bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact of cuticle photoluminescence on the color morphism of a male damselfly Ischnura senegalensis (Rambur, 1842)
Authors: Chuang Chin-Jung , Liu Cheng-Der , Patil Ranjit A. , Wu Chi-Chung , Chang Yao-Chih , Peng Chih-Wen , Chao Ting-Kwuan , Liou Je-Wen , Liou Yung , Ma Yuan-Ron 
Published: December 2016

AbstractIn this study the damselfly Ischnura senegalensis (Rambur, 1842) was first found to produce strong photoluminescence (PL) emissions from various colored-body portions, such as the eighth abdominal segment of the tail. The colors of the colored-body portions can be enhanced or modified by the PL emissions for assistance in reducing intrasexual and male harassment, and improving mature mating and conspecific identity. Therefore, the PL emissions that contribute to the color modification and coloration are involved in the cuticle evolution of the damselflies. The micro-PL confocal images verify that the PL emissions can strongly influence the surface colors of the cuticle, and demonstrate why the damselfly Ischnura senegalensis is called a bluetail.
Electric-field-induced interferometric resonance of a one-dimensional spin-orbit-coupled electron
Authors: Fan Jingtao , Chen Yuansen , Chen Gang , Xiao Liantuan , Jia Suotang , Nori Franco 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThe efficient control of electron spins is of crucial importance for spintronics, quantum metrology, and quantum information processing. We theoretically formulate an electric mechanism to probe the electron spin dynamics, by focusing on a one-dimensional spin-orbit-coupled nanowire quantum dot. Owing to the existence of spin-orbit coupling and a pulsed electric field, different spin-orbit states are shown to interfere with each other, generating intriguing interference-resonant patterns. We also reveal that an in-plane magnetic field does not affect the interval of any neighboring resonant peaks, but contributes a weak shift of each peak, which is sensitive to the direction of the magnetic field. We find that this proposed external-field-controlled scheme should be regarded as a new type of quantum-dot-based interferometry. This interferometry has potential applications in precise measurements of relevant experimental parameters, such as the Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit-coupling strengths, as well as the Landé factor.
Catalyst- and template-free low-temperature in situ growth of n-type CdS nanowire on p-type CdTe film and p-n heterojunction properties
Authors: Ma Ligang , Liu Wenchao , Cai Hongling , Zhang Fengming , Wu Xiaoshan 
Published: December 2016

AbstractCdS is an important semiconductor used in optoelectronic devices. Simple techniques for growing CdS nanostructures are thus essential at a low cost. This study presents a novel method for growing single-crystal n-type CdS nanowires on p-type CdTe films by thermal annealing in an H2S/N2 mixed gas flow, which does not require the help of a catalyst or template. The formation process and growth mechanism of the nanowires are investigated. Well-dispersed whiskerlike CdS nanostructures are obtained at an appropriate annealing temperature and duration. We suggest that the stress-driving mechanism of nanowire formation may contribute to the growth of CdS nanowires, and that the evaporation of Te through the boundaries of the CdS grain seeds plays an important role in the sustainable growth of nanowire. In addition, CdS/CdTe heterojunction device is fabricated on Mo glass. The I-V characteristic of the heterojunction in dark shows typical rectifying diode behavior. The turn-on voltage can be regulated by annealing conditions. Meanwhile, the obvious photovoltaic effect is obtained on the in situ growth heterojunction prepared at low annealing temperature. Hence, this is a new fabricated method for CdTe-based materials in the field of energy conversion.
Pleiotropic Effects of Myocardial MMP-9 Inhibition to Prevent Ventricular Arrhythmia
Authors: Weng Ching-Hui , Chung Fa-Po , Chen Yao-Chang , Lin Shien-Fong , Huang Po-Hsun , Kuo Terry B. J. , Hsu Wei-Hsuan , Su Wen-Cheng , Sung Yen-Ling , Lin Yenn-Jiang , Chang Shih-Lin , Lo Li-Wei , Yeh Hung-I , Chen Yi-Jen , Hong Yi-Ren , Chen Shih-Ann , Hu Yu-Feng 
Published: December 2016

