bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The correlation between LDH serum levels and clinical outcome in advanced biliary tract cancer patients treated with first line chemotherapy
Authors: Faloppi Luca , Del Prete Michela , Gardini Andrea Casadei , Santini Daniele , Silvestris Nicola , Bianconi Maristella , Giampieri Riccardo , Valgiusti Martina , Brunetti Oronzo , Bittoni Alessandro , Andrikou Kalliopi , Lai Eleonora , Dessì Alessandra , Cascinu Stefano , Scartozzi Mario 
Published: April 2016

AbstractLDH may represent an indirect marker of neo-angiogenesis and worse prognosis in many tumour types. We assessed the correlation between LDH and clinical outcome for biliary tract cancer (BTC) patients treated with first-line chemotherapy. Overall, 114 advanced BTC patients treated with first-line gemcitabine and cisplatin were included. Patients were divided into two groups (low vs. high LDH), according to pre-treatment LDH values. Patients were also classified according to pre- and post-treatment variation in LDH serum levels (increased vs. decreased). Median progression free survival (PFS) was 5.0 and 2.6 months respectively in patients with low and high pre-treatment LDH levels (p = 0.0042, HR = 0.56, 95% CI: 0.37–0.87). Median overall survival (OS) was 7.7 and 5.6 months (low vs. high LDH) (p = 0.324, HR = 0.81, 95% CI: 0.54–1.24). DCR was 71% vs. 43% (low vs. high LDH) (p = 0.002). In 38 patients with decreased LDH values after treatment, PFS and OS were respectively 6.2 and 12.1 months, whereas in 76 patients with post-treatment increased LDH levels, PFS and OS were respectively 3.0 and 5.1 months (PFS: p = 0.0009; HR = 0.49; 95% IC: 0.33–0.74; OS: p < 0.0001; HR = 0.42; 95% IC: 0.27–0.63). Our data seem to suggest that LDH serum level may predict clinical outcome in BTC patients receiving first-line chemotherapy.
Pressure-induced topological phases of KNa2Bi
Authors: Sklyadneva I. Yu. , Rusinov I. P. , Heid R. , Bohnen K.-P. , Echenique P. M. , Chulkov E. V. 
Published: April 2016

AbstractWe report an ab initio study of the effect of hydrostatic pressure and uniaxial strain on electronic properties of KNa2Bi, a cubic bialkali bismuthide. It is found that this zero-gap semimetal with an inverted band structure at the Brillouin zone center can be driven into various topological phases under proper external pressure. We show that upon hydrostatic compression KNa2Bi turns into a trivial semiconductor with a conical Dirac-type dispersion of electronic bands at the point of the topological transition while the breaking of cubic symmetry by applying a uniaxial strain converts the compound into a topological insulator or into a three-dimensional Dirac semimetal with nontrivial surface Fermi arcs depending on the sign of strain. The calculated phonon dispersions show that KNa2Bi is dynamically stable both in the cubic structure (at any considered pressures) and in the tetragonal phase (under uniaxial strain).
Implication of Long noncoding RNAs in the endothelial cell response to hypoxia revealed by RNA-sequencing
Authors: Voellenkle C. , Garcia-Manteiga J. M. , Pedrotti S. , Perfetti A. , De Toma I. , Da Silva D. , Maimone B. , Greco S. , Fasanaro P. , Creo P. , Zaccagnini G. , Gaetano C. , Martelli F. 
Published: April 2016

AbstractLong noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) are non-protein coding RNAs regulating gene expression. Although for some lncRNAs a relevant role in hypoxic endothelium has been shown, the regulation and function of lncRNAs is still largely unknown in the vascular physio-pathology. Taking advantage of next-generation sequencing techniques, transcriptomic changes induced by endothelial cell exposure to hypoxia were investigated. Paired-end sequencing of polyadenylated RNA derived from human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) exposed to 1% O2 or normoxia was performed. Bioinformatics analysis identified ≈2000 differentially expressed genes, including 122 lncRNAs. Extensive validation was performed by both microarray and qPCR. Among the validated lncRNAs, H19, MIR210HG, MEG9, MALAT1 and MIR22HG were also induced in a mouse model of hindlimb ischemia. To test the functional relevance of lncRNAs in endothelial cells, knockdown of H19 expression was performed. H19 inhibition decreased HUVEC growth, inducing their accumulation in G1 phase of the cell cycle; accordingly, p21 (CDKN1A) expression was increased. Additionally, H19 knockdown also diminished HUVEC ability to form capillary like structures when plated on matrigel. In conclusion, a high-confidence signature of lncRNAs modulated by hypoxia in HUVEC was identified and a significant impact of H19 lncRNA was shown.
High magnetic field induced otolith fusion in the zebrafish larvae
Authors: Pais-Roldán Patricia , Singh Ajeet Pratap , Schulz Hildegard , Yu Xin 
Published: April 2016

