bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Impact of past climatic changes and resource availability on the population demography of three food‐specialist bees
Authors: Dellicour Simon , Michez Denis , Rasplus Jean‐Yves , Mardulyn Patrick 
Published: January 2015

AbstractPast climate change is known to have strongly impacted current patterns of genetic variation of animals and plants in Europe. However, ecological factors also have the potential to influence demographic history and thus patterns of genetic variation. In this study, we investigated the impact of past climate, and also the potential impact of host plant species abundance, on intraspecific genetic variation in three codistributed and related specialized solitary bees of the genus Melitta with very similar life history traits and dispersal capacities. We sequenced five independent loci in samples collected from the three species. Our analyses revealed that the species associated with the most abundant host plant species (Melitta leporina) displays unusually high genetic variation, to an extent that is seldom reported in phylogeographic studies of animals and plants. This suggests a potential role of food resource abundance in determining current patterns of genetic variation in specialized herbivorous insects. Patterns of genetic variation in the two other species indicated lower overall levels of diversity, and that M. nigricans could have experienced a recent range expansion. Ecological niche modelling of the three Melitta species and their main host plant species suggested a strong reduction in range size during the last glacial maximum. Comparing observed sequence data with data simulated using spatially explicit models of coalescence suggests that M. leporina recovered a range and population size close to their current levels at the end of the last glaciation, and confirms recent range expansion as the most likely scenario for M. nigricans. Overall, this study illustrates that both demographic history and ecological factors may have contributed to shape current phylogeographic patterns.
PscI is a type III secretion needle anchoring protein with in vitro polymerization capacities
Authors: Monlezun Laura , Liebl David , Fenel Daphna , Grandjean Teddy , Berry Alice , Schoehn Guy , Dessein Rodrigue , Faudry Eric , Attree Ina 
Published: January 2015

SummaryThe export of bacterial toxins across the bacterial envelope requires the assembly of complex, membrane‐embedded protein architectures. Pseudomonas aeruginosa employs type III secretion (T3S) injectisome to translocate exotoxins directly into the cytoplasm of a target eukaryotic cell. This multi‐protein channel crosses two bacterial membranes and extends further as a needle through which the proteins travel. We show in this work that PscI, proposed to form the T3S system (T3SS) inner rod, possesses intrinsic properties to polymerize into flexible and regularly twisted fibrils and activates IL‐1β production in mouse bone marrow macrophages in vitro. We also found that point mutations within C‐terminal amphipathic helix of PscI alter needle assembly in vitro and T3SS function in cell infection assays, suggesting that this region is essential for an efficient needle assembly. The overexpression of PscF partially compensates for the absence of the inner rod in PscI‐deficient mutant by forming a secretion‐proficient injectisome. All together, we propose that the polymerized PscI in P. aeruginosa optimizes the injectisome function by anchoring the needle within the envelope‐embedded complex of the T3S secretome and – contrary to its counterpart in Salmonella – is not involved in substrate switching.
Paraphyly of the subgenus Anaphlebotomus and creation of Madaphlebotomus subg. nov. (Phlebotominae: Phlebotomus)
Authors: DEPAQUIT J. , LEGER N. , RANDRIANAMBININTSOA F. J. 
Published: January 2015

AbstractThe systematic position of the Malagasy Phlebotomus (Diptera: Psychodidae) species was assessed in molecular phylogenetic studies. Three molecular markers were sequenced: cytochrome b of the mitochondrial DNA; ITS2, and the D8 domain of the ribosomal DNA. The following species were studied: Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) berentiensis, Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) fertei, Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) fontenillei, Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) vaomalalae and Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) vincenti from Madagascar; Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) stantoni from Asia, and Phlebotomus (Anaphlebotomus) rodhaini from Africa. The following outgroups were selected: Phlebotomus (Euphlebotomus) argentipes, Phlebotomus (Euphlebotomus) barguesae, Phlebotomus (Larroussius) perfiliewi s.l. and Phlebotomus (Adlerius) simici. Each marker analysed by maximum parsimony and maximum likelihood supports the monophyly of the Malagasy Phlebotomus spp. Consequently, we create a new subgenus for these species: Madaphlebotomus subg. nov. This molecular individualization is reinforced by the originality of their spermathecae and by the fact that their geographical distribution is limited to Madagascar, and considers the high level of endemism on this island.
Partitioned identities? Everyday national distinctions inNorthernIreland and theIrish state
Authors: Todd Jennifer 
Published: January 2015

