bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
High-precision isotopic analysis sheds new light on mercury metabolism in long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas)
Authors: Bolea-Fernandez Eduardo , Rua-Ibarz Ana , Krupp Eva M. , Feldmann Jörg , Vanhaecke Frank 
Published: May 2019

AbstractWhales accumulate mercury (Hg), but do not seem to show immediate evidence of toxic effects. Analysis of different tissues (liver, kidney, muscle) and biofluids (blood, milk) from a pod of stranded long-finned pilot whales (Globicephala melas) showed accumulation of Hg as a function of age, with a significant decrease in the MeHg fraction. Isotopic analysis revealed remarkable differences between juvenile and adult whales. During the first period of life, Hg in the liver became isotopically lighter (δ202Hg decreased) with a strongly decreasing methylmercury (MeHg) fraction. We suggest this is due to preferential demethylation of MeHg with the lighter Hg isotopes and transport of MeHg to less sensitive organs, such as the muscles. Also changes in diet, with high MeHg intake in utero and during lactation, followed by increasing consumption of solid food contribute to this behavior. Interestingly, this trend in δ202Hg is reversed for livers of adult whales (increasing δ202Hg value), accompanied by a progressive decrease of δ202Hg in muscle at older ages. These total Hg (THg) isotopic trends suggest changes in the Hg metabolism of the long-finned pilot whales, development of (a) detoxification mechanism(s) (e.g., though the formation of HgSe particles), and Hg redistribution across the different organs.
Modelling opinion dynamics in the age of algorithmic personalisation
Authors: Perra Nicola , Rocha Luis E. C. 
Published: May 2019

AbstractModern technology has drastically changed the way we interact and consume information. For example, online social platforms allow for seamless communication exchanges at an unprecedented scale. However, we are still bounded by cognitive and temporal constraints. Our attention is limited and extremely valuable. Algorithmic personalisation has become a standard approach to tackle the information overload problem. As result, the exposure to our friends’ opinions and our perception about important issues might be distorted. However, the effects of algorithmic gatekeeping on our hyper-connected society are poorly understood. Here, we devise an opinion dynamics model where individuals are connected through a social network and adopt opinions as function of the view points they are exposed to. We apply various filtering algorithms that select the opinions shown to each user (i) at random (ii) considering time ordering or (iii) its current opinion. Furthermore, we investigate the interplay between such mechanisms and crucial features of real networks. We found that algorithmic filtering might influence opinions’ share and distributions, especially in case information is biased towards the current opinion of each user. These effects are reinforced in networks featuring topological and spatial correlations where echo chambers and polarisation emerge. Conversely, heterogeneity in connectivity patterns reduces such tendency. We consider also a scenario where one opinion, through nudging, is centrally pushed to all users. Interestingly, even minimal nudging is able to change the status quo moving it towards the desired view point. Our findings suggest that simple filtering algorithms might be powerful tools to regulate opinion dynamics taking place on social networks.
Identification of influential invaders in evolutionary populations
Authors: Yang Guoli , Benko Tina P. , Cavaliere Matteo , Huang Jincai , Perc Matjaž 
Published: May 2019

AbstractThe identification of the most influential nodes has been a vibrant subject of research across the whole of network science. Here we map this problem to structured evolutionary populations, where strategies and the interaction network are both subject to change over time based on social inheritance. We study cooperative communities, which cheaters can invade because they avoid the cost of contributions that are associated with cooperation. The question that we seek to answer is at which nodes cheaters invade most successfully. We propose the weighted degree decomposition to identify and rank the most influential invaders. More specifically, we distinguish two kinds of ranking based on the weighted degree decomposition. We show that a ranking strategy based on negative-weighted degree allows to successfully identify the most influential invaders in the case of weak selection, while a ranking strategy based on positive-weighted degree performs better when the selection is strong. Our research thus reveals how to identify the most influential invaders based on statistical measures in dynamically evolving cooperative communities.
Structural prediction of stabilized atomically thin tin layers
Authors: Borlido Pedro , Huran Ahmad W. , Marques Miguel A. L. , Botti Silvana 
Published: May 2019

