bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Genetics of Alzheimer’s disease
Authors: König Theresa , Stögmann Elisabeth 
Published: February 2021

SummaryAlzheimer’s disease (AD) is the leading cause of neurodegeneration in the elderly and is clinically characterized by slowly progressing cognitive decline, which most commonly affects episodic memory function. This eventually leads to difficulties in activities of daily living. Biomarker studies show that the underlying pathology of AD begins 20 years before clinical symptoms. This results in the need to define specific targets and preclinical stages in order to address the problems of this disease at an earlier point in time. Genetic studies are indispensable for gaining insight into the etiology of neurodegenerative diseases and can play a major role in the early definition of the individual disease risk. This review provides an overview of the currently known genetic features of AD.
Growing pains in local food systems: a longitudinal social network analysis on local food marketing in Baltimore County, Maryland and Chester County, Pennsylvania
Authors: Brinkley Catherine , Manser Gwyneth M. , Pesci Sasha 
Published: February 2021

AbstractLocal food systems are growing, and little is known about how the constellation of farms and markets change over time. We trace the evolution of two local food systems (Baltimore County, Maryland and Chester County, Pennsylvania) over six years, including a dataset of over 2690 market connections (edges) between 1520 locations (nodes). Longitudinal social network analysis reveals how the architecture, actor network centrality, magnitude, and spatiality of these supply chains shifted during the 2012–2018 time period. Our findings demonstrate that, despite growth in the number of farmers’ markets, grocery stores, farms and restaurants in both counties, each local food system also experienced high turnover rates. Over 80% of the market connections changed during the study period. Farms, farmers’ markets, and grocery stores showed a 40–50% ‘survival’ rate, indicating their role in sustaining local food systems over longer time periods. Other actors, such as restaurants, had a much higher turnover rate within the network. Both food systems became more close-knit and consolidated as the center of gravity for both local food systems pulled away from urban areas toward rural farmland. Evidence of both growth and decay within local food systems provides a new understanding of the social networks behind local food markets.
Different effects of Zn nanoparticles and ions on growth and cellular respiration in the earthworm Eisenia andrei after long-term exposure
Authors: Filipiak Zuzanna M. , Bednarska Agnieszka J. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractIn this study, the effects of zinc nanoparticles (ZnO-NPs) and ions (ZnCl2) on the mortality, growth, maturation, and cellular respiration of the earthworm Eisenia andrei were assessed. Earthworms were individually exposed for 98 days, starting from the juvenile stage, to soils contaminated with either ZnO-NPs or ZnCl2 (125, 250, 500 and 1000 mg Zn kg−1 dry weight (dw)). Exposure to the highest-concentration ionic treatments (500 and 1000 mg kg−1) caused 100% mortality, while for other treatments, mortality did not exceed 15% at the end of exposure. Compared to the control treatment, both 125–1000 mg kg−1 ZnO-NPs and 125 or 250 mg kg−1 ZnCl2 stimulated earthworm growth, which might be due to a hormetic effect. ZnO-NPs and ZnCl2 caused different responses at medium Zn concentrations (250 and 500 mg kg−1): earthworms exposed to ionic treatment at 250 mg kg−1 were characterized by a significantly lower growth constant, lower cellular respiration rate, later inflection point, and higher final body weight than those exposed to ZnO-NPs treatments at the same (250 mg kg−1) or twice as high (500 mg kg−1) nominal Zn concentrations. However, differences were not observed in all examined parameters between the studied forms when the highest-concentration ZnO-NPs treatment was compared with the lowest-concentration ionic treatment, which was likely due to the same levels of available Zn concentrations in those treatments. Overall, different growth and maturation strategies accompanied by pronounced differences in cellular respiration were adopted by earthworms exposed to low and medium levels of either ZnO-NPs or ZnCl2.
Microevolutionary change in viscerocranial bones under congeneric sympatry in the Lake Tanganyikan cichlid genus Tropheus
Authors: Kerschbaumer Michaela , Postl Lisbeth , Sturmbauer Christian 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe endemic Lake Tanganyika cichlid genus Tropheus lives at rocky shores all around the lake and comprises six species which are subdivided into about 120 morphologically similar but color-wise distinct populations. Typically, they live without a second Tropheus species, but there are some regions where two or even three sister species live in sympatry. We previously showed that there are morphological differences concerning head shape, eye size and insertion of fins among populations living alone compared to those living in sympatry with a second Tropheus. This study goes one step further to test if sympatry affects the shape of viscerocranial bones. By means of geometric morphometrics, we compare the shape of four bones among thirteen Tropheus populations, some of which in sympatry and some living alone. We quantify patterns of shape variation and estimate morphological disparity among the four bony elements in the study species and populations. We found consistent differences in the shape of one bony element among non-sympatric and sympatric populations, besides an extensive variation in the shape of viscerocranial bones within and among species. Furthermore, sexual dimorphism in Tropheus is clearly evident in the viscerocranial bones analyzed. We suggest that the relatively subtle morphological signal in sympatric vs. non-sympatric Tropheus populations is owed to the fact that the depth segregation does not yet represent a full shift in the trophic niche, albeit our data confirm that differences in ecologically relevant traits, such as bones of the preorbital region, play an important role in the process of niche separation and in the context of explosive diversification of cichlid fishes.
Extraction of laminarin from Saccharina latissima seaweed using cross-flow filtration
Authors: Sterner Martin , Gröndahl Fredrik 
Published: February 2021

