bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Immunodeficiency in patients with 49,XXXXY chromosomal variation
Authors: Keller Michael D. , Sadeghin Teresa , Samango‐Sprouse Carole , Orange Jordan S.
Published: January 2013

Boys affected with 49,XXXXY sex chromosomal variation have been described to have high incidence of recurrent otitis media and asthma, the cause of which is unknown. We hypothesized that primary immunodeficiency occurs in patients with XXXXY aneuploidy. To investigate this, 31 boys with known 49,XXXXY were evaluated through a multidisciplinary clinic. Screening history was performed using the “10 Warning Signs of primary immunodeficiency” (Jeffrey Modell Foundation), as well as by history of atopic and autoimmune conditions. Of the 31 boys, 20 had at least two warning signs of primary immunodeficiency, and five had four or more signs. Sixteen had history of recurrent pneumonia, and 15 carried the diagnosis of asthma. Of the 10 who underwent immunologic screening, eight showed some evidence of impaired antibody responses to polysaccharide antigens, and one was diagnosed with specific antibody deficiency. These preliminary results suggest a high incidence of both atopy and antibody deficiency in boys with 49,XXXXY. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Protonenleitung in Metall‐organischen Gerüsten und verwandten modularen porösen Festkörpern
Authors: Yoon Minyoung , Suh Kyungwon , Natarajan Srinivasan , Kim Kimoon
Published: January 2013

Protonenleitende Materialien sind ein wichtiger Bestandteil von Brennstoffzellen, und die Entwicklung neuer Materialien dieser Art ist eine der zentralen Forschungsrichtungen in der Brennstoffzellentechnologie. In diesem Kurzaufsatz fassen wir jüngste Fortschritte bei modular aufgebauten porösen Festkörpern für Anwendungen als protonenleitende Materialien zusammen; die wichtigsten Materialklassen sind Koordinationspolymere (CPs) und Metall‐organische Gerüstverbindungen (MOFs). Struktur und Eigenschaften dieser porösen Materialien lassen sich gezielt entwerfen und einstellen, was ein wichtiger Punkt für die weitere Entwicklung des Gebiets ist. Die Synthese sowie neue Arten protonenleitender Materialien und deren einzigartige Eigenschaften werden diskutiert.
Düstere Prognose für die Propheten der Apokalypse – heitere Prognose für Chemiker
Authors: Keinan Ehud
Published: January 2013

Das Bevölkerungswachstum, welches sich alle 50 Jahre verdoppelt, führt zu globalen Problemen wie Energie‐, Rohstoff‐ und Lebensmittelknappheit. Dennoch erscheint durch das schnelle Wachstum des menschlichen Wissens, das sich alle 18 Monate verdoppelt, und durch die Unvorhersagbarkeit der Wissenschaft die Zukunft der Menschheit heller. Unsere globalen Herausforderungen werden wahrscheinlich durch bisher noch unbekannten Technologien, meist von Chemikern entwickelt, gelöst werden.
Proton Conduction in Metal–Organic Frameworks and Related Modularly Built Porous Solids
Authors: Yoon Minyoung , Suh Kyungwon , Natarajan Srinivasan , Kim Kimoon
Published: January 2013

Proton‐conducting materials are an important component of fuel cells. Development of new types of proton‐conducting materials is one of the most important issues in fuel‐cell technology. Herein, we present newly developed proton‐conducting materials, modularly built porous solids, including coordination polymers (CPs) or metal–organic frameworks (MOFs). The designable and tunable nature of the porous materials allows for fast development in this research field. Design and synthesis of the new types of proton‐conducting materials and their unique proton‐conduction properties are discussed.
Gloomy Forecast for the Prophets of Apocalypse and Bright Forecast for Chemists
Authors: Keinan Ehud
Published: January 2013

The human population, doubling every 50 years, creates global problems, including limitations on energy, raw materials, food, water, health, and air. However, the future of humankind seems bright thanks to the even faster growth of human knowledge, doubling every 18 months, and the unpredictability of science. Our global challenges are likely to be met by yet unknown technologies, mostly invented by chemists.
Dendrimers as Nd3+ ligands: Effect of Generation on the Efficiency of the Sensitized Lanthanide Emission
Authors: Pillai Zeena S. , Ceroni Paola , Kubeil Manja , Heldt Jan‐Martin , Stephan Holger , Bergamini Giacomo
Published: January 2013

We have designed two novel dendrimers with cyclam cores with appended poly(amido amine) (PAMAM) dendrons, decorated at the periphery with four and eight dansyl chromophores, respectively. The photophysical properties of the dendrimers and their Nd3+ complexes have been investigated. The energy‐transfer efficiency to the lanthanide ions from these dendrimers has been studied as a function of the generation. It has been observed that an increase in the dendrimer generation as well as the number of amide units enhances the energy transfer to the lanthanide ion.
Prospective study on loss of signal on the first side during neuromonitoring of the recurrent laryngeal nerve in total thyroidectomy
Authors: Sitges-Serra A , Fontané J , Dueñas J P , Duque C S , Lorente L , Trillo L , Sancho J J
Published: January 2013

Background

Staged thyroidectomy has been recommended when loss of the signal from intraoperative nerve monitoring is observed after first-side dissection of the recurrent laryngeal nerve. There is no high-quality evidence supporting this recommendation. In addition, it is not clear whether signal loss predicts postoperative vocal cord paralysis.

