bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Recent evolution in use and effectiveness in mainland China of thoracic endovascular aortic repair of type B aortic dissection
Authors: Xiong Jiang , Chen Chen , Wu Zhongyin , Chen Duanduan , Guo Wei 
Published: December 2017

AbstractA meta-analysis was performed on 175 studies selected among those published in mainland China between 2008 and 2015 on thoracic endovascular aortic repair (TEVAR) for type B aortic dissection (AD). Most TEVAR were performed in Shanghai, Beijing, Hubei and Guangdong in patients with mean age of 53.9 years, and acute (70%) or chronic (30%) type B AD. Procedural success rate was 99.1 ± 0.8%. Major complication rate was 1.7 ± 2.3%, with paraplegia in 0.4 ± 0.0%. Overall in-hospital mortality rate was 1.6 ± 0.9% with AD rupture in 30% (about 40% during first postoperative day); follow-up mortality rate was 2.3 ± 1.1%, with AD rupture in 39.2% (50% within first year). Compared with 2001–2007 data from China, there appeared to be improvement in rates of major complications, paraplegia and in-hospital mortality. Compared with 1999–2004 Western data, rates of procedural success, stroke, and paraplegia appeared similar, while those for major complications, in-hospital mortality, retrograde type A dissection and follow-up mortality appeared lower. Compared with more recent Western data (2006–2013) on acute complicated type B AD, stroke, paraplegia, in-hospital mortality and follow-up mortality appeared lower. Therefore, in mainland China, safety for TEVAR of type B AD appeared better between 2008 and 2015 than in previous periods in China or Western countries.
SNP co-association and network analyses identify E2F3, KDM5A and BACH2 as key regulators of the bovine milk fatty acid profile
Authors: Pegolo Sara , Dadousis Christos , Mach Núria , Ramayo-Caldas Yuliaxis , Mele Marcello , Conte Giuseppe , Schiavon Stefano , Bittante Giovanni , Cecchinato Alessio 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThe fatty acid (FA) profile has a considerable impact on the nutritional and technological quality of milk and dairy products. The molecular mechanism underlying the regulation of fat metabolism in bovine mammary gland have been not completely elucidated. We conducted genome-wide association studies (GWAS) across 65 milk FAs and fat percentage in 1,152 Brown Swiss cows. In total, we identified 175 significant single nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) spanning all chromosomes. Pathway analyses revealed that 12:0 was associated with the greatest number of overrepresented categories/pathways (e.g. mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) activity and protein phosphorylation), suggesting that it might play an important biological role in controlling milk fat composition. An Associated Weight Matrix approach based on SNP co-associations predicted a network of 791 genes related to the milk FA profile, which were involved in several connected molecular pathways (e.g., MAPK, lipid metabolism and hormone signalling) and undetectable through standard GWAS. Analysis of transcription factors and their putative target genes within the network identifiedBACH2,E2F3andKDM5Aas key regulators of milk FA metabolism. These findings contribute to increasing knowledge of FA metabolism and mammary gland functionality in dairy cows and may be useful in developing targeted breeding practices to improve milk quality.
Evaluation of serum epidermal growth factor receptor (EGFR) in correlation to circulating tumor cells in patients with metastatic breast cancer
Authors: Banys-Paluchowski Malgorzata , Witzel Isabell , Riethdorf Sabine , Rack Brigitte , Janni Wolfgang , Fasching Peter A. , Solomayer Erich-Franz , Aktas Bahriye , Kasimir-Bauer Sabine , Pantel Klaus , Fehm Tanja , Müller Volkmar 
Published: December 2017

