bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
In the Search of Fundamental Inner Bond Strength of Solid Elements
Authors: Sahba Yaghmaee Maziar , Riahifar Reza
Published: March 2014

In order to understand the physics behind the surface properties and nano-scale phenomena, we are motivated first to investigate the inner bond strengths as well as the effect of number of neighboring atoms and their relative distance in addition to space positions (crystallography). Therefore, in order to study the effect of the nature of metallic bond on their physico-chemical properties, we first tried to investigate and introduce a mathematical model for transforming the bulk molar cohesion energy into microscopic bond strengths between atoms. Then an algorithm for estimating the nature of bond type including the materials properties and lattice scale “cutoff” has been proposed. This leads to a new fundamental energy scale free from the crystallography and number of atoms. The results of our model in case of fundamental energy scale of metals not only perfectly describe the inter relation between binding and melting phenomena but also adequately reproduce the bond strength for different bond types with respect to other estimations reported in literatures. The generalized algorithm and calculation methodology introduced here by us are suggested to be used for developing energy scale of bulk crystal materials to explain or predict any particular materials properties related to bond strengths of metallic elements.
Microstructure Properties of Rapidly Solidified Al-Zn-Mg-Cu Alloys
Authors: Ahmed Emad M.
Published: March 2014

The Rietveld X-ray diffraction analysis was applied to analyze the weight fraction of precipitation phases and microstructure characterizations of rapidly solidified Al-8Zn-4Mg-xCu, x = 1, 4, 8, and 10 alloys (in wt.%), prepared by melt spun technique. A good agreement between observed and calculated diffraction pattern was obtained and the conventional Rietveld factors (Rp, Rwp, and GOF) converged to satisfactory values. Solid solubilities of Zn, Mg, and Cu in α-Al were extended to high values. Besides, metastable Al0.71Zn0.29, intermetallic Al2CuMg, Al2Cu, and CuMgZn phases have been observed for x = 4, 8, and 10 Cu alloys. The crystal structure and microstructure characterizations exhibit strong Cu content dependence.
Body Fat Percentage Prediction Using Intelligent Hybrid Approaches
Authors: Shao Yuehjen E.
Published: March 2014

Excess of body fat often leads to obesity. Obesity is typically associated with serious medical diseases, such as cancer, heart disease, and diabetes. Accordingly, knowing the body fat is an extremely important issue since it affects everyone’s health. Although there are several ways to measure the body fat percentage (BFP), the accurate methods are often associated with hassle and/or high costs. Traditional single-stage approaches may use certain body measurements or explanatory variables to predict the BFP. Diverging from existing approaches, this study proposes new intelligent hybrid approaches to obtain fewer explanatory variables, and the proposed forecasting models are able to effectively predict the BFP. The proposed hybrid models consist of multiple regression (MR), artificial neural network (ANN), multivariate adaptive regression splines (MARS), and support vector regression (SVR) techniques. The first stage of the modeling includes the use of MR and MARS to obtain fewer but more important sets of explanatory variables. In the second stage, the remaining important variables are served as inputs for the other forecasting methods. A real dataset was used to demonstrate the development of the proposed hybrid models. The prediction results revealed that the proposed hybrid schemes outperformed the typical, single-stage forecasting models.
Brazilin Ameliorates High Glucose-Induced Vascular Inflammation via Inhibiting ROS and CAMs Production in Human Umbilical Vein Endothelial Cells
Authors: Jayakumar Thanasekaran , Chang Chao-Chien , Lin Shoei-Loong , Huang Yung-Kai , Hu Chien-Ming , Elizebeth Antoinet Ramola , Lin Shih-Chang , Choy Cheuk-sing
Published: March 2014

Vascular inflammatory process has been suggested to play a key role in the initiation and progression of atherosclerosis, a major complication of diabetes mellitus. Recent studies have shown that brazilin exhibits antihepatotoxic, antiplatelet, cancer preventive, or anti-inflammatory properties. Thus, we investigated whether brazilin suppresses vascular inflammatory process induced by high glucose (HG) in cultured human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVEC). HG induced nitrite production, lipid peroxidation, and intracellular reactive oxygen species formation in HUVEC cells, which was reversed by brazilin. Western blot analysis revealed that brazilin markedly inhibited HG-induced phosphorylation of endothelial nitric oxide synthase. Besides, we investigated the effects of brazilin on the MAPK signal transduction pathway because MAPK families are associated with vascular inflammation under stress. Brazilin blocked HG-induced phosphorylation of extracellular signal-regulated kinase and transcription factor NF-κB. Furthermore, brazilin concentration-dependently attenuated cell adhesion molecules (ICAM-1 and VCAM-1) expression induced by various concentrations of HG in HUVEC. Taken together, the present data suggested that brazilin could suppress high glucose-induced vascular inflammatory process, which may be closely related with the inhibition of oxidative stress, CAMs expression, and NF-κB activation in HUVEC. Our findings may highlight a new therapeutic intervention for the prevention of vascular diseases.
α-Actinin TvACTN3 ofTrichomonas vaginalisIs an RNA-Binding Protein That Could Participate in Its Posttranscriptional Iron Regulatory Mechanism
Authors: Calla-Choque Jaeson Santos , Figueroa-Angulo Elisa Elvira , Ávila-González Leticia , Arroyo Rossana
Published: March 2014

