bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Protein kinase C signalling involved in prothoracicotropic hormone‐stimulated prothoracic glands in the silkworm, Bombyx mori
Authors: Gu S.‐H. , Chen C.‐H. , Lin P.‐L. 
Published: October 2021

AbstractIn the present study, the participation of protein kinase C (PKC) signalling in prothoracicotropic hormone (PTTH)‐stimulated ecdysteroidogenesis in Bombyx prothoracic glands (PGs) is demonstrated and characterized. PTTH stimulated phosphorylation of a 37‐kDa protein in Bombyx PGs both in vitro and in vivo, as recognized by a PKC substrate antibody. Treatment with either A23187 or thapsigargin also stimulated this 37‐kDa protein phosphorylation. PTTH‐stimulated phosphorylation of the 37‐kDa protein was markedly attenuated in the absence of Ca2+. The phospholipase C (PLC) inhibitor, U73122, greatly inhibited PTTH‐stimulated phosphorylation of this protein, indicating the involvement of Ca2+ and PLC. A mitogen‐activated protein kinase/extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK) kinase (MEK) inhibitor (U0126), a phosphoinositide 3‐kinase (PI3K) inhibitor (LY294002) and a chemical activator of adenosine 5′‐monophosphate‐activated protein kinase (AMPK) (5‐aminoimidazole‐4‐carboxamide‐1‐β‐d‐ribofuranoside) did not affect PTTH‐stimulated phosphorylation of the 37‐kDa protein, implying that ERK and PI3K/AMPK are not the upstream signalling pathways for PKC‐dependent protein phosphorylation. The mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation inhibitors (the uncoupler carbonyl cyanide p‐trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone and diphenylene iodonium) inhibited PTTH‐stimulated phosphorylation of the 37‐kDa protein, indicating its redox regulation. Treatment with PKC inhibitors (either calphostin C, chelerythrine C or rottlerin) reduced PTTH‐stimulated phosphorylation of the 37‐kDa protein. PTTH‐stimulated ecdysteroidogenesis was also inhibited by treatment with rottlerin, thus further confirming participation of PKC‐dependent phosphorylation in PTTH signalling. From these results, we demonstrated that redox‐regulated PTTH‐stimulated PKC signalling is involved in ecdysteroid secretion in Bombyx PGs.
Imaging leukocyte migration through afferent lymphatics*
Authors: Collado‐Diaz Victor , Medina‐Sanchez Jessica D. , Gkountidi Anastasia‐Olga , Halin Cornelia 
Published: October 2021

AbstractAfferent lymphatics mediate the transport of antigen and leukocytes, especially of dendritic cells (DCs) and T cells, from peripheral tissues to draining lymph nodes (dLNs). As such they play important roles in the induction and regulation of adaptive immunity. Over the past 15 years, great advances in our understanding of leukocyte trafficking through afferent lymphatics have been made through time‐lapse imaging studies performed in tissue explants and in vivo, allowing to visualize this process with cellular resolution. Intravital imaging has revealed that intralymphatic leukocytes continue to actively migrate once they have entered into lymphatic capillaries, as a consequence of the low flow conditions present in this compartment. In fact, leukocytes spend considerable time migrating, patrolling and interacting with the lymphatic endothelium or with other intralymphatic leukocytes within lymphatic capillaries. Cells typically only start to detach once they arrive in downstream‐located collecting vessels, where vessel contractions contribute to enhanced lymph flow. In this review, we will introduce the biology of afferent lymphatic vessels and report on the presumed significance of DC and T cell migration via this route. We will specifically highlight how time‐lapse imaging has contributed to the current model of lymphatic trafficking and the emerging notion that ‐ besides transport – lymphatic capillaries exert additional roles in immune modulation.
Optimal group‐buying price strategy considering the information‐sharing of the seller and buyers in social e‐commerce
Authors: Guan Lei , Chen Hongqiao , Ma Haiwen , Zhang Lianmin 
Published: October 2021

