bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Functional role of the Tau protein in epithelial ovarian cancer cells
Authors: Yamauchi Aisa , Kobayashi Asami , Oikiri Hiroe , Yokoyama Yoshihito 
Published: March 2017

AbstractAimThe microtubule‐associated Tau protein is a marker of paclitaxel sensitivity in ovarian cancer. The aim of the present study was to elucidate the function of the Tau protein in epithelial ovarian cancer.MethodsThe correlation between Tau protein expression and the response to paclitaxel by using several ovarian cancer cell lines was investigated.ResultsA Western blot showed that the expression level of the Tau protein was the highest in the TOV112D cells. A cell‐counting kit showed that the proliferation rates were more inhibited in the cells with down‐regulated Tau protein than in the control cells, both with and without paclitaxel treatment. The proliferation rates of the control cells and the TOV112D cells also were compared with Tau protein overexpression. The level of cell proliferation was more inhibited in the cells that overexpressed the Tau protein, compared to the control cells, both with and without paclitaxel treatment. It was shown that both the down‐regulation and the overexpression of the Tau protein were related to the inhibition of TOV112D cell proliferation. Early and late apoptosis of the TOV112D cells that were transfected with Tau cDNA plasmid construct or Tau small interfering RNA significantly increased.ConclusionThese findings suggest that the molecular targeting of the Tau protein could be a potential treatment for ovarian cancer.
Protein biomarkers for male artificial insemination subfertility in bovine spermatozoa
Authors: Harayama Hiroshi , Minami Kenta , Kishida Kazumi , Noda Taichi 
Published: March 2017

AbstractBackgroundAlthough artificial insemination (AI) technique is an established biotechnology for bovine reproduction, the results of AI (conception rates) have a tendency to decline gradually. To our annoyance, moreover, AI‐subfertile bulls have been occasionally found in the AI centers. To resolve these serious problems, it is necessary to control the sperm quality more strictly by the examinations of sperm molecules.MethodsWe reviewed a number of recent articles regarding potentials of bovine sperm proteins as the biomarkers for bull AI‐subfertility and also showed our unpublished supplemental data on the bull AI‐subfertility associated proteins.Main findingsBull AI‐subfertility is caused by the deficiency or dysfunctions of various molecules including regulatory proteins of ATP synthesis, acrosomal proteins, nuclear proteins, capacitation‐related proteins and seminal plasma proteins.ConclusionIn order to control the bovine sperm quality more strictly by the molecular examinations, it is necessary to select suitable sperm protein biomarkers for the male reproductive problems which happen in the AI centers.
Hidden high rate of pre‐eclampsia in twin compared with singleton pregnancy
Authors: Francisco C. , Wright D. , Benkő Z. , Syngelaki A. , Nicolaides K. H. 
Published: March 2017

ABSTRACTObjectivesTo examine the gestational age at delivery in dichorionic (DC) and monochorionic (MC) twin pregnancies, with and without pre‐eclampsia (PE), and to determine the relative risk of total and preterm PE compared with that in singleton pregnancies.MethodsThis was a screening study for PE in twin pregnancies undergoing first‐trimester combined screening for aneuploidy and subsequently delivering two phenotypically normal live or stillborn babies at ≥ 24 weeks' gestation. The distribution of gestational age at delivery in DC and MC twins was determined and compared with that in singleton pregnancies from the same population. The relative risk for total and preterm PE in twins compared with singleton pregnancies was determined. Kaplan–Meier estimates of the cumulative incidence of PE in twin and singleton pregnancies, assuming no other cause for delivery, were determined and hazard ratios for twins relative to singletons were obtained from a Cox proportional hazards regression model.ResultsThe incidence of PE in singletons was 2.3% (2162/93 297), in DC twin pregnancies was 8.1% (145/1789) and in MC twin pregnancies was 6.0% (26/430). Compared with singletons, the relative risk of total PE was 3.5 for DC twins and 2.6 for MC twins. Delivery < 37 weeks' gestation occurred in 5.5% of singletons, 46.5% of DC twins and 91.4% of MC twins. The incidence of preterm PE was 0.6%, 5.5% and 5.8% for singletons, DC twins and MC twins, respectively. Compared with singletons, the relative risk of preterm PE was 8.7 for DC twins and 9.1 for MC twins. In the Cox proportional hazards regression model, the hazard ratios for DC and MC twin pregnancies relative to singleton pregnancies were 14 and 23, respectively.ConclusionsThe relative risk of preterm PE in DC and MC twins is similar and substantially higher than in singleton pregnancies. In ongoing twin pregnancies, the high relative risk of PE may merit a higher intensity of monitoring than is routine for singleton pregnancies. Copyright © 2017 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
Camera angle and photographic identification of individual striped skunks
Authors: Theimer Tad C. , Ray Dylan T. , Bergman David L. 
Published: March 2017

