bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Misuse of laxatives among adult outpatients with eating disorders: Prevalence and profiles
Authors: Bryant‐Waugh Rachel , Turner Hannah , East Philippa , Gamble Caroline , Mehta Rajnikant
Published: March 2006

Objective:

The current study investigated the prevalence of laxative misuse among adult outpatients with eating disorders, distinguished demographic and psychobehavioral profiles of laxative misusers, identified specific predictors of laxative misuse, and explored whether prevalence rates and psychobehavioral profiles differ across eating disorder diagnoses.

Method:

Data were collected for 201 consecutive patients. Laxative misusers and nonmisusers were compared on demographic variables, measures of eating‐related and weight‐related behaviors and cognitions, and general psychopathology.

Results:

Fifty‐three (26.4%) patients had misused laxatives in the month before assessment. Laxative misusers scored significantly higher than nonmisusers on measures of anorexic behaviors and cognitions, restraint, and weight and shape concerns. They also displayed higher levels of depression and self‐directed hostility. Laxative misuse was specifically predicted by anorexic behaviors and depression. Across diagnoses, proportions of misusers versus nonmisusers were similar.

Conclusion:

Laxative misuse remains prevalent among adult outpatients and is associated with increased severity of clinical presentation, regardless of the eating disorder diagnosis. © 2006 by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Eat Disord 2006.
Finding all solutions of weakly nonlinear equations using the dual simplex method
Authors: Yamamura Kiyotaka , Tanaka Katsumasa
Published: March 2006

Recently, efficient algorithms have been proposed for finding all solutions of nonlinear equations using linear programming (LP). These algorithms are based on a simple test (termed the LP test) for nonexistence of a solution to a system of nonlinear equations in a given region. In the LP test, a system of nonlinear equations is transformed into an LP problem by surrounding component nonlinear functions by rectangles or right‐angled triangles. In this paper, an efficient algorithm is proposed for finding all solutions of weakly nonlinear equations, where component nonlinear functions are surrounded by parallelograms and then the dual simplex method is applied to the LP problem. Numerical examples are given to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed algorithm. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 89(7): 1–7, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20220
Analytical correction methods for aperture and attenuation effects in SPECT
Authors: Ishikawa Akira , Ogawa Koichi
Published: March 2006

This paper is concerned with the lowering of spatial resolution by γ ray attenuation and the collimator aperture, which are serious factors degrading the quantitative performance of SPECT (single‐photon emission CT). The limit of analytical correction is investigated from the viewpoint of the aperture angle and noise. The methods considered in this paper are the analytical attenuation correction proposed by Kudo and Saito and the analytical aperture correction based on the stationary phase principle proposed by Lewitt and colleagues. Both of these methods are intended to correct projection data affected by attenuation and aperture blur in the Fourier space. Simulation results show that the correction for the attenuation and the aperture is effective if the single‐sided aperture is up to 1°. It is also shown that the statistical noise should be carefully handled in applying the correction. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 89(7): 42–50, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20253
Adaptive acquisition of dynamics matching in sensory‐motor fusion system
Authors: Ogawa Naoko , Sakaguchi Yutaka , Namiki Akio , Ishikawa Masatoshi
Published: March 2006

“Dynamics matching” is a design concept in sensory‐motor fusion systems, where the performance is maximized by adjustment of the dynamics of the system under the physical and computational constraints. This paper models dynamics matching as an optimization problem and constructs an adaptive acquisition algorithm. A numerical experiment on the target‐tracking task using active vision is presented as an example, and it is shown that a reasonable solution is acquired by the proposed approach. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 89(7): 19–30, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley. com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20255
Time‐series data server optimized for multichannel and real‐time processing
Authors: Goto Hiroyuki
Published: March 2006

Since there are a considerable number of earthquakes and active volcanoes in Japan, it is important to install high‐accuracy seismic monitoring equipment and to develop systems that can process observed data efficiently. In the field of seismic data processing, specific requirements such as multichannel and on‐demand/real‐time processing are essential, whereas they are not so significant in other time‐series data. Since conventional systems cannot fulfill such requisites, a client/server system is newly developed. It provides a unified solution for delivering the seismic data to the client side, whether it is used for real‐time monitoring or for on‐demand printing. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn Pt 3, 89(7): 8–18, 2006; Published online in Wiley InterScience (www.interscience.wiley.com). DOI 10.1002/ecjc.20257
A New and Fast Synthesis of Nanosized LiFePO4 Electrode Materials
Authors: Caballero Alvaro , Cruz‐Yusta Manuel , Morales Julián , Santos‐Peña Jesús , Rodríguez‐Castellón Enrique
Published: March 2006

LiFePO4 has been prepared as highly crystalline nanoparticles (approx. 80 nm in diameter) of well‐defined shape by heating a mixture containing lithium acetylacetonate, iron oxalate, ammonium hydrogen phosphate and oxalic acid under argon at 550 °C for 2 h. The resulting solid contains about 6 % magnetite (Fe3O4) as an impurity. Despite its small particle size, this nanomaterial exhibits relatively poor electrochemical performance in lithium cells owing to its lack of electronic conductivity. Its electrochemical response contrasts with previously reported data for nano‐LiFePO4 materials prepared at such low temperatures. In order to overcome its lack of conductivity, the compound was treated with a copper precursor. The copper phosphate nanocomposite thus obtained exhibits improved electrochemical performance in terms of capacity and cycling life in lithium cells. Thus Cu‐LiFePO4‐based cells deliver capacity values close to 80 mAh g–1 over at least 50 cycles under a C/10 regime. These values testify to the usefulness of the proposed synthetic method for preparing nanoparticulated lithium phosphate‐based electrodes. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
Catalytic Activity of Copper Oxide/Zinc Oxide Composites Prepared by Thermolysis of Crystallographically Defined Bimetallic Coordination Compounds
Authors: Weiss Rainer , Guo Yanzhi , Vukojević Sascha , Khodeir Lamma , Boese Roland , Schüth Ferdi , Muhler Martin , Epple Matthias
Published: March 2006

