bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Cut points and sensitivity to change of the Enfranchisement scale of the Community Participation Indicators in adults with traumatic brain injury
Authors: Kersey Jessica , Baum Carolyn M. , Hammel Joy , Terhorst Lauren , McCue Michael , Skidmore Elizabeth R. 
Published: December 2021

AbstractBackgroundCommunity participation is an important outcome of rehabilitation following traumatic brain injury. Yet, few measures assess inclusion and belonging (enfranchisement) as a dimension of community participation. The Enfranchisement scale of the Community Participation Indicators addresses this need. However, research on its psychometric properties is lacking.ObjectiveTo examine cut points and sensitivity to change of the Enfranchisement scale of the Community Participation Indicators in adults with traumatic brain injury.DesignThis was a repeated measures study with assessments administered twice (3 months apart).SettingAssessments were administered either over the phone, virtually (Zoom), or in person at the participant's home.ParticipantsA total of 44 participants from community settings who had either experienced a traumatic brain injury within the previous year or were receiving rehabilitation interventions were recruited.Main Outcome MeasureThe Enfranchisement scale has two subscales: the Control subscale (range: 13‐65) and the Importance subscale (range: 14‐70). On both subscales, lower scores indicate better enfranchisement.MethodsThe software SAS PROC Logistic and the macro %ROCPlot were used to examine cut points at varying levels of sensitivity and specificity. The area under the receiver operating characteristics curve was calculated to determine overall classification accuracy. Minimum detectable change and minimal clinically important difference were also calculated.ResultsFor the Control subscale, a cut point of 44 (area under the curve = .75), a minimum detectable change of 8, and a minimal clinically important difference of 5 were found. For the Importance subscale, a cut point of 39 (area under the curve = .81), a minimum detectable change of 8, and a minimal clinically important difference of 5 were found.ConclusionsThe cut points resulted in good classification accuracy, providing support for their reliability. The results provided evidence that both subscales are sensitive to change in adults with brain injury.
Structural and dynamic studies of the peptidase domain from Clostridium thermocellum PCAT1
Authors: Bhattacharya Shibani , Palillo Anthony 
Published: December 2021

AbstractThe export of antimicrobial peptides is mediated by diverse mechanisms in bacterial quorum sensing pathways. One such binary system employed by gram‐positive bacteria is the PCAT1 ABC transporter coupled to a cysteine protease. The focus of this study is the N‐terminal C39 peptidase (PEP) domain from Clostridium thermocellum PCAT1 that processes its natural substrate CtA by cleaving a conserved ‐GG‐ motif to separate the cargo from the leader peptide prior to secretion. In this study, we are primarily interested in elucidating the dynamic and structural determinants of CtA binding and how it is coupled to cleavage efficiency in the PCAT1 PEP domain. To this end, we have characterized CtA interactions with PEP domain and PCAT1 transporter in detergent micelles using solution nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. The bound CtA structure revealed the disordered C‐terminal cargo peptide is linked by a sterically hindered cleavage site to a helix docked within a hydrophobic cavity in the PEP domain. The wide range of internal motions detected by amide nitrogen (N15) relaxation measurements in the free enzyme and substrate‐bound complex suggests the binding site is relatively floppy. This flexibility plays a key role in the structural rearrangement necessary to relax steric inhibition in the bound substrate. In conjunction with previously reported PCAT1 structures, we offer fresh insight into the ATP‐mediated association between PEP and transmembrane domains as a putative mechanism to optimize peptide cleavage by regulating the width and flexibility of the enzyme active site.
A newly introduced salt bridge cluster improves structural and biophysical properties of de novoTIM barrels
Authors: Kordes Sina , Romero‐Romero Sergio , Lutz Leonie , Höcker Birte 
Published: December 2021

AbstractProtein stability can be fine‐tuned by modifying different structural features such as hydrogen‐bond networks, salt bridges, hydrophobic cores, or disulfide bridges. Among these, stabilization by salt bridges is a major challenge in protein design and engineering since their stabilizing effects show a high dependence on the structural environment in the protein, and therefore are difficult to predict and model. In this work, we explore the effects on structure and stability of an introduced salt bridge cluster in the context of three different de novo TIM barrels. The salt bridge variants exhibit similar thermostability in comparison with their parental designs but important differences in the conformational stability at 25°C can be observed such as a highly stabilizing effect for two of the proteins but a destabilizing effect to the third. Analysis of the formed geometries of the salt bridge cluster in the crystal structures show either highly ordered salt bridge clusters or only single salt bridges. Rosetta modeling of the salt bridge clusters results in a good prediction of the tendency on stability changes but not the geometries observed in the three‐dimensional structures. The results show that despite the similarities in protein fold, the salt bridge clusters differently influence the structural and stability properties of the de novo TIM barrel variants depending on the structural background where they are introduced.
Current situation and forecasting of resistance evolution to lambda‐cyhalothrin in Spanish medfly populations
Authors: Guillem‐Amat Ana , López‐Errasquín Elena , Castells‐Sierra Javier , Sánchez Lucas , Ortego Félix 
Published: December 2021

