bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Attitudes towards the dying and death anxiety in acute care nurses – can a workshop make any difference? A mixed-methods evaluation
Authors: Cheong Chin Yee , Ha Ngoc Huong Lien , Tan Laurence Lean Chin , Low James A. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractObjectivesIn Singapore, the core curriculum for end-of-life (EOL) care used in nurse training courses is limited. Only 45% of nurses indicated familiarity with inpatient palliative care. Nurses who lack skills in palliative care may develop anxiety and negative attitudes towards caring for dying patients. We explored whether a two-day, multimodal EOL care workshop could reduce nurses’ death anxiety and improve nurses’ skills, knowledge, and attitude towards palliative care.MethodsForty-five nurses participated in the workshop. At baseline before and at six weeks after, a 20-item knowledge-based questionnaire and the Death Attitude Profile-Revised (DAP-R) were administered. Six weeks post-workshop, in-depth interviews were conducted. We employed descriptive statistics, student paired samplest-test and inductive thematic analysis.ResultsThere was a significant improvement in nurses’ knowledge score (p< 0.01) and reduction in their death anxiety score (p< 0.01). Fear of Death (p= 0.025) and Death Avoidance (p= 0.047) sub-scores decreased significantly. However, the remaining domains such as Neutral Acceptance, Approach Acceptance, and Escape Acceptance did not show any significant difference, although Escape Acceptance showed a trend towards a reduced score (p= 0.063). After the workshop, more nurses adopted the Neutral Acceptance stance (76.2%), and none of them fell into the Fear of Death subdomain. Most nurses interviewed reported a positive change in their knowledge, attitudes, and practice even after the workshop.Significance of resultsThe multimodal palliative care workshop was useful in improving nurses’ EOL knowledge and reducing their anxiety towards death. The positive change in nurses’ attitudes and practices were noted to be sustained for at least six weeks after the intervention.
Stability of Pulse‐Like Earthquake Ruptures
Authors: Brantut Nicolas , Garagash Dmitry I. , Noda Hiroyuki 
Published: August 2019

AbstractPulse‐like ruptures arise spontaneously in many elastodynamic rupture simulations and seem to be the dominant rupture mode along crustal faults. Pulse‐like ruptures propagating under steady state conditions can be efficiently analyzed theoretically, but it remains unclear how they can arise and how they evolve if perturbed. Using thermal pressurization as a representative constitutive law, we conduct elastodynamic simulations of pulse‐like ruptures and determine the spatiotemporal evolution of slip, slip rate, and pulse width perturbations induced by infinitesimal perturbations in background stress. These simulations indicate that steady state pulses driven by thermal pressurization are unstable. If the initial stress perturbation is negative, ruptures stop; conversely, if the perturbation is positive, ruptures grow and transition to either self‐similar pulses (at low background stress) or expanding cracks (at elevated background stress). Based on a dynamic dislocation model, we develop an elastodynamic equation of motion for slip pulses and demonstrate that steady state slip pulses are unstable if their accrued slip b is a decreasing function of the uniform background stress τb. This condition is satisfied by slip pulses driven by thermal pressurization. The equation of motion also predicts quantitatively the growth rate of perturbations and provides a generic tool to analyze the propagation of slip pulses. The unstable character of steady state slip pulses implies that this rupture mode is a key one determining the minimum stress conditions for sustainable ruptures along faults, that is, their “strength.” Furthermore, slip pulse instabilities can produce a remarkable complexity of rupture dynamics, even under uniform background stress conditions and material properties.
