bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Intake of starch and sugars and total and cause-specific mortality in a Japanese community: the Takayama Study
Authors: Nagata Chisato , Wada Keiko , Yamakawa Michiyo , Konishi Kie , Goto Yuko , Koda Sachi , Mizuta Fumi , Uji Takahiro 
Published: August 2019

AbstractStudies on the intake of different types of carbohydrates and long-term mortality are sparse. We examined the association of starch, total and each type of sugar and free sugars with the risk of total and cause-specific mortality in a cohort of the general population in Japan. Study subjects were 29 079 residents from the Takayama Study, Japan, who responded to a self-administered questionnaire in 1992. Diet was assessed by a validated FFQ at the baseline. Mortality was ascertained during 16 years of follow-up. We noted 2901 deaths (974 cancer related and 775 cardiovascular related) in men and 2438 death (646 cancer related and 903 cardiovascular related) in women. In men, intake of starch was inversely associated with total mortality after controlling for covariates (hazard ratio (HR) for the highest quartile v. lowest quartile: 0·71; 95 % CI 0·60, 0·84; Ptrend &lt; 0·001). Intakes of total sugars, glucose, fructose, sucrose, maltose and free and naturally occurring sugars were significantly positively associated with total mortality in men (HR for the highest v. lowest quartile of total sugar: 1·27; 95 % CI 1·12, 1·45; Ptrend &lt; 0·0001). Similar relations were observed for cardiovascular mortality and non-cancer, non-cardiovascular mortality in men. In women, there was no significant association between any type of carbohydrates and mortality except that intake of free sugars was significantly positively associated with total and non-cancer, non-cardiovascular mortality. Data suggest that the high intake of starch reduces mortality, whereas the high intake of sugars, including glucose, fructose and sucrose, increases mortality in Japanese men.
Claims-Based Co-management in Norway's Arctic? Examining Sami Land Governance as a Case of Treaty Federalism
Authors: Spitzer Aaron John , Selle Per 
Published: August 2019

AbstractAround the world, Indigenous peoples seek increased control of traditional lands. In northern Canada, such control may be afforded by claims-based co-management regimes. Such regimes are a common, and sometimes celebrated, component of treaty federalism. In Norway, Europe's only Indigenous people, the Sami, now participate in a land-management regime: the Finnmark Estate (FeFo). We explore whether FeFo is, in effect, claims-based co-management and whether Sami thus enjoy the sort of guaranteed shared rule envisioned in treaty federalism. We compare FeFo to Canadian co-management in three dimensions: novelty, independence and Indigenous influence. We conclude FeFo is indeed claims-based co-management. But FeFo falls short of the treaty-federal ideal, for reasons possibly including bureaucratic capture, fragile legitimacy, conflicting interpretations of the Sami interest and conflicting views on the merits of shared rule.
Isolated perfused udder model for transcriptome analysis in response toStreptococcus agalactiae
Authors: Weller Mayara M. D. C. A. , Fonseca Isabela , Sbardella Ana P. , Pinto Isabella S. B. , Viccini Lyderson F. , Brandão Humberto M. , Gern Juliana C. , Carvalho Wanessa A. , Guimarães Alessandro S. , Brito Maria A. V. P. , Munari Danísio P. , Silva Marcos V. G. B. , Martins Marta F. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThis study aimed to evaluate the transcriptional changes occurring in isolated perfused mammary alveolar tissue in response to inoculation withS. agalactiaeand to identify the most affected biological functions and pathways after 3 h. Four udders taken at slaughter from cows with healthy mammary gland were perfused ex situ with warmed and gassed Tyrode's solution. Mammary alveolar tissue samples were taken from the left fore and rear quarters (IQ-inoculated quarters) before inoculation (hour 0) and at 3 h post inoculation (hpi) and at the same times from control right fore and rear quarters (not inoculated: NIQ). A total of 1756 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified between IQ and NIQ at 3 hpi using edgeR package. Within this set of DEGs, 952 were up regulated and mainly involved with innate immune response and inflammatory response, e.g.,CD14,CCL5,TLR2,IL-8,SAA3, as well as in transcriptional regulation such asFOS,STAT3andNFKBIA. Genes down-regulated (804) included those involved with lipid synthesis e.g.,APOC2,SCD,FABP3andFABP4. The most affected pathways were chemokine signaling, Wnt signaling and complement and coagulation cascades, which likely reflects the early stage response of mammary tissue toS. agalactiaeinfection. No significant gene expression changes were detected by RNA-Seq in the others contrasts. Real time-PCR confirmed the increase in mRNA abundance of immune-related genes:TLR2,TLR4,IL-1β, andIL-10at 3 hpi between IQ and NIQ. The expression profiles ofCasp1andBaxfor any contrasts were unaffected whereasBcl2was increased in IQ, which suggests no induction of apoptosis during the first hours after infection. Results provided novel information regarding the early functional pathways and gene network that orchestrate innate immune responses toS. agalactiaeinfection. This knowledge could contribute to new strategies to enhance resistance to this disease, such as genomic selection.
Waves in a warm pair plasma: a relativistically complete two-fluid analysis
Authors: Keppens Rony , Goedbloed Hans , Durrive Jean-Baptiste 
Published: August 2019

