bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Oxylipin Biosynthesis Genes Positively Regulate Programmed Cell Death during Compatible Infections with the Synergistic Pair
Potato Virus X-Potato Virus Y
and Tomato Spotted Wilt Virus
Authors: García-Marcos Alberto , Pacheco Remedios , Manzano Aranzazu , Aguilar Emmanuel , Tenllado Francisco 
Published: March 2013

ABSTRACT

One of the most severe symptoms caused by compatible plant-virus interactions is systemic necrosis, which shares common attributes with the hypersensitive response to incompatible pathogens. Although several studies have identified viral symptom determinants responsible for systemic necrosis, mechanistic models of how they contribute to necrosis in infected plants remain scarce. Here, we examined the involvement of different branches of the oxylipin biosynthesis pathway in the systemic necrosis response caused either by the synergistic interaction of
Potato virus X
with
Potato virus Y
(PVX-PVY) or by
Tomato spotted wilt virus
(TSWV) in
Nicotiana benthamiana
. Silencing either
9-lipoxygenase
(
LOX
),
13-LOX
, or α-
dioxygenase-1
(α-
DOX-1
) attenuated the programmed cell death (PCD)-associated symptoms caused by infection with either PVX-PVY or TSWV. In contrast, silencing of the jasmonic acid perception gene,
COI1
(Coronatine insensitive 1), expedited cell death during infection with compatible viruses. This correlated with an enhanced expression of oxylipin biosynthesis genes and dioxygenase activity in PVX-PVY-infected plants. Moreover, the
Arabidopsis thaliana
double
lox1
α-
dox-1
mutant became less susceptible to TSWV infection. We conclude that oxylipin metabolism is a critical component that positively regulates the process of PCD during compatible plant-virus interactions but does not play a role in restraining virus accumulation
in planta
.
PARP expression in germ cell tumours
Authors: Mego Michal , Cierna Zuzana , Svetlovska Daniela , Macak Dusan , Machalekova Katarina , Miskovska Viera , Chovanec Michal , Usakova Vanda , Obertova Jana , Babal Pavel , Mardiak Jozef 
Published: March 2013

BackgroundPoly(ADP-ribose)polymerase (PARP) inhibitors represent a new class of promising drugs in anticancer therapy.AimsTo evaluate PARP expression in testicular germ cell tumours (GCTs) and to correlate expression patterns with clinicopathological variables.MethodsIn this translational study, tumour specimens from 124 patients with GCTs (114 patients with testicular primary tumours and 10 with extragonadal GCTs) were identified. PARP expression was detected by immunohistochemistry using monoclonal antibodies, scored by the multiplicative quickscore (QS) method and compared to PARP expression in normal testicular tissue.ResultsWe observed higher expression of PARP in testicular tumours compared to normal testicular tissue (mean QS=10.04 vs 3.31, p<0.0000001). Mean QS±SD for each histological subtype was as follows: intratubular germ cell neoplasia unclassified (IGCNU)=18.00±0.00, embryonal carcinoma=9.62±5.64, seminoma=9.74±6.51, yolk sac tumour=7.8±7.20, teratoma=5.87±5.34, and choriocarcinoma=4.50±8.33. The PARP overexpression (QS>9) was most often detected in IGCNU (100% of specimen with PARP overexpression), seminona (52.6%), embryonal carcinoma (47.0%), yolk sac tumour (33.3%), teratoma (26.7%) and choriocarcinoma (25.0%), compared to 1.9% of normal testicular tissue specimens. There was no association between PARP expression and clinical variables.ConclusionsIn this pilot study, we showed for the first time, that PARP is overexpressed in testicular germ cell tumours compared to normal testis.
The multi-diffusion domain model: past, present and future
Authors: Harrison T. Mark , Lovera Oscar M. 
Published: March 2013

