bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The therapeutic significance of mutational signatures from DNA repair deficiency in cancer
Authors: Ma Jennifer , Setton Jeremy , Lee Nancy Y. , Riaz Nadeem , Powell Simon N. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractCancer is fundamentally a disease of the genome and inherited deficiencies in DNA repair pathways are well established to increase lifetime cancer risk. Computational analysis of pan-cancer data has identified signatures of mutational processes thought to be responsible for the pattern of mutations in any given cancer. These analyses identified altered DNA repair pathways in a much broader spectrum of cancers than previously appreciated with significant therapeutic implications. The development of DNA repair deficiency biomarkers is critical to the implementation of therapeutic targeting of repair-deficient tumors, using either DNA damaging agents or immunotherapy for the personalization of cancer therapy.
Sarcolab pilot study into skeletal muscle’s adaptation to long-term spaceflight
Authors: Rittweger Jörn , Albracht Kirsten , Flück Martin , Ruoss Severin , Brocca Lorenza , Longa Emanuela , Moriggi Manuela , Seynnes Olivier , Di Giulio Irene , Tenori Leonardo , Vignoli Alessia , Capri Miriam , Gelfi Cecilia , Luchinat Claudio , Franceschi Claudio , Bottinelli Roberto , Cerretelli Paolo , Narici Marco 
Published: August 2018

AbstractSpaceflight causes muscle wasting. The Sarcolab pilot study investigated two astronauts with regards to plantar flexor muscle size, architecture, and function, and to the underlying molecular adaptations in order to further the understanding of muscular responses to spaceflight and exercise countermeasures. Two crew members (A and B) spent 6 months in space. Crew member A trained less vigorously than B. Postflight, A showed substantial decrements in plantar flexor volume, muscle architecture, in strength and in fiber contractility, which was strongly mitigated in B. The difference between these crew members closely reflected FAK-Y397 abundance, a molecular marker of muscle’s loading history. Moreover, crew member A showed downregulation of contractile proteins and enzymes of anaerobic metabolism, as well as of systemic markers of energy and protein metabolism. However, both crew members exhibited decrements in muscular aerobic metabolism and phosphate high energy transfer. We conclude that countermeasures can be effective, particularly when resistive forces are of sufficient magnitude. However, to fully prevent space-related muscular deterioration, intersubject variability must be understood, and intensive exercise countermeasures programs seem mandatory. Finally, proteomic and metabolomic analyses suggest that exercise benefits in space may go beyond mere maintenance of muscle mass, but rather extend to the level of organismic metabolism.
Post-class naps boost declarative learning in a naturalistic school setting
Authors: Cabral Thiago , Mota Natália B. , Fraga Lucia , Copelli Mauro , McDaniel Mark A. , Ribeiro Sidarta 
Published: August 2018

