bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Chromosome segregation drives division site selection inStreptococcus pneumoniae
Authors: van Raaphorst Renske , Kjos Morten , Veening Jan-Willem 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAccurate spatial and temporal positioning of the tubulin-like protein FtsZ is key for proper bacterial cell division.Streptococcus pneumoniae(pneumococcus) is an oval-shaped, symmetrically dividing human pathogen lacking the canonical systems for division site control (nucleoid occlusion and the Min-system). Recently, the early division protein MapZ was identified and implicated in pneumococcal division site selection. We show that MapZ is important for proper division plane selection; thus the question remains what drives pneumococcal division site selection. By mapping the cell cycle in detail, we show that directly after replication both chromosomal origin regions localize to the future cell division sites, prior to FtsZ. Perturbing the longitudinal chromosomal organization by mutating the condensin SMC, by CRISPR/Cas9-mediated chromosome cutting or by poisoning DNA decatenation resulted in mistiming of MapZ and FtsZ positioning and subsequent cell elongation. Together, we demonstrate an intimate relationship between DNA replication, chromosome segregation and division site selection in the pneumococcus, providing a simple way to ensure equally sized daughter cells without the necessity for additional protein factors.
The natural selection of metabolism and mass selects lifeforms from viruses to multicellular animals
Authors: Witting Lars 
Published: November 2016

AbstractI show that the natural selection of metabolism and mass is selecting for the major life history and allometric transitions that define lifeforms from viruses, over prokaryotes and larger unicells, to multicellular animals with sexual reproduction.The proposed selection is driven by a mass specific metabolism that is selected as the pace of the resource handling that generates net energy for self-replication. This implies that an initial selection of mass is given by a dependence of mass specific metabolism on mass in replicators that are close to a lower size limit. A maximum dependence that is sublinear is shown to select for virus-like replicators with no intrinsic metabolism, no cell, and practically no mass. A maximum superlinear dependence is instead selecting for prokaryote-like self-replicating cells with asexual reproduction and incomplete metabolic pathways. These self-replicating cells have selection for increased net energy, and this generates a gradual unfolding of a population dynamic feed-back selection from interactive competition. The incomplete feed-back is shown to select for larger unicells with more developed metabolic pathways, and the completely developed feed-back to select for multicellular animals with sexual reproduction.This model unifies natural selection from viruses to multicellular animals, and it provides a parsimonious explanation where allometries and major life history transitions evolve from the natural selection of metabolism and mass.
Effects of fracture intersections on seismic dispersion: theoretical predictions versus numerical simulations
Authors: Guo Junxin , Rubino J. Germán , Glubokovskikh Stanislav , Gurevich Boris 
Published: November 2016

ABSTRACTThe detection and characterisation of domains of intersecting fractures are important goals in several disciplines of current interest, including exploration and production of unconventional reservoirs, nuclear waste storage, CO2 sequestration, and groundwater hydrology, among others. The objective of this study is to propose a theoretical framework for quantifying the effects of fracture intersections on the frequency‐dependent elastic properties of fluid‐saturated porous and fractured rocks. Three characteristic frequency regimes for fluid pressure communication are identified. In the low‐frequency limit, fractures are in full pressure communication with the embedding porous matrix and with other fractures. Conversely, in the high‐frequency limit, fractures are hydraulically isolated from the matrix and from other fractures. At intermediate frequencies, fractures are hydraulically isolated from the matrix porosity but can be in hydraulic communication with each other, depending on whether fracture sets are intersecting. For each frequency regime, the effective stiffness coefficients are derived using the linear‐slip theory and anisotropic Gassmann equations. Explicit mathematical expressions for the two characteristic frequencies that separate the three frequency regimes are also determined. Theoretical predictions are then applied to two synthetic 2D samples, each containing two orthogonal fracture sets: one with and another without intersections. The resulting stiffness coefficients, Thomsen‐style anisotropy parameters, and the transition frequencies show good agreement with corresponding numerical simulations. The theoretical results are applicable not only to 2D but also to 3D fracture systems and are amenable to being employed in inversion schemes designed to characterise fracture systems.
Iatrogenic Burns of the Neckline in a Patient with Tetraparesis During Tracheotomy
Authors: Smędra Anna , Meissner Ewa , Barzdo Maciej , Grabowski Przemysław , Kartasiński Michał , Krajewski Wojciech , Berent Jarosław 
Published: November 2016

