bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Control of glyphosate-resistant Canada fleabane in Ontario with multiple effective modes-of-action in glyphosate/dicamba-resistant soybean
Authors: Hedges Brittany K. , Soltani Nader , Robinson Darren E. , Hooker David C. , Sikkema Peter H.
Published: October 2018

Canada fleabane is a winter or summer annual weed that is found throughout North America. Fall-emerged Canada fleabane can fix carbon early in the growing season, giving it a competitive advantage over nearby crop and weed species. Glyphosate-resistant (GR) Canada fleabane was originally found in one county in Ontario, Canada, in 2010 and had spread to at least 29 additional counties within the province by 2016. Previous research with several preplant herbicides resulted in variable control of GR Canada fleabane in soybean. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficacy of glyphosate/dicamba (1800 g a.e. ha−1) alone or with the addition of a second effective mode-of-action for the control of GR Canada fleabane in glyphosate/dicamba-resistant soybean. At 4 weeks after application, glyphosate/dicamba + saflufenacil, saflufenacil/dimethenamid-P, saflufenacil/imazethapyr, or paraquat controlled GR Canada fleabane 97%, 96%, 97%, and 98%, respectively. All herbicide treatments decreased Canada fleabane density and biomass by 93%–99%. When choosing herbicide programs, it is important to consider the use of multiple modes-of-action to decrease selection pressure for the evolution of herbicide-resistant Canada fleabane. Treatments containing saflufenacil, saflufenacil/dimethenamid-P, or saflufenacil/imazethapyr with the addition of glyphosate/dicamba are recommended for the control of GR Canada fleabane.
AAC Viewfield hard red spring wheat
Authors: Cuthbert R.D. , DePauw R.M. , Knox R.E. , Singh A.K. , McCallum B. , Fetch T.
Published: October 2018

AAC Viewfield hard red spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) has a grain yield significantly higher than the check cultivars Katepwa and Lillian and is similar to Carberry. AAC Viewfield matures significantly later than Katewpa and Lillian but is similar to Carberry. AAC Viewfield has an awned spike, a low lodging score (indicative of strong straw), and significantly shorter plant stature than all checks. AAC Viewfield expressed resistance to prevalent races of yellow rust and stem rust, moderate resistance to leaf rust and common bunt, and intermediate resistance to Fusarium head blight. AAC Viewfield has quality attributes within the range of the check cultivars and is eligible for grades of Canada Western Red Spring wheat.
The bitter end: primate avoidance of caterpillar-infested trees in a central Amazon flooded forest
Authors: Negreiros Allana A. , Pohlit Adrian M. , Baccaro Fabricio , Koolen Héctor H.F. , Barnett Adrian A.
Published: October 2018

Animal–plant interactions are often mediated by chemical compounds. It has been widely reported that herbivore damage to plants induces chemical defenses which may then affect subsequent interactions with both invertebrate and vertebrate herbivores. Our study investigated the effects of the interaction between larvae of an unidentified nymphalid butterfly and the tanimbuca tree (Buchenavia ochroprumna Eichl.; Combretaceae) on subsequent folivory by a primate, the golden-backed uacari (Cacajao ouakary (Spix, 1823); Pitheciidae). Primate-feeding observations, records of the extent of nymphalid – B. ochroprumna interactions, and tree distribution occurred in Jaú National Park, Amazonas State, Brazil. The values of Ivlev’s electivity index showed that C. ouakary strongly rejected trees infested by caterpillars (−0.68), whereas non-infested trees were highly selected by them (+0.84). Given this behavior, we suggest that C. ouakary may be deterred by (i) caterpillars, (ii) change in leaf chemical composition induced by caterpillars, or (iii) a combination of both.
Ontogeny of the skull of the Black Caiman (Melanosuchus niger) (Crocodylia: Alligatoridae)
Authors: Vieira L.G. , Santos A.L.Q. , Hirano L.Q.L. , Menezes-Reis L.T. , Mendonça J.S. , Sebben A.
Published: October 2018

We describe the formation of the chondrocranium and the ossification pattern of the skull of the Black Caiman (Melanosuchus niger (Spix, 1825)). The embryos were cleared and double-stained with Alizarin Red S and Alcian Blue 8GX. Additionally, they were visualized by histological hematoxylin and eosin staining and computed tomography imaging. The chondrocranium of M. niger comprised the nasal capsule, orbitotemporal, and optic–occipital regions. Its development began at stage 9, with the chondrification of the acrochordal cartilage, trabeculae, and mandibular cartilage. The optic capsule was formed in the caudolateral portion of the chondrocranium at stage 13. The basal plate appeared at stage 14, with foramina for the hypoglossal. The chondrocranium was completely formed at stage 16. The first osteogenic events were noted at stage 13, in the bones, maxilla, jugal, postorbital, and pterygoid. The quadratojugal, prefrontal, frontal, and squamosal began their ossification at stage 14. The parietal bone began to ossify only at stage 20. The basisphenoid began at stage 15 and the parasphenoid began at stage 16. The jaw bones ossified between stages 13 and 16. The dermal elements started their ossification prior to the endochondral bones.
Habitat type influences parasite load in Algerian Psammodromus (Psammodromus algirus) lizards
Authors: Carbayo J. , Martín J. , Civantos E.
Published: October 2018

