bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Size tuning of Ag‐decorated TiO2 nanotube arrays for improved bactericidal capacity of orthopedic implants
Authors: Esfandiari N. , Simchi A. , Bagheri R.
Published: August 2013

Surface modification of orthopedic implants using titanium dioxide nanotubes and silver nanoparticles (SNs) is a promising approach to prevent bacteria adhesion, biofilm formation, and implant infection. Herein, we utilized a straightforward and all‐solution process to prepare silver‐decorated TiO2 nanotube arrays with surface density of 103 to 104 per µm2. With controlling the synthesis conditions, hexagonal closed‐packed nanotubes with opening diameter of 30–100 nm that are decorated with SNs with varying sizes (12–40 nm) were prepared. Various analytical techniques were utilized to characterize the size, morphology, distribution, valance state, surface roughness, and composition of the prepared antibacterial films. The bactericidal capacity of the films were studied on Escherichia coli (E. coli) by drop‐test method and correlated with the size and percentage of Ag as well as the surface density of TiO2 nanotube arrays. Synergetic effect of TiO2 nanotubes and SNs on the antibacterial activity of the composite films is shown. The bactericidal capacity is found to depend on the size characteristics of the Ag‐TiO2 coating. The highest antibacterial activity is obtained for TiO2 nanotubes with opening diameter of about 100 nm and SNs with an average size of 20 nm. MTT assay using osteoblast MG63 cells was performed to examine the cell viability. We suggest that release rate of the silver ions is an important factor controlling the antibacterial activity. Additionally, the size dependency of the bactericidal capacity implies that electrical coupling between silver and TiO2 nanotubes and improved hydrophobicity of the coating might influence the bacterial behavior of the hybrid nanostructures. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 102A: 2625–2635, 2014.
Biological behavior of fibroblast on contractile collagen hydrogel crosslinked by γ‐irradiation
Authors: Zhang Xiangmei , Zhang Yaqing , Chen Wenqiang , Xu Ling , Wei Shicheng , Zheng Yufeng , Zhai Maolin
Published: August 2013

Collagen hydrogels exhibited a contractile trend in simulated body fluid. In this study, the internal pore architecture and mechanical properties of collagen hydrogel prepared by radiation crosslinking was evaluated during contraction, and the effect of contractile collagen hydrogels on the biological behavior of fibroblasts were investigated in vitro, such as viability, proliferation, morphology, apoptosis, cycle, and stress fiber. The results showed that accompany with contraction of collagen hydrogel, the pore diameter of the hydrogels decreased and compressive modulus increased. However, fibroblasts can grow on contractile collagen hydrogels. Indeed, collagen hydrogel contracted from circumference to the interior, which retard the spreading of fibroblasts on the dynamic substrate and interrupted the initial attachment of the cell. However, contraction of collagen hydrogel had not only significant influence on the L929 cell proliferation, but also accelerated the apoptosis. Cell cycle analysis showed that contractile collagen hydrogel may promote cell cycle from G0/G1 phase to S phase, and DNA synthesis and cell proliferation were enhanced, but which may be different in contraction process. Therefore, as a scaffold for tissue engineering, the strategy for inhibition of the contraction of collagen hydrogel should be taken into account. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part A: 102A: 2669–2679, 2014.
Varying the costs of sunk costs: Optimal and non‐optimal choices in a sunk‐cost task with humans
Authors: Avila Raul , Yankelevitz Rachelle L. , Gonzalez Juan C. , Hackenberg Timothy D.
Published: August 2013

Twelve adult human subjects were exposed to a sunk‐cost procedure with two options: a mixed‐ratio schedule of points later exchangeable for money, and an escape schedule that cancelled the current trial and initiated a new one. The mixed ratio included four values, arranged probabilistically in such a way that the expected ratios favored either persistence or escape. These probabilities were varied systematically on a within‐subject basis across conditions. Absolute ratio size was thus varied across four groups of three subjects each, yielding unique combinations of expected ratios from escaping and persisting. When the differences between escaping and persisting differed the least, subjects tended to persist, committing the sunk‐cost error. When the differences between persisting and escaping differed by a larger margin, choice patterns tended toward optimal—escaping or persisting as a function of the contingencies. These findings demonstrate that sunk‐cost decision‐making errors in humans are sensitive to their relative costs and benefits, and illustrate a promising set of methods for bringing such behavior under experimental control in the laboratory.
The occurrence of autophagic cell death in the tegument of rabbits pre‐infested withRhipicephalus sanguineusand exposed to selamectin (active principle of acaricide pfizer revolution®)
Authors: Bozzatto Vlamir , Oliveira PatrÍCia Rosa De , Furquim Karim Christina Scopinho , Camargo‐Mathias Maria Izabel
Published: August 2013

