bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Lifestyle of the biotroph Agrobacterium tumefaciens in the ecological niche constructed on its host plant
Authors: González‐Mula Almudena , Lang Julien , Grandclément Catherine , Naquin Delphine , Ahmar Mohammed , Soulère Laurent , Queneau Yves , Dessaux Yves , Faure Denis 
Published: April 2018

Summary

Agrobacterium tumefaciens constructs an ecological niche in its host plant by transferring the T‐DNA from its Ti plasmid into the host genome and by diverting the host metabolism.

We combined transcriptomics and genetics for understanding the A. tumefaciens lifestyle when it colonizes Arabidopsis thaliana tumors.

Transcriptomics highlighted: a transition from a motile to sessile behavior that mobilizes some master regulators (Hfq, CtrA, DivK and PleD); a remodeling of some cell surface components (O‐antigen, succinoglucan, curdlan, att genes, putative fasciclin) and functions associated with plant defense (Ef‐Tu and flagellin pathogen‐associated molecular pattern‐response and glycerol‐3‐phosphate and nitric oxide signaling); and an exploitation of a wide variety of host resources, including opines, amino acids, sugars, organic acids, phosphate, phosphorylated compounds, and iron. In addition, construction of transgenic A. thaliana lines expressing a lactonase enzyme showed that Ti plasmid transfer could escape host‐mediated quorum‐quenching. Finally, construction of knock‐out mutants in A. tumefaciens showed that expression of some At plasmid genes seemed more costly than the selective advantage they would have conferred in tumor colonization.

We provide the first overview of A. tumefaciens lifestyle in a plant tumor and reveal novel signaling and trophic interplays for investigating host–pathogen interactions.
Effects of multidisciplinary interventions on weight loss and health outcomes in children and adolescents with morbid obesity
Authors: Zolotarjova J. , ten Velde G. , Vreugdenhil A. C. E. 
Published: April 2018

SummaryObjectiveMorbid obesity is the fastest growing subcategory of childhood obesity, associated with an increased health risk that persists into adulthood. There is an urgent need to develop multifaceted interventions that target initial and long‐term lifestyle changes. This review investigates the effects of multidisciplinary interventions on weight loss and health outcomes in children and adolescents with morbid obesity. The influence of age, gender and family participation on health outcomes and intensive treatment alternatives are explored.MethodsThe review includes 16 studies conducted between 1995 and 2017. Studies examined youth with morbid obesity, 4–18 years old, undergoing multidisciplinary treatment.ResultsAll studies found a reduction in body mass index (BMI or z‐score) and if measured, cardiovascular risk factors. Physical activity, nutrition education, behavioural modification and family involvement are commonly included treatment components and have improved weight loss and health‐related outcomes. However, initial weight loss was often not sustainable, despite the favourable interventional effect on cardiometabolic risk markers. Weight loss was prolonged in younger children and among the male sex.ConclusionsThere is not a ‘one‐size‐fits‐all’ treatment approach, and matched care to personal needs is preferable. The integration of a chronic care approach is critical for the successful adaption of sustainable health behaviours.
A cumulative meta‐analysis of the effects of individual physical activity interventions targeting healthy adults
Authors: Love R. , Adams J. , van Sluijs E. M. F. , Foster C. , Humphreys D. 
Published: April 2018

