bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
TNF‐α polymorphisms affect persistence and progression of HBV infection
Authors: Woziwodzka Anna , Rybicka Magda , Sznarkowska Alicja , Romanowski Tomasz , Dręczewski Marcin , Stalke Piotr , Bielawski Krzysztof Piotr 
Published: August 2019

AbstractBackgroundHepatitis B virus (HBV) infections are a major threat worldwide. Disease progression and outcome is diverse and depends on host genetic background. Recently, a high rate of HBV reactivation in individuals receiving tumor necrosis factor‐α (TNF‐α) antagonists showed the importance of this cytokine in HBV infection control. Here, we investigated the influence of TNF‐α promoter polymorphisms on susceptibility to chronic HBV infection (CHB), liver injury progression and outcomes.MethodsA total of 231 patients with CHB constituted the study group and 100 healthy volunteers—the local control group. TNF‐α −1031T/C, −863C/A, −857C/T, −308G/A, and −238G/A were genotyped using MALDI‐TOF mass spectrometry.ResultsTNF‐α −1031C and −863A alleles were observed more frequently in CHB group than in healthy controls. Carriers of TNF‐α −1031C and −863A variant alleles had lower baseline levels of serum HBV DNA and lower liver necroinflammatory activity than dominant homozygotes. A −857CT genotype predisposed to higher necroinflammatory activity. No associations between TNF‐α variants and liver fibrosis were found.ConclusionThis study indicates that TNF‐α −863A and −1031C alleles are associated with increased susceptibility to CHB in individuals from northern Poland. The same variants determine the course of CHB, lowering viremia and reducing necroinflammatory activity of the liver.
Conjugated Physiological Resveratrol Metabolites Induce Senescence in Breast Cancer Cells: Role of p53/p21 and p16/Rb Pathways, and ABC Transporters
Authors: Giménez‐Bastida Juan Antonio , Ávila‐Gálvez María Ángeles , Espín Juan Carlos , González‐Sarrías Antonio 
Published: August 2019

ScopeRecent evidence demonstrates that resveratrol (RSV) metabolites, but not free RSV, reach malignant tumors (MT) in breast cancer (BC) patients. Since these metabolites, as detected in MT, do not exert short‐term antiproliferative or estrogenic/antiestrogenic activities, long‐term tumor‐senescent chemoprevention has been hypothesized. Consequently, here, for the first time, whether physiologically relevant RSV metabolites can induce senescence in BC cells is investigated.Methods and ResultsHuman BC MCF‐7 (wild‐type p53) and MDA‐MB‐231 (mutant p53), and non‐tumorigenic MCF‐10A cells are treated with free RSV and physiological‐derived metabolites (RSV 3‐O‐glucuronide, RSV 3‐O‐sulfate, RSV 4′‐O‐sulfate, dihydroresveratrol (DH‐RSV), and DH‐RSV 3‐Oglucuronide). Cellular senescence is measured by SA‐β‐gal activity and senescence‐associated markers (p53, p21Cip1/Waf1, p16INK4a, and phosphorylation status of retinoblastoma (pRb/tRb)). Although no effect is observed in MDA‐MB‐231 and normal cells, RSV metabolites induce cellular senescence in MCF‐7 cells by reducing their clonogenic capacity and arresting cell cycle at G2M/S phase, but do not induce apoptosis. Senescence is induced through the p53/p21Cip1/Waf1 and p16INK4a/Rb pathways, depending on the RSV metabolite, and requires ABC transporters, but not estrogen receptors.ConclusionsThese data suggest that RSV metabolites, as found in MT from BC patients, are not de‐conjugated to release free RSV, but enter the cells and may exert long‐term tumor‐senescent chemoprevention.
A circularly polarized hybrid plasmonic nanoantenna
Authors: Mohanta Jyotirmaya , Meher Priya R. , Behera Bikash R. , Mishra Sanjeev K. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractIn this article, a waveguide fed circularly polarized hybrid plasmonic nanoantenna (CP‐HPNA) is proposed for nanophotonic applications, at 1550 nm wavelength telecommunication window. Here, the concept of hybrid plasmonic waveguide (HPWG) in conjunction with transmission line model is well incorporated in terms of electromagnetics. The proposed antenna geometry is an L‐hexagonal shaped patch fed by HPWG. The FDTD computational technique through CST microwave studio is used for design, simulation and characterization of CP‐HPNA. The proposed antenna exhibits an impedance bandwidth of 4.07 THz (S11 ≤ −10 dB) and prior to that, complete circular polarization is achieved, with an axial bandwidth of 5.49 THz (AR ≤ 3 dB). It shows broadside pattern with realized gain of 4.64 dB, directivity of 8.10 dBi and antenna efficiency of 63.98% at 1550 nm wavelength. With observed outcomes, the proposed antenna model finds its way‐out for many nanophotonic applications, ranging from the fields of optical sensing to lidars and in wireless optical communications from interconnects to intraconnects of chips. In correspondence to its utility, this research article, can significantly be treated as a link for visualizing the concepts of optical through classical electromagnetism.
Biological fingerprint using scout computed tomographic images for positive patient identification
Authors: Ueda Yasuyuki , Morishita Junji , Hongyo Tadashi 
Published: August 2019

