bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Genetic risk factors affecting mitochondrial function are associated with kidney disease in people with Type 1 diabetes
Authors: Swan E. J. , Salem R. M. , Sandholm N. , Tarnow L. , Rossing P. , Lajer M. , Groop P. H. , Maxwell A. P. , McKnight A. J. ,   the GENIE Consortium
Published: March 2015

AbstractAimTo evaluate the association with diabetic kidney disease of single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) that may contribute to mitochondrial dysfunction.MethodsThe mitochondrial genome and 1039 nuclear genes that are integral to mitochondrial function were investigated using a case (n = 823 individuals with diabetic kidney disease) vs. control (n = 903 individuals with diabetes and no renal disease) approach. All people included in the analysis were of white European origin and were diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes before the age of 31 years. Replication was conducted in 5093 people with similar phenotypes to those of the discovery collection. Association analyses were performed using the plink genetic analysis toolset, with adjustment for relevant covariates.ResultsA total of 25 SNPs were evaluated in the mitochondrial genome, but none were significantly associated with diabetic kidney disease or end‐stage renal disease. A total of 38 SNPs in nuclear genes influencing mitochondrial function were nominally associated with diabetic kidney disease and 16 SNPS were associated with end‐stage renal disease, secondary to diabetic kidney disease, with meta‐analyses confirming the same direction of effect. Three independent signals (seven SNPs) were common to the replication data for both phenotypes with Type 1 diabetes and persistent proteinuria or end‐stage renal disease.ConclusionsOur results suggest that SNPs in nuclear genes that influence mitochondrial function are significantly associated with diabetic kidney disease in a white European population.
Intensive multifactorial treatment modifies the effect of family history of diabetes on glycaemic control in people with Type 2 diabetes: a post hoc analysis of the ADDITION‐Denmark randomized controlled trial
Authors: Eliraqi G. M. , Vistisen D. , Lauritzen T. , Sandbæk A. , Jørgensen M. E. , Færch K. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractAimTo investigate whether intensive multifactorial treatment can reverse the predisposed adverse phenotype of people with Type 2 diabetes who have a family history of diabetes.MethodsData from the randomized controlled trial ADDITION‐Denmark were used. A total of 1441 newly diagnosed patients with diabetes (598 with family history of diabetes) were randomized to intensive treatment or routine care. Family history of diabetes was defined as having one parent and/or sibling with diabetes. Linear mixed‐effects models were used to assess the changes in risk factors (BMI, waist circumference, blood pressure, lipids and HbA1c) after 5 years of follow‐up in participants with and without a family history of diabetes. An interaction term between family history of diabetes and treatment group was included in the models to test for a modifying effect of the intervention. All analyses were adjusted for age, sex, baseline value of the risk factor and general practice (random effect).ResultsAt baseline, participants with a family history of diabetes were younger and had a 1.1 mmol/mol (0.1%) higher HbA1c concentration at the time of diagnosis than those without a family history of diabetes. Family history of diabetes modified the effect of the intervention on changes in HbA1c levels. In the group receiving routine care, participants with a family history of diabetes experienced an improvement in HbA1c concentration that was 3.3 mmol/mol (0.3%) lower than the improvement found in those without a family history of diabetes after 5 years of follow‐up. In the intensive treatment group, however, there was no difference in HbA1c concentrations between participants with and without a family history of diabetes after 5 years of treatment.ConclusionsIntensive treatment of diabetes may partly remove the adverse effects of family history of diabetes on glycaemic control. The effect of this improvement on long‐term diabetic complications warrants further investigation.
