bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Welfare‐at‐Risk and Extreme Dependency of Regional Wheat Yields: Implications of a Stochastic CGE Model
Authors: Erhan Ünal Gözde , Karapinar Baris , Tanaka Tetsuji 
Published: August 2017

AbstractStochastic computable general equilibrium (CGE) models have ignored regional correlations in agricultural yields, assuming random shocks to be independent between regions. This could lead to misinterpretation of simulation outputs which ignore extreme positive or negative harvests at the global scale. We develop a multi‐regional CGE model which allows for five types of interregional correlation between wheat yields to analyse the vulnerability of countries against fluctuating international markets, focusing on Value at Risk (VaR) and extreme dependency. We find that global welfare risks could be underestimated by up to 33% if significant interregional correlations in yield shocks are not taken into account. Egypt, Kazakhstan, Ukraine, the former Soviet Union and Northern Africa are particularly vulnerable to global volatilities in terms of economic welfare.
The time paradox of emergency medicine: Another inverted U curve
Authors: Fatovich Daniel M 
Published: August 2017

AbstractTime is integral to emergency medicine, but the importance of time is over‐rated. Media promotes a focus on time over suffering. Terms such as the ‘golden hour’ and ‘time is muscle’ are embedded into our language, but is language that corrupts thought. Time‐based metrics for ED quality measures focus on speed over accuracy, reflecting another inverted U curve in our system of care. We often fail to understand the importance of heterogeneity, and the heterogeneity of treatment effect, for example, sicker patients are more likely to benefit from the intervention, whereas less sick patients do not benefit but are more likely to be harmed. This highlights the importance of nuanced judgements. We need to get into the Goldilocks zone of the ‘just right’ balance between speed and accuracy. This essay challenges us to focus more on the suffering human subject, rather than on time‐based metrics that reflect our hope bias.
Rollout Strategy to Implement Interoperable Traceability in the Seafood Industry
Authors: Gooch Martin , Dent Benjamin , Sylvia Gilbert , Cusack Christopher 
Published: August 2017

AbstractVerifying the accuracy and rigor of data exchanged within and between businesses for the purposes of traceability rests on the existence of effective and efficient interoperable information systems that meet users’ needs. Interoperability, particularly given the complexities intrinsic to the seafood industry, requires that the systems used by businesses operating along the supply chain share a common technology architecture that is robust, resilient, and evolves as industry needs change. Technology architectures are developed through engaging industry stakeholders in understanding why an architecture is required, the benefits provided to the industry and individual businesses and supply chains, and how the architecture will translate into practical results. This article begins by reiterating the benefits that the global seafood industry can capture by implementing interoperable chain‐length traceability and the reason for basing the architecture on a peer‐to‐peer networked database concept versus more traditional centralized or linear approaches. A summary of capabilities that already exist within the seafood industry that the proposed architecture uses is discussed; and a strategy for implementing the architecture is presented. The 6‐step strategy is presented in the form of a critical path.
Enrichment and Cytotoxic Activity of Curcuminoids from Turmeric Using Macroporous Resins
Authors: Chen Cheng , Jin Shuna , Xiang Xingliang , Wang Xuanyuan , Shi Qingxin , Yang Min , Ji Simin , Huang Rongzeng , Song Chengwu 
Published: August 2017

AbstractCurcuminoids are functional secondary metabolites abundant in turmeric. In the present study, a simple and efficient method for enrichment of curcuminoids from turmeric was developed using macroporous resin. Eight different types of macroporous resins were examined by static adsorption/desorption properties and the type of XDA‐7 was selected as the optimum one. Under the optimized conditions, the final contents of refined extract excluded 84.2% of impurities, by comparison with crude extract in a scale‐up experiment. Meanwhile, 8 representative curcuminoids including 4 dihydro‐ and tetrahydro‐curcuminoids were enriched, isolated, and identified by liquid chromatography coupled with tandem mass spectrometry (LC–MS/MS) and nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) data. In addition, the individual curcuminoids were prepared to evaluate their cytotoxic activity toward HeLa tumor cell lines. All compounds, especially the trace amount of curcuminoids, demonstrated notable cytotoxic activity. The results supported that those trace amount of curcuminoids can be good candidates for drug development as anticancer agents. The purification process was simple and efficient, which could afford a potential method to enrich and concentrate not only the major curcuminoids, but also the trace amount of ones from turmeric raw materials for industrial applications.
Imperial Expansion and Local Agency: A Case Study of Labor Organization Under Inca Rule
Authors: Garrido Francisco , Salazar Diego 
Published: August 2017

