bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Influenza vaccine and survival in acute heart failure
Authors: Kopel Eran , Klempfner Robert , Goldenberg Ilan
Published: March 2014

Aims

Influenza vaccine is a well‐recommended secondary prevention measure for improving survival in patients with coronary artery disease, but it has generally been less studied in heart failure. We ask whether having influenza vaccination is associated with survival among patients with acute heart failure (HF).

Methods and results

This was a prospective population‐based cohort study accompanied by an analysis of two cross‐sectional population samples for external validation of baseline characteristics differences. We analysed all 1964 ambulatory patients with acute HF aged ≥50 years who were admitted to the Heart Failure Survey in Israel (HFSIS). We used the Israel Health Survey (IHS) 2009 and the Behavioural Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) 2003–2004 surveys (274 535 participants) for external validation. In the HFSIS, the multivariate‐adjusted hazard ratios for in‐hospital, 1 and 4 year mortality outcomes of influenza‐vaccinated patients were 0.71 (P = 0.19), 0.81 (P = 0.04), and 0.83 (P = 0.006), respectively. In the IHS validation sample, a recent physician visit [odds ratio (OR) 1.61; 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.43–1.80] or having supplementary health insurance (OR 1.39; 95% CI 1.19–1.61) were associated with higher likelihood of being vaccinated against influenza. In the BRFSS validation sample, having > 1 healthcare providers (OR 2.31; 95% CI 2.22–2.40) or having any healthcare coverage were associated with higher likelihood of being vaccinated (OR 1.59; 95% CI 1.54–1.65).

Conclusions

Influenza vaccine might improve survival among patients with acute HF. This association, however, could be affected by unmeasured confounding and bias due to baseline medical surveillance and socioeconomic differences between vaccinated and non‐vaccinated patients.
Plasma galectin 3 and heart failure risk in the Physicians' Health Study
Authors: Djoussé Luc , Matsumoto Chisa , Petrone Andrew , Weir Natalie L. , Tsai Michael Y. , Gaziano J. Michael
Published: March 2014

Aims

We sought to test the hypothesis that plasma galectin 3 (Gal‐3) is positively associated with the risk of heart failure (HF) in male subjects.

Methods and results

While Gal‐3 has been reported as prognostic factor in HF patients, limited data are available on the role of Gal‐3 in the development of HF. We used a prospective nested‐case control study (n = 462 cases and 462 controls) within the Physicians' Health Study for current analyses. For each case of HF, we randomly selected one control among subjects that were alive and free of HF at the time of index case occurrence and matched on age, race, and time of blood collection. Gal‐3 was measured using ELISA and we used conditional logistic regression to compute adjusted odds ratios. Mean age at baseline was 58.3 y and median log‐Gal‐3 was 1.50 (IQR: 1.20–1.73) ng/ml. Cubic splines suggested a non‐linear relation between Gal‐3 and HF. Odds ratios (95% CI) for HF were 1.0 (ref), 0.89 (0.58–1.38), 1.08 (0.71–1.67), and 1.57 (1.03–2.39) across consecutive quartiles of Gal‐3 after adjustment for body mass index, diabetes, atrial fibrillation, hypertension, C‐reactive protein, alcohol, smoking, and exercise. The Gal‐3‐HF relation was seen for HF with and without antecedent coronary heart disease.

Conclusions

Our data are consistent with a positive non‐linear association between Gal‐3 and HF risk in male subjects.
Impact of elevated heart rate on clinical outcomes in patients with heart failure with reduced and preserved ejection fraction: a report from the CHART‐2 Study
Authors: Takada Tsuyoshi , Sakata Yasuhiko , Miyata Satoshi , Takahashi Jun , Nochioka Kotaro , Miura Masanobu , Tadaki Soichiro , Shimokawa Hiroaki ,   on behalf of the CHART‐2 Investigators
Published: March 2014

Aims

It is still controversial whether elevated baseline heart rate (HR) is associated with higher mortality in patients with heart failure (HF) with preserved ejection fraction (HFpEF). We compared the impacts of baseline HR on mortality in patients with HFpEF and those with HF with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF).

Methods and results

We enrolled consecutive 2688 patients in Stage C or D HF with sinus rhythm from our Chronic Heart Failure Analysis and Registry in the Tohoku District 2 (CHART‐2) Study (n = 10 219). The prognostic impact of HR increase was compared between the two groups, defined as left ventricular ejection fraction of < 50% (HFrEF) and > 50% (HFpEF). Cox regression analysis revealed that elevated baseline HR was associated with increased all‐cause mortality in both groups [hazard ratio for the highest tertile (HH) 1.77 in HFrEF, P = 0.008; HH1.82 in HFpEF, P = 0.001]. However, as for mode of death, elevated HR was associated with cardiovascular (CV) death in HFpEF (HH 2.17, P = 0.012), but the association was modest in HFrEF (HH1.49, P = 0.14): in particular, impact on HF death was different between HFpEF (HH 3.79, P = 0.020) and HFrEF (HH 1.07, P = 0.864). In contrast, the prognostic impact of baseline HR on non‐CV death was noted only in patients with HFrEF. β‐Blocker therapy was associated with reduced HF mortality in HFrEF (hazard ratio 0.49, P = 0.038) but not in HFpEF (hazard ratio 0.64, P = 0.321).

