bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A phylogenetically distinctive and extremely heat stable light-driven proton pump from the eubacterium Rubrobacter xylanophilus DSM 9941T
Authors: Kanehara Kanae , Yoshizawa Susumu , Tsukamoto Takashi , Sudo Yuki 
Published: March 2017

AbstractRhodopsins are proteins that contain seven transmembrane domains with a chromophore retinal and that function as photoreceptors for light-energy conversion and light-signal transduction in a wide variety of organisms. Here we characterized a phylogenetically distinctive new rhodopsin from the thermophilic eubacterium Rubrobacter xylanophilus DSM 9941T that was isolated from thermally polluted water. Although R. xylanophilus rhodopsin (RxR) is from Actinobacteria, it is located between eukaryotic and archaeal rhodopsins in the phylogenetic tree. Escherichia coli cells expressing RxR showed a light-induced decrease in environmental pH and inhibition by a protonophore, indicating that it works as a light-driven outward proton pump. We characterized purified RxR spectroscopically, and showed that it has an absorption maximum at 541 nm and binds nearly 100% all-trans retinal. The pKa values for the protonated retinal Schiff base and its counterion were estimated to be 10.7 and 1.3, respectively. Time-resolved flash-photolysis experiments revealed the formation of a red-shifted intermediate. Of note, RxR showed an extremely high thermal stability in comparison with other proton pumping rhodopsins such as thermophilic rhodopsin TR (by 16-times) and bacteriorhodopsin from Halobacterium salinarum (HsBR, by 4-times).
Quantification of arthritic bone degradation by analysis of 3D micro-computed tomography data
Authors: Svensson Carl-Magnus , Hoffmann Bianca , Irmler Ingo M. , Straßburger Maria , Figge Marc Thilo , Saluz Hans Peter 
Published: March 2017

AbstractThe use of animal models of arthritis is a key component in the evaluation of therapeutic strategies against the human disease rheumatoid arthritis (RA). Here we present quantitative measurements of bone degradation characterised by the cortical bone profile using glucose-6-phosphate isomerase (G6PI) induced arthritis. We applied micro-computed tomography (μCT) during three arthritis experiments and one control experiment to image the metatarsals of the hind paws and to investigate the effect of experimental arthritis on their cortical bone profile. For measurements of the cortical profile we automatically identified slices that are orthogonal to individual metatarsals, thereby making the measurements independent of animal placement in the scanner. We measured the average cortical thickness index (CTI) of the metatarsals, as well as the thickness changes along the metatarsal. In this study we introduced the cortical thickness gradient (CTG) as a new measure and we investigated how arthritis affects this measure. We found that in general both CTI and CTG are able to quantify arthritic progression, whilst CTG was found to be the more sensitive measure.
Acquisition of the capsule locus by horizontal gene transfer in Neisseria meningitidis is often accompanied by the loss of UDP-GalNAc synthesis
Authors: Bartley Stephanie N. , Mowlaboccus Shakeel , Mullally Christopher A. , Stubbs Keith A. , Vrielink Alice , Maiden Martin C. J. , Harrison Odile B. , Perkins Timothy T. , Kahler Charlene M. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractPathogenic meningococci have acquired a 24 kb capsule synthesis island (cps) by horizontal gene transfer which consists of a synthetic locus and associated capsule transport genes flanked by repetitive Regions D and D’. Regions D and D’ contain an intact gene encoding a UDP-galactose epimerase (galE1) and a truncated remnant (galE2), respectively. In this study, GalE protein alleles were shown to be either mono-functional, synthesising UDP-galactose (UDP-Gal), or bi-functional, synthesising UDP-Gal and UDP-galactosamine (UDP-GalNAc). Meningococci possessing a capsule null locus (cnl) typically possessed a single bi-functional galE. Separation of functionality between galE1 and galE2 alleles in meningococcal isolates was retained for all serogroups except serogroup E which has a synthetic requirement for UDP-GalNAc. The truncated galE2 remnant in Region D’ was also phylogenetically related to the bi-functional galE of the cnl locus suggesting common ancestry. A model is proposed in which the illegitimate recombination of the cps island into the galE allele of the cnl locus results in the formation of Region D’ containing the truncated galE2 locus and the capture of the cps island en bloc. The retention of the duplicated Regions D and D’ enables inversion of the synthetic locus within the cps island during bacterial growth.
Overexpression of decorin promoted angiogenesis in diabetic cardiomyopathy via IGF1R-AKT-VEGF signaling
Authors: Lai Jinsheng , Chen Fuqiong , Chen Jing , Ruan Guoran , He Mengying , Chen Chen , Tang Jiarong , Wang Dao Wen 
Published: March 2017

