bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Recent developments in the study of hypnotic pain reduction: a new golden era of research?
Authors: Milling Leonard S.
Published: August 2008

This article presents a selective review of recent developments in research on hypnotic pain reduction. A profusion of well‐controlled studies of hypnotic analgesia in children suggests that hypnosis ranks among the more effective psychological tools for managing the distress experienced by youngsters undergoing invasive medical procedures. This literature also draws attention to the importance of matching interventions to natural pain coping strategies. Virtual reality hypnosis shows much promise as a treatment and may offer hope to people who might otherwise be unable to experience hypnotic analgesia. Response expectancies appear to be a key psychological mechanism of hypnotic pain reduction. Neuroimaging studies point to activity in the midcingulate cortex as a possible biological mechanism of hypnotic analgesia. More generally, based upon the findings of a sound empirical literature, important meta‐analytic and qualitative reviews have concluded that hypnosis is effective for reducing both experimental and clinical pain. Indeed, the study of hypnotic pain reduction is vigorous, innovative, and may well have entered a golden era of research. Copyright © 2008 British Society of Experimental & Clinical Hypnosis. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Biomedical Potentials of Crown Ethers: Prospective Antitumor Agents
Authors: Kralj Marijeta , Tušek‐Božić Ljerka , Frkanec Leo
Published: August 2008

Crown ethers are of enormous interest and importance in chemistry, biochemistry, materials science, catalysis, separation, transport and encapsulated processes, as well as in the design and synthesis of various synthetic systems with specific properties, diverse capabilities, and programmable functions. Classical crown ethers are macrocyclic polyethers that contain 3–20 oxygen atoms separated from each other by two or more carbon atoms. They are exceptionally versatile in selectively binding a range of metal ions and a variety of organic neutral and ionic species. Crown ethers are currently being studied and used in a variety of applications beyond their traditional place in chemistry. This review presents additional applications and the ever‐increasing biomedical potentials of these intriguing compounds, with particular emphasis on the prospects of their relevance as anticancer agents. We believe that further research in this direction should be encouraged, as crown compounds could either induce toxicities that are different from those of conventional antitumor drugs, or complement drugs in current use, thereby providing a valuable adjunct to therapy.
The prognostic significance of cytokine levels in newly diagnosed acute myeloid leukemia and high‐risk myelodysplastic syndromes
Authors: Tsimberidou Apostolia Maria , Estey Elihu , Wen Sijin , Pierce Sherry , Kantarjian Hagop , Albitar Maher , Kurzrock Razelle
Published: August 2008

BACKGROUND.

Tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐α and other cytokines are involved in the pathogenesis of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) and high‐risk myelodysplastic syndromes (MDS), but their prognostic significance in these diseases is unknown. In the current study, the authors assessed the association between serum levels of various cytokines and clinical outcomes in patients with untreated AML or high‐risk MDS.

METHODS.

Serum levels of TNF‐α, interleukin (IL)‐1 receptor antagonist, IL‐6, IL‐10, and endostatin were measured in patients with AML or high‐risk MDS who presented for treatment at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center from September 1994 through January 2001. Univariate and multivariate analyses were performed to test for correlations with clinical outcomes.

RESULTS.

Higher TNF‐α levels were found to correlate with poorer performance status; higher leukocyte counts; higher levels of β2‐microglobulin, creatinine, uric acid, and alkaline phosphatase; lower levels of creatinine clearance and albumin; baseline infection; and M4‐M5 AML subtypes. TNF‐α levels <10 pg/mL were associated with higher rates of complete remission (P = .003), survival (P = .0003), and event‐free survival (EFS) (P = .0009). However, on multivariate analyses, TNF‐α level ≥10 pg/mL was not found to be an independent factor predicting clinical outcomes, but became statistically significant when leukocyte count was excluded from the models. The other cytokines were not found to be predictive of clinical outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS.

High serum TNF‐α level is an adverse prognostic factor for survival and EFS in patients with untreated AML or high‐risk MDS. Cancer 2008. © 2008 American Cancer Society.
Cyclic Voltammetric Behavior of Nitrogen‐Doped Tetrahedral Amorphous Carbon Films Deposited by Filtered Cathodic Vacuum Arc
Authors: Khun N. W. , Liu E. , Guo H. W.
Published: August 2008

Nitrogen‐doped tetrahedral amorphous carbon (ta‐C : N) films were deposited by filtered cathodic vacuum arc (FCVA) technique using nitrogen as a background gas. The structure of the ta‐C : N films was studied with X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and Raman spectroscopy in terms of nitrogen flow rate used during the film deposition. Potential windows of the films measured in deaerated and unstirred solutions, such as 0.5 M HCl, 0.1 M KCl, 0.1 M NaCl, 0.1 M KOH, and 0.1 M NaOH, were about 2.4, 2.32, 3.2, 3.1, and 3.25 V, respectively. This study showed that the potential windows of the ta‐C : N films were also affected by nitrogen flow rate. The ta‐C : N films used in this study had the desired voltammetric characteristics suitable for electrochemical analysis.
Cu(II) Hexacyanoferrate(III) Modified Carbon Paste Electrode; Application for Electrocatalytic Detection of Nitrite
Authors: Ojani Reza , Raoof Jahan‐Bakhsh , Norouzi Banafsheh
Published: August 2008