AbstractHow does political structure affect ethno‐national distinction? Partitioned societies are a good test case where we can see the effects of changed socio‐political circumstances on historically inherited distinction. This article takes nominally identical distinctions of nationality and religion with common historical roots and shows how they are differentially understood in two polities partitioned in 1920:NorthernIreland, a devolved region of theUnitedKingdom, and theIrish state. Using a data base of interviews with over 220 respondents, of which 75 inNorthernIreland, conducted between 2003 and 2006, it shows how complex, potentially totalising and exclusive ‘ethnic’ and ‘ethno‐national’ divisions are built up from simpler and more permeable distinctions. Respondents interrelate the same elements into a loosely‐knit symbolic structure – different in each jurisdiction – which frames expectations and discourse, and which is associated with different logics of national discourse, one focussing on personal orientation, the other on group belonging. The resultant ‘ethno‐national’ distinctions function differently North and South.
Claiming the nation for the people: the dynamics of representation in German public discourse about immigrant integration
Authors: Piwoni Eunike 
Published: January 2015

AbstractAgainst the backdrop of the current trend to criticise elite‐centred approaches to the study of nationalism, this article sheds light on ways in which elite and popular notions of nationhood are mediated. Thus, public discourse on national identity is explored as a discourse that ordinary people can influence and in which elites make claims to represent the people. To illustrate the dynamics of representative claim‐making and reception, the article uses a case study fromGerman public discourse; the debate aboutThiloSarrazin's 2010 bookGermany Does Away With Itself. It finds that, althoughSarrazin clearly breaches well‐established rules in national identity discourse, his ideas gain traction from the moment he becomes accepted as representing ordinaryGermans. The findings are discussed against the backdrop of the history ofGerman national identity discourse and anti‐essentialist approaches treating nationhood as a political claim.
The nation and the city: urban festivals and cultural mobilisation
Authors: Leerssen Joep 
Published: January 2015

AbstractThis article attempts to map the relations between nation‐building processes in 19th‐century Europe and city cultures with their urban sociability. Three patterns are surveyed: [1] the modern‐national assimilation of medieval and early‐modern city cultures (sample case: Orléans and the French cult of Joan of Arc); [2] the modular replication across cities of urban festivals as cultural mobilizers (sample case: the spread of Floral Games festivals in Southern France and Northern Spain); [3] the reticulation of city‐based practices into a nationwide and nation‐building network (sample cases: the role of choral societies in German cultural nationalism; and its transnational knock‐on effect in the Baltic Provinces). By choosing the city as our social focus and placing it (or rather, its ideal‐type ‘Urbania’) alongside Gellner's ideal‐types of ‘Megalomania’ and ‘Ruritania’, we can avoid the finalism of studying regionalist and nationalist movements in the analytical framework of the post‐Versailles state system, and we gain a better understanding of the granulated, localized social basis of such movements and the translocally homogenizing role of culture.
Gender‐ and disease‐specific urinary thioredoxin in chronic kidney disease patients with or without type 2 diabetic nephropathy
Authors: Tobino Kyoko , Muso Eri , Iwasaki Yukako , Yonemoto Satomi , Kasuno Kenji , Tsukamoto Tatsuo , Nakamura Hajime , Tomino Yasuhiko 
Published: January 2015

AbstractAimThe role of urinary (U‐) thioredoxin (Trx), a class of small redox proteins, in physiological and pathological conditions, in addition to its gender specificity, has been insufficiently determined in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients, especially in diabetes mellitus (DM) nephropathy.MethodsU‐Trx was measured cross‐sectionally in 110 CKD outpatients with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) of >15 mL/min per 1.73 m2, namely, in 57 type 2 DM patients (male: n = 41, female: n = 16) and 53 non‐DM patients (M: n = 33, F: n = 20), as well as 30 healthy controls (M: n = 11, F: n = 19). Comparisons were made among controls, DM and non‐DM, and between M and F, with clinical parameters compared in each group. In addition, a comparison between average U‐Trx level and the changes of renal function during a one‐year period was performed.ResultsU‐Trx was significantly higher in females than in males in controls (P < 0.05) and in non‐DM patients (P < 0.05). Multiple regression analysis revealed that urinary protein (UP)/creatinine (Cr) ratio, female sex and HbA1c were independent factors affecting U‐Trx among all subjects (adjusted R2 = 0.468). In DM patients, U‐Trx was negatively correlated with eGFR, especially in males, and positively correlated with UP/Cr and NAG in both sexes (all P < 0.01), as well as with systolic blood pressure in all (P < 0.05). Average U‐Trx was positively correlated with the rate of annual eGFR decline of male (P < 0.01) but not female DM patients.ConclusionU‐Trx might have a gender‐specific physiological and pathological role and be a potent marker of renal damage in DM nephropathy.
A hemicellulose‐bound form of silicon inhibits cadmium ion uptake in rice (Oryza sativa) cells
Authors: Ma Jie , Cai Hongmei , He Congwu , Zhang Wenjun , Wang Lijun 
Published: January 2015

