bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
TNF-α Gene Knockout in Triple Negative Breast Cancer Cell Line Induces Apoptosis
Authors: Pileczki Valentina , Braicu Cornelia , Gherman Claudia , Berindan-Neagoe Ioana
Published: December 2012

Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α) is a pro-inflammatory cytokine involved in the promotion and progression of cancer, including triple negative breast cancer cells. Thus, there is significant interest in understanding the molecular signaling pathways that connect TNF-α with the survival of tumor cells. In our experiments, we used as an in vitro model for triple negative breast cancer the cell line Hs578T. The purpose of this study is to determine the gene expression profiling of apoptotic signaling networks after blocking TNF-α formation by using specially designed siRNA molecules to target TNF-α messenger RNA. Knockdown of TNF-α gene was associated with cell proliferation inhibition and apoptosis, as observed by monitoring the cell index using the xCELLigence RTCA System and flow cytometry. PCR array technology was used to examine the transcript levels of 84 genes involved in apoptosis. 15 genes were found to be relevant after comparing the treated group with the untreated one of which 3 were down-regulated and 12 up-regulated. The down-regulated genes are all involved in cell survival, whereas the up-regulated ones are involved in and interact with pro-apoptotic pathways. The results described here indicate that the direct target of TNF-α in the Hs578T breast cancer cell line increases the level of certain pro-apoptotic factors that modulate different cellular networks that direct the cells towards death.
Effects of Organoboron Antifoulants on Oyster and Sea Urchin Embryo Development
Authors: Tsunemasa Noritaka , Tsuboi Ai , Okamura Hideo
Published: December 2012

Prohibition of Ot (organotin) compounds was introduced in Japan in 1997 and worldwide from September 2008. This meant that the production of paints containing TBT compounds was stopped and alternatives to the available Ot antifoulants had to be developed. It has been claimed that the degradation by-products of these alternative antifoulants were less toxic than those of Ot compounds. Since the introduction of the alternative antifoulants, the accumulation of these compounds has been reported in many countries. However, the toxicity of these compounds was still largely unreported. In this research, the toxicity of the alternative Ot antifoulants TPBP (triphenylborane pyridine) and TPBOA (triphenylborane octadecylamine) and their degradation products on Crassostea gigas and Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus were tested. The results showed that toxic effects in Crassostea gigas was higher for each antifouling biocide than that in Hemicentrotus pulcherrimus. Also, while the toxicity of the Organoboron antifoulants and the Ots were the same, the former’s degradation products were much less harmful.
An Involvement of Oxidative Stress in Endoplasmic Reticulum Stress and Its Associated Diseases
Authors: Bhandary Bidur , Marahatta Anu , Kim Hyung-Ryong , Chae Han-Jung
Published: December 2012

The endoplasmic reticulum (ER) is the major site of calcium storage and protein folding. It has a unique oxidizing-folding environment due to the predominant disulfide bond formation during the process of protein folding. Alterations in the oxidative environment of the ER and also intra-ER Ca2+ cause the production of ER stress-induced reactive oxygen species (ROS). Protein disulfide isomerases, endoplasmic reticulum oxidoreductin-1, reduced glutathione and mitochondrial electron transport chain proteins also play crucial roles in ER stress-induced production of ROS. In this article, we discuss ER stress-associated ROS and related diseases, and the current understanding of the signaling transduction involved in ER stress.
The Effect of Long-Term Storage on the Physiochemical and Bactericidal Properties of Electrochemically Activated Solutions
Authors: Robinson Gareth , Thorn Robin , Reynolds Darren
Published: December 2012

Electrochemically activated solutions (ECAS) are generated by electrolysis of NaCl solutions, and demonstrate broad spectrum antimicrobial activity and high environmental compatibility. The biocidal efficacy of ECAS at the point of production is widely reported in the literature, as are its credentials as a “green biocide.” Acidic ECAS are considered most effective as biocides at the point of production and ill suited for extended storage. Acidic ECAS samples were stored at 4 °C and 20 °C in glass and polystyrene containers for 398 days, and tested for free chlorine, pH, ORP and bactericidal activity throughout. ORP and free chlorine (mg/L) in stored ECAS declined over time, declining at the fastest rate when stored at 20 °C in polystyrene and at the slowest rate when stored at 4 °C in glass. Bactericidal efficacy was also affected by storage and ECAS failed to produce a 5 log10 reduction on five occasions when stored at 20 °C. pH remained stable throughout the storage period. This study represents the longest storage evaluation of the physiochemical parameters and bactericidal efficacy of acidic ECAS within the published literature and reveals that acidic ECAS retain useful bactericidal activity for in excess of 12 months, widening potential applications.
Isolation and Characterisation of 11 Polymorphic Microsatellite Markers in Papaver rhoeas L. (Corn Poppy), a Major Annual Plant Species from Cultivated Areas
Authors: Kati Vaya , Le Corre Valérie , Michel Séverine , Jaffrelo Lydia , Poncet Charles , Délye Christophe
Published: December 2012