Copper hexacyanoferrate (CuHCF) film‐modified carbon paste electrode (CPE) has been prepared from various electrolytic aqueous solutions using consecutive cyclic voltammetry. The cyclic voltammograms showed the direct deposition of CuHCF films from the mixing of Cu2+ and Fe(CN)63− ions and each time with one of the six cations: H+, Na+, K+, NH4+, Mg2+, and Al3+. The CuHCF film showed a single redox couple that exhibited a cation effect (Na+, K+, Mg2+, and NH4+) and anion effect (Cl−, NO3−, SO42−, ClO4−, and BrO3−) in the cyclic voltammograms. Voltammetric studies have indicated that in presence of nitrite, the cathodic peak current of CuHCF increases, followed by a decrease in the corresponding anodic current. This indicated that nitrite was reduced by the redox mediator immobilized on the electrode surface via an electrocatalytic mechanism. The process of reduction and its kinetics were investigated by using cyclic voltammetry, differential pulse voltammetry, chronoamperometry and chronocoulometry techniques. The electrocatalytic ability about 800 mV can be seen. The rate constant of the catalytic reduction of nitrite was found to be 7.9×105 cm3 mol−1 s−1. Linearity range obtained was 5×10−5−8.4×10−3 by cyclic voltammetry and 8×10−6−1.3×10−3 and 4×10−3−2×10−2 by differential pulse voltammetry.
Hydrothermal Synthesis of Titanium‐Supported Nickel Nanoflakes for Electrochemical Oxidation of Glucose
Authors: Yi Qingfeng , Huang Wu , Yu Wenqiang , Li Lei , Liu Xiaoping
Published: August 2008

Titanium‐supported nanoscale flaky nickel electrode (nanoNi/Ti) was prepared by a hydrothermal process using hydrazine hydrate as a reduction agent. Its electrocatalytic activity as an electrocatalyst for the electrooxidation of glucose was evaluated in alkaline solutions using cyclic voltammetry (CV), chronoamperometric responses (CA) and electrochemical impedance spectra (EIS). The nanoNi/Ti electrode exhibits significantly high current density of glucose oxidation. A high catalytic rate constant of 1.67×106 cm3 mol−1 s−1 was calculated from amperometric responses on the nanoNi/Ti electrode. Low charge transfer resistances on the nanoNi/Ti in 0.5 M NaOH containing various concentrations of glucose were obtained according to the analysis for EIS. Furthermore, amperometric data show a linear dependence of the current density for glucose oxidation upon glucose concentration in the range of 0.05–0.6 mM with a sensitivity of 7.32 mA cm−2 mM−1. A detection limit of 0.0012 mM (1.2 μM) M glucose was found. Results show that the prepared nanoNi/Ti electrode presents high electrocatalytic activity for glucose oxidation.
Stimulation of human mesenchymal stem cells and osteoblasts activities in vitro on silicon‐releasable scaffolds
Authors: Obata Akiko , Kasuga Toshihiro
Published: August 2008

Cellular activities of human osteoblasts (HOBs) and mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) on a silicon‐releasable scaffold, siloxane‐doped poly(lactic acid) and vaterite composite coated with hydroxycarbonate apatite (SPV‐H), were estimated using a medium with or without organic factors, such as dexamethasone (Dex) and β‐glycerophosphate (β‐GP), for inducing mineralization or differentiation. As a control, a composite film containing no silicon (denoted by PV‐H) was prepared using poly(lactic acid) and vaterite. HOBs cultured on SPV‐H formed some agglomerates, bone nodules, after a 21‐day culture in a medium without the organic factors, whereas no agglomerate was observed on PV‐H. Laser Raman spectra implied that calcium phosphate precipitated in HOBs on the SPV‐H. The silicon species in SPV‐H stimulated HOBs to mineralization. The culture tests using MSCs show that the level of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) activity in the cells cultured on SPV‐H increased during the 21‐day culture in a medium without Dex and β‐GP. The level was unchanged in MSCs cultured on PV‐H. In the case of supplementing Dex and β‐GP to the medium, the level of ALP activity in MSCs cultured on SPV‐H was higher than that on PV‐H at all time points during the 21‐day culture. The silicon species in SPV‐H were regarded to induce and enhance the osteogenic differentiation of MSCs. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res, 2009
Injectable acrylic bone cements for vertebroplasty based on a radiopaque hydroxyapatite. Bioactivity and biocompatibility
Authors: Hernández Lidia , Parra Juan , Vázquez Blanca , Bravo Antonio López , Collía Francisco , Goñi Isabel , Gurruchaga Marilo , San Román Julio
Published: August 2008

Radiopaque bone cements have been formulated to provide injectable pastes with improved bioactivity to be applied in vertebroplasty and kyphoplasty techniques. The bioactive compound was strontium containing hydroxyapatite salt, which was introduced as obtained (SrHA) or after treatment with MMA monomer (SrHA‐t). The in vitro bioactivity of the cements was tested in cement films or in cement pastes introduced directly in a simulated body fluid (SBF) solution at 37°C to mimic the in vivo conditions. Precipitation of an apatite‐like layer was observed for the 20 wt %‐SrHA‐t containing cement in the first experiments, and in all formulations in the second ones. The deposited particles were characterized by FTIR spectroscopy and by EDAX analysis. Radiopacity of cements after immersion in SBF was confirmed. The biocompatibility exhibited by the SrHA containing cements was, in some cases, superior to that shown by a formulation with 10 wt % of BaSO4. The new formulations prepared with the treated filler exhibited the lowest cytotoxicity and enhanced cellular proliferation. The in vivo biocompatibility tested by an intramuscular model in rats indicated the formation of a membrane formed by collagen fibers containing fibroblasts with no inflammatory cells, such as macrophages, giant cells or lymphocytes in all formulations. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Biomed Mater Res Part B: Appl Biomater, 2009
On the direct calculation of the free energy of quantization for molecular systems in the condensed phase
Authors: Geerke Daan P. , Luber Sandra , Marti Koni H. , Van Gunsteren Wilfred F.
Published: August 2008