The suitability of bimetallic coordination compounds in the systems Cu/Zn/CN and Cu/Zn/CN/ethylenediamine as precursors for CuO/ZnO was explored. The kinetic and thermodynamic equilibria in these systems are discussed. The introduction of ethylenediamine led to crystalline precursorcompounds, and the bimetallic coordination compounds[Zn(en)]2[Cu2(CN)6] and [Zn(en)3]6[Cu2(CN)7]2[Cu(CN)3]·8.4H2O were structurally characterised. The oxide mixtures of CuO/ZnO, prepared by mild thermolysis of the precursor compounds, were tested for their catalytic activity in the formation of methanol from synthesis gas, i.e. CO/CO2/H2. While the oxide mixtures from Zn[Cu(CN)3] were not catalytically active, the oxide mixtures derived from the crystalline compounds with ethylenediamine as the ligand had about 20–30 % of the activity of an industrial methanol catalyst. This underscores the importance of the origin of the catalyst, i.e. the dependence of its activity from the structure of its precursor. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
(Tetramethylcyclobutadiene)cobalt Complexes with Tricarbollide Ligands
Authors: Mutseneck Elena V. , Perekalin Dmitry S. , Holub Josef , Lyssenko Konstantin A. , Petrovskii Pavel V. , Štíbr Bohumil , Kudinov Alexander R.
Published: March 2006

Reactions of the 11‐vertex nido‐tricarbollide anions [7,8,9‐C3B8H11]– (2a) and [7,8,10‐C3B8H11]– (3) with [Cb*Co(MeCN)3]+ or [Cb*Co(C6H6)]+ (Cb* = C4Me4) afford the expected cobaltatricarbollides 1‐Cb*‐1,2,3,4‐CoC3B8H11 (4a) and 1‐Cb*‐1,2,3,5‐CoC3B8H11 (5), respectively. A similar reaction of the amino‐substituted anion [7‐tBuNH‐7,8,9‐C3B8H10]– (2b) is accompanied by polyhedral rearrangement even at room temperature, giving 1‐Cb*‐12‐tBuNH‐1,2,4,12‐CoC3B8H10 (7b). Complex 4a rearranges to the isomeric complex 5 at 110 °C and further to 1‐Cb*‐1,2,4,10‐CoC3B8H11 (6a) at 160 °C. The amino‐substituted derivative 1‐Cb*‐10‐tBuNH‐1,2,4,10‐CoC3B8H10 (6b) was obtained by isomerization of 7b at 160 °C. The observed rearrangement sequence for Cb*CoC3B8H11 correlates well with the relative stabilities of nonmethylated analogs estimated by DFT calculations. The structures of 4a and 7b were determined by X‐ray diffraction. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
Investigations into the Reactivity of Organoelement Gallium Subhalides – Syntheses of Bifunctional Digallium Carboxylate Iodides Possessing Bridged Ga–Ga Bonds and Terminal Iodine Atoms
Authors: Uhl Werner , El‐Hamdan Abdelhakim , Schindler Klaus Peter
Published: March 2006

The organoelement subhalide R2Ga2I2 (1) [R = C(SiMe3)3] reacted with one equivalent of different lithium carboxylates LiO2CR [R = ‐C6H5, ‐4‐Me3C–C6H4, ‐4‐BrC6H4, ‐3,5‐Me2C6H3, ‐CMe3] by the selective replacement of only one iodine atom. Bifunctional digallium compounds were formed, in which one chelating carboxylato group bridges the Ga–Ga bonds. Thus, both gallium atoms are coordinated to one carbon atom of the tris(trimethylsilyl)methyl groups and one oxygen atom of the chelating ligand, while only one is further attached to a terminal iodine atom. This asymmetric substitution pattern results in different coordination numbers of three and four for the gallium atoms. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
Supramolecular Assemblies with Honeycomb Structures by π‐π Stacking of Octahedral Metal Complexes of 1,12‐Diazaperylene
Authors: Kammer Stefan , Müller Holger , Grunwald Nicolas , Bellin Anja , Kelling Alexandra , Schilde Uwe , Mickler Wulfhard , Dosche Carsten , Holdt Hans‐Jürgen
Published: March 2006

Homoleptic NiII and FeII complexes of the “large‐surface” phenanthroline‐type ligand 1,12‐diazaperylene (dap), [Ni(dap)3](BF4)2 (1) and [Fe(dap)3](PF6)2 (2), respectively, were synthesized. In the crystal structure the complex cation [M(dap)3]2+ (M = Ni, Fe) exhibits C3 symmetry and interacts with three other cations by π‐π stacking. It forms a new metalla‐supramolecular assembly with a honeycomb structure containing nanochannels running parallel to the crystallographic c axis. Aggregation by π‐π stacking between metal complexes of “large‐surface” ligands should give new perspectives for inorganic supramolecular chemistry. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
Synthesis of C‐Nucleosidic ATP Mimics as Potential FGFR3 Inhibitors
Authors: Busca Patricia , McCort Isabelle , Prangé Thierry , Le Merrer Yves
Published: March 2006

