bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Coupling recombinase‐mediated cassette exchange with somatic hypermutation for antibody affinity maturation in CHO cells
Authors: Chen Chuan , Li Nan , Zhao Yun , Hang Haiying
Published: July 2015

Heterologous expression of activation‐induced cytidine deaminase (AID) can induce somatic hypermutation (SHM) for genes of interest in various cells, and several research groups (including ours) have successfully improved antibody affinity in mammalian or chicken cells using AID‐induced SHM. These affinity maturation systems are time‐consuming and inefficient. In this study, we developed an antibody affinity maturation platform in Chinese hamster ovary (CHO) cells by coupling recombinase‐mediated cassette exchange (RMCE) with SHM. Stable CHO cell clones containing a single copy puromycin resistance gene (PuroR) expression cassette flanked by recombination target sequences (FRT and loxP) being able to highly express a gene of interest placed in the cassette were developed. The PuroR gene was replaced with an antibody gene by RMCE, and the antibody was displayed on the cell surface. Cells displaying antibodies on their membrane were transfected with the AID gene, and mutations of the antibody gene were accumulated by AID‐mediated hypermutation during cell proliferation followed by flow cytometric cell sorting for cells bearing antibody mutants with improved affinity. Affinity improvements were detected after only one round of cell sorting and proliferation, mutant clones with 15‐fold affinity improvement were isolated within five rounds of maturation (within 2 months). CHO cells are fast growing, stress‐resistant and produce antibody with glycosylations suitable for therapy. Our antibody‐evolution platform based on CHO cells makes antibody‐affinity maturation more efficient and is especially convenient for therapeutic antibody affinity improvement. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2016;113: 39–51. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Synthesis of C8‐N‐Arylamine‐Modified 2′‐Deoxyguanosine‐5′‐Triphosphates and Their Effects on Primer Extension by DNA Polymerases
Authors: Höfler Katharina , Sarac Ivo , Meier Chris
Published: July 2015

C8‐N‐arylamine adducts of 2′‐deoxyguanosine (2′‐dG) play an important role in the induction of the chemical carcinogenesis caused by aromatic amines. C8‐N‐acetyl‐N‐arylamine dG adducts that differ in their substitution pattern in the aniline moiety were converted by cycloSal technology into the corresponding C8‐N‐acetyl‐N‐arylamine‐2′‐deoxyguanosine‐5′‐triphosphates and C8‐NH‐arylamine‐2′‐deoxyguanosine‐5′‐triphosphates. Their conformation preference has been investigated by NOE spectroscopy and DFT calculations. The substrate properties of the C8‐dG adducts were studied in primer‐extension assays by using Klenow fragment exo− of Escherichia coli DNA polymerase I and human DNA polymerase β. It was shown that the incorporation was independent of the substitution pattern in the aryl moiety and the N‐acetyl group. Although the triphosphates were poor substrates for the human polymerases, they were incorporated twice before the termination of the elongation process occurred; this might demonstrate the importance of C8‐N‐arylamine‐2′‐deoxyguanosine‐5′‐triphosphates in chemical carcinogenesis.
Respiratory syncytial virus infection inhibits TLR4 signaling via up‐regulation of miR‐26b
Authors: Liu Shuang , Gao Li , Wang Xia , Xing Yan
Published: July 2015

Respiratory syncytial virus (RSV) is the leading cause of lower respiratory tract illnesses in infants worldwide. TLR4 signal pathway plays a critical role in regulating immune response against RSV infection. However, the activation of TLR4 in RSV infection is still unclear. In present study, the expression levels of miR‐26b and TLR4 mRNA were detected in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) of children with or without RSV infected bronchiolitis. The expression levels of TLR4 and its downstream genes IFNβ and CCL5 were also quantified in PBMCs infected with RSVΔG or RSV A2 in vitro. The results showed that children with RSV infection had higher miR‐26b level and lower TLR4 mRNA level in PBMCs. miR‐26b was predicted to target TLR4. In vitro, miR‐26b mimic markedly down‐regulated TLR4 mRNA/protein expression and IFNβ/CCL5 concentrations while miR‐26b inhibitor up‐regulated these levels. This study reveals that RSV infection inhibits TLR4 signaling via up‐regulation of miR‐26b, which provides a potential therapeutic target for preventing and treating RSV infection.
Palladium‐Catalyzed Synthesis of Phenanthridine/Benzoxazine‐Fused Quinazolinones by Intramolecular CH Bond Activation
Authors: Gupta Puneet K. , Yadav Nisha , Jaiswal Subodh , Asad Mohd. , Kant Ruchir , Hajela Kanchan
Published: July 2015

A highly efficient synthesis of phenanthridine/benzoxazine‐fused quinazolinones by ligand‐free palladium‐catalyzed intramolecular CH bond activation under mild conditions has been developed. The CC coupling provides the corresponding N‐fused polycyclic heterocycles in good to excellent yields and with wide functional group tolerance.
Synthesis of Nature‐Inspired Medium‐Sized Fused Heterocycles from Amino Acids
Authors: Ventosa‐Andrés Pilar , La‐Venia Agustina , Ripoll Carlos Alfonso Barea , Hradilová Ludmila , Krchňák Viktor
Published: July 2015

