bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Hypoxia negatively regulates heparan sulfatase 2 expression in renal cancer cell lines
Authors: Khurana Ashwani , Tun Han W. , Marlow Laura , Copland John A. , Dredge Keith , Shridhar Viji
Published: July 2011

Inactivation of von Hippel‐Lindau (VHL), a tumor suppressor gene is often associated with clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC). VHL inactivation leads to multitude of responses including enhanced growth factor signaling such as bFGF2, SDF‐1α, and HGF. Here, we have identified a novel VHL‐inducible gene, heparan sulfatase 2 (HSulf‐2) that attenuates heparan‐binding growth factor such as bFGF2 signaling. VHL‐mediated HIF‐1 alpha degradation was essential to restore HSulf‐2 expression. Mechanistically, HSulf‐2 negatively regulated vimentin expression and knockdown of vimentin abolished cell migration. This study reveals a novel layer of regulation of heparan‐binding growth factor signaling via modulation of heparan sulfate by HSulf‐2 in ccRCC. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Movement lateralization and bimanual coordination in children with Tourette syndrome
Authors: Avanzino Laura , Martino Davide , Bove Marco , De Grandis Elisa , Tacchino Andrea , Pelosin Elisa , Mirabelli Marisol , Veneselli Edvige , Abbruzzese Giovanni
Published: July 2011

Background:

Gilles de la Tourette syndrome is a childhood‐onset disorder characterized by persistent motor and vocal tics fluctuating in severity. Although structural changes observed in Gilles de la Tourette syndrome concern brain structures involved in voluntary motor control such as the basal ganglia, the frontoparietal cortex, and the corpus callosum, movement lateralization and bimanual coordination have been underinvestigated.

Methods:

Using a sensor‐engineered glove, we analyzed the performance of repetitive externally paced single‐hand and bimanual finger movements in 11 children with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome.

Results:

When requested to perform sequential single‐hand finger movements, patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome showed longer touch duration, shorter movement time, and more errors than healthy subjects. When requested to execute the task bimanually, healthy subjects exhibited a slight loss in accuracy and an increase in touch duration compared with the single‐hand task, whereas patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome did not. Further, healthy subjects presented great asymmetry in terms of movement accuracy between left and right hands during the bimanual task, whereas patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome did not.

Conclusions:

These findings suggest that patients with Gilles de la Tourette syndrome may present an abnormal process of sensorimotor integration, movement lateralization, and bimanual coordination during sequential finger movements. © 2011 Movement Disorder Society
Obesity, diabetes, and risk of Parkinson's disease
Authors: Palacios Natalia , Gao Xiang , McCullough Marjorie L. , Jacobs Eric J. , Patel Alpa V. , Mayo Tinisha , Schwarzschild Michael A. , Ascherio Alberto
Published: July 2011

The aim of this work was to investigate whether obesity and diabetes are related to risk of Parkinson's disease. We prospectively followed 147,096 participants in the Cancer Prevention Study II Nutrition Cohort from 1992 to 2005. Participants provided information on anthropometric variables and medical history at baseline and on waist circumference in 1997. Incident cases of Parkinson's disease (n = 656) were confirmed by treating neurologists and medical record review. Relative risks were estimated using proportional hazards models, adjusting for age, gender, smoking, and other risk factors. Neither body mass index nor waist circumference significantly predicted Parkinson's disease risk. Relative risk comparing individuals with a baseline body mass index of ≥30 to those with a body mass index <23 was 1.00 (95% confidence interval: 0.75, 1.34; P trend: 0.79), and that comparing individuals with a waist circumference in the top category (≥40.3 inches in men and ≥35 inches in women) to those in the bottom category (<34.5 inches in men and <28 inches in women) was 1.35 (95% confidence interval: 0.95, 1.93; P trend: 0.08). History of diabetes was not significantly associated with Parkinson's disease risk (combined relative risks = 0.88; 95% confidence interval: 0.62, 1.25; P heterogeneity = 0.96). In addition, neither body mass index at age 18 nor changes in weight between age 18 and baseline were significantly associated with Parkinson's disease risk. The results did not differ significantly by gender. Our results do not provide evidence for a relationship between body mass index, weight change, waist circumference, or baseline diabetes and risk of Parkinson's disease. © 2011 Movement Disorder Society
Local stress analysis in granular materials at a mesoscale
Authors: Nguyen Ngoc‐Son , Magoariec Hélène , Cambou Bernard
Published: July 2011

The purpose of this paper is to contribute to the change of scale techniques developed for granular materials. The proposed approach consists in considering an intermediate scale between the macroscales and microscales, called the mesoscale, using the classical homogenization scheme. In this approach, the mesoscale for 2D granular materials was defined at the level of local volumes, called mesodomains, which are local closed structures composed of particles in contact. In this paper, we focused on defining a local stress field at this scale. Two different methods are proposed, both based on the equivalent continuum mean stress but using different approximations of the mean stress tensor for each mesodomain. The two proposed methods were then compared to each other. Analyses performed on the stress field at the mesoscale show that this local field is heterogeneous and, in particular, that its heterogeneity is significantly structured at this scale. The distribution of the local mean stress (first invariant of the local stress tensor) is uniform in any mesodomain, whereas the distribution of the stress deviator (second invariant of the deviatoric part of the local stress tensor) is significantly dependent on the elongation direction and on the elongation degree of the mesodomains. The local stress ratio (ratio of the stress deviator to the mean stress) is higher within the mesodomains that are elongated in the global compression direction than that within the ones elongated in the global extension direction. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A finite volume approach with local adaptation scheme for the simulation of free surface flow in porous media
Authors: Bresciani E. , Davy P. , de Dreuzy J. R.
Published: July 2011

