bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Development and Shelf Stability of Natural Fibre Rich Retort Pouch Ready to Eat Products
Authors: C.R. Vasudish  , S. Nataraj  , K.S. Premavalli
Published: April 2014

The new frontier in the food research is the role of non nutritive components in human health. In the recent past, the importance of dietary fibre in the diet has been increased as a functional ingredient which has opened up a potential market for fibre rich products. The by products available during processing of plant foods are considered as promising source of functional fibres. The aim of the present study was to develop fibre rich products using the natural fibre such as ashgourd (Benincasa hispida) fibre, with high soluble fibre fraction. Ready-to-eat fibre rich Bisi bele bath and vegetable pulav were developed with the optimization of fibre using statistical design software. Fibre, fat and spice mixtures were independent variables with the other components as fixed factors. Since the product acceptance is more dependent on volatile compound form intern the flavour, as well as depends on the test, appearance, colour, texture which are the sensory attributes, total volatiles and sensory attributes were selected as responses. While in the fibre rich vegetable pulav water, fibre and spice mixtures were the independent variables. Both the products were showing good acceptability i.e. in the case of bisi bele bhath 7.1 and in the case of vegetable pulav 6.5 on a 9 point hedonic scale after 6 months of storage at room temperature. The dietary fibre profile of bisi bele bhath was 1.1% soluble fibre and 4.4% insoluble fibre while vegetable pulav had 6.2% insoluble and 1.54% soluble fibre fraction. The products were safe and had an established shelf life of 6 months.
GHK, the Human Skin Remodeling Peptide, Induces Anti-Cancer Expression of Numerous Caspase, Growth Regulatory, and DNA Repair Genes
Authors: Loren Pickart  , Jessica M. Vasquez-Soltero  , Francoise D. Pickart  , John Majnarich
Published: April 2014

GHK (glycyl-L-histidyl-L-lysine) is a human plasma copper-binding peptide that declines during aging. Numerous studies have established many biological actions of GHK: it improves tissue regeneration, possesses anti-oxidant and anti-inflammatory effects, increases cellular stemness; increases decorin, angiogenesis, and nerve outgrowth. In recent studies, GHK was found to switch gene expression from a diseased state to a healthier state for certain cancers and for chronic obstructive pulmonary disease. In studies of aggressive, metastatic human colon cancer, the Broad Institute's Connectivity Map indicated that GHK, out of 1,309 bioactive molecules studied, reversed the expression of 70% of 54 genes over-expressed genes. GHK also reactivates programmed cell death in several cultured human cancer lines. To determine GHK's potential as a cancer treatment, we analyzed the molecule's effect on the human gene expression using the Connectivity Map. GHK induces a 50% or greater change of expression in 31.2% of human genes. GHK increased gene expression in 6 of the 12 human caspase genes that activate programmed cell death. In 28 other genes, GHK altered the pattern of gene expression in a manner that would be expected to inhibit cancer growth. For DNA repair genes, there was a one-sided increase in the expression of such genes (47 UP, 5 DOWN). A previous study found that a copper peptide plus ascorbic acid inhibited Ehrlich ascites cancer in mice. Using this method with GHK-copper gave a strong suppression of Sarcoma 180 in mice. These results support the idea that GHK may help to impede or suppress cancer growth.
Biologic Therapy for Psoriatic Arthritis or Moderate to Severe Plaque Psoriasis: Systematic Review with Pairwise and Network Meta-Analysis
Authors: Peruzzi Mariangela , Colombo Delia , Falco Elena De , Chimenti Isotta , Abbate Antonio , Frati Giacomo , Biondi-Zoccai Giuseppe
Published: April 2014

Background: A comprehensive assessment of the risk-benefit profile of biologic agents in psoriasis is lacking. We conducted a network meta-analysis of randomized trials on biologic agents in psoriasis. Methods: Trials on biologic agents in psoriasis (including psoriatic arthritis) were sought in several databases. Endpoints were ≥75% Reduction in the Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI75), ≥20% improvement in the American College of Rheumatology core set of outcomes (ACR20), serious adverse events (SAE), and adverse events (AE) at the longest available non-cross-over follow-up. Random-effect methods were used to obtain pairwise and network pooled estimates. Results: A total of 52 trials with 17,617 patients and 9 different biologic agents included, with 52% affected by psoriatic arthritis. After an average follow-up of 18 weeks, treatment with placebo was associated with a 5.9% (5.2%-6.6%) rate of PASI75, 17.4% (15.1%-19.6%) of ACR20, 2.4% (1.9%-2.8%) of SAE, and 51.8% (50.2%-53.4%) of AE. Several biologic agents provided higher PASI75 rates than placebo, with golimumab yielding the most favorable results (relative risk [RR]=14.02 [6.85-17.11]). Accordingly, several agents provided higher ACR20 rates than placebo, with infliximab yielding the most favorable results (RR=3.02 [1.67-4.55]). Overall, rates of SAE and AE were higher for several but not all biologic agents versus placebo, with golimumab being associated with the most favorable results for SAE (RR=0.40 [0.11-1.41]), and abatacept for AE (RR=1.00 [0.79-1.22]). Conclusions: Efficacy and safety of biologic agents for psoriasis differ, and clinicians should bear in mind these features to maximize safety and efficacy in the individual patient.
Deployment of Six Sigma Methodology in Pars Plana Vitrectomy
Authors: Sahbaz Ibrahim , Taner Mehmet Tolga , Sanisoglu Huseyin , Kar Taner , Kagan Gamze , Durmus Ebubekir , Tunca Meltem , Erbas Engin , Armagan Ilker , Kagan Mehmet Kemal
Published: April 2014

