bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Lactate metabolism and acute kidney injury
Authors: Li Hui , Ren Qian , Shi Min , Ma Liang , Fu Ping 
Published: May 2024

Abstract
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a common clinically critical syndrome in hospitalized patients with high morbidity and mortality. At present, the mechanism of AKI has not been fully elucidated, and no therapeutic drugs exist. As known, glycolytic product lactate is a key metabolite in physiological and pathological processes. The kidney is an important gluconeogenic organ, where lactate is the primary substrate of renal gluconeogenesis in physiological conditions. During AKI, altered glycolysis and gluconeogenesis in kidneys significantly disturb the lactate metabolic balance, which exert impacts on the severity and prognosis of AKI. Additionally, lactate-derived posttranslational modification, namely lactylation, is novel to AKI as it could regulate gene transcription of metabolic enzymes involved in glycolysis or Warburg effect. Protein lactylation widely exists in human tissues and may severely affect non-histone functions. Moreover, the strategies of intervening lactate metabolic pathways are expected to bring a new dawn for the treatment of AKI. This review focused on renal lactate metabolism, especially in proximal renal tubules after AKI, and updated recent advances of lactylation modification, which may help to explore potential therapeutic targets against AKI.
SEIR: a novel multi-locus GWAS method that provides higher statistical power for fast identifying variant-phenotype associations
Authors: Zhou Guang-liang , Zhao Yun-xia , Qiao Jia-kun , Xu Fang-jun , Kuang Ren-zuo , Li Mi-lin , Wang Dao-yuan , Hu Ming-yang , Liu Xiao-lei , Li Xin-yun , Zhao Shu-hong , Zhu Meng-jin 
Published: May 2024

AbstractMulti-locus genome-wide association study (GWAS) methods have considered the joint effects of multiple variants to more accurately unravel the genetic basis of complex traits. Here, we developed a novel multi-locus GWAS method named Selector-Embedded Iterative Regression (SEIR), which integrates the embedded selector with fast single-marker scanning in an iterative manner. SEIR has excellent adaptability and flexibility under various genetic architectures for qualitative and quantitative traits. Reliability of SEIR was experimentally supported by integrating GWAS with 3D epigenomics in a real trait. Conclusively, SEIR exhibits higher statistical power for fast identifying putative variants compared to other single- and multi-locus methods.
Butyrate ameliorates inflammation in colon biopsy samples of IBD patients and experimental colitis in mice involving RNA binding protein, AUF1-IL-27 axis and accelerating B1a to B10 polarization
Authors: Masid Aaheli , Das Oishika , Roy Diganta , Dutta Ankita , Sikdar Sohini , Ghosh Atanu , Banerjee Arpan , Ghosh Ujjal , Chowdhury Sutanu Acharya , Majumder Sankhasubhro , Yahya Mohammad , Sinha Surajit , Bhaumik Moumita 
Published: May 2024

AbstractThe pathophysiology of Inflammatory Bowel Disease (IBD) is significantly influenced by the decline in B regulatory (B10) cells, which produce IL-10. Therefore, it is important to identify the key genes and pathways that regulate the B10 cell generation in order to develop more effective therapies. Here, we have shown that one of the short chain fatty acid, butyrate regulates the expression of RNA binding protein, AUF1 which is responsible for increasing the half-life of p28 mRNA, coding for p28 protein which associates with overexpressed EBI3 and forms functional IL-27. This effect is mediated through AUF1 binding to 3’UTR of IL-27p28 mRNA. As a consequence, IL-27 signals splenic CD19+CD5+(B1a) cells but not CD19+CD23+(B2) cells to polarize to B10 cells. We proved the importance of AUF1 and the sequential downstream players in unique cell penetrating morpholino induced AUF1 knockdown (AUF1-KD) in mice, establishing the roster of events in splenic B1a cells: butyrate-AUF1-IL-27-IL-10. We showed that there was a significant decrease in AUF1, IL-27 and IL-10 expression in the colon biopsy of IBD patients compared to non-IBD control. We have used DSS induced colitis in mice as a surrogate of IBD in human and showed the reduction in AUF1 in spleen and colon could be correlated with the decrease in IL-27 and B10 cells in spleen and mesenteric lymph nodes which were reversed with butyrate treatment. We further established AUF1 as the role player by showing adoptive transfer of butyrate stimulated B1a cells from wild type mice conferring protection against colitis while adoptive transfer of butyrate stimulated B1a cells from AUF1 KD mice failed to suppress the disease. Finally, we propose that butyrate driven B1a cells as a glimmer of new hope of therapeutic possibility against colitis.
Culture wars: Empirically determining the best approach for plasmid library amplification
Authors: Mateyko Nicholas , de Boer Carl 
Published: May 2024