Conclusions

Elevated HR was associated with increased CV death in HFpEF compared with HFrEF, although its impact on all‐cause mortality was comparable between the two groups.
Weaning from inotropic support and concomitant beta‐blocker therapy in severely ill heart failure patients: take the time in order to improve prognosis
Authors: Constantinescu Alina A. , Caliskan Kadir , Manintveld Olivier C. , van Domburg Ron , Jewbali Lucia , Balk Aggie H.M.M.
Published: March 2014

Aims

Beta‐blockers improve the prognosis in heart failure (HF), but their introduction may seem impossible in patients dependent on inotropic support. However, many of these patients can be titrated on beta‐blockers, but there is little evidence of successful clinical strategies.

Methods and results

We analysed the records of inotropy‐dependent patients referred for assessment for heart transplantation. Thirty‐six patients (45%) could not be weaned (NW) and underwent left ventricular assist device (LVAD) implantation or transplantation, or died. However, 44 (55%) were successfully weaned (SW). Neither the aetiology (ischaemic vs. non‐ischaemic) nor cardiac indexes were different in the SW as compared with the NW group (2.27 ± 0.5 vs. 2.15 ± 0.6 L/min/m2). The NW patients had lower LVEF (15 ± 5% vs. 19 ± 5%, P = 0.001), higher right atrial pressure (12 ± 6 vs. 8 ± 6 mmHg, P = 0.02), and more severe mitral regurgitation (P < 0.001) than the SW patients. At discharge, 35 of 44 SW patients were receiving beta‐blockers. In 29 of them, a beta‐blocker could only be initiated or continued during concomitant support with i.v. enoximone for a duration of 14.1 ± 7.2 days. Patients discharged on a beta‐blocker had an LVAD/transplantation‐free cumulative survival of 71% during a follow‐up of 2074 ± 201 days (confidence interval 1679–2470).

Conclusion

It takes time to put severely ill HF patients on beta‐blockers and it may require bridging with inotropes which are independent of beta‐adrenergic receptors. Whether such a strategy may result in a better clinical outcome warrants further research.
Determination of Bismuth by Adsorptive Stripping Voltammetry Using Aluminum Oxide for Elimination of Environmental Sample Matrix Interferences
Authors: Koper Anna , Grabarczyk Malgorzata
Published: March 2014

The aim of this work was to find a fast new and simple method for efficient elimination of negative influence of humic substances and synthetic surfactants in the voltammetric determination of bismuth. The negative influence of the organic matrix present in environmental water samples due to their adsorption on aluminum oxide was successfully evaluated. The organic compounds such as humic substances and surface active compounds were removed by adsorption on the surface of aluminum oxide from the water samples. The application of this method was the recovery of Bi(III) from spiked water samples.
Separation of alogliptin enantiomers in cyclodextrin‐modified capillary electrophoresis: A validated method
Authors: Fejős Ida , Urbancsok Zsuzsanna , Zhou Wei , Sohajda Tamás , Hu Wenhui , Szente Lajos , Béni Szabolcs
Published: March 2014

The single enantiomer drug, alogliptin (Alo, Nesina®) is a novel, orally available and selective dipeptidyl peptidase‐4 inhibitor used for the treatment of type II diabetes. Following itspKadetermination by CE‐pH titration, a validated chiral CE method has been developed to separate Alo enantiomers. Preliminary screening of the native CDs and their ten derivatives revealed that sulfopropylated‐γ‐CD, sulfopropylated‐β‐CD and sulfopropylated‐γ‐CD, sulfobutyl‐ether‐β‐CD (SBE‐β‐CD) and sulfobutyl‐ether‐γ‐CD enabled enantioresolution. Furthermore, cavity size dependent enantiomer migration order reversal was observed between γ‐ and β‐CD derivatives. To improve enantioseparation, buffer composition and pH, CD concentration, applied voltage, temperature, and injection parameters were optimized for the Alo/ SBE‐β‐CD system, yielding a resolution of 8.34. RSD percentage of the resolution value, migration times, and corrected peak areas were below 3 and 5% during testing repeatability and intermediate precision. LOD and LOQ values were found to be 2 and 6 μg/mL, respectively, for each enantiomer. Calibration lines ranging from 6 to 250 μg/mL were constructed withr2> 0.9997. Robustness could be successfully verified by using the Plackett–Burman statistical experimental design. The optimized system containing 5 mM SBE‐β‐CD in a 25 mM acetate buffer at pH 4.75 was found promising to detect 0.1% distomer in the presence of the API.
Critical concentration of ion‐pairs formation in nonpolar media
Authors: Dukhin Andrei
Published: March 2014

It is known that nonpolar liquids can be ionized by adding surfactants, either ionic or nonionic. Surfactant molecules serve as solvating agents, building inverse micelles around ions, and preventing their association back into neutral molecules. According to the Bjerrum‐Onsager‐Fuoss theory, these inverse micelle ions should form “ion pairs.” This, in turn, leads to nonlinear dependence of the conductivity on the concentration. Surprisingly, ionic surfactants exhibit linear conductivity dependence, which implies that these inverse micelle ions do not form ion pairs. Theory predicts the existence of two ionic strength ranges, which are separated by a certain critical ion concentration. Ionic strength above the critical one is proportional to the square root of the ion concentration, whereas it becomes linear below the critical concentration. Critical ion concentration lies within the range of 10−11–10−7 mol/L when ion size ranges from 1 to 3 nm. Critical ion concentration is related, but not equal, to a certain surfactant concentration (critical concentration of ion‐pairs formation (CIPC)) because only a fraction of the surfactant molecules is incorporated into the micelles ions. The linear conductivity dependence for ionic surfactants indicates that the corresponding CIPC is above the range of studied concentrations, perhaps, due to rather large ion size. The same linearity is a sign that charged inverse micelles structure and fraction are concentration independent due to strong charge–dipole interaction in the charge micelle core. This also proves that CIPC is independent of critical concentration of micelle formation. Nonionic surfactants, on the other hand, exhibit nonlinear conductivity dependence apparently due to smaller ion sizes.
Microfluidics for the analysis of membrane proteins: How do we get there?
Authors: Battle Katrina N. , Uba Franklin I. , Soper Steven A.
Published: March 2014

