bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Synthesis of Transesterified Palm Olein‐Based Polyol and Rigid Polyurethanes from this Polyol
Authors: Arniza Mohd Zan , Hoong Seng Soi , Idris Zainab , Yeong Shoot Kian , Hassan Hazimah Abu , Din Ahmad Kushairi , Choo Yuen May
Published: February 2015

Transesterification of palm olein with glycerol can increase the functionality by introducing additional hydroxyl groups to the triglyceride structure, an advantage compared to using palm olein directly as feedstock for producing palm‐based polyol. The objective of this study was to synthesize transesterified palm olein‐based polyol via a three‐step reaction: (1) transesterification of palm olein, (2) epoxidation and (3) epoxide ring opening. Transesterification of palm olein yielded approximately 78 % monoglyceride and has an hydroxyl value of approximately 164 mg KOH g−1. The effect of formic acid and hydrogen peroxide concentrations on the epoxidation reaction was studied. The relationships between epoxide ring‐opening reaction time and residual oxirane oxygen content and hydroxyl value were monitored. The synthesized transesterified palm olein‐based polyol has hydroxyl value between 300 and 330 mg KOH g−1 and average molecular weight between 1,000 and 1,100 Da. On the basis of the hydroxyl value and average molecular weight of the polyol, the transesterified palm olein‐based polyol is suitable for producing rigid polyurethane foam, which can be designed to exhibit desirable properties. Rigid polyurethane foams were synthesized by substituting a portion of petroleum‐based polyol with the transesterified palm olein‐based polyol. It was observed that by increasing the amount of transesterified palm olein‐based polyol, the core density and compressive strength were reduced but at the same time the insulation properties of the rigid polyurethane foam were improved.
Learning the difficult tasks of caring for dying children
Authors: Lefroy Janet
Published: February 2015

None
Aggregate earnings and why they matter✩
Authors: Ball Ray , Sadka Gil
Published: February 2015

The accounting literature has traditionally focused on firm-level studies to examine the capital market implications of earnings and other accounting variables. We first develop the arguments for studying capital market implications at the aggregate level as well. A central issue is that diversification makes equity investors at least partially and potentially almost completely immune to several firm-level properties of earnings by holding diversified portfolios. Diversification is particularly important when assessing the welfare consequences of random errors in accounting measurement (imperfect accruals) and, to the extent it is independent across firms, of deliberate manipulation (earnings management). Consequently, some firm-level metrics of association, timeliness, value relevance, conservatism and other earnings properties do not map easily into investor welfare. Similarly, earnings-related risk manifests itself to equity investors largely through systematic earnings risk (covariation with aggregate earnings and/or other macroeconomic indicators). We conclude that the design and evaluation of financial reporting must adopt at least in part an aggregate perspective. We then summarize the literature in accounting, economics and finance on aggregate earnings and stock prices. Our review highlights the importance of studying earnings at the aggregate level.
Longitudinal dust acoustic solitary waves in a strongly coupled complex (dusty) plasma
Authors: Chakrabarti Nikhil , Ghosh Samiran
Published: February 2015

The dynamics of the weakly nonlinear and weakly dispersive low frequency longitudinal dust acoustic waves (LDAWs) in a strongly coupled complex (dusty) plasma are investigated using generalized hydrodynamic (GH) model. In presence of strong correlation, the nonlinear wave is shown to be governed by a Korteweg–de Vries (KdV) equation with a nonlocal nonlinear forcing and a linear damping terms. This novel equation is solved numerically to show the competition between nonlinear forcing and dissipative damping in the formation of the localized structures.
Divided by Law: The Sit-ins and the Role of the Courts in the Civil Rights Movement
Authors: Schmidt Christopher W.
Published: February 2015

A central goal of the lunch counter sit-ins of 1960, the protests that launched the direct-action phase of the Civil Rights Movement, was to give new meaning to the very idea of “civil rights.” To the students who took part in the protests, civil rights work entailed litigation and lobbying. It required relying on the older generation of civil rights activists and working through established civil rights organizations. It meant surrendering student control over the demonstrations. And, as the great unrealized promise of the then 6-year-old Supreme Court ruling inBrown v. Board of Educationmade painfully clear, it meant patience. For the thousands of students who joined the sit-in movement, reliance on their elders, litigation, and patience—the stuff of civil rights, traditionally understood—was precisely what they wanted to avoid.
Characterization of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus from residents and the environment in a long-term care facility
Authors: LUDDEN C. , BRENNAN G. , MORRIS D. , AUSTIN B. , O'CONNELL B. , CORMICAN M.
Published: February 2015

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) is a major public health concern associated with residence in a long-term care facility (LTCF). The aim of this prospective study was to characterize MRSA isolated from residents over a 1-year period and their physical environment over a 2-year period. MRSA was recovered from 17/64 residents (R) of a LTCF and from 42 environmental (E) sites. All isolates carried the mecA gene and lacked the mecC and Panton–Valentine leukocidin (PVL) genes. Thirteen spa types were identified with t032 being the most frequent (41% of total; n = 8R, 16E), followed by t727 (22% of total; n = 13E), and t8783 (10% of total; n = 6E). Five spa types were each represented by single isolates. Thirty-nine isolates were of spa types associated with the multilocus sequence type ST22 (t032, 41%; spa-CC22, 68%) and reflect the predominance of ST22 in Irish hospitals. The uncommon spa types t727, t8783, t1372, t3130, t10038 were present in the environment but not detected in residents and are infrequently observed in Ireland.
Genetic moderation of interpersonal psychotherapy efficacy for low-income mothers with major depressive disorder: Implications for differential susceptibility
Authors: Cicchetti Dante , Toth Sheree L. , Handley Elizabeth D.
Published: February 2015

