bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Predicting Suicide Attempts among Treatment‐Seeking Male Alcoholics: An Exploratory Study
Authors: Hung Galen Chin‐Lun , Caine Eric D. , Fan Hsiang‐Fang , Huang Ming‐Chyi , Chen Ying‐Yeh
Published: April 2013

Documented risk factors for suicide among alcohol‐dependent patients are sensitive but insufficiently specific to effectively identify individuals who are prone to future suicide attempt. As a first step to assess factors not previously considered, this pilot study involved a group of male alcohol‐dependent patients (N = 175) coming to detoxification to examine the potential utility of adverse childhood experiences (ACE) along with other documented events to discriminate individuals with a history of attempted suicide from their detoxifying peers. Family health history questionnaires were used to evaluate their ACEs. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was applied to examine the predictive power of ACEs, alone or in combination with documented risk factors, to lifetime history of attempted suicide. Among our participants, 48 (27.4%) had a history of a suicide attempt and 156 (89.1%) reported at least one out of the nine categories of ACEs. Modeling by ROC analysis, we found that a cutoff of four or more ACEs plus a history of personal violence achieved the best predictive power to a history of any suicide attempt, producing a sensitivity of 0.7, specificity of 0.81, and area under curve of 0.75. A prospective study to replicate and extend our findings is necessary.
Stepping into iSMART: Understanding Science–Mathematics Integration for Middle School Science and Mathematics Teachers
Authors: Lee Mimi Miyoung , Chauvot Jennifer B. , Vowell Julie , Culpepper Shea Mosley , Plankis Brian J.
Published: April 2013

This paper is based on an online graduate program for middle school science and mathematics teachers in Texas titled Integration of Science, Mathematics and Reflective Teaching (iSMART). Launching the program for its first cohort in fall 2010, the authors attempted to answer the following two questions in this paper: (a) How do the members of the iSMART design team and the first cohort of teacher participants define science and mathematics integration with similar and different emphases? and (b) How would these definitions and concerns impact the ongoing design of the program? The iSMART design team members and the participating cohort teachers had a shared view regarding the importance of integration and its possible impact on student motivation. The findings also revealed that the two groups showed some different points of emphasis in their definitions of integration. These issues will be addressed in the ongoing design of the program in the following three areas: (a) design of the second summer meeting activities, (b) greater emphasis on teacher as researcher and action research, and (c) administrative support for teacher collaboration.
Scholarly Personal Narratives as a New Direction for the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning
Authors: Brookfield Stephen
Published: April 2013

Response to “Sketching the Contours of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning in Theology and Religion”
Review of Influenza A Virus in Swine Worldwide: A Call for Increased Surveillance and Research
Authors: Vincent A. , Awada L. , Brown I. , Chen H. , Claes F. , Dauphin G. , Donis R. , Culhane M. , Hamilton K. , Lewis N. , Mumford E. , Nguyen T. , Parchariyanon S. , Pasick J. , Pavade G. , Pereda A. , Peiris M. , Saito T. , Swenson S. , Van Reeth K. , Webby R. , Wong F. , Ciacci‐Zanella J.
Published: April 2013

Pigs and humans have shared influenza A viruses (IAV) since at least 1918, and many interspecies transmission events have been documented since that time. However, despite this interplay, relatively little is known regarding IAV circulating in swine around the world compared with the avian and human knowledge base. This gap in knowledge impedes our understanding of how viruses adapted to swine or man impacts the ecology and evolution of IAV as a whole and the true impact of swine IAV on human health. The pandemic H1N1 that emerged in 2009 underscored the need for greater surveillance and sharing of data on IAV in swine. In this paper, we review the current state of IAV in swine around the world, highlight the collaboration between international organizations and a network of laboratories engaged in human and animal IAV surveillance and research, and emphasize the need to increase information in high‐priority regions. The need for global integration and rapid sharing of data and resources to fight IAV in swine and other animal species is apparent, but this effort requires grassroots support from governments, practicing veterinarians and the swine industry and, ultimately, requires significant increases in funding and infrastructure.
Nuclear Actin Network Assembly by Formins Regulates the SRF Coactivator MAL
Authors: Baarlink Christian , Wang Haicui , Grosse Robert
Published: April 2013

Nuclear Actin in Action

Actin polymerization is essential for structures in mammalian cells. Although actin filament network structures are observed in the cytoplasm and at the plasma membrane, monomeric actin is also seen in the nucleus.

Baarlink
et al.

(p.
864
, published online 4 April) directly visualized a distinct and dynamic actin network within the nucleus in living cells. The network spanned the entire nucleus and appeared to be enriched along the nuclear cortex. Transient formation of a nuclear actin network may be induced by the transcriptional serum response.
Genome Sequence of the Basidiomycetous Yeast
Pseudozyma antarctica
T-34, a Producer of the Glycolipid Biosurfactants Mannosylerythritol Lipids
Authors: Morita Tomotake , Koike Hideaki , Koyama Yoshinori , Hagiwara Hiroko , Ito Emi , Fukuoka Tokuma , Imura Tomohiro , Machida Masayuki , Kitamoto Dai
Published: April 2013

