bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Proteinuria and Albuminuria During and After Paricalcitol Treatment in Chronic Kidney Disease Patients
Authors: Ekart Robert , Bevc Sebastjan , Hojs Radovan , Hojs Nina
Published: October 2015

Data on paricalcitol lowering albuminuria and proteinuria already exist; however, it is unclear how paricalcitol withdrawal affects both. Forty‐two nondialysis chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients (29 men) aged 62.3 ± 12 years completed the study. CKD patients with proteinuria and intact parathyroid hormone ≥65 pg/mL received paricalcitol (1 μg/day po) for 6 months. After paricalcitol withdrawal we followed them for 6 more months. Paricalcitol treatment significantly reduced urinary albumin/creatinine ratio (UACR), 24‐hour albuminuria (24hA), and 24‐hour proteinuria (24hP). Six months after drug withdrawal UACR increased significantly, 24hA and 24hP did not change significantly. Serum creatinine and cystatin C significantly increased during treatment, and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) decreased. After drug withdrawal serum creatinine, cystatin C, and eGFR did not change significantly. In conclusion, 6‐month paricalcitol treatment (1 μg/day) in nondialysis CKD patients significantly reduced albuminuria and proteinuria. Six months after paricalcitol withdrawal 24hA and 24hP did not change significantly. Kidney function decreased during paricalcitol treatment; after paricalcitol withdrawal it remained stable. The unaltered values of 24hA, 24hP, and kidney function after paricalcitol withdrawal could be a delayed effect of paricalcitol treatment.
Protein stabilization and enzyme activation in ionic liquids: specific ion effects
Authors: Zhao Hua
Published: October 2015

There are still debates on whether the hydration of ions perturbs the water structure, and what is the degree of such disturbance; therefore, the origin of the Hofmeister effect on protein stabilization continues to be questioned. For this reason, it is suggested to use the ‘specific ion effect’ instead of other misleading terms such as Hofmeister effect, Hofmeister series, lyotropic effect, and lyotropic series. This review first discusses the controversial aspect of inorganic ion effects on water structures, and several possible contributors to the specific ion effect of protein stability. Due to recent overwhelming attraction of ionic liquids (ILs) as benign solvents in many enzymatic reactions, this paper further evaluates the structural properties of ILs and molecular‐level interactions in neat ILs and their aqueous solutions. Next, the specific ion effects of ILs on enzyme stability and activity are systematically compared and it is concluded that (a) the specificity of many enzymatic systems in diluted aqueous IL solutions is roughly in line with the traditional Hofmeister series albeit some exceptions; (b) however, the specificity follows a different track in concentrated or neat ILs because other factors (such as hydrogen‐bond basicity, nucelophilicity, and hydrophobicity, etc.) are playing leading roles. In addition, some examples of biocatalytic reactions in IL systems that are guided by the empirical specificity rule are demonstrated. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Lactic acid production on a combined distillery stillage and sugar beet molasses substrate
Authors: Mladenović Dragana D , Djukić‐Vuković Aleksandra P , Kocić‐Tanackov Sunčica D , Pejin Jelena D , Mojović Ljiljana V
Published: October 2015

BACKGROUND

Utilization of wastes and industrial by‐products for production of valuable bio‐based chemicals has economic and environmental advantages. The aim of this study was to investigate utilization of two industrial by‐products, distillery stillage and sugar beet molasses combined as a substrate for lactic acid and biomass production. A selection of the most appropriate lactic acid bacteria that could effectively utilize this waste substrate was performed. In addition, the effect of initial sugar concentration on lactic acid production and growth of lactic acid bacteria on the combined waste substrate was evaluated.

RESULTS

Lactobacillus paracasei NRRL B‐4564 was selected as the most promising for lactic acid production on distillery stillage and sugar beet molasses. The highest lactic acid productivity of 1.42 g L−1 h−1 and yield of 0.91 g g−1 were achieved on stillage/molasses media at initial sugar concentration of 56.74 g L−1. The highest number of L. paracasei cells at 5.3 × 109 CFU mL−1 was achieved at initial sugar concentration of 78.22 g L−1.

CONCLUSION

Combined distillery stillage and sugar beet molasses could provide valuable nutrients for growth of fastidious lactic acid bacteria and enable efficient lactic acid production, while processing industrial waste in this way has great environmental relevance. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Empirical Analysis of School Attainment/Progression in Cameroon
Authors: Tenikue Michel
Published: October 2015

In Cameroon, only one third of children progress to secondary education. This paper estimates a sequential model of school attainment to investigate the role played by family and individual characteristics in keeping children at school up to the end of secondary school. Using Cameroonian Household data, we find that while parental wealth has no effect on the probability of entering primary school, it is, however, a good predictor of completing primary and secondary education; the lack of secondary schools hinders primary school entry and that male children are more likely to stay in school up to the end of secondary education. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Purification and molecular characterization of a novel mannose‐specific lectin from Dioclea reflexa hook seeds with inflammatory activity
Authors: Pinto‐Junior Vanir R. , Correia Jorge L. A. , Pereira Ronniery I. , Pereira‐Junior Francisco N. , Santiago Mayara Q. , Osterne Vinicius J. S. , Madeira Juliana C. , Cajazeiras João B. , Nagano Celso S. , Delatorre Plinio , Assreuy Ana M. S. , Nascimento Kyria S. , Cavada Benildo S.
Published: October 2015

