bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
miR‐29a attenuates cardiac hypertrophy through inhibition of PPARδ expression
Authors: Zhang Si , Yin Zhongnan , Dai Fei‐Fei , Wang Hao , Zhou Meng‐Jiao , Yang Ming‐Hui , Zhang Shu‐Feng , Fu Zhi‐Feng , Mei Ying‐Wu , Zang Ming‐Xi , Xue Lixiang 
Published: December 2018

AbstractAlthough cardiac hypertrophy is widely recognized as a risk factor that leads to cardiac dysfunction and, ultimately, heart failure, the complex mechanisms underlying cardiac hypertrophy remain incompletely characterized. The nuclear receptor peroxisome proliferator‐activated receptor δ (PPARδ) is involved in the regulation of cardiac lipid metabolism. Here, we describe a novel PPARδ‐dependent molecular cascade involving microRNA‐29a (miR‐29a) and atrial natriuretic factor (ANF), which is reactivated in cardiac hypertrophy. In addition, we identify a novel role of miR‐29a, in which it has a cardioprotective function in isoproterenol hydrochloride‐induced cardiac hypertrophy by targeting PPARδ and downregulating ANF. Finally, we provide evidence that miR‐29a reduces the isoproterenol hydrochloride‐induced cardiac hypertrophy response, thereby underlining the potential clinical relevance of miR‐29a in which it may serve as a potent therapeutic target for heart hypertrophy treatment.
Purple sweet potato color attenuated NLRP3 inflammasome by inducing autophagy to delay endothelial senescence
Authors: Sun Chunhui , Diao Qiaoqiao , Lu Jun , Zhang Zifeng , Wu Dongmei , Wang Xingqi , Xie Jun , Zheng Guihong , Shan Qun , Fan Shaohua , Hu Bin , Zheng Yuanlin 
Published: December 2018

AbstractAutophagy is a vital negative factor regulating cellular senescence. Purple sweet potato color (PSPC), one type of flavonoid, has been demonstrated to suppress endothelial senescence and restore endothelial function in diabetic mice by inhibiting the nucleotide‐binding oligomerization domain, leucine rich repeat and pyrin domain containing protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome. However, the roles of autophagy in the inflammatory response during endothelial senescence are unknown. Here, we found that PSPC augmented autophagy to restrict high‐glucose‐induced premature endothelial senescence. In addition, PSPC administration impaired endothelium aging in diabetic mice by increasing autophagy. Inhibition of autophagy accelerated endothelial senescence, while enhancement of autophagy delayed senescence. Moreover, deactivation of the NLRP3 inflammasome triggered by PSPC was autophagy‐dependent. Autophagy receptor microtubule‐associated protein 1 light chain 3 and p62 interacted with the inflammasome component NLRP3, suggesting that autophagosomes target the NLRP3 inflammasome and deliver it to the lysosome for degradation. Altogether, PSPC amplified cellular autophagy, subsequently attenuated NLRP3 inflammasome activity and finally delayed endothelial senescence to ameliorate cardiovascular complication. These results suggest a potential therapeutic target in senescence‐related cardiovascular diseases.
Prevention of tracheal stenosis with pirfenidone after tracheotomy: An experimental study
Authors: Türkmen Emre , Pata Yavuz Selim 
Published: December 2018