Methods

This was a prospective observational study of consecutive adult patients undergoing neuromonitored total thyroidectomy for either malignancy or multinodular goitre. The prevalence of first-side loss of signal was recorded. Surgery was completed, and vagus and laryngeal nerves on the first side were rechecked at the end of the procedure.

Results

Two-hundred and ninety patients were included. Loss of signal on the first side was noted in 16 procedures (5·5 per cent). Thyroidectomy was completed and, at retesting, 15 of 16 initially silent nerves recovered an electromyographic signal with a mean(s.d.) amplitude of 132(26) mcV. Mean time to recovery was 20·2 (range 10–35) min. In no patient was the signal lost on the opposite side. Only three of 15 nerves with a recovered signal were associated with transient vocal cord dysfunction.

Conclusion

After loss of signal of the recurrent laryngeal nerve dissected initially, there was a 90 per cent chance of intraoperative signal recovery. In this setting, judicious bilateral thyroidectomy can be performed without risk of bilateral recurrent nerve paresis.
Verbal and facial‐emotional Stroop tasks reveal specific attentional interferences in sad mood
Authors: Isaac Linda , Vrijsen Janna N. , Eling Paul , van Oostrom Iris , Speckens Anne , Becker Eni S.
Published: January 2013

Mood congruence refers to the tendency of individuals to attend to information more readily when it has the same emotional content as their current mood state. The aim of the present study was to ascertain whether attentional interference occurred for participants in sad mood states for emotionally relevant stimuli (mood‐congruence), and to determine whether this interference occurred for both valenced words and valenced faces. A mood induction procedure was administered to 116 undergraduate females divided into two equal groups for the sad and happy mood condition. This study employed three versions of the Stroop task: color, verbal‐emotional, and a facial‐emotional Stroop. The two mood groups did not differ on the color Stroop. Significant group differences were found on the verbal‐emotional Stroop for sad words with longer latencies for sad‐induced participants. Main findings for the facial‐emotional Stroop were that sad mood is associated with attentional interference for angry‐threatening faces as well as longer latencies for neutral faces. Group differences were not found for positive stimuli. These findings confirm that sad mood is associated with attentional interference for mood‐congruent stimuli in the verbal domain (sad words), but this mood‐congruent effect does not necessarily apply to the visual domain (sad faces). Attentional interference for neutral faces suggests sad mood participants did not necessarily see valence‐free faces. Attentional interference for threatening stimuli is often associated with anxiety; however, the current results show that threat is not an attentional interference observed exclusively in states of anxiety but also in sad mood.
Cross‐platform management of intelligent objects behaviors in serious virtual environments
Authors: Rodriguez Inmaculada , Puig Anna , Esteva Marc
Published: January 2013

In this paper, we present a generic interaction framework that controls intelligent objects' actions in different virtual world (VW) platforms. These actions are based on the state of external platform‐independent artificial intelligence‐based systems such as multi‐agent and rule‐based systems. We have evaluated the proposed framework by means of two intelligent objects, a door and a noticeboard, incorporating them in Second Life and OpenWonderland VWs. These objects allow to work along three advanced aspects of a serious virtual environment: it is a dynamic space where participants are synchronously informed about activities evolution inside the virtual space, it can integrate processes and information coming from the real world, and it needs norms to organize participants actions, to define actions consequences, and to prevent undesired participants behaviors. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Electronic Properties of p‐Xylylene and p‐Phenylene Chains Subjected to Finite Bias Voltages: A New Highly Conducting Oligophenyl Structure
Authors: Ramos‐Berdullas Nicolas , Mandado Marcos
Published: January 2013

Recently, experimental and theoretical determination of electric currents induced by finite bias voltages in p‐xylylene chains attached to gold contacts revealed higher conductance of these systems in comparison with p‐phenylene homologous chains. To gain more insight into the conducting properties of these oligophenyl structures, ab initio studies were carried out on the electronic properties of two different p‐xylylene‐like chains (pX1 and pX2) and the p‐phenylene (pP) chain attached to gold contacts, with molecular formulas AuCH2(C6H4)nCH2Au (n=1–5), Au2C(C6H4)nCAu2 (n=1–5), and Au(C6H4)nAu (n=1–5), respectively. The molecules were subjected to finite bias voltages ranging from 0 to 5 V. Analysis of the intramolecular electron transfer and electron delocalization revealed a completely opposite response to electric perturbation of pX2 in comparison with pX1 and pP. Thus, in pX2 the applied voltage causes an increase in the electron delocalization within the rings together with a large electron transfer and energetic stabilization. On the contrary, the same voltages partially destroy the electron delocalization in pX1 and pP, produce a large local electron polarization in the benzene rings, and a smaller energetic stabilization. These differences can be rationalized in terms of the role played by polarized valence bond structures in the total wave function. Theoretical estimation of the I/V profiles indicates that pX2 chains are much better electronic conductors than pX1 and pP.
A pH‐Sensitive Lasso‐Based Rotaxane Molecular Switch
Authors: Clavel Caroline , Romuald Camille , Brabet Emile , Coutrot Frédéric
Published: January 2013