Receptor tyrosine kinases (RTKs) play an important role in signal transduction pathways, and in particular, FGFR3 is one of the four RTKs related to the fibroblast growth factor family. This paper describes the synthesis of C‐nucleosidic ATP mimics, as potential FGFR3 inhibitors, by nucleophilic epoxide ring‐opening followed by in situ O‐heterocyclization of 1,2:5,6‐dianhydro‐3,4‐di‐O‐benzyl‐D‐mannitol or L‐iditol. Cesium carbonate [Cs2CO3] was found to be the best catalyst for the reaction of purine derivatives with these bis‐epoxides. (© Wiley‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, 69451 Weinheim, Germany, 2006)
Electrochemical Characterization of a Pyrolytic Carbon Film Electrode and the Effect of Anodization
Authors: Hadi M. , Rouhollahi A. , Yousefi M. , Taidy F. , Malekfar R.
Published: March 2006

A pyrolytic carbon (PC) film electrode was fabricated by the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method. This report deals with the preparation, characterization and electrochemical behavior of this carbon film. Cyclic voltammetry, linear sweep voltammetry, Raman spectroscopy and scanning electron microscopy were employed to characterize the electrode. Low background current and capacitance were observed and the rate of charge transfer for Fe(CN)$\rm{ {_{6}^{3-/4-}}}$ redox couple was determined via cyclic voltammetry. Also the effect of the anodic activation on the electrochemical activity was evaluated and characterized with respect to the sequence of voltage applied to the electrode. The excellent electrochemical activity and low background current are the reasons why this electrode is attractive for electroanalysis measurements with lower detection limit.
Simultaneous and Direct Determination of Tryptophan and Tyrosine at Boron‐Doped Diamond Electrode
Authors: Zhao Guohua , Qi Yuan , Tian Yang
Published: March 2006

A facile method for the simultaneous measurement of tryptophan (Trp) and tyrosine (Tyr) was firstly exploited at unmodified boron‐doped diamond (BDD) electrode. The experimental results indicated that by using differential pulse voltammetry, the oxidative peaks of these two kinds of amino acids could be completely separated at BDD electrode. The peak separation of Trp and Tyr was developed to be 0.64 V when Na2PO4/NaOH buffer solution with the optimized pH 11.2 was employed. The detection limit of Trp was obtained to be 1×10−5 M, while that of Tyr was achieved to be 1×10−6 M. The present method was also evidenced to be available to the determination of real samples of amino acids.
A Vinylanthracene and Vinylferrocene‐Containing Copolymer: A New Dual pH/Sulfide Sensor
Authors: Robinson Kay L. , Lawrence Nathan S.
Published: March 2006

A single electroactive copolymer containing both anthracene and ferrocene units has been synthesized to form a dual pH/sulfide sensor. Under cyclic voltammetric conditions the oxidation of the ferrocene moiety undergoes an electrocatalytic reaction with sulfide, producing a linear increase in the oxidative peak current over the range 0.2–2.0 mM. Furthermore, square wave voltammetry was utilized to determine the pH of the solution by measuring the variation in the anthracene oxidation potential with respect to the ferrocene oxidation wave.
Voltammetric Monitoring and Speciation of Copper Ions in Italian “Grappa” with Platinum Microelectrodes
Authors: Baldo M. Antonietta , Daniele Salvatore
Published: March 2006

A linear sweep voltammetric (LSV) investigation and the anodic stripping voltammetric (ASV) detection of copper ions in ethanol‐water mixtures and grappa samples are reported. The measurements are carried out by using platinum microdisk electrodes. Ethanol‐water mixtures with ethanol content in the range 40–100 vol%, commercially available and raw grappa samples having ethanol content in the above range are examined. From LSV measurements of copper (II) ions added to the samples, the formation of intermediate copper (I) soluble species, which are stabilized mainly by the naturally occurring organic compounds present in the real samples, is observed. The analysis of LSV and ASV current responses against added Cu2+ ions provides linear trends over the concentration range 5×10−5−5×10−3 M and 5×10−7−5×10−5 M, respectively. The sensitivity depends on the ethanol content in the mixture and, as expected, it is the higher the lower the viscosity of the medium. In particular, it varies from 1.54 to 3.53 nA mM−1 and from 0.114 to 0.263 nA μM−1 for LSV and ASV measurements, respectively, upon changing the ethanol content from 40 to 100 vol%. In the same range of ethanol content, detection limits obtained by ASV vary from 0.27 to 0.15 μM, respectively. Labile or total copper contents in the grappa samples are determined by ASV measurements performed in the untreated matrices or in the samples acidified with 0.1 M HClO4, respectively. Finally, acidification of the samples with different amounts of HClO4 allows also some speciation investigations to be performed.
X‐Ray Photoelectron Spectroscopy and Electron Microscopy of Hydralazinium Ion‐Selective Electrode Membrane's Surface
Authors: Shoukry Adel F. , Maraffie Hayat M. , El‐Shatti Laila A.
Published: March 2006