Understanding how habitat type and deterioration may affect parasitism is important in assessing the effects of human-induced environmental change on host–parasite dynamics. In this study, we examined inter-population differences in parasite load in the Mediterranean lizard Psammodromus algirus (Linnaeus, 1758). We analyzed prevalence and intensity of infection by blood parasites and ectoparasites in two populations separated by a 400 m elevational gradient and with different habitat types that also differed in the degree of human alteration. We also compared data obtained from the same populations 10 years later to assess whether there have been temporary changes in parasite loads. Results showed that prevalence and intensity of blood parasites were higher in the deteriorated lowland holm oak forest population than in the well-preserved upland oak forest. In contrast, the prevalence and intensity of infection by Ixodes Latreille, 1795 ticks was higher in the upland oak forest population. Individuals from the lowland population were in poorer condition. Intensities of infection by blood parasites and ectoparasites have decreased significantly from 2005–2006 to 2016 in both populations. Our results suggest that inter-population differences in parasite load may be explained by differences in habitat characteristics. This study contributes to the identification of ecosystems and habitats that are most sensitive to prevalence and intensity of infection by parasites.
Resource selection by coyotes (Canis latrans) in a longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) ecosystem: effects of anthropogenic fires and landscape features
Authors: Stevenson E.R. , Lashley M.A. , Chitwood M.C. , Garabedian J.E. , Swingen M.B. , DePerno C.S. , Moorman C.E.
Published: October 2018

Prescribed fire is used to restore and maintain fire-dependent forest communities. Because fire affects food and cover resources, fire-mediated resource selection has been documented for many wildlife species. The first step in understanding these interactions is to understand resource selection of the predators in a fire-maintained system. We attached GPS radio collars to 27 coyotes (Canis latrans Say, 1823) and examined resource selection relative to fire-maintained vegetation types, years since fire, anthropogenic features that facilitate prescribed burning, and other landscape features likely to affect coyote resource selection. Coyote home ranges were characterized by more open vegetation types and more recently burned forest (i.e., burned 0–1 year prior) than available on the study area. Within their home ranges, coyotes avoided areas close to densely vegetated drainages and paved roads. Coyote selection of more recently burned forest likely was in response to greater prey density or increased ability to detect prey soon after vegetation cover was reduced by fires; similarly, coyotes likely avoided drainages due to decreased hunting efficiency. Coyote resource selection was linked to prescribed fire, suggesting the interaction between fire and coyotes may influence ecosystem function in fire-dependent forests.
The Monotone Satisfiability Problem with Bounded Variable Appearances
Authors: Darmann Andreas , Döcker Janosch , Dorn Britta
Published: October 2018

The prominent Boolean formula satisfiability problem SAT is known to be [Formula: see text]-complete even for very restricted variants such as 3-SAT, Monotone 3-SAT, or Planar 3-SAT, or instances with bounded variable appearance. We settle the computational complexity status for two variants with bounded variable appearance: We show that Planar Monotone Sat — the variant of Monotone Sat in which the incidence graph is required to be planar — is [Formula: see text]-complete even if each clause consists of at most three distinct literals and each variable appears exactly three times, and that Monotone Sat is [Formula: see text]-complete even if each clause consists of three distinct literals and each variable appears exactly four times in the formula. The latter confirms a conjecture stated in scribe notes [7] of an MIT lecture by Eric Demaine. In addition, we provide hardness results with respect to bounded variable appearances for two variants of Planar Monotone Sat.
Encoding of Rational Numbers and Their Homomorphic Computations for FHE-Based Applications
Authors: Chung Heewon , Kim Myungsun
Published: October 2018

This work addresses a basic problem of security systems that operate on very sensitive information. Specifically, we are interested in the problem of privately handling numeric data represented by rational numbers (e.g., medical records). Fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) is one of the natural and powerful tools for ensuring privacy of sensitive data, while allowing complicated computations on the data. However, because the native plaintext domain of known FHE schemes is restricted to a set of quite small integers, it is not easy to obtain efficient algorithms for encrypted rational numbers in terms of space and computation costs. For example, the naïve decimal representation considerably restricts the choice of parameters in employing an FHE scheme, particularly the plaintext size.

Our basic strategy is to alleviate this inefficiency by using a different representation of rational numbers instead of naïve expressions. In this work we express rational numbers as continued fractions. Because continued fractions enable us to represent rational numbers as a sequence of integers, we can use a plaintext space with a small size while preserving the same quality of precision. However, this encoding technique requires performing very complex arithmetic operations, such as division and modular reduction. Theoretically, FHE allows the evaluation of any function, including modular reduction at encrypted data, but it requires a Boolean circuit of very high degree to be constructed. Hence, the primary contribution of this work is developing an approach to solve this efficiency problem using homomorphic operations with small degrees.
Acupuncture Application in Chronic Kidney Disease and its Potential Mechanisms
Authors: Xiong Wei , He Fang-Fang , You Ren-Yu , Xiong Jing , Wang Yu-Mei , Zhang Chun , Meng Xian-Fang , Su Hua
Published: October 2018

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is an increasing major public health problem worldwide. The number of CKD patients on hemodialysis is growing rapidly as well. Acupuncture technique is one of the traditional Chinese medicine methods and has been used in a variety of diseases. Nowadays, the clinical application of acupuncture technique for CKD patients has become the focus for its effectiveness and security. In this paper, we will review the therapeutic effects and mechanisms of different acupuncture techniques for CKD patients. In patients with CKD, acupuncture improves renal function, reduces proteinuria, controls hypertension, corrects anemia, relieves pain, and controls many hemodialysis-related complications such as uremic pruritus, insomnia and fatigue. The mechanisms are related to the regulation of sympathetic nerve and the activation of bioactive chemicals. In conclusion, acupuncture is proved to be beneficial for CKD patients. More research, however, is needed to verify the potential mechanisms.
THE ROLE OF EDUCATED LEADERS IN ECONOMIC GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT: EVIDENCE FROM CENTRAL AFRICAN REPUBLIC AND SINGAPORE
Authors: OWOYE OLUWOLE , ONAFOWORA OLUGBENGA A.
Published: October 2018

