No one likes a copycat: a cross-cultural investigation of children's response to plagiarism

Copying other people's ideas is evaluated negatively by American children and adults. The current study investigated the influence of culture on children's evaluations of plagiarism by comparing children from three countries--the United States, Mexico, and China--that differ in terms of their emphasis on the protection of intellectual property and ideas. Children (3- to 6-year-olds) were presented with videos involving two characters drawing pictures and were asked to evaluate the character who drew unique work or the character who copied someone else's drawing. The study showed that 5- and 6-year-olds from all three cultures evaluated copiers negatively compared with unique drawers. These results suggest that children from cultures that place different values on the protection of ideas nevertheless develop similar concerns with plagiarism by 5-year-olds.

Novel biological strategies for treatment of wear particle-induced periprosthetic osteolysis of orthopaedic implants for joint replacement

Wear particles and by-products from joint replacements and other orthopaedic implants may result in a local chronic inflammatory and foreign body reaction. This may lead to persistent synovitis resulting in joint pain and swelling, periprosthetic osteolysis, implant loosening and pathologic fracture. Strategies to modulate the adverse effects of wear debris may improve the function and longevity of joint replacements and other orthopaedic implants, potentially delaying or avoiding complex revision surgical procedures. Three novel biological strategies to mitigate the chronic inflammatory reaction to orthopaedic wear particles are reported. These include (i) interference with systemic macrophage trafficking to the local implant site, (ii) modulation of macrophages from an M1 (pro-inflammatory) to an M2 (anti-inflammatory, pro-tissue healing) phenotype in the periprosthetic tissues, and (iii) local inhibition of the transcription factor nuclear factor kappa B (NF-κB) by delivery of an NF-κB decoy oligodeoxynucleotide, thereby interfering with the production of pro-inflammatory mediators. These three approaches have been shown to be viable strategies for mitigating the undesirable effects of wear particles in preclinical studies. Targeted local delivery of specific biologics may potentially extend the lifetime of orthopaedic implants.

Transmissible [corrected] dog cancer genome reveals the origin and history of an ancient cell lineage

Canine transmissible venereal tumor (CTVT) is the oldest known somatic cell lineage. It is a transmissible cancer that propagates naturally in dogs. We sequenced the genomes of two CTVT tumors and found that CTVT has acquired 1.9 million somatic substitution mutations and bears evidence of exposure to ultraviolet light. CTVT is remarkably stable and lacks subclonal heterogeneity despite thousands of rearrangements, copy-number changes, and retrotransposon insertions. More than 10,000 genes carry nonsynonymous variants, and 646 genes have been lost. CTVT first arose in a dog with low genomic heterozygosity that may have lived about 11,000 years ago. The cancer spawned by this individual dispersed across continents about 500 years ago. Our results provide a genetic identikit of an ancient dog and demonstrate the robustness of mammalian somatic cells to survive for millennia despite a massive mutation burden.

Comparison of intensity-dependent inhibition of spinal wide-dynamic range neurons by dorsal column and peripheral nerve stimulation in a rat model of neuropathic pain

BACKGROUND

Spinal cord stimulation (SCS) and peripheral nerve stimulation (PNS) are thought to reduce pain by activating a sufficient number of large myelinated (Aβ) fibres, which in turn initiate spinal segmental mechanisms of analgesia. However, the volume of neuronal activity and how this activity is associated with different treatment targets is unclear under neuropathic pain conditions.

METHODS

We sought to delineate the intensity-dependent mechanisms of SCS and PNS analgesia by in vivo extracellular recordings from spinal wide-dynamic range neurons in nerve-injured rats. To mimic therapeutic SCS and PNS, we used bipolar needle electrodes and platinum hook electrodes to stimulate the dorsal column and the tibial nerve, respectively. Compound action potentials were recorded to calibrate the amplitude of conditioning stimulation required to activate A-fibres and thus titrate the volume of activation.

RESULTS

Dorsal column stimulation (50 Hz, five intensities) inhibited the windup (a short form of neuronal sensitization) and the C-component response of wide-dynamic range neurons to graded intracutaneous electrical stimuli in an intensity-dependent manner. Tibial nerve stimulation (50 Hz, three intensities) also suppressed the windup in an intensity-dependent fashion but did not affect the acute C-component response.

CONCLUSIONS

SCS and PNS may offer similar inhibition of short-term neuronal sensitization. However, only SCS attenuates spinal transmission of acute noxious inputs under neuropathic pain conditions. Our findings begin to differentiate peripheral from spinal-targeted neuromodulation therapies and may help to select the best stimulation target and optimum therapeutic intensity for pain treatment.