ABSTRACTImperial expansion can produce broad economic intensification throughout the provinces to provide key economic resources for the state. However, not all such economic intensification is the direct result of the imposition of an imperial political economy over subject populations. This article presents evidence for some cases where intensification occurred due to bottom‐up responses of small groups that were able to profit from imperial conquest. In the case of the Incas, although the imposition of a labor‐tax system, or mit'a, was an important economic device for their imperial expansion, we question its universality. This article addresses the economic changes that local communities experienced within the Tawantinsuyu by comparing the coexistence of attached and independent modes of production in two cases of mining production in the Atacama Desert, in northern Chile. This contributes to finding and elaborating on explicit archaeological indicators that enable us to contrast both modes of engagement with the political economy of the Inca Empire and to identify, archaeologically, alternative and independent local responses to imperial expansion. Our study thus energizes debates on how and to what extent local populations, under conditions of empire, can negotiate spaces and activities outside of state control. [mit'a, prehistoric mining, bottom‐up dynamics, imperial expansion, Inca Empire]
Premature ventricular contraction‐induced concealed retrograde penetration: Electrocardiographic manifestations on anterograde ventricular preexcitation
Authors: Longo Damián , Baranchuk Adrian 
Published: August 2017

AbstractIn patients with manifest anterograde ventricular preexcitation, the electrocardiographic manifestation of the anomalous conduction through the simultaneous conduction over the atrioventricular (AV) node and the accessory pathway (“delta wave”); depends on several factors, the most representative being the conduction velocity over one or another connection. Occasionally, ventricular ectopic beats may present with retrograde penetration over one or both conduction pathways (AV node and/or accessory pathway), impacting on the morphology of the next immediate anterogradely conducted QRS. We present a case of a young patient with WPW syndrome and ectopic ventricular beats with different manifestations on the postectopic QRS due to concealed penetration of different conduction pathways.
Distinct in vivo target occupancy by bivalent‐ and induced‐fit‐like binding drugs
Authors: Vauquelin Georges 
Published: August 2017

Background and PurposeOptimal drug therapy often requires long‐lasting target occupancy While this attribute was usually linked to the drug's pharmacokinetic properties, the dissociation rate is now increasingly recognized to contribute as well. Nearly all the earlier pharmacokinetic‐pharmacodynamic (PK‐PD) simulations encompassed single‐step binding drugs and focused on koff. However, ‘micro’‐PK mechanisms and more complex binding mechanisms like bivalent‐ and induced‐fit binding may contribute as well. Corresponding binding models are presently explored.Experimental ApproachWe compared the 24 h in vivo occupancy over time profiles of prototype bivalent‐ and induced‐fit‐like binding drugs (A and B) after one or repeated daily dosings, both without and with rebinding. Special attention was focused on the effect of each of the microscopic rate constants on the occupancy profiles and on the metrics to represent those profiles.Key ResultsAlthough both models can be represented by the same mathematical formulation, drugs A and B display quite different occupancy profiles, even though they have the same potency. These differences can be attributed to the different effects of their microscopic rate constants on their composite koff and also on their susceptibility to experience rebinding. This also affects how the occupancy profiles of bivalent‐ and induced‐fit‐like binders progress when repeating the dosings and by changing the dosage.Conclusions and ImplicationsCloser attention should be paid to more complex binding models in PK‐PD simulations. This may help pharmacologists and medicinal chemists to improve the translation of in vitro kinetic measurements from preclinical screening programmes into clinical efficiency.
Aphid specialism as an example of ecological–evolutionary divergence
Authors: Loxdale Hugh D. , Balog Adalbert 
Published: August 2017

