bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Load profiles and flexibility in operation of washing machines and dishwashers in Europe
Authors: Stamminger Rainer , Schmitz Angelika 
Published: November 2016

AbstractWhile the energy generation system is changing towards the use of more renewable energies, the problem of how to deal with fluctuating energy supply is increasing. Smart appliances in households are often referenced as one possible solution, as their operation may be shifted in time and, thus, used to balance an unstable energy supply. The potential of such appliances has been studied to date mainly in pilot installations with a very limited number of participants or by making assumptions on what might be possible. With this work, a semi‐representative approach for 12 European countries was used to assess actual consumer habits for the use of washing machines and dishwashers which then could be used to calculate average load profiles for those appliances depending on the time of the day. Using these profiles, it is strait forward to calculate how much load may be shifted by those appliances in a demand response application. This allows aggregators or energy utilities to assign clear financial benefits to the shifting potential of those appliances. Consumers use the shifting of appliance operation already today for various reasons. Investigating these reasons allows to learn already a lot about the flexibility of consumers.
Nitric oxide and pH modulation in gynaecological cancer
Authors: Sanhueza Carlos , Araos Joaquín , Naranjo Luciano , Barros Eric , Subiabre Mario , Toledo Fernando , Gutiérrez Jaime , Chiarello Delia I. , Pardo Fabián , Leiva Andrea , Sobrevia Luis 
Published: November 2016

AbstractNitric oxide plays several roles in cellular physiology, including control of the vascular tone and defence against pathogen infection. Neuronal, inducible and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (NOS) isoforms synthesize nitric oxide. Cells generate acid and base equivalents, whose physiological intracellular concentrations are kept due to membrane transport systems, including Na+/H+ exchangers and Na+/HCO3− transporters, thus maintaining a physiological pH at the intracellular (~7.0) and extracellular (~7.4) medium. In several pathologies, including cancer, cells are exposed to an extracellular acidic microenvironment, and the role for these membrane transport mechanisms in this phenomenon is likely. As altered NOS expression and activity is seen in cancer cells and because this gas promotes a glycolytic phenotype leading to extracellular acidosis in gynaecological cancer cells, a pro‐inflammatory microenvironment increasing inducible NOS expression in this cell type is feasible. However, whether abnormal control of intracellular and extracellular pH by cancer cells regards with their ability to synthesize or respond to nitric oxide is unknown. We, here, discuss a potential link between pH alterations, pH controlling membrane transport systems and NOS function. We propose a potential association between inducible NOS induction and Na+/H+ exchanger expression and activity in human ovary cancer. A potentiation between nitric oxide generation and the maintenance of a low extracellular pH (i.e. acidic) is proposed to establish a sequence of events in ovarian cancer cells, thus preserving a pro‐proliferative acidic tumour extracellular microenvironment. We suggest that pharmacological therapeutic targeting of Na+/H+ exchangers and inducible NOS may have benefits in human epithelial ovarian cancer.
Dual specificity phosphatase 15 regulates Erk activation in Schwann cells
Authors: Rodríguez‐Molina José F. , Lopez‐Anido Camila , Ma Ki H. , Zhang Chongyu , Olson Tyler , Muth Katharina N. , Weider Matthias , Svaren John 
Published: November 2016

