bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Visual memory and sustained attention impairment in youths with autism spectrum disorders
Authors: Chien Y.-L. , Gau S. S.-F. , Shang C.-Y. , Chiu Y.-N. , Tsai W.-C. , Wu Y.-Y 
Published: July 2015

BackgroundAn uneven neurocognitive profile is a hallmark of autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Studies focusing on the visual memory performance in ASD have shown controversial results. We investigated visual memory and sustained attention in youths with ASD and typically developing (TD) youths.MethodWe recruited 143 pairs of youths with ASD (males 93.7%; mean age 13.1, s.d. 3.5 years) and age- and sex-matched TD youths. The ASD group consisted of 67 youths with autistic disorder (autism) and 76 with Asperger's disorder (AS) based on the DSM-IV criteria. They were assessed using the Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery involving the visual memory [spatial recognition memory (SRM), delayed matching to sample (DMS), paired associates learning (PAL)] and sustained attention (rapid visual information processing; RVP).ResultsYouths with ASD performed significantly worse than TD youths on most of the tasks; the significance disappeared in the superior intelligence quotient (IQ) subgroup. The response latency on the tasks did not differ between the ASD and TD groups. Age had significant main effects on SRM, DMS, RVP and part of PAL tasks and had an interaction with diagnosis in DMS and RVP performance. There was no significant difference between autism and AS on visual tasks.ConclusionsOur findings implied that youths with ASD had a wide range of visual memory and sustained attention impairment that was moderated by age and IQ, which supports temporal and frontal lobe dysfunction in ASD. The lack of difference between autism and AS implies that visual memory and sustained attention cannot distinguish these two ASD subtypes, which supports DSM-5 ASD criteria.
Towards a genealogy of ‘society’ in International Relations
Authors: BARTELSON JENS 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe concept of society and its cognates have long been widely invoked in order to understand International Relations. Theories of international society distinguish between a society of states and a mere system of states, and theories of world society assume that the world constitutes a single social space. In order to come to terms with the social character of International Relations, constructivists of different stripes have invoked a societal context within which the construction of identities and norms takes place. As I shall argue in this article, these usages draw on conceptions of society that emerged during the early phases of modern sociology, and have then been projected onto alien historical and cultural contexts. In order to avoid the anachronism and Eurocentrism that invariably have resulted from these uncritical usages, I argue that academic International Relations should seek to accommodate those forms of human association that cannot be subsumed under a recognisably modern concept of society by incorporating insights from postcolonial sociology into its theoretical core.
Uniformity of fuel target implosion in heavy ion fusion
Authors: Kawata S. , Noguchi K. , Suzuki T. , Karino T. , Barada D. , Ogoyski A.I. , Ma Y.Y. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractIn inertial confinement fusion the target implosion non-uniformity is introduced by a driver beams’ illumination non-uniformity, a fuel target alignment error in a fusion reactor, the target fabrication defect, etc. For a steady operation of a fusion power plant the target implosion should be robust against the implosion non-uniformities. In this paper the requirement for the implosion uniformity is first discussed. The implosion uniformity should be less than a few percent. A study on the fuel hotspot dynamics is also presented and shows that the stagnating plasma fluid provides a significant enhancement of vorticity at the final stage of the fuel stagnation. Then non-uniformity mitigation mechanisms of the heavy-ion beam (HIB) illumination are also briefly discussed in heavy ion inertial fusion (HIF). A density valley appears in the energy absorber, and the large-scale density valley also works as a radiation energy confinement layer, which contributes to a radiation energy smoothing. In HIF a wobbling HIB illumination was also introduced to realize a uniform implosion. In the wobbling HIBs illumination, the illumination non-uniformity oscillates in time and space on a HIF target. The oscillating-HIB energy deposition may contribute to the reduction of the HIBs’ illumination non-uniformity by its smoothing effect on the HIB illumination non-uniformity and also by a growth mitigation effect on the Rayleigh–Taylor instability.
Characteristics of target polarization by laser ablation
Authors: Krása J. , Delle Side D. , Giuffreda E. , Nassisi V. 
Published: July 2015