AbstractLaboratory evidence of a positive effect of sleep on declarative memory consolidation suggests that naps can be used to boost school learning in a scalable, low-cost manner. The few direct investigations of this hypothesis have so far upheld it, but departed from the naturalistic setting by testing non-curricular contents presented by experimenters instead of teachers. Furthermore, nap and non-nap groups were composed of different children. Here we assessed the effect of post-class naps on the retention of Science and History curricular contents presented by the regular class teacher to 24 students from 5th grade. Retention was repeatedly measured 3–4 days after content learning, with weekly group randomization over 6 consecutive weeks. Contents followed by long naps (>30 min), but not short naps (<30 min), were significantly more retained than contents followed by waking (Cohen’s d = 0.7962). The results support the use of post-class morning naps to enhance formal education.
A new era in cytomegalovirus vaccinology: considerations for rational design of next-generation vaccines to prevent congenital cytomegalovirus infection
Authors: Nelson Cody S. , Herold Betsy C. , Permar Sallie R. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractHuman cytomegalovirus (HCMV), a member of the beta-herpesvirus family, is the most common cause of congenital infection worldwide as well as an important cause of morbidity in transplant recipients and immunosuppressed individuals. An estimated 1 in 150 infants are infected with HCMV at birth, which can result in lifelong, debilitating neurologic sequelae including microcephaly, sensorineural hearing loss, and cognitive impairment. Natural maternal immunity to HCMV decreases the frequency of reinfection and reduces risk of congenital transmission but does not completely protect against neonatal disease. Thus, a vaccine to reduce the incidence and severity of infant infection is a public health priority. A variety of candidate HCMV vaccine approaches have been tried previously, including live-attenuated viruses, glycoprotein subunit formulations, viral vectors, and single/bivalent DNA plasmids, but all have failed to reach target endpoints in clinical trials. Nevertheless, there is a great deal to be learned from the successes and failures of the HCMV vaccine field (both congenital and transplant-associated), as well as from vaccine development efforts for other herpesvirus pathogens including herpes simplex virus 1 and 2, varicella zoster virus, and Epstein–Barr virus. Here, we review those successes and failures, evaluating recent cutting-edge discoveries that have shaped the HCMV vaccine field and identifying topics of critical importance for future investigation. These considerations will inform rational design and evaluation of next-generation vaccines to prevent HCMV-associated congenital infection and disease.
In vitro and in vivo evaluation of the genotoxic and antigenotoxic potential of the major Chios mastic water constituents
Authors: Drosopoulou Elena , Vlastos Dimitris , Efthimiou Ioanna , Kyrizaki Paraskevi , Tsamadou Sofia , Anagnostopoulou Maria , Kofidou Danai , Gavriilidis Maxim , Mademtzoglou Despoina , Mavragani-Tsipidou Penelope 
Published: August 2018

AbstractChios mastic products are well-known for their broad applications in food industry, cosmetics, and healthcare since the antiquity. Given our recent finding that Chios mastic water (CMW) exerts antigenotoxic action, in the present study, we evaluated the genotoxic as well as the antigenotoxic potential of the four major compounds of CMW, namely, verbenone, α-terpineol, linalool, and trans-pinocarveol. The cytokinesis block micronucleus (CBMN) assay in cultured human lymphocytes and the Drosophila Somatic Mutation And Recombination Test (SMART), also known as the wing spot test, were employed. None of the four major CMW’s constituents or their mixtures showed genotoxic or recombinogenic activity in either of the assays used. Co-treatment of each of the constituents with MMC revealed that all except trans-pinocarveol exerted antigenotoxic potential. Moreover, co-administration of verbenone with linalool or α-terpineol presented statistically significant reduction of MMC-induced mutagenicity. In conclusion, the major CMW constituents were shown to be free of genotoxic effects, while some exerted antigenotoxic activity either alone or in combinations, suggesting synergistic phenomena. Our results provide evidence on the key antigenotoxicity effectors of the plant extract CMW.
Expression analysis and functional characterization of the mouse cysteine-rich with EGF-like domains 2
Authors: Oh-hashi Kentaro , Fujimura Keito , Norisada Junpei , Hirata Yoko 
Published: August 2018

AbstractWe have previously identified a novel endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress-inducible protein, namely, cysteine-rich with EGF-like domains 2 (CRELD2), which is predominantly regulated by ATF6. However, few studies on intrinsic CRELD2 have been published. In the present study, we elucidated the expression of intrinsic CRELD2 in mouse tissues and ER stress- treated Neuro2a cells. Among nine tissues we tested, CRELD2 protein in the heart and skeletal muscles was negligible. CRELD2 expression in Neuro2a cells was induced at the late phase after treatment with tunicamycin (Tm) compared with rapid induction of growth arrest and DNA damage inducible gene 153 (GADD153). On the other hand, another ER stress inducer, thapsigargin, increased the intrinsic CRELD2 secretion from Neuro2a cells. We furthermore established CRELD2-deficient Neuro2a cells to evaluate their features. In combination with the NanoLuc complementary reporter system, which was designed to detect protein-protein interaction in living cells, CRELD2 interacted with not only CRELD2 itself but also with ER localizing proteins in Neuro2a cells. Finally, we investigated the responsiveness of CRELD2-deficient cells against Tm-treatment and found that CRELD2 deficiency did not affect the expression of genes triggered by three canonical ER stress sensors but rendered Neuro2a cells vulnerable to Tm-stimulation. Taken together, these findings provide the novel molecular features of CRELD2, and its further characterization would give new insights into understanding the ER homeostasis and ER stress-induced cellular dysfunctions.
Stress affects the epigenetic marks added by natural transposable element insertions in Drosophila melanogaster
Authors: Guio Lain , Vieira Cristina , González Josefa 
Published: August 2018

