bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Concurrent pituitary and adrenocortical lesions on computed tomography imaging in dogs with spontaneous hypercortisolism
Authors: van Bokhorst Kirsten L. , Kooistra Hans S. , Boroffka Susanne A.E.B. , Galac Sara 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundSpontaneous hypercortisolism or Cushing's syndrome in dogs is either pituitary or adrenal dependent, but concurrent pituitary and adrenal hypercortisolism also has been reported.ObjectiveTo determine how often concurrent pituitary and adrenal lesions are present in dogs with spontaneous hypercortisolism.AnimalsTwo hundred one client‐owned dogs with spontaneous hypercortisolism.MethodsRetrospective study. Pre‐ and post‐contrast computed tomography (CT) scans of the pituitary and adrenal glands were performed in dogs with confirmed hypercortisolism.ResultsIn dogs with dexamethasone‐suppressible hypercortisolism (122/201), 78 dogs (64%) had an enlarged pituitary gland (median pituitary height/brain area [P/B], 0.43×10−2mm−1; range, 0.32‐1.21×10−2mm−1). Two of these 78 dogs had concurrent adrenal lesions. In the remaining dogs (44/122; 36%), the pituitary gland was not enlarged. In the dexamethasone‐resistant group (79/201), the pituitary gland was enlarged in 47 dogs (59%; median P/B, 0.57×10−2; range, 0.32‐1.50×10−2mm−1). Eight of these 47 dogs (17%) had concurrent adrenal lesions. In the remaining 32 dexamethasone‐resistant dogs (41%), the pituitary gland was not enlarged. Among them, 27 dogs had adrenal lesions and suppressed ACTH concentrations consistent with adrenal‐dependent hypercortisolism and 5 dogs were diagnosed with pituitary‐dependent hypercortisolism.Conclusions and Clinical ImportanceConcurrent pituitary and adrenal lesions were present in 5% of all dogs with hypercortisolism and in 10% of the dexamethasone‐resistant dogs. Diagnostic imaging of both pituitary and adrenal glands should be included in the diagnostic evaluation of every dog with spontaneous hypercortisolism to obtain information needed for estimation of prognosis and choosing the optimal treatment.
Cultural Values and Decision to Work of Immigrant Women in Italy
Authors: Scoppa Vincenzo , Stranges Manuela 
Published: December 2018

AbstractWe investigate the role of culture in explaining economic outcomes at individual level analyzing how cultural values from the home country affect the decision to work of immigrants in Italy. Following the ‘epidemiological approach’, we relate the probability of being in the labor force in Italy for immigrant women with the female labor force participation (LFP) in their country of origin, taken as a proxy of cultural heritage and gender role model, finding a strong positive impact. We show that this relationship cannot be attributed to human capital quality or discrimination and it is stronger for immigrants that maintained more intense ties with their origin countries.
Incipient devitrification of impact melt particles at Bosumtwi crater, Ghana: Implications for suevite cooling history and melt dispersion
Authors: Välja Rudolf , Kirsimäe Kalle , Koeberl Christian , Boamah Daniel , Kirs Juho 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe petrographic, mineralogical, and geochemical compositions of the incipient devitrification products in impact melt fragments found in outer suevites at the Bosumtwi impact crater were studied to reconstruct the postimpact environmental constraints on the suevite formation and to refine its cooling history. Our study shows that devitrified melt/particles contain numerous microlitic crystals and crystal aggregates of different shapes derived from rapid cooling. The matrix of melt/particles in Bosumtwi suevites contains abundant Mg‐hercynite (pleonaste)‐type spinels with sizes rarely exceeding a few micrometers. High nucleation density of microlites suggests rapid crystallization under strong undercooling in the presence of abundant volatiles. Although the Bosumtwi impact event took place in a continental environment, the possible sources for elevated fluid/volatile content could have been the groundwater in the deeply weathered and fractured‐jointed Birimian basement, dewatering of abundant hydrous phases in weathered crust or hydrothermally altered basement, and the shale/phyllite–greywacke lithologies in the target rocks. Our results show that enough volatiles were present in the target rocks at the time of impact for the effective impact melt dispersion observed in Bosumtwi impactites.
Design Considerations for Conducting Large‐Scale Learning Research Using Innovative Technologies in Schools
Authors: Uncapher Melina R. 
Published: December 2018

