bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cost analysis for efficient management: diabetes treatment at a public district hospital in Thailand
Authors: Riewpaiboon Arthorn , Chatterjee Susmita , Piyauthakit Piyanuch
Published: May 2011

Objective

The study estimated cost of illness from the provider's perspective for diabetic patients who received treatment during the fiscal year 2008 at Waritchaphum Hospital, a 30-bed public district hospital in Sakhon Nakhon province in northeastern Thailand.

Methods

This retrospective, prevalence-based cost-of-illness study looked at 475 randomly selected diabetic patients, identified by the World Health Organization's International Classification of Diseases, 10th revision, codes E10–E14. Data were collected from the hospital financial records and medical records of each participant and were analysed with a stepwise multiple regression.

Key findings

The study found that the average public treatment cost per patient per year was US$94.71 at 2008 prices. Drug cost was the highest cost component (25% of total cost), followed by inpatient cost (24%) and outpatient visit cost (17%). A cost forecasting model showed that length of stay, hospitalization, visits to the provincial hospital, duration of disease and presence of diabetic complications (e.g. diabetic foot complications and nephropathy) were the significant predictor variables (adjusted R2 = 0.689).

Conclusions

According to the fitted model, avoiding nephropathy and foot complications would save US$19 386 and US$39 134 respectively per year. However, these savings are missed savings for the study year and the study hospital only and not projected savings, as that would depend on the number of diabetic patients managed in the year, the ratio of complicated to non-complicated cases and effectiveness of the prevention programmes. Nonetheless, given the high avoidable cost associated with complications of diabetes, healthcare providers in Thailand should focus on initiatives that delay the progression of complications in diabetic patients.
Stories of weight management: Factors associated with successful and unsuccessful weight maintenance
Authors: Chambers Julie A. , Swanson Vivien
Published: May 2011

Objective. Although behavioural interventions are successful in achieving short‐term weight loss, most individuals regain most or all of their weight within a few years. Our aim was to investigate factors that can help in long‐term weight maintenance.

Design. Qualitative interviews were conducted in order to elicit experiences, successes, and difficulties associated with weight control over the lifespan.

Methods. Participants were 20 adult volunteers (aged 30–67) including lifelong weight maintainers, active weight maintainers who have maintained weight loss, and weight gainers. Thematic analysis was used to highlight differences between weight groups.

Results. Successful weight maintainers adopt a staged approach to weight management, including monitoring weight fluctuations and having a clear alarm signal for weight gain that triggers immediate action. They have several behavioural strategies for weight control, comprising relatively small adjustments to diet and/or exercise behaviour and also have clear strategies for coping with lifestyle interruptions. In contrast, unsuccessful weight maintainers display negative cognitive factors, including erratic or inconsistent weight vigilance, failure to respond to warning signs of weight gain, and failure to restrict weight unless in a positive mindset. Further, their coping strategies for weight gain or failed actions are poor.

Conclusions. The results suggest that successful weight maintainers, irrespective of current weight band, adopt a staged behavioural approach to weight management that allows them to maintain a fairly stable weight. Encouraging the use of such strategies in those who typically regain weight after dieting may aid them in maintaining weight loss.
Courteous but not curious: how doctors' politeness masks their existential neglect. A qualitative study of video-recorded patient consultations
Authors: Agledahl Kari Milch , Gulbrandsen Pål , Førde Reidun , Wifstad Åge
Published: May 2011

Objective

To study how doctors care for their patients, both medically and as fellow humans, through observing their conduct in patient–doctor encounters.

Design

Qualitative study in which 101 videotaped consultations were observed and analysed using a Grounded Theory approach, generating explanatory categories through a hermeneutical analysis of the taped consultations.

Setting

A 500-bed general teaching hospital in Norway.

Participants

71 doctors working in clinical non-psychiatric departments and their patients.

Results

The doctors were concerned about their patients' health and how their medical knowledge could be of service. This medical focus often over-rode other important aspects of the consultations, especially existential elements. The doctors actively directed the focus away from their patients' existential concerns onto medical facts and rarely addressed the personal aspects of a patient's condition, treating them in a biomechanical manner. At the same time, however, the doctors attended to their patients with courteousness, displaying a polite and friendly attitude and emphasising the relationship between them.

Conclusions

The study suggests that the main failing of patient–doctor encounters is not a lack of courteous manners, but the moral offence patients experience when existential concerns are ignored. Improving doctors' social and communication skills cannot resolve this moral problem, which appears to be intrinsically bound to modern medical practice. Acknowledging this moral offence would, however, be the first step towards minimising the effects thereof.
STATIC SPHERICALLY SYMMETRIC SCALAR FIELD SPACETIMES WITH C0 MATCHING
Authors: BHATTACHARYA SWASTIK , JOSHI PANKAJ S.
Published: May 2011

All the classes of static massless scalar field models currently available in the Einstein theory of gravity necessarily contain a strong curvature naked singularity. We obtain here a family of solutions for static massless scalar fields coupled to gravity, which does not have any strong curvature singularity. This class of models contain a thin shell of singular matter, which has a physical interpretation. The central curvature singularity is, however, avoided which is common to all static massless scalar field spacetime models known so far. Our result thus points out that the full class of solutions in this case may contain non-singular models, which is an intriguing possibility.
NON-PERTURBATIVE RENORMALIZATION GROUP: BASIC PRINCIPLES AND SOME APPLICATIONS
Authors: MOUHANNA D. , DELAMOTTE B. , KOWNACKI J.-P. , TISSIER M.
Published: May 2011

