bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Motor neurons from ALS patients with mutations in C9ORF72 and SOD1 exhibit distinct transcriptional landscapes
Authors: Wong Ching-On , Venkatachalam Kartik 
Published: May 2019

AbstractAmyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) is a progressive motor neuron disease that culminates in paralysis and death. Here, we present our analyses of publicly available multiOMIC data sets generated using motor neurons from ALS patients and control cohorts. Functional annotation of differentially expressed genes in induced pluripotent stem cell (iPSC)-derived motor neurons generated from patients with mutations in C9ORF72 (C9-ALS) suggests elevated expression of genes that pertain to extracellular matrix (ECM) and cell adhesion, inflammation and TGFβ targets. On the other end of the continuum, we detected diminished expression of genes repressed by quiescence-promoting E2F4/DREAM complex. Proteins whose abundance was significantly altered in C9-ALS neurons faithfully recapitulated the transcriptional aberrations. Importantly, patterns of gene expression in spinal motor neurons dissected from C9-ALS or sporadic ALS patients were highly concordant with each other and with the C9-ALS iPSC neurons. In contrast, motor neurons from patients with mutations in SOD1 exhibited dramatically different signatures. Elevated expression of gene sets such as ECM and cell adhesion genes occurs in C9 and sporadic ALS but not SOD1-ALS. These analyses indicate that despite the similarities in outward manifestations, transcriptional and proteomic signatures in ALS motor neurons can vary significantly depending on the identity of the causal mutations.
Mesenchymal stromal cells in bone marrow express adiponectin and are efficiently targeted by an adiponectin promoter-driven Cre transgene
Authors: Mukohira Hisa , Hara Takahiro , Abe Shinya , Tani-ichi Shizue , Sehara-Fujisawa Atsuko , Nagasawa Takashi , Tobe Kazuyuki , Ikuta Koichi 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
Stromal cells in bone marrow (BM) constitute a specific microenvironment supporting the development and maintenance of hematopoietic cells. Adiponectin is a cytokine secreted by adipocytes. Besides its anti-diabetic and anti-atherogenic roles, adiponectin reportedly regulates the development and function of hematopoietic cells in BM. However, it remains unclear whether mesenchymal stromal cells in BM express adiponectin. Here, we show that PDGFRβ+VCAM-1+ stromal cells express adiponectin. Lineage tracing revealed that a majority of PDGFRβ+VCAM-1+ cells were targeted by an adiponectin promoter-driven Cre (Adipoq-Cre) transgene. Additionally, the Adipoq-Cre transgene targets a minority of osteoblasts at a younger age but larger populations are targeted at an older age. Furthermore, the Adipoq-Cre transgene targets almost all CXCL12-abundant reticular (CAR) cells and most of the stromal cells targeted by the Adipoq-Cre transgene are CAR cells. Finally, deletion of interleukin-7 (IL-7) by the Adipoq-Cre transgene resulted in severe impairment of B lymphopoiesis in BM. These results demonstrate that PDGFRβ+VCAM-1+ stromal cells in BM express adiponectin and are targeted by the Adipoq-Cre transgene, suggesting a broader specificity of the Adipoq-Cre transgene.
ISAba1-dependent overexpression of eptA in clinical strains of Acinetobacter baumannii resistant to colistin
Authors: Potron Anaïs , Vuillemenot Jean-Baptiste , Puja Hélène , Triponney Pauline , Bour Maxime , Valot Benoit , Amara Marlène , Cavalié Laurent , Bernard Christine , Parmeland Laurence , Reibel Florence , Larrouy-Maumus Gerald , Dortet Laurent , Bonnin Rémy A , Plésiat Patrick 
Published: May 2019

AbstractBackgroundColistin resistance in Acinetobacter baumannii often results from mutational activation of the two-component system PmrAB and subsequent addition of phospho-ethanolamine (pEtN) to lipooligosaccharide by up-regulated pEtN transferase PmrC.ObjectivesTo characterize mechanisms of colistin resistance independent of PmrCAB in A. baumannii.MethodsTwenty-seven colistin-resistant A. baumannii were collected from 2012 to 2018. Analysis of operon pmrCAB was performed by PCR and sequencing. Seven strains were investigated further by WGS and whole-genome MLST (wgMLST).ResultsSeven out of the 27 selected isolates were found to overexpress eptA, a gene homologous to pmrC, likely as a consequence of upstream insertion of an ISAba1 element. Insertion sites of ISAba1 were mapped 13, 18 and 156 bp ahead of the start codon of eptA in five strains, one strain and one strain, respectively. The finding that the isolates did not cluster together when compared by wgMLST analysis supports the notion that distinct insertion events occurred in close, but different, genetic backgrounds.ConclusionsActivation of eptA and subsequent addition of pEtN to the cell surface represents a novel mechanism of resistance to colistin in A. baumannii.
Designing and executing a functional exercise to test a novel informatics tool for mass casualty triage
Authors: Donevant Sara B , Svendsen Erik R , Richter Jane V , Tavakoli Abbas S , Craig Jean B r , Boltin Nicholas D , Valafar Homayoun , DiNardi Salvatore Robert , Culley Joan M 
Published: May 2019