We present a method for solving steady‐state flow with a free surface in porous media. This method is based on a finite volume approach and is halfway between a fixed and an adaptive mesh method, taking advantage of both approaches: computational efficiency and localization accuracy. Most of the mesh remains fixed during the iterative process, while the cells in contact with the free surface (free surface cells) are being reshaped. Based on this idea, we developed two methods. In the first one, only the volumes of the free surface cells are adapted. In the second one, the computational nodes of the free surface cells are relocated exactly at the free surface. Both adaptations are designed for a better application of the free surface boundary conditions. Implementation details are given on a regular finite volume mesh for the case of homogeneous and heterogeneous rectangular dams in 2D and 3D. Accuracy and convergence properties of the proposed approach are demonstrated by comparison with an analytical solution and with existing references. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Simple superposition approach for dynamic analysis of piled embedded footings
Authors: Padrón L. A. , Mylonakis G. , Beskos D. E.
Published: July 2011

The effectiveness and accuracy of the superposition method in assessing the dynamic stiffness and damping coefficients (impedance functions) of embedded footings supported by vertical piles in homogeneous viscoelastic soil is addressed. To this end, the impedances of piled embedded footings are compared to those obtained by superposing the impedance functions of the corresponding pile groups and embedded footings treated separately, with the magnitude of the relative average differences being around 10–30%. The results are presented in a set of dimensionless graphs and simple expressions that can be used to estimate the dynamic stiffness and damping of piled embedded footings, provided that the impedance functions of the two individual components are known. This is precisely the reason why the superposition approach studied here is appealing, because such impedance functions for both embedded footings and pile groups are available for a wide range of cases. How to estimate the kinematic response functions of the system when those of the individual components are known is also discussed.

To address the problem, parametric analyses performed using a 3D frequency‐domain elastodynamic BEM‐FEM formulation are presented for different pile–soil stiffness contrasts, embedment depths, pile‐to‐pile separations and excitation frequencies. Vertical, horizontal, rocking, and cross‐coupled horizontal‐rocking impedance functions, together with translational and rotational kinematic response functions, are discussed. The results suggest that the superposition concept, in conjunction with a correction strategy as that presented herein, can be employed in geotechnical design. For kinematic effects, the response functions of the embedded footing are found to provide reasonable estimates of the system's behaviour. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Two‐level Newton iterative method for the 2D/3D steady Navier‐Stokes equations
Authors: He Yinnian , Zhang Yan , Shang Yueqiang , Xu Hui
Published: July 2011

A combination method of the Newton iteration and two‐level finite element algorithm is applied for solving numerically the steady Navier‐Stokes equations under the strong uniqueness condition. This algorithm is motivated by applying the m Newton iterations for solving the Navier‐Stokes problem on a coarse grid and computing the Stokes problem on a fine grid. Then, the uniform stability and convergence with respect to ν of the two‐level Newton iterative solution are analyzed for the large m and small H and h << H. Finally, some numerical tests are made to demonstrate the effectiveness of the method. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Numer Methods Partial Differential Eq, 2012
The association of vitamin D use with hypercalcemia and hyperphosphatemia in hemodialysis patients: a case–crossover study
Authors: Kilpatrick Ryan D. , Danese Mark D. , Belozeroff Vasily , Smirnakis Karen , Goodman William G. , Rothman Kenneth J.
Published: July 2011

Purpose

Elevated levels of phosphorus (P) and calcium (Ca) have been shown in observational studies to be associated with an increased risk of adverse clinical outcomes including mortality. Vitamin D sterols have been shown to increase the risk of hypercalcemia and hyperphosphatemia in clinical trials. We sought to explore these risks in real‐world clinical practice.

Methods

We employed a case–crossover design, which eliminates confounding by non‐time‐varying patient characteristics by comparing, within each patient, vitamin D doses before the event with those at an earlier period. Using this method, we estimated the risk of hypercalcemic (Ca ≥ 11 g/dL) and hyperphosphatemic (P ≥ 8 g/dL) events for patients at different dose quartiles of vitamin D relative to patients not on a vitamin D sterol.

Results

There was a dose‐dependent association between vitamin D dose quartile and risk of hypercalcemia or hyperphosphatemia. In adjusted analyses, each increase in vitamin D quartile was associated with a multiple of hypercalcemia risk between 1.7 and 19 times compared with those not on vitamin D and a multiple of hyperphosphatemia risk between 1.8 and 4.

