bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Pharmacokinetics of the NS3 Protease Inhibitor, Asunaprevir (ASV, BMS‐650032), in Phase I Studies in Subjects With or Without Chronic Hepatitis C
Authors: Eley Timothy , He Bing , Huang Shu‐Pang , Li Wenying , Pasquinelli Claudio , Rodrigues A. David , Grasela Dennis M. , Bertz Richard J.
Published: August 2013

Asunaprevir (BMS‐650032, ASV) is a potent, selective hepatitis C virus (HCV) NS3 protease inhibitor in clinical evaluation for chronic hepatitis C treatment. ASV pharmacokinetics were evaluated in four single‐ and multiple‐ascending‐dose studies in healthy subjects or subjects with HCV genotype 1 infection and in human mass balance and food‐effect studies. Median Tmax was 2–4 hours. Although T½ was 14–23 hours, oral clearance was high (302–668 L/h at doses ≥100 mg). Steady state was achieved by Day 7. The ASV dose–exposure relationship was disproportionate at doses <200 mg but largely proportional for Cmax and AUC at clinically relevant doses of 200–600 mg (capsule). Following multiple doses, the accumulation index for AUC[TAU] and Cmin was lower at doses ≥200 mg, suggestive of possible auto‐induction. ASV exposure increased when administered as a solution (vs. suspension) or with a high‐fat meal; the effect was greater for Cmax than AUC, suggesting a saturable first‐pass process, the mechanism of which remains to be defined. The apparent complexities of ASV pharmacokinetics will be further explored; nevertheless, data from these studies and antiviral activity in phase 2a/2b studies support further development. Clinical studies are ongoing with ASV in combination with other antivirals.
A Multiclass Likelihood Ratio Approach for Genetic Risk Prediction Allowing for Phenotypic Heterogeneity
Authors: Wen Yalu , Lu Qing
Published: August 2013

The translation of human genome discoveries into health practice is one of the major challenges in the coming decades. The use of emerging genetic knowledge for early disease prediction, prevention, and pharmacogenetics will advance genome medicine and lead to more effective prevention/treatment strategies. For this reason, studies to assess the combined role of genetic and environmental discoveries in early disease prediction represent high priority research projects, as manifested in the multiple risk prediction studies now underway. However, the risk prediction models formed to date lack sufficient accuracy for clinical use. Converging evidence suggests that diseases with the same or similar clinical manifestations could have different pathophysiological and etiological processes. When heterogeneous subphenotypes are treated as a single entity, the effect size of predictors can be reduced substantially, leading to a low‐accuracy risk prediction model. The use of more refined subphenotypes facilitates the identification of new predictors and leads to improved risk prediction models. To account for the phenotypic heterogeneity, we have developed a multiclass likelihood‐ratio approach, which simultaneously determines the optimum number of subphenotype groups and builds a risk prediction model for each group. Simulation results demonstrated that the new approach had more accurate and robust performance than existing approaches under various underlying disease models. The empirical study of type II diabetes (T2D) by using data from theGenes and Environment Initiativessuggested heterogeneous etiology underlying obese and nonobese T2D patients. Considering phenotypic heterogeneity in the analysis leads to improved risk prediction models for both obese and nonobese T2D subjects.
A Shrinkage Method for Testing the Hardy–Weinberg Equilibrium in Case‐Control Studies
Authors: Zang Yong , Yuan Ying
Published: August 2013

Testing for the Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium (HWE) is often used as an initial step for checking the quality of genotyping. When testing the HWE for case‐control data, the impact of a potential genetic association between the marker and the disease must be controlled for otherwise the results may be biased. Li and Li [2008] proposed a likelihood ratio test (LRT) that accounts for this potential genetic association and it is more powerful than the commonly used control‐only χ2 test. However, the LRT is not efficient when the marker is independent of the disease, and also requires numerical optimization to calculate the test statistic. In this article, we propose a novel shrinkage test for assessing the HWE. The proposed shrinkage test yields higher statistical power than the LRT when the marker is independent of or weakly associated with the disease, and converges to the LRT when the marker is strongly associated with the disease. In addition, the proposed shrinkage test has a closed form and can be easily used to test the HWE for large datasets that result from genome‐wide association studies. We compare the performance of the shrinkage test with existing methods using simulation studies, and apply the shrinkage test to a genome‐wide association dataset for Alzheimer's disease.
EINVis: A Visualization Tool for Analyzing and Exploring Genetic Interactions in Large‐Scale Association Studies
Authors: Wu Yubao , Zhu Xiaofeng , Chen Jian , Zhang Xiang
Published: August 2013

Epistasis (gene‐gene interaction) detection in large‐scale genetic association studies has recently drawn extensive research interests as many complex traits are likely caused by the joint effect of multiple genetic factors. The large number of possible interactions poses both statistical and computational challenges. A variety of approaches have been developed to address the analytical challenges in epistatic interaction detection. These methods usually output the identified genetic interactions and store them in flat file formats. It is highly desirable to develop an effective visualization tool to further investigate the detected interactions and unravel hidden interaction patterns. We have developed EINVis, a novel visualization tool that is specifically designed to analyze and explore genetic interactions. EINVis displays interactions among genetic markers as a network. It utilizes a circular layout (specially, a tree ring view) to simultaneously visualize the hierarchical interactions between single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), genes, and chromosomes, and the network structure formed by these interactions. Using EINVis, the user can distinguish marginal effects from interactions, track interactions involving more than two markers, visualize interactions at different levels, and detect proxy SNPs based on linkage disequilibrium. EINVis is an effective and user‐friendly free visualization tool for analyzing and exploring genetic interactions. It is publicly available with detailed documentation and online tutorial on the web at http://filer.case.edu/yxw407/einvis/.
On the insignificance of Herschel's sunspot correlation
Authors: Love Jeffrey J.
Published: August 2013

