bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Phase 2, Randomized, Double-Blind Study of the Efficacy and Safety of Two Dose Regimens of Eravacycline versus Ertapenem for Adult Community-Acquired Complicated Intra-Abdominal Infections
Authors: Solomkin Joseph S. , Ramesh Mayakonda Krishnamurthy , Cesnauskas Gintaras , Novikovs Nikolajs , Stefanova Penka , Sutcliffe Joyce A. , Walpole Susannah M. , Horn Patrick T.
Published: December 2013

Eravacycline is a novel fluorocycline, highly active against Gram-positive and Gram-negative pathogens
in vitro
, including those with tetracycline and multidrug resistance. This phase 2, randomized, double-blind study was conducted to evaluate the efficacy and safety of two dose regimens of eravacycline compared with ertapenem in adult hospitalized patients with complicated intra-abdominal infections (cIAIs). Patients with confirmed cIAI requiring surgical or percutaneous intervention and antibacterial therapy were randomized (2:2:1) to receive eravacycline at 1.5 mg/kg of body weight every 24 h (q24h), eravacycline at 1.0 mg/kg every 12 h (q12h), or ertapenem at 1 g (q24h) for a minimum of 4 days and a maximum of 14 days. The primary efficacy endpoint was the clinical response in microbiologically evaluable (ME) patients at the test-of-cure (TOC) visit 10 to 14 days after the last dose of study drug therapy. Overall, 53 patients received eravacycline at 1.5 mg/kg q24h, 56 received eravacycline at 1.0 mg/kg q12h, and 30 received ertapenem. For the ME population, the clinical success rate at the TOC visit was 92.9% (39/42) in the group receiving eravacycline at 1.5 mg/kg q24h, 100% (41/41) in the group receiving eravacycline at 1.0 mg/kg q12h, and 92.3% (24/26) in the ertapenem group. The incidences of treatment-emergent adverse events were 35.8%, 28.6%, and 26.7%, respectively. Incidence rates of nausea and vomiting were low in both eravacycline groups. Both dose regimens of eravacycline were as efficacious as the comparator, ertapenem, in patients with cIAI and were well tolerated. These results support the continued development of eravacycline for the treatment of serious infections, including those caused by drug-resistant Gram-negative pathogens. (This study has been registered at ClinicalTrials.gov under registration no. NCT01265784.)
Antibiotic Streptolydigin Requires Noncatalytic Mg
2+
for Binding to RNA Polymerase
Authors: Zorov Savva , Yuzenkova Yulia , Nikiforov Vadim , Severinov Konstantin , Zenkin Nikolay
Published: December 2013

Multisubunit RNA polymerase, an enzyme that accomplishes transcription in all living organisms, is a potent target for antibiotics. The antibiotic streptolydigin inhibits RNA polymerase by sequestering the active center in a catalytically inactive conformation. Here, we show that binding of streptolydigin to RNA polymerase strictly depends on a noncatalytic magnesium ion which is likely chelated by the aspartate of the bridge helix of the active center. Substitutions of this aspartate may explain different sensitivities of bacterial RNA polymerases to streptolydigin. These results provide the first evidence for the role of noncatalytic magnesium ions in the functioning of RNA polymerase and suggest new routes for the modification of existing and the design of new inhibitors of transcription.
Essential Role of Invasin for Colonization and Persistence of Yersinia enterocolitica in Its Natural Reservoir Host, the Pig
Authors: Schaake Julia , Drees Anna , Grüning Petra , Uliczka Frank , Pisano Fabio , Thiermann Tanja , von Altrock Alexandra , Seehusen Frauke , Valentin-Weigand Peter , Dersch Petra
Published: December 2013

In this study, an oral minipig infection model was established to investigate the pathogenicity of
Yersinia enterocolitica
bioserotype 4/O:3. O:3 strains are highly prevalent in pigs, which are usually symptomless carriers, and they represent the most common cause of human yersiniosis. To assess the pathogenic potential of the O:3 serotype, we compared the colonization properties of
Y. enterocolitica
O:3 with O:8, a highly mouse-virulent
Y. enterocolitica
serotype, in minipigs and mice. We found that O:3 is a significantly better colonizer of swine than is O:8. Coinfection studies with O:3 mutant strains demonstrated that small variations within the O:3 genome leading to higher amounts of the primary adhesion factor invasin (InvA) improved colonization and/or survival of this serotype in swine but had only a minor effect on the colonization of mice. We further demonstrated that a deletion of the
invA
gene abolished long-term colonization in the pigs. Our results indicate a primary role for invasin in naturally occurring
Y. enterocolitica
O:3 infections in pigs and reveal a higher adaptation of O:3 than O:8 strains to their natural pig reservoir host.
Rosetting Plasmodium falciparum-Infected Erythrocytes Bind to Human Brain Microvascular Endothelial Cells
In Vitro
, Demonstrating a Dual Adhesion Phenotype Mediated by Distinct P. falciparum Erythrocyte Membrane Protein 1 Domains
Authors: Adams Yvonne , Kuhnrae Pongsak , Higgins Matthew K. , Ghumra Ashfaq , Rowe J. Alexandra
Published: December 2013

