bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Effects of Salinity on Acute Toxicity of Ammonia and Oxygen Consumption Rates in Common Prawn, Palaemon serratus (Pennat, 1777)
Authors: Kır Mehmet , Öz Osman 
Published: February 2015

AbstractPalaemon serratus juveniles (0.18 ± 0.06 g) were exposed to different concentrations of ammonia in a series of acute toxicity tests by the static renewal method at four salinity levels (10, 20, 30, and 40 ppt) at 29 C and at a pH of 8.0. Oxygen consumption rate (OCR) was also measured. The mortality rate increased with increasing concentrations of ammonia and longer exposure times. High salinity levels clearly increased the tolerance of shrimp to total ammonia nitrogen (TAN) and unionized ammonia (NH3) (P < 0.05). The safe level for P. serratus was estimated to be 2.1, 3.5, 3.8, and 8.5 mg/L for TAN and 0.13, 0.21, 0.24, and 0.53 mg/L for NH3 at 10, 20, 30, and 40 ppt salinity levels, respectively. OCR of P. serratus increased with increasing salinity and TAN concentrations. This study clearly indicated that there is a relationship between an increment in salinity or TAN and the OCR of P. serratus juveniles (P < 0.05).
Dietary Maize Starch Influences Growth Performance, Apparent Digestibility Coefficient, and Hepatic Enzyme Activities of Carbohydrate Metabolism in Obscure Puffer, Takifugu obscurus (Abe)
Authors: Liu Xiang‐He , Ye Chao‐Xia , Zheng Li‐Mian , Ou Cheng‐Cheng , Wang An‐Li , Ye Ji‐Dan , Kong Jiang‐Hong 
Published: February 2015

AbstractA 60‐d feeding trial was conducted to investigate the effect of dietary maize starch on growth performance, feed utilization, and apparent digestibility coefficient (ADC) and key hepatic enzyme activities regulating glycolytic and gluconeogenic metabolic pathways of juvenile obscure puffer, Takifugu obscurus (Abe) (initial body weight = 7.9 ± 0.2 g). Five isonitrogenous and isolipidic diets containing graded levels of maize starch (10, 15, 20, 25, and 30%) were formulated. Results demonstrated that weight gain (WG), specific growth rate (SGR), protein efficiency ratio (PER), protein productive value (PPV), and energy productive value (EPV) increased with increasing dietary maize starch up to 25% (P < 0.05), and thereafter WG, SGR, PER, PPV, and EPV declined. Hepatosomatic index and viscerosomatic index, plasma glucose, triglycerides, and liver glycogen and liver lipid concentration of fish significantly increased with increasing dietary maize starch level (P<0.05). ADC of starch reduced significantly up to 25%, while ADC of dry matter showed a contrary tendency. However, survival, whole body and muscle compositions, and ADCs of protein and lipid showed no significant differences. Dietary maize starch supplements tended to enhance gluconokinase and pyruvate kinase activities of the liver, but no significant differences were observed in activities of hexokinase, phosphofructokinase‐1, fructose‐1, 6‐bisphosphatase, and glucose‐6‐phosphatase in the liver among dietary treatments. Based on WG and FCR, the appropriate dietary maize starch supplementations of juvenile obscure puffer were estimated to be 23.5 and 22.5% of diet, respectively.
The interaction of Saccharomyces paradoxus with its natural competitors on oak bark
Authors: Kowallik Vienna , Miller Eric , Greig Duncan 
Published: February 2015