The non-perturbative renormalization group (NPRG), in its modern form, constitutes an efficient framework to investigate the physics of systems whose long-distance behavior is dominated by strong fluctuations that are out of reach of perturbative approaches. We present here the basic principles underlying the NPRG and illustrate its power in the context of two longstanding problems of condensed matter and soft matter physics: the nature of the phase transition occuring in frustrated magnets in three dimensions and the phase diagram of polymerized phantom membranes.
COMPETING PHASES IN SPIN-½ J1-J2 CHAIN WITH EASY-PLANE ANISOTROPY
Authors: SATO MASAHIRO , FURUKAWA SHUNSUKE , ONODA SHIGEKI , FURUSAKI AKIRA
Published: May 2011

We summarize our theoretical findings on the ground-state phase diagram of the spin-½ XXZ chain having competing nearest-neighbor (J1) and antiferromagnetic next-nearest-neighbor (J2) couplings. Our study is mainly concerned with the case of ferromagnetic J1, and the case of antiferromagnetic J1 is briefly reviewed for comparison. The phase diagram contains a rich variety of phases in the plane of J1/J2 versus the XXZ anisotropy Δ: vector-chiral phases, Néel phases, several dimer phases, and Tomonaga–Luttinger liquid phases. We discuss the vector-chiral order that appears for a remarkably wide parameter space, successive Néel-dimer phase transitions, and an emergent nonlocal string order in a narrow region of ferromagnetic J1 side.
PHASE TRANSITION IN THE HEISENBERG FULLY-FRUSTRATED SIMPLE CUBIC LATTICE
Authors: NGO V. THANH , HOANG D. TIEN , DIEP H. T.
Published: May 2011

The phase transition in frustrated spin systems is a fascinating subject in statistical physics. We show the result obtained by the Wang–Landau flat histogram Monte Carlo simulation on the phase transition in the fully frustrated simple cubic lattice with the Heisenberg spin model. The degeneracy of the ground state of this system is infinite with two continuous parameters. We find a clear first-order transition in contradiction with previous studies which have shown a second-order transition with unusual critical properties. The robustness of our calculations allows us to conclude this issue putting an end to the 20-year long uncertainty.
METAL–INSULATOR TRANSITION OF THE SPINLESS FERMIONS ON THE KAGOMÉ LATTICE
Authors: NAKAMURA MASAAKI , NISHIMOTO SATOSHI , O'BRIEN AROON , FULDE PETER
Published: May 2011

We discuss the metal–insulator transition of the spinless fermion model with nearest-neighbor repulsion on the Kagomé lattice at 1/3- and 2/3-filling. The system is analyzed by using exact diagonalization, the density-matrix renormalization group methods and the random phase approximation. In the strong-coupling region, the system is described by ring exchange processes. In the intermediate-coupling regime, we find that the qualitative properties of the metal–insulator transition at 1/3- and 2/3-filling are totally different reflecting the difference in the band structure near the Fermi level.
PHASE DIAGRAM OF ONE-DIMENSIONAL ALKALINE-EARTH COLD FERMIONIC ATOMS
Authors: NONNE H. , BOULAT E. , CAPPONI S. , LECHEMINANT P.
Published: May 2011

The phase diagram of one-dimensional alkaline-earth fermionic atoms and ytterbium 171 atoms is investigated by means of a low-energy approach and density-matrix renormalization group calculations. For incommensurate filling, four gapless phases with a spin gap are found and consist of two superconducting instabilities and two coexisting bond and charge density-waves instabilities. In the half-filled case, seven Mott-insulating phases arise with the emergence of four non-degenerate phases with exotic hidden orderings.
INFRARED BEHAVIOR OF INTERACTING BOSONS AT ZERO TEMPERATURE
Authors: DUPUIS N.
Published: May 2011

We review the infrared behavior of interacting bosons at zero temperature. After a brief discussion of the Bogoliubov approximation and the breakdown of perturbation theory due to infrared divergences, we show how the non-perturbative renormalization group enables to obtain the exact infrared behavior of the correlation functions.
COLOR SUPERFLUID AND TRIONIC STATE OF ATTRACTIVE THREE-COMPONENT LATTICE FERMIONIC ATOMS AT FINITE TEMPERATURES
Authors: INABA KENSUKE , SUGA SEI-ICHIRO
Published: May 2011

We investigate the finite-temperature properties of attractive three-component (colors) fermionic atoms in optical lattices using a self-energy functional approach. As the strength of the attractive interaction increases in the low temperature region, a second-order transition occurs from a Fermi liquid to a color superfluid (CSF). In the strong attractive region, a first-order transition occurs from a CSF to a trionic state. In the high temperature region, a cross-over between a Fermi liquid and a trionic state is observed with increasing the strength of the attractive interaction. The cross-over region for fixed temperature is almost independent of filling.
MONTE CARLO SIMULATION OF GIANT PIEZORESISTANCE EFFECT IN p-TYPE SILICON NANOSTRUCTURES
Authors: NGHIÊM T. T. TRANG , AUBRY-FORTUNA V. , CHASSAT C. , BOSSEBOEUF A. , DOLLFUS P.
Published: May 2011

