bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Impact of positional difference on the measurement of breast density using MRI
Authors: Chen Jeon‐Hor , Chan Siwa , Tang Yi‐Ting , Hon Jia Shen , Tseng Po‐Chuan , Cheriyan Angela T. , Shah Nikita Rakesh , Yeh Dah‐Cherng , Lee San‐Kan , Chen Wen‐Pin , McLaren Christine E. , Su Min‐Ying
Published: April 2015

Purpose:

This study investigated the impact of arms/hands and body position on the measurement of breast density using MRI.

Methods:

Noncontrast‐enhanced T1‐weighted images were acquired from 32 healthy women. Each subject received four MR scans using different experimental settings, including a high resolution hands‐up, a low resolution hands‐up, a high resolution hands‐down, and finally, another high resolution hands‐up after repositioning. The breast segmentation was performed using a fully automatic chest template‐based method. The breast volume (BV), fibroglandular tissue volume (FV), and percent density (PD) measured from the four MR scan settings were analyzed.

Results:

A high correlation of BV, FV, and PD between any pair of the four MR scans was noted (r > 0.98 for all). Using the generalized estimating equation method, a statistically significant difference in mean BV among four settings was noted (left breast, score test p = 0.0056; right breast, score test p = 0.0016), adjusted for age and body mass index. Despite differences in BV, there were no statistically significant differences in the mean PDs among the four settings (p > 0.10 for left and right breasts). Using Bland–Altman plots, the smallest mean difference/bias and standard deviations for BV, FV, and PD were noted when comparing hands‐up high vs low resolution when the breast positions were exactly the same.

Conclusions:

The authors’ study showed that BV, FV, and PD measurements from MRI of different positions were highly correlated. BV may vary with positions but the measured PD did not differ significantly between positions. The study suggested that the percent density analyzed from MRI studies acquired using different arms/hands and body positions from multiple centers can be combined for analysis.
A dual‐Kinect approach to determine torso surface motion for respiratory motion correction in PET
Authors: Heß Mirco , Büther Florian , Gigengack Fabian , Dawood Mohammad , Schäfers Klaus P.
Published: April 2015

Purpose:

Respiratory gating is commonly used to reduce blurring effects and attenuation correction artifacts in positron emission tomography (PET). Established clinically available methods that employ body‐attached hardware for acquiring respiration signals rely on the assumption that external surface motion and internal organ motion are well correlated. In this paper, the authors present a markerless method comprising two Microsoft Kinects for determining the motion on the whole torso surface and aim to demonstrate its validity and usefulness—including the potential to study the external/internal correlation and to provide useful information for more advanced correction approaches.

Methods:

The data of two Kinects are used to calculate 3D representations of a patient's torso surface with high spatial coverage. Motion signals can be obtained for any position by tracking the mean distance to a virtual camera with a view perpendicular to the surrounding surface. The authors have conducted validation experiments including volunteers and a moving high‐precision platform to verify the method's suitability for providing meaningful data. In addition, the authors employed it during clinical 18F‐FDG‐PET scans and exemplarily analyzed the acquired data of ten cancer patients. External signals of abdominal and thoracic regions as well as data‐driven signals were used for gating and compared with respect to detected displacement of present lesions. Additionally, the authors quantified signal similarities and time shifts by analyzing cross‐correlation sequences.

Results:

The authors’ results suggest a Kinect depth resolution of approximately 1 mm at 75 cm distance. Accordingly, valid signals could be obtained for surface movements with small amplitudes in the range of only few millimeters. In this small sample of ten patients, the abdominal signals were better suited for gating the PET data than the thoracic signals and the correlation of data‐driven signals was found to be stronger with abdominal signals than with thoracic signals (average Pearson correlation coefficients of 0.74 ± 0.17 and 0.45 ± 0.23, respectively). In all cases, except one, the abdominal respiratory motion preceded the thoracic motion—a maximum delay of approximately 600 ms was detected.

Conclusions:

The method provides motion information with sufficiently high spatial and temporal resolution. Thus, it enables meaningful analysis in the form of comparisons between amplitudes and phase shifts of signals from different regions. In combination with a large field‐of‐view, as given by combining the data of two Kinect cameras, it yields surface representations that might be useful in the context of motion correction and motion modeling.
H1N1 pneumonitis associated with long-term non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug abuse
Authors: Prower Emma , Hasnain Ozair , Oscier Chris
Published: April 2015

This case series discusses two similar presentations of H1N1 influenza in young patients with a background history of long-term non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) abuse. Both patients presented with type 1 respiratory failure requiring intensive care unit admission and subsequent organ support. This report reviews the immunosuppressive effects of long-term NSAID use and highlights a potential link to the significant morbidity seen.
Fish Malodour syndrome in a child
Authors: Oliveira Alexandra , Faria Ana , Oliva Mónica
Published: April 2015

Body odour can be a manifestation of several metabolic diseases. Diagnosis may be difficult because the disease is often unknown to the doctor. We present a child observed in a general paediatric clinic for bad body odour after eating fish. Given the suspicion of trimethylaminuria, molecular study of flavin mono-oxygenase 3 gene was requested. A pathogenic mutation and polymorphism were identified, which could explain the complaint. Dietary and hygienic measures were imposed with symptom improvement.
Chronic candida endophthalmitis as a cause of intermediate uveitis
Authors: Amin Rowayda Mohamed , Hamdy Islam , Osman Ihab Mohamed
Published: April 2015

