bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
High Intraspecific Genetic Diversity ofNocardia brasiliensis, a Pathogen Responsible for Cutaneous Nocardiosis Found in France: Phylogenetic Relationships by Usingsodandhsp65Genes
Authors: Kosova-Maali D. , Bergeron E. , Maali Y. , Durand T. , Gonzalez J. , Mouniée D. , Sandoval Trujillo H. , Boiron P. , Salinas-Carmona M.-C. , Rodriguez-Nava V.
Published: May 2018

This study aims at genetic characterization and phylogenetic relationships ofNocardia brasiliensisfocusing by using housekeepingrrs,hsp65,andsodAgenes.N. brasiliensisis the species responsible for 80% of cases of actinomycetoma, one form of cutaneous nocardiosis which occurs mainly in tropical regions reaching immunocompetent patients in which the disease can lead to amputation. We analyze 36 indigenous cases ofN. brasiliensisthat happened in France. Phylogenetic analysis targetingrrsgene showed no robustness at phylogenetic nodes level. However, the use of a concatenation ofhsp65andsodAgenes showed that the tested strains surprisingly ranked in 3 well-defined genotypes. Genotypes 2 and 3 were phylogenetically closer to each other and both diverged from genotype 1 sustained by a high bootstrap of 81%. This last genotype hosts all the cases of pulmonary forms (3), the sole cerebral form, and almost all the cases of immunocompromised patients (3 out of 4). Moreover, excepting one of them, all the strains belonging to this group present a susceptibility to imipenem which is not the case in the other genotypes that rarely count among them strains being susceptible to this drug. The haplotype diversity (Hd) ofhsp65(0.927) andsodA(0.885) genes was higher than that ofrrs(0.824). For this gene, we obtained 16 polymorphic sites whereas, forhsp65andsodAgenes, up to 27 and 29 were identified, respectively. This study reveals that these two genes have an important genetic discriminatory power for the evaluation of the intraspecies genetic variability ofN. brasiliensisand they may be useful for identification purposes at species level. This study also reveals the possible existence of a new species harbored by genotype 1.
Modeling of Spray Combustion with a Steady Laminar Flamelet Model in an Aeroengine Combustion Chamber Based on OpenFOAM
Authors: Xiao Yinli , Wang Zupeng , Lai Zhengxin , Song Wenyan
Published: May 2018

The development of high-performance aeroengine combustion chambers strongly depends on the accuracy and reliability of efficient numerical models. In the present work, a reacting solver with a steady laminar flamelet model and spray model has been developed in OpenFOAM and the solver details are presented. The solver is firstly validated by Sandia/ETH-Zurich flames. Furthermore, it is used to simulate nonpremixed kerosene/air spray combustion in an aeroengine combustion chamber with the RANS method. A comparison with available experimental data shows good agreement and validates the capability of the new developed solver in OpenFOAM.
Security Measurement for Unknown Threats Based on Attack Preferences
Authors: Yin Lihua , Sun Yanwei , Wang Zhen , Guo Yunchuan , Li Fenghua , Fang Binxing
Published: May 2018

Security measurement matters to every stakeholder in network security. It provides security practitioners the exact security awareness. However, most of the works are not applicable to the unknown threat. What is more, existing efforts on security metric mainly focus on the ease of certain attack from a theoretical point of view, ignoring the “likelihood of exploitation.” To help administrator have a better understanding, we analyze the behavior of attackers who exploit the zero-day vulnerabilities and predict their attack timing. Based on the prediction, we propose a method of security measurement. In detail, we compute the optimal attack timing from the perspective of attacker, using a long-term game to estimate the risk of being found and then choose the optimal timing based on the risk and profit. We design a learning strategy to model the information sharing mechanism among multiattackers and use spatial structure to model the long-term process. After calculating the Nash equilibrium for each subgame, we consider the likelihood of being attacked for each node as the security metric result. The experiment results show the efficiency of our approach.
Absence of Rejection in a Facial Allograft Recipient with a Positive Flow Crossmatch 24 Months after Induction with Rabbit Anti-Thymocyte Globulin and Anti-CD20 Monoclonal Antibody
Authors: Gelb Bruce E. , Diaz-Siso J. Rodrigo , Plana Natalie M. , Jacoby Adam , Rifkin William J. , Khouri Kimberly S. , Ceradini Daniel J. , Rodriguez Eduardo D.
Published: May 2018

Background. Donor-specific antibodies (DSA) to human leukocyte antigen increase the risk of accelerated rejection and allograft damage and reduce the likelihood of successful transplantation. Patients with full-thickness facial burns may benefit from facial allotransplantation. However, they are at a high risk of developing DSA due to standard features of their acute care. Case Presentation. A 41-year-old male with severe disfigurement from facial burns consented to facial allotransplantation in 2014; panel reactive antibody score was 0%. In August of 2015, a suitable donor was found. Complement-dependent cytotoxicity crossmatch was negative; flow cytometry crossmatch was positive to donor B cells. An induction immunosuppression strategy consisting of rabbit antithymocyte globulin, rituximab, tacrolimus, mycophenolate mofetil (MMF), and methylprednisolone taper was designed. Total face, scalp, eyelid, ears, and skeletal subunit allotransplantation was performed without operative, immunological, or infectious complications. Maintenance immunosuppression consists of tacrolimus, MMF, and prednisone. As of posttransplant month 24, the patient has not developed acute rejection or metabolic or infectious complications. Conclusions. To our knowledge, this is the first report of targeted B cell agents used for induction immunosuppression in skin-containing vascularized composite tissue allotransplantation. A cautious approach is warranted, but early results are promising for reconstructive transplant candidates given the exceptionally high rate of acute rejection episodes, particularly in the first year, in this patient population.
Determination of Epiphyseal Union Age in the Knee and Hand Joints Bones among the Saudi Population in Taif City
Authors: Aljuaid Majed O. , El-Ghamry Osama R.
Published: May 2018

