bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
A Nacre‐Like Carbon Nanotube Sheet for High Performance Li‐Polysulfide Batteries with High Sulfur Loading
Authors: Pan Zheng‐Ze , Lv Wei , He Yan‐Bing , Zhao Yan , Zhou Guangmin , Dong Liubing , Niu Shuzhang , Zhang Chen , Lyu Ruiyang , Wang Cong , Shi Huifa , Zhang Wenjie , Kang Feiyu , Nishihara Hirotomo , Yang Quan‐Hong
Published: April 2018

Lithium‐sulfur (Li‐S) batteries are considered as one of the most promising energy storage systems for next‐generation electric vehicles because of their high‐energy density. However, the poor cyclic stability, especially at a high sulfur loading, is the major obstacles retarding their practical use. Inspired by the nacre structure of an abalone, a similar configuration consisting of layered carbon nanotube (CNT) matrix and compactly embedded sulfur is designed as the cathode for Li‐S batteries, which are realized by a well‐designed unidirectional freeze‐drying approach. The compact and lamellar configuration with closely contacted neighboring CNT layers and the strong interaction between the highly conductive network and polysulfides have realized a high sulfur loading with significantly restrained polysulfide shuttling, resulting in a superior cyclic stability and an excellent rate performance for the produced Li‐S batteries. Typically, with a sulfur loading of 5 mg cm−2, the assembled batteries demonstrate discharge capacities of 1236 mAh g−1 at 0.1 C, 498 mAh g−1 at 2 C and moreover, when the sulfur loading is further increased to 10 mg cm−2 coupling with a carbon‐coated separator, a superhigh areal capacity of 11.0 mAh cm−2 is achieved.
Feminist Organizing in Rural Nicaragua: Assessing a Psychosocial Process to Promote Empowered Solidarity
Authors: Dutt Anjali
Published: April 2018

This study examines a psychosocial process linking women's involvement in a grassroots women's organization with skills and experiences to promote empowered solidarity. Empowered solidarity is described as a process of increasing the sense of connection and capacity to create social transformation among a group of people united by interest in addressing a social issue. Data collected and analyzed for this research were 298 quantitative surveys conducted with two groups of women living in rural Nicaragua. One group of women were members of a grassroots feminist organization, and the other group lived in nearby communities where the organization did not offer programs. Findings document higher levels of leadership skills and sense of community, and lower levels of powerlessness among members of the organization. Additionally, tests of a process model using structural equation modeling provides support for a model that links involvement in the organization to women's increased interest in, capacity and experience in working to support women, broadly. Overall findings from this research are valuable to both community psychologists and groups seeking to enhance social justice and uphold feminist values of equity and community well‐being.
Deprotonative Generation of Cyclohexynes from Cyclic Enol Triflates Using Aluminate Bases
Authors: Hioki Yuto , Yukioka Taro , Okano Kentaro , Mori Atsunori
Published: April 2018

Deprotonative generation of cyclohexynes was achieved by treatment of the corresponding enol triflates with lithium triisobutyl(2,2,6,6‐tetramethylpiperidino)aluminate as a base. Six‐membered enol triflates involving an ester and a cyano group were converted to the corresponding cyclohexynes at 60 °C. The reaction conditions were applied to [3+2] cycloaddition with a nitrone to form the isoxazoline.
Staff and family attitudes to fences as a means of detaining people with dementia in residential aged care settings: The tension between physical and emotional safety
Authors: Dreyfus Shoshana , Phillipson Lyn , Fleming Richard
Published: April 2018

This study investigates staff and family attitudes towards the use of the fences that surround many aged care facilities in Australia, in the context of indefinite detention of people with dementia. This indefinite detention has been described in a report from an Australian Senate Inquiry as “a significant problem within the aged care context”, which “is often informal, unregulated and unlawful”. Five focus groups comprising direct care workers, family members, nurse unit managers and facility managers discussed the reasons for and their attitudes towards fences. The results show a tension between the provision of physical and emotional safety. This is to say that even while it is illegal to detain people with dementia against their will, and even while participants understood the negative impact of fences on the well‐being and emotional safety of people with dementia, they accepted and supported the presence of perimeter fences because they provided the perception that fences kept people with dementia physically safe. This has implications for redressing the balance between physical and emotional safety in policy and practice.
The “Belt and Road Initiative” and comparative regional productivity in China
Authors: Gibson John , Li Chao
Published: April 2018

We study potential internal effects of China's Belt and Road Initiative. These effects may occur sooner than the international effects, since they face no delay from partner negotiations and from financing and security concerns. For a key part of the overland Silk Road Economic Belt, we identify 46 prefectural‐level units in a corridor from the China–Kazakh border to Xi'an that are likely to see increased investment and economic activity from Belt and Road. These units are smaller, more diverse, poorer, and less productive than are prefectural‐level units in the rest of China. The Belt and Road Initiative will disperse some economic activity to places that the market would not direct it, such as to this corridor. Given that these areas are less productive and are likely to have lower absorptive capacity, investments here will have an efficiency cost since they should yield more GDP if deployed elsewhere in China.
Mitochondrial DNA copy number is associated with risk of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma in Chinese population
Authors: Wang Lihua , Lv Hong , Ji Pei , Zhu Xun , Yuan Hua , Jin Guangfu , Dai Juncheng , Hu Zhibin , Su Yuxiong , Ma Hongxia
Published: April 2018