Adhesion interactions between
Plasmodium falciparum
-infected erythrocytes (IE) and human cells underlie the pathology of severe malaria. IE cytoadhere to microvascular endothelium or form rosettes with uninfected erythrocytes to survive
in vivo
by sequestering IE in the microvasculature and avoiding splenic clearance mechanisms. Both rosetting and cytoadherence are mediated by the parasite-derived IE surface protein family
Plasmodium falciparum
erythrocyte membrane protein 1 (PfEMP1). Rosetting and cytoadherence have been widely studied as separate entities; however, the ability of rosetting
P. falciparum
strains to cytoadhere has received little attention. Here, we show that IE of the IT/R29 strain expressing a rosette-mediating PfEMP1 variant (IT4var09) cytoadhere
in vitro
to a human brain microvascular endothelial cell line (HBEC-5i). Cytoadherence was inhibited by heparin and by treatment of HBEC-5i with heparinase III, suggesting that the endothelial receptors for IE binding are heparan sulfate proteoglycans. Antibodies to the N-terminal regions of the IT4var09 PfEMP1 variant (NTS-DBL1α and DBL2γ domains) specifically inhibited and reversed cytoadherence down to low concentrations (<10 μg/ml of total IgG). Surface plasmon resonance experiments showed that the NTS-DBLα and DBL2γ domains bind strongly to heparin, with half-maximal binding at a concentration of ∼0.5 μM in both cases. Therefore, cytoadherence of IT/R29 IE is distinct from rosetting, which is primarily mediated by NTS-DBL1α interactions with complement receptor 1. These data show that IT4var09-expressing parasites are capable of dual interactions with both endothelial cells and uninfected erythrocytes via distinct receptor-ligand interactions.
Reduced Live Organism Recovery and Lack of Hydrosalpinx in Mice Infected with Plasmid-Free Chlamydia muridarum
Authors: Lei Lei , Chen Jianlin , Hou Shuping , Ding Yiling , Yang Zhangsheng , Zeng Hao , Baseman Joel , Zhong Guangming
Published: December 2013

Plasmid-free
Chlamydia trachomatis
and
Chlamydia muridarum
fail to induce severe pathology. To evaluate whether the attenuated pathogenicity is due to insufficient infection or inability of the plasmidless chlamydial organisms to trigger pathological responses, we compared plasmid-competent and plasmid-free
C. muridarum
infections in 5 different strains of mice. All 5 strains developed hydrosalpinx following intravaginal inoculation with plasmid-competent, but not inoculation with plasmid-free,
C. muridarum
. The lack of hydrosalpinx induction by plasmid-free
C. muridarum
correlated with significantly reduced live organism recovery from the lower genital tract and shortened infection in the upper genital tract. The plasmid-free
C. muridarum
organisms failed to induce hydrosalpinx even when the organisms were directly inoculated into the oviduct via an intrabursal injection, which was accompanied by significantly reduced survival of the plasmidless organisms in the genital tracts. Furthermore, plasmid-competent
C. muridarum
organisms after UV inactivation were no longer able to induce hydrosalpinx even when directly delivered into the oviduct at a high dose. Together, these observations suggest that decreased survival of and shortened infection with plasmid-free
C. muridarum
may contribute significantly to its attenuated pathogenicity. We conclude that adequate live chlamydial infection in the oviduct may be necessary to induce hydrosalpinx.
Randomised Clinical Trial of Five Ear Acupuncture Points for the Treatment of Overweight People
Authors: Yeo Sujung , Kim Kang Sik , Lim Sabina
Published: December 2013

Objective

To evaluate the efficacy of the five ear acupuncture points (Shen-men, Spleen, Stomach, Hunger, Endocrine), generally used in Korean clinics for treating obesity, and compare them with the Hunger acupuncture point.

Methods

A randomised controlled clinical trial was conducted in 91 Koreans (16 male and 75 female, body mass index (BMI)≥23), who had not received any other weight control treatment within the past 6 months. Subjects were divided randomly into treatment I, treatment II or sham control groups and received unilateral auricular acupuncture with indwelling needles replaced weekly for 8 weeks. Treatment I group received acupuncture at the five ear acupuncture points, treatment II group at the Hunger acupuncture point only and the sham control group received acupuncture at the five ear acupuncture points used in treatment I, but the needles were removed immediately after insertion. BMI, waist circumference, weight, body fat mass (BFM), percentage body fat and blood pressure were measured at baseline and at 4 and 8 weeks after treatment.

