bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Thermal and kinetic behaviors and microscopic characteristics of diacylglycerol‐enriched palm‐based oils blends
Authors: Xu Yayuan , Dong Cao 
Published: February 2017

This study aimed to investigate how mixtures of diacylglycerol‐enriched oils affected the phase behavior, thermal characteristics, crystallization properties, and the microstructure in a solid fat system. diacylglycerol‐enriched palm oil (PO‐DAGE) was mixed with diacylglycerol‐enriched palm stearin (PS‐DAGE) in various concentrations. On the basis of iso‐solid diagram and phase diagram, PO‐DAGE/PS‐DAGE blends exhibited a better compatibility compared to their corresponding original blends. DSC thermal profiles showed that the melting and crystallization properties of PO‐DAGE/PS‐DAGE were obviously different from their original blends. Crystallization kinetics revealed that PO‐DAGE/PS‐DAGE blends showed rather high crystallization rates and displayed no spherulitic crystal growth at all examined supercoolings. From the results of polarized light micrographs, PO‐DAGE/PS‐DAGE showed more dense structures with very small needle‐like. X‐ray diffraction evaluation exhibited when above 30% PS‐DAGE was added to PO‐DAGE, β‐polymorph crystals dominated.Practical applications: The results demonstrate that DAG‐enriched blends based from palm oil and palm stearin exhibited rather fast crystallization kinetics, which could provide a feasible solution to the annoying problems with palm‐based oils in terms of slow crystallization. DAG‐enriched blends have flatter SFC profiles and better compatibility as well as the fine microstructure compared to their corresponding original blends. These properties will be conducive to the development of DAG‐enriched plastic fats in the future, which exhibits the functionality to reduce postprandial lipid levels and to treat obesity.Compared the melting properties of DAG‐enriched blends based from palm stearin and palm oil with their corresponding original blends.
Osteoporosis-Related Health Services Utilization Following First Hip Fracture Among a Cohort of Privately-Insured Women in the United States, 2008–2014: An Observational Study
Authors: Gillespie Catherine W , Morin Pamela E 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACT

Timely identification and treatment of osteoporosis following hip fracture is recommended to mitigate future fracture risk, yet prior work has demonstrated a disconnect between evidence-based recommendations and real-world implementation. We sought to describe contemporary patterns of osteoporosis screening and initiation of pharmacotherapy following hip fracture based on medical and pharmacy claims in the OptumLabs™ Data Warehouse. From a national sample, we identified 8349 women aged 50+ years enrolled in private commercial or Medicare Advantage plans with no prior history of osteoporosis diagnosis, osteoporosis pharmacotherapy, or hip fracture who experienced a hip fracture between 2008 and 2013. Just 17.1% and 23.1% of these women had evidence of osteoporosis assessment and/or treatment within 6 or 12 months of their fractures, respectively. Women aged 80+ years were one-third less likely to utilize recommended services within 6 months, compared to those aged 50 to 79 years (13.8% versus 20.8%; p &lt; 0.001). Utilization of bone mass measurement increased significantly among women aged 65+ years over the study period (p &lt; 0.001) while declining among those aged 50 to 64 years (p = 0.2). In contrast, rates of osteoporosis pharmacotherapy remained steady among women aged 50 to 64 years (p = 0.8) yet declined among women aged 65 to 79 years and aged 80+ years (p = 0.07 and p = 0.004, respectively). Accounting for differences in all measured characteristics, receipt of primary care was the strongest and most consistent predictor of osteoporosis assessment or treatment following fracture. © 2017 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
CRISPR/CAS9 Technologies
Authors: Williams Bart O , Warman Matthew L 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACT

The Clustered Regularly Interspaced Palindromic Repeats (CRISPR)/CRISPR-associated protein (Cas) pathway is revolutionizing biological research. Modifications to this primitive prokaryotic immune system now enable scientists to efficiently edit DNA or modulate gene expression in living eukaryotic cells and organisms. Thus, many laboratories can now perform important experiments that previously were considered scientifically risky or too costly. Here, we describe the components of the CRISPR/Cas system that have been engineered for use in eukaryotes. We also explain how this system can be used to genetically modify cell lines and model organisms, or regulate gene expression in order to search for new participants in biological pathways. © 2017 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Using the TFP Model to Determine Impacts of Stock Market Listing on Corporate Performance of Agri‐Foods Companies in Vietnam
Authors: Shaikh Junaid M. , Linh Dinh Thi Bao 
Published: February 2017