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe control of the Mediterranean fruit fly Ceratitis capitata (Wiedemann) in Spanish field populations mainly relies on the insecticides lambda‐cyhalothrin and spinosad as bait sprays. However, their sustainable used is compromised by the development of lambda‐cyhalothrin resistance and the detection of spinosad resistant alleles. In addition, the use of lure‐and‐kill traps covered with deltamethrin has increased in the last years. It is thus urgent to predict the impact that the combination of both pyrethroids will have in the evolution of lambda‐cyhalothrin resistance and how they could be combined with spinosad so as to establish proper resistance management programs.RESULTSToxicity bioassays were performed to analyze the current levels of lambda‐cyhalothrin resistance in field populations, proving that it has remained stable in the last decade. An evolutionary model was established to explore the weight of selected parameters in the evolution of lambda‐cyhalothrin resistance in C. capitata and to forecast resistance development under different resistance management scenarios. Our results highlight the importance of fitness cost and inheritance to fit the experimental results. The analyses predicted that the rotation of lambda‐cyhalothrin and spinosad, when deltamethrin traps are also deployed in the field, will slow down the evolution of resistance, especially when cross‐resistance between both pyrethroids is considered.CONCLUSIONLambda‐cyhalothrin resistance has not increased in the last decade, probably due to the alternation of this insecticide with spinosad. Our modelling results indicate that the best option to avoid an increase in lambda‐cyhalothrin resistant alleles, considering that deltamethrin use is growing, would be to continue combining their use with spinosad. © 2021 The Authors. Pest Management Science published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of Society of Chemical Industry.
Nature's nitrite-to-ammonia expressway, with no stop at dinitrogen
Authors: Kroneck Peter M. H. 
Published: December 2021

Abstract
Since the characterization of cytochrome c552 as a multiheme nitrite reductase, research on this enzyme has gained major interest. Today, it is known as pentaheme cytochrome c nitrite reductase (NrfA). Part of the NH4+ produced from NO2− is released as NH3 leading to nitrogen loss, similar to denitrification which generates NO, N2O, and N2. NH4+ can also be used for assimilatory purposes, thus NrfA contributes to nitrogen retention. It catalyses the six-electron reduction of NO2− to NH4+, hosting four His/His ligated c-type hemes for electron transfer and one structurally differentiated active site heme. Catalysis occurs at the distal side of a Fe(III) heme c proximally coordinated by lysine of a unique CXXCK motif (Sulfurospirillum deleyianum, Wolinella succinogenes) or, presumably, by the canonical histidine in Campylobacter jejeuni. Replacement of Lys by His in NrfA of W. succinogenes led to a significant loss of enzyme activity. NrfA forms homodimers as shown by high resolution X-ray crystallography, and there exist at least two distinct electron transfer systems to the enzyme. In γ-proteobacteria (Escherichia coli) NrfA is linked to the menaquinol pool in the cytoplasmic membrane through a pentaheme electron carrier (NrfB), in δ- and ε-proteobacteria (S. deleyianum, W. succinogenes), the NrfA dimer interacts with a tetraheme cytochrome c (NrfH). Both form a membrane-associated respiratory complex on the extracellular side of the cytoplasmic membrane to optimize electron transfer efficiency. This minireview traces important steps in understanding the nature of pentaheme cytochrome c nitrite reductases, and discusses their structural and functional features.

Graphical abstract
Why do men extend their employment beyond pensionable age more often than women? a cohort study
Authors: Myllyntausta Saana , Virtanen Marianna , Pentti Jaana , Kivimäki Mika , Vahtera Jussi , Stenholm Sari 
Published: December 2021

AbstractMen extend their employment beyond pensionable age more often than women, but the factors that contribute to this sex difference are unknown. This study aimed to examine sex differences in extending employment and the contribution of sociodemographic, work- and health-related factors to these differences. Participants of this prospective cohort study were 4,263 public sector employees from Finland who reached their individual pensionable date between 2014 and 2019 and responded to a survey on work- and non-work-related issues before that date. Extended employment was defined as continuing working for over six months beyond the individual pensionable date. We used mediation analysis to examine the contribution of explanatory factors to the association between sex and extended employment. Of the participants, 29% extended employment beyond the pensionable date. Men had a 1.29-fold (95% confidence interval 1.11–1.49) higher probability of extending employment compared with women. Men had a higher prevalence of factors that increase the likelihood of extended employment than women (such as spouse working full-time, no part-time retirement, low job strain, high work time control, and lack of pain) and this mediated the association of sex with extended employment by up to 83%. In conclusion, men were more likely to extend their employment beyond pensionable age than women. This difference was largely explained by men being more likely to have a full-time working spouse, low job strain, high work time control, no pain, and not being on part-time retirement.
Can agroecology and CRISPR mix? The politics of complementarity and moving toward technology sovereignty
Authors: Montenegro de Wit Maywa 
Published: December 2021

