bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Prediction of glycan motifs using quantitative analysis of multi‐lectin binding: Motifs on MUC1 produced by cultured pancreatic cancer cells
Authors: McCarter Calvin , Kletter Doron , Tang Huiyuan , Partyka Katie , Ma Yinjiao , Singh Sudhir , Yadav Jessica , Bern Marshall , Haab Brian B.
Published: August 2013

Purpose

Lectins are valuable tools for detecting specific glycans in biological samples, but the interpretation of the measurements can be ambiguous due to the complexities of lectin specificities. Here, we present an approach to improve the accuracy of interpretation by converting lectin measurements into quantitative predictions of the presence of various glycan motifs.

Experimental design

The conversion relies on a database of analyzed glycan array data that provides information on the specificities of the lectins for each of the motifs. We tested the method using measurements of lectin binding to glycans on glycan arrays and then applied the method to predicting motifs on the protein mucin 1 (MUC1) expressed in eight different pancreatic cancer cell lines.

Results

The combined measurements from several lectins were more accurate than individual measurements for predicting the presence or absence of motifs on arrayed glycans. The analysis of MUC1 revealed that each cell line expressed a unique pattern of glycoforms, and that the glycoforms significantly differed between MUC1 collected from conditioned media and MUC1 collected from cell lysates.

Conclusions and clinical relevance

This new method could provide more accurate analyses of glycans in biological sample and make the use of lectins more practical and effective for a broad range of researchers.
Evaluation of Different Conditions of Contact for Caprolactam Migration from Multilayer Polyamide Films into Food Simulants
Authors: Félix Juliana S. , Manzoli José Eduardo , Padula Marisa , Monteiro Magali
Published: August 2013

Caprolactam, the polyamide 6 (PA‐6) monomer, can migrate during food processing. At cooking temperatures, migration is accelerated and plastic components could degrade, giving off low molecular mass compounds, which can migrate into food. In this work, caprolactam migration from multilayer films containing PA‐6 for meat foodstuffs and cheese packaging was performed at contact conditions of 40°C/10 days and 100°C/30 min. The migration into water ranged from 0.89 to 1.22 mg/dm2 and 0.92 to 1.21 mg/dm2, into 3% acetic acid from 1.29 to 1.74 mg/dm2 and 1.13 to 1.62 mg/dm2 and into olive oil from 1.18 to 1.98 mg/dm2 and 0.50 to 0.80 mg/dm2 for films intended for meat foodstuffs for 10 days at 40°C and 30 min at 100°C, respectively. Among PA‐6 films used for cheese, caprolactam migration into water ranged from 0.17 to 0.91 mg/dm2 and 0.74 to 1.04 mg/dm2, into 3% acetic acid from 1.15 to 1.26 mg/dm2 and 1.11 to 1.37 mg/dm2 and into olive oil from 0.23 to 0.83 mg/dm2 and 0.37 to 0.56 mg/dm2 for 10 days at 40°C and 30 min at 100°C, respectively. Caprolactam migration evaluation into water and 3% acetic acid at 100°C/30 min could replace the need to apply the test at 40°C/10 days, since similar results were obtained under both conditions. In the case of PA‐6 for meat foodstuffs, caprolactam migration into olive oil was highly affected by different conditions of contact, showing values two to three times higher at 40°C/10 days than at 100°C/30 min. For cheese films, caprolactam migration into olive oil was higher at 40°C for 10 days. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Entrepreneurship in Emerging Markets: New Insights and Directions for Future Research
Authors: Alon Ilan , Rottig Daniel
Published: August 2013

In recent years, the entrepreneurship and emerging markets research streams have intersected. Emerging markets provide an opportunity to examine entrepreneurship in different contexts and forms. This article discusses the current literature that interconnects both research streams in general, comments on the contributions of the articles published in the special issue on entrepreneurship and emerging markets in particular, and sketches out future avenues for research. These contributions span several theoretical lenses, including institutional theory, internationalization theory, transaction cost economics, and the resource‐based view, as well as multiple geographic regions, including China as the largest emerging economy and other countries in East Asia, Central Asia, South Asia, Eastern Europe, Latin America, the Caribbean, and the Middle East. We weave a discussion of the extant literature and these contributions inside three key themes: Emerging Markets and China's Uniqueness, Entrepreneurship in Emerging Markets, and Future Research on Emerging Markets Entrepreneurship. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Internationalization of Chinese Entrepreneurial Firms
Authors: Alon Ilan , Yeheskel Orly , Lerner Miri , Zhang Wenxian
Published: August 2013

This article uses the resource‐based and internationalization theories to explain the export behavior of Chinese entrepreneurial firms. Based on multiyear data on Chinese firms from the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor (GEM), we show that contextualized resource‐based theory can adequately explain some of the variation in export behavior among young Chinese firms. Exports by small Chinese firms are driven by the social and intellectual capital of the entrepreneur and their entrepreneurial proclivity, and the innovativeness/uniqueness of the product/offering. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Students' Close Reading of Science Texts
Authors: Lapp Diane , Grant Maria , Moss Barbara , Johnson Kelly
Published: August 2013

