bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Kluyveromyces marxianus as a robust synthetic biology platform host
Authors: Cernak Paul , Estrela Raissa , Poddar Snigdha , Skerker Jeffrey M. , Cheng Ya-Fang , Carlson Annika K. , Chen Berling , Glynn Victoria M. , Furlan Monique , Ryan Owen W. , Donnelly Marie K. , Arkin Adam P. , Taylor John W. , Cate Jamie H. D. 
Published: June 2018

ABSTRACTThroughout history, the yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae has played a central role in human society due to its use in food production and more recently as a major industrial and model microorganism, because of the many genetic and genomic tools available to probe its biology. However S. cerevisiae has proven difficult to engineer to expand the carbon sources it can utilize, the products it can make, and the harsh conditions it can tolerate in industrial applications. Other yeasts that could solve many of these problems remain difficult to manipulate genetically. Here, we engineer the thermotolerant yeast Kluyveromyces marxianus to create a new synthetic biology platform. Using CRISPR-Cas9 mediated genome editing, we show that wild isolates of K. marxianus can be made heterothallic for sexual crossing. By breeding two of these mating-type engineered K. marxianus strains, we combined three complex traits– thermotolerance, lipid production, and facile transformation with exogenous DNA-into a single host. The ability to cross K. marxianus strains with relative ease, together with CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing, should enable engineering of K. marxianus isolates with promising lipid production at temperatures far exceeding those of other fungi under development for industrial applications. These results establish K. marxianus as a synthetic biology platform comparable to S. cerevisiae, with naturally more robust traits that hold potential for the industrial production of renewable chemicals.
Microglia-triggered hyperexcitability in the cerebellum depresses animal behaviors
Authors: Yamamoto Masamichi , Kim Minsoo , Imai Hirohiko , Ohtsuki Gen 
Published: June 2018

AbstractClinical studies have suggested that cerebellar dysfunction is involved in various psychiatric disorders, including autism spectrum disorders, dyslexia, and depressive disorders. However, the physiological aspect is less-advanced. Here, we comprehensively investigated the immune-triggered excitability plasticity in the cerebellum. Activated microglia (MG) via exposure to bacterial endotoxin lipopolysaccharide or heat-killed Gram-negative bacteria induced a potentiation of the excitability of Purkinje neurons, which was suppressed by MG-activity inhibitor and MG-depletion. An inflammatory cytokine, tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α) released from MG triggered this plasticity. While our new two-photon FRET ATP-imaging showed an increase in ATP concentration following endotoxin exposure, both TNF-α and ATP secretion facilitated synaptic transmission. Inflammation in the cerebellar anterior vermisin vivoimmobilized animals, and reduced sociability. Such abulia-like behavioral impairments were reverted by TNF-α-inhibition and MG-depletion. Resting-state functional MRI revealed overconnectivity between the inflamed cerebellum and prefrontal neocortical regions, which may underlie the psychomotor depressiveness in animals.
Co-culture of soil biofilm isolates enables the discovery of novel antibiotics
Authors: Gao Chun-Hui , Cai Peng , Li Zhunjie , Wu Yichao , Huang Qiaoyun 
Published: June 2018

AbstractBacterial natural products (NPs) are considered to be a promising source of drug discovery. However, the biosynthesis gene clusters (BGCs) of NP are not often expressed, making it difficult to identify them. Recently, the study of biofilm community showed bacteria may gain competitive advantages by the secretion of antibiotics, implying a possible way to screen antibiotic by evaluating the social behavior of bacteria. In this study, we have described an efficient workflow for novel antibiotic discovery by employing the bacterial social interaction strategy with biofilm cultivation, co-culture, transcriptomic and genomic methods. We showed that a biofilm dominant species, i.e.Pseudomonassp. G7, which was isolated from cultivated soil biofilm community, was highly competitive in four-species biofilm communities, as the synergistic combinations preferred to exclude this strain while the antagonistic combinations did not. Through the analysis of transcriptomic changes in four-species co-culture and the complete genome ofPseudomonassp. G7, we finally discovered two novel non-ribosomal polypeptide synthetic (NRPS) BGCs, whose products were predicted to have seven and six amino acid components, respectively. Furthermore, we provide evidence showing that only whenPseudomonassp. G7 was co-cultivated with at least two or three other bacterial species can these BGC genes be induced, suggesting that the co-culture of the soil biofilm isolates is critical to the discovery of novel antibiotics. As a conclusion, we set a model of applying microbial interaction to the discovery of new antibiotics.
Nucleotides inclusion in pet food: effect of thermic treatment and shelf-life
Authors: Russo N. , Candellone A. , Galaverna D. , Prola L. 
Published: June 2018