Herein, we describe the synthesis of molecular scaffolds consisting of medium‐sized fused heterocycles using amino acids, which are some of the most useful building blocks used by nature as well as chemists to create structural diversity. The acyclic precursors were assembled by using traditional Merrifield solid‐phase peptide synthesis, and cyclization was carried out through acid‐mediated tandem endocyclic N‐acyliminium ion formation, followed by nucleophilic addition with internal nucleophiles. The synthesis of molecular scaffolds consisting of seven‐, eight‐, and nine‐membered rings proceeded with full stereocontrol of the newly generated stereogenic center in most cases.
Callipeltosides A, B and C: Total Syntheses and Structural Confirmation
Authors: Frost James R. , Pearson Colin M. , Snaddon Thomas N. , Booth Richard A. , Turner Richard M. , Gold Johan , Shaw David M. , Gaunt Matthew J. , Ley Steven V.
Published: July 2015

Since their isolation almost 20 years ago, the callipeltosides have been of long standing interest to the synthetic community owing to their unique structural features and inherent biological activity. Herein we present our full research effort that has led to the synthesis of these molecules. Key aspects of our final strategy include 1) synthesis of the C1–C9 pyran core (5) using an AuCl3‐catalysed cyclisation; 2) formation of C10–C22 vinyl iodide (55) by sequential bidirectional Stille reactions and 3) diastereoselective union of these advanced fragments by means of an alkenylzinc addition (d.r.=91:9 at C9). The common callipeltoside aglycon (4) was completed in a further five steps. Following this, all three sugar fragments were appended to provide the entire callipeltoside family. In addition to this, D‐configured callipeltose B was synthesised and appended to the callipeltoside aglycon. The 1H NMR spectrum of this molecule was found to be significantly different to the natural isolate, further supporting our assignment of callipeltoside B (2).
Room‐Temperature Decarboxylative Couplings of α‐Oxocarboxylates with Aryl Halides by Merging Photoredox with Palladium Catalysis
Authors: Cheng Wan‐Min , Shang Rui , Yu Hai‐Zhu , Fu Yao
Published: July 2015

Enabled by merging iridium photoredox catalysis and palladium catalysis, α‐oxocarboxylate salts can be decarboxylatively coupled with aryl halides to generate aromatic ketones and amides at room temperature. DFT calculations suggest that this reaction proceeds through a Pd0–PdII–PdIII pathway, in which the PdIII intermediate is responsible for reoxidizing IrII to complete the IrIII–*IrIII–IrII photoredox cycle.
Global Dynamics of the Lotka‐Volterra Competition‐Diffusion System: Diffusion and Spatial Heterogeneity I
Authors: He Xiaoqing , Ni Wei‐Ming
Published: July 2015

In the first part of this series of three papers, we investigate the combined effects of diffusion, spatial variation, and competition ability on the global dynamics of a classical Lotka‐Volterra competition‐diffusion system. We establish the main results that determine the global asymptotic stability of semitrivial as well as coexistence steady states. Hence a complete understanding of the change in dynamics is obtained immediately. Our results indicate/confirm that, when spatial heterogeneity is included in the model, “diffusion‐driven exclusion” could take place when the diffusion rates and competition coefficients of both species are chosen appropriately.© 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Online optimization scheduling for scientific workflows with deadline constraint on hybrid clouds
Authors: Lin Bing , Guo Wenzhong , Lin Xiuyan
Published: July 2015

The tremendous parallel computing ability of cloud computing encourages investigators to research its drawbacks and advantages on processing large‐scale scientific applications such as workflows. The current cloud market is composed of numerous diverse public clouds and a local private cloud, and workflow scheduling is one of the biggest challenges on hybrid clouds due to the highly fragmented cloud market with respect to service provisions, pricing models, and bandwidths. In this paper, we propose an online‐scheduling strategy for continuous submitted scientific workflows on hybrid clouds, which aims to complete the deadline‐constrained applications as more as possible at a lower price. Firstly, a hierarchical iterative application partition (HIAP) algorithm is proposed to partition the application into a set of dependent tasks. Moreover, many online‐scheduling algorithms cooperated with HIAP are presented to finish the workflows with a low average payment. Our strategy takes into account the basic characteristics on hybrid clouds such as bandwidth constraints, data transfer cost and computational cost. Various well‐known workflows are used for evaluating the multiple scheduling algorithms and the results show that the MLF_ID approach can achieve a promising performance. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Towards optimized scheduling for data‐intensive scientific workflow in multiple datacenter environment
Authors: Zhang Jinghui , Wang Mingjun , Luo Junzhou , Dong Fang , Zhang Junxue
Published: July 2015

In the big data era, scientific workflow exhibits the characteristics of data intensity and becomes increasingly popular in scientific domains. Efficient scheduling of data‐intensive scientific workflow in a multiple datacenter (DC) environment has been a long‐standing challenge. Most of previous work on data‐intensive scientific workflow scheduling primarily focused on the optimization of reducing the volumes of data transfer between workflow tasks. In this paper, novel scheduling strategies for the execution of data‐intensive scientific workflow in multi‐DC environment are proposed aiming at the optimization of the overall data transfer time. A novel DC selection approach is proposed to minimize the number of DCs having enough storage capacity for the execution of scientific workflow as well as optimized inter‐DC network bandwidth for efficient data transfer between workflow tasks. A k‐means clustering‐based data placement strategy is adopted to intelligently place the initial data of scientific workflow thereby reducing the volume of initial data transfer between different DCs. A multilevel task replication scheduling strategy is invented to reduce the volumes of intermediate data transfer between DCs during the runtime of the scientific workflow. Simulations spanning a broad range of scientific workflow and multi‐DC settings are performed in order to verify the proposed approaches. The numerical results show that our combined scheduling strategy significantly reduces the overall data transfer time and data transfer volume when scientific workflow is scheduled in multi‐DC environment. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An agent‐oriented, trust‐aware approach to improve the QoS in dynamic grid federations
Authors: De Meo Pasquale , Messina Fabrizio , Rosaci Domenico , Sarné Giuseppe M. L.
Published: July 2015