This paper postulates that highly educated leaders matter in economic growth and development and that this is one of the fundamental causes of the differences in income between countries. To verify this assertion, we examine Central African Republic and Singapore within the neoclassical growth model that incorporates educational attainments of leaders as the functionally relevant explanatory variable. We found the mean years of schooling of educated leaders to be statistically and significantly different in both countries, but more importantly, educational attainments of leaders have a positive and statistically significant effect on economic growth in Singapore, but negative in Central African Republic.
The time-splitting Fourier spectral method for Riesz fractional coupled Schrödinger–KdV equations in plasma physics
Authors: Ray S. Saha
Published: October 2018

In this paper, Riesz fractional coupled Schrödinger–KdV (SK) equations have been solved by implementing a new approach viz. time-splitting spectral method. In order to verify the results, it has also been solved by an implicit finite difference method by using fractional centered difference approximation for Riesz fractional derivative. The obtained results manifest that the proposed time-splitting spectral method is very effective and simple for obtaining approximate solutions of Riesz fractional coupled SK equations. In order to show the reliability and efficiency of the proposed methods, numerical solutions obtained by these methods have been presented graphically.
Transfer matrix method application on semiconductor-based solar cell characteristics measurements
Authors: Shabat Mohammed M. , El-Khozondar Hala J. , AlShembari Ahmed A. , El-Khozondar Rifa J.
Published: October 2018

In this work, numerical calculations and simulation based on Transfer Matrix Method have been presented to investigate a model solar cell structure. New four-layered structure containing different types of semiconductor has been presented, analyzed and discussed. The average reflectance and average transmittance in the visible light are derived and plotted versus the operating wavelength at different physical parameters. The obtained results show that the proposed structure is a promising candidate to be used for designing future solar cell structures.
Measurement of the tensor analyzing power for the γd → ppπ− reaction in the low energy range of protons
Authors: Gauzshtein V. V. , Levchuk M. I. , Loginov A. Yu. , Lukonin S. E. , Nikolenko D. M. , Rachek I. A. , Sadykov R. Sh. , Shestakov Yu. V. , Toporkov D. K. , Zevakov S. A.
Published: October 2018

All three components of the tensor analyzing power for the reaction of [Formula: see text]-meson photoproduction on a deuteron have been measured in photon energy range of 280–500[Formula: see text]MeV and proton energy range of 15–70[Formula: see text]MeV. The experiment has been conducted on an internal tensor-polarized deuterium gas target of the VEPP-3 electron storage ring using the method of detecting two final protons in coincidence. Measured components of the tensor analyzing power have been compared with calculations results obtained within the framework of diagrammatic approach.
Multivariate Time Series Link Prediction for Evolving Heterogeneous Network
Authors: Ozcan Alper , Oguducu Sule Gunduz
Published: October 2018

Link prediction is considered as one of the key tasks in various data mining applications for recommendation systems, bioinformatics, security and worldwide web. The majority of previous works in link prediction mainly focus on the homogeneous networks which only consider one type of node and link. However, real-world networks have heterogeneous interactions and complicated dynamic structure, which make link prediction a more challenging task. In this paper, we have studied the problem of link prediction in the dynamic, undirected, weighted/unweighted, heterogeneous social networks which are composed of multiple types of nodes and links that change over time. We propose a novel method, called Multivariate Time Series Link Prediction for evolving heterogeneous networks that incorporate (1) temporal evolution of the network; (2) correlations between link evolution and multi-typed relationships; (3) local and global similarity measures; and (4) node connectivity information. Our proposed method and the previously proposed time series methods are evaluated experimentally on a real-world bibliographic network (DBLP) and a social bookmarking network (Delicious). Experimental results show that the proposed method outperforms the previous methods in terms of AUC measures in different test cases.
Effect of magnesium cluster size on Grignard reagent formation mechanism. A quantum-chemical study
Authors: Panteleev S. V. , Belyaev S. N. , Ignatov S. K.
Published: October 2018

The density functional theory (B3PW91/6-311[Formula: see text]G(2d,2p)) was used to obtain optimized geometry, energy and electronic properties of Mg[Formula: see text]EtBr adsorption complexes, Et[Formula: see text]Mg[Formula: see text]Br intermediates and transition states for ethyl bromide reaction with the magnesium atom and Mgn ([Formula: see text]–20) clusters modeling the distorted surface of the metallic magnesium. We suggest a consecutive multi-stage scheme of EtBr[Formula: see text]Mgn process in vacuum that includes adsorption of reagents on external cluster atoms, chemical interaction with Grignard reagent formation and desorption of products to the volume. Two fundamentally different reaction channels were investigated — the radical and molecular ones. Influence of Mgn cluster size on the preference of each of channels was established. It is shown that the reaction route is primarily determined with the position of the reactive group of atoms participating in formation of the transition state or radical intermediates and the activation energy of EtMgBr formation correlates with the energy of atom detachment from a cluster. For both pathways, reaction activation energies and thermodynamic parameters of the elementary steps were calculated.
On curvelet CS reconstructed MR images and GA-based fuzzy conditional entropy maximization for segmentation
Authors: Roy Apurba , Maity Santi P.
Published: October 2018