Epidemiological investigation of physique situation for birth high-risk children aged 9-15 years in Chengdu, Southwest China

BACKGROUND

As the intrauterine environment can effect children's growth and development, this study aimed to explore the relationship between birth high-risk and physique situation of 9 to 15-year-old children by cross-sectional investigation, and to provide clues for the monitoring, prevention, and treatment of growth deviation in children.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

This study recruited 7,194 students aged 9 to 15 years in primary and junior schools. Their parents were asked to complete the birth situation questionnaire. Measurements included height, weight, and body mass index (BMI). Birth high-risk infant was defined according to the gestational age and birth weight. Growth deviation was classified as underweight, short stature, overweight, and obesity.

RESULTS

The prevalence of all kinds of growth deviations in preterm, full-term, and post-term birth groups were similar, the same as the physique situation at school age among both sexes. The incidence of small for gestational age (SGA) was 6.23%, when at school age, part of SGA had catch-up growth. However, the prevalence of underweight and short stature for SGA was highest in three groups. The weight and height at school age in SGA group was less than that in appropriate for gestational age (AGA) and large for gestational age (LGA) groups. The prevalence of overweight and obesity for LGA and macrosomia were highest in three groups. At school age, the weight in macrosomia and LGA groups was higher than that in the other groups.

CONCLUSIONS

Longitudinal height and weight development and growth of children with birth high-risk are different from normal children. In order to improve healthy situation, more attention should be paid to height and weight development of those children with birth high-risk at school age, even in pre-school age. Prevention may already begin during pregnancy.

Chromosomal evolution among leaf-nosed nectarivorous bats--evidence from cross-species chromosome painting (Phyllostomidae, Chiroptera)

Background

New World leaf-nosed bats, Phyllostomidae, represent a lineage of Chiroptera marked by unprecedented morphological/ecological diversity and extensive intergeneric chromosomal reorganization. There are still disagreements regarding their systematic relationships due to morphological convergence among some groups. Their history of karyotypic evolution also remains to be documented.

Results

To better understand the evolutionary relationships within Phyllostomidae, we developed chromosome paints from the bat species Macrotus californicus. We tested the potential of these paints as phylogenetic tools by looking for chromosomal signatures in two lineages of nectarivorous phyllostomids whose independent origins have been statistically supported by molecular phylogenies. By examining the chromosomal homologies defined by chromosome painting among two representatives of the subfamily Glossophaginae (Glossophaga soricina and Anoura cultrata) and one species from the subfamily Lonchophyllinae (Lonchophylla concava), we found chromosomal correspondence in regions not previously detected by other comparative cytogenetic techniques. We proposed the corresponding human chromosomal segments for chromosomes of the investigated species and found two syntenic associations shared by G. soricina and A. cultrata.

Conclusion

Comparative painting with whole chromosome-specific paints of M. californicus demonstrates an extensive chromosomal reorganization within the two lineages of nectarivorous phyllostomids, with a large number of chromosomes shared between M. californicus and G. soricina. We show that the evolution of nectar-feeding bats occurs mainly by reshuffling of chiropteran Evolutionarily Conserved Units (ECUs). Robertsonian fusions/fissions and inversions seem to be important modifiers of phyllostomid karyotypes, and autapomorphic character states are common within species. Macrotus californicus chromosome paints will be a valuable tool for documenting the pattern of karyotypic evolution within Phyllostomidae radiation.

Two new cytotypes reinforce that Micronycteris hirsuta Peters, 1869 does not represent a monotypic taxon

Background

The genus Micronycteris is a diverse group of phyllostomid bats currently comprising 11 species, with diploid number (2n) ranging from 26 to 40 chromosomes. The karyotypic relationships within Micronycteris and between Micronycteris and other phyllostomids remain poorly understood. The karyotype of Micronycteris hirsuta is of particular interest: three different diploid numbers were reported for this species in South and Central Americas with 2n = 26, 28 and 30 chromosomes. Although current evidence suggests some geographic differentiation among populations of M. hirsuta based on chromosomal, morphological, and nuclear and mitochondrial DNA markers, the recognition of new species or subspecies has been avoided due to the need for additional data, mainly chromosomal data.

