bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Differing assemblage composition and dynamics in T4‐like myophages of two neighbouring sub‐alpine lakes
Authors: Zhong Xu , Jacquet Stephan 
Published: March 2014

Summary

Bacteriophages play an important role in plankton population dynamics and biogeochemical cycling, but their community dynamics and diversity are still poorly known, especially in fresh waters.

We conducted a 1‐year investigation of the T4‐like bacteriophages in the surface waters of two Western European peri‐alpine lakes (lakes Annecy and Bourget), using fingerprinting and cloning‐sequencing approaches targeting the major capsid protein g23 gene.

Our results suggest that T4‐like bacteriophages are diverse (we found several new sequences) and differed substantially between the two lakes. Further, these phages displayed seasonal patterns with marked shifts in community composition.

Examining the dynamics of some individual constituents (e.g. DGGE bands), we found that (i) the majority of these myoviruses were rare (mean relative abundance <1%) and only a few were abundant (mean relative abundance >5%); (ii) the dominance of the most abundant DGGE bands changed throughout the year and their dynamics were very different between the two lakes; (iii) only a few bands (e.g. <20%) were detectable throughout the year and their proportion was higher in the oligomesotrophic Lake Bourget.

Our results suggest a highly dynamic T4‐like myoviral assemblage. T4‐like‐viruses seem to conform to a standard model of community organisation and a common type of species abundance curve, with mainly rare organisms that occasionally may become abundant (termed a ‘seed bank’ for virus assemblages).
Missing effects of anthropogenic nutrient deposition on sentinel alpine ecosystems
Authors: Vinebrooke Rolf D. , Maclennan Megan M. , Bartrons Mireia , Zettel James P. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractAnthropogenic nitrogen (N) deposition affects unproductive remote alpine and circumpolar ecosystems, which are often considered sentinels of global change. Human activities and forest fires can also elevate phosphorus (P) deposition, possibly compounding the ecological effects of increased N deposition given the ubiquity of nutrient co‐limitation of primary producers. Low N : P ratios coupled with evidence of NP‐limitation from bioassays led us to hypothesize that P indirectly stimulates phytoplankton by amplifying the direct positive effect of N (i.e. serial N‐limitation) in alpine ponds. We tested the hypothesis using the first replicated N × P enrichment experiment conducted at the whole‐ecosystem level, which involved 12 alpine ponds located in the low N deposition backcountry of the eastern Front Range of the Canadian Rockies. Although applications of N and P elevated ambient N and P concentrations by 2–5×, seston and plankton remained relatively unaffected in the amended ponds. However, additions of ammonium nitrate elevated the δ15N signals of both primary producers and herbivores (fairy shrimp; Anostraca), attesting to trophic transfer of N deposition to consumers. Further, in situ bioassays revealed that grazing by high ambient densities of fairy shrimp together with potential competition from algae lining the pond bottoms suppressed the otherwise serially N‐limited response by phytoplankton. Our findings highlight how indirect effects of biotic interactions rather the often implicit direct effects of chemical changes can regulate the sensitivities of extreme ecosystems to nutrient deposition.
Contrasting long‐term records of biomass burning in wet and dry savannas of equatorial East Africa
Authors: Colombaroli Daniele , Ssemmanda Immaculate , Gelorini Vanessa , Verschuren Dirk 
Published: March 2014