Genetic moderation of interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) efficacy for economically disadvantaged women with major depressive disorder was examined. Specifically, we investigated whether genotypic variation in corticotropin releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRHR1) and the linked polymorphic region of the serotonin transporter gene (5-HTTLPR) moderated effects of IPT on depressive symptoms over time. We also tested genotype moderation of IPT mechanisms on social adjustment and perceived stress. Non-treatment-seeking urban women at or below the poverty level with infants were recruited from the community (N= 126;Mage = 25.33 years,SD= 4.99; 54.0% African American, 22.2% Caucasian, and 23.8% Hispanic/biracial) and randomized to individual IPT or Enhanced Community Standard groups. The results revealed that changes in depressive symptoms over time depended on both intervention group and genotypes (5-HTTLPRandCRHR1). Moreover, multiple-group path analysis indicated that IPT improved depressive symptoms, increased social adjustment, and decreased perceived stress at posttreatment among women with the 0 copies of theCRHR1TAT haplotype only. Finally, improved social adjustment at postintervention significantly mediated the effect of IPT on reduced depressive symptoms at 8 months postintervention for women with 0 copies of the TAT haplotype only. Post hoc analyses of5-HTTLPRwere indicative of differential susceptibility, albeit among African American women only.
Polygenic Score × Intervention Moderation: An application of discrete-time survival analysis to modeling the timing of first tobacco use among urban youth
Authors: Musci Rashelle J. , Masyn Katherine E. , Uhl George , Maher Brion , Kellam Sheppard G. , Ialongo Nicholas S.
Published: February 2015

The present study examines the interaction between a polygenic score and an elementary school-based universal preventive intervention trial. The polygenic score reflects the contribution of multiple genes and has been shown in prior research to be predictive of smoking cessation and tobacco use (Uhl et al., 2014). Using data from a longitudinal preventive intervention study, we examined age of first tobacco use from sixth grade to age 18. Genetic data were collected during emerging adulthood and were genotyped using the Affymetrix 6.0 microarray. The polygenic score was computed using these data. Discrete-time survival analysis was employed to test for intervention main and interaction effects with the polygenic score. We found a main effect of the intervention, with the intervention participants reporting their first cigarette smoked at an age significantly later than controls. We also found an Intervention × Polygenic Score interaction, with participants at the higher end of the polygenic score benefitting the most from the intervention in terms of delayed age of first use. These results are consistent with Belsky and colleagues' (e.g., Belsky, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & van IJzendoorn, 2007; Belsky & Pleuss, 2009, 2013; Ellis, Boyce, Belsky, Bakermans-Kranenburg, & van IJzendoorn, 2011) differential susceptibility hypothesis and the concept of “for better or worse,” wherein the expression of genetic variants are optimally realized in the context of an enriched environment, such as provided by a preventive intervention.
Brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF) Val66Met polymorphism influences the association of the methylome with maternal anxiety and neonatal brain volumes
Authors: Chen Li , Pan Hong , Tuan Ta Anh , Teh Ai Ling , MacIsaac Julia L. , Mah Sarah M. , McEwen Lisa M. , Li Yue , Chen Helen , Broekman Birit F. P. , Buschdorf Jan Paul , Chong Yap Seng , Kwek Kenneth , Saw Seang Mei , Gluckman Peter D. , Fortier Marielle V. , Rifkin-Graboi Anne , Kobor Michael S. , Qiu Anqi , Meaney Michael J. , Holbrook Joanna D. ,   The Gusto Study Group
Published: February 2015

Early life environments interact with genotype to determine stable phenotypic outcomes. Here we examined the influence of a variant in the brain-derived neurotropic factor (BDNF) gene (Val66Met), which underlies synaptic plasticity throughout the central nervous system, on the degree to which antenatal maternal anxiety associated with neonatal DNA methylation. We also examined the association between neonatal DNA methylation and brain substructure volume, as a function ofBDNFgenotype. Infant, but not maternal,BDNFgenotype dramatically influences the association of antenatal anxiety on the epigenome at birth as well as that between the epigenome and neonatal brain structure. There was a greater impact of antenatal maternal anxiety on the DNA methylation of infants with the methionine (Met)/Met compared to both Met/valine (Val) and Val/Val genotypes. There were significantly more cytosine–phosphate–guanine sites where methylation levels covaried with right amygdala volume among Met/Met compared with both Met/Val and Val/Val carriers. In contrast, more cytosine–phosphate–guanine sites covaried with left hippocampus volume in Val/Val infants compared with infants of the Met/Val or Met/Met genotype. Thus, antenatal Maternal Anxiety ×BDNFVal66Met Polymorphism interactions at the level of the epigenome are reflected differently in the structure of the amygdala and the hippocampus. These findings suggest thatBDNFgenotype regulates the sensitivity of the methylome to early environment and that differential susceptibility to specific environmental conditions may be both tissue and function specific.
Easily Testable Graph Properties
Authors: ALON NOGA , FOX JACOB
Published: February 2015

