bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Alteration minerals, fluids, and gases on early Mars: Predictions from 1‐D flow geochemical modeling of mineral assemblages in meteorite ALH 84001
Authors: Melwani Daswani Mohit , Schwenzer Susanne P. , Reed Mark H. , Wright Ian P. , Grady Monica M. 
Published: August 2016

AbstractClay minerals, although ubiquitous on the ancient terrains of Mars, have not been observed in Martian meteorite Allan Hills (ALH) 84001, which is an orthopyroxenite sample of the early Martian crust with a secondary carbonate assemblage. We used a low‐temperature (20 °C) one‐dimensional (1‐D) transport thermochemical model to investigate the possible aqueous alteration processes that produced the carbonate assemblage of ALH 84001 while avoiding the coprecipitation of clay minerals. We found that the carbonate in ALH 84001 could have been produced in a process, whereby a low‐temperature (~20 °C) fluid, initially equilibrated with the early Martian atmosphere, moved through surficial clay mineral and silica‐rich layers, percolated through the parent rock of the meteorite, and precipitated carbonates (thereby decreasing the partial pressure of CO2) as it evaporated. This finding requires that before encountering the unweathered orthopyroxenite host of ALH 84001, the fluid permeated rock that became weathered during the process. We were able to predict the composition of the clay minerals formed during weathering, which included the dioctahedral smectite nontronite, kaolinite, and chlorite, all of which have been previously detected on Mars. We also calculated host rock replacement in local equilibrium conditions by the hydrated silicate talc, which is typically considered to be a higher temperature hydrothermal phase on Earth, but may have been a common constituent in the formation of Martian soils through pervasive aqueous alteration. Finally, goethite and magnetite were also found to precipitate in the secondary alteration assemblage, the latter associated with the generation of H2. Apparently, despite the limited water–rock interaction that must have led to the formation of the carbonates ~ 3.9 Ga ago, in the vicinity of the ALH 84001 source rocks, clay formation would have been widespread.
Firms’ Finance in an Experimentally Microfounded Agent‐Based Macroeconomic Model
Authors: Giulioni Gianfranco , Silvestri Marcello , Bucciarelli Edgardo 
Published: August 2016

AbstractThe purpose of this work is twofold. First, we highlight the importance of the finance motive in Keynes and how it has affected the work of Augusto Graziani and Hyman Minsky. Second, we build an agent‐based model where artificial agents replicate heterogeneous financial behavior induced from discovery driven economic experiments. The aggregate and disaggregate outcomes of the model are then investigated to identify the role of entrepreneurs' financial decisions in facing aggregate negative events or in generating endogenous business cycles.
Are Human and Social Capital Linked? Evidence from India
Authors: Alpaslan Barış 
Published: August 2016

AbstractThis paper develops a two‐period Overlapping Generations (OLG) model of endogenous growth in which a two‐way relationship between social capital and human capital is studied. In order to illustrate the impact of public policies, the model is calibrated using the data for a low‐income country, India and a sensitivity analysis is reported under different parameter values. Based on the numerical analysis, this paper focuses on possible trade‐offs in the allocation of government spending between two productive components, that is, social capital‐related activities and education. The results of this paper show that an increase in the share of public spending on social capital‐related activities through a cut in spending on education or vice versa entails trade‐offs. However, the trade‐off fades away and the net impact on long‐run growth turns out to be positive for different parameter values in the case where a higher share of spending on education is financed by a cut in spending on social capital‐related activities but a policy in improving social capital accumulation at the expense of education is always detrimental to long‐run growth.
LaeA regulation of secondary metabolism modulates virulence in Penicillium expansum and is mediated by sucrose
Authors: Kumar Dilip , Barad Shiri , Chen Yong , Luo Xingyu , Tannous Joanna , Dubey Amit , Glam Matana Nofar , Tian Shiping , Li Boqiang , Keller Nancy , Prusky Dov 
Published: August 2016