Using the path integral formalism or the Feynman‐Hibbs approach, various expressions for the free energy of quantization for a molecular system in the condensed phase can be derived. These lead to alternative methods to directly compute quantization free energies from molecular dynamics computer simulations, which were investigated with an eye to their practical use. For a test system of liquid neon, two methods are shown to be most efficient for a direct evaluation of the excess free energy of quantization. One of them makes use of path integral simulations in combination with a single‐step free energy perturbation approach and was previously reported in the literature. The other method employs a Feynman‐Hibbs effective Hamiltonian together with the thermodynamic integration formalism. However, both methods are found to give less accurate results for the excess free energy of quantization than the estimate obtained from explicit path integral calculations on the excess free energy of the neon liquid in the classical and quantum mechanical limit. Suggestions are made to make both methods more accurate. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem 2009
Efficient evaluation of sampling quality of molecular dynamics simulations by clustering of dihedral torsion angles and Sammon mapping
Authors: Frickenhaus Stephan , Kannan Srinivasaraghavan , Zacharias Martin
Published: August 2008

A direct conformational clustering and mapping approach for peptide conformations based on backbone dihedral angles has been developed and applied to compare conformational sampling of Met‐enkephalin using two molecular dynamics (MD) methods. Efficient clustering in dihedrals has been achieved by evaluating all combinations resulting from independent clustering of each dihedral angle distribution, thus resolving all conformational substates. In contrast, Cartesian clustering was unable to accurately distinguish between all substates. Projection of clusters on dihedral principal component (PCA) subspaces did not result in efficient separation of highly populated clusters. However, representation in a nonlinear metric by Sammon mapping was able to separate well the 48 highest populated clusters in just two dimensions. In addition, this approach also allowed us to visualize the transition frequencies between clusters efficiently. Significantly, higher transition frequencies between more distinct conformational substates were found for a recently developed biasing‐potential replica exchange MD simulation method allowing faster sampling of possible substates compared to conventional MD simulations. Although the number of theoretically possible clusters grows exponentially with peptide length, in practice, the number of clusters is only limited by the sampling size (typically much smaller), and therefore the method is well suited also for large systems. The approach could be useful to rapidly and accurately evaluate conformational sampling during MD simulations, to compare different sampling strategies and eventually to detect kinetic bottlenecks in folding pathways. © 2008 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Comput Chem, 2009
Simvastatin attenuation of cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats via increased phosphorylation of Akt and endothelial nitric oxide synthase
Authors: Sugawara Takashi , Ayer Robert , Jadhav Vikram , Chen Wanqiu , Tsubokawa Tamiji , Zhang John H.
Published: August 2008

The mechanisms involved in simvastatin‐mediated attenuation of cerebral vasospasm after subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) are unclear. We investigated the role of the phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/Akt (PI3K/Akt) pathway and endothelial nitric oxide synthase (eNOS) in the cerebral vasculature in statin‐mediated attenuation of cerebral vasospasm using wortmannin, an irreversible pharmacological PI3K inhibitor, and a rat SAH endovascular perforation model. Simvastatin was administered intraperitoneally in two dosages (1 mg/kg and 20 mg/kg) at 0.5, 24, and 48 hr after SAH and histological parameters of ipsilateral intracranial carotid artery (ICA) were assessed at 24 and 72 hr. SAH significantly decreased ICA diameter and perimeter while increasing wall thickness at both 24 and 72 hr. High‐dosage simvastatin prevented the reduction of ICA diameter and perimeter following SAH, whereas both high and low dosages reduced wall thickness significantly at 24 and 72 hr. The effects of simvastatin were significantly reversed by wortmannin. High‐dosage simvastatin increased pAkt and peNOS (phosphorylated forms) levels without increasing Akt and eNOS expression compared with the SAH group and also improved neurological deficits at 24 and 72 hr. Simvastatin did not affect protein levels by itself compared with untreated sham group. The present study elucidates the critical role of the PI3K activation leading to phosphorylation of Akt and eNOS in simvastatin‐mediated attenuation of cerebral vasospasm after SAH. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
High potassium induces taurine release by osmosensitive and osmoresistant mechanisms in the rat hippocampus in vivo
Authors: Rodríguez‐Navarro José A. , Gonzalo‐Gobernado Rafael , Herranz Antonio S. , Gonźlez‐Vigueras José M. , Solís José M.
Published: August 2008

