bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Acceleration of vegetation dynamics in hydrologically connected wetlands caused by dam operation
Authors: Zheng Lilin , Xu Jinying , Wang Dandan , Xu Guoyu , Tan Zhiqiang , Xu Ligang , Wang Xiaolong 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe dynamic responses of wetlands to upstream water conservancy projects are becoming increasingly crucial for watershed management. Poyang Lake is a dynamic wetland system of critical ecological importance and connected with the Yangtze river. However, in the context of disturbed water regime in Poyang Lake resulting from human activities and climate change, the responses of vegetation dynamics to the Three Gorges Dam (TGD) have not been investigated. We addressed this knowledge gap by using daily water level data and Landsat images from 1987 to 2018. Landsat images were acquired between October and December to ensure similar phenological conditions. Object‐oriented Artificial Neural Network Regression for wetland classification was developed based on abundant training and validation samples. Interactions between vegetation coverage and water regimes pre and post the operation of the TGD were compared using classification and regression trees and the random forest model. Since the implementation of the TGD in 2003, Poyang Lake has become drier, especially during the dry season. A more rapid plant growth rate was observed post TGD (44.74 km2 year−1) compared to that of the entire study period (12.9 km2 year−1). Average water level for the antecedent 20 days most significantly affected vegetation before 2003, whereas average water level for the antecedent 5 or 10 days was more important after 2003. The impoundment of the TGD after the flood season accelerated the drawdown processes of Poyang Lake, and the rapidly exposed wetlands accelerated vegetation expansion during the dry seasons, resulting in shrinkage and degradation of the lake area. This study deepens our knowledge of the influences of newly developed dams on lakes and rivers.
Serum proteome‐wide identified ATP citrate lyase as a novel informative diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in pediatric sepsis: A pilot study
Authors: Wang Chunxia , Zhu Xiaodong , Cui Yun , Miao Huijie , Xu Yaya , Xiong Xi , Tang Xiaomeng , Shao Lujing , Zhang Yucai 
Published: December 2020

AbstractIntroductionATP citrate lyase (ACLY) is involved in lipid metabolism and inflammatory response in immune cells. However, the serum level of ACLY and its clinical relevance in sepsis is totally unknown.MethodsWe conducted a prospective pilot study in patients with sepsis admitted to pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) from January 2018 to December 2018.ResultsHigher levels of ACLY were detected in sera of pediatric patients with sepsis than that of healthy children. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve (AUC) of ACLY for diagnosis of sepsis was 0.855 (95% confidence interval [CI]: 0757–0.952), and an AUC of ACLY for predicting PICU mortality was 0.770 (95% CI: 0.626–0.915). ACLY levels ≤21 ng/ml on PICU admission predicted an unfavorable prognosis among patients with sepsis with a sensitivity of 87.5% and a specificity of 67.6%. Moreover, serum ACLY levels were correlated to platelet count, IL‐18 levels, and monocyte counts in pediatric patients with sepsis, implying the potential roles of ACLY in immunometabolic regulation in sepsis.ConclusionsACLY is firstly identified in sera of patients with sepsis. Serum ACLY level is an additional diagnostic and prognostic biomarker in pediatric patients with sepsis.
Household choices on investing in financial risky assets: Do national institutional factors have their own merit?
Authors: Apergis Nicholas , Bouras Christos 
Published: December 2020

