bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Pre and post-entry resource needs for international entrepreneurs: The role of government and industry networks
Authors: Chang Frances Y M , Jack Robert , Webster Cynthia M 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThis paper identifies the resource needs of international entrepreneurs and examines the role of government and industry networks as providers of resource opportunities deemed essential by international entrepreneurs for international growth. Unique resource challenges confront international entrepreneurs in their pursuit of international markets. Our qualitative study of Australian entrepreneurs in the health industry reveals that international entrepreneurs emphasise information, knowledge and relational resources as crucial for international market entry. Although government networks provide essential resources at the planning and pre-entry stage of internationalisation, at the postentry stage industry networks offer more relevant resource opportunities. Both networks, however, fall short of expectations in affording knowledge and relational resources that are instrumental in entering international markets.
Contingent technocracy: bureaucratic independence in developing countries
Authors: Teodoro Manuel P. , Pitcher M. Anne 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThis study investigates the effects of formal bureaucratic independence under varying democratic conditions. Conventional accounts predict that greater formal independence of technocratic agencies facilitates policy implementation, but those claims rest on observations of industrialised, high-income countries that are also established democracies. On the basis of research in developing countries, we argue that the effects of agency independence depend on the political context in which the agency operates. Our empirical subjects are privatisation agencies and their efforts to privatise state-owned enterprises in Africa. We predict that greater independence leads to more thorough privatisation under authoritarian regimes, but that the effect of independence declines as a country becomes more democratic. Using an original data set, we examine the relationship between formal agency independence and privatisation in Africa from 1990 to 2007. Our results modify the conventional wisdom on bureaucratic independence and culminate in a more nuanced theory of “contingent technocracy”.
Assessing Hospital Disaster Readiness Over Time at the US Department of Veterans Affairs
Authors: Der-Martirosian Claudia , Radcliff Tiffany A. , Gable Alicia R. , Riopelle Deborah , Hagigi Farhad A. , Brewster Pete , Dobalian Aram 
Published: December 2016

AbstractIntroductionThere have been numerous initiatives by government and private organizations to help hospitals become better prepared for major disasters and public health emergencies. This study reports on efforts by the US Department of Veterans Affairs (VA), Veterans Health Administration, Office of Emergency Management’s (OEM) Comprehensive Emergency Management Program (CEMP) to assess the readiness of VA Medical Centers (VAMCs) across the nation.Hypothesis/ProblemThis study conducts descriptive analyses of preparedness assessments of VAMCs and examines change in hospital readiness over time.MethodsTo assess change, quantitative analyses of data from two phases of preparedness assessments (Phase I: 2008-2010; Phase II: 2011-2013) at 137 VAMCs were conducted using 61 unique capabilities assessed during the two phases. The initial five-point Likert-like scale used to rate each capability was collapsed into a dichotomous variable: “not-developed=0” versus “developed=1.” To describe changes in preparedness over time, four new categories were created from the Phase I and Phase II dichotomous variables: (1) rated developed in both phases; (2) rated not-developed in Phase I but rated developed in Phase II; (3) rated not-developed in both phases; and (4) rated developed in Phase I but rated not- developed in Phase II.ResultsFrom a total of 61 unique emergency preparedness capabilities, 33 items achieved the desired outcome – they were rated either “developed in both phases” or “became developed” in Phase II for at least 80% of VAMCs. For 14 items, 70%-80% of VAMCs achieved the desired outcome. The remaining 14 items were identified as “low-performing” capabilities, defined as less than 70% of VAMCs achieved the desired outcome.Conclusion:Measuring emergency management capabilities is a necessary first step to improving those capabilities. Furthermore, assessing hospital readiness over time and creating robust hospital readiness assessment tools can help hospitals make informed decisions regarding allocation of resources to ensure patient safety, provide timely access to high-quality patient care, and identify best practices in emergency management during and after disasters. Moreover, with some minor modifications, this comprehensive, all-hazards-based, hospital preparedness assessment tool could be adapted for use beyond the VA.Der-MartirosianC, RadcliffTA, GableAR, RiopelleD, HagigiFA, BrewsterP, DobalianA. Assessing hospital disaster readiness over time at the US Department of Veterans Affairs. Prehsop Disaster Med. 2017;32(1):46–57.
NQO1 inhibits proteasome-mediated degradation of HIF-1α
Authors: Oh Eun-Taex , Kim Jung-whan , Kim Joon Mee , Kim Soo Jung , Lee Jae-Seon , Hong Soon-Sun , Goodwin Justin , Ruthenborg Robin J. , Jung Myung Gu , Lee Hae-June , Lee Chul-Ho , Park Eun Sung , Kim Chulhee , Park Heon Joo 
Published: December 2016

