bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Novel methods for integration and visualization of genomics and genetics data in Alzheimer's disease
Authors: Bihlmeyer Nathan A. , Merrill Emily , Lambert Yann , Srivastava Gyan P. , Clark Timothy W. , Hyman Bradley T. , Das Sudeshna 
Published: March 2019

AbstractIntroductionNumerous omics studies have been conducted to understand the molecular networks involved in Alzheimer's disease (AD), but the pathophysiology is still not completely understood; new approaches that enable neuroscientists to better interpret the results of omics analysis are required.MethodsWe have developed advanced methods to analyze and visualize publicly‐available genomics and genetics data. The tools include a composite clinical‐neuropathological score for defining AD, gene expression maps in the brain, and networks integrating omics data to understand the impact of polymorphisms on AD pathways.ResultsWe have analyzed over 50 public human gene expression data sets, spanning 19 different brain regions and encompassing three separate cohorts. We integrated genome‐wide association studies with expression data to identify important genes in the pathophysiology of AD, which provides further insight into the calcium signaling and calcineurin pathways.DiscussionBiologists can use these freely‐available tools to obtain a comprehensive, information‐rich view of the pathways in AD.
Association between an individual dietary index based on the British Food Standard Agency Nutrient Profiling System and asthma symptoms
Authors: Andrianasolo Roland M. , Julia Chantal , Varraso Raphaëlle , Egnell Manon , Touvier Mathilde , Kesse-Guyot Emmanuelle , Hercberg Serge , Galan Pilar 
Published: March 2019

AbstractThe role of diet in asthma is still debated. In France, a front-of-pack (FOP) nutrition label based on a modified Food Standards Agency Nutrient Profiling System/High Council for Public Health (FSAm-NPS/HCSP) has recently been implemented to help consumers to make healthier food choices during purchase. At the individual level, the FSAm-NPS dietary index (DI) has been shown to reflect the nutritional quality of the diet. The aim of the present study was to investigate the association between the FSAm-NPS DI and the asthma symptom score. In total, 34 323 participants (25 823 women and 8500 men) from the NutriNet-Santé cohort were included. The overall nutritional quality of the diet was assessed using the FSAm-NPS DI. Increasing FSAm-NPS DI reflects decreasing overall diet quality. Asthma was defined by the asthma symptom score (sum of five questions). Negative binomial regression was used to evaluate the association between the FSA-NPS DI and the asthma symptom score. Overall, mean participant’s age was 54 ± 14 years, and about 27 % reported at least one asthma symptom. We observed a significant positive association between less healthy diet, as expressed by higher FSAm-NPS DI, and the asthma symptom score. The adjusted OR were 1·27 (95 % CI 1·17, 1·38) among women and 1·31 (95 % CI 1·13, 1·53) among men. Unhealthy food choices, as reflected by a higher FSAm-NPS DI, were associated with greater asthma symptoms. These results reinforce the relevance of public health approach to orient consumers towards healthier food choices by using a clear and easy-to-understand FOP nutrition label based on the FSAm-NPS, such as the Nutri-Score.
Longitudinal analysis of Voice Handicap Index in early glottic cancer patients treated with transoral laser microsurgery: age, gender, stage and time dependence
Authors: Lane C , Rigby M , Hart R , Trites J , Levi E , Taylor S M 
Published: March 2019

AbstractObjectivesTransoral laser microsurgery is an increasingly common treatment modality for glottic carcinoma. This study aimed to determine the effect of age, gender, stage and time on voice-related quality of life using the Voice Handicap Index-10.MethodsPrimary early glottic carcinoma patients treated with transoral laser microsurgery were included in the study. Self-reported Voice Handicap Index testing was completed pre-operatively, three months post-operatively, and yearly at follow-up appointments.ResultsVoice Handicap Index improvement was found to be dependent on age and tumour stage, while no significant differences were found in Voice Handicap Index for gender. Voice Handicap Index score was significantly improved at 12 months and 24 months. Time versus Voice Handicap Index modelling revealed a preference for non-linear over linear regression.ConclusionAge and stage are important factors, as younger patients with more advanced tumours show greater voice improvement post-operatively. Patient's Voice Handicap Index is predicted to have 95 per cent of maximal improvement by 5.5 months post-operatively.
Analysis of factors associated with multiple ventilation tube insertions in children with otitis media with effusion
Authors: Choi H , Lee D , Hong Y , Kim D-K 
Published: March 2019