In this paper, a distributed approach aimed at improving the quality of service in dynamic grid federations is presented. Virtual organizations (VO) are grouped into large‐scale federations in which the original goals and scheduling mechanisms are left unchanged, while grid nodes can be quickly instructed to join or leave any VO at any time. Moreover, an agent‐oriented framework is designed to observe and characterize past behaviors of nodes in terms of resource sharing and consumption, as well as to determine the trust relationships occurring between each pair of nodes. By combining trust and historical behaviors into a unified convenience measure, software agents are able to evaluate the (i) advantages of node's membership with VOs and (ii) whether a specific set of nodes is able to meet the actual requirements, in terms of resource sharing and consumption of a specific VO. The convenience measure has been exploited to design a fully decentralized, greedy procedure, aimed at controlling the grid formation process. Extensive simulations have shown that the coordinated and decentralized process of grid formation provides a powerful means to improve the overall quality of service of the grid federation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
P3‐Type Layered Sodium‐Deficient Nickel–Manganese Oxides: A Flexible Structural Matrix for Reversible Sodium and Lithium Intercalation
Authors: Kalapsazova Maria , Ortiz Gregorio F. , Tirado Jose L. , Dolotko Oleksandr , Zhecheva Ekaterina , Nihtianova Diana , Mihaylov Lyuben , Stoyanova Radostina
Published: July 2015

Sodium‐deficient nickel–manganese oxides exhibit a layered structure, which is flexible enough to acquire different layer stacking. The effect of layer stacking on the intercalation properties of P3‐NaxNi0.5Mn0.5O2 (x=0.50, 0.67) and P2‐Na2/3Ni1/3Mn2/3O2, for use as cathodes in sodium‐ and lithium‐ion batteries, is examined. For P3‐Na0.67Ni0.5Mn0.5O2, a large trigonal superstructure with 2√3 a×2√3 a×2 c is observed, whereas for P2‐Na2/3Ni1/3Mn2/3O2 there is a superstructure with reduced lattice parameters. In sodium cells, P3 and P2 phases intercalate sodium reversibly at a well‐expressed voltage plateau. Preservation of the P3‐type structure during sodium intercalation determines improving cycling stability of the P3 phase within an extended potential range, in comparison with that for the P2 phase, for which a P2–O2 phase transformation has been found. Between 2.0 and 4.0 V, P3 and P2 phases display an excellent rate capability. In lithium cells, the P3 phase intercalates lithium, accompanied by a P3–O3 structural transformation. The in situ generated O3 phase, containing lithium and sodium simultaneously, determines the specific voltage profile of P3‐NaxNi0.5Mn0.5O2. The P2 phase does not display any reversible lithium intercalation. The P3 phase demonstrates a higher capacity at lower rates in lithium cells, whereas in sodium cells P3‐NaxNi0.5Mn0.5O2 operates better at higher rates. These findings reveal the unique ability of sodium‐deficient nickel–manganese oxides with a P3‐type structure for application as low‐cost electrode materials in both sodium‐ and lithium‐ion batteries.
Composite Noble‐Metal Films/H+‐Conducting Solid‐Polymer Electrolyte Assemblies: The Nitrate‐Reduction Activity in an Asymmetric Sandwich‐Type Reactor
Authors: Hasnat Mohammad A. , Islam Muhammad Amirul , Aoun S. Ben , Safwan Jamil A. , Rahman Mohammed M. , Asiri Abdullah M.
Published: July 2015

Asymmetric (Pt|Nafion|Pt–Pd–Cu) assemblies were fabricated to study the nitrate‐reduction reaction (NRR) at the cathode surface. The influence of the material composition, supplied current, and applied potential on the reactivity, kinetics, and product selectivity were thoroughly investigated. The cathode assembly consisting of 54 atom % Pt showed enhanced reactivity both in binary (Pt–Pd; k1≈10.7×10−3 min−1) and ternary (Cu–Pt–Pd; k1≈28.6×10−3 min−1) states. This composition was found to be highly nitrite‐selective (80 % in the binary state and 53 % in the ternary state). The mechanistic studies revealed that the reduction of nitrate ions to ammonia proceeded through a catalytic hydrogenation reaction followed by electrochemical hydrogen generation.
First Demonstration of the Applicability of the Latent Pigment Approach to Plastic Luminescent Solar Concentrators
Authors: Mattiello Sara , Sanzone Alessandro , Brazzo Paolo , Sassi Mauro , Beverina Luca
Published: July 2015

