bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Appendages of an early Cambrian metadoxidid trilobite from Yunnan, SW China support mandibulate affinities of trilobites and artiopods
Authors: ZENG HAN , ZHAO FANGCHEN , YIN ZONGJUN , ZHU MAOYAN
Published: April 2017

Appendage anatomy contributes crucial data for understanding the evolution and ecology of Euarthropoda. The Palaeozoic trilobites show a great diversity of exoskeletons in the fossil record. However, soft parts, especially appendages, have only been discovered from a few trilobite species. Here we report extraordinarily preserved appendages in the trilobite speciesHongshiyanaspis yiliangensisZhang & LininZhanget al. 1980 (Redlichiida, Metadoxididae) from a single mudstone layer of the Xiazhuang fossil assemblage within the Hongjingshao Formation (Cambrian Series 2, Stage 3) near Kunming, Yunnan, SW China. The appendages exhibit the common architecture revealed by other trilobites and artiopods by consisting of a pair of uniramous antennae followed by a series of paired homonomous biramous limbs. The antennae in holaspid individuals comprise up to 27 spinous podomeres and their ontogeny occurs by lengthening of the podomeres. The post-antennal biramous limbs are similar to those in other polymerid trilobites and artiopods by having a single-segmented protopodite and an endopodite comprising seven segments, but possess a unique wide tripartite exopodite with long setae. Sophisticated appendage anatomy, including the body–limb junction, fine setae, putative muscle bundles and duct-type tissues, are also revealed. Appendages of trilobites, artiopods and other upper stem-group euarthropods are compared and summarized. TheH. yiliangensisappendages highlight the high morphological disparity of exopodites and the conservativeness of endopodites in trilobites and artiopods. This morphological pattern, together with similar body patterning seen in crustaceans but not in chelicerates, supports the mandibulate affinities of trilobites and at least some artiopods.
Actualized Stigma: The historical formation of anti-Americanism in North Korea
Authors: KIM TAEWOO
Published: April 2017

During the Open Port period and Japanese colonial period (1876–1945), Koreans generally had a positive image of the United States. This positive view of the United States held by Koreans persisted until after liberation from Japanese colonial rule in 1945. The United States was a ‘liberator’ that saved the Koreans, and was viewed as ‘a cooperator’ with whom Korea was to solve its national task of establishing a new country. However, the concept of ‘American imperialist warmonger’ had begun to be promoted in North Korea from 1948–49. It was a concept advanced by the Soviet Union and the North Korean leadership. The negative image of the United States, which spread throughout North Korea from the early years of the Cold War, was merely a perplexing stigma lacking substantiated grounds. However, the experiences of the Korean War actualized the image of the United States as a ‘warmonger’ in the hearts of the North Korean people. Alleged indiscriminate aerial bombings, mass slaughters, sexual assaults, and arson attacks against Korean civilians became the most important reason for the expansion of intense sentiment. Anti-Americanism began to be systemized and routinized in every aspect of North Korean life after the Korean War.
Impact of the location of the fenestration on Fontan circulation haemodynamics: a three-dimensional, computational model study
Authors: Sughimoto Koichi , Asakura Yuta , Brizard Christian P. , Liang Fuyou , Fujiwara Takashi , Miyaji Kagami , Liu Hao
Published: April 2017

Objectives

There is no consensus or theoretical explanation regarding the optimal location for the fenestration during the Fontan operation. We investigated the impact of the location of the fenestration on Fontan haemodynamics using a three-dimensional Fontan model in various physiological conditions.

Methods

A three-dimensional Fontan model was constructed on the basis of CT images, and a 4-mm-diameter fenestration was located between the extracardiac Fontan conduit and the right atrium at three positions: superior, middle, and inferior part of the conduit. Haemodynamics in the Fontan route were analysed using a three-dimensional computational fluid dynamic model in realistic physiological conditions, which were predicted using a lumped parameter model of the cardiovascular system. The respiratory effect of the caval flow was taken into account. The flow rate through the fenestration, the effect of lowering the central venous pressure, and wall shear stress in the Fontan circuit were evaluated under central venous pressures of 10, 15, and 20 mmHg. The pulse power index and pulsatile energy loss index were calculated as energy loss indices.

Results

Under all central venous pressures, the middle-part fenestration demonstrated the most significant effect on enhancing the flow rate through the fenestration while lowering the central venous pressure. The middle-part fenestration produced the highest time-averaged wall shear stress, pressure pulse index, and pulsatile energy loss index.

Conclusions

Despite slightly elevated energy loss, the middle-part fenestration most significantly increased cardiac output and lowered central venous pressure under respiration in the Fontan circulation.
AN ITERATIVE MODEL ORDER REDUCTION METHOD FOR LARGE-SCALE DYNAMICAL SYSTEMS
Authors: MOHAMED K. , MEHDI A. , ABDELKADER M.
Published: April 2017

We present a new iterative model order reduction method for large-scale linear time-invariant dynamical systems, based on a combined singular value decomposition–adaptive-order rational Arnoldi (SVD-AORA) approach. This method is an extension of the SVD-rational Krylov method. It is based on two-sided projections: the SVD side depends on the observability Gramian by the resolution of the Lyapunov equation, and the Krylov side is generated by the adaptive-order rational Arnoldi based on moment matching. The use of the SVD provides stability for the reduced system, and the use of the AORA method provides numerical efficiency and a relative lower computation complexity. The reduced model obtained is asymptotically stable and minimizes the error ($H_{2}$and$H_{\infty }$) between the original and the reduced system. Two examples are given to study the performance of the proposed approach.
Why Do Great Earthquakes Follow Each Other at Subduction Zones?
Authors: Cook Terri
Published: April 2017