AbstractObservational studies have established a strong association between matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9) and ventricular arrhythmia. However, whether MMP-9 has a causal link to ventricular arrhythmia, as well as the underlying mechanism, remains unclear. Here, we investigated the mechanistic involvement of myocardial MMP-9 in the pathophysiology of ventricular arrhythmia. Increased levels of myocardial MMP-9 are linked to ventricular arrhythmia attacks after angiotensin II (Ang II) treatment. MMP-9-deficient mice were protected from ventricular arrhythmia. Increased expressions of protein kinase A (PKA) and ryanodine receptor phosphorylation at serine 2808 (pS2808) were correlated with inducible ventricular arrhythmia. MMP-9 deficiency consistently prevented PKA and pS2808 increases after Ang II treatment and reduced ventricular arrhythmia. Calcium dynamics were examined via confocal imaging in isolated murine cardiomyocytes. MMP-9 inhibition prevents calcium leakage from the sarcoplasmic reticulum and reduces arrhythmia-like irregular calcium transients via protein kinase A and ryanodine receptor phosphorylation. Human induced pluripotent stem cell-derived cardiomyocytes similarly show that MMP-9 inhibition prevents abnormal calcium leakage. Myocardial MMP-9 inhibition prevents ventricular arrhythmia through pleiotropic effects, including the modulation of calcium homeostasis and reduced calcium leakage.
Spatiotemporal analysis with a genetically encoded fluorescent RNA probe reveals TERRA function around telomeres
Authors: Yamada Toshimichi , Yoshimura Hideaki , Shimada Rintaro , Hattori Mitsuru , Eguchi Masatoshi , Fujiwara Takahiro K. , Kusumi Akihiro , Ozawa Takeaki 
Published: December 2016

AbstractTelomeric repeat-containing RNA (TERRA) controls the structure and length of telomeres through interactions with numerous telomere-binding proteins. However, little is known about the mechanism by which TERRA regulates the accessibility of the proteins to telomeres, mainly because of the lack of spatiotemporal information of TERRA and its-interacting proteins. We developed a fluorescent probe to visualize endogenous TERRA to investigate its dynamics in living cells. Single-particle fluorescence imaging revealed that TERRA accumulated in a telomere-neighboring region and trapped diffusive heterogeneous nuclear ribonucleoprotein A1 (hnRNPA1), thereby inhibiting hnRNPA1 localization to the telomere. These results suggest that TERRA regulates binding of hnRNPA1 to the telomere in a region surrounding the telomere, leading to a deeper understanding of the mechanism of TERRA function.
Ultrafast laser induced local magnetization dynamics in Heusler compounds
Authors: Elliott P. , Müller T. , Dewhurst J. K. , Sharma S. , Gross E. K. U. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThe overarching goal of the field of femtomagnetism is to control, via laser light, the magnetic structure of matter on a femtosecond time scale. The temporal limits to the light-magnetism interaction are governed by the fact that the electron spin interacts indirectly with light, with current studies showing a laser induced global loss in the magnetic moment on a time scale of the order of a few 100 s of femtoseconds. In this work, by means of ab-initio calculations, we show that more complex magnetic materials - we use the example of the Heusler and half-Heusler alloys - allow for purely optical excitations to cause a significant change in the local moments on the order of 5 fs. This, being purely optical in nature, represents the ultimate mechanism for the short time scale manipulation of spins. Furthermore, we demonstrate that qualitative behaviour of this rich magnetic response to laser light can be deduced from the ground-state spectrum, thus providing a route to tailoring the response of some complex magnetic materials, like the Heuslers, to laser light by the well established methods for material design from ground-state calculations.
A Novel Information-Theoretic Approach for Variable Clustering and Predictive Modeling Using Dirichlet Process Mixtures
Authors: Chen Yun , Yang Hui 
Published: December 2016

AbstractIn the era of big data, there are increasing interests on clustering variables for the minimization of data redundancy and the maximization of variable relevancy. Existing clustering methods, however, depend on nontrivial assumptions about the data structure. Note that nonlinear interdependence among variables poses significant challenges on the traditional framework of predictive modeling. In the present work, we reformulate the problem of variable clustering from an information theoretic perspective that does not require the assumption of data structure for the identification of nonlinear interdependence among variables. Specifically, we propose the use of mutual information to characterize and measure nonlinear correlation structures among variables. Further, we develop Dirichlet process (DP) models to cluster variables based on the mutual-information measures among variables. Finally, orthonormalized variables in each cluster are integrated with group elastic-net model to improve the performance of predictive modeling. Both simulation and real-world case studies showed that the proposed methodology not only effectively reveals the nonlinear interdependence structures among variables but also outperforms traditional variable clustering algorithms such as hierarchical clustering.
Highly efficient transduction of primary adult CNS and PNS neurons
Authors: Levin Evgeny , Diekmann Heike , Fischer Dietmar 
Published: December 2016

