bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The Excess Burden of Cytomegalovirus in African American Communities: A Geospatial Analysis
Authors: Lantos Paul M. , Permar Sallie R. , Hoffman Kate , Swamy Geeta K. 
Published: November 2015

Abstract
Background.  Cytomegalovirus (CMV) is a common cause of birth defects and hearing loss in infants and opportunistic infections in the immunocompromised. Previous studies have found higher CMV seroprevalence rates among minorities and among persons with lower socioeconomic status. No studies have investigated the geographic distribution of CMV and its relationship to age, race, and poverty in the community.
Methods.  We identified patients from 6 North Carolina counties who were tested in the Duke University Health System for CMV immunoglobulin G. We performed spatial statistical analyses to analyze the distributions of seropositive and seronegative individuals.
Results.  Of 1884 subjects, 90% were either white or African American. Cytomegalovirus seropositivity was significantly more common among African Americans (73% vs 42%; odds ratio, 3.31; 95% confidence interval, 2.7–4.1), and this disparity persisted across the life span. We identified clusters of high and low CMV odds, both of which were largely explained by race. Clusters of high CMV odds were found in communities with high proportions of African Americans.
Conclusions.  Cytomegalovirus seropositivity is geographically clustered, and its distribution is strongly determined by a community's racial composition. African American communities have high prevalence rates of CMV infection, and there may be a disparate burden of CMV-associated morbidity in these communities.
Signals at ground level of relativistic solar particles associated with a radiation storm on 2014 April 18
Authors: Augusto Carlos , Navia Carlos , de Oliveira Marcel N. , Fauth Anderson , Nepomuceno André 
Published: November 2015

Abstract
Active region NOAA AR2036, located at S20W34 at the Sun disk, produced a moderately strong (GOES class M7.3) flare on 2014 April 18. The flare itself was long in duration, and a halo coronal mass ejection (CME) was emitted. In addition, a radiation storm, that is, solar energetic particles (SEP), began to reach the Earth at 13:30 UT in the aftermath of the solar blast, meeting the condition of an S1 (minor) radiation storm level. In temporal coincidence with the onset of the S1 radiation storm, the Tupi telescopes located within the South Atlantic Anomaly (SAA) detected a fast rise in the muon counting rate, caused by relativistic protons from this solar blast, with a confidence of up to 3.5% at peak. At the time of the solar blast, of all ground-based detectors, the Tupi telescopes had the best geoeffective location. Indeed, in association with the radiation storm, a gradual increase in the particle intensity was found in some neutron monitors (NMs), all of them in the west region relative to the Sun–Earth line, yet within the geoeffective region. However, their confidence levels are smaller: up to 3%. The fast rising observed at Tupi suggests possible detection of solar particles emitted during the impulsive phase, following by a gradual phase observed also at NMs. Details of these observations, including the expected energy spectrum, are reported.
Failed eruptions of two intertwining small-scale filaments
Authors: Xue Zhike , Yan Xiaoli , Zhao Li , Xiang Yongyuan , Yang Liheng , Guo Yang 
Published: November 2015

Abstract
Using multi-wavelength observations of the New Vacuum Solar Telescope (NVST), the Atmospheric Imaging Assembly (AIA) and Helioseismic and Magnetic Imager (HMI) on board the Solar Dynamics Observatory (SDO), we study the topology and evolutions of two filaments observed in NOAA active region (AR) 12031 on 2014 April 7. Before their eruptions, the two filaments (F1 and F2) were sinistral filaments, and the left part of F1 (LP) was located above F2, the right part of F1 (RP) under F2. They show an overall intertwining structure. LP erupted first and rotated clockwise. The total rotation angle was about 470° (≈2.61π). With its rotation, most of the plasma fell back, and thus it was a failed eruption. Meanwhile, when LP erupted to a higher altitude, the overlying magnetic loops were partially pushed from the northeast to the southwest with projected speeds from 36 to 105 km s−1. Next, F2 began to erupt and, when reaching a certain height, the plasma of F2 started to fall down to their footpoints. Using the potential-field source-surface (PFSS) model, the decay indexes at five positions along the polarity inversion line of AR 12031 were calculated to be from 1.03 to 1.25 with an average value of 1.20 that was lower than the critical value for torus instability. These results imply that the kink instability was the main triggering mechanism for the eruption of F1, and the eruption of F2 was due to the decreasing of overlying magnetic loops caused by the eruption of F1. The eruptions of two filaments were confined by the large-scale overlying magnetic loops.
Serial Mehta Cast Utilization in Infantile Idiopathic Scoliosis: Evaluation of Radiographic Predictors
Authors: Hassanzadeh Hamid , Nandyala Sreeharsha V. , Puvanesarajah Varun , Manning Blaine T. , Jain Amit , Hammerberg Kim W. 
Published: November 2015

