bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Obesogenic environment: A concept analysis and pediatric perspective
Authors: Gauthier Kristine I. , Krajicek Marilyn J.
Published: April 2013

Purpose

A concept analysis was undertaken to examine the attributes, characteristics, and uses of the concept of obesogenic environment within a pediatric context.

Conclusions

Utilizing a modified version of Walker and Avant's method, the attributes and characteristics of obesogenic environment were identified as it pertains to children. Based on the review of the literature and previous definitions applied to adults, a definition of the concept of obesogenic environment within a pediatric context was developed; examples of sample cases illustrate the concept further.

Practice Implications

Defining the concept of obesogenic environment has utility for nursing theory development, practice, research, and education.
Nurses’ aims when managing pediatric postoperative pain: Is what they say the same as what they do?
Authors: Twycross Alison , Finley G. Allen
Published: April 2013

Purpose

The purpose of this study was to explore nurses’ aims when managing postoperative pain and whether reported aims reflect actual practices.

Design and Methods

Participant observation was used to collect data regarding nurses’ (n = 17) pain management practices. Nurses (n = 19) were asked: When managing postoperative pain, what is your overall aim?

Results

Around half the participants (n = 10) aimed for patients to be comfortable while others aimed for a pain score of 2–3 (n = 7), or below 5 (n = 2). Observed practices matched aims for just more than half the participants (n = 9).

Practice Implications

There is evidence of individual variation in practices. This may impact on the care provided.
Impact of Structural Differences on Perceived Sweetness in Semisolid Dairy Matrices
Authors: Arancibia Carla , Costell Elvira , Bayarri Sara
Published: April 2013

The objective of this work was to explore the possibility of obtaining dairy desserts of similar consistency and with different sweetness intensity. Eight formulations were prepared varying in the thickener type and concentration: carboxymethyl cellulose (1.1 and 1.3% w/w) and modified starch (3.5 and 4.0% w/w) and the milk type (whole or skimmed). The amounts of sugar (10% w/w), colorant (37.5 mg/kg) and lemon flavor (120 mg/kg) were fixed. Changes in composition and structure provide products with similar values of three instrumental indices of thickness (η10, η50 and Kokini shear stress [OSS]). The relationship between each of these instrumental indices and the sensory consistency fitted well to Psychophysical Stevens' Law. No direct relationship was detected between OSS values and sweetness. Some structural differences observed between thickeners can influence product behavior during oral processing, modifying in‐mouth delivery of sucrose molecules. It could explain sweetness differences among samples with similar consistency.

Practical Applications

Decreasing calorie content of processed foods without modifying their quality and acceptance is important for consumers and the food industry. In dairy desserts, a strategy to compensate or reduce the sensory quality problems associated with calorie reduction is to design novel textures for optimizing the delivery of sweet taste stimuli to taste receptors. The results of this work have shown that it is possible to obtain semisolid dairy desserts with similar texture and with different sweetness, and also, with different texture and similar sweetness using different thickeners. More studies are needed to understand the effect of oral processing in dairy desserts thickened with different hydrocolloids to explain the observed variations in sweetness perceived.
Understanding the Link between Bolus Properties and Perceived Texture
Authors: Young Ashley K. , Cheong Jean Ne , Hedderley Duncan I. , Morgenstern Marco P. , James Bryony J.
Published: April 2013

The relationships between food structure, texture perception and bolus properties during bolus formation are poorly understood. This preliminary single‐subject study on three biscuit recipes investigated the links between bolus macrostructure, perceived texture (using temporal dominance of sensations), and mechanical and rheological properties (using back extrusion and consecutive double compression) throughout mastication. The fracture properties of the biscuits dominated textural perception in the early stages of mastication. As mastication progressed, a sensory transition from dry to sticky was accompanied by an increase in “cohesiveness” and decreases in the consistency coefficient, peak force and “adhesiveness.” At the point of swallow, the boluses were shear thinning pastes and sticky dominated perception. Consistency coefficient and “cohesiveness” indicated different swallowing thresholds for the different recipes. This study found back extrusion to be a suitable method for characterizing biscuit bolus rheology in the later stages of mastication as it is unaffected by bolus dimensions.

Practical Applications

Mastication of a solid food involves the breakdown of the food and reassembly with saliva into a deformable bolus that can be swallowed safely. The relationships between the perceived texture and structural, mechanical and rheological properties throughout mastication are not well understood. An understanding of these relationships could aid in the design of foods that can be swallowed safely by the elderly or those with dysphagia, or foods that follow a desired oral processing path and thus have a desired texture profile or flavor release.
Spatial dichotomy of sociality in the African ice rat
Authors: Hinze A. , Rymer T. , Pillay N.
Published: April 2013

Sociality is environmentally and phylogenetically determined and can vary intraspecifically and interspecifically. We investigated the reasons for group living in the African ice rat Otomys sloggetti robertsi, a diurnal, herbivorous, non‐hibernating murid rodent, endemic to the sub‐alpine and alpine regions of the southern African Drakensberg and Maluti mountains. We expected ice rats to be group living, nesting communally in underground burrows. We documented the spatial organization and social behaviour of free‐living ice rats through direct observations and experimental manipulations. Colonies comprised 4–17 adults of both sexes. Members of a colony had a high degree of spatial home‐range overlap but no temporal overlap because interactions between members were rare aboveground. Individuals experimentally displaced within their own colony were attacked by members of their own colony and were treated in the same way as strangers from other colonies. Members of a colony competed aggressively for prized food, particularly in winter. Ice rats displayed a vertical spatial separation in social behaviour, from huddling and tolerance belowground to solitary foraging and mutual avoidance aboveground. Such a dichotomy in sociality reflects the compromise between the benefits of social thermoregulation and burrow sharing on the one hand and the constraints of competing for resources, mainly food, on the other. Such a compromise may ultimately be related to the poor physiological adaptation of ice rats to the cold environments they inhabit.
Theology After Derrida
Authors: Horner Robyn
Published: April 2013