Abstract

It is axiomatic that application of closure theory – the foundation of isotope-based thermochronology – requires an empirical diffusion model. It is therefore surprising that the majority of thermochronological studies have not met this requirement. The advent of the multi-diffusion domain (MDD) model transcended this limitation yielding both diffusion and age information via routine
40
Ar/
39
Ar step-heating of K-feldspar. Observed correlations between age and Arrhenius spectra show that Ar diffusion occurs by the same mechanisms in nature as in the laboratory. Under certain conditions, these data permit the recovery of a unique, cooling history. The community reaction included some unproductive lines of argument but some stimulated refinements of the MDD model that benefited the development of thermochronology. The MDD model was recently applied to muscovite upon recognition that the same diffusion mechanism operates in vacuum step-heating as in nature. The advent of
40
K–
40
Ca closure profile dating opens up a new thermochronological approach. Initial results confirm that muscovite intragrain defects can restrict effective diffusion length scales in white micas from 10–100 s of microns. Our hope for the future of the MDD model is that it be subject to aggressive and sceptical testing by the community in which quantification is valued over assertion.
Covalently linking heparin to antithrombin enhances prothrombinase inhibition on activated platelets
Authors: Stevic Ivan , Chan Howard H. W. , Chander Ankush , Berry Leslie R. , Chan Anthony K. C. 
Published: March 2013

SummaryFactor (F)Xa within the prothrombinase complex is protected from inhibition by unfractionated heparin (UFH), enoxaparin and fondaparinux. We have developed a covalent antithrombin-heparin complex (ATH) with enhanced anticoagulant activity. We have also demonstrated that ATH is superior at inhibiting coagulation factors when assembled on artificial surfaces. The objective of the present study is to determine the ability of ATH vs AT+UFH to inhibit FXa within the prothrombinase complex when the enzyme complex is assembled on the more native platelet system. Discontinuous inhibition assays were performed to determine final k 2-values for inhibition of FXa, FXa within the platelet-prothrombinase, or FXa within prothrombinase devoid of various components. Thrombin generation and plasma clotting was also assayed in the presence of resting/activated platelets ± inhibitors. Protection of FXa was not observed for ATH, whereas a moderate 60% protection was observed for AT+UFH. ATH inhibited platelet-prothrombinase ∼4-fold faster than AT+UFH. Relative to intact prothrombinase, rates for FXa inhibition by AT+UFH in prothrombinase complexes devoid of either prothrombin (II)/activated platelets/FVa were higher. However, inhibition by AT+UFH of prothrombinase devoid of FII yielded slightly lower rates compared to free FXa inhibition. Thrombin generation and plasma clotting was enhanced with activated platelets, while inhibition was better by ATH compared to AT+UFH, thus suggesting an overall enhanced anticoagulant activity of ATH against platelet-bound prothrombinase complexes.
A novel coagulation assay incorporating adherent endothelial cells in thromboelastometry
Authors: Zipperle Johannes , Holnthoner Wolfgang , Husa Anna-Maria , Nürnberger Sylvia , Redl Heinz , Schöchl Herbert , Schlimp Christoph J. 
Published: March 2013

SummaryFollowing vascular injury or activation, endothelial cells (ECs) participate in the modulation of haemostasis and fibrinolysis. Viscoelastic tests (VETs) are a potent bedside monitoring tool that reports haemostatic parameters in real time. However, VETs neglect the influence of the surrounding endothelium. Our aim was therefore to establish an assay that incorporates ECs in a whole blood VET and to assess the impact of ECs on coagulation parameters. Outgrowth endothelial cells (OECs) and human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were seeded onto microbeads to create transferable EC-microcarriers. Microbeads were then added to citrated whole blood in the measurement cup of a thromboelastometry device (ROTEM). After the addition of CaCl2 (star-TEM®) to the blood sample (NATEM assay), standard ROTEM parameters were analysed. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) was carried out to visualise the interactions of the beads, whole blood components and the ROTEM pin after clotting. SEM showed that the added microbeads were effectively incorporated into the final blood clot. In the presence of activated ECs, the clotting time (CT) of the blood was shortened fourfold compared to that in uncoated control beads. A significant reduction in CT was also observed in the presence of unstimulated ECs. Interestingly, CT was also reduced by the addition of purified EC culture supernatant. CT shortening was prevented by incubating the supernatant with an inhibiting antibody against tissue factor (TF). Our findings demonstrate that ECs can be incorporated into a ROTEM assay via coated microbeads, and whole blood clotting initiation is accelerated by non-activated and activated ECs.
Right Ventricular Systolic Function in Organic Mitral Regurgitation
Authors: Le Tourneau Thierry , Deswarte Guillaume , Lamblin Nicolas , Foucher-Hossein Claude , Fayad Georges , Richardson Marjorie , Polge Anne-Sophie , Vannesson Claire , Topilsky Yan , Juthier Francis , Trochu Jean-Noel , Enriquez-Sarano Maurice , Bauters Christophe 
Published: March 2013

Background—
To assess the prevalence, determinants, and prognosis value of right ventricular (RV) ejection fraction (EF) impairment in organic mitral regurgitation.

