bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Actual and potential distribution ofAcrolepiopsis assectella(Lepidoptera: Acrolepiidae), an invasive alien pest ofAlliumspp. in Canada
Authors: Mason P.G. , Weiss R.M. , Olfert O. , Appleby M. , Landry J.-F.
Published: March 2011

Acrolepiopsis assectella(Zeller), leek moth, is a widespread and common pest of species ofAlliumL. (Liliaceae) in the western Palaearctic subregion. The establishment ofA. assectellain eastern North America has resulted in economic losses to garlic (Allium sativumL.), leek (Allium porrumL.), and onion (Allium cepaL.) growers, especially to organic producers in eastern Ontario and southern Quebec.Acrolepiopsis assectellawas first recorded in the Ottawa area in 1993. By 2010,A. assectellahad expanded its range into eastern Ontario, southwestern Quebec, Prince Edward Island, and New York. A bioclimate model, using CLIMEX simulation software, was developed to produce mapped results that closely approximated known distributions forA. assectellain central Europe. This model was then validated with recorded distribution records in eastern Europe, Asia, and North America. Model output predicted thatA. assectellawill readily survive in southeastern Canada and the eastern United States of America. Other areas potentially suitable forA. assectellainclude coastal regions of the Pacific Northwest, the interior of southern British Columbia, and north-central Mexico. The continued range expansion ofA. assectellainto otherAllium-growing areas of eastern North America appears to be inevitable. Establishment in these areas presents the risk of substantial production losses toAlliumspp. producers.
Photoelectrochemical Stability and Alteration Products of n-Type Single-Crystal ZnO Photoanodes
Authors: Paulauskas I. E. , Jellison G. E. , Boatner L. A. , Brown G. M.
Published: March 2011

The photoelectrochemical stability and surface-alteration characteristics of doped and undoped n-type ZnO single-crystal photoanode electrodes were investigated. The single-crystal ZnO photoanode properties were analyzed using current-voltage measurements plus spectral and time-dependent quantum-yield methods. These measurements revealed a distinct anodic peak and an accompanying cathodic surface degradation process at negative potentials. The features of this peak depended on time and the NaOH concentration in the electrolyte, but were independent of the presence of electrode illumination. Current measurements performed at the peak indicate that charging and discharging effects are apparently taking place at the semiconductor/electrolyte interface. This result is consistent with the significant reactive degradation that takes place on the ZnO single crystal photoanode surface and that ultimately leads to the reduction of the ZnO surface to Zn metal. The resulting Zn-metal reaction products create unusual, dendrite-like, surface alteration structural features that were analyzed using x-ray diffraction, energy-dispersive analysis, and scanning electron microscopy. ZnO doping methods were found to be effective in increasing the n-type character of the crystals. Higher doping levels result in smaller depletion widths and lower quantum yields, since the minority carrier diffusion lengths are very short in these materials.
MAGE-A3/4 and NY-ESO-1 antigens expression in metastatic esophageal squamous cell carcinoma
Authors: Bujas T. , Marusic Z. , Peric Balja M. , Mijic A. , Kruslin B. , Tomas D.
Published: March 2011

In the present study we analyzed immunohistochemical expression of MAGE-A 3/4 and NY-ESO-1 in 55 samples of esophageal squamous cell carcinomas (ESCC) and their respective lymph node metastases. To our knowledge this is the first study to assess and compare the expression of these antigens in ESCC lymph node metastases. Fifty (90.9%) primary ESCC were positive for MAGE-A 3/4 and 53 (96.6%) were positive for NY-ESO-1. MAGE-A 3/4 was expressed in all lymph node metastases and the intensity of expression was high in a majority of cases. NY-ESO-1 was negative in 2 (7.1%) lymph nodes metastases, while the reaction was predominantly moderate in the positive group. In primary tumors MAGE-A 3/4 showed a significantly higher intensity of expression compared to NY-ESO-1 (P=0.047), while in lymph node metastases the intensity of expression was not significantly different (P=0.387). Primary tumors with and without lymph node metastases showed no significant differences in MAGE-A 3/4 (P=0.672) and NY-ESO-1 (P=0.444) expression. Intensity of MAGE-A 3/4 (P=0.461) and NY-ESO-1 (P=0.414) expression in primary tumors was not significantly different compared to the expression in their respective lymph nodes metastases. Expression of MAGE-A 3/4 in primary tumors showed significant positive correlation with primary tumor expression of NY-ESO-1 (P=0.021) but no significant correlation with the expression of MAGE-A 3/4 in lymph node metastases (P=0.056). Expression of NY-ESO-1 in primary tumors showed significant positive correlation with the expression of NY-ESO-1 in lymph node metastases (P=0.001) and significant negative correlation with patients’ age (P<0.001). Expression of MAGE-A 3/4 and NY-ESO-1 in primary tumors and lymph node metastases showed no significant correlation with prognostic parameters such as tumor grade and TNM stage (P>0.05). We have shown different levels of MAGE-A 3/4 and NY-ESO-1 expression in almost all specimens of primary tumor and lymph node metastases, suggesting that ESCC may be possible target of immunotherapy and anti-tumor vaccination. High levels of expression in lymph node metastases indicate possible clinical benefit of postoperative vaccine with MAGE-A3 and NY-ESO-1 in advanced stage of disease.
Welcome to Nursing Reports
Authors: Editor-in-Chief Marilyn Kirshbaum,
Published: March 2011