A novel lectin present in Dioclea reflexa seeds (DrfL) was discovered and described in this study. DrfL was purified in a single step by affinity chromatography in a Sephadex G‐50 column. The lectin strongly agglutinated rabbit erythrocytes and was inhibited by α‐methyl‐d‐mannoside, d‐mannose, and d‐glucose. The hemagglutinating activity of DrfL is optimum at pH 5.0–7.0, stable up to 50 °C, and dependent on divalent cations. Similar to other lectins of the subtribe Diocleinae, the analysis by mass spectrometry indicated that DrfL has three chains (α, β, and γ) with masses of 25 562, 12 874, and 12 706 Da, respectively, with no disulfide bonds or glycosylation. DrfL showed inflammatory activity in the paw edema model and exhibited low cytotoxicity against Artemia sp. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Clinical course and prognostic factors in patients with malignant pheochromocytoma and paraganglioma: A single institution experience
Authors: Choi Yun Mi , Sung Tae‐Yon , Kim Won Gu , Lee Jong Jin , Ryu Jin‐Sook , Kim Tae Yong , Kim Won Bae , Hong Suck Joon , Song Dong Eun , Shong Young Kee
Published: October 2015

Objectives

Malignant pheochromocytoma (PCC)/paraganglioma (PG) are rare neuroendocrine malignancies, and their clinical courses and prognoses are not well understood. This study aimed to evaluate prognostic factors associated with the survival of malignant PCC/PG.

Methods

This retrospective study reviewed 299 patients with PCC and 46 with PG treated between 1997 and 2013 at our single tertiary hospital. Malignant PCC/PG was defined as the presence of distant metastasis or recurrence at sites where neuroendocrine tissue is normally not present.

Results

Twenty‐seven patients (9%) were confirmed with malignant PCC and six patients (13%) with malignant PG. Twenty‐seven patients (82%) had distant metastases, nine patients (27%) presented with a metastasis at the initial diagnosis, whilst 24 patients (73%) were diagnosed with malignant PCC/PG during follow‐up (median, 4.3 year). The median survival was 7.2 years, and the 5 year survival rate was 75.4%. Older age (>45 years), larger tumor size (>6 cm), synchronous metastasis, and absence of surgical excision were associated with poor survival by univariate analysis. By multivariate analysis, older age (HR = 4.3, P = 0.02) and synchronous metastasis (HR = 4.3, P = 0.01) were significantly associated with a poor prognosis.

Conclusions

Patients with malignant PCC/PG have diverse clinical courses. Poor survival was independently associated with older age and synchronous metastasis. J. Surg. Oncol. 2015;112:815–821. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
On complexity and homogeneity measures in predicting biological aggressiveness of prostate cancer; Implication of the cellular automata model of tumor growth
Authors: Tanase Mihai , Waliszewski Przemyslaw
Published: October 2015

Background and Objectives

We propose a novel approach for the quantitative evaluation of aggressiveness in prostate carcinomas.

Methods

The spatial distribution of cancer cell nuclei was characterized by the global spatial fractal dimensions D0, D1, and D2. Two hundred eighteen prostate carcinomas were stratified into the classes of equivalence using results of ROC analysis. A simulation of the cellular automata mix defined a theoretical frame for a specific geometric representation of the cell nuclei distribution called a local structure correlation diagram (LSCD). The LSCD and dispersion Hdwere computed for each carcinoma. Data mining generated some quantitative criteria describing tumor aggressiveness.

Results

Alterations in tumor architecture along progression were associated with some changes in both shape and the quantitative characteristics of the LSCD consistent with those in the automata mix model. Low‐grade prostate carcinomas with low complexity and very low biological aggressiveness are defined by the condition D0 < 1.545 and Hd < 38. High‐grade carcinomas with high complexity and very high biological aggressiveness are defined by the condition D0 > 1.764 and Hd < 38.

Conclusions

The novel homogeneity measure Hdidentifies carcinomas with very low aggressiveness within the class of complexity C1 or carcinomas with very high aggressiveness in the class C7.J. Surg. Oncol. 2015;112:791–801. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Objective assessment of intensive targeted treatment for solar lentigines using intense pulsed light with wavelengths between 500 and 635 nm
Authors: Tanaka Yohei , Tsunemi Yuichiro , Kawashima Makoto
Published: October 2015

Background and Objectives

Solar lentigines are commonly found in sun‐exposed areas of the body including hands, neck, or face. This study evaluates the efficacy of an intense pulsed light (IPL) device, with wavelengths between 500 and 635 nm and delivered with a targeted tip, for the treatment of solar lentigines on Japanese skin.

Study Design/Materials and Methods

Forty Japanese patients with solar lentigines received one IPL treatment with a targeted treatment tip that emits wavelengths between 500 and 635 nm and contact cooling. Pulses were delivered through a targeted tip to each lentigo until mild swelling and a gray color were observed. Digital photographs and gray level histogram values were taken pre‐ and post‐treatment, and patient assessments were recorded post‐treatment.