PurposeManagement of patient identification is an important issue that should be addressed to ensure patient safety while using modern healthcare systems. Patient identification errors can be mainly attributed to human errors or system problems. An error‐tolerant system, such as a biometric system, should be able to prevent or mitigate potential misidentification occurrences. Herein, we propose the use of scout computed tomography (CT) images for biometric patient identity verification and present the quantitative accuracy outcomes of using this technique in a clinical setting.MethodsScout CT images acquired from routine examinations of the chest, abdomen, and pelvis were used as biological fingerprints. We evaluated the resemblance of the follow‐up with the baseline image by comparing the estimates of the image characteristics using local feature extraction and matching algorithms. The verification performance was evaluated according to the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves, area under the ROC curves (AUC), and equal error rates (EER). The closed‐set identification performance was evaluated according to the cumulative match characteristic curves and rank‐one identification rates (R1).ResultsA total of 619 (383 males, 236 females, age range 21–92 years) patients who underwent baseline and follow‐up chest–abdomen–pelvis CT scans on the same CT system were analyzed for verification and closed‐set identification. The highest performances of AUC, EER, and R1 were 0.998, 1.22%, and 99.7%, respectively, in the considered evaluation range. Furthermore, to determine whether the performance decreased in the presence of metal artifacts, the patients were classified into two groups, namely scout images with (255 patients) and without (364 patients) metal artifacts, and the significance test was performed for two ROC curves using the unpaired Delong's test. No significant differences were found between the ROC performances in the presence and absence of metal artifacts when using a sufficient number of local features. Our proposed technique demonstrated that the performance was comparable to that of conventional biometrics methods when using chest, abdomen, and pelvis scout CT images. Thus, this method has the potential to discover inadequate patient information using the available chest, abdomen, and pelvis scout CT image; moreover, it can be applied widely to routine adult CT scans where no significant body structure effects due to illness or aging are present.ConclusionsOur proposed method can obtain accurate patient information available at the point‐of‐care and help healthcare providers verify whether a patient’s identity is matched accurately. We believe the method to be a key solution for patient misidentification problems.
Interrupting Sitting Time with Simple Resistance Activities Lowers Postprandial Insulinemia in Adults with Overweight or Obesity
Authors: Larsen Robyn , Ali Hamza , Dempsey Paddy C. , Grace Megan , Dillon Francis , Kingwell Bronwyn A. , Cohen Neale , Owen Neville , Green Daniel J. , Dunstan David W. 
Published: August 2019

ObjectiveThis study aimed to examine the effects on postprandial glucose and insulin responses of interrupting sitting time with brief bouts of simple resistance activities (SRAs) in adults with overweight or obesity.MethodsParticipants (n = 19) were recruited for a randomized crossover trial involving the following two 6‐hour conditions: (1) uninterrupted sitting or (2) sitting with 3‐minute bouts of SRAs (half‐squats, calf raises, gluteal contractions, and knee raises) every 30 minutes (total duration = 27 minutes). Incremental areas under the curve (iAUC) for glucose, insulin, and insulin:glucose ratio were analyzed as prespecified secondary outcomes using mixed‐effects log‐linear regression adjusted for sex, BMI, treatment order, and preprandial values. Results are reported as multiplicative change (exponentiated coefficient [EC] with 95% CI) relative to the control condition.ResultsGlucose iAUC during the SRA condition was not significantly different from the prolonged sitting condition (EC = 0.92; 95% CI: 0.73‐1.16; P = 0.43). However, SRAs lowered the postprandial insulin response by 26% (EC = 0.74; 95% CI: 0.64‐0.85; P < 0.001), and there was a 23% lowering of the iAUC for insulin:glucose (EC = 0.77; 95% CI: 0.67‐0.89; P < 0.001).ConclusionsIn adults with overweight or obesity, frequent interruptions to sitting time with SRAs lowered postprandial insulin responses and insulin:glucose. These findings may have implications for mitigating cardiometabolic risk in adults with overweight or obesity who engage in prolonged periods of sitting.
Positive predictive value of ICD‐10 codes to detect anaphylaxis due to vaccination: A validation study
Authors: Mesfin Yonatan Moges , Cheng Allen C. , Tran Aimy H.L. , Buttery Jim 
Published: August 2019

