bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Huntingtin gene intermediate alleles influence the progression from subjective cognitive decline to mild cognitive impairment: A 14‐year follow‐up study
Authors: Mazzeo Salvatore , Emiliani Filippo , Bagnoli Silvia , Padiglioni Sonia , Conti Vittoria , Ingannato Assunta , Giacomucci Giulia , Balestrini Juri , Ferrari Camilla , Sorbi Sandro , Nacmias Benedetta , Bessi Valentina 
Published: February 2022

AbstractBackground and purposeHuntingtin (HTT) is a gene containing a key region of CAG repeats. HTT alleles containing from 27 to 35 CAG repeats are termed intermediate alleles (IAs). We aimed to assess the effect of IAs on progression of cognitive impairment in patients with subjective cognitive decline (SCD).MethodsWe included 106 patients with SCD. All the patients underwent neuropsychological assessments and blood sample collection at baseline. Patients were followed up for a median (interquartile range) time of 13.75 (8.17) years. We genotyped APOE and HTT at the end of the follow‐up.ResultsEleven out of 106 patients (10.38%, 95% confidence interval [CI] 4.57–16.18) were carriers of IAs (IA+). During the follow‐up, 44 patients (41.51%, 95% CI 32.13–50.89) progressed to mild cognitive impairment (MCI; p‐SCD group), while 62 patients (58.49%, 95% CI 49.11–67.87) did not (np‐SCD group). Rate of progression to MCI was associated with IAs, age at baseline, and APOE ɛ4. We dichotomized age at baseline (<60 years = younger patients [YP], >60 years = older patients [OP]) and then classified patients into four groups: YP/IA–, YP/IA+, OP/IA– and OP/IA+. The OP/IA+ group had a higher proportion of patients with progression from SCD to MCI (85.71%, 95% CI 59.79–100) as compared to the YP/IA– group (28.57%, 95% CI 13.60–43.54, χ2 = 15.25; p < 0.001) and the OP/IA– group (45.00%, 95% CI 32.41–57.59, χ2 = 7.903; p = 0.005). We classified patients according to APOE and IA as: ɛ4–/IA–, ɛ4–/IA+, ɛ4+/IA–, ɛ4+/IA+. The proportion of patients with progression in the ɛ4+/IA+ group (100%) was higher as compared to the ɛ4–/IA– group (33.33%, 95% CI 21.96–44.71, χ2 = 14.43; p < 0.001) and ɛ4+/IA– (55.56%, 95% CI 36.81–74.30, χ2 = 4.60; p = 0.032).ConclusionsIntermediate alleles interact with age and APOE ɛ4, increasing the risk of progression to MCI in SCD patients.
Irradiation with 590‐nm yellow light‐emitting diode light attenuates oxidative stress and modulates UVB‐induced change of dermal fibroblasts
Authors: Hong Ji Yeon , Han Hye Sung , Youn Ji Hyun , Kim Hyun‐wook , Ryu Hyun‐Seung , Park Kui Young 
Published: February 2022

AbstractRecently, light‐emitting diode (LED)‐based devices have emerged as effective and safe tools for the treatment of photoaged skin. However, few studies have been conducted to elucidate the underlying mechanism behind the effect on photoageing of LED light. In this study, we induced photoageing of human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) with Ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation and evaluated the ability of 590‐nm LED radiation to induce recovery from oxidative stress, restore collagen formation and regulate inflammatory changes. Photoageing was induced in cultured human dermal fibroblasts (HDFs) using UVB irradiation of 50 mJ/cm2. Then, the photoaged HDFs were irradiated with LED using a custom‐built 590‐nm LED device which emits light with an intensity of 38 mW/cm2(irradiated for 900 s with 34.2 J/cm2of total energy). LED irradiation significantly attenuated UVB‐induced reactive oxygen species generation and UVB‐induced phosphorylation of JNK, c‐Fos and c‐Jun. In addition, the procollagen levels were recovered significantly, and MMP‐9 levels were significantly suppressed after LED irradiation. The UVB‐induced phosphorylation levels of NF‐κB and pro‐inflammatory enzyme COX‐2 also significantly decreased. Our results suggest that 590‐nm yellow light irradiation may be an effective and safe anti‐oxidative and anti‐inflammatory treatment modality for photoaged skin.
Cold atmospheric pressure plasma treatment combined with starvation increases autophagy and apoptosis in melanoma in vitro and in vivo
Authors: Golpour Monireh , Alimohammadi Mina , Sohbatzadeh Farshad , Fattahi Sadegh , Bekeschus Sander , Rafiei Alireza 
Published: February 2022