AbstractMicrocirculatory dysfunction is believed to play an important role in diabetic cardiomyopathy. The small leucine-rich proteoglycan decorin is generally considered a pro-angiogenic factor. Here, we investigate whether overexpression of decorin ameliorates diabetic cardiomyopathy and its effects on angiogenesis in vivo and in vitro. Diabetes was induced through intraperitoneal injection with streptozotocin combined with a high-fat diet, and decorin was overexpressed via recombinant adeno-associated virus in Wistar rats. Six months later, cardiac function was determined using an echocardiography and cardiac catheter system. The results showed that cardiac function was decreased in diabetic rats and restored by overexpression of decorin. In addition, overexpression of decorin upregulated the expression of VEGF and attenuated the reduction in the cardiac capillary density. In the in vitro study, high glucose induced apoptosis and inhibited the capabilities of tube formation, migration and proliferation, which were all ameliorated by decorin overexpression. Meanwhile, decorin overexpression increased the expression of VEGF and IGF1R, as well as the phosphorylation level of AKT and AP-1. Nonetheless, all of these effects were abolished by pretreatment with the IGF1R antibody or AKT inhibitor. In conclusion, overexpression of decorin ameliorated diabetic cardiomyopathy and promoted angiogenesis through the IGF1R-AKT-VEGF signaling pathway in vivo and in vitro.
Mapping cell surface adhesion by rotation tracking and adhesion footprinting
Authors: Li Isaac T. S. , Ha Taekjip , Chemla Yann R. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractRolling adhesion, in which cells passively roll along surfaces under shear flow, is a critical process involved in inflammatory responses and cancer metastasis. Surface adhesion properties regulated by adhesion receptors and membrane tethers are critical in understanding cell rolling behavior. Locally, adhesion molecules are distributed at the tips of membrane tethers. However, how functional adhesion properties are globally distributed on the individual cell’s surface is unknown. Here, we developed a label-free technique to determine the spatial distribution of adhesive properties on rolling cell surfaces. Using dark-field imaging and particle tracking, we extract the rotational motion of individual rolling cells. The rotational information allows us to construct an adhesion map along the contact circumference of a single cell. To complement this approach, we also developed a fluorescent adhesion footprint assay to record the molecular adhesion events from cell rolling. Applying the combination of the two methods on human promyelocytic leukemia cells, our results surprisingly reveal that adhesion is non-uniformly distributed in patches on the cell surfaces. Our label-free adhesion mapping methods are applicable to the variety of cell types that undergo rolling adhesion and provide a quantitative picture of cell surface adhesion at the functional and molecular level.
Activated hepatic stellate cells impair NK cell anti-fibrosis capacity through a TGF-β-dependent emperipolesis in HBV cirrhotic patients
Authors: Shi Jijing , Zhao Juanjuan , Zhang Xin , Cheng Yongqian , Hu Jinhua , Li Yuanyuan , Zhao Xin , Shang Qinghua , Sun Yanling , Tu Bo , Shi Lei , Gao Bin , Wang Fu-Sheng , Zhang Zheng 
Published: March 2017

AbstractNatural killer (NK) cells can induce liver fibrosis remission by killing hepatic stellate cells (HSCs) and producing interferon (IFN)-γ in a mouse model; however, their anti-fibrotic immune-characteristics and regulatory mechanisms by HSCs remain to be determined, especially in livers from HBV-infected liver cirrhosis (LC) patients. We analyzed frequency, phenotype and anti-fibrotic function of hepatic and peripheral NK subsets in 43 HBV-LC patients. We found that hepatic NK subsets from LC patients displayed a decreased frequency, activation status and anti-fibrotic activity compared with those from chronic hepatitis B patients, which were mainly mediated by increased intrahepatic tumour-growth factor (TGF)-β because blockade of TGF-β significantly reversed NK anti-fibrotic function in vitro. In vivo, hepatic NK cells were enriched in proximity to the α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA+) area within mild fibrosis regions; while in severe fibrotic areas, they were either directly attached to or separated from the α-SMA+ region. NK cells from LC patients could enter HSCs to form emperipolesis (a cell-in-cell structure) and become apoptotic; anti-TGF-β treatment ameliorated this emperipolesis. This finding suggested a novel mechanism by which activated HSCs impair NK cells’ anti-fibrosis capacity through a TGF-β-dependent emperipolesis in LC patients, providing an anti-fibrotic rational by enhancing NK cell activity.
Tailoring the electronic and magnetic properties of monolayer SnO by B, C, N, O and F adatoms
Authors: Tao Junguang , Guan Lixiu 
Published: March 2017