AbstractDelivery and expression of recombinant genes, a key methodology for many applications in biological research, remains a challenge especially for mature neurons. Here, we report easy, highly efficient and well tolerated transduction of adult peripheral and central neuronal populations of diverse species in culture using VSV-G pseudo-typed, recombinant baculovirus (BacMam). Transduction rates of up to 80% were reliably achieved at high multiplicity of infection without apparent neuro-cytopathic effects. Neurons could be transduced either shortly after plating or after several days in culture. Co-incubation with two different baculoviruses attained near complete co-localization of fluorescent protein expression, indicating multigene delivery. Finally, evidence for functional protein expression is provided by means of cre-mediated genetic recombination and neurite outgrowth assays. Recombinant protein was already detected within hours after transduction, thereby enabling functional readouts even in relatively short-lived neuronal cultures. Altogether, these results substantiate the usefulness of baculovirus-mediated transduction of mature neurons for future research in neuroscience.
Clinical Association of Chemokine (C-X-C motif) Ligand 1 (CXCL1) with Interstitial Pneumonia with Autoimmune Features (IPAF)
Authors: Liang Minrui , Jiang Zhixing , Huang Qiong , Liu Lei , Xue Yu , Zhu Xiaoxia , Yu Yiyun , Wan Weiguo , Yang Haihua , Zou Hejian 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThe term “interstitial pneumonia with autoimmune features” (IPAF) has been recently proposed. We here investigate the clinical characteristics of IPAF and evaluate the clinical implications of CXCL1-CXCR2 axis in IPAF. An increased plasma level of CXCL1 was exhibited in IPAF compared to idiopathic interstitial pneumonia (IIP), chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), and healthy controls. Additionally, plasma CXCL1 levels were clinically associated with diffusing capacity of the lungs for carbon monoxide (DLCO), erythrocyte sedimentation rate (ESR), and involved parenchyma extension in IPAF. Furthermore, circulating CXCL1 levels were highest in IPAF patients with acute exacerbations. CXCR2, the chemokine receptor for CXCL1, was readily observed in inflammatory aggregates and endothelial cells in IPAF lungs, but was lower in IIP lungs and healthy lungs. Interestingly, increased CXCL1 concentrations in BALF paralleled neutrophil counts in IPAF. Overall, the plasma concentrations of CXCL1 indicated the disease activity and prognosis in IPAF. Thus, the CXCL1/CXCR2 axis appears to be involved in the progression of IPAF.
Invisibility cloak with image projection capability
Authors: Banerjee Debasish , Ji Chengang , Iizuka Hideo 
Published: December 2016

AbstractInvestigations of invisibility cloaks have been led by rigorous theories and such cloak structures, in general, require extreme material parameters. Consequently, it is challenging to realize them, particularly in the full visible region. Due to the insensitivity of human eyes to the polarization and phase of light, cloaking a large object in the full visible region has been recently realized by a simplified theory. Here, we experimentally demonstrate a device concept where a large object can be concealed in a cloak structure and at the same time any images can be projected through it by utilizing a distinctively different approach; the cloaking via one polarization and the image projection via the other orthogonal polarization. Our device structure consists of commercially available optical components such as polarizers and mirrors, and therefore, provides a significant further step towards practical application scenarios such as transparent devices and see-through displays.
The effect of standardized food intake on the association between BMI and 1H-NMR metabolites
Authors: Schutte Bianca A. M. , van den Akker Erik B. , Deelen Joris , van de Rest Ondine , van Heemst Diana , Feskens Edith J. M. , Beekman Marian , Slagboom P. Eline 
Published: December 2016