Purpose: To show how a Turkish public eye care centre in Turkey initiated Six Sigma principles to reduce the number of complications occurring during and after pars plana vitreoretctomy surgeries.
Method: Data were collected for two years. To analyse the complications among 2272 patients, main tools of Six Sigma’s Define-Measure-Analyse-Improve-Control (DMAIC) improvement cycle such as SIPOC table, Fishbone Diagram and, Failure, Mode and Effect Analysis were implemented. Sources and root causes of twenty-two types of complications were identified and reported.
Results: For a successful pars plana vitrectomy procedure, experience of vitreoretinal surgeon, attention of vitreoretinal surgeon, patient’s anatomy were determined to be the “critical few” factors whereas, sterilization and hygiene, amount of silicone oil and amount of gas were found to be the “trivial many” factors. The most frequently occurring complication was found to be subconjunctival haemorrhage.
Conclusion: The sigma level of the overall process was measured to be 3.8559. The surgical team concluded that twelve of the complications should be significantly reduced by taking the necessary preventive measures.
Institutional ethics committee approval has been taken due to retrospective nature of this study.
A Bayesian Shared Parameter Model for Analysing Longitudinal Skewed Responses with Nonignorable Dropout
Authors: Ganjali M. , Baghfalaki T.
Published: April 2014

When the nature of a data set comes from a skew distribution, the use of usual Gaussian mixed effect model can be unreliable. In recent years, skew-normal mixed effect models have been used frequently for longitudinal data modeling in many biomedical studies. These models are flexible for considering skewness of the longitudinal data. In this paper, a shared parameter model is considered for simultaneously analysing nonignorable missingness and skew longitudinal outcomes. A Bayesian approach using Markov Chain Monte Carlo is adopted for parameter estimation. Some simulation studies are performed to investigate the performance of the proposed methods. The proposed methods are applied for analyzing an AIDS data set, where CD4 count measurements are gathered as longitudinal outcomes. In these data CD4 counts measurements are severely skew. In application section, different structures of skew-normal distribution assumptions for random effects and errors are considered where deviance information criterion is used for model comparison.
Satellite‐beacon Ionospheric‐scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere (SIGMA) I: High‐latitude sensitivity study of the model parameters
Authors: Deshpande K. B. , Bust G. S. , Clauer C. R. , Rino C. L. , Carrano C. S.
Published: April 2014

Complex magnetosphere‐ionosphere coupling mechanisms result in high‐latitude irregularities that are difficult to characterize using only Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) scintillation measurements. However, GNSS observations combined with physical parameters derived from modeling can be used to study the physics of these irregularities. We have developed a full three‐dimensional electromagnetic wave propagation model called “Satellite‐beacon Ionospheric‐scintillation Global Model of the upper Atmosphere” (SIGMA), to simulate GNSS scintillations. This model eliminates the most significant approximation made by the previous simulation approaches about the correlation length of the irregularity. Thus, for the first time, using SIGMA, we can accomplish scintillation simulations of significantly high fidelity. While the model is global, it is particularly applicable at high latitudes as it accounts for the complicated geometry of the magnetic field lines in these regions. Using SIGMA, we simulate the spatial and temporal variations in the GNSS signal phase and amplitude on the ground. In this paper, we present the model and results from a study to determine the sensitivity of the SIGMA outputs to different input parameters. We have deduced from our sensitivity study that the peak to peak (P2P) power gets most affected by the spectral index and line of sight direction, while the P2P phase and standard deviation of the phase (σφ) are more sensitive to the anisotropy of the irregularity. The sensitivity study of SIGMA narrows the parametric space to investigate when comparing the modeled results to the observations.
Estimation of the helium ion density distribution in the plasmasphere based on a single IMAGE/EUV image
Authors: Nakano S. , Fok M.‐C. , Brandt P. C. , Higuchi T.
Published: April 2014

We have developed a technique by which to estimate the spatial distribution of plasmaspheric helium ions based on extreme ultraviolet (EUV) data obtained from the IMAGE satellite. The estimation is performed using a linear inversion method based on the Bayesian approach. The global imaging data from the IMAGE satellite enable us to estimate a global two‐dimensional distribution of the helium ions in the plasmasphere. We applied this technique to a synthetic EUV image generated from a numerical model. This technique was confirmed to successfully reproduce the helium ion density that generated the synthetic EUV data. We also demonstrate how the proposed technique works for real data using two real EUV images.
Dual‐FOV Raman and Doppler lidar studies of aerosol‐cloud interactions: Simultaneous profiling of aerosols, warm‐cloud properties, and vertical wind
Authors: Schmidt Jörg , Ansmann Albert , Bühl Johannes , Baars Holger , Wandinger Ulla , Müller Detlef , Malinka Aleksey V.
Published: April 2014