We present a study of the giant piezoresistance effect in p-type silicon using full-band Monte Carlo simulation based on 30-band k.p calculation. This effect has been demonstrated experimentally in Si nanowires by He and Yang. By including the well-known strain effect on the band structure, and by introducing a law of variation of the surface potential according to the applied mechanical stress, we can reproduce this effect. This variation of surface potential modulates the depletion depth and then the conductivity of the structure. This modulation induces a strong variation of the total amount of carriers available for the conduction, which increases drastically this piezoresistive effect. This is probably the main origin of this effect, which may be used to achieve high performance MEMS sensors.
NONLINEAR ABSORPTION LINE-WIDTHS IN RECTANGULAR QUANTUM WIRES
Authors: PHONG TRAN CONG , PHUC HUYNH VINH
Published: May 2011

Applying the theory of nonlinear optical conductivity for an electron—phonon system, we propose a new method to obtain the line-widths of nonlinear optical conductivity in rectangular quantum wires (RQW). General analytical expressions of the nonlinear absorption power (NLAP) are obtained in the presence of an intense external field. A two-photon absorption process is taken into the result. The dependence of NLAP on the photon energy and the wire's size are numerically calculated and graphically plotted for a specific RQW. From graphs of the NLAP, we obtain line-widths as profiles of curves. The dependence of the line-widths on the temperature and parameters of a RQW are reasonable in comparison with some available theoretical and experimental results.
TIME EVOLUTION OF MIXING IN THE STAGGERED HERRINGBONE MICROCHANNEL
Authors: FODOR PETRU S. , KAUFMAN MIRON
Published: May 2011

Patterning ridges on the surface of microchannels has been found to be a viable strategy to induce mixing in straight channels, despite their characteristically small Reynolds numbers. In order to identify the fundamental characteristics of the advection process, we evaluate the time evolution of the Rényi entropy associated with the spatial distribution of tracers carried by an incompressible fluid moving through such channels. It is found that independent of the channel surface geometry and of the Reynolds number, the time evolution of the Rényi distributive entropy follows a universal behavior described by a logarithmic increase with time, with a slope close to unity. On the other hand, an analysis of the Shannon mixing entropy evaluated from the time evolution of the position of two tracer species moving through the channel, reveals a cross–over between two different mixing mechanisms: one dominated by the stretching of the interface between the flow regions containing different tracers, and the other dominated by chaotic mixing induced by counter-rotating transversal flows.
TEMPERATURE DEPENDENCE OF THE RATE CONSTANTS OF CHARGE RECOMBINATION REACTIONS IN BACTERIAL REACTION CENTERS
Authors: THUY T. T. , YEN V. T. H. , THAO T. T. , VIET NGUYEN AI
Published: May 2011

The bacterial reaction center couples light-induced electron transfer via a tightly bound ubiquinone ( Q A ) to a mobile ubiquinone ( Q B ). Based on the electron transfer theory by Marcus, we have investigated the rate of charge recombination reactions from Rhodopseudomonas viridis and Rhodobacter sphaeroides, by mean of finding an approximation formula. The results obtained are verified for not only at high and low temperature as the previous works but also at the medium temperature range.
PERMUTATION ENTROPY APPLIED TO MOVEMENT BEHAVIORS OF DROSOPHILA MELANOGASTER
Authors: LIU YUEDAN , CHON TAE-SOO , BAEK HUNKI , DO YOUNGHAE , CHOI JIN HEE , CHUNG YUN DOO
Published: May 2011

Movement of different strains in Drosophila melanogaster was continuously observed by using computer interfacing techniques and was analyzed by permutation entropy (PE) after exposure to toxic chemicals, toluene (0.1 mg/m3) and formaldehyde (0.01 mg/m3). The PE values based on one-dimensional time series position (vertical) data were variable according to internal constraint (i.e. strains) and accordingly increased in response to external constraint (i.e. chemicals) by reflecting diversity in movement patterns from both normal and intoxicated states. Cross-correlation function revealed temporal associations between the PE values and between the component movement patterns in different chemicals and strains through the period of intoxication. The entropy based on the order of position data could be a useful means for complexity measure in behavioral changes and for monitoring the impact of stressors in environment.
UNRAVELING MARKOV PROCESSES IN MOVEMENT PATTERNS OF INDICATOR SPECIES IN RESPONSE TO CHEMICAL STRESSORS
Authors: NGUYEN TUYEN VAN , LIU YUEDAN , JUNG IL-HYO , CHON TAE-SOO , LEE SANG-HEE
Published: May 2011

Revealing biological responses of organisms in responding to environmental stressors is the critical issue in contemporary ecological sciences. Markov processes in behavioral data were unraveled by utilizing the hidden Markov model (HMM). Individual organisms of daphnia (Daphnia magna) and zebrafish (Danio rerio) were exposed to diazinon at low concentrations. The transition probability matrix (TPM) and the emission probability matrix (EPM) were accordingly estimated by training with the HMM and were verified before and after the treatments with 10-6 tolerance in 103 iterations. Structured property in behavioral changes was accordingly revealed to characterize dynamic processes in movement patterns. Parameters and sequences produced through the HMM training could be a suitable means of monitoring toxic chemicals in environment.
EFFECTS OF ADAPTIVE SOCIAL NETWORKS ON THE ROBUSTNESS OF EVOLUTIONARY ALGORITHMS
Authors: WHITACRE JAMES M. , SARKER RUHUL A. , PHAM Q. TUAN
Published: May 2011