AbstractAs one of the most popular forms of social e‐commerce, group‐buying price (GBP) is a widely used pricing mechanism. One typical example is PinDuoDuo, which was listed on the NASDAQ stock exchange in 2018. On the PinDuoDuo app, sellers generally encourage informed buyers to share information about products with uninformed buyers to increase sales volume. However, a growing number of sellers have begun using new methods (e.g., online live streaming) to share information with buyers themselves. In this article, we investigate optimal pricing decisions under various scenarios of product information‐sharing between sellers and buyers. We first investigate a scenario in which either the seller or the informed buyer alone shares information with the uninformed buyer. We then consider a scenario in which they share information together. Further, we extend our model to the situation that the unit cost of information‐sharing is nonlinear. We find that the seller will choose to share information herself when the cost of information‐sharing is small or the cost function is quadratic, whereas the seller will not always choose to act first when both the seller and the informed buyer share information. GBP strategy is preferred by the seller when the information gap between buyers is in a middle range. These results can help guide sellers in choosing efficient information‐sharing methods in social e‐commerce.
Some Points of Contention with the How, not the What of Yancy's Across Black Spaces
Authors: Marino Gordon 
Published: October 2021

AbstractOn the value of public philosophy, both the present writer and the author of Across Black Spaces concur that when it comes to nontechnical issues, philosophers ought to be able to make themselves clear to educated nonspecialists. In terms of our public philosophy, I am not as fixated as Yancy in forcing readers to ‘unsuture themselves’ so as to acknowledge their racist beliefs and feelings. In The Uses and Disadvantages of History for Life, Nietzsche contends that the criterion for a good look into our past should be an answer to the question, ‘Does the historical study improve the present health of our culture?’ I argue that in some respects Yancy’s work falls short of achieving this end. Throughout, Yancy demands space for a philosophy based on Blackness. In contrast, I join Ralph Ellison and Martin Luther King Jr. in looking forward to what the late Congressman John Lewis termed ‘the blessed community’, that is, one in which we all see each other as brothers and sisters. I endeavor to defend my views against the inevitable charge that many of my judgements can be dismissed as manifestations of White privilege.
For Whom and How Does Philosophy Matter? A Response to My Interlocutors
Authors: Yancy George 
Published: October 2021

ABSTRACTIn this article, I respond to various interpretations of important aspects of my authored book, Across Black Spaces. I discuss the importance of thinking beyond Eurocentric/Western meta‐philosophical assumptions regarding the production of knowledge. I articulate and defend forms of philosophical engagement that trouble sites of white privilege and white power. I highlight the importance of philosophy as a site for engaging issues of existential catastrophe and disaster. And last, I defend the position that African American philosophy is, by its historical development within the context of anti‐Blackness, a collective site of Black opposition and resistance.
Effects of digital games on student motivation in mathematics: A meta‐analysis in K‐12
Authors: Fadda Daniela , Pellegrini Marta , Vivanet Giuliano , Zandonella Callegher Claudio 
Published: October 2021

AbstractBackgroundMotivation is an important factor in the learning process and supporting students' motivation in mathematics is a significant challenge for educators. Educational technologies, such as digital games, offer potential for engagement in mathematics learning activities.ObjectivesTo contrast the general decrement in student motivation in mathematics, a multilevel meta‐analysis was carried out to synthesize the results of studies concerning the impact of digital games on K‐12 student motivation in mathematics.MethodsStandardized measure of effect size (dppc2) for pre‐ post‐control group designs was used, and different sources of dependency among the effects were taken into account. Moreover, through meta‐regressions, we examined whether specific characteristics of the participants, interventions and outcomes were associated with effect size differences throughout the studies.Results and ConclusionsA total of 20 primary studies (43 effect sizes) meeting eligibility criteria was included. Results showed a significant overall effect (dppc2 = 0.27; 95%CI = [0.14; 0.41]) and a great heterogeneity between studies. Moderator analyses showed differences in effect size associated to the duration of intervention and motivational construct in terms of expectancy and value.ImplicationsOverall, the findings indicate that digital games are effective tools compared to conventional teaching practices. The results are promising and could be useful for the design of digital educational interventions aimed at promoting motivation in mathematics.
Actual tissue temperature during ablation index‐guided high‐power short‐duration ablation versus standard ablation: Implications in terms of the efficacy and safety of atrial fibrillation ablation
Authors: Otsuka Naoto , Okumura Yasuo , Kuorkawa Sayaka , Nagashima Koichi , Wakamatsu Yuji , Hayashida Satoshi , Ohkubo Kimie , Nakai Toshiko , Hao Hiroyuki , Takahashi Rie , Taniguchi Yoshiki 
Published: October 2021