Methods and Results—

Two hundred eight patients (62±12 years, 138 males) with chronic organic mitral regurgitation referred to surgery underwent an echocardiography and biventricular radionuclide angiography with regional function assessment. Mean RV EF was 40.4±10.2%, ranging from 10% to 65%. RV EF was severely impaired (≤35%) in 63 patients (30%), and biventricular impairment (left ventricular EF<60% and RV EF≤35%) was found in 34 patients (16%). Pathophysiologic correlates of RV EF were left ventricular septal function (β=0.42,
P
<0.0001), left ventricular end-diastolic diameter index (β=−0.22,
P
=0.002), and pulmonary artery systolic pressure (β=−0.14,
P
=0.047). Mitral effective regurgitant orifice size (n=84) influenced RV EF (β=−0.28,
P
=0.012). In 68 patients examined after surgery, RV EF increased strongly (27.5±4.3–37.9±7.3,
P
<0.0001) in patients with depressed RV EF, whereas it did not change in others (
P
=0.91). RV EF ≤35% impaired 10-year cardiovascular survival (71.6±8.4% versus 89.8±3.7%,
P
=0.037). Biventricular impairment dramatically reduced 10-year cardiovascular survival (51.9±15.3% versus 90.3±3.2%,
P
<0.0001; hazard ratio, 5.2;
P
<0.0001) even after adjustment for known predictors (hazard ratio, 4.6;
P
=0.004). Biventricular impairment reduced also 10-year overall survival (34.8±13.0% versus 72.6±4.5%,
P
=0.003; hazard ratio, 2.5;
P
=0.005) even after adjustment for known predictors (
P
=0.048).

Conclusions—
In patients with organic mitral regurgitation referred to surgery, RV function impairment is frequent (30%) and depends weakly on pulmonary artery systolic pressure but mainly on left ventricular remodeling and septal function. RV function is a predictor of postoperative cardiovascular survival, whereas biventricular impairment is a powerful predictor of both cardiovascular and overall survival.
Electrophysiological Evidence for the Continuous Processing of Linguistic Categories of Regular and Irregular Verb Inflection in German
Authors: Smolka Eva , Khader Patrick H. , Wiese Richard , Zwitserlood Pienie , Rösler Frank 
Published: March 2013

Abstract
A central question concerning word recognition is whether linguistic categories are processed in continuous or categorical ways, in particular, whether regular and irregular inflection is stored and processed by the same or by distinct systems. Here, we contribute to this issue by contrasting regular (regular stem, regular suffix) with semi-irregular (regular stem, irregular suffix) and irregular (irregular stem, irregular suffix) participle formation in a visual priming experiment on German verb inflection. We measured ERPs and RTs and manipulated the inflectional and meaning relatedness between primes and targets. Inflected verb targets (e.g., leite, “head”) were preceded either by themselves, by their participle (geleitet, “headed”), by a semantically related verb in the same inflection as the target (führe, “guide”) or in the participle form (geführt, “guided”), or by an unrelated verb in the same inflection (nenne, “name”). Results showed that behavioral and ERP priming effects were gradually affected by verb regularity. Regular participles produced a widely distributed frontal and parietal effect, irregular participles produced a small left parietal effect, and semi-irregular participles yielded an effect in-between these two in terms of amplitude and topography. The behavioral and ERP effects further showed that the priming because of participles differs from that because of semantic associates for all verb types. These findings argue for a single processing system that generates participle priming effects for regular, semi-irregular, and irregular verb inflection. Together, the findings provide evidence that the linguistic categories of verb inflection are processed continuously. We present a single-system model that can adequately account for such graded effects.
The Good, the Bad, or the Useful? The Examination of the Relationship between the Feedback-related Negativity (FRN) and Long-term Learning Outcomes
Authors: Arbel Yael , Goforth Kristen , Donchin Emanuel 
Published: March 2013