The basidiomycetous yeast
Pseudozyma antarctica
T-34 is an excellent producer of mannosylerythritol lipids (MELs), members of the multifunctional extracellular glycolipids, from various feedstocks. Here, the genome sequence of
P. antarctica
T-34 was determined and annotated. Analysis of the sequence might provide insights into the properties of this yeast that make it superior for use in the production of functional glycolipids, leading to the further development of
P. antarctica
for industrial applications.
Draft Genome Sequence of Acinetobacter baumannii Strain MSP4-16
Authors: Singh Nitin Kumar , Kumar Shailesh , Raghava Gajendra Pal Singh , Mayilraj Shanmugam
Published: April 2013

We report the 4.0-Mb draft genome sequence of
Acinetobacter baumannii
strain MSP4-16, isolated from a mangrove soil sample from Parangipettai (11°30′N, 79°47′E), Tamil Nadu, India. The draft genome sequence of strain MSP4-16 consists of 3,944,542 bp, with a G+C content of 39%, 5,387 protein coding genes, and 69 RNAs.
Junior doctor skill in the art of physical examination: a retrospective study of the medical admission note over four decades
Authors: Oliver Charlotte M , Hunter Selena A , Ikeda Takayoshi , Galletly Duncan C
Published: April 2013

Objectives

To investigate the hypothesis that junior doctors’ examination skills are deteriorating by assessing the medical admission note examination record.

Design

Retrospective study of the admission record.

Setting

Tertiary care hospital.

Methods

The admission records of 266 patients admitted to Wellington hospital between 1975 and 2011 were analysed, according to the total number of physical examination observations (PEOtot), examination of the relevant system pertaining to the presenting complaint (RelSystem) and the number of body systems examined (Nsystems). Subgroup analysis proceeded according to admission year, level of experience of the admitting doctor (registrar, house surgeon (HS) and trainee intern (TI)) and medical versus surgical admission notes. Further analysis investigated the trend over time in documentation with respect to cardiac murmurs, palpable liver, palpable spleen, carotid bruit, heart rate, funduscopy and apex beat location and character.

Results

PEOtot declined by 34% from 1975 to 2011. Surgical admission notes had 21% fewer observations than medical notes. RelSystem occurred in 94% of admissions, with no decline over time. Medical notes documented this more frequently than surgical notes (98% and 86%, respectively). There were no differences between registrars and HS, except for the 2010s subgroup (97% and 65%, respectively). Nsystems declined over the study period. Medical admission notes documented more body systems than surgical notes. There were no differences between registrars, HSs and TIs. Fewer examinations were performed for palpable liver, palpable spleen, cardiac murmur and apex beat location and character over the study period. There was no temporal change in the positive findings of these observations or heart rate rounding.

Conclusions

There has been a decline in the admission record at Wellington hospital between 1975 and 2011, implying a deterioration in local doctors’ physical examination skills. Measures to counter this trend are discussed.
Mast cells in infantile haemangioma possess a primitive myeloid phenotype
Authors: Itinteang Tinte , Tan Swee T , Jia Jun , Steel Ryan , Laing Emma L , Brasch Helen D , Day Darren J
Published: April 2013

Aims

Recent reports on infantile haemangioma (IH) have demonstrated a primitive population of interstitial cells expressing the embryonic transcription factor, Nanog, with decreasing abundance during involution. In this report we investigated the expression of Nanog on mast cells in all three phases of IH progression.

Methods

Paraffin-embedded sections of six proliferating, six involuting and six involuted IH lesions were used to investigate the expression of tryptase, Nanog, CD45, CD34 and GLUT-1 by immunostaining.

Results

Mast cells, identified by their expression of tryptase, were located in the interstitium of IH lesions. 93%, 42% and 0% of these tryptase+cells also expressed Nanog, in proliferating, involuting and involuted IH, respectively.

Conclusions

The identification of an abundant population of tryptase+/Nanog+cells in IH is novel. The relative loss of Nanog expression as IH involutes may be a result of maturation and/or proliferation of these cells. This report supports the primitive nature of IH.
Renal function after trauma
Authors: World Michael J
Published: April 2013

Objective

The lack of need for immediate renal replacement treatment for military trauma victims suggests that the current policy of restricting operational deployment of those Service personnel with active inflammatory renal disease and significantly impaired renal function, combined with good prehospital care for all trauma casualties, is probably correct. No published estimates of renal function in civilian or military trauma victims in the earliest period following injury have been retrieved. The purpose of the present retrospective study was to assess the renal function of military trauma victims on arrival in the Emergency Department of the field hospital.

Methods

The case records of 287 military trauma casualties with severe injury (New Injury Severity Score, NISS≥16) were retrospectively reviewed to assess renal function by calculating estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) using the serum creatine concentration obtained immediately on arrival in the Emergency Department of the field hospitals in Iraq and Afghanistan, 2005–2009. Correlations were attempted between eGFR and other clinical and laboratory variables.

Results

Hospital case notes recording management following repatriation were retrieved in 221/287 (77%) cases. None had required immediate renal support in the field. Serum creatine concentration on arrival in the field hospital with demographic data permitting calculation of eGFR was recorded in 158 cases. Median eGFR=76 ml/min/1.73m2(range=43–144). Statistically significant correlations were found among eGFR and pulse rate (r=−0.3, p=0.0002), body temperature (r=0.24, p=0.01) and mean arterial pressure (r=0.2, p=0.02). No statistically significant correlation was found among eGFR and NISS, white cell count, or respiration rate. A stepwise multivariate regression analysis of 106 cases suggested that the best combination of clinical observations to predict renal function were pulse rate and body temperature but the prediction was overoptimistic at lower eGFR values. eGFR was statistically significantly different in those satisfying criteria for systemic inflammatory response syndrome (SIRS; eGFR with SIRS=76 and eGFR without SIRS=86 ml/min/1.73 m2).

