bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Clinical Profile of Febrile convulsion among admitted children in a tertiary care hospital at Dhaka city
Authors: Biswas Rabi , Munsi Abu Sayed , Rahman Md Maksudur , Begum Nasreen , Das Rajib Chandra
Published: November 2015

Background : Febrile convulsion (FC) is the most common type of seizure that occurs in children aged 4-60 months, which is benign and had a good prognosis.Objective : To evaluate the clinical profile and management of hospitalized children with Febrile convulsion.Methodology : This cross sectional study was done in Dhaka Shishu (children) Hospital during July 01, 2013 to June 30, 2014. Total 80 children aged between 4-72 months who were admitted in to Pediatric Medicine department with diagnosis of FC were purposively recruited in the study. Data were collected by a trained physician from history, clinical examination, laboratory findings, treatment and outcome using a structured questionnaire.Results : Among the study children 41(51.3%) were between 6 months to 12 months with a male to female ratio was1.5:1. Forty-nine (61.2%) children had simple seizures, and 16 (20%) of the patients had family history of febrile seizures. In 70 (87.5%) cases the duration of seizure was less than 15 minutes and 75% patients had less than one attack within 24 hours of onset of fever. Upper respiratory tract infection was the most common (31%) cause of fever followed by unclassified in 21 (26%) cases. Complete blood count revealed leukocytosis in 49% cases, CRP raised in 30% cases while CSF study and ultrasonography of brain was normal in 30 cases and 10 cases. We could not perform any investigation to isolate possible causative virus. More than 90% per cent received intravenous broad-spectrum antibiotics and prophylactic anticonvulsant drugs during early days of hospitalization.Conclusion : In this study, Upper respiratory Tract infection was found as common cause of febrile convulsion. Duration of seizure was less than 15 minutes and Leukocytosis, raised CRP was identified and nearly all patients received broad-spectrum antibiotics during hospital stay.Northern International Medical College Journal Vol.7(1) Jul 2015: 101-104
Prevalence of urinary tract infection, its causative agents and antibiotic sensitivity pattern : A study in Northern International Medical College Hospital, Dhaka
Authors: Yasmeen BH Nazma , Islam Saad , Islam Saba , Uddin Md Moyez , Jahan Rowshan
Published: November 2015

Background : Urinary tract infection (UTI) is one of the most important causes of morbidity and mortality in the developing countries like Bangladesh. Antimicrobial agents are the frequently used drug for its treatment. Periodic evaluation of antimicrobial activity of different antibiotics is essential as the pattern of antibiotic sensitivity may vary over periods. Increasing antibiotic resistance among urinary pathogens to commonly prescribed drugs has become a global reality today.Objective : To determine the prevalence and to find out the causative agents of UTI and their antibiotic sensitivity pattern among suspected UTI patients attending Northern International Medical College Hospital (NIMCH), Dhaka.Methods : A retrospective study was conducted at Northern International Medical College Hospital, Dhaka, Bangladesh by analyzing the records of urine samples collected for culture and sensitivity tests over a period of six months (January 2014 to June 2014). Of the total 878 clean catch mid-stream urine samples collected from suspected cases of UTI patients of all ages and both sexes. Urine specimens were cultured for isolation of microbial agents of urinary tract infection. The isolated bacteria were identified using biochemical test. The diffusion susceptibility test was used to determine susceptibility of bacterial agents to antibiotics. Computerized data was collected from Microbiology department of NIMCH and analyzed by Microsoft Excel Version 2013.Results : In this study, 182 (20.73%) out of 878 urine sample were positive for pathogenic organisms. Of the various pathogenic organisms isolated, Escherichia coli constituted for 85.16% followed by Pseudomonas sp, Acinatobactersp, Group D Streptococcus, Staphylococcus aureus, Klebsiellasp, Enterobactersp and others. E.coli was found to be most sensitive to Imipenem, Amikacin and Meropenem and resistant to most commonly used oral drugs like Azithromycin, Cefexime, cotrimoxazole and Ciprofloxacin and Levofloxacin.Conclusion : Mainly Gram negative bacilli is responsible for UTI and most frequent isolated bacteria was E-coli. The most effective antibiotics were Imipenem, Amikacin, Meropenem,all of them are parentral. Majority E-coli were resistant to commonly used oral drugs like Azithromycin, Cefexime, cotrimoxazole and Ciprofloxacin. Therefore the choice of antibiotic therapy in UTI should be depends on the local sensitivity pattern of the infecting organisms.Northern International Medical College Journal Vol.7(1) Jul 2015: 105-109
Study of Premature Infant during Early Period of Life
Authors: Mamun Mohammad Abdullah Al , Hoque Md Mahbubul , Chowdhury MAK Azad , Hossain M Monir , Shirin Mahfuza , Ye Lee Le
Published: November 2015