A graph on n vertices is ε-far from a property $\mathcal{P}$ if one has to add or delete from it at least εn2 edges to get a graph satisfying $\mathcal{P}$. A graph property $\mathcal{P}$ is strongly testable if for every fixed ε > 0 it is possible to distinguish, with one-sided error, between graphs satisfying $\mathcal{P}$ and ones that are ε-far from $\mathcal{P}$ by inspecting the induced subgraph on a random subset of at most f(ε) vertices. A property is easily testable if it is strongly testable and the function f is polynomial in 1/ε, otherwise it is hard. We consider the problem of characterizing the easily testable graph properties, which is wide open, and obtain several results in its study. One of our main results shows that testing perfectness is hard. The proof shows that testing perfectness is at least as hard as testing triangle-freeness, which is hard. On the other hand, we show that being a cograph, or equivalently, induced P3-freeness where P3 is a path with 3 edges, is easily testable. This settles one of the two exceptional graphs, the other being C4 (and its complement), left open in the characterization by the first author and Shapira of graphs H for which induced H-freeness is easily testable. Our techniques yield a few additional related results, but the problem of characterizing all easily testable graph properties, or even that of formulating a plausible conjectured characterization, remains open.
Strategic nutrition: a vision for the twenty-first century
Authors: Temple Norman J
Published: February 2015

It is now widely accepted that poor nutrition plays a major role in the epidemic of various diseases, including obesity, type 2 diabetes and CVD. There has also been much research regarding the role of related factors such as advertising and food prices. Many intervention studies have been carried out where attempts have been made to persuade people to modify their behaviour, such as by making dietary changes, in order to enhance health (health promotion). There has also been much debate on the potential of government policy as a tool for achieving these goals. Various proposals have been made, such as a tax on sugary drinks, the redirection of food subsidies and how the salt content of food can be reduced. However, the great majority of previous papers have considered only single aspects of the topics discussed here. The present paper reviews strategies for improving public health, both health promotion interventions and the use of government policy approaches. Topics discussed include providing advice for the general population and the design of food guides and food labels. This leads to the conclusion that we need an overall strategy that integrates this diverse body of information and formulates a comprehensive action plan. I propose the term ‘strategic nutrition’. The implementation of this plan opens up a path to a major advance in public health.
Assessment of recent bottlenecks and estimation of effective population size in the Ethiopian wild sorghum using simple sequence repeat allele diversity and mutation models
Authors: Adugna Asfaw , Bekele Endashaw
Published: February 2015

Since the immediate wild relatives ofSorghum bicolor(L.) Moench are indigenous to Ethiopia, studying their population biology is timely for undertaking conservation measures. A study was conducted to investigate the occurrence of population bottlenecks and to estimate the long-term effective population size (Ne) in wild relatives of sorghum. For this, 40 samples of wild sorghum were collected from two remotely located populations that were allopatric to the cultivated sorghum. The presence of bottlenecks was investigated using heterozygosity excess/deficiency, mode shift and allelic diversity based on nine polymorphic simple sequence repeat (SSR) loci. We also estimated theNeof the studied populations using two different methods employing SSR mutation models. The expected heterozygosity was found to be 0.41 and 0.71 and allelic richness was 3.0 and 4.9, in Awash and Gibe populations, respectively. Neither the heterozygosity excess nor the mode-shift methods detected signatures of bottlenecks in the studied populations. The effective size of the two wild sorghum populations studied also showed no risk of population reduction in these regions of Ethiopia. Therefore, these allopatric wild sorghum populations can survive by occupying patches by the roadsides and fences, areas within abandoned farm lands, forests, etc., which shows that their wild characteristics of adaptation have been adequate for them to survive from extinction despite extensive deforestation of their habitat for modern agriculture and frequent grazing by livestock. However, this does not guarantee the survival of these species for the future andex situconservation measures or policies could help maintain their diversity.
High performance anode-supported tubular solid oxide fuel cells fabricated by a novel slurry-casting method
Authors: Duan Nan-Qi , Yan Dong , Chi Bo , Pu Jian , Jian Li
Published: February 2015

Tubular solid oxide fuel cells were fabricated and evaluated for their microstructure and electrochemical performance. The tubular substrate was prepared by casting NiO-Y2O3 stabilized ZrO2 (YSZ) slurry on the inner wall of a plastic mold (tube). The wall thickness and uniformity were controlled by slurry viscosity and rotation speed of the tube. The cells consisted of Ni-YSZ functional anode, YSZ electrolyte and (La0.8Sr0.2)0.95MnO3-δ (LSM)-YSZ cathode prepared in sequence on the substrate by dip-coating and sintering. Their dimension was 50 mm in length, 0.8 mm in thickness and 10.5 mm in outside diameter. The peak power density of the cell at temperatures between 650 and 850°C was in the range from 85 to 522 mW cm−2 and was greatly enhanced to the range from 308 to 1220 mW cm−2 by impregnating PdO into LSM-YSZ cathode. During a cell testing at 0.7 A cm−2 and 750°C for 282 h, the impregnated PdO particles grew by coalescence, which increased the cathode polarization resistance and so that decreased the cell performance. According to the degradation tendency, the cell performance will be stabilized in a longer run.
Identifying anti-growth factors for human cancer cell lines through genome-scale metabolic modeling
Authors: Ghaffari Pouyan , Mardinoglu Adil , Asplund Anna , Shoaie Saeed , Kampf Caroline , Uhlen Mathias , Nielsen Jens
Published: February 2015

Human cancer cell lines are used as important model systems to study molecular mechanisms associated with tumor growth, hereunder how genomic and biological heterogeneity found in primary tumors affect cellular phenotypes. We reconstructed Genome scale metabolic models (GEMs) for eleven cell lines based on RNA-Seq data and validated the functionality of these models with data from metabolite profiling. We used cell line-specific GEMs to analyze the differences in the metabolism of cancer cell lines and to explore the heterogeneous expression of the metabolic subsystems. Furthermore, we predicted 85 antimetabolites that can inhibit growth of, or even kill, any of the cell lines, while at the same time not being toxic for 83 different healthy human cell types. 60 of these antimetabolites were found to inhibit growth in all cell lines. Finally, we experimentally validated one of the predicted antimetabolites using two cell lines with different phenotypic origins and found that it is effective in inhibiting the growth of these cell lines. Using immunohistochemistry, we also showed high or moderate expression levels of proteins targeted by the validated antimetabolite. Identified anti-growth factors for inhibition of cell growth may provide leads for the development of efficient cancer treatment strategies.
The Emergence of Dirac points in Photonic Crystals with Mirror Symmetry
Authors: He Wen-Yu , Chan C. T.
Published: February 2015