SummaryDespite a large and increasing evidence base on physical activity interventions, the high rates of physical inactivity and associated chronic diseases are continuing to increase globally. The purpose of this cumulative meta‐analysis was to investigate the evolution of randomized controlled trial evidence of individual‐level physical activity interventions to asses if new trials are contributing novel evidence to the field. Through a two‐staged search process, primary studies examining the effects of interventions targeted at increasing physical activity within healthy adult populations were pooled and selected from eligible systematic reviews. Cumulative meta‐analyses were performed on effect sizes immediately post‐intervention (n = 62), and for long‐term behaviour change (≥12‐month post‐baseline; n = 27). Sufficiency and stability of the evidence was assessed through application of pre‐published indicators. Meta‐analyses suggest overall positive intervention effects on physical activity. The evidence base for effectiveness immediately post‐intervention reached levels of sufficiency and stability in 2007; and for long‐term follow‐up in 2011. In the time since, intervention effectiveness has not substantially changed, and further trials are unlikely to change the direction and magnitude of effect. Substantial evidence exists demonstrating that physical activity interventions can modify individual behaviour in controlled settings. Researchers are urged to shift focus towards investigating the optimization, implementation, sustainability and cost‐effectiveness of interventions.
Being respected by nurses: Measuring older patients’ perceptions
Authors: Koskenniemi Jaana , Leino‐Kilpi Helena , Puukka Pauli , Stolt Minna , Suhonen Riitta 
Published: April 2018

Aim and objectiveTo investigate older patients’ perceptions of respect in hospital nursing care and to test a newly developed instrument measuring the phenomenon.BackgroundRespect manifests itself in the older patient–nurse relationship in terms of nurses being with and doing for the patient. Empirical studies investigating respect from the older patients’ perspective are rare. There is a need to maintain respectful behaviours and attitudes within hospital‐based nursing practice. Furthermore, there is a lack of instruments measuring respect in the care provided by nurses.Design and methodsA descriptive, cross‐sectional explorative survey design was used. Data were collected between February and May 2016 by interviewing face‐to‐face 196 older patients in two hospitals in Finland. Respect was measured using the ReSpect scale (Parts A and B) developed for this study. Respect is based on the two dimensions of respect, nurses’ Being with and Doing for patients. Data were analysed using descriptive and inferential statistical methods including the psychometric testing of the new instrument.ResultsOlder patients perceived respect in their care frequently and to a great extent, although there were also shortcomings. The findings highlight the need to improve respect to patients in care delivery by showing an interest in their views, acknowledging them positively and supporting their individual capacities. A two‐factor structure of the ReSpect scale Part A and a four‐factor structure of the Part B were confirmed.ConclusionsFindings from this study suggest that older hospital patients perceived respect by nurses overall, but the area where there is the most room for improvement is that of listening and encouraging. The psychometric analysis demonstrated that the ReSpect scale shows promise in measuring respect.Implications for practiceThe ReSpect scale could be a useful tool to measure respect, an important element of value‐based health care.
Calcification Moderates the Increased Susceptibility to UV Radiation of the Coccolithophorid Gephryocapsa oceanica Grown under Elevated CO2 Concentration: Evidence Based on Calcified and Non‐calcified Cells
Authors: Miao Hangbin , Beardall John , Gao Kunshan 
Published: April 2018

AbstractThe physiological performance of calcified and non‐calcified cells of Gephyrocapsa oceanica (NIES‐1318) and their short‐term responses to UV radiation were compared for cultures grown under present‐day (LC, 400 μatm) and high pCO2 (HC, 1000 μatm) conditions. Similar growth rates and Fv/Fm values were observed in both types of cell under LC conditions, indicating that the loss of calcification in the non‐calcified cells did not lead to a competitive disadvantage under such conditions. Detrimental effects of elevated pCO2 were observed in both cell types, with the growth rate of non‐calcified cells decreasing more markedly, which might reflect a negative impact of higher cytoplasmic H+. When exposed to short‐term UV radiation, similar trends in effective quantum yield were observed in both cell types acclimated to LC conditions. Elevated pCO2 and associated seawater chemical changes strongly reduced effective quantum yield in non‐calcified cells but no significant influence was observed in calcified cells. Based on these findings and comparisons with previous studies, we suggest that the negative impact of elevated cytoplasmic H+ would exacerbate the detrimental effects of UV radiation while the possession of calcification attenuated this influence.
The reward‐like nature of social cues that indicate successful altruistic punishment
Authors: Mussel Patrick , Hewig Johannes , Weiß Martin 
Published: April 2018