Background : There is suboptimal growth observed among the very low birth weight (VLBW) infants during postnatal period.Objectives : This study was conducted to evaluate the anthropometric parameters among preterm VLBW infants during early period of life.Methods : This was a retrospective study of preterm VLBW infants admitted to Dhaka Shishu (Children) Hospital during the period of July 2011 to June 2013. Body weight, length and occipitofrontal circumference (OFC) at birth and at 4 weeks was recorded from neonatal data base. Z-scores for each anthropometric parameter were computed using Fentons growth chart of preterm infants. Statistical analysis was done using SPSS version 21.0.Results : Total 88 preterm VLBW infants were included in the study and among them male were 61.4% and female were 38.6% with a male female ratio 1.59:1. Mean weight, length and OFC at birth was 1186±277.45gm, 38.23±2.89 cm and 27.46±2.20cm respectively and at 4 weeks 1460.81±295.73 gm, 41.23±2.87 cm and 29.91±2.19 cm respectively. At birth small for gestational age (SGA) was found in 44.3% but at 4 weeks majority (77.3%) failed to achieve appropriate weight. Z score of weight, length and OFC at birth was -1.19, -0.58 and - 0.24 respectively and at 4 weeks-2.01, -1.17 and -0.75 respectively. There was a significant decline in all three anthropometric parameters from birth to 4 weeks of life (p<0.05).Conclusion : There was decrease in all anthropometric parameters among preterm VLBW neonate at 4 weeks of life. Despite significant decrease in somatic growth they maintained a near normal head growth.Northern International Medical College Journal Vol.7(1) Jul 2015: 115-118
Tubal Ectopic Pregnancy after 11 Years of Bilateral Tubal Ligation
Authors: Parvin Mosammat Bilkis , Begum Kazi Sahnaz , Jahan Naseem , Sultana Hasina
Published: November 2015

Tubal ligation is a well excepted method of contraception. Permanent contraception by tubal ligation is one of the most commonly used contraceptive methods in United States, also most popular form of contraception worldwide. Although pregnancy after ligation is uncommon, it can occur and may be ectopic. Surprisingly, failures are not limited to the first year or two but continued to appear even after many years during follow up. In this paper we report a case of ectopic pregnancy in a patient who underwent bilateral tubal ligation11years ago during caesarean delivery for contraception.Northern International Medical College Journal Vol.7(1) Jul 2015: 119-120
Semi-Supervised Classification Based on Mixture Graph
Authors: Feng Lei , Yu Guoxian
Published: November 2015

Graph-based semi-supervised classification heavily depends on a well-structured graph. In this paper, we investigate a mixture graph and propose a method called semi-supervised classification based on mixture graph (SSCMG). SSCMG first constructs multiple k nearest neighborhood (kNN) graphs in different random subspaces of the samples. Then, it combines these graphs into a mixture graph and incorporates this graph into a graph-based semi-supervised classifier. SSCMG can preserve the local structure of samples in subspaces and is less affected by noisy and redundant features. Empirical study on facial images classification shows that SSCMG not only has better recognition performance, but also is more robust to input parameters than other related methods.
Effect of Ta2O5 and Nb2O5 Dopants on the Stable Dielectric Properties of BaTiO3–(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3-Based Materials
Authors: Wang Sea-Fue , Hsu Yung-Fu , Hung Yu-Wen , Liu Yi-Xin
Published: November 2015

In this study, BaTiO3–(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3 ceramics with various amounts of Ta2O5 dopant were investigated for their ability to enhance high-temperature stability to meet X9R specifications. The results were compared to those for ceramics with the common Nb2O5 additive. The best composition appeared to be 0.9BaTiO3–0.1(Bi0.5Na0.5)TiO3 with 2 mol% Ta2O5 dopant sintered at 1215 °C, which had a dielectric constant of 1386, a tanδ value of 1.8%, temperature coefficients of capacitance (TCCs) of −1.3% and 1.2%, and electrical resistivities of 2.8 × 1012 and 1.5 × 1010 Ω·cm at 25 °C and 200 °C, respectively. Its microstructure consisted of fine equiaxed grains with a perovskite structure and an average grain size of 0.46 μm and some rod-like grains of second-phase Ba6Ti17O40 with a size of approximately 3.2 μm. The Ta2O5 dopant caused a reduction in the grain size and a slight increase in trapped pores. The temperature dependence of the dielectric constant flattened and the Curie point was dramatically suppressed with the addition of Ta2O5 dopant, leading to smooth dielectric temperature characteristics over a relatively broad temperature range. The X9R formulations and their dielectric properties were highly repeatable in this study.
Fluorinated Carbohydrates as Lectin Ligands: 19F-Based Direct STD Monitoring for Detection of Anomeric Selectivity
Authors: Ribeiro João , Diercks Tammo , Jiménez-Barbero Jesús , André Sabine , Gabius Hans-Joachim , Cañada Francisco
Published: November 2015

The characterization of the binding of reducing carbohydrates present as mixtures of anomers in solution to a sugar recepor (lectin) poses severe difficulties. In this situation, NMR spectroscopy enables the observation of signals for each anomer in the mixture by applying approaches based on ligand observation. Saturation transfer difference (STD) NMR allows fast and efficient screening of compound mixtures for reactivity to a receptor. Owing to the exceptionally favorable properties of 19F in NMR spectroscopy and the often complex 1H spectra of carbohydrates, 19F-containing sugars have the potential to be turned into versatile sensors for recognition. Extending the recently established 1H → 1H STDre19F-NMR technique, we here demonstrate its applicability to measure anomeric selectivity of binding in a model system using the plant lectin concanavalin A (ConA) and 2-deoxy-2-fluoro-d-mannose. Indeed, it is also possible to account for the mutual inhibition between the anomers on binding to the lectin by means of a kinetic model. The monitoring of 19F-NMR signal perturbation disclosed the relative activities of the anomers in solution and thus enabled the calculation of their binding affinity towards ConA. The obtained data show a preference for the α anomer that increases with temperature. This experimental approach can be extended to others systems of biomedical interest by testing human lectins with suitably tailored glycan derivatives.
The Health Effects of Climate Change in the WHO European Region
Authors: Wolf Tanja , Lyne Katrina , Martinez Gerardo , Kendrovski Vladimir
Published: November 2015