We examine William Herschel's hypothesis that solar‐cycle variation of the Sun's irradiance has a modulating effect on the Earth's climate and that this is, specifically, manifested as an anticorrelation between sunspot number and the market price of wheat. Since Herschel first proposed his hypothesis in 1801, it has been regarded with both interest and skepticism. Recently, reports have been published that either support Herschel's hypothesis or rely on its validity. As a test of Herschel's hypothesis, we seek to reject a null hypothesis of a statistically random correlation between historical sunspot numbers, wheat prices in London and the United States, and wheat farm yields in the United States. We employ binary‐correlation, Pearson‐correlation, and frequency‐domain methods. We test our methods using a historical geomagnetic activity index, well known to be causally correlated with sunspot number. As expected, the measured correlation between sunspot number and geomagnetic activity would be an unlikely realization of random data; the correlation is “statistically significant.” On the other hand, measured correlations between sunspot number and wheat price and wheat yield data would be very likely realizations of random data; these correlations are “insignificant.” Therefore, Herschel's hypothesis must be regarded with skepticism. We compare and contrast our results with those of other researchers. We discuss procedures for evaluating hypotheses that are formulated from historical data.
Intrinsic versus extrinsic seismic anisotropy: The radial anisotropy in reference Earth models
Authors: Wang Nian , Montagner Jean‐Paul , Fichtner Andreas , Capdeville Yann
Published: August 2013

Seismic anisotropy usually arises from different mechanisms, which include lattice or crystallographic preferred orientation (LPO, CPO), alignment of cracks with or without fluid inclusions, fine layering, or partial melting. This makes the interpretation of anisotropy in terms of “intrinsic” (produced by LPO, CPO) versus “extrinsic” (produced by other mechanisms) properties difficult and nonunique. The radial anisotropy in the one‐dimensional, global spherically symmetric reference Earth is usually claimed to be intrinsic. Here we explore whether the radial anisotropy in one‐dimensional reference Earth models including preliminary reference Earth model (PREM) and the constrained reference Earth model ACY400 contains extrinsic anisotropy, especially in relation to fine layering. We conclude that as well as intrinsic anisotropy, extrinsic anisotropy introduced by finely layered models, can be considered to explain the lithospheric anisotropy in PREM, but cannot explain alone its asthenospheric anisotropy. We also find that radial anisotropy in model ACY400 is mainly intrinsic due to its petrological constraints.
Effects of a Nanofluid and Magnetic Field on the Thermal Efficiency of a Two‐Phase Closed Thermosyphon
Authors: Salehi Hadi , Zeinali Heris Saeed , Sharifi Fateme , Razbani Mohammad Amin
Published: August 2013

Heat transfer of a CuO/water nanofluid in a two‐phase closed thermosyphon (TPCT) that is thermally enhanced by a magnetic field has been predicted by an optimized artificial neural network (ANN). The magnetic field strength, volume fraction of nanoparticles in water, and inlet power were used as input parameters and the thermal efficiency was used as the output parameters. The correlation coefficient (R2 = 0.924), mean square error (MSE = 0.000340231), mean absolute error (MAE = 0.012410941), and normalized mean‐squared error (NMSE = 0.112417498) between the measured and predicted thermal efficiency by the ANN model were developed. The results were compared with experimental data and it was found that the thermal efficiency estimated by the multi‐layer perception neural network is accurate. In this study, a new approach for the auto‐design of neural networks, based on a genetic algorithm, has been used to predict collection output of a TPCT. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res, 42(7): 630–650, 2013; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/htj). DOI 10.1002/htj.21043
Piecewise prediction model for watershed‐scale erosion and sediment yield of individual rainfall events on the Loess Plateau, China
Authors: Guo‐Qiang Yu , Mao‐Sheng Zhang , Zhan‐Bin Li , Peng Li , Xia Zhang , Sheng‐Dong Cheng
Published: August 2013

