Medicine by Alexandros G.Sfakianakis: 08/18/16

The vertebrate fauna of the Philippines, known for its diversity and high proportion of endemic species, comprises mainly small- to medium-sized forms with a few large exceptions. As with other tropical ecosystems, the major threats to wildlife are habitat loss, hunting and invasive species, of which the feral cat (Felis catus) is considered the most damaging. Our camera-trapping study focused on a terrestrial vertebrate species inventory on Bohol Island and tempo-spatial co-occurrences of feral cats with their prey and competitors. The survey took place in the Rajah Sikatuna Protected Landscape, and we examined the primary rainforest, its border with agricultural land, and rural areas in the vicinity of villages. Altogether, over 2,885 trap days we captured 30 species of vertebrates–10 mammals (including Sus philippensis), 19 birds and one reptile, Varanus cumingi. We trapped 81.8% of expected vertebrates. Based on the number of events, the most frequent native species was the barred rail (Gallirallus torquatus). The highest overlap in diel activity between cats and potential prey was recorded with rodents in rural areas (Δ = 0.62); the lowest was in the same habitat with ground-dwelling birds (Δ = 0.40). Cat activity was not recorded inside the rainforest; in other habitats their diel activity pattern differed. The cats' activity declined in daylight in the proximity of humans, while it peaked at the transition zone between rainforest and fields. Both rodents and ground-dwelling birds exhibited a shift in activity levels between sites where cats were present or absent. Rodents tend to become active by day in cat-free habitats. No cats' temporal response to co-occurrences of civets (Paradoxurus hermaphroditus and Viverra tangalunga) was found but cats in diel activity avoided domestic dogs (Canis lupus familiaris). Our first insight into the ecology of this invasive predator in the Philippines revealed an avoidance of homogeneous primary rainforest and a tendency to forage close to human settlements in heterogeneous habitats. A detailed further investigation of the composition of the cat's diet, as well as ranging pattern, is still needed.

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Microendemicity in the northern Hajar Mountains of Oman and the United Arab Emirates with the description of two new species of geckos of the genus Asaccus (Squamata: Phyllodactylidae)

Background The Hajar Mountains of Oman and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) is the highest mountain range in Eastern Arabia. As a result of their old geological origin, geographical isolation, complex topography and local climate, these mountains provide an important refuge for endemic and relict species of plants and animals with strong Indo-Iranian affinities. Among vertebrates, the rock climbing nocturnal geckos of the genus Asaccus represent the genus with the highest number of endemic species in the Hajar Mountains. Recent taxonomic studies on the Zagros populations of Asaccus have shown that this genus is much richer than it was previously thought and preliminary morphological and molecular data suggest that its diversity in Arabia may also be underestimated. Methods A total of 83 specimens originally classified as Asaccus caudivolvulus (including specimens of the two new species described herein), six other Asaccus species from the Hajar and the Zagros Mountains and two representatives of the genus Haemodracon were sequenced for up to 2,311 base pairs including the mitochondrial 12S and cytb and the nuclear c-mos, MC1R and ACM4 genes. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred using both Bayesian and maximum-likelihood approaches and the former method was also used to calibrate the phylogenetic tree. Haplotype networks and phylogenetic trees were inferred from the phased nuclear genes only. Sixty-one alcohol-preserved adult specimens originally classified as Asaccus caudivolvulus from the northern Hajar Mountains were examined for 13 morphometric and the five meristic variables using multivariate methods and were also used to diagnose and describe the two new species. Results The results of the molecular and morphological analyses indicate that the species originally classified as Asaccus caudivolvulus is, in fact, an assemblage of three different species that started diversifying during the Mid-Miocene. The molecular phylogenies consistently recovered the Hajar endemic A. montanus as sister taxon to all the other Asaccus species included in the analyses, rendering the Arabian species of Asaccus polyphyletic. Discussion Using this integrative approach we have uncovered a very old diversification event that has resulted in a case of microendemicity, where three morphologically and ecologically similar medium-sized lizard species coexist in a very short and narrow mountain stretch. Asaccus caudivolvulus is restricted to a small coastal area of the UAE and at risk from heavy development, while the two new species described herein are widely distributed across the northern tip of the Hajar Mountains and seem to segregate in altitude when found in close proximity in the Musandam Peninsula (Oman). Similarly to other integrative analyses of Hajar reptiles, this study highlights the high level of diversity and endemicity of this arid mountain range, underscoring its status as one of the top hotspots of reptile diversity in Arabia.

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Agricultural land-use change in a Mexican oligotrophic desert depletes ecosystem stability

Background Global demand for food has led to increased land-use change, particularly in dry land ecosystems, which has caused several environmental problems due to the soil degradation. In the Cuatro Cienegas Basin (CCB), alfalfa production irrigated by flooding impacts strongly on the soil. Methods In order to analyze the effect of such agricultural land-use change on soil nutrient dynamics and soil bacterial community composition, this work examined an agricultural gradient within the CCB which was comprised of a native desert grassland, a plot currently cultivated with alfalfa and a former agricultural field that had been abandoned for over 30 years. For each site, we analyzed C, N and P dynamic fractions, the activity of the enzyme phosphatase and the bacterial composition obtained using 16S rRNA clone libraries. Results The results showed that the cultivated site presented a greater availability of water and dissolved organic carbon, these conditions promoted mineralization processes mediated by heterotrophic microorganisms, while the abandoned land was limited by water and dissolved organic nitrogen. The low amount of dissolved organic matter promoted nitrification, which is mediated by autotrophic microorganisms. The microbial N immobilization process and specific phosphatase activity were both favored in the native grassland. As expected, differences in bacterial taxonomical composition were observed among sites. The abandoned site exhibited similar compositions than native grassland, while the cultivated site differed. Discussion The results suggest that the transformation of native grassland into agricultural land induces drastic changes in soil nutrient dynamics as well as in the bacterial community. However, with the absence of agricultural practices, some of the soil characteristics analyzed slowly recovers their natural state.