The high potassium‐evoked taurine efflux in the nervous tissue has been entirely considered to be the result of the cell swelling produced by KCl influx via passive Donnan forces. However, the extracellular taurine increase evoked in the hippocampus by applying 6–100 mM KCl through microdialysis probes, which saturates at a concentration of 25 mM KCl, is not congruent with the mentioned osmosensitive release of taurine stimulated by high potassium. Therefore, we studied whether the taurine release elicited by different high KCl concentrations (25, 50, 75, or 100 mM) was blocked under hypertonic conditions (+100 mM sucrose). Taurine release stimulated by 25 mM KCl was totally osmosensitive, but that released by higher KCl concentrations became progressively osmoresistant, achieving more than the 60% of the extracellular taurine enhancement during 100 mM KCl perfusion. The osmoresistant taurine release evoked by 100 mM KCl perfusion was partially reduced by a solution without Ca2+and with high Mg2+, or byD,L‐2‐amino‐5‐phosphopentanoic acid, an N‐methyl‐D‐aspartic acid (NMDA) receptor antagonist. Moreover, the release of taurine induced by a hypoosmotic solution was reduced by the presence ofeither high K+(75 mM) or NMDA (100 μM). These results indicate that although moderately high [K+] evoke the osmosensitive release of taurine, higher [K+] inhibit it and trigger the release of taurine by an osmoresistant mechanism. This last component is partially mediated by NMDA receptors activated by the glutamate released during potassium‐induced depolarization. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Changes in biogenic amines during iced and ambient temperature storage of tilapia
Authors: Sil Subhasis , Joseph Jose , Kumar K Ashok
Published: August 2008

BACKGROUND: Changes in the biogenic amine content of tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus) with time during iced and ambient temperature (28 °C) storage were quantified by high‐performance liquid chromatography in a gradient elution system using acetonitrile and water as solvents.

RESULTS: The levels of amines in tilapia were significantly low even after a long storage period (18 h under ambient temperature storage and 15 days under iced storage). All amines except spermidine and spermine increased with time during both iced and ambient temperature storage. Spermidine and spermine showed a decrease with increasing storage time.

CONCLUSION: Being euryhaline (tolerant of a wide range of salinity) in nature, tilapia shows significantly low quantities of biogenic amines even after a long period of ambient temperature or iced storage, unlike most other marine fish. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry
Effect of fermentation metabolites on rheological and sensory properties of fermented rice noodles
Authors: Lu Zhan‐Hui , Cao Wei , Peng He‐Hua , Wang Feng , Tatsumi Eizo , Kohyama Kaoru , Li Li‐Te
Published: August 2008

BACKGROUND: Considering the effect of natural fermentation on the textural improvement of fermented rice noodles in China and South Asia, and given the lack of reports concerning the roles of fermentation metabolites (enzymes, organic acids, glucose and maltose), this study aims to determine fermentation metabolites produced during fermentation of raw milled rice grains, and investigate their effects on rheological and sensory properties of rice noodles.

RESULTS: α‐Amylase activity was correlated with reducing sugar content significantly in the supernatant during fermentation process (r = 0.76, P < 0.05). Lactic acid was the dominant organic acid produced by fermentation. Protein and lipid content decreased significantly by fermentation. Treating the rice grains with trypsin, lipase or lactic acid could modify the rheological characteristics and improve the sensory properties of rice noodles. Removal of protein and lipid by physical extraction confirmed the results. The residue of glucose and maltose in rice flour weakened the noodle texture.

CONCLUSIONS: Fermentation of raw milled rice decreased protein and lipid content, increased the purity of rice starch, and thus improved the texture of fermented rice noodles. The low molecule weight sugars produced during fermentation should be removed for their negative effect on texture. Copyright © 2008 Society of Chemical Industry
Radiofrequency‐Assisted liver resection in cirrhotic patients with hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Curro Giuseppe , Jiao Long , Scisca Claudio , Baccarani Umberto , Mucciardi Massimo , Habib Nagy , Navarra Giuseppe
Published: August 2008

Background

Radio‐frequency‐assisted liver resection has been shown to allow virtually bloodless procedures without the need for vascular exclusion manoeuvres. Our primary end‐point was to evaluate safety and feasibility of RF‐assisted liver resection in cirrhotic patients with hepatocellular carcinoma. Our second end‐point was to assess whether the RF‐assisted procedure influence the outcome in terms of morbidity and mortality.

Methods

A retrospective study was done of 55 cirrhotic patients who underwent RF‐assisted liver resection for HCC at our Departments between September 2001 and October 2007.

Results

In the period of study 29 monosegmentectomies, 20 bisegmentectomies, 4 trisegmentectomies and 2 right hepatectomies were carried out. Vascular exclusion manoeuvres were never performed. One patient died post‐operatively because of untreatable hepatorenal syndrome. Twelve patients out of 55 experienced 21 complications including complicated pleural effusion, intra‐abdominal collection, hepatorenal syndrome, ascites, hematoma and biliary fistula. Post‐operative liver failure occurred in one case (1.8%). In patients without post‐operative morbidity (n = 43) the 4‐year survival rate was 62% versus 24% in patients who experienced post‐operative morbidity (n = 12) (P = 0.02).