The evidence of observed health effects as well as projections of future health risks from climate variability and climate change is growing. This article summarizes new knowledge on these health risks generated since the IPCC fourth assessment report (AR4) was published in 2007, with a specific focus on the 53 countries comprising the WHO European Region. Many studies on the effects of weather, climate variability, and climate change on health in the European Region have been published since 2007, increasing the level of certainty with regard to already known health threats. Exposures to temperature extremes, floods, storms, and wildfires have effects on cardiovascular and respiratory health. Climate- and weather-related health risks from worsening food and water safety and security, poor air quality, and ultraviolet radiation exposure as well as increasing allergic diseases, vector- and rodent-borne diseases, and other climate-sensitive health outcomes also warrant attention and policy action to protect human health.
From Lattice Boltzmann Method to Lattice Boltzmann Flux Solver
Authors: Wang Yan , Yang Liming , Shu Chang
Published: November 2015

Based on the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM), the lattice Boltzmann flux solver (LBFS), which combines the advantages of conventional Navier–Stokes solvers and lattice Boltzmann solvers, was proposed recently. Specifically, LBFS applies the finite volume method to solve the macroscopic governing equations which provide solutions for macroscopic flow variables at cell centers. In the meantime, numerical fluxes at each cell interface are evaluated by local reconstruction of LBM solution. In other words, in LBFS, LBM is only locally applied at the cell interface for one streaming step. This is quite different from the conventional LBM, which is globally applied in the whole flow domain. This paper shows three different versions of LBFS respectively for isothermal, thermal and compressible flows and their relationships with the standard LBM. In particular, the performance of isothermal LBFS in terms of accuracy, efficiency and stability is investigated by comparing it with the standard LBM. The thermal LBFS is simplified by using the D2Q4 lattice velocity model and its performance is examined by its application to simulate natural convection with high Rayleigh numbers. It is demonstrated that the compressible LBFS can be effectively used to simulate both inviscid and viscous flows by incorporating non-equilibrium effects into the process for inviscid flux reconstruction. Several numerical examples, including lid-driven cavity flow, natural convection in a square cavity at Rayleigh numbers of 107 and 108 and transonic flow around a staggered-biplane configuration, are tested on structured or unstructured grids to examine the performance of three LBFS versions. Good agreements have been achieved with the published data, which validates the capability of LBFS in simulating a variety of flow problems.
Payoffs and Coherence of a Quantum Two-Player Game in a Thermal Environment
Authors: Dajka Jerzy , Łobejko Marcin , Sładkowski Jan
Published: November 2015

A two-player quantum game is considered in the presence of a thermal decoherence modeled in terms of a rigorous Davies approach. It is shown how the energy dissipation and pure decoherence affect the payoffs of the players of the (quantum version) of prisoner dilemma. The impact of the thermal environment on a coherence of game, as a quantum system, is also presented.
Coping with Workplace Violence in Healthcare Settings: Social Support and Strategies
Authors: Zhao Siqi , Liu He , Ma Hongkun , Jiao Mingli , Li Ye , Hao Yanhua , Sun Yihua , Gao Lijun , Hong Sun , Kang Zheng , Wu Qunhong , Qiao Hong
Published: November 2015

A cross-sectional survey of healthcare professionals from 19 hospitals in six cities of Heilongjiang Province, China was conducted. This study had two objectives: (1) to examine the factors influencing healthcare workers’ opinions of strategies to prevent workplace violence, using social support theory, and (2) to encourage healthcare organisations and the larger society to offer greater support to healthcare workers. The respondents exposed to workplace violence expected to receive organisational and social support. Those exposed to psychological violence had a strong opinion of the need for target training to strengthen their competence in responding to violence (OR = 1.319, 95% CI: 1.034–1.658) and enacting workplace violence legislation (OR = 1.968, 95% CI: 1.523–2.543).Those exposed to physical violence thought it might be useful to reinforce staff with back-up support (OR = 3.101, 95% CI: 1.085–8.860). Those exposed to both types of violence and those with high anxiety levels need greater support at both the organisational and societal levels.
Vulnerabilities to Temperature Effects on Acute Myocardial Infarction Hospital Admissions in South Korea
Authors: Kwon Bo , Lee Eunil , Lee Suji , Heo Seulkee , Jo Kyunghee , Kim Jinsun , Park Man
Published: November 2015

Most previous studies have focused on the association between acute myocardial function (AMI) and temperature by gender and age. Recently, however, concern has also arisen about those most susceptible to the effects of temperature according to socioeconomic status (SES). The objective of this study was to determine the effect of heat and cold on hospital admissions for AMI by subpopulations (gender, age, living area, and individual SES) in South Korea. The Korea National Health Insurance (KNHI) database was used to examine the effect of heat and cold on hospital admissions for AMI during 2004–2012. We analyzed the increase in AMI hospital admissions both above and below a threshold temperature using Poisson generalized additive models (GAMs) for hot, cold, and warm weather. The Medicaid group, the lowest SES group, had a significantly higher RR of 1.37 (95% CI: 1.07–1.76) for heat and 1.11 (95% CI: 1.04–1.20) for cold among subgroups, while also showing distinctly higher risk curves than NHI for both hot and cold weather. In additions, females, older age group, and those living in urban areas had higher risks from hot and cold temperatures than males, younger age group, and those living in rural areas.
Evaluation of the Consistency of MODIS Land Cover Product (MCD12Q1) Based on Chinese 30 m GlobeLand30 Datasets: A Case Study in Anhui Province, China
Authors: Liang Dong , Zuo Yan , Huang Linsheng , Zhao Jinling , Teng Ling , Yang Fan
Published: November 2015

