bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Organic osmolytes preserve the function of the developing tight junction in ultraviolet B-irradiated rat epidermal keratinocytes
Authors: El-Chami Cécile , Haslam Iain S. , Steward Martin C. , O’Neill Catherine A. 
Published: March 2018

AbstractEpidermal barrier function is provided by the highly keratinised stratum corneum and also by tight junctions (TJs) in the granular layer of skin. The development of the TJ barrier significantly deteriorates in response to ultraviolet B radiation (UVB). Following exposure to UVB, keratinocytes accumulate organic osmolytes, which are known to preserve cell volume during water stress. Since TJs are intimately associated with control of water homeostasis in skin, we hypothesised that there may be a direct influence of osmolytes on TJ development. Exposure of rat epidermal keratinocytes (REKs) to a single dose of UVB reduced the function of developing TJs. This was concomitant with dislocalisation of claudin-1 and claudin-4 from the keratinocyte plasma membrane, phosphorylation of occludin and elevation of reactive oxygen species (ROS). In the presence of organic osmolytes, these effects were negated but were independent of the effects of these molecules on cell volume, elevation of ROS or the gene expression of TJ proteins. These data suggest that organic osmolytes affect TJs via post-translational mechanism(s) possibly involving protection of the native conformation of TJ proteins.
A complete, homozygous CRX deletion causing nullizygosity is a new genetic mechanism for Leber congenital amaurosis
Authors: Ibrahim M. T. , Alarcon-Martinez T. , Lopez I. , Fajardo N. , Chiang J. , Koenekoop R. K. 
Published: March 2018

AbstractCRX is a transcription factor required for activating the expression of many photoreceptor-neuron genes. CRX may be mutated in three forms of human blindness; Leber congenital amaurosis (LCA), cone-rod degeneration (CRD) and retinitis pigmentosa (RP). The pathogenic mechanism in most cases is likely dominant negative, with gain of function. We report a novel, complete homozygous CRX deletion in LCA. We identified a Lebanese family with 3 affected LCA cases. The proband was sequenced by NGS. Quantitative PCR, array comparative genomic hybridization, and long range PCR were performed. Full eye examinations, OCT and photography were performed. We identified a homozygous 56,000 bp deletion of CRX, which co-segregates and is heterozygous in four parents, who report normal vision. The blind children with LCA manifest severe retinal degeneration, a phenotype typical for CRX and LCA. We hypothesized that a single copy of CRX (haplo-insufficiency) in the causes mild abnormal foveal development, but not LCA. Two parents had significant inner and outer foveal and photoreceptor abnormalities. This is the first reported case of a homozygous, complete CRX deletion. Nullizygosity of CRX thus causes LCA while haplo-insufficiency of CRX causes abnormal foveal development, but not LCA. Our data suggest a new disease mechanism for CRX.
Increasing biomass demand enlarges negative forest nutrient budget areas in wood export regions
Authors: de Oliveira Garcia Wagner , Amann Thorben , Hartmann Jens 
Published: March 2018

AbstractEnergy production from biomass is one of the adopted strategies in different European countries to limit global warming to within the 1.5–2° targets after the 2015 UN climate agreement. This will motivate enhanced forest harvest rates and whole tree harvest to supply the increasing biomass demand. Negative nutrient budgets for certain timberland areas where geogenic nutrient supply cannot cope with harvesting rates will be one consequence. A spatially explicit analysis for a U.S. timberland area of 33,570 km2 reveals that for a minimum nutrient loss and supply scenario, negative nutrient budgets occur in 17, 20, 16, and almost 94% of the studied areas for Ca, K, Mg, and P, respectively. For a maximum nutrient loss (considering intensive harvesting) and supply assumptions, the affected areas increase to 50, 57, 45 and 96% for Ca, K, Mg, and P, respectively. In general, atmospheric nutrient deposition is of minor importance for the high weathering supply cases. Increasing global woody biomass demand may cause additional pressure on forested ecosystems, enlarging negative nutrient budget areas. If woody biomass demand rises, strategies to counterbalance nutrient gaps might be needed, for example, by preparing harvested areas with rock products, designed to replenish growth limiting nutrients, and/or implementing forest management strategies to minimize nutrient export.
Bacterial diversity and community structure in the rhizosphere of four Ferula species
Authors: Wang Xiuling , Wang Zhongke , Jiang Ping , He Yaling , Mu Yudi , Lv Xinhua , Zhuang Li 
Published: March 2018

