bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Genetic control of cellular morphogenesis in Müller glia
Authors: Charlton‐Perkins Mark , Almeida Alexandra D. , MacDonald Ryan B. , Harris William A. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractCell shape is critical for the proper function of every cell in every tissue in the body. This is especially true for the highly morphologically diverse neural and glia cells of the central nervous system. The molecular processes by which these, or indeed any, cells gain their particular cell‐specific morphology remain largely unexplored. To identify the genes involved in the morphogenesis of the principal glial cell type in the vertebrate retina, the Müller glia (MG), we used genomic and CRISPR based strategies in zebrafish (Danio rerio). We identified 41 genes involved in various aspects of MG cell morphogenesis and revealed a striking concordance between the sequential steps of anatomical feature addition and the expression of cohorts of functionally related genes that regulate these steps. We noted that the many of the genes preferentially expressed in zebrafish MG showed conservation in glia across species suggesting evolutionarily conserved glial developmental pathways.
Type 2 diabetes and later cognitive function in older American Indians: The Strong Heart Study
Authors: Cholerton Brenna , Omidpanah Adam , Verney Steven P. , Nelson Lonnie A. , Baker Laura D. , Suchy‐Dicey Astrid , Longstreth William T. , Howard Barbara V. , Henderson Jeffrey A. , Montine Thomas J. , Buchwald Dedra 
Published: March 2019

ObjectivesInsulin resistance is a substantial health issue for American Indians, with type 2 diabetes overrepresented in this population as compared with non‐Hispanic whites. Insulin resistance and its related conditions in turn increase risk for dementia and cognitive impairment. The aim of the current study was to determine whether type 2 diabetes and insulin resistance at midlife was associated with later‐life cognitive testing in a large sample of older American Indians, aged 65 and older.MethodsAmerican Indian participants who underwent both fasting blood draw as part of the Strong Heart Study and had subsequent cognitive testing as part of the later adjunct Cerebrovascular Disease and its Consequences in American Indians study were included (n = 790). Regression models examined type 2 diabetes and impaired fasting glucose and subsequent cognitive test performance as part of a longitudinal study design. The relationship between a continuous measure of insulin resistance and later cognitive test performance was assessed using generalized estimating equations.ResultsControlling for demographic and clinical factors, verbal fluency and processing speed/working memory were significantly negatively associated with having type 2 diabetes and with insulin resistance, but not with impaired fasting glucose.ConclusionIn this sample of American Indians, type 2 diabetes at midlife was associated with subsequent lower performance on measures of executive function. These results may have important implications for future implementation of diagnostic and intervention services in this population.
Investigating systematic bias in brain age estimation with application to post‐traumatic stress disorders
Authors: Liang Hualou , Zhang Fengqing , Niu Xin 
Published: March 2019

AbstractBrain age prediction using machine‐learning techniques has recently attracted growing attention, as it has the potential to serve as a biomarker for characterizing the typical brain development and neuropsychiatric disorders. Yet one long‐standing problem is that the predicted brain age is overestimated in younger subjects and underestimated in older. There is a plethora of claims as to the bias origins, both methodologically and in data itself. With a large neuroanatomical dataset (N = 2,026; 6–89 years of age) from multiple shared datasets, we show this bias is neither data‐dependent nor specific to particular method including deep neural network. We present an alternative account that offers a statistical explanation for the bias and describe a simple, yet efficient, method using general linear model to adjust the bias. We demonstrate the effectiveness of bias adjustment with a large multi‐modal neuroimaging data (N = 804; 8–21 years of age) for both healthy controls and post‐traumatic stress disorders patients obtained from the Philadelphia Neurodevelopmental Cohort.
Correlates of vaginal laxity symptoms in women attending a urogynecology clinic in Saudi Arabia
Authors: Talab Sali , Al‐Badr Ahmed , AlKusayer Ghadeer M. , Dawood Ashraf , Bazi Tony 
Published: March 2019

