bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
LCZ696 mitigates diabetic-induced nephropathy through inhibiting oxidative stress, NF-κB mediated inflammation and glomerulosclerosis in rats
Authors: Mohany Mohamed , Alanazi Ahmed Z. , Alqahtani Faleh , Belali Osamah M. , Ahmed Mohammed M. , Al-Rejaie Salim S. 
Published: June 2020

BackgroundDiabetic nephropathy (DN) is among the most common microvascular complications of diabetes resulting in end-stage renal disease and therefore search for candidates which can ameliorate the kidney function is needed simultaneously with standard diabetic pharmacotherapy. The current study was aimed to investigate the effect of long term sacubitril/valsartan therapy (LCZ696) in diabetic rats to assess its ameliorative impact against various pathological parameters such as oxidative stress, inflammation and glomerulosclerosis associated with chronic DN.MethodsA single dose (60 mg/kg/day) of STZ was used to induce type 1 diabetes in adult male wistar rats. 2 weeks after diabetes induction, these rats were treated orally with valsartan (31 mg/kg) or LCZ696 (68 mg/kg) for 6 weeks. At end of the treatment period, serum and kidney samples were collected and analyzed. The serum levels of glucose, insulin, urea, creatinine, TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6 and IL-10 levels were estimated. In renal tissue homogenate, the levels of inflammatory markers such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, NF-kB along with oxidative stress biomarkers including thiobarbituric acid-reacting substances (TBARs), glutathione (GSH), superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), glutathione S-transferase (GST) were assessed. Histological changes were observed in kidney.ResultsTime course therapy withLCZ696 and valsartan in diabetic rats resulted in significant reduction of serum glucose, urea and creatinine levels (P < 0.05). Additionally, serum of treated diabetic rats showed a diminution in inflammatory (TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6) and increment in anti-inflammatory (IL-10) cytokines levels (P < 0.05). Tissue homogenate of the kidney extracted from LCZ696 and valsartan treated diabetic rats revealed a substantial reduction in the levels of inflammatory markers such as TNF-α, IL-1β, IL-6, NF-kB and sufficient restoration of anti-oxidant enzyme levels (P < 0.05). Finally, in the histological sections of the kidney, prevention of renal injury was observed with limited necrosis and inflammatory cells infiltration.ConclusionPresent data suggest that LCZ696 has sufficient therapeutic potential to restrict DN progression through inhibiting inflammation, oxidative stress and glomerulosclerosis.
Salmo salar fish waste oil: Fatty acids composition and antibacterial activity
Authors: Inguglia Luigi , Chiaramonte Marco , Di Stefano Vita , Schillaci Domenico , Cammilleri Gaetano , Pantano Licia , Mauro Manuela , Vazzana Mirella , Ferrantelli Vincenzo , Nicolosi Rosalia , Arizza Vincenzo 
Published: June 2020

Background and aims
Fish by-products are generally used to produce fishmeal or fertilizers, with fish oil as a by-product. Despite their importance, fish wastes are still poorly explored and characterized and more studies are needed to reveal their potentiality. The goal of the present study was to qualitatively characterize and investigate the antimicrobial effects of the fish oil extracted from Salmo salar waste samples and to evaluate the potential use of these compounds for treating pathogen infections.

Methods
Salmo salar waste samples were divided in two groups: heads and soft tissues. Fatty acids composition, and in particular the content in saturated (SAFAs), mono-unsaturated (MUFAs) and Polyunsaturated (PUFAs) fatty acids, was characterized through GC/MS Thermo Focus GC-DSQ II equipped with a ZB-5 fused silica capillary tubes column. The antimicrobial activity of the salmon waste oils was evaluated through the Minimum Inhibitory Concentration assay and the antibiotics contamination was determined by Liquid Chromatography with tandem Mass Spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) analysis. All experiments were done at least in triplicate.