I am absolutely thrilled to have such an opportunity to make a unique contribution to my profession and the wider community. At heart, I have been a nurse for a very long time. I have spent many years in clinical practice and have been fortunate to have personally thrived in the pursuit of scientific inquiry, analysis, reporting and scholarship in nursing. As this is the first editorial of Nursing Reports, I would like to share my vision. An open access journal of this kind is intended, first and foremost, to provide a communication platform from which all levels of credible knowledge relative to nursing, from all reaches of the world, could be disseminated, diffused and debated. A key objective is to make rigorously conducted research accessible to the full spectrum of practicing nurses, academics, educators and interested members of the public. It will be the job of the editorial team to ensure that high academic and ethical standards for research and reporting are reached so that we can build a strong and sound reputation; we want the journal to be widely read and influential within the broad fields of nursing, health and social care. A second objective relates to the relatively new paradigm of open access journals; there is huge scope here to reach out to nurses in the world, not only those who have subscriptions or affiliated with academic or health service libraries. The focus of the journal is to present a global perspective of nursing, its advances and issues of current concern. As nurses we are committed to the health of communities – our personal contribution may be clinical, political, educative or academic. Therefore submissions on all areas relevant to nursing are requested, whether they are in the form of empirical reports, reviews of literature, conceptual analyses, debates, short reports from around the globe or open letters that are of concern to the international community. I believe that this journal could be so vibrant and dynamic! Our esteemed associate editors and editorial board currently includes experts in mental health, cancer care, aging, public health and family, acute care, palliative care, social sciences, health promotion, empowerment, disadvantaged groups and education – and statistics. A huge welcome to ALL! Now, let’s get writing and communicating!!
The Influence of the Spleen on Neutrophil Apoptosis in Vivo
Authors: White Jessica F. , Cowburn Andrew S. , Summers Charlotte , Cadwallader Karen A. , Mackenzie Iain , Praseedom Raaj K. , Chilvers Edwin R. , Peters A. Mike
Published: March 2011

In contrast to radiolabelled erythrocytes and platelets, radiolabelled neutrophils leave the circulating blood in an exponential manner, indicating random rather than age-dependent removal. Neutrophils transit the spleen with a range of residence times that are log normally distributed. We hypothesized that neutrophils are conditioned to undergo apoptosis to an extent that depends on their intrasplenic residence time and that this provides an explanation for the random removal of these cells from blood. Splenic venous and peripheral arterial blood was sampled simultaneously during abdominal surgery in four patients and age-dependent apoptosis assessed in whole blood using annexin V/PI staining. Apoptosis increased after 4 and 20 h ex-vivo incubation and was invariably higher in splenic venous vs arterial neutrophils. Transit through the spleen appears to promote neutrophil apoptosis, with subsequent high efficiency clearance by the liver. This may explain the mechanism underlying the random removal of neutrophils from the blood.
Besifloxacin Ophthalmic Suspension: Emerging Evidence of its Therapeutic Value in Bacterial Conjunctivitis
Authors: Khimdas S. , Visscher K.L. , Hutnik C.M.L.
Published: March 2011

Objective

To outline the pharmacodynamics, efficacy and safety of besifloxacin ophthalmic suspension 0.6% in the treatment of bacterial conjunctivitis.

Quality of Evidence

MEDLINE database was searched to review recent pharmacodynamic and clinical studies evaluating besifloxacin and comparing besifloxacin to other topical antibiotics for ophthalmic use. Findings were limited to full-text articles from clinical journals in the English language.

Main Message

Bacterial resistance is a common source for treatment failure in bacterial conjunctivis. Besifloxacin, a novel fourth generation synthetic fluoroquinolone is likely to show lower resistance rates due to its mechanism of action and its short-term use for ocular infections only (decreased systemic exposure). Besifloxacin displays improved pharmacodynamic properties compared to other commonly used fluoroquinolones and has shown to be efficacious and safe in clinical studies.

Conclusion

Besifloxacin ophthalmic suspension 0.6% provides safe and efficacious treatment for bacterial conjunctivitis. The factors leading to bacterial resistance are diminished, which allows besifloxacin to be a favorable treatment option.
Cofiniteness of Generalized Local Cohomology Modules for One-Dimensional Ideals
Authors: Divaani-Aazar Kamran , Hajikarimi Alireza
Published: March 2011

Let a be an ideal of a commutative Noetherian ring R and M and N two finitely generated R-modules. Our main result asserts that if dim R/a ≤ 1, then all generalized local cohomology modules (M,N) are a-cofinite.
A Precise Characterization of Software Component Interfaces
Authors:   Computer Science & Engineering Umm Al-Qura University, Makkah, Saudi Arabia, Y. Alkazemi Basem
Published: March 2011