Conclusions

Prehospital resuscitative measures are effective in maintaining renal function at an adequate level until arrival in the field hospital. The combination of tachycardia and hypothermia predicts lower renal function, variables already employed in the assessment of injury severity. The observations in the present study support restriction of recruitment and operational deployment where renal problems exist.
Military nephrology: magnitude of rates of deterioration in renal function
Authors: World Michael J
Published: April 2013

Objective

To review military cases of renal disease seen between 1985 and 2011 to assess the magnitude of rates of deterioration in renal function according to diagnosis when therapeutic interventions were employed and to compare these with data from civilian patients.

Methods

A 26-year archive of out-patient consultations, discharge summaries and renal biopsies was reviewed according to diagnosis. Serum creatine concentration and demographic data permitted retrospective calculation of estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) at presentation and follow-up. Calculation of an annualised rate of deterioration of eGFR (ΔeGFR, ml/min/1.73 m2/y) was undertaken when there were at least four follow-up values.

Results

Eight of 13 (61%) conditions included cases where eGFR deteriorated significantly with time and this was present in 40/161 (25%) individual cases. Those diseases where 10% or more of cases showed significant deterioration in eGFR were hypertensive/ischaemic nephropathy (10%), immunoglobulin A nephropathy (22%), Henoch–Schönlein nephritis (28%), focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (30%), membranous nephropathy (57%), acquired single kidney status (60%) and adult polycystic kidney disease (68%). In the latter condition, frequency of significant deterioration was greater (p<0.0001) than in civilian patients. Median ΔeGFR values ranged from −1.8 to −9.1 ml/min/1.73 m2/y in military patients and were similar to those of civilian patients.

Conclusions

Cases of renal disease discovered de novo in serving military personnel showed deterioration of renal function with time in a significant proportion despite interventions to maintain renal function. The magnitude of rates of deterioration was similar to that of civilian patients suggesting that military medical management strategy was appropriate. These results support a traditional restrictive policy concerning applicants with a history of renal disease.
Coelioscopic orchiectomy can be effectively and safely accomplished in chelonians
Authors: Innis C. J. , Feinsod R. , Hanlon J. , Stahl S. , Oguni J. , Boone S. , Schnellbacher R. , Cavin J. , Divers S. J.
Published: April 2013

Coelioscopic orchiectomy was performed in 27 male turtles (25 juvenile to adult red‐eared sliders (Trachemys scripta elegans), one adult eastern painted turtle (Chrysems picta picta), and one juvenile male yellow‐spotted Amazon River turtle (Podocnemis unifilis)). Orchiectomy was conducted under coelioscopic visualisation using ligation and transection of the mesorchium, or transection of the mesorchium with monopolar radiosurgical scissors. In 22 cases, bilateral orchiectomy was performed through a single incision; five turtles required bilateral incisions. All turtles recovered from anaesthesia. Nine turtles died within one year of surgery from conditions believed to be unrelated to surgery. One turtle was lost to follow‐up. Seventeen turtles remain clinically healthy one to three years postoperatively. Coelioscopic orchiectomy provides a minimally invasive method for sterilisation of male chelonians and provides excellent visualisation during surgery. This technique is a useful model for the development of additional minimally invasive surgical techniques for chelonians.
Voices bringing history to life
Authors: Bradley Sue
Published: April 2013

The RCVS Charitable Trust and the Centre for Rural Economy at Newcastle University are collaborating on ‘Veterinary lives in practice’, a project to record and preserve the personal reflections of different generations of veterinary surgeons to create a national oral history resource. Here, Sue Bradley, who is coordinating the project, explains why personal testimonies are important and includes extracts from some interviews conducted so far
TWISTED TENSOR PRODUCT MODULES OVER MÖBIUS TWISTED TENSOR PRODUCT NONLOCAL VERTEX ALGEBRAS
Authors: SUN JIANCAI , YANG HENGYUN
Published: April 2013

This is the third part in a series of papers developing a twisted tensor product theory for nonlocal vertex algebras and its modules. In this paper we introduce and study twisted tensor product modules over Möbius twisted tensor product nonlocal vertex algebras. Among the main results, we find the isomorphic relation between the opposite Möbius twisted tensor product nonlocal vertex algebra and twisted tensor product of opposite Möbius nonlocal vertex algebras. And we also establish the isomorphism between two twisted tensor product contragredient modules. Furthermore, we study iterated twisted tensor product modules over iterated twisted tensor product nonlocal vertex algebras and find conditions for constructing an iterated twisted tensor product module of three factors.
LAPLACIAN COMPARISON ON COMPLEX FINSLER MANIFOLDS AND ITS APPLICATIONS
Authors: XIAO JINXIU , QIU CHUNHUI , HE QUN , CHEN ZHIHUA
Published: April 2013

By defining the Rund Laplacian, we obtain the first and the second holomorphic variation formulas for the strongly pseudoconvex complex Finsler metric. Using the holomorphic variation formulas, we get an estimate for the Levi forms of distance function on complex Finsler manifolds. Further, an estimate for the Rund Laplacians of distance function on strongly pseudoconvex complex Finsler manifolds is obtained. As its applications, we get the Bonnet theorem and maximum principle on complex Finsler manifolds.
THE EFFECT OF SPONTANEOUS AND PIEZOELECTRIC POLARIZATION ON THERMAL CONDUCTIVITY OFInN
Authors: SAHOO BIJAYA KUMAR , SAHOO SUSANT KUMAR , SAHOO SUKDEV
Published: April 2013