ObjectivesIn this study, pirfenidone's role about reducing tracheal stenosis by suppressing fibrosis and inflammation was examined.MethodsTracheotomy was performed on 14 rats, and their cannulas were fixed to tracheotomy area by stoma suture. Two working groups were established. Rats in the first group were given 15 mg/kg/day (1 mL pirfenidone solution) pirfenidone intraperitoneally for 10 days. In the second group as a control group, 1 mL saline solution was applied intraperitoneally. Ten days later, rats were decanulated and kept alive for 3 more weeks.Anesthetized rats were sacrificed on day 30. All rat tracheas were resected between the first and seventh rings. Epithelial damage, inflammation, and fibrosis were determined histopathologically; diameters of intratracheal lumen and their mucosal thickness parameters were determined histomorphometrically; and TGFβ‐1 (the growth factor beta), TNFα (tumor necrosis factor alpha), and IL‐1β (Interleukin‐1 beta) values were determined immunohistochemically.ResultsAccording to the parameters of the control group, fibrosis; diameters of intratracheal lumen; and values of TGFβ‐1, TNFα, and IL‐1β were found to be statistically significant.ConclusionIn our study, it was found that pirfenidone reduces fibrosis and narrowing of intratracheal lumen diameter significantly.Level of EvidenceNA Laryngoscope, 129:E178–E186, 2019
Biases in the metabarcoding of plant pathogens using rust fungi as a model system
Authors: Makiola Andreas , Dickie Ian A. , Holdaway Robert J. , Wood Jamie R. , Orwin Kate H. , Lee Charles K. , Glare Travis R. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractPlant pathogens such as rust fungi (Pucciniales) are of global economic and ecological importance. This means there is a critical need to reliably and cost‐effectively detect, identify, and monitor these fungi at large scales. We investigated and analyzed the causes of differences between next‐generation sequencing (NGS) metabarcoding approaches and traditional DNA cloning in the detection and quantification of recognized species of rust fungi from environmental samples. We found significant differences between observed and expected numbers of shared rust fungal operational taxonomic units (OTUs) among different methods. However, there was no significant difference in relative abundance of OTUs that all methods were capable of detecting. Differences among the methods were mainly driven by the method's ability to detect specific OTUs, likely caused by mismatches with the NGS metabarcoding primers to some Puccinia species. Furthermore, detection ability did not seem to be influenced by differences in sequence lengths among methods, the most appropriate bioinformatic pipeline used for each method, or the ability to detect rare species. Our findings are important to future metabarcoding studies, because they highlight the main sources of difference among methods, and rule out several mechanisms that could drive these differences. Furthermore, strong congruity among three fundamentally different and independent methods demonstrates the promising potential of NGS metabarcoding for tracking important taxa such as rust fungi from within larger NGS metabarcoding communities. Our results support the use of NGS metabarcoding for the large‐scale detection and quantification of rust fungi, but not for confirming the absence of species.
UWB four elements antenna array
Authors: Ahmed Bazil Taha , Masa Campos Jose Luis , Brande Hernández Daniel 
Published: December 2018

AbstractIn this work, a planar UWB four elements antenna array with and without notch filter is designed. The feeding system of the array is an UWB four branch multiple segment power divider/combiner. Each branch has a three segments impedance transformer. Measurements show that the array works well within the band 3.1 to 10.6 with S11 lower than −10 dB. It is shown that the maximum gain varies with the operating frequency having a value of 8 to 12.3 dB and that it is higher than the gain of the single element.
A fast scheme for renal microvascular perfusion functional imaging: Assessed by an imaging quality evaluation model
Authors: Wang Diya , Xu Shanshan , Zhang Kejia , Zhang Xinyu , Yang Xuan , Xiao Mengnan , Su Qiang , Wan Mingxi 
Published: December 2018

PurposeThis study aimed to develop a fast scheme of multiparametric perfusion functional imaging (PFI) based on dynamic contrast‐enhanced ultrasound (DCEUS) for assessing renal microvascular hemodynamics.MethodThe flow process in the DCEUS‐based PFI was modified step‐by‐step to improve its operational efficiency, which was validated through in vivo renal perfusion experiments. A multiparametric model with a comprehensive coefficient of imaging quality (CIQ) was then built on four terms of the average information entropy, contrast, gray, and noise coefficient of PFIs to evaluate the sacrifice of imaging quality during modifications of DCEUS‐based PFI.ResultsThe multiparametric model successfully evaluated modifications of DCEUS‐based PFI from multiple perspectives (R2 = 0.73, P < 0.01). Compared with the raw scheme in the renal sagittal and coronal planes, the fast PFI scheme significantly improved its operational efficiency by 62.82 ± 1.07% (P < 0.01) and the nine PFIs simultaneously maintained a similar CIQ of 0.26 ± 0.06.ConclusionsThe inhomogeneous hemodynamic distributions with a ring‐like feature in the renal microvasculature were accurately and efficiently characterized by the fast PFI scheme. The fast PFI scheme can be applied for early diagnosis, follow‐up evaluation and monitoring treatment of chronic kidney disease.
Modified predictor‐corrector solution approach for efficient discontinuous deformation analysis of jointed rock masses
Authors: Zheng Fei , Leung Yat Fai , Zhu Jian‐Bo , Jiao Yu‐Yong 
Published: December 2018

