bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Frequency‐dependent shear properties of annulus fibrosus and nucleus pulposus by magnetic resonance elastography
Authors: Beauchemin P.F. , Bayly P.V. , Garbow J.R. , Schmidt J.L.S. , Okamoto R.J. , Chériet F. , Périé D. 
Published: May 2018

Aging and degeneration are associated with changes in mechanical properties in the intervertebral disc, generating interest in the establishment of mechanical properties as early biomarkers for the degenerative cascade. Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) of the intervertebral disc is usually limited to the nucleus pulposus, as the annulus fibrosus is stiffer and less hydrated. The objective of this work was to adapt high‐frequency needle MRE to the characterization of the shear modulus of both the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus. Bovine intervertebral discs were removed from fresh oxtails and characterized by needle MRE. The needle was inserted in the center of the disc and vibrations were generated by an amplified piezoelectric actuator. MRE acquisitions were performed on a 4.7‐T small‐animal MR scanner using a spin echo sequence with sinusoidal motion encoding gradients. Acquisitions were repeated over a frequency range of 1000–1800 Hz. The local frequency estimation inversion algorithm was used to compute the shear modulus. Stiffness maps allowed the visualization of the soft nucleus pulposus surrounded by the stiffer annulus fibrosus surrounded by the homogeneous gel. A significant difference in shear modulus between the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus, and an increase in the shear modulus with excitation frequency, were observed, in agreement with the literature. This study demonstrates that global characterization of both the nucleus pulposus and annulus fibrosus of the intervertebral disc is possible with needle MRE using a preclinical magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. MRE can be a powerful method for the mapping of the complex properties of the intervertebral disc. The developed method could be adapted for in situ use by preserving adjacent vertebrae and puncturing the side of the intervertebral disc, thereby allowing an assessment of the contribution of osmotic pressure to the mechanical behavior of the intervertebral disc.
Multicenter randomized, double‐blind controlled trial to evaluate the efficacy of laser therapy for the treatment of severe oral mucositis induced by chemotherapy in children: laMPO RCT
Authors: Gobbo Margherita , Verzegnassi Federico , Ronfani Luca , Zanon Davide , Melchionda Fraia , Bagattoni Simone , Majorana Alessandra , Bardellini Elena , Mura Rosamaria , Piras Alessandra , Petris Maria Grazia , Mariuzzi Maria Livia , Barone Angelica , Merigo Elisabetta , Decembrino Nunzia , Vitale Marina Consuelo , Berger Massimo , Defabianis Patrizia , Biasotto Matteo , Ottaviani Giulia , Zanazzo Giulio Andrea 
Published: May 2018

AbstractObjectivesTo demonstrate the efficacy of laser photobiomodulation (PBM) compared to that of placebo on severe oral mucositis (OM) in pediatric oncology patients. The primary objective was the reduction of OM grade (World Health Organization [WHO] scale) 7 days after starting PBM. Secondary objectives were reduction of pain, analgesic consumption, and incidence of side effects.MethodsOne hundred and one children with WHO grade > 2 chemotherapy‐induced OM were enrolled in eight Italian hospitals. Patients were randomized to either PBM or sham treatment for four consecutive days (days +1 to +4). On days +4, +7, and +11, OM grade, pain (following a 0–10 numeric pain rating scale, NRS) and need for analgesics were evaluated by an operator blinded to treatment.ResultsFifty‐one patients were allocated to the PBM group, and 50 were allocated to the sham group. In total, 93.7% of PBM patients and 72% of sham patients had OM grade < 3 WHO on day +7 (P = 0.01). A significant reduction of pain was registered on day +7 in the PBM versus sham group (NRS 1 [0–3] vs. 2.5 [1–5], P < 0.006). Reduced use of analgesics was reported in the PBM group, although it was not statistically significant. No significant adverse events attributable to treatment were recorded.ConclusionsPBM is a safe, feasible, and effective treatment for children affected by chemotherapy‐induced OM, as it accelerates mucosal recovery and reduces pain.
Microbiome characteristics of induced sputum compared to bronchial fluid and upper airway samples
Authors: An Shi‐qi , Warris Adilia , Turner Steve 
Published: May 2018

