bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Delamination analysis of carbon fiber composites under hygrothermal environment using acoustic emission
Authors: Liu Peng-fei , Yang Jun , Peng Xiong-qi
Published: August 2016

Non-destructive test technique for monitoring delamination failure under complex load and environments is still not mature until now. The purpose of this paper is to study mixed-mode delamination failure properties of carbon fiber/epoxy composite laminates under hygrothermal environment using acoustic emission. Different water-saturated composite specimens with initial intralaminar and interlaminar defects are tested. Two loading modes including single-leg and over-leg three-point bending are applied under hygrothermal environment. By analyzing the responses of acoustic emission parameters including amplitude and energy, the effects of the hygrothermal environment, layup pattern and initial defect on the delamination behaviors of composite specimens are studied. Besides, different failure modes are observed through scanning electron microscope. Quantitative acoustic emission results show hygrothermal environment and load mode affect the delamination properties of composites remarkably.
Evaluation of interfacial properties of the silane blend sized glass fiber–epoxy composite by the microdroplet test
Authors: Safi Somayeh , Zadhoush Ali , Masoomi Mahmood
Published: August 2016

The performance of a composite material system depends critically on the interfacial characteristics of the reinforcement and the matrix material. In this study, the interfacial adhesion was tailored by the creation of textures on the glass fiber surface using inorganic-organic silane blends. A single-fiber microdroplet test was conducted to assess the interfacial properties between the textured glass surface and an epoxy matrix. The load–displacement curves from microdroplet tests were analyzed. The stress-based and energy-based micromechanic models of interfacial debonding and corresponding adhesional parameters (apparent and ultimate interfacial shear strength, friction stress, critical energy release rate, work of adhesion, and adhesional pressure) were applied for theoretical calculations. The results showed a clear trend for the impact of different silane blends on the interfacial properties. The specimens containing 75:25 and 50:50 of inorganic–organic silane blends show the most effective improvement in the interfacial adhesion properties between glass fiber and epoxy resin. Scanning electron microscopy was used to visualize the failure surface of the specimen after the microdroplet test. The scanning electron microscopic images indicated that the failure in the blend sized treated glass fiber–epoxy matrix specimen runs predominantly along the interphase and combines both cohesive failure in resin (the presence of some resin fragments) and adhesive failure (some bare fiber surfaces can be seen).
Polyvictimization Across Social Contexts
Authors: Butcher Fredrick , Holmes Megan R. , Kretschmar Jeff M. , Flannery Daniel J.
Published: August 2016

Exposure to violence is a widespread problem that affects the mental health of children and adolescents particularly in at-risk populations such as juvenile justice involved youth. While a number of studies have examined the cumulative impact of violence exposure, few studies have examined the importance of social context. The present study examined classifications of youth exposed to violence by contextual location (home, school, and neighborhood) in a sample of 2,124 juvenile justice involved youth. Latent class analysis revealed three classes of youth exposed to violence: (a) low violence exposure, (b) moderate and high home/school violence exposure, and (c) violence exposure in all three social contexts. Furthermore, distal outcomes analysis showed differences in internalizing and externalizing problems based on class membership. Findings from the current study underline the importance of understanding the role of social context in assessing violence exposure in juvenile justice involved youth.
Using Celebrities in Abnormal Psychology as Teaching Tools to Decrease Stigma and Increase Help Seeking
Authors: Ferrari Anne
Published: August 2016

Research shows that a very small percentage of those who suffer from mental illness seek professional help and fear of stigma is a principal factor why individuals are reluctant to obtain assistance. This study evaluated whether using examples of celebrities’ experiences with mental illness as a form of “contact” with a mentally ill person would reduce public stigma toward mental illness as well as stigma toward obtaining psychological assistance. Data were collected using a pre–post design from 38 (experimental group) and 17 (control group) college undergraduate students enrolled in an abnormal psychology course. Compared to the control group, the use of celebrities as narratives to teach about mental illness resulted in reduced public stigma toward mental illness and reduced stigma toward seeking help.
Veterinary Forensic Pathology
Authors: McDonough S. P. , McEwen B. J.
Published: August 2016

Veterinary forensic pathology is emerging as a distinct discipline, and this special issue is a major step forward in establishing the scientific basis of the discipline. A forensic necropsy uses the same skill set needed for investigations of natural disease, but the analytical framework and purpose of forensic pathology differ significantly. The requirement of legal credibility and all that it entails distinguishes the forensic from routine diagnostic cases. Despite the extraordinary depth and breadth of knowledge afforded by their training, almost 75% of veterinary pathologists report that their training has not adequately prepared them to handle forensic cases. Many veterinary pathologists, however, are interested and willing to develop expertise in the discipline. Lessons learned from tragic examples of wrongful convictions in medical forensic pathology indicate that a solid foundation for the evolving discipline of veterinary forensic pathology requires a commitment to education, training, and certification. The overarching theme of this issue is that the forensic necropsy is just one aspect in the investigation of a case of suspected animal abuse or neglect. As veterinary pathologists, we must be aware of the roles filled by other veterinary forensic experts involved in these cases and how our findings are an integral part of an investigation. We hope that the outcome of this special issue of the journal is that veterinary pathologists begin to familiarize themselves with not only forensic pathology but also all aspects of veterinary forensic science.
Canine Nervous System Lymphoma Subtypes Display Characteristic Neuroanatomical Patterns
Authors: Sisó S. , Marco-Salazar P. , Moore P. F. , Sturges B. K. , Vernau W. , Wisner E. R. , Bollen A. W. , Dickinson P. J. , Higgins R. J.
Published: August 2016

