Floral pigments and their perception by avian pollinators in three Chilean Puya species.

The Chilean Puya species, Puya coerulea var. violacea and P. chilensis bear blue and pale-yellow flowers, respectively, while P. alpestris considered to be their hybrid-derived species has unique turquoise flowers. In this study, the chemical basis underlying the different coloration of the three Puya species was explored. We first isolated and identified three anthocyanins: delphinidin 3,3',5'-tri-O-glucoside, delphinidin 3,3'-di-O-glucoside and delphinidin 3-O-glucoside; seven flavonols: quercetin 3-O-rutinoside-3'-O-glucoside, quercetin 3,3'-di-O-glucoside, quercetin 3-O-rutinoside, isorhamnetin 3-O-rutinoside, myricetin 3,3',5'-tri-O-glucoside, myricetin 3,3'-di-O-glucoside and laricitrin 3,5'-di-O-glucoside; and six flavones: luteolin 4'-O-glucoside, apigenin 4'-O-glucoside, tricetin 4'-O-glucoside, tricetin 3',5'-di-O-glucoside, tricetin 3'-O-glucoside and selagin 5'-O-glucoside, which is a previously undescribed flavone, from their petals. We also compared compositions of floral flavonoid and their aglycone among these species, which suggested that the turquoise species P. alpestris has an essentially intermediate composition between the blue and pale-yellow species. The vacuolar pH was relatively higher in the turquoise (pH 6.2) and pale-yellow (pH 6.2) flower species, while that of blue flower species was usual (pH 5.2). The flower color was reconstructed in vitro using isolated anthocyanin, flavonol and flavone at neutral and acidic pH, and its color was analyzed by reflectance spectra and the visual modeling of their avian pollinators. The modeling demonstrated that the higher pH of the turquoise and pale-yellow species enhances the chromatic contrast and spectral purity. The precise regulation of flower color by flavonoid composition and vacuolar pH may be adapted to the visual perception of their avian pollinator vision.

The flow of corporate control in the global ownership network.

We propose a model and algorithm to measure the amount of influence a shareholder has over the flow of corporate control held by the ultimate owners. Existing models of corporate ownership and control either focus on the ultimate owners' influence or inadequately evaluate the influence possessed by intermediate shareholders in a ownership network. As it extends Network Power Index (NPI) that describes the the power of corporate control possessed by the ultimate owners, our new model, Network Power Flow (NPF), delineates the distribution of ownership influence among shareholders across the network and identifies the channels through which the ultimate owners' corporate control travel through the global shareholding network. Our analysis of NPI and NPF values for 7 million ultimate owners and 16 million shareholders reveals a new landscape of ownership and control in the global shareholding network that remained opaque before.

Flavonoids from Sedum japonicum subsp. oryzifolium (Crassulaceae).

Twenty-two flavonoids were isolated from the leaves and stems of Sedum japonicum subsp. oryzifolium (Crassulaceae). Of these compounds, five flavonoids were reported in nature for the first time, and identified as herbacetin 3-O-xyloside-8-O-glucoside, herbacetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-(2'''-acetylxyloside), gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-arabinoside, gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-(2'''-acetylxyloside) and hibiscetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-arabinoside via UV, HR-MS, LC-MS, acid hydrolysis and NMR. Other seventeen known flavonoids were identified as herbacetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-arabinoside, herbacetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-xyloside, gossypetin 3-O-glucoside-8-O-xyloside, quercetin, quercetin 3-O-glucoside, quercetin 3-O-xylosyl-(1→2)-rhamnoside-7-O-rhamnoside, quercetin 3-O-rhamnoside-7-O-glucoside, kaempferol, kaempferol 3-O-glucoside, kaempferol 7-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3,7-di-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-glucoside-7-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-glucosyl-(1→2)-rhamnoside-7-O-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-xylosyl-(1→2)-rhamnoside, kaempferol 3-O-xylosyl-(1→2)-rhamnoside-7-O-rhamnoside, myricetin 3-O-glucoside and cyanidin 3-O-glucoside. Some flavonol 3,8-di-O-glycosides were found in Sedum japonicum subsp. oryzifolium as major flavonoids in this survey. They were presumed to be the diagnostic flavonoids in the species. Flavonoids were reported from S. japonicum for the first time.