AbstractUsing data from household surveys in United Kingdom, Belgium, France, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Italy, Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Canada, and United States, spanning the period 2009–2018, we examine the institutional basis of households' portfolio choice decisions as related to investments in financial risky assets. We document that governance matters for households' investment decisions. A decomposition of the institutional factor effects on portfolio allocation reveals that a high degree of judicial independence and property rights protection drive households to invest in riskier assets. Our findings, which receive robust support from alternative panel data methodological approaches, have important implications for the literature on the factors dictating portfolio investments, as well as for financial choice decisions reached by investors and portfolio managers.
Correlates of suicidal thoughts and attempts in males engaging in muscle dysmorphia or eating disorder symptoms
Authors: Ortiz Shelby N. , Forrest Lauren N. , Smith April R. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractObjectiveDespite the high rates of suicidality in body dysmorphic disorder and eating disorders (EDs), research on suicidality in a related disorder, muscle dysmorphia (MD), is essentially nonexistent. Thus, this study tested relations between suicidal thoughts and behaviors and MD and ED symptoms in an online male community sample.MethodA total of 464 males (Mage = 40.3; 85% Caucasian) recruited from Amazon's Mechanical Turk completed measures that evaluated ED symptoms, MD symptoms, current suicidal ideation, and past suicide attempts.ResultsMost MD and ED symptoms were correlated with current suicidal ideation and previous suicide attempts. In multivariate regression models, vomiting and appearance intolerance remained significantly related to suicidal ideation, while hard exercise and lower functional impairment were significantly related to prior suicide attempts.ConclusionResults indicate that appearance dissatisfaction, a core MD criterion, and hard exercise, a common behavioral symptom of MD, are associated with suicidality.
Puromycin‐sensitive aminopeptidase is required for C2C12 myoblast proliferation and differentiation
Authors: Osana Shion , Kitajima Yasuo , Suzuki Naoki , Nunomiya Aki , Takada Hiroaki , Kubota Takahiro , Murayama Kazutaka , Nagatomi Ryoichi 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe ubiquitin‐proteasome system is a major protein degradation pathway in the cell. Proteasomes produce several peptides that are rapidly degraded to free amino acids by intracellular aminopeptidases. Our previous studies reported that proteolysis via proteasomes and aminopeptidases is required for myoblast proliferation and differentiation. However, the role of intracellular aminopeptidases in myoblast proliferation and differentiation had not been clarified. In this study, we investigated the effects of puromycin‐sensitive aminopeptidase (PSA) on C2C12 myoblast proliferation and differentiation by knocking down PSA. Aminopeptidase enzymatic activity was reduced in PSA‐knockdown myoblasts. Knockdown of PSA induced impaired cell cycle progression in C2C12 myoblasts and accumulation of cells at the G2/M phase. Additionally, after the induction of myogenic differentiation in PSA‐knockdown myoblasts, multinucleated circular‐shaped myotubes with impaired cell polarity were frequently identified. Cell division cycle 42 (CDC42) knockdown in myoblasts resulted in a loss of cell polarity and the formation of multinucleated circular‐shaped myotubes, which were similar to PSA‐knockdown myoblasts. These data suggest that PSA is required for the proliferation of myoblasts in the growth phase and for the determination of cell polarity and elongation of myotubes in the differentiation phase.
How can recapitulation be reconciled with modern concepts of evolution?
Authors: Kuratani Shigeru , Uesaka Masahiro , Irie Naoki 
Published: December 2020

AbstractTo understand Haeckel's idea of recapitulation with modern evolutionary biology, one has to realize how evolutionarily conserved embryonic stages appear sequentially in developmental processes as chains of causality. Whether the idea of evolution was accepted or not, Haeckel and von Baer commonly saw an importance of a particularly conserved mid‐embryonic stage in biphasic development of metazoans, the phylotype, that defines an animal phylum as the developmental source of a basic body plan. In an evolutionary context, the phylotypic stage was once understood by Haeckel to reflect the common ancestor of animal phyla, which went through hypermorphosis independently into various phyla. Recent comprehensive molecular studies, however, accumulated data to refute this idea. The conserved embryonic pattern does not reflect an ancestral adult morphology but appears to have arisen primarily as an embodiment of developmental constraints established through evolutionary processes. How the developmental burden results in a nested series of constraints will solve the recapitulative tendency of developmental programs.
The evolutionary consequences of epigenesis and neutral change: A conceptual approach at the organismal level
Authors: Vargas Alexander O. , Botelho Joao F. , Mpodozis Jorge 
Published: December 2020