The development of fully automated and high‐throughput systems for proteomics is now in demand because of the need to generate new protein‐based disease biomarkers. Unfortunately, it is difficult to identify protein biomarkers that are low abundant when in the presence of highly abundant proteins, especially in complex biological samples such as serum, cell lysates, and other biological fluids. Membrane proteins, which are in many cases of low abundance compared to the cytosolic proteins, have various functions and can provide insight into the state of a disease and serve as targets for new drugs making them attractive biomarker candidates. Traditionally, proteins are identified through the use of gel electrophoretic techniques, which are not always suitable for particular protein samples such as membrane proteins. Microfluidics offers the potential as a fully automated platform for the efficient and high‐throughput analysis of complex samples, such as membrane proteins, and do so with performance metrics that exceed their bench‐top counterparts. In recent years, there have been various improvements to microfluidics and their use for proteomic analysis as reported in the literature. Consequently, this review presents an overview of the traditional proteomic‐processing pipelines for membrane proteins and insights into new technological developments with a focus on the applicability of microfluidics for the analysis of membrane proteins. Sample preparation techniques will be discussed in detail and novel interfacing strategies as it relates to MS will be highlighted. Lastly, some general conclusions and future perspectives are presented.
Optimal resource allocation for opportunistic spectrum access in heterogeneous MIMO cognitive radio networks
Authors: Adian M. G. , Aghaeinia H. , Norouzi Yaser
Published: March 2014

The optimal resource allocation in multi‐antenna multi‐band cognitive radio networks with heterogeneous secondary users (SUs) and underlay strategy is presented in this work. The heterogeneity is due to different types of secondary networks, where some of the SUs constitute an ad hoc network and access the resources (channel and power) in a distributed and competitive fashion, referred to as distributed SUs (DSUs), and others are served by a cognitive base station (CBS) and are referred to as centralised SUs (CSUs). The objectives of this work are twofold. At first, we study the joint problems of transmission time and power allocation for CSUs in uplink with the constraint of fairness. Afterwards, for the heterogeneous case with both the CSUs and DSUs, the resource allocation problem is formulated, and an iterative power water‐filling scheme is proposed to achieve the optimal resource allocation for both kinds of SUs. The simulation results illustrate the performance of the proposed scheme and its superiority over other resource allocation schemes. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Basal CD38/cyclic ADP‐ribose‐dependent signaling mediates ATP release and survival of microglia by modulating connexin 43 hemichannels
Authors: Ma Yingxin , Cao Wei , Wang Lu , Jiang Jingwen , Nie Hui , Wang Ban , Wei Xunbin , Ying Weihai
Published: February 2014

It is necessary to investigate the mechanisms underlying ATP release from neural cells, because extracellular ATP plays multiple important biological roles in the brain. CD38 is an ectoenzyme that consumes NAD+ to produce cyclic ADP‐ribose (cADPR), a potent agonist of ryanodine receptors. Our previous study showed that CD38 reductions led to microglial apoptosis. In this study, we used both murine microglial BV2 cells and primary microglial cultures as cellular models to test our hypothesis that basal CD38/cyclic ADP‐ribose (CD38/cADPR)‐dependent signaling plays a key role in ATP release, which mediates basal survival of microglia. We found that inhibition of CD38/cADPR‐dependent signaling by CD38 silencing or 8‐Bromo‐cADPR, a ryanodine receptor antagonist, produced significant ATP release from BV2 microglia. Cx43 small interfering RNA and Cx43 hemichannel blocker 18‐α‐glycyrrhetinic acid completely prevented the CD38 silencing or 8‐Bromo‐cADPR‐induced ATP release. Prevention of the ATP release could also be due to P2X7 receptor antagonists. Our study has further suggested a key role of ATP release in the microglial apoptosis induced by decreased CD38/cADPR‐dependent signaling. In addition, by using primary microglial cultures, we found that 8‐Bromo‐cADPR also induced significant ATP release, which could be attenuated by 18‐α‐glycyrrhetinic acid. 8‐Bromo‐cADPR was also found to induce death of primary microglial cultures. In conclusion, our results have suggested novel roles of basal activation of CD38/cADPR‐dependent signaling in mediating microglial functions and survival: It mediates ATP release from microglia by modulating Cx43 hemichannels, which can significantly affect microglial survival. GLIA 2014;62:943–955
Snowmelt runoff and soil moisture dynamics on steep subalpine hillslopes
Authors: Kampf Stephanie , Markus Julie , Heath Jared , Moore Cara
Published: March 2014

