bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Electrospray Ionization Tandem Mass Spectrometry in High‐Throughput Screening of Homogeneous Catalysts
Authors: Chen Peter
Published: June 2003

The frontispiece shows an illustration by John Tenniel and an excerpt from the 1865 edition of Lewis Carroll's “Alice in Wonderland”. Because everything in Wonderland runs counter to logic, the Queen of Hearts declares in Alice's trial “Sentence first—verdict afterwards”. High‐throughput screening of catalysts, as it is conventionally practiced, does “Synthesis first—screening afterwards” which, as is argued in this review, also backwards. Given the particular constraints present in organometallic complexes, it is more efficient to develop a selective synthesis only when it has already been determined that a structure is likely to be better. The consequence is that screening methods must be able to handle ill‐defined mixtures. Electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry is presented as a technical solution to this problem.
Recent Methods for the Synthesis of (E)‐Alkene Units in Macrocyclic Natural Products
Authors: Prunet Joëlle
Published: June 2003

(E)‐Alkene units are frequently found in macrocyclic natural products. Among the reactions that form the double bond during the cyclization, the classical Horner–Emmons coupling is still frequently used with success. During the last decade, ring‐closing metathesis has emerged as a very powerful tool for the synthesis of large rings, but the E/Z selectivity, which is rarely predictable, depends on many factors which will be discussed in this review. The best solution might be a two‐step procedure involving ring‐closing alkyne metathesis (RCAM) followed by stereoselective reduction of the macrocyclic alkyne unit to the corresponding E double bond.
Recent developments in receptor modeling
Authors: Hopke Philip K.
Published: June 2003

Receptor modeling is the application of data analysis methods to elicit information on the sources of air pollutants. Typically, it employs methods of solving the mixture resolution problem using chemical composition data for airborne particulate matter samples. In such cases, the outcome is the identification of the pollution source types and estimates of the contribution of each source type to the observed concentrations. It can also involve efforts to identify the locations of the sources through the use of ensembles of air parcel back trajectories. In recent years, there have been improvements in the factor analysis methods that are applied in receptor modeling as well as easier application of trajectory methods. These developments are reviewed. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
1‐Octanol/Water Partition Coefficients of 1Alkyl‐3‐methylimidazolium Chloride
Authors: Domańska Urszula , Bogel‐Łukasik Ewa , Bogel‐Łukasik Rafał
Published: June 2003

The solubilities of 1alkyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride, [Cnmim][Cl], where n=4, 8, 10, and 12, in 1octanol and water have been measured by a dynamic method in the temperature range from 270 to 370 K. The solubility data was used to calculate the 1octanol/water partition coefficients as a function of temperature and alkyl substituent. The melting point, enthalpies of fusion, and enthalpies of solid–solid phase transitions were determined by differential scanning calorimetry, DSC. The solubility of [Cnmim][Cl], where n=10 or 12 in 1octanol is comparable and higher than that of [C4mim][Cl] in 1octanol. Liquid 1n‐octyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride, [C8mim][Cl], is not miscible with 1octanol and water, consequently, the liquid–liquid equilibrium, LLE was measured in this system. The differences between the solubilities in water for n=4 and 12 are shown only in α1 and γ1 solid crystalline phases. Additionally, the immiscibility region was observed for the higher concentration of [C10mim][Cl] in water. The intermolecular solute–solvent interaction of 1butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chloride with water is higher than for other 1alkyl‐3‐methylimidazolium chlorides. The data was correlated by means of the UNIQUAC ASM and two modified NRTL equations utilizing parameters derived from the solid–liquid equilibrium, SLE. The root‐mean‐square deviations of the solubility temperatures for all calculated data are from 1.8 to 7 K and depend on the particular equation used. In the calculations, the existence of two solid–solid first‐order phase transitions in [C12mim][Cl] has also been taken into consideration. Experimental partition coefficients (log P) are negative at three temperatures; this is evidence for the possible use of these ionic liquids as green solvents.
Supramolecular Structures of Titanium(IV)‐Substituted Wells–Dawson Polyoxotungstates
Authors: Kortz Ulrich , Hamzeh Shadia S. , Nasser Niveen A.
Published: June 2003

The novel, dimeric titanium(IV)‐substituted phosphotungstate [(TiP2W15O55OH)2]14− (1) has been synthesized and characterized by IR and 31P NMR spectroscopy, elemental analysis, and single‐crystal Xray diffraction. The polyanion consists of two [P2W15O56]12− Wells–Dawson moieties linked through two titanium(IV) centers. Polyanion 1 is a dilacunary species and represents the first Ti‐containing sandwich‐type structure. The titanium centers are octahedrally coordinated by three oxygen atoms of each P2W15O56 subunit. The edge‐shared TiO6 units are symmetrically equivalent and have no terminal ligands. Polyanion 1 shows a chiral distortion within each P2W15Ti fragment. We also report on the structural characterization of the tetrameric, supramolecular species [{Ti3P2W15O57.5(OH)3}4]24− (2). Polyanion 2 is composed of four equivalent P2W15Ti3 fragments, fused together through terminal TiO bonds, leading to a structure with Td symmetry.
The prevalence of dementia in a metropolitan city of South Korea
Authors: Kim Jungsoon , Jeong Ihnsook , Chun Jin‐Ho , Lee Suill
Published: June 2003

Background

There are few studies on the prevalence of dementia in South Korea. This study was designed to estimate the prevalence rate of dementia in a metropolitan city of South Korea, Busan.