Developing software systems according to the Component-based Software Development (CBSD) model has proven to be one of the prominent development approaches nowadays. However, integrating components to build a complete working system has always been considered as an obstacle that requires substantial effort and may considerably delay the development process. The lack of effective characterization of component interfaces that only focus on the functional characteristics and ignore the architectural characteristics of software components is the main cause of this difficulty. Therefore, this work provides a detailed characterization of software component interfaces in order to expose the implicit architectural characteristics that impact component integration.
Investigations of aerosol impacts on hurricanes: virtual seeding flights
Authors: Carrio G. G. , Cotton W. R.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. This paper examines the feasibility of mitigating the intensity of hurricanes by enhancing the CCN concentrations in the outer rainband region. Increasing CCN concentrations would cause a reduced collision and coalescence, resulting in more supercooled liquid water to be transported aloft which then freezes and enhances convection via enhanced latent heat of freezing. The intensified convection would condense more water ultimately enhancing precipitation in the outer rainbands. Enhanced evaporative cooling from the increased precipitation in the outer rainbands would produce stronger and more widespread areal cold pools which block the flow of energy into the storm core, ultimately inhibiting the intensification of the tropical cyclone. We designed a series of multi-grid for which the time of the "virtual flights" as well as the aerosol release rates are varied. A code that simulates the flight of a plane is used to increase the CCN concentrations as an aircraft flies. Results show a significant sensitivity to both the seeding time and the aerosol release rates and support the aforementioned hypothesis.
In situ observations of new particle formation in the tropical upper troposphere: the role of clouds and the nucleation mechanism
Authors: Weigel R. , Borrmann S. , Kazil J. , Minikin A. , Stohl A. , Wilson J. C. , Reeves J. M. , Kunkel D. , de Reus M. , Frey W. , Lovejoy E. R. , Volk C. M. , Viciani S. , D'Amato F. , Cairo F. , Schlager H. , Law K. S. , Shur G. N. , Belyaev G. V. , Curtius J.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. New particle formation which generates ultrafine aerosol was observed in the continental tropical Upper Troposphere (UT) and Tropical Tropopause Layer (TTL), particularly at the bottom of the TTL, by in situ airborne measurements over South America (January–March, 2005) and West Africa (August, 2006). Measurements with a set of condensation particle counters with different dp50 (50% detection efficiency cut-off particle diameter) were conducted in the altitude range of 12.0–20.5 km on board the high altitude research aircraft M-55 "Geophysica" and at up to 11.5 km altitude on board the research aircraft DLR Falcon-20. Concentrations of ultrafine particles in the size range of 6 to 15 nm were derived from these measurements and several events of new particle formation (NPF) were identified. For two flight segments (24 February 2005 and 7 August 2006, at 12.5 km altitude) when recent lifting had influenced the probed air mass, the concentration of ultrafine particles reached up to 16 000 particles cm−3 (ambient concentration). A sensitivity study by using an aerosol model which includes neutral and ion induced nucleation processes revealed predicted concentrations of ultrafine particles in reasonable agreement with the in situ observations. NPF over South America was observed in cloud free air, above thin cirrus, while over West Africa, in the outflow of a Mesoscale Convective System (MCS), newly formed particles in the range of several hundred per cm3 were found to coexist with ice cloud particles as long as the concentration of cloud particles (dp>2 μm) remained below 2 cm−3. The occurrence of NPF within the upper troposphere and the TTL was generally confined within an altitude band extending from 340 K to 380 K potential temperature, of particular strength between 350 K and 370 K. By means of a heated aerosol inlet line (at 250 °C) measurements of particle volatility were performed which show that within the TTL over South America and West Africa, on average 10–25% of the particles contained non-volatile cores. In background UT/TTL conditions the fractions of non-volatile particles typically ranged up to 50%. Our measurements provide further evidence for the hypothesis that the tropical UT and the TTL are aerosol source regions supplying freshly nucleated particles which, if lifted, may contribute to maintain the stratospheric background aerosol. These particles can become important for cloud formation in the tropical upper troposphere, if they further grow such that they can act as cloud condensation nuclei.
Importance of crop varieties and management practices: evaluation of a process-based model for simulating CO2 and H2O fluxes at five European maize (Zea mays L.) sites
Authors: Li L. , Vuichard N. , Viovy N. , Ciais P. , Ceschia E. , Jans W. , Wattenbach M. , Béziat P. , Gruenwald T. , Lehuger S. , Bernhofer C.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. Crop varieties and management practices such as planting and harvest dates, irrigation, and fertilization have important effects on the water and carbon fluxes over croplands, and lack or inaccuracy of this information may cause large uncertainties in hydraulic and carbon modeling. Yet the magnitude of uncertainties has not been investigated in detail. This paper provides a comprehensive assessment of the performances of a process-based ecosystem model called ORCHIDEE-STICS (a coupled model between generic ecosystem model ORCHIDEE and the crop growth model STICS), against eddy-covariance observations of CO2 and H2O fluxes at five European maize cultivation sites. The results show that ORCHIDEE-STICS has a good potential to simulate energy, water vapor and carbon dioxide fluxes from maize croplands on a daily basis. The model explains 23–75% of the observed daily net ecosystem exchange (NEE) variance at five sites, and 26–79% of the latent heat flux (LE) variance. Similarly, 34–83% of the variance in observed gross primary productivity (GPP) is accounted for by the model. However, only 3–81% of the variance of observed terrestrial ecosystem respiration (TER) is explained. Therefore, simulating TER is shown to be much more difficult than GPP. We conclude that structural deficiencies of the model in the determination of LAI and TER are the main sources of errors in simulating carbon dioxide and water vapor fluxes. A group of sensitivity analyses, by setting different crop variety, nitrogen fertilization, irrigation, and planting date, indicate that any of these factors is able to cause more than 15% change in simulated NEE although the response of these fluxes to management parameters is site-dependent. Varying management practice in the model is shown to affect not only the daily values of NEE and LE, but also the total seasonal cumulative values, and therefore the annual carbon and water budgets. However, LE is found to be less sensitive to management practices than NEE. Multi-site evaluation of the model and sensitivity analysis with respect to management practices performed in this research provide important insights on the model errors for estimating carbon and water vapor fluxes over European croplands.
Tropical seaways played a more important role than high latitude seaways in Cenozoic cooling
Authors: Zhang Z. , Nisancioglu K. H. , Flatøy F. , Bentsen M. , Bethke I. , Wang H.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. Following the Early Eocene climatic optimum (EECO, ~55–50 Ma), climate deteriorated and gradually changed the earth from a greenhouse into an icehouse, with major cooling events at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary (~34 Ma) and the Middle Miocene (~15 Ma). It is believed that the opening of the Drake Passage had a marked impact on the cooling at the Eocene-Oligocene boundary. Based on an Early Eocene simulation, we study the sensitivity of climate and ocean circulation to the tectonic events such as the closing of the West Siberian Seaway, the deepening of the Arctic-Atlantic Seaway, the opening of the Drake Passage, and the constriction of the Tethys and Central American seaways. The opening of the Drake Passage, together with the closing of the West Siberian Seaway, and the deepening of the Arctic-Atlantic Seaway, weakens the Southern Ocean Deep Water (SODW) dominated ocean circulation and leads to a weak cooling at high latitudes, thus contributing to the observed Early Cenozoic cooling. However, the later constriction of the Tethys and Central American Seaways is shown to give a strong cooling at southern high latitudes. This cooling is related to the transition of ocean circulation from a SODW-dominated mode to the modern-like ocean circulation dominated by North Atlantic Deep Water (NADW).
Exchange between a river and groundwater, assessed with hydrochemical data
Authors: Hoehn E. , Scholtis A.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. We describe the chemical composition of groundwater from an alluvial granular aquifer in a valley fill flood plain (River Thur Valley). The river flows along this valley and is mostly downwelling on its way, indirectly through an unsaturated zone in the upstream part, and directly through the water-saturated bed in the downstream part. River Thur has been channelized with barriers for more than a century. In 1992, the authorities started to restore a section of River Thur with riverbed enlargements. The land use in the flood plain and the seasonal and climatic conditions (e.g., hot dry summer 2003) result in alterations of the natural geochemical composition of the river water. This groundwater is partly to mainly recharged by bank filtration. Several wells exist near the river that draw groundwater for drinking. In some of these wells, the groundwater has a very short residence time in the subsurface of days to weeks. Bed enlargements and other operations for an enhancement of the exchange of water between the river and groundwater increase the contamination risk of the nearby wells. During bank filtration, the groundwater changes gradually its composition, with increasing distance from the river and with depth in the aquifer. From today's changes of the water quality during riverbank filtration, we tried to extrapolate to the groundwater quality that may arise from future river restorations. Today the groundwater body consists of a mixture of groundwater from the seepage of precipitation and from riverbank filtration. The main difference between river water and groundwater results from the microbial activity in riverbed and bank materials. This activity leads to a consumption of O2 and to a higher partial pressure of CO2 in the groundwater. Criteria for the distinction of different groundwater compositions are the distance of a well from the river and the subsurface residence time of the groundwater to reach this well.
Comparison between three implementations of automatic identification algorithms for the quantification and characterization of mesoscale eddies in the South Atlantic Ocean
Authors: Souza J. M. A. C. , de Boyer Montégut C. , Le Traon P. Y.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. Three methods for automatic detection of mesoscale coherent structures are applied to Sea Level Anomaly (SLA) fields in the South Atlantic. The first method is based on the wavelet packet decomposition of the SLA data, the second on the estimation of the Okubo-Weiss parameter and the third on a geometric criterion using the winding-angle approach. The results provide a comprehensive picture of the mesoscale eddies over the South Atlantic Ocean, emphasizing their main characteristics: amplitude, diameter, duration and propagation velocity. Five areas of particular eddy dynamics were selected: the Brazil Current, the Agulhas eddies propagation corridor, the Agulhas Current retroflexion, the Brazil-Malvinas confluence zone and the northern branch of the Antarctic Circumpolar Current (ACC). For these areas, mean propagation velocities and amplitudes were calculated. Two regions with long duration eddies were observed, corresponding to the propagation of Agulhas and ACC eddies. Through the comparison between the identification methods, their main advantages and shortcomings were detailed. The geometric criterion presents a better performance, mainly in terms of number of detections, duration of the eddies and propagation velocities. The results are particularly good for the Agulhas Rings, that presented the longest lifetimes of all South Atlantic eddies.
Evidence of accelerated englacial warming in the Monte Rosa area, Switzerland/Italy
Authors: Hoelzle M. , Darms G. , Lüthi M. P. , Suter S.
Published: March 2011