Results

For the 58 participants who provided data at 8 weeks, significant differences in BMI, weight and BFM were found between the treatment and control groups. Treatment groups I and II showed 6.1% and 5.7% reduction in BMI, respectively (p<0.004). There were no significant differences between the two treatment groups.

Conclusions

This finding suggests that the five ear acupuncture points, generally used in Korean clinics, and the Hunger point alone treatment are both effective for treating overweight people.
Isolated duodenal varices as the initial presentation of hepatocellular carcinoma
Authors: Okoli Amara , Raymond Pascale , Ammannagari Nischala , Merrell Nancy
Published: December 2013

Duodenal varices are an uncommon, life-threatening cause of acute gastrointestinal (GI) bleeding commonly caused by portal hypertension. Though generally regarded as a complication of advanced cirrhosis and portal hypertension, often overlooked is that in about 2.7% of cases, it can be the first presenting symptom of advanced hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC). We report a case of an isolated, duodenal variceal bleeding as the first clinical manifestation of HCC, complicated by portal venous thrombosis. Diagnosis of HCC was established by a markedly elevated α-fetoprotein, hepatitis B surface and core antibody positivity and consistent radiological findings. Although not the first choice, variceal bleeding was successfully arrested with endoclips. The patient thereafter declined further evaluation and unsurprisingly died within a few weeks from a massive GI bleed. An initial bleed from a duodenal varix often confers a poor prognosis. Patients with HCC who present with variceal bleeding reportedly have a median survival of 71 days.
Poor owner knowledge of feline reproduction contributes to the high proportion of accidental litters born to UK pet cats
Authors: Welsh C. P. , Gruffydd‐Jones T. J. , Roberts M. A. , Murray J. K.
Published: December 2013

‘Accidental’ litters contribute to population growth and the number of unwanted animals entering animal welfare organisations. Assessing the problem's extent and determining risk factors enables identification of education targets. Data were obtained from 715 cat‐owning households in a cross‐sectional telephone survey. Demographic and lifestyle factors were assessed for their association with accidental litters and with owner knowledge of cat reproduction. A total of 128 litters were reported from 552 female cats, and the proportion of accidental litters reported by owners was 80 per cent. Multivariable analysis identified that respondents were more likely to report an accidental litter of kittens if they believed a female cat should have a litter prior to being neutered, if they had more than one cat and if they rented rather than owned their home. Misconceptions relating to cat reproduction were common. The opinion that the youngest age a cat could get pregnant was five months of age (or older) was held by 83.5 per cent of cat‐owning respondents, with over a quarter (26.4 per cent; 174/659) believing a queen is unable to conceive until at least a year of age. Almost half the respondents (49.0 per cent; 334/682) believed a female cat should have a litter before being neutered or were not sure; 38.8 per cent (264/681) thought that un‐neutered, related cats would not mate or were not sure. This study suggests that improving cat‐owner knowledge of the reproductive capacity of cats is likely to have a significant impact on the numbers of accidental litters born.
A new and sensitive method for the determination of trace arsenic using differential pulse polarography
Authors: Somer Güler , Kalaycı Şükrü
Published: December 2013

A new and simple differential pulse polarographic method has been developed for the trace determination of arsenic. When selenite was added into solutions of some ions such as copper, lead, cadmium, zinc, and chromium, their differential pulse polarographic peak decreased. A new reduction peak appeared at a more positive potential than the ion present and it was always higher than the corresponding reduction peak of the ion. Thus, we made use of this interference for the trace determination of As(III). By the addition of selenite onto As(III), a new As−Se intermetallic compound peak was formed at about −0.35 V (pH at about 1.0–2.0). The trace arsenic concentration could be determined simply from this peak by the addition of standard arsenic into a polarographic cell. In the presence of large amounts of selenite, 2 × 10−7 mol/L As(III) could be determined from this peak precisely. With the newly established method, the limit of detection was 1 × 10−8 mol/L (S/N = 3). Among the most common cations and anions, only Cd−Se and Pb−Se intermetallic compound peaks had an overlap with the As−Se peak. This interference could be eliminated simply by the addition of EDTA. This method was applied successfully for the determination of arsenic in a digested beer sample.
NOTE ABOUT THE IMPLEMENTATION OF FINITE SYMMETRIES IN THE LEPTON SECTOR
Authors: JORA RENATA , SHAHID M. NAEEM
Published: December 2013

Assuming that the leptonic mixing matrix is given in first approximation by the tribimaximal form or a generalization of this, we deduce some consequences with regard to the finite symmetries that may be applied in the minimal lepton sector of the electroweak theory.
POLITICAL SPACES, DIMENSIONALITY DECLINE AND PARTY COMPETITION
Authors: GARCÍA-DÍAZ CÉSAR , ZAMBRANA-CRUZ GILMAR , VAN WITTELOOSTUIJN ARJEN
Published: December 2013