Propagation of Shocks in Individual Firms Through Supplier-Customer Relationships.

We quantify the magnitude of shock that propagates individual firms through direct supplier-customer relationships. First, we construct machine learning models that predict a firm's sales growth rate based on corporate attributes and sales information of the firm and its suppliers/customers. The prediction models indicate that not only macroeconomic factors, such as the year and country, but also sales fluctuation of suppliers/customers are important predictors of the firm's sales growth rate. Second, we plot the change in the predicted sales growth rates in accordance with those of suppliers/customers using a partial dependence plot. Thus, we quantify how much a firm's sales growth rate changes in accordance with the changes of its suppliers/customers, namely, the magnitude of shock propagation. Finally, we verify the magnitude of shock propagation by comparing it with the sales growth rate of firms that have suppliers/customers negatively impacted by Hurricane Sandy in the U.S. in 2012. The comparison indicates that there is no significant difference between them and further demonstrates that we can simulate how much the shock that occurred in the disaster-affected firms propagates to their transaction firms.

Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Spatial Separation of New and Existing Residents: Case Study of Tsukuba City in Greater Tokyo Area.

For balancing the improvement of social capital through mutual interaction among residents and measures against infectious diseases, municipalities must understand where their residents interact with each other during epidemics. By distinguishing between new and existing residents based on the average age of the houses in their residential areas, we measured the degree of separation between them at various locations and facilities in the Tsukuba City in the Greater Tokyo Area during the daytime based on smartphone location information. We also investigated separation by visitors' residential savings and income class and their age and gender in each location. Separation was observed in almost all the public places in Tsukuba City, even before the COVID-19 outbreak. During the outbreak, many public places and facilities were visited by fewer people, and yet their separation increased. On the other hand, separation lessened in parks, increasing opportunities for residents to interact. Even after the outbreak began, lower separation environments remained in places where food courts and department stores were located compared to other places. In the post-outbreak period, separation returned to its normal level.

Flavonoids and phenylethanoids from the flowers and leaves of Aeschynanthus species and cultivars (Gesneriaceae).

Forty-one flavones, each one of flavonol, chalcone and dihydroflavonol, two flavanones, and four phenylethanoids were isolated from corollas, calyces and leaves of two Aeschynanthus species, A. fulgens and A. pulcher, and six cultivars, 'Mahligai', 'Mona Lisa', SoeKa', 'Redona', 'Freshya' and 'Bravera'. Flavonoids were mainly the glucuronides and/or methylglucuronides based on hispidulin, nepetin, pectolinarigenin, 6-hydroxyluteolin, scutellarein, apigenin and luteolin, and identified by UV spectra, HR-MS, LC-MS, acid hydrolysis, NMR, and/or HPLC and TLC comparisons with authentic samples. Of these flavonoids, twelve, i.e. hispidulin 7,4'-di-O-glucuronide, 7,4'-di-O-methylglucuronide, 7-O-methylglucuronide-4'-O-glucuronide, 7-O-glucuronide-4'-O-methylglucuronide, 7-O-glucosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-glucuronide and 8-C-glucoside, nepetin 7,4'-di-O-glucuronide, 7-O-glucuronide-4'-O-methylglucuronide and 7-O-methylglucuronide-4'-O-glucuronide, pectolinarigenin 7-O-glucosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-glucuronide and 7-O-xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6″-malonylglucoside), and 6-hydroxyluteolin 7,4'-di-O-glucuronide, were previously undescribed.

Coordination of Palladium(II) and Platinum(II) Complexes to One Vacant Site in an α-Keggin-Type Polyoxotungstate.

