bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Exploring the effect of soil management intensity on taxonomic and functional diversity of ants in Mediterranean olive groves
Authors: Hevia Violeta , Ortega Jorge , Azcárate Francisco M. , López César A. , González José A. 
Published: October 2018

Abstract
Agricultural intensification is one of the major drivers behind biodiversity loss in Mediterranean agroecosystems. The intensification of olive groves as monoculture in large areas of the southern Spain has had important effects on biodiversity and ecological processes.
In the present study, we explore the olive grove soil management practices effects on taxonomic and functional diversity of ants along a gradient of soil management intensity. We predict that both species richness and functional diversity decrease with an increasing intensification of olive grove soil management. We used pitfall traps to sample ants in 24 olive groves subject to different soil management regimes in southern Spain, and then compared ant species richness and functional diversity (FD).
Nonploughed organic farms showed higher species richness. Ploughing was observed to be the soil management practice with the greatest negative effect on ant species richness.
Three functional traits significantly responded to soil management intensity, with tibia length and head width showing a higher FD in organic farms and diet showing a lower FD in ploughed farms.
The results of the present study highlight the negative effects of olive grove ploughing on ant biodiversity and provide novel evidence of the nonploughing organic farming role with respect to maintaining higher levels of ant functional diversity.
Relative skeletal distribution of proliferating marrow in the adult dog determined using 3′‐deoxy‐3′‐[18F]fluorothymidine
Authors: Rowe Joshua A. , Morandi Federica , Osborne Dustin R. , Wall Jonathan S. , Kennel Stephen J. , Reed Robert B. , LeBlanc Amy K. 
Published: October 2018

Abstract3′‐deoxy‐3′‐[18F]fluorothymidine (18FLT) is a radiopharmaceutical tracer used with positron emission tomography (PET), often in combination with computed tomography (CT), to image DNA synthesis, and thus, cellular proliferation. Characteristic accumulation of the tracer within haematopoietic bone marrow provides a noninvasive means to assess marrow activity and distribution throughout the living animal. The present study utilizes three‐dimensional analysis of 18FLT‐PET/CT scans to quantify the relative skeletal distribution of active marrow by anatomic site in the dog. Scans were performed on six healthy, adult (3–6 years of age), mixed‐breed dogs using a commercially available PET/CT scanner consisting of a 64‐slice helical CT scanner combined with an integrated four ring, high‐resolution LSO PET scanner. Regions of interest encompassing 11 separate skeletal regions (skull, cervical vertebral column, thoracic vertebral column, lumbar vertebral column, sacrum, ribs, sternum, scapulae, proximal humeri, ossa coxarum, and proximal femora) were manually drawn based on CT images and thresholded by standardized uptake value to delineate bone marrow activity. Activity within each skeletal region was then divided by the total skeletal activity to derive the per cent of overall marrow activity within an individual site. The majority of proliferative marrow was located within the vertebral column. Of the sites traditionally accessed clinically for marrow sampling, the proximal humerus contained the largest percentage, followed by the ossa coxarum, proximal femur, and sternum, respectively. This information may be used to guide selection of traditional marrow sampling sites as well as inform efforts to spare important sites of haematopoiesis in radiation therapy planning.
Comparing biologicals and small molecule drug therapies for chronic respiratory diseases: An EAACI Taskforce on Immunopharmacology position paper
Authors: Roth‐Walter Franziska , Adcock Ian M. , Benito‐Villalvilla Cristina , Bianchini Rodolfo , Bjermer Leif , Caramori Gaetano , Cari Luigi , Chung Kian Fan , Diamant Zuzana , Eguiluz‐Gracia Ibon , Knol Edward F. , Kolios Antonios G. A. , Levi‐Schaffer Francesca , Nocentini Giuseppe , Palomares Oscar , Puzzovio Pier Giorgio , Redegeld Frank A. , van Esch Betty C. A. M. , Stellato Cristiana 
Published: October 2018