ABSTRACTWe tested whether striped skunks (Mephitis mephitis) in Flagstaff, Arizona, USA, could be recognized based on variation in pelage patterns and whether camera position influenced that outcome. We presented 11 volunteers with 2 sets of 24 photographs taken between 1 January and 15 February 2015, one with animals photographed from the side, the other from above. Each set of 24 photographs included 9 pairs, with each pair representing 2 different images of the same animal. Volunteers scored twice as many correct matches and 4‐fold fewer false matches when photographs were taken from above. Regardless of camera position, the total number of unique skunks in each set was underestimated (83% of total from above, 75% from side), likely because some skunks had very similar pelage patterns. Our results indicate that variation in nose stripe, back stripe, dorsal and ventral tail pattern, and shape of tail can be used to recognize individual striped skunks but similarity in those characteristics among some individuals may cause total number of unique individuals to be underestimated regardless of camera orientation. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.
An application of temporal projection to interleaving concurrency
Authors: Moszkowski Ben , Guelev Dimitar P. 
Published: March 2017

Abstract

We revisit the earliest temporal projection operator

Π

in discrete-time Propositional Interval Temporal Logic (PITL) and use it to formalise interleaving concurrency. The logical properties of

Π

as a normal modality and a way to eliminate it in both PITL and conventional point-based Linear-Time Temporal Logic (LTL), which can be viewed as a PITL subset, are examined, as are stutter-invariant formulas. Striking similarities between the expressiveness of

Π

and the standard LTL operator

U

(‘until’) are briefly illustrated. We also formalise concurrent imperative programming constructs with and without

Π

, and relate the two approaches. Peterson’s mutual exclusion algorithm is used to illustrate reasoning with

Π

about a concrete programming example. Projection with fairness and non-fairness assumptions are both discussed. This all illustrates an approach to the analysis of such concurrent interleaving finite-state systems using temporal logic formulas with projection constructs to reason about correctness properties. Unlike conventional LTL formulas about concurrency which normally largely focus on global time, properties expressed in LTL combined with

Π

help to reveal and analyse important differing viewpoints involving global time and the local projected time seen by each individual process. Links between