We built a computational model of political party competition in order to gain insight into the effect of the decrease in the number of relevant political issues (dimensions), and the change of their relative importance, on the number of surviving political parties, their strategy performance, and the degree of political party fragmentation. Particularly, we find that when there is a dimensionality reduction (i.e., a change from a two-dimensional issue space to a one-dimensional one, or, a substantial decrement in one of the issue's relative importance with respect to the other), the number of political parties declines, as does the overall degree of party fragmentation in the system. Regarding party strategies, we observe that, after the dimensionality reduction, (i) the inert parties tend to improve their performance in terms of party numbers (i.e., more inert parties survive, relatively speaking); (ii) the population of large-size seekers declines, (iii) the few large-size seeker survivors, in general, cushion their increased mortality hazard with increased size (i.e., increased number of supporters); and, finally, (iv) the mortality hazard increases with distance to the mean voter spot.
Liquid crystalline alkylthia-substituted novel phthalocyanines: synthesis and characterization
Authors: Erdoğan Buket S. , Atilla Devrim , Gürek Ayşe G. , Ahsen Vefa
Published: December 2013

Methylene-bridged tetra- and octa-alkylthia substituted metal free- and Ni ( II ) phthalocyanines were synthesized from the corresponding phthalonitrile derivatives in the presence of the anhydrous metal salt ( NiCl 2) or a strong organic base. The new compounds were fully characterized by elemental analyses, UV-vis, IR, NMR and mass spectra. The mesogenic properties of these materials were studied by differential scanning calorimetry, optical microscopy and X-ray diffraction investigations. X-ray diffraction patterns of the mesophase confirmed that the tetra- and the octa-substituted compounds formed hexagonal columnar mesophases (Colh). The mesogenic properties of these compounds were compared to that of their octa alkythia substituted phthalocyanine derivatives in the literature.
Effect of TeO2 addition on the dielectric properties of CaCu3Ti4O12 ceramics derived from the oxalate precursor route
Authors: Thomas P. , Varma K. B. R.
Published: December 2013

CaCu 3 Ti 4 O 12 (CCTO) ceramics which has perovskite structure gained considerable attention due to its giant permittivity. But it has high tan δ (0.1 at 1 kHz) at room temperature, which needs to be minimized to the level of practical applications. Hence, TeO 2 which is a good glass former has been deliberately added to CCTO nanoceramic (derived from the oxalate precursor route) to explore the possibility of reducing the dielectric loss while maintaining the high permittivity. The structural, morphological and dielectric properties of the pure CCTO and TeO 2 added ceramics were studied using X-ray diffraction, Scanning Electron Microscope along with Energy Dispersive X-ray Analysis (EDX), spectroscopy and Impedance analyzer. For the 2.0 wt.% TeO 2 added ceramics, there is a remarkable difference in the microstructural features as compared to that of pure CCTO ceramics. This sample exhibited permittivity values as high as 7387 at 10 KHz and low dielectric loss value of 0.037 at 10 kHz, which can be exploited for the high frequency capacitors application.
Rupes Recta and the geological history of the Mare Nubium region of the Moon: insights from forward mechanical modelling of the ‘Straight Wall’
Authors: Nahm Amanda L. , Schultz Richard A.
Published: December 2013

Rupes Recta, also known as the ‘Straight Wall’, is an individual normal fault located in eastern Mare Nubium on the nearside of the Moon. Age and cross-cutting relationships suggest that the maximum age of Rupes Recta is 3.2 Ga, which may make it the youngest large-scale normal fault on the Moon. Based on detailed structural mapping and throw distribution analysis, fault nucleation is interpreted to have occurred near the fault centre, and the fault has propagated bi-directionally, growing northwards and southwards by segment linkage. Forward mechanical modelling of fault topography gives a best-fitting fault dip of approximately 85°, and suggests that Rupes Recta accommodated approximately 400 m of maximum displacement and extends to a depth of around 42 km. The cumulative driving stresses required to form Rupes Recta are similar in magnitude to those that formed normal faults in Tempe Terra, Mars. The spatial and temporal association with Rima Birt, a sinuous rille to the west of Rupes Recta, suggests a genetic relationship between both structures and implies regional extension at the time of formation.
On the validity of flow-level tcp network models for grid and cloud simulations
Authors: Velho Pedro , Schnorr Lucas Mello , Casanova Henri , Legrand Arnaud
Published: December 2013