Methods

This was a cross‐sectional epidemiological study of 1101 residents aged 65 or over in a metropolitan city (Busan) as of 31 December 2001 who were selected with the stratified three‐stage cluster sampling. Dementia was assessed by two‐stage examination with Mini‐Mental State Examination—Korean version (MMSE‐K), psychometric measures and the Barthel index. Crude and sex‐age adjusted prevalence rate were obtained.

Results

The crude rate was 7.4% (men 2.4%, women 10.5%). The sex‐age adjusted rate was 7.0% (men 2.5%, women 9.0%) and 8.0% (men 2.7%, women 10.0%) when adjusted with Busan and whole Korean population, respectively.

Conclusion

These results were lower than those of other domestic studies. This is the first well‐designed total‐population based epidemiologic study on the prevalence rate of dementia of the aged residing in Busan city. Further studies for evaluating the relationships with type and severity of dementia are needed. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Removal of phosphates from aqueous solutions by using bauxite II: the activation study
Authors: Altundoǧan H Soner , Tümen Fikret
Published: June 2003

In this study, acid treatment and heat treatment methods have been investigated in order to enhance the phosphate adsorption capacity of bauxite. For this purpose, a series of bauxites treated with 0.1–1.0 M HCl and another one heated at various temperatures between 200 and 1000 °C were subjected to standardized orthophosphate adsorption tests. Besides determining chemical and mineralogical compositions, TGA and DTA were performed and point of zero net proton charge (PZNPC), surface area, mean particle size and porosity were measured for selected samples. The results have shown that the acid treatment of bauxite has a negative effect on the phosphate adsorption capability. On the other hand, it has been observed that the phosphate adsorption capacity of bauxite could be increased by heating. The optimum heating temperature was determined as 600 °C. Bauxite heated at 600 °C exhibited about an eight‐fold increase in surface area compared with raw bauxite. The results showed that the activation of bauxite occurred via dehydration of boehmite and diaspore, being the hydrated mineral phases. Maximum adsorption efficiencies for ortho‐, tripoly‐ and glycerophosphates were achieved in the slightly acidic pH range. It was found that the adsorption capacities of thermally‐activated bauxite for all phosphate species investigated were higher than that of raw bauxite. But the increase in adsorption efficiency is not proportional to the increase in specific surface area. It was found that the relative adsorptivity of phosphate species investigated is in the order of orthophosphate > tripoly(phosphate) > glycerophosphate. In addition, it was found that the desorption trends of these phosphate species were similar to the results obtained for raw bauxite. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry
Responses of phosphatases and arylsulfatase in soils to liming and tillage systems
Authors: Ekenler Mine , Tabatabai M. A.
Published: June 2003

This study was carried out to investigate the long‐term influence of lime application and tillage systems (no‐till, ridge‐till, and chisel plow) on the activities of phosphatases and arylsulfatase in soils at four research sites in Iowa, USA. The activities of the following enzymes were studied: acid and alkaline phosphatases, phosphodiesterase, and arylsulfatase at their optimal pH values. With the exception of acid phosphatase, which was significantly (P< 0.001) but negatively correlated with soil pH (rranged from –0.65** to –0.98***), the activities of other enzymes were significantly (P< 0.001) and positively correlated with soil pH, withrvalues ranging from 0.65** to 0.99*** for alkaline phosphatase, from 0.79*** to 0.97*** for phosphodiesterase, and from 0.66*** to 0.97*** for arylsulfatase. The Δ activity/Δ pH values were calculated to determine the sensitivity of each enzyme to changes in soil pH. Acid phosphatase was the most sensitive and arylsulfatase the least sensitive to changes in soil pH. Activities of the enzymes were greater in the 0 – 5 cm depth samples than those in 0 – 15 cm samples under no‐till treatment. With the exception of acid phosphatase, enzyme activities were mostly significantly (P< 0.001) and positively correlated with microbial biomass C (Cmic), withrvalues ranging from 0.28 (not significant) to 0.83*** and with microbial biomass N (Nmic), withrvalues ranging from 0.31 (not significant) to 0.94***. Liming and tillage systems significantly affected the activities of some enzymes but not others, as was evident from the specific activity values (g ofp‐nitrophenol released kg–1Corgh–1).
Dynamic of different C and N fractions in a Cambisol under five year succession fallow in Saxony (Germany)
Authors: Landgraf Dirk , Böhm Christian , Makeschin Franz
Published: June 2003