AbstractObjectiveThe study of the community of microorganisms (the microbiota) in the lower airways in children is restricted to opportunistic sampling in children undergoing elective general anaesthetic. Here we tested the hypothesis that induced sputum is a valid alternative to directly sampling the lower airways to study lower airway microbiota.MethodsChildren scheduled for elective operations were recruited. Pre‐operatively a sample of induced sputum was obtained. After anaesthesia was induced, a bronchial brushing and swabs of the upper respiratory tract were obtained. Bacterial community analysis was performed by amplification of the V3–V4 16S rRNA gene region.ResultsTwenty children were recruited, mean age 10.7 years. Induced sputum samples were obtained from 12 children, bronchial brushing from 14 and nasal, mouth, and throat samples in 15, 16, and 17 children. The profile of bacterial communities was similar in the mouth, throat, and sputum samples with the nose and bronchial samples being different. Actinobacteria species dominated the nose and mouth, Fusobacteria were the dominant species in the throat and sputum while Proteobacteria species dominated in bronchial samples. Forty‐one percent of detected bacteria in bronchial samples were unclassified. Bacterial communities from the mouth, throat, and induced sputum were tightly clustered and were distinct from nose and those found in bronchial communities.ConclusionsInduced sputum may not be a valid surrogate for microbiome assessment of the lower airways in all individuals. Many bacteria in bronchial samples were not recognized by standard testing, suggesting that our understanding of the lower airway microbiota in children remains rudimentary.
Role of glycans in cholesteryl ester transfer protein revealed by molecular dynamics simulation
Authors: Hao Dongxiao , Yang Zhiwei , Gao Teng , Tian Zhiqi , Zhang Lei , Zhang Shengli 
Published: May 2018

AbstractCurrent cholesteryl ester transfer protein (CETP) inhibitors are designed based on the unglycosylated crystal structure, and most of them have failed to cure cardiovascular disease (CVD). It is particularly important for us to investigate the glycosylation structure of CETP (CETP‐G) and effect of glycans on the structure and function of CETP. Here, we used a total of 3.0‐μs molecular dynamics (MD) trajectories of nascent structure of CETP (CETP‐N) and CETP‐G to study their structural differentiations, to shed new light on the CETP‐mediated lipid exchange. In accordance with our simulations and previous mutation studies, relative to CETP‐N, CETP‐G adopts a more stretched shape with higher hydrophobic and hydrophilic solvent‐accessible surface area (SASA) of N‐terminal oscillating with larger amplitude, in which Glycan88 provides partial assistance for CEs through the N‐terminal. Glycan341 reduces the flexibility of neck flap, with the interference of CEs through the neck region. Besides, Glycan240 reduces the flexibility of Helix‐X to interfere the CEs transfer. Glycan396 decreases the flexibility and increases the hydrophobic SASA of C‐terminal. Overall, these glycans affect the dynamics and structure of CETP through forming H‐bonds with surrounding residues, and the sampled conformations of glycan is also affected by its surrounding residues. Thus, glycans are an integral part of CETP, further studies on the CETP inhibition and treatment of CVD should fully consider the effect of glycans.
Escherichia coli survival and transfer in estuarine bed sediments
Authors: Schang C. , Lintern A. , Cook P. L. M. , Rooney G. , Coleman R. , Murphy H. M. , Deletic A. , McCarthy D. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractBed sediment resuspension is a potential source of faecal microorganisms in the water column of estuaries. As such, it is important to identify the survival of faecal microorganisms in these bed sediments and understand how bed sediment resuspension impacts the quality of estuarine waters. This study explores the effect of bed sediment resuspension on Escherichia coli concentrations in the water column and the persistence of E. coli in the water column and bed sediments of the Yarra River estuary in South‐Eastern Australia. Using sediment cores, we identified that the resuspension of both surficial sediments (e.g., by tidal movements) and deeper bed sediments (e.g., by large storm events) can increase E. coli concentrations in the water column by up to 20 times in estuaries in oceanic climates. Bed sediment resuspension can result in increased E. coli concentrations in the water column even up to 24 days after E. coli first enters the estuarine water. This study demonstrates that faecal microorganisms, such as E. coli, can persist for extended periods in estuarine bed sediments, which may then be re‐entrained into the water column via recreational activities, high flow events, or tidal fluctuations. If the survival and resuspension processes observed here hold true for pathogenic microorganisms, the resuspension of bed sediments may indeed represent an increased public health risk.
Di‐μ‐acetato Diuranyl(VI) Complexes with N‐(2‐pyridyl)‐N′‐(5‐R‐salicylidene)hydrazines: Syntheses, Structures, Properties and Extraction Studies
Authors: Ghosh Sabari , Kurapati Sathish Kumar , Ghosh Arpita , Srivastava Ankit Kumar , Pal Samudranil 
Published: May 2018