SummaryPenicillium expansum, the causal agent of blue mould rot, is a critical health concern because of the production of the mycotoxin patulin in colonized apple fruit tissue. Although patulin is produced by many Penicillium species, the factor(s) activating its biosynthesis are not clear. Sucrose, a key sugar component of apple fruit, was found to modulate patulin accumulation in a dose‐responsive pattern. An increase in sucrose culture amendment from 15 to 175 mm decreased both patulin accumulation and expression of the global regulator laeA by 175‐ and five‐fold, respectively, whilst increasing expression of the carbon catabolite repressor creA. LaeA was found to regulate several secondary metabolite genes, including the patulin gene cluster and concomitant patulin synthesis in vitro. Virulence studies of ΔlaeA mutants of two geographically distant P. expansum isolates (Pe‐21 from Israel and Pe‐T01 from China) showed differential reduction in disease severity in freshly harvested fruit, ranging from no reduction for Ch‐Pe‐T01 strains to 15%–25% reduction for both strains in mature fruit, with the ΔlaeA strains of Is‐Pe‐21 always showing a greater loss in virulence. The results suggest the importance of abiotic factors in LaeA regulation of patulin and other secondary metabolites that contribute to pathogenicity.
Differential control and function of Arabidopsis ProDH1 and ProDH2 genes on infection with biotrophic and necrotrophic pathogens
Authors: Rizzi Yanina Soledad , Cecchini Nicolás Miguel , Fabro Georgina , Alvarez María Elena 
Published: August 2016

SummaryArabidopsis contains two proline dehydrogenase (ProDH) genes, ProDH1 and ProDH2, encoding for homologous and functional isoenzymes. Although ProDH1 has been studied extensively, especially under abiotic stress, ProDH2 has only started to be analysed in recent years. These genes display distinctive expression patterns and show weak transcriptional co‐regulation, but are both activated in pathogen‐infected tissues. We have demonstrated previously that Arabidopsis plants with silenced ProDH1/2 expression fail to trigger defences against the hemibiotrophic bacterial pathogen Pseudomonas syringae pv. tomato AvrRpm1 (Pst‐AvrRpm1), and that ProDH1 and ProDH2 are differentially regulated by salicylic acid (SA). In the current work, we used prodh1 and prodh2 single‐mutant plants to assess the particular contribution of each gene to resistance against Pst‐AvrRpm1 and the necrotrophic fungal pathogen Botrytis cinerea. In addition, we studied the sensitivity of ProDH1 and ProDH2 to the jasmonic acid (JA) defence pathway. We found that ProDH1 and ProDH2 are both necessary to achieve maximum resistance against Pst‐AvrRpm1 and B. cinerea. However, ProDH2 has a major effect on early restriction of B. cinerea growth. Interestingly, ProDH1 is up‐regulated by SA and JA, whereas ProDH2 is only activated by JA, and both genes display transcriptional inter‐regulation at basal and infection conditions. These studies provide the first evidence of the contribution of ProDH2 to disease resistance, and describe the differential regulation and non‐redundant but complementary function of both enzyme isoforms in infected tissues, providing support for a fundamental role of ProDH in the control of biotrophic and necrotrophic pathogens.
Turin Shroud, Resurrection and Science: One View of the Cathedral
Authors: Casabianca Tristan 
Published: August 2016

AbstractIn a topic as controversial as the Turin Shroud, it is always surprising to note that there remains a large area of consensus among scholars who hold opposite opinions on the origin of this piece of fabric. According to the consensus view, neither science nor history can prove that the Turin Shroud shows signs of the Resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. However, the reasons provided for this important claim are not convincing, especially in light of recent developments in historiography and analytic philosophy.
Recent changes in the clinical features of patients with new psychoactive‐substances‐related disorders in Japan: Comparison of the Nationwide Mental Hospital Surveys on Drug‐related Psychiatric Disorders undertaken in 2012 and 2014
Authors: Matsumoto Toshihiko , Tachimori Hisateru , Takano Ayumi , Tanibuchi Yuko , Funada Daisuke , Wada Kiyoshi 
Published: August 2016

AimThe aim of this study was to examine changes in the psychosocial backgrounds and clinical features of patients with psychiatric disorders associated with new psychoactive substances (NPS) between 2012 and 2014 in Japan.MethodsClinical features of patients with NPS‐related disorders were compared using data from the Nationwide Mental Hospital Surveys on Drug‐related Psychiatric Disorders undertaken in 2012 and 2014. NPS patients were compared with a control group comprising patients with methamphetamine‐related disorders, using data from the same period.ResultsIn NPS patients, changes were observed in the following three areas between 2012 and 2014: (i) a decrease in the number of employed patients; (ii) an increase in the ratio of patients diagnosed with dependence syndrome; and (iii) a decrease in the ratio of patients diagnosed with psychotic disorder. In methamphetamine patients, only one change was observed: protective custody or arrest record relating to the Pharmaceutical Affairs Act.ConclusionThis study suggests that the number of patients dependent upon NPS, and those exhibiting social dysfunction, increased between 2012 and 2014. There is a need to focus future measures against NPS dependence: not only on stopping the supply of drugs, but also on reducing the demand for them.
Sources of Mortality on Dialysis with an Emphasis on Microemboli
Authors: Stegmayr Bernd G. 
Published: August 2016