Results

Significant improvement was observed for all patients in digital photographs and mean values of gray level histograms (P < 0.0001). Ninety percent of patients reported satisfaction with the improvement of the treatment area and convenience of the procedure. Complications were minor and transitory, consisting of a slight burning sensation and mild erythema which resolved within 5 hours of treatment. No serious adverse events were observed.

Conclusions

A short‐wavelength IPL, delivered with a targeted tip and contact cooling, offers a highly efficacious treatment for solar lentigines in Japanese skin with minimal downtime and complications. Lasers Surg. Med. 48:30–35, 2016. © 2015 The Authors. Lasers in Surgery and Medicine Published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
δ‐Tocopherol inhibits receptor tyrosine kinase‐induced AKT activation in prostate cancer cells
Authors: Wang Hong , Hong Jungil , Yang Chung S.
Published: October 2015

The cancer preventive activity of vitamin E is suggested by epidemiological studies and supported by animal studies with vitamin E forms, γ‐tocopherol and δ‐tocopherol (δ‐T). Several recent large‐scale cancer prevention trials with high dose of α‐tocopherol, however, yielded disappointing results. Whether vitamin E prevents or promotes cancer is a serious concern. A better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of action of the different forms of tocopherols would enhance our understanding of this topic. In this study, we demonstrated that δ‐T was the most effective tocopherol form in inhibiting prostate cancer cell growth, by inducing cell cycle arrest and apoptosis. By profiling the effects of δ‐T on the cell signaling using the phospho‐kinase array, we found that the most inhibited target was the phosphorylation of AKT on T308. Further study on the activation of AKT by EGFR and IGFR revealed that δ‐T attenuated the EGF/IGF‐induced activation of AKT (via the phosphorylation of AKT on T308 induced by the activation of PIK3). Expression of dominant active PIK3 and AKT in prostate cancer cell line DU145 in which PIK3, AKT, and PTEN are wild type caused the cells to be reflectory to the inhibition of δ‐T, supporting that δ‐T inhibits the PIK3‐mediated activation of AKT. Our data also suggest that δ‐T interferes with the EGF‐induced EGFR internalization, which leads to the inhibition of the receptor tyrosine kinase‐dependent activation of AKT. In summary, our results revealed a novel mechanism of δ‐T in inhibiting prostate cancer cell growth, supporting the cancer preventive activity δ‐T. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The sirtuins: Markers of metabolic health
Authors: Covington Jeffrey D. , Bajpeyi Sudip
Published: October 2015

The sirtuins represent a class of proteins first discovered orthologus to the yeast silent information regulator 2 protein that have been retained in mammalian species. Currently, seven sirtuins have been identified in humans, and their functions currently surpass their originally identified role as histone deacetylase and chromatin silencers to encompass nutrient sensing and metabolic function. All seven sirtuins require NAD+ in order to carry out their enzymatic activity, and thus become activated in conditions of nutrient depletion, starvation, and cellular stress. Caloric restriction and increased physical activity have been postulated, though perhaps controversially, to mediate sirtuin function. Here, we review the current literature surrounding the functions of the seven human sirtuins, mediators of their function, and the roles they play in metabolic health related to dietary and physical activity interventions. Despite the controversy surrounding sirtuin function with regard to longevity, we have aimed to show that regardless of its effects on aging, sirtuin function is pivotal to pathways involving metabolic health, and should therefore be investigated with regard to improving metabolic diseases such as obesity and type 2 diabetes.
The effects of 2,4‐dinitrophenol and d‐glucose concentration on the development, sex ratio, and interferon‐tau (IFNT) production of bovine blastocysts
Authors: Green Mark P. , Harvey Alexandra J. , Spate Lee D. , Kimura Koji , Thompson Jeremy G. , Roberts R. Michael
Published: October 2015

The preimplantation bovine embryo displays sexual dimorphism in glucose sensitivity and interferon‐tau (IFNT) secretion that are negated by inhibition of the pentose phosphate pathway, suggesting that the association between glucose metabolism and IFNT likely underpins the selective loss of female embryos. The aim of this study was to determine if altered glucose metabolism, through glucose supplementation and/or uncoupling oxidative phosphorylation with 2,4‐dinitrophenol (DNP), affected embryo development. Bovine blastocyst development, sex, and IFNT production were examined in embryos cultured in the presence or absence of glucose (0, 1.5, 4 mM) with or without exposure to DNP (0, 10, 100 μM) between Days 5 and 8 post‐fertilization. The absence or presence of high (4 mM) glucose reduced blastocyst development and favored the development of male embryos (P < 0.001). DNP at 10 μM had no effect, whereas 100 μM had a negative impact on blastocyst development. Notably, in the presence or even absence of glucose, supplementation with 10 μM DNP further skewed the sex ratio toward males (P < 0.05). Sexually dimorphic IFNT production was maintained in these conditions, although total production was reduced in the presence of high glucose and DNP, irrespective of embryo sex. These data suggest that the pentose phosphate pathway can modulate embryonic sex ratio and development. Therefore, bovine embryo culture should be undertaken in a low glucose (<2.5 mM) medium to minimize potential embryonic stress, as higher concentrations have sexually dimorphic effects on development and an embryo's ability to signal to the maternal reproductive tract. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 83: 50–60, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Trefftz‐based dual reciprocity method for hyperbolic boundary value problems
Authors: Moldovan I. D. , Radu L.
Published: October 2015

