bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
The origins of molluscs
Authors: Vinther Jakob 
Published: November 2014

AbstractThe interrelationships and evolutionary history of molluscs have seen great advances in the last decade. Recent phylogenetic studies have allowed alternative morphology‐based evolutionary scenarios to be tested and, most significantly, shown that the aplacophorans are sister group to polyplacophorans (chitons), corroborating palaeontological and embryological evolutionary scenarios in which aplacophorans are secondarily simplified from a chiton‐like ancestor. Aplacophoran morphology therefore does not represent the plesiomorphic condition for molluscs as a whole. The mollusc crown group radiated in the Early Cambrian, and rapidly thereafter, stem lineages to the major molluscan classes emerged: cephalopods, gastropods, bivalves (= pelecypods), monoplacophorans, rostroconchs (inferred stem scaphopods) and aculiferans. This attests to the fast, adaptive radiation of the crown group during the Cambrian explosion. Kimberella from the latest Ediacaran exhibits several molluscan traits, which justifies its position as a molluscan stem‐group member, rather than as a more basal Lophotrochozoan. The interrelationships among the conchiferan molluscs are still a matter of contention and require further palaeontological and molecular phylogenetic scrutiny.
Volatile organic compounds in the strongly fragrant fern genus Melpomene (Polypodiaceae)
Authors: Kessler M. , Connor E. , Lehnert M. 
Published: November 2014

AbstractVolatile organic compounds (VOCs) are common among plants, both as attractants for pollinators and as defence against herbivores. While much studied among flowering plants, the prevalence and function of VOCs among ferns is little known. Using headspace sorption and gas chromatography, we analysed the VOCs of dried specimens of six species of grammitid fern (Polypodiaceae), including two species of the genus Melpomene, which is characterised by a distinctive sweet smell. We identified 38 VOCs, including 22 not previously recorded among ferns. The two species of Melpomene had distinct VOC cocktails, including 12 substances not found in the other four studied genera, mainly involving fatty acid derivatives (FADs) and aromatics. We propose that these VOCs have, at least in part, a function in herbivore defence, but note that the VOC bouquet of Melpomene is distinct from that typically found in angiosperms.
Association of salivary triglycerides and cholesterol with dental caries in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus
Authors: Subramaniam Priya , Sharma Akhliesh , Kaje Keerthan 
Published: November 2014

ABSTRACTBackgroundMetabolic disturbances in diabetes mellitus can affect oral health. Altered levels of salivary lipids have been suggested as a risk for dental caries. There has been lack of research in this regard and in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus.AimTo assess the salivary triglycerides and cholesterol levels in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus and correlate them with their dental caries status.Materials and methodsThirty children aged 12–16 years with type 1 diabetes mellitus and 30 age‐ and gender‐matched healthy children were included in the study. Unstimulated saliva was collected from each child and evaluated for salivary triglyceride and cholesterol levels. Dental caries status (DMFT) was recorded.ResultsSalivary cholesterol and triglyceride levels were significantly higher in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus (p ≤ 0.05). In comparison to controls, mean DMFT score was higher in the diabetic children. Salivary triglycerides showed a significant correlation with dental caries status in the study group (p = 0.035). In normal children, salivary cholesterol levels showed a significant association with dental caries. (p = 0.008).ConclusionBoth salivary cholesterol and triglycerides levels were significantly higher in children with type 1 diabetes mellitus. Salivary triglycerides showed a significant association with dental caries in these children.
Quantifying Not Only Bone Loss, but Also Soft Tissue Swelling, in a Murine Inflammatory Arthritis Model Using Micro‐Computed Tomography
Authors: Perilli E. , Cantley M. , Marino V. , Crotti T. N. , Smith M. D. , Haynes D. R. , Dharmapatni A. A. S. S. K. 
Published: November 2014