New hydralazinium (Hz) plastic membrane electrodes of either conventional or coated‐wire type were constructed based on incorporation of Hz‐phosphotungstate (Hz‐PT) ion associate or Hz‐reineckate (Hz‐Rn) ion‐pair in poly(vinyl chloride) membranes. The (Hz‐PT)‐based electrodes required 30 minutes conditioning time to exhibit nearly Nernstian response over the concentration range 1.58×10−5–1.7×10−2 M HzCl. They also showed life span of 17 days, working pH range of 3.2 to 9.4 and high selectivity for Hz towards Na+, K+, Mg2+ and Ca2+. The electrodes have not lost their efficiency at temperatures elevated up to 60 °C. They were successfully employed to assaying HzCl in a pharmaceutical preparation. The electrode containing (Hz‐Rn) ion‐pair required 30 minutes conditioning time to show response for Hz over the concentration range 2.5×10−5–5.6×10−2 M. The life span of the electrode was only 8 h. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy was applied to investigate the effect of prolonged soaking on the membrane's surface of both types of electrodes. The surfaces of fresh and expired membranes containing Hz‐PT were also examined by electron microscopy. The results indicated that the limitation of the life span of plastic membrane electrodes is attributed to leaching of the ion exchanger from the membrane to the test solution in addition to deformation at the surface of the expired electrode.
Synthesis, Design and Electrochemical Properties of Langmuir–Blodgett (LB) Films Built of Bis(Pyrrolyl)Fluorene
Authors: Cabaj Joanna , Sołoducho Jadwiga , Nowakowska Anna , Chyla Antoni
Published: March 2006

The synthesis, characterization, electropolymerization, electrical and sensing properties of LB films of mono‐ and dihexadecyl‐bis(pyrrolyl)fluorene derivatives are reported. Different responses to different gases at various concentrations obtained for mono‐ and disubstituted derivatives of bis(pyrrolyl)fluorene make these materials a very good candidates for elements of gas sensing devices of the different type of an “artificial nose” or a neuronic network.
Tailoring Solution Cast Poly(3,4‐dioctyloxythiophene) Transducers for Potentiometric All‐Solid‐State Ion‐Selective Electrodes
Authors: Michalska Agata , Skompska Magdalena , Mieczkowski Józef , Zagórska Małgorzata , Maksymiuk Krzysztof
Published: March 2006

A novel concept of tailoring potentiometric responses of all‐solid‐state ion‐selective electrodes was introduced. The effect of composition and resulting properties of the conjugated polymer transducer, placed between the electrode support and ion‐selective membrane, on analytical characteristic of obtained sensors was studied.
An Eulerian approach to fluid–structure interaction and goal‐oriented mesh adaptation
Authors: Dunne Th.
Published: March 2006

We propose an Eulerian framework for modelling fluid–structure interaction (FSI) of incompressible fluids and elastic structures. The model is based on an Eulerian approach for describing structural dynamics. This is achieved by tracking the movement of the initial positions of all ‘material’ points. In this approach the displacement appears as a primary variable in an Eulerian framework.

Our approach uses a technique which is similar to the level set method in so far that it also tracks initial data, in our case the set of initial positions (IP), and from this determines to which ‘phase’ a point belongs. To avoid the occasional reinitialization of the initial position set we employ the harmonic continuation of the structure velocity field into the fluid domain.

By using the IP set for tracking the structure displacement, we can ensure that corners and edges of the fluid–structure interface are preserved well.

Based on this monolythic model of the FSI we apply the Dual Weighted Residual (DWR) method for goal‐oriented a posteriori error estimation to stationary FSI problems.

Examples are presented based on the model and for the goal‐oriented local mesh adaptation. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Haplotype analysis in the presence of informatively missing genotype data
Authors: Liu Nianjun , Beerman Isabel , Lifton Richard , Zhao Hongyu
Published: March 2006

It is common to have missing genotypes in practical genetic studies, but the exact underlying missing data mechanism is generally unknown to the investigators. Although some statistical methods can handle missing data, they usually assume that genotypes are missing at random, that is, at a given marker, different genotypes and different alleles are missing with the same probability. These include those methods on haplotype frequency estimation and haplotype association analysis. However, it is likely that this simple assumption does not hold in practice, yet few studies to date have examined the magnitude of the effects when this simplifying assumption is violated. In this study, we demonstrate that the violation of this assumption may lead to serious bias in haplotype frequency estimates, and haplotype association analysis based on this assumption can induce both false‐positive and false‐negative evidence of association. To address this limitation in the current methods, we propose a general missing data model to characterize missing data patterns across a set of two or more markers simultaneously. We prove that haplotype frequencies and missing data probabilities are identifiable if and only if there is linkage disequilibrium between these markers under our general missing data model. Simulation studies on the analysis of haplotypes consisting of two single nucleotide polymorphisms illustrate that our proposed model can reduce the bias both for haplotype frequency estimates and association analysis due to incorrect assumption on the missing data mechanism. Finally, we illustrate the utilities of our method through its application to a real data set. Genet. Epidemiol. 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Two‐connected orientations of Eulerian graphs
Authors: Berg Alex R. , Jordán Tibor
Published: March 2006

A graph G = (V, E) is said to be weakly four‐connected if G is 4‐edge‐connected and G – x is 2‐edge‐connected for every x ∈ V. We prove that every weakly four‐connected Eulerian graph has a 2‐connected Eulerian orientation. This verifies a special case of a conjecture of A. Frank . © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 52: 230–242, 2006
Isomorphic factorization of the complete graph into Cayley digraphs
Authors: Chia G. L. , Ong Poh‐Hwa
Published: March 2006