A decade of continuous GPS measurements in South America indicates that enhanced strain accumulation following a great earthquake can initiate failure along adjacent fault segments.
What Regions Are Most at Risk for Ice Loss in East Antarctica?
Authors: Witman Sarah
Published: April 2017

Scientists model the impact of environmental warming on ice drainage basins in the less studied East Antarctica.
EcR recruits dMi-2 and increases efficiency of dMi-2-mediated remodelling to constrain transcription of hormone-regulated genes
Authors: Kreher Judith , Kovač Kristina , Bouazoune Karim , Mačinković Igor , Ernst Anna Luise , Engelen Erik , Pahl Roman , Finkernagel Florian , Murawska Magdalena , Ullah Ikram , Brehm Alexander
Published: April 2017

Gene regulation by steroid hormones plays important roles in health and disease. In Drosophila, the hormone ecdysone governs transitions between key developmental stages. Ecdysone-regulated genes are bound by a heterodimer of ecdysone receptor (EcR) and Ultraspiracle. According to the bimodal switch model, steroid hormone receptors recruit corepressors in the absence of hormone and coactivators in its presence. Here we show that the nucleosome remodeller dMi-2 is recruited to ecdysone-regulated genes to limit transcription. Contrary to the prevalent model, recruitment of the dMi-2 corepressor increases upon hormone addition to constrain gene activation through chromatin remodelling. Furthermore, EcR and dMi-2 form a complex that is devoid of Ultraspiracle. Unexpectedly, EcR contacts the dMi-2 ATPase domain and increases the efficiency of dMi-2-mediated nucleosome remodelling. This study identifies a non-canonical EcR-corepressor complex with the potential for a direct regulation of ATP-dependent nucleosome remodelling by a nuclear hormone receptor.
TGF-β induces phosphorylation of phosphatase and tensin homolog: implications for fibrosis of the trabecular meshwork tissue in glaucoma
Authors: Tellios Nikoleta , Belrose Jillian C. , Tokarewicz Alexander C. , Hutnik Cindy , Liu Hong , Leask Andrew , Motolko Michael , Iijima Miho , Parapuram Sunil K.
Published: April 2017

Fundamental cell signaling mechanisms that regulate dynamic remodeling of the extracellular matrix (ECM) in mechanically loaded tissues are not yet clearly understood. Trabecular meshwork (TM) tissue in the eye is under constant mechanical stress and continuous remodeling of ECM is crucial to maintain normal aqueous humor drainage and intraocular pressure (IOP). However, excessive ECM remodeling can cause fibrosis of the TM as in primary open-angle glaucoma (POAG) patients, and is characterized by increased resistance to aqueous humor drainage, elevated IOP, optic nerve degeneration and blindness. Increased levels of active transforming growth factor-β2 (TGF-β2) in the aqueous humor is the main cause of fibrosis of TM in POAG patients. Herein, we report a novel finding that, in TM cells, TGF-β-induced increase in collagen expression is associated with phosphorylation of phosphatase and tensin homolog (PTEN) at residues Ser380/Thr382/383. Exogenous overexpression of a mutated form of PTEN with enhanced phosphatase activity prevented the TGF-β-induced collagen expression by TM cells. We propose that rapid alteration of PTEN activity through changes in its phosphorylation status could uniquely regulate the continuous remodeling of ECM in the normal TM. Modulating PTEN activity may have high therapeutic potential to alleviating the fibrosis of TM in POAG patients.
Genetic dissection of yield traits in super hybrid rice Xieyou9308 using both unconditional and conditional genome-wide association mapping
Authors: Zhang Yingxin , Zhou Liyuan , Shen Xihong , Chen Daibo , Wu Weixun , Zhan Xiaodeng , Liu Qunen , Zhu Aike , Lou Xiangyang , Xu Haiming , Cheng Shihua , Cao Liyong
Published: April 2017

With the development and application of super rice breeding, elite rice hybrids with super high-yielding potential have been widely developed in last decades in China. Xieyou9308 is one of the most famous super hybrid rice varieties. To uncover the genetic mechanism of Xieyou9308’s high yield potential, a recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from cross of XieqingzaoB and Zhonghui9308 was re-sequenced and investigated on the grain yield (GYD) and its three component traits, number of panicles per plant (NP), number of filled grains per panicle (NFGP), and grain weight (GW). Unconditional and conditional genome-wide association analysis, based on a linear mixed model with epistasis and gene-environment interaction effects, were conducted, using ~0.7 million identified SNPs. There were six, four, seven, and seven QTSs identified for GYD, NP, NFGP, and GW, respectively, with accumulated explanatory heritability varying from 43.06% to 48.36%; additive by environment interactions were detected for GYD, some minor epistases were detected for NP and NFGP. Further, conditional genetic mapping analysis for GYD given its three components revealed several novel QTSs associated with yield than that were suppressed in our unconditional mapping analysis.
Moderate lifelong overexpression of tuberous sclerosis complex 1 (TSC1) improves health and survival in mice
Authors: Zhang Hong-Mei , Diaz Vivian , Walsh Michael E. , Zhang Yiqiang
Published: April 2017