AbstractDNA libraries are critical components of many biological assays. These libraries are often kept in plasmids that are amplified inE. colito generate sufficient material for an experiment. Library uniformity is critical for ensuring that every element in the library is tested similarly, and is thought to be influenced by the culture approach used during library amplification. We tested five commonly used culturing methods for their ability to uniformly amplify plasmid libraries: liquid, semisolid agar, cell spreader-spread plates with high or low colony density, and bead-spread plates. Each approach was evaluated with two library types: a random 80-mer library, representing high complexity low coverage of similar sequence lengths, and a human TF ORF library, representing low complexity high coverage of diverse sequence lengths. We found that no method was better than liquid culture, which produced relatively uniform libraries regardless of library type. However, when libraries were transformed with high coverage, culturing method had minimal impact on uniformity or amplification bias. Plating libraries was the worst approach by almost every measure for both library types, and, counter-intuitively, produced the strongest biases against long sequence representation. Semisolid agar amplified most elements of the library uniformly but also included outliers with orders of magnitude higher abundance. For amplifying DNA libraries, liquid culture, the simplest method, appears to be best.
Driving proteomic imbalance to combat Neurofibromatosis type I (NF1)-associated malignancy
Authors: Ram Babul Moni , Chuang Kun-Han , Dai Chengkai 
Published: May 2024

ABSTRACTUnlike genomic instability, the implications of proteomic instability in cancer remain ambiguous. By governing the proteotoxic stress response, heat shock factor 1 (HSF1) sustains proteomic stability upon environmental insults. Apart from its importance to stress resistance and survival, HSF1 is emerging as a powerful, generic oncogenic enabler. In the Neurofibromatosis type I (NF1)-deficient malignant peripheral nerve sheath tumor (MPNST) cells,HSF1depletion prompted protein polyubiquitination, aggregation, and even tumor-suppressive amyloidogenesis. In stark contrast,HSF1is dispensable for the proteome of non-transformed human Schwann cells. Mechanistically, in MPNST cells HSF1 defends the essential mitochondrial chaperone HSP60 against the direct assault from soluble amyloid oligomers. To survive and adapt to impaired protein quality, owing toHSF1deficiency, MPNST cells mobilized JNK to repress mTORC1 and protein translation, thereby attenuating protein quantity to alleviate proteomic imbalance. mTORC1 stimulation, via either pharmacological JNK blockade, geneticTSC2depletion, or supplement with the leucine analog NV-5138, markedly aggravated the proteomic imbalance elicited byHSF1deficiency. This profound proteomic imbalance instigated non-apoptotic cell death partly through unchecked amyloidogenesis. Thus, HSF1 safeguards the cancer proteome to enable the oncogenic potential of mTORC1. Counterintuitively, this proof-of-concept study highlights driving proteomic imbalance as a new therapeutic concept to combat malignancies.
Cell-free synthesis and purification of recombinant nucleocapsid (N), membrane (M), and envelope (E) proteins
Authors: Wang Lin , Fei Mingming , Zhang Wenhui , Lin Sen , Jiang Zhihui , Zhang Shun , Wang Yao 
Published: May 2024

AbstractRapid production of soluble recombinant antigens is important for developingin vitrodiagnostics, vaccines, and drugs against virus such as severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). In this research, hard-to-express nucleocapsid, membrane, and envelope proteins were successfully expressed by an Escherichia coli-based cell-free protein synthesis system. The solubility of the proteins was optimized using various amphipathic molecules. Most of the impurities were easily removed by a one-step Ni-NTA affinity chromatography. This study provides an easy and quick alternative for virus’s trans-membrane and nucleotides associated recombinant protein expression, which has potential downstream application for early screening of newly emerging viruses.
Identifying factors influencing women academics in STEM careers: evidence from a Latin American country
Authors: Avolio Beatrice , Chávez Cajo Jessica Marleny 
Published: May 2024