The synthesis of a pH‐sensitive two‐station [1]rotaxane molecular switch by self‐entanglement of a non‐interlocked hermaphrodite molecule, containing an anilinium and triazole moieties, is reported. The anilinium was chosen as the best template for the macrocycle benzometaphenylene[25]crown‐8 (BMP25C8) and allowed the self‐entanglement of the molecule. The equilibrium between the hermaphrodite molecule and the pseudo[1]rotaxane was studied by 1H NMR spectroscopy: the best conditions of self‐entanglement were found in the less polar solvent CD2Cl2 and at high dilution. The triazole moiety was then benzylated to afford a benzyltriazolium moiety, which then played a dual role. On one hand, it acts as a bulky gate to trap the BMP25C8, thus to avoid any self‐disentanglement of the molecular architecture. On another hand, it acts as a second molecular station for the macrocycle. At acidic pH, the BMP25C8 resides around the best anilinium molecular station, displaying the lasso [1]rotaxane in a loosened conformation. The deprotonation of the anilinium molecular station triggers the shuttling of the BMP25C8 around the triazolium moiety, therefore tightening the lasso.
Graphene Nanoplatelets: Electrochemical Properties and Applications for Oxidation of Endocrine‐Disrupting Chemicals
Authors: Wan Qijin , Cai Hui , Liu Yi , Song Hongtu , Liao Hualing , Liu Shantang , Yang Nianjun
Published: January 2013

In most graphene‐based electrochemical applications, graphene nanoplatelets (GNPs) have been applied. Now, for the first time, electrochemical properties of GNPs, namely, its electrochemical activity, potential window, and double‐layer capacitance, have been investigated. These properties are compared with those of carbon nanotubes (CNTs). GNP‐ and CNT‐coated electrodes were then applied for electrochemical oxidation of endocrine‐disrupting chemicals. The GNP‐coated electrode was characterized by atomic force microscopy and electrochemical techniques. Compared with the CNT‐coated electrode, higher peak current for the oxidation of 4‐nonylphenol is achieved on the GNP‐coated electrode, together with lower capacitive current. Electrochemical oxidation of 2,4‐dichlorophenol, bisphenol A, and octylphenol in the absence or presence of 4‐nonylphenol was studied on the GNP‐coated electrode. The results suggest that GNPs have better electrochemical performance than CNTs and are thus more promising for electrochemical applications, for example, electrochemical detection and removal of endocrine‐disrupting chemicals.
Size‐Selective Encapsulation of Hydrophobic Guests by Self‐Assembled M4L6 Cobalt and Nickel Cages
Authors: Ronson Tanya K. , Giri Chandan , Kodiah Beyeh N. , Minkkinen Antti , Topić Filip , Holstein Julian J. , Rissanen Kari , Nitschke Jonathan R.
Published: January 2013

Subtle differences in metal–ligand bond lengths between a series of [M4L6]4− tetrahedral cages, where M=FeII, CoII, or NiII, were observed to result in substantial differences in affinity for hydrophobic guests in water. Changing the metal ion from iron(II) to cobalt(II) or nickel(II) increases the size of the interior cavity of the cage and allows encapsulation of larger guest molecules. NMR spectroscopy was used to study the recognition properties of the iron(II) and cobalt(II) cages towards small hydrophobic guests in water, and single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction was used to study the solid‐state complexes of the iron(II) and nickel(II) cages.
The Boron Conundrum: Which Principles Underlie the Formation of Large Hollow Boron Cages?
Authors: Muya Jules Tshishimbi , Lijnen Erwin , Nguyen Minh Tho , Ceulemans Arnout
Published: January 2013

Extensive optimisation calculations are performed for the B80 isomers in order to find out which principles underlie the formation of large hollow boron cages. Our analysis shows that the most stable isomers contain triangular B10 or rhombohedral B16 building blocks. The lowest‐energy isomer has C3v symmetry and is characterised by a belt of three interconnected B16 units and two separate B10 units. At the B3LYP/6‐31G(d) level of theory, this newly discovered isomer is 2.29, 1.48, and 0.54 eV below the leapfrog B80 of Szwacki et al., the Th‐B80 of Wang, and the D3d‐B80 of Pochet et al., respectively. Our C3v isomer is therefore identified as the most stable hollow cage isomer of B80 presently known. Its HOMO–LUMO gap of 1.6 eV approaches that of the leapfrog B80. The leapfrog principle still remains a reliable scheme for producing boron cages with larger HOMO–LUMO gaps, whereas the thermodynamically most stable B80 cages are formed when all pentagonal faces are capped. We show that large hollow cages of boron retain a preference for fullerene frames. The additional capping is in accordance with the following rules: preference for capping of pentagonal faces, formation of B10 and/or B16 units, homogeneous distribution of the hexagonal caps, and hole density approaching 1/9. Although our most stable B80 isomer still remains higher in energy than the B80 core–shell structure, we show that by applying the bonding principles to larger structures it is possible to construct boron cages with higher stabilisation energy per boron atom than the core–shell structure; a prototypical example is B160. This clearly shows the continuous competition between the two suggested construction schemes, namely, the formation of multiple‐shell structures and hollow cages.
Microlens for uncooled infrared array sensor
Authors: Yamazaki Ryo , Obana Akimitsu , Kimata Masafumi
Published: January 2013