AbstractRainfall controls fire in tropical savanna ecosystems through impacting both the amount and flammability of plant biomass, and consequently, predicted changes in tropical precipitation over the next century are likely to have contrasting effects on the fire regimes of wet and dry savannas. We reconstructed the long‐term dynamics of biomass burning in equatorial East Africa, using fossil charcoal particles from two well‐dated lake‐sediment records in western Uganda and central Kenya. We compared these high‐resolution (5 years/sample) time series of biomass burning, spanning the last 3800 and 1200 years, with independent data on past hydroclimatic variability and vegetation dynamics. In western Uganda, a rapid (<100 years) and permanent increase in burning occurred around 2170 years ago, when climatic drying replaced semideciduous forest by wooded grassland. At the century time scale, biomass burning was inversely related to moisture balance for much of the next two millennia until ca. 1750 ad, when burning increased strongly despite regional climate becoming wetter. A sustained decrease in burning since the mid20th century reflects the intensified modern‐day landscape conversion into cropland and plantations. In contrast, in semiarid central Kenya, biomass burning peaked at intermediate moisture‐balance levels, whereas it was lower both during the wettest and driest multidecadal periods of the last 1200 years. Here, burning steadily increased since the mid20th century, presumably due to more frequent deliberate ignitions for bush clearing and cattle ranching. Both the observed historical trends and regional contrasts in biomass burning are consistent with spatial variability in fire regimes across the African savanna biome today. They demonstrate the strong dependence of East African fire regimes on both climatic moisture balance and vegetation, and the extent to which this dependence is now being overridden by anthropogenic activity.
Influence of health locus of control on recovery of function in recently hospitalized frail older adults
Authors: Milte Catherine M , Luszcz Mary A , Ratcliffe Julie , Masters Stacey , Crotty Maria 
Published: March 2014

AimTo investigate the influence of health locus of control on physical function, quality of life, depression and satisfaction with care transition in a sample of older adults after a hospital admission.MethodsA total of 230 older adults referred for transition care after a hospital admission (mean length of stay 25.7 days, SD 17.2) were recruited into a randomized controlled intervention trial investigating the effect of specialized coaching compared with usual care. Older adults completed the multidimensional health locus of control (MHLC) survey at baseline. Self‐rated quality of life, depression and physical function were assessed at baseline and 12 months using the EuroQol five‐dimension, Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) and Modified Barthel Index (MBI), respectively.ResultsResults from hierarchical multiple regression analysis in 136 participants (70 usual care and 66 specialized care) with complete data showed that higher scores on the MHLC internal subscale were related to better quality of life, and better physical function in the usual care group at 12 months, but not depression or transition process satisfaction at 3 months. No relationships between MHLC subscales and outcome measures were observed in the specialized care group, where the coaching intervention might have precluded any relationship observed.ConclusionsA stronger sense of personal control over health was associated with better maintenance of quality of life and physical function at 12 months in older adults undergoing usual care transition after acute hospitalization. Modification of control beliefs has the potential to promote resilience and impact on health outcomes in older adults during care transitions. Geriatr Gerontol Int 2015; 15: 341–349.
Intravesical prostatic protrusion as a predictor of early urinary continence recovery after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy
Authors: Lee Chan Ho , Ha Hong Koo 
Published: March 2014

