bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Language Deficits as a Preclinical Window into Parkinson’s Disease: Evidence from Asymptomatic Parkin and Dardarin Mutation Carriers
Authors: García Adolfo M. , Sedeño Lucas , Trujillo Natalia , Bocanegra Yamile , Gomez Diana , Pineda David , Villegas Andrés , Muñoz Edinson , Arias William , Ibáñez Agustín 
Published: February 2017

AbstractObjectives:The worldwide spread of Parkinson’s disease (PD) calls for sensitive and specific measures enabling its early (or, ideally, preclinical) detection. Here, we use language measures revealing deficits in PD to explore whether similar disturbances are present in asymptomatic individualsat riskfor the disease.Methods:We administered executive, semantic, verb-production, and syntactic tasks to sporadic PD patients, genetic PD patients with PARK2 (parkin) or LRRK2 (dardarin) mutation, asymptomatic first-degree relatives of the latter with similar mutations, and socio-demographically matched controls. Moreover, to detectsui generislanguage disturbances, we ran analysis of covariance tests using executive functions as covariate.Results:The two clinical groups showed impairments in all measures, most of which survived covariation with executive functions. However, the key finding concerned asymptomatic mutation carriers. While these subjects showed intact executive, semantic, and action-verb production skills, they evinced deficits in a syntactic test with minimal working memory load.Conclusions:We propose that thissui generisdisturbance may constitute a prodromal sign anticipating eventual development of PD. Moreover, our results suggest that mutations on specific genes (PARK2 and LRRK2) compromising basal ganglia functioning may be subtly related to language-processing mechanisms. (JINS, 2017,23, 150–158)
Low-income adults’ perceptions of farmers’ markets and community-supported agriculture programmes
Authors: Cotter Elizabeth W , Teixeira Carla , Bontrager Annessa , Horton Kasharena , Soriano Deyanira 
Published: February 2017

AbstractObjectiveTo better understand low-income adults’ attitudes towards participating in farmers’ markets, community-supported agriculture (CSA) and nutrition education programming.DesignFocus groups were held with a diverse sample of adults. Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analysed using thematic analysis.SettingThree affordable housing communities in Washington, DC, USA.SubjectsParticipants included twenty-eight residents of the three affordable housing communities.ResultsFour major themes emerged across groups, along with several sub-themes within each theme. These included: (i) perceptions of farmers’ markets (benefits, barriers, current participation and knowledge); (ii) perceptions of CSA (benefits, barriers and questions/concerns); (iii) need/interest in additional programming (nutrition education, non-nutrition education, qualities of programming and perceived barriers); and (iv) current health knowledge and behaviours (dietary behaviours, health recommendations and health concerns).ConclusionAdults living in urban, affordable housing communities desire access to healthy foods, but are limited by cost. Programmes could have a higher likelihood of success if they accept benefits like SNAP (the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program), are heavily marketed and incorporate culturally relevant nutrition education components.
RAMEAU'S CARTESIAN WONDER
Authors: DILL CHARLES 
Published: February 2017

ABSTRACTWhile Rameau alluded to contemporary notions of musical expression in his theoretical writings, he devoted little effort to explaining how music acted on listeners expressively. This article reviews Rameau's writings to establish and clarify his beliefs about this process, finding that they less resemble what we would think of as the leading edge of contemporary thought – exemplified by Dubos, Estève and the Encyclopedists – than they do the earlier descriptions of Descartes and Malebranche. Following long-standing philosophical tradition, the latter privileged the passion wonder (admiration) as the structural basis for all passions. Rameau in turn staged his theoretical discoveries and responses to music in precisely the same way, as an initial, constitutive experience of wonder that then merged mimetically with subtler passionate responses. He assumed similar responses for those who listened to music. We can attribute Rameau's preference for an old-fashioned explanation of the passions to several factors. Notably, according to the principles of his theoretical system, he needed to isolate and describe music as an object that acted on the beholder's mind, whereas later writers concerned themselves more with the beholder's sensory and emotional responses. Moreover, Rameau's argument was an effective response to conservative music critics, who attacked him for introducing overly sensual elements into music.
CRISPR/Cpf1-mediated DNA-free plant genome editing
Authors: Kim Hyeran , Kim Sang-Tae , Ryu Jahee , Kang Beum-Chang , Kim Jin-Soo , Kim Sang-Gyu 
Published: February 2017