AbstractThe medicinal value of the Ferula L. has been recognized for more than a thousand years. Wild stocks of Ferula have declined dramatically because high economic value has led to overharvesting. The objective of this study was to compare the rhizosphere microbial community of four Ferula species [F. syreitschikowii K.-Pol., F. gracilis (Ledeb.) Ledeb., F. ferulaeoides (Steud.) Korov., and F. lehmannii Boiss.] in the northern part of Xinjiang, China. The 16S rRNA sequences of rhizosphere bacteria were obtained with an Illumina paired-end sequence platform. Analysis was conducted to determine the richness and diversity of the rhizosphere bacterial communities. Two-way ANOVA indicated that plant species and soil depth had no significant effect on the alpha diversity of rhizobacteria. Linear discriminant analysis effect size showed that F. lehmannii followed by F. ferulaeoides had the most biomarkers and the highest taxon level, F. syreitschikowii and F. gracilis the least, while F. syreitschikowii and F. gracilis had the least property. This trend is consistent with reports that the medicinal value of F. lehmannii and F. ferulaeoides is greater than that of F. gracilis and F. syreitschikowii. The results of this study provide information that could be used for the commercial cultivation of Ferula spp.
Higher High-Sensitivity C Reactive Protein is Associated with Future Premature Ventricular Contraction: a Community Based Prospective Cohort Study
Authors: Chen Yue , Wu Shouling , Li Wenyu , Wang Binhao , Han Xu , Yang Yiheng , Guan Xumin , Yu Haixu , Khalid Bin Waleed , Li Huihua , Xia Yunlong 
Published: March 2018

AbstractWe aimed to determine whether hs-CRP is a predictor of future premature ventricular contraction (PVC) events in a community based population. A total of 101,510 participants were recruited at baseline (2006–2007). The follow-up visits were conducted every two years. Participants who were free from PVC at baseline and achieved the fourth visit, or diagnosed of PVC during the subsequent visits were included for analyses. Diagnosis of PVC was based on standard supine resting, 10-s 12-lead ECG. Cox regression was applied to evaluate the association between quartiles of hs-CRP and the incidence of PVCs. 60710 participants (male: 79.9%, mean age 49.4 years) were included for analyses. During a mean follow-up of 74.9 ± 7.4 months, 908 (1.5%) participants were diagnosed with PVC. Participants of the highest quartile of hs-CRP had significantly increased risk of PVC events as compared with the lowest quartile (HR 1.36; 95% CI 1.12–1.66); and stratified analyses showed similar result in males (HR 1.45; 95% CI 1.16–1.80), but not in females (HR 1.12; 95% CI 0.71–1.79). Moreover, elevated serum hs-CRP was associated with future PVC in participants without history of myocardial infarction or stroke (HR 1.34; 95% CI 1.09–1.65). Elevated hs-CRP was an independent predictor of PVC in Chinese population, especially in men.
Erythrocyte’s aging in microgravity highlights how environmental stimuli shape metabolism and morphology
Authors: Dinarelli S. , Longo G. , Dietler G. , Francioso A. , Mosca L. , Pannitteri G. , Boumis G. , Bellelli A. , Girasole M. 
Published: March 2018

AbstractThe determination of the function of cells in zero-gravity conditions is a subject of interest in many different research fields. Due to their metabolic unicity, the characterization of the behaviour of erythrocytes maintained in prolonged microgravity conditions is of particular importance. Here, we used a 3D-clinostat to assess the microgravity-induced modifications of the structure and function of these cells, by investigating how they translate these peculiar mechanical stimuli into modifications, with potential clinical interest, of the biochemical pathways and the aging processes. We compared the erythrocyte’s structural parameters and selected metabolic indicators that are characteristic of the aging in microgravity and standard static incubation conditions. The results suggest that, at first, human erythrocytes react to external stimuli by adapting their metabolic patterns and the rate of consumption of the cell resources. On longer timeframes, the cells translate even small differences in the environment mechanical solicitations into structural and morphologic features, leading to distinctive morphological patterns of aging.
System-wide coordinates of higher order functions in host-pathogen environment upon Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection
Authors: Parvati Sai Arun P. V. , Miryala Sravan Kumar , Rana Aarti , Kurukuti Sreenivasulu , Akhter Yusuf , Yellaboina Sailu 
Published: March 2018