A question being asked by teachers across the country is, How can I teach students to acquire both the skills and knowledge demanded by the Common Core State Standards (CCSS) while simultaneously guiding them to read challenging texts such as those presented in Appendix B of the CCSS? Answering this invites the integration of ideas and the innovation of novel instructional plans. Illustrating close reading procedures in two classrooms‐ one 1st grade and one 5th grade‐ this article provides an answer by detailing the manner in which a student might approach a challenging science text using annotated reading, partner talk, text‐based questioning and reflective writing to build competence and a capacity for reading, writing, listening, and speaking about informational texts.
A study of bremsstrahlung spectra and absorbed dose of beta in teeth enamel and dentin
Authors: Manjunatha H. C.
Published: August 2013

The beta‐induced bremsstrahlung spectra produced by 113 pure beta nuclides in teeth enamel and dentin are computed. The computed spectral distributions are presented. The spectral shapes are primarily responsible for variations in the shapes of depth‐dose distributions. They are intended to provide a quick and convenient reference for spectral shapes and to give an indication of the wide variation in these shapes. The computed bremsstrahlung spectrum is used in the evaluation of bremsstrahlung dose in teeth enamel and dentin. The evaluated Beta bremsstrahlung dose as a function distance for the studied nuclides is also presented. The beta bremsstrahlung dose decreases with the increase of distance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Role of Cholecystectomy and Lymph Node Dissection in Patients with T2 Gallbladder Cancer
Authors: Kim Dong Hyun , Kim Sung Hoon , Choi Gi Hong , Kang Chang Moo , Kim Kyung Sik , Choi Jin Sub , Lee Woo Jung
Published: August 2013

Background

Incidental findings of gallbladder cancer (GBCA) have dramatically increased as an initial presentation of the disease because of the expansion of laparoscopic cholecystectomy. However, the optimal management of T2 GBCA remains at issue.

Methods

We compared our 10‐year experience with the consensus surgical strategy for T2 GBCA. Between January 2000 and December 2009, 70 patients at Severance Hospital, Yonsei University Health System, Seoul, Korea, underwent surgical treatment for GBCA stage T2. The medical records of 70 patients with T2 GBCA were retrospectively reviewed.

Results

Radical cholecystectomy was performed on only 32 (45.8 %) patients. In patients with T2 GBCA and positive lymph nodes (LN), the overall survival rate between cholecystectomy with LN dissection and radical cholecystectomy did not show a significant difference. Twenty patients experienced recurrence during the follow‐up period. Among the 11 patients who underwent cholecystectomy with liver resection, only 2 (18.2 %) patients had an intrahepatic recurrence. Of the 9 patients who underwent cholecystectomy without liver resection, 3 (33.3 %) patients had an intrahepatic recurrence. However, recurrences at the gallbladder bed occurred only in one and two patients, respectively, and were not significantly different between the two groups.

Conclusions

There was a large gap between clinical practice and treatment guidelines. Though relatively few patients enrolled in this study experienced recurrence, cholecystectomy and LN dissection without liver resection showed similar survival and recurrence patterns compared with those of radical cholecystectomy. To improve consistency between clinical practice and consensus guidelines, the role of limited resection for T2 lesions needs further evaluation.
Optimization, validation, and application of a real-time PCR protocol for quantification of viable bacterial cells in municipal sewage sludge and biosolids using reporter genes andEscherichia coli
Authors: van Frankenhuyzen Jessica K , Trevors Jack T , Flemming Cecily A , Lee Hung , Habash Marc B
Published: August 2013

Biosolids result from treatment of sewage sludge to meet jurisdictional standards, including pathogen reduction. Once government regulations are met, materials can be applied to agricultural lands. Culture-based methods are used to enumerate pathogen indicator microorganisms but may underestimate cell densities, which is partly due to bacteria existing in a viable but non-culturable physiological state. Viable indicators can also be quantified by real-time polymerase chain reaction (qPCR) used with propidium monoazide (PMA), a dye that inhibits amplification of DNA found extracellularly or in dead cells. The objectives of this study were to test an optimized PMA-qPCR method for viable pathogen detection in wastewater solids and to validate it by comparing results to data obtained by conventional plating. Reporter genes from genetically marked Pseudomonas sp. UG14Lr and Agrobacterium tumefaciens 542 cells were spiked into samples of primary sludge, and anaerobically digested and Lystek-treated biosolids as cell-free DNA, dead cells, viable cells, and mixtures of live and dead cells, followed by DNA extraction with and without PMA, and qPCR. The protocol was then used for Escherichia coli quantification in the three matrices, and results compared to plate counts. PMA-qPCR selectively detected viable cells, while inhibiting signals from cell-free DNA and DNA found in membrane-compromised cells. PMA-qPCR detected 0.5–1 log unit more viable E. coli cells in both primary solids and dewatered biosolids than plate counts. No viable E. coli was found in Lystek-treated biosolids. These data suggest PMA-qPCR may more accurately estimate pathogen cell numbers than traditional culture methods.
Production, Biochemical Characterization and Detergents Application of Keratinase from the Marine Actinobacterium Actinoalloteichus sp. MA‐32
Authors: Manivasagan Panchanathan , Sivakumar Kannan , Gnanam Selvaraj , Venkatesan Jayachandran , Kim Se‐Kwon
Published: August 2013