SummaryThe high computational costs associated with the implicit formulation of discontinuous deformation analysis (DDA) have been one of the major obstacles for its implementation to engineering problems involving jointed rock masses with large numbers of blocks. In this paper, the Newmark‐based predictor‐corrector solution (NPC) approach was modified to improve the performance of the original DDA solution module in modeling discontinuous problems. The equation of motion for a discrete block system is first established with emphasis on the consideration of contact constraints. A family of modified Newmark‐based predictor‐corrector integration (MNPC) scheme is then proposed and implemented into a unified analysis framework. Comparisons are made between the proposed approach and the widely used constant acceleration (CA) integration approach and central difference (CD) approach, regarding the stability and numerical damping features for a single‐degree‐of‐freedom model, where the implications of the proposed approach on open‐close iteration are also discussed. The validity of the proposed approach is verified by several benchmarking examples, and it is then applied to two typical problems with different numbers of blocks. The results show that the original CA approach in DDA is efficient for the simulation of quasi‐static deformation of jointed rock masses, while the proposed MNPC approach leads to improved computational efficiency for dynamic analysis of large‐scale jointed rock masses. The MNPC approach therefore provides an additional option for efficient DDA of jointed rock masses.
Effects of Statin Therapy on the Risk of Intracerebral Hemorrhage in Korean Patients with Hyperlipidemia
Authors: Jung Minji , Lee Sukhyang 
Published: December 2018

