bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Epistaxis and mortality
Authors:   Integrate (The National ENT Trainee Research Network)
Published: November 2018

AbstractBackgroundEpistaxis is a common emergency presentation to ENT. The ‘Epistaxis 2016: national audit of management’ collected prospective data over a 30-day audit window in 113 centres. A 30-day all-cause mortality rate of 3.4 per cent was identified. This study examines in more detail the subgroup of patients who died during the audit period.MethodsThere were 985 eligible patients identified. Of these, 33 patients died within the audit period. World Health Organization bleeding score, Modified Early Warning System score, haemostasis time, source of referral, co-morbidities and cause of death were investigated from the dataset.ResultsPatients who died were more likely to come from a ward environment, have co-existing cardiovascular disease, diabetes or a bleeding diathesis, be on antithrombotic medication, or have received a blood transfusion. Patients did not die from exsanguination.ConclusionEpistaxis may be seen as a general marker of poor health and a poor prognostic sign.
States before relations: On misrecognition and the bifurcated regime of sovereignty
Authors: Holm Minda , Sending Ole Jacob 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe symbolic structure of the international system, organised around sovereignty, is sustained by an institutional infrastructure that shapes how states seek sovereign agency. We investigate how the modern legal category of the state is an institutional expression of the idea of the state as a liberal person, dependent on a one-off recognition in establishing the sovereign state. We then discuss how this institutional rule coexists with the ongoing frustrated search for recognition in terms of sociopolitical registers. While the first set of rules establishes a protective shield against others, regardless of behaviour, the second set of rules specify rules for behaviour of statehood, which produces a distinct form of misrecognition. States are, at one level, already recognised as sovereign and are granted rights akin to individuals in liberal thought, and yet they are continually misrecognised in their quest to actualise the sovereign agency they associate with statehood. We draw on examples from two contemporary phenomena – fragile states, and assertions of non-interference and sovereignty from the populist right and non-Western great powers, to discuss the misrecognition processes embedded in the bifurcated symbolic structure of sovereignty, and its implications for debates about hierarchy and sovereignty in world affairs.
Evaluating anaerobic soil disinfestation and other biological soil management strategies for open-field tomato production in Florida
Authors: Paudel Bodh R. , Di Gioia Francesco , Zhao Xin , Ozores-Hampton Monica , Hong Jason C. , Kokalis-Burelle Nancy , Pisani Cristina , Rosskopf Erin N. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractIn the search for alternative practices to chemical soil fumigation (CSF), anaerobic soil disinfestation (ASD) has proven to be a promising tool for soil-borne pest management and crop production improvement. The ASD treatment with composted poultry litter (CPL) and molasses (M, a labile carbon source) was identified as an effective approach for a biologically based soil disinfestation system in tomato (Solanum lycopersicum L.) production in Florida. However, environmental and food-safety concerns are associated with animal manure-based amendments, which led to the exploration of composted yard waste (CYW) as a potential substitute for CPL in ASD application. In this study, field trials were conducted in Citra and Immokalee, FL to examine the effects of ASD using CYW, CPL and M compared with a commercially available microbial amendment system on root-knot nematodes, weeds, fruit yield and quality of fresh-market tomato. Treatments included (1) ASD with CPL (11 Mg ha−1) and M (6.9 m3 ha−1) (ASD0.5), (2) ASD with CYW (26.9 Mg ha−1) and M (CYW1 + M), (3) ASD with CYW (13.5 Mg ha−1) and M (CYW0.5 + M), (4) Soil Symphony Amendment (SSA), (5) CYW (26.9 Mg ha−1) alone (CYW1) and (6) a combination of CYW1 + SSA, in comparison with (7) untreated control and (8) CSF (Pic-Clor 60 at 224 kg ha−1). Cumulative soil anaerobiosis was greater in ASD0.5 compared with all the other treatments. The root-knot nematode gall index ratings on the tomato crop were significantly lower in CSF, ASD0.5, CYW1 + M and CYW0.5 + M than untreated control in Citra. Although CYW1 and SSA alone had a moderately suppressive effect on weed coverage and root-knot nematodes, their positive impact on crop performance was limited when used alone. ASD0.5, CYW1 + M and CSF had significantly higher marketable and total fruit yields than untreated control in both locations, while all treatments showed promising results in the Immokalee trial in comparison with untreated control. In general, few differences in major fruit quality attributes were found. Although using CYW in ASD was not as effective as CPL in creating soil anaerobic conditions, the enhanced crop performance in CYW1 + M and CYW0.5 + M suggests the potential of using CYW as an alternative source of organic amendment in combination with M to achieve benefits similar to those obtained with CPL-based ASD.