Conclusion

Use of vitamin D sterols is associated with an increased risk of hypercalcemic and hyperphosphatemic events in real‐world clinical practice. Other potential predictors of these events, such as phosphate binder use and dialysate Ca levels, were not examined in this analysis. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Mixed‐valence class I transition and electrochemistry of bis(triphenylamine)‐based aramids containing isolated ether‐linkage
Authors: Yen Hung‐Ju , Guo Shiue‐Ming , Liou Guey‐Sheng , Chung Jen‐Chieh , Liu Yu‐Chang , Lu Yung‐Fang , Zeng Yu‐Zhen
Published: July 2011

A series of solution‐processable electrochromic (EC) aromatic polyamides with bis(triphenylamine)ether (TPAO) units in the backbone were prepared by the phosphorylation polyamidation from a newly synthesized diamine monomer, bis(N‐4‐aminophenyl‐N‐4‐methoxyphenyl‐4‐aminophenyl)ether, and various dicarboxylic acids. These polymers were highly soluble in many organic solvents and showed useful levels of thermal stability associated with high glass‐transition temperatures and high char yields (higher than 50 at 800 °C in nitrogen). The polymer films showed reversible electrochemical oxidation and electrochromism with high contrast ratio in the visible range, which also exhibited moderate coloration efficiency (CE), low switching time, and good stability. Especially, the polyamides with two electroactive nitrogen centers only showed one‐stage oxidative coloring (no intervalence charge‐transfer [IV‐CT] band was detected), implying the two electrons are simultaneously removed from the TPAO units on account of the ether‐linkage definitely isolated the two redox centers. The mixed‐valence (MV) Class I/II/III transition and electrochemistry of the synthesized model compounds were investigated for the bridged triarylamine system with various NN distances and intramolecular electron transfer (ET) capability. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011
Pure blue electroluminescent poly(aryl ether)s with dopant–host systems
Authors: Bian Chunlei , Jiang Guoxin , Tong Hui , Cheng Yanxiang , Xie Zhiyuan , Wang Lixiang , Jing Xiabin , Wang Fosong
Published: July 2011

A series of novel arylene ether polymers (P5F‐BCzVFs) containing both pentafluorene (5F) and distyrylarylene derivative (BCzVF) units in the side chains for efficient pure blue light emission were prepared by a facile, metal‐free condensation polymerization. The emission spectra indicated that color tuning could be achieved through efficient Förster energy transfer from the deep‐blue 5F host to the pure‐blue BCzVF dopant. Single‐layer polymer light‐emitting diodes (PLEDs) based on P5F‐BCzVFs (ITO/(PEDOT:PSS)/polymer/Ca/Al) exhibited voltage‐independent and stable pure blue emission with a Commission International de L'Eclairage (CIE) coordinate of (0.15, 0.15), a maximum brightness of 3576 cd/m2, and a maximum luminous efficiencies of 2.15 cd/A, respectively. As most polymers with dopant‐host systems, the luminous efficiencies of all P5F‐BCzVFs surpassed that of the host‐only polymer (P5F), due to the energy transfer and charge trapping from the host to the dopant. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011
Poly(p‐phenylene methylene)‐based block copolymers by mechanistic transformation
Authors: Tasdelen Mehmet Atilla , Beyazit Selim , Gunes Deniz , Bicak Niyazi , Tatar Pinar , Demirel A. Levent , Yagci Yusuf
Published: July 2011

The synthesis of poly(p‐phenylene methylene) (PPM)‐based block copolymers such as poly(p‐phenylene methylene)‐b‐poly(ε‐caprolactone) and poly(p‐phenylene methylene)‐b‐polytetrahydrofuran by mechanistic transformation was described. First, precursor PPM was synthesized by acid‐catalyzed polymerization of tribenzylborate at 16 °C. Then, this polymer was used as macroinitiators in either ring‐opening polymerization of ε‐caprolactone or cationic ring‐opening polymerization of tetrahydrofuran to yield respective block copolymers. The structures of the prepolymer and block copolymers were characterized by GPC and 1H NMR investigations. The composition of block copolymers as determined by 1H NMR and TGA analysis was found to be in very good agreement. The thermal behavior and surface morphology of the copolymers were also investigated, respectively, by differential scanning calorimetry and atomic force microscopy measurements, and the contribution of the major soft segment has been observed. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Polym Sci Part A: Polym Chem, 2011
Integrating atom‐based and residue‐based scoring functions for protein–protein docking
Authors: Vreven Thom , Hwang Howook , Weng Zhiping
Published: July 2011

Most scoring functions for protein–protein docking algorithms are either atom‐based or residue‐based, with the former being able to produce higher quality structures and latter more tolerant to conformational changes upon binding. Earlier, we developed the ZRANK algorithm for reranking docking predictions, with a scoring function that contained only atom‐based terms. Here we combine ZRANK's atom‐based potentials with five residue‐based potentials published by other labs, as well as an atom‐based potential IFACE that we published after ZRANK. We simultaneously optimized the weights for selected combinations of terms in the scoring function, using decoys generated with the protein–protein docking algorithm ZDOCK. We performed rigorous cross validation of the combinations using 96 test cases from a docking benchmark. Judged by the integrative success rate of making 1000 predictions per complex, addition of IFACE and the best residue‐based pair potential reduced the number of cases without a correct prediction by 38 and 27% relative to ZDOCK and ZRANK, respectively. Thus combination of residue‐based and atom‐based potentials into a scoring function can improve performance for protein–protein docking. The resulting scoring function is called IRAD (integration of residue‐ and atom‐based potentials for docking) and is available at http://zlab.umassmed.edu.
High power lithium ion battery materials by computational design
Authors: Adams Stefan , Rao R. Prasada
Published: July 2011