AbstractLaminarin is a low-molecular-weight polysaccharide found in seaweed (kelp), often in equal concentrations to that in the commercially important hydrocolloid alginate. However, while alginate can be easily recovered by dissolution followed by acid precipitation, for laminarin, there is no such straightforward way of recovering it. Laminarin can be used as dietary fiber and, if efficiently extracted, it may be used for functional food/feed applications and as a component in plant defense stimulants for agriculture. One way of concentrating laminarin from dilute solutions is to press the solution through ultrafine membranes that the molecules cannot pass through. When alginate is extracted, an acid pretreatment step is used and the dilute acid residue from that process also contains laminarin. We used cross-flow filtration to concentrate laminarin from Saccharina latissima, retrieving it from the dilute acid solution of the acid pretreatment of an alginate extraction. Three ceramic membranes with 5, 15, and 50 kDa molecular weight cutoffs were used, and the pressure, temperature, and feed velocity were altered to reveal which parameters controlled the flow through the membrane and how efficiently laminarin was concentrated. The effects on laminarin extraction for fresh vs. frozen biomass were evaluated showing that frozen biomass releases more laminarin with a similar biomass homogenization technique. Thermal and microbial degradation of the feed components was studied during the course of the filtrations, showing that microbial degradation can affect the laminarin concentration, while the temperature of the process ~ 65 °C had little impact on laminarin. The techniques used to monitor the components in the feed and permeate during filtration were nuclear magnetic resonance, 1H-NMR, and size exclusion chromatography. The filtrations were performed in a pilot-size filtration unit with ceramic membranes (ZrO2/TiO2, TiO2-Al2O support, 0.08 m2). To be able to operate without quick membrane fouling, the most important parameter was to have a high liquid velocity over the membrane, 4.7 m s−1. A good technique to concentrate laminarin was to prefilter it through a 50-kDa membrane using 2 bar liquid pressure and to concentrate it over a 5-kDa membrane using 5-bar liquid pressure. With these settings, the liquid flux through the filter became 60–80 and 30–40 L m−2 h−1 over the 50-kDa and 5-kDa membrane.
Centriolar defects, centrin 1 alterations, and FISH studies in human spermatozoa of a male partner of a couple that produces aneuploid embryos in natural and artificial fertilization
Authors: Moretti Elena , Noto Daria , Guazzo Raffaella , Menchiari Andrea , Belmonte Giuseppe , Collodel Giulia 
Published: February 2021

Abstract
Purpose
To study the potential paternal contribution to aneuploidies in the man of a couple who obtained trisomic embryos with natural and assisted fertilization.

Methods
Semen analysis, immunofluorescence for localization of tubulin and centrin 1, transmission electron microscopy (TEM), and fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) analysis for chromosomes 18 and 9 were performed. Sperm of fertile men were used as controls.