Land cover plays an important role in the climate and biogeochemistry of the Earth system. It is of great significance to produce and evaluate the global land cover (GLC) data when applying the data to the practice at a specific spatial scale. The objective of this study is to evaluate and validate the consistency of the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) land cover product (MCD12Q1) at a provincial scale (Anhui Province, China) based on the Chinese 30 m GLC product (GlobeLand30). A harmonization method is firstly used to reclassify the land cover types between five classification schemes (International Geosphere Biosphere Programme (IGBP) global vegetation classification, University of Maryland (UMD), MODIS-derived Leaf Area Index and Fractional Photosynthetically Active Radiation (LAI/FPAR), MODIS-derived Net Primary Production (NPP), and Plant Functional Type (PFT)) of MCD12Q1 and ten classes of GlobeLand30, based on the knowledge rule (KR) and C4.5 decision tree (DT) classification algorithm. A total of five harmonized land cover types are derived including woodland, grassland, cropland, wetland and artificial surfaces, and four evaluation indicators are selected including the area consistency, spatial consistency, classification accuracy and landscape diversity in the three sub-regions of Wanbei, Wanzhong and Wannan. The results indicate that the consistency of IGBP is the best among the five schemes of MCD12Q1 according to the correlation coefficient (R). The “woodland” LAI/FPAR is the worst, with a spatial similarity (O) of 58.17% due to the misclassification between “woodland” and “others”. The consistency of NPP is the worst among the five schemes as the agreement varied from 1.61% to 56.23% in the three sub-regions. Furthermore, with the biggest difference of diversity indices between LAI/FPAR and GlobeLand30, the consistency of LAI/FPAR is the weakest. This study provides a methodological reference for evaluating the consistency of different GLC products derived from multi-source and multi-resolution remote sensing datasets on various spatial scales.
Decreased Bone Volume and Bone Mineral Density in the Tibial Trabecular Bone Is Associated with Per2 Gene by 405 nm Laser Stimulation
Authors: Yoo Yeong-Min , Lee Myung-Han , Park Ji , Seo Dong-Hyun , Lee Sangyeob , Jung Byungjo , Kim Han , Bae Kiho
Published: November 2015

Low-level laser therapy/treatment (LLLT) using a minimally invasive laser needle system (MILNS) might enhance bone formation and suppress bone resorption. In this study, the use of 405 nm LLLT led to decreases in bone volume and bone mineral density (BMD) of tibial trabecular bone in wild-type (WT) and Per2 knockout (KO) mice. Bone volume and bone mineral density of tibial trabecular bone was decreased by 405 nm LLLT in Per2 KO compared to WT mice at two and four weeks. To determine the reduction in tibial bone, mRNA expressions of alkaline phosphatase (ALP) and Per2 were investigated at four weeks after 405 nm laser stimulation using MILNS. ALP gene expression was significantly reduced in the LLLT-stimulated right tibial bone of WT and Per2 KO mice compared to the non-irradiated left tibia (p < 0.001). Per2 mRNA expression in WT mice was significantly reduced in the LLLT-stimulated right tibial bone compared to the non-irradiated left tibia (p < 0.001). To identify the decrease in tibial bone mediated by the Per2 gene, levels of runt-related transcription factor 2 (Runx2) and ALP mRNAs were determined in non-irradiated WT and Per2 KO mice. These results demonstrated significant downregulation of Runx2 and ALP mRNA levels in Per2 KO mice (p < 0.001). Therefore, the reduction in tibial trabecular bone resulting from 405 nm LLLT using MILNS might be associated with Per2 gene expression.
Skills and Vacancy Analysis with Data Mining Techniques
Authors: Wowczko Izabela
Published: November 2015

Through recognizing the importance of a qualified workforce, skills research has become one of the focal points in economics, sociology, and education. Great effort is dedicated to analyzing labor demand and supply, and actions are taken at many levels to match one with the other. In this work we concentrate on skills needs, a dynamic variable dependent on many aspects such as geography, time, or the type of industry. Historically, skills in demand were easy to evaluate since transitions in that area were fairly slow, gradual, and easy to adjust to. In contrast, current changes are occurring rapidly and might take an unexpected turn. Therefore, we introduce a relatively simple yet effective method of monitoring skills needs straight from the source—as expressed by potential employers in their job advertisements. We employ open source tools such as RapidMiner and R as well as easily accessible online vacancy data. We demonstrate selected techniques, namely classification with k-NN and information extraction from a textual dataset, to determine effective ways of discovering knowledge from a given collection of vacancies.
On the Origin of Sequence
Authors: Gulik  Peter
Published: November 2015

