bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Cardiomyogenic differentiation of human sternal bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells using a combination of basic fibroblast growth factor and hydrocortisone
Authors: Hafez Pezhman , Jose Shinsmon , Chowdhury Shiplu R. , Ng Min Hwei , Ruszymah B. H. I. , Abdul Rahman Mohd Ramzisham
Published: August 2015

The alarming rate of increase in myocardial infarction and marginal success in efforts to regenerate the damaged myocardium through conventional treatments creates an exceptional avenue for cell‐based therapy. Adult bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) can be differentiated into cardiomyocytes, by treatment with 5‐azacytidine, thus, have been anticipated as a therapeutic tool for myocardial infarction treatment. In this study, we investigated the ability of basic fibroblastic growth factor (bFGF) and hydrocortisone as a combined treatment to stimulate the differentiation of MSCs into cardiomyocytes. MSCs were isolated from sternal marrow of patients undergoing heart surgery (CABG). The isolated cells were initially monitored for the growth pattern, followed by characterization using ISCT recommendations. Cells were then differentiated using a combination of bFGF and hydrocortisone and evaluated for the expression of characteristic cardiac markers such as CTnI, CTnC, and Cnx43 at protein level using immunocytochemistry and flow cytometry, and CTnC and CTnT at mRNA level. The expression levels and pattern of the cardiac markers upon analysis with ICC and qRT‐PCR were similar to that of 5‐azacytidine induced cells and cultured primary human cardiomyocytes. However, flow cytometric evaluation revealed that induction with bFGF and hydrocortisone drives MSC differentiation to cardiomyocytes with a marginally higher efficiency. These results indicate that combination treatment of bFGF and hydrocortisone can be used as an alternative induction method for cardiomyogenic differentiation of MSCs for future clinical applications.
Involvement of Notch signaling in early chick ovarian follicle development
Authors: Li Jun , Zhao Dan , Guo Changquan , Li Jian , Mi Yuling , Zhang Caiqiao
Published: August 2015

The formation of primordial follicles is a crucial process in the establishment of follicle pools required for the female's reproductive life span. For laying hens, ample follicles are a prerequisite for high laying performance. Notch signaling plays critical roles in germ cell cysts breakdown and in the formation of primordial follicles. Here, we investigated the role of Notch signaling in the ovarian development of post‐hatch chicks. Results showed that around post‐hatch day 4 (H4), the germ cell cysts broke apart, oocytes became surrounded by squamous pregranulosa cells, and the primordial follicles were then formed. Subsequently, we detected the expression of Notch signaling‐related genes including Notch receptors (Notch1, 2), ligands (Jag1, 2 and Dll1, 4), and target genes (Hes1, Hey1). These genes all showed expression at H4 and some of these genes were up‐regulated during primordial follicle formation. To evaluate the Notch signaling requirement for early follicular development, we adopted an in vitro ovary culture system. Suppression of Notch signaling by γ‐secretase inhibitor induced a decrease of primordial follicles and an increase of germ cells in cysts. Attenuating Notch signaling also inhibited the phosphatidylinositol 3‐kinase/protein kinase B pathways and suppressed cadherin expression. These results suggest that Notch signaling is endowed with an indispensable role in primordial follicle formation in post‐hatch chicks.
Pop goes the PA! and the aorta! iatrogenic aortopulmonary connections
Authors: “Sam” Lucas Victor
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Iatrogenic aortopulmonary connections may occur after pulmonary artery angioplasty, stent or trans‐catheter pulmonary valve implantation

Patients with Ross autograft or arterial switch procedure may be at particular risk for this complication

Timely diagnosis is facilitated by post‐intervention aortic angiogram
Bivalirudin: An expensive heparin?
Authors: Gupta Saurabh , Cigarroa Joaquin E.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Bleeding rates with unfractionated heparin (UH) without concomitant use of glycoprotein IIb/IIIa inhibitors as compared to bivalirudin are similar.

Ischemic event rates during the index hospitalization are similar in the heparin and bivalirudin subgroups.

Low does heparin (60–70 units/kg) with a target ACT of 200–250 sec may obviate the historical improved safety of bivalirudin demonstrated in certain clinical trials.
Carotid artery stenting: Optimizing patient selection and technique
Authors: Safian Robert D.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Complex arch anatomy (type 2, type 3) and bovine configuration were identified in 34.4% and 20.5% of carotid stent patients, respectively.

Catheter manipulation time (CMT), rather than arch complexity per se, was the only independent predictor of adverse events after carotid stenting.

Careful attention to patient selection, preprocedural planning, and stent technique are important to ensure success.
Coronary perforation: What color is your parachute?
Authors: Seto Arnold H. , Kern Morton J.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Coronary perforation is a rare but devastating complication of PCI, requiring rescue devices such as covered stents.

This paper documents the successful use of a pericardial covered stent in 9/9 patients for coronary perforation.

Pericardial covered stents have theoretical advantages over PTFE covered stents, but clinical studies proving this are not feasible.
Cutting down on the cutdown: Time to remove the training wheels for transfemoral access for TAVR
Authors: Turi Zoltan G.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Percutaneous transfemoral access is replacing cutdowns, even in the absence of a high level evidence base

The evolution of smaller profile TAVR sheaths will make cutdowns largely obsolete

Patient comfort, early ambulation, and shorter length of stay, along with improved methodologies will continue to drive the move to percutaneous access and closure for TAVR
A single degree of oversize does not fit all valve types
Authors: Belardi Jorge A. , Albertal Mariano
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Moderate valve oversize increases the risk of aortic regurgitation with self‐expandable valves, and larger oversizing may be preferable with this valve type.