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate the prevalence of vaginal laxity (VL) and its correlates in a cohort of women attending a urogynecology clinic in a tertiary referral center in Saudi Arabia.MethodsIn this retrospective study, demographic information, clinical characteristics, and POP‐Q system measurements for women attending the King Fahad Medical City Urogynecology Clinic (January 2013 to April 2015) were analyzed. Women with and without VL were compared across these variables.ResultsOut of 376 women attending the clinic for various reasons, 135 (35.9%) reported VL. VL was more common in younger women (P<0.001). Parity, menopausal status, and diabetes were not associated with this symptom. A history of cesarean delivery was protective (aOR 0.39; 95% CI, 0.17–0.90). A bulge symptom and “vaginal wind” were predictors (aOR 3.25; 95% CI, 1.46–7.23 and aOR 15.48; 95% CI, 6.93–34.56, respectively). There was no correlation between VL and POP‐Q measurements. VL was not associated with the presence of clinically significant prolapse (stage 2–4), compared with nonsignificant prolapse (stage 0–1) (P=0.869, P=0.152, and P=0.783 for anterior, posterior, and central vaginal compartment, respectively).ConclusionsIn this cohort, VL was common, more prevalent in younger women, and had poorly defined clinical correlates.
Serum miR‐122 and miR‐192 as biomarkers of intrinsic and idiosyncratic acute hepatotoxicity: A quantitative real‐time polymerase chain reaction study in adult albino rats
Authors: Madboly Abdelmonem G. , Alhusseini Naglaa F. , Abd El Rahman Shaymaa M. , El Gazzar Walaa B. , Idris Ahmed M. M. 
Published: March 2019

AbstractmiR‐122 and miR‐192 were investigated as indicators of toxic liver injury caused by acetaminophen, but their role in idiosyncratic toxic liver injury remains controversial. So, this work aimed to assess and compare the expressions of miR‐122 and miR‐192 in two different types of toxic liver injury (intrinsic [acetaminophen] and idiosyncratic [diclofenac]). Forty male adult Wistar albino rats were divided into equal five groups, in which serum liver enzymes; microRNAs (miRNAs) expressions (miR‐122 and miR‐192) and histopathological findings were studied. The present study showed that (1) miR‐122 and miR‐192 are good serum biomarkers of toxic liver injury whatever its etiology, as their serum levels exhibited a significantly earlier increase and earlier return to normal baseline levels as compared to serum aminotransferase levels; (2) miR‐122 is more specific than miR‐192; and (3) both serum levels of miR‐122 and miR‐192 showed non‐significant differences in relation to the type of toxic liver injury.
Comparison of point‐of‐care and central laboratory analyzers for blood gas and lactate measurements
Authors: Indrasari Nuri Dyah , Wonohutomo Jessica Purwanti , Sukartini Ninik 
Published: March 2019

BackgroundBlood gas analysis and blood lactate measurement have important roles in patient management. Point‐of‐care (POC) testing simplifies and provides rapid blood gas and lactate measurements. This study aimed to compare pH, pCO2, pO2, and lactate measurements between a POC device and a benchtop blood gas analyzer typically used in a hospital central laboratory, and to evaluate the inter‐device variability of the POC device.MethodsA cross‐sectional study was conducted with a sample size of 100. Each sample was measured for pH, pCO2, pO2, and lactate using a Nova pHOx plus L® benchtop blood gas analyzer in the central laboratory and an i‐STAT® handheld POC device. The results of both devices were compared using Pearson or Spearman correlation coefficients and Bland‐Altman tests. Testing of the inter‐device variability was done by using three different i‐STAT® devices, and the results were compared statistically.ResultsStrong correlations were observed for all test results. In Bland‐Altman analysis, ≥95% of the results were within the limits of agreement, with the exception of lactate, which had only 93%. The results that were beyond the limits were primarily lactate levels >8 mmol/L. Biases between the benchtop analyzer and the i‐STAT® were not clinically significant, except pH. No significant inter‐device variability was observed between the i‐STAT® analyzers.ConclusionThis comparison study of pH, pCO2, pO2, and lactate measurements between Nova pHOx plus L® and i‐STAT® analyzers showed good agreement. However, lactate measurement results >8 mmol/L on the i‐STAT® analyzer should be interpreted with caution.
Are genetic variations in IL‐21–IL‐23R–IL‐17A cytokine axis involved in a pathogenic pathway of rheumatoid arthritis? Bayesian hierarchical meta‐analysis
Authors: Mohammadi Fatemeh Sadat , Aslani Saeed , Mostafaei Shayan , Jamshidi Ahmadreza , Riahi Parisa , Mahmoudi Mahdi 
Published: March 2019

