bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
NP-Technique As A Tool In Decision Making
Authors: Pesonen Erkki 
Published: July 2016

It is likely that in the future applications of actuarial methods to the decision making in non-life companies will more and more relate to the utility concept as was proposed by K. Borch [1] about fifteen years ago. In this connection it will be important to have workable numerical methods. The calculation of the distribution function of the profit is an unavoidable problem from a practical point of view. Even if it is possible to compute this function today accurately with computers by using the ingenious technique developed by H. Bohman [2], integrals become very laborious when applied to the decision making procedure based on utility concepts. This paper intends to show that the NP-technique,—proposed for the first time by L. Kauppi and P. Ojantakanen in actuarial science [3]—, is particularly suitable in integrals needed for utility calculations.LetF(x) be the distribution function of the total amount of claims and let its mean, standard deviation, skewness and kurtosis be respectively m, σ, γ1 and γ2. The NP-technique uses the system of equationswhere Φ(y) is the standardized normal distribution function. If the parameters m, σ, γ1 and γ2 and F(x) are known, y is directly found from the tables of the normal distribution function, and thereafter the second equation directly gives the value of x. If, vice versa, x and the above parameters are known, F(x) is obtained by solving y from the second equation (1), or, more practically, by using the converted NP-expansion instead of (i), i.e. [4]:where Sometimes it is sufficient to use short forms of the formulae (1) and (2), obtained by omitting the terms in the brackets. If these rougher approximations are used, the estimation of the kurtosis γ2 remains unnecessary.
Expected Utility Strategic Decision Models for General Insurers
Authors: Samson Danny 
Published: July 2016

AbstractIt has been argued in previous studies that the expected utility decision criterion provides useful insights for certain insurance problems, such as underwriting, reinsurance and portfolio optimization problems. In this study three new models are developed which extend and generalize previous results. The first model analyses modified stop-loss reinsurance. The second model analyses risk pooling where both inward and outward reinsurance occur. Expected utility calculations can be used to provide insight on the attractiveness of competing reinsurance and risk pooling options. The third model is for strategic planning, where risk/reward tradeoffs for all the insurer's business activities (underwriting, investment, reinsurance) can be considered in aggregate. The simpler models can often be solved analytically however the strategic planning model is relatively complex and uses Monte Carlo techniques to determine retained earnings distributions. The expected utility approach has been found to be powerful, flexible and comprehensive as a decision aiding mechanism. From a normative viewpoint, this approach accounts very well for all the important decision elements. Recent developments in decision support systems will allow these models to be made available to practitioners in user friendly forms.
Selecting system architecture: What a single industrial experiment can tell us about the traps to avoid when choosing selection criteria
Authors: Moullec Marie-Lise , Jankovic Marija , Eckert Claudia 
Published: July 2016

AbstractDecisions related to system architecture are difficult because of fuzziness and lack of information combined with often-conflicting objectives. We organized an industrial workshop with the objective of choosing 5 out of 800 architectures. The first step, the identification of selection criteria, proved to be the greatest challenge. As a result, designers selected system architectures that did not satisfy them without being able to explain why. It appeared that most of the difficulties faced by the designers came from the criteria used for architecture selection. This study aims to identify what made the selection criteria difficult to use. The audio recordings of the workshop were transcribed and analyzed in order to identify the obstacles related to the definition and the use of selection criteria. The analysis highlights two issues: the interdisciplinarity of system architecture makes criteria interdependent and the lack of information makes it impossible to define an exhaustive set of criteria. Finally, this study provides recommendations for selecting appropriate selection criteria and insights for future selection support tools dedicated to system architecture design.
Antennal Sensilla and Sexual Dimorphism of the Parasitoid Trichospilus pupivorus (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae)
Authors: Silva Isabel Moreira da , Pereira Kleber de Sousa , Spranghers Thomas , Zanuncio José Cola , Serrão José Eduardo 
Published: July 2016