AbstractObjectiveTo determine the factors related to multiple ventilation tube insertions in children with otitis media with effusion.MethodsA retrospective review was performed of 126 ears of 81 children aged less than 12 years who had undergone insertion of a Paparella type 1 ventilation tube for the first time between August 2012 and March 2018.ResultsMean age at the first operation was 4.0 ± 2.2 years, and the mean duration of otitis media with effusion before the first ventilation tube insertion was 5.4 ± 4.5 months. Among 126 ears, 80 (63.5 per cent) had a single ventilation tube insertion and 46 (36.5 per cent) had multiple insertions. On multivariate logistic regression, tympanic membrane retraction, serous middle-ear discharge, and early recurrence of otitis media with effusion were independent predictive factors of multiple ventilation tube insertions.ConclusionTympanic membrane retraction, serous middle-ear discharge, and early recurrence of otitis media with effusion after the first tube extrusion are associated with multiple ventilation tube insertions.
Time for care: exploring time use by carers of older people
Authors: Bowes Alison , Dawson Alison , Ashworth Rosalie 
Published: March 2019

AbstractThe paper focuses on temporal aspects of informal caring for older people. Limitations of large-scale surveys in capturing such data are noted and time-use methodology, despite its own limitations, is proposed as a promising alternative. Adopting a critical perspective on time that includes carers’ own conceptualisations, we report the findings of a qualitative study of carers’ time use. Sixty-two interviews with carers, male/female, co-resident/not co-resident, employed/not employed, and located across Great Britain were conducted. Analysis considered people's own diverse and ambiguous views of their care activities. Carers’ accounts of their time revealed non-linear experiences and a sense of being permanently on call. Interviewees often travelled distances to engage in support activities with or for older people. Changes over time were pervasive, increasing or reducing care requirements. Unanticipated events could precipitate radical changes in time use. Managing time, exercising temporal agency, was particularly apparent in accounts of care, employment, other family responsibilities and choices about friendship. Measurement of carers’ time use which draws on the conceptual foundation of carers’ own perspectives on time may provide more effective quantitative understanding of the temporal aspects of caring. It should not pre-define time, must grasp a variety of tasks, take account of intermittent activity, incorporate the 24–7 experience of many carers and demonstrate how caring time interacts with other time.
Constructing weak simulations from linear implications for processes with private names
Authors: Horne Ross , Tiu Alwen 
Published: March 2019