A new dual reciprocity‐type approach to approximating the solution of non‐homogeneous hyperbolic boundary value problems is presented in this paper. Typical variants of the dual reciprocity method obtain approximate particular solutions of boundary value problems in two steps. In the first step, the source function is approximated, typically using radial basis, trigonometric or polynomial functions. In the second step, the particular solution is obtained by analytically solving the non‐homogeneous equation having the approximation of the source function as the non‐homogeneous term. However, the particular solution trial functions obtained in this way typically have complicated expressions and, in the case of hyperbolic problems, points of singularity. Conversely, the method presented here uses the same trial functions for both source function and particular solution approximations. These functions have simple expressions and need not be singular, unless a singular particular solution is physically justified. The approximation is shown to be highly convergent and robust to mesh distortion.

Any boundary method can be used to approximate the complementary solution of the boundary value problem, once its particular solution is known. The option here is to use hybrid‐Trefftz finite elements for this purpose. This option secures a domain integral‐free formulation and endorses the use of super‐sized finite elements as the (hierarchical) Trefftz bases contain relevant physical information on the modeled problem. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Self‐comparisons as motivators for healthy behavior
Authors: Shakya Holly B. , Christakis Nicholas A. , Fowler James H.
Published: October 2015

Objective

We explored whether individuals' comparison of themselves to their social contacts, specifically feeling fitter or thinner than friends, is a significant predictor of three weight‐loss behaviors (dieting, reducing alcohol, exercising).

Methods

We used a longitudinal survey of a national sample of Americans (N = 20,373) to measure respondents' personal social networks and their self‐comparisons to their social contacts at two annual waves.

Results

Participants who felt thinner than friends in Wave 1 had 1.16 lower odds of dieting in Wave 2. Those who felt fitter than friends in Wave 1 had 1.10 times higher odds of reducing alcohol and 1.18 times higher odds of exercising in Wave 2. We found that 20% of the relationship between feeling thin at baseline and subsequent dieting may be because feeling heavier than friends makes one want to lose weight. This same dynamic accounts for 25% of the relationship between feeling fit and dieting and 12% of the relationship between feeling thin and reducing alcohol.

Conclusions

These results suggest that normative self‐comparison with important others is a potentially salient determinant of obesity‐related health behavior and appears to work differently depending upon the behavior. Interventions may benefit from exploiting social comparisons in targeted ways.
Probiotic supplementation and trimethylamine‐N‐oxide production following a high‐fat diet
Authors: Boutagy Nabil E. , Neilson Andrew P. , Osterberg Kristin L. , Smithson Andrew T. , Englund Tessa R. , Davy Brenda M. , Hulver Matthew W. , Davy Kevin P.
Published: October 2015

Objective

The objective of this study was to test the hypothesis that the multi‐strain probiotic VSL#3 would attenuate the increase in fasting plasma concentrations of trimethylamine‐N‐oxide (TMAO) following a high‐fat diet.

Methods

Nineteen healthy, non‐obese males (18‐30 years) participated in the present study. Following a 2‐week eucaloric control diet, subjects were randomized to either VSL#3 (900 billion live bacteria) or placebo (cornstarch) during the consumption of a hypercaloric (+1,000 kcal day−1), high‐fat diet (55% fat) for 4 weeks. Plasma TMAO, L‐carnitine, choline, and betaine (UPLC‐MS/MS) were measured at baseline and following a high‐fat diet.

Results

Plasma TMAO significantly increased 89% ± 66% vs. 115% ± 61% in both the VSL#3 and placebo groups, respectively; however, the magnitude of change in plasma TMAO was not different (P > 0.05) between them. Plasma L‐carnitine, choline, and betaine concentrations did not increase following the high‐fat diet in either group.

Conclusions

A high‐fat diet increases plasma TMAO in healthy, normal‐weight, young males. However, VSL#3 treatment does not appear to influence plasma TMAO concentrations following a high‐fat diet. Future studies are needed to determine whether other therapeutic strategies can attenuate the production of TMAO.
Application of comprehensive NMR‐based analysis strategy in annotation, isolation and structure elucidation of low molecular weight metabolites of Ricinus communis seeds
Authors: Vučković Ivan , Rapinoja Marja‐Leena , Vaismaa Matti , Vanninen Paula , Koskela Harri
Published: October 2015

Introduction

Powder‐like extract of Ricinus communis seeds contain a toxic protein, ricin, which has a history of military, criminal and terroristic use. As the detection of ricin in this “terrorist powder” is difficult and time‐consuming, related low mass metabolites have been suggested to be useful for screening as biomarkers of ricin.

Objective

To apply a comprehensive NMR‐based analysis strategy for annotation, isolation and structure elucidation of low molecular weight plant metabolites of Ricinus communis seeds.