AbstractMolecular signatures and their interactions behind the successful establishment of infection ofMycobacterium tuberculosis(Mtb) inside macrophage are largely unknown. In this work, we present an inter-system scale atlas of the gene expression signatures, their interactions and higher order gene functions of macrophage-Mtbenvironment at the time of infection. We have carried out large-scale meta-analysis of previously published gene expression microarray studies andhave identified a ranked list of differentially expressed genes and their higher order functions in intracellularMtbas well as the infected macrophage. Comparative analysis of gene expression signatures of intracellularMtbwith thein vitrodormantMtbat different hypoxic and oxidative stress conditions led to the identification of the large number ofMtbfunctional groups, namely operons, regulons and pathways that were common and unique to the intracellular environment and dormancy state. Some of the functions that are specific to intracellularMtbare cholesterol degradation and biosynthesis of immunomodulatory phenolic compounds. The molecular signatures we have identified to be involved in adaptation to different stress conditions in macrophage environment may be critical for designing therapeutic interventions against tuberculosis. And, our approach may be broadly applicable for investigating other host-pathogen interactions.
Kinematic features in patients with lateral discoid meniscus injury during walking
Authors: Lin Zefeng , Huang Wenhan , Ma Limin , Chen Lingling , Huang Zhiqiang , Zeng Xiaolong , Xia Hong , Zhang Yu 
Published: March 2018

AbstractAt present, there few studies on the kinematic features of lateral discoid meniscus injury. In this study, a motion capture system was used to investigate the motion characteristics of knees with lateral discoid meniscus after injury, and the differences between the knees with lateral meniscus and intact knees were compared. Fourteen patients diagnosed with unilateral lateral discoid meniscus injury, fourteen patients diagnosed with unilateral lateral meniscus injury, and fourteen normal subjects with healthy knees were recruited and grouped. Through kinematic gait analysis, it was found that the subjects in the two groups with meniscus injuries exhibited significantly smaller ranges of rotation and translation than those with healthy knees on the sagittal, coronal, and horizontal planes, but not in proximal-distal translation. Maximum lateral tibial translation and maximum internal tibial rotation in the knees with lateral discoid meniscus injury were significantly decreased compared to those with lateral meniscus injury. The results show that the kinematic features of knees with lateral discoid meniscus injury are statistically different than those of healthy knees and knees with lateral meniscus injury. This study provides an important reference for the dynamic function of knees with lateral discoid meniscus injury.
Electrospinning over Solvent Casting: Tuning of Mechanical Properties of Membranes
Authors: Ghosal Kajal , Chandra Aniruddha , G. Praveen , S. Snigdha , Roy Sudeep , Agatemor Christian , Thomas Sabu , Provaznik Ivo 
Published: March 2018

AbstractWe put forth our opinion regarding the enhanced plasticity and modulation of mechanical properties of polymeric films obtained through electrospinning process in this article. In majority of the pharmaceutical, biomedical, and packaging applications, it is desirable that polymer based matrices should be soft, flexible, and have a moderate toughness. In order to convert inflexible and brittle polymers, adjuvants in the form of plasticizers are added to improve the flexibility and smoothness of solvent casted polymer films. However, many of these plasticizers are under scrutiny for their toxic effects and environmental hazards. In addition, plasticizers also increase the cost of end products. This has motivated the scientific community to investigate alternate approaches. The changes imparted in membrane casted by electrospinning were tried to be proved by SEM, Mechanical property study, DSC and XRD studies. We have showed dramatic improvement in flexibility of poly(ε-caprolactone) based nanofiber matrix prepared by electrospinning method whereas solvent casting method without any plasticizer produced very brittle, inflexible film of PCL. Modulation capacity of mechanical properties is also recorded. We tried to support our opinion by citing several similar findings available in the open literature. The electrospinning method helps in plasticization and in tuning mechanical properties.
The Effect of Partner Reauditorization on Undergraduates' Attitudes Toward a Peer Who Communicates With Augmentative and Alternative Communication
Authors: Hyppa-Martin Jolene , Reichle Joe 
Published: March 2018

Purpose
This study compared college students' attitudes toward a peer who used a nonelectronic augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) system with and without a partner reauditorization strategy and also examined the effect of reauditorization on reported (a) ease of understanding the peer who used AAC, (b) willingness to engage in interactions with the peer who used AAC, and (c) preferences regarding AAC systems.

