bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Biochemical Characterization of Purified Esterase from Soybean (Glycine max) Seed
Authors: de Barros Márcio , Macedo Gabriela Alves 
Published: December 2014

AbstractAlkaline esterase (carboxylic‐ester hydrolases; EC 3.1.1.1) extracted from germinated soybean seeds (Glycine max) was purified approximately 3.6 times by chromatography in a DEAE‐cellulose anion exchange column and filtration in Sephadex G100 gel. The molecular mass of the enzyme was estimated at 45 kDa by gel electrophoresis (SDS‐PAGE). The purified enzyme showed a specific activity of 5.6 U mg−1 using p‐nitrophenyl butyrate as substrate. The esterase showed optimal activity at 47 °C in moderately alkaline pH, low stability in temperatures higher than 50 °C, and high stability at pH values between 6 and 9.5. The Ca2+ and Co2+ ions proved to have a positive effect on enzyme activity; however, Hg2+ completely inhibited esterase activity. Using p‐nitrophenyl butyrate as substrate, the enzyme showed a Km of 0.39 mM, Vmax of 31.5 mM mg−1 min−1 and kcat 7.60 × 106 s−1. Regarding substrate affinity, the enzyme showed greater activity for substrates containing short‐chain fatty acids, especially p‐nitrophenyl acetate. Such characteristics give the enzyme great potential for application in the production of low molecular weight esters, in the food industry, and in chemical products. This enzyme is another new member of the family of lipases and esterases from vegetable seeds with high activity and stability in alkaline pH.
Operational and strategic information processing: Complementing healthcare IT infrastructure
Authors: Gardner John W. , Boyer Kenneth K. , Gray John V. 
Published: December 2014

AbstractHealthcare information technologies (HIT) have been promoted as key enablers of improved patient safety, reduced medical errors, and increased patient satisfaction but have yielded mixed results. Drawing upon information processing theory and quality management concepts, we examine HIT infrastructure simultaneously with two distinct means of processing information: (1) operational use of error data for detecting and reducing hospital errors, and (2) strategic use of objective data for organizational planning. We use time‐sequenced data to examine HIT infrastructure (secondary data in 2008), information processing mechanisms (primary survey data from 258 hospitals in 2009), and two measures of hospital performance: (1) care quality, and (2) patient satisfaction (secondary data in 2010). Using hierarchical regression analysis we find that whether and how investments in HIT infrastructure are complemented by information processing mechanisms depends upon the performance measure under consideration and the form of information processing employed. Specifically, operational error processing complements HIT infrastructure in its association with higher care quality but not with patient satisfaction. In comparison, higher levels of strategic information processing complement HIT infrastructure in its association with higher patient satisfaction.
Short telomere length in peripheral blood leukocyte predicts poor prognosis and indicates an immunosuppressive phenotype in gastric cancer patients
Authors: Qu Falin , Li Renli , He Xianli , Li Qiucheng , Xie Shuang , Gong Li , Ji Gang , Lu Jianguo , Bao Guoqiang 
Published: December 2014

Compelling evidences indicate that relative telomere length (RTL) in peripheral blood leukocytes (PBLs) can predict the clinical outcome of several cancers. However, to date, the prognostic value of leukocyte RTL in gastric cancer (GC) patients has not been explored. In this study, relative telomere length (RTL) in peripheral blood leukocytes (PBLs) was measured using a real‐time PCR‐based method in a total of 693 GC patients receiving surgical resection. The prognostic value of leukocyte RTL was first explored in the training set (112 patients) using Kaplan–Meier and Cox proportional hazards regression analyses. Then an independent cohort of 581 patients was used as a validation set. To explore potential mechanism, we detected the immunophenotypes of peripheral blood mononuclear cells and plasma concentrations of several cytokines in GC patients. Patients with short RTL showed significantly worse overall survival (OS) and relapse‐free survival (RFS) than those with long RTL in all patient sets. Furthermore, leukocyte RTL and TNM stage exhibited a notable joint effect in prognosis prediction. Integration of TNM stage and leukocyte RTL significantly improved the prognosis prediction efficacy for GC. In addition, we found that patients with short RTL had a higher CD4+ T cell percentage in PBMCs, CD19+IL‐10+ Breg percentage in B cells and plasma IL‐10 concentration, indicating an enhanced immunosuppressive status with short leukocyte RTL. In conclusion, our study for the first time demonstrates that leukocyte RTL is an independent prognostic marker complementing TNM stage and associated with an immunosuppressive phenotype in the peripheral blood lymphocytes in GC patients.
Macro-Economic Cycles Related to Climate change in Dynastic China
Authors: Wei Zhudeng , Rosen Arlene M. , Fang Xiuqi , Su Yun , Zhang Xuezhen 
Published: December 2014

