bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Light and scanning electron microscopy studies of the early infection stages of Hymenoscyphus pseudoalbidus on Fraxinus excelsior
Authors: Cleary M. R. , Daniel G. , Stenlid J.
Published: March 2013

The ontogeny and morphology of infection structures associated with the early stages of infection of Hymenoscyphus pseudoalbidus on common ash (Fraxinus excelsior) leaves and leaf petioles were investigated using light and scanning electron microscopy. Ascospores were produced in mature ascocarps and infections on ash leaves were first observed 2 weeks later. Ascospores developed germ tubes, followed by appressorium formation and penetration of epidermal cells on ash leaves and petioles. Chalara fraxinea spores, the anamorph of H. pseudoalbidus, appeared and were arranged in chains, surrounded by a membranous sheath, and varied considerably in size and shape. Host invasion and colonization of all cell types of leaves and petioles were observed using light microscopy. The role of leaves and petioles as sites of infection in the life cycle of H. pseudoalbidus and the disease cycle of ash dieback is discussed.
The Dark Triad of Personality: A 10 Year Review
Authors: Furnham Adrian , Richards Steven C. , Paulhus Delroy L.
Published: March 2013

Ten years ago Paulhus and Williams (2002) called attention to the ‘Dark Triad’, a constellation of three conceptually distinct but empirically overlapping personality variables. The three members ‐‐ Machiavellianism, narcissism and subclinical psychopathy ‐‐ often show differential correlates but share a common core of callous‐manipulation. There are now dozens of studies on the triad and, according to Google Scholar, over 350 citations. The goal of this review is to update and critically evaluate this rapidly expanding literature. The standard measures of each Dark Triad member are reviewed along with newer combination measures. The Dark Triad members are located in in mainstream structural models, namely, the interpersonal circumplex as well as Five‐ and Six‐Factor Models. Key issues and controversies are addressed.
Effects of N placement, carbon distribution and temperature on N2O emissions in clay loam and loamy sand soils
Authors: Xue Y. , van Es H. M. , Schindelbeck R. R. , Moebius‐Clune B. N. , Melkonian J. J. , Graham C. , Yang P.
Published: March 2013

Changes in the profile distribution of soil C stocks for conventional versus no‐tillage can affect N2O losses. Uncertainty remains whether deep N placement into a wetter layer in humid areas would affect N2O losses. This study evaluated the effects of soil carbon profile distribution (inverted, normal), depth of nitrogen placement (5 cm, 15 cm), temperature (10, 20 and 30 °C) and soil texture (clay loam, loamy sand) on N2O emissions from soil cores in a 216‐h incubation after simulated rainfall. N2O losses were larger from the clay loam than from the loamy sand, and cumulative N2O emissions from the inverted profile, with greater C levels at depth, were more than those from the profile with more C near the upper surface. Cumulative N2O losses from the inverted clay loam profile with deep N placement (1.16 mg N per kg dry soil; 0.71% of applied N) on average were almost double those in the loamy sand (0.62 mg N per kg dry soil; 0.42%). The smallest N2O losses were measured from the profiles with more C close to the upper surface with a shallow placement of N for the clay loam (0.19 mg N per kg dry soil; 0.12%) and loamy sand (0.33 mg N per kg dry soil; 0.23%). An exponential relationship between N2O fluxes and temperature was measured. We conclude that large N2O losses may occur under the combination of greater soil C content at deeper layers (ploughed soils) and moist profiles after N application (humid regions). Deep N placement appears to aggravate rather than ameliorate these concerns.
Echo and reverberation in a Pekeris waveguide by convolution and by the product rule
Authors: Ainslie Michael A.
Published: March 2013

The detection performance of an active sonar depends on the intensity of the signal (target echo) relative to that of a background of reverberation plus noise. The echo is calculated for a standard test problem by convolving the time-domain impulse response at the target position with itself. The same approach is applied to a closely related test problem for reverberation by integrating over scatterers at all ranges. The result is compared with a widely used rule whereby the reverberation intensity is approximated by integrating the product of the source, propagation, and scattering factors over grazing angle. The error resulting from this approximation, which increases with increasing grazing angle and tends to infinity as the upper limit of integration tends to π/2, can be corrected by including a simple trigonometric multiplying factor in the integrand.
Relative fundamental frequency during vocal onset and offset in older speakers with and without Parkinson's disease
Authors: Stepp Cara E.
Published: March 2013

The relative fundamental frequency (RFF) surrounding production of a voiceless consonant has previously been shown to be lower in speakers with hypokinetic dysarthria and Parkinson's disease (PD) relative to age/sex matched controls. Here RFF was calculated in 32 speakers with PD without overt hypokinetic dysarthria and 32 age and sex matched controls to better understand the relationships between RFF and PD progression, medication status, and sex. Results showed that RFF was statistically significantly lower in individuals with PD compared with healthy age-matched controls and was statistically significantly lower in individuals diagnosed at least 5 yrs prior to experimentation relative to individuals recorded less than 5 yrs past diagnosis. Contrary to previous trends, no effect of medication was found. However, a statistically significant effect of sex on offset RFF was shown, with lower values in males relative to females. Future work examining the physiological bases of RFF is warranted.
Plenum window insertion loss in the presence of a line source—A scale model study
Authors: Tong Y. G. , Tang S. K.
Published: March 2013