Conclusions

RF‐assisted liver resection is a safe and feasible procedure associated with lower morbidity and hospital mortality rates even in case of liver cirrhosis. J. Surg. Oncol. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Effect of boron concentration on the corrosion resistance of cast B‐bearing steel in molten zinc
Authors: Hanguang Fu , Xuding Song , Yongping Lei , Jiandong Xing
Published: August 2008

The microstructures, mechanical properties and corrosion resistance in molten zinc of five kinds of cast B‐bearing steels containing X wt% B ‐ 0.8 wt% Si ‐ 1.0 wt% Mn ‐ (1.0∼2.0) wt% Cr ‐ (0.3∼0.5) wt% C (X = 0.50, 1.00, 1.50, 2.00, 2.50) were studied. The effects of boron concentration on microstructure and mechanical properties of cast B‐bearing steels have been investigated by optical microscopy (OM), X‐ray diffraction (XRD) analysis, hardness and impact tester. The evaluation of corrosion resistance in molten zinc of cast B‐bearing steel is calculated from the slopes of mass lossversusdipping time and surface area of sample at 480 °C. The results showed that boride volume fraction and hardness increased and the impact toughness of cast B‐bearing steel decreased with the increase in boron concentration. The corrosion rate of cast B‐bearing steels decreased and corrosion resistance in molten zinc increased with the increase in boron concentration. Moreover, the corrosion rate of cast B‐bearing steels decreased with the increase in temperature of molten zinc.
Polymer/Clay Nanocomposites: Influence of Ionic Strength on the Structure and Adhesion Characteristics in Multilayered Films
Authors: Stefanescu Eduard A. , Stefanescu Cristina , Donose Bogdan C. , Garno Jayne C. , Daly William H. , Schmidt Gudrun , Negulescu Ioan I.
Published: August 2008

The aim of the present contribution is to understand how ionic strength, brought by the addition of salt to laponite/PEO nanocomposite dispersions, influences the texture and adhesion characteristics at nano‐ and microscales in multilayered nanocomposite films prepared from such dispersions. At the nano‐scale, SAXS and XRD measurements indicated that the clay platelets orient parallel to the film plane and that the polymer chains intercalate the clay platelets regardless of salt addition. A gradual transition from an agglomerated structure, containing polymer‐rich and clay‐rich domains, to a fine‐balanced structure with smaller distinct details without excess PEO was observed, via AFM, on the exposed edges of cryo‐microtomed films with increasing ionic strength.

magnified image
Image reconstruction by regularized nonlinear inversion—Joint estimation of coil sensitivities and image content
Authors: Uecker Martin , Hohage Thorsten , Block Kai Tobias , Frahm Jens
Published: August 2008

The use of parallel imaging for scan time reduction in MRI faces problems with image degradation when using GRAPPA or SENSE for high acceleration factors. Although an inherent loss of SNR in parallel MRI is inevitable due to the reduced measurement time, the sensitivity to image artifacts that result from severe undersampling can be ameliorated by alternative reconstruction methods. While the introduction of GRAPPA and SENSE extended MRI reconstructions from a simple unitary transformation (Fourier transform) to the inversion of an ill‐conditioned linear system, the next logical step is the use of a nonlinear inversion. Here, a respective algorithm based on a Newton‐type method with appropriate regularization terms is demonstrated to improve the performance of autocalibrating parallel MRI—mainly due to a better estimation of the coil sensitivity profiles. The approach yields images with considerably reduced artifacts for high acceleration factors and/or a low number of reference lines. Magn Reson Med, 2008. © 2008 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.
Preface: phys. stat. sol. (a) 205/8
Authors: Fortunato Elvira
Published: August 2008

Advances in Transparent Electronics: From Materials to Devices II

This issue of physica status solidi contains selected papers presented in Symposium I “Advances in Transparent Electronics: From Materials to Devices II” at the European Materials Research Society Spring Meeting held in Strasbourg, France, from 28 May to 1 June 2007. This was the second meeting in Europe covering this topic. It was attended by scientists from 33 different countries, with special emphasis to the Republic of South Korea and Japan (20% and 10%, respectively, of the total of papers presented).

The symposium programme consisted of 9 invited talks, 45 oral presentations and 122 poster presentations, in total 176 contributions, from which 60 were selected for publication in the proceedings, representing nearly 35% of the submitted communications.

Topics ranging from the fundamental understanding of physical phenomena to materials and devices have been covered, with special emphasis on the following ones:

– Materials and processing for transparent electronics

– Characterization and modelling

– New devices (nano, micro and macro)

– New applications

The success of this symposium was the result of the contributions of many dedicated people. It is a pleasure for me to thank the symposium organizers (H. Hosono, Japan, J. Wager, USA, G. Kiriakidis, Greece, and S. Y. Lee, Korea) for their availability and help during the preparation and follow up of this symposium as well as all the individual referees, who donated their time to help making this a successful and scientific strong contribution for the international community on transparent electronics. I also would like to thank the two voluntary symposium assistants (P. Barquinha and G. Gonçalo) who helped before, during and after the symposium.

Since the work is not limited to what was done before and during the conference, I also have to emphasize a detailed, delicate and long work that has been done after the conference was over, in close cooperation with Prof. Martin Stutzmann and Dr. Stefan Hildebrandt, for the edition of this special issue.

I also would like to thank the E‐MRS staff (C. Kocher and S. Schoeffter) for the unlimited time, energy and professionalism given for the success of this symposium. Without their assistance the symposium would not have been the success that it was.