Background:
Mehta cast utilization has gained a considerable momentum as a nonoperative treatment modality for the initial management of infantile idiopathic scoliosis (IIS). Despite its acceptance, there is paucity of data that characterize the radiographic parameters associated with Mehta casting and the factors correlated with a sustained curve correction.

Methods:
A retrospective review of IIS patients who underwent Mehta casting was performed with a mean 2-year follow-up. X-rays were evaluated at each visit for the Cobb angle, focal deformity, rib-vertebral angle difference, and height of concavity and convexity of the apical 3 vertebrae. Concave-to-convex height ratios were calculated and tracked for each patient. Radiographic parameters were compared from precasting to after final casting, and from final casting to most recent follow-up.

Results:
A total of 45 patients were identified, of whom 18 (40%) were male and 27 (60%) were female, with a mean age of 18.8±9.5 months at first casting and a mean follow-up of 37.7±19.7 months. Following final casting, the mean Cobb angle (25.6 vs. 52.7 degrees), focal deformity (17.4 vs. 30.5 degrees), rib-vertebral angle difference (18 vs. 32.3 degrees), and the concave-to-convex height ratios improved relative to precast parameters, respectively (P<0.001). At final follow-up, mean Cobb angle (16.2 vs. 25.6 degrees) and concave-to-convex height ratios progressively improved when compared with final cast measurements, respectively (P<0.001). Five (11%) patients did not demonstrate sustained curve correction at final follow-up, whereas 4 (9%) required growing-rod placement. Lastly, the regression analysis demonstrated improvements in the focal deformity (17.4 vs. 30.5) and the concave-to-convex height ratios of the +1 and −1 apical vertebrae from the precast to last cast periods (P<0.001). These findings were correlated with sustained Cobb angle correction from cast removal to the most recent follow-up.

Conclusions:
Radiographic parameters associated with control of progressive deformity for IIS include improvements in focal deformity and concave-to-convex height ratios for +1 and −1 apical vertebrae after final casting. Mehta casting is an effective treatment for symptomatic IIS and continues to provide IIS patients with significant curve correction.

Level of Evidence:
Level IV.
Effects of Antifungal Soaked Silicone Hydrogel Contact Lenses on Candida albicans in an Agar Eye Model
Authors: Phan Chau-Minh , Bajgrowicz Magdalena , McCanna David J. , Subbaraman Lakshman N. , Jones Lyndon 
Published: November 2015

Purpose:
To evaluate the effects of two commercial silicone hydrogel contact lenses (CLs) soaked with natamycin (NA) or fluconazole (FL) on the growth of Candida albicans in an in vitro eye model.

Methods:
Three-D printed molds were used as a cast for making eye-shaped models comprising potato dextrose agar. Senofilcon A (SA) and lotrafilcon B (LB) CLs were incubated with either 2 mL of NA or FL at a concentration of 1 mg/mL for 24 hr. To simulate a fungal infection, the eye models were coated with C. albicans. The drug-soaked lenses were placed on top of the eye models. Seven experimental conditions were examined: (1) NA-SA, (2) NA-LB, (3) FL-SA, (4) FL-LB, (5) SA, (6) LB, and (7) control—no lens. At specified time points (t=1, 8, 16, 24, 48 hr), the agar eyes from each experimental condition were removed from the incubator and photographed. The yeast cells from the 24 and 48 hr time point were also analyzed using light microscopy.

Results:
At 24 and 48 hr, there was considerable growth observed for all conditions except for the NA-SA and NA-LB conditions. When observed under the microscope at 24 and 48 hr, the morphology of the yeast cells in the FL-SA and SA condition were similar to that of the control (oval shaped). There was limited hyphae growth observed for LB and significant visible hyphae growth for the NA-LB group. For NA-SA, NA-LB, and FL-LB groups, the cells were significantly smaller compared with the control.