Establishing a universal watershed‐scale erosion and sediment yield prediction model represents a frontier field in erosion and soil/water conservation. The research presented here was conducted on the Chabagou watershed, which is located in the first sub‐region of the hill‐gully area of the Loess Plateau, China. A back‐propagation artificial neural model for watershed‐scale erosion and sediment yield was established, with the accuracy of the model, then compared with that of multiple linear regression. The sensitivity degree of various factors to erosion and sediment yield was quantitatively analysed using the default factor test. On the basis of the sensitive factors and the fractal information dimension, the piecewise prediction model for erosion and sediment yield of individual rainfall events was established and further verified. The results revealed the back‐propagation artificial neural network model to perform better than the multiple linear regression model in terms of predicting the erosion modulus, with the former able to effectively characterize dynamic changes in sediment yield under comprehensive factor conditions. The sensitivity of runoff erosion power and runoff depth to the erosion and sediment yield associated with individual rainfall events was found to be related to the complexity of surface topography. The characteristics of such a hydrological response are thus closely related to topography. When the fractal information dimension is greater than the topographic threshold, the accuracy of prediction using runoff erosion power is higher than that of using runoff depth. In contrast, when the fractal information dimension is smaller than the topographic threshold, the accuracy of prediction using runoff depth is higher than that of using runoff erosion power. The developed piecewise prediction model for watershed‐scale erosion and sediment yield of individual rainfall events, which introduces runoff erosion power and runoff depth using the fractal information dimension as a boundary, can be considered feasible and reliable and has a high prediction accuracy. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Divide et impera: Acceleration of DTI tractography using multi‐GPU parallel processing
Authors: Lee Jungsoo , Kim Dae‐Shik
Published: August 2013

Diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) tractography technique represents neural fiber pathways by using local tensor information based on water diffusion anisotropy in brain white matter. However, DTI tractography is often unable to reconstruct crossing, kissing, and branching fiber trajectories due to intrinsic limitations of DTI. Increasingly complex tractography algorithms provided reliable and visually pleasing results, yet at an increasing computational cost in comparison with simple tractography algorithms. To shorten the computation time, we developed multi‐GPU (graphics processing unit)‐based parallelized versions of deterministic and probabilistic tractography algorithms to investigate their utility for near‐real time tractography. We were able to dramatically reduce the computation time using multiple GPUs (three NVIDIA TESLA C1060s) in comparison to the central processing unit (CPU) sequential processing. Deterministic tractography could accelerate 101 times faster, and probabilistic tractography could accelerate 63 times faster. The results showed that parallel tractography algorithm is well suited with GPU which has fundamentally parallelized architecture. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 23, 256–264, 2013
Hough transform‐based approach for estimating 3D rotation angles of vertebrae from biplanar radiographs using GPU‐acceleration
Authors: Zhang Junhua , Lv Liang , Shi Xinling , Guo Fei , Zhang Yufeng , Li Hongjian
Published: August 2013

For scoliosis assessment, a system was developed to estimate the three‐dimensional (3D) rotation angles of vertebrae from biplanar radiographs. The proposed approach was based on the generalized Hough transform (GHT) technique to match the projected contours of the standard 3D primitive with vertebral edges detected in biplanar radiographs. A deformation tolerant matching strategy was proposed to extend the GHT for an inexact contour matching. The system was implemented on a graphics processing unit (GPU). Seventeen dry vertebral specimens were used to evaluate accuracy. Precision was tested by three operators on 181 vertebrae from radiographs of 15 patients. With GPU computing, the average estimation time was 10 s for a vertebra. Results showed that the 3D estimation error was less than 2.5° with the mean value of 1.6°. The intraoperator variability was within 1.6° and the interoperator variability was within 2.2°. These promising results indicate that the proposed system can help orthopedic surgeons measure the 3D vertebral rotation angles from two‐dimensional radiographs for better assessment of scoliosis. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Int J Imaging Syst Technol, 23, 272–279, 2013
Gene-by-Diet Interactions Influence Calcium Absorption and Bone Density in Mice
Authors: Replogle Rebecca A , Li Qiang , Wang Libo , Zhang Min , Fleet James C
Published: August 2013

Dietary calcium (Ca) intake is needed to attain peak bone mineral density (BMD). Habitual low Ca intake increases intestinal Ca absorption efficiency to protect bone mass, but the mechanism controlling, and the impact of genetics on, this adaptive response is not clear. We fed 11 genetically diverse inbred mouse lines a normal (0.5%) or low (0.25%) Ca diet from 4 to 12 weeks of age (n = 8 per diet per line) and studied the independent and interacting effects of diet and genetics on Ca and bone metabolism. Significant genetic variation was observed in all bone, renal, and intestinal phenotypes measured including Ca absorption. Also, adaptation of Ca absorption and bone parameters to low dietary Ca was significantly different among the lines. Ca absorption was positively correlated to femur BMD (r = 0.17, p = 0.02), and distal femur bone volume/tissue volume (BV/TV) (r = 0.34, p < 0.0001). Although Ca absorption was correlated to 1,25 dihydroxyvitamin D (1,25(OH)2D) (r = 0.35, p < 0.0001), the adaptation of Ca absorption to low Ca intake did not correlate to diet-induced adaptation of 1,25(OH)2D across the 11 lines. Several intestinal proteins have been proposed to mediate Ca absorption: claudins 2 and 12, voltage gated Ca channel v1.3 (Cav1.3), plasma membrane Ca ATPase 1b (PMCA1b), transient receptor potential vanilloid member 6 (TRPV6), and calbindin D9k (CaBPD9k). Only the mRNA levels for TRPV6, CaBPD9k, and PMCA1b were related to Ca absorption (r = 0.42, 0.43, and 0.21, respectively). However, a significant amount of the variation in Ca absorption is not explained by the current model and suggests that novel mechanisms remain to be determined. These observations lay the groundwork for discovery-focused initiatives to identify novel genetic factors controlling gene-by-diet interactions affecting Ca/bone metabolism. © 2014 American Society for Bone and Mineral Research.
Turbidity current with a roof: Success and failure of RANS modeling for turbidity currents under strongly stratified conditions
Authors: Yeh Tzu‐hao , Cantero Mariano , Cantelli Alessandro , Pirmez Carlos , Parker Gary
Published: August 2013