AbstractOverexpression of epidermal growth factor receptor in breast cancer is associated with estrogen receptor negativity, higher histological grade and larger tumors. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the clinical significance of serum EGFR (sEGFR) in relation to circulating tumor cells (CTCs) in metastatic breast cancer. 252 patients were enrolled in this prospective multicentre study. Blood was drawn before start of a new line of therapy. sEGFR was determined using a sandwich-type ELISA. CTCs were detected using CellSearch. sEGFR was determined in 48 healthy controls and 252 patients, with no significant differences between the two groups. Clinical-pathological parameters did not correlate with sEGFR, irrespective of the cutoff chosen. Patients with sEGFR levels above the 50th and 75th percentile were more likely to present with <5 CTCs per 7.5 ml blood (p = 0.007; p = 0.003). Patients with sEGFR ≥73 ng/ml had significantly longer overall survival than those with sEGFR <73 ng/ml (19.7 vs. 15.2 months; p = 0.007). In the multivariate analysis, presence of ≥5 CTCs, higher grading and higher line of therapy remained independent predictors of shorter OS, while only higher line of therapy and presence of ≥5 CTCs were independent predictors of shorter PFS.
Boosting with recombinant MVA expressing M. tuberculosis α-crystallin antigen augments the protection imparted by BCG against tuberculosis in guinea pigs
Authors: Nangpal Prachi , Bahal Ritika Kar , Tyagi Anil K. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractTuberculosis (TB) is one of the major causes of mortality all over the globe. BCG, the only vaccine available against this disease has been successful in preventing the severe forms of childhood TB. However, the unsatisfactory performance of BCG in controlling the adult pulmonary tuberculosis has made the development of an effective vaccine against M. tuberculosis a prime objective of the TB research. In this study, a genetically stable, marker-free recombinant MVA expressing α-crystallin of M. tuberculosis (rMVA.acr) was generated which was further evaluated for its ability to impart protection as a booster vaccine against tuberculosis in a heterologous prime boost approach. Our results demonstrated that intradermal delivery of rMVA.acr was able to efficiently boost the BCG induced protection against M. tuberculosis infection in guinea pigs by significantly reducing the pulmonary bacillary load (1.27 log10 fewer bacilli) in comparison to BCG vaccination alone. In addition, boosting BCG vaccinated animals with intramuscular delivery of rMVA.acr resulted in significantly superior protective efficacy in both lungs and spleen with 0.83 log10 and 0.74 log10 CFU fewer bacilli, respectively, when compared to animals vaccinated with BCG only. These findings establish the promise of this prime-boost strategy involving rMVA.acr in enhancing the efficacy of BCG.
Two-dimensional semiconductors ZrNCl and HfNCl: Stability, electric transport, and thermoelectric properties
Authors: Yun Won Seok , Lee J. D. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractSearching for novel two-dimensional (2D) semiconducting materials is a challenging issue. We investigate novel 2D semiconductors ZrNCl and HfNCl which would be isolated to single layers from van der Waals layered bulk materials, i.e., ternary transition-metal nitride halides. Their isolations are unquestionably supported through an investigation of their cleavage energies as well as their thermodynamic stability based on the ab initio molecular dynamics and phonon dispersion calculations. Strain engineering is found to be available for both single-layer (1L) ZrNCl and 1L-HfNCl, where a transition from an indirect to direct band gap is attained under a tensile strain. It is also found that 1L-ZrNCl has an excellent electron mobility of about 1.2 × 103 cm2 V−1 s−1, which is significantly higher than that of 1L-MoS2. Lastly, it is indicated that these systems have good thermoelectric properties, i.e., high Seebeck coefficient and high power factor. With these findings, 1L-ZrNCl and 1L-HfNCl would be novel promising 2D materials for a wide range of optoelectronic and thermoelectric applications.
Dual-specificity phosphatase 5 acts as an anti-inflammatory regulator by inhibiting the ERK and NF-κB signaling pathways
Authors: Seo Huiyun , Cho Young-Chang , Ju Anna , Lee Sewoong , Park Byoung Chul , Park Sung Goo , Kim Jeong-Hoon , Kim Kwonseop , Cho Sayeon 
Published: December 2017