AbstractSchwann cells and oligodendrocytes are the myelinating cells of the peripheral and central nervous system, respectively. Despite having different myelin components and different transcription factors driving their terminal differentiation there are shared molecular mechanisms between the two. Sox10 is one common transcription factor required for several steps in development of myelinating glia. However, other factors are divergent as Schwann cells need the transcription factor early growth response 2/Krox20 and oligodendrocytes require Myrf. Likewise, some signaling pathways, like the Erk1/2 kinases, are necessary in both cell types for proper myelination. Nonetheless, the molecular mechanisms that control this shared signaling pathway in myelinating cells remain only partially characterized. The hypothesis of this study is that signaling pathways that are similarly regulated in both Schwann cells and oligodendrocytes play central roles in coordinating the differentiation of myelinating glia. To address this hypothesis, we have used genome‐wide binding data to identify a relatively small set of genes that are similarly regulated by Sox10 in myelinating glia. We chose one such gene encoding Dual specificity phosphatase 15 (Dusp15) for further analysis in Schwann cell signaling. RNA interference and gene deletion by genome editing in cultured RT4 and primary Schwann cells showed Dusp15 is necessary for full activation of Erk1/2 phosphorylation. In addition, we show that Dusp15 represses expression of several myelin genes, including myelin basic protein. The data shown here support a mechanism by which early growth response 2 activates myelin genes, but also induces a negative feedback loop through Dusp15 to limit over‐expression of myelin genes.
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Managing Capital via Internal Capital Market Transactions: The Case of Life Insurers
Authors: Niehaus Greg 
Published: November 2016

AbstractThe movement of capital within insurance groups is important for understanding insolvency risk management, as well as regulatory policies regarding capital standards and group supervision. Panel data estimates indicate that, on average, a dollar decrease in performance (net income plus unrealized capital gains) when performance is negative is associated with a $0.26 increase in capital contributions to life insurers from other entities in the group, and that a dollar increase in performance when performance is positive is associated with a $0.56 increase in the amount of internal shareholder dividends paid by life insurers to other entities in the group. Moreover, the sensitivity of internal dividends to performance is higher during the financial crisis than the noncrisis period. Also, insurers with low (high) risk‐based capital ratios receive more (less) internal capital contributions than other insurers, holding other factors constant.
Pharmacokinetics cannot explain the increased effective dose requirement for morphine and midazolam in rats during their extended administration alone or in combination
Authors: Schaller Stefan J , Alam Saad M , Mao Jianren , Zhao Yanli , Blobner Manfred , Greenblatt David J , Martyn J A Jeevendra 
Published: November 2016

Abstract

Objectives
Chronic administration of morphine and midazolam, alone or in combination, can induce tolerance to their effects. Data showed that co-administration of morphine and midazolam increased effective dose requirement of morphine, exceeding that observed with morphine alone.

Methods
To elucidate the pharmacokinetic component to the tolerance, we administered midazolam (2 mg/kg) and morphine (10 mg/kg) alone or their combination daily to rats for 12 days followed by a pharmacokinetic study on day 13. On the study day, each animal received a single bolus dose of 5 mg/kg morphine, and 2 mg/kg of midazolam 30 s later. Multiple blood samples were obtained for 6 h. Plasma drug concentrations were assayed by mass spectrometry optimized for small samples.

Key findings
Mean morphine clearance was as follows: 22.2, 27.2, 26.0 and 23.4 l/h per kg in the saline–saline, saline–midazolam, saline–morphine and midazolam–morphine groups, respectively. Corresponding midazolam clearances were 32.8, 23.0, 22.2 and 31.1 l/h per kg. ANOVA indicated no significant differences among the four groups in the clearances, half-lives, and volumes of distribution. Morphine and midazolam clearances were significantly correlated (R2 = 0.48, P &lt; 0.001).

Conclusions
This animal model suggests that altered pharmacokinetics cannot explain tolerance evidenced as increased dose requirement for morphine or midazolam, when administered alone or combination, for extended periods.
Changes in species composition and richness in an alluvial hardwood forest over 52 yrs
Authors: Strubelt Ilka , Diekmann Martin , Zacharias Dietmar 
Published: November 2016