Density underflows in general and turbidity currents in particular differ from rivers in that their governing equations do not allow a steady, streamwise uniform “normal” solution. This is due to the fact that density underflows entrain ambient fluid, thus creating a tendency for underflow discharge to increase downstream. Recently, however, a simplified configuration known as the “turbidity current with a roof” (TCR) has been proposed. The artifice of a roof allows for steady, uniform solutions for flows driven solely by gravity acting on suspended sediment. A recent application of direct numerical simulation (DNS) of the Navier‐Stokes equations by Cantero et al. (2009) has revealed that increasing dimensionless sediment fall velocity increases flow stratification, resulting in a damping of the turbulence. When the dimensionless fall velocity is increased beyond a threshold value, near‐bed turbulence collapses. Here we use the DNS results as a means of testing the ability of three Reynolds‐averaged Navier‐Stokes (RANS) models of turbulent flow to capture stratification effects in the TCR. Results showed that the Mellor‐Yamada and quasi‐equilibrium k‐ϵ models are able to adequately capture the characteristics of the flow under conditions of relatively modest stratification, whereas the standard k‐ϵ model is a relatively poor predictor of turbulence characteristics. As stratification strengthens, however, the deviation of all RANS models from the DNS results increases. All are incapable of predicting the collapse of near‐bed turbulence predicted by DNS under conditions of strong stratification. This deficiency is likely due to the inability of RANS models to replace viscous dissipation of turbulent energy with transfer to internal waves under conditions of strong stratification. Within the limits of modest stratification, the quasi‐equilibrium k‐ϵ model is used to derive predictors of flow which can be incorporated into simpler, layer‐averaged models of turbidity currents.
Avalanche grainflow on a simulated aeolian dune
Authors: Sutton S. L. F. , McKenna Neuman C. , Nickling W.
Published: August 2013

Avalanches maintain the slipface of aeolian dunes, which alters their airflow characteristics and sediment dynamics, and results in the development of grainflow cross‐bedding. We report on a series of experiments in which avalanches were observed on a 1:1 replica of a small (1.2 m brink height) transverse dune in the Dune Simulation Wind Tunnel under wind velocities of 8–11 m s−1. Changes in slipface topography were observed photographically and measured utilizing a 3‐D laser scanner with 1 mm2 spatial resolution. Avalanches in noncohesive sands were observed to progress through scarp recession from the point of initiation and continue until the slope angle is reduced. Changes in local slope confirm that the steep, pre‐avalanche mean slope relaxes to a uniform value equal to the angle of repose of the test sand (32°) over all involved portions of the slipface. Avalanche volumes are measured, and demonstrate that avalanche magnitude is independent of wind speed over the range of velocities observed. This independence provides the potential to significantly simplify the modeling of grainflow as a function of only the total cross brink sediment transport.
Choice in a World of New School Types
Authors: Butler J. S. , Carr Douglas A. , Toma Eugenia F. , Zimmer Ron
Published: August 2013

As school choice options have evolved over recent years, it is important to understand what family and school factors are associated with the enrollment decisions families make. Use of restricted‐access data from the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study allowed us to identify household location from a nationally representative sample of students and to match households to the actual schools attended and other nearby schools. This matching is significant as previous research generally has not been able to link individual households to school enrollment decisions. Using these data, we examined the role that socioeconomic status, race, and ethnicity play in school enrollment decisions. One of our more interesting results suggests that the newest public alternative, charter schools, attracts families with higher socioeconomic status than those that traditional public schools attract. The attraction of charter schools, however, unlike traditional public schools, appears to be racially and ethnically neutral. Families do not choose a charter school because of its racial or ethnic composition, nor do race and ethnicity within a household influence its choice of charter schools. Other socioeconomic factors influencing charter school choice are more similar to factors explaining private school choice than to those factors explaining the choice of traditional public schools. The findings suggest that policies governing the design of charter schools should focus on broader socioeconomic diversity rather than race only.
Paranoid personality disorder and the schizophrenia spectrum—Where to draw the line?
Authors: Birkeland Søren Fryd
Published: August 2013

By means of a case vignette, this study explores the clinical intersection between paranoid personality disorder and other schizophrenia‐spectrum illness. Even though the patient described had paramount signs of a paranoid personality disorder and was diagnosed as such, psychopathological symptoms extended considerably beyond the common concept and diagnostic criteria of the disorder. Management strategies included psychopharmacological and non‐pharmacological interventions, yet psychosocial functioning permanently appeared defective. While there is a persistent need for an opportunity to distinguish the characteristic syndromal pattern of paranoid personality attributes, the case exemplifies the challenges associated with classifying some largely suspicious and distrustful eccentrics within the schizophrenia spectrum. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modern heavy steel plates for use in offshore installations – characteristics and production processes
Authors: Thieme Andreas , Schröter Falko
Published: August 2013

Steels for structural applications for offshore oil and gas as well as offshore wind installations have to fulfil demanding requirements that exceed those for steels used in normal structural steelwork. The applicable steel grades must show an optimum trade‐off between sufficient toughness and good strength properties, and at the same time allow easy fabrication, especially concerning weldability. Although sufficient toughness is of importance in order to avoid abrupt failure phenomena such as brittle fracture, good strength properties are necessary to minimize the dead weight of the structure and thus facilitate transport and erection process. The significance of good fabrication properties consist of two facets: good weldability results in easy processing procedures and thus cost‐efficiency in fabrication; further, materials with good weldability exhibit a higher resistance to cracking phenomena in the heat affected zone and are therefore more “forgiving” when it comes to non‐optimum welding conditions, which may occur during erection in harsh environments.

