bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Targeting LOXL2 for cardiac interstitial fibrosis and heart failure treatment
Authors: Yang Jin , Savvatis Konstantinos , Kang Jong Seok , Fan Peidong , Zhong Hongyan , Schwartz Karen , Barry Vivian , Mikels-Vigdal Amanda , Karpinski Serge , Kornyeyev Dmytro , Adamkewicz Joanne , Feng Xuhui , Zhou Qiong , Shang Ching , Kumar Praveen , Phan Dillon , Kasner Mario , López Begoña , Diez Javier , Wright Keith C. , Kovacs Roxanne L. , Chen Peng-Sheng , Quertermous Thomas , Smith Victoria , Yao Lina , Tschöpe Carsten , Chang Ching-Pin 
Published: December 2016

AbstractInterstitial fibrosis plays a key role in the development and progression of heart failure. Here, we show that an enzyme that crosslinks collagen—Lysyl oxidase-like 2 (Loxl2)—is essential for interstitial fibrosis and mechanical dysfunction of pathologically stressed hearts. In mice, cardiac stress activates fibroblasts to express and secrete Loxl2 into the interstitium, triggering fibrosis, systolic and diastolic dysfunction of stressed hearts. Antibody-mediated inhibition or genetic disruption of Loxl2 greatly reduces stress-induced cardiac fibrosis and chamber dilatation, improving systolic and diastolic functions. Loxl2 stimulates cardiac fibroblasts through PI3K/AKT to produce TGF-β2, promoting fibroblast-to-myofibroblast transformation; Loxl2 also acts downstream of TGF-β2 to stimulate myofibroblast migration. In diseased human hearts, LOXL2 is upregulated in cardiac interstitium; its levels correlate with collagen crosslinking and cardiac dysfunction. LOXL2 is also elevated in the serum of heart failure (HF) patients, correlating with other HF biomarkers, suggesting a conserved LOXL2-mediated mechanism of human HF.
Osteoblasts secrete Cxcl9 to regulate angiogenesis in bone
Authors: Huang Bin , Wang Wenhao , Li Qingchu , Wang Zhenyu , Yan Bo , Zhang Zhongmin , Wang Liang , Huang Minjun , Jia Chunhong , Lu Jiansen , Liu Sichi , Chen Hongdong , Li Mangmang , Cai Daozhang , Jiang Yu , Jin Dadi , Bai Xiaochun 
Published: December 2016

AbstractCommunication between osteoblasts and endothelial cells (ECs) is essential for bone turnover, but the molecular mechanisms of such communication are not well defined. Here we identify Cxcl9 as an angiostatic factor secreted by osteoblasts in the bone marrow microenvironment. We show that Cxcl9 produced by osteoblasts interacts with vascular endothelial growth factor and prevents its binding to ECs and osteoblasts, thus abrogating angiogenesis and osteogenesis both in mouse bone and in vitro. The mechanistic target of rapamycin complex 1 activates Cxcl9 expression by transcriptional upregulation of STAT1 and increases binding of STAT1 to the Cxcl9 promoter in osteoblasts. These findings reveal the essential role of osteoblast-produced Cxcl9 in angiogenesis and osteogenesis in bone, and Cxcl9 can be targeted to elevate bone angiogenesis and prevent bone loss-related diseases.
A reconstruction algorithm for compressive quantum tomography using various measurement sets
Authors: Zheng Kai , Li Kezhi , Cong Shuang 
Published: December 2016

AbstractCompressed sensing (CS) has been verified that it offers a significant performance improvement for large quantum systems comparing with the conventional quantum tomography approaches, because it reduces the number of measurements from O(d2) to O(rd log(d)) in particular for quantum states that are fairly pure. Yet few algorithms have been proposed for quantum state tomography using CS specifically, let alone basis analysis for various measurement sets in quantum CS. To fill this gap, in this paper an efficient and robust state reconstruction algorithm based on compressive sensing is developed. By leveraging the fixed point equation approach to avoid the matrix inverse operation, we propose a fixed-point alternating direction method algorithm for compressive quantum state estimation that can handle both normal errors and large outliers in the optimization process. In addition, properties of five practical measurement bases (including the Pauli basis) are analyzed in terms of their coherences and reconstruction performances, which provides theoretical instructions for the selection of measurement settings in the quantum state estimation. The numerical experiments show that the proposed algorithm has much less calculating time, higher reconstruction accuracy and is more robust to outlier noises than many existing state reconstruction algorithms.
Occurrence investigation of perfluorinated compounds in surface water from East Lake (Wuhan, China) upon rapid and selective magnetic solid-phase extraction
Authors: Zhou Yusun , Tao Yun , Li Huarong , Zhou Tingting , Jing Tao , Zhou Yikai , Mei Surong 
Published: December 2016