Mitochondria show the special role in cellular bioenergy and many essential physiological activities. Previous researches have suggested that variations of mitochondrial DNA copy number contribute to development of different types of carcinomas. However, the relationship of mtDNA copy number in peripheral blood leukocytes (PBLs) with the risk of head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is still inconclusive. We investigated the association of mtDNA with HNSCC risk through a case–control study including 570 HNSCC cases and 597 cancer‐free controls. mtDNA copy number in PBLs was measured by real‐time qPCR. Logistic regression was performed to estimate the association between the mtDNA copy number in PBLs and HNSCC risk. A U‐shaped relation between the mtDNA copy number and HNSCC risk was found. Compared with those in the second quartile group, the adjusted odds ratios (ORs) and 95% confidence interval (CI) for those in the first and the forth quartile groups were 1.95 (1.37–2.76) and 2.16 (1.53–3.04), respectively. Using restricted cubic spline analysis, we confirmed such a significant U‐shaped relation. Furthermore, the U‐shaped association remained significant in different subgroups stratified by age, gender, tobacco smoking, and alcohol consumption. Both extremely low and high mtDNA copy numbers had significant associations with the increased HNSCC risk.
Major pathologic response and RAD51 predict survival in lung cancer patients receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy
Authors: Pataer Apar , Shao Ruping , Correa Arlene M. , Behrens Carmen , Roth Jack A. , Vaporciyan Ara A. , Wistuba Ignacio I. , Swisher Stephen G.
Published: April 2018

In a previous study, we determined that major pathologic response (MPR) as indicated by the percentage of residual viable tumor cells predicted overall survival (OS) in patients with non‐small‐cell lung cancer (NSCLC) who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. In this study, we assessed whether two genes and five protein biomarkers could predict MPR and OS in 98 patients with NSCLC receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy. We collected formalin‐fixed, paraffin‐embedded specimens of resected NSCLC tumors from 98 patients treated with neoadjuvant chemotherapy. We identified mutations in KRAS and EGFR genes using pyrosequencing and examined the expression of protein markers VEGFR2, EZH2, ERCC1, RAD51, and PKR using immunohistochemistry. We assessed whether gene mutation status or protein expression was associated with MPR or OS. We observed that KRAS mutation tended to be associated with OS (P = .06), but EGFR mutation was not associated with OS. We found that patients with high RAD51 expression levels had a poorer prognosis than did those with low RAD51 expression. We also observed that RAD51 expression was associated with MPR. MPR and RAD51 expression were associated with OS in univariate and multivariate analyses (P = .04 and P = .02, respectively). Combination of MPR with RAD51 is a significant predictor of prognosis in patients with NSCLC who received neoadjuvant chemotherapy. We demonstrated that MPR or RAD51 expression was associated with OS in patients with NSCLC receiving neoadjuvant chemotherapy. Prediction of a patient's prognosis could be improved by combined assessment of MPR and RAD51 expression.
Leadless pacemaker implantation after transcatheter lead extraction in complex anatomy patient
Authors: De Regibus Valentina , Pardeo Antonino , Artale Paolo , Petretta Andrea , Filannino Pasquale , Iacopino Saverio
Published: April 2018

Key Clinical Message

After transvenous lead extraction, leadless pacemaker might be a valid alternative to the traditional two‐step strategy including an active fixation leads temporary PM and subsequent contralateral permanent implantation in patients who are pacemaker‐dependent. Moreover, leadless PM might be of great importance in patients presenting with congenital vascular or cardiac abnormality.
A Rapid (Differential) Effect of Rosuvastatin and Atorvastatin on High‐Sensitivity Cardiac Troponin‐I in Subjects With Stable Cardiovascular Disease
Authors: Bodde Mathijs C. , Welsh Paul , Bergheanu Sandrin C. , Lijfering Willem M. , Mertens Bart , Liem An‐Ho , van der Laarse Arnoud , Sattar Naveed , Jukema J. Wouter
Published: April 2018

Serum troponin within the normal range is an emerging predictor of cardiovascular mortality. We aimed to determine how rapidly high‐sensitivity troponin‐I (hs‐cTnI) levels are lowered by statin therapy in patients with stable cardiovascular disease. In the RADAR substudy, patients were randomized to atorvastatin 20 mg/day (n = 39) or rosuvastatin 10 mg/day (n = 39) and up‐titrated at 6‐week intervals to 80 mg of atorvastatin or 40 mg of rosuvastatin. Hs‐cTnI concentrations were measured at baseline and at 6 and 18 weeks of follow‐up. Statin treatment resulted in a mean change of serum hs‐cTnI of –8.2% (P = 0.010) after 6 weeks and –12.3% (P = 0.001) after 18 weeks. After 18 weeks, hs‐cTnI levels were lowered by 21.8% with atorvastatin and by 4.1% with rosuvastatin (P = 0.001 and P = 0.133, respectively). During statin therapy, serum hs‐cTnI levels decreased rapidly within weeks of treatment, suggesting an effect beyond long‐term atherosclerosis regression. Mechanisms that mediate this effect require further study.
Evolutionary and demographic processes shaping geographic patterns of genetic diversity in a keystone species, the African forest elephant (Loxodonta cyclotis)
Authors: Ishida Yasuko , Gugala Natalie A. , Georgiadis Nicholas J. , Roca Alfred L.
Published: April 2018