It has recently been argued that Derrida's work is thoroughly atheistic, which seems to put any dialogue between Derrida and theology out of play. However, such arguments forget that to forbid the impossible outright is as much to be a slave to metaphysics as to presume that one could attain to it in language. Here I revisit the relationship between deconstruction and negative theology, and reconsider utilising Derrida to think God as the impossible. Arguing that thinking God in the absolute future still cannot sustain theology, I suggest how Derrida's work might nevertheless open onto the possibility of revelation.
Implications of saline concentrations for the performance and competitive interactions of the mosquitoesAedes aegypti(Stegomyia aegypti) andAedes albopictus(Stegomyia albopictus)
Authors: YEE D. A. , HIMEL E. , REISKIND M. H. , VAMOSI S. M.
Published: April 2013

Aedes albopictus(Stegomyia albopictus) (Diptera: Culicidae) has probably supplantedAedes aegypti(Stegomyia aegypti) throughout most of its historical range in the U.S.A., althoughAe. aegyptistill exists in large coastal cities in southern Florida. We measured salt concentrations in field containers along an axis perpendicular to the coast and examined intraspecific outcomes in these species under different salt concentrations in a factorial study using varying intra‐ and interspecific densities in different conditions of salinity to order to determine if salt could mitigate the documented competitive superiority ofAe. albopictus. Salt in field containers declined away from the coast, with maximal values similar to our lower salt concentrations. Egg hatching and short‐term survival of pupae and late instars were not affected by salt concentrations; survival of early instars of both species decreased at higher concentrations. In high salt conditions,Ae. aegyptiachieved higher survival. In the longterm experiment, both species displayed longer development times. Salt did not affect interactions for either species;Ae. aegyptisurvived in the highest salt conditions, regardless of density. The tolerance ofAe. aegyptito high salt concentrations may allow it to use coastal containers, although because salt did not mediate interspecific interactions betweenAe. aegyptiandAe. albopictus, the ultimate effects of salt on the coexistence of these species or exclusion of either species remain unknown.
Abnormal RNA structures (RNA foci) containing a penta‐nucleotide repeat (UGGAA)n in the Purkinje cell nucleus is associated with spinocerebellar ataxia type 31 pathogenesis
Authors: Niimi Yusuke , Takahashi Makoto , Sugawara Emiko , Umeda Shigeaki , Obayashi Masato , Sato Nozomu , Ishiguro Taro , Higashi Miwa , Eishi Yoshinobu , Mizusawa Hidehiro , Ishikawa Kinya
Published: April 2013

Spinocerebellar ataxia type 31 (SCA31) is an autosomal‐dominant cerebellar ataxia showing a Purkinje cell (PC)‐predominant neurodegeneration in humans. The mutation is a complex penta‐nucleotide repeat containing (TGGAA)n, (TAGAA)n, (TAAAA)n and (TAGAATAAAA)n inserted in an intron shared by two different genes BEAN1 and TK2 located in the long arm of the human chromosome 16. Previous studies have shown that (TGGAA)n is the critical component of SCA31 pathogenesis while the three other repeats, also present in normal Japanese, are not essential. Importantly, it has been shown that BEAN1 and TK2 are transcribed in mutually opposite directions in the human brain. Furthermore, abnormal RNA structures called “RNA foci” are observed by a probe against (UAGAAUAAAA)n in SCA31 patients' PC nuclei, indicating that the BEAN1‐direction mutant transcript appears instrumental for the pathogenesis. However, it is not known whether the critical repeat (TGGAA)n contributes to the formation of RNA foci, neither do we understand how the RNA foci formation is relevant to the pathogenesis. To address these issues, we investigated two SCA31 cerebella by fluorescence in situ hybridization using a probe against (UGGAA)n. We also asked whether the mutant BEAN1‐transcript containing (UGGAA)n exerts toxicity compared to the other three repeats in cultured cells. Histopathologically, we confirm that the PC is the main target of SCA31 pathogenesis. We find that the RNA foci containing (UGGAA)n are indeed observed in PC nuclei of both SCA31 patients, whereas similar foci were not observed in control individuals. In both transiently and stably expressed cultured cell models, we also find that the mutation transcribed in the BEAN1‐direction yields more toxicity than control transcripts and forms RNA foci detected with probes against (UGGAA)n and (UAGAAUAAAA)n. Taking these findings together, we conclude that the RNA foci containing BEAN1‐direction transcript (UGGAA)n are associated with PC degeneration in SCA31.
Arsenic alters uptake and distribution of sulphur in Pteris vittata
Authors: WATANABE TOSHIHIRO , KOUHO RAN , KATAYOSE TOMO , KITAJIMA NOBUYUKI , SAKAMOTO NAOYA , YAMAGUCHI NORIKO , SHINANO TAKURO , YURIMOTO HISAYOSHI , OSAKI MITSURU
Published: April 2013

