bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Awareness and attitudes towards external auditory canal exostosis and its preventability in surfers in the UK: cross-sectional study
Authors: Morris S , Martin T , Mccahon D , Bennett S 
Published: June 2016

AbstractObjectives:To determine the proportion of UK surfers aware of external auditory canal exostosis, to identify surfer characteristics associated with knowledge of the condition and to explore attitudes to earplug use.Method:An online, cross-sectional survey of UK-based surfers.Results:Of 375 surfers, 86.1 per cent (n = 323; 95 per cent confidence interval = 82.3–89.3) reported awareness of external auditory canal exostosis. Further investigation revealed that, despite their awareness of the condition, 23.4 per cent of these surfers (88 out of 323; 95 per cent confidence interval = 19.5–28.0) had little or no knowledge about external auditory canal exostosis. Predictors of knowledge included: distance from nearest surfing beach (p = 0.001), surfing standard (ability) (p = 0.008), earplug use (p = 0.024) and positive external auditory canal exostosis diagnosis (p = 0.009).Conclusion:The findings suggest that a significant minority of UK surfers have no knowledge about this condition. Knowledge of external auditory canal exostosis was significantly associated with earplug use when surfing. Efforts to improve surfers’ knowledge are required to enable surfers to better protect themselves, which could reduce the incidence of external auditory canal exostosis.
Functional codeswitching and register in educated Negev Arabic interview style
Authors: Henkin Roni 
Published: June 2016

AbstractThe sociolinguistic phenomenon of codeswitching, both diglossic and bilingual (Arabic–Hebrew), is extremely pervasive in all varieties of Palestinian Arabic, including Negev Arabic. Surprisingly, neither of these types of codeswitching in Palestinian Arabic has received due scholarly attention; moreover, their interplay has not been studied for any type of Arabic. This article analyses quantitative and functional aspects of diglossic and bilingual codeswitching in the personal interview style of 11 Negev Bedouin female students, focusing on their functional interaction. In the five distinct registers analysed, ratios of both diglossic and bilingual codeswitching were found to rise from childhood narratives to recounts of the period of academic studies and expository sections, with the use of Hebraisms dropping in the more formal registers. Although mixed bilingual discourse with intensive codeswitching is the default style for in-group discourse of the young generation, I show that many switches are not random, but fulfil discourse-pragmatic, communicative, social and textual functions typical of each of the registers. For example, in the narrative registers, switching may mark evaluation (commenting, explaining, self-repair, sidetracking, repetition). In both narrative and non-narrative discourse it may mark quotations, rephrasing or paraphrasing, with or without a metalinguistic introducing particle such as ‘as they say’. The result is redundancy at the referential level, with pragmatic functions of emphasizing or elaborating at the discourse level. This is in keeping with functions identified for bilingual codeswitching in general and also for diglossic codeswitching in Arabic; but it is the first effort, as far as I know, to combine analysis of the two codeswitching dimensions in any given code; and, moreover, to study the interplay of this bi-dimensional switching with relation to the stylistic factors of genre and register.
Erroneous Gazes: Lucretian Poetics in Catullus 64
Authors: Tamás Ábel 
Published: June 2016

ABSTRACTThis article argues for a ‘reciprocal intertextuality’ between Catullus 64 and Lucretius anticipating the poetic interplays of Augustan poets with theDe Rerum Natura. Catullus’ wedding guests (proto-readers), Ariadne (proto-Narcissus), and Aegeus (proto-Dido) are interpreted here aserrantesin the Lucretian sense: through their erroneous gazes presented in Poem 64, they all exemplify hownotto gaze at the structure of the universe. In the Lucretio-Catullan intertextual space — generated, as it seems, by the Catullan text — a reciprocal way of reading emerges: while, on the one hand, ‘Catullus’ uses ‘Lucretius’ to show that the aesthetic experience he offers is dependent upon an erroneous, unLucretian gaze/reading which deprives us of the external spectator position, ‘Lucretius’, on the other hand, uses ‘Catullan’ characters as deterrent examples in order to teach us hownotto submerge in ‘Catullus’ poetics of illusion’.
In vivo dosimetry using radiochromic films (EBT-2) during intraoperative radiotherapy
Authors: Yekta Zahra Rahimzade , Mahdavi Seied Rabi Mehdi , Baghani Hamid Reza , Robatjazi Mostafa , Mostaar Ahmad , Mirzaie Hamidreza , Sardari Dariush , Akbari Mohammad Esmaeil , Nafisi Nahid 
Published: June 2016