The tuberous sclerosis complex 1/2 (TSC1/2) is an endogenous regulator of the mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR). While mTOR has been shown to play an important role in health and aging, the role of TSC1/2 in aging has not been fully investigated. In the current study, a constitutive TSC1 transgenic (Tsc1
tg
) mouse model was generated and characterized. mTORC1 signaling was reduced in majority of the tissues, except the brain. In contrast, mTORC2 signaling was enhanced in Tsc1
tg
mice. Tsc1
tg
mice are more tolerant to exhaustive exercises and less susceptible to isoproterenol-induced cardiac hypertrophy at both young and advanced ages. Tsc1
tg
mice have less fibrosis and inflammation in aged as well as isoproterenol-challenged heart than age-matched wild type mice. The female Tsc1
tg
mice exhibit a higher fat to lean mass ratio at advanced ages than age-matched wild type mice. More importantly, the lifespan increased significantly in female Tsc1
tg
mice, but not in male Tsc1
tg
mice. Collectively, our data demonstrated that moderate increase of TSC1 expression can enhance overall health, particularly cardiovascular health, and improve survival in a gender-specific manner.
Correction: Corrigendum: Gene expression differences in Longissimus muscle of Nelore steers genetically divergent for residual feed intake
Authors: Tizioto Polyana C. , Coutinho Luiz L. , Oliveira Priscila S. N. , Cesar Aline S. M. , Diniz Wellison J. S. , Lima Andressa O. , Rocha Marina I. , Decker Jared E. , Schnabel Robert D. , Mourão Gerson B. , Tullio Rymer R. , Zerlotini Adhemar , Taylor Jeremy F. , Regitano Luciana C. A.
Published: April 2017

Scientific Reports 6: Article number: 39493; published online: 22 December 2016; updated: 05 April 2017 This Article contains an error in the order of the Figures, where Figures 2 and 3 were inverted. The correct Figures 2 and 3 appear below:
Genetic and Epigenetic Alterations of TERT Are Associated with Inferior Outcome in Adolescent and Young Adult Patients with Melanoma
Authors: Seynnaeve Brittani , Lee Seungjae , Borah Sumit , Park Yongseok , Pappo Alberto , Kirkwood John M. , Bahrami Armita
Published: April 2017

Progression of melanoma to distant sites in adolescents and young adults (AYAs) is not reliably predicted by clinicopathologic criteria. TERT promoter mutations when combined with BRAF/NRAS mutations correlate with adverse outcome in adult melanoma. To determine the prognostic value of TERT alterations in AYA melanoma, we investigated the association of TERT promoter mutations, as well as promoter methylation, an epigenetic alteration also linked to TERT upregulation, with TERT mRNA expression and outcome using a well-characterized cohort of 27 patients with melanoma (ages 8–25, mean 20). TERT mRNA expression levels were significantly higher in tumors harboring TERT promoter mutation and/or hypermethylation than those without either aberration (P = 0.046). TERT promoter mutations alone did not predict adverse outcomes (P = 0.50), but the presence of TERT promoter methylation, alone or concurrent with promoter mutations, correlated with reduced recurrence-free survival (P = 0.001). These data suggest that genetic and epigenetic alterations of TERT are associated with TERT upregulation and may predict clinical outcomes in AYA melanoma. A more exhaustive understanding of the different molecular mechanisms leading to increased TERT expression may guide development of prognostic assays to stratify AYA melanoma patients according to clinical risk.
Phase II study of induction chemotherapy followed by chemoradiotherapy in patients with borderline resectable and unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer
Authors: Fiore Michele , Ramella Sara , Valeri Sergio , Caputo Damiano , Floreno Barnaba , Trecca Pasquale , Trodella Luca Eolo , Trodella Lucio , D’Angelillo Rolando Maria , Coppola Roberto
Published: April 2017

There is not a clear consensus regarding the optimal treatment of locally advanced pancreatic disease. There is a potential role for neoadjuvant therapy to treat micrometastatic disease with chemotherapy, as well as for the treatment of local disease with radiotherapy. We evaluated the safety and efficacy of induction chemotherapy with oxaliplatin and gemcitabine followed by a high weekly dose of gemcitabine concurrent to radiation therapy in patients with borderline resectable and unresectable locally advanced pancreatic cancer. In our study, 41 patients with pancreatic cancer were evaluated. In all cases an accurate pre-treatment staging was performed. Patients with evidence of metastatic disease were excluded, and thus a total of 34 patients were consequently enrolled. Of these, twenty-seven patients (80%) had locally advanced unresectable tumours, seven patients (20%) had borderline resectable disease. This protocol treatment represents a well-tolerated promising approach. Fifteen patients (55.5%) underwent surgical radical resection. With a median follow-up of 20 months, the median PFS and OS were 20 months and 19.2 months, respectively. The median OS for borderline resectable patients was 21.5 months compared with 14 months for unresectable patients (p = 0.3). Continued optimization in multimodality therapy and an accurate patient selection remain crucial points for the appropriate treatment of these patients.
Rare Earth Doped Silica Nanoparticles via Thermolysis of a Single Source Metallasilsesquioxane Precursor
Authors: Davies Gemma-Louise , O’Brien John , Gun’ko Yurii K.
Published: April 2017

Rare earth metal doped silica nanoparticles have significant advantages over traditional organic dyes and quantum dots. Silsesquioxanes are promising precursors in the production of silica nanoparticles by thermolysis, due to their structural similarities with silica materials. This manuscript describes the production of a new Eu3+-based metallasilsesquioxane species and its use as a single source precursor in the thermolytic production of luminescent rare earth metal doped silica nanoparticles with characteristic emission in the visible region of the spectrum.
Deployable micro-traps to sequester motile bacteria
Authors: Di Giacomo Raffaele , Krödel Sebastian , Maresca Bruno , Benzoni Patrizia , Rusconi Roberto , Stocker Roman , Daraio Chiara
Published: April 2017