I also gratefully acknowledge the financial support of our main sponsors who made the symposium possible:

– FCT‐UNL, Portugal

– Hewlett‐Packard, Ireland

– Horiba Jobin Yvon, France

– Canon, Japan
Pulsed laser annealing of semiconductor structures for functional devices
Authors: Misra N. , Xu L. , Rogers M. S. , Ko S. H. , Grigoropoulos C. P.
Published: August 2008

The cover picture of this issue of physica status solidi (c) has been taken from the article [1]. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Abdominal and pelvic ultrasound findings within 24 hours following uneventful Cesarean section
Authors: Koskas M. , Nizard J. , Salomon L. J. , Ville Y.
Published: August 2008

Objectives

To describe prospectively the normal abdominal and pelvic ultrasound features within 24 h following uneventful Cesarean section.

Methods

Transabdominal ultrasound examination was performed between 1 and 3 h, and again at 24 h, following lower‐segment Cesarean section (LSCS). The myometrium, endometrium, and amount and distribution of free peritoneal fluid were studied in 30 women with singleton pregnancies who underwent LSCS delivery.

Results

Examinations were performed easily in all cases except one who was morbidly obese (body mass index > 40 kg/m2). At 1–3 h after delivery, mean ± SD endometrial thickness was 13 ± 2 mm. Mean uterine length, from the fundus to the cervical external os, was 160 ± 15 mm. Measurement of uterine length in the mid‐sagittal plane of the pelvis was impossible in eight cases (27%) owing to pain. No abnormal intrauterine findings were observed. Mean uterine width was 110 ± 10 mm. Mean distance between the sacral promontory and uterine fundus was 104 ± 11 mm. Mean thicknesses of the anterior and posterior walls of the uterus were 40 ± 5 mm and 39 ± 7 mm, respectively. No fluid was seen in Morrison's or Douglas' pouches. There was a consistent and significant reduction between the measurements performed at 1–3 h and those at 24 h after LSCS, except for the distance between the fundus and external os.

Conclusions

Ultrasound examination is feasible after Cesarean section. Images are obtained easily, even when scanning through the scar. In normal pregnancies, there is no fluid in the abdomen or pelvis. These results could help clinicians in the decision‐making process in cases of early postpartum hemorrhage or hemodynamic instability following LSCS. Copyright © 2008 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Contention‐free approaches for WiFi MAC design for VoIP services: performance analysis and comparison
Authors: Qaimkhani Irshad A. , Hossain Ekram
Published: August 2008

The exponential growth in the demand of voice over internet protocol (VoIP) services along with the increasing demand for mobility in VoIP services has attracted great research efforts towards provisioning of VoIP services in IEEE 802.11‐based Wireless LANs (WiFi networks). We address one of the important research problems, namely, the quality of service (QoS)‐aware efficient silence suppression in the bursty voice traffic, for provisioning VoIP services in WiFi networks. The research works in the recent literature on silence suppression in voice calls have been surveyed categorising them on how the activity arrival is notified to the access point (AP). In most of the recent schemes, notification of uplink activity arrival is done through contention based medium access mechanisms such as the distributed coordination function (DCF). Contention‐based medium access causes non‐deterministic delays, therefore such schemes are not suited to voice traffic which require strict delay bound guarantees. This paper focuses on the schemes which do not use contention based approaches for silence suppression in voice traffic. Analytical performance evaluation and comparison of such schemes is carried out. Two very important performance metrics are modelled mathematically. One is the expected polling overhead time that the schedulers in these schemes can save per voice call during one voice activity cycle as compared to that in the round‐robin polling scheduler. The other is the expected unnecessary wireless channel access delay that a typical first talk‐spurt frame experiences due to the specific design of each scheme. The numerical results of this evaluation lead us to the conclusion whether or not and to what extent each of these schemes is viable. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hormonal programming in perinatal life: leptin and beyond
Authors: Plagemann Andreas , Harder Thomas
Published: August 2008

Central nervous system leptin resistance as a possible cause of obesity and associated diseases is a ‘hot topic’ in nutrition research. Simultaneously, a new field in biomedical sciences has evolved during the past years.
Dietary fish oil decreases secretion of T helper (Th) 1-type cytokines by a direct effect on murine splenic T cells but enhances secretion of a Th2-type cytokine by an effect on accessory cells
Authors: Petursdottir Dagbjort H. , Hardardottir Ingibjorg
Published: August 2008

Dietary fish oil is considered to have anti-inflammatory effects based primarily on its effects on T-cell proliferation and IL-2 secretion. Its effects on the secretion of T helper (Th) 1-type cytokines vary and few studies have examined its effects on the secretion of Th2-type cytokines. In the present study, we examined the effects of dietary fish oil on the secretion of Th1 and Th2-type cytokines by splenocytes and the mechanism by which dietary fish oil affects Th2-type cytokine secretion. Mice were fed diets supplemented with 18 % fish oil (w/w) +2 % maize oil or 20 % maize oil for 6 weeks. Spleen cells, isolated splenic T cells and accessory cells (splenocytes depleted of T cells) were stimulated with anti-CD3/anti-CD28. The secretion of interferon (IFN)-γ, TNF-α, IL-4 and IL-10 was measured by ELISA. Dietary fish oil decreased the secretion of IFN-γ and TNF-α by total splenocytes and isolated T cells. In contrast, dietary fish oil increased the secretion of IL-4 by total splenocytes but had no effect on IL-4 secretion by isolated T cells. When isolated T cells were cultured with CD11b+cells (mainly macrophages), cells from mice fed the fish oil diet secreted more IL-4 than cells from mice fed the maize oil diet. These results demonstrate that dietary fish oil directs cytokine secretion by splenocytes towards a Th2 phenotype and that the effects of dietary fish oil on the secretion of a Th2-type cytokine are mediated by its effect on CD11b+accessory cells.
Learning Shakespeare's Secret Language: the Limits of ‘Performance Studies’
Authors: Brown John Russell
Published: August 2008