The present study is the first report on poultry feathers as a novel, inexpensive substrate for the production of a thermo‐ and detergent stable keratinase from a marine actinobacterium belonging to the genus Actinoalloteichus. Medium composition and culture conditions for the keratinase production by Actinoalloteichus sp. MA‐32 were optimized using two statistical methods: Plackett–Burman design was applied to find the key ingredients and conditions for the best yield of enzyme production and central composite design used to optimize the concentration of the five significant variables: whole chicken feather, soy flour, MgSO4·7H2O, KH2PO4 and NaCl. The medium optimization resulted in a 19.30‐fold increase with a 31.99 % yield with a specific activity of 3842.57 U mg−1 and the molecular weight was estimated as 66 kDa. The enzyme was optimally active at pH 8–10 and temperature 50–60 °C and it was most stable up to pH 12 and 10–14 % of NaCl concentration. The enzyme activity was reduced when treated with Hg2+, Pb2+, Tween‐80, 1,10‐phenanthroline and EDTA and stimulated by Fe2+, Mg2+, Cu2+, Ca2+, Ni2+, Mn2+, SDS, ethoxylated (9.5EO) octylphenol, DMSO, sodium sulfite and β‐mercaptoethanol. The keratinase exhibited a significant stability and compatibility with most of the tested commercial laundry detergents, demonstrating its feasibility for inclusion in laundry detergent formulation. These results suggest that this extracellular keratinase may be a useful alternative and eco‐friendly route for handling the abundant amount of waste feathers or for applications in detergent formulation and other industrial processes.
Psychological interventions for adolescent psychosis: A pilot controlled trial in routine care
Authors: Browning S. , Corrigall R. , Garety P. , Emsley R. , Jolley S.
Published: August 2013

Purpose

Evidence for the recommendation to deliver Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) and Family Interventions (FI) to under-18s with psychosis derives from adult research, and no previous study has focused exclusively on an adolescent population. We evaluated adaptations of these therapies for adolescent inpatients with psychosis (CBTpA and FIpA), delivered as an adjunct to inpatient standard care (SC).

Subjects and methods

Thirty adolescent inpatients with psychotic symptoms on admission were sequentially allocated to receive CBTpA + SC (n = 10); FIpA + SC (n = 10) or SC alone (n = 10). Psychotic symptoms and functioning were measured at admission and discharge.

Results

Group comparisons did not reach conventional significance, but effect sizes in this pilot study showed a promising impact of CBTpA compared to SC alone, in reducing symptoms (ES: d = 0.6), with smaller effect sizes for functioning (d = 0.2) and for FIpA (symptoms, d = 0.1 and functioning, d = 0.4). There was no advantage of either additional treatment in reducing length of stay, but self-report satisfaction ratings were higher for both psychological therapies.

Discussion and conclusions

The study is the first to focus on an exclusively adolescent population, using appropriately adapted therapy protocols. Findings suggest that the interventions are feasible, acceptable and helpful for adolescents with psychosis. Larger randomised controlled trials are now needed.
Attenuation of fibroblast growth factor signaling by poly‐N‐acetyllactosamine type glycans
Authors: Sugihara Kazuhiro , Shibata Toshiaki K. , Takata Kayoko , Kimura Takako , Kanayama Naohiro , Williams Roy , Hatakeyama Shingo , Akama Tomoya O. , Kuo Chu-Wei , Khoo Kay-Hooi , Fukuda Michiko N.
Published: August 2013

Fibroblast growth factors (FGFs) and their receptors are expressed in a variety of mammalian tissues, playing a role in development and cell proliferation. While analyzing human sperm motility, we found that sperm treated with endo‐β‐galactosidase (EBG), which specifically hydrolyzes poly‐N‐acetyllactosamine type glycans (polyLacs), enhanced motility. Mass spectrometry analysis revealed that sperm‐associated polyLacs are heavily fucosylated, consistent with Lewis Y antigen. Immunohistochemistry of epididymis using an anti‐Lewis Y antibody before and after EBG treatment suggested that polyLacs carrying the Lewis Y epitope are synthesized in epididymal epithelia and secreted to seminal fluid. EBG‐treated sperm elevated cAMP levels and calcium influx, indicating activation of fibroblast growth factor signaling. Seminal fluid polyLacs bound to FGFs in vitro, and impaired FGF‐mediated signaling in HEK293T cells.
Analytic moduli for unfoldings of germs of generic analytic diffeomorphisms with a codimension parabolic point
Authors: ROUSSEAU C.
Published: August 2013

In this paper we provide a complete modulus of analytic classification for germs of generic analytic families of diffeomorphisms which unfold a parabolic fixed point of codimension$k$. We start by showing that a generic family can be ‘prepared’, i.e. brought to a prenormal form${f}_{\epsilon } (z)$in which the multi-parameter$\epsilon $is almost canonical (up to an action of$ \mathbb{Z} / k \mathbb{Z} $). As in the codimension one case treated in P. Mardešić, R. Roussarie and C. Rousseau [Modulus of analytic classification for unfoldings of generic parabolic diffeomorphisms.Mosc. Math. J. 4(2004), 455–498], we show that the Ecalle–Voronin modulus can be unfolded to give a complete modulus for such germs. For this purpose, we define unfolded sectors in$z$-space that constitute natural domains on which the map${f}_{\epsilon } $can be brought to normal form in an almost unique way. The comparison of these normalizing changes of coordinates on the different sectors forms the analytic part of the modulus. This construction is performed on sectors in the multi-parameter space$\epsilon $such that the closure of their union provides a neighborhood of the origin in parameter space.
Rational maps whose Julia sets are Cantor circles
Authors: QIU WEIYUAN , YANG FEI , YIN YONGCHENG
Published: August 2013