The development of strategies to reduce the load of unwanted bacteria is a fundamental challenge in industrial processing, environmental sciences and medical applications. Here, we report a new method to sequester motile bacteria from a liquid, based on passive, deployable micro-traps that confine bacteria using micro-funnels that open into trapping chambers. Even in low concentrations, micro-traps afford a 70% reduction in the amount of bacteria in a liquid sample, with a potential to reach >90% as shown by modelling improved geometries. This work introduces a new approach to contain the growth of bacteria without chemical means, an advantage of particular importance given the alarming growth of pan-drug-resistant bacteria.
Elucidating fish oil-induced milk fat depression in dairy sheep: Milk somatic cell transcriptome analysis
Authors: Suárez-Vega Aroa , Toral Pablo G. , Gutiérrez-Gil Beatriz , Hervás Gonzalo , Arranz Juan José , Frutos Pilar
Published: April 2017

In this study, RNA sequencing was used to obtain a comprehensive profile of the transcriptomic changes occurring in the mammary gland of lactating sheep suffering from fish oil-induced milk fat depression (FO-MFD). The milk somatic cell transcriptome analysis of four control and four FO-MFD ewes generated an average of 42 million paired-end reads per sample. In both conditions, less than 220 genes constitute approximately 89% of the total counts. These genes, which are considered as core genes, were mainly involved incytoplasmic ribosomal proteinsandelectron transport chainpathways. In total, 117 genes were upregulated, and 96 genes were downregulated in FO-MFD samples. Functional analysis of the latter indicated a downregulation of genes involved in theSREBP signalingpathway (e.g.,ACACA, ACSL, andACSS) and Gene Ontology terms related tolipid metabolismandlipid biosyntheticprocesses. Integrated interpretation of upregulated genes indicated enrichment in genes encoding plasma membrane proteins and proteins regulating protein kinase activity. Overall, our results indicate that FO-MFD is associated with the downregulation of key genes involved in the mammary lipogenesis process. In addition, the results also suggest that this syndrome may be related to upregulation of other genes implicated in signal transduction and codification of transcription factors.
Non-photonic sensing of membrane-delimited reactive species with a Na+ channel protein containing selenocysteine
Authors: Ojha Navin K. , Leipold Enrico , Schönherr Roland , Hoshi Toshinori , Heinemann Stefan H.
Published: April 2017

Photonic experiments are of key importance in life sciences but light-induced side effects are serious confounding factors. Here we introduce roNaV2, an engineered voltage-gated Na+ channel harboring a selenocysteine in its inactivation motif, as a non-photonic, sensitive, gateable, and reversible sensor for membrane-delimited reactive species. roNaV2 allows for the assessment of chemical modification induced in fluorescence microscopy settings with high sensitivity and time resolution and it demonstrates the usefulness of ion channels as highly sensitive reporters of membrane processes.
Correction: Corrigendum: Analysis of the common genetic component of large-vessel vasculitides through a meta-Immunochip strategy
Authors: Carmona F. David , Coit Patrick , Saruhan-Direskeneli Güher , Hernández-Rodríguez José , Cid María C. , Solans Roser , Castañeda Santos , Vaglio Augusto , Direskeneli Haner , Merkel Peter A. , Boiardi Luigi , Salvarani Carlo , González-Gay Miguel A. , Martín Javier , Sawalha Amr H. ,   Spanish GCA Study Group, Martínez-Berriochoa Agustín , Unzurrunzaga Ainhoa , Hidalgo-Conde Ana , Vuelta Ana Belén Madroñero , Fernández-Nebro Antonio , Ordóñez-Cañizares M. Carmen , Fernández-Gutiérrez Benjamín , Rodríguez-Rodríguez Luis , Escalante Begoña , Marí-Alfonso Begoña , Sopeña Bernardo , Gómez-Vaquero Carmen , Raya Enrique , Grau Elena , Román José A. , Vicente Esther F. , de Miguel Eugenio , López-Longo Francisco J. , Martínez Lina , Morado Inmaculada C. , Díaz-López J. Bernardino , Caminal-Montero Luis , Martínez-Zapico Aleida , Narváez Javier , Monfort Jordi , Tío Laura , Miranda-Filloy José A. , Sánchez-Martín Julio , Alegre-Sancho Juan J. , Sáez-Comet Luis , Pérez-Conesa Mercedes , Corbera-Bellalta Marc , Ramentol-Sintas Marc , García-Villanueva María Jesús , Guijarro Rojas Mercedes , Ortego-Centeno Norberto , Ríos Fernández Raquel , Callejas José Luis , Sanchez Pernaute Olga , Fanlo Mateo Patricia , Blanco Ricardo , Prieto-González Sergio , Martínez-Taboada Víctor Manuel ,   Italian GCA Study Group, Soriano Alessandra , Lunardi Claudio , Gianfreda Davide , Santilli Daniele , Bonatti Francesco , Muratore Francesco , Pazzola Giulia , Addimanda Olga , Emmi Giacomo , Ramirez Giuseppe A. , Beretta Lorenzo , Govoni Marcello , Cimmino Marco A. ,   Turkish Takayasu Study Group, Mesut Onat Ahmet , Cefle Ayse , Yazici Ayten , Kısacık Bünyamin , Dalkilic Ediz , Seyahi Emire , Fresko Izzet , Tunc Ercan , Erken Eren , TE Ozer Hüseyin , Aksu Kenan , Keser Gokhan , Ozturk Mehmet A. , Bıcakcıgil Muge , Duzgun Nurşen , Karadag Omer , Kiraz Sedat , Pamuk Ömer N. , Akar Servet , Onen Fatos , Akkoc Nurullah , Kamali Sevil , Inanc Murat , Yentür Sibel P. , Aydin Sibel Z. , Alibaz-Oner Fatma , Kaşifoğlu Timuçin , Cobankara Veli , Ozbalkan Zeynep , Ates Askin , Karaaslan Yasar ,   Vasculitis Clinical Research Consortium, Carette Simon , Chung Sharon A. , Cuthbertson David , Forbess Lindsay J. , Hoffman Gary S. , Khalidi Nader A. , Koening Curry L. , Langford Carol A. , McAlear Carol A. , McKinnon-Maksimowicz Kathleen , Monach Paul A. , Moreland Larry , Pagnoux Christian , Seo Philip , Spiera Robert , Sreih Antoine G. , Warrington Kenneth J. , Ytterberg Steven R.
Published: April 2017