Large oversizing increases the risk of aortic annular rupture in patients treated with balloon‐expandable valves and less oversizing appears safer.

Anatomical factors may also may influence procedural success and should not be overlooked.
Diabetes is not sufficient justification for IIb/IIIa use in percutaneous coronary intervention
Authors: Hillegass William B.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Diabetics, particularly insulin treated, have increased risk of ischemic events and bleeding with percutaneous coronary intervention (PCI). The relative risk of atherothrombotic versus bleeding events is higher in diabetics than non‐diabetics.

Bivalirudin with provisional IIb/IIIa therapy has less bleeding and lower one‐year mortality than routine IIb/IIIa therapy in diabetics undergoing PCI.

IIb/IIIa agents should be reserved for provisional and niche applications during PCI.
Treating on the edge
Authors: Ansel Gary M.
Published: August 2015

Key Points

Treatment of stent graft edge restenosis can be successfully treated but optimal treatment has not been identified.

The practice of continued duplex surveillance for stent grafts appears to be important.

Randomized trials comparing drug technology and to properly sized stent graft extension will be needed.
Very Facile Polarity Umpolung and Noncovalent Functionalization of Inorganic Nanoparticles: A Tool Kit for Supramolecular Materials Chemistry
Authors: Zeininger Lukas , Petzi Stefanie , Schönamsgruber Jörg , Portilla Luis , Halik Marcus , Hirsch Andreas
Published: August 2015

The facile assembly of shell‐by‐shell (SbS)‐coated nanoparticles [TiO2PAC16]@shell 1–7 (PAC16=hexadecylphosphonic acid), which are soluble in water and can be isolated as stable solids, is reported. In these functional architectures, an umpolung of dispersibility (organic apolar versus water) was accomplished by the noncovalent binding of ligands 1–7 to titania nanoparticles [TiO2PAC16] containing a first covalent coating with PAC16. Ligands 1–7 are amphiphilic and form the outer second shell of [TiO2PAC16]@shell 1–7. The tailor‐designed dendritic building blocks 3–5 contain negative and positive charges in the same molecule, and ligands 6 and 7 contain a perylenetetracarboxylic acid dimide (PDI) core (6/7) as a photoactive reporter component. In the redox and photoactive system [TiO2PAC16]@shell 7, electronic communication between the inorganic core to the PDI ligands was observed.
Strain‐Promoted Reaction of 1,2,4‐Triazines with Bicyclononynes
Authors: Horner Katherine A. , Valette Nathalie M. , Webb Michael E.
Published: August 2015

Strain‐promoted inverse electron‐demand Diels–Alder cycloaddition (SPIEDAC) reactions between 1,2,4,5‐tetrazines and strained dienophiles, such as bicyclononynes, are among the fastest bioorthogonal reactions. However, the synthesis of 1,2,4,5‐tetrazines is complex and can involve volatile reagents. 1,2,4‐Triazines also undergo cycloaddition reactions with acyclic and unstrained dienophiles at elevated temperatures, but their reaction with strained alkynes has not been described. We postulated that 1,2,4‐triazines would react with strained alkynes at low temperatures and therefore provide an alternative to the tetrazine cycloaddition reaction for use in in vitro or in vivo labelling experiments. We describe the synthesis of a 1,2,4‐triazin‐3‐ylalanine derivative fully compatible with the fluorenylmethyloxycarbonyl (Fmoc) strategy for peptide synthesis and demonstrate its reaction with strained bicyclononynes at 37 °C with rates comparable to the reaction of azides with the same substrates. The synthetic route to triazinylalanine is readily adaptable to late‐stage functionalization of other probe molecules, and the 1,2,4‐triazine‐SPIEDAC therefore has potential as an alternative to tetrazine cycloaddition for applications in cellular and biochemical studies.
ChemInform Abstract: Carbon‐Based Materials for Lithium‐Ion Batteries, Electrochemical Capacitors, and Their Hybrid Devices
Authors: Yao Fei , Pham Duy Tho , Lee Young Hee
Published: August 2015

Review: 354 refs.
Model‐based MPI‐IO tuning with Periscope tuning framework
Authors: Liu Weifeng , Gerndt Michael , Gong Bin
Published: August 2015

For many parallel applications, I/O performance is a major bottleneck. MPI‐IO, defined by the MPI forum, can help parallel applications overcome the performance and portability limitations of existing parallel I/O interfaces. Although autotuning has been used to improve the performance of computing kernels, MPI‐IO autotuning has rarely been studied. To automate MPI‐IO performance tuning, we designed and implemented an automatic tuner. The tuner relies on the Periscope tuning framework for transparently passing hints to the MPI‐IO library and for automatically collecting performance data. Unlike computational code, each MPI‐IO function takes a relatively long time to complete. Thus, exhaustively searching through the entire parameter space is impractical. So we developed a performance model that can direct us to shorten the tuning time. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A high‐level and accurate energy model of parallel and concurrent workloads
Authors: Morelli Davide , Canciani Andrea , Cisternino Antonio
Published: August 2015