Intermediate uveitis is a subset of intraocular inflammation where vitritis is the most consistent sign, with or without snowball opacities or snow banks over the pars plana. Some patients will have an associated underlying systemic disease such as sarcoidosis, multiple sclerosis, ocular tuberculosis, inflammatory bowel disease, possibly Behçet's disease and intraocular lymphoma, whereas some will be classified as pars planitis in case of the lack of an identifiable systemic disease association. Our patient, a 47-year-old woman, developed intermediate uveitis after cataract surgery in her right eye, was misdiagnosed as pars planitis, and received steroid monotherapy for 8 months. Her inflammation only fully resolved after vitrectomy with removal of the intraocular lens (IOL) and capsular bag. Oral fluconazole and intravitreal amphotericin B injection had failed to resolve her inflammation whenCandida albicanswas identified as the cause of her persistent intermediate uveitis.
Detection and distribution of cell growth regulators and cellulose microfibrils during the development of Lopesia sp. galls on Lonchocarpus cultratus (Fabaceae)
Authors: Suzuki Aline Yasko Marinho , Bedetti Cibele Souza , Isaias Rosy Mary dos Santos
Published: April 2015

Gall-inducing insects cause their plant hosts’ cells to redifferentiate, divide, and elongate, which are processes mediated by cell growth regulators. In this study, the histochemical detection of these regulators, and of cellulose microfibrils were performed in a gall induced by Lopesia sp. (Cecidomyiidae) on Lonchocarpus cultratus (Vell.) A.M.G.Azevedo & H.C.Lima. The co-occurrence of reactive oxygen species, (poly)phenols, flavonoids, and indole-3-acetic acid are age-independent and are detected at the sites of cell hypertrophy. Nevertheless, the intensity of the reactions may vary from young to mature galls. First, changes in the axis of cell elongation are observed from the non-galled leaflets to the young galls, in the cortical parenchyma and in the nutritive tissue. During maturation, the elongation axis of the nutritive cells changes again. In young galls, sites of hyperplasia and hypertrophy co-occur, and in mature galls, the orientation of cellulose microfibrils determines the predominant anisotropic pattern of cell expansion. The detection of (poly)phenols and indole-3-acetic acid, reactive oxygen species, and flavonoids coincide with the sites of cell elongation and division. These results denote a chemical balance between the regulation of growth and the avoidance of cell death at gall sites. The rearrangement of cellulose microfibrils coordinates the anisotropic expansion, which determines the development of the tissue projections both to adaxial and abaxial leaflet lamina, typical to this gall morphotype.
Simultaneous optimization of harvest schedule and data quality
Authors: Kangas Annika , Hartikainen Markus , Miettinen Kaisa
Published: April 2015

In many recent studies, the value of forest inventory information in harvest scheduling has been examined. In a previous paper, we demonstrated that making measurement decisions for stands for which the harvest decision is uncertain simultaneously with the harvest decisions may be highly profitable. In that study, the quality of additional measurements was not a decision variable, and the only options were between making no measurements or measuring perfect information. In this study, we introduce data quality into the decision problem, i.e., the decisionmaker can select between making imperfect or perfect measurements. The imperfect information is obtained with a specific scenario tree formulation. Our decision problem includes three types of decisions: harvest decisions, measurement decisions, and decisions about measurement quality. In addition, the timing of the harvests and measurements must be decided. These decisions are evaluated based on two objectives: discounted aggregate income for the planning periods and the end value of the forest at the end of the planning horizon. Solving the bi-objective optimization problem formed using the ε-constraint method showed that imperfect information was mostly sufficient for the harvest timing decisions during the planning horizon but perfect information was required to meet the end-value constraint. The relative importance of the two objectives affects the measurements indirectly by increasing or decreasing the number of certain decisions (i.e., situations in which the optimal decision is identical in all scenarios).
Radial growth responses of four oak species to climate in eastern and central North America
Authors: LeBlanc David C. , Stahle David W.
Published: April 2015

This study characterized associations between climate variables and radial growth of four oak species at sites distributed across central and eastern North America. Tree-ring data were obtained from 24, 29, 33, and 55 sites for Quercus prinus L., Quercus velutina Lam., Quercus macrocarpa Michx., and Quercus stellate Wangenh., respectively. Pearson’s correlation coefficients were computed between radial growth and monthly and seasonal temperature and precipitation. Growth was most strongly and consistently correlated with precipitation and temperature during the early growing season (May to July). Coincident positive correlations with precipitation and negative correlations with temperature indicate that this relationship is mediated by site water balance. The combination of this plausible cause–effect mechanism and extensive spatial replication of these correlations suggest that they reflect cause–effect relationships. Growth of Q. stellata was correlated with precipitation during the dormant season, suggesting that stored soil water is important for growth of this species in the southern Great Plains. Despite substantial spatial variation in temperature and growing-season initiation between sites in Texas and Manitoba, Canada, there was little variation in the phenology of growth–climate associations; growth–climate correlations were strongest during the same May–July period at all sites. Results of this study support the hypothesis that temperate zone ring-porous oak species have similar phenology of growth–climate correlations and can be treated as a biologically meaningful functional group in forest simulation models.
Ecological segregation among Thick-billed Murres (Urialomvia) and Common Murres (Uriaaalge) in the Northwest Atlantic persists through the nonbreeding season
Authors: McFarlane Tranquilla L. , Montevecchi W.A. , Hedd A. , Regular P.M. , Robertson G.J. , Fifield D.A. , Devillers R.
Published: April 2015