AbstractOverexpression of NQO1 is associated with poor prognosis in human cancers including breast, colon, cervix, lung and pancreas. Yet, the molecular mechanisms underlying the pro-tumorigenic capacities of NQO1 have not been fully elucidated. Here we show a previously undescribed function for NQO1 in stabilizing HIF-1α, a master transcription factor of oxygen homeostasis that has been implicated in the survival, proliferation and malignant progression of cancers. We demonstrate that NQO1 directly binds to the oxygen-dependent domain of HIF-1α and inhibits the proteasome-mediated degradation of HIF-1α by preventing PHDs from interacting with HIF-1α. NQO1 knockdown in human colorectal and breast cancer cell lines suppresses HIF-1 signalling and tumour growth. Consistent with this pro-tumorigenic function for NQO1, high NQO1 expression levels correlate with increased HIF-1α expression and poor colorectal cancer patient survival. These results collectively reveal a function of NQO1 in the oxygen-sensing mechanism that regulates HIF-1α stability in cancers.
Dense GeV electron–positron pairs generated by lasers in near-critical-density plasmas
Authors: Zhu Xing-Long , Yu Tong-Pu , Sheng Zheng-Ming , Yin Yan , Turcu Ion Cristian Edmond , Pukhov Alexander 
Published: December 2016

AbstractPair production can be triggered by high-intensity lasers via the Breit–Wheeler process. However, the straightforward laser–laser colliding for copious numbers of pair creation requires light intensities several orders of magnitude higher than possible with the ongoing laser facilities. Despite the numerous proposed approaches, creating high-energy-density pair plasmas in laboratories is still challenging. Here we present an all-optical scheme for overdense pair production by two counter-propagating lasers irradiating near-critical-density plasmas at only ∼1022 W cm−2. In this scheme, bright γ-rays are generated by radiation-trapped electrons oscillating in the laser fields. The dense γ-photons then collide with the focused counter-propagating lasers to initiate the multi-photon Breit–Wheeler process. Particle-in-cell simulations indicate that one may generate a high-yield (1.05 × 1011) overdense (4 × 1022 cm−3) GeV positron beam using 10 PW scale lasers. Such a bright pair source has many practical applications and could be basis for future compact high-luminosity electron–positron colliders.
TOC1–PIF4 interaction mediates the circadian gating of thermoresponsive growth in Arabidopsis
Authors: Zhu Jia-Ying , Oh Eunkyoo , Wang Tina , Wang Zhi-Yong 
Published: December 2016

AbstractArabidopsis adapts to elevated temperature by promoting stem elongation and hyponastic growth through a temperature-responsive transcription factor PIF4. Here we show that the evening-expressed clock component TOC1 interacts with and inactivates PIF4, thereby suppressing thermoresponsive growth in the evening. We find that the expression of PIF4 target genes show circadian rhythms of thermosensitivity, with minimum responsiveness in the evening when TOC1 level is high. Loss of function of TOC1 and its close homologue PRR5 restores thermosensitivity in the evening, whereas TOC1 overexpression causes thermo insensitivity, demonstrating that TOC1 mediates the evening-specific inhibition of thermoresponses. We further show that PIF4 is required for thermoadaptation mediated by moderately elevated temperature. Our results demonstrate that the interaction between TOC1 and PIF4 mediates the circadian gating of thermoresponsive growth, which may serve to increase fitness by matching thermoresponsiveness with the day–night cycles of fluctuating temperature and light conditions.
Development of a computer-aided design software for dental splint in orthognathic surgery
Authors: Chen Xiaojun , Li Xing , Xu Lu , Sun Yi , Politis Constantinus , Egger Jan 
Published: December 2016

