bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Biophysical and physiological characterization of ZraP from Escherichia coli, the periplasmic accessory protein of the atypical ZraSR two-component system
Authors: Petit-Härtlein Isabelle , Rome Kevin , de Rosny Eve , Molton Florian , Duboc Carole , Gueguen Erwan , Rodrigue Agnès , Covès Jacques 
Published: October 2015

The ZraSR system belongs to the family of TCSs (two-component signal transduction systems). In Escherichia coli, it was proposed to participate in zinc balance and to protect cytoplasmic zinc overload by sequestering this metal ion into the periplasm. This system controls the expression of the accessory protein ZraP that would be a periplasmic zinc scavenger. ZraPSR is functionally homologous with CpxPAR that integrates signals of envelope perturbation, including misfolded periplasmic proteins. The auxiliary periplasmic regulator CpxP inhibits the Cpx pathway by interacting with CpxA. Upon envelope stress sensing, the inhibitory function of CpxP is relieved, resulting in CpxR activation. Similarly to CpxPAR, ZraPSR probably plays a role in envelope stress response as a zinc-dependent chaperone activity was demonstrated for ZraP in Salmonella. We have purified ZraP from E. coli and shown that it is an octamer containing four interfacial metal-binding sites contributing to dimer stability. These sites are located close to the N-terminus, whereas the C-terminus is involved in polymerization of the protein to form a tetramer of dimers. In vitro, ZraP binds copper with a higher affinity than zinc and displays chaperone properties partially dependent on zinc binding. In vivo, zinc-bound ZraP is a repressor of the expression of the zraPSR operon. However, we have demonstrated that none of the Zra proteins are involved in zinc or copper resistance. We propose an integrated mechanism in which zinc is a marker of envelope stress perturbation and ZraPSR TCS is a sentinel sensing and responding to zinc entry into the periplasm.
Consequences of postnatal vascular smooth muscle EGFR deletion on acute angiotensin II action
Authors: Schreier Barbara , Hünerberg Mirja , Rabe Sindy , Mildenberger Sigrid , Bethmann Daniel , Heise Christian , Sibilia Maria , Offermanns Stefan , Gekle Michael 
Published: October 2015

Epi dermal growth factor (EGF) receptor (EGFR) is activated by its canonical ligands and transactivated by various vasoactive substances, e.g. angiotensin II (Ang II). Vascular EGFR has been proposed to be involved in vascular tissue homoeostasis and remodelling. Thus, most studies have focused on its role during long-term vascular changes whereas the relevance for acute regulation of vascular function in vivo and ex vivo is insufficiently understood. To investigate the postnatal role of VSMCs (vascular smooth muscle cells) EGFR in vivo and ex vivo, we generated a mouse model with cell-specific and inducible deletion of VSMC EGFR and studied the effect on basal blood pressure, acute pressure response to, among others, Ang II in vivo as well as ex vivo, cardiovascular tissue homoeostasis and vessel morphometry in male mice. In knockout (KO) animals, systolic, diastolic and mean blood pressures were reduced compared with wild-type (WT). Furthermore, Ang II-induced pressure load was lower in KO animals, as was Ang II-induced force development and extracellular-signal-regulated kinase 1 and 2 (ERK1/2) phosphorylation in aortic rings from KO animals. By contrast, we observed no difference in force development during application of serotonin, KCl, endothelin-1 or endothelin-1-induced pressure load in KO animals. In addition, nitric oxide (NO)-mediated vasodilation was not affected. Heart weight (HW) increase and up-regulation of aortic and cardiac expression of Ccl2 (chemoattractant protein-2) and serpinE1 (plasminogen activator inhibitor 1) during the transition from 4- to 10-months of age were prevented by VSMC EGFR KO. We conclude that VSMC EGFR is involved in basal blood pressure homoeostasis and acute pressure response to Ang II, and thereby contributes to maturation-related remodelling.
Periodontal Bacterial DNA and Their Link to Human Cardiac Tissue: Findings of a Pilot Study
Authors: Ziebolz Dirk , Rost Christoph , Schmidt Julia , Waldmann-Beushausen Regina , Schöndube Friedrich , Mausberg Rainer , Danner Bernhard 
Published: October 2015