Scientific Reports 7: Article number: 43953; published online: 09 March 2017; updated: 05 April 2017 In this Article, Javier Martin is incorrectly listed as being affiliated with “Departamento de Genética e Instituto de Biotecnología, Universidad de Granada, Granada 18016, Spain”. The correct affiliation is listed below:
Effects of organosolv and ammonia pretreatments on lignin properties and its inhibition for enzymatic hydrolysis
Authors: Yoo Chang Geun , Li Mi , Meng Xianzhi , Pu Yunqiao , Ragauskas Arthur J.
Published: April 2017

Effects of organosolv and ammonia pretreatments were understood by investigating the changes of lignin properties and its inhibition for enzymatic hydrolysis using diverse analysis methods.
Preparation and characterization of activated carbon derived from the Borassus flabellifer flower as an electrode material for supercapacitor applications
Authors: Sivachidambaram M. , Vijaya J. Judith , Kennedy L. John , Jothiramalingam R. , Al-Lohedan Hamad A. , Munusamy Murugan A. , Elanthamilan E. , Merlin J. Princy
Published: April 2017

Activated carbon is prepared by a two stage process with H3PO4 activating agent using the precursor material Borassus flabellifer flower as an electrode material for supercapacitors.
Prebiotic synthesis of aminooxazoline-5′-phosphates in water by oxidative phosphorylation
Authors: Fernández-García C. , Grefenstette N. M. , Powner M. W.
Published: April 2017

A novel strategy for aminooxazoline-5′-phosphate synthesis in water from prebiotic feedstocks, which is generationally linked to Strecker synthesis of proteinogenic amino acids.
Insights into the surface chemistry and electronic properties of sp2 and sp3-hybridized nanocarbon materials for catalysis
Authors: Lin Yangming , Feng Zhenbao , Yu Linhui , Gu Qinging , Wu Shuchang , Su Dang Sheng
Published: April 2017

Compared with other carbon materials, the surface chemistry, electronic properties and corresponding catalytic performance of nanodiamond and its derivatives are investigated.
Selective particle and cell capture in a continuous flow using micro-vortex acoustic streaming
Authors: Collins David J. , Khoo Bee Luan , Ma Zhichao , Winkler Andreas , Weser Robert , Schmidt Hagen , Han Jongyoon , Ai Ye
Published: April 2017

Selective capture of biological cells using acoustic streaming vortices generated by a high-frequency, narrow-beam focused surface acoustic wave.
Strategies for inhibiting quorum sensing
Authors: Williams Paul
Published: April 2017

The ability of bacterial cells to synchronize their behaviour through quorum sensing (QS) regulatory networks enables bacterial populations to mount co-operative responses against competing micro-organisms and host immune defences and to adapt to environmental challenges. Since QS controls the ability of many pathogenic bacteria to cause disease, it is an attractive target for novel antibacterial agents that control infection through inhibition of virulence and by rendering biofilms more susceptible to conventional antibiotics and host clearance pathways. QS systems provide multiple druggable molecular targets for inhibitors (QSIs) that include the enzymes involved in QS signal molecule biosynthesis and the receptors involved in signal transduction. Considerable advances in our understanding of the chemical biology of QS systems and their inhibition have been made, some promising QS targets structurally characterized, QSI screens devised and inhibitors identified. However, much more work is required before any QSI ‘hits’ with the appropriate pharmacological and pharmacokinetic properties can enter human clinical trials. Indeed, the relative efficacy of QSIs alone or as prophylactics or therapeutics or as adjuvants in combination with conventional antibiotics still needs to be extensively evaluated in vivo. Particular attention must be given to the measurement of successful QSI therapy outcomes with respect to bacterial clearance, immune response and pathophysiology. Currently, our understanding of the potential of QS as a promising antibacterial target suggests that it is likely to be of value with respect to a limited number of major pathogens.
UAV‐assisted content‐based sensor search in IoTs
Authors: Sharma V. , Kumar R. , Kaur R.
Published: April 2017

‘Internet of things’ (IoT) operates for all‐time availability of network components to provide a wide range of service applications to the network users or clients. IoT operates for a large number of applications, and one of these include the sensor deployment for data support to clients. However, these sensors require a large number of queries to be handled by the network components considering the constraints of memory, energy, and delays. These issues can be easily tackled by deploying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), which serve as dynamic nodes to handle clients’ queries by acting as on‐demand gateways. However, this UAV‐assisted IoT requires efficient localisation to determine the sensor for handling multiple‐content queries, which is considered as a problem. A cost function is formed in the proposed approach to generate an optimisation problem which is resolved using a radial basis function kernel support vector machine. The effectiveness of the proposed approach is demonstrated in terms of significant gains attained in terms of error in the cost function, overheads in handling queries, and accuracy in UAV allocation.
Tunable and flexible liquid spiral antennas
Authors: Li Gaosheng , Gao Gui , Liu Wei , Tian Zhihao
Published: April 2017