AbstractBackgroundActual in vivo tissue temperatures and the safety profile during high‐power short‐duration (HPSD) ablation of atrial fibrillation have not been clarified.MethodsWe conducted an animal study in which, after a right thoracotomy, we implanted 6–8 thermocouples epicardially in the superior vena cava, right pulmonary vein, and esophagus close to the inferior vena cava. We recorded tissue temperatures during a 50 W‐HPSD ablation and 30 W‐standard ablation targeting an ablation index (AI) of 400 (5–15 g contact force).ResultsMaximum tissue temperatures reached with HSPD ablation were significantly higher than that reached with standard ablation (62.7 ± 12.5 vs. 52.7 ± 11.4°C, p = 0.033) and correlated inversely with the distance between the catheter tip and thermocouple, regardless of the power settings (HPSD: r = −0.71; standard: r = −0.64). Achievement of lethal temperatures (≥50°C) was within 7.6 ± 3.6 and 12.1 ± 4.1 s after HPSD and standard ablation, respectively (p = 0.003), and was best predicted at cutoff points of 5.2 and 4.4 mm, respectively. All HPSD ablation lesions were transmural, but 19.2% of the standard ablation lesions were not (p = 0.011). There was no difference between HPSD and standard ablation regarding the esophageal injury rate (30% vs. 33.3%, p > 0.99), with the injury appearing to be related to the short distance from the catheter tip.ConclusionsActual tissue temperatures reached with AI‐guided HPSD ablation appeared to be higher with a greater distance between the catheter tip and target tissue than those with standard ablation. HPSD ablation for <7 s may help prevent collateral tissue injury when ablating within a close distance.
Peri‐implant tissue changes at sites treated with alveolar ridge preservation in the aesthetic zone: Twenty‐two months follow‐up of a randomized clinical trial
Authors: Silva Carlos Guillermo Benítez , Sapata Vitor Marques , Llanos Alexandre Hugo , Romano Marcelo Munhoes , Jung Ronald Ernst , Hämmerle Christoph Hans Franz , Cesar‐Neto João Batista , Pannuti Cláudio Mendes , Romito Giuseppe Alexandre 
Published: October 2021

AbstractAimTo compare tissue changes at implant sites previously treated with two biomaterials for alveolar ridge preservation (ARP) in the aesthetic zone, 1 year after restoration.Materials and methodsSixty‐six participants were treated with ARP using demineralized bovine bone mineral (DBBM) or DBBM +10% of collagen (DBBM‐C), both covered with a collagen matrix (CM). Dental implants were placed, and definitive crowns were installed. Silicon impressions were taken before tooth extraction (T0), 2 weeks after crown insertion (T1) and 1 year after restoration (T2). Mid‐facial mucosal level change (MLC), soft tissue thickness changes (TT), and marginal bone loss (MBL) were analysed using inter‐group comparisons.ResultsFifty‐four participants were included in the analysis. The mid‐facial level change between T0–T1 and T1–T2 showed no statistical difference between DBBM and DBBM‐C. Between T0 and T1 for soft tissue thickness, DBBM performed significantly better at 3 and 5 mm below the mucosal margin. From T1 to T2, no significant differences between groups were found at any level for soft tissue thickness and MBL.ConclusionAt the aesthetic zone, advanced recession from tooth extraction to crown placement can be expected at sites treated with ARP regardless of biomaterial used. However, after crown insertion, tissue stability can be predicted.
Relationship between heat/mass transfer and ingredient degradation during drying process
Authors: Song Cheng , Liu Chuanping , Chen Jingyi 
Published: October 2021