AbstractPurposeTo validate the use of selected International Classification of Disease Codes 10th revision (ICD‐10) to predict (positive predictive value) anaphylaxis due to vaccination using emergency department (ED) data.MethodsWe conducted a retrospective study using ED encounter data from a large tertiary‐care teaching hospital, Monash Medical Centre, Melbourne, Australia. We searched all ED encounters potentially due to anaphylaxis after vaccination, between 1 January 2010 and 31 December 2018, using ICD‐10‐CM codes T80.5, T80.6, T88.1, T88.6, and T78.2. Health records of potential cases were examined to determine if they met the Brighton Collaboration (BC) criteria for anaphylaxis. We calculated the PPV to evaluate the accuracy of the selected ICD‐10‐CM codes in predicting anaphylaxis due to vaccination.ResultsOf the 69 health records identified and reviewed, 29 (42.2%) met the criteria for anaphylaxis regardless of the cause, and 24.6% (17/69) of records were confirmed as anaphylaxis triggered by vaccination (low positive predictive value). However, of the 23 records identified using ICD‐10‐CM code T80.5, 22 were classified as anaphylaxis cases regardless of the cause, and 12 were anaphylaxis due to vaccination cases giving PPV of 95.7% and 52.2%, respectively.ConclusionsGiven that there is no specific ICD‐10‐CM code for anaphylaxis due to vaccination, ICD‐10‐CM code T80.5 may be suitable to monitor anaphylaxis due to vaccination in the ED setting. The current study was conducted at a single centre and needs to be confirmed by future multicentre studies.
Coassembly of Gold Nanoclusters with Nucleic Acids: Sensing, Bioimaging, and Gene Transfection
Authors: Wang Yanan , Wang Xiaojuan , Ma Xiqi , Chen Qi , He Hua , Nau Werner M. , Huang Fang 
Published: August 2019

AbstractAssemblies of biopolymers and nanomaterials have become a powerful tool to build up new architectures with growing application potential. Herein, novel peptide‐stabilized fluorescent gold nanoclusters, K4‐AuNCs, are utilized as building blocks to investigate their coassembly with nucleic acids. K4‐AuNCs possess ultrasmall size (1.8 nm), red fluorescence emission, and positively charged surfaces, which are able to coassemble with DNA or RNA strands through electrostatic interactions to form pitaya‐like hybrid nanoparticles ranging from 30 to 80 nm, accompanied by an up to 3.5‐fold fluorescence enhancement. The coassembly also forms intracellularly, rendering K4‐AuNCs an attractive dye for specific in vivo nucleic acid staining, due to their higher photostability than commercial fluorescent probes such as SYTO 9. This work also demonstrates that the coassembly of K4‐AuNCs with nucleic acids can be applied to gene transfection and to build up a sensing platform to detect DNase/RNase activity or to screen their inhibitors. The new strategy greatly extends the application range of gold nanoclusters into the development of new nucleic acid detection methods and novel hybrid materials.
The ‘Omics’ of Epigenetic Modulation by Valproic Acid Treatment in Traumatic Brain Injury—What We Know and What the Future Holds
Authors: Bhatti Umar F. , Williams Aaron M. , Georgoff Patrick E. , Alam Hasan B. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractTraumatic brain injury (TBI) is a heterogeneous injury that is a major cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide. Epigenetic modulation through the alteration of cellular acetylation by valproic acid (VPA) administration has shown promise as a novel pharmacological treatment for TBI. It improves clinical outcomes through multiple mechanisms, many of which are still poorly understood. In recent years, omics technologies have emerged as a promising strategy to detect molecular changes at the cellular level. This review highlights the use of these high throughput technologies in advancing the understanding of epigenetic modulation by VPA in TBI. It also describes the future role of omics techniques in developing a point of care test to guide patient selection for VPA administration.
The Aging Studies of the Low HCl Content Composite Rocket Propellant
Authors: Bogusz Rafał , Magnuszewska Paulina 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThis paper presents technological research on the storage time of a composite rocket propellant with a low HCl content in combustion products, based on sodium nitrate. For research were prepared and casted in laboratory scale, a composite rocket propellant based on sodium nitrate and HTPB system, and as the reference sample, the classic composite rocket propellants based on the HTPB/AP system. Both propellants have been subjected to laboratory‐scale aging in accordance with the STANAG accelerated aging protocol, by 5 and 10 years. For each propellant, aged and not aged, parameters such as calorific value, hardness, sensitivity to the mechanical stimuli and decomposition temperature were determined. For the ballistic evaluation of the investigated propellants, the Laboratory Rocket Motor technique with the indirect burning rate determination method, was used. Based on the obtained data, was found that the composite rocket propellants based on sodium nitrate are technological and can be used in the rocket propulsion applications.
High‐resolution structural analysis shows how different crystallographic environments can induce alternative modes of binding of a phosphotyrosine peptide to the SH2 domain of Fer tyrosine kinase
Authors: Matsuura Yoshiyuki 
Published: August 2019