AbstractThis paper clarifies that linear implication defines a branching-time preorder, preserved in all contexts, when used to compare embeddings of process in non-commutative logic. The logic considered is a first-order extension of the proof system BV featuring a de Morgan dual pair of nominal quantifiers, called BV1. An embedding of π-calculus processes as formulae in BV1 is defined, and the soundness of linear implication in BV1 with respect to a notion of weak simulation in the π -calculus is established. A novel contribution of this work is that we generalise the notion of a ‘left proof’ to a class of formulae sufficiently large to compare embeddings of processes, from which simulating execution steps are extracted. We illustrate the expressive power of BV1 by demonstrating that results extend to the internal π -calculus, where privacy of inputs is guaranteed. We also remark that linear implication is strictly finer than any interleaving preorder.
Strawberry, black medic (Medicago lupulina), and Carolina geranium (Geranium carolinianum) growth under light-limiting conditions
Authors: Sharpe Shaun M. , Yu Jialin , Boyd Nathan S. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractBroadleaf infestations interfere with Florida strawberry production. Broadleaf POST herbicide options applied atop the crop are limited to synthetic auxins and not suitable for conventional multi-cropping and organic systems. Reducing light access and interception during weed emergence may reduce interference. Light-limited growth of two problematic broadleaves, black medic and Carolina geranium, and the most commonly grown strawberry cultivar (‘Florida Radiance’), were examined in the greenhouse. The experimental design was completely randomized, and the trial was repeated. Black medic was susceptible to reductions in incoming solar radiation, wherein reducing the daily maximum available light from 331 to 94 µmol m−2s−1reduced leaf number and area by 93% and 89%, respectively. Carolina geranium growth was less susceptible to reduced-light treatments, with leaf area and number each reduced by 66% when light was reduced from 331 to 94 µmol m−2s−1. Belowground, Carolina geranium biomass was similarly reduced between the 331 and 94 µmol m−2s−1treatments. Strawberry was relatively tolerant to shading at 155 µmol m−2s−1, but further reductions did increase mortality. Shade-induced weed suppression is a promising alternative strategy for conventional and organic Florida strawberry production. Targeted application during periods of weed emergence may play a role within integrated pest management strategies. This approach is most feasible for black medic management but may be useful for Carolina geranium in concert with other strategies.
The Plausibility of September–November Congo Basin Rainfall Change in Coupled Climate Models
Authors: Creese A. , Washington R. , Munday C. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractAs one of three global hot spots of tropical convection, potential future changes to the Congo Basin climate system will have regional and tropics‐wide implications. However, the latest generation of climate models from the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project 5 disagree on the sign and magnitude of future change and diverge in their estimation of the historical rainfall climatology. This study assesses the plausibility of different signals of future rainfall change by examining the processes relating to rainfall projections in samples of historically wet or dry models during the September–November rainy season. In the west Congo Basin, there are no significant differences in rainfall change projections in models that are historically wet or dry. Both composites feature wetting in the north (up to 1.8 mm/day) and drying in the south, associated with enhanced tropical Atlantic sea surface temperatures, increased evaporation, and enhanced low‐level moisture flux into the basin. In the east Congo Basin, there is greater evidence that differences in model historical climatologies has an influence on the magnitude of future rainfall change. Historically wet models project significant wetting in the northeast (1.19 mm/day) associated with a weakened northern component of the African Easterly Jet (AEJ) and enhanced moisture convergence. Dry models do not capture the structure of the AEJs in the historical period, and so changes to the AEJs under warming do not produce the same wetting pattern. The analysis therefore casts doubt on the plausibility of the driest rainfall change signals in the east Congo Basin.
Salt Marsh Greenhouse Gas Fluxes and Microbial Communities Are Not Sensitive to the First Year of Precipitation Change
Authors: Emery Hollie E. , Angell John H. , Fulweiler R. W. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractChanging precipitation patterns are predicted to alter ecosystem structure and function with potential carbon cycle feedbacks to climate change. Influenced by both land and sea, salt marshes are unique ecosystems and their productivity and respiration responses to precipitation change differ from those observed in terrestrial ecosystems. How salt marsh greenhouse gas fluxes and sediment microbial communities will respond to climate‐induced precipitation changes is largely unknown. We conducted 1‐year precipitation manipulation experiments in the Spartina patens (high marsh) zone of two salt marshes and quantified ecosystem functions at both and microbial community structure at one. Precipitation treatments (doubled rainfall, extreme drought, and seasonal intensification) had a significant, although transient, impact on porewater salinity following storms at both sites, but most site conditions (nutrient concentrations, sediment moisture, and temperature) were unaffected. Extreme drought led to a subtle change in microbial community structure, but most ecosystem functions (primary productivity, litter decomposition, and greenhouse gas fluxes) were not affected by precipitation changes. The absence of ecosystem function change indicates functional redundancy (under extreme drought) and resistance (under doubled precipitation and seasonal intensification) exist in the microbial community. Our findings demonstrate that salt marsh ecosystems can maintain function (including ecosystem services like carbon sequestration) under even the most extreme precipitation change scenarios, due to resistance, resilience, and functional redundancy in the underlying microbial community.
Effects of Precipitation on Mercury Accumulation on Subtropical Montane Forest Floor: Implications on Climate Forcing
Authors: Wang Xun , Yuan Wei , Lu Zhiyun , Lin Che‐Jen , Yin Runsheng , Li Fen , Feng Xinbin 
Published: March 2019