Papaver rhoeas, an annual plant species in the Papaveraceae family, is part of the biodiversity of agricultural ecosystems and also a noxious agronomic weed. We developed microsatellite markers to study the genetic diversity of P. rhoeas, using an enriched microsatellite library coupled with 454 next-generation sequencing. A total of 13,825 sequences were obtained that yielded 1795 microsatellite loci. After discarding loci with less than six repeats of the microsatellite motif, automated primer design was successful for 598 loci. We tested 74 of these loci for amplification with a total of 97 primer pairs. Thirty loci passed our tests and were subsequently tested for polymorphism using 384 P. rhoeas plants originating from 12 populations from France. Of the 30 loci, 11 showed reliable polymorphism not affected by the presence of null alleles. The number of alleles and the expected heterozygosity ranged from 3 to 7.4 and from 0.27 to 0.73, respectively. A low but significant genetic differentiation among populations was observed (FST = 0.04; p < 0.001). The 11 validated polymorphic microsatellite markers developed in this work will be useful in studies of genetic diversity and population structure of P. rhoeas, assisting in designing management strategies for the control or the conservation of this species.
Sorption, Solubility, Bond Strength and Hardness of Denture Soft Lining Incorporated with Silver Nanoparticles
Authors: Chladek Grzegorz , Kasperski Jacek , Barszczewska-Rybarek Izabela , Żmudzki Jarosław
Published: December 2012

The colonization of denture soft lining material by oral fungi can result in infections and stomatitis of oral tissues. In this study, 0 ppm to 200 ppm of silver nanoparticles was incorporated as an antimicrobial agent into composites to reduce the microbial colonization of lining materials. The effect of silver nanoparticle incorporation into a soft lining material on the sorption, solubility, hardness (on the Shore A scale) and tensile bond strength of the composites was investigated. The data were statistically analyzed using two-way ANOVA and Newman-Keuls post hoc tests or the chi-square Pearson test at the p < 0.05 level. An increase in the nanosilver concentration resulted in a decrease in hardness, an increase in sorption and solubility, a decrease in bond strength and a change in the failure type of the samples. The best combination of bond strength, sorption, solubility and hardness with antifungal efficacy was achieved for silver nanoparticle concentrations ranging from 20 ppm to 40 ppm. These composites did not show properties worse than those of the material without silver nanoparticles and exhibited enhanced in vitro antifungal efficiency.
Thermal Annealing Effect on Optical Properties of Binary TiO2-SiO2 Sol-Gel Coatings
Authors: Wang Xiaodong , Wu Guangming , Zhou Bin , Shen Jun
Published: December 2012

TiO2-SiO2 binary coatings were deposited by a sol-gel dip-coating method using tetrabutyl titanate and tetraethyl orthosilicate as precursors. The structure and chemical composition of the coatings annealed at different temperatures were analyzed by Raman spectroscopy and Fourier Transform Infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. The refractive indices of the coatings were calculated from the measured transmittance and reflectance spectra. An increase in refractive index with the high temperature thermal annealing process was observed. The Raman and FTIR results indicate that the refractive index variation is due to changes in the removal of the organic component, phase separation and the crystal structure of the binary coatings.
Novel Conformationally Constrained Analogues of Agomelatine as New Melatoninergic Ligands
Authors: Rami Marouan , Landagaray Elodie , Ettaoussi Mohamed , Boukhalfa Koussayla , Caignard Daniel-Henri , Delagrange Philippe , Berthelot Pascal , Yous Saïd
Published: December 2012

Novel conformationally restricted analogues of agomelatine were synthesized and pharmacologically evaluated at MT1 and MT2 melatoninergic receptors. Replacement of the N-acetyl side chain of agomelatine by oxathiadiazole-2-oxide (compound 3), oxadiazole-5(4H)-one (compound 4), tetrazole (compound 5), oxazolidinone (compound 7a), pyrrolidinone (compound 7b), imidazolidinedione (compound 12), thiazole (compounds 13 and 14) and isoxazole moieties (compound 15) led to a decrease of the melatoninergic binding affinities, particularly at MT1. Compounds 7a and 7b exhibiting nanomolar affinity towards the MT2 receptors subtypes have shown the most interesting pharmacological results of this series with the appearance of a weak MT2-selectivity.
Sulfation and Enhanced Antioxidant Capacity of an Exopolysaccharide Produced by the Medicinal Fungus Cordyceps sinensis
Authors: Yan Jing-Kun , Wang Wen-Qiang , Ma Hai-Le , Wu Jian-Yong
Published: December 2012

EPS-1 was an exopolysaccharide produced by the medicinal fungus Cordyceps sinensis (Cs-HK1). In the present study, EPS-1 was sulfated with chlorosulfonic acid (CSA)-pyridine (Pyr) at different volume ratios, yielding four sulfated derivatives, SEPS-1A, B, C and D, with different degrees of substitution (DS: 0.25–1.38) and molecular weights (17.1–4.1 kDa). The sulfation of EPS-1 occurred most frequently at the C-6 hydroxyl groups due to their higher reactivity. In aqueous solution, the native EPS-1 formed random coils or aggregated networks, but the sulfated derivatives formed single helices. The antioxidant activities of the sulfated EPS-1 derivatives for scavenging hydroxyl radicals (•OH) and 2,2-azinobis-3-ehtylbenzothiazolin-6-sulfonic acid radicals (ABTS•+) were significantly increased with increasing DS and decreasing molecular weight (MW). Sulfation has thus been shown to be an effective and favorable strategy for improving the physico-chemical properties and bioactivities of fungal polysaccharides.
Stability and Antioxidant Activity of Semi-synthetic Derivatives of 4-Nerolidylcatechol
Authors: Lima Emerson , Pinto Ana , Nogueira Karla , Silva Luiz , Almeida Patricia , Vasconcellos Marne , Chaves Francisco , Tadei Wanderli , Pohlit Adrian
Published: December 2012