For the first time, colocated dual‐field of view (dual‐FOV) Raman lidar and Doppler lidar observations (case studies) of aerosol and cloud optical and microphysical properties below and within thin layered liquid water clouds are presented together with an updraft and downdraft characterization at cloud base. The goal of this work is to investigate the relationship between aerosol load close to cloud base and cloud characteristics of warm (purely liquid) clouds and the study of the influence of vertical motions and turbulent mixing on this relationship. We further use this opportunity to illustrate the applicability of the novel dual‐FOV Raman lidar in this field of research. The dual‐FOV lidar combines the well‐established multiwavelength Raman lidar technique for aerosol retrievals and the multiple‐scattering Raman lidar technique for profiling of the single‐scattering extinction coefficient, effective radius, number concentration of the cloud droplets, and liquid water content. Key findings of our 3 year observations are presented in several case studies of optically thin altocumulus layers occurring in the lower free troposphere between 2.5 and 4 km height over Leipzig, Germany, during clean and polluted situations. For the clouds that we observed, the most direct link between aerosol proxy (particle extinction coefficient) and cloud proxy (cloud droplet number concentration) was found at cloud base during updraft periods. Above cloud base, additional processes resulting from turbulent mixing and entrainment of dry air make it difficult to determine the direct impact of aerosols on cloud processes.
A quantitative measure of polar vortex strength using the function M
Authors: Smith Madeleine L. , McDonald Adrian J.
Published: April 2014

Changes in the dynamics of the stratospheric polar vortices can significantly affect the composition of air in the polar stratosphere, with the dynamics of the vortex barrier being particularly important. The “Function M” is a recently proposed measure for quantifying transport in dynamical systems. We show that it can be used not only to visualize the structure of the stratospheric polar region in detail but also to provide a basis for quantitative measures capturing important aspects of vortex dynamics. Two such measures have been calculated daily for August–October 2009 and 2010 in the Southern Hemisphere for potential temperatures of 600, 700, and 900 K, as well as for three different Northern Hemisphere winter periods for 900 K. We discuss a measure of vortex barrier strength and permeability based on the average value of the function M near the vortex edge. The second measure, associated with vortex barrier area, is obtained by calculating the area associated with values of M above a threshold. Both measures are found to be potentially useful, with the area‐based measure providing the most convincing results. The measures are based on a Lagrangian framework and follow the vortex edge, allowing periods when the vortex retains its dynamical integrity to be identified even when the vortex is greatly distorted. We also discuss a strong linear correlation near the vortex edge between values of the function M calculated over different time periods, suggesting that the structure of the polar vortex is coherent over periods of at least 30 days.
Quasi‐biennial oscillation and solar cycle influences on winter Arctic total ozone
Authors: Li King‐Fai , Tung Ka‐Kit
Published: April 2014

The total column ozone (TCO) observed from satellites and assimilated in the European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts since 1979 is used as an atmospheric tracer to study the modulations of the winter Arctic stratosphere by the quasi‐biennial oscillation (QBO) and the solar cycle. It is found that both the QBO and solar forcings in low latitudes can perturb the late winter polar vortex, likely via planetary wave divergence, causing an early breakdown of the vortex in the form of sudden stratospheric warming. As a result, TCO within the vortex in late winter can increase by ~60 Dobson unit during either a solar maximum or an easterly phase of the QBO, or both, relative to the least perturbed state when the solar cycle is minimum and the QBO is in the westerly phase. In addition, from the solar maximum to the solar minimum during the QBO easterly phase, the change in TCO is found to be statistically insignificant. Therefore, the “reversal” of the Holton–Tan effect, reported in some previous studies using lower stratospheric temperature, is not evident in the TCO behavior of both observation and assimilation.
Troposphere‐stratosphere coupling: Links to North Atlantic weather and climate, including their representation in CMIP5 models
Authors: Shaw Tiffany A. , Perlwitz Judith , Weiner Ori
Published: April 2014

A new dynamical metric of troposphere‐stratosphere coupling is established based on extreme stratospheric planetary‐scale wave heat flux events, defined as the 10th and 90th percentiles of the daily high‐latitude averaged heat flux distribution at 50 hPa using European Centre for Medium‐Range Weather Forecasts Re‐Analysis (ERA)‐Interim reanalysis data. The stratospheric heat flux extremes are linked instantaneously to high‐latitude planetary‐scale wave patterns in the troposphere and zonal wind, temperature, and mean sea level pressure anomalies in the Atlantic basin. The impacts are reminiscent of different phases of the North Atlantic Oscillation. In particular, extreme positive (negative) heat flux events in the stratosphere are associated with an equatorward (poleward) jet shift in the North Atlantic basin. The metric is used to evaluate troposphere‐stratosphere coupling in models participating in the Coupled Model Intercomparison Project Phase 5 (CMIP5). The results show that models with a degraded representation of stratospheric extremes exhibit robust biases in the troposphere relative to ERA‐Interim. In particular, models with biased stratospheric extremes exhibit a biased climatological stationary wave pattern and Atlantic jet stream position in the troposphere. In addition, these models exhibit biases in geopotential height and zonal wind extremes in the North Atlantic region. The stratospheric biases are connected to model lid height, but it is not sufficient for assessing the tropospheric impacts. Our analysis reveals that the mean bias of the stratospheric heat flux is also not sufficient for assessing the representation of troposphere‐stratosphere coupling. Overall, the results suggest that a metric based on stratospheric heat flux extremes should be used in conjunction with metrics based on extreme polar vortex events in multimodel assessments of troposphere‐stratosphere coupling.
Measurements and modeling of the inorganic chemical composition of fine particulate matter and associated precursor gases in California's San Joaquin Valley during CalNex 2010
Authors: Markovic M. Z. , VandenBoer T. C. , Baker K. R. , Kelly J. T. , Murphy J. G.
Published: April 2014