AbstractA growing trend of nucleotides supplementation in pets is occurring in recent years with the final goal of reinforcing the immune system and promoting intestinal function. Despite that, data evaluating possible alterations of nucleotides during pet food processing are lacking. The aim of the study was to evaluate the recovery percentage of nucleotides in dry and canned food after processing and storage. Selected dry and canned feed were supplemented with 0.4/100 g dry matter basis of Prosol petMOD™. Recovery percentage in dry food was 75% and 74% at the end of technological process and a 12-month shelf-life, while in canned food it was 43% and 41%, respectively. These results support the hypothesis that N could be included during pet food process but industries have to increase the awareness about possible losses, especially in canned food.
In vitro evaluation of the decontamination effect of cold argon plasma on selected bacteria frequently encountered in small animal bite injuries
Authors: Winter S. , Meyer-Lindenberg A. , Wolf G. , Reese S. , Nolff M.C. 
Published: June 2018

AbstractObjectiveThe beneficial effects of cold argon plasma (CAP) on wound healing and its capacity for bacterial decontamination has recently been documented. However, despite favourable reports from experimental trials and human applications, the first in vivo studies in small animals did not prove any decontamination effect in canine bite wounds.The present study therefore aimed to evaluate the decontamination effect of CAP in different bacteria frequently encountered in canine bite woundsin vitro.MethodsStandard strains ofEscherichia (E.) coli, Staphylococcus (S.) pseudintermedius, S. aureus, Streptococcus (Sc.) canis, Pseudomonas (P.) aeruginosaandPasteurella multocidawere investigated. To evaluate the influence of the bacterial growth phase, each bacterium was incubated in nutrient broth for 3 and 8 hours, respectively, before argon plasma treatment. Three different bacterial concentrations were created per bacterium and growth phase, and each was exposed to cold plasma at a gas flow rate of 5 standard litres/minute of argon for 30 seconds, 1 minute and 2 minutes.ResultsArgon treatment resulted in acceptable decontamination rates (range 98.9-99.9%) in all bacteria species in vitro; however, differences in susceptibility were detected in the different tested bacteria. Treatment time significantly (P<0.05) correlated with the decontamination rate inE. coli,Sc. canisandS. aureus, with an exposure time of 2 minutes being most effective. The initial bacterial concentration significantly (P<0.05) influenced decontamination inPasteurella multocidaandP. aeruginosa,in which treatment time was not as important. The growth phase only influenced decontamination inS. pseudintermedius.ConclusionCAP exerts effective antibacterial activity against the tested bacteria strains in vitro, with species specific effects of treatment time, growth phase and concentration.
Effects of different pretreatments on flavonoids and antioxidant activity of Dryopteris erythrosora leave
Authors: Zhang Xinxin , Wang Xin , Wang Minglong , Cao Jianguo , Xiao Jianbo , Wang Quanxi 
Published: June 2018

