidence rate of human STEC O157 infections in summer (RR of 1.09 [95%CI;1.01–1.17], RR of 1.17 [95%CI;1.07–1.28] and RR of 1.13 [95%CI;1.01–1.26]), with a PAF of 49% (95%CI;8–72%). Results suggest exposure to small ruminants to be a risk factor, although no evidence on the mode of transmission is provided. Therefore, the underlying mechanisms warrant further investigation and could offer new targets for control. The newly proposed exposure metric has potential to improve existing spatial modeling studies on infectious diseases related to livestock exposure, especially in densely populated countries like the Netherlands.
Twenty‐First Century Trends in Mixing Barriers and Eddy Transport in the Lower Stratosphere
Authors: Abalos M. , de la Cámara A. 
Published: October 2020

AbstractFuture trends in isentropic mixing in the lower stratosphere remain largely unexplored, in contrast with other aspects of stratospheric tracer transport. This study examines trends in effective diffusivity (κeff), a measure of the potential of the flow to produce isentropic mixing, in recent chemistry‐climate model simulations. The results highlight substantial reduction of κeff in the upper flanks of the subtropical jets from fall to spring, which are strengthened in response to greenhouse gas increases. This contrasts with stronger eddy transport, associated with increased wave drag in the region, peaking in summer near the critical lines. The key role of changes in tracer meridional gradients in addition to transport barriers for isentropic mixing trends is evidenced. The projected ozone recovery leads to enhanced κeff in polar austral spring and summer, associated with a weaker and shorter‐lived austral polar vortex by the end of the 21st century.
On the Type‐A and Type‐B 150‐km Radar Echoes
Authors: Patra A. K. , Chaitanya P. Pavan , Rao M. Durga , Reddy G. Janardana 
Published: October 2020

AbstractType‐A (weaker and wider Doppler spectra) and Type‐B (stronger and narrower Doppler spectra) echoes are inherent to the puzzling 150‐km echoing phenomenon. In this paper, we investigate the characteristics and possible origin of the Type‐A and Type‐B 150‐km echoes using high‐resolution 53‐MHz radar and Digisonde observations from Gadanki. Results show that the Type‐A echoes dominate the echoing phenomenon and they always precede the Type‐B echoes. Intriguingly, the Type‐B echoes are fundamentally not narrower than the Type‐A echoes as was originally thought. The primary reason that distinguishes the Type‐B echoes from the rest is the confinement of a few high PSD values at the center of the spectra, resulting in narrow spectral width. Spectral spreads of both types of echoes are found to increase with echo signal‐to‐noise ratio (SNR), and in fact, the spectral spreads of the Type‐B echoes are higher than those of the Type‐A echoes. Observations also show spectral evolution displaying the occurrence of Type‐A and Type‐B echoes in tune with the quasiperiodicity in the echo strength (SNR). We propose that both types of echoes primarily are of common origin, presumably linked with naturally enhanced incoherent scattering. Looking at the simultaneously observed short period variations in the lower F region electron density, we propose a gravity wave induced pathway as a plausible mechanism accounting for echo intensity modulation as well as spectral transition.
Glacial Drivers of Marine Biogeochemistry Indicate a Future Shift to More Corrosive Conditions in an Arctic Fjord
Authors: Cantoni Carolina , Hopwood Mark J. , Clarke Jennifer S. , Chiggiato Jacopo , Achterberg Eric P. , Cozzi Stefano 
Published: October 2020

