bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Potassium fertilisation reduces radiocesium uptake by Japanese cypress seedlings grown in a stand contaminated by the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear accident
Authors: Komatsu Masabumi , Hirai Keizo , Nagakura Junko , Noguchi Kyotaro 
Published: November 2017

AbstractWe analysed suppressive effects of potassium (K) fertilisation on radiocesium (137Cs) uptake by hinoki cypress (Chamaecyparis obtusa) seedlings from soils contaminated after the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant accident. Three-year-old seedlings were planted in a clear-cut forest (ca. 4 ha) during June–July 2014, and potassium chloride fertiliser (83 kg K ha−1) was applied twice (August 2014 and April 2015). 137Cs concentrations in the needles in the fertilised plots were one-eighth of those in the control (unfertilised) plots at the end of the second growing season (October 2015). Our results clearly indicated that K fertilisation reduced radiocesium transfer from soil to planted cypress seedlings. A linear mixed model analysis revealed that 137Cs concentrations in the needles were significantly affected by 137Cs inventory in the soil (Bq m−2) adjacent to the sampled seedlings, exchangeable K concentrations in surface mineral soils (0–5 cm) and fertilisation. The exchangeable K concentrations in surface soils in October 2015 did not differ from those in August 2014 (before fertilisation) in the fertilised plots and in the control plots. These results suggested that the levels of exchangeable K would temporarily increase by fertilisation during the growing season, and radiocesium uptake by tree roots was suppressed.
Maternal Exposure to Iodine Excess Throughout Pregnancy and Lactation Induces Hypothyroidism in Adult Male Rat Offspring
Authors: Serrano-Nascimento Caroline , Salgueiro Rafael Barrera , Pantaleão Thiago , Corrêa da Costa Vânia Maria , Nunes Maria Tereza 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThis study aimed to investigate the consequences of maternal exposure to iodine excess (IE; 0.6 mg NaI/L) throughout pregnancy and lactation on the hypothalamus-pituitary-thyroid axis of the male offspring in adulthood. Maternal IE exposure increased hypothalamic Trh mRNA expression and pituitary Tsh expression and secretion in the adult male offspring. Moreover, the IE-exposed offspring rats presented reduced thyroid hormones levels, morphological alterations in the thyroid follicles, increased thyroid oxidative stress and decreased expression of thyroid differentiation markers (Tshr, Nis, Tg, Tpo, Mct8) and thyroid transcription factors (Nkx2.1, Pax8). Finally, the data presented here strongly suggest that epigenetic mechanisms, as increased DNA methylation, augmented DNA methyltransferases expression, hypermethylation of histone H3, hypoaceylation of histones H3 and H4, increased expression/activity of histone deacetylases and decreased expression/activity of histone acetyltransferases are involved in the repression of thyroid gene expression in the adult male offspring. In conclusion, our results indicate that rat dams’ exposure to IE during pregnancy and lactation induces primary hypothyroidism and triggers several epigenetic changes in the thyroid gland of their male offspring in adulthood.
Circulating miR-210 and miR-22 combined with ALT predict the virological response to interferon-alpha therapy of CHB patients
Authors: Li Jin , Zhang Xiaonan , Chen Liang , Zhang Zhanqing , Zhang Jiming , Wang Weixia , Wu Min , Shi Bisheng , Zhang Xinxin , Kozlowski Maya , Hu Yunwen , Yuan Zhenghong 
Published: November 2017

AbstractInterferon-alpha (IFN-α) therapy of chronic hepatitis B (CHB) patients is constrained by limited response and side effects. We described a panel of circulating microRNAs (miRNAs) which could potentially predict outcome of IFN-α therapy. Here, we report development of a simplified scoring model for personalized treatment of CHB patients. 112 CHB patients receiving IFN-α treatment were randomly divided into a training (n = 75) or a validation group (n = 37). The expression of 15 candidate miRNAs was detected in training group with 5 miRNAs exhibiting significantly different levels (p < 0.0001) between early virological response (EVR) and non-early virological response (N-EVR). These 5 miRNAs were further tested in validation phase. Refinement analyses of results from training phase established a model composed of miR-210, miR-22 and alanine aminotransferase (ALT), with area under ROC curve (AUC) of 0.874 and 0.816 in training and validation groups, respectively. In addition, this model showed prognostic value for sustained virological response (SVR) (AUC = 0.821). Collectively, this simplified scoring model composed of miR-210, miR-22 and ALT can reproducibly predict the EVR and SVR of IFN-α therapy in CHB patients. The model should help to forecast the outcome of IFN-α treatment prior to therapy decision involving nucleoside analogs or IFNs.
Modifying response times in the Simon task with transcranial random noise stimulation
Authors: McIntosh James Robert , Mehring Carsten 
Published: November 2017

