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By removing the immunogenic cellular components through various decellularization methods, decellularized extracellular matrix (dECM) is considered a promising material in the field of tissue engineering and regenerative medicine with highly preserved physicochemical properties and superior biocompatibility. However, decellularization treatment can lead to some loss of structural integrity, mechanical strength, degradation stability, and biological performance of dECM biomaterials. Therefore, physical and chemical crosslinking methods are preferred to restore or even improve the biomechanical properties, stability, and bioactivity, and to achieve a delicate balance between degradation of the implanted biomaterial and regeneration of the host tissue. This review provides an overview of dECM biomaterials, and describes and compares the mechanisms and characteristics of commonly used crosslinking methods for dECM, with a focus on the potential applications of versatile dECM‐based biomaterials derived from skin, cardiac tissues (pericardium, heart valves, myocardial tissue), blood vessels, liver, and kidney, modified with different chemical crosslinking reagents, in tissue and organ regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Caregiver (CG)'s depression is common and its prevalence is rising. The relationship of CG depression with care recipients (CR)'s subsequent cognitive impairment remains unclear. This study examines the association of CG depressive symptoms trajectories with 6-year cognitive impairment risk among care recipients (CR) who are older adults with functional limitations. Methods: Retrospective analysis of prospectively collected data cohorts from 2010 to 2016. The sample included 810 community-dwelling older adults aged ≥75 years, dementia free at baseline, with their primary caregiver dyads. CG's depressive symptoms were measured using the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale. The main outcomes were incident mild, moderate, and severe cognitive impairment of CRs measured using Short Portable Mental Status Questionnaire. Group-based trajectory modeling identified three CG depressive symptom trajectory groups. Competing risks regression analysis modeled the hazards as a function of CG depressive symptom trajectories. Results: Of 810 CRs, 3% developed severe cognitive impairment, 21% had moderate cognitive impairment, and 37% had mild cognitive impairment. Only CG's "Increasing" trajectory group predicted increased risk of CR's mild and moderate cognitive impairment relative to "persistently low" group (subhazard ratio [SHR] = 1.52, 95% confidence interval [CI], p < 0.05; SHR = 1.87, 95% CI, p < 0.05, respectively). Conclusions and Implications: Finding highlight the intricate and non-linear association between CG depressive trajectory and CR cognitive impairment. This evidence can be used to enlighten policymakers and health providers about the need for risk stratification screening for CG mental health and early treatment for CG depression to prevent or delay CR's cognitive impairment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Myocardial fibrosis detected by cardiac magnetic resonance (CMR) has been reported in patients with desmin‐related myopathy, although its characteristics remain unclear. Here, we describe a case of desmin‐related restrictive cardiomyopathy wherein CMR imaging revealed myocardial oedema, ischaemia, and fibrosis in the left ventricle; the different types and processes of myocardial injury were detected by CMR. Middle wall left ventricular enhancement may be a feature of late gadolinium enhancement, and the lateral wall is often involved in cases of myocardial injury. CMR is useful for the early detection of cardiac involvement and the prediction of prognosis in patients diagnosed with desmin‐related myopathy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objectives: Family caregivers are important to older adults' health, but few studies have examined how caregivers' mental health is associated with older adults' cognitive function. This study examined the trajectories of cognitive function of older adults and whether caregivers' depressive symptoms shape the pattern of cognitive function trajectories. Methods: This 6-year longitudinal sample consisted 1188 older adults aged =75 years with deficits in activities of daily living (ADL) and their family caregivers in Shanghai, China (Rounds 1-3). Cognitive function trajectories were identified based on an enhanced group-based trajectory modeling that accounted for nonrandom attrition. Multinomial logistic regression tested the association between caregivers' depressive symptoms and older adults' cognitive function trajectory. Results: Three trajectory groups were identified: a "newly onset" group (50.4%) had an increased risk of being cognitive impaired during the 6-year period; a "never" group (46.2%) remained cognitive active; and a "chronic" group was largely persistently cognitive impaired (3.4%). Caregivers' depressive symptoms increased the relative risk of having the "onset" or "chronic" versus "never" trajectory. Among the four dimensions of depressive symptoms, only somatic complaints were associated with a higher risk of the "newly onset" trajectory in 6 years. Conclusion: The progression of cognitive function among older adults with deficits in ADL followed three distinct trajectories during a 6-year period. Addressing the mental health of caregivers may prevent or delay progression of cognitive impairment among older adults. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Summary: A recent study indicated that Lectin‐type oxidized LDL receptor‐1 (LOX‐1) was a distinct surface marker for human polymorphisms myeloid‐derived suppressor cells (PMN‐MDSC). The present study was aimed to investigate the existence LOX‐1 PMN‐MDSC in hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) patients. One hundred and twenty‐seven HCC patients, 10 patients with mild active chronic hepatitis B, 10 liver cirrhosis due to hepatitis B, 10 liver dysplastic node with hepatitis B and 50 health control were included. LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSC were significantly elevated in HCC patients compared with healthy control and patients with benign diseases. LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSC in circulation were positively associated with those in HCC tissues. LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSCs significantly reduced proliferation and IFN‐γ production of T cells with a dosage dependent manner with LOX‐1− CD15+ PMNs reached negative results. The suppression on T cell proliferation and IFN‐γ production was reversed by ROS inhibitor and Arginase inhibitor. ROS level and activity of arginase of LOX‐1 +CD15+ PMN were higher in LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSCs than LOX‐1− CD15+ PMNs, as well as the expression of the NADPH oxidase NOX2 and arginase I. RNA sequence revealed that LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSCs displayed significantly higher expression of spliced X‐box ‐binding protein 1 (sXBP1), an endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress marker. ER stress inducer induced LOX‐1 expression and suppressive function for CD15+ PMN from health donor. For HCC patients, LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSCs were positively related to overall survival. Above all, LOX‐1+ CD15+ PMN‐MDSC were elevated in HCC patients and suppressed T cell proliferation through ROS/Arg I pathway induced by ER stress. They presented positive association with the prognosis of HCC patients. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A novel palladium(II)-catalyzed [5+2] oxidative annulation of readily available o-arylanilines with alkynes has been developed for building a seven-membered N-heterocyclic architecture containing a biaryl linkage. This method is applicable to a wide range of unprotected o-arylanilines and internal alkynes, and results in the chemoselective preparation of imine-containing dibenzo[b,d]azepines in high yields with excellent diastereoselectivity with respect to the two types of stereogenic elements. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

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Catalytic asymmetric aminative dearomatization of 1-substituted 2-naphthols was successfully implemented with electrophilic azodicarboxylates under the catalysis of chiral ScIII/pybox complexes. This intermolecular reaction represents a hitherto unknown enantioselective CN bond-forming process through direct dearomatization of phenolic compounds to generate chiral nitrogen-containing quaternary carbon stereocenters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated first language (L1) influence on the acquisition of second language (L2) collocations using a framework based on Kroll and Stewart (1994) and Jiang (2000), by comparing the performance on a phrase-acceptability judgment task among native speakers of English, Japanese English as a second language (ESL) users, and Japanese English as a foreign language (EFL) learners. The test materials included both congruent collocations, whose lexical components were similar in L1 and L2, and incongruent collocations, whose lexical components differed in the two languages. EFL learners made more errors with and reacted more slowly to incongruent collocations than congruent collocations. ESL users generally performed better than EFL learners (lower error rate and faster speed), but they still made more errors on incongruent collocations than on congruent collocations. Interestingly, however, the L1 effect was not apparent on the ESL users' reaction time. The results suggested that (a) both L1 congruency and L2 exposure affect the acquisition of L2 collocations with the availability of both maximizing this acquisition; (b) it is difficult to acquire incongruent collocations even with a considerable amount of exposure to L2; and (c) once stored in memory, L2 collocations are processed independently