AbstractChronic airway diseases such as asthma and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), together with their comorbidities, bear a significant burden on public health. Increased appreciation of molecular networks underlying inflammatory airway disease needs to be translated into new therapies for distinct phenotypes not controlled by current treatment regimens. On the other hand, development of new safe and effective therapies for such respiratory diseases is an arduous and expensive process. Antibody‐based (biological) therapies are successful in treating certain respiratory conditions not controlled by standard therapies such as severe allergic and refractory eosinophilic severe asthma, while in other inflammatory respiratory diseases, such as COPD, biologicals are having a more limited impact. Small molecule drug (SMD)‐based therapies represent an active field in pharmaceutical research and development. SMDs expand biologicals’ therapeutic targets by reaching the intracellular compartment by delivery as either an oral or topically based formulation, offering both convenience and lower costs. Aim of this review was to compare and contrast the distinct pharmacological properties and clinical applications of SMDs‐ and antibody‐based treatment strategies, their limitations and challenges, in order to highlight how they should be integrated for their optimal utilization and to fill the critical gaps in current treatment for these chronic inflammatory respiratory diseases.
Volar locking plating versus percutaneous Kirschner wires for distal radius fractures in an adult population: a meta‐analysis
Authors: Youlden Daniel J. , Sundaraj Keran , Smithers Chris 
Published: October 2018

BackgroundThis paper compares volar locking plates (VLPs) and percutaneous Kirschner wire (K‐wire) fixation for distal radius fractures in an adult population up to and beyond 12 months. The aim of this review is to compare functional and radiological outcomes along with complication rates. A meta‐analysis was performed to investigate this.MethodsA systematic review and meta‐analysis was performed using the PRISMA guidelines. A search of major databases (MEDLINE, EMBASE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and CINAHL) was performed up to November 2017. Prospective and retrospective studies were included. Studies were assessed for quality using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. Meta‐analysis was performed using the ‘metafor’ package with R.ResultsA total of 14 studies (five randomized controlled trials and nine comparative studies) (n = 1535) were identified. Disabilities of the Arm, Shoulder and Hand (DASH) scores were statistically significant for VLP at all follow‐up intervals up to and beyond 12 months. Wrist movements were statistically significant for VLP at 6 weeks. Grip strength was significantly different favouring VLP at 12 months and final follow‐up. VLP provided better restoration of ulnar variance at 6 weeks, but overall radiological outcomes were similar. These results were not clinically significant. K‐wires were associated with an 18% higher risk of complication but the reoperation rate was higher for VLP (4.6% versus 3.2%).ConclusionsThis study demonstrates similar clinical functional and radiological outcomes for VLP and K‐wire fixation in the short and intermediate term. There is a higher rate of overall complication with K‐wires, but the increased risk of reoperation must be considered when planning surgical fixation of these fractures.
Humidity a potential risk factor for prosthetic joint infection in a tropical Australian hospital
Authors: Armit Drew , Vickers Mark , Parr Adam , Van Rosendal Simon , Trott Nicholas , Gunasena Rivindi , Parkinson Benjamin 
Published: October 2018

BackgroundMany pathogens of importance, including the staphylococcal species of concern in orthopaedics, demonstrate seasonal variations influenced by environmental factors. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of humidity as a risk factor for deep prosthetic joint infection following total knee arthroplasty (TKA) in a tropical Australian hospital.MethodsA retrospective cohort study of all TKAs performed over a 13‐year period was conducted at the author's institution. Univariate analysis was used to individually assess for a range of risk factors including humidity >60% and apparent temperature >30°C (86°F). Odds ratios (ORs) were reported. P‐values <0.25 were considered as potentially important risk factors and P‐values <0.05 were considered statistically significant.ResultsA total of 1058 primary TKAs were performed with a deep prosthetic joint infection incidence of 2.7%. Four potential risk factors were identified with P‐values <0.25: (i) humidity >60% (OR 1.4; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.68–3.04; P = 0.221); (ii) apparent temperature >30°C (86°F) (OR 2.4; 95% CI 0.56–10.1; P = 0.174); (iii) male gender (OR 2.2; 95% CI 1.02–4.81; P = 0.057); and (iv) American Society of Anesthesiologists score of III or IV (OR 2.1; 95% CI 1.00–4.49; P = 0.064).ConclusionHumidity and apparent temperature may be potentially important risk factors for infection following TKA.
Conophylline suppresses pancreatic cancer desmoplasia and cancer‐promoting cytokines produced by cancer‐associated fibroblasts
Authors: Ishii Norihiro , Araki Kenichiro , Yokobori Takehiko , Hagiwara Kei , Gantumur Dorgormaa , Yamanaka Takahiro , Handa Tadashi , Tsukagoshi Mariko , Igarashi Takamichi , Watanabe Akira , Kubo Norio , Harimoto Norifumi , Masamune Atsushi , Umezawa Kazuo , Kuwano Hiroyuki , Shirabe Ken 
Published: October 2018