Abstract
According to the reinforcement learning account of the error-related negativity (ERN), the ERN is a manifestation of a signal generated in ACC as a consequence of a phasic decrease in the activity of the mesencephalic dopamine system occurring when the monitoring system evaluates events as worse than expected. This signal is also hypothesized to be used to modify behavior to ascertain that future events will have better outcomes. It is therefore expected that this signal be correlated with learning outcomes. We report a study designed to examine the extent to which the ERN is related to learning outcomes within a paired-associates learning task. The feedback-related negativity (FRN) elicited by stimuli that indicated to the participants whether their response was correct or not was examined both according the degree to which the associates were learned in the session and according to whether participants recalled the associations on the next day. The results of the spatio-temporal PCA indicate that, whereas the process giving rise to the negative feedback elicited a FRN whose amplitude was not correlated with long-term learning outcomes, positive feedback was associated with a FRN-like activity, which was correlated with the learning outcomes. Another ERP component that follows the FRN temporally and shares its spatial distribution was found associated with long-term learning outcomes. Our findings shed light on the functional significance of the feedback-related ERP components and are discussed within the framework of the reinforcement learning ERN hypothesis.
Monitoring Individual and Joint Action Outcomes in Duet Music Performance
Authors: Loehr Janeen D. , Kourtis Dimitrios , Vesper Cordula , Sebanz Natalie , Knoblich Günther 
Published: March 2013

Abstract
We investigated whether people monitor the outcomes of their own and their partners' individual actions as well as the outcome of their combined actions when performing joint actions together. Pairs of pianists memorized both parts of a piano duet. Each pianist then performed one part while their partner performed the other; EEG was recorded from both. Auditory outcomes (pitches) associated with keystrokes produced by the pianists were occasionally altered in a way that either did or did not affect the joint auditory outcome (i.e., the harmony of a chord produced by the two pianists' combined pitches). Altered auditory outcomes elicited a feedback-related negativity whether they occurred in the pianist's own part or the partner's part, and whether they affected individual or joint action outcomes. Altered auditory outcomes also elicited a P300 whose amplitude was larger when the alteration affected the joint outcome compared with individual outcomes and when the alteration affected the pianist's own part compared with the partner's part. Thus, musicians engaged in joint actions monitor their own and their partner's actions as well as their combined action outcomes, while at the same time maintaining a distinction between their own and others' actions and between individual and joint outcomes.
Narrowed Expectancies under Degraded Speech: Revisiting the N400
Authors: Strauß Antje , Kotz Sonja A. , Obleser Jonas 
Published: March 2013

AbstractUnder adverse listening conditions, speech comprehension profits from the expectancies that listeners derive from the semantic context. However, the neurocognitive mechanisms of this semantic benefit are unclear: How are expectancies formed from context and adjusted as a sentence unfolds over time under various degrees of acoustic degradation? In an EEG study, we modified auditory signal degradation by applying noise-vocoding (severely degraded: four-band, moderately degraded: eight-band, and clear speech). Orthogonal to that, we manipulated the extent of expectancy: strong or weak semantic context (±con) and context-based typicality of the sentence-last word (high or low: ±typ). This allowed calculation of two distinct effects of expectancy on the N400 component of the evoked potential. The sentence-final N400 effect was taken as an index of the neural effort of automatic word-into-context integration; it varied in peak amplitude and latency with signal degradation and was not reliably observed in response to severely degraded speech. Under clear speech conditions in a strong context, typical and untypical sentence completions seemed to fulfill the neural prediction, as indicated by N400 reductions. In response to moderately degraded signal quality, however, the formed expectancies appeared more specific: Only typical (+con +typ), but not the less typical (+con −typ) context–word combinations led to a decrease in the N400 amplitude. The results show that adverse listening “narrows,” rather than broadens, the expectancies about the perceived speech signal: limiting the perceptual evidence forces the neural system to rely on signal-driven expectancies, rather than more abstract expectancies, while a sentence unfolds over time.
Not merely rights for children but children’s rights: The theory gap and the assumption of the importance of children’s rights
Authors: Ferguson Lucinda 
Published: March 2013