AbstractDespite advances in therapy, malignant melanoma remains a fatal disease. Among several emerging approaches to combat cancer, cold atmospheric pressure plasma (CAP) has shown promising results as a novel antitumor agent in preclinical models so far. The technology mainly relies on the emittance of various reactive oxygen and nitrogen species (ROS/RNS) that are tumor‐toxic at high concentrations. Moreover, malignant melanoma has a metabolic dimension that can be targeted by mild starvation. To this end, we investigated the combined effect of starvation and CAP treatment on melanoma in vitro and in vivo. In vitro, starvation+CAP led to cell morphology changes, decreased metabolic activity and increased lipid peroxidation accompanied by apoptosis and DNA fragmentation in murine B16 melanoma cells but not murine non‐malignant L929 fibroblasts. This was paralleled by increased apoptosis (Bax, Bcl‐2 and Caspase‐3) and autophagy (Lc3 and Atg5)‐related gene expression. In vivo, starvation reduced tumor burden. Combination with CAP treatment augmented this effect significantly, albeit there was no difference of combination treatment to CAP exposure alone. Interestingly, there was an overall greater increase of Lc3 and Atg5 in the tumor tissue compared to CAP exposure alone, while starvation‐induced autophagy‐related gene expression was similar to in the combination group. These data collectively suggest that CAP‐derived ROS/RNS treatment and autophagy‐induction augment antitumor effects in malignant melanoma in vitro and in vivo.
Fatigue damage detection and risk assessment via neural network modeling of ultrasonic signals
Authors: Alqahtani Hassan , Ray Asok 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis paper develops a data‐driven autonomous method for detection of fatigue damage and classification of the associated damage risk in mechanical structures, based on ultrasonic signal energy. The underlying concept is built upon attenuation of the signal and stability of the attenuation process. The attenuation provides pertinent information for damage quantification, whereas the stability represents resistance toward the fatigue damage growth. The proposed neural network (NN) model has been trained using the scaled conjugate‐gradient back‐propagation method. The NN model is capable of damage detection and damage classification into five classes of increasing risk. The wavelet transform tool has been used to reduce the noisy pattern of the ultrasonic signal energy by using the associated approximation coefficients. The results show that the proposed method of approximation signal energy can detect and classify the damage with an accuracy of up to ∼98.5%.
Drivers and spatial patterns of population synchrony of fish species in a floodplain
Authors: Vendrametto Granzotti Rafaela , Agostinho Angelo Antonio , Bini Luis Mauricio 
Published: February 2022

Abstract

Spatial synchrony is the correlation between the temporal dynamics of local populations. This pattern may be driven by spatially correlated environmental variation (i.e., Moran effect), dispersal and trophic interactions. Investigating geographic patterns of synchrony can help disentangle the relative importance of these drivers.

Using fish abundance data from long‐term ecological research (17 years) in the Upper Paraná River floodplain, we studied the relative roles of dispersal distance, density dependence differences, and environmental synchrony in determining spatial synchrony of the most common species in this floodplain. We also investigated the geography of spatial synchrony by estimating modularity and site‐level contributions to synchrony and anti‐synchrony networks.

We found positive spatial synchrony for most species, but levels were relatively low. For most species, our explanatory matrices were poorly related to spatial synchrony. We detected modular structures in some species networks, which reflected complex spatial patterns in synchrony. We also detected sites with high importance to spatial synchrony patterns that could be managed to increase metapopulation stability.