Introduction. The use of radiographic data for determination of age, according to the epiphyseal union stage, is a widely accepted method and considered scientifically approved. The aim of the present work is to estimate the age of epiphyseal union of hand and knee joints bones among Saudi population in Taif City. Subjects and Method. A retrospective cross-sectional study was conducted in the Armed Forces Hospitals (4 hospitals) in Taif City. The five-stage method was used for the union assessment. Results. A total of 473 patients’ X-ray images were involved. Approximately three-quarters of the knee and hand images were males’ images (77.25% and 75.41%, resp.). The means of age of stage 3 (age of recent union) in the knee joint were 23.63 ± 3.12 and 21.19 ± 3.41 in males and females, respectively, and 19.84 ± 3.47 and 17.19 ± 1.61 in hand joints for males and females, respectively. There were significant differences between males and females in the means of age for stages 1, 3, and 4 at the knee joint plates and for stages 0, 2, and 3 in the hand joint plates (P values were <0.05). However, by comparing the mean of age for each stage with the previous stage mean in males and females, there was a significant difference between stages 0–4 (P values ≤ 0.0001, ≤0.001, <0.0001, and <0.001, resp.) and stages 2 and 3 (P value = 0.012) in knee joint images for males and females, respectively. In addition, there were significant differences between stages 2–4 in hand joints for males and females (P values ≤ 0.0001, <0.0001, <0.0001, and <0.0001, resp.) and stages 0 and 1 for males only (P value = 0.002). Conclusion and Recommendation. This study suggests that the union of epiphyses of knees and hands in Taif City occurs later than other places. More studies must be done with female samples.
A Task Allocation Model for a Team of Aircraft Launching on the Carrier
Authors: Cui Jiapeng , Wu Yu , Su Xichao , Song Jingyu
Published: May 2018

High level efficiency and safety are of paramount importance for the improvement of fighting capability of an aircraft carrier. The task allocation problem for a team of aircraft launching on the carrier is studied in this paper. Although the study of this problem is of great significance, no relevant literature has been found on this issue. Firstly, the conceptual model of problem is formulated with the planning objectives and the constraints defined. Then the multi-aircraft and multi-catapult launching task allocation problem is decomposed into two consecutive sub-tasks, that is, catapult allocation and the launching sequence determination. The taxi time of aircraft is considered during the catapult allocation process, and the launching position of each aircraft is determined using a decision-making method. In the launching sequence determination step, the starting collision risk of aircraft is introduced to optimize the launching sequence which results in the minimum collision risk on each catapult. Thirdly, the proposed method is validated using the setups of the Nimitz-class aircraft carrier. The proposed method is used to solve the task allocation problem and is compared to the artificial heuristics approach and the brute force approach. Experiment results demonstrate that the proposed method has better performance than the artificial heuristics approach and has better performance than the brute force approach in balancing efficiency and safety.
Secure Certificateless Authentication and Road Message Dissemination Protocol in VANETs
Authors: Tan Haowen , Choi Dongmin , Kim Pankoo , Pan Sungbum , Chung Ilyong
Published: May 2018

As a crucial component of Internet‐of‐Thing (IoT), vehicular ad hoc networks (VANETs) have attracted increasing attentions from both academia and industry fields in recent years. With the extensive VANETs deployment in transportation systems of more and more countries, drivers’ driving experience can be drastically improved. In this case, the real‐time road information needs to be disseminated to the correlated vehicles. However, due to inherent wireless communicating characteristics of VANETs, authentication and group key management strategies are indispensable for security assurance. Furthermore, effective road message dissemination mechanism is of significance. In this paper, we address the above problems by developing a certificateless authentication and road message dissemination protocol. In our design, certificateless signature and the relevant feedback mechanism are adopted for authentication and group key distribution. Subsequently, message evaluating and ranking strategy is introduced. Security analysis shows that our protocol achieves desirable security properties. Additionally, performance analysis demonstrates that the proposed protocol is efficient compared with the state of the art.
A Nonlinear Creep Damage Model of Layered Rock under Unloading Condition
Authors: Wang Ruihong , Jiang Yuzhou , Yang Chao , Huang Fei , Wang Yuxuan
Published: May 2018