Results
GC/MS analysis has shown the specific fatty acid composition of the salmon waste oils and their enrichment in MUFAs and PUFAs, with special reference to omega-3, -6, -7, -9 fatty acids. Furthermore, our study has highlighted the antimicrobial activity of the fish waste oil samples against two Gram+ and Gram- bacterial strains.

Conclusions
These data confirm that the fish waste is still quantitatively and qualitatively an important source of available biological properties that could be extracted and utilized representing an important strategy to counteract infective diseases in the context of the circular economy.
The common personal behavior and preventive measures among 42 uninfected travelers from the Hubei province, China during COVID-19 outbreak: a cross-sectional survey in Macao SAR, China
Authors: Lio Chon Fu , Cheong Hou Hon , Lei Chin Ion , Lo Iek Long , Yao Lan , Lam Chong , Leong Iek Hou 
Published: June 2020

Background
The novel coronavirus diseases 2019 (COVID-19) caused over 1.7 million confirmed cases and cumulative mortality up to over 110,000 deaths worldwide as of 14 April 2020. A total of 57 Macao citizens were obligated to stay in Hubei province, China, where the highest COVID-19 prevalence was noted in the country and a “lockdown” policy was implemented for outbreak control for more than one month. They were escorted from Wuhan City to Macao via a chartered airplane organized by Macao SAR government and received quarantine for 14 days with none of the individual being diagnosed with COVID-19 by serial RNA tests from the nasopharyngeal specimens and sera antibodies. It was crucial to identify common characteristics among these 57 uninfected individuals.

Methods
A questionnaire survey was conducted to extract information such as behavior, change of habits and preventive measures.

Results
A total of 42 effective questionnaires were analyzed after exclusion of 14 infants and children with age under fifteen as ineligible for the survey and missing of one questionnaire, with a response rate of 97.7% (42 out of 43). The proportion of female composed more than 70% of this group of returners. The main reason for visiting Hubei in 88.1% of respondents was to visit relatives. Over 88% of respondents did not participate in high-risk activities due to mobility restriction. All (100%) denied contact with suspected or confirmed COVID-19 cases. Comparison of personal hygiene habits before and during disease outbreak showed a significant increase in practice including wearing a mask when outdoor (16.7% and 95.2%, P < 0.001) and often wash hands with soap or liquid soap (85.7% and 100%, P = 0.031).
Possible Impact of Select Trace Mineral Deficiency in HIV Seropositive Pregnant Women with/without Malaria Co-infection in NAUTH, Nnewi, Nigeria
Authors: Chukwuagwu Ikechukwu U. , Ukibe Nkiruka R. , Ogbu Innocent S. , Agu Victoria O. , Awalu Joseph C. , Ehiaghe Friday A. , Onyema-Iloh Obiageli B. 
Published: June 2020