of L1. Possible differences in acquiring congruent and incongruent collocations are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Chromatin structure affects the accessibility of DNA to transcription, repair, and replication. Changes in chromatin structure occur during development, but less is known about changes during aging. We examined the state of chromatin structure and its effect on gene expression during aging in Drosophila at the whole genome and cellular level using whole-genome tiling microarrays of activation and repressive chromatin marks, whole-genome transcriptional microarrays and single-cell immunohistochemistry. We found dramatic reorganization of chromosomal regions with age. Mapping of H3K9me3 and HP1 signals to fly chromosomes reveals in young flies the expected high enrichment in the pericentric regions, the 4th chromosome, and islands of facultative heterochromatin dispersed throughout the genome. With age, there is a striking reduction in this enrichment resulting in a nearly equivalent level of H3K9me3 and HP1 in the pericentric regions, the 4th chromosome, facultative heterochromatin, and euchromatin. These extensive changes in repressive chromatin marks are associated with alterations in age-related gene expression. Large-scale changes in repressive marks with age are further substantiated by single-cell immunohistochemistry that shows changes in nuclear distribution of H3K9me3 and HP1 marks with age. Such epigenetic changes are expected to directly or indirectly impinge upon important cellular functions such as gene expression, DNA repair, and DNA replication. The combination of genome-wide approaches such as whole-genome chromatin immunoprecipitation and transcriptional studies in conjunction with single-cell immunohistochemistry as shown here provide a first step toward defining how changes in chromatin may contribute to the process of aging in metazoans. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A scheme is proposed in this article to predict the cooperativity in hydrogen bond chains of formamides, acetamides, and N-methylformamides. The parameters needed in the scheme are derived from fitting to the hydrogen bonding energies of MP2/6-31+G** with basis set superposition error (BSSE) correction of the hydrogen bond chains of formamides containing from two to eight monomeric units. The scheme is then used to calculate the individual hydrogen bonding energies in the chains of formamides containing 9 and 12 monomeric units, in the chains of acetamides containing from two to seven monomeric units, in the chains of N-methylformamides containing from two to seven monomeric units. The calculation results show that the cooperativity predicted by the scheme proposed in this paper is in good agreement with those obtained from MP2/6-31+G** calculations by including the BSSE correction, demonstrating that the scheme proposed in this article is reasonable. Based on our scheme, a cooperativity effect of almost 240% of the dimer hydrogen bonding energy in long hydrogen bond formamide chains, a cooperativity effect of almost 190% of the dimer hydrogen bonding energy in long hydrogen bond acetamide chains, and a cooperativity effect of almost 210% of the dimer hydrogen bonding energy in long hydrogen bond N-methylformamide chains are predicted. The scheme is further applied to some heterogeneous chains containing formamide, acetamide, and N-methylformamide. The individual hydrogen bonding energies in these heterogeneous chains predicted by our scheme are also in good agreement with those obtained from Møller-Plesset calculations including BSSE correction. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2010 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

An analytic potential energy function is proposed and applied to evaluate the amide–amide and amide–water hydrogen-bonding interaction energies in peptides. The parameters in the analytic function are derived from fitting to the potential energy curves of 10 hydrogen-bonded training dimers. The analytic potential energy function is then employed to calculate the N&bond;H...O&dbond;C, C&bond;H...O&dbond;C, N&bond;H...OH2, and C&dbond;O...HOH hydrogen-bonding interaction energies in amide–amide and amide–water dimers containing N-methylacetamide, acetamide, glycine dipeptide, alanine dipeptide, N-methylformamide, N-methylpropanamide, N-ethylacetamide and/or water molecules. The potential energy curves of these systems are therefore obtained, including the equilibrium hydrogen bond distances R(O...H) and the hydrogen-bonding energies. The function is also applied to calculate the binding energies in models of β-sheets. The calculation results show that the potential energy curves obtained from the analytic function are in good agreement with those obtained from MP2/6-31+G** calculations by including the BSSE correction, which demonstrate that the analytic function proposed in this work can be used to predict the hydrogen-bonding interaction energies in peptides quickly and accurately. © 2009 