The past processes that have shaped geographic patterns of genetic diversity may be difficult to infer from current patterns. However, in species with sex differences in dispersal, differing phylogeographic patterns between mitochondrial (mt) and nuclear (nu) DNA may provide contrasting insights into past events. Forest elephants (Loxodonta cyclotis) were impacted by climate and habitat change during the Pleistocene, which likely shaped phylogeographic patterns in mitochondrial (mt) DNA that have persisted due to limited female dispersal. By contrast, the nuclear (nu) DNA phylogeography of forest elephants in Central Africa has not been determined. We therefore examined the population structure of Central African forest elephants by genotyping 94 individuals from six localities at 21 microsatellite loci. Between forest elephants in western and eastern Congolian forests, there was only modest genetic differentiation, a pattern highly discordant with that of mtDNA. Nuclear genetic patterns are consistent with isolation by distance. Alternatively, male‐mediated gene flow may have reduced the previous regional differentiation in Central Africa suggested by mtDNA patterns, which likely reflect forest fragmentation during the Pleistocene. In species like elephants, male‐mediated gene flow erases the nuclear genetic signatures of past climate and habitat changes, but these continue to persist as patterns in mtDNA because females do not disperse. Conservation implications of these results are discussed.
As temperature increases, predator attack rate is more important to survival than a smaller window of prey vulnerability
Authors: Pepi Adam , Grof‐Tisza Patrick , Holyoak Marcel , Karban Richard
Published: April 2018

Climate change can have strong effects on species interactions and community structure. Temperature‐dependent effects on predator–prey interactions are a major mechanism through which these effects occur. To understand the net effects of predator attack rates and dynamic windows of prey vulnerability, we examined the impacts of temperature on the interaction of a caterpillar (Arctia virginalis) and its ant predator (Formica lasioides). We conducted field experiments to examine attack rates on caterpillars relative to temperature, ant abundance, and body size, and laboratory experiments to determine the effects of temperature on caterpillar growth. We modeled temperature‐dependent survival based on the integrated effects of temperature‐dependent growth and temperature‐ and size‐dependent predation. Attack rates on caterpillars increased with warming and ant recruitment, but decreased with caterpillar size. Caterpillar growth rates increased with temperature, narrowing the window of vulnerability. The model predicted that net caterpillar survival would decrease with temperature, suggesting that A. virginalis populations could be depressed with future climate warming. Theoretical work suggests that the net outcome of predator–prey interactions with increasing temperature depends on the respective responses of interacting species in terms of velocity across space, whereas the present study suggests the importance of effects of temperature on prey window of vulnerability, or “velocity” across time.
Elastocaloric Cooling on the Miniature Scale: A Review on Materials and Device Engineering
Authors: Bruederlin Florian , Bumke Lars , Chluba Christoph , Ossmer Hinnerk , Quandt Eckhard , Kohl Manfred
Published: April 2018

This Review covers the fundamentals of operation and scaling of elastocaloric cooling devices as well as current developments of elastocaloric shape‐memory alloy (SMA) films and the engineering of SMA film‐based cooling devices. Sputter‐deposited TiNiCuCo alloys showing ultra‐low fatigue enable unique functional properties such as tailored transformation temperature gradients. Two substantially different concepts for the development of elastocaloric cooling demonstrators are discussed. One concept relies on heat transfer by mechanical contact between the elastocaloric SMA film and solid heat sink and source elements. The second concept makes use of the heat transfer between the elastocaloric SMA film and a heat transfer fluid, including the advanced technology of active regeneration. Demonstrators based on a single SMA film reach device temperature spans of 14 K and a high specific cooling power of up to 18 W g−1. The performance characteristics are compared with other solid‐state caloric cooling technologies.
Clinical application of the GLOBE and United Kingdom‐primary biliary cholangitis risk scores in a trial cohort of patients with primary biliary cholangitis
Authors: Carbone Marco , Harms Maren H. , Lammers Willem J. , Marmon Tonya , Pencek Richard , MacConell Leigh , Shapiro David , Jones David E. , Mells George F. , Hansen Bettina E.
Published: April 2018

The GLOBAL Primary Biliary Cholangitis (PBC) Study Group and United Kingdom‐PBC (UK‐PBC) Consortium have demonstrated that dichotomous response criteria are not as accurate as continuous equations at predicting mortality or liver transplantation in PBC. The aim of this analysis was to assess the clinical utility of the GLOBE and UK‐PBC risk scores using data from POISE, a phase 3 trial investigating obeticholic acid (OCA) in patients with PBC. Data (N = 216) at baseline and month 12 were used to calculate the GLOBE and UK‐PBC risk scores to assess the projected change in risk with OCA versus placebo. Additionally, the benefit of OCA was assessed in patients not meeting the POISE primary endpoint. Both the GLOBE and UK‐PBC risk scores predicted a significant reduction in long‐term risk of death and liver transplantation after OCA treatment (P < 0.0001). The differences in the relative risk reduction from baseline in the 10‐year event risk after 1 year for OCA 10 mg versus placebo was 26% (GLOBE) and 37% (UK‐PBC). The scores also predicted a significantly decreased risk in patients treated with OCA who did not meet POISE response criteria after 1 year of treatment compared to an increased risk with placebo (P < 0.0001). Conclusion: This analysis demonstrates the use of the GLOBE and UK‐PBC risk scores to assess risk reduction of a cohort treated with OCA. While validation of this risk reduction in studies with clinical outcomes is needed, this study highlights the potential use of these scores in individualizing risk prediction in PBC both in clinical practice and therapeutic trials. (Hepatology Communications 2018;2:683‐692)
The Empirical Studies of China's Enterprise Bankruptcy Law: Problems and Improvements
Authors: Lin Shaowei
Published: April 2018