Researchers in the area of grid/cloud computing perform many of their experiments using simulations that must capture network behavior. In this context,
packet-level
simulations, which are widely used to study network protocols, are too costly given the typical large scales of simulated systems and applications. An alternative is to implement network simulations with less costly
flow-level
models. Several flow-level models have been proposed and implemented in grid/cloud simulators. Surprisingly, published validations of these models, if any, consist of verifications for only a few simple cases. Consequently, even when they have been used to obtain published results, the ability of these simulators to produce scientifically meaningful results is in doubt. This work evaluates these state-of-the-art flow-level network models of TCP communication via comparison to packet-level simulation. While it is straightforward to show cases in which previously proposed models lead to good results, instead we follow the
critical method
, which places model refutation at the center of the scientific activity, and we systematically seek cases that lead to invalid results. Careful analysis of these cases reveals fundamental flaws and also suggests improvements. One contribution of this work is that these improvements lead to a new model that, while far from being perfect, improves upon all previously proposed models in the context of simulation of grids or clouds. A more important contribution, perhaps, is provided by the pitfalls and unexpected behaviors encountered in this work, leading to a number of enlightening lessons. In particular, this work shows that model validation cannot be achieved solely by exhibiting (possibly many) “good cases.” Confidence in the quality of a model can only be strengthened through an invalidation approach that attempts to prove the model wrong.
Rare-event simulation for stochastic recurrence equations with heavy-tailed innovations
Authors: Blanchet Jose , Hult Henrik , Leder Kevin
Published: December 2013

In this article, rare-event simulation for stochastic recurrence equations of the form

X

n
+1

=
A

n
+1

X

n

+
B

n
+1

,
X
0
=0

is studied, where {
A
n
;
n
≥ 1} and {
B
n
;
n
≥ 1} are independent sequences consisting of independent and identically distributed real-valued random variables. It is assumed that the tail of the distribution of
B
1
is regularly varying, whereas the distribution of
A
1
has a suitably light tail. The problem of efficient estimation, via simulation, of quantities such as
P
{
X

n

>b} and
P
{sup

k
≤
n

X
k
> b} for large
b
and
n
is studied. Importance sampling strategies are investigated that provide unbiased estimators with bounded relative error as
b
and
n
tend to infinity.
Capturing human motion one step at a time
Authors: Adelsberger Rolf
Published: December 2013

The design, construction, and deployment of a pressure-enhanced IMU system that fits in the bottom of your shoe.
Security bugs in large software ecosystems
Authors: Mitropoulos Dimitris
Published: December 2013

The
XRDS
blog highlights a range of topics from security and privacy to neuroscience. Selected blog posts, edited for print, will be featured in every issue. Please visit xrds.acm.org/blog to read each post in its entirety. Keeping with our theme of professional development, included is a guest post on how to craft a publishable research paper.
The many stages of writing a paper, and how to close the deal
Authors: Venkatasubramanian Suresh
Published: December 2013

Originally posted on The Geomblog
Toward smartphone assisted personal rehabilitation training
Authors: Spina Gabriele , Amft Oliver
Published: December 2013

When utilizing internal sensors, modern smartphones are inexpensive and powerful wearable devices for sensor data acquisition, processing, and feedback in personal daily health applications.
When assistance becomes dependence
Authors: Vallina-Rodriguez Narseo , Crowcroft Jon , Finamore Alessandro , Grunenberger Yan , Papagiannaki Konstantina
Published: December 2013

Location based services are a vital component of the mobile ecosystem. Among all the location technologies used behind the scenes, A-GPS (Assisted-GPS) is considered to be the most accurate. Unlike standalone GPS systems, A-GPS uses network support to speed nup position fix. However, it can be a dangerous strategy due to varying cell conditions which may impair performance, sometimes potentially neglecting the expected benefits of the original design. We present the characterization of the accuracy, location acquisition speed, energy cost, and network dependency of the state of the art A-GPS receivers shipped in popular mobile devices. Our analysis is based on active measurements, an exhaustive on-device analysis, and cellular traffic traces processing. The results reveals a number of inefficiencies as a result of the strong dependence on the cellular network to obtain assisting data, implementation, and integration problems.
The wireless data drain of users, apps, & platforms
Authors: Sani Ardalan Amiri , Tan Zhiyong , Washington Peter , Chen Mira , Agarwal Sharad , Zhong Lin , Zhang Ming
Published: December 2013

Cellular data consumption is an important issue for users and network operators. However, little is understood about data consumption differences between similar apps, smartphone platforms, and different classes of users. We examine data consumption behavior in the lab, comparing different apps of the same category, comparing the same top apps across different platforms, and comparing network APIs that apps use across different platforms. We also collect data from 387 Android users in India, where users pay for cellular data consumed, with little prevalence of unlimited data plans. Our findings can inform users on how their choice of platform and apps has a drastic impact on their data bill. Our findings can also inform operators on how to use incentives to induce desired data consumption.
Illuminations and the revelations
Authors: Zhu Tong , Cao Zhichao , Gong Wei , He Yuan , Liu Yunhao
Published: December 2013

