bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
SUCCESS FACTORS FOR INTERNATIONAL HTA PROJECTS: EVALUATING EUnetHTA JOINT ACTION AS AN EXEMPLAR
Authors: Guegan Eleanor Woodford , Cook Andrew 
Published: March 2015

Objectives: Evaluation is essential for the management of international projects or networks in health technology assessment (HTA). It extends beyond the normal process of project management by incorporating qualitative dimensions and provides information about a project's effectiveness and achievements. This article aimed to identify the factors that are important for the success of international HTA projects. The European network for Health Technology Assessment Joint Action (EUnetHTA JA) is presented as an exemplar.Methods: Methods for the evaluation of international HTA projects include interviews, focus groups, questionnaires, observations and documentary review, and the key points of these approaches have been summarized. The impact and effectiveness of the EUnetHTA JA was evaluated by questionnaires of project participants and external stakeholders, and by documentary review.Results: The response rate for the three annual questionnaires sent to project participants ranged from 86 percent to 88 percent and for external stakeholders ranged from 65 percent to 88 percent. Key factors for project success included production of deliverables according to the workplan, achievement of objectives, added value generated, effective communication, involvement of external stakeholders, workstream management and progress from the preceding EUnetHTA 2006–2008 project.Conclusions: The experience of this project can inform the evaluation of future international HTA collaborations, such as the EUnetHTA 2nd Joint Action and HTAsiaLink. A high response rate was achieved to the self-completion questionnaires and the strategy followed is recommended for evaluation of international HTA projects. Future assessments of international HTA projects should strive to measure outcomes and impact, not just outputs and process.
IS THE PLANNED AND ONGOING PROJECT (POP) DATABASE A SUITABLE TOOL TO REDUCE DUPLICATION IN THE PROCESS OF ASSESSING NEW HEALTH TECHNOLOGIES IN THE EUROPEAN UNION? PRELIMINARY EXPERIENCE IN THE CONTEXT OF THE EUNETHTA JOINT ACTION PROJECT FRAMEWORK (2010–2012)
Authors: Vondeling Hindrik , Sandvei Marianne 
Published: March 2015