Despite recent advances in cancer treatment, pancreatic cancer is a highly malignant tumor type with a dismal prognosis and it is characterized by dense desmoplasia in the cancer tissue. Cancer‐associated fibroblasts (CAF) are responsible for this fibrotic stroma and promote cancer progression. We previously reported that a novel natural compound conophylline (CnP) extracted from the leaves of a tropical plant reduced liver and pancreatic fibrosis by suppression of stellate cells. However, there have been no studies to investigate the effects of CnP on CAF, which is the aim of this work. Here, we showed that CAF stimulated indicators of pancreatic cancer malignancy, such as proliferation, invasiveness, and chemoresistance. We also showed that CnP suppressed CAF activity and proliferation, and inhibited the stimulating effects of CAF on pancreatic cancer cells. Moreover, CnP strongly decreased the various cytokines involved in cancer progression, such as interleukin (IL)‐6, IL‐8, C‐C motif chemokine ligand 2 (CCL2), and C‐X‐C motif chemokine ligand 12 (CXCL12), secreted by CAF. In vivo, CAF promoted tumor proliferation and desmoplastic formation in a mouse xenograft model, CnP reduced desmoplasia of tumors composed of pancreatic cancer cells + CAF, and combination therapy of CnP with gemcitabine remarkably inhibited tumor proliferation. Our findings suggest that CnP is a promising therapeutic strategy of combination therapy with anticancer drugs to overcome refractory pancreatic cancers.
Design, synthesis and antitrypanosomatid activities of 3,5‐diaryl‐isoxazole analogues based on neolignans veraguensin, grandisin and machilin G
Authors: Trefzger Ozildéia S. , das Neves Amarith R. , Barbosa Natália V. , Carvalho Diego B. , Pereira Indiara C. , Perdomo Renata T. , Matos Maria F. C. , Yoshida Nidia C. , Kato Massuo J. , de Albuquerque Sérgio , Arruda Carla C. P. , Baroni Adriano C. M. 
Published: October 2018

AbstractUsing bioisosterism as a medicinal chemistry tool, 16 3,5‐diaryl‐isoxazole analogues of the tetrahydrofuran neolignans veraguensin, grandisin and machilin G were synthesized via 1,3‐dipolar cycloaddition reactions, with yields from 43% to 90%. Antitrypanosomatid activities were evaluated against Trypanosoma cruzi, Leishmania (L.) amazonensis and Leishmania (V.) braziliensis. All compounds were selective for the Leishmania genus and inactive against T. cruzi. Isoxazole analogues showed a standard activity on both promastigotes of L. amazonensis and L. braziliensis. The most active compounds were 15, 16 and 19 with IC50 values of 2.0, 3.3 and 9.5 μM against L. amazonensis and IC50 values of 1.2, 2.1 and 6.4 μM on L. braziliensis, respectively. All compounds were noncytotoxic, showing lower cytotoxicity (>250 μM) than pentamidine (78.9 μM). Regarding the structure–activity relationship (SAR), the methylenedioxy group was essential to antileishmanial activity against promastigotes. Replacement of the tetrahydrofuran nucleus by an isoxazole core improved the antileishmanial activity.
Combined administration of anti‐IL‐13 and anti‐IL‐17A at individually sub‐therapeutic doses limits asthma‐like symptoms in a mouse model of Th2/Th17 high asthma
Authors: Kim Dasom , McAlees Jaclyn W. , Bischoff Lindsay J. , Kaur Davinder , Houshel Lauren K. , Gray Jerilyn , Hargis Julie , Davis Xenia , Dudas Paul L. , Deshmukh Hitesh , Lewkowich Ian P. 
Published: October 2018