Planar luminescent solar concentrators are slabs of high optical quality materials doped with luminophores. Such devices enable the collection of solar light over a large area, followed by concentrated emission at the slab edges due to total internal reflection. The luminophore plays a central role as it is responsible for light absorption over the largest possible fraction of the solar spectrum and efficient emission. We show how the latent pigment approach makes it possible to prepare bulk‐polymerized single‐layer luminescent solar concentrators doped with the high performance pigments quinacridone and perylenediimide. The process is advantageous in terms of overall synthetic efficiency for both quinacridone and perylendiimide. In the former case a sizeable improvement in photostability is also demonstrated.
Nickel‐Catalyzed Decarbonylative Cou­pling of Aryl Esters and Arylboronic Acids
Authors: LaBerge Nicole A. , Love Jennifer A.
Published: July 2015

A variety of functionalized biaryls can be accessed by coupling aryl and heteroaryl esters with boronic acids in Suzuki–Miyaura‐type decarbonylative cross‐coupling catalyzed by an affordable catalyst system composed of Ni(cod)2 and PCy3. The methodology is tolerant of a variety of functional groups and presents an attractive alternative to the use of palladium catalysis currently used in industry to acquire such bis(hetero)aryls, but also reveals challenges associated with nickel catalysis of esters in cross‐coupling chemistry.
Evaluation of approximate methods to estimate residual drift demands in steel framed buildings
Authors: Ruiz‐García Jorge , Chora Carlos
Published: July 2015

This paper presents the evaluation of two approximate methods recently proposed in the literature to estimate residual (permanent) drift demands at the end of earthquake excitation for seismic assessment of buildings. Both methods require an estimate of the peak (maximum) interstory drift demand and the corresponding drift demand at significant yielding of the building. Additionally, an approximate method is proposed as part of this study. The introduced method follows a coefficient‐based approach similar to the Coefficient Method included in several US documents. For evaluating the approximate methods, five moment‐resisting steel framed buildings having different number of stories were analyzed under four sets of earthquake ground motions. Quantification of the accuracy of the approximate methods to estimate residual drift demands with respect to results from nonlinear time‐history analyses was performed through error measures computed for each building and each set of earthquake ground motions. Results show that the mean standard error tends to increase as the seismic hazard level increases. Between the two methods, the method introduced by Erochkoet al. seems more effective in predicting residual drift demands than that proposed in the FEMA P‐58 recommendations in the USA. It is demonstrated that including additional sources of stiffness and strength in the modeling approach constrains the amplitude of residual drift demands. As a beneficial consequence, the accuracy of both approximate methods in predicting residual drift demands is significantly improved (i.e., mean standard error decreases). The introduced method also provides similar accuracy than the approximate methods available in the literature. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Meta‐Analysis Examining the Influence of Pro‐Eating Disorder Websites on Body Image and Eating Pathology
Authors: Rodgers Rachel F. , Lowy Alice S. , Halperin Daniella M. , Franko Debra L.
Published: July 2015

Previous research has indicated that exposure to pro‐eating disorder websites might increase eating pathology; however, the magnitude of this effect is unknown. This study aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta‐analysis to examine the effect of exposure to pro‐eating disorder websites on body image and eating pathology. Studies examining the relationship between exposure to pro‐eating disorder websites and eating pathology‐related outcomes were included. The systematic review identified nine studies. Findings revealed significant effect sizes of exposure to pro‐eating disorder websites on body image dissatisfaction (five studies), d = .41, p = .003; dieting (six studies), d = .68, p < .001, and negative affect (three studies), d = 1.00, p < .001. No effect emerged for bulimic symptoms (four studies), d = .22, p = .73. Findings confirmed the effect of pro‐eating disorder websites on body image and eating pathology, highlighting the need for enforceable regulation of these websites. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd and Eating Disorders Association.
Cross‐layer routing and optimal radio resource allocation in OFDMA‐based cognitive radio ad‐hoc networks: spectrum sensing strategy
Authors: MirMotahhary Navid , Pourmina Mohammad Ali
Published: July 2015

In this paper, we propose a cross‐layer routing and radio resource allocation in an orthogonal frequency‐division multiple access‐based wireless cognitive radio ad hoc networks, where the availability of local spectrum resources may change instantaneously. The main objective is to determine sensing time, the data routes, subcarrier schedules and power allocations that maximize throughput of the data communicated subject to the transmission power, interference, routing and capacity constraints. We propose an iterative algorithm that optimises the subcarrier allocation and the power allocation alternatively routing in spectrum sensing based cognitive radio ad hoc networks. Finally, we provide simulation results to show the performance of the proposed algorithms and validate our theoretical analysis. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Olanzapine as the ideal “trip terminator”? Analysis of online reports relating to antipsychotics' use and misuse following occurrence of novel psychoactive substance‐related psychotic symptoms
Authors: Valeriani Giuseppe , Corazza Ornella , Bersani Francesco Saverio , Melcore Claudia , Metastasio Antonio , Bersani Giuseppe , Schifano Fabrizio
Published: July 2015

Objective

The pharmacological self‐management of novel psychoactive substance (NPS)‐induced psychopathological consequences represents a fast growing phenomenon. This is facilitated by the frequent sharing of NPS intake experiences online and by the ease of access to a range of psychotropic medications from both the online and street market. Olanzapine is anecdotally reported by Web users to be the most frequent self‐prescribed medication to cope with NPS‐induced psychoses. Hence, we aimed here at better assessing olanzapine use/misuse for this purpose.