Primary and secondary nervous system involvement occurs in 4% and 5%–12%, respectively, of all canine non-Hodgkin lymphomas. The recent new classification of canine malignant lymphomas, based on the human World Health Organization classification, has been endorsed with international acceptance. This histological and immunocytochemical classification provides a unique opportunity to study the histologic anatomic distribution patterns in the central and peripheral nervous system of these defined lymphoma subtypes. In this study, we studied a cohort of 37 dogs with lymphoma, which at necropsy had either primary (n = 1, 2.7%) or secondary (n = 36; 97.3%) neural involvement. These T- (n = 16; 43.2%) or B-cell (n = 21; 56.8%) lymphomas were further classified into 12 lymphoma subtypes, with predominant subtypes including peripheral T-cell lymphoma (PTCL) or diffuse large B-cell lymphoma (DLBCL), respectively. This systematic study identified 6 different anatomically based histologically defined patterns of lymphoma infiltration in the nervous system of dogs. Different and distinct combinations of anatomical patterns correlated with specific lymphoma subtypes. Lymphoma infiltration within the meningeal, perivascular, and periventricular compartments were characteristic of DLBCL, whereas peripheral nerve involvement was a frequent feature of PTCL. Similarly cell counts above 64 cells/μL in cerebrospinal samples correlated best with marked meningeal and periventricular lymphoma infiltration histologically. Prospective studies are needed in order to confirm the hypothesis that these combinations of histological neuroanatomic patterns reflect targeting of receptors specific for the lymphoma subtypes at these various sites.
Parental Self-Control and the Development of Male Aggression in Early Childhood: A Longitudinal Test of Self-Control Theory
Authors: Meldrum Ryan C. , Verhoeven Marjolein , Junger Marianne , van Aken Marcel A. G. , Deković Maja
Published: August 2016

A number of studies have evaluated associations between parenting practices, adolescent self-control, and adolescent antisocial behavior. Yet, few studies have examined associations between these constructs in early childhood or examined the extent to which both maternal and paternal self-control shapes them. To address these gaps, the current study utilizes longitudinal data collected on a sample of 117 Dutch boys and their parents to investigate the across time interrelationships between parental self-control, ineffective parenting, child self-control, and child aggression. The results provide evidence of an indirect association between maternal self-control and early childhood self-control through maternal ineffective parenting, an indirect association between maternal ineffective parenting and early childhood aggression through early childhood self-control, and an indirect association between maternal self-control and early childhood aggression through both maternal ineffective parenting and early childhood self-control. In contrast, paternal self-control and paternal ineffective parenting were unrelated to child self-control and child aggression. The implications and limitations of the study are discussed.
Layup quality evaluation of fiber trajectory based on prepreg tow deformability for automated fiber placement
Authors: Zhao Cong , Xiao Jun , Huang Wei , Huang Xinjie , Gu Shanqun
Published: August 2016

To conform to the fiber path, deformation of prepreg tow occurred inevitably in automated fiber placement process which would have great impact on layup quality. In order to evaluate whether fiber trajectory could be laid without prepreg distortion, fiber path layup quality was proposed and evaluated by prepreg tow deformation characteristic on free-form surface in this paper. Critical buckling radius of plane lateral bending was proposed as evaluation index for tow deformability. Layup quality of fiber trajectory was evaluated by the relationship between geodesic radius of trajectory and critical buckling radius. If the former radius was larger than the latter radius, layup quality of fiber path was fairly good, but not vice versa. A series of layup experiments were conducted to verify the evaluation criterion. Results showed that fiber trajectory layup quality could be well evaluated by this criterion proposed in this paper. And fiber modulus, prepreg thickness, and process parameters played important roles in determining fiber trajectory layup quality evaluated by prepreg deformability. By adjusting layup process parameters during automatic layup process, deformation ability of prepreg tow can be improved and the layup quality of fiber path could be enhanced to a higher level.
Online monitoring of truing arc-shaped diamond wheel by acoustic emission signal
Authors: Chen Bing , Guo Bing , Zhao Qingliang
Published: August 2016