4-nerolidylcatechol (4-NC) is an unstable natural product that exhibits important antioxidant, anti-inflammatory and other properties. It is readily obtainable on a multi-gram scale through straightforward solvent extraction of the roots of cultivated Piper peltatum or P. umbellatum, followed by column chromatography on the resulting extract. Semi-synthetic derivatives of 4-NC with one or two substituent groups (methyl, acetyl, benzyl, benzoyl) on the O atoms have been introduced that have increased stability compared to 4-NC and significant in vitro inhibitory activity against the human malaria parasite Plasmodium falciparum. Antioxidant and anti-inflammatory properties may be important for the antiplasmodial mode of action of 4-NC derivatives. Thus, we decided to investigate the antioxidant properties, cytotoxicity and stability of 4-NC derivatives as a means to explore the potential utility of these compounds. 4-NC showed high antioxidant activity in the DPPH and ABTS assays and in 3T3-L1 cells (mouse embryonic fibroblast), however 4-NC was more cytotoxic (IC50 = 31.4 µM) and more unstable than its derivatives and lost more than 80% of its antioxidant activity upon storage in solution at −20 °C for 30 days. DMSO solutions of mono-O-substituted derivatives of 4-NC exhibited antioxidant activity and radical scavenging activity in the DPPH and ABTS assays that was comparable to that of BHA and BHT. In the cell-based antioxidant model, most DMSO solutions of derivatives of 4-NC were less active on day 1 than 4-NC, quercetin and BHA and more active antioxidants than BHT. After storage for 30 days at −20 °C, DMSO solutions of most of the derivatives of 4-NC were more stable and exhibited more antioxidant activity than 4-NC, quercetin and BHA and exhibited comparable antioxidant activity to BHT. These findings point to the potential of derivatives of 4-NC as antioxidant compounds.
Synthesis and Characterization of Carboxymethyl Chitosan Nanogels for Swelling Studies and Antimicrobial Activity
Authors: Farag Reem , Mohamed Riham
Published: December 2012

Nanogels of a binary system of carboxymethyl chitosan (CMCh) and poly- (vinyl alcohol) PVA, were successfully synthesized by a novel in situ process. They were also characterized by various analytical tools like Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), transmission electron microscopy (TEM) and X-ray diffraction (XRD). They were studied for their unique swelling properties in water and different pH solutions. They were also investigated for their great ability to capture or isolate bacteria and fungi from aquatic environments.
Anti-Infectious Agents against MRSA
Authors: Koyama Nobuhiro , Inokoshi Junji , Tomoda Hiroshi
Published: December 2012

Clinically useful antibiotics, β-lactams and vancomycin, are known to inhibit bacterial cell wall peptidoglycan synthesis. Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) has a unique cell wall structure consisting of peptidoglycan and wall teichoic acid. In recent years, new anti-infectious agents (spirohexaline, tripropeptin C, DMPI, CDFI, cyslabdan, 1835F03, and BPH-652) targeting MRSA cell wall biosynthesis have been discovered using unique screening methods. These agents were found to inhibit important enzymes involved in cell wall biosynthesis such as undecaprenyl pyrophosphate (UPP) synthase, FemA, flippase, or UPP phosphatase. In this review, the discovery, the mechanism of action, and the future of these anti-infectious agents are described.
Schizandrin Protects Primary Rat Cortical Cell Cultures from Glutamate-Induced Apoptosis by Inhibiting Activation of the MAPK Family and the Mitochondria Dependent Pathway
Authors: Lee Meng-Shiou , Chao Jung , Yen Jiin-Cherng , Lin Li-Wei , Tsai Fan-Shiu , Hsieh Ming-Tsuen , Peng Wen-Huang , Cheng Hao-Yuan
Published: December 2012

Glutamate-induced excitotoxicity has been implicated in a variety of neuronal degenerative disorders. In the present study, we investigated the possible neuroprotective effects of schizandrin against apoptosis of primary cultured rat cortical cells induced by glutamate. Glutamate (10 μM) administered for 24 h decreased the expression of Bcl-2 and Bcl-XL protein, whereas increased the expression of Bax, Bak, apoptosis inducing factor (AIF), endonuclease G (Nodo G) and endoplasmic reticulum (ER) stress of caspase-12. Pretreatment with schizandrin (100 μM) before glutamate treatment increased the Bcl-XL and Bcl-2 expression and decreased Bax, Bak, AIF, Nodo G and caspase-12 compared with those only treated with glutamate. Furthermore, glutamate-induced phosphorylation of JNK, p38 and ERK mitogen-activated protein kinases (MAPK), and these effects were attenuated by schizandrin (100 μM) treatment. These results suggest that schizandrin possesses the neuroprotective effects. The molecular mechanisms of schizandrin against glutamate-induced apoptosis may involve the regulation of Bcl-2 family proteins expression, and ER stress through blocking the activation of JNK, ERK and p38 MAPK.
Empirical Equation Based Chirality (n, m) Assignment of Semiconducting Single Wall Carbon Nanotubes from Resonant Raman Scattering Data
Authors: Arefin Md
Published: December 2012