Abstract. A range of englacial temperature measurements was acquired in the Monte Rosa area at the border of Switzerland and Italy in the years 1982, 1991, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2007 and 2008. Englacial temperatures revealed no evidence of warming at the firn saddle of Colle Gnifetti at 4452 m a.s.l. between 1982 and 1991, the 1991 to 2000 period showed an increase of 0.05 °C per year at a depth of 20 m. From 2000 to 2008 a further increase of 1.3 °C or 0.16 °C per year was observed, indicating that the amount of infiltrating and refreezing meltwater at Colle Gnifetti has probably increased since 2000. The measured temperatures give clear evidence of firn warming since 1991. This is confirmed by five existing boreholes with measured temperature down to bedrock, which were drilled in 1982, 1995, 2003 and 2005. All the observed temperature profiles show a slight bending to warmer temperatures in their uppermost part indicating a warming of the firn, which can be related to the observed atmospheric warming in the 20th century. However, the drilling sites on Colle Gnifetti are still located in the recrystallisation-infiltration zone. A much stronger warming of 6.8 °C or 0.4 °C per year was found at locations beneath Colle Gnifetti on Grenzgletscher from 1991 to 2008. This warming is one order of magnitude greater than the atmospheric warming and can be explained only by a strong increase in the latent heat input by infiltrating and refreezing meltwater. The observations indicate that since 1991, an important firn area beneath Colle Gnifetti has already undergone a firn facies change from the recrystallisation-infiltration to the cold infiltration zone due to an increasing supply of surface melt energy.
Search for multiple targets of different colours: Misguided eye movements reveal a reduction of colour selectivity
Authors: Stroud Michael J. , Menneer Tamaryn , Cave Kyle R. , Donnelly Nick , Rayner Keith
Published: March 2011