AbstractIn the orthognathic surgery, dental splints are important and necessary to help the surgeon reposition the maxilla or mandible. However, the traditional methods of manual design of dental splints are difficult and time-consuming. The research on computer-aided design software for dental splints is rarely reported. Our purpose is to develop a novel special software named EasySplint to design the dental splints conveniently and efficiently. The design can be divided into two steps, which are the generation of initial splint base and the Boolean operation between it and the maxilla-mandibular model. The initial splint base is formed by ruled surfaces reconstructed using the manually picked points. Then, a method to accomplish Boolean operation based on the distance filed of two meshes is proposed. The interference elimination can be conducted on the basis of marching cubes algorithm and Boolean operation. The accuracy of the dental splint can be guaranteed since the original mesh is utilized to form the result surface. Using EasySplint, the dental splints can be designed in about 10 minutes and saved as a stereo lithography (STL) file for 3D printing in clinical applications. Three phantom experiments were conducted and the efficiency of our method was demonstrated.
Highly intense monocycle terahertz vortex generation by utilizing a Tsurupica spiral phase plate
Authors: Miyamoto Katsuhiko , Kang Bong Joo , Kim Won Tae , Sasaki Yuta , Niinomi Hiromasa , Suizu Koji , Rotermund Fabian , Omatsu Takashige 
Published: December 2016

AbstractOptical vortex, possessing an annular intensity profile and an orbital angular momentum (characterized by an integer termed a topological charge) associated with a helical wavefront, has attracted great attention for diverse applications due to its unique properties. In particular for terahertz (THz) frequency range, several approaches for THz vortex generation, including molded phase plates consisting of metal slit antennas, achromatic polarization elements and binary-diffractive optical elements, have been recently proposed, however, they are typically designed for a specific frequency. Here, we demonstrate highly intense broadband monocycle vortex generation near 0.6 THz by utilizing a polymeric Tsurupica spiral phase plate in combination with tilted-pulse-front optical rectification in a prism-cut LiNbO3 crystal. A maximum peak power of 2.3 MW was obtained for THz vortex output with an expected topological charge of 1.15. Furthermore, we applied the highly intense THz vortex beam for studying unique nonlinear behaviors in bilayer graphene towards the development of nonlinear super-resolution THz microscopy and imaging system.
Salivary and pellicle proteome: A datamining analysis
Authors: Schweigel Hardy , Wicht Michael , Schwendicke Falk 
Published: December 2016

AbstractWe aimed to comprehensively compare two compartmented oral proteomes, the salivary and the dental pellicle proteome. Systematic review and datamining was used to obtain the physico-chemical, structural, functional and interactional properties of 1,515 salivary and 60 identified pellicle proteins. Salivary and pellicle proteins did not differ significantly in their aliphatic index, hydrophaty, instability index, or isoelectric point. Pellicle proteins were significantly more charged at low and high pH and were significantly smaller (10–20 kDa) than salivary proteins. Protein structure and solvent accessible molecular surface did not differ significantly. Proteins of the pellicle were more phosphorylated and glycosylated than salivary proteins. Ion binding and enzymatic activities also differed significantly. Protein-protein-ligand interaction networks relied on few key proteins. The identified differences between salivary and pellicle proteins could guide proteome compartmentalization and result in specialized functionality. Key proteins could be potential targets for diagnostic or therapeutic application.
Host cell surfaces induce a Type IV pili-dependent alteration of bacterial swimming
Authors: Golovkine Guillaume , Lemelle Laurence , Burny Claire , Vaillant Cedric , Palierne Jean-Francois , Place Christophe , Huber Philippe 
Published: December 2016