To study the influence of inter- and intra-specific interactions on patterns of ecological segregation in nonbreeding habitat, we used geolocators to track year-round movements of congeneric and partially sympatric Thick-billed Murres (Uria lomvia (L., 1758)) and Common Murres (Uria aalge (Pontoppidan, 1763)) from seven Canadian colonies during 2007–2011. Locations from 142 individuals were (i) examined for species- and colony-specific spatiotemporal patterns, (ii) mapped with environmental data, and (iii) used to delineate core wintering areas. Compared with Common Murres, Thick-billed Murres dispersed across a wider range of latitudes and environments, had larger winter ranges, and showed greater variation in seasonal timing of movements. These interspecific differences were consistent at two scales: among colonies spanning a wide latitudinal range and at a sympatric colony. Intraspecifically, nonbreeding ecological segregation was more pronounced among colonies of Thick-billed Murres than of Common Murres: colonies of Thick-billed Murres tended to follow distinct movement patterns and segregate by latitude, whereas colonies of Common Murres segregated very little; moreover, the extent of segregation was more variable among Thick-billed Murres than Common Murres. For Thick-billed Murres, rather than complete divergence of winter ecological niche from Common Murres, we found a “widening” of an overlapping niche. This strategy of increased movement flexibility may enable Thick-billed Murres to mitigate competition both intra- and inter-specifically; we propose this movement strategy may have played a role in species divergence.
New and old about renormalons: In memoriam Kolya Uraltsev
Authors: Shifman M.
Published: April 2015

I summarize what we know of renormalons from the 1970s and 80s: their uses and theoretical status. It is emphasized that renormalons in QCD are closely related to the Wilsonean operator product expansion (OPE) — a setup ideally suited for dealing with the factorially divergent series reflecting infrared dynamics. I discuss a breakthrough proposal due to Uraltsev et al. to use renormalons to evaluate nonperturbative (power) corrections in the processes without OPE. Some fresh ideas which were put forward recently are briefly discussed too, with emphasis on a possible relationship between resurgence via trans-series and OPE.

This article is devoted to the memory of my friend Kolya Uraltsev. I should emphasize that these are my personal recollections. Other people who closely knew Kolya may or may not agree with my opinions.
Inclusive semileptonic B decays and |Vcb|: In memoriam Kolya Uraltsev
Authors: Gambino Paolo
Published: April 2015

The CKM matrix elements |Vcb| can be extracted from inclusive semileptonic B decays in a model independent way pioneered by Kolya Uraltsev and collaborators. I review here the present status and latest developments in this field.
Exclusive decays in the heavy quark expansion: From models to real QCD
Authors: Mannel Thomas
Published: April 2015

In this article I discuss a few aspects of exclusive decays of heavy mesons from the specific perspective of Kolya Uraltsev's contributions to this field. The selection of topics as well as their presentation reflects my personal view on Kolya's work and also includes some personal remarks related to my collaboration with him.
Isgur–Wise functions, Bjorken–Uraltsev sum rules and their Lorentz group interpretation
Authors: Oliver L. , Raynal J.-C.
Published: April 2015

In the heavy quark limit of QCD, using the Operator Product Expansion and the non-forward amplitude, as proposed by Nikolai Uraltsev, we formulate sum rules that generalize Bjorken and Uraltsev sum rules. We recover the Uraltsev lower bound for the slope of the Isgur–Wise (IW) function, that we generalize to higher derivatives. We show that these results have a clear interpretation in terms of the Lorentz group, since the IW function is given by an overlap between the initial and final light clouds, related by Lorentz transformations. Both the Lorentz group and the Sum Rules approaches are equivalent. Moreover, we formulate an integral representation of the IW function with a positive measure. Inverting this integral formula, we obtain the measure in terms of the IW function, allowing one to formulate criteria to decide if a given ansatz for the IW function is compatible or not with the sum rule constraints. We compare these theoretical constraints to some forms proposed in the literature.
Consolidating Heterogeneous Enterprise Data for Named Entity Linking and Web Intelligence
Authors: Weichselbraun Albert , Streiff Daniel , Scharl Arno
Published: April 2015