ABSTRACTSince the advent of computers, scientists who study how people learn have been utilizing technology to uncover the cognitive and neural mechanisms of learning. Recent technological advances have allowed learning scientists to move their research out of the lab and into the wild, to investigate how students learn in real‐world environments. However, the move from the lab to the classroom involves a significant shift in strategy, requiring consideration of factors varying from the design of mobile (vs. lab‐based) technology to the recruitment of participants, as well as the contextual variables to account for in the less‐controlled environment of schools. Here I discuss the learnings our group has gleaned from a research program involving over a thousand elementary and middle school students in a longitudinal, multi‐year design that involves technologies for assessment and improving learning in schools.
Unexpected bird–feather mite associations revealed by DNA metabarcoding uncovers a dynamic ecoevolutionary scenario
Authors: Doña Jorge , Serrano David , Mironov Sergey , Montesinos‐Navarro Alicia , Jovani Roger 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe high relevance of host‐switching for the diversification of highly host‐specific symbionts (i.e., those commonly inhabiting a single host species) demands a better understanding of host‐switching dynamics at an ecological scale. Here, we used DNA metabarcoding to study feather mites on passerine birds in Spain, sequencing mtDNA (COI) for 25,540 individual mites (representing 64 species) from 1,130 birds (representing 71 species). Surprisingly, 1,228 (4.8%) mites from 84 (7.4%) birds were found on host species that were not the expected to be a host according to a recent bird–feather mite associations catalog. Unexpected associations were widespread across studied mite (40.6%) and bird (43.7%) species and showed smaller average infrapopulation sizes than typical associations. Unexpected mite species colonized hosts being distantly related to the set of their usual hosts, but with similar body size. The network of bird–mite associations was modular (i.e., some groups of bird and mite species tended to be more associated with each other than with the others), with 75.9% of the unexpected associations appearing within the module of the typical hosts of the mite species. Lastly, 68.4% of mite species found on unexpected hosts showed signatures of genetic differentiation, and we found evidence for reproduction or the potential for it in many of the unexpected associations. Results show host colonization as a common phenomenon even for these putatively highly host‐specific symbionts. Thus, host‐switching by feather mites, rather than a rare phenomenon, appears as a relatively frequent phenomenon shaped by ecological filters such as host morphology and is revealed as a fundamental component for a dynamic coevolutionary and codiversification scenario.
Bioengineering nisin to overcome the nisin resistance protein
Authors: Field Des , Blake Tony , Mathur Harsh , O' Connor Paula M. , Cotter Paul D. , Paul Ross R. , Hill Colin 
Published: December 2018

SummaryThe emergence and dissemination of antibiotic resistant bacteria is a major medical challenge. Lantibiotics are highly modified bacterially produced antimicrobial peptides that have attracted considerable interest as alternatives or adjuncts to existing antibiotics. Nisin, the most widely studied and commercially exploited lantibiotic, exhibits high efficacy against many pathogens. However, some clinically relevant bacteria express highly specific membrane‐associated nisin resistance proteins. One notable example is the nisin resistance protein that acts by cleaving the peptide bond between ring E and the adjacent serine 29, resulting in a truncated peptide with significantly less activity. We utilised a complete bank of bioengineered nisin (nisin A) producers in which the serine 29 residue has been replaced with every alternative amino acid. The nisin A S29P derivative was found to be as active as nisin A against a variety of bacterial targets but, crucially, exhibited a 20‐fold increase in specific activity against a strain expressing the nisin resistance protein. Another derivative, nisin PV, exhibited similar properties but was much less prone to oxidation. This version of nisin with enhanced resistance to specific resistance mechanisms could prove useful in the fight against antibiotic resistant pathogens.
The partitioning of gross primary production for young Eucalyptus tereticornis trees under experimental warming and altered water availability
Authors: Drake John E. , Tjoelker Mark G. , Aspinwall Michael J. , Reich Peter B. , Pfautsch Sebastian , Barton Craig V. M. 
Published: December 2018

Summary

The allocation of carbon (C) is an important component of tree physiology that influences growth and ecosystem C storage. Allocation is challenging to measure, and its sensitivity to environmental changes such as warming and altered water availability is uncertain.

We exposed young Eucalyptus tereticornis trees to +3°C warming and elimination of summer precipitation in the field using whole‐tree chambers. We calculated C allocation terms using detailed measurements of growth and continuous whole‐crown CO2 and water exchange measurements.

Trees grew from small saplings to nearly 9 m height during this 15‐month experiment. Warming accelerated growth and leaf area development, and it increased the partitioning of gross primary production (GPP) to aboveground respiration and growth while decreasing partitioning below ground. Eliminating summer precipitation reduced C gain and growth but did not impact GPP partitioning. Trees utilized deep soil water and avoided strongly negative water potentials.

