bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Detection of Atrial Fibrillation After Ischemic Stroke or Transient Ischemic Attack
Authors: Kishore Amit , Vail Andy , Majid Arshad , Dawson Jesse , Lees Kennedy R. , Tyrrell Pippa J. , Smith Craig J. 
Published: January 2014

Background and Purpose—
Atrial fibrillation (AF) confers a high risk of recurrent stroke, although detection methods and definitions of paroxysmal AF during screening vary. We therefore undertook a systematic review and meta-analysis to determine the frequency of newly detected AF using noninvasive or invasive cardiac monitoring after ischemic stroke or transient ischemic attack.

Methods—
Prospective observational studies or randomized controlled trials of patients with ischemic stroke, transient ischemic attack, or both, who underwent any cardiac monitoring for a minimum of 12 hours, were included after electronic searches of multiple databases. The primary outcome was detection of any new AF during the monitoring period. We prespecified subgroup analysis of selected (prescreened or cryptogenic) versus unselected patients and according to duration of monitoring.

Results—
A total of 32 studies were analyzed. The overall detection rate of any AF was 11.5% (95% confidence interval, 8.9%–14.3%), although the timing, duration, method of monitoring, and reporting of diagnostic criteria used for paroxysmal AF varied. Detection rates were higher in selected (13.4%; 95% confidence interval, 9.0%–18.4%) than in unselected patients (6.2%; 95% confidence interval, 4.4%–8.3%). There was substantial heterogeneity even within specified subgroups.

Conclusions—
Detection of AF was highly variable, and the review was limited by small sample sizes and marked heterogeneity. Further studies are required to inform patient selection, optimal timing, methods, and duration of monitoring for detection of AF/paroxysmal AF.
Diurnal Cycles of Cumulus, Cumulonimbus, Stratus, Stratocumulus, and Fog from Surface Observations over Land and Ocean
Authors: Eastman Ryan , Warren Stephen G. 
Published: January 2014

AbstractA worldwide climatology of the diurnal cycles of low clouds is obtained from surface observations made eight or four times daily at 3- or 6-h intervals from weather stations and ships. Harmonic fits to the daily cycle are made for 5388 weather stations with long periods of record, and for gridded data on a 5° × 5° or 10° × 10° latitude–longitude grid over land and ocean areas separately.For all cloud types, the diurnal cycle has larger amplitude over land than over ocean, on average by a factor of 2. Diurnal cycles of cloud amount appear to be proprietary to each low cloud type, showing the same cycle regardless of whether that type dominates the diurnal cycle of cloud cover. Stratiform cloud amounts tend to peak near sunrise, while cumuliform amounts peak in the afternoon; however, cumulonimbus amounts peak in the early morning over the ocean. Small latitudinal and seasonal variation is apparent in the phase and amplitude of the diurnal cycles of each type. Land areas show more seasonality compared to ocean areas with respect to which type dominates the diurnal cycle.Multidecadal trends in low cloud cover are small and agree between day and night regardless of the local climate.Diurnal cycles of base height are much larger over land than over the ocean. For most cloud types, the bases are highest in the midafternoon or early evening.
Urbanization Effect on Trends of Extreme Temperature Indices of National Stations over Mainland China, 1961–2008
Authors: Ren Guoyu , Zhou Yaqing 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
Understanding the long-term change of extreme temperature events is important to the detection and attribution of climate change. It is unclear, however, how much effect urbanization has had on trends of the extreme temperature indices series constructed based on the commonly used datasets on a subcontinental scale. Applying a homogenized daily temperature dataset of the national reference climate stations and basic meteorological stations, and a rural station network previously developed, urbanization effects on trends of extreme temperature indices in mainland China for the time period 1961–2008 are evaluated. It is found that 1) the country-averaged annual- and seasonal-mean extreme temperature indices series generally experience statistically significant trends; 2) annual-mean urbanization effects in the country as a whole are statistically significant for daily minimum temperature (Tmin), maximum temperature (Tmax), and mean temperature of Tmin and Tmax (Tavg), reaching 0.070°, 0.023°, and 0.047°C (10 yr)−1, respectively, with the largest values for annual-mean Tmin occurring in north China; 3) annual- and seasonal-mean urbanization effects for the declining diurnal temperature range (DTR) are highly significant, and the largest seasonal-mean DTR decline because of urbanization occurs in winter and spring; 4) annual-mean urbanization effects for the lowest Tmin, summer days, tropical nights, and frost days series are significant, but an insignificant urbanization effect is detected for icing days series; 5) urbanization has led to a highly significant decline of annual cold nights at a rate of −1.485 days (10 yr)−1 and a highly significant increase of annual warm nights at a rate of 2.264 days (10 yr)−1. Although urbanization effects are also significant for cold days and warm days, they are relatively smaller, and 6) the smallest absolute values of annual-mean urbanization effects for most of the indices series are found to dominantly appear during 1966–76, a well-known deurbanization period resulting from the Cultural Revolution.
An Atmospheric–Hydrologic Forecasting Scheme for the Indus River Basin
Authors: Shrestha Kristofer Y. , Webster Peter J. , Toma Violeta E. 
Published: January 2014