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Isolation of an antimicrobial compound produced by bacteria associated with reef-building corals

Bacterial communities associated with healthy corals produce antimicrobial compounds that inhibit the colonization and growth of invasive microbes and potential pathogens. To date, however, bacteria-derived antimicrobial molecules have not been identified in reef-building corals. Here, we report the isolation of an antimicrobial compound produced by Pseudovibrio sp. P12, a common and abundant coral-associated bacterium. This strain was capable of metabolizing dimethylsulfoniopropionate (DMSP), a sulfur molecule produced in high concentrations by reef-building corals and playing a role in structuring their bacterial communities. Bioassay-guided fractionation coupled with nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) and mass spectrometry (MS), identified the antimicrobial as tropodithietic acid (TDA), a sulfur-containing compound likely derived from DMSP catabolism. TDA was produced in large quantities by Pseudovibrio sp., and prevented the growth of two previously identified coral pathogens, Vibrio coralliilyticus and V. owensii, at very low concentrations (0.5 μg/mL) in agar diffusion assays. Genome sequencing of Pseudovibrio sp. P12 identified gene homologs likely involved in the metabolism of DMSP and production of TDA. These results provide additional evidence for the integral role of DMSP in structuring coral-associated bacterial communities and underline the potential of these DMSP-metabolizing microbes to contribute to coral disease prevention.

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Evaluation of outbreak response immunization in the control of pertussis using agent-based modeling

Background Pertussis control remains a challenge due to recently observed effects of waning immunity to acellular vaccine and suboptimal vaccine coverage. Multiple outbreaks have been reported in different ages worldwide. For certain outbreaks, public health authorities can launch an outbreak response immunization (ORI) campaign to control pertussis spread. We investigated effects of an outbreak response immunization targeting young adolescents in averting pertussis cases. Methods We developed an agent-based model for pertussis transmission representing disease mechanism, waning immunity, vaccination schedule and pathogen transmission in a spatially-explicit 500,000-person contact network representing a typical Canadian Public Health district. Parameters were derived from literature and calibration. We used published cumulative incidence and dose-specific vaccine coverage to calibrate the model's epidemiological curves. We endogenized outbreak response by defining thresholds to trigger simulated immunization campaigns in the 10–14 age group offering 80% coverage. We ran paired simulations with and without outbreak response immunization and included those resulting in a single ORI within a 10-year span. We calculated the number of cases averted attributable to outbreak immunization campaign in all ages, in the 10–14 age group and in infants. The count of cases averted were tested using Mann–Whitney U test to determine statistical significance. Numbers needed to vaccinate during immunization campaign to prevent a single case in respective age groups were derived from the model. We varied adult vaccine coverage, waning immunity parameters, immunization campaign eligibility and tested stronger vaccination boosting effect in sensitivity analyses. Results 189 qualified paired-runs were analyzed. On average, ORI was triggered every 26 years. On a per-run basis, there were an average of 124, 243 and 429 pertussis cases averted across all age groups within 1, 3 and 10 years of a campaign, respectively. During the same time periods, 53, 96, and 163 cases were averted in the 10–14 age group, and 6, 11, 20 in infants under 1 (p

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Effects of social isolation and re-socialization on cognition and ADAR1 (p110) expression in mice

It has been reported that social isolation stress could be a key factor that leads to cognitive deficit for both humans and rodent models. However, detailed mechanisms are not yet clear. ADAR1 (Adenosine deaminase acting on RNA) is an enzyme involved in RNA editing that has a close relation to cognitive function. We have hypothesized that social isolation stress may impact the expression of ADAR1 in the brain of mice with cognitive deficit. To test our hypothesis, we evaluated the cognition ability of mice isolated for different durations (2, 4, and 8 weeks) using object recognition and object location tests; we also measured ADAR1 expression in hippocampus and cortex using immunohistochemistry and western blot. Our study showed that social isolation stress induced spatial and non-spatial cognition deficits of the tested mice. In addition, social isolation significantly increased both the immunoreactivity and protein expression of ADAR1 (p110) in the hippocampus and frontal cortex. Furthermore, re-socialization could not only recover the cognition deficits, but also bring ADAR1 (p110) immunoreactivity of hippocampus and frontal cortex, as well as ADAR1 (p110) protein expression of hippocampus back to the normal level for the isolated mice in adolescence. In conclusion, social isolation stress significantly increases ADAR1 (p110) expression in the hippocampus and frontal cortex of the mice with cognitive deficit. This finding may open a window to better understand the reasons (e.g., epigenetic change) that are responsible for social isolation-induced cognitive deficit and help the development of novel therapies for the resulted diseases.