AbstractLiving beings are autopoietic systems with highly context‐dependent structural dynamics and interactions, that determine whether a disturbance in the genotype or environment will lead or not to phenotypic change. The concept of epigenesis entails how a change in the phenotype may not correspond to a change in the structure of an earlier developmental stage, including the genome. Disturbances of embryonic structure may fail to change the phenotype, as in regulated development, or when different genotypes are associated to a single phenotype. Likewise, the same genotype or early embryonic structure may develop different phenotypes, as in phenotypic plasticity. Disturbances that fail to trigger phenotypic change are considered neutral, but even so, they can alter unexpressed developmental potential. Here, we present conceptual diagrams of the “epigenic field”: similar to Waddington's epigenetic landscapes, but including the ontogenic niche (organism/environment interactional dynamics during ontogeny) as a factor in defining epigenic fields, rather than just selecting among possible pathways. Our diagrams illustrate transgenerational changes of genotype, ontogenic niche, and their correspondence (or lack thereof) with changes of phenotype. Epigenic fields provide a simple way to understand developmental constraints on evolution, for instance: how constraints evolve as a result of developmental system drift; how neutral changes can be involved in genetic assimilation and de‐assimilation; and how constraints can evolve as a result of neutral changes in the ontogenic niche (not only the genotype). We argue that evolutionary thinking can benefit from a framework for evolution with conceptual foundations at the organismal level.
Synthesis, spectral, crystal structure, drug‐likeness, in silico, and in vitro biological screening of halogen [Cl, Br] substituted N‐phenylbenzo[g]indazole derivatives as antimicrobial agents
Authors: Saminathan Murugavel , Jayakumar Mohan Raj , Chandrasekaran Ravikumar , Raja Ranganathan , George Jaabil , Alagusundaram Ponnuswamy 
Published: December 2020

AbstractThe N‐phenylbenzo[g]indazole derivatives, 3‐(4‐chlorophenyl)‐3,3a,4,5‐tetrahydro‐N‐phenylbenzo[g]indazole‐2‐carbothioamide (4CLPBIC), 3‐(4‐bromophenyl)‐3,3a,4,5‐tetrahydro‐N‐phenylbenzo[g]indazole‐2‐carbothioamide (4BRPBIC), and 3‐(3‐bromophenyl)‐3,3a,4,5‐tetrahydro‐N‐phenylbenzo[g]indazole‐2‐carbothioamide (3BRPBIC), were synthesized by the one‐pot green amalgamation of solvent‐free granulating methodology procedure at room temperature. The synthesized crystals were characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction (SC‐XRD), FT‐IR, FT‐Raman, NMR, and UV–Vis techniques. The molecular geometries from XRD experimental values of synthesized compounds 4CLPBIC, 4BRPBIC, and 3BRPBIC in the ground state are compared theoretically by applying the density functional theory (DFT), a method with the B3LYP/6‐311G(d,p) basis set using Gaussian 09 software. The vibrational assignments of the synthesized compounds were studied based on potential energy distribution (PED) by the VEDA4 program. The scaled DFT/B3LYP/6‐311G(d,p) results show the best agreement with the experimental values. Computational 1H and 13C NMR were acquired by utilizing gauge‐independent atomic orbital (GIAO) procedure, and chemical shift results are in good agreement with the experimental values. A web‐based theoretical investigation was performed to understand the drug‐likeness and ADMET properties of the compounds. Molecular docking studies were carried out against bacterial cholesterol inhibitor block and inhibitor of lanosterol‐14α‐demethylase CYP51 used in the treatment of topical and systemic mycoses in fungal to understand the inhibitory activity of synthesized compounds. The synthesized molecules were also tested for antibacterial and antifungal activities.
Convolutional neural network for accelerating the computation of the extended Tofts model in dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging
Authors: Fang Ke , Wang Zejun , Li Zhaoqing , Wang Bao , Han Guangxu , Cheng Zhaowei , Chen Zhihong , Lan Chuanjin , Zhang Yi , Zhao Peng , Jin Xinyu , Liu Yingchao , Bai Ruiliang 
Published: December 2020

Quantitative physiological parameters can be obtained from nonlinear pharmacokinetic models, such as the extended Tofts (eTofts) model, applied to dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging (DCE‐MRI). However, the computation of such nonlinear models is time consuming. The aim of this study was to develop a convolutional neural network (CNN) for accelerating the computation of fitting eTofts model without sacrificing agreement with conventional nonlinear‐least‐square (NLLS) fitting. This was a retrospective study, which included 13 patients with brain glioma for training (75%) and validation (25%), and 11 patients (three glioma, four brain metastases, and four lymphoma) for testing. CAIPIRINHA‐Dixon‐TWIST DCE‐MRI and double flip angle T1 map acquired at 3 T were used. A CNN with both local pathway and global pathway modules was designed to estimate the eTofts model parameters, the volume transfer constant (Ktrans), blood volume fraction (vp), and volume fraction of extracellular extravascular space (ve), from DCE‐MRI data of tumor and normal‐appearing voxels. The CNN was trained on mixed dataset consisting of synthetic and patient data. The CNN result and computation speed were compared with NLLS fitting. The robustness to noise variations and generalization to brain metastases and lymphoma data were also evaluated. Statistical tests used were Student's t test on mean absolute error, concordance correlation coefficient (CCC), and normalized root mean squared error. Including global pathway modules in the CNN and training the network with mixed data significantly (p < 0.05) improved the CNN performance. Compared with NLLS fitting, CNN yields an average CCC greater than 0.986 for Ktrans, greater than 0.965 for vp, and greater than 0.948 for ve. The CNN accelerated computation speed approximately 2000 times compared to NLLS, showed robustness to noise (signal‐to‐noise ratio >34.42 dB), and had no significant (p > 0.21) difference applied to brain metastases and lymphoma data. In conclusion, the proposed CNN to estimate eTofts parameters showed comparable result as NLLS fitting while significantly reducing the computation time.Level of Evidence3Technical Efficacy Stage1
Alteration of single‐subject gray matter networks in major depressed patients with suicidality
Authors: Li Huiru , Yang Jing , Yin Li , Zhang Huawei , Zhang Feifei , Chen Ziqi , Jia Zhiyun , Gong Qiyong 
Published: December 2020