AbstractProcesses facilitated by precipitation play an important role on mercury (Hg) accumulation on forest floor and therefore key to Hg cycling in forest ecosystems. Sites along the windward slope of 1,250 to 2,400 m at Mt. Ailao, Southwestern China, have higher precipitation than the leeward slope sites. In this study, measurements of Hg concentration and associated stable isotope composition for soil, fresh, and degraded litterfall samples were made at sites along two slopes of Mt. Ailao to quantify the direct and indirect effects of precipitation on Hg accumulation on forest floor. Higher soil Hg concentrations, larger litterfall Hg depositions, and faster litter decomposition rates were observed on the windward slope (1,250–2,400 m). Data of Hg isotopic signatures suggest that Hg in surface soils is mainly derived from litterfall Hg input. Precipitation enhances litterfall Hg deposition by increasing litter biomass production, reduces litter decomposition rate, facilitates short‐term Hg uptake to decomposing litter, and potentially increases microbial activity that increases Hg loss via microbial reduction or runoff. Structural equation modeling results support that the indirect effect of precipitation on increased biomass production merge as the most important factor controlling soil Hg variation. Given the climate forcing on global precipitation pattern and vegetation growth cycle, Hg biogeochemical cycling is likely to continue to evolve under the changing climate.
Structural equation modeling of a winnowed soil microbiome identifies how invasive plants re-structure microbial networks
Authors: Mamet Steven D , Redlick Ellen , Brabant Michelle , Lamb Eric G , Helgason Bobbi L , Stanley Kevin , Siciliano Steven D 
Published: March 2019

Abstract
The development of microbial networks is central to ecosystem functioning and is the hallmark of complex natural systems. Characterizing network development over time and across environmental gradients is hindered by the millions of potential interactions among community members, limiting interpretations of network evolution. We developed a feature selection approach using data winnowing that identifies the most ecologically influential microorganisms within a network undergoing change. Using a combination of graph theory, leave-one-out analysis, and statistical inference, complex microbial communities are winnowed to identify the core organisms responding to external gradients or functionality, and then network development is evaluated against these externalities. In a plant invasion case study, the winnowed microbial network became more influential as the plant invasion progressed as a result of direct plant-microbe links rather than the expected indirect plant–soil–microbe links. This represents the first use of structural equation modeling to predict microbial network evolution, which requires identification of keystone taxa and quantification of the ecological processes underpinning community structure and function patterns.
Direct electronetting of high-performance membranes based on self-assembled 2D nanoarchitectured networks
Authors: Zhang Shichao , Liu Hui , Tang Ning , Ge Jianlong , Yu Jianyong , Ding Bin 
Published: March 2019

AbstractThere is an increasing demand worldwide on advanced two-dimensional (2D) nanofibrous networks with applications ranging from environmental protection and electrical devices to bioengineering. Design of such nanoarchitectured materials has been considered a long-standing challenge. Herein, we report a direct electronetting technology for the fabrication of self-assembled 2D nanoarchitectured networks (nano-nets) from various materials. Tailoring of the precursor solution and of the microelectric field allows charged droplets, which are ejected from a Taylor cone, to levitate, deform and phase separate before they self-assemble a 2D nanofibre network architecture. The fabricated nano-nets show mechanical robustness and benefit from nanostructural properties such as enhanced surface wettability, high transparency, separation and improved air filtration properties. Calcination of the nano-nets results in the formation of carbon nano-nets with electric conductivity and titanium dioxide nano-nets with bioprotective properties.
Increased H-Bond Stability Relates to Altered ε-Cleavage Efficiency and Aβ Levels in the I45T Familial Alzheimer’s Disease Mutant of APP
Authors: Götz Alexander , Högel Philipp , Silber Mara , Chaitoglou Iro , Luy Burkhard , Muhle-Goll Claudia , Scharnagl Christina , Langosch Dieter 
Published: March 2019