AbstractFor most pathogenic bacteria, flagellar motility is recognized as a virulence factor. Here, we analysed the swimming behaviour of bacteria close to eukaryotic cellular surfaces, using the major opportunistic pathogen Pseudomonas aeruginosa as a model. We delineated three classes of swimming trajectories on both cellular surfaces and glass that could be differentiated by their speeds and local curvatures, resulting from different levels of hydrodynamic interactions with the surface. Segmentation of the trajectories into linear and curved sections or pause allowed us to precisely describe the corresponding swimming patterns near the two surfaces. We concluded that (i) the trajectory classes were of same nature on cells and glass, however the trajectory distribution was strikingly different between surface types, (ii) on cell monolayers, a larger fraction of bacteria adopted a swimming mode with stronger bacteria-surface interaction mostly dependent upon Type IV pili. Thus, bacteria swim near boundaries with diverse patterns and importantly, Type IV pili differentially influence swimming near cellular and abiotic surfaces.
Ebselen Preserves Tissue-Engineered Cell Sheets and their Stem Cells in Hypothermic Conditions
Authors: Katori Ryosuke , Hayashi Ryuhei , Kobayashi Yuki , Kobayashi Eiji , Nishida Kohji 
Published: December 2016

AbstractClinical trials have been performed using autologous tissue-engineered epithelial cell sheets for corneal regenerative medicine. To improve stem cell-based therapy for convenient clinical practice, new techniques are required for preserving reconstructed tissues and their stem/progenitor cells until they are ready for use. In the present study, we screened potential preservative agents and developed a novel medium for preserving the cell sheets and their stem/progenitor cells; the effects were evaluated with a luciferase-based viability assay. Nrf2 activators, specifically ebselen, could maintain high ATP levels during preservation. Ebselen also showed a strong influence on maintenance of the viability, morphology, and stem cell function of the cell sheets preserved under hypothermia by protecting them from reactive oxygen species-induced damage. Furthermore, ebselen drastically improved the preservation performance of human cornea tissues and their stem cells. Therefore, ebselen shows good potential as a useful preservation agent in regenerative medicine as well as in cornea transplantation.
Electroacupuncture enhances rehabilitation through miR-181b targeting PirB after ischemic stroke
Authors: Deng Bin , Bai Fuhai , Zhou Heng , Zhou Dandan , Ma Zhi , Xiong Lize , Wang Qiang 
Published: December 2016

AbstractRecent studies have demonstrated microRNAs (miRNAs) and proteins are beneficial to axon regeneration, which may be involved in Electroacupuncture (EA) therapy against stroke. In this study, we aimed to determine the pivotal role of PirB in EA-produced rehabilitation against ischemic stroke; and to screen and investigate the potential miRNAs directly regulating PirB expression. The results showed EA treatment enhanced axon regeneration and new projections from the corticospinal tract at 28 d after cerebral ischemic reperfusion injury of rats. Then, we found EA decreased pirb mRNA and PirB protein expression in the penumbra within 28 days after reperfusion. The reduction of PirB expression facilitated neurite outgrowth after oxygen-glucose deprivation injury. The miRNA microarray showed the level of twenty kinds of miRNAs changed in the penumbra after EA administration. The bioinformatics study and luciferase assay verified miR-181b directly regulated pirb mRNA expression. EA increased miR-181b levels in the penumbras, and improved neurobehavioral function rehabilitation through miR-181b direct targeting of pirb mRNA to regulate the expression of PirB, RhoA and GAP43. In conclusion, we provide the first evidence that EA enhances rehabilitation against stroke by regulating epigenetic changes to directly act on its targets, such as the miR-181b/PirB/RhoA/GAP43 axis, which is a novel mechanism of EA therapy.
Supersymmetrical bounding of asymmetric states and quantum phase transitions by anti-crossing of symmetric states
Authors: Afzal Muhammad Imran , Lee Yong Tak 
Published: December 2016