Objectives: The European Network for Health Technology Assessment (EUnetHTA) Joint Action Project Framework, 2010–12, Work Package 7B (WP 7B), was aimed at facilitating collaboration between HTA agencies to avoid duplication of assessment efforts. A major task of WP 7B was to collect information on planned and ongoing (POP) projects by EUnetHTA agencies and to incorporate this information in a POP Database. We analyzed whether the Database served its intended purpose.Methods: A survey was sent to all fifty-seven EUnetHTA partners, complemented by telephone interviews with the Ludwig Boltzmann Institute of HTA in Austria (lead institution). Furthermore, detailed documentation on the activities of the POP Database was provided to the research team at CAST (University of Southern Denmark) by the lead institution.Results: Forty-two of fifty-seven agencies (74 percent) responded to the survey. Eleven collaborations initiated by agencies themselves were reported. The scope of these collaborative activities was usually limited to information exchange on for example literature search protocols. A slight reduction of duplication of effort was documented. In addition, twelve collaborations at the full report level were initiated by the lead institution.Conclusion: While the POP Database has the potential to reduce duplication of effort, this has not been realized during the 3-year period of the EUnetHTA Joint Action Project Framework, 2010–12. Further evidence needs to be gathered to determine whether the POP Database is effective and whether the benefits outweigh the resources required to maintain it.
The effect of water stress on the temperature range for germination ofOrobanche aegyptiacaseeds
Authors: Kebreab Ermias , Murdoch Alistair J. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractNon-dormant seeds ofOrobanche aegyptiacawere incubated at water potentials of 0 to –1.33 MPa and at constant temperatures from 5 to 29°C. Effects of water potential and temperature on final germination were modelled. In general, germination increased with increased temperature from 5 to 20°C and decreased above 26°C. Maximum germination occurred at 20–26°C and 0 MPa. Germination was reduced as the water potential decreased. Water potential also affected the temperature range over which high germination was observed; at 0 MPa high germination occurred over 9° (17–26°C) compared with 3° at -1.25 MPa (17–20°C). The optimum germination temperature also tended to decrease with a decrease in water potential. Final germination could be accounted for by seed-to-seed variation in the population assuming that each seed had a minimum temperature for germination and a maximum temperature above which it would not germinate. Seed-to-seed variation in these characteristics was assumed to be normally distributed, and it was further assumed that the two characteristics were independent. Effects of water potential on these temperature requirements were quantified, and the resulting empirical model accounted for final germination with reasonable accuracy (R2= 0.96).
Mass Gathering Medicine: A Review
Authors: De Lorenzo Robert A. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThe provision for emergency medical care for spectators and participants at large events is a growing area of interest. This article describes the definition and characteristics of medical care at mass gatherings. The literature is reviewed with regard to the planning, organization, personnel, and staffing required at these events. The equipment and transportation assets needed are also discussed. Disaster and mass casualty planning implications also are described.
MicroRNA-146a regulates ICOS–ICOSL signalling to limit accumulation of T follicular helper cells and germinal centres
Authors: Pratama Alvin , Srivastava Monika , Williams Naomi J. , Papa Ilenia , Lee Sau K. , Dinh Xuyen T. , Hutloff Andreas , Jordan Margaret A. , Zhao Jimmy L. , Casellas Rafael , Athanasopoulos Vicki , Vinuesa Carola G. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractTight control of T follicular helper (Tfh) cells is required for optimal maturation of the germinal centre (GC) response. The molecular mechanisms controlling Tfh-cell differentiation remain incompletely understood. Here we show that microRNA-146a (miR-146a) is highly expressed in Tfh cells and peak miR-146a expression marks the decline of the Tfh response after immunization. Loss of miR-146a causes cell-intrinsic accumulation of Tfh and GC B cells. MiR-146a represses several Tfh-cell-expressed messenger RNAs, and of these, ICOS is the most strongly cell autonomously upregulated target in miR-146a-deficient T cells. In addition, miR-146a deficiency leads to increased ICOSL expression on GC B cells and antigen-presenting cells. Partial blockade of ICOS signalling, either by injections of low dose of ICOSL blocking antibody or by halving the gene dose of Icos in miR-146a-deficient T cells, prevents the Tfh and GC B-cell accumulation. Collectively, miR-146a emerges as a post-transcriptional brake to limit Tfh cells and GC responses.
Chromatin organization at the nuclear pore favours HIV replication
Authors: Lelek Mickaël , Casartelli Nicoletta , Pellin Danilo , Rizzi Ermanno , Souque Philippe , Severgnini Marco , Di Serio Clelia , Fricke Thomas , Diaz-Griffero Felipe , Zimmer Christophe , Charneau Pierre , Di Nunzio Francesca 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThe molecular mechanisms that allow HIV to integrate into particular sites of the host genome are poorly understood. Here we tested if the nuclear pore complex (NPC) facilitates the targeting of HIV integration by acting on chromatin topology. We show that the integrity of the nuclear side of the NPC, which is mainly composed of Tpr, is not required for HIV nuclear import, but that Nup153 is essential. Depletion of Tpr markedly reduces HIV infectivity, but not the level of integration. HIV integration sites in Tpr-depleted cells are less associated with marks of active genes, consistent with the state of chromatin proximal to the NPC, as analysed by super-resolution microscopy. LEDGF/p75, which promotes viral integration into active genes, stabilizes Tpr at the nuclear periphery and vice versa. Our data support a model in which HIV nuclear import and integration are concerted steps, and where Tpr maintains a chromatin environment favourable for HIV replication.
Paper and Flexible Substrates as Materials for Biosensing Platforms to Detect Multiple Biotargets
Authors: Shafiee Hadi , Asghar Waseem , Inci Fatih , Yuksekkaya Mehmet , Jahangir Muntasir , Zhang Michael H. , Durmus Naside Gozde , Gurkan Umut Atakan , Kuritzkes Daniel R. , Demirci Utkan 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThe need for sensitive, robust, portable and inexpensive biosensing platforms is of significant interest in clinical applications for disease diagnosis and treatment monitoring at the point-of-care (POC) settings. Rapid, accurate POC diagnostic assays play a crucial role in developing countries, where there are limited laboratory infrastructure, trained personnel and financial support. However, current diagnostic assays commonly require long assay time, sophisticated infrastructure and expensive reagents that are not compatible with resource-constrained settings. Although paper and flexible material-based platform technologies provide alternative approaches to develop POC diagnostic assays for broad applications in medicine, they have technical challenges integrating to different detection modalities. Here, we address the limited capability of current paper and flexible material-based platforms by integrating cellulose paper and flexible polyester films as diagnostic biosensing materials with various detection modalities through the development and validation of new widely applicable electrical and optical sensing mechanisms using antibodies and peptides. By incorporating these different detection modalities, we present selective and accurate capture and detection of multiple biotargets including viruses (Human Immunodeficieny Virus-1), bacteria (Escherichia coli and Staphylococcus aureus) and cells (CD4+ T lymphocytes) from fingerprick volume equivalent of multiple biological specimens such as whole blood, plasma and peritoneal dialysis effluent with clinically relevant detection and sensitivity.
Mice lacking the cerebral cortex develop normal song: Insights into the foundations of vocal learning
Authors: Hammerschmidt Kurt , Whelan Gabriela , Eichele Gregor , Fischer Julia 
Published: March 2015