AbstractExperimental results are obtained concerning the target polarization, which aptly characterizes the laser ablation. The charge separation in the laser-produced plasma, structure of the ion front, and the current of fast electrons expanding into the vacuum chamber ahead of ions are of crucial importance for the interpretation of multi-peak structure of target currents appearing much later than the laser pulse. Of particular interest is the correlation between the partial maxima in the time-resolved target current and the square root of mass number of ionized species. The late-time negative charging of targets provides evidence for production of very slow ions by ionization of neutrals ablated at the target crater by radiation from plasma produced by 23 ns excimer krypton fluoride laser.
COUNTABLE STATE MARKOV PROCESSES: NON-EXPLOSIVENESS AND MOMENT FUNCTION
Authors: Spieksma F.M. 
Published: July 2015

The existence of a moment function satisfying a drift function condition is well known to guarantee non-explosiveness of the associated minimal Markov process (cf. [1,9]), under standard technical conditions. Surprisingly, the reverse is true as well for a countable space Markov process. We prove this result by showing that recurrence of an associated jump process, that we call the α-jump process, is equivalent to non-explosiveness. Non-explosiveness corresponds in a natural way to the validity of the Kolmogorov integral relation for the function identically equal to 1. In particular, we show that positive recurrence of the α-jump chain implies that all bounded functions satisfy the Kolmogorov integral relation. We present a drift function criterion characterizing positive recurrence of this α-jump chain.Suppose that to a drift functionVthere corresponds another drift functionW, which is a moment with respect toV. Via a transformation argument, the above relations hold for the transformed process with respect toV. Transferring the results back to the original process, allows to characterize theV-bounded functions that satisfy the Kolmogorov forward equation.
All of London's a stage: the 1943 County of London Plan Exhibition
Authors: AMATI MARCO , FREESTONE ROBERT 
Published: July 2015

ABSTRACT:The post-war reconstruction era was marked by numerous planning exhibitions which provide a window on the contemporary nature of communication and consultation in planning practice. The 1943 Exhibition of the County of London Plan prepared by J.H. Forshaw and Patrick Abercrombie was a major event with the king and queen making a high-profile visit. This article describes the making of the exhibition, considers its content, design and historical significance and reflects on its importance as a high water mark in the culture of twentieth-century town planning promotion generally and exhibition culture specifically. Archival research reveals how the London County Council (LCC) negotiated for resources from the central government and the local boroughs in hosting and organizing the event and how crucial these negotiations were in its eventual staging, marketing and impact.
Influence of personal choices on lexical variability in referring expressions
Authors: HERVÁS RAQUEL , ARROYO JAVIER , FRANCISCO VIRGINIA , PEINADO FEDERICO , GERVÁS PABLO 
Published: July 2015

AbstractVariability is inherent in human language as different people make different choices when facing the same communicative act. In Natural Language Processing, variability is a challenge. It hinders some tasks such as evaluation of generated expressions, while it constitutes an interesting resource to achieve naturalness and to avoid repetitiveness. In this work, we present a methodological approach to study the influence of lexical variability. We apply this approach to TUNA, a corpus of referring expression lexicalizations, in order to study the use of different lexical choices. First, we reannotate the TUNA corpus with new information about lexicalization, and then we analyze this reannotation to study how people lexicalize referring expressions. The results show that people tend to be consistent when generating referring expressions. But at the same time, different people also share certain preferences.
The Internal Structure of Macroporous Membranes and Transport of Surface-Modified Nanoparticles
Authors: Lee Sang J. , Kim Kiwoong , Ahn Sungsook 
Published: July 2015