The acoustical insertion losses of plenum windows installed on a building facade in the presence of a non-parallel line source are studied by using a 1:4 scaled down model in a semi-anechoic chamber in the present investigation. Two types of insertion losses, weighted by the normalized traffic noise spectrum (from the 100 Hz to 5000 Hz one-third octave bands), are defined with different references. The first one is for the case where the orientation of the building facade relative to the line source is fixed. The reference case is the opened window having the same orientation angle as the plenum window. The maximum and minimum insertion losses under this condition across the orientations tested are found to be around 14 dB and 5 dB, respectively. The other is the opposite situation where such orientation is allowed to change because of practical purposes and the reference for this condition is the opened window with its width span parallel to the line source. The corresponding maximum and minimum insertion losses are found to be around 18 dB and 8 dB, respectively. There are evidences showing that the lower order plenum acoustic modes are responsible for the relatively high low frequency insertion loss.
Influence of the scattering and absorption coefficients on homogeneous room simulations that use a diffusion equation model
Authors: Navarro Juan M. , Escolano José , Cobos Maximo , López José J.
Published: March 2013

The diffusion equation model was used for room acoustic simulations to predict the sound pressure level and the reverberation time. The technical literature states that the diffusion equation method accurately models the late portion of the room impulse response if the energy is sufficiently scattered. This work provides conclusions on the validity of the diffusion equation model for rooms with homogeneous dimensions in relation to the scattering coefficients of the boundaries. A systematic evaluation was conducted out to determine the ranges of the absorption and scattering coefficient values that result in low noticeable differences between the predictions from a geometrical acoustic model and those from the diffusion equation model.
Surface wave measurements using a single continuously scanning laser Doppler vibrometer: Application to elastography
Authors: Salman Muhammad , Sabra Karim G.
Published: March 2013

A continuous scanning laser Doppler vibrometry (CSLDV) obtained sweeping a single laser beam along a periodic scan pattern allows measuring surface vibrations at many points simultaneously by demultiplexing the CSLDV signal. This known method fundamentally differs from conventional scanning laser vibrometry techniques in which the laser beam is kept at a fixed point during each measurement and then moved to a new position prior to the next measurement. This article demonstrates the use of a CSLDV for measuring in a non-contact fashion the velocity of low-frequency surface waves (f < 100 Hz) propagating over soft materials, namely here gel surfaces—mimicking human body soft tissues—and skeletal muscles, to develop an affordable and noninvasive elastography modality. The CSLDV vibration measurements obtained with a single laser beam, linearly scanned over the test surface at 200 Hz over lengths up to 6 cm, were validated using an array of three fixed laser Doppler vibrometers distributed along the same scan line. Furthermore, this CSLDV setup was used to measure the increase in surface wave velocity over the biceps brachii muscle which was directly correlated to the actual stiffening of the biceps occurring while a subject was performing voluntary contractions at an increasing level.
Discrimination of individual tigers (Panthera tigris) from long distance roars
Authors: Ji An , Johnson Michael T. , Walsh Edward J. , McGee JoAnn , Armstrong Douglas L.
Published: March 2013

This paper investigates the extent of tiger (Panthera tigris) vocal individuality through both qualitative and quantitative approaches using long distance roars from six individual tigers at Omaha's Henry Doorly Zoo in Omaha, NE. The framework for comparison across individuals includes statistical and discriminant function analysis across whole vocalization measures and statistical pattern classification using a hidden Markov model (HMM) with frame-based spectral features comprised of Greenwood frequency cepstral coefficients. Individual discrimination accuracy is evaluated as a function of spectral model complexity, represented by the number of mixtures in the underlying Gaussian mixture model (GMM), and temporal model complexity, represented by the number of sequential states in the HMM. Results indicate that the temporal pattern of the vocalization is the most significant factor in accurate discrimination. Overall baseline discrimination accuracy for this data set is about 70% using high level features without complex spectral or temporal models. Accuracy increases to about 80% when more complex spectral models (multiple mixture GMMs) are incorporated, and increases to a final accuracy of 90% when more detailed temporal models (10-state HMMs) are used. Classification accuracy is stable across a relatively wide range of configurations in terms of spectral and temporal model resolution.
Vocal fold vibration measurements using laser Doppler vibrometry
Authors: Chan Alfred , Mongeau Luc , Kost Karen
Published: March 2013

The objective of this study was to measure the velocity of the superior surface of human vocal folds during phonation using laser Doppler vibrometry (LDV). A custom-made endoscopic laser beam deflection unit was designed and fabricated. An in vivo clinical experimental procedure was developed to simultaneously collect LDV velocity and video from videolaryngoscopy. The velocity along the direction of the laser beam, i.e., the inferior-superior direction, was captured. The velocity was synchronous with electroglottograph and sound level meter data. The vibration energy of the vocal folds was determined to be significant up to a frequency of 3 kHz. Three characteristic vibrational waveforms were identified which may indicate bifurcations between vibrational modes of the mucosal wave. No relationship was found between the velocity amplitude and phonation frequency or sound pressure level. A correlation was found between the peak-to-peak displacement amplitude and phonation frequency. A sparse map of the velocity amplitudes on the vocal fold surface was obtained.
ACOUSTICAL STANDARDS NEWS
Authors: Blaeser Susan B. , Schomer Paul D.
Published: March 2013

American National Standards (ANSI Standards) developed by Accredited Standards Committees S1, S2, S3, and S12 in the areas of acoustics, mechanical vibration and shock, bioacoustics, and noise, respectively, are published by the Acoustical Society of America (ASA). In addition to these standards, ASA publishes catalogs of Acoustical Standards, both National and International. To receive copies of the latest Standards catalogs, please contact Susan B. Blaeser.