A cylindrical spiral liquid antenna and a tapered helical water antenna are presented. Saline water with a concentration of 3.5% is injected into a flexible tube to form the radiation structure. Thresholds for changes of the radiation direction are calculated to be 0.1 and 0.4 for the ratio between the spiral diameter and the wavelength. Resonance frequency increases when the probe length or the radius of the vertical liquid decreases. The quantity of the water could be changed with the help of a syringe to enable the reconfigurability. Measurement results show fairly good agreements with that simulated.
CANS: context‐aware traffic estimation and navigation system
Authors: Ramazani Azam , Vahdat‐Nejad Hamed
Published: April 2017

Acquiring real‐time traffic information is a basic requirement for dynamic vehicular navigation systems. The majority of the current navigation systems are based on static traffic information. Building on mobile crowdsensing technology, the authors propose context‐aware traffic estimation and navigation system (CANS), a context‐aware system that can estimate traffic state without any requirement for expensive infrastructure. Using only available equipment, it can provide dynamic navigation service to drivers. The proposed system consists of three main components: local traffic estimation, global traffic aggregation, and navigation. In this system, vehicles estimate local traffic state using vehicular contextual information including speed and acceleration by relying on fuzzy logic, and transmit the information to the urban server. The server integrates the received local traffic information from different vehicles and estimates the global traffic state, providing the traffic‐aware navigation system to drivers. CANS performance is evaluated for an urban scenario in a traffic flow in Birjand, Iran. The experiment is conducted for evaluating CANS in both traffic congestion estimation and navigation. The results show an accurate estimation of traffic states along urban roads. Compared with previous approaches, CANS overrides them for its reduced travel time.
Design and implementation of two‐phase permanent magnet synchronous motor fed by a matrix converter
Authors: Aydogmus Omur , Deniz Erkan
Published: April 2017

A direct matrix converter structure and a two‐phase permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) are designed to increase the system efficiency in low‐power motor drive applications. The drive system with two‐phase PMSM has been proposed instead of the single‐phase squirrel cage induction motor, which has low efficiency. A constant AC single‐phase power supply can be directly converted to frequency and amplitude‐adjustable two‐phase power supply by the proposed converter structure. However, the proposed converter cannot generate the sufficient voltage level for a standard commercial motor. For this reason, a new two‐phase PMSM is designed to adapt the converter output voltage amplitude with the motor‐rated voltage by using Infolytica/MotorSolve software. A novel switching algorithm has been developed and analysed to show output voltage–current waveforms of the converter with their harmonic spectrum. In addition, the converter is designed compactly to be mounted to the terminal box of the designed motor. Experimental results have been obtained for speed control of the motor by using vector control at different reference speeds.
Microhardness and corrosion resistance behaviour of Ti–6Al–4V alloy‐coloured surface under WEDM‐HS process
Authors: Zhang Linshuai , Xu Jinkai , Chen Bingyan , Yu Huadong , Lian Zhongxu
Published: April 2017

In this work, the reaction films were generated on the Ti–6Al–4V alloy by means of high‐speed wire electrical discharge machining (WEDM‐HS) technology in order to improve its microhardness and corrosion resistance. The microhardness was evaluated by using a nanoindentation tester. The corrosion behaviour was studied using measurements of potentiodynamic polarisation and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. The experimental results showed that the processed alloys presented a higher microhardness than the matrix, and the thicker film on the surface had a greater microhardness. Additionally, the corrosion resistances of the processed alloys were superior, which could have been due to the lower corrosion current densities and the higher impedance values. Furthermore, the corrosion current densities of the processed alloys would decrease with thicker reaction films. This research provides important insights into the surface modification of titanium alloys.
Effect of high‐k dielectric on the performance of Si, InAs and CNT FET
Authors: Mech Bhubon Chandra , Kumar Jitendra
Published: April 2017

The important issue of selection of gate dielectrics to reduce short channel effects (SCEs) is presented along with the study of different channel materials in transistors. A comparative study of performance was carried out of silicon dioxide (SiO2), aluminium oxide (Al2O3), hafnium oxide (HfO2), lanthanum oxide (La2O3) and titanium dioxide (TiO2) as gate dielectrics for Si double gate field‐effect transistor (FET), Si gate all around (GAA) nanowire FET (NWFET), indium arsenide GAA NWFET and carbon nanotube (CNT) FETs within non‐equilibrium Green's function formalism. Simulated results show that TiO2 is better gate dielectric as compared with SiO2, Al2O3, HfO2 and La2O3, with near ideal subthreshold swing (60 mV/decade), lower Ioff, improved drain‐induced barrier lowering and high transconductance (gm). Also, the gate capacitance (Cg), cut‐off frequency (fT) and switching time (τ) improve with the high‐k dielectric materials. Furthermore, the study of different channel material shows that CNT has better SCEs, smaller Cg with τ ranging from 13.5 to 12.5 fs suitable for digital applications and fT of about 7–9 THz.
Viscoelastic Testing in Trauma
Authors: Baumann Holger , Klinkspoor J. , Goslings J. , Juffermans Nicole , Wirtz Mathijs
Published: April 2017

Traumatic-induced coagulopathy (TIC) is a complex condition which develops both as a response to trauma as well as to clinical care interventions. Accurate and timely diagnostics are necessary to enable therapy aimed at correction of TIC. Viscoelastic hemostatic assays (VHA) are increasingly recognized for their potential to diagnose TIC as well as for guidance of treatment. This narrative review focuses on the evidence of the use of VHAs to diagnose TIC, to monitor efficacy of treatment of TIC during bleeding and to prognosticate outcome. Pitfalls of the use of VHA are also discussed.
Bleeding Complications and Management on anticoagulant therapy
Authors: Schulman Sam
Published: April 2017