Triaxial unloading creep tests of layered rock specimen of Jinping II hydropower station were carried out using the rock creep testing machine; thus the creep deformation curves under different confining pressures were acquired. The test results showed that, in addition to the obvious unloading creep characteristics of rock specimen, the nonlinear accelerating creep deformation emerged under the last stage confining stress condition, and the whole creep curves presented the typical rock creep three stages. On the other hand, the Burgers creep model constitutive equations under the three-dimensional stress state were also deduced. Based on the creep test data, through identifying the creep parameters using the optimized algorithm, the corresponding parameters of triaxial creep constitutive model were obtained. By comparative analysis of creep parameters, it can be concluded that creep parameters nonlinearly degraded with the decrease of confining pressure gradually. Moreover, when the load is below the long-term strength of rock, the creep parameters are only related to the unloading ratio, while in the case that the load is larger than the long-term strength of rock, the unloading creep parameters are related to both unloading ratio and creep time. According to the creep parameters under the first-stage stress level, and through introducing unloading ratio damage factor to describe the degrading rule of creep parameters on other stress levels, the method of uniformity determining the creep parameters was proposed. It was assumed that the damage degree in rock interior was relative to both unloading ratio and creep time; a nonlinear creep damage model of rock under unloading was proposed, which could better reflect the nonlinear characteristics of rock creep. The results showed that rock nonlinear creep damage model achieved perfectly consistent results with the creep test.
Risk Factors for the Completion of the Cold Loop Hysteroscopic Myomectomy in a One-Step Procedure: A Post Hoc Analysis
Authors: Mazzon Ivan , Favilli Alessandro , Grasso Mario , Horvath Stefano , Bini Vittorio , Di Renzo Gian Carlo , Gerli Sandro
Published: May 2018

Introduction. The aim of the study was to analyze which variables influenced the completion of a cold loop hysteroscopic myomectomy in a one-step procedure in a large cohort of patients. Materials and Methods. A retrospective cohort study of 1434 cold loop resectoscopic myomectomies consecutively performed. The study population was divided into two groups according to the number of procedures needed to accomplish the treatment. Variables influencing the completion of hysteroscopic myomectomy in a one-step procedure were investigated. Results. A total of 1434 resections were performed and 1690 myomas in total were removed. The procedure was accomplished in a one-step procedure in 1017 patients (83.7%), whereas 198 women (16.3%) needed a multiple-step procedure. The multivariate analysis showed that the size, the number of myomas, and the age of patients were significantly correlated with the risk of a multiple-step procedure. No correlation was revealed with the grading of myomas, parity, and the use of presurgical GnRH-agonist therapy. Conclusions. In case of multiple fibroids, the intramural development of submucous myomas did not influence the completion of cold loop hysteroscopic myomectomy in a one-step procedure. The size of myomas and the age of patients were significantly correlated with the need to complete the myomectomy in a multiple-step procedure.
Diagnostic Accuracy of Magnifying Endoscopy with Narrow Band Imaging and Its Diagnostic Value for Invasion Depth Staging in Esophageal Squamous Cell Carcinoma: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis
Authors: Yu Tingting , Geng Jin , Song Wei , Jiang Zhonghua
Published: May 2018

Background and Goals.This study aimed to investigate the diagnostic accuracy of magnifying endoscopy with narrow band imaging (ME-NBI) and determine its value for invasion depth staging in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma.Methods. We searched the PubMed, Embase, and Cochrane Library databases and found relevant studies published up to December 2016. Quality Assessment of Diagnostic Accuracy Studies 2 was used to evaluate the quality of the studies. We calculated sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood values from forest plots and determined summary receiver operating characteristic (sROC) curves for ME-NBI diagnostic accuracy analysis.Results. Ten studies met our criteria and were selected for this meta-analysis. A total of 1,033 patients underwent ME-NBI, and 207 of these patients received a diagnosis of staging mucosal or submucosal invasion. The pooled sensitivity, specificity, and positive and negative likelihood values of ME-NBI for the diagnostic rate were 0.90 (95% CI, 0.71–0.97), 0.90 (95% CI, 0.80–0.95), 6.74 (95% CI, 3.52–712.89), and 0.20 (95% CI, 0.10–0.42), respectively. The area under the curve (AUC) was 0.95 for all studies.Conclusions. ME-NBI provides a high diagnostic rate in evaluating the esophagus to diagnose squamous cell carcinoma. In the differentiation for invasion depth staging, ME-NBI was demonstrated to be superior to white light endoscopy and had a similar diagnostic rate compared with HF-EUS. However, HF-EUS had high positive likelihood values for invasion depth staging, suggesting that HF-EUS is a reliable method for confirming invasion depth staging.
Mechanical Characterization of Carbon Fibres Recycled by Steam Thermolysis: A Statistical Approach
Authors: Boulanghien M. , R’Mili M. , Bernhart G. , Berthet F. , Soudais Y.
Published: May 2018

The recent development of technologies for recycling carbon fibre reinforced plastics (CFRPs) leads to the need to evaluate the mechanical response of recycled carbon fibres. As these fibres are likely to be degraded during the recycling treatment, it is very important to determine their tensile residual properties so as to evaluate their ability as reinforcement for new composite materials. Carbon fibres reclaimed by a steam‐thermal treatment applied to degrade the epoxy resin matrix of a CFRP are here analysed. Two conditions were chosen so as to reach two degradation efficiency levels of the steam thermolysis. Several carbon fibre samples were selected for mechanical testing carried out either on single filaments using single fibre tensile tests or on fibre tows using bundle tensile tests. It is shown that the single fibre tensile test leads to a wide variability of statistical parameters derived from the analysis. Bundle tensile tests results were able to indicate that fibre strength of recycled carbon fibre is similar to corresponding as‐received carbon fibres thanks to a statistically relevant database. Wide number of tested filaments enabled indeed to obtain low scatters.
S-Amlodipine: An Isomer with Difference—Time to Shift from Racemic Amlodipine
Authors: Dalal Jamshed , Mohan J. C. , Iyengar S. S. , Hiremath Jagdish , Sathyamurthy Immaneni , Bansal Sandeep , Kahali Dhiman , Dasbiswas Arup
Published: May 2018