AbstractA detailed survey of a high Arctic glacier fjord (Kongsfjorden, Svalbard) was carried out in summer 2016, close to the peak of the meltwater season, in order to identify the effects of glacier runoff on nutrient distributions and the carbonate system. Short‐term weather patterns were found to exert a strong influence on freshwater content within the fjord. Freshwater inputs from glacier runoff and ice meltwater averaged (±SD) low nitrate (1.85 ± 0.47 μM; 0.41 ± 0.99 μM), orthophosphate (0.07 ± 0.27 μM; 0.02 ± 0.03 μM), dissolved organic carbon (27 ± 14 μM in glacier runoff), total alkalinity (708 ± 251 μmol kg−1; 173 ± 121 μmol kg−1), and dissolved inorganic carbon (622 ± 108 μmol kg−1; 41 ± 88 μmol kg−1), as well as a modest silicate concentration (3.71 ± 0.02 μM; 3.16 ± 5.41 μM). pCO2 showed a nonconservative behavior across the estuarine salinity gradient with a pronounced undersaturation in the inner‐fjord, leading to strong CO2 uptake from the atmosphere. The combined effect of freshwater dilution and atmospheric CO2 absorption was the lowering of aragonite saturation state to values that are known to negatively affect marine calcifiers (ΩAr, 1.07). Glacier discharge was therefore a strong local amplifier of ocean acidification. Future increases in discharge volume and the loss of marine productivity following the retreat of marine‐terminating glaciers inland are both anticipated to further lower ΩAr within inner‐fjord surface waters. This shift may be partially buffered by an increase in the mean freshwater total alkalinity as the fractional importance of iceberg melt to freshwater fjord inputs declines and runoff increases.
Bayesian Hierarchical Models for the Frequency of Winter Heavy Precipitation Events Over the Central United States: The Role of Atmospheric Rivers
Authors: Nayak Munir Ahmad , Cowles Mary Kathryn , Villarini Gabriele , Wafa Burhan Ul 
Published: October 2020

AbstractOver the central United States, a large fraction of heavy precipitation and flood events have been tied to atmospheric rivers (ARs) and to two large‐scale atmospheric modes, the Pacific‐North American teleconnection pattern (PNA) and the Arctic Oscillation (AO). Here, we build on these insights to model the frequency of heavy precipitation events at 88 locations across the central United States. We use a Bayesian hierarchical modeling framework to develop and compare different models with varying degrees of complexity and nonstationary parameters that are conditioned on ARs and the prevalent climate. We show that Bayesian hierarchical models with a prior layer that allows spatially correlated parameters result in improved prediction skills over the traditional regression‐based modeling frameworks. While ARs, PNA, and AO have statistically significant relationships with the frequency of heavy precipitation events over large areas of the central United States, we find that ARs can significantly improve upon the other two covariates in the statistical modeling of extremes over the region.
Sorcin is an early marker of neurodegeneration, Ca2+ dysregulation and endoplasmic reticulum stress associated to neurodegenerative diseases
Authors: Genovese Ilaria , Giamogante Flavia , Barazzuol Lucia , Battista Theo , Fiorillo Annarita , Vicario Mattia , D’Alessandro Giuseppina , Cipriani Raffaela , Limatola Cristina , Rossi Daniela , Sorrentino Vincenzo , Poser Elena , Mosca Luciana , Squitieri Ferdinando , Perluigi Marzia , Arena Andrea , van Petegem Filip , Tito Claudia , Fazi Francesco , Giorgi Carlotta , Calì Tito , Ilari Andrea , Colotti Gianni 
Published: October 2020

AbstractDysregulation of calcium signaling is emerging as a key feature in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases such as Alzheimer’s disease (AD), Parkinson’s disease (PD), and Huntington’s disease (HD), and targeting this process may be therapeutically beneficial. Under this perspective, it is important to study proteins that regulate calcium homeostasis in the cell. Sorcin is one of the most expressed calcium-binding proteins in the human brain; its overexpression increases endoplasmic reticulum (ER) calcium concentration and decreases ER stress in the heart and in other cellular types. Sorcin has been hypothesized to be involved in neurodegenerative diseases, since it may counteract the increased cytosolic calcium levels associated with neurodegeneration. In the present work, we show that Sorcin expression levels are strongly increased in cellular, animal, and human models of AD, PD, and HD, vs. normal cells. Sorcin partially colocalizes with RyRs in neurons and microglia cells; functional experiments with microsomes containing high amounts of RyR2 and RyR3, respectively, show that Sorcin is able to regulate these ER calcium channels. The molecular basis of the interaction of Sorcin with RyR2 and RyR3 is demonstrated by SPR. Sorcin also interacts with other ER proteins as SERCA2 and Sigma-1 receptor in a calcium-dependent fashion. We also show that Sorcin regulates ER calcium transients: Sorcin increases the velocity of ER calcium uptake (increasing SERCA activity). The data presented here demonstrate that Sorcin may represent both a novel early marker of neurodegenerative diseases and a response to cellular stress dependent on neurodegeneration.
Phosphatidylethanolamine-phosphatidylserine binding synergy of seven coagulation factors revealed using Nanodisc arrays on silicon photonic sensors
Authors: Medfisch Sara M. , Muehl Ellen M. , Morrissey James H. , Bailey Ryan C. 
Published: October 2020