AbstractInvestigations of the relationships between climate and human history often place more emphasis on the science of climate change than on understanding human socio-economic processes, and therefore suffer from superficial results and an unbalanced perspective. This is partly due to the lack of high-resolution data concerning long-term socio-economic processes. Here, we base our study of climate and society on a series of 2130-yr-long economic proxy data from China with decadal resolution. The economy was associated significantly with temperature and precipitation at the two predominant bands of 100 and 320 yr. The phase transition of economic states was influenced positively by long-term temperature change combined with triggering effects of short-term changes in precipitation. However, climatic impact on economy should not be recognized as simple causality but some driving-response relation coupled with meditation by human agency at multiple scales. A model of ‘adaptive cycles’ implies, in relative to the developing phases, climate–economy relationship during the declining phases was more easily moderated by slower processes like rigidity and faster processes like unrest. From a more-macro perspective, climatic driving for the macro-economic cycles was moderated by larger and slower processes like social memory, spatial shifting of key economic areas, and social–technical advance.
Optimal laser intensity profiles for a uniform target illumination in direct-drive inertial confinement fusion
Authors: Temporal Mauro , Canaud Benoit , Garbett Warren J. , Ramis Rafael 
Published: December 2014

Abstract
A numerical method providing the optimal laser intensity profiles for a direct-drive inertial confinement fusion scheme has been developed. The method provides an alternative approach to phase-space optimization studies, which can prove computationally expensive. The method applies to a generic irradiation configuration characterized by an arbitrary number

$N_{B}$

of laser beams provided that they irradiate the whole target surface, and thus goes beyond previous analyses limited to symmetric configurations. The calculated laser intensity profiles optimize the illumination of a spherical target. This paper focuses on description of the method, which uses two steps: first, the target irradiation is calculated for initial trial laser intensities, and then in a second step the optimal laser intensities are obtained by correcting the trial intensities using the calculated illumination. A limited number of example applications to direct drive on the Laser MegaJoule (LMJ) are described.
The bearable gooeyness of swimming
Authors: Lauga Eric 
Published: December 2014

AbstractUnderstanding biolocomotion in fluids has long been a focus of fluid dynamicists. One method to quantify the impact of environmental stresses on locomotion is to systematically change the mechanical properties of the surrounding medium, and measure how that change influences swimming kinematics and energetics. In a recently published investigation, Gagnon et al. (J. Fluid Mech., vol. 758, 2014, R3) employ that approach to investigate the locomotion of the nematode Caenorhabditis elegans in complex fluids. Specifically, they characterize experimentally how the presence of shear-thinning rheology influences the flow around the organism and its swimming ability. Surprisingly, while they measure an important change to the flow structure around the organism, they find no change in its waving motion and the speed at which it is able to swim. While ‘gooeyness’ is a universal feature of natural biological and environmental media, C. elegans seems to find it perfectly bearable.
GLP-1 receptor agonists have a sustained stimulatory effect on corticosterone release after chronic treatment
Authors: Krass Maarja , Volke Annika , Rünkorg Kertu , Wegener Gregers , Lund Sten , Abildgaard Anders , Vasar Eero , Volke Vallo 
Published: December 2014