Three aspects which make planet Earth special, and which must be taken in consideration with respect to the emergence of peptides, are the mineralogical composition, the Moon which is in the same size class, and the triple environment consisting of ocean, atmosphere, and continent. GlyGly is a remarkable peptide because it stimulates peptide bond formation in the Salt-Induced Peptide Formation reaction. The role glycine and aspartic acid play in the active site of RNA polymerase is remarkable too. GlyGly might have been the original product of coded peptide synthesis because of its importance in stimulating the production of oligopeptides with a high aspartic acid content, which protected small RNA molecules by binding Mg2+ ions. The feedback loop, which is closed by having RNA molecules producing GlyGly, is proposed as the essential element fundamental to life. Having this system running, longer sequences could evolve, gradually solving the problem of error catastrophe. The basic structure of the standard genetic code (8 fourfold degenerate codon boxes and 8 split codon boxes) is an example of the way information concerning the emergence of life is frozen in the biological constitution of organisms: the structure of the code contains historical information.
Effect of Oxide Coating on Performance of Copper-Zinc Oxide-Based Catalyst for Methanol Synthesis via Hydrogenation of Carbon Dioxide
Authors: Umegaki Tetsuo , Kojima Yoshiyuki , Omata Kohji
Published: November 2015

The effect of oxide coating on the activity of a copper-zinc oxide–based catalyst for methanol synthesis via the hydrogenation of carbon dioxide was investigated. A commercial catalyst was coated with various oxides by a sol-gel method. The influence of the types of promoters used in the sol-gel reaction was investigated. Temperature-programmed reduction-thermogravimetric analysis revealed that the reduction peak assigned to the copper species in the oxide-coated catalysts prepared using ammonia shifts to lower temperatures than that of the pristine catalyst; in contrast, the reduction peak shifts to higher temperatures for the catalysts prepared using L(+)-arginine. These observations indicated that the copper species were weakly bonded with the oxide and were easily reduced by using ammonia. The catalysts prepared using ammonia show higher CO2 conversion than the catalysts prepared using L(+)-arginine. Among the catalysts prepared using ammonia, the silica-coated catalyst displayed a high activity at high temperatures, while the zirconia-coated catalyst and titania-coated catalyst had high activity at low temperatures. At high temperature the conversion over the silica-coated catalyst does not significantly change with reaction temperature, while the conversion over the zirconia-coated catalyst and titania-coated catalyst decreases with reaction time. From the results of FTIR, the durability depends on hydrophilicity of the oxides.
Ferrocene Orientation Determined Intramolecular Interactions Using Energy Decomposition Analysis
Authors: Wang Feng , Islam Shawkat , Vasilyev Vladislav
Published: November 2015

Two very different quantum mechanically based energy decomposition analyses (EDA) schemes are employed to study the dominant energy differences between the eclipsed and staggered ferrocene conformers. One is the extended transition state (ETS) based on the Amsterdam Density Functional (ADF) package and the other is natural EDA (NEDA) based in the General Atomic and Molecular Electronic Structure System (GAMESS) package. It reveals that in addition to the model (theory and basis set), the fragmentation channels more significantly affect the interaction energy terms (ΔE) between the conformers. It is discovered that such an interaction energy can be absorbed into the pre-partitioned fragment channels so that to affect the interaction energies in a particular conformer of Fc. To avoid this, the present study employs a complete fragment channel—the fragments of ferrocene are individual neutral atoms. It therefore discovers that the major difference between the ferrocene conformers is due to the quantum mechanical Pauli repulsive energy and orbital attractive energy, leading to the eclipsed ferrocene the energy preferred structure. The NEDA scheme further indicates that the sum of attractive (negative) polarization (POL) and charge transfer (CL) energies prefers the eclipsed ferrocene. The repulsive (positive) deformation (DEF) energy, which is dominated by the cyclopentadienyle (Cp) rings, prefers the staggered ferrocene. Again, the cancellation results in a small energy residue in favour of the eclipsed ferrocene, in agreement with the ETS scheme. Further Natural Bond Orbital (NBO) analysis indicates that all NBO energies, total Lewis (no Fe) and lone pair (LP) deletion all prefer the eclipsed Fc conformer. The most significant energy preferring the eclipsed ferrocene without cancellation is the interactions between the donor lone pairs (LP) of the Fe atom and the acceptor antibond (BD*) NBOs of all C–C and C–H bonds in the ligand, LP(Fe)-BD*(C–C & C–H), which strongly stabilizes the eclipsed (D5h) conformation by −457.6 kcal·mol−1.
Cyanobactins from Cyanobacteria: Current Genetic and Chemical State of Knowledge
Authors: Martins Joana , Vasconcelos Vitor
Published: November 2015

Cyanobacteria are considered to be one of the most promising sources of new, natural products. Apart from non-ribosomal peptides and polyketides, ribosomally synthesized and post-translationally modified peptides (RiPPs) are one of the leading groups of bioactive compounds produced by cyanobacteria. Among these, cyanobactins have sparked attention due to their interesting bioactivities and for their potential to be prospective candidates in the development of drugs. It is assumed that the primary source of cyanobactins is cyanobacteria, although these compounds have also been isolated from marine animals such as ascidians, sponges and mollusks. The aim of this review is to update the current knowledge of cyanobactins, recognized as being produced by cyanobacteria, and to emphasize their genetic clusters and chemical structures as well as their bioactivities, ecological roles and biotechnological potential.
The Structure of Wheel Check Valve Influence on Air Block Phenomenon of Piezoelectric Micro-Pump
Authors: Chen Song , Liu Yong , Shen Yanhu , Wang Jiantao , Yang Zhigang
Published: November 2015