In this paper, we give a family of rational maps whose Julia sets are Cantor circles and show that every rational map whose Julia set is a Cantor set of circles must be topologically conjugate to one map in this family on their corresponding Julia sets. In particular, we give the specific expressions of some rational maps whose Julia sets are Cantor circles, but they are not topologically conjugate to any McMullen maps on their Julia sets. Moreover, some non-hyperbolic rational maps whose Julia sets are Cantor circles are also constructed.
An Index to the Slavery and Slave Trade Enquiry: The British Parliamentary House of Commons Sessional Papers, 1788-1792
Authors: Lovejoy Paul E. , Oliveira Vanessa S.
Published: August 2013

The article describes volumes pertaining to slavery and the slave trade in the British Parliament House of Commons Sessional Papers of the eighteenth century, published by Sheila Lambert in 1975 but seldom used by historians of Africa and the trans-Atlantic slave trade. In addition, the article provides an index for the eight volumes from 1788 to 1792 that concern the slave trade. The index is arranged according to the names of individuals who provided testimony to the House of Commons or who are referred to in the testimonies, as well as according to places in Africa and the Americas that are mentioned in the testimonies. There is also a list of tables that are included in the texts and a list of ships mentioned in the testimonies, which are referenced with respect to the ships inVoyages: The Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade Database. The materials were assembled in connection with the campaign to abolish the British slave trade, which was eventually achieved in 1807. As is clear from the testimonies and statistical information, the enquiry into the slave trade is a valuable source of documentary material that is relevant to scholars studying the coastal regions of Atlantic Africa in the eighteenth century and the trans-Atlantic slave trade during the period when the British trade was at its height.
Entraining gravity currents
Authors: Johnson Christopher G. , Hogg Andrew J.
Published: August 2013

Entrainment of ambient fluid into a gravity current, while often negligible in laboratory-scale flows, may become increasingly significant in large-scale natural flows. We present a theoretical study of the effect of this entrainment by augmenting a shallow water model for gravity currents under a deep ambient with a simple empirical model for entrainment, based on experimental measurements of the fluid entrainment rate as a function of the bulk Richardson number. By analysing long-time similarity solutions of the model, we find that the decrease in entrainment coefficient at large Richardson number, due to the suppression of turbulent mixing by stable stratification, qualitatively affects the structure and growth rate of the solutions, compared to currents in which the entrainment is taken to be constant or negligible. In particular, mixing is most significant close to the front of the currents, leading to flows that are more dilute, deeper and slower than their non-entraining counterparts. The long-time solution of an inviscid entraining gravity current generated by a lock-release of dense fluid is a similarity solution of the second kind, in which the current grows as a power of time that is dependent on the form of the entrainment law. With an entrainment law that fits the experimental measurements well, the length of currents in this entraining inviscid regime grows with time approximately as ${t}^{0. 447} $. For currents instigated by a constant buoyancy flux, a different solution structure exists in which the current length grows as ${t}^{4/ 5} $. In both cases, entrainment is most significant close to the current front.
Myopericytoma of the external auditory canal and tragus
Authors: Chotey N A , Naidu T K , Naidoo V , Naidoo J
Published: August 2013

Background:

Myopericytoma is a relatively recently described skin and soft tissue tumour that demonstrates perivascular myoid cell or pericytic differentiation. Whilst the range of anatomical locations has expanded to include visceral locations, head and neck myopericytomas are rarely documented. There have been no previous reports of aural myopericytoma.

Case report:

This paper reports the clinicopathological features of a biopsy-proven, slow-growing, 20 × 20 mm, polypoid myopericytoma that involved the external auditory canal and tragus in an 18-year-old woman. Excision was curative.

Conclusion:

Heightened clinicopathological awareness of the expanding anatomical distribution of myopericytoma is critical to its diagnosis when it presents in unusual and novel locations. Myopericytoma should be added to the range of external auditory canal neoplasms, especially those characterised by an admixture of spindle cells and a prominence of blood vessels, including those with a haemangiopericytomatous pattern.
Benefits of combined modality treatment of Merkel cell carcinoma of the head and neck: single institution experience
Authors: Balakrishnan V , Berry S , Stew B , Sizeland A
Published: August 2013

Background:

There is ongoing debate surrounding the roles of surgery and adjuvant radiotherapy in the management of primary and recurrent Merkel cell carcinoma of the head and neck. This study assessed the influence of local excision, margin status, adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy on locoregional recurrence and survival.

Method:

A retrospective review of 54 consecutive cases of head and neck Merkel cell carcinoma at a single institution.