Biological networks are structurally adaptive and take on non-random topological properties that influence system robustness. Studies are only beginning to reveal how these structural features emerge, however the influence of component fitness and community cohesion (modularity) have attracted interest from the scientific community. In this study, we apply these concepts to an evolutionary algorithm and allow its population to self-organize using information that the population receives as it moves over a fitness landscape. More precisely, we employ fitness and clustering based topological operators for guiding network structural dynamics, which in turn are guided by population changes taking place over evolutionary time. To investigate the effect on evolution, experiments are conducted on six engineering design problems and six artificial test functions and compared against cellular genetic algorithms and panmictic evolutionary algorithm designs. Our results suggest that a self-organizing topology evolutionary algorithm can exhibit robust search behavior with strong performance observed over short and long time scales. More generally, the coevolution between a population and its topology may constitute a promising new paradigm for designing adaptive search heuristics.
MACHINE LEARNING ON CONGESTION ANALYSIS BASED REAL-TIME NAVIGATION SYSTEM
Authors: CHEN KAI , MAKKI KIA , PISSINOU NIKI
Published: May 2011

In the metropolitan region, most congestion or traffic jams are caused by the uneven distribution of traffic flow that creates bottleneck points where the traffic volume exceeds the road capacity. Additionally, unexpected incidents are the next most probable cause of these bottleneck regions. Moreover, most drivers are driving based on their empirical experience without awareness of real-time traffic situations. This unintelligent traffic behavior can make the congestion problem worse. Prediction based route guidance systems show great improvements in solving the inefficient diversion strategy problem by estimating future travel time when calculating accurate travel time is difficult. However, performances of machine learning based prediction models that are based on the historical data set degrade sharply during a congestion situation. This paper develops a new navigation system for reducing travel time of an individual driver and distributing the flow of urban traffic efficiently in order to reduce the occurrence of congestion. Compared with previous route guidance systems, the results reveal that our system, applying the advanced multi-lane prediction based real-time fastest path (AMPRFP) algorithm, can significantly reduce the travel time especially when drivers travel in a complex route environment and face frequent congestion problems. Unlike the previous system,1 it can be applied either for single lane or multi-lane urban traffic networks where the reason for congestion is significantly complex. We also demonstrate the advantages of this system and verify the results using real highway traffic data and a synthetic experiment.
ON ARC INDEX AND MAXIMAL THURSTON–BENNEQUIN NUMBER
Authors: NG LENHARD
Published: May 2011

We discuss the relation between arc index, maximal Thurston–Bennequin number, and Khovanov homology for knots. As a consequence, we calculate the arc index and maximal Thurston–Bennequin number for all knots with at most 11 crossings. For some of these knots, the calculation requires a consideration of cables which also allows us to compute the maximal self-linking number for all knots with at most 11 crossings.
THE FINITE STRIP METHOD FOR ACOUSTIC AND VIBROACOUSTIC PROBLEMS
Authors: POBLET-PUIG J. , RODRÍGUEZ-FERRAN A.
Published: May 2011

The finite strip method, widely employed in structural mechanics, is extended to solve acoustic and vibroacoustic problems. The acoustic part of the formulation, including how to handle the most typical acoustic boundary conditions and the fluid structure interaction, is presented. Several realistic problems where the three-dimensional domain of interest has extrusion symmetry are solved. These examples illustrate the advantages of the method: it has smaller computational costs than the finite element method and consequently the analyzed frequency range can be increased.
NUMERICAL ANALYSIS OF THE WALL STRESS IN ABDOMINAL AORTIC ANEURYSM: INFLUENCE OF THE MATERIAL MODEL NEAR-INCOMPRESSIBILITY
Authors: TOUNGARA MAMADOU , CHAGNON GREGORY , GEINDREAU CHRISTIAN
Published: May 2011

Recently, hyperelastic mechanical models were proposed to well capture the aneurismal arterial wall anisotropic and nonlinear features experimentally observed. These models were formulated assuming the material incompressibility. However in numerical analysis, a nearly incompressible approach, i.e., a mixed formulation pressure-displacement, is usually adopted to perform finite element stress analysis of abdominal aortic aneurysm (AAA). Therefore, volume variations of the material are controlled through the volumetric energy which depends on the initial bulk modulus κ. In this paper, an analytical analysis of the influence of κ on the mechanical response of two invariant-based anisotropic models is first performed in the case of an equibiaxial tensile test. This analysis shows that for the strongly nonlinear anisotropic model, even in a restricted range of deformations, large values of κ are necessary to ensure the incompressibility condition, in order to estimate the wall stress with a reasonable precision. Finite element simulations on idealized AAA geometries are then performed. Results from these simulations show that the maximum stress in the AAA wall is underestimated in previous works, committed errors vary from 26% to 58% depending on the geometrical model complexity. In addition to affect the magnitude of the maximum stress in the aneurysm, we found that too small value of κ may also affect the location of this stress.
MODELING THE EFFECT OF VARIATION IN SAGITTAL CURVATURE ON THE FORCE REQUIRED TO PRODUCE A FOLLOWER LOAD IN THE LUMBAR SPINE
Authors: MEAKIN JUDITH R. , ASPDEN RICHARD M.
Published: May 2011

The aim of this study was to investigate how the forces required to stabilize the lumbar spine in the standing posture may be affected by variation in its shape. A two-dimensional model of the lumbar spine in the sagittal plane was developed that included a simplified representation of the lumbar extensor muscles. The shape of the model was varied by changing both the magnitude and distribution of the lumbar curvature. The forces required to produce a resultant load traveling along a path as close to the vertebral body centroids as possible (a follower load) were determined. In general,the forces required to produce a follower load increased as the curvature became larger and more evenly distributed. The results suggest that the requirements of the lumbar muscles to maintain spinal stability in vivo will vary between individuals. This has implications for understanding the role of spinal curvature and muscle atrophy in back pain.
APPLICATION OF THE FINITE ELEMENT METHOD IN THE FATIGUE LIFE PREDICTION OF A STENT FOR A PERCUTANEOUS HEART VALVE
Authors: ESTERHUYSE A. , VAN DER WESTHUIZEN K. , DOUBELL A. , WEICH H. , SCHEFFER C. , DELLIMORE K.
Published: May 2011