To realize the efficient and precision truing of arc-shaped diamond wheel, a novel on-machine precision form truing of arc-shaped diamond wheel is proposed utilizing rotary green silicon carbon rod, and online monitoring of the truing process by acoustic emission was studied. Through this truing method, any required radius of wheel arc profile could be formed by programmed truing paths; meanwhile, the vertical direction position error of the wheel center could be corrected after truing. In order to improve the truing efficiency, the acoustic emission signal was processed to monitor the truing process, and the AErms threshold of judging the finishing truing time was obtained.
Micro texturing on metallic surfaces: State of the art
Authors: Patel Divyansh , Jain VK , Ramkumar J
Published: August 2016

The study of surface texturing on a metallic surface has become a great area of interest of researchers in the last few decades. Surface texturing is employed for enhancing the performance of the surface in its working environment. As the characterization techniques have been evolving very fast, researchers have started mimicking the natural surfaces to take the advantages of their characteristics (such as self-cleaning, load capacity, reducing coefficient of friction). Manufacturing of natural inspired surface requires having a great control over the process to achieve the micro or nano features on the natural surfaces. Hence, the selection of the most suitable process and optimum parameters for machining of arrays of micro or nano features at large scale is highly desirable. This study reports an overview of different micromachining processes used for texturing on metallic surfaces and research gaps to be filled in the available literature. Electrochemical micromachining has tremendous potential on account of its versatility in different applications. It is a promising and economically viable machining process for micromanufacturing industries for fabrication of micro textures and micro features on metallic surfaces. Production of textured surface at large scale requires a sustainable technology, which can serve the purpose of enhancing the performance of the surface without changing the original properties of the surface. Indeed, laser surface texturing, through-mask electrochemical micromachining, lithography, micro- or nanocasting and so on are the existing methods which involve multiple steps for generation of textured surfaces. This article also reports some original experimental investigations for generation of different kinds of micro textures on metallic surfaces, namely, arrays of micro dimples, micro channels and micro pillars using a single-step maskless electrochemical micro-texturing process with a pre-patterned micro tool.
Fault feature extraction and classification based on WPT and SVD: Application to element bearings with artificially created faults under variable conditions
Authors: Kedadouche Mourad , Liu Zhaoheng
Published: August 2016

Achieving a precise fault diagnosis for rolling bearings under variable conditions is a problematic challenge. In order to enhance the classification and achieves a higher precision for diagnosing rolling bearing degradation, a hybrid method is proposed. The method combines wavelet packet transform, singular value decomposition and support vector machine. The first step of the method is the decomposition of the signal using wavelet packet transform and then instantaneous amplitudes and energy are computed for each component. The Second step is to apply the singular value decomposition to the matrix constructed by the instantaneous amplitudes and energy in order to reduce the matrix dimension and obtaining the fault feature unaffected by the operating condition. The features extracted by singular value decomposition are then used as an input to the support vector machine in order to recognize the fault mode of rolling bearings. The method is applied to a bearing with faults created using electro-discharge machining under laboratory conditions. Test results show that the proposed methodology is effective to classify rolling bearing faults with high accuracy.
Jesus’s Two Great Commandments: Analysing Indian Theology through Caste and Gender
Authors: Patil Prachi
Published: August 2016

The article attempts to problematize Christian theology sociologically, navigating it through the minefield of the ‘Two Great Commandments’ given by Jesus, within the Indian context of caste and gender. ‘Thou shalt love the Lord thy God ’, the First Commandment which mandates the believers to love God becomes intriguing as it forces one to ask who is my God and how do I relate to the form of this God? The article looks at how Dalit theology experiences Jesus as opposed to upper-caste theology. The Second Commandment, ‘Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself ’, becomes more challenging than the First in an Indian context because it contradicts the practices of caste and gender discrimination. For Indian Christians the idea of ‘love thy neighbour’ then reworks back into the question of who is ‘allowed’ to be my neighbour. The article analyses Jesus through his historical existence rather than his divinity.
SWOT-AHP Approach for Sustainable Manufacturing Strategy Selection: A Case of Indian SME
Authors: Khatri Jitendar Kumar , Metri Bhimaraya
Published: August 2016

Manufacturing firms are facing growing internal and external pressures to adopt manufacturing and supply chain strategies that fulfil the expectations of various stakeholders in value chain. Literature highlights that despite positive relationship between firm performance and sustainable development strategies, manufacturing industry, particularly small and medium enterprises (SMEs), are slow to adopt sustainable practices. Researchers highlight that the inability to identify and prioritize critical factors for strategy formulation and implementation is the main reason that inhibits SMEs to accrue the sustainability-related benefits. This article presents a combination of strength, weakness, opportunities and threats analysis and analytic hierarchy process for identifying and prioritizing critical sustainable manufacturing and supply chain factors by an Indian metal recycling medium-size firm. After assigning priority rankings to the shortlisted strategies, company was able to select and deploy highly successful strategy for improving sustainable business performance.
UDAN – Playing to Learn the Nuances of Entrepreneurship
Authors: Shankar Raj K.
Published: August 2016

Background. Entrepreneurship courses are ubiquitous across educational institutions. While pedagogical innovations are being experimented with, using games to teach the nuances of starting up are rare.