AbstractInflammatory cytokines have been established to be involved in the pathogenesis of rheumatoid arthritis (RA). The genetic polymorphisms in the interleukin (IL) 23 receptor (IL23R), IL21, and IL17 have been associated with RA risk. However, there is no conclusive understanding of the genes encoding the immunoinflammatory IL‐21–IL‐23R–IL‐17A pathway in RA aetiopathogenesis. This meta‐analysis was conducted to attain this goal. A comprehensive literature search was conducted in Scopus and PubMed to look for the relevant case–control studies up until 2018. A Bayesian hierarchical meta‐analysis was carried out to assess the association between the polymorphisms and the risk of RA. The association was estimated by calculating the logarithm of odds ratio (Log OR) and 95% credible interval (95% CI). In this meta‐analysis, 37 case–control studies comprising 23,506 RA patients and 25,984 healthy individuals were found for analyzing the IL23R,
IL21,
and IL1A gene polymorphism and risk of RA. In the
IL23R gene rs1343151 SNP, the minor A allele significantly increased the risk of RA (Log OR = 0.085, 95% CI = 0.008, 0.156). Moreover, the minor AA genotype was significantly associated with increased RA risk (Log OR = 0.176, 95% CI = 0.028, 0.321). In addition, the C allele of the
IL23R gene rs2201841 SNP significantly decreased the disease risk (Log OR = −0.544, 95% CI = −1.0, −0.065). Since Bayesian meta‐analysis is a powerful strategy to pool the data, it can be mentioned that genetic polymorphisms of
IL23R, but not
IL21 and
IL17A, are involved in susceptibility to RA.
Bioremediation of Sr2+ ion radionuclide by using marine Streptomyces sp. CuOff24 extracellular polymeric substances
Authors: Kamala Kannan , Sivaperumal Pitchiah , Thilagaraj Richard , Natarajan Elayaperumal 
Published: March 2019

AbstractBACKGROUNDMicrobial biosorption is recognized as a resourceful process for the remediation of pollution from contaminated environs. To investigate radionuclide bioremediation, carbohydrate contained extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) and strontium ion (Sr+) tolerant marine actinobacterium has been isolated and identified as Streptomyces sp. CuOff24 through 16S rDNA sequencing.RESULTSEPS was extracted, characterized and the biosorption of the long half‐life radionuclide of Sr2+ was also performed. EPS could remove 82% of Sr2+ from the experimental solution of 100 mg L−1 of strontium chloride (SrCl2). Furthermore, EPS composition also obtained with the presence of Sr2+ radionuclide and major contents of carbohydrate (68.6%) followed by protein (12.3%), nucleic acid (10.4%) and unidentified compounds 8.7%) were quantified. The spectroscopy study also confirmed the presence of carbohydrate functional groups presence in the EPS surface were probably to be involved in Sr2+ adsorption.CONCLUSIONOverall results conclude that, marine actinobacterial EPS could be used for the large‐scale remediation of radionuclides contaminated environment. © 2019 Society of Chemical Industry
Cotrimoxazole prophylaxis decreases tuberculosis risk among Asian patients with HIV
Authors: Ku Stephane Wen‐Wei , Jiamsakul Awachana , Joshi Kedar , Pasayan Mark Kristoffer Ungos , Widhani Alvina , Chaiwarith Romanee , Kiertiburanakul Sasisopin , Avihingsanon Anchalee , Ly Penh Sun , Kumarasamy Nagalingeswaran , Do Cuong D , Merati Tuti P , Nguyen Kinh Van , Kamarulzaman Adeeba , Zhang Fujie , Lee Man Po , Choi Jun Yong , Tanuma Junko , Khusuwan Suwimon , Sim Benedict Lim Heng , Ng Oon Tek , Ratanasuwan Winai , Ross Jeremy , Wong Wing‐Wai ,   TREAT Asia HIV Observational Database (TAHOD) of IeDEA Asia‐Pacific
Published: March 2019