AbstractUnderstanding the morphological structure of membranes is essential to improve performance of membrane-based applications. In this paper, macroporous membranes were investigated and two methods introduced as an alternative for characterization of stereo-structure of the membranes. We combined the use of synchrotron X-ray nanotomography and small-angle X-ray scattering to examine the internal structure of cellulose acetate membranes with studies of the capture of surface-modified gold nanoparticles within these membranes. Finally, the morphological structures of macroporous membranes were visualized and their relationships with penetration tendency of surface-modified gold nanoparticles were explained.
Simultaneous Observation of Cells and Nuclear Tracks from the Boron Neutron Capture Reaction by UV-C Sensitization of Polycarbonate
Authors: Portu Agustina , Rossini Andrés Eugenio , Thorp Silvia Inés , Curotto Paula , Pozzi Emiliano César Cayetano , Granell Pablo , Golmar Federico , Cabrini Rómulo Luis , Martin Gisela Saint 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe distribution of boron in tissue samples coming from boron neutron capture therapy protocols can be determined through the analysis of its autoradiography image on a nuclear track detector. A more precise knowledge of boron atom location on the microscopic scale can be attained by the observation of nuclear tracks superimposed on the sample image on the detector. A method to produce an “imprint” of cells cultivated on a polycarbonate detector was developed, based on the photodegradation properties of UV-C radiation on this material. Optimal conditions to generate an appropriate monolayer of Mel-J cells incubated with boronophenylalanine were found. The best images of both cells and nuclear tracks were obtained for a neutron fluence of 1013cm−2, 6 h UV-C (254 nm) exposure, and 4 min etching time with a KOH solution. The imprint morphology was analyzed by both light and scanning electron microscopy. Similar samples, exposed to UV-A (360 nm) revealed no cellular imprinting. Etch pits were present only inside the cell imprints, indicating a preferential boron uptake (about threefold the incubation concentration). Comparative studies of boron absorption in different cell lines andin vitroevaluation of the effect of diverse boron compounds are feasible with this methodology.
First record of Norwegian killer whales attacking and feeding on a harbour porpoise
Authors: Cosentino A. Mel 
Published: July 2015

Orcinus orcais a cosmopolitan species and the most widely distributed marine mammal. Its diet includes over 140 species of fish, cephalopods, sea birds and marine mammals. However, many populations are specialised on certain specific prey items. Three genetically distinct populations have been described in the North Atlantic. Population A (that includes the Icelandic and Norwegian sub-populations) is believed to be piscivorous, as is population C, which includes fish-eating killer whales from the Strait of Gibraltar. In contrast, population B feeds on both fish and marine mammals. Norwegian killer whales follow the Norwegian spring spawning herring stock. The only description in the literature of Norwegian killer whales feeding on another cetacean species is a predation event on northern bottlenose whales in 1968. Daily land-based surveys targeting sperm whales were conducted from the Andenes lighthouse using BigEyes®binoculars (25×, 80 mm). The location of animals at sea was approximated through the use of an internal reticule system and a graduated wheel. On 24 June 2012 at 3:12 am, an opportunistic sighting of 11 killer whales was made off Andenes harbour. The whales hunted and fed on a harbour porpoise. Despite these species having overlapping distributions in Norwegian waters, this is the first predatory event reported in the literature.
Targeting neddylation induces DNA damage and checkpoint activation and sensitizes chronic lymphocytic leukemia B cells to alkylating agents
Authors: Paiva C , Godbersen J C , Berger A , Brown J R , Danilov A V 
Published: July 2015

AbstractMicroenvironment-mediated upregulation of the B-cell receptor (BCR) and nuclear factor-κB (NF-κB) signaling in CLL cells resident in the lymph node and bone marrow promotes apoptosis evasion and clonal expansion. We recently reported that MLN4924 (pevonedistat), an investigational agent that inhibits the NEDD8-activating enzyme (NAE), abrogates stromal-mediated NF-κB pathway activity and CLL cell survival. However, the NAE pathway also assists degradation of multiple other substrates. MLN4924 has been shown to induce DNA damage and cell cycle arrest, but the importance of this mechanism in primary neoplastic B cells has not been studied. Here we mimicked the lymph node microenvironment using CD40 ligand (CD40L)-expressing stroma and interleukin-21 (IL-21) to find that inducing proliferation of the primary CLL cells conferred enhanced sensitivity to NAE inhibition. Treatment of the CD40-stimulated CLL cells with MLN4924 resulted in deregulation of Cdt1, a DNA replication licensing factor, and cell cycle inhibitors p21 and p27. This led to DNA damage, checkpoint activation and G2 arrest. Alkylating agents bendamustine and chlorambucil enhanced MLN4924-mediated DNA damage and apoptosis. These events were more prominent in cells stimulated with IL-21 compared with CD40L alone, indicating that, following NAE inhibition, the culture conditions were able to direct CLL cell fate from an NF-κB inhibition to a Cdt1 induction program. Our data provide insight into the biological consequences of targeting NAE in CLL and serves as further rationale for studying the clinical activity of MLN4924 in CLL, particularly in combination with alkylating agents.
Alpha-Synuclein affects neurite morphology, autophagy, vesicle transport and axonal degeneration in CNS neurons
Authors: Koch J C , Bitow F , Haack J , d'Hedouville Z , Zhang J-N , Tönges L , Michel U , Oliveira L M A , Jovin T M , Liman J , Tatenhorst L , Bähr M , Lingor P 
Published: July 2015