Patients treated with anticoagulants have an unavoidable risk of bleeding complications. There are, for all oral anticoagulants, several potential options for management of major bleeding. The first action is to assess the causative role of the anticoagulant in the current bleeding. Supportive measures have been assessed in several post hoc analyses of the phase III pivotal trials with the non–vitamin K antagonist oral anticoagulants (NOACs). Those results will be reviewed here together with emerging data on the efficacy and safety of the specific antidotes idarucizumab (for dabigatran) and andexanet-α (for factor Xa inhibitors). Regular or activated prothrombin complex concentrates are also evaluated and might have a role as alternatives for management of NOAC-associated major bleeding if the “specific” antidote is not available. Once hemostasis has been achieved, it is imperative to assess the possibility and timing of resumption of anticoagulation, as these patients have an inherent prothrombotic state and a non-negligible proportion of patients will have thromboembolic complications during the first month after the hemorrhage. Many factors will have to be taken into account for this decision and unfortunately the guidelines in this respect are very weak if at all available. This review will hopefully provide some assistance in the management of major bleeding and posthemorrhage care.
Langmuir wave in a dusty plasma with nonextensive electrons
Authors: Gong B. , Dong X. Y.
Published: April 2017

The effect of the dust charge perturbation on Langmuir waves in a dusty plasma with nonextensive electrons and Maxwellian ions is investigated within the fluid theory framework, where the sink term of electrons in the continuity equation is considered. The dispersion of Langmuir waves shows that the dust charge relaxation introduces an additional source of dissipation in Langmuir waves. The damping rate of Langmuir oscillation caused by the dust charge fluctuations is bigger than the one with Maxwellian electrons when the nonextensively distributed electrons have a suprathermal tail. On the contrary, the excess of low energy electrons for nonextensively distributed electrons can lower the damping rate of Langmuir oscillation. These differences are mainly due to the modification of the unperturbed electron attachment frequency by the nonextensively distributed electrons. Our results may be of wide relevance to space and interstellar plasmas.
Direct numerical simulation of flow around a surface-mounted finite square cylinder at low Reynolds numbers
Authors: Zhang Di , Cheng Liang , An Hongwei , Zhao Ming
Published: April 2017

With the aid of direct numerical simulation, this paper presents a detailed investigation on the flow around a finite square cylinder at a fixed aspect ratio (AR) of 4 and six Reynolds numbers (Re = 50, 100, 150, 250, 500, and 1000). It is found that the mean streamwise vortex structure is also affected by Re, apart from the AR value. Three types of mean streamwise vortices have been identified and analyzed in detail, namely, “Quadrupole Type” at Re = 50 and Re = 100, “Six-Vortices Type” at Re = 150 and Re = 250, and “Dipole Type” at Re = 500 and Re = 1000. It is the first time that the “Six-Vortices Type” mean streamwise vortices are reported, which is considered as a transitional structure between the other two types. Besides, three kinds of spanwise vortex-shedding models have been observed in this study, namely, “Hairpin Vortex Model” at Re = 150, “C and Reverse-C and Hairpin Vortex Model (Symmetric Shedding)” at Re = 250, and “C and Reverse-C and Hairpin Vortex Model (Symmetric/Antisymmetric Shedding)” at Re = 500 and Re = 1000. The newly proposed “C and Reverse-C and Hairpin Vortex Model” shares some similarities with “Wang’s Model” [H. F. Wang and Y. Zhou, “The finite-length square cylinder near wake,” J. Fluid Mech. 638, 453–490 (2009)] but differs in aspects such as the absence of the connection line near the free-end and the “C-Shape” vortex structure in the early stage of the formation of the spanwise vortex.
Structure and magnetic properties of ultrafine lithium ferrite crystallized from a borate glass
Authors: El Shabrawy S. , Bocker C. , Tzankov D. , Georgieva M. , Harizanova R. , Rüssel C.
Published: April 2017

A glass with the mol. % compositions 51.7 B2O3/9.3 K2O/1 P2O5/27.6 Li2O/10.4 Fe2O3 was crystallized at temperatures in the range from 400 to 540 °C for different periods of time (2–12 h). X-ray diffraction showed cubic Li ferrite with a spinel structure, LiFe5O8, with small crystallites with sizes in the range from 3 to 31 nm. While the samples crystallized at 440, 480, and 500 °C reveal a disordered phase, crystallization at 540 °C indicates a phase transformation to the ordered state. Magnetization curves showed that the samples crystallized at 440 °C are superparamagnetic with very low maximum magnetization, while the samples crystallized at 480 and 500 °C show thin clear S-shaped magnetization curves with zero coercivity and hence are also superparamagnetic. By contrast, the sample crystallized at 540 °C shows a coercive field of 40 Oe and thus is ferrimagnetic. The magnetic properties can be tailored by the size of the ferrite crystals and hence by the crystallization conditions.
Comparative study for highly Al and Mg doped ZnO thin films elaborated by sol gel method for photovoltaic application
Authors: El Hallani G. , Nasih S. , Fazouan N. , Liba A. , Khuili M. , Sajieddine M. , Mabrouki M. , Laanab L. , Atmani E. H.
Published: April 2017

