bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Roles of brain and muscle ARNT‐like 1 and Wnt antagonist Dkk1 during osteogenesis of bone marrow stromal cells
Authors: He Y. , Chen Y. , Zhao Q. , Tan Z. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractObjectivesMany studies have demonstrated that the clock gene, brain and muscle ARNT‐like 1 (Bmal1), is directly related to bone ageing by affecting age‐related changes to mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs). As a main developmental signal, Wnt may play an important role in this process. Here, we have aimed to elucidate whether Bmal1 positively regulates osteogenesi via Wnt pathways.Materials and methodsBone marrow stromal cells were cultured in basic and in osteo‐induction medium with Wnt signalling inhibitor Dkk1 and Bmal1 transfection. Proliferation and osteogenesis of MSCs, expression of Bmal1 and activation of Wnt signalling were investigated by flow cytometry, senescence‐associated β‐galactosidase (SA‐β‐gal) staining, real‐time quantitative PCR and western blot analysis.ResultsExpression of Bmal1 (specially after 7 days osteo‐induction), activation of Wnt signalling and osteo‐related factors fell significantly during osteo‐induction after Dkk1 addition. When cellular Bmal1 was increased by transfection, osteogenesis inhibition by Dkk1 was rescued to a certain extent with activation of Wnt signalling. However, Dkk1 did not significantly affect proliferation or senescence of MSCs during early periods of culture.ConclusionThese findings demonstrated that Bmal1 and Wnt signalling may have a synergistic effect at a particular stage of osteogenesis. Inhibition of Wnt signalling did not greatly affect ageing of MSCs through early passages.
Behavioural sensitivity to binaural spatial cues in ferrets: evidence for plasticity in the duplex theory of sound localization
Authors: Keating Peter , Nodal Fernando R. , King Andrew J. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractFor over a century, the duplex theory has guided our understanding of human sound localization in the horizontal plane. According to this theory, the auditory system uses interaural time differences (ITDs) and interaural level differences (ILDs) to localize low‐frequency and high‐frequency sounds, respectively. Whilst this theory successfully accounts for the localization of tones by humans, some species show very different behaviour. Ferrets are widely used for studying both clinical and fundamental aspects of spatial hearing, but it is not known whether the duplex theory applies to this species or, if so, to what extent the frequency range over which each binaural cue is used depends on acoustical or neurophysiological factors. To address these issues, we trained ferrets to lateralize tones presented over earphones and found that the frequency dependence of ITD and ILD sensitivity broadly paralleled that observed in humans. Compared with humans, however, the transition between ITD and ILD sensitivity was shifted toward higher frequencies. We found that the frequency dependence of ITD sensitivity in ferrets can partially be accounted for by acoustical factors, although neurophysiological mechanisms are also likely to be involved. Moreover, we show that binaural cue sensitivity can be shaped by experience, as training ferrets on a 1‐kHz ILD task resulted in significant improvements in thresholds that were specific to the trained cue and frequency. Our results provide new insights into the factors limiting the use of different sound localization cues and highlight the importance of sensory experience in shaping the underlying neural mechanisms.
Site‐specific effects of gastrin‐releasing peptide in the suprachiasmatic nucleus
Authors: Kallingal George J. , Mintz Eric M. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractThe effects of gastrin‐releasing peptide (GRP) on the circadian clock in the suprachiasmatic nucleus (SCN) are dependent on the activation of N‐methyl‐d‐aspartate (NMDA) receptors in the SCN. In this study, the interaction between GRP, glutamate and serotonin in the regulation of circadian phase in Syrian hamsters was evaluated. Microinjection of GRP into the third ventricle induced c‐fos and p‐ERK expression throughout the SCN. Coadministration of an NMDA antagonist or 8‐hydroxy‐2‐di‐n‐propylamino‐tetralin [a serotonin (5‐HT)1A,7 agonist, DPAT] with GRP limited c‐fos expression in the SCN to a region dorsal to GRP cell bodies. Similar to the effects of NMDA antagonists, DPAT attenuated GRP‐induced phase shifts in the early night, suggesting that the actions of serotonin on the photic phase shifting mechanism occur downstream from retinorecipient cells. c‐fos and p‐ERK immunoreactivity in the supraoptic (SON) and paraventricular hypothalamic nuclei also increased following ventricular microinjection of GRP. Because of this finding, a second set of experiments was designed to test a potential role for the SON in the regulation of clock function. Syrian hamsters were given microinjections of GRP into the peri‐SON during the early night. GRP‐induced c‐fos activity in the SCN was similar to that following ventricular administration of GRP. GRP or bicuculline (a γ‐aminobutyric acidA antagonist) administered near the SON during the early night elicited phase delays of circadian activity rhythms. These data suggest that GRP‐induced phase‐resetting is dependent on levels of glutamatergic and serotonergic neurotransmission in the SCN and implicate activity in the SON as a potential regulator of photic signaling in the SCN.
Medication Usage Patterns for Headache Treatment After Mild Traumatic Brain Injury
Authors: DiTommaso Craig , Hoffman Jeanne M. , Lucas Sylvia , Dikmen Sureyya , Temkin Nancy , Bell Kathleen R. 
Published: October 2013