The fatigue failure of the stent component of a percutaneous aortic heart valve (PAHV) is an event that could be fatal to the patient. Therefore, the fatigue life prediction of a stent intended for application in a PAHV is a major consideration during the design and development phase of the device. Since the stent component will be subjected to both cyclic blood pressure as well as cyclic valve-leaflet forces, the combined effect of these loads must be taken into account for the analysis of the fatigue life. This paper expands on a methodology developed by Marrey et al.10 to incorporate the combined loading of both the cyclic blood pressure as well as the cyclic leaflet forces in the fatigue life assessment of stents intended for application in percutaneous aortic heart valves. It was found that the developed methodology, which utilizes the finite element method (FEM), provides a simple and cost-effective tool to quantitatively determine the fatigue resistance of the stent component, thereby enabling the designer to compare different stent designs with respect to their resistance against fatigue. Two different stent designs were analyzed using this approach and it was found that they exhibited similar resistances to fatigue and that resistance to fatigue is influenced by strut width.
Distribution of deep-sea benthic foraminifera in the Neogene of Blake Ridge, NW Atlantic Ocean
Authors: Mohan Kuppusamy , Gupta Anil K. , Bhaumik Ajoy K.
Published: May 2011

Abstract. This study describes and illustrates the evolution of deep-sea benthic foraminifera from the Blake Ridge during the late Neogene. In total, 305 species of benthic foraminifera belonging to 107 genera were identified. The Blake Ridge receives fine-grained nannofossil-bearing hemipelagic sediments, transported from the Canadian continental margin by the Deep Western Boundary Undercurrent (DWBUC). We thus presume that changes in benthic foraminifera at Ocean Drilling Program (ODP) sites 991A, 994C, 995A and B and 997A reflect mainly changes in the intensity of the DWBUC, which is closely related to North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW) production. However, the dominance of Uvigerina peregrina, U. proboscidea and Cassidulina carinata during the late Miocene in all the holes suggests an increased influence of Southern Component Waters in the Blake Ridge region. During the early Pliocene (4.8–2.8 Ma) in all the sites benthic faunal assemblages suggest that there was an increased transport of organic-rich sediments by the DWBUC from the Canadian margin to the Blake Ridge, driven by increased production of NADW. During this time the species diversity (Sanders' rarefied values) was low. In the younger interval (since 2.8 Ma), the faunal data suggest less transport of organic-rich sediments to the Blake Ridge, which appears to be related to weakening of the DWBUC during cold intervals. An increase in species diversity at 3 Ma probably resulted from decreased population of bacteria due to low organic matter and/or less competition. In the late Pleistocene (c. 0.6 Ma), Stilostomella lepidula became extinct in all the studied holes, suggesting that this species may have possessed a mode of feeding which no longer existed in the cold, well-oxygenated oceans of the present.
Acid-resistant Cretaceous thecamoebian tests from the Arabian Peninsula: a suggestion for study of agglutinated rhizopods in palynological slides
Authors: Kumar Arun
Published: May 2011

Abstract. Rare specimens of Centropyxis aculeata (Ehrenberg, 1832), cf. Difflugia oblonga (Ehrenberg, 1832), Amphitrema flavum (Archer, 1869) and an unidentified spherical form (similar to a protozoan ‘cyst’ in van Hengstum et al., 2007) were observed in the palynological preparations of cutting samples from a drill-hole in southern Saudi Arabia. These thecamoebians were found in Cretaceous formations in association with typical Cretaceous spore, pollen and dinoflagellate cysts. Since the youngest rock formation in this drill-hole is of Cretaceous age, contamination due to caving from post-Cretaceous sediments is thus ruled out. Although the oldest record of thecamoebians comes from Neoproterozoic strata, their pre-Holocene occurrences are rare and patchy. Since many thecamoebian tests are autogenous and are made of acid-resistant proteinaceous material, they occur in the palynological preparations of fossil sediments. It is suggested that careful observation and search for thecamoebians in palynological slides could potentially lead to new discoveries of these microfossils from Phanerozoic sediments from all over the world.
Early Permian glacio-marine thecamoebian assemblages from the northwest Himalayas, India
Authors: Kumar Arun , Farooqui Anjum , Jha Neerja
Published: May 2011

Abstract. Diverse assemblages of thecamoebians are reported here from the Early Permian Manjir Formation of the northwest Himalaya in India. These thecamoebian tests were found in palynological preparations and are assigned an Early Permian age based on co-occurrence of age-diagnostic palynomorphs. Several of them show very close morphological affinity with extant thecamoebian genera, such as Amphitrema, Arcella, Centropyxis, Cyclopyxis, Cucurbitella, Difflugia and Trinema. This fauna lived in shallow-marine environments during the Early Permian deglacial phase of the widespread Late Carboniferous–Early Permian glaciation of Gondwana. The extant forms used for morphological comparison with the fossil forms were recorded from lakes and ponds in various parts of India. This study supports the current hypothesis of minimal evolution in thecamoebian lineages through geological time, and this group of protists has survived through long geological time and several mass extinction events without any significant morphological change. Stratigraphical and palaeontological evidence indicates that this fauna lived in the shallow-marine environments along the northwestern margin of Indian Gondwana during the deglacial phase of Late Carboniferous–Early Permian glaciation.
Late Scythian–Anisian ostracods (Crustacea) from the Meged-2 borehole, central Israel
Authors: Honigstein Avraham , Crasquin Sylvie
Published: May 2011