Impact of Convective Activity on Precipitation δ18O in Isotope‐Enabled General Circulation Models
Authors: Hu Jun , Emile‐Geay Julien , Nusbaumer Jesse , Noone David 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe δ18O signal preserved in paleoarchives is widely used to reconstruct past climate conditions. In many speleothems, this signal is classically interpreted via the amount effect. However, recent work has shown that precipitation δ18O (
) is greatly influenced by convective processes distinct from precipitation amount, and new observations indicate that
is negatively correlated with the fraction of stratiform precipitation. Isotope‐enabled climate models have emerged as a key interpretive tool in water isotope systematics, and it is thus important to determine to what extent they can reproduce these relationships. Here seven isotope‐enabled models, including the state‐of‐the‐art model iCAM5, are evaluated to see whether they can simulate the impact of convective activity on
in observations. The results show that, of these models, only iCAM5 can simulate the observed anticorrelation between stratiform fraction and
. Furthermore, while all models can simulate the observed relationship between outgoing longwave radiation and
, different models achieve this via different mechanisms—some getting the right answer for the wrong reasons. Because iCAM5 appears in various metrics to correctly simulate
variability, we use it to examine long‐standing interpretations of
over Asia. We find that the contribution of convective processes is very site dependent, with local processes accounting for a very small amount of variance at the sites of most Chinese cave records (speleothems). The residual is attributed to source and transport effects. Our results imply that state‐of‐the‐art models like iCAM5 can and should be used to guide the interpretation of
‐based proxies.
Compaction and Melt Transport in Ammonia‐Rich Ice Shells: Implications for the Evolution of Triton
Authors: Hammond Noah P. , Parmenteir E. M. , Barr Amy C. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractAmmonia, if present in the ice shells of icy satellites, could lower the temperature for the onset of melting to 176 K and create a large temperature range where partial melt is thermally stable. The evolution of regions of ammonia‐rich partial melt could strongly influence the geological and thermal evolution of icy bodies. For melt to be extracted from partially molten regions, the surrounding solid matrix must deform and compact. Whether ammonia‐rich melts sink to the subsurface ocean or become frozen into the ice shell depends on the compaction rate and thermal evolution. Here we construct a model for the compaction and thermal evolution of a partially molten, ammonia‐rich ice shell in a one‐dimensional geometry. We model the thickening of an initially thin ice shell above an ocean with 10% ammonia. We find that ammonia‐rich melts can freeze into the upper 5 to 10 km of the ice shell, when ice shell thickening is rapid compared to the compaction rate. The trapping of near‐surface volatiles suggests that, upon reheating of the ice shell, eutectic melting events are possible. However, as the ice shell thickening rate decreases, ammonia‐rich melt is efficiently excluded from the ice shell and the bulk of the ice shell is pure water ice. We apply our results to the thermal evolution of Neptune's moon Triton. As Triton's ice shell thickens, the gradual increase of ammonia concentration in Triton's subsurface ocean helps to prevent freezing and increases the predicted final ocean thickness by up to 50 km.