Snowmelt water supplies streamflow and growing season soil moisture in mountain regions, yet pathways of snowmelt water and their effects on moisture patterns are still largely unknown. This study examined how flow processes during snowmelt runoff affected spatial patterns of soil moisture on two steep sub‐alpine hillslope transects in Rocky Mountain National Park, CO, USA. The transects have northeast‐facing and east‐facing aspects, and both extend from high‐elevation bedrock outcrops down to streams in valley bottoms. Spatial patterns of both snow depth and near‐surface soil moisture were surveyed along these transects in the snowmelt and summer seasons of 2008–2010. To link these patterns to flow processes, soil moisture was measured continuously on both transects and compared with the timing of discharge in nearby streams. Results indicate that both slopes generated shallow lateral subsurface flow during snowmelt through near‐surface soil, colluvium and bedrock fractures. On the northeast‐facing transect, this shallow subsurface flow emerged through mid‐slope seepage zones, in some cases producing saturation overland flow, whereas the east‐facing slope had no seepage zones or overland flow. At the hillslope scale, earlier snowmelt timing on the east‐facing slope led to drier average soil moisture conditions than on the northeast‐facing slope, but within hillslopes, snow patterns had little relation to soil moisture patterns except in areas with persistent snow drifts. Results suggest that lateral flow and exfiltration processes are key controls on soil moisture spatial patterns in this steep sub‐alpine location. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Structure and Reactions of Aliphatic Bridged Bifunctional Radical Ions: Exploring Fine‐Tuning in Radiation Chemistry
Authors: Feldman Vladimir I.
Published: March 2014

Bridged bifunctional molecules of general structure X(CH2)nY are useful models for investigations into the effects of intra‐ and intermolecular interactions in primary radiation‐induced processes, with a number of implications for radiation chemistry, radiobiology, and molecular electronics. This short Review presents an outline of recent studies on the structure and reactivity of aliphatic bifunctional radical ions in low‐temperature matrices using EPR spectroscopy and quantum‐chemical calculations. Both EPR data and DFT calculations for radical cations show that the delocalization of charge and spin density occurs if XY or X and Y have close electronic properties. If the difference in the ionization potentials between X and Y is large, localized radical cations are observed with ground‐state properties close to those of the corresponding monofunctional species. Nevertheless, the remote second functional group may affect the photochemistry of such radical cations at a specific bridge length, probably due to intramolecular interactions in a certain conformation. The stabilization of bridged bifunctional radical anions containing two carbonyl groups was found to be very sensitive to the local environment, which may be described in terms of a microsolvation model at the MP2 level of theory. Two independent reactions pathways with excess electrons, yielding different types of localized radical anions, were demonstrated for asymmetrical bifunctional molecules. The obtained results and their implications are discussed in terms of fine‐tuning effects in radiation‐induced chemical processes in condensed phases.
Malonyl CoA: A promising target for the treatment of cardiac disease
Authors: Fillmore Natasha , Lopaschuk Gary D.
Published: March 2014

Alterations in cardiac energy metabolism are an important contributor to the high incidence and severity of heart disease in the world. These alterations can include an impairment of the production of ATP necessary to meet the high energy demands of the heart, as well as adverse switches in energy substrate preference by the heart. With regard to this latter point, evidence suggests that a decrease in cardiac efficiency, caused by a rise in cardiac fatty acid oxidation and/or an increase in the uncoupling of glycolysis from glucose oxidation, impairs cardiac function and is a contributing factor to cardiac disease. In support of this concept, therapeutic strategies that modulate these metabolic pathways and increase cardiac efficiency produce beneficial results in the setting of heart disease. One such strategy is to increase cardiac malonyl CoA levels, an important inhibitor of mitochondrial fatty acid uptake. This includes malonyl CoA decarboxylase (MCD) inhibition that results in increased cardiac malonyl CoA levels, decreased cardiac fatty acid oxidation rates, and improved cardiac efficiency. Preclinical studies have shown that MCD inhibition can improve cardiac function in various forms of heart disease. Here, we focus on the importance of malonyl CoA in the regulation of cardiac energy metabolism and function in the normal and diseased heart and discuss the evidence that suggests that inhibition of fatty acid oxidation especially via regulation of malonyl CoA, through MCD inhibition, is a promising strategy to treat cardiac disease. © 2014 IUBMB Life, 66(3):139–146, 2014
Direct effects of morphine but not of fentanyl‐type opioids on human 5‐HT3A receptors in outside‐out patch‐clamp studies
Authors: Schaaf T. , Lyutenska M. , Urban B.W. , Wittmann M.
Published: March 2014

Background

The alkaloid morphine is historically the oldest opiate, yet still today it has clinically important uses in analgesic therapies. The main analgesic effect of opioids, including synthetic opioids belonging to the family of 4‐anilidopiperidines, is mediated via activation of opioid receptors spread throughout the peripheral and central nervous system. However, morphine acting as a ‘dirty’ drug also exhibits effects on other receptor systems, e.g., the serotonergic system and its 5‐HT3 receptor. Therefore, this study focuses on the interaction of morphine and fentanyl‐type opioids (alfentanil, remifentanil and sufentanil) with 5‐HT3A receptors.

Methods

Excised outside‐out patches from human embryonic kidney‐293 cells, stably transfected with the human 5‐HT3A receptor cDNA, were used to determine the opioid effects using the patch‐clamp technique.

Results

Within clinical concentrations, the effects of morphine are concentration‐dependent. Morphine reduced current amplitudes, as well as activation and decay time constants. These effects were not competitive. Contrary to these results, all fentanyl‐type opioids only exerted effects far above their clinical concentration ranges. These effects were not homogenous but varying.