AbstractRecently, SnO has attracted more and more attention, because it is a bipolar electronic material holding great potential in the design of p-n junction. In this paper, we examine the effect of extrinsic point defects on modifying the electronic and magnetic properties of SnO using density functionals theory (DFT). The surface adatoms considered are B, C, N, O and F with a [He] core electronic configuration. All adatoms are found energetically stable. B, C, N and F adatoms will modify the band gap and introduce band gap states. In addition, our calculations show that N, B and F can introduce stable local magnetic moment to the lattice. Our results, therefore, offer a possible route to tailor the electronic and magnetic properties of SnO by surface functionalization, which will be helpful to experimentalists in improving the performance of SnO-based electronic devices and opening new avenue for its spintronics applications.
Effects of bumetanide on neurobehavioral function in children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders
Authors: Lemonnier E , Villeneuve N , Sonie S , Serret S , Rosier A , Roue M , Brosset P , Viellard M , Bernoux D , Rondeau S , Thummler S , Ravel D , Ben-Ari Y 
Published: March 2017

AbstractIn animal models of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the NKCC1 chloride-importer inhibitor bumetanide restores physiological (Cl−)i levels, enhances GABAergic inhibition and attenuates electrical and behavioral symptoms of ASD. In an earlier phase 2 trial; bumetanide reduced the severity of ASD in children and adolescents (3–11 years old). Here we report the results of a multicenter phase 2B study primarily to assess dose/response and safety effects of bumetanide. Efficacy outcome measures included the Childhood Autism Rating Scale (CARS), the Social Responsive Scale (SRS) and the Clinical Global Impressions (CGI) Improvement scale (CGI-I). Eighty-eight patients with ASD spanning across the entire pediatric population (2–18 years old) were subdivided in four age groups and randomized to receive bumetanide (0.5, 1.0 or 2.0 mg twice daily) or placebo for 3 months. The mean CARS value was significantly improved in the completers group (P: 0.015). Also, 23 treated children had more than a six-point improvement in the CARS compared with only one placebo-treated individual. Bumetanide significantly improved CGI (P: 0.0043) and the SRS score by more than 10 points (P: 0.02). The most frequent adverse events were hypokalemia, increased urine elimination, loss of appetite, dehydration and asthenia. Hypokalemia occurred mainly at the beginning of the treatment at 1.0 and 2.0 mg twice-daily doses and improved gradually with oral potassium supplements. The frequency and incidence of adverse event were directly correlated with the dose of bumetanide. Therefore, bumetanide improves the core symptoms of ASD and presents a favorable benefit/risk ratio particularly at 1.0 mg twice daily.
Integrated transcriptome and methylome analysis in youth at high risk for bipolar disorder: a preliminary analysis
Authors: Fries G R , Quevedo J , Zeni C P , Kazimi I F , Zunta-Soares G , Spiker D E , Bowden C L , Walss-Bass C , Soares J C 
Published: March 2017

AbstractFirst-degree relatives of patients with bipolar disorder (BD), particularly their offspring, have a higher risk of developing BD and other mental illnesses than the general population. However, the biological mechanisms underlying this increased risk are still unknown, particularly because most of the studies so far have been conducted in chronically ill adults and not in unaffected youth at high risk. In this preliminary study we analyzed genome-wide expression and methylation levels in peripheral blood mononuclear cells from children and adolescents from three matched groups: BD patients, unaffected offspring of bipolar parents (high risk) and controls (low risk). By integrating gene expression and DNA methylation and comparing the lists of differentially expressed genes and differentially methylated probes between groups, we were able to identify 43 risk genes that discriminate patients and high-risk youth from controls. Pathway analysis showed an enrichment of the glucocorticoid receptor (GR) pathway with the genesMED1,HSPA1L,GTF2A1andTAF15, which might underlie the previously reported role of stress response in the risk for BD in vulnerable populations. Cell-based assays indicate a GR hyporesponsiveness in cells from adult BD patients compared to controls and suggest that these GR-related genes can be modulated by DNA methylation, which poses the theoretical possibility of manipulating their expression as a means to counteract the familial risk presented by those subjects. Although preliminary, our results suggest the utility of peripheral measures in the identification of biomarkers of risk in high-risk populations and further emphasize the potential role of stress and DNA methylation in the risk for BD in youth.
The Effects of Parent-Focused Slow Relaxed Speech Intervention on Articulation Rate, Response Time Latency, and Fluency in Preschool Children Who Stutter
Authors: Sawyer Jean , Matteson Colleen , Ou Hua , Nagase Takahisa 
Published: March 2017

