bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Single Center Outcomes of Status Epilepticus at a Paediatric Intensive Care Unit
Authors: Shah Samir , Shah Namrata , Johnson Robert , West Alina Nico , Prasad Narayan 
Published: November 2015

AbstractBackground:Status epilepticus (SE) is a frequent admission diagnosis to paediatric intensive care units (PICUs) and is associated with variable outcomes. We have audited our experience of patients presenting in SE at a Canadian PICU to determine unfavorable outcome variables.Methods:Charts of patients <18 years of age presenting in SE to a tertiary care PICU over a 10-year period were audited. Data were analyzed at three care-points: transport, the emergency department (ED) and the PICU. Patient outcome before PICU discharge was categorized as “favorable” for return to pre-status functioning level or “unfavorable” for new deficit/death. Student’st-test andthe Kruskal-Wallis test were used for analysis of normal and skewed continuous variables, respectively, and either Chi-square test or Fisher’s exact test for categorical variables.Results:189 patients (54% males) were identified with a median age of 1.9 years. Idiopathic SE had the highest incidence; infectious/vascular etiologies were associated with more unfavorable outcomes. Progression to refractory SE in the ED had a higher incidence of death (p<0.05). Patients with an unfavorable outcome had a higher incidence of apnea during transport (p=0.01), longer hospital stays (p<0.05), need for therapeutic coma (p=0.01), longer duration of therapeutic coma (p<0.05), need for mechanical ventilation (p<0.05), and recurrent or refractory seizures during inpatient stay (p<0.05). Multivariate analysis of unfavorable outcomes of patients in SE presenting to the PICU included renal failure, cerebral edema, apnea during transport, refractory seizures, and recurrent seizures.Conclusions:Refractory seizures in children presenting with SE are associated with worsened outcomes in the PICU.
Conceiving a national head and neck cancer screening programme
Authors: Gogarty D S , Shuman A , O'Sullivan E M , Sheahan P , Kinsella J , Timon C , O'Neill J P 
Published: November 2015

AbstractBackground:This study was undertaken to determine the optimum approach to screening for head and neck cancer based on international experiences.Objective:To determine whether or not head and neck cancer is suitable for screening, and, if so, what the ideal approach should be.Methods:An electronic search of online databases up to and including May 2014 was conducted. Key search terms included ‘head and neck’, ‘cancer’, ‘screening’, ‘larynx’, ‘oropharynx’ and ‘oral’.Results:Subset analysis of high-risk cohorts showed statistically significant improvements in early detection of head and neck cancer via screening.Conclusion:Current levels of public awareness regarding head and neck cancers are suboptimal, despite increased incidence and mortality. Scheduled and opportunistic screening, coupled with efforts to enhance education and health behaviour modification, are highly recommended for pre-defined, high-risk, targeted populations. This can enable early detection and therefore improve morbidity and mortality.
Developing Brief Opportunistic Interactions: practitioners facilitate patients to identify and change health risk behaviours at an early preventive stage
Authors: Docherty Barbara , Sheridan Nicolette , Kenealy Timothy 
Published: November 2015

AimTo identify shortcomings in existing models of patient behaviour change, and present the development and testing of a novel approach using practitioner facilitation and person-focussed conversations that identifies and addresses behaviours at an earlier stage than current models.BackgroundSystematic strategies used by health professionals to change patient behaviours began with motivational interviewing and brief intervention approaches for serious addictive behaviours. Practitioners typically presume they should drive the process of patient behaviour change. Attempts to transfer these approaches to primary care, and a broader range of health risk behaviours, have been less successful. The TADS programme (Tobacco, Alcohol and Other Drugs, later Training and Development Services) began teaching motivational interviewing and brief interventions to practitioners in New Zealand in 1996. Formal and informal evaluations showed that practitioners used screening tools that patients rejected and that led to incomplete disclosure, used language that did not engage patients, failed to identify the behaviours patients wished to address and therefore misdirected interventions.MethodsIterative development of new tools with input from patients and primary care clinicians.FindingsThe TADS programme developed a questionnaire whose results remained private to the patient, which enabled the patient to identify personal behaviours that they might choose to change (the TADS Personal Assessment Choice Tool). This was assisted by a brief conversation that facilitated and supported any change prioritised by the patient (the TADS Brief Opportunistic Interaction). The need for this approach, and its effectiveness, appeared to be similar across adults, youth, different ethnic groups and people in different socio-economic circumstances. Behaviours patients identified were often linked to other health risk behaviours or early-stage mental health disorders that were not easily detected by practitioner-driven screening or inquiry. The long-term effectiveness of this approach in different populations in primary health care settings requires further evaluation.
Landschaft der Herzen III
Authors: Becker-Glauch Wulf 
Published: November 2015

