bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Maximal functional capacity in subjects with isolated left bundle branch block: A pilot study
Authors: Palau Patricia , Mendez Jose , Santas Enrique , Núñez Julio , López Laura , Briatore Antonio , Domínguez Eloy 
Published: February 2023

AbstractBackgroundLeft bundle branch block (LBBB) has been commonly associated with adverse cardiovascular (CV) events, but the effect of an isolated LBBB on maximal functional capacity is not well characterized.ObjectiveTo evaluate maximal functional capacity in adults with isolated LBBB and compare it to healthy population‐derived predicted values (adjusted for sex, age, weight, and height).MethodsThis descriptive pilot study included subjects with isolated LBBB derived from outpatient clinics of two academic hospitals. All subjects underwent maximal cardiopulmonary exercise testing (CPET) and a Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ). The primary outcome was to evaluate maximal functional capacity according to population‐derived predicted values of peak oxygen consumption (peakVO2): pp‐peakVO2. The secondary outcome was to report adverse CV events (CV deaths or hospitalizations) at follow‐up.ResultsA total of 27 (18 women and 9 men) participants were included. The median (interquartile range) age of the sample and time to screening from the first LBBB diagnosis were 62 (51−71) and 3.4 (1.1−8.4) years, respectively. The results of the GPAQ score showed that 19 patients were highly active, and 8 were moderately active. The median of peakVO2 and pp‐peakVO2 were 19.3 (15−22.5) ml/kg/min and 88% (79.3%−104.4%), respectively. There were no adverse CV events at a median follow‐up after CPET of 3.1 (2.7−3.4) years.ConclusionIn this pilot study, adults with isolated LBBB showed reduced maximal functional capacity, despite the absence of cardiac disease and a baseline moderate to highly active lifestyle.
Discovery of SI 1/20 and SI 1/22 as Mutual Prodrugs of 5‐Fluorouracil and Imidazole‐Based Heme Oxygenase 1 Inhibitor with Improved Cytotoxicity in DU145 Prostate Cancer Cells
Authors: Salerno Loredana , Sorrenti Valeria , Pittalà Valeria , Consoli Valeria , Modica Maria N. , Romeo Giuseppe , Marrazzo Agostino , Giuliano Michela , Zajdel Paweł , Vanella Luca , Intagliata Sebastiano 
Published: February 2023

AbstractIn this work, we extend the concept of 5‐fluorouracil/heme oxygenase 1 (5‐FU/HO‐1) inhibitor hybrid as an effective strategy for enhancing 5‐FU‐based anticancer therapies. For this purpose, we designed and synthesized new mutual prodrugs, named SI 1/20 and SI 1/22, in which the two active parent drugs (i. e., 5‐FU and an imidazole‐based HO‐1 inhibitor) were connected through an easily cleavable succinic linker. Experimental hydrolysis rate, and in silico ADMET predictions were indicative of good drug‐likeness and pharmacokinetic properties. Novel hybrids significantly reduced the viability of prostate DU145 cancer cells compared to the parent compounds 5‐FU and HO‐1 inhibitor administered alone or in combination. Interestingly, both compounds showed statistically significant lower toxicity, than 5‐FU at the same dose, against non‐tumorigenic human benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH‐1) cell line. Moreover, the newly synthesized mutual prodrugs inhibited the HO‐1 activity both in a cell‐free model and in vitro, as well as downregulated the HO‐1 expression and increased the reactive oxygen species (ROS) levels.
The NIH Intramural Research Program: Opportunities for training and career development in neuroscience and beyond
Authors: Schor Nina F. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractThe National Institutes of Health is renowned for being the largest funder of biomedical research in the world. Although it also houses unique research laboratories and clinics on its campuses around the United States, the National Institutes of Health Intramural Research Program is much less well‐known than its extramural enterprise. The Intramural Research Program provides many outstanding opportunities for research‐intensive careers and training and includes a vibrant and diverse community of developmental neurobiology and child neurology investigators.