AbstractCpf1, a type V CRISPR effector, recognizes a thymidine-rich protospacer-adjacent motif and induces cohesive double-stranded breaks at the target site guided by a single CRISPR RNA (crRNA). Here we show that Cpf1 can be used as a tool for DNA-free editing of plant genomes. We describe the delivery of recombinant Cpf1 proteins with in vitro transcribed or chemically synthesized target-specific crRNAs into protoplasts isolated from soybean and wild tobacco. Designed crRNAs are unique and do not have similar sequences (≤3 mismatches) in the entire soybean reference genome. Targeted deep sequencing analyses show that mutations are successfully induced in FAD2 paralogues in soybean and AOC in wild tobacco. Unlike SpCas9, Cpf1 mainly induces various nucleotide deletions at target sites. No significant mutations are detected at potential off-target sites in the soybean genome. These results demonstrate that Cpf1–crRNA complex is an effective DNA-free genome-editing tool for plant genome editing.
Zero-gap semiconductor to excitonic insulator transition in Ta2NiSe5
Authors: Lu Y. F. , Kono H. , Larkin T. I. , Rost A. W. , Takayama T. , Boris A. V. , Keimer B. , Takagi H. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractThe excitonic insulator is a long conjectured correlated electron phase of narrow-gap semiconductors and semimetals, driven by weakly screened electron–hole interactions. Having been proposed more than 50 years ago, conclusive experimental evidence for its existence remains elusive. Ta2NiSe5 is a narrow-gap semiconductor with a small one-electron bandgap EG of <50 meV. Below TC=326 K, a putative excitonic insulator is stabilized. Here we report an optical excitation gap Eop ∼0.16 eV below TC comparable to the estimated exciton binding energy EB. Specific heat measurements show the entropy associated with the transition being consistent with a primarily electronic origin. To further explore this physics, we map the TC–EG phase diagram tuning EG via chemical and physical pressure. The dome-like behaviour around EG∼0 combined with our transport, thermodynamic and optical results are fully consistent with an excitonic insulator phase in Ta2NiSe5.
Local pH oscillations witness autocatalytic self-organization of biomorphic nanostructures
Authors: Montalti M. , Zhang G. , Genovese D. , Morales J. , Kellermeier M. , García-Ruiz J. M. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractBottom-up self-assembly of simple molecular compounds is a prime pathway to complex materials with interesting structures and functions. Coupled reaction systems are known to spontaneously produce highly ordered patterns, so far observed in soft matter. Here we show that similar phenomena can occur during silica-carbonate crystallization, the emerging order being preserved. The resulting materials, called silica biomorphs, exhibit non-crystallographic curved morphologies and hierarchical textures, much reminiscent of structural principles found in natural biominerals. We have used a fluorescent chemosensor to probe local conditions during the growth of such self-organized nanostructures. We demonstrate that the pH oscillates in the local microenvironment near the growth front due to chemical coupling, which becomes manifest in the final mineralized architectures as intrinsic banding patterns with the same periodicity. A better understanding of dynamic autocatalytic crystallization processes in such simple model systems is key to the rational development of advanced materials and to unravel the mechanisms of biomineralization.
Reversed thermo-switchable molecular sieving membranes composed of two-dimensional metal-organic nanosheets for gas separation
Authors: Wang Xuerui , Chi Chenglong , Zhang Kang , Qian Yuhong , Gupta Krishna M. , Kang Zixi , Jiang Jianwen , Zhao Dan 
Published: February 2017