Wireless sensor networks (WSNs) are developed in an accelerated pace during the past years. Motivated by the need of closely monitoring the forest and urban environments and accurately measuring carbon sequestration and emission, we launched two long-term large-scale WSNs: "GreenOrbs" in 2009 and "CitySee" in 2011, respectively. This paper presents our recent advances and experience on how to implement the two WSNs with stable and high performance. Some research directions are also discussed based on our observations and measurements.
LiveLabs
Authors: Misra Archan , Balan Rajesh Krishna
Published: December 2013

We believe that, for successful adoption of novel mobile technologies and applications, it is important to be able to test them under real usage patterns, and with real users. To implement this vision, we present our initial effort in building LiveLabs, a large-scale mobile testbed for in-situ experimentation. LiveLabs is unique in two aspects. First, LiveLabs operates on a scale much larger than most research testbeds it is being deployed in four different public spaces in Singapore (a university campus, a shopping mall, an airport and a leisure resort), and is expected to have a pool of over 30,000 opt-in participants. Second, LiveLabs not only instruments smartphones and the infrastructure to gather deep individual and collective context, but also provides a unique experimentation platform that automates many aspects of behavioral experimentation, such as subject selection and context-triggered delivery of interventions. We briefly describe some of the research challenges associated with building such a large-scale deep-context collection testbed, as well as the current status of LiveLabs. We then share our perspectives on the challenges of setting up and operating such testbeds, with the expectation that our experiences will prove useful to other researchers looking to build similar testbeds elsewhere.
Hierarchical spectrum market and the design of contracts for mobile providers
Authors: de Carvalho Pablo J.C. , Gupta Aparna , Kar Koushik
Published: December 2013

In this paper, we propose a hierarchical market structure and contracting mechanisms that could be used by wireless/mobile service providers to trade spectrum and spectrum-derived services with each other. This market advances beyond the current contracting mechanisms between service providers that, due to availability of only long-term contract choices, do not lead to efficient utilization of spectrum resources and service innovation for the customers. We describe the spectrum market structure in terms of the role of the providers and the different spectrum contract types that could be traded in the marketplace. Finally, the role and function of present day mobile virtual networks operators (MVNO) and the mobile network operators (MNO) are discussed from the context of the proposed market structure.
Bruxism Associated with Anoxic Encephalopathy: Successful Treatment with Baclofen
Authors: Janati A. Bruce , ALGhasab Naif Saad , ALGhassab Fahad Saad
Published: December 2013

Introduction. Bruxism is a movement disorder characterized by grinding and clenching of the teeth. Etiology of bruxism can be divided into three groups: psychosocial factors, peripheral factors, and pathophysiological factors.Methods. The clinical investigation was conducted at King Khaled Hospital in Hail, Saudi Arabia, in 2012.Results. A 16-year-old Saudi female was brought to the hospital in a comatose state and with generalized convulsive seizures secondary to acute anoxic encephalopathy. In the third week of hospitalization, while still in a state of akinetic mutism, she developed incessant bruxism which responded favorably to a GABA receptor agonist (baclofen).Conclusion. Our data support the hypothesis that bruxism emanates from imbalance or dysregulation of the neurotransmitter system. Larger scale studies will be needed to confirm this hypothesis.
Mining Linguistic Associations for Emergent Flood Prediction Adjustment
Authors: Burda Michal , Rusnok Pavel , Štěpnička Martin
Published: December 2013

Floods belong to the most hazardous natural disasters and their disaster management heavily relies on precise forecasts. These forecasts are provided by physical models based on differential equations. However, these models do depend on unreliable inputs such as measurements or parameter estimations which causes undesirable inaccuracies. Thus, an appropriate data-mining analysis of the physical model and its precision based on features that determine distinct situations seems to be helpful in adjusting the physical model. An application of fuzzy GUHA method in flood peak prediction is presented. Measured water flow rate data from a system for flood predictions were used in order to mine fuzzy association rules expressed in natural language. The provided data was firstly extended by a generation of artificial variables (features). The resulting variables were later on translated into fuzzy GUHA tables with help of Evaluative Linguistic Expressions in order to mine associations. The found associations were interpreted as fuzzy IF-THEN rules and used jointly with the Perception-based Logical Deduction inference method to predict expected time shift of flow rate peaks forecasted by the given physical model. Results obtained from this adjusted model were statistically evaluated and the improvement in the forecasting accuracy was confirmed.
Safety Evaluation of Turmeric Polysaccharide Extract: Assessment of Mutagenicity and Acute Oral Toxicity
Authors: Velusami Chandrasekaran Chinampudur , Boddapati Srinivasa Rao , Hongasandra Srinivasa Srikanth , Richard Edwin Jothie , Joseph Joshua Allan , Balasubramanian Murali , Agarwal Amit
Published: December 2013