To improve the stability and reliability of the piezoelectric micro-pump, the cause of air block phenomenon is analyzed on the structure of wheel check valve. During the movement of the bubble in the micro-channel, pressure drop occurs, the main factor which influences the bubble going through is opening height of the wheel check valve. Five groups of wheel check valves with different structures are used to test the wheel check valve opening height and air block probability. The experiment results show that reducing the wheel check valve thickness or diameter ratio can both increase the wheel check valve opening height, and decrease the air block probability. Through experiment, the optimum combination of the wheel check valve structure is obtained within the samples: as the thickness is 0.02 mm, the diameter ratio is 1.2, the wheel check valve opening height gets 252 µm, and within the given bubble volume, the air block probability is less than 2%.
Using a Microfluidic Gradient Generator to Characterize BG-11 Medium for the Growth of Cyanobacteria Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942
Authors: Yang Chih-Chun , Wen Rex , Shen Claire , Yao Da-Jeng
Published: November 2015

The photosynthetic cyanobacterium Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942 has recently gained great attention for its ability to directly convert CO2 into renewable chemicals upon genetic engineering. Thus, it is of great interest to increase the growth speed and lower the medium requirement for cultivating this cyanobacterium. The cultivation medium of Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942 has been developed, which consists of many inorganic and metal ingredients with a specific composition, known as the BG-11 medium. In this work, we analyzed the concentration effect of each ingredient and identified the absolutely essential components in BG-11 medium for cyanobacteria growth using the concentration gradient generator chip (CGGC) fabricated by MEMS technology. As shown by our results, removal of the individual component sodium nitrate, potassium phosphate, or magnesium sulfate from the BG-11 medium led to severe growth inhibition of Synechococcus elongatus PCC7942. Contrary to our expectation, increasing concentration of the crucial ingredients showed either insignificant or negative impact on cell growth. Overall, standard growth could be achieved without supplementation of ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid (EDTA) disodium, sodium carbonate, or sodium citrate to the culture medium. Further improvement of the CGGC-based microfluidic system based on this preliminary study may broaden its application range to analyze more complicated correlations.
Efficient SNP Discovery by Combining Microarray and Lab-on-a-Chip Data for Animal Breeding and Selection
Authors: Huang Chao-Wei , Lin Yu-Tsung , Ding Shih-Torng , Lo Ling-Ling , Wang Pei-Hwa , Lin En-Chung , Liu Fang-Wei , Lu Yen-Wen
Published: November 2015

The genetic markers associated with economic traits have been widely explored for animal breeding. Among these markers, single-nucleotide polymorphism (SNPs) are gradually becoming a prevalent and effective evaluation tool. Since SNPs only focus on the genetic sequences of interest, it thereby reduces the evaluation time and cost. Compared to traditional approaches, SNP genotyping techniques incorporate informative genetic background, improve the breeding prediction accuracy and acquiesce breeding quality on the farm. This article therefore reviews the typical procedures of animal breeding using SNPs and the current status of related techniques. The associated SNP information and genotyping techniques, including microarray and Lab-on-a-Chip based platforms, along with their potential are highlighted. Examples in pig and poultry with different SNP loci linked to high economic trait values are given. The recommendations for utilizing SNP genotyping in nimal breeding are summarized.
Extraction of Lithium from Lepidolite Using Mixed Grinding with Sodium Sulfide Followed by Water Leaching
Authors: Lee Jaeryeong
Published: November 2015

Mixed grinding with Na2S followed by water leaching was performed to extract Li from lepidolite. The leachability of Li increases dramatically in the ground mixture, regardless of the mixing ratio over the range of 1:1 to 3:1, while only 4.53% of Li was extracted in lepidolite ground without Na2S. The leachability increased with an increase of the grinding time, and ultimately, 93% of the Li was leached by water from the ground mixture with a weight ratio of 3:1 (Na2S:Lepidolite). In the process of the mixed grinding, the Li-contained lepidolite was destructured crystallographically, and it might have changed to different compounds. This process enables us to extract Li from lepidolite via a water leaching treatment.
Nonprenylated Xanthones from Gentiana lutea, Frasera caroliniensis, and Centaurium erythraea as Novel Inhibitors of Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation
Authors: Waltenberger Birgit , Liu Rongxia , Atanasov Atanas , Schwaiger Stefan , Heiss Elke , Dirsch Verena , Stuppner Hermann
Published: November 2015

Aberrant proliferation of vascular smooth muscle cells (VSMC) plays a major role in restenosis, the pathological renarrowing of the blood vessel lumen after surgical treatment of stenosis. Since available anti-proliferative pharmaceuticals produce unfavorable side effects, there is high demand for the identification of novel VSMC proliferation inhibitors. A natural product screening approach using a resazurin conversion assay enabled the identification of gentisin (1) from Gentiana lutea as a novel inhibitor of VSMC proliferation with an IC50 value of 7.84 µM. Aiming to identify further anti-proliferative compounds, 13 additional nonprenylated xanthones, isolated from different plant species, were also tested. While some compounds showed no or moderate activity at 30 µM, 1-hydroxy-2,3,4,5-tetramethoxyxanthone (4), swerchirin (6), and methylswertianin (7) showed IC50 values between 10.2 and 12.5 µM. The anti-proliferative effect of 1, 4, 6, and 7 was confirmed by the quantification of DNA synthesis (BrdU incorporation) in VSMC. Cell death quantification (determined by LDH release in the culture medium) revealed that the compounds are not cytotoxic in the investigated concentration range. In conclusion, nonprenylated xanthones are identified as novel, non-toxic VSMC proliferation inhibitors, which might contribute to the development of new therapeutic applications to combat restenosis.
Hydrogel-Based Drug Delivery Systems for Poorly Water-Soluble Drugs
Authors: McKenzie Matthew , Betts David , Suh Amy , Bui Kathryn , Kim London , Cho Hyunah
Published: November 2015

