bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A targeted approach for evaluating preclinical activity of botanical extracts for support of bone health
Authors: Lin Yumei , Murray Mary A. , Garrett I. Ross , Gutierrez Gloria E. , Nyman Jeffry S. , Mundy Gregory , Fast David , Gellenbeck Kevin W. , Chandra Amitabh , Ramakrishnan Shyam 
Published: May 2014

AbstractUsing a sequentialin vitro/in vivoapproach, we tested the ability of botanical extracts to influence biomarkers associated with bone resorption and bone formation. Pomegranate fruit and grape seed extracts were found to exhibit anti-resorptive activity by inhibiting receptor activator of nuclear factor-κB ligand (RANKL) expression in MG-63 cells and to reduce IL-1β-stimulated calvarial45Ca loss. A combination of pomegranate fruit and grape seed extracts were shown to be effective at inhibiting bone loss in ovariectomised rats as demonstrated by standard histomorphometry, biomechanical and bone mineral density measurements. Quercetin and licorice extract exhibited bone formation activity as measured by bone morphogenetic protein-2 (BMP-2) promoter activation, increased expression of BMP-2 mRNA and protein levels, and promotion of bone growth in cultured mouse calvariae. A combination of quercetin and licorice extract demonstrated a potential for increasing bone mineral density in an intact female rat model as compared with controls. The results from this sequentialin vitro/in vivoresearch model yielded botanical extract formulas that demonstrate significant potential benefits for bone health.
Maternal protein restriction impairs the transcriptional metabolic flexibility of skeletal muscle in adult rat offspring
Authors: da Silva Aragão Raquel , Guzmán-Quevedo Omar , Pérez-García Georgina , Manhães-de-Castro Raul , Bolaños-Jiménez Francisco 
Published: May 2014

Skeletal muscle exhibits a remarkable flexibility in the usage of fuel in response to the nutrient intake and energy demands of the organism. In fact, increased physical activity and fasting trigger a transcriptional programme in skeletal muscle cells leading to a switch from carbohydrate to lipid oxidation. Impaired metabolic flexibility has been reported to be associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes, but it is not known whether the disability to adapt to metabolic demands is a cause or a consequence of these pathological conditions. Inasmuch as a poor nutritional environment during early life is a predisposing factor for the development of metabolic diseases in adulthood, in the present study, we aimed to determine the long-term effects of maternal malnutrition on the metabolic flexibility of offspring skeletal muscle. To this end, the transcriptional responses of the soleus and extensor digitorum longus muscles to fasting were evaluated in adult rats born to dams fed a control (17 % protein) or a low-protein (8 % protein, protein restricted (PR)) diet throughout pregnancy and lactation. With the exception of reduced body weight and reduced plasma concentrations of TAG, PR rats exhibited a metabolic profile that was the same as that of the control rats. In the fed state, PR rats exhibited an enhanced expression of key regulatory genes of fatty acid oxidation including CPT1a, PGC-1α, UCP3 and PPARα and an impaired expression of genes that increase the capacity for fat oxidation in response to fasting. These results suggest that impaired metabolic inflexibility precedes and may contribute to the development of metabolic disorders associated with early malnutrition.
Seroprevalence of heartworm (Dirofilaria immitis) in feline and canine hosts from central and northern Portugal
Authors: Vieira L. , Silvestre-Ferreira A.C. , Fontes-Sousa A.P. , Balreira A.C. , Morchón R. , Carretón E. , Vilhena H. , Simón F. , Montoya-Alonso J.A. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractDirofilaria immitis is endemic in Portugal. Several studies have reported the presence of canine heartworm disease, although no previous studies on feline infections have been published. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence of D. immitis in cats and dogs from central and northern Portugal. Blood samples from 434 cats were tested for circulating anti-D. immitis and anti-Wolbachia antibodies. Furthermore, 386 dogs were tested for circulating D. immitis antigens. Overall feline seroprevalence was 15%, while canine prevalence was 2.1%. The highest feline seroprevalences of 18.7% and 17.6% were found in Aveiro and Viseu, respectively, while the highest canine prevalences of 8.8% and 6.8% were found in Coimbra and Aveiro, respectively. Cats and dogs showing respiratory signs presented higher prevalences of 24.4% and 17%, respectively, while 50% of cats with gastrointestinal signs were seropositive. The present study confirms the seropositivity of D. immitis in the feline population in central and northern Portugal, and suggests the importance of including heartworm disease in the list of differential diagnoses of cats and dogs showing clinical signs compatible with the disease.
Forest without prey: livestock sustain a leopard Panthera pardus population in Pakistan
Authors: Shehzad Wasim , Nawaz Muhammad Ali , Pompanon François , Coissac Eric , Riaz Tiayyba , Shah Safdar Ali , Taberlet Pierre 
Published: May 2014