A modified Ambient Ion Monitor‐Ion Chromatograph was utilized to monitor the composition of water‐soluble fine particulate matter (PM2.5) and precursor gases at the Bakersfield, CA, supersite during Research at the Nexus of Air Quality and Climate Change (CalNex) in May and June of 2010. The observations were used to investigate inorganic gas/particle partitioning, to derive an empirical relationship between ammonia emissions and temperature, and to assess the performance of the Community Multiscale Air Quality (CMAQ) model. The water‐soluble PM2.5 maximized in the morning and in the evening because of gas/particle partitioning and possibly regional transport. Among the PM2.5 constituents, pNO3− was the dominant chemical species with campaign average mass loading of 0.80 µg m−3, and the mass loadings of pNH4+ and pSO42− were 0.46 µg m−3 and 0.53 µg m−3, respectively. The observed HNO3 (g) levels had an average of 0.14 ppb. Sub‐ppb levels of SO2 (g) were measured, consistent with the absence of major emission sources in the region. Measured NH3 (g) had an average of 19.7 ppb over the campaign and demonstrated a strong relationship with temperature. Observations of ammonia were used to derive an empirical enthalpy for volatilization of 30.8 ± 2.1 kJ mol−1. The gas/particle partitioning of semivolatile PM2.5 composition was driven by meteorological factors and limited by total nitrate (TN) in this region. CMAQ model output exhibited significant biases in the predicted concentrations of pSO42−, NH3 (g), and TN. The largest model bias was in HNO3 (g), with an overprediction of an order of magnitude, which may be due to missing HNO3 (g) sinks such as reactive uptake on dust in the CMAQ framework.
Usefulness of ensemble forecasts from NCEP Climate Forecast System in sub‐seasonal to intra‐annual forecasting
Authors: Kumar Sanjiv , Dirmeyer Paul A. , Kinter J. L.
Published: April 2014

Typically, sub‐seasonal to intra‐annual climate forecasts are based on ensemble mean (EM) predictions. The EM prediction provides only a part of the information available from the ensemble forecast. Here we test the null hypothesis that the observations are randomly distributed about the EM predictions using a new metric that quantifies the distance between the EM predictions from the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP) Climate Forecast System version 2 (CFSv2) and the observations represented by CFSv2 Reanalysis. The null hypothesis cannot be rejected in this study. Hence, we argue that the higher order statistics such as ensemble standard deviation are also needed to describe the forecast. We also show that removal of systematic errors that are a function of the forecast initialization month and lead time is a necessary pre‐processing step. Finally, we show that CFSv2 provides useful ensemble climate forecasts from 0 to 9 month lead time in several regions.
What causes the location of the air‐sea turbulent heat flux maximum over the Labrador Sea?
Authors: Moore G.W.K. , Pickart R.S. , Renfrew I.A. , Våge Kjetil
Published: April 2014

The Labrador Sea is a region of climatic importance as a result of the occurrence of oceanic wintertime convection, a process that is integral to the Atlantic Meridional Overturning Circulation. This process requires large air‐sea heat fluxes that result in a loss of surface buoyancy, triggering convective overturning of the water column. The Labrador Sea wintertime turbulent heat flux maximum is situated downstream of the ice edge, a location previously thought to be causal. Here we show that there is considerable similarity in the characteristics of the regional mean atmospheric circulation and high heat flux events over the Labrador Sea during early winter, when the ice is situated to the north, and midwinter, when it is near the region of maximum heat loss. This suggests that other factors, including the topography of the nearby upstream and downstream landmasses, contribute to the location of the heat flux maximum.
Response of the mantle to flat slab evolution: Insights from local S splitting beneath Peru
Authors: Eakin Caroline M. , Long Maureen D. , Beck Susan L. , Wagner Lara S. , Tavera Hernando , Condori Cristóbal
Published: April 2014

The dynamics of flat subduction, particularly the interaction between a flat slab and the overriding plate, are poorly understood. Here we study the (seismically) anisotropic properties and deformational regime of the mantle directly above the Peruvian flat slab. We analyze shear wave splitting from 370 local S events at 49 stations across southern Peru. We find that the mantle above the flat slab appears to be anisotropic, with modest average delay times (~0.28 s) that are consistent with ~4% anisotropy in a ~30 km thick mantle layer. The most likely mechanism is the lattice‐preferred orientation of olivine, which suggests that the observed splitting pattern preserves information about the mantle deformation. We observe a pronounced change in anisotropy along strike, with predominately trench‐parallel fast directions in the north and more variable orientations in the south, which we attribute to the ongoing migration of the Nazca Ridge through the flat slab system.
Seasonal characteristics of aerosol optical properties at the SKYNET Hefei site (31.90°N, 117.17°E) from 2007 to 2013
Authors: Wang Zhenzhu , Liu Dong , Wang Zhien , Wang Yingjian , Khatri Pradeep , Zhou Jun , Takamura Tamio , Shi Guangyu
Published: April 2014