ObjectivesTo evaluate the significance of intravesical prostatic protrusion as a predictor of early urinary continence recovery after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy.MethodsA total of 242 patients who underwent laparoscopic radical prostatectomy were included in the study. Data on incontinence status and the number of pads required per day for urinary incontinence were collected. Urinary continence was defined as no pad use or occasional security pad use. Intravesical prostatic protrusion was measured by the vertical distance from the tip of the protruding prostate to the base of the urinary bladder in the sagittal plane of preoperative magnetic resonance imaging. Continence at 1, 3, 6 and 12 months postoperatively was assessed by dividing the patients into two groups based on the degree of intravesical prostatic protrusion. The correlation between preoperative factors and urinary continence after laparoscopic radical prostatectomy was examined.ResultsThe urinary continence rates at postoperative month 1, 3, 6 and 12 were 19%, 50%, 79.8% and 92.1%, respectively. In the multivariate logistic analysis, intravesical prostatic protrusion was a significant independent predictive factor of early urinary continence at 1, 3, 6, 9 and 12 months. Markedly improved urinary continence was observed in the non‐significant intravesical prostatic protrusion group (intravesical prostatic protrusion <5 mm) at all periods compared with the significant intravesical prostatic protrusion group (intravesical prostatic protrusion ≥5 mm; P < 0.05).ConclusionsThese findings suggest that the likelihood of postoperative urinary incontinence in patients undergoing laparoscopic radical prostatectomy is markedly higher in those with larger intravesical prostatic protrusion, and that intravesical prostatic protrusion is correlated with the duration of postoperative urinary incontinence.
Growth, Photosynthetic Characteristics, Antioxidant Capacity and Biomass Yield and Quality of Wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) Exposed to LED Light Sources with Different Spectra Combinations
Authors: Dong C. , Fu Y. , Liu G. , Liu H. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractAs a consequence of the increasing importance of crop in Bioregenerative Life Support System (BLSS), there is an interest in enhancing both the productivity and quality of wheat. Lighting systems for growing wheat need to be lightweight, reliable and durable. Light‐emitting diodes (LEDs) have these characteristics. Previous studies demonstrated that the combination of red and blue lights was an effective light source for several crops. Yet the appearance of plant in this kind of lighting was purplish grey, and other problems were also accompanied. The addition of other spectra LEDs made better growth and also offer a better visual experience to bring psychological benefit to the crews. The objective of this study was to investigate the influences of different spectra combinations on the wheat growth, photosynthetic characteristics, antioxidant capacity and biomass yield and quality during their life cycle. Four types of different spectra combinations with the same intensity were employed: a single red light (R), a red–blue light (R + B, R : B = 4 : 1), a red–white light (R + W, R : W = 4 : 1) and a white light (W). The results showed that the wheat cultivated in the R + W light was characterized by highest harvest index and lowest lignin in inedible biomass, which was more beneficial to recycle substances in the processes of the environment regeneration. The data were comparable to those under W condition in terms of straw height, relative water content (RWC), membrane stability index (MSI), photosynthetic rate, chlorophyll concentration, antioxidant capacity, thousand kernel weight (TKW) and soluble sugar concentration. Wheat was sensitive to light quality which significantly affected those indices of growth and physiology, especially at earing and flowering stages.
Scale‐dependent species–area and species–isolation relationships: a review and a test study from a fragmented semi‐arid agro‐ecosystem
Authors: Giladi Itamar , May Felix , Ristow Michael , Jeltsch Florian , Ziv Yaron 
Published: March 2014

AbstractAimPatterns that relate species richness with fragment area (the species–area relationship, SAR) and with isolation (the species–isolation relationship, SIR) are well documented. However, those that relate species density – the number of species within a standardized area – with fragment area (D‐SAR) or isolation (D‐SIR) have not been sufficiently explored, despite the potential for such an analysis to disentangle the underlying mechanisms of SARs and SIRs. Previous spatial theory predicts that a significant D‐SAR or D‐SIR is unlikely to emerge in taxa with high dispersal limitation, such as plants. Furthermore, a recent model predicts that the detection and the significance of D‐SARs or D‐SIRs may decrease with grain size. We combined a literature review with grain size‐dependent sampling in a fragmented landscape to evaluate the prevalence and grain size‐dependent nature of D‐SARs and D‐SIRs in plants.LocationWorldwide (review) and a semi‐arid agro‐ecosystem in Israel (case study).MethodsWe combined an extensive literature review of 31 D‐SAR studies of plants in fragmented landscapes with an empirical study in which we analysed grain size‐dependent D‐SARs and D‐SIRs using a grain size‐dependent hierarchical sampling of species density and species richness in a fragmented, semi‐arid agro‐ecosystem.ResultsWe found that significantly increasing D‐SARs are rare in plant studies. Furthermore, we found that the detection of a significant D‐SAR is often possible only after the data have been stratified by species, habitat or landscape characteristics. The results from our case study indicated that the significance and the slopes of both D‐SARs and D‐SIRs increase as grain size decreases.Main conclusionsThese results call for a careful consideration of scale while analysing and interpreting the responses of species richness and species density to fragmentation. Our results suggest that grain size‐dependent analyses of D‐SARs and D‐SIRs may help to disentangle the mechanisms that generate SARs and SIRs and may enable early detection of the effects of fragmentation on plant biodiversity.
Physicians' Discourse for Establishing Authoritative Knowledge in Birthing Work and Reducing the Presence of the Granny Midwife
Authors: D. Bonaparte Alicia 
Published: March 2014