The paper describes the design and fabrication of a microlens for improvement of the sensitivity of uncooled infrared array sensors. We improved the sensitivity by focusing infrared rays on the detector. The microlens is made of silicon, which is a typical substrate for MEMS technology. We fabricated it by photolithography technology using a gray scale mask and an etch‐back process by selectivity‐controlled dry etching. This process enables us to fabricate a 43‐µm‐high silicon microlens from only a 2‐ to 3‐µm‐high photoresist structure. To confirm the usefulness of the microlens, we developed a small infrared array sensor with microlens. Evaluation results show that the microlens improved the sensitivity by 4.2 times, thereby suggesting that microlens is a promising technology for sensitivity improvement. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Electron Comm Jpn, 96(2): 1–8, 2013; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com). DOI 10.1002/ecj.11453
X‐ray Crystallographic and First‐Principles Theoretical Studies of K2[TcOCl5] and UV/Vis Investigation of the [TcOCl5]2– and [TcOCl4]– Ions
Authors: Johnstone Erik V. , Weck Philippe F. , Poineau Frederic , Kim Eunja , Forster Paul M. , Sattelberger Alfred P. , Czerwinski Kenneth R.
Published: January 2013

Dipotassium pentachloridooxidotechnetate, K2[TcOCl5], has been isolated as green single crystals by the dissolution of (NH4)TcO4 in 12 M HCl at 0 °C and careful precipitation with KCl. The structure of this compound was determined by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction analysis [a = 13.0815(9), b = 9.8982(6), c = 6.7623(4) Å; V = 875.605 Å3, orthorhombic, Pnma, Z = 4] and compared with the corresponding molybdenum and rhenium analogues. The structure of K2[TcOCl5] was also investigated by density functional theory, and the results are in agreement with the crystallographic data. The oscillator strengths of the electronic transitions in the C4v complex anions [TcOCl5]2– and [TcOCl4]– were also calculated by using time‐dependent density functional theory and compared with the experimental UV/Vis spectra.
Aptamer‐Assisted Gold Nanoparticles/PEDOT Platform for Ultrasensitive Detection of LPS
Authors: Su Wenqiong , Cho MiSuk , Nam Jae‐Do , Choe Woo‐Seok , Lee Youngkwan
Published: January 2013

Neatly arranged gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) were directly electrodeposited on an electrochemically polymerized self‐assembled monolayer (SAM) of thiol‐functionalized 3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene (EDOT) derivative, EDTMSHA. A thiolated single‐stranded DNA (ssDNA) aptamer with high specificity to LPS was immobilized on the AuNPs/conducting polymer composite film, serving as sensing platform for LPS detection. Electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS), cyclic voltammetry (CV), scanning electron microscope (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) were utilized to characterize the modification and detection processes. The electron transfer resistance was found to have a linear relationship with LPS concentration from 0.1 pg/mL to 1 ng/mL.
The usefulness of hydrazine derivatives for mass spectrometric analysis of carbohydrates
Authors: Lattová Erika , Perreault Hélène
Published: January 2013

Over the last years, extensive studies have evaluated glycans from different biological samples and validated the importance of glycosylation as one of the most important post‐translational modifications of proteins. Although a number of new methods for carbohydrate analysis have been published and there has been significant progress in their identification, the development of new approaches to study these biomolecules and understand their role in living systems are still vivid challenges that intrigue glycobiologists. In the last decade, the success in analyses of oligosaccharides has been driven mainly by the development of innovative, highly sensitive mass spectrometry techniques. For enhanced mass spectrometry detection, carbohydrate molecules are often derivatized. Besides, the type of labeling can influence the fragmentation pattern and make the structural analysis less complicated. In this regard, in 2003 we introduced the low scale, simple non‐reductive tagging of glycans employing phenylhydrazine (PHN) as the derivatizing reagent. PHN‐labeled glycans showed increased detection and as reported previously they can be analyzed by HPLC, ESI, or MALDI immediately after derivatization. Under tandem mass spectrometry conditions, PHN‐derivatives produced useful data for the structural elucidation of oligosaccharides. This approach of analysis has helped to reveal new isomeric structures for glycans of known/unknown composition and has been successfully applied for the profiling of N‐glycans obtained from serum samples and cancer cells. The efficacy of this labeling has also been evaluated for different substituted hydrazine reagents. This review summarizes all types of reducing‐end labeling based on hydrazone‐linkage that have been used for mass spectrometric analyses of oligosaccharides. This review is also aimed at correcting some past misconceptions or interpretations reported in the literature. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Rapid Commun. Mass Spectrom. 32: 366–385, 2013.
The telomere/telomerase binding factor PinX1 is a new target to improve the radiotherapy effect of oesophageal squamous cell carcinomas
Authors: Qian Dong , Zhang Bin , He Li‐Ru , Cai Mu‐Yan , Mai Shi‐Juan , Liao Yi‐Ji , Liu Yan‐Hui , Lin Marie C , Bian Xiu‐Wu , Zeng Yi‐Xin , Huang Jun‐Jian , Kung Hsiang‐Fu , Xie Dan
Published: January 2013