Comments are welcomed on all material in Acoustical Standards News.

This Acoustical Standards News section in JASA, as well as the National and International Catalogs of Acoustical Standards, and other information on the Standards Program of the Acoustical Society of America, are available via the ASA Standards home page: http://acousticalsociety.org/standards.
Exceptional Properties by Design
Authors: Zhou Min
Published: March 2013

A nanocomposite with a unique combination of attributes heralds an era of new possibilities in materials design.

[Also see Report by

Hao
et al.

]
At Home on the Range: Prairie Rodents Yield Their Secrets to a Dogged Observer
Authors: Pennisi Elizabeth
Published: March 2013

John Hoogland has intensively studied prairie dogs for 40 years—and now he's made another new discovery.
Imaging the Beating Heart
Authors: Zidar David A.
Published: March 2013

Intravital microscopy of mouse hearts reveals rapid immune cell influx after a heart attack.
Antibody-Dependent Cellular Cytotoxicity Is Associated with Control of Pandemic H1N1 Influenza Virus Infection of Macaques
Authors: Jegaskanda Sinthujan , Weinfurter Jason T. , Friedrich Thomas C. , Kent Stephen J.
Published: March 2013

Emerging influenza viruses pose a serious risk to global human health. Recent studies in ferrets, macaques, and humans suggest that seasonal H1N1 (sH1N1) infection provides some cross-protection against 2009 pandemic influenza viruses (H1N1pdm), but the correlates of cross-protection are poorly understood. Here we show that seasonal infection of influenza-naïve Indian rhesus macaques (
Macaca mulatta
) with A/Kawasaki/173/2001 (sH1N1) virus induces antibodies capable of binding the hemagglutinin (HA) of both the homologous seasonal virus and the antigenically divergent A/California/04/2009 (H1N1pdm) strain in the absence of detectable H1N1pdm-specific neutralizing antibodies. These influenza virus-specific antibodies activated macaque NK cells to express both CD107a and gamma interferon (IFN-γ) in the presence of HA proteins from either sH1N1 or H1N1pdm viruses. Although influenza virus-specific antibody-dependent cellular cytotoxicity (ADCC)-mediated NK cell activation diminished in titer over time following sH1N1 infection, these cells expanded rapidly within 7 days following H1N1pdm exposure. Furthermore, we found that influenza virus-specific ADCC was present in bronchoalveolar lavage fluid and was able to activate lung NK cells. We concluded that infection with a seasonal influenza virus can induce antibodies that mediate ADCC capable of recognizing divergent influenza virus strains. Cross-reactive ADCC may provide a mechanism for reducing the severity of divergent influenza virus infections.
Enhanced Phagocytic Activity of HIV-Specific Antibodies Correlates with Natural Production of Immunoglobulins with Skewed Affinity for FcγR2a and FcγR2b
Authors: Ackerman Margaret E. , Dugast Anne-Sophie , McAndrew Elizabeth G. , Tsoukas Stephen , Licht Anna F. , Irvine Darrell J. , Alter Galit
Published: March 2013

While development of an HIV vaccine that can induce neutralizing antibodies remains a priority, decades of research have proven that this is a daunting task. However, accumulating evidence suggests that antibodies with the capacity to harness innate immunity may provide some protection. While significant research has focused on the cytolytic properties of antibodies in acquisition and control, less is known about the role of additional effector functions. In this study, we investigated antibody-dependent phagocytosis of HIV immune complexes, and we observed significant differences in the ability of antibodies from infected subjects to mediate this critical effector function. We observed both quantitative differences in the capacity of antibodies to drive phagocytosis and qualitative differences in their FcγR usage profile. We demonstrate that antibodies from controllers and untreated progressors exhibit increased phagocytic activity, altered Fc domain glycosylation, and skewed interactions with FcγR2a and FcγR2b in both bulk plasma and HIV-specific IgG. While increased phagocytic activity may directly influence immune activation via clearance of inflammatory immune complexes, it is also plausible that Fc receptor usage patterns may regulate the immune response by modulating downstream signals following phagocytosis—driving passive degradation of internalized virus, release of immune modulating cytokines and chemokines, or priming of a more effective adaptive immune response.
Stochastic Assembly Leads to Alternative Communities with Distinct Functions in a Bioreactor Microbial Community
Authors: Zhou Jizhong , Liu Wenzong , Deng Ye , Jiang Yi-Huei , Xue Kai , He Zhili , Van Nostrand Joy D. , Wu Liyou , Yang Yunfeng , Wang Aijie
Published: March 2013