AbstractThe natural history of the model yeast Saccharomyces cerevisiae is poorly understood and confounded by domestication. In nature, S. cerevisiae and its undomesticated relative S. paradoxus are usually found on the bark of oak trees, a habitat very different from wine or other human fermentations. It is unclear whether the oak trees are really the primary habitat for wild yeast, or whether this apparent association is due to biased sampling. We use culturing and high‐throughput environmental sequencing to show that S. paradoxus is a very rare member of the oak bark microbial community. We find that S. paradoxus can grow well on sterile medium made from oak bark, but that its growth is strongly suppressed when the other members of the community are present. We purified a set of twelve common fungal and bacterial species from the oak bark community and tested how each affected the growth of S. paradoxus in direct competition on oak bark medium at summer and winter temperatures, identifying both positive and negative interactions. One Pseudomonas species produces a diffusible toxin that suppresses S. paradoxus as effectively as either the whole set of twelve species together or the complete community present in nonsterilized oak medium. Conversely, one of the twelve species, Mucilaginibacter sp., had the opposite effect and promoted S. paradoxus growth at low temperatures. We conclude that, in its natural oak tree habitat, S. paradoxus is a rare species whose success depends on the much more abundant microbial species surrounding it.
The population demography of Betula maximowicziana, a cool‐temperate tree species in Japan, in relation to the last glacial period: its admixture‐like genetic structure is the result of simple population splitting not admixing
Authors: Tsuda Y. , Nakao K. , Ide Y. , Tsumura Y. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractConservation of the local genetic variation and evolutionary integrity of economically and ecologically important trees is a key aspect of studies involving forest genetics, and a population demographic history of the target species provides valuable information for this purpose. Here, the genetic structure of 48 populations of Betula maximowicziana was assessed using 12 expressed sequence tag–simple sequence repeat (EST‐SSR) markers. Genetic diversity was lower in northern populations than southern ones and structure analysis revealed three groups: northern and southern clusters and an admixed group. Eleven more genomic‐SSR loci were added and the demographic history of these three groups was inferred by approximate Bayesian computation (ABC). The ABC revealed that a simple split scenario was much more likely than isolation with admixture, suggesting that the admixture‐like structure detected in this species was due to ancestral polymorphisms. The ABC analysis suggested that the population growth and divergence of the three groups occurred 96 800 (95% CI, 20 500–599 000) and 28 300 (95% CI, 8700–98 400) years ago, respectively. We need to be aware of several sources of uncertainty in the inference such as assumptions about the generation time, overlapping of generations, confidence intervals of the estimated parameters and the assumed model in the ABC. However, the results of the ABC together with the model‐based maps of reconstructed past species distribution and palaeoecological data suggested that the modern genetic structure of B. maximowicziana originated prior to the last glacial maximum (LGM) and that some populations survived in the northern range even during the LGM.
IV. REACTIVITY AND SLEEP IN INFANTS: A LONGITUDINAL OBJECTIVE ASSESSMENT
Authors: De Marcas Gali S. , Soffer‐Dudek Nirit , Dollberg Shaul , Bar‐Haim Yair , Sadeh Avi 
Published: February 2015

ABSTRACTSleep patterns and temperament in the first year of life are closely related. However, research utilizing objective, rather than subjective measurements of sleep and temperament is scarce and results are inconsistent. In addition, a relative lack of longitudinal data prevents inference of causality between the two constructs. In this study, infant sleep was objectively assessed among 95 infants at 3, 6, and 12 months‐of‐age with an actigraph in the home setting. Reactivity to sound, light, and touch, a specific aspect of temperament, was behaviorally assessed at 3 and 6 months, both during sleep (at home) and during waking (at the laboratory). Expected maturational trends were recorded in sleep, with a temporal increase in sleep efficiency and percent of motionless sleep. Quadratic (i.e., inverse U shape) relations were found, especially among girls, when predicting change in sleep by reactivity thresholds, suggesting that both hyposensitive and hypersensitive infants are at risk for poor sleep quality. These are the first research findings suggesting that low reactivity in infancy might be associated with compromised sleep quality. The observed nonlinear effects may account for null or inconsistent results in previous studies that explored only linear associations between temperament and sleep. Future studies should address both extremes of the temperament continuum when exploring relations with sleep patterns.
VII. INFANT SLEEP DEVELOPMENT FROM 3 TO 6 MONTHS POSTPARTUM: LINKS WITH MATERNAL SLEEP AND PATERNAL INVOLVEMENT
Authors: Tikotzky Liat , Sadeh Avi , Volkovich Ella , Manber Rachel , Meiri Gal , Shahar Golan 
Published: February 2015