Curcuma longaLinn. (Zingiberaceae) commonly known as turmeric has long been used for centuries as a spice and household remedy. The present study was carried out to assess the possible mutagenic potential and acute oral toxicity of polysaccharide extract of turmeric rhizome (NR-INF-02) using standard tests. The standard battery ofin vitrogenotoxicity tests, bacterial reverse mutation test (BRMT), chromosome aberration (CA), and micronucleus (MN) tests were employed to assess the possible mutagenic activity of NR-INF-02 (Turmacin). The results showed no mutagenic effect with NR-INF-02 up to a dose of 5000 µg/mL in BRMT. The results on CA and MN tests revealed the non clastogenic activity of NR-INF-02 in a dose range of 250.36 to 2500 µg/mL with and without metabolic activation (S9). In acute oral toxicity study, NR-INF-02 was found to be safe up to 5 g/kg body weight in Wistar rats. Overall, results indicated that polysaccharide extract ofC. longawas found to be genotoxically safe and also exhibited maximum tolerable dose of more than 5 g/kg rat body weight.
Analgesic, Anti-Inflammatory, and Antiplatelet Profile of Hydrazones Containing Synthetic Molecules
Authors: Asif Mohammad , Husain Asif
Published: December 2013

Hydrazones are present in many of the bioactive compounds with wide interest because of their diverse pharmacological applications. Hydrazones possess wide variety of biological activities such as anticonvulsant, antidepressant, analgesic, anti-inflammatory, antiplatelet, antimicrobial, anticancer, antihypertensive, anthelmintic, antidiabetic, antiparasitic, and other anticipated activities. This created an interest for researchers towards synthesized variety of hydrazone derivatives for different biological activities. Therefore many researchers have synthesized hydrazone derivatives as target structures for their biological activities. This is paper focuses on the analgesic, anti-inflammatory, and antiplatelet activities of hydrazones.
A Simplification for Exp-Function Method When the Balanced Nonlinear Term Is a Certain Product
Authors: Liu Hong-Zhun
Published: December 2013

The Exp-function method plays an important role in searching for analytic solutions of many nonlinear differential equations. In this paper, we prove that the balancing procedure in the method is unnecessary when the balanced nonlinear term is a product of the dependent variable under consideration and its derivatives. And in this case, the ansatz of the method can be simplified to be with less parameters so as to be easy to calculate.
Diffusion Tensor Imaging in NAWM and NADGM in MS and CIS: Association with Candidate Biomarkers in Sera
Authors: Natarajan Renuka , Hagman Sanna , Wu Xingchen , Hakulinen Ullamari , Raunio Minna , Helminen Mika , Rossi Maija , Dastidar Prasun , Elovaara Irina
Published: December 2013

The aim of this study was to evaluate diffusion tensor imaging (DTI) indices in the corpus callosum and pyramidal tract in normal-appearing white matter (NAWM) and the caudate nucleus and thalamus in deep grey matter (NADGM) in all MS subtypes and clinically isolated syndrome (CIS). Furthermore, it was determined whether these metrics are associated with clinical measures and the serum levels of candidate immune biomarkers. Apparent diffusion coefficients (ADC) values were significantly higher than in controls in all six studied NAWM regions in SPMS, 4/6 regions in RRMS and PPMS and 2/6 regions in CIS. In contrast, decreased fractional anisotropy (FA) values in comparison to controls were detected in 2/6 NAWM regions in SPMS and 1/6 in RRMS and PPMS. In RRMS, the level of neurological disability correlated with thalamic FA values (r=0.479,P=0.004). In chronic progressive subtypes and CIS, ADC values of NAWM and NADGM were associated with the levels of MIF, sFas, and sTNF-α. Our data indicate that DTI may be useful in detecting pathological changes in NAWM and NADGM in MS patients and that these changes are related to neurological disability.
The Corrosion Performance of Galvanized Steel in Closed Rusty Seawater
Authors: Liu Shuan , Sun Huyuan , Zhang Ning , Sun Lijuan
Published: December 2013

The corrosion performance of galvanized steel in closed rusty seawater (CRS) was investigated using weight loss, Tafel polarization curve, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy. Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and energy dispersive spectroscopy (EDS) were carried out for morphological and chemical characterization of the rust layer absorbed on the zinc coating. Effects of temperature and hydrostatic pressure on corrosion resistance of galvanized steel were studied. Results indicated that rust layer could induce pitting corrosion on the zinc coating under the Cl−erosion; high temperature accelerated the corrosion rate of zinc coating and inhibited the absorption of rust layer; the polarization resistance (Rp) of galvanized steel increased with the increase of hydrostatic pressure in CRS.
A Unique Case of Relapsing Polychondritis Presenting with Acute Pericarditis
Authors: Higgins John V. , Thanarajasingam Uma , Osborn Thomas G.
Published: December 2013