Seasonal characteristics of aerosol optical properties in Sky Radiometer Network (SKYNET) Hefei site are studied using a sky radiometer from March 2007 to May 2013. The aerosol optical depth (AOD), Angstrom exponent (AE), volume size distributions, single‐scattering albedo (SSA), refractive index, and asymmetry factor (ASY) of aerosols are simultaneously retrieved using the SKYRAD.pack version 4.2 software. During the study period, the AOD varied seasonally, with the maximum value of 1.02 ± 0.42 at 500 nm occurring in the summer, and the highest AOD (1.13 ± 0.42) occurred in June due to stagnant climate conditions and accumulation of polluted aerosols before the East Asian summer monsoon. The variation in AE showed a different pattern, with the minimum (0.97 ± 0.28) and maximum values (1.30 ± 0.22) occurring during the spring and fall seasons, respectively. The relatively low value of AE in spring is related to the emission of Asian dust events. The aerosol volume size distributions can be expressed by the trimodal patterns for each season, consisting of a fine mode with R < 0.6 µm, a coarse mode with R > 2.5 µm, and a middle mode located between them. The real part of the refractive index increased with wavelength (380–870 nm) while the imaginary part of the refractive index decreased for all seasons except for the summer. The seasonal mean values of SSA were 0.97 ± 0.02 (summer), 0.95 ± 0.03 (spring), 0.93 ± 0.04 (autumn), and 0.91 ± 0.04 (winter) at 380 nm indicating more absorbing aerosol in the autumn and winter months. Furthermore, aerosol properties were greatly modified by condensation growth as evidenced by the positive dependencies of AOD, SSA, and ASY on relative humidity.
The response of US summer rainfall to quadrupled CO2 climate change in conventional and superparameterized versions of the NCAR community atmosphere model
Authors: Kooperman Gabriel J. , Pritchard Michael S. , Somerville Richard C. J.
Published: April 2014

Observations and regional climate modeling (RCM) studies demonstrate that global climate models (GCMs) are unreliable for predicting changes in extreme precipitation. Yet RCM climate change simulations are subject to boundary conditions provided by GCMs and do not interact with large‐scale dynamical feedbacks that may be critical to the overall regional response. Limitations of both global and regional modeling approaches contribute significant uncertainty to future rainfall projections. Progress requires a modeling framework capable of capturing the observed regional‐scale variability of rainfall intensity without sacrificing planetary scales. Here the United States summer rainfall response to quadrupled CO2 climate change is investigated using conventional (CAM) and superparameterized (SPCAM) versions of the NCAR Community Atmosphere Model. The superparameterization approach, in which cloud‐resolving model arrays are embedded in GCM grid columns, improves rainfall statistics and convective variability in global simulations. A set of 5 year time‐slice simulations, with prescribed sea surface temperature and sea ice boundary conditions harvested from preindustrial and abrupt four times CO2 coupled Community Earth System Model (CESM/CAM) simulations, are compared for CAM and SPCAM. The two models produce very different changes in mean precipitation patterns, which develop from differences in large‐scale circulation anomalies associated with the planetary‐scale response to warming. CAM shows a small decrease in overall rainfall intensity, with an increased contribution from the weaker parameterized convection and a decrease from large‐scale precipitation. SPCAM has the opposite response, a significant shift in rainfall occurrence toward higher precipitation rates including more intense propagating Central United States mesoscale convective systems in a four times CO2 climate.
Adaptive robust boundary control of shaft vibrations under perturbations with unknown upper bounds
Authors: Tavasoli Ali
Published: April 2014

This paper presents robust and adaptive boundary control designs to stabilize the two‐dimensional vibration of hybrid shaft model. The hybrid shaft is mathematically represented by a set of partial differential equations, governing the shaft vibrations, coupled to ordinary differential equations, describing rigid body spinning and dynamic boundary conditions. The control objective is to stabilize the transverse vibrations of the perturbed shaft while regulating the spinning rate. To achieve this, the paper first establishes robust boundary control laws that fulfil the control objective in the presence of modeling uncertainties and external disturbances operating over the shaft domain and boundary. Lyapunov‐based analyses show that the proposed robust control exponentially stabilizes the shaft with vanishing distributive perturbations, while assuring ultimately bounded vibrations in the case of nonvanishing perturbations. Then, adaptive control philosophy is utilized to achieve redesigned robust controllers that only use online adaptation of control gains without acquiring the knowledge of bounds on perturbations, as well as dynamic parameters. An advantage of this design is avoiding an overconservative robust control law, which may induce poor stability and chattering in tackling system perturbations with unknown upper bounds. Simulations through finite element method illustrate the results. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Adaptive actuator failure compensation design for unknown chaotic multi‐input systems
Authors: Tahoun A. H.
Published: April 2014

In this paper, an adaptive control approach is designed for compensating the faults in the actuators of chaotic systems and maintaining the acceptable system stability. We propose a state‐feedback model reference adaptive control scheme for unknown chaotic multi‐input systems. Only the dimensions of the chaotic systems are required to be known. Based on Lyapunov stability theory, new adaptive control laws are synthesized to accommodate actuator failures and system nonlinearities. An illustrative example is studied. The simulation results show the effectiveness of the design method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Color Effects of Nanotextured Aluminum Surfaces: Characterization and Modeling of Optical Behavior
Authors: Matsapey Natalia , Faucheu Jenny , Flury Manuel , Delafosse David
Published: April 2014