Calcium channel blockers are among the first-line drugs for treatment of hypertension (HTN). S-amlodipine (S-AM), an S-enantiomer of amlodipine, is available in India and in other countries like China, Korea, Russia, Ukraine, and Nepal. Being clinically researched for nearly two decades, we performed in-depth review of S-AM. This review discusses clinical evidence from total 42 studies (26 randomized controlled trials, 14 observational studies, and 2 meta-analyses) corroborating over 7400 patients treated with S-AM. Efficacy and safety of S-AM in HTN in comparison to racemic amlodipine, used as monotherapy and in combination with other antihypertensives, efficacy in angina, and pleiotropic benefits with S-AM, are discussed in this review.
Hysteretic Behaviour of Stockbridge Dampers: Modelling and Parameter Identification
Authors: Foti Francesco , Martinelli Luca
Published: May 2018

Stockbridge dampers are widely used to mitigate the vortex-induced vibrations of overhead electrical line conductors and of many other cable or cable-like structures exposed to the action of wind. Aim of this work is to develop a simple, but accurate, mechanical model of a Stockbridge damper to use in the assessment of such structures vibrations. The model is based on a beam-like description of the messenger cable and on a nonlinear formulation of the cross sections cyclic bending behaviour. At the cross-sectional level, the mechanical behaviour of the messenger cable is reproduced with the classic Bouc-Wen hysteretic model, which has been recognized as adequate to represent the local behaviour mainly controlled by interwire sliding processes. The Bouc-Wen model parameters are identified from experimental results available in literature and used at the local (cross-sectional) level to characterize the mechanical behaviour of the messenger cable. The descending global behaviour of the Stockbridge damper compares very favourably with the experimental results in terms of the impedance function at the clamp and allows for the confident use of the proposed model inside the assessing process of full power lines. The important role of the end zones of the messenger cable is highlighted. In these zones, a boundary layer like transition is found to occur for the bending stiffness of the messenger cable cross section. This largely affects the global behaviour of the Stockbridge damper. The length of these zones complements the model parameters.
An Efficient Traffic Congestion Monitoring System on Internet of Vehicles
Authors: Nguyen Duc-Binh , Dow Chyi-Ren , Hwang Shiow-Fen
Published: May 2018

Existing intelligent transport systems (ITS) do not fully consider and resolve accuracy, instantaneity, and compatibility challenges while resolving traffic congestion in Internet of Vehicles (IoV) environments. This paper proposes a traffic congestion monitoring system, which includes data collection, segmented structure establishment, traffic‐flow modelling, local segment traffic congestion prediction, and origin‐destination traffic congestion service for drivers. Macroscopic model‐based traffic‐flow factors were formalized on the basis of the analysis results. Fuzzy rules‐based local segment traffic congestion prediction was performed to determine the traffic congestion state. To enhance prediction efficiency, this paper presents a verification process for minimizing false predictions which is based on the Rankine‐Hugoniot condition and an origin‐destination traffic congestion service is also provided. To verify the feasibility of the proposed system, a prototype was implemented. The experimental results demonstrate that the proposed scheme can effectively monitor traffic congestion in terms of accuracy and system response time.
GLPP: A Game-Based Location Privacy-Preserving Framework in Account Linked Mixed Location-Based Services
Authors: Ma Zhuo , Cao Jiuxin , Chen Xiusheng , Xu Shuai , Liu Bo , Yang Yuntao
Published: May 2018

In Location-Based Services (LBSs) platforms, such as Foursquare and Swarm, the submitted position for a share or search leads to the exposure of users’ activities. Additionally, the cross-platform account linkage could aggravate this exposure, as the fusion of users’ information can enhance inference attacks on users’ next submitted location. Hence, in this paper, we propose GLPP, a personalized and continuous location privacy-preserving framework in account linked platforms with different LBSs (i.e., search-based LBSs and share-based LBSs). The key point of GLPP is to obfuscate every location submitted in search-based LBSs so as to defend dynamic inference attacks. Specifically, first, possible inference attacks are listed through user behavioral analysis. Second, for each specific attack, an obfuscation model is proposed to minimize location privacy leakage under a given location distortion, which ensures submitted locations’ utility for search-based LBSs. Third, for dynamic attacks, a framework based on zero-sum game is adopted to joint specific obfuscation above and minimize the location privacy leakage to a balanced point. Experiments on real dataset prove the effectiveness of our proposed attacks in Accuracy, Certainty, and Correctness and, meanwhile, also show the performance of our preserving solution in defense of attacks and guarantee of location utility.
Secure and Efficient User Authentication Scheme Based on Password and Smart Card for Multiserver Environment
Authors: Zhao Yan , Li Shiming , Jiang Liehui
Published: May 2018

The rapid development of information and network technologies motivates the emergence of various new computing paradigms, such as distributed computing, cloud computing, and edge computing. This also enables more and more network enterprises to provide multiple different services simultaneously. To ensure these services can only be accessed conveniently by authorized users, many password and smart card based authentication schemes for multiserver architecture have been proposed. Recently, Truong et al. introduced an identity based user authentication scheme on elliptic curve cryptography in multiserver environment and claimed that their scheme is secure against popular attacks. However, in this paper, we point out that their scheme suffers from offline password guessing and impersonation attack and fails to achieve security requirements of this kind of authentication scheme. Moreover, we put forward a new scheme to conquer security pitfalls in the above scheme. Security analysis indicates that the proposed scheme can be free from well-known attacks. Performance discussion demonstrates that our scheme has advantages in terms of both security property and computation efficiency and thus is more desirable for practical applications in multiserver environment.
Photooxygenations and Self-Sensitizations of Naphthylamines: Efficient Access to Iminoquinones
Authors: Wei Ying , Tang Lei , Zhong Chunxiao , Xie Xinmiao , Sun Pengju , Sun Chen , Zhang He , Zheng Xiang-ping , Wang Xiuli , Xie Ling-hai
Published: May 2018