A palladium-platinum bimetal complex containing a mono-lacunary α-Keggin-type polyoxotungstate is demonstrated. The bimetallic complex Cs2.5{PdII(bpy)}0.25[α-PW11O39{PdII(bpy)}{cis-PtII(NH3)2}]·12H2O·2CH3CN (bpy = 2,2'-bipyridine) (PdPt) was synthesized by the reaction of Cs4.9K0.1[α-PW11O39{cis-PtII(NH3)2}]·10H2O (Pt1) with PdII(bpy)Cl2 in aqueous solution. The compound PdPt was characterized via elemental analysis, thermogravimetric/differential thermal analysis, and Fourier transform infrared, ultraviolet-visible, cold-spray ionization mass, and solution (1H, 13C, and 31P) nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopies. The coordination of {cis-PtII(NH3)2} and {PdII(bpy)} moieties to the mono-vacant site of [PW11O39]7- resulted in an asymmetric, monomeric compound. A unique exchange reaction between the counter cation [PdII(bpy)]2+ and {cis-PtII(NH3)2} moiety in [α-PW11O39{PdII(bpy)}{cis-PtII(NH3)2}]3- in a dimethylsulfoxide solution was also observed.

Visualizing Social and Behavior Change due to the Outbreak of COVID-19 Using Mobile Phone Location Data.

We visualize the rates of stay-home for residents by region using the difference between day-time and night-time populations to detect residential areas, and then observing the numbers of people leaving residential areas. There are issues with measuring stay-home rates by observing numbers of people visiting downtown areas, such as central urban shopping centers and major train stations. The first is that we cannot eliminate the possibility that people will avoid areas being observed and go to other areas. The second is that for people visiting downtown areas, we cannot know where they reside. These issues can be resolved if we quantify the degree of stay-home using the number of people leaving residential areas. There are significant differences in stay-home levels by region throughout Japan. By this visualization, residents of each region can see whether their level of stay-home is adequate or not, and this can provide incentive toward compliance suited to the residents of the region.

Acylated pelargonidin and cyanidin 3-sambubiosides from the flowers of Aeschynanthus species and cultivars.

Thirteen anthocyanins were isolated from the flowers of two Aeschynanthus species, A. fulgens and A. pulcher, and six cultivars, 'Mahligai', 'Mona Lisa', 'SoeKa', 'Redona', 'Freshya' and 'Bravera', and identified as pelargonidin and cyanidin 3-O-sambubiosides and their malonates, succinates, p-coumarates and caffeates, and pelargonidin 3-O-glucoside by acid hydrolysis, HR-MS and NMR. Of their anthocyanins, pelargonidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-malonylglucoside)] (2), pelargonidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-succinylglucoside)] (3), pelargonidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-E-p-coumaroylglucoside)] (4), pelargonidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-Z-p-coumaroylglucoside)] (5), pelargonidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-E-caffeoylglucoside)] (6) and cyanidin 3-O-[xylosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-(6''-succinylglucoside)] (9) were reported in nature for the first time.

Quasi-Static Variation of Power-Law and Log-Normal Distributions of Urban Population.

We analytically derived and confirmed by empirical data the following three relations from the quasi-time-reversal symmetry, Gibrat's law, and the non-Gibrat's property observed in the urban population data of France. The first is the relation between the time variation of the power law and the quasi-time-reversal symmetry in the large-scale range of a system that changes quasi-statically. The second is the relation between the time variation of the log-normal distribution and the quasi-time-reversal symmetry in the mid-scale range. The third is the relation among the parameters of log-normal distribution, non-Gibrat's property, and quasi-time-reversal symmetry.

Socially responsible investing through the equity funds in the global ownership network.

We analyze the connectivity of equity investments to the firms in the global ownership network that are reported as non-compliant with Environment, Social, and Government (ESG) benchmarks. We find that a large number of shareholders have ownership linkages to non-ESG firms, most commonly with three or four degrees of separation. Analyzing the betweenness centrality for shareholders connecting the ultimate owners and non-ESG firms, we find that the investment management companies play important roles in channeling the investment money into non-ESG firms, where largest American asset managers commonly have one to two degrees of separation on their ownership linkages to those problematic firms. Since asset managers collect capital from investors by running the equity funds, we analyze the ownership stakes and the associated voting rights attributable to the equity funds investors. We estimate the distribution of the power of corporate control over non-ESG firms among specific asset managers (such as BlackRock and Fidelity) and among different types of the equity funds (such as mutual funds and exchanged-traded funds), and explores how investing in the equity funds rather than ownership investing may have shifted the distribution of the power to control those non-ESG firms.

