bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Enhancing nutrient recycling from excreta to meet crop nutrient needs in Sweden – a spatial analysis
Authors: Akram Usman , Quttineh Nils-Hassan , Wennergren Uno , Tonderski Karin , Metson Geneviève S. 
Published: July 2019

AbstractIncreased recycling of nutrient-rich organic waste to meet crop nutrient needs is an essential component of a more sustainable food system. However, agricultural specialization continues to pose a significant challenge to balancing crop nutrient needs and the nutrient supply from animal manure and human excreta locally. For Sweden, this study found that recycling all excreta (in 2007) could meet up to 75% of crop nitrogen and 81% of phosphorus needs, but that this would exceed crop potassium needs by 67%. Recycling excreta within municipalities could meet 63% of crop P nutrient needs, but large regional differences and imbalances need to be corrected to avoid over or under fertilizing. Over 50% of the total nitrogen and phosphorus in excreta is contained in just 40% of municipalities, and those have a surplus of excreta nutrients compared to crop needs. Reallocation of surpluses (nationally optimized for phosphorus) towards deficit municipalities, would cost 192 million USD (for 24 079 km of truck travel). This is 3.7 times more than the total NPK fertilizer value being transported. These results indicate that Sweden could reduce its dependence on synthetic fertilizers through investments in excreta recycling, but this would likely require valuing also other recycling benefits.
Recent spatial aggregation tendency of rainfall extremes over India
Authors: Nikumbh Akshaya C. , Chakraborty Arindam , Bhat G. S. 
Published: July 2019

AbstractSignificant increase in the frequency of occurrences of rainfall extremes has been reported over several parts of the world. These extreme events were defined at individual grids without considering their spatial extent. Here, using ground-based observations over India during boreal summer, we show that the average size of spatially collocated rainfall extremes has been significantly increasing since 1980. However, the frequency of occurrences of such collocated extreme events remains unchanged. Around 90% of the total number of large-sized events (area ≥ 70 × 103 km2) of our study period (1951 to 2015) have occurred after 1980. Some of the major floods in recent decades over India are attributed to these large events. These events have distinctive precursory planetary-scale conditions, unlike their smaller counterparts. As the underlying physical mechanisms of extremes rainfall events are size-dependent, their changing spatial extent needs to be considered to understand the observed trends correctly and obtain realistic future projections.
Cholesterol and 27-hydroxycholesterol promote thyroid carcinoma aggressiveness
Authors: Revilla Giovanna , Pons Monica de Pablo , Baila-Rueda Lucía , García-León Annabel , Santos David , Cenarro Ana , Magalhaes Marcelo , Blanco R. M. , Moral Antonio , Ignacio Pérez José , Sabé Gerard , González Cintia , Fuste Victoria , Lerma Enrique , Faria Manuel dos Santos , de Leiva Alberto , Corcoy Rosa , Carles Escolà-Gil Joan , Mato Eugenia 
Published: July 2019

AbstractCholesterol mediates its proliferative and metastatic effects via the metabolite 27-hydroxycholesterol (27-HC), at least in breast and endometrial cancer. We determined the serum lipoprotein profile, intratumoral cholesterol and 27-HC levels in a cohort of patients with well-differentiated papillary thyroid carcinoma (PTC; low/intermediate and high risk), advanced thyroid cancers (poorly differentiated, PDTC and anaplastic thyroid carcinoma, ATC) and benign thyroid tumors, as well as the expression of genes involved in cholesterol metabolism. We investigated the gene expression profile, cellular proliferation, and migration in Nthy-ori 3.1 and CAL-62 cell lines loaded with human low-density lipoprotein (LDL). Patients with more aggressive tumors (high-risk PTC and PDTC/ATC) showed a decrease in blood LDL cholesterol and apolipoprotein B. These changes were associated with an increase in the expression of the thyroid’s LDL receptor, whereas 3-hydroxy-3-methylglutaryl-CoA reductase and 25-hydroxycholesterol 7-alpha-hydroxylase were downregulated, with an intratumoral increase of the 27-HC metabolite. Furthermore, LDL promoted proliferation in both the Nthy-ori 3.1 and CAL-62 thyroid cellular models, but only in ATC cells was its cellular migration increased significantly. We conclude that cholesterol and intratumoral accumulation of 27-HC promote the aggressive behavior process of PTC. Targeting cholesterol metabolism could be a new therapeutic strategy in thyroid tumors with poor prognosis.
Quantum annealing for systems of polynomial equations
Authors: Chang Chia Cheng , Gambhir Arjun , Humble Travis S. , Sota Shigetoshi 
Published: July 2019