AbstractBlood coagulation is regulated through protein–protein and protein–lipid interactions that occur at the sub-endothelium following vascular damage. Soluble clotting proteins bind to membrane components in a phosphatidylserine (PS) dependent manner to assemble multi-protein complexes that regulate clot formation; however, PS is of limited abundance physiologically. In this manuscript, we investigate synergy between PS and phosphatidylethanolamine (PE)—a lipid of much higher abundance naturally. Using a label-free, silicon photonic technology, we constructed arrays of Nanodiscs having variable lipid composition and probed the binding interactions of seven different clotting factors with GLA domains that have never been studied in tandem experiments before. The factors studied were prothrombin, activated factor VII, factor IX, factor X, activated protein C, protein S, and protein Z. Equilibrium dissociation constants (Kd) for each coagulation factor binding to Nanodiscs with unique compositions of PE and PS were determined. While all factors showed greater binding affinities in the presence of PS and PE, the most dramatic improvements in binding were observed when PS quantities were lowest. This demonstrates that synergy is effective in promoting coagulation factor binding under physiological lipid compositions, as opposed to the artificially high PS content probed in most in vitro activity studies.
Precise measurement of correlations between frequency coupling and visual task performance
Authors: Young Joseph , Dragoi Valentin , Aazhang Behnaam 
Published: October 2020

AbstractFunctional connectivity analyses focused on frequency-domain relationships, i.e. frequency coupling, powerfully reveal neurophysiology. Coherence is commonly used but neural activity does not follow its Gaussian assumption. The recently introduced mutual information in frequency (MIF) technique makes no model assumptions and measures non-Gaussian and nonlinear relationships. We develop a powerful MIF estimator optimized for correlating frequency coupling with task performance and other relevant task phenomena. In light of variance reduction afforded by multitaper spectral estimation, which is critical to precisely measuring such correlations, we propose a multitaper approach for MIF and compare its performance with coherence in simulations. Additionally, multitaper MIF and coherence are computed between macaque visual cortical recordings and their correlation with task performance is analyzed. Our multitaper MIF estimator produces low variance and performs better than all other estimators in simulated correlation analyses. Simulations further suggest that multitaper MIF captures more information than coherence. For the macaque data set, coherence and our new MIF estimator largely agree. Overall, we provide a new way to precisely estimate frequency coupling that sheds light on task performance and helps neuroscientists accurately capture correlations between coupling and task phenomena in general. Additionally, we make an MIF toolbox available for the first time.
Enhanced physical and cognitive performance in active duty Airmen: evidence from a randomized multimodal physical fitness and nutritional intervention
Authors: Zwilling Christopher E. , Strang Adam , Anderson Evan , Jurcsisn Jennifer , Johnson Erica , Das Tapas , Kuchan Matthew J. , Barbey Aron K. 
Published: October 2020