A series of spiro [fluorene-9,7′-dibenzo[c,h]acridine]-5′-one (SFDBAO) derivatives have been concisely and cleanly obtained by exposure to sunlight without external photosensitizers in the higher yields than that when using a UV lamp. An interesting autocatalyst and self-sensitive procedure have been proposed to explain the effective photooxygenation. SFDBAO derivatives exhibit the continuous π-stacks in single-crystal and electron-withdraw properties with red light-emitting and photovoltaic properties.
The Role of Galectins as Modulators of Metabolism and Inflammation
Authors: Brinchmann Monica Fengsrud , Patel Deepti Manjari , Iversen Martin Haugmo
Published: May 2018

Galectins areβ-galcotosid-binding lectins. The function of galectins varies with their tissue-specific and subcellular location, and their binding to carbohydrates makes them key players in several intra- and extracellular processes where they bind to glycosylated proteins and lipids. In humans, there are 12 identified galectins, some with tissue-specific distribution. Galectins are found inside cells and in the nucleus, cytosol, and organelles, as well as extracellularly. Galectin-1, -2, -3, -4, -7, -8, -9, and -12 can all induce T-cell apoptosis and modulate inflammation. In the context of metabolic control and loss of the same in, for example, diabetes, galectin-1, -2, -3, -9, and -12 are especially interesting. This review presents information on galectins relevant to the control of inflammation and metabolism and the potential to target galectins for therapeutic purposes.
Observations of the Effects of Angiotensin II Receptor Blocker on Angiotensin II-Induced Morphological and Mechanical Changes in Renal Tubular Epithelial Cells Using Atomic Force Microscopy
Authors: Kim Jin Sug , Lee Gi-Ja , Lee Tae Won , Ihm Chun Gyoo , Lee Yu Ho , Kim Yang Gyun , Moon Ju-Young , Lee Sang Ho , Kim Ji-Hye , Kang Sung-Wook , Chae Su-Jin , Park Hun-Kuk , Jeong Kyung Hwan
Published: May 2018

Objective. Angiotensin II (Ang II) plays a profibrotic role in the kidneys. Although many pathways of Ang II have been discovered, the morphological and mechanical aspects have not been well investigated. We observed the changes in tubular epithelial cells (TECs) after Ang II treatment with or without Ang II receptor blockers (ARBs) using atomic force microscopy (AFM). Methods. TECs were stimulated with Ang II with or without telmisartan, PD123319, and blebbistatin. AFM was performed to measure the cellular stiffness, cell volume, and cell surface roughness. Epithelial to mesenchymal transition markers were determined via immunocytochemistry. Results. After Ang II stimulation, cells transformed to a flattened and elongated mesenchymal morphology. Cell surface roughness and volume significantly increased in Ang II treated TECs. Ang II also induced an increase in phospho-myosin light chain and F-actin and a decrease in E-cadherin. Ang II coincubation with either telmisartan or blebbistatin attenuated these Ang II-induced changes. Conclusion. We report, for the first time, the use of AFM in directly observing the changes in TECs after Ang II treatment with or without ARBs. Simultaneously, we successfully measured the selective effect of PD123319 or blebbistatin. AFM could be a noninvasive evaluating strategy for cellular processes in TECs.
Adipose Tissue-Secreted Factors Alter Bladder Cancer Cell Migration
Authors: Hariharan Nisha , Ashcraft Keith A. , Svatek Robert S. , Livi Carolina B. , Wilson Desiree , Kaushik Dharam , Leach Robin J. , Johnson-Pais Teresa L.
Published: May 2018

Background. Obesity is associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer recurrence. This study investigated the role of adipose tissue in bladder cancer progression. Methods. Gene expression profiling was performed on adipose tissues collected from normal weight (n=5), overweight (n=11), and obese (n=10) patients with invasive bladder cancer, and adipose stromal cells (ASCs) were obtained from two normal weight, two overweight, and two obese patients. Conditioned media (CM) was characterized and evaluated for its effects on the proliferation, migration, and invasive potential of T24 bladder cancer cells. Results. Expression profiling demonstrated depot-specific or body mass index-specific differences. Increased T24 cell migration was observed using CM harvested from all ASCs. ASC CM from an obese patient significantly increased T24 cell migration and invasion compared to ASC CM collected from normal weight and overweight patients. We identified abundant expression of CXCL1, PAI1, IL6, CX3CL1, and CCL2 in all CM. Exogenous treatment of T24 cells with PAI1, IL6, and CXCL1 enhanced migration. Depletion of CXCL1, PAI1, and IL6 in an obese patient ASC CM abrogated T24 migration. Conclusion. Factors secreted by adipose tissue influence the migration of bladder tumor cells and could play an active role in tumor progression.
Progress on Waveguide-Integrated Graphene Optoelectronics
Authors: Wang Jiaqi , Cheng Zhenzhou , Li Xuejin
Published: May 2018