AbstractBackgroundIntraoperative radiotherapy is a method of choice to deliver a critical radiation dose to the tumour bed immediately after surgical excision.AimThe purpose of this work is to check the dose delivered to the patients during intraoperative electron beam radiation therapy (IOERT) in the conservative treatment of breast cancer, by means of reference dose measurement using radiochromic (EBT-2) films.Material and methodsNinety patients with early-stage breast cancer underwent exclusive IOERT to the tumour bed using a LIAC linear accelerator. Absolute dose measurements were done with film pieces. After irradiation, the pixel values of the films were obtained via MATLAB and ImageJ softwares. Calibration curve was also used for calculating net optical density. Expected dose was compared to the patient delivered dose.ResultsThe mean deviation of the delivered dose from the expected one was 2·56% that is well in the accepted criteria. Only in one case, there was a larger deviation due to barometer miscalibration.FindingsEBT-2 film response is independent from dose-per-pulse and as it was shown in this study it can be robustly used during breast IOERT for dosimetric and also positioning verifications.
How much do means-tested benefits reduce the demand for annuities?
Authors: BÜTLER MONIKA , PEIJNENBURG KIM , STAUBLI STEFAN 
Published: June 2016

AbstractMeans-tested retirement benefits create incentives to cash out pension wealth. Individuals trade off the advantages from annuitization, receiving longevity risk insurance, to the disadvantages, giving up ‘free’ wealth in the form of means-tested supplemental income. We quantify the impact of means-tested benefits with a calibrated life-cycle model, demonstrating that they substantially reduce the desire to annuitize especially for low and intermediate levels of pension wealth. Using an administrative dataset on pension choices, we show that the model's predicted fraction of retirees choosing the annuity is able to match the annuitization pattern of occupational pension wealth observed in Switzerland. On the base of our model, we also assess alternative policies such as mandatory annutization and tougher asset tests.
The future of Spanish pensions
Authors: DÍAZ-GIMÉNEZ JAVIER , DÍAZ-SAAVEDRA JULIÁN 
Published: June 2016

AbstractWe use an overlapping generations model economy with endogenous retirement to study the 2011 and 2013 reforms of the Spanish public pension system. These reforms delay the legal retirement ages, increase the contributivity of the system, and adopt a sustainability factor and a pension revualuation index that effectively transform the Spanish pension system into a defined-contribution pension system. We find that these reforms improve the sustainability of Spanish pensions substantially, and that they limit the tax increases that would have been necessary to finance the pension system deficits. But these results are achieved at the expense of large reductions in the real value of the average pension. This reduction is progressive and, by 2050, the average pension is approximately 30% smaller in real terms than what it would have been under the pension system rules that prevailed in 2010. We also show that these reforms are costly in welfare terms and that households born between 1950 and 1970, young disabled workers who are alive at the time of the reform, and future cohorts bear the highest welfare costs. The substantial reduction of pensions and the high welfare costs that these reforms bring about lead us to conjecture that further reforms lurk in the future of Spanish pensions.
Organic agriculture in post-war Uganda: emergence of pioneer-led niches between 1986 and 1993
Authors: Hauser Michael , Lindtner Mara 
Published: June 2016

AbstractUganda is the largest producer of organic commodities in Africa. While most of the literature associate the start of organic agriculture in Uganda with the first certified project, no accounts exist about non-certified organic agriculture before 1993. Both in Europe and in the USA, pioneers drove non-certified organic agriculture as a response to economic, ecological and social crises. Uganda suffered two decades of civil war ending in 1986 causing multiple crises. We explore how post-war conditions influenced the emergence of organic agriculture in Uganda. We conducted individual semi-structured interviews with 12 organic agriculture experts from Central and Southwestern Uganda. Interviews were held in English using interview guides informed by a transition theoretical perspective. Interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed and analyzed using deductive and inductive coding. Our analysis shows that the degraded environment, food insecurity and economic instability after the war created a sense of urgency for the rehabilitation of livelihoods. Pioneers, including civil society activists, farmers, entrepreneurs and researchers, responded by promoting low-cost, resource-conserving technologies and agronomic practices to smallholder farmers. Economic liberalization, decentralization and institutional vacuum eased pioneers’ activities, despite facing opponents from the government and research. Through experimental learning, demonstration farms and cooperation with the Catholic Church, public extension services, researchers and international development-oriented non-governmental organizations, pioneers reached out to farmers in Eastern, Central and Southwestern Uganda. As challenging as post-war crises may be, they offer opportunities for changing development trajectories. Therefore, reconstruction and rehabilitation efforts can accommodate sustainability concerns and allow the introduction of course-changing measures in any sector.
Multi-analyte biosensor interface for real-time monitoring of 3D microtissue spheroids in hanging-drop networks
Authors: Misun Patrick M. , Rothe Jörg , Schmid Yannick R.F. , Hierlemann Andreas , Frey Olivier 
Published: June 2016