Flavonoids in the flowers of Primula ×polyantha Mill. and Primula primulina (Spreng.) H. Hara (Primulaceae).

Two undescribed anthocyanins and two undescribed flavonols were isolated from the flowers of Primula ×polyantha Mill., along with five known anthocyanins and four known flavonols. The two undescribed anthocyanins and the two undescribed flavonols were determined to be hirsutidin 3-O-ß-galactopyranoside-5-O-ß-glucopyranoside, 7-O-methyl-petunidin 3-O-ß-galactopyranoside-5-O-ß-glucopyranoside, quercetin 3-O-ß-[(6""-acetylglucopyranosyl)-(1 â†’ 2)-ß-glucopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 6)-ß-glucopyranoside], and kaempferol 3-O-ß-[(6""-acetylglucopyranosyl)-(1 â†’ 2)-ß-glucopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 6)-ß-glucopyranoside] using chemical and spectroscopic methods. They were also found in the flowers of the Himalayan wild species, Primula primulina (Spreng.) H. Hara except for quercetin 3-O-ß-[(6""-acetylglucopyranosyl)-(1 â†’ 2)-ß-glucopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 6)-ß-glucopyranoside]. The flower color variations of P. ×polyantha cultivars, reflected by the hue values (b*/a*) of the colors, were due to the glycosidic patterns in the anthocyanins and their concentrations in the petals. Moreover, in the P. ×polyantha cultivars with violet-blue flowers, both the intermolecular copigmentation occurs between hirsutidin 3-O-ß-galactopyranoside-5-O-ß-glucopyranoside and another flavonol, quercetin 3-O-ß-glucopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 2)-ß-glucopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 6)-ß-glucopyranoside. Moreover, the flower color variation was affected by the pH value.

MIMO carrier phase recovery for carrier-asynchronous SDM-MIMO reception based on the extended Kalman filter.

We propose a novel phase recovery scheme designed for coherent space division multiplexing (SDM) systems with independently-operated asynchronous light sources. The proposed scheme is based on the approach of the extended Kalman filter and is referred to as multiple-input multiple-output carrier phase recovery (MIMO-CPR). In the minimum mean squared error (MMSE) sense, it simultaneously and optimally obtains estimates of the multiple phase errors arising from phase-unlocked asynchronous light sources. To ensure the scheme's application for SDM fibers with a time-varying property, we also describe a modification to incorporate a MIMO equalization scheme and analyze the computational complexity. The performance of the proposed MIMO-CPR scheme is investigated through numerical simulation, which shows that it has a tolerance for the sum linewidth symbol duration product of up to 3.4 × 10-4, 1.0 × 10-4 and 2.2 × 10-5 for QPSK, 16QAM, and 64QAM signals, respectively, if 1-dB optical signal-to-noise ratio (OSNR) penalty is allowable to achieve BER of 10-3. Transmission experimental results using three spatial modes in a 51-km-long few-mode fiber (FMF) also verify the applicability of the MIMO-CPR scheme to carrier-asynchronous coherent SDM-MIMO systems.

Anthocyanin 5,3'-aromatic acyltransferase from Gentiana triflora, a structural insight into biosynthesis of a blue anthocyanin.