AbstractPerceptual decisions pervade our every-day lives, and can align or conflict with inbuilt biases. We investigated these conflicting biases by applying transcranial random noise stimulation (tRNS) while subjects took part in a visual Simon task - a paradigm where irrelevant spatial cues influence the response times of subjects to relevant colour cues. We found that tRNS reduces the response time of subjects independent of the congruence between spatial and colour cues, but dependent on the baseline response time, both between subjects and across conditions within subjects. We consider the reduction in response time to be non-specific to the Simon task, and cast our interpretations in terms of drift-diffusion models, which have been previously used as mechanistic explanations for decision-making processes. However, there have been few extensions of the drift-diffusion model to the Simon effect, and so we first elaborate on this interpretation, and further extend it by incorporating the potential action of tRNS.
Influence of Large Reservoir Operation on Water-Levels and Flows in Reaches below Dam: Case Study of the Three Gorges Reservoir
Authors: Yang Yunping , Zhang Mingjin , Zhu Lingling , Liu Wanli , Han Jianqiao , Yang Yanhua 
Published: November 2017

AbstractThe Three Gorges Project (TGP) is the world’s largest water conservation project. The post-construction low-flow water level at the same discharge below the dam has declined, but there remains disagreement over whether the flood level has increased. Measured water levels and upstream and downstream flow data from 1955 to 2016 show that, post-construction: (1) the low-flow water level at the same discharge decreased, and the lowest water level increased due to dry-season reservoir discharge; (2) the decline of the low-flow water level below the dam was less than the undercutting value of the flow channel of the river; (3) the flood level at the same discharge below the dam was slightly elevated, although peak water levels decreased; (4) flood characteristics changed from a high discharge–high flood level to a medium discharge – high flood level; and (5) an expected decline in the flood level downstream was not observed. Channel erosion and the adjustment of rivers and lakes tend to reduce flood levels, while river bed coarsening, vegetation, and human activities downstream increase the flood level. Although the flood control benefits of the Three Gorges Dam (TGD) and the upstream reservoirs are obvious, increased elevation of the downstream flood level remains a concern.
Proteomic study revealed cellular assembly and lipid metabolism dysregulation in sepsis secondary to community-acquired pneumonia
Authors: Sharma Narendra Kumar , Tashima Alexandre Keiji , Brunialti Milena Karina Colo , Ferreira Eden Ramalho , Torquato Ricardo Jose Soares , Mortara Renato Arruda , Machado Flavia Ribeiro , Assuncao Murillo , Rigato Otelo , Salomao Reinaldo 
Published: November 2017

