bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Synthesis of Thiophene‐Based Optical Ligands That Selectively Detect Tau Pathology in Alzheimer's Disease
Authors: Shirani Hamid , Appelqvist Hanna , Bäck Marcus , Klingstedt Therése , Cairns Nigel J. , Nilsson K. Peter R. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThe accumulation of protein aggregates is associated with many devastating neurodegenerative diseases and the development of molecular ligands able to detect these pathological hallmarks is essential. Here, the synthesis of thiophene based optical ligands, denoted bi‐thiophene‐vinyl‐benzothiazoles (bTVBTs) that can be utilized for selective assignment of tau aggregates in brain tissue with Alzheimer's disease (AD) pathology is reported. The ability of the ligands to selectively distinguish tau deposits from the other AD associated pathological hallmark, senile plaques consisting of aggregated amyloid‐β (Aβ) peptide, was reduced when the chemical composition of the ligands was altered, verifying that specific molecular interactions between the ligands and the aggregates are necessary for the selective detection of tau deposits. Our findings provide the structural and functional basis for the development of new fluorescent ligands that can distinguish between aggregated proteinaceous species consisting of different proteins. In addition, the bTVBT scaffold might be utilized to create powerful practical research tools for studying the underlying molecular events of tau aggregation and for creating novel agents for clinical imaging of tau pathology in AD.
Understanding the Catalytic Mechanism and the Nature of the Transition State of an Attractive Drug‐Target Enzyme (Shikimate Kinase) by Quantum Mechanical/Molecular Mechanical (QM/MM) Studies
Authors: Yao Jianzhuang , Wang Xia , Luo Haixia , Gu Pengfei 
Published: September 2017

AbstractShikimate kinase (SK) is the fifth bacterial enzyme involved in the shikimate pathway for biosynthesis of life‐indispensable components, such as aromatic amino acids. The absence of the shikimate pathway in humans makes SK an attractive target for the rational design of drugs aimed at pathogenesis bacteria, such as Mycobacterium tuberculosis and Helicobacter pylori. However, an effective inhibitor of SK (e.g., a transition‐state analogue) is still not available on the market due, at least in part, to a lack of knowledge on the catalytic mechanism and the nature of the rate‐limiting transition state. Herein, quantum mechanical/molecular mechanical (QM/MM) reaction coordinate, molecular dynamics (MD), and free‐energy simulations have been performed to answer these questions. The results presented herein demonstrate that the phosphoryl‐transfer process, which is the rate‐limiting step of SK‐catalyzed phosphorylation of shikimic acid (SKM), is a concerted one‐step reaction proceeding through a loose transition state. The computational results agree well with those of experimental studies, specifically NMR results, X‐ray crystal structure observation, and activation free‐energy barrier.
Better Organic Ternary Memory Performance through Self‐Assembled Alkyltrichlorosilane Monolayers on Indium Tin Oxide (ITO) Surfaces
Authors: Hou Xiang , Cheng Xue‐Feng , Zhou Jin , He Jing‐Hui , Xu Qing‐Feng , Li Hua , Li Na‐Jun , Chen Dong‐Yun , Lu Jian‐Mei 
Published: September 2017

AbstractRecently, surface engineering of the indium tin oxide (ITO) electrode of sandwich‐like organic electric memory devices was found to effectively improve their memory performances. However, there are few methods to modify the ITO substrates. In this paper, we have successfully prepared alkyltrichlorosilane self‐assembled monolayers (SAMs) on ITO substrates, and resistive random access memory devices are fabricated on these surfaces. Compared to the unmodified ITO substrates, organic molecules (i.e., 2‐((4‐butylphenyl)amino)‐4‐((4‐butylphenyl)iminio)‐3‐oxocyclobut‐1‐en‐1‐olate, SA‐Bu) grown on these SAM‐modified ITO substrates have rougher surface morphologies but a smaller mosaicity. The organic layer on the SAM‐modified ITO further aged to eliminate the crystalline phase diversity. In consequence, the ternary memory yields are effectively improved to approximately 40–47 %. Our results suggest that the insertion of alkyltrichlorosilane self‐assembled monolayers could be an efficient method to improve the performance of organic memory devices.
Randomized controlled trial of increasing physical activity on objectively measured and self‐reported cognitive functioning among breast cancer survivors: The memory & motion study
Authors: Hartman Sheri J. , Nelson Sandahl H. , Myers Emily , Natarajan Loki , Sears Dorothy D. , Palmer Barton W. , Weiner Lauren S. , Parker Barbara A. , Patterson Ruth E. 
Published: September 2017