In many practical situations, magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) needs reconstruction of images at low measurements, far below the Nyquist rate, as sensing process may be very costly and slow enough so that one can measure the coefficients only a few times. Segmentation of such subsampled reconstructed MR images for medical analysis and diagnosis becomes a challenging task due to the inherent complex characteristics of the MR images. This paper considers reconstruction of MR images at compressive sampling (or compressed sensing (CS)) paradigm followed by its segmentation in an integrated platform. Image reconstruction is done from incomplete measurement space with random noise injection iteratively. A weighted linear prediction is done for the unobserved space followed by spatial domain denoising through adaptive recursive filtering. The reconstructed images, however, suffer from imprecise and/or missing edges, boundaries, lines, curvatures etc. and residual noise. Curvelet transform (CT) is purposely used for removal of noise and for edge enhancement through hard thresholding and suppression of approximate subbands, respectively. Then a fuzzy entropy-based clustering, using genetic algorithms (GAs), is done for segmentation of sharpen MR Image. Extensive simulation results are shown to highlight performance improvement of both image reconstruction and segmentation of the reconstructed images along with relative gain over the existing works.
Inflation constraints for classes of f(R) models
Authors: Ntahompagaze Joseph , Damascène Mbarubucyeye Jean , Sahlu Shambel , Abebe Amare
Published: October 2018

In this paper, we explore the equivalence between two theories, namely [Formula: see text] and scalar–tensor theories of gravity. We use this equivalence to explore several [Formula: see text] toy models focusing on the inflation epoch of the early universe. The study is done based on the definition of the scalar field in terms of the first derivative of [Formula: see text] model. We have applied the slow-roll approximations during inflationary parameters consideration. The comparison of the numerically computed inflationary parameters with the observations is done. We have inspected that some of the [Formula: see text] models produce numerical values of [Formula: see text] that are in the same range as the suggested values from observations. But for the case of the tensor-to-scalar ratio [Formula: see text], we realized that some of the considered [Formula: see text] models suffer to produce a value which is in agreement with the observed values for different considered space parameter.
The Effect of Corporate Environmental Performance on Corporate Financial Performance
Authors: Earnhart Dietrich
Published: October 2018

This review explores the effect of corporate environmental performance on financial performance. In particular, it reviews the empirical evidence on this effect. Conceptually, stronger environmental performance may lead to worse or better financial performance. The empirical literature generally finds a positive link from good environmental performance to financial success. However, many studies reveal a negative link. Given this mixed evidence, literature reviews and meta-analyses help to discern the conditions under which better environmental performance prompts financial success or disappointment. Similarly, this review organizes the empirical evidence by the specific measures of environmental performance and financial performance to discern which links are positive or negative. Lastly, the review identifies shortcomings in the empirical literature and offers suggestions for future research. For example, analyses should more fully explore the factors shaping the links from environmental to financial performance, such as firm size and economy type (e.g., mature market).
Sex-specific effects of advanced maternal age on cardiovascular function in aged adult rat offspring
Authors: Shah Amin , Cooke Christy-Lynn M. , Kirschenman Raven D. , Quon Anita L. , Morton Jude S. , Care Alison S. , Davidge Sandra T.
Published: October 2018

Pregnancy at an advanced maternal age has an increased risk of complications for both the mothers and their offspring. We have previously shown that advanced maternal age in a rat model leads to poor fetal outcomes, maternal vascular dysfunction, and hypertension, concordant with findings in humans. Moreover, offspring from aged dams had sex-specific cardiovascular dysfunction in young adulthood. However, the detrimental impact of aging on the cardiovascular system of the offspring in this model is unknown. We hypothesized that offspring born to aged dams (9.5–10 mo old) would have impaired cardiovascular function at 12 mo of age. Echocardiographic data revealed signs of mild left ventricular diastolic dysfunction in only male offspring from aged dams [isovolumetric relaxation time: 34.27 ± 2.04 in the young dam group vs. 27.61 ± 0.99 ms in the aged dam group, P < 0.01; mitral annular velocity ratio ( E′/ A′): 1.08 ± 0.04 in the young dam group vs. 0.96 ± 0.02 in the aged dam group, P < 0.05]. We have previously shown that in young adulthood (4 mo of age), male, but not female, offspring born to aged dams had impaired recovery from ischemia-reperfusion injury. Aging did not alter the susceptibility of female offspring to ischemia-reperfusion injury. Interestingly, wire myography data revealed that male offspring from aged dams had enhanced vascular sensitivity to methacholine (negative log of EC50: 7.4 ± 0.08 in young dams vs. 7.9 ± 0.11 in aged dams, P = 0.007) due, in part, to increased prostaglandin-mediated vasodilation. Despite intact endothelium-dependent relaxation, female offspring from aged dams had elevated systolic blood pressure (125.3 ± 4.2 mmHg in young dams vs. 144.0 ± 6.9 mmHg in aged dams, P = 0.03). These data highlight sex-specific mechanisms underlying cardiovascular programming in offspring born to dams of advanced age.

NEW & NOTEWORTHY Our study demonstrated that adult male and female offspring (12 mo old) born to aged dams had impaired cardiac diastolic function and increased blood pressure, respectively, signifying sex-specific differential cardiovascular effects of advanced maternal age.
Lost in Translation: Deciphering the Mechanism of Action of Anti-human CTLA-4
Authors: Quezada Sergio A. , Peggs Karl S.
Published: October 2018

Despite a number of preclinical studies demonstrating that the activity of anti-CTLA-4 antibodies in murine models of cancer relies on effector T-cell activation and regulatory T cell depletion, the activity of the clinical antibodies remains controversial. To decipher such mechanisms is critical to the development of novel and more potent immunotherapies.