SummaryBackgroundRecent studies have demonstrated that Th2 responses have the ability to antagonize Th17 responses. In mouse models of allergic asthma, blockade of Th2‐effector cytokines results in elaboration of Th17 responses and associated increases in pulmonary neutrophilia. While these can be controlled by simultaneous blockade of Th17‐associated effector cytokines, clinical trials of anti‐IL‐17/IL‐17RA blocking therapies have demonstrated increased of risk of bacterial and fungal infections. Identification of minimally effective doses of cytokine‐blocking therapies with the goal of reducing the potential emergence of infection‐related complications is a translationally relevant goal.ObjectiveIn the current report, we examine whether combined blockade of IL‐13 and IL‐17A, at individually sub‐therapeutic levels, can limit the development of allergic asthma while sparing expression of IL‐17A‐associated anti‐microbial effectors.MethodsHouse dust mite was given intratracheally to A/J mice. Anti‐IL‐13 and anti‐IL‐17A antibodies were administered individually, or concomitantly at sub‐therapeutic doses. Airway hyper‐reactivity, lung inflammation, magnitude of Th2‐ and Th17‐associated cytokine production and expression of IL‐13‐ and IL‐17A‐induced genes in the lungs was assessed.ResultsInitial dosing studies identified sub‐therapeutic levels of IL‐13 and IL‐17A blocking mAbs that have a limited effect on asthma parameters and do not impair responses to microbial products or infection. Subsequent studies demonstrated that combined sub‐therapeutic dosing with IL‐13 and IL‐17A blocking mAbs resulted in significant improvement in airway hyperresponsiveness (AHR) and expression of IL‐13‐induced gene expression. Importantly, these doses neither exacerbated nor inhibited production of Th17‐associated cytokines, or IL‐17A‐associated gene expression.ConclusionThis study suggests that combining blockade of individual Th2 and Th17 effector cytokines, even at individually sub‐therapeutic levels, may be sufficient to limit disease development while preserving important anti‐microbial pathways. Such a strategy may therefore have reduced potential for adverse events associated with blockade of these pathways.
A 5α‐reductase (SRD5A2) polymorphism is associated with serum testosterone and sex hormone–binding globulin in men, while aromatase (CYP19A1) polymorphisms are associated with oestradiol and luteinizing hormone reciprocally
Authors: Yeap Bu B. , Knuiman Matthew W. , Handelsman David J. , Ho Ken K. Y. , Hui Jennie , Divitini Mark L. , Arscott Gillian M. , McQuillan Brendan , Hung Joseph , Beilby John P. 
Published: October 2018

SummaryContextPituitary luteinizing hormone (LH) stimulates testicular production of testosterone (T) which is metabolized to dihydrotestosterone (DHT) by 5α‐reductase and to oestradiol (E2) by aromatase. How the activity of population variants in these enzymes impacts on gonadal function is unclear. We examined whether polymorphisms in 5α‐reductase (SRD5A2) and aromatase (CYP19A1) genes predict circulating sex hormone concentrations.DesignCross‐sectional analysis of 1865 community‐dwelling men aged 50.4 ± 16.8 years.MeasurementsEarly morning sera assayed for T, DHT and E2 (mass spectrometry), and SHBG and LH (immunoassay). Two SRD5A2 and eleven CYP19A1 polymorphisms were analysed by PCR. Regression models were adjusted for age and cardiometabolic risk factors.ResultsSRD5A2 polymorphism rs9282858 GA vs. GG was associated with higher serum T (+1.5 nmol/L, P < 0.001) and higher SHBG (+3.3 nmol/L, P = 0.001). CYP19A1 polymorphisms were associated with higher serum E2 and lower LH in reciprocal fashion, from which the two‐copy haplotype rs10046 = T/rs2899470 = G/rs11575899 = I/rs700518 = G/rs17703883 = T was associated with higher E2 (63.4 vs. 56.5 pmol/L, P = 0.001) and lower LH (3.9 vs. 4.5 IU/L, P = 0.001) compared to null copies. Conversely, rs10046 = C/rs2899470 = T/rs11575899 = D/rs700518 = A/rs17703883 = C was associated with lower E2 (51.8 vs. 62.0 pmol/L, P = 0.001) and higher LH (5.7 vs. 3.9 IU/L, P < 0.001). These haplotypes were associated primarily with differences in E2 in men <65 years and LH in men ≥65 years.ConclusionsA 5α‐reductase polymorphism predicts circulating T and SHBG, while aromatase polymorphisms predict E2 and LH in reciprocal fashion. Age and aromatase polymorphisms interact to affect E2 and LH. How these functional polymorphisms impact on male reproductive and general health outcomes requires further study.
Semantic Reconstruction: Reconstruction of Semantically Segmented 3D Meshes via Volumetric Semantic Fusion
Authors: Jeon Junho , Jung Jinwoong , Kim Jungeon , Lee Seungyong 
Published: October 2018