Impact of the Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education (DICE) project and the DICE Care Pathway on patient outcomes and trainee doctor's knowledge and confidence
Authors: Rajendran R. , Kerry C. , Round R.‐M. , Barker S. , Scott A. , Rayman G. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractAimTo evaluate the impact of the Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education project and a comprehensive diabetes care pathway, the Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education Care Pathway, on patient outcomes and on the knowledge and confidence of trainee doctors.MethodsThe effect on patient outcomes was evaluated by comparing the National Diabetes Inpatient Audit data before (2012) and after (2013) implementing the Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education project. The impact on trainee doctors was evaluated using the Modified Kirkpatrick model. Just before the project began and again 3 months later, trainee doctors were surveyed to assess their knowledge and confidence in inpatient diabetes care.ResultsPatient harm was found to have been reduced significantly when National Diabetes Inpatient Audit data for 2012 and 2013 were compared. Severe hypoglycaemia decreased from 15.4 to 9.7%, medication errors from 56.9 to 21.1% and insulin errors from 31 to 7%. Across the 96 trainee doctors surveyed, the mean (sd) knowledge and confidence scores increased significantly (P < 0.001 for both) from 57.1 (16.8) and 61.8 (14.9) to 68.4 (13.3) and 74.3 (11.7), respectively.ConclusionThe Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education project and the Diabetes Inpatient Care and Education Care Pathway improved patient outcomes and the knowledge and confidence of trainee doctors in this hospital. The impact of a similar project in other hospitals needs to be evaluated.
Multicentered patient‐based evidence of the role of free light chain ratio normalization in multiple myeloma disease relapse
Authors: Radocha Jakub , Pour Luděk , Pika Tomáš , Maisnar Vladimír , Špička Ivan , Gregora Evžen , Krejčí Marta , Minařík Jiří , Machálková Kateřina , Straub Jan , Pavlíček Petr , Hájek Roman , Žák Pavel 
Published: March 2015

AbstractIntroductionThe normalization of free light chain ratio (FLCr) has been introduced as a marker of stringent complete remission (CR) of multiple myeloma (MM). There is currently a lack of literature assessing the role of FLCr on MM disease progression and remission status.Patients and methodsA multicentered retrospective review of 125 patients with MM in CR and various FLCr values was completed. Parameters of interest included patient demographics, FLCr values, complete remission (CR)/relapse status, and time to progression (TTP). The FLCr values were recorded to provide time‐dependent findings on the role of FLCr on progression‐free survival and overall survival (OS).ResultsThe mean follow‐up time of 125 patients from five hospitals in the Czech Republic was 31 months. A total of 47.2% of patients relapsed (54 of 125) during the follow‐up period. The median TTP of patients with normal FLCr (n = 66) was 54.4 and 40.2 months for patients with abnormal FLCr (n = 59) (P = 0.217). None of the patients reached median overall survival regardless of FLCr values (P = 0.821). In the subgroup of newly diagnosed patients after upfront autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT), there were 55.6% of patients (35 of 63) with normal FLCr and 44.4% (28 of 64) with abnormal FLCr. A total of 34.9% of patients (22 of 63) relapsed in this subgroup. Within the abnormal FLCr patients, a median TTP was 56.3 months, but no median TTP was reached among the normal FLCr patients (P = 0.746). Median OS in patients with normal (nFLCr) and abnormal FLCr (aFLCr) was not reached (P = 0.787).ConclusionWe did not observe any benefit from FLCr normalization in CR in myeloma patients in terms of progression‐free survival or overall survival.
Unifying ecology and macroevolution with individual‐based theory
Authors: Rosindell James , Harmon Luke J. , Etienne Rampal S. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractA contemporary goal in both ecology and evolutionary biology is to develop theory that transcends the boundary between the two disciplines, to understand phenomena that cannot be explained by either field in isolation. This is challenging because macroevolution typically uses lineage‐based models, whereas ecology often focuses on individual organisms. Here, we develop a new parsimonious individual‐based theory by adding mild selection to the neutral theory of biodiversity. We show that this model generates realistic phylogenies showing a slowdown in diversification and also improves on the ecological predictions of neutral theory by explaining the occurrence of very common species. Moreover, we find the distribution of individual fitness changes over time, with average fitness increasing at a pace that depends positively on community size. Consequently, large communities tend to produce fitter species than smaller communities. These findings have broad implications beyond biodiversity theory, potentially impacting, for example, invasion biology and paleontology.
Data on ecology of the purple scale Lepidosaphes beckii (Newman) on citrus in Greece
Authors: Stathas G. J. , Skouras P. J. , Kontodimas D. C. 