AbstractAlthough dual-specificity phosphatase 5 (DUSP5), which inactivates extracellular signal-regulated kinase (ERK), suppresses tumors in several types of cancer, its functional roles remain largely unknown. Here, we show that DUSP5 is induced during lipopolysaccharide (LPS)-mediated inflammation and inhibits nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) activity. DUSP5 mRNA and protein expression increased transiently in LPS-stimulated RAW 264.7 cells and then returned to basal levels. DUSP5 overexpression in RAW 264.7 cells suppressed the production of pro-inflammatory tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α) and interleukin-6 (IL-6), whereas knockdown of DUSP5 increased their expression. Investigation of two major inflammatory signaling pathways, mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) and NF-κB, using activator protein-1 (AP-1) and NF-κB reporter plasmids, respectively, showed that NF-κB transcription activity was downregulated by DUSP5 in a phosphatase activity-independent manner whereas AP-1 activity was inhibited by DUSP5 phosphatase activity towards ERK,. Further investigation showed that DUSP5 directly interacts with transforming growth factor beta-activated kinase 1 (TAK1) and inhibitor of κB (IκB) kinases (IKKs) but not with IκBα. DUSP5 binding to IKKs interfered with the association of TAK1 with IKKs, suggesting that DUSP5 might act as a competitive inhibitor of TAK1-IKKs association. Therefore, we propose that DUSP5 negatively regulates ERK and NF-κB in a phosphatase activity-dependent and -independent manner, respectively.
Myosin-X knockout is semi-lethal and demonstrates that myosin-X functions in neural tube closure, pigmentation, hyaloid vasculature regression, and filopodia formation
Authors: Heimsath Ernest G. , Yim Yang-In , Mustapha Mirna , Hammer John A. , Cheney Richard E. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractMyosin-X (Myo10) is an unconventional myosin best known for its striking localization to the tips of filopodia. Despite the broad expression of Myo10 in vertebrate tissues, its functions at the organismal level remain largely unknown. We report here the generation of KO-first (Myo10
tm1a/tm1a
), floxed (Myo10
tm1c/tm1c
), and KO mice (Myo10
tm1d/tm1d
). Complete knockout of Myo10 is semi-lethal, with over half of homozygous KO embryos exhibiting exencephaly, a severe defect in neural tube closure. All Myo10 KO mice that survive birth exhibit a white belly spot, all have persistent fetal vasculature in the eye, and ~50% have webbed digits. Myo10 KO mice that survive birth can breed and produce litters of KO embryos, demonstrating that Myo10 is not absolutely essential for mitosis, meiosis, adult survival, or fertility. KO-first mice and an independent spontaneous deletion (Myo10
m1J/m1J
) exhibit the same core phenotypes. During retinal angiogenesis, KO mice exhibit a ~50% decrease in endothelial filopodia, demonstrating that Myo10 is required to form normal numbers of filopodia in vivo. The Myo10 mice generated here demonstrate that Myo10 has important functions in mammalian development and provide key tools for defining the functions of Myo10 in vivo.
A novel Tn1696-like composite transposon (Tn6404) harboring bla
IMP-4 in a Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate carrying a rare ESBL gene bla
SFO-1
Authors: Zhou Kai , Yu Wei , Shen Ping , Lu Haifeng , Wang Baohong , Rossen John W. A. , Xiao Yonghong 
Published: December 2017