The ability to predict the energy needed by a system to perform a task, or several concurrent parallel tasks, allows the scheduler to enforce energy‐aware policies while providing acceptable performance. The approaches in literature to model energy consumption of tasks usually focus on low‐level descriptors and require invasive instrumentation of the computational environment. We developed an energy model and a methodology to automatically extract features that characterize the computational environment relying only on a single power meter that measures the energy consumption of the whole system. Once the model has been built, the energy consumption of concurrent tasks can be calculated, with a statistically insignificant error, even without any power meter. We show that our model can predict with high accuracy, even only using the utilization time of the cores in a high‐performance computing enclosure, without using performance counters. Hence, the model could be easily applicable to heterogeneous systems, where collecting representative performance counters can be problematic. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Load‐balanced and locality‐aware scheduling for data‐intensive workloads at extreme scales
Authors: Wang Ke , Qiao Kan , Sadooghi Iman , Zhou Xiaobing , Li Tonglin , Lang Michael , Raicu Ioan
Published: August 2015

Data‐driven programming models such as many‐task computing (MTC) have been prevalent for running data‐intensive scientific applications. MTC applies over‐decomposition to enable distributed scheduling. To achieve extreme scalability, MTC proposes a fully distributed task scheduling architecture that employs as many schedulers as the compute nodes to make scheduling decisions. Achieving distributed load balancing and best exploiting data locality are two important goals for the best performance of distributed scheduling of data‐intensive applications. Our previous research proposed a data‐aware work‐stealing technique to optimize both load balancing and data locality by using both dedicated and shared task ready queues in each scheduler. Tasks were organized in queues based on the input data size and location. Distributed key‐value store was applied to manage task metadata. We implemented the technique in MATRIX, a distributed MTC task execution framework. In this work, we devise an analytical suboptimal upper bound of the proposed technique, compare MATRIX with other scheduling systems, and explore the scalability of the technique at extreme scales. Results show that the technique is not only scalable but can achieve performance within 15% of the suboptimal solution. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Accelerating earthquake simulations on general‐purpose graphics processors
Authors: Sengupta Prasenjit , Nguyen Jimmy , Kwan Jason , Menon Padmanabhan K. , Heien Eric M. , Rundle John B.
Published: August 2015

Parallelization strategies are presented for Virtual Quake, a numerical simulation code for earthquakes based on topologically realistic systems of interacting earthquake faults. One of the demands placed upon the simulation is the accurate reproduction of the observed earthquake statistics over three to four decades. This requires the use of a high‐resolution fault model in computations, which demands computational power that is well beyond the scope of off‐the‐shelf multi‐core CPU computers. However, the recent advances in general‐purpose graphic processing units have the potential to address this problem at moderate cost increments. A functional decomposition of Virtual Quake is performed, and opportunities for parallelization are discussed in this work. Computationally intensive modules are identified, and these are implemented on graphics processing units, significantly speeding up earthquake simulations. In the current best case scenario, a computer with six graphics processing units can simulate 500 years of fault activity in California at 1.5 km × 1.5 km element resolution in less than 1 hour, whereas a single CPU requires more than 2 days to perform the same simulation. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dynamic partitioning‐based JPEG decompression on heterogeneous multicore architectures
Authors: Sodsong Wasuwee , Hong Jingun , Chung Seongwook , Lim Yeongkyu , Kim Shin‐Dug , Burgstaller Bernd
Published: August 2015

With the emergence of social networks and improvements in computational photography, billions of JPEG images are shared and viewed on a daily basis. Desktops, tablets, and smartphones constitute the vast majority of hardware platforms used for displaying JPEG images. Despite the fact that these platforms are heterogeneous multicores, no approach exists yet that is capable of joining forces of a system's CPU and graphics processing unit (GPU) for JPEG decoding. In this paper, we introduce a novel JPEG decoding scheme for heterogeneous architectures consisting of a CPU and a general‐purpose GPU. We employ an offline profiling step to determine the performance of a system's CPU and GPU with respect to JPEG decoding. For a given JPEG image, our performance model uses: (1) the CPU and GPU performance characteristics, (2) the image entropy, and (3) the width and height of the image to balance the JPEG decoding workload on the underlying hardware. Our run‐time partitioning and scheduling scheme exploits task, data, and pipeline parallelism by scheduling the non‐parallelizable entropy‐decoding task on the CPU, whereas inverse discrete cosine transformations, color conversions, and upsampling are conducted on both the CPU and the GPU. We have implemented the proposed method in the context of the libjpeg‐turbo library, which is an industrial‐strength JPEG encoding and decoding engine. Libjpeg‐turbo's hand‐optimized SIMD routines for ARM and x86 architectures constitute a competitive yardstick for the comparison with the proposed approach. We have evaluated our approach for a total of 7194 JPEG images across four high‐end and middle‐end CPU–GPU combinations including a mobile GPU. We achieve speedups of up to 5.2× over the SIMD version of libjpeg‐turbo, and speedups of up to 10.5× over its sequential code. Taking into account the non‐parallelizable JPEG entropy‐decoding part, our approach achieves up to 97% of the theoretically attainable maximal speedup, with an average of 94%. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The particle filter algorithm: parallel implementations and performance analysis over Android mobile devices
Authors: Acosta A. , Almeida F.
Published: August 2015