AbstractNumerous scientific and engineering applications require numerically solving systems of equations. Classically solving a general set of polynomial equations requires iterative solvers, while linear equations may be solved either by direct matrix inversion or iteratively with judicious preconditioning. However, the convergence of iterative algorithms is highly variable and depends, in part, on the condition number. We present a direct method for solving general systems of polynomial equations based on quantum annealing, and we validate this method using a system of second-order polynomial equations solved on a commercially available quantum annealer. We then demonstrate applications for linear regression, and discuss in more detail the scaling behavior for general systems of linear equations with respect to problem size, condition number, and search precision. Finally, we define an iterative annealing process and demonstrate its efficacy in solving a linear system to a tolerance of 10−8.
Mechanism of catalysis and inhibition of Mycobacterium tuberculosis SapM, implications for the development of novel antivirulence drugs
Authors: Fernandez-Soto Paulina , Bruce Alexander J. E. , Fielding Alistair J. , Cavet Jennifer S. , Tabernero Lydia 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) SapM is a secreted virulence factor critical for intracellular survival of the pathogen. The role of SapM in phagosome maturation arrest in host macrophages suggests its potential as a drug target to assist in the clearance of tuberculosis infection. However, the mechanism of action of SapM at the molecular level remains unknown. In this study, we provide new insights into the mechanism of catalysis, substrate specificity and inhibition of SapM, and we identify the critical residues for catalysis and substrate binding. Our findings demonstrate that SapM is an atypical monoester alkaline phosphatase, with a serine-based mechanism of catalysis probably metal-dependent. Particularly relevant to SapM function and pathogenesis, is its activity towards PI(4,5)P2 and PI3P, two phosphoinositides that function at the early stages of microbial phagocytosis and phagosome formation. This suggests that SapM may have a pleiotropic role with a wider importance on Mtb infection than initially thought. Finally, we have identified two inhibitors of SapM, L-ascorbic acid and 2-phospho-L-ascorbic, which define two different mechanisms by which the catalytic activity of this phosphatase could be regulated. Critically, we demonstrate that 2-phospho-L-ascorbic reduces mycobacterial survival in macrophage infections, hence confirming the potential of SapM as a therapeutic drug target.
Better Quality of Life of Peritoneal Dialysis compared to Hemodialysis over a Two-year Period after Dialysis Initiation
Authors: Jung Hee-Yeon , Jeon Yena , Park Yeongwoo , Kim Yon Su , Kang Shin-Wook , Yang Chul Woo , Kim Nam-Ho , Choi Ji-Young , Cho Jang-Hee , Park Sun-Hee , Kim Chan-Duck , Kim Yong-Lim 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThis study aimed to compare health-related quality of life (HRQOL) over time in patients initiating hemodialysis (HD) or peritoneal dialysis (PD). A total of 989 incident patients starting HD or PD were included from a prospective nationwide cohort study. HRQOL was assessed 3, 12, and 24 months after the start of dialysis. The scores of questionnaires were adjusted for clinical and socioeconomic parameters. The adjusted three months scores of patients on PD showed better HRQOL in eight end-stage renal disease (ESRD), three physical component summary and one mental component summary domains compared with patients on HD. Both patients on HD and PD experienced significant decreases in different HRQOL domains over two years and the degree of changes in HRQOL over time was not different between dialysis modality. However, the scores of three (effects of kidney disease, burden of kidney disease, and dialysis staff encouragement, all P < 0.05) and two (sexual function and dialysis staff encouragement, all P < 0.05) ESRD domains were still higher in patients on PD compared with patients on HD at one and two years after initiation of dialysis, respectively. PD shows better HRQOL during the initial period after dialysis even after adjusting for clinical and socioeconomic characteristics, and the effect lasts up to two years. It was similar in terms of changes in HRQOL over time between HD and PD.
Bisphenol A Regulates Sodium Ramp Currents in Mouse Dorsal Root Ganglion Neurons and Increases Nociception
Authors: Soriano Sergi , Gil-Rivera Minerva , Marroqui Laura , Alonso-Magdalena Paloma , Fuentes Esther , Gustafsson Jan-Ake , Nadal Angel , Martinez-Pinna Juan 
Published: July 2019