This work presents a technique for the chirality (n, m) assignment of semiconducting single wall carbon nanotubes by solving a set of empirical equations of the tight binding model parameters. The empirical equations of the nearest neighbor hopping parameters, relating the term (2n, m) with the first and second optical transition energies of the semiconducting single wall carbon nanotubes, are also proposed. They provide almost the same level of accuracy for lower and higher diameter nanotubes. An algorithm is presented to determine the chiral index (n, m) of any unknown semiconducting tube by solving these empirical equations using values of radial breathing mode frequency and the first or second optical transition energy from resonant Raman spectroscopy. In this paper, the chirality of 55 semiconducting nanotubes is assigned using the first and second optical transition energies. Unlike the existing methods of chirality assignment, this technique does not require graphical comparison or pattern recognition between existing experimental and theoretical Kataura plot.
Harmonizing and Combining Existing Land Cover/Land Use Datasets for Cropland Area Monitoring at the African Continental Scale
Authors: Vancutsem Christelle , Marinho Eduardo , Kayitakire François , See Linda , Fritz Steffen
Published: December 2012

Mapping cropland areas is of great interest in diverse fields, from crop monitoring to climate change and food security. Recognizing the value of a reliable and harmonized crop mask that entirely covers the African continent, the objectives of this study were to (i) consolidate the best existing land cover/land use datasets, (ii) adapt the Land Cover Classification System (LCCS) for harmonization, (iii) assess the final product, and (iv) compare the final product with two existing datasets. Ten datasets were compared and combined through an expert-based approach in order to create the derived map of cropland areas at 250 m covering the whole of Africa. The resulting cropland mask was compared with two recent cropland extent maps at 1 km: one derived from MODIS and one derived from five existing products. The accuracy of the three products was assessed against a validation sample of 3,591 pixels of 1km regularly distributed over Africa and interpreted using high resolution images, which were collected using the Geo-Wiki tool. The comparison of the resulting crop mask with existing products shows that it has a greater agreement with the expert validation dataset, in particular for places where the cropland represents more than 30% of the area of the validation pixel.
Using InSAR Coherence to Map Stand Age in a Boreal Forest
Authors: Pinto Naiara , Simard Marc , Dubayah Ralph
Published: December 2012

The interferometric coherence parameter γ estimates the degree of correlation between two Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) images and can be influenced by vegetation structure. Here, we investigate the use of repeat-pass interferometric coherence γ to map stand age, an important parameter for the study of carbon stocks and forest regeneration. In August 2009 NASA’s L-band airborne sensor UAVSAR (Uninhabited Aerial Vehicle Synthetic Aperture Radar) acquired zero-baseline data over Quebec with temporal separation ranging between 45 min and 9 days. Our analysis focuses on a 66 km2 managed boreal forest and addresses three questions: (i) Can coherence from L-band systems be used to model forest age? (ii) Are models sensitive to weather events and temporal baseline? and (iii) How is model accuracy impacted by the spatial scale of analysis? Linear regression models with 2-day baseline showed the best results and indicated an inverse relationship between γ and stand age. Model accuracy improved at 5 ha scale (R2 = 0.75, RMSE = 5.3) as compared to 1 ha (R2 = 0.67, RMSE = 5.8). Our results indicate that coherence measurements from L-band repeat-pass systems can estimate forest age accurately and with no saturation. However, empirical model relationships and their accuracy are sensitive to weather events, temporal baseline, and spatial scale of analysis.
A Sequential Aerial Triangulation Algorithm for Real-time Georeferencing of Image Sequences Acquired by an Airborne Multi-Sensor System
Authors: Choi Kyoungah , Lee Impyeong
Published: December 2012

Real-time image georeferencing is essential to the prompt generation of spatial information such as orthoimages from the image sequence acquired by an airborne multi-sensor system. It is mostly based on direct georeferencing using a GPS/INS system, but its accuracy is limited by the quality of the GPS/INS data. More accurate results can be acquired using traditional aerial triangulation (AT) combined with GPS/INS data, which can be performed only as a post-processing method due to intense computational requirements. In this study, we propose a sequential AT algorithm that can produce accurate results comparable to those from the simultaneous AT algorithm in real time. Whenever a new image is added, the proposed algorithm rapidly performs AT with minimal computation at the current stage using the computational results from the previous stage. The experimental results show that the georeferencing of an image sequence at any stage took less than 0.1 s and its accuracy was determined within ± 5 cm on the estimated ground points, which is comparable to the results of simultaneous AT. This algorithm may be used for applications requiring real-time image georeferencing such as disaster monitoring and image-based navigation.
Detectability of Absorption and Reduced Scattering Coefficients in Frequency-Domain Measurements Using a Realistic Head Phantom
Authors: Zhang Xiaofeng , Webb Andrew
Published: December 2012

Detection limits of the changes in absorption and reduced scattering coefficients were investigated using a frequency-domain near-infrared system in a realistic head phantom. The results were quantified in terms of the maximum detectable depth for different activation volumes in the range of 0.8–20 microliters. The non-linear relation between the maximum detectable depth and the magnitude of changes in the absorption coefficient conform well with the Born approximation to the diffusion equation. The minimal detectable changes in the reduced scattering coefficient measured in terms of the phase signal were found to be approximately twice as large as that of the absorption coefficient using the AC signal for the same volume and at the same depth. The phase delay, which can be used to quantify the fast neuronal optical response in the human brain, showed a linear dependence on the reciprocal of the reduced scattering coefficient, as predicted by the Rytov approximation.
Measurement of Urinary N-Telopeptides and Serum C-Telopeptides from Type I Collagen Using a Lateral Flow-Based Immunoassay
Authors: Lee Kyoung , Lee Min , Chung Chin , Seong Woo , Lee Sang , Park Moon
Published: December 2012

