bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Altered fire regimes cause long‐term lichen diversity losses
Authors: Miller Jesse E. D. , Root Heather T. , Safford Hugh D. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractMany global ecosystems have undergone shifts in fire regimes in recent decades, such as changes in fire size, frequency, and/or severity. Recent research shows that increases in fire size, frequency, and severity can lead to long‐persisting deforestation, but the consequences of shifting fire regimes for biodiversity of other vegetative organisms (such as understory plants, fungi, and lichens) remain poorly understood. Understanding lichen responses to wildfire is particularly important because lichens play crucial roles in nutrient cycling and supporting wildlife in many ecosystems. Lichen responses to fire have been little studied, and most previous research has been limited to small geographic areas (e.g. studies of a single fire), making it difficult to establish generalizable patterns. To investigate long‐term effects of fire severity on lichen communities, we sampled epiphytic lichen communities in 104 study plots across California's greater Sierra Nevada region in areas that burned in five wildfires, ranging from 4 to 16 years prior to sampling. The conifer forest ecosystems we studied have undergone a notable increase in fire severity in recent decades, and we sample across the full gradient of fire severity to infer how shifting fire regimes may influence landscape‐level biodiversity. We find that low‐severity fire has little to no effect on lichen communities. Areas that burned at moderate and high severities, however, have significantly and progressively lower lichen richness and abundance. Importantly, we observe very little postfire lichen recolonization on burned substrates even more than 15 years after fire. Our multivariate model suggests that the hotter, drier microclimates that occur after fire removes forest canopies may prevent lichen reestablishment, meaning that lichens are not likely to recolonize until mature trees regenerate. These findings suggest that altered fire regimes may cause broad and long‐persisting landscape‐scale biodiversity losses that could ultimately impact multiple trophic levels.
Spring temperature, migration chronology, and nutrient allocation to eggs in three species of arctic‐nesting geese: Implications for resilience to climate warming
Authors: Hupp Jerry W. , Ward David H. , Soto David X. , Hobson Keith A. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractThe macronutrients that Arctic herbivores invest in their offspring are derived from endogenous reserves of fat and protein (capital) that females build prior to the period of investment or from foods they consume concurrently with investment (income). The relative contribution from each source can be influenced by temporal and environmental constraints on a female's ability to forage on Arctic breeding areas. Warming temperatures and advancing Arctic phenology may alter those constraints. From 2011 to 2014, we examined relationships among spring temperature, timing of migration and reproduction, and the sources of nutrients females deposited in eggs for three sympatric species of geese that nested in northern Alaska. Compared to lesser snow geese (Anser caerulescens caerulescens) and greater white‐fronted geese (Anser albifrons frontalis), black brant (Branta bernicla nigricans) were more likely to initiate follicle development during migration, resulting in fewer days between their arrival in the Arctic and the onset of incubation and requiring a relatively greater capital investment in eggs. Delaying follicle development until after their arrival in the Arctic provided snow geese and white‐fronted geese an opportunity to forage near their nesting area and to deposit exogenous nutrients in eggs. With warmer spring temperatures, brant invested more capital in eggs, but snow geese invested less capital. Brant likely used capital to meet costs associated with earlier onset of follicle development when phenology was advanced, whereas snow geese used capital to compensate for poor foraging conditions during colder Arctic springs. Global warming is likely to reduce the quality of lower latitude marine habitats where brant acquire endogenous reserves and advancing Arctic phenology may increase their reliance on those reserves during reproduction. Near‐term warming in northern Alaska may improve foraging conditions and favor the reproductive strategies of some herbivores such as snow geese and white‐fronted geese that mainly invest Arctic nutrients in their offspring.
Enhancer function regulated by combinations of transcription factors and cofactors
Authors: Nakagawa Takeya , Yoneda Mitsuhiro , Higashi Miki , Ohkuma Yoshiaki , Ito Takashi 
Published: August 2018

AbstractRegulation of the expression of diverse genes is essential for making possible the complexity of higher organisms, and the temporal and spatial regulation of gene expression allows for the alteration of cell types and growth patterns. A critical component of this regulation is the DNA sequence‐specific binding of transcription factors (TFs). However, most TFs do not independently participate in gene transcriptional regulation, because they lack an effector function. Instead, TFs are thought to work by recruiting cofactors, including Mediator complex (Mediator), chromatin‐remodeling complexes (CRCs), and histone‐modifying complexes (HMCs). Mediator associates with the majority of transcribed genes and acts as an integrator of multiple signals. On the other hand, CRCs and HMCs are selectively recruited by TFs. Although all the pairings between TFs and CRCs or HMCs are not fully known, there are a growing number of established TF–CRC and TF–HMC combinations. In this review, we focused on the most important of these pairings and discuss how they control gene expression.