AbstractFlavonoids with wide bioactivity for medcine are vital secondary metabolite of plant. The factors influenced on flavonoids had been reported. However, as the key processes lead to metabolite alterations, the influences of the different pretreatments of samples on flavonoids and antioxidant activity of ferns were with little information. Therefore, Dryopteris erythrosora leaves were chosen as the materials for analyzing flavonoids alterations, which would not only provide the significant basic data for flavonoid metabolism of fern, but also for further developing fern resources. The results showed that a) The total flavonoids contents of D. erythrosora leaves with different pretreatments were obviously different. The total flavonoid contents of samples, which was dried in shade firstly and then dried at 75 °C in oven, finally smashed, was the highest (7.6%), but that of samples, which was quickly dried at 75 °C in oven directly after cleaning and then smashed, was the lowest (2.17%); b) Antioxidant activities of D. erythrosora leaves with different pretreatments were variant. Samples, which were dried in shade firstly and then dried at 75 °C in oven, finally smashed and samples which were firstly dried in the sun and then dried at 75 °C in oven, ultimately smashed, both showed stronger antioxidant activity; c) Total twenty-three flavonoids with four different pretreatments were tentatively identified by HPLC-ESI-TOF-MS. In conlusion, a) The influences of different pretreatments on flavonoids and antioxidant activity of D. erythrosora Leaves were obvious. b) The best pretreatment in respect to conserving fern medical application was drying in shade firstly and then drying at 75 °C in oven, finally smashed.
Motor learning decline with age is related to differences in the explicit memory system
Authors: Wolpe Noham , Ingram James N. , Tsvetanov Kamen A. , Henson Richard N. , Kievit Rogier A. , Wolpert Daniel M. , Rowe James B. ,   for Cambridge Centre for Ageing and Neuroscience
Published: June 2018

ABSTRACTThe ability to adapt one’s movements to changes in the environment is fundamental in everyday life, but this ability changes across the lifespan. Although often regarded as an ‘implicit’ process, recent research has also linked motor adaptation with ‘explicit’ learning processes. To understand how these processes contribute to differences in motor adaptation with age, we combined a visuomotor learning paradigm with cognitive tasks that measure implicit and explicit processes, and structural brain imaging. In a large population-based cohort from the Cambridge Centre for Ageing and Neuroscience (n=322, aged 18-89 years) we first confirmed that the degree of adaptation to an angular perturbation of visual feedback declined with age. There were no associations between adaptation and sensory attenuation, which has been previously hypothesised to contribute to implicit motor learning. However, interactions between age and scores on two independent memory tasks showed that explicit memory performance was a progressively stronger determinant of motor learning with age. Similarly, interactions between age and grey matter volume in the medial temporal lobe, amygdala and hippocampus showed that grey matter volume in these regions became a stronger determinant of adaptation in older adults. The convergent behavioural and structural imaging results suggest that age-related differences in the explicit memory system is a contributor to the decline in motor adaptation in older age. These results may reflect the more general compensatory reliance on cognitive strategies to maintain motor performance with age.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTThe central nervous system has a remarkable capacity to learn new motor skills and adapt to new environmental dynamics. This capacity is impaired with age, and in many brain disorders. We find that explicit memory performance and its associated medial temporal brain regions deteriorate with age, but the association between this brain system and individual differences in motor learning becomes stronger in older adults. We propose that these results reflect an increased reliance on cognition in order to maintain adaptive motor skill performance. This difference in learning strategy has implications for interventions to improve motor skills in older adults.
Not scene learning, but attentional processing is superior in team sport athletes and action video game players
Authors: Schmidt Anne , Geringswald Franziska , Sharifian Fariba , Pollmann Stefan 
Published: June 2018

AbstractWe tested if high-level athletes or action video game players have superior context learning skills. Incidental context learning was tested in a spatial contextual cueing paradigm. We found comparable contextual cueing of visual search in repeated displays in high-level amateur handball players, dedicated action video game players and normal controls. In contrast, both handball players and action video game players showed faster search than controls, measured as search time per display item, independent of display repetition. Thus, our data do not indicate superior context learning skills in athletes or action video game players. Rather, both groups showed more efficient visual search in abstract displays that were not related to sport-specific situations.
Light dynamically regulates growth rate and cellular organisation of the Arabidopsis root meristem
Authors: Blein Thomas , Duerr Jasmin , Pasternak Taras , Haser Thomas , Falk Thorsten , Liu Kun , Ditengou Franck A. , Ronneberger Olaf , Palme Klaus 
Published: June 2018