Measuring bone turnover markers could detect early stages of osteoporosis and early responses to anti-osteoporotic treatments. Currently, commonly used bone turnover markers, N-telopeptides (NTx) and C-telopeptides (CTx), are measured using ELISA tests, which demands time and increases cost. Bone turnover markers need to be measured more easily for general use. Lateral flow-based immunoassay would be an appropriate method for this context. This study was performed to investigate the precision of a newly developed lateral flow-based immunoassay for measuring the urinary NTx and serum CTx, and their correlations with ELISA measurements. Urine NTx and serum CTx concentrations were determined by photoscan of newly developed strips, using a lateral flow-based immunoassay for 36 subjects (mean age 66.2 years, SD 7.5 years; four males and 32 females). Repeated measurement of urinary NTx and serum CTx were performed three times, using this technology for a precision test. The correlation of the lateral flow-based immunoassay with the ELISA measurements was analyzed. Precision of the newly developed lateral flow based immunoassay was 0.974 (ICC, 95% confidence interval, 0.955 to 0.986) and 0.995 (ICC, 95% confidence interval, 0.991 to 0.997) for urinary NTx and serum CTx, respectively. The correlation of lateral flow based immunoassay with ELISA was 0.913 for urinary NTx and 0.872 for serum CTx. These results suggest that measuring the urinary NTx and serum CTx, using a lateral flow-based immunoassay, is a relevant method for point-of-care testing and screening of bone resorption markers.
Adaptive PIF Control for Permanent Magnet Synchronous Motors Based on GPC
Authors: Lu Shaowu , Tang Xiaoqi , Song Bao
Published: December 2012

To enhance the control performance of permanent magnet synchronous motors (PMSMs), a generalized predictive control (GPC)-based proportional integral feedforward (PIF) controller is proposed for the speed control system. In this new approach, firstly, based on the online identification of controlled model parameters, a simplified GPC law supplies the PIF controller with suitable control parameters according to the uncertainties in the operating conditions. Secondly, the speed reference curve for PMSMs is usually required to be continuous and continuously differentiable according to the general servo system design requirements, so the adaptation of the speed reference is discussed in details in this paper. Hence, the performance of the speed control system using a GPC-based PIF controller is improved for tracking some specified signals. The main motivation of this paper is the extension of GPC law to replace the traditional PI or PIF controllers in industrial applications. The efficacy and usefulness of the proposed controller are verified through experimental results.
An Analog Multilayer Perceptron Neural Network for a Portable Electronic Nose
Authors: Pan Chih-Heng , Hsieh Hung-Yi , Tang Kea-Tiong
Published: December 2012

This study examines an analog circuit comprising a multilayer perceptron neural network (MLPNN). This study proposes a low-power and small-area analog MLP circuit to implement in an E-nose as a classifier, such that the E-nose would be relatively small, power-efficient, and portable. The analog MLP circuit had only four input neurons, four hidden neurons, and one output neuron. The circuit was designed and fabricated using a 0.18 μm standard CMOS process with a 1.8 V supply. The power consumption was 0.553 mW, and the area was approximately 1.36 × 1.36 mm2. The chip measurements showed that this MLPNN successfully identified the fruit odors of bananas, lemons, and lychees with 91.7% accuracy.
Acetic Acid Detection Threshold in Synthetic Wine Samples of a Portable Electronic Nose
Authors: Macías Miguel , Manso Antonio , Orellana Carlos , Velasco Horacio , Caballero Ramón , Chamizo Juan
Published: December 2012

Wine quality is related to its intrinsic visual, taste, or aroma characteristics and is reflected in the price paid for that wine. One of the most important wine faults is the excessive concentration of acetic acid which can cause a wine to take on vinegar aromas and reduce its varietal character. Thereby it is very important for the wine industry to have methods, like electronic noses, for real-time monitoring the excessive concentration of acetic acid in wines. However, aroma characterization of alcoholic beverages with sensor array electronic noses is a difficult challenge due to the masking effect of ethanol. In this work, in order to detect the presence of acetic acid in synthetic wine samples (aqueous ethanol solution at 10% v/v) we use a detection unit which consists of a commercial electronic nose and a HSS32 auto sampler, in combination with a neural network classifier (MLP). To find the characteristic vector representative of the sample that we want to classify, first we select the sensors, and the section of the sensors response curves, where the probability of detecting the presence of acetic acid will be higher, and then we apply Principal Component Analysis (PCA) such that each sensor response curve is represented by the coefficients of its first principal components. Results show that the PEN3 electronic nose is able to detect and discriminate wine samples doped with acetic acid in concentrations equal or greater than 2 g/L.
The Aeroflex: A Bicycle for Mobile Air Quality Measurements
Authors: Elen Bart , Peters Jan , Poppel Martine , Bleux Nico , Theunis Jan , Reggente Matteo , Standaert Arnout
Published: December 2012