ObjectiveTo describe patient self‐report of headache treatment in the first year following mild traumatic brain injury (TBI).BackgroundAn understanding of appropriate management of symptoms after mild TBI is crucial for improving acute care and long‐term outcomes. This is particularly true for post‐traumatic headaches as recent studies suggest that headaches after mild TBI are common with multiple phenotypes. In addition, symptoms such as headache after mild TBI are often managed by primary care providers without specialty training, and often in medically underserved areas. Outside of previous opinion papers, few studies have guided the treatment or examined the effectiveness of the interventions for post‐traumatic headache.MethodsOne hundred sixty‐seven participants admitted to a level 1 trauma hospital with mild TBI who were prospectively enrolled and reported new or worse headache at 3, 6, or 12 months after injury.ResultsParticipants were primarily male (75%), white (75%), injured in vehicle crashes (62%), and had completed high school (83%). The majority of headaches met International Classification of Headache Disorders – 2nd edition criteria for migraine/probable migraine, followed by tension‐type headache. Despite the diverse nature of headaches, more than 70% of those with headache at each time period used acetaminophen or a nonsteroidal anti‐inflammatory drug for headache control. Only 8% of those with the migraine/probable migraine phenotype used triptans. Of those individuals who used medication, 26% of those with migraine/probable migraine phenotype and 70% of those with tension headache phenotype endorsed complete relief (vs partial or no relief) because of medication use. The majority of individuals with tension headache reported never taking medication.ConclusionsHeadaches after mild TBI are frequent and are not optimally treated. Results suggest that many individuals with mild TBI may be self‐treating their headaches by utilizing over‐the‐counter pain relief medications. These medications, however, are only providing effective treatment for a minority of this population. Further research must be conducted to develop evidence‐guided treatment and educate providers.
Therapeutic reversal of chronic alcohol‐related steatohepatitis with the ceramide inhibitor myriocin
Authors: Tong Ming , Longato Lisa , Ramirez Teresa , Zabala Valerie , Wands Jack R. , de la Monte Suzanne M. 
Published: October 2013