The variable levels of spatial synchrony for fish species in the Upper Paraná River floodplain implies the need to monitor several sites to understand their dynamics in this region. Also, some migratory species of high importance to regional fisheries, such as Prochilodus lineatus, may deserve special monitoring attention due to the increased regional extinction risk associated with their high levels of spatial synchrony.

Finally, we speculate that hydrological manipulation from upstream reservoirs should consider the timing of water releases to avoid spatially correlated population declines.
Proximate and evolutionary sources of variation in offspring energy expenditure in songbirds
Authors: Mitchell Adam E. , Wolf Blair O. , Martin Thomas E. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAimUnderstanding variation in offspring energy expenditure is important because energy is critical for growth and development. Weather may exert proximate effects on offspring energy expenditure, but in altricial species these might be masked by parental care and huddling with siblings. Such effects are particularly important to understand given changing global weather patterns, yet studies of wild offspring in the presence of parental care are lacking. Offspring energy expenditure may also vary among species due to evolved responses to environmental selection pressures, requiring studies at both proximate and ultimate levels.LocationUSA, South Africa, Malaysia.Time period2016–2019.Major taxa studiedSongbirds.MethodsWe used the doubly‐labelled water technique to estimate nestling daily energy expenditure of 54 songbird species across three continents. We used Bayesian phylogenetic mixed models to test proximate and evolutionary causes of variation in offspring energy expenditure while accounting for phylogeny and phylogenetic uncertainty.ResultsOffspring energy expenditure increased with more rainfall and colder air temperatures, but decreased among offspring in broods with more siblings. Across species, nestling and adult mortality, but not growth rate, were positively associated with offspring energy use.Main conclusionsWeather had clear proximate effects on offspring energy expenditure and parents were either unable or unwilling to fully offset these effects. However, the decrease in offspring energy use when huddling with more siblings demonstrated a modulating effect of life history traits. For example, high nest predation rates favour reduced parental care and can force offspring to spend more energy coping with environmental conditions. Furthermore, reduced energy expenditure is thought to facilitate increased longevity, which is increasingly realized with lower extrinsic mortality rates, providing an explanation for the positive association between adult mortality and offspring energy expenditure. Ultimately, both proximate and evolutionary influences need to be considered to better understand causes of offspring energetics.
Pelagic larval polyclads that practice macrophagous carnivory
Authors: von Dassow George , Mendes Cecili B. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAmong polyclad flatworms, many species are known to develop indirectly via long‐lived planktotrophic larvae, whereas the rest hatch as adult‐like juveniles. Such adult‐like hatchlings have been presumed to represent direct development. However, we report evidence that hatchling polyclads of several genera feed in the plankton on large prey. These ciliated swimmers, despite apparently lacking means to concentrate food or even detect it at a distance, subdue and consume fast‐moving active‐swimming plankters such as crustacean larvae and copepods, or molluscan veligers. We describe feeding events in captivity using videomicroscopy and identify several wild‐caught predatory pelagic polyclad larvae to genus or species level by DNA barcoding. Remarkably, one of these types is identified unambiguously with a species previously observed as Müller's larvae, which live as conventional planktotrophs on a diet inferred to consist of small phytoflagellates. Therefore, we conclude first that although so‐called direct‐developing polyclad flatworms may hatch with juvenile‐like morphology, at least some of these are functionally larvae. Second, these soft‐bodied ciliated larvae are neither lecithotrophs nor conventional planktotrophs feeding on unicellular algae, but pelagic predators; indeed, this may constitute the first demonstration that pelagic polyclads eat zooplankton. Third, some species of polyclad have at least a triphasic life cycle, in which a first larval stage lives in the plankton and feeds on primary producers, followed by a second larval stage that remains in the plankton to feed by macrophagous carnivory, before presumably settling to the benthos for adult life.
On the catalytic effect of zirconia on flash sintering of alumina
Authors: Cross Landen , Raj Rishi , Jalali Syed I.A. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractFlash sintering of alumina is more difficult than of yttria‐stabilized zirconia (YSZ). Whereas (MgO doped) alumina requires fields greater than 1 kVcm–1 and temperatures often significantly higher than 1000°C, YSZ can be flashed sintered at ∼100 Vcm–1 at temperatures below 800°C. Mixed powders of such bi‐phasic ceramics, on the other hand, can be flashed under conditions below those for alumina. This effect is usually subscribed to the influence of YSZ on the overall electrical conductivity of the composite. However, such rationalization leaves open the mechanism by which YSZ catalyzes the flash event in alumina. Here, we present results for the onset of flash in a layered structure of YSZ and alumina where both constituents extend from one electrode to the other. We find that the flash initiates, at first, exclusively in the YSZ layer, under conditions identical to those in usual voltage‐to‐current experiments in single phase YSZ, and then, after a brief incubation period, spreads transversely through the thickness of the alumina layer at a speed of ∼3.3 mm s–1, while the power supply is held at constant current. This observation opens a new question as to how flash once initiated in an “easy” phase can migrate normal to itself into a second ceramic, which is nominally more‐difficult‐to flash. (In the present experiments, the alumina layer sintered to full density with all the shrinkage being accommodated in the thickness direction, consistent with an earlier study that articulated that flash obviates constrained sintering.) It is noteworthy that the catalytic effect depends not only on the volume fraction of YSZ, but also on the architecture of the green state (for example a two‐phase powder mixture vs. layered structure), which may affect the initiation of the flash in YSZ but, likely, not its migration behavior into the second phase.
Religiosity and corruption in bank lending
Authors: Niu Geng , Zhou Yang , Lu Weijie , Gan Hongwu 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis paper explores the effect of country‐level religiosity on corruption in bank lending. By using the World Business Environment Survey, we find that firms in more religious countries perceive a higher level of bank lending corruption. Furthermore, larger (smaller) foreign (government) ownership and more competition in a country's banking system attenuate the adverse effect of religiosity. The effect of religiosity carries over to bank loan performance. Our findings are confirmed by various robustness checks. This study contributes to a more balanced and comprehensive understanding of the role of religion in business ethics.
Dividend payouts, cash‐flow uncertainty and the role of institutions
Authors: An Zhe , Gao Wenlian , Li Donghui , Ye Dezhu 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThis study examines the impact of cash‐flow uncertainty on corporate dividend payouts and how this impact is shaped by country‐level institutional environments. Employing a large sample of 41,157 firms in 49 economies from 1996 to 2018, we document that cash‐flow uncertainty has a negative impact on dividend payouts and that this negative relation is more pronounced in economies with stronger institutions. Our results indicate that strong institutions could facilitate information disclosure, reduce government interventions and promote corporate financing opportunities, thus making firms less subject to agency costs and less motivated to disguise their cash‐flow risk.
Species distribution models and a 60‐year‐old transplant experiment reveal inhibited forest plant range shifts under climate change
Authors: Sanczuk Pieter , De Lombaerde Emiel , Haesen Stef , Van Meerbeek Koenraad , Van der Veken Bas , Hermy Martin , Verheyen Kris , Vangansbeke Pieter , De Frenne Pieter 
Published: February 2022