Dynamics of Postfire Aboveground Carbon in a Chronosequence of Chinese Boreal Larch Forests
Authors: Yang Yuan Z. , Cai Wen H. , Yang Jian , White Megan , Lhotka John M. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractBoreal forests store a large proportion of the global terrestrial carbon (C), while wildfire plays a crucial role in determining their C storage and dynamics. The aboveground C (AC) pool is an important component of forest C stocks. To quantify the turning point (transforming from C source to C sink) and recovery time of postfire AC, and assess how stand density affects the AC, 175 plots from eight stand age classes were surveyed as a chronosequence in the Great Xing'an Mountains of Northeast China. Linear and nonlinear regression analyses were conducted to describe postfire AC recovery patterns. The results showed that (1) postfire AC exhibited a skewed U‐shaped pattern with the turning point at approximately year 30, when the change rate of AC shifted from negative to positive, (2) it took more than 120 years for this forest ecosystem to recover 80% of AC in unburned old‐growth (200 years) stands, and (3) there was an overall positive relationship between AC and stand density over the entire range of stand age classes; and such relationship was stronger during the early‐ and late‐successional stages, but weaker (p > 0.05) during the midsuccessional stage. Although boreal larch forests have been C sinks under historical fire free intervals, predicted increases in fire frequency could potentially shift it to a C source. Understanding postfire AC dynamics in boreal larch forests is central to predicting C cycling response to wildfire and provides a framework for assessing ecosystem resilience to disturbance in this region.
Corneal Confocal Microscopy detects a Reduction in Corneal Endothelial Cells and Nerve Fibres in Patients with Acute Ischemic Stroke
Authors: Khan Adnan , Kamran Saadat , Akhtar Naveed , Ponirakis Georgios , Al-Muhannadi Hamad , Petropoulos Ioannis N. , Al-Fahdawi Shumoos , Qahwaji Rami , Sartaj Faheem , Babu Blessy , Wadiwala Muhammad Faisal , Shuaib Ashfaq , Malik Rayaz A. 
Published: November 2018

AbstractEndothelial dysfunction and damage underlie cerebrovascular disease and ischemic stroke. We undertook corneal confocal microscopy (CCM) to quantify corneal endothelial cell and nerve morphology in 146 patients with an acute ischemic stroke and 18 age-matched healthy control participants. Corneal endothelial cell density was lower (P < 0.001) and endothelial cell area (P < 0.001) and perimeter (P < 0.001) were higher, whilst corneal nerve fibre density (P < 0.001), corneal nerve branch density (P < 0.001) and corneal nerve fibre length (P = 0.001) were lower in patients with acute ischemic stroke compared to controls. Corneal endothelial cell density, cell area and cell perimeter correlated with corneal nerve fiber density (P = 0.033, P = 0.014, P = 0.011) and length (P = 0.017, P = 0.013, P = 0.008), respectively. Multiple linear regression analysis showed a significant independent association between corneal endothelial cell density, area and perimeter with acute ischemic stroke and triglycerides. CCM is a rapid non-invasive ophthalmic imaging technique, which could be used to identify patients at risk of acute ischemic stroke.
Modulating the Work Function of Graphene by Pulsed Plasma Aided Controlled Chlorination
Authors: Takehira Hiroshi , Karim Mohammad Razaul , Shudo Yuta , Fukuda Masahiro , Mashimo Tsutomu , Hayami Shinya 
Published: November 2018

AbstractChlorine on graphene (G) matrices was doped by pulsed plasma stimulation on graphite electrode submerged in organochlorine solvents (CH2Cl2, CHCl3, CCl4). The study of work function by Kelvin probe force microscopy (KPFM) measurement clearly indicates that Cl-doped G behave like semiconductor and GG@CHCl3 exhibits the lowest value for the work function. We propose that this report not only represents a new route for tuning the semiconductivity of G but also indicates that doping level of halogen on G based carbon framework can be controlled by pulsed plasma treatment of carbon materials on various organohalogen derivatives.