AbstractMagnetoreception in animals illustrates the interaction of biological systems with the geomagnetic field (geoMF). However, there are few studies that identified the impact of high magnetic field (MF) exposure from Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) scanners (>100,000 times of geoMF) on specific biological targets. Here, we investigated the effects of a 14 Tesla MRI scanner on zebrafish larvae. All zebrafish larvae aligned parallel to the B0 field, i.e. the static MF, in the MRI scanner. The two otoliths (ear stones) in the otic vesicles of zebrafish larvae older than 24 hours post fertilization (hpf) fused together after the high MF exposure as short as 2 hours, yielding a single-otolith phenotype with aberrant swimming behavior. The otolith fusion was blocked in zebrafish larvae under anesthesia or embedded in agarose. Hair cells may play an important role on the MF-induced otolith fusion. This work provided direct evidence to show that high MF interacts with the otic vesicle of zebrafish larvae and causes otolith fusion in an “all-or-none” manner. The MF-induced otolith fusion may facilitate the searching for MF sensors using genetically amenable vertebrate animal models, such as zebrafish.
Single cell analysis in native tissue: Quantification of the retinoid content of hepatic stellate cells
Authors: Galler Kerstin , Requardt Robert Pascal , Glaser Uwe , Markwart Robby , Bocklitz Thomas , Bauer Michael , Popp Jürgen , Neugebauer Ute 
Published: April 2016

AbstractHepatic stellate cells (HSCs) are retinoid storing cells in the liver: The retinoid content of those cells changes depending on nutrition and stress level. There are also differences with regard to a HSC’s anatomical position in the liver. Up to now, retinoid levels were only accessible from bulk measurements of tissue homogenates or cell extracts. Unfortunately, they do not account for the intercellular variability. Herein, Raman spectroscopy relying on excitation by the minimally destructive wavelength 785 nm is introduced for the assessment of the retinoid state of single HSCs in freshly isolated, unprocessed murine liver lobes. A quantitative estimation of the cellular retinoid content is derived. Implications of the retinoid content on hepatic health state are reported. The Raman-based results are integrated with histological assessments of the tissue samples. This spectroscopic approach enables single cell analysis regarding an important cellular feature in unharmed tissue.
A Recombinant Secondary Antibody Mimic as a Target-specific Signal Amplifier and an Antibody Immobilizer in Immunoassays
Authors: Min Junseon , Song Eun Kyung , Kim Hansol , Kim Kyoung Taek , Park Tae Joo , Kang Sebyung 
Published: April 2016

AbstractWe construct a novel recombinant secondary antibody mimic, GST-ABD, which can bind to the Fc regions of target-bound primary antibodies and acquire multiple HRPs simultaneously. We produce it in tenth of mg quantities with a bacterial overexpression system and simple purification procedures, significantly reducing the manufacturing cost and time without the use of animals. GST-ABD is effectively conjugated with 3 HRPs per molecule on an average and selectively bind to the Fc region of primary antibodies derived from three different species (mouse, rabbit, and rat). HRP-conjugated GST-ABD (HRP-GST-ABD) is successfully used as an alternative to secondary antibodies to amplify target-specific signals in both ELISA and immunohistochemistry regardless of the target molecules and origin of primary antibodies used. GST-ABD also successfully serves as an anchoring adaptor on the surface of GSH-coated plates for immobilizing antigen-capturing antibodies in an orientation-controlled manner for sandwich-type indirect ELISA through simple molecular recognition without any complicated chemical modification.
Real-time estimation of wildfire perimeters from curated crowdsourcing
Authors: Zhong Xu , Duckham Matt , Chong Derek , Tolhurst Kevin 
Published: April 2016