Method
Sixty-four participants completed surveys after viewing each of 2 counterbalanced conditions involving a video of a peer who communicated using AAC. Mean survey ratings were compared between conditions.

Results
Participants reported (a) more positive attitudes toward, (b) a greater ease in understanding, and (c) an increased willingness to interact with the peer who used nonelectronic AAC with partner reauditorization. Participants indicated that reauditorization contributed positively to the observed conversation. Reported preferences for nonelectronic AAC systems did not vary as a function of reauditorization, and most participants reported a preference for an electronic speech-generating device when compared with a nonelectronic system.

Conclusion
Partner reauditorization may play a role in improving attitudes that individuals hold about peers who use nonelectronic AAC and may contribute to ease of understanding the aided message and increased likelihood of peer interactions.
Comparison of Subjective and Objective Measures of Hearing, Auditory Processing, and Cognition Among Older Adults With and Without Mild Cognitive Impairment
Authors: Fausto Bernadette A. , Badana Adrian N. S. , Arnold Michelle L. , Lister Jennifer J. , Edwards Jerri D. 
Published: March 2018

Purpose
The aims of the study were to compare the Cognitive Self-Report Questionnaire (CSRQ; Spina, Ruff, & Mahncke, 2006) Hearing and Cognitive subscale ratings among older adults with and without probable mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and to examine whether self-report, as measured by the CSRQ, is associated with objective measures of hearing, auditory processing, and cognition.

Method
Data analyses included 97 older adults of ages 61–91 years. Participants completed the CSRQ self-report measure as well as a battery of objective measures, including pure-tone audiometry, degraded speech understanding, temporal processing, and memory.

Results

Older adults with probable MCI rated their cognitive abilities more poorly than those without MCI (
p
= .002), but ratings of hearing and auditory abilities did not differ between the two groups (
p
= .912). Age and CSRQ Hearing subscale ratings explained a significant proportion of variance in objective measures of hearing and degraded speech understanding (
R
2
= .39,
p
< .001). Age, sex, mental status, and CSRQ Cognition subscale ratings explained a significant proportion of variance in objective memory performance (
R
2
= .55,
p
< .001).

Conclusions
Taken together, these results suggest that the CSRQ is an appropriate self-report measure of hearing, cognition, and some aspects of auditory processing for older adults with and without probable MCI.
Gravitational wave driven mergers and coalescence time of supermassive black holes
Authors: Khan Fazeel Mahmood , Berczik Peter , Just Andreas 
Published: March 2018

Aims. The evolution of supermassive black holes (SMBHs) initially embedded in the centres of merging galaxies realised with a stellar mass function (SMF) is studied from the onset of galaxy mergers until coalescence. Coalescence times of SMBH binaries are of great importance for black hole evolution and gravitational wave detection studies.
Methods. We performed direct N-body simulations using the highly efficient and massively parallel phi-GRAPE+GPU code capable of running on high-performance computer clusters supported by graphic processing units (GPUs). Post-Newtonian terms up to order 3.5 are used to drive the SMBH binary evolution in the relativistic regime. We performed a large set of simulations with three different slopes of the central stellar cusp and different random seeds. The impact of a SMF on the hardening rate and the coalescence time is investigated.
Results. We find that SMBH binaries coalesce well within one billion years when our models are scaled to galaxies with a steep cusp at low redshift. Here higher central densities provide a larger supply of stars to efficiently extract energy from the SMBH binary orbit and shrink it to the phase where gravitational wave (GW) emission becomes dominant, leading to the coalescence of the SMBHs. Mergers of models with shallow cusps that are representative of giant elliptical galaxies having central cores result in less efficient extraction of the binary’s orbital energy, due to the lower stellar densities in the centre. However, high values of eccentricity witnessed for SMBH binaries in such galaxy mergers ensure that the GW emission dominated phase sets in earlier at larger values of the semi-major axis. This helps to compensate for the less efficient energy extraction during the phase dominated by stellar encounters resulting in mergers of SMBHs in about 1 Gyr after the formation of the binary. Additionally, we witness mass segregation in the merger remnant resulting in enhanced SMBH binary hardening rates. We show that at least the final phase of the merger in cuspy low-mass galaxies would be observable with the GW detector eLISA.
Multi-wavelength campaign on NGC 7469
Authors: Mehdipour M. , Kaastra J. S. , Costantini E. , Behar E. , Kriss G. A. , Bianchi S. , Branduardi-Raymont G. , Cappi M. , Ebrero J. , Di Gesu L. , Kaspi S. , Mao J. , De Marco B. , Middei R. , Peretz U. , Petrucci P.-O. , Ponti G. , Ursini F. 
Published: March 2018