Fixed air quality stations have limitations when used to assess people's real life exposure to air pollutants. Their spatial coverage is too limited to capture the spatial variability in, e.g., an urban or industrial environment. Complementary mobile air quality measurements can be used as an additional tool to fill this void. In this publication we present the Aeroflex, a bicycle for mobile air quality monitoring. The Aeroflex is equipped with compact air quality measurement devices to monitor ultrafine particle number counts, particulate mass and black carbon concentrations at a high resolution (up to 1 second). Each measurement is automatically linked to its geographical location and time of acquisition using GPS and Internet time. Furthermore, the Aeroflex is equipped with automated data transmission, data pre-processing and data visualization. The Aeroflex is designed with adaptability, reliability and user friendliness in mind. Over the past years, the Aeroflex has been successfully used for high resolution air quality mapping, exposure assessment and hot spot identification.
Tracking by Identification Using Computer Vision and Radio
Authors: Mandeljc Rok , Kovačič Stanislav , Kristan Matej , Perš Janez
Published: December 2012

We present a novel system for detection, localization and tracking of multiple people, which fuses a multi-view computer vision approach with a radio-based localization system. The proposed fusion combines the best of both worlds, excellent computer-vision-based localization, and strong identity information provided by the radio system, and is therefore able to perform tracking by identification, which makes it impervious to propagated identity switches. We present comprehensive methodology for evaluation of systems that perform person localization in world coordinate system and use it to evaluate the proposed system as well as its components. Experimental results on a challenging indoor dataset, which involves multiple people walking around a realistically cluttered room, confirm that proposed fusion of both systems significantly outperforms its individual components. Compared to the radio-based system, it achieves better localization results, while at the same time it successfully prevents propagation of identity switches that occur in pure computer-vision-based tracking.
Health Assessment of Cooling Fan Bearings Using Wavelet-Based Filtering
Authors: Miao Qiang , Tang Chao , Liang Wei , Pecht Michael
Published: December 2012

As commonly used forced convection air cooling devices in electronics, cooling fans are crucial for guaranteeing the reliability of electronic systems. In a cooling fan assembly, fan bearing failure is a major failure mode that causes excessive vibration, noise, reduction in rotation speed, locked rotor, failure to start, and other problems; therefore, it is necessary to conduct research on the health assessment of cooling fan bearings. This paper presents a vibration-based fan bearing health evaluation method using comblet filtering and exponentially weighted moving average. A new health condition indicator (HCI) for fan bearing degradation assessment is proposed. In order to collect the vibration data for validation of the proposed method, a cooling fan accelerated life test was conducted to simulate the lubricant starvation of fan bearings. A comparison between the proposed method and methods in previous studies (i.e., root mean square, kurtosis, and fault growth parameter) was carried out to assess the performance of the HCI. The analysis results suggest that the HCI can identify incipient fan bearing failures and describe the bearing degradation process. Overall, the work presented in this paper provides a promising method for fan bearing health evaluation and prognosis.
Constructed Wetlands for Combined Sewer Overflow Treatment—Comparison of German, French and Italian Approaches
Authors: Meyer Daniel , Molle Pascal , Esser Dirk , Troesch Stéphane , Masi Fabio , Dittmer Ulrich
Published: December 2012

Combined sewer systems are designed to transport stormwater surface run off in addition to the dry weather flows up to defined limits. In most European countries, hydraulic loads greater than the design flow are discharged directly into receiving water bodies, with minimal treatment (screening, sedimentation), or with no treatment at all. One feasible solution to prevent receiving waters from strong negative impacts seems to be the application of vertical flow constructed wetlands. In Germany, first attempts to use this ecological technology were recognized in early 1990s. Since then, further development continued until a high level of treatment performance was reached. During recent years the national “state-of-the-art” (defined in 2005) was adapted in other European countries, including France and Italy. Against the background of differing national requirements in combined sewer system design, substantial developmental steps were taken. The use of coarser filter media in combination with alternating loadings of separated filter beds allows direct feedings with untreated combined runoff. Permanent water storage in deep layers of the wetland improves the system’s robustness against extended dry periods, but contains operational risks. Besides similar functions (but different designs and layouts), correct dimensioning of all approaches suffers from uncertainties in long-term rainfall predictions as well as inside sewer system simulation tools.
A NUMERICAL STUDY OF PARACHUTE INFLATION BASED ON A MIXED METHOD
Authors: Cheng Han , Yu Li , Rong Wei , Jia He
Published: December 2012

ἀ e C9 parachute was the research object in this work and was studied by using a fluid-structure interaction method and CFD method. An arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian method, a kind of fluid-structure interaction method, was used to simulate the inflation process. ἀ e dynamic relationship between canopy shape and flow field was obtained. ἀ e canopy shape in a stable phase was exported and was transformed into the porous media domain. ἀ en the flow around the canopy shape was simulated by the CFD method we used based on the k-ε turbulence model. ἀ e experiments verified the accuracy of structural change and the feasibility of the porous media model. ἀ e arbitrary Lagrangian-Eulerian method not only can obtain the dynamic results of structure and flow field but also can provide a more accurate bluff body for further CFD analysis. ἀ e CFD method based on porous media and the turbulence model can obtain more detailed and accurate flow field results, which can be used as a complement to fluid-structure interaction analysis. ἀi s mixed method can improve the accuracy of analysis and be useful for other permeable fabric research.
VILNIUS ADVANCED-SURFACE MOVEMENT GUIDANCE AND CONTROL SYSTEM (A-SMGCS) SAFETY OBJECTIVES / VILNIAUS AERODROMO AUTOMATIZUOTOS ANTŽEMINIO EISMO STEBĖJIMO IR KONTROLĖS SISTEMOS SAUGOS TIKSLŲ ANALIZĖ
Authors: Kondroška Vaidotas , Stankūnas Jonas
Published: December 2012

This work reviews the innovative and progressive methods of determination and analysis of safety objectives using Vilnius A-SMGCS example. The aim of the analysis is to determine how failures in this system could affect flight safety in Vilnius aerodrome.