Let Zp denote the cyclic group of order p where p is a prime number. Let X = X(Zp, H) denote the Cayley digraph of Zp with respect to the symbol H. We obtain a necessary and sufficient condition on H so that the complete graph on p vertices can be edge‐partitioned into three copies of Cayley digraphs of the same group Zp each isomorphic to X. Based on this condition on H, we then enumerate all such Cayley graphs and digraphs. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 52: 243–256, 2006
Rectangular and visibility representations of infinite planar graphs
Authors: Thomassen Carsten
Published: March 2006

We provide a new method for extending results on finite planar graphs to the infinite case. Thus a result of Ungar on finite graphs has the following extension: Every infinite, planar, cubic, cyclically 4‐edge‐connected graph has a representation in the plane such that every edge is a horizontal or vertical straight line segment, and such that no two edges cross. A result of Tamassia and Tollis extends as follows: Every countably infinite planar graph is a subgraph of a visibility graph. Furthermore, every locally finite, 2‐connected, planar graph is a visibility graph. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Graph Theory 52: 257–265, 2006
Bone marrow stromal cells induce BMP2/4 production in oxygen‐glucose‐deprived astrocytes, which promotes an astrocytic phenotype in adult subventricular progenitor cells
Authors: Xin Hongqi , Li Yi , Chen Xiaoguang , Chopp Michael
Published: March 2006

Bone morphogenetic proteins (BMPs) affect cell proliferation and differentiation. Astrocytes in ischemic brain are highly responsive to bone marrow stromal cell (BMSC) treatment. We investigated the effects of BMSCs on astrocytes cultured under oxygen‐ and glucose‐deprived conditions, which in part simulate in vivo stroke conditions, to test the hypothesis that BMSCs alter astrocytic expression of BMPs which may contribute to neurological functional recovery of stroke. Quantitative real‐time RT‐PCR showed that the expression of BMP2/4 mRNAs decreased within ischemic astrocytes, In contrast, BMP2/4 mRNA was significantly increased after cocultured with BMSCs. Western blotting also confirmed this increase at the protein level in the medium of ischemic astrocytes after coculture with BMSCs. As a source of neural stem and progenitor cells, cultured subventricular zone (SVZ) neurospheres exposed to medium obtained from ischemic astrocytes cocultured with BMSCs were significantly enriched in cells expressing the astrocytic marker glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP), but not at the expense of β‐III‐tubulin‐positive SVZ neuroblasts. The expression of BMP2/4 subsequently increased the phosphorylation of downstream effector Smad1 and the expression of notch signal pathway‐induced protein Hes1 in cultured SVZ neurospheres. BMP antagonist Noggin blocked the elevation of phosphorylated Smad1 and the expression of Hes1 as well as reducing the percentage of astrocytic SVZ progenitor cells. Our results indicate that BMSCs increase BMP2/4 expression in ischemic astrocytes. These changes enhance subventricular progenitor cell gliogenesis by activating relevant signaling pathways. BMSC‐stimulated signaling of endogenous astrocytes may alter the ischemic environment, promoting remodeling of brain and hence, improve functional recovery after stroke. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Living donor liver transplantation for hepatocellular carcinoma: A single-center preliminary report
Authors: Malagó Massimo , Sotiropoulos Georgios C. , Nadalin Silvio , Valentin-Gamazo Camino , Paul Andreas , Lang Hauke , Radtke Arnold , Saner Fuat , Molmenti Ernesto , Beckebaum Susanne , Gerken Guido , Frilling Andrea , Broelsch Christoph E.
Published: March 2006

Liver transplantation (LT) is the treatment of choice for early hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) in patients with end-stage liver disease but is limited by the availability of donor organs. Living donor liver transplantation (LDLT) represents an alternative therapeutic option for patients with disease confined to the liver. Between April 1998 and December 2003, 537 patients underwent liver transplantation in our center. Thirty patients with HCC and associated terminal cirrhosis and 4 patients with tumor recurrence after liver resection who underwent LDLT were reviewed. Nineteen patients (55.8%) met the Milan criteria for LT, whereas 15 patients (44.2%) “exceeded” them. The overall survival rates at 1 and 2 years were 68% and 62%, respectively, with a median follow-up of 41 months (range, 17–64 months). Five patients (14.7%) died in the first 30 days after LDLT. Hospital mortality was significantly correlated with age >60 years. Four patients developed recurrence between 6 and 35 months after LDLT. Recurrence was significantly related to the presence of more than 3 tumor lesions in our series. In conclusion, LDLT is a promising treatment option for patients with HCC. Even longer follow-up and bigger patients’ series are needed to fully assess the benefits of LDLT for HCC patients exceeding the Milan criteria.
Liver Transpl 12:934–940, 2006.