AbstractThe paper presents a case of an atypical iatrogenic complication after tracheotomy analyzed on the basis of the case dossier materials submitted to the authors by the court of justice to prepare a forensic medical opinion concerning the correctness of the medical procedure. A 37‐year‐old woman was brought by the ambulance service to the hospital with acute respiratory failure due to post‐tracheostomy tracheal stenosis. Tracheotomy was performed on an emergency basis. The patient suffered severe burns of the chest and neck. The experts concluded that the most probable cause of the incident was electrocautery‐induced ignition of the disinfectant used for cleaning the skin before the surgery. It was established that with correct handling of the procedure, the aforementioned incident should not have taken place. Therefore, it cannot be regarded as a normal complication inherent in the risk associated with the procedure, but as a consequence of a medical error.
Efficacy of vitamin D replacement therapy on patients with chronic nonspecific widespread musculoskeletal pain with vitamin D deficiency
Authors: Yilmaz Ramazan , Salli Ali , Cingoz Havva Turac , Kucuksen Sami , Ugurlu Hatice 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAimThe objective of this study is the evaluation of the effect of vitamin D replacement treatment on musculoskeletal symptoms and quality of life in patients with chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain (CWP) including fibromyalgia (FM) and vitamin D deficiency.MethodPatients with nonspecific CWP and vitamin D deficiency (25‐OH D3 < 25 ng/mL) were included into the study. Replacement treatments of 50 000 IU/week oral vitamin D3 for 3 months were given to the patients. Patients were assessed pre‐ and post‐treatment in terms of serum levels of Ca, P, alkaline phosphatase, 25‐OH D3, severity of pain (visual analogue scale [VAS]‐pain), severity of asthenia (VAS‐asthenia), Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), quality of life scale (Short Form [SF]‐36), tender point count (TPC), severity of waking unrefreshed, headache, tenderness on tibia, meeting the criteria of FM, and level of patient satisfaction.ResultsFifty‐eight patients with a mean age of 36.9 ± 9.2 years were included into the study. 25‐OH D3 levels of patients elevated from 10.6 ± 5.1 ng/mL to 46.5 ± 24.0 ng/mL after replacement treatment (P < 0.001). Marked decrease in VAS‐pain, VAS‐asthenia, severity of waking unrefreshed, TPC, and BDI and an evident increase in subgroups of SF‐36 were established in patients after treatment (P < 0.001). The number of FM+ patients was 30 (52%) before treatment and regressed to 20 (34%) after treatment (P = 0.013); 85% of patients stated satisfaction with the treatment.ConclusionsVitamin D replacement treatment in patients with nonspecific CWP has provided improvements in musculoskeletal symptoms, level of depression and quality of life of patients. Patients with CWP should be investigated for vitamin D deficiency.
Differences in chronic obstructive pulmonary disease phenotypes between non‐smokers and smokers
Authors: Ji Wonjun , Lim Myoung Nam , Bak So Hyeon , Hong Seok‐Ho , Han Seon‐Sook , Lee Seung‐Joon , Kim Woo Jin , Hong Yoonki 
Published: November 2016