The spontaneous (SP) and piezoelectric (PZ) polarization present in the wurtzite III nitrides influence the optical and electrical properties of these materials. The effects of SP and PZ polarization on thermal properties of III nitrides have yet to be investigated. Here we have investigated the SP and PZ effects on thermal conductivity of InN . Inclusion of polarization property modifies the group velocity of phonons. The combined phonon scattering rates and thermal conductivity k of InN are calculated using modified phonon group velocity, Debye frequency and Debye temperature. Without SP and PZ polarization, the room temperature thermal conductivity of InN is found to be 132.55 W/m.K. Inclusion of SP and PZ polarization property enhances the room temperature thermal conductivity from 132.55 to 134.32 W/m.K. Our predicted thermal conductivity values are closer to the recent experimental value 120 W/m.K measured by Levander et al. for a high quality irradiated InN films at room temperature.
MBTDD: MODEL BASED TEST DRIVEN DEVELOPMENT
Authors: SADEGHI ALIREZA , MIRIAN-HOSSEINABADI SEYED-HASSAN
Published: April 2013

Test Driven Development (TDD), as a quality promotion approach, suffers from some shortages that discourage its usage. One of the most challenging shortcomings of TDD is the low level of granularity and abstraction. This may lead to production of software that is not acceptable by the end users. Additionally, exploiting of TDD is not applicable in the enterprise systems development. To overcome this defect, we have merged TDD with Model Based Testing (MBT) and suggested a framework named Model Based Test Driven Development (MBTDD). According to TDD, writing test cases comes before programming, and based on our improved method of TDD, modeling precedes writing test cases. To validate the applicability of the proposed framework, we have implemented a use case of Human Resource Management (HRM) system by means of MBTDD. The empirical results of using MBTTD show that our proposed method overwhelms existing deficiencies of TDD.
THE DYNAMICS OF TACHYON FIELD WITH AN INVERSE SQUARE POTENTIAL IN LOOP QUANTUM COSMOLOGY
Authors: HUANG FEI , ZHU JIAN-YANG , XIAO KUI
Published: April 2013

The dynamical behavior of tachyon field with an inverse potential is investigated in loop quantum cosmology. It reveals that the late-time behavior of tachyon field with this potential leads to a power-law expansion. In addition, an additional barotropic perfect fluid with the adiabatic index 0 < γ < 2 is added and the dynamical system is shown to be an autonomous one. The stability of this autonomous system is discussed using phase plane analysis. There exist up to five fixed points with only two of them possibly stable. The two stable node (attractor) solutions are specified and their cosmological indications are discussed. For the tachyon dominated solution, the further discussion is stretched to the possibility of considering tachyon field as a combination of two parts which respectively behave like dark matter and dark energy.
SIMULATION OPTIMIZATION OF THE HEAT TRANSFER CONDITIONS IN HFCVD DIAMOND FILM GROWTH INSIDE HOLES
Authors: WANG XINCHANG , ZHANG JIANGUO , ZHANG TAO , SHEN BIN , SUN FANGHONG
Published: April 2013

Finite volume method (FVM) is adopted in the present investigation to simulate the temperature and reactant gas velocity distributions in hot filament chemical vapor deposition (HFCVD) diamond film growth inside holes, using a detailed 3D computational model well in accordance with the actual reactor. The influences of the heat transfer characteristic of the substrate and the auxiliary heat transfer conditions are firstly studied by control variable method (CVM), including the thermal conductivity of the substrate k, the size of the red bronze support block V(x × y × z), the cooling water flux Qw, the reactant gas flux Qg, the arrangement of the gas outlets A out and the emissivities of the different solid surfaces ϵ. Thereafter, the substrate temperature data measured in the actual HFCVD reactor with three chosen groups of parameters are compared with those obtained from the simulations, presenting similar trends and small deviations less than 5%. Moreover, the auxiliary heat transfer conditions are optimized for both the WC- Co and SiC substrates based on the simulation and measurement results, and corresponding deposition parameters are also determined. Furthermore, HFCVD diamond films are deposited on the inner surfaces of both the substrates under the optimized conditions. The characterization results show that high-quality diamond films with uniform thickness and fine-faceted crystals are obtained, indicating that this optimization method focusing on the heat transfer conditions is feasible and correct.
EFFECTS OF SUBSTRATE TEMPERATURE ON STRUCTURAL, OPTICAL AND SURFACE MORPHOLOGICAL PROPERTIES OF PULSED LASER DEPOSITED ZnO THIN FILMS
Authors: MAHMOOD KHALIQ , BASHIR SHAZIA , KHALEEQ-UR-RAHMAN M. , FARID NAZAR , AKRAM MAHREEN , HAYAT ASMA , FAIZAN-UL-HAQ
Published: April 2013