Minimising oxygen contamination through a liquid copper-aided group IV metal production process
Authors: Yoo Bung Uk , Lee Young Jun , Ri Vladislav , Lee Seong Hun , Nersisyan Hayk , Kim Hyun You , Lee Jong Hyeon , Earner Nicholas , MacDonald Alister 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThis paper demonstrates for the first time the fabrication of Zr-Cu alloy ingots from a Hf- free ZrO2 precursor in a molten CaCl2 medium to recover nuclear-grade Zr. The reduction of ZrO2 in the presence of CaO was accelerated by the formation of Ca metal in the intermediate stage of the process. Tests conducted with various amounts of ZrO2 indicate that the ZrO2 was reduced to the metallic form at low potentials applied at the cathode, and the main part of the zirconium was converted to a CuZr alloy with a different composition. The maximum oxygen content values in the CuZr alloy and Zr samples upon using liquid Cu were less than 300 and 891 ppm, respectively. However, Al contamination was observed in the CuZr during the electroreduction process. In order to solve the Al contamination problem, the fabrication process of CuZr was performed using the metallothermic reduction process, and the produced CuZr was used for electrorefining. The CuZr alloy was further purified by a molten salt electrorefining process to recover pure nuclear-grade Zr in a LiF-Ba2ZrF8-based molten salt, the latter of which was fabricated from a waste pickling acid of a Zr clad tube. After the electrorefining process, the recovered Zr metal was fabricated into nuclear-grade Zr buttons through arc melting following a salt distillation process. The results suggest that the removal of oxygen from the reduction product is a key reason for the use of a liquid CaCu reduction agent.
Genomic Analysis of Colombian Leishmania panamensis strains with different level of virulence
Authors: Urrea Daniel Alfonso , Duitama Jorge , Imamura Hideo , Álzate Juan F. , Gil Juanita , Muñoz Natalia , Villa Janny Alexander , Dujardin Jean-Claude , Ramirez-Pineda José R. , Triana-Chavez Omar 
Published: November 2018

AbstractThe establishment of Leishmania infection in mammalian hosts and the subsequent manifestation of clinical symptoms require internalization into macrophages, immune evasion and parasite survival and replication. Although many of the genes involved in these processes have been described, the genetic and genomic variability associated to differences in virulence is largely unknown. Here we present the genomic variation of fourLeishmania (Viannia) panamensisstrains exhibiting different levels of virulence in BALB/c mice and its application to predict novel genes related to virulence.De novoDNA sequencing and assembly of the most virulent strain allowed comparative genomics analysis with sequencedL. (Viannia) panamensisandL. (Viannia) braziliensisstrains, and showed important variations at intra and interspecific levels. Moreover, the mutation detection and a CNV search revealed both base and structural genomic variation within the species. Interestingly, we found differences in the copy number and protein diversity of some genes previously related to virulence. Several machine-learning approaches were applied to combine previous knowledge with features derived from genomic variation and predict a curated set of 66 novel genes related to virulence. These genes can be prioritized for validation experiments and could potentially become promising drug and immune targets for the development of novel prophylactic and therapeutic interventions.
Ternary crystal structure of human RORγ ligand-binding-domain, an inhibitor and corepressor peptide provides a new insight into corepressor interaction
Authors: Noguchi Masato , Nomura Akihiro , Doi Satoki , Yamaguchi Keishi , Hirata Kazuyuki , Shiozaki Makoto , Maeda Katsuya , Hirashima Shintaro , Kotoku Masayuki , Yamaguchi Takayuki , Katsuda Yoshiaki , Crowe Paul , Tao Haiyan , Thacher Scott , Adachi Tsuyoshi 
Published: November 2018

AbstractRetinoic acid-related orphan receptor gamma (RORγ) plays pivotal roles in autoimmune diseases by controlling the lineage of interleukin 17 (IL-17)-producing CD4+ T cells (Th17 cells). Structure-based drug design has proven fruitful in the development of inhibitors targeting the ligand binding domain (LBD) of RORγ. Here, we present the crystal structure of a novel RORγ inhibitor co-complex, in the presence of a corepressor (CoR) peptide. This ternary complex with compound T reveals the structural basis for an inhibitory mechanism different from the previously reported inverse agonist. Compared to the inverse agonist, compound T induces about 2 Å shift of helix 5 (H5) backbone and side-chain conformational changes of Met365 on H5. These conformational changes correlate to reduced CoR peptide binding to RORγ-LBD in the presence of compound T, which suggests that the shift of H5 is responsible. This crystal structure analysis will provide useful information for the development of novel and efficacious drugs for autoimmune disorders.