AbstractSemantic segmentation partitions a given image or 3D model of a scene into semantically meaning parts and assigns predetermined labels to the parts. With well‐established datasets, deep networks have been successfully used for semantic segmentation of RGB and RGB‐D images. On the other hand, due to the lack of annotated large‐scale 3D datasets, semantic segmentation for 3D scenes has not yet been much addressed with deep learning. In this paper, we present a novel framework for generating semantically segmented triangular meshes of reconstructed 3D indoor scenes using volumetric semantic fusion in the reconstruction process. Our method integrates the results of CNN‐based 2D semantic segmentation that is applied to the RGB‐D stream used for dense surface reconstruction. To reduce the artifacts from noise and uncertainty of single‐view semantic segmentation, we introduce adaptive integration for the volumetric semantic fusion and CRF‐based semantic label regularization. With these methods, our framework can easily generate a high‐quality triangular mesh of the reconstructed 3D scene with dense (i.e., per‐vertex) semantic labels. Extensive experiments demonstrate that our semantic segmentation results of 3D scenes achieves the state‐of‐the‐art performance compared to the previous voxel‐based and point cloud‐based methods.
Light Optimization for Detail Highlighting
Authors: Gkaravelis Anastasios , Papaioannou Georgios 
Published: October 2018

AbstractIn this paper we propose an effective technique for the automatic arrangement of spot lights and other luminaires on or near user‐provided arbitrary mounting surfaces in order to highlight the geometric details of complex objects. Since potential applications include the lighting design for exhibitions and similar installations, the method takes into account obstructing geometry and potential occlusion from visitors and other non‐permanent blocking geometry. Our technique generates the most appropriate position and orientation for light sources based on a local contrast maximization near salient geometric features and a clustering mechanism, producing consistent and view‐independent results, with minimal user intervention. We validate our method with realistic test cases including multiple and disjoint exhibits as well as high occlusion scenarios.
Fast Global Illumination with Discrete Stochastic Microfacets Using a Filterable Model
Authors: Wang Beibei , Wang Lu , Holzschuch Nicolas 
Published: October 2018

AbstractMany real‐life materials have a sparkling appearance, whether by design or by nature. Examples include metallic paints, sparkling varnish but also snow. These sparkles correspond to small, isolated, shiny particles reflecting light in a specific direction, on the surface or embedded inside the material. The particles responsible for these sparkles are usually small and discontinuous. These characteristics make it difficult to integrate them efficiently in a standard rendering pipeline, especially for indirect illumination. Existing approaches use a 4‐dimensional hierarchy, searching for light‐reflecting particles simultaneously in space and direction. The approach is accurate, but still expensive. In this paper, we show that this 4‐dimensional search can be approximated using separate 2‐dimensional steps. This approximation allows fast integration of glint contributions for large footprints, reducing the extra cost associated with glints be an order of magnitude.
Controlling Stroke Size in Fast Style Transfer with Recurrent Convolutional Neural Network
Authors: Yang Lingchen , Yang Lumin , Zhao Mingbo , Zheng Youyi 
Published: October 2018

AbstractControlling stroke size in Fast Style Transfer remains a difficult task. So far, only a few attempts have been made towards it, and they still exhibit several deficiencies regarding efficiency, flexibility, and diversity. In this paper, we aim to tackle these problems and propose a recurrent convolutional neural subnetwork, which we call recurrent stroke‐pyramid, to control the stroke size in Fast Style Transfer. Compared to the state‐of‐the‐art methods, our method not only achieves competitive results with much fewer parameters but provides more flexibility and efficiency for generalizing to unseen larger stroke size and being able to produce a wide range of stroke sizes with only one residual unit. We further embed the recurrent stroke‐pyramid into the Multi‐Styles and the Arbitrary‐Style models, achieving both style and stroke‐size control in an entirely feed‐forward manner with two novel run‐time control strategies.
Reformulating Hyperelastic Materials with Peridynamic Modeling
Authors: Xu Liyou , He Xiaowei , Chen Wei , Li Sheng , Wang Guoping 
Published: October 2018

AbstractPeridynamics is a formulation of the classical elastic theory that is targeted at simulating deformable objects with discontinuities, especially fractures. Till now, there are few studies that have been focused on how to model general hyperelastic materials with peridynamics. In this paper, we target at proposing a general strain energy function of hyperelastic materials for peridynamics. To get an intuitive model that can be easily controlled, we formulate the strain energy density function as a function parameterized by the dilatation and bond stretches, which can be decomposed into multiple one‐dimensional functions independently. To account for nonlinear material behaviors, we also propose a set of nonlinear basis functions to help design a nonlinear strain energy function more easily. For an anisotropic material, we additionally introduce an anisotropic kernel to control the elastic behavior for each bond independently. Experiments show that our model is flexible enough to approximately regenerate various hyperelastic materials in classical elastic theory, including St. Venant‐Kirchhoff and Neo‐Hookean materials.