Methods

Exploratory qualitative searches of 163 discussion fora/specialized websites have been carried out in four languages (English, German, Spanish, and Italian) in the time frame November 2012–2013.

Results

Most NPS‐users allegedly self administer with olanzapine to manage related psychotic crises/“bad trips”. This may be typically taken only for a few days, at a dosage range of 5–50 mg/day.

Conclusions

Only a few research studies have formally assessed the effectiveness of olanzapine and indeed of other second‐generation antipsychotics to treat NPS‐induced psychosis. Olanzapine was suggested here from a range of pro drug websites as being the “ideal” molecule to terminate “bad trips”. Health professionals should be informed about the risks related to olanzapine misuse. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Greater sexual risk‐taking in female and male recreational MDMA/ecstasy users compared with alcohol drinkers: a questionnaire study
Authors: May Aimee L. , Parrott Andrew C.
Published: July 2015

Aims

Previous studies have shown increased sexual risk‐taking in experienced MDMA/ecstasy users. The main objectives of this study were to compare levels of sexual risk‐taking between a young student sample of predominantly heterosexual MDMA users and alcohol‐drinker controls and investigate potential gender differences.

Methods

Recreational drug use and sexual risk questionnaires were completed by 20 MDMA users (10 females, 10 males) and 20 non‐user controls (10 females, 10 males). They were predominantly university students, aged between 20–22 years, mainly heterosexual (n = 37), with three bisexual participants.

Results

MDMA users displayed significantly greater levels of sexual risk‐taking than the alcohol‐drinker controls. It involved significantly higher rates of casual sex, non‐condom use during sex, and penetrative sexual risks. This increase in sexual riskiness occurred to a similar extent in males and females.

Conclusions

These findings indicate that both female and male ecstasy/MDMA users reported more risky sexual behaviours, than the non‐user controls. Further research into the sexual behaviour and sexual risk‐taking of heterosexual MDMA users should be conducted because much of the past literature has focused on homosexual participants. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Prenatal cocaine exposure and child outcomes: a conference report based on a prospective study from Cleveland
Authors: Singer Lynn T. , Minnes Sonia , Min Meeyoung O. , Lewis Barbara A. , Short Elizabeth J.
Published: July 2015

Objective

The study aims to describe developmental outcomes from a longitudinal prospective cohort (Cleveland study) of prenatally cocaine‐exposed (CE) infants.

Methods

Two hundred eighteen CE and 197 nonexposed infants were enrolled at birth and followed through mid‐adolescence. Birth CE status was determined by interview and biologic measures. Multiple demographic, drug, and environmental correlates were controlled. Standardized, normative, reliable measures of fetal growth, intelligence quotient (IQ), behavior, executive function, and language were given at each age and risk for substance misuse assessed in adolescence. A subset of children received volumetric magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) at 7 years and functional MRI at 14 years. The effect of CE was determined through multiple regression analyses controlling for confounders.

Results

Cocaine exposed had significant negative effects on fetal growth, attention, executive function, language, and behavior, while overall IQ was not affected. CE had significant negative effects on perceptual reasoning IQ and visual–motor skills and predicted lower volume of corpus callosum and decreased gray matter in the occipital and parietal lobes. CE children had higher risk for substance misuse. Confounding risk factors had additive effects on developmental outcomes.

Conclusions

Prenatal exposure to cocaine was related to poorer perceptual organization IQ, visual–spatial information processing, attention, language, executive function, and behavior regulation through early adolescence. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Detecting a signal in the noise: monitoring the global spread of novel psychoactive substances using media and other open‐source information
Authors: Young Matthew M. , Dubeau Chad , Corazza Ornella
Published: July 2015

Objective

To determine the feasibility and utility of using media reports and other open‐source information collected by the Global Public Health Intelligence Network (GPHIN), an event‐based surveillance system operated by the Public Health Agency of Canada, to rapidly detect clusters of adverse drug events associated with ‘novel psychoactive substances’ (NPS) at the international level.

Methods and Results

Researchers searched English media reports collected by the GPHIN between 1997 and 2013 for references to synthetic cannabinoids. They screened the resulting reports for relevance and content (i.e., reports of morbidity and arrest), plotted and compared with other available indicators (e.g., US poison control center exposures). The pattern of results from the analysis of GPHIN reports resembled the pattern seen from the other indicators.

Conclusions

The results of this study indicate that using media and other open‐source information can help monitor the presence, usage, local policy, law enforcement responses, and spread of NPS in a rapid effective way. Further, modifying GPHIN to actively track NPS would be relatively inexpensive to implement and would be highly complementary to current national and international monitoring efforts. © 2015 The Authors. Human Psychopharmacology: Clinical and Experimental published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Novel psychoactive substances: use and knowledge among adolescents and young adults in urban and rural areas
Authors: Martinotti Giovanni , Lupi Matteo , Carlucci Leonardo , Cinosi Eduardo , Santacroce Rita , Acciavatti Tiziano , Chillemi Eleonora , Bonifaci Ludovica , Janiri Luigi , Di Giannantonio Massimo
Published: July 2015

Introduction

Novel psychoactive substances (NPS) are new psychotropic drugs, not scheduled under the International Conventions on Psychotropic Substances, but which may pose a relevant public health threat. In this study, we investigated knowledge and use of NPS in a sample of Italian youth in urban and rural areas.