The Role of Fault‐Zone Architectural Elements on Pore Pressure Propagation and Induced Seismicity
Authors: Ortiz John P. , Person Mark A. , Mozley Peter S. , Evans James P. , Bilek Susan L. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractWe used hydrogeologic models to assess how fault‐zone properties promote or inhibit the downward propagation of fluid overpressures from a basal reservoir injection well (150 m from fault zone, Q = 5000 m3/day) into the underlying crystalline basement rocks. We varied the permeability of the fault‐zone architectural components and a crystalline basement weathered layer as part of a numerical sensitivity study. Realistic conduit‐barrier style fault zones effectively transmit elevated pore pressures associated with 4 years of continuous injection to depths of approximately 2.5 km within the crystalline basement while compartmentalizing fluid flow within the injection reservoir. The presence of a laterally continuous, relatively low‐permeability altered/weathered basement horizon (kaltered layer = 0.1 × kbasement) can limit the penetration depth of the pressure front to approximately 500 m. On the other hand, the presence of a discontinuous altered/weathered horizon that partially confines the injection reservoir without blocking the fault fluid conduit promotes downward propagation of pressures. Permeability enhancement via hydromechanical failure was found to increase the depth of early‐time pressure front migration by a factor of 1.3 to 1.85. Dynamic permeability models may help explain seismicity at depths of greater than 10 km such as is observed within the Permian Basin, NM.
Real‐world comparative analysis of bleeding complications and health‐related quality of life in patients with haemophilia A and haemophilia B
Authors: Booth Jason , Oladapo Abiola , Walsh Shaun , O'Hara Jamie , Carroll Liz , Garcia Diego Daniel‐Anibal , O'Mahony Brian 
Published: August 2018

IntroductionClinical severity and impact of haemophilia on quality of life have been generally considered to be lower for haemophilia B (HB) compared with haemophilia A (HA) patients.AimsTo compare annual bleeding rate (ABR), target joint development and health‐related quality of life (HRQoL) between adult (≥18 years) severe HA and HB patients using recent data from the Cost of Haemophilia in Europe: a Socioeconomic Survey (CHESS) study.MethodsMultivariate generalized linear models (GLM) were constructed to assess the relationship between haemophilia type, ABR, HRQoL (derived from EQ‐5D index scores) and the presence of target joints while controlling for covariates.ResultsOf the 1225 patients included, 77% (n = 949) had HA and 23% (n = 278) had HB. Of the 514 patients who completed the EQ‐5D, 78% (n = 405) had HA, and 22% (n = 110) had HB. Unadjusted mean ABR was 3.79 in HA and 4.60 in HB. The presence of ≥1 target joint was reported in 59% and 54% of patients with HA and HB, respectively. Unadjusted mean EQ‐5D index score was 0.78 in HA and 0.76 in HB. Haemophilia type was not a significant predictor of ABR, target joints or HRQoL when adjusted for confounding factors such as BMI, age and replacement therapy regimen.ConclusionData suggest comparable ABR, incidence of target joints and HRQoL between patients with HB and HA indicating comparable clinical severity and disease impact on patient quality of life.