AbstractAltruistic punishment is the attempt to penalize deviant behavior of another person even though it is accompanied by personal costs. Here, we investigated the influence of the reaction on the socioemotional level of the other person following altruistic punishment behavior on future decision making and neural responses. We used a modified ultimatum game, which included an emotional facial feedback of the proposer following the decision of the participant. We found higher acceptance rates for proposers showing a smile upon acceptance or a sad face upon rejection of an offer, compared to proposers showing a neutral facial expression. On the neural level, we found a reversed N2 effect for negative emotional faces in the context of altruistic punishment, compared to a control condition. Specifically, when following the rejection of an unfair offer, negative emotional faces showed a reward‐like positivity that might signal successful altruistic punishment. In addition, differential effects for P3 amplitudes might signal the subjective importance of a desired outcome. Our results are in line with the interpretation that rejection of unfair offers in the ultimatum game is due to intended altruistic punishment. Social cues may exhibit reward‐like properties when indicating successful altruistic punishment and can influence subsequent decision making.
The peculiar insertion of Brazil into global value chains
Authors: Callegari Julia , Melo Tatiana Massaroli , Carvalho Carlos Eduardo 
Published: April 2018

AbstractBrazil plays a very peculiar role in global value chains (GVC): the country imports high technological goods in general while going through early deindustrialization and relying mainly on basic goods for its exports. Even after developing a broad, diversified industrial framework and becoming one of the countries that has received more foreign direct investments since the 1990s, Brazil has been struggling to occupy a more technologically oriented place inGVCs. This paper examines the conditionings of this pattern of insertion by characterizing the country's quantitative and qualitative model of integration intoGVCs and by analyzing the elements that can explain this performance.
Mutual and Self Perceptions of Opposing Advocacy Coalitions: Devil Shift and Angel Shift in a German Policy Subsystem
Authors: Vogeler Colette S. , Bandelow Nils C. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractIn political conflicts, actors tend to assume that opponents behave maliciously. This phenomena is part of the “devil shift,” which was introduced in advocacy coalition framework research. We present a multivariate analysis of the perceptions of motives and actions of opposing coalitions in a political conflict and thereby analyze a major dimension of the “devil shift” and of its antonym “angel shift.” The conflict concerning the German infrastructure project Stuttgart 21 serves as a case study. We show that the radicalness of policy‐specific beliefs is the most important predictor for the intensity of mutual misperception in the researched conflict. The results further point to a more systematic inclusion of an actor's deep normative core beliefs in future analyses of distorted perception. Another central finding relates to the importance of the personal environment: actors in the subsystem share the same policy core beliefs with the majority of people in their personal environment.
Dynamics of Child Malnutrition in Rural and Small‐Town Ethiopia
Authors: Seff Ilana , Baird Sarah , Jolliffe Dean 
Published: April 2018