Low‐molecular‐weight thiol (LMWT) synthesis has been reported to be directly induced by arsenic (As) in Pteris vittata, an As hyperaccumulator. Sulphur (S) is a critical component of LMWTs. Here, the effect of As treatment on the uptake and distribution of S in P. vittata was investigated. In P. vittata grown under low S conditions, the presence of As in the growth medium enhanced the uptake of SO42−, which was used for LMWT synthesis in fronds. In contrast, As application did not affect SO42− uptake in Nephrolepis exaltata, an As non‐hyperaccumulator. Moreover, the isotope microscope system revealed that S absorbed with As accumulated locally in a vacuole‐like organelle in epidermal cells, whereas S absorbed alone was distributed uniformly. These results suggest that S is involved in As transport and/or accumulation in P. vittata. X‐ray absorption near‐edge structure analysis revealed that the major As species in the fronds and roots of P. vittata were inorganic As(III) and As(V), respectively, and that As–LMWT complexes occurred as a minor species. Consequently, in case of As accumulation in P. vittata, S possibly acts as a temporary ligand for As in the form of LMWTs in intercellular and/or intracellular transport (e.g. vacuolar sequestration).
Expression of signalling and defence‐related genes mediated by over‐expression of JERF1, and increased resistance to sheath blight in rice
Authors: Pan X. , Li Y. , Zhang H. , Huang R. , Liu W. , Ming J. , Liu S. , Li X.
Published: April 2013

Sheath blight (SB) is one of the most destructive rice diseases that affect the yield and quality of rice. Jasmonate and Ethylene Response Factor 1, designated JERF1, can be induced by ethylene, methyl jasmonate (MeJA), abscisic acid (ABA) and salt stress. Previous research demonstrated that over‐expression of JERF1 enhanced drought tolerance by regulating the expression of stress‐related genes in rice. The present study reports that JERF1 could improve SB resistance of transgenic rice. At the molecular and physiological levels, JERF1 could up‐regulate the expression of signalling and defence‐related genes and increase the activities of lipoxygenase (LOX) and phenylalanine ammonia lyase (PAL). Analysis of cis‐elements showed that there were several DRE/CRT (dehydration‐responsive element/C‐repeat) and/or GCC boxes in the promoters of these candidate genes, indicating that JERF1 might regulate the expression of defence‐related genes via interaction with these cis‐elements. These results suggest that JERF1 might improve SB resistance by modulating the expression of defence‐related genes. This may prove to be a useful strategy for genetic engineering to improve SB resistance using transcription factor genes in rice.
Second time a charm? Remobilization of peripheral blood stem cells with plerixafor in patients who previously mobilized poorly despite using plerixafor as a salvage agent
Authors: Yuan Shan , Nademanee Auayporn , Krishnan Amrita , Kogut Neil , Shayani Sepideh , Wang Shirong
Published: April 2013

Background

Plerixafor is a recently introduced agent used to improve peripheral blood stem cell (PBSC) mobilization in patients with hematologic malignancies. However, some patients still cannot mobilize adequately even with plerixafor.

Study Design and Methods

We retrospectively reviewed the PBSC collections of 18 consecutive lymphoma and multiple myeloma patients, who had previously mobilized poorly despite the use of plerixafor and received plerixafor again during remobilization.

Results

During the first mobilization attempt, all 18 recombinant granulocyte–colony‐stimulating factor (G‐CSF; two) or G‐CSF plus chemotherapy–mobilized patients (16) had poor response to plerixafor, with peripheral blood (PB) CD34+ counts ranging from 0 to 7.48 × 106/L after the first dose. They collected only 0.15 × 106 to 1.63 × 106 (median, 0.40 × 106) CD34+ cells/kg after one to four collections. The median average daily yield was 0.24 × 106 CD34+ cells/kg. Remobilization began 1 to 4 weeks later with G‐CSF, plerixafor, and with (three) or without (15) cyclophosphamide. The PB CD34+ cell counts after the first dose of plerixafor were 3.04 × 106 to 127.54 × 106/L (median, 14.58 × 106/L). After one to four doses of plerixafor, each patient collected an additional 0.39 × 106 to 14.02 × 106 (median, 1.89 × 106) CD34+ cells/kg, and the median daily average was 0.78 × 106 CD34+ cells/kg. Cumulatively, after two rounds of collections, 15 collected more than 2.0 × 106 CD34+ cells/kg. Thirteen have proceeded to autologous stem cell transplantation (ASCT) and successfully engrafted.

Conclusion

In patients who had responded poorly to the use of plerixafor as a mobilization salvage agent, response to remobilization with plerixafor for the second time was variable, but most (83.3%) patients were able to collect enough PBSCs to proceed to ASCT.
Hepatitis B virus testing by minipool nucleic acid testing: does it improve blood safety?
Authors: Stramer Susan L. , Notari Edward P. , Krysztof David E. , Dodd Roger Y.
Published: April 2013

Background

Hepatitis B virus (HBV) DNA‐positive yield since nucleic acid testing (NAT) implementation (minipools of 16 [MP16]) was reported for the first year. We have updated those figures, evaluated the current value of all HBV tests, calculated the HBV residual risk before and after the introduction of MP‐NAT, and estimated residual risks with further improvements in HBV screening for US blood donations.

Study Design and Methods

All donations were screened by US‐required serologic HBV tests and for HBV DNA by MP‐NAT (Novartis/Gen‐Probe). Further testing by individual‐donation polymerase chain reaction (ID‐PCR) confirmed various classes of MP‐NAT–reactive or –nonreactive donations. The hepatitis B surface antigen (HBsAg)‐yield method was used to calculate incidence and the incidence–window‐period model used to define residual risk.