AbstractMultiple studies have shown that levels of 1H-NMR metabolites are associated with disease and risk factors of disease such as BMI. While most previous investigations have been performed in fasting samples, meta-analysis often includes both cohorts with fasting and non-fasting blood samples. In the present study comprising 153 participants (mean age 63 years; mean BMI 27 kg/m2) we analyzed the effect of a standardized liquid meal (SLM) on metabolite levels and how the SLM influenced the association between metabolites and BMI. We observed that many metabolites, including glycolysis related metabolites, multiple amino acids, LDL diameter, VLDL and HDL lipid concentration changed within 35 minutes after a standardized liquid meal (SLM), similarly for all individuals. Remarkable, however, is that the correlations of metabolite levels with BMI remained highly similar before and after the SLM. Hence, as exemplified with the disease risk factor BMI, our results suggest that the applicability of 1H-NMR metabolites as disease biomarkers depends on the standardization of the fasting status rather than on the fasting status itself. Future studies are required to investigate the dependency of metabolite biomarkers for other disease risk factors on the fasting status.
Physics-driven Spatiotemporal Regularization for High-dimensional Predictive Modeling: A Novel Approach to Solve the Inverse ECG Problem
Authors: Yao Bing , Yang Hui 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThis paper presents a novel physics-driven spatiotemporal regularization (STRE) method for high-dimensional predictive modeling in complex healthcare systems. This model not only captures the physics-based interrelationship between time-varying explanatory and response variables that are distributed in the space, but also addresses the spatial and temporal regularizations to improve the prediction performance. The STRE model is implemented to predict the time-varying distribution of electric potentials on the heart surface based on the electrocardiogram (ECG) data from the distributed sensor network placed on the body surface. The model performance is evaluated and validated in both a simulated two-sphere geometry and a realistic torso-heart geometry. Experimental results show that the STRE model significantly outperforms other regularization models that are widely used in current practice such as Tikhonov zero-order, Tikhonov first-order and L1 first-order regularization methods.
Association between sleep duration and cardiac structure in youths at risk for metabolic syndrome
Authors: Feng Dan , Zhang Jihui , Fu Junling , Wu Heng , Wang Yonghui , Li Lujiao , Zhao Yanglu , Li Ming , Gao Shan 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThe evidence for a link between sleep duration and cardiovascular risk is accumulating in youths, but no study has yet investigated the relationship between sleep duration and change of cardiac structure. In this study, we recruited 559 youths aged 14–28 years from the cohort of Beijing Child and Adolescent Metabolic Syndrome Study. Questionnaire, color Doppler echocardiography, oral glucose tolerance test and blood biomarkers analyses were performed. We found that sleep duration was negatively correlated with body mass index, waist circumstance, and HbA1c (all P < 0.05), but not with adiponectin and leptin. Meanwhile, participants with shorter sleep duration (≤7 h) had larger interventricular septal diastolic thickness, left ventricular (LV) end-diastolic diameter, LV posterior wall thickness, LV mass (LVM), and LV mass index (LVMI), compared to participants in 7–9 h/night or >9 h/night group. Findings remained significant after adjustment for the major confounding factors (P < 0.05). Multivariate regression modeling revealed that each additional hour of sleep was associated with smaller LVM (β: −3.483, P < 0.0001) and LVMI (β: −0.815, P < 0.0001). Our findings suggest that short sleep has a possible direct effect on cardiac remodeling, occurring already at young ages.
Imbalanced positive selection maintains the functional divergence of duplicated DIHYDROKAEMPFEROL 4-REDUCTASE genes
Authors: Huang Bing-Hong , Chen Yi-Wen , Huang Chia-Lung , Gao Jian , Liao Pei-Chun 
Published: December 2016

AbstractGene duplication could be beneficial by functional division but might increase the risk of genetic load. The dynamics of duplicated paralogs number could involve recombination, positive selection, and functional divergence. Duplication ofDIHYDROFLAVONOL 4-REDUCTASE(DFR) has been reported in several organisms and may have been retained by escape from adaptive conflict (EAC). In this study, we screened the angiospermDFRgene focusing on a diversified genusScutellariato investigate how these duplicated genes are retained. We deduced that gene duplication involved multiple independent events in angiosperms, but the duplication ofDFRwas before the divergence ofScutellaria. Asymmetric positive selective pressures resulted in different evolutionary rates between the duplicates. Different numbers of regulatory elements, differential codon usages, radical amino acid changes, and differential gene expressions provide evidences of functional divergence between the twoDFRduplicates inScutellaria, implying adaptive subfunctionalization between duplicates. The discovery of pseudogenes accompanying a reduced replacement rate in oneDFRparalogous gene suggested possibly leading to “loss of function” due to dosage imbalance after the transient adaptive subfunctionalization in the early stage of duplication. Notwithstanding, episodic gene duplication and functional divergence may be relevant to the diversification of ecological function ofDFRgene inScutellaria.
The accessory proteins REEP5 and REEP6 refine CXCR1-mediated cellular responses and lung cancer progression
Authors: Park Cho Rong , You Dong-Joo , Park Sumi , Mander Sunam , Jang Da-Eun , Yeom Su-Cheong , Oh Seong-Hyun , Ahn Curie , Lee Sang Heon , Seong Jae Young , Hwang Jong-Ik 
Published: December 2016