Graphene, a single layer of carbon atoms arranged in the form of hexagonal lattice, has many intriguing optical and electrical properties. However, due to the atomic layer thickness, light-matter interactions in the monolayer graphene are naturally weak when the light is normally incident to the material. To overcome this challenge, waveguide-integrated graphene optoelectronic devices have been proposed and demonstrated. In such coplanar configurations, the propagating light in the waveguide can significantly interact with the graphene layer integrated on the surface of the waveguide. The combination of photonic integrated circuits and graphene also enables the development of graphene devices by using silicon photonic technology, which greatly extends the scope of graphene’s application. Moreover, the waveguide-integrated graphene devices are fully CMOS-compatible, which makes it possible to achieve low-cost and high-density integration in the future. As a result, the area has been attracting more and more attention in recent years. In this paper, we introduce basic principles and research advances of waveguide-integrated graphene optoelectronics.
Anatomical Thin Titanium Mesh Plate Structural Optimization for Zygomatic-Maxillary Complex Fracture under Fatigue Testing
Authors: Wang Yu-Tzu , Huang Shao-Fu , Fang Yu-Ting , Huang Shou-Chieh , Cheng Hwei-Fang , Chen Chih-Hao , Wang Po-Fang , Lin Chun-Li
Published: May 2018

This study performs a structural optimization of anatomical thin titanium mesh (ATTM) plate and optimal designed ATTM plate fabricated using additive manufacturing (AM) to verify its stabilization under fatigue testing. Finite element (FE) analysis was used to simulate the structural bending resistance of a regular ATTM plate. The Taguchi method was employed to identify the significance of each design factor in controlling the deflection and determine an optimal combination of designed factors. The optimal designed ATTM plate with patient-matched facial contour was fabricated using AM and applied to a ZMC comminuted fracture to evaluate the resting maxillary micromotion/strain under fatigue testing. The Taguchi analysis found that the ATTM plate required a designed internal hole distance to be 0.9 mm, internal hole diameter to be 1 mm, plate thickness to be 0.8 mm, and plate height to be 10 mm. The designed plate thickness factor primarily dominated the bending resistance up to 78% importance. The averaged micromotion (displacement) and strain of the maxillary bone showed that ZMC fracture fixation using the miniplate was significantly higher than those using the AM optimal designed ATTM plate. This study concluded that the optimal designed ATTM plate with enough strength to resist the bending effect can be obtained by combining FE and Taguchi analyses. The optimal designed ATTM plate with patient-matched facial contour fabricated using AM provides superior stabilization for ZMC comminuted fractured bone segments.
Viscoelastic Contact Simulation under Harmonic Cyclic Load
Authors: Spinu Sergiu
Published: May 2018

Characterization of viscoelastic materials from a mechanical point of view is often performed via dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA), consisting in the arousal of a steady-state undulated response in a uniaxial bar specimen, allowing for the experimental measurement of the so-called complex modulus, assessing both the elastic energy storage and the internal energy dissipation in the viscoelastic material. The existing theoretical investigations of the complex modulus’ influence on the contact behavior feature severe limitations due to the employed contact solution inferring a nondecreasing contact radius during the loading program. In case of a harmonic cyclic load, this assumption is verified only if the oscillation indentation depth is negligible compared to that due to the step load. This limitation is released in the present numerical model, which is capable of contact simulation under arbitrary loading profiles, irregular contact geometry, and complicated rheological models of linear viscoelastic materials, featuring more than one relaxation time. The classical method of deriving viscoelastic solutions for the problems of stress analysis, based on the elastic-viscoelastic correspondence principle, is applied here to derive the displacement response of the viscoelastic material under an arbitrary distribution of surface tractions. The latter solution is further used to construct a sequence of contact problems with boundary conditions that match the ones of the original viscoelastic contact problem at specific time intervals, assuring accurate reproduction of the contact process history. The developed computer code is validated against classical contact solutions for universal rheological models and then employed in the simulation of a harmonic cyclic indentation of a polymethyl methacrylate half-space by a rigid sphere. The contact process stabilization after the first cycles is demonstrated and the energy loss per cycle is calculated under an extended spectrum of harmonic load frequencies, highlighting the frequency for which the internal energy dissipation reaches its maximum.
Image Denoising Based on Adaptive Fractional Order with Improved PM Model
Authors: Yu Jimin , Zhai Rumeng , Zhou Shangbo , Tan LiJian
Published: May 2018

In order to improve the image quality, in this paper, we propose an improved PM model. In the proposed model, we introduce two novel diffusion coefficients and a residual error term and replace the integer differential operator with the fractional differential operator in the PM model. The diffusion coefficients can be used effectively for edge detection and noise removal. The residual error term can help to prevent image distortion. Fractional order differential operator has a good characteristic that it can enhance image texture information while removing image noise. Additionally, in the two new diffusion coefficients, a novel method is proposed for automatically setting parameter k, and it does not need to do any experiments to get the value of k. For the computing fractional order diffusion coefficient, we employ the discrete Fourier transform, and an iterative scheme is carried out in the frequency domain. In the proposed model, not only is the integer differential operator replaced with the fractional differential operator, but also the order of the fractional differentiation is determined adaptively with the local variance. Comparing with some existing models, the experimental results show that the proposed algorithm can not only better suppress noise, but also better preserve edge and texture information. Moreover, the running time is greatly reduced.
Material Selection and Fabrication Processes for Flexible Conformal Antennas
Authors: Monne Mahmuda Akter , Lan Xing , Chen Maggie Yihong
Published: May 2018