AbstractIntroduction and ObjectivesAlthough tobacco smoking is a major risk factor for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), more than one‐fourth of COPD patients are non‐smokers. In this cross‐sectional study, the differences in COPD phenotypes between non‐smokers and smokers in male subjects were investigated and were focused on structural lung changes using a quantitative assessment of computed tomography (CT) images.MethodsThey divided male participants with COPD, from a Korean cohort near a cement plant, into non‐smokers and smokers by a cutoff of a 5 pack‐year smoking history. Clinical characteristics, including age, body mass index (BMI), spirometry results, history of biomass smoke exposure, and CT measurements, were compared between the two groups. Emphysema index (EI) and mean wall area percentage (MWA %) were used to evaluate the structural lung changes on volumetric CT scans.ResultsThe non‐smoker group (n = 49) had younger patients and had a greater BMI than the smoker group (n = 113) (P < .05). Spirometry results, including post‐bronchodilator forced expiratory volume in 1 s, were comparable between the two groups. More smokers had emphysema than non‐smokers (EI 10.0 vs. 6.5, P < .001), but after accounting the potential confounders in model analysis, the difference was borderline significance (P = .051). In the subgroup of biomass smoke‐exposed subjects, MWA% was significantly greater in smokers than in non‐smokers (MWA 69.1 vs. 65.3, P = .03), while EI was not statistically different (EI 7.1 vs. 10.4, P = .52).ConclusionsNon‐smoker males with COPD were younger and had a greater BMI than the smokers. Tobacco smoke exposure seemed to be associated with an emphysema‐predominant phenotype, while biomass smoke exposure exhibited a significant interaction with tobacco smoking in an airway‐predominant phenotype.
Reproductive performance of the hemlock looper, Lambdina fiscellaria, as a function of temperature and population origin
Authors: Delisle Johanne , Bernier‐Cardou Michèle , Laroche Ghislaine 
Published: November 2016

AbstractIn a recent study of the hemlock looper (HL), Lambdina fiscellaria (Guenée) (Lepidoptera: Geometridae), long exposure of early‐diapausing eggs to high temperatures considerably reduced their ability to hatch. This finding raised the possibility that adults could also be negatively affected by increasing temperatures if they reproduced too early in the season in response to global warming. To investigate this hypothesis, newly formed HL pupae from three populations of eastern Canada ‐ Quebec (QC), Newfoundland (NL), and Labrador (LB) ‐ were submitted to four constant temperatures (10, 15, 20, or 25 °C) during pupal and adult development. The effect of population origin on HL reproduction was generally negligible. Mating probability was high at 15 and 20 °C (0.86 and 0.83, respectively), quite low at 10 °C (0.53), and even lower at 25 °C (0.38). Mating started earlier in the night and lasted longer as temperature decreased. Both productivity and absolute fecundity increased when temperature increased from 10 to 15 °C and then decreased slowly as temperature increased further. Over populations and temperatures, relative fecundity averaged 0.95, indicating that females had enough time to lay most of their eggs before they died. High temperatures had a deleterious effect on egg fertility: between 10 and 20 °C, relative fertility was about 0.90, but it dropped to 0.51 at 25 °C. The average proportion of fertile eggs declined from 0.88 in the first quarter of the egg‐laying period to 0.57 in the last quarter, suggesting lower sperm count or viability, or deterioration of the oocytes as the egg‐laying period progresses. Based on these findings, we argue that the production of an additional fifth instar among HL populations of southern origin can be viewed as an adaptive mechanism allowing adults to postpone reproduction or the egg‐laying period in order to mitigate the detrimental effect of high temperatures on their probability of mating successfully or that of laying fertile eggs.
Predator diversity and environmental change modify the strengths of trophic and nontrophic interactions
Authors: Sentis Arnaud , Gémard Charlène , Jaugeon Baptiste , Boukal David S. 
Published: November 2016