Influence of Near‐Surface Currents on the Global Dispersal of Marine Microplastic
Authors: Wichmann David , Delandmeter Philippe , van Sebille Erik 
Published: August 2019

AbstractBuoyant microplastic in the ocean can be submerged to deeper layers through biofouling and the consequent loss of buoyancy or by wind‐induced turbulent mixing at the ocean surface. Yet the fact that particles in deeper layers are transported by currents that are different from those at the surface has not been explored so far. We compute 10‐year trajectories of 1 million virtual particles with the Parcels framework for different particle advection scenarios to investigate the effect of near‐surface currents on global particle dispersal. We simulate the global‐scale transport of passive microplastic for (i) particles constrained to different depths from the surface to 120‐m depth, (ii) particles that are randomly displaced in the vertical with uniform distribution, (iii) particles subject to surface mixing, and (iv) for a 3‐D passive advection model. Our results show that the so called “garbage patches” become more “leaky” in deeper layers and completely disappear at about 60‐m depth. At the same time, subsurface currents can transport significant amounts of microplastic from subtropical and subpolar regions to polar regions, providing a possible mechanism to explain why plastic is found in these remote areas. Finally, we show that the final distribution in the surface turbulent mixing scenario with particle rise speed wr = 0.003 m/s is very similar to the distribution of plastic at the surface. This demonstrates that it is not necessary to incorporate surface mixing for global long‐term simulations, although this might change on more local scales and for particles with lower rise speeds.
Recent Contributions of Theory to Our Understanding of the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation
Authors: Johnson Helen L. , Cessi Paola , Marshall David P. , Schloesser Fabian , Spall Michael A. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractRevolutionary observational arrays, together with a new generation of ocean and climate models, have provided new and intriguing insights into the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation (AMOC) over the last two decades. Theoretical models have also changed our view of the AMOC, providing a dynamical framework for understanding the new observations and the results of complex models. In this paper we review recent advances in conceptual understanding of the processes maintaining the AMOC. We discuss recent theoretical models that address issues such as the interplay between surface buoyancy and wind forcing, the extent to which the AMOC is adiabatic, the importance of mesoscale eddies, the interaction between the middepth North Atlantic Deep Water cell and the abyssal Antarctic Bottom Water cell, the role of basin geometry and bathymetry, and the importance of a three‐dimensional multiple‐basin perspective. We review new paradigms for deep water formation in the high‐latitude North Atlantic and the impact of diapycnal mixing on vertical motion in the ocean interior. And we discuss advances in our understanding of the AMOC's stability and its scaling with large‐scale meridional density gradients. Along with reviewing theories for the mean AMOC, we consider models of AMOC variability and discuss what we have learned from theory about the detection and meridional propagation of AMOC anomalies. Simple theoretical models remain a vital and powerful tool for articulating our understanding of the AMOC and identifying the processes that are most critical to represent accurately in the next generation of numerical ocean and climate models.
Ocean‐Atmosphere Trajectories of Extended Drought in Southwestern North America
Authors: Parsons Luke A. , Coats Sloan 
Published: August 2019

AbstractMultiyear droughts are a common occurrence in southwestern North America (SWNA), but it is unclear what causes these persistent dry periods. The ocean‐atmosphere conditions coinciding with droughts have traditionally been studied using correlation and composite methods, which suggest that cool conditions in the tropical Pacific are associated with SWNA droughts and warm conditions are associated with wet periods in SWNA. Nevertheless, the extent to which multiyear droughts are truly consistent with this paradigm remains unknown. This is, in part, because the temporal trajectory of ocean‐atmosphere conditions during these dry periods have not been sufficiently characterized. Here we examine the continuum of ocean‐atmosphere trajectories before, during, and after multiyear droughts in SWNA using observation‐based data and an ensemble of climate model simulations from the Community Earth System Model. An examination of sea surface temperature patterns at the beginning, middle, and end of SWNA droughts shows that an El Niño event tends to precede SWNA droughts, a cool tropical Pacific occurs during droughts, and central Pacific El Niño events end droughts. However, moderate El Niño events can occur in the middle of persistent droughts, so a warm tropical Pacific does not always end these dry periods. These findings are important for drought predictability and emphasize the need to improve simulations of the magnitude, life cycle, and frequency of occurrence of El Niño events.