AbstractMouse models play an increasingly important role in the identification and functional assessment of speech-associated genes, with a focus on genes involved in vocal production and possibly vocal learning. Moreover, mice reportedly show direct projections from the cortex to brainstem vocal motor neurons, implying a degree of volitional control over vocal output. Yet, deaf mice did not reveal differences in call structures compared to their littermates, suggesting that auditory input is not a prerequisite for the development of species-specific sounds. To elucidate the importance of cortical structures for the development of mouse ultrasonic vocalizations (USVs) in more detail, we studied Emx1-CRE;Esco2fl/fl mice, which lack the hippocampus and large parts of the cortex. We conducted acoustic analyses of the USVs of 28 pups during short-term isolation and 23 adult males during courtship encounters. We found no significant differences in the vocalizations of Emx1-CRE;Esco2fl/fl mice and only minor differences in call type usage in adult mice, compared to control littermates. Our findings question the notion that cortical structures are necessary for the production of mouse USVs. Thus, mice might be less suitable to study the mechanisms supporting vocal learning than previously assumed, despite their value for studying the genetic foundations of neurodevelopment more generally.
3D Pharmacophoric Similarity improves Multi Adverse Drug Event Identification in Pharmacovigilance
Authors: Vilar Santiago , Tatonetti Nicholas P. , Hripcsak George 
Published: March 2015

AbstractAdverse drugs events (ADEs) detection constitutes a considerable concern in patient safety and public health care. For this reason, it is important to develop methods that improve ADE signal detection in pharmacovigilance databases. Our objective is to apply 3D pharmacophoric similarity models to enhance ADE recognition in Offsides, a pharmacovigilance resource with drug-ADE associations extracted from the FDA Adverse Event Reporting System (FAERS). We developed a multi-ADE predictor implementing 3D drug similarity based on a pharmacophoric approach, with an ADE reference standard extracted from the SIDER database. The results showed that the application of our 3D multi-type ADE predictor to the pharmacovigilance data in Offsides improved ADE identification and generated enriched sets of drug-ADE signals. The global ROC curve for the Offsides ADE candidates ranked with the 3D similarity score showed an area of 0.7. The 3D predictor also allows the identification of the most similar drug that causes the ADE under study, which could provide hypotheses about mechanisms of action and ADE etiology. Our method is useful in drug development, screening potential adverse effects in experimental drugs and in drug safety, applicable to the evaluation of ADE signals selected through pharmacovigilance data mining.
A Novel Mechanism for Small Heat Shock Proteins to Function as Molecular Chaperones
Authors: Zhang Kaiming , Ezemaduka Anastasia N. , Wang Zhao , Hu Hongli , Shi Xiaodong , Liu Chuang , Lu Xinping , Fu Xinmiao , Chang Zengyi , Yin Chang-Cheng 
Published: March 2015

AbstractSmall heat shock proteins (sHSPs) are molecular chaperones ubiquitously present in all forms of life, but their function mechanisms remain controversial. Here we show by cryo-electron microscopy and single particle 3D reconstruction that, at the low temperatures (4–25°C), CeHSP17 (a sHSP from Caenorhabditis elegans) exists as a 24-subunit spherical oligomer with tetrahedral symmetry. Our studies demonstrate that CeHSP17 forms large sheet-like super-molecular assemblies (SMAs) at the high temperatures (45–60°C) and such SMAs are apparently the form that exhibits chaperone-like activity. Our findings suggest a novel molecular mechanism for sHSPs to function as molecular chaperones.
Submarine fresh groundwater discharge into Laizhou Bay comparable to the Yellow River flux
Authors: Wang Xuejing , Li Hailong , Jiao Jiu Jimmy , Barry D. A. , Li Ling , Luo Xin , Wang Chaoyue , Wan Li , Wang Xusheng , Jiang Xiaowei , Ma Qian , Qu Wenjing 
Published: March 2015