1AbstractLarge-scale methods and robust algorithms are needed for a quantitative analysis of cells status/geometryin situ. It allows the understanding the cellular mechanisms that direct organ growth in response to internal and environmental cues. Using advanced whole-stack imaging in combination with pattern analysis, we have developed a new approach to investigate root zonation under different dark/light conditions. This method is based on the determination of 3 different parameters: cell length, cell volume and cell proliferation on the cell-layer level. This method allowed to build a precise quantitative 3D cell atlas of the Arabidopsis root tip. Using this approach we showed that the meristematic (proliferation) zone length differs between cell layers. Considering only the rapid increase of cortex cell length to determine the meristematic zone overestimates of the proliferation zone for epidermis/cortex and underestimates it for pericycle. The use of cell volume instead of cell length to define the meristematic zone correlates better with cell proliferation zone.
Molecular basis for a novel systemic form of human hereditary apoA-I amyloidosis with vision loss
Authors: Morgado Isabel , Rothschild Pierre-Raphael , Panahi Afra , Aldigier Jean-Claude , Burwash Andrew G. , Das Madhurima , Colombat Magali , Frouget Thierry , Rerolle Jean Philippe , Paraf François , Rioux-Leclercq Nathalie , Goujon Jean-Michel , Beugnet Caroline , Durrbach Antoine , Samuel Didier , Brézin Antoine , Straub John E. , Gursky Olga , Valleix Sophie 
Published: June 2018

AbstractHereditary apolipoprotein A-I (apoA-I) amyloidosis (AApoAI) is a life-threatening incurable genetic disorder whose molecular underpinnings and the full spectrum of afflicted organs are unclear. We report a new form of AApoAI with amyloid deposition in multiple organs, including an unprecedented retinal amyloidosis. Genetic and proteomic analyses identified Glu34Lys apoA-I as the fibrillar protein causing the clinical manifestations. A life-saving combined hepatorenal transplantation was performed for one Glu34Lys carrier. To elucidate structural underpinnings for amyloidogenic properties of Glu34Lys, we generated its recombinant globular domain and compared the conformation and dynamics of its lipid-free form with those of two other naturally occurring apoA-I variants, Phe71Tyr (amyloidogenic) and Leu159Arg (non-amyloidogenic). All variants showed reduced stability and altered aromatic residue packing. Molecular dynamics simulations revealed local helical unfolding and suggested that transient opening of Trp72 induced mutation-dependent structural perturbations in a sensitive region, including the major amyloid hotspot residues 14-22. We posit that a shift from the “closed” to an “open” orientation of Trp72 modulates structural protection of amyloid hotspots, suggesting a previously unknown early step in protein misfolding.
Network Structure and Social Complexity in Primates
Authors: Dunbar R.I.M. 
Published: June 2018

AbstractPrimates use social grooming to create and maintain coalitions. Because of this, individuals focus their time on a small number of individuals, and this means that in many cases group networks are not fully connected. I use data on primate grooming networks to show that three different social grades can be differentiated in terms of network structuring. These grades seem to arise from a glass ceiling imposed on group size by limits on the time available for social grooming. It seems that certain genera have managed to circumvent this constraint by a phase shift in the behavioural and cognitive mechanisms that underpin social relationships in a way that allows a form of multilevel sociality based on weak and strong ties not unlike those found in human social networks.
Small RNAs from the plant pathogenic fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum highlight candidate host target genes associated with quantitative disease resistance
Authors: Derbyshire Mark C , Mbengue Malick , Barascud Marielle , Navaud Olivier , Raffaele Sylvain 
Published: June 2018

ABSTRACTPlant pathogenic fungi secrete effector proteins and secondary metabolites to cause disease. Additionally, some produce small RNAs (sRNAs) that silence transcripts of host immunity genes through RNA interference. The fungus Sclerotinia sclerotiorum infects over 600 plant species, but little is known about its molecular interactions with its hosts. In particular, the role of sRNAs in S. sclerotiorum pathogenicity has not been determined. By sequencing sRNAs in vitro and during infection of two host species, we found that S. sclerotiorum produces at least 374 highly abundant sRNAs. These sRNAs mostly originated from polymorphic repeat-rich genomic regions. Predicted gene targets of these sRNAs, from 10 different host species, were enriched for immunity-related functional domains. Predicted A. thaliana gene targets of S. sclerotiorum sRNAs were significantly more down-regulated during infection than other genes. A. thaliana gene targets were also more likely to contain single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) associated with quantitative disease resistance. In conclusion, sRNAs produced by S. sclerotiorum are likely capable of silencing immunity components in multiple hosts. Prediction of fungal sRNA targets in host plant genomes can be combined with other global approaches, such as genome wide association studies and transcriptomics, to assist identification of plant genes involved in disease resistance.
Universality of the developmental origins of diverse functional maps in the visual cortex
Authors: Song Min , Jang Jaeson , Kim Gwangsu , Paik Se-Bum 
Published: June 2018