BACKGROUNDIncreasing physical activity can improve cognition in healthy and cognitively impaired adults; however, the benefits for cancer survivors are unknown. The current study examined a 12‐week physical activity intervention, compared with a control condition, on objective and self‐reported cognition among breast cancer survivors.METHODSSedentary breast cancer survivors were randomized to an exercise arm (n = 43) or a control arm (n = 44). At baseline and at 12 weeks, objective cognition was measured with the National Institutes of Health Cognitive Toolbox, and self‐reported cognition using the Patient‐Reported Outcomes Measurement Information System scales. Linear mixed‐effects regression models tested intervention effects for changes in cognition scores.RESULTSOn average, participants (n = 87) were aged 57 years (standard deviation, 10.4 years) and were 2.5 years (standard deviation, 1.3 years) post surgery. Scores on the Oral Symbol Digit subscale (a measure of processing speed) evidenced differential improvement in the exercise arm versus the control arm (b = 2.01; P < .05). The between‐group differences in improvement on self‐reported cognition were not statistically significant but were suggestive of potential group differences. Time since surgery moderated the correlation, and participants who were ≤2 years post surgery had a significantly greater improvement in Oral Symbol Digit score (exercise vs control (b = 4.00; P < .01), but no significant improvement was observed in patients who were >2 years postsurgery (b = −1.19; P = .40). A significant dose response was observed with greater increased physical activity associated with objective and self‐reported cognition in the exercise arm.CONCLUSIONSThe exercise intervention significantly improved processing speed, but only among those who had been diagnosed with breast cancer within the past 2 years. Slowed processing speed can have substantial implications for independent functioning, supporting the potential importance of early implementation of an exercise intervention among patients with breast cancer. Cancer 2018;124:192‐202. © 2017 American Cancer Society.
Body image and nonsuicidal self‐injury: Validation of the Body Investment Scale in participants with eating disorders
Authors: Marco J. H. , Cañabate M. , García‐Alandete J. , Llorca G. , Real‐López M. , Beltrán M. , Pérez S. 
Published: September 2017

The Body Investment Scale (BIS) assesses body image feelings, body care, protection of the body, and comfort in touch, in order to identify and distinguish participants with self‐harming and self‐destructive tendencies. However, the psychometric properties of the BIS were not analysed in participants diagnosed with eating disorders. The main objective of the present study is to confirm the factor structure of the Spanish version of the BIS and analyse its psychometric properties in a sample composed of women diagnosed with eating disorders. Participants were 250 Spanish women between 12 and 60 years old (M = 26.05, SD = 11.97) diagnosed with eating disorders. A confirmatory factor analysis showed a poor fit of the original BIS. The final model showed an acceptable 4‐factor structure (Body Feelings, α = .88; Body Touch, α = .82; Body Protection, α = .77; Body Care, α = .68), with a good fit to the data (SBχ2(246) = 393.21, CFI = .906, IFI = .908, RMSEA = .049). The relationships between the BIS and both the Purpose‐In‐Life Test—10 Items and Beck Hopelessness Scale were analysed, as well as differences in the BIS score according to nonsuicidal self‐injuries and suicidal ideation in the past year. The BIS is an appropriate instrument to assess the body investment dimension of body image in women with eating disorders.
Modeling and performance analysis of a new secure address resolution protocol
Authors: Younes Osama S. 
Published: September 2017