Background The aim of this pilot study was to detect correlations of microbiological DNA, inflammatory proteins, and infection parameters in patients with periodontal disease (PD) and valvular heart disease (VHD).
Methods A perioperative comprehensive dental examination for the investigation of periodontal status, including sampling of specific subgingival bacteria, was performed in 10 patients with indication for surgery of aortic valve stenosis with or without concomitant myocardial revascularization. Standard protocol biopsies were taken from right atrium (A), left septal myocardium (M), and aortic valve (V). Eleven periodontal pathogens DNA in oral and cardiac tissue samples (A/M/V) were analyzed using polymerase chain reaction. For cardiac tissue samples, Western blot analysis of LPS-binding protein (LBP), immunohistochemical (IHC) detection of LBP-big42, LPS-binding protein receptor (CD14), and macrophages (CD68), as well as inflammation scoring measurement were performed.
Results Periodontitis was present in all patients with severe intensity in 7, moderate in 2 and mild in one patient. Same bacterial DNA was detected in A, M, and V in different distribution, and detection was more often in atrium than in myocardium or valve tissue. Morphological investigation revealed increased extracellular inflammatory cell migration. In IHC markers of LBP, CD68 and CD14 showed positive findings for all patients in atrium and myocardium.
Conclusion Our results demonstrate the presence of oral bacterial DNA in human cardiac tissue, as well as inflammatory markers potentially indicating connection of PD and VHD. Further investigation is necessary to confirm these preliminary data.
Food safety incidents in Beijing: occurrence patterns, causes and wider social implications
Authors: Liu Feiyan , Liu Yang , Gao Jianbo , Zhang Jianfang 
Published: October 2015

AbstractFood safety incidents have the potential to result in a range of adverse health effects, including diarrhoeal diseases and various forms of cancer. Furthermore, they also have a disruptive effect on the economy, trade and tourism. As Beijing strives to become a global centre of politics, economy and culture, serious food safety incidents continue to be frequently reported in the city. It is clear that a large number of food safety incidents, such as those that have occurred in China, and in some other parts of the world, cannot be fully tackled by means of conventional analysis, which focuses on biological and chemical factors, but which often ignores potential human factors (which may be intentional in nature). In this article, we dynamically examine the time intervals between successive distinct food safety incidents that were mainly caused by human factors. Our intention is to identify information that could be of use to governmental and other bodies in efforts to curb the occurrence of food safety incidents. We analyse data spanning a 10-year period from 2004 to 2013, during which time 295 food safety incidents occurred in Beijing. We find that the occurrence of food safety incidents was drastically different from Poisson processes, suggesting that their causes may have been systemic in nature. We further found that the sequence of time intervals had persistent long-range correlations, characterized by a Hurst parameter of H=0.65, suggesting that food safety incidents occurred in bursts. Finally, we propose scenarios that may be responsible for these long-range correlations. Our quantitative findings may not only hold in Beijing and elsewhere in China, but also in other parts of the world where human factors are an important cause of food safety incidents. In all those situations, our proposed scenarios for long-range correlations may be used as part of efforts to devise strategies to curb or prevent future food safety incidents.
Melanopsin-driven increases in maintained activity enhance thalamic visual response reliability across a simulated dawn
Authors: Storchi Riccardo , Milosavljevic Nina , Eleftheriou Cyril G. , Martial Franck P. , Orlowska-Feuer Patrycja , Bedford Robert A. , Brown Timothy M. , Montemurro Marcelo A. , Petersen Rasmus S. , Lucas Robert J. 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Irradiance-dependent (“luxotonic”) changes in baseline firing were first described in neurones of the early visual system decades ago. However, the origin and function (if any) of this visual response is still poorly understood. Here we address both questions by recording electrophysiological activity in mouse dorsal lateral geniculate nucleus over a simulated dawn. First, we show that in the photopic regime luxotonic activity becomes increasingly driven by inner-retinal melanopsin photoreceptors as irradiance increases. Then, that irradiance-dependent increases in activity apply not only to baseline firing but also to the amplitude of fast visual responses, producing increases in signal:noise across the simulated dawn, revealing a function for luxotonic activity and a new way in which inner retinal photoreceptors support conventional vision.
Rapid Y degeneration and dosage compensation in plant sex chromosomes
Authors: Papadopulos Alexander S. T. , Chester Michael , Ridout Kate , Filatov Dmitry A. 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Sex chromosomes have repeatedly evolved in animals and plants, but the evolutionary forces driving this process are not entirely understood. Nonrecombining Y chromosomes undergo rapid loss of functional genes in animals; however, it remains unclear whether this holds true in plants. We report the first genome sequence-based analysis of sex chromosomes in white campion, to our knowledge, which evolved large sex chromosomes only 10 million years ago. We demonstrate that the Y chromosome has lost nearly half its functional genes, at a rate of Y degeneration comparable to that of animal Y chromosomes. This degeneration is accommodated for by highly variable dosage compensation. Our results resolve the puzzling discrepancy in evolutionary trajectories of sex chromosomes between the plant and animal kingdoms.
Mechanism for rapid passive-dynamic prey capture in a pitcher plant
Authors: Bauer Ulrike , Paulin Marion , Robert Daniel , Sutton Gregory P. 
Published: October 2015