AbstractIt is highly desirable to reduce the membrane thickness in order to maximize the throughput and break the trade-off limitation for membrane-based gas separation. Two-dimensional membranes composed of atomic-thick graphene or graphene oxide nanosheets have gas transport pathways that are at least three orders of magnitude higher than the membrane thickness, leading to reduced gas permeation flux and impaired separation throughput. Here we present nm-thick molecular sieving membranes composed of porous two-dimensional metal-organic nanosheets. These membranes possess pore openings parallel to gas concentration gradient allowing high gas permeation flux and high selectivity, which are proven by both experiment and molecular dynamics simulation. Furthermore, the gas transport pathways of these membranes exhibit a reversed thermo-switchable feature, which is attributed to the molecular flexibility of the building metal-organic nanosheets.
Superconductivity in a chiral nanotube
Authors: Qin F. , Shi W. , Ideue T. , Yoshida M. , Zak A. , Tenne R. , Kikitsu T. , Inoue D. , Hashizume D. , Iwasa Y. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractChirality of materials are known to affect optical, magnetic and electric properties, causing a variety of nontrivial phenomena such as circular dichiroism for chiral molecules, magnetic Skyrmions in chiral magnets and nonreciprocal carrier transport in chiral conductors. On the other hand, effect of chirality on superconducting transport has not been known. Here we report the nonreciprocity of superconductivity—unambiguous evidence of superconductivity reflecting chiral structure in which the forward and backward supercurrent flows are not equivalent because of inversion symmetry breaking. Such superconductivity is realized via ionic gating in individual chiral nanotubes of tungsten disulfide. The nonreciprocal signal is significantly enhanced in the superconducting state, being associated with unprecedented quantum Little-Parks oscillations originating from the interference of supercurrent along the circumference of the nanotube. The present results indicate that the nonreciprocity is a viable approach toward the superconductors with chiral or noncentrosymmetric structures.
Mitochondrial ATP transporter depletion protects mice against liver steatosis and insulin resistance
Authors: Cho Joonseok , Zhang Yujian , Park Shi-Young , Joseph Anna-Maria , Han Chul , Park Hyo-Jin , Kalavalapalli Srilaxmi , Chun Sung-Kook , Morgan Drake , Kim Jae-Sung , Someya Shinichi , Mathews Clayton E. , Lee Young Jae , Wohlgemuth Stephanie E. , Sunny Nishanth E. , Lee Hui-Young , Choi Cheol Soo , Shiratsuchi Takayuki , Oh S. Paul , Terada Naohiro 
Published: February 2017

AbstractNon-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a common metabolic disorder in obese individuals. Adenine nucleotide translocase (ANT) exchanges ADP/ATP through the mitochondrial inner membrane, and Ant2 is the predominant isoform expressed in the liver. Here we demonstrate that targeted disruption of Ant2 in mouse liver enhances uncoupled respiration without damaging mitochondrial integrity and liver functions. Interestingly, liver specific Ant2 knockout mice are leaner and resistant to hepatic steatosis, obesity and insulin resistance under a lipogenic diet. Protection against fatty liver is partially recapitulated by the systemic administration of low-dose carboxyatractyloside, a specific inhibitor of ANT. Targeted manipulation of hepatic mitochondrial metabolism, particularly through inhibition of ANT, may represent an alternative approach in NAFLD and obesity treatment.
A viral protease relocalizes in the presence of the vector to promote vector performance
Authors: Bak Aurélie , Cheung Andrea L. , Yang Chunling , Whitham Steven A. , Casteel Clare L. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractVector-borne pathogens influence host characteristics relevant to host–vector contact, increasing pathogen transmission and survival. Previously, we demonstrated that infection withTurnip mosaic virus, a member of one of the largest families of plant-infecting viruses, increases vector attraction and reproduction on infected hosts. These changes were due to a single viral protein, NIa-Pro. Here we show that NIa-Pro responds to the presence of the aphid vector during infection by relocalizing to the vacuole. Remarkably, vacuolar localization is required for NIa-Pro’s ability to enhance aphid reproduction on host plants, vacuole localization disappears when aphids are removed, and this phenomenon occurs for another potyvirus,Potato virus Y, suggesting a conserved role for the protein in vector–host interactions. Taken together, these results suggest that potyviruses dynamically respond to the presence of their vectors, promoting insect performance and transmission only when needed.
Pathways of N removal and N2O emission from a one-stage autotrophic N removal process under anaerobic conditions
Authors: Li Kai , Fang Fang , Wang Han , Wang Chao , Chen Youpeng , Guo Jinsong , Wang Xixi , Jiang Fuyang 
Published: February 2017