SummaryAddress Resolution Protocol (ARP) is an essential protocol for the operation of local area networks. It is used for mapping the logical address to the physical address. However, ARP was designed without any security features. Therefore, ARP is vulnerable to many ARP spoofing attacks, such as the host impersonation, man‐in‐the‐middle (MITM), and denial of service (DoS) attacks. Many techniques were introduced in the literature for mitigating ARP spoofing attack. However, they could not provide protection against the host impersonation and DoS attacks. This work introduces a new technique to secure address resolution protocol called ARP Authentication (ARP‐A). The proposed technique provides authentication for ARP messages and entities. In addition, it converts ARP from a stateless to a stateful protocol. To evaluate the performance of ARP‐A, it was implemented on Linux. To investigate the scalability of ARP‐A, a new analytical model was designed for it using stochastic reward nets. The results show that, compared with other related schemes introduced in the literature, ARP‐A is more efficient in terms of security and performance.
Energy‐efficient power allocation for multi‐user MIMO systems with GZI precoding
Authors: Tian Feng , Yu Yue , Zhao Tingting , Li Dapeng , Zhang Xuejun , Yang Zhen 
Published: September 2017

SummaryTo achieve the energy efficiency (EE) for multi‐user multiple‐input multiple‐output (MU‐MIMO) systems with GZI precoding, based on an actual power consumption model, the paper investigates the power allocation (PA) optimization problem with guaranteeing the sum rate for all downlink users and the different rate requirements for different downlink users. For the case of guaranteeing the sum rate for all downlink users, the highly complex optimization problem is firstly reformulated into an equivalent pseudo‐convex form to be handled by the Lagrange Multiplier method. Then, it is simplified with reducing 2‐dimension PA parameter into 1 dimension. Finally, the closed‐form optimal solution is obtained through deriving of complex equations involving the log function. And for the case of guaranteeing the different rate requirements for different downlink users, the concrete numerical solution to the optimization problem is iteratively obtained through convex optimization toolbox in MATLAB. Simulation results validate the efficacy of the proposed optimization scheme. Furthermore, it is illustrated that the proposed optimization algorithm shows more optimal than average PA and antenna selection algorithms.
Temporal trends in quality of primary care for patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus: A population‐based retrospective cohort study after implementation of a quality improvement initiative
Authors: Wong Carlos K.H. , Fung Colman S.C. , Yu Esther Y.T. , Wan Eric Y.F. , Chan Anca K.C. , Lam Cindy L.K. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractBackgroundThis study examined whether temporal trends exist in treatment of patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) and quality of diabetes care after implementation of quality improvement initiative in primary care setting.MethodsWe conducted a population‐based retrospective cohort study of 202,284 patients with T2D who were routinely managed in primary care clinics. We examined the change over time and the variability between clinics in quality of care from Hospital Authority administrative data over a 5‐year period (2009‐2013) and used multilevel logistic regression to adjust for patient and clinic characteristics. Observational period was partitioned in 5 calendar years. Ten quality‐of‐care criteria were selected: adherence to 7 process of care criteria (HbA1c test, renal function test, full lipid profile, urine protein analysis, retinal screening, lipid‐lowering agent prescriptions among patients with hypercholesterolaemia, and angiotensin converting enzyme inhibitor/angiotensin receptor blocker prescriptions among patients with microalbuminuria) and 3 outcome of care criteria (HbA1c ≤ 7%, BP ≤ 130/80 mmHg, and LDL‐C ≤ 2.6 mmol/L). Variability of standards between clinics was assessed by using intracluster correlation coefficients.ResultsCharacteristics of patients with T2D managed in primary care changed substantially during the observational period, with increasing age and usage of insulin and longer duration of diabetes but improved metabolic profiles (all P trend < .001). Performance rates of the 7 process and 3 clinical outcomes of care criteria increased remarkably over time (all P trend < .001). Variations in retinal screening delivery between clinics were considerable, albeit decreasing over time.ConclusionsCoinciding with implementation of quality improvement initiative, quality of diabetes care improved significantly in the past 5 years, in part attributable to benefits of integrated multidisciplinary diabetes management.
Myelin development, plasticity, and pathology in the auditory system
Authors: Long Patrick , Wan Guoqiang , Roberts Michael T. , Corfas Gabriel 
Published: September 2017