Zusammenfassung. Landschaft der Herzen–mitten im Krieg und auf dem Rückzug ein menschliches Zeugnis der Kunst von Reinhard und Irmgard Becker-Glauch als Halt zum Durchhalten des Stabsgefreiten und Hoffnung auf Frieden. Die Kunst begleitet und sucht ihren Ausdruck im einzelnen Menschen, der für viele, besonders die Kameraden, spricht. Bei all dem Unheil der Nazizeit und des 2. Weltkrieges vergisst man zu Recht, dass menschliches Verhalten möglich war, denn es war unauffällig. Landschaft der Herzen III geht auf dessen Voraussetzungen bei meinem Bruder Reinhard im christlichen Elternhaus und im humanistischen Gymnasium ein. Es werden vor allem Gedichte des 14 – 16-jährigen über Zeit, Ewigkeit und Tod vorgestellt und seine Erzählung Grenzen als Zeichen deutsch-polnischer Freundschaft im Jahre 1940 sowie Briefe aus der Vorgeschichte der Erzählung. Eingeschoben ist ein kleiner Beitrag zu Gedichten über Deutschland von Klopstock, Hölderlin und R. A. Schröder u. a.
PPARγ regulated CIDEA affects pro-apoptotic responses in glioblastoma
Authors: Chatterjee A , Mondal P , Ghosh S , Mehta VS , Sen E 
Published: November 2015

AbstractRefractoriness of glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) to current treatment paradigms has necessitated identification of new targets to better the existing therapeutic strategies. One such target is peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) – a transcription factor involved in regulation of lipid metabolism and inflammation. Expression of PPARγ, a known regulator of cell death-inducing DFFA-like effector (CIDEA), is modulated by hypoxia inducible factor (HIF-1α). While the involvement of CIDEA in lipid metabolism is known, its role in malignancies remains largely unknown. An elevated PPARγ and low CIDEA level was observed in GBM tumors as compared with surrounding non-neoplastic tissue. As reciprocal relation exists between PPAR and HIF-1α: and as HIF-1α is a key component in glioma progression, their role in regulating CIDEA expression in glioblastoma was investigated. Although HIF-1α inhibition had no effect on CIDEA expression, pharmacological inhibition of PPARγ elevated CIDEA levels. PPARγ mediated upregulation of CIDEA was accompanied by decreased recruitment of NFκB and SP1 to their predicted binding sites on CIDEA promoter. Ectopic expression of CIDEA triggered apoptosis, activated JNK, decreased HIF-1α activation and increased PPARγ levels in glioma cells. While CIDEA overexpression induced actin cytoskeletal disruption, cell cycle arrest, release of pro-inflammatory cytokine IL-6 in a JNK-dependent manner; CIDEA mediated apoptotic cell death, decreased STAT3 phosphorylation and increased p53 acetylation was JNK independent. This study highlights for the first time the existence of (i) PPARγ-CIDEA regulatory loop in glioma and (ii) novel function of CIDEA as regulator of glioma cell survival.
Sperm Associated Antigen 6 (SPAG6) Regulates Fibroblast Cell Growth, Morphology, Migration and Ciliogenesis
Authors: Li Wei , Mukherjee Abir , Wu Jinhua , Zhang Ling , Teves Maria E. , Li Hongfei , Nambiar Shanti , Henderson Scott C. , Horwitz Alan R. , Strauss III Jerome F. , Fang Xianjun , Zhang Zhibing 
Published: November 2015