Transparent conducting oxides such as ZnO doped with Al or Mg are commonly used in solar cells, light emitting diodes, photodetectors, and ultraviolet laser diodes. In our work, we focus on a comparative study of the structural, optical, and electrical properties of ZnO films highly doped with Al (AZO) and Mg (MZO). These films are deposited on glass substrates by the sol-gel spin coating method. The doping concentrations for Al and Mg are fixed to 5%–30%. The XRD spectra indicate that all the samples are polycrystalline with hexagonal wurtzite structures, exhibiting a preferred orientation along the (002) plane. Low degradation in crystallinity was observed for MZO even at a Mg concentration of 30%. The MgO phase started to appear compared to Al-doped layers where smaller grains are formed inducing a deterioration in the films just after doping but no new phase appeared. This result is in agreement with other experimental results [J. K. Rath, Sol. Energy Mater. Sol. Cells 76, 431–487 (2003); Morris et al., J. Appl. Phys. 67, 1079–1087 (1990)]. By AFM analysis, the results indicate a significantly rough surface for MZO compared to AZO films. For equal Al and Mg dopant concentrations, we observe that the transmittance spectra of MZO thin films are wider than those of AZO, indicating a shift toward shorter wavelengths with an optical gap energy equal to 3.67 eV. The electrical measurements of AZO and MZO thin films were made using the I–V characteristic obtained by the four probe method. All the films present an ohmic behavior. The conductivity and the mobility of AZO films were found to be better than those of MZO.
Mid-infrared multiheterodyne spectroscopy with phase-locked quantum cascade lasers
Authors: Westberg J. , Sterczewski L. A. , Wysocki G.
Published: April 2017

Fabry-Pérot (FP) quantum cascade lasers (QCLs) provide purely electronically controlled monolithic sources for broadband mid-infrared (mid-IR) multiheterodyne spectroscopy (MHS), which benefits from the large gain bandwidth of the QCLs without sacrificing the narrowband properties commonly associated with the single mode distributed feedback variant. We demonstrate a FP-QCL based multiheterodyne spectrometer with a short-term noise-equivalent absorption of ∼3 × 10−4/Hz, a mid-IR spectral coverage of 25 cm−1, and very short acquisition time (10 μs) capability. The broadband potential is demonstrated by measuring the absorption spectra of ammonia and isobutane under atmospheric pressure conditions. The stability of the system is enhanced by a two-stage active frequency inter-locking procedure, where the two QCLs are pre-locked with a slow feedback loop based on an analog frequency discriminator, followed by a high bandwidth optical phase-locked loop. The locking system provides a relative frequency stability in the sub kHz range over seconds of integration time. The strength of the technique lies in the ability to acquire spectral information from all optical modes simultaneously and individually, which bodes for a versatile and cost effective spectrometer for mid-IR chemical gas sensing.
Pb0.94La0.04[(Zr0.70Sn0.30)0.90Ti0.10]O3 antiferroelectric bulk ceramics for pulsed capacitors with high energy and power density
Authors: Xu Ran , Li Borui , Tian Jingjing , Xu Zhuo , Feng Yujun , Wei Xiaoyong , Huang Dong , Yang Lanjun
Published: April 2017

Pb0.94La0.04[(Zr0.70Sn0.30)0.90Ti0.10]O3 antiferroelectric (AFE) bulk ceramics with both excellent energy storage and release properties were fabricated via the solid-state reaction method. The ceramics exhibited a high releasable energy density of 1.39 J/cm3, high efficiency of 92%, and good temperature stability under 104 kV/cm. Fast discharge current was measured, and a large current density up to 820 A/cm2 was achieved. The nonlinear dielectric behavior resulted in the variation of the discharge period of AFE ceramics. The stored charge was released completely due to the low remanent polarization, and the actually released energy density was about 1.0 J/cm3 in 400 ns. A high peak power density of 6.4 × 109 W/kg without a load resistor and an average power density of 3.16 × 108 W/kg with a 204.7 Ω load resistor were achieved in the rapid discharge process. The excellent energy storage and release properties indicate that the obtained antiferroelectric bulk ceramics are very promising for submicrosecond pulsed capacitors.
Ultra-high strain in epitaxial silicon carbide nanostructures utilizing residual stress amplification
Authors: Phan Hoang-Phuong , Nguyen Tuan-Khoa , Dinh Toan , Ina Ginnosuke , Kermany Atieh Ranjbar , Qamar Afzaal , Han Jisheng , Namazu Takahiro , Maeda Ryutaro , Dao Dzung Viet , Nguyen Nam-Trung
Published: April 2017

Strain engineering has attracted great attention, particularly for epitaxial films grown on a different substrate. Residual strains of SiC have been widely employed to form ultra-high frequency and high Q factor resonators. However, to date, the highest residual strain of SiC was reported to be limited to approximately 0.6%. Large strains induced into SiC could lead to several interesting physical phenomena, as well as significant improvement of resonant frequencies. We report an unprecedented nanostrain-amplifier structure with an ultra-high residual strain up to 8% utilizing the natural residual stress between epitaxial 3C-SiC and Si. In addition, the applied strain can be tuned by changing the dimensions of the amplifier structure. The possibility of introducing such a controllable and ultra-high strain will open the door to investigating the physics of SiC in large strain regimes and the development of ultra sensitive mechanical sensors.
Bi2Te3 photoconductive detectors on Si
Authors: Liu Juanjuan , Li Yaoyao , Song Yuxin , Ma Yingjie , Chen Qimiao , Zhu Zhongyunshen , Lu Pengfei , Wang Shumin
Published: April 2017

The peculiar properties of the gapless surface states with a Dirac cone shaped energy dispersion in topological insulators (TIs) enable promising applications in photodetection with an ultra-broad band and polarization sensitivity. Since many TIs can be easily grown on silicon (Si) substrates, TIs on Si could make an alternative route for photon detection of Si photonics. We present good device performances of a Si-based single-crystal bismuth telluride (Bi2Te3) photoconductive detector. Room temperature photo responses to 1064 nm and 1550 nm light illumination were demonstrated. Linear dependences of the photocurrent on both the incident light power and the bias voltage were observed. The main device parameters including responsivity and quantum efficiency were extracted.