Results

Of approximately 12.8 million donations screened during 2009 to 2011, a total of 1368 HBV confirmed positives including 941 by MP‐NAT were observed (combined 4.32% positive predictive value) of which five were seronegative NAT‐yield donations (1:2.6 million) and 25 HBsAg‐yield (anti‐HBc–nonreactive) donations from which an incidence of 1.62/100,000 person‐years (vs. 3.43 during 2006‐2008) and residual risk of 1:592,000 to 1:754,000 were calculated. With the addition of MP‐NAT, and resulting 8.8‐day window‐period reduction, residual risks decreased to 1:765,000 to 1:1,006,000. Of the 1368 positives, 99.6% were detected by serology and 68.8% by MP‐NAT; ID‐PCR detected 427 more infected donors than MP‐NAT.

Conclusions

HBV MP‐NAT and decreases in HBV incidence (likely vaccine‐related) in the United States have reduced residual risks to levels comparable to those of human immunodeficiency virus and hepatitis C virus and raise the question of the continued need for all three HBV markers for blood donation screening. Further reductions in residual risk will require the implementation of more sensitive HBV‐NAT methods including ID‐NAT.
Botryoid nuclei in the peripheral blood of a dog with heatstroke
Authors: Mastrorilli Cinzia , Welles Elizabeth G. , Hux Bryan , Christopherson Peter W.
Published: April 2013

AnEDTA‐anticoagulated blood sample collected from a 1.5‐year‐old, intact male, English Bulldog was submitted for aCBC. TheCBCdata and blood smear evaluation revealed borderline high hematocrit (54%, reference interval 37–55%), inappropriate rubricytosis, moderate leukopenia due to both mature neutropenia and lymphopenia, and mild thrombocytopenia. Numerous leukocytes showed evidence of karyolysis, pyknosis, and karyorhexis, and apoptotic bodies were frequent in the background. Many neutrophils had botryoid nuclei characterized by increased numbers of nuclear segments radially arranged with spoke‐like, delicate chromatin filaments connecting the segments centrally. The finding of botryoid nuclei and inappropriate rubricytosis was indicative of severe hyperthermia, such as heatstroke. The dog had been exercised a long time during conditions of high temperature and humidity until he collapsed. The dog was diagnosed with severe heatstroke, hypovolemic shock, disseminated intravascular coagulation, and multiorgan dysfunction syndrome. Despite aggressive treatment, the patient died of cardiopulmonary arrest. Botryoid nuclei are frequent in people with heatstroke. In the authors' experience, botryoid nuclei are seen commonly in dogs with heatstroke, but they have never been reported in veterinary medicine. The presence of petechiation with only mild thrombocytopenia and inappropriate rubricytosis also is suggestive of heatstroke and manifests ongoing life‐threatening vascular derangement.
Feasibility of a simple method of hybrid collimation for megavoltage grid therapy
Authors: Almendral Pedro , Mancha Pedro J. , Roberto Daniel
Published: April 2013

Purpose:

Megavoltage grid therapy is currently delivered with step‐and‐shoot multisegment techniques or using a high attenuation block with divergent holes. However, the commercial availability of grid blocks is limited, their construction is difficult, and step‐and‐shoot techniques require longer treatment times and are not practical with some multileaf collimators. This work studies the feasibility of a hybrid collimation system for grid therapy that does not require multiple segments and can be easily implemented with widely available technical means.

Methods:

The authors have developed a system to generate a grid of beamlets by the simultaneous use of two perpendicular sets of equally spaced leaves that project stripe patterns in orthogonal directions. One of them is generated with the multileaf collimator integrated in the accelerator and the other with an in‐house made collimator constructed with a low melting point alloy commonly available at radiation oncology departments. The characteristics of the grid fields for 6 and 18 MV have been studied with a shielded diode, an unshielded diode, and radiochromic film.

Results:

The grid obtained with the hybrid collimation is similar to some of the grids used clinically with respect to the beamlet size (about 1 cm) and the percentage of open beam (1/4 of the total field). The grid fields are less penetrating than the open fields of the same energy. Depending on the depth and the direction of the profiles (diagonal or along the principal axes), the measured valley‐to‐peak dose ratios range from 5% to 16% for 6 MV and from 9% to 20% for 18 MV. All the detectors yield similar results in the measurement of profiles and percent depth dose, but the shielded diode seems to overestimate the output factors.

Conclusions:

The combination of two stripe pattern collimators in orthogonal directions is a feasible method to obtain two‐dimensional arrays of beamlets and has potential usefulness as an efficient way to deliver grid therapy. The implementation of this method is technically simpler than the construction of a conventional grid block.
Dosimetric impact of Acuros XB deterministic radiation transport algorithm for heterogeneous dose calculation in lung cancer
Authors: Han Tao , Followill David , Mikell Justin , Repchak Roman , Molineu Andrea , Howell Rebecca , Salehpour Mohammad , Mourtada Firas
Published: April 2013

Purpose:

The novel deterministic radiation transport algorithm, Acuros XB (AXB), has shown great potential for accurate heterogeneous dose calculation. However, the clinical impact between AXB and other currently used algorithms still needs to be elucidated for translation between these algorithms. The purpose of this study was to investigate the impact of AXB for heterogeneous dose calculation in lung cancer for intensity‐modulated radiation therapy (IMRT) and volumetric‐modulated arc therapy (VMAT).