Study ObjectiveStatins are widely used for primary and secondary prevention of cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease. Several large randomized trials have suggested that statins might increase the risk of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH); studies have also shown interethnic variability in responses to statins. This study aimed to determine the association between statin use and the risk of ICH in patients with hyperlipidemia among a Korean population.DesignPopulation‐based, retrospective cohort study.Data SourceKorean National Health Insurance Service–National Sample Cohort database (2002–2015).PatientsA total of 313,368 patients, aged 40–85 years, without a history of hemorrhagic stroke were included after being diagnosed with hyperlipidemia between January 2003 and December 2013 (for follow‐up through December 2015). Of those, statin users were compared with nonusers by using propensity score matching in a 1:1 ratio (21,797 in each group). The study groups were matched for age, sex, Charlson Comorbidity Index score, follow‐up duration, comorbidities, and concurrent medications.Measurements and Main ResultsThe primary endpoint was occurrence of an ICH event. Secondary endpoints were mortality (all‐cause, major adverse cardiovascular and cerebrovascular event related, and stroke related) and outcomes after ICH (e.g., recurrent ICH and mortality after primary ICH event). The Cox proportional hazard model was used to evaluate the ICH risk of statins. Subgroup analyses were performed based on ICH‐related risk factors. During a mean follow‐up period of 6.4 years, ICH occurred in 456 of the 43,594 patients (1.05%). Statin use was significantly associated with a decreased ICH risk (adjusted hazard ratio [aHR] 0.78, 95% confidence interval [CI] 0.65–0.94). Compared with nonusers, statin users showed significantly lower all‐cause mortality (aHR 0.61, 95% CI 0.57–0.64), cardiovascular and cerebrovascular disease‐related mortality (aHR 0.75, 95% CI 0.65–0.85), and stroke‐related mortality (aHR 0.69, 95% CI 0.54–0.88). No significant differences in recurrence and mortality after an ICH event were noted between study groups.ConclusionStatin therapy was associated with a decreased ICH risk and improvements in ischemic cardiovascular and cerebrovascular outcomes in Korean patients with hyperlipidemia. Further large‐scale clinical studies are needed to clarify the impact of statins on the risk of developing ICH.
Association of anti‐inflammatory and antiangiogenic therapies negatively influences prostate cancer progression in TRAMP mice
Authors: Mateus Pedro Augusto Marischka , Kido Larissa Akemi , Silva Rafael Sauce , Cagnon Valéria Helena Alves , Montico Fabio 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundChronic inflammation has been implicated in cancer etiology and angiogenesis is stimulated in this disease. In prostate, the crosstalk between malignant epithelial cells and their microenvironment is an essential step of tumorigenesis during which glandular stroma undergo changes designated as reactive stroma. Thus, the aim herewith was to evaluate the effects of associating anti‐inflammatory and antiangiogenic therapies on cancer progression, correlating them with steroid hormone receptor (AR and ERα), reactive stroma (vimentin, αSMA, and TGF‐β), and cell proliferation (PCNA) markers expression in the Transgenic Adenocarcinoma of Mouse Prostate (TRAMP) model.MethodsTRAMP mice (12‐week old) were divided into the groups: Control (TRCON): received the vehicles used for drug dilution; Celecoxib (TRCEL): received oral doses of the anti‐inflammatory drug celecoxib (15 mg/kg) twice daily; Nintedanib (TRNTB): received oral doses of the antiangiogenic drug nintedanib (10 mg/kg) daily; Nintedanib+Celecoxib (TRNTCEL): received the combination of drugs. After 6 weeks, mice were euthanized and ventral prostate samples were harvested for morphological, immunohistochemical, and Western blotting analyses.ResultsWhile celecoxib led to fibromuscular hypertrophy attenuation, nintedanib significantly reduced the incidence of well‐differentiated adenocarcinoma (WDAC) foci in relation to controls, both when administered per se or in association to celecoxib. Furthermore, drug combination was associated with unique effects, including lower incidence of HGPIN lesions; lower AR stromal distribution; changes in ERα localization from epithelial nuclei to stroma as well as significant decrease of TGF‐β levels and associated angiogenesis. In parallel, all treatments applied resulted in reduced inflammatory marker and vimentin (VIM) expression.ConclusionsCelecoxib plus nintedanib is an effective antitumor combination against prostate cancer progression in TRAMP mice, showing remarkable efficacy in relation to isolated therapies. Importantly, this efficacy might be due to drug association effect on driving AR and mainly ERα distribution in the prostatic tissue towards benign patterns. In addition, celecoxib and nintedanib impaired the development of a stromal reaction by reducing the recruitment of reactive stroma cells and maintaining a normal smooth muscle cell‐rich prostate stroma in TRAMP mice. Collectively, these findings pointed to the beneficial effects of combining anti‐inflammatory and antiangiogenic strategies to prevent or delay prostatic tumorigenesis.
The taxonomic content of the genus Gavialis from the Siwalik Hills of India and Pakistan
Authors: Martin Jeremy E. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe fossil record of the genus Gavialis currently comprises nine species, many of which were erected from the mid nineteenth to the early twentieth century, sometimes on the basis of incomplete specimens. A survey of the Natural History Museum, London, collections, where many specimens were collected in the course of geological surveys in Punjab and Sindh, part of the former Indian Empire, provides a basis to reevaluate the taxonomic content of the genus Gavialis. Four species, G. leptodus, G. pachyrhynchus, G. curvirostris and G. breviceps, are not referable to the genus Gavialis. The species G. hysudricus is considered a junior synonym of G. gangeticus. The genus Gavialis includes two species, namely G. gangeticus and G. bengawanicus; two others, G. browni and G. lewisi require revisions. Several similarities are noted between the tomistomine Rhamphosuchus crassidens and G. leptodus, G. pachyrhynchus, G. curvirostris and G. breviceps. As a generality, the scarcity of information on sampling locations renders difficult a discussion on taxon provenance and age. However, a definitive revision of these taxa requires a revision of R. crassidens as well as an improved stratigraphic framework for all these taxa in a continuing effort to update the diversity of Gavialis and other longirostrine forms in the Mio‐Plio‐Pleistocene of India–Pakistan and SE Asia.
Music, movement and memory: Pedagogical songs as mnemonic aids
Authors: Werner Riah 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThis article proposes a theoretical foundation and practical strategies for incorporating pedagogical songs and corresponding gestures into the language classroom. Music and movement are connected to verbal memory, which is a key component of language learning. Music and language are processed in the same areas of the brain, and recent empirical studies conducted with pre‐K‐12 learners around the world have found a range of benefits when music is integrated into language classrooms. In addition, neuroscientific research has found that presenting text through music can lead to increased recall. Verbal recall can be further enhanced by the incorporation of gesture. Pedagogical songs—created for classroom use and designed to target specific linguistic items—can harness the memory benefits of music for language learning. When teachers create these songs themselves, they can have full control over the songs’ linguistic content. This article outlines three approaches to the creation of pedagogical songs with accompanying examples, so teachers can create lyrics that fit the content they are teaching. Research‐based strategies for incorporating gestures and teaching songs are also presented.
Initialization of DFIG wind turbines with a phasor‐based approach
Authors: Rolán Alejandro , Pedra Joaquín 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe objective of this paper is to propose a simple approach to solve the steady state of a wind turbine (WT) equipped with a doubly fed induction generator (DFIG), which can be used to initialize dynamic studies of the machine. The idea is to model the rotor‐side converter (RSC) as a constant current source connected to the rotor of the DFIG. The resulting equivalent circuit consists of a voltage source in series with a reactance, which makes it possible to obtain simple phasor expressions that can be used to obtain the Park components of the variables. The proposed method is compared with the traditional Newton–Raphson algorithm, showing that it is easier and faster to implement, as it makes use of the phasor expressions and it does not require an iterative process to obtain the final solution. Finally, the results of the proposed method are used to simulate a 2‐MW DFIG‐based WT under three‐phase faults, considering three different WT‐operating points. In these simulations, the idea of constant rotor current is extrapolated to the entire event. The simulated results show that both current at torque peaks are reduced. The analytical study and the simulations have been carried out in Matlab™.
Using maternal mule deer movements to estimate timing of parturition and assist fawn captures
Authors: Peterson Mark E. , Anderson Charles R. , Alldredge Mathew W. , Doherty Paul F. 
Published: December 2018