SignificanceCarnivorous pitcher plants have thus far been considered a classic example of passive, motionless pitfall traps. Here, we describe a rapid, passive-dynamic movement used by an AsianNepenthespitcher plant to capture insect prey. We show that the pitcher lid functions as a rain-driven torsion spring that combines material properties adapted for momentum transfer with a unique friction-reducing surface coating. Unlike other pitcher traps, this capture mechanism employs rapid movement. It also differs from the metabolically costly mechanisms of active carnivorous plants such as Venus flytraps because the movement is externally driven. It therefore establishes a new category of rapid plant movements that challenges the conventional distinction between active and passive carnivorous plant traps.
Expected time-invariant effects of biological traits on mammal species duration
Authors: Smits Peter D. 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Determining which biological traits influence differences in extinction risk is vital for understanding differential diversification of life and for making predictions about species’ vulnerability to human impacts. The durations of fossil species are a rich source of information for estimating systematic differences in extinction risk. I analyzed Cenozoic North American fossil mammal species durations and their relationship with multiple ecological traits, their time of origination, and their shared evolutionary histories. I find support for generalists having a lower extinction risk than specialists as a general statement. When these results are compared with risk factors associated with living mammals, I find some incongruities that may indicate that the current biodiversity crisis is akin to the great mass extinctions in Earth’s history.
Disulphide-reduced psoriasin is a human apoptosis-inducing broad-spectrum fungicide
Authors: Hein Kyaw Zaw , Takahashi Hitoshi , Tsumori Toshiko , Yasui Yukihiko , Nanjoh Yasuko , Toga Tetsuo , Wu Zhihong , Grötzinger Joachim , Jung Sascha , Wehkamp Jan , Schroeder Bjoern O. , Schroeder Jens M. , Morita Eishin 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Fungi increasingly cause serious medical problems in immunocompromised populations. Antimicrobial peptides are primary effector molecules of innate immune systems. Antimicrobial peptides successfully protect healthy humans from bacterial infections. However, it is largely unknown how and why human body surfaces resist fungal infections. We identified the common epithelial protein, psoriasin (S100A7), in its disulphide-reduced form (redS100A7) as the principal antifungal factor of human body surfaces. redS100A7 kills several pathogenic fungi using a mechanism that differs from conventional antifungal agents. Thus, this study might contribute to a better understanding of human defense systems against fungal infection and the development of urgently needed novel antifungal therapeutics.
Remodeling nuclear architecture allows efficient transport of herpesvirus capsids by diffusion
Authors: Bosse Jens B. , Hogue Ian B. , Feric Marina , Thiberge Stephan Y. , Sodeik Beate , Brangwynne Clifford P. , Enquist Lynn W. 
Published: October 2015