AbstractMany neuropathological and experimental studies suggest that the degeneration of dopaminergic terminals and axons precedes the demise of dopaminergic neurons in the substantia nigra, which finally results in the clinical symptoms of Parkinson disease (PD). The mechanisms underlying this early axonal degeneration are, however, still poorly understood. Here, we examined the effects of overexpression of human wildtype alpha-synuclein (αSyn-WT), a protein associated with PD, and its mutant variantsαSyn-A30P and -A53T on neurite morphology and functional parameters in rat primary midbrain neurons (PMN). Moreover, axonal degeneration after overexpression ofαSyn-WT and -A30P was analyzed by live imaging in the rat optic nervein vivo. We found that overexpression ofαSyn-WT and of its mutants A30P and A53T impaired neurite outgrowth of PMN and affected neurite branching assessed by Sholl analysis in a variant-dependent manner. Surprisingly, the number of primary neurites per neuron was increased in neurons transfected withαSyn. Axonal vesicle transport was examined by live imaging of PMN co-transfected with EGFP-labeled synaptophysin. Overexpression of allαSyn variants significantly decreased the number of motile vesicles and decelerated vesicle transport compared with control. Macroautophagic flux in PMN was enhanced byαSyn-WT and -A53T but not byαSyn-A30P. Correspondingly, colocalization ofαSyn and the autophagy marker LC3 was reduced forαSyn-A30P compared with the otherαSyn variants. The number of mitochondria colocalizing with LC3 as a marker for mitophagy did not differ among the groups. In the rat optic nerve, bothαSyn-WT and -A30P accelerated kinetics of acute axonal degeneration following crush lesion as analyzed byin vivolive imaging. We conclude thatαSyn overexpression impairs neurite outgrowth and augments axonal degeneration, whereas axonal vesicle transport and autophagy are severely altered.
Multiple sclerosis: getting personal with induced pluripotent stem cells
Authors: Di Ruscio A , Patti F , Welner R S , Tenen D G , Amabile G 
Published: July 2015

AbstractHuman induced pluripotent stem (iPS) cells can be derived from lineage-restricted cells and represent an important tool to develop novel patient-specific cell therapies and research models for inherited and acquired diseases. Recently, patient-derived iPS cells, containing donor genetic background, have offered a breakthrough approach to study human genetics of neurodegenerative diseases. By offering an unlimited source of patient-specific disease-relevant cells, iPS cells hold great promise for understanding disease mechanisms, identifying molecular targets and developing phenotypic screens for drug discovery. This review will discuss the potential impact of using iPS cell-derived models in multiple sclerosis (MS) research and highlight some of the current challenges and prospective for generating novel therapeutic treatments for MS patients.
Estrogen receptor α regulates non-canonical autophagy that provides stress resistance to neuroblastoma and breast cancer cells and involves BAG3 function
Authors: Felzen V , Hiebel C , Koziollek-Drechsler I , Reißig S , Wolfrum U , Kögel D , Brandts C , Behl C , Morawe T 
Published: July 2015