We investigate the physical structure of the active galactic nucleus (AGN) wind in the Seyfert-1 galaxy NGC 7469 through high-resolution X-ray spectroscopy with Chandra HETGS and photoionisation modelling. Contemporaneous data from Chandra, HST, and Swift are used to model the optical-UV-X-ray continuum and determine the spectral energy distribution (SED) at two epochs, 13 yr apart. For our investigation we use new observations taken in December 2015–January 2016, and historical ones taken in December 2002. We study the impact of a change in the SED shape, seen between the two epochs, on the photoionisation of the wind. The HETGS spectroscopy shows that the AGN wind in NGC 7469 consists of four ionisation components, with their outflow velocities ranging from − 400 to − 1800 km s-1. From our modelling we find that the change in the ionising continuum shape between the two epochs results in some variation in the ionisation state of the wind components. However, for the main ions detected in X-rays, the sum of their column densities over all components remains in practice unchanged. For two of the four components, which are found to be thermally unstable in both epochs, we obtain 2 < r < 31 pc and 12 < r < 29 pc using the cooling and recombination timescales. For the other two thermally stable components, we obtain r < 31 pc and r < 80 pc from the recombination timescale. The results of our photoionisation modelling and thermal stability analysis suggest that the absorber components in NGC 7469 are consistent with being a thermally driven wind from the AGN torus. Finally, from analysis of the zeroth-order ACIS/HETG data, we discover that the X-ray emission in the range 0.2–1 keV is spatially extended over 1.5–12′′. This diffuse soft X-ray emission is explained by coronal emission from the nuclear starburst ring in NGC 7469. The star formation rate inferred from this diffuse soft X-ray emission is consistent with those found by far-infrared studies of NGC 7469.
The coordinated radio and infrared survey for high-mass star formation
Authors: Kalcheva I. E. , Hoare M. G. , Urquhart J. S. , Kurtz S. , Lumsden S. L. , Purcell C. R. , Zijlstra A. A. 
Published: March 2018

A catalogue of 239 ultra-compact H II regions (UCHIIs) found in the CORNISH survey at 5 GHz and 1.5″ resolution in the region 10° < l < 65°, |b| < 1° is presented. This is the largest complete and well-selected sample of UCHIIs to date and provides the opportunity to explore the global and individual properties of this key state in massive star formation at multiple wavelengths. The nature of the candidates was validated, based on observational properties and calculated spectral indices, and the analysis is presented in this work. The physical sizes, luminosities and other physical properties were computed by utilising literature distances or calculating the distances whenever a value was not available. The near- and mid-infrared extended source fluxes were measured and the extinctions towards the UCHIIs were computed. The new results were combined with available data at longer wavelengths and the spectral energy distributions (SEDs) were reconstructed for 177 UCHIIs. The bolometric luminosities obtained from SED fitting are presented. By comparing the radio flux densities to previous observational epochs, we find about 5% of the sources appear to be time variable. This first high-resolution area survey of the Galactic plane shows that the total number of UCHIIs in the Galaxy is ~750 – a factor of 3–4 fewer than found in previous large area radio surveys. It will form the basis for future tests of models of massive star formation.