We show that Dirac points can emerge in photonic crystals possessing mirror symmetry when band gap closes. The mechanism of generating Dirac points is discussed in a two-dimensional photonic square lattice, in which four Dirac points split out naturally after the touching of two bands with different parity. The emergence of such nodal points, characterized by vortex structure in momentum space, is attributed to the unavoidable band crossing protected by mirror symmetry. The Dirac nodes can be unbuckled through breaking the mirror symmetry and a photonic analog of Chern insulator can be achieved through time reversal symmetry breaking. Breaking time reversal symmetry can lead to unidirectional helical edge states and breaking mirror symmetry can reduce the band gap to amplify the finite size effect, providing ways to engineer helical edge states.
Low anti-staphylococcal IgG responses in granulomatosis with polyangiitis patients despite long-term Staphylococcus aureus exposure
Authors: Glasner Corinna , van Timmeren Mirjan M. , Stobernack Tim , Omansen Till F. , Raangs Erwin C. , Rossen John W. , de Goffau Marcus C. , Arends Jan P. , Kampinga Greetje A. , Koedijk Denny G. A. M. , Neef Jolanda , Buist Girbe , Tavakol Mehri , van Wamel Willem J. B. , Rutgers Abraham , Stegeman Coen A. , Kallenberg Cees G. M. , Heeringa Peter , van Dijl Jan Maarten
Published: February 2015

Chronic nasal carriage of the bacterium Staphylococcus aureus in patients with the autoimmune disease granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) is a risk factor for disease relapse. To date, it was neither known whether GPA patients show similar humoral immune responses to S. aureus as healthy carriers, nor whether specific S. aureus types are associated with GPA. Therefore, this study was aimed at assessing humoral immune responses of GPA patients against S. aureus antigens in relation to the genetic diversity of their nasal S. aureus isolates. A retrospective cohort study was conducted, including 85 GPA patients and 18 healthy controls (HC). Humoral immune responses against S. aureus were investigated by determining serum IgG levels against 59 S. aureus antigens. Unexpectedly, patient sera contained lower anti-staphylococcal IgG levels than sera from HC, regardless of the patients' treatment, while total IgG levels were similar or higher. Furthermore, 210 S. aureus isolates obtained from GPA patients were characterized by different typing approaches. This showed that the S. aureus population of GPA patients is highly diverse and mirrors the general S. aureus population. Our combined findings imply that GPA patients are less capable of mounting a potentially protective antibody response to S. aureus than healthy individuals.
Two-photon excited quantum dots with compact surface coatings of polymer ligands used as an upconversion luminescent probe for dopamine detection in biological fluids
Authors: Jin Hui , Gui Rijun , Wang Zonghua , Zhang Feifei , Xia Jianfei , Yang Min , Bi Sai , Xia Yanzhi
Published: February 2015

Two-photon excited CdTe quantum dots were developed as a novel upconversion luminescent probe for dopamine detection in biological fluids.
Quantitative analysis of nonmetal elements in steel using laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy combined with random forest
Authors: Wu Shan , Zhang Tianlong , Tang Hongsheng , Wang Kang , Yang Xiaofeng , Li Hua
Published: February 2015

Laser-induced breakdown spectroscopy (LIBS) combined with PLSR and RF was employed for the detection of nonmetal elements in steels.
Application of laser ionization mass spectrometry for the analysis of pyrolysis products from TiO2 nanoparticles treated with a silane coupling agent
Authors: Fujii Takaaki , Uchimura Tomohiro
Published: February 2015

LI/TOFMS was applied to the measurement of pyrolysis products generated from silanized TiO2 nanoparticles.
Biophysics of α-synuclein induced membrane remodelling
Authors: Shi Zheng , Sachs Jonathan N. , Rhoades Elizabeth , Baumgart Tobias
Published: February 2015

α-Synuclein leads to thinning, and subsequent tubulation of membrane bilayer.
A new LaCo0.71(1)V0.29(1)O2.97(3) perovskite containing vanadium in octahedral sites: synthesis and structural and magnetic characterization
Authors: Fuertes V. C. , Blanco M. C. , Franco D. G. , Ceppi S. , Sánchez R. D. , Fernández-Díaz M. T. , Tirao G. , Carbonio R. E.
Published: February 2015

Powder neutron diffraction, Co-Kβ XES spectra and a polyhedral view of the orthorhombic LaCo0.71(1)V0.29(1)O2.97(3) perovskite.
A novel synthetic route to transition metal phosphide nanoparticles
Authors: Yao Zhiwei , Li Meng , Wang Xiang , Qiao Xue , Zhu Jiang , Zhao Yu , Wang Guanzhang , Yin Jingzhou , Wang Haiyan
Published: February 2015

A novel synthetic route was developed to prepare nano-sized and well-dispersed phosphides of transition metals (Mo, Ni, and Co) from their corresponding oxide precursors.
In vitro bioactive properties of intact and enzymatically hydrolysed whey protein: targeting the enteroinsular axis
Authors: Power-Grant O. , Bruen C. , Brennan L. , Giblin L. , Jakeman P. , FitzGerald R. J.
Published: February 2015