See related article by Sharma et al., p. 1233
Drug Lag for Inflammatory Bowel Disease Treatments in the East and West
Authors: Okabayashi Shinji , Kobayashi Taku , Hibi Toshifumi
Published: October 2018

Background: Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD), though historically common in the West, is now increasingly prevalent in industrializing countries. A simultaneous dramatic increase in IBD drug options has enabled most patients to achieve remission. Nevertheless, worldwide disparities in the approval of IBD drugs, or “drug lag”, remain problematic. Summary: Drug lag for major IBD drugs before March 31, 2018 (12 for Crohn’s disease [CD] and 13 for ulcerative colitis [UC]) was compared between that of the United States (US), European Union (EU), and Asia (Japan, China, South Korea, Taiwan, and the Philippines) to assess current trends. In the US, unapproved IBD drugs accounted for 16.7% (2/12) for CD and 23.1% (3/13) for UC; approval lag was 3.8 (0–80.5) months for CD and 3.6 (0–88) months for UC. In the EU, unapproved drugs accounted for 16.7% (2/12) for CD and 15.4% (2/13) for UC; approval lag was 0.03 (0–13.9) months for CD and 0 (0–13.9) months for UC. This demonstrates the short drug lag in both regions, although one drug developed in a joint US/EU clinical trial had around a 350-day approval lag. In Asia, the proportion of unapproved IBD drugs was the lowest in Japan at 33.3% (4/12) for CD and 23.1% (3/13) for UC; South Korea had the shortest lag for CD at 13.2 (0–133.1) months and the Philippines had the shortest lag for UC at 9.9 (0.6–176.2) months, but these countries still had longer lag periods than the West. However, a proportion of unapproved drugs and approval lag has decreased considerably in Asia since the start of the biologics era. Key Messages: Despite the recent shortening drug lag between different countries and regions, this study shows that disparities persist. With globalization, eliminating these disparate drug lags is necessary to manage IBD and may require efforts toward international adoption of a more standardized approval process.
Functional Outcome and Quality of Life after Ileal Pouch-Anal Anastomosis within a Defined Population in Sweden
Authors: Dafnis George
Published: October 2018

Objective: The purpose of this population-based study was to present prospectively recorded functional data and health-related quality of life (HRQOL) questionnaire data to assess the long-term results of the first 100 consecutive ileal pouch-anal anastomosis (IPAA) performed chronologically by 3 surgeons in a single referral centre. Methods: During 1993–2008, 100 patients underwent IPAA. The 90 patients still alive with an intact pouch were included (response rate = 92%). Function was evaluated using St Mark’s incontinence score, and HRQOL with SF-36. Results: At 18 months after loop ileostomy closure, 63 patients (76%) had 4–6 day-time and 47 patients (57%) had no night-time bowel movements. A stapled IPAA resulted in better St Mark’s (p = 0.0064) and Wexner scores (p = 0.0019) than did a hand-sewn anastomosis. The younger the patients were at the onset of ulcerative colitis (UC) the better St Mark’s (p = 0.0037) and Wexner scores (p = 0.011) were. The patients scored significantly higher than did the general Swedish population adjusted by age-group and sex in 6 out of 7 SF-36 subscales. Conclusions: In the hands of experienced high-volume surgeons, IPAA is a safe procedure associated with good functional results that are stable over time. Stapled IPAA and younger age at onset of UC were correlated with better functional results. The HRQOL scores were high.
Relation of the Ankle Brachial Index to Left Ventricular Ejection Fraction in Patients Without Coronary Artery Disease
Authors: Nunez Arismendy , Russ Sophia , Ihsan Muhammad , Gaballah Sarah , Haque Attiya , Goulbourne Clive , Railwah Dale , Massay Ryan , Khan Muhammad Afzal , Salciccioli Louis , Stewart Mark , Lazar Jason M.
Published: October 2018

Background: The low ankle brachial index (ABI) values are indicative of peripheral arterial disease, but have recently been found to be associated with reduced left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF). This may relate to coexisting coronary artery disease (CAD). Aim: This study prospectively assessed a potential ABI–LVEF association in patients without CAD. Methods and Results: We studied 55 patients (age 57 ± 13 years, 49% male) with normal coronary arteries with LVEF determination. ABI, pulse wave velocity (PWV), and augmentation index (AI) were performed after coronary angiography. ABI correlated with LVEF (r = 0.40, p = 0.002), but not with PWV or AI. On linear regression analysis, ABI was independently associated with LVEF (B = 0.42, p = 0.004). The median LVEF was lower in subjects with low ABI values compared to those with normal ABI values (33 vs. 61%; p = 0.001). Conclusion: ABI may be influenced by LVEF independently of CAD, arterial stiffness or pressure wave reflection.
A High-Protein/Low-Fat Diet May Interact with Vitamin D-Binding Protein Gene Variants to Moderate the Risk of Depression in Apparently Healthy Adults
Authors: Pooyan Sara , Rahimi Mohammad Hossein , Mollahosseini Mehdi , Khorrami-Nezhad Leila , Nasir Yasaman , Maghbooli Zhila , Mirzaei Khadijeh
Published: October 2018