AbstractTransposable elements are emerging as an important source of cis-acting regulatory sequences and epigenetic marks that could influence gene expression. However, few studies have dissected the role of specific transposable element insertions on epigenetic gene regulation. Bari-Jheh is a natural transposon that mediates resistance to oxidative stress by adding cis-regulatory sequences that affect expression of nearby genes. In this work, we integrated publicly available ChIP-seq and piRNA data with chromatin immunoprecipitation experiments to get a more comprehensive picture of Bari-Jheh molecular effects. We showed that Bari-Jheh was enriched for H3K9me3 in nonstress conditions, and for H3K9me3, H3K4me3 and H3K27me3 in oxidative stress conditions, which is consistent with expression changes in adjacent genes. We further showed that under oxidative stress conditions, H3K4me3 and H3K9me3 spread to the promoter region of Jheh1 gene. Finally, another insertion of the Bari1 family was associated with increased H3K27me3 in oxidative stress conditions suggesting that Bari1 histone marks are copy-specific. We concluded that besides adding cis-regulatory sequences, Bari-Jheh influences gene expression by affecting the local chromatin state.
Synergistic negative effects of thermal stress and altered food resources on echinoid larvae
Authors: Feehan Colette J. , Ludwig Zoe , Yu Suzannah , Adams Diane K. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractMultiple changes to the marine environment under climate change can have additive or interactive (antagonistic or synergistic) effects on marine organisms. Prompted by observations of anomalously warm sea temperatures and low chlorophyll concentrations during the 2013–2016 warm “Blob” event in the Northeast Pacific Ocean, we examined the combined effects of thermal stress and a shift in food resources on the development of a larval echinoid (Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis) in the laboratory. A high concentration of phytoplankton yielded faster echinus rudiment development at warm versus historical temperature, indicating a mitigating effect of abundant food on thermal stress; however, low phytoplankton concentration or a shift in diet to suspended kelp detritus, yielded slow development and high mortality at warm temperature. The results indicate a synergistic negative effect of thermal stress and altered food resources on larvae of a keystone marine species.
Light-programmable manipulation of DC field in Laplacian Meta-devices
Authors: Han Tiancheng , Liu Yuexia , Liu Lei , Qin Jin , Li Ying , Bao Jiayu , Ni Dongyuan , Qiu Cheng-Wei 
Published: August 2018

AbstractImpressive progresses have been achieved in the field of metamaterial to mimic the illusion or camouflage effects in nature. These include invisible cloaks and many other cloak-based illusion meta-devices. However, to date many experiments only present single, static or discretized functionalities. The dynamical control of multiple kinds of illusion signals can only be achieved by embedding complex active sources directly connected to external stimuli, leading to limited on/off switching effect in a contact fashion. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a distinct scheme to incorporate multi-functions into one passive Laplacian DC meta-device, assisted by light illumination. It is shown that light-programmable cloaking, full illusion, and partial illusion can be achieved on the same device without physical contact of the heating pads or electric bias, at the cost of only four kinds of natural bulk materials with homogeneous parameters throughout. A DC network is fabricated to demonstrate the proof of concept, with measurement results in good agreement with the numerical simulations. The proposed scheme may open a new avenue to the non-contact multiphysical control of multi-illusion functions for Laplacian fields.
Early molecular events associated with nitrogen deficiency in rice seedling roots
Authors: Hsieh Ping-Han , Kan Chia-Cheng , Wu Hsin-Yu , Yang Hsiu-Chun , Hsieh Ming-Hsiun 
Published: August 2018