AbstractVon Neumann and Wigner theorized the bounding and anti-crossing of eigenstates. Experiments have demonstrated that owing to anti-crossing and similar radiation rates, the graphene-like resonance of inhomogeneously strained photonic eigenstates can generate a pseudomagnetic field, bandgaps and Landau levels, whereas exponential or dissimilar rates induce non-Hermicity. Here, we experimentally demonstrate higher-order supersymmetry and quantum phase transitions by resonance between similar one-dimensional lattices. The lattices consisted of inhomogeneous strain-like phases of triangular solitons. The resonance created two-dimensional, inhomogeneously deformed photonic graphene. All parent eigenstates were annihilated. Eigenstates of mildly strained solitons were annihilated at similar rates through one tail and generated Hermitian bounded eigenstates. The strongly strained solitons with positive phase defects were annihilated at exponential rates through one tail, which bounded eigenstates through non-Hermitianally generated exceptional points. Supersymmetry was evident, with preservation of the shapes and relative phase differences of the parent solitons. Localizations of energies generated from annihilations of mildly and strongly strained soliton eigenstates were responsible for geometrical (Berry) and topological phase transitions, respectively. Both contributed to generating a quantum Zeno phase, whereas only strong twists generated topological (Anderson) localization. Anti-bunching-like condensation was also observed.
Gene network analysis identifies rumen epithelial cell proliferation, differentiation and metabolic pathways perturbed by diet and correlated with methane production
Authors: Xiang Ruidong , McNally Jody , Rowe Suzanne , Jonker Arjan , Pinares-Patino Cesar S. , Oddy V. Hutton , Vercoe Phil E. , McEwan John C. , Dalrymple Brian P. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractRuminants obtain nutrients from microbial fermentation of plant material, primarily in their rumen, a multilayered forestomach. How the different layers of the rumen wall respond to diet and influence microbial fermentation, and how these process are regulated, is not well understood. Gene expression correlation networks were constructed from full thickness rumen wall transcriptomes of 24 sheep fed two different amounts and qualities of a forage and measured for methane production. The network contained two major negatively correlated gene sub-networks predominantly representing the epithelial and muscle layers of the rumen wall. Within the epithelium sub-network gene clusters representing lipid/oxo-acid metabolism, general metabolism and proliferating and differentiating cells were identified. The expression of cell cycle and metabolic genes was positively correlated with dry matter intake, ruminal short chain fatty acid concentrations and methane production. A weak correlation between lipid/oxo-acid metabolism genes and methane yield was observed. Feed consumption level explained the majority of gene expression variation, particularly for the cell cycle genes. Many known stratified epithelium transcription factors had significantly enriched targets in the epithelial gene clusters. The expression patterns of the transcription factors and their targets in proliferating and differentiating skin is mirrored in the rumen, suggesting conservation of regulatory systems.
Genes essential for the morphogenesis of the Shiga toxin 2-transducing phage from Escherichia coli O157:H7
Authors: Mondal Shakhinur Islam , Islam Md Rakibul , Sawaguchi Akira , Asadulghani Md , Ooka Tadasuke , Gotoh Yasuhiro , Kasahara Yasuhiro , Ogura Yoshitoshi , Hayashi Tetsuya 
Published: December 2016

AbstractShiga toxin 2 (Stx2), one of the most important virulence factors of enterohaemorrhagicEscherichia coli(EHEC), is encoded by phages. These phages (Stx2 phages) are often called lambda-like. However, most Stx2 phages are short-tailed, thus belonging to the familyPodoviridae, and the functions of many genes, especially those in the late region, are unknown. In this study, we performed a systematic genetic and morphological analysis of genes with unknown functions in Sp5, the Stx2 phage from EHEC O157:H7 strain Sakai. We identified nine essential genes, which, together with the terminase genes, determine Sp5 morphogenesis. Four of these genes most likely encoded portal, major capsid, scaffolding and tail fiber proteins. Although exact roles/functions of the other five genes are unknown, one was involved in head formation and four were required for tail formation. One of the four tail genes encoded an unusually large protein of 2,793 amino-acid residues. Two genes that are likely required to maintain the lysogenic state were also identified. Because the late regions of Stx2 phages from various origins are highly conserved, the present study provides an important basis for better understanding the biology of this unique and medically important group of bacteriophages.