AbstractNear- and off-shore fresh groundwater resources become increasingly important with the social and economic development in coastal areas. Although large scale (hundreds of km) submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) to the ocean has been shown to be of the same magnitude order as river discharge, submarine fresh groundwater discharge (SFGD) with magnitude comparable to large river discharge is never reported. Here, we proposed a method coupling mass-balance models of water, salt and radium isotopes based on field data of 223Ra, 226Ra and salinity to estimate the SFGD, SGD. By applying the method in Laizhou Bay (a water area of ~6000 km2), we showed that the SFGD and SGD are 0.57 ~ 0.88 times and 7.35 ~ 8.57 times the annual Yellow River flux in August 2012, respectively. The estimate of SFGD ranges from 4.12 × 107 m3/d to 6.36 × 107 m3/d, while SGD ranges from 5.32 × 108 m3/d to 6.20 × 108 m3/d. The proportion of the Yellow River input into Laizhou Bay was less than 14% of the total in August 2012. Our method can be used to estimate SFGD in various coastal waters.
Lipid droplets hypertrophy: a crucial determining factor in insulin regulation by adipocytes
Authors: Sanjabi Bahram , Dashty Monireh , Özcan Behiye , Akbarkhanzadeh Vishtaseb , Rahimi Mehran , Vinciguerra Manlio , van Rooij Felix , Al-Lahham Saad , Sheedfar Fareeba , van Kooten Theo G. , Spek C. Arnold , Rowshani Ajda T. , van der Want Johannes , Klaassen Rene , Sijbrands Eric , Peppelenbosch Maikel P. , Rezaee Farhad 
Published: March 2015

AbstractLipid droplets (LDs) hypertrophy in adipocytes is the main cause of energy metabolic system dysfunction, obesity and its afflictions such as T2D. However, the role of adipocytes in linking energy metabolic disorders with insulin regulation is unknown in humans. Human adipocytes constitutively synthesize and secrete insulin, which is biologically functional. Insulin concentrations and release are fat mass- and LDs-dependent respectively. Fat reduction mediated by bariatric surgery repairs obesity-associated T2D. The expression of genes, like PCSK1 (proinsulin conversion enzyme), GCG (Glucagon), GPLD1, CD38 and NNAT, involved in insulin regulation/release were differentially expressed in pancreas and adipose tissue (AT). INS (insulin) and GCG expression reduced in human AT-T2D as compared to AT-control, but remained unchanged in pancreas in either state. Insulin levels (mRNA/protein) were higher in AT derived from prediabetes BB rats with destructed pancreatic β-cells and controls than pancreas derived from the same rats respectively. Insulin expression in 10 human primary cell types including adipocytes and macrophages is an evidence for extrapancreatic insulin-producing cells. The data suggest a crosstalk between AT and pancreas to fine-tune energy metabolic system or may minimize the metabolic damage during diabetes. This study opens new avenues towards T2D therapy with a great impact on public health.
Defining the light emitting area for displays in the unipolar regime of highly efficient light emitting transistors
Authors: Ullah Mujeeb , Armin Ardalan , Tandy Kristen , Yambem Soniya D. , Burn Paul L. , Meredith Paul , Namdas Ebinazar B. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractLight-emitting field effect transistors (LEFETs) are an emerging class of multifunctional optoelectronic devices. It combines the light emitting function of an OLED with the switching function of a transistor in a single device architecture. The dual functionality of LEFETs has the potential applications in active matrix displays. However, the key problem of existing LEFETs thus far has been their low EQEs at high brightness, poor ON/OFF and poorly defined light emitting area - a thin emissive zone at the edge of the electrodes. Here we report heterostructure LEFETs based on solution processed unipolar charge transport and an emissive polymer that have an EQE of up to 1% at a brightness of 1350 cd/m2, ON/OFF ratio > 104 and a well-defined light emitting zone suitable for display pixel design. We show that a non-planar hole-injecting electrode combined with a semi-transparent electron-injecting electrode enables to achieve high EQE at high brightness and high ON/OFF ratio. Furthermore, we demonstrate that heterostructure LEFETs have a better frequency response (fcut-off = 2.6 kHz) compared to single layer LEFETs. The results presented here therefore are a major step along the pathway towards the realization of LEFETs for display applications.
Variations of gastric corpus microbiota are associated with early esophageal squamous cell carcinoma and squamous dysplasia
Authors: Nasrollahzadeh Dariush , Malekzadeh Reza , Ploner Alexander , Shakeri Ramin , Sotoudeh Masoud , Fahimi Saman , Nasseri-Moghaddam Siavosh , Kamangar Farin , Abnet Christian C. , Winckler Björn , Islami Farhad , Boffetta Paolo , Brennan Paul , Dawsey Sanford M. , Ye Weimin 
Published: March 2015