ObjectiveGlucagon-like peptide 1 (GLP-1) receptor agonists are a new group of antidiabetic medications quickly gaining popularity. We aimed to examine behavioural and neuroendocrine changes following chronic treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists in animal models.MethodsThe effects of chronic treatment with GLP-1 receptor agonists were determined on behavioural parameters [anxiety level in the light–dark compartment test, the motor activity in automated activity cages, immobility in the forced swimming test (FST)] and on corticosterone release in mice. The possible antidepressant effect of chronic liraglutide treatment was also studied in Flinders Sensitive Line (FSL) rats, a genetic model of depression.ResultsTwo weeks of treatment with exenatide (10 µg /kg twice daily) or liraglutide (1200 µg/kg once daily) did not affect the anxiety level in a light–dark compartment test nor induce an antidepressant-like effect in the FST in mice. Moreover, chronic treatment with liraglutide had no effect on depression-related behaviour in FSL rats. Interestingly, hypolocomotion induced by the drugs in mice disappeared after chronic dosing. Both of the GLP-1 receptor agonists induced robust increases in corticosterone levels in mice under basal conditions as well as in the case of combination with swimming stress. Remarkably, exenatide was as potent a stimulator of corticosterone release after 2 weeks as after acute administration.ConclusionsThe increases in corticosterone release seen after acute exenatide or liraglutide treatment do not abate after 2 weeks of treatment demonstrating that tolerance does not develop towards this particular effect of GLP-1 agonists.
Contribution of nociceptin/orphanin FQ receptors to the anti-nociceptive and hypothermic effects of dipyrone
Authors: Ertin Ismet Hande , Gunduz Ozgur , Ulugol Ahmet 
Published: December 2014

BackgroundDipyrone is one of the most commonly used non-opioid analgesic and antipyretic drug. Its anti-nociceptive and hypothermic effects have long been suspected to be centrally mediated. The involvement of the most recently discovered opioid peptide, nociceptin/orphanin FQ (N/OFQ), and its receptor (NOP) in pain transmission is controversial. It appears to be pro-nociceptive when administered supra-spinally, but exerts anti-nociceptive effects when injected spinally or systemically.ObjectiveInvestigation of the role of the N/OFQ system in paracetamol-induced anti-nociception and hypothermia led us to determine its role in the anti-nociceptive and hypothermic effects of dipyrone.Material and MethodsHot-plate and tail-flick tests were used to assess nociception, and a rectal thermometer was used to measure rectal temperature in mice.ResultsMice injected with dipyrone (150, 300, 600 mg/kg, i.p.) displayed dose-related anti-nociception and hypothermia. The NOP receptor antagonist JTC-801 (3 mg/kg, i.p.), at a dose that exerted no effect when used alone, alleviated dipyrone-induced anti-nociception but did not reverse dipyrone-induced hypothermia.ConclusionWe conclude that NOP receptors participate in the anti-nociceptive, but not in the hypothermic, effects of dipyrone.
Clinical epidemiology and molecular profiling of human bocavirus in faecal samples from children with diarrhoea in Guangzhou, China
Authors: ZHANG D.-M. , MA M.-M. , WEN W.-T. , ZHU X. , XU L. , HE Z.-J. , HE X. , WU J.-H. , HU Y.-W. , ZHENG Y. , DENG Y. , LIN C.-J. , LU J.-H. , LI M.-F. , CAO K.-Y. 
Published: December 2014

SUMMARYTo understand the clinical epidemiology and molecular characteristics of human bocavirus (HBoV) infection in children with diarrhoea in Guangzhou, South China, we collected 1128 faecal specimens from children with diarrhoea from July 2010 to December 2012. HBoV and five other major enteric viruses were examined using real-time polymerase chain reaction. Human rotavirus (HRV) was the most prevalent pathogen, detected in 250 (22·2%) cases, followed by enteric adenovirus (EADV) in 76 (6·7%) cases, human astrovirus (HAstV) in 38 (3·4%) cases, HBoV in 17 (1·5%) cases, sapovirus (SaV) in 14 (1·2%) cases, and norovirus (NoV) in 9 (0·8%) cases. Co-infections were identified in 3·7% of the study population and 23·5% of HBoV-positive specimens. Phylogenetic analysis revealed 14 HBoV strains to be clustered into species HBoV1 with only minor variations among them. Overall, the detection of HBoV appears to partially contribute to the overall detection gap for enteric infections, single HBoV infection rarely results in severe clinical outcomes, and HBoV sequencing data appears to support conserved genomes across strains identified in this study.
Erythrocyte–Platelet Interaction in Uncomplicated Pregnancy
Authors: Swanepoel Albe C. , Pretorius Etheresia 
Published: December 2014