AbstractPatients on chronic hemodialysis have a shortened survival compared to the general population. There are multiple sources of morbidity and mortality unique to the dialysis population that account for this. Reasons include the effects of blood membrane interactions, intradialytic hypotension, myocardial stunning, excessive interdialytic weight gain, high‐flow arteriovenous fistulae, and impaired lipid break down by anticoagulation administered during HD. Another risk factor, not well appreciated, is the occurrence of microemboli of air (microbubbles) during HD. Such microemboli are not effectively removed by the venous air trap and the safety system provides no warning when these small microbubbles enter the venous bloodline of the extra corporeal circuit and then the venous circulation of the patient. Data indicate that the gas emboli are not fully adsorbed and become embedded by fibrin resulting in a combined clot that causes microemboli in the lung. In addition, these microbubbles (of the size of blood corpuscles) can pass the pulmonary circulation into the left heart and then into the general arterial circulation explaining their detection not only in the lungs but also in the brain and heart of patients. Risk factors for such microbubble appearance include the high blood pump speed associated with high‐efficiency dialyses. This review will discuss these various issues in relation to the better outcome of patients in Japan and also how to reduce some of these risk factors.
Ultrafiltration Rate Clinical Performance Measures: Ready for Primetime?
Authors: Flythe Jennifer E. 
Published: August 2016

AbstractMounting evidence supports a strong association between fluid management and outcomes among individuals receiving maintenance hemodialysis. The speed of fluid removal during dialysis (ultrafiltration, UF) is a modifiable aspect of fluid management that has attracted recent attention as a potential performance measure for facility fluid management practices. Observational data support an association between higher UF rates and adverse outcomes. This association is supported by the plausible pathophysiologic rationale of hypoperfusion‐induced ischemic injury to the heart and other end‐organs. However, no published clinical trial has studied the impact of lowering UF rates on clinical and patient‐centered outcomes. Lowering UF rates requires interdialytic weigh gain reduction and/or extension of dialysis time. Weight gain reduction has proven difficult despite nutritional programs focused on salt and fluid restrictions, and patients are generally averse to longer treatment times. Thus, imposition of UF rate limitations may lead to failed target weight achievement and volume expansion over time. Despite these potential unintended consequences, the National Quality Forum endorsed an UF rate clinical performance measure in 2015. Prior to implementation of quality measure‐imposed UF rate limitations, prospective studies of UF rates and outcomes are needed.
In vitro comparison between gamma‐irradiated cryopreserved and Day 7 liquid‐stored buffy coat–derived platelet components
Authors: Crimmins Daryl , Flanagan Peter , Charlewood Richard , Ruggiero Katya 
Published: August 2016

BACKGROUNDCryopreserved platelet (PLT) components stored at −80°C in 5% to 6% dimethyl sulfoxide (DMSO) demonstrate enhanced hemostatic activity. Alterations in PLT surface glycoprotein expression and release of procoagulant microparticles during the freeze/thaw cycle result in PLT activation. Nothing is known of the effect of gamma irradiation on the in vitro quality of reconstituted cryopreserved PLTs.STUDY DESIGN AND METHODSGamma‐irradiated (25‐50 Gy) buffy coat–derived PLT components were either stored at room temperature for 7 days (the current expiry in New Zealand) or cryopreserved at −80°C using 5% to 6% DMSO. Cryopreserved PLTs were thawed at 37°C and reconstituted in ABO‐identical plasma or PAS‐E and compared to Day 7 gamma‐irradiated liquid‐stored PLTs. In vitro assays were performed to assess glycoprotein expression, PLT functionality and soluble cytokine release.RESULTSCryopreserved PLTs after thawing and reconstitution in ABO‐matched plasma or PAS‐E displayed differing recoveries (82.7 and 75.9%, respectively). Key expression levels of glycoproteins GPIbα (CD42b) and GPIIb (CD41a) were reduced. Cryopreserved PLTs retained the ability to form an effective functional clot, while showing accelerated initiation of clot formation (R‐time) compared to Day 7 gamma‐irradiated liquid‐stored PLTs.CONCLUSIONGamma‐irradiated buffy coat–derived liquid‐stored and cryopreserved PLTs have distinctly differing phenotypes. Cryopreserved PLTs reconstituted in ABO plasma have enhanced clot strength driven by coagulation factors and fibrinogen levels not present in PAS‐E. Irradiated cryopreserved PLTs maintain a similar in vitro quality profile and hemostatic behavior to previously published, nonirradiated cryopreserved PLTs.
Practical reconstruction protocol for quantitative 90Y bremsstrahlung SPECT/CT
Authors: Siman W. , Mikell J. K. , Kappadath S. C. 
Published: August 2016