Empirical bond length–bond valence (BV) relations provide insight into the link between structure of and ion transport in solid electrolytes and mixed conductors. Building on our earlier systematic adjustment of BV parameters to the bond softness, here we discuss how the squared BV mismatch is linked to the absolute energy scale and used as a general Morse‐type interaction potential for analyzing low‐energy ion migration paths in ion conducting solids or mixed conductors by either an energy landscape approach or molecular dynamics (MD) simulations. For a wide range of lithium oxides we could thus model ion transport revealing significant differences to an earlier geometric approach. This novel BV‐based force‐field has then been applied to investigate a range of mixed conductors, focusing on cathode materials for lithium ion battery (LIB) applications to promote a systematic design of LIB cathodes that combine high energy density with high power density. To demonstrate the versatility of the new BV‐based force field it is applied in exploring various strategies to enhance the power performance of safe low cost LIB materials including LiFePO4, LiVPO4F, LiFeSO4F, etc.
Magnetoelectric properties of lead‐free Li0.06K0.47Na0.47NbO3CoFe2O4 nanocomposite films fabricated by a one‐step chemical process
Authors: Cheng T. D. , Wang G. Y. , Wang Y. , Tang X. G. , Chan H. L. W.
Published: July 2011

Lead‐free composite thin films composed of Li0.06K0.47Na0.47NbO3 and CoFe2O4 were prepared using a one‐step chemical method. By analysis using X‐ray diffraction, thermogravimetry (TG), and differential scanning calorimetry, it was found that the Li0.06K0.47Na0.47NbO3 and CoFe2O4 phases were crystallized at different stages of the thermal treatment, which resulted in the formation of a composite structure. The phase segregation was confirmed by observations on scanning electron microscopy and magnetic force microscopy. By electrical and magnetic measurements it was found that the composite showed a coupled magnetoelectric behavior at room temperature with a magnetoelectric coefficient of ∼185 mV/cm · Oe.
Doping and grain size effects on pyroelectric properties of Ba0.7Sr0.3TiO3 for uncooled infrared bolometer
Authors: Zhang Guangzu , Jiang Shenglin , Zeng Yike , Zhang Yangyang , Zhang Qingfeng , Yu Yan , Wang Jing
Published: July 2011

Ba0.7Sr0.3TiO3 (BST) ceramics with different dopants and various grain sizes were fabricated by the solid‐state reaction process, and the doping and grain size effects on dielectric and dc bias field‐induced pyroelectric properties were systemically investigated. When acceptors were added, the dielectric loss of the BST was decreased effectively, whereas the pyroelectric coefficient was decreased for the broadening of dielectric constant peaks. With the increase of the content of acceptors and the adding of donors simultaneously, the decrease of pyroelectric coefficient caused by the doping effect could be weakened. The dielectric and dc bias field‐induced pyroelectric properties were also affected by the grain size effects dramatically. In this paper, the best pyroelectric coefficient of 105 × 10−8 C/cm2 °C and figure‐of‐merit of 22 × 10−5 Pa−0.5 could be obtained when the grain size was 1 µm. The systemic investigation of doping and grain size effects would contribute to the development of high pyroelectric properties of BST for uncooled infrared detector.
First‐principles study of the reconstruction and hydroxylation of the polar NiO(111) surface
Authors: Ebensperger Christina , Meyer Bernd
Published: July 2011

Density‐functional theory (DFT) calculations have been combined with a thermodynamic formalism to determine a phase diagram of lowest‐energy structures and compositions of the polar NiO(111) surface in equilibirum with oxygen, hydrogen, and water reservoirs at finite temperatures and pressures. Consistent with experiment we find that for a wide range of oxygen and hydrogen chemical potentials the surface is fully hydroxylated and shows a (1 × 1) periodicity. At higher temperatures and H‐poor conditions water can be removed from the surface and the two (2 × 2) octopolar reconstructions become the thermodynamically most stable configurations. Other structures, which have been proposed on the basis of experimental data after high‐temperature annealing, have to be considered to be kinetically limited metastable phases. In O‐poor conditions no reduced surface structures are found to be thermodynamically stable. However, in O‐rich environments and at low hydrogen chemical potential the surface can be oxidized by a partial removal of hydrogen or incorporation of additional oxygen. The structural motifs are closely related to the cadmium iodide structure of Ni(OH)2 and NiO2.
How much of the placebo ‘effect’ is really statistical regression?
Authors: McDonald Clement J. , Mazzuca Steven A. , McCabe George P.
Published: July 2011