AbstractCleavage of the amyloid precursor protein’s (APP) transmembrane domain (TMD) by γ-secretase is a crucial step in the aetiology of Alzheimer’s Disease (AD). Mutations in the APP TMD alter cleavage and lead to familial forms of AD (FAD). The majority of FAD mutations shift the preference of initial cleavage from ε49 to ε48, thus raising the AD-related Aβ42/Aβ40 ratio. The I45T mutation is among the few FAD mutations that do not alter ε-site preference, while it dramatically reduces the efficiency of ε-cleavage. Here, we investigate the impact of the I45T mutation on the backbone dynamics of the substrate TMD. Amide exchange experiments and molecular dynamics simulations in solvent and a lipid bilayer reveal an increased stability of amide hydrogen bonds at the ζ- and γ-cleavage sites. Stiffening of the H-bond network is caused by an additional H-bond between the T45 side chain and the TMD backbone, which alters dynamics within the cleavage domain. In particular, the increased H-bond stability inhibits an upward movement of the ε-sites in the I45T mutant. Thus, an altered presentation of ε-sites to the active site of γ-secretase as a consequence of restricted local flexibility provides a rationale for reduced ε-cleavage efficiency of the I45T mutant.
Ti2NiCoSnSb - a new half-Heusler type high-entropy alloy showing simultaneous increase in Seebeck coefficient and electrical conductivity for thermoelectric applications
Authors: Karati Anirudha , Nagini M. , Ghosh Sanyukta , Shabadi Rajashekhara , Pradeep K. G. , Mallik Ramesh Chandra , Murty B. S. , Varadaraju U. V. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractA new single phase high entropy alloy, Ti2NiCoSnSb with half-Heusler (HH) structure is synthesized for the first time by vacuum arc melting (VAM) followed by ball-milling (BM). The BM step is necessary to obtain the single phase. Local electrode atom probe (LEAP) analysis showed that the elements are homogeneously and randomly distributed in the HH phase without any clustering tendency. When the BM was carried out for 1 hour on the VAM alloy, microcrystalline alloy is obtained with traces of Sn as secondary phase. When BM was carried out for 5 h, single HH phase formation is realized in nanocrystalline form. However, when the BM samples were subjected to Spark plasma sintering (SPS), secondary phases were formed by the decomposition of primary phase. Nanostructuring leads to simultaneous increase in S and σ with increasing temperature. The micro (1 h BM-SPS) and nanocrystalline (5 h BM-SPS) alloys exhibited a power factor (S2σ) of 0.57 and 1.02 mWm−1K−2, respectively, at 860 K. The microcrystalline sample had a total thermal conductivity similar to bulk TiNiSn sample. The nanocrystalline alloy exhibited a ZT of 0.047 at 860 K. The microcrystalline alloy showed a ZT to 0.144 at 860 K, in comparison to the nanocrystalline alloy.
MoS2 photodetectors integrated with photonic circuits
Authors: Gonzalez Marin Juan Francisco , Unuchek Dmitrii , Watanabe Kenji , Taniguchi Takashi , Kis Andras 
Published: March 2019

AbstractIn recent years, two-dimensional materials have risen as an attractive platform for integrated optoelectronics, due to their atomic scale thickness, favorable electrical, mechanical, and optical properties. In particular, graphene has been exploited as an ultrafast light modulator and photodetector, operating at telecommunication wavelengths. However, materials with larger bandgaps are required for light detection in the visible range of the spectrum, with wide applications in space communication, industrial quality controls, light sensing, etc. Even though TMDC-based light emitting and detecting devices in the visible spectrum have already been realized, efficient light absorption and photocurrent generation on integrated devices has not been achieved yet. Here, we demonstrate the integration of an ultrasensitive MoS2 photodetector with a silicon nitride photonic circuit. In contrast to the limited vertical light absorption, we observe near-unity lateral absorption, which results in even higher responsivity. By fabricating an alternative device where the MoS2 semiconducting channel is combined with a hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) substrate, we significantly improve the speed of the photodetector. Low power operation is further achieved in a third device with graphene local gates. These results pave the way for future TMDC-based integrated optoelectronic devices.