AbstractUsing a novel magnetic nanocomposite as adsorbent, a convenient and effective magnetic solid-phase extraction (MSPE) procedure was established for selective separation and concentration of nine perfluorinated compounds (PFCs) in surface water sample. Then an ultra high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) system was employed for detection of PFCs. Good linearity of the developed analytical method was in the range of 0.5–100 ng L−1 with R2 > 0.9917, and the limits of detection (LODs) ranged from 0.029 to 0.099 ng L−1. At three fortified concentrations of 0.5, 5 and 50 ng L−1, the spiked recoveries of PFCs were in the range of 90.05–106.67% with RSDs < 12.62% (n = 3). The proposed analytical method was applied for determination of PFCs in surface water from East Lake (Wuhan, China). The total concentrations of nine PFCs ranged from 30.12 to 125.35 ng L−1, with perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluoroctanoic acid as the most prevalent PFCs, and the greatest concentrations of PFCs were observed in Niuchao lakelet. The concentrations of the PFCs (C ≥ 11) were mostly less than the limits of quantification (LOQs), attributed to the possibility that the more hydrophobic long-chain PFCs are potential to accumulate in sediment and aquatic biota.
New Immunosuppressive Sphingoid Base and Ceramide Analogues in Wild Cordyceps
Authors: Mi Jia-Ning , Han Yuwei , Xu Yingqiong , Kou Junping , Wang Jing-Rong , Jiang Zhi-Hong 
Published: December 2016

AbstractA comprehensive identification of sphingoid bases and ceramides in wild Cordyceps was performed by integrating a sequential chromatographic enrichment procedure and an UHPLC-ultrahigh definition-Q-TOF-MS based sphingolipidomic approach. A total of 43 sphingoid bases and 303 ceramides were identified from wild Cordyceps, including 12 new sphingoid base analogues and 159 new ceramide analogues based on high-resolution MS and MS/MS data, isotope distribution, matching with the comprehensive personal sphingolipid database, confirmation by sphingolipid standards and chromatographic retention time rule. The immunosuppressive bioassay results demonstrated that Cordyceps sphingoid base fraction exhibits more potent immunosuppressive activity than ceramide fraction, elucidating the immunosuppressive ingredients of wild Cordyceps. This study represented the most comprehensive identification of sphingoid bases and ceramides from a natural source. The findings of this study provided an insight into therapeutic application of wild Cordyceps.
Heterogeneous shedding of influenza by human subjects and its implications for epidemiology and control
Authors: Canini Laetitia , Woolhouse Mark E. J. , Maines Taronna R. , Carrat Fabrice 
Published: December 2016

AbstractHeterogeneity of infectiousness is an important feature of the spread of many infections, with implications for disease dynamics and control, but its relevance to human influenza virus is still unclear. For a transmission event to occur, an infected individual needs to release infectious particles via respiratory symptoms. Key factors to take into account are virus dynamics, particle release in relation to respiratory symptoms, the amount of virus shed and, importantly, how these vary between infected individuals. A quantitative understanding of the process of influenza transmission is relevant to designing effective mitigation measures. Here we develop an influenza infection dynamics model fitted to virological, systemic and respiratory symptoms to investigate how within-host dynamics relates to infectiousness. We show that influenza virus shedding is highly heterogeneous between subjects. From analysis of data on experimental infections, we find that a small proportion (<20%) of influenza infected individuals are responsible for the production of 95% of infectious particles. Our work supports targeting mitigation measures at most infectious subjects to efficiently reduce transmission. The effectiveness of public health interventions targeted at highly infectious individuals would depend on accurate identification of these subjects and on how quickly control measures can be applied.
Transcriptional analysis of degenerate strain Clostridium beijerinckii DG-8052 reveals a pleiotropic response to CaCO3-associated recovery of solvent production
Authors: Jiao Shengyin , Zhang Yan , Wan Caixia , Lv Jia , Du Renjia , Zhang Ruijuan , Han Bei 
Published: December 2016