Ticks ofRhipicephalus sanguineusspecies have great medical and veterinary importance for being a vector of various diseases. In an attempt to minimize their action on the host, people have resorted to chemical control by using various acaricides, such as selamectin. Although previous studies have demonstrated its toxic action in domestic animals, no studies focused on the detection of cell death when exposed to selamectin. For this reason, the technique for detecting autophagic cell death was used in order to demonstrate the responses of rabbits' skin tissues pre‐infested withR. sanguineusand exposed to different concentrations of selamectin. The obtained results when exposed to 100 and 80% concentrations of selamectin showed a strong mark of acid phosphatase on the cells of the connective tissue of the dermis and hair follicles, whereas the ones exposed to the 50% concentration had a weak mark on the cells of the connective tissue of the dermis and moderate staining in hair follicles. It became clear that, when used at high concentrations (100 and 80%), selamectin is capable to induce a large scale occurrence of the autophagic cell death process. On the other hand, the concentration of 50% causes minor morphophysiological changes in the skin of rabbit hosts when evaluated the cell death process. Therefore, the data confirms that selamectin is a powerful dose‐dependent toxic agent causes increased activity of the enzyme acid phosphatase.Microsc. Res. Tech. 76:1171–1176, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Nonhydrostatic nested climate modeling: A case study of the 2010 summer season over the western United States
Authors: Lebassi‐Habtezion Bereket , Diffenbaugh Noah S.
Published: August 2013

The potential importance of local‐scale climate phenomena motivates development of approaches to enable computationally feasible nonhydrostatic climate simulations. To that end, we evaluate the potential viability of nested nonhydrostatic model approaches, using the summer climate of the western United States (WUSA) as a case study. We use the Weather Research and Forecast (WRF) model to carry out five simulations of summer 2010. This suite allows us to test differences between nonhydrostatic and hydrostatic resolutions, single and multiple nesting approaches, and high‐ and low‐resolution reanalysis boundary conditions. WRF simulations were evaluated against station observations, gridded observations, and reanalysis data over domains that cover the 11 WUSA states at nonhydrostatic grid spacing of 4 km and hydrostatic grid spacing of 25 km and 50 km. Results show that the nonhydrostatic simulations more accurately resolve the heterogeneity of surface temperature, precipitation, and wind speed features associated with the topography and orography of the WUSA region. In addition, we find that the simulation in which the nonhydrostatic grid is nested directly within the regional reanalysis exhibits the greatest overall agreement with observational data. Results therefore indicate that further development of nonhydrostatic nesting approaches is likely to yield important insights into the response of local‐scale climate phenomena to increases in global greenhouse gas concentrations. However, the biases in regional precipitation, atmospheric circulation, and moisture flux identified in a subset of the nonhydrostatic simulations suggest that alternative nonhydrostatic modeling approaches such as superparameterization and variable‐resolution global nonhydrostatic modeling will provide important complements to the nested approaches tested here.
Synthesis of Novel Series of 6‐Chloro‐1,1‐dioxo‐1,4,2‐benzodithiazine Derivatives with Potential Biological Activity
Authors: Brzozowski Zdzisław , Sławiński Jarosław
Published: August 2013

A series of 6′‐chloro‐1′,1′‐dioxo‐2′H‐spiro[benzo[d][1,3,7]oxadiazocine‐4,3′‐(1,4,2‐benzodithiazine)]‐2,6(1H,5H)‐dione derivatives 2a, 2b and 3a, 3b have been synthesized starting from 3‐aminobenzodithiazines 1a, 1b and isatoic anhydride. Subsequent reactions of 2a with 3‐chlorophenyl isocyanate gave condensation products 4 and 5. Compound 2a was also converted into 3‐(2‐aminobenzamido)‐6‐chloro‐7‐methyl‐1,1‐dioxo‐1,4,2‐benzodithiazine derivatives 6, 7, 8, 9, 10. The mechanisms of the reactions are discussed.
Sulfamic Acid‐Catalyzed Multicomponent One‐Pot Synthesis of Poly‐Substituted Pyridines and Their Antimicrobial Activity
Authors: Janardhan B. , Vijayalaxmi S. , Rajitha B.
Published: August 2013

A novel series of poly‐substituted pyridines (7‐(substituted aryl)‐3,11‐dimethoxy‐5,6,8,9‐tetrahydro‐dibenzo[c,h]acridines) were synthesized via one‐pot multicomponent approach using sulfamic acid as a catalyst and evaluated for their antimicrobial activity. The results indicate that the poly‐substituted series (4a, 4b, 4c, 4d, 4e, 4f, 4g, 4h, 4i) showed weak to moderate antibacterial activity. However, compound (4c) had shown good antifungal activity against Candida rugosa with standard antifungal drug Amphotericin‐B. Analogue (4c) was considered to be a lead compound for subsequent standard optimization.
Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II in spinal dorsal horn contributes to the pain hypersensitivity induced by γ‐aminobutyric acid type a receptor inhibition
Authors: Suo Zhan‐Wei , Fan Qing‐Qing , Yang Xian , Hu Xiao‐Dong
Published: August 2013