AbstractThe family of group IV two-dimensional materials shows a rich variety of structural, electronic and topological properties. Only graphene is stable in the honeycomb structure, while buckling and dumbbell configurations stabilize silicene and germanene. Here we investigate from first principles the lowest-energy atomic arrangements of atomically-thin tin layers. Our calculations are performed with a very efficient method for global structural prediction, combined with constrains that enforce the desired one-dimensional confinement and include the effect of strain due to the substrate. We discover a series of new structures that span a large range of atomic densities and are considerably more stable than hexagonal single- or double-layer stanene, as well as dumbbell structures. The ground state, a metallic double layer with a square lattice that lies 295 meV/atom below honeycomb stanene and only 149 meV/atom above bulk α-tin, is akin to the atomic arrangement of a layer of romarchite tin oxide. Due to its enhanced stability with respect to honeycomb stanene, we propose that this structure can be easily synthesized on appropriate lattice-matched metallic substrates.
Digital health: a path to validation
Authors: Mathews Simon C. , McShea Michael J. , Hanley Casey L. , Ravitz Alan , Labrique Alain B. , Cohen Adam B. 
Published: May 2019

AbstractDigital health solutions continue to grow in both number and capabilities. Despite these advances, the confidence of the various stakeholders — from patients and clinicians to payers, industry and regulators — in medicine remains quite low. As a result, there is a need for objective, transparent, and standards-based evaluation of digital health products that can bring greater clarity to the digital health marketplace. We believe an approach that is guided by end-user requirements and formal assessment across technical, clinical, usability, and cost domains is one possible solution. For digital health solutions to have greater impact, quality and value must be easier to distinguish. To that end, we review the existing landscape and gaps, highlight the evolving responses and approaches, and detail one pragmatic framework that addresses the current limitations in the marketplace with a path toward implementation.
Transcriptome analysis of activated sludge microbiomes reveals an unexpected role of minority nitrifiers in carbon metabolism
Authors: Sato Yuya , Hori Tomoyuki , Koike Hideaki , Navarro Ronald R. , Ogata Atsushi , Habe Hiroshi 
Published: May 2019

AbstractAlthough metagenomics researches have illuminated microbial diversity in numerous biospheres, understanding individual microbial functions is yet difficult due to the complexity of ecosystems. To address this issue, we applied a metagenome-independent, de novo assembly–based metatranscriptomics to a complex microbiome, activated sludge, which has been used for wastewater treatment for over a century. Even though two bioreactors were operated under the same conditions, their performances differed from each other with unknown causes. Metatranscriptome profiles in high- and low-performance reactors demonstrated that denitrifiers contributed to the anaerobic degradation of heavy oil; however, no marked difference in the gene expression was found. Instead, gene expression-based nitrification activities that fueled the denitrifiers by providing the respiratory substrate were notably high in the high-performance reactor only. Nitrifiers—small minorities with relative abundances of <0.25%—governed the heavy-oil degradation performances of the reactors, unveiling an unexpected linkage of carbon- and nitrogen-metabolisms of the complex microbiome.
Bacteriophage gene products as potential antimicrobials against tuberculosis
Authors: Puiu Maria , Julius Christina 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
Tuberculosis (TB) is recognised as one of the most pressing global health threats among infectious diseases. Bacteriophages are adapted for killing of their host, and they were exploited in antibacterial therapy already before the discovery of antibiotics. Antibiotics as broadly active drugs overshadowed phage therapy for a long time. However, owing to the rapid spread of antibiotic resistance and the increasing complexity of treatment of drug-resistant TB, mycobacteriophages are being studied for their antimicrobial potential. Besides phage therapy, which is the administration of live phages to infected patients, the development of drugs of phage origin is gaining interest. This path of medical research might provide us with a new pool of previously undiscovered inhibition mechanisms and molecular interactions which are also of interest in basic research of cellular processes, such as transcription. The current state of research on mycobacteriophage-derived anti-TB treatment is reviewed in comparison with inhibitors from other phages, and with focus on transcription as the host target process.
CaloCube and “Tracker In Calorimeter” projects for the direct measurement of high energy charged astro-particles and gamma rays.
Authors: Pacini Lorenzo , Mori Nicola 
Published: May 2019