Methodology

The seed extract was prepared with a well‐known acetone extraction approach. The common metabolites were annotated from seed extract dissolved in acidic solution using 1H NMR spectroscopy with spectrum library comparison and standard addition, whereas unconfirmed metabolites were identified using multi‐step off‐line HPLC‐DAD‐NMR approach.

Results

In addition to the common plant metabolites, two previously unreported compounds, 1,3‐digalactoinositol and ricinyl‐alanine, were identified with support of MS analyses.

Conclusion

The applied comprehensive NMR‐based analysis strategy provided identification of the prominent low molecular weight metabolites with high confidence. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Quantifying the impact of time‐varying baseline risk adjustment in the self‐controlled risk interval design
Authors: Li Lingling , Kulldorff Martin , Russek‐Cohen Estelle , Kawai Alison Tse , Hua Wei
Published: October 2015

Purpose

The self‐controlled risk interval design is commonly used to assess the association between an acute exposure and an adverse event of interest, implicitly adjusting for fixed, non‐time‐varying covariates. Explicit adjustment needs to be made for time‐varying covariates, for example, age in young children. It can be performed via either a fixed or random adjustment. The random‐adjustment approach can provide valid point and interval estimates but requires access to individual‐level data for an unexposed baseline sample. The fixed‐adjustment approach does not have this requirement and will provide a valid point estimate but may underestimate the variance. We conducted a comprehensive simulation study to evaluate their performance.

Methods

We designed the simulation study using empirical data from the Food and Drug Administration‐sponsored Mini‐Sentinel Post‐licensure Rapid Immunization Safety Monitoring Rotavirus Vaccines and Intussusception study in children 5–36.9 weeks of age. The time‐varying confounder is age. We considered a variety of design parameters including sample size, relative risk, time‐varying baseline risks, and risk interval length.

Results

The random‐adjustment approach has very good performance in almost all considered settings. The fixed‐adjustment approach can be used as a good alternative when the number of events used to estimate the time‐varying baseline risks is at least the number of events used to estimate the relative risk, which is almost always the case.

Conclusions

We successfully identified settings in which the fixed‐adjustment approach can be used as a good alternative and provided guidelines on the selection and implementation of appropriate analyses for the self‐controlled risk interval design. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
High refractive index hyperbranched polyvinylsulfides for planar one‐dimensional all‐polymer photonic crystals
Authors: Gazzo Serena , Manfredi Giovanni , Pötzsch Robert , Wei Qiang , Alloisio Marina , Voit Brigitte , Comoretto Davide
Published: October 2015

We report on the growth and characterization of one‐dimensional (1D) planar all‐polymer photonic crystals (PhC) with high dielectric contrast (Δn = 0.3) prepared by spin coating using hyperbranched polyvinylsulfide polymers (HB‐PVS) as high refractive index material and cellulose acetate as low refractive index material. Solution processable HB‐PVS show a near ultraviolet absorption inducing an increased refractive index in the visible‐near infrared (n = 1.68, λ = 1000 nm). HBPVS:Cellulose Acetate Distributed Bragg Reflectors show a very clear fingerprint of the photonic band gap possessing the expected polarized dispersion properties as a function of the incidence angle. Moreover, engineered microcavities tuned on the weak fluorescence spectrum of the HB‐PVS show directional fluorescence enhancement effects due to spectral redistribution of the emission oscillator strength. The combination of all these properties testifies the high optical quality of the obtained photonic structures thus indicating HB‐PVS as an interesting material for the preparation of such PhC. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part B: Polym. Phys. 2016, 54, 73–80
Does fear of cancer recurrence differ between cancer types? A study from the population‐based PROFILES registry
Authors: van de Wal Marieke , van de Poll‐Franse Lonneke , Prins Judith , Gielissen Marieke
Published: October 2015

Objective

Knowledge of factors associated with fear of cancer recurrence (FCR) may inform intervention development and improve patient care. The aims were (1) to compare FCR severity between cancer types and (2) to identify associations between FCR, demographics, medical characteristics, information provision and health‐related quality of life.

Methods

Cross‐sectional data were obtained from the Patient Reported Outcomes Following Initial Treatment and Long‐Term Evaluation of Survivorship registry. We included stage I and II survivors diagnosed with melanoma (n = 469), colorectal cancer (n = 861), endometrial cancer (n = 688), thyroid cancer (n = 218), Hodgkin (n = 103) and non‐Hodgkin lymphoma (n = 276). Cancer survivors completed questionnaires on FCR (Impact of Cancer scale – Health Worries subscale), satisfaction with information provision (European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer, Quality of Life Questionnaire (EORTC‐QLQ) INFO25, satisfaction scale) and health‐related quality of life (EORTC‐QLQ C30, Short Form 36‐item).

Results

A total of 2615 survivors completed the Impact of Cancer scale – Health Worries subscale. No significant differences in FCR severity were found between any of the cancer types (p = 0.063). A younger age, female gender, stage II disease, a shorter time since diagnosis, scheduled follow‐up appointments and comorbidity were associated with higher FCR (p < 0.01). Satisfaction with information provision was negatively correlated with FCR severity (r = −0.16, p < 0.05). Demographic and medical factors accounted for 6% of explained variance in FCR. The full model, also including health‐related quality of life, explained 15% and 19%, respectively.