Summary

Silicon (Si) alleviates cadmium (Cd) toxicity in rice (Oryza sativa). However, the chemical mechanisms at the single‐cell level are poorly understood.

Here, a suspension of rice cells exposed to Cd and/or Si treatments was investigated using a combination of plant cell nutritional, molecular biological, and physical techniques including in situ noninvasive microtest technology (NMT), polymerase chain reaction (PCR), inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP‐MS), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) in Kelvin probe mode (KPFM).

We found that Si‐accumulating cells had a significantly reduced net Cd2+ influx, compared with that in Si‐limited cells. PCR analyses of the expression levels of Cd and Si transporters in rice cells showed that, when the Si concentration in the medium was increased, expression of the Si transporter gene Low silicon rice 1 (Lsi1) was up‐regulated, whereas expression of the gene encoding the transporter involved in the transport of Cd, Natural resistance‐associated macrophage protein 5 (Nramp5), was down‐regulated. ICP‐MS results revealed that 64% of the total Si in the cell walls was bound to hemicellulose constituents following the fractionation of the cell walls, and consequently inhibited Cd uptake. Furthermore, AFM in KPFM demonstrated that the heterogeneity of the wall surface potential was higher in cells cultured in the presence of Si than in those cultured in its absence, and was homogenized after the addition of Cd.

These results suggest that a hemicellulose‐bound form of Si with net negative charges is responsible for inhibition of Cd uptake in rice cells by a mechanism of [Si‐hemicellulose matrix]Cd complexation and subsequent co‐deposition.
How dieting makes the lean fatter: from a perspective of body composition autoregulation through adipostats and proteinstats awaiting discovery
Authors: Dulloo A. G. , Jacquet J. , Montani J.‐P. , Schutz Y. 
Published: January 2015

SummaryWhether dieting makes people fatter has been a subject of considerable controversy over the past 30 years. More recent analysis of several prospective studies suggest, however, that it is dieting to lose weight in people who are in the healthy normal range of body weight, rather than in those who are overweight or obese, that most strongly and consistently predict future weight gain. This paper analyses the ongoing arguments in the debate about whether repeated dieting to lose weight in normal‐weight people represents unsuccessful attempts to counter genetic and familial predispositions to obesity, a psychosocial reaction to the fear of fatness or that dieting per se confers risks for fatness and hence a contributing factor to the obesity epidemic. In addressing the biological plausibility that dieting predisposes the lean (rather than the overweight or obese) to regaining more body fat than what had been lost (i.e. fat overshooting), it integrates the results derived from the re‐analysis of body composition data on fat mass and fat‐free mass (FFM) losses and recoveries from human studies of experimental energy restriction and refeeding. These suggest that feedback signals from the depletion of both fat mass (i.e. adipostats) and FFM (i.e. proteinstats) contribute to weight regain through the modulation of energy intake and adaptive thermogenesis, and that a faster rate of fat recovery relative to FFM recovery (i.e. preferential catch‐up fat) is a central outcome of body composition autoregulation in lean individuals. Such a temporal desynchronization in the restoration of the body's fat vs. FFM results in a state of hyperphagia that persists beyond complete recovery of fat mass and interestingly until FFM is fully recovered. However, as this completion of FFM recovery is also accompanied by fat deposition, excess fat accumulates. In other words, fat overshooting is a prerequisite to allow complete recovery of FFM. This confers biological plausibility for post‐dieting fat overshooting – which through repeated dieting and weight cycling would increase the risks for trajectories from leanness to fatness. Given the increasing prevalence of dieting in normal‐weight female and male among young adults, adolescents and even children who perceive themselves as too fat (due to media, family and societal pressures), together with the high prevalence of dieting for optimizing performance among athletes in weight‐sensitive sports, the notion that dieting and weight cycling may be predisposing a substantial proportion of the population to weight gain and obesity deserves greater scientific scrutiny.
Monocarboxylate transporters: new players in body weight regulation
Authors: Carneiro L. , Pellerin L. 
Published: January 2015