AbstractReal-time information about the spatial extents of evolving natural disasters, such as wildfire or flood perimeters, can assist both emergency responders and the general public during an emergency. However, authoritative information sources can suffer from bottlenecks and delays, while user-generated social media data usually lacks the necessary structure and trustworthiness for reliable automated processing. This paper describes and evaluates an automated technique for real-time tracking of wildfire perimeters based on publicly available “curated” crowdsourced data about telephone calls to the emergency services. Our technique is based on established data mining tools and can be adjusted using a small number of intuitive parameters. Experiments using data from the devastating Black Saturday wildfires (2009) in Victoria, Australia, demonstrate the potential for the technique to detect and track wildfire perimeters automatically, in real time and with moderate accuracy. Accuracy can be further increased through combination with other authoritative demographic and environmental information, such as population density and dynamic wind fields. These results are also independently validated against data from the more recent 2014 Mickleham-Dalrymple wildfires.
Citrus unshiu peel extract alleviates cancer-induced weight loss in mice bearing CT-26 adenocarcinoma
Authors: Kim Aeyung , Im Minju , Gu Min Jung , Ma Jin Yeul 
Published: April 2016

AbstractSkeletal muscle atrophy is a critical feature of cancer-induced cachexia, caused by pro-cachectic factors secreted by host cells and tumor cells. Therefore, blockade of these factors has considered a reasonable target for pharmacological and nutritional interventions to prevent skeletal muscle loss under cancer-induced cachexia. Citrus unshiu peel (CUP) has been used for treating the common cold, dyspepsia, and bronchial discomfort and reported to have pharmacological activities against inflammation, allergy, diabetes, and viral infection. In the present study, we observed that daily oral administration of water extract of CUP (WCUP) to male BALB/c mice bearing CT-26 adenocarcinoma remarkably reduced the losses in final body weight, carcass weight, gastrocnemius muscle, epididymal adipose tissue, and hemoglobin (Hb), compared with saline treatment. The levels of serum IL-6 and muscle-specific E3 ligases elevated by tumor burden were also considerably reduced by WCUP administration. In an in vitro experiment, WCUP efficiently suppressed the production of pro-cachectic cytokines in immune cells as well as cancer cells. In addition, WCUP treatment attenuated C2C12 skeletal muscle cell atrophy caused by cancer cells. These findings collectively suggest that WCUP is beneficial as a nutritional supplement for the management of cancer patients with severe weight loss.
Self-assembly of multilevel branched rutile-type TiO2 structures via oriented lateral and twin attachment
Authors: Jordan Vanja , Javornik Uroš , Plavec Janez , Podgornik Aleš , Rečnik Aleksander 
Published: April 2016

AbstractRecent breakthrough of novel hierarchic materials, orchestrated through oriented attachment of crystal subunits, opened questions on what is the mechanism of their self-assembly. Using rutile-type TiO2, synthesized by hydrothermal reaction of Ti(IV)-butoxide in highly acidic aqueous medium, we uncovered the key processes controlling this nonclassical crystallization process. Formation of complex branched mesocrystals of rutile is accomplished by oriented assembly of precipitated fibers along the two low-energy planes,i.e.{110} and {101}, resulting in lateral attachment and twinning. Phase analysis of amorphous material enclosed in pockets between imperfectly assembled rutile fibers clearly shows harmonic ordering resembling that of the adjacent rutile structure. To our understanding this may be the first experimental evidence indicating the presence of electromagnetic force-fields that convey critical structural information through which oriented attachment of nanocrystals is made possible.
An Allosteric Cross-Talk Between the Activation Loop and the ATP Binding Site Regulates the Activation of Src Kinase
Authors: Pucheta-Martínez Encarna , Saladino Giorgio , Morando Maria Agnese , Martinez-Torrecuadrada Jorge , Lelli Moreno , Sutto Ludovico , D’Amelio Nicola , Gervasio Francesco Luigi 
Published: April 2016