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Population genetic structure between Yap and Palau for the coral Acropora hyacinthus

Information on connectivity is becoming increasingly in demand as marine protected areas are being designed as an integral part of a network to protect marine resources at the ecosystem level. Larval dispersal and population structure, however, remain very difficult to assess. Here, we tested the predictions of a detailed oceanographic connectivity model of larval dispersal and coral recruitment within Palau and between Palau and Yap, which was developed to support the review of the existing network of marine protected areas in Palau. We used high throughput microsatellite genotyping of the coral Acropora hyacinthus to characterize population genetic structure. Pairwise F′ST values between Palau and Yap (0.10), Palau and Ngulu (0.09) and Yap and Ngulu (0.09) were all significant and similar to pairwise F′ST values of sites within Palau (0.02–0.12) and within Yap (0.02–0.09) highlighting structure at island scale and indicating that recruitment may be even more localized than previously anticipated. A bottleneck test did not reveal any signs of a founder effect between Yap and Palau. Overall, the data supports the idea that recovery of A. hyacinthus in Palau did not come exclusively from a single source but most likely came from a combination of areas, including sites within Palau. In light of these results there seems to be very little connectivity around the barrier reef and management recommendation would be to increase the number or the size of MPAs within Palau.

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Microbe-ID: an open source toolbox for microbial genotyping and species identification

Development of tools to identify species, genotypes, or novel strains of invasive organisms is critical for monitoring emergence and implementing rapid response measures. Molecular markers, although critical to identifying species or genotypes, require bioinformatic tools for analysis. However, user-friendly analytical tools for fast identification are not readily available. To address this need, we created a web-based set of applications called Microbe-ID that allow for customizing a toolbox for rapid species identification and strain genotyping using any genetic markers of choice. Two components of Microbe-ID, named Sequence-ID and Genotype-ID, implement species and genotype identification, respectively. Sequence-ID allows identification of species by using BLAST to query sequences for any locus of interest against a custom reference sequence database. Genotype-ID allows placement of an unknown multilocus marker in either a minimum spanning network or dendrogram with bootstrap support from a user-created reference database. Microbe-ID can be used for identification of any organism based on nucleotide sequences or any molecular marker type and several examples are provided. We created a public website for demonstration purposes called Microbe-ID (microbe-id.org) and provided a working implementation for the genus Phytophthora (phytophthora-id.org). In Phytophthora-ID, the Sequence-ID application allows identification based on ITS or cox spacer sequences. Genotype-ID groups individuals into clonal lineages based on simple sequence repeat (SSR) markers for the two invasive plant pathogen species P. infestans and P. ramorum. All code is open source and available on github and CRAN. Instructions for installation and use are provided at http://ift.tt/2b3f7CH.

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A resource-based game theoretical approach for the paradox of the plankton

The maintenance of species diversity is a central focus in ecology. It is not rare to observe more species than the number of limiting resources, especially in plankton communities. However, such high species diversity is hard to achieve in theory under the competitive exclusion principles, known as the plankton paradox. Previous studies often focus on the coexistence of predefined species and ignore the fact that species can evolve. We model multi-resource competitions using evolutionary games, where the number of species fluctuates under extinction and the appearance of new species. The interspecific and intraspecific competitions are captured by a dynamical payoff matrix, which has a size of the number of species. The competition strength (payoff entries) is obtained from comparing the capability of species in consuming resources, which can change over time. This allows for the robust coexistence of a large number of species, providing a possible solution to the plankton paradox.

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Diet of otters (Lutra lutra) in various habitat types in the Pannonian biogeographical region compared to other regions of Europe

Knowledge of the effect of habitat type and region on diet and feeding behaviours of a species facilitates a better understanding of factors impacting populations, which contributes to effective conservation management. Using spraint analysis and relative frequency of occurrence data from the literature, we described the dietary patterns of Eurasian otters (Lutra lutra) in 23 study sites within the Pannonian biogeographical region in Hungary. Our results indicated that diet composition varied by habitat type and is therefore context dependant. The differences among habitat types were however lower than expected. We noticed a decline in the fish consumption with a concomitant increase in trophic niche breadth and amphibian consumption in rivers, ponds (fish farms), backwaters, marshes and small watercourses. The main differences in diet were not attributed to the consumption of primary and secondary food types (fish and amphibians), but rather to differences in other, less important food types (mammals, birds). Using hierarchical cluster analysis, rivers and ponds could clearly be separated from other habitat types. We found the main fish diet of otters in most of these areas consisted of small (

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Genes, Vol. 7, Pages 49: Transcriptional Reactivation of the FMR1 Gene. A Possible Approach to the Treatment of the Fragile X Syndrome

Fragile X syndrome (FXS) is the most common cause of inherited intellectual disability, caused by CGG expansion over 200 repeats (full mutation, FM) at the 5′ untranslated region (UTR) of the fragile X mental retardation 1 (FMR1) gene and subsequent DNA methylation of the promoter region, accompanied by additional epigenetic histone modifications that result in a block of transcription and absence of the fragile X mental retardation protein (FMRP). The lack of FMRP, involved in multiple aspects of mRNA metabolism in the brain, is thought to be the direct cause of the FXS phenotype. Restoration of FMR1 transcription and FMRP production can be obtained in vitro by treating FXS lymphoblastoid cell lines with the demethylating agent 5-azadeoxycytidine, demonstrating that DNA methylation is key to FMR1 inactivation. This concept is strengthened by the existence of rare male carriers of a FM, who are unable to methylate the FMR1 promoter. These individuals produce limited amounts of FMRP and are of normal intelligence. Their inability to methylate the FMR1 promoter, whose cause is not yet fully elucidated, rescues them from manifesting the FXS. These observations demonstrate that a therapeutic approach to FXS based on the pharmacological reactivation of the FMR1 gene is conceptually tenable and worthy of being further pursued.