AbstractFes and Fes‐related (Fer) protein tyrosine kinases (PTKs) comprise a subfamily of nonreceptor tyrosine kinases characterized by a unique multidomain structure composed of an N‐terminal Fer/CIP4 homology‐Bin/Amphiphysin/Rvs (F‐BAR) domain, a central Src homology 2 (SH2) domain, and a C‐terminal PTK domain. Fer is ubiquitously expressed, and upregulation of Fer has been implicated in various human cancers. The PTK activity of Fes has been shown to be positively regulated by the binding of phosphotyrosine‐containing ligands to the SH2 domain. Here, the X‐ray crystal structure of human Fer SH2 domain bound to a phosphopeptide that has D‐E‐pY‐E‐N‐V‐D sequence is reported at 1.37 å resolution. The asymmetric unit (ASU) contains six Fer‐phosphopeptide complexes, and the structure reveals three distinct binding modes for the same phosphopeptide. At four out of the six binding sites in the ASU, the phosphopeptide binds to Fer SH2 domain in a type I β‐turn conformation, and this could be the optimal binding mode of this phosphopeptide. At the other two binding sites in the ASU, it appears that spatial proximity of neighboring SH2 domains in the crystal induces alternative modes of binding of this phosphopeptide.
The characterization of pc‐polylines representing protein backbones
Authors: Wang Lincong , Zhang Yao , Zou Shuxue 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe backbone of a protein is typically represented as either a C
α‐polyline, a three‐dimensional (3D) polyline that passes through the C
α atoms, or a tuple of ϕ,ψ pairs while its fold is usually assigned using the 3D topological arrangement of the secondary structure elements (SSEs). It is tricky to obtain the SSE composition for a protein from the C
α‐polyline representation while its 3D SSE arrangement is not apparent in the two‐dimensional (2D) ϕ,ψ representation. In this article, we first represent the backbone of a protein as a pc‐polyline that passes through the centers of its peptide planes. We then analyze the pc‐polylines for six different sets of proteins with high quality crystal structures. The results show that SSE composition becomes recognizable in pc‐polyline presentation and consequently the geometrical property of the pc‐polyline of a protein could be used to assign its secondary structure. Furthermore, our analysis finds that for each of the six sets the total length of a pc‐polyline increases linearly with the number of the peptide planes. Interestingly a comparison of the six regression lines shows that they have almost identical slopes but different intercepts. Most interestingly there exist decent linear correlations between the intercepts of the six lines and either the average helix contents or the average sheet contents and between the intercepts and the average backbone hydrogen bonding energetics. Finally, we discuss the implications of the identified correlations for structure classification and protein folding, and the potential applications of pc‐polyline representation to structure prediction and protein design.
Target highlights in CASP13: Experimental target structures through the eyes of their authors
Authors: Lepore Rosalba , Kryshtafovych Andriy , Alahuhta Markus , Veraszto Harshul A. , Bomble Yannick J. , Bufton Joshua C. , Bullock Alex N. , Caba Cody , Cao Hongnan , Davies Owen R. , Desfosses Ambroise , Dunne Matthew , Fidelis Krzysztof , Goulding Celia W. , Gurusaran Manickam , Gutsche Irina , Harding Christopher J. , Hartmann Marcus D. , Hayes Christopher S. , Joachimiak Andrzej , Leiman Petr G. , Loppnau Peter , Lovering Andrew L. , Lunin Vladimir V. , Michalska Karolina , Mir‐Sanchis Ignacio , Mitra AK , Moult John , Phillips Jr George N. , Pinkas Daniel M. , Rice Phoebe A. , Tong Yufeng , Topf Maya , Walton Jonathan D. , Schwede Torsten 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe functional and biological significance of selected CASP13 targets are described by the authors of the structures. The structural biologists discuss the most interesting structural features of the target proteins and assess whether these features were correctly reproduced in the predictions submitted to the CASP13 experiment.
A robust control chart for simple linear profiles in two‐stage processes
Authors: Hassanvand Farid , Samimi Yaser , Shahriari Hamid 
Published: August 2019