This work identified extensively hydrolysed whey protein hydrolysates with multifunctional (insulinotropic, dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibitory and antioxidative) bioactive properties.
Conversion of cellulose to lactic acid catalyzed by erbium-exchanged montmorillonite K10
Authors: Wang Fen-Fen , Liu Jie , Li Hao , Liu Chun-Ling , Yang Rong-Zhen , Dong Wen-Sheng
Published: February 2015

Erbium ion-exchanged montmorillonite K10 can catalyze effectively the hydrolysis of cellulose into lactic acid, giving a lactic acid yield as high as 67.6%.
Copper-catalyzed efficient synthesis of a 2-benzimidazolone scaffold from 2-nitroaniline and dimethyl carbonate via a hydrosilylation reaction
Authors: Nale Deepak B. , Bhanage Bhalchandra M.
Published: February 2015

This work reports a copper-catalyzed novel protocol for the tandem synthesis of 2-benzimidazolone derivatives from dimethyl carbonate (DMC) and various 2-nitroanilines by using polymethylhydrosiloxane (PMHS) as an inexpensive, stable and environmentally benign reducing agent.
Mathematical modeling of the apo and holo transcriptional regulation in Escherichia coli
Authors: Alvarez-Vasquez Fernando J. , Freyre-González Julio A. , Balderas-Martínez Yalbi I. , Delgado-Carrillo Mónica I. , Collado-Vides Julio
Published: February 2015

Transcription factors can bind to DNA either with their effector bound (holo conformation), or as free proteins (apo conformation).
Application of QM/MM and QM methods to investigate histone deacetylase 8
Authors: Gleeson Duangkamol , Gleeson M. Paul
Published: February 2015

Computational chemistry plays an important supporting role in the early stages of drug discovery research.
Third-order nonlinear optical properties of 3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene copolymers with chalcogenadiazole acceptors
Authors: Narayanan Sona , Raghunathan Sreejesh Poikavila , Poulose Aby Cheruvathoor , Mathew Sebastian , Sreekumar Krishnapillai , Sudha Kartha Cheranellore , Joseph Rani
Published: February 2015

3,4-Ethylenedioxythiophene–chalcogenadiazole copolymers with a low optical limiting threshold have been synthesized via direct arylation.
3D plasmonic nanoantennas integrated with MEA biosensors
Authors: Dipalo Michele , Messina Gabriele C. , Amin Hayder , La Rocca Rosanna , Shalabaeva Victoria , Simi Alessandro , Maccione Alessandro , Zilio Pierfrancesco , Berdondini Luca , De Angelis Francesco
Published: February 2015

Plasmonic 3D nanoantennas are integrated on multielectrode arrays. These biosensors can record extracellular activity and enhance Raman signals from living neurons.
In-situ preparation of N-TiO2/graphene nanocomposite and its enhanced photocatalytic hydrogen production by H2S splitting under solar light
Authors: Bhirud Ashwini P. , Sathaye Shivaram D. , Waichal Rupali P. , Ambekar Jalindar D. , Park Chan-J. , Kale Bharat B.
Published: February 2015

Highly monodispersed N-TiO2 nanoparticles were successfully decorated on graphene by facile in situ wet chemical method and showed utmost hydrogen production.
Local pH tracking in living cells
Authors: Tsou Chieh-Jui , Hsia Chih-Hao , Chu Jia-Yin , Hung Yann , Chen Yi-Ping , Chien Fan-Ching , Chou Keng C. , Chen Peilin , Mou Chung-Yuan
Published: February 2015

Simultaneous 3D single-particle tracking and local pH detection in living cells was achieved with ratiometric fluorescent mesoporous silica nanoparticles.
Material effects on V-nanoantenna performance
Authors: Earl S. K. , Gómez D. E. , James T. D. , Davis T. J. , Roberts A.
Published: February 2015

Aluminum V-antennas on silicon display significant alterations to their plasmon resonances due to the presence of the optically-dense silicon substrate and adjacent antennas, as well as a high sensitivity to the substrate's native oxide layer. The effect of the aluminium band-gap is also shown to affect the V-antennas’ resonances.
Nanosized graphene crystallite induced strong magnetism in pure carbon films
Authors: Wang Chao , Zhang Xi , Diao Dongfeng
Published: February 2015

Pure carbon films with abundant graphene nanocrystallites (sample C) having a 2D Raman band similar to that of bilayer graphene exhibit stronger magnetism than the amorphous (A) and graphite-like structures (D).
Graphene supported non-precious metal-macrocycle catalysts for oxygen reduction reaction in fuel cells
Authors: Choi Hyun-Jung , Ashok Kumar Nanjundan , Baek Jong-Beom
Published: February 2015

Fuel cells are promising alternative energy devices owing to their high efficiency and eco-friendliness.
Reduced ceria nanofilms from structure prediction
Authors: Kozlov Sergey M. , Demiroglu Ilker , Neyman Konstantin M. , Bromley Stefan T.
Published: February 2015

A search yielding >30 distinct Ce2O3nanofilm structures predicts a new stable structure and helps to rationalise experimental observations.
Metabolic alkene labeling and in vitro detection of histone acylation via the aqueous oxidative Heck reaction
Authors: Ourailidou Maria E. , Dockerty Paul , Witte Martin , Poelarends Gerrit J. , Dekker Frank J.
Published: February 2015