AbstractHuman–carnivore conflict is one of the major challenges in the management of populations of large carnivores. Concerns include the increasing human population; habitat loss as a result of degradation and fragmentation of forest; and livestock predation as a result of a lack of natural prey, leading to retaliatory killings of wild carnivores. Conflicts may be further aggravated by occasional attacks that result in injury and loss of human life. The level of consumption of prey species by a predator is a benchmark to evaluate the scale of this conflict. We used a newly developed DNA-based diet analysis to study the prey profile of common leopards Panthera pardus in Ayubia National Park, Pakistan. The results suggest that the common leopard is a generalist predator, subsisting mainly on domestic animals. Based on the frequency of occurrence of prey items in 57 faecal samples, the diet of the leopard is dominated by domestic goat Capra hircus (64.9%), followed by domestic dog Canis lupus familiaris (17.5%) and cow Bos taurus (12.3%). Domestic animals (goat, dog, cow, water buffalo Bubalus bubalis, horse Equus caballus and sheep Ovis aries) occurred in 54 (95%) of the 57 samples. We recommend a two-step strategy to mitigate this conflict: (1) introducing incentives for increased acceptance of leopards among local communities in the vicinity of the protected area and (2) increasing the availability of wild prey. We hope that the results of this study will contribute to the survival of the leopard in Pakistan.
Alternative oxidase inhibitors as antiparasitic agents against scuticociliatosis
Authors: MALLO NATALIA , LAMAS JESÚS , LEIRO JOSÉ M. 
Published: May 2014

SUMMARYPhilasterides dicentrarchicauses a severe disease in turbot, and at present there are no drugs available to treat infected fish. We have previously demonstrated that, in addition to the classical respiratory pathway,P. dicentrarchipossesses an alternative mitochondrial respiratory pathway that is cyanide-insensitive and salicylhydroxamic acid (SHAM)-sensitive. In this study, we found that during the initial phase of growth in normoxia, ciliate respiration is sensitive to the natural polyphenol resveratrol (RESV) and to Antimycin A (AMA). However, under hypoxic conditions, the parasite utilizes AMA-insensitive respiration, which is completely inhibited by RESV and by the antioxidant propyl gallate (PG), an alternative oxidase (AOX) inhibitor. PG caused significantly dose-dependent inhibition of thein vitrogrowth of the parasite under normoxia and hypoxia and an over-expression of heat shock proteins of the Hsp70 subfamily. RESV and PG may affect the protective role of the AOX against mitochondrial oxidative stress, leading to an impaired mitochondrial membrane potential and mitochondrial dysfunction, which the parasite attempts to neutralize by increasing the expression of Hsp70. In view of the antiparasitic effects induced by AOX inhibitors and the absence of AOX in their host, this enzyme constitutes a potential target for the development of new drugs against scuticociliatosis.
The effect of glycosylation of antigens on the antibody responses againstEchinostoma caproni(Trematoda: Echinostomatidae)
Authors: SOTILLO JAVIER , CORTÉS ALBA , MUÑOZ-ANTOLI CARLA , FRIED BERNARD , ESTEBAN J. GUILLERMO , TOLEDO RAFAEL 
Published: May 2014