AbstractObjectiveThe testing of informatics tools designed for use during mass casualty incidents presents a unique problem as there is no readily available population of victims or identical exposure setting. The purpose of this article is to describe the process of designing, planning, and executing a functional exercise to accomplish the research objective of validating an informatics tool specifically designed to identify and triage victims of irritant gas syndrome agents.Materials and MethodsDuring a 3-year time frame, the research team and partners developed the Emergency Department Informatics Computational Tool and planned a functional exercise to test it using medical records data from 298 patients seen in 1 emergency department following a chlorine gas exposure in 2005.ResultsThe research team learned valuable lessons throughout the planning process that will assist future researchers with developing a functional exercise to test informatics tools. Key considerations for a functional exercise include contributors, venue, and information technology needs (ie, hardware, software, and data collection methods).DiscussionDue to the nature of mass casualty incidents, testing informatics tools and technology for these incidents is challenging. Previous studies have shown a functional exercise as a viable option to test informatics tools developed for use during mass casualty incidents.ConclusionUtilizing a functional exercise to test new mass casualty management technology and informatics tools involves a painstaking and complex planning process; however, it does allow researchers to address issues inherent in studying informatics tools for mas casualty incidents.
Spatial ecology of river otters in a human-modified landscape
Authors: Hanrahan Alexander T , Rutter Andrew U , Nielsen Clayton K , Schauber Eric M 
Published: May 2019

AbstractRiver otter populations have expanded across much of their historical range, including in Illinois where they were reintroduced from 1994 to 1997. These expanding populations are recolonizing a wide range of landscapes with different levels of human modification, which could influence how river otters use space in relation to habitat characteristics and each other. Our objectives were to quantify 1) home ranges and core areas, 2) sociality, and 3) habitat selection across all available habitats and within home ranges (second- and third-order selection, respectively) of 22 radiomarked river otters (Lontra canadensis) in southern Illinois during 2014–2016. Our study area contained a diverse mix of forest, agriculture, aquatic and wetland habitats, and a range of urban development intensity. We examined sociality using the frequency at which individuals were located < 25 m from a conspecific and compared home-range overlap among individuals based on sex. Habitat selection at the second and third order was analyzed using an eigen-analysis of selection ratios based on landcover categories. Similar to other studies, male river otters had > 2-fold larger home ranges and core areas than females in southern Illinois. Several lines of evidence indicated males were more social than females. Males were located close to a conspecific more frequently than were females, and overlap of home ranges and core areas among males was greater than it was among females or between sexes. As observed in other landscapes, river otters strongly selected herbaceous and wooded wetlands at both second- and third-order scales. River otters selected terrestrial cover types with vegetative cover potentially due to shelter or prey availability. Forests were selected over crop fields at the third-order scale, which was consistent with studies using sign surveys. River otters in our study had home ranges containing 0–40% developed land cover, but we found no evidence that otters living in more developed areas used their home ranges more selectively. River otters in this landscape were plastic in regard to social behavior and habitat selection, highlighting their generalist nature and providing insight into their ability to successfully recolonize areas of the Midwest with sufficient vegetative cover and aquatic habitat, among other factors.
Measures of the Degree of Departure from Ignorable Sample Selection
Authors: Little Roderick J A , West Brady T , Boonstra Philip S , Hu Jingwei 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
With the current focus of survey researchers on “big data” that are not selected by probability sampling, measures of the degree of potential sampling bias arising from this nonrandom selection are sorely needed. Existing indices of this degree of departure from probability sampling, like the R-indicator, are based on functions of the propensity of inclusion in the sample, estimated by modeling the inclusion probability as a function of auxiliary variables. These methods are agnostic about the relationship between the inclusion probability and survey outcomes, which is a crucial feature of the problem. We propose a simple index of degree of departure from ignorable sample selection that corrects this deficiency, which we call the standardized measure of unadjusted bias (SMUB). The index is based on normal pattern-mixture models for nonresponse applied to this sample selection problem and is grounded in the model-based framework of nonignorable selection first proposed in the context of nonresponse by Don Rubin in 1976. The index depends on an inestimable parameter that measures the deviation from selection at random, which ranges between the values zero and one. We propose the use of a central value of this parameter, 0.5, for computing a point index, and computing the values of SMUB at zero and one to provide a range of the index in a sensitivity analysis. We also provide a fully Bayesian approach for computing credible intervals for the SMUB, reflecting uncertainty in the values of all of the input parameters. The proposed methods have been implemented in R and are illustrated using real data from the National Survey of Family Growth.
Shale gas Sino-foreign agreements in China: attractive or not?
Authors: Guo (Claire) Nan 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
This article presents an analysis of how China will participate in the ‘shale revolution’ through Sino-foreign collaboration by evaluating the legal arrangements on offer today in the onshore shale gas industry—specifically focusing on the essence of the different agreements, the obstacles for foreign investors under the current petroleum regime, why obstacles exist and what the relevant solutions to them might be. The first part of the article provides a general introduction to the use of JV contracting models and PSCs in the development of Chinese shale projects with foreign investment, and analyses the crucial factors which apply to determining the boundaries between the different forms of contract and the concerns of the relevant parties in the process of negotiation. The second part of the article investigates the reasons for the absence of IOCs in the second shale gas bid round, and why Shell terminated its PSC with CNPC even though commerciality had been declared. Finally, taking into account the underlying reasons for why China's legal regime hinders foreigner investors' enthusiasm for shale gas investment, it proposes relevant suggestions to enhance the attractiveness of Sino-foreign shale gas cooperation.
Rational Requirements and the Primacy of Pressure
Authors: Fogal Daniel 
Published: May 2019