AbstractGenetic determinants of a clinical Klebsiella pneumoniae isolate (KP1814) coproducing IMP-4 and a rare ESBL gene SFO-1 was investigated. KP1814 belongs to a novel sequence type (ST) assigned to ST2270. WGS identified four circular DNA sequences in KP1814, including two multidrug-resistance (MDR) plasmids, one virulence plasmid, and one circular form. The MDR plasmid pKP1814-1 (299.9 Kb) is untypeable, and carries two large mosaic multiresistance regions (MRRs). blaSFO-1 and blaIMP-4 co-exists on MRR1, and blaSFO-1 is associated with an IS/Tn-independent genetic context. blaIMP-4 is carried by a novel In804-like integron (intlI-blaIMP-4-Kl.pn.I3-qacG2-aacA4-catB3∆) associated with a novel Tn1696-like transposon (designed Tn6404) flanked by IS5075. The other MDR plasmid pKP1814-3 is a 95,701-bp IncFII plasmid, and is a hybrid of a Shigella flexneri plasmid pSF07201 and an E. coli plasmid pCA08. All resistance genes of pKP1814-3 were detected in a ~16-kb IS26-flanked composite transposon carried by a Tn5396 transposon. The circular form (18.3 Kb) was composed of two parts belonging to pKP1814-1 and pKP1814-3, respectively. The plasmid pKP1814-2, carrying multiple virulence factors, encodes IncFIBK and IncFIIK replicons with a size of 187,349 bp. The coexistence of MDR and virulence plasmids largely enhances the bacterial fitness in the host and environment.
A Dilatometric Study of Tempering Complemented by Mössbauer Spectroscopy and other Characterization Techniques
Authors: Vieira I. , Klemm-Toole J. , Buchner E. , Williamson D. L. , Findley K. O. , De Moor E. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractA new approach for non-isothermal tempering analysis utilizing dilatometry is proposed and was carried out on a medium carbon steel with high silicon and additions of Mo and V for secondary hardening. The method includes a second non-isothermal step performed with the same heating rate (2 °C/min) used for the first step in order to create a baseline for analysis. The results were correlated with several other characterization techniques. Mössbauer spectroscopy confirmed the formation of transition carbides by auto-tempering as well as the presence of retained austenite decomposition (stage II) and cementite precipitation (stage III), which demonstrated significant overlap. Electrical resistivity measurements were correlated with dislocation densities obtained through X-ray diffraction analysis. Transmission electron microscopy dark field images confirmed the secondary hardening assessment from dilatometry.
Insulin-like peptide 3 expressed in the silkworm possesses intrinsic disulfide bonds and full biological activity
Authors: Miyazaki Takatsugu , Ishizaki Masaaki , Dohra Hideo , Park Sungjo , Terzic Andre , Kato Tatsuya , Kohsaka Tetsuya , Park Enoch Y. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractInsulin-like peptide 3 (INSL3) is a member of the relaxin/insulin superfamily and is expressed in testicular Leydig cells. Essential for fetal testis descent, INSL3 has been implicated in testicular and sperm function in adult males via interaction with relaxin/insulin-like family peptide receptor 2 (RXFP2). The INSL3 is typically prepared using chemical synthesis or overexpression in Escherichia coli followed by oxidative refolding and proteolysis. Here, we expressed and purified full-length porcine INSL3 (pINSL3) using a silkworm-based Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus bacmid expression system. Biophysical measurements and proteomic analysis revealed that this recombinant pINSL3 exhibited the correct conformation, with the three critical disulfide bonds observed in native pINSL3, although partial cleavage occurred. In cAMP stimulation assays using RXFP2-expressing HEK293 cells, the recombinant pINSL3 possessed full biological activity. This is the first report concerning the production of fully active pINSL3 without post-expression treatments and provides an efficient production platform for expressing relaxin/insulin superfamily peptides.
The Toll–Like Receptor 2/6 Agonist, FSL–1 Lipopeptide, Therapeutically Mitigates Acute Radiation Syndrome
Authors: Kurkjian Cathryn J. , Guo Hao , Montgomery Nathan D. , Cheng Ning , Yuan Hong , Merrill Joseph R. , Sempowski Gregory D. , Brickey W. June , Ting Jenny P.-Y. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractRisks of radiation exposure from nuclear incidents and cancer radiotherapy are undeniable realities. These dangers urgently compel the development of agents for ameliorating radiation–induced injuries. Biologic pathways mediated by myeloid differentiation primary response gene 88 (MyD88), the common adaptor for toll–like receptor (TLR) and Interleukin–1 receptor signaling, are critical for radioprotection. Treating with agonists prior to radiation enhances survival by activating TLR signaling, whereas radiomitigating TLR–activating therapeutics given after exposure are less defined. We examine the radiomitigation capability of TLR agonists and identify one that is superior for its efficacy and reduced toxic consequences compared to other tested agonists. We demonstrate that the synthetic TLR2/6 ligand Fibroblast–stimulating lipopeptide (FSL–1) substantially prolongs survival in both male and female mice when administered 24 hours after radiation and shows MyD88–dependent function. FSL–1 treatment results in accelerated hematopoiesis in bone marrow, spleen and periphery, and augments systemic levels of hematopoiesis–stimulating factors. The ability of FSL–1 to stimulate hematopoiesis is critical, as hematopoietic dysfunction results from a range of ionizing radiation doses. The efficacy of a single FSL–1 dose for alleviating radiation injury while protecting against adverse effects reveals a viable radiation countermeasures agent.
Energy harvesting efficiency of piezoelectric polymer film with graphene and metal electrodes
Authors: Park Sanghoon , Kim Yura , Jung Hyosub , Park Jun-Young , Lee Naesung , Seo Yongho 
Published: December 2017

AbstractIn this study, we investigated an energy harvesting effect of tensile stress using piezoelectric polymers and flexible electrodes. A chemical-vapor-deposition grown graphene film was transferred onto both sides of the PVDF and P(VDF-TrFE) films simultaneously by means of a conventional wet chemical method. Output voltage induced by sound waves was measured and analyzed when a mechanical tension was applied to the device. Another energy harvester was made with a metallic electrode, where Al and Ag were deposited by using an electron-beam evaporator. When acoustic vibrations (105 dB) were applied to the graphene/PVDF/graphene device, an induced voltage of 7.6 Vpp was measured with a tensile stress of 1.75 MPa, and this was increased up to 9.1 Vpp with a stress of 2.18 MPa for the metal/P(VDF-TrFE)/metal device. The 9 metal/PVDF/metal layers were stacked as an energy harvester, and tension was applied by using springs. Also, we fabricated a full-wave rectifying circuit to store the electrical energy in a 100 μF capacitor, and external vibration generated the electrical charges. As a result, the stored voltage at the capacitor, obtained from the harvester via a bridge diode rectifier, was saturated to ~7.04 V after 180 s charging time.
Functional and evolutionary analysis of Korean bob-tailed native dog using whole-genome sequencing data
Authors: Lee Daehwan , Lim Dajeong , Kwon Daehong , Kim Juyeon , Lee Jongin , Sim Mikang , Choi Bong-Hwan , Choi Seog-Gyu , Kim Jaebum 
Published: December 2017