AbstractSouth Asia is vulnerable to extreme weather events, and the Indus River basin (IRB) is subject to flood risk. Flooding occurred in Pakistan during the monsoon seasons from 2010 to 2012, causing major economic damage and significant loss of life. The nature of slow-rise discharge on the Indus and overtopping of riverbanks in the IRB indicates the need for extended warning time (1–10 days). Daily mean streamflow at Tarbela Dam, a major control structure on the Indus River, is reproduced by using numerical weather prediction initialization data from the ECMWF to drive the Variable Infiltration Capacity macroscale hydrologic model. A one-dimensional routing model conducts base flow and surface runoff from each grid cell through a stream network. Comparisons of reconstructions with inflow data at Tarbela Dam over a 3-yr period yield an R2 correlation of 0.93 and RMSE of 692 m3 s−1. From 2010 to 2012, 276 daily ensemble hindcasts are generated. In comparing the ensemble mean of 10-day hindcasts to reconstructed inflow, the R2 correlation was &gt;0.85 for 2010, &gt;0.70 for 2011, and &gt;0.70 for 2012. The RMSE was &lt;24% of mean streamflow for 2010, &lt;28% for 2011, and &lt;34% for 2012. A method to translate this type of probabilistic streamflow forecast data into communicable information is described. A two-dimensional model is described to simulate movement of overflow water into the floodplain.
Stochastic Rainfall Downscaling of Climate Models
Authors: D’Onofrio D. , Palazzi E. , von Hardenberg J. , Provenzale A. , Calmanti S. 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
Precipitation extremes and small-scale variability are essential drivers in many climate change impact studies. However, the spatial resolution currently achieved by global climate models (GCMs) and regional climate models (RCMs) is still insufficient to correctly identify the fine structure of precipitation intensity fields. In the absence of a proper physically based representation, this scale gap can be at least temporarily bridged by adopting a stochastic rainfall downscaling technique. In this work, a precipitation downscaling chain is introduced where the global 40-yr ECMWF Re-Analysis (ERA-40) (at about 120-km resolution) is dynamically downscaled using the Protheus RCM at 30-km resolution. The RCM precipitation is then further downscaled using a stochastic downscaling technique, the Rainfall Filtered Autoregressive Model (RainFARM), which has been extended for application to long climate simulations. The application of the stochastic downscaling technique directly to the larger-scale reanalysis field at about 120-km resolution is also discussed. To assess the ability of this approach in reproducing the main statistical properties of precipitation, the downscaled model results are compared with the precipitation data provided by a dense network of 122 rain gauges in northwestern Italy, in the time period from 1958 to 2001. The high-resolution precipitation fields obtained by stochastically downscaling the RCM outputs reproduce well the seasonality and amplitude distribution of the observed precipitation during most of the year, including extreme events and variance. In addition, the RainFARM outputs compare more favorably to observations when the procedure is applied to the RCM output rather than to the global reanalyses, highlighting the added value of reaching high enough resolution with a dynamical model.
Profilin 1 is essential for retention and metabolism of mouse hematopoietic stem cells in bone marrow
Authors: Zheng Junke , Lu Zhigang , Kocabas Fatih , Böttcher Ralph T. , Costell Mercedes , Kang Xunlei , Liu Xiaoye , DeBerardinis Ralph J. , Wang Qianming , Chen Guo-Qiang , Sadek Hesham , Zhang Cheng Cheng 
Published: January 2014