The fast inhibitory synaptic transmission mediated by the γ‐aminobutyric acid type A receptor (GABAAR) within spinal dorsal horn exerts a gating control over the synaptic conveyance of nociceptive information from the periphery to higher brain regions. Although a large body of evidence has demonstrated that the impairment of GABAergic inhibition alone is sufficient to elicit pain hypersensitivity in intact animals, the underlying mechanisms remain to be characterized. The present study shows that Ca2+/calmodulin‐dependent protein kinase II (CaMKII) is an important signaling protein downstream of reduced GABAergic inhibition. We found that pharmacological removal of inhibition by intrathecal application of the GABAAR antagonist bicuculline significantly enhanced the autophosphorylation of CaMKII at Thr286 in spinal dorsal horn of mice. In addition to increased CaMKII activity, bicuculline also promoted CaMKII interaction with N‐methyl‐D‐aspartate (NMDA)‐subtype glutamate receptors and induced the translocation of CaMKII from cytosolic compartments to the synaptosomal membrane fraction. Immunoblotting analysis revealed that the phosphorylation levels of NMDA receptor NR2B subunit at Ser1303 and of AMPA‐subtype glutamate receptor GluR1 subunit at Ser831, two important CaMKII phosphorylation sites, were substantially enhanced after bicuculline application. Behavioral tests illustrated that intrathecal administration of the CaMKII inhibitor KN‐93, NMDA receptor antagonist D‐APV, or AMPA receptor antagonist GYKI 52466 effectively ameliorated the mechanical allodynia evoked by bicuculline. These data thus indicate that CaMKII signaling is critical for the reduced inhibition to evoke spinal sensitization. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The climate of daily precipitation in the Alps: development and analysis of a high‐resolution grid dataset from pan‐Alpine rain‐gauge data
Authors: Isotta Francesco A. , Frei Christoph , Weilguni Viktor , Perčec Tadić Melita , Lassègues Pierre , Rudolf Bruno , Pavan Valentina , Cacciamani Carlo , Antolini Gabriele , Ratto Sara M. , Munari Michela , Micheletti Stefano , Bonati Veronica , Lussana Cristian , Ronchi Christian , Panettieri Elvio , Marigo Gianni , Vertačnik Gregor
Published: August 2013

In the region of the European Alps, national and regional meteorological services operate rain‐gauge networks, which together, constitute one of the densest in situ observation systems in a large‐scale high‐mountain region. Data from these networks are consistently analyzed, in this study, to develop a pan‐Alpine grid dataset and to describe the region's mesoscale precipitation climate, including the occurrence of heavy precipitation and long dry periods. The analyses are based on a collation of high‐resolution rain‐gauge data from seven Alpine countries, with 5500 measurements per day on average, spanning the period 1971–2008. The dataset is an update of an earlier version with improved data density and more thorough quality control. The grid dataset has a grid spacing of 5 km, daily time resolution, and was constructed with a distance‐angular weighting scheme that integrates climatological precipitation–topography relationships. Scales effectively resolved in the dataset are coarser than the grid spacing and vary in time and space, depending on station density. We quantify the uncertainty of the dataset by cross‐validation and in relation to topographic complexity, data density and season. Results indicate that grid point estimates are systematically underestimated (overestimated) at large (small) precipitation intensities, when they are interpreted as point estimates. Our climatological analyses highlight interesting variations in indicators of daily precipitation that deviate from the pattern and course of mean precipitation and illustrate the complex role of topography. The daily Alpine precipitation grid dataset was developed as part of the EU funded EURO4M project and is freely available for scientific use.
Selenium accumulation and speciation in biofortified chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) under Mediterranean conditions
Authors: Poblaciones Maria J , Rodrigo Sara , Santamaria Oscar , Chen Yi , McGrath Steve P
Published: August 2013

BACKGROUND

Millions of people have Se‐deficient diets and Se‐biofortified crops could prevent such deficiency. The aim of the present study was to evaluate the potential of chickpea for use in Se fertilization programs in order to increase available Se. Two foliar Se fertilizers (sodium selenate and sodium selenite) at four rates (0, 10, 20, 40 g ha−1) were tested in the 2010/2011 and 2011/2012 growing seasons in a field experiment conducted under semiarid Mediterranean conditions.

RESULTS

Sodium selenate was much more effectively taken by plants than sodium selenite, and there was a strong and linear relationship between total Se content and Se rate for both. For each gram of Se fertilizer, applied either as sodium selenate or sodium selenite, the increases of total Se concentration in grain were 126 and 87, and 25 and 19 µg Se kg−1 dry weight, in 2010/2011 and 2011/2012, respectively. Se was found to be incorporated into chickpea grains mainly (>70%) as selenomethionine.

CONCLUSION

Se‐enriched chickpeas would be a good candidate for inclusion in biofortification programs under semiarid Mediterranean conditions and for promotion as a ‘functional food’. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry
Effect of ensiling treatment on secondary compounds and amino acid profile of tropical forage legumes, and implications for their pig feeding potential
Authors: Martens Siriwan D , Hoedtke Sandra , Avila Patricia , Heinritz Sonja N , Zeyner Annette
Published: August 2013

BACKGROUND

Smallholders in the tropics depend on local protein supplements to balance pig diets. Thus, various tropical forage legumes are a potential feeding option. Ensiling allows converting forages into a ready‐to‐feed‐out choice, but the lactic acid fermentation may influence various (anti)nutritional components. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effects of sucrose (SU) and a tropical Lactobacillus plantarum strain (LAB) as ensiling treatments (control, SU, LAB, LAB + SU) on the potential nutrient availability of 10 forage legume species.

RESULTS

Ensiling commonly reduced antinutritional compounds such as tannins (by 49–84%) and trypsin inhibitory activity (by 74–78%), as well as oxalic acid (by 51–100%). An improved potential absorbability of protein and minerals for pigs is thus inferred. There was no major loss in total amino acids. In general, the species effect was stronger than the treatment effect. A clear effect of the treatments SU, LAB and LAB + SU over all 10 forage species was only observed for oxalic acid, single amino acids and trypsin inhibitory activity.