Chemoradiotherapy (CRT) is a standard treatment for oesophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC) in its advanced stages. The telomerase/telomere interacting protein PinX1 contributes to telomere maintenance, tumourigenicity, and influences the DNA damage agent‐induced apoptotic response in telomerase‐positive cancer cells. However, the clinical and biological significance of PinX1 in human ESCCs remains unclear. We examined the expression dynamics of PinX1 by immunohistochemistry in a learning cohort (n = 98) and a validation cohort (n = 59) of ESCC patients treated with definite chemoradiotherapy (CRT). A series of in vivo and in vitro assays were performed to elucidate the effect of PinX1 on ESCC cells' CRT response and underlying mechanisms. Knockdown of PinX1 did not affect ESCC cells' chemosensitivities to 5‐fluorouracil and cisplatin, but substantially increased ESCC cells' therapeutic efficacy of radiation both in vitro and in vivo. Ectopic overexpression of PinX1 dramatically enhanced ESCC cells' resistance to radiotherapy. Furthermore, we demonstrated that PinX1 resistance to radiotherapy (RT) was attributed to PinX1 maintaining telomere stability, reducing ESCC cell death by RT‐induced mitosis catastrophe (MC). High expression of Pinx1 correlated positively with ESCC's resistance to CRT, and was a strong and independent predictor for short disease‐specific survival (DSS) of ESCC patients. Our data suggest that PinX1 could serve as a novel predictor for a CRT response to ESCC patients, and the pathway of PinX1‐mediated telomere stability might represent a new target to improve the RT effect of ESCC. Copyright © 2013 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Decitabine represses translocated MYC oncogene in Burkitt lymphoma
Authors: Guan Hanfeng , Xie Linka , Klapproth Kay , Weitzer Clarissa D , Wirth Thomas , Ushmorov Alexey
Published: January 2013

Burkitt lymphoma (BL) is caused by translocation of the MYC gene to an immunoglobulin locus resulting in its constitutive expression depending on the activity of the immunoglobulin (Ig) enhancer elements. Treatment of BL cell lines with epigenetic modifiers is known to repress B‐cell‐specific genes and to up‐regulate B‐cell‐inappropriate genes including the transcription repressor ID2 expression. We found that the DNA methyltransferase inhibitor decitabine/5‐aza‐2‐deoxycytidine (5‐aza‐dC) represses the MYC oncogene on RNA and protein levels by inducing ID2. Down‐regulation of MYC was associated with repression of transcriptional activity of the Ig locus and with inhibition of proliferation. The induction of ID2 can be in part explained by activation of the transcription factor NF‐κB. We conclude that up‐regulation of ID2 contributes to anti‐tumour activity of 5‐aza‐dC via repression of Ig locus activity and consequently MYC expression. Copyright © 2013 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Challenges in Modern Biomarker Discovery – 17th HUPO BPP Workshop
Authors: Gröttrup Bernd , Esselmann Hermann , May Caroline , Schrötter Andreas , Woitalla Dirk , Heinsen Helmut , Marcus Katrin , Wiltfang Jens , Meyer Helmut E. , Grinberg Lea T. , Park Young Mok
Published: January 2013

The HUPO Brain Proteome Project (HUPO BPP) held its 17th workshop in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on May 24 and 25, 2012. The focus was on the progress on the Human Brain Proteome Atlas as well as ideas, strategies and methodological aspects in clinical neuroproteomics.
Blocking and Removing Illegal Child Sexual Content: Analysis from a Technical and Legal Perspective
Authors: Demeyer Karel , Lievens Eva , Dumortier Jos
Published: January 2013

In 2011, the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on Combating the Sexual Abuse, Sexual Exploitation of Children and Child Pornography was adopted, repealing and updating the 2004 Framework Decision on this topic. The much debated Article 25 of this proposal requires Member States to ensure the prompt removal of child pornography websites hosted in their territory and to endeavor to obtain the removal of such websites hosted outside their territory. It also leaves the option for Member States, subject to several safeguards, to block access to such websites to users within their territory. Both these policy choices are highly controversial and much debated, both at the level of the European Union and within Member States. This article analyzes both mechanisms, describing them from a technical as well as a legal point of view, in order to provide more clarity as to the advantages and drawbacks of these policy options.
Evolutionary conservation of the polyproline II conformation surrounding intrinsically disordered phosphorylation sites
Authors: Austin Elam W. , Schrank Travis P. , Campagnolo Andrew J. , Hilser Vincent J.
Published: January 2013

Intrinsically disordered (ID) proteins function in the absence of a unique stable structure and appear to challenge the classic structure‐function paradigm. The extent to which ID proteins take advantage of subtle conformational biases to perform functions, and whether signals for such mechanism can be identified in proteome‐wide studies is not well understood. Of particular interest is the polyproline II (PII) conformation, suggested to be highly populated in unfolded proteins. We experimentally determine a complete calorimetric propensity scale for the PII conformation. Projection of the scale into representative eukaryotic proteomes reveals significant PII bias in regions coding for ID proteins. Importantly, enrichment of PII in ID proteins, or protein segments, is also captured by other PII scales, indicating that this enrichment is robustly encoded and universally detectable regardless of the method of PII propensity determination. Gene ontology (GO) terms obtained using our PII scale and other scales demonstrate a consensus for molecular functions performed by high PII proteins across the proteome. Perhaps the most striking result of the GO analysis is conserved enrichment (P < 10−8) of phosphorylation sites in high PII regions found by all PII scales. Subsequent conformational analysis reveals a phosphorylation‐dependent modulation of PII, suggestive of a conserved “tunability” within these regions. In summary, the application of an experimentally determined polyproline II (PII) propensity scale to proteome‐wide sequence analysis and gene ontology reveals an enrichment of PII bias near disordered phosphorylation sites that is conserved throughout eukaryotes.
Biosafety and Bioapplication of Nanomaterials by Designing Protein–Nanoparticle Interactions
Authors: Yang Sheng‐Tao , Liu Ying , Wang Yan‐Wen , Cao Aoneng
Published: January 2013