AbstractSensory structures (sensilla) of insects are present in high number in the antennae are important for perceiving environmental cues. Thus, sensilla play an important role in the localization, discrimination, and acceptance of a possible host by parasitoid insects. The sensilla, classified according to their shape, size, and distribution, may also show sexual dimorphism in insects. The types and distribution of antennal sensilla in female and male parasitoid Trichospilus pupivorus (Ferriere, 1930) (Hymenoptera: Eulophidae) were evaluated. T. pupivorus females had longer antennae than males. Both males and females have ten sensilla types with higher abundance of placoid sensilla in females, which suggest a possible functional dimorphism.
Characterization and target genes of nine human PRD-like homeobox domain genes expressed exclusively in early embryos
Authors: Madissoon Elo , Jouhilahti Eeva-Mari , Vesterlund Liselotte , Töhönen Virpi , Krjutškov Kaarel , Petropoulos Sophie , Einarsdottir Elisabet , Linnarsson Sten , Lanner Fredrik , Månsson Robert , Hovatta Outi , Bürglin Thomas R. , Katayama Shintaro , Kere Juha 
Published: July 2016

AbstractPAIRED (PRD)-like homeobox genes belong to a class of predicted transcription factor genes. Several of these PRD-like homeobox genes have been predicted in silico from genomic sequence but until recently had no evidence of transcript expression. We found recently that nine PRD-like homeobox genes, ARGFX, CPHX1, CPHX2, DPRX, DUXA, DUXB, NOBOX, TPRX1 and TPRX2, were expressed in human preimplantation embryos. In the current study we characterized these PRD-like homeobox genes in depth and studied their functions as transcription factors. We cloned multiple transcript variants from human embryos and showed that the expression of these genes is specific to embryos and pluripotent stem cells. Overexpression of the genes in human embryonic stem cells confirmed their roles as transcription factors as either activators (CPHX1, CPHX2, ARGFX) or repressors (DPRX, DUXA, TPRX2) with distinct targets that could be explained by the amino acid sequence in homeodomain. Some PRD-like homeodomain transcription factors had high concordance of target genes and showed enrichment for both developmentally important gene sets and a 36 bp DNA recognition motif implicated in Embryo Genome Activation (EGA). Our data implicate a role for these previously uncharacterized PRD-like homeodomain proteins in the regulation of human embryo genome activation and preimplantation embryo development.
New paradigms for understanding and step changes in treating active and chronic, persistent apicomplexan infections
Authors: McPhillie Martin , Zhou Ying , El Bissati Kamal , Dubey Jitender , Lorenzi Hernan , Capper Michael , Lukens Amanda K , Hickman Mark , Muench Stephen , Verma Shiv Kumar , Weber Christopher R. , Wheeler Kelsey , Gordon James , Sanders Justin , Moulton Hong , Wang Kai , Kim Taek-Kyun , He Yuqing , Santos Tatiana , Woods Stuart , Lee Patty , Donkin David , Kim Eric , Fraczek Laura , Lykins Joseph , Esaa Farida , Alibana-Clouser Fatima , Dovgin Sarah , Weiss Louis , Brasseur Gael , Wirth Dyann , Kent Michael , Hood Leroy , Meunieur Brigitte , Roberts Craig W. , Hasnain S. Samar , Antonyuk Svetlana V. , Fishwick Colin , McLeod Rima 
Published: July 2016

AbstractToxoplasma gondii, the most common parasitic infection of human brain and eye, persists across lifetimes, can progressively damage sight, and is currently incurable. New, curative medicines are needed urgently. Herein, we develop novel models to facilitate drug development: EGS strain T. gondii forms cysts in vitro that induce oocysts in cats, the gold standard criterion for cysts. These cysts highly express cytochrome b. Using these models, we envisioned, and then created, novel 4-(1H)-quinolone scaffolds that target the cytochrome bc1 complex Qi site, of which, a substituted 5,6,7,8-tetrahydroquinolin-4-one inhibits active infection (IC50, 30 nM) and cysts (IC50, 4 μM) in vitro, and in vivo (25 mg/kg), and drug resistant Plasmodium falciparum (IC50, <30 nM), with clinically relevant synergy. Mutant yeast and co-crystallographic studies demonstrate binding to the bc1 complex Qi site. Our results have direct impact on improving outcomes for those with toxoplasmosis, malaria, and ~2 billion persons chronically infected with encysted bradyzoites.
RNAi-mediated knockdown of the voltage gated sodium ion channel TcNav causes mortality in Tribolium castaneum
Authors: Abd El Halim Hesham M. , Alshukri Baida M. H. , Ahmad Munawar S. , Nakasu Erich Y. T. , Awwad Mohammed H. , Salama Elham M. , Gatehouse Angharad M. R. , Edwards Martin G. 
Published: July 2016