Phosphonium Ionic Liquid‐Activated Sulfur Vulcanization: A Way Forward to Reduce Zinc Oxide Levels in Industrial Rubber Formulations
Authors: Sattar Mohammad Abdul , Patnaik Archita 
Published: February 2023

AbstractExtensive use of zinc oxide and accelerators such as diphenyl guanidine (DPG) in the vulcanization of rubber composites entail potential environmental risks. These are pervasive contaminants of roadway runoff originating from tire wear particles (TWPs). Herein, the effect of phosphonium ionic liquids (PILs) in styrene–butadiene rubber compounds was demonstrated with reduced ZnO loading and no DPG to minimize the environmental footprint of the vulcanization process. The structure and chemistry of PILs were found to be the influencing parameters impelling the cross‐linking kinetics, enabling shorter induction times. The generation of active Zn2+ sites by PILs was examined through FTIR spectroscopy, calorimetry, and molecular dynamics simulations. From a tire application perspective, the PILs not only enhanced the cure kinetics but also improved the dynamic–mechanical behavior of the rubber composites. Consequently, the harm caused by TWPs to the atmosphere, fuel intake, and CO2 emissions was minimal, thereby confirming the potential use of PILs in the tire industry.
Efficacy of an integrated program (PIA‐2) to reduce the risk for problems related to eating, weight and body image in female adolescents from Argentina
Authors: Rutsztein Guillermina , Scappatura María Luz , Elizathe Luciana , Leonardelli Eduardo , Murawski Brenda , Lievendag Leonora , Sanday Julieta , Falivelli María Belén Banasco , Bidacovich Germán , Keegan Eduardo 
Published: February 2023

AbstractObjectiveThis study aimed to examine the efficacy of an integrated program (PIA‐2) to reduce the risk for problems related to eating, weight and body image in female adolescents from Argentina.MethodA quasi‐experimental study was conducted by comparing an experimental group versus a control group. The final sample included 509 girls aged 13–18 (M = 15.39 and SD = 1.30) from nine schools located in three geographical regions. They provided data at three assessment time points: baseline, post‐intervention and a 3‐month follow‐up. Dependent variables included skipping breakfast, physical activity, eating disorder risk and thin‐ideal internalization. The program was carried out in three 90‐minute sessions within usual school hours, at 1‐week intervals.ResultsParticipants who received the intervention decreased more than the control group in skipping breakfast month by month. However, a significant effect of the intervention was not found on physical activity, eating disorder risk, and thin‐ideal internalization.DiscussionThe presence of mixed findings shows the need to adjust the intervention to enhance the results. The importance of working jointly with other Latin American countries is emphasized, in order to promote the growth of the field of prevention, regarding cultural particularities shared by our societies.Public SignificanceIntegrated programs aimed at reducing risk factors for the entire spectrum of problems related to eating, weight and body image could lead to beneficial and more efficient effects. However, their development is still incipient in Latin America. PIA‐2 Program, designed for female adolescents, produced positive results in one of the four variables studied, decreasing the weekly frequency of skipping breakfast among adolescents. This is pioneering research in Argentina and the region since very few studies on integrated prevention have been published in Latin America. It is crucial to continue with efforts aimed at developing programs that are suited to the specific needs of the population of Latin American countries. In this aspect, our study is undoubtedly an important contribution.
Lakescape connectivity: Mobile fish consumers link Lake Michigan coastal wetland and nearshore food webs
Authors: O'Reilly Katherine E. , Berg Martin B. , Cooper Matthew J. , Forsythe Patrick S. , Houghton Christopher J. , Shrovnal Jeremiah S. , Student James J. , Uzarski Donald G. , Lamberti Gary A. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractIn large lake ecosystems, fish movement between coastal littoral habitats such as wetlands and the adjacent open‐water nearshore represents an understudied but potentially important linkage supporting energy flow and fisheries production. We hypothesized that yellow perch (Perca flavescens), an ecologically and economically important sport fish in the Laurentian Great Lakes, transport energy from highly productive wetlands to nearshore food webs, but that their role changes with ontogenetic shifts in diet and habitat use. We also predicted that the relative strength of such fish‐mediated habitat linkages would vary depending on physical connectivity across habitats. We collected perch and potential prey resources from seven paired coastal wetland–nearshore sites across three regions of Lake Michigan and quantified resource and habitat use with Bayesian stable isotope mixing models and otolith microchemistry. We found that juvenile perch collected in nearshore habitats showed high use of wetland resources, and that diets of wetland‐collected juveniles typically contained a smaller proportion of nearshore resources than did more mobile adults from the same wetland. The least hydrologically connected sites had lower cross‐habitat resource use (e.g., wetland‐collected perch consumed fewer nearshore resources and vice versa) compared with sites with greater levels of hydrological connectivity. Otolith microchemistry confirmed the linkages revealed by stable isotopes, suggesting that a dual approach can increase understanding of habitat linkages in large lakes. Quantifying the importance of multiple lentic habitats (i.e., “lakescape connectivity”) for fisheries production is critical for developing comprehensive large lake food web models and providing managers with information to prioritize locations for conservation and restoration.