AbstractMicrofluidics is becoming a technology of growing interest for building microphysiological systems with integrated read-out functionalities. Here we present the integration of enzyme-based multi-analyte biosensors into a multi-tissue culture platform for ‘body-on-a-chip’ applications. The microfluidic platform is based on the technology of hanging-drop networks, which is designed for the formation, cultivation, and analysis of fluidically interconnected organotypic spherical three-dimensional (3D) microtissues of multiple cell types. The sensor modules were designed as small glass plug-ins featuring four platinum working electrodes, a platinum counter electrode, and an Ag/AgCl reference electrode. They were placed directly into the ceiling substrate from which the hanging drops that host the spheroid cultures are suspended. The electrodes were functionalized with oxidase enzymes to enable continuous monitoring of lactate and glucose through amperometry. The biosensors featured high sensitivities of 322±41 nA mM−1 mm−2 for glucose and 443±37 nA mM−1 mm−2 for lactate; the corresponding limits of detection were below 10 μM. The proposed technology enabled tissue-size-dependent, real-time detection of lactate secretion from single human colon cancer microtissues cultured in the hanging drops. Furthermore, glucose consumption and lactate secretion were monitored in parallel, and the impact of different culture conditions on the metabolism of cancer microtissues was recorded in real-time.
The MDM2–p53–pyruvate carboxylase signalling axis couples mitochondrial metabolism to glucose-stimulated insulin secretion in pancreatic β-cells
Authors: Li Xiaomu , Cheng Kenneth K. Y. , Liu Zhuohao , Yang Jin-Kui , Wang Baile , Jiang Xue , Zhou Yawen , Hallenborg Philip , Hoo Ruby L. C. , Lam Karen S. L. , Ikeda Yasuhiro , Gao Xin , Xu Aimin 
Published: June 2016

AbstractMitochondrial metabolism is pivotal for glucose-stimulated insulin secretion (GSIS) in pancreatic β-cells. However, little is known about the molecular machinery that controls the homeostasis of intermediary metabolites in mitochondria. Here we show that the activation of p53 in β-cells, by genetic deletion or pharmacological inhibition of its negative regulator MDM2, impairs GSIS, leading to glucose intolerance in mice. Mechanistically, p53 activation represses the expression of the mitochondrial enzyme pyruvate carboxylase (PC), resulting in diminished production of the TCA cycle intermediates oxaloacetate and NADPH, and impaired oxygen consumption. The defective GSIS and mitochondrial metabolism in MDM2-null islets can be rescued by restoring PC expression. Under diabetogenic conditions, MDM2 and p53 are upregulated, whereas PC is reduced in mouse β-cells. Pharmacological inhibition of p53 alleviates defective GSIS in diabetic islets by restoring PC expression. Thus, the MDM2–p53–PC signalling axis links mitochondrial metabolism to insulin secretion and glucose homeostasis, and could represent a therapeutic target in diabetes.
Ligand-induced substrate steering and reshaping of [Ag2(H)]+ scaffold for selective CO2 extrusion from formic acid
Authors: Zavras Athanasios , Khairallah George N. , Krstić Marjan , Girod Marion , Daly Steven , Antoine Rodolphe , Maitre Philippe , Mulder Roger J. , Alexander Stefanie-Ann , Bonačić-Koutecký Vlasta , Dugourd Philippe , O’Hair Richard A. J. 
Published: June 2016