PurposeThis phenomenological study, conducted within the discourse on the underrepresentation of women in academia, examined the factors influencing the advancement of women academics in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM).Design/methodology/approachThe sample comprised twenty-one women academics from both public and private universities in Peru. Data were collected through in-depth interviews based on the women's experiences and subsequently processed using Moustakas’ (1994) stages for encoding, categorization, and analysis.FindingsThe study introduces a conceptual framework of nine factors – personal tastes and preferences, attitudes towards science as a vocation, care work, work–life balance, congruent gender roles, occupational segregation, lack of opportunities, low salaries, and lack of gender equality policies – that impact the career progression of women in STEM fields.Originality/valueThe results offer valuable insights for policymakers and academic authorities to address the barriers affecting women academics in STEM. The uniqueness of this paper lies in its investigation in Peru, a country with the highest female labor force participation in Latin America, where women constitute the majority of undergraduate program graduates.
The productivity and income effects of adopting improved rice varieties by smallholder farmers in Indonesia
Authors: Amrullah Eka Rastiyanto , Takeshita Hironobu , Tokuda Hiromi 
Published: May 2024

PurposeThis study identified the determinants of improved rice variety adoption and measured their impact on farm productivity and the income of smallholder farmers in Indonesia.Design/methodology/approachWe used a multistage sampling procedure and data from household surveys in four districts in the Banten region of Indonesia. An endogenous switching regression (ESR) model was used to estimate the impact of adoption, and the propensity score matching (PSM) non-parametric method tested the strength of the ESR findings.FindingsThe farm productivity of adoption increased by 11.45% and the income of smallholder farmers increased by 12.10% when compared to that of traditional methods.Research limitations/implicationsThe positive and significant effects of improved rice variety adoption indicated that research programs that develop improved rice varieties can optimize the productivity and income of smallholder farmers.Originality/valueAdopting improved rice varieties increases the productivity and income of smallholder farmers, and the level of education, rice farming experience, access to extension workers, off-farm work, and mobile phone ownership have positive and significant effects on the adoption of improved rice varieties.
Sustainability performance measurement – a framework for context-specific applications
Authors: Damtoft Nadja Fugleberg , van Liempd Dennis , Lueg Rainer 
Published: May 2024

Purpose
Researchers and practitioners have recently been interested in corporate sustainability performance (CSP). However, knowledge on measuring CSP is limited. Many CSP-measurements are eclectic, without guidance for contextual applications. This paper aims to develop a conceptual framework that categorizes, explains and evaluates measurements based on their accuracy and precision and provides a guideline for their context-specific application.

Design/methodology/approach
The authors conducted a systematic literature review of an initial sample of 1,415 papers.

Findings
The final sample of 74 papers suggested four measurement categories: isolated indicators, indicator frameworks, Sustainability Balanced Scorecards (SBSC) and Sustainability Performance Measurement Systems (SPMS). The analysis reveals that isolated indicators are inaccurate and imprecise, limiting their application to organizations with delimited, specific measurements of parts of CSP due to the risk of a GIGO-effect (i.e. low-quality input will always produce low-quality output). CSP-indicator frameworks are imprecise but accurate, making them applicable to organizations that handle a more significant amount of CSP data. They have a risk of greensplashing, i.e. many indicators not connected to the industry, organization or strategy. In contrast, SBSCs are precise but inaccurate and valuable for organizations desiring a comprehensive strategic management tool with limited capacity to handle sustainability issues. They pose a risk of the streetlight effect, where organisations do not measure relevant indicators but what is easy to measure.

Originality/value
The ideal CSP-measurement was identified as SPMSs, which are both precise and accurate. SPMSs are useful for organizations with complex, comprehensive, connected and tailored indicators but are methodologically challenging.
Brand pride: concept and measurement
Authors: Kaur Harleen , Verma Harsh V. 
Published: May 2024

Purpose
This paper aims to conceptualize and define a construct of brand pride and develop a measurement instrument for the construct.