Hydrogels are three-dimensional materials that can withstand a great amount of water incorporation while maintaining integrity. This allows hydrogels to be very unique biomedical materials, especially for drug delivery. Much effort has been made to incorporate hydrophilic molecules in hydrogels in the field of drug delivery, while loading of hydrophobic drugs has not been vastly studied. However, in recent years, research has also been conducted on incorporating hydrophobic molecules within hydrogel matrices for achieving a steady release of drugs to treat various ailments. Here, we summarize the types of hydrogels used as drug delivery vehicles, various methods to incorporate hydrophobic molecules in hydrogel matrices, and the potential therapeutic applications of hydrogels in cancer.
Essential Oil Composition, Antioxidant, Cytotoxic and Antiviral Activities of Teucrium pseudochamaepitys Growing Spontaneously in Tunisia
Authors: Hammami Saoussen , Jmii Habib , Mokni Ridha , Khmiri Abdelbaki , Faidi Khaled , Dhaouadi Hatem , Aouni Mohamed , Aouni Mahjoub , Joshi Rajesh
Published: November 2015

The chemical composition, antioxidant, cytotoxic and antiviral activities of the essential oil obtained by hydrodistillation from the aerial parts of Teucrium pseudochamaepitys (Lamiaceae) collected from Zaghouan province of Tunisia are reported. The essential oil was analyzed by gas chromatography equipped with a flame ionization detector (GC-FID) and gas chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Thirty-one compounds were identified representing 88.6% of the total essential oil. Hexadecanoic acid was found to be the most abundant component (26.1%) followed by caryophyllene oxide (6.3%), myristicin (4.9%) and α-cubebene (3.9%). The antioxidant capacity of the oil was measured on the basis of the scavenging activity to the stable 2,2-diphenyl-1-picrylhydrazyl (DPPH). The IC50 value of the oil was evaluated as 0.77 mg·mL−1. In addition, the essential oil was found to possess moderate cytotoxic effects on the HEp-2 cell line (50% cytotoxic concentration (CC50) = 653.6 µg·mL−1). The potential antiviral effect was tested against Coxsackievirus B (CV-B), a significant human and mouse pathogen that causes pediatric central nervous system disease, commonly with acute syndromes. The reduction of viral infectivity by the essential oil was measured using a cytopathic (CPE) reduction assay.
The Subtle Balance between Lipolysis and Lipogenesis: A Critical Point in Metabolic Homeostasis
Authors: Saponaro Chiara , Gaggini Melania , Carli Fabrizia , Gastaldelli Amalia
Published: November 2015

Excessive accumulation of lipids can lead to lipotoxicity, cell dysfunction and alteration in metabolic pathways, both in adipose tissue and peripheral organs, like liver, heart, pancreas and muscle. This is now a recognized risk factor for the development of metabolic disorders, such as obesity, diabetes, fatty liver disease (NAFLD), cardiovascular diseases (CVD) and hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). The causes for lipotoxicity are not only a high fat diet but also excessive lipolysis, adipogenesis and adipose tissue insulin resistance. The aims of this review are to investigate the subtle balances that underlie lipolytic, lipogenic and oxidative pathways, to evaluate critical points and the complexities of these processes and to better understand which are the metabolic derangements resulting from their imbalance, such as type 2 diabetes and non alcoholic fatty liver disease.
Immunomodulation and Disease Tolerance to Staphylococcus aureus
Authors: Li Zhigang , Peres Adam , Damian Andreea , Madrenas Joaquín
Published: November 2015

The Gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus is one of the most frequent pathogens that causes severe morbidity and mortality throughout the world. S. aureus can infect skin and soft tissues or become invasive leading to diseases such as pneumonia, endocarditis, sepsis or toxic shock syndrome. In contrast, S. aureus is also a common commensal microbe and is often part of the human nasal microbiome without causing any apparent disease. In this review, we explore the immunomodulation and disease tolerance mechanisms that promote commensalism to S. aureus.
Antimicrobial Peptides from Plants
Authors: Tam James , Wang Shujing , Wong Ka , Tan Wei
Published: November 2015

Plant antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) have evolved differently from AMPs from other life forms. They are generally rich in cysteine residues which form multiple disulfides. In turn, the disulfides cross-braced plant AMPs as cystine-rich peptides to confer them with extraordinary high chemical, thermal and proteolytic stability. The cystine-rich or commonly known as cysteine-rich peptides (CRPs) of plant AMPs are classified into families based on their sequence similarity, cysteine motifs that determine their distinctive disulfide bond patterns and tertiary structure fold. Cystine-rich plant AMP families include thionins, defensins, hevein-like peptides, knottin-type peptides (linear and cyclic), lipid transfer proteins, α-hairpinin and snakins family. In addition, there are AMPs which are rich in other amino acids. The ability of plant AMPs to organize into specific families with conserved structural folds that enable sequence variation of non-Cys residues encased in the same scaffold within a particular family to play multiple functions. Furthermore, the ability of plant AMPs to tolerate hypervariable sequences using a conserved scaffold provides diversity to recognize different targets by varying the sequence of the non-cysteine residues. These properties bode well for developing plant AMPs as potential therapeutics and for protection of crops through transgenic methods. This review provides an overview of the major families of plant AMPs, including their structures, functions, and putative mechanisms.
Expectations do not Influence the Response to Phosphosdiesterase Type 5 Inhibitor Therapy for Erectile Dysfunction
Authors: Louizos Connie , Knight Peter
Published: November 2015