SummaryOver the last two decades, several genes have been identified that appear to play a role in the regulation of energy homeostasis and body weight. For a small subset of them, a reduction or an absence of expression confers a resistance to the development of obesity. Recently, a knockin mouse for a member of the monocarboxylate transporter (MCT) family, MCT1, was demonstrated to exhibit a typical phenotype of resistance to diet‐induced obesity and a protection from its associated metabolic perturbations. Such findings point out at MCTs as putatively new therapeutic targets in the context of obesity. Here, we will review what is known about MCTs and their possible metabolic roles in different organs and tissues. Based on the description of the phenotype of the MCT1 knockin mouse, we will also provide some insights about their putative roles in weight gain regulation.
Short QTc Interval in Males with Klinefelter Syndrome—Influence of CAG Repeat Length, Body Composition, and Testosterone Replacement Therapy
Authors: JØRGENSEN INGER NORLYK , SKAKKEBÆK ANNE , ANDERSEN NIELS HOLMARK , PEDERSEN LISBETH NØRUM , HOUGAARD DAVID MICHAEL , BOJESEN ANDERS , TROLLE CHRISTIAN , GRAVHOLT CLAUS HØJBJERG 
Published: January 2015

BackgroundKlinefelter syndrome (KS) is a sex chromosomal aneuploidy (47,XXY) affecting 1/660 males. Based on findings in Turner syndrome, we hypothesized that electrocardiogram (ECG) abnormalities would be present in males with KS.ObjectiveTo investigate ECGs in males with KS and compare with controls.MethodsCase control study of 62 males with KS and 62 healthy males matched on age. The primary outcome parameter was a difference in the ECG presentation between the two groups. The ECGs were analyzed by one blinded examiner (intraobserver variability 0.2–2.1%). The QT‐interval was measured using “teach‐the‐tangent” method excluding the U‐wave. QTc was calculated using Bazett's equation, Hodges’ equation, and a linear regression model. Body mass index, abdominal fat, and muscle mass as well as sex hormone levels were secondary parameters. The prevalence of mutations in genes related to short QT syndrome was determined in participants with a QTc < 330 ms.ResultsCompared to controls, the QTc‐interval was shorter (P = 0.02–0.06) in males with KS depending on the applied correction method. QTc was shortest among testosterone (T)‐treated males with KS, while untreated and thus hypogonadal KS had QTc interval comparable to controls. No mutations in genes related to short QT syndrome were found.ConclusionWe found short QTc interval in males with KS, with further shortening of the QTc interval by T. These results suggest that genes on the X chromosome could be involved in regulation of the QTc interval and that T treatment may aggravate this mechanism.
Heterologous expression of chloroplast‐localized geranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthase confers fast plant growth, early flowering and increased seed yield
Authors: Tata Sandeep Kumar , Jung Jihye , Kim Yoon‐Ha , Choi Jun Young , Jung Ji‐Yul , Lee In‐Jung , Shin Jeong Sheop , Ryu Stephen Beungtae 
Published: January 2015