Results
The percentages of sperm motility and normal forms were decreased. The percentages of sperm with tail reduced in dimension, headless tails, coiled tails, and altered head-tail junction were significantly higher (P < 0.01) in the patient than in controls, whereas the percentage of sperm with a normal centrin 1 localization (two spots in the centriolar area) was significantly reduced (P < 0.01) in the patient. Immunofluorescence with anti-tubulin antibody showed that in most of the patient’s sperm connecting pieces (83.00 ± 1.78%), two spots were present, indicating prominent proximal centriole/centriolar adjunct and evident distal centriole, whereas controls’ sperm displayed a single spot, indicating the proximal centriole. The percentage of sperm with two spots was significantly higher (P < 0.01) in the patient than in controls. TEM analysis showed that centriolar adjuncts of the patient’s sperm were significantly longer (721.80 ± 122.26 nm) than in controls’ sperm (310.00 ± 64.11 nm; P < 0.001). The aneuploidy frequencies of the patient’s sperm, detected by FISH analysis, were increased with respect to controls.

Conclusion
A paternal contribution to sperm aneuploidies cannot be excluded since the patient’s sperm showed altered morphology, immature centriolar adjunct, presence of evident distal centriole, scarce presence of centrin 1, and high aneuploidy frequency.
The Adenosine A2A Receptor Activation in Nucleus Accumbens Suppress Cue-Induced Reinstatement of Propofol Self-administration in Rats
Authors: Dong Zhanglei , Huang Bingwu , Jiang Chenchen , Chen Jiangfan , Lin Han , Lian Qingquan , Wu Binbin 
Published: February 2021

AbstractPropofol has shown strong addictive properties in rats and humans. Adenosine A2A receptors (A2AR) in the nucleus accumbens (NAc) modulate dopamine signal and addictive behaviors such as cocaine- and amphetamine-induced self-administration. However, whether A2AR can modulate propofol addiction remains unknown. AAV-shA2AR was intra-NAc injected 3 weeks before the propofol self-administration training to test the impacts of NAc A2AR on establishing the self-administration model with fixed ratio 1 (FR1) schedule. Thereafter, the rats were withdrawal from propofol for 14 days and tested cue-induced reinstatement of propofol seeking behavior on day 15. The propofol withdrawal rats received one of the doses of CGS21680 (A2AR agonist, 2.5–10.0 ng/site), MSX-3 (A2AR antagonist, 5.0–20.0 μg/site) or eticlopride (D2 receptor (D2R) antagonist, 0.75–3.0 μg/site) or vehicle via intra-NAc injection before relapse behavior test. The numbers of active and inactive nose-poke response were recorded. Focal knockdown A2AR by shA2AR did not affect the acquisition of propofol self-administration behavior, but enhance cue-induced reinstatement of propofol self-administration compared with the AAV-shCTRLgroup. Pharmacological activation of the A2AR by CGS21680 (≥ 5.0 ng/site) attenuated cue-induced reinstatement of propofol self-administration behavior. Similarly, pharmacological blockade of D2R by eticlopride (0.75–3.0 μg/site) attenuated propofol seeking behavior. These effects were reversed by the administration of MSX-3 (5.0–20.0 μg/site). The A2AR- and D2R-mediated effects on propofol relapse were not confounded by the learning process, and motor activity as the sucrose self-administration and locomotor activity were not affected by all the treatments. This study provides genetic and pharmacological evidence that NAc A2AR activation suppresses cue-induced propofol relapse in rats, possibly by interacting with D2R.
Hölder Continuous Regularity of Stochastic Convolutions with Distributed Delay
Authors: Liu Kai 
Published: February 2021