Methods:

The thorax phantom from the Radiological Physics Center (RPC) was used for this study. IMRT and VMAT plans were created for the phantom in the Eclipse 11.0 treatment planning system. Each plan was delivered to the phantom three times using a Varian Clinac iX linear accelerator to ensure reproducibility. Thermoluminescent dosimeters (TLDs) and Gafchromic EBT2 film were placed inside the phantom to measure delivered doses. The measurements were compared with dose calculations from AXB 11.0.21 and the anisotropic analytical algorithm (AAA) 11.0.21. Two dose reporting modes of AXB, dose‐to‐medium in medium (Dm,m) and dose‐to‐water in medium (Dw,m), were studied. Point doses, dose profiles, and gamma analysis were used to quantify the agreement between measurements and calculations from both AXB and AAA. The computation times for AAA and AXB were also evaluated.

Results:

For the RPC lung phantom, AAA and AXB dose predictions were found in good agreement to TLD and film measurements for both IMRT and VMAT plans. TLD dose predictions were within 0.4%–4.4% to AXB doses (bothDm,m and Dw,m); and within 2.5%–6.4% to AAA doses, respectively. For the film comparisons, the gamma indexes (±3%/3 mm criteria) were 94%, 97%, and 98% for AAA, AXB_Dm,m, and AXB_Dw,m, respectively. The differences between AXB and AAA in dose–volume histogram mean doses were within 2% in the planning target volume, lung, heart, and within 5% in the spinal cord. However, differences up to 8% between AXB and AAA were found at lung/soft tissue interface regions for individual IMRT fields. AAA was found to be 5–6 times faster than AXB for IMRT, while AXB was 4–5 times faster than AAA for VMAT plan.

Conclusions:

AXB is satisfactorily accurate for the dose calculation in lung cancer for both IMRT and VMAT plans. The differences between AXB and AAA are generally small except in heterogeneous interface regions. AXBDw,m and Dm,m calculations are similar inside the soft tissue and lung regions. AXB can benefit lung VMAT plans by both improving accuracy and reducing computation time.
Comparative Phosphoproteomic Analysis of Checkpoint Recovery Identifies New Regulators of the DNA Damage Response
Authors: Halim Vincentius A. , Alvarez-Fernández Mónica , Xu Yan Juan , Aprelia Melinda , van den Toorn Henk W. P. , Heck Albert J. R. , Mohammed Shabaz , Medema René H.
Published: April 2013

Cells arrested by damaged DNA need astrin to enable the cell cycle to resume.
Repressing the Repressors of Mitophagy
Authors: VanHook Annalisa M.
Published: April 2013

Stage-specific transcriptional repression of microRNAs ensures that mitophagy is initiated late in erythrocyte differentiation.
Gram-Negative Bacteria That Produce Carbapenemases Causing Death Attributed to Recent Foreign Hospitalization
Authors: Ahmed-Bentley Jasmine , Chandran A. Uma , Joffe A. Mark , French Desiree , Peirano Gisele , Pitout Johann D. D.
Published: April 2013

Overseas travel, as a risk factor for the acquisition of infections due to antimicrobial-resistant organisms, has recently been linked to carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative bacteria. Multiresistant
Klebsiella pneumoniae
,
Escherichia coli
, and
Acinetobacter baumannii
strains were isolated from a wound of a Canadian patient with a recent history of hospitalization in India. This resulted in the initiation of outbreak management that included surveillance cultures. Epidemiological and molecular investigations showed that NDM-1-producing
K. pneumoniae
ST16 and OXA-23-producing
A. baumannii
ST10 strains were transmitted to 5 other patients, resulting in the colonization of 4 patients and the death of 1 patient due to septic shock caused by the OXA-23-producing
A. baumannii
strain. The high rate of false positivity of the screening cultures resulted in additional workloads and increased costs for infection control and clinical laboratory work. We believe that this is the first report of an infection with carbapenemase-producing Gram-negative bacteria resulting in death attributed to a patient with recent foreign hospitalization. We recommend routine rectal and wound screening for colonization with multiresistant bacteria for patients who have recently been admitted to hospitals outside Canada.
In Vitro
,
In Vivo
, and Clinical Studies of Tedizolid To Assess the Potential for Peripheral or Central Monoamine Oxidase Interactions
Authors: Flanagan S. , Bartizal K. , Minassian S. L. , Fang E. , Prokocimer P.
Published: April 2013

Tedizolid phosphate is a novel oxazolidinone prodrug whose active moiety, tedizolid, has improved potency against Gram-positive pathogens and pharmacokinetics, allowing once-daily administration. Given linezolid warnings for drug-drug and drug-food interactions mediated by monoamine oxidase (MAO) inhibition, including sporadic serotonergic toxicity, these studies evaluated tedizolid for potential MAO interactions.
In vitro
, tedizolid and linezolid were reversible inhibitors of human MAO-A and MAO-B; the 50% inhibitory concentration (IC
50
) for tedizolid was 8.7 μM for MAO-A and 5.7 μM for MAO-B and 46.0 and 2.1 μM, respectively, with linezolid. Tedizolid phosphate was negative in the mouse head twitch model of serotonergic activity. Two randomized placebo-controlled crossover clinical studies assessed the potential of 200 mg/day tedizolid phosphate (at steady state) to enhance pressor responses to coadministered oral tyramine or pseudoephedrine. Sensitivity to tyramine was determined by comparing the concentration of tyramine required to elicit a ≥30-mmHg increase in systolic blood pressure (TYR
30
) when administered with placebo versus tedizolid phosphate. The geometric mean tyramine sensitivity ratio (placebo TYR
30
/tedizolid phosphate TYR
30
) was 1.33; a ratio of ≥2 is considered clinically relevant. In the pseudoephedrine study, mean maximum systolic blood pressure was not significantly different when pseudoephedrine was coadministered with tedizolid phosphate versus placebo. In summary, tedizolid is a weak, reversible inhibitor of MAO-A and MAO-B
in vitro
. Provocative testing in humans and animal models failed to uncover significant signals that would suggest potential for hypertensive or serotonergic adverse consequences at the therapeutic dose of tedizolid phosphate. Clinical studies are registered at
www.clinicaltrials.gov
as NCT01539473 (tyramine interaction study conducted at Covance Clinical Research Center, Evansville, IN) and NCT01577459 (pseudoephedrine interaction study conducted at Vince and Associates Clinical Research, Overland Park, KS).
High-Throughput Analysis of Antimalarial Susceptibility Data by the WorldWide Antimalarial Resistance Network (WWARN)
In Vitro
Analysis and Reporting Tool
Authors: Woodrow Charles J. , Dahlström Sabina , Cooksey Richard , Flegg Jennifer A. , Le Nagard Hervé , Mentré France , Murillo Claribel , Ménard Didier , Nosten François , Sriprawat Kanlaya , Musset Lise , Quashie Neils B. , Lim Pharath , Fairhurst Rick M. , Nsobya Sam L. , Sinou Veronique , Noedl Harald , Pradines Bruno , Johnson Jacob D. , Guerin Philippe J. , Sibley Carol H. , Le Bras Jacques
Published: April 2013