Problem. A practice-oriented subject like entrepreneurship is difficult to be taught using traditional methods. The elusive nature of the subject (entrepreneurship), its actors (entrepreneurs) and their actions (entrepreneurial) only make it worse.

Approach. UDAN (means ‘Flight’ in Hindi) is a game, which solves this challenge. It simulates every aspect of the startup process in an entrepreneur’s journey. While running the game brings energy and enthusiasm amongst participants, it exposes them to the harsh realities, challenges and thrills of creating and running a startup.

The Game. Participants are grouped into teams representing startups in an airplane manufacturing industry. Every team selects various key people for roles like CEO, HR, Sales, Finance, workforce etc. There are both government buyers as well as private airlines of different sizes making purchases. Buying raw materials, managing teams and their outputs, marketing, selling airplanes, negotiating prices, signing contracts, raising invoices, collecting payments, meeting quality standards and customer expectations are some experiences the game offers. Selecting a name, registering company with the local authorities, ensuring regulatory compliance, and filing returns are the other organizational activities that get simulated. Number of market and regulatory surprises are thrown in to expose participants to the realities of the business world. A debrief summarizes the lessons that the game offers.

Practical Implications. Being an entrepreneur requires one to come to terms with numerous aspects of starting and running an enterprise. It does not entail doing only what you love doing. Entrepreneurship is a socially involved practice. The game gives participants a peek into the varied nuances of running a startup. It highlights the need for exposing themselves to number of aspects of starting and managing an enterprise. It prepares the ground for the faculty to deliver a course on entrepreneurship. Participants will be able to appreciate the variety of tools and techniques that a good entrepreneurship course offers.
Methotrexate Elimination When Coadministered With Levetiracetam
Authors: Reeves David , DiDominick Sarah , Finn Suzanne , Kim Hyeon Jin , Shake Amanda
Published: August 2016

Background: Delayed elimination of methotrexate was previously reported in 2 patients receiving concomitant levetiracetam. Objective: To explore the potential interaction between methotrexate and levetiracetam in patients receiving high-dose methotrexate. Methods: This retrospective study reviewed the records of 81 adults receiving 280 cycles of methotrexate to determine the effects of levetiracetam on methotrexate elimination. Institutional review board approval was obtained. Results: Levetiracetam was administered in 33 (12%) cycles of methotrexate. Patients receiving levetiracetam had significantly lower 24-hour methotrexate concentrations compared with those not receiving levetiracetam (2.91 vs 7.37 µmol/L, P = 0.005). Despite this difference, concentrations at 48 and 72 hours were similar between groups. Times to nontoxic methotrexate concentration (<0.1 µmol/L) were the same regardless of the presence of levetiracetam. The frequency of delayed elimination at 24, 48, and 72 hours was similar in both groups as was the frequency of delayed elimination at any time point. Cox regression demonstrated that levetiracetam was not a significant predictor of time to nontoxic methotrexate concentration ( P = 0.796; HR = 1.058; 95% CI = 0.692-1.617), and logistic regression demonstrated that levetiracetam was not a significant predictor of delayed elimination at any time point. Levetiracetam use was similar between groups when comparing patients experiencing delayed elimination at any time point with those without delayed elimination (13% vs 10%, respectively, P = 0.527). Conclusion: This study does not support the previous reports of a significant interaction between levetiracetam and methotrexate. A clinically significant interaction is unlikely in those without additional risk factors for delayed elimination.
The Internet as a Site of Decreasing Cultural Homophobia in Association Football
Authors: Cleland Jamie , Magrath Rory , Kian Edward
Published: August 2016

This article analyzes 5,128 comments from thirty-five prominent football fan online message boards located across the United Kingdom and 978 online comments in response to a Guardian newspaper article regarding the decision by former German international footballer, Thomas Hitzlsperger, to publicly come out as gay in January 2014. Adopting the theoretical framework of inclusive masculinity theory, the findings demonstrate almost universal inclusivity through the rejection of homophobia and frequent contestation of comments that express orthodox views. From a period of high homophobia during the 1980s and 1990s, just 2 percent of the 6,106 comments contained pernicious homophobic intent. Rather than allow for covert homophobic hate speech toward those with a different sexual orientation, 98 percent of the comments illustrate a significant decrease in cultural homophobia than was present when Justin Fashanu came out in 1990.
Disappearing the asylum: Modernizing psychiatry and generating manpower in India
Authors: Varma Saiba
Published: August 2016