Surface finishes based on structural colors raise interest in product design and architecture in that long lasting colored surfaces can be produced with low risks if color fading. In this paper, aluminum surface are patterned through anodization with additional chemical post‐treatment. This electrochemical technique is advantageous in that it is already industrially mature and enables the treatment of large surfaces. The resulting surface shows self‐organized nanopatterns that lead to specific colored effects. In particular, colored effects similar to rainbow colors are observed in backscattering while the sample preserves its typical grayish metallic color when observed in direct reflection. Optical characterization of the sample have been performed and compared to optical simulations using Fourier modal method (FMM) method. A strong consistency between the simulation results and the experimental measurements has been obtained. It has been demonstrated that the color effects observed in backscattering are due to first order diffraction phenomena.
The Stanford Nanocharacterization Laboratory (SNL) and Recent Applications of an Aberration‐Corrected Environmental Transmission Electron Microscope
Authors: Sinclair Robert , Kempen Paul Joseph , Chin Richard , Koh Ai Leen
Published: April 2014

This article describes the establishment, over a period of 10 years or so, of a multi‐user, institution‐wide facility for the characterization of materials and devices at the nanoscale. Emphasis is placed on the type of equipment that we have found to be most useful for our users, and the business strategy that maintains its operations. A central component of our facility is an aberration‐corrected environmental transmission electron microscope and its application is summarized in the studies of plasmon energies of silver nanoparticles, the band gap of PbS quantum dots, atomic site occupancy near grain boundaries in yttria stabilized zirconia, the lithiation of silicon nanoparticles, in situ observations on carbon nanotube oxidation and the electron tomography of varicella zoster virus nucleocapsids.
Diversified Construction of Chromeno[3,4‐c]pyridin‐5‐one and Benzo[c]chromen‐6‐one Derivatives by Domino Reaction of 4‐Alkynyl‐2‐oxo‐2H‐chromene‐3‐carbaldehydes
Authors: Xiao Jian , Chen Yuye , Zhu Shuai , Wang Liang , Xu Lubin , Wei Hongtao
Published: April 2014

Silver‐catalyzed three‐component, tandem reactions of 4‐alkynyl‐2‐oxo‐2H‐chromene‐3‐carbaldehydes, amines and various nucleophiles result in the formation of highly functionalized chromeno[3,4‐c]pyridin‐5‐ones in high yields. Gold‐catalyzed [4+2] cycloadditions of 4‐alkynyl‐2‐oxo‐2H‐chromene‐3‐carbaldehydes with alkynes or alkenes have also been achieved to afford benzo[c]chromen‐6‐ones efficiently.

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Cobalt‐Catalyzed ortho‐CH Alkylation of 2‐Arylpyridines via Ring‐Opening of Aziridines
Authors: Gao Ke , Paira Rupankar , Yoshikai Naohiko
Published: April 2014

A cobalt–N‐heterocyclic carbene catalyst, in combination with neopentylmagnesium bromide, was found to promote ortho‐CH functionalization of 2‐arylpyridines with 1,2‐diarylaziridines through ring‐opening alkylation. The reaction affords 1,1‐diarylethanes bearing 2‐amino functional groups in moderate to good yields under mild room‐temperature conditions.

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ortho‐Allylation of 1‐Arylpyrazoles with Allyl Phenyl Ether via Iron‐Catalyzed CH Bond Activation under Mild Conditions
Authors: Asako Sobi , Norinder Jakob , Ilies Laurean , Yoshikai Naohiko , Nakamura Eiichi
Published: April 2014

An iron salt and a bipyridine‐type ligand catalyze the ortho‐allylation of 1‐arylpyrazoles and congeners with allyl phenyl ether under mild conditions (0 °C). The ligand, an organozinc base, and the nature of the allylating reagent are crucial for the success of this reaction. Under these conditions, a competitive phenylation reaction is largely retarded, and cross‐coupling of the organozinc with the allyl electrophile is minimized. The reaction may proceed via iron‐catalyzed ortho CH activation to form a metallic intermediate, which then reacts with the allyl ether in a γ selective fashion.

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Palladium‐Catalysed, Directed CH Coupling with Organometallics
Authors: Giri Ramesh , Thapa Surendra , Kafle Arjun
Published: April 2014

Transition metal (TM)‐catalysed CH coupling using organometallic reagents is developing into a distinct transformation area for the construction of carbon‐carbon (CC) bonds. Among different TMs (Ru, Rh, Pd, Co, Fe), complexes of palladium(II) are emerging as the most effective and versatile catalysts and have already asserted a proven track‐record for the catalytic activation and coupling of unactivated sp2 and sp3 CH bonds with sp2 and sp3 organometallic reagents. A majority of these TM‐catalysed CH coupling reactions utilise a heteroatom contained in substrates as a directing group. In the last decade, both traditional as well as non‐traditional but synthetically useful functional groups have been extensively exploited as directing groups. Novel directing groups based on mechanistic understanding have also been designed to enhance the reactivity of Pd(II) catalysts towards CH bonds. In addition, the unprecedented application of exogenous ligands to Pd(II)‐catalysed CH coupling is also on the rise, and this approach has already demonstrated an extraordinary level of success not only in breaking unactivated CH bonds enantioselectively, but also in improving reactivity of catalysts towards these CH bonds.

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Rhodium(III)‐Catalyzed, CH Activated Annulation to Form Isocoumarins and α‐Pyrones using the ON Bond as an Internal Oxidant
Authors: Li Xing Guang , Liu Kai , Zou Gang , Liu Pei Nian
Published: April 2014

A mild, efficient and regioselective CH activation‐based intermolecular redox‐neutral annulation of O‐benzoylhydroxylamines and internal alkynes has been achieved. The protocol employs an ON bond as the internal oxidant and leads to isocoumarins and α‐pyrones.