Being one of the world's leading exporters of different agricultural products, especially rice, pepper, and catfish, Vietnam has a significant role to play in the agricultural‐related, economic, and geographic political issues of Asia. The transformation from a socialist public‐owned economy to a private‐equity form of ownership through the securitization of resources will have a significant impact on the economic well‐being of Vietnam. Since the recent advances of China and its ambition in the South China Sea, big countries like the United States, Japan, and India have considered Vietnam a key partner in their new Asia strategies. Along with the economic integration and trade liberalization, Vietnam is opening its market with 100 million consumers and also many export opportunities to international business and investors. Is the stock market a transparent and efficient channel for their choice? That depends not only on the legal framework, but also on the performance of Vietnamese companies that may become their partners or rivals.This article investigates the effect of stock market listing on the corporate performance of listed food processing and agricultural companies in Vietnam. Using the regression analysis and a total factor productivity (TFP) model modified to fit the Vietnam data, the study revealed that stock listing has a positive effect on corporate performance in Vietnam. Key findings lead to the recommendation that the Vietnamese government should enhance the process of privatizing state‐owned enterprises (SOEs) and stock market listing in the foods and agricultural sectors, focusing on market transparency and fairness, securities market reform, and incentives policies dealing with credit, tax, and land ownership.	© 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Resveratrol Enhances Self‐Renewal of Mouse Embryonic Stem Cells
Authors: Li Na , Du Zhaoyu , Shen Qiaoyan , Lei Qijing , Zhang Ying , Zhang Mengfei , Hua Jinlian 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACTResveratrol (RSV) has been shown to affect the differentiation of several types of stem cells, while the detailed mechanism is elusive. Here, we aim to investigate the function of RSV in self‐renewal of mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and the related mechanisms. In contrast with its reported roles, we found unexpectedly that differentiated ESCs or iPSCs treated by RSV would not show further differentiation, but regained a naïve pluripotency state with higher expressions of core transcriptional factors and with the ability to differentiate into all three germ layers when transplanted in vivo. In accordance with these findings, RSV also enhanced cell cycle progression of ESCs via regulating cell cycle‐related proteins. Finally, enhanced activation of JAK/STAT3 signaling pathway and suppressed activation of mTOR were found essential in enhancing the self‐renewal of ESCs by RSV. Our finding discovered a novel function of RSV in enhancing the self‐renewal of ESCs, and suggested that the timing of treatment and concentration of RSV determined the final effect of it. Our work may contribute to understanding of RSV in the self‐renewal maintenance of pluripotent stem cells, and may also provide help to the generation and maintenance of iPSCs in vitro. J. Cell. Biochem. 118: 1928–1935, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Identification of nontuberculous mycobacteria using multilocous sequence analysis of 16S rRNA, hsp65, and rpoB
Authors: Kim Si Hyun , Shin Jeong Hwan 
Published: February 2017

BackgroundThe isolation of nontuberculous mycobacteria (NTM) from clinical specimens has increased, and they now are considered significant opportunistic pathogens. The aims of this study were to develop a database and interpretive criteria for identifying individual species. In addition, using clinical isolates, we evaluated the clinical usefulness of 16S rRNA, hsp65, and rpoB as target genes for this method.MethodsThe sequences of NTM for 16S rRNA, hsp65, and rpoB were collected from GenBank and checked by manual inspection. Clinical isolates collected between 2005 and 2010 were used for DNA extraction, polymerase chain reaction, and sequencing of these three genes. We constructed a database for the genes and evaluated the clinical utility of multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) using 109 clinical isolates.ResultsA total 131, 130, and 122 sequences were collected from GenBank for 16S rRNA, hsp65, and rpoB, respectively. The percent similarities of the three genes ranged from 96.57% to 100% for the 16S rRNA gene, 89.27% to 100% for hsp65, and 92.71% to 100% for rpoB. When we compared the sequences of 109 clinical strains with those of the database, the rates of species‐level identification were 71.3%, 86.79%, and 81.55% with 16S rRNA, hsp65, and rpoB, respectively. We could identify 97.25% of the isolates to the species level when we used MLSA.ConclusionThere were significant differences among the utilities of the three genes for species identification. The MLSA technique would be helpful for identification of NTM.
Facile generation of rod‐like PbCl2 crystals from Pb(II) aqueous solutions induced by Aliquat 336 at room temperature
Authors: Li Jianfeng , Li Enze , Du Zhiping , Shen Jing , Cheng Fangqin 
Published: February 2017