Trichomonas vaginalisis a sexually transmitted flagellated protist parasite responsible for trichomoniasis. This parasite is dependent on high levels of iron, favoring its growth and multiplication. Iron also differentially regulates some trichomonad virulence properties by unknown mechanisms. However, there is evidence to support the existence of gene regulatory mechanisms at the transcriptional and posttranscriptional levels that are mediated by iron concentration inT. vaginalis. Thus, the goal of this study was to identify an RNA-binding protein inT. vaginalisthat interacts with the tvcp4 RNA stem-loop structure, which may participate in a posttranscriptional iron regulatory mechanism mediated by RNA-protein interactions. We performed RNA electrophoretic mobility shift assay (REMSA) and supershift, UV cross-linking, Northwestern blot, and western blot (WB) assays using cytoplasmic protein extracts fromT. vaginaliswith the tvcp4 RNA hairpin structure as a probe. We identified a 135-kDa protein isolated by the UV cross-linking assays asα-actinin 3 (TvACTN3) by MALDI-TOF-MS that was confirmed by LS-MS/MS andde novosequencing. TvACTN3 is a cytoplasmic protein that specifically binds to hairpin RNA structures from trichomonads and humans when the parasites are grown under iron-depleted conditions. Thus, TvACTN3 could participate in the regulation of gene expression by iron inT. vaginalisthrough a parallel posttranscriptional mechanism similar to that of the IRE/IRP system.
Proteomic Study of HPV-Positive Head and Neck Cancers: Preliminary Results
Authors: Descamps Géraldine , Wattiez Ruddy , Saussez Sven
Published: March 2014

Human papillomavirus (HPV) was recently recognized as a new risk factor for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma. For oropharyngeal cancers, an HPV+ status is associated with better prognosis in a subgroup of nonsmokers and nondrinkers. However, HPV infection is also involved in the biology of head and neck carcinoma (HNC) in patients with a history of tobacco use and/or alcohol consumption. Thus, the involvement of HPV infection in HN carcinogenesis remains unclear, and further studies are needed to identify and analyze HPV-specific pathways that are involved in this process. Using a quantitative proteomics-based approach, we compared the protein expression profiles of two HPV+ HNC cell lines and one HPV− HNC cell line. We identified 155 proteins that are differentially expressed (P<0.01) in these three lines. Among the identified proteins, prostate stem cell antigen (PSCA) was upregulated and eukaryotic elongation factor 1 alpha (EEF1α) was downregulated in the HPV+ cell lines. Immunofluorescence and western blotting analyses confirmed these results. Moreover, PSCA and EEF1αwere differentially expressed in two clinical series of 50 HPV+ and 50 HPV− oral cavity carcinomas. Thus, our study reveals for the first time that PSCA and EEF1αare associated with the HPV-status, suggesting that these proteins could be involved in HPV-associated carcinogenesis.
The Use of Newer High Translucency Zirconia in Aesthetic Zone
Authors: Dangra Zishan , Gandhewar Mahesh
Published: March 2014

Loss of anterior tooth causes aesthetic and functional disharmony. Although no restorative material can approach the appearance of intact tooth enamel, glass ceramic, at the increased risk of brittle fracture, can mimic original tooth color better than the other restorative options. The newest zirconia material comes with unparalleled individualization in aesthetics and optimal physical properties. One of the basic principles of tooth preparation is conservation of tooth structure. This clinical report describes the replacement of maxillary and mandibular incisor with latest generation zirconia adhesive fixed partial denture. The authors have achieved unmatched aesthetics with newer high translucency zirconia.
A Synchronous Pancreatic Metastasis from Renal Clear Cell Carcinoma, with Unusual CT Characteristics, Completely Regressed after Therapy with Sunitinib
Authors: Lauro Salvatore , Onesti Elisa Concetta , Righini Riccardo , Carbonetti Francesco , Cremona Antonio , Marchetti Paolo
Published: March 2014

We present a case report of a 75-years-old woman affected by renal clear cell carcinoma with a synchronous pancreatic metastasis and a metachronous lung metastasis. This case has two peculiarities. First the pancreatic metastasis was treated just with medical therapy, that is, Sunitinib, instead of the surgical therapy that is mostly considered. Secondly, the pancreatic lesion showed different characteristics on the computed tomography scan compared to the usual pancreatic metastases from renal clear cell carcinoma. The pancreatic metastasis totally regressed after medical treatment and nowadays, four years after the diagnosis, the patient is disease-free.
Ensuring Healthcare Services Provision: An Integrated Approach of Resident Contexts Extraction and Analysis via Smart Objects
Authors: Hsieh Nan-Chen , Hung Lun-Ping , Park Jong Hyuk , Yen Neil Y.
Published: March 2014

Advances in healthcare applications benefit the scenario of medical service provision for both care staff and medical institution than ever. Following such success, a healthcare system, named RCTC (Resident Classification by Types of Care), which grades individuals in terms of the severity of five functional status assessment aspects: mental, movement, eating, toilet (urination and defecation functions), and medical treatment, was developed in this study. This system is designed based on a conceptual model that follows the assessment/classification/placement sequence for long-term care institutions. It is implemented to deliver appropriate services according to individual needs based on its preprocessing of classification and further reduces the costs of manpower and loading of care staff through the analysis of assessment logs. With this systematic appraisal, this system can not only help care staff determine the needs of residents but also produce personalized health plans (i.e., weekly schedule towards comprehensive assessment and personalized care services). Results of implemented (and in use as well) system have demonstrated the feasibility that it can enhance the quality of care services to residents, working load of care staff, and efficiency of care-related information management for medical institution.
Structure and Stability of Cocoa Flowers and Their Response to Pollination
Authors: Frimpong-Anin Kofi , Adjaloo Michael  K. , Kwapong Peter K. , Oduro William
Published: March 2014