Published: March 2015

The ecology of the purple scale Lepidosaphes beckii (Newman) (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) was studied on citrus, in the area of Kalamata (Messinia ‐ Peloponnese) from May 2009 to May 2011. Observations on infested citrus branches were conducted to study the phenology of the scale. Yellow sticky traps were hung in infested trees and examined to monitor the flights of male L. beckii as well as the flights of adults of parasitoids and predators of this pest. Lepidosaphes beckii mainly infested the leaves and fruits and to a lesser extent the shoots and stems. During the period of the study all developmental stages of L. beckii were found. Sticky transparent band traps were also placed on shoots and were examined to monitor the fluctuation in the population of crawlers. From the crawlers caught in the traps three population peaks were recorded in June, August and October. Natural enemies of the scale consisted of the parasitoids Aphytis lepidosaphes Compère and Encarsia sp. (Hymenoptera: Aphelinidae), which together parasitized up to 32% of L. beckii as well as the predators Chilocorus bipustulatus (L.) and Rhyzobius lophanthae Blaisdell (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae).
Transgenerational plasticity mitigates the impact of global warming to offspring sex ratios
Authors: Donelson Jennifer M. , Munday Philip L. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractGlobal warming poses a threat to organisms with temperature‐dependent sex determination because it can affect operational sex ratios. Using a multigenerational experiment with a marine fish, we provide the first evidence that parents developing from early life at elevated temperatures can adjust their offspring gender through nongenetic and nonbehavioural means. However, this adjustment was not possible when parents reproduced, but did not develop, at elevated temperatures. Complete restoration of the offspring sex ratio occurred when parents developed at 1.5 °C above the present‐day average temperature for one generation. However, only partial improvement in the sex ratio occurred at 3.0 °C above average conditions, even after two generations, suggesting a limitation to transgenerational plasticity when developmental temperature is substantially increased. This study highlights the potential for transgenerational plasticity to ameliorate some impacts of climate change and that development from early life may be essential for expression of transgenerational plasticity in some traits.
How many dimensions are needed to accurately assess functional diversity? A pragmatic approach for assessing the quality of functional spaces
Authors: Maire Eva , Grenouillet Gaël , Brosse Sébastien , Villéger Sébastien 
Published: March 2015

AbstractAimFunctional diversity is a key facet of biodiversity that is increasingly being measured to quantify its changes following disturbance and to understand its effects on ecosystem functioning. Assessing the functional diversity of assemblages based on species traits requires the building of a functional space (dendrogram or multidimensional space) where indices will be computed. However, there is still no consensus on the best method for measuring the quality of functional spaces.InnovationHere we propose a framework for evaluating the quality of a functional space (i.e. the extent to which it is a faithful representation of the initial functional trait values). Using simulated datasets, we analysed the influence of the number and type of functional traits used and of the number of species studied on the identity and quality of the best functional space. We also tested whether the quality of the functional space affects functional diversity patterns in local assemblages, using simulated datasets and a real study case.Main conclusionsThe quality of functional space strongly varied between situations. Spaces having at least four dimensions had the highest quality, while functional dendrograms and two‐dimensional functional spaces always had a low quality. Importantly, we showed that using a poor‐quality functional space could led to a biased assessment of functional diversity and false ecological conclusions. Therefore, we advise a pragmatic approach consisting of computing all the possible functional spaces and selecting the most parsimonious one.
Spatial data integration for the environmental characterization of pasture macrotypes in the Italian Alps
Authors: Dibari C. , Bindi M. , Moriondo M. , Staglianò N. , Targetti S. , Argenti G. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractIn the Italian Alps, local climate, topography and soil play a dominant role in pasture distribution. In this study, pre‐existent layers of spatial data were used to identify the geographical locations of the main pasture communities (macrotypes) dominating these mountainous areas and to characterize them environmentally. The influence of the environment on macrotype distribution was assessed by principal component analysis (PCA) and a kernel density estimation (KDE) on nine explanatory variables extracted from soil–topography–climatic gridded maps. Results indicated the reliability of the method. The ecological description disentangled from PCA and KDE analysis fitted well with the ecological exigencies of seven macrotypes, identified as most representative in terms of their extent, ecological and pastoral importance across the Alps. This was more evident for high‐altitude communities and xeric species, but less evident for the more ubiquitous, mixed or fragmented macrotypes. The results show that three main environmental regions can be distinguished across the area: a relatively wet and cold region located at the highest altitudes dominated by mountainside pasture macrotypes; an intermediate area comprising macrotypes without any marked environmental needs; and relatively dry and warm areas at the lowest altitudes dominated by xeric species and rich semi‐natural grasslands. Method strengths, weaknesses and possible applications of the results are discussed.