AbstractQuestions(1) How has the species richness of an alluvial forest changed over the past 52 yrs, and what are the main drivers of the observed temporal changes; (2) has the species composition changed over this period in response to changes in environmental variables; and (3) what are the main drivers of species richness (change) in this forest?LocationHaseder Holz, Innerste floodplain in lowland northern Germany.MethodsIn 2012 we resurveyed the plant species composition of 19 permanent plots analysed for the first time in 1960 and for a second time in 2002. At the most recent survey, several environmental variables (photosynthetically active radiation, soil water content, groundwater table, pH and content of soil P, Ca, Mg, K, C and N) were measured in five locations within each plot. GLM were used to examine the relationship between explanatory variables and species richness, while variation in species composition, in time and space, was assessed by DCA.ResultsThe number of species generally increased with decreasing soil nutrient (except Mg) content, with increasing variation in light availability and with increasing variation in K content. The significant increase in species richness from 1960 to 2012 was mainly attributed to the increase in true forest species, such as Paris quadrifolia and Mercurialis perennis, and woody species. The most pronounced increase in species richness was found in plots with lower soil phosphate content. Species typical for open habitats showed the most pronounced decrease from 1960 to 2012. A significant homogenization of the plots over time was observed.ConclusionsAgainst the common trend in European forests, we found a significant increase in mean species richness, especially in plots with relatively low nutrient content. While the total pool of species has not consistently increased, we found a strong increase in plot‐scale species richness of woody and herbaceous species. This overall increase and the slight decrease in the proportion of species typical of open habitats were probably driven by a decrease in light availability caused by less intensive management. Our results demonstrate that fine‐scale spatial environmental heterogeneity positively affects species richness. In contrast to recently reported findings, we found a decrease in the number of species with increasing nutrient content.
The variability of ruthenium in chromite from chassignite and olivine‐phyric shergottite meteorites: New insights into the behavior of PGE and sulfur in Martian magmatic systems
Authors: Baumgartner Raphael J. , Fiorentini Marco L. , Baratoux David , Ferrière Ludovic , Locmelis Marek , Tomkins Andrew , Sener Kerim A. 
Published: November 2016

AbstractThe Martian meteorites comprise mantle‐derived mafic to ultramafic rocks that formed in shallow intrusions and/or lava flows. This study reports the first in situ platinum‐group element data on chromite and ulvöspinel from a series of dunitic chassignites and olivine‐phyric shergottites, determined using laser‐ablation ICP‐MS. As recent studies have shown that Ru has strongly contrasting affinities for coexisting sulfide and spinel phases, the precise in situ analysis of this element in spinel can provide important insights into the sulfide saturation history of Martian mantle‐derived melts. The new data reveal distinctive differences between the two meteorite groups. Chromite from the chassignites Northwest Africa 2737 (NWA 2737) and Chassigny contained detectable concentrations of Ru (up to ~160 ppb Ru) in solid solution, whereas chromite and ulvöspinel from the olivine‐phyric shergottites Yamato‐980459 (Y‐980459), Tissint, and Dhofar 019 displayed Ru concentrations consistently below detection limit (<42 ppb). The relatively elevated Ru signatures of chromite from the chassignites suggest a Ru‐rich (~1–4 ppb) parental melt for this meteorite group, which presumably did not experience segregation of immiscible sulfide liquids over the interval of mantle melting, melt ascent, and chromite crystallization. The relatively Ru‐depleted signature of chromite and ulvöspinel from the olivine‐phyric shergottites may be the consequence of relatively lower Ru contents (<1 ppb) in the parental melts, and/or the presence of sulfides during the crystallization of the spinel phases. The results of this study illustrate the significance of platinum‐group element in situ analysis on spinel phases to decipher the sulfide saturation history of magmatic systems.
CtrA controls cell division and outer membrane composition of the pathogen Brucella abortus
Authors: Francis Nayla , Poncin Katy , Fioravanti Antonella , Vassen Victoria , Willemart Kevin , Ong Thi Anh Phuong , Rappez Luca , Letesson Jean‐Jacques , Biondi Emanuele G. , De Bolle Xavier 
Published: November 2016