Key PointsThe deletion of pfn1 led to bone marrow failure, loss of quiescence, increased apoptosis and mobilization, and a metabolic switch of HSCs. Pfn1 partially acts through the axis of pfn1/Gα13/EGR1 to regulate stem cell retention and metabolism in the bone marrow.
ITEP: An integrated toolkit for exploration of microbial pan-genomes
Authors: Benedict Matthew N , Henriksen James R , Metcalf William W , Whitaker Rachel J , Price Nathan D 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
Comparative genomics is a powerful approach for studying variation in physiological traits as well as the evolution and ecology of microorganisms. Recent technological advances have enabled sequencing large numbers of related genomes in a single project, requiring computational tools for their integrated analysis. In particular, accurate annotations and identification of gene presence and absence are critical for understanding and modeling the cellular physiology of newly sequenced genomes. Although many tools are available to compare the gene contents of related genomes, new tools are necessary to enable close examination and curation of protein families from large numbers of closely related organisms, to integrate curation with the analysis of gain and loss, and to generate metabolic networks linking the annotations to observed phenotypes.

Results
We have developed ITEP, an Integrated Toolkit for Exploration of microbial Pan-genomes, to curate protein families, compute similarities to externally-defined domains, analyze gene gain and loss, and generate draft metabolic networks from one or more curated reference network reconstructions in groups of related microbial species among which the combination of core and variable genes constitute the their "pan-genomes". The ITEP toolkit consists of: (1) a series of modular command-line scripts for identification, comparison, curation, and analysis of protein families and their distribution across many genomes; (2) a set of Python libraries for programmatic access to the same data; and (3) pre-packaged scripts to perform common analysis workflows on a collection of genomes. ITEP’s capabilities include de novo protein family prediction, ortholog detection, analysis of functional domains, identification of core and variable genes and gene regions, sequence alignments and tree generation, annotation curation, and the integration of cross-genome analysis and metabolic networks for study of metabolic network evolution.

Conclusions
ITEP is a powerful, flexible toolkit for generation and curation of protein families. ITEP's modular design allows for straightforward extension as analysis methods and tools evolve. By integrating comparative genomics with the development of draft metabolic networks, ITEP harnesses the power of comparative genomics to build confidence in links between genotype and phenotype and helps disambiguate gene annotations when they are evaluated in both evolutionary and metabolic network contexts.
Vertical blockade of the IGFR- PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway for the treatment of hepatocellular carcinoma: the role of survivin
Authors: Ou Da-Liang , Lee Bin-Shyun , Lin Liang-In , Liou Jun-Yang , Liao Sheng-Chieh , Hsu Chiun , Cheng Ann-Lii 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
To explore whether combining inhibitors that target the insulin-like growth factor receptor (IGFR)/PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling pathway (vertical blockade) can improve treatment efficacy for hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC).

Methods
HCC cell lines (including Hep3B, Huh7, and PLC5) and HUVECs (human umbilical venous endothelial cells) were tested. The molecular targeting therapy agents tested included NVP-AEW541 (IGFR kinase inhibitor), MK2206 (Akt inhibitor), BEZ235 (PI3K/mTOR inhibitor), and RAD001 (mTOR inhibitor). Potential synergistic antitumor effects were tested by median dose-effect analysis in vitro and by xenograft HCC models. Apoptosis was analyzed by flow cytometry (sub-G1 fraction analysis) and Western blotting. The activities of pertinent signaling pathways and expression of apoptosis-related proteins were measured by Western blotting.

Results
Vertical blockade induced a more sustained inhibition of PI3K/Akt/mTOR signaling activities in all the HCC cells and HUVEC tested. Synergistic apoptosis-inducing effects, however, varied among different cell lines and drug combinations and were most prominent when NVP-AEW541 was combined with MK2206. Using an apoptosis array, we identified survivin as a potential downstream mediator. Over-expression of survivin in HCC cells abolished the anti-tumor synergy between NVP-AEW541 and MK2206, whereas knockdown of survivin improved the anti-tumor effects of all drug combinations tested. In vivo by xenograft studies confirmed the anti-tumor synergy between NVP-AEW541 and MK2206 and exhibited acceptable toxicity profiles.