AbstractSepsis is a life-threatening disorder characterized by organ dysfunction and a major cause of mortality worldwide. The major challenge in studying sepsis is its diversity in such factors as age, source of infection and etiology. Recently, genomic and proteomic approaches have improved our understanding of its complex pathogenesis. In the present study, we use quantitative proteomics to evaluate the host proteome response in septic patients secondary to community-acquired pneumonia (CAP). Samples obtained at admission and after 7 days of follow-up were analyzed according to the outcomes of septic patients. The patients’ proteome profiles were compared with age- and gender-matched healthy volunteers. Bioinformatic analyses of differentially expressed proteins showed alteration in the cytoskeleton, cellular assembly, movement, lipid metabolism and immune responses in septic patients. Actin and gelsolin changes were assessed in mononuclear cells using immunofluorescence, and a higher expression of gelsolin and depletion of actin were observed in survivor patients. Regarding lipid metabolism, changes in cholesterol, HDL and apolipoproteins were confirmed using enzymatic colorimetric methods in plasma. Transcriptomic studies revealed a massive change in gene expression in sepsis. Our proteomic results stressed important changes in cellular structure and metabolism, which are possible targets for future interventions of sepsis.
Hyaluronic acid 35 normalizes TLR4 signaling in Kupffer cells from ethanol-fed rats via regulation of microRNA291b and its target Tollip
Authors: Saikia Paramananda , Roychowdhury Sanjoy , Bellos Damien , Pollard Katherine A. , McMullen Megan R. , McCullough Rebecca L. , McCullough Arthur J. , Gholam Pierre , de la Motte Carol , Nagy Laura E. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractTLR4 signaling in hepatic macrophages is increased after chronic ethanol feeding. Treatment of hepatic macrophages after chronic ethanol feeding with small-specific sized hyaluronic acid 35 (HA35) normalizes TLR4 signaling; however, the mechanisms for HA35 action are not completely understood. Here we used Next Generation Sequencing of microRNAs to identify negative regulators of TLR4 signaling reciprocally modulated by ethanol and HA35 in hepatic macrophages. Eleven microRNAs were up-regulated by ethanol; only 4 microRNAs, including miR291b, were decreased by HA35. Bioinformatics analysis identified Tollip, a negative regulator of TLR4, as a target of miR291b. Tollip expression was decreased in hepatic macrophages from ethanol-fed rats, but treatment with HA35 or transfection with a miR291b hairpin inhibitor restored Tollip expression and normalized TLR4-stimulated TNFα expression. In peripheral blood monocytes isolated from patients with alcoholic hepatitis, expression of TNFα mRNA was robustly increased in response to challenge with lipopolysaccharide. Importantly, pre-treatment with HA35 reduced TNFα expression by more than 50%. Taken together, we have identified miR291b as a critical miRNA up-regulated by ethanol. Normalization of the miR291b → Tollip pathway by HA35 ameliorated ethanol-induced sensitization of TLR4 signaling in macrophages/monocytes, suggesting that HA35 may be a novel therapeutic agent in the treatment of ALD.
Shock Synthesis of Five-component Icosahedral Quasicrystals
Authors: Oppenheim Julius , Ma Chi , Hu Jinping , Bindi Luca , Steinhardt Paul J. , Asimow Paul D. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractFive-component icosahedral quasicrystals with compositions in the range Al68–73Fe11–16Cu10–12Cr1–4Ni1–2 were recently recovered after shocking metallic CuAl5 and (Mg0.75Fe0.25)2SiO4 olivine in a stainless steel 304 chamber, intended to replicate a natural shock that affected the Khatyrka meteorite. The iron in those quasicrystals might have originated either from reduction of Fe2+ in olivine or from the stainless steel chamber. In this study, we clarify the shock synthesis mechanism of icosahedral quasicrystals through two new shock recovery experiments. When CuAl5 and Fe2+-bearing olivine were isolated in a Ta capsule, no quasicrystals were found. However, with only metallic starting materials, numerous micron-sized five-component icosahedral quasicrystals, average composition Al72Cu12Fe12Cr3Ni1, were found at the interface between CuAl5 and stainless steel, demonstrating nucleation of quasicrystals under shock without any redox reaction. We present detailed characterization of recovered quasicrystals and discuss possible mechanisms for generating sufficiently high temperatures to reach melting with relatively weak shocks. We discuss the implications of our five-component quasicrystal for the stability of quasicrystals, which have previously only been considered in alloy systems with four or fewer components. Even small amounts of additional metals expand the stability range of the icosahedral phase and facilitate routine syntheses without extraordinary precision in preparation of starting mixtures.
Identification of small RNAs abundant in Burkholderia cenocepacia biofilms reveal putative regulators with a potential role in carbon and iron metabolism
Authors: Sass Andrea , Kiekens Sanne , Coenye Tom 
Published: November 2017