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Cytogenetic risk stratification of 417 patients with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia from a single institution
Authors: Tang Guilin , Zhang Liping , Fu Bin , Hu Jianhua , Lu Xinyan , Hu Shimin , Patel Ankita , Goswami Maitrayee , Khoury Joseph D. , Garcia‐Manero Guillermo , Medeiros L. Jeffrey , Wang Sa A.
Published: April 2014

Approximately 30% of patients with chronic myelomonocytic leukemia (CMML) have karyotypic abnormalities and this low frequency has made using cytogenetic data for the prognostication of CMML patients challenging. Recently, a three‐tiered cytogenetic risk stratification system for CMML patients has been proposed by a Spanish study group. Here we assessed the prognostic impact of cytogenetic abnormalities on overall survival (OS) and leukemia‐free survival (LFS) in 417 CMML patients from our institution. Overall, the Spanish cytogenetic risk effectively stratified patients into different risk groups, with a median OS of 33 months in the low‐, 24 months in intermediate‐ and 14 months in the high‐risk groups. Within the proposed high risk group, however, marked differences in OS were observed. Patients with isolated trisomy 8 showed a median OS of 22 months, similar to the intermediate‐risk group (P = 0.132), but significantly better than other patients in the high‐risk group (P = 0.018). Furthermore, patients with more than three chromosomal abnormalities showed a significantly shorter OS compared with patients with three abnormalities (8 vs. 15 months, P = 0.004), suggesting possible a separate risk category. If we simply moved trisomy 8 to the intermediate risk category, the modified cytogenetic grouping would provide a better separation of OS and LFS; and its prognostic impact was independent of other risk parameters. Our study results strongly advocate for the incorporation of cytogenetic information in the risk model for CMML. Am. J. Hematol. 89:813–818, 2014. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Abnormal brain magnetic resonance imaging in two patients with Smith–Magenis syndrome
Authors: Maya Idit , Vinkler Chana , Konen Osnat , Kornreich Liora , Steinberg Tamar , Yeshaya Josepha , Latarowski Victoria , Shohat Mordechai , Lev Dorit , Baris Hagit N.
Published: April 2014

Smith–Magenis syndrome (SMS) is a clinically recognizable contiguous gene syndrome ascribed to an interstitial deletion in chromosome 17p11.2. Seventy percent of SMS patients have a common deletion interval spanning 3.5 megabases (Mb). Clinical features of SMS include characteristic mild dysmorphic features, ocular anomalies, short stature, brachydactyly, and hypotonia. SMS patients have a unique neurobehavioral phenotype that includes intellectual disability, self‐injurious behavior and severe sleep disturbance. Little has been reported in the medical literature about anatomical brain anomalies in patients with SMS. Here we describe two patients with SMS caused by the common deletion in 17p11.2 diagnosed using chromosomal microarray (CMA). Both patients had a typical clinical presentation and abnormal brain magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) findings. One patient had subependymal periventricular gray matter heterotopia, and the second had a thin corpus callosum, a thin brain stem and hypoplasia of the cerebellar vermis. This report discusses the possible abnormal MRI images in SMS and reviews the literature on brain malformations in SMS. Finally, although structural brain malformations in SMS patients are not a common feature, we suggest baseline routine brain imaging in patients with SMS in particular, and in patients with chromosomal microdeletion/microduplication syndromes in general. Structural brain malformations in these patients may affect the decision‐making process regarding their management. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Design of Peptidyl Thiourea Derivatives as Organocatalysts for the Asymmetric Ring Opening of meso‐Stilbene Oxides
Authors: Chimni Swapandeep Singh , Kumar Vikas , Bala Neeraj
Published: April 2014

Chiral peptidyl thiourea organocatalysts were designed and synthesized for asymmetric ring‐opening of cis‐stilbene oxides with N‐phenylpiperazines. Chiral β‐amino alcohols were obtained with up to 95 % ee after crystallization. The configuration at the N‐terminal residue stereogenic center of peptidyl thiourea organocatalyst was found to affect the stereochemical outcome of the reaction.
Impairment of ceramide synthesis causes a novel progressive myoclonus epilepsy
Authors: Vanni Nicola , Fruscione Floriana , Ferlazzo Edoardo , Striano Pasquale , Robbiano Angela , Traverso Monica , Sander Thomas , Falace Antonio , Gazzerro Elisabetta , Bramanti Placido , Bielawski Jacek , Fassio Anna , Minetti Carlo , Genton Pierre , Zara Federico
Published: April 2014

Objective

Alterations of sphingolipid metabolism are implicated in the pathogenesis of many neurodegenerative disorders.

Methods

We identified a homozygous nonsynonymous mutation in CERS1, the gene encoding ceramide synthase 1, in 4 siblings affected by a progressive disorder with myoclonic epilepsy and dementia. CerS1, a transmembrane protein of the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), catalyzes the biosynthesis of C18‐ceramides.

Results

We demonstrated that the mutation decreases C18‐ceramide levels. In addition, we showed that downregulation of CerS1 in a neuroblastoma cell line triggers ER stress response and induces proapoptotic pathways.