AbstractCan gene editing and agroecology be complementary? Various formulations of this question now animate debates over the future of food systems, including in the UN Committee on World Food Security and at the UN Food Systems Summit. Previous analyses have discussed the risks of gene editing for agroecosystems, smallholders, and the concentration of wealth by and for agro-industry. This paper takes a different approach, unpacking the epistemic, socioeconomic, and ontological politics inherent in complementarity. I ask: How is complementarity understood? Who is asking and defining this question? What are the politics of entertaining the debate at all? I sketch the epistemic foundations of science and technology that organize different notions of evidence used in agroecology and genetic engineering. On this base, I offer 8 angles on the compatibility question, exploring the historical contradictions that complementarity discourses reveal and the contemporary work they do. I work through questions of (1) technological neutrality, (2) “root cause” problems, (3) working with nature, (4) encoding racism, and dilemmas of (5) ownership and (6) access. These questions, I argue, require a reckoning with (7) ontologies of coloniality-modernity, which help us get underneath—and beyond—the complementarity question. Finally, I offer (8) a framework for thinking about and working toward technology sovereignty.
Does the freshwater mussel Anodonta anatina remove the fish pathogen Flavobacterium columnare from water?
Authors: Hajisafarali Mahsa , Aaltonen Sari , Pulkkinen Katja , Taskinen Jouni 
Published: December 2021

AbstractGlobal decline of freshwater mussels (Unionoida) is threatening biodiversity and the essential ecosystem services that mussels provide. As filter-feeding organisms, freshwater mussels remove phytoplankton and suspended particles from the water. By filtering bacteria, freshwater mussels also decrease pathogen loads in the water. The objective of this study was to evaluate whether the common freshwater bivalve Anodonta anatina (duck mussel) could remove the bacterial fish pathogen Flavobacterium columnare from the water. Mussels reduced bacteria in both of the two experiments performed, so that the bacterial concentration at the end of the 96-h monitoring in mussel treatments was only 0.3–0.5 times that of the controls. Surprisingly, mussels did not reduce algal cell concentration statistically significantly. Mussel behavior (shell openness, foot position, and movement) was not affected by the presence of bacteria or algae, except for biodeposition formation, which was greatest in algal-fed treatments, followed by bacterial-fed treatments and controls, respectively. The intestines of bacteria-incubated A. anatina harbored F. columnare, suggesting that mussels ingested the bacteria. Present results suggest that freshwater mussels may also have a potential to mitigate aquaculture pathogen problems, as well as play a role in water quality management.
The Scope of Academic Freedom Right and the Situation of Scientists in Poland
Authors: Stachowiak-Kudła Monika 
Published: December 2021

AbstractThe implementation of academic freedom can be difficult both for policymakers and university authorities. A good example of these difficulties is the case of Poland. These difficulties stem from three factors: a weak legal tradition of academic freedom, a lack of legal definition of this freedom and the transition of Polish universities from the collegial to the managerial management model. This article analyzes the impact of these three factors on the situation of Polish scientists. It is very plausible that the introduction of a legal definition of academic freedom to the Law on Higher Education and Science could mitigate the tendency to limit academic freedom in Poland. Such a definition would make it difficult for governments, faculty and university authorities to interfere with this right and make it easier for researchers to assert their rights in court.
University satellite institutes as exogenous facilitators of technology transfer ecosystem development
Authors: Conlé Marcus , Kroll Henning , Storz Cornelia , ten Brink Tobias 
Published: December 2021

AbstractUniversities can contribute to knowledge-based regional development not only in their home region but also in other regions. In a number of countries, universities have established university satellite institutes in additional (host) regions to promote research and technology transfer there. We investigate the role of university satellite institutes in the industrial development of regions, which, albeit not economically marginal, suffer from a weak knowledge infrastructure, limited absorptive capacities for external knowledge in the business sector and hence a low degree of attractiveness for non-local knowledge actors. Despite policy recommendations in favor of establishing satellite institutes, there has only been limited empirical research on this phenomenon, particularly concerning technology transfer ecosystem development. To fill this gap, we provide an exploratory case study of university satellite institutes in the Pearl River Delta of China’s Guangdong province. We show how such institutes can be successful in facilitating the development of their host region’s technology transfer ecosystems and demonstrate why they should be conceptually included in our existing understanding of third mission activities. Our research centers on the interplay of geographical proximity and non-spatial, organized proximity in the development of interregional knowledge bridges and entrepreneurial opportunities. We argue that the university’s geographical proximity is only successful if the satellite institute, by facilitating organized proximity, promotes the geographical proximity of further knowledge actors, hereby propelling ecosystem development.
Local and landscape features constrain the trait and taxonomic diversity of urban bees
Authors: Cohen Hamutahl , Egerer Monika , Thomas Summer-Solstice , Philpott Stacy M. 
Published: December 2021