This steel has to be tailor‐made at the steelworks, the aim being to produce it as cleanly as possible with specially adapted alloying concepts. To secure good properties in the half thickness portion of the plates, what is necessary for offshore plates, slabs and ingots have to show an accurate control of the mid thickness segregation. Additionally those plates need higher deformation ratios from slab to plate in order to get a dense structure also in the mid thickness by proper through thickness deformation. These materials are produced with various rolling and heat treatment processes, each chosen depending on the desired grade, thickness and weight of the final plate. The processes in use are normalization of the plates, thermomechanical controlled rolling and the quenching and tempering of the plates.

This article aims to support the designer or fabricator when selecting the steel grade by explaining the different production methods and the resulting properties with respect to the final use.
Improvement factors for the design of welded joints subjected to high frequency mechanical impact treatment
Authors: Ummenhofer Thomas , Weidner Philipp
Published: August 2013

The effectiveness of high frequency mechanical impact treatment for increasing the fatigue strength of welded structures has been investigated in several research projects over recent years. Based on extensive fatigue test data, design recommendations have been developed by different institutions. Most recommendations provide fatigue strength improvement factors that consider beneficial effects due to the application of post weld treatment methods. Current design recommendations use fatigue test data derived from small‐scale specimens, but only very few studies have focused on welded joints with a plate thickness > 15 mm. This paper reviews existing design recommendations and provides a database for welded joints with a plate thickness exceeding those already covered. Butt‐welded joints, longitudinal attachments and transverse attachments are covered in particular. Based on the data evaluated, improvement factors are given for a stress ratio of R = 0.1 for axial loading.
Pushing the limits – mega monopile foundations for offshore wind turbines
Authors: Scharff Rüdiger , Siems Michael
Published: August 2013

Offshore wind energy development is lagging far behind the ambitious targets that the German government set at a time when an energy turnaround was propounded. Interest in using monopile foundations in a wider field is therefore growing because this type of foundation has proved to be the most economical solution. Their benefits lie in their simple design, favourable fabrication conditions with a considerable automation potential, and short installation times. Concepts and technologies are being developed to be able to produce and install monopile foundations for water depths down to at least 40 m. The necessary design concepts have to be adapted and extended for these requirements. Approaches are presented in this paper.
SETS WITH ALMOST COINCIDING REPRESENTATION FUNCTIONS
Authors: KISS SÁNDOR Z. , ROZGONYI ESZTER , SÁNDOR CSABA
Published: August 2013

For a given integer$n$and a set$ \mathcal{S} \subseteq \mathbb{N} $, denote by${ R}_{h, \mathcal{S} }^{(1)} (n)$the number of solutions of the equation$n= {s}_{{i}_{1} } + \cdots + {s}_{{i}_{h} } $,${s}_{{i}_{j} } \in \mathcal{S} $,$j= 1, \ldots , h$. In this paper we determine all pairs$( \mathcal{A} , \mathcal{B} )$,$ \mathcal{A} , \mathcal{B} \subseteq \mathbb{N} $, for which${ R}_{3, \mathcal{A} }^{(1)} (n)= { R}_{3, \mathcal{B} }^{(1)} (n)$from a certain point on. We discuss some related problems.
THE SIMILARITY DEGREE OF SOME -ALGEBRAS
Authors: HADWIN DON , LI WEIHUA
Published: August 2013

We define the class of weakly approximately divisible unital${C}^{\ast } $-algebras and show that this class is closed under direct sums, direct limits, any tensor product with any${C}^{\ast } $-algebra, and quotients. A nuclear${C}^{\ast } $-algebra is weakly approximately divisible if and only if it has no finite-dimensional representations. We also show that Pisier’s similarity degree of a weakly approximately divisible${C}^{\ast } $-algebra is at most five.
The Centralism of ‘Twenty-First-Century Socialism’: Recentralising Politics in Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia
Authors: EATON KENT
Published: August 2013

Presidents Hugo Chávez, Rafael Correa and Evo Morales have all sought to reverse the policies of decentralisation that were adopted in the 1990s in Venezuela, Ecuador and Bolivia. This article adapts ideational and institutional hypotheses from the earlier literature on decentralisation to explain this recent movement in the opposite direction. At the ideational level, because of the close association of decentralisation with liberalisation in each country, recentralisation emerged as a way for presidents to reverse the legacies of their neoliberal predecessors. Beyond ideology, recentralisation can be explained by paying attention to the territorial distribution of electoral support; presidents used it to weaken the sub-national governments where the opposition had found political shelter, while simultaneously redirecting recentralised resources toward supporters.
Aortic arch augmentation using a pulmonary artery autograft patch and a reversed left subclavian artery flap for an interrupted aortic arch type B complex
Authors: Hasegawa Tomomi , Oshima Yoshihiro , Kadowaki Tasuku
Published: August 2013