ABSTRACTDebate still continues around the definition of generalism and specialism in nature. To some, generalism is equated solely with polyphagy, but this cannot be readily divorced from other essential biological factors, such as morphology, behaviour, genetics, biochemistry, chemistry and ecology, including chemical ecology. Viewed in this light, and accepting that when living organisms evolve to fill new ecological–evolutionary niches, this is the primal act of specialisation, then perhaps all living organisms are specialist in the broadest sense. To illustrate the levels of specialisation that may be found in a group of animals, we here provide an overview of those displayed by a subfamily of hemipteran insects, the Aphididae, which comprises some 1600 species/subspecies in Europe alone and whose members are specialised in a variety of lifestyle traits. These include life cycle, host adaptation, dispersal and migration, associations with bacterial symbionts (in turn related to host adaptation and resistance to hymenopterous wasp parasitoids), mutualisms with ants, and resistance to insecticides. As with polyphagy, these traits cannot easily be separated from one another, but rather, are interconnected, often highly so, which makes the Aphididae a fascinating animal group to study, providing an informative, perhaps unique, model to illustrate the complexities of defining generalism versus specialism.
Drought, post‐dispersal seed predation, and the establishment of epiphytic bromeliads (Tillandsia spp.)
Authors: Chilpa‐Galván Nahlleli , Zotz Gerhard , Sánchez‐Fuente Guillermo J. , Espadas‐Manrique Celene , Andrade José L. , Reyes‐García Casandra 
Published: August 2017

AbstractPost‐dispersal, epiphyte seed predation is poorly documented. Our study on the in situ germination of two Tillandsia species in a deciduous forest in Yucatan, Mexico showed an average post‐dispersal seed predation rate by the Yucatan deer mouse (Peromyscus yucatanicus) of 90%. Post‐dispersal predation was thus more limiting than drought.
Recurrent fruit harvesting reduces seedling density but increases the frequency of clonal reproduction in a tropical tree
Authors: Gaoue Orou G. , Gado Choukouratou , Natta Armand K. , Kouagou M'Mouyohoun 
Published: August 2017

AbstractStudies on the ecological impacts of non‐timber forest products (NTFP) harvest reveal that plants are often more resilient to fruit and seed harvest than to bark and root harvest. Several studies indicate that sustainable fruit harvesting limits can be set very high (>80% fruit harvesting intensity). For species with clonal and sexual reproduction, understanding how fruit harvest affects clonal reproduction can shed light on the genetic risks and sustainability of NTFP harvest. We studied 18 populations of a gallery forest tree, Pentadesma butyracea (Clusiaceae), to test the impact of fruits harvest, climate and habitat size (gallery forest width) on the frequency of sexual or clonal recruitment in Benin, West Africa. We sampled populations in two ecological regions (Sudanian and Sudano‐Guinean) and in each region, we selected sites with low, moderate and high fruit harvesting intensities. These populations were selected in gallery forests with varying width to sample the natural variation in P. butyracea habitat size. Heavily harvested populations produced significantly less seedlings but had the highest density and proportion of clonal offspring. Our study suggests that for plant species with dual reproductive strategy (via seeds and clonal), fruit harvesting and associated disturbances that come with it can lead to an increase in the proportion of clonal offspring. This raises the issue that excessive fruit harvest by increasing the proportion of clonal offspring to the detriment of seed originated offspring may lead to a reduction in genetic diversity with consequence on harvested species capability to withstand environmental stochasticity.
Phase 1 study of veliparib with carboplatin and weekly paclitaxel in Japanese patients with newly diagnosed ovarian cancer
Authors: Nishio Shin , Takekuma Munetaka , Takeuchi Satoshi , Kawano Kouichirou , Tsuda Naotake , Tasaki Kazuto , Takahashi Nobutaka , Abe Masakazu , Tanaka Aki , Nagasawa Takayuki , Shoji Tadahiro , Xiong Hao , Nuthalapati Silpa , Leahy Terri , Hashiba Hideyuki , Kiriyama Tsukasa , Komarnitsky Philip , Hirashima Yasuyuki , Ushijima Kimio 
Published: August 2017