Assessment of
in vitro
susceptibility is a fundamental component of antimalarial surveillance studies, but wide variations in the measurement of parasite growth and the calculation of inhibitory constants make comparisons of data from different laboratories difficult. Here we describe a Web-based, high-throughput
in vitro
analysis and reporting tool (IVART) generating inhibitory constants for large data sets. Fourteen primary data sets examining laboratory-determined susceptibility to artemisinin derivatives and artemisinin combination therapy partner drugs were collated from 11 laboratories. Drug concentrations associated with half-maximal inhibition of growth (IC
50
s) were determined by a modified sigmoid
E
max
model-fitting algorithm, allowing standardized analysis of 7,350 concentration-inhibition assays involving 1,592 isolates. Examination of concentration-inhibition data revealed evidence of apparent paradoxical growth at high concentrations of nonartemisinin drugs, supporting amendment of the method for calculating the maximal drug effect in each assay. Criteria for defining more-reliable IC
50
s based on estimated confidence intervals and growth ratios improved correlation coefficients for the drug pairs mefloquine-quinine and chloroquine-desethylamodiaquine in 9 of 11 and 8 of 8 data sets, respectively. Further analysis showed that maximal drug inhibition was higher for artemisinins than for other drugs, particularly in ELISA (enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay)-based assays, a finding consistent with the earlier onset of action of these drugs in the parasite life cycle. This is the first high-throughput analytical approach to apply consistent constraints and reliability criteria to large, diverse antimalarial susceptibility data sets. The data also illustrate the distinct biological properties of artemisinins and underline the need to apply more sensitive approaches to assessing
in vitro
susceptibility to these drugs.
Ex Vivo
Responses of Plasmodium falciparum Clinical Isolates to Conventional and New Antimalarial Drugs in Niger
Authors: Issaka Mariama , Salissou Adamou , Arzika Ibrahim , Guillebaud Julia , Maazou Abani , Specht Sabine , Zamanka Halima , Fandeur Thierry
Published: April 2013

Little is known about resistance of
Plasmodium falciparum
to antimalarials in Sahelian countries. Here we investigated the drug susceptibilities of fresh isolates collected in Niger post-deployment of artemisinin-based combination therapies (ACTs). We found that the parasites remained highly susceptible to new (dihydroartemisinin, lumefantrine, pyronaridine, and piperaquine) and conventional (amodiaquine and chloroquine) antimalarial drugs. The introduction of ACTs in 2005 and their further deployment nationwide have therefore not resulted in a decrease in
P. falciparum
susceptibilities to these antimalarials.
Aqueous Inorganic Salt Solutions at High Temperatures
Authors: Keevil N. B.
Published: April 2013

ContentsPageTable 151. Composition and vapor pressure of saturated solutions2162. Properties of 1 gram of saturated solution (KCl + H2O)2203. Freezing-point curves for three-phase silicate-water systems2214. Solubility of water in silicate melts at high temperatures and pressures (two-phase equilibrium)222

This section presents the limited amount of information, some of it still unpublished, regarding solubility and vapor pressure in aqueous solutions at temperatures above 100°C. No attempt is made to cover the wealth of data which exists for temperatures below 100°C., and which is exhaustively tabulated in other places (Int. Crit. Tables, Vol. IV; Handbook of Chemistry and Physics, Chemical Rubber Publishing Co.).

Solubility determinations from the cryohydric point to the triple point of the salt have been carried out for sodium and potassium nitrates (m.p. 308°C. and 334°C., resp.) and for boric oxide (m.p. 450°C.), but for higher-melting salts only parts of certain binary systems with water as one component have been investigated. The experimental methods, in order of decreasing accuracy, are:

(1) Heating water and excess salt in a closed thermostated system, with some device for sampling a portion of the saturated solution for analysis [2, 3];

(2) Heating known weights of salt and water in a closed glass system, and observing the temperature at which the last portion of salt passes into solution [4, 5];

(3) For glass-forming solutes, quenching charges of glass after treatment with excess water in a closed bomb [6, 10];

(4) Observing the discontinuity of . . .
Elasticity (Except Compressibility)
Authors: Birch Francis
Published: April 2013