AbstractDegenerate Clostridium beijerinckii strain (DG-8052) can be partially recovered by supplementing CaCO3 to fermentation media. Genome resequencing of DG-8052 showed no general regulator mutated. This study focused on transcriptional analysis of DG-8052 and its response to CaCO3 treatment via microarray. The expressions of 5168 genes capturing 98.6% of C. beijerinckii NCIMB 8052 genome were examed. The results revealed that with addition of CaCO3 565 and 916 genes were significantly up-regulated, and 704 and 1044 genes significantly down-regulated at acidogenic and solventogenic phase of DG-8052, respectively. These genes are primarily responsible for glycolysis to solvent/acid production (poR, pfo), solventogensis (buk, ctf, aldh, adh, bcd) and sporulation (spo0A, sigE, sigma-70, bofA), cell motility and division (ftsA, ftsK, ftsY, ftsH, ftsE, mreB, mreC, mreD, rodA), and molecular chaperones (grpE, dnaK, dnaJ, hsp20, hsp90), etc. The functions of some altered genes in DG-8052, totalling 5.7% at acidogenisis and 8.0% at sovlentogenisis, remain unknown. The response of the degenerate strain to CaCO3 was suggested significantly pleiotropic. This study reveals the multitude of regulatory function that CaCO3 has in clostridia and provides detailed insights into degeneration mechanisms at gene regulation level. It also enables us to develop effective strategies to prevent strain degeneration in future.
A Critical Role for Toxoplasma gondii Vacuolar Protein Sorting VPS9 in Secretory Organelle Biogenesis and Host Infection
Authors: Sakura Takaya , Sindikubwabo Fabien , Oesterlin Lena K. , Bousquet Hugo , Slomianny Christian , Hakimi Mohamed-Ali , Langsley Gordon , Tomavo Stanislas 
Published: December 2016

AbstractAccurate sorting of proteins to the three types of parasite-specific secretory organelles namely rhoptry, microneme and dense granule in Toxoplasma gondii is crucial for successful host cell invasion by this obligate intracellular parasite. Despite its tiny body architecture and limited trafficking machinery, T. gondii relies heavily on transport of vesicles containing proteins, lipids and important virulence-like factors that are delivered to these secretory organelles. However, our understanding on how trafficking of vesicles operates in the parasite is still limited. Here, we show that the T. gondii vacuolar protein sorting 9 (TgVps9), has guanine nucleotide exchange factor (GEF) activity towards Rab5a and is crucial for sorting of proteins destined to secretory organelles. Our results illuminate features of TgVps9 protein as a key trafficking facilitator that regulates protein maturation, secretory organelle formation and secretion, thereby ensuring a primary role in host infection by T. gondii.
Spreading to localized targets in complex networks
Authors: Sun Ye , Ma Long , Zeng An , Wang Wen-Xu 
Published: December 2016