Π

and another standard PITL projection operator, both suitable for reasoning about different time granularities, are demonstrated by showing the two operators to be interdefinable. We briefly look at other (mostly interval-based) temporal logics with similar forms of projection, as well as some related applications and industrial standards.
Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS®) in Individuals with Diabetes: A Systematic Review
Authors: Albalawi Zaina , Laffin Michael , Gramlich Leah , Senior Peter , McAlister Finlay A. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractBackgroundPrevalence of diabetes in surgical patients is 10–40%. It is well recognized that they have higher rates of complications, and longer stays in hospital compared to patients without diabetes. Enhanced recovery after surgery (ERAS) is an evidence‐based multimodal surgical care pathway that improves postoperative complications and length of stay in patients without diabetes. This review evaluates the evidence on whether individuals with diabetes would benefit from ERAS implementation.MethodsMEDLINE, Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials (CENTRAL) and EMBASE searched with no language restrictions applied. Conference proceedings and bibliographies were reviewed. Experts in the field were contacted, and www.clinicaltrials.gov searched for ongoing trials.Selection criteriaRandomized controlled trials (RCT) looking at individuals with diabetes undergoing surgery randomized to ERAS® or conventional care. Non‐randomized controlled trials, controlled before–after studies, interrupted time series, and cohort studies with concurrent controls were also considered. Two authors independently screened studies.ResultsThe electronic search yielded 437 references. After removing duplicates, 376 were screened for eligibility. Conference proceedings and bibliographies identified additional references. Searching www.clinicaltrials.gov yielded 59 references. Contacting experts in the field identified no further studies. Fourteen full articles were assessed and subsequently excluded for the following reasons: used an intervention other than ERAS®, did not include patients with diabetes, or used an uncontrolled observational design.ConclusionsTo date, the effects of ERAS® on patients with diabetes have not been rigorously evaluated. This review highlights the lack of evidence in this area and provides guidance on design for future studies.
Incorporation of Lamotrigine Drug in the PEO–PPO–PEO Triblock Copolymer (Pluronic F127) Micelles: Effect of Hydrophilic Polymers
Authors: Shaikh Sofiya , Ray Debes , Aswal V. K. , Sharma Rakesh K. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractThe hydrophobic drug Lamotrigine (LTG) shows low bioavailability after oral administration. Work has been performed to improve the aqueous solubility of LTG using the micelles of amphiphilic block copolymers. Polyethylene oxide‐ polypropylene oxide‐ polyethylene oxide triblock copolymers (PEO–PPO–PEO), known as Pluronic®, have been the subject of current interest due to the versatile structural possibilities of varying PEO/PPO ratios. Incorporation of LTG in the aqueous micellar solutions of Pluronic® F127 was investigated using UV–visible spectroscopy. The shapes and size of the micelles with and without LTG have been ascertained using dynamic light scattering and small angle neutron scattering experiments. Results show increase in the Pluronic® micellar size with hard sphere radius with the incorporation of LTG. The effect of hydrophilic polymers (PEG1500 and F68) on the LTG‐incorporated Pluronic® F127 micelles was also studied and found inefficient for enhancement of the solubility of LTG. Solid forms of LTG‐incorporated Pluronic® F127 micelles with and without hydrophilic polymers, coded as LPMs, were successfully prepared through the thin‐film hydration method. Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction spectroscopy and thermogravimetric analysis have been used to ensure the compatibility of the LTG with Pluronic® F127 micelles in prepared LPMs. All the LPMs showed good incorporation efficiency, loading capacity and the sustained release profile of LTG. Results showed no specific improvement with the addition of hydrophilic polymers in the studied concentration range.
Altered visual repetition suppression in Fragile X Syndrome: New evidence from ERPs and oscillatory activity
Authors: Rigoulot Simon , Knoth Inga S. , Lafontaine Marc‐Philippe , Vannasing Phetsamone , Major Philippe , Jacquemont Sébastien , Michaud Jacques L. , Jerbi Karim , Lippé Sarah 
Published: March 2017

AbstractFragile X Syndrome (FXS) is a neurodevelopmental genetic disorder associated with cognitive and behavioural deficits. In particular, neuronal habituation processes have been shown to be altered in FXS patients. Yet, while such deficits have been primarily explored using auditory stimuli, less is known in the visual modality. Here, we investigated the putative alteration of repetition suppression using faces in FXS patients compared to controls that had the same age distribution. Electroencephalographic (EEG) signals were acquired while participants were presented with 18 different faces, each repeated ten times successively. The repetition suppression effect was probed by comparing the brain responses to the first and second presentation, based on task‐evoked event‐related potentials (ERP) as well as on task‐induced oscillatory activity. We found different patterns of habituation for controls and patients both in ERP and oscillatory power. While the N170 was not affected by face repetition in controls, it was altered in FXS patients. Conversely, while a repetition suppression effect was observed in the theta band (4–8 Hz) over frontal and parieto‐occipital areas in controls, it was not seen in FXS patients. These results provide the first evidence for diminished ERP and oscillatory habituation effects in response to face repetitions in FXS. These findings extend previous observations of impairments in learning mechanisms and may be linked to deficits in the maturation processes of synapses caused by the mutation. The present study contributes to bridging the gap between animal models of synaptic plasticity dysfunctions and human research in FXS.
CSR public policies in India's democracy: ambiguities in the political regulation of corporate conduct
Authors: Krichewsky Damien 
Published: March 2017