As author of one of the pioneering books advocating the study of Shakespeare's Plays in Performance (1966), founder of the Department of Drama and Theatre Arts at Birmingham University, and for fifteen years an Associate Director of the Royal National Theatre, John Russell Brown is in a uniquely authoritative position to look back over the intervening years as ‘Performance Studies’ have increasingly displaced the study of Shakespeare's plays as texts. But has this been as helpful as many, including the author, hoped, when in practice it is so often based on the second- or third-hand recreation of lost and isolated theatrical moments, and fails entirely to give a sense of the progressive experience of watching a play? John Russell Brown here argues for closer attention to what he calls the ‘secret language’ of the plays – implicit instructions to actors that are buried in the texts themselves, at a time when there was no director to encourage or impose a particular interpretation or approach. He concludes: ‘Rather than trying to describe and understand what very different people have made of the plays in very different circumstances and times, we can best study them in performance by allowing them to reflect our own lives.’ John Russell Brown's most recent books are Shakespeare Dancing (Palgrave, 2005) and, as editor, The Routledge Companion to Directors' Shakespeare (2008). In 2007 he was appointed Visiting Professor at University College London.
Modeling dust emissions and transport within Europe: The Ukraine March 2007 event
Authors: Bessagnet Bertrand , Menut Laurent , Aymoz Gilles , Chepfer Hélène , Vautard Robert
Published: August 2008

A dust event was observed in Europe on 23–25 March 2007. Surface observations in Central Europe showed huge concentrations of particulate matter (PM). At the same time, dust models diagnosed a Saharan dust outbreak flowing from Sahara to Europe. However, lidar measurements and surface stations in Eastern Europe diagnosed a dust event originating from Ukraine related to chernozemic‐erodible lands. Using surface and satellite measurements with modeling results, it is demonstrated that the finally huge surface concentrations recorded in the Netherlands, Belgium, and the north of France were mostly due to the extremely rare Ukraine dust event, whereas Saharan dust events usually produce only midtroposphere plumes. To investigate this episode, the chemistry‐transport model CHIMERE is modified to account for the erodibility of chernozemic soil inside Europe. A size distribution for chernozemic dust emission is proposed. Over Western Europe, the model reproduces the observed PM concentration peaks up to 200 μg m−3, with a large contribution of Ukraine dust, up to 170 μg m−3. This first model study of dust emissions due to European arable land shows that it is possible to fairly retrieve the magnitude of surface concentrations far away from the emission sources.
Characterizing an “uncharacteristic” ETS event in northern Cascadia
Authors: Wang Kelin , Dragert Herb , Kao Honn , Roeloffs Evelyn
Published: August 2008

GPS and borehole strainmeter data allowed the detection and model characterization of a slow slip event in northern Cascadia in November 2006 accompanying a brief episode of seismic tremor. The event is much smaller in area and duration than other well‐known ETS events in northern Cascadia but is strikingly similar to typical ETS events at the Nankai subduction zone. The 30–45 km depth range and the 2–3 cm slip magnitude as interpreted for this event appear to be common to most ETS events in these two subduction zones, regardless of their sizes. We infer that the Nankai‐type small ETS events must be abundant at Cascadia and that ETS events at the two subduction zones are governed by a similar physical process.
Dendritic cells and C‐type lectin receptors: coupling innate to adaptive immune responses
Authors: van Vliet Sandra J , García‐Vallejo Juan J , van Kooyk Yvette
Published: August 2008

Dendritic cells (DCs) have an important function in the initiation and differentiation of immune responses, linking innate information to tailored adaptive responses. Depending on the pathogen invading the body, specific immune responses are built up that are crucial for eliminating the pathogen from the host. Host recognition of invading microorganisms relies on evolutionarily ancient, germline‐encoded pattern recognition receptors (PRRs) that are highly expressed on the cell surface of DCs, of which the Toll‐like receptors (TLRs) are well characterized and recognize bacterial or viral components. Moreover, they bind a variety of self‐proteins released from damaged tissues including several heat‐shock proteins. The membrane‐associated C‐type lectin receptors (CLRs) recognize glycan structures expressed by host cells of the immune system or on specific tissues, which upon recognition allow cellular interactions between DCs and other immune or tissue cells. In addition, CLRs can function as PRRs. In contrast to TLRs, CLRs recognize carbohydrate structures present on the pathogens. Modification of glycan structures on pathogens to mimic host glycans can thereby alter CLR interactions that subsequently modifies DC‐induced polarization. In this review, we will discuss in detail how specific glycosylation of antigens can dictate both the innate and adaptive interactions that are mediated by CLRs on DCs and how this balances immune activation and inhibition of DC function.
Carrier generation and transport in bulk heterojunction films processed with 1,8-octanedithiol as a processing additive
Authors: Hwang In-Wook , Cho Shinuk , Kim Jin Young , Lee Kwanghee , Coates Nelson E. , Moses Daniel , Heeger Alan J.
Published: August 2008