AbstractChanges in ingredient content (paeoniflorin) and moisture transformation were studied during the drying process of Radix Paeoniae Alba (RPA) slice. The results show that paeoniflorin content decreases as the moisture content decreases from the initial state to 14% drying base. Paeoniflorin content in RPA slice is mainly related to drying temperature but slightly affected by gas speed. The RPA slice has the highest retention rate of paeoniflorin content (60% of initial content) at 60°C. When the drying temperature is lower than 60°C, the retention rate of paeoniflorin content decreases with the temperature decreasing because the drying process is prolonged; while the drying temperature is over 70°C, the retention rate decreases with the temperature increasing as the hydrolysis reaction of paeoniflorin is sped up. Free water is mutually transformed with bound water during drying and the degradation of paeoniflorin because of hydrolysis, diffusion, and oxidation. A model coupling heat/mass transfer and paeoniflorin degradation was presented to illustrate the results during the convective drying process.Practical ApplicationsIn this study, we evaluated the changes in paeoniflorin content and moisture transformation in Radix Paeoniae Alba (RPA) slice during the convective drying process. The temperature of 60°C, here, was presented for the highest preservation of paeoniflorin content. The factors affecting paeoniflorin content and moisture transformation as well as the degradation mechanism of paeoniflorin were studied. Furthermore, a model was developed to evaluate the coupling transformation of moisture, heat, and ingredient, which can be used to determine the drying parameters. Our results have given the temperature for the highest paeoniflorin preservation during drying, and our model is helpful to design the parameters for other drying processes.
Blessed Beats: Religious Profanation and Evangelical Syncretization fromSambatoCarnaval Gospel
Authors: Oosterbaan Martijn 
Published: October 2021

AbstractThis article examines Evangelical carnaval in Brazil to argue that anthropological writing on syncretization expresses a theoretical gap or shortcoming. In several large Brazilian cities, Evangelicals are currently organizing carnaval parades and performing samba music with percussion instruments. Many Evangelical adherents regard samba as spiritually hazardous because the music genre is perceived to hold Afro‐Brazilian religious force. Such an appraisal barred fusions between proselytization and samba in the past, but Evangelical carnaval performers offer a new mode of syncretization that produces fusions previously deemed impossible. This article argues that this mode can be described as Evangelical syncretization and that such mergers are characterized by religious profanation. Participants in Evangelical carnaval codify samba as “cultural” and argue that no music genre is intrinsically malevolent. This semiotic ideology, in combination with a proselytization technique calledestratégia, makes possible Evangelical participation in patrimonial practices associated with Afro‐Brazilian religion and allows Evangelicals to employ cultural phenomena as missionary armaments.
The fragmented politics of sugarcane contract farming in Uganda
Authors: Martiniello Giuliano , Owor Arthur , Bahati Ibrahim , Branch Adam 
Published: October 2021

AbstractIn the last decade, contract farming has regained momentum among policymakers and global development agencies as a tool to promote inclusive rural development and responsible investments. Integrating smallholders within global, regional and national agricultural value chains, we are told, represents the sine qua non for alleviating rural poverty. In Uganda, under the label of out‐grower schemes, contract farming is currently undergoing massive expansion, driven especially by the boom in sugarcane cultivation. Drawing from three case studies of sugarcane contract farming in Uganda, the paper re‐politicizes the debate around contract farming by looking at the power relations within which these schemes are embedded. We argue, what is seen in Uganda's expansion is a political dynamic derived both from the major dislocations and dispossessions required to establish the plantation estate and its work force, as well as from the effort to bring many smallholders using unimproved methods on land with sometimes unclear tenure arrangements into contracted arrangements for supplying sugarcane. The result has been highly contentious politics around sugar's expansion, where struggles over land dispossession merge with those around exploitative wage labour, around the loss and transformation of livelihoods, and around debt, power inequalities and environmental harm, a matrix in which state violence and co‐optation are ever‐present.
Formal and informal contract farming in Mozambique: Socially embedded relations of agricultural intensification
Authors: Veldwisch Gert Jan , Woodhouse Philip 
Published: October 2021