In recent years, the Movement for Global Mental Health (MGMH) and the World Health Organization have worked closely with governments across the global South to redress major treatment gaps to improve access to mental health services. In India, recent reforms include transforming public psychiatric institutions from sites of treatment to research and training institutes, known as “Centres of Excellence,” to combat acute manpower shortages and modernize psychiatry. Drawing on ethnographic fieldwork at a public psychiatric hospital in Srinagar, Kashmir, one of the institutions selected to be a future “Centre of Excellence,” this article focuses on how these reforms have affected psychiatric institutions themselves. Efforts at modernizing and increasing access to mental health care—that is, emphasizing shortened stays, increasing outpatient treatment, and providing care in the “community”—depend on quarantining stigmatized, chronically ill, long-term patients who reside in custodial conditions with fewer resources and limited attention from providers. Psychiatrists have a radically different vision for redressing manpower shortages than the MGMH and Indian state, revealing contradictions in the reform process. This paper demonstrates how modernizing mental health care splits mental institutions spatially, ontologically, temporally, and epistemologically, so that the process of modernizing the institution is neither seamless nor complete.
Earthing the Anthropos? From ‘socializing the Anthropocene’ to geologizing the social
Authors: Clark Nigel , Gunaratnam Yasmin
Published: August 2016

Responding to claims of Anthropocene geoscience that humans are now geological agents, social scientists are calling for renewed attention to the social, cultural, political and historical differentiation of the Anthropos. But does this leave critical social thought’s own key concepts and categories unperturbed by the Anthropocene provocation to think through dynamic earth processes? Can we ‘socialize the Anthropocene’ without also opening ‘the social’ to climate, geology and earth system change? Revisiting the earth science behind the Anthropocene thesis and drawing on social research that is using climatology and earth systems thinking to help understand socio-historical change, this article explores some of the possibilities for ‘geologizing’ social thought. While critical social thought’s attention to justice and exclusion remains vital, it suggests that responding to Anthropocene conditions also calls for a kind of ‘geo-social’ thinking that relates human diversity and social difference to the potentiality and multiplicity of the earth itself.
The role of the diffusion-limited injection in direct dual fuel stratification
Authors: Wissink Martin , Reitz Rolf
Published: August 2016

Low-temperature combustion offers an attractive combination of high thermal efficiency and low NO x and soot formation at moderate engine load. However, the kinetically-controlled nature of low-temperature combustion yields little authority over the rate of heat release, resulting in a tradeoff between load, noise, and thermal efficiency. While several single-fuel strategies have achieved full-load operation through the use of equivalence ratio stratification, they uniformly require retarded combustion phasing to maintain reasonable noise levels, which comes at the expense of thermal efficiency and combustion stability. Previous work has shown that control over heat release can be greatly improved by combining reactivity stratification in the premixed charge with a diffusion-limited injection that occurs after low-temperature heat release, in a strategy called direct dual fuel stratification. While the previous work has shown how the heat release control offered by direct dual fuel stratification differs from other strategies and how it is enabled by the reactivity stratification created by using two fuels, this paper investigates the effects of the diffusion-limited injection. In particular, the influence of fuel selection and the pressure, timing, and duration of the diffusion-limited injection are examined. Diffusion-limited injection fuel type had a large impact on soot formation, but no appreciable effect on performance or other emissions. Increasing injection pressure was observed to decrease filter smoke number exponentially while improving combustion efficiency. The timing and duration of the diffusion-limited injection offered precise control over the heat release event, but the operating space was limited by a tradeoff between NO x and soot.
‘We’re a little loud. That’s because we like to read!’: Developing positive views of reading in a diverse, urban first grade
Authors: Moses Lindsey , Kelly Laura Beth
Published: August 2016

In this formative experiment, we examined interventions in and modifications to literacy instruction in a first-grade classroom with the aim of cultivating a love of reading among the students. Consistent with the design of formative experiments, the teacher established a pedagogical goal of building a love of reading, and throughout the year reflective modifications were made during the literacy block to encourage this love among the students. The participants were part of a diverse urban first-grade class of 28 students in the Southwest United States. The initial intervention included making a broad array of texts accessible to students and frequently discussing the teacher’s and students’ enjoyment of reading. Modifications throughout the year included establishing literary discussion groups, purchasing accessible text sets including many non-fiction books, author studies based on students’ most frequently checked-out books, book spotlights presented by students and a book exchange party proposed by the students. The findings demonstrate that students did in fact develop a positive view of reading as shown through positive talk about books, establishing favourite authors and genres, resisting the end of reading time, choosing to read over other activities and making reading a part of their social interactions.
Small-World Characteristics of Cortical Connectivity Changes in Acute Stroke
Authors: Caliandro Pietro , Vecchio Fabrizio , Miraglia Francesca , Reale Giuseppe , Della Marca Giacomo , La Torre Giuseppe , Lacidogna Giordano , Iacovelli Chiara , Padua Luca , Bramanti Placido , Rossini Paolo Maria
Published: August 2016