Coral Records of Temperature and Salinity in the Tropical Western Pacific Reveal Influence of the Pacific Decadal Oscillation Since the Late Nineteenth Century
Authors: Ramos R. D. , Goodkin N. F. , Siringan F. P. , Hughen K. A. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe Pacific Decadal Oscillation (PDO) is a complex aggregate of different atmospheric and oceanographic forcings spanning the extratropical and tropical Pacific. The PDO has widespread climatic and societal impacts, thus understanding the processes contributing to PDO variability is critical. Distinguishing PDO‐related variability is particularly challenging in the tropical Pacific due to the dominance of the El Niño–Southern Oscillation and influence of anthropogenic warming signals. Century‐long western Pacific records of subannual sea surface temperature (SST) and sea surface salinity (SSS), derived from coral Sr/Ca and δ18O profiles, respectively, allow for evaluating different climatic sensitivities and identifying PDO‐related variability in the region. The summer Sr/Ca‐SST record provides evidence of a significant SST increase, likely tied to greenhouse gas emissions. Anthropogenic warming is masked in the winter Sr/Ca‐SST record by interannual to multidecadal scale changes driven by the East‐Asian Winter Monsoon and the PDO. Decadal climate variability during winter is strongly correlated to the PDO, in agreement with other PDO records in the region. The PDO also exerts influence on the SSS difference between the dry and wet season coral δ18O (δ18Oc)‐SSS records through water advection. The PDO and El Niño–Southern Oscillation constructively combine to enhance/reduce advection of saline Kuroshio waters at our site. Overall, we are able to demonstrate that climate records from a tropical reef environment significantly capture PDO variability and related changes over the period of a century. This implies that the tropical western Pacific is a key site in understanding multifrequency climate variability, including its impact on tropical climate at longer timescales.
New Eocene primate from Myanmar shares dental characters with African Eocene crown anthropoids
Authors: Jaeger Jean-Jacques , Chavasseau Olivier , Lazzari Vincent , Naing Soe Aung , Sein Chit , Le Maître Anne , Shwe Hla , Chaimanee Yaowalak 
Published: August 2019

AbstractRecent discoveries of older and phylogenetically more primitive basal anthropoids in China and Myanmar, the eosimiiforms, support the hypothesis that Asia was the place of origins of anthropoids, rather than Africa. Similar taxa of eosimiiforms have been discovered in the late middle Eocene of Myanmar and North Africa, reflecting a colonization event that occurred during the middle Eocene. However, these eosimiiforms were probably not the closest ancestors of the African crown anthropoids. Here we describe a new primate from the middle Eocene of Myanmar that documents a new clade of Asian anthropoids. It possesses several dental characters found only among the African crown anthropoids and their nearest relatives, indicating that several of these characters have appeared within Asian clades before being recorded in Africa. This reinforces the hypothesis that the African colonization of anthropoids was the result of several dispersal events, and that it involved more derived taxa than eosimiiforms.
Aortic pathology from protein kinase G activation is prevented by an antioxidant vitamin B12 analog
Authors: Schwaerzer Gerburg K. , Kalyanaraman Hema , Casteel Darren E. , Dalton Nancy D. , Gu Yusu , Lee Seunghoe , Zhuang Shunhui , Wahwah Nisreen , Schilling Jan M. , Patel Hemal H. , Zhang Qian , Makino Ayako , Milewicz Dianna M. , Peterson Kirk L. , Boss Gerry R. , Pilz Renate B. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractPeople heterozygous for an activating mutation in protein kinase G1 (PRKG1, p.Arg177Gln) develop thoracic aortic aneurysms and dissections (TAAD) as young adults. Here we report that mice heterozygous for the mutation have a three-fold increase in basal protein kinase G (PKG) activity, and develop age-dependent aortic dilation. Prkg1R177Q/+ aortas show increased smooth muscle cell apoptosis, elastin fiber breaks, and oxidative stress compared to aortas from wild type littermates. Transverse aortic constriction (TAC)—to increase wall stress in the ascending aorta—induces severe aortic pathology and mortality from aortic rupture in young mutant mice. The free radical-neutralizing vitamin B12-analog cobinamide completely prevents age-related aortic wall degeneration, and the unrelated anti-oxidant N-acetylcysteine ameliorates TAC-induced pathology. Thus, increased basal PKG activity induces oxidative stress in the aorta, raising concern about the widespread clinical use of PKG-activating drugs. Cobinamide could be a treatment for aortic aneurysms where oxidative stress contributes to the disease, including Marfan syndrome.