AbstractReactions of equimolar amounts of UO2(OAc)2⋅2H2O and N‐(2‐pyridyl)‐N′‐(5‐R‐salicylidene)hydrazines (HLn; n=1–3 for R = H, Me, and OMe, respectively) in methanol produced [(UO2)2(μ‐OAc)2(Ln)2] (1‐3 for n=1–3) in ∼70% yields. Elemental analysis, various spectroscopic, and electrochemical measurements were used to characterize 1‐3. X‐ray crystal structures revealed an 8‐membered U(OCO)2U ring with a chair conformation and pentagonal‐bipyramidal UN2O5 coordination spheres in each of 1‐3. The N,N,O‐donor (Ln)‐ and the two O‐atoms of the two bridging (OAc)‐ form the pentagonal plane around the U‐atom of trans‐(UO2)2+. Intermolecular H‐bonding assisted self‐assembly of the complexes lead to 1‐ and 2‐dimensional supramolecular structures. Infrared (IR) and proton nuclear magnetic resonance (1H NMR) spectra of 1‐3 are consistent with their molecular structures. The electronic spectra showed four strong absorption bands in the range 466‐288 nm. The complexes undergo two irreversible reductions near ‐0.65 and ‐0.88 V (vs. Ag/AgCl). Time‐dependent density functional theory (TD‐DFT) calculations suggest that a ligand centered transition causes the highest energy absorption band, while, the remaining three are ligand‐to‐metal charge transfer (LMCT) bands and the two successive reductions are due to U(VI)‐U(VI) → U(V)‐U(VI) → U(V)‐U(V) processes. A maximum extraction of 98% of trans‐(UO2)2+ from the aqueous layer was observed in two‐phase extraction studies.
The role of deliberate practice in development of essential sonography skills
Authors: Edwards Christopher , Chamunyonga Crispen , Clarke Jillian 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe role of deliberate practice (DP) theory in the development of expert performance has been widely studied. This paper reviews the concept of DP and the various factors that could impact the development or refining of essential sonography skills for students and practitioners. In this article, the authors review the concept of DP for its potential benefits and limitations in Medical Sonography education and its potential impact on the future calibre of practitioners. The paper encourages both novice and experienced practitioners to rethink how DP could enhance the notion of grasping a skill. Evidence from various areas of practice including the health professions has been used to argue that sonographers can successfully incorporate DP. This review opens up the opportunity for further conversations on how various skills could be isolated and improved using DP theory, with the primary aim of improving the quality of patient care in sonography practice.
Ontology‐based model‐driven development of a destination management portal: Experience and lessons learned
Authors: Mili Hafedh , Valtchev Petko , Szathmary Laszlo , Boubaker Anis , Leshob Abderrahmane , Charif Yasmine , Martin Louis 
Published: May 2018

SummaryWe present a case study inmodel‐driven developmentof ane‐tourism portalthat we chose to develop throughgenerationfrom adomain modelencoded as anontology. We present (1) the requirements of e‐tourism portal, which dictated its high‐level design; (2) the principles behind our implementation strategy, including the use of adomain ontologyas a starting model within the context of a model‐driven transformational approach; (3) the ontology development process and the code generation strategy used; and (4) the lessons learned. In particular, we compare our experiences to those reported in the model‐driven engineering (MDE) literature along 3 dimensions, ie, (1) the impact of MDE on the development process, (2) the choice of the modeling approach, and (3) the impact of code generation on design and code quality and testing. Overall, our experiences corroboratedsomeof thetheoretical claimsandmanyof thepractical experienceswith MDE. Key findings include (1) model‐driven development makes maintenance, not development, more efficient; (2) it does require a higher skill level than traditional development; (3) clients and managers need to be educated into whatincrementalitymeans in agenerative approach; (4) UML is neither necessary nor sufficient to handle the required representational flexibility; (5) it is difficult to build models that are good for both human consumption and code generation; and (6) it is difficult to generate code that is, simultaneously, efficient, pretty, and easy to maintain. We conclude by summarizing the findings of the paper.
Interspecies Incompatibilities Limit the Immunomodulatory Effect of Human Mesenchymal Stromal Cells in the Rat
Authors: Lohan Paul , Treacy Oliver , Morcos Maurice , Donohoe Ellen , O'donoghue Yvonne , Ryan Aideen E. , Elliman Stephen J. , Ritter Thomas , Griffin Matthew D. 
Published: May 2018