AbstractBACKGROUNDLead is one of the frequent contaminants of industrial wastewater. This work presents a novel approach for the removal of lead from aqueous solutions through generation of rod‐like PbCl2 crystals induced by Aliquat 336 at room temperature.RESULTSRegular rod‐like PbCl2 crystals formation was rapid and the reaction could be described by a second‐order kinetic model very well. PbCl2 crystals were obtained when Pb(II) concentration was more than 15 g L‐1, but the maximum PbCl2 production was achieved at 60 g L‐1 for the solution/Aliquat ratio of 5. Increase of Aliquat 336 volume could increase PbCl2 production, but an optimal volume existed for different Pb(II) solutions. The formation of rod‐like PbCl2 was strongly dependent on pH, but the yield of crystals was uncorrelated with pH. The presence of ethanol led to high yields of PbCl2, but the crystal size became smaller.CONCLUSIONSThe results indicate that PbCl2 crystals form at the interface of the organic and aqueous phases, and the reaction rate is proportional to the Pb(II) in aqueous phase and Cl‐ in Aliquat 336. H+ promotes the orientated PbCl2 growth with a rod‐like shape. The high yield of PbCl2 crystals with ethanol is due to the increases of interface area. Aliquat 336 can be used as an effective PbCl2 crystals inducer for the removal of lead from wastewaters. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry
Diversification of Hox Gene Clusters in Osteoglossomorph Fish in Comparison to Other Teleosts and the Spotted Gar Outgroup
Authors: Martin Kyle J , Holland Peter W H 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACTAn ancient genome duplication (TGD or 3R) occurred in teleost fish after divergence from the lineage leading to gar. This genome duplication is shared by the three extant teleost lineages: Osteoglossomorpha (bony‐tongues), Elopomorpha (eels and tarpons), and Clupeocephala (a large clade including salmon, carp, medaka, zebrafish, cichlids, pufferfish, stickleback, and ∼26,000 other species). After TGD, different clupeocephalan species retained different gene duplicates; this is seen clearly in Hox gene clusters but extends to all genes. Since divergent resolution of TGD paralogs is a potential driving force for speciation, it is possible this contributed to diversification of this clade. The extent to which divergent resolution of TGD paralogs occurred within Osteoglossomorpha has not been investigated in detail, and Hox cluster organization has been reported for just two species:Pantodon buchholzi(Pantodontidae) andScleropages formosus(Osteoglossidae). We applied survey‐scale genome sequencing and de novo assembly to three further osteoglossomorph taxa:Osteoglossum bicirrhosum(Osteoglossidae),Chitala ornata(Notopteridae), andGnathonemus petersii(Mormyridae). We find that each retained more Hox genes than clupeocephalan taxa (excluding those that underwent additional genome duplication), but fewer than eels. Several Hox genes are missing in all teleosts, including duplicates of two Hox genes present in the slow evolving pre‐TGD genome of the spotted gar. We find divergent resolution through individual gene losses, and whole cluster losses have been rampant across osteoglossomorphs, despite their extant species paucity. We suggest that reciprocal gene loss following TGD was probably insufficient to drive the exceptional diversification of teleosts.
Encouraging environmental sustainability through gender:Amicro‐foundational approach using linguistic gender marking
Authors: Shoham Amir , Almor Tamar , Lee Sang Mook , Ahammad Mohammad F. 
Published: February 2017