The dynamic of different soil C and N fractions in a Cambisol under succession fallow was investigated from June 1996 until May 2001. Mineral soil samples (0 – 10 and 10 – 30 cm) were analyzed for their concentrations of organic C (Corg), total N (Nt), hot water extractable C and N (HWC and HWN), and KCl extractable C and N (Corg(KCl), Norg(KCl), NH4+‐N, NO3–‐N). The values of all C and N fractions revealed a distinct depth gradient. While the concentrations of Corg increased after set aside significantly from 7.7 to 8.9 g kg–1 at 0 – 10 cm, those at 10 – 30 cm depth decreased from 7.2 to 6.1 g kg–1. Nt remained rather constant throughout the whole observation period. The HWC concentrations increased from 0.33 to 0.49 g kg–1, while HWN decreased slightly at 0 – 10 cm with time. In contrast, both HWC and HWN increased at 10 – 30 cm soil depth. HWC showed close significant correlations to Corg, and HWN to Nt as well as to NH4+‐N and NO3–‐N, respectively. In comparison to hot water‐extractable C and N, Corg(KCl) and Norg(KCl) accounted only about one tenth of those and showed a decreasing trend with time of succession. C : N ratio of the KCl fraction was in the same order of magnitude as the HWC : HWN ratio, except the last phase of the experiment where hot water extract values increased above 10.
Omental free‐tissue transfer: Indications and results from personal experience
Authors: Ciuce Constantin , Seddiq Faghed , Fodor Marius , Constantinescu Dan , Todoran Marian , Andercou Aurel , Demco Dana
Published: June 2003

Between 1987–2002, omental free‐tissue transfer was used in 11 patients, aged 6–65 years (mean age, 37.6). The omentum was used for the treatment of brachial plexus injury pain (3 cases), Romberg's disease (1 case), defects of the extremities occurring with chronic obstructive arterial disease (2 cases), posttraumatic lesions (3 cases), and following oncological resections (2 cases). In 2 cases, omental tissue represented the secondary option, after the failure of muscular tissue transfer. In 2 patients, the omental tissue transfer helped to preserve the knee. There was 1 failure, followed by amputation of the thigh. Two patients died from their underlying disease 10 and 36 months, respectively, after the operation. © 2003 Wiley‐Liss, Inc. MICROSURGERY 23:198–205 2003
Preparation and characterization of polypropylene/silver nanocomposite fibers
Authors: Yeo Sang Young , Jeong Sung Hoon
Published: June 2003

Bicomponent sheath‐core fibers were prepared by a general melt‐spinning method with polypropylene chips and silver nanoparticles. The melt‐spun fibers were characterized by DSC, WAXS and SEM. The antibacterial effect was evaluated by an AATCC 100 test, a quantitative method. The results of the DSC thermogram and the intensity pattern of X‐ray diffraction indicated that the crystallinity of polypropylene including silver nanoparticles was slightly decreased compared with that of pure polypropylene fibers. SEM micrographs showed that the average diameter of the silver nanoparticles was approximately 30 nm and some particles had aggregated. The fibers, which contained silver in the core part, did not show antibacterial effects. Fibers with added silver in the sheath part, however, exhibited excellent antibacterial effects. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry
Plasma‐modified poly(vinyl alcohol) membranes for the dehydrationof ethanol
Authors: Rafik M , Mas A , Guimon M‐F , Guimon C , Elharfi A , Schué F
Published: June 2003

Non‐porous poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) membranes prepared by a cast‐evaporating technique were covered with an allyl alcohol or acrylic acid plasma‐polymerized layer. The wettability and the surface energy, as well as the chemical nature of the deposit, were assigned by X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Fourier‐transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The ability of the modified membranes for dehydrating the water/ethanol azeotropic mixture by pervaporation was studied at 25, 40 and 60 °C. The best selectivity (α = 250 at 25 °C) was obtained in the case of the allyl alcohol plasma treatment. The results obtained are discussed on the basis of the hydrophilicity as well as in terms of the weakly crosslinked superficial layer that favoured the membrane swelling. Copyright © 2003 Society of Chemical Industry
Shotgun collision‐induced dissociation of peptides using a time of flight mass analyzer
Authors: Purvine Samuel , Eppel* Jason‐Thomas , Yi Eugene C. , Goodlett David R.
Published: June 2003

Parallel collision‐induced dissociation (CID) of peptides rather than serial, as is customary, results in loss of the obvious parent‐fragment ion lineage available from CID on a single ion. We report proof‐of‐principle results suggesting the feasibility of parallel peptide CID, referred to here as shotgun CID, for protein identification when using the measured mass accuracies available from a time of flight mass analyzer and currently available search routines such as SEQUEST. Additionally, we report that parent‐fragment ion lineage may be reconstructed from information encoded in the chromatographic single ion current traces of peptides.
Popitam: Towards new heuristic strategies to improve protein identification from tandem mass spectrometry data
Authors: Hernandez Patricia , Gras Robin , Frey Julien , Appel Ron D.
Published: June 2003

In recent years, proteomics research has gained importance due to increasingly powerful techniques in protein purification, mass spectrometry and identification, and due to the development of extensive protein and DNA databases from various organisms. Nevertheless, current identification methods from spectrometric data have difficulties in handling modifications or mutations in the source peptide. Moreover, they have low performance when run on large databases (such as genomic databases), or with low quality data, for example due to bad calibration or low fragmentation of the source peptide. We present a new algorithm dedicated to automated protein identification from tandem mass spectrometry (MS/MS) data by searching a peptide sequence database. Our identification approach shows promising properties for solving the specific difficulties enumerated above. It consists of matching theoretical peptide sequences issued from a database with a structured representation of the source MS/MS spectrum. The representation is similar to the spectrum graphs commonly used by de novo sequencing software. The identification process involves the parsing of the graph in order to emphazise relevant sections for each theoretical sequence, and leads to a list of peptides ranked by a correlation score. The parsing of the graph, which can be a highly combinatorial task, is performed by a bio‐inspired algorithm called Ant Colony Optimization algorithm.
β‐elimination: An unexpected artefact in proteome analysis
Authors: Herbert Ben , Hopwood Femia , Oxley David , McCarthy John , Laver Matt , Grinyer J. , Goodall A. , Williams Keith , Castagna Annalisa , Righetti Pier Giorgio
Published: June 2003