AbstractMaternal and fetal requirements during uncomplicated pregnancy are associated with changes in the hematopoietic system. Platelets and erythrocytes [red blood cells (RBCs)], and especially their membranes, are involved in coagulation, and their interactions may provide reasons for the changed hematopoietic system during uncomplicated pregnancy. We review literature regarding RBC and platelet membrane structure and interactions during hypercoagulability and hormonal changes. We then study interactions between RBCs and platelets in uncomplicated pregnancy, as their interactions may be one of the reasons for increased hypercoagulability during uncomplicated pregnancy. Scanning electron microscopy was used to study whole blood smears from 90 pregnant females in different phases of pregnancy. Pregnancy-specific interaction was seen between RBCs and platelets. Typically, one or more platelets interacted through platelet spreading and pseudopodia formation with a single RBC. However, multiple interactions with RBCs were also shown for a single platelet. Specific RBC–platelet interaction seen during uncomplicated pregnancy may be caused by increased estrogen and/or increased fibrinogen concentrations. This interaction may contribute to the hypercoagulable state associated with healthy and uncomplicated pregnancy and may also play a fundamental role in gestational thrombocytopenia.
Systems Pharmacology of the NGF Signaling Through p75 and TrkA Receptors
Authors: Toni T , Dua P , van der Graaf P H 
Published: December 2014

The nerve growth factor (NGF) pathway has been shown to play a key role in pain treatment. Recently, a systems pharmacology model has been proposed that can aid in the identification and validation of drug targets in the NGF pathway. However, this model did not include the role of the p75 receptor, which modulates the signaling of NGF through the tropomyosin receptor kinase A (TrkA). The precise mechanism of the interaction between these two receptors has not been completely elucidated, and we therefore adopted a systems pharmacology modeling approach to gain understanding of the effect of p75 on the dynamics of NGF signal transduction. Specifically, models were developed for the so‐called heterodimer and for the ligand‐passing hypotheses. We used the model to compare the effect of inhibition of NGF and TrkA and its implication for drug discovery and development for pain treatment.CPT Pharmacometrics Syst. Pharmacol. (2014) 3, e150; doi:10.1038/psp.2014.48; published online 03 December 2014
Effect of pH on the structural and optical properties of nanostructured CdO films grown by chemical bath deposition technique
Authors: Ismail Raid A. , Ahmed Hani H. , Al‐Samarai Abdul‐Majeed E. , Mohmed Sabre J. 
Published: December 2014

Nanostructured cadmium oxide (CdO) thin films have been deposited on glass substrates using the chemical bath deposition (CBD) technique at different pH values. To obtain good film stoichiometry, the heating of films in static air at a temperature of 573 K for 3 h was carried out. X‐ray diffraction and atomic force microscope investigations confirmed the cubic structure of the deposited CdO films. Films prepared with pH = 12.4 are almost homogeneous and consisted of nanowires with diameters of less than 100 nm. The optical properties showed that the CdO films prepared have an average optical transmittance of ∼86% and the optical bandgap varied from 2.38 to 2.57 eV for pH solutions of 10.2 and 12.4, respectively. The effect of pH on the film thickness, grain size and root‐mean square of roughness was investigated and analysed.
Robust spectrotemporal decomposition by iteratively reweighted least squares
Authors: Ba Demba , Babadi Behtash , Purdon Patrick L. , Brown Emery N. 
Published: December 2014

SignificanceClassical spectral estimation techniques use sliding windows to enforce temporal smoothness of the spectral estimates of signals with time-varying spectrotemporal representations. This widely applied approach is not well-suited to signals that have low-dimensional, highly structured time–frequency representations. We develop a new Bayesian spectral decomposition framework—spectrotemporal pursuit—to compute spectral estimates that are smooth in time and sparse in frequency. We use a statistical interpretation of sparse recovery to derive efficient algorithms for computing spectrotemporal pursuit spectral estimates. We apply spectrotemporal pursuit to achieve a more precise delineation of the oscillatory structure of human electroencephalogram and neural spiking data under propofol general anesthesia. Spectrotemporal pursuit offers a principled alternative to existing methods for decomposing a signal into a small number of oscillatory components.
Effects of increasing and decreasing physiological arousal on anticipation timing performance during competition and practice
Authors: Duncan Michael J. , Smith Mike , Bryant Elizabeth , Eyre Emma , Cook Kathryn , Hankey Joanne , Tallis Jason , Clarke Neil , Jones Marc V. 
Published: December 2014