Conclusion

Fear of cancer recurrence seems to be a universal concern of cancer survivors rather than a cancer type‐specific problem. Gender, age and medical factors were identified as risk factors. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Preparation of HMX/TATB Composite Particles Using a Mechanochemical Approach
Authors: Wang Zhixiang , Guo Xiaode , Wu Fei , Yan Ting
Published: October 2015

To improve the safety of HMX, HMX/TATB composite particles were prepared using a mechanochemical approach. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FT‐IR) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) were employed to characterize the HMX particles before and after being coated. The results showed that the HMX particles were coated by submicrometer‐sized TATB particles. The crystal form of HMX maintained unchanged during the whole preparing process. The decomposition characteristics of HMX/TATB composite were investigated by DSC, showing that the decomposition peak temperature increased by 5.141 °C, while the phase transition temperature decreased by 4.064 °C. Compared with the uncoated HMX particles, the impact and friction sensitivities were decreased by 56.1 and 70 %. Moreover, the grinding mechanism was investigated and discussed.
On the Comparison of Small Nitrogen and Phosphorus Oxide Cages
Authors: Buszek Robert J. , Boatz Jerry A.
Published: October 2015

Ab initio electronic structure calculations, including a natural bond orbital (NBO) analysis, are employed to compare the stabilities of larger nitrogen oxide cages and phosphorus oxide cages relative to the cage compound c‐N2O3 , which has been previously investigated as a potential energetic oxidizer. The larger NO cages, c‐N2O6  and c‐N4O6 exhibit less internal strain but have significantly lower barriers to decomposition of 1.9 kJ mol−1 and 5.6 kJ mol−1 respectively, compared to 37.6 kJ mol−1 for c‐N2O3, at the MP2/aug‐cc‐pVDZ level of theory. In contrast, the phosphorus oxide cage c‐P2O3 exhibits similar internal strain but has a significantly larger barrier to decomposition of 40.2 kJ mol−1 compared to the 24.4 kJ mol−1 of c‐N2O3 at CCSD(T)/CBS(Q‐5). Furthermore, NBO analysis shows that the PO bond is more ionic in nature compared to the NO bond. The reduced degree of ionic character leads to the kinetic instability of the nitrogen oxide cages and therefore renders them impractical as energetic oxidizers.
Temporal and Spatial Patterns of Fish Response to Hydromorphological Processes
Authors: Wolter C. , Buijse A. D. , Parasiewicz P.
Published: October 2015

This paper relates life cycle characteristics of fishes, their environmental tolerances, habitat requirements, and resilience against hydromorphological disturbances to a recently developed river typology providing a hierarchy of spatial units. It aims to identify the most relevant spatiotemporal scales for river restoration and environmental assessment.

Most fish species, except diadromous and some potamodromous species, can complete their life cycle within a river reach and form sustainable populations within a river segment. They typically move within the spatial scale of river segments and have their home range within the river reach. By comprising heterogeneous patterns of different geomorphic and hydraulic units, the reach provides habitat complexity and heterogeneity that supports river‐type‐specific fish assemblages. The single units are often used temporarily or by specific life stages only underpinning the need for habitat diversity. Further, they might be only temporarily available. River fishes have evolved several life cycle adaptations to improve their resilience against stochastic disturbances, as high fecundity, multiple spawning, batch‐spawning, a protracted annual spawning season, and long life‐time fecundity with multi‐cyclic spawning. Therefore, they are well adapted to environmental variations driven by hydromorphological processes.

Considering the home range of most species, representative sampling at the reach scale will cover all functional river elements, hydraulic, and geomorphic units, while accounting for their temporary or sporadic use by fish. Therefore, the reach scale appears as practicable and sufficient scale for fish‐based assessments and as highly relevant planning unit in hydromorphological river restoration practise. Nonetheless, reach‐scale characteristics are largely inherited from large‐scale geomorphic processes and multiple pressures at the catchment scale that may impact aquatic communities and river restoration success at the lower spatial scales. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Assessing the Participatory Potential of Systems Mapping
Authors: Király Gábor , Köves Alexandra , Pataki György , Kiss Gabriella
Published: October 2015

The complexity of sustainability issues prompts both science and policy‐making to broaden their methodologies in finding solutions to problems of environmental, social and economic sustainability. In the realms of post‐normal science, quests to find adequate answers to everyday challenges happen in an issue‐driven, policy‐oriented manner where the issue of involving the widest possible range of stakeholders is of utmost importance. Participatory systems mapping is a new type of participatory technique, which has emerged in the last few years. In such a process, participants jointly devise diagrams on a topical issue and develop policy recommendations. The paper discusses an experiment applying this method concerning the issue of sustainable consumption. The authors point out that systems mapping has many significant features that can enrich participatory methodologies. However, the participatory potential of systems mapping might be limited because it can be demanding for groups with lower levels of knowledge capital. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Rotary scanning wireless temperature measurement method for hyperthermia using ferromagnetic implants
Authors: Tonthat Loi , Saito Hajime , Miyamoto Ryuhei , Suzuki Masafumi , Yoshimura Noboru , Mitobe Kazutaka
Published: October 2015