AbstractIn this work, we consider the Hölder continuous regularity of stochastic convolutions for a class of linear stochastic retarded functional differential equations with distributed delay in Hilbert spaces. By focusing on distributed delays, we first establish some more delicate estimates for fundamental solutions than those given in Liu (Discrete Contin. Dyn. Syst. Ser. B 25(4), 1279–1298, 2020). Then we apply these estimates to stochastic convolutions incurred by distributed delay to study their regularity property. Last, we present some easily-verified results by considering the regularity of a class of systems whose delay operators have the same order derivatives as those in instantaneous ones.
Disobedience of Judges as a Problem of Legal Philosophy and Comparative Constitutionalism: A Polish Case
Authors: Pilich Mateusz 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThe article takes up the difficult problem of the so-called disobedience of judges against the background of the experiences of the Polish departure from constitutional democracy in 2015–2020. The special role and responsibility of a judge in the state imposes restrictions on her freedom of opinion in the public sphere. Openly manifesting opposition to government policy, which in the case of an ordinary citizen is only the implementation of human rights and freedoms, may be described as controversial and contrary to applicable ethical regulations. The main thesis of this paper is the assertion that although judges who act as impartial arbitrators in disputes should generally refrain from ostentatiously opposing the actions of political authorities, they are not deprived of the possibility of protest. Also in the exercise of office, and not outside the sphere of their duties, judges should take into account overriding moral values that should be implemented by the legal order, and not the values or declarations guiding the government policies. The integrity of the judge, which prescribes restraint in statements and actions in the public sphere, as well as the care for the dignity of the office held, should not be confused with absolute subordination to the legislature or the executive, even if the judge is obliged to apply the law. The traditional attitude of the members of the judiciary, consisting in focusing only on the application of the law in individual cases and the lack of any political involvement, is being reviewed in the face of the spread of majoritarianism and the law abuse as normal techniques of exercising public authority. The disobedience of judges—although difficult to defend at first sight—may seem to be the only possible way to draw public attention to the corruption of the state system. The ‘disobediant’ judges can even be assigned the role of ‘whistleblowers’, which should help to ease their legal liability or their future rehabilitation.
Clinical and radiological correlates of activities of daily living in cerebellar atrophy caused by PMM2 mutations (PMM2-CDG)
Authors: Pettinato Fabio , Mostile Giovanni , Battini Roberta , Martinelli Diego , Madeo Annalisa , Biamino Elisa , Frattini Daniele , Garozzo Domenico , Gasperini Serena , Parini Rossella , Sirchia Fabio , Sortino Giuseppe , Sturiale Luisa , Matthijs Gert , Morrone Amelia , Di Rocco Maja , Rizzo Renata , Jaeken Jaak , Fiumara Agata , Barone Rita 
Published: February 2021

AbstractWe aimed to identify clinical, molecular and radiological correlates of activities of daily living (ADL) in patients with cerebellar atrophy caused by PMM2 mutations (PMM2-CDG), the most frequent congenital disorder of glycosylation. Twenty-six PMM2-CDG patients (12 males; mean age 13 ± 11.1 years) underwent a standardized assessment to measure ADL, ataxia (brief ataxia rating scale, BARS) and phenotype severity (Nijmegen CDG rating scale, NCRS). MRI biometry of the cerebellum and the brainstem were performed in 23 patients (11 males; aged 5 months–18 years) and 19 control subjects with equal gender and age distributions. The average total ADL score was 15.3 ± 8.5 (range 3–32 out of 36 indicating severe functional disability), representing variable functional outcome in PMM2-CDG patients. Total ADL scores were significantly correlated with NCRS (r2 = 0.55, p < 0.001) and BARS scores (r2 = 0.764; p < 0.001). Severe intellectual disability, peripheral neuropathy, and severe PMM2 variants were all significantly associated with worse functional outcome. Higher ADL scores were significantly associated with decreased diameters of cerebellar vermis (r2 = 0.347; p = 0.004), hemispheres (r2 = 0.436; p = 0.005), and brainstem, particularly the mid-pons (r2 = 0.64; p < 0.001) representing the major radiological predictor of functional disability score in multivariate regression analysis. We show that cerebellar syndrome severity, cognitive level, peripheral neuropathy, and genotype correlate with ADL used to quantify disease-related deficits in PMM2-CDG. Brainstem involvement should be regarded among functional outcome predictors in patients with cerebellar atrophy caused by PMM2-CDG.
Documenting Contact and Thinking with Skin: A Dermatological Approach to the Study of Police Street Checks
Authors: Lam Anita , Bryan Timothy 
Published: February 2021