Results:

Median disease-specific survival time was 120 months. Forty-four per cent of patients developed locoregional recurrence. Combined treatment with surgery and locoregional radiotherapy improved disease-specific survival. Radiotherapy was associated with longer time to recurrence and regional recurrence. Irradiation of the regional nodes improved regional control, irrespective of clinical status. Margin-negative excision was not associated with improved local control. Combined modality treatment of recurrent disease resulted in a four-fold improvement of local control, but small numbers prevented this trend from reaching statistical significance.

Conclusion:

Surgical excision of the primary disease and clinically involved regional nodes, plus adjuvant radiotherapy to the surgical bed and regional nodes are recommended for all patients with Merkel cell carcinoma of the head and neck, irrespective of clinical status. Recurrent disease should be aggressively treated with combined modality treatment.
Interactions ofPlasmodium juxtanucleareand chicken anaemia virus: establishing a model
Authors: SILVEIRA PATRICIA , MARIN SANDRA Y. G. , MOREIRA PATRICIA A. , TOCANTINS BÁRBARA B. , LACORTE GUSTAVO , PAIXÃO TATIANE A. , MARTINS NELSON R. S. , BRAGA ÈRIKA M.
Published: August 2013

The pathogensPlasmodium juxtanucleareand chicken anaemia virus (CAV) are easily transmitted and potentially harmful to chickens. In this study, we established an experimental model to investigate the effects of avian malaria caused byP. juxtanuclearein white leghorn specific-pathogen-free (SPF) chicks previously immunosuppressed with CAV. Parasitaemia, haematological variables and clinical and pathological parameters were determined in four different experimental groups: chicks coinfected by CAV andP. juxtanuclearestrain (Coinfected group), chicks exclusively infected by CAV (CAV group) orP. juxtanucleare(Malaria group) and uninfected chicks (Control group). Our data demonstrated thatP. juxtanucleareparasitaemia was significantly higher in the Coinfected group. Furthermore, haematological parameters, including the RBC, haematocrit and haemoglobin concentration were significantly reduced in coinfected chicks. In agreement with the changes observed in haematological features, the mortality among coinfected chicks was higher compared with animals with single infections. Clinical analysis indicated moderate changes related to different organs size (bursa of Fabricius, heart and liver) in coinfected birds. The experimental coinfection of SPF chickens withP. juxtanucleareand CAV may represent a research tool for the study of avian malaria after CAV immunosuppression, enabling measurement of the impacts caused by different pathogens during malarial infection.
Parastrongyloides trichosurisuggests that XX/XO sex determination is ancestral in Strongyloididae (Nematoda)
Authors: KULKARNI ARPITA , DYKA ANNA , NEMETSCHKE LINDA , GRANT WARWICK N. , STREIT ADRIAN
Published: August 2013

The parasitic roundwormsStrongyloides stercoralis(in man) andStrongyloides ratti(in rats) employ environmentally controlled XX/XO sex determination with a pair of X chromosomes and two pairs of autosomes.Strongyloides papillosus(in sheep) has only two pairs of chromosomes, one of which combines the genetic material homologous to theS. rattichromosomes X and I. This species creates males through the elimination of one copy of the portion related to the X chromosome (chromatin diminution). It is not clear which one of these two sex-determining mechanisms is ancestral. We demonstrate thatStrongyloides vituli(in cattle) has two pairs of chromosomes like its very close relativeS. papillosuswhereasParastrongyloides trichosuri, a closely related out-group toStrongyloidesspp. in Australian brushtail possums, has three chromosome pairs and employs XX/XO sex determination. The X chromosome ofP. trichosuriis homologous to the X chromosome ofS. ratti. Our data strongly suggest that the last common ancestor ofStrongyloidesspp. andParastrongyloidesspp. had two pairs of autosomes along with two or one X chromosome in females and males, respectively. The situation with two pairs of chromosomes is likely derived and occurred through the fusion of the X chromosome with an autosome.
Can differences in life cycle explain differences in invasiveness? – A study on Anguillicola novaezelandiae in the European eel
Authors: DANGEL K. C. , KEPPEL M. , SURES B.
Published: August 2013

Anguillicola crassus is the most invasive species of its genus and it is a successful colonizer of different eel species worldwide. It is so far the only species of the genus Anguillicola whose life cycle has been studied completely. To analyse whether differences in life cycle may explain differences in invasiveness, we infected European eels with Anguillicola novaezelandiae under laboratory conditions. Anguillicola novaezelandiae shows a synchronized development in the European eel. Eggs with second-stage larvae appeared 120 days after infection. No density-dependent effect in parasite development could be found for A. novaezelandiae. The present study shows that the life cycle of A. novaezelandiae differs on final host level compared with A. crassus in ways which result in a less successful invasion of new host species.
Reduction in community-onset methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus rates in an urban Canadian hospital setting
Authors: WILMER A. , LLOYD-SMITH E. , ROMNEY M. G. , CHAMPAGNE S. , WONG T. , ZHANG W. , STENSTROM R. , HULL M. W.
Published: August 2013