Over the past 9 years since the implementation of China's Enterprise Bankruptcy Law in 2007, it has contributed to some measures of regulating market practice and rearrangement of market resources and has become an integral part in an improved legal system of China's market economy. However, a closer look at the effect of implementing the Enterprise Bankruptcy Law shows that the number of bankruptcy cases after its implementation, instead of increasing, has taken on a trend of decreasing. Even under the influence of the 2008 financial crisis, no significant increase in the number of Chinese bankrupt enterprises means that China's Bankruptcy Law failed to play its due role, leaving a large gap as desired. As such, this article aims to examine the problems arising from the implementation of the Bankruptcy Law and, taking this as guidance, probe into the reasons hidden behind and propose possible improvement measures. It is expected that the Bankruptcy Law would increasingly play a key role in the development of China's market economy, particularly under the current situation where Chinese government proposes to clean up zombie businesses. Copyright © 2018 INSOL International and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Drug‐induced Proarrhythmia and Torsade de Pointes: A Primer for Students and Practitioners of Medicine and Pharmacy
Authors: Turner J. Rick , Rodriguez Ignacio , Mantovani Emily , Gintant Gary , Kowey Peter R. , Klotzbaugh Ralph J. , Prasad Krishna , Sager Philip T. , Stockbridge Norman , Strnadova Colette ,   the Cardiac Safety Research Consortium
Published: April 2018

Multiple marketing withdrawals due to proarrhythmic concerns occurred in the United States, Canada, and the United Kingdom in the late 1980s to early 2000s. This primer reviews the clinical implications of a drug's identified proarrhythmic liability, the issues associated with these safety‐related withdrawals, and the actions taken by the International Council for Harmonisation of Technical Requirements for Pharmaceuticals for Human Use (ICH) and by regulatory agencies in terms of changing drug development practices and introducing new nonclinical and clinical tests to asses proarrhythmic liability. ICH Guidelines S7B and E14 were released in 2005. Since then, they have been adopted by many regional regulatory authorities and have guided nonclinical and clinical proarrhythmic cardiac safety assessments during drug development. While this regulatory paradigm has been successful in preventing drugs with unanticipated potential for inducing the rare but potentially fatal polymorphic ventricular arrhythmia torsade de pointes from entering the market, it has led to the termination of drug development programs for other potentially useful medicines because of isolated results from studies with limited predictive value. Research efforts are now exploring alternative approaches to better predict potential proarrhythmic liabilities. For example, in the domain of human electrocardiographic assessments, concentration‐response modeling conducted during phase 1 clinical development has recently become an accepted alternate primary methodology to the ICH E14 “thorough QT/QTc” study for defining a drug's corrected QT interval prolongation liability under certain conditions. When a drug's therapeutic benefit is considered important at a public health level but there is also an identified proarrhythmic liability that may result from administration of the single drug in certain individuals and/or drug‐drug interactions, marketing approval will be accompanied by appropriate directions in the drug's prescribing information. Health‐care professionals in the fields of medicine and pharmacy need to consider the prescribing information in conjunction with individual patients’ clinical characteristics and concomitant medications when prescribing and dispensing such drugs.
The effects of nasal closure on quality of life in patients with hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia
Authors: Thomson Rhett S. , Molin Nicole L. , Whitehead Kevin J. , Ashby Shaelene , Johnson Leland , Ward P. Daniel , McRae Bryan R. , Wilson Kevin F. , McDonald Jamie
Published: April 2018

Introduction

Epistaxis is the most common symptom of hereditary hemorrhagic telangiectasia (HHT). Complete nasal closure is one of the treatment options for patients with severe, intractable epistaxis. In our experience, this surgery can be life changing in a positive sense; but many patients as well as their physicians understandably fear that such a procedure will diminish certain aspects of quality of life (QOL).

Methods

Case‐control study of HHT patients treated at the University of Utah HHT Center of Excellence with and without nasal closure from January 2005 to January 2016. Patients were matched according to epistaxis severity. Each included patient was issued three surveys: Epistaxis Severity Score (ESS), the Pittsburg Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and the Nasal Obstruction Symptom Evaluation (NOSE).

Results

After treatment, the mean PSQI and NOSE scores were not significantly different between the two groups. However, the mean ESS score in the nasal closure group was significantly lower at 1.10 compared to the severe epistaxis group with a mean score of 3.99 (P = .027).

Conclusion

The results of this study demonstrate that nasal closure significantly improves epistaxis severity without having a significant effect on sleep or nasal obstruction as they relate to QOL. These findings suggest that nasal closure should be considered for HHT patients with chronic severe epistaxis.

Level of Evidence

4.
The expression of the cancer testis antigen MAGE A4: A favorable prognostic biomarker in salivary gland carcinomas related to low tumor grading
Authors: Vital Domenic , Ikenberg Kristian , Moch Holger , Roessle Matthias , Huber Gerhard F.
Published: April 2018

Background

Aim was to analyze the expression of different cancer testis antigens (CTA) and to assess its prognostic value in salivary gland carcinomas.