AbstractIn rodent models of inflammatory arthritis, bone erosion has been non‐invasively assessed by micro‐computed tomography (micro‐CT). However, non‐invasive assessments of paw swelling (oedema) are still based on clinical grading by visual evaluation, or measurements by callipers, not always reliable for the tiny mouse paws. The aim of this work was to demonstrate a novel straightforward 3D micro‐CT analysis protocol capable of quantifying not only joint bone erosion, but also soft tissue swelling, from the same scans, in a rodent inflammatory arthritis model. Balb/c mice were divided into two groups: collagen antibody‐induced arthritis (CAIA) and CAIA treated with prednisolone, the latter reflecting an established treatment in human rheumatoid arthritis. Clinical paw scores were recorded. On day 10, front paws were assessed by micro‐CT and histology. Micro‐CT measurements included paw volume (bone and soft tissue together) and bone volume at the radiocarpal joint, and bone volume from the radiocarpal to the metacarpophalangeal joint. Micro‐CT analysis revealed significantly lower paw volume (−36%, P < 0.01) and higher bone volume (+17%, P < 0.05) in prednisolone‐treated CAIA mice compared with untreated CAIA mice. Paw volume and bone volume assessed by micro‐CT correlated significantly with clinical and histological scores (|r| > 0.5, P < 0.01). Untreated CAIA mice showed significantly higher clinical scores, higher inflammation levels histologically, cartilage and bone degradation, and pannus formation, compared with treated mice (P < 0.01). The presented novel micro‐CT analysis protocol enables 3D‐quantification of paw swelling at the micrometre level, along with the typically assessed bone erosion, using the same images/scans, without altering the scanning procedure or using contrast agents.
Social Enterprise – A New Phenomenon in the Field of Economic and Social Welfare?
Authors: Sepulveda Leandro 
Published: November 2014

AbstractDrawing upon insights from historical institutionalism, this article critically examines the origins of social enterprise and its emergence into the mainstream policy arena. It begins by relating the social enterprise idea to major non‐state/non‐private institutional traditions, including the European social economy, US non‐profits and the UK charitable sector, and places it within the specific field of economic and social welfare. In so doing, the article contests the idea that social enterprise is a new phenomenon in the social welfare field and proposes instead that the supposed ‘novelty’ of social enterprise as an organizational form and a subject of public policy lies primarily in the nature of the socio‐political and economic context of the 1980s–1990s, during which time it became ‘en vogue’. The process of institutionalization of social enterprise and its ascension into the mainstream policy arena is examined in more detail in the case of England during the time New Labour was in office and beyond, and lessons are drawn from this experience concerning both the role that social enterprise plays or is expected to play as a vehicle to address economic and social needs, and how this is intertwined with both a dominant neo‐liberal discourse, as well as alternative perspectives that emphasize more equalitarian and sustainable development paths. The article concludes with some reflections in relation to the apparent consensus that seems to exist around social enterprise as a legitimate subject of public policy and the resulting social enterprization of public services which is currently taking place in England.
Can the Euro Survive?
Authors: Haidar Jamal Ibrahim 
Published: November 2014

AbstractOne of the fascinating aspects of the European debt crisis has been the resilience of the euro. For much of 2011, the euro was a key reserve currency, oblivious to the chaos ravaging European economies. Now, however, the gravity of the crisis is finally dragging down the euro. As the Euro zone debt crisis enters its third uncertain year, the question about whether the euro can survive rises. This paper argues that the euro can survive given policymakers still have in hand various tools. These tools include creating exit rules, implementing new stabilisation rules and instruments, adopting new fiscal policy, introducing conditional Eurobonds, using inflation differentials and providing more independence to the European Central Bank.
Iso‐uncertainty control in an experimental fluoroscopy system
Authors: Siddique S. , Fiume E. , Jaffray D. A. 
Published: November 2014