Results

We describe two new cytotypes for Micronycteris hirsuta (MHI) (2n = 26 and 25, NF = 32), whose differences in diploid number are interpreted as the products of Robertsonian rearrangements. C-banding revealed a small amount of constitutive heterochromatin at the centromere and the NOR was located in the interstitial portion of the short arm of a second pair, confirmed by FISH. Telomeric probes hybridized to the centromeric regions and weakly to telomeric regions of most chromosomes. The G-banding analysis and chromosome painting with whole chromosome probes from Carollia brevicauda (CBR) and Phyllostomus hastatus (PHA) enabled the establishment of genome-wide homologies between MHI, CBR and PHA.

Conclusions

The karyotypes of Brazilian specimens of Micronycteris hirsuta described here are new to Micronycteris and reinforce that M. hirsuta does not represent a monotypic taxon. Our results corroborate the hypothesis of karyotypic megaevolution within Micronycteris, and strong evidence for this is that the entire chromosome complement of M. hirsuta was shown to be derivative with respect to species compared in this study.

Jet and underlying event properties as a function of charged-particle multiplicity in proton-proton collisions at [Formula: see text]

Characteristics of multi-particle production in proton-proton collisions at [Formula: see text] are studied as a function of the charged-particle multiplicity, Nch. The produced particles are separated into two classes: those belonging to jets and those belonging to the underlying event. Charged particles are measured with pseudorapidity |η|<2.4 and transverse momentum pT>0.25 GeV/c. Jets are reconstructed from charged-particles only and required to have pT>5 GeV/c. The distributions of jet pT, average pT of charged particles belonging to the underlying event or to jets, jet rates, and jet shapes are presented as functions of Nch and compared to the predictions of the pythia and herwig event generators. Predictions without multi-parton interactions fail completely to describe the Nch-dependence observed in the data. For increasing Nch, pythia systematically predicts higher jet rates and harder pT spectra than seen in the data, whereas herwig shows the opposite trends. At the highest multiplicity, the data-model agreement is worse for most observables, indicating the need for further tuning and/or new model ingredients.

Search for top squarks in R-parity-violating supersymmetry using three or more leptons and b-tagged jets

A search for anomalous production of events with three or more isolated leptons and bottom-quark jets produced in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV is presented. The analysis is based on a data sample corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.5 fb(-1) collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC in 2012. No excess above the standard model expectations is observed. The results are interpreted in the context of supersymmetric models with signatures that have low missing transverse energy arising from light top-squark pair production with R-parity-violating decays of the lightest supersymmetric particle. In two models with different R-parity-violating couplings, top squarks are excluded below masses of 1020 GeV and 820 GeV when the lightest supersymmetric particle has a mass of 200 GeV.

Searches for new physics using the tt¯ invariant mass distribution in pp collisions at √s=8 TeV

Searches for anomalous top quark-antiquark production are presented, based on pp collisions at √s=8 TeV. The data, corresponding to an integrated luminosity of 19.7 fb(-1), were collected with the CMS detector at the LHC. The observed tt¯ invariant mass spectrum is found to be compatible with the standard model prediction. Limits on the production cross section times branching fraction probe, for the first time, a region of parameter space for certain models of new physics not yet constrained by precision measurements.

CCL3L1 copy number, HIV load, and immune reconstitution in sub-Saharan Africans

BACKGROUND

The role of copy number variation of the CCL3L1 gene, encoding MIP1α, in contributing to the host variation in susceptibility and response to HIV infection is controversial. Here we analyse a sub-Saharan African cohort from Tanzania and Ethiopia, two countries with a high prevalence of HIV-1 and a high co-morbidity of HIV with tuberculosis.

METHODS

We use a form of quantitative PCR called the paralogue ratio test to determine CCL3L1 gene copy number in 1134 individuals and validate our copy number typing using array comparative genomic hybridisation and fiber-FISH.

RESULTS

We find no significant association of CCL3L1 gene copy number with HIV load in antiretroviral-naïve patients prior to initiation of combination highly active anti-retroviral therapy. However, we find a significant association of low CCL3L1 gene copy number with improved immune reconstitution following initiation of highly active anti-retroviral therapy (p = 0.012), replicating a previous study.

CONCLUSIONS

Our work supports a role for CCL3L1 copy number in immune reconstitution following antiretroviral therapy in HIV, and suggests that the MIP1α -CCR5 axis might be targeted to aid immune reconstitution.

Lack of Epstein-Barr virus infection in Chinese myasthenia gravis patients

OBJECTIVE

There are three recent contradictory reports on the incidence of Epstein-Barr virus in the pathogenesis of myasthenia gravis, with all studies carried out in Caucasian patients. The current study evaluated whether Epstein-Barr virus infection had a role in the pathogenesis of myasthenia gravis in a cohort of 30 Chinese patients.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Serial paraffin sections of thymic hyperplasia obtained from myasthenia gravis patients were analyzed for the presence of Epstein-Barr virus-encoded small RNA -1 and Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein 1 by in situ hybridization and immunohistochemistry, respectively. Epstein-Barr virus(+) cervical lymph nodes from lymphoma patients and Epstein-Barr virus(-) thymus specimens obtained during cardiac surgery served as the positive and negative control groups, respectively.