ABSTRACTThe aims of this longitudinal study were to examine (a) development of infant sleep and maternal sleep from 3 to 6 months postpartum; (b) concomitant and prospective links between maternal sleep and infant sleep; and (c) triadic links between paternal involvement in infant caregiving and maternal and infant sleep. The study included 57 families that were recruited during pregnancy. Maternal and infant sleep was assessed using actigraphy and sleep diaries for 5 nights. Both fathers and mothers completed a questionnaire assessing the involvement of fathers relative to mothers in infant caregiving. The results demonstrated moderate improvement in infant and maternal sleep percent between 3 and 6 months. Maternal sleep percent at 3 months significantly predicted infant sleep percent at 6 months. Greater paternal involvement in infant daytime and nighttime caregiving at 3 months significantly predicted more consolidated maternal and infant sleep at 6 months. These findings suggest that maternal sleep is an important predictor of infant sleep and that increased involvement of fathers in infant caregiving responsibilities may contribute to improvements in both maternal and infant sleep during the first 6 months postpartum.
ORGANIZED CRIMES AGAINST NATURE: ELEPHANTS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA
Authors: LOPES ADRIAN A. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractPoaching of elephants in Southern Africa is now dominated by international groups following a model of organized crime. This shift, from poaching conducted by small, local groups; with limited mobility, weapons, and technology, to individuals who organize, finance, equip, and transport well‐armed poaching units to previously scouted locations, has made the protection of elephants in Southern Africa much more difficult and dangerous. This paper develops a model of high‐tech criminal poaching. A poaching organization makes a decision on the number of “planned poaching expeditions.” If a poaching unit is intercepted the entire organization is destroyed, but is replaced by a new organization in the next year. The operating life of a poaching organization is a stochastic process, which in turn induces a stochastic evolution in the elephant population. Under plausible conditions, the number of planned poaching expeditions is highly sensitive to the probability of interception by anti‐poaching patrols, but is nonresponsive to reductions in the black‐market ivory price. Thereby it might be better to focus conservation efforts on increasing the probability of intercepting poaching units rather than trying to control black market ivory prices. A benchmark value of poaching expeditions is identified—above which elephants may slowly decline to extinction.
Simulation Evidence on Theory‐based and Statistical Identification under Volatility Breaks
Authors: Herwartz Helmut , Plödt Martin 
Published: February 2015

AbstractBeside a priori theoretical assumptions on instantaneous or long‐run effects of structural shocks, sign restrictions have become a prominent means for structural vector autoregressive (SVAR) analysis. Moreover, changes in second order moments of systems of time series can be fruitfully exploited for identification purposes in SVARs. By means of Monte Carlo studies, we examine to what degree theory‐based and statistical identification approaches offer an accurate quantification of the true structural relations in a standard model for monetary policy analysis. Subsequently, we discuss how identifying information from theory‐based and statistical approaches can be combined on the basis of a low‐dimensional empirical model of US monetary policy.
Non‐adherence in children with asthma reviewed: The need for improvement of asthma care and medical education
Authors: Klok Ted , Kaptein Adrian A. , Brand Paul L. P. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractAdherence to daily inhaled corticosteroid therapy is a key determinant of asthma control. Therefore, improving adherence to inhaled corticosteroids is the most effective method through which healthcare providers can help children with uncontrolled asthma. However, identifying non‐adherent patients is difficult, and electronic monitoring is the only reliable method to assess adherence. (Non‐)adherence is a complex behavioural process influenced by many interacting factors. Intentional barriers to adherence are common; driven by illness perceptions and medication beliefs, patients and parents deliberately choose not to follow the doctor's recommendations. Common non‐intentional barriers are related to family routines, child‐raising issues, and to social issues such as poverty. Effective interventions improving adherence are complex, because they take intentional and non‐intentional barriers to adherence into account. There is evidence that comprehensive, guideline‐based asthma self‐management programmes can be successful, with excellent adherence and good asthma control. Patient‐centred care focused on healthcare provider–patient/parent collaboration is the key factor determining the success of guided self‐management programmes. Such care should focus on shared decision‐making as this has been shown to improve adherence and healthcare outcomes. Current asthma care falls short because many physicians fail to adhere to asthma guidelines in their diagnostic approach and therapeutic prescriptions, and because of the lack of application of patient‐centred health care. Increased awareness of the importance of patient‐centred communication and increased training in patient‐centred communication skills of undergraduates and experienced attending physicians are needed to improve adherence to daily controller therapy and asthma control in children with asthma.
Gas induction for pyloromyotomy
Authors: Scrimgeour Gemma E. , Leather Nicholas W.F. , Perry Rachel S. , Pappachan John V. , Baldock Andrew J. 
Published: February 2015