Conclusions:
For NA-SA and NA-LB, there was limited growth of C. albicans observed on the eye models even after 48 hr. Under the microscope, the cell morphology differ noticeably between each testing condition, and is dependent on drug-lens combinations.
Effect of Ambient Temperature on the Human Tear Film
Authors: Abusharha Ali A. , Pearce E. Ian , Fagehi Raied 
Published: November 2015

Purpose:
During everyday life, the tear film is exposed to a wide range of ambient temperatures. This study aims to investigate the effect of ambient temperature on tear film physiology.

Method:
A controlled environment chamber was used to create different ambient temperatures (5, 10, 15, 20, and 25°C) at a constant relative humidity of 40%. Subjects attended for two separate visits and were exposed to 25, 20, and 15°C at one visit and to 10 and 5°C at the other visit. The subjects were exposed to each room temperature for 10 min before investigating tear film parameters. The order of the visits was random. Tear physiology parameters assessed were tear evaporation rate, noninvasive tear break-up time (NITBUT), lipid layer thickness (LLT), and ocular surface temperature (OST). Each parameter was assessed under each condition.

Result:
A threefold increase in tear evaporation rate was observed as ambient temperature increased to 25°C (P=0.00). The mean evaporation rate increased from 0.056 μL/min at 5°C to 0.17 μL/min at 25°C. The mean NITBUT increased from 7.31 sec at 5°C to 12.35 sec at 25°C (P=0.01). A significant change in LLT was also observed (P=0.00), LLT median ranged between 20 and 40 nm at 5 and 10°C and increased to 40 and 90 nm at 15, 20, and 25°C. Mean reduction of 4°C OST was observed as ambient temperature decreased from 25 to 5°C.

Conclusion:
Ambient temperature has a considerable effect on human tear film characteristics. Tear evaporation rate, tear LLT, tear stability, and OST were considerably affected by ambient temperature. Chronic exposure to low ambient temperature would likely result in symptoms of dry eye and ultimately ocular surface disorders.
A Study of Interpersonal Intimacy and Meaning of Life Among Elderly Institutionalized Veterans
Authors: Niu Chen-Chun , Huang Hui-Man , Hung Yun-Ying , Lee Hsiu-Li 
Published: November 2015

ABSTRACT

Background:
Most senior veterans who live in veterans’ homes in Taiwan are single and have few intimate, interpersonal relationships. Aging is often accompanied by solitude and illness, which causes senior veterans to doubt the meaning of life and to lose confidence in the value of life.

Purpose:
This study investigated the personal characteristics that influence interpersonal intimacy and the meaning of life as well as the relationship between interpersonal intimacy and the meaning of life among senior veterans living in veterans’ homes.

Methods:
A cross-sectional design was used, and 120 senior male veterans were convenience sampled from three veterans’ homes in southern Taiwan. Three structured questionnaires were used in this study: personal characteristics questionnaire, interpersonal intimacy scale, and purpose in life test.

Results:
(a) Interpersonal intimacy was influenced by source of income or funds, type of residence institution, religious affiliation, and the quality of the participant’s relationships with family, friends, and fellow residents. Educational level and self-perceived health status correlated positively with interpersonal intimacy, and period of residence correlated negatively with interpersonal intimacy. (b) Meaning of life was influenced by the quality of relationships with family and friends. Educational level and self-perceived health status correlated significantly and positively with meaning of life, and period of residence correlated negatively with meaning of life. (c) Significant, positive correlations were found among interpersonal intimacy, the four domains of interpersonal intimacy, and meaning of life.