Two persistent myths, ingrained in the electrophoretic literature of the last thirty years, namely carbamylation and deamidation, have been recently dispelled (Herbertet al.,J. Proteome Res. 2002, in press). We report here, for the first time, a noxious and unexpected artefact in proteome analysis: β‐elimination (or desulfuration), which results on the loss of an H2S group (34 Da) from cysteine (Cys) residues for protein focusing in the alkaline pH region. With such an elimination event, a dehydro alanine residue is generated at the Cys site. In turn, the presence of a double bond in this position elicits lysis of the peptide bond, generating a number of peptides of fairly large size from an intact protein. The first process seems to be favored by the electric field, probably due to the continuous harvesting of the SH‐anion produced. The only remedy found to this noxious degradation pathway is the reduction and alkylation of all Cys residues prior to their exposure to the electric field. Alkylation appears to substantially reduce both β‐elimination and the subsequent amido bond lysis.
Non conformal gauge theories from D branes
Authors: Di Vecchia P.
Published: June 2003

We use fractional and wrapped branes to describe perturbative and nonperturbative properties of the gauge theories living on their worldvolume.
Quantitative genetic analysis of among-population variation in sperm and female sperm-storage organ length in Drosophila mojavensis
Authors: MILLER GARY T. , STARMER WILLIAM T. , PITNICK SCOTT
Published: June 2003

In Drosophila, sperm length and the length of the females' primary sperm-storage organ have rapidly coevolved through post-copulatory sexual selection. This pattern is evident even among geographic populations of Drosophila mojavensis. To understand better these traits of potential importance for speciation, we performed quantitative genetic analysis of both seminal receptacle length and sperm length in two divergent populations. Parental strains, F1, F1 reciprocal (F1r), F2, F2r, backcross and backcross reciprocal generations were used in a line-cross (generation means) analysis. Seminal receptacle length is largely an autosomal additive trait, whereas additivity, dominance and epistasis all contributed to the means of sperm length. Either an X-chromosome or a Y-chromosome effect was necessary for models of sperm length to be significant. However, the overall contributions from the X and Y chromosomes to sperm length was small.
Subcellular localization of CrmA: identification of a novel leucine-rich nuclear export signal conserved in anti-apoptotic serpins
Authors: RODRIGUEZ Jose A. , SPAN Simone W. , KRUYT Frank A. E. , GIACCONE Giuseppe
Published: June 2003

The cowpox virus-encoded anti-apoptotic protein cytokine response modifier A (CrmA) is a member of the serpin family that specifically inhibits the cellular proteins caspase 1, caspase 8 and granzyme B. In this study, we have used Flag- and yellow fluorescent protein (YFP)-tagged versions of CrmA to investigate the mechanisms that regulate its subcellular localization. We show that CrmA can actively enter and exit the nucleus and we demonstrate the role of the nuclear export receptor CRM1 in this shuttling process. CrmA contains a novel leucine-rich nuclear export signal (NES) that is functionally conserved in the anti-apoptotic cellular serpin PI-9. Besides this leucine-rich export signal, additional sequences mapping to a 103-amino-acid region flanking the NES contribute to the CRM1-dependent nuclear export of CrmA. Although YFP-tagged CrmA is primarily located in the cytoplasm, shifting its localization to be predominantly nuclear by fusion of a heterologous nuclear localization signal did not impair its ability to prevent Fas-induced apoptosis. We propose that nucleocytoplasmic shuttling would allow CrmA to efficiently target cellular pro-apoptotic proteins not only in the cytoplasm, but also in the nucleus, and thus to carry out its anti-apoptotic function in both compartments.
GRAVITATIONAL LENSING CONSTRAINT ON THE COSMIC EQUATION OF STATE
Authors: JAIN DEEPAK , DEV ABHA , PANCHAPAKESAN N. , MAHAJAN S. , BHATIA V. B.
Published: June 2003

Recent redshift-distance measurements of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) at cosmological distances suggest that two-third of the energy density of the universe is dominated by dark energy component with an effective negative pressure. This dark energy component is described by the equation of state px= wρx(w ≥ - 1). We use gravitational lensing statistics to constrain the equation of state of this dark energy. We use n(Δθ), the image separation distribution function of lensed quasars, as a tool to probe w. We find that for the observed range of Ωm~ 0.2–0.4, w should lie between -0.8 ≤ w ≤ -0.4 in order to have five lensed quasars in a sample of 867 optical quasars. This limit is highly sensitive to lens and Schechter parameters and the evolution of galaxies.
CHEMICAL PATTERNS IN SIMPLE FLOW SYSTEMS
Authors: TAYLOR ANNETTE
Published: June 2003

The addition of flow to chemical reaction-diffusion systems provides robust pattern-forming mechanisms which are expected to occur in a wide variety of natural and artificial systems. Experiments demonstrating some of these mechanisms are presented here, including the differential-flow-induced chemical instability (DIFICI), which gives rise to traveling chemical waves, and flow-distributed oscillations (FDO), which produce stationary concentration patterns.
MODE-EMERGENCE IN THE SYNCHRONIZED SAILING OF CAMPHOR BOATS
Authors: NAKATA SATOSHI , DOI YUKIE
Published: June 2003