AbstractIntroductionCotrimoxazole (CTX) is recommended as prophylaxis against Pneumocystis jiroveci pneumonia, malaria and other serious bacterial infections in HIV‐infected patients. Despite its in vitro activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis, the effects of CTX preventive therapy on tuberculosis (TB) remain unclear.MethodsAdults living with HIV enrolled in a regional observational cohort in Asia who had initiated combination antiretroviral therapy (cART) were included in the analysis. Factors associated with new TB diagnoses after cohort entry and survival after cART initiation were analysed using Cox regression, stratified by site.ResultsA total of 7355 patients from 12 countries enrolled into the cohort between 2003 and 2016 were included in the study. There were 368 reported cases of TB after cohort entry with an incidence rate of 0.99 per 100 person‐years (/100 pys). Multivariate analyses adjusted for viral load (VL), CD4 count, body mass index (BMI) and cART duration showed that CTX reduced the hazard for new TB infection by 28% (HR 0.72, 95% CI l 0.56, 0.93). Mortality after cART initiation was 0.85/100 pys, with a median follow‐up time of 4.63 years. Predictors of survival included age, female sex, hepatitis C co‐infection, TB diagnosis, HIV VL, CD4 count and BMI.ConclusionsCTX was associated with a reduction in the hazard for new TB infection but did not impact survival in our Asian cohort. The potential preventive effect of CTX against TB during periods of severe immunosuppression should be further explored.
L‐alpha‐aminoadipic acid restricts dopaminergic neurodegeneration and motor deficits in an inflammatory model of Parkinson’s disease in male rats
Authors: O’Neill Eoin , Chiara Goisis Rosa , Haverty Ruth , Harkin Andrew 
Published: March 2019

AbstractNeuroinflammation is a contributory factor underlying the progressive nature of dopaminergic neuronal loss within the substantia nigra (SN) of Parkinson's disease (PD) patients, albeit the role of astrocytes in this process has been relatively unexplored to date. Here, we aimed to investigate the impact of midbrain astrocytic dysfunction in the pathophysiology of intra‐nigral lipopolysaccharide (LPS)‐induced experimental Parkinsonism in male Wistar rats via simultaneous co‐injection of the astrocytic toxin L‐alpha‐aminoadipic acid (L‐AAA). Simultaneous intra‐nigral injection of L‐AAA attenuated the LPS‐induced loss of tyrosine hydroxylase‐positive (TH+) dopamine neurons in the SNpc and suppressed the affiliated degeneration of TH+ dopaminergic nerve terminals in the striatum. L‐AAA also repressed LPS‐induced nigrostriatal dopamine depletion and provided partial protection against ensuing motor dysfunction. L‐AAA abrogated intra‐nigral LPS‐induced glial fibrillary acidic protein‐positive (GFAP+) reactive astrogliosis and attenuated the LPS‐mediated increases in nigral S100β expression levels in a time‐dependent manner, findings which were associated with reduced ionized calcium binding adaptor molecule 1‐positive (Iba1+) microgliosis, thus indicating a role for reactive astrocytes in sustaining microglial activation at the interface of dopaminergic neuronal loss in response to an immune stimulus. These results indicate that midbrain astrocytic dysfunction restricts the development of dopaminergic neuropathology and motor impairments in rats, highlighting reactive astrocytes as key contributors in inflammatory associated degeneration of the nigrostriatal tract.
Shifting national surveillance of Shigella infections toward geno‐serotyping by the development of a tailored Luminex assay and NGS workflow
Authors: Ventola Eleonora , Bogaerts Bert , De Keersmaecker Sigrid C. J. , Vanneste Kevin , Roosens Nancy H. C. , Mattheus Wesley , Ceyssens Pieter‐Jan 
Published: March 2019