Purpose:To develop a practical background compensation (BC) technique to improve quantitative 90Y‐bremsstrahlung single‐photon emission computed tomography (SPECT)/computed tomography (CT) using a commercially available imaging system.Methods:All images were acquired using medium‐energy collimation in six energy windows (EWs), ranging from 70 to 410 keV. The EWs were determined based on the signal‐to‐background ratio in planar images of an acrylic phantom of different thicknesses (2–16 cm) positioned below a 90Y source and set at different distances (15–35 cm) from a gamma camera. The authors adapted the widely used EW‐based scatter‐correction technique by modeling the BC as scaled images. The BC EW was determined empirically in SPECT/CT studies using an IEC phantom based on the sphere activity recovery and residual activity in the cold lung insert. The scaling factor was calculated from 20 clinical planar 90Y images. Reconstruction parameters were optimized in the same SPECT images for improved image quantification and contrast. A count‐to‐activity calibration factor was calculated from 30 clinical 90Y images.Results:The authors found that the most appropriate imaging EW range was 90–125 keV. BC was modeled as 0.53× images in the EW of 310–410 keV. The background‐compensated clinical images had higher image contrast than uncompensated images. The maximum deviation of their SPECT calibration in clinical studies was lowest (<10%) for SPECT with attenuation correction (AC) and SPECT with AC + BC. Using the proposed SPECT‐with‐AC + BC reconstruction protocol, the authors found that the recovery coefficient of a 37‐mm sphere (in a 10‐mm volume of interest) increased from 39% to 90% and that the residual activity in the lung insert decreased from 44% to 14% over that of SPECT images with AC alone.Conclusions:The proposed EW‐based BC model was developed for 90Y bremsstrahlung imaging. SPECT with AC + BC gave improved lesion detectability and activity quantification compared to SPECT with AC only. The proposed methodology can readily be used to tailor 90Y SPECT/CT acquisition and reconstruction protocols with different SPECT/CT systems for quantification and improved image quality in clinical settings.
Stringent Response Factors PPX1 and PPK2 Play an Important Role in Mycobacterium tuberculosis Metabolism, Biofilm Formation, and Sensitivity to Isoniazid
In Vivo
Authors: Chuang Yu-Min , Dutta Noton K. , Hung Chien-Fu , Wu T.-C. , Rubin Harvey , Karakousis Petros C. 
Published: August 2016

ABSTRACT

Mycobacterium tuberculosis
remains a global health threat largely due to the lengthy duration of curative antibiotic treatment, contributing to medical nonadherence and the emergence of drug resistance. This prolonged therapy is likely due to the presence of
M. tuberculosis
persisters, which exhibit antibiotic tolerance. Inorganic polyphosphate [poly(P)] is a key regulatory molecule in the
M. tuberculosis
stringent response mediating antibiotic tolerance. The polyphosphate kinase PPK1 is responsible for poly(P) synthesis in
M. tuberculosis
, while the exopolyphosphatases PPX1 and PPX2 and the GTP synthase PPK2 are responsible for poly(P) hydrolysis. In the present study, we show by liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry that poly(P)-accumulating
M. tuberculosis
mutant strains deficient in
ppx1
or
ppk2
had significantly lower intracellular levels of glycerol-3-phosphate (G3P) and 1-deoxy-xylulose-5-phosphate. Real-time PCR revealed decreased expression of genes in the G3P synthesis pathway in each mutant. The
ppx1
-deficient mutant also showed a significant accumulation of metabolites in the tricarboxylic acid cycle, as well as altered arginine and NADH metabolism. Each poly(P)-accumulating strain showed defective biofilm formation, while deficiency of
ppk2
was associated with increased sensitivity to plumbagin and meropenem and deficiency of
ppx1
led to enhanced susceptibility to clofazimine. A DNA vaccine expressing
ppx1
and
ppk2
, together with two other members of the
M. tuberculosis
stringent response,
M. tuberculosis
rel
and
sigE
, did not show protective activity against aerosol challenge with
M. tuberculosis
, but vaccine-induced immunity enhanced the killing activity of isoniazid in a murine model of chronic tuberculosis. In summary, poly(P)-regulating factors of the
M. tuberculosis
stringent response play an important role in
M. tuberculosis
metabolism, biofilm formation, and antibiotic sensitivity
in vivo
.
Improved Protection in a Rabbit Model of Community-Associated Methicillin-Resistant Staphylococcus aureus Necrotizing Pneumonia upon Neutralization of Leukocidins in Addition to Alpha-Hemolysin
Authors: Diep Binh An , Le Vien T. M. , Visram Zehra C. , Rouha Harald , Stulik Lukas , Dip Etyene Castro , Nagy Gábor , Nagy Eszter 
Published: August 2016