This study investigated the position of staminodes around the style of cocoa flowers and the stability of cocoa flowers relative to pollination and seasonality. Cocoa flowers were categorized into converging, ≤1.20 mm; parallel, 1.21–2.40 mm, and splay ≥2.41 mm, depending on the distance between the staminode and style. Some flowers were hand pollinated while others were not and were excluded from insect visitors. Proportions of flowers of converging (56.0%), parallel (37.5%), and splay (6.5%) remained similar along the vertical plane of cocoa trees. Although pollination rates of flowers with splay staminodes were the lowest, the overall pollination success of cocoa trees was not significantly affected because of the small proportion of splay flowers.The stability of the cocoa flowers depended on both the season and pollination. During the dry season, unpollinated flowers of cocoa trees showed a flower-stability ratio of 72% on the second day, while the flower-stability ratio was 94% in the wet season. Pollinated (senescent) flowers had a stability ratio of 95% after 5 days during the wet season, but all pollinated flowers dropped after 5 days in the dry season, indicating that seasonal factors, such as water stress, can have dramatic effects on cocoa yields.
Signal Integrity Analysis in Carbon Nanotube Based Through-Silicon Via
Authors: Majumder Manoj Kumar , Kumari Archana , Kaushik Brajesh Kumar , Manhas Sanjeev Kumar
Published: March 2014

Development of a reliable 3D integrated system is largely dependent on the choice of filler materials used in through-silicon vias (TSVs). This research paper presents carbon nanotube (CNT) bundles as prospective filler materials for TSVs and provides an analysis of signal integrity for different single- (SWCNT), double- (DWCNT), and multi-walled CNT (MWCNT) bundle based TSVs. Depending on the physical configuration of a pair of TSVs, an equivalent electrical model is employed to analyze the in-phase and out-phase delays. It is observed that, using an MWCNT bundle (with number of shells = 10), the overall in-phase delays are reduced by 96.86%, 92.33%, 78.35%, and 32.72% compared to the bundled SWCNT, DWCNT, 4-shell MWCNT, and 8-shell MWCNT, respectively; similarly, the overall reduction in out-phase delay is 85.89%, 73.38%, 45.92%, and 12.56%, respectively.
Synthesis and Characterization of Folate-Targeted Dextran/Retinoic Acid Micelles for Doxorubicin Delivery in Acute Leukemia
Authors: Varshosaz J. , Hassanzadeh F. , Sadeghi Aliabadi H. , Nayebsadrian M. , Banitalebi M. , Rostami M.
Published: March 2014

Folate and retinoic acid grafted/dextran (FA-RA/DEX) copolymers with different molecular weight of DEX were synthesized using carbonyldiimidazole and dimethylaminopyridine for targeted delivery of doxorubicin (DOX) in acute myelogenous leukemia (AML). The copolymers structure was confirmed by1H NMR and FTIR. Critical micelle concentration (CMC) of each copolymer was determined using pyrene as a fluorescent probe. DOX was loaded in micelles by the direct dissolution method. Physical properties of micelles, including particle size, zeta potential, drug loading efficiency, and drug release profiles, were examined. The orientation of the folate ligand on the surface of the micelles was studied by X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) technique. The cytotoxicity of micelles loaded with DOX at different concentrations was studied in KG1 cells using MTT assay and their cellular uptake by flow cytometry technique. FTIR and1H NMR spectra confirmed successful production of the targeted micelles and XPS spectra showed the surface orientation of folate. R15D10F7copolymer produced micelles with particle size of 82.86 nm, polydispersity index of 0.3, zeta potential of −4.68 mV, drug loading efficiency of 96%, and release efficiency of 63%. DOX loaded in folate-targeted micelles of RA/DEX was more toxic than that in nontargeted micelles and free drug and seems promising in reducing drug resistance in AML.
Estimating the Cation Distributions in Ni0.65-xZn0.35CoxFe2O4 Ferrites Using X-Ray, FT-IR, and Magnetization Measurements
Authors: Varma M. Chaitanya , Choudary GSVRK , Kumar A. Mahesh , Rao K. H.
Published: March 2014

The fundamental requirements for the shift of critical frequency to microwave frequencies are smaller grains with single domain, high resistivity, high saturation magnetization, moderate permeability, moderate magnetic anisotropy, and low spin relaxation time. With these guidelines an attempt to produce high performance ferrite for high frequency applications the present work aimed to synthesize cobalt substituted Ni-Zn ferrites using sol-gel method. Investigation of effects of cobalt on crystallite size, saturation magnetization, initial permeability, magnetic anisotropy, and spin relaxation time reveals the suitability of these materials for high frequency applications. Further in this paper cat ion distribution was proposed from the basis of variations in these properties. The results of this paper are thus useful to tailor the properties apt for high frequency applications.
Tumor Hemodynamics and Hepatocarcinogenesis: Radio-Pathological Correlations and Outcomes of Carcinogenic Hepatocyte Nodules
Authors: Ueda Kazuhiko , Matsui Osamu , Kitao Azusa , Kobayashi Satoshi , Nakayama Jun , Miyagawa Shinich , Kadoya Masumi
Published: March 2014