AbstractNitrogen (N) deficiency is one of the most common problems in rice. The symptoms of N deficiency are well documented, but the underlying molecular mechanisms are largely unknown in rice. Here, we studied the early molecular events associated with N starvation (−N, 1 h), focusing on amino acid analysis and identification of −N-regulated genes in rice roots. Interestingly, levels of glutamine rapidly decreased within 15 min of −N treatment, indicating that part of the N-deficient signals could be mediated by glutamine. Transcriptome analysis revealed that genes involved in metabolism, plant hormone signal transduction (e.g. abscisic acid, auxin, and jasmonate), transporter activity, and oxidative stress responses were rapidly regulated by −N. Some of the −N-regulated genes encode transcription factors, protein kinases and protein phosphatases, which may be involved in the regulation of early −N responses in rice roots. Previously, we used similar approaches to identify glutamine-, glutamate-, and ammonium nitrate-responsive genes. Comparisons of the genes induced by different forms of N with the −N-regulated genes identified here have provided a catalog of potential N regulatory genes for further dissection of the N signaling pathwys in rice.
Curve-fitting techniques improve the mid-infrared analysis of soil organic carbon: a case study for Brookston clay loam particle-size fractions
Authors: Fan Ruqin , Yang Xueming , Drury Craig F. , Zhang Zhenhua 
Published: August 2018

AbstractFew studies have evaluated structural features of soil organic carbon (SOC) in different soil particle fractions, especially SOC changes induced by tillage, using Fourier transformed mid-infrared (MIR) spectroscopy. To make a contribution in this context, soil samples of a Brookston clay loam (mesic Typic Argiaquoll) with averaged pH and organic matter concentration at 7.28 and 43.9 g kg−1, respectively, were collected from short-term no-tillage (NT97) and mouldboard plow (CT97) treatments initiated in 1997 and long-term no-tillage (NT83) and mouldboard plow (CT83) treatments initiated in 1983 under a corn-soybean rotation, and were separated into sand, silt, and clay fractions using sonication. Structural features of SOC in these soil fractions were investigated using curve-fitting analysis of mid-infrared (MIR) spectra. Aromatic C content was found to be greater in clay- than in sand-sized fractions, while aliphatic C content was higher in sand- than in silt- and clay-sized particles. With decrease in tillage intensity, the aliphatic C gradually increased in sand- and clay-sized fractions but not in the silt-sized fraction. The aliphatic C content in sand fraction was significantly greater in NT83 than CT83 (P < 0.05). The aromatic C in silt- and clay-sized fractions was greater in NT83 than in both CT soils, whereas aromatic C contents were higher in both CT soils than in NT83 soil. Significantly higher aromatic/aliphatic C ratio in CT83 than NT83 was found in sand-sized fractions, while the opposite trend was found in the silt-sized fraction. These findings were not apparent until the curve-fitting technique was employed, which has the capacity to quantify many overlapped bands in the spectra. This study demonstrates that the curve-fitting of MIR spectra advances the analysis of organic matter in soil samples.
Improvement of physico-chemical properties of dextran-chitosan composite scaffolds by addition of nano-hydroxyapatite
Authors: El-Meliegy Emad , Abu-Elsaad N. I. , El-Kady Abeer M. , Ibrahim Manar A. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractNano-hydroxyapatite was incorporated into polymer matrix of Dextran/Chitosan to achieve a novel composite scaffold by freeze drying technique. The synthesized composite scaffolds were recognized by different performances such as: X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results revealed the complex formation between dextran and chitosan with an excellent dispersion of nHA inside the polymer matrix. The SEM images showed the presence of interconnected pore structure inside the scaffolds. The porosity of the composites was found to decrease from 82% to 67% by adding nanohydroxyapatite to the polymer matrix of Dextran/Chitosan. The mechanical properties of the scaffolds were measured by compression test. The obtained results verified that the presence of nHA can noticeably enhance young’s modulus and compressive strength of the composite scaffolds. All the obtained results essentially recommend that these composites can be a good candidate for bone tissue engineering applications.
Fluorescence detection of DNA mismatch repair in human cells
Authors: Ito Shunsuke , Shiraishi Miyako , Tsuchihashi Kazuki , Takatsuka Reine , Yamamoto Junpei , Kuraoka Isao , Iwai Shigenori 
Published: August 2018