SummaryWhile studies show that organizational diversity is beneficial to their practice of environmental sustainability, we know very little about the effect that the gender of an individual director can have on sustainability practice. In this empirical paper, we employ a micro‐foundational approach to examine whether the number of women on an organization's board of directors has a direct effect on its attitude towards environmental sustainability, regardless of the national culture in which the organization is located. Culture in this study is measured through grammatical gender marking, a unique approach to measuring women‐oriented cultural effects. Previous studies show that certain cultures have more gender roles than others do, which in turn affect general and organizational behavior in that society. Grammatical gender marking enables us to study the impact of gender of the individual director on the organization's attitude towards environmental sustainability across cultures, by empirically examining data from 71 countries, sampling 4500 organizations for multiple years and industries. Our findings show that organizations become significantly more proactive in environmental sustainability with the appointment of even one woman to the board of directors, regardless of the local culture. We further show that the organization's level of disclosure regarding its sustainability activities increases with the number of women on the board of directors. Our data also show a significantly negative relationship between various gender‐based language indices and the presence of women on the board of directors. In cultures defined by a language that has clear grammatical gender markings, there is a tendency to appoint fewer women to boards of directors, thereby influencing indirectly the organization's attitude towards environmental sustainability.
The effects of managerial and employee attributions for corporate social responsibility initiatives
Authors: Vlachos Pavlos A. , Panagopoulos Nikolaos G. , Bachrach Daniel G. , Morgeson Frederick P. 
Published: February 2017

SummaryAlthough corporate social responsibility (CSR) can affect employees, we know little about how it affects them. Employees' interpretation of CSR is important because of the paradoxical nature of CSR. When firms operate in ways that seem counter to their nature (i.e., pursuit of social good rather than profit), the causal attributions of affected employees are crucial to understanding their work‐related behavior, as is the role of contextual factors such as leadership processes in shaping these attributions. Drawing from attribution and social learning theories, we develop a multilevel social influence theory of how CSR affects employees. We integrate managers as second observers in the baseline actor (i.e., firm)—observer (i.e., employee) dyad, whereas most attribution theory research has focused on single actor–observer dyads. Multisource field data collected from 427 employees and 45 managers were analyzed using hierarchical linear modeling. Managers' genuine (self‐serving) CSR attributions are positively related to employees' genuine (self‐serving) CSR attributions; and the strength of the relationship between managers' and employees' genuine CSR attributions depends on managers' organizational tenure. Employees' genuine CSR attributions also are positively related to employee advocacy, whereas—interestingly—employees' self‐serving CSR attributions do not appear to harm employee advocacy. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
To What Extent Did We Change Our Soils? A Global Comparison of Natural and Current Conditions
Authors: Stoorvogel Jetse J. , Bakkenes Michel , ten Brink Ben J.E. , Temme Arnaud J.A.M. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractThe food security–climate change nexus rapidly gains momentum. Soil degradation plays an important role in this context while dealing with, for example, the productive capacity of our soil resources or carbon sequestration for climate change mitigation. However, little has been done to assess the pristine soil conditions despite the fact that these provide the basis to put changes into context. Various methodologies have been developed to assess the global distribution of current soil conditions. We used the S‐World methodology that was developed to generate global soil property maps for environmental modelling studies. Up till now, the S‐World methodology assessed current soil conditions by disaggregating the Harmonized World Soil Database using detailed information on climate, topography, land cover, and land use. This study used the S‐World methodology to derive global soil conditions under natural vegetation. A large number of natural areas around the globe were identified for which land cover, expressed by the Normalized Difference Vegetation Index, could be successfully correlated to environmental conditions such as temperature, rainfall, and topography. Using this relation in regression kriging, the vegetation index under natural conditions was derived for the entire globe. Subsequently, the S‐World methodology was used to calculate the soil properties under natural land cover and absence of human land use. Soil property maps for natural and current conditions were compared and showed large local differences. The results indicate that there are major changes due to land cover and land use change and that these changes are concentrated on the globe. The results are the basis for future assessments on, for example, land degradation, food security, or the sustainable development goals. © 2017 The Authors. Land Degradation & Development Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Testing Sediment Connectivity at the Experimental SPA2 Basin, Sicily (Italy)
Authors: Di Stefano Costanza , Ferro Vito 
Published: February 2017