We present an ideal two-fluid wave mode analysis for a pair plasma, extending an earlier study for cold conditions to the warm pair plasma case. Starting from the completely symmetrized means for writing the governing linearized equations in the pair fluid rest frame, we discuss the governing dispersion relation containing all six pairs of forward and backward propagating modes, which are conveniently labelled as S, A, F, M, O and X. These relate to the slow (S), Alfvén (A) and fast (F) magnetohydrodynamic waves, include a modified (M) electrostatic mode, as well as the electromagnetic O and X branches. In the dispersion relation, only two parameters appear, which define the pair plasma magnetization$E^{2}\in [0,\infty ]$and the squared pair plasma sound speed $v^{2}$, measured in units of the light speed $c$. The description is valid also in the highly relativistic regime, where either a high magnetization and/or a relativistic temperature (hence sound speed) is reached. We recover the exact relativistic single-fluid magnetohydrodynamic expressions for the S, A and F families in the low wavenumber–frequency regime, which can be obtained for any choice of the equation of state. We argue that, as in a cold pair plasma, purely parallel or purely perpendicular propagation with respect to the magnetic field vector$\boldsymbol{B}$is special, and near-parallel or near-perpendicular orientations demonstrate avoided crossings of branches at computable wavenumbers and frequencies. The complete six-mode phase and group diagram views are provided as well, visually demonstrating the intricate anisotropies in all wave modes, as well as their transformations. Analytic expressions for all six wave group speeds at both small and large wavenumbers complement the analysis.
RON2, a novel gene in Babesia bigemina, contains conserved, immunodominant B-cell epitopes that induce antibodies that block merozoite invasion
Authors: Mosqueda Juan , Hidalgo-Ruiz Mario , Calvo-Olvera Diana Alexandra , Hernandez-Silva Diego Josimar , Ueti Massaro Wilson , Mercado-Uriostegui Miguel Angel , Rodriguez Angelina , Ramos-Aragon Juan Alberto , Hernandez-Ortiz Ruben , Kawazu Shin-ichiro , Igarashi Ikuo 
Published: August 2019