This phase 1, open‐label, dose‐escalation study was conducted to determine the safety, tolerability, pharmacokinetics and preliminary efficacy of veliparib with carboplatin and weekly paclitaxel in Japanese women with newly diagnosed, advanced ovarian cancer. Patients received veliparib at 100 or 150 mg b.i.d. on days 1–21 with carboplatin (area under the concentration–time curve 6 mg/mL•min) on day 1 and paclitaxel 80 mg/m2 on days 1, 8 and 15 every 3 weeks for up to 6 21‐day cycles. Dose escalation followed a 3 + 3 design to determine dose‐limiting toxicities, maximum tolerated dose and the recommended phase 2 dose. Nine patients (median age 62 [range 27–72] years) received a median of 5 (range 3–6) cycles of treatment (3 at 100 mg, 6 at 150 mg). There were no dose‐limiting toxicities. The most common adverse events of any grade were neutropenia (100%), alopecia (89%), peripheral sensory neuropathy (78%), and anemia, nausea and malaise (67% each). Grade 3 or 4 adverse events were associated with myelosuppression. Pharmacokinetics of carboplatin/paclitaxel were similar at both veliparib doses. Response, assessed in five patients, was partial in four and complete in one (objective response rate 100%). The response could not be assessed in four patients who had no measurable disease at baseline. The recommended phase 2 dose of veliparib, when combined with carboplatin/paclitaxel, is 150 mg b.i.d. Findings from this phase 1 trial demonstrate the tolerability and safety of veliparib with carboplatin/paclitaxel, a regimen with potential clinical benefit in Japanese women with ovarian cancer.
Elevated expression of JAM‐A promotes neoplastic properties of lung adenocarcinoma
Authors: Magara Kazufumi , Takasawa Akira , Osanai Makoto , Ota Misaki , Tagami Yohei , Ono Yusuke , Takasawa Kumi , Murata Masaki , Hirohashi Yoshihiko , Miyajima Masahiro , Yamada Gen , Hasegawa Tadashi , Sawada Norimasa 
Published: August 2017

A cell–cell adhesion protein, junctional adhesion molecule‐A (JAM‐A), has been shown to be involved in neoplasia of various organs. However, the fundamental role of JAM‐A in tumorigenesis is still under debate because dysregulated expression of this protein has distinct effects, playing opposite roles in carcinogenesis depending on the target tissues. In the present study, we found elevated levels of JAM‐A expression in lung adenocarcinoma and its preinvasive lesions, including atypical adenomatous hyperplasia and adenocarcinoma in situ by immunohistochemistry. We also showed that suppression of constitutive JAM‐A expression conferred target cells with increased susceptibility to apoptosis in lung adenocarcinoma cells. Consequently, inhibition of JAM‐A activity decreased colony‐forming capability in vitro and tumorigenicity in vivo. The transformed phenotype following suppression of JAM‐A expression was sufficient to reduce motile and invasive capacities. Importantly, knockout of JAM‐A had striking effects on cells. Our observations suggest that increased expression of JAM‐A promotes neoplasia of lung adenocarcinoma. In addition, an anti‐JAM‐A antibody efficiently reduced cell proliferation and provoked apoptosis, indicating the potential feasibility of JAM‐A‐inhibitory cancer therapy.
Smart Conformists: Children and Adolescents Associate Conformity With Intelligence Across Cultures
Authors: Wen Nicole J. , Clegg Jennifer M. , Legare Cristine H. 
Published: August 2017

The current study used a novel methodology based on multivocal ethnography to assess the relations between conformity and evaluations of intelligence and good behavior among Western (U.S.) and non‐Western (Ni‐Vanuatu) children (6‐ to 11‐year‐olds) and adolescents (13‐ to 17‐year‐olds; N = 256). Previous research has shown that U.S. adults were less likely to endorse high‐conformity children as intelligent than Ni‐Vanuatu adults. The current data demonstrate that in contrast to prior studies documenting cultural differences between adults' evaluations of conformity, children and adolescents in the United States and Vanuatu have a conformity bias when evaluating peers' intelligence and behavior. Conformity bias for good behavior increases with age. The results have implications for understanding the interplay of conformity bias and trait psychology across cultures and development.
Effect of vitamin D on blood–brain barrier function in multiple sclerosis
Authors: Suzumura Akio 
Published: August 2017

AbstractVitamin D deficiency might be a risk factor for multiple sclerosis (MS). The active form of vitamin D has some protective effects on MS. The study by Takahashi et al. in this issue addressed the question of how vitamin D works on MS pathology. Using a human brain microvascular endothelial cell line, they showed that vitamin D attenuated the damage of barrier function of the cell line after exposure to either MS sera or tumor necrosis factor‐α. The study along with their previous study suggests that vitamin D might protect blood–brain barrier function, and could give us a rationale for the use of vitamin D in MS patients.
Reduction of nitric oxide level results in maturation promoting factor destabilization during spontaneous meiotic exit from diplotene arrest in rat cumulus oocytes complexes cultured in vitro
Authors: Tiwari Meenakshi , Chaube Shail K. 
Published: August 2017