SummaryGeranylgeranyl pyrophosphate synthase (GGPS) is a key enzyme for a structurally diverse class of isoprenoid biosynthetic metabolites including gibberellins, carotenoids, chlorophylls and rubber. We expressed a chloroplast‐targeted GGPS isolated from sunflower (Helianthus annuus) under control of the cauliflower mosaic virus 35S promoter in tobacco (Nicotiana tabacum). The resulting transgenic tobacco plants expressing heterologous GGPS showed remarkably enhanced growth (an increase in shoot and root biomass and height), early flowering, increased number of seed pods and greater seed yield compared with that of GUS‐transgenic lines (control) or wild‐type plants. The gibberellin levels in HaGGPS‐transgenic plants were higher than those in control plants, indicating that the observed phenotype may result from increased gibberellin content. However, in HaGGPS‐transformant tobacco plants, we did not observe the phenotypic defects such as reduced chlorophyll content and greater petiole and stalk length, which were previously reported for transgenic plants expressing gibberellin biosynthetic genes. Fast plant growth was also observed in HaGGPS‐expressing Arabidopsis and dandelion plants. The results of this study suggest that GGPS expression in crop plants may yield desirable agronomic traits, including enhanced growth of shoots and roots, early flowering, greater numbers of seed pods and/or higher seed yield. This research has potential applications for fast production of plant biomass that provides commercially valuable biomaterials or bioenergy.
Exchange transfusion in patients with Down syndrome and severe transient leukemia
Authors: Hayasaka Itaru , Cho Kazutoshi , Morioka Keita , Kaneshi Yosuke , Akimoto Takuma , Furuse Yuta , Moriichi Akinori , Iguchi Akihiro , Cho Yuko , Minakami Hisanori , Ariga Tadashi 
Published: January 2015

AbstractBackgroundAmong neonates with Down syndrome (DS) and transient leukemia (TL), hyperleukocytosis (white blood cell [WBC] count >100 × 109/L) is associated with increased blood viscosity, respiratory failure due to pulmonary hypertension, multiorgan failure, and increased risk of early death. There have been no previous studies focusing on the effects of exchange transfusion (ExT) on WBC count, respiratory status, and other parameters in TL patients with hyperleukocytosis.MethodsAn observational retrospective study was carried out at a single center of all five DS neonates with TL, GATA1 mutations, and hyperleukocytosis, born at a median gestational age of 34 weeks (range, 30–38 weeks) with birthweight 2556 g (range, 1756–3268 g) during a 24 month study period between September 2011 and August 2013. All five neonates underwent ExT at a median age of 2 days (range, 0–5 days) before initiation of other cytoreductive therapy with cytarabine, which was carried out in two patients.ResultsAll patients required respiratory support before ExT. After ExT, respiration status improved in all five patients: WBC count (mean) decreased by 85% from 143 × 109/L to 21 × 109/L. None developed tumor lysis syndrome. Three survived and two died: one hydrops fetalis neonate born at gestational week 30 died at age 5 days, and another died eventually from acute gastroenteritis 40 days after leaving hospital at the age of 155 days with complete remission. Two of the three surviving neonates developed acute megakaryocytic leukemia at age 90 days and 222 days.ConclusionExT was very effective in improving hyperleukocytosis and may have had favorable effects on respiration.
Do we need a practice incremental shuttle walk test for patients with interstitial lung disease referred for pulmonary rehabilitation?
Authors: Johnson‐Warrington Vicki , Sewell Louise , Morgan Mike , Singh Sally 
Published: January 2015

AbstractBackground and objectivePatients with interstitial lung disease (ILD) are increasingly being referred to pulmonary rehabilitation (PR) where exercise capacity is measured, often by an incremental shuttle walk test (ISWT). These patients are frequently limited by severe dyspnoea and exertional desaturation. Available guidelines suggest two ISWT are needed; however, this is time consuming and it has not been reported whether a practice ISWT is necessary in ILD. We aimed to investigate if a practice ISWT is needed for patients with ILD referred to PR.MethodsPatients with ILD who attended a PR assessment performed two ISWT as per standard protocol. Hospital notes were retrieved and relevant data extracted and validated. Endurance shuttle walk test (ESWT) level was calculated at 85% VO2 peak as estimated from the first ISWT (ISWT 1) and second ISWT (ISWT 2).ResultsForty‐three patients were included (18 with idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis). There was a mean change of 28.84 (31.71) m between the two ISWT (P < 0.001) with 72.1% of patients walking further on ISWT 2. A Bland–Altman plot showed good agreement between the ISWTs; however, the limits of agreement were wide. There was a significant difference in ESWT levels (P < 0.001) when calculated from ISWT 1 and ISWT 2. ISWT 1 distance, post‐ISWT 1 heart rate and baseline Borg breathlessness score were significant variables (P < 0.05) in linear regression, but this only explained 42.6% of the variance (R2 0.426).ConclusionsA practice ISWT is necessary to accurately assess exercise capacity. It was not possible to predict which patients did not need to complete two ISWT.