AbstractBovine babesiosis is the most important protozoan disease transmitted by ticks. In Plasmodium falciparum, another Apicomplexa protozoan, the interaction of rhoptry neck protein 2 (RON2) with apical membrane antigen-1 (AMA-1) has been described to have a key role in the invasion process. To date, RON2 has not been described in Babesia bigemina, the causal agent of bovine babesiosis in the Americas. In this work, we found a ron2 gene in the B. bigemina genome. RON2 encodes a protein that is 1351 amino acids long, has an identity of 64% (98% coverage) with RON2 of B. bovis and contains the CLAG domain, a conserved domain in Apicomplexa. B. bigemina ron2 is a single copy gene and it is transcribed and expressed in blood stages as determined by RT-PCR, Western blot, and confocal microscopy. Serum samples from B. bigemina-infected bovines were screened for the presence of RON2-specific antibodies, showing the recognition of conserved B-cell epitopes. Importantly, in vitro neutralization assays showed an inhibitory effect of RON2-specific antibodies on the red blood cell invasion by B. bigemina. Therefore, RON2 is a novel antigen in B. bigemina and contains conserved B-cell epitopes, which induce antibodies that inhibit merozoite invasion.
Flea infestation, social contact, and stress in a gregarious rodent species: minimizing the potential parasitic costs of group-living
Authors: Warburton Elizabeth M. , Khokhlova Irina S. , Palme Rupert , Surkova Elena N. , van der Mescht Luther , Krasnov Boris R. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractBoth parasitism and social contact are common sources of stress that many gregarious species encounter in nature. Upon encountering such stressors, individuals secrete glucocorticoids and although short-term elevation of glucocorticoids is adaptive, long-term increases are correlated with higher mortality and deleterious reproductive effects. Here, we used an experimental host-parasite system, social rodents Acomys cahirinus and their characteristic fleas Parapulex chephrenis, in a fully-crossed design to test the effects of social contact and parasitism on stress during pregnancy. By analysing faecal glucocorticoid metabolites, we found that social hierarchy did not have a significant effect on glucocorticoid concentration. Rather, solitary females had significantly higher glucocorticoid levels than females housed in pairs. We found a significant interaction between the stressors of parasitism and social contact with solitary, uninfested females having the highest faecal glucocorticoid metabolite levels suggesting that both social contact and infestation mitigate allostatic load in pregnant rodents. Therefore, the increased risk of infestation that accompanies group-living could be outweighed by positive aspects of social contact within A. cahirinus colonies in nature.
In vitroinfluence ofTheileria annulataon the functions of bovine dendritic cells for stimulation of T lymphocyte proliferation
Authors: Rashid Muhammad , Liu Junlong , Guan Guiquan , Wang Jinming , Li Zhi , Hassan Muhammad Adeel , Rashid Muhammad Imran , Mukhtar Muhammad Uzair , Luo Jianxun , Yin Hong 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe present study was performed on antigen-presenting cells (APCs) ofTheileria annulatatransformed dendritic cells (TaDCs) and monocyte-derived dendritic cells (MoDCs) to compare differences in antigen presentation and stimulation of T lymphocyte proliferation. Antigen presentation for T lymphocyte proliferation was analysed by flow cytometry. Additionally, the level of mRNA transcription of small GTPases of the Rab family expressed in the TaDC cell line was analysed by quantitative real-time polymerase chain reaction (Q-RT-PCR). The endocytosis rate of TaDCs was significantly (P< 0.01) lower than in MoDCs. In contrast, when T lymphocytes were co-cultured with TaDC-APCs T cell proliferation was similar, while co-culture with MoDC-APC stimulated proliferation of CD4+cells to a greater degree than CD8+cells. However, the efficacy of TaDC-APCs to stimulate T lymphocytes dropped as the number of passages of TaDC-APC increased. Likewise, the transcription level of Rab family genes also significantly (P> 0.001) declined with progressive passages (>50) of the TaDC cell line. We conclude that initially the TaDC cell line efficiently presents antigen to stimulate T lymphocyte proliferation to produce a cellular immune response against the presented antigen.
Host dispersal and landscape conversion are associated with the composition of haemosporidian parasites of the golden-winged warbler
Authors: Enslow Chelsea , Vallender Rachel , Rondel Emily , Koper Nicola 
Published: August 2019

AbstractUnderstanding factors that influence the spatial and temporal distributions of blood parasites is important to help predict how host species and their parasites may respond to global change. Factors that may influence parasite distributions are land cover and host dispersal patterns, which may result in exposure of a host to novel parasites, or escape from parasites of their origin. We screened golden-winged warblers from across the United States and Canada for blood parasites, and investigated whether land-use patterns or host dispersal affected the prevalence and composition of haemosporidian assemblages. Parasite prevalence varied strongly with study area, and areas with high agricultural cover had a significantly higher prevalence ofLeucocytozoonandParahaemoproteusparasites. Lineages ofParahaemoproteusandLeucocytozoonwere genetically differentiated among study areas, and prevalence and composition of parasite assemblages indicated an increase in parasite prevalence and accumulation of unique parasite lineages from the southeast to the northwest. This matches the historical range expansion and natal dispersal patterns of golden-winged warblers, and suggests that golden-winged warblers may have been sensitive to novel parasites as they dispersed. The high prevalence and diversity of parasite lineages in the north-west extent of their breeding range (Manitoba) indicates that this population may face unique pressures.
Symptom structure of PTSD and co-morbid depressive symptoms – a network analysis of combat veteran patients
Authors: Lazarov Amit , Suarez-Jimenez Benjamin , Levi Ofir , Coppersmith Daniel D. L. , Lubin Gadi , Pine Daniel S. , Bar-Haim Yair , Abend Rany , Neria Yuval 
Published: August 2019