The processes and mechanisms of community assembly and its relationships to community functioning are central issues in ecology. Both deterministic and stochastic factors play important roles in shaping community composition and structure, but the connection between community assembly and ecosystem functioning remains elusive, especially in microbial communities. Here, we used microbial electrolysis cell reactors as a model system to examine the roles of stochastic assembly in determining microbial community structure and functions. Under identical environmental conditions with the same source community, ecological drift (i.e., initial stochastic colonization) and subsequent biotic interactions created dramatically different communities with little overlap among 14 identical reactors, indicating that stochastic assembly played dominant roles in determining microbial community structure. Neutral community modeling analysis revealed that deterministic factors also played significant roles in shaping microbial community structure in these reactors. Most importantly, the newly formed communities differed substantially in community functions (e.g., H
2
production), which showed strong linkages to community structure. This study is the first to demonstrate that stochastic assembly plays a dominant role in determining not only community structure but also ecosystem functions. Elucidating the links among community assembly, biodiversity, and ecosystem functioning is critical to understanding ecosystem functioning, biodiversity preservation, and ecosystem management.

IMPORTANCE
Microorganisms are the most diverse group of life known on earth. Although it is well documented that microbial natural biodiversity is extremely high, it is not clear why such high diversity is generated and maintained. Numerous studies have established the roles of niche-based deterministic factors (e.g., pH, temperature, and salt) in shaping microbial biodiversity, the importance of stochastic processes in generating microbial biodiversity is rarely appreciated. Moreover, while microorganisms mediate many ecosystem processes, the relationship between microbial diversity and ecosystem functioning remains largely elusive. Using a well-controlled laboratory system, this study provides empirical support for the dominant role of stochastic assembly in creating variations of microbial diversity and the first explicit evidence for the critical role of community assembly in influencing ecosystem functioning. The results presented in this study represent important contributions to the understanding of the mechanisms, especially stochastic processes, involved in shaping microbial biodiversity.
Evolutionary Analysis Points to Divergent Physiological Roles of Type 1 Fimbriae inSalmonellaand Escherichia coli
Authors: Kisiela Dagmara I. , Chattopadhyay Sujay , Tchesnokova Veronika , Paul Sandip , Weissman Scott J. , Medenica Irena , Clegg Steven , Sokurenko Evgeni V.
Published: March 2013

SalmonellaandEscherichia colimannose-binding type 1 fimbriae exhibit highly similar receptor specificities, morphologies, and mechanisms of assembly but are nonorthologous in nature, i.e., not closely related evolutionarily. Their operons differ in chromosomal location, gene arrangement, and regulatory components. In the current study, we performed a comparative genetic and structural analysis of the major structural subunit, FimA, fromSalmonellaandE. coliand found that FimA pilins undergo diverse evolutionary adaptation in the different species. Whereas theE. coli fimAlocus is characterized by high allelic diversity, frequent intragenic recombination, and horizontal movement,Salmonella fimAshows structural diversity that is more than 5-fold lower without strong evidence of gene shuffling or homologous recombination. In contrast toSalmonellaFimA, the amino acid substitutions in theE. colipilin heavily target the protein regions that are predicted to be exposed on the external surface of fimbriae. Altogether, our results suggest thatE. coli, but notSalmonella, type 1 fimbriae display a high level of structural diversity consistent with a strong selection for antigenic variation under immune pressure. Thus, type 1 fimbriae in these closely related bacterial species appear to function in distinctly different physiological environments.

IMPORTANCEE. coliandSalmonellaare enteric bacteria that are closely related from an evolutionary perspective. They are both notorious human pathogens, though with somewhat distinct ecologies and virulence mechanisms. Type 1 fimbriae are rod-shaped surface appendages found in mostE. coliandSalmonellaisolates. In both species, they mediate bacterial adhesion to mannose receptors on host cells and share essentially the same morphology and assembly mechanisms. Here we show that despite the strong resemblances in function and structure, they are exposed to very different natural selection environments. Sequence analysis indicates thatE. coli, but notSalmonella, fimbriae are subjected to strong immune pressure, resulting in a high level of major fimbrial protein gene shuffling and interbacterial transfer. Thus, evolutionary analysis tools can provide evidence of divergent physiological roles of functionally similar traits in different bacterial species.
Open book injury secondary to doing the splits
Authors: Lawal Kaltumi O , Clayson Anthony D , Charalambous Charalambos Panayiotou
Published: March 2013

Open book injury is usually a result of a high-energy force. We present such an injury sustained as a result of a fall while doing the splits. In our case, a successful outcome was achieved by non-surgical treatment, as the patient was haemodynamically stable.
The urban brain: analysing outdoor physical activity with mobile EEG
Authors: Aspinall Peter , Mavros Panagiotis , Coyne Richard , Roe Jenny
Published: March 2013

Background

Researchers in environmental psychology, health studies and urban design are interested in the relationship between the environment, behaviour settings and emotions. In particular, happiness, or the presence of positive emotional mindsets, broadens an individual's thought-action repertoire with positive benefits to physical and intellectual activities, and to social and psychological resources. This occurs through play, exploration or similar activities. In addition, a body of restorative literature focuses on the potential benefits to emotional recovery from stress offered by green space and ‘soft fascination’. However, access to the cortical correlates of emotional states of a person actively engaged within an environment has not been possible until recently. This study investigates the use of mobile electroencephalography (EEG) as a method to record and analyse the emotional experience of a group of walkers in three types of urban environment including a green space setting.