EDTA-Pd(ii) as a novel catalyst for protein labelingviathe aqueous oxidative Heck reaction.
Ultrafast chemical lithiation of single crystalline silicon nanowires: in situ characterization and first principles modeling
Authors: Seo Jong-Hyun , Chou Chia-Yun , Tsai Yu-Hao , Cho Yigil , Seong Tae-Yeon , Lee Woo-Jung , Cho Mann-Ho , Ahn Jae-Pyoung , Hwang Gyeong S. , Choi In-Suk
Published: February 2015

Through a combined density functional theory andin situscanning electron microscopy study, we demonstrate the ultrafast chemical lithiation of a singlec-Si nanowire brought into direct contact with Li metal in the absence of an electric field.
Evaluation of n-butanol as an oxygenated additive to improve combustion-emission-performance characteristics of a diesel engine fuelled with a diesel-calophyllum inophyllum biodiesel blend
Authors: Imtenan S. , Masjuki H. H. , Varman M. , Rizwanul Fattah I. M.
Published: February 2015

Oxygenated additives modify the physicochemical properties of the biodiesel–diesel blends which influences the combustion mechanism in a way that improves the performance and emission characteristics significantly.
Spectroscopic characterization of C-4 substituted 3,5-dichloro-4H-1,2,6-thiadiazines
Authors: Theodorou Eleni , Ioannidou Heraklidia A. , Ioannou Theodosia A. , Kalogirou Andreas S. , Constantinides Christos P. , Manoli Maria , Koutentis Panayiotis A. , Hayes Sophia C.
Published: February 2015

The effect of C-4 substitution with electron withdrawing groups on the structure and electronic properties of three 3,5-dichloro-4H-1,2,6-thiadiazines is characterized using resonance Raman, absorption and photoluminescence spectroscopies.
Multiwalled carbon nanotubes noncovalently functionalized by electro-active amphiphilic copolymer micelles for selective dopamine detection
Authors: Fei Xiaoma , Luo Jing , Liu Ren , Liu Jingcheng , Liu Xiaoya , Chen Mingqing
Published: February 2015

We have synthesized an electro-active amphiphilic copolymer with carbazole side chainsviafree radical polymerization using 7-(4-vinylbenzyloxy)-4-methyl coumarin and 9-(4-vinylbenzyl)-9H-carbazole as the monomers.
Concise synthesis of semicarbazides and formylhydrazines via direct addition reaction between aromatic azoarenes and N-substituted formamides
Authors: Liu Defu , Mao Jincheng , Rong Guangwei , Yan Hong , Zheng Yang , Chen Jie
Published: February 2015

The addition reactions between aromatic azoarenes and N-substituted formamides are described.
Preparation, fracture, and fatigue of exfoliated graphene oxide/natural rubber composites
Authors: Dong Bin , Liu Chang , Zhang Liqun , Wu Youping
Published: February 2015

The fracture and fatigue resistance of graphene oxide reinforced natural rubber composites which were prepared by latex co-coagulation was investigated.
Modulation of inherent dynamical tendencies of the bisabolyl cation via preorganization in epi-isozizaene synthase
Authors: Pemberton Ryan P. , Ho Krystina C. , Tantillo Dean J.
Published: February 2015

The relative importance of various factors controlling the product distribution for a terpene synthase are elucidated through a combination of quantum chemical, dynamics and automated docking calculations.
Stretching self-entangled DNA molecules in elongational fields
Authors: Renner C. Benjamin , Doyle Patrick S.
Published: February 2015

Initially self-entangled DNA molecules exhibit drastically different stretching behavior compared to identical molecules without self-entanglements.
A single-material graded refractive index layer for improving the efficiency of III–V triple-junction solar cells
Authors: Yeo Chan Il , Choi Hee Ju , Song Young Min , Kang Seok Jin , Lee Yong Tak
Published: February 2015

We present a single-material titanium oxide (TiO2) bi-layer antireflection coating (ARC) produced using oblique angle deposition for improving the power conversion efficiency (PCE) of III–V compound semiconductor triple-junction (TJ) solar cells.
Sensitive colorimetric sensors for visual detection of carbon dioxide and sulfur dioxide
Authors: Chatterjee Chandrani , Sen Ayusman
Published: February 2015

Reusable, solid-supported colorimetric sensors, prepared from tertiary amino alcohols and pH-sensitive dyes, can detect ppm levels of gaseous CO2 and SO2.
Superhydrophobic and stable mesoporous polymeric adsorbent for siloxane removal: D4 super-adsorbent
Authors: Jafari Tahereh , Noshadi Iman , Khakpash Nasser , Suib Steven L.
Published: February 2015

Synthesis of a new class of siloxane adsorbent (D4) was done to purify methane-rich gases including biogas and digester gas, at near ambient temperature and atmospheric pressure.
Zero-periodic metal–organic material, organic polymer composites: tuning properties of methacrylate polymers via dispersion of dodecyloxy-decorated Cu-BDC nanoballs
Authors: Kim Mu-Seong , Perry IV John , Julien Tamalia C. M. , Marangon Elisa , Manouat Cedric , Eubank Jarrod F. , Harmon Julie P.
Published: February 2015

A self-assembled metal–organic polyhedron (i.e., MOP or nanoball) with –OC12 external/surface functionality has been incorporated in two methacrylate polymer systems.
Interactions of stealth conjugated polymer nanoparticles with human whole blood
Authors: Khanbeigi Raha Ahmad , Hashim Zeina , Abelha Thais Fedatto , Pitchford Simon , Collins Helen , Green Mark , Dailey Lea Ann
Published: February 2015