Tumor hemodynamics of carcinogenic hepatocytes nodules, that is, low grade dysplastic nodules, high grade dysplastic nodules, early hepatocellular carcinomas (HCCs), and progressed HCCs, change during multistep dedifferentiation of the nodules. Morphometric analyses of inflow vessels of these nodules indicate that the portal veins of carcinogenic hepatocyte nodules monotonically decrease whereas the arteries bitonically change, first decrease and then increase. Findings on imaging techniques depicting these changes in tumor blood inflows, especially intra-arterial contrast-enhanced computed tomography, closely related not only to the histological differentiation of the nodules but also to the outcomes of the nodules. Histological analyses of connections between the vessels within the tumors and those in the surrounding livers and findings on imaging techniques indicate that drainage vessels of HCC change from hepatic veins to hepatic sinusoids and then to portal veins during multistep hepatocarcinogenesis. Understanding of tumor hemodynamics through radio-pathological correlations will be helpful in drawing up therapeutic strategies for carcinogenic hepatocyte nodules arising in cirrhosis.
Design and Modelling of Water Chilling Production System by the Combined Effects of Evaporation and Night Sky Radiation
Authors: Al-Zubaydi Ahmed Y. Taha , Dartnall W. John
Published: March 2014

The design and mathematical modelling of thermal radiator panel to be used primarily to measure night sky radiation wet coated surface is presented in this paper. The panel consists of an upper dry surface coated aluminium sheet laminated to an ethylene vinyl acetate foam backing block as an insulation. Water is sprayed onto the surface of the panel so that an evaporative cooling effect is gained in addition to the radiation effect; the surface of a panel then is wetted in order to study and measure the night sky radiation from the panel wet surface. In this case, the measuring water is circulated over the upper face of this panel during night time. Initial TRNSYS simulations for the performance of the system are presented and it is planned to use the panel as calibrated instruments for discriminating between the cooling effects of night sky radiation and evaporation.
Global Optimization for Bus Line Timetable Setting Problem
Authors: Chen Qun
Published: March 2014

This paper defines bus timetables setting problem during each time period divided in terms of passenger flow intensity; it is supposed that passengers evenly arrive and bus runs are set evenly; the problem is to determine bus runs assignment in each time period to minimize the total waiting time of passengers on platforms if the number of the total runs is known. For such a multistage decision problem, this paper designed a dynamic programming algorithm to solve it. Global optimization procedures using dynamic programming are developed. A numerical example about bus runs assignment optimization of a single line is given to demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed methodology, showing that optimizing buses’ departure time using dynamic programming can save computational time and find the global optimal solution.
A Robust Fractal Color Image Watermarking Algorithm
Authors: Lu Jian , Zou Yuru , Yang Chaoying , Wang Lijing
Published: March 2014

One of the main objectives of watermarking is to achieve a better tradeoff between robustness and high visual quality of a host image. In recent years, there has been a significant development in gray‐level image watermarking using fractal‐based method. This paper presents a human visual system (HVS) based fractal watermarking method for color images. In the proposed method, a color pixel is considered as a 3‐D vector in RGB space. And a general form of 3 × 3 matrix is utilized as the scaling operator. Meanwhile, the luminance offset vector is substituted by the range block mean vector. Then an orthogonalization fractal color coding method is achieved to obtain very high image quality. We also show that the orthogonalization fractal color decoding is a mean vector‐invariant iteration. So, the range block mean vector is a good place for hiding watermark. Furthermore, for consistency with the characteristics of the HVS, we carry out the embedding process in the CIE La*b* space and incorporate a just noticeable difference (JND) profile to ensure the watermark invisibility. Experimental results show that the proposed method has good robustness against various typical attacks, at the same time, with an imperceptible change in image quality.
Integral Representations of Cooperative Game with Fuzzy Coalitions
Authors: Pang Jinhui , Chen Xiang
Published: March 2014

Classical extensions of fuzzy game models are based on various integrals, such as Butnariu game and Tsurumi game. A new class of symmetric extension of fuzzy game with fuzzy coalition variables is put forward with Concave integral, where players’ expected values are on a partial set of coalitions. Some representations and properties of some limited models are compared in this paper. The explicit formula of characteristic function determined by coalition variables is given. Moreover, a calculation approach of imputations is discussed in detail. The new game could be regarded as a general form of cooperative game. Furthermore, the fuzzy game introduced by Tsurumi is a special case of the proposed game when game is convex.
Detection of Genetic Variations in Coagulopathy-Related Genes Using Ramified Rolling Circle Amplification
Authors: Smith James H. , Cui Miao , Zhang David Y. , Beals Thomas P. , Ye Fei
Published: March 2014

We evaluated single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) detection via a target-capture, C-probe ligation, and RAM assay in a single-blind comparison to clinical samples that had been tested with FDA-cleared tests for up to 4 different vascular disease-related SNPs. In the RAM assay circulizable linear probes (C- or padlock probes) were annealed directly to genomic DNA, processed on a largely automated platform, and ligated C-probes were amplified by real-time RAM. After allele determinations were made with the experimental system, the sample genotypes were unblinded and the experimentally determined genotypes were found to be completely consistent with the FDA-cleared test results. The methods and results presented here show that a combination of C-probes, automated sample processing, and isothermal RAM provides a robust, and specific, nucleic acid detection platform that is compatible with automated DNA sample preparation and the throughput requirements of the clinical laboratory.
The Effect of Lysophosphatidic Acid duringIn VitroMaturation of Bovine Oocytes: Embryonic Development and mRNA Abundances of Genes Involved in Apoptosis and Oocyte Competence
Authors: Boruszewska Dorota , Torres Ana Catarina , Kowalczyk-Zieba Ilona , Diniz Patricia , Batista Mariana , Lopes-da-Costa Luis , Woclawek-Potocka Izabela
Published: March 2014