AbstractSmall RNAs play a regulatory role in many central metabolic processes of bacteria, as well as in developmental processes such as biofilm formation. Small RNAs of Burkholderia cenocepacia, an opportunistic pathogenic beta-proteobacterium, are to date not well characterised. To address that, we performed genome-wide transcriptome structure analysis of biofilm grown B. cenocepacia J2315. 41 unannotated short transcripts were identified in intergenic regions of the B. cenocepacia genome. 15 of these short transcripts, highly abundant in biofilms, widely conserved in Burkholderia sp. and without known function, were selected for in-depth analysis. Expression profiling showed that most of these sRNAs are more abundant in biofilms than in planktonic cultures. Many are also highly abundant in cells grown in minimal media, suggesting they are involved in adaptation to nutrient limitation and growth arrest. Their computationally predicted targets include a high proportion of genes involved in carbon metabolism. Expression and target genes of one sRNA suggest a potential role in regulating iron homoeostasis. The strategy used for this study to detect sRNAs expressed in B. cenocepacia biofilms has successfully identified sRNAs with a regulatory function.
DNA metabarcoding for high-throughput monitoring of estuarine macrobenthic communities
Authors: Lobo Jorge , Shokralla Shadi , Costa Maria Helena , Hajibabaei Mehrdad , Costa Filipe Oliveira 
Published: November 2017

AbstractMorphology-based profiling of benthic communities has been extensively applied to aquatic ecosystems’ health assessment. However, it remains a low-throughput, and sometimes ambiguous, procedure. Despite DNA metabarcoding has been applied to marine benthos, a comprehensive approach providing species-level identifications for estuarine macrobenthos is still lacking. Here we report a combination of experimental and field studies to assess the aptitude of COI metabarcoding to provide robust species-level identifications for high-throughput monitoring of estuarine macrobenthos. To investigate the ability of metabarcoding to detect all species present in bulk DNA extracts, we contrived three phylogenetically diverse communities, and applied four different primer pairs to generate PCR products within the COI barcode region. Between 78–83% of the species in the contrived communities were recovered through HTS. Subsequently, we compared morphology and metabarcoding-based approaches to determine the species composition from four distinct estuarine sites. Our results indicate that species richness would be considerably underestimated if only morphological methods were used: globally 27 species identified through morphology versus 61 detected by metabarcoding. Although further refinement is required to improve efficiency and output of this approach, here we show the great aptitude of COI metabarcoding to provide high quality and auditable species identifications in estuarine macrobenthos monitoring.
Biocompatibility and biodegradation studies of a commercial zinc alloy for temporary mini-implant applications
Authors: Kannan M. Bobby , Moore Corey , Saptarshi Shruti , Somasundaram Sahadev , Rahuma Mohamed , Lopata Andreas L. 
Published: November 2017

AbstractIn this study, the biocompatibility and in vitro degradation behaviour of a commercial zinc-based alloy (Zn-5 Al-4 Mg) were evaluated and compared with that of pure zinc for temporary orthopaedic implant applications. Biocompatibility tests were conducted using human alveolar lung epithelial cells (A549), which showed that the zinc alloy exhibits similar biocompatibility as compared to pure zinc. In vitro degradation evaluation was performed using weight loss and electrochemical methods in simulated body fluid (SBF) at 37 °C. Weight loss measurements revealed that the degradation of the zinc alloy was slightly lower during the initial immersion period (1–3 days), but marginally increased after 5 and 7 days immersion as compared to pure zinc. Potentiodynamic polarisation experiments showed that the zinc alloy exhibits higher degradation rate than pure zinc. However, electrochemical impedance spectroscopy analysis suggests that pure zinc is susceptible to localized degradation, whereas the zinc alloy exhibited passivation behaviour. Post-degradation analysis revealed localized degradation in both pure zinc and the zinc alloy.
Diet selection and n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid deposition in lambs as affected by restricted time at pasture
Authors: Zhang X. Q. , Jin Y. M. , Badgery W. B. , Tana  
Published: November 2017

AbstractThis study investigates the effects of restricted grazing time on forage selectivity and meat fatty acid deposition of lambs compared to a traditional grazing system. Results showed that the animals preferred to graze pasture species that were more palatable and lower in fibre, while demonstrating a partial preference for species with high protein levels. Leymus chinensis was more preferentially selected by lambs grazing pasture for shorter periods than longer periods. Lambs that grazed for 4 h per day had a high LNA (α-linolenic acid) intake. The accumulation of LNA and its elongation products in tissue was closely related to the LNA level in diet. Therefore, allowing lambs to graze for at least 4 h per day resulted in a meat fatty acid profile that is richer in health-promoting fatty acids. In particular, the highest DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) was observed in meat from lambs which grazed pasture for 4-h versus 8- and 12-h. It can be concluded that, in grassland systems, a healthier meat fatty acid profile for humans and the potential for better pasture management is achieved by limiting the grazing of lambs to 4 h per day rather than grazing over longer time periods.
Discovery of Bladder Cancer-related Genes Using Integrative Heterogeneous Network Modeling of Multi-omics Data
Authors: Peng Chen , Li Ao , Wang Minghui 
Published: November 2017