Purpose
This study investigated the effects of an intervention to reduce caregivers' articulation rates with children who stutter on (a) disfluency, (b) caregiver and child's articulation rates, and (c) caregiver and child's response time latency (RTL).

Method
Seventeen caregivers and their preschool children who stuttered participated in a group study of treatment outcomes. One speech sample was collected as a baseline, and 2 samples were collected after treatment. Posttreatment samples were of caregivers speaking as they typically would and using reduced articulation rates.

Results
Caregivers reduced articulation rates significantly in the 2 posttreatment samples, and a significant decrease of stuttering-like disfluencies (SLD) was found in the children in those 2 samples. No direct relationship was found between the caregiver's articulation rate and RTL, and there was a small correlation of RTL with the lower levels of SLD found postintervention. No significant relationships were found between the reduced levels of SLD and articulation rates for either caregivers or children.

Conclusions
Results suggest caregivers can be trained to slow their speech, and children increased their fluency at the end of a program designed to slow caregiver articulation. The intentionally slower rate of the caregivers, however, was not significantly related to fluency.
Levisticum officinale Koch: Antiinflammatorisches Potenzial und klinischer Einsatz bei Otitis media
Authors: Beckmann Christiane , Staiger Melanie , Herrick Anja , Fischer Anna , Britsch Maria , Stintzing Florian 
Published: March 2017

ZusammenfassungDie Wurzel von Liebstöckel (Levisticum officinale Koch), der v. a. als Gewürzpflanze bekannt ist, wird seit Jahrhunderten zur Herstellung von Arzneimitteln eingesetzt. Neben der traditionellen Verwendung zur Durchspülungstherapie bei Nierenleiden findet in der anthroposophischen Medizin ein 5 %iger Auszug der getrockneten Wurzel in nativem Olivenöl Anwendung bei Mittelohrentzündung. Sicherheit und Wirkungen dieses Auszugs waren Ziele einer präklinischen und klinischen Untersuchung.Methoden: Präklinisch wurden die Effekte des 5 %igen Auszugs sowie des Auszugsöls auf die 5-Lipoxygenase und die Cyclooxygenase-2 und die von ihnen katalysierte Synthese von antiinflammatorischen Mediatoren, Leukotrien B4 und Prostaglandin E2 untersucht. Klinisch lieferte eine nichtinterventionelle Studie mit 85 Patienten Daten aus der ärztlichen Routineanwendung des Auszugs von Levistici radix bei Otitis media.Ergebnisse: Der 5 %ige Auszug von Levistici radix in nativem Olivenöl reduzierte deutlich die Leukotrien-B4- und weniger deutlich die Prostaglandin-E2-Synthese. Die Wirkung des parallel getesteten Olivenöls fiel wesentlich geringer aus. Die klinische Anwendung des Auszugs in Form von Ohrentropfen ergab eine als gut bis sehr gut beurteilte Wirkung und Verträglichkeit.Fazit: Die präklinische Untersuchung liefert eine rationale Basis für die lokale klinische Anwendung des 5 %igen Auszugs von Levistici radix in nativem Olivenöl bei Otitis media, die in der Praxis bestätigt wird.
Selective dietary supplementation in early postpartum is associated with high resilience against depressed mood
Authors: Dowlati Yekta , Ravindran Arun V. , Segal Zindel V. , Stewart Donna E. , Steiner Meir , Meyer Jeffrey H. 
Published: March 2017