Background: Recent studies have shown that depression is inversely correlated with high protein and low fat intake and positively correlated with vitamin D-binding protein (VDBP). Therefore, the aim of this study was to examine the interaction between protein/fat dietary patterns and VDBP genotypes with regard to the risk of depression in apparently healthy adults who have not been diagnosed with any chronic disease. Methods: In this study, 265 individuals (126 males and 139 females) aged 18–55 years were recruited from the communities of central and west Tehran based on convenience sampling. Body composition was measured with a body composition analyzer and depression symptoms were categorized as normal, moderate depression, or severe depression using the Depression Anxiety Stress Scales 21 (DASS-21) questionnaire. Dietary patterns were determined by a semiquantitative food frequency questionnaire to assess typical food intake during the 12-month period. Blood samples were collected from and biochemical measurements performed on all participants. An analysis of two polymorphisms (rs7041 and rs4588) in the GC gene, which encodes VDBP, was performed by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism. Results: A statistically significant association was found between depression and diet (p = 0.03) after having categorized the participants into three groups: a high-protein/low-fat (HP/LF) group, a moderate-protein/moderate-fat (MP/MF) group, and a low-protein/high-fat (LP/HF) group. Moreover, the findings demonstrated that depression was related to both the rs7041 and the rs4588 polymorphism (p = 0.05 and p = 0.02, respectively). We next used multinomial logistic modeling to investigate the risk of depression. A significant interaction was observed between HP/LF diet and the rs7041 polymorphism in the moderate- and severe-depression groups (β = –0.30, p = 0.05, and β = –0.48, p = 0.01, respectively). Conclusion: This study showed that an HP/LF diet interacts with the rs7041 polymorphism, with T allele carriers having a greater prevalence of moderate and severe depression.
Success Rates for Retinal Detachment Repair in Alberta: A Physician Learning Program Initiative
Authors: Dotan Assaf , Johnson Dianne , Kherani Amin , Jahangir Kahrram , Tennant Matthew T.S.
Published: October 2018

Objective: To identify primary surgical success rates for retinal detachment repair in Alberta and compare functional outcomes of methods of repair. Methods: Data was retrospectively extracted from the Alberta Health Services Discharge Abstract Database and the National Ambulatory Care Reporting System for all patients diagnosed with retinal detachment and vitreoretinal procedures during the 2008/09 to 2012/13 fiscal years. Results: Of the 5,433 surgeries for retinal detachment identified, 279 were excluded due to invalid provincial health numbers, unidentified procedure location, and/or treating physician other than an Alberta retina surgeon. The final analysis included 4,336 detachments in 4,020 patients. The average primary retinal detachment success rate was 84.9% (3,680/4,336). Primary success rates varied between vitrectomy only (84.9%, 2,149/2,532), vitrectomy and scleral buckle (85.5%, 818/957), and scleral buckle (84.4%, 702/832). Conclusions: Alberta retina surgeons have an average primary success rate of 84.9% (3,680/4,336) for repair of retinal detachments. This result is in keeping with other published retinal detachment success rate studies.
Health-Related Quality of Life in Patients with Small Intestine Neuroendocrine Tumors
Authors: Karppinen Noora , Lindén Riikka , Sintonen Harri , Tarkkanen Maija , Roine Risto , Heiskanen Ilkka , Matikainen Niina , Schalin-Jäntti Camilla
Published: October 2018

Background: The prevalence of small intestine neuroendocrine tumors (SI-NETs) is increasing. Disease progression is often slow and treatment options and long-term survival rates have improved, but little is known about health-related quality of life (HRQoL) in these patients. Objective: To assess HRQoL and its predictors in SI-NET patients receiving contemporary treatments. Methods: We measured HRQoL with 15D and SF-36 questionnaires in 134 SI-NET patients and compared the 15D results to those of an age- and gender-standardized sample of the general population (n = 1,153). In the patients, we studied the impact of treatments, Ki-67, liver metastases, circulating tumor markers, comorbidities, and/or socioeconomic factors on HRQoL with linear regression analysis. Results: The mean disease duration of the patients was 81 (4–468) months, 91% had metastatic disease, and 79% received somatostatin analog treatment. Hepatic tumor load was 0% in 44.8%, < 10–25% in 44.0%, and > 25% in 11.2%, respectively. Mean fP-CgA and S-5HIAA concentrations were 15 (1.3–250) and 344 (24–7,470) nmol/L, respectively. Overall, HRQoL was significantly impaired in patients compared to controls (15D score 0.864 ± 0.105 vs. 0.905 ± 0.028, p < 0.001). SI-NET patients scored worse on 9 of 15 dimensions: sleep, excretion (i.e., bladder and bowel function), depression, distress, vitality, sexual activity (p < 0.001), breathing, usual activities, and discomfort and symptoms (p < 0.01–0.05). SF-36 scores were impaired and highly correlated with 15D scores (p < 0.001). HRQoL was impaired in patients with (n = 85) compared to patients without (n = 49) impaired excretion (0.828 vs. 0.933, p < 0.001). In the patient group, number of medications predicted impaired HRQoL. Conclusions: Despite contemporary treatments, SI-NET patients have severely impaired HRQoL, including diarrhea, sleep, depression, vitality, and sexual activity.
Xangai, uma inflexão no fazer urbano chinês
Authors: Schultz Tiago
Published: October 2018

Este artigo trata da experiência de gestão urbana da cidade de Xangai desde a abertura econômica da República Popular da China, em 1978. As políticas urbanas desenvolvidas nesse contexto podem ser consideradas como um conjunto de métodos utilizados para difundir o recente fenômeno da hiperurbanização na China continental. Abordaremos este processo de formação de um novo modelo urbano asiático a partir da produção e venda de imagens espetaculares dentro da lógica do city marketing, compreendida através de processos como o da xintiandização em diversos bairros em Xangai e em muitas outras cidades chinesas.
Um entreato progressista na ocupação do espaço público na cidade de São Paulo
Authors: Kwak Andre
Published: October 2018