AbstractThe concept of sediment delivery can be used as a measure of sediment connectivity, and it can be linked to the structural connectivity (morphological unit, slope length, slope steepness, travel time) of a basin and to the hydrological connectivity (rainfall–runoff processes at morphological unit scale). In this paper, the sediment connectivity concept was tested at basin scale applying SEdiment Delivery Distributed model, which takes into account the hillslope sediment transport, and using sediment yield measurements carried out at SPA2 experimental basin (Sicily, Italy). For the SPA2 basin discretized into morphological units, the SEdiment Delivery Distributed model was first calibrated at event scale using the sediment yield measurements carried out at the outlet of the experimental basin in the period April 2000–March 2015. The model calibration was used to determine the relationships useful for estimating the unique coefficient βe of the model appearing in the expression used to calculate the sediment delivery ratio of each morphological unit. The developed analysis allowed establishing that the functional connectivity is dependent on the magnitude of erosion events, and for low events the sediment connectivity is only governed by its structural component. Then, at annual scale, the model was calibrated for the period 2000–2015, and relationships for the estimate of the coefficient βa taking into account the intensity of erosion events occurring in each year were determined. Finally, a physical interpretation of β coefficient at the two temporal scales (βe, βa) and its link to sediment connectivity was proposed. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The anti‐convulsants lacosamide, lamotrigine, and rufinamide reduce myotonia in isolated human and rat skeletal muscle
Authors: Skov Martin , de Paoli Frank V. , Nielsen Ole B. , Pedersen Thomas H. 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACTIntroductionIn myotonia congenita, loss of ClC‐1 Cl− channel function results in skeletal muscle hyperexcitability and myotonia. Anti‐myotonic treatment has typically targeted the voltage‐gated sodium channel in skeletal muscle (Nav1.4). In this study we explored whether 3 sodium channel‐modulating anti‐epileptics can reduce myotonia in isolated rat and human muscle.MethodsDissected muscles were rendered myotonic by ClC‐1 channel inhibition. The ability of the drugs to suppress myotonia was then assessed from subclinical to maximal clinical concentrations. Drug synergy was determined using isobole plots.ResultsAll drugs were capable of abolishing myotonia in both rat and human muscles. Lamotrigine and rufinamide completely suppressed myotonia at submaximal clinical concentrations, whereas lacosamide had to be raised above the maximal clinical concentration to suppress myotonia completely. A synergistic effect of lamotrigine and rufinamide was observed.ConclusionThese findings suggest that lamotrigine and rufinamide could be considered for anti‐myotonic treatment in myotonia congenita. Muscle Nerve 56: 136–142, 2017.
The association between cytomegalovirus infection, obesity, and metabolic syndrome in U.S. adult females
Authors: Fleck‐Derderian Shannon , McClellan William , Wojcicki Janet M. 
Published: February 2017

ObjectiveThe purpose of this analysis was to determine whether cytomegalovirus (CMV) infection is associated with the prevalence of metabolic syndrome (MetS) and whether this relationship differs by BMI.MethodsData from the 1999‐2004 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) were pooled (N = 2,532). Logistic regression was used for assessing the association between CMV and MetS, stratified by gender and BMI, categorized as normal weight, overweight, obesity, and extreme obesity, and adjusted for age, race/ethnicity, and poverty level.ResultsIn unadjusted analyses, CMV infection was significantly associated with MetS in females (OR: 1.50; 95% CI: 1.1‐2.1) but not males. After adjusting for confounders, the odds of MetS were higher in CMV+ normal‐weight females (aOR: 65.31; 95% CI: 6.8‐625.6) but lower in CMV+ females with extreme obesity (aOR: 0.25; 95% CI: 0.1‐0.9). CMV infection was associated with higher high‐density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL‐C) and lower triglycerides in females with extreme obesity but lower HDL‐C in normal‐weight females.ConclusionsCMV infection was found to be associated with unique MetS phenotypes that differ between BMI categories and gender. Seropositive normal‐weight females had a higher prevalence of MetS and dyslipidemia, while infection in females with extreme obesity was associated with a more metabolically benign profile.