AbstractMetalloenzymes preorganize the reaction environment to steer substrate(s) along the required reaction coordinate. Here, we show that phosphine ligands selectively facilitate protonation of binuclear silver hydride cations, [LAg2(H)]+by optimizing the geometry of the active site. This is a key step in the selective, catalysed extrusion of carbon dioxide from formic acid, HO2CH, with important applications (for example, hydrogen storage). Gas-phase ion-molecule reactions, collision-induced dissociation (CID), infrared and ultraviolet action spectroscopy and computational chemistry link structure to reactivity and mechanism. [Ag2(H)]+and [Ph3PAg2(H)]+react with formic acid yielding Lewis adducts, while [(Ph3P)2Ag2(H)]+is unreactive. Using bis(diphenylphosphino)methane (dppm) reshapes the geometry of the binuclear Ag2(H)+scaffold, triggering reactivity towards formic acid, to produce [dppmAg2(O2CH)]+and H2. Decarboxylation of [dppmAg2(O2CH)]+via CID regenerates [dppmAg2(H)]+. These gas-phase insights inspired variable temperature NMR studies that show CO2and H2production at 70 °C from solutions containing dppm, AgBF4, NaO2CH and HO2CH.
Unravelling the structural plasticity of stretched DNA under torsional constraint
Authors: King Graeme A. , Peterman Erwin J. G. , Wuite Gijs J. L. 
Published: June 2016

AbstractRegions of the genome are often held under torsional constraint. Nevertheless, the influence of such constraint on DNA–protein interactions during genome metabolism is still poorly understood. Here using a combined optical tweezers and fluorescence microscope, we quantify and explain how torsional constraint influences the structural stability of DNA under applied tension. We provide direct evidence that concomitant basepair melting and helical unwinding can occur in torsionally constrained DNA at forces >∼50 pN. This striking result indicates that local changes in linking number can be absorbed by the rest of the DNA duplex. We also present compelling new evidence that an overwound DNA structure (likely P-DNA) is created (alongside underwound structures) at forces >∼110 pN. These findings substantiate previous theoretical predictions and highlight a remarkable structural plasticity of torsionally constrained DNA. Such plasticity may be required in vivo to absorb local changes in linking number in DNA held under torsional constraint.
111 oriented gold nanoplatelets on multilayer graphene as visible light photocatalyst for overall water splitting
Authors: Mateo Diego , Esteve-Adell Iván , Albero Josep , Royo Juan F. Sánchez , Primo Ana , Garcia Hermenegildo 
Published: June 2016

AbstractDevelopment of renewable fuels from solar light appears as one of the main current challenges in energy science. A plethora of photocatalysts have been investigated to obtain hydrogen and oxygen from water and solar light in the last decades. However, the photon-to-hydrogen molecule conversion is still far from allowing real implementation of solar fuels. Here we show that 111 facet-oriented gold nanoplatelets on multilayer graphene films deposited on quartz is a highly active photocatalyst for simulated sunlight overall water splitting into hydrogen and oxygen in the absence of sacrificial electron donors, achieving hydrogen production rate of 1.2 molH2 per gcomposite per h. This photocatalytic activity arises from the gold preferential orientation and the strong gold–graphene interaction occurring in the composite system.
PolyMetformin combines carrier and anticancer activities for in vivo siRNA delivery
Authors: Zhao Yi , Wang Wei , Guo Shutao , Wang Yuhua , Miao Lei , Xiong Yang , Huang Leaf 
Published: June 2016

AbstractMetformin, a widely implemented anti-diabetic drug, exhibits potent anticancer efficacies. Herein a polymeric construction of Metformin, PolyMetformin (PolyMet) is successfully synthesized through conjugation of linear polyethylenimine (PEI) with dicyandiamide. The delocalization of cationic charges in the biguanide groups of PolyMet reduces the toxicity of PEI bothin vitroandin vivo. Furthermore, the polycationic properties of PolyMet permits capture of siRNA into a core-membrane structured lipid-polycation-hyaluronic acid (LPH) nanoparticle for systemic gene delivery. Advances herein permit LPH-PolyMet nanoparticles to facilitate VEGF siRNA delivery for VEGF knockdown in a human lung cancer xenograft, leading to enhanced tumour suppressive efficacy. Even in the absence of RNAi, LPH-PolyMet nanoparticles act similarly to Metformin and induce antitumour efficacy through activation of the AMPK and inhibition of the mTOR. In essence, PolyMet successfully combines the intrinsic anticancer efficacy of Metformin with the capacity to carry siRNA to enhance the therapeutic activity of an anticancer gene therapy.
Plasma concentrations of coffee polyphenols and plasma biomarkers of diabetes risk in healthy Japanese women
Authors: Lee A H , Tan L 'B , Hiramatsu N , Ishisaka A , Alfonso H , Tanaka A , Uemura N , Fujiwara Y , Takechi R 
Published: June 2016