Community-onset methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus (CO-MRSA) became a prominent cause of infection in North America in 2003, with a peak in the epidemic noted by multiple groups in the USA between 2005 and 2007. We reviewed rates of MRSA in two hospitals in Vancouver, Canada, to observe changes in epidemiology from 2003 to 2011. Episodes of emergency department (ED) MRSA bacteraemia and wounds were extracted from the laboratory database, with rates calculated per 10 000 ED visits. All cases were assumed to be community onset, as they were diagnosed in the ED. A peak in ED MRSA bacteraemias occurred in 2005, at 7·8/10 000 ED visits. By 2011, rates of ED bacteraemia declined significantly to 3·3/10 000 ED visits (P⩽0·03). MRSA wound rates peaked at 82·2 cases/10 000 ED visits in 2007 with a subsequent significant decline to 34·3 cases in 2011 (P = 0·04). We have demonstrated a significant decline in CO-MRSA within our population, consistent with reports from the USA, suggesting a substantial change in the epidemiology of CO-MRSA in certain North American cities.
An outbreak of measles in a prison in Yorkshire, England, December 2012–January 2013
Authors: CRICK J. R. , FIRTH R. , PADFIELD S. , NEWTON A.
Published: August 2013

Measles is a highly infectious disease with a high reproduction rate [1]. For every index case occurring in a susceptible population, 15–17 secondary cases will occur [1]. The most effective way to control measles is by active immunization of a high proportion of the population [2]. MMR vaccine was introduced in the UK in October 1988 and achieved coverage levels in excess of 90% [3]. Prior to this measles vaccination coverage was low and transmission was largely unaffected. According to seroprevalence studies <1% of individuals born before 1970 and <10% born between 1970 and 1989 are antibody negative to measles [4, 5]; however, despite measles vaccination programmes residual susceptibility is present in young adults [6]. We describe an outbreak of measles occurring in a prison in Yorkshire that began in December 2012.
The effects of nicotine on cone and rod b-wave responses in larval zebrafish
Authors: MOYANO MIGUEL , PORTEROS ÁNGEL , DOWLING JOHN E.
Published: August 2013

Acetylcholine is present in and released from starburst amacrine cells in the inner plexiform layer (IPL), but its role in retinal function except, perhaps, in early development, is unclear. Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors are thought to be present on ganglion, amacrine, and bipolar cell processes in the IPL, and it is known that acetylcholine increases the spontaneous and light-evoked responses of retinal ganglion cells. The effects of acetylcholine on bipolar cells are not known, and here we report the effects of nicotine on the b-wave of the electroretinogram in larval zebrafish. The b-wave originates mainly from ON-bipolar cells, and the larval zebrafish retina is cone-dominated. Only small rod responses can be elicited with dim lights in wild-type larval zebrafish retinas, but rod responses can be recorded over a range of intensities in a mutant (nooptokinetic responsef) fish that has no cone function. We find that nicotine strongly enhances cone-driven b-wave response amplitudes but depresses rod driven b-wave response amplitudes without, however, affecting rod- or cone-driven b-wave light sensitivity.
Clinically asymptomatic myocardial bridging in a child with familial subaortic stenosis
Authors: Gokalp Selman , Oztunc Funda
Published: August 2013

Myocardial bridging is usually seen in the setting of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy or left ventricular hypertrophy. It is rarely reported in an asymptomatic patient with an otherwise structurally normal heart. Familial subaortic stenosis is also a rare entity, and its mode of inheritance is still unknown. Here, we described the case of a 13-year-old asymptomatic girl with a positive family history of sudden cardiac death and subaortic stenosis who was diagnosed with severe myocardial bridging concomitant with familial subaortic stenosis.
What, not just salad and veg? Consumer testing of the eatwell week
Authors: Leslie Wilma S , Eunson Jane , Murray Lorraine , Lean Michael EJ , Hankey Catherine R
Published: August 2013

Objective

To test the appeal of the eatwell week, a nutritionally balanced 7 d menu which satisfies nutritional guidelines of the Food Standards Agency in Scotland; determine the clarity and understanding of the main messages; and gather views on the usability and acceptability of the eatwell week resource format.

Design

Focus group discussions with consumers and health professionals.

Setting

Four locations across the UK.

Results

The eatwell week was considered realistic by consumers as it contained foods they recognised and already ate. A preconceived idea had been that there would be more fruit and vegetables and fewer ‘treats’. Consumers found the recipes simple and lack of cooking skills was not an apparent barrier. However, the message of ‘balance’ was poorly understood. Consumers often lacked the knowledge to make informed substitutions in the week. Both the general public and some health professionals felt the menu contained too much carbohydrate. Health professionals felt it was unclear who the eatwell week was intended for and what purpose it served.

Conclusions

Use of familiar foods and the provision of simple, easy-to-follow recipes have the potential to overcome some barriers to healthy eating encountered by the general public and encourage improvements in dietary intakes. The eatwell week shows promise as a resource to facilitate implementation of the principles of the eatwell plate and supports government priorities and policies for health.
Prevalence and severity of household food insecurity of First Nations people living in an on-reserve, sub-Arctic community within the Mushkegowuk Territory
Authors: Skinner Kelly , Hanning Rhona M , Tsuji Leonard JS
Published: August 2013

Objective

To measure and describe the prevalence and severity of household food insecurity in a remote on-reserve First Nations community using the Household Food Security Survey Module (HFSSM) and to evaluate the perceived relevance of the HFSSM for this population.