AbstractThis paper explores the role of contract farming arrangements in agricultural intensification in sub‐Saharan Africa, combining secondary literature and original case material from Mozambique. The paper extends the scope of “contract farming” beyond the formal contracts between large companies and small‐scale producers to include less formal credit agreements between farmers and traders. It argues that such informal contract arrangements are evidence of farmers' agency in “real markets.” In the studied cases, farmers use contract farming opportunities to intensify agricultural production by investing in irrigation and inputs. While informal contracts typically concern locally consumed crops, thus with more possibilities for side selling than formal contracts for export crops with company‐controlled markets, informal contract compliance reflects closely knit social ties between the contracting parties. In both formal and informal contracts, purchasers tend to seek out producers who are already irrigating, thus obtaining gains from farmers' earlier investments. This also implies contract farming as a mechanism for accelerating social differentiation arising from unequal access to irrigation. The paper argues that the significance of informal contracts in the studied cases raises the possibility that informal contract farming by local traders plays a more important role in agrarian transformation in Africa than formal contract farming by large companies.
Clients' Connections: Measuring the Role of Private Information in Decentralized Markets
Authors: KONDOR PÉTER , PINTÉR GÁBOR 
Published: October 2021

ABSTRACTWe propose a new measure of private information in decentralized markets—connections—which exploits the time variation in the number of dealers with whom a client trades in a time period. Using trade‐level data for the U.K. government bond market, we show that clients perform better when having more connections as their trades predict future price movements. Time variation in market‐wide connections also helps explain yield dynamics. Given our novel measure, we present two applications suggesting that (i) dealers pass on information, acquired from their informed clients, to their affiliates, and (ii) informed clients better predict the orderflow intermediated by their dealers.
Increasing Enrollment in Income‐Driven Student Loan Repayment Plans: Evidence from the Navient Field Experiment
Authors: MUELLER HOLGER , YANNELIS CONSTANTINE 
Published: October 2021

ABSTRACTWe report evidence from a randomized field experiment conducted by a major student loan servicer, Navient, in which student loan borrowers received prepopulated applications for income‐driven repayment (IDR) plans. Treatment increased IDR enrollment by 34 percentage points relative to the control group. Using the random treatment assignment as an instrument for IDR enrollment, we furthermore provide local average treatment effect (LATE) estimates of the effects of IDR enrollment on new delinquencies, monthly student loan payments, and consumer spending. Our study is the first field‐experimental evaluation of a U.S. government program designed to address the soaring debt burdens of U.S. households.
Clinical features and outcomes in 38 dogs with cholelithiasis receiving conservative or surgical management
Authors: Allan Frederik , Watson Penny J. , McCallum Katie E. 
Published: October 2021

AbstractBackgroundUrsodeoxycholic acid is used in human medicine for litholytic management of choleliths, but the efficacy of medical management in dogs with cholelithiasis is unknown.ObjectivesTo describe the clinical features and outcomes of dogs with cholelithiasis, focusing on cases that received medical treatment, and to identify patient factors that influenced decision‐making for surgical or medical management.AnimalsThirty‐eight dogs with cholelithiasis identified on abdominal ultrasonography (AUS).MethodsMedical records of dogs with cholelithiasis on AUS between 2010 and 2019 were retrospectively reviewed. Cases were classified as symptomatic (n = 18) or incidental (n = 20) and divided into medically treated (n = 13), surgically treated (n = 10), and no treatment (n = 15) groups. Biochemical variables and cholelith location were compared between symptomatic and incidental groups using Mann‐WhitneyUand chi‐squared tests, respectively. Survival times were compared using Kaplan‐Meier survival analysis.ResultsSymptomatic cases had higher alkaline phosphatase (P = .03), gamma‐glutamyl transferase (P = .03), and alanine transferase (P = .02) activities than did incidental cases. A higher proportion of symptomatic cases (44.4%) had choledocholithiasis than did incidental cases (0%;P = .003). Seventy percent of surgically managed dogs, 7.7% of medically managed dogs, and 0% of nontreated dogs had choledocholiths at presentation. Seventeen dogs had follow‐up AUS: cholelithiasis completely resolved in 4/8 medically treated, 5/7 of surgically treated, and 1/2 nontreated dogs. Median survival time was 457.4 days, with no significant difference between incidental and symptomatic dogs.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceMedical treatment can be effective for management of cholelithiasis in dogs, with clinical presentation and cholelith location playing important roles in treatment decision‐making.