bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Characterisation of transcription factor profiles in polycystic kidney disease (PKD): identification and validation of STAT3 and RUNX1 in the injury/repair response and PKD progression
Authors: Formica Chiara , Malas Tareq , Balog Judit , Verburg Lotte , ‘t Hoen Peter A. C. , Peters Dorien J. M. 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) is the most common genetic renal disease, caused in the majority of the cases by a mutation in either the PKD1 or the PKD2 gene. ADPKD is characterised by a progressive increase in the number and size of cysts, together with fibrosis and distortion of the renal architecture, over the years. This is accompanied by alterations in a complex network of signalling pathways. However, the underlying molecular mechanisms are not well characterised. Previously, we defined the PKD Signature, a set of genes typically dysregulated in PKD across different disease models from a meta-analysis of expression profiles. Given the importance of transcription factors (TFs) in modulating disease, we focused in this paper on characterising TFs from the PKD Signature. Our results revealed that out of the 1515 genes in the PKD Signature, 92 were TFs with altered expression in PKD, and 32 of those were also implicated in tissue injury/repair mechanisms. Validating the dysregulation of these TFs by qPCR in independent PKD and injury models largely confirmed these findings. STAT3 and RUNX1 displayed the strongest activation in cystic kidneys, as demonstrated by chromatin immunoprecipitation (ChIP) followed by qPCR. Using immunohistochemistry, we showed a dramatic increase of expression after renal injury in mice and cystic renal tissue of mice and humans. Our results suggest a role for STAT3 and RUNX1 and their downstream targets in the aetiology of ADPKD and indicate that the meta-analysis approach is a viable strategy for new target discovery in PKD.

Key messages

We identified a list of transcription factors (TFs) commonly dysregulated in ADPKD.

Out of the 92 TFs identified in the PKD Signature, 35% are also involved in injury/repair processes.

STAT3 and RUNX1 are the most significantly dysregulated TFs after injury and during PKD progression.

STAT3 and RUNX1 activity is increased in cystic compared to non-cystic mouse kidneys.

Increased expression of STAT3 and RUNX1 is observed in the nuclei of renal epithelial cells, also in human ADPKD samples.
Health-related quality of life in patients undergoing adrenalectomy: report from a Swedish National Audit
Authors: Thompson Lo Hallin , Nordenström Erik , Almquist Martin , Bergenfelz Anders 
Published: November 2019

Abstract
Purpose
The aim of the study was to examine subjective health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in patients undergoing adrenalectomy.

Methods
The study included patients scheduled for adrenalectomy 2014–2017 after giving informed consent. The SF-36 questionnaire was administrated before operation and 1 year postoperatively. Results were compared with published normative values in Sweden.

Results
Some 50 patients were included. SF-36 scores for the whole cohort improved significantly after adrenalectomy in all dimensions except for bodily pain. Compared with the general Swedish population, the patients reported a significantly reduced HRQoL before and after adrenalectomy in all domains except for bodily pain postoperatively. Patients with benign functional tumours had lower HRQoL in physical domains before adrenalectomy than patients with benign non-functional tumours; Physical Component Summary (PCS), median 33.1 (range 17.1–62.9) vs. 44.2 (20.0–66.5), p = 0.018. Postoperatively, HRQoL was similar in the two groups of patients. Patients with benign functional tumours reported significantly improved HRQoL in all dimensions after adrenalectomy: PCS 33.1 (17.1–62.9) preoperatively vs. 47.6 (19.8-57.3) postoperatively, p = 0.005; Mental Component Summary (MCS) 33.8 (11.8–62.0) preoperatively vs. 52.7 (16.4–59.8) postoperatively, p = 0.004. These improvements were not seen in patients with benign non-functional or malignant tumours. Patients with malignant tumours reported no difference in SF-36 scores before or after adrenalectomy compared with patients with benign non-functional tumours.

Conclusions
Adrenalectomy improved HRQoL in patients with benign functional tumours. Adrenalectomy did not improve HRQoL in patients with benign non-functional tumours or in patients with malignant tumours.
Classical access structures of ramp secret sharing based on quantum stabilizer codes
Authors: Matsumoto Ryutaroh 
Published: November 2019

AbstractIn this paper, we consider to use the quantum stabilizer codes as secret sharing schemes for classical secrets. We give necessary and sufficient conditions for qualified and forbidden sets in terms of quantum stabilizers. Then, we give a Gilbert–Varshamov-type sufficient condition for existence of secret sharing schemes with given parameters, and by using that sufficient condition, we show that roughly 19% of participants can be made forbidden independently of the size of classical secret, in particular when an n-bit classical secret is shared among n participants having 1-qubit share each. We also consider how much information is obtained by an intermediate set and express that amount of information in terms of quantum stabilizers. All the results are stated in terms of linear spaces over finite fields associated with the quantum stabilizers.
Contradictions in Judicial Support for Capital Punishment in India and Bangladesh: Utilitarian Rationales
Authors: Hoyle Carolyn , Lehrfreund Saul 
Published: November 2019