AbstractTo investigate the pathways of nitrogen (N) removal and N2O emission in a one-stage autotrophic N removal process during the non-aeration phase, biofilm from an intermittent aeration sequencing batch biofilm reactor (SBBR) and organic carbon-free synthetic wastewater were applied to two groups of lab-scale batch experiments in anaerobic conditions using a15N isotopic tracer and specific inhibitors, respectively. Then, the microbial composition of the biofilm was analysed using high-throughput sequencing. The results of the15N isotopic experiments showed that anaerobic ammonium oxidation (Anammox) was the main pathway of N transformation under anaerobic conditions and was responsible for 83–92% of N2production within 24 h. Furthermore, experiments using specific inhibitors revealed that when nitrite was the main N source under anaerobic conditions, N2O emissions from heterotrophic denitrification (HD) and ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) denitrification were 64% and 36%, respectively. Finally, analysing the microbial composition demonstrated that Proteobacteria, Planctomycetes, and Nitrospirae were the dominant microbes, corresponding to 21%, 13%, and 7% of the microbial community, respectively, and were probably responsible for HD, Anammox, and AOB denitrification, respectively.
Insect herbivory (Choristoneura fumiferana, Tortricidea) underlies tree population structure (Picea glauca, Pinaceae)
Authors: Parent Geneviève J. , Giguère Isabelle , Germanos Gaby , Lamara Mebarek , Bauce Éric , MacKay John J. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractVariation in insect herbivory can lead to population structure in plant hosts as indicated by defence traits. In annual herbaceous, defence traits may vary between geographic areas but evidence of such patterns is lacking for long-lived species. This may result from the variety of selection pressures from herbivores, long distance gene flow, genome properties, and lack of research. We investigated the antagonistic interaction between white spruce (Picea glauca) and spruce budworm (SBW, Choristoneura fumiferana) the most devastating forest insect of eastern North America in common garden experiments. White spruces that are able to resist SBW attack were reported to accumulate the acetophenones piceol and pungenol constitutively in their foliage. We show that levels of these acetophenones and transcripts of the gene responsible for their release is highly heritable and that their accumulation is synchronized with the most devastating stage of SBW. Piceol and pungenol concentrations negatively correlate with rate of development in female SBW and follow a non-random geographic variation pattern that is partially explained by historical damage from SBW and temperature. Our results show that accumulation of acetophenones is an efficient resistance mechanism against SBW in white spruce and that insects can affect population structure of a long-lived plant.
Quantitative bioassay to identify antimicrobial drugs through drug interaction fingerprint analysis
Authors: Weinstein Zohar B. , Zaman Muhammad H. 
Published: February 2017

AbstractDrug interaction analysis, which reports the extent to which the presence of one drug affects the efficacy of another, is a powerful tool to select potent combinatorial therapies and predict connectivity between cellular components. Combinatorial effects of drug pairs often vary even for drugs with similar mechanism of actions. Therefore, drug interaction fingerprinting may be harnessed to differentiate drug identities. We developed a method to analyze drug interactions for the application of identifying active pharmaceutical ingredients, an essential step to assess drug quality. We developed a novel approach towards the identification of active pharmaceutical ingredients by comparing drug interaction fingerprint similarity metrics such as correlation and Euclidean distance. To expedite this method, we used bioluminescent E. coli in a simplified checkerboard assay to generate unique drug interaction fingerprints of antimicrobial drugs. Of 30 antibiotics studied, 29 could be identified based on their drug interaction fingerprints. We present drug interaction fingerprint analysis as a cheap, sensitive and quantitative method towards substandard and counterfeit drug detection.
Lyn regulates mucus secretion and MUC5AC via the STAT6 signaling pathway during allergic airway inflammation
Authors: Wang Xiaoyun , Li Yin , Luo Deyu , Wang Xing , Zhang Yun , Liu Zhigang , Zhong Nanshan , Wu Min , Li Guoping 
Published: February 2017