Photoluminescent conjugated polymeric nanoparticles (CPNs) exhibit favourable properties as fluorescent probes due to their brightness, high photostability, tunable emission spectra and ease of surface modification.
An electrochemical deoxyribonucleic acid biosensor for rapid genotoxicity screening of chemicals
Authors: Wu Lidong , Lu Xianbo , Wang Xue , Song Yi , Chen Jiping
Published: February 2015

A schematic diagram of the E-DNA biosensor detection of PCDD by DPV.
Tunable ferromagnetic ordering in MoS2 nanosheets with fluorine adsorption
Authors: Gao Daqiang , Shi Shoupeng , Tao Kun , Xia Baorui , Xue Desheng
Published: February 2015

Two-dimensional ferromagnetic ultrathin nanosheets hold great promise for next generation electronics and spintronics.
Bioorthogonal oxime ligation mediated in vivo cancer targeting
Authors: Tang Li , Yin Qian , Xu Yunxiang , Zhou Qin , Cai Kaimin , Yen Jonathan , Dobrucki Lawrence W. , Cheng Jianjun
Published: February 2015

Here, we report anin vivocancer targeting strategy mediated by bioorthogonal oxime ligation.
Hysteretic DC electrowetting by field-induced nano-structurations on polystyrene films
Authors: Sawane Yogesh B. , Datar Suwarna , Ogale Satishchandra B. , Banpurkar Arun G.
Published: February 2015

Electrowetting of a water droplet on a polystyrene dielectric surface generates surface nano-structuration through electrohydrodynamic instability by close water-ion contacts.
A new approach to construct segregated structures in thermoplastic polyolefin elastomers towards improved conductive and mechanical properties
Authors: Li Ting , Ma Li-Feng , Bao Rui-Ying , Qi Guo-Qiang , Yang Wei , Xie Bang-Hu , Yang Ming-Bo
Published: February 2015

A novel approach for the development of conductive elastomeric composites with improved electrical performance and mechanical properties is provided.
Application of sulfur-doped carbon coating on the surface of Li3V2(PO4)3composites to facilitate Li-ion storage as cathode materials
Authors: Wang Cong , Guo Ziyang , Shen Wei , Zhang Aili , Xu Qunjie , Liu Haimei , Wang Yonggang
Published: February 2015

The heteroatom S is successfully doped into the surface carbon layer of Li3V2(PO4)3composites, and could produce defects and break the electroneutrality of the carbon-coated layer. As a result, S-doped carbon-coated Li3V2(PO4)3materials exhibit improved electrochemical properties.
High efficiency PTB7-based inverted organic photovoltaics on nano-ridged and planar zinc oxide electron transport layers
Authors: Richardson Beau J. , Wang Xuezhen , Almutairi Abdulrahman , Yu Qiuming
Published: February 2015

Consistently high PCEs of ~8% were achieved for the PTB7-based inverted organic photovoltaics on a variety of nano-ridged and planar ZnO electron transport layers (ETLs) as long as the optimal active layer thickness was carefully controlled for each underlying ETL.
The cytotoxicity of 3-bromopyruvate in breast cancer cells depends on extracellular pH
Authors: Azevedo-Silva João , Queirós Odília , Ribeiro Ana , Baltazar Fátima , Young Ko H. , Pedersen Peter L. , Preto Ana , Casal Margarida
Published: February 2015

Transport of the anti-cancer agent 3-bromopyruvate (3BP) in breast cancer cells is mediated by monocarboxylate transporter (MCT)-1 activated by glycosylated chaperone cluster of differentiation (CD) 147. The extracellular acidic pH increases the affinity for 3BP uptake enhancing its selective cytotoxic effect in tumour cells.
Time and frequency synchronisation in all‐optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing systems
Authors: Ali Mumtaz , Dai Bo , Wang Xu
Published: February 2015

In all‐optical orthogonal frequency division multiplexing (AO‐OFDM) systems, symbol time misalignment (STM) and subcarrier frequency offset (ScFO) result in intercarrier‐interference and intersymbol interference, leading to degradation of bit error rate (BER) performance. In this study, an analytical study of the impacts of STM and ScFO on AO‐OFDM system performance is conducted. In the presence of STM and ScFO, AO‐OFDM system performance is evaluated with the number of subcarriers (NSC), cyclic prefix requirements and receiver bandwidth (BWRX). For AO‐OFDM system without CP, results show that the STM gives higher BER than the ScFO. To keep the BER below 10−3 in AO‐OFDM systems with on‐off keying‐modulated three optical subcarriers and homodyne detection with BWRX = 30 GHz, the maximum acceptable relative deviations for the STM and the ScFO are 11 and 14%, respectively.
Indian topographical map symbols understanding system
Authors: Ganpatrao Nikam Gitanjali , Ghosh Jayanta Kumar
Published: February 2015

Symbol understanding is a pre‐requisite for reading and interpretation of any map. Thus, any topographic map‐based automated system needs to understand generic symbols associated with the set of maps. The objective of this study was to develop an automated system for the understanding of Survey of India topographic map symbols. The system has been developed making use of shape analysis adopting a complex‐valued chain coding method for representation of the (exterior) boundary of the symbol. Fourier discrete transform and autocorrelation function have been used for shape descriptions. Classification and recognition have been implemented through a template matching method based on similarity measures. The system has been trained with 150 samples of 20 Indian topographic symbols and tested for 200 samples of each of the 20 symbols extracted from sample maps. Experimental results showed that the proposed method has an overall recognition rate of 84.68% as well as the improved mean average precision of symbol recognition. However, understanding of interconnected and/or crowded symbols may be taken up as future scope of this work.
On the use of normal forms in the propagation of random waves
Authors: de Suzzoni Anne-Sophie
Published: February 2015