The acylation of anthocyanins contributes to their structural diversity. Aromatic acylation is responsible for the blue color of anthocyanins and certain flowers. Aromatic acyltransferase from Gentiana triflora Pall. (Gentianaceae) (Gt5,3'AT) catalyzes the acylation of glucosyl moieties at the 5 and 3' positions of anthocyanins. Anthocyanin acyltransferase transfers an acyl group to a single position, such that Gt5,3'AT possesses a unique enzymatic activity. Structural investigation of this aromatic acyl group transfer is fundamental to understand the molecular mechanism of the acylation of double positions. In this study, structural analyses of Gt5,3'AT were conducted to identify the underlying mechanism. The crystal structure indicated that Gt5,3'AT shares structural similarities with other BAHD family enzymes, consisting of N and C terminal lobes. Structural comparison revealed that acyl group preference (aromatic or aliphatic) for the enzymes was determined by four amino acid positions, which are well conserved in aromatic and aliphatic CoA-binding acyltransferases. Although a complex structure with anthocyanins was not obtained, the binding of delphinidin 3,5,3'-triglucoside to Gt5,3'AT was investigated by evaluating the molecular dynamics. The simulation indicated that acyl transfer by Gt5,3'AT preferentially occurs at the 5-position rather than at the 3'-position, with interacting amino acids that are mainly located in the C-terminal lobe. Subsequent assays of chimeric enzymes (exchange of the N-terminal lobe and the C-terminal lobe between Gt5,3'AT and lisianthus anthocyanin 5AT) demonstrated that acyl transfer selectivity may be caused by the C-terminal lobe.

Current status of trauma surgery at a Japanese prefectural academic institute: improved organization in a regional prefecture.

PURPOSES: Balancing scheduled surgery and trauma surgery is difficult with a limited number of surgeons. To address the issues and systematize education, we analyzed the current situation and the effectiveness of having a trauma team in the ER of a regional hospital. METHODS: This retrospective study analyzed the demographics, traumatic variables, procedures, postoperative morbidities, and outcomes of 110 patients who underwent trauma surgery between 2012 and 2019. The trauma team was established in 2016 and our university hospital Emergency Room (ER) opened in 2012. RESULTS: Blunt trauma accounted for 82% of the trauma injuries and 39% of trauma victims were transported from local centers to our institute. The most frequently injured organs were in the digestive tract and about half of the interventions were for hemostatic surgery alone. Concomitant treatments for multiple organ injuries were performed in 31% of the patients. The rates of postoperative severe complications (over Clavien-Dindo IIIb) and mortality were 10% and 13%, respectively. Fourteen (12.7%) of 24 patients who underwent damage-control surgery died, with multiple organ injury being the predominant cause of death. CONCLUSION: Systematic education or training of medical students and general surgeons, as well as the co-operation of the team at the regional academic institute, are necessary to overcome the limited human resources and save trauma patients.

Estimation of socioeconomic attributes from location information.

Timely estimation of the distribution of socioeconomic attributes and their movement is crucial for academic as well as administrative and marketing purposes. In this study, assuming personal attributes affect human behavior and movement, we predict these attributes from location information. First, we predict the socioeconomic characteristics of individuals by supervised learning methods, i.e., logistic Lasso regression, Gaussian Naive Bayes, random forest, XGBoost, LightGBM, and support vector machine, using survey data we collected of personal attributes and frequency of visits to specific facilities, to test our conjecture. We find that gender, a crucial attribute, is as highly predictable from locations as from other sources such as social networking services, as done by existing studies. Second, we apply the model trained with the survey data to actual GPS log data to check the performance of our approach in a real-world setting. Though our approach does not perform as well as for the survey data, the results suggest that we can infer gender from a GPS log.

Identification of anthocyanin and other flavonoids from the green-blue petals of Puya alpestris (Bromeliaceae) and a clarification of their coloration mechanism.