Conclusions
Vertical blockade of the IGFR/PI3K/Akt/mTOR pathway has promising anti-tumor activity for HCC. Survivin expression may serve as a biomarker to predict treatment efficacy.
Atypical behavior of NFATc1 in cultured intercostal myofibers
Authors: Robison Patrick , Hernández-Ochoa Erick O , Schneider Martin F 
Published: January 2014

Abstract

Background
The NFATc transcription factor family is responsible for coupling cytoplasmic calcium signals to transcription programs in a wide variety of cell types. In skeletal muscle, these transcription factors control the fiber type in response to muscle activity. This excitation-transcription (E-T) coupling permits functional adaptation of muscle according to use. The activity dependence of these transcription programs is sensitive to the firing patterns of the muscle, not merely the period of activity, enabling a nuanced adaptation to various functional tasks.

Methods
Isolated skeletal muscle fibers expressing exogenous fluorescent NFATc1 were studied by confocal microscopy under stimulation both with and without pharmacological inhibitors. Western blots of whole muscle lysates were also used.

Results
This study investigates the activity dependent response of NFATc1 skeletal muscle fibers cultured from mice, comparing fibers of respiratory origin to muscles responsible for limb locomotion. Using patterns of stimulation known to strongly activate NFATc1 in the commonly cultured flexor digitorum brevis and soleus muscles, we have observed significant deactivation of NFATc1 in cultured intercostal muscle fibers. This effect is at least partially dependent on the action of JNK and CaMKII in intercostal fibers.

Conclusions
Our findings highlight the role of lineage in the NFAT pathway, showing that the respiratory intercostal muscle fibers decode similar E-T coupling signals into NFAT transcriptional programs in a different manner from the more commonly studied locomotor muscles of the limbs.
Panel of polymorphic heterologous microsatellite loci to genotype critically endangered Bengal tiger: a pilot study
Authors: Mishra Sudhanshu , Singh Sujeet Kumar , Munjal Ashok Kumar , Aspi Jouni , Goyal Surendra Prakash 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
In India, six landscapes and source populations that are important for long-term conservation of Bengal tigers (Panthera tigris tigris) have been identified. Except for a few studies, nothing is known regarding the genetic structure and extent of gene flow among most of the tiger populations across India as the majority of them are small, fragmented and isolated. Thus, individual-based relationships are required to understand the species ecology and biology for planning effective conservation and genetics-based individual identification has been widely used. But this needs screening and describing characteristics of microsatellite loci from DNA from good-quality sources so that the required number of loci can be selected and the genotyping error rate minimized. In the studies so far conducted on the Bengal tiger, a very small number of loci (n = 35) have been tested with high-quality source of DNA, and information on locus-specific characteristics is lacking. The use of such characteristics has been strongly recommended in the literature to minimize the error rate and by the International Society for Forensic Genetics (ISFG) for forensic purposes. Therefore, we describe for the first time locus-specific genetic and genotyping profile characteristics, crucial for population genetic studies, using high-quality source of DNA of the Bengal tiger. We screened 39 heterologous microsatellite loci (Sumatran tiger, domestic cat, Asiatic lion and snow leopard) in captive individuals (n = 8), of which 21 loci are being reported for the first time in the Bengal tiger, providing an additional choice for selection. The mean relatedness coefficient (R = −0.143) indicates that the selected tigers were unrelated. Thirty-four loci were polymorphic, with the number of alleles ranging from 2 to 7 per locus, and the remaining five loci were monomorphic. Based on the PIC values (> 0.500), and other characteristics, we suggest that 16 loci (3 to 7 alleles) be used for genetic and forensic study purposes. The probabilities of matching genotypes of unrelated individuals (3.692 × 10-19) and siblings (4.003 × 10-6) are within the values needed for undertaking studies in population genetics, relatedness, sociobiology and forensics.
Effects of caffeic acid phenethyl ester and melatonin on distraction osteogenesis: an experimental study
Authors: Erdem Mehmet , Gulabi Deniz , Sen Cengiz , Sahin Seyit Ahmet , Bozdag Ergun 
Published: January 2014