Conclusions/Implications for Practice:
Health professionals involved in the care of senior veterans in institutions may use the results of this study to develop and implement interventions that promote a higher degree of interpersonal intimacy and a higher appreciation of the meaning of life, thus enabling senior veterans to confront old age in a more positive manner.
Role of autoregulation and relative synthesis of operon partners in alternative sigma factor networks
Authors: Narula Jatin , Tiwari Abhinav , Igoshin Oleg A. 
Published: November 2015

SummaryDespite the central role of alternative sigma factors in bacterial stress response and virulence their regulation remains incompletely understood. Here we investigate one of the best-studied examples of alternative sigma factors: the σBnetwork that controls the general stress response ofBacillus subtilisto uncover widely relevant general design principles that describe the structure-function relationship of alternative sigma factor regulatory networks. We show that the relative stoichiometry of the synthesis rates of σB, its anti-sigma factor RsbW and the anti-anti-sigma factor RsbV plays a critical role in shaping the network behavior by forcing the σBnetwork to function as an ultrasensitive negative feedback loop. We further demonstrate how this negative feedback regulation insulates alternative sigma factor activity from competition with the housekeeping sigma factor for RNA polymerase and allows multiple stress sigma factors to function simultaneously with little competitive interference.Major Subject Areas:Computational and systems biology, Microbiology & Infectious diseaseResearch Organism:Bacillus subtilis
Mind the drift - improving sensitivity to fMRI pattern information by accounting for temporal pattern drift
Authors: Alink Arjen , Walther Alexander , Krugliak Alexandra , van den Bosch Jasper J.F. , Kriegeskorte Nikolaus 
Published: November 2015

AbstractAnalyzing functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) pattern similarity is becoming increasingly popular because it allows one to relate distributed patterns of voxel activity to continuous perceptual and cognitive states of the human brain. Here we show that fMRI pattern similarity estimates are severely affected by temporal pattern drifts in fMRI data – even after voxel-wise detrending. For this particular dataset, the drift effect obscures orientation information as measured by fMRI pattern dissimilarities. We demonstrate that orientation information can be recovered using three different methods: 1. Regressing out the drift component through linear modeling; 2. Computing representational distances between conditions measured in independent imaging runs; 3. Crossvalidation of pattern distance estimates. One possible source of temporal pattern drift could be random walk like fluctuations — physiological or scanner related — occurring within single voxel timecourses. This explanation is consistent with voxel-wise detrending not alleviating pattern drift effects. In addition, this would explain why crossvalidated pattern distances are robust to temporal drift because a random walk process is expected to give rise to non-replicable drift directions. Given these findings, we recommend that future fMRI studies take pattern drift into account when analyzing pattern similarity as this can greatly enhance the sensitivity to experimental effects of interest.
Consistent estimation of complete neuronal connectivity in large neuronal populations using sparse “shotgun” neuronal activity sampling
Authors: Mishchenko Yuriy 
Published: November 2015

AbstractWe investigate the properties of the recently proposed “shotgun” sampling approach for the common inputs problem in the functional estimation of neuronal connectivity. We study the asymptotic correctness, the speed of convergence, and the data size requirements of such an approach. We find that the shotgun approach can be expected to allow the inference of the complete connectivity matrix in large neuronal populations under some rather general conditions. However, we find that the posterior error of the shotgun connectivity estimator may grow quickly with the size of the unobserved neuronal populations, the connectivity strength, and the square of the observations’ sparseness. This implies that the shotgun connectivity estimation will require significant amounts of neuronal activity data whenever the number of neurons in the observed populations is small. We present a numerical approach for solving the shotgun estimation problem in general settings and use it to demonstrate the shotgun connectivity inference in simulated synfire and weakly coupled cortical neuronal networks.
Shared genomic variants: identification of transmission routes using pathogen deep sequence data
Authors: Worby Colin J. , Lipsitch Marc , Hanage William P. 
Published: November 2015

AbstractSequencing pathogen samples during a communicable disease outbreak is becoming an increasingly common procedure in epidemiological investigations. Identifying who infected whom sheds considerable light on transmission patterns, high-risk settings and subpopulations, and infection control effectiveness. Genomic data shed new light on transmission dynamics, and can be used to identify clusters of individuals likely to be linked by direct transmission. However, identification of individual routes of infection via single genome samples typically remains uncertain. Here, we investigate the potential of deep sequence data to provide greater resolution on transmission routes, via the identification of shared genomic variants. We assess several easily implemented methods to identify transmission routes using both shared variants and genetic distance, demonstrating that shared variants can provide considerable additional information in most scenarios. While shared variant approaches identify relatively few links in the presence of a small transmission bottleneck, these links are highly confident. Furthermore, we proposed hybrid approach additionally incorporating phylogenetic distance to provide greater resolution. We apply our methods to data collected during the 2014 Ebola outbreak, identifying several likely routes of transmission. Our study highlights the power of pathogen deep sequence data as a component of outbreak investigation and epidemiological analyses.
Activation of G proteins by guanine nucleotide exchange factors relies on GTPase activity
Authors: Stanley Rob J , Thomas Geraint MH 
Published: November 2015