Abstract17β-Estradiol mediates the sensitivity to pain and is involved in sex differences in nociception. The widespread environmental disrupting chemical bisphenol A (BPA) has estrogenic activity, but its implications in pain are mostly unknown. Here we show that treatment of male mice with BPA (50 µg/kg/day) during 8 days, decreases the latency to pain behavior in response to heat, suggesting increased pain sensitivity. We demonstrate that incubation of dissociated dorsal root ganglia (DRG) nociceptors with 1 nM BPA increases the frequency of action potential firing. SCN9A encodes the voltage-gated sodium channel Nav1.7, which is present in DRG nociceptors and is essential in pain signaling. Nav1.7 and other voltage-gated sodium channels in mouse DRG are considered threshold channels because they produce ramp currents, amplifying small depolarizations and enhancing electrical activity. BPA increased Nav-mediated ramp currents elicited with slow depolarizations. Experiments using pharmacological tools as well as DRG from ERβ−/− mice indicate that this BPA effect involves ERα and phosphoinositide 3-kinase. The mRNA expression and biophysical properties other than ramp currents of Nav channels, were unchanged by BPA. Our data suggest that BPA at environmentally relevant doses affects the ability to detect noxious stimuli and therefore should be considered when studying the etiology of pain conditions.
Structural and Functional Insights into GluK3-kainate Receptor Desensitization and Recovery
Authors: Kumari Jyoti , Vinnakota Rajesh , Kumar Janesh 
Published: July 2019

AbstractGluK3-kainate receptors are atypical members of the iGluR family that reside at both the pre- and postsynapse and play a vital role in the regulation of synaptic transmission. For a better understanding of structural changes that underlie receptor functions, GluK3 receptors were trapped in desensitized and resting/closed states and structures analyzed using single particle cryo-electron microscopy. While the desensitized GluK3 has domain organization as seen earlier for another kainate receptor-GluK2, antagonist bound GluK3 trapped a resting state with only two LBD domains in dimeric arrangement necessary for receptor activation. Using structures as a guide, we show that the N-linked glycans at the interface of GluK3 ATD and LBD likely mediate inter-domain interactions and attune receptor-gating properties. The mutational analysis also identified putative N-glycan interacting residues. Our results provide a molecular framework for understanding gating properties unique to GluK3 and exploring the role of N-linked glycosylation in their modulation.
Benzisothiazolinone upregulates the MUC5AC expression via ERK1/2, p38, and NF-κB pathways in airway epithelial cells
Authors: Kwak Soyoung , Choi Yoon Seok , Na Hyung Gyun , Bae Chang Hoon , Song Si-Youn , Kim Hyung Geun , Kim Yong-Dae 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMucus plays an important role in protecting the respiratory tract from irritants. However, mucus hypersecretion is a major indicator of airway diseases. 1,2-Benzisothiazolin-3-one (BIT), as a microbicide, induces asthmatic inflammation. Therefore, we focused on the effects of BIT-related mucin secretion in airway epithelial cells. Our in vivo study showed increased mucus and MUC5AC expressions in the bronchioles of mice that inhaled BIT. For investigating the signaling pathways, we performed experiments in human airway epithelial cells. BIT induced the MUC5AC expression and significantly increased the phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase 1/2 (ERK1/2), p38, and nuclear factor kappa-light-chain-enhancer of activated B cells (NF-κB). The specific inhibitors of ERK1/2, p38, and NF-κB blocked the BIT-induced MUC5AC expression. Therefore, these results suggest that BIT induces the MUC5AC expression via the ERK1/2, p38, and NF-κB pathways in human airway epithelial cells, which may be involved in mucus hypersecretion associated with airway inflammatory diseases.
Identification of novel genes associated with a poor prognosis in pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma via a bioinformatics analysis
Authors: Zhou Jun , Hui Xiaoliang , Mao Ying , Fan Liya 
Published: July 2019