While regional brain alterations and functional connectivity in depressed suicidal patients have previously been reported, knowledge about gray matter (GM) structural networks is limited. The aim of this study was to explore the GM of depressed suicidal brains from the single‐subject structural network level. This was a cross‐sectional study, in which 50 healthy controls (HC, 31 ± 9 years), 50 major depressed patients without suicidality (NSD, 29 ± 10 years), and 50 major depressed patients with suicidality (SU, 29 ± 12 years) were enrolled. T1‐weighted images (T1WI) were acquired with three‐dimensional‐magnetization prepared rapid gradient echo sequence in 3.0 T magnetic resonance. The analysis was performed using the automated Computational Anatomy Toolbox (CAT12) within Statistical Parametric Mapping while running MATLAB. The T1 images were segmented into GM, white matter, and cerebrospinal fluid. Then single‐subject structural networks were constructed based on the morphological similarity of GM regions. Global network topological properties, including clustering coefficient (Cp), characterpath length (Lp), normalized clustering coefficient (γ), normalized characteristic path length (λ), small‐worldness (σ), global efficiency (Eglob), local efficiency (Eloc), and nodal network topological properties, including nodal efficiency, degree, and betweenness centrality, were measured using graph theory analysis. Statistical tests performed were analysis of variance, Pearson correlation analysis, and multiple linear regression analysis. Decreased Eglob and increased shortest Lp were observed in SU group compared to HC and NSD groups (p < 0.05). The NSD and SU groups had an increased λ and decreased Eloc compared to the HC group (p < 0.05). Altered nodal efficiency was found in the fronto‐striatum‐limbic‐thalamic circuit in the SU group compared with the HC and NSD groups (all p < 0.05). The GM network in the SU group showed decreased segregation and weaker integration, that is weaker small‐worldness, compared to the NSD and HC groups. Abnormal nodal efficiency was found in the fronto‐striatum‐limbic‐thalamic circuit in suicidal brains. This study provides new evidence for therapeutic targets for patients with depression and suicidality.Level of Evidence3Technical Efficacy Stage3
Impact of Vertical Stiffness Gradient on the Maximum Divergence Angle
Authors: Farbos de Luzan Charles , Maddox Alexandra , Oren Liran , Gutmark Ephraim , Howell Rebecca J. , Khosla Sid M. 
Published: December 2020

IntroductionDuring vocal fold vibration, the medial surface of both folds forms a convergent shape during opening and a divergent shape during closing. A greater maximum divergence angle is associated with greater closing forces which will increase the closing speed of the glottis. An increased closing speed results in a greater acoustic intensity and greater vocal efficiency. Indentation testing showed that as the strain increases, the inferior aspect of the folds becomes stiffer than the superior aspect, resulting in the vertical stiffness gradient (VSG). We hypothesize that a reduction of the vertical stiffness gradient will reduce the maximum divergence angle.MethodsFour excised canine larynges were tested. Stress–strain curves of the superior and inferior aspects of the fold in the mid membranous plane of the baseline larynges were taken using the indentation method. Calcium hydroxylapatite (CaHA) crystals were then injected into the superior aspect of the fold. The stress–strain tests were repeated. Particle imaging velocimetry (PIV) of the intraglottal velocity fields was performed in three larynges at different subglottal pressures in the mid coronal plane for the baseline and CaHA‐injected larynges.ResultsCaHA injection reduced the inferior–superior stiffness gradient in all larynges. The maximal divergence angle was markedly reduced. In some cases, there was not a divergent angle.DiscussionMarked reduction of the vertical stiffness gradient significantly reduces the maximum divergence angle. Clinical implications will be discussed.Level of EvidenceNA Laryngoscope, 131:E1934–E1940, 2021
Phenolic profiles and nutritional quality of four new mungbean lines grown in northern Australia
Authors: Johnson Joel B. , Mani Janice S. , Skylas Daniel , Walsh Kerry B. , Bhattarai Surya P. , Naiker Mani 
Published: December 2020