Immunological profile of teeth with inflammatory periapical disease from chronic liver disease patients
Authors: Braga Diniz J. M. , Espaladori M. C. , Souza e Silva M. E. , Brito L. C. N. , Vieira L. Q. , Ribeiro Sobrinho A. P. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractAimTo evaluate the mRNA expression levels of the cytokines interferon‐γ, tumour necrosis factor‐α, interleukin (IL)‐1β, IL‐10, IL‐6, VEGF, and AGT and the chemokine CCL2/MCP‐1 in periapical interstitial fluid associated with root canal infections before and after the reduction of the bacterial load using a cleaning procedure.MethodologyThe case group included 11 patients with chronic liver disease, and the control group included 11 healthy patients. Clinical samples were taken from teeth with pulp necrosis. After cleaning and drying the canal, three paper points were introduced into the root canal and passed through the root apex (2 mm) into the periapical tissues for 1 min. The samples were collected immediately after root canal cleaning and 7 days later to characterize those gene expression levels using real‐time PCR. The data were subjected to the Shapiro–Wilk and the Wilcoxon tests.ResultsIn the control group, significantly increased expression of the pro‐inflammatory cytokines IFN‐γ and TNF‐α was observed in teeth with restrained bacterial loads (day 7) (P < 0.05). Similarly, increased TNF‐α expression was found on day 7 in the liver group (P < 0.05). No differences were observed in the expression levels of the IL‐1β, IL‐10 and, IL‐6, MCP‐1/CCL‐2 and VEGF between the first collection (day 0) and second collection (day 7), over time in either group.ConclusionChronic liver disease patients exhibited sufficient immunologic ability showing relatively similar expression levels of cytokines, chemokines and angiogenic factors in periapical samples compared with the responses from no‐chronic liver disease patients. The outcomes of this study suggest that liver impairment did not compromise the periapical immune response.
Outcome of hospital outpatient treatment of functional gastrointestinal disorders
Authors: Basnayake Chamara , Kamm Michael A. , Salzberg Michael , Stanley Annalise , Khera Angela , Burrell Kathryn , Wilson‐O’Brien Amy , Hebbard Geoffrey , Thompson Alexander J. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractBackgroundFunctional gastrointestinal disorders (FGID) are the commonest conditions observed in gastrointestinal (GI) practice, yet the outcomes of their outpatient care are not known.AimTo evaluate the outcome for patients with FGID attending a specialist GI clinic.MethodsConsecutive, newly referred patients with a FGID attending a specialist GI clinic in a tertiary hospital, over a 1‐year period were reviewed and then completed a phone survey to assess current symptoms.ResultsOf 102 patients, 57% had irritable bowel syndrome, 28% functional dyspepsia and 15% other functional disorders. At interview, a median of 402 days after the last consultation 38% expressed symptom improvement, but 64% remained concerned about their condition despite 62% having been reassured. After treatment, 50% of employed patients took time off work because of gut symptoms. Functional dyspepsia patients were less likely to be symptomatically improved than other FGID (21% vs 45%, P = 0.02). Patients given a diet low in fermentable oligosaccharides, disaccharides, monosaccharides and polyols were more likely than others to achieve symptom improvement (53% vs 31%, P = 0.03); PPI‐treated patients were less likely to experience improvement (22% vs 44%, P = 0.05); other treatments did not predict outcome. Number of visits, seniority of clinician, duration of care and comorbidities did not predict outcome.ConclusionOne year after attending a specialist GI clinic a minority of patients with FGID were symptomatically improved. Failure to benefit by many patients may relate to the nature of patients and conditions being treated or the limited nature and range of treatments offered. Different models of care, including more diverse multidisciplinary models, should be explored.
Hepatitis C treatment for difficult to access populations: can telementoring (as distinct from telemedicine) help?
Authors: Mohsen Waled , Chan Patrick , Whelan Michelle , Glass Ann , Mouton Marlize , Young Ernest , Tran Quyen , Arora Sanjeev , Davison Scott , Lama Tenzin , Cobrador Cherry , Levy Miriam 
Published: August 2018

AbstractBackgroundAlthough hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection is curable, treatment of difficult to access populations (DTAP) presents unique challenges. Project ECHO (PE) (Extension for Community Healthcare Outcomes) is a telementoring programme adopted to support clinicians treating DTAP.AimsTo determine if the PE model supports primary care clinicians treating HCV and to compare cohort of PE patients with those in a tertiary liver clinic (TLC).MethodsWeekly PE group video conferences were conducted. Clinical information, laboratory indices, psychosocial elements and treatment outcomes, including sustained virological response (SVR) data were recorded in the first 100 consecutive cases and retrospectively compared to 100 consecutive patients seen at a TLC from July 2016 to April 2017.ResultsSome patient characteristics were similar between PE and TLC: gender (72% vs 75% male; P = 0.23), median age (45 vs 50; P = 0.344) and the proportion of treatment naïve patients (95.0% vs 90.9%). Treatment for HCV was commenced in 78% of the PE patients and 81% of the TLC patients; 67/68 of the TLC patients and 60/61 PE patients with virological follow up who completed treatment and attended follow up have confirmed SVR. PE patients are more likely to have ongoing substance use (44% vs 17% P < 0.001), be active intravenous drug users (32% vs 17%; P < 0.001) and polysubstance abusers (26% vs 7%; P < 0.001) and were more likely to be taking opioid substitution therapy (74% vs 20%; P < 0.001). Indigenous patients were three times more greatly represented in PE (15% vs 5%; P = 0.018).ConclusionPE is an effective model to support primary healthcare providers treating HCV in DTAP with similar rates of treatment uptake and SVR compared to patients in TLC.