AbstractUnderstanding the dependence of species interaction strengths on environmental factors and species diversity is crucial to predict community dynamics and persistence in a rapidly changing world. Nontrophic (e.g. predator interference) and trophic components together determine species interaction strengths, but the effects of environmental factors on these two components remain largely unknown. This impedes our ability to fully understand the links between environmental drivers and species interactions. Here, we used a dynamical modelling framework based on measured predator functional responses to investigate the effects of predator diversity, prey density, and temperature on trophic and nontrophic interaction strengths within a freshwater food web. We found that (i) species interaction strengths cannot be predicted from trophic interactions alone, (ii) nontrophic interaction strengths vary strongly among predator assemblages, (iii) temperature has opposite effects on trophic and nontrophic interaction strengths, and (iv) trophic interaction strengths decrease with prey density, whereas the dependence of nontrophic interaction strengths on prey density is concave up. Interestingly, the qualitative impacts of temperature and prey density on the strengths of trophic and nontrophic interactions were independent of predator identity, suggesting a general pattern. Our results indicate that taking multiple environmental factors and the nonlinearity of density‐dependent species interactions into account is an important step towards a better understanding of the effects of environmental variations on complex ecological communities. The functional response approach used in this study opens new avenues for (i) the quantification of the relative importance of the trophic and nontrophic components in species interactions and (ii) a better understanding how environmental factors affect these interactions and the dynamics of ecological communities.
Incorporation of plant traits in a land surface model helps explain the global biogeographical distribution of major forest functional types
Authors: Lu Xingjie , Wang Ying‐Ping , Wright Ian J. , Reich Peter B. , Shi Zheng , Dai Yongjiu 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAimsContrasting leaf types with different leaf life spans represent different adaptive strategies in plants. Previous studies explained the adaptive advantages of different strategies on the basis of environmental climatic limits, but could not account for the observed co‐dominance of multiple plant functional types (PFTs) in many regions. Here we used a process‐based model to explore whether observed inter‐ and intra‐PFT variation in plant traits can explain global biogeographical variation in the dominance and co‐dominance of major forest types.LocationWorld‐wide.MethodsWe identified four important plant traits: leaf N concentration, leaf life span, fraction of net primary production (NPP) allocated to leaves and plant basal respiration rate. We incorporated means and variances of these plant traits from trait databases into the Community Atmosphere–Biosphere–Land Exchange model. We then predicted the dominant PFT or PFT mixture for global forested grid cells, using NPP as a proxy for growth rate, and considering three PFTs: evergreen needleleaf forests (ENF), evergreen broadleaf forests (EBF) and deciduous broadleaf forests (DBF). We compared results with: (1) those from simulations that did not account for trait variance; (2) results from an empirical model based purely on mean annual temperature; and (3) data from remotely sensed observations.ResultsOur estimates of the fractions of land area covered by major forest types were consistent with observation; i.e. ENFs dominate in boreal regions, EBFs dominate in tropical regions and DBFs are distributed widely across a broad range of environmental conditions. We also showed that co‐dominance of different forest PFTs cannot be reproduced without considering variation in plant traits.Main conclusionsGlobal trait data are useful for representing underlying plant strategies and functional diversity. Variation in key plant traits explains significant fractions of global biogeographical variation of three major forest types. Future developments in dynamic global vegetation modelling will benefit from the inclusion of plant trait variation.
Climate change is not a major driver of shifts in the geographical distributions of North American birds
Authors: Currie David J. , Venne Simon 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAimMany studies postulate that physiological tolerance of climatic variables imposes the primary limit on species geographical distributions, that tolerances are constant through time, that climate has warmed and that geographical distributions shift to maintain species in their thermal niches when climate changes. However, recent studies present evidence that is inconsistent with each of these propositions. Here we ask: how strongly did avian species entire geographical distributions (as opposed to their latitudinal extremes) in North America track temperature changes between 1979 and 2010?LocationThe continental United States (excluding Alaska) and southern Canada.MethodsWe examined changes from 1979 to 2010 in the geographical distributions, and the realized temperature niches, of 21 species of passerine birds whose entire breeding ranges fall within the area well sampled by the North American Breeding Bird Survey. We related changes in breeding distributions to the concomitant changes in breeding season temperature.ResultsThe median temperature increased within the breeding ranges of most, but not all, species. Temperature on the coolest 2.5% of routes increased significantly for only 8 of 21 species. Most species' distributions shifted geographically, but the most frequent shift was westward, not northward. Most species' realized temperature niches changed detectably through time, mainly as a result of changing temperature (versus geographical shifts). Where shifts in geographical distribution occurred, in most cases they did not result in smaller changes in species realized temperature niche than species would have experienced by not moving at all. There is little suggestion of a lagged response to climate change.Main conclusionsWe find only slight evidence that the geographical distributions of North American passeriform birds, considered in their entirety (as opposed to their latitudinal extremes), tracked temperature change. Of the factors that have driven recent shifts in the geographical distributions of North American avian species temperature change is probably only a minor one.
Energy efficient household appliances in emerging markets: the influence of consumers' values and knowledge on their attitudes and purchase behaviour
Authors: Nguyen The Ninh , Lobo Antonio , Greenland Steven 
Published: November 2016