The effect of substrate temperature on the structural, optical and morphological properties of ZnO thin films has been investigated. ZnO thin films were deposited on quartz substrate for various temperatures ranging from room temperature to 250°C by pulsed laser deposition (PLD) technique. Nd:YAG laser (532 nm, 100 mJ, 6 ns, 10 Hz) with corresponding fluence of 6 J/cm2 was employed for the ablation of ZnO target. Characterization of the thin films was carried out using X-ray diffraction (XRD), high resolution UV-visible spectrometer, atomic force microscope (AFM) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). From XRD analysis, the amorphous behaviors of films at room temperature and crystalline behavior along the preferred orientation of (002) is exhibited for higher substrate temperature. The transmittances of grown films increase with the increasing substrate temperature. The evaluated values of bandgap energies increase with increasing substrate temperature up to the range of 150°C and then monotonically decrease with the further increase in temperature. AFM and SEM analysis illustrates that the density and height of grains for deposited films increase significantly with increasing substrate temperature.
MODELING AND INVESTIGATION OF THE WEAR RESISTANCE OF SALT BATH NITRIDED AISI 4140 VIA ANN
Authors: EKINCI ŞERAFETTIN , AKDEMIR AHMET , KAHRAMANLI HUMAR
Published: April 2013

Nitriding is usually used to improve the surface properties of steel materials. In this way, the wear resistance of steels is improved. We conducted a series of studies in order to investigate the microstructural, mechanical and tribological properties of salt bath nitrided AISI 4140 steel. The present study has two parts. For the first phase, the tribological behavior of the AISI 4140 steel which was nitrided in sulfinuz salt bath (SBN) was compared to the behavior of the same steel which was untreated. After surface characterization using metallography, microhardness and sliding wear tests were performed on a block-on-cylinder machine in which carbonized AISI 52100 steel discs were used as the counter face. For the examined AISI 4140 steel samples with and without surface treatment, the evolution of both the friction coefficient and of the wear behavior were determined under various loads, at different sliding velocities and a total sliding distance of 1000 m. The test results showed that wear resistance increased with the nitriding process, friction coefficient decreased due to the sulfur in salt bath and friction coefficient depended systematically on surface hardness. For the second part of this study, four artificial neural network (ANN) models were designed to predict the weight loss and friction coefficient of the nitrided and unnitrided AISI 4140 steel. Load, velocity and sliding distance were used as input. Back-propagation algorithm was chosen for training the ANN. Statistical measurements of R2, MAE and RMSE were employed to evaluate the success of the systems. The results showed that all the systems produced successful results.
Building Weighted Associative Classifiers using Maximum Likelihood Estimation to Improve Prediction Accuracy in Health Care Data Mining
Authors: Soni Sunita , Vyas O. P.
Published: April 2013

Associative classifiers are new classification approach that use association rules for classification. An important advantage of these classification systems is that, using association rule mining (ARM) they are able to examine several features at a time. Many applications can benefit from good classification model. Associative classifiers are especially fit to applications where the model may assist the domain experts in their decisions. Medical diagnosis is a domain where the maximum accuracy of the model is desired. In this paper, we propose a framework weighted associative classifier (WAC) that assigns different weights to different attributes according to their predicting capability. We are using maximum likelihood estimation (MLE) theory to calculate weight of each attribute using training data. We also show how existing Apriori algorithm can be modified in weighted environment to infer association rule from medical dataset having numeric valued attributes as the conventional ARM usually deals with the transaction database with categorical values. Experiments have been performed on benchmark data set to evaluate the performance of WAC in terms of accuracy, number of rules generating and impact of minimum support threshold on WAC outcomes. The result reveals that WAC is a promising alternative in medical prediction and certainly deserves further attention.
AN ALGORITHM FOR MESH REFINEMENT AND UN-REFINEMENT IN FAST TRANSIENT DYNAMICS
Authors: CASADEI FOLCO , DÍEZ PEDRO , VERDUGO FRANCESC
Published: April 2013

A procedure to locally refine and un-refine an unstructured computational grid of four-node quadrilaterals (in 2D) or of eight-node hexahedra (in 3D) is presented. The chosen refinement strategy generates only elements of the same type as their parents, but also produces so-called hanging nodes along nonconforming element-to-element interfaces. Continuity of the solution across such interfaces is enforced strongly by Lagrange multipliers. The element split and un-split algorithm is entirely integer-based. It relies only upon element connectivity and makes no use of nodal coordinates or other real-number quantities. The chosen data structure and the continuous tracking of the nature of each node facilitate the treatment of natural and essential boundary conditions in adaptivity. A generalization of the concept of neighbor elements allows transport calculations in adaptive fluid calculations. The proposed procedure is tested in structure and fluid wave propagation problems in explicit transient dynamics.
PREPARATION AND CHARACTERIZATION OF GLYCYRRHETINIC ACID-MODIFIED POLOXAMER 188/CHITOSAN NANOPARTICLES
Authors: WANG JING , GUO LI , MA LI FANG
Published: April 2013