Adequate arch augmentation for interrupted aortic arch repair is quite important to avoid post-operative recoarctation and bronchial compression. We describe here two successful cases of aortic arch reconstruction using autologous materials such as a pulmonary artery patch and a reversed left subclavian artery flap in infants with an interrupted aortic arch type B complex.
Thuja und die Beweglichkeit unserer Arzneimittelkenntnisse
Authors: Keller Georgv.
Published: August 2013

Der Verfasser versucht darzustellen, wie die Ausbildung und der Lernprozes eines homöopathischen Arztes langfristig vor sich geht. Zu den im Anfang vom Studenten gelernten einfachen Begriffen wie "Feigwarzen", "Linksseitigkeit" oder "Impffolgen" kommen im Laufe der Zeit zahlreiche Einzelheiten hinzu. Diese komplizierten Empfindungsschilderungen lassen sich nicht mehrauswendig lernen, sondern sie werden dem Hintergrundgedächtnis einverleibt, wo sie jederzeit während des Gespräches mit einem Patienten angesprochen werden können und so die Mittelwahl für diesen Patienten ermöglichen. Als Beispiel werden Fälle gebracht, in denen je eine Art von Kopfschmerz und von Hüftschmerz die Ähnlichkeit zu Thuja erkennen lassen.
Non-Born-Oppenheimer potential energy curve: Hydrogen molecular ion with highly accurate free complement method
Authors: Nakashima Hiroyuki , Nakatsuji Hiroshi
Published: August 2013

Although the concept of a potential energy curve (PEC) originates from the outgrowth of the Born-Oppenheimer (BO) approximation, we propose the application of analysis methods for the physical PEC with non-Born-Oppenheimer (non-BO) wave functions. A numerical examination was performed with the highly accurate non-BO vibronic wave functions of hydrogen molecular ion, which were obtained in our previous studies with the free complement method. The reduced density function integrated over the electron coordinates plays an important role in understanding nuclear motion dynamics, since it corresponds to the wave function density of the vibrational and rotational motions. The maximum positions of this density indicate the high existence probability of nuclei and can be considered as a discrete representation of the PEC. Whereas an ordinary PEC with the BO approximation is obtained as a numeric curve after multiple electronic state calculations at fixed nuclear coordinates, we propose a new analytical expression of the PEC from a non-BO wave function.
Spectroscopic investigations of dark Si nanocrystals in SiO2 and their role in external quantum efficiency quenching
Authors: Limpens Rens , Gregorkiewicz Tom
Published: August 2013

The percentage of dark silicon nanocrystals, i.e., the nanocrystals that are not able to radiatively recombine after absorption of a photon, is investigated by combining measurements of external and internal quantum efficiencies. The study is conducted on samples prepared by co-sputtering and subsequent heat treatments. We show that the external quantum efficiency is mainly limited by the presence of dark nanocrystals, which induce losses after direct excitation and also, as we propose, by indirect excitation enabled by energy migration. The percentage of dark nanocrystals can be decreased by high quality surface passivation as a result of low-temperature annealing in ambients of O2 and H2. By using a non-passivated sample as a reference, the relation between the size of a nanocrystal and its probability of being dark is studied. Larger nanocrystals are demonstrated to function more likely as dark centers. The study shows that high external quantum efficiencies of Si nanocrystal ensembles can be realized for small, well passivated Si nanocrystals under suppression of excitation diffusion.
Electrical current-induced gradual failure of crystalline Ge2Sb2Te5 for phase-change memory
Authors: Park Yong-Jin , Yang Tae-Youl , Cho Ju-Young , Lee So-Yeon , Joo Young-Chang
Published: August 2013

Electrical failure in crystalline Ge2Sb2Te5 was observed under a direct current bias, which induces a steady degradation of the electrical conductivity. This failure is induced by electromigration because alternating current bias stressing does not trigger this behavior. Nano-scaled voids were generated during current stressing, which explains the gradual increase in the quantitative resistance. Each nano-void previously comprised a molten phase that was induced by localized melting, which produced compositional variation during the solidification process. The phase-change memory can be damaged by electrical stressing in the non-active regions.
Effect of Sb induced type II alignment on dynamical processes in InAs/GaAs/GaAsSb quantum dots: Implication to solar cell design
Authors: Tomić Stanko
Published: August 2013

In order to improve the dynamical conditions for possible formation of quasi-Fermi level separation between states in the conduction band, upon external illumination of an quantum dot based solar cells, we employ methods of quantum engineering to design the type II alignment, using a GaAsSb barrier buffer underneath InAs/GaAs QD. By changing the Sb amount in the buffer region, we predict an increase of the interband radiative time to the same time scale as interband radiative time, with simultaneous increase of the Auger electron cooling to ∼0.1 ns.
Efficient discovery of overlapping communities in massive networks
Authors: Gopalan Prem K. , Blei David M.
Published: August 2013