Statistical regression to the mean predicts that patients selected for abnormalcy will, on the average, tend to improve. We argue that most improvements attributed to the placebo effect are actually instances of statistical regression. First, whereas older clinical trials susceptible to regression resulted in a marked improvement in placebo‐treated patients, in a modern series of clinical trials whose design tended to protect against regression, we found no significant improvement (median change 0·3 per cent, p > 0·05) in placebo‐treated patients. Secondly, regression can yield sizeable improvements, even among biochemical tests. Among a series of 15 biochemical tests, theoretical estimates of the improvement due to regression by selection of patients as high abnormals (i.e. 3 standard deviations above the mean) ranged from 2·5 per cent for serum sodium to 26 per cent for serum lactate dehydrogenase (median 10 per cent); empirical estimates ranged from 3·8 per cent for serum chloride to 37·3 per cent for serum phosphorus (median 9·5 per cent). Thus, we urge caution in interpreting patient improvements as causal effects of our actions and should avoid the conceit of assuming that our personal presence has strong healing powers.
Measuring and analysing quality of life in cancer clinical trials: A review
Authors: Fayers P. M. , Jones D. R.
Published: July 2011

After brief consideration of the definition of the term ‘quality of life’, methods previously adopted and problems encountered in assessing and evaluating quality of life in clinical studies of cancer are reviewed. Desirable properties of any such assessment methods and approaches to the analysis of quality of life data are discussed.

Illustrations are provided by reference to the methods of assessment of quality of life incorporated in two recently‐initiated studies of cancer treatment.
Validity and power investigation of a test for serial correlation in univariate repeated measures analysis
Authors: Hearne Erwin M. , Clark Gary M.
Published: July 2011

A common design in biostatistics and psychometrics is the repeated measures design. A popular example is a clinical trial with one grouping factor, e.g. treatment or drug, and one repeated measures factor, e.g. time or visit. For selected ‘real world’ parameter sets, we performed a validity and power study on a test for serial correlation in repeated measures analysis and also conducted a similar study of a test for sphericity. Simulation showed that the serial correlation test identified the serial correlation structure, whereas the sphericity test, for some parameter sets, failed to detect this non‐spherical pattern as often as 85 per cent of the time.
Agile Software Development
Authors: Greer Des , Hamon Yann
Published: July 2011

This focus section contains papers related to agile software development. The papers address a range of research areas including the application of agile methods to safety critical software development, the relationship of agile development with user experience design and how to measure flow in lean software development.
Pax7 Expressing Cells Contribute to Dermal Wound Repair, Regulating Scar Size through a β-Catenin Mediated Process
Authors: Amini-Nik Saeid , Glancy Dylan , Boimer Corey , Whetstone Heather , Keller Charles , Alman Benjamin A.
Published: July 2011

During skin wound healing, fibroblast-like cells reconstitute the dermal compartment of the repaired skin filling the wound gap. A subset of these cells are transcriptionally active for β-catenin/T-cell factor (TCF) signaling during the proliferative phase of the repair process, and β-catenin levels control the size of the scar that ultimately forms by regulating the number of dermal fibroblasts. Here, we performed cell lineage studies to reveal a source of the dermal cells in which β-catenin signaling is activated during wound repair. Using a reporter mouse, we found that cells in the early wound in which TCF-dependent transcription is activated express genes involved in muscle development. Using mice in which cells express Pax7 (muscle progenitors) or Mck (differentiated myocytes) are permanently labeled, we showed that one quarter of dermal cells in the healing wound are Pax7 expressing progeny, but none are Mck progeny. Removing one allele of β-catenin in Pax7 expressing progeny resulted in a significantly smaller scar size with fewer Pax7 expressing progeny cell contributing to wound repair. During wound healing, β-catenin activation causes muscle satellite cells to adopt a fibrotic phenotype and this is a source of dermal cells in the repair process.
Trans‐18:1 and CLA Isomers in Rumen and Duodenal Digesta of Bulls Fed n‐3 and n‐6 PUFA‐Based Diets
Authors: Shen Xiangzhen , Dannenberger Dirk , Nuernberg Karin , Nuernberg Gerd , Zhao Ruqian
Published: July 2011

The aim of the study was to investigate the effect of n‐6 PUFA (maize silage/grass silage, soybean meal and soybean oil, control) and n‐3 PUFA (grass silage, rapeseed cake and rapeseed oil, experiment) based diets on the occurrence of rumen‐ and duodenal digesta trans‐C18:1 and CLA isomers of German Simmental bulls. The results based on rumen and duodenal digesta samples immediately taken from the bulls just after slaughter. The diet affected the occurrence of individual trans‐C18:1 and CLA isomers in the rumen and duodenal digesta in different ways. The isomer trans‐11,cis‐13 CLA was detected as the most abundant isomer in the rumen of n‐3 PUFA based diet fed bulls compared to n‐6 PUFA based diet fed bulls. The trans‐7,cis‐9 CLA isomer was not detected in the rumen samples of bulls fed both diets, however abundant trans‐7,cis‐9 CLA was identified and quantified in the duodenum digesta. Both the concentration of the sum of trans‐18:1 fatty acids and individual isomers in the rumen were not affected by the diet, except trans‐16‐18:1. The concentration of trans‐16‐18:1 was significantly decreased in the rumen of n‐3 PUFA supplemented‐fed bulls compared to n‐6 PUFA supplemented‐fed bulls.
Asparagine 405 of heparin lyase II prevents the cleavage of glycosidic linkages proximate to a 3‐O‐sulfoglucosamine residue
Authors: Zhao Wenjing , Garron Marie-Line , Yang Bo , Xiao Zhongping , Esko Jeffrey D. , Cygler Miroslaw , Linhardt Robert J.
Published: July 2011