Linking named entities to structured knowledge sources paves the way for state-of-the-art Web intelligence applications which assign sentiment to the correct entities, identify trends, and reveal relations between organizations, persons and products. For this purpose this paper introduces Recognyze, a named entity linking component that uses background knowledge obtained from linked data repositories, and outlines the process of transforming heterogeneous data silos within an organization into a linked enterprise data repository which draws upon popular linked open data vocabularies to foster interoperability with public data sets. The presented examples use comprehensive real-world data sets from Orell Füssli Business Information, Switzerland's largest business information provider. The linked data repository created from these data sets comprises more than nine million triples on companies, the companies' contact information, key people, products and brands. We identify the major challenges of tapping into such sources for named entity linking, and describe required data pre-processing techniques to use and integrate such data sets, with a special focus on disambiguation and ranking algorithms. Finally, we conduct a comprehensive evaluation based on business news from the New Journal of Zurich and AWP Financial News to illustrate how these techniques improve the performance of the Recognyze named entity linking component.
Measuring the Strength of the Semantic Relationship Between Words
Authors: Stanchev Lubomir
Published: April 2015

We propose a novel way for extracting the strength of the semantic relationship between words from semi-structured sources, such as WordNet. Unlike existing approaches that only explore the structured information (e.g., the hypernym relationship in WordNet), we present a framework that allows us to utilize all available information, including natural text descriptions. Our approach constructs a similarity graph that stores the strength of the semantic relationship between words. Specifically, an edge between two words describes the probability that someone who is interested in resources about the first word will be also interested in resources about the second word. Note that the graph is asymmetric because the probability that someone is interested in the second word given that they are interested in the first word is not the same as the probability that they are interested in the first word given that they are interested in the second word. The similarity between any two words in the graph can be computed as a function of the directed paths between the two nodes in the graph that represent the words.

We evaluate the quality of the data in the similarity graph by comparing the similarity of pairs of words using our software that uses the graph with results of studies that are performed with human subjects. To the best of our knowledge, our software produces better correlation with the results of both the Miller and Charles study and the WordSimilarity-353 study than any other published research. We also present an extended evaluation section that describes how the different heuristics that we use affect the correlation score.
The minimization of the number of colors is different at p = 11
Authors: Lopes Pedro
Published: April 2015

In this article we present the following new fact for prime p = 11. For knots 62 and 72, mincol11 62 = 5 = mincol11 72, along with the following feature. There is a pair of diagrams, one for 62 and the other one for 72, each of them admitting only non-trivial 11-colorings using five colors, but neither of them admitting being colored with the sets of five colors that color the other one. This new fact is in full contrast with the behavior exhibited by links admitting non-trivial p-colorings over the smaller primes, p = 2, 3, 5 or 7. We also prove results concerning obstructions to the minimization of colors over generic odd moduli. We apply these to finding the right colors to eliminate from non-trivial colorings. We thus prove that 5 is the minimum number of colors for each knot of prime determinant 11 or 13 from Rolfsen's table.
MAGNETIC FLUID HYPERTHERMIA IN A CYLINDRICAL GEL CONTAINS WATER FLOW
Authors: HEYDARI MORTEZA , JAVIDI MEHRDAD , ATTAR MOHAMMAD MAHDI , KARIMI ALIREZA , NAVIDBAKHSH MAHDI , HAGHPANAHI MOHAMMAD , AMANPOUR SAEID
Published: April 2015

In magnetic fluid hyperthermia (MFH), nanoparticles are injected into a diseased tissue and then subjected to an alternating high frequency magnetic field. The produced heat may have a key asset to destroy the cancerous cells. The blood flow in a tissue is considered as the most complicated part of the MFH which should be taken into account in the analysis of the MFH. This study was aimed to perform an experimental study to investigate the heat transfer of agar gel which contains fluid flow. Fe 3 O 4 as a nanoparticle was injected into the center of a cylindrical gel. It was also embedded with other cylindrical gels and subjected to an alternating magnetic field of 7.3 (kA/m) and a frequency of 50 (kHz) for 3600 (s). The temperature of the gel was measured at three points. The temperature distribution was measured via the experimental data. Moreover, specific absorption rate (SAR) was quantified with time differential temperature function at t = 0 by means of experimental data. Finite element method (FEM) was employed to establish a model to validate the SAR function. Results revealed the effects of fluid flow and accuracy of the SAR function for heat production in gel. The proposed function have implications in hyperthermia studies as a heat generation source. Finally, the condition of experimental setup was simulated to find the blood perfusion.
FSI SIMULATION OF A HEALTHY CORONARY BIFURCATION FOR STUDYING THE MECHANICAL STIMULI OF ENDOTHELIAL CELLS UNDER DIFFERENT PHYSIOLOGICAL CONDITIONS
Authors: PAKRAVAN HOSSEIN ALI , SAIDI MOHAMMAD SAID , FIROOZABADI BAHAR
Published: April 2015

Atherosclerosis is a world-spread and well-known disease. This disease strongly relates to the endothelial cells (ECs) function. Normally, the endothelial cells align in the flow direction in the atheroprotected sites; however, in the case of atheroprone sites these cells orient randomly. The mechanical stimuli such as wall shear stress and strains could determine the morphology and function of the endothelial cells. In the present study, we numerically simulated the left main coronary artery (LCA) and its branches to left anterior descending (LAD) and left circumflex coronary (LCX) artery using fluid–structure interaction (FSI) modeling. The results were presented as longitudinal and circumferential strains of ECs as well as wall shear stress. Wide ranges of heart rate, cardiac motion, systolic and diastolic pressures were considered and their effects on mechanical stimuli were described in detail. The results showed that these factors could greatly influence the risk of atherosclerosis and the location of atherosclerotic lesions.
Optimal Design of Broadband Radar Absorbing Sandwich Structure with Circuit Analog Absorber Core
Authors: Chen Mingji , Zhu Xiaolei , Lei Hongshuai , Fang Daining , Zhang Zhong
Published: April 2015