SummaryBackgroundInfants with pyloric stenosis are considered to be at high risk of aspiration on induction of anesthesia. Traditionally, texts have recommended classic rapid sequence induction (RSI) or awake intubation (AI). AI has generally fallen out of favor, while the components of RSI have become increasingly controversial. Infants are at high risk of hypoxemia if ventilation is not maintained while waiting for neuromuscular blockade to establish. The efficacy of cricoid pressure (CP) to prevent aspiration has not been proven. It can impair visualization of the glottis and make intubation difficult. It is debatable whether any RSI technique is needed for pyloromyotomy. A recent review of 235 infants reported no aspiration events. These children were anesthetized with a variety of techniques, including RSI, gas induction, and AI. In our institution, we teach a gaseous induction. The nasogastric tube is used to empty the stomach and anesthesia is induced with sevoflurane. A nondepolarizing muscle relaxant is administered and ventilation maintained until neuromuscular blockade is established and intubating conditions are optimal. We report our experience of this technique.MethodA retrospective medical notes review of all patients undergoing pyloromyotomy between 2005 and 2012.ResultsThere were 269 patients (84.4% male, mean weight 3.74 kg ± 0.74). Two hundred and fifty‐two (93.7%) received gas inductions and 17 (6.3%) intravenous (IV) inductions. Two children received an RSI. No patient‐specific factors were identified to explain operator choice in those receiving IV inductions. There were no recorded aspiration events.ConclusionGas induction can be considered for children undergoing pyloromyotomy.
An Algorithm for Automated Estimation of Road Roughness from Mobile Laser Scanning Data
Authors: Kumar Pankaj , Lewis Paul , McElhinney Conor P. , Rahman Alias Abdul 
Published: February 2015

AbstractRoad roughness is the deviation of a road surface from a designed surface grade that influences safety conditions for road users. Mobile laser scanning (MLS) systems provide a rapid, continuous and cost‐effective way of collecting highly accurate and dense 3D point‐cloud data along a route corridor. In this paper an algorithm for the automated estimation of road roughness from MLS data is presented, where a surface grid is fitted to the lidar points associated with the road surface. The elevation difference between the lidar points and their surface grid equivalents provides residual values in height which can be used to estimate roughness along the road surface. Tests validated the new road‐roughness algorithm by successfully estimating surface conditions on multiple road sections. These findings contribute to a more comprehensive approach to surveying road networks.
Aquagrams of Raw Milk for Oestrus Detection in Dairy Cows
Authors: Takemura G , Bázár G , Ikuta K , Yamaguchi E , Ishikawa S , Furukawa A , Kubota Y , Kovács Z , Tsenkova R 
Published: February 2015

ContentsThe purpose of this research was to develop rapid and cost‐effective method for oestrus detection in dairy cows by means of near infrared spectroscopy and aquaphotomics, using raw milk from individual cows. We found that aquaphotomics approach showed consistent specific water spectral pattern of milk at the oestrus periods of the investigated Holstein cows. Characteristic changes were detected especially in foremilk collected at morning milking. They were reflected in calculated aquagrams of milk spectra where distinctive spectral pattern of oestrus showed increased light absorbance of strongly hydrogen‐bonded water. Results showed that monitoring of raw milk near infrared spectra provides an opportunity for analysing hormone levels indirectly, through the changes of water spectral pattern caused by complex physiological changes related to fertile periods.
Clinical features and survival of lung cancer patients with pleural effusions
Authors: Porcel Jose M. , Gasol Ariadna , Bielsa Silvia , Civit Carme , Light Richard W. , Salud Antonieta 
Published: February 2015