Background. After cerebral ischemia, disruption and subsequent reorganization of functional connections occur both locally and remote to the lesion. Recently, complexity of brain connectivity has been described using graph theory, a mathematical approach that depicts important properties of complex systems by quantifying topologies of network representations. Functional and dynamic changes of brain connectivity can be reliably analyzed via electroencephalography (EEG) recordings even when they are not yet reflected in structural changes of connections. Objective. We tested whether and how ischemic stroke in the acute stage may determine changes in small-worldness of cortical networks as measured by cortical sources of EEG. Methods. Graph characteristics of EEG of 30 consecutive stroke patients in acute stage (no more than 5 days after the event) were examined. Connectivity analysis was performed using eLORETA in both hemispheres. Results. Network rearrangements were mainly detected in delta, theta, and alpha bands when patients were compared with healthy subjects. In delta and alpha bands similar findings were observed in both hemispheres regardless of the side of ischemic lesion: bilaterally decreased small-worldness in the delta band and bilaterally increased small-worldness in the alpha2 band. In the theta band, bilaterally decreased small-worldness was observed only in patients with stroke in the left hemisphere. Conclusions. After an acute stroke, brain cortex rearranges its network connections diffusely, in a frequency-dependent modality probably in order to face the new anatomical and functional frame.
Distinctive HLA‐II association with primary biliary cholangitis on the Island of Sardinia
Authors: Clemente Maria Grazia , Frau Fulvia , Bernasconi Matilde , Macis Maria Doloretta , Cicotto Lucia , Pilleri Giampaolo , De Virgiliis Stefano , Castiglia Paolo , Farci Patrizia
Published: August 2016

Background

The HLA DRB1 *08 allele associated with primary biliary cholangitis (PBC) among Caucasians is of low frequency in the Sardinian population.

Objective

The aim of our study was to type a cohort of PBC patients from the island of Sardinia for HLA class II antigens.

Methods

Twenty Sardinian patients affected by PBC, 14 with autoimmune hepatitis (AIH) and 89 healthy controls (HCs) were typed for HLA class II alleles by dot‐blot analysis.

Results

The PBC‐associated HLA DRB1 *08 allele was detected in none of the studied individuals. The DRB1 *0301–DQB1 *0201 was the prevalent HLA haplotype, detected in 19 (47.5%) out of 40 PBC haplotypes (OR = 3.0; 95% CI 1.5–6.2) and in 11 (39.3%) out of 28 AIH haplotypes (OR = 2.2; 95% CI 0.94–5.0), but in only 41 (23%) out of 178 HC haplotypes. Moreover, PBC patients showed an increased frequency of homozygosity for the DQB1 *0201 allele (35% compared with 6.7% of the HCs; OR = 7.5; 95% CI 2.2–25.7). The frequency of the DRB1*11 allele in the PBC group was about half of that seen in the Sardinian HCs (7.5% vs 15.7%) (p  = ns).

Conclusions

Our study confirmed the low frequency of the HLA DRB1 *08 allele among Sardinians, either in the general population or PBC patients. The high prevalence of the HLA DRB1 *0301–DQB1 *0201 haplotype is a distinctive genetic feature of PBC among Sardinians. Our study strengthens the hypothesis that still unknown genetic, epigenetic, and environmental factors must be involved in the pathogenesis of different HLA‐associated liver diseases, and it represents a pathfinder that warrants exploration in a future extensive study.
Ethnic variation in acute cerebrovascular disease: Analysis from the Qatar stroke registry
Authors: Akhtar Naveed , Salam Abdul , Kamran Saadat , Bourke Paula , Joseph Sujatha , Santos Mark , Khan Rabia , Irfan Furqan , Deleu Dirk , Malik Rayaz A. , Shuaib Ashfaq
Published: August 2016

Objective

We analysed the Qatar stroke registry for ethnic variations in patients admitted with cerebrovascular disease at Hamad General Hospital, Qatar.

Methods

Patients admitted with acute stroke from January 2014 to December 2015, enrolled in the registry were included in the study. We evaluated the clinical presentation, risk factors, and outcome at discharge and 90 days post-discharge in relation to the patient’s ethnic background.

Results

A total of 1727 patients were enrolled in the Hamad General Hospital stroke registry (Middle Eastern 594 (34.4%), South East Asian 924 (53.5%) and Far Eastern 209 (12.1%)). There were significant differences in risk factors, clinical presentation and prognosis. Compared to Middle Eastern patients, Far Eastern patients were younger (62.8 ± 13.7 vs. 48.9 ± 9.1 years; p < 0.001). Diabetes and hypertension were significantly more common in Middle Eastern patients (358 (60.3%), 458 (77.1%)) compared to South East Asian patients (420 (45.5%), 596 (64.5%)) and Far Eastern patients (57 (27.3%), 154 (73.7%)), respectively (p < 0.001). Stroke was more severe in the Far Eastern group (median (interquartile range) – 5.0 (2–11.5)) compared to the Middle Eastern group (median (interquartile range) – 4.0 (1–8)) and South East Asian (median (interquartile range) – 4.0 (2–9)), p = 0.011. Mortality at 90 days was highest in patients from the Far East (15/209 (8.2%)) compared to the Middle East (35/594 (6.5%)) and South East Asia (33/924 (4.0)), p = 0.028. Patients from the Far East had significantly higher rates of intracranial hemorrhage compared to the Middle East and South East Asia (70/209 (33.5%), 77/594 (13.0%), and 169/924 (18.3%)), respectively (p < 0.001).