Heparin and heparan sulfate contain a rare 3‐O‐sulfoglucosamine residue critical for anticoagulation and virus recognition, respectively. The glycosidic linkage proximate to this 3‐O‐sulfoglucosamine is resistant to cleavage by all heparin lyases (Heps). HepII has a broad specificity. The crystal structure of the wild type HepII identified its active site and showed a close spatial proximity between Asn405 and the 3‐OH group of the bound glucosamine residue. In this study, we mutated Asn405 to the less sterically demanding Ala405 or Gly405, which broadened the substrate specificity of HepII and caused it to cleave the resistant linkage proximate to the 3‐O‐sulfoglucosamine residue.
Resonance of long waves generated by storms obliquely crossing shelf topography in a rotating ocean
Authors: THIEBAUT S. , VENNELL R.
Published: July 2011

The oceanic forced wave beneath a moving atmospheric disturbance is amplified by Proudman resonance. When modified by the Earth's rotation this classical resonance only occurs if the disturbance time scale is smaller than the inertial period. With or without Coriolis effects, free transients generated by storm forced waves obliquely crossing step changes in water depth at particular angles are shown to resonate by exciting a range of long barotropic free waves. Rotationally influenced slow atmospherically forced waves crossing a vertical coast at a critical angle lead to a form of subcritical resonance, which occurs only when the component of the disturbances' phase velocities along the coast matches that of a free Kelvin wave (KW). In a rotating ocean, transients generated by disturbances crossing a step at a particular angle are shown to excite a free double Kelvin wave (DKW). This new type of resonance only occurs for sufficiently large steps and disturbances with time scale greater than the inertial period. A storm crossing a step shelf can result in the excitation of an infinite set of edge waves, a single KW, a unique DKW and a first-mode continental shelf wave, depending on the topography and the disturbance time scale, translation speed and incident angle. The study of resonances and wave mode excitations generated by storms crossing a coast or a continental shelf may contribute to understanding how a particular combination of the storm characteristics can result in destructive coastal events with time scales encompassing the typical meteotsunami period band (tens of minutes) and storm surges with periods of several hours or days.
Transmission dynamics of primary pneumonic plague in the USA
Authors: HINCKLEY A. F. , BIGGERSTAFF B. J. , GRIFFITH K. S. , MEAD P. S.
Published: July 2011

Plague is thought to have killed millions during three catastrophic pandemics. Primary pneumonic plague, the most severe form of the disease, is transmissible from person-to-person and has the potential for propagating epidemics. Efforts to quantify its transmission potential have relied on published data from large outbreaks, an approach that artificially inflates the basic reproductive number (R0) and skews the distribution of individual infectiousness. Using data for all primary pneumonic plague cases reported in the USA from 1900 to 2009, we determined that the majority of cases will fail to transmit, even in the absence of antimicrobial treatment or prophylaxis. Nevertheless, potential for sustained outbreaks still exists due to superspreading events. These findings challenge current concepts regarding primary pneumonic plague transmission.
Early development ofBrycon orthotaenia(Pisces: Characidae)
Authors: Gomes Rafael Zeferino , Sato Yoshimi , Rizzo Elizete , Bazzoli Nilo
Published: July 2011

Brycon orthotaeniais an important fish for commercial and sport fishing and may reach 7 kg in body weight; it is endangered in some regions of Brazil's São Francisco River Basin. Breeders were subjected to spawning induction to analyse the early development; oocytes and semen were obtained by manual extrusion and fertilization was carried out using the dry method. After fertilization, eggs were kept in incubators at 24°C. Egg samples were collected every 10 min until hatching in order to monitor embryonic development and were analysed and photographed. Larvae samples were collected daily until the seventh day to analyse the larvae development; larvae were fixed in Bouin's fluid and subjected to routine histological and histochemical techniques for glycoprotein and glyco-conjugated detection. Oocyte extrusion occurred 6 h after the second hormone dose at 26°C. The recently extruded oocytes were spherical, dark green and non-adhesive, with a diameter of 1479.67 ± 53.18 and 3094.60 ± 80.34 μm after hydration. The blastopore closure occurred within 7 h 30 min of fertilization and the fertilization rate was 50.0 ± 5.5 % at 24°C. Embryonic development was completed within 21 h 30 min of fertilization. Complete yolk sac resorption and mouth opening occurred on the third day after hatching, at which time an adhesive organ with mucosubstances was observed. On the third day, an olfactory chamber with cilia and intense cannibalism amongst the larvae was observed. The complete differentiation of the digestive system occurred on the fifth day and the nervous and sensorial systems differentiation occurred on the sixth to seventh days.
Non-selective lexical access in different-script bilinguals
Authors: MOON JIHYE , JIANG NAN
Published: July 2011

Lexical access in bilinguals is known to be largely non-selective. However, most studies in this area have involved bilinguals whose two languages share the same script. This study aimed to examine bilingual lexical access among bilinguals whose two languages have distinct scripts. Korean–English bilinguals were tested in a phoneme monitoring task in their first or second language. The results showed a simultaneous activation of the non-target language in a monolingual task, suggesting non-selective lexical access even among bilinguals whose two languages do not share the same script. Language dominance did not affect the pattern of results.
Predictors of nutrition label viewing during food purchase decision making: an eye tracking investigation
Authors: Graham Dan J , Jeffery Robert W
Published: July 2011

Objective

Nutrition label use could help consumers eat healthfully. Despite consumers reporting label use, diets are not very healthful and obesity rates continue to rise. The present study investigated whether self-reported label use matches objectively measured label viewing by monitoring the gaze of individuals viewing labels.