Identified safety objectives will limit the frequency of occurrence of hazards enough for the associated risk to be acceptable, and will ensure that appropriate mitigation means are reflected subsequently as Safety Requirements for the system.

Analysis reflects aspects of A-SMGCS Safety objectives, which should be taken into consideration.

Santrauka

Darbe apžvelgiami progresyvūs saugos tikslų analizės metodai pagal Vilniaus aerodromo automatizuotos antžeminio eismo stebėjimo ir kontrolės sistemos veiklos pavyzdį. Analizuojama, kaip šios sistemos sutrikimai gali paveikti skrydžių saugą Vilniaus aerodrome. Remiantis galimų pavojų skrydžių saugai analize, tyrime nustatyti saugos tikslai, pagal kuriuos vėliau bus numatomos riziką mažinančios priemonės (galimų pavojų neutralizavimui ar kylančios rizikos sumažinimui iki priimtino lygio). Straipsnyje pateikiami veiksniai, kuriuos reikėtų įvertinti nustatant aerodromo automatizuotos antžeminio eismo stebėjimo ir kontrolės sistemos saugos tikslus.
DEVELOPMENT OF LITHUANIAN AIRSPACE STRUCTURE / LIETUVOS ORO ERDVĖS STRUKTŪROS TOBULINIMAS
Authors: Kondroška Vaidotas , Stankūnas Jonas
Published: December 2012

The primary aim of this paper is to consider difficulties related to the possible shortage of Lithuanian airspace structure capacity.

In order to ensure that sufficient capacity is in place, current situation and modeling of possible changes must be continuously analyzed.

For this reason the optimization project of the Lithuanian airspace structure is being performed. The result of this project is the regional implementation of a new airspace structure which ensures the short and medium term needs and is fully in line with the possible future changes related to the functional airspace block (FAB).

The paper also examines future perspectives of this new structure.

Santrauka

Pagrindinis šio tyrimo tikslas buvo įvertinti Lietuvos oro erdvės pralaidumą. Siekiant užtikrinti reikiamą oro erdvės pralaidumą, turi būti nuolat vertinama esama situacija bei modeliuojami galimi oro erdvės struktūros pokyčiai.

Tuo tikslu yra vykdomas Lietuvos oro erdvės reorganizavimo projektas. Šio projekto rezultatas – nauja oro erdvės struktūra, kuri užtikrintų trumpalaikius ir vidutinės trukmės poreikius bei atitiktų galimus ateityje oro erdvės struktūros pakeitimus, susijusius su funkcinių oro erdvės blokų (FAB) diegimu regione.
EFFECT OF HYSTERESIS IN AXIAL COMPRESSORS OF GAS-TURBINE ENGINES
Authors: Kulyk Mykola , Lastivka Ivan , Tereshchenko Yuri
Published: December 2012

The phenomenon of separated flow hysteresis in the process of the streamlining the axial compressor of gas-turbine engines is considered. Generalised results of research on the occurrence of hysteresis in the aerodynamic performance of compressor grids and its influence on the performance of the bladed disks of compressors that operate in real conditions of periodic circular non-uniformity are demonstrated.
RELIABILITY OF FLEET OF AIRCRAFT TAKING INTO ACCOUNT INFORMATION EXCHANGE ABOUT THE DISCOVERY OF FATIGUE CRACKS AND THE HUMAN FACTOR
Authors: Paramonov Yuri , Tretyakov Sergey
Published: December 2012

The importance of using information about the discovery of fatigue cracks to eliminate any fatigue failure in a fleet of aircraft of the same type and the human factor influence is studied. Numerical estimation of the influence of this information exchange is obtained. The Monte Carlo method was used for modelling the process of inspecting the aircraft fleet and calculating the probability of fatigue failure as a function of the inspection interval, number of aircraft in the fleet, and intensity of the process of bringing new aircraft into operation.
AN INTEGRATED AIRCRAFT NAVIGATION SYSTEM WITH OPTICAL HORIZON SENSOR
Authors: Rahmouni Mohamed , Malysheva Julia
Published: December 2012

An integration algorithm for a strapdown inertial navigation system with optical horizon sensor based on Kalman filtering is presented. It allows the accuracy of the estimation of aircraft motion parameters to be improved. A self-contained horizon recognition algorithm for the video sequence that enables real-time aircraft attitude determination relative to the horizon line is developed. A scaled-down simulation and performance analysis of the operation of the integrated navigation system is carried out.
Le français sur objectif universitaire
Authors: Boukhannouche Lamia
Published: December 2012

Un programme de formation « Français sur objectif spécifique » ou « français sur objectif universitaire » permet aux apprenants d’acquérir les compétences langagières, disciplinaires et méthodologiques nécessaires à la réussite de leurs études universitaires. Ce projet de formation les aide aussi à intégrer de façon optimale les différentes composantes de l’université. Son objectif vise à la fois un perfectionnement et un approfondissement des connaissances générales et spécifiques en langue française dans les disciplines universitaires de la composante que veut intégrer un étudiant.
Scalable Checkpointing-Based Rollback Recovery Protocol for Geographically Distributed Systems
Authors: Ahn Jin Ho
Published: December 2012