AbstractBackgroundDespite extensive research, symptom structure of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is highly debated. The network approach to psychopathology offers a novel method for understanding and conceptualizing PTSD. However, extant studies have mainly used small samples and self-report measures among sub-clinical populations, while also overlooking co-morbid depressive symptoms.MethodsPTSD symptom network topology was estimated in a sample of 1489 treatment-seeking veteran patients based on a clinician-rated PTSD measure. Next, clinician-rated depressive symptoms were incorporated into the network to assess their influence on PTSD network structure. The PTSD-symptom network was then contrasted with the network of 306 trauma-exposed (TE) treatment-seeking patients not meeting full criteria for PTSD to assess corresponding network differences. Finally, a directed acyclic graph (DAG) was computed to estimate potential directionality among symptoms, including depressive symptoms and daily functioning.ResultsThe PTSD symptom network evidenced robust reliability. Flashbacks and getting emotionally upset by trauma reminders emerged as the most central nodes in the PTSD network, regardless of the inclusion of depressive symptoms. Distinct clustering emerged for PTSD and depressive symptoms within the comorbidity network. DAG analysis suggested a key triggering role for re-experiencing symptoms. Network topology in the PTSD sample was significantly distinct from that of the TE sample.ConclusionsFlashbacks and psychological reactions to trauma reminders, along with their strong connections to other re-experiencing symptoms, have a pivotal role in the clinical presentation of combat-related PTSD among veterans. Depressive and posttraumatic symptoms constitute two separate diagnostic entities, but with meaningful between-disorder connections, suggesting two mutually-influential systems.
Behavioural insight and the labour market: evidence from a pilot study and a large stepped-wedge controlled trial
Authors: Sanders Michael , Briscese Guglielmo , Gallagher Rory , Gyani Alex , Hanes Samuel , Kirkman Elspeth , Service Owain 
Published: August 2019

AbstractIn this article, we describe two experiments measuring the impact of a collection of interventions informed by behavioural sciences to reduce unemployment. In a small-scale pilot study (n= 2,383) run in partnership with a Jobcentre in the UK, we found that small changes to the way jobseekers interacted with employment advisers showed promising effects. Based on these findings, we refined our intervention and tested it in a second, larger trial (n= 88,033) across 12 Jobcentres in the UK. We found that our intervention significantly increased off-flow from benefits. These experiments demonstrate that policies and programmes aimed at reducing unemployment can benefit greatly from a deeper understanding of the behaviours of jobseekers and employment advisers. Further, we suggest that this approach could have positive implications for other areas of public policy.
Traversing the soft/hard power binary: the case of the Sino-Japanese territorial dispute
Authors: Hagström Linus , Pan Chengxin 
Published: August 2019

AbstractSoft power and hard power are conceptualised in International Relations as empirically and normatively dichotomous, and practically opposite – one intangible, attractive, and legitimate, the other tangible, coercive, and less legitimate. This article critiques this binary conceptualisation, arguing that it is discursively constructed with and for the construction of Self and Other. It further demonstrates that practices commonly labelled and understood as soft power and hard power are closely interconnected. Best understood as ‘representational force’ and ‘physical force’ respectively, soft and hard power intertwine through the operation of productive and disciplinary forms of power. We illustrate this argument by analysing the Sino-Japanese dispute over the Diaoyu/Senkaku Islands. Both governments exercise representational force in constructing their respective versions of events and Self/Other. The soft/hard power binary itself plays a performative role as the Self is typically associated with soft power and the Other with hard power. The operation of productive power, moreover, privileges the attractiveness of the former and the repellence of the latter, and disciplinary power physically enforces these distinctions on subjects in both states. Finally, reinforced Self/Other distinctions legitimise preparations for violence against the Other on both sides, thus exposing how fundamentally entangled soft and hard power are in practice.
Genetic Algorithm Coupled with the Krawczyk Method for Multi-Objective Design Parameters Optimization of the 3-UPU Manipulator
Authors: El Hraiech Safa , Chebbi Ahmed H. , Affi Zouhaier , Romdhane Lotfi 
Published: August 2019