The synchronized self-motion of three camphor boats was investigated on a circular water route as a simple example of mode-emergence. When three camphor boats were floated on the surface of water in a circular route in the same direction, various kinds of synchronization could be produced by changing the inherent velocities of the boats. The essential features of synchronization were reproduced by a numerical calculation regarding the distances among three camphor boats, which changed the driving forces of the individual boats. We believe that the present results may be useful for developing novel experiments with vector processes and mode-switching.
Eutectic Mixture of Two Bismaleimides: Thermal and Electrical Properties
Authors: Sava Mitica , Tanasa Fulga
Published: June 2003

4,4′-Bismaleimidodiphenylmethane and 2,4-bismaleimidotoluene were mixed in solution in different molar ratios. Differential scanning calorimetry of the resulting mixtures, as well as of the initial monomers, was performed. The eutectic melting temperatures showed a very interesting behavior, being much lower than the lowest melting point of those two monomers initially considered. In addition, the decrease of the temperature of crosslinking onset became maximal for these mixtures at the eutectic point.
Morphology of Poly(p-oxybenzoyl) Crystals Prepared by Direct Polycondensation of p-Hydroxybenzoic Acid with Diphenyl Chlorophosphate
Authors: Kimura Kunio , Horii Toshiyuki , Yamashita Yuhiko
Published: June 2003

We have studied the morphology of poly( p-oxybenzoyl) (POB) crystals prepared by the direct polycondensation of p-hydroxybenzoic acid (HBA) using diphenyl chlorophosphate (DPCP) in the presence of N,N-dimethylformamide. Lozenge-shaped sheaf-like POB crystals were obtained of which the longer diagonal was 16.0-16.5 μm. Favorable polymerization conditions to prepare the crystal exhibiting clear crystal characteristic were the molar ratio of DPCP to HBA of 1.5, the molar ratio of DMF to HBA of 2.6 and the polymerization concentration of 3.0%. The crystals were comprised of low molecular weight polymer of which the degree of polymerization (DPn) was 14 and possessed extremely high crystallinity. The formation mechanism of the crystals was considered by the polymerization time dependences of morphology, yield, density, DPn, crystallite size, and lattice constant as follows. When the DPn of the oligomers exceeded a critical value of about 3, they were precipitated to form the hexagonal lamellae. The lamellae grew very quickly to sheaf-like lozenge-shaped crystal through the screw dislocation with the continuous precipitation of the oligomer from the solution. Finally, further polymerization and the reorganization of polymer chains occurred in the precipitated crystals.
Solid Phase Ring-opening Polymerization of Macrocyclic S-Aryl Thioesters Containing Terephthaloyl Structure
Authors: Kameyama Atsushi , Ide Takashi , Nishikubo Tadatomi
Published: June 2003

We have studied synthesis and solid-state ring-opening polymerization of macrocyclic S-aryl thioesters, dimer p-BBDT-2, trimer p-BBDT-3, and tetramer p-BBDT-4 containing terephthaloyl structure. The targeted p-BBDT-2, p-BBDT-3, and p-BBDT-4 were prepared by the reaction of terephthaloyl chloride (TPC) with 4- tert-butyl-1,2-benzenedithiol (BBDT) using NaOH under phase transfer conditions. The macrocyclic trimer p-BBDT-3 was obtained preferentially in 81% yield by a reaction at a concentration of 1.0 mol 1-1 in a mixture of aqueous NaOH and chloroform. The structures of the prepared macrocyclic S-aryl thioesters were well identified by IR, 1H NMR, 13C NMR spectroscopies, MALDI-TOF MS, and elemental analysis. The solubility and thermal properties of p-BBDT-2, p-BBDT-3, and p-BBDT-4 were characterized. It was found that the ring-opening polymerization of p-BBDT-2, p-BBDT-3, and p-BBDT-4 without catalysts occurred in the solid state, and the corresponding poly( S-aryl thioester)s with moderate molecular weights were obtained. The behaviors of the polymerization of p-BBDT-3 and catalytic effect of potassium halides/dibenzo-18-crown-6 complexes were examined. It was also found that the poly( S-aryl ester) obtained by a solid-state polymerization had good thermal properties.
Preparation of Composites of Hyperbranched Aromatic Poly(ethersulfone)s Possessing Sulfonic Acid Terminal Groups and Epoxy Resin for Polymer Electrolyte
Authors: Takeuchi Masaki , Jikei Mitsutoshi , Kakimoto Masa-Aki
Published: June 2003

An AB2 monomer, 2,6-bis( p-sodium sulfophenoxy) benzonitrile 1, was synthesized from 2,6-dichlrobenzonitrile and p-sodium hydroxybenzene sulfonic acid. The novel hyperbranched poly(ethersulfone) 2 was prepared from self-polycondensation of the AB2 monomer using phosphorus pentoxide/methane sulfonic acid as the condensation agent. The obtained hyperbranched polymer had the sulfonic acid groups at the terminals existing in a large quantity. The weight-average molecular weight ( Mw) of the polymer was 27,000. This polymer was thermally stable until 275 °C. The composites 2 and epoxy resin were prepared, and it was found that they had proton transfer mobility. The proton flux of epoxy resin composites was higher than that of the composites prepared from 2 and PVA. The epoxy resin composites had good thermal properties and were stable up to 200 °C.
“The Woman is Not Always the Bad Guy”
Authors: Nichols Laura , Feltey Kathryn M.
Published: June 2003

