bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Comparative study of 2‐D and bichanneled 3‐D laparoscopic images: Is there a difference?
Authors: Tung Karen LM , Yang George PC , Li Michael KW 
Published: June 2015

AbstractIntroductionLack of depth perception and spatial orientation are drawbacks of laparoscopic surgery. The advent of the 3‐D camera system enables surgeons to regain binocular vision. The aim of this study was to gain subjective and objective data to determine whether 3‐D systems are superior to 2‐D systems.Materials and MethodsOur study consisted of two parts: a laparoscopic training model and an actual operation assessment. In the first part, we compared two groups of surgeon (specialists and trainees) performing a laparoscopic task using a 2‐D and a 3‐D camera system. In the second part, surgeons were assessed on their performance of standard laparoscopic cholecystectomies using the two different camera systems. At the end of each assessment, participants were required to complete a questionnaire on their impressions of the comparative ease of operation tasks under 2‐D and 3‐D vision.ResultIn the laboratory training model, trainees' performance time was shorter with the 3‐D camera system than with the 2‐D camera, but no difference was observed in the specialists group. In the surgical (cholecystectomy) assessment, no significant difference was observed between the 2‐D and 3‐D camera systems in terms of operative time and precision. The questionnaire indicated that all participants did not significantly favor the 3‐D system.ConclusionWe believe that the 3‐D camera system can allow young surgeons to perform standard laparoscopic tasks safely and quickly, so as to accelerate the learning curve. However, new‐generation 3‐D systems will be essential to overcome surgeons' discomfort.
Comorbid alcohol dependence disorder may be related to aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2) and alcohol dehydrogenase 1B (ADH1B) in bipolarIIdisorder, but only toALDH2in bipolar I disorder, in Han Chinese
Authors: Chang Yun‐Hsuan , Lee Sheng‐Yu , Wang Tzu‐Yun , Chen Shiou‐Lan , Tzeng Nian‐Sheng , Chen Po See , Lee I Hui , Chen Kao Chin , Huang San‐Yuan , Yang Yen Kuang , Ko Hui‐Chen , Lu Ru‐Band 
Published: June 2015

ObjectivesA high prevalence rate of bipolar disorder (BP) comorbid with alcohol dependence (AD) (BP+AD) in Western patients withBPhas been reported, but whether this is true for Han Chinese withBPis uncertain. We explored the prevalence ofBP+ADin a Han Chinese population withBP, and investigated the effect of alcohol‐metabolizing genotypes on bipolar I disorder (BP‐I) +ADand bipolarIIdisorder (BP‐II) +AD.MethodsHealthy controls (HCs) (n = 672) and 18‐ to 65‐year‐old patients withBP(BP‐I: n = 530;BP‐II: n = 788) were recruited. Patients with any other major or minor mental illnesses, neurological disorders, or organic mental disorders were excluded. A polymerase chain reaction and restriction fragment length polymorphism analysis was used to determine genotypes for alcohol dehydrogenase 1B (ADH1B) and aldehyde dehydrogenase 2 (ALDH2), two alcohol‐metabolizing enzymes.ResultsADcomorbidity rates were 11.7% withBP‐I and 17.1% withBP‐II. Significantly fewer patients withBPnot comorbid withAD(BP–AD) carried theAHD1B*1allele than did theHCs. Logistic regression analysis showed a main effect ofALDH2*1/*1only in theBP‐I–ADgroup. InBP+ADpatients, logistic regression analysis showed main effects ofALDH2*1/*1andADH1B*1/*1only in theBP‐II+ADgroup.ConclusionsHavingBP‐II+ADmay be related toALDH2andADH1B, but havingBP‐I+ADmay be related only toALDH2. We conclude thatALDH2andADH1Bhave different effects in Han Chinese patients withBP‐I+ADandBP‐II+AD.
Estimating Diversity via Frequency Ratios
Authors: Willis Amy , Bunge John 
Published: June 2015