AbstractThe voltage-gated sodium ion channel (VGSC) belongs to the largest superfamily of ion channels. Since VGSCs play key roles in physiological processes they are major targets for effective insecticides. RNA interference (RNAi) is widely used to analyse gene function, but recently, it has shown potential to contribute to novel strategies for selectively controlling agricultural insect pests. The current study evaluates the delivery of dsRNA targeted to the sodium ion channel paralytic A (TcNav) gene in Tribolium castaneum as a viable means of controlling this insect pest. Delivery of TcNav dsRNA caused severe developmental arrest with larval mortalities up to 73% post injection of dsRNA. Injected larvae showed significant (p < 0.05) knockdown in gene expression between 30–60%. Expression was also significantly (p < 0.05) reduced in pupae following injection causing 30% and 42% knockdown for early and late pupal stages, respectively. Oral delivery of dsRNA caused dose-dependant mortalities of between 19 and 51.34%; this was accompanied by significant (p < 0.05) knockdown in gene expression following 3 days of continuous feeding. The majority of larvae injected with, or fed, dsRNA died during the final larval stage prior to pupation. This work provides evidence of a viable RNAi-based strategy for insect control.
Over-expression of DNA-PKcs in renal cell carcinoma regulates mTORC2 activation, HIF-2α expression and cell proliferation
Authors: Zheng Bing , Mao Jia-Hui , Li Xiao-Qing , Qian Lin , Zhu Hua , Gu Dong-hua , Pan Xiao-dong 
Published: July 2016

AbstractHere, we demonstrated that DNA-PKcs is over-expressed in multiple human renal cell carcinoma (RCC) tissues and in primary/established human RCCs. Pharmacological or genetic inhibition of DNA-PKcs suppressed proliferation of RCC cells. DNA-PKcs was in the complex of mTOR and SIN1, mediating mTORC2 activation and HIF-2α expression in RCC cells. Inhibiting or silencing DNA-PKcs suppressed AKT Ser-473 phosphorylation and HIF-2α expression. In vivo, DNA-PKcs knockdown or oral administration of the DNA-PKcs inhibitor NU-7441 inhibited AKT Ser-473 phosphorylation, HIF-2α expression and 786-0 RCC xenograft growth in nude mice. We showed that miRNA-101 level was decreased in RCC tissues/cells, which could be responsible for DNA-PKcs overexpression and DNA-PKcs mediated oncogenic actions in RCC cells. We show that DNA-PKcs over-expression regulates mTORC2-AKT activation, HIF-2α expression and RCC cell proliferation.
Two-stage association study to identify the genetic susceptibility of a novel common variant of rs2075290 in ZPR1 to type 2 diabetes
Authors: Guan Fanglin , Niu Yu , Zhang Tianxiao , Liu Songfang , Ma Lei , Qi Ting , Feng Jia , Zuo Hong , Li Guohong , Liu Xufeng , Wang Shujin 
Published: July 2016

AbstractThe SNP of rs964184 in ZPR1 has recently been associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in Japanese individuals. To comprehensively investigate the association of common variants in ZPR1 with T2DM in Han Chinese individuals, we designed a two-stage case-control study of 3,505 T2DM patients and 6,911 unrelated healthy Han Chinese individuals. A total of 24 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were genotyped and single-SNP association, imputation and gender-specific association analyses were performed. To increase the coverage of genetic markers, we implemented imputation techniques to extend the number of tested makers to 280. A novel SNP, rs2075290 and the previously reported SNP, rs964184, were significantly associated with T2DM in the two independent datasets and individuals harboring the CC genotype of rs2075290 and GG genotype of rs964184 exhibited higher levels of fasting plasma glucose (FPG) and blood hemoglobin A1c (HbA1c) than individuals of other genotypes. Additionally, haplotype analyses indicated that two haplotype blocks containing rs2075290 or rs964184 were also significantly associated with T2DM. In summary, these results suggest that ZPR1 plays an important role in the etiology of T2DM and this gene might be involved in abnormal glucose metabolism.
Tracking Cancer Genetic Evolution using OncoTrack
Authors: Talukder Asoke K. , Agarwal Mahima , Buetow Kenneth H. , Denèfle Patrice P. 
Published: July 2016