Searching for two targets simultaneously is often less efficient than conducting two separate searches. Eye movements were tracked to understand this dual‐target cost. Findings are discussed in the context of security screening. In both single‐target and dual‐target search, displays contained one target at most. Stimuli were abstract shapes modelled after guns and other threat items. With these targets and distractors, colour information helped more in guiding search than shape information. When the two targets had different colours, distractors with colours different from either target were fixated more often in dual‐target search than in single‐target searches. Thus a dual‐target cost arose from a reduction in colour selectivity, reflecting limitations in the ability to represent two target features simultaneously and use them to guide search. Because of these limitations, performance in security searches may improve if each image is searched by two screeners, each specializing in a different category of threat item. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Biosensors: Control of Nanoscale Environment to Improve Stability of Immobilized Proteins on Diamond Surfaces (Adv. Funct. Mater. 6/2011)
Authors: Radadia Adarsh D. , Stavis Courtney J. , Carr Rogan , Zeng Hongjun , King William P. , Carlisle John A. , Aksimentiev Aleksei , Hamers Robert J. , Bashir Rashid
Published: March 2011

Immunoassays for detection of bacterial pathogens rely on the selectivity and stability of bio‐recognition elements such as antibodies tethered to sensor surfaces. The search for novel surfaces that improve the stability of biomolecules and assay performance has been pursued for a long time. However, the anticipated improvements in stability have not been realized in practice under physiological conditions because the surface functionalization layers on commonly used substrates, silica and gold, are themselves unstable on time scales of days. In this paper, we show that covalent linking of antibodies to diamond surfaces leads to substantial improvements in biological activity of proteins as measured by the ability to selectively capture cells of the pathogenic bacterium Escherichia coli O157:H7 even after exposure to buffer solutions at 37 ºC for extended periods of time, approaching 2 weeks. Our results from ELISA, XPS, fluorescence microscopy, and MD simulations suggest that by using highly stable surface chemistry and controlling the nanoscale organization of the antibodies on the surface, it is possible to achieve significant improvements in biological activity and stability. Our findings can be easily extended to functionalization of micro and nanodimensional sensors and structures of biomedical diagnostic and therapeutic interest.
Photovoltaic Devices: Highly Conductive PEDOT:PSS Electrode with Optimized Solvent and Thermal Post‐Treatment for ITO‐Free Organic Solar Cells (Adv. Funct. Mater. 6/2011)
Authors: Kim Yong Hyun , Sachse Christoph , Machala Michael L. , May Christian , Müller‐Meskamp Lars , Leo Karl
Published: March 2011