SummaryWe wish to estimate the total number of classes in a population based on sample counts, especially in the presence of high latent diversity. Drawing on probability theory that characterizes distributions on the integers by ratios of consecutive probabilities, we construct a nonlinear regression model for the ratios of consecutive frequency counts. This allows us to predict the unobserved count and hence estimate the total diversity. We believe that this is the first approach to depart from the classical mixed Poisson model in this problem. Our method is geometrically intuitive and yields good fits to data with reasonable standard errors. It is especially well-suited to analyzing high diversity datasets derived from next-generation sequencing in microbial ecology. We demonstrate the method's performance in this context and via simulation, and we present a dataset for which our method outperforms all competitors.
Synergies and trade‐offs in achieving global biodiversity targets
Authors: Di Marco Moreno , Butchart Stuart H. M. , Visconti Piero , Buchanan Graeme M. , Ficetola Gentile F. , Rondinini Carlo 
Published: June 2015

AbstractAfter their failure to achieve a significant reduction in the global rate of biodiversity loss by 2010, world governments adopted 20 new ambitious Aichi biodiversity targets to be met by 2020. Efforts to achieve one particular target can contribute to achieving others, but different targets may sometimes require conflicting solutions. Consequently, lack of strategic thinking might result, once again, in a failure to achieve global commitments to biodiversity conservation. We illustrate this dilemma by focusing on Aichi Target 11. This target requires an expansion of terrestrial protected area coverage, which could also contribute to reducing the loss of natural habitats (Target 5), reducing human‐induced species decline and extinction (Target 12), and maintaining global carbon stocks (Target 15). We considered the potential impact of expanding protected areas to mitigate global deforestation and the consequences for the distribution of suitable habitat for >10,000 species of forest vertebrates (amphibians, birds, and mammals). We first identified places where deforestation might have the highest impact on remaining forests and then identified places where deforestation might have the highest impact on forest vertebrates (considering aggregate suitable habitat for species). Expanding protected areas toward locations with the highest deforestation rates (Target 5) or the highest potential loss of aggregate species’ suitable habitat (Target 12) resulted in partially different protected area network configurations (overlapping with each other by about 73%). Moreover, the latter approach contributed to safeguarding about 30% more global carbon stocks than the former. Further investigation of synergies and trade‐offs between targets would shed light on these and other complex interactions, such as the interaction between reducing overexploitation of natural resources (Targets 6, 7), controlling invasive alien species (Target 9), and preventing extinctions of native species (Target 12). Synergies between targets must be identified and secured soon and trade‐offs must be minimized before the options for co‐benefits are reduced by human pressures.
Beyond Formal Environmentalism: Eco‐Nationalism and the “Ringing Cedars” ofRussia
Authors: Davidov Veronica 
Published: June 2015

AbstractThe frame of “environmentalism” in academic and policy literature onRussia tends to focus on the “formal” environmentalism sector inRussia, thereby relegating phenomena such as the conservative, eco‐spiritual “Anastasia” or “RingingCedars” movement to the domain of religious or spiritual studies. Yet this movement is significant for understanding the ecopolitical field of contemporaryRussia and the processes of meaning‐making within that field. At the same time, callingAnastasians “environmentalists” would obfuscate and flatten the thick complexity of a movement that might be labeled “ecological” in the West, but which has to be understood through the lens of disenchantment with the state and the forms of nationalism it generates. One such form is a reactionary eco‐nationalism that is discursively decoupled from the state, and expressed through mythohistorical narratives as much as “back to the land” agricultural and homesteading practices.
Identifying learning patterns of children at risk for Specific Reading Disability
Authors: Barbot Baptiste , Krivulskaya Suzanna , Hein Sascha , Reich Jodi , Thuma Philip E. , Grigorenko Elena L. 
Published: June 2015

AbstractDifferences in learning patterns of vocabulary acquisition in children at risk (+SRD) and not at risk (−SRD) for Specific Reading Disability (SRD) were examined using a microdevelopmental paradigm applied to the multi‐trial Foreign Language Learning Task (FLLT; Baddeley et al., 1995). The FLLT was administered to 905 children from rural Chitonga‐speaking Zambia. A multi‐group Latent Growth Curve Model (LGCM) was implemented to study interindividual differences in intraindividual change across trials. Results showed that the +SRD group recalled fewer words correctly in the first trial, learned at a slower rate during the subsequent trials, and demonstrated a more linear learning pattern compared to the −SRD group. This study illustrates the promise of LGCM applied to multi‐trial learning tasks, by isolating three components of the learning process (initial recall, rate of learning, and functional pattern of learning). Implications of this microdevelopmental approach to SRD research in low‐to‐middle income countries are discussed.
Calorie seeking, but not hedonic response, contributes to hyperphagia in a mouse model for Prader–Willi syndrome
Authors: Davies Jennifer R. , Humby Trevor , Dwyer Dominic M. , Garfield Alastair S. , Furby Hannah , Wilkinson Lawrence S. , Wells Timothy , Isles Anthony R. 
Published: June 2015