Methods

Between December 2012 and October 2013, we administered a questionnaire to a sample of 3011 healthy subjects (44.7% men; 55.3% women), aged between 16 and 24 years and recruited in urban, intermediate and rural areas of Italy.

Results

Of the global sample, 53.3% declared to have some knowledge on NPS, with a higher knowledge in urban areas. Mephedrone (26%), desomorphine (22.6%) and methamphetamine (21.7%) were the most commonly known drugs. NPS use was reported by 4.7% of the sample, without significant differences between urban and rural areas; mephedrone (3.3%), synthetic cannabinoids (1.2%) and Salvia divinorum (0.3%) consumption has been identified. NPS use was also predictive of binge‐drinking behaviours (χ2(4) = 929.58, p < .001).

Discussion

Urban areas may represent a focal point for preventive strategies, given the presence of higher levels of NPS knowledge. Moreover, the association between binge‐drinking habits and NPS use was really strong. This issue should not be underestimated because of its medical, psychopathological and social consequences. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A tracer to bridge the scales: on the value of diatoms for tracing fast flow path connectivity from headwaters to meso‐scale catchments
Authors: Klaus Julian , Wetzel Carlos E. , Martínez‐Carreras Núria , Ector Luc , Pfister Laurent
Published: July 2015

Connectivity between different landscape units and flow paths to the stream has gained much attention in hydrological science. Recent work has focused on the threshold sequencing of spatial sources in upland forested watersheds, connectivity and its spatial patterns in the hillslope–riparian–stream continuum. Fast flow path connectivity in the HRS continuum is still difficult to decipher because of the scale‐limitations of hydrometric and tracer methods. Such connectivity may be strongly non‐linear and controls streamflow response and chemistry. Recently, diatoms, one of the most common and diverse algal groups, were used to detect the onset and cessation of surface runoff to small headwater streams and constrain hydrograph separation methods. In this work, we investigate the potential for diatoms to determine fast flow path connectivity between their habitat and the stream over various scaled catchments. We used seven nested sub‐catchments (0.45 to 247 km2) with uniform and mixed geologies and land use types within the Attert River catchment (Luxembourg) for testing our hypothesis. We categorized the prevailing diatom communities based on their habitat in the hillslope–riparian–stream continuum of one headwater catchment and sampled a storm event for diatom communities in every catchment. We present the diatom dynamics during the event hydrograph. We also outline different occurring species of diatoms and present that combinations of species or individual species can be used as a tracer for source area connectivity. Further, we show that the occurrence of aerial diatom species decreases by a power law with scale, potentially limiting the scale of application. Finally, we discuss how diatoms could indicate temporal variability of contributions from different physiographic units. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A topological assessment of the electronic structure of mesoionic compounds
Authors: Anjos Italo Curvelo , Rocha Gerd Bruno
Published: July 2015

Mesoionic compounds belonging to the 1,3‐oxazol‐5‐one, 1,3‐diazole‐4‐thione and 1,3‐thiazole‐5‐thione rings have been evaluated by a combination of Density Functional Theory, Quantum Theory of Atoms in Molecules, Electron Localization Function, Natural Bond Orbitals and Geodesic Electrostatic Potential Charge calculations. Atomic, bond, and ring properties have been considered to describe the electronic structure of mesoionic compounds. The results show that not only the ring type, but also the substituent groups have great influence on these properties. In addition, there is a significant and heterogeneous π‐bonding contribution throughout the mesoionic rings. Finally, we conclude that some classical conceptions of charge localization and π‐bonding contribution in these compounds are misleading or incomplete. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Reaching the Ultra‐Poor: Adapting Targeting Strategy in the Context of South Sudan
Authors: Morel Ricardo , Chowdhury Reajul
Published: July 2015

This paper focuses on an innovative model to enable the ultra‐poor ‘graduate’ from extreme poverty into sustainable livelihoods. The first part of the paper makes a comparative review of the ‘graduation model’. Evidence confirms consistent impacts on consumption, food security and productive assets across multiple sites. The second part assesses targeting effectiveness of this model in South Sudan. Combining Consultative Group to Assist the Poor poverty assessment tool with discriminant analysis for better accuracy, it is observed that the programme maintained its effectiveness in targeting the ultra‐poor. Success of this approach can be attributed to both adaptability and rigorousness in implementing targeting methods. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Hyperpolarized [1‐13C]pyruvate MRI for noninvasive examination of placental metabolism and nutrient transport: A feasibility study in pregnant guinea pigs
Authors: Friesen‐Waldner Lanette J. , Sinclair Kevin J. , Wade Trevor P. , Michael Banoub , Chen Albert P. , de Vrijer Barbra , Regnault Timothy R.H. , McKenzie Charles A.
Published: July 2015

Purpose

To test the feasibility of hyperpolarized [1‐13C]pyruvate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for noninvasive examination of guinea pig fetoplacental metabolism and nutrient transport.

Materials and Methods

Seven pregnant guinea pigs with a total of 30 placentae and fetuses were anesthetized and scanned at 3T. T1‐weighted 1H images were obtained from the maternal abdomen. An 80 mM solution of hyperpolarized [1‐13C]pyruvate (hereafter referred to as pyruvate) was injected into a vein in the maternal foot. Time‐resolved 3D 13C images were acquired starting 10 seconds after the beginning of bolus injection and every 10 seconds after to 50 seconds. The pregnant guinea pigs were recovered after imaging. Regions of interest (ROIs) were drawn around the maternal heart and each placenta and fetal liver in all slices in the 1H images. These ROIs were copied to the 13C images and were used to calculate the sum of the pyruvate and lactate signal intensities for each organ. The signal intensities were normalized by the volume of the organ and the maximum signal in the maternal heart.