This article aims to reinvigorate the debate over the nature and value of the claim that children have children’s rights. Whilst the language of rights and children’s rights continues to be widely employed, and even relied upon, in many situations involving the legal regulation of children we lack strong child-centred evidence that it is better to regulate children through the lens of children’s rights, rather than their ‘best interests’ or in terms of duties owed to them.
My argument proceeds in four stages. First, I distinguish between rights for children and children’s rights. Understood in the sense of fundamental human rights, children are plainly rights-holders. The critical debate relates to children’s rights. Secondly, I argue that the expressive and procedural reasons for affirming that children hold children’s rights are contingent upon improved outcomes. Thirdly, I contend that we do not currently have a child-centred theory of children’s rights that improves, or increases the likelihood of improved outcomes in legal practice. This is not a claim that children do not have children’s rights. My argument critiques the current potential of both individual children’s rights and a rights-based framework of reasoning to improve outcomes for children.
Finally, I argue that without a theory of children’s rights, we currently have no good evidence that it benefits children to think of them in terms of children’s rights in law. This is an optimistic conclusion as it suggests that with greater attention on making decision-making truly child-centred, or explicitly recognizing the inability to do so, the purposes for which we want to believe that children have children’s rights might be better achieved than they are at present.
Episodes of breathlessness: Types and patterns – a qualitative study exploring experiences of patients with advanced diseases
Authors: Simon Steffen T , Higginson Irene J , Benalia Hamid , Gysels Marjolein , Murtagh Fliss EM , Spicer James , Bausewein Claudia 
Published: March 2013

Background: Despite the high prevalence and impact of episodic breathlessness, information about characteristics and patterns is scarce. Aim: To explore the experience of patients with advanced disease suffering from episodic breathlessness, in order to describe types and patterns. Design and participants: Qualitative design using in-depth interviews with patients suffering from advanced stages of chronic heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lung cancer or motor neurone disease. As part of the interviews, patients were asked to draw a graph to illustrate typical patterns of breathlessness episodes. Interviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim and analysed using Framework Analysis. The graphs were grouped according to their patterns. Results: Fifty-one participants (15 chronic heart failure, 14 chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, 13 lung cancer and 9 motor neurone disease) were included (mean age 68.2 years, 30 of 51 men, mean Karnofsky 63.1, mean breathlessness intensity 3.2 of 10). Five different types of episodic breathlessness were described: triggered with normal level of breathlessness, triggered with predictable response (always related to trigger level, e.g. slight exertion causes severe breathlessness), triggered with unpredictable response (not related to trigger level), non-triggered attack-like (quick onset, often severe) and wave-like (triggered or non-triggered, gradual onset). Four patterns of episodic breathlessness could be identified based on the graphs with differences regarding onset and recovery of episodes. These did not correspond with the types of breathlessness described before. Conclusion: Patients with advanced disease experience clearly distinguishable types and patterns of episodic breathlessness. The understanding of these will help clinicians to tailor specific management strategies for patients who suffer from episodes of breathlessness.
Evaluation of spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide in reducing proteinuria in type 2 diabetic nephropathy
Authors: Momeni Ali , Behradmanesh Mohammad Saeed , Kheiri Soleiman , Karami Horestani Mohammad 
Published: March 2013

Introduction: Inhibitors of the renin–angiotensin aldosterone system (RAAS) are the basic drugs for treatment of diabetic nephropathy, as to some extent is spironolactone. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of spironolactone versus spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide in decreasing proteinuria in type 2 diabetic mellitus (T2DM) patients. Methods: In a double-blind clinical trial, 60 T2DM patients with nephropathy randomly assigned to three equal groups were enrolled. Spironolactone (50 mg/day) plus placebo, spironolactone (50 mg/day) plus hydrochlorothiazide (25 mg/day), and hydrochlorothiazide (25 mg/day) plus placebo were prescribed, respectively. The duration of treatment was three months for all patients. Urine protein was measured at the beginning and end of the study and analysis of data was performed. Results: Twenty-six of the patients were male, with a total mean age of 56.8±8.3 years. Mean 24-h urine protein was reduced in patients in groups 1 and 2 compared to the third group ( p < 0.001). Serum potassium in the first group showed a significant increase of 0.26 meq/lit with mean 4.64 ± 0.28 meq/lit ( p=0.002), but it did not change in the second and third groups. Conclusion: Our results showed that spironolactone plus hydrochlorothiazide is an effective and inexpensive modality in the treatment of diabetic nephropathy without increasing serum potassium.