AbstractPhosphorylation of the activation loop is a fundamental step in the activation of most protein kinases. In the case of the Src tyrosine kinase, a prototypical kinase due to its role in cancer and its historic importance, phosphorylation of tyrosine 416 in the activation loop is known to rigidify the structure and contribute to the switch from the inactive to a fully active form. However, whether or not phosphorylation is able per-se to induce a fully active conformation, that efficiently binds ATP and phosphorylates the substrate, is less clear. Here we employ a combination of solution NMR and enhanced-sampling molecular dynamics simulations to fully map the effects of phosphorylation and ATP/ADP cofactor loading on the conformational landscape of Src tyrosine kinase. We find that both phosphorylation and cofactor binding are needed to induce a fully active conformation. What is more, we find a complex interplay between the A-loop and the hinge motion where the phosphorylation of the activation-loop has a significant allosteric effect on the dynamics of the C-lobe.
Low bone mass and changes in the osteocyte network in mice lacking autophagy in the osteoblast lineage
Authors: Piemontese Marilina , Onal Melda , Xiong Jinhu , Han Li , Thostenson Jeff D. , Almeida Maria , O’Brien Charles A. 
Published: April 2016

AbstractAutophagy maintains cell function and homeostasis by recycling intracellular components. This process is also required for morphological changes associated with maturation of some cell types. Osteoblasts are bone forming cells some of which become embedded in bone and differentiate into osteocytes. This transformation includes development of long cellular projections and a reduction in endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria. We examined the role of autophagy in osteoblasts by deleting Atg7 using an Osterix1-Cre transgene, which causes recombination in osteoblast progenitors and their descendants. Mice lacking Atg7 in the entire osteoblast lineage had low bone mass and fractures associated with reduced numbers of osteoclasts and osteoblasts. Suppression of autophagy also reduced the amount of osteocyte cellular projections and led to retention of endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondria in osteocytes. These results demonstrate that autophagy in osteoblasts contributes to skeletal homeostasis and to the morphological changes associated with osteocyte formation.
The effects of surface wettability on the fog and dew moisture harvesting performance on tubular surfaces
Authors: Seo Donghyun , Lee Junghun , Lee Choongyeop , Nam Youngsuk 
Published: April 2016

AbstractThe efficient water harvesting from air-laden moisture has been a subject of great interest to address world-wide water shortage issues. Recently, it has been shown that tailoring surface wettability can enhance the moisture harvesting performance. However, depending on the harvesting condition, a different conclusion has often been reported and it remains unclear what type of surface wettability would be desirable for the efficient water harvesting under the given condition. Here we compare the water harvesting performance of the surfaces with various wettability under two different harvesting conditions–dewing and fogging, and show that the different harvesting efficiency of each surface under these two conditions can be understood by considering the relative importance of the water capturing and removal efficiency of the surface. At fogging, the moisture harvesting performance is determined by the water removal efficiency of the surface with the oil-infused surfaces exhibiting the best performance. Meanwhile, at dewing, both the water capturing and removal efficiency are crucial to the harvesting performance. And well-wetting surfaces with a lower barrier to nucleation of condensates exhibit a better harvesting performance due to the increasing importance of the water capture efficiency over the water removal efficiency at dewing.
Ultrasmall all-optical plasmonic switch and its application to superresolution imaging
Authors: Wu Hsueh-Yu , Huang Yen-Ta , Shen Po-Ting , Lee Hsuan , Oketani Ryosuke , Yonemaru Yasuo , Yamanaka Masahito , Shoji Satoru , Lin Kung-Hsuan , Chang Chih-Wei , Kawata Satoshi , Fujita Katsumasa , Chu Shi-Wei 
Published: April 2016

AbstractBecause of their exceptional local-field enhancement and ultrasmall mode volume, plasmonic components can integrate photonics and electronics at nanoscale and active control of plasmons is the key. However, all-optical modulation of plasmonic response with nanometer mode volume and unity modulation depth is still lacking. Here we show that scattering from a plasmonic nanoparticle, whose volume is smaller than 0.001 μm3, can be optically switched off with less than 100 μW power. Over 80% modulation depth is observed and shows no degradation after repetitive switching. The spectral bandwidth approaches 100 nm. The underlying mechanism is suggested to be photothermal effects and the effective single-particle nonlinearity reaches nearly 10−9 m2/W, which is to our knowledge the largest record of metallic materials to date. As a novel application, the non-bleaching and unlimitedly switchable scattering is used to enhance optical resolution to λ/5 (λ/9 after deconvolution), with 100-fold less intensity requirement compared to similar superresolution techniques. Our work not only opens up a new field of ultrasmall all-optical control based on scattering from a single nanoparticle, but also facilitates superresolution imaging for long-term observation.
Magnetic coherent tunnel junctions with periodic grating barrier
Authors: Fang Henan , Xiao Mingwen , Rui Wenbin , Du Jun , Tao Zhikuo 
Published: April 2016