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2009 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Iterative development methodology has been widely adopted in recent years since it is flexible and capable of dealing with requirement volatility. However, how to quantitatively manage iterative projects, and in particular, how to quantitatively manage defects across multiple iterations, remains a challenging issue. In this article, we identify three main challenges of quantitative defects management in iterative development in a leading Chinese telecommunications company (named ZZNode). The three challenges are: identifying appropriate ‘control points’ in each iteration, selecting appropriate measures and corresponding measurement methods, and determining the ‘sweet spot’ amount of effort for performing testing and defect-fixing activities. We propose a process performance Baselines based iteration Defects management (BiDefect) method to address the three challenges. We also report an industrial experience where several iterative development projects of ZZNode successfully applied the BiDefect method in initial estimating, analyzing, re-estimating, and controlling number of defects and defect detecting/fixing effort. In addition, we provide the evaluation of using BiDefect method, and discuss the benefits and lessons learned from BiDefect and its application. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) expression is increased by angiotensin II (Ang II) within paraventricular nucleus (PVN) neurons of normotensive rats and acts via its intrinsic thiol protein oxidoreductase (TPOR) to counterregulate the central nervous system-mediated pressor action of Ang II. Considering that the PVN-mediated actions of Ang II are enhanced in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs) and contribute to the development of hypertension in these animals, we investigated this MIF regulatory mechanism in SHRs. Here, we have demonstrated that Ang II failed to increase MIF protein expression in the PVN of SHRs. Furthermore, although basal levels of MIF protein and mRNA were similar in the PVN of SHRs and normotensive rats, immunostaining revealed that MIF was either absent from or diminished in PVN neurons of SHRs. AAV2-mediated increases in MIF expression within PVN neurons of young (8 wk old) SHRs produced a chronic attenuation of hypertension and cardiac hypertrophy. However, similar AAV2-mediated transduction of [C60S]-MIF, which lacks TPOR activity, did not alter the development of hypertension or cardiac hypertrophy in SHRs. Collectively, these findings suggest that a lack of MIF expression within PVN neurons contributes to the development of hypertension and cardiac hypertrophy in SHRs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Detecting and fixing defects are key activities in a testing process, which consume two kinds of skill sets. Unfortunately, many current leading software estimation methods, such as COCOMO II, mainly estimate the effort depending on the size of software, and allocate testing effort proportionally among various activities. Both efforts on detecting and fixing defects, are simply counted into software testing process/phase and cannot be estimated and managed satisfactorily. In fact, the activities for detecting defects and fixing them are quite different and need differently skilled people. The inadequate effort estimation leads to the difficulty of test process management. It is also the main problem which causes software project delays. In this article, we propose a method on Quantitatively Managing Testing (TestQM) process including identifying performance objectives, establishing a performance baseline, establish a process-performance model for fixing effort, and establishing a process-performance model for fixing the schedule, which supports high-level process management mentioned in Capability Maturity Model Integration (CMMI). In our method, defect injection distribution (DID) is used to derive estimation of fixing effort and schedule. The TestQM method has been successfully applied to a software organization for their quantitative management of testing process and proved to be helpful in estimating and controlling defects, effort and schedule of the testing process. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A number of researchers have suggested that formulaic sequences are stored and processed holistically ( Altenberg, 1998 ; Raupach, 1984 ; Schmitt & Carter, 2004 ; Spöttl & McCarthy, 2004 ). However, the evidence for this hypothesis has not been conclusive. The present study examined the representation and processing of formulaic sequences in two online grammaticality judgment experiments. English as a second language speakers and native English speakers were tested with formulaic and nonformulaic phrases matched for word length and frequency. The results showed that both native and nonnative speakers responded to the formulaic sequences significantly faster and with fewer errors than they did to nonformulaic sequences. The