Conclusions

Morphine is an opioid compound exhibiting special antagonistic interaction with 5‐HT3A receptors. This interaction is not shared by the newer synthetic derivatives of the fentanyl‐type opioids in the clinical relevant concentration range.
ERK3 Promotes Endothelial Cell Functions by Upregulating SRC‐3/SP1‐Mediated VEGFR2 Expression
Authors: Wang Wei , Bian Ka , Vallabhaneni Sreeram , Zhang Bin , Wu Ray‐Chang , O'Malley Bert W. , Long Weiwen
Published: February 2014

Despite a regain of interest recently in ERK3 kinase signaling, the molecular regulations of both ERK3 gene expression and protein kinase activity are still largely unknown. While it is shown that disruption of ERK3 gene causes neonatal lethality, cell type‐specific functions of ERK3 signaling remain to be explored. In this study, we report that ERK3 gene expression is upregulated by cytokines through c‐Jun in endothelial cells; c‐Jun binds to the ERK3 gene and regulates its transcription. We further reveal a new role for ERK3 in regulating endothelial cell migration, proliferation and tube formation by upregulating SRC‐3/SP‐1‐mediated VEGFR2 expression. The underlying molecular mechanism involves ERK3‐stimulated formation of a transcriptional complex involving coactivator SRC‐3, transcription factor SP‐1 and the secondary coactivator CBP. Taken together, our study identified a molecular regulatory mechanism of ERK3 gene expression and revealed a previously unknown role of ERK3 in regulating endothelial cell functions. J. Cell. Physiol. 229: 1529–1537, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Quantification of liver iron with MRI: State of the art and remaining challenges
Authors: Hernando Diego , Levin Yakir S. , Sirlin Claude B. , Reeder Scott B.
Published: March 2014

Liver iron overload is the histological hallmark of hereditary hemochromatosis and transfusional hemosiderosis, and can also occur in chronic hepatopathies. Iron overload can result in liver damage, with the eventual development of cirrhosis, liver failure, and hepatocellular carcinoma. Assessment of liver iron levels is necessary for detection and quantitative staging of iron overload and monitoring of iron‐reducing treatments. This article discusses the need for noninvasive assessment of liver iron and reviews qualitative and quantitative methods with a particular emphasis on magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Specific MRI methods for liver iron quantification include signal intensity ratio as well as R2 and R2* relaxometry techniques. Methods that are in clinical use, as well as their limitations, are described. Remaining challenges, unsolved problems, and emerging techniques to provide improved characterization of liver iron deposition are discussed. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2014;40:1003–1021. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
MRI and MRA of spinal cord arteriovenous shunts
Authors: Condette‐Auliac Stéphanie , Boulin Anne , Roccatagliata Luca , Coskun Oguzhan , Guieu Stéphanie , Guedin Pierre , Rodesch Georges
Published: March 2014

The purpose of this review is to describe the diagnostic criteria for spinal cord arteriovenous shunts (SCAVSs) when using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and magnetic resonance angiography (MRA), and to discuss the extent to which the different MRI and MRA sequences and technical parameters provide the information that is required to diagnose these lesions properly. SCAVSs are divided into four groups according to location (paraspinal, epidural, dural, or intradural) and type (fistula or nidus); each type of lesion is described. SCAVSs are responsible for neurological symptoms due to spinal cord or nerve root involvement. MRI is usually the first examination performed when a spinal cord lesion is suspected. Recognition of the image characteristics of vascular lesions is mandatory if useful sequences are to be performed—especially MRA sequences. Because the treatment of SCAVSs relies mainly on endovascular therapies, MRI and MRA help with the planning of the angiographic procedure. We explain the choice of MRA sequences and parameters, the advantages and pitfalls to be aware of in order to obtain the best visualization, and the analysis of each lesion.J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2014;40:1253–1266. ©2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
VARIATION IN SOIL ORGANIC CARBON AND NITROGEN STOCKS ALONG A TOPOSEQUENCE IN A TRADITIONAL MEDITERRANEAN OLIVE GROVE
Authors: Lozano‐García Beatriz , Parras‐Alcántara Luis
Published: March 2014

The impact of the topographical position on soil properties was evaluated in an olive grove with traditional tillage. Three topographical positions: summit, backslope and toeslope were chosen for evaluation. The soil samples were taken from four soil sections of 0·25 m (0–1 m). The soil organic carbon (SOC) and N content increased along the downslope direction (5·5, 6·5 and 7·1 g C kg−1 and 0·3, 0·8 and 0·9 g N kg−1 in the surface layer in the summit, backslope and toeslope respectively) as well as SOC and N stocks, considering the two first soil sections. In addition, there was movement of the most erodible textural fraction (silt). However, the total SOC stock (refer to 1 m of depth) did not vary with respect to the topographical position, but the total N stock (refer to 1 m of depth) varied significantly. These increases were due to erosion processes that occur along the toposequence, leading to organic matter transfers from the summit to the toeslope. All the stratification ratios calculated were lower than 2, indicating the low quality of the soils. Therefore, alternative management techniques that avoid soil erosion must be considered in olive grove in order to increase the soil quality and fertility. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Plasmonic lattice solitons beyond the coupled‐mode theory
Authors: Xue Ying , Ye Fangwei , Mihalache Dumitru , Panoiu Nicolae C. , Chen Xianfeng
Published: March 2014

The existence and properties of plasmonic lattice solitons (PLSs) supported by periodic arrays of metallic nanowires embedded into a dielectric medium with Kerr nonlinearity are studied by solving the 3D Maxwell equations, and the conclusions are compared with the results predicted by a coupled‐mode theory analysis. It is found that these two methods predict markedly different characteristics for the optical power of PLSs and its dependence on the separation distance between adjacent nanowires. In particular, the coupled‐mode theory is found to be valid only when the distance between nanowires is larger than some characteristic length. The compensation of modal loss by a background optical gain is also studied and it is revealed that the gain coefficient required to balance the loss is much smaller than the loss parameter of the metallic components of the plasmonic array.
Syntheses of Biaxially Extended Octithiophene‐Based Conjugated Copolymers for High‐Open‐Circuit‐Voltage Photovoltaic‐Cell Applications
Authors: Wu Hung‐Chin , Lai Yi‐Cang , Chiu Yu‐Cheng , Lee Wen‐Ya , Chen Wen‐Chang
Published: March 2014