A cidade de São Paulo experimentou um entreato progressista que confrontou sua matriz rodoviarista e seu histórico de negação dos espaços públicos, introduzindo políticas públicas que enfrentaram esse status quo vigente. No período entre 2013 e 2016, implementaram-se políticas estruturantes e ações específicas que dialogavam com um paradigma contemporâneo na produção e ocupação de áreas públicas, tendo como ideário uma cidade mais inclusiva e democrática. Outro importante pilar dessa gestão caracterizou-se pela alocação dos investimentos públicos municipais: equipamentos e infraestruturas de vulto foram realizados majoritariamente nas regiões mais carentes da cidade, indo na contracorrente histórica de investimentos no centro expandido. Ao mesmo tempo, a cidade presenciou a propagação de inflamado debate entre grupos sociais de diversos matizes, muitas vezes antagônicos, transformando a cidade em uma arena de disputas, com cada intervenção urbana sendo disputada palmo a palmo, numa complexa rede de atores sociais e institucionais com seus respectivos interesses, tendo a utilização (ou não utilização) do espaço público como “prêmio” desses embates, que se deram em inúmeras rodadas de deliberação democrática.
Patrimônio e intervenção em preexistências no renascimento italiano: três casos exemplares
Authors: Luccas Luís Henrique Haas
Published: October 2018

O estudo oferece uma contribuição ao tema da intervenção em edificações existentes. Examina a prática no renascimento italiano, quando se configura a noção de patrimônio, como efeito da reverência dos humanistas pela antiguidade clássica; ali surgiam os monumentos “não intencionais”, segundo a classificação de Riegl. A reflexão se desenvolve através da análise de três casos exemplares, amparada em uma revisão bibliográfica concisa. A primeira examina a pequena intervenção de Michelangelo na base do Palazzo Medici, realizada em 1517, quando ele insere as chamadas janelas inginocchiati ou ajoelhadas. O segundo caso examina a construção do Palazzo Savelli-Orsini sobre as ruínas do Teatro di Marcello, realizada por Peruzzi nos anos 1520, assim como outras camadas de intervenção: uma do período Mussolini, onde ocorreu o diradamento edilizio; outra de linhagem moderna, entre 1962 e 1964, com o autor Quaroni atuando de modo similar a Scarpa. E o terceiro caso trata da conversão da Terma de Diocleciano em Basílica de Santa Maria degli Angeli, concebida por Michelangelo em 1561: sem dúvida, a atualidade da economia de meios utilizados ali seria uma de suas últimas e maiores lições.
Number of Measurements Needed to Obtain a Reliable Estimate of Home Blood Pressure: Results From the Improving the Detection of Hypertension Study
Authors: Bello Natalie A. , Schwartz Joseph E. , Kronish Ian M. , Oparil Suzanne , Anstey D. Edmund , Wei Ying , Cheung Ying Kuen K. , Muntner Paul , Shimbo Daichi
Published: October 2018

Background

Obtaining out‐of‐clinic blood pressure (
BP
) measurements to confirm a diagnosis of hypertension is recommended before initiating treatment. There are few empiric data available on the number of measurements required to reliably estimate
BP
on home
BP
monitoring (
HBPM
).

Methods and Results

We analyzed data from 316 community‐dwelling adults not taking antihypertensive medication from the
IDH
(Improving the Detection of Hypertension) study who performed
HBPM
for 14 days. The reliability of home
BP
measurements was assessed using the intraclass correlation coefficient and as the percentage of participants with an absolute difference in home
BP
<10 mm Hg between weeks. The reliability of home hypertension status was assessed by the κ statistic. In the
IDH
study, 13.6% of participants had clinic hypertension and 18.0% had home hypertension. Mean home systolic and diastolic
BP
exhibited excellent reliability and sufficient agreement using the average of 2 morning and 2 evening
BP
readings for a minimum of 2 days of
HBPM
and a single morning and single evening or 2 morning
BP
readings for a minimum of 3 days. For diagnosing home hypertension, there was good agreement with a minimum of 3 days of
HBPM
using the average of 2 morning and 2 evening measurements or a single morning and single evening
BP
reading. A greater number of days was required for the other
HBPM
strategies.

Conclusions

Using the average of morning and evening readings, 3 days of
HBPM
are needed to reliably estimate mean home
BP
and diagnose out‐of‐clinic hypertension.
MATERYALİST DEĞERLER STATÜ TÜKETİMİ VE DÜRTÜSEL SATIN ALMA ARASINDAKİ İLİŞKİ
Authors: TOKGÖZ Emrah
Published: October 2018