Methods

Using Emotiv EPOC, a low-cost mobile EEG recorder, participants took part in a 25 min walk through three different areas of Edinburgh. The areas (of approximately equal length) were labelled zone 1 (urban shopping street), zone 2 (path through green space) and zone 3 (street in a busy commercial district). The equipment provided continuous recordings from five channels, labelled excitement (short-term), frustration, engagement, long-term excitement (or arousal) and meditation.

Results

A new form of high-dimensional correlated component logistic regression analysis showed evidence of lower frustration, engagement and arousal, and higher meditation when moving into the green space zone; and higher engagement when moving out of it.

Conclusions

Systematic differences in EEG recordings were found between three urban areas in line with restoration theory. This has implications for promoting urban green space as a mood-enhancing environment for walking or for other forms of physical or reflective activity.
Fifth metatarsal fractures among male professional footballers: a potential career-ending disease
Authors: Ekstrand Jan , van Dijk C Niek
Published: March 2013

Background

There is little information about Metatarsal Five (MT-5) fractures for specific sports.

Objective

To study the occurrence, the imaging characteristics, the lay-off times and healing problems of MT-5 fractures among male footballers.

Methods

Sixty-four European elite teams were monitored from 2001 to 2012. x-Rays were collected and classified by the Torg criteria.

Results

Of 13 754 injuries, 0.5% (67) proved to be MT-5 fractures. Their incidence was 0.04 injuries/1000 h of exposure. A team of 25 players might thus expect an MT-5 fracture every fifth season. Of these fractures, 67% (38) were primary and 33% were refractures. One of the 38 primary fractures was an avulsion of the tuberosity; all the others (97%) located towards the base. In total, 32% of the players with MT-5 fracture were younger than 21 years, 40% of the fractures occurred during the preseason and 45% of the players had prodromal symptoms. In total, 54% of the initial x-rays were classified as Torg type II (stress fractures), and 46% were classified as Torg type I (acute type). After surgical treatment the fractures healed faster, compared with conservative treatment (75% vs 33%, p<0.05). There was no significant difference in lay-off days between players that had been operated, and those that had not (80 vs 74 days, p=0.67).

Conclusions

The majority of MT-5 fractures are stress fractures, and mainly occur among young players. There are frequent healing problems, which might be explained by the stress nature of the injury. After surgery there are less healing problems, compared with those in conservative treatment.
An evaluation of the performance of the NHS Health Check programme in identifying people at high risk of developing type 2 diabetes
Authors: Smith Sarah , Waterall Jamie , Burden A C Felix
Published: March 2013

Objective

To evaluate the performance of the National Health Service (NHS) Health Check in identifying people at high risk of having or developing type 2 diabetes.

Design

Retrospective evaluation of the performance of the NHS Health Check diabetes filter (based on ethnicity, body mass index and blood pressure) in identifying people at risk for type 2 diabetes (glycated haemoglobin (HbA1c) ≥42 mmol/mol recorded within 3 months of their NHS Health Check).

Setting

Heart of Birmingham Primary Care Trust (HoB PCT).

Subjects

34 022 patients with a Read code in the general practitioners’ (GP) clinical record indicating that they had attended an NHS Health Check over the period April 2009 – February 2012.

Outcome measures

Primary outcome measure: proportion (%) of patients at risk of diabetes or non-diabetes hyperglycaemia not identified by a simple application of the NHS Health Check diabetes filter. Secondary outcome measures included sensitivity, positive predictive value (PPV) and specificity of the NHS Health Check diabetes filter.

Results

In HoB PCT, the simple application of the NHS Health Check diabetes filter led to a failure to identify 1990/5968 (33.3% (95% CI, 31.2% to 35.4%)) of patients of known ethnicity at risk of having or developing diabetes (HbA1c≥42 mmol/mol). The NHS Health Check diabetes filter has a sensitivity of 66.8% (95% CI 65.7% to 68.0%), and the PPV was 41.1% (95% CI 40.1% to 42.1%). Specificity was 34.7% (95%CI 33.9% to 35.6%). Sensitivity and PPV of the NHS Health Check diabetes filter in the HoB PCT population are significantly greater for patients of Asian ethnic origin than for those of other ethnic backgrounds.

Conclusions

This evaluation, which was based on a large population sample, demonstrates that the NHS Health Check programme diabetes filter failed to identify a third of people at high risk of having or developing diabetes.
PREVALENCE OF DYSLIPIDEMIA IN NEWFOUNDLAND ADULTS: APPROACHES TO ESTIMATION USING ELECTRONIC MEDICAL RECORDS
Authors: Oake Justin , Asghari Shabnam , Godwin Marshall , Collins Kayla , Aubrey Kris
Published: March 2013

Introduction

Dyslipidemia is a leading risk factor for cardiovascular disease (CVD). Newfoundland and Labrador (NL) has a higher level of CVD mortality than any other province in Canada. This high level may be partially explained by the lipid profiles of people in this province. To our knowledge, there is no study in NL or Canada to use electronic medical records (EMR) to assess the prevalence of dyslipidemia.