ABSTRACT

Community-associated methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus
(CA-MRSA), especially the USA300 pulsotype, is a frequent cause of skin and soft tissue infections and severe pneumonia. Despite appropriate antibiotic treatment, complications are common and pneumonia is associated with high mortality.
S. aureus
strains express multiple cytotoxins, including alpha-hemolysin (Hla) and up to five bicomponent leukocidins that specifically target phagocytic cells for lysis. CA-MRSA USA300 strains carry the genes for all six cytotoxins. Species specificity of the leukocidins greatly contributes to the ambiguity regarding their role in
S. aureus
pathogenesis. We performed a comparative analysis of the leukocidin susceptibility of human, rabbit, and mouse polymorphonuclear leukocytes (PMNs) to assess the translational value of mouse and rabbit
S. aureus
models. We found that mouse PMNs were largely resistant to LukSF-PV, HlgAB, and HlgCB and susceptible only to LukED, whereas rabbit and human PMNs were highly sensitive to all these cytotoxins. In the rabbit pneumonia model with a USA300 CA-MRSA strain, passive immunization with a previously identified human monoclonal antibody (MAb), Hla-F#5, which cross-neutralizes Hla, LukSF-PV, HlgAB, HlgCB, and LukED, provided full protection, whereas an Hla-specific MAb was only partially protective. In the mouse USA300 CA-MRSA pneumonia model, both types of antibodies demonstrated full protection, suggesting that Hla, but not leukocidin(s), is the principal virulence determinant in mice. As the rabbit recapitulates the high susceptibility to leukocidins characteristic of humans, this species represents a valuable model for assessing novel, cytotoxin-targeting anti-
S. aureus
therapeutic approaches.
Antistaphylococcal β-Lactams versus Vancomycin for Treatment of Infective Endocarditis Due to Methicillin-Susceptible Coagulase-Negative Staphylococci: a Prospective Cohort Study from the International Collaboration on Endocarditis
Authors: Carugati M. , Petti C. A. , Arnold C. , Miro J. M. , Pericàs J. M. , Garcia de la Maria C. , Kanafani Z. , Durante-Mangoni E. , Baddley J. , Wray D. , Klein J. L. , Delahaye F. , Fernandez-Hidalgo N. , Hannan M. M. , Murdoch D. , Bayer A. , Chu V. H. 
Published: August 2016

ABSTRACTThe phenotypic expression of methicillin resistance among coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) is heterogeneous regardless of the presence of themecAgene. The potential discordance between phenotypic and genotypic results has led to the use of vancomycin for the treatment of CoNS infective endocarditis (IE) regardless of methicillin MIC values. In this study, we assessed the outcome of methicillin-susceptible CoNS IE among patients treated with antistaphylococcal β-lactams (ASB) versus vancomycin (VAN) in a multicenter cohort study based on data from the International Collaboration on Endocarditis (ICE) Prospective Cohort Study (PCS) and the ICE-Plus databases. The ICE-PCS database contains prospective data on 5,568 patients with IE collected between 2000 and 2006, while the ICE-Plus database contains prospective data on 2,019 patients with IE collected between 2008 and 2012. The primary endpoint was in-hospital mortality. Secondary endpoints were 6-month mortality and survival time. Of the 7,587 patients in the two databases, there were 280 patients with methicillin-susceptible CoNS IE. Detailed treatment and outcome data were available for 180 patients. Eighty-eight patients received ASB, while 36 were treated with VAN. In-hospital mortality (19.3% versus 11.1%;P= 0.27), 6-month mortality (31.6% versus 25.9%;P= 0.58), and survival time after discharge (P= 0.26) did not significantly differ between the two cohorts. Cox regression analysis did not show any significant association between ASB use and the survival time (hazard ratio, 1.7;P= 0.22); this result was not affected by adjustment for confounders. This study provides no evidence for a difference in outcome with the use of VAN versus ASB for methicillin-susceptible CoNS IE.