In the present study we examined whether LPA can be synthesized and act duringin vitromaturation of bovine cumulus oocyte complexes (COCs). We found transcription of genes coding for enzymes of LPA synthesis pathway (ATXandPLA2) and of LPA receptors (LPAR 1–4) in bovine oocytes and cumulus cells, followingin vitromaturation. COCs were maturedin vitroin presence or absence of LPA (10−5 M) for 24 h. Supplementation of maturation medium with LPA increased mRNA abundance ofFSTandGDF9in oocytes and decreased mRNA abundance ofCTSsin cumulus cells. Additionally, oocytes stimulated with LPA had higher transcription levels ofBCL2and lower transcription levels ofBAXresulting in the significantly lowerBAX/BCL2ratio. Blastocyst rates on day 7 were similar in the control and the LPA-stimulated COCs. Our study demonstrates for the first time that bovine COCs are a potential source and target of LPA action. We postulate that LPA exerts an autocrine and/or paracrine signaling, through several LPARs, between the oocyte and cumulus cells. LPA supplementation of maturation medium improves COC quality, and although this was not translated into an enhancedin vitrodevelopment until the blastocyst stage, improved oocyte competence may be relevant for subsequentin vivosurvival.
Effect of Isopropanolic Cimicifuga racemosa Extract on Uterine Fibroids in Comparison with Tibolone among Patients of a Recent Randomized, Double Blind, Parallel‐Controlled Study in Chinese Women with Menopausal Symptoms
Authors: Xi Sisi , Liske Eckehard , Wang Shuyu , Liu Jianli , Zhang Zhonglan , Geng Li , Hu Lina , Jiao Chunfeng , Zheng Shurong , Zepelin Hans-Heinrich Henneicke-von , Bai Wenpei
Published: March 2014

Objective. Effect of isopropanolic Cimicifuga racemosa extract (iCR) on uterine fibroid size compared with tibolone. Method. The randomized, double‐blind, controlled study in China enrolled 244 patients aged 40–60 years with menopausal symptoms (Kupperman Menopause Index ≥ 15). The participants were treated with either iCR of 40 mg crude drug/day (N = 122) or tibolone 2.5 mg/day (N = 122) orally for 3 months in 2004. Now, we investigated the subset of all women (N = 62) with at least one uterine fibroid at onset of treatment for the effect of iCR (N = 34) on fibroid size compared with tibolone (N = 28) by transvaginal ultrasonography. Results. The median myoma volume decreased upon iCR by as much as −30% (P = 0.016) but increased upon tibolone by +4.7%. The percentage of volume change, mean diameter change and geometric mean diameter change of the iCR group compared to tibolone were statistically significant (P = 0.016, 0.021, 0.016 respectively). Conclusion. Our results suggest that iCR (Remifemin) is a valid herbal medicinal product in patients with uterine myomas as it provides adequate relief from menopausal symptoms and inhibits growth of the myomas in contrast to tibolone.
Fault Detection and Diagnosis in Process Data Using Support Vector Machines
Authors: Wu Fang , Yin Shen , Karimi Hamid Reza
Published: March 2014

For the complex industrial process, it has become increasingly challenging to effectively diagnose complicated faults. In this paper, a combined measure of the original Support Vector Machine (SVM) and Principal Component Analysis (PCA) is provided to carry out the fault classification, and compare its result with what is based on SVM-RFE (Recursive Feature Elimination) method. RFE is used for feature extraction, and PCA is utilized to project the original data onto a lower dimensional space. PCAT2, SPE statistics, and original SVM are proposed to detect the faults. Some common faults of the Tennessee Eastman Process (TEP) are analyzed in terms of the practical system and reflections of the dataset. PCA-SVM and SVM-RFE can effectively detect and diagnose these common faults. In RFE algorithm, all variables are decreasingly ordered according to their contributions. The classification accuracy rate is improved by choosing a reasonable number of features.
High Performance and Low Power Hardware Implementation for Cryptographic Hash Functions
Authors: Zhang Yunlong , Kim Joohee , Choi Ken , Shon Taeshik
Published: March 2014

Since hash functions are cryptography's most widely used primitives, efficient hardware implementation of hash functions is of critical importance. The proposed high performance hardware implementation of the hash functions used sponge construction which generates desired length digest, considering two key design metrics: throughput and power consumption. Firstly, this paper introduces unfolding transformation which increases the throughput of hash function and pipelining and parallelism design techniques which reduce the delay. Secondly, we propose a frequency trade-off technique which can give us a scope of frequency value for making a trade-off between low dynamic power consumption and high throughput. Finally, we use load-enable based clock gating scheme to eliminate wasted toggle rate of signals in the idle mode of hash encryption system. We demonstrated the proposed design techniques by using 45 nm CMOS technology at 10 MHz. The results show that we can achieve up to 47.97 times higher throughput, 6.31% delay reduction, and 13.65% dynamic power reduction.
Nonlinear Decomposition of Doob-Meyer's Type for Continuousg-Supermartingale with Uniformly Continuous Coefficient
Authors: Shi Xuejun , Jiang Long , Ji Ronglin
Published: March 2014