Inpatient palliative care of people dying in New South Wales hospitals or soon after discharge
Authors: Stubbs Joanne M. , Assareh Hassan , Achat Helen M. , Jalaludin Bin 
Published: August 2018

AbstractBackgroundPalliative care can benefit all patients with life‐limiting diseases.AimTo describe hospital use in the final year of life, timing of palliative care and variations by age and disease for patients receiving inpatient palliative care.MethodsRetrospective cohort study of all New South Wales residents aged 50 years and older who died (decedents) between July 2010 and June 2015 in hospital or within 30 days of discharge. Care type and diagnosis codes identified decedents who received inpatient palliative care.ResultsOf 150 770 decedents, 34.4% received palliative care a median of 10 days before death. Decedents were more likely to receive palliative care if they had cancer (64.7% vs 13.3% for those without chronic conditions) or were younger (46.3% vs 25.0% of the oldest decedents). In their last year of life, palliated decedents, on average, had three emergency department presentations and four hospital admissions – one involving surgery and one where palliation was the intent of care. Of the 30.1 days spent in hospital, 8.7 days involved palliative care. Older age and non‐cancer diagnoses were associated with fewer days of inpatient palliation and shorter time between first palliative admission and death. Decedents dying out of hospital started palliative care 18 days earlier than those dying in hospital.ConclusionMost decedents did not receive palliative care during hospital admission, and even then only very late in life, limiting its benefits. Improved recognition of palliative need, including earlier identification regardless of age and disease, will enhance the quality of care for the dying.
Outcomes of patients admitted to hospital medical units with back pain
Authors: Kyi Leo , Kandane‐Rathnayake Rangi , Morand Eric , Roberts Lynden J. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractBackgroundHospital admissions for patients with back pain are increasing. Despite their significant contribution to the healthcare burden, they remain largely unstudied.AimTo investigate the management and clinical outcomes of patients with acute back pain admitted to hospital under general medicine units when compared to a rheumatology unit.MethodsA 36‐month retrospective, observational study on patients presenting to the emergency department with back pain who were subsequently admitted to one of three general medicine units (GM) or a rheumatology unit (RU). Differences in patient demographics, management and clinical outcomes were assessed using Chi‐squared tests for categorical variables and Kruskall–Wallis tests for continuous variables. Multivariate associations of two primary outcomes, length of stay (LOS) and complications were examined using generalised estimating equations.ResultsData from 712 admissions from 594 patients across the four inpatient units were used for this study. Common discharge diagnoses were musculoskeletal/non‐specific back pain (41%), disc‐related illness (22%), vertebral fracture (14%) and sciatica (14%). Non‐English speaking background (NESB), age ≥ 80 years, disc‐related disease, vertebral fracture and sciatica were statistically significantly associated with both increased LOS and complications. The presence of comorbidities was associated with more complications. GM admission was associated with a longer LOS and more complications than RU admission.ConclusionMultiple factors associated with an increased LOS and complications were identified, including older patients and patients of NESB. Given the observed variations in back pain management between general and specialty units, strategies to standardise care should be considered.