Systematic Analysis and Biomarker Study for Alzheimer’s Disease
Authors: Li Xinzhong , Wang Haiyan , Long Jintao , Pan Genhua , He Taigang , Anichtchik Oleg , Belshaw Robert , Albani Diego , Edison Paul , Green Elaine K , Scott James 
Published: November 2018

AbstractRevealing the relationship between dysfunctional genes in blood and brain tissues from patients with Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) will help us to understand the pathology of this disease. In this study, we conducted the first such large systematic analysis to identify differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in blood samples from 245 AD cases, 143 mild cognitive impairment (MCI) cases, and 182 healthy control subjects, and then compare these with DEGs in brain samples. We evaluated our findings using two independent AD blood datasets and performed a gene-based genome-wide association study to identify potential novel risk genes. We identified 789 and 998 DEGs common to both blood and brain of AD and MCI subjects respectively, over 77% of which had the same regulation directions across tissues and disease status, including the known ABCA7, and the novel TYK2 and TCIRG1. A machine learning classification model containing NDUFA1, MRPL51, and RPL36AL, implicating mitochondrial and ribosomal function, was discovered which discriminated between AD patients and controls with 85.9% of area under the curve and 78.1% accuracy (sensitivity = 77.6%, specificity = 78.9%). Moreover, our findings strongly suggest that mitochondrial dysfunction, NF-κB signalling and iNOS signalling are important dysregulated pathways in AD pathogenesis.
Uncovering the mechanism of Maxing Ganshi Decoction on asthma from a systematic perspective: A network pharmacology study
Authors: Song Wenjie , Ni Shenglou , Fu Yanling , Wang Yun 
Published: November 2018

AbstractMaxing GanshiDecoction (MXGSD) is used widely for asthma over thousands of years, but its underlying pharmacological mechanisms remain unclear. In this study, systematic and comprehensive network pharmacology was utilized for the first time to reveal the potential pharmacological mechanisms of MXGSD on asthma. Specifically, we collected 141 bioactive components from the 600 components in MXGSD, which shared 52 targets common to asthma-related ones. In-depth network analysis of these 52 common targets indicated that asthma might be a manifestation of systemic neuro-immuno-inflammatory dysfunction in the respiratory system, and MXGSD could treat asthma through relieving airway inflammation, improving airway remodeling, and increasing drug responsiveness. After further cluster and enrichment analysis of the protein-protein interaction network of MXGSD bioactive component targets and asthma-related targets, we found that the neurotrophin signaling pathway, estrogen signaling pathway, PI3K-Akt signaling pathway, and ErbB signaling pathway might serve as the key points and principal pathways of MXGSD gene therapy for asthma from a systemic and holistic perspective, and also provides a novel idea for the development of new drugs for asthma.
Using mimicry of body movements by a virtual agent to increase synchronization behavior and rapport in individuals with schizophrenia
Authors: Raffard Stéphane , Salesse Robin N. , Bortolon Catherine , Bardy Benoit G. , Henriques José , Marin Ludovic , Stricker Didier , Capdevielle Delphine 
Published: November 2018

AbstractSynchronization of behavior such as gestures or postures is assumed to serve crucial functions in social interaction but has been poorly studied to date in schizophrenia. Using a virtual collaborative environment (VCS), we tested 1) whether synchronization of behavior, i.e., the spontaneous initiation of gestures that are congruent with those of an interaction partner, was impaired in individuals with schizophrenia compared with healthy participants; 2) whether mimicry of the patients’ body movements by the virtual interaction partner was associated with increased behavioral synchronization and rapport. 19 patients and 19 matched controls interacted with a virtual agent who either mimicked their head and torso movements with a delay varying randomly between 0.5 s and 4 s or did not mimic, and rated feelings of rapport toward the virtual agent after each condition. Both groups exhibited a higher and similar synchronization behavior of the virtual agent forearm movements when they were in the Mimicry condition rather than in the No-mimicry condition. In addition, both groups felt more comfortable with a mimicking virtual agent rather than a virtual agent not mimicking them suggesting that mimicry is able to increase rapport in individuals with schizophrenia. Our results suggest that schizophrenia cannot be considered anymore as a disorder of imitation, particularly as regards behavioral synchronization processes in social interaction contexts.