Conclusion

The early age at presentation and the poor control of risk factors, especially in patients from South East Asia and the Far East requires attention.
Regulatory roles of interferon-inducible protein 204 on differentiation and vasculogenic activity of endothelial progenitor cells
Authors: Yang Junjie , Zhang Xiaofei , Zhao Zhenao , Li Xizhe , Wang Xu , Chen Ming , Song Bo , Ii Masaaki , Shen Zhenya
Published: August 2016

Background

Endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) have shown great potential in angiogenesis either by their differentiation into endothelial cells or by secretion of angiogenic factors. Interferon-inducible protein 204 (Ifi204) has been reported to participate in the regulation of cell growth and differentiation. However, its role in differentiation of EPCs remains unknown. We proposed that Ifi204 could modulate the differentiation and regenerative abilities of EPCs.

Methods

Ifi204-expressing lentivirus and Ifi204 siRNA were introduced into EPCs to overexpress and suppress the expression of Ifi204. Using fluorescence-activated cell sorting, immunocytochemistry, and quantitative PCR, endothelial markers including CD31, VE-cadherin, and vWF were detected in the modified EPCs. An in-vitro incorporation assay and a colony-forming assay were also performed.

Results

Evidence showed that Ifi204 inhibition decreased the endothelial differentiation and vasculogenic activities of EPCs in vitro. In mice with hindlimb ischemia, downregulation of Ifi204 in EPCs, which was tracked by our newly synthesized nanofluorogen, impaired neovascularization, with a corresponding reduction in hindlimb blood reperfusion by postoperative day 14.

Conclusions

Ifi204 is required for EPC differentiation and neovascularization in vitro and in vivo. The regulatory roles of Ifi204 in EPC differentiation may benefit the clinical therapy of ischemic vascular diseases.
Potential role of herbal remedies in stem cell therapy: proliferation and differentiation of human mesenchymal stromal cells
Authors: Udalamaththa Vindya Lankika , Jayasinghe Chanika Dilumi , Udagama Preethi Vidya
Published: August 2016

Stem cell therapy has revolutionized modern clinical therapy with the potential of stem cells to differentiate into many different cell types which may help to replace different cell lines of an organism. Innumerous trials are carried out to merge new scientific knowledge and techniques with traditional herbal extracts that may result in less toxic, affordable, and highly available natural alternative therapeutics. Currently, mesenchyamal stromal cell (MSC) lines are treated with individual and mixtures of crude herbal extracts, as well as with purified compounds from herbal extracts, to investigate the mechanisms and effects of these on stem cell growth and differentiation. Human MSCs (hMSCs) possess multilineage, i.e., osteogenic, neurogenic, adipogenic, chondrogenic, and myogenic, differentiation abilities. The proliferative and differentiation properties of hMSCs treated with herbal extracts have shown promise in diseases such as osteoporosis, neurodegenerative disorders, and other tissue degenerative disorders. Well characterized herbal extracts that result in increased rates of tissue regeneration may be used in both stem cell therapy and tissue engineering for replacement therapy, where the use of scaffolds and vesicles with enhanced attaching and proliferative properties could be highly advantageous in the latter. Although the clinical application of herbal extracts is still in progress due to the variability and complexity of bioactive constituents, standardized herbal preparations will strengthen their application in the clinical context. We have critically reviewed the proliferative and differentiation effects of individual herbal extracts on hMSCs mainly derived from bone marrow and elaborated on the plausible underlying mechanisms of action. To be fruitfully used in reparative and regenerative therapy, future directions in this area of study should (i) make use of hMSCs derived from different non-traditional sources, including medical waste material (umbilical cord, Wharton’s jelly, and placenta), (ii) take account of the vast numbers of herbal extracts used in traditional medicine globally, and (iii) investigate the mechanisms and pathways of their effects on hMSCs.
Interrelationship of membership, authors,and papers published in GEOPHYSICS
Authors: DOMENICO S. N.
Published: August 2016

We compare the distribution of authors of papers published in GEOPHYSICS during 1975-76 to SEC membership distribution in 10 employer classifications. Also, paper distribution is compared to membership distribution in 9 disciplines. A disproportionately large percentage (43.2) of authors are in academic institutions which employ a small percentage (5.6) of Society members. Percentage of authors in government agencies (20.6) and in service companies (5.8) also are larger than percentage of members in these two employer classifications (6.7 and 2.4, respectively). Percentage of authors in petroleum companies (19.2) and in contracting companies (2.3) are considerably less than percentage of members in these two employer classifications (50.8 and 14.6, respectively). Percentage of papers (55.6) in the four potential field disciplines (gravity, magnetic, electrical, and electromagnetic) far exceeds the percentage of SEG members (30.5) in these disciplines. By contrast, percentage of papers on the seismic method (30.6) is appreciably less than percentage of members (56.5) in this discipline.
High-accuracy wavefront tracing traveltime calculation
Authors: Coultrip Robert. L.
Published: August 2016