Measurements of high energy cosmic rays in the “knee” region (about 1015 eV) are currently available only with ground detectors: new observations of cosmic particles up to these energies with direct measurements are one of the main goals of the next generation space experiments. To achieve those aims, a large acceptance, good energy resolution and particle identification are needed. CaloCube is the design of a space borne calorimeter which is capable to accept particles coming from any direction, increasing the acceptance with respect to traditional telescopes. A good performance for both hadronic and electromagnetic showers is achieved with a 3-D sampling capability: the basic picture of CaloCube is a cubic homogeneous calorimeter which consists of cubic scintillating crystals. MC simulations, concerning different materials and geometrical configurations, and several beam tests with different versions of the CaloCube prototype have been employed to optimize both the detector design and the data analysis method. Taking advantage of the CaloCube project, the space experiment HERD (“High Energy Cosmic Radiation Detection”) will include a large acceptance cubic calorimeter with cubic LYSO crystals. It will be installed on-board of the Chinese space station around 2025.
Beside the charged particle observations, high energy gamma-rays provide direct information about the galactic cosmic ray sources. A new project named “Tracker In Calorimeter” (TIC) was approved by INFN in 2017 with the main purpose of the optimization of the calorimeter design for the reconstruction of the gamma-ray direction, without the requirement of additional not homogeneous pre-shower detector. A TIC prototype was recently assembled and tested at the PS-CERN and SPS-CERN accelerators.
Die Larynxmaske – Schritt für Schritt
Authors: Dembinski Rolf , Scholtyschik Daniel 
Published: May 2019

AbstractLaryngeal masks are supraglottic airway devices developed in the early 1980s. Today, they are frequently used in clinical routine to provide airway access for mechanical ventilation in patients undergoing surgery with a short duration. Moreover, the they have also become integral part of difficult airway management in patients who cannot be intubated by the use of conventional laryngoscopy.Relevant advances have been made to simplify their positioning and improve tightness with the aim to allow for the use of higher airway pressures during mechanical ventilation thereby reducing the risk of gastric insufflation and pulmonary aspiration. Focusing on this goal, several different prototypes have been developed and introduced in clinical practice until today. However, even these new developed laryngeal masks still do not provide reliable protection against pulmonary aspiration until today. Consequently, their use In critical care medicine is still limited to rescue situations with intubation failure.In this review some of the most popular lanryngeal masks are presented, indications for their use are outlined and their handling is described.
Renale Rindennekrose nach Gabe von Tranexamsäure bei geburtsassoziierter Blutung
Authors: Hoch Henning , Stegbauer Johannes , Wiech Thorsten , Barwing Jürgen , Karbowski Brigitta , Fehm Tanja , Rump Lars 
Published: May 2019

Zusammenfassung
Anamnese Eine 28-jährige Patientin bringt eine Tochter durch primäre Sectio caesarea (41. SSW) bei Beckenendlage zur Welt. Die Schwangerschaft war bis auf erhöhte Blutdruckwerte am Morgen der Sectio komplikationslos. Bei der Sectio kommt es zu einer massiven Blutung aus dem atonen Uterus mit hämorrhagischem Schock. Es erfolgte die Blutstillung durch mechanische Tamponade, die Gabe von Erythrozytenkonzentraten und die Substitution von Gerinnungsfaktoren, auch Tranexamsäure. Bei anurischem Nierenversagen im Rahmen des Schocks wird die Hämodialyse eingeleitet.
Untersuchungen/Befunde Klinisch und laborchemisch zeigt sich das Bild einer thrombotischen Mikroangiopathie (TMA). Hinweise auf eine thrombotisch-thrombozytopenische Purpura (TTP) oder ein hämolytisch urämisches Syndrom (HUS) ergeben sich jedoch nicht. Auch ergibt sich bei der genetischen Testung kein Anhalt auf ein atypisches HUS. In der bei persistierender Dialysepflicht nach 4 Wochen durchgeführten Nierenbiopsie kann ein nur teilweise reversibler Tubulusschaden mit älteren ischämischen Rindennekrosen nachgewiesen werden.
Therapie und Verlauf Im weiteren Verlauf kommt es zur Wiederaufnahme der Diurese. Bei nicht ausreichender exkretorischer Nierenfunktion muss jedoch die Hämodialyse fortgeführt werden. Glücklicherweise kann bereits ein Jahr nach dem Ereignis bei der Patientin eine Lebendnierentransplantation (Mutter) realisiert werden.
Folgerung Die Kombination aus peripartaler Blutung mit hämorrhagischem Schock, möglicherweise aggraviert durch eine peripartale (Prä-)Eklampsie oder ein HELLP-Syndrom, und Applikation von Tranexamsäure mit seiner prothrombotischen Wirkung erscheinen verantwortlich für die schwere renale Rindennekrose.
Borreliose und ihre homöopathische Behandlung
Authors: Pscheidl Heinz 
Published: May 2019