SummaryAlcohol‐related liver disease (ALD) is associated with steatohepatitis and insulin resistance. Insulin resistance impairs growth and disrupts lipid metabolism in hepatocytes. Dysregulated lipid metabolism promotes ceramide accumulation and oxidative stress, leading to lipotoxic states that activate endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress pathways and worsen inflammation and insulin resistance. In a rat model of chronic alcohol feeding, we characterized the effects of a ceramide inhibitor, myriocin, on the histopathological and ultrastructural features of steatohepatitis, and the biochemical and molecular indices of hepatic steatosis, insulin resistance and ER stress. Myriocin reduced the severity of alcohol‐related steatohepatitis including the abundance and sizes of lipid droplets and mitochondria, inflammation and architectural disruption of the ER. In addition, myriocin‐mediated reductions in hepatic lipid and ceramide levels were associated with constitutive enhancement of insulin signalling through the insulin receptor and IRS‐2, reduced hepatic oxidative stress and modulation of ER stress signalling mechanisms. In conclusion, ceramide accumulation in liver mediates tissue injury, insulin resistance and lipotoxicity in ALD. Reducing hepatic ceramide levels can help restore the structural and functional integrity of the liver in chronic ALD due to amelioration of insulin resistance and ER stress. However, additional measures are needed to protect the liver from alcohol‐induced necroinflammatory responses vis‐à‐vis continued alcohol abuse.
Frequency, pattern, and extent of skin diseases in relation to CD4+ cell count among adults with human immunodeficiency virus infection or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome in Osogbo, southwestern Nigeria
Authors: Akinboro Adeolu Oladayo , Onayemi Olaniyi , Mejiuni Ayodele D. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractBackgroundSkin diseases characterize all stages of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection and acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (AIDS) and contribute significantly to associated morbidity and mortality.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to document the prevalences, patterns, and extents (severity) of skin diseases and their relationships with immunologic status in HIV/AIDS patients.MethodsA total of 140 HIV/AIDS patients in different stages of HIV infection and 140 controls were recruited. Skin diseases were documented and CD4+ cell counts determined in all subjects. Severity was assessed according to the body surface area affected (using the Wallace rule of nines and the rule of palm) for lesions that tended to be widespread. The number of digits involved was counted for lesions involving the nails. Intensity of pain was graded for specific conditions such as herpes zoster. Chi‐squared statistics and Pearson correlations were determined.ResultsMean ± standard deviation age was 35.04 ± 8.83 years in the patient group and 32.21 ± 8.30 years in the control group. The prevalences and patterns of skin diseases in HIV/AIDS patients were similar to those reported in previous studies. Most commonly found dermatoses were oral candidiasis (n = 28, 20.0%), pruritic papular eruption (n = 27, 19.3%), xeroderma (n = 23, 16.4%), dermatophytosis (n = 22, 15.7%), and fluffy hair (n = 19, 13.6%). The presence of specific skin lesions represented a better correlate with immunosuppression than cutaneous extents. However, the extents of viral warts and multiple blue–black nails correlated significantly with CD4+ cell count. The presence of a lighter hair color phenotype signifies a lower CD4+ cell count than a softer hair phenotype.ConclusionsThe presence of specific skin lesions correlates more strongly with a low CD4+ cell count than does the extent of their distribution, except in cases of viral warts. The presence of and higher numbers of nails affected with blue–black nail hyperpigmentation suggest severe immunosuppression.
Music, identity, and musical ethnocentrism of young people in sixAsian,LatinAmerican, andWestern cultures
Authors: Boer Diana , Fischer Ronald , González Atilano Ma Luisa , de Garay Hernández Jimena , Moreno García Luz Irene , Mendoza Socorro , Gouveia Valdiney V. , Lam Jason , Lo Eva 
Published: October 2013

AbstractEthnomusicologists and sociologists have extensively discussed the symbolic role of music in the creation, maintenance, and expression of cultural and national identity, while the underlying social psychological processes remain unexplored. We elaborate psychological mechanisms of identity construction and identity expression through culture‐specific music preferences. We propose and test a model linking music preferences to national identity via musical ethnocentrism in six student samples fromBrazil,Germany,HongKong,Mexico,NewZealand, and thePhilippines. In each context, culture‐specific music styles were related to national identity of its listeners and musical ethnocentrism mediated these effects. This paper bridges culture‐specific and universal perspectives on music and identity by examining the underlying psychological processes inAsian,Latin, andWestern cultures.
Low Prolactin Is Associated with Sexual Dysfunction and Psychological or Metabolic Disturbances in Middle-Aged and Elderly Men: The European Male Aging Study (EMAS)
Authors: Corona Giovanni , Wu Frederick C. , Rastrelli Giulia , Lee David M. , Forti Gianni , O'Connor Daryl B. , O'Neill Terence W. , Pendleton Neil , Bartfai Gyorgy , Boonen Steven , Casanueva Felipe F. , Finn Joseph D. , Huhtaniemi Ilpo T. , Kula Krzysztof , Punab Margus , Vanderschueren Dirk , Rutter Martin K. , Maggi Mario 
Published: October 2013

Abstract

Introduction
We previously reported that in male patients consulting for sexual dysfunction, low prolactin (PRL) levels were associated with metabolic syndrome (MetS), arteriogenic erectile dysfunction, and incident major cardiovascular events.