Assessing impacts of climate change on selected foundation species and ecosystem services in the South‐Central USA
Authors: Ansley R. James , Rivera‐Monroy Victor H. , Griffis‐Kyle Kerry , Hoagland Bruce , Emert Amanda , Fagin Todd , Loss Scott R. , McCarthy Heather R. , Smith Nicholas G. , Waring Elizabeth F. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractClimate change, interacting with and exacerbating anthropogenic modifications to the landscape, is altering ecosystem structure and function, biodiversity, and species distributions. Among the most visible short‐term impacts are the altered ecological roles of foundation species—those species, native or non‐native—that create locally stable environmental conditions and strongly influence ecosystem services. Understanding the future of these species is crucial for projecting impacts on ecosystem services at both local and regional scales. Here we present foundation species by ecoregion study cases across the US South‐Central Region (Louisiana, New Mexico, Oklahoma, and Texas), including C4 grasses, mesquite, and northern bobwhite in the Southern Great Plains, mangroves and nutria in coastal Louisiana wetlands, tiger salamanders and sandhill cranes in wetlands of the Southern Great Plains, and post and blackjack oaks and eastern redcedar in the Cross Timbers ecoregion. These case studies explore the impacts of climate change on foundation species and the consequences for ecosystem services, the outlook for climate adaptation efforts, and the sustainability of restoration in these systems. We underscore risks and vulnerabilities that stakeholders should consider when managing or restoring natural resources and conserving ecosystem services in an increasingly extreme and variable climate. We show that past management, through a lack of understanding or implementation of actions, has exacerbated shifts in invasive species, resulting in significant changes in ecosystem structure and function. These changes, interacting with landscape fragmentation and shifting land use and exacerbated by climate change, can result in critical losses of biodiversity. Unfortunately, lack of public understanding may hinder political support for restoration efforts and climate adaptation strategies crucial for the continued supply of traditional ecosystem services. Furthermore, the resulting invaded systems may provide opportunities for income via new ecosystem services valued by society that may reduce support for restoration to historical baselines, thus further shifting management priorities. These priorities should be informed by an understanding of past and ongoing ecological trends in region‐specific situations, such as those we present, to highlight the immediacy of climate change impacts on the environment and society and provide evidence for the critical nature of informed management decisions.