Abstract. Cutting samples from the Zafir Formation in the Meged-2 well (5013–5200 m), central Israel, were examined for ostracods. Seventeen species, belonging to eleven genera, could be distinguished. Five of them are described here as new species: Bairdia megedensis nov. sp., Bairdia bariudini nov. sp., Renngartenella ragilis nov. sp., Renngartenella perii nov. sp. and Patellacythere ephraimi nov. sp. Six species of the genera Renngartenella, Mostlerella and Kerocythere may also represent new taxa, but were left in open nomenclature, due to their rare occurrence in the samples. Only one species has been reported from other localities. Punctate forms of the genus Bairdia and Paracypris sp. are the most common species in the samples. The ostracods indicate a normal open-marine environment of deposition. The ostracod assemblages point to a Late Scythian–Anisian age, confirmed by foraminiferal and palynological data, but this age assignment remains disputed until the new taxa described here have been independently dated.
Increased proinflammatory and oxidant gene expression in circulating mononuclear cells in older adults: amelioration by habitual exercise
Authors: Gano Lindsey B. , Donato Anthony J. , Pierce Gary L. , Pasha Hamza M. , Magerko Katherine A. , Roeca Cassandra , Seals Douglas R.
Published: May 2011

We tested the hypothesis that peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) of older adults demonstrate a proinflammatory/-oxidative gene expression profile that can be improved by regular aerobic exercise. PBMC were isolated from young ( n = 25, 18–33 yr) and middle-aged/older ( n = 40, 50–76 yr) healthy adults. The older adults had greater mRNA expression (real-time RT-PCR) of the proinflammatory/-oxidant transcription factor nuclear factor-κB (1.58-fold, P < 0.05) and receptor for advanced glycation end products (1.12-fold, P < 0.05), the proinflammatory cytokines tumor necrosis factor-α (1.90-fold, P < 0.05) and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1 (1.47-fold, P < 0.05), and the oxidant-producing enzymes nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide phosphate-oxidase (0.91-fold, P < 0.05) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (2.60-fold, P < 0.05). In 11 subjects (58–70 yr), maximal oxygen consumption (+11%) and exercise time (+19%) were increased (both P < 0.001), and expression of the above proinflammatory/-oxidative genes was or tended to be decreased in PBMC after vs. before 2 mo of aerobic exercise (brisk walking ∼6 days/wk, 50 min/day, 70% of maximal heart rate). Expression of interleukin-6 was not different with age or exercise intervention. Age group- and exercise intervention-related differences in gene expression were independent of other factors. PBMC of healthy older adults demonstrate increased expression of several genes associated with inflammation and oxidative stress, which is largely ameliorated by habitual aerobic exercise. This proinflammatory/-oxidative gene signature may represent a therapeutic target for lifestyle and pharmacological prevention and treatment strategies.
More Private Schools for Nonnative Students? Migrant Performance in Private Schools of Differing National Contexts
Authors: Jungbauer-Gans Monika , Gross Christiane
Published: May 2011

Migrant children from most countries are disadvantaged in school. We investigate which characteristics of both school and societal contexts influence the achievements of migrant students. We argue that living conditions and inequality in a society as a whole may affect the chances of minority members and the function that private schools perform in the process of social reproduction of inequality. We investigate in particular the question of whether migrant students attending private schools show a better performance than those attending public schools. The analyses of the paper are based on the data collected in the PISA 2006 survey. Our main results are that the lower mathematics and reading competencies of migrant students can partly be explained by the socioeconomic status and cultural capital of the family and—to a marginal degree—by school characteristics. Initially, students in private independent schools have some advantages that disappear after controlling for country attributes. In both fields of knowledge, migrants obtain better results in private government-dependent schools (interaction effect); this, however, can be traced back to their families' socioeconomic origin and cultural capital. We detect that students in private independent schools reach lower competency levels in wealthier societies (GNP).
Spectrophotometric Determination ofN-Acetyl-L-Cysteine andN-(2-Mercaptopropionyl)-Glycine in Pharmaceutical Preparations
Authors: Kukoc-Modun Lea , Radić Njegomir
Published: May 2011

A simple spectrophotometric method for the determination ofN-acetyl-L-cysteine (NAC) andN-(2-mercaptopropionyl)glycine (MPG) in pharmaceutical preparations was developed, validated, and used. The proposed equilibrium method is based on a coupled two-step redox and complexation reaction. In the first step, Fe(III) is reduced to Fe(II) by NAC or MPG. Subsequently, Fe(II) is complexed with 2,4,6-tripyridyl-s-triazine (TPTZ). Several analytical parameters of the method were optimized for NAC and MPG analysis in the concentration range from 1.0 μM to 100.0 μM. Regression analysis of the calibration data showed a good correlation coefficient (0.9999). The detection limit of the method was 0.14 μM for NAC and 0.13 μM for MPG. The method was successfully applied to quantify NAC and MPG in pharmaceutical preparations. No interferences were observed from common pharmaceutical excipients.
Current Perspectives on Percutaneous Vertebroplasty: Current Evidence/Controversies, Patient Selection and Assessment, and Technique and Complications
Authors: Nairn Robert James , Binkhamis Shagran , Sheikh Adnan
Published: May 2011