AbstractIndia and Bangladesh share a common history, and each has developed somewhat similarly since partition. However, while both countries now have relatively low murder rates, India has seen a decline in the rate of executions, while Bangladesh continues to impose death sentences and carry out executions at a higher rate. There have been challenges to the death penalty in India, restricting its use to exceptional cases. The same has not occurred in Bangladesh. Yet in both countries, systemic flaws in the criminal process are evident. This article draws on two original empirical research projects that explored judges’ opinions on the retention and administration of capital punishment in India and Bangladesh. The data expose justice systems marred by corruption, incompetence, abuses of due process, and arbitrary and inconsistent treatment of defendants from arrest through to conviction and sentencing. It shows that those with the power to sentence to death have little faith in the integrity of the criminal process. Yet, a startling paradox emerges from these studies; despite personal knowledge of its flaws, judges have trust in the death penalty to deter crime and to realise other sentencing aims and feel retention benefits society. This is explained by reference to utilitarian values. Not only did our judges express strongly utilitarian justifications for sentencing people to death, in terms of their erroneous belief in its deterrent effect, but some also articulated utilitarian justifications for misconduct in pre-trial processes, suggesting that it was necessary to break the rules to secure convictions when the system was dysfunctional and ineffective.
Determinants of students’ idealistic and realistic educational aspirations in elementary school
Authors: Gölz Nicole , Wohlkinger Florian 
Published: November 2019

AbstractAlthough the social stratification of educational aspirations is well documented for parents and adolescents, current educational inequality research largely ignores the perspective of children. To learn more about the involvement of children in the emergence and reproduction of social disparities, we examine children’s educational aspirations during elementary school. Based on the Wisconsin model, rational choice approaches, and the theory of cultural reproduction, our explorative investigation aims to identify determinants of young students’ idealistic and realistic aspirations. We utilize a sample of 4947 third grade students from Starting Cohort 2 of the German National Educational Panel Study (NEPS). The multivariate results indicate that students’ aspirations are influenced by their parents’ social position and aspirations, whereby the students’ self-rated rational choice indicators assert the greatest impact.
The $${\bar{\partial }}$$-Equation, Duality, and Holomorphic Forms on a Reduced Complex Space
Authors: Samuelsson Kalm Håkan 
Published: November 2019

AbstractWe solve the $${\bar{\partial }}$$

∂

¯

-equation for (p, q)-forms locally on any reduced pure-dimensional complex space and we prove an explicit version of Serre duality by introducing suitable concrete fine sheaves of certain (p, q)-currents. In particular this gives a condition for the $${\bar{\partial }}$$

∂

¯

-equation to be globally solvable. Our results also give information about holomorphic p-forms on singular spaces.
The Effects of Valvular Heart Disease on Atrial Conduction During Sinus Rhythm
Authors: van der Does Lisette J. M. E. , Lanters Eva A. H. , Teuwen Christophe P. , Mouws Elisabeth M. J. P. , Yaksh Ameeta , Knops Paul , Kik Charles , Bogers Ad J. J. C. , de Groot Natasja M. S. 
Published: November 2019

AbstractDifferent arrhythmogenic substrates for atrial fibrillation (AF) may underlie aortic valve (AV) and mitral valve (MV) disease. We located conduction disorders during sinus rhythm by high-resolution epicardial mapping in patients undergoing AV (n = 85) or MV (n = 54) surgery. Extent and distribution of conduction delay (CD) and block (CD) across the entire right and left atrial surface was determined from circa 1880 unipolar electrogram recordings per patient. CD and CB were most pronounced at the superior intercaval area (2.5% of surface, maximal degree 6.6%/cm2). MV patients had a higher maximal degree of CD at the lateral left atrium than AV patients (4.2 vs 2.3%/cm2, p = 0.001). A history of AF was most strongly correlated to CD/CB at Bachmann’s bundle and age. Although MV patients have more conduction disorders at the lateral left atrium, disturbed conduction at Bachmann’s bundle during sinus rhythm indicates the presence of atrial remodeling which is related to AF episodes.
Impacts of government interventions on pricing policies of the dual-channel supply chain by considering retailer services
Authors: Javadi Taher , Hafezalkotob Ashkan 
Published: November 2019