AbstractThe rise of public policies in the field of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) suggests a reassertion of state power over a phenomenon initially designed to weaken public authorities. But depending on policy objectives and underlying state-business relationships, CSR public policies seem to oscillate between the steering of corporate conduct towards political goals and the provision of political support to business interests. The present paper offers new perspectives on this ambiguity. Using social systems theory to guide a comparative study of two major Indian CSR policies, the analysis distinguishes two levels. At a functional level, the introduction of CSR in Indian regulatory politics produced more or less constraining expectations that open up opportunities for companies to participate in the performance of political functions. At an operational level, however, even a “mandatory” policy designed primarily according to political calculations let companies decidehowthey perform these functions. This persistence of voluntarism, which is supported by the semantic properties of “CSR,” consolidates the role of profit-driven calculations in the regulation of corporate conduct and, in the Indian case, in the redistribution of resources for social welfare. Research perspectives on the implications of CSR public policies for democracy are outlined in concluding remarks.
Talk Ain’t Cheap: Political CSR and the Challenges of Corporate Deliberation
Authors: Sabadoz Cameron , Singer Abraham 
Published: March 2017

ABSTRACT:Deliberative democratic theory, commonly used to explore questions of “political” corporate social responsibility (PCSR), has become prominent in the literature. This theory has been challenged previously for being overly sanguine about firm profit imperatives, but left unexamined is whether corporate contexts are appropriate contexts for deliberative theory in the first place. We explore this question using the case of Starbucks’ “Race Together” campaign to show that significant challenges exist to corporate deliberation, even in cases featuring genuinely committed firms. We return to the underlying social theory to show that this is not an isolated case: for-profit firms are predictably hostile contexts for deliberation, and significant normative and strategic problems can be expected should deliberative theory be imported uncritically to corporate contexts. We close with recent advances in deliberative democratic theory that might help update the PCSR project, and accommodate the application of deliberation to the corporate context, albeit with significant alterations.
Animal roles and traces in the history of medicine,c.1880–1980
Authors: CASSIDY ANGELA , DENTINGER RACHEL MASON , SCHOEFERT KATHRYN , WOODS ABIGAIL 
Published: March 2017

AbstractThis paper argues for the need to create a more animal-centred history of medicine, in which animals are considered not simply as the backdrop for human history, but as medical subjects important in and of themselves. Drawing on the tools and approaches of animal and human–animal studies, it seeks to demonstrate, via four short historical vignettes, how investigations into the ways that animals shaped and were shaped by medicine enables us to reach new historical understandings of both animals and medicine, and of the relationships between them. This is achieved by turning away from the much-studied fields of experimental medicine and public health, to address four historically neglected contexts in which diseased animals played important roles: zoology/pathology, parasitology/epidemiology, ethology/psychiatry, and wildlife/veterinary medicine. Focusing, in turn, on species that rarely feature in the history of medicine – big cats, tapeworms, marsupials and mustelids – which were studied, respectively, within the zoo, the psychiatric hospital, human–animal communities and the countryside, we reconstruct the histories of these animals using the traces that they left on the medical-historical record.
The value of non-pollen palynomorphs in interpreting paleoecological change in the Great Basin (Nevada, USA)
Authors: Tunno Irene , Mensing Scott A. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractNon-pollen palynomorphs (NPPs) are identifiable microfossils that survive chemical digestion during pollen extraction and appear in pollen slides. They represent important proxies and indicators of environmental change that can be integrated with pollen studies of landscape history. NPPs have been widely studied in Europe since the 1970s and regularly included in paleoecological studies, whereas in the United States only the most common NPPs have been routinely tallied. The aim of this study is to contribute to the validation of the use of NPPs in the reconstruction of landscape history. We analyzed NPPs in modern and fossil sediment samples from Stonehouse Meadow, located in Spring Valley in the eastern part of central Nevada. We present a total of 64 modern and fossil NPPs, with images and morphological descriptions given for all previously unknown NPPs and a selection of the most important known NPPs. The comparison of pollen and NPPs in the fossil sediments improves our interpretation of the ecological changes of the last 8000 yr.
Discipline building in Germany: women and genetics at the Berlin Institute for Heredity Research
Authors: STAMHUIS IDA H. , VOGT ANNETTE B. 
Published: March 2017