AbstractAimThe aim of this experimental animal model study is to investigate the effects of caffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) and melatonin on the maturation of newly-formed regenerated bone in distraction osteogenesis.MethodsUnilateral femoral lengthening(extension) was applied to 39 adult male Wistar albino rats, which were randomly allocated to 3 groups of 13; control, melatonin and CAPE groups. Through a 7-day latent waiting period and 15 days of distraction, melatonin of 25 mg/kg and CAPE of 10 μmol/kg were administered to the respective groups. The animals were sacrificed on Day 82. Radiographic, histological and biomechanical evaluations were made and measurements were taken.ResultsAt the end of 82 days, the distraction osteogenesis area was seen to be completely filled with new bone formation in all 3 groups both radiologically and histologically. Biomechanically, the maximum torsional fracture strength (Maximum Torque (N-m)) of the melatonin group was higher compared to that of the control group, although it was not statistically significant (p > 0.05). The maximum torsional momentum of the CAPE group was statistically significantly high (p < 0.05). The degree of rigidity (N-m/deg) of both the melatonin and CAPE groups was higher than that of the control group and the CAPE group was found to be statistically significantly higher than the melatonin group (p < 0.05).ConclusionMelatonin and CAPE increase the maturation of new bone in distraction osteogenesis. These effects are probably due to the reducing effect on bone resorption by inhibiting NF-κB and free oxygen radicals.
Comparative evaluation of three interfaces for non-invasive ventilation: a randomized cross-over design physiologic study on healthy volunteers
Authors: Vaschetto Rosanna , De Jong Audrey , Conseil Matthieu , Galia Fabrice , Mahul Martin , Coisel Yannael , Prades Albert , Navalesi Paolo , Jaber Samir 
Published: January 2014

Abstract
Introduction
Interface choice is crucial for non-invasive ventilation (NIV) success. We compared a new interface, the helmet next (HN), with the facial mask (FM) and the standard helmet (HS) in twelve healthy volunteers.

Methods
In this study, five NIV trials were randomly applied, preceded and followed by a trial of unassisted spontaneous breathing (SB). Baseline settings, for example, 5 cmH2O of both inspiratory pressure support (PS) and positive end-expiratory pressure (PEEP), were applied through FM, HS and HN, while increased settings (PS and PEEP of 8 cmH2O) were only applied through HS and HN. We measured flow, airway, esophageal and gastric pressures, and calculated inspiratory effort indexes and trigger delays. Comfort was assessed with a visual-analog-scale.

Results
We found that FM, HS and HN at baseline settings were not significantly different with respect to inspiratory effort indexes and comfort. Inspiratory trigger delay and time of synchrony (TI,synchrony) were significantly improved by FM compared to both helmets, whereas expiratory trigger delay was shorter with FM, as opposed to HS only. HN at increased settings performed better than FM in decreasing inspiratory effort measured by pressure-time product of transdiaphragmatic pressure (PTPdi)/breath (10.7 ± 9.9 versus 17.0 ± 11.0 cmH2O*s), and PTPdi/min (128 ± 96 versus 204 ± 81 cmH2O*s/min), and PTPdi/L (12.6 ± 9.9 versus 30.2 ± 16.8 cmH2O*s/L). TI, synchrony was inferior between HN and HS at increased settings and FM.

Conclusions
HN might hold some advantages with respect to interaction and synchrony between subject and ventilator, but studies on patients are needed to confirm these findings.

Trial registration
ClinicalTrials.gov NCT01610960
Preparation and properties of LGF/ER/TPU/PMMA composites
Authors: Guo Jianbing , Zhang Daohai , Shao Huiju , Zhang Kaizhou , Wu Bin 
Published: January 2014

AbstractA series of long glass fiber (LGF)-reinforced epoxy resin (ER), thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) elastomers, and poly(methyl methacrylate) (PMMA) composites were prepared by using self-designed impregnation device. Dynamic mechanical properties of the LGF/ER/TPU/PMMA composites have been investigated by using dynamic mechanical thermal analysis (DMA). The results indicated that the content of PMMA and TPU and scanning frequency had important influence on dynamic mechanical properties and glass transition of the LGF/ER/TPU/PMMA composites. In addition, the Arrhenius relationship has been used to calculate the activation energy of α-transition of the LGF/ER/TPU/PMMA composites. The thermal properties of the LGF/ER/TPU/PMMA composites were studied by thermogravimetric analysis (TGA). Morphology and mechanical properties of the composites are investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), a universal testing machine, and a ZBC-4 Impact Pendulum.