AbstractThis research integrates both motivational and cognitive approaches to better understand consumers' purchase behaviour of energy efficient household appliances in emerging markets. A unique values, knowledge, attitudes and behaviour model was developed, and then validated by obtaining data from Vietnamese consumers which yielded 682 usable responses. The findings confirm that consumers with stronger adherence to egoistic values are more likely to develop negative attitudes towards environmental protection, and they tend to formulate positive attitudes towards individual inconvenience associated with the purchase of energy efficient appliances. In contrast, biospheric and altruistic values facilitate consumers' purchase behaviour by enhancing their attitudes towards environmental protection, and by also reducing their attitudes in relation to individual inconvenience. Interestingly, consumers with high knowledge about energy efficient appliances tend to believe that the purchase of such products is important for environmental protection, and they are likely to negate the perception of inconvenience associated with the purchase. Attitudes were found to be significant determinants of both purchase intention and behaviour. The implications for policymakers, marketers and other stakeholders are discussed and future research directions presented.
The relationship between breast milk leptin and adiponectin with child body composition from 3 to 5 years: a follow‐up study
Authors: Meyer D. M. , Brei C. , Stecher L. , Much D. , Brunner S. , Hauner H. 
Published: November 2016

SummaryBackgroundResearch indicates that breast milk contains bioactive components that influence metabolism in infancy and may play a role in the prevention of obesity in early childhood. In our initial study, 147 breastfeeding mother/child pairs were followed from birth to 2 years of age to examine the relationship between breast milk leptin and total adiponectin (collected at 6 weeks and 4 months postpartum) and infant body composition. Higher breast milk total adiponectin was related to greater fat mass and weight gain in children at 1 and 2 years of age, whereas leptin showed no association.Objectives/MethodsIn this follow‐up, we examined the relationship between both adipokines and children's body weight, body mass index percentiles, sum of four skin‐folds, percentage of body fat, fat mass and lean body mass at 3, 4 and 5 years of age.ResultsBreast milk adipokines were largely unrelated to child anthropometric measures.ConclusionOur results do not provide significant evidence that breast milk adipokines can predict adiposity in preschool children.
Accuracy of intuition in clinical decision‐making among novice clinicians
Authors: Price Amanda , Zulkosky Kristen , White Krista , Pretz Jean 
Published: November 2016

AbstractAimsTo assess the reliance on intuitive and analytical approaches during clinical decision‐making among novice clinicians and whether that reliance is associated with accurate decision‐making.BackgroundNurse educators and managers tend to emphasize analysis over intuition during clinical decision‐making though nurses typically report some reliance on intuition in their practice. We hypothesized that under certain conditions, reliance on intuition would support accurate decision‐making, even among novices.DesignThis study utilized an experimental design with clinical complication (familiar vs. novel) and decision phase (cue acquisition, diagnosis and action) as within‐subjects’ factors, and simulation role (observer, family, auxiliary nurse and primary nurse) as between‐subjects’ factor.MethodsWe examined clinical decision‐making accuracy among final semester pre‐licensure nursing students in a simulation experience. Students recorded their reasoning about emerging clinical complications with their patient during two distinct points in the simulation; one point involved a familiar complication and the other a relatively novel complication. All data were collected during Spring 2015.ResultsAlthough most participants relied more heavily on analysis than on intuition, use of intuition during the familiar complication was associated with more accurate decision‐making, particularly in guiding attention to relevant cues. With the novel complication, use of intuition appeared to hamper decision‐making, particularly for those in an observer role.ConclusionNovice clinicians should be supported by educators and nurse managers to note when their intuitions are likely to be valid. Our findings emphasize the integrated nature of intuition and analysis in clinical decision‐making.