Aims: To evaluate the impact of HIV and malaria on serum Zinc (zn), Selenium (se) and Magnesium (mg) in HIV seropositive pregnant women in Nnewi, Nigeria.
Study Design: This is a case-control study.
Place and Duration of Study: Prevention of Mother to Child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV Clinic of Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital, Nnewi, (NAUTH), Nigeria, between December, 2017 and April, 2018.
Methodology: We included 122 consented female participants; 32 HIV seropositive pregnant women with malaria parasitaemia, 30 HIV seropositive pregnant women without malaria parasitaemia, 30 Malaria infected pregnant women, 30 pregnant women without HIV or malaria parasitaemia, aged between 18 and 42 years. Screening for HIV antibodies and malaria parasite was double screened using National algorithm, rapid detection technique (RDT) and Giemsa staining microscopy technique respectively. Micronutrient levels were determined using atomic absorption spectrophotometry (AAS).
Results: When the mean zn, sel and mg levels were compared between the test and control groups, significant decreases in serum zn (37.34 ± 6.7, 36.70 ± 4.39), sel (29.93 ± 6.02, 28.00 ± 5.04) and mg (2.41 ± 0.46, 2.33 ± 0.14) were observed in HIV seropositive pregnant participants with/without malaria co-infection when compared with their corresponding controls Zn (45.1 ± 7.83, 50.36 ± 8.73); Sel (31.46 ± 6.19, 31.96 ± 6.81); Mg (2.62 ± 0.30) and (P < .05 respectively). Body mass index (BMI) was significantly decreased while diastolic blood pressure (DBP) and systolic blood pressure (SBP) were significantly increased in HIV seropositive pregnant women with malaria compared with their seronegative counterparts (P < .05 respectively).
Conclusion: The significant loss in BMI with derangement in serum zn, sel and mg levels in HIV seropositive pregnant women with/without malaria co-infection indicates high degree of malnutrition while the increased blood pressure suggests high blood pressure which might predispose the pregnant mothers to pre-eclampsia if not properly managed. Adequate micronutrient supplementation and effective anti malaria agent is strictly advocated in the routine management of HIV infected mothers during pregnancy to reduce the severity of the co-infection and adverse pregnancy complications especially in areas of malaria endemic transmissions.
In Pursuance of Differentiation Inducers to Combat Cancer via Targeting of Abnormal Methylation Enzymes
Authors: Liau Ming C. , Kim Jai-Hyun , Fruehauf John P. 
Published: June 2020

Cell differentiation agent-2 (CDA-2) was a promising hypomethylating agent approved by the Chinese FDA for the therapy of MDS in China. The active components of CDA-2 are differentiation inducers (DIs) and differentiation helper inducers (DHIs). DIs are chemicals capable of eliminating telomerase from abnormal MEs commonly found in human cancers. The major DI of CDA-2 is an organic acid without UV absorption. Without UV absorption as a guide, it was difficult to purify the DI of CDA-2 for identification. Thus, we pursued possible candidates to function as DIs in this study.
Cancer MEs become abnormal due to association with telomerase. Naturally we sought telomerase inhibitors as possible candidates of DIs. Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) attracted our attention because it was implicated to involve in wound healing, which is a major biological mission of progenitor stem cells (PSCs) and cancer stem cells (CSCs). Eradication of CSCs has been a major focus of our studies. Besides, PGE2 fits the description of the major DI of CDA-2.
Induction of terminal differentiation (TD) of HL-60 cells by NBT assay was employed to evaluate the activity of chemicals as DIs. Cell growth was based on cell numbers. All-trans retinoic acid (ATRA) and 12-O-tetradecanoylphorbol-13-acetate (TPA) are two well known DIs. ATRA displayed a wide active dosage range from 0.2 to 4.5 µM with a maximum of inducing 89% NBT+ cells at 3 µM. TPA displayed a narrow active dosage range from 0.2 to 0.6 nM with a maximum of inducing 84% NBT+ cells at 0.4 nM. BIBR1532 and bodine were the two telomerase inhibitors studied. Both were found active as DIs. BIBR1532 was active in the dosage range from 30 to 75 µM with a maximum of inducing 86% at 63 µM. Bodine was active in the dosage range from 60 to 98 µM with a maximum of inducing 80% at 98 µM. PGE2 was active in the dosage range from 20 to 70 µM with a maximum of inducing 80% at 56 µM.
DIs at dosages not active as DIs could function as effective DHIs to other DIs. RI0.5 of BIBR1532, boldine and PGE2 as DHIs were 2.02 µM, 3.11 µM, and 0.92 µM, respectively.
DIs alone, no matter how effective, could not induce NBT+ cells to reach 100%. 95% (89% plus 6% of blank) was the highest value achieved by ATRA. Incomplete induction of TD was the reason for frequent recurrence when ATRA was used alone in the therapy of acute promyelocytic leukemia (APL). A combination of ATRA and a DHI could induce NBT+ cells to reach 100% to avoid recurrence.
On Import Growth Path of China’s Bulk Agri-Products from Perspective of Ternary Margins
Authors: Dong Yinguo , Yu Jiao 
Published: June 2020