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Detection of Soluble ED-A+ Fibronectin and Evaluation as Novel Serum Biomarker for Cardiac Tissue Remodeling

Background and Aims. Fibronectin containing the extra domain A (ED-A+ Fn) was proven to serve as a valuable biomarker for cardiac remodeling. The study was aimed at establishing an ELISA to determine ED-A+ Fn in serum of heart failure patients. Methods. ED-A+ Fn was quantified in serum samples from 114 heart failure patients due to ischemic (ICM, ) and dilated (DCM, ) cardiomyopathy as well as hypertensive heart disease (HHD, ) compared to healthy controls (). Results. In comparison to healthy volunteers, heart failure patients showed significantly increased levels of ED-A+ Fn (). In particular in ICM patients there were significant associations between ED-A+ Fn serum levels and clinical parameters, for example, increased levels with rising NYHA class (), a negative correlation with left ventricular ejection fraction (, : −0.353), a positive correlation with left atrial diameter (, : 0.431), and a strong positive correlation with systolic pulmonary artery pressure (, : 0.485). In multivariate analysis, ED-A+ Fn was identified as an independent predictor of an ischemic heart failure etiology. Conclusions. The current study could clearly show that ED-A+ Fn is a promising biomarker in cardiovascular diseases, especially in heart failure patients due to an ICM. We presented a valid ELISA method, which could be applied for further studies investigating the value of ED-A+ Fn.

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Expression of Cancer Testis Antigens in Colorectal Cancer: New Prognostic and Therapeutic Implications

Background. While cancer/testis antigens (CTAs) are restricted in postnatal tissues to testes and germ line-derived cells, their role in cancer development and the clinical significance of their expression still remain to be better defined. Objective. The aim of this study was to investigate the level of CTA expression in colon samples from patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) in relation to patient clinical status. Methods. Forty-five patients with newly diagnosed colorectal cancer were included in the study. We selected a panel of 18 CTAs that were previously detected in CRC as well as some new gene candidates, and their expression was detected at the mRNA level by employing RQ-PCR. Additionally, we evaluated CTA expression in three colon cancer cell lines (CL-188, HTB-39, and HTB-37) after exposure to the DNA methylation-modifying drug 5-azacytidine. Results. We report that 6 out of 18 (33%) CTAs tested (MAGEA3, OIP5, TTK, PLU1, DKKL1, and FBXO39) were significantly () overexpressed in tumor tissue compared with healthy colon samples isolated from the same patients. Conclusions. Moreover, we found that MAGEA3, PLU-1, and DKKL expression positively correlated with disease progression, evaluated according to the Dukes staging system. Finally, 5-azacytidine exposure significantly upregulated expression of CTAs on CRC cells, which indicates that this demethylation agent could be employed therapeutically to enhance the immune response against tumor cells.

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Establishment of Simple and Routine Methods in Early Diagnosis of Gentamicin-Induced Kidney Injury Based on a Rat Model

The changes in biomarkers of gentamycin- (GM-) induced kidney injury have been studied by using simple and routine methods and also assessed the efficacy and utility of these routine biomarkers in early diagnosis. Eighty Sprague-Dawley (SD) rats were randomly divided into 4 groups: three experimental groups treated with different GM dosages (4, 20, and 100 mg·kg−1) and a control group. The experimental groups were given intramuscular GM injections once daily for 14 days, and the control group was given intramuscular sterile water. Blood and urine samples were collected on treatment days 1, 3, 7, and 14 to test for total protein (TP), albumin (ALB), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), creatinine (CRE), uric acid (UA), pH, specific gravity (SG), proteins (PRO), and cells in urinary sediment. Histopathology and kidney coefficient were performed on excised kidney specimens. The result indicated that serum CRE, BUN, and TP, urine PRO, and urinary hyaline casts and low-transitional epithelium showed an immediate and highly sensitive response to kidney injury, and the combined diagnosis with the above methods could be used in early diagnosis. Particularly, the process of the test was simple and quick, no special equipment, so it is more suit for primary medical institution.

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Sensors, Vol. 16, Pages 1316: Data-Aware Retrodiction for Asynchronous Harmonic Measurement in a Cyber-Physical Energy System

Cyber-physical energy systems provide a networked solution for safety, reliability and efficiency problems in smart grids. On the demand side, the secure and trustworthy energy supply requires real-time supervising and online power quality assessing. Harmonics measurement is necessary in power quality evaluation. However, under the large-scale distributed metering architecture, harmonic measurement faces the out-of-sequence measurement (OOSM) problem, which is the result of latencies in sensing or the communication process and brings deviations in data fusion. This paper depicts a distributed measurement network for large-scale asynchronous harmonic analysis and exploits a nonlinear autoregressive model with exogenous inputs (NARX) network to reorder the out-of-sequence measuring data. The NARX network gets the characteristics of the electrical harmonics from practical data rather than the kinematic equations. Thus, the data-aware network approximates the behavior of the practical electrical parameter with real-time data and improves the retrodiction accuracy. Theoretical analysis demonstrates that the data-aware method maintains a reasonable consumption of computing resources. Experiments on a practical testbed of a cyber-physical system are implemented, and harmonic measurement and analysis accuracy are adopted to evaluate the measuring mechanism under a distributed metering network. Results demonstrate an improvement of the harmonics analysis precision and validate the asynchronous measuring method in cyber-physical energy systems.