Abstract
Mesenchymal stem/stromal cells (MSC) are an immunomodulatory cell population which are under preclinical and clinical investigation for a number of inflammatory conditions including transplantation. In this study, a well-established rat corneal transplantation model was used to test the ability of human MSC to prolong corneal allograft rejection-free survival using a pre-transplant intravenous infusion protocol previously shown to be efficacious with allogeneic rat MSC. Surprisingly, pre-transplant administration of human MSC had no effect on corneal allograft survival. In vitro, human MSC failed to produce nitric oxide and upregulate IDO and, as a consequence, could not suppress rat T-cell proliferation. Furthermore, human MSC were not activated by rat pro-inflammatory cytokines. Thus, interspecies incompatibility in cytokine signaling leading to failure of MSC licensing may explain the lack of in vivo efficacy of human MSC in a rat tissue allotransplant model. Interspecies incompatibilities should be taken into consideration when interpreting preclinical data efficacy data in the context of translation to clinical trial.
Induced expression of the alcohol acetyltransferase gene ATF1 in industrial yeast Saccharomyces pastorianus TUM 34/70
Authors: Fischer S. , Büchner K.R. , Becker T. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractTargeted induced gene expression for industrial fermentation processes in food and beverage production could fulfill future demands. To avoid metabolic burden and disturbances owing to the fermentation procedure, induced gene expression is necessary for combating stress, such as that caused by temperature shifts that occur during the transition from fermentation to maturation in the brewing process. The aim of this study was to target gene expression in industrial yeast using stress‐responsive promoters and homologues of the selection marker SMR1. Self‐cloning strains of the industrial brewing yeast Saccharomyces pastorianus TUM 34/70 were constructed to overexpress the alcohol acetyltransferase (ATF1) gene under the control of inducible promoters PSSA3, PHSP104 and PUBI4. Transcription analysis shows the highest induction after 72 h of shock situation for PHSP104 with 1.3‐fold and PUBI4 with 2.2‐fold. Further, at the end of shock situation the concentrations of ethyl acetate were 1.2‐ and 1.3‐fold higher than the wild type for PHSP104 and PUBI4, respectively. In addition, the influence of the final temperature and temporal sequence of temperature shock to 4°C had a major impact on expression patterns. Therefore, these data show that temperature‐induced gene expression of self‐cloning industrial yeast could be an option for optimization of the beverage fermentation.
Awake Tracheostomy: Indications, Complications and Outcome
Authors: Sagiv Doron , Nachalon Yuval , Mansour Jobran , Glikson Eran , Alon Eran E. , Yakirevitch Arkadi , Bachar Gideon , Wolf Michael , Primov‐Fever Adi 
Published: May 2018

AbstractBackgroundAwake tracheostomy (AT) is aimed at securing the airway of patients with upper airway obstruction when other means are not feasible or have failed. Reports on AT in the literature are scarce. The goal of this study was to review our experience with the indications, complications and outcome of AT.MethodsA retrospective chart review was conducted on all ATs performed between 2010 and 2016 in two university‐affiliated, tertiary medical centers. Data on demographics, indications, techniques, urgency and postoperative complications were retrieved from the medical charts.ResultsThe 37 of the 1023 recorded tracheostomies (3.62%) that were ATs comprised the study group (mean age of the patients 60.3 years, 32 [86.5%] males). The most common indication was head and neck (HN) malignancy (oncologic group, 70.3%), with the larynx (53.8%) being the most commonly involved site. Patients in the non‐oncologic group (n = 11) were significantly younger (P = 0.048) and had a significantly higher prevalence of urgent surgery compared to the oncologic group (P = 0.0009). Major postoperative complications included tube dislodgement (n = 2) and pneumothorax (n = 1) that were managed successfully. One of the two patients with severe hypoxia and arrhythmia that necessitated cardiopulmonary resuscitation died.ConclusionWhether the etiology of the AT was related to HN oncological disease or not was the most important clinical factor in our cohort. The non‐oncologic group was significantly younger, suffered from more urgent events and tended to have more complications (nonsignificant). ATs had a 97.3% rate of immediate survival, a 5.4% risk of major irreversible complications and a 2.7% risk of mortality.
Improvedl-ornithine production inCorynebacterium crenatumby introducing an artificial linear transacetylation pathway
Authors: Shu Qunfeng , Xu Meijuan , Li Jing , Yang Taowei , Zhang Xian , Xu Zhenghong , Rao Zhiming 
Published: May 2018