CONCLUSION

Ensiling is a viable option to enhance nutrient utilization of tropical forages for pigs. Species‐specific treatment of forage legumes is recommended. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry
Study on discrimination of white tea and albino tea based on near‐infrared spectroscopy and chemometrics
Authors: Chen Yi , Deng Jing , Wang Yuanxing , Liu Boping , Ding Jian , Mao Xuejin , Zhang Juan , Hu Haitao , Li Jing
Published: August 2013

BACKGROUND

White tea and albino tea have their own nutritional characteristics, but from the appearance they are quite similar to each other. It is not easy to distinguish them with existing analytical tools or by visual inspection. The current study proposed a rapid method to discriminate them based on near‐infrared (NIR) spectroscopy associated with supervised pattern recognition methods.

RESULTS

For this purpose, discriminant partial least‐squares (DPLS) and discriminant analysis (DA) were employed to build classification models on the basis of a reduced subset of wavenumbers and different pretreatment methods. A completely independent validation set was also used to test the model performance. The results of the DA model showed that with the SNV Karl Norris derivative spectral pre‐treatment samples from the two different origins could be 100% correctly discriminated. Similarly, for the DPLS model, the best classification results were obtained with the multiplicative scattering correction (MSC) + first derivative spectral pre‐treatments; the accuracy of identification was 98.48% for the calibration set and 100% for the validation set.

CONCLUSION

The overall results demonstrated that NIR spectroscopy with pattern recognition could be successfully applied to discriminate white tea and albino tea quickly and non‐destructively without the need for various analytical determinations. © 2013 Society of Chemical Industry
Influence of Chain Structure and Swelling on the Elasticity of Rubbery Materials: Localization Model Description
Authors: Douglas Jack F.
Published: August 2013

Classical network elasticity theories are based on the concept of flexible volumeless network chains fixed into a network in which there are no excluded volume, or even topological, interactions between the chains and where the chains explore accessible configurations by Brownian motion. In this type of ‘classical’ model of rubber elasticity, the elasticity of the deformed network derives from the entropic changes that arise from a deformation of the network junction positions. The shortcoming of this approach is evident from the observation that unswollen rubbery materials are nearly incompressible, reflecting the existence of strong intermolecular interactions that restrict the polymer chains to the exploration of their local tube‐like molecular environments along their chain contours. The imposition of a deformation of these solid rubbery materials then necessitates a consideration of how the local molecular packing constraints become modified under deformation and the impact of these changes in chain confinement on the macroscopic elasticity of the material as a whole. Many researchers have struggled with this difficult many‐body problem. The present paper focuses on the simple ‘localization model’ (LM) of rubber elasticity of Gaylord and Douglas (GD), which provides a simple minimal model for the network elasticity of rubbery materials in the dense polymer state. Particular emphasis in the present paper is given to the implications of this model for describing how network elasticity changes with solvent swelling, a phenomenon for which large deviations from classical elasticity have been observed and a situation highly relevant to numerous applications that involve rubbery materials. We also discuss the physical nature of ‘entanglement’ based on the same molecular packing picture and deduce general conditions for entanglement in terms of molecular parameters. Our predictions accord rather well with experimental correlations relating chain molecular structure to the entanglement molecular mass, changing elasticity with swelling, etc.
Combined Electrostatic and Covalent Polymer Networks for Cell Microencapsulation
Authors: Mahou Redouan , Kolláriková Gabriela , Gonelle‐Gispert Carmen , Meier Raphael , Schmitt Frederic , Tran Nhu Mai , Dufresne Murielle , Altimari Ilaria , Lacík Igor , Bühler Léo , Juillerat‐Jeanneret Lucienne , Legallais Cécile , Wandrey Christine
Published: August 2013

Two types of hydrogel microspheres have been developed. Fast ionotropic gelation of sodium alginate (Na‐alg) in the presence of calcium ions was combined with slow covalent cross‐linking of poly(ethylene glycol) (PEG) derivatives. For the first type, the fast obtainable Ca‐alg hydrogel served as spherical matrix for the simultaneously occurring covalent cross‐linking of multi‐arm PEG derivative. A two‐component interpenetrating network was formed in one step upon extruding the mixture of the two polymers into the gelation bath. For the second type, heterobifunctional PEG was grafted onto Na‐alg prior to gelation. Upon extrusion of the polymer solution into the gelation bath, fast Ca‐alg formation ensured the spherical shape and was accompanied by cross‐linker‐free covalent cross‐linking of the PEG side chains. Thus, one‐component hydrogel microspheres resulted. We present the physical properties of the hydrogel microspheres and demonstrate the feasibility of cell microencapsulation for both types of polymer networks.
Factors Influencing the Shear and Tensile Moduli of Smectic Polydomain Networks
Authors: Yu Ziniu , Hedden Ronald C.
Published: August 2013

The molecular and mesoscale factors affecting the shear and tensile moduli of smectic main chain liquid crystal networks (MCLCN) were investigated. Polydomain smectic MCLCN having several different crosslinker concentrations were characterized by dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) and X‐ray diffraction (XRD) linewidth measurements. The shear and tensile moduli in the smectic state are dominated by the energy cost for deforming smectic layers, while the isotropic shear modulus is governed by the usual entropic cost of deforming elastic network chains.
Exploring the Effect of Maximum Cure Temperature on the Thermal and Thermomechanical Properties of Polybenzoxazine Networks
Authors: Jungman Matthew J. , Cobb Jared S. , Lawler Daniel J. , Sholar Jamie D. , Johnson Charles B. , Patton Derek L.
Published: August 2013