SignificanceThe nucleus is structured into chromatin and interchromatin compartments. Its sieve-like architecture permits individual proteins to rapidly diffuse while large macromolecular assemblies are corralled in the interchromatin. Herpesvirus capsids assemble in the nucleus and have to access the nuclear periphery for exit. It was hypothesized that nuclear herpesvirus capsids recruit filamentous actin and molecular motor protein to overcome nuclear entrapment. Here we use “ring-sheet” microscopy to track nuclear capsids with high spatiotemporal resolution. We report that nuclear herpesvirus capsids do not use directed motility. Instead, virus infection changes nuclear architecture, which allows capsids to reach the nuclear membranes by diffusion. Our findings illustrate a pathway for very large macromolecular assemblies to cross the nucleoplasm without directed motility.
Algal ancestor of land plants was preadapted for symbiosis
Authors: Delaux Pierre-Marc , Radhakrishnan Guru V. , Jayaraman Dhileepkumar , Cheema Jitender , Malbreil Mathilde , Volkening Jeremy D. , Sekimoto Hiroyuki , Nishiyama Tomoaki , Melkonian Michael , Pokorny Lisa , Rothfels Carl J. , Sederoff Heike Winter , Stevenson Dennis W. , Surek Barbara , Zhang Yong , Sussman Michael R. , Dunand Christophe , Morris Richard J. , Roux Christophe , Wong Gane Ka-Shu , Oldroyd Giles E. D. , Ané Jean-Michel 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Colonization of land by plants was a critical event for the emergence of extant ecosystems. The innovations that allowed the algal ancestor of land plants to succeed in such a transition remain unknown. Beneficial interaction with symbiotic fungi has been proposed as one of these innovations. Here we show that the genes required for this interaction appeared in a stepwise manner: Some evolved before the colonization of land by plants and others first appeared in land plants. We thus propose that the algal ancestor of land plants was preadapted for interaction with beneficial fungi and employed these gene networks to colonize land successfully.
Elevation of 20-carbon long chain bases due to a mutation in serine palmitoyltransferase small subunit b results in neurodegeneration
Authors: Zhao Lihong , Spassieva Stefka , Gable Kenneth , Gupta Sita D. , Shi Lan-Ying , Wang Jieping , Bielawski Jacek , Hicks Wanda L. , Krebs Mark P. , Naggert Juergen , Hannun Yusuf A. , Dunn Teresa M. , Nishina Patsy M. 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Sphingolipids are essential in eukaryotes and are particularly important in neural tissues. Generally, sphingolipids have an 18-carbon (C18) long chain base (LCB) backbone. However, low-abundance sphingolipids containing LCBs of 16 or 20 carbons have also been discovered. Yet their specific functions and biological significance is not known. This work demonstrates that elevation of 20-carbon LCBs and/or sphingolipids containing C20 LCBs has detrimental neurodegenerative effects in the brain and the retina, leading to perturbation of protein homeostasis. This work describes, for the first time to our knowledge, the specific pathological roles of a class of low-abundance LCBs in vivo.
Power decreases trust in social exchange
Authors: Schilke Oliver , Reimann Martin , Cook Karen S. 
Published: October 2015

SignificanceTrust is pivotal to the functioning of society. This work tests competing predictions about how having low vs. high power may impact people’s tendency to place trust in others. Using different experimental paradigms and measures and confirming predictions based on motivated cognition theory, we show that people low in power are significantly more trusting than more powerful people and that this effect can be explained by the constructs of hope and perceived benevolence. Our findings make important contributions to the literatures on trust, power, and motivated cognition.
Relation between rainfall intensity and savanna tree abundance explained by water use strategies
Authors: Xu Xiangtao , Medvigy David , Rodriguez-Iturbe Ignacio 
Published: October 2015

Significance
Savannas account for 20% of global land area and support 30% of terrestrial net primary production. The biome is characterized by the coexistence of trees and grasses. Tree abundance strongly influences savanna ecosystem dynamics. Maximum tree abundance in tropical savannas is found to be negatively correlated with rainfall intensity, which remains unexplained. Through combining in situ observations, a biophysical tree–grass competition model, and a stochastic rainfall generator, we present that differentiated tree and grass water use strategies are essential to explain the phenomenon. Our findings show the importance of vegetation physiology in determining tree abundance in the biome and enhance our ability to predict future ecosystem composition and dynamics under global change.
Effects of Turbidity on Prey Selection and Foraging Return of Adult Largemouth Bass in Reservoirs
Authors: Shoup Daniel E. , Drew Lane W. 
Published: October 2015