AbstractMammalianSpag6is the orthologue of ChlamydomonasPF16, which encodes a protein localized in the axoneme central apparatus and regulates flagella/cilia motility. MostSpag6-deficient mice are smaller in size than their littermates. Because SPAG6 decorates microtubules, we hypothesized that SPAG6 has other roles related to microtubule function besides regulating flagellar/cilia motility. Mouse embryonic fibroblasts (MEFs) were isolated fromSpag6-deficient and wild-type embryos for these studies. Both primary and immortalizedSpag6-deficient MEFs proliferated at a much slower rate than the wild-type MEFs and they had a larger surface area. Re-expression of SPAG6 in theSpag6-deficient MEFs rescued the abnormal cell morphology.Spag6-deficient MEFs were less motile than wild-type MEFs, as shown by both chemotactic analysis and wound-healing assays.Spag6-deficient MEFs also showed reduced adhesion associated with a non-polarized F-actin distribution. Multiple centrosomes were observed in theSpag6-deficient MEF cultures. The percentage of cells with primary cilia was significantly reduced compared to the wild-type MEFs and someSpag6-deficient MEFs developed multiple cilia. Furthermore, SPAG6 selectively increased expression of acetylated tubulin, a microtubule stability marker. TheSpag6-deficient MEFs were more sensitive to paclitaxel, a microtubule stabilizer. Our studies reveal new roles for SPAG6 in modulation of cell morphology, proliferation, migration and ciliogenesis.
Plasma proteomic analysis of active and torpid greater mouse-eared bats (Myotis myotis)
Authors: Hecht Alexander M. , Braun Beate C. , Krause Eberhard , Voigt Christian C. , Greenwood Alex D. , Czirják Gábor Á. 
Published: November 2015

AbstractHibernation is a physiological adaptation to overcome extreme environmental conditions. It is characterized by prolonged periods of torpor interrupted by temporary arousals during winter. During torpor, body functions are suppressed and restored rapidly to almost pre-hibernation levels during arousal. Although molecular studies have been performed on hibernating rodents and bears, it is unclear how generalizable the results are among hibernating species with different physiology such as bats. As targeted blood proteomic analysis are lacking in small hibernators, we investigated the general plasma proteomic profile of European Myotis myotis and hibernation associated changes between torpid and active individuals by two-dimensional gel electrophoresis. Results revealed an alternation of proteins involved in transport, fuel switching, innate immunity and blood coagulation between the two physiological states. The results suggest that metabolic changes during hibernation are associated with plasma proteomic changes. Further characterization of the proteomic plasma profile identified transport proteins, coagulation proteins and complement factors and detected a high abundance of alpha-fetoprotein. We were able to establish for the first time a basic myotid bat plasma proteomic profile and further demonstrated a modulated protein expression during torpor in Myotis myotis, indicating both novel physiological pathways in bats in general and during hibernation in particular.
Nopaline-type Ti plasmid of Agrobacterium encodes a VirF-like functional F-box protein
Authors: Lacroix Benoît , Citovsky Vitaly 
Published: November 2015

AbstractDuring Agrobacterium-mediated genetic transformation of plants, several bacterial virulence (Vir) proteins are translocated into the host cell to facilitate infection. One of the most important of such translocated factors is VirF, an F-box protein produced by octopine strains of Agrobacterium, which presumably facilitates proteasomal uncoating of the invading T-DNA from its associated proteins. The presence of VirF also is thought to be involved in differences in host specificity between octopine and nopaline strains of Agrobacterium, with the current dogma being that no functional VirF is encoded by nopaline strains. Here, we show that a protein with homology to octopine VirF is encoded by the Ti plasmid of the nopaline C58 strain of Agrobacterium. This protein, C58VirF, possesses the hallmarks of functional F-box proteins: it contains an active F-box domain and specifically interacts, via its F-box domain, with SKP1-like (ASK) protein components of the plant ubiquitin/proteasome system. Thus, our data suggest that nopaline strains of Agrobacterium have evolved to encode a functional F-box protein VirF.
Slit2N Inhibits Transmission of HIV-1 from Dendritic Cells to T-cells by Modulating Novel Cytoskeletal Elements
Authors: Shrivastava Ashutosh , Prasad Anil , Kuzontkoski Paula M. , Yu Jinlong , Groopman Jerome E. 
Published: November 2015