AbstractAs an important type of dynamics on complex networks, spreading is widely used to model many real processes such as the epidemic contagion and information propagation. One of the most significant research questions in spreading is to rank the spreading ability of nodes in the network. To this end, substantial effort has been made and a variety of effective methods have been proposed. These methods usually define the spreading ability of a node as the number of finally infected nodes given that the spreading is initialized from the node. However, in many real cases such as advertising and news propagation, the spreading only aims to cover a specific group of nodes. Therefore, it is necessary to study the spreading ability of nodes towards localized targets in complex networks. In this paper, we propose a reversed local path algorithm for this problem. Simulation results show that our method outperforms the existing methods in identifying the influential nodes with respect to these localized targets. Moreover, the influential spreaders identified by our method can effectively avoid infecting the non-target nodes in the spreading process.
Subtype-specific structural constraints in the evolution of influenza A virus hemagglutinin genes
Authors: Gultyaev Alexander P. , Spronken Monique I. , Richard Mathilde , Schrauwen Eefje J. A. , Olsthoorn René C. L. , Fouchier Ron A. M. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractThe influenza A virus genome consists of eight RNA segments. RNA structures within these segments and complementary (cRNA) and protein-coding mRNAs may play a role in virus replication. Here, conserved putative secondary structures that impose significant evolutionary constraints on the gene segment encoding the surface glycoprotein hemagglutinin (HA) were investigated using available sequence data on tens of thousands of virus strains. Structural constraints were identified by analysis of covariations of nucleotides suggested to be paired by structure prediction algorithms. The significance of covariations was estimated by mutual information calculations and tracing multiple covariation events during virus evolution. Covariation patterns demonstrated that structured domains in HA RNAs were mostly subtype-specific, whereas some structures were conserved in several subtypes. The influence of RNA folding on virus replication was studied by plaque assays of mutant viruses with disrupted structures. The results suggest that over the whole length of the HA segment there are local structured domains which contribute to the virus fitness but individually are not essential for the virus. Existence of subtype-specific structured regions in the segments of the influenza A virus genome is apparently an important factor in virus evolution and reassortment of its genes.
Gait patterns associated with thyroid function: The Rotterdam Study
Authors: Bano Arjola , Chaker Layal , Darweesh Sirwan K. L. , Korevaar Tim I. M. , Mattace-Raso Francesco U. S. , Dehghan Abbas , Franco Oscar H. , van der Geest Jos N. , Ikram M. Arfan , Peeters Robin P. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractGait is an important health indicator and poor gait is strongly associated with disability and risk of falls. Thyroid dysfunction is suggested as a potential determinant of gait deterioration, but this has not been explored in a population-based study. We therefore investigated the association of thyroid function with gait patterns in 2645 participants from the Rotterdam Study with data available on TSH (thyroid-stimulating hormone), FT4 (free thyroxine) and gait, without known thyroid disease or dementia. The primary outcome was Global gait (standardized Z-score), while secondary outcomes included gait domains (Rhythm, Variability, Phases, Pace, Base of support, Tandem, Turning) and velocity. Gait was assessed by electronic walkway. Multivariable regression models revealed an inverted U-shaped association of TSH (p < 0.001), but no association of FT4 concentrations with Global gait (p = 0.2). TSH levels were positively associated with Base of support (p = 0.01) and followed an inverted U-shaped curve with Tandem (p = 0.002) and velocity (p = 0.02). Clinical and subclinical hypothyroidism were associated with worse Global gait than euthyroidism (β = −0.61; CI = −1.03, −0.18; p = 0.004 and β = −0.13; CI = −0.26, −0.00; p = 0.04, respectively). In euthyroid participants, higher thyroid function was associated with worse gait patterns. In conclusion, both low and high thyroid function are associated with alterations in Global gait, Tandem, Base of support and velocity.
Urinary KIM-1: a novel biomarker for evaluation of occupational exposure to lead
Authors: Zhou Rong , Xu Yahong , Shen Jie , Han Lin , Chen Xi , Feng Xuefang , Kuang Xingya 
Published: December 2016

AbstractChronic occult lead poisoning often develops ensuing occupational lead exposure. Early diagnosis of lead poisoning is critical for timely discontinuation of lead exposure and for prognosis. This study explored the value of urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) in diagnosing renal injury induced by lead at an early stage. We retrospectively analyzed 92 workers exposed to occupational lead and demonstrated a better correlation ship between blood lead levels and urine excretion of KIM-1 than other traditional renal injury biomarkers following creatinine adjustment. Receiver operating characteristic curve analysis of the ability of diverse biomarkers for predicting kidney injury in lead-exposed workers demonstrated that the order of predicting accuracy of the studied biomarkers is as follows: urinary KIM-1-to-creatinine ratio > urinary N-acetyl-β-(D)-glucosaminidase-to-creatinine ratio > urinary β2-microglobulin-to-creatinine ratio > urinary α1-microglobulin-to-creatinine ratio, with the Youden index being 16.59 ng/g, 14.01 U/g, 0.15 mg/g, and 4.63 mg/g, respectively. Collectively, our findings suggest that short-period occupational lead exposure may cause injury of renal tubules. Urinary excretion of KIM-1 correlates with blood lead levels better than other traditional renal injury biomarkers, including N-acetyl-β-(D)-glucosaminidase, α1-microglobulin, and β2-microglobulin. Longitudinal surveillance of urinary KIM-1 may aid for early diagnosis of renal tubular injury in workers with occupational lead exposure.
Detecting the existence of gene flow between Spanish and North African goats through a coalescent approach
Authors: Martínez Amparo , Manunza Arianna , Delgado Juan Vicente , Landi Vincenzo , Adebambo Ayotunde , Ismaila Muritala , Capote Juan , El Ouni Mabrouk , Elbeltagy Ahmed , Abushady Asmaa M. , Galal Salah , Ferrando Ainhoa , Gómez Mariano , Pons Agueda , Badaoui Bouabid , Jordana Jordi , Vidal Oriol , Amills Marcel 
Published: December 2016