The protein–nanoparticle (NP) interface is a current frontier of multiple disciplines, full of challenges and opportunities. The unique behaviors of nanomaterials (NMs) bring many exciting applications, and also raise safety concerns. Beyond bioapplications, various NMs could also enter human bodies from the environment. When entering human bodies, NPs interact with various biomolecules, especially proteins, forming a protein corona. This protein–NP complex is what the biosystems 'see' and 'respond to'. Therefore, understanding how NPs interact with proteins is crucial for both bioapplications and the biosafety of NMs. In this review, the current understanding of protein–NP interactions is summarized, including the theoretical background, experimental results, and computational progresses. Guidelines for improving bioapplication performance and reducing the potential biosafety hazard of NMs by designing the protein–NP interactions are discussed, along with future directions and challenges in this exciting field.
Sharpening the Thermal Release of DNA from Nanoparticles: Towards a Sequential Release Strategy
Authors: Díaz Julián A. , Gibbs‐Davis Julianne M.
Published: January 2013

Unlike the sharp melting behavior of DNA‐linked nanoparticle aggregates, the melting of DNA strands from individual gold nanoparticles is broad despite the high surface density of bound DNA. Here, it is demonstrated how sharpened melting can be achieved in colloidal nanoparticle systems using branched DNA–doubler structures hybridized with complementary DNA‐doublers bound to the gold nanoparticle. Moreover, sharpened transitions are observed when DNA‐doublers are hybridized with linear DNA‐modified gold nanoparticles. This result suggests that the DNA density on nanoparticles is intrinsically great enough to form cooperative structures with the DNA‐doublers. Finally, by introducing abasic destabilizing groups, the melting temperature of these DNA‐doublers decreases without decreasing the sharpness. Consequently, by varying the temperature, two DNA‐doublers with different stabilities dissociate sequentially from the gold nanoparticle surface, without overlapping and within a narrow temperature window. Owing to the excellent thermal selectivities exhibited by this system, the implementation of DNA‐doublers in sequential photothermal therapies and with other nanomedicine delivery agents that rely on DNA dissociation as the mechanism of selective release is anticipated.
Direct displacement‐based design of steel‐braced reinforced concrete frames
Authors: Malekpour Saleh , Ghaffarzadeh Hosein , Dashti Farhad
Published: January 2013

This study investigates a direct displacement‐based design procedure for dual system structures composed of reinforced concrete frames and steel bracings. In this procedure, in order to establish the design displacement profile before any analysis, strength proportions between bracings and frames are assigned. By using the displacement profile and damping characteristics of the structural components, the structure can be represented as an equivalent single‐degree‐of‐freedom system. The effective period and secant stiffness of the structure are then calculated, and finally, after the base shear was computed, the design process can be implemented. Structures with 4, 8 and 12 stories have been designed using this methodology, and in order to validate it, seven accelerograms have been used for nonlinear time‐history analysis of the above structures. The results demonstrate the efficiency of this procedure. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Combined mining: Analyzing object and pattern relations for discovering and constructing complex yet actionable patterns
Authors: Cao Longbing
Published: January 2013

Combined mining is a technique for analyzing object relations and pattern relations, and for extracting and constructing actionable knowledge (patterns or exceptions). Although combined patterns can be built within a single method, such as combined sequential patterns by aggregating relevant frequent sequences, this knowledge is composed of multiple constituent components (the left hand side) from multiple data sources, which are represented by different feature spaces, or identified by diverse modeling methods. In some cases, this knowledge is also associated with certain impacts (influence, action, or conclusion, on the right hand side). This paper presents an abstract high‐level picture of combined mining and the combined patterns from the perspective of object and pattern relation analysis. Several fundamental aspects of combined pattern mining are discussed, including feature interaction, pattern interaction, pattern dynamics, pattern impact, pattern relation, pattern structure, pattern paradigm, pattern formation criteria, and pattern presentation (in terms of pattern ontology and pattern dynamic charts). We also briefly illustrate the concepts and discuss how they can be applied to mining complex data for complex knowledge in either a multifeature, multisource, or multimethod scenario. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.

This article is categorized under:

Algorithmic Development > Ensemble Methods
Inflating in a trough: single-field effective theory from multiple-field curved valleys
Authors: Burgess C. P. , Horbatsch M. W. , Patil Subodh. P.
Published: January 2013

Abstract

We examine the motion of light fields near the bottom of a potential valley in a multi-dimensional field space. In the case of two fields we identify three general scales, all of which must be large in order to justify an effective low-energy approximation involving only the light field, ℓ. (Typically only one of these — the mass of the heavy field transverse to the trough — is used in the literature when justifying the truncation of heavy fields.) We explicitly compute the resulting effective field theory, which has the form of a P(ℓ, X) model, with
$ X=-\frac{1}{2}{{\left( {\partial \ell } \right)}^2} $
, as a function of these scales. This gives the leading ways each scale contributes to any low-energy dynamics, including (but not restricted to) those relevant for cosmology. We check our results with the special case of a homogeneous roll near the valley floor, placing into a broader context recent cosmological calculations that show how the truncation approximation can fail. By casting our results covariantly in field space, we provide a geometrical criterion for model-builders to decide whether or not the single-field and/or the truncation approximation is justified, identify its leading deviations, and to efficiently extract cosmological predictions.
Exchange of “signature” calls in captive belugas (Delphinapterus leucas)
Authors: Morisaka Tadamichi , Yoshida Yayoi , Akune Yuichiro , Mishima Hideki , Nishimoto Sayo
Published: January 2013