SummaryBrucella abortus is a pathogen infecting cattle, able to survive, traffic, and proliferate inside host cells. It belongs to the Alphaproteobacteria, a phylogenetic group comprising bacteria with free living, symbiotic, and pathogenic lifestyles. An essential regulator of cell cycle progression named CtrA was described in the model bacterium Caulobacter crescentus. This regulator is conserved in many alphaproteobacteria, but the evolution of its regulon remains elusive. Here we identified promoters that are CtrA targets using ChIP‐seq and we found that CtrA binds to promoters of genes involved in cell cycle progression, in addition to numerous genes encoding outer membrane components involved in export of membrane proteins and synthesis of lipopolysaccharide. Analysis of a conditional B. abortus ctrA loss of function mutant confirmed that CtrA controls cell division. Impairment of cell division generates elongated and branched morphologies, that are also detectable inside HeLa cells. Surprisingly, abnormal bacteria are able to traffic to the endoplasmic reticulum, the usual replication niche of B. abortus in host cells. We also found that CtrA depletion affected outer membrane composition, in particular the abundance and spatial distribution of Omp25. Control of the B. abortus envelope composition by CtrA indicates the plasticity of the CtrA regulon along evolution.
A high‐resolution genetic map of the cereal crown rot pathogen Fusarium pseudograminearum provides a near‐complete genome assembly
Authors: Gardiner Donald M. , Benfield Aurelie H. , Stiller Jiri , Stephen Stuart , Aitken Karen , Liu Chunji , Kazan Kemal 
Published: November 2016

SummaryFusarium pseudograminearum is an important pathogen of wheat and barley, particularly in semi‐arid environments. Previous genome assemblies for this organism were based entirely on short read data and are highly fragmented. In this work, a genetic map of F. pseudograminearum has been constructed for the first time based on a mapping population of 178 individuals. The genetic map, together with long read scaffolding of a short read‐based genome assembly, was used to give a near‐complete assembly of the four F. pseudograminearum chromosomes. Large regions of synteny between F. pseudograminearum and F. graminearum, the related pathogen that is the primary causal agent of cereal head blight disease, were previously proposed in the core conserved genome, but the construction of a genetic map to order and orient contigs is critical to the validation of synteny and the placing of species‐specific regions. Indeed, our comparative analyses of the genomes of these two related pathogens suggest that rearrangements in the F. pseudograminearum genome have occurred in the chromosome ends. One of these rearrangements includes the transposition of an entire gene cluster involved in the detoxification of the benzoxazolinone (BOA) class of plant phytoalexins. This work provides an important genomic and genetic resource for F. pseudograminearum, which is less well characterized than F. graminearum. In addition, this study provides new insights into a better understanding of the sexual reproduction process in F. pseudograminearum, which informs us of the potential of this pathogen to evolve.
Evaluation of quality of kidneys from donation after circulatory death/expanded criteria donors by parameters of machine perfusion
Authors: Chen Guodong , Wang Chang , Zhao Yi , Qiu Longhui , Yuan Xiaopeng , Qiu Jiang , Wang Changxi , He Xiaoshun , Chen Lizhong 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAimTo investigate whether the parameters of machine perfusion could predict the quality of kidneys from donation after circulatory death (DCD) donors and expanded criteria donors (ECD).MethodsFifty‐eight kidneys from DCD/ECD donors were harvested in our hospital from July 2011 to August 2014. All kidneys were preserved with machine perfusion (Life Port), and parameters of machine perfusion were collected. All kidneys were biopsied before transplantation. The primary endpoints were delayed graft function (DGF), graft loss and patient death.ResultsAfter kidney transplantation, 26 patients (44.8%) had DGF. We chose 1 h RI as a predictive parameter to predict DGF after transplant, and made the ROC curve. The ROC curve showed that 1 h RI = 0.4 was the best cut‐off point for predicting DGF after transplant. The sensitivity was 61.54%, and the specificity was 81.25%. Fifty‐eight recipients were divided into two groups according to 1 h RI of machine perfusion. 22 cases in high RI group (RI > 0.4) and 36 cases in low RI group (RI ≤0.4). DGF rate was significantly higher in the high RI group (72.7% vs. 27.8%). One year serum creatinine levels were also significantly higher in the high RI group (P < 0.05). Acute rejection rate and 1 year graft and patient survival were comparable.ConclusionsOne hour RI of machine perfusion is associated with DGF and 1 year graft function in DCD/ECD kidney transplantation, and may be a non‐invasive tool for evaluating quality of DCD/ECD kidneys.
Gender differences in chronic constipation on anorectal motility
Authors: Zakari M. , Nee J. , Hirsch W. , Kuo B. , Lembo A. , Staller K. 
Published: November 2016