AbstractContextThere is concern that urbanization threatens bees, a diverse group of economic importance. The impact of urbanization on bees is likely mediated by their phenotypic traits.ObjectivesWe examine how urban cover and resource availability at local and landscape scales influences both species taxonomic and functional diversity in bees.MethodsWe used a combination of aerial netting and pan traps across six sampling periods to collect wild bees in 18 urban gardens spanning more than 125 km of the California central coast. We identified 3537 specimens to genus and, when possible, to species to obtain species richness and abundance at each site. For each species we measured a suite of bee traits, including body size, sociality, nesting location, nesting behavior, pollen-carrying structure, parasitism, and lecty.ResultsWe found that increased garden size was positively associated with bee species richness and abundance. Somewhat counterintuitively, we found that urban cover surrounding gardens (2 km) was positively associated with bee species richness. Urban cover was also associated with the prevalence of certain bee traits, such as bees that excavate nests over those who rent, and bees with non-corbiculate structures. We suggest that urban habitats such as gardens can host a high number of bee species, but urbanization selects for species with specific traits.ConclusionsThese findings illustrate that local and landscape features both influence bee abundance, species richness, and the frequency of specific traits. We highlight the importance of trait-based approaches for assessing biodiversity in urban landscapes, and suggest conceptualizing urbanization as a process of habitat change rather than habitat loss.
Recent trends in Ni(II) sorption from aqueous solutions using natural materials
Authors: Charazińska Sylwia , Burszta-Adamiak Ewa , Lochyński Paweł 
Published: December 2021

AbstractThe use of materials of natural origin for the adsorption of heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions has gained attention in recent years among the scientific community. This is explained by the fact that nickel compounds, due to severe health consequences, are considered to be among the most dangerous to the environment. This article reviews the results of studies on the use of biosorbents for purification of aqueous solutions from nickel ions, and then attempts to classify them according to their origin. The characteristics of materials and their sorption capacity have been compared, and the removal mechanisms identified of which chemisorption and ion exchange are considered to be the most common. From the analyses, a major trend is the use of biomass; however, biosorbents from other groups also continue to attract the interest of researchers. Conducting laboratory studies can help select materials with high efficiency. The highest sorption capacity values for the materials in each group were: for waste products 56 mg Ni·g−1 (olive stone), for peat 61 mg Ni·g−1, for miscellaneous 225 mg Ni·g−1 (microbial flocculant GA1), for biomass 286 mg Ni·g−1 (Plantanus orientalis bark) and for composites/modified materials calcinated eggshells 769 mg Ni·g−1 (calcinated eggshells). However, for some materials the sorption phenomenon may be accompanied by precipitation in the presence of hydroxides, which significantly affects the sorption capacity achieved. There is a need to transfer these experiments to an industrial scale so as to verify their applicability. In such industrial scale applications, attention should be paid not only to the effectiveness of the material, but also to its availability, price, and ease of use, as well as the effect of the biosorbent in terms of changing the quality parameters of the aquatic environment.
Qualification of the Low-pressure Cold Gas Spraying for the Additive Manufacturing of Copper–Nickel–Diamond Grinding Wheels
Authors: Tillmann W. , Zajaczkowski J. , Baumann I. , Kipp M. , Biermann D. 
Published: December 2021

AbstractGrinding wheels are usually manufactured by powder metallurgical processes, i.e., by molding and sintering. Since this requires the production of special molds and the sintering is typically carried out in a continuous furnace, this process is time-consuming and cost-intensive. Therefore, it is only worthwhile for medium and large batches. Another influencing factor of the powder metallurgical process route is the high thermal load during the sintering process. Due to their high thermal sensitivity, superabrasives such as diamond or cubic boron nitride are very difficult to process in this way. In this study, a novel and innovative approach is presented, in which superabrasive grinding wheels are manufactured by thermal spraying. For this purpose, flat samples as well as grinding wheel bodies were coated by low-pressure (LP) cold gas spraying with a blend of a commercial Cu-Al2O3 cold gas spraying powder and nickel-coated diamonds. The coatings were examined metallographically in terms of their composition. A well-embedded superabrasive content of 12 % was achieved. After the spraying process, the grinding wheels were conditioned and tested for the grinding application of cemented carbides and the topographies of both the grinding wheel and the cemented carbide were evaluated. Surface qualities of the ground surface that are comparable to those of other finishing processes were reached. This novel process route offers great flexibility in the combination of binder and hard material as well as a cost-effective single-part and small-batch production.