SUMMARYIn the present study, we analyse the effect of glycosylation inEchinostoma caproni(Trematoda: Echinostomatidae) antigens in antibody responses against the parasite in experimentally infected mice. It has been previously demonstrated that the mouse is a host of high compatibility withE. caproniand develops elevated responses of IgG, IgG1, IgG3 and IgM as a consequence of the infection, though the role of glycans in these responses remains unknown. To this purpose, the responses generated in mice against non-treated excretory/secretory antigens ofE. caproniwere compared with those observed after N-deglycosylation, O-deglycosylation and double deglycosylation of the antigens by indirect ELISA and western blot. Our results suggest thatE. caproni-expressed glycans play a major role in the modulation of the immune responses. The results obtained indicate that IgG subclass responses generated in mice againstE. caproniare essentially due to glycoproteins and may affect the Th1/Th2 biasing. The reactivity significantly decreased after any of the deglycosylation treatments and the N-glycans appears to be of greater importance than O-glycans. Interestingly, the IgM response increased after N-deglycosylation suggesting that carbohydrates may mask peptide antigens.
Non-coding RNAs in epithelial immunity toCryptosporidiuminfection
Authors: ZHOU RUI , FENG YAOYU , CHEN XIAN-MING 
Published: May 2014

SUMMARYCryptosporidiumspp. is a protozoan parasite that infects the gastrointestinal epithelium and causes diarrhoeal disease worldwide. It is one of the most common pathogens responsible for moderate to severe diarrhoea in children younger than 2 years. Because of the ‘minimally invasive’ nature ofCryptosporidiuminfection, mucosal epithelial cells are critical to the host's anti-Cryptosporidiumimmunity. Gastrointestinal epithelial cells not only provide the first and most rapid defence againstCryptosporidiuminfection, they also mobilize immune effector cells to the infection site to activate adaptive immunity. Recent advances in genomic research have revealed the existence of a large number of non-protein-coding RNA transcripts, so called non-coding RNAs (ncRNAs), in mammalian cells. Some ncRNAs may be key regulators for diverse biological functions, including innate immune responses. Specifically, ncRNAs may modulate epithelial immune responses at every step of the innate immune network followingCryptosporidiuminfection, including production of antimicrobial molecules, expression of cytokines/chemokines, release of epithelial cell-derived exosomes, and feedback regulation of immune homoeostasis. This review briefly summarizes the current science on ncRNA regulation of innate immunity toCryptosporidium, with a focus on microRNA-associated epithelial immune responses.
How to become a parasite without sex chromosomes: a hypothesis for the evolution ofStrongyloidesspp. and related nematodes
Authors: STREIT ADRIAN 
Published: May 2014

SUMMARYParasitic lifestyles evolved many times independently. Just within the phylum Nematoda animal parasitism must have arisen at least four times. Switching to a parasitic lifestyle is expected to lead to changes in various life history traits including reproductive strategies. Parasitic nematode worms of the genus Strongyloides represent an interesting example to study these processes because they are still capable of forming facultative free-living generations in between parasitic ones. The parasitic generation consists of females only, which reproduce parthenogenetically. The sex in the progeny of the parasitic worms is determined by environmental cues, which control a, presumably ancestral, XX/XO chromosomal sex determining system. In some species the X chromosome is fused with an autosome and one copy of the X-derived sequences is removed by sex-specific chromatin diminution in males. Here I propose a hypothesis for how today'sStrongyloidessp. might have evolved from a sexual free-living ancestor through dauer larvae forming free-living and facultative parasitic intermediate stages.
Legal asymmetries in asymmetric war
Authors: McKEOWN RYDER 
Published: May 2014

AbstractStandard conceptions of the relationship between international law and war in International Relations (IR) mostly oscillate between the sceptical view that law is mostly irrelevant in times of conflict, and the optimistic view that law is a meaningful moral standard that effectively constrains violence. Modern asymmetric conflicts between liberal democratic states and non-state actors such as the Taliban,al-Qaeda, orHamaschallenge these conceptions, however, as they are at once increasingly legal and extremely violent. Drawing inspiration from IR and International Law (IL) scholarship from multiple theoretical paradigms, this article examines the legal asymmetries before, during, and after asymmetric conflict. Noting that law is at once a useful tool and a strong normative force, it argues that a good understanding of legal asymmetries can supplement existing theories of asymmetric war, continue the dissolution of false dichotomies and open up interesting avenues of research in IR, and help both scholars and policymakers understand how international law influences modern asymmetric conflict against non-state actors.
An alternative mode of international order: The international administrative union in the nineteenth century
Authors: HOWLAND DOUGLAS 
Published: May 2014