Belugas (Delphinapterus leucas) produce echolocation clicks, burst pulses, and whistles. The sounds of 3 captive belugas were recorded using 2 hydrophones at the Port of Nagoya Public Aquarium. There were stable individual differences in the pulse patterning of one type of pulsed sounds (PS1 call), suggesting that belugas use these as “signature” calls. Eighty-eight percent of PS1 calls initiated PS1 calls from other animals within 1 s. PS1 calls repeated by the same individual occurred primarily when other belugas did not respond within 1 s of the first call. Belugas delayed successive PS1 calls when other belugas responded with a PS1 call within 1 s. There was no clear temporal pattern for whistles. It appears that the time limit for responding to calls is 1 s after the initial call. If other individuals do not respond to the PS1 call of a beluga within 1 s, belugas tend to repeat the call and wait for a response. The results of this study suggest that the belugas exchange their individual signatures by using PS1 calls, in a manner similar to that of signature whistles used by bottlenose dolphins.
Risk Factor Analysis for 30-Day Mortality after Primary THA in a Single Institution
Authors: Comba Fernando , Alonso Hidalgo Ignacio , Buttaro Martín , Piccaluga Francisco
Published: January 2013

The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of, and associated risk factors for, 30-day perioperative death following primary total hip arthroplasty (THA). Data of all the patients were compiled from the computerized total joint registry at a single institution. Between May 1993 and May 2006, 3,232 consecutive primary THA (2,453 elective and 779 nonelective) were performed. Eleven deaths occurred during the first month after surgery (0.34 %). Thirty-day mortality rate after elective THA was 0.08 % (two of 2,453 IC 95 %(0–0.4)). The 30-day mortality rate after nonelective THA was 1.15 % (nine of 779 IC 95 %(0.7–2.4). To analyze the factors that could have contributed with death, we conducted a 4-to-1 nested case–control study. Control cases were strictly matched by sex, age, surgeon, prosthesis fixation mode, and date of surgery. Conditional logistic regression was used to evaluate the association of risk factors with mortality. Elective surgery was associated with a lower risk of mortality with an odds ratio (OR) of 0.07 (95 % CI 0.008–0.6); p = 0.015. American Society of Anesthesiologists (ASA) score III–IV increased the mortality risk 13 times (OR 13.7; 95 % CI 1.6–114.8). Cardiovascular disease increased the risk for mortality eight times (OR 8.83 (95 % CI 1.78–43.6). Time delay before surgery showed a trend towards significance ( p = 0.06). Aggressive vs. nonaggressive thromboembolism prophylaxis and the amount of blood transfusions required were not associated with a higher risk of death. Patients undergoing a THA due to fractures, patients with high ASA score, and those with cardiovascular disease were the highest risk factors for 30-day mortality after primary THA.
Intra-articular Injections of Hyaluronic Acid and Other Drugs in the Knee Joint
Authors: Rodriguez-Merchan E. Carlos
Published: January 2013

Background

Degenerative osteoarthritis of the knee (OA) affects 35% of persons older than 65 years. If pain persists after non-invasive treatment, some intra-articular drugs can be tried before surgical treatment.

Questions/Purposes

The purpose of this article is to review the literature after 2006 with the aim of answering two questions: (1) Are intra-articular injections of corticosteroids (CS), hyaluronic acid (HA) and platelet-rich plasma (PRP) effective in painful knee OA? and (2) Which of these drugs is more effective?

Methods

The search engines were MedLine and the Cochrane Library. The keywords used were: knee, osteoarthritis, and intra-articular injections. Eight hundred and forty-four articles were found but only 142 had been published after 2006. Of those, only 14 were selected and reviewed because they were strictly focused on the topic and the questions of this article.

Results

The clinical efficacy of intra-articular injections of HA and CS in patients with knee OA has been demonstrated. Pain reduction after three to five weekly injections of HA lasts between 5 to13 weeks (sometimes up to 1 year). Pain reduction is less durable after CS injections (2 to 3 weeks). Recent reports indicate that PRP could have a better performance than HA in younger patients.

Conclusions

Three to five weekly intra-articular injections of HA are recommendable in patients with knee OA before surgical treatment. CS injections have a very short effect. The efficacy and duration of PRP injections require further studies.
Plasma 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Levels in Operative Patella Fractures
Authors: Reinhardt Keith R. , Lazaro Lionel E. , Umunna Ben-Paul , Cross Michael B. , Helfet David L. , Lane Joseph M. , Lorich Dean G.
Published: January 2013

Background

Patella fractures have not traditionally been considered “fragility” fractures.

Questions/Purpose

The purpose of this study was to examine the demographic patterns (age and gender distribution) and plasma 25-hydroxyvitamin D levels of a cohort of patients with operative patella fractures.

Patients and Methods

Medical records were reviewed on all consecutive patients presenting to our institution with operative patella fractures from 2003 to 2009. Seventy-eight operative patella fractures (25 male, 53 female) were identified with a mean age of 58 years (range, 22–89 years).

Results

The majority of patients with patella fractures in this series were females over the age of 50 years who sustained low-energy falls from a standing height or less. Twenty-four patients (80%) had vitamin D insufficiency or deficiency at the time of injury. For 68 patients (87%), the patella fracture represented their first fracture. Patients with known osteoporosis risk factors did not have higher rates of vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency.