Lysosomal integral membrane protein-2 (LIMP-2/SCARB2) is involved in lysosomal cholesterol export
Authors: Heybrock Saskia , Kanerva Kristiina , Meng Ying , Ing Chris , Liang Anna , Xiong Zi-Jian , Weng Xialian , Ah Kim Young , Collins Richard , Trimble William , Pomès Régis , Privé Gilbert G. , Annaert Wim , Schwake Michael , Heeren Joerg , Lüllmann-Rauch Renate , Grinstein Sergio , Ikonen Elina , Saftig Paul , Neculai Dante 
Published: August 2019

AbstractThe intracellular transport of cholesterol is subject to tight regulation. The structure of the lysosomal integral membrane protein type 2 (LIMP-2, also known as SCARB2) reveals a large cavity that traverses the molecule and resembles the cavity in SR-B1 that mediates lipid transfer. The detection of cholesterol within the LIMP-2 structure and the formation of cholesterol−like inclusions in LIMP-2 knockout mice suggested the possibility that LIMP2 transports cholesterol in lysosomes. We present results of molecular modeling, crosslinking studies, microscale thermophoresis and cell-based assays that support a role of LIMP-2 in cholesterol transport. We show that the cavity in the luminal domain of LIMP-2 can bind and deliver exogenous cholesterol to the lysosomal membrane and later to lipid droplets. Depletion of LIMP-2 alters SREBP-2-mediated cholesterol regulation, as well as LDL-receptor levels. Our data indicate that LIMP-2 operates in parallel with Niemann Pick (NPC)-proteins, mediating a slower mode of lysosomal cholesterol export.
Incomplete influenza A virus genomes occur frequently but are readily complemented during localized viral spread
Authors: Jacobs Nathan T. , Onuoha Nina O. , Antia Alice , Steel John , Antia Rustom , Lowen Anice C. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractSegmentation of viral genomes into multiple RNAs creates the potential for replication of incomplete viral genomes (IVGs). Here we use a single-cell approach to quantify influenza A virus IVGs and examine their fitness implications. We find that each segment of influenza A/Panama/2007/99 (H3N2) virus has a 58% probability of being replicated in a cell infected with a single virion. Theoretical methods predict that IVGs carry high costs in a well-mixed system, as 3.6 virions are required for replication of a full genome. Spatial structure is predicted to mitigate these costs, however, and experimental manipulations of spatial structure indicate that local spread facilitates complementation. A virus entirely dependent on co-infection was used to assess relevance of IVGs in vivo. This virus grows robustly in guinea pigs, but is less infectious and does not transmit. Thus, co-infection allows IVGs to contribute to within-host spread, but complete genomes may be critical for transmission.
Molecular understanding of label-free second harmonic imaging of microtubules
Authors: Van Steenbergen V. , Boesmans W. , Li Z. , de Coene Y. , Vints K. , Baatsen P. , Dewachter I. , Ameloot M. , Clays K. , Vanden Berghe P. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractMicrotubules are a vital component of the cell’s cytoskeleton and their organization is crucial for healthy cell functioning. The use of label-free SH imaging of microtubules remains limited, as sensitive detection is required and the true molecular origin and main determinants required to generate SH from microtubules are not fully understood. Using advanced correlative imaging techniques, we identified the determinants of the microtubule-dependent SH signal. Microtubule polarity, number and organization determine SH signal intensity in biological samples. At the molecular level, we show that the GTP-bound tubulin dimer conformation is fundamental for microtubules to generate detectable SH signals. We show that SH imaging can be used to study the effects of microtubule-targeting drugs and proteins and to detect changes in tubulin conformations during neuronal maturation. Our data provide a means to interpret and use SH imaging to monitor changes in the microtubule network in a label-free manner.