AbstractThe phylogenetically closely related Shigella species and enteroinvasive Escherichia coli (EIEC) are responsible for millions of episodes of bacterial dysenteriae worldwide. Given its distinct epidemiology and public health relevance, only Shigellae are subject to mandatory reporting and follow‐up by public health authorities. However, many clinical laboratories struggle to differentiate non‐EIEC, EIEC, and Shigella in their current workflows, leading to inaccuracies in surveillance and rising numbers of misidentified E. coli samples at the National Reference Centre (NRC). In this paper, we describe two novel tools to enhance Shigella surveillance. First, we developed a low‐cost Luminex‐based multiplex assay combining five genetic markers for species identification with 11 markers for serotype prediction for S. sonnei and S. flexneri isolates. Using a test panel of 254 clinical samples, this assay has a sensitivity of 100% in differentiation of EIEC/Shigella pathotype from non‐EIEC strains, and 68.7% success rate in distinction of Shigella and EIEC. A novel, and particularly successful marker was a Shigella‐specific deletion in the spermidine acetyltransferase gene speG, reflecting its metabolic decay. For Shigella serotype prediction, the multiplex assay scored a sensitivity and specificity of 96.6% and 98.4%, respectively. All discrepancies were analyzed with whole‐genome sequencing and shown to be related to causative mutations (stop codons, indels, and promoter mutations) in glycosyltransferase genes. This observation spurred the development of an in silico workflow which extracts the Shigella serotype from Next‐Generation Sequencing (NGS) data, taking into account gene functionality. Both tools will be implemented in the workflow of the NRC, and will play a major role in the shift from phenotypic to genotyping‐based surveillance of shigellosis in Belgium.
Freshwater Predators on the Edge: Assessing the Temporal and Spatial Variation in Diet of Largemouth Bass in Mobile Bay Estuary, Alabama, USA
Authors: Kemp C. M. , DeVries D. R. , Wright R. A. 
Published: March 2019

Abstract
Estuaries present a set of unique challenges for freshwater fish. In addition to basic physiological challenges, the influx of salinity can affect prey availability and can influence resource consumption. Diets of coastal Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides were surveyed from three sites in the Mobile Bay estuary, Alabama, USA, from April 2011 to April 2015. A large proportion of Largemouth Bass consumed blue crabs Callinectes sapidus (proportion occurrence [PO] = 0.38) and mud crabs Panopeus spp. (PO = 0.24). Largemouth Bass also consumed grass shrimp Palaemonetes spp. (PO = 0.16), Gulf Menhaden Brevoortia patronus (PO = 0.14), and mysid shrimp Mysidopsis spp. (PO = 0.12). Prey diversity was greater at the lower estuary site (Fowl River) than at the sites in the upper estuary (Bay Minette and D'Olive Bay). A principal components analysis based on the biomass diet data revealed that invertebrates were the most important prey resource for coastal Largemouth Bass, with finfishes playing a secondary role. Seasonal inputs of estuarine fish species, such as Gulf Menhaden, represented an important prey resource in the diets of Largemouth Bass during both spring and summer.
Novel Antihypertensive Peptides Derived from Chicken Foot Proteins
Authors: Bravo Francisca I. , Mas‐Capdevila Anna , Margalef Maria , Arola‐Arnal Anna , Muguerza Begoña 
Published: March 2019