Design/methodology/approach
A scale development procedure comprising a qualitative prestudy and four quantitative studies for item generation and content validity, scale refinement using exploratory factor analyses, scale confirmation using confirmatory factor analysis and scale validity using PLS-SEM is followed to develop the measure of brand pride.

Findings
The scale development procedure yields a two-dimensional measurement instrument for brand pride with affective and utilitarian dimensions. The proposed scale is reliable and has convergent, discriminant and nomological validity.

Originality/value
This study highlights the need to study brand pride by reviewing literature from both psychology and marketing. The definition and conceptualization of brand pride help uniquely identify and describe the phenomenon. By developing a scale to measure the construct of brand pride, this study will enable research into the phenomenon, its causes and effects and its significance for consumer–brand relationships.
Re-imagining African millennials’ brand buying and distribution channel selection behaviour in a technologically disrupted world
Authors: Chikweche Tendai , Lappeman James , Egan Paul , Mohammed Hossain 
Published: May 2024

Purpose
This paper aims to investigate the factors that influence millennial purchase behaviour, brand choice and distribution channel selection in an evolving technology-driven environment.

Design/methodology/approach
The study was exploratory, using qualitative methods of personal interviews and some ethnographic observations to collect data from 585 millennials from ten cities in nine African countries.

Findings
Findings from the study confirm and support the critical role of e-commerce in facilitating millennials engagement with brands, highlighting how brand purchases are integral to their lifestyle choices. There is an overwhelming confirmation of the importance of influencer marketing and social media in shaping purchase decisions, with new insights into the role of local micro-influencers and social networks. The findings from the study highlight the pivotal role of a brand’s country of origin in influencing millennials’ brand preferences. The study supports and advances insights into the importance of online shopping and diverse factors influencing millennials’ selection of distribution channels.

Practical implications
There is an opportunity to leverage the growing mobile telephone penetration and social media usage to develop innovative integrated marketing communications strategies. There are opportunities for co-creating marketing communication campaigns with millennials in different settings. These are outlined in the practical implications section.

Originality/value
The paper is based on original empirical data collected from ten countries and explores the behaviour of a growing but under-researched segment of millennials in Africa.
The specialised buzz pollination syndrome poses a partial barrier to plant invasions
Authors: Lopresti Laura C. , Lach Lori , Montesinos Daniel 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Plants that exhibit generalised pollination syndromes have been hypothesised to become invasive more easily compared with specialists, yet the degree to which specialised pollination traits inhibit plant invasions is unknown. One such specialisation is the buzz pollination syndrome, which encompasses specialised floral traits that restrict pollen access (typically poricidal anthers) and benefits from specialised insect behaviour for pollen extraction.

We reviewed the literature on buzz pollination of invasive plants to assess whether: (1) plant species exhibiting specialised pollination syndromes are underrepresented as invasive species, and (2) species with specialised pollination syndromes that have become invasive can reproduce in the absence of specialist buzzing pollinators.

Synthesis. We found 2.5% (117/4630) of invasive angiosperms have poricidal anthers, which is an underrepresentation of the proportion of global angiosperms that are estimated to have poricidal anthers (6%–10%). Most invasive buzz‐pollinated plants are genetically self‐compatible (97%), but only 43% can set fruit in the absence of a pollinator. Our findings highlight the importance of establishing new pollinator mutualisms for sexual reproduction. However, we identified six non‐buzzing behaviours used to extract pollen from plants with poricidal anthers, which is important where buzzing pollinators may be absent or not attracted to newly introduced plant species.
The Acoustic Index User's Guide: A practical manual for defining, generating and understanding current and future acoustic indices
Authors: Bradfer‐Lawrence Tom , Duthie Brad , Abrahams Carlos , Adam Matyáš , Barnett Ross J. , Beeston Amy , Darby Jennifer , Dell Benedict , Gardner Nick , Gasc Amandine , Heath Becky , Howells Nia , Janson Magnus , Kyoseva Maria‐Viktoria , Luypaert Thomas , Metcalf Oliver C. , Nousek‐McGregor Anna E. , Poznansky Frederica , Ross Samuel R. P.‐J. , Sethi Sarab , Smyth Siobhan , Waddell Emily , Froidevaux Jérémy S. P. 
Published: May 2024

Abstract

Ecoacoustics, the study of environmental sound, is a rapidly growing discipline offering ecological insights at scales ranging from individual organisms to whole ecosystems. Substantial methodological developments over the last 15 years have streamlined extraction of ecological information from audio recordings. One widely used set of methods are acoustic indices, which offer numerical summaries of the spectral, temporal and amplitude patterns in audio recordings.