Based on the HS6 encoded agricultural trade data from 1995 to 2018, this paper uses the ternary marginal method to analyze the import path of China’s bulk agri-products from the static and dynamic perspectives. The study finds that the import of bulk agri-products is mainly driven by the quantity margin with an average annual growth rate of 6.28 since china’s accession to the World Trade Organization (WTO). This conclusion is robust in terms of time periods, major source countries and main varieties. Improvement of living standards of Chinese consumers, innate short of advantage in supply side, opening up policy facilitating foreign supplier and unnecessary import owing to price differential all explain quantity margin impetus. At present, the main problem in the bulk agri-products has switched from insufficient amount to structural imbalance. Therefore, it is urgent to adjust the production structure and manage the import structure of bulk agri- products.
Melghiribacillus
Authors: Fardeau Marie‐Laure , Cayol Jean‐Luc 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Mel.ghi.ri.ba.cil'lus. N.L. n.
Melghir –iris
the salt lake Chott Melghir in north‐east Algeria; L. masc. n.
bacillus
a rod; N.L. masc. n.
Melghiribacillus
a rod from Chott Melghir, where the type strain of the type species was isolated.

Firmicutes / Bacilli / Bacillales / Bacillaceae / Melghiribacillus

The genus
Melghiribacillus
comprises one validly published species,
Melghiribacillus thermohalophilus,
which was isolated from soil collected from an Algerian Salt Lake, Chott Melghir. The species of the genus is Gram‐positive‐staining, endospore forming, aerobic, thermophilic, and moderately halophilic. The strain forms long and thin filaments, 2–100 μm × 0.1–0.2 μm. Cells are not motile. Phylogenetic analyses using 16S RNA gene sequences placed the genus within the family
Bacillaceae
; the genus represents a distinct lineage and shows highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to the genera
Virgibacillus
,
Thalassobacillus
, and
Sediminibacillus
.

DNA G + C content (mol%)
: 41.9 (HPLC).

Type species
:
Melghiribacillus thermohalophilus
Addou et al. 2015
VP
.
Halococcoides
Authors: Sorokin Dimitry Y. , Merkel Alexander , Kublanov Ilya , Oren Aharon 
Published: June 2020

Abstract

Ha.lo.coc.co'i.des. Gr. masc. n.
hals
,
halos
, salt; N.L. masc. n.
coccus
(from Gr. masc. n.
kokkos
, grain, seed), coccus; L. suff. ‐
oides
(from Gr. suff. ‐
eides
, from Gr. n.
eidos
, that which is seen, form, shape, figure), resembling, similar; N.L. neut. n.
Halococcoides
, coccus‐shaped halophile.

Euryarchaeota / Halobacteria / Halobacteriales / Haloarculaceae / Halococcoides

The genus
Halococcoides
, classified within the family
Haloarculaceae
, order
Halobacteriales
, and within the class
Halobacteria
, currently consists of a single species,
Halococcoides cellulosivorans
. It was enriched and isolated in pure culture from a mixture of the surface brines and sediments of hypersaline athalassic lakes with neutral pH in the Kulunda Steppe (Altai region, Russia) using amorphous cellulose as the sole growth substrate. Cells are nonmotile cocci of variable size with a thin monolayer cell wall. Colonies are pale orange and form large zones of cellulose hydrolysis around them. The genus metabolism is characterized as aerobic organoheterotrophy with insoluble cellulose, xylan, and cellobiose as the only substrates shown to support growth. NaCl concentrations of 2.5–5 M are required for growth, optimum growth being observed at 3.5–4 M NaCl and neutral pH. The core archaeal lipids are dominated by C
20
C
20
and C
25
C
20
dialkyl glycerol ethers.

DNA G + C content (mol%)
: 65.7 (genome sequence).