AbstractIn contrast to quantitative studies that rely on numerical data to highlight racial disparities in police street checks, this article offers a qualitative methodology for examining how histories of anti-Blackness configure civilians’ experiences of present-day policing. Taking theHalifax Street Checks Reportas our primary object of analysis, we apply an innovative dermatological approach, demonstrating how skin itself becomes meaningful when police officers and civilians make contact in the process of a street check. We explore how street checks become an occasion for epidermalization, whereby a law enforcement practice projects onto the skins of civilians locally specific histories and emotions. To think with skin, we focus on the narratives shared by African Nova Scotians, a group that has been street checked at higher rates than their white counterparts. By doing so, we argue that current debates about police street checks in Halifax must attend to the emotional stakes of police-initiated encounters in order to fully appreciate the lived experience of street checks for Black civilians.
Early Cambrian (Stage 4) brachiopods from the Shipai Formation in the Three Gorges area of South China
Authors: Duan Xiaolin , Betts Marissa J. , Holmer Lars E. , Chen Yanlong , Liu Fan , Liang Yue , Zhang Zhifei 
Published: February 2021

AbstractDiverse and abundant fossil taxa have been described in the lower Cambrian Shipai Formation in the Three Gorges area of Hubei Province, South China, but the taxonomy and diversity of the co-occurring brachiopod fauna are still far from clear. Here we describe the brachiopod fauna recovered from the Shipai Formation in the Three Gorges area of South China, including representatives of the subphylum Linguliformea: linguloids (Lingulellotreta ergalievi,Eoobolus malongensis, and Neobolidae gen. indet. sp. indet.), and an acrotretoid (Linnarssonia sapushanensis); and representatives from the subphylum Rhynchonelliformea: the calcareous-shelled Kutorginates (Kutorgina sinensis,Kutorginasp., andNisusia liantuoensis). This brachiopod assemblage and the first occurrence ofLinnarssonia sapushanensisshell beds permit correlation of the Shipai Formation in the Three Gorges area of Hubei Province with the Stage 4 Wulongqing Formation in the Wuding area of eastern Yunnan. This correlation is further strengthened by the first appearance datum (FAD) of the rhynchonelliform brachiopodNisusiain the upper silty mudstone of both the Shipai and Wulongqing formations. The new well-preserved material, derived from siliciclastic rocks, also gives critical new insights into the fine shell structure ofL.sapushanensis. Microstructural studies on micromorphic acrotretoids (likeLinnarssonia) have previously been restricted to fossils that were acid-etched from limestones. This is the first study to carry out detailed comparative ultrastructural studies on acrotretoid shells preserved in siliciclastic rocks. This work reveals a hollow tube and solid column microstructure in the acrotretoid shells from the Shipai Formation, which is likely to be equivalent of traditional column and central canal observed in shells dissolved from limestones.
Interest group lobbying and partisan polarization in the United States: 1999–2016
Authors: Garlick Alex 
Published: February 2021

AbstactThe lobbying activity of interest groups has been overlooked as a contributing factor to legislative party polarization in the United States. Using bill-level data from Congress and three state legislatures, I show floor votes on bills lobbied by more non-profit interest groups are more polarized by party. The state legislative data demonstrate the robustness of the relationship between lobbying and polarization, showing it is not an artifact of party agenda control, salience, or bill content. Increased lobbying from these groups in recent years helps explain high levels of partisan polarization in Congress and an uneven pattern across the state legislatures.
Justice Speaks: Nemesis, Nature, and Common Law in Aristotle's Rhetoric
Authors: Basil Christine J. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractThis essay explores Aristotle's treatment of the passion of nemesis or “righteous indignation” in his Rhetoric and its relevance to contemporary displays of passion in democratic political orders. It does so by considering Aristotle's perplexing definition of nemesis in relation to two other passions, pity and envy, as well as its significance to his discussion of common law (a transpolitical standard of justice according to nature), which he presents through allusions to Sophocles's Antigone. Aristotle's discussion sheds light on the way in which nemesis, which is aroused in relation to the concern for justice, necessarily takes into consideration questions of moral worth that liberal democratic regimes attempt to relegate to the private sphere.
Homotopic distance between maps
Authors: MACÍAS–VIRGÓS E. , MOSQUERA–LOIS D. 
Published: February 2021

AbstractWe show that well-known invariants like Lusternik–Schnirelmann category and topological complexity are particular cases of a more general notion, that we call homotopic distance between two maps. As a consequence, several properties of those invariants can be proved in a unified way and new results arise.