ScopeChicken foot proteins have recently been demonstrated by the group to be a great source of hydrolysates with antihypertensive properties. The aim of this study was to isolate and identify angiotensin I‐converting enzyme inhibitory (ACEI) peptides from chicken foot hydrolysate Hpp11 and to test their antihypertensive properties.Methods and ResultsPeptides are separated into fractions according to their molecular size and hydrophobicity by ultrafiltration and RP‐HPLC, respectively. Subsequent peptide identification in the two fractions that present the highest ACEI activities is carried out by HPLC‐MS. Ten of the identified peptides are synthesized and five of them show ACEI (IC50) values lower than 100 µm. The antihypertensive effects of these ACEI peptides after oral administration is evaluated in spontaneously hypertensive rats. The peptides AVFQHNCQE and QVGPLIGRYCG exhibit antihypertensive activity when administered at an oral dose of 10 mg kg−1 body weight. The maximal decrease in systolic blood pressure is recorded 6 h after their administration (−25.07 ± 4.21 and −10.94 ± 1.96 mmHg, respectively).ConclusionThese results suggest that AVFQHNCQE and QVGPLIGRYCG could be used as functional ingredients with antihypertensive effects, although it would be necessary to perform bioavailability and clinical studies to demonstrate their efficiency in humans.
Measurement of T2* in the human spinal cord at 3T
Authors: Barry Robert L. , Smith Seth A. 
Published: March 2019

Purpose
To measure the transverse relaxation time T2* in healthy human cervical spinal cord gray matter (GM) and white matter (WM) at 3T.
Methods
Thirty healthy volunteers were recruited. Axial images were acquired using an averaged multi‐echo gradient‐echo (mFFE) T2*‐weighted sequence with 5 echoes. We used the signal equation for an mFFE sequence with constant dephasing gradients after each echo to jointly estimate the spin density and T2* for each voxel.
Results
No global difference in T2* was observed between all GM (41.3 ± 5.6 ms) and all WM (39.8 ± 5.4 ms). No significant differences were observed between left (43.2 ± 6.8 ms) and right (43.4 ± 5.5 ms) ventral GM, left (38.3 ± 6.1 ms) and right (38.6 ± 6.5 ms) dorsal GM, and left (39.4 ± 5.8 ms) and right (40.3 ± 5.8 ms) lateral WM. However, significant regional differences were observed between ventral (43.4 ± 5.7 ms) and dorsal (38.4 ± 6.0 ms) GM (p < 0.05), as well as between ventral (42.9 ± 6.5 ms) and dorsal (37.9 ± 6.2 ms) WM (p < 0.05). In analyses across slices, inferior T2* was longer than superior T2* in GM (44.7 ms vs. 40.1 ms; p < 0.01) and in WM (41.8 ms vs. 35.9 ms; p < 0.01).
Conclusions
Significant differences in T2* are observed between ventral and dorsal GM, ventral and dorsal WM, and superior and inferior GM and WM. There is no evidence for bilateral asymmetry in T2* in the healthy cord. These values of T2* in the spinal cord are notably lower than most reported values of T2* in the cortex.
Assessing the pentose phosphate pathway using [2, 3‐13C2]glucose
Authors: Lee Min Hee , Malloy Craig R. , Corbin Ian R. , Li Junjie , Jin Eunsook S. 
Published: March 2019

The pentose phosphate pathway (PPP) is essential for reductive biosynthesis, antioxidant processes and nucleotide production. Common tracers such as [1,2‐13C2]glucose rely on detection of 13C in lactate and require assumptions to correct natural 13C abundance.Here, we introduce a novel and specific tracer of the PPP, [2,3‐13C2]glucose. 13C NMR analysis of the resulting isotopomers is informative because [1,2‐13C2]lactate arises from glycolysis and [2,3‐13C2]lactate arises exclusively through the PPP. A correction for natural abundance is unnecessary.In rats receiving [2,3‐13C2]glucose, the PPP was more active in the fed versus fasted state in the liver and the heart, consistent with increased expression of key enzymes in the PPP. Both the PPP and glycolysis were substantially increased in hepatoma compared with liver.In summary, [2,3‐13C2]glucose and 13C NMR simplify assessment of the PPP.