Design

The present study monitored adults viewing sixty-four food items on a computer equipped with an eye-tracking camera as they made simulated food purchasing decisions. ANOVA and t tests were used to compare label viewing across various subgroups (e.g. normal weight v. overweight v. obese; married v. unmarried) and also across various types of foods (e.g. snacks v. fruits and vegetables).

Setting

Participants came to the University of Minnesota's Epidemiology Clinical Research Center in spring 2010.

Subjects

The 203 participants were ⩾18 years old and capable of reading English words on a computer 76 cm (30 in) away.

Results

Participants looked longer at labels for ‘meal’ items like pizza, soup and yoghurt compared with fruits and vegetables, snack items like crackers and nuts, and dessert items like ice cream and cookies. Participants spent longer looking at labels for foods they decided to purchase compared with foods they decided not to purchase. There were few between-group differences in nutrition label viewing across sex, race, age, BMI, marital status, income or educational attainment.

Conclusions

Nutrition label viewing is related to food purchasing, and labels are viewed more when a food's healthfulness is ambiguous. Objectively measuring nutrition label viewing provides new insight into label use by various sociodemographic groups.
What is the real cost of our food? Implications for the environment, society and public health nutrition
Authors: O'Kane Gabrielle
Published: July 2011

The current, globalised food system supplies ‘cheap’ food to a large proportion of the world's population, but with significant social, environmental and health costs that are poorly understood. The present paper examines the nature and extent of these costs for both rural and urban communities, by illustrating the financial pressures on food producers and manufacturers to produce cheap food, the disconnection people experience with how and where their food is produced, and the rise in obesity levels that plague the globe. The paper then proposes that community food systems may play an important role in mitigating the adverse environmental, economic and social effects of the dominant food system, by the use of more sustainable food production methods, the development of local economies and enabling closer connections between farmers and consumers. There are many opportunities for public health nutritionists to contribute to the local food system literature to ascertain whether these systems improve inequities, provide better access to healthy food and help stem the tide of rising global obesity levels. Public health nutritionists can play a key role in supporting people to become food citizens and to advocate for democratic and sustainable food systems.
Mapping Suicide in London
Authors: Rezaeian Mohsen , Dunn Graham , St Leger Selwyn , Appleby Louis
Published: July 2011

Background: When one intends to globally smooth unstable rates, e.g., suicide rates in a region, one needs to consider whether it is better to smooth the rates toward the global mean of the country or toward the global mean of the same region. Aims: The present study aims to provide a methodological framework to answer this question by smoothing suicide rates within London boroughs. Methods: Based on the results of the spatial autocorrelation statistics, the noniterative empirical Bayes method of moments was chosen to globally smooth the suicide rate of each borough, first toward the global mean of England and Wales, and second toward the mean of the London region. Results: The results revealed that smoothing the suicide rates of the boroughs toward the global mean of England and Wales had a stronger influence in reducing the variability of suicide rates than smoothing toward the global mean of the London region. Conclusions: Smoothing the rates toward the mean of a region within a country acts somewhat between global and local smoothing.
Suicidal Ideation, Friendships with Delinquents, Social and Parental Connectedness, and Differential Associations by Sex
Authors: Logan J. E. , Crosby A. E. , Hamburger M. E.
Published: July 2011

Background: The association between suicidal ideation, friendships with delinquents, and social/parental connectedness among pre/early adolescents who reside in high-risk communities is poorly understood. Aims: This study examined among high-risk youths: (1) the association between suicidal ideation and having delinquent friends, school connectedness, social support, and different parenting styles (i.e., caring only, supervision only, caring with supervision); and, (2) the differential associations by sex. Methods: The associations were assessed among 2,598 pre/early adolescents using logistic regression. The analyses were adjusted for demographic, mental distress, illicit substance use, and peer/date violence victimization factors. The interaction terms determined differences by sex. Results: After adjusting for demographic factors and mental distress, suicidal ideation was positively associated with having delinquent friends; however, after factoring in illicit substance use and violence victimization, this association was negative for males. After adjusting for all factors, suicidal ideation was negatively associated with school connectedness and all parenting styles; however, the association between suicidal ideation and having parental caring with supervision was stronger for females. Conclusions: The results suggest the potential benefits of increasing school connectedness and improving parent-child interactions, particularly among females, and the potential benefits of violence and substance-abuse prevention strategies for youths, particularly males, connected with delinquent peers.
Predicting Suicidal Risk in a Cohort of Depressed Children and Adolescents
Authors: Hetrick Sarah E. , Parker Alexandra G. , Robinson Jo , Hall Nicole , Vance Alasdair
Published: July 2011