Interpretation

This study demonstrates that impairment of ceramide biosynthesis underlies neurodegeneration in humans. Ann Neurol 2014;76:206–212
Toughening‐modified epoxy‐amine system: Cure kinetics, mechanical behavior, and shape memory performances
Authors: Jing Xianghai , Liu Yuyan , Liu Yuxi , Liu Zhenguo , Tan Huifeng
Published: April 2014

Shape memory epoxy resins are derived on reacting E51 with triethylenetetramine in presence of the toughening agent polypropylene glycol diglycidyl ether (PPGDGE). The curing behaviors are studied with differential scanning calorimetry. The toughening system shows a decrease in activation energy. Šesták–Berggren model is utilized to establish the kinetic equations. The fitting results prove that the equations can well describe the reactions. Tensile tests and dynamic mechanical analysis are used to analyze mechanical performances and thermodynamics. Shape memory properties are characterized by fold‐deploy tests. The elongation at break increases as the concentration of PPGDGE increases. The toughening materials have lower glass transition temperature (Tg). The fixable ratios of all systems are greater than 99.5%. The shape recovery time decreases with increasing the PPGDGE concentration. The optimal system can fully recover its original shape in about 2 min at Tg + 30°C, and exhibit the maximum fold‐deploy cycles as 13 cycles. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2014, 131, 40853.
4,6‐Diaryl/heteroarylpyrimidin‐2(1H)‐ones as a New Class of Xanthine Oxidase Inhibitors
Authors: Shukla Shiwani , Kumar Dinesh , Ojha Ritu , Gupta Manish K. , Nepali Kunal , Bedi Preet M. S.
Published: April 2014

A series of 4,6‐diaryl/heteroarylpyrimidones was synthesized employing silica‐supported fluoroboric acid under solvent‐free conditions in a microwave reactor. The catalytic influence of HBF4‐SiO2 was investigated in detail to optimize the reaction conditions. The synthesized compounds were evaluated for in vitro xanthine oxidase (XO) inhibitory activity for the first time. Structure‐activity relationship analyses are also presented. Among the synthesized compounds, VA‐5, ‐9, ‐10, ‐12, ‐22, ‐23, and ‐25 were the active inhibitors with IC50 values ranging from 6.45 to 13.46 µM. Compound VA‐25 with a pyridinyl ring as ring A and a thiophenyl ring as ring B emerged as the most potent XO inhibitor (IC50 = 6.45 µM) in comparison to allopurinol (IC50 = 12.24 µM). Some of the important interactions of VA‐25 with the amino acid residues of the active site of XO were figured out by molecular modeling studies.
Factors affecting rocchio‐based pseudorelevance feedback in image retrieval
Authors: Tsai Chih‐Fong , Hu Ya‐Han , Chen Zong‐Yao
Published: April 2014

Pseudorelevance feedback (PRF) was proposed to solve the limitation of relevance feedback (RF), which is based on the user‐in‐the‐loop process. In PRF, the top‐k retrieved images are regarded as PRF. Although the PRF set contains noise, PRF has proven effective for automatically improving the overall retrieval result. To implement PRF, the Rocchio algorithm has been considered as a reasonable and well‐established baseline. However, the performance of Rocchio‐based PRF is subject to various representation choices (or factors). In this article, we examine these factors that affect the performance of Rocchio‐based PRF, including image‐feature representation, the number of top‐ranked images, the weighting parameters of Rocchio, and similarity measure. We offer practical insights on how to optimize the performance of Rocchio‐based PRF by choosing appropriate representation choices. Our extensive experiments on NUS‐WIDE‐LITE and Caltech 101 + Corel 5000 data sets show that the optimal feature representation is color moment + wavelet texture in terms of retrieval efficiency and effectiveness. Other representation choices are that using top‐20 ranked images as pseudopositive and pseudonegative feedback sets with the equal weight (i.e., 0.5) by the correlation and cosine distance functions can produce the optimal retrieval result.
Electrodermal and Behavioral Responses of Children With Autism Spectrum Disorders to Sensory and Repetitive Stimuli
Authors: McCormick Carolyn , Hessl David , Macari Suzanne L. , Ozonoff Sally , Green Cherie , Rogers Sally J.
Published: April 2014

Parents frequently report that their children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD) respond atypically to sensory stimuli. Repetitive behaviors are also part of the ASD behavioral profile. Abnormal physiological arousal may underlie both of these symptoms. Electrodermal activity (EDA) is an index of sympathetic nervous system arousal. The goals of this study were twofold: (1) to pilot methods for collecting EDA data in young children and (2) to examine hypothesized relationships among EDA, and sensory symptoms and repetitive behaviors in children with ASD as compared with children with typical development. EDA was recorded on 54 young children with ASD and on 33 children with typical development (TD) during a protocol that included baseline, exposure to sensory and repetitive stimuli, and play. Parents completed standardized questionnaires regarding their child's sensory symptoms and repetitive behaviors. Frequency and type of repetitive behavior during play was coded offline. Comparisons between EDA data for ASD and TD groups indicated no significant between‐group differences in any measures. Parents of children with ASD reported more abnormal responses to sensory stimuli and more repetitive behaviors, but scores on these measures were not significantly correlated with EDA or with frequency of observed repetitive behaviors. Parent report of frequency and severity of sensory symptoms was significantly correlated with reports of repetitive behaviors in both groups. Although parents of children with ASD report high levels of sensory symptoms and repetitive behaviors, these differences are not related to measured EDA arousal or reactivity. Autism Res 2014, 7: 468–480. © 2014 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.