Highly conductive poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) films as stand‐alone electrodes for organic solar cells have been optimized using a solvent post‐treatment method. The treated PEDOT:PSS films show enhanced conductivities up to 1418 S cm−1, accompanied by structural and chemical changes. The effect of the solvent treatment on PEDOT:PSS has been investigated in detail and is shown to cause a reduction of insulating PSS in the conductive polymer layer. Using these optimized electrodes, ITO‐free, small molecule organic solar cells with a zinc phthalocyanine (ZnPc):fullerene C60 bulk heterojunction have been produced on glass and PET substrates. The system was further improved by pre‐heating the PEDOT:PSS electrodes, which enhanced the power conversion efficiency to the values obtained for solar cells on ITO electrodes. The results show that optimized PEDOT:PSS with solvent and thermal post‐treatment can be a very promising electrode material for highly efficient flexible ITO‐free organic solar cells.
Drug Delivery: Wavelength‐Selective Light‐Induced Release from Plasmon Resonant Liposomes (Adv. Funct. Mater. 6/2011)
Authors: Leung Sarah J. , Kachur Xenia M. , Bobnick Michael C. , Romanowski Marek
Published: March 2011

Biodegradable, spectrally tunable plasmon resonant nanocapsules are created via the deposition of gold onto the surface of 100 nm diameter thermosensitive liposomes. These nanocapsules exhibit selective release of encapsulated contents upon illumination with light of a wavelength matching their distinct resonance bands. In this study, 760 and 1210 nm laser illumination elicits complete release from gold‐coated liposomes with a corresponding resonance, while causing minimal release from liposomes with an unmatching resonance. Spectrally selective release is accomplished through the use of multiple, low‐intensity laser pulses delivered over a period of minutes, ensuring that illumination affects the gold‐coated liposomes without heating the surrounding media. The use of pulsed illumination to achieve spectral selectivity is validated experimentally and through modeling of the heat equation. The result of this illumination scheme for selective release using multiple wavelengths of light is a biologically safe mechanism for realizing drug delivery, microfluidic, and sensor applications.
X‐shooter, a unique VLT project
Authors: D'Odorico S.
Published: March 2011

X‐shooter, an intermediate resolution spectrograph, is the first VLT instrument of the second generation. It was built in a record time of 6 years by a Consortium of Institutes in Denmark, France, Italy, The Netherlands and at ESO and started operation in 2009. For the first time in astronomical instrumentation, X‐shooter offers parallel coverage from the atmospheric cut‐off at 300 nm to the K band, a feature that allows for the timely capture of the spectra of targets of unknown redshift like the GRBs (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
X‐shooter: What stands behind the good performance
Authors: Zerbi F.M. , Dekker H. , Guinouard I. , Navarro R. , Rasmussen P.K.
Published: March 2011

One year of operations demonstrated the high level of scientific performance of the X‐shooter spectrograph. The excellent science opened by this instrument is described in various papers within this volume. The purpose of this contribution is to briefly describe the novel technical solution adopted in the design and construction phase of X‐shooter that made it a successful instrument and the aforementioned science possible (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
An X‐shooter survey of star forming regions: Low‐mass stars and sub‐stellar objects
Authors: Alcalá J.M. , Stelzer B. , Covino E. , Cupani G. , Natta A. , Randich S. , Rigliaco E. , Spezzi L. , Testi L. , Bacciotti F. , Bonito R. , Covino S. , Flaccomio E. , Frasca A. , Gandolfi D. , Leone F. , Micela G. , Nisini B. , Whelan E.
Published: March 2011

We present preliminary results of our X‐shooter survey in star forming regions. In this contribution we focus on subsamples of young stellar and sub‐stellar objects (YSOs) in the Lupus star forming region and in the TW Hya association. We show that the X‐shooter spectra are suitable for conducting several parallel studies such as YSO + disk fundamental parameters, accretion and outflow activity in the very low‐mass (VLM) and sub‐stellar regimes, as well as magnetic activity in young VLM YSOs, and Li abundance determinations. The capabilities of X‐shooter in terms of wide spectral coverage, resolution and limiting magnitudes, allow us to assess simultaneously the accretion/outflow, magnetic activity, and disk diagnostics, from the UV and optical to the near‐IR, avoiding ambiguities due to possible YSO variability (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Stellar parameters of young brown dwarfs
Authors: Rigliaco E. , Natta A. , Testi L. , Randich S. , Covino E. , Alcalá J.M.
Published: March 2011

We present X‐shooter observations of two brown dwarf candidates. We focus on the determination of stellar parameters and their errors. The targets, an accreting class II and a non‐accreting class III objects, are members of the σ Orionis star‐forming region. We derive the spectroscopic spectral types from the VIS spectrum and the stellar parameters. We find that the uncertainties on the stellar parameters have a minor effect on the determination of the mass accretion rate for the accreting star, thus confirming that the discrepancies between the mass accretion rate estimates found with different (simultaneous) tracers are probably due to different physical conditions where the accretion/wind indicators are produced (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Absorption spectroscopy of gamma‐ray burst afterglows: Probing the GRB line of sight
Authors: D'Elia V.
Published: March 2011