AbstractAimClimate change causes species to shift their distributions. Individual species, however, greatly vary in their capacity to track the macroclimatic temperature increase due to differences in demography and dispersal. To better predict range shifts to climate change we need a complementary integration of long‐term empirical data and predictive modelling.LocationBelgium and North‐West Europe.TaxonHyacinthoides non‐scripta¸ forest understorey plants.MethodsComplementing species distribution models with demographic data from an exceptional 60‐year‐old over‐the‐range‐edge transplant experiment measured not less than 45 and 60 years after installation, we evaluated the long‐term consequences of climate change on one of the most emblematic but also among the slowest colonizing plant species of European forests, bluebellHyacinthoides non‐scripta.ResultsWe found bluebell able to establish viable populations beyond its natural range. These results were confirmed by the SDM, showing that bluebell’s potential range is considerably larger than its current range. Colonization rates of only 2 m century−1were observed in the transplanted populations. Beyond bluebell’s current range, we observed decreasing trends in population growth rates over the past 15 years. By the end of the 21st century, substantial decreases in the southern parts of bluebell’s range were predicted.Main conclusionsBased on empirical and modelling results, we expect serious population declines in large parts of its current natural distribution of bluebell. Although the species is able to establish viable populations beyond the natural range edge, slow demography and local colonization rates four orders of magnitude lower than the velocity of climate change make fast enough range shifts virtually impossible in this species.
Ageing causes an aortic contractile dysfunction phenotype by targeting the expression of members of the extracellular signal‐regulated kinase pathway
Authors: Nicholson Christopher J. , Xing Yi , Lee Sophie , Liang Stephanie , Mohan Shivani , O’Rourke Caitlin , Kang Joshua , Morgan Kathleen G. 
Published: February 2022