RESULTS

All the 30 myasthenia gravis specimens were negative for both Epstein-Barr virus-encoded small RNA -1 and Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein 1 tests. However, we obtained well-characterized membrane and cytoplasmic immunohistochemical and in situ hybridization staining for both Epstein-Barr virus latent membrane protein 1 and Epstein-Barr virus-encoded small RNA -1, respectively, in the positive control samples.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results therefore do not support a role of thymic Epstein-Barr virus infection in myasthenia gravis pathogenesis and calls for an integration of methodological and interpretation issues in detecting Epstein-Barr virus incidence in myasthenia gravis patients.

Microbial basis of oral malodor development in humans

To better understand the microbial basis of oral malodor development in humans, we used a cross-sectional and longitudinal study design and the pyrosequencing approach to track and compare the tongue microbiota associated with oral malodor in 29 Chinese adults who underwent a consecutive three-day evaluation for the amount of H2S excreted orally. Three levels of the oral malodor state (healthy, oral malodor, and severe oral malodor) were defined based on the H2S level. Community structure of the tongue plaques was more sensitive to changes of malodor state than to interpersonal variations or differences in sampling times. Within each individual, the structure of microbiota was relatively stable, while their variations were correlated with the change in the H2S level. Severe oral malodor microbiota were the most conserved in community structure, whereas the healthy ones were relatively varied. Oral-malodor-associated bacteria were identified. The relative abundance of Leptotrichia and Prevotella was positively correlated with oral malodor severity, whereas Hemophilus and Gemella exhibited a negative relationship with oral malodor severity. Our study provides one of the first landscapes of oral microbiota changes associated with oral malodor development and reveals microbes potentially useful to the evaluation and control of oral malodor.

Genetic diversity of fluoroquinolone-nonsusceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae clinical isolates and the first identification of serotype 20B in China

The purpose of this study was to investigate the genetic characteristics of fluoroquinolone-nonsusceptible Streptococcus pneumoniae clinical isolates in China. A total of 377 S. pneumoniae clinical isolates, including 307 pediatric strains and 70 adult strains, were collected from eight centers in China. The minimal inhibitory concentrations (MICs) of 10 antimicrobial agents were determined by agar dilution. Multilocus sequence typing (MLST), serotyping, and quinolone resistance-determining region (QRDR) variations were conducted in levofloxacin-nonsusceptible isolates by polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods. Seven levofloxacin-nonsusceptible isolates were found, with an overall resistance rate of 1.9 % (7/377) and 8.6 % (6/70) in adults. Sequence analyses of parC, gyrA, and parE QRDRs in levofloxacin-resistant isolates demonstrated mutations in dual target sites at the hot spots. These seven strains represented multiple clones: two strains were serotype 19F (Taiwan(19F)-14) and MLST clonal complex (CC) 271/320, two were typed as 23F (Spain(23F)-1) and CC81, two were determined as serotype 20B and a new sequence type of ST6935, and one non-serotypeable pediatric strain belonged to a new sequence type of ST6946. Two serotype 19F strains possessed a variety of characteristic alterations of viridans group streptococci in gyrA (Ser114Gly) or parC (Ser52Gly, Asn91Asp). Fluoroquinolone-nonsusceptible S. pneumoniae isolates showed a substantial degree of genetic diversity and belonged to pre-existing epidemic clones together with native clones. S. pneumoniae strains with serotype 20B was recovered for the first time to be associated with levofloxacin resistance in China.

Crystal structure of polymeric carbon nitride and the determination of its process-temperature-induced modifications

Based on the arrangement of two-dimensional 'melon', we construct a unit cell for polymeric carbon nitride (PCN) synthesized via thermal polycondensation, whose theoretical diffraction powder pattern includes all major features measured in x-ray diffraction. With the help of this unit cell, we describe the process-temperature-induced crystallographic changes in PCN that occur within a temperature interval between 510 and 610 °C. We also discuss further potential modifications of the unit cell for PCN. It is found that both triazine- and heptazine-based g-C3N4 can only account for minor phases within the investigated synthesis products.