Methods

Patients with salivary gland carcinomas diagnosed 1994 to 2010 were included. Baseline characteristics, pathohistological, clinical, and outcome data were assessed. Tissue microarrays were constructed and immunohistochemistry for different CTA (NY‐ESO1, NY‐BR1, MAGE A1, MAGE A3, MAGE A4, MAGE C1/CT7, and MAGE C2/CT10) was performed. CTA expression was assessed and statistically correlated with pathological and outcome data.

Results

Expression rates of CTA in salivary gland tumors ranged from 0% to 40%. MAGE A4 expression was associated with a lower tumor grade tumor grading (P = .017), and a favorable recurrence‐free (P = .003), disease‐specific (P = .046) and overall survival (P = .028).

Conclusions

MAGE A4 is a highly significant prognostic marker in salivary gland carcinoma; its expression is associated with low‐grade histology, a low rate of distant metastasis and a favorable survival.

Level of Evidence

4
TMTC2 variant associated with sensorineural hearing loss and auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder in a family dyad
Authors: Guillen‐Ahlers Hector , Erbe Christy B. , Chevalier Frédéric D. , Montoya Maria J. , Zimmerman Kip D. , Langefeld Carl D. , Olivier Michael , Runge Christina L.
Published: April 2018

Background

Sensorineural hearing loss (SNHL) is a common form of hearing loss that can be inherited or triggered by environmental insults; auditory neuropathy spectrum disorder (ANSD) is a SNHL subtype with unique diagnostic criteria. The genetic factors associated with these impairments are vast and diverse, but causal genetic factors are rarely characterized.

Methods

A family dyad, both cochlear implant recipients, presented with a hearing history of bilateral, progressive SNHL, and ANSD. Whole‐exome sequencing was performed to identify coding sequence variants shared by both family members, and screened against genes relevant to hearing loss and variants known to be associated with SNHL and ANSD.

Results

Both family members are successful cochlear implant users, demonstrating effective auditory nerve stimulation with their devices. Genetic analyses revealed a mutation (rs35725509) in the TMTC2 gene, which has been reported previously as a likely genetic cause of SNHL in another family of Northern European descent.

Conclusion

This study represents the first confirmation of the rs35725509 variant in an independent family as a likely cause for the complex hearing loss phenotype (SNHL and ANSD) observed in this family dyad.
Technical Note: On maximizing Cherenkov emissions from medical linear accelerators
Authors: Shrock Zachary , Yoon Suk W. , Gunasingha Rathnayaka , Oldham Mark , Adamson Justus
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Cherenkov light during MV radiotherapy has recently found imaging and therapeutic applications but is challenged by relatively low fluence. Our purpose is to investigate the feasibility of increasing Cherenkov light production during MV radiotherapy by increasing photon energy and applying specialized beam‐hardening filtration.

Methods

GAMOS 5.0.0, a GEANT4‐based framework for Monte Carlo simulations, was used to model standard clinical linear accelerator primary photon beams. The photon source was incident upon a 17.8 cm3 cubic water phantom with a 94 cm source to surface distance. Dose and Cherenkov production was determined at depths of 3–9 cm. Filtration was simulated 15 cm below the photon beam source. Filter materials included aluminum, iron, and copper with thicknesses of 2–20 cm. Histories used depended on the level of attenuation from the filter, ranging from 100 million to 2 billion. Comparing average dose per history also allowed for evaluation of dose‐rate reduction for different filters.

Results

Overall, increasing photon beam energy is more effective at improving Cherenkov production per unit dose than is filtration, with a standard 18 MV beam yielding 3.3–4.0× more photons than 6 MV. Introducing an aluminum filter into an unfiltered 2400 cGy/min 10 MV beam increases the Cherenkov production by 1.6–1.7×, while maintaining a clinical dose rate of 300 cGy/min, compared to increases of ~1.5× for iron and copper. Aluminum was also more effective than the standard flattening filter, with the increase over the unfiltered beam being 1.4–1.5× (maintaining 600 cGy/min dose rate) vs 1.3–1.4× for the standard flattening filter. Applying a 10 cm aluminum filter to a standard 18 MV, photon beam increased the Cherenkov production per unit dose to 3.9–4.3× beyond that of 6 MV (vs 3.3–4.0× for 18 MV with no aluminum filter).

Conclusions

Through a combination of increasing photon energy and applying specialized beam‐hardening filtration, the amount of Cherenkov photons per unit radiotherapy dose can be increased substantially.
A joint space‐angle regularization approach for single 4D diffusion image super‐resolution
Authors: Yin Shi , You Xinge , Yang Xin , Peng Qinmu , Zhu Ziqi , Jing Xiao‐Yuan
Published: April 2018

Purpose

Low signal‐to‐noise‐ratio and limited scan time of diffusion magnetic resonance imaging (dMRI) in current clinical settings impede obtaining images with high spatial and angular resolution (HSAR) for a reliable fiber reconstruction with fine anatomical details. To overcome this problem, we propose a joint space‐angle regularization approach to reconstruct HSAR diffusion signals from a single 4D low resolution (LR) dMRI, which is down‐sampled in both 3D‐space and q‐space.

Methods

Different from the existing works which combine multiple 4D LR diffusion images acquired using specific acquisition protocols, the proposed method reconstructs HSAR dMRI from only a single 4D dMRI by exploring and integrating two key priors, that is, the nonlocal self‐similarity in the spatial domain as a prior to increase spatial resolution and ridgelet approximations in the diffusion domain as another prior to increase the angular resolution of dMRI. To more effectively capture nonlocal self‐similarity in the spatial domain, a novel 3D block‐based nonlocal means filter is imposed as the 3D image space regularization term which is accurate in measuring the similarity and fast for 3D reconstruction. To reduce computational complexity, we use the L2‐norm instead of sparsity constraint on the representation coefficients.