AbstractThe extracellular signal‐regulated kinase (ERK) pathway is a well‐known regulator of vascular smooth muscle cell proliferation, but it also serves as a regulator of caldesmon, which negatively regulates vascular contractility. This study examined whether aortic contractile function requires ERK activation and if this activation is regulated by ageing. Biomechanical experiments revealed that contractile responses to the alpha1‐adrenergic agonist phenylephrine are attenuated specifically in aged mice, which is associated with downregulation of ERK phosphorylation. ERK inhibition attenuates phenylephrine‐induced contractility, indicating that the contractile tone is at least partially ERK‐dependent. To explore the mechanisms of this age‐related downregulation of ERK phosphorylation, we transfected microRNAs, miR‐34a and miR‐137 we have previously shown to increase with ageing and demonstrated that in A7r5 cells, both miRs downregulate the expression of Src and paxillin, known regulators of ERK signalling, as well as ERK phosphorylation. Further studies in aortic tissues transfected with miRs show that miR‐34a but not miR‐137 has a negative effect on mRNA levels of Src and paxillin. Furthermore, ERK phosphorylation is decreased in aortic tissue treated with the Src inhibitor PP2. Increases in miR‐34a and miR‐137 with ageing downregulate the expression of Src and paxillin, leading to impaired ERK signalling and aortic contractile dysfunction.
Nur77 Prevents Osteoporosis by Inhibiting the NF‐κB Signalling Pathway and Osteoclast Differentiation
Authors: Tian Huanlian , Chen Feng , Wang Yingfang , Liu Yixuan , Ma Guojing , Zhao Yuhong , Ma Yanan , Tian Tingting , Ma Ruze , Yu Yang , Wang Difei 
Published: February 2022

AbstractInflammation is a major risk factor for osteoporosis, and reducing inflammatory levels is important for the prevention of osteoporosis. Although nuclear receptor 77 (Nur77) protects against inflammation in a variety of diseases, its role in osteoporosis is unknown. Therefore, the main purpose of this study was to investigate the osteoprotective and anti‐inflammatory effects of Nur77. The microCT and haematoxylin and eosin staining results indicated that knockout of Nur77 accelerated femoral bone loss in mice. The enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) results showed that knockout of Nur77 increased the serum levels of hsCRP and IL‐6. The expression levels of NF‐κB, IL‐6, TNF‐α and osteoclastogenesis factors (TRAP, NFATC1, Car2, Ctsk) in the femurs of Nur77 knockout mice were increased significantly. Furthermore, in vitro, shNur77 promoted the differentiation of RAW264.7 cells into osteoclasts by activating NF‐κB, which was confirmed by PDTC treatment. Mechanistically, Nur77 inhibited osteoclast differentiation by inducing IκB‐α and suppressing IKK‐β. In RAW264.7 cells, overexpression of Nur77 alleviated inflammation induced by siIκB‐α, while siIKK‐β alleviated inflammation induced by shNur77. Consistent with the in vivo studies, we found that compared with control group, older adults with high serum hsCRP levels were more likely to suffer from osteoporosis (OR = 1.76, p < 0.001). Our data suggest that Nur77 suppresses osteoclast differentiation by inhibiting the NF‐κB signalling pathway, strongly supporting the notion that Nur77 has the potential to prevent and treat osteoporosis.