To understand the unique green-blue color of Puya alpestris (Bromeliaceae) flowers, we investigated their constituent anthocyanin and related compounds. An anthocyanin, two undescribed flavonols, and two flavones were isolated and identified as delphinidin 3,3',5'-tri-O-ß-glucopyranoside, myricetin 3-O-[α-rhamnopyranosyl-(1 â†’ 6)-ß-glucopyranoside]-3',5'-di-O-ß-glucopyranoside, myricetin 3,3',5'-tri-O-ß-glucopyranoside, luteolin 4'-O-glucoside, and apigenin 4'-O-glucoside. Furthermore, the presence of chlorophyll has also been revealed. P. alpestris petals show a gradient color appearance: Green-blue at the tip and blue at the base. This color difference between the tip and base was used to analyze the pigment components underlying the green-blue color expression. It was found that the petal tip contains the anthocyanin, flavonols, flavones, and chlorophyll in high quantities. Furthermore, the pH of petal juice was 6.2 and 5.6 at the tip and base, respectively. In vitro reconstruction revealed the blue color expression occurred via an intermolecular copigmentation between the anthocyanin and flavones, as well as yellow color expression, which was due to an increase in the absorption at 400-450 nm of the flavonols under the higher pH conditions. Furthermore, we found that the petal extract obtaining using 50% acetone containing chlorophyll showed the same absorption spectrum as that observed for the raw petal. These results indicate that the green-blue color of P. alpestris flowers is developed via an intermolecular co-pigmentation of the anthocyanin (delphinidin 3,3',5'-tri-O-ß-glucopyranoside) with flavones, such as luteolin 4'-O-glucoside, the yellow color expression of flavonols, such as myricetin 3,3',5'-tri-O-glucoside under relatively high pH conditions in the cell sap, and the presence of chlorophyll.

The power of corporate control in the global ownership network.

As passive investment through index funds and Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs) has become pervasive, the structure of corporate control in the global capital market is more complex than before. We propose a new model and calculation algorithm to measure a shareholder's power to control corporations in the global economy. Our method takes into account how fragmented voting rights attached to dispersed ownership may be consolidated to generate corporate control. Analyzing the ownership holdings in 49 million companies worldwide by 69 million shareholders in 2016, we find that the landscape of global corporate control appears differently if we adequately evaluate indirect influence via dispersed ownership. In particular, a larger portion of corporate control appears to be concentrated in the hands of sovereign governments than has been recognized before. Yet, such governmental capacities are "hidden" if we use the conventional method. Moreover, financial institutions appear to not be as powerful as emphasized before. These results point to important financial and political risks both for scholars and policymakers.

Antimicrobial susceptibility surveillance of bacterial isolates recovered in Japan from odontogenic infections in 2013.

We report on the findings of the first antimicrobial susceptibility surveillance study in Japan of isolates recovered from odontogenic infections. Of the 38 facilities where patients representing the 4 groups of odontogenic infections were seen, 102 samples were collected from cases of periodontitis (group 1), 6 samples from pericoronitis (group 2), 84 samples from jaw inflammation (group 3) and 54 samples from phlegmon of the jaw bone area (group 4) for a total of 246 samples. The positivity rates of bacterial growth on culture were 85.3%, 100%, 84% and 88.9%, respectively, for groups 1, 2, 3 and 4. Streptococcus spp. isolation rates according to odontogenic infection group were 22% (group 1), 17.7% (group 3) and 20.7% (group 4). Anaerobic isolation rates were 66.9% (group 1), 71.8% (group 3) and 68.2% (group 4). Drug susceptibility tests were performed on 726 strains excluding 121 strains that were undergrown. The breakdown of the strains subjected to testing was 186 Streptococcus spp., 179 anaerobic gram-positive cocci, 246 Prevotella spp., 27 Porphyromonas spp., and 88 Fusobacterium spp. The isolates were tested against 30 antimicrobial agents. Sensitivities to penicillins and cephems were good except for Prevotella spp. The low sensitivities of Prevotella spp is due to ß-lactamase production. Prevotella strains resistant to macrolides, quinolones, and clindamycin were found. No strains resistant to carbapenems or penems were found among all strains tested. No anaerobic bacterial strain was resistant to metronidazole. Antimicrobial susceptibility testing performed on the S. anginosus group and anaerobic bacteria, which are the major pathogens associated with odontogenic infections, showed low MIC90 values to the penicillins which are the first-line antimicrobial agents for odontogenic infections; however, for Prevotella spp., penicillins combined with ß-lactamase inhibitor showed low MIC90 values.