Conventional ray-tracing algorithms for first-arrival calculation suffer from drawbacks such as (1) no guarantee of finding the globally minimum traveltime path when multiple paths exist, (2) shadow zones, and (3) trouble finding minimum traveltime paths containing refraction and/or diffraction energy. Algorithms that trace wavefronts circumvent these problems. The new wavefront-tracing algorithm presented here is based on an earth model consisting of uniform-velocity triangular cells with nodes placed at vertices and along cell edges. Nodes are places where traces of first arrival wavefronts (propagation directions and arrival times) are stored. The algorithm works by propagating wavefronts (sampled at the nodes) away from the source throughout the entire model. Wavefronts are propagated locally as diffraction, direct arrival, or critically refracted energy that implicitly describe minimum time paths. Once the first arrival wavefront is sampled throughout the model, traveltimes and raypaths from the source to receivers are easily calculated. This algorithm computes the globally minimum time paths from the source to all points in the model regardless of model complexity and the number of locally minimum traveltime paths. Traveltime calculations are highly accurate and computation time is O(n log2 n) for n nodes. Use of triangular cells allows for cell boundaries that follow, say, fault planes and dipping beds, without resorting to stair-step approximations inherent with rectangular cells. This method can be extended to three dimensional (3-D) problems.
Pore geometry effects on elastic properties of Opalinus Clay
Authors: Keller Lukas M.
Published: August 2016

Regarding the storage of nuclear waste within clay rock formations requires fundamental understanding of elastic properties of this rock type with regard to the risk evaluation process. The influence of the pore geometry on elastic properties of Opalinus Clay is studied on the basis of realistic pore microstructure, which is reconstructed from image data acquired by focused ion beam nanotomography. These microstructures are used as input pore geometries for linear elastic finite-element modeling to determine Thomsen’s [Formula: see text], [Formula: see text], and [Formula: see text] anisotropy parameters and the effective elastic moduli related to the porous material. The presence of fully drained intergranular pores substantially increases the values of [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text]. For the investigated sample with an expected porosity of approximately 10 vol.%, the anisotropic pore space contributes similarly to the anisotropy parameters when compared with the contribution related to the preferred orientation of minerals. On the other hand, if the pore space is undrained, the effect of pores is smaller and the anisotropy is largely controlled by the preferred orientation of minerals. It is revealed that the value of [Formula: see text] is most sensitive to changes in water saturation. In case water is drained from the pores, the vertical Young’s modulus [Formula: see text] reduces significantly more when compared with the horizontal modulus [Formula: see text]. Presuming that the drainable porosity corresponds to a volume fraction of 10 vol.%, [Formula: see text] reduces by approximately 15%–20%. The effect of drainage is even more pronounced for the Poisson’s ratios, whereas the shear moduli are not much affected by drainage.
Velocity-independent estimation of kinematic attributes in vertical transverse isotropy media using local slopes and predictive painting
Authors: Khoshnavaz M. Javad , Bóna Andrej , Urosevic Milovan
Published: August 2016

Agood seismic velocity model is required for many routine seismic imaging techniques. Velocity model building from seismic data is often labor intensive and time consuming. The process becomes more complicated by taking nonhyperbolic traveltime estimations into account. An alternative to the conventional time-domain imaging algorithms is to use techniques based on the local event slopes, which contain sufficient information about the traveltime moveout for velocity estimation and characterization of the subsurface geologic structures. Given the local slopes, there is no need for a prior knowledge of a velocity model. That is why the term “velocity independent” is commonly used for such techniques. We improved upon and simplified the previous versions of velocity-independent nonhyperbolic approximations for horizontally layered vertical transverse isotropy (VTI) media by removing one order of differentiation with respect to offset from the imaging kinematic attributes. These kinematic attributes are derived in terms of the local event slopes and zero-offset two-way traveltime (TWTT). We proposed the use of predictive painting, which keeps all the attributes curvature independent, to estimate the zero-offset TWTT. The theoretical contents and performance of the proposed approach were evaluated on synthetic and field data examples. We also studied the accuracy of moveout attributes for shifted hyperbola, rational, three-parameter, and acceleration approximations on a synthetic example. Our results show that regardless of the approximation types, NMO velocity estimate has higher accuracy than the nonhyperbolicity attribute. Computational time and accuracy of the inversion of kinematic attributes in VTI media using our approach were compared with routine/conventional multiparameter semblance inversion and with the previous velocity-independent inversion techniques.