AbstractIn many manufacturing systems, the final product is the result of several dependent stages. In particular, in multistage processes, the quality characteristics of downstream stages are influenced by those in the earlier stages (upstream). This property is referred to as the cascade property, which, if disregarded in process monitoring, may bring about misleading results for the subsequent fault diagnosis. Considering the relationships among consecutive stages of the process, the U statistic is the most widely used method for monitoring multistage processes. Using this method, our paper deals with monitoring a two‐stage process where quality characteristics are represented as simple linear profiles. To guard against the detrimental effect of contaminated data in the phase I of statistical process control, two well‐known robust M‐estimators, including Huber's and bi‐square, are employed for estimation of the process parameters. Under different degrees of autocorrelation across stages of the process and also for different contamination rates, the performances of the proposed methods are compared with that of the conventional least‐square method. From the viewpoint of estimation performance measures, including unbiasedness and efficiency, along with the capability of the control chart in identifying the true source of variation, extensive simulation results reveal that robust estimators outperform the traditional method in a two‐stage process. Meanwhile, it should be noted when there is contamination only in the first stage of the process, the least‐square method performs slightly better.
Use case specifications: How complete are they?
Authors: Tiwari Saurabh , Gupta Atul 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe flexibility of the use cases in specifying requirements from informal textual descriptions to more formal ones makes them usable in different contexts and purposes. However, the versatility of use cases regarding their admissible structure raises a natural concern about the specification completeness. This paper reports on the analysis of the eight different variants of use case template regarding their functional completeness, ability to express the set of particular functionalities, by comparing their information contents exercised by comprehensive questionnaires on five different problem specifications. The questionnaire was obtained from two sources: one based on the understanding of the functionality to be implemented and the other based on the functionality documented in eight different use case templates under study. Our results suggested that use cases can be used to specify a complete set of requirements intended to develop a software system. We found that the choice of a use case template influences the completeness of the specification. A more detailed analysis of the eight different variants of use case template resulted in the identification of 21 significant use case elements. We showed that by incorporating these significant use case elements in a given template, the completeness of the specification could be further enhanced.
Obstacles to the use of complementary and alternative medicine by primary care physicians: Preliminary study
Authors: Sugito Ryosuke , Son Daisuke 
Published: August 2019

ABSTRACTAimComplementary and alternative medicine is increasingly being used by primary care physicians in Japan, although this usage has not been studied in detail, and the barriers in the way of its use by physicians have not been explored. The aim of this study was therefore to clarify the factors that interfere with the use of complementary and alternative medicine, from the perspective of the primary care physicians.MethodsWe conducted interviews with primary care physicians who use complementary and alternative medicine in their practice. Transcripts of interviews were analyzed qualitatively using the Steps for Coding and Theorization method.ResultsFour categories and 15 concepts were extracted. The categories generated were ‘Awareness of health‐care providers’, ‘Characteristics of complementary and alternative medicine’, ‘Medical system and organization’ and ‘Regional factors’.ConclusionVarious factors interfere in the use of complementary and alternative medicine by primary care physicians. Approaches to overcome lack of education and insufficient collaboration among regional health professionals need to be developed. Future studies are needed to generalize the present findings in order to enhance integrative medicine and the utilization of complementary and alternative medicine in primary care settings.