AbstractObservational studies revealed a relationship between changes in gastric mucosa and risk of esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) which suggested a possible role for gastric microbiota in ESCC carcinogenesis. In this study we aimed to compare pattern of gastric corpus microbiota in ESCC with normal esophagus. Cases were included subjects with early ESCC (stage I–II) and esophageal squamous dysplasia (ESD) as the cancer precursor. Control groups included age and sex-matched subjects with mid-esophagus esophagitis (diseased-control) and histologically normal esophagus (healthy-control). DNA was extracted from snap-frozen gastric corpus tissues and 16S rRNA was sequenced on GS-FLX Titanium. After noise removal, an average of 3004 reads per sample was obtained from 93 subjects. We applied principal coordinate analysis to ordinate distances from beta diversity data. Pattern of gastric microbiota using Unifrac (p = 0.004) and weighted Unifrac distances (p = 0.018) statistically varied between cases and healthy controls. Sequences were aligned to SILVA database and Clostridiales and Erysipelotrichales orders were more abundant among cases after controling for multiple testing (p = 0.011). No such difference was observed between mid-esophagitis and healthy controls. This study is the first to show that composition of gastric corpus mucosal microbiota differs in early ESCC and ESD from healthy esophagus.
Perturbation theory of a superconducting 0 − π impurity quantum phase transition
Authors: Žonda M. , Pokorný V. , Janiš V. , Novotný T. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractA single-level quantum dot with Coulomb repulsion attached to two superconducting leads is studied via the perturbation expansion in the interaction strength. We use the Nambu formalism and the standard many-body diagrammatic representation of the impurity Green functions to formulate the Matsubara self-consistent perturbation expansion. We show that at zero temperature second order of the expansion in its spin-symmetric version yields a nearly perfect agreement with the numerically exact calculations for the position of the 0 − π phase boundary at which the Andreev bound states reach the Fermi energy as well as for the values of single-particle quantities in the 0-phase. We present results for phase diagrams, level occupation, induced local superconducting gap, Josephson current and energy of the Andreev bound states with the precision surpassing any (semi)analytical approaches employed thus far.
Surface properties of atomically flat poly-crystalline SrTiO3
Authors: Woo Sungmin , Jeong Hoidong , Lee Sang A. , Seo Hosung , Lacotte Morgane , David Adrian , Kim Hyun You , Prellier Wilfrid , Kim Yunseok , Choi Woo Seok 
Published: March 2015

AbstractComparison between single- and the poly-crystalline structures provides essential information on the role of long-range translational symmetry and grain boundaries. In particular, by comparing single- and poly-crystalline transition metal oxides (TMOs), one can study intriguing physical phenomena such as electronic and ionic conduction at the grain boundaries, phonon propagation and various domain properties. In order to make an accurate comparison, however, both single- and poly-crystalline samples should have the same quality, e.g., stoichiometry, crystallinity, thickness, etc. Here, by studying the surface properties of atomically flat poly-crystalline SrTiO3 (STO), we propose an approach to simultaneously fabricate both single- and poly-crystalline epitaxial TMO thin films on STO substrates. In order to grow TMOs epitaxially with atomic precision, an atomically flat, single-terminated surface of the substrate is a prerequisite. We first examined (100), (110) and (111) oriented single-crystalline STO surfaces, which required different annealing conditions to achieve atomically flat surfaces, depending on the surface energy. A poly-crystalline STO surface was then prepared at the optimum condition for which all the domains with different crystallographic orientations could be successfully flattened. Based on our atomically flat poly-crystalline STO substrates, we envision expansion of the studies regarding the TMO domains and grain boundaries.