In this paper, we firstly synthesized glycyrrhetinic acid-modified double amino-terminated poloxamer 188 (GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA). The structure of the synthesized compound was confirmed by 1H-NMR and Fourier transform infrared (FT-IR) spectroscopy. Then the nanoparticles composed of GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/chitosan (GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/CTS) were prepared by an ionic gelation process. The characterization of the nanoparticles was measured by dynamic light scattering (DLS) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The results showed that the nanoparticles were well dispersed with a spherical shape and the particle size was distributed between 100 nm and 300 nm. The cytotoxicity based on MTT assay against cells (QGY-7703 cells and L929 cells) showed that the nanoparticles had low toxicity and good biocompatibility. The encapsulation efficiency and drug loading of 5-fluorouracil-loaded nanoparticles (5-FU nanoparticles) were measured by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and fluorescence spectroscopy, ultraviolet-visible (UV-vis) absorbance. The encapsulation of 5-Fu-loaded CTS nanoparticles was 12.8% and the drug loading was 2.9%, while the encapsulation of 5-Fu-loaded GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/CTS nanoparticles was 20.9% and the drug loading was 3.36%. The release profile showed that the GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/CTS nanoparticles were available for sustained release of 5-Fu. The GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/CTS nanoparticles have a higher affinity to the QGY-7703 cells, so indicated that the GA–NH–POLO–NH–GA/CTS nanoparticles have the capacity of liver-targeting in vitro.
ON THE APPROXIMATION OF INCOMPRESSIBLE MISCIBLE DISPLACEMENT PROBLEMS IN POROUS MEDIA BY MIXED AND STANDARD FINITE VOLUME ELEMENT METHODS
Authors: KUMAR SARVESH
Published: April 2013

The incompressible miscible displacement problem in porous media is modeled by a coupled system of two nonlinear partial differential equations, the pressure–velocity equation and the concentration equation. In this paper, we present a mixed finite volume element method (FVEM) for the approximation of the pressure–velocity equation and a standard FVEM for the concentration equation. A priori error estimates in L∞(L2) are derived for velocity, pressure and concentration. Numerical results are presented to substantiate the validity of the theoretical results.
A NEW CHARACTERISTIC EXPANDED MIXED METHOD FOR SOBOLEV EQUATION WITH CONVECTION TERM
Authors: LIU YANG , LI HONG , HE SIRIGULENG , FANG ZHICHAO , WANG JINFENG
Published: April 2013

In this paper, a new numerical method based on a new expanded mixed scheme and the characteristic method is developed and discussed for Sobolev equation with convection term. The hyperbolic part [Formula: see text] is handled by the characteristic method and the diffusion term ∇ ⋅ (a(x, t)∇u+b(x, t)∇ut) is approximated by the new expanded mixed method, whose gradient belongs to the simple square integrable (L2(Ω))2 space instead of the classical H( div ; Ω) space. For a priori error estimates, some important lemmas based on the new expanded mixed projection are introduced. An optimal priori error estimates in L2-norm for the scalar unknown u and a priori error estimates in (L2)2-norm for its gradient λ, and its flux σ (the coefficients times the negative gradient) are derived. In particular, an optimal priori error estimate in H1-norm for the scalar unknown u is obtained.
Structure Determination of Membrane Proteins by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance Spectroscopy
Authors: Opella Stanley J.
Published: April 2013

Many biological membranes consist of 50% or more (by weight) membrane proteins, which constitute approximately one-third of all proteins expressed in biological organisms. Helical membrane proteins function as receptors, enzymes, and transporters, among other unique cellular roles. Additionally, most drugs have membrane proteins as their receptors, notably the superfamily of G protein–coupled receptors with seven transmembrane helices. Determining the structures of membrane proteins is a daunting task because of the effects of the membrane environment; specifically, it has been difficult to combine biologically compatible environments with the requirements for the established methods of structure determination. There is strong motivation to determine the structures in their native phospholipid bilayer environment so that perturbations from nonnatural lipids and phases do not have to be taken into account. At present, the only method that can work with proteins in liquid crystalline phospholipid bilayers is solid-state NMR spectroscopy.
Immigration and Production Technology
Authors: Lewis Ethan
Published: April 2013

Research on the labor market impact of immigration typically relies on a single-good model of production with separable capital. This article discusses theory and evidence that suggest that this standard model is too simple to capture the long-run labor market impact of immigration. A level of capital-skill complementarity supported in studies both involving and not involving immigration alone reduces the relative wage impact of immigration by 40% compared to simulations with separable capital. Other models in which the production structure responds to skill-mix changes, including models with endogenous choice of technique, directed technical change, or human capital spillovers, also imply that the long-run impact of immigration on wages is smaller than predicted by the standard model. This article discusses new research that tries to credibly evaluate such models using immigration-induced variation in the skill mix, an approach with further potential, and evidence that immigration impacts innovation and firm formation.
OPEC: What Difference Has It Made?
Authors: Fattouh Bassam , Mahadeva Lavan
Published: April 2013

The main purpose of this paper is to review the evolution of OPEC models and to link this evolution to some key events in the oil market. Our main conclusion is that OPEC’s pricing power varies over time. In many instances, OPEC can lose power to limit oil price movements in either direction. Such changes in pricing power are induced by market conditions and can occur in both weak and tight market conditions. Because of OPEC’s varying conduct, there is not a single model that fits OPEC behavior. Hence analysts have been forced to choose from a wide range of models to explain certain episodes. The empirical literature has not been successful in distinguishing between the various competing models, as these models offer very similar predictions.
Malignant Pericardial Effusion
Authors: Burazor I. , Imazio M. , Markel G. , Adler Y.
Published: April 2013