The thermal and thermomechanical properties of two commercially available polybenzoxazine materials were investigated as a function of maximum temperature employed in the cure profile. Cationic ring‐opening polymerization of Araldite 35600 and Araldite 35900 was carried out at 180 °C, 200 °C, 220 °C, and 240 °C. FTIR and differential scanning analysis results show maximum conversion in each monomer system is achieved at 180 °C or 200 °C, and that higher cure temperatures were unnecessary. Thermal stability of the polybenzoxazine materials prepared under both low and high temperature cure profiles, as indicated by thermogravimetric analysis results, was minimally affected with increasing cure temperatures. Dynamic mechanical analysis results indicate that despite an increase in the rubbery storage modulus as a function of maximum cure temperature, higher cure temperatures employed in ambient atmosphere ovens result in detrimental effects on the glass transition temperature of the network. In the case of Araldite 35600, a 12 °C decrease in Tg was observed when the cure temperature was increased from 180 °C to 240 °C. The combined FTIR, DSC, and DMA data for Araldite 35600 and Araldite 35900 show that optimized conversion and thermomechanical properties can be achieved at lower cure temperatures. Thus, a judicious choice of cure profile must be considered to avoid degradative processes and to achieve the maximum properties of polybenzoxazine systems.
Thermoresponsive and Biodegradable Dextran Based Microgels: Synthesis and Structural Investigation
Authors: Ghugare Shivkumar V. , Chiessi Ester , Sakai Victoria Garcia , Telling Mark T. F. , Wadgaonkar Prakash P. , Paradossi Gaio
Published: August 2013

Nanostructured objects, often ranging from hundreds of nanometers to few microns, support a number of functions directly linked to their structural features. They are, or they will be, protagonists in biomedical applications where miniaturized activities are required. These include the interface with living systems as tissues and cells, where targeted release of drug molecules occurs, or molecular imaging methods monitoring the drug trafficking in specific cell districts. The potentials of such devices, far to be fully understood, will be assessed only when a close correlation of their functions with their structure will be established.

In this contribution we present a dextran based microdevice responsive to temperature and biodegradable. Both thermoresponsivity and biodegradability are of relevance for the potential use as drug carrier and controlled release device. The temperature behaviour, overall structure and internal architectures have been addressed with different methods.
Liquid‐Crystalline Epoxy Resins as Matrices in Nanocomposites with Anisotropic Fillers
Authors: Mossety‐Leszczak Beata , Włodarska Magdalena , Kowalik Marcin , Łokaj Krzysztof
Published: August 2013

The curing of compositions comprising liquid crystalline diepoxy monomer LCEM with central triaromatic mesogenic group is described. LCEM was crosslinked with 4‐(N,N‐dimethylamino)pyridine (DMAP) and pimelic acid (PA) with or without external magnetic field. Diphenyl aluminum phosphate nanorods (NR) were used as filler. The crosslinking process of the compositions was monitored by differential scanning calorimetry DSC to compare it to the analogous liquid crystalline systems not containing filler. The properties of the cured resin and the composites are reported and discussed. The structures of all products were evaluated with use of polarization microscope and by WAXS analysis. Thermal properties of cured compositions were determined by DSC. In all cases, solid and thermally stable products were obtained, but the anisotropic properties remained only in compositions cured with pimelic acid.
Stimuli‐Responsive Properties of Nanocomposite Gels Comprising (2‐methoxyethylacrylate‐co‐N,N‐dimethylacrylamide) Copolymer‐Clay Networks
Authors: Haraguchi Kazutoshi , Murata Kazutaka , Takehisa Toru
Published: August 2013

Stimuli‐responsive properties of nanocomposite gels (MD–NC gels) consisting of (2‐methoxyethylacrylate‐co‐N,N‐dimethylacrylamide) copolymer and inorganic clay were investigated. The MDx–NCn gels were synthesized with different ratios of monomer (x) and clay content (n) by in situ free‐radical polymerization of two monomers in the presence of exfoliated clay in aqueous media. The resulting MDx–NCn gels were always uniform, but the network structure (or clay morphology) and the mechanical and swelling properties were largely dependent on the ratio of x and n. Also, well‐defined stimuli‐responsive properties such as changes in transparency and gel volume by altering the temperature and salt concentration were observed in the MDx–NCn gels, particularly with intermediate x (e.g., 10–50) and relatively small n (e.g., 2–5). Further, the reversible change in the gel size and the stress generation therefrom were observed in repeated runs. In addition, thermo‐responsive release of drugs (or chemicals) from MDx–NCn gels was observed.
Stability of the age‐dependent system with delayed dependence of the structure
Authors: Dawidowicz Antoni Leon , Poskrobko Anna
Published: August 2013

The paper deals with the problem of the stability for a model of a population with delayed dependence of the structure. We study an equilibrium age distribution. We also give conditions under which such distribution is exponentially asymptotically stable. The work continues authors’ research which begun in 2009. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Quantitative uniqueness for Schrödinger operator with regular potentials
Authors: Bakri Laurent , Casteras Jean‐Baptiste
Published: August 2013