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Viruses, Vol. 8, Pages 219: Proteomic Interaction Patterns between Human Cyclins, the Cyclin-Dependent Kinase Ortholog pUL97 and Additional Cytomegalovirus Proteins

The human cytomegalovirus (HCMV)-encoded cyclin-dependent kinase (CDK) ortholog pUL97 associates with human cyclin B1 and other types of cyclins. Here, the question was addressed whether cyclin interaction of pUL97 and additional viral proteins is detectable by mass spectrometry-based approaches. Proteomic data were validated by coimmunoprecipitation (CoIP), Western blot, in vitro kinase and bioinformatic analyses. Our findings suggest that: (i) pUL97 shows differential affinities to human cyclins; (ii) pUL97 inhibitor maribavir (MBV) disrupts the interaction with cyclin B1, but not with other cyclin types; (iii) cyclin H is identified as a new high-affinity interactor of pUL97 in HCMV-infected cells; (iv) even more viral phosphoproteins, including all known substrates of pUL97, are detectable in the cyclin-associated complexes; and (v) a first functional validation of pUL97-cyclin B1 interaction, analyzed by in vitro kinase assay, points to a cyclin-mediated modulation of pUL97 substrate preference. In addition, our bioinformatic analyses suggest individual, cyclin-specific binding interfaces for pUL97-cyclin interaction, which could explain the different strengths of interactions and the selective inhibitory effect of MBV on pUL97-cyclin B1 interaction. Combined, the detection of cyclin-associated proteins in HCMV-infected cells suggests a complex pattern of substrate phosphorylation and a role of cyclins in the fine-modulation of pUL97 activities.

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Sensors, Vol. 16, Pages 1307: Virtual Control Policy for Binary Ordered Resources Petri Net Class

Prevention and avoidance of deadlocks in sensor networks that use the wormhole routing algorithm is an active research domain. There are diverse control policies that will address this problem being our approach a new method. In this paper we present a virtual control policy for the new specialized Petri net subclass called Binary Ordered Resources Petri Net (BORPN). Essentially, it is an ordinary class constructed from various state machines that share unitary resources in a complex form, which allows branching and joining of processes. The reduced structure of this new class gives advantages that allow analysis of the entire system's behavior, which is a prohibitive task for large systems because of the complexity and routing algorithms.

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Water, Vol. 8, Pages 350: Engaging Southwestern Tribes in Sustainable Water Resources Topics and Management

Indigenous peoples in North America have a long history of understanding their societies as having an intimate relationship with their physical environments. Their cultures, traditions, and identities are based on the ecosystems and sacred places that shape their world. Their respect for their ancestors and 'Mother Earth' speaks of unique value and knowledge systems different than the value and knowledge systems of the dominant United States settler society. The value and knowledge systems of each indigenous and non-indigenous community are different but collide when water resources are endangered. One of the challenges that face indigenous people regarding the management of water relates to their opposition to the commodification of water for availability to select individuals. External researchers seeking to work with indigenous peoples on water research or management must learn how to design research or water management projects that respect indigenous cultural contexts, histories of interactions with settler governments and researchers, and the current socio-economic and political situations in which indigenous peoples are embedded. They should pay particular attention to the process of collaborating on water resource topics and management with and among indigenous communities while integrating Western and indigenous sciences in ways that are beneficial to both knowledge systems. The objectives of this paper are to (1) to provide an overview of the context of current indigenous water management issues, especially for the U.S. federally recognized tribes in the Southwestern United States; (2) to synthesize approaches to engage indigenous persons, communities, and governments on water resources topics and management; and (3) to compare the successes of engaging Southwestern tribes in five examples to highlight some significant activities for collaborating with tribes on water resources research and management. In discussing the engagement approaches of these five selected cases, we considered the four "simple rules" of tribal research, which are to ask about ethics, do more listening, follow tribal research protocols, and give back to the community. For the five select cases of collaboration involving Southwestern tribes, the success of external researchers with the tribes involved comprehensive engagement of diverse tribal audience from grassroots level to central tribal government, tribal oversight, on-going dialogue, transparency of data, and reporting back. There is a strong recognition of the importance of engaging tribal participants in water management discussions particularly with pressing impacts of drought, climate change, and mining and defining water rights.