AbstractPrader–Willi syndrome (PWS) is a neurodevelopmental disorder caused by deletion or inactivation of paternally expressed imprinted genes on human chromosome 15q11‐q13, the most recognised feature of which is hyperphagia. This is thought to arise as a consequence of abnormalities in both the physiological drive for food and the rewarding properties of food. Although a number of mouse models for PWS exist, the underlying variables dictating maladaptive feeding remain unknown. Here, feeding behaviour in a mouse model in which the imprinting centre (IC) of the syntenic PWS interval has been deleted (PWSICdel mice) is characterised. It is demonstrated that PWSICdel mice show hyperghrelinaemia and increased consumption of food both following overnight fasting and when made more palatable with sucrose. However, hyperphagia in PWSICdel mice was not accompanied by any changes in reactivity to the hedonic properties of palatable food (sucrose or saccharin), as measured by lick‐cluster size. Nevertheless, overall consumption by PWSICdel mice for non‐caloric saccharin in the licking test was significantly reduced. Combined with converging findings from a continuous reinforcement schedule, these data indicate that PWSICdel mice show a marked heightened sensitivity to the calorific value of food. Overall, these data indicate that any impact of the rewarding properties of food on the hyperphagia seen in PWSICdel mice is driven primarily by calorie content and is unlikely to involve hedonic processes. This has important implications for understanding the neural systems underlying the feeding phenotype of PWS and the contribution of imprinted genes to abnormal feeding behaviour more generally.
Myocyte enhancer factor 2D regulates ectoderm specification and adhesion properties of animal cap cells in the early Xenopus embryo
Authors: Katz Imberman Sandra , Kolpakova Alina , Keren Aviad , Bengal Eyal 
Published: June 2015

In Xenopus, animal cap (AC) cells give rise to ectoderm and its derivatives: epidermis and the central nervous system. Ectoderm has long been considered a default pathway of embryonic development, with cells that are not under the influence of vegetal Nodal signaling adopting an ectodermal program of gene expression. In the present study, we describe the involvement of the animally‐localized maternal transcription factor myocyte enhancer factor (Mef) 2D in regulating the identity of AC cells. We find that Mef2D is required for the formation of both ectodermal lineages: neural and epidermis. Gain and loss of function experiments indicate that Mef2D regulates early gastrula expression of key ectodermal/epidermal genes in the animal region. Mef2D controls the activity of zygotic bone morphogenetic protein (BMP) signaling known to dictate the epidermal differentiation program. Exogenous expression of Mef2D in vegetal blastomeres was sufficient to induce ectopic expression of ectoderm/epidermal genes in the vegetal half of the embryo, when Nodal signaling was inhibited. Depletion of Mef2D caused a loss of AC cell adhesion that was rescued by the expression of E‐cadherin or bone morphogenetic protein 4. In addition, expression of Mef2D in the prospective endoderm caused unusual aggregation of vegetal cells with animal cells in vitro and inappropriate segregation to other germ layers in vivo. Mef2D cooperates with another animally‐expressed transcription factor, FoxI1e. Together, they regulate the expression of genes encoding signaling proteins and the transcription factors that control the regional identity of animal cells. Therefore, we describe a new role for the animally‐localized Mef2D protein in early ectoderm specification, which is similar to that of the vegetally‐localized VegT in endoderm and mesoderm formation.
Gross classification of solitary small hepatocellular carcinoma on preoperative computed tomography: Prognostic significance after radiofrequency ablation
Authors: Fu Xu , Mao Liang , Tang Min , Yan Xiaopeng , Qiu Yudong , He Jian , Zhou Tie 
Published: June 2015