Circuit analog (CA) absorbers have advantages of broadband radar absorption and feasibility in realizing the design blueprint. In this paper, a kind of radar absorbing sandwich structure (RASS) with rigid CA absorber core is proposed, which is capable of broadband absorption as well as load bearing. The numerical approach to predict the broadband reflectivity of CA absorber is introduced into an adaptive genetic algorithm (AGA) so as to derive the optimal RASS design within a certain frequency range. Furthermore, mechanical constraints including facesheet yielding, core shearing, and facesheet wrinkling, are incorporated into the optimization procedure to derive the optimal design of a one-side clamped RASS panel subjected to uniformly distributed loads. The results indicate that, when the layer number of lossy films is fixed, the radar absorbing performance (RAP) is not improved monotonically with the structure thickness, and by the present optimization procedure, an optimal structure thickness together with position, sheet resistance and geometry of the lossy films can be expected for such kind of RASS.
Asymptotic Analysis of the Maxwell Garnett Formula Using the Two-Phase Composite Model
Authors: Andrianov Igor V. , Awrejcewicz Jan , Starushenko Galina A.
Published: April 2015

In this paper, a two-phase computational model of a composite (TwPM) with cylindrical inclusion of square cross-sections and small sizes is proposed. The applied asymptotic techniques devoted to the analysis of the constructed TwPM are validated through a comparison of the results reported by others. A simple analytical formula of the reduced heat transfer parameter for small size of inclusions is derived, and an asymptotic character of Maxwell Garnett (MG) formula is illustrated.
Autophagic Markers BECLIN 1 and LC3 Are Associated with Prognosis of Multiple Myeloma
Authors: Jung Geunyoung , Roh Jin , Lee Hyangsin , Gil Minchan , Yoon Doc Hyun , Suh Cheolwon , Jang Seongsoo , Park Chan-Jeoung , Huh Jooryung , Park Chan-Sik
Published: April 2015

Background/Aims: Autophagy is crucial for the survival and function of plasma cells including protection from toxic misfolded immunoglobulin and proper energy metabolism. Multiple myeloma (MM) is an indolent but eventually fatal neoplasm of plasma cells. Autophagy may play a critical role in the survival of MM cells and their response to chemotherapeutic agents. In this study, we correlated the expression of autophagy-related proteins with the prognosis of MM. Methods: In this retrospective cohort study, we examined the expression of the autophagic markers BECLIN 1 and microtubule-associated protein light chain 3 (LC3) in 89 cases of MM biopsied from 2001 to 2004 at the Asan Medical Center. The association of the expression scores of these markers with clinical outcomes was assessed. Results: Patients with strong immunoreactivity to BECLIN 1 or LC3 had a significantly better overall survival (OS) than patients with negative to moderate immunoreactivity (p = 0.036 and 0.018, respectively). This was also true for disease-specific survival (DSS; p = 0.051 and 0.043, respectively). In addition, LC3 immunostaining remained an independent factor impacting OS (p = 0.028) and DSS (p = 0.020) after multivariate analysis. Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that higher immunoreactivity for autophagic markers in MM is associated with superior patient survival.
The Effect of Sphingosine 1-Phosphate/Sphingosine 1-Phosphate Receptor on Neutrophil Function and the Relevant Signaling Pathway
Authors: Wang Zhongying , Fan Huahua , Xie Rufeng , Yang Jie , Ren Yana , Yang Yiming , Li Wei
Published: April 2015

Background/Aims: This study investigated the priming effect of sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) on formyl-Met-Leu-Phe-OH (fMLP)-activated neutrophils, by specific analysis of the neutrophil respiratory burst and the signaling pathway involved in S1P activity. Methods: The neutrophil respiratory burst was indirectly detected by the cytochrome c reduction method and the dihydrorhodamine 123 staining method. The signal transduction pathways of neutrophil respiratory burst primed by S1P were detected by Western blotting. Results: Our results showed that the S1P receptors (S1PRs) 1, 4 and 5 were the predominantly expressed neutrophil S1PRs at the cDNA level. After pretreatment with S1P, the fMLP-activated neutrophils released increased levels of superoxide anions. PI3K and Akt proteins were involved in the signaling pathway of the neutrophil respiratory burst primed by S1P. Conclusion: The results indicate that S1P is a new priming reagent for neutrophils and primes the respiratory burst of fMLP-activated neutrophils. S1P interacts with its receptors on neutrophils, resulting in NADPH oxidase activation by the PI3K-Akt cell signaling pathway and induction of the neutrophil respiratory burst.
The CERAD Neuropsychological Battery in Patients with Frontotemporal Lobar Degeneration
Authors: Haanpää Ramona M. , Suhonen Noora-Maria , Hartikainen Päivi , Koivisto Anne M. , Moilanen Virpi , Herukka Sanna-Kaisa , Hänninen Tuomo , Remes Anne M.
Published: April 2015