© 2006 AASLD.
A Schrödinger operator with a δ′‐interaction on a Cantor set and Krein–Feller operators
Authors: Albeverio Sergio , Nizhnik Leonid
Published: March 2006

A construction of a one‐dimensional Schrödinger operator that has an inner structure defined on a set of Lebesgue measure zero and an interaction given on such a set. General Krein–Feller operators are constructed and the spectrum of a Schrödinger operator with a δ′‐interaction given on a Cantor set is studied. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Dehn surgeries on periodic links
Authors: Barbieri E. , Cavicchioli A. , Spaggiari F.
Published: March 2006

We consider orientable closed connected 3‐manifolds obtained by Dehn surgeries with rational coefficients along the components of certain periodic links. These manifolds extend many classes of (hyperbolic) manifolds considered by several authors (see the references). We find geometric presentations of the fundamental group of such manifolds, and study some covering properties of them. Then we obtain results on their geometric structures in many cases. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Mod 2 degree and a generalized No Retraction Theorem
Authors: Bloch Ethan D.
Published: March 2006

We provide elementary proofs of generalized versions of the No Retraction Theorem and Sperner's Lemma, and a simple definition of mod 2 degree of certain maps. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Rank one perturbations of Jacobi matrices with mixed spectra
Authors: del Rio R. , Kudryavtsev M. , Silva L.
Published: March 2006

Let A be a self‐adjoint operator and φ its cyclic vector. In this work we study spectral properties of rank one perturbations of A

Aθ = A + θ 〈φ , ·〉φ

in relation to their dependence on the real parameter θ . We find bounds on averages of spectral measures for semi‐infinite Jacobi matrices and give criteria which guarantee existence of mixed spectral types for θ in a set of positive Lebesgue measure. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Orthogonal rational matrix‐valued functions on the unit circle: Recurrence relations and a Favard‐type theorem
Authors: Fritzsche Bernd , Kirstein Bernd , Lasarow Andreas
Published: March 2006

This paper contains further steps towards a Szegö theory for orthogonal rational matrix‐valued functions on the unit circle 𝕋. It continues the investigations started in [18]–[20]. Hereby we are guided by former work of Bultheel, González–Vera, Hendriksen, and Njåstad on scalar orthogonal rational functions on the one side and by research of Delsarte, Genin, and Kamp on matrix polynomials on the other side. In this paper we derive recursion formulas for Christoffel–Darboux pairs of rational matrix functions which lead us to jqq ‐recursively connected pairs of rational matrix functions. Moreover, we prove a Favard‐type theorem for rational matrix functions. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Generalized fractal dimensions on the negative axis for compactly supported measures
Authors: Germinet François , Tcheremchantsev Serguei
Published: March 2006

We study generalized fractal dimensions of measures, called the Hentschel–Procaccia dimensions and the generalized Rényi dimensions. We consider compactly supported Borel measures with finite total mass on a complete separable metric space. More precisely we discuss in great generality finiteness and equality of the different lower and upper dimensions for negative values of their argument q . In particular we do not assume that the measure satisfies to the so called “doubling condition”. A key tool in our analysis is, given a measure μ , the function g (ε ), ε > 0, defined as the infimum over all points x in the support of μ of the quantity μ (B (x , ε )), where B (x , ε ) is the ball centered at x and of radius ε . We provide counter examples to show the optimality of some criteria for finiteness and equality of the dimensions. We also relate this work to quantum dynamics. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Characterizations of stable laws via functional equations
Authors: Gupta Arjun K. , Jagannathan Keshav , Nguyen Truc T. , Shanbhag Damodar N.
Published: March 2006

In this paper, characterizations of continuous and discrete stable laws are given using Deny's Theorem. These results are obtained using infinite divisibility property of the characteristic function, and the ensueing functional equations are solved using either Deny's Theorem or the Lau–Rao Theorem. Multivariate versions of these results are also given in addition to a multidimensional generalization of the main result. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Singular integrals on Besov spaces
Authors: Hytönen Tuomas , Weis Lutz
Published: March 2006

The boundedness of singular convolution operators f ↦ k ∗︁ f is studied on Besov spaces of vector‐valued functions, the kernel k taking values in ℒ︁(X , Y ). The main result is a Hörmander‐type theorem giving sufficient conditions for the boundedness of such an operator on these spaces. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Boundedness of solutions for a class of reversible systems
Authors: Yang Xiaojing
Published: March 2006

In this paper, we are concerned with the problem of boundedness of solutions for the second order differential equation x ″ + f (x )x ′ + g (x ) = e (t ), where f , g ∈ C ∞(ℝ) are odd functions and e (t ) ∈ C ∞(ℝ/ℤ) is odd. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
On finite elements in vector lattices and Banach lattices
Authors: Chen Z. L. , Weber M. R.
Published: March 2006

In Archimedean vector lattices we show that each element of the band generated by a finite element is also finite. In vector lattices with the (PPP) and in Banach lattices we obtain some characterizations of finite elements by using the generalized order units for principal bands. In the case of Banach lattices with order continuous norm the ideal of all finite elements coincides with the linear span of all atoms. Some other related results and applications are included. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Operator holes and extensions of sectorial operators and dual pairs of contractions
Authors: Malamud Mark
Published: March 2006

We find a criterion of existence and uniqueness of an m ‐sectorial extension of a dual pair {A 1, A 2} of nonnegative operators. A description of the set of all such extensions of a dual pair {A 1, A 2} is obtained too. A complete description of the set of all proper and improper m ‐sectorial extensions of a nonnegative operator is also obtained. All the problems are reduced to similar problems for a dual pair {T 1, T 2} of non‐densely defined symmetric contractions Tj = (I – Aj )(I + Aj )–1, j ∈ {1, 2}. In turn these problems are reduced to the investigation of the corresponding operator “holes”, intersections of two operator balls. Basically, complexity of the problem depends upon that whether the left/right radii of the operator ball(s) coincide or not. A parametrization of an operator hole with equal left and right radii is obtained. Solutions to the above problems are based on such a parametrization.