Significance
Postpartum blues is a healthy range of sadness that peaks on day 5 after giving birth in most women. Severe postpartum blues is a high-risk state for postpartum depression. A dietary supplement was designed to compensate for a temporary rise in a brain protein, monoamine oxidase A, which occurs on postpartum day 5. This study tested whether this dietary supplement reduces the sadness associated with the postpartum blues. Total levels of tryptophan and tyrosine in breast milk are not affected by this dietary supplement. Women received the dietary supplement over postpartum days 3–5 or received no supplement. This dietary supplement dramatically reduced the vulnerability to sadness on postpartum day 5, the peak of the postpartum blues, eliminating the prodrome of postpartum depression.
Volatile secondary metabolites as aposematic olfactory signals and defensive weapons in aquatic environments
Authors: Giordano Giuseppe , Carbone Marianna , Ciavatta Maria Letizia , Silvano Eleonora , Gavagnin Margherita , Garson Mary J. , Cheney Karen L. , Mudianta I Wayan , Russo Giovanni Fulvio , Villani Guido , Magliozzi Laura , Polese Gianluca , Zidorn Christian , Cutignano Adele , Fontana Angelo , Ghiselin Michael T. , Mollo Ernesto 
Published: March 2017

Significance
This report gives empirical evidence indicating that chemoreception of volatile/odorant lipophilic compounds, almost insoluble in water, can occur in aquatic environments, by means of “tactile” forms of olfaction. This thesis has been proved by exploring the defensive role of terpenes isolated from benthic invertebrates. The isolated metabolites were found to act both as defensive toxic weapons and as olfactory signals. In addition, the most abundant compound induced avoidance learning in crustaceans and fish that experienced postingestive negative effects.
Large-scale identification of coevolution signals across homo-oligomeric protein interfaces by direct coupling analysis
Authors: Uguzzoni Guido , John Lovis Shalini , Oteri Francesco , Schug Alexander , Szurmant Hendrik , Weigt Martin 
Published: March 2017

Significance
Protein–protein interactions are important to all facets of life, but their experimental and computational characterization is arduous and frequently of uncertain outcome. The current study demonstrates both the power and limitation to study protein interactions by utilizing sophisticated statistical inference technology to derive protein contacts from available sequence databases, more precisely from the coevolution between residues, that are in contact across the interaction interface of two proteins. By studying homo-oligomeric protein interactions, the current study expands from anecdotal evidence of the performance of this technology to systematic evidence of its value across close to 2,000 interacting protein families.
Storage and release of hydrogen cyanide in a chelicerate (
Oribatula tibialis
)
Authors: Brückner Adrian , Raspotnig Günther , Wehner Katja , Meusinger Reinhard , Norton Roy A. , Heethoff Michael 
Published: March 2017

Significance
Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is highly volatile and among the most toxic substances known, being lethal to humans at a dosage of 1–2 mg/kg body weight. HCN blocks the respiratory chain and prevents aerobic organisms from using oxygen. In nature, HCN is produced by numerous plants that store it mainly as glycosides. Among animals, cyanogenesis is a defensive strategy that has seemed restricted to a few mandibulate arthropods (certain insects, millipedes, and centipedes), which evolved ways to store HCN in the form of stable and less volatile molecules. We found an instance of cyanogenesis in the phylogenetically distant group Chelicerata (“spider-like” arthropods), involving an aromatic ester for stable HCN storage and two degradation pathways that release HCN.
B vitamins attenuate the epigenetic effects of ambient fine particles in a pilot human intervention trial
Authors: Zhong Jia , Karlsson Oskar , Wang Guan , Li Jun , Guo Yichen , Lin Xinyi , Zemplenyi Michele , Sanchez-Guerra Marco , Trevisi Letizia , Urch Bruce , Speck Mary , Liang Liming , Coull Brent A. , Koutrakis Petros , Silverman Frances , Gold Diane R. , Wu Tangchun , Baccarelli Andrea A. 
Published: March 2017

Significance
Air pollution is a major public health concern worldwide. The molecular mechanistic underpinnings of the health effects of air pollution are not fully understood, and the lack of individual-level preventative options represent a critical knowledge gap. Our study demonstrated the epigenetic effects of air pollution and suggested that B vitamins might be used as prevention to complement regulations to attenuate the impact of air pollution on the epigenome. Our study inaugurated a line of research for the development of preventive interventions to minimize the adverse effects of air pollution on potential mechanistic markers. Because of the central role of epigenetic modifications in mediating environmental effects, our findings might be extended to other toxicants and environmental diseases.