Aim
The aim of this study is to assess the clinical associations of PRL levels in the European Male Ageing Study (EMAS).

Methods
EMAS is a prospective, observational cohort of community-dwelling men aged 40–79 years old (mean age 60 ± 11 years old). PRL was available for 2,948 men.

Main Outcome Measures
Different parameters were evaluated including the Short Form-36 questionnaire, Becks Depression Inventory, the Adverse Life Events Scale, the Physical Activity Scale for the Elderly, and the EMAS sexual function questionnaire (EMAS-SFQ).

Results
After the adjustment for confounders, PRL levels were inversely related with worsening of sexual function as compared with the previous year, as derived from change in sexual functioning domain of the EMAS-SFQ (adj. r = −0.043; P = 0.029). The strongest correlation (Wald = 6.840; P = 0.009) was observed between lower PRL levels and reduced enjoyment of orgasmic experiences. Furthermore, an inverse relationship between PRL levels and stressful life events or depressive symptoms was observed. Low PRL was also negatively associated with an unhealthy metabolic phenotype as well as with the MetS (Wald = 5.229; P = 0.022). In line with these data, low PRL was associated with a lower level of physical activity and feeling unhealthier.

Conclusions
Low PRL is related to several metabolic, psychological, and sexual unhealthy characteristics in European men. Checking PRL might be useful to stratify men for cardiovascular risk and to encourage appropriate lifestyle changes.
Does competition for pollinators contribute to structuring Erica communities?
Authors: Heystek A. , Pauw A. 
Published: October 2013

AbstractQuestionPollinators are often implicated in the origin of plant species, but their role during the assembly of diverse plant communities has only rarely been investigated. Intra‐specific competition for pollinators can theoretically facilitate plant species co‐occurrence by limiting the density of any one species, while inter‐specific competition can potentially structure communities through the exclusion of inferior competitors. We analyse plant community composition and use field experiments to test whether intra‐ and inter‐specific competition for pollinators structures communities of co‐occurring Erica species.LocationCape Floral Region, southwestern South Africa (ca. 34° S, 18° E).Methods and ResultsIn the study area, the genus Erica has diversified into ca. 680 species that differ primarily in their floral morphologies, reflecting insect, bird and wind pollination syndromes. Vegetation plot data from nine regions throughout the Fynbos Biome were used to test whether the frequency of co‐occurrence of species with the same pollination syndrome differs from a null model of random community assembly. We found that Erica communities were assembled randomly with respect to pollination in six regions, but that pollination syndrome co‐occurrence was significantly lower than expected in three regions. This over‐dispersion of syndromes across communities is consistent with communities being structured by inter‐specific competition for pollinators. To better understand the processes generating these patterns, we conducted competition experiments with six Erica species that share the Orange‐breasted sunbird (Anthobaphes violacea) as pollinator. We transplanted inflorescences of a focal Erica species into communities containing another resident Orange‐breasted sunbird bird‐pollinated Erica species and recorded pollination and nectar robbing rates in both the resident and the transplanted species in relation to the floral density of the resident species. Consistent with the observed community structure, pollination rate in both the resident and the introduced species declined with increasing density of the resident species, but the effect was not consistent among all populations. Nectar robbing rates of the resident species were negatively related to its own density.ConclusionOur analyses concur that both intra‐ and inter‐specific competition for pollination can contribute to structuring plant communities, but it is not the dominant factor structuring Erica communities.
Diet of mussels Mytilus trossulus and Dreissena polymorpha in a brackish nontidal environment
Authors: Lauringson Velda , Kotta Jonne , Orav‐Kotta Helen , Kaljurand Kaire 
Published: October 2013