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Remote Sensing, Vol. 8, Pages 666: Ready-to-Use Methods for the Detection of Clouds, Cirrus, Snow, Shadow, Water and Clear Sky Pixels in Sentinel-2 MSI Images

Classification of clouds, cirrus, snow, shadows and clear sky areas is a crucial step in the pre-processing of optical remote sensing images and is a valuable input for their atmospheric correction. The Multi-Spectral Imager on board the Sentinel-2's of the Copernicus program offers optimized bands for this task and delivers unprecedented amounts of data regarding spatial sampling, global coverage, spectral coverage, and repetition rate. Efficient algorithms are needed to process, or possibly reprocess, those big amounts of data. Techniques based on top-of-atmosphere reflectance spectra for single-pixels without exploitation of external data or spatial context offer the largest potential for parallel data processing and highly optimized processing throughput. Such algorithms can be seen as a baseline for possible trade-offs in processing performance when the application of more sophisticated methods is discussed. We present several ready-to-use classification algorithms which are all based on a publicly available database of manually classified Sentinel-2A images. These algorithms are based on commonly used and newly developed machine learning techniques which drastically reduce the amount of time needed to update the algorithms when new images are added to the database. Several ready-to-use decision trees are presented which allow to correctly label about 91 % of the spectra within a validation dataset. While decision trees are simple to implement and easy to understand, they offer only limited classification skill. It improves to 98 % when the presented algorithm based on the classical Bayesian method is applied. This method has only recently been used for this task and shows excellent performance concerning classification skill and processing performance. A comparison of the presented algorithms with other commonly used techniques such as random forests, stochastic gradient descent, or support vector machines is also given. Especially random forests and support vector machines show similar classification skill as the classical Bayesian method.

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Forests, Vol. 7, Pages 179: Variation in Mountain Vegetation Composition between the East and the West Sides of Southern Taiwan

In this study, we classified twenty associations, 179 families, 810 genera, 1897 species, and identified 291 rare species. The vegetation units were named following floristic-sociological approach. A cocktail determination key was used to classify the following vegetation units of association. More of the west side than the east side of the study area was at a higher altitude, and the vegetation experienced significant compression. Follow the result of detrended correspondence analysis (DCA), winter rainfall and average January temperature were the main environmental factors affecting variation in vegetation distribution by elevation gradient in this area. The particular association type on the eastern side of the study area is attributable to the northeast monsoon experienced year-round in this area, which causes relatively low temperature and humidity and wind rush, as well as the compression of the elevation range in each forest. The monsoon deciduous vegetation area exists only on the west of the low altitude mountains.

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Energies, Vol. 9, Pages 654: An Algorithmic Game Approach for Demand Side Management in Smart Grid with Distributed Renewable Power Generation and Storage

In this paper, the problem of minimizing electricity cost and the peak system load in smart grids with distributed renewable energy resources is studied. Unlike prior research works that either assume all of the jobs are interruptible or power-shiftable, this paper focuses on more challenging scenarios in which jobs are non-interruptible and non-power-shiftable. In addition, as more and more newly-built homes have rooftop solar arrays, it is assumed that all users are equipped with a solar-plus-battery system in this paper. Thus, power can be drawn from the battery as needed to reduce the cost of electricity or to lower the overall system load. With a quadratic load-dependent cost function, this paper first shows that the electricity cost minimization problem in such a setting is NP-hard and presents a distributed demand-side management algorithm, called DDSM, to solve this. Experimental results show that the proposed DDSM algorithm is effective, scalable and converges to a Nash equilibrium in finite rounds.

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Energies, Vol. 9, Pages 652: Heat Transfer and Energy Performance of a PVA Wall Tile Containing Macro-Encapsulated PCM

This study integrated building material engineering, building construction practices, and heat transfer mechanisms to develop a polyvinyl acetate (PVA) based wall tile, containing macro-encapsulated phase change material (macro-encapsulated PCM, macroPCM) and PVA. The heat transfer characteristics and energy performances of the proposed prototype were investigated experimentally. The results indicated that the PVA-based macroPCM wall tile is suitable for use in exterior walls to enhance the thermal performance. The tile shows a lower heat indoor heat flux than other tested similar building materials and increases the time lag of peak load, effectively shifting the summer peak demand.

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Sensors, Vol. 16, Pages 1317: Estimation of Prestress Force Distribution in Multi-Strand System of Prestressed Concrete Structures Using Field Data Measured by Electromagnetic Sensor

The recently developed smart strand can be used to measure the prestress force in the prestressed concrete (PSC) structure from the construction stage to the in-service stage. The higher cost of the smart strand compared to the conventional strand renders it unaffordable to replace all the strands by smart strands, and results in the application of only a limited number of smart strands in the PSC structure. However, the prestress forces developed in the strands of the multi-strand system frequently adopted in PSC structures differ from each other, which means that the prestress force in the multi-strand system cannot be obtained by simple proportional scaling using the measurement of the smart strand. Therefore, this study examines the prestress force distribution in the multi-strand system to find the correlation between the prestress force measured by the smart strand and the prestress force distribution in the multi-strand system. To that goal, the prestress force distribution was measured using electromagnetic sensors for various factors of the multi-strand system adopted on site in the fabrication of actual PSC girders. The results verified the possibility to assume normal distribution for the prestress force distribution per anchor head, and a method computing the mean and standard deviation defining the normal distribution is proposed. This paper presents a meaningful finding by proposing an estimation method of the prestress force based upon field-measured data of the prestress force distribution in the multi-strand system of actual PSC structures.