Objectives

First, to assess the prevalence of dyslipidemia in NL using Canadian Primary Care Sentinel Surveillance Network (CPCSSN) EMR data. Second, to develop an algorithm that will provide a more accurate estimation of dyslipidemia using EMR data.

Methods

This is a secondary, cross-sectional analysis of existing data in our province. The study population included all patients aged 20 years or older who lived in NL. The most recent lipid profile (triglyceride, total cholesterol, high density lipoprotein (HDL-C), low density lipoprotein (LDL-C)) available on patients between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2010 was identified. Independent variables included sex, age, lipid lowering medication use, and presence of comorbid conditions and other risk factors, such as hypertension and diabetes. The sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, negative predictive value and κ agreement, were calculated to compare different algorithms (ICD-9 code, laboratory result and lipid lowering medication use) for estimating the prevalence of dyslipidemia.

Results

This study included 4424 primary healthcare patients. Approximately 42% of patients were considered to have high total cholesterol, almost 36% had unhealthy levels of LDL-C, 25% had low HDL-C, and nearly 25% had high triglycerides. For adults with multiple dyslipidemias, elevated total cholesterol and LDL-C was the most common combination (32.9%), followed by elevated total cholesterol and triglycerides (13.1%). A combination of lipid lowering medication use and laboratory results revealed a sensitivity of 99.4%, and the κ agreement was 0.99 compared with the combination of the three existing variables. This algorithm showed a dyslipidemic prevalence of 76.0% among these patients.

Conclusions

Results of the NL component of the CPCSSN database showed a high prevalence of both individual and multiple dyslipidemias. Furthermore, the optimal criteria to estimate the prevalence of dyslipidemia in EMRs is using laboratory results together with lipid lowering medication use. These findings highlight the need for further investigation into lipid research in NL in order to determine the magnitude of dyslipidemia as an important risk factor of CVD and other chronic diseases in NL.
Spectroscopic studies of vanadium biosorption on different types of carbohydrate biomass
Authors: García Jousy , González Juan Carlos , Frascaroli María Inés , García Silvia , Blanes Patricia , Correia Isabel , Costa Pessoa João , Sala Luis F.
Published: March 2013

The biosorption potential of different types of carbohydrate biomass is investigated to evaluate their application to purify water contaminated by vanadium in environmentally relevant oxidation states (VIV and VV). Spectroscopic studies were done by electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), vanadium nuclear magnetic resonance (51V NMR), circular dichroism (CD), and electronic absorption in the visible range (vis). Both d-galacturonic and d-glucuronic acids are major components of plant cellular wall polysaccharides. The interaction of VIV with the model ligands d-galacturonic and d-glucuronic acids showed that complexation starts at low pH values (pH 3) and that carboxylate and sugar–OH groups, as well as water molecules, are involved in the coordination. At pH > 4.5, coordination promotes the sugar–OH deprotonation and new species form with the ligand chelating the metal ion via oxygen atoms of carboxylate and of adjacent sugar–O− donors. The studies with pectin and citric acid show the ability of both compounds to partially reduce VV to VIV in solution and the EPR parameters suggest coordination of carboxylate, sugar–OH, and water molecules. The interaction of VV with biomass from different sources shows that grapefruit, orange peel, and plane tree fruit are the most suitable candidates for the biosorption of vanadium. Studies with VV and grapefruit (or the grainless stalk of corn) indicate that the reduction takes place at the “surface” of the solid. EPR studies on the interaction of VIV with different carbohydrate biomass show their ability to complex high amounts of VIV. We propose that the biosorption mechanism, when the biomass is in contact with VV species, involves sorption, reduction, and retention at the surface level of VIV coordinated by oxygen donors of the biomass. When the interaction starts with VIV, the main process just involves the uptake of the metal ion at the surface level.
GENERALIZED SYNCHRONIZATION IN AN ARRAY OF NONLINEAR DYNAMIC SYSTEMS WITH APPLICATIONS TO CHAOTIC CNN
Authors: MIN LEQUAN , CHEN GUANRONG
Published: March 2013

This paper establishes some generalized synchronization (GS) theorems for a coupled discrete array of difference systems (CDADS) and a coupled continuous array of differential systems (CCADS). These constructive theorems provide general representations of GS in CDADS and CCADS. Based on these theorems, one can design GS-driven CDADS and CCADS via appropriate (invertible) transformations. As applications, the results are applied to autonomous and nonautonomous coupled Chen cellular neural network (CNN) CDADS and CCADS, discrete bidirectional Lorenz CNN CDADS, nonautonomous bidirectional Chua CNN CCADS, and nonautonomously bidirectional Chen CNN CDADS and CCADS, respectively. Extensive numerical simulations show their complex dynamic behaviors. These theorems provide new means for understanding the GS phenomena of complex discrete and continuously differentiable networks.
FRACTAL ANALYSIS OF PRIME INDIAN STOCK MARKET INDICES
Authors: SAMADDER SWETADRI , GHOSH KOUSHIK , BASU TAPASENDRA
Published: March 2013