Two opposite approaches were proposed to address some scalability problem resulting from coordinated checkpointing's synchronization during failure-free operation: minimizing the number of checkpointing participants and having the checkpointing process non-blocking. However, these previous approaches, oblivious to the underlying network, may not fundamentally provide any breakthrough for ensuring high scalability required in very large-scale P2P-based systems. This paper proposes a non-blocking coordinated checkpointing protocol to significantly reduce checkpointing synchronization overhead by structuring the peer-to-peer network into a set of groups according to a particular criterion. In this protocol, among processes in a group, one is designated as representative with the following special roles, intra-group and inter-group checkpointing coordination. Intra-group checkpointing coordination addresses the checkpointing procedure among processes within a group. On the other hand, inter-group checkpointing coordination is performed only among representatives. Thanks to this beneficial feature, the proposed protocol may considerably reduce the number of checkpointing control messages routed on core networks compared with the existing ones.
Study on Metric of Genreic Intertexuality Based on User Behavior
Authors: Wan Ya Ping , Yang Xiao Hua , Liu Zhi Ming , Li Xiao Yun , Ouyang Chun Ping , Yu Ying , Jiang Hui
Published: December 2012

Using the genre perspective, we studied the electronic communication of knowledge users collaborating on a movie community and found that their work and interactions were mediated by the use of genres. Drawing on these findings, we develop the concept of genre repertoire to designate the set of genres enacted by groups, organizations, or communities to accomplish their work. Automatic discourse classification according to genre in social information sharing, transfer and knowledge communication provides a higher level of service quality. By investigating user behavior in movie community, the relationship between intertextuality of discourse genre and user behavior was studied. We denoted genre by using vector, and discourse genre intertextuality intensity is measured with vector distance. And for those discourse which genre is unknown, genre intertextuality is calculated using user behavior. The results show that user various behaviors stickiness in movie community and discourse genre intertextuality intensity have potential common features.
An Administration Iteration Problem and its Solution when Deploying the RBAC Model
Authors: Zhang Jian Hua , Liu Qiang
Published: December 2012

Access control is an important infrastructure of an information system. Role-Based Access Control (RBAC) model is the main-stream access control model. When deploying a RBAC model, there is an administration iteration problem which needs the information engineers to define the administrator structure before running the RBAC model, which make the deploying process redundancy and complex, make the running process rigid, and result in decrease of control capability of RBAC model. We present a top-down method. In this method, we define the administration authority as the source of management authority and set up the right and liability mechanism of RBAC. By this method, the administrator structure will be defined and expanded by administrators according to application requirements, and the right and liability mechanism can make sure these administrators should perform their management authorities responsibly and legally. Our method can solve the administration iteration problem and improve the flexibility of RBAC model.
Software Information Management-Oriented Software Architecture Analysis
Authors: Xiang Liang , Hua Yang , Wang Jia Si , Chen Zhong Wei , Du Song Yang
Published: December 2012

This paper is to study the common architecture of the software development and compare the software system architecture-selection criteria. Meanwhile, this paper offers appropriate software architecture solution according to the features of data information management of the software testing organization.
An Adaptive Detection Algorithm for Blind Watermark Based on Generalized Gaussian Distribution
Authors: Li Zhi Ming , Wang Tai Yue
Published: December 2012

The technique of blind watermarking is one of key technology for copyright protecting. By applying generalized Gaussian distribution to statistically model the Alternating current coefficient of discrete cosine transform, an adaptive blind watermark detection algorithm is presented on the basis of sign detector and linear correlate detector and its probability efficiency is deduced. The experimental results show that the performance of the new detector is better than that of linear correlate detector.
Interest Points Guided Mesh Simplification
Authors: Gao Ying , Wang Rui Zhao , Yuan Jue
Published: December 2012

Based on interest point detection, a feature preserving mesh simplification algorithm is proposed. The Harris operator values of all vertices in the mesh were computed firstly. On the base of Garland’s simplification algorithm, we combine the Harris operator value with quadric error metric and change the order of edge collapsing in the simplification. The experimental results show that the proposed algorithm is effective and feature preserving.
Clustering Boundary Points Detection Algorithm Based on Gradient Binarization
Authors: He Yu Zhen , Wang Chun Hong , Qiu Bao Zhi
Published: December 2012

In order to detect the boundary points of clustering efficiently, we proposed a novel algorithm which combined grid technology and gradient operator. In this algorithm the grid technology is used to enhance the speed of the data processing, and Prewitt gradient operator is applied to calculate gradient in 3×3 grid region from eight directions, the maximum being the central grid gradient. The gradient is used to judge whether the grid is the boundary grid or not, and a point in the boundary grid is a boundary point. Putting the method of image boundary processing into the practice of processing cluster boundary is a fresh idea for the research on cluster boundary. The experimental results indicate that this algorithm can effectively detect boundary of clusters in datasets with noises/outliers and have high running efficiency.
Design and Implementation of Intelligent Shelf System Based on Internet of Things Technology
Authors: Liu Bing Wu , Wei Guang Wei , Li Jun Tao
Published: December 2012

In order to solve the problem of the desynchronized between entity flow and information flow in space and time, the paper puts forward the intelligent shelf system based on IOT tech. Through the deployment design of the hardware structure and analyzing of intelligent shelf architecture systematically, it realizes entity flow and information flow synchronization in business process, which makes the warehouse management more efficient and visible.