AbstractThe primary visual cortex of higher mammals is organized into diverse functional maps of correlated topography, implying an efficient tiling of functional domains. However, no fundamental principle is available on how systematic organization of the maps could develop initially in various species. Here, we propose that diverse functional maps are seeded from a common framework of retinal afferents, and that this universality of development explains the observed topographical correlations among the maps. From the simulation of retinal ganglion cell mosaics, we successfully developed all four cortical maps observed so far. We validated our model prediction of inter-map relationships from analysis of map data in evolutionarily divergent mammalian species. Our key prediction, the hexagonal periodicity of every functional map, was validated from analysis of the map data in diverse mammalian species. Our results provide new insight into a universal mechanism for the development and evolution of the visual cortex.
Microbial interkingdom interactions in roots promote Arabidopsis survival
Authors: Durán Paloma , Thiergart Thorsten , Garrido-Oter Ruben , Agler Matthew , Kemen Eric , Schulze-Lefert Paul , Hacquard Stéphane 
Published: June 2018

SummaryRoots of healthy plants are inhabited by soil-derived bacteria, fungi, and oomycetes that have evolved independently in distinct kingdoms of life. How these microorganisms interact and to what extent those interactions affect plant health are poorly understood. We examined root-associated microbial communities from three Arabidopsis thaliana populations and detected mostly negative correlations between bacteria and filamentous microbial eukaryotes. We established microbial culture collections for reconstitution experiments using germ-free A. thaliana. In plants inoculated with mono- or multi-kingdom synthetic microbial consortia, we observed a profound impact of the bacterial root microbiota on fungal and oomycetal community structure and diversity. We demonstrate that the bacterial microbiota is essential for plant survival and protection against root-derived filamentous eukaryotes. Deconvolution of 2,862 binary bacterial-fungal interactions ex situ, combined with community perturbation experiments in planta, indicate that biocontrol activity of bacterial root commensals is a redundant trait that maintains microbial interkingdom balance for plant health.
Disease transmission mode has little effect on simulated canine rabies elimination
Authors: Ward Jessica K. R. , Smith Graham C. , Massei Giovanna 
Published: June 2018

AbstractDisease transmission in animal populations can be affected by density or by frequency of contacts between individuals, although many models assume linear density-dependent transmission. We used rabies and free-roaming dogs (Canis familiaris) in two Nepalese cities as a model system to explore the impact of linear and non-linear density-dependent disease transmission on disease elimination achieved through rabies vaccination or vaccination and sterilisation. Strongly non-linear transmission approximated realistic frequency dependent transmission. Free roaming dogs, abundant in many parts of the developing world, are responsible for most cases of rabies transmission to humans. Most models of rabies transmission assume that the disease transmission rate is linearly density-dependent, although a recent empirical study did not find evidence to support this assumption. Rabies vaccination, culling and dog sterilisation are employed to eliminate rabies or to reduce the numbers of human cases. We created a continuous-time deterministic compartmental model to describe rabies epidemiology within a dog population and to analyse the two modes of transmission. Under each transmission mode, we investigated the efficacy of dog vaccination and fertility control to eliminate rabies. To investigate the effect of dog density on disease control efforts, models were run for cities with high and low dog population densities using data from the Nepalese cities. The results showed that, at low population density, the amount of control effort required for disease elimination did not differ substantially between different transmission modes. At high population density, the effort required to achieve disease elimination was only higher for linear density-dependent than for non-linear transmission due to the exact value of the transmission rate, beta. The model suggests that although disease transmission mode may alter the impact of control on rabies elimination, this impact is relatively small and probably not relevant to disease management.