AbstractIt is difficult for existing methods to quantify, and track the constant evolution of cancers due to high heterogeneity of mutations. However, structural variations associated with nucleotide number changes show repeatable patterns in localized regions of the genome. Here we introduce SPKMG, which generalizes nucleotide number based properties of genes, in statistical terms, at the genome-wide scale. It is measured from the normalized amount of aligned NGS reads in exonic regions of a gene. SPKMG values are calculated within OncoTrack. SPKMG values being continuous numeric variables provide a statistical metric to track DNA level changes. We show that SPKMG measures of cancer DNA show a normative pattern at the genome-wide scale. The analysis leads to the discovery of core cancer genes and also provides novel dynamic insights into the stage of cancer, including cancer development, progression, and metastasis. This technique will allow exome data to also be used for quantitative LOH/CNV analysis for tracking tumour progression and evolution with a higher efficiency.
Serotype IV Streptococcus agalactiae ST-452 has arisen from large genomic recombination events between CC23 and the hypervirulent CC17 lineages
Authors: Campisi Edmondo , Rinaudo C. Daniela , Donati Claudio , Barucco Mara , Torricelli Giulia , Edwards Morven S. , Baker Carol J. , Margarit Imma , Rosini Roberto 
Published: July 2016

AbstractStreptococcus agalactiae (Group B Streptococcus, GBS) causes life-threatening infections in newborns and adults with chronic medical conditions. Serotype IV strains are emerging both among carriers and as cause of invasive disease and recent studies revealed two main Sequence Types (STs), ST-452 and ST-459 assigned to Clonal Complexes CC23 and CC1, respectively. Whole genome sequencing of 70 type IV GBS and subsequent phylogenetic analysis elucidated the localization of type IV isolates in a SNP-based phylogenetic tree and suggested that ST-452 could have originated through genetic recombination. SNPs density analysis of the core genome confirmed that the founder strain of this lineage originated from a single large horizontal gene transfer event between CC23 and the hypervirulent CC17. Indeed, ST-452 genomes are composed by two parts that are nearly identical to corresponding regions in ST-24 (CC23) and ST-291 (CC17). Chromosome mapping of the major GBS virulence factors showed that ST-452 strains have an intermediate yet unique profile among CC23 and CC17 strains. We described unreported large recombination events, involving the cps IV operon and resulting in the expansion of serotype IV to CC23. This work sheds further light on the evolution of GBS providing new insights on the recent emergence of serotype IV.
Association of Inter-arm Blood Pressure Difference with Asymptomatic Intracranial and Extracranial Arterial Stenosis in Hypertension Patients
Authors: Wang Yan , Zhang Jin , Qian Yuesheng , Tang Xiaofeng , Ling Huawei , Chen Kemin , Li Yan , Gao Pingjin , Zhu Dingliang 
Published: July 2016

AbstractInter-arm blood pressure (BP) difference has been associated with ischemic stroke. Local atherosclerosis of stroke differ among vulnerable individuals, whereas intracranial arterial stenosis (ICAS) is more frequently affected Asians and extracranial arterial stenosis (ECAS) is more prevalent among whites. We hereby sought to explore the association of inter-arm BP difference with ICAS and ECAS in stroke-free hypertensive patients in Chinese population. All the 885 subjects were evaluated of ICAS and ECAS through computerized tomographic angiography. Both arm BP was measured simultaneously by Vascular Profiler-1000 device. In the continuous study, ICAS was significantly associated with age, male, average brachial SBP, diabetes, anti-hypertensive treatment and inter-arm DBP difference. ECAS was associated with age, inter-arm SBP and LDL. In the categorical study, subjects with the top quartile of inter-arm DBP difference (≥4 mmHg) showed significantly higher risk of ICAS (OR = 2.109; 95% CI, 1.24–3.587). And the participants with the top quartile of inter-arm SBP difference (≥6 mmHg) showed significantly higher risk of ECAS (OR = 2.288; 95% CI, 1.309–3.998). In conclusion, we reported a diverse association of inter-arm SBP/DBP difference with the ICAS/ECAS. Inter-arm DBP difference might be the early symbol of ICAS in Chinese population, which need further verification in long-term cohort study.
sBWT: memory efficient implementation of the hardware-acceleration-friendly Schindler transform for the fast biological sequence mapping
Authors: Chang Chia-Hua , Chou Min-Te , Wu Yi-Chung , Hong Ting-Wei , Li Yun-Lung , Yang Chia-Hsiang , Hung Jui-Hung 
Published: July 2016