Flexible antennas offer many advantages for communication, radar, RF identification, and energy harvesting applications. A review on the material selection and fabrication process of flexible antennas is presented since these aspects are critical to the antenna’s overall electrical and mechanical performance. A number of different material and fabrication techniques are reviewed in detail for different types of antennas. In addition, experimental results are also discussed for these antennas, which further underlines the importance of material selection and the various fabrication processes.
Em busca dos espaços públicos de brincar: um estudo das infâncias contemporâneas na cidade de Vitória-ES
Authors: Dias Marina Simone
Published: May 2018

Este artigo é parte da pesquisa de pós-doutorado “Espaços lúdicos infantis: de Barcelona/Espanha a Vitória/Brasil (PPGAU-UFES, 2015-2016)”, cujo estudo de campo desenvolvido em Vitória - ES constitui sua base empírica. O pensamento crítico aqui exposto se constrói a partir da articulação entre campos do conhecimento adjacentes à Arquitetura e Urbanismo, como planejamento urbano, cultura urbana, educação e sociologia da infância. O trabalho se aproxima do objeto real - os sujeitos-crianças - através da infância de Vitória - ES usuária dos seus espaços lúdicos. Na inter-relação entre cidade contemporânea e infância urbana, o objetivo é introduzir algumas perspectivas acerca do lugar da criança na cidade: no espaço e na sociedade. Mais especificamente, busca-se construir uma leitura transdisciplinar para entender o potencial dos espaços públicos das grandes cidades brasileiras[1], as dinâmicas sociais e práticas infantis sobre a cidade, e o real papel que desempenham no desenvolvimento da infância, na sua sociabilidade e construção da cidadania.[1] É importante pontuar que utilizamos o termo “grandes cidades” para abarcar tanto as cidades “médias”, quanto as “grandes” e as “metrópoles”, caracterizadas por problemáticas socioespaciais semelhantes. Segundo dados do IBGE (2010), cerca de 50% da população brasileira vive em cidades com mais de 100 mil habitantes.
Richard Kelly: Pioneirismo na iluminação da arquitetura moderna
Authors: Bandeira Fernanda Brito , Scarazzato Paulo Sergio
Published: May 2018

Livros resenhado:NEUMANN, Dietrich; STERN, Robert A. M. The structure of light: Richard Kelly and the illumination of modern architecture. New York: Yale University Press, 2010, 214 p. ISBN: 978-0-300-16370-4
Diagnósticos, de Diego Agrimbau e Lucas Varela: A Estética dos Quadrinhos como Forma de Representação de Distúrbios Mentais
Authors: Queiroz Jozefh Fernando Soares , Silva Laureny Aparecida Lourenço da
Published: May 2018

Este texto se debruça sobre a obra Diagnósticos (2016), dos argentinos Diego Agrimbau e Lucas Varela. A obra reúne um conjunto de seis contos independentes sobre variados distúrbios psicológicos, tais como a claustrofobia ou a sinestesia. No decorrer do artigo, busca-se analisar como os elementos fundamentais na composição dos quadrinhos são utilizados intencionalmente para simular os efeitos de cada uma das enfermidades que protagonizam os contos. Aspectos como a composição do quadro, as relações entre a palavra e a imagem, o uso dos balões ou a noção de movimento são analisados de maneira que se compreendem não apenas os elementos constituintes das narrativas gráficas, mas também os recursos utilizados para potencializar cada trama e reforçar a representação dos distúrbios psicológicos que nelas figuram. Para isso, as análises dialogam com olhares de outros estudiosos dos quadrinhos e da relação texto-imagem, tais como Will Eisner (1999; 2008), precursor dos estudos sobre as narrativas gráficas, Laura Vazquez (2012), Jacques Rancière (2012) e Sophie Van der Linden (2011).
O voo peregrinatório: paternidade, morte e sonhos na obra de Antonio Altarriba
Authors: Antonio Ana Lúcia Mendes
Published: May 2018

Este trabalho tem o objetivo de apresentar algumas observações a respeito de elementos constituintes do romance gráfico A arte de voar, de autoria de Antonio Altarriba e do cartunista Kim, entre eles o processo narrativo e o efeito de construção de imagens metafóricas para ilustrar pensamentos e sentimentos do protagonista, Antonio Altarriba pai. Aproveitando essa análise, pontuamos conceitos caros a autores espanhóis contemporâneos ao contexto histórico da obra em questão, a Guerra Civil Espanhola, como José Bergamín e María Zambrano, quanto a morte, tempo e paternidade.
Cultural Presence in Virtual Archaeology: An Exploratory Analysis of Factors
Authors: Pujol-Tost Laia
Published: May 2018

Shared between Human-Computer Interaction and Cultural Heritage, the concept of Cultural Presence may provide an encompassing theoretical and methodological framework for Virtual Archaeology. The factors underlying presence have been extensively investigated, by means of both particular analyses as well as general statistical approaches. Yet, Cultural Presence has mostly been defined theoretically, and there are no global empirical examinations of it. The goal of this study is to verify the validity of the concept and to understand its underlying factors in the field of Virtual Archaeology. To that end we established an operational definition of Cultural Presence, we built a virtual reconstruction of an archaeological site based on it, and we evaluated the environment by means of self-reports and exploratory factor analysis. The general conclusion is that the concept of Cultural Presence is sound and composed of three main factors (cultural representation and engagement, social presence, and communicational aspects of technology); yet, it is not universal, but influenced by purpose and demographic variables.
Virtual Valcamonica: Collaborative Exploration of Prehistoric Petroglyphs and Their Surrounding Environment in Multi-User Virtual Reality
Authors: Kulik Alexander , Kunert André , Beck Stephan , Matthes Carl-Feofan , Schollmeyer Andre , Kreskowski Adrian , Fröhlich Bernd , Cobb Sue , D’Cruz Mirabelle
Published: May 2018