Novel biaxially extended octithiophene (8T)‐based conjugated polymers are successfully ­synthesized using Stille coupling reactions of the branched octithiophene moiety with seleno­phene (P8TSe), thiophene (P8TT), and thieno[3,2‐b]thiophene (P8TTT). The 8T moiety can signifi­cantly lower the highest occupied molecular orbital (HOMO) level and leads to an enhanced open‐circuit voltage because of the branched conformation. The power conversion efficiencies (PCE) of the polymer/[6,6]‐phenyl‐C71‐butyric acid methyl ester PC71BM photovoltaic cells are in the range of 1.28–2.30%. In particular, the P8TTT‐based device processed from an o‐dichlorobenzene/1,8‐diiodoctane mixed solvent shows the best PCE among the studied polymers (2.81%), demonstrating that 8T‐based polymers with a low HOMO level can emerge as promising candidates for organic device applications.

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Polymers from 1‐Vinyl‐2‐(hydroxymethyl)imidazole in Water: Altering from UCST to LCST Behavior via O‐Ethylation
Authors: Meiswinkel Georg , Ritter Helmut
Published: March 2014

1‐Vinyl‐2‐(methoxymethyl)imidazole (6), 1‐vinyl‐2‐(ethoxymethyl)imidazole (7), 1‐vinyl‐2‐(prop­oxy­methyl)imidazole (8), and 1‐vinyl‐2‐(butoxymethyl)imidazole (9) are synthesized through the etherification of 1‐vinyl‐2‐(hydroxymethylimidazole) (1) with corresponding alkyl halides (2–5). Corresponding homopolymers (10–13) are synthesized via free radical polymerization and investigated concerning their temperature‐dependent solubility in water. The homopolymer 11 shows a lower critical solution temperature (LCST) behavior with a cloud point of 23 °C. Through copolymerization of 7 with N‐vinylimidazole (14), the cloud point is varied up to 42 °C.

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Solutions for subquadratic fractional Hamiltonian systems without coercive conditions
Authors: Zhang Ziheng , Yuan Rong
Published: March 2014

In this paper, we are concerned with the existence of infinitely many solutions for the following fractional Hamiltonian systems

urn:x-wiley:1704214:media:mma3031:mma3031-math-0001 where α ∈ (1 ∕ 2,1), , , is a symmetric and positive definite matrix for all , , and ∇ W is the gradient of W at u. The novelty of this paper is that, assuming L is bounded in the sense that there are constants 0 < τ1 < τ2 < + ∞ such that τ1 | u | 2 ≤ (L(t)u,u) ≤ τ2 | u | 2 for all and W is of subquadratic growth as | u | → + ∞ , we show that (FHS) possesses infinitely many solutions via the genus properties in the critical theory. Recent results in [Z. Zhang and R. Yuan, Variational approach to solutions for a class of fractional Hamiltonian systems, Math. Methods Appl. Sci., DOI:10.1002/mma.2941] are generalized and significantly improved. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Incorporation of rician noise in the analysis of biexponential transverse relaxation in cartilage using a multiple gradient echo sequence at 3 and 7 tesla
Authors: Bouhrara Mustapha , Reiter David A. , Celik Hasan , Bonny Jean‐Marie , Lukas Vanessa , Fishbein Kenneth W. , Spencer Richard G.
Published: March 2014

Purpose

Previous work has evaluated the quality of different analytic methods for extracting relaxation times from magnitude imaging data exhibiting Rician noise. However, biexponential analysis of relaxation in tissue, including cartilage, and materials is of increasing interest. We, therefore, analyzed biexponential transverse relaxation decay in the presence of Rician noise and assessed the accuracy and precision of several approaches to determining component fractions and apparent transverse relaxation times.

Theory and Methods

Comparisons of four different voxel‐by‐voxel fitting methods were performed using Monte Carlo simulations, and phantom and ex vivo bovine nasal cartilage (BNC) experiments. In each case, preclinical and clinical imaging field strengths of 7 Tesla (T) and 3T, respectively, and parameters, were investigated across a range of signal‐to‐noise ratios (SNR). Results were compared with Cramér‐Rao lower bound calculations.

Results

As expected, at high SNR, all methods performed well. At lower SNR, fits explicitly incorporating the analytic form of the Rician noise maintained performance. The much more efficient correction scheme of Gudbjartsson and Patz performed almost as well in many cases. Ex vivo experiments on phantoms and BNC were consistent with simulation results.

Conclusion

Explicit incorporation of Rician noise greatly improves accuracy and precision in the analysis of biexponential transverse decay data. Magn Reson Med 73:352–366, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Reduction of voxel bleeding in highly accelerated parallel 1H MRSI by direct control of the spatial response function
Authors: Kirchner Thomas , Fillmer Ariane , Tsao Jeffrey , Pruessmann Klaas Paul , Henning Anke
Published: March 2014

Purpose

To substantially improve spatial localization in magnetic resonance spectroscopic imaging (MRSI) accelerated by parallel imaging. This is important in order to make MRSI more reliable as a tool for clinical applications.