AbstractHypersecretion of mucus is an important component of airway remodeling and contributes to the mucus plugs and airflow obstruction associated with severe asthma phenotypes. Lyn has been shown to down-regulate allergen-induced airway inflammation. However, the role of Lyn in mucin gene expression remains unresolved. In this study, we first demonstrate that Lyn overexpression decreased the mucus hypersecretion and levels of themuc5actranscript in mice exposed to ovalbumin (OVA). Lyn overexpression also decreased the infiltration of inflammatory cells and the levels of IL-13 and IL-4 in OVA-challenged airways. Whereas Lyn knockdown increased the IL-4 or IL-13-induced MUC5AC transcript and protein levels in the human bronchial epithelial cell line, 16HBE, Lyn overexpression decreased IL-4- or IL-13-induced MUC5AC transcript and protein levels. Overexpression of Lyn also decreased the expression and phosphorylation of STAT6 in OVA-exposed mice, whereas Lyn knockdown increased STAT6 and MUC5AC levels in 16HBE cells. Finally, chromatin immunoprecipitation analysis confirmed that Lyn overexpression decreased the binding of STAT6 to the promoter region ofMuc5acin mice exposed to OVA. Collectively, these findings demonstrated that Lyn overexpression ameliorated airway mucus hypersecretion by down-regulating STAT6 and its binding to the MUC5AC promoter.
Immature mice are more susceptible than adult mice to acetaminophen-induced acute liver injury
Authors: Lu Yan , Zhang Cheng , Chen Yuan-Hua , Wang Hua , Zhang Zhi-Hui , Chen Xi , Xu De-Xiang 
Published: February 2017

AbstractAcetaminophen (APAP) overdose induces acute liver injury. The aim of the present study was to analyze the difference of susceptibility between immature and adult mice to APAP-induced acute liver injury. Weanling immature and adult mice were injected with APAP (300 mg/kg). As expected, immature mice were more susceptible than adult mice to APAP-induced acute liver injury. APAP-evoked hepatic c-Jun N-terminal kinase phosphorylation was stronger in immature mice than in adult mice. Hepatic receptor-interacting protein (RIP)1 was obviously activated at APAP-exposed immature and adult mice. Interestingly, hepatic RIP3 activation was more obvious in APAP-treated immature mice than adult mice. Although there was no difference on hepatic GSH metabolic enzymes between immature and adult mice, immature mice were more susceptible than adult mice to APAP-induced hepatic GSH depletion. Of interest, immature mice expressed a much higher level of hepatic Cyp2e1 and Cyp3a11 mRNAs than adult mice. Correspondingly, immature mice expressed a higher level of hepatic CYP2E1, the key drug metabolic enzyme that metabolized APAP into the reactive metabolite NAPQI. These results suggest that a higher level of hepatic drug metabolic enzymes in immature mice than adult mice might contribute to the difference of susceptibility to APAP-induced acute liver injury.
Minimally Invasive Aortic Root Replacement with Valved Conduits through Partial Upper Sternotomy
Authors: Alshakaki Mosab , Martens Sven , Scherer Mirela , Hillebrand Julia 
Published: February 2017

Background Minimally invasive surgical access through limited sternotomy reduces trauma and morbidity in cardiosurgical patients. However, until now, it is not the standard access for aortic root replacement. This study details our clinic's experience with minimally invasive implantation of valved conduits through partial upper sternotomy and the comparison to conventional full median sternotomy.
Methods Between January 2012 and March 2016, a total of 187 patients underwent aortic root replacement with valved conduits in our department. Minimally invasive access through partial upper sternotomy (group A) was performed in 33 patients (9 female, 24 male; mean age: 55.68 ± 13.24 years). Four of these patients received concomitant mitral and tricuspid valve interventions. The results were compared with similar procedures through conventional approach (group B): 25 patients (7 female, 18 male; mean age: 59.09 ± 12.32 years).
Results In all 33 cases of minimally invasive access and 25 cases of conventional approach, aortic root replacement was successful. Operative times were as follows (in minutes; groups A and B)—cardiopulmonary bypass: 166.12 ± 40.61 and 162.88 ± 45.89; cross-clamp time: 122.24 ± 27.42 and 113.44 ± 22.57, respectively. In both groups, two patients needed postoperative reexploration due to secondary bleeding. One multimorbid patient suffered from postoperative stroke and died on the ninth postoperative day due to heart failure. The observed operation times and clinical results after minimally invasive surgery are comparable to conduit implantation through full median sternotomy.
Conclusions Partial upper sternotomy is a feasible access for safe aortic root replacement with valved conduits. Nevertheless, minimally invasive aortic root replacement is a challenging operative procedure.