AimThe prognostic significance of the gross classification of hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) has been confirmed in both hepatectomy and living donor liver transplantation. However, the role of this type of classification in HCC treated with radiofrequency ablation (RFA) has rarely been reported. The aim of this study was to investigate the role of preoperative gross classification in cases of solitary small HCC treated with RFA.MethodsFrom January 2007 to September 2013, 103 patients with solitary small HCC treated with RFA were retrospectively reviewed. The lesions were classified into three types according to gross appearance in preoperative contrast‐enhanced computed tomography (CT) scans. Clinicopathological variables and survival information were compared among these three types. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to clarify the long‐term prognostic factors.ResultsThe group of 103 tumors comprised 34 type 1, 49 type 2 and 20 type 3 tumors. The level of preoperative serum α‐fetoprotein in the type 3 tumors was significantly higher than that in types 1 and 2 (P < 0.05). The overall survival of the patients with type 3 HCC was the poorest among the three types. The tumor‐free survival of the patients with types 3 and 2 HCC were significantly poorer than those with type 1 (P < 0.05). The univariate analysis showed that gross classification, α‐fetoprotein level, tumor size and degree of enhancement were poor prognostic factors. The multivariate analysis indicated that the gross classification was the only independent prognostic indicator.ConclusionThe preoperative gross classification was of great prognostic significance in solitary small HCC treated with RFA.
Pharmacokinetic analysis of cyclosporine in a renal transplant recipient with congenital absence of the portal vein
Authors: Nakazawa Ryuto , Sato Yuichi , Sasaki Hideo , Shibagaki Yugo , Kimura Kenjiro , Chikaraishi Tatsuya 
Published: June 2015

AbstractHere we report therapeutic drug monitoring of cyclosporine in a kidney transplant recipient lacking enterohepatic circulation. The patient developed steroid‐resistant nephrotic syndrome at age 14 years, and was medicated with an oral cyclosporine microemulsion. However, her cyclosporine trough level was unexpectedly elevated, and subsequent investigations showed that she was deficient in drug metabolism as a result of the congenital absence of the portal vein. Her renal function gradually decreased and she became dialysis‐dependent at the age of 21 years, and kidney transplantation was planned. Based on pretransplant therapeutic drug monitoring, we started cyclosporine microemulsion at half of the conventional dosage. After transplantation, the dosage was successfully adjusted to achieve a target trough level. The post‐transplant course was stable with no symptoms of rejection or cyclosporine‐associated nephrotoxicity.
Prospects for Cellulosic Biofuel Production in the Northeastern United States: A Scenario Analysis
Authors: Dilekli Naci , Duchin Faye 
Published: June 2015

SummarySecure access to energy and food are two of the challenges facing the Northeast region of the United States. Traditional biofuel feedstocks, such as corn and oil seed, are able to satisfy energy requirements. However, they compete with food production for desirable land and water resources and, in any case, are not likely to exploit the region's current comparative advantages. This study investigates a potential solution to the energy security problem in the Northeast: biofuel from advanced feedstock in the form of net forest growth and woody wastes, of which the region has abundant endowments. The federal government has committed to requiring 79.5 billion liters (BL) of advanced biofuel production annually by 2022. We evaluate both the physical capacity for its production and its cost competitiveness using an input‐output model of consumption, production, and trade in the 13‐state region. The model minimizes resource use required to satisfy given consumer demand using alternative technological options and subject to resource constraints. We compile data from the technical literature quantifying state‐level biofuel feedstock endowments and the technological requirements for cellulosic ethanol production. We find that exploiting the region's endowment of cellulosic feedstock requires either making the price of biofuels competitive with gasoline through subsidies or restricting imports of gasoline. Based on this initial investigation, we conclude that the region can produce significant amounts of advanced biofuel, up to 20.28 BL of cellulosic ethanol per year, which could displace nearly 12.5% of the gasoline that is now devoted to motorized transport in the region.
The Paranoid Style Revisited: Pseudo‐Conservatism in the 21st Century
Authors: Appelrouth Scott 
Published: June 2015