AbstractHuman-driven migrations are one of the main processes shaping the genetic diversity and population structure of domestic species. However, their magnitude and direction have been rarely analysed in a statistical framework. We aimed to estimate the impact of migration on the population structure of Spanish and African goats. To achieve this goal, we analysed a dataset of 1,472 individuals typed with 23 microsatellites. Population structure of African and Spanish goats was moderate (mean FST = 0.07), with the exception of the Canarian and South African breeds that displayed a significant differentiation when compared to goats from North Africa and Nigeria. Measurement of gene flow with Migrate-n and IMa coalescent genealogy samplers supported the existence of a bidirectional gene flow between African and Spanish goats. Moreover, IMa estimates of the effective number of migrants were remarkably lower than those calculated with Migrate-n and classical approaches. Such discrepancies suggest that recent divergence, rather than extensive gene flow, is the main cause of the weak population structure observed in caprine breeds.
Meteorite Impact-Induced Rapid NH3 Production on Early Earth: Ab Initio Molecular Dynamics Simulation
Authors: Shimamura Kohei , Shimojo Fuyuki , Nakano Aiichiro , Tanaka Shigenori 
Published: December 2016

AbstractNH3 is an essential molecule as a nitrogen source for prebiotic amino acid syntheses such as the Strecker reaction. Previous shock experiments demonstrated that meteorite impacts on ancient oceans would have provided a considerable amount of NH3 from atmospheric N2 and oceanic H2O through reduction by meteoritic iron. However, specific production mechanisms remain unclear, and impact velocities employed in the experiments were substantially lower than typical impact velocities of meteorites on the early Earth. Here, to investigate the issues from the atomistic viewpoint, we performed multi-scale shock technique-based ab initio molecular dynamics simulations. The results revealed a rapid production of NH3 within several picoseconds after the shock, indicating that shocks with greater impact velocities would provide further increase in the yield of NH3. Meanwhile, the picosecond-order production makes one expect that the important nitrogen source precursors of amino acids were obtained immediately after the impact. It was also observed that the reduction of N2 proceeded according to an associative mechanism, rather than a dissociative mechanism as in the Haber-Bosch process.
Magnetic Phases of Sputter Deposited Thin-Film Erbium
Authors: Witt J. D. S. , Cooper J. F. K. , Satchell N. , Kinane C. J. , Curran P. J. , Bending S. J. , Langridge S. , Heyderman L. J. , Burnell G. 
Published: December 2016

AbstractWe present a detailed structural and magnetic characterization of sputter deposited thin film erbium, determined by x-ray diffraction, transport measurements, magnetometry and neutron diffraction. This provides information on the onset and change of the magnetic state as a function of temperature and applied magnetic field. Many of the features of bulk material are reproduced. Also of interest is the identification of a conical magnetic state which repeats with a wavevector parallel to the c axis τc = 4/17 in units of the reciprocal lattice parameter c*, which is a state not observed in any other thin film or bulk measurements. The data from the various techniques are combined to construct magnetic field, temperature (H, T)–phase diagrams for the 200 nm-thick Er sample that serves as a foundation for future exploitation of this complex magnetic thin film system.
Comparative Proteomics Reveals that Phosphorylation of β Carbonic Anhydrase 1 Might be Important for Adaptation to Drought Stress in Brassica napus
Authors: Wang Limin , Jin Xiang , Li Qingbin , Wang Xuchu , Li Zaiyun , Wu Xiaoming 
Published: December 2016

AbstractLittle is known about the mechanism of drought tolerance in rapeseed (Brassica napus L.). In this study, different morphological and physiological responses to drought stress were studied in three rapeseed cultivars. For the cultivar 2AF009 with high drought tolerance, comparative proteomic analyses were conducted to determine the molecular mechanism behind. Approximately 138 differentially abundant proteins (DAPs) and 1232 phosphoproteins containing 4469 phosphopeptides were identified. Furthermore, 337 phosphoproteins containing 547 phosphorylation sites demonstrated significant changes. These drought-responsive DAPs and phosphoproteins were mainly involved in signal transduction, photosynthesis, and glutathione-ascorbate metabolism. Notably, 9 DAPs were also identified as drought-responsive phosphoproteins, especially beta carbonic anhydrase 1 (βCA1), which was represented by eight distinct protein spots with different abundant levels during drought stress. Tyr207 phosphorylated site of βCA1 was down-regulated at the phosphorylation level during drought stress, which was also located in the substrate-binding active region of three-dimensional (3D) structure. Moreover, drought stress inhibited CA activity. We concluded that Tyr207 was the most likely phosphorylation target affecting the enzyme activity, and phosphorylation of βCA1 might be important for the response to drought stress in rapeseed. The study provided a new clue for the drought tolerance mechanism in B.napus.