Osteoporotic-associated vertebral compression fractures are a major public health concern, dwarfing even hip fractures in incidence in the United States. These fractures carry a significant morbidity and mortality burden and also represent a major growing source of consumption of scarce heath resources. Percutaneous vertebroplasty remains a commonly used and safe technique for the symptomatic treatment of vertebral compression fractures, both osteoporotic- and neoplastic-induced. By carefully selecting appropriate patients who are referred promptly, vertebroplasty can provide significant and durable pain relief over traditional conservative therapy. Recent controversies surrounding the evidence for vertebroplasty in osteoporotic-associated vertebral compression fractures are reviewed. A comprehensive step-by-step practical guide to performing vertebroplasty is then described. A brief description of patient selection, workup, as well as complications is also provided.
Acetaldehyde-Mediated Neurotoxicity: Relevance to Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Tong Ming , Longato Lisa , Nguyen Quynh-GiaoLy , Chen William C. , Spaisman Amy , de la Monte Suzanne M.
Published: May 2011

Ethanol-induced neuro-developmental abnormalities are associated with impaired insulin and IGF signaling, and increased oxidative stress in CNS neurons. We examined the roles of ethanol and its principal toxic metabolite, acetaldehyde, as mediators of impaired insulin/IGF signaling and oxidative injury in immature cerebellar neurons. Cultures were exposed to 3.5 mM acetaldehyde or 50 mM ethanol ± 4-methylpyrazole (4-MP), an inhibitor of ethanol metabolism, and viability, mitochondrial function, oxidative stress, DNA damage, and insulin responsiveness were measured 48 hours later. Acetaldehyde or ethanol increased neuronal death and levels of 8-OHdG and 4-HNE, and reduced mitochondrial function. Ethanol inhibited insulin responsiveness, whereas acetaldehyde did not. 4-MP abated ethanol-induced oxidative stress and mitochondrial dysfunction, but failed to restore insulin responsiveness. Furthermore, alcohol and aldehyde metabolizing enzyme genes were inhibited by prenatal ethanol exposure; this effect was mediated by acetaldehyde and not ethanol + 4MP. These findings suggest that brain insulin resistance in prenatal alcohol exposure is caused by direct effects of ethanol, whereas oxidative stress induced neuronal injury is likely mediated by ethanol and its toxic metabolites. Moreover, the adverse effects of prenatal ethanol exposure on brain development may be exacerbated by down-regulation of genes needed for metabolism and detoxification of alcohol in the brain.
Modified Step Variational Iteration Method for Solving Fractional Biochemical Reaction Model
Authors: Yulita Molliq R. , Noorani M. S. M. , Ahmad R. R. , Alomari A. K.
Published: May 2011

A new method called the modification of step variational iteration method (MoSVIM) is introduced and used to solve the fractional biochemical reaction model. The MoSVIM uses general Lagrange multipliers for construction of the correction functional for the problems, and it runs by step approach, which is to divide the interval into subintervals with time step, and the solutions are obtained at each subinterval as well adopting a nonzero auxiliary parameter ℏ to control the convergence region of series′ solutions. The MoSVIM yields an analytical solution of a rapidly convergent infinite power series with easily computable terms and produces a good approximate solution on enlarged intervals for solving the fractional biochemical reaction model. The accuracy of the results obtained is in a excellent agreement with the Adam Bashforth Moulton method (ABMM).
Study of Magnetic Interference on an LVDT: FEM Modeling and Experimental Measurements
Authors: Masi Alessandro , Danisi Alessandro , Losito Roberto , Martino Michele , Spiezia Giovanni
Published: May 2011

Static or slowly varying magnetic fields can affect the performances of linear variable differential transformer by inducing a position reading drift. The problem is barely addressed in LVDTs' datasheets, and no quantitative information on the induced error is given. An LVDT finite element model is here presented together with its experimental validation in order to propose a tool for the study of the effects of external magnetic fields on LVDTs and for the design of less sensitive devices. The LVDT model has been validated in standard working conditions and in presence of an external magnetic field by means of a complete set of experimental measurements performed on a custom prototype, manufactured following the FEM guidelines.
Spring-Interseeded Winter Rye Seeding Rates Influence Weed Control and Organic Soybean Yield
Authors: Nelson Kelly A. , Smeda Reid J. , Smoot Randall L.
Published: May 2011

Field research in 2002 and 2003 evaluated spring-interseeded winter rye (Secale cerealeL.) at 67, 134, or 200 kg ha−1at two soybean (Glycine max(L.) Merr.) row spacings (19- and 76-cm) on weed control, yield, and gross margins. Based on regression analysis, wide-row (76-cm) soybean grain yield and gross margins were greatest when winter rye was interseeded at 114 and 106 kg ha−1, respectively. Yields and gross margins for wide-row soybean were 8 to 55% greater than narrow-row (19-cm) soybean seeded at 494,000 or 742,000 seeds ha−1which was probably due to flexibility for implementing cultivation. As interseeded rye rates increased from 67 to 200 kg ha−1, yields and gross margins for narrow-rows decreased. Soybean row spacing had minimal impacts on specific weed species and total weed biomass or density. The use of wide-row soybean and spring-interseeded rye at 67 kg ha−1was more cost-effective compared to narrow rows.
Manipulation of pH Shift to Enhance the Growth and Antibiotic Activity of Xenorhabdus nematophila
Authors: Wang Yonghong , Fang Xiangling , Cheng Yongpeng , Zhang Xing
Published: May 2011