AbstractThe origin and the development of scientific disciplines has been a topic of reflection for several decades. The few extensive case studies support the thesis that scientific disciplines are not monolithic structures but can be characterized by distinct social, organizational and scientific–technical practices. Nonetheless, most disciplinary histories of genetics confine themselves largely to an uncontested account of the content of the discipline or occasionally institutional factors. Little attention is paid to the large number of researchers who, by their joint efforts, ultimately shaped the discipline. We contribute to this aspect of disciplinary historiography by discussing the role of women researchers at the Institute for Heredity Research, founded in 1914 in Berlin under the directorship of Erwin Baur, and the sister of the John Innes Institute at Cambridge. This paper investigates how and why Baur built a highly successful research programme that relied on the efforts of his female staff, whose careers, notably Elisabeth Schiemann's, are also assessedin toto. These women undertook the necessary ‘technoscience’ and in some cases innovative work and helped increase the prestige of the institute and its director. Together they played a pivotal role in the establishment of genetics in Germany. Without them the discipline would have developed much more slowly and along a divergent path.
DEGREE CONES AND MONOMIAL BASES OF LIE ALGEBRAS AND QUANTUM GROUPS
Authors: BACKHAUS TEODOR , FANG XIN , FOURIER GHISLAIN 
Published: March 2017

AbstractWe provide ℕ-filtrations on the negative part Uq($\mathfrak{n}$−) of the quantum group associated to a finite-dimensional simple Lie algebra $\mathfrak{g}$, such that the associated graded algebra is a skew-polynomial algebra on $\mathfrak{n}$−. The filtration is obtained by assigning degrees to Lusztig's quantum PBW root vectors. The possible degrees can be described as lattice points in certain polyhedral cones. In the classical limit, such a degree induces an ℕ-filtration on any finite-dimensional simple $\mathfrak{g}$-module. We prove for type An, Cn, B3, D4 and G2 that a degree can be chosen such that the associated graded modules are defined by monomial ideals, and conjecture that this is true for any $\mathfrak{g}$.
Behaviour of sheep freely grazed on Gökçeada Island (Turkey) rangeland reclaimed by different methods
Authors: TÖLÜ C. , ALATÜRK F. , ÖZASLAN PARLAK A. , GÖKKUŞ A. 
Published: March 2017

SUMMARYExtensive sheep and goat farming is common in the rangelands of Gökçeada Island, NW Turkey. The aim of the current study was to investigate the behaviour of indigenous Gökçeada sheep over these rangelands and factors influencing their behavioural characteristics. Grubbing (with chisel ploughing to a depth of 20 cm), burning (the entire top part of plants) and cutting (10–15 cm stalk on the surface of the soil) were carried out on selected rangeland to reduce prickly burnet (Sarcopoterium spinosum (L.) Spach) from the vegetative covering, then forage crop seeds were sown to improve plant cover. Forty head of Gökçeada-bred sheep were placed in eight fenced plots (half seeded, half unseeded) on reclaimed and natural rangeland for 2 years. Sheep behaviour was observed for a period of 1 year. Each plot was arranged with a stocking rate of 2·67 sheep/ha and contained five sheep that grazed freely within each plot. Sheep behaviour was observed diurnally through direct observation by time sampling (10 min) and continuous sampling methods. During the period of 1 year, the observed sheep spent an average of 0·53 of their time grazing in daylight, 0·30 of their time in rangelands on other activities and 0·17 in the paddocks. Significant differences were observed in the time of grazing, resting, locomotion and rumination by season. The highest grazing ratio was noticed in spring while the lowest was in summer. Sheep exhibited walking behaviour 10·6 times/day. The sheep mostly (0·66) grazed on prickly burnet throughout the year although, when available, they tended to prefer herbaceous plants. The behaviour of sheep in the two natural (unreclaimed) plots was significantly different from those placed in other plots, mainly due to the mass of prickly burnet shrub found in the natural plots.