AbstractBackgroundThe epidemiology of chronic constipation (CC) skews toward female predominance, yet men make up an important component of those suffering from CC. We sought to determine whether there are sex‐specific differences in symptoms and physiologic parameters on anorectal manometry (ARM).MethodsWe performed a case–control analysis of sequential men and age‐matched women (2:1 ratio) presenting for ARM as part of the evaluation of CC. We collected physiologic parameters derived from 3D high‐resolution ARM in addition to the ROME III constipation module and the Pelvic Floor Distress Inventory 20 (PFDI‐20) questionnaires. We analyzed univariate, sex‐specific differences in ARM physiologic parameters and PFDI‐20 parameters and adjusted for putative confounders using multivariate logistic regression.Key ResultsOur study enrolled 80 men and 165 age‐matched women. Men had a higher median sphincter resting pressure (81.2 vs 75.2 mm Hg, P=.01) and mean squeeze pressure (257.0 vs 170.5 mm Hg, P<.0001) than women. Although men reported significantly less severe straining and incomplete evacuation, they had greater mean rectoanal pressure differential (−106.7 vs −71.1 mm Hg, P<.0001), smaller mean defecation index (0.17 vs 0.27, P=.03) and higher volume threshold for urgency (115.2 v. 103.4 mL, P=.03). However, women were more likely to have abnormal balloon expulsion time (BET) than men (52.7% vs 35.0%, P=.01). After multivariate analysis, male gender was the only independent predictor of a normal BET (OR: 0.48, 95% CI: 0.27‐0.86, P=.01).Conclusions & InferencesMen and women with CC differ with regard to symptom severity and physiologic parameters derived from ARM suggesting differences in their pathophysiology.
Motility patterns in mouse colon: gastrointestinal dysfunction induced by anticancer chemotherapy
Authors: Spencer N. J. 
Published: November 2016

AbstractColon cancer is a leading cause of cancer‐related death in humans. 5‐Fluorouracil (5‐FU), a major chemotherapy treatment, has been used for decades to fight numerous types of cancers, including breast, colon, and head and neck carcinomas. Unfortunately, a large proportion of patients treated with 5‐FU develop toxicities that include diarrhea, mucositis, neutropenia, and vomiting. While the side effects of 5‐FU are well known, the mechanisms underlying the induction of these unpleasant symptoms are poorly understood. The study by McQuade et al. in this issue of Neurogastroenterology & Motility provides important new potential explanations for the gastrointestinal (GI) dysfunction induced by 5‐FU. These researchers carefully investigated an overlooked research area in which the symptoms of GI‐motility dysfunction maybe due to an effect on the enteric nervous system. McQuade et al. delivered 5‐FU treatment to mice and discovered an initial increase in GI transit (associated with acute intestinal inflammation), followed by a slowing in transit. Major differences were noted in characteristics of colonic migrating motor complexes. These effects maybe causally related to deficits in enteric ganglia or neurotransmission. Their study identified specific neurochemical classes of neurons in the myenteric plexus most affected by 5‐FU. This is the first study to provide evidence that the functional intrinsic neural pathways within the enteric nervous system are likely impaired by 5‐FU, leading to colonic dysmotility. This review will describe major patterns of motor activity in isolated whole mouse colon and how these patterns are modified by anticancer chemotherapy.