Feeding the fire: Annual grass invasion facilitates modeled fire spread across Inland Northwest forest‐mosaic landscapes
Authors: Tortorelli Claire M. , Kim John B. , Vaillant Nicole M. , Riley Karin , Dye Alex , Nietupski Ty C. , Vogler Kevin C. , Lemons Rebecca , Day Michelle , Krawchuk Meg A. , Kerns Becky K. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractInvasive annual grasses are a growing global concern because they facilitate larger and more frequent fires in historically fuel‐limited ecosystems. Forests of the western United States have remained relatively resistant to invasion by annual grasses and their subsequent impacts. However, where forests are adjacent to invaded areas, increased fire spread across ecotones could alter fire behavior and ecosystem resilience. In the Inland Northwest, USA, recent invasion by the annual grass ventenata (Ventenata dubia) has increased fine fuel loads and continuity in nonforest patches embedded within the forested landscape. Despite ventenata's rapid spread across the American West and growing management concern, little is known regarding how invasion influences fire within invaded vegetation types or its potential to alter landscape‐scale fire and management practices. Here, we examine how the ventenata invasion alters simulated fire across forest‐mosaic landscapes of the 7 million ha Blue Mountains Ecoregion using the large fire simulator (FSim) with custom fuel landscapes: present‐day invaded versus historic uninvaded. Invasion increased simulated mean fire size, burn probability, and flame lengths throughout the ecoregion, and the strength of these impacts varied by location and scale. Changes at the ecoregion scale were relatively modest given that fine fuels increased in only 2.8% of the ecoregion where ventenata invaded historically fuel‐limited vegetation types. However, strong localized changes were simulated within invaded patches (primarily dwarf‐shrublands) and where invasion facilitated fire spread into nearby forests. Within invaded patches, burn probabilities increased by 45%, and higher flame lengths required fire management strategies to shift from direct to indirect attack, requiring large machinery. Forests with 25% of their neighborhood invaded experienced a 28% increase in burn probability and 16% increase in the probability of experiencing flame lengths likely to produce crown fire (flame lengths >2.4 m). Increased canopy loss could have severe implications for forest resilience given that invasive grasses can heavily invade early seral dry conifer forests and limit postfire forest recovery. Our study demonstrates how annual grass invasion can influence fire behavior and resilience across forest landscapes despite primarily invading nonforested areas, and highlights invasion as an important management issue in an expansive forest‐mosaic ecosystem.
Decoupling of species and plant communities of the U.S. Southwest: A CCSM4 climate scenario example
Authors: Thomas Kathryn A. , Stauffer Brett A. , Jarchow Christopher J. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractClimate change is predicted to alter the current climate suitability under which plant species and communities occur. Predictions of change have focused on individual species or entire communities, but theory indicates plants will not respond uniformly to climate change within or between communities. We developed models of the current climate suitability (the baseline) of 66 plant species characteristic of 29 plant communities of the arid Southwest, made predictions of climate suitability for the species under two climate change scenarios for the years 2041–2060 (Community Climate System Model version 1.4 [CCSM4] global climate model [GCM], Representative Concentration Pathway [RCP] 4.5 and 8.5 scenarios), and calculated changes in suitability between the future scenarios and baseline for each species. Climate change exposure for the entire community was then evaluated as the composite change of the predicted future climate suitability of the communities' characteristic species. Loss of 25% or more of favorable climate suitability was predicted for 39 (RCP4.5) and 51 (RCP8.5) species within their communities. The proportion of the study area with all species in a community having unfavorable suitability was 17.9% (RCP4.5) and 21.3% (RCP8.5) compared to 6.2% for baseline. We show that suitable climates for species within a plant community are not expected to be a single community‐wide trajectory, but rather changes in climate suitability will be unique to the species and not experienced uniformly across the extant communities. This decoupling of plant species within their traditional plant communities may lead to a cascade of unanticipated ecological responses and unprecedented challenges to resource management. Our study results can inform hypotheses of the future successional track of plant communities, characteristic species, and the decisions resource managers must make for management.
Interleukin‐39 is a novel cytokine associated with type 2 diabetes mellitus and positively correlated with body mass index
Authors: Nussrat Shahad W. , Ad'hiah Ali H. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractIntroductionIt is suggested that cytokines play a key role in the pathogenesis of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). Therefore, this study explored two recently discovered cytokines, interleukin (IL)‐37 (anti‐inflammatory) and IL‐39 (pro‐inflammatory), in T2DM due to limited data in this context.MethodsSerum IL‐37 and IL‐39 levels were determined in 106 T2DM patients and 109 controls using enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay kits.ResultsSerum levels (median and interquartile range) of IL‐37 (79 [47–102] vs. 60 [46–89] ng/L; probability [p] = .04) and IL‐39 (66 [59–69] vs. 31 [19–42] ng/L; p < .001) were significantly elevated in T2DM patients compared to controls. As indicated by the area under the curve (AUC), IL‐39 (AUC = 0.973; p < .001) was more predictable for T2DM than IL‐37 (AUC = 0.582; p = .039). Elevated levels of IL‐39 were significantly associated with T2DM (odds ratio = 1.30; p < .001), while IL‐37 did not show this association. Classification of IL‐37 and IL‐39 levels by demographic and clinical characteristics of patients revealed some significant differences including gender (IL‐39), body mass index (BMI; IL‐37 and IL‐39) and diabetic neuropathy (IL‐39). BMI was positively correlated with IL‐39 (correlation coefficient [rs] = 0.27; p = .005) and glycosylated haemoglobin (rs = 0.31; p = .001), and negatively correlated with age at onset (rs = −0.24; p = .015).ConclusionsIL‐37 and IL‐39 levels were elevated in the serum of T2DM patients. Besides, IL‐39 is proposed to be a novel cytokine associated with T2DM and positively correlated with BMI.