ZusammenfassungMit ihren verschiedenen Stadien und Formen stellt die Borreliose für Therapeuten eine komplexe Herausforderung dar. Es werden ergänzende Vorschläge zu Diagnose und Therapie gegeben und anhand von Beispielen illustriert, unter Beachtung der heutzutage häufigen Komplizierungen mit „Kunstkrankheiten“ (z. B. Amalgam) – eine Herangehensweise, die auch seitens moderner Immunologie ihre Bestätigung findet.
Highlights on Specific Biological Targets; Cyclin-Dependent Kinases, Epidermal Growth Factor Receptors, Ras Protein, and Cancer Stem Cells in Anticancer Drug Development
Authors: Hawash Mohammed 
Published: May 2019

AbstractCancer is the second leading cause of death in worldwide, because of that we need a great effort to discover, determine and understand the main pathways and mechanism of action of new novel anticancer drugs, which highly selective on the cancerous cells over the normal cells. The traditional approaches to the treat cancer depend on surgery, radiotherapy, and chemotherapy, according to the medicinal reports the chemotherapy is still the main procedure in the cancer cure or treatment till nowadays, and it is one of the main factors that drops the mortality of cancer in the last years. In the past decades the chemotherapeutic agents were used in the cancer treatment without clear understand on which target, protein, or enzyme that is working, and it was making the inhibition on the whole family of enzymes or receptors which lead to high toxicity and side effects, but nowadays the anticancer agents work with high selectivity on specific subtype of clear targets, and these targets usually present in high percentage in the cancerous cells. In this review article we will summarize some of these specific targets for anticancer drugs like Cyclin-dependent kinases (CDKs), epidermal growth factor receptors (EGFR), Ras protein, and Cancer stem cells, finally, we will mention some anticancer drugs which approved by FDA in 2018 which work on specific targets.
The Antiheparin And Antiplatelet-Aggregating Effects Of Human α1-Acid Glycoprotein; Influence On Heparin Tolerance In Acute Phase Reactions
Authors: Andersen P , Kierulf P , Godal H C 
Published: May 2019

The antiheparin effect of human α1-n-acid glycoprotein (α1-acid GP), in thrmbin clotting time systems, was originally observed after the addition of purified α1-acid GP to heparinized, citrated human plasma. The α1-acid GP used in that and other studies was rather crude. In the present study, however, a similar antiheparin effect has been observed with highly purified, non-desialyzed α1-n-acid GP. Furthermore, the inhibitory effect of this highly purified α1-acid GP on the thronbin-induced platelet aggregation was identical to that of the less purified preparation. The antiheparin effect of highly purified α1-acid GP isolated in parallel frcm pooled plasma of patients with acute phase reactions and from healthy controls was likewise identical.In patients (n=10), with acute phase reaction, only the concentration of α1-acid GP was negatively correlated with the heparin thrcrnbin clotting time (r=0.42), indicating α1-acid GP to be a major contributor to the increased heparin tolerance observed during such disease states.Removal of α1-acid GP by precipitating with rabbit anti- human α1-acid GP antibodies failed to danonstrate the heparin-neutralizing effect of α1-acid GP, probably because inmunoglobulins per se possess heparin-neutralizing activity.Our findings suggest that α1-acid GP, during the acute phase reaction, interacts in a way to reduce untimely consequences of plasma hypercoagulability and/or platelet reactivity.
Effects Of Pentoxifylline, Penbutolol, Prenylamine, Clofibric Acid And Nicotinic Acid On The Release Of Prostacyclin-(PGI2-) Like Activity From Rat Aorta In Vivo And In Vitro
Authors: Weithmann K U , Hoechst A G 
Published: May 2019