Type species
:
Halococcoides cellulosivorans
Sorokin et al. 2019
VP
.
Boosting radiotherapy dose calculation accuracy with deep learning
Authors: Xing Yixun , Zhang You , Nguyen Dan , Lin Mu‐Han , Lu Weiguo , Jiang Steve 
Published: June 2020

AbstractIn radiotherapy, a trade‐off exists between computational workload/speed and dose calculation accuracy. Calculation methods like pencil‐beam convolution can be much faster than Monte‐Carlo methods, but less accurate. The dose difference, mostly caused by inhomogeneities and electronic disequilibrium, is highly correlated with the dose distribution and the underlying anatomical tissue density. We hypothesize that a conversion scheme can be established to boost low‐accuracy doses to high‐accuracy, using intensity information obtained from computed tomography (CT) images. A deep learning‐driven framework was developed to test the hypothesis by converting between two commercially available dose calculation methods: Anisotropic analytic algorithm (AAA) and Acuros XB (AXB). A hierarchically dense U‐Net model was developed to boost the accuracy of AAA dose toward the AXB level. The network contained multiple layers of varying feature sizes to learn their dose differences, in relationship to CT, both locally and globally. Anisotropic analytic algorithm and AXB doses were calculated in pairs for 120 lung radiotherapy plans covering various treatment techniques, beam energies, tumor locations, and dose levels. For each case, the CT and the AAA dose were used as the input and the AXB dose as the “ground‐truth” output, to train and test the model. The mean squared errors (MSEs) and gamma passing rates (2 mm/2% & 1 mm/1%) were calculated between the boosted AAA doses and the “ground‐truth” AXB doses. The boosted AAA doses demonstrated substantially improved match to the “ground‐truth” AXB doses, with average (± s.d.) gamma passing rate (1 mm/1%) 97.6% (±2.4%) compared to 87.8% (±9.0%) of the original AAA doses. The corresponding average MSE was 0.11(±0.05) vs 0.31(±0.21). Deep learning is able to capture the differences between dose calculation algorithms to boost the low‐accuracy algorithms. By combining a less accurate dose calculation algorithm with a trained deep learning model, dose calculation can potentially achieve both high accuracy and efficiency.
Asymmetric Alkynylation of Cyclic N‐Sulfonyl Imines using Synergistic Chiral Phosphoric Acid/Copper Catalysis
Authors: Li Ya‐Ling , Liu Jin‐Xin , Chen Xiao‐Pan , Zhou Yuan , Xiao You‐Cai , Chen Fen‐Er 
Published: June 2020