Improved performance of polymer-based solar cells based on poly[2,6-(4,4-bis-(2-ethylhexyl)-4H-cyclopenta[2,1-b;3,4-b′]dithiophene)-alt-4,7-(2,1,3-benzo-thiadiazole)] PCPDTBT has been obtained by using 1,8-octanedithiol (ODT) as a processing additive in the polymer solution used to spin cast the bulk heterojunction films. Although ultrafast spectroscopy studies indicate that the carrier losses are reduced in the films processed with ODT [similar to the reduced carrier losses after thermal annealing of bulk heterojunction (BHJ) materials made from P3HT:PCBM], the magnitude of the reduction is not sufficient to explain the observed factor of 2 increase in the power conversion efficiency. From the analysis of carrier transport in field effect transistors, we find increased electron mobility in the PCPDTBT:PC70BM composites when fabricated with ODT, which is indicative of enhanced connectivity of PC70BM networks. The improved electron mobility appears to be the primary origin of the improved power conversion efficiency in BHJ films.
Derivation of electrostatic Korteweg–deVries equation in fully relativistic two-fluid plasmas
Authors: Lee Nam C.
Published: August 2008

A second order Korteweg–deVries (KdV) equation that describes the evolution of nonlinear electrostatic waves in fully relativistic two-fluid plasmas is derived without any assumptions restricting the magnitudes of the flow velocity and the temperatures of each species. In the derivation, the positive and negative species of plasmas are treated with equal footings, not making any species specific assumptions. Thus, the resulting equation, which is expressed in transparent form symmetric in particle species, can be applied to any two-fluid plasmas having arbitrarily large flow velocity and ultrarelativistically high temperatures. The phase velocity of the nonlinear electrostatic waves found in this paper is shown to be related to the flow velocity and the acoustic wave velocity through the Lorentz addition law of velocities, revealing the relativistic nature of the formulation in the present study. The derived KdV equation is applied to some limiting cases, and it is shown that it can be reduced to existing results in nonrelativistic plasmas, while there are some discrepancies from the results in the weak relativistic approximations.
Light scattering and diffuse light propagation in sintered porous silicon
Authors: Wolf A. , Terheiden B. , Brendel R.
Published: August 2008

The scattering coefficient and the refractive index of sintered porous silicon are deduced from measurements on 1–4μm thick freestanding films. Mie’s theory is applied to describe the light scattering by the spherical pores. Using a reduced effective refractive index for the host medium in Mie’s theory accounts for the close spacing of the pores and results in an agreement between the measured and calculated scattering coefficients. A coherent calculation for the specular nonscattered radiation is combined with a model that describes the propagation of the scattered diffuse light flux. For this diffuse model two approaches, the Kubelka Munk theory and a Lambertian model developed in this work, are compared. The combined model reproduces both, the specular as well as the diffuse component of the measured reflection and transmission.
Exact statistics of chaotic dynamical systems
Authors: Guralnik Zachary
Published: August 2008

We present an inverse method to construct large classes of chaotic invariant sets together with their exact statistics. The associated dynamical systems are characterized by a probability distribution and a two-form. While our emphasis is on classical systems, we briefly speculate about possible applications to quantum field theory, in the context of generalizations of stochastic quantization.
Characteristics of a dust trajectory sensor
Authors: Auer Siegfried , Grün Eberhard , Kempf Sascha , Srama Ralf , Srowig André , Sternovsky Zoltan , Tschernjawski Valentin
Published: August 2008

Trajectories of cosmic dust particles are determined by the measurement of the electrical signals that are induced when a charged grain flies through a position-sensitive electrode system. A typical dust trajectory sensor has four sensor planes consisting of about 16 wire electrodes each. Two adjacent planes have orthogonal wire directions. The sensor is highly transparent and mechanically robust, provides a large sensitive area, large field of view, and can, at least in principle, achieve unlimited precision. While a sensor model had already undergone limited testing in the dust laboratory, its response as a function of position and angle of incidence of the trajectory and as a function of sensor dimensions was generally unknown. To better understand its characteristics, the operation of a sensor model consisting of three planes and seven wires per plane was simulated using the COULOMB computer program. We show that the response of the reduced model can be applied to a model with more planes and more wires per plane. The effect of a trajectory’s position and angle on the signal strength is discussed as well as the influence of geometrical parameters such as wire diameter, distance between wire planes, and wire length. We found a greater effect of the wire diameter on the signal strength, and a lesser effect of the plane distance, than expected. A set of similarity rules is provided for the design of a larger sensor. Finally, we discuss the optimization of the sensor for different applications.
Effects of transverse temperature gradient on acoustic and streaming velocity fields in a resonant cavity
Authors: Nabavi Majid , Siddiqui Kamran , Dargahi Javad
Published: August 2008

Effects of transverse temperature gradient on acoustic and streaming velocity fields inside a gas-filled rectangular enclosure subject to acoustic standing wave are investigated experimentally. Synchronized particle image velocimetry technique has been used to measure the acoustic and streaming velocity fields. The results show that the temperature difference between the top and the bottom walls deforms the symmetric streaming vortices about the channel’s centerline to the asymmetric ones. As the temperature difference increases, the amplitude of streaming velocity increases.