Abstract
Pancreatic ductal adenocarcinoma (PDAC) is a class of the commonest malignant carcinomas. The present study aimed to elucidate the potential biomarker and prognostic targets in PDAC. The array data of GSE41368, GSE43795, GSE55643, and GSE41369 were downloaded from Gene Expression Omnibus (GEO) database. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) and differentially expressed microRNAs (DEmiRNAs) in PDAC were obtained by using GEO2R, and overlapped DEGs were acquired with Venn Diagrams. Functional enrichment analysis of overlapped DEGs and DEmiRNAs was conducted with Metascape and FunRich, respectively. The protein–protein interaction (PPI) network of overlapped DEGs was constructed by STRING and visualized with Cytoscape. Overall survival (OS) of DEmiRNAs and hub genes were investigated by Kaplan–Meier (KM) plotter (KM plotter). Transcriptional data and correlation analyses among hub genes were verified through GEPIA and Human Protein Atlas (HPA). Additionally, miRNA targets were searched using miRTarBase, then miRNA–DEG regulatory network was visualized with Cytoscape. A total of 32 DEmiRNAs and 150 overlapped DEGs were identified, and Metascape showed that DEGs were significantly enriched in cellular chemical homeostasis and pathways in cancer, while DEmiRNAs were mainly enriched in signal transduction and Glypican pathway. Moreover, seven hub genes with a high degree, namely, V-myc avian myelocytomatosis viral oncogene homolog (MYC), solute carrier family 2 member 1 (SLC2A1), PKM, plasminogen activator, urokinase (PLAU), peroxisome proliferator activated receptor γ (PPARG), MET proto-oncogene, receptor tyrosine kinase (MET), and integrin subunit α 3 (ITGA3), were identified and found to be up-regulated between PDAC and normal tissues. miR-135b, miR-221, miR-21, miR-27a, miR-199b-5p, miR-143, miR-196a, miR-655, miR-455-3p, miR-744 and hub genes predicted poor OS of PDAC. An integrative bioinformatics analysis identified several hub genes that may serve as potential biomarkers or targets for early diagnosis and precision target treatment of PDAC.
Functional analyses of microRNA-326 in breast cancer development
Authors: Du Ye , Shen Lishengnan , Zhang Wei , Ding Rongbo , Li Qian , Li Simin , Zhang Haipeng 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMicroRNA-326 (miR-326) was reported to be dysregulated and involved in the progression of multiple cancers. However, the clinical significance, biological role and underlying mechanism of miR-326 in the carcinogenesis of breast cancer are still unclear. In the present study, we showed that miR-326 was down-regulated in human breast cancer tissues and cell lines. Our results also revealed that miR-326 overexpression significantly suppressed breast cancer cell proliferation, migration and invasion, and induced cell cycle arrest at G1/G0 phase. Furthermore, Sex determining region Y-box (SOX) protein 12 (SOX12), a known oncogene, was identified as a direct target of miR-326 by luciferase reporter assay. Moreover, miR-326 expression was inversely correlated with SOX12 mRNA expression levels in human breast cancer specimens. Overexpression of SOX12 partially rescued the inhibitory effect on cell proliferation, migration and invasion in breast cancer cells caused by miR-326 overexpression. These findings suggested that miR-326 might play a suppressive role in breast cancer, at least in part, by targeting SOX12, rendering miR-326 a promising therapeutic target for breast cancer.
Optimised PLC transmission over pulse‐width modulated network
Authors: Descamps Anne‐Sophie , Zaraneh Nabil , Batard Christophe , Ginot Nicolas 
Published: July 2019

In industrial application of adjustable speed drive for electrical motors, some sensors are supplying mandatory information such as speed or position of the rotor to the electronic command. In most deployed applications, these data are transmitted through an additional dedicated line. In order to avoid this additional installation, power line communication (PLC) technology can be used. This study proposes a PLC communication solution between an inverter and a motor through a variable length cable. This solution relies on the modelling of this communication channel as well as the characterisation of the pulse‐width modulated signal. The communication parameters such as carrier frequency or modulation format (quadrature phase shift keying etc.) have been optimised to reduce the channel‐to‐noise ratio in this context. An error free 2 Mbit/s communication has been achieved on a 2 kW test bench.
Quad‐bus motor drive system for electrified vehicles based on a dual‐output–single‐inductor structure
Authors: Kim Taehyung , Kwak Sangshin , Lee Hyung‐Woo 
Published: July 2019