Results

Experimental results demonstrate that the proposed method can obtain the HSAR dMRI efficiently with approximately 2% per‐voxel root‐mean‐square error between the actual and reconstructed HSAR dMRI.

Conclusion

The proposed approach can effectively increase the spatial and angular resolution of the dMRI which is independent of the acquisition protocol, thus overcomes the inherent resolution limitation of imaging systems.
Nurses' experience with relatives of patients receiving end‐of‐life care in nursing homes and at home: A questionnaire‐based cross‐sectional study
Authors: Paulsen Bård , Johnsen Roar , Hadders Hans
Published: April 2018

Aim

The aim of this study was to explore any differences between nurses working in nursing home and home‐based care in their experiences regarding relatives' ability to accept the imminence of death and relatives' ability to reach agreement when deciding on behalf of patients unable to consent.

Design

An electronic questionnaire‐based cross‐sectional study.

Method

An electronically distributed survey to 884 nurses in long‐term care in Norway in May 2014. A total of 399 nurses responded (45%), of which 197 worked in nursing homes and 202 in home‐based care.

Results

Nurses in home‐based care, more often than their colleagues in nursing homes, experienced that relatives had difficulties in accepting that patients were dying. Nurses who often felt insecure about whether life extension was in consistency with patients' wishes and nurses who talked most about life‐prolonging medical treatment in communication with relatives more often experienced that relatives being reluctant to accept a poor prognosis and disagreements between relatives in their role as proxy decision makers for the patient.
Enhanced interfacial interactions of isocyanate‐grafted graphene oxide/nitrile‐butadiene rubber nanocomposites: mechanical and thermo‐physical properties
Authors: Zhang Yinhang , Cho Ur Ryong
Published: April 2018

4,4‐diphenylmethane diisocyanate‐modified graphene oxide (GO) was fabricated (GO‐NCO), and for the first time used to reinforce the nitrile‐butadiene rubber (NBR) by using latex compounding approach. The modification process was verified by employing the Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and field‐emission transmission electron microscopy. The morphologies of the fracture surfaces of the NBR and its nanocomposites were analyzed using high‐resolution scanning electron microscopy. The mechanical properties, dynamic rheological properties and the thermo‐physical properties of the NBR/GO‐NCO nanocomposites were compared and investigated. At same filler concentration, the NBR/GO‐NCO nanocomposites exhibited the superior performances than the NBR/GO nanocomposites did. The NBR/GO‐NCO exhibited the highest tensile strength of 8.3 MPa, which was almost 200% higher than that of the neat NBR composites. And the storage modulus continuously enhanced with the filler concentration attributing to the enhanced stiffness due to the GO‐NCO in the rubber matrix. POLYM. COMPOS., 40:E1103–E1110, 2019. © 2018 Society of Plastics Engineers
Intrinsic spontaneous brain activity predicts individual variability in associative memory in older adults
Authors: Zheng Zhiwei , Li Rui , Xiao Fengqiu , He Rongqiao , Zhang Shouzi , Li Juan
Published: April 2018

Older adults demonstrate notable individual differences in associative memory. Here, resting‐state functional magnetic resonance imaging (rsfMRI) was used to investigate whether intrinsic brain activity at rest could predict individual differences in associative memory among cognitively healthy older adults. Regional amplitude of low‐frequency fluctuations (ALFF) analysis and a correlation‐based resting‐state functional connectivity (RSFC) approach were used to analyze data acquired from 102 cognitively normal elderly who completed the paired‐associative learning test (PALT) and underwent fMRI scans. Participants were divided into two groups based on the retrospective self‐reports on whether or not they utilized encoding strategies during the PALT. The behavioral results revealed better associative memory performance in the participants who reported utilizing memory strategies compared with participants who reported not doing so. The fMRI results showed that higher associative memory performance was associated with greater functional connectivity between the right superior frontal gyrus and the right posterior cerebellum lobe in the strategy group. The regional ALFF values in the right superior frontal gyrus were linked to associative memory performance in the no‐strategy group. These findings suggest that the regional spontaneous fluctuations and functional connectivity during rest may subserve the individual differences in the associative memory in older adults, and that this is modulated by self‐initiated memory strategy use.
A 3D Multifunctional Architecture for Lithium–Sulfur Batteries with High Areal Capacity
Authors: Zhao Shiyong , Fang Ruopian , Sun Zhenhua , Wang Shaogang , Veder Jean‐Pierre , Saunders Martin , Cheng Hui‐Ming , Liu Chang , Jiang San Ping , Li Feng
Published: April 2018