ContentsPageTable 51. Elasticity of single crystals661.1. Extreme values of Young’s modulus and of rigidity in certain metal single crystals691.2. Effect of temperature on the elasticity of quartz702. Elasticity of polycrystalline metals at ordinary pressure and temperature; effect of pressure on rigidity713. Effect of temperature on the elasticity of polycrystalline metals724. Elastic constants of rocks at ordinary pressure and temperature735. Effect of stress on Young’s modulus of rocks786. Effect of stress on Young’s modulus and on σ in granite.797. Effect of moisture upon velocity in Amherst sandstone798. Elastic parameters of certain rocks at 4,000 kg.cm−2 and 30°C809. Rigidity and velocity of shear waves, in rocks, as function of pressure8110. Effect of temperature on the velocity of shear waves in rocks at high pressure8311. Elasticity of glass and glassy rocks; effect of pressure upon rigidity8412. Effect of temperature on elasticity of glasses8513. Elasticity of rocks from seismic determinations86

(For compressibility, see Section 4.)

(For velocities determined in the field, see Section 7.)

For sufficiently small stresses, two elastic “constants” are necessary and sufficient to determine the elastic behavior of a homogeneous, isotropic, elastic solid. Various pairs of constants are in common use; those usually measured in the laboratory are Young’s modulus E, the modulus of rigidity or the shear modulus G, Poisson’s ratio σ, and the compressibility β or its. . . .
Mechanisms and critical properties in drying shrinkage of soils: experimental and numerical parametric studies
Authors: Hu Liang Bo , Péron Hervé , Hueckel Tomasz , Laloui Lyesse
Published: April 2013

Mechanisms of free-shrinkage strains of desiccating deformable initially saturated soils are studied. The role of the surface evaporation rate, surface tension and viscosity of pore fluid, and soil compressibility and permeability is investigated in experimental and numerical parametric studies. Two different geomaterials with three different pore fluids are tested and numerically simulated using a macroscale Biot theory model and a mesoscale vessel model. Evolution of shrinkage strain and fluid content is reported and evaluated. The total amount of shrinkage and shrinkage limit are found to correlate with both solid fraction compressibility and surface tension of the fluid fraction. Most of the strain occurs in the saturated stage of drying concomitant with a build-up of fluid suction. The macroscopic Biot model yields good results in the saturated stage of drying. However, the air-entry criteria are all formulated at meso- or microscale. Hence, a mesoscale deformable pore vessel model is adopted, with pore fluid suction limited by a fluid tensile stress threshold identified with fluid cavitation. Beyond cavitation, air entry occurs. Subsequently, partially fluid-filled pore vessels are considered with fluid evaporation across a migrating fluid–gas interface within the vessel. A mesoscale model parametric study confirms that the total drying shrinkage strain and the shrinkage limit depend on the solids' compressibility, as well as on the fluid surface tension.
CONTROLLABILITY OF ELECTROMAGNETICALLY INDUCED TRANSPARENCY IN A DOPPLER BROADENED FOUR-LEVEL ATOMIC SYSTEM
Authors: ABD-ELNABI SOMIA , OSMAN K. I.
Published: April 2013

The influence of Doppler broadening on a four-level N-type atomic system has been investigated in the presence of spontaneous generating coherence. The atomic system interacting with three electromagnetic fields and includes the nonradiative decay, the effect of co- and counter-propagation of the fields is considered. The probe susceptibility behaviors can be modified by Doppler broadening via nonperturbative treatments of the density matrix elements solution in the absence and presence of the spontaneous generating coherence. Some interesting features are enhanced for the spectral behaviors and controllability of electromagnetically induced transparency, which were found to be in good agreement to some experimental results without including Zeeman sublevels to the system.
A WEIGHTED LOCAL-WORLD EVOLVING NETWORK MODEL BASED ON THE EDGE WEIGHTS PREFERENTIAL SELECTION
Authors: LI PING , ZHAO QINGZHEN , WANG HAITANG
Published: April 2013

In this paper, we use the edge weights preferential attachment mechanism to build a new local-world evolutionary model for weighted networks. It is different from previous papers that the local-world of our model consists of edges instead of nodes. Each time step, we connect a new node to two existing nodes in the local-world through the edge weights preferential selection. Theoretical analysis and numerical simulations show that the scale of the local-world affect on the weight distribution, the strength distribution and the degree distribution. We give the simulations about the clustering coefficient and the dynamics of infectious diseases spreading. The weight dynamics of our network model can portray the structure of realistic networks such as neural network of the nematode C. elegans and Online Social Network.
OBSERVATION OF NEW SUPERCONDUCTIVITY AND PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENT BY EMPLOYING CYCLOTRON OF ELECTRON PAIRS
Authors: ISHIGURI SHINICHI
Published: April 2013

A novel temperature-independent superconducting device that employs a doped semiconductor is presented in this study. The underlying theory of this superconductivity is confirmed by experimental results. Specifically, superconductivity generates a negative electric field with characteristics of both electrostatic and current-induced fields. This type of electric field creates a new paired interaction between two electrons and implies the existence of a new force. The negative electric field also exhibits the Meissner effect. Moreover, magnetic flux quanta are produced in the semiconductor. The Aharonov–Bohm effect is exhibited to create a superconducting current along the electric circuit of the superconducting system. Therefore, a load introduced to the circuit will also become superconductive. This finding has strong potential for practical applications. To solve the problem of critical current, a static magnetic field is applied. This field combines with the new electric field to yield cyclotron motion, which increases superconducting current.
KINETICS OF GRAIN NUCLEATION IN SUPERCOOLED QUASI-TWO-DIMENSIONAL Cu
Authors: CHOI YONGSOO
Published: April 2013