Purpose:X‐ray fluoroscopy remains an important imaging modality in a number of image‐guided procedures due to its real‐time nature and excellent spatial detail. However, the radiation dose delivered raises concerns about its use particularly in lengthy treatment procedures (>0.5 h). The authors have previously presented an algorithm that employs feedback of geometric uncertainty to control dose while maintaining a desired targeting uncertainty during fluoroscopic tracking of fiducials. The method was tested using simulations of motion against controlled noise fields. In this paper, the authors embody the previously reported method in a physical prototype and present changes to the controller required to function in a practical setting.Methods:The metric for feedback used in this study is based on the trace of the covariance of the state of the system, tr(C). The state is defined here as the 2D location of a fiducial on a plane parallel to the detector. A relationship between this metric and the tube current is first developed empirically. This relationship is extended to create a manifold that incorporates a latent variable representing the estimated background attenuation. The manifold is then used within the controller to dynamically adjust the tube current and maintain a specified targeting uncertainty. To evaluate the performance of the proposed method, an acrylic sphere (1.6 mm in diameter) was tracked at tube currents ranging from 0.5 to 0.9 mA (0.033 s) at a fixed energy of 80 kVp. The images were acquired on a Varian Paxscan 4030A (2048 × 1536 pixels, ∼100 cm source‐to‐axis distance, ∼160 cm source‐to‐detector distance). The sphere was tracked using a particle filter under two background conditions: (1) uniform sheets of acrylic and (2) an acrylic wedge. The measured tr(C) was used in conjunction with a learned manifold to modulate the tube current in order to maintain a specified uncertainty as the sphere traversed regions of varying thickness corresponding to the acrylic sheets in the background.Results:With feedback engaged, the tracking error was found to correlate well with the specified targeting uncertainty. Tracking of the fiducial was found to be robust to changes in the attenuation presented by the varying background conditions. For a desired uncertainty of 5.0 mm, comparison of the feedback framework with a comparable system employing fixed exposure demonstrated dose savings of 29%.Conclusions:This work presents a relation between a state descriptor, tr(C), the x‐ray tube current used, and an estimate of the background attenuation. This relation is leveraged to modulate the tube current in order to maintain a desired geometric uncertainty during fluoroscopy. The authors’ work demonstrates the use of the method in a real x‐ray fluoroscopy system with physical motion against varying backgrounds. The method offers potential savings in imaging dose to patients and staff while maintaining tracking uncertainty during fluoroscopy‐guided treatment procedures.
Deformable image registration based automatic CT‐to‐CT contour propagation for head and neck adaptive radiotherapy in the routine clinical setting
Authors: Kumarasiri Akila , Siddiqui Farzan , Liu Chang , Yechieli Raphael , Shah Mira , Pradhan Deepak , Zhong Hualiang , Chetty Indrin J. , Kim Jinkoo 
Published: November 2014

Purpose:To evaluate the clinical potential of deformable image registration (DIR)‐based automatic propagation of physician‐drawn contours from a planning CT to midtreatment CT images for head and neck (H&N) adaptive radiotherapy.Methods:Ten H&N patients, each with a planning CT (CT1) and a subsequent CT (CT2) taken approximately 3–4 week into treatment, were considered retrospectively. Clinically relevant organs and targets were manually delineated by a radiation oncologist on both sets of images. Four commercial DIR algorithms, two B‐spline‐based and two Demons‐based, were used to deform CT1 and the relevant contour sets onto corresponding CT2 images. Agreement of the propagated contours with manually drawn contours on CT2 was visually rated by four radiation oncologists in a scale from 1 to 5, the volume overlap was quantified using Dice coefficients, and a distance analysis was done using center of mass (CoM) displacements and Hausdorff distances (HDs). Performance of these four commercial algorithms was validated using a parameter‐optimized Elastix DIR algorithm.Results:All algorithms attained Dice coefficients of >0.85 for organs with clear boundaries and those with volumes >9 cm3. Organs with volumes <3 cm3 and/or those with poorly defined boundaries showed Dice coefficients of ∼0.5–0.6. For the propagation of small organs (<3 cm3), the B‐spline‐based algorithms showed higher mean Dice values (Dice = 0.60) than the Demons‐based algorithms (Dice = 0.54). For the gross and planning target volumes, the respective mean Dice coefficients were 0.8 and 0.9. There was no statistically significant difference in the Dice coefficients, CoM, or HD among investigated DIR algorithms. The mean radiation oncologist visual scores of the four algorithms ranged from 3.2 to 3.8, which indicated that the quality of transferred contours was “clinically acceptable with minor modification or major modification in a small number of contours.”Conclusions:Use of DIR‐based contour propagation in the routine clinical setting is expected to increase the efficiency of H&N replanning, reducing the amount of time needed for manual target and organ delineations.
Ehrlichia chaffeensis Proliferation Begins with NtrY/NtrX and PutA/GlnA Upregulation and CtrA Degradation Induced by Proline and Glutamine Uptake
Authors: Cheng Zhihui , Lin Mingqun , Rikihisa Yasuko 
Published: November 2014