GRB absorption spectroscopy opened up a new window in the study of the high redshift Universe, especially with the launch of the Swift satellite and the quick and precise localization of the afterglow. Eight‐meter class telescopes can be repointed within a few hours from the GRB, enabling the acquisition of high signal‐to‐noise ratio and high resolution afterglow spectra. In this paper I will give a short review of what we learned through this technique, and I will present some of the first results obtained with the X‐shooter spectrograph (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
GRB host galaxies studies with X‐shooter
Authors: Piranomonte S. , Vergani S. D. , Onori F. , Savaglio S. , Palazzi E. , Flores H. , Covino S. , Goldoni P. , Randich S. , Hammer F. , Pian E. , Tagliaferri G.
Published: March 2011

Gamma‐ray bursts (GRBs) are the most powerful explosions since the formation of the Universe, associated with the death of massive stars or mergers of compact stellar objects. Several recent striking results strongly support the idea that host galaxies of GRBs are opening a new view on our understanding of galaxy formation and evolution, back to the very primordial universe at z ∼ 8. They form a unique sample of galaxies which cover a wide range of redshift, they are typically weak with low mass and unlike other methods they are not selected on luminosity. In recent years, thanks to the support of new generation instruments, multi‐band photometry and spectroscopy allow us to better investigate the properties of these host galaxies (e.g., stellar mass, age, SFR, metallicity), to study their possible evolution and to compare them with field galaxies and other classes of galaxies. GRB host spectroscopy is one of the main science drivers behind the X‐shooter spectrograph. In this paper, we present the first results of the program devoted to Italian‐French GTO multiband spectroscopy of GRB host galaxies with X‐shooter (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Time resolved spectroscopy of GRB 100418A and its host galaxy with X‐shooter
Authors: de Ugarte Postigo A. , Thöne C.C. , Goldoni P. , Fynbo J.P.U. , the X‐shooter GRB collaboration
Published: March 2011

GRB 100418A was an intermediate duration GRB detected by Swift. It showed an initially dim optical afterglow that had a late increase in brightness, reaching its maximum several hours after the burst onset, unlike typical afterglows that peak tens of seconds after. It also displayed a bright X‐ray and radio counterpart. In this paper we present the observations of the afterglow obtained with X‐shooter. Three epochs were obtained, 0.4, 1.4, and 2.4 days after the burst. In these spectra, each covering the range from 3000 to 24800 Å, we detect abundant absorption features with 4 velocity components, and emission lines from the host galaxy with 2 additional velocity components. In one single velocity component, we detect a Fe II* 2396 Å fine structure feature which disappears from the first to the second epoch indicating that it is due to the effect of the GRB radiation on its environment. We consider it to be the closest absorption component to the GRB itself, for which we determine a redshift of z = 0.6239 ± 0.0002. From the Hα to [N II] ratio we determine a host galaxy metallicity of 0.5 solar (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Star‐forming galaxies observed with X‐shooter
Authors: Christensen L.
Published: March 2011

In the last couple of decades hundreds of studies have explored the nature of star‐forming galaxies at different redshifts. This contribution focuses on X‐shooter observations of star‐burst galaxies at 0 < z < 6 from commissioning runs, science verification, and regular observations, and demonstrates the capability of the new instrument in this competitive field. Observations of gravitationally lensed galaxies show that X‐shooter has no limitation in the redshift desert (1.4 < z < 2) where the strong optical emission lines are shifted to the near‐IR region. Physical properties of galaxies, such as masses, metallicities, abundance ratios, and star formation rates can be derived from observations with relatively short integration times for faint galaxies. The simultaneous UV to near‐IR spectral coverage makes derivation of physical quantities more reliable because there are no differential slit losses as may occur when observations from different optical and near‐IR instruments are used. Over the entire redshift range, spectra of faint galaxies will allow us to better measure stellar ages and dominating ionisation sources compared to broad band spectral energy distribution measurements (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Pancreatoduodenectomy as a source of human small intestine for Ussing chamber investigations and comparative studies with rat tissue
Authors: Haslam Iain S. , O'Reilly Derek A. , Sherlock David J. , Kauser Ambareen , Womack Chris , Coleman Tanya
Published: March 2011

A clear understanding of oral drug absorption is an important aspect of the drug development process. The permeability of drug co mpounds across intact sections of small intestine from numerous species, including man, has often been investigated using modified Ussing chambers. The maintenance of viable, intact tissue is critical to the success of this technique. This study therefore aimed to assess the viability and integrity of tissue from patients undergoing pancreatoduodenectomy, for use in cross‐species Ussing chamber studies. Electrical parameters (potential difference, mV; short‐circuit current, µA.cm−2; resistance, Ω.cm2) were monitored over the duration of each experiment, as was the permeability of the paracellular marker atenolol. The permeability values (Papp; cm/s × 10−6) for a training‐set of compounds, displaying a broad range of physicochemical properties and known human fraction absorbed values, were determined in both rat and human jejunum, as well as Caco‐2 cell monolayers. The results indicate that human jejunum sourced from pancreatoduodenectomy remained viable and intact for the duration of experiments. Permeability values generated in rat and human jejunum correlate well (R2 = 0.86), however the relationship between permeability in human tissue and Caco‐2 cells was comparatively weak (R2 = 0.58). Relating permeability to known human fraction absorbed (hFabs) values results in a remarkably similar relationship to both rat and human jejunum Papp values.