Feminist scholars promote an advocacy and social change approach that is rooted in centering women's knowledge and suggestions for change. This article centers and analyzes suggestions made by women staying in shelters for women who have been battered and explores the ways their perspectives reflect individualized or structural discourse and their solutions concentrate needs at the level of survival, equality, or transformation. The article finds that women have a range of perspectives and suggestions, and feminist scholars are encouraged to understand and address these from women's multiple positions while continuing to grapple with how to promote social change to improve women's lives.
Long-term Trends in Depression among Women Separated from Abusive Partners
Authors: Anderson Deborah K. , Saunders Daniel G. , Yoshihama Mieko , Bybee Deborah I. , Sullivan Cris M.
Published: June 2003

This study tested a cumulative adversity hypothesis, where differences in postseparation stressors among battered women were expected to lead to a widening gap in levels of women's depression over time. Ninety-four women separated from their abusive partners were interviewed six times over a 2-year period. Consistent with the hypothesis, inequalities grew over time. Women who were exposed to the greatest amount of violence and secondary stressors shortly after shelter exit experienced relatively higher levels of depression that either did not improve or significantly increased with time. Social support was the only resource to have the hypothesized decreasing effect on depression.
Puerto Rican Drug Users' Experiences of Physical and Sexual Abuse
Authors: Finlinson H. Ann , Oliver-Vélez Denise , Deren Sherry , Cant John G. H. , Colón Héctor M. , Robles Rafaela R. , Andía Jonny F.
Published: June 2003

This study examines gender and developmental stage differences in physical and sexual abuse among Puerto Rican drug users. A structured questionnaire was administered to 799 participants in New York and 382 in Puerto Rico. Qualitative data were collected through in-depth life histories with 21 participants. Study participants included 297 female and 884 male Puerto Rican drug injectors and crack smokers. Females were significantly more likely than males to report physical abuse by a family member in childhood and unwanted sex in childhood, adolescence, and adulthood. Qualitative findings describe abuse in the contexts of family, drug dealing, drug paraphernalia possession, and sex work.
Design, Implementation, and Performance of MPI on Portals 3.0
Authors: Brightwell Ron , Riesen Rolf , Maccabe Arthur B.
Published: June 2003

This paper describes an implementation of the Message Passing Interface (MPI) on the Portals 3.0 data movement layer. Portals 3.0 provides low-level building blocks that are flexible enough to support higher-level message passing layers, such as MPI, very efficiently. Portals 3.0 is also designed to allow for programmable network interface cards to offload message processing from the host processor, allowing for the ability to overlap computation and MPI communication. We describe the basic building blocks in Portals 3.0, show how they can be put together to implement MPI, and describe the protocols of our MPI implementation. We look at several key operations within the implementation and describe the effects that a Portals 3.0 implementation has on scalability and performance. We also present preliminary performance results from our implementation for Myrinet.
Communication and Optimization Aspects of Parallel Programming Models on Hybrid Architectures
Authors: Rabenseifner Rolf , Wellein Gerhard
Published: June 2003

Most HPC systems are clusters of shared memory nodes. Parallel programming must combine the distributed memory parallelization on the node interconnect with the shared memory parallelization inside each node. The hybrid MPI+OpenMP programming model is compared with pure MPI, compiler based parallelization, and other parallel programming models on hybrid architectures. The paper focuses on bandwidth and latency aspects, and also on whether programming paradigms can separate the optimization of communication and computation. Benchmark results are presented for hybrid and pure MPI communication. This paper analyzes the strengths and weaknesses of several parallel programming models on clusters of SMP nodes.
Towards Merging Context-Aware, Mobile and Grid Computing
Authors: Yamin Adenauer Corrêa , Barbosa Jorge Victória , Augustin Iara , da Silva Luciano Cavalheiro , Real Rodrigo , Geyer Cláudio , Cavalheiro Gerson
Published: June 2003

ISAM is a proposal directed to supporting physical and logical mobility, context-awareness, dynamic adaptation and the execution of large-scale distributed applications. In order to achieve its goals, ISAM uses, as strategy, an integrated environment that provides: (a) a programming language; (b) an execution environment; (c) a context recognition server. The integration is accomplished through an adaptation process that uses a multilevel collaborative model, in which both the system and the application contribute for that. In this paper we discuss the main components used to implement the ISAM features, and we also present a distributed application that explores some of this features.
Political Discourse on Ethnic Minority Issues
Authors: Van Der Valk Ineke
Published: June 2003

In this article, commonalities and differences in the discourses of the right and the extreme right on ethnic minority issues in the Netherlands and France are examined. The investigation is carried out from an interdisciplinary and comparative discourse analytical perspective. The examined data include parliamentary debates, political speeches, interviews and articles in the time period 1990-97. The analysis shows that a majority of the investigated political actors - in particular of the extreme right, but also of the right - contribute to the representation of immigrant groups, first, as an out-group; second, as different or even deviant; and, third, as threatening. In France, however, a rather explicit ant-immigrant discourse appears to be more common and mainstream when compared to the Netherlands during the period under study.
Community Violence Exposure in Young Adults
Authors: Scarpa Angela
Published: June 2003