AbstractBackground and objectiveThe clinical relevance of pleural effusions in lung cancer has seldom been approached systematically. The aim of this study was to determine the prevalence, causes and natural history of lung cancer‐associated pleural effusions, as well as their influence on survival.MethodsRetrospective review of clinical records and imaging of 556 consecutive patients with a newly diagnosed lung cancer over a 4‐year period at our institution.ResultsLung cancer comprised 490 non‐small cell and 66 small cell types. About 40% of patients with lung cancer developed pleural effusions at some time during the course of their disease. In half the patients, the effusions were too small to be tapped. These effusions did not progress to require a pleural intervention. Patients with minimal effusions had a worse prognosis compared to patients without pleural effusions (median survival of 7.49 vs 12.65 months, P < 0.001). Less than 20% of the 113 patients subjected to a diagnostic thoracentesis had benign causes for their effusions. Palliative pleural procedures (like therapeutic thoracenteses, pleurodesis or tunnelled pleural catheters) were conducted in 79 (84%) of the 94 malignant effusions. An effusion's size equal to or greater than half of the hemithorax was a strong predictor of the need for a palliative procedure. Overall survival of patients with malignant effusions was 5.49 months.ConclusionsMalignant pleural effusions are a poor prognostic factor in the setting of lung cancer, which includes minimal effusions not amenable to tapping.
Foreign Direct Investment into Open and Closed Cities
Authors: Dascher Kristof 
Published: February 2015

AbstractThis article argues that the more open a city is to immigration, the more likely it is to welcome – and hence also receive – foreign direct investment (FDI). If immigration is allowed to complement the inflow of foreign capital, urban rent rises by more. This extra rise in rent aids in appeasing owners of capital specific to local traditional industries who else become worse off as FDI flows in. The article's model may help give a simple alternative explanation of why urban centers such as Hong Kong, Singapore, Dublin or many cities on China's Eastern coast have received so much more FDI per capita. These cities could draw on a nearby pool of extra labor that – by driving rents up and keeping wages down – may have been decisive in the political struggle over whether to let foreign direct investors in.
A method to discriminate between closely related bovine major histocompatibility complex class I alleles by combining established PCR‐SSP assays with RFLPs
Authors: Svitek N. , Nzau B. , Steinaa L. , Nene V. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractWe have developed a polymerase chain reaction‐sequence‐specific primers‐restriction fragment length polymorphism (PCR‐SSP‐RFLP) method to rapidly differentiate between the A18 and A18 variant (v) BoLA haplotypes and between A14 and A15/A15v BoLA haplotypes in Holstein/Friesian cattle. We used published SSP to PCR amplify BoLA alleles expressed in animals of known haplotype and exposed the amplicons to the restriction enzyme PvuII that was predicted to cut at a unique site in the middle of BoLA‐6*01302 (A18v) and BoLA‐1*00901 (A15) but not in BoLA‐6*01301 (A18) or BoLA‐1*02301 (A14) alleles. Whereas the method does not discriminate between the A15 and A15v haplotypes, as the BoLA‐1*00902 allele associated with A15v also contains a PvuII site, we are interested in cattle of A18 and A14 haplotype for vaccine related studies. Our results also indicated that the BoLA‐6*01302 (A18v) allele is much more abundant than BoLA‐6*01301 (A18) in the cattle that we sampled.
Community effectiveness of copepods for dengue vector control: systematic review
Authors: Lazaro A. , Han W. W. , Manrique‐Saide P. , George L. , Velayudhan R. , Toledo J. , Runge Ranzinger S. , Horstick O. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractObjectiveVector control remains the only available method for primary prevention of dengue. Several interventions exist for dengue vector control, with limited evidence of their efficacy and community effectiveness. This systematic review compiles and analyses the existing global evidence for community effectiveness of copepods for dengue vector control.MethodsThe systematic review follows the PRISMA statement, searching six relevant databases. Applying all inclusion and exclusion criteria, 11 articles were included.ResultsThere is evidence that cyclopoid copepods (Mesocyclops spp.) could potentially be an effective vector control option, as shown in five community effectiveness studies in Vietnam. This includes long‐term effectiveness for larval and adult control of Ae. aegypti, as well as dengue incidence. However, this success has so far not been replicated elsewhere (six studies, three community effectiveness studies – Costa Rica, Mexico and USA, and three studies analysing both efficacy and community effectiveness – Honduras, Laos and USA), probably due to community participation, environmental and/or biological factors. Judging by the quality of existing studies, there is a lack of good study design, data quality and appropriate statistics.ConclusionThere is limited evidence for the use of cyclopoid copepods as a single intervention. There are very few studies, and more are needed in other communities and environments. Clear best practice guidelines for the methodology of entomological studies should be developed.