AbstractMismatched base pairs, produced by nucleotide misincorporation by DNA polymerase, are repaired by the mismatch repair (MMR) pathway to maintain genetic integrity. We have developed a method for the fluorescence detection of the cellular MMR ability. A mismatch, which would generate a stop codon in the mRNA transcript unless it was repaired, was introduced into the gene encoding the enhanced green fluorescent protein (EGFP) in an expression plasmid. When MMR-proficient HeLa cells were transformed with this plasmid, the production of active EGFP was observed by fluorescence microscopy. It was assumed that the nick required to initiate the MMR pathway was produced non-specifically in the cells. In contrast, fluorescence was not detected for three types of MMR-deficient cells, LoVo, HCT116, and DLD-1, transformed with the same plasmid. In addition, the expression of a red fluorescent protein gene was utilized to avoid false-negative results. This simple fluorescence method may improve the detection of repair defects, as a biomarker for cancer diagnosis and therapy.
Effect of medication adherence on long-term all-cause-mortality and hospitalization for cardiovascular disease in 65,067 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes patients
Authors: Kim Yeon-Yong , Lee Jin-Seok , Kang Hee-Jin , Park Sang Min 
Published: August 2018

AbstractThis study determined the effects of anti-diabetic medication adherence on the long-term all-cause mortality and hospitalization for cerebrovascular disease and myocardial infarction among newly diagnosed patients. The study used retrospective cohort from the National Health Insurance Service. Study participants were 65,076 newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus patients aged ≥40 years. The medication adherence was evaluated from the proportion of days covered (PDC) between 2006 and 2007. Outcome variables were mortality, newly diagnosed cerebrovascular disease (CVD) and myocardial infarction (MI) in 2008–2017. Cox-proportional hazard regression analysis was performed. After adjusting for sex, age, monthly contribution, insurance type, medical institution type, Charlson comorbidity index score, disability, hypertension, and active ingredients of oral hypoglycemic agents, the adjusted hazard ratio (aHR) for all-cause-mortality of the lowest PDC group (<0.20) was 1.45 (95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.36–1.54) as compared to the highest PDC (≥0.8). The aHR for all-cause-mortality associated with PDC levels of 0.60–0.79, 0.40–0.59, and 0.20–0.39 were 1.19, 1.26, and 1.34, respectively (Ptrend < 0.001). Compared to the highest PDC group, diabetic patients with the lowest PDC had elevated risk for CVD (aHR = 1.41; 95% CI = 1.30–1.52;Ptrend < 0.001). Improving anti-diabetic medication adherence among newly diagnosed type 2 diabetes mellitus patients is essential to the reduce risk for cardiovascular disease and long-term all-cause mortality.
Wildfire-driven thunderstorms cause a volcano-like stratospheric injection of smoke
Authors: Peterson David A. , Campbell James R. , Hyer Edward J. , Fromm Michael D. , Kablick George P. , Cossuth Joshua H. , DeLand Matthew T. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractIntense heating by wildfires can generate deep, smoke-infused thunderstorms, known as pyrocumulonimbus (pyroCb), which can release a large quantity of smoke particles above jet aircraft cruising altitudes. Injections of pyroCb smoke into the lower stratosphere have gained increasing attention over the past 15 years due to the rapid proliferation of satellite remote sensing tools. Impacts from volcanic eruptions and other troposphere-to-stratosphere exchange processes on stratospheric radiative and chemical equilibrium are well recognized and monitored. However, the role of pyroCb smoke in the climate system has yet to be acknowledged. Here, we show that the mass of smoke aerosol particles injected into the lower stratosphere from five near-simultaneous intense pyroCbs occurring in western North America on 12 August 2017 was comparable to that of a moderate volcanic eruption, and an order of magnitude larger than previous benchmarks for extreme pyroCb activity. The resulting stratospheric plume encircled the Northern Hemisphere over several months. By characterizing this event, we conclude that pyroCb activity, considered as either large singular events, or a full fire season inventory, significantly perturb the lower stratosphere in a manner comparable with infrequent volcanic intrusions.