Motivation: The Full-text index in Minute space (FM-index) derived from the Burrows–Wheeler transform (BWT) is broadly used for fast string matching in large genomes or a huge set of sequencing reads. Several graphic processing unit (GPU) accelerated aligners based on the FM-index have been proposed recently; however, the construction of the index is still handled by central processing unit (CPU), only parallelized in data level (e.g. by performing blockwise suffix sorting in GPU), or not scalable for large genomes.
Results: To fulfill the need for a more practical, hardware-parallelizable indexing and matching approach, we herein propose sBWT based on a BWT variant (i.e. Schindler transform) that can be built with highly simplified hardware-acceleration-friendly algorithms and still suffices accurate and fast string matching in repetitive references. In our tests, the implementation achieves significant speedups in indexing and searching compared with other BWT-based tools and can be applied to a variety of domains.
Availability and implementation: sBWT is implemented in C ++ with CPU-only and GPU-accelerated versions. sBWT is open-source software and is available at http://jhhung.github.io/sBWT/
Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Contact: chyee@ntu.edu.tw or jhhung@nctu.edu.tw (also juihunghung@gmail.com)
Estimating evolutionary rates using time-structured data: a general comparison of phylogenetic methods
Authors: Duchêne Sebastián , Geoghegan Jemma L. , Holmes Edward C. , Ho Simon Y.W. 
Published: July 2016

Motivation: In rapidly evolving pathogens, including viruses and some bacteria, genetic change can accumulate over short time-frames. Accordingly, their sampling times can be used to calibrate molecular clocks, allowing estimation of evolutionary rates. Methods for estimating rates from time-structured data vary in how they treat phylogenetic uncertainty and rate variation among lineages. We compiled 81 virus data sets and estimated nucleotide substitution rates using root-to-tip regression, least-squares dating and Bayesian inference.
Results: Although estimates from these three methods were often congruent, this largely relied on the choice of clock model. In particular, relaxed-clock models tended to produce higher rate estimates than methods that assume constant rates. Discrepancies in rate estimates were also associated with high among-lineage rate variation, and phylogenetic and temporal clustering. These results provide insights into the factors that affect the reliability of rate estimates from time-structured sequence data, emphasizing the importance of clock-model testing.
Contact: sduchene@unimelb.edu.au or garzonsebastian@hotmail.com
Supplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
The International Maritime Organization
Authors: Chircop Aldo 
Published: July 2016

Abstract
The International Maritime Organization (IMO) is an intergovernmental organization with special competence in matters relating to navigation and shipping. It also plays a critical role in the international law of the sea. This chapter discusses the purposes, functions, and governance structure of the IMO; and the functions of the IMO in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC).
Science and the International Regulation of Marine Pollution
Authors: Kirk Elizabeth 
Published: July 2016

Abstract
This chapter considers the approaches taken by international regimes to address marine pollution. It identifies similarities and differences in approaches across time and different sources of pollution, the degree to which they follow an adaptive management approach, and the role of science in decision-making. It begins with an overview of the historical development of the law. It then discusses the current regime, covering general obligations and certain source-specific obligations. The final section contains conclusions and a discussion of current and future issues.
The South China Sea
Authors: Zou Keyuan 
Published: July 2016

Abstract
This chapter assesses the legal regime of the South China Sea. It first discusses legal issues concerning the South China Sea, including sovereignty and territorial disputes, maritime disputes, the controversy over China's ‘U-shaped’ line, and the relation between conventional rights deriving from the UN Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC) and historic rights embodied in international customary law. It then considers the applicable international law in the South China Sea including the LOSC and regional arrangements such as the 2002 Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the South China Sea. The final section considers the latest developments in the South China Sea including the Philippines v China case. It discusses the possibility of cooperation in the region between or amongst claimants as well as between ASEAN and China through feasible means, such as joint development, joint management of fishery resources, common responsibilities for the protection of the marine environment and cooperation in non-traditional security issues.