ABSTRACT

How the obligatory intracellular bacterium
Ehrlichia chaffeensis
begins to replicate upon entry into human monocytes is poorly understood. Here, we examined the potential role of amino acids in initiating intracellular replication. PutA converts proline to glutamate, and GlnA converts glutamate to glutamine.
E. chaffeensis
PutA and GlnA complemented
Escherichia coli
putA
and
glnA
mutants. Methionine sulfoximine, a glutamine synthetase inhibitor, inhibited
E. chaffeensis
GlnA activity and
E. chaffeensis
infection of human cells. Incubation of
E. chaffeensis
with human cells rapidly induced
putA
and
glnA
expression that peaked at 24 h postincubation.
E. chaffeensis
took up proline and glutamine but not glutamate. Pretreatment of
E. chaffeensis
with a proline transporter inhibitor (protamine), a glutamine transporter inhibitor (histidine), or proline analogs inhibited
E. chaffeensis
infection, whereas pretreatment with proline or glutamine enhanced infection and upregulated
putA
and
glnA
faster than no treatment or glutamate pretreatment. The temporal response of
putA
and
glnA
expression was similar to that of NtrY and NtrX, a two-component system, and electrophoretic mobility shift assays showed specific binding of recombinant
E. chaffeensis
NtrX (rNtrX) to the promoter regions of
E. chaffeensis putA
and
glnA
. Furthermore, rNtrX transactivated
E. chaffeensis putA
and
glnA
promoter-
lacZ
fusions in
E. coli
. Growth-promoting activities of proline and glutamine were also accompanied by rapid degradation of the DNA-binding protein CtrA. Our results suggest that proline and glutamine uptake regulates
putA
and
glnA
expression through NtrY/NtrX and facilitates degradation of CtrA to initiate a new cycle of
E. chaffeensis
growth.

IMPORTANCE
Human monocytic ehrlichiosis (HME) is one of the most prevalent, life-threatening emerging infectious zoonoses in the United States. HME is caused by infection with
E. chaffeensis
, an obligatory intracellular bacterium in the order
Rickettsiales
, which includes several category B/C pathogens, such as those causing Rocky Mountain spotted fever and epidemic typhus. The limited understanding of the mechanisms that control bacterial growth within eukaryotic cells continues to impede the identification of new therapeutic targets against rickettsial diseases. Extracellular rickettsia cannot replicate, but rickettsial replication ensues upon entry into eukaryotic host cells. Our findings will provide insights into a novel mechanism of the two-component system that regulates
E. chaffeensis
growth initiation in human monocytes. The result is also important because little is known about the NtrY/NtrX two-component system in any bacteria, let alone obligatory intracellular bacteria. Our findings will advance the field’s current conceptual paradigm on regulation of obligatory intracellular nutrition, metabolism, and growth.
Infant suffocation in place of sleep: New Zealand national data 2002–2009
Authors: Hayman Rebecca M , McDonald Gabrielle , Baker Nick J de C , Mitchell Edwin A , Dalziel Stuart R 
Published: November 2014

BackgroundAccidental suffocation during sleep, leading to death, has been described as due to overlay or wedging of infants, particularly in a bed-sharing situation. Bed sharing is a risk factor for sudden infant death syndrome but the mechanism of death is not clearly defined. Accidental suffocation may be one such mechanism.ObjectiveTo describe accidental suffocation deaths during sleep in New Zealand between 2002 and 2009.DesignThe New Zealand mortality database, which holds data collected by the Child Youth Mortality Review Committee and the Perinatal and Maternal Mortality Review Committee, was searched for potential deaths by accidental suffocation in infants less than 1 year of age. Deaths underwent a detailed analysis by demographic data and qualitative report.ResultsThere were 48 deaths due to accidental suffocation between 2002 and 2009 in New Zealand, equating to a rate of 0.10 deaths per 1000 live births. The most common age at death was 1 month or under (n=11, 23%). Deaths were due to overlay (n=30, 63%) or wedging (n=18, 37%) and two-thirds (n=34, 71%) were in a bed-sharing situation. A quarter of deaths (n=12, 25%) occurred in makeshift bedding arrangements, some of which were away from home.ConclusionsAccidental suffocation in bed was responsible for 48 preventable deaths. Prevention of these accidental deaths needs to focus on supporting changes in family behaviour with safety messages that are consistent, persistent and disseminated widely.
Comparing Antonovsky's sense of coherence scale across three UK post-industrial cities
Authors: Walsh David , McCartney Gerry , McCullough Sarah , Buchanan Duncan , Jones Russell 
Published: November 2014