AbstractDendritic cells are among the first cells to encounter sexually acquired human immunodeficiency virus (HIV-1), in the mucosa and they can transmit HIV-1 to CD4+ T-cells via an infectious synapse. Recent studies reveal that actin-rich membrane extensions establish direct contact between cells at this synapse and facilitate virus transmission. Genesis of these contacts involves signaling through c-Src and Cdc42, which modulate actin polymerization and filopodia formation via the Arp2/3 complex and Diaphanous 2 (Diaph2). We found that Slit2N, a ligand for the Roundabout (Robo) receptors, blocked HIV-1-induced signaling through Arp2/3 and Diaph2, decreased filopodial extensions on dendritic cells and inhibited cell-to-cell transmission of HIV-1 in a Robo1-dependent manner. Employing proteomic analysis, we identified Flightless-1 as a novel, Robo1-interacting protein. Treatment with shRNAs reduced levels of Flightless-1 and demonstrated its role in efficient cell-to-cell transfer of HIV-1. These results suggest a novel strategy to limit viral infection in the host by targeting the Slit/Robo pathway with modulation of cytoskeletal elements previously unrecognized in HIV-1 transmission.
An Efficient Site-Specific Method for Irreversible Covalent Labeling of Proteins with a Fluorophore
Authors: Liu Jiaquan , Hanne Jeungphill , Britton Brooke M. , Shoffner Matthew , Albers Aaron E. , Bennett Jared , Zatezalo Rachel , Barfield Robyn , Rabuka David , Lee Jong-Bong , Fishel Richard 
Published: November 2015

AbstractFluorophore labeling of proteins while preserving native functions is essential for bulk Förster resonance energy transfer (FRET) interaction and single molecule imaging analysis. Here we describe a versatile, efficient, specific, irreversible, gentle and low-cost method for labeling proteins with fluorophores that appears substantially more robust than a similar but chemically distinct procedure. The method employs the controlled enzymatic conversion of a central Cys to a reactive formylglycine (fGly) aldehyde within a six amino acid Formylglycine Generating Enzyme (FGE) recognition sequence in vitro. The fluorophore is then irreversibly linked to the fGly residue using a Hydrazinyl-Iso-Pictet-Spengler (HIPS) ligation reaction. We demonstrate the robust large-scale fluorophore labeling and purification of E.coli (Ec) mismatch repair (MMR) components. Fluorophore labeling did not alter the native functions of these MMR proteins in vitro or in singulo. Because the FGE recognition sequence is easily portable, FGE-HIPS fluorophore-labeling may be easily extended to other proteins.
Resequencing of the common marmoset genome improves genome assemblies and gene-coding sequence analysis
Authors: Sato Kengo , Kuroki Yoko , Kumita Wakako , Fujiyama Asao , Toyoda Atsushi , Kawai Jun , Iriki Atsushi , Sasaki Erika , Okano Hideyuki , Sakakibara Yasubumi 
Published: November 2015

AbstractThe first draft of the common marmoset (Callithrix jacchus) genome was published by the Marmoset Genome Sequencing and Analysis Consortium. The draft was based on whole-genome shotgun sequencing and the current assembly version is Callithrix_jacches-3.2.1, but there still exist 187,214 undetermined gap regions and supercontigs and relatively short contigs that are unmapped to chromosomes in the draft genome. We performed resequencing and assembly of the genome of common marmoset by deep sequencing with high-throughput sequencing technology. Several different sequence runs using Illumina sequencing platforms were executed and 181 Gbp of high-quality bases including mate-pairs with long insert lengths of 3, 8, 20 and 40 Kbp were obtained, that is, approximately 60× coverage. The resequencing significantly improved the MGSAC draft genome sequence. The N50 of the contigs, which is a statistical measure used to evaluate assembly quality, doubled. As a result, 51% of the contigs (total length: 299 Mbp) that were unmapped to chromosomes in the MGSAC draft were merged with chromosomal contigs and the improved genome sequence helped to detect 5,288 new genes that are homologous to human cDNAs and the gaps in 5,187 transcripts of the Ensembl gene annotations were completely filled.
Evolution of opercle shape in cichlid fishes from Lake Tanganyika - adaptive trait interactions in extant and extinct species flocks
Authors: Wilson Laura A. B. , Colombo Marco , Sánchez-Villagra Marcelo R. , Salzburger Walter 
Published: November 2015