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NaEuF4/Au@Ag2S nanoparticles-based fluorescence resonant transfer DNA sensor for ultrasensitive detection of DNA energy

Publication date: 1 December 2016
Source:Talanta, Volume 161
Author(s): Yuhong Liu, Linlin Zhao, Jin Zhang, Jinzha Zhang, Wenbo Zhao, Chun Mao
The work investigates a new fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET) system using NaEuF4 nanoparticles (NPs) and Au@Ag2S NPs as the energy donor–acceptor pair for the first time. The NaEuF4/Au@Ag2S NPs-based FRET DNA sensor was constructed with NaEuF4 NPs as the fluorescence (FL) donor and Au@Ag2S core−shell NPs as FL acceptor. In order to find the matching energy acceptor, the amount of AgNO3 and Na2S were controlled in the synthesis process to overlap the absorption spectrum of energy acceptor with the emission spectrum of energy donors. The sensitivity of FRET-based DNA sensor can be enhanced and the self-absorption of ligand as well as the background of signals can be decreased because of Eu³⁺ which owns large Stokes shifts and narrow emission bands due to f–f electronic transitions of 4f shell. We obtained the efficient FRET system by studying suitable distance between the donor and acceptor. Then the FRET-based DNA sensor was used for the design of specific and sensitive detection of target DNA and the quenching efficiency (ΔFL/F0, ΔFL=F−F0) of FL was logarithmically related to the concentration of the target DNA, ranging from 100aM to 100pM. We can realize an ultrasensitive detection of target DNA with a detection limit of 32 aM. This proposed method was feasible to analyse target DNA in real samples with satisfactory results.

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http://ift.tt/2b16acV

A validated 1H NMR method for quantitative analysis of α-bisabolol in essential oils of Eremanthus erythropappus

Publication date: 1 December 2016
Source:Talanta, Volume 161
Author(s): Cristiane I. Cerceau, Luiz C.A. Barbosa, Elson S. Alvarenga, Antonio G. Ferreira, Sérgio S. Thomasi
α-Bisabolol is a natural terpene produced by Eremanthus erythropappus and is widely used in cosmetics and pharmaceuticals due to its anti-inflammatory, antibacterial and antimycotic properties. Due to these applications, a control of composition and authenticity of commercial oils rich in this terpene is required, resulting in a demand for new methodologies for quality control. In this work a rapid and efficient method for quantification of α-bisabolol in the essential oil of E. erythropappus (candeia) using ¹H NMR was developed, validated and compared to gas chromatography (GC) method. The quantification of α-bisabolol by ¹H NMR was successfully achieved for most of the essential oil samples of E. erythropappus evaluated, except for those with a more complex composition. To circumvent this limitation a 2D NMR COSY contour map was used. This method proved to be a fast and efficient alternative, providing results with standard deviations SD<0.3%. All evaluated parameters (selectivity, linearity, accuracy/precision, repeatability, robustness and stability of analyte and internal standard in solution) gave satisfactory results. Using the ¹H NMR signals at 5.36 and 5.13ppm, the limit of detection (LOD) and limit of quantification (LOQ) were 0.26 and 2.59mg, respectively. The results obtained by the ¹H NMR method presented SD=0.59%, smaller than the value found for GC (SD=1.18%). Tukey tests have shown that the results obtained by ¹H NMR and COSY methodology are similar to the obtained by the traditional GC-FID technique using external and internal standardization and normalization with 95% confidence.

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http://ift.tt/2b15hRu

FT-Raman and NIR spectroscopy data fusion strategy for multivariate qualitative analysis of food fraud

Publication date: 1 December 2016
Source:Talanta, Volume 161
Author(s): Cristina Márquez, M. Isabel López, Itziar Ruisánchez, M. Pilar Callao
Two data fusion strategies (high- and mid-level) combined with a multivariate classification approach (Soft Independent Modelling of Class Analogy, SIMCA) have been applied to take advantage of the synergistic effect of the information obtained from two spectroscopic techniques: FT-Raman and NIR. Mid-level data fusion consists of merging some of the previous selected variables from the spectra obtained from each spectroscopic technique and then applying the classification technique. High-level data fusion combines the SIMCA classification results obtained individually from each spectroscopic technique. Of the possible ways to make the necessary combinations, we decided to use fuzzy aggregation connective operators. As a case study, we considered the possible adulteration of hazelnut paste with almond. Using the two-class SIMCA approach, class 1 consisted of unadulterated hazelnut samples and class 2 of samples adulterated with almond. Models performance was also studied with samples adulterated with chickpea. The results show that data fusion is an effective strategy since the performance parameters are better than the individual ones: sensitivity and specificity values between 75% and 100% for the individual techniques and between 96–100% and 88–100% for the mid- and high-level data fusion strategies, respectively.