AbstractAchieving military mission objectives requires high levels of performance from Airmen who operate under extreme physical and cognitive demands. Thus, there is a critical need to establish scientific interventions to enhance physical fitness and cognitive performance—promoting the resilience of Airmen and aiding in mission success. We therefore conducted a comprehensive, 12-week randomized controlled trial in active-duty Air Force Airmen (n = 148) to compare the efficacy of a multimodal intervention comprised of high-intensity interval aerobic fitness and strength training paired with a novel nutritional supplement [comprised of β-hydroxy β-methylbutyrate (HMB), lutein, phospholipids, DHA and selected micronutrients including B12 and folic acid] to high-intensity interval aerobic fitness and strength training paired with a standard of care placebo beverage. The exercise intervention alone improved several dimensions of physical fitness [strength and endurance (+ 7.8%), power (+ 1.1%), mobility and stability (+ 18.3%), heart rate (− 1.3%) and lean muscle mass (+ 1.1%)] and cognitive function [(episodic memory (+ 19.9%), processing efficiency (+ 4.6%), executive function reaction time (− 5.8%) and fluid intelligence accuracy (+ 11.0%)]. Relative to exercise training alone, the multimodal fitness and nutritional intervention further improved working memory (+ 11.2%), fluid intelligence reaction time (− 6.2%), processing efficiency (+ 4.3%), heart rate (− 2.3%) and lean muscle mass (+ 1.6%). These findings establish the efficacy of a multimodal intervention that incorporates aerobic fitness and strength training with a novel nutritional supplement to enhance military performance objectives and to provide optimal exercise training and nutritional support for the modern warfighter.
Legislators’ roll-call voting behavior increasingly corresponds to intervals in the political spectrum
Authors: Schoch David , Brandes Ulrik 
Published: October 2020

AbstractScaling techniques such as the well known NOMINATE position political actors in a low dimensional space to represent the similarity or dissimilarity of their political orientation based on roll-call voting patterns. Starting from the same kind of data we propose an alternative, discrete, representation that replaces positions (points and distances) with niches (boxes and overlap). In the one-dimensional case, this corresponds to replacing the left-to-right ordering of points on the real line with an interval order. As it turns out, this seemingly simplistic one-dimensional model is sufficient to represent the similarity of roll-call votes by U.S. senators in recent years. In a historic context, however, low dimensionality represents the exception which stands in contrast to what is suggested by scaling techniques.
Intracellular optical doppler phenotypes of chemosensitivity in human epithelial ovarian cancer
Authors: Li Zhe , An Ran , Swetzig Wendy M. , Kanis Margaux , Nwani Nkechiyere , Turek John , Matei Daniela , Nolte David 
Published: October 2020

AbstractDevelopment of an assay to predict response to chemotherapy has remained an elusive goal in cancer research. We report a phenotypic chemosensitivity assay for epithelial ovarian cancer based on Doppler spectroscopy of infrared light scattered from intracellular motions in living three-dimensional tumor biopsy tissue measured in vitro. The study analyzed biospecimens from 20 human patients with epithelial ovarian cancer. Matched primary and metastatic tumor tissues were collected for 3 patients, and an additional 3 patients provided only metastatic tissues. Doppler fluctuation spectra were obtained using full-field optical coherence tomography through off-axis digital holography. Frequencies in the range from 10 mHz to 10 Hz are sensitive to changes in intracellular dynamics caused by platinum-based chemotherapy. Metastatic tumor tissues were found to display a biodynamic phenotype that was similar to primary tissue from patients who had poor clinical outcomes. The biodynamic phenotypic profile correctly classified 90% [88–91% c.i.] of the patients when the metastatic samples were characterized as having a chemoresistant phenotype. This work suggests that Doppler profiling of tissue response to chemotherapy has the potential to predict patient clinical outcomes based on primary, but not metastatic, tumor tissue.
Distribution of disease-causing germline mutations in coiled-coils implies an important role of their N-terminal region
Authors: Kalman Zsofia E. , Mészáros Bálint , Gáspári Zoltán , Dobson Laszlo 
Published: October 2020