AbstractThere are at least two threads in our thought and talk about rationality, both practical and theoretical. In one sense, to be rational is to respond correctly to the reasons one has. Call this substantive rationality. In another sense, to be rational is to be coherent, or to have the right structural relations hold between one's attitudinal mental states, independently of whether those states are justified. Call this structural rationality. According to the standard view, structural rationality is associated with a distinctive set of requirements that mandate or prohibit certain combinations of attitudes, and it's in virtue of violating these requirements that incoherent agents are irrational. I think the standard view is mistaken. The goal of this paper is to explain why, and to motivate an alternative account: rather than corresponding to a set of law-like requirements, structural rationality should be seen as corresponding to a distinctive kind of pro tanto rational pressure—that is, something that comes in degrees, having both magnitude and direction. Something similar is standardly assumed to be true of substantive rationality. On the resulting picture, each dimension of rational evaluation is associated with a distinct kind of rational pressure—substantive rationality with (what I call) justificatory pressure and structural rationality with attitudinal pressure. The former is generated by one's reasons while the latter is generated by one's attitudes. Requirements turn out to be at best a footnote in the theory of rationality.
SDSS J094635.06+101706.1: a redshift one, very radio-loud, γ-ray emitting narrow-line Seyfert 1 galaxy
Authors: Yao Su , Komossa S , Liu Wen-Juan , Yi Weimin , Yuan Weimin , Zhou Hongyan , Wu Xue-Bing 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
As hybrids of narrow-line Seyfert 1 (NLS1) galaxies and blazars, γ-ray emitting NLS1s are important probes of jet physics in the high Eddington-ratio regime. Only very few of them are known to date; the majority of them below redshift $z$ = 0.5. Here, we present the identification of the γ-ray emitting AGN TXS 0943+105 (SDSS J094635.06+101706.1) as a high-redshift NLS1 galaxy. It turns out to be one of the radio-loudest NLS1s known, highly variable at all wavelengths, and shows widely extended radio emission at a (projected) &gt;100 kpc scale. It is a known strong γ-ray emitter with a luminous flare reported previously. At redshift $z$ = 1.004, this is the most distant γ-NLS1 known to date.
Microhomologies are prevalent at Cas9-induced larger deletions
Authors: Owens Dominic D G , Caulder Adam , Frontera Vincent , Harman Joe R , Allan Alasdair J , Bucakci Akin , Greder Lucas , Codner Gemma F , Hublitz Philip , McHugh Peter J , Teboul Lydia , de Bruijn Marella F T R 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
The CRISPR system is widely used in genome editing for biomedical research. Here, using either dual paired Cas9D10A nickases or paired Cas9 nuclease we characterize unintended larger deletions at on-target sites that frequently evade common genotyping practices. We found that unintended larger deletions are prevalent at multiple distinct loci on different chromosomes, in cultured cells and mouse embryos alike. We observed a high frequency of microhomologies at larger deletion breakpoint junctions, suggesting the involvement of microhomology-mediated end joining in their generation. In populations of edited cells, the distribution of larger deletion sizes is dependent on proximity to sgRNAs and cannot be predicted by microhomology sequences alone.
Organelle Studies and Proteome Analyses of Mitochondria and Plastids Fractions from the Diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana
Authors: Schober Alexander F , R�o B�rtulos Carolina , Bischoff Annsophie , Lepetit Bernard , Gruber Ansgar , Kroth Peter G 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
Diatoms are unicellular algae and evolved by secondary endosymbiosis, a process in which a red alga-like eukaryote was engulfed by a heterotrophic eukaryotic cell. This gave rise to plastids of remarkable complex architecture and ultrastructure that require elaborate protein importing, trafficking, signaling and intracellular cross-talk pathways. Studying both plastids and mitochondria and their distinctive physiological pathways in organello may greatly contribute to our understanding of photosynthesis, mitochondrial respiration and diatom evolution. The isolation of such complex organelles, however, is still demanding, and existing protocols are either limited to a few species (for plastids) or have not been reported for diatoms so far (for mitochondria). In this work, we present the first isolation protocol for mitochondria from the model diatom Thalassiosira pseudonana. Apart from that, we extended the protocol so that it is also applicable for the purification of a high-quality plastids fraction, and provide detailed structural and physiological characterizations of the resulting organelles. Isolated mitochondria were structurally intact, showed clear evidence of mitochondrial respiration, but the fractions still contained residual cell fragments. In contrast, plastid isolates were virtually free of cellular contaminants, featured structurally preserved thylakoids performing electron transport, but lost most of their stromal components as concluded from Western blots and mass spectrometry. Liquid chromatography electrospray-ionization mass spectrometry studies on mitochondria and thylakoids, moreover, allowed detailed proteome analyses which resulted in extensive proteome maps for both plastids and mitochondria thus helping us to broaden our understanding of organelle metabolism and functionality in diatoms.
Self-Administered Acupressure for Chronic Low Back Pain: A Randomized Controlled Pilot Trial
Authors: Murphy Susan Lynn , Harris Richard Edmund , Keshavarzi Nahid Roonizi , Zick Suzanna Maria 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
Objective Chronic low back pain (CLBP) is associated with fatigue, pain, poor sleep, and disability. Acupressure is a low-risk treatment option used to manage symptoms in other groups, but its efficacy, particularly on fatigue and sleep, is unknown in CLBP. This study examined preliminary effects of two types of self-administered acupressure (relaxing and stimulating) on fatigue, pain, sleep, and reported disability.
Methods A randomized pilot trial was conducted (N = 67) in which participants were randomized into six weeks of relaxing acupressure, stimulating acupressure, or usual care. Fatigue was measured by the Brief Fatigue Inventory, pain was measured by the Brief Pain Inventory, sleep was measured by the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index, and reported disability was measured by the Roland Morris Scale.
Results Baseline characteristics were similar across groups. An intent-to-treat analysis using general linear models showed positive improvement in pain in acupressure groups compared with usual care. Pain was reduced by 35–36% in the acupressure groups. Improvement in fatigue was also found in stimulating acupressure compared with usual care. Adverse events were minimal and related to application of too much pressure.
Discussion Although this was a small study, acupressure demonstrated promising preliminary support of efficacy for pain and fatigue reduction in this population.
Partisanship vs. Principle: Understanding Public Opinion on Same-Day Registration
Authors: McCarthy Devin 
Published: May 2019