The advent of emergent system on chip and multiprocessor system on chip opens a new era on the small mobile devices (smartphones, tablets, etc.) in terms of computing capabilities and applications to be addressed. Given the ability of these devices to interact with the real world through the camera, the development of efficient algorithms related to image processing and computer vision is mandatory. The particle filter algorithm is an algorithm frequently used in image and video processing; it constitutes the baseline algorithm in many applications: feature tracking, facial recognition, tracking of vehicles in traffic, video compression and so on. We propose a parallel implementation for the particle filter algorithm oriented to mobile Android devices. Three different versions of this algorithm are presented: a Java sequential implementation and two Renderscript parallel versions, an ad hoc implementation and a parallel implementation generated automatically with Paralldroid. The results obtained by the parallel versions over different Android platforms present high accuracy with a high processing rate of frame per second and a high speedup at the same time. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Palirria: accurate on‐line parallelism estimation for adaptive work‐stealing
Authors: Varisteas Georgios , Brorsson Mats
Published: August 2015

We present Palirria, a self‐adapting work‐stealing scheduling method for nested fork/join parallelism that can be used to estimate the number of utilizable workers and self‐adapt accordingly. The estimation mechanism is optimized for accuracy, minimizing the requested resources without degrading performance. We implemented Palirria for both the Linux and Barrelfish operating systems and evaluated it on two platforms: a 48‐core Non‐Uniform Memory Access (NUMA) multiprocessor and a simulated 32‐core system. Compared with state‐of‐the‐art, we observed higher accuracy in estimating resource requirements. This leads to improved resource utilization and performance on par or better to executing with fixed resource allotments. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Machine learning techniques for daily solar energy prediction and interpolation using numerical weather models
Authors: Martin R. , Aler R. , Valls J. M. , Galvan I. M.
Published: August 2015

This article addresses two issues in solar energy forecasting from the numerical weather prediction (NWP) models using machine learning. First, we are interested in determining the relevant information for the forecasting task. With this purpose, a study has been carried out to evaluate the influence on accuracy of the number of NWP grid nodes used as input for the forecasting model, as well as their relative importance. Several machine learning (support vector machines and gradient boosting) and feature selection algorithms (linear, ReliefF, and local information analysis) have been used in this study. The second aim is to be able to predict solar energy for locations where no previous production data are available. To address this goal, an approach consisting on modeling regions in the grid is proposed. Models (aggregate models) use as input attributes the meteorological variables relevant for the region and two new inputs to identify the location of each station: the latitude and the longitude. Those models can be used to predict energy production for existing stations and for new locations, represented by latitude and longitude. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
How Van der Waals Interactions Influence the Absorption Spectra of Pheophorbide a Complexes: A Mixed Quantum–Classical Study
Authors: Megow Jörg
Published: August 2015

The computation of dispersive site energy shifts due to van der Waals interaction (London dispersion forces) was combined with mixed quantum–classical methodology to calculate the linear optical absorption spectra of large pheophorbide a (Pheo) dendrimers. The computed spectra agreed very well with the measurements considering three characteristic optical features occurring with increasing aggregate size: a strong line broadening, a redshift, and a low‐energy shoulder. The improved mixed quantum–classical methodology is considered a powerful tool in investigating molecular aggregates.
Molecular Simulations of Fatty‐Acid Methyl Esters and Representative Biodiesel Mixtures
Authors: Bharadwaj Vivek S. , Eagan Nathaniel M. , Wang Nicholas M. , Liberatore Matthew W. , Maupin C. Mark
Published: August 2015

Despite the importance of fatty‐acid methyl esters (FAMEs) as key components of various green solvents, detergents, plasticizers, and biodiesels, our understanding of these systems at the molecular level is limited. An enhanced molecular‐level perspective of FAMEs will enable a detailed analysis of the polymorph and crystallization phenomena that adversely impact flow properties at low temperatures. Presented here, is the parameterization and validation of a charge‐modified generalized amber force field (GAFF) for eight common FAMEs and two representative biodiesel mixtures. Our simulations accurately reproduce available experimental data (e.g. densities and self‐diffusivity coefficients) and their trends, with respect to temperature and degree of unsaturation. Structural analyses from our simulations provide a more detailed picture of liquid‐phase molecular ordering in FAMEs and confirm recent experimental hypotheses. This study provides a firm foundation to initiate further studies into the mechanisms that drive crystallization phenomena at the molecular level.
One‐Pot Asymmetric Synthesis of Cyclopropanes with Quaternary Centers Starting From Bromonitroalkenes under Aminocatalytic Conditions
Authors: Luis‐Barrera Javier , Mas‐Ballesté Ruben , Alemán José
Published: August 2015