Background: In children and adolescents with a depressive disorder, predicting who will also go on to exhibit suicide-related behaviors (SRBs), including suicide attempt or self-harm, is a key challenge facing clinicians. Aims: To investigate the relative contributions of depressive disorder severity, hopelessness, family dysfunction, and perceived social support to the risk of suicide-related behaviors. Methods: This was a cross-sectional study of a group of 10–16-year-olds with major depressive disorders and dysthymic disorder. Results: Child-rated depressive disorder symptom severity emerged as the greatest predictor of risk. Hopelessness and family dysfunction were also significant predictors of SRBs. In combination these variables were strong predictors, accounting for 66% of the variance. This is a cross-sectional study design, rather than longitudinal, therefore risk prediction over time was not possible. Conclusions: Understanding the child and adolescents depressive disorder symptom severity from their perspective, their level of hopelessness, as well as their family context is critical in understanding the risk of SRBs. These findings may help to provide direction for targeted interventions to address these clinical risk factors.
Evaluation of the Commitment to Living (CTL) Curriculum
Authors: Pisani Anthony R. , Cross Wendi F. , Watts Arthur , Conner Kenneth
Published: July 2011

Background: Finding effective and efficient options for training mental health professionals to assess and manage suicide risk is a high priority. Aims: To test whether an innovative, brief workshop can improve provider knowledge, confidence, and written risk assessment in a multidisciplinary sample of ambulatory and acute services professionals and trainees. Methods: We conducted a pre/post evaluation of a 3 h workshop designed to improve clinical competence in suicide risk assessment by using visual concept mapping, medical records documentation, and site-specific crisis response options. Participants (N = 338 diverse mental health professionals) completed pre- and postworkshop questionnaires measuring their knowledge and confidence. Before and after the workshop, participants completed documentation for a clinical vignette. Trained coders rated the quality of risk assessment formulation before and after training. Results: Participants’ knowledge, confidence, and objectively-rated documentation skills improved significantly (p < .001), with large effect sizes. Participants’ expectation of their ability to transfer workshop content to their clinical practice was high (mean = 4.10 on 1–5 scale). Conclusions: Commitment to Living is a promising, innovative, and efficient curriculum for educating practicing clinicians to assess and respond to suicide risk. Well-designed, brief, suicide risk management programs can improve clinicians’ knowledge, confidence, and skill.
Multiple phase screen modeling of ionospheric scintillation along radio occultation raypaths
Authors: Carrano Charles S. , Groves Keith M. , Caton Ronald G. , Rino Charles L. , Straus Paul R.
Published: July 2011

We present the Radio Occultation Scintillation Simulator (ROSS), which uses the multiple phase screen method (MPS) to simulate the forward scatter of radio waves by irregularities in the equatorial ionosphere during radio occultation experiments. ROSS simulates propagation through equatorial plasma bubbles which are modeled as homogeneous electron density fluctuations modulated by a Chapman profile in altitude and a Gaussian window in the magnetic east‐west direction. We adjust the parameters of the density model using electron density profiles derived from the ALTAIR incoherent scatter radar (9.4°N, 167.5°E, 4.3° north dip), and space‐to‐ground observations of scintillation using VHF and GPS receivers that are colocated with the radar. We compare the simulated occultation scintillation to observations of scintillation from the CORISS instrument onboard the C/NOFS satellite during a radio occultation occurring near ALTAIR on 21 April 2009. The ratio of MPS predicted S4 to CORISS observed S4 throughout the F region altitudes of 240–350 km ranged between 0.86 and 1.14.
Representative elementary volume estimation for porosity, moisture saturation, and air‐water interfacial areas in unsaturated porous media: Data quality implications
Authors: Costanza‐Robinson Molly S. , Estabrook Benjamin D. , Fouhey David F.
Published: July 2011

Achieving a representative elementary volume (REV) has become a de facto criterion for demonstrating the quality of CT measurements in porous media systems. However, the data quality implications of an REV requirement have not been previously examined. In this work, deterministic REVs for porosity, moisture saturation (SW), and air‐water interfacial area (AI) were estimated using a set of 49 CT images of eight unsaturated homogeneous porous media with heterogeneity in moisture distributions present in varying degrees. Estimated porosity REVs were <8 mm3 for all cases, smaller than typical CT image sizes (∼100 mm3). Estimated SW and AI REVs were <55 mm3 for cases with homogeneous moisture distributions but could not be estimated for cases with heterogeneous moisture distributions, due to the absence of a distinct “REV plateau” within the maximum imaged volume. Conventionally, SW and AI data from such non‐REV cases would be excluded. The implications of excluding data on the basis of REV were examined by comparing AI‐SW data measured on image windows of increasing size against the expected linear AI‐SW relationship. At measurement scales exceeding porosity REV, random fluctuations in AI‐SW data were excluded, even for cases containing heterogeneous moisture distributions. In contrast, requiring measurement scales to exceed SW and AI REV appeared overly restrictive and resulted in visible loss of reliable AI‐SW data. We attribute these findings to overestimation of REVs due to inherently problematic estimation of deterministic REVs in real systems. Implications of these findings for ensuring CT data quality and the efficient use of CT data are discussed.