Detecting overlapping communities is essential to analyzing and exploring natural networks such as social networks, biological networks, and citation networks. However, most existing approaches do not scale to the size of networks that we regularly observe in the real world. In this paper, we develop a scalable approach to community detection that discovers overlapping communities in massive real-world networks. Our approach is based on a Bayesian model of networks that allows nodes to participate in multiple communities, and a corresponding algorithm that naturally interleaves subsampling from the network and updating an estimate of its communities. We demonstrate how we can discover the hidden community structure of several real-world networks, including 3.7 million US patents, 575,000 physics articles from the arXiv preprint server, and 875,000 connected Web pages from the Internet. Furthermore, we demonstrate on large simulated networks that our algorithm accurately discovers the true community structure. This paper opens the door to using sophisticated statistical models to analyze massive networks.
Transmembrane control of cadherin-mediated cell adhesion: a 94 kDa protein functionally associated with a specific region of the cytoplasmic domain of E-cadherin.
Authors: Nagafuchi A , Takeichi M
Published: August 2013

Cadherins are a family of transmembrane glycoproteins which play a key role in Ca(2+)-dependent cell-cell adhesion. Cytoplasmic domains of these molecules are anchored to the cell cytoskeleton and are required for cadherin function. To elucidate how the function of cadherins is controlled through their cytoplasmic domains, we deleted five different regions in the cytoplasmic domain of E-cadherin. After transfecting L cells with cDNA encoding the mutant polypeptides, we assayed aggregating activity of these transfectants; all these mutant proteins were shown to have an extracellular domain with normal Ca(2+)-sensitivity and molecular weight. Two mutant polypeptides with deletions in the carboxy half of the cytoplasmic domain, however, did not promote cell-cell adhesion and had also lost the ability to bind to the cytoskeleton, whereas the mutant molecules with deletions of other regions retained the ability to promote cell adhesion and to anchor to the cytoskeleton. Thus, the cytoplasmic domain contains a subdomain which was involved in the cell adhesion and cytoskeleton-binding functions. When E-cadherin in F9 cells or in L cells transfected with wild-type or functional mutant cadherin polypeptides was solubilized with nonionic detergents and immunoprecipitated, two additional 94 and 102 kDa components were coprecipitated. The 94 kDa component, however, was not detected in the immunoprecipitates from cells expressing the mutant cadherins which had lost the adhesive function. These results suggest that the interaction of the carboxy half of the cytoplasmic domain with the 94 kDa component regulates the cell binding function of the extracellular domain of E-cadherin.
Antiproliferative function of glia maturation factor beta.
Authors: Lim R , Zhong W X , Zaheer A
Published: August 2013

Recombinant human glia maturation factor beta (GMF-beta) reversibly inhibits the proliferation of neoplastic cells in culture by arresting the cells in the G0/G1 phase. This phenomenon is not target-cell specific, as neural and nonneural cells are equally inhibited. When tested simultaneously, GMF-beta suppresses the mitogenic effect of acidic fibroblasts growth factor (aFGF), but the two are synergistic in promoting the morphologic differentiation of cultured astrocytes. GMF-beta also counteracts the growth-stimulating effect of pituitary extract and cholera toxin on Schwann cells. The results underscore the regulatory role of GMF-beta and its intricate interaction with the mitogenic growth factors.
Rat brain endoplasmic reticulum calcium pools are anatomically and functionally segregated.
Authors: Verma A , Ross C A , Verma D , Supattapone S , Snyder S H
Published: August 2013

Autoradiographic imaging can localize 45Ca2+ selectively accumulated via the Ca2+, Mg2(+)-ATPase into endoplasmic reticulum stores in rat brain slices. 45Ca2+ accumulation is markedly stimulated by oxalate and displays a heterogeneous distribution which resembles the mRNA distribution for a sarcoendoplasmic reticulum Ca2+, Mg2(+)-ATPase. Inositol 1,4,5-triphosphate [I(1,4,5)P3] inhibits 45Ca2+ accumulation selectively into regions corresponding to those enriched in I(1,4,5)P3 receptor-binding sites and in Ca2+, -Mg2(+)-ATPase mRNA. Thus rat brain endoplasmic reticulum calcium stores are anatomically and functionally differentiated.
A high-affinity receptor for urokinase plasminogen activator on human keratinocytes: characterization and potential modulation during migration.
Authors: McNeill H , Jensen P J
Published: August 2013

Low passage cultures of normal human keratinocytes produce several components of the plasminogen activator/plasmin proteolytic cascade, including urokinase plasminogen activator (uPA), tissue plasminogen activator (tPA), and two specific inhibitors. Studies here presented demonstrate that these cells also contain a high-affinity (Kd = 3 x 10(-10) M) plasma membrane-binding site for uPA. High molecular weight uPA, either as the single-chain precursor or two-chain activated form, bound to the receptor; however, low molecular weight (33 kD) uPA, tPA, or epidermal growth factor did not compete for binding, demonstrating specificity. Acid treatment, which removed endogenous uPA from the receptor, was required to detect maximal binding (45,000 sites per cell). To investigate the possibility that the uPA receptor on keratinocytes may be involved in epithelial migration during wound repair, cultures were wounded and allowed to migrate into the wounded site. Binding sites for uPA were localized by autoradiographic analysis of 125I-uPA binding as well as by immunocytochemical studies using anti-uPA IgG. With both techniques uPA binding sites were detected selectively on the plasma membrane of cells at the leading edge of the migrating epithelial sheet. This localization pattern suggests that uPA receptor expression on keratinocytes may be coupled to cell migration during cutaneous wounding.
The affinities of human platelet and Acanthamoeba profilin isoforms for polyphosphoinositides account for their relative abilities to inhibit phospholipase C.
Authors: Machesky L M , Goldschmidt-Clermont P J , Pollard T D
Published: August 2013