Cyclopropanes with a quaternary center are efficiently synthesized starting from bromonitroalkenes and alkyl aldehydes under aminocatalysis, giving good yield, excellent enantioselectivities, and moderate to excellent diastereoselectivities. This work is a novel approach using bromonitroalkenes as starting material instead of the usual synthesis with bromine‐activated methylene derivatives. The cyclization process is analyzed by DFT calculations, which suggests an SN2 mechanism. Theoretical data indicate that diastereoselectivity results from the energetic balance as a consequence of distortion the in trigonal bipyramid transition states and the relative stabilities of both starting rotamers and final products arising from distinct steric repulsions.
Validation of the Psychometric Properties of the Self‐Compassion Scale. Testing the Factorial Validity and Factorial Invariance of the Measure among Borderline Personality Disorder, Anxiety Disorder, Eating Disorder and General Populations
Authors: Costa Joana , Marôco João , Pinto‐Gouveia José , Ferreira Cláudia , Castilho Paula
Published: August 2015

Background

During the last years, there has been a growing interest in self‐compassion. Empirical evidences show that self‐compassion is associated with psychological benefits among young adults and it might be considered a buffer factor in several mental disorders.

Aims

The aim of this study was to validate the psychometric properties of the Self‐compassion Scale (SCS: Neff, 2003a) after the initial lack of replicating the original six‐factor structure.

Method

Data were collected from the overall database of a research centre (56 men and 305 women; mean age = 25.19) and comprised four groups: borderline personality disorder, anxiety disorder, eating disorder and general population.

Results

Confirmatory factor analysis supported a two‐factor model (self‐compassionate attitude versus self‐critical attitude) with good internal consistencies, construct‐related validity and external validity. Configural, weak measurement and structural invariance of the two‐factor model of SCS were also shown.

Conclusions

Findings support the generalizability of the two‐factor model and show that both properties and interpretations of scores on self‐compassion are equivalent across these population groups. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Key Practitioner Message

A two‐factor structure of SCS with strong psychometric validity was supported in clinical and non‐clinical samples.

Helping individuals with limited experiences of compassion to develop positive internal processing systems seems to be related with better mental health, self‐acceptance and self‐nurturing abilities.

The non‐probabilistic sampling limits the generalization of our conclusions.
Oxidized Mild Steel S235: An Efficient Anode for Electrocatalytically Initiated Water Splitting
Authors: Schäfer Helmut , Küpper Karsten , Wollschläger Joachim , Kashaev Nikolai , Hardege Jörg , Walder Lorenz , Mohsen Beladi‐Mousavi Seyyed , Hartmann‐Azanza Brigitte , Steinhart Martin , Sadaf Shamaila , Dorn Falk
Published: August 2015

The surface of steel S235 was oxidized by Cl2 gas and checked for its electrocatalytic efficiency regarding oxygen formation in aqueous solution. If exposed to humid Cl2 gas for 110 min, steel S235 became an electrocatalyst that exhibits an overpotential for the oxygen evolution reaction (OER) of 462 mV at 1 mA cm−2 at pH 7. The OER activity of the same sample at pH 13 was moderate (347 mV overpotential at 2.0 mA cm−2 current density) in comparison with OER electrocatalysts developed recently. Potential versus time plots measured at a constant current demonstrate the sufficient stability of all samples under catalysis conditions at pH 7 and 13 for tens of hours. High‐resolution X‐ray photoelectron spectra could be reasonably resolved with the proviso that Fe2O3, FeO(OH), MnO(OH), and Mn2O3 are the predominant Fe and Mn species on the surface of the oxidized steel S235.
Identification of recombinant human EPO variants in greyhound plasma and urine by ELISA, LC‐MS/MS and western blotting: a comparative study
Authors: Timms Mark , Steel Rohan , Vine John
Published: August 2015

The recombinant human erythropoietins epoetin alfa (Eprex®), darbepoetin (Aranesp®) and methoxy polyethylene glycol‐epoetin beta (Mircera®) were administered to greyhounds for 7, 10 and 14 days respectively. Blood and urine samples were collected and analysed for erythropoietin by ELISA, LC‐MS/MS and western blotting. Limits of confirmation in plasma for western blotting and LC‐MS/MS methods ranged from a low of 2.5mIU/mL, and closely matched the sensitivity of ELISA screening. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Maintenance of brucellosis in Yellowstone bison: linking seasonal food resources, host–pathogen interaction, and life‐history trade‐offs
Authors: Treanor John J. , Geremia Chris , Ballou Michael A. , Keisler Duane H. , White Patrick J. , Cox John J. , Crowley Philip H.
Published: August 2015

The seasonal availability of food resources is an important factor shaping the life‐history strategies of organisms. During times of nutritional restriction, physiological trade‐offs can induce periods of immune suppression, thereby increasing susceptibility to infectious disease. Our goal was to provide a conceptual framework describing how the endemic level bovine brucellosis (Brucella abortus) may be maintained in Yellowstone bison based on the seasonality of food resources and the life‐history strategies of the host and pathogen. Our analysis was based on active B. abortus infection (measured via bacterial culture), nutritional indicators (measured as metabolites and hormones in plasma), and carcass measurements of 402 slaughtered bison. Data from Yellowstone bison were used to investigate (1) whether seasonal changes in diet quality affect nutritional condition and coincide with the reproductive needs of female bison; (2) whether active B. abortus infection and infection intensities vary with host nutrition and nutritional condition; and (3) the evidence for seasonal changes in immune responses, which may offer protection against B. abortus, in relation to nutritional condition. Female bison experienced a decline in nutritional condition during winter as reproductive demands of late gestation increased while forage quality and availability declined. Active B. abortus infection was negatively associated with bison age and nutritional condition, with the intensity of infection negatively associated with indicators of nutrition (e.g., dietary protein and energy) and body weight. Data suggest that protective cell‐mediated immune responses may be reduced during the B. abortus transmission period, which coincides with nutritional insufficiencies and elevated reproductive demands during spring. Our results illustrate how seasonal food restriction can drive physiological trade‐offs that suppress immune function and create infection and transmission opportunities for pathogens.
Dissolution of the Rare‐Earth Mineral Bastnaesite by Acidic Amide Ionic Liquid for Recovery of Critical Materials
Authors: Freiderich John W. , Stankovich Joseph J. , Luo Huimin , Dai Sheng , Moyer Bruce A.
Published: August 2015