Alanyazında, tüketici
değerlerinin tüketim davranışına nasıl dönüştüğünü ortaya koyan araştırmalarda
eksiklikler görülmektedir. Söz konusu tüketici değerlerinden birisi olarak
ileri sürülen materyalizm; belirli bir davranış kalıbı veya kalıcı bir inanç
olarak ifade edilmektedir. Bu nedenle araştırmada, materyalist değerlerin alt
boyutları olan; maddi edinim, başarı ve mutluluk ile statü tüketimi ve dürtüsel
satın alma arasındaki ilişkileri ortaya koymayı amaçlayan Yapısal Eşitlik
Modeli (YEM) oluşturulmuştur. Örnekleme yöntemi olarak; olasılığa dayalı
örnekleme yöntemlerinden, kümelere göre örnekleme yöntemi kullanılmıştır.
Araştırma kapsamında, bırak-topla yöntemiyle, 17-24 yaşlarındaki öğrencilerden
kullanılabilir durumda 589 adet anket elde edilmiştir. Oluşturulan modelin
sonuçlarına göre, toplamda materyalist değerlerin statü tüketimi ve dürtüsel
satın alma üzerinde olumlu yönde direkt etkisi olduğu ve statü tüketiminin,
materyalist değerler ile dürtüsel satın alma davranışı arasında düzenleyici
etkisi olduğu belirlenmiştir. Ayrıca, materyalist değerlerin alt boyutlarından
(maddi edinim, başarı ve mutluluk), sadece başarı boyutunun statü tüketimi ve
dürtüsel satın alma üzerinde olumlu yönde direkt etkisi olduğu ve statü
tüketiminin, başarı boyutu ile dürtüsel satın alma davranışı arasında
düzenleyici etkisi olduğu ortaya konmuştur. Diğer alt boyutlar olan maddi
edinim ve mutluluğun statü tüketimi ve dürtüsel satın alma üzerinde anlamlı
etkileri olmadığı anlaşılmıştır.
YAŞLI TÜKETİCİLERİN PAZARA İLİŞKİN GÖRÜŞLERİ
Authors: TOPÇU Zeynep , GÜVEN Seval
Published: October 2018

Günümüzde yaşanan bilimsel ve teknolojik
gelişmelerin önemli bir sonucu olarak yaşlı nüfusun toplam nüfusa oranı her
geçen gün artmakta ve yaşlı tüketiciler pazarı giderek önem kazanmaktadır. Bu
çalışma yaşlı tüketicilerin pazara ilişkin görüşlerinin belirlenmesi amacıyla gerçekleştirilmiştir.
Çalışmanın örneklemi Ankara’da yaşayan 65 yaş ve üzeri toplam 500 kişiden
oluşmaktadır. Araştırmada yaşlı tüketicilerin pazara ilişkin görüşlerine yönelik
ifadelere katılım düzeylerine ilişkin ortalama puanlar incelendiğinde;
“Etiketler yaşlı tüketicilerin daha kolay anlayacağı şekilde yazılmalıdır”
(2,56) ifadesine katılım düzeylerine ilişkin ortalama puanların önde geldiği
saptanmıştır. Araştırmaya katılan yaşlı tüketicilerin pazara ilişkin
görüşlerinin cinsiyete göre farklılık gösterdiği; yaş gruplarına, öğrenim
düzeyine ve aylık gelire göre farklılık göstermediği bulunmuştur.
ECONOMIC AND DEMOGRAPHIC DETERMINANTS OF THE DEMAND FOR LIFE INSURANCE: MULTIVARIATE ANALYSIS
Authors: SATROVIC Elma , MUSLIJA Adnan
Published: October 2018

he aim of this paper is to summarize a large number of economic and demographic determinants that are used to predict the demand for life insurance into a smaller number of component variables (components) and to determine which component has a stronger influence on demand for life insurance. Data are collected for 150 countries during the period 2005-2010. Final cross-country database is consisted of six-year average values on variables for selected countries. The methodology includes techniques of multivariate analysis: principal component analysis (PCA) and multiple linear regression. Results show that initial determinants of demand for life insurance can be summarized into two components: economic and demographic. Both components have a statistically significant positive influence on the demand for life insurance. On the basis of standardized regression coefficients it can be concluded that economic component is stronger determinant of demand for life insurance in comparison with demographic.
GENEL ÖZ YETERLİK VE ÇATIŞMA YÖNETİM TARZI İLİŞKİSİ: ÖZEL SEKTÖR ÇALIŞANLARI ÜZERİNE BİR ARAŞTIRMA
Authors: Gerçek Alper , Balaban Özlem
Published: October 2018

Bu
araştırmada, özel şirket çalışanlarının genel öz yeterlik algıları ve çatışma
yönetim tarzları arasındaki ilişkinin incelenmesi amaçlanmıştır. Veri toplama
yönteminin anket olduğu çalışmanın örneklemini kolayda örnekleme yoluyla
seçilen Ankara, İstanbul ve Zonguldak illerinde faaliyet gösteren özel sektör
çalışanları oluşturmaktadır. Bu anket
çalışmasında Jerusalem ve Schwarzer’in Genel Öz-Yeterlik Ölçeği ve Rahim’in
Örgütsel Çatışma Envanteri 2 kullanılmıştır. 240 anketin değerlendirildiği
çalışmada ilişkisel tarama modeli kullanılmıştır. Anketin verileri SPSS
istatistik programında analiz edilmiştir. Fark analizlerinde Mann-Whitney U ve
Kruskal-Wallis testleri uygulanarak değişkenler incelenmiştir. Analiz
sonuçlarına göre katılımcıların genel öz yeterlikleri ile bütünleştirme,
zorlama ve uzlaşma tarzları arasında istatistiksel olarak anlamlı bir ilişki
bulunmuştur.
CAUSAL STRUCTURE OF EXPORT-PRODUCTIVITY NEXUS IN TURKEY
Authors: Benli Muhammed
Published: October 2018

This
paper examines the causal relationship between real exports and economic growth
in Turkey for the period 2000Q1-2017Q1 by estimating Directed Acyclic Graphs
(DAGs). In doing so, we attempt to shed light on both the direct and indirect
causation between the two with respect to other mediating factors. The
resulting DAG patterns suggest that economic growth follows real exports
expansion in Turkey, while the other variables such as capital formation and
foreign output of other industrialized countries are also significant
determinants of productivity growth in Turkey.