Background/Aims: The diagnosis of frontotemporal lobar degeneration (FTLD) is based on neuropsychological examination in addition to clinical symptoms and brain imaging. There is no simple, validated, cognitive tool available in screening for FTLD. The Consortium to Establish a Registry for Alzheimer's Disease neuropsychological battery (CERAD-NB) was originally devised to identify the early cognitive changes related to Alzheimer's disease (AD). Our aim was to investigate the utility of the CERAD-NB in FTLD. Methods: Patients with FTLD (n = 95) and AD (n = 90) were assessed with the CERAD-NB, Trail Making Test parts A and B and single-letter Phonemic Fluency. Results: FTLD patients were more severely impaired in the Verbal Fluency subtest in the CERAD-NB and Trail Making Test part A compared to AD patients. In addition, AD patients were more impaired in memory subtests compared to FTLD patients. Conclusion: The CERAD-NB may be a useful tool in screening for FTLD. Impaired performance in Verbal Fluency with moderately well-preserved Delayed Recall and Memory Tests may help in identifying patients with probable FTLD and discriminating FTLD from AD. Adding the Trail Making Test to the battery might enhance its value as a screening instrument for FTLD.
Hangeshashinto Improves the Completion Rate of Chemoradiotherapy and the Nutritional Status in Patients with Head and Neck Cancer
Authors: Hatakeyama Hiromitsu , Takahashi Hiroki , Oridate Nobuhiko , Kuramoto Rinnosuke , Fujiwara Keishi , Homma Akihiro , Takeda Hiroshi , Fukuda Satoshi
Published: April 2015

Purpose: Severe oral and pharyngeal mucositis is one of the most critical toxicities known to lead to the discontinuation of chemoradiotherapy (CRT) for head and neck cancer (HNC). Hangeshashinto (TJ-14) is a Kampo medicine that relieves chemotherapy-induced oral mucositis. We investigated the effect of TJ-14 on mucositis, nutritional status, and the completion rate of CRT. Methods: The study group comprised patients with advanced HNC who were treated with concomitant weekly cisplatin and 70 Gy of radiotherapy. The primary endpoint was the completion rate of chemotherapy, and the secondary endpoints were the grade of mucositis and the nutritional status. Results: A total of 57 patients were included in this study. The completion rate of CRT among patients who were treated with TJ-14 was 91.4%. There was a significant difference in the completion rate of CRT between the groups treated with and without TJ-14 (p = 0.0452). The reduction in body weight was significantly improved from 10.89 to 5.89% with TJ-14 administration (p = 0.003), and the reduction in serum albumin was also significantly decreased from 17.37 to 8.73%. (p = 0.024). Conclusion: This therapy allowed a high completion rate of CRT as well as significant benefits in terms of nutritional status. We plan to carry out a further large-scale study of TJ-14.
First record of the family Heloridae (Hymenoptera: Proctotrupoidea) from Iran, with description of a new species
Authors: IZADIZADEH MOHAMMAD , TALEBI ALI ASGHAR , ACHTERBERG CORNELIS VAN , RAKHSHANI EHSAN
Published: April 2015

For the first time in more than 100 years, a new western Palaearctic species of Heloridae is described. Specimens of Helorus alborzicus Izadizadeh, van Achterberg & Talebi sp. nov. and Helorus ruficornis Förster were collected from the Alborz province of Iran. An illustrated identification key for Western Palaearctic Heloridae is provided.
Nomenclatural status of Euptychia mollina Hübner, 1818 (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae: Satyrinae)
Authors: LAMAS GERARDO , NAKAHARA SHINICHI
Published: April 2015

The purpose of this note is to clarify the nomenclatural status of Euptychia mollina Hübner, 1818, the type species of Euptychia Hübner, 1818, as there seems to be confusion regarding its year of publication. Due to an unfortunate oversight, Lamas (2004) listed the name as Euptychia mollina (Hübner, [1813]), and this mistake has been repeated in the subsequent literature (e.g. Brévignon 2005; Warren et al. 2014; Neild et al. 2014).
Redescription and reclassification of the African termite, Forficulitermes planifrons (Isoptera, Termitidae, Termitinae)
Authors: SCHEFFRAHN RUDOLF H. , KŘEČEK JAN
Published: April 2015

Forficulitermes planifrons is a monotypic genus and species described by Emerson (1960) from three soldiers and a single worker. All known occurrences of Forficulitermes (Emerson 1960, Wango & Josens 2011, this study) originate from equatorial middle Africa. Emerson (1960) compared soldiers of Forficulitermes with Basidentitermes, Proboscitermes, Orthotermes, Profastigitermes, and Fastigitermes, (the latter all in the Cubitermitinae) with respect to the general shape of the labrum, but found no similarities among these genera with respect to either the former’s mandibles or the undulating profile surrounding its fontanelle. The only worker morphology noted for F. planifrons by Emerson (1960) was a pair of worn mandibles. Based largely on the enteric valve armature, we herein redescribe F. planifrons and assign this genus to the subfamily Termitinae.
The Sensitivity of Hurricane Irene to Aerosols and Ocean Coupling: Simulations with WRF Spectral Bin Microphysics
Authors: Lynn Barry H. , Khain Alexander P. , Bao Jian Wen , Michelson Sara A. , Yuan Tianle , Kelman Guy , Rosenfeld Daniel , Shpund Jacob , Benmoshe Nir
Published: April 2015