Warming increased growth respiration, but maintenance respiration acclimated homeostatically. The increasing growth in the warmed treatment resulted in higher rates of respiration, even with complete acclimation of maintenance respiration. Warming‐induced stimulations of tree growth likely involve increased C allocation above ground, particularly to leaf area development, whereas reduced water availability may not stimulate allocation to roots.
Counselling for young people and young adults in the voluntary and community sector: An overview of the demographic profile of clients and outcomes
Authors: Duncan Charlie , Rayment Barbara , Kenrick James , Cooper Mick 
Published: December 2018

ObjectivesTo determine the demographic profile of clients accessing voluntary and community sector (VCS) counselling services for young people and young adults, and to undertake the first systematic evaluation of outcomes.DesignNaturalistic, non‐experimental study design.MethodsA total of 2,144 clients were recruited from nine services in England. Data on gender, age, ethnicity, number of sessions, problem descriptions, and initial levels of psychological distress were collected from clients. Calculations of reliable and clinically significant change, repeated measures t‐tests, effect size estimates, and moderation analyses were undertaken to determine whether pre–post change, over an average of 5.1 (SD = 5.3) sessions, was significant and which variables predicted outcomes. Levels of service satisfaction were also recorded.ResultsThe demographic profile of clients accessing VCS services was distinct to those accessing statutory and school‐based counselling services, with a greater representation of females, ‘older’ clients, and clients from Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) groups. Clients accessing VCS counselling services presented with multiple and complex needs. Statistically significant reductions in psychological distress were observed with effect sizes ranging from .64 to .80. High levels of service satisfaction were expressed by clients.ConclusionsThis study establishes that clinical outcomes in the VCS are comparable to those reported in school‐based and statutory mental health services in the United Kingdom. VCS services were perceived as being highly accessible and appear able to reach marginalized groups who may not be accessing other services.Practitioner points

VCS services in the United Kingdom may be more accessible to young people from marginalized groups, such as those from BME backgrounds, compared to statutory and school‐based counselling services.

Counselling in VCS services is associated with significant short‐term reductions in psychological distress, at a level comparable with the statutory and educational sectors.

Clients accessing counselling in VCS services report relatively high levels of service satisfaction.
Achieving consensus on the undergraduate curriculum of public health nursing in Turkey
Authors: Kadioglu Hasibe , Albayrak Sevil , Ergun Ayse , Yurt Seher , Gur Kamer , Mert Kader , Erol Saime , Esin Melek Nihal 
Published: December 2018

AbstractObjectiveThe aim of this study was to construct a consensus on the undergraduate learning objectives and topics for public health nursing (PHN) in Turkey.DesignA three‐round e‐mail‐based Delphi study was conducted between May and July 2015 with a national sample.SampleNinety‐one academics from 54 universities were invited as experts to participate by e‐mail. Fifty‐nine academics from 43 universities participated in the study.MeasurementsData were analyzed by computing the median, quartiles one and three, and the interquartile range for each learning outcome and topic. Consensus was considered as less than the interquartile range of 1.2.ResultsExperts who participated in the study added 70 learning outcomes, eight main topics, and 278 sub‐topics during the first round. Round I generated 170 learning outcomes, 28 main topics, and 385 sub‐topics. At the end of Round II, consensus was reached on 126 learning outcomes, 22 main topics and 168 sub‐topics. At the end of Round III, consensus was achieved for 126 learning outcomes, 22 main topics, and 169 sub‐topics.ConclusionThe learning outcomes and topics that were decided upon through a consensus process will contribute to the standardization and development of PHN education.
Ethynylpyrene Linked Benzocrown Ethers as Fluorescent Sensors for Metal Ions
Authors: Maeda Hajime , Tanaka Kazuhiro , Aratani Mona , Segi Masahito 
Published: December 2018

AbstractSubstances containing ethynylpyrenes linked to either one or four benzocrown ethers were synthesized, and their absorption and fluorescence spectroscopic responses to metal ions were assessed. Addition of metal perchlorates to solutions of these substances promotes short wavelength shifts in their absorption and fluorescence maxima and increases in their fluorescence intensities. The magnitudes of the fluorescence intensity increases are dependent on the ring size and number of the crown ether and the nature of the metal cation. Association constants for complex formation were calculated using fluorescence intensity versus concentration data. Analysis using Job's plots showed that the substances containing one benzocrown ether moiety form 1:1 complexes with metal ions. Results of experiments employing repeated addition and removal of Mg(ClO4)2 demonstrate that the ON‐OFF fluorescence response can be repeated at least three times. Results of molecular orbital calculations show that complexation with metal ions lowers the energies of both the π and π* levels of the ethynylpyrene moiety and that in some cases the vacant orbital on the metal becomes the LUMO of the complex. An explanation of the spectroscopic changes promoted by metal ions is proposed in terms of electrostatic repulsion and structural regulation.
International migration, foreign direct investment, and development stage in developing economies
Authors: Phyo Ei Ei , Goto Hideaki , Kakinaka Makoto 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThe existing empirical results on the relationship between FDI and migration are rather mixed. This study reevaluates, both theoretically and empirically, how inward FDI relates to emigration in developing countries. Our model illustrates that the relationship between inward FDI and emigration flows depends on the development stage of a developing country, that is, there is a positive association between inward FDI and emigration flows for relatively less‐developed countries but a negative association between these two variables for relatively developed countries. We confirm the empirical validity of our model prediction using the panel data of 21 OECD and 51 non‐OECD countries during the period from 2003 to 2012. Our results argue that as economic development proceeds in a developing country, the home effect of inward FDI associated with intensified labor demand would dominate the linkage effect that induces the brain drain problem through enhancing the socioeconomic ties with migrant networks.
The Weight of Ethnic Collectivism: Youth, Identifications, and Boundaries in Post‐conflict Bosnia Herzegovina
Authors: Piacentini Arianna 
Published: December 2018