Design

Household food security status was determined from the eighteen-item HFSSM following the classifications developed by Health Canada for the Canadian Community Health Survey, Cycle 2·2 Nutrition. One adult from each household in the community was invited to complete the HFSSM and to comment on its relevance as a tool to measure food security for First Nations communities.

Setting

Sub-Arctic Ontario, Canada.

Subjects

Households (n64).

Results

Seventy per cent of households were food insecure, 17 % severely and 53 % moderately. The prevalence of food insecurity in households with children was 76 %. Among respondents from homes rated as having severe food insecurity, all (100 %) reported worrying that food would run out, times when food didn't last and there wasn't money to buy more, and times when they couldn't afford to eat balanced meals. The majority of respondents felt the HFSSM did not capture an accurate picture of food security for their situation. Aspects missing from the HFSSM included the high cost of market food and the incorporation of traditional food practices.

Conclusions

A high prevalence of household food insecurity was reported in this community. On-reserve remote First Nations communities may be more susceptible to food insecurity than off-reserve Aboriginal populations. Initiatives that promote food security for this vulnerable population are needed.
The use of predefined diet quality scores in the context of CVD risk during urbanization in the South African Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiological (PURE) study
Authors: Dolman Robin C , Wentzel-Viljoen Edelweiss , Jerling Johann C , Feskens Edith JM , Kruger Annamarie , Pieters Marlien
Published: August 2013

Objective

Urbanization is generally associated with increased CVD risk and accompanying dietary changes. Little is known regarding the association between increased CVD risk and dietary changes using approaches such as diet quality. The relevance of predefined diet quality scores (DQS) in non-Western developing countries has not yet been established.

Design

The association between dietary intakes and CVD risk factors was investigated using two DQS, adapted to the black South African diet. Dietary intake data were collected using a quantitative FFQ. CVD risk was determined by analysing known CVD risk factors.

Setting

Urban and rural areas in North West Province, South Africa.

Subjects

Apparently healthy volunteers from the South African Prospective Urban and Rural Epidemiological (PURE) study population (n1710).

Results

CVD risk factors were significantly increased in the urban participants, especially women. Urban men and women had significantly higher intakes of both macro- and micronutrients with macronutrient intakes well within the recommended CVD guidelines. While micronutrient intakes were generally higher in the urban groups than in the rural groups, intakes of selected micronutrients were low in both groups. Both DQS indicated improved diet quality in the urban groups and good agreement was shown between the scores, although they seemed to measure different aspects of diet quality.

Conclusions

The apparent paradox between improved diet quality and increased CVD risk in the urban groups can be explained when interpreting the cut-offs used in the scores against the absolute intakes of individual nutrients. Predefined DQS as well as current guidelines for CVD prevention should be interpreted with caution in non-Western developing countries.
PARABOLIC HIGGS BUNDLES AND -HIGGS BUNDLES
Authors: BISWAS INDRANIL , MAJUMDER SOURADEEP , WONG MICHAEL LENNOX
Published: August 2013

We investigate parabolic Higgs bundles and $\Gamma $-Higgs bundles on a smooth complex projective variety.
AN OPEN ELITE: THE PECULIARITIES OF CONNOISSEURSHIP IN EARLY MODERN ENGLAND
Authors: COWAN BRIAN
Published: August 2013

Seventeenth-century English virtuoso attitudes to the visual arts have often been contrasted with a putative eighteenth-century culture of connoisseurship, most notably in a still influential 1942 article by Walter Houghton. This essay revisits Houghton's thesis and argues that English virtuoso culture did indeed allow for an incipient notion of artistic connoisseurship but that it did so in a manner different from the French model. The first section details a virtuoso aesthetic in which a modern approach to the cultural heritage of antiquity was central. The instructive ethical and historical attributes of an art work were deemed more important than attribution to a master artist, although one can discern an incipient notion of a virtuoso canon of great artists. The second section examines the social and institutional position of the English virtuosi and argues that the lack of a Royal Academy of Arts in the French manner made virtuoso attitudes to the arts unusually receptive to outside influences such as the Royal Society and other private clubs and academies. It concludes by considering the ways in which some eighteenth-century concepts of taste and connoisseurship defined themselves in contrast to an earlier and wider-ranging virtuosity even if they failed to fully supplant it.
Intrauterine environment and cognitive development in young twins
Authors: Antoniou E. E. , Fowler T. , Thiery E. , Southwood T. R. , van Gestel S. , Jacobs N. , Vlietinck R. , van Os J. , Rijsdijk F. V. , Derom C. , Zeegers M. P.
Published: August 2013

Intrauterine factors important for cognitive development, such as birth weight, chorionicity and umbilical cord characteristics were investigated. A total of 663 twin pairs completed the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised and scores were available for Performance, Verbal and Total Intelligence Quotient (IQ). The intrauterine factors examined were birth weight, placental weight and morphology, cord knots, cord length and cord insertion. IQ scores for the varying levels of the intrauterine markers adjusting for gender and gestational age were calculated. The heritability of IQ and the association between IQ and intrauterine environment were examined. Twins with lower birth weight and cord knots had lower IQ scores. The aetiology of IQ is largely distinct from that of birth weight and cord knots, and non-shared environment may influence the observed relationships.
Fast and High-Accuracy Localization for Three-Dimensional Single-Particle Tracking
Authors: Liu Shu-Lin , Li Jicun , Zhang Zhi-Ling , Wang Zhi-Gang , Tian Zhi-Quan , Wang Guo-Ping , Pang Dai-Wen
Published: August 2013