Lithium–sulfur (Li–S) batteries are highly attractive as next‐generation electrochemical energy‐storage technologies because they can provide a high energy density at a low cost. However, the performance degradation of sulfur cathodes with high mass loadings remains a significant challenge to be addressed. Here, a 3D multifunctional integrated and sponge‐like architecture is designed as the cathode framework, which provides a favorable balance between high sulfur loadings and uncompromised electrochemical performances. In this architecture, a highly porous nitrogen‐doped carbon fiber foam is used as a 3D current collector and host for sulfur accommodation and a thin graphene layer is used for polysulfide interception, which not only facilitates fast electron and lithium‐ion transport but also enables effective active material immobilization by both physical restriction and chemical adsorption. With a sulfur loading of 7.7 mg cm−2, high areal capacities up to 8.7 mAh cm−2 are attained together with excellent cycling stability over 500 cycles. This approach demonstrates a new concept for the construction of cathode architectures for practical Li–S batteries and can be extended to other battery systems.
Ameliorative effect of animal bile preparations on dextran sulfate sodium‐induced colitis in mice
Authors: Watanabe Shiro , Fujita Kyosuke , Nishida Takeshi , Imura Johji
Published: April 2018

Aim

Animal bile preparations harvested from bears, cattle, and pigs are composed of distinct types of bile acids. Given that several types of bile acid activate the farnesoid X receptor (FXR) or Takeda G‐protein receptor 5 (TGR5) and thereby exert anti‐inflammatory effects, we compared the effects of the three animal bile preparations on dextran sulfate sodium (DSS)‐induced colitis in mice.

Methods

Bear bile (BB), cattle bile (CB), and pig bile (PB) were orally given at 100 mg/kg/day during DSS treatment for 7 days. The colitis symptoms and the histological and biochemical markers of inflammatory response in the colon tissues were assessed.

Results

BB, CB, and PB similarly ameliorated the colitis symptoms in DSS‐treated mice. BB and CB but not PB attenuated inflammatory response in the colon tissues of DSS‐treated mice. The content of the bile acids agonistic to FXR and TGR5 was significantly increased by BB and CB but not by PB.

Conclusion

BB, CB, and PB are indistinguishable in ameliorating colitis symptoms in DSS‐treated mice. The differences, however, in the effects of the three animal bile preparations on colon inflammation may be due to the differences in the content of anti‐inflammatory bile acids.
Flavor-safe light squarks in Higgs-anomaly mediation
Authors: Yanagida Tsutomu T. , Yin Wen , Yokozaki Norimi
Published: April 2018

Abstract

We consider a simple setup with light squarks which is free from the gravitino and SUSY flavor problems. In our setup, a SUSY breaking sector is sequestered from the matter and gauge sectors, and it only couples to the Higgs sector directly with

$$ \mathcal{O}(100) $$

O

100

TeV gravitino. Resulting mass spectra of sfermions are split: the first and second generation sfermions are light as

$$ \mathcal{O}(1) $$

O

1

TeV while the third generation sfermions are heavy as

$$ \mathcal{O}(10) $$

O

10

TeV. The light squarks of

$$ \mathcal{O}(1) $$

O

1

TeV can be searched at the (high-luminosity) LHC and future collider experiments. Our scenario can naturally avoid too large flavor-changing neutral currents and it is consistent with the ϵ

K
constraint. Moreover, there are regions explaining the muon g − 2 anomaly and bottom-tau/top-bottom-tau Yukawa coupling unification simultaneously.
Wilson loop form factors: a new duality
Authors: Chicherin Dmitry , Heslop Paul , Korchemsky Gregory P. , Sokatchev Emery
Published: April 2018

Abstract

We find a new duality for form factors of lightlike Wilson loops in planar

$$ \mathcal{N} $$

N

= 4 super-Yang-Mills theory. The duality maps a form factor involving an n-sided lightlike polygonal super-Wilson loop together with m external on-shell states, to the same type of object but with the edges of the Wilson loop and the external states swapping roles. This relation can essentially be seen graphically in Lorentz harmonic chiral (LHC) superspace where it is equivalent to planar graph duality. However there are some crucial subtleties with the cancellation of spurious poles due to gauge fixing. They are resolved by finding the correct formulation of the Wilson loop and by careful analytic continuation from Minkowski to Euclidean space. We illustrate all of these subtleties explicitly in the simplest non-trivial NMHV-like case.
Surgical Indication for Advanced Intrahepatic Cholangiocarcinoma According to the Optimal Preoperative Carbohydrate Antigen 19‐9 Cutoff Value
Authors: Yamamoto Yusuke , Sugiura Teiichi , Todaka Akiko , Okamura Yukiyasu , Ito Takaaki , Ashida Ryo , Kakuda Yuko , Nakanuma Yasuni , Uesaka Katsuhiko
Published: April 2018

Background

The indication of surgery in intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma (ICC) patients with lymph node metastasis (LNM), macroscopic periductal infiltration (PI), and intrahepatic metastasis (IM) remains unclear.

Methods

Patients who underwent resection for mass‐forming (MF) dominant ICC and unresected patients caused by LNM, IM, or locally advanced tumors (UR group) were enrolled. The significance of CA19‐9 was investigated in advanced ICC.

Results

Seventy‐three patients who underwent resection and 20 UR patients were analyzed. Using the minimum p value approach based on the overall survival, the optimal CA19‐9 cutoff value was 300 U/mL. The OS of the patients with CA19‐9 < 37 U/mL (n = 26; MST, 49.6 months) and 37–300 U/mL (n = 28; MST, 45.1 months) was comparable (P = 0.842); however, the OS of the patients with CA19‐9 = 37–300 U/mL was significantly better than that with CA19‐9 ≥ 300 U/mL (n = 19; MST, 15.3 months; P < 0.001). CA19‐9 > 300 U/mL, MF + PI, and IM were independently associated with OS. The OS of the patients with CA19‐9 < 300 U/mL who developed LNM (MST, 34.0 months), MF + PI (MST, 32.9 months), or IM (MST, 35.2 months), or who required major vascular resection (MST, 45.1 months) was better than those with CA19‐9 ≥ 300 U/mL who developed LNM (MST, 8.7 months; P = 0.005), MF + PI (MST, 7.5 months; P = 0.040), or IM (MST, 8.7 months; P = 0.001), or who required major vascular resection (MST, 14.8 months; P = 0.015); their prognosis was similar with the UR group.