Recently, the use of a ferromagnetic material in a soft‐heating method has garnered much attention as a novel method for cancer treatment. By concurrently using this material as a thermal probe, we are currently developing a minimally invasive heating and wireless temperature measurement system. To make the approach feasible in a clinical setting, it is vital to overcome the key challenge of heating the local tumor at a constant temperature. In previous conventional approaches, it was necessary to switch the induction‐heating power supply on/off after the target tumor temperature was reached. However, it cannot determine the temperature of the material during the power‐off period. Therefore, we changed this approach and found that by adjusting the distance between the heating coil and the material while maintaining a constant current flow in heating coil, the drift problem, which happened just after power is supplied during the on/off operation, did not occur any longer. Accordingly, it was not required to use multiple sensors to reduce the drift, thereby minimizing the cost. This study verifies the validity of our wireless thermometry approach while performing rotary scanning and proposes a technique for determining achievement of the target temperature. This knowledge complements other approaches for cancer treatment utilizing hyperthermia. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Modeling method of fast transient for unsymmetrical stray capacitance to ground
Authors: Permata Diah , Nagaoka Naoto
Published: October 2015

Transient characteristic of power system apparatus in a high‐frequency region should be modeled with stray capacitors. Pi‐type circuit is commonly used to represent the stray capacitors between terminals and those to the ground. A modeling method for the pi‐type circuit with unsymmetrical stray capacitances to ground is proposed in this paper. To obtain the unsymmetrical stray capacitances to ground, a couple of differential‐mode measurements are interchangeably applied. The parameters of the pi‐type circuit can be determined by the measurements with a common‐mode measurement. A nonlinear least‐squares method is used to estimate the capacitances. The method is applied to compose an equivalent circuit of a miniature circuit breaker (MCB), which has unsymmetrical stray capacitances to ground. The application is not only for the MCB but also for a scaled model of a high‐voltage circuit breaker. A gas‐filled arrester is used as a voltage sensor for the test because the voltage across the stray capacitor cannot be directly measured due to the input capacitance of a voltage probe. A transient response of the MCB with the gas‐filled arresters is numerically simulated to show the usefulness of the equivalent circuit. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Total variation regularized back‐projection method for spatial resolution enhancement
Authors: Rui Lai , Yin‐tang Yang
Published: October 2015

Iterative back‐projection (IBP) technique is commonly utilized to minimize the error of the super resolution (SR) reconstruction and acquire a high spatial resolution image with appealing visual effect. However, the IBP‐based SR method suffers from the chessboard and ringing effect around edges. In this paper, we employ the total variation as a part of the penalty function to minimize the reconstruction error, which helps to avoid across‐edge smoothing and suppress the above‐mentioned artifacts simultaneously. The experimental results validate that the proposed method leads to significant gain in terms of both the peak signal‐to‐noise ratio and the structural similarity index, and promotes the visual effect of the image considerably. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Detection of gait impairment in the elderly using patch‐GEI
Authors: Zhou Chengju , Mitsugami Ikuhisa , Yagi Yasushi
Published: October 2015

We propose a novel method for estimating physical impairment of elderly people using gait. To achieve this, we first investigate which gait feature is effective for this purpose among gait energy image (GEI), duration time, and phase fluctuation as dynamic features. GEI is a popular appearance‐based feature showing high performance in human authentication. By comparison, we find that it is the most reasonable feature. In real situations, however, GEI is easily affected by clothes variations or carrying conditions, so that the use of whole body results in decreasing performance. Considering this problem, we thus propose to use only the GEI features of the most discriminative body patches. From the experiments that evaluate the contribution of various sizes of body patches, we find that head and chest regions perform better than the whole body with the classification accuracy improved from 80.93% to 83.17% for the visual impairment discrimination case. As for the leg impairment detection case, the leg region performs better than the whole body by an accuracy increased from 69.30 to 75.05%. These results confirm the effectiveness of patch‐GEI for impairment detection. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Lazy abstraction for timed automaton with interpolants
Authors: Chen Zuxi , Xu Zhongwei
Published: October 2015

In this paper, we adapt lazy abstraction with interpolants for reachability analysis of timed automaton. It involves computing an abstract reachability tree whose nodes are labeled by a location and a given set of predicates. The set of predicates over‐approximates the reachable clock valuations of the corresponding location, and the approximation is refined when a spurious counterexample appears. A more precise approximation usually contains fewer spurious counterexamples that require refinement, but as a result it may delay the convergence of the algorithm. The state‐of‐the‐art lazy abstraction algorithms employ interpolants to produce an approximation that is closer to the actual reachable clock valuation to eliminate the spurious errors. However, interpolant also cannot ensure the quality of the resulting approximation, as it blindly relies on the SMT solver. In order to produce optimal approximation, we assign to each node a maximal lower and upper bounds (LU‐bounds) function to produce a node‐specific LU‐bounds abstraction; the abstraction can further over‐approximate the reachable clock valuations without introducing extra spurious counterexamples. Furthermore, in our algorithm, LU‐bounds are refined only when a spurious counterexample occurs. Hence, only those clock valuations that lead to error nodes are excluded. An alternative benefit of the LU‐bounds abstraction is that it ensures that the abstraction‐refinement loop terminates. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Calibration of multiple kinects with little overlap regions
Authors: Nakazawa Mitsuru , Mitsugami Ikuhisa , Habe Hitoshi , Yamazoe Hirotake , Yagi Yasushi
Published: October 2015