We consider the evolution of the correlations between the Fourier coefficients of a solution of the Kadomtsev-Petviashvili II equation when these coefficients are initially independent random variables. We use the structure of normal forms of the equation to prove that those correlations remain small until times of order ε5/3 or ε2 depending on the quantity considered.
Fluid-solid coexistence from two-phase simulations: Binary colloidal mixtures and square well systems
Authors: Méndez-Maldonado G. Arlette , Chapela Gustavo A. , Martínez-González José Adrián , Moreno José Antonio , Díaz-Herrera Enrique , Alejandre José
Published: February 2015

Molecular dynamics simulations are performed to clarify the reasons for the disagreement found in a previous publication [G. A. Chapela, F. del Río, and J. Alejandre, J. Chem. Phys. 138(5), 054507 (2013)] regarding the metastability of liquid-vapor coexistence on equimolar charged binary mixtures of fluids interacting with a soft Yukawa potential with κσ = 6. The fluid-solid separation obtained with the two-phase simulation method is found to be in agreement with previous works based on free energy calculations [A. Fortini, A.-P. Hynninen, and M. Dijkstra, J. Chem. Phys. 125, 094502 (2006)] only when the CsCl structure of the solid is used. It is shown that when pressure is increased at constant temperature, the solids are amorphous having different structures, densities, and the diagonal components of the pressure tensor are not equal. A stable low density fluid-solid phase separation is not observed for temperatures above the liquid-vapor critical point. In addition, Monte Carlo and discontinuous molecular dynamics simulations are performed on the square well model of range 1.15σ. A stable fluid-solid transition is observed above the vapor-liquid critical temperature only when the solid has a face centered cubic crystalline structure.
Ultrahigh-spatial-resolution chemical and magnetic imaging by laser-based photoemission electron microscopy
Authors: Taniuchi Toshiyuki , Kotani Yoshinori , Shin Shik
Published: February 2015

We report the first experiments carried out on a new chemical and magnetic imaging system, which combines the high spatial resolution of a photoemission electron microscope (PEEM) with a continuous-wave deep-ultraviolet laser. Threshold photoemission is sensitive to the chemical and magnetic structures of the surface of materials. The spatial resolution of PEEM is limited by space charging when using pulsed photon sources as well as aberrations in the electron optics. We show that the use of a continuous-wave laser enabled us to overcome such a limit by suppressing the space-charge effect, allowing us to obtain a resolution of approximately 2.6 nm. With this system, we demonstrated the imaging of surface reconstruction domains on Si(001) by linear dichroism with normal incidence of the laser beam. We also succeeded in magnetic imaging of thin films with the use of magnetic circular dichroism near the Fermi level. The unique features of the ultraviolet laser will give us fast switching of the incident angles and polarizations of the photon source, which will be useful for the characterization of antiferromagnetic materials as well as ferromagnetic materials.
Strong temperature dependence of the Hall factor of p-type CoSb3: A re-analysis incorporating band nonparabolicity
Authors: Kajikawa Y.
Published: February 2015

The Hall factor has been calculated as a function of temperature for p-type CoSb3 samples reported by Hui et al. [J. Appl. Phys. 115, 103704 (2014)] in addition to those reported by Caillat et al. [J. Appl. Phys. 80, 4442 (1996)], incorporating the valence band nonparabolicity. For the nominally undoped p-type samples, reported by Caillat et al., the Hall factor was calculated to increase with temperature from about 1.6 around room temperature to about as large as 5 at 900 K. Owing to the incorporation of the Hall factor, the net acceptor concentration has been corrected to be larger by about 1.6 times. Furthermore, due to the strong temperature dependence of the Hall factor, the band-gap energy deduced through fitting the temperature dependence of the Hall coefficient has been corrected to be smaller by about 0.03 eV than the values deduced when assuming a constant Hall factor of unity. It has also been shown that, even when the temperature dependence of the Hall factor is considered, the incorporation of the second valence band into the calculation is necessary to explain the anomalous increase of the Hall coefficient with temperature in the Sn-doped p-type CoSb3 sample reported by Hui et al.
Mechanisms of optical losses in the 5D4 and 5D3 levels in Tb3+ doped low silica calcium aluminosilicate glasses
Authors: dos Santos J. F. M. , Terra I. A. A. , Astrath N. G. C. , Guimarães F. B. , Baesso M. L. , Nunes L. A. O. , Catunda T.
Published: February 2015

Trivalent Tb-doped materials exhibit strong emission in the green and weak emission in the UV-blue levels. Usually, this behavior is attributed to the cross relaxation (CR) process. In this paper, the luminescence properties of Tb3+-doped low silica calcium aluminosilicate glasses are analyzed for UV (λexc = 325 nm) and visible (488 nm) excitations. Under 325 nm excitation, the intensity of green luminescence increases proportionally to Tb3+ concentration. However, the blue luminescence intensity is strongly reduced with the increase of concentration from 0.5–15.0 wt. %. In the case of 488 nm excitation, a saturation behavior of the green emission is observed at intensities two orders of magnitude smaller than expected for bleaching of the ground state population. Using a rate equation model, we showed that this behavior can be explained by an excited state absorption cross section two orders of magnitude larger than the ground state absorption. The blue emission is much weaker than expected from our rate equations (325 nm and 488 nm excitation). We concluded that only the CR process cannot explain the overall feature of measured luminescence quenching in the wide range of Tb3+ concentrations. Cooperative upconversion from a pair of excited ions (5D3:5D3 or 5D3:5D4) and other mechanisms involving upper lying states (4f5d, charge transfer, host matrix, defects, etc.) may play a significant role.