findings provide prevailing evidence in support of the holistic nature of formula representation and processing in second language speakers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The regulation of myogenic progenitor cells during muscle regeneration is not clearly understood. We have previously shown that the Foxk1 gene, a member of the forkhead/winged helix family of transcription factors, is expressed in myogenic progenitor cells in adult skeletal muscle. In the present study, we utilize transgenic technology and demonstrate that the 4.6 kb upstream fragment of the Foxk1 gene directs β-galactosidase expression to the myogenic progenitor cell population. We further establish that Sox15 directs Foxk1 expression to the myogenic progenitor cell population, as it binds to an evolutionarily conserved site and recruits Fhl3 to transcriptionally coactivate Foxk1 gene expression. Knockdown of endogenous Sox15 results in perturbed cell cycle kinetics and decreased Foxk1 expression. Furthermore, Sox15 mutant mice display perturbed skeletal muscle regeneration, due in part to decreased numbers of satellite cells and decreased Foxk1 expression. These studies demonstrate that Sox15, Fhl3 and Foxk1 function to coordinately regulate the myogenic progenitor cell population and skeletal muscle regeneration. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We present physics-based modeling for silicon on-chip spiral inductors, taking into account the coupling capacitance between metal spirals. The coupling capacitance Cp is calculated using a distributed-capacitance model based on finite-element analysis. As demonstrated for a series of inductors with the number of turns ranging from 2.5 to 6.5 fabricated in a 0.18-μm CMOS technology, the current model provides simulation results for the quality factor Q, the S-parameter, and the self-resonance frequency fSR that are in good agreement with the measurements without any fitting parameters. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Microwave Opt Technol Lett 48: 1423–1427, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/mop.21642 [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

1. Proteins are the workhorses of biological systems and, thus, it is not surprising that the field of proteomics has flourished in recent years. The present review briefly surveys the general proteomic approaches taken to identify drug targets and to evaluate drug efficacy and toxicity in the preclinical and clinical settings. These generally fall into three basic categories: a profiling approach, a functional approach and a structural approach. 2. The current ‘tools’ used and applied to the drug-discovery process will be highlighted. These include the two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, liquid chromatography, mass spectrometry, isotope-coded affinity tag and protein biochips. 3. Clearly, proteomics has begun to set a foothold in every stage of the drug-discovery process. Future developments in this area will likely make a significant impact in our quest for better, safer and cost-effective drugs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated semantic transfer in second language (L2) learning and provided a replication of the author's study (Jiang, 2002) in a different English as a Second Language (ESL) population. Korean ESL speakers were asked to perform a semantic judgment task in which they decided whether or not 2 English words were related in meaning. Two types of related word pairs served as critical stimuli: word pairs whose 2 members shared or did not share the same Korean translation. The Korean ESL speakers responded to the same-translation pairs significantly faster than to the different-translation pairs whereas no such same-translation effect was found among native speakers of English. The same-translation effect found in L2 speakers was taken as evidence for the presence of first language semantic structures in L2 lexical representations and their continued involvement in L2 processing. Pedagogical implications for L2 vocabulary teaching are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Helicia falcata C. Y. Wu was not validly published in 1977 because two gatherings, one flowering and one fruiting, were simultaneously designated as types in the protologue. This name is validated here by designating the flowering specimen as the holotype. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Catalytic asymmetric aminative dearomatization of 1-substituted 2-naphthols is successfully implemented with electrophilic azodicarboxylates under the catalysis of chiral ScIII/pybox complexes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Intermolecular annulation reactions of 1-aryl-2-naphthols with internal alkynes proceed efficiently in the presence of a Ru catalyst and a Cu oxidant to generate spirocyclic compounds by sequential cleavage of the C(sp2)-H bond, migratory insertion of the alkyne, and dearomatization of the naphthyl ring. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]