Visible Light‐Induced Synthesis of 2‐Oxazolidinones through One‐Pot Coupling of Benzylamines, Epoxides and CO2
Authors: Malik Anil , Kishor Gour Nand , Bhatt Sakshi , Chandra Deka Ramesh , Jain Suman L. 
Published: February 2023

AbstractThe synthesis of 2‐oxazolidinones from a three component coupling reaction of amines, epoxides, and CO2. The reaction proceeds in the presence of 1,1,3,3‐tetramethylguanidine under visible light irradiation at atmospheric pressure. The optimized structures of all species involved in the reaction mechanism along with transition states have been described based on the DFT calculations. The developed methodology represents a promising approach of employing CO2 as a naturally abundant and non‐toxic carbon resource to produce profitable chemicals.
Concise Total Synthesis of rac‐Betuphenone F
Authors: Luan Nguyen Ngoc Thanh , Okada Takuya , Toyooka Naoki 
Published: February 2023

AbstractBetuphenone F (6) is a natural product isolated from the bark of Betula alnoides Ham. ex D. Don (Betulaceae) and structurally determined by S. Awale et al. in 2021. Betuphenone F (6) has the potential to be a new‐generation anti‐cancer agents based on anti‐austerity, as it showed preferential cytotoxicity against PANC‐1 human pancreatic cancer cells under nutrient‐deprived conditions (PC50 value of 4.9 μM). We succeeded in constructing the 2‐oxabicyclo[3.3.1]nonane skeleton, which is a structural feature of betuphenone F (6), by exposing intermediate 9 to acid, and achieved the first total synthesis of rac‐bethuphenone F (6) from phloroglucinol (7) in only three steps.
In vitro genotoxicity potential investigation of 7 oxy‐PAHs
Authors: Clergé Adeline , Le Goff Jérémie , Brotin Emilie , Abeillard Edwige , Vaudorne Isabelle , Denoyelle Christophe , Le Hegarat Ludovic , Delépée Raphaël 
Published: February 2023

AbstractAir pollutants include many compounds among them oxygenated polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (oxy‐PAHs). As they are suspected to generate DNA damage and mutagenicity, an understanding of their mode of action could highlight a carcinogenic potential risk in exposed population. In this article, a prospective study on seven oxy‐PAHs selected in terms of occurrence in the environment was conducted on mutagenicity, genotoxicity, and cytotoxicity potentials using in vitro assays including Ames test on five strains, kinetic analysis of cytotoxicity and apoptosis, phosphorylation of histone H2AX, and p53 induction assays on human lung cell line BEAS‐2B. Ames test demonstrated that mutagenicity pattern depended on the oxy‐PAH tested. Except for BAQ, all oxy‐PAHs tested gave mutagenic effect, in the absence and/or in the presence of metabolic activation (S9 fraction). At 24 h of exposure, the majority of oxy‐PAHs induced γ‐H2AX in BEAS‐2B cells and/or phosphorylation of p53 at serine 15 and cell death at highest tested concentrations. Although 9,10‐AQ and B[b]FO were mutagenic in bacteria, they failed to induce any of the other genotoxicity biomarkers. In comparison with the benzo[a]pyrene, all oxy‐PAHs were less potent in terms of genotoxic potential at the same concentration. These results highlighted the genotoxic and mutagenic potential of these oxy‐PAHs and provide preliminary information concerning their possible mechanism of action for toxicity, contributing to a better evaluation of the real associated health risks for human and environment.