AbstractFifty years ago, the Pulitzer Prize‐winning historian Richard Hofstadter published the seminal essay, “The Paranoid Style in American Politics.” In this and related works he examined the rhetoric animating the extreme right‐wing of the country's electorate. In this article I revisit Hofstadter's claims regarding the marginalization of the paranoid style and its connection to status‐based politics. A review of the most popular “pseudo‐conservative” commentators, survey data, the rise of the Tea Party, and the intransigence of the present day Republican Party suggests that a worldview that was once extreme has now become “mainstreme” within the political culture.
Estimation of trade‐off between costs of preprocessing and primary processing
Authors: Maehigashi Akihiro , Miwa Kazuhisa 
Published: June 2015

AbstractWhen people engage in a task, they often take preliminary actions (preprocessing) to simplify primary processing. Usually, a trade‐off is made between the costs of preprocessing and primary processing. We conducted three experiments to find out whether people could adaptively estimate the utility of preprocessing depending on the task situation. The result demonstrated that in performing a high‐complexity task, almost all the participants reduced their overall task performance cost by conducting cost‐adaptive preprocessing. However, for a low‐complexity task, participants tended to conduct preprocessing even though this increased overall task performance cost. Based on these results, we discuss human nature from the viewpoint of the influence of cognitive effort.
Isolation by environment in White‐breasted Nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis) of the Madrean Archipelago sky islands: a landscape genomics approach
Authors: Manthey Joseph D. , Moyle Robert G. 
Published: June 2015

AbstractUnderstanding landscape processes driving patterns of population genetic differentiation and diversity has been a long‐standing focus of ecology and evolutionary biology. Gene flow may be reduced by historical, ecological or geographic factors, resulting in patterns of isolation by distance (IBD) or isolation by environment (IBE). Although IBE has been found in many natural systems, most studies investigating patterns of IBD and IBE in nature have used anonymous neutral genetic markers, precluding inference of selection mechanisms or identification of genes potentially under selection. Using landscape genomics, the simultaneous study of genomic and ecological landscapes, we investigated the processes driving population genetic patterns of White‐breasted Nuthatches (Sitta carolinensis) in sky islands (montane forest habitat islands) of the Madrean Archipelago. Using more than 4000 single nucleotide polymorphisms and multiple tests to investigate the relationship between genetic differentiation and geographic or ecological distance, we identified IBE, and a lack of IBD, among sky island populations of S. carolinensis. Using three tests to identify selection, we found 79 loci putatively under selection; of these, seven matched CDS regions in the Zebra Finch. The loci under selection were highly associated with climate extremes (maximum temperature of warmest month and minimum precipitation of driest month). These results provide evidence for IBE – disentangled from IBD – in sky island vertebrates and identify potential adaptive genetic variation.
Grassland species differentially regulate proline concentrations under future climate conditions: an integrated biochemical and modelling approach
Authors: AbdElgawad Hamada , De Vos Dirk , Zinta Gaurav , Domagalska Malgorzata A. , Beemster Gerrit T. S. , Asard Han 
Published: June 2015

Summary

Proline (Pro) is a versatile metabolite playing a role in the protection of plants against environmental stresses. To gain a deeper understanding of the regulation of Pro metabolism under predicted future climate conditions, including drought stress, elevated temperature and CO2, we combined measurements in contrasting grassland species (two grasses and two legumes) at multiple organisational levels, that is, metabolite concentrations, enzyme activities and gene expression.

Drought stress (D) activates Pro biosynthesis and represses its catabolism, and elevated temperature (DT) further elevated its content. Elevated CO2 attenuated the DT effect on Pro accumulation.

Computational pathway control analysis allowed a mechanistic understanding of the regulatory changes in Pro metabolism. This analysis indicates that the experimentally observed coregulation of multiple enzymes is more effective in modulating Pro concentrations than regulation of a single step. Pyrroline‐5‐carboxylate synthetase (P5CS) and pyrroline‐5‐carboxylate reductase (P5CR) play a central role in grasses (Lolium perenne, Poa pratensis), and arginase (ARG), ornithine aminotransferase (OAT) and P5CR play a central role in legumes (Medicago lupulina, Lotus corniculatus).

Different strategies in the regulation of Pro concentrations under stress conditions were observed. In grasses the glutamate pathway is activated predominantly, and in the legumes the ornithine pathway, possibly related to differences in N‐nutritional status.