Abstractl-Ornithine is a non-protein amino acid with extensive applications in the food and pharmaceutical industries. In this study, we performed metabolic pathway engineering of an l-arginine hyper-producing strain of Corynebacterium crenatum for L-ornithine production. First, we amplified the L-ornithine biosynthetic pathway flux by blocking the competing branch of the pathway. To enhance L-ornithine synthesis, we performed site-directed mutagenesis of the ornithine-binding sites to solve the problem of l-ornithine feedback inhibition for ornithine acetyltransferase. Alternatively, the genes argA from Escherichia coli and argE from Serratia marcescens, encoding the enzymes N-acetyl glutamate synthase and N-acetyl-l-ornithine deacetylase, respectively, were introduced into Corynebacterium crenatum to mimic the linear pathway of L-ornithine biosynthesis. Fermentation of the resulting strain in a 5-L bioreactor allowed a dramatically increased production of L-ornithine, 40.4 g/L, with an overall productivity of 0.673 g/L/h over 60 h. This demonstrates that an increased level of transacetylation is beneficial for L-ornithine biosynthesis.
Fractal regulation and incident Alzheimer's disease in elderly individuals
Authors: Li Peng , Yu Lei , Lim Andrew S.P. , Buchman Aron S. , Scheer Frank A.J.L. , Shea Steven A. , Schneider Julie A. , Bennett David A. , Hu Kun 
Published: May 2018

AbstractIntroductionHealthy physiological systems exhibit fractal regulation (FR), generating similar fluctuation patterns in physiological outputs across different time scales. FR in motor activity is degraded in dementia, and the degradation correlates to cognitive decline. We tested whether degraded FR predicts Alzheimer's dementia.MethodsFR in motor activity was assessed in 1097 nondemented older adults at baseline. Cognition was assessed annually for up to 11 years.ResultsParticipants with an FR metric at the 10th percentile in this cohort had a 1.8‐fold Alzheimer's disease risk (equivalent to the effect of being ∼5.2 years older) and 1.3‐fold risk for mild cognitive impairment (equivalent to the effect of being ∼3.0 years older) than those at the 90th percentile. Consistently, degraded FR predicted faster cognitive decline. These associations were independent of physical activity, sleep fragmentation, and stability of daily activity rhythms.DiscussionFR may be a useful tool for predicting Alzheimer's dementia.
Far-wake meandering induced by atmospheric eddies in flow past a wind turbine
Authors: Mao X. , Sørensen J. N. 
Published: May 2018

A novel algorithm is developed to calculate the nonlinear optimal boundary perturbations in three-dimensional incompressible flow. An optimal step length in the optimization loop is calculated without any additional calls to the Navier–Stokes equations. The algorithm is applied to compute the optimal inflow eddies for the flow around a wind turbine to clarify the mechanisms behind wake meandering, a phenomenon usually observed in wind farms. The turbine is modelled as an actuator disc using an immersed boundary method with the loading prescribed as a body force. At Reynolds number (based on free-stream velocity and turbine radius) $Re=1000$, the most energetic inflow perturbation has a frequency $\unicode[STIX]{x1D714}=0.8$–2, and is in the form of an azimuthal wave with wavenumber $m=1$ and the same radius as the actuator disc. The inflow perturbation is amplified by the strong shear downstream of the edge of the disc and then tilts the rolling-up vortex rings to induce wake meandering. This mechanism is verified by studying randomly perturbed flow at $Re\leqslant 8000$. At five turbine diameters downstream of the disc, the axial velocity oscillates at a magnitude of more than 60 % of the free-stream velocity when the magnitude of the inflow perturbation is 6 % of the free-stream wind speed. The dominant Strouhal number of the wake oscillation is 0.16 at $Re=3000$ and keeps approximately constant at higher $Re$. This Strouhal number agrees well with previous experimental findings. Overall the observations indicate that the well-observed stochastic wake meandering phenomenon appearing far downstream of wind turbines is induced by large-scale (the same order as the turbine rotor) and low-frequency free-stream eddies.