ABSTRACTMyelin allows for the rapid and precise timing of action potential propagation along neuronal circuits and is essential for healthy auditory system function. In this article, we discuss what is currently known about myelin in the auditory system with a focus on the timing of myelination during auditory system development, the role of myelin in supporting peripheral and central auditory circuit function, and how various myelin pathologies compromise auditory information processing. Additionally, in keeping with the increasing recognition that myelin is dynamic and is influenced by experience throughout life, we review the growing evidence that auditory sensory deprivation alters myelin along specific segments of the brain's auditory circuit. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 78: 80–92, 2018
Myelin plasticity, neural activity, and traumatic neural injury
Authors: Kondiles Bethany R. , Horner Philip J. 
Published: September 2017

ABSTRACTThe possibility that adult organisms exhibit myelin plasticity has recently become a topic of great interest. Many researchers are exploring the role of myelin growth and adaptation in daily functions such as memory and motor learning. Here we consider evidence for three different potential categories of myelin plasticity: the myelination of previously bare axons, remodeling of existing sheaths, and the removal of a sheath with replacement by a new internode. We also review evidence that points to the importance of neural activity as a mechanism by which oligodendrocyte precursor cells (OPCs) are cued to differentiate into myelinating oligodendrocytes, which may potentially be an important component of myelin plasticity. Finally, we discuss demyelination in the context of traumatic neural injury and present an argument for altering neural activity as a potential therapeutic target for remyelination following injury. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Develop Neurobiol 78: 108–122, 2018.
Land use types influenced avian assemblage structure in a forest–agriculture landscape in Ghana
Authors: Deikumah Justus Precious , Kwafo Richard , Konadu Vida Asieduwaa 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThe conservation of biodiversity within tropical forest regions does not lie only in the maintenance of natural forest areas, but on conservation strategies directed toward agricultural land types within which they are embedded. This study investigated variations in bird assemblages of different functional groups of forest‐dependent birds in three agricultural land types, relative to distance from the interior of 34 tropical forest patches of varying sizes. Point counts were used to sample birds at each study site visited. Data from counts were used to estimate species richness, species evenness, and Simpson's diversity of birds. Mean species richness, evenness, and diversity were modeled as responses and as a function of agricultural land type, distance from the forest interior and three site‐scale vegetation covariates (density of large trees, fruiting trees, and patch size) using generalized linear mixed‐effect models. Mean observed species richness of birds varied significantly within habitat types. Mean observed species richness was highest in forest interior sites while sites located in farm centers recorded the lowest mean species richness. Species richness of forest specialists was strongly influenced by the type of agricultural land use. Fallow lands, density of large trees, and patch size strongly positively influenced forest specialists. Insectivorous and frugivorous birds were more species‐rich in fallow lands while monoculture plantations favored nectarivorous birds. Our results suggest that poor agricultural practices can lead to population declines of forest‐dependent birds particularly specialist species. Conservation actions should include proper land use management that ensures heterogeneity through retention of native tree species on farms in tropical forest‐agriculture landscapes.
A quadratic correlation between long‐term mean group size and group density in a cooperatively breeding passerine
Authors: Ke Dian‐Hua , Deng Yan‐Hui , Guo Wei‐Bin , Huang Zu‐Hao 
Published: September 2017