AbstractIn this study, the implications of the government’s tariffs on optimal pricing decisions in a dual-channel SC with one manufacturer and one retailer by taking into account the retailer services are examined. First, the best response strategies of retailer and manufacturer have obtained following the government’s tariffs by using a Stackelberg game model. Then, the government problem has modeled in six scenarios in a competitive mode about service level, social welfare, and government’s revenue-seeking policies. It can be concluded that retailer services affect the optimal manufacturer and retailer’s decisions. Moreover, with the sensitivities analysis that was studied on government models, it was shown that an integrated SC could better serve the government to achieve its goals. Also, the optimal strategies of the manufacturer and retailer of a dual-channel supply chain have been reached to the government’s social and economic goals. It can be found that the government with proper tariffs could coordinate social, economic, and service objectives.
Model-based learning of information diffusion in social media networks
Authors: Qiang Zhecheng , Pasiliao Eduardo L. , Zheng Qipeng P. 
Published: November 2019

AbstractSocial networks have become widely used platforms for their users to share information. Learning the information diffusion process is essential for successful applications of viral marketing and cyber security in social media networks. This paper proposes two learning models that are aimed at learning person-to-person influence in information diffusion from historical cascades based on the threshold propagation model. The first model is based on the linear threshold propagation model. In addition, by considering multi-step information propagation in one time period, this paper proposes a learning model for multi-step diffusion influence between pairs of users based on the idea of random walk. Mixed integer programs (MIP) have been used to learn these models by minimizing the prediction errors, where decision variables are estimations of the diffusion influence between pairs of users. For large-scale networks, this paper develops approximate methods for those learning models by using artificial neural networks to learn the pairwise influence. Extensive computational experiments using both synthetic data and real data have been conducted to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed models and methods.
Measuring the Impact of Public Understandings of Risk from Urban and Industrial Development on Community Psychosocial Well-Being: a Mixed Methods Strategy
Authors: Baldwin Cathy , Cave Ben , Rawstorne Patrick 
Published: November 2019

AbstractAs the science of well-being moves towards an understanding of the influence of social experiences shared by many on individual and group-level well-being (‘community well-being’), a new approach to measuring well-being is required. It needs to bridge the contextually-specific social experiences best uncovered by social research methods, and psychological diagnoses made using conventional psychometric scales and diagnostic interviews. We build on our previous work on a new psychosocial model of a major influence on contemporary community well-being, the process by which people form, maintain and change their understandings of risk from urban and industrial projects, and any subsequent effects on individualpsychosocial well-being. We utilise this model, and propose a mixed qualitative and quantitative methodology to argue for; 1) the incorporation of theemic(subject’s) perspective in the conceptual underpinnings of measurement scales; and 2) the synthesis of quantitative and qualitative assessments of well-being. This gives validity and contextual precision to scales which measure experiences of well-being that are geographically and socio-culturally-located. The resulting data offers both context of scale, and depth of insight. Additionally, our proposition combines theories and methods from psychology, social anthropology, sociology, social epidemiology, public health and community development. This evinces the importance of drawing on broad ranging perspectives to develop tools which capture the complex and multi-dimension nature of well-being - where psychological responses are shaped by collective social experiences.
A particle swarm optimization approach using adaptive entropy-based fitness quantification of expert knowledge for high-level, real-time cognitive robotic control
Authors: de Jager Deon , Zweiri Yahya , Makris Dimitrios 
Published: November 2019

AbstractHigh-level, real-time mission control of semi-autonomous robots, deployed in remote and dynamic environments, remains a challenge. Control models, learnt from a knowledgebase, quickly become obsolete when the environment or the knowledgebase changes. This research study introduces a cognitive reasoning process, to select the optimal action, using the most relevant knowledge from the knowledgebase, subject to observed evidence. The approach in this study introduces an adaptive entropy-based set-based particle swarm algorithm (AE-SPSO) and a novel, adaptive entropy-based fitness quantification (AEFQ) algorithm for evidence-based optimization of the knowledge. The performance of the AE-SPSO and AEFQ algorithms are experimentally evaluated with two unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) benchmark missions: (1) relocating the UAV to a charging station and (2) collecting and delivering a package. Performance is measured by inspecting the success and completeness of the mission and the accuracy of autonomous flight control. The results show that the AE-SPSO/AEFQ approach successfully finds the optimal state-transition for each mission task and that autonomous flight control is successfully achieved.
Enhancement of the attitude dynamics capabilities of the spinning spacecraft using inertial morphing
Authors: Trivailo P.M. , Kojima H. 
Published: November 2019