Grain nucleation kinetics of nanocrystalline Cu in a quasi-two-dimensional system was investigated using molecular dynamics. Nanoscale grains nucleate rapidly from supercooled Cu under isothermal annealing conditions. An Avrami exponent from the JMAK equation implies that the kinetics follows the continuous nucleation model. Observation of grain growth during the nucleation stage shows that the kinetics follows the classical grain growth model with a low growth exponent. The lower value of the exponent illustrates the rapid growth of grains during this stage. Using the growth exponent, the activation energy for nucleation in Cu was obtained and compared with the values obtained in earlier studies.
EQUILIBRIUM SHAPES FOR ISOTROPIC ELASTIC TUBES IN THE PLANAR CASE
Authors: XU QING-HUA , ZHOU XIAO-HUA , LIU YUAN-SHENG , WU KE-JIAN , WEN JUN
Published: April 2013

When making an isotropic elastic shell into a curving tube, the crimp energy and bending energy determine the equilibrium shapes of the tube. In this study, we established a model to explore the elastic behavior of a tube made of an elastic shell. Two typical shapes: torus shape and periodic shape are discussed by studying the equilibrium shape equations in the planar case. Our study reveals that the crimp energy for an isotropic elastic tube is innegligible and will induce abundant shapes. It also reveals that varicose vein is more likely to occur when the blood vessels become thicker, which is in accordance with the clinic experiments.
EVALUATION STUDY OF SYSTOLIC ARRAY PROCESSORS OPTIMIZATION AND MAPPING ON k-LUT FPGA DEVICES
Authors: DOKOUZYANNIS STAVROS P. , MOKIOS ARGIRIS P.
Published: April 2013

This paper analyzes the design automation of embedded Systolic Array Processors (SAPs), into large scale Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) devices. SAPs are hardware implementations of a class of iterative, high-level language algorithms, for applications where the high-speed of processing has the principal meaning of a design. Embedding SAPs onto FPGAs is a complex process. The optimization phase in this process reduces the SAP significantly, thus less FPGA area is occupied by the embedded design, without any loss in the final performance. The present paper examines the effect of Projection Vectors (PVs) and Task Scheduling Vectors (TSVs) on the optimization process. Two optimization approaches are examined, namely technology mapping using FlowMap and Flowpack algorithms and optimization via logic synthesis using Xilinx Synthesis Tool. The multiplication of matrices, with entries being up to 32-bit integer vectors, has been taken as a sample space for the experiments conducted. The results, confirm that the selection of PV and TSV greatly affects the number of input/output signal connections of the FPGA, while the selection of an optimization approach affects the final number of logic resources occupied on the targeted device.
CHARACTERIZING PSL2(r) BY ITS ORDER AND THE NUMBER OF ITS SYLOW r-SUBGROUPS
Authors: ASBOEI ALIREZA KHALILI
Published: April 2013

We show that if r is a prime number that is not a Mersenne prime, then PSL2 (r) is determined up to isomorphism by its order and by the number of its Sylow r-subgroups. We then show that if r is a Mersenne prime other than 7, then PSL2 (r) is determined up to isomorphism by its order, the number of its Sylow r-subgroups, and the fact that r is an isolated vertex of the prime graph of the group.
FACTORIZATION OF TROPICAL MATRICES
Authors: NIV ADI
Published: April 2013

In contrast to the situation in classical linear algebra, not every tropically non-singular matrix can be factored into a product of tropical elementary matrices. We do prove the factorizability of any tropically non-singular 2 × 2 matrix and, relating to the existing Bruhat decomposition, determine which 3 × 3 matrices are factorizable. Nevertheless, there is a closure operation, obtained by means of the tropical adjoint, which is always factorizable, generalizing the decomposition of the closure operation * of a matrix.
OXIDATION MECHANISM OF THE BUTADIYNYL RADICAL, C4H: ANALOGUE OF C2H OR NOT?
Authors: ZHU WEI-WEI , ZHANG SHAO-WEN , DING YI-HONG
Published: April 2013

Reactions of the carbon-chain radicals are of great importance in the combustion and astrophysical processes. The kinetics of the butadiynyl radical, C 4 H , has received recent attention. While there has been sufficient knowledge concerning the oxidation of the ethynyl radical, C 2 H , oxidation of the higher even-numbered members C 2n H (n > 1) is hardly known. In this paper, to enrich the C 4 H -chemistry, we report the first study of the oxidation mechanism of C 4 H . At the CCSD(T)/aug-cc-pVTZ//B3LYP/6-311++G(d,p)+ZPVE level, the potential energy surface (PES) survey is presented covering various product channels P1( CO + HC 3 O ) (-152.7 kcal/mol), P2( C 3 H + CO 2) (-117.9), P3( HCO + C 3 O ) (-108.5), P4( HC 4 O +3 O ) (-45.2), and P5( OH + C 4 O ) (-33.2) accompanied by the master equation rate constant calculations. Despite the similarity in the PES, the kinetics of C 4 H +3 O 2 differs dramatically from that of the analogous C 2 H +3 O 2 reaction. For the C 4 H +3 O 2 reaction, the O -abstraction product P4( HC 4 O +3 O ) is almost the exclusive product, whereas the lowest C , O -exchange product P1( CO + HC 3 O ) and other products have little importance. By contrast, the C 2 H +3 O 2 reaction favors the C , O -exchange product HCO + CO . Being overall barrierless and mainly associated with the molecular → atomic oxygen conversion, the C 4 H +3 O 2 reaction should play an important role in the soot formation and interstellar chemistry where C 4 H is involved.