To evaluate the effects of pH control strategy on cell growth and the production of antibiotic (cyclo(2‐Me‐BABA‐Gly)) by Xenorhabdus nematophila and enhance the antibiotic activity. The effects of uncontrolled‐ (different initial pH) and controlled‐pH (different constant pH and pH‐shift) operations on cell growth and antibiotic activity of X. nematophila YL00I were examined. Experiments showed that the optimal initial pH for cell growth and antibiotic production of X. nematophila YL001 occurred at 7.0. Under different constant pH, a pH level of 7.5 was found to be optimal for biomass and antibiotic activity at 23.71 g/L and 100.0 U/mL, respectively. Based on the kinetic information relating to the different constant pH effects on the fermentation of X. nematophila YL001, a two‐stage pH control strategy in which pH 6.5 was maintained for the first 24 h, and then switched to 7.5 after 24 h, was established to improve biomass production and antibiotic activity. By applying this pH‐shift strategy, the maximal antibiotic activity and productivity were significantly improved and reaching 185.0 U/mL and 4.41 U/mL/h, respectively, compared to values obtained from constant pH operation (100.0 U/mL and 1.39 U/mL/h).
Compatible and Incompatible Nonuniqueness Conditions for the Classical Cauchy Problem
Authors: Diblík Josef , Nowak Christine
Published: May 2011

In the first part of this paper sufficient conditions for nonuniqueness of the classical
Cauchy problem , x(t0) = x0 are given. As the essential tool serves a
method which estimates the “distance” between two solutions with an appropriate
Lyapunov function and permits to show that under certain conditions the “distance” between two different solutions vanishes at the initial point. In the second part attention
is paid to conditions that are obtained by a formal inversion of uniqueness
theorems of Kamke‐type but cannot guarantee nonuniqueness because they are incompatible.
A Bayesian Model Averaging Approach to the Quantification of Overlapping Peptides in an MALDI-TOF Mass Spectrum
Authors: Zhu Qi , Kasim Adetayo , Valkenborg Dirk , Burzykowski Tomasz
Published: May 2011

In a high-resolution MALDI-TOF mass spectrum, a peptide produces multiple
peaks, corresponding to the isotopic variants of the molecules. An overlap occurs when two peptides appear in the vicinity of the mass coordinate, resulting in the difficulty of quantifying the relative abundance and the exact masses of these peptides. To address the problem, two factors need to be considered: (1) the variability pertaining to the abundances of the isotopic variants (2) extra information content needed to supplement the information contained in data. We propose a Bayesian model for the incorporation of prior information. Such information exists, for example, for the distribution of the masses of peptides and the abundances of the isotopic variants. The model we develop allows for the correct estimation of the parameters of interest. The validity of the modeling approach is verified by a real-life case study from a controlled mass spectrometry experiment and by a simulation study.
Response to Interferon-Beta Treatment in Afro-Caribbeans with Multiple Sclerosis
Authors: Jeannin S. , Deschamps R. , Chausson N. , Cabre P.
Published: May 2011

Background. Multiple sclerosis (MS) patients of African ancestry have a more aggressive disease course than white patients and could be resistant to interferon-beta (INFB).Methods. We studied the impact of INFB in treatment-naive Afro-Caribbean (AC) with clinically definite MS using our European Database for Multiple Sclerosis (EDMUS) (2003–2010). Main outcome measures were annual relapse rate after 2 years of treatment, proportion of exacerbation-free subjects 48 weeks after initiating INFB, and time to first relapse.Results. 76 AC-MS (59F/17M) were identified. Annual relapse rate of 1.29 decreased to 0.83 (−35.6%) after 2 years of treatment. The proportion of relapse-free patients at 48 weeks was 46.2%. Median time to first relapse was 52 weeks.Conclusion. INFB is not strong enough to control AC-MS patients in many cases which is problematic in a population of worse MS prognosis.
Hodgkin's Lymphoma in Children and Adolescents: A Saint Petersburg Hodgkin's Lymphoma Group Study
Authors: Kulyova Svetlana A. , Kolygin Boris A.
Published: May 2011

Purpose. Prospective analysis of the efficacy of the original protocol SPbHL-05 was performed.Patients and Methods. Sixty patients with Hodgkin's lymphoma (HL) aged less than 18 years old were treated in accordance with SPbHL-05 from January 2000, to July 2009. In induction chemotherapy we used VBVP and ABVD schedules followed by involved-field radiotherapy. Fourteen patients (23,3%) with 0–2 adverse factors (the favourable group) received two cycles of chemotherapy (VBVP), 25 children (41,7%) with 3-4 unfavorable signs (the intermediate group) received two cycles of VBVP alternating with two cycles of ABVD, 21 patient (35%) who had 5 or more adverse prognostic factors (the unfavourable group) received three cycles of VBVP alternating with three cycles of ABVD.Results. With a median follow-up of 68 months, overall survival (OS) at 5 years is 91.3%, event-free survival (EFS) is 82.8%. OS in the favourable and intermediate risk group were 100%, EFS were 92,9% and 90,7%, respectively, OS and EFS in unfavourable risk group—77,1% and 55,6%, respectively.Conclusion. The identification of prognostic risk factors and using medicines with less prominent side effects would be of major importance in the development of new strategies of treatment for childhood HL.