We prove that a continuousg-supermartingale with uniformly continuous coeffcientgon finite or infinite horizon, is ag-supersolution of the corresponding backward stochastic differential equation. It is a new nonlinear Doob-Meyer decomposition theorem for theg-supermartingale with continuous trajectory.
Persistently High Hip Circumference after Bariatric Surgery Is a Major Hurdle to Successful Hip Replacement
Authors: Meller Menachem M. , Courville Amber B. , Sumner Anne E.
Published: March 2014

The prevalence of class III obesity (BMI≥40 kg/m2) in black women is 18%. As class III obesity leads to hip joint deterioration, black women frequently present for orthopedic care. Weight loss associated with bariatric surgery should lead to enhanced success of hip replacements. However, we present a case of a black woman who underwent Roux-en-Y gastric bypass with the expectation that weight loss would make her a better surgical candidate for hip replacement. Her gastric bypass was successful as her BMI declined from 52.0 kg/m2to 33.7 kg/m2. However, her hip circumference after weight loss remained persistently high. Therefore, at surgery the soft tissue tunnel geometry presented major challenges. Tunnel depth and immobility of the soft tissue interfered with retractor placement, tissue reflection, and surgical access to the acetabulum. Therefore a traditional cup placement could not be achieved. Instead, a hemiarthroplasty was performed. After surgery her pain and reliance on external support decreased. But her functional independence never improved. This case demonstrates that a lower BMI after bariatric surgery may improve the metabolic profile and decrease anesthesia risk, but the success of total hip arthroplasties remains problematic if fat mass in the operative field (i.e., high hip circumference) remains high.
TV+TV2 Regularization with Nonconvex Sparseness‐Inducing Penalty for Image Restoration
Authors: Lu Chengwu , Huang Hua
Published: March 2014

In order to restore the high quality image, we propose a compound regularization method which combines a new higher‐order extension of total variation (TV+TV2) and a nonconvex sparseness‐inducing penalty. Considering the presence of varying directional features in images, we employ the shearlet transform to preserve the abundant geometrical information of the image. The nonconvex sparseness‐inducing penalty approach increases robustness to noise and image nonsparsity. In what follows, we present the numerical solution of the proposed model by employing the split Bregman iteration and a novel p‐shrinkage operator. And finally, we perform numerical experiments for image denoising, image deblurring, and image reconstructing from incomplete spectral samples. The experimental results demonstrate the efficiency of the proposed restoration method for preserving the structure details and the sharp edges of image.
Benefits and Harms of Extending the Duration of Dual Antiplatelet Therapy after Percutaneous Coronary Intervention with Drug-Eluting Stents: A Meta-Analysis
Authors: Kwok Chun Shing , Bulluck Heerajnarain , Ryding Alisdair D. , Loke Yoon K.
Published: March 2014

Background.The optimal duration of dual antiplatelet therapy (DAPT) after percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI) is unclear.Methods.We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials evaluating risk of adverse events in participants receiving different durations of DAPT following insertion of drug-eluting stents.Results.Five trials were included, but only four had data suitable for meta-analysis (n=8,231participants). No significant increase in the composite endpoint of death and nonfatal myocardial infarction was observed with earlier cessation of DAPT in any instance when compared to longer durations of DAPT (RR 0.64 95% CI 0.25–1.63 for 3 versus 12 months, RR 1.09 95% CI 0.84–1.41 for 6 versus 12 months and, RR 0.64 95% CI 0.35–1.16 for 12 versus 24 months). Pooled results showed a significantly lower risk of major bleeding (RR 0.48 95% CI 0.25–0.93) and total bleeding (RR 0.30 95% CI 0.16–0.54) for shorter compared to longer duration of DAPT. Subgroup analysis based on age, prior diabetes, and prior ACS failed to show any group where longer durations were consistently better than shorter ones.Conclusions.There are no cardiovascular or mortality benefits associated with extended duration of DAPT, but the risk of major bleeding was significantly lower with shorter lengths of therapy.
Theoretical Analysis and Numerical Simulation of Resonances and Stability of a Piecewise Linear-Nonlinear Vibration Isolation System
Authors: Gao X. , Chen Q.
Published: March 2014

A methodology is presented to study the resonance and stability for a single-degree-of-freedom (SDOF) system with a piecewise linear-nonlinear stiffness term (i.e., one piece is linear and the other is weakly nonlinear). Firstly, the exact response of the linear governing equation is obtained, and a modified perturbation method is applied to finding the approximate solution of the weakly nonlinear equation. Then, the primary and 1/2 subharmonic resonances are obtained by imposing continuity conditions and periodicity conditions. Furthermore, Jacobian matrix is derived to investigate the stability of resonance responses. Finally, the results of theoretical study are compared with numerical results, and a good agreement is observed.
A New Boundary Model for Simulating Complex and Flexible Wall Bounded Domain in Dissipative Particle Dynamics
Authors: Mokhtarian Saeid , Pishevar Ahmadreza , Saidi Mohammad Said
Published: March 2014