Abstract
Previous laboratory studies have demonstrated that turbidity alters prey selection by Largemouth Bass Micropterus salmoides, but this has not been tested in the field. Laboratory studies have also suggested that daily rates of consumption by Largemouth Bass may decline as turbidity increases and that the rate of decline may differ among prey types, possibly providing a mechanism that drives the observed prey selection patterns. We conducted laboratory trials to measure daily consumption rates for Largemouth Bass when foraging on Bluegills Lepomis macrochirus and Gizzard Shad Dorosoma cepedianum; we also collected field data in three reservoir systems (Boomer, Sooner, and Guthrie lakes, Oklahoma) during 2 years to evaluate Largemouth Bass prey selection and consumption rates over a range of turbidity levels. In the laboratory trials, Largemouth Bass daily consumption rates declined with increased turbidity, but the decline was similar between the two prey types. We detected no correlations between turbidity and consumption rate (percentage of empty stomachs or mean weight of prey in stomach contents) in the field. Field-measured prey selection was highly variable among reservoirs and between sampling years, yet all but one reservoir ×× year combination had significant correlations between prey selection and turbidity, which generally followed the predictions of previous laboratory results (greater use of fish prey [especially centrarchids] and reduced use of crayfish at high levels of turbidity). However, the use of crayfish prey under low-turbidity conditions was higher than that expected based on previous laboratory trials. Further research is needed to determine which factors regulate the effects of increased turbidity on predator foraging return and to evaluate the food web implications of turbidity-related changes in the diets of top predators.
Received December 3, 2014; accepted June 25, 2015
Constraints on the distribution of supernova remnants with Galactocentric radius
Authors: Green D A 
Published: October 2015

Abstract
Supernova remnants (SNRs) in the Galaxy are an important source of energy injection into the interstellar medium, and also of cosmic rays. Currently there are 294 known SNRs in the Galaxy, and their distribution with Galactocentric radius is of interest for various studies. Here I discuss some of the statistics of Galactic SNRs, including the observational selection effects that apply, and difficulties in obtaining distances for individual remnants from the ‘$\Sigma$–D’ relation. Comparison of the observed Galactic longitude distribution of a sample of bright Galactic SNRs – which are not strongly affected by selection effects – with those expected from models is used to constrain the Galactic distribution of SNRs. The best-fitting power-law/exponential model is more concentrated towards the Galactic Centre than the widely used distribution obtained by Case & Bhattacharya.
Risks of Being Malignant or High Risk and Their Characteristics in Breast Lesions 20 mm or Larger After Benign Results on Ultrasonography-Guided 14-Gauge Core Needle Biopsy
Authors: Moon Hee Jung , Kim Min Jung , Yoon Jung Hyun , Kim Eun-Kyung 
Published: October 2015

Purpose
The malignancy risk, risk of being high-risk lesions after benign results on ultrasonography-guided 14-gauge core needle biopsies (US-CNBs), and their characteristics in breast lesions of 20 mm or greater were investigated.

Methods
Eight hundred forty-seven breast lesions with benign results on US-CNB were classified as benign, high risk, and malignant through excision and clinical follow-up. The risks of being malignant or high risk were analyzed in all lesions, lesions 20 to 29 mm, and lesions 30 mm or greater. Their clinicopathological characteristics were evaluated.

Results
Of 847, 18 (2.1%) were malignant, 53 (6.3%) were high-risk lesions, and 776 (91.6%) were benign. Of 18 malignancies, 6 (33.3%) were malignant phyllodes tumors and 12 (66.7%) were carcinomas. In benign lesions 20 to 29 mm, risks of being malignant or high risk were 1.6% (9 of 566) and 4.4% (25 of 566). In 281 lesions 30 mm or greater, the risks of being malignant or high risk were 3.2% and 10%. The risk of being high risk in lesions 30 mm or greater was 10%, significantly higher than 4.4% of lesions 20 to 29 mm (P = 0.002).

Conclusions
Excision can be considered in lesions measuring 20 mm or larger because of the 2.1% malignancy risk and the 6.3% risk of being high-risk lesions despite benign results on US-CNB. Excision should be considered in lesions measuring 30 mm or larger because of the 3.2% malignancy risk and the 10% risk of being high-risk lesions.