AbstractThis study examines regulatory efforts directed toward southern Black granny midwives in the early 20th century. Using Black feminist theory, I analyze physicians' written anti‐midwifery advocacy in The Journal of the American Medical Association and The Journal of the South Carolina Medical Association as evidence of the presence of inter‐occupational conflict between physicians and Black grannies. I argue that doctors advocated for enhanced midwifery education and midwifery supervision to eliminate midwives while defining physicians as heroes in birthing rooms. This study illustrates how physicians' professional writings substantiated doctors as veritable experts in birthing work rather than strategically targeting Black midwives.
Does Institutional Theory Need Redirecting?
Authors: Meyer Renate E. , Höllerer Markus A. 
Published: March 2014

Abstract Greenwood, Hinings and Whetten (2014) present two major criticisms of current institutional scholarship, and see need for a broad redirection: institutional organization theory, they argue, has lost sight of the claim to study organizations and, with its overwhelming focus on isomorphism and similarity, has fallen short on adequately theorizing differences across organizations. In our article, we offer support as well as a riposte. First, while we agree that the organizing of collective efforts needs to be at the core of organization research, we warn that focusing on formal organization – a rationalized cultural product itself – may direct attention away from studying alternative modes of organizing, and underestimates the dynamic developments that have transformed contemporary organizations into increasingly complex objects of inquiry. Second, we are concerned that, by abandoning the analysis of similarities in favour of differences, institutional theory may eventually lose sight of its pivotal quest: to study institutions.
The impact of an educational mental health intervention on adolescents' perceptions of mental illness
Authors: Sakellari E. , Sourander A. , Kalokerinou‐Anagnostopoulou A. , Leino‐Kilpi H. 
Published: March 2014

Accessible summary
Positive perceptions towards mental illness are essential for a mentally healthy society.
This study explores adolescents' perceptions of mental illness and examines the extent to which these perceptions changed after a mental health educational intervention.
The results of this study demonstrate that there is a positive effect on adolescents' perceptions towards mental illness.
AbstractNowadays, in many countries, mental health care is primarily community based. Community perceptions of mental illness are an essential issue for the quality of life of people with mental health problems and the promotion of mental health in general. The aim of this study was to explore adolescents' perceptions of mental illness and to examine the extent to which those perceptions changed after an educational mental health intervention. The data were collected twice, before and after the educational mental health intervention. Fifty‐nine pupils from two Greek secondary schools were individually interviewed, and data were analyzed by inductive content analysis. The findings show that adolescents can provide a rich description of mental illness in a multidimensional way. After the intervention, they provide different descriptions, identify various forms of mental illness and express opinions on what mentally ill people need and how they should be treated. It is concluded that mental health educational interventions in schools can be effective in changing adolescents' perceptions towards mental illness.
Developing an information leaflet on 22q11.2 deletion syndrome for parents to use with professionals during healthcare encounters
Authors: Nicholl Honor , Doyle Carmel , Begley Thelma , Murphy Maryanne , Lawlor Anne , Malone Helen 
Published: March 2014