AbstractIn Bosnia and Herzegovina ethnic collective identities have been manipulated and politicized, becoming fixed labels inferred by kinship and ethno‐religious origins. The war has been the testing ground for a new collective order, which then moved to the next level with the green light of Dayton, and ethnopolitics is widely used to promote ethnonational identification while preventing and challenging a civic, non‐ethnic one. By relying on empirical material collected through semi‐structured interviews conducted in Sarajevo, this work focuses on the ‘sons of war’, the generation born during the 1992–95 conflict, and it explores their modalities of dealing and coping with deep ethnically based socio‐political divisions. The research results show how, although trying to move beyond the boundaries of ethnonational belonging, Bosnian youth sometimes do end up maintaining and going along with a despised status quo by virtue of ‘the weight of ethnic collectivism’ – perceived as unchangeable and without alternatives.
Thomas White on the Metaphysics of Transubstantiation
Authors: Connolly Patrick J. 
Published: December 2018

AbstractThis article explores a previously neglected manuscript essay in which Thomas White offers an account of the metaphysics underpinning transubstantiation. White’s views are of particular interest because his explanation employs a broadly mechanist framework, rather than the hylomorphism traditionally associated with Roman Catholic discussions of the Eucharist. The manuscript helps to shed light on a number of topics of importance to early modern philosophy including the reception of Descartes’s views, the relationship between theology and natural philosophy, and mechanist accounts of identity and individuation.
The Extended Mind: State of the Question
Authors: Gallagher Shaun 
Published: December 2018

AbstractIt has been twenty years since Clark and Chalmers published “The Extended Mind.” In the present article I review the development of the extended mind hypothesis across what some proponents have defined as three theoretical “waves.” From first‐wave extended mind theory, based on the parity principle, to second‐wave complementarity, to the third wave, characterized as an uneasy integration of predictive processing and enactivist dynamics, extended mind theorists have faced and solved a number of problems along the way. The fact that the hypothesis continues to spark debate and to generate both new insights and new objections suggests that it continues to play a productive role in contemporary philosophy of mind.
Analytical validation of a conventional cardiac troponin I assay for dogs and cats
Authors: Langhorn Rebecca , Yrfelt Jacob D. , Stjernegaard Claus S. , Christiansen Liselotte B. , Olsen Lisbeth H. , Nielsen Lise N. 
Published: December 2018

BackgroundCardiac troponins are gold‐standard biomarkers of myocardial injury. There is a need for validation of assays with higher availability and lower costs in veterinary medicine.ObjectivesThe primary aim of the present study was to perform an analytical validation of the IMMULITE 2000 TnI assay for use in dogs and cats. A secondary aim was to evaluate its agreement with the previously validated and sensitive Siemens ADVIA Centaur TnI‐Ultra assay.MethodsIntra‐ and inter‐assay variation, detection limits, the linearity under dilution, and a sample addition study (modified spike‐and‐recovery analysis) were investigated to assess analytical performance in 15 canine and 15 feline serum samples. Agreement between the assays was evaluated by correlation and Bland‐Altman analyses including an additional 99 canine serum samples.ResultsIntra‐assay variation of cTnI in canine and feline serum was 3.71% and 4.68%, while inter‐assay variation was 5.88% and 6.54%, respectively. The assay performed with acceptable linearity within a clinically relevant range of serum cTnI concentrations. The sample addition study revealed insufficient recovery in the range of 71.9%‐81.4% for dogs and 62.6%‐75.7% for cats. This was considered to be due to a negative matrix effect. A significant correlation between the assays was found, and the Bland‐Altman analysis showed acceptable agreement for a wide range of concentrations, but revealed a proportional error, with the IMMULITE TnI assay consistently measuring a higher concentration than the Centaur TnI‐Ultra assay. This was relevant only at high serum cTnI concentrations.ConclusionsThe IMMULITE TnI assay is considered acceptable for clinical use in dogs and cats.