AbstractIn human health, a fundamental challenge is the identification of disease-related genes. Bladder cancer (BC) is a worldwide malignant tumor, which has resulted in 170,000 deaths in 2010 up from 114,000 in 1990. Moreover, with the emergence of multi-omics data, more comprehensive analysis of human diseases become possible. In this study, we propose a multi-step approach for the identification of BC-related genes by using integrative Heterogeneous Network Modeling of Multi-Omics data (iHNMMO). The heterogeneous network model properly and comprehensively reflects the multiple kinds of relationships between genes in the multi-omics data of BC, including general relationships, unique relationships under BC condition, correlational relationships within each omics and regulatory relationships between different omics. Besides, a network-based propagation algorithm with resistance is utilized to quantize the relationships between genes and BC precisely. The results of comprehensive performance evaluation suggest that iHNMMO significantly outperforms other approaches. Moreover, further analysis suggests that the top ranked genes may be functionally implicated in BC, which also confirms the superiority of iHNMMO. In summary, this study shows that disease-related genes can be better identified through reasonable integration of multi-omics data.
Ultra-high quality factor metallic micro-cavity based on concentric double metal-insulator-metal rings
Authors: Jiang Meiling , Qi Jiwei , Zhang Mingsi , Sun Qian , Chen Jing , Chen Zongqiang , Yu Xuanyi , Li Yudong , Tian Jianguo 
Published: November 2017

AbstractWe propose and numerically investigate a novel ultra-high quality (Q) factor metallic micro-cavity based on concentric double metal-insulator-metal (MIM) rings (CDMR). In this CDMR cavity, because of the angular momentum matching, the strong coupling occurs between the same order modes of the inner and outer rings with huge resonance frequency difference. Consequently, the energy distribution between in the inner and outer rings presents enormous difference. Especially, for the quasi-in-phase CDMR modes, the energy is confined in the inner ring mainly, which suppresses the radiation loss greatly and results in ultra-narrow resonance dips and ultra-high Q factors. The full width at half-maximum (FWHM) of this CDMR cavity can be less than 2 nm and the Q factor can be higher than 300. Moreover, the character of this CDMR metallic micro-cavity can be modulated by varying the gap width between the two MIM rings. Our CDMR metallic micro-cavity provides a new perspective to design the advanced optical cavity with high Q factor and small mode volumes.
A magnetoelastic biosensor based on E2 glycoprotein for wireless detection of classical swine fever virus E2 antibody
Authors: Guo Xing , Sang Shengbo , Guo Jinyu , Jian Aoqun , Duan Qianqian , Ji Jianlong , Zhang Qiang , Zhang Wendong 
Published: November 2017

AbstractA wireless magnetoelastic (ME) biosensor immobilized with E2 glycoprotein was first developed to detect classical swine fever virus (CSFV) E2 antibody. The detection principle is that a sandwich complex of CSFV E2 – rabbit anti-CSFV E2 antibody – alkaline phosphatase (AP) conjugated goat anti-rabbit IgG formed on the ME sensor surface, with biocatalytic precipitation used to amplify the mass change of antigen–antibody specific binding reaction, induces a significant change in resonance frequency of the biosensor. Due to its magnetostrictive feature, the resonance vibrations and resonance frequency can be actuated and wirelessly monitored through magnetic fields. The experimental results show that resonance frequency shift increases with the augmentation of the CSFV E2 antibody concentration. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy-dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) and fluorescence microscopy analysis proved that the modification and detection process were successful. The biosensor shows a linear response to the logarithm of CSFV E2 antibody concentrations ranging from 5 ng/mL to 10 μg/mL, with a detection limit (LOD) of 2.466 ng/mL and the sensitivity of 56.2 Hz/μg·mL−1. The study provides a low-cost yet highly-sensitive and wireless method for selective detection of CSFV E2 antibody.