The United States is one of the most violent countries in the world, and this is being reflected in rates of young adults' lifetime exposure ranging from 76% to 82% for victimization and 93% to 96% for witnessing. These high rates are found despite these studies being conducted on relatively low-risk samples from rural areas, and the majority of violent acts reported being less life threatening than those reported by high-risk urban adolescents. Nonetheless, young adults with high levels of exposure report more psychological maladjustment including depressed mood, aggressive behavior, posttraumatic stress disorder symptomatology, and interpersonal problems. The cycle from exposure to later perpetration of aggression is discussed in terms of psychophysiological processes that may emerge from chronic violence exposure or interact with victimization to increase risk. Last, theoretical, clinical, and policy implications are suggested that include intervention and prevention programs targeting all forms of violence in urban and rural areas.
Living in Danger
Authors: Kaysen Debra , Resick Patricia A. , Wise Deborah
Published: June 2003

In this article on the effects of chronic traumatization, research is reviewed regarding the association between chronicity of traumatization and posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptomatology. The contribution of the broader traumatic context to PTSD symptomatology is also examined. This review focuses on three populations: combat veterans, child sexual abuse survivors, and survivors of domestic violence. The challenges of defining chronicity of a traumatic event and traumatic context are addressed. Finally, suggestions for future directions are provided.
Perpetrators of Spousal Homicide
Authors: Aldridge Mari L. , Browne Kevin D.
Published: June 2003

It has been argued that individuals who engage in spouse abuse increase their violence toward their partners, which can culminate in the death of either the assaulter or the victim. The aim of this review is to identify risk factors that determine whether an abusive relationship will end in eventual death. An extensive search revealed 22 empirical research studies on risk factors for spousal homicide. The circumstances of spousal homicide are described and salient risk factors are highlighted. In the United Kingdom, 37% of all women were murdered by their current or former intimate partner compared to 6% of men. The most common cause of an intimate partner's death in England and Wales was being attacked with a sharp implement or being strangled. By contrast, the most common cause in the United States for spousal homicide was being shot. Nine major risk factors are found that may help predict the probability of a partner homicide and prevent future victims.
Variables related to increased mortality following out-patient pulmonary rehabilitation
Authors: Gerardi DA , Lovett L , Benoit-Connors ML , Reardon JZ , ZuWallack RL
Published: June 2003

Although patients with advanced pulmonary diseases have significant improvement in exercise ability and functional status following comprehensive out-patient pulmonary rehabilitation (OPR), their long-term prognosis once they have reached this stage of their diseases remains poor. To further evaluate predictors of increased mortality in these patients, we related patient characteristics and short-term outcome obtained during OPR assessment of 158 patients to subsequent survival. The time period from OPR to death or collection of survival data was 40.0 +/- 17.1 months. The following variables were tested individually and in stepwise fashion using a proportional hazards model: 1) age; 2) gender; 3) pulmonary diagnosis; 4) prebronchodilator forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1); 5) arterial oxygen tension (Pa,O2) and arterial carbon dioxide tension (Pa,CO2); 6) body mass index (BMI); 7) pre- and post-OPR 12 min walking distance (12-MW); 8) pre- and post-OPR quality of life, using the Chronic Respiratory Disease Questionnaire (CRDQ); 9) number and type of nonpulmonary diagnoses; and 10) number of medications. Separate survival analyses were performed for all deaths (the total group), respiratory deaths only (nonrespiratory deaths excluded), and nonrespiratory deaths only (respiratory deaths excluded). Forty three patients (27%) died during the study period; and the 3 year survival was 80%. For all three survival analyses, the post-OPR 12-MW was the most significant variable related to prognosis: patients with low timed walking distance had increased mortality both from respiratory and nonrespiratory causes. Other variables related to increased mortality included: elevated Pa,CO2; low pre-OPR 12-MW; reduced Pa,O2; low FEV1; low BMI, increased number of medications, and increased CRDQ dyspnoea. These results indicate that the timed walking distance following out-patient pulmonary rehabilitation is an important predictor of survival in patients with advanced pulmonary disease.
Long-term effects of therapy on respiratory health
Authors: Fuhrman C , Ernst P , Kauffmann F
Published: June 2003

Only scant information is available on the long-term consequences to respiratory health of treatment with bronchodilators and oral corticosteroids. In the present study, we aimed to gain more information about these consequences. We examined 712 men working in the Paris area, by means of a subjective assessment of whether their respiratory health worsened or improved from 1960 to 1972, the decline in forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) over this time-period, and mortality from 1972 to 1992, in relation to respiratory therapy dispensed during a 2 year period in 1970-1971, as recorded in social security reimbursement records. As expected, subjects with respiratory symptoms or airflow limitation were more likely to have been prescribed respiratory therapy. After accounting for the effect of lung function level and smoking, subjects dispensed inhaled beta-agonists were likely to feel their condition had worsened and had a greater decline in FEV1 from 1960 to 1972. Among subjects with airflow limitation who reported asthma or persistent wheeze, having been dispensed oral corticosteroids on an intermittent basis was associated with improved survival (relative risk (RR) 0.32; 95% confidence interval (95% CI): 0.10-0.91) after adjusting for FEV1 level and smoking category. Our results add to the evidence that regular use of beta-agonist bronchodilators may be associated with adverse effects on respiratory health, whilst intermittent use of corticosteroids may be of long-term benefit.
Integrated care for asthma: matching care to the patient
Authors: Osman LM , Abdalla MI , Russell IT , Fiddes J , Friend JA , Legge JS , Douglas JG
Published: June 2003