AbstractThe catalytic enantioselective alkynylation of six‐membered cyclic N‐sulfonyl imines was achieved using a cooperative chiral phosphoric acid and Cu(I) catalyst. This alkynylation reaction displays a broad substrate scope for both terminal alkynes and benzoxathiazine 2,2‐dioxides and provides a highly efficient method for the synthesis of chiral propargylic sulfamidates in up to 95% yield and 99% enantiomeric excess.magnified image
Soil water and crop water use with crop rotations and cultural practices
Authors: Sainju Upendra M. , Lenssen Andrew W. , Allen Brett L. , Jabro Jalal D. , Stevens William B. , Iversen William M. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractLimited and erratic precipitation in arid and semiarid regions can affect soil water storage, water use, and dryland crop performance. Our objective was to examine soil water content, crop yield, and water‐use efficiency (WUE) with crop rotations and cultural practices for 6 yr in the northern Great Plains. Crop rotations were durum wheat (or durum) (Triticum turgidum L.)−durum−canola (Brassica napus L.)−pea (Pisum sativum L.) (DDCP), durum−durum−flax (Linum usitatissimum L.)−pea (DDFP), durum−canola−durum−pea (DCDP), and durum−flax−durum−pea (DFDP). A continuous durum (CD) was also included for comparison. Cultural practices were traditional (a combination of conventional tillage, recommended seeding rate, broadcast N fertilization, and reduced stubble height) and improved (a combination of no‐tillage, increased seeding rate, banded N fertilization, and increased stubble height) practices. Pre‐plant and postharvest soil water contents at the 0‐ to 122‐cm depth were 19−39 mm lower with DDFP than other crop rotations. Pre‐plant soil water was 21−39 mm greater in the improved than the traditional cultural practice in 3 out of 6 yr. Annualized grain yield was 207−370 kg ha−1 lower with DDFP than CD and DCDP. Overall water use and WUE (yield/water use) for the rotation system were not affected by treatments, but varied for each crop as the growing season precipitation (GSP) increased. Pre‐plant and postharvest soil water, water use, grain yield, and WUE for each crop in the rotation varied with treatments and years. Alternate‐year rotations and CD can enhance dryland soil water storage and crop yield compared to stacked rotations.
Unattached and unconvinced: Australian non‐partisans
Authors: Tranter Bruce , Smith Jonathan F. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractPolitical party identification is a strong predictor of political behaviour and social attitudes in advanced industrialised democracies. Australian Election Study data show declining identification with major parties over time, and that working‐class Australians, those who do not identify with any class, the secular and the politically uninterested are most likely to be non‐partisans. However, national samples rarely allow for detailed analysis of younger people, given the low numbers of younger people they contain. Longitudinal data from the Social Futures and Life Pathways (“Our Lives”) project enable us to focus upon young Australians aged 24 living in the state of Queensland. The Queensland data show that younger non‐partisans tend to lack post‐secondary education, are on lower incomes, are less interested in politics and, importantly, have non‐aligned parents. Nationally, non‐partisans were less likely than partisans to pay attention to politics during the 2016 Federal Election, but more likely to decide how to vote on the day of the Federal Election and more likely than partisans to vote informal. Younger non‐partisans were also less likely to engage in non‐electoral political actions, such as signing e‐petitions or posting in online forums or social networking sites.
Naphthalene‐Diimide‐Based Ionenes as Universal Interlayers for Efficient Organic Solar Cells
Authors: Liu Ming , Fan Pu , Hu Qin , Russell Thomas P. , Liu Yao 
Published: June 2020

AbstractSelf‐doping ionene polymers were efficiently synthesized by reacting functional naphthalene diimide (NDI) with 1,3‐dibromopropane (NDI‐NI) or trans‐1,4‐dibromo‐2‐butene (NDI‐CI) via quaternization polymerization. These NDI‐based ionene polymers are universal interlayers with random molecular orientation, boosting the efficiencies of fullerene‐based, non‐fullerene‐based, and ternary organic solar cells (OSCs) over a wide range of interlayer thicknesses, with a maximum efficiency of 16.9 %. NDI‐NI showed a higher interfacial dipole (Δ), conductivity, and electron mobility than NDI‐CI, affording solar cells with higher efficiencies. These polymers proved to efficiently lower the work function (WF) of air‐stable metals and optimize the contact between metal electrode and organic semiconductor, highlighting their power to overcome energy barriers of electron injection and extraction processes for efficient organic electronics.
BIMP‐Catalyzed 1,3‐Prototropic Shift for the Highly Enantioselective Synthesis of Conjugated Cyclohexenones
Authors: Golec Jonathan C. , Carter Eve M. , Ward John W. , Whittingham William G. , Simón Luis , Paton Robert S. , Dixon Darren J. 
Published: June 2020

AbstractA bifunctional iminophosphorane (BIMP)‐catalysed enantioselective synthesis of α,β‐unsaturated cyclohexenones through a facially selective 1,3‐prototropic shift of β,γ‐unsaturated prochiral isomers, under mild reaction conditions and in short reaction times, on a range of structurally diverse substrates, is reported. α,β‐Unsaturated cyclohexenone products primed for downstream derivatisation were obtained in high yields (up to 99 %) and consistently high enantioselectivity (up to 99 % ee). Computational studies into the reaction mechanism and origins of enantioselectivity, including multivariate linear regression of TS energy, were carried out and the obtained data were found to be in good agreement with experimental findings.