Molecular Modeling of ALK L1198F and/or G1202R Mutations to Determine Differential Crizotinib Sensitivity
Authors: Chuang Yu-Chung , Huang Bo-Yen , Chang Hsin-Wen , Yang Chia-Ning 
Published: August 2019

AbstractAnaplastic lymphoma kinase (ALK) is a receptor tyrosine kinase that has been recognized as a therapeutic target for EML4-ALK fusion-positive nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC) treatment using type I kinase inhibitors such as crizotinib to take over the ATP binding site. According to Shaw’s measurements, ALK carrying G1202R mutation shows reduced response to crizotinib (IC50 = 382 nM vs. IC50 = 20 nM for wild-type), whereas L1198F mutant is more responsive (IC50 = 0.4 nM). Interestingly, the double mutant L1198F/G1202R maintains a similar response (IC50 = 31 nM) to the wild-type. Herein we conducted molecular modeling simulations to elucidate the varied crizotinib sensitivities in three mutants carrying L1198F and/or G1202R. Both L1198 and G1202 are near the ATP pocket. Mutation G1202R causes steric hindrance that blocks crizotinib accessibility, which greatly reduces efficacy, whereas mutation L1198F enlarges the binding pocket entrance and hydrophobically interacts with crizotinib to enhance sensitivity. With respect to the double mutant L1198F/G1202R, F1198 indirectly pulls R1202 away from the binding entrance and consequently alleviates the steric obstacle introduced by R1202. These results demonstrated how the mutated residues tune the crizotinib response and may assist kinase inhibitor development especially for ALK G1202R, analogous to the ROS1 G2302R and MET G1163R mutations that are also resistant to crizotinib treatment in NSCLC.
Experimental observation of gain in a resonantly pumped Pr3+-doped chalcogenide glass mid-infrared fibre amplifier notwithstanding the signal excited-state absorption
Authors: Shen Meili , Furniss David , Farries Mark , Jayasuriya Dinuka , Tang Zhuoqi , Sojka Lukasz , Sujecki Slawomir , Benson Trevor M. , Seddon Angela B. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractWe demonstrate a maximum gain of 4.6 dB at a signal wavelength of 5.28 μm in a 4.1 μm resonantly pumped Pr3+-doped selenide-based chalcogenide glass fibre amplifier of length 109 mm, as well as a new signal excited-stated absorption (ESA) at signal wavelengths around 5.5 μm. This work to the best of our knowledge is the first experimental demonstration of gain at mid-infrared (MIR) wavelengths in a Pr3+-doped chalcogenide fibre amplifier. The signal ESA of the fibre is attributed to the transition 3H6 → (3F4, 3F3) after the pump ESA (3H5 → 3H6) at a pump wavelength of 4.1 μm, which absorbs the MIR signal at wavelengths of 5.37, 5.51 and 5.57 μm, and so spoils the amplifier’s performance at these wavelengths. Thus, this signal ESA should be suppressed in a resonantly pumped Pr3+-doped selenide-based chalcogenide fibre amplifier.
Modelling the impacts of climate change on riverine thermal regimes in western Canada’s largest Pacific watershed
Authors: Islam Siraj Ul , Hay Rachel W. , Déry Stephen J. , Booth Barry P. 
Published: August 2019

AbstractQuantification of climate change impacts on the thermal regimes of rivers in British Columbia (BC) is crucial given their importance to aquatic ecosystems. Using the Air2Stream model, we investigate the impact of both air temperature and streamflow changes on river water temperatures from 1950 to 2015 across BC’s 234,000 km2Fraser River Basin (FRB). Model results show the FRB’s summer water temperatures rose by nearly 1.0 °C during 1950–2015 with 0.47 °C spread across 17 river sites. For most of these sites, such increases in average summer water temperature have doubled the number of days exceeding 20 °C, the water temperature that, if exceeded, potentially increases the physiological stress of salmon during migration. Furthermore, river sites, especially those in the upper and middle FRB, show significant associations between Pacific Ocean teleconnections and regional water temperatures. A multivariate linear regression analysis reveals that air temperature primarily controls simulated water temperatures in the FRB by capturing ~80% of its explained variance with secondary impacts through river discharge. Given such increases in river water temperature, salmon returning to spawn in the Fraser River and its tributaries are facing continued and increasing physical challenges now and potentially into the future.