Malignant pericardial effusion is a common and serious manifestation in malignancies. The origins of the malignant process include solid tumors or hematological malignancies, while primary neoplasms of the pericardium are less common. In the oncological patient, pericardial effusion may develop by several different mechanisms, namely by direct or metastatic spread of the primary process or as a complication of antineoplastic therapies. In some cases, pericardial effusion may be the first manifestation of the disease, and that is why malignancy must be excluded in every case of an acute pericardial disease with cardiac tamponade at presentation, rapidly increasing pericardial effusion and an incessant or recurrent course. Thus, the definite differentiation of malignant pericardial effusion and rapid diagnosis are of particular therapeutic and prognostic importance. Management of these patients is multidisciplinary and requires team work, but at present there is a need for further research. An individual treatment plan should be established, taking into account cancer stage, the patient's prognosis, local availability and experience. In emergency cases with cardiac tamponade or significant effusion, initial relief can be obtained with pericardiocentesis. Despite the magnitude of this serious problem, little progress has been made in the treatment of pericardial effusion secondary to malignant disease.
Granulysin-Bearing Cells in the Skin Lesions of Acute Graft-versus-Host Disease: Possible Mechanisms for Hypohidrosis in Graft-versus-Host Disease
Authors: Furudate Sadanori , Fujimura Taku , Kambayashi Yumi , Aiba Setsuya
Published: April 2013

Graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) is an important complication of bone marrow transplantation and is known to induce sweat gland abnormalities. We employed immunohistochemical staining for granulysin, dermcidin as well as IL-17 and Foxp3 in the lesional skin of 7 patients with acute GVHD. Granulysin-bearing cells were distributed in the epidermis, basal membrane zone of the dermis, and superficial perivascular lesion of the dermis. Interestingly, granulysin-bearing cells were also detected around the secretory portion of the eccrine glands, which might be related to the downregulation of the expression of dermcidin on the secretory portion of the eccrine glands. Differing from a mouse model, in human acute GVHD, IL-17-producing cells and Foxp3+ cells were not prominent. Our present observation sheds light on the contribution of granulysin-bearing cells to the decrease of the sweat in patients with acute GVHD. Though we did not assess the function of these infiltrating lymphocytes directly, further analysis of the mechanism of this phenomenon would offer fundamental insight into the establishment of acute GVHD.
Transintestinal Cholesterol Excretion Is an Active Metabolic Process Modulated by PCSK9 and Statin Involving ABCB1
Authors: Le May Cédric , Berger Jean Mathieu , Lespine Anne , Pillot Bruno , Prieur Xavier , Letessier Eric , Hussain M. Mahmood , Collet Xavier , Cariou Bertrand , Costet Philippe
Published: April 2013

Objective—

Transintestinal cholesterol excretion (TICE) is an alternate pathway to hepatobiliary secretion. Our study aimed at identifying molecular mechanisms of TICE.

Approach and Results—

We studied TICE ex vivo in mouse and human intestinal explants, and in vivo after bile diversion and intestinal cannulation in mice. We provide the first evidence that both low-density lipoprotein (LDL) and high-density lipoprotein deliver cholesterol for TICE in human and mouse jejunal explants at the basolateral side. Proprotein convertase subtilisin kexin type 9 (PCSK9)
−/−
mice and intestinal explants show increased LDL-TICE, and acute injection of PCSK9 decreases TICE in vivo, suggesting that PCSK9 is a repressor of TICE. The acute repression was dependent on the LDL receptor (LDLR). Further, TICE was increased when mice were treated with Lovastatin. These data point to an important role for LDLR in TICE. However, LDLR
−/−
mice showed increased intestinal LDL uptake, contrary to what is observed in the liver, and tended to have higher TICE. We interpret these data to suggest that there might be at least 2 mechanisms contributing to TICE; 1 involving LDL receptors and other unidentified mechanisms. Acute modulation of LDLR affects TICE, but chronic deficiency is compensated for most likely by the upregulation of the unknown mechanisms. Using mice deficient for apical multidrug active transporter ATP-binding cassette transporter B1 a and b, and its inhibitor, we show that these apical transporters contribute significantly to TICE.

Conclusions—

TICE is operative in human jejunal explants. It is a metabolically active process that can be acutely regulated, inversely related to cholesterolemia, and pharmacologically activated by statins.
mRNA-Binding Protein ZFP36 Is Expressed in Atherosclerotic Lesions and Reduces Inflammation in Aortic Endothelial Cells
Authors: Zhang Huanchun , Taylor W. Robert , Joseph Giji , Caracciolo Valentina , Gonzales Donna M. , Sidell Neil , Seli Emre , Blackshear Perry J. , Kallen Caleb B.
Published: April 2013

Objective—

We studied the expression and function of an mRNA-binding protein, zinc finger protein-36 (ZFP36), in vascular endothelial cells in vivo and in vitro. We tested the hypotheses that ZFP36 regulates inflammation in vascular endothelial cells and that it functions through direct binding to target cytokine mRNAs. We also tested whether ZFP36 inhibits nuclear factor-κB–mediated transcriptional responses in vascular endothelial cells.

Approach and Results—

ZFP36 was minimally expressed in healthy aorta but was expressed in endothelial cells overlying atherosclerotic lesions in mice and humans. The protein was also expressed in macrophage foam cells of atherosclerosis. ZFP36 was expressed in human aortic endothelial cells in response to bacterial lipopolysaccharide, glucocorticoid, and forskolin, but not oxidized low-density lipoproteins or angiotensin II. Functional studies demonstrated that ZFP36 reduces the expression of inflammatory cytokines in target cells by 2 distinct mechanisms: ZFP36 inhibits nuclear factor-κB transcriptional activation and also binds to cytokine mRNAs, leading to reduced transcript stability.