AbstractPurposeThe purpose of this project was to gather parents' expertise to inform an educational leaflet for parents to share with professionals caring for children with 22q11.2 deletion syndrome (22q11.2 DS).Design and MethodsA mixed‐method design was adopted. Data were collected by one focus group interview (n = 8) and questionnaires with 92 other parents of children with 22q11.2 DS.ResultsQuantitative and qualitative responses informed the development of an information leaflet.Practice ImplicationsParents are well positioned to assist in development of information leaflets that can minimize “repeated storytelling” during professional encounters.
An updated description of the Australian dingo (Canis dingo Meyer, 1793)
Authors: Crowther M. S. , Fillios M. , Colman N. , Letnic M. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractA sound understanding of the taxonomy of threatened species is essential for setting conservation priorities and the development of management strategies. Hybridization is a threat to species conservation because it compromises the integrity of unique evolutionary lineages and can impair the ability of conservation managers to identify threatened taxa and achieve conservation targets. Australia's largest land predator, the dingo Canis dingo, is a controversial taxon that is threatened by hybridization. Since their arrival <5000 yBP (years Before Present) dingoes have been subject to isolation, leading to them becoming a unique canid. However, the dingo's taxonomic status is clouded by hybridization with modern domesticated dogs and confusion about how to distinguish ‘pure’ dingoes from dingo‐dog hybrids. Confusion exists because there is no description or series of original specimens against which the identities of putative hybrid and ‘pure’ dingoes can be assessed. Current methods to classify dingoes have poor discriminatory abilities because natural variation within dingoes is poorly understood, and it is unknown if hybridization may have altered the genome of post‐19th century reference specimens. Here we provide a description of the dingo based on pre‐20th century specimens that are unlikely to have been influenced by hybridization. The dingo differs from the domestic dog by relatively larger palatal width, relatively longer rostrum, relatively shorter skull height and relatively wider top ridge of skull. A sample of 19th century dingo skins we examined suggests that there was considerable variability in the colour of dingoes and included various combinations of yellow, white, ginger and darker variations from tan to black. Although it remains difficult to provide consistent and clear diagnostic features, our study places morphological limits on what can be considered a dingo.
Endothelial Ephrin‐B2 is Essential for Arterial Vasodilation in Mice
Authors: Lin Yuankai , Jiang Weiya , Ng Jennifer , Jina Asmita , Wang Rong A. 
Published: March 2014

AbstractObjectiveThe cell surface protein ephrin‐B2 is expressed in arterial and not venous ECs throughout development and adulthood. Endothelial ephrin‐B2 is required for vascular development and angiogenesis, but its role in established arteries is currently unknown. We investigated the physiological role of ephrin‐B2 signaling in adult endothelium.MethodsWe generated adult conditional knockout mice lacking the Efnb2 gene specifically in ECs and evaluated the vasodilation responses to blood flow increase and ACh in the cremaster muscle preparation by intravital microscope and in carotid artery by in vivo ultrasound.ResultsWe found that the Efnb2 conditional knockout mice were defective in acute arterial dilation. Vasodilation was impaired in cremaster arterioles in response to either increased flow or ACh, and in the carotid arteries in response to increased flow. Levels of cGMP, an effector of NO, were diminished in mutant arteries following ACh stimulation. GSNO, a donor for the vasodilator NO, alleviated the vasodilatory defects in the mutants. Immunostaining showed that a subset of ephrin‐B2 proteins colocalized with caveolin‐1, a negative regulator of eNOS.ConclusionsOur data suggest that endothelial ephrin‐B2 is required for endothelial‐dependent arterial dilation and NO signaling in adult endothelium.
NPHS2 mutation analysis and primary nephrotic syndrome in southern Indians
Authors: Jaffer Asra , Unnisa Wali , Raju DSB , Jahan Parveen 
Published: March 2014

AbstractAimNephrotic syndrome is one of the most commonly diagnosed primary kidney diseases and its progressive forms can lead to chronic kidney disease and or end‐stage renal disease. Steroid‐resistant nephrotic syndrome is defined by resistance to standard steroid therapy and it remains one of the most intractable causes of kidney failure. Mutations in NPHS2, which encodes for podocin, an integral membrane protein of the glomerular epithelial cells (podocytes), represent a frequent cause of steroid‐resistant nephrotic syndrome worldwide. This study was aimed at screening for known NPHS2 mutations in Indians with nephrotic syndrome.MethodsWe screened a cohort of 484 subjects from the southern Indian population for the presence of four missense mutations G92C, P118L, R138Q and D160G within the NPHS2 gene using tetra primer ARMS PCR.ResultsOur results revealed that these mutations were seen only among the patients (14.02%) and were absent in the controls, suggesting their disease‐causing nature. Further categorization revealed that these mutations were together responsible for 18.5% of steroid‐resistant cases in our study group. Conversely, the studied mutations were not found in the controls as well as in the patients with steroid‐sensitive nephrotic syndrome.ConclusionThis is the first such report from India. More studies are warranted to establish the frequency of NPHS2 mutations in the Asian–Indian population and such analysis may help in developing mutation(s)‐specific therapeutic interventions in the future.