AbstractSome G-protein-coupled receptors have been reported to require accessory proteins with specificity for proper functional expression. In this study, we found that CXCR1 interacted with REEP5 and REEP6, but CXCR2 did not. Overexpression of REEP5 and REEP6 enhanced IL-8-stimulated cellular responses through CXCR1, whereas depletion of the proteins led to the downregulation of the responses. Although REEPs enhanced the expression of a subset of GPCRs, in the absence of REEP5 and REEP6, CXCR1 was expressed in the plasma membrane, but receptor internalization and intracellular clustering of β-arrestin2 following IL-8 treatment were impaired, suggesting that REEP5 and REEP6 might be involved in the ligand-stimulated endocytosis of CXCR1 rather than membrane expression, which resulted in strong cellular responses. In A549 lung cancer cells, which endogenously express CXCR1, the depletion of REEP5 and REEP6 significantly reduced growth and invasion by downregulating IL-8-stimulated ERK phosphorylation, actin polymerization and the expression of genes related to metastasis. Furthermore, an in vivo xenograft model showed that proliferation and metastasis of A549 cells lacking REEP5 and REEP6 were markedly decreased compared to the control group. Thus, REEP5 and REEP6 could be novel regulators of G-protein-coupled receptor signaling whose functional mechanisms differ from other accessory proteins.
Slit-Robo GTPase-Activating Protein 2 as a metastasis suppressor in osteosarcoma
Authors: Marko Tracy A. , Shamsan Ghaidan A. , Edwards Elizabeth N. , Hazelton Paige E. , Rathe Susan K. , Cornax Ingrid , Overn Paula R. , Varshney Jyotika , Diessner Brandon J. , Moriarity Branden S. , O’Sullivan M. Gerard , Odde David J. , Largaespada David A. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractOsteosarcoma is the most common primary bone tumor, with metastatic disease responsible for most treatment failure and patient death. A forward genetic screen utilizing Sleeping Beauty mutagenesis in mice previously identified potential genetic drivers of osteosarcoma metastasis, including Slit-Robo GTPase-Activating Protein 2 (Srgap2). This study evaluates the potential role of SRGAP2 in metastases-associated properties of osteosarcoma cell lines through Srgap2 knockout via the CRISPR/Cas9 nuclease system and conditional overexpression in the murine osteosarcoma cell lines K12 and K7M2. Proliferation, migration, and anchorage independent growth were evaluated. RNA sequencing and immunohistochemistry of human osteosarcoma tissue samples were used to further evaluate the potential role of the Slit-Robo pathway in osteosarcoma. The effects of Srgap2 expression modulation in the murine OS cell lines support the hypothesis that SRGAP2 may have a role as a suppressor of metastases in osteosarcoma. Additionally, SRGAP2 and other genes in the Slit-Robo pathway have altered transcript levels in a subset of mouse and human osteosarcoma, and SRGAP2 protein expression is reduced or absent in a subset of primary tumor samples. SRGAP2 and other axon guidance proteins likely play a role in osteosarcoma metastasis, with loss of SRGAP2 potentially contributing to a more aggressive phenotype.
Sex differences in number processing: Differential systems for subtraction and multiplication were confirmed in men, but not in women
Authors: Pletzer Belinda 
Published: December 2016

AbstractNeuroimaging studies suggest segregated neuronal systems underlying number magnitude processing (e.g. subtraction) and arithmetic fact retrieval (e.g. multiplication). While number magnitude processing is thought to rely on the intraparietal sulcus (IPS) bilaterally, arithmetic fact retrieval is thought to rely on the left angular gyrus (AG). However, evidence from brain damaged patients and brain stimulation challenges this view and suggests considerable overlap between the systems underlying number magnitude processing and arithmetic fact retrieval. This study investigates, whether sex differences in number processing can account for these conflicting findings. A subtraction and a multiplication task were administered to 40 men and 34 women in their luteal phase during functional MRI. Replicating previous studies in men, we found the IPS to be more strongly activated during subtraction than multiplication, and the AG to be more strongly activated during multiplication than subtraction. However, no differences between the two tasks were observed in women.