AbstractA novel form of international order was developed in the nineteenth century by international administrative unions such as the International Telegraph Union and the Universal Postal Union. This administrative internationalism posed a striking alternative to the international society of great powers, sovereignty, and forms of imperial domination, for the members of administrative unions included not only sovereign states but also semi-sovereigns, vassals, and colonies. Members were equal and bound identically to the union treaty and its international administrative law. This article examines the structure of unions and their politics of membership in the nineteenth century, and engages theories of global governance to argue that early administrative unions present a mode of international order different from theories of both global networks and the international system of neorealism.
What does it take to be a great power? The story of France joining the Big Five
Authors: HEIMANN GADI 
Published: May 2014

AbstractThe article illuminates the International Relations (IR) enigma of how states with relative low power succeed in gaining privileges reserved for great powers. Many IR studies on status stress the importance of social recognition as a precondition for enjoying the status of a great power. However, very few focus on the factors that affect such recognition. This article tries to fill this gap by looking at systemic wars. Systemic wars are special circumstances wherein a new world order is built and privileges are redistributed among states. In these situations, states may use their symbolic, moral, and circumstantial assets to grant themselves a paramount role in the new order. A state's previous status as a great power, its contribution to victory in a war, and the utilitarian considerations of other countries are all assets that help it to win the privileges reserved for great powers – and that in the long run could gain it recognition as a great power, despite its lack of the requisite capabilities. By using this conceptual framework in the case of France during and after the Second World War, this article tries to explain how a relatively weak power can gain a leading role in a postwar order.
Diversity of toxin and non-toxin containing cyanobacterial mats of meltwater ponds on the Antarctic Peninsula: a pyrosequencing approach
Authors: Kleinteich J. , Hildebrand F. , Wood S.A. , Ciŕs S. , Agha R. , Quesada A. , Pearce D.A. , Convey P. , K̈pper F.C. , Dietrich D.R. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractDespite their pivotal role as primary producers, there is little information as to the diversity and physiology of cyanobacteria in the meltwater ecosystems of polar regions. Thirty cyanobacterial mats from Adelaide Island, Antarctica were investigated using 16S rRNA gene pyrosequencing and automated ribosomal intergenic spacer analysis, and screened for cyanobacterial toxins using molecular and chemical approaches. A total of 274 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) were detected. The richness ranged between 8 and 33 cyanobacterial OTUs per sample, reflecting a high mat diversity.LeptolyngbyaandPhormidium(c. 55% and 37% of the OTUs per mat) were dominant. Cyanobacterial community composition was similar between mats, particularly those obtained from closely adjacent locations. The cyanotoxin microcystin was detected in 26 of 27 mats (10–300 ng g-1organic mass), while cylindrospermopsin, detected for the first time in Antarctica, was present in 21 of 30 mats (2–156 ng g-1organic mass). The latter was confirmed via liquid chromatography-mass spectrometry and by the presence of thecyrABandcyrJgenes. This study demonstrates the usefulness of pyrosequencing for characterizing diverse cyanobacterial communities, and confirms that cyanobacteria from extreme environments produce a similar range of cyanotoxins as their temperate counterparts.
Comparative analysis of cyanobacteria inhabiting rocks with different light transmittance in the Mojave Desert: a Mars terrestrial analogue
Authors: Smith Heather D. , Baqué Mickael , Duncan Andrew G. , Lloyd Christopher R. , McKay Christopher P. , Billi Daniela 
Published: May 2014