Methods

The sensitivity encoding acceleration technique with spatial overdiscretization is applied for the reconstruction of parallel MRSI. In addition, the spatial response function is optimized by minimizing its deviation from a previously chosen target function. This modified minimum‐norm sensitivity encoding‐MRSI reconstruction approach is applied in this article for in vivo pulse‐acquire MRSI of human brain at 7T with simulated acceleration factors of 2, 4, and 9 as well as actual 4‐fold accelerated MRSI.

Results

The sidelobes of the spatial response function are significantly suppressed, which reduces far‐reaching voxel bleeding. At the same time, the major enlargement of the effective voxel size, which would be introduced by conventional k‐space apodization methods, is largely avoided. Regularization allows for a practical trade‐off between noise minimization, effective voxel size, and unaliasing. Although not aiming at increasing the nominal spatial resolution, a better spatial specificity is achieved.

Conclusion

Simultaneous suppression of short‐ and far‐reaching voxel bleeding in MRSI is analyzed and reconstruction of highly accelerated parallel in vivo MRSI is demonstrated. Magn Reson Med 73:469–480, 2015. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Tetanus toxin preserves skeletal muscle contractile force and size during limb immobilization
Authors: Matthews Christopher C. , Lovering Richard M. , Bowen Thomas G. , Fishman Paul S.
Published: March 2014

Introduction: We examined the possibility that tetanus toxin can prevent muscle atrophy associated with limb immobility in rats. Methods: While the knee and ankle joints were immobilized unilaterally, the tibialis anterior (TA) muscle on the immobilized side was injected with 1 μl saline or with 1 ng tetanus toxin. After 2 weeks, TA wet weights, contractile forces, and myofiber sizes from the immobilized sides were compared with those from body weight–matched normal animals. Results: Saline group wet weights decreased and produced less absolute twitch and tetanic force and normalized tetanic force compared with the toxin or normal groups. Cross‐sectional areas of saline group type I, IIa, and IId myofibers, and the masses of saline group IIa, IId, IIb, and toxin group IIb myofibers, were smaller compared with the normal group. Conclusions: Tetanus toxin prevented common signs of muscle atrophy and may become a useful adjunct to current rehabilitation strategies. Muscle Nerve 50: 759–766, 2014
Non‐uniform surface electromyographic responses to change in joint angle within rectus femoris muscle
Authors: Watanabe Kohei , Kouzaki Motoki , Moritani Toshio
Published: March 2014

Introduction: Our recent studies have demonstrated region‐specific neural activation within the rectus femoris (RF) muscle. However, these studies involved a fixed joint angle or posture. In this study we investigated the effect of hip and knee joint angles on neural activation within RF using multichannel surface electromyography (SEMG). Methods: Eleven healthy men performed isometric maximal voluntary contraction (MVC) during knee extension and hip flexion at different hip or joint angles. During the contractions, SEMG of the RF was recorded using 46 electrode pairs covering most of the superficial area of the muscle. Results: During knee extension MVC, an increase in the hip joint angle was associated with a significant increase in SEMG amplitude in the proximal region and a decrease in the distal region (P < 0.05). Higher SEMG amplitude during hip flexion MVC compared with knee extension MVC was observed in proximal regions with the flexed knee and hip joint angles. This task‐dependent spatial distribution of SEMG amplitude was seen at the extended hip, but not at the extended knee. Conclusions: SEMG amplitudes within the RF muscle are not modified uniformly with changes in joint position. Muscle Nerve 50: 794–802, 2014
Automatic consistency integrations for the stress update of J2 elastoplastic rate constitutive equations with combined hardening
Authors: Yin Zheng‐Nan , Xiao Heng
Published: March 2014

A novel method is introduced to study numerical integrations of J2 elastoplastic rate constitutive equations with general combined hardening. The basic idea is to transform the usual time rate constitutive equations into those with reference to the equivalent plastic strain. By virtue of tensorial matrix operations, we show that these transformed equations may be converted to a linear differential system governing the shifted stress and the plastic multiplier. From this system, we derive explicit integrations for the shifted stress and then for the back stress and the Cauchy stress. We demonstrate that these results are accurate up to within a third order term of the equivalent plastic strain increment. In particular, for pure kinematic hardening, we show that the integrations obtained can achieve automatic enforcement of both the plastic consistency condition and the loading condition, thus bypassing the numerical treatment of the latter two. Furthermore, we explain that, with the new algorithm for the stress update, the continuum tangent moduli may be used to ensure a quadratic rate of convergency in Newton's iteration scheme for the balance equation. Numerical examples suggest that the new algorithm may be more accurate and efficient than the widely used return algorithm. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Positive interaction between prebiotics and thiazolidinedione treatment on adiposity in diet‐induced obese mice
Authors: Alligier Maud , Dewulf Evelyne M. , Salazar Nuria , Mairal Aline , Neyrinck Audrey M. , Cani Patrice D. , Langin Dominique , Delzenne Nathalie M.
Published: March 2014

Objectives

To investigate whether inulin‐type fructan (ITF) prebiotics could counteract the thiazolidinedione (TZD, PPARγ activator) induced‐fat mass gain, without affecting its beneficial effect on glucose homeostasis, in high‐fat (HF) diet fed mice.

Methods

Male C57bl6/J mice were fed a HF diet alone or supplemented with ITF prebiotics (0.2 g/day × mouse) or TZD (30 mg pioglitazone (PIO)/kg body weight × day) or both during 4 weeks. An insulin tolerance test was performed after 3 weeks of treatment.