AbstractCoffee consumption has been reported to reduce the risk of type 2 diabetes in experimental and epidemiological studies. This anti-diabetic effect of coffee may be attributed to its high content in polyphenols especially caffeic acid and chlorogenic acid. However, the association between plasma coffee polyphenols and diabetic risks has never been investigated in the literature. In this study, fasting plasma samples were collected from 57 generally healthy females aged 38–73 (mean 52, s.d. 8) years recruited in Himeji, Japan. The concentrations of plasma coffee polyphenols were determined by liquid chromatography coupled with mass tandem spectrometer. Diabetes biomarkers in the plasma/serum samples were analysed by a commercial diagnostic laboratory. Statistical associations were assessed using Spearman’s correlation coefficients. The results showed that plasma chlorogenic acid exhibited negative associations with fasting blood glucose, glycated hemoglobin and C-reactive protein, whereas plasma total coffee polyphenol and plasma caffeic acid were weakly associated with these biomarkers. Our preliminary data support previous findings that coffee polyphenols have anti-diabetic effects but further replications with large samples of both genders are recommended.
NIK regulates MT1-MMP activity and promotes glioma cell invasion independently of the canonical NF-κB pathway
Authors: Duran C L , Lee D W , Jung J-U , Ravi S , Pogue C B , Toussaint L G , Bayless K J , Sitcheran R 
Published: June 2016

AbstractA growing body of evidence implicates the noncanonical NF-κB pathway as a key driver of glioma invasiveness and a major factor underlying poor patient prognoses. Here, we show that NF-κB-inducing kinase (NIK/MAP3K14), a critical upstream regulator of the noncanonical NF-κB pathway, is both necessary and sufficient for cell-intrinsic invasion, as well as invasion induced by the cytokine TWEAK, which is strongly associated with tumor pathogenicity. NIK promotes dramatic alterations in glioma cell morphology that are characterized by extensive membrane branching and elongated pseudopodial protrusions. Correspondingly, NIK increases the phosphorylation, enzymatic activity and pseudopodial localization of membrane type-1 matrix metalloproteinase (MT1-MMP/MMP14), which is associated with enhanced tumor cell invasion of three-dimensional collagen matrices. Moreover, NIK regulates MT1-MMP activity in cells lacking the canonical NF-κB p65 and cRel proteins. Finally, increased expression of NIK is associated with elevated MT1-MMP phosphorylation in orthotopic xenografts and co-expression of NIK and MT1-MMP in human tumors is associated with poor glioma patient survival. These data reveal a novel role of NIK to enhance pseudopodia formation, MT1-MMP enzymatic activity and tumor cell invasion independently of p65. Collectively, our findings underscore the therapeutic potential of approaches targeting NIK in highly invasive tumors.
Electricity, water, and natural gas consumption of a residential house in Canada from 2012 to 2014
Authors: Makonin Stephen , Ellert Bradley , Bajić Ivan V. , Popowich Fred 
Published: June 2016

AbstractWith the cost of consuming resources increasing (both economically and ecologically), homeowners need to find ways to curb consumption. The Almanac of Minutely Power dataset Version 2 (AMPds2) has been released to help computational sustainability researchers, power and energy engineers, building scientists and technologists, utility companies, and eco-feedback researchers test their models, systems, algorithms, or prototypes on real house data. In the vast majority of cases, real-world datasets lead to more accurate models and algorithms. AMPds2 is the first dataset to capture all three main types of consumption (electricity, water, and natural gas) over a long period of time (2 years) and provide 11 measurement characteristics for electricity. No other such datasets from Canada exist. Each meter has 730 days of captured data. We also include environmental and utility billing data for cost analysis. AMPds2 data has been pre-cleaned to provide for consistent and comparable accuracy results amongst different researchers and machine learning algorithms.