AbstractPhenotype-environment correlations and the evolution of trait interactions in adaptive radiations have been widely studied to gain insight into the dynamics underpinning rapid species diversification. In this study we explore the phenotype-environment correlation and evolution of operculum shape in cichlid fishes using an outline-based geometric morphometric approach combined with stable isotope indicators of macrohabitat and trophic niche. We then apply our method to a sample of extinct saurichthyid fishes, a highly diverse and near globally distributed group of actinopterygians occurring throughout the Triassic, to assess the utility of extant data to inform our understanding of ecomorphological evolution in extinct species flocks. A series of comparative methods were used to analyze shape data for 54 extant species of cichlids (N = 416) and 6 extinct species of saurichthyids (N = 44). Results provide evidence for a relationship between operculum shape and feeding ecology, a concentration in shape evolution towards present along with evidence for convergence in form and significant correlation between the major axes of shape change and measures of gut length and body elongation. The operculum is one of few features that can be compared in extant and extinct groups, enabling reconstruction of phenotype-environment interactions and modes of evolutionary diversification in deep time.
Self-regulation of charged defect compensation and formation energy pinning in semiconductors
Authors: Yang Ji-Hui , Yin Wan-Jian , Park Ji-Sang , Wei Su-Huai 
Published: November 2015

AbstractCurrent theoretical analyses of defect properties without solving the detailed balance equations often estimate Fermi-level pinning position by omitting free carriers and assume defect concentrations can be always tuned by atomic chemical potentials. This could be misleading in some circumstance. Here we clarify that: (1) Because the Fermi-level pinning is determined not only by defect states but also by free carriers from band-edge states, band-edge states should be treated explicitly in the same footing as the defect states in practice; (2) defect formation energy, thus defect density, could be pinned and independent on atomic chemical potentials due to the entanglement of atomic chemical potentials and Fermi energy, in contrast to the usual expectation that defect formation energy can always be tuned by varying the atomic chemical potentials; and (3) the charged defect compensation behavior, i.e., most of donors are compensated by acceptors or vice versa, is self-regulated when defect formation energies are pinned. The last two phenomena are more dominant in wide-gap semiconductors or when the defect formation energies are small. Using NaCl and CH3NH3PbI3 as examples, we illustrate these unexpected behaviors. Our analysis thus provides new insights that enrich the understanding of the defect physics in semiconductors and insulators.
Design and Synthesis of Near-infrared Fluorescent Probes for Imaging of Biological Nitroxyl
Authors: Tan Yi , Liu Ruochuan , Zhang Huatang , Peltier Raoul , Lam Yun-Wah , Zhu Qing , Hu Yi , Sun Hongyan 
Published: November 2015

AbstractNitroxyl (HNO), the reduced and protonated form of nitric oxide (NO), has recently been identified as an interesting and important signaling molecule in biological systems. However, research on its biosynthesis and bioactivities are hampered by the lack of versatile HNO detection methods applicable to living cells. In this report, two new near-infrared (NIR) probes were designed and synthesized for HNO imaging in living cells. One of the probes was found to display high sensitivity towards HNO, with up to 67-fold of fluorescence increment after reaction with HNO. The detection limit was determined to be as low as 0.043 μM. The probe displayed high selectivity towards HNO over other biologically related species including metal ions, reactive oxygen species, reactive nitrogen species and reactive sulfur species. Furthermore, the probe was shown to be suitable for imaging of exogenous and endogenous HNO in living cells. Interestingly, the probe was found to be mainly localized in lysosomes. We envision that the new NIR probe described here will serve as a useful tool for further elucidation of the intricate roles of HNO in living cells.
Bede’s horologium: Observational Astronomy and the Problem of the Equinoxes in Early Medieval Europe (c.700–1100)
Authors: Nothaft C. Philipp E. 
Published: November 2015

Abstract
This essay aims to establish the Venerable Bede’s place in the history of medieval astronomy by examining certain frequently cited passages that suggest that he and other monks in early eighth-century Northumbria measured the date of the vernal equinox by means of a sundial or horologium. These references must be located in the context of ongoing controversies between the ‘Roman’ and ‘Celtic’ parties in the British Isles, who followed diverging conventions for calculating the time of Easter and located the vernal equinox on different dates. While it is indeed possible to identify instruments and methods that may have served Bede in supporting his case for the ‘Roman’ equinox on 21 March, the historical significance of his appeals to horologica consideratio lies primarily in their reception by subsequent authors, who took from Bede the notion that observation was a legitimate way of validating computistical doctrines. This line of influence culminated in the frequently overlooked work of William of Hirsau (before 1069), who employed innovative observational techniques to establish new conventions for the dates of the equinoxes and solstices, thus providing us with a crucial link between the early medieval computus tradition and the assimilation of Arabic astronomical knowledge during the eleventh and twelfth centuries.