Hurricane Irene (2011) moved northward along the eastern coast of the United States and was expected to cause severe wind and flood damage. However, the hurricane weakened much faster than was predicted. Moreover, the minimum pressure in Irene occurred, atypically, about 40 h later than the time of maximum wind speed. Possible reasons for Irene’s weakening and the time shift between maximum wind and minimum central pressure were studied in simulations using WRF with spectral bin microphysics (WRF-SBM) with 1-km grid spacing and ocean coupling. Both ocean coupling and aerosol distribution/concentration were found to influence Irene’s development. Without ocean coupling or with ocean coupling and uniform aerosol distribution, the simulated maximum wind occurred at about the same time as the minimum pressure. With ocean coupling and nonuniform spatial aerosol distributions caused by aerosols from the Saharan air layer (band) and the continental United States, the maximum wind occurred about 40 h before the simulated minimum pressure, in agreement with observations. Concentrations of aerosols of several hundred per cubic centimeter in the inner core were found to initially cause convection invigoration in the simulated eyewall. In contrast, a weakening effect dominated at the mature and the decaying stages, when aerosols from the band and land intensified convection at the simulated storm’s periphery. Simulations made with 3-km instead of 1-km grid spacing suggest that cloud-scale processes interactions are required to correctly simulate the timing differences between maximum wind and minimum pressure.
Stationary Eddies and the Zonal Asymmetry of Net Precipitation and Ocean Freshwater Forcing
Authors: Wills Robert C. , Schneider Tapio
Published: April 2015

Transport of water vapor in the atmosphere generates substantial spatial variability of net precipitation (precipitation minus evaporation). Over half of the total spatial variability in annual-mean net precipitation is accounted for by deviations from the zonal mean. Over land, these regional differences determine differences in surface water availability. Over oceans, they account, for example, for the Pacific–Atlantic difference in sea surface salinity, with implications for the deep overturning circulation. This study analyzes the atmospheric water budget in reanalyses from ERA-Interim and MERRA, to investigate which physical balances lead to zonal variation in net precipitation. It is found that the leading-order contribution is zonal variation in stationary-eddy vertical motion. Transient eddies modify the pattern of zonally anomalous net precipitation by moving moisture from the subtropical and tropical oceans onto land and poleward across the Northern Hemisphere storm tracks. Zonal variation in specific humidity and stationary-eddy horizontal advection play a secondary role. The dynamics leading to net precipitation via vertical motion in stationary eddies can be understood from a lower-tropospheric vorticity budget. The large-scale variations of vertical motion are primarily described by Sverdrup balance and Ekman pumping, with some modification by transient eddies. These results suggest that it is important to understand changes in stationary eddies and their influence on the zonal variation of transient eddy fluxes, in order to understand regional changes in net precipitation. They highlight the relative importance of different atmospheric mechanisms for the freshwater forcing of the North Pacific and North Atlantic.
Community and Innovation: From Tönnies to Marx
Authors: Adler Paul S.
Published: April 2015

The idea of community has lurked in various forms in organization studies since the field’s inception, but its recent prominence as a critical precondition for innovation makes urgent the resolution of two theoretical puzzles. Both puzzles can be stated in the terms suggested by Tönnies’ classic contrast of Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft, community and association. First, it is difficult to reconcile the idea that community is critical to innovation with the traditionalistic character of Gemeinschaft. Second, it is difficult to reconcile any idea of community in work organizations with the conflictual character of the capitalist employment relation and the instrumental Gesellschaft character of the economic sphere. I argue that the resolution of the second puzzle via Marxist theory leads us to a resolution of the first. My thesis, in summary, is that community is a critical component of the capitalist labour-process, and that where this labour-process is oriented toward innovation, community is taking an historically new form. This new form represents a dialectical synthesis of Gemeinschaft and Gesellschaft, a form we can call Genossenschaft, or collaborative. The argument is essentially theoretical; I illustrate some key features of this emergent collaborative form with case data from a software services firm. In conclusion I suggest that this new form represents communism developing in the heart of capitalism.
Organizational Learning: Bringing the Forces of Production Back In
Authors: Ingvaldsen Jonas A.
Published: April 2015

Under the influence of the ‘communities of practice’ perspective, research on organizational learning has lost sight of the role of science and technology. As a result, theory development in this field too often takes archaic work forms as its starting point. Based on a structural and materialist interpretation of Marx, this paper proposes an alternative approach that theorizes organizational learning as an outcome of contradictory processes in which the productive forces are progressively socialized, albeit unevenly. This approach leads to a very different perspective on tacit/explicit knowledge, work formalization, identify formation and the roles of managers and engineers. This structural-Marxist theory of organizational learning offers a more fruitful account of learning in technologically advanced, competitive sectors such as the manufacturing and process industries. Increasingly, it also applies to private and public service provision.
Healthy Aging and Concerns Among Elderly Japanese
Authors: Tsuchiya Yoko , Shida Naoki , Tsujiuchi Takuya , Machida Kazuhiko
Published: April 2015