The purpose of the present study was to investigate whether criteria associated with assignment of asthma patients between general practice (GP) care alone, integrated care (shared between GP care and hospital clinic) or conventional specialist review could be identified, and whether outcomes for these patients differed over the next 12 months. Seven hundred and sixty four patients with a diagnosis of asthma and previously assigned to either integrated care or clinic care were reviewed after 1 year and reassigned. These patients were then followed for another 12 months and clinical data were collected over this time. After 12 months in clinic care or integrated care, assignment to integrated care was predicted by previous participation in integrated care (OR 2.94), patient preference for integrated care (OR 3.7), no admission (OR 1.56), fewer steroid courses during the previous year (OR 0.88) and nonattendance at review (OR 0.43) in the previous 12 months. Patient discharge to GP care was predicted by higher level of forced expiratory volume in one second (FEV1) (OR 1.49), lower number of GP consultations for troublesome asthma (OR 0.78), and nonattendance for review in the preceding year (OR 2.15). In the following 12 months, the three groups of patients differed significantly in hospital admissions (Discharged = 0.008; Integrated = 0.12; Clinic = 0.31), bronchodilators prescribed (Discharged = 8.5; Integrated = 10.2; Clinic = 13.9), GP consultations (Discharged = 1.3; Integrated = 3.0; Clinic = 4.1) and oral steroid courses (Discharged = 0.62; Integrated = 1.7; Clinic = 2.4). Patients assigned to integrated care, clinic care or discharged to general practice care form three distinct patient populations differing retrospectively and prospectively in morbidity and admission risk. In particular, patients assigned to integrated care fall midway in risk and morbidity between those discharged or those retained in clinic care. These results suggest that integrated care provides general practitioners with a system of management for asthma patients, for whom they do not wish frequent specialist review but who they do not believe can safely be discharged to general practice care only.
Low-dose theophylline modulates T-lymphocyte activation in allergen-challenged asthmatics
Authors: Jaffar ZH , Sullivan P , Page C , Costello J
Published: June 2003

Theophylline has been shown by several investigators to attenuate the late asthmatic response (LAR) to inhaled allergen, suggesting that it has anti-inflammatory or immunomodulatory properties. We have, therefore, undertaken a double-blind, placebo-controlled study to examine the effects of low-dose theophylline on bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) and blood T-lymphocyte profile and activation in asthmatics following antigen challenge and the development of a LAR. Peripheral blood and BAL samples were obtained from 17 subjects with mild atopic asthma before and after 6 weeks of treatment with either oral theophylline or placebo. The mean serum theophylline concentration achieved was 6.6 micrograms.mL-1, which is below the currently accepted therapeutic range. Following theophylline therapy, there was a significant decrease in the number of BAL lymphocytes compared to placebo. On flow cytometric analysis of BAL cells, a significant loss of CD3+ T-lymphocytes, comprising both CD4+ and CD8+ subsets, was demonstrated. Moreover, there was a decrease in the number of BAL CD4+ T-cells expressing the activation marker very late activation antigen-1 (VLA-1), and an apparent reduction in human leucocyte antigen-DR (HLA-DR). Correspondingly, this was accompanied in the blood by an elevation in the proportion of activated CD4+ T-lymphocytes, in particular those expressing HLA-DR. These findings provide further evidence that theophylline has an anti-inflammatory action in asthma.
Role of interleukin-5 and substance P in development of airway hyperreactivity to histamine in guinea-pigs
Authors: Van Oosterhout AJ , van Ark I , Hofman G , Van Der Linde HJ , Fattah D , Nijkamp FP
Published: June 2003

In this study, we examined the mechanism by which bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) cells induced hyperreactivity of the trachea in vitro. As both interleukin-5 (IL-5) and substance P (SP) appeared to be involved, the effect of these mediators was examined in vivo. Tracheae were incubated with BAL cells from ovalbumin or saline challenged animals, and from naive animals, in the absence or presence of either IL-5, SP, or both. In addition, the effect of intra-airway application of IL-5, SP, both, or vehicle on tracheal hyperreactivity was examined. Incubation of tracheae with BAL cells from ovalbumin challenged animals induced an increase (30 +/- 10%) in the maximal response to histamine. The hyperreactivity could be completely inhibited by co-incubation with 5-lipoxygenase inhibitor, AA861. The hyperreactivity could be mimicked by incubation of tracheae with BAL cells from naive animals in the presence of IL-5 and SP. After in vivo administration of either IL-5 or SP, maximal responses to histamine were increased and amounted to 105 +/- 35 and 101 +/- 37%, respectively. Administration of IL-5 but not SP induced a significant increase in the number of eosinophils (67 +/- 22%) and eosinophil peroxidase (EPO) activity (94 +/- 33%) in BAL cells. The simultaneous administration of IL-5 and SP did not potentiate the hyperreactivity and eosinophilia observed with IL-5 alone. These data suggest that IL-5 is important in the recruitment of eosinophils, whereas both IL-5 and substance P are involved in the induction of airway hyperreactivity.