ABSTRACTMovement patterns of maternal ungulates have been used to determine parturition dates and aid in locating fawns, which may be important for understanding reproductive rates (e.g., pregnancy and fetal), but such methods have not been validated for mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus). We first determined timing of parturition using vaginal implant transmitters (VITs) and then predicted timing of parturition using VITs in conjunction with Global Positioning System collar data in the Piceance Basin of northwestern Colorado, USA, during 2012–2014. We examined daily movement rate to determine differences in movement rate among days (7 days pre‐ and postpartum) and for movement patterns indicative of parturition. Mean daily movement rate (m/day) of 102 maternal deer decreased by 46% from 1 day preparturition ( = 1,253, SD = 1,091) to parturition date ( = 682, SD = 574), and remained at this low rate 1–7 days postpartum. We applied an independent data set to validate predicted parturition dates based on daily movement rate. We estimated day of parturition correctly (i.e., day 0), within 1–3 days postparturition, and ≥4 days postparturition of field‐reported dates for 10 (29%), 21 (60%), and 4 (11%) maternal females, respectively. For novel data sets, we predict that a mule deer female whose daily movement rate decreases by ≥46% and remains low ≥3 days postparturition particularly when preceded by a sudden increase in movement—has given birth. However, we caution that disturbance of deer by field crews should be minimized, and if birth sites are not found, neonatal mortality will be underestimated. Our results can help determine timing and general location of parturition as an aid in capturing fawns when the use of VITs is not feasible, with the ultimate objective of estimating pregnancy, fetal, and fawn survival rates if birth sites are found. © 2018 The Wildlife Society.
Application of Craig-Bampton Reduction Technique and 2D Dynamic Infinite Element Modeling Approach to Membrane Vibration Problems
Authors: Liu D. S. , Chen Y. W. 
Published: December 2018

ABSTRACTAn approach is presented for solving membrane vibration problems using an integrated scheme consisting of the Craig-Bampton (CB) reduction technique and a 2D dynamic infinite element modeling (DIEM) method. In the proposed CB-DIEM scheme, the substructure domain is partitioned into multiple layers of geometrically-similar infinite elements (IEs) which use only the data of the boundary nodes. A convergence criterion based on the first invariant of the DIEM mass matrix is used to determine the optimal parameters of the CB-DIEM scheme, namely the proportionality ratio and number of layers in the DIEM partitioning process and the number of retained frequency modes in the CB reduction method. Furthermore, in implementing the CB method, the inversion of the global stiffness matrix is calculated using only the stiffness matrix of the first element layer. Having reduced the DIEM model, a coupled DIE-FE algorithm is employed to model the dynamic problems of the full structure, which removes the respective methods disadvantages while keeping their advantages. The validity and performance of the proposed CB-DIEM method are investigated by means of three illustrative problems.