Nitric oxides (NO) act as one of the major signal molecules and modulate various cell functions including oocyte meiosis in mammals. The present study was designed to investigate the mechanism of NO action during spontaneous meiotic exit from diplotene arrest (EDA) in rat cumulus oocytes complexes (COCs) cultured in vitro. Diplotene‐arrested COCs collected from ovary of immature female rats after 20 IU pregnant mare's serum gonadotropins (PMSG) for 48 h were exposed to various concentrations of NO donor, S‐nitroso‐N‐acetyl penicillamine (SNAP) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) inhibitor, aminoguanidine (AG) for 3 h in vitro and downstream factors were analyzed. Our results suggest that SNAP inhibited, while AG induced EDA in a concentration‐dependent manner. The iNOS‐mediated total NO, cyclic nucleotides and cell division cycle 25B (Cdc25B) levels were reduced significantly. The decreased Cdc25B was associated with the increased Thr14/Tyr15 phosphorylated cyclin‐dependent kinase 1 (Cdk1) level and decreased Thr161 phosphorylated Cdk1 as well as cyclin B1 levels leading to maturation promoting factor (MPF) destabilization. The destabilized MPF finally induced spontaneous EDA. Taken together, these results suggest that reduction of iNOS‐mediated NO level destabilizes MPF during spontaneous EDA in rat COCs cultured in vitro.
Covalent dimerization of interleukin‐like epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) inducer (ILEI) facilitates EMT, invasion, and late aspects of metastasis
Authors: Kral Maria , Klimek Christoph , Kutay Betül , Timelthaler Gerald , Lendl Thomas , Neuditschko Benjamin , Gerner Christopher , Sibilia Maria , Csiszar Agnes 
Published: August 2017

The interleukin‐like epithelial‐to‐mesenchymal transition (EMT) inducer (ILEI)/FAM3C is a member of the highly homologous FAM3 family and is essential for EMT and metastasis formation. It is upregulated in several cancers, and its altered subcellular localization strongly correlates with poor survival. However, the mechanism of ILEI action, including the structural requirements for ILEI activity, remains elusive. Here, we show that ILEI formed both monomers and covalent dimers in cancer cell lines and in tumors. Using mutational analysis and pulse‐chase experiments, we found that the four ILEI cysteines, conserved throughout the FAM3 family and involved in disulfide bond formation were essential for extracellular ILEI accumulation in cultured cells. Modification of a fifth cysteine (C185), unique for ILEI, did not alter protein secretion, but completely inhibited ILEI dimerization. Wild‐type ILEI monomers, but not C185A mutants, could be converted into covalent dimers extracellularly upon overexpression by intramolecular‐to‐intermolecular disulfide bond isomerization. Incubation of purified ILEI with cell culture medium showed that dimerization was triggered by bovine serum in a dose‐ and time‐dependent manner. Purified ILEI dimers induced EMT and trans‐well invasion of cancer cells in vitro. In contrast, ILEI monomers and the dimerization‐defective C185A mutant affected only cell motility as detected by scratch assays and cell tracking via time‐lapse microscopy. Importantly, tumor cells overexpressing wild‐type ILEI caused large tumors and lung metastases in nude mice, while cells overexpressing the dimerization‐defective C185A mutant behaved similar to control cells. These data show that covalent ILEI self‐assembly is essential for EMT induction, elevated tumor growth, and metastasis.
Numerical verification of stress intensity factor solution for clamped single edge notched tension (SENT) specimens
Authors: Bassindale C. , Wang X. , Tyson W.R. , Xu S. 
Published: August 2017

AbstractStress intensity factor solutions for clamped single edge notched tension (SENT) specimens, including a closed‐form function recently proposed by Zhu along with a function by CanmetMATERIALS referenced in the British Standard BS 8571, have been assessed. Solutions for an SENT specimen with a daylight‐to‐width ratio of 10 have been compared with new finite element results generated in this work to assess their accuracies. The results of this study show that the polynomial proposed by Zhu differs by no more than 0.23% compared with the numerical results over the range of 0.2 ≤a/W ≤ 0.7. The CANMET function differs by no more than 0.69% over the same range.