Rare‐earth elements provide the cornerstones to clean sustainable energy and modern technologies such as computers, communications, and transportation. As such, the recovery of rare earths (REs) from minerals such as bastnaesite remains important for modern times. As the light lanthanides (La–Nd) constitute the majority (typically >98.7 %) of the REs in bastnaesite with the heavy REs (Sm–Lu) contributing the remainder (approximately 1.3 %), an enrichment of heavier REs may serve as an effective means of assisting rare‐earth recovery. Such an extractive metallurgy process involving ionic liquids (ILs) leads to an enrichment of heavy REs by nearly an order of magnitude. The acidic IL N,N‐dimethylacetamidium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (DMAH+NTf2–) in the IL 1‐butyl‐3‐methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)imide (BMIM+NTf2–) dissolves froth flotation bastnaesite, synthetic bastnaesite analogues (RECO3F), RE2O3, and RE2(CO3)3 minerals. An overall reaction for the dissolution of bastnaesite is proposed for this IL system. This IL system may provide the initial stages of a greater RE separation scheme for bastnaesite froth flotation concentrates.
Construction of Benzimidazoles and Benzoxazoles through the Molybdenum‐Mediated Carbonylation of Aryl Halides
Authors: Kebede Eshetu , Tadikonda Ramu , Nakka Mangarao , Inkollu Bhargavi , Vidavalur Siddaiah
Published: August 2015

The facile and efficient one‐pot construction of benzimidazoles and benzoxazoles through the Mo(CO)6‐mediated carbonylation of aryl halides was examined. In the process, Mo(CO)6 acted as a convenient and safe solid source of carbon monoxide. A wide range of substrates were tolerated to provide the corresponding products in fair to good yields without the need of gaseous CO or palladium catalysts.
Divergent Total Syntheses to Azafluor­anthene and Dehydroaporphine Alkaloids
Authors: Khunnawutmanotham Nisachon , Sahakitpichan Poolsak , Chimnoi Nitirat , Techasakul Supanna
Published: August 2015

Facile divergent total syntheses for azafluoranthene and dehydroaporphine alkaloids have been successfully developed. A common intermediate, a biarylsulfonamide‐protected amino aldehyde, underwent either a cascade or a stepwise cyclization to furnish a tetracyclic skeleton related to the azafluoranthene alkaloids. Natural products, triclisine and telitoxine, were prepared to illustrate the use of this approach. Subsequent C‐homologation of the aldehyde moiety on the same intermediate by means of a Wittig reaction allowed the synthesis of aporphine alkaloids, as exemplified by the preparation of dehydronornuciferine. This synthetic approach could be applicable to the syntheses of other azafluoranthene‐related as well as aporphine‐related alkaloids.
One‐Pot Preparation of Graphene/Gold Nanocomposites for Ultrasensitive Nonenzymatic Electrochemical Immunoassay
Authors: Lai Guosong , Cheng Hui , Yin Cuiying , Fu Li , Yu Aimin
Published: August 2015

A graphene/gold nanoparticles (Au NPs) composite was one‐pot synthesized to design a new gold nanoprobe for electrochemical immunoassay. After sandwich immunoreaction at a carbon nanotubes (CNTs)‐based immunosensor, the nanoprobes were quantitatively captured on the immunosensor surface and produced sensitive signal response through the electrochemical stripping analysis of Au NP labels. Both the multi‐label signal amplification of nanoprobe and the electrode modification of CNTs greatly improved the signal response resulting in the development of an ultrasensitive immunoassay method for human IgG measurement. Additionally, this method also showed wide linear range, high specificity as well as satisfactory reproducibility, stability and reliability.
Communication key to boosting retention rates
Authors: Sutton Halley
Published: August 2015

As an English major from Cornell College, Julie Bryant did not see enrollment services in higher education as an obvious career path. However, when Bryant was hired at Ruffalo Noel Levitz in 1993, a firm that contracts with colleges and universities to offer enrollment management solutions, she realized that the communication skills she'd garnered in college would prove key to helping colleges and universities retain students.
Shaking‐table tests of flat‐bottom circular silos containing grain‐like material
Authors: Silvestri Stefano , Ivorra Salvador , Chiacchio Laura Di , Trombetti Tomaso , Foti Dora , Gasparini Giada , Pieraccini Luca , Dietz Matt , Taylor Colin
Published: August 2015