AbstractFour new lines of mungbean cultivated under northern Australian cropping conditions (19.8462°S, 147.2448°E) were characterised for yield, seed characteristics, nutritional contents, phytochemical profiles and phenolic acid contents. Their performance was compared to a commercially grown mungbean line (Jade‐AU). The seed yield for three of the new lines (AVTMB 1, 3 and 4) was 14% higher compared to Jade‐AU. However, the seed size of AVTMB 1 was also significantly smaller compared to the other lines and Jade‐AU. in vitro sprouting acceptability scores ranged between 80% and 100%, with no significant difference between lines. Ash content was highest (4.26% w/w) for lines with smallest seed (e.g., AVTMB 1), while higher protein content was recorded for AVTMB 1 followed by AVTMB 4, AVTMB 3 and Jade‐AU, and lowest in AVTMB 2. The seed coat colour of AVTMB 1 and 4 was significantly different (lighter green) than other lines and Jade‐AU, whereas the flour colour did not vary significantly. Total polyphenolic content, antioxidant capacity and total monomeric anthocyanin content did not vary significantly between lines. Phenolic acid and flavonoid profiling by HPLC showed the predominant constituents to be vitexin (which averaged between 115 and 149 μg/g for different lines), isovitexin (132–174 μg/g) and catechin (94–105 μg/g). There were statistically significant differences between the mungbean lines for several individual phenolic acids, including p‐hydroxybenzoic, vanillic, caffeic, sinapic, ferulic and cinnamic acids, as well as for the flavonoid glycoside vitexin. In most cases, with the highest concentrations of these compounds were found in AVTMB 4 or AVTMB 1. Several of these new mungbean lines show potential for commercial cropping in the drier, hotter regions of northern Australia due to their yield and seed quality performance.
MicroRNA‐141‐3p regulates cellular proliferation, migration, and invasion in esophageal cancer by targeting tuberous sclerosis complex 1
Authors: Phatak Pornima , Noe Michael , Asrani Kaushal , Chesnick Ingrid E. , Greenwald Bruce D. , Donahue James M. 
Published: December 2020

AbstractMicroRNA (miR)−141‐3p, which functions as an oncogene in multiple malignancies, has been shown to be highly overexpressed in esophageal cancer cells in our previous work. miR‐141‐3p is predicted to bind the messenger RNA (mRNA) of tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (TSC1), a tumor suppressor, with high affinity. In this study, we investigated the expression and functional interaction between miR‐141‐3p and TSC1 in esophageal cancer cells. Experiments were conducted in four esophageal cancer lines and in tumor cells isolated from human esophageal cancer specimens by laser capture microdissection. miR‐141‐3p expression was measured by real time and droplet digital PCR. Biotinylated RNA pull‐down and luciferase reporter assays were used to assess binding. miR‐141‐3p function was tested by assessing proliferation, migration, invasion, and induction of autophagy following its silencing. We found that miR‐141‐3p levels were increased in TE7, OE33, and TE10 esophageal cancer cells compared to FLO‐1 cells, with similar heterogeneity observed in human esophageal cancer specimens. Silencing of miR‐141‐3p led to increased TSC1 protein expression in these cells and was associated with increased TSC1 translation. Binding studies reveal that miR‐141‐3p binds to each of the predicted binding sites in the 3′‐untranslated region of TSC1 mRNA. Following miR‐141‐3p silencing, TE7, OE33, and TE10 cells exhibited decreased proliferation, migration, and invasion, as well as enhanced autophagy. Importantly, these phenotypic effects were replicated by overexpression of TSC1 alone in these cells. Our results indicate that miR‐141‐3p functions in an oncogenic capacity in a subset of esophageal cancer cells, in part by suppressing TSC1 expression.