AbstractG proteins are an important family of signalling molecules controlled by guanine nucleotide exchange and GTPase activity in what is commonly called an ‘activation/inactivation cycle’. The molecular mechanism by which guanine nucleotide exchange factors (GEFs) catalyse the activation of monomeric G proteins is well-established, however the complete reversibility of this mechanism is often overlooked. Here, we use a theoretical approach to prove that GEFs are unable to positively control G protein systems at steady-state in the absence of GTPase activity. Instead, positive regulation of G proteins must be seen as a product of the competition between guanine nucleotide exchange and GTPase activity – emphasising a central role for GTPase activity beyond merely signal termination. We conclude that a more accurate description of the regulation of G proteins via these processes is as a ‘balance/imbalance’ mechanism. This result has implications for the understanding of many intracellular signalling processes, and for experimental strategies that rely on modulating G protein systems.
The ASYMMETRIC LEAVES Complex Employs Multiple Modes of Regulation to Affect Adaxial-Abaxial Patterning and Leaf Complexity
Authors: Husbands Aman Y. , Benkovics Anna H. , Nogueira Fabio T.S. , Lodha Mukesh , Timmermans Marja C.P. 
Published: November 2015

AbstractFlattened leaf architecture is not a default state but depends on positional information to precisely coordinate patterns of cell division in the growing primordium. This information is provided, in part, by the boundary between the adaxial (top) and abaxial (bottom) domains of the leaf, which are specified via an intricate gene regulatory network whose precise circuitry remains poorly defined. Here, we examined the contribution of the ASYMMETRIC LEAVES (AS) pathway to adaxial-abaxial patterning in Arabidopsis thaliana and demonstrate that AS1-AS2 affects this process via multiple, distinct regulatory mechanisms. AS1-AS2 uses Polycomb-dependent and -independent mechanisms to directly repress the abaxial determinants MIR166A, YABBY5, and AUXIN RESPONSE FACTOR3 (ARF3), as well as a nonrepressive mechanism in the regulation of the adaxial determinant TAS3A. These regulatory interactions, together with data from prior studies, lead to a model in which the sequential polarization of determinants, including AS1-AS2, explains the establishment and maintenance of adaxial-abaxial leaf polarity. Moreover, our analyses show that the shared repression of ARF3 by the AS and trans-acting small interfering RNA (ta-siRNA) pathways intersects with additional AS1-AS2 targets to affect multiple nodes in leaf development, impacting polarity as well as leaf complexity. These data illustrate the surprisingly multifaceted contribution of AS1-AS2 to leaf development showing that, in conjunction with the ta-siRNA pathway, AS1-AS2 keeps the Arabidopsis leaf both flat and simple.
Host infection history modifies co‐infection success of multiple parasite genotypes
Authors: Klemme Ines , Louhi Katja‐Riikka , Karvonen Anssi 
Published: November 2015

Summary

Co‐infections by multiple parasite genotypes are common and have important implications for host–parasite ecology and evolution through within‐host interactions. Typically, these infections take place sequentially, and therefore, the outcome of co‐infection may be shaped by host immune responses triggered by previous infections. For example, in vertebrates, specific immune responses play a central role in protection against disease over the course of life, but co‐infection research has mostly focused on previously uninfected individuals.

Here, we investigated whether sequential exposure and activation of host resistance in rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss affects infection success and interactions between co‐infecting parasite genotypes of the trematode eye‐fluke Diplostomum pseudospathaceum.

In accordance with earlier results, we show that a simultaneous attack of two parasite genotypes facilitates parasite establishment in previously uninfected hosts. However, we find for the first time that this facilitation in co‐infection is lost in hosts with prior infection.

We conclude that vertebrate host infection history can affect the direction of within‐host–parasite interactions. Our results may have significant implications for the evolution of co‐infections and parasite transmission strategies.