According to Eurocode 8, the seismic design of flat‐bottom circular silos containing grain‐like material is based on a rough estimate of the inertial force imposed on the structure by the ensiled content during an earthquake: 80% of the mass of the content multiplied by the peak ground acceleration. A recent analytical consideration of the horizontal shear force mobilised within the ensiled material during an earthquake proposed by some of the authors has resulted in a radically reduced estimate of this load suggesting that, in practice, the effective mass of the content is significantly less than that specified. This paper describes a series of laboratory tests that featured shaking table and a silo model, which were conducted in order to obtain some experimental data to verify the proposed theoretical formulations and to compare with the established code provisions. Several tests have been performed with different heights of ensiled material – about 0.5 mm diameter Ballotini glass – and different magnitudes of grain–wall friction. The results indicate that in all cases, the effective mass is indeed lower than the Eurocode specification, suggesting that the specification is overly conservative, and that the wall–grain friction coefficient strongly affects the overturning moment at the silo base. At peak ground accelerations up to around 0.35 g, the proposed analytical formulation provides an improved estimate of the inertial force imposed on such structures by their contents. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Key Practice, Discuss and Debate Ideas: Conceptual Framework, Literature Review, and Provisional Learning Progressions for Argumentation
Authors: Deane Paul , Song Yi
Published: August 2015

In this paper, we provide a comprehensive literature review on the development of key argumentation skills to lay a foundation for a framework of the key practice, discuss and debate ideas, which is centrally involved in the expectations for academic reading and writing. Specifically, the framework includes 5 phases of core activities and related sets of argumentation skills, and for each set of skills, a provisional learning progression is designed to identify qualitative shifts in the development of critical argumentation skills informed by the developmental literature. These learning may have the potential to support teachers' instructional decisions that effectively scaffold their students to the next level.
The contribution of wheat to human diet and health
Authors: Shewry Peter R. , Hey Sandra J.
Published: August 2015

Wheat is the most important staple crop in temperate zones and is in increasing demand in countries undergoing urbanization and industrialization. In addition to being a major source of starch and energy, wheat also provides substantial amounts of a number of components which are essential or beneficial for health, notably protein, vitamins (notably B vitamins), dietary fiber, and phytochemicals. Of these, wheat is a particularly important source of dietary fiber, with bread alone providing 20% of the daily intake in the UK, and well‐established relationships between the consumption of cereal dietary fiber and reduced risk of cardio‐vascular disease, type 2 diabetes, and forms of cancer (notably colo‐rectal cancer). Wheat shows high variability in the contents and compositions of beneficial components, with some (including dietary fiber) showing high heritability. Hence, plant breeders should be able to select for enhanced health benefits in addition to increased crop yield.
Alternate wetting and moderate drying increases rice yield and reduces methane emission in paddy field with wheat straw residue incorporation
Authors: Chu Guang , Wang Zhiqin , Zhang Hao , Liu Lijun , Yang Jianchang , Zhang Jianhua
Published: August 2015

Wheat residue incorporation into the rice paddy field is becoming a popular practice in rice production in China's main rice‐growing area but risks an increased emission of greenhouse gases. This study investigated if an alternate wetting and moderate drying (AWMD) irrigation regime in rice production reduces CH4 emission and increases grain yield when wheat straw residues are incorporated into rice paddy field. One super rice variety was field‐grown in 2012 and 2013 and subjected to four irrigation and straw incorporation treatments: continuously flooded (CF) without straw incorporation (−S), AWMD without straw incorporation (AWMD−S), then CF with straw incorporation (CF + S) and AWMD + S. When compared with the CF, the AWMD regime increased grain yield and water use efficiency (WUE, grain yield over the amount of water used) by 2.7% and 27.6%, respectively, under −S, and by 18.0 and 50.0%, respectively under +S. The AWMD + S treatment also significantly increased nitrogen use efficiency (NUE) compared with the CF + S treatment. The increase in grain yield, WUE and NUE in the AWMD regime, especially under +S, were attributed mainly to a greater root oxidation activity, deeper root distribution and increases in productive tillers, crop growth rate and nonstructural carbohydrate remobilization during grain filling. There was a total of 0.49 kg N2O‐N ha−1 more loss in the AWMD than in the CF regime. However, the AWMD regime substantially decreased seasonal CH4 emissions, global warming potential (GWP, including both CH4 and N2O) and greenhouse gas intensity (grain yield over GWP) by 49.8%, 45.2% and 46.7%, respectively, under −S, and by 57.5, 55.9% and 62.6%, respectively, under +S, when compared with the CF regime. The results demonstrate that the AWMD is an effective practice to increase grain yield and resource‐use efficiency and reduce environmental risks especially, when wheat straw is incorporated into paddy field.
Interpreting the Supreme Court's Mercury Emissions Decision
Authors: Corman Bernice I. (Bicky) , Cooney John F.
Published: August 2015

By a vote of 5–4 (with Justice Kennedy in the majority), the Supreme Court has reversed and remanded a regulation issued by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) under the Clean Air Act that limited emissions of mercury and other airborne toxics from electric power plants, because the agency failed to consider the costs of regulation at the start of the rulemaking process.1
Young Children Have Difficulty Predicting Future Preferences in the Presence of a Conflicting Physiological State
Authors: Mahy Caitlin E. V.
Published: August 2015