Some classes of non‐contractive extensions of the dual pair {T 1, T 2} are described too. (© 2006 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Cover Picture: Macromol. Rapid Commun. 6/2006
Authors: Sugawara Ayae , Yamane Setsuko , Akiyoshi Kazunari
Published: March 2006

Cover: Novel organic‐calcium phosphate hybrid nanoparticles, which show a narrow size distribution and high colloidal stability in solution, were synthesized using polymer hydrogel nanoparticles (nanogels) and nanogel‐liposomes as templates for the mineralization of calcium phosphate. Further details can be found in the Communication by Ayae Sugawara, Setsuko Yamane and Kazunari Akiyoshi* on page 441.
Gas‐phase ion chemistry in organometallic systems
Authors: Operti Lorenza , Rabezzana Roberto
Published: March 2006

This review essentially deals with positive ion/molecule reactions occurring in gas‐phase organometallic systems, and encompasses a period of time of approximately 7 years, going from 1997 to early 2004. Following the example of the excellent review by Eller & Schwarz (1991; Chem Rev 91:1121–1177), in the first part, results of reaction of naked ions are presented by grouping them according to the neutral substrate, while in the second part, ligated ions are grouped according to the different ligands. Whenever possible, comparison among similar studies is attempted, and general trends of reactivities are evidenced. © 2005 Wiley Periodicals, Inc., Mass Spec Rev 25:483–513, 2006
Multicontrast sequences with continuous table motion: A novel acquisition technique for extended field of view imaging
Authors: Sommer Gregor , Fautz Hans‐Peter , Ludwig Ute , Hennig Jürgen
Published: March 2006

A novel acquisition technique called multicontrast imaging is presented that provides multiple datasets of different image contrasts covering an extended field of view within one measurement procedure. The technique uses a continuously moving table and is based on the repetitive acquisition of axial volume sections while the patient moves through the scanner once. To compensate for the table motion during the measurement, adaptive slice shifting is applied. Multicontrast imaging is designed to combine the comfort of a moving table examination with the high time efficiency of a multitask protocol and can be used for generating differences in both contrast and spatial parameters of the acquired data. The technique and its properties are demonstrated on healthy human volunteers. Magn Reson Med, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Robust quantification of short echo time 1H magnetic resonance spectra using the Padé approximant
Authors: Williamson David C. , Hawesa Halima , Thacker Neil A. , Williams Stephen R.
Published: March 2006

Accurate quantification of in vivo short echo time spectra is hampered by the presence of overlapping peaks and a significant baseline. In this work the Padé approximant in conjunction with Monte Carlo simulation is used to extract peak areas from short echo time 1H spectra. We exploit the fact that the Padé approximant is known to model broad non‐Lorentzian signals as arbitrary sums of Lorentzian components to separate baseline components from sharper metabolite signals by combining the Padé approximant with Monte Carlo simulation. The simulation results demonstrate that the Padé approximant–Monte Carlo hybrid analysis is able to separate the metabolite signals from the baseline, while a least squares fitting of a time domain model may result in significant bias of the peak area estimations. For the in vivo data the estimates of the peak areas using the Padé approximant and AMARES compare well, with the exception of the NAA peak at 2.02 ppm. We suggest that the discrepancy may be due to the baseline contamination as supported by the simulation results; however, without an in vivo gold standard this remains difficult to demonstrate. Magn Reson Med, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Reducing contamination while closing the gap: BASSI RF pulses in PASL
Authors: Warnking Jan M. , Pike G. Bruce
Published: March 2006

Bandwidth‐modulated selective saturation and inversion (BASSI) pulses are a class of frequency‐ and gradient‐modulated radiofrequency (RF) pulses, derived from the hyperbolic secant pulse by temporal variation of the bandwidth parameter. These pulses afford optimal amplitude modulation, achieving uniform and highly selective profiles at any effective flip angle. In this paper, BASSI pulses are parameterized to obtain low RF energy pulsed arterial spin labeling (PASL) label pulses with minimal contamination of static spins outside the label region and highly selective PICORE/QUIPSS II saturation pulses allowing for small label gaps. They are compared to frequency offset corrected inversion (FOCI) label pulses and sinc saturation pulses in simulations and a phantom experiment. Drawing on the outstanding selectivity of bandwidth‐modulated saturation pulses, a new noninvasive method to measure in vivo the contamination effects due to direct and indirect saturation of static spins by the label pulse is presented. In an in vivo study on four subjects, contamination effects in a QUIPSS II PASL implementation based on BASSI pulses are compared to those present in a state‐of‐the‐art Q2TIPS sequence employing a FOCI label pulse. Residual contamination in the QUIPSS II/BASSI sequence is shown to be reduced by a factor of 3, compared to the Q2TIPS/FOCI sequence. In vivo human perfusion images obtained with a label gap of only 2 mm are presented. Magn Reson Med, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Needle shear wave driver for magnetic resonance elastography
Authors: Chan Q.C.C. , Li G. , Ehman R.L. , Grimm R.C. , Li R. , Yang E.S.
Published: March 2006