Results

No adverse events were observed in the pregnant guinea pigs and natural pupping occurred at term (∼68 days). Pyruvate signal was observed in all 30 placentae, and lactate, a by‐product of pyruvate metabolism, was also observed in all placentae. The maximum pyruvate and lactate signals in placentae occurred at 20 seconds. In addition to the observation of pyruvate and lactate signals in the placentae, both pyruvate and lactate signals were observed in all fetal livers. The maximum pyruvate and lactate signals in the fetal livers occurred at 10 seconds and 20 seconds, respectively.

Conclusion

This work demonstrates the feasibility of using hyperpolarized [1‐13C]pyruvate MRI to noninvasively examine fetoplacental metabolism and transport of pyruvate in guinea pigs. Hyperpolarized 13C MRI may provide a novel method for longitudinal studies of fetoplacental abnormalities. J. Magn. Reson. Imaging 2015. J. MAGN. RESON. IMAGING 2016;43:750–755.
Multilayer variable neighborhood search for two‐level uncapacitated facility location problems with single assignment
Authors: Gendron Bernard , Khuong Paul‐Virak , Semet Frédéric
Published: July 2015

We develop a variant of the variable neighborhood search (VNS) metaheuristic called the multilayer VNS (MLVNS). It consists in partitioning the neighborhood structures into multiple layers. For each layer , a VNS defined on the associated neighborhood structures is invoked, each move being evaluated and completed by a recursive call to the MLVNS at layer . A specific MLVNS is developed to solve approximately a class of two‐level uncapacitated facility location problems with single assignment (TUFLPS), when only mild assumptions are imposed on the cost functions. Two special cases are used to illustrate the efficiency of the MLVNS: the classical TUFLPS and a problem with modular costs derived from a real‐life case. To assess the efficiency of the MLVNS, computational results on a large set of instances are compared with those obtained by slope scaling heuristic methods and by solving integer programming models using a state‐of‐the‐art commercial solver. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. NETWORKS, Vol. 66(3), 214–234 2015
Exploring the Nature of the Intention, Meaning and Perception Process of the Neuro‐occupation Model to Understand Adaptation to Change
Authors: Derakhshanrad Seyed Alireza , Piven Emily , Hosseini Seyed Ali , Shahboulaghi Farahnaz Mohammadi , Nazeran Homer , Rassafiani Mehdi
Published: July 2015

The theoretical model of neuro‐occupation, intention, meaning and perception, sought to describe the symbiotic relationship between occupation and the brain, as a chaotic, self‐organized, complex system. Lack of evidence has limited its applicability to practice. The aim of this study was to track the postulates of the model within the daily experiences of subjects. Structured matrices were created for content analysis, using a qualitative multiple‐case‐study design, typically used for testing models. An underpinning principle of the model, defined a circular causality feedback process, which was confirmed as described through tracing the repetitive processes within the lived experience of two Iranian men. The process suggested that continual adaptation occurred in lives interrupted by cerebrovascular accident, which enabled the subjects to return to expression of meaning through purposeful occupation and continually re‐shaped their perceptions. The primary limitation of this study was that it was the earliest attempt to test the model and to substantiate the process by comparing the similarities and differences between too few subjects. Future research should identify the same process in more subjects and validate a practical assessment tool for clients. These findings may inform practitioners about intentional use of occupational challenges to elicit adaptive behaviours in clients. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Photochemical stability of dicyano‐substituted poly(phenylenevinylenes) with different side chains
Authors: Sanow Logan P. , Sun Jianyuan , Zhang Cheng
Published: July 2015

The photodegradation mechanism study has been conducted on poly(2,5‐dioctyl‐1,4‐phenylene‐1,2‐dicyanovinylene) (C8‐diCN‐PPV) and poly[2,5‐bis(decyloxy)−1,4‐phenylene‐1,2‐dicyanovinylene] (ROdiCN‐PPV) to understand the reason behind the faster photodegradation of C8‐diCN‐PPV which has a lower LUMO. In both polymers, radical superoxide anion mechanism, which is responsible for electron‐rich RO‐PPVs, is found to be energetically unfavorable for both diCN‐PPVs due to diCN substitution. The IR analysis results confirm this and suggest that singlet oxygen (O2) is the main culprit for photodegradation of both polymers, which cleaves the CC bonds into carboxylic acids. The rates of MW reduction (by GPC) and increase in carbonyl IR absorption intensity are in excellent agreement for both polymers. Phosphorescence study indicates that the faster photodegradation of C8‐diCN‐PPV is due to intersystem crossing, which helps generate singlet O2 upon photoexcitation. No phosphorescence was detected in RO‐diCN‐PPV, suggesting that inefficient intersystem crossing makes RO‐diCN‐PPV photochemically more stable. This work shows that a small difference in side chain structure can lead to a significant difference in photochemical stability. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Polym. Sci., Part A: Polym. Chem. 2015, 53, 2820–2828
Design and Synthesis of Hydrolytically Stable N‐Nitrourea Explosives
Authors: Cui Kejian , Xu Zhibin , Xu Guangrui , Meng Zihui , Liu Wenjin , Shi Xinpeng , Xu Yudong , Li Jiarong , Lin Zhihui
Published: July 2015