Ferroelectric and piezoelectric properties of Ba0.85Ca0.15Ti0.90Zr0.10O3 films in 200 nm thickness range
Authors: Reddy Seelam Rangaswamy , Bhanu Prasad Velidandla Venkata , Bysakh Sandip , Shanker Vishnu , Joardar Joydip , Roy Subir K. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractLead‐free piezoelectric Ba0.85Ca0.15Ti0.90Zr0.10O3 (BCZT) thin films were fabricated on Si/SiO2/TiO2/Pt (100) substrates following chemical solution deposition technique. Microstructure of the nano‐sized BCZT particles crystallized in the thin film was thoroughly characterized. Ferroelectric, dielectric and piezoelectric properties of the films were investigated in detail. The BCZT films annealed at 800°C temperature exhibited high remanent polarization of 25 ± 1 μC/cm2, energy density of 17 J/cm3, dielectric constant of 1550 ± 50 and dielectric tunability of 50%. Converse piezoelectric coefficients (d33) obtained from piezo‐response force microscopy (PFM) measurements on BCZT grains of different grain size (20‐100 nm) distributed on the BCZT 700 film varied widely from 90 to 230 pm/V. The same for BCZT 800 measured on different grain size (30‐130 nm) varied from 120 to 295 pm/V. These BCZT thin films with high dielectric, ferroelectric, and piezoelectric properties might be good alternative to the PZT films for thin film piezoelectric device applications.
Local coordination, electronic structure, and thermal quenching of Ce3+ in isostructural Sr2GdAlO5 and Sr3AlO4F phosphors
Authors: Ji Haipeng , Xu Jian , Asami Kazuki , Ueda Jumpei , Brik Mikhail G. , Tanabe Setsuhisa 
Published: August 2018

AbstractSr2GdAlO5:Ce and Sr3AlO4F:Ce are isostructural phosphors in which the Ce3+ 4f‐5d1 transition can be efficiently excited by a photon with energy lower than 3.1 eV. Herein, we analyze the crystal chemistry of the Ce3+ local coordination, compare the thermal quenching behavior and construct the electronic structure of Ce3+ in them. The Rietveld refinement on two occupancy models suggests that Gd3+ only occupies the 8h site in Sr2GdAlO5; this provides a hint on the preferred occupancy of dopant Ce3+ in this site. The large crystal filed splitting of Ce8h is mainly due to the fact that the 8h site is bonded to two oxygen with relatively short dSr/Gd‐O and forms a quasi‐square antiprism which experiences a large distortion. The Ce3+ 5d‐4f luminescence in Sr3AlO4F is much more stable against thermal quenching than that in Sr2GdAlO5, as evidenced by the temperature‐dependent luminescence intensity and luminescence decay studies. The energy of the O2−‐Eu3+/2+ and O2−‐Ce4+/3+ charge transfer as well as bandgap were estimated and the electronic structure of Ce3+ were constructed. A larger energy barrier ΔEdC between the Ce3+ 5d1 level and the conduction band bottom in Sr3AlO4F is seen from the Vacuum Referred Binding Energy (VRBE) diagrams which explains the higher thermal quenching temperature by thermal ionization model.
Boro/carbothermal reduction synthesis of uranium tetraboride and its oxidation behavior in dry air
Authors: Guo Hangxu , Wang Jieru , Chen Denglei , Tian Wei , Cao Shiwei , Chen Desheng , Tan Cunmin , Deng Qihuang , Qin Zhi 
Published: August 2018

AbstractUranium tetraboride (UB4) was successfully synthesized by boro/carbothermal reduction of UO2 with B4C and carbon as combined reduction agents under flowing argon. The effects of processing temperature and mole ratios of starting materials on phase evolution were studied. XRD results demonstrated that UB4 was obtained with 3.75 mol% B4C in excess based on the UO2/B4C/C molar ratios of 1:1:1 at 1500°C. SEM observation revealed that submicrometer‐sized quasi‐spherical UB4 particles cemented together to be an aggregate. The laser particle size analysis showed that the particle size was in the range of 1‐10 μm. The oxidation behavior of UB4 was also investigated by TG and XRD. The oxidation of UB4 started at about 500°C and it showed better oxidation resistance than other basic uranium nuclear fuels (UO2, UC, UN and U3Si2). The oxidation chemical process of UB4 was presented as a three‐step process: (a) the formation of U3O8 and B2O3 oxidation products; (b) the formation of UB2O6 intermediate product by the interaction of U3O8 and B2O3; (c) the decomposition of UB2O6 to get U3O8.