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http://ift.tt/2b16qbF

A highly selective and sensitive nanosensor for the detection of glyphosate

Publication date: 1 December 2016
Source:Talanta, Volume 161
Author(s): Ya-Chu Chang, Yu-Syuan Lin, Guan-Ting Xiao, Tai-Chia Chiu, Cho-Chun Hu
A turn-off fluorescence sensor synthesized by combining copper (II) oxide and multiwall carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) were used for measuring glyphosate based on the inhibiting the catalytic activity of the CuO/MWCNTs. This sensor was synthesized by precipitating copper ions onto the acidic MWCNTs under basic conditions; the resulting material was characterized by the transmission electron microscopy, X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy to confirm its structure. The CuO/MWCNTs nanomaterial was found to exhibit high peroxidase-like catalytic activity toward the reduction of H2O2 to H2O and the oxidation of Amplex Red to resorufin, with a corresponding color change from pink to red and the fluorescence enhancement. However, this activity was inhibited and the fluorescence diminished when glyphosate was added to the system. Using this strategy, we applied this sensor to detect glyphosate. The results indicated that this sensor is not only highly sensitive, with a detection limit of 0.67 ppb and a linear range from 0.002 to 0.01ppm, but also exhibits good selectivity for glyphosate. When this sensor was assessed for detecting glyphosate in real water samples, recoveries of 96–107% were attained. This proposed material and method are a promising approach for rapid screening of glyphosate.

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http://ift.tt/2b160Ch

Krawtchouk image moment method for the simultaneous determination of three drugs in human plasma based on fluorescence three-dimensional spectra

Publication date: 1 December 2016
Source:Talanta, Volume 161
Author(s): Jing Chen, Bao Qiong Li, Min Li Xu, Xue Wang, Yu Hong Jing, Hong Lin Zhai
The interference signals and overlapped peaks are common phenomena in fluorescence determination, which seriously influence the accuracy and reliability of analytical results. In this paper, Krawtchouk image moment method was introduced to the analysis of fluorescence three-dimensional (3D) spectra and applied to the quantitative analysis of three drugs including nicotinic acid, metoprolol and amlodipine in human plasma. Without any pretreatment to the obtained spectra, Krawtchouk moments were directly calculated on the grayscale images of 3D spectra, and the quantitative linear models for the three drugs were established by stepwise regression, respectively. The determination coefficients (R) were more than 0.9906. The correlation coefficients of leave-one-out cross-validation (Rcv) were more than 0.9256. The precisions (RSD, %) of inter-day and intra-day variations were less than 8.4% and 3.1%, separately. The recovery was from 101.84% to 107.88%. The limit of quantification and the limit of detection were 0.12μgmL⁻¹ and 0.43μgmL⁻¹, respectively. All the statistical parameters supported that the obtained models performed well and the proposed method was accurate and reliable. Our study indicates that Krawtchouk image moments with the powerful abilities of multi-resolution and extracting local information can be applied to the simultaneous determination of multi-target compounds in plasma based on fluorescence 3D spectra.

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http://ift.tt/2b14OPl

Immunomodulatory and Antimicrobial Activity of Babassu Mesocarp Improves the Survival in Lethal Sepsis

Attalea speciosa syn Orbignya phalerata Mart. (babassu) has been used in the treatment of inflammatory and infectious diseases. Aim of the study. To investigate the antimicrobial and immunological activity of babassu mesocarp extract (EE). Material and Methods. The in vitro antimicrobial activity was evaluated by disk diffusion assay and by determination of the minimum inhibitory concentration (MIC) to Escherichia coli, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Enterococcus faecalis, Staphylococcus aureus, and methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). The flavonoids and phenolic acids content were determined by chromatography. The in vivo assays were performed in Swiss mice submitted to sepsis by cecal ligation and puncture (CLP). The mice received EE subcutaneously (125 or 250 mg/Kg), 6 hours after the CLP. The number of lymphoid cells was quantified and the cytokines production was determined by ELISA after 12 h. Results. EE was effective as antimicrobial to E. faecalis, S. aureus, and MRSA. EE is rich in phenolic acids, a class of compounds with antimicrobial and immunological activity. An increased survival can be observed in those groups, possibly due to a significant inhibition of TNF-α and IL-6. Conclusions. The EE showed specific antimicrobial activity in vitro and an important antiseptic effect in vivo possibly due to the antimicrobial and immunomodulatory activity.

http://ift.tt/2buL9c2

“The Monkey on Your Shoulder”: A Qualitative Study of Lymphoedema Patients’ Attitudes to and Experiences of Acupuncture and Moxibustion

Background. Lymphoedema, a distressing consequence of cancer treatment, has significant negative impact on health-related quality of life. Multidisciplinary approaches are needed to improve physical and psychosocial wellbeing. Acupuncture and moxibustion (acu/moxa), two modalities of traditional East Asian medicine, may contribute to improved outcomes for cancer survivors with lymphoedema. Aim. To explore how patients with lymphoedema secondary to cancer treatment perceive and experience acu/moxa treatment. Design and Setting. A qualitative focus group study, nested in a 3-step mixed methods observational study, was carried out in a cancer drop-in and information centre in north-west London. Methods. Six focus groups and one telephone interview were conducted with 23 survivors of breast or head and neck cancer, who had completed up to 13 acu/moxa treatments. Scripts were transcribed, coded, and analysed to identify salient and overarching themes. Results. Participants described feeling disempowered by cancer treatment and subsequent diagnosis of lymphoedema. Acu/moxa was valued for its whole-person approach and for time spent with a practitioner who cared, listened, and responded. Participants reported changes in physical and psychosocial health, including increased energy levels and reduced pain and discomfort, and feelings of empowerment, personal control, and acceptance. Many were motivated to improve self-care. Conclusion. Many participants who received acu/moxa treatment reported improved wellbeing and a more proactive attitude towards self-care.

http://ift.tt/2bDqB4k

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Πέμπτη 18 Αυγούστου 2016

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