The purpose of the present work is to study the fractal behaviour of prime Indian stock exchanges, namely Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitivity Index (BSE Sensex) and National Stock Exchange (NSE). To analyze the monofractality of these indices we have used Higuchi method and Katz method separately. By applying Mutifractal Detrended Fluctuation Analysis (MFDFA) technique we have calculated the generalized Hurst exponents, multifractal scaling exponents and generalized multifractal dimensions for the present indices. We have deduced Hölder exponents as well as singularity spectra for BSE and NSE. It has been observed that both the stock exchanges are possessing self-similarity at different small ranges separately and inhomogeneously. By comparing the multifractal behaviour of the BSE and NSE indices, we have found that the second one exhibits a richer multifractal feature than the first one.
AN APPROACH TO STATICAL AND QUASI-STATICAL NONLINEAR ANALYSIS OF STRUCTURES IN SMALL STRAINS AND FINITE ROTATIONS HYPOTHESES
Authors: LOPEZ S. , RUSSO K. , LA SALA G.
Published: March 2013

A geometrically nonlinear formulation to analyze structures in the hypotheses of large displacements and rotations and small strains is presented. In this formulation, applied to low-order elements and based on the total Lagrangian kinematics, the use of the rotation matrices is bypassed. A selectively based definition of the strain tensor, used in order to avoid shear-locking problems, is effected by the linear definition of deformations because it is element reference system independent. In addition, complex manipulations required to obtain conservative descriptions and well-posed transformation matrices are avoided. Numerical tests have been carried out to validate the developed technique both in the statical and in the quasi-statical context.
ELASTIC RESTRAINED DISTORTIONAL BUCKLING OF STEEL-CONCRETE COMPOSITE BEAMS BASED ON ELASTICALLY SUPPORTED COLUMN METHOD
Authors: YE JI-HONG , CHEN WEI
Published: March 2013

Restrained distortional buckling (RDB) is different from overall buckling and distortional buckling, and it usually occurs in the hogging moment region of composite beams. It may govern the member design for some cases, and should be taken into consideration. The present paper investigates the elastic RDB of composite beams based on elastically supported column method. First, Svensson's elastically supported column model is improved by including the participation of the web as part of the buckling column. The corresponding theoretical expressions for the improved elastically support column subjected to a varying axial force are derived by the potential energy expression and equilibrium differential equation, respectively. Then, the precision of several elastically supported column methods for the RDB problem is discussed, based on the finite element method (FEM). The results show that elastically supported columns subjected to a negative uniform moment or a triangular moment have a good agreement with FEM results, but they are not valid for the cases of nonlinear moment distributions. In order to consider the complicated load conditions of composite beams, the equivalent moment assumption is introduced and proved to be suitable for the RDB problem. However, there is an applicable range of the length of the hogging moment region. Thus, a critical length formula of equivalent moment assumption of RDB is put forward and verified by FEM. Furthermore, a three-step simplified method is presented which can solve the elastic RDB problem of continuous composite beams. The proposed method, in which values of elastically supported column methods can be tabulated previously, is simple and suitable for design purposes.
FREE VIBRATION OF FUNCTIONALLY GRADED PLATES WITH A HIGHER-ORDER SHEAR AND NORMAL DEFORMATION THEORY
Authors: JHA D. K. , KANT TARUN , SINGH R. K.
Published: March 2013

Free vibration analysis of functionally graded elastic, rectangular, and simply supported (diaphragm) plates is presented based on a higher-order shear and normal deformation theory (HOSNT). Although functionally graded materials (FGMs) are highly heterogeneous in nature, they are generally idealized as continua with mechanical properties changing smoothly with respect to the spatial coordinates. The material properties of functionally graded (FG) plates are assumed here to be varying through the thickness of the plate in a continuous manner. The Poisson ratios of the FG plates are assumed to be constant, but their Young's modulii and densities vary continuously in the thickness direction according to the volume fraction of constituents which is mathematically modeled as a power law function. The equations of motion are derived using Hamilton's principle for the FG plates on the basis of a HOSNT assuming varying material properties. Numerical solutions are obtained by the use of Navier solution method. The accuracy of the numerical solutions is first established through comparison with the exact three-dimensional (3D) elasticity solutions and the present solutions are then compared with available solutions of other models.
DYNAMIC ANALYSES OF A FLEXIBLE VEHICLE MOVING ALONG A FLEXIBLE GUIDEWAY CONSIDERING THE TIP-OFF EFFECT
Authors: CHOU S. N. , CHENG F. P. , HUANG C. S.
Published: March 2013

A semi-analytical solution for the tip-off response of a vehicle moving along a guideway is obtained, considering the dynamic interaction between the two subsystems. The guideway is modeled as an inclined simply-supported uniform flexible beam, and the vehicle as a flexible free-free beam under a pre-specified thrust force. The equations of motion for the vehicle and guideway are developed using the Lagrangian approach and the assumed mode method based on the Euler–Bernoulli hypothesis. In the form of nonlinear differential equations, they are solved by the Petzold-Gear backward differentiation formula (BDF) method. The solutions obtained are validated by comparing them with the published results for the models with a rigid vehicle running over a rigid guideway or a flexible guideway. Comparisons of the present solutions with the existing ones for the vehicle and guideway reveal the advantages of the approach proposed herein. Other effects on the tip-off responses of the vehicle that are investigated include the length of the guideway, distance between the shoes of the vehicle, and mass and rigidity ratios of the vehicle to the guideway. The results presented herein provide valuable information for the design of the vehicle launch system.
ON AN EXTENSION OF A RESULT OF HERSTEIN
Authors: TAMMAM EL-SAYIAD M. S. , ALSHEHRI N. O.
Published: March 2013