SUMMARYIn this paper, a multi-objective design optimization of the 3-UPU translational parallel manipulator is presented. Based on a new algorithm, which combines the genetic algorithms and the Krawczyk operator, the robot position error is minimized and the robot design parameters tolerances are maximized, simultaneously. The results show that the designer can maintain the manipulator accuracy by using a specific size of the base, and can restrict its tolerance even by enlarging the actuators’ tolerance intervals. This algorithm is also used to determine the maximum design parameters tolerances for an allowable robot position error. The proposed algorithm can be extended to optimize other types of robots.
Nitrogen-fixing and non-fixing trees differ in leaf chemistry and defence but not herbivory in a lowland Costa Rican rain forest
Authors: Taylor Benton N. , Ostrowsky Laura R. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractNitrogen-fixing plants provide critical nitrogen inputs that support the high productivity of tropical forests, but our understanding of the ecology of nitrogen fixers – and especially their interactions with herbivores – remains incomplete. Herbivores may interact differently with nitrogen fixers vs. non-fixers due to differences in leaf nitrogen content and herbivore defence strategies. To examine these potential differences, our study compared leaf carbon, nitrogen, toughness, chemical defence and herbivory for four nitrogen-fixing tree species (Inga oerstediana, Inga sapindoides, Inga thibaudiana and Pentaclethra macroloba) and three non-fixing species (Anaxagorea crassipetala, Casearia arborea and Dipteryx panamensis) in a lowland tropical rain forest. Leaf chemical defence, not nutritional content, was the primary driver of herbivore damage among our species. Even though nitrogen fixers exhibited 21.1% higher leaf nitrogen content, 20.1% lower C:N ratios and 15.4% lower leaf toughness than non-fixers, we found no differences in herbivory or chemical defence between these two plant groups. Our results do not support the common hypotheses that nitrogen fixers experience preferential herbivory or that they produce more nitrogen-rich defensive compounds than non-fixers. Rather, these findings suggest strong species-specific differences in plant–herbivore relationships among both nitrogen-fixing and non-fixing tropical trees.
LINGUISTIC DIMENSIONS OF COMPREHENSIBILITY AND PERCEIVED FLUENCY: AN INVESTIGATION OF COMPLEXITY, ACCURACY, AND FLUENCY IN SECOND LANGUAGE ARGUMENTATIVE SPEECH
Authors: Suzuki Shungo , Kormos Judit 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThis study examined the linguistic dimensions of comprehensibility and perceived fluency in the context of L2 argumentative speech elicited from 40 Japanese-speaking learners of English. Their speaking performance was judged by 10 inexperienced native speakers of English for comprehensibility and perceived fluency, and was also objectively analyzed in terms of complexity, accuracy, and fluency as well as pronunciation and discourse features. The results showed that comprehensibility and fluency judgments strongly correlated with each other and that native listeners were significantly more severe when they judged fluency. Furthermore, multiple regression analyses revealed that both constructs were commonly associated with a set of underlying linguistic dimensions (grammatical accuracy, breakdown fluency, and pronunciation). However, comprehensibility was best predicted by articulation rate (speed fluency) whereas perceived fluency was most strongly associated with the frequency of mid-clause pauses (breakdown fluency).
Why now? Examining antecedents for substance use initiation among African American adolescents
Authors: Zapolski Tamika C. B. , Yu Tianyi , Brody Gene H. , Banks Devin E. , Barton Allen W. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractCurrent adolescent substance use risk models have inadequately predicted use for African Americans, offering limited knowledge about differential predictability as a function of developmental period. Among a sample of 500 African American youth (ages 11–21), four risk indices (i.e., social risk, attitudinal risk, intrapersonal risk, and racial discrimination risk) were examined in the prediction of alcohol, marijuana, and cigarette initiation during early (ages 11–13), mid (ages 16–18), and late (ages 19–21) adolescence. Results showed that when developmental periods were combined, racial discrimination was the only index that predicted initiation for all three substances. However, when risk models were stratified based on developmental period, variation was found within and across substance types. Results highlight the importance of racial discrimination in understanding substance use initiation among African American youth and the need for tailored interventions based on developmental stage.