AbstractImproving the status of malnourished children, and preventing children from becoming malnourished, lies at the heart of several of the Sustainable Development Goals. While many cross‐sectional studies examine correlates of stunting, they largely cannot identify drivers of change in stunting. We use two waves of panel data from Ethiopia and incrementally larger sets of fixed effects to control for time‐variant observable characteristics and time‐invariant unobservable characteristics. After controlling for these potential confounders, our analysis reveals that many factors that are associated with stunting in the cross‐section do not impact stunting dynamics. We also estimate individual fixed‐effects regressions, separately, according to baseline stunting status. We find evidence suggesting that while improved societal conditions drive many children out of a stunted state, certain exogenous factors may lead previously healthy children to become stunted. Overall, policymakers and practitioners would be wise to consult research utilising both cross‐sectional and panel data analyses in order to more effectively target already stunted children as well as vulnerable children who may be at risk of becoming stunted.
SIRT1 attenuates murine allergic rhinitis by downregulated HMGB 1/TLR4 pathway
Authors: Yuan Y. , Liu Q. , Zhao J. , Tang H. , Sun J. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractConventional allergic rhinitis (AR) treatments have limitations due to the lack of safety and complete cure strategy. We evaluated the effects of silent information regulator 1 (SIRT1), a multifunctional molecule involved in a variety of inflammatory pathways, on murine AR model. Ovalbumin (OVA)‐induced murine model was constructed, and recombinant SIRT1 was administered into the nostril continuously. The expression of SIRT1 was measured at mRNA and protein levels, and the allergic symptoms were evaluated. Protein levels of OVA‐specific IgE, leukotriene C4 (LTC4), eosinophil cation protein (ECP), prostaglandin D2 (PGD2), as well as different inflammatory cytokine mediators in the serum and nasal lavage fluid (NLF), were assessed by ELISA. The effects of SIRT1 on human primary nasal epithelial cells challenged with tumour necrosis factor (TNF)‐α were also evaluated by investigating the HMGB1/TLR4 signalling pathway. Administration of SIRT1 significantly alleviated OVA‐induced AR symptoms with lower numbers of sneezing and nasal rubbing events, decreased levels of OVA‐specific IgE, LTC4, ECP, PGD2, less inflammatory cells and downregulated levels of Th2 type cytokines. SIRT1 also reduced the genes of HMGB1/TLR4 signalling pathway in the murine model and cultured human nasal epithelial cells. Expression of SIRT1 is impaired in OVA‐induced AR model. The administration of SIRT1 alleviates the allergic symptoms of mice, regulates the production of pro‐inflammatory mediators predominantly produced by Th2 cells in AR and attenuates expressions of proteins relevant to HMGB1/TLR4 signalling pathway. All the results showed that SIRT1 is promising as a therapeutic agent of AR.
Semiparametric maximum likelihood inference for nonignorable nonresponse with callbacks
Authors: Guan Zhong , Leung Denis H. Y. , Qin Jing 
Published: April 2018

AbstractWe model the nonresponse probabilities as logistic functions of the outcome variable and other covariates in the survey study with callback. The identification aspect of this callback model is investigated. Semiparametric maximum likelihood estimators of the parameters in the response probabilities are proposed and studied. As a result, an efficient estimator of the mean of the outcome variable is constructed using the estimated response probabilities. Moreover, if a regression model for the conditional mean of the outcome variable given some covariate is available, then we can obtain an even more efficient estimate of the mean of the outcome variable by fitting the regression model using an adjusted least‐squares method based on the estimated underlying distributions of the observed values. Simulation results show that the proposed method is more efficient compared with some existing competitors. The method is applied to data from the Singapore Life Panel, a survey of health spending using a population‐based sample of individuals aged 50–70 years, where nonresponse may be related to health.
Retinal vascular diameters in relation to physical activity in Danish children — The CHAMPS Eye Study
Authors: Lundberg K. , Tarp J. , Vestergaard A. H. , Jacobsen N. , Thykjær A. S. , Rønne M. S. , Bugge A. , Goldschmidt E. , Peto T. , Wedderkopp N. , Grauslund J. 
Published: April 2018

Our objective was to determine associations between retinal vascular caliber and physical activity (PA) in a school‐based child cohort. In a prospective study, we created a childhood cumulative average PA‐index using objectively measured PA (accelerometry) assessed at four periods between 2009 and 2015. Cumulative exposure to PA intensities was estimated. Cross‐sectional examinations on biomarkers, anthropometry, and ophthalmological data including retinal fundus photographs were performed in 2015. Semi‐automated measurements of retinal vascular diameters were performed and summarized into central retinal arteriolar and venular equivalents (CRAE, CRVE). We included 307 participants. Mean age in 2015 was 15.4 years (0.7). The mean CRAE and CRVE were 156.5 μm (2.8) and 217.6 μm (7.7), respectively. After adjusting for age, gender, and axial length, more time in PA was independently related to thinner retinal venules (β‐coefficient = −1.25 μm/%, 95% confidence interval = −2.20, −0.30, P < .01). Sedentary time was associated with wider venules (P < .01). Furthermore, birthweight (β‐coefficient = 0.56 μm/%, 95% confidence interval = 0.18, 0.95, P < .01) was associated with CRVE. Blood pressure was associated with thinner retinal arterioles (β‐coefficient = −0.19 μm/mmHg, 95% confidence interval = −0.36, −0.01, P = .04). We concluded that children with higher PA in childhood had thinner retinal venular caliber. Our results suggest that PA during childhood positively impacts the retinal microcirculation and that retinal vascular analysis may be a possible assessment to detect microvascular impairments in children with an increased risk of future cardiovascular disease.
Therapeutic potential to reduce brain injury in growth restricted newborns
Authors: Wixey Julie A. , Chand Kirat K. , Pham Lily , Colditz Paul B. , Bjorkman S. Tracey 
Published: April 2018