Despite extensive area of applications, simulation of complex wall bounded problems or any deformable boundary is still a challenge in a Dissipative Particle Dynamics simulation. This limitation is rooted in the soft force nature of DPD and the fact that we need to use an antipenetration model for escaped particles. In the present paper, we propose a new model of antipenetration which preserves the conservation of linear momentum on the boundaries and enables us to simulate complex and flexible boundaries. Finally by performing numerical simulations, we demonstrate the validity of our new model.
Interprofessional Collaboration in the Mental Health Services in Norway
Authors: Andvig Ellen , Syse Jonn , Severinsson Elisabeth
Published: March 2014

The aim of this study was to describe and interpret interprofessional collaboration between healthcare professionals (HCPs) working at the district psychiatric centre (DPC) and employed in community mental health care (CMHC) using a dialogue-oriented co-operative approach. Data were collected by means of multistage focus groups and qualitative content analysis was performed. The main theme “development of interprofessional collaboration by means of organisational strategies and interactional styles” encompassed the following categories: “improved communication skills,” “developing structures for coordination and responsibility” and “ increased professional insight into the values and conditions necessary for decision-making.” In conclusion, more attention should be paid to leadership in terms of coordination and feedback. The HCPs must be acknowledged, understood and strengthened in their work to improve the quality of CMHC. Finally, we recommend that a range of organisational and administrative models of care be used in order to support improvement work.
Dynamical Behavior of a New Epidemiological Model
Authors: Wang Zizi , Guo Zhiming
Published: March 2014

A new epidemiological model is introduced with nonlinear incidence, in which the infected disease may lose infectiousness and then evolves to a chronic noninfectious disease when the infected disease has not been cured for a certain timeτ. The existence, uniqueness, and stability of the disease-free equilibrium and endemic equilibrium are discussed. The basic reproductive numberR0is given. The model is studied in two cases: with and without time delay. For the model without time delay, the disease-free equilibrium is globally asymptotically stable provided thatR0≤1; ifR0>1, then there exists a unique endemic equilibrium, and it is globally asymptotically stable. For the model with time delay, a sufficient condition is given to ensure that the disease-free equilibrium is locally asymptotically stable. Hopf bifurcation in endemic equilibrium with respect to the timeτis also addressed.
Fate and Distribution of Heavy Metals in Wastewater Irrigated Calcareous Soils
Authors: Stietiya Mohammed Hashem , Duqqah Mohammad , Udeigwe Theophilus , Zubi Ruba , Ammari Tarek
Published: March 2014

Accumulation of heavy metals in Jordanian soils irrigated with treated wastewater threatens agricultural sustainability. This study was carried out to investigate the environmental fate of Zn, Ni, and Cd in calcareous soils irrigated with treated wastewater and to elucidate the impact of hydrous ferric oxide (HFO) amendment on metal redistribution among soil fractions. Results showed that sorption capacity for Zarqa River (ZR1) soil was higher than Wadi Dhuleil (WD1) soil for all metals. The order of sorption affinity for WD1 was in the decreasing order of Ni > Zn > Cd, consistent with electrostatic attraction and indication of weak association with soil constituents. Following metal addition, Zn and Ni were distributed among the carbonate and Fe/Mn oxide fractions, while Cd was distributed among the exchangeable and carbonate fractions in both soils. Amending soils with 3% HFO did not increase the concentration of metals associated with the Fe/Mn oxide fraction or impact metal redistribution. The study suggests that carbonates control the mobility and bioavailability of Zn, Ni, and Cd in these calcareous soils, even in presence of a strong adsorbent such as HFO. Thus, it can be inferred that in situ heavy metal remediation of these highly calcareous soils using iron oxide compounds could be ineffective.
A Remark on the Homogeneity of Isosceles Orthogonality
Authors: He Chan , Wang Dan
Published: March 2014

Inspired by the definition of homogeneous direction of isosceles orthogonality, we introduce the notion of almost homogeneous direction of isosceles orthogonality and show that, surprisingly, these two notions coincide. Several known characterizations of inner products are improved.
Increased Expression of Chitinase 3-Like 1 in Aorta of Patients with Atherosclerosis and Suppression of Atherosclerosis in Apolipoprotein E-Knockout Mice by Chitinase 3-Like 1 Gene Silencing
Authors: Gong Zushun , Xing Shanshan , Zheng Fei , Xing Qichong
Published: March 2014

Introduction. The purpose of this study was to investigate the changes of chitinase 3-like 1 (CHI3L1) in the aorta of patients with coronary atherosclerosis and to determine whether inhibition of CHI3L1 by lentivirus-mediated RNA interference could stabilize atherosclerotic plaques in apolipoprotein E-knockout (ApoE−/−) mice.Methods. We collected discarded aortic specimens from patients undergoing coronary artery bypass graft surgery and renal arterial tissues from kidney donors. A lentivirus carrying small interfering RNA targeting the expression of CHI3L1 was constructed. Fifty ApoE−/−mice were divided into control group and CHI3L1 gene silenced group. A constrictive collar was placed around carotid artery to induce plaques formation. Then lentivirus was transfected into carotid plaques.Results. We found that CHI3L1 was overexpressed in aorta of patients with atherosclerosis and its expression was correlated with the atherosclerotic risk factors. After lentivirus transduction, mRNA and protein expression of CHI3L1 were attenuated in carotid plaques, leading to reduced plaque content of lipids and macrophages, and increased plaque content of collagen and smooth muscle cells. Moreover, CHI3L1 gene silencing downregulated the expression of local proinflammatory mediators.Conclusions. CHI3L1 is overexpressed in aorta from patients with atherosclerosis and the lentivirus-mediated CHI3L1 gene silencing could represent a new strategy to inhibit plaques progression.
Some Weighted Norm Estimates for the Composition of the Homotopy and Green’s Operator
Authors: Li Huacan , Li Qunfang
Published: March 2014