Japan is facing an unprecedented aging society. In 2013, 25.1% of the total population in Japan was 65 years old and over. One third of the population in Japan will be at least 65 years old in 2035; healthy aging is crucial for public health and society in Japan. Under the budget limitations of social security, policies and frequent policy changes have created great uncertainty and concern for the elderly population. Given these circumstances, we conducted questionnaire surveys in 2010 to examine concerns in this age-group. In 2010, we sent questionnaires to university graduates 65 years old and older, randomly selected from a list of an alumni association of 11 universities. The questionnaires were open-ended and asked them to write any concerns that they had about health care, health policy, health systems, and their future. We received 344 responses. Among those who responded, 271 (78.8%) respondents said that they had concerns. We conducted a text analysis (Trend Search–Keyword Associator 2008) and extracted the keywords from their responses. The keywords that were extracted frequently included hospitals, doctors, health-care system, health care, Japanese government policies, government, medical insurance system for the elderly, support, increase, copayment, health (their own), scarcities, and burdens. In this study, many elderly people in Japan are concerned about health-care expenditures, health-care systems, and health policies. This may be caused by frequent health policy changes and uncertainty due to frequent administration changes such as the lack of clarity concerning raising the out of pocket payment rate from 10% to 20% for elderly people under budget constraints in Japan. Correct policy making and determination to eliminate the concerns from this vulnerable population in Japan are necessary for healthy aging.
Post-disaster reconstruction without citizens and their social capital in Llico, Chile
Authors: Imilan Walter A , Fuster Xenia , Vergara Paulina
Published: April 2015

This paper describes how the inhabitants of Llico, a small fishing town in Chile, organized to move from the coastline to avoid a tsunami that devastated their homes and livelihoods and then to manage immediate responses. It then describes how long it took for state support to arrive and how the inhabitants were marginalized from planning and implementing the reconstruction processes. As a result, this poorly served their needs and priorities and failed to utilize their knowledge and organizational capacities. Here and elsewhere in Chile, post-catastrophe reconstruction processes miss the opportunity to improve living conditions for the affected communities and to develop policies for disaster management that incorporate and use their social capital.
Container-based sanitation: assessing costs and effectiveness of excreta management in Cap Haitien, Haiti
Authors: Tilmans Sebastien , Russel Kory , Sklar Rachel , Page Leah , Kramer Sasha , Davis Jennifer
Published: April 2015

Container-based sanitation (CBS) – in which wastes are captured in sealable containers that are then transported to treatment facilities – is an alternative sanitation option in urban areas where on-site sanitation and sewerage are infeasible. This paper presents the results of a pilot household CBS service in Cap Haitien, Haiti. We quantify the excreta generated weekly in a dense urban slum,(1) the proportion safely removed via container-based public and household toilets, and the costs associated with these systems. The CBS service yielded an approximately 3.5-fold decrease in the unmanaged share of faeces produced, and nearly eliminated the reported use of open defecation and “flying toilets” among service recipients. The costs of this pilot small-scale service were higher than those of large-scale waterborne sewerage, but economies of scale have the potential to reduce CBS costs over time. The paper concludes with a discussion of planning and policy implications of incorporating CBS into the menu of sanitation options for rapidly growing cities.
Hunting for Treasures Through Learning
Authors: Brown Katherine B. , Hughes Abby J. , Crowder Isabelle G. , Brown Philip M.
Published: April 2015

As the National Middle School Association wrote, “No other age level is of more enduring importance because the determinants of one’s behavior as an adult, self concept, learning interests and skills, and values largely are formed in this period of life.” During this influential time in the lives of gifted adolescents, it is important to expose students to a variety of experiences and educational topics. Geocaching, a high-tech scavenger hunt, is one rewarding strategy that supports the growth of gifted students’ emotional, social, and intellectual being through the wide variety of topics addressed, the problem-solving skills involved, and the collaboration required with peers. This manuscript examines the incorporation of geocaching into the middle school classroom as a means to motivate gifted young adolescent learners.
Reversing the Underachievement of Gifted Middle School Students
Authors: Ritchotte Jennifer , Rubenstein Lisa , Murry Francie
Published: April 2015

Underachievement often begins in middle school for gifted students. Unfortunately, there is no single intervention that will ameliorate underachievement for all gifted students. To date, interventions aimed at reversing the underachieving behaviors of gifted middle school students have been inconsistent and inconclusive. To create an effective plan to reverse gifted underachievement, the field of gifted education must look closely at the research-based practices of special education. Functional Behavioral Analysis (FBA) is a viable way to accomplish this task. A team of individuals invested in the student’s success first target the source(s) of the student’s underachieving behavior, and then, together, they develop an individualized intervention plan. Although there is no magical cure for underachievement, steps can be taken to help middle school gifted students become achievers. This article will explore who the middle school gifted underachiever is and why he or she may begin to underachieve, review interventions that have been researched for this population, and provide a step-by-step plan for the reversal of gifted underachievement at the middle school level.