AbstractBrain injury in intrauterine growth restricted (IUGR) infants is a major contributing factor to morbidity and mortality worldwide. Adverse outcomes range from mild learning difficulties, to attention difficulties, neurobehavioral issues, cerebral palsy, epilepsy, and other cognitive and psychiatric disorders. While the use of medication to ameliorate neurological deficits in IUGR neonates has been identified as warranting urgent research for several years, few trials have been reported. This review summarises clinical trials focusing on brain protection in the IUGR newborn as well as therapeutic interventions trialled in animal models of IUGR. Therapeutically targeting mechanisms of brain injury in the IUGR neonate is fundamental to improving long‐term neurodevelopmental outcomes. Inflammation is a key mechanism in neonatal brain injury; and therefore an appealing target. Ibuprofen, an anti‐inflammatory drug currently used in the preterm neonate, may be a potential therapeutic candidate to treat brain injury in the IUGR neonate. To better understand the potential of ibuprofen and other therapeutic agents to be neuroprotective in the IUGR neonate, long‐term follow‐up information of neurodevelopmental outcomes must be studied. Where agents such as ibuprofen are shown to be effective, have a good safety profile and are relatively inexpensive, they can be widely adopted and lead to improved outcomes.
Distribution and Diversity of Rhodopsin-Producing Microbes in the Chesapeake Bay
Authors: Maresca Julia A. , Miller Kelsey J. , Keffer Jessica L. , Sabanayagam Chandran R. , Campbell Barbara J. 
Published: April 2018

ABSTRACT

Although sunlight is an abundant source of energy in surface environments, less than 0.5% of the available photons are captured by (bacterio)chlorophyll-dependent photosynthesis in plants and bacteria. Metagenomic data indicate that 30 to 60% of the bacterial genomes in some environments encode rhodopsins, retinal-based photosystems found in heterotrophs, suggesting that sunlight may provide energy for more life than previously suspected. However, quantitative data on the number of cells that produce rhodopsins in environmental systems are limited. Here, we use total internal reflection fluorescence microscopy to show that the number of free-living microbes that produce rhodopsins increases along the salinity gradient in the Chesapeake Bay. We correlate this functional data with environmental data to show that rhodopsin abundance is positively correlated with salinity and with indicators of active heterotrophy during the day. Metagenomic and metatranscriptomic data suggest that the microbial rhodopsins in the low-salinity samples are primarily found in
Actinobacteria
and
Bacteroidetes
, while those in the high-salinity samples are associated with SAR-11 type
Alphaproteobacteria
.

IMPORTANCE
Microbial rhodopsins are common light-activated ion pumps in heterotrophs, and previous work has proposed that heterotrophic microbes use them to conserve energy when organic carbon is limiting. If this hypothesis is correct, rhodopsin-producing cells should be most abundant where nutrients are most limited. Our results indicate that in the Chesapeake Bay, rhodopsin gene abundance is correlated with salinity, and functional rhodopsin production is correlated with nitrate, bacterial production, and chlorophyll
a
. We propose that in this environment, where carbon and nitrogen are likely not limiting, heterotrophs do not need to use rhodopsins to supplement ATP synthesis. Rather, the light-generated proton motive force in nutrient-rich environments could be used to power energy-dependent membrane-associated processes, such as active transport of organic carbon and cofactors, enabling these organisms to more efficiently utilize exudates from primary producers.