AbstractRapid and cost effective production of large-scale genome data through next-generation sequencing has enabled population-level studies of various organisms to identify their genotypic differences and phenotypic consequences. This is also used to study indigenous animals with historical and economical values, although they are less studied than model organisms. The objective of this study was to perform functional and evolutionary analysis of Korean bob-tailed native dog Donggyeong with distinct tail and agility phenotype using whole-genome sequencing data by using population and comparative genomics approaches. Based on the uniqueness of non-synonymous single nucleotide polymorphisms obtained from next-generation sequencing data, Donggyeong dog-specific genes/proteins and their functions were identified by comparison with 12 other dog breeds and six other related species. These proteins were further divided into subpopulation-specific ones with different tail length and protein interaction-level signatures were investigated. Finally, the trajectory of shaping protein interactions of subpopulation-specific proteins during evolution was uncovered. This study expands our knowledge of Korean native dogs. Our results also provide a good example of using whole-genome sequencing data for population-level analysis in closely related species.
MatchingLand, geospatial data testbed for the assessment of matching methods
Authors: Xavier Emerson M. A. , Ariza-López Francisco J. , Ureña-Cámara Manuel A. 
Published: December 2017

AbstractThis article presents datasets prepared with the aim of helping the evaluation of geospatial matching methods for vector data. These datasets were built up from mapping data produced by official Spanish mapping agencies. The testbed supplied encompasses the three geometry types: point, line and area. Initial datasets were submitted to geometric transformations in order to generate synthetic datasets. These transformations represent factors that might influence the performance of geospatial matching methods, like the morphology of linear or areal features, systematic transformations, and random disturbance over initial data. We call our 11 GiB benchmark data ‘MatchingLand’ and we hope it can be useful for the geographic information science research community.
Articulatory Kinematic Characteristics Across the Dysarthria Severity Spectrum in Individuals With Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis
Authors: Lee Jimin , Bell Michael , Simmons Zachary 
Published: December 2017

Purpose
The current study investigated whether articulatory kinematic patterns can be extrapolated across the spectrum of dysarthria severity in individuals with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS).

Method
Temporal and spatial articulatory kinematic data were collected using electromagnetic articulography from 14 individuals with dysarthria secondary to ALS and 6 typically aging speakers. Speech intelligibility and speaking rate were used as indices of severity.

Results
Temporal measures (duration, speed of articulators) were significantly correlated with both indices of severity. In speakers with dysarthria, spatial measures were not correlated with severity except in 3 measures: tongue movement displacement was more reduced in the anterior–posterior dimension; jaw movement distance was greater in the inferior–superior dimension; jaw convex hull area was larger in speakers with slower speaking rates. Visual inspection of movement trajectories revealed that overall spatial kinematic characteristics in speakers with severe dysarthria differed qualitatively from those in speakers with mild or moderate dysarthria. Unlike speakers with dysarthria, typically aging speakers displayed variable tongue movement and minimal jaw movement.

Conclusions
The current study revealed that spatial articulatory characteristics, unlike temporal characteristics, showed a complicated pattern across the severity spectrum. The findings suggest that articulatory characteristics in speakers with severe dysarthria cannot simply be extrapolated from those in speakers with mild-to-moderate dysarthria secondary to ALS.
Wide digitally tunable lowpass filter for biomedical and wireless applications
Authors: Elamien M.B. , Mahmoud S.A. 
Published: December 2017

A fully differential Gm‐C lowpass filter for wireless and biomedical applications is introduced in this Letter. The proposed filter is based on a highly linear CMOS digital programmable operational transconductance amplifier (DPOTA).The filter consists of a parallel connection of three fourth‐order Butterworth sections. Each section is optimised for a specific band of frequencies which can be tuned digitally. Switching between the different sections is achieved by controlling the corresponding DPOTAs' transconductance values, hence, this filter design eliminates the need for switches. Simulation results for a 90 nm CMOS technology are given. The third‐order harmonic distortion (HD3) of the DPOTA remains below −60 dB up to 0.5 V differential input voltage at 1.2 V supply voltage. The proposed filter exhibits a wide cutoff frequency tuning range, from 100 Hz to 12 MHz, thus it covers many biomedical and wireless communication standards.