We give a sharp upper bound on the vanishing order of solutions to the Schrödinger equation with electric and magnetic potentials on a compact smooth manifold. Our main result is that the vanishing order of nontrivial solutions to Δu + V · ∇ u + Wu = 0 is everywhere less than . Our method is based on quantitative Carleman type inequalities, and it allows us to show the following uniform doubling inequality
urn:x-wiley:01704214:media:mma2951:mma2951-math-0003 which implies the desired result. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Modeling 21Ne NMR parameters for carbon nanosystems
Authors: Kupka Teobald , Nieradka Marzena , Kaminský Jakub , Stobiński Leszek
Published: August 2013

The potential of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) technique in probing the structure of porous systems including carbon nanostructures filled with inert gases is analysed theoretically using accurate calculations of neon (21Ne) nuclear magnetic shieldings. The CBS estimates of 21Ne NMR parameters were performed for single atom, its dimer and neon interacting with acetylene, ethylene and 1,3‐cyclopentadiene. Several levels of theory including restricted Hartree‐Fock (RHF), Møller‐Plesset perturbation theory to the second order (MP2), density functional theory (DFT) with van Voorhis and Scuseria's t‐dependent gradient‐corrected correlation functional (VSXC), coupled cluster with single and doubles excitations (CCSD), with single, doubles and triples included in a perturbative way (CCSD(T)) and single, doubles and tripes excitations (CCSDT) combined with polarization‐consistent aug‐pcS‐n series of basis sets were employed. The impact of neon confinement inside selected fullerene cages used as an NMR probe was studied at the RHF/pcS‐2 level of theory. A sensitivity of neon probe to the proximity of multiple CC bonds in C2H2, C2H4, C5H6 and inside C28, C30, C32, C34 and C60 fullerenes was predicted from 21Ne NMR parameters' changes. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shifts of negatively charged NH…N systems
Authors: Pietrzak Mariusz , Grech Eugeniusz , Nowicka‐Scheibe J. , Hansen Poul Erik
Published: August 2013

Deuterium isotope effects on 13C chemical shifts are investigated in anions of 1,8‐bis(4‐toluenesulphonamido)naphthalenes together with N,N‐(naphthalene‐1,8‐diyl)bis(2,2,2‐trifluoracetamide) all with bis(1,8‐dimethylamino)napthaleneH+ as counter ion. These compounds represent both “static” and equilibrium cases. NMR assignments of the former have been revised. The NH proton is deuteriated. The isotope effects on 13C chemical shifts are rather unusual in these strongly hydrogen bonded systems between a NH and a negatively charged nitrogen atom. The formal four‐bond effects are found to be negative indicating transmission via the hydrogen bond. In addition, unusual long range effects are seen. Structures, 1H and 13C NMR chemical shifts and changes in nuclear shieldings upon deuteriation are calculated using density functional theory methods. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Effect of the Incorporation of Modified Silicas on the Final Properties of Wood Adhesives
Authors: Bonnefond Audrey , Reyes Yury , Peruzzo Pablo , Ronne Erik , Fare Joanna , Paulis Maria , Leiza Jose Ramon
Published: August 2013

The effect of the incorporation of three different surface modified silicas on the final properties of poly(vinyl acetate) (PVAc) latex based wood adhesives is assessed. It is shown that the compatibility and reactivity of the silica with the polymer determines its state of dispersion throughout the polymer matrix. While silicas revealing the best compatibility with the monomer are located inside or close to the polymer particles surface, the silica that presents the lowest compatibility with the monomer is located exclusively on the surface of the polymer particles. This is found to affect the properties of the adhesives as higher tensile strengths are measured in the presence of silicas with good compatibility with the monomer. The reactivity between one of the silica modifiers and the polymer is the key to substantially improve the hydrophobicity and the adhesion of hybrid PVAc based adhesives.
A cognitive model‐based approach for autonomic fault management in OpenFlow networks
Authors: Kim Sungsu , Kang Joon‐Myung , Seo Sin‐seok , Hong James Won‐Ki
Published: August 2013

Autonomic network management is an approach to the management of complex networks and services that incorporates the detection, diagnosis and reconfiguration, as well as optimization, of their performance. A control loop is fundamental as it facilitates the capture of the current state of the networks and the reconfiguration of network elements without human intervention. For new networking architectures such as software‐defined networking and OpenFlow networks, in which the control plane is moved onto a centralized controller, an efficient control loop and decision making are more crucial. In this paper, we propose a cognitive control loop based on a cognitive model for efficient problem resolving and accurate decision making. In contrast to existing control loops, the proposed control loop provides reactive, deliberative and reflective loops for managing systems based on analysis of current status. In order to validate the proposed control loop, we applied it to fault management in OpenFlow networks and found that the protection mechanism provides fast recovery from single failures in OpenFlow networks, but it cannot cover multiple‐failure cases. We therefore also propose a fast flow setup (FFS) algorithm for our control loop to manage multiple‐failure scenarios. The proposed control loop adaptively uses protection and FFS based on analysis of failure situations. We evaluate the proposed control loop and the FFS algorithm by conducting failure recovery experiments and comparing its recovery time to those of existing methods. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Temporal and Spatial Distribution of Treponemal Infection in South Florida: An Epidemiological Approach
Authors: Schaffer W. C. , Carr R. S.
Published: August 2013