In light of recent work implicating profilin from human platelets as a possible regulator of both cytoskeletal dynamics and inositol phospholipid-mediated signaling, we have further characterized the interaction of platelet profilin and the two isoforms of Acanthamoeba profilin with inositol phospholipids. Profilin from human platelets binds to phosphatidylinositol-4-monophosphate (PIP) and phosphatidylinositol-4,5-bisphosphate (PIP2) with relatively high affinity (Kd approximately 1 microM for PIP2 by equilibrium gel filtration), but interacts only weakly (if at all) with phosphatidylinositol (PI) or inositol trisphosphate IP3) in small-zone gel-filtration assays. The two isoforms of Acanthamoeba profilin both have a lower affinity for PIP2 than does human platelet profilin, but the more basic profilin isoform from Acanthamoeba (profilin-II) has a much higher (approximately 10-microM Kd) affinity than the acidic isoform (profilin-I, 100 to 500-microM Kd). None of the profilins bind to phosphatidylserine (PS) or phosphatidylcholine (PC) in small-zone gel-filtration experiments. The differences in affinity for PIP2 parallel the ability of these three profilins to inhibit PIP2 hydrolysis by soluble phospholipase C (PLC). The results show that the interaction of profilins with PIP2 is specific with respect to both the lipid and the proteins. In Acanthamoeba, the two isoforms of profilin may have specialized functions on the basis of their identical (approximately 10 microM) affinities for actin monomers and different affinities for PIP2.
Identification and cellular distribution of distinct proteins forming human GM-CSF receptor.
Authors: Chiba S , Shibuya K , Piao Y F , Tojo A , Sasaki N , Matsuki S , Miyagawa K , Miyazono K , Takaku F
Published: August 2013

Two proteins forming the receptor for human granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor (GM-CSF)1 were identified and characterized. One with apparent Mr of about 80,000 was defined as alpha-chain and has Kd of 0.7-2.8 nM. The other binding molecule with apparent Mr of about 135,000 was defined as beta-chain and is related to the high-affinity binding with Kd of 10-40 pM. The binding kinetic studies confirmed that the 125I-GM-CSF associated slower to and dissociated more rapidly from the alpha-chain than the beta-chain. The alpha-chain is expressed not only on hemopoietic cells but also on full-term placental tissues, choriocarcinoma cells, and other solid tumor cells. In contrast, the distribution of the beta-chain is restricted on hemopoietic cells. The alpha-chain probably corresponds to the low-affinity GM-CSF receptor whose cDNA has been cloned and sequenced.
Activation by serotonin of starfish eggs expressing the rat serotonin 1c receptor.
Authors: Shilling F , Mandel G , Jaffe L A
Published: August 2013

Starfish oocytes were injected with mRNA for the serotonin 1c receptor or with rat brain poly A+ mRNA, incubated to allow expression of the membrane protein, then matured to eggs by addition of 1-methyladenine. Applying serotonin to these eggs caused cortical granule exocytosis like that occurring at fertilization. Because the serotonin 1c receptor specifically activates a G-protein, these results provide support for the hypothesis that sperm activate eggs by way of a receptor-G-protein interaction. The starfish oocyte may be a generally useful system for expression of exogenous mRNA for membrane proteins.
Endocytosis via coated pits mediated by glycoprotein receptor in which the cytoplasmic tail is replaced by unrelated sequences.
Authors: Verrey F , Gilbert T , Mellow T , Proulx G , Drickamer K
Published: August 2013

Rat 6 fibroblast cell lines expressing wild-type chicken liver glycoprotein receptor (CHL) or chimeric receptors with alternate cytoplasmic tails were produced to study the role of the cytoplasmic tail in mediating receptor localization in coated pits and endocytosis of ligand. Cells expressing CHL or cells expressing a hybrid receptor that contains the cytoplasmic tail of the asialoglycoprotein receptor display high-efficiency endocytosis of N-acetylglucosamine-conjugated bovine serum albumin in experiments designed to measure an initial internalization step, as well as in studies of continuous uptake and degradation. Substitution of the cytoplasmic tail by the equivalent domain of rat Na,K-ATPase beta subunit or by a stretch of Xenopus laevis globin beta chain does not abolish endocytosis but decreases the endocytosis rate constant from 15%-16%/min to 2.4% and 6.5%/min, respectively. Electron microscopy was used to visualize the glycoprotein binding sites at the surface of Rat 6 cells transfected with the various receptors. The percentage of receptors found in coated areas ranged from 32% for CHL to 9% for the Na,K-ATPase hybrid, indicating that clustering in coated pits correlates with efficiency of endocytosis. We concluded that replacement of the CHL cytoplasmic tail with unrelated sequences does not prevent, but decreases to varying extents, coated-pit localization and endocytosis efficiency. The construct with NH2-terminal globin tail lacks a signal for high-efficiency localization in coated pits but nevertheless is directed to the pits by an alternative mechanism.