It has been reported that patients frequently discontinue treatment for erectile dysfunction (ED) with phosphodiesterase type 5 inhibitors (PDE5Is) despite apparently good therapeutic results. Because expectations have been shown to affect patients’ appraisals of many drugs, the purpose of this study was to determine whether expectations affected the therapeutic response to PDE5Is in men with apparent psychogenic ED. An unvalidated questionnaire was used to collect data on expectations in 80 men commencing PDE5I therapy, and after three and six months of treatment. At the same time, subjects completed the International Index of Erectile Function (IIEF), the Sexual Excitation/Inhibition Scale (SIS/SES) and Beck’s Depression Inventory (BDI). No evidence of an effect on expectations on changes in IIEF or BDI scores could be identified. Although changes in IIEF, and BDI scores from recruitment to three months were indicative of improved sexual function and less depression, scores for most items on the expectations scale decreased, suggesting that expectations were not being met. The items for which scores decreased were the expectation to be prescribed a drug, that the drug would restore the sexual function to normal, would work within 30 minutes of administration, improve patients confidence to engage in sexual activity, and that the medication was the best treatment for ED across the three data collection points. The findings of this study indicate that improvements in erectile function did not translate into changes in medication expectations that suggested user satisfaction.
Classification of C3 and C4 Vegetation Types Using MODIS and ETM+ Blended High Spatio-Temporal Resolution Data
Authors: Liu Xiaolong , Bo Yanchen , Zhang Jian , He Yaqian
Published: November 2015

The distribution of C3 and C4 vegetation plays an important role in the global carbon cycle and climate change. Knowledge of the distribution of C3 and C4 vegetation at a high spatial resolution over local or regional scales helps us to understand their ecological functions and climate dependencies. In this study, we classified C3 and C4 vegetation at a high resolution for spatially heterogeneous landscapes. First, we generated a high spatial and temporal land surface reflectance dataset by blending MODIS (Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer) and ETM+ (Enhanced Thematic Mapper Plus) data. The blended data exhibited a high correlation (R2 = 0.88) with the satellite derived ETM+ data. The time-series NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) data were then generated using the blended high spatio-temporal resolution data to capture the phenological differences between the C3 and C4 vegetation. The time-series NDVI revealed that the C3 vegetation turns green earlier in spring than the C4 vegetation, and senesces later in autumn than the C4 vegetation. C4 vegetation has a higher NDVI value than the C3 vegetation during summer time. Based on the distinguished characteristics, the time-series NDVI was used to extract the C3 and C4 classification features. Five features were selected from the 18 classification features according to the ground investigation data, and subsequently used for the C3 and C4 classification. The overall accuracy of the C3 and C4 vegetation classification was 85.75% with a kappa of 0.725 in our study area.
Continuous Change Detection and Classification Using Hidden Markov Model: A Case Study for Monitoring Urban Encroachment onto Farmland in Beijing
Authors: Yuan Yuan , Meng Yu , Lin Lei , Sahli Hichem , Yue Anzhi , Chen Jingbo , Zhao Zhongming , Kong Yunlong , He Dongxu
Published: November 2015

In this paper, we propose a novel method to continuously monitor land cover change using satellite image time series, which can extract comprehensive change information including change time, location, and “from-to” information. This method is based on a hidden Markov model (HMM) trained for each land cover class. Assuming a pixel’s initial class has been obtained, likelihoods of the corresponding model are calculated on incoming time series extracted with a temporal sliding window. By observing the likelihood change over the windows, land cover change can be precisely detected from the dramatic drop of likelihood. The established HMMs are then used for identifying the land cover class after the change. As a case study, the proposed method is applied to monitoring urban encroachment onto farmland in Beijing using 10-year MODIS time series from 2001 to 2010. The performance is evaluated on a validation set for different model structures and thresholds. Compared with other change detection methods, the proposed method shows superior change detection accuracy. In addition, it is also more computationally efficient.
Hybrid Molecular and Spin Dynamics Simulations for Ensembles of Magnetic Nanoparticles for Magnetoresistive Systems
Authors: Teich Lisa , Schröder Christian
Published: November 2015

The development of magnetoresistive sensors based on magnetic nanoparticles which are immersed in conductive gel matrices requires detailed information about the corresponding magnetoresistive properties in order to obtain optimal sensor sensitivities. Here, crucial parameters are the particle concentration, the viscosity of the gel matrix and the particle structure. Experimentally, it is not possible to obtain detailed information about the magnetic microstructure, i.e., orientations of the magnetic moments of the particles that define the magnetoresistive properties, however, by using numerical simulations one can study the magnetic microstructure theoretically, although this requires performing classical spin dynamics and molecular dynamics simulations simultaneously. Here, we present such an approach which allows us to calculate the orientation and the trajectory of every single magnetic nanoparticle. This enables us to study not only the static magnetic microstructure, but also the dynamics of the structuring process in the gel matrix itself. With our hybrid approach, arbitrary sensor configurations can be investigated and their magnetoresistive properties can be optimized.