Bioarchaeological analysis of the MDM site (8DA11) in Miami, Florida (ad 400–1200) has identified human skeletal remains with lesions suggestive of and consistent with treponematosis. A population and epidemiological approach was utilised to compare the MDM site to geographically neighbouring skeletal samples from the Highland Beach mound (8PB11) (ad 600–1200) and Fort Center (8GL12) (ad 1–500/1000). These samples were then integrated with data from previous research on proliferative skeletal lesion prevalence on the Gulf Coast of Florida. Population comparisons suggest a higher prevalence of proliferative skeletal lesions in Atlantic coastal populations as opposed to the nearest sampled site from the interior (p < 0.00001), a trend seemingly different from Gulf Coast populations. This investigation details the presence of treponemal disease in the Everglades archaeological region likely as early as ad 400, and the southern terminus in the contiguous United States that treponematosis has been reported. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Long‐term survival of children less than six years of age enrolled on the CCG‐945 phase III trial for newly‐diagnosed high‐grade glioma: A report from the Children's Oncology Group
Authors: Batra Vandana , Sands Stephen A. , Holmes Emi , Geyer Jeffrey Russell , Yates Allan , Becker Lawrence , Burger Peter , Gilles Floyd , Wisoff Jeffrey , Allen Jeffrey C. , Pollack Ian F. , Finlay Jonathan L.
Published: August 2013

Background

We analyzed the long‐term survival of children under 6 years of age (<6 years) enrolled upon the Children's Cancer Group (CCG)‐945 high‐grade glioma (HGG) study to determine the impact of intrinsic biological characteristics as well as treatment upon both survival and quality of life (QOL) in this younger age population.

Procedure

Analyses were undertaken on patients <6 years with institutionally diagnosed HGG enrolled on the CCG‐945 trial. Comparisons of survival were performed for patients <3 years of age (<3 years) (treated with intent to avoid irradiation) versus those between 3 and 6 years of age (3–6 years) (treated with irradiation and chemotherapy) at diagnosis. Discordance between the institutional diagnoses of HGG and consensus‐reviewed diagnoses led us to perform further survival analyses for both groups. We compared the two groups of patients for biological markers, and evaluated the neuropsychological and QOL outcomes of long‐term survivors.

Results

Patients <3 years (n = 49, 19.5% of all enrolled patients) at diagnosis had a 10‐year EFS and OS of 29 ± 6.5% and 37.5 ± 7%, respectively, while for patients 3–6 years (n = 34, 13.5% of all enrolled patients) 10‐year EFS and OS were 35 ± 8% and 36 ± 8%, respectively. Molecular marker analysis showed that a smaller proportion of patients <3 years harbored TP53 mutations (P = 0.05). Analysis of QOL outcomes with a median length of follow‐up of 15.1 years (9.5–19.2) showed comparable results.

Conclusions

QOL and survival data were similar for the two groups. A larger prospective study is justified to study the efficacy of chemotherapy only regimens in younger children. Pediatr Blood Cancer 2014;61:151–157. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
13C CP/MAS NMR studies on the curing characteristics of phenol formaldehyde resin in the presence of nano cupric oxide and surfactants
Authors: Gao Wei , Du Guanben
Published: August 2013

The effect of nano cupric oxide (CuO) in combination with surfactants on the curing characteristics of phenol formaldehyde (PF) resin analyzed using solid 13C CP/MAS NMR, including the bonding strength of plywood prepared by modified resin, was investigated in this study. The results showed that nano CuO alone improved the cure of PF resin. The intensity of the functional groups of the PF mixture was maintained during the curing process as sodium lignosulfonate was simultaneously introduced. Furthermore, nano CuO and alkane surfactant together modified the PF resin conformation. The shear strength of the plywood showed that the addition of nano CuO (1%) alone or in combination with alkane surfactant (0.55%) or sodium lignosulfonate (0.55%) to the PF resin mixture was effective. And this approach met the important criteria for its application in the manufacture of plywood. POLYM. COMPOS., 35:113–117, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers
Comparison of stretched polycarbonate films produced on a stretching line and a stretching frame
Authors: Wibbeke Andrea , Schöppner Volker
Published: August 2013

Various methods can be used for the axial stretching of polycarbonate films. This article compares uniaxially stretched films, produced on a stretching line by the short‐gap method, with planar‐stretched films that were produced on a stretching frame. The process affects the mechanical properties in the stretching direction as well as transversely. Because the stretching technologies differ primarily in the contraction of the film width, an analysis of the mechanical properties in the transverse direction is of particular interest. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 54:1848–1857, 2014. © 2013 Society of Plastics Engineers
Respiratory outcomes of children with BPD and gastrostomy tubes during the first 2 years of life
Authors: McGrath‐Morrow Sharon A. , Hayashi Madoka , Aherrera Angela D. , Collaco Joseph M.
Published: August 2013

Objectives

Infants with bronchopulmonary dysplasia (BPD) often undergo gastrostomy tube (GT) placement and/or Nissen fundoplication (Nissen) to improve weight gain and to attenuate chronic respiratory symptoms related to feeding difficulties. After initial hospitalization little is known how these children do with regard to respiratory symptoms when compared to children with BPD who did not receive GTs. This study was done to determine if differences in respiratory outcomes were associated with the presence of a GT or Nissen/GT in children with BPD during the first 2 years of life.

Methods

Children (n = 398) were recruited from the Johns Hopkins BPD Outpatient Clinic. Medical charts were reviewed and acute care usage and respiratory symptoms were assessed by caregiver questionnaires.