AbstractA new spintronic theory has been developed for the magnetic tunnel junction (MTJ) with single-crystal barrier. The barrier will be treated as a diffraction grating with intralayer periodicity, the diffracted waves of tunneling electrons thus contain strong coherence, both in charge and especially in spin. The theory can answer the two basic problems present in MgO-based MTJs: (1) Why does the tunneling magnetoresistance (TMR) oscillate with the barrier thickness? (2) Why is the TMR still far away from infinity when the two electrodes are both half-metallic? Other principal features of TMR can also be explained and reproduced by the present work. It also provides possible ways to modulate the oscillation of TMR and to enhance TMR so that it can tend to infinity. Within the theory, the barrier, as a periodic diffraction grating, can get rid of the confinement in width, it can vary from nanoscale to microscale. Based on those results, a future-generation MTJ is proposed where the three pieces can be fabricated separately and then assembled together, it is especially appropriate for the layered materials, e.g., MoS2 and graphite and most feasible for industries.
Comparative genetic characterization of Enteroaggregative Escherichia coli strains recovered from clinical and non-clinical settings
Authors: Zhang Rong , Gu Dan-xia , Huang Yong-lu , Chan Edward Wai-Chi , Chen Gong-Xiang , Chen Sheng 
Published: April 2016

AbstractThe origin of pathogenic EnteroaggregativeEscherichia coli(EAEC), a major causative agent of childhood diarrhea worldwide, remains ill-defined. The objective of this study was to determine the relative prevalence of EAEC in clinical and non-clinical sources and compare their genetic characteristics in order to identify strains that rarely and commonly cause human diarrhea. The virulence geneastAwas commonly detectable in both clinical and non-clinical EAEC, while clinical isolates, but not the non-clinical strains, were consistently found to harbor other virulence factors such asaap(32%), aatA(18%) andaggR(11%). MLST analysis revealed the extremely high diversity of EAEC ST types, which can be grouped into three categories including: (i) non-clinical EAEC that rarely cause human infections; (ii) virulent strains recoverable in diarrhea patients that are also commonly found in the non-clinical sources; (iii) organisms causing human infections but rarely recoverable in the non-clinical setting. In addition, the high resistance in these EAEC isolates in particular resistance to fluoroquinolones and cephalosporins raised a huge concern for clinical EAEC infection control. The data from this study suggests that EAEC strains were diversely distributed in non-clinical and clinical setting and some of the clinical isolates may originate from the non-clinical setting.
Global monsoon precipitation responses to large volcanic eruptions
Authors: Liu Fei , Chai Jing , Wang Bin , Liu Jian , Zhang Xiao , Wang Zhiyuan 
Published: April 2016

AbstractClimate variation of global monsoon (GM) precipitation involves both internal feedback and external forcing. Here, we focus on strong volcanic forcing since large eruptions are known to be a dominant mechanism in natural climate change. It is not known whether large volcanoes erupted at different latitudes have distinctive effects on the monsoon in the Northern Hemisphere (NH) and the Southern Hemisphere (SH). We address this issue using a 1500-year volcanic sensitivity simulation by the Community Earth System Model version 1.0 (CESM1). Volcanoes are classified into three types based on their meridional aerosol distributions: NH volcanoes, SH volcanoes and equatorial volcanoes. Using the model simulation, we discover that the GM precipitation in one hemisphere is enhanced significantly by the remote volcanic forcing occurring in the other hemisphere. This remote volcanic forcing-induced intensification is mainly through circulation change rather than moisture content change. In addition, the NH volcanic eruptions are more efficient in reducing the NH monsoon precipitation than the equatorial ones, and so do the SH eruptions in weakening the SH monsoon, because the equatorial eruptions, despite reducing moisture content, have weaker effects in weakening the off-equatorial monsoon circulation than the subtropical-extratropical volcanoes do.