ObjectivesHigh levels of ‘excess’ mortality (ie, that seemingly not explained by deprivation) have been shown for Scotland compared to England and Wales and, especially, for its largest city, Glasgow, compared to the similarly deprived English cities of Liverpool and Manchester. It has been suggested that this excess may be related to differences in ‘Sense of Coherence’ (SoC) between the populations. The aim of this study was to ascertain whether levels of SoC differed between these cities and whether, therefore, this could be a plausible explanation for the ‘excess’.SettingThree post-industrial UK cities: Glasgow, Liverpool and Manchester.ParticipantsA representative sample of more than 3700 adults (over 1200 in each city).Primary and secondary outcome measuresSoC was measured using Antonovsky's 13-item scale (SOC-13). Multivariate linear regression was used to compare SoC between the cities while controlling for characteristics (age, gender, SES etc) of the samples. Additional modelling explored whether differences in SoC moderated city differences in levels of self-assessed health (SAH).ResultsSoC was higher, not lower, among the Glasgow sample. Fully adjusted mean SoC scores for residents of Liverpool and Manchester were, respectively, 5.1 (−5.1 (95% CI −6.0 to −4.1)) and 8.1 (−8.1 (−9.1 to −7.2)) lower than those in Glasgow. The additional modelling confirmed the relationship between SoC and SAH: a 1 unit increase in SoC predicted approximately 3% lower likelihood of reporting bad/very bad health (OR=0.97 (95% CI 0.96 to 0.98)): given the slightly worse SAH in Glasgow, this resulted in slightly lower odds of reporting bad/very bad health for the Liverpool and Manchester samples compared to Glasgow.ConclusionsThe reasons for the high levels of ‘excess’ mortality seen in Scotland and particularly Glasgow remain unclear. However, on the basis of these analyses, it appears unlikely that a low SoC provides any explanation.
The value of the white precursor cell channel (WPC) on the Sysmex XN-1000 analyser in a specialist paediatric hospital
Authors: Jones Amanda S , Tailor Hitesh , Liesner Ri , Machin Samuel J , Briggs Carol J 
Published: November 2014

BackgroundHistorically, haematology analyser flags for abnormal white blood cells (WBCs) show good sensitivity but lower specificity, causing unnecessary blood film reviews. While the WBC differential channel on Sysmex XE and XN instruments reports a combined flag for blasts/abnormal lymphocytes, the new white precursor cell channel (WPC) on the XN series has been introduced to separate this into a specific flag for either cell type or, if no abnormality, remove the flag entirely.AimsTo compare the efficiency of abnormal WBC flags from the XN WPC to our existing analyser and determine whether WPC can reduce false positive flags and blood films required.MethodsAbnormal WBC flags from the Sysmex XE-5000 and XN-1000 were compared to manual differential and blood film morphology on 300 K2EDTA samples from infants and children.ResultsThe XN WPC flag for blasts was more sensitive and specific than flags indicating blasts on the XE-5000, with a reduction in false positives from 64% (XE) to 36% (XN). Overall efficiency of the WPC flag for abnormal lymphocytes was 94% vs 79% on the XE. WPC reduced false positive flags for blasts and abnormal lymphocytes on neonatal samples by 50%. Automatic reflex analysis by WPC correctly removed a false positive flag from the white cell differential channel on 46% of samples. Total abnormal WBC flags from XN WPC were less (73) than the XE-5000 (92).ConclusionsXN WPC demonstrated superior efficiency of abnormal WBC flags on paediatric samples, compared to the XE-5000, with greater sensitivity and specificity of flagging, reducing blood films for review.