Aortas from rats, treated with 5-20 mg/kg of pentoxifylline (pof), penbutolol, prenylamine, clofibric acid or nicotinic acid showed, ex vivo, a significantly higher release of acid labile PGI2-like anti-aggregatory activity compared to controls. This activity could be suppressed by pre-treatment with 2 mg/kg Indomethacin. When incubated with rat aortas in vitro, pof showed a similar stimulatory effect on PGI2-like release, whereas clofibric-and nicotinic acid had no significant effect in this system. Pof and all other drugs mentioned above in therapeutical concentrations had virtually no effect on induced aggregation of human platelets in vitro. However, in the presence of small amounts PGI2 in vitro, inhibition of aggregation and platelet cyclic AMP are enhanced synergistically above the effects of PGI2 and pof individually.We conclude from these experiments that therapeutic doses of all drugs in our study stimulate in vivo the release of PGI2-like activity from vessel walls, thus inhibiting platelet aggregation in vivo. The primary site of action of pof seems to be the vessel wall, whereas the effect of clofibric acid and nicotinic acid on the vessel walls seem to be secondary. The elevation of platelet cyclic AMP levels which generally parallels PGI2-induced inhibition of aggregation might be further enhanced by pof known as an inhibitor of platelet cyclic AMP phosphodiesterase, thus explaining the observed synergistic effects between PGI2 and pof.
Intra-Platelet PF4 In Health And After Surgery
Authors: Etherington M D , O'Brien J R 
Published: May 2019

To study the interrelations between intra-platelet PF4 (IP PF4), the platelet count (P1 Cnt) and the mean platelet volume (MPV), 14 patients, 3 to 7 days after major surgery were compared with 20 controls. The P1 Cnt and the MPV were estimated in citrated blood using a Coulter 'S' Plus counter and the IP PF4 by radioimmunoassay (ABBOTT KIT) after lysis by distilled water of a platelet button of known platelet number.The mean IP PF4 for the controls was 13.69 + 2.92μg/109 plats, and for the patients was 10.00 ± 2.11μg/109 plats. This difference was significant (p¼0.001). The mean IP PF4 in the platelets in 1ml of platelet rich plasma (PRP) was 5.23 ± 1.99μg/ml in the controls and 3.13 ± 1.27μg/ml in the patients which was significantly different, (p<0.00l). The mean IP PF4 per unit volume of platelet substance was for controls 1.86 ± O.43 μg/μl and for patients 1.58 ± 0.32. This difference was significant (p<0.05). The mean P1 Cnt and MPV for the controls was 386 ± 119 109/1 and 7.15 ± 0.58 f1 respectively. In the post-operative patients it was 312 ± 101 109/1 and 6.44 ± 0.73 f1. Both showed a decrease but only MPV was significantly different (p<0.005).Calculation of correlations even within these two small groupsQrevealed a significant correlation between IP PF4 (μg/lO9 plats) and MPV in the patient group (r = O.599, P<0.05).Thus post-operatively the circulating platelets are smaller than normal and contain less PF4. These small relatively empty platelets result either from the partial release of PF4 from the α granules due to activation, release and "exhaustion", or consumption of large platelets during or immediately after the operation. It is probably relevant that we have previously reported depletion of 5HT from the dense granules after surgery (Shuttleworth et al Blood: March 1981 in press).
Objective Diagnosis Of Recurrent Deep Vein Thrombosis
Authors: Barnes R W , Turley D G , Qureshi G D , Fratkin M J 
Published: May 2019

Recurrent deep vein thrarbosis must be differentiated from other causes of leg pain, swelling and inflammation, including chronic venous insufficiency or the postphlebitic stasis syndrome. Venous obstruction and/or valvular incompetence was evaluated by Dcppler ultrasound in 229 patients with recurrent leg symptoms following one or more prior episodes of clinical deep vein thrombosis. The diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of the Dcppler technique was 96% and 90%, respectively, in 259 consecutive contrast phlebograms. In a subset of 65 patients with abnormal Dcppler examination, I-125 fibrinogen leg scans were performed prior to institution of anticoagulants in order to establish the diagnosis of recurrent active thrarbosis (positive scan) or inactive postphlebitic disease (negative sca.In the 229 symptomatic patients screened, the Dcppler examination was normal in 87 (38.0%). In 65 patients with abnormal deep veins receiving I-125 fibrinogen, leg scans were positive in 25 (38.5%), suggesting active thrarbosis which was treated by anticoagulants. The remaining 40 patients were treated for the postphlebitic syndrome with leg elevation and elastic support and none developed manife stations of venous thrarboerrbolism.This study suggests that many individuals (38%) with suspected recurrent deep vein thrarbosis have normal leg veins and that the majority (62%) of patients with proven venous abnormalities have inactive (postphlebitic) disease which does not require anti coagulation.