Conclusions

Even if patients had ICC developing LNM, PI, or IM, or require major vascular resection, surgical resection can be indicated for patients with CA19‐9 < 300 U/mL. However, the indications for either adjuvant therapy or resection should be carefully determined in patients with CA19‐9 ≥ 300 U/mL.
The bumps and bruises from turning a blind eye: Learning from our failures and surprises
Authors: Varpio Lara , Nagler Alisa
Published: April 2018

None
Paleoecology of an Upper Ordovician submarine cave-dwelling bryozoan fauna and its exposed equivalents in northern Kentucky, USA
Authors: Buttler Caroline J. , Wilson Mark A.
Published: April 2018

A bryozoan-dominated fauna that inhabited small caves underneath a carbonate hardground is here described from the Corryville Formation (Upper Ordovician, Katian) exposed near Washington, Mason County, Kentucky, USA. The dominant bryozoan,Stigmatella personata(a trepostome), is found both growing downwards from the cave ceilings and upwards on the exposed hardground surface above. Another trepostome,Monticulipora, is a minor component of the cave fauna. There are few discernible anatomical differences between the bryozoan colonies that grew upwards in presumably well-lit waters and those that grew downwards in the gloomy caves. The pendant, cave-dwellingS.personatain some cases appears to have longer zooecial tubes than its exposed equivalent. The colonies ofS.personataare rounded mounds with multiple layers formed by self-overgrowth. The overgrowths in both downward and upward growing forms are marked by thin layers of sediment infilling the upper zooecial chambers in the older portion of the colony. We suggest that biofilms developed on patches of the colony where the zooids had died. Sediment adhered to these surfaces and the colony then overgrew the patches, trapping sediment within the skeleton. The bryozoan zoaria and the carbonate hardground are extensively bored by the cylindrical ichnogenusTrypanitesthat occasionally contain cylindrical calcite-filled tubes similar to “ghosts” of organic materials. Bioclaustrations are present in some of the bryozoan skeletons. This cave fauna is one of few submarine examples known from the Paleozoic. It supports the hypothesis that early cave-dwelling organisms were little differentiated from their exposed counterparts.
Parasitic causes of organ condemnation in cattle slaughtered in Fako abattoirs, South-West region of Cameroon, and estimate of financial losses
Authors: Kouam M.K. , Meningue R. , Fon D.E.
Published: April 2018

An abattoir study was carried out between May and October 2016 to determine the parasitic causes of organ condemnation during meat inspection and to evaluate the attendant financial losses in Fako abattoirs, in the South-West region of Cameroon. Organs (liver, lungs, heart, tongue, kidney, spleen and intestine) were examined at meat inspection following standard procedures and the financial loss was estimated by considering the total weight of condemned organs and the price per kilogram of marketable organs, obtained from the local market. The organs of 1472 cattle were examined, of which 357 (24.38%) were condemned. The organs condemned because of parasitic infestations were the liver (333) and small intestine (24), and the infections were caused by flukes of Fasciola sp. and proglottids of Moniezia sp., respectively. Hydatid cysts and cysticerci were absent. The prevalence of fasciolosis and monieziosis was 22.62% and 1.63%, respectively. Condemnation deprived the region of 665.457 kg of meat, with an associated financial loss of CFA 1,330,902 (USD 2505), during the study period. Parasitic diseases worsen the food insecurity situation as they result in the withdrawal of a considerable amount of meat from the food chain. Fasciolosis, the leading parasitic cause of meat condemnation in Fako, is also zoonotic. It is therefore important that effective control measures are implemented countrywide against this parasitosis.
Machiavelli as Philosopher
Authors: Baluch Faisal
Published: April 2018

This paper deals with Zuckert's book Machiavelli's Politics. It takes as its point of departure Zuckert's remark that Machiavelli is “surprisingly like Socrates.” The paper begins with a brief discussion of what makes a Socratic philosopher and then charts out the many similarities between Socrates and Machiavelli. Responses are offered to some of the key reservations against terming Machiavelli a Socratic. In particular, the paper points to a less activist and more meditative mode in Machiavelli's writings that allows one to make a more convincing case for a Socratic Machiavelli.
What you always wanted to know about the deterministic part of the International Planning Competition (IPC) 2014 (but were too afraid to ask)
Authors: Vallati Mauro , Chrpa Lukáš , Mccluskey Thomas L.
Published: April 2018

The International Planning Competition (IPC) is a prominent event of the artificial intelligence planning community that has been organized since 1998; it aims at fostering the development and comparison of planning approaches, assessing the state-of-the-art in planning and identifying new challenging benchmarks. IPC has a strong impact also outside the planning community, by providing a large number of ready-to-use planning engines and testing pioneering applications of planning techniques.

This paper focusses on the deterministic part of IPC 2014, and describes format, participants, benchmarks as well as a thorough analysis of the results. Generally, results of the competition indicates some significant progress, but they also highlight issues and challenges that the planning community will have to face in the future.