AbstractThe aim of this study was to investigate if the effects of changes in physiological arousal on timing performance can be accurately predicted by the catastrophe model. Eighteen young adults (8 males, 10 females) volunteered to participate in the study following ethical approval. After familiarisation, coincidence anticipation was measured using the Bassin Anticipation Timer under four incremental exercise conditions: Increasing exercise intensity and low cognitive anxiety, increasing exercise intensity and high cognitive anxiety, decreasing exercise intensity and low cognitive anxiety and decreasing exercise intensity and high cognitive anxiety. Incremental exercise was performed on a treadmill at intensities of 30%, 50%, 70% and 90% heart rate reserve (HRR) respectively. Ratings of cognitive anxiety were taken at each intensity using the Mental Readiness Form 3 (MRF3) followed by performance of coincidence anticipation trials at speeds of 3 and 8 mph. Results indicated significant condition × intensity interactions for absolute error (AE; p =. 0001) and MRF cognitive anxiety intensity scores (p =. 05). Post hoc analysis indicated that there were no statistically significant differences in AE across exercise intensities in low–cognitive anxiety conditions. In high–cognitive anxiety conditions, timing performance AE was significantly poorer and cognitive anxiety higher at 90% HRR, compared to the other exercise intensities. There was no difference in timing responses at 90% HRR during competitive trials, irrespective of whether exercise intensity was increasing or decreasing. This study suggests that anticipation timing performance is negatively affected when physiological arousal and cognitive anxiety are high.
Increased Plasma Concentrations of Midregional Proatrial Natriuretic Peptide Is Associated With Risk of Cardiorenal Dysfunction in Type 1 Diabetes
Authors: Theilade Simone , Hansen Tine Willum , Goetze Jens Peter , Rossing Peter 
Published: December 2014

BACKGROUND
To examine possible associations between midregional proatrial natriuretic peptide (MR-proANP) and diabetic complications at baseline and risk of mortality and end-stage renal disease (ESRD) during follow-up in type 1 diabetes.

METHODS
Observational study including 667 patients, with plasma MR-proANP measured at baseline. Complications were defined as micro- (n = 168) or macroalbuminuria (n = 190) (urinary albumin excretion rate (UAER) 30–299 or ≥300mg/24h), previous cardiovascular disease (CVD) (n = 143), cardiac autonomic dysfunction (heart rate variability &lt; 11 beats/min) (n = 369), and retinopathy (n = 523). Adjustments included gender, age, systolic blood pressure, estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), UAER, HbA1c, total cholesterol, 24-hour urinary sodium excretion (24h-UNa), body mass index, daily insulin dose, antihypertensive treatment, and smoking in linear regression analyses and analysis of covariance models. Development of ESRD (dialysis, renal transplantation, or GFR/eGFR &lt; 15ml/min/1.73 m2) and mortality was recorded through national registers.

RESULTS
The cohort included 293 (44%) females, aged 55 ± 13 years. Plasma MR-proANP (median (interquartile)) was 74.7 (49.2–116.8) pmol/L. Adjusted, MR-proANP correlated positively with age and UAER and negatively with eGFR, 24h-UNa, total cholesterol, and HbA1c (P &lt; 0.05). Moreover, MR-proANP levels increased with albuminuria degree and were higher in patients with previous CVD (P ≤ 0.001), but similar in patients with or without autonomic dysfunction or retinopathy (P ≥ 0.076). During follow-up (3.5 (3.1–4.0) years), higher MR-proANP concentrations predicted ESRD and mortality combined (n = 35) adjusted for gender, age, systolic blood pressure, eGFR, and previous CVD (hazard ratio per 1SD increase in logANP: 2.8 (1.6–4.7; P &lt; 0.001)).

CONCLUSIONS
Increased plasma MR-proANP was associated with impaired renal function, increased albuminuria, and previous CVD. Moreover, MR-proANP concentrations were associated with increased risk of development of ESRD and mortality combined during follow-up.