We report a non-iterative localization algorithm that utilizes the scaling of a three-dimensional (3D) image in the axial direction and focuses on evaluating the radial symmetry center of the scaled image to achieve the desired single-particle localization. Using this approach, we analyzed simulated 3D particle images by wide-field microscopy and confocal microscopy respectively and the 3D trajectory of quantum dots (QDs)-labeled influenza virus in live cells. Both applications indicate that the method can achieve 3D single-particle localization with a sub-pixel precision and sub-millisecond computation time. The precision is almost the same as that of the iterative nonlinear least-squares 3D Gaussian fitting method, but with two orders of magnitude higher computation speed. This approach can reduce considerably the time and costs for processing the large volume data of 3D images for 3D single-particle tracking, which is especially suited for 3D high-precision single-particle tracking, 3D single-molecule imaging and even new microscopy techniques.
Dwell‐time computation for stability of switched systems with time delays
Authors: Çalışkan Sina Yamaç , Özbay Hitay , Niculescu Silviu‐Iulian
Published: August 2013

The aim of this study is to find an improved dwell time that guarantees the stability of switched systems with heterogeneous constant time‐delays. Piecewise Lyapunov–Krasovkii functionals are used for each candidate system to investigate the stability of the switched time‐delayed system. Under the assumption that each candidate system is stable for small delay values, a sufficient condition for dwell‐time that guarantees the asymptotic stability is derived. Numerical examples are given to compare the results with the previously obtained dwell‐time bounds.
Network‐based precise tracking control of systems subject to stochastic failure and non‐zero input
Authors: Gu Zhou , Tian Engang , Liu Jinliang , Huang Lei , Zou Hongyan , Zhao Yaqin
Published: August 2013

This study deals with the problem of reliable precise tracking control for the networked control system with non‐zero external inputs (NEIs). A new control scheme is developed by introducing an integral item in the control law and taking stochastic actuator failure (SAF) into account, by which a better steady tracking performances can be achieved. Based on Lyapunov theory, a reliable control design method that guarantees the network‐based tracking control systems with zero steady‐state error in the conditions of both NEIs and SAFs is designed. Simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness of the developed controller design scheme.
Numerical adaptive learning control scheme for discrete‐time non‐linear systems
Authors: Wei Qinglai , Liu Derong
Published: August 2013

In this study, a novel numerical adaptive learning control scheme based on adaptive dynamic programming (ADP) algorithm is developed to solve numerical optimal control problems for infinite horizon discrete‐time non‐linear systems. Using the numerical controller, the domain of definition is constrained to a discrete set that makes the approximation errors always exist between the numerical controls and the accurate ones. Convergence analysis of the numerical iterative ADP algorithm is developed to show that the numerical iterative controls can make the iterative performance index functions converge to the greatest lower bound of all performance indices within a finite error bound under some mild assumptions. The stability properties of the system under the numerical iterative controls are proved, which allow the present iterative ADP algorithm to be implemented both on‐line and off‐line. Finally, two simulation examples are given to illustrate the performance of the present method.
Closed‐loop subspace identification methods: an overview
Authors: van der Veen Gijs , van Wingerden Jan‐Willem , Bergamasco Marco , Lovera Marco , Verhaegen Michel
Published: August 2013

In this study, the authors present an overview of closed‐loop subspace identification methods found in the recent literature. Since a significant number of algorithms has appeared over the last decade, the authors highlight some of the key algorithms that can be shown to have a common origin in autoregressive modelling. Many of the algorithms found in the literature are variants on the algorithms that are discussed here. In this study, the aim is to give a clear overview of some of the more successful methods presented throughout the last decade. Furthermore, the authors retrace these methods to a common origin and show how they differ. The methods are compared both on the basis of simulation examples and real data. Although the main focus in the literature has been on the identification of discrete‐time models, identification of continuous‐time models is also of practical interest. Hence, the authors also provide an overview of the continuous‐time formulation of the identification framework.
Distributed cooperative control for deployment and task allocation of unmanned aerial vehicle networks
Authors: Hu Jinwen , Xu Zhao
Published: August 2013

In this study, the authors consider the deployment of unmanned aerial vehicle networks for task accomplishment within a closed region. Each agent with limited sensing range and communication range needs to take charge of the task accomplishment within a part of the whole region. The main objective is to optimise the deployment of the agents such that the maximum travelling time the agents take to reach a place within the surveillance region is minimised. The deployment issue is formulated as the worst‐case disc‐covering problem and a distributed cooperative control strategy is designed for agents with limited mobility. It is proven that by the proposed control strategy the network configuration converges to a local optimum configuration. Moreover, a combined optimisation approach is developed to improve the performance by optimising the initial configuration. To guarantee the proper working of the designed control strategy and K ‐connectivity of the network, a distributed topology control scheme is proposed. Finally, the effectiveness of the proposed control strategy is testified by simulation.