Results

As expected, PIO improved glucose homeostasis and increased adiponectinaemia. Furthermore, it induced an over‐expression of several PPARγ target genes in white adipose tissues. ITF prebiotics modulated the PIO‐induced PPARγ activation in a tissue‐dependent manner. The co‐treatment with ITF prebiotics and PIO maintained the beneficial impact of TZD on glucose homeostasis and adiponectinaemia. Moreover, the combination of both treatments reduced fat mass accumulation, circulating lipids and hepatic triglyceride content, suggesting an overall improvement of metabolism. Finally, the co‐treatment favored induction of white‐to‐brown fat conversion in subcutaneous adipose tissue, thereby leading to the development of brite adipocytes that could increase the oxidative capacity of the tissue.

Conclusions

ITF prebiotics decrease adiposity and improve the metabolic response in HF fed mice treated with TZD.
A Simple Semi‐preparative Reversed‐phase HPLC/PDA Method for Separation and Quantification of Glycyrrhizin in Nine Samples of Glycyrrhiza glabra Root Collected from Different Geographical Origins
Authors: Basar Norazah , Talukdar Anupam D. , Nahar Lutfun , Stafford Angela , Kushiev Habibjon , Kan Asuman , Sarker Satyajit D.
Published: March 2014

Introduction

Glycyrrhiza glabra L. (Fabaceae), commonly known as ‘liquorice’, is one of the most popular ingredients in several traditional herbal medicinal preparations, and glycyrrhizin is the major glycoside present in this plant. The content of glycyrrhizin may vary among G. glabra samples collected from various geographical origins, which may affect the therapeutic efficacy. Thus, quantification of glycyrrhizin in G. glabra samples is important.

Objective

To develop and validate a simple semi‐preparative reversed‐phase HPLC with photodiode array (PDA) method for separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin in nine samples of G. glabra root collected from various geographical origins.

Methods

Dried and ground root of G. glabra was Soxhlet‐extracted sequentially with n‐hexane and methanol (MeOH). The separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin was achieved on a C18 reversed‐phase semi‐preparative column using a gradient mobile phase, 30–100% solvent B in solvent A in 30 min (solvent A: 0.1% v/v trifluoroacetic acid (TFA) in water and solvent B: 0.1% v/v of TFA in MeOH), at a flow rate of 3.00 mL/min and UV detection at 254 nm.

Results

A simple semi‐preparative reversed‐phase HPLC/PDA method allowing clear separation and quantification of glycyrrhizin content in nine samples has been validated in terms of linearity, selectivity, limits of detection, precision, accuracy and detection. Concentration levels of glycyrrhizin were between 0.177 and 0.688% w/w of dry materials.

Conclusion

This method is precise, less time consuming and more cost effective, and can be used for the quality control of any G. glabra sample with regard to its glycyrrhizin contents. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A systematic review on patient‐reported outcomes in cancer survivors of randomised clinical trials: direction for future research
Authors: Li Qiuping , Lin Yi , Liu Xiwen , Xu Yongyong
Published: March 2014

Objective

With increasing expectations of a 5‐year survival rate among cancer patients, there is growing interest in patient‐reported outcome (PRO) measures, particularly measures of health‐related quality of life (HRQOL) in cancer practice. The purpose of this review was to explore the existing interventions for patients coping with cancer in terms of intervention type, PRO measurements and outcomes; and to identify directions for future research.

Methods

Systematic review of randomised clinical trials. A systematic search of four databases was conducted to identify articles published in English or Chinese from January 2000 to July 2013. Studies were located using an electronic search, a manual search and an author search.

Results

A total of 34 articles corresponding to 33 original studies were identified and included in this review. These interventions were classified under four broad categories according to their approaches: psycho‐education (15), case management (13), exercise (4) and feedback of PRO (1). The PRO measures covered different types of PRO measures, including HRQOL, functional status, symptom status, overall well‐being and satisfaction with care. Positive outcomes of more than 70% (24) out of these interventions were reported.

Conclusions

These findings highlight the significant outcomes of cancer patient interventions that applied PRO measures to evaluate their outcomes. A theory‐driven and careful design of the programme should be considered in the whole process of developing, delivering and assessing the programmes. Collaboration among patients, clinicians, researchers and policy makers is crucial to ensure the development of effective and accessible interventions targeting improving cancer survivors' HRQOL. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Thermoelectric properties of Yb and Nb codoped CaMnO3
Authors: Kabir Rezaul , Zhang Tianshu , Donelson Richard , Wang Danyang , Tian Ruoming , Tan Thiam Teck , Gong Bin , Li Sean
Published: March 2014

Perovskite‐type Ca1−xYbxMn0.98Nb0.02O3 (x = 0, 0.02, 0.05, 0.08, and 0.1) thermoelectric materials were synthesized by a solid‐state reaction technique. The dopant‐level dependence of lattice parameter, the correlation of crystallographic structures and the high temperature properties of these codoped CaMnO3 systems were investigated. The results show that codoping in A and B‐sites of the perovskite structure improves the ZT value noticeably rather than the single doping. This is driven by the compromise among carrier concentration, structural distortion, and phonon impediment. The increase of Yb doping leads to higher phonon impediment and consequently reduces thermal conductivity. In this codoping system, the effective doping content is x = 0.05 in order to reduce the thermal conductivity. The sample with nominal composition of Ca0.95Yb0.05Mn0.98Nb0.02O3 reaches the highest ZT of 0.13 at 973 K, which is almost 18% higher than that of the single‐doped CaMn0.98Nb0.02O3.