Conclusions—

ZFP36 is expressed in vascular endothelial cells and macrophage foam cells where it inhibits the expression of proinflammatory mRNA transcripts. The anti-inflammatory effects of ZFP36 in endothelial cells occur via both transcriptional and posttranscriptional mechanisms. Our data suggest that enhancing vascular ZFP36 expression might reduce vascular inflammation.
Heritability Estimates Identify a Substantial Genetic Contribution to Risk and Outcome of Intracerebral Hemorrhage
Authors: Devan William J. , Falcone Guido J. , Anderson Christopher D. , Jagiella Jeremiasz M. , Schmidt Helena , Hansen Björn M. , Jimenez-Conde Jordi , Giralt-Steinhauer Eva , Cuadrado-Godia Elisa , Soriano Carolina , Ayres Alison M. , Schwab Kristin , Kassis Sylvia Baedorf , Valant Valerie , Pera Joanna , Urbanik Andrzej , Viswanathan Anand , Rost Natalia S. , Goldstein Joshua N. , Freudenberger Paul , Stögerer Eva-Maria , Norrving Bo , Tirschwell David L. , Selim Magdy , Brown Devin L. , Silliman Scott L. , Worrall Bradford B. , Meschia James F. , Kidwell Chelsea S. , Montaner Joan , Fernandez-Cadenas Israel , Delgado Pilar , Greenberg Steven M. , Roquer Jaume , Lindgren Arne , Slowik Agnieszka , Schmidt Reinhold , Woo Daniel , Rosand Jonathan , Biffi Alessandro
Published: April 2013

Background and Purpose—

Previous studies suggest that genetic variation plays a substantial role in occurrence and evolution of intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH). Genetic contribution to disease can be determined by calculating heritability using family-based data, but such an approach is impractical for ICH because of lack of large pedigree-based studies. However, a novel analytic tool based on genome-wide data allows heritability estimation from unrelated subjects. We sought to apply this method to provide heritability estimates for ICH risk, severity, and outcome.

Methods—

We analyzed genome-wide genotype data for 791 ICH cases and 876 controls, and determined heritability as the proportion of variation in phenotype attributable to captured genetic variants. Contribution to heritability was separately estimated for the
APOE
(encoding apolipoprotein E) gene, an established genetic risk factor, and for the rest of the genome. Analyzed phenotypes included ICH risk, admission hematoma volume, and 90-day mortality.

Results—

ICH risk heritability was estimated at 29% (SE, 11%) for non-
APOE
loci and at 15% (SE, 10%) for
APOE
. Heritability for 90-day ICH mortality was 41% for non-
APOE
loci and 10% (SE, 9%) for
APOE
. Genetic influence on hematoma volume was also substantial: admission volume heritability was estimated at 60% (SE, 70%) for non-
APOE
loci and at 12% (SE, 4%) for
APOE
.

Conclusions—

Genetic variation plays a substantial role in ICH risk, outcome, and hematoma volume. Previously reported risk variants account for only a portion of inherited genetic influence on ICH pathophysiology, pointing to additional loci yet to be identified.
Singular Readings in 4QSamuela and the Question of Rewritten Scripture
Authors: Cross Frank Moore , Saley Richard J.
Published: April 2013

Abstract

4QSama contains 79 readings, sufficiently present on the leather to ensure validity, that are missing from all of the other textual witnesses (Masoretic Text, Septuagint [Old Greek, Kaige, Lucianic, Hexaplaric], Old Latin, Targum, Peshitta, Vulgate) employed for comparison in the DJD 17 publication. This study sorts these readings into five categories (Minor Grammatical Differences; Probable Scribal Changes; Agreement with Another Passage/Source; Too Unclear for Classification; and Putative Primitive Readings) and analyzes them for signs of tendentiousness and/or Rewritten Scripture. The conclusion of this study finds no evidence for either tendentiousness or Rewritten Scripture in the singular readings of 4QSama.
Structure and Allusion in the Apostrophe Zion (11QPsa 22:1–15)
Authors: Henderson Ruth
Published: April 2013

Abstract

The Apostrophe to Zion (11QPsa 22:1–15) is a Second Temple song structured as an alphabetic acrostic. A tripartite structure at alphabetic units ע-ת, ט-ס, א-ח with each part enclosed by inclusio has also been observed. In this paper it is proposed that the song also displays a seven part concentric structure, comprising A//A1—an opening and closing invocation to praise at units א-ב// ר-ת; an outer circle B//B1 units ג-ח//ע-ק in which a vision of the glorious future of Zion is recalled; an inner circle C//C1 units ט-כ//מ-ס in which past saving events are recalled and reflected upon in terms of the wisdom doctrine of retribution, and finally, a central section D at unit ל in which the hope of Zion is reaffirmed. Within this concentric structure the poet balances two biblical allusions to Isa 66:10–11 and Dan 9:24 in such a way that they enter into dialogue one with the other. In this the poet shares what appears to be a common Second Temple interpretive strategy of viewing earlier scriptural texts in the light of later ones.
A new species of Acanthophyllum (Caryophyllaceae) from Iran
Authors: PIRANI ATEFEH , JOHARCHI MOHAMMAD REZA , MEMARIANI FARSHID
Published: April 2013

The new species Acanthophyllum yasamin-nassehiae (Caryophyllaceae) from North Khorassan province (north-eastern Iran) is here described and illustrated. It belongs to the sect. Oligosperma, and it is related to A. lilacinum and A. brevibracteatum from the morphological point of view. Notes on its ecology and conservation status are given.