1,720,958 research outputs found

    A fine-tuned β-catenin regulation during proliferation of corneal endothelial cells revealed using proteomics analysis

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    Corneal endothelial (CE) dysfunction is the main indication for corneal transplantation, an invasive procedure with several limitations. Developing novel strategies to re-activate CE regenerative capacity is, therefore, of fundamental importance. This goal has proved to be challenging as corneal endothelial cells (CEnC) are blocked in the G0/G1 phase of the cell cycle in vivo and, albeit retaining proliferative capacity in vitro, this is further hindered by endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition. Herein we investigated the mechanisms regulating CEnC proliferation in vitro. Comparing the proteome of non-proliferating (in vivo—G0/G1) and proliferating (in vitro—G2/M) rabbit CEnC (rCEnC), 77 proteins, out of 3,328 identified, were differentially expressed in the two groups (p < 0.005). Literature and Gene Ontology analysis revealed β-catenin and transforming growth factor (TGF-β) pathways to be correlated with the identified proteins. Treatment of rCEnC with a β-catenin activator and inhibitor showed that β-catenin activation was necessary during rCEnC proliferation, but not sufficient for its induction. Furthermore, both pro-proliferative activity of basic fibroblast growth factor and anti-proliferative effects of TGF-β were regulated through β-catenin. Overall, these results provide novel insights into the molecular basis underlying the proliferation process that CEnC re-activate in vitro, consolidating the role of β-catenin and TGF-β

    Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis

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    The present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed

    A new storage medium containing amphotericin B versus Optisol-GS for preservation of human donor corneas

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    Background/Aim: We compared the quality of human donor corneas stored in a cold storage medium containing 2.5 μg/ml of amphotericin B (Kerasave, AL.CHI.MI.A. S.R.L., Ponte San Nicolò, Italy) and Optisol-GS (Bausch & Lomb Inc., Bridgewater, NJ, USA) for 14 days. Methods: Sixteen pairs of human donor corneas were collected in Eusol-C (AL.CHI.MI.A. S.R.L., Ponte San Nicolò, Italy). Next, all tissues underwent the first evaluation that included the assessments of central corneal thickness (CCT), endothelial cell density (ECD) measured using both trypan blue staining and specular microscopy, endothelial cell (EC) mortality and morphology, and corneal transparency within 24 hours from recovery (Day 1). Afterwards, one cornea of each pair was transferred into Kerasave or Optisol-GS. ECD and CCT were also assessed at Day 7, and all the metrics were evaluated again at the end of the storage period (Day 14). Results: At all tested time points, no differences were found in the qualitative (corneal transparency, EC morphology) and quantitative metrics (ECD, CCT, EC mortality) between the Kerasave and the Optisol-GS storage groups. At Day 14, the corneas stored in Kerasave and Optisol-GS showed ECD of 2312±98 and 2335±128 cells/mm2 (p=0.886), CCT of 717±17 and 697±19 μm (p=0.454) and central EC mortality of 0.54%±0.40% and 0.14%±0.14% (p=0.719), respectively. Conclusions: The new amphotericin B-containing medium Kerasave was comparable to Optisol-GS in terms of preservation of corneal characteristics at 2-8°C for 14 days

    Variations on the Author

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    “Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship

    Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis

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    We provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis

    Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts

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    We conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more sophisticated methods

    Author Index

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    koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist

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    We have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
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