48 V electric system architecture has been recently introduced to accommodate an increasing number of electric components in mild hybrid electric vehicles. In this study, two additional DC buses are added for electric machines including 36 and 24 V AC‐ and DC‐motor/actuator loads, in a 48/12 V power supply system. This structure can yield significant benefits, especially for electrified vehicles that have more electric machines and actuators. A single‐inductor multi‐output structure is employed, with a control strategy that produces linear transfer functions and is less sensitive to load variation, to accommodate multiple‐bus motor/actuator drives. The proposed structure and control strategy can offer options for selecting proper bus voltages, optimising the electric machine's power density. Both simulations and experiments have been performed to verify the system structure and control schemes using 36 and 24 V electric machines connected to the additional dual‐output buses on top of the existing 12/48 V bus structure.
New signal subspace approach to estimate the inter‐area oscillatory modes in power system using TLS‐ESPRIT algorithm
Authors: Samal Sudhansu Kumar , Subudhi Bidyadhar 
Published: July 2019

The authors propose here a new low‐frequency oscillatory (LFO) modes estimation scheme by applying Karhunen–Loeve transform (KLT) with total least square estimation of signal parameter employing rotational invariance technique (TLS‐ESPRIT). The proposed KLT provides the perfect decorrelation of the signal from the noise at low signal‐to‐noise ratio and for both white and coloured noise. KLT also maximally compress the energy of the estimated signal. KLT helps to estimate the signal subspace perfectly for any non‐stationary ambient power signal with the fastest computational time. First, the authors applied the KLT denoise to the filtered signal buried with highly correlated coloured Gaussian noise through the first eigenvectors of the correlation matrix and estimated the signal subspace. Finally, TLS‐ESPRIT is applied to estimate the modes of the power system. A comparative analysis of the KLT‐TLS‐ESPRIT with the modified TLS‐ESPRIT, multi‐channel wavelet transform, data driven‐stochastic subspace identification, TLS‐ESPRIT, Root‐MUSIC, and improved Prony method is presented. To explore the real‐time application of the KLT‐TLS‐ESPRIT, the authors considered Kundur's two‐area test system and 16‐machine 68‐bus system using 50,000 Monte‐Carlo simulations. The obtained results show that the KLT‐TLS‐ESPRIT accurately estimates the LFO with least mean and standard deviation as compared to the remaining six methods.
Constraining nuclear star cluster formation using MUSE-AO observations of the early-type galaxy FCC 47
Authors: Fahrion Katja , Lyubenova Mariya , van de Ven Glenn , Leaman Ryan , Hilker Michael , Martín-Navarro Ignacio , Zhu Ling , Alfaro-Cuello Mayte , Coccato Lodovico , Corsini Enrico M. , Falcón-Barroso Jesús , Iodice Enrichetta , McDermid Richard M. , Sarzi Marc , de Zeeuw Tim 
Published: July 2019

Context. Nuclear star clusters (NSCs) are found in at least 70% of all galaxies, but their formation path is still unclear. In the most common scenarios, NSCs form in-situ from the galaxy’s central gas reservoir, through the merging of globular clusters (GCs), or through a combination of both.Aims. As the scenarios pose different expectations for angular momentum and stellar population properties of the NSC in comparison to the host galaxy and the GC system, it is necessary to characterise the stellar light, NSC, and GCs simultaneously. The large NSC (reff = 66 pc) and rich GC system of the early-type Fornax cluster galaxy FCC 47 (NGC 1336) render this galaxy an ideal laboratory to constrain NSC formation.Methods. Using Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer science verification data assisted by adaptive optics, we obtained maps for the stellar kinematics and stellar-population properties of FCC 47. We extracted the spectra of the central NSC and determined line-of-sight velocities of 24 GCs and metallicities of five.Results. The galaxy shows the following kinematically decoupled components (KDCs): a disk and a NSC. Our orbit-based dynamical Schwarzschild model revealed that the NSC is a distinct kinematic feature and it constitutes the peak of metallicity and old ages in FCC 47. The main body consists of two counter-rotating populations and is dominated by a more metal-poor population. The GC system is bimodal with a dominant metal-poor population and the total GC system mass is ∼17% of the NSC mass (∼7 × 108 M⊙).Conclusions. The rotation, high metallicity, and high mass of the NSC cannot be explained by GC-inspiral alone. It most likely requires additional, quickly quenched, in-situ formation. The presence of two KDCs likely are evidence of a major merger that has significantly altered the structure of FCC 47, indicating the important role of galaxy mergers in forming the complex kinematics in the galaxy-NSC system.