A derivation of an associative ring R is an additive map satisfying T(xy) = T(x)y + xT(y) for all x, y in R. We study rings with a derivation T satisfying Herstein's condition [T(R), T(R)] = 0. (The commutator [u, v] is defined by: [u, v] = uv - vu.) This work studies the structure of the ideal I generated by T(R). We show that I3 is in the center of R, and we show that R has an ideal K which is contained in the kernel of T, K2 = 0, and [T(R/K), R/K] generates a trivial ideal of R/K.
A NOVEL FLOW-BASED METHOD USING GREY RELATIONAL ANALYSIS FOR PATTERN CLASSIFICATION
Authors: HU YI-CHUNG
Published: March 2013

Flow-based methods based on the outranking relation theory are extensively used in multiple criteria classification problems. Flow-based methods usually employed an overall preference index representing the flow to measure the intensity of preference for one pattern over another pattern. A traditional flow obtained by the pairwise comparison may not be complete since it does not globally consider the differences on each criterion between all the other patterns and the latter. That is, a traditional flow merely locally considers the difference on each criterion between two patterns. In contrast with traditional flows, the relationship-based flow is newly proposed by employing the grey relational analysis to assess the flow from one pattern to another pattern by considering the differences on each criterion between all the other patterns and the latter. A genetic algorithm-based learning algorithm is designed to determine the relative weights of respective criteria to derive the overall relationship index of a pattern. Our method is tested on several real-world data sets. Its performance is comparable to that of other well-known classifiers and flow-based methods.
AN EXPLICIT SMOOTHED FINITE ELEMENT METHOD (SFEM) FOR ELASTIC DYNAMIC PROBLEMS
Authors: CUI X. Y. , LI G. Y. , LIU G. R.
Published: March 2013

This paper presents an explicit smoothed finite element method (SFEM) for elastic dynamic problems. The central difference method for time integration will be used in presented formulations. A simple but general contact searching algorithm is used to treat the contact interface and an algorithm for the contact force is presented. In present method, the problem domain is first divided into elements as in the finite element method (FEM), and the elements are further subdivided into several smoothing cells. Cell-wise strain smoothing operations are used to obtain the stresses, which are constants in each smoothing cells. Area integration over the smoothing cell becomes line integration along its edges, and no gradient of shape functions is involved in computing the field gradients nor in forming the internal force. No mapping or coordinate transformation is necessary so that the element can be used effectively for large deformation problems. Through several examples, the simplicity, efficiency and reliability of the smoothed finite element method are demonstrated.
EVALUATION OF THE ANTITUMOR ACTIVITY BY CdTe QDs WITH VERBASCOSIDE
Authors: ZHAO XIAO-HUI , YUE HUI-LAN , LI PING , ZENG XIN , ZHANG GEN
Published: March 2013

Cadmium telluride quantum dots (QDs) have received significant attention in biomedical research because of their potential in drug delivery. In this study, the chemotherapeutic agent Verbascoside (VB) was immobilized successfully onto CdTe QDs by covalent bonding between the –OH group of VB and the –COOH group of CdTe QDs. The amount of VB that could be immobilized depended on the concentration of –COOH groups (succinic acid) on the surface of the CdTe QDs. Apoptotic staining, DNA fragmentation and flow cytometry analysis further demonstrated that compared with CdTe QDs or VB treatment alone, the apoptosis rate increased after the treatment of CdTe QDs together with VB (VB–QDs) in HepG2/ADM cells. We observed that VB–QDs treatment could clearly activate apoptosis-related Caspase 3 expression in HepG2/ADM cells. Moreover, our in vivo study indicated that the treatment of VB–QDs effectively inhibited the human hepatoma HepG2/ADM nude mice tumor growth. The increased cell apoptosis rate was closely correlated with the enhanced inhibition of tumor growth in the studied animals. Thus, VB–QDs may serve as a possible alternative for therapeutic approaches for some cancer treatments. In summary, studies have shown that cancer cells are treated by the presence of VB–QDs nanoparticles based on analysis of cell apoptosis.
SYNTHESIS OF GRAPHITE OXIDE (GO)/Cu2O NANOCOMPOSITE AND ITS CATALYTIC PERFORMANCE UNDER THE ULTRASOUND
Authors: CHEN CHUNNIAN , YU CHENWEI , FU WEN
Published: March 2013

GO/ Cu2O nanocomposite had been successfully synthesized by electrostatic interactions method. X-ray powder diffraction (XRD), transmission electron microscope (TEM), selective-area electron diffraction (SAED), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR) and Raman spectra confirmed the structure of the Cu2O and GO/ Cu2O nanocomposite. The catalytic degradation of Rhodamine B under the condition of ultrasound was investigated and the result of UV-Vis spectroscopy demonstrated that the nanocomposite can efficiently degraded it.