Magnetic resonance elastography (MRE) is capable of quantitatively depicting the mechanical properties of tissues in vivo. In contrast to mechanical excitation at the surface of the tissue, the method proposed in this study describes shear waves produced by an inserted needle. The results demonstrate that MRE performed with the needle driver provides shear stiffness estimates that correlate well with those obtained using mechanical testing. Comparisons between MRE acquisitions obtained with surface and needle drivers yielded similar results in general. However, the well‐defined wave propagation pattern provided by the needle driver in a target region can reduce section orientation‐related error in wavelength estimation that occurs with surface drivers in 2D MRE acquisitions. Preliminary testing of the device was performed on animals. This study demonstrates that the needle driver is an effective option that offers advantages over surface drivers for obtaining accurate stiffness estimates in targeted regions that are accessible by the needle. Magn Reson Med, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Location of anthralin radical generation in mouse skin by UV‐A irradiation: An estimation using microscopic EPR spectral‐spatial imaging
Authors: Matsumoto Ken‐ichiro , Kawai Sayo , Chignell Colin F. , Utsumi Hideo
Published: March 2006

In vivo location of the anthralin radical generated in mouse skin by ultraviolet A (UV‐A) irradiation was estimated by microscopic electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) spectral‐spatial imaging. An X‐band EPR spectrometer equipped with specially designed high‐power imaging coils and a TE‐mode cavity was employed. The maximum field gradient used in this study was 6.77 mT/mm. Anthralin was applied to the dorsal skin of live mice, which were then exposed to UV‐A irradiation. A broad singlet EPR spectrum (peak‐to‐peak line width = 0.6 mT and g = 2.004) was obtained. Microscopic EPR spectral‐spatial imaging of the skin tissue showed that the anthralin radical was located mainly in the epidermis (27 μm from the skin surface). This result was consistent with the finding that the proportions of the radical in the dermis and epidermis were about 15% and 85%, respectively. Magn Reson Med, 2006. Published 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Bin‐packing problem with concave costs of bin utilization
Authors: Li Chung‐Lun , Chen Zhi‐Long
Published: March 2006

We consider a generalized one‐dimensional bin‐packing model where the cost of a bin is a nondecreasing concave function of the utilization of the bin. Four popular heuristics from the literature of the classical bin‐packing problem are studied: First Fit (FF), Best Fit (BF), First Fit Decreasing (FFD), and Best Fit Decreasing (BFD). We analyze their worst‐case performances when they are applied to our model. The absolute worst‐case performance ratio of FF and BF is shown to be exactly 2, and that of FFD and BFD is shown to be exactly 1.5. Computational experiments are also conducted to test the performance of these heuristics. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006
Transient analysis of Markov models of fault‐tolerant systems with deferred repair using split regenerative randomization
Authors: Temsamani Jamal , Carrasco Juan A.
Published: March 2006

The (standard) randomization method is an attractive alternative for the transient analysis of continuous time Markov models. The main advantages of the method are numerical stability, well‐controlled computation error, and ability to specify the computation error in advance. However, the fact that the method can be computationally very expensive limits its applicability. In this paper, we develop a new method calledsplit regenerative randomization, which, having the same good properties as standard randomization, can be significantly more efficient. The method covers reliability‐like models with a particular but quite general structure and requires the selection of a subset of states and aregenerativestate satisfying some conditions. For a class of continuous time Markov models, model class C2, including typical failure/repair reliability‐like models with exponential failure and repair time distributions and deferred repair, natural selections are available for both the subset of states and the regenerative state and, for those natural selections, theoretical results are available assessing the efficiency of the method in terms of “visible” model characteristics. Those results can be used to anticipate when the method can be expected to be competitive. We illustrate the application of the method using a large class C2model and show that for models in that class the method can indeed be significantly more efficient than previously available randomization‐based methods. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006
A sequential Bayesian generalization of the Jelinski–Moranda software reliability model
Authors: Washburn Alan
Published: March 2006

The Jelinski–Moranda model of software reliability is generalized by introducing a negative‐binomial prior distribution for the number of faults remaining, together with a Gamma distribution for the rate at which each fault is exposed. This model is well suited to sequential use, where a sequence of reliability forecasts is made in the process of testing or using the software. We also investigate replacing the Gamma distribution with a worst‐case assumption about failure rates (the worst‐case failure rate in models such as this is not infinite, since faults with large failure rates are immediately discovered and removed). © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Naval Research Logistics, 2006
Approximation algorithms for channel allocation problems in broadcast networks
Authors: Gandhi Rajiv , Khuller Samir , Srinivasan Aravind , Wang Nan
Published: March 2006

We study two packing problems that arise in the area of dissemination‐based information systems; a second theme is the study of distributed approximation algorithms. The problems considered have the property that the space occupied by a collection of objects together could be significantly less than the sum of the sizes of the individual objects. In the Channel Allocation Problem, there are requests that are subsets of topics. There are a fixed number of channels that can carry an arbitrary number of topics. All the topics of each request must be broadcast on some channel. The load on any channel is the number of topics that are broadcast on that channel; the objective is to minimize the maximum load on any channel. We present approximation algorithms for this problem, and also show that the problem is MAX‐SNP hard. The second problem is the Edge Partitioning Problem addressed by Goldschmidt, Hochbaum, Levin, and Olinick (Networks, 41:13–23, 2003). Each channel here can deliver topics for at most k requests, and we aim to minimize the total load on all channels. We present an O(n1/3)–approximation algorithm, and also show that the algorithm can be made fully distributed with the same approximation guarantee; we also generalize the (nondistributed) Edge Partitioning Problem of graphs to the case of hypergraphs. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 47(4), 225–236 2006