Abstract
Voter access has become a deeply polarized issue in American politics. It is well known that policymakers’ positions on election laws are often dictated by whether they think the laws will help their electoral interests and those of their party. But we know little about whether public opinion on election laws is similarly driven by partisan interest or is instead constrained by concerns of procedural legitimacy. To answer this question, I conduct a survey experiment that frames the issue of same-day registration (SDR) in terms of which major party it is expected to help electorally. The results provide clear evidence that both Democrats and Republicans are less likely to support SDR after being told the policy will primarily increase turnout among voters of the opposing party, but little evidence that being told SDR will benefit their own party affects opinion. These findings suggest an asymmetry in citizens’ willingness to choose partisan interest over democratic principles based on whether they perceive a rule change as benefiting the in-party or out-party.
An Alternative Route to Voting Reform: the Right to Vote, Voter Registration, Redistricting and U.S. State Constitutions
Authors: Martorano Miller Nancy , Hamm Keith E , Aroca Maria , Hedlund Ronald D 
Published: May 2019

AbstractThe U.S. Constitution reserves to states the responsibility for regulating most aspects of elections. Recently, the Supreme Court has weakened the tools for federal officials to challenge state elections practices under the Voting Rights Act and signaled a great deal of deference to state authority over election law. As a result, state legislatures’ latitude to regulate elections is constrained primarily by state constitutions. With voter ID laws and partisan gerrymandering commanding considerable attention in recent years, it is important to investigate the importance of state constitutions in this area. In this article, we discuss recent efforts by voting and election reformers to utilize state constitutions to challenge restrictive voting laws and partisan gerrymandering, whether by enacting state constitutional amendments or relying on state constitutional provisions in state court litigation. We also highlight the diverse and often underappreciated landscape of voting and election laws in the states and the resources available to reformers at the state level by analyzing state constitutional provisions bearing on the right to vote, voter registration, and redistricting.