AbstractThe Mojave Desert has been long considered a suitable terrestrial analogue to Mars in many geological and astrobiological aspects. The Silver Lake region in the Mojave Desert hosts several different rock types (talc, marble, quartz, white carbonate and red-coated carbonate) colonized by hypoliths within a few kilometres. This provides an opportunity to investigate the effect of rock type on hypolithic colonization in a given environment. Transmission measurements from 300 to 800 nm showed that the transmission of blue and UVA varied between rock types. The wavelength at which the transmission fell to 1% of the transmission at 600 nm was 475 nm for white carbonate and quartz, 425 nm for red-coated carbonate and talc and 380 nm for marble. The comparative analysis of the cyanobacterial component of hypoliths under different rocks, as revealed by sequencing 16S rRNA gene clone libraries, showed no significant variation with rock type; hypoliths were dominated by phylotypes of the genusChroococcidiopsis, although less abundant phylotypes of the genusLoriellopsis, LeptolyngbyaandScytonemaoccurred. The comparison of the confocal laser scanning microscopy-λ (CLSM-λ) scan analysis of the spectral emission of the photosynthetic pigments ofChroococcidiopsisin different rocks with the spectrum of isolatedChroococcidiopsissp. 029, revealed a 10 nm red shift in the emission fingerprinting for quartz and carbonate and a 5 nm red shift for talc samples. This result reflects the versatility ofChroococcidiopsisin inhabiting dry niches with different light availability for photosynthesis.
Impact shocked rocks as protective habitats on an anoxic early Earth
Authors: Bryce Casey C. , Horneck Gerda , Rabbow Elke , Edwards Howell G. M. , Cockell Charles S. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractOn Earth, microorganisms living under intense ultraviolet (UV) radiation stress can adopt endolithic lifestyles, growing within cracks and pore spaces in rocks. Intense UV irradiation encountered by microbes leads to death and significant damage to biomolecules, which also severely diminishes the likelihood of detecting signatures of life. Here we show that porous rocks shocked by asteroid or comet impacts provide protection for phototrophs and their biomolecules during 22 months of UV radiation exposure outside the International Space Station. The UV spectrum used approximated the high-UV flux on the surface of planets lacking ozone shields such as the early Earth. These data provide a demonstration that endolithic habitats can provide a refugium from the worst-case UV radiation environments on young planets and an empirical refutation of the idea that early intense UV radiation fluxes would have prevented phototrophs without the ability to form microbial mats or produce UV protective pigments from colonizing the surface of early landmasses.
In situ models for planet assembly around cool stars
Authors: Hansen Brad M. S. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractWe present a model for the in situ assembly of planetary systems around a 0.5 M⊙ star, and compare the resulting statistics with the observed sample of cool Kepler planet candidates. We are able to reproduce the distribution of planetary periods and period ratios, although we once again find an underabundance of single transit systems relative to the observations. We also demonstrate that almost every planetary system assembled in this fashion contains at least one planet in the habitable zone, and that water delivery to these planets can potentially produce water content comparable to that of Earth. Our results broadly support the notion that habitable planets are plentiful around M dwarfs in the solar neighbourhood.
The use of palliative sedation: A comparison of attitudes of French-speaking physicians from Quebec and Switzerland
Authors: Dumont Serge , Blondeau Danielle , Turcotte Véronique , Borasio Gian Domenico , Currat Thierry , Foley Rose-Anna , Beauverd Michel 
Published: May 2014

AbstractObjective:Previous literature has suggested that laws and regulations may impact the use of palliative sedation. Our present study compares the attitudes of French-speaking physicians practicing in the Quebec and Swiss environments, where different laws are in place regarding physician-assisted suicide.Method:Data were drawn from two prior studies, one by Blondeau and colleagues and another by Beauverd and coworkers, employing the same two-by-two experimental design with length of prognosis and type of suffering as independent variables. Both the effect of these variables and the effect of their interaction on Swiss and Quebec physicians' attitudes toward sedation were compared. The written comments of respondents were submitted to a qualitative content analysis and summarized in a comparative perspective.Results:The analysis of variance showed that only the type of suffering had an effect on physicians' attitudes toward sedation. The results of the Wilcoxon test indicated that the attitudes of physicians from Quebec and Switzerland tended to be different for two vignettes: long-term prognosis with existential suffering (p= 0.0577) and short-term prognosis with physical suffering (p= 0.0914). In both cases, the Swiss physicians were less prone to palliative sedation.Significance of results:The attitudes of physicians from Quebec and Switzerland toward palliative sedation, particularly regarding prognosis and type of suffering, seem similar. However, the results suggest that physicians from Quebec could be slightly more open to palliative sedation, even though most were not in favor of this practice as an answer to end-of-life existential suffering.