We establish theAr(D)-weighted integral inequality for the composition of the HomotopyTand Green’s operatorGon a bounded convex domain and also motivated it to the global domain by the Whitney cover. At the same time, we also obtain some(p,q)-type norm inequalities. Finally, as applications of above results, we obtain the upper bound for theLpnorms ofT(G(u))or(T(G(u)))Bin terms ofLqnorms ofuordu.
Early Clinical and Radiographic Results of Minimally Invasive Anterior Approach Hip Arthroplasty
Authors: Alexandrov Tamara , Ahlmann Elke R. , Menendez Lawrence R.
Published: March 2014

We present a retrospective review of the early results and complications in a series of 35 consecutive patients with 43 total hip arthroplasties performed through an anterior muscle sparing minimally invasive approach. We found the early complication rates and radiographic outcomes comparable to those reported from arthroplasties performed via traditional approaches. Complications included dislocation (2%), femur fracture (2%), greater trochanteric fracture (12%), postoperative periprosthetic intertrochanteric fracture (2%), femoral nerve palsy (5%), hematoma (2%), and postoperative iliopsoas avulsion (2%). Radiographic analysis revealed average cup anteversion of19.6°±6.6, average cup abduction angle of48.4°±7, stem varus of0.9°±2, and a mean leg length discrepancy of 0.7 mm. The anterior approach to the hip is an attractive alternative to the more traditional approaches. Acceptable component placement with comparable complication rates is possible using a muscle sparing technique which may lead to faster overall recovery.
Finite Time Stabilization of the Four Tanks System: Extensions to the Uncertain Systems
Authors: Ben Njima Chakib , Ben Mabrouk Walid , Messaoud Hassani , Garcia Germain
Published: March 2014

We consider the finite time stability and stabilization of linear systems described in continuous time. First, we provide a condition for the stability over time using the state transition matrix standard. Then we give conditions to design a state feedback control that stabilizes the system over time. In some cases where there is uncertainty in the system model, the previous conditions are extended to a certain class of uncertain systems. The considered uncertainties are the polytopic and norm bounded ones. To reveal the proposed approach, an application to the four tanks system was made.
Anisotropic, Mixed-Norm Lizorkin-Triebel Spaces and Diffeomorphic Maps
Authors: Johnsen J. , Munch Hansen S. , Sickel W.
Published: March 2014

This paper gives general results on invariance of anisotropic Lizorkin-Triebel spaces with mixed norms under coordinate transformations on Euclidean space, open sets, and cylindrical domains.
Carbonate Hydroxyapatite and Silicon-Substituted Carbonate Hydroxyapatite: Synthesis, Mechanical Properties, and Solubility Evaluations
Authors: Bang L. T. , Long B. D. , Othman R.
Published: March 2014

The present study investigates the chemical composition, solubility, and physical and mechanical properties of carbonate hydroxyapatite (CO3Ap) and silicon-substituted carbonate hydroxyapatite (Si-CO3Ap) which have been prepared by a simple precipitation method. X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, and inductively coupled plasma (ICP) techniques were used to characterize the formation of CO3Ap and Si-CO3Ap. The results revealed that the silicate (SiO44-) and carbonate (CO32-) ions competed to occupy the phosphate (PO43-) site and also entered simultaneously into the hydroxyapatite structure. The Si-substituted CO3Ap reduced the powder crystallinity and promoted ion release which resulted in a better solubility compared to that of Si-free CO3Ap. The mean particle size of Si-CO3Ap was much finer than that of CO3Ap. At 750°C heat-treatment temperature, the diametral tensile strengths (DTS) of Si-CO3Ap and CO3Ap were about10.8±0.3and11.8±0.4MPa, respectively.
Effects of the Domestic Cooking on Elemental Chemical Composition of Beans Species (Phaseolus vulgaris L.)
Authors: Ferreira Alessandra S. T. , Naozuka Juliana , Kelmer Gislayne A. R. , Oliveira Pedro V.
Published: March 2014

Cooking is imperative for beans owing to the presence of compounds that can negatively affect nutritional value. Additionally, the heating of beans can increase protein digestibility and induce desirable sensory properties. However, cooking also causes considerable changes in the composition of numerous chemical constituents, including amino acids, vitamins, and minerals. For this, effects of domestic cooking on the essential element concentrations in various beans species (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) were investigated using jalo, fradinho, rajado, rosinha, bolinha, black, and common species. Elemental determination was made with flame atomic absorption spectrometry and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectrometry after sample digestion in a closed-vessel microwave oven using a diluted oxidant mixture. Analytical methods were evaluated with an addition and recovery test and analysis of certified reference materials (apple and citrus leaves). Ca, Cu, K, and Mg were present mainly in rajado, Cu in jalo, Fe in black, S and Zn in fradinho, and P in rosinha species. Thermal treatment did not affect Cu, Fe, S, and Zn concentrations, but it increased Ca, K, Mg, P, and Zn concentrations in jalo and black species. Ca concentration decreased in fradinho and rajado species, as did Fe concentration in jalo and rajado species.