AbstractBenthic suspension feeders have traditionally been considered an important link between pelagic and benthic food webs in shallow seas. Their ecological impact depends highly on the removal rate of pelagic production from the water column. Besides phytoplankton, benthic suspension feeders can feed on microphytobenthos and detritus suspended in the water column by wind‐waves or tidal forces. The share of the pelagic component in the diet of benthic suspension feeders is poorly studied in the non‐tidal environment. We examined the diatom food items of two bivalve species, Mytilus trossulus Gould and Dreissena polymorpha Pallas, at four shallow locations in the Gulf of Riga basin, in the Baltic Sea, differing in hydrographic characteristics. The share of pennate benthic diatoms was always higher in mussel food than in ambient water, whereas pelagic species were under‐represented. Mussels never consumed the dominant genera that were in the water column, Cylindrotheca and Leptocylindrus. There were no differences in the main food source between the two mussel species. Our results suggest that the impact of benthic suspension feeders on pelagic foodwebs and their role in promoting benthic–pelagic coupling is of a minor importance in the study area, whereas the impact on benthic food webs may be mainly by the re‐arrangement of energy within benthic pathways.
Complex formation and processing of the minor transformation pilins of Bacillus subtilis
Authors: Mann Jessica M. , Carabetta Valerie J. , Cristea Ileana M. , Dubnau David 
Published: October 2013

SummaryTransformation in most bacteria is dependent on orthologues of Type 2 secretion and Type 4 pilus system proteins. In each system, pilin proteins (major and minor) are required to make the pilus structure and are essential to the process, although the precise roles of the minor pilins remain unclear. We have explored protein–protein interactions among the competence minor pilins of Bacillus subtilis through in vitro binding studies, immunopurification and mass spectrometry. We demonstrate that the minor pilins directly interact, and the minor pilin ComGG interacts with most of the known proteins required for transformation. We find that ComGG requires other ComG proteins for its stabilization and for processing by the pre‐pilin peptidase. These observations, C‐terminal mutations in ComGG that prevent processing and the inaccessibility of pre‐ComGG to externally added protease suggest a model in which pre‐ComGG must be associated with other minor pilins for processing to take place. We propose that ComGG does not become a transmembrane protein until after processing. These behaviours contrast with that of pre‐ComGC, the major pilin, which is accessible to externally added protease and requires only the peptidase to be processed. The roles of the pilins and of the pilus in transformation are discussed.
Essential role of the plasmidhik31operon in regulating central metabolism in the dark inSynechocystissp.PCC6803
Authors: Nagarajan Sowmya , Srivastava Sanvesh , Sherman Louis A. 
Published: October 2013

SummaryThe plasmidhik31operon (P3, slr6039‐slr6041) is located on thepSYSXplasmid inSynechocystissp.PCC6803. AP3 mutant (ΔP3) had a growth defect in the dark and a pigment defect that was worsened by the addition of glucose. The glucose defect was from incomplete metabolism of the substrate, was pH dependent, and completely overcome by the addition of bicarbonate. Addition of organic carbon and nitrogen sources partly alleviated the defects of the mutant in the dark. Electron micrographs of the mutant revealed larger cells with division defects, glycogen limitation, lack of carboxysomes, deteriorated thylakoids and accumulation of polyhydroxybutyrate and cyanophycin. A microarray experiment over two days of growth in light‐dark plus glucose revealed downregulation of several photosynthesis, amino acid biosynthesis, energy metabolism genes; and an upregulation of cell envelope and transport and binding genes in the mutant. ΔP3had an imbalance in carbon and nitrogen levels and many sugar catabolic and cell division genes were negatively affected after the first dark period. The mutant suffered from oxidative and osmotic stress, macronutrient limitation, and an energy deficit. Therefore, theP3 operon is an important regulator of central metabolism and cell division in the dark.