‘ICH BIN GENAUSO DEUTSCH WIE KAFKA’: GERMAN LINGUISTIC IDENTITY IN THE NOVELS OF TERÉZIA MORA
Authors: Case Laura Bohn 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTTerézia Mora, the translingual author of Alle Tage, Der einzige Mann auf dem Kontinent and Das Ungeheuer, demands an unqualified place within German literature, claiming ‘Ich bin genauso deutsch wie Kafka’. With Kafka, Mora chooses an author who shows the importance of Eastern European influences on German literature and how ‘the foreign’, especially the geographically close Eastern European, is, and always has been, part of ‘Germanness.’ I argue that Mora's protagonists seek a form of the German language which allows the expression of specific experience and emotion, and that this flexibility within language is necessary for a more complex contemporary German identity. Only through the openness of Darius Kopp to his wife's translingualism does this protagonist of Mora's latest two novels – and the most emphatically ‘German’ of her characters – come closer to an emotionally meaningful use of the German language, as she returns Kopp to aspects of his identity that he has lost.Terézia Mora, die translinguistische Autorin von Alle Tage, Der einzige Mann auf dem Kontinent und Das Ungeheuer, behauptet sie sei ‘genauso deutsch wie Kafka’ und ebenso sehr beteiligt an der deutschen Literatur. Moras Erwähnung von Kafka zeigt die Wichtigkeit des osteuropäischen Einflusses auf die deutsche Literatur. ‘Das Fremde’, besonders das geographisch nahe Osteuropäische, ist, und war immer, Teil des Deutschen. In dieser Arbeit behaupte ich, dass Moras Figuren eine Sprache suchen, die ihre besonderen Erfahrungen und Emotionen ausdrücken kann, und dass diese Flexibilität der Sprache für eine erweiterte heutige deutsche Identität notwendig ist. Nur durch die offene Haltung gegenüber der translinguistischen Sprache seiner Frau findet Darius Kopp (Moras Hauptfigur in den letzten zwei Romanen) eine emotional bedeutsame Sprache, da er durch sie zu verlorenen Aspekten seiner Identität zurückfindet.
‘THE EAST’ AS A TRANSIT SPACE IN THE NEW EUROPE? TRANSNATIONAL TRAIN JOURNEYS IN PROSE POEMS BY KURT DRAWERT, LUTZ SEILER AND ILMA RAKUSA
Authors: Egger Sabine 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTThe past three decades, following the collapse of the Iron Curtain, have seen the development of a ‘European literature’ characterised by the emergence of transnational subjects and spaces. This also applies to a Europe traditionally defining itself by means of a frontier to the ‘East’. In German writing, this has been a more recent phenomenon than in other Central or Eastern European literatures, and is not restricted to ‘Migrantenliteratur’. In texts subverting East‐West dichotomies by contemporary German‐speaking writers with an ‘Eastern Bloc biography’, the train journey into the East emerges as a recurrent motif. The traveller encounters this East in Siberia, but also in various places or spaces in Central and Eastern Europe. Examples discussed here include poems and short narrative texts by Kurt Drawert, Lutz Seiler and Ilma Rakusa, which could be defined as prose poetry. My analysis, based on spatial concepts by Michel de Certeau and Michel Foucault, will focus on movement in these texts, which tends to affect temporal and genre boundaries as much as those between self and Other. The train itself or the landscape travelled through becomes a transit space in which national borders and frontiers to the East are, at least temporarily, transcended.Mit dem Ende des Kalten Krieges hat sich in den letzten drei Jahrzehnten eine ‘europäische Literatur’ entwickelt, die sich durch ein transnationales Raumbewusstsein auszeichnet, in dem dichotomische Konzepte des ‘Anderen’ bzw. ‘Fremden’ und ‘Eigenen’ zunehmend brüchig werden. Die das dominante Europabild traditionell bestimmende West‐Ost‐Dichotomie wird in dieser Literatur zum Teil ebenso in Frage gestellt, wie andere Vorstellungen kollektiver Identität. Diese Entwicklung lässt sich, vielleicht später als in anderen mittel‐ und osteuropäischen Literaturen auch in der deutschsprachigen Literaturlandschaft beobachten und ist nicht auf die ‘Migrantenliteratur’ beschränkt. Dabei greifen insbesondere aus dem ehemaligen Ostblock stammende Autorinnen und Autoren häufig auf das Motiv der Eisenbahnreise in den ‘Osten’ zurück. Dieser Osten begegnet dem Reisenden in Sibirien ebenso wie an Orten innerhalb Deutschlands, Mittel‐ und Osteuropas. Beispiele hierfür sind Gedicht‐ und Kurzprosatexte von Kurt Drawert, Lutz Seiler und Ilma Rakusa, die sich auch als Formen des Prosagedichts bezeichnen lassen. Im Mittelpunkt meiner sich auf Ansätze Michel de Certeaus und Michel Foucaults stützenden Untersuchung stehen ästhetische Formen der Dynamisierung von Räumen und Identitäten, in denen Zeitebenen und Gattungsgrenzen ebenso in Bewegung gesetzt werden wie Grenzen zwischen Eigenem und Fremdem. Der Zug oder die durchquerte Landschaft wird zum Transitraum, in dem nationale Grenzen und solche zum Osten hin zumindest vorübergehend durchdrungen werden.