When using multiple Kinects, there must be enough distances among neighboring Kinects to avoid spoiled range data caused by the interference of their infrared speckle patterns. In the arrangement, their overlapped regions are too small to apply existing calibration methods using correspondences between their observations straightforwardly. Therefore, we propose a method to calibrate Kinects without large overlapped regions. In our method, first, we add extra RGB cameras in an environment to compensate overlapped regions. Thanks to them, we can estimate their camera parameters by obtaining correspondences between color images. Next, for accurate calibration, which considers range data as well as color images of Kinects, we optimize the estimated parameters by minimizing both the errors of correspondences between color images and those of range data of planar regions, which exist in a general environment such as walls and floors. Although our method consists of conventional techniques, its combination is optimized to achieve the calibration. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Five‐phase modular stator surface‐mounted permanent magnet machine with reduced space sub‐harmonics
Authors: Kang Huilin , Zhou Libing , Wang Jin
Published: October 2015

Multiphase modular stator surface‐mounted permanent magnet machines (MSPMs) feature short end connection, unity winding factor, and low cost. However, they also exhibit rich space harmonics. A five‐phase MSPM with reduced space sub‐harmonics is proposed in this paper. The phase‐shifting method and magnetic flux barriers are adopted to reduce the slot harmonic and lowest order harmonic, respectively. A modified MSPM used for phase shifting is specially proposed. Further, the phase‐shifted MSPMs without and with magnetic flux barriers are both studied to show the separate effectiveness of the phase‐shifting method and magnetic flux barriers. The phase‐shifting angle is determined based on winding function method and the optimal angle is fixed considering the minimal tooth width. A double‐layer MSPM with 20 slots and 22 poles is exemplified, and two single‐layer 40‐slot 22‐pole MSPMs, which are respectively equipped without and with magnetic flux barriers, are proposed. Finite element analysis is performed, and the comparison results show that the space sub‐harmonics, permanent magnet eddy current loss, and the lowest mode of vibration are largely reduced in the phase‐shifted MSPM with magnetic flux barriers. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Compensation for position‐dependent mechanical resonances in head‐positioning control of hard disk drives
Authors: Yabui Shota , Atsumi Takenori , Nakamura Shigeo
Published: October 2015

We propose a compensation method for position‐dependent mechanical resonances in head‐positioning control system of hard disk drives (HDDs). To realize high‐accuracy head‐positioning control, it is important to compensate for the mechanical resonances in the head‐positioning control system. The some mechanical resonance characteristics depend on the magnetic head's location. In conventional design method, a notch filter must be designed to compensate for the mechanical resonances at any magnetic head location. The disadvantage is that phase lag caused by the notch filter worsens the stability of the head‐positioning control system. To overcome this disadvantage, we propose a magnetic head‐position‐dependent notch filter to compensate for the position‐dependent mechanical resonances in the head‐positioning control system. The simulation results in HDD benchmark model show that the proposed method can decrease the phase lag caused by the notch filter. That is, the proposed method can improve the stability compared to the conventional method. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Automatic system test technology of virtual machine software patch on IaaS cloud
Authors: Yamato Yoji
Published: October 2015

Regarding IaaS virtual machine operations, the problem is its high operation costs because users need to distribute and verify software patches for their virtual machines. We proposed an automatic verification technology for each virtual machine patch in our previous work. In this paper, we study an improvement of automatic verifications of system tests with plural virtual machines. © 2015 Institute of Electrical Engineers of Japan. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Inc.
Synthesis and Characterization of a New Energetic Salt based on Dinitramide
Authors: Zhao Jun , Jin Bo , Peng Rufang , Liu Qiangqiang , Tan Bisheng , Chu Shijin
Published: October 2015

The development of new ionic salt as green propellants is one of intense investigations to replace toxicN, N′‐dimethylhydrazine. A new energetic saltN, N′,N′′‐tri(propan‐2‐ylidene)methanetriamium dinitramide (NTAGDN) based on dinitramide was synthesized by reacting silver dinitramide with triaminoguanidinium chloride. The structure of this new energetic salt was confirmed by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction, elemental analysis, Fourier transform infrared spectrometry, ultraviolet‐visible spectrophotometry, and nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy. NTAGDN crystallizes in the orthorhombic space groupR. Thermal decomposition was studied by differential scanning calorimetry, differential thermal analysis, and thermogravimetric tandem infrared spectrometry. Results indicated that NTAGDN exhibited excellent resistance to thermal decompositions of up to 470 K and incurred an 80.54 % mass loss between 450 and 523 K via exothermic decomposition. The kinetic parameters of NTAGDN thermal decomposition were also obtained from the differential thermal analysis data by Kissinger's method withEa= 125.46 kJ·mol–1. Moreover, based on the Kamlet‐Jacobs formula, the detonation velocity and detonation pressure of NTAGDN were calculated as 6.3 km·s–1and 15 GPa, respectively.