Results

Ninety‐two children with BPD had GTs, with the majority placed by 6 months of age. Of children with GTs, 64.7% also had Nissen fundoplication. Children with Nissen/GTs were more likely to have birth weights <10th percentile and to be discharged on supplemental oxygen. After initial hospitalization, children with GTs and Nissen/GTs weaned off supplemental oxygen at significantly older ages than children without GTs. Children with Nissen/GTs also had more hospitalizations than children without GTs. Caregivers of children with GTs and Nissen/GTs reported similar respiratory symptoms as caregivers of children without GTs.

Conclusion

Weaning off supplemental oxygen occurred later in children with GTs and Nissen/GTs compared to children without GTs. Although children with Nissen/GTs had more re‐hospitalizations, there were no differences in reported respiratory symptoms between any of the groups by caregiver questionnaire. Pediatr Pulmonol. 2014; 49:537–543. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Characterization of PDZ domain‐peptide interaction interface based on energetic patterns
Authors: Li Nan , Hou Tingjun , Ding Bo , Wang Wei
Published: August 2013

PDZ domain is one of the abundant modular domains that recognize short peptide sequences to mediate protein–protein interactions. To decipher the binding specificity of PDZ domain, we analyzed the interactions between 11 mouse PDZ domains and 217 peptides using a method called MIECSVM, which energetically characterizes the domain‐peptide interaction using molecular interaction energy components (MIECs) and predicts binding specificity using support vector machine (SVM). Cross‐validation and leave‐one‐domain‐out test showed that the MIEC‐SVM using all 44 PDZ‐peptide residue pairs at the interaction interface outperformed the sequence‐based methods in the literature. A further feature (residue pair) selection procedure illustrated that 16 residue pairs were uninformative to the binding specificity, even though they contributed significantly (∼50%) to the binding energy. If only using the 28 informative residue pairs, the performance of the MIEC‐SVM on predicting the PDZ binding specificity was significantly improved. This analysis suggests that the informative and uninformative residue interactions between the PDZ domain and the peptide may represent those contributing to binding specificity and affinity, respectively. We performed additional structural and energetic analyses to shed light on understanding how the PDZ‐peptide recognition is established. The success of the MIEC‐SVM method on PDZ domains in this study and SH3 domains in our previous studies illustrates its generality on characterizing protein‐ peptide interactions and understanding protein recognition from a structural and energetic viewpoint.
Optical study of carrier diffusion and recombination in CVD diamond
Authors: Kozák Martin , Trojánek František , Malý Petr
Published: August 2013

We report on the measurements of nonequilibrium carrier dynamics in monocrystalline diamond prepared by the chemical vapor deposition (CVD) technique. Nonlinearly excited laser‐induced transient grating (LITG) and time‐resolved photoluminescence (PL) were used for investigation of carrier diffusion and recombination. Diffusion constant was observed to be strongly dependent on the sample temperature and carrier density (D = 2.5–35 cm2 s−1) what was explained in terms of the density dependent carrier‐carrier scattering. The new method based on the time‐resolved PL was proposed for measuring the diffusion and recombination dynamics of excitons. The measured exciton lifetime τFE = 700–800 ns was temperature independent between 100 and 295 K.
Sb2S3 quantum dots: diffusion‐controlled growth and characterization
Authors: Mishra Rakesh K. , Vedeshwar Agnikumar G. , Tandon Ram P.
Published: August 2013

The quantum dots of antimony trisulphide, a potential semiconductor for various applications, are grown in glass matrix for the first time and are characterized by various techniques. The dependence of the average dot size on growth parameters like growth temperature and time is systematically studied for the dot size range of 5–80 nm. The linear blue shift of band gap of dots with inverse square of dot size clearly indicates the typical behavior of quantum dots in a strong quantum confinement regime. (© 2013 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Distributed video coding of secure compressed sensing
Authors: Zhang Baoju , Lei Qing , Wang Wei , Mu Jiasong
Published: August 2013

In this paper, we use the distributed compressed sensing to deal with video coding. To reduce the orthogonal matching pursuit algorithm computational complexity, we use the quantum‐behaved particle swarm optimization algorithm to reconstruct video signal. In this paper, we analyze the computational complexity of two algorithms, simulation results demonstrate that quantum‐behaved particle swarm optimization algorithm greatly reduce the amount of computation. And it has better stability and faster convergence to deal with original video signal. Simulation results demonstrate that we can obtain the better reconstructed video with low sample value, and it can guarantee safety performance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Multiple‐objective response‐adaptive repeated measurement designs in clinical trials for binary responses
Authors: Liang Yuanyuan , Li Yin , Wang Jing , Carriere Keumhee C.
Published: August 2013

A multiple‐objective allocation strategy was recently proposed for constructing response‐adaptive repeated measurement designs for continuous responses. We extend the allocation strategy to constructing response‐adaptive repeated measurement designs for binary responses. The approach with binary responses is quite different from the continuous case, as the information matrix is a function of responses, and it involves nonlinear modeling. To deal with these problems, we first build the design on the basis of success probabilities. Then we illustrate how various models can accommodate carryover effects on the basis of logits of response profiles as well as any correlation structure. Through computer simulations, we find that the allocation strategy developed for continuous responses also works well for binary responses. As expected, design efficiency in terms of mean squared error drops sharply, as more emphasis is placed on increasing treatment benefit than estimation precision. However, we find that it can successfully allocate more patients to better treatment sequences without sacrificing much estimation precision. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.