ABSTRACTIn the previous works by the authors, an efficient method of control of the inversion of the spinning spacecraft was proposed. This method was prompted by the Dzhanibekov’s Effect or Tennis Racket Theorem, which are often seen by many as odd or even mysterious. For the spacecraft, initially undergoing periodic flipping motion, proposed method allows to completely stop these flips by transferring the unstable motion into the regular stable spin. Similarly, the method allows activation of the flipping motion of the spacecraft, which is initially undergoing its stable spin. In this paper, spacecraft designs, which have inertial morphing capabilities, are considered and their advantages are further investigated. For general formulation, the ability of the spacecraft to change its inertial properties, associated with all three principal axes of inertia, are assumed. For simulation of these types of spacecraft systems, extended Euler’s equations are used and peculiar dynamics of the spacecraft is illustrated with a several study cases. Complex spacecraft attitude dynamics manoeuvres, using geometric interpretation, employing angular momentum spheres and kinetic energy ellipsoids, are considered in detail. Contributions of the inertial morphing to the changes of the shape of the kinetic energy ellipsoid are demonstrated and are related to the resultant various feature manoeuvres, including inversion and re-orientation. A method of reduction of the compound rotation of the spacecraft into a single stable predominant rotation around one of the body axes was proposed. This is achieved via multi-stage morphing and employing proposed instalment into separatrices. Implementation of the morphing control capabilities are discussed. For the periodic inversion motions, calculation of the periods of the flipping motion, based on the complete elliptic integral of the first kind, is performed. Flipping periods for various combinations of inertial properties of the spacecraft are presented in a systematic way. This paper discusses strategies to the increase or reduction the flipping and/or wobbling motions. A discovered asymmetric ridge of high periods for peculiar combinations of the inertial properties is discussed in detail. Numerous examples are illustrated with animations in virtual reality, facilitating explanation of the analysis and control methodologies to a wide audience, including specialists, industry and students.
The Online Public Sphere in the Gulf: Contestation, Creativity, and Change
Authors: Khamis Sahar 
Published: November 2019

AbstractThis introductory essay sets the stage for this special issue, which explores how online media has changed the Arabian Gulf region's politics, economies, and social norms.2It provides an overview of the most important themes, arguments, and findings tackled in the four essays in this issue, as well as the intersections, overlaps, and divergences emerging from, and between, them. In doing so, it explains how the similarities and differences, as well as the most significant underlying themes, emerging from these four essays further our understanding of the online public sphere in the Gulf region as a space for contestation, creativity, and change. This introductory essay identifies three important, and overlapping, themes found in this special issue: techno-euphoria, cyberwars, and the public sphere. It concludes by proposing possible next steps and future research on the important, yet understudied, links between the online public sphere and the sociopolitical environment of the Gulf.
Relationships between autistic traits, insufficient sleep, and real-world executive functions in children: a mediation analysis of a national epidemiological survey
Authors: Tsai Tsung-Han , Chen Yi-Lung , Gau Susan Shur-Fen 
Published: November 2019

AbstractBackgroundAlthough the literature documents low executive functions and sleep deficits in individuals with autism spectrum disorder or subclinical autistic traits, no study has simultaneously examined their relationships in the general child population. This study aimed to examine whether autistic traits impacted real-world executive functions through insufficient sleep in a nationally representative sample of children.MethodsThis was a national survey of 6832 primary and secondary school students, aged 8–14 years old, with equal sex distribution (3479 boys, 50.8%). Parents reported their child's nocturnal sleep duration and the need for sleep to maintain their daytime function and the Social Responsiveness Scale and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function (BRIEF) for their children's autistic traits and real-world executive functions, respectively.ResultsWe found that autistic traits exerted indirect effects on real-world executive functions through sleep deficits, independent of sex, and age. Moreover, such an indirect effect was observed only from restricted and repetitive behaviors to executive functions through sleep deficits, but not in the other components of autistic traits (i.e. social communication and interaction).ConclusionsOur novel findings underscore the importance of sleep and autistic traits in executive functions and suggest potential mechanisms that may underlie the observed correlational structure among autistic behaviors, sleep deficits, and low executive function performance.
Script variation as audience design: Imagining readership and community in Japanese yuri comics
Authors: Dahlberg-Dodd Hannah E. 
Published: November 2019

AbstractBuilding on recent work supporting a sociolinguistic approach to orthographic choice, this study engages with paratextual language use in yuri, a subgenre of Japanese shōjo manga ‘girls’ comics’ that centers on same-sex romantic and/or erotic relationships between female characters. The comic magazine Comic Yuri Hime has been the dominant, if not only, yuri-oriented published magazine in Japan since its inception in 2005. Though both written and consumed by a primarily female audience, the magazine has undergone numerous attempts to rebrand and refocus the target audience as a means to broaden the magazine's readership. This change in target demographic is reflected in the stylistic representation of paratextual occurrences of the second-person pronoun anata, indicating the role of the textual landscape in reflecting, and reifying, an imagined target audience. (Script variation, manga, popular media, Japan, yuri manga)