This study examined children's predictions about their future preferences when they were in two different physiological states (thirsty and not thirsty). Ninety 3‐ to 7‐year‐olds were asked to predict what they would prefer tomorrow: pretzels to eat or water to drink after having consumed pretzels, and again after having had the opportunity to quench their thirst with water. Results showed that although children initially preferred pretzels to water at baseline, they more often indicated that they would prefer water the next day after they had consumed pretzels. After consuming water, however, the same children indicated they would prefer pretzels the next day. Children's verbal justifications for their choices rarely made reference to their current or future states, but rather justifications were more likely to make reference to their general preferences when they were no longer thirsty compared to when they were thirsty. Results suggest that current physiological states have a powerful influence on future preferences. The findings are discussed in the context of the development of episodic foresight, the Bischof‐Kohler hypothesis, and the important and often overlooked role that children's current states play in future decision making. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Attentional Predictors of 5‐month‐olds' Performance on a Looking A‐not‐B Task
Authors: Marcovitch Stuart , Clearfield Melissa W. , Swingler Margaret , Calkins Susan D. , Bell Martha Ann
Published: August 2015

In the first year of life, the ability to search for hidden objects is an indicator of object permanence and, when multiple locations are involved, executive function (i.e. inhibition, cognitive flexibility and working memory). The current study was designed to examine attentional predictors of search in 5‐month‐old infants (as measured by the looking A‐not‐B task), and whether levels of maternal education moderated the effect of the predictors. Specifically, in a separate task, the infants were shown a unique puppet, and we measured the percentage of time attending to the puppet, as well as the length of the longest look (i.e., peak fixation) directed towards the puppet. Across the entire sample (N = 390), the percentage of time attending to the puppet was positively related to performance on the visual A‐not‐B task. However, for infants whose mothers had not completed college, having a shorter peak looking time (after controlling for percentage of time) was also a predictor of visual A‐not‐B performance. The role of attention, peak fixation and maternal education in visual search is discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Postmenopausal hormone therapy and the risk of breast cancer in Norway
Authors: Román Marta , Sakshaug Solveig , Graff‐Iversen Sidsel , Vangen Siri , Weiderpass Elisabete , Ursin Giske , Hofvind Solveig
Published: August 2015

There is convincing evidence that combined estrogen–progestin therapy (EPT) increases the risk of breast cancer. However, the effect of different formulations, preparations and routes of administration is largely unknown. Estrogen only‐therapy (ET) is, in general, not associated or weakly associated with breast cancer risk. We investigated the effect of hormone therapy (HT) with ET, EPT, and tibolone on risk of invasive breast cancer. Information on HT use was obtained from the Norwegian Prescription Database, and breast cancer incidence from the Cancer Registry of Norway. Poisson regression was used to estimate the incidence rate ratios (RR). We analyzed data from 686,614 Norwegian women, aged 45–79 years in January 2004, followed until December 2008, of whom 178,383 (26%) were prescribed HT. During the average 4.8 years of follow‐up, 7,910 invasive breast cancers were registered. Compared with nonusers, current users of estradiol–norethisterone acetate (NETA)(EPT) had a RR of 2.74 (95% CI: 2.55–2.95). Users of the high dose estradiol–NETA formulation Kliogest® had a RR of 3.26 (95% CI: 2.84–3.73), while users of the low dose Activelle® had a RR of 2.76 (95% CI: 2.51–3.04). Current users of tibolone had a RR of 1.91 (95% CI: 1.61–2.28). Current users of ET with oral or transdermal estradiol had a RR of 1.40 (95% CI: 1.16–1.68), and 1.40 (95% CI: 1.00–1.95), respectively. The increased incidence rates approximates one extra invasive breast cancer case diagnosed for every 259 women using estradiol–NETA for one year, and one extra case for every 475 women using tibolone. In conclusion, use of estradiol–NETA and tibolone preparations is associated with an increased breast cancer risk.
Sub‐cycle Dynamics of High Harmonic Generation of Ne Atoms Excited by Attosecond Pulses and Driven by Near‐infrared Laser Fields: A Self‐Interaction‐Free TDDFT Approach
Authors: Chou Chi‐Hui
Published: August 2015

In the framework of the self‐interaction‐free time‐dependent density‐functional theory (TDDFT), we have performed three‐dimensional ab initio calculations of Ne atoms in near‐infrared (NIR) laser fields subject to excitation by a single extreme ultraviolet (XUV) attosecond pulse (SAP). The TDDFT equations are solved accurately and efficiently by means of the time‐dependent generalized pseudo spectral (TDGPS) method. We have explored the transient dynamical behavior of the sub‐cycle high harmonic generation (HHG) for transitions from the excited states to the ground state and found oscillation structures with respect to the time delay between the SAP and NIR fields. We investigate the harmonic emission spectrum from singly excited state 2p3s, 2p4s, 2p3d, 2p5s, 2p4d and 2p6s, 2p5d and the virtual states 2p3p‐, 2p4f‐ and 2p4p+ as the function of time delay. We explore the sub‐cycle Stark shift phenomenon in NIR fields and its influence on the photon emission process. Our analysis reveals several novel features of the sub‐cycle transient HHG dynamics and spectra, the quantum interference pattern between different multiphoton excitation pathways, and we identify the mechanisms responsible for the observed peak splitting in the photon emission spectra.