AbstractNext-generation sequencing resulted in the identification of a huge number of naturally occurring variations in human proteins. The correct interpretation of the functional effects of these variations necessitates the understanding of how they modulate protein structure. Coiled-coils are α-helical structures responsible for a diverse range of functions, but most importantly, they facilitate the structural organization of macromolecular scaffolds via oligomerization. In this study, we analyzed a comprehensive set of disease-associated germline mutations in coiled-coil structures. Our results suggest an important role of residues near the N-terminal part of coiled-coil regions, possibly critical for superhelix assembly and folding in some cases. We also show that coiled-coils of different oligomerization states exhibit characteristically distinct patterns of disease-causing mutations. Our study provides structural and functional explanations on how disease emerges through the mutation of these structural motifs.
Dog ownership and adults’ objectively-assessed sedentary behaviour and physical activity
Authors: Koohsari Mohammad Javad , Shibata Ai , Ishii Kaori , Kurosawa Sayaka , Yasunaga Akitomo , Hanibuchi Tomoya , Nakaya Tomoki , McCormack Gavin R. , Oka Koichiro 
Published: October 2020

AbstractEvidence suggests a positive effect of dog ownership on physical activity. However, most previous studies used self-reported physical activity measures. Additionally, it is unknown whether owning a dog is associated with adults’ sedentary behaviour, an emerging health risk factor. In this study, physical activity and sedentary behaviour were objectively collected between 2013 and 2015 from 693 residents (aged 40–64 years) living in Japan using accelerometer devices. Multivariable linear regression models were used, adjusted for several covariates. The means of total sedentary time and the number of long (≥ 30 min) sedentary bouts were 26.29 min/day (95% CI − 47.85, − 4.72) and 0.41 times/day (95% CI − 0.72, − 0.10) lower for those who owned a dog compared to those not owning a dog, respectively. Compared with non-owners, dog-owners had significantly higher means of the number of sedentary breaks (95% CI 0.14, 1.22), and light-intensity physical activity (95% CI 1.31, 37.51). No significant differences in duration of long (≥ 30 min) sedentary bouts, moderate, vigorous, and moderate-to-vigorous-intensity physical activity were observed between dog-owners and non-owners. A novel finding of this study is that owning a dog was associated with several types of adults’ sedentary behaviours but not medium-to-high-intensity physical activities. These findings provide new insights for dog-based behavioural health interventions on the benefits of dog ownership for reducing sedentary behaviour.
De novo transcriptome analysis of Chlorella sorokiniana: effect of glucose assimilation, and moderate light intensity
Authors: Azaman Siti Nor Ani , Wong Darren C. J. , Tan Sheau Wei , Yusoff Fatimah M. , Nagao Norio , Yeap Swee Keong 
Published: October 2020

AbstractChlorella can produce an unusually wide range of metabolites under various nutrient availability, carbon source, and light availability. Glucose, an essential molecule for the growth of microorganisms, also contributes significantly to the metabolism of various metabolic compounds produced by Chlorella. In addition, manipulation of light intensity also induces the formation of secondary metabolites such as pigments, and carotenoids in Chlorella. This study will focus on the effect of glucose addition, and moderate light on the regulation of carotenoid, lipid, starch, and other key metabolic pathways in Chlorella sorokiniana. To gain knowledge about this, we performed transcriptome profiling on C. sorokiniana strain NIES-2168 in response to moderate light stress supplemented with glucose under mixotrophic conditions. A total of 60,982,352 raw paired-end (PE) reads 100 bp in length was obtained from both normal, and mixotrophic samples of C. sorokiniana. After pre-processing, 93.63% high-quality PE reads were obtained, and 18,310 predicted full-length transcripts were assembled. Differential gene expression showed that a total of 937, and 1124 genes were upregulated, and downregulated in mixotrophic samples, respectively. Transcriptome analysis revealed that the mixotrophic condition caused upregulation of genes involved in carotenoids production (specifically lutein biosynthesis), fatty acid biosynthesis, TAG accumulation, and the majority of the carbon fixation pathways. Conversely, starch biosynthesis, sucrose biosynthesis, and isoprenoid biosynthesis were downregulated. Novel insights into the pathways that link the enhanced production of valuable metabolites (such as carotenoids in C. sorokiniana) grown under mixotrophic conditions is presented.