A series of high energy density compounds (HEDCs) based on N‐nitrourea were designed and their theoretical performances were calculated using the Gaussian programs. The predicted values of the energy density of these compounds are in the range 1.848–1.93 g cm−3, and their calculated VODs are in the range 6700–8305 m s−1. Tetranitrodiglycoluril (TNDGU) (1) and tetranitrotriglycoluril (TNTGU) (2) were synthesized and characterized by NMR (1H, 13C) and IR spectroscopy as well as elemental analyses. The structure of the aminolysis product (7) of TNDGU was further confirmed by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction, which indicated that the structure belongs to P21/c space group in the monoclinic system.
Twin experiments with the equivalent weights particle filter and HadCM3
Authors: Browne P. A. , van Leeuwen P. J.
Published: July 2015

This article investigates the use of a particle filter for data assimilation with a full‐scale coupled ocean–atmosphere general circulation model. Synthetic twin experiments are performed to assess the performance of the equivalent weights filter in such a high‐dimensional system. Artificial two‐dimensional sea surface temperature fields are used as observational data every day. Results are presented for different values of the free parameters in the method. Measures of the performance of the filter are root mean square errors, trajectories of individual variables in the model and rank histograms. Filter degeneracy is not observed and the performance of the filter is shown to depend on the ability to keep maximum spread in the ensemble.
Simulating boundary‐layer rolls with a numerical weather prediction model
Authors: Thurston William , Fawcett Robert J. B. , Tory Kevin J. , Kepert Jeffrey D.
Published: July 2015

Boundary‐layer rolls have an impact on bushfires, pollution dispersion, the triggering of extreme convective weather events, the air–sea interaction and intensification of tropical cyclones and momentum, particle and gas fluxes. Previous numerical modelling studies that investigate the effects of boundary‐layer rolls and the processes that control their dynamics have relied upon high‐resolution, idealised simulations. Recently, however, numerical weather prediction (NWP) systems have increased in horizontal resolution to the point at which they are capable of explicitly resolving shallow convective circulations. Therefore, there is a need to assess the ability of NWP to accurately forecast the formation, development and breakup of boundary‐layer rolls. Here, we assess the ability of the UK Met Office Unified Model (UM), the NWP component of the Australian Community Climate and Earth‐System Simulator (ACCESS), to simulate the life cycle of boundary‐layer rolls. A suite of simulations is performed, over a range of horizontal resolutions, of boundary‐layer rolls observed across Victoria, Australia, on Black Saturday, 7 February 2009. In this case, it is found that a horizontal grid spacing of less than 0.6 km is required to adequately reproduce the scale and evolution of the observed rolls. We note that the boundary layer was particularly deep on this day and as a consequence the boundary‐layer rolls were wider than may be typically observed, meaning the grid spacing specified here lies at the upper end of what would be required with a shallower boundary layer. The model output is used to assess how the boundary‐layer rolls contribute to the high fire danger on Black Saturday. It is suggested that boundary‐layer rolls may increase fire danger by (i) causing wind‐direction variability at the surface, which increases the rate of spread of fires; and (ii) enhancing the process of long‐range spotting by augmenting the vertical lofting of embers.
Adaptive noise Wiener filter for scanning electron microscope imaging system
Authors: Sim K. S. , Teh V. , Nia M. E.
Published: July 2015

Noise on scanning electron microscope (SEM) images is studied. Gaussian noise is the most common type of noise in SEM image. We developed a new noise reduction filter based on the Wiener filter. We compared the performance of this new filter namely adaptive noise Wiener (ANW) filter, with four common existing filters as well as average filter, median filter, Gaussian smoothing filter and the Wiener filter. Based on the experiments results the proposed new filter has better performance on different noise variance comparing to the other existing noise removal filters in the experiments. SCANNING 38:148–163, 2016. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Using multiple timescale models for the evaluation of a time‐dependent treatment
Authors: Rebora Paola , Galimberti Stefania , Valsecchi Maria Grazia
Published: July 2015

In survival analysis, the absolute measure of cumulative risk provided by the Kaplan‐Meier estimator is still the most used quantity for its easy calculation and direct interpretability. However, for describing the survival after an intervention that may occur at different times from baseline observation, the Kaplan‐Meier estimator generally yields to biased results if intervention is considered as fixed at baseline. The main focus of the present paper is to extend the use of a multiple timescale model in the presence of a time dependent intervention. The aim is to obtain 1) an estimate of treatment effect in terms of hazard ratios by flexible modeling, 2) a valid prediction tool, i.e. estimate of prognosis for a patient who changes treatment later in time, and 3) an appropriate graphical representation of survival in the presence of a time dependent treatment change, accounting for different timescales. We will show the advantages of this approach on the comparison of chemotherapy versus transplant in children with high‐risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia in first remission. We considered a model with two timescales that accounts for the change in treatment at different times in the disease course. An alternative approach to survival estimates is also proposed which has some advantages over the traditional landmark approach: it uses all the data available to plot survival from the date of remission, it avoids the arbitrary choice of a landmark time and explicitly models the change in hazard due to transplant. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.