In this article, we present a novel, multi-user, virtual reality environment for the interactive, collaborative 3D analysis of large 3D scans and the technical advancements that were necessary to build it: a multi-view rendering system for large 3D point clouds, a suitable display infrastructure, and a suite of collaborative 3D interaction techniques. The cultural heritage site of Valcamonica in Italy with its large collection of prehistoric rock-art served as an exemplary use case for evaluation. The results show that our output-sensitive level-of-detail rendering system is capable of visualizing a 3D dataset with an aggregate size of more than 14 billion points at interactive frame rates. The system design in this exemplar application results from close exchange with a small group of potential users: archaeologists with expertise in rockart. The system allows them to explore the prehistoric art and its spatial context with highly realistic appearance. A set of dedicated interaction techniques was developed to facilitate collaborative visual analysis. A multi-display workspace supports the immediate comparison of geographically distributed artifacts. An expert review of the final demonstrator confirmed the potential for added value in rock-art research and the usability of our collaborative interaction techniques.
Kilo Hōkū—Experiencing Hawaiian, Non-Instrument Open Ocean Navigation through Virtual Reality
Authors: Karjala Patrick , Lodes Dean , Noe Kari , Sikkink Anna , Leigh Jason
Published: May 2018

In this article, we present our development of a virtual reality simulation of sailing on the Hōkūle‘a, a Polynesian double-hulled sailing canoe built in Hawai‘i in 1974, which completed its worldwide journey in 2017. The construction and sailing of this vessel is of significant importance to the Hawaiian cultural renaissance of the 1970s and 1980s; of particular relevance is Hawaiian wayfinding, the cultural practice of navigating across the open ocean to a destination without the use of maps or modern navigation instruments. By developing the simulation, we aimed to assist in the cultural preservation of the star navigation portion of Hawaiian wayfinding techniques, and to help to educate future generations of non-instrument navigators. The first implementation of Kilo Hōkū as a cultural heritage project in virtual reality was to test its viability as a tool for Modern Hawaiian wayfinders to use in classroom instruction, and its realism as an accurate reproduction of the Hōkūle‘a’s sailing experience. The reaction to the simulation from current practicing Modern Hawaiian wayfinders was positive, and indicates that further study is warranted in testing the efficacy of the simulation for teaching Hawaiian wayfinding to future navigators, as well as preserving and spreading knowledge of Hōkūle‘a and of Modern Hawaiian wayfinding beyond Hawai‘i.
Sporolithon sinusmexicanum sp. nov. (Sporolithales, Rhodophyta): a new rhodolith-forming species from deepwater rhodolith beds in the Gulf of Mexico
Authors: RICHARDS JOSEPH L. , FREDERICQ SUZANNE
Published: May 2018

Sporolithon is a non-geniculate, marine taxon that occurs in tropical to subtropical and warm temperate habitats worldwide. On the basis of specimens collected from offshore Louisiana and Florida in the Gulf of Mexico, Sporolithon sinusmexicanum sp. nov. is described. rbcL and psbA sequence analyses showed that S. sinusmexicanum is closely related to Sporolithon yoneshigueae (type locality: Bahia, Brazil). These two species can be distinguished by the number of rosette cells (10–12 in S. sinusmexicanum vs. 19–24 in S. yoneshigueae) and by the habit of the tetrasporangial structures after spore release (sloughed off in S. sinusmexicanum vs. overgrown and buried in Sporolithon yoneshigueae).
Generic typifications in Amarathaceae s.str.
Authors: IAMONICO DUILIO
Published: May 2018

Centemopsis, Dasysphaera¸ Neocentema, Nototrichium, Ptilotus, and Sericostachys are the generic names in Amaranthaceae which still appear untypified. Lectotypes of these names (according to the Art. 10.1 Note 1 of ICN) are designated in the present paper. On the basis of the Art. 10.1, I also investigated here the generitypes of the names, which are not typified [Centema glomerata, Dasysphaera tomentosa, Nototrichium viride, Ptilotus corymbosus, and Sericostachys scandens]. Specimens preserved at BM, GH, and S, and an image by Lopriore were chosen for the purpose of typification. Isolectotypes for the names Nototrichium viride, and Sericostachys scandens are also indicated from among specimens deposited at BISH, K, L, P, US, and WAG. The indications as holotype/isotype by Townsend and Bean (specimens preserved at BM, K, M, and Z) for the names Centema alternifolia, Dasysphaera tomentosa, and Ptilotus corymbosus were corrected (lectotype/isolectotype) according to the Art. 9.9, ex. 10. “Ptilotus sandwicensis”, which is currently considered as the basionym of “Nototrichium sandwicense”, is a nomen nudum and therefore not validly published according to the Art. 38.1 of ICN. As a consequence, the proposed combinations “Nototrichium sandwicense” by Hillebrand, and “Psilotrichium sandwicense” by Seeman were not validly published either.