Conclusions

The age and gender distribution, as well as the prevalence of vitamin D insufficiency/deficiency, of operative patella fractures, suggest that these patients likely have abnormal vitamin D levels and should undergo a metabolic bone work-up.
The Spectrophotometric Sulfo‐Phospho‐Vanillin Assessment of Total Lipids in Human Meibomian Gland Secretions
Authors: McMahon Anne , Lu Hua , Butovich Igor A.
Published: January 2013

Human meibomian gland secretions (meibum) are the major lipid component of the human preocular tear film. The predominant lipid classes found in meibum include waxes (WE), cholesteryl esters (CE), and varying amounts of cholesterol (Chl). The classical sulfo‐phospho‐vanillin assay (SPVA), adapted for a microplate reader, was used to quantitate lipids in meibum. To account for varying reactivities of different lipids in SPVA, a model meibomian lipid mixture (MMx) that approximated the WE/CE/Chl composition of meibum was developed and used to quantitate meibomian lipids. The overall SPV responses of MMx and meibum were found to be close, with similar intermediate and final reaction products for both. Saturated WE that had not been expected to be reactive were found to be SPV‐positive. A reaction mechanism for these compounds in SPVA which involves the formation of alkenyl ethers is proposed and discussed. Tested proteins were non‐reactive in SPVA. Thus, by comparing the results of gravimetric analyses of meibum samples with the results of a properly calibrated SPVA, it was estimated that the SPV‐reactive lipid content of dry meibum in tested samples was about 78 % (w/w). The SPV method can also be adopted for analyzing other types of complex lipids secretions, such as sebum, as well as whole lipid extracts from other lipid‐enriched organs and tissues, if proper standards are chosen.
Molekulargenetische Diagnostik von Imprintingerkrankungen
Authors: Eggermann T. , Begemann M. , Soellner L. , Elbracht M. , Buiting K. , Horsthemke B. , Spengler S.
Published: January 2013

Bei allen derzeit bekannten Imprintingerkrankungen wurde über eine Assoziation mit molekularen Veränderungen an krankheitsspezifischen chromosomalen Loci berichtet. Die locusspezifische Zuordnung einiger dieser Krankheitsbilder wird erschwert durch den Nachweis so genannter Multilocusmethylierungsdefekte (MLMD): Dabei besteht nicht nur an krankheitsspezifischen geprägten Genorten eine aberrante Methylierung, sondern auch an anderen Loci. Klinisch zeigt sich mehrheitlich die Symptomatik nur einer Imprintingerkrankung, in einzelnen Fällen überlappen sich jedoch verschiedene Krankheitsbilder. Umgekehrt wurden auch Fälle mit gleichartigem MLMD-Muster, aber unterschiedlichen Krankheitsbildern beschrieben. Zur Abklärung von MLMD sollten daher Testverfahren eingesetzt werden, die auf Methylierungsveränderungen an verschiedenen geprägten Loci ausgerichtet sind. Aber auch bei der MLMD-Testung ist eine eindeutige Unterscheidung des zugrunde liegenden Mutationstyps als Basis für eine gezielte genetische Beratung erforderlich.
Educational Homogamy and Gender-Specific Earnings: Sweden, 1990–2009
Authors: Dribe Martin , Nystedt Paul
Published: January 2013

Several studies have shown strong educational homogamy in most Western societies, although the trends over time differ across countries. In this article, we study the connection between educational assortative mating and gender-specific earnings in a sample containing the entire Swedish population born 1960–1974; we follow this sample from 1990 to 2009. Our empirical strategy exploits a longitudinal design, using distributed fixed-effects models capturing the impact of partner education on postmarital earnings, relating it to the income development before union formation. We find that being partnered with someone with more education (hypergamy) is associated with higher earnings, while partnering someone with less education (hypogamy) is associated with lower earnings. However, most of these differences in earnings emerge prior to the time of marriage, implying that the effect is explained by marital selection processes rather than by partner education affecting earnings. The exception is hypogamy among the highly educated, for which there are strong indications that in comparison with homogamy and hypergamy, earnings grow slower after union formation.
Sharp asymptotic growth laws of turbulent flame speeds in cellular flows by inviscid Hamilton–Jacobi models
Authors: Xin Jack , Yu Yifeng
Published: January 2013

We study the large time asymptotic speeds (turbulent flame speeds

s_{T}

) of the simplified Hamilton–Jacobi (HJ) models arising in turbulent combustion. One HJ model is G-equation describing the front motion law in the form of local normal velocity equal to a constant (laminar speed) plus the normal projection of fluid velocity. In level set formulation, G-equations are HJ equations with convex (

L^{1}

type) but non-coercive Hamiltonians. The other is the quadratically nonlinear (

L^{2}

type) inviscid HJ model of Majda–Souganidis derived from the Kolmogorov–Petrovsky–Piskunov reactive fronts. Motivated by a question posed by Embid, Majda and Souganidis (1995) [10], we compare the turbulent flame speeds

s_{T}

ʼs from these inviscid HJ models in two-dimensional cellular flows or a periodic array of steady vortices via sharp asymptotic estimates in the regime of large amplitude. The estimates are obtained by analyzing the action minimizing trajectories in the Lagrangian representation of solutions (Lax formula and its extension) in combination with delicate gradient bound of viscosity solutions to the associated cell problem of homogenization. Though the inviscid turbulent flame speeds share the same leading order asymptotics, their difference due to nonlinearities is identified as a subtle double logarithm in the large flow amplitude from the sharp growth laws. The turbulent flame speeds differ much more significantly in the corresponding viscous HJ models.