Currently, the specifics of each index's background, methodology and the soundscape patterns they are designed to summarise, are spread across multiple sources. Critically, details of index calculation are sometimes scarce, making it challenging for users to understand how index values are generated. Discrepancies in understanding can lead to misuse of acoustic indices or reporting of spurious results. This hinders ecological inference, replicability and discourages adoption of these tools for conservation and ecosystem monitoring, where they might otherwise provide useful insight.

Here we present the Acoustic Index User's Guide—an interactive RShiny web app that defines and deconstructs eight of the most commonly used acoustic indices to facilitate consistent application across the discipline. We break the acoustic indices calculations down into easy‐to‐follow steps to better enable practical application and critical interpretation of acoustic indices. We demonstrate typical soundscape patterns using a suite of 91 example audio recordings: 66 real‐world soundscapes from terrestrial, aquatic and subterranean systems around the world, and 25 synthetic files demonstrating archetypal soundscape patterns. Our interpretation figures signpost specific soundscape patterns likely to be reflected in acoustic indices' values.

This RShiny app is a living resource; additional acoustic indices will be added in the future through collaboration with authors of pre‐existing and new indices. The app also serves as a best‐practice template for the information required when publishing new acoustic indices, so that authors can facilitate the widest possible understanding and uptake of their indices. In turn, improved understanding of acoustic indices will aid effective hypothesis generation, application and interpretation in ecological research, ecosystem monitoring and conservation management.
Differential proteomics of circulating extracellular vesicles of placental origin isolated from women with early‐onset preeclampsia reveal aberrant innate immune and hemostasis processes
Authors: Rao Aishwarya , Subedi Rambhadur , Kundu Indra , Idicula‐Thomas Susan , Shinde Uma , Bansal Vandana , Balsarkar Geetha , Mayadeo Niranjan , Das Dhanjit Kumar , Balasinor Nafisa , Madan Taruna 
Published: May 2024

AbstractProblemEarly‐onset preeclampsia (EOPE) is a severe gestational hypertensive disorder with significant feto‐maternal morbidity and mortality due to uteroplacental insufficiency. Circulating extracellular vesicles of placental origin (EV‐P) are known to be involved in the pathophysiology of EOPE and might serve as an ideal reservoir for its specific biomarkers. Therefore, we aimed to characterize and perform comparative proteomics of circulating EV‐P from healthy pregnant and EOPE women before delivery.Method of StudyThe EV‐P from both groups were isolated using immunoaffinity and were characterized using transmission electron microscopy, dynamic light scattering, nanoparticle tracking analysis, and immunoblotting. Following IgG albumin depletion, the pooled proteins that were isolated from EV‐P of both groups were subjected to quantitative TMT proteomics.ResultsCirculating term EV‐P isolated from both groups revealed ∼150 nm spherical vesicles containing CD9 and CD63 along with placental PLAP and HLA‐G proteins. Additionally, the concentration of EOPE‐derived EV‐P was significantly increased. A total of 208 proteins were identified, with 26 among them being differentially abundant in EV‐P of EOPE women. This study linked the pathophysiology of EOPE to 19 known and seven novel proteins associated with innate immune responses such as complement and TLR signaling along with hemostasis and oxygen homeostasis.ConclusionThe theory suggesting circulating EVs of placental origin could mimic molecular information from the parent organ—“the placenta”—is strengthened by this study. The findings pave the way for possible discovery of novel prognostic and predictive biomarkers as well as provide insight into the mechanisms driving the pathogenesis of EOPE.
Letter: Fibrates may be safe and effective in patients with primary biliary cholangitis and decompensated cirrhosis
Authors: Ao Xiaoyan , Zeng Yu , Wang Xianglin , Fan Xiaoli 
Published: May 2024

LINKED CONTENTThis article is linked to Hofer et al papers. To view these articles, visit https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.17908 and https://doi.org/10.1111/apt.18067.