AbstractBreast cancer is a heterogeneous disease and approximately 70% of newly diagnosed breast cancers are estrogen receptor (ER) positive. Out of the two ER types, α and β, ERα is the only ER that is detectable by immunohistochemistry in breast cancer biopsies and is the predominant subtype expressed in breast tumor tissue. ER-positive tumors are currently treated with anti-hormone therapy to inhibit ER signaling. It is well known that breast cancer cells can develop endocrine resistance and resistance to anti-hormone therapy and this can be facilitated via the autophagy pathway, but so far the description of a detailed autophagy expression profile of ER-positive cancer cells is missing. In the present study, we characterized tumor cell lines ectopically expressing ERα or ERβ as well as the breast cancer-derived MCF-7 cell line endogenously expressing ERα but being ERβ negative. We could show that ERα-expressing cells have a higher autophagic activity than cells expressing ERβ and cells lacking ER expression. Additionally, for autophagy-related gene expression we describe an ERα-specific ‘autophagy-footprint’ that is fundamentally different to tumor cells expressing ERβ or lacking ER expression. This newly described ERα-mediated and estrogen response element (ERE)-independent non-canonical autophagy pathway, which involves the function of the co-chaperone Bcl2-associated athanogene 3 (BAG3), is independent of classical mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR) and phosphatidylinositol 3 kinase (PI3K) signaling networks and provides stress resistance in our model systems. Altogether, our study uncovers a novel non-canonical autophagy pathway that might be an interesting target for personalized medicine and treatment of ERα-positive breast cancer cells that do not respond to anti-hormone therapy and classical autophagy inhibitors.
Single-cell imaging of inflammatory caspase dimerization reveals differential recruitment to inflammasomes
Authors: Sanders M G , Parsons M J , Howard A G A , Liu J , Fassio S R , Martinez J A , Bouchier-Hayes L 
Published: July 2015

AbstractThe human inflammatory caspases, including caspase-1, -4, -5 and -12, are considered as key regulators of innate immunity protecting from sepsis and numerous inflammatory diseases. Caspase-1 is activated by proximity-induced dimerization following recruitment to inflammasomes but the roles of the remaining inflammatory caspases in inflammasome assembly are unclear. Here, we use caspase bimolecular fluorescence complementation to visualize the assembly of inflammasomes and dimerization of inflammatory caspases in single cells. We observed caspase-1 dimerization induced by the coexpression of a range of inflammasome proteins and by lipospolysaccharide (LPS) treatment in primary macrophages. Caspase-4 and -5 were only dimerized by select inflammasome proteins, whereas caspase-12 dimerization was not detected by any investigated treatment. Strikingly, we determined that certain inflammasome proteins could induce heterodimerization of caspase-1 with caspase-4 or -5. Caspase-5 homodimerization and caspase-1/-5 heterodimerization was also detected in LPS-primed primary macrophages in response to cholera toxin subunit B. The subcellular localization and organization of the inflammasome complexes varied markedly depending on the upstream trigger and on which caspase or combination of caspases were recruited. Three-dimensional imaging of the ASC (apoptosis-associated speck-like protein containing a caspase recruitment domain)/caspase-1 complexes revealed a large spherical complex of ASC with caspase-1 dimerized on the outer surface. In contrast, NALP1 (NACHT leucine-rich repeat protein 1)/caspase-1 complexes formed large filamentous structures. These results argue that caspase-1, -4 or -5 can be recruited to inflammasomes under specific circumstances, often leading to distinctly organized and localized complexes that may impact the functions of these proteases.
Rapid neodymium release to marine waters from lithogenic sediments in the Amazon estuary
Authors: Rousseau Tristan C. C. , Sonke Jeroen E. , Chmeleff Jérôme , van Beek Pieter , Souhaut Marc , Boaventura Geraldo , Seyler Patrick , Jeandel Catherine 
Published: July 2015

AbstractRare earth element (REE) concentrations and neodymium isotopic composition (ɛNd) are tracers for ocean circulation and biogeochemistry. Although models suggest that REE release from lithogenic sediment in river discharge may dominate all other REE inputs to the oceans, the occurrence, mechanisms and magnitude of such a source are still debated. Here we present the first simultaneous observations of dissolved (<0.45 μm), colloidal and particulate REE and ɛNd in the Amazon estuary. A sharp drop in dissolved REE in the low-salinity zone is driven by coagulation of colloidal matter. At mid-salinities, total dissolved REE levels slightly increase, while ɛNd values are shifted from the dissolved Nd river endmember (−8.9) to values typical of river suspended matter (−10.6). Combining a Nd isotope mass balance with apparent radium isotope ages of estuarine waters suggests a rapid (3 weeks) and globally significant Nd release by dissolution of lithogenic suspended sediments.