AbstractBoth mean group size (MGS) and mean group density (MGD) are critical indices to characterize a population of cooperatively breeding birds. When a population reaches its carrying capacity, both long‐term MGS and long‐term MGD will remain relatively stable. However, there has been little study of how these two variables relate. The Masked laughingthrush Garrulax perspicillatus is a cooperatively breeding bird living in fragmented habitats. During 2010 and 2012‐2016, we used song playback to observe and confirm the group sizes and territory ranges of the birds and the data of bird presence to determine habitat suitability. By grouping the nearest territories according to their geographical coordinates, we divided the whole study area into 12 subareas and the whole population into 12 subpopulations. Then, we calculated both MGS and MGD for different time durations for each subpopulation. Finally, using MGD as independent variable and MGS as the dependent variable, we explored the correlations between MGS and MGD by fitting quadratic functions and modeling quadratic regression. Both MGS and MGD were averaged for different time durations and were cross‐related. Our results show that the MGS for more than 2 years significantly correlated with MGD for more than 3 years in a reverse parabolic shape, differing from that of short‐term effects. Our findings suggest that long‐term MGD is a better predictor of long‐term habitat quality and that long‐term MGS is determined by long‐term habitat quality in Masked Laughingthrushes. Based on above findings, we can infer that: (1) Long‐term habitat quality determines the long‐term MGS, but it sets no prerequisite for the status and source of group members; (2) Long‐term MGS in certain populations is adapted to the corresponding level of long‐term habitat quality, it facilitates us to predict the helper effects on current or future survival or reproduction in different situations. These findings and inferences are both helpful for us to understand the evolution of cooperative breeding.
State–space mark–recapture estimates reveal a recent decline in abundance of North Atlantic right whales
Authors: Pace Richard M. , Corkeron Peter J. , Kraus Scott D. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractNorth Atlantic right whales (Eubalaena glacialis Müller 1776) present an interesting problem for abundance and trend estimation in marine wildlife conservation. They are long lived, individually identifiable, highly mobile, and one of the rarest of cetaceans. Individuals are annually resighted at different rates, primarily due to varying stay durations among several principal habitats within a large geographic range. To date, characterizations of abundance have been produced that use simple accounting procedures with differing assumptions about mortality. To better characterize changing abundance of North Atlantic right whales between 1990 and 2015, we adapted a state–space formulation with Jolly‐Seber assumptions about population entry (birth and immigration) to individual resighting histories and fit it using empirical Bayes methodology. This hierarchical model included accommodation for the effect of the substantial individual capture heterogeneity. Estimates from this approach were only slightly higher than published accounting procedures, except for the most recent years (when recapture rates had declined substantially). North Atlantic right whales' abundance increased at about 2.8% per annum from median point estimates of 270 individuals in 1990 to 483 in 2010, and then declined to 2015, when the final estimate was 458 individuals (95% credible intervals 444–471). The probability that the population's trajectory post‐2010 was a decline was estimated at 99.99%. Of special concern was the finding that reduced survival rates of adult females relative to adult males have produced diverging abundance trends between sexes. Despite constraints in recent years, both biological (whales' distribution changing) and logistical (fewer resources available to collect individual photo‐identifications), it is still possible to detect this relatively recent, small change in the population's trajectory. This is thanks to the massive dataset of individual North Atlantic right whale identifications accrued over the past three decades. Photo‐identification data provide biological information that allows more informed inference on the status of this species.
The genetics of phenotypic plasticity. XV. Genetic assimilation, the Baldwin effect, and evolutionary rescue
Authors: Scheiner Samuel M. , Barfield Michael , Holt Robert D. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractWe used an individual‐based simulation model to examine the role of phenotypic plasticity on persistence and adaptation to two patterns of environmental variation, a single, abrupt step change and continual, linear change. Our model tested the assumptions and predictions of the theory of genetic assimilation, explored the evolutionary dynamics of the Baldwin effect, and provided expectations for the evolutionary response to climate change. We found that genetic assimilation as originally postulated is not likely to occur because the replacement of plasticity by fixed genetic effects takes much longer than the environment is likely to remain stable. On the other hand, trait plasticity as an enhancement to continual evolutionary change may be an important evolutionary mechanism as long as plasticity has little or no costs. Whether or not plasticity helps or hinders evolutionary rescue following a step change in the environment depends on whether plasticity is costly. For linear environmental change, noncostly plasticity always decreases extinction rates, while costly plasticity can create a fitness drag and increase the chance of extinction. Thus, with changing climates plasticity can enhance adaptation and prevent extinction under some conditions, but not others.