It can be concluded that human jejunum sourced from pancreatoduodenectomy is a suitable source of tissue for Ussing chamber permeability investigations. The relationship between permeability and hFabs is comparable to results reported using alternative test compounds. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Was bedeutet “Entschuldigung”? Die Überlebenden medizinischer NS‐Verbrechen und die Max‐Planck‐Gesellschaft
Authors: Sachse Carola
Published: March 2011

The Meaning of “Apology”: The Survivors of Nazi Medical Crimes and the Max Planck Society. Around the turn of the twenty‐first century a new practice in international politics became established: representatives of political, economic and religious organisations apologised for the historical and political crimes of their own collectives, addressing the victims or the victims' descendants. At a public event in Juni 2001, a formal apology of this kind was made by the president of the Max Planck Society (MPS), who had previously launched an extensive programme of research into the National Socialist history of what was then the Kaiser Wilhelm Society. The majority of the eight invited survivors of human experimentation in Nazi concentration camps refused forgiveness. Instead, they called for the MPS not to content itself with historical research and analysis, but to ensure the continued remembrance of the victims and their suffering. Starting from this 2001 ritual of repentance, the paper examines the participants' diverse views of how to deal with the medical crimes of National Socialism, and asks about possibilities of going beyond historical retrospection to fulfil the imperative of remembrance.
Assessing the coefficient of variations of chemical data using bootstrap method
Authors: Amiri Saeid , Zwanzig Silvelyn
Published: March 2011

The coefficient of variation is frequently used in the comparison and precision of results with different scales. This work examines the comparison of the coefficient of variation without any assumptions about the underlying distribution. A family of tests based on the bootstrap method is proposed, and its properties are illustrated using Monte Carlo simulations. The proposed method is applied to chemical experiments with iid and non‐iid observations. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Chemometric analysis of metabolism disorders in blood plasma of S180 and H22 tumor‐bearing mice by high performance liquid chromatography‐diode array detection
Authors: Sun Xiaoming , Liu Yun , Di Duolong , Wu Guotai , Guo Hongyun
Published: March 2011

The aim of this paper is to characterize metabolism disorders in Kunming mice induced by S180 and H22 tumor cells. Metabolic fingerprint based on high performance liquid chromatography‐diode array detector (HPLC‐DAD) was developed to map the disturbed metabolic responses. In vivo testing of the antitumor activity of paclitaxel (Taxol) was carried out by inhibiting the growth of S180 and H22 tumor cells. Based on 27 common peaks, principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares‐discriminant analysis (PLS‐DA) were used to distinguish the abnormal from control and to find significant endogenous compounds (SECs) which have significant contributions to classification. The tumor growth inhibition ratios (TIRs) of Taxol groups were used to validate the predictive accuracies of the PLS‐DA models. The predictive accuracies of PLS‐DA models for S180 and H22 tumor model groups were 97.6 and 100%, respectively. Nine (S180) and seven (H22) SECs were discovered, including uric acid and cytidine. In addition, the correlations between relative tumor weights (RTWs) and chromatographic data for the SECs were significant (p < 0.05). Investigations on the stability and precision of the established metabolic fingerprints demonstrate that the experiment is well controlled and reliable. This work shows that the platform of HPLC‐DAD coupled with chemometric methods provides a promising method for the study of metabolism disorders induced by tumor cells. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Measuring Outcomes in Adult Outpatient Psychiatry
Authors: Blais Mark A. , Sinclair Samuel J. , Baity Matthew R. , Worth Jonathan , Weiss Anthony P. , Ball Laurie Ansorge , Herman John
Published: March 2011

Despite growing pressure for accountability, mental health professionals continue to debate the value of routinely measuring treatment outcomes. This paper sought to move the outcomes measurement debate forward by reviewing some of the current limitations in outcomes methodology and by providing initial strategies to address them. Using these strategies, we evaluated outcomes for a large diagnostically diverse group of adult outpatients receiving treatment as usual (TAU) within an academic medical centre. Initial self‐report and clinician‐rated assessments were obtained from 5546 patients, and follow‐up data were obtained from 1572 (28%) patients. Using the subset of patients with the follow‐up data, we determined treatment effect sizes, rates of reliable improvement (and deterioration) and rates of clinically significant improvement for all patients and for specific diagnostic groups (depression, anxiety, substance abuse, mood disorders not otherwise specified, bipolar and psychotic conditions). TAU outcomes for depression and anxiety were also compared with benchmarks derived from the randomized controlled trial literature. Lastly, the impact of patient or sample characteristics on outcome was explored. Overall, these findings generally support the benefit of TAU over no treatment while also highlighting both the utility and limitations inherent in the current approaches to evaluating treatment outcomes. Suggestions for improving outcomes measurement are provided. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Practitioner Message

Routine outcomes measurement of real world treatment is valuable.