Assessing the Nonlinearity of Karst Response Function under Variable Boundary Conditions
Authors: Duran Léa , Fournier Matthieu , Massei Nicolas , Dupont Jean‐Paul 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThe hydraulic and transfer response of karst aquifers is complex and often highly nonlinear: due to their high transmissivity and connection with the surface, such systems are very sensitive to modifications of their boundary conditions. The aim of this study was to assess the variation of the response depending on both upstream and downstream parameters, and propose a methodology to simulate the response of the karst system depending on those parameters. The impact of the variations of multiple environmental parameters on the response of a karstic system submitted to tidal variations (Normandy, France) was investigated after a campaign of artificial tracer tests acquired in very different hydrologic conditions (rainfall events, low tide, high tide, low/high piezometric level, and low/high waters). Principal components analysis and hierarchical clustering were applied on both environmental variables and karstic system response variables (parameters of the residence time distribution [RTD] curves). Equations between the RTD parameters and the most relevant variables were established using a symbolic regression algorithm. It appeared that the variations of the RTD parameters depend mainly on the cumulated rainfall preceding the injection, the piezometric level of the aquifer, and on the tide parameters. The hydraulic conditions downstream of the aquifer have a strong influence on the hydraulic and transfer response of the aquifer. The response of the aquifer in various and extreme conditions has been simulated using the equations resulting from the symbolic regression algorithm. Such relationships can be useful for management of water resources in karst media, and support decision making.
ERAP1 variants are associated with ankylosing spondylitis in East Asian population: a new Chinese case–control study and meta‐analysis of published series
Authors: Chen C. , Zhang X. 
Published: March 2015

SummaryEndoplasmic reticulum aminopeptidase 1 (ERAP1) has been confirmed to be associated with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) in Caucasian. However, whether they are associated with AS in East Asian population remains unidentified. We investigated this relationship by a new Chinese case–control study and a meta‐analysis of published series. 368 cases and 460 controls were recruited in the Chinese case–control study. Genotyping was completed using the chip‐based matrix‐assisted laser desorption ionization time‐of‐flight mass spectrometry. Allelic associations were analysed using contingency tables. In the meta‐analysis, up to 2748 cases and 2774 controls from seven different studies and the new Chinese study were combined using Review Manager software version 5.1.1. Mantel–Haenszel or Inverse Variance test was used to calculate fixed or random‐effects pooled ORs. In the new Chinese study, strong association with AS was observed for marker rs10050860, rs27434 and rs1065407 at P value of <0.001. Moderate association was observed for rs30187 at P value of <0.01, while no association was observed for rs27044 (P = 0.37) and rs2287987 (P = 0.23). The meta‐analysis showed that rs27037 and rs30187 were strongly associated with AS (P < 0.00001). Significant association was also observed for rs27434 (P = 0.001). No association was shown for rs27044 (P = 0.70). We concluded that ERAP1 variants are associated with AS in East Asian population, indicating a common pathogenic mechanism for AS in East Asians and Caucasians.