Search for supersymmetry in hadronic final states with missing transverse energy using the variables αT and b-quark multiplicity in pp collisions at [Formula: see text]

An inclusive search for supersymmetric processes that produce final states with jets and missing transverse energy is performed in pp collisions at a centre-of-mass energy of 8 TeV. The data sample corresponds to an integrated luminosity of 11.7 fb-1 collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. In this search, a dimensionless kinematic variable, αT, is used to discriminate between events with genuine and misreconstructed missing transverse energy. The search is based on an examination of the number of reconstructed jets per event, the scalar sum of transverse energies of these jets, and the number of these jets identified as originating from bottom quarks. No significant excess of events over the standard model expectation is found. Exclusion limits are set in the parameter space of simplified models, with a special emphasis on both compressed-spectrum scenarios and direct or gluino-induced production of third-generation squarks. For the case of gluino-mediated squark production, gluino masses up to 950-1125 GeV are excluded depending on the assumed model. For the direct pair-production of squarks, masses up to 450 GeV are excluded for a single light first- or second-generation squark, increasing to 600 GeV for bottom squarks.

Comparative studies on species identification of Noctuoidea moths in two nature reserve conservation zones (Beijing, China) using DNA barcodes and thin-film biosensor chips

Rapid and accurate identification of species is required for the biological control of pest Noctuoidea moths. DNA barcodes and thin-film biosensor chips are two molecular approaches that have gained wide attention. Here, we compare these two methods for the identification of a limited number of Noctuoidea moth species. Based on the commonly used mitochondrial gene cytochrome c oxidase I (the standard DNA barcode for animal species), 14 probes were designed and synthesized for 14 species shared by two national nature reserves in Beijing and Hebei, China. Probes ranged in length from 18 to 27 bp and were designed as mismatch probes to guarantee that there were at least three base differences between the probe and nontarget sequences. The results on the chip could be detected by the naked eye without needing special equipment. No cross-hybridizations were detected although we tested all probes on the 14 target and 24 nontarget Noctuoidea species. The neighbour-joining tree of the 38 species based on COI sequences gave 38 highly supported independent groups. Both DNA barcoding and thin-film biosensor chips, based on the COI gene, are able to accurately identify and discriminate the 14 targeted moth species in this study. Because of its speed, high accuracy and low cost, the thin-film biosensor chip is a very practical means of species identification. Now, a more comprehensive chip will be developed for the identification of additional Noctuoidea moths for pest control and ecological protection.

Measurement of the Bs(0)→μ+ μ- branching fraction and search for B(0)→μ+ μ- with the CMS experiment

Results are presented from a search for the rare decays Bs(0)→μ+ μ- and B(0)→μ+ μ- in pp collisions at sqrt[s]=7 and 8 TeV, with data samples corresponding to integrated luminosities of 5 and 20  fb(-1), respectively, collected by the CMS experiment at the LHC. An unbinned maximum-likelihood fit to the dimuon invariant mass distribution gives a branching fraction B(Bs(0)→μ+ μ-)=(3.0(-0.9)(+1.0))×10(-9), where the uncertainty includes both statistical and systematic contributions. An excess of Bs(0)→μ+ μ- events with respect to background is observed with a significance of 4.3 standard deviations. For the decay B(0)→μ+ μ- an upper limit of B(B(0)→μ+ μ-)<1.1×10(-9) at the 95% confidence level is determined. Both results are in agreement with the expectations from the standard model.

Pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic relationship of cefquinome against Pasteurella multocida in a tissue-cage model in yellow cattle

The cephalosporin antimicrobial drug cefquinome was administered to yellow cattle intravenously (i.v.) and intramuscularly (i.m.) at a dose of 1 mg/kg of body weight in a two-period crossover study. The pharmacokinetic (PK) properties of cefquinome in serum, inflamed tissue-cage fluid (exudate), and noninflamed tissue-cage fluid (transudate) were studied using a tissue-cage model. The in vitro and ex vivo activities of cefquinome in serum, exudate, and transudate against a pathogenic strain of Pasteurella multocida (P. multocida) were determined. A concentration-independent antimicrobial activity of cefquinome was confirmed for levels lower than 4 × MIC. Integration of in vivo pharmacokinetic data with the in vitro MIC provided mean values for the time that drug levels remain above the MIC (T > MIC) in serum was 14.10 h after intravenous and 14.46 h after intramuscular dosing, indicating a likely high level of effectiveness in clinical infections caused by P. multocida of MIC 0.04 μg/mL or less. These data may be used as a rational basis for setting dosing schedules, which optimize clinical efficacy and minimize the opportunities for emergence of resistant organisms.