Relapsing polychondritis (RP) is an inflammatory disease of the cartilaginous tissue primarily affecting the cartilaginous structures of the ear, nose, joints, and the respiratory system. Cardiovascular complications of RP are associated with high morbidity and mortality and occur most commonly as valvular disease. Pericarditis is a less common complication, occurring in 4% of patients with RP and has not previously been described at presentation. We describe a case of relapsing polychondritis with acute pericarditis at presentation.
Quasilinearization for the Boundary Value Problem of Second-Order Singular Differential System
Authors: Wang Peiguang , Kong Tiantian
Published: December 2013

We study the boundary value problems of second-order singular differential equations. At first, we reduce the BVPs to initial value problems of first-order singular integrodifferential equations and then we employ the quasilinearization method in studying the IVPs and obtain two monotone iterative sequences, which converge uniformly and quadratically to the unique solution of the IVPs. Finally, we get the similar result for the given BVPs.
Acupoint Stimulation for Fibromyalgia: A Systematic Review of Randomized Controlled Trials
Authors: Cao Huijuan , Li Xun , Han Mei , Liu Jianping
Published: December 2013

Background. Acupoint stimulation is popular for treatment of fibromyalgia though there is lack of comprehensive evaluation of current clinical evidence for its effect and safety.Objective. To systematically review the beneficial effects and safety of acupoint stimulation for fibromyalgia.Methods. We searched six electronic databases for randomized trials on acupoint stimulation for treatment of fibromyalgia. Two authors extracted data and assessed the trial quality independently. RevMan 5.2 software was used for data analyses with effect estimate presented as (standard) mean difference and a 95% confidence interval. We defined minimum, medium, and large SMD effect sizes as 0.3, 0.5, and 0.75.Results. 16 RCTs with 1081 participants were involved in this review. Only two trials were evaluated as low risk of bias. Meta-analysis showed that acupuncture alone or combined with cupping therapy was superior to conventional medications on reducing pain scores and/or the number of tender points. However, acupuncture showed no better than sham acupuncture on pain reduction. There was no serious adverse event reported to be related to acupoint stimulation.Conclusions. Acupoint stimulation appears to be effective in treating fibromyalgia compared with medications. However, further large, rigorously designed trials are warranted due to insufficient methodological rigor in the included trials.
Extraction of Blood Vessels in Retinal Images Using Four Different Techniques
Authors: Mudassar Asloob Ahmad , Butt Saira
Published: December 2013

A variety of blood vessel extraction (BVE) techniques exist in the literature, but they do not always lead to acceptable solutions especially in the presence of anomalies where the reported work is limited. Four techniques are presented for BVE: (1) BVE using Image Line Cross-Sections (ILCS), (2) BVE using Edge Enhancement and Edge Detection (EEED), (3) BVE using Modified Matched Filtering (MMF), and (4) BVE using Continuation Algorithm (CA). These four techniques have been designed especially for abnormal retinal images containing low vessel contrasts, drusen, exudates, and other artifacts. The four techniques were applied to 30 abnormal retinal images, and the success rate was found to be (95 to 99%) for CA, (88–91%) for EEED, (80–85%) for MMF, and (74–78%) for ILCS. Application of these four techniques to 105 normal retinal images gave improved results: (99-100%) for CA, (96–98%) for EEED, (94-95%) for MMF, and (88–93%) for ILCS. Investigations revealed that the four techniques in the order of increasing performance could be arranged as ILCS, MMF, EEED, and CA. Here we demonstrate these four techniques for abnormal retinal images only. ILCS, EEED, and CA are novel additions whereas MMF is an improved and modified version of an existing matched filtering technique. CA is a promising technique.
Electrochemical and Oxidation Behavior of Yttria Stabilized Zirconia Coating on Zircaloy-4 Synthesized via Sol-Gel Process
Authors: Rezaee S. , Rashed Gh. R. , Golozar M. A.
Published: December 2013

Sol-gel 8 wt.% Yttria Stabilized Zirconia (YSZ) thin films were prepared on zirconium (zircaloy-4 alloy) by dip-coating technique followed by heat treating at various temperatures (200°C, 400°C, and 700°C) in order to improve both electrochemical corrosion and high temperature oxidation properties of the substrate. Differential thermal analysis and thermogravimetric analysis (DTA-TG) revealed the coating formation process. X-ray diffraction (XRD) was used to determine the crystalline phase structure transformation. The morphological characterization of the coatings was carried out using scanning electron microscopy (SEM). The electrochemical behavior of the coated and uncoated samples was investigated by means of open circuit potential, Tafel, and electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) in a 3.5 wt.% NaCl solution. The homogeneity and surface appearance of coatings produced was affected by the heat treatment temperature. According to the corrosion parameters, the YSZ coatings showed a considerable increase in the corrosion resistance, especially at higher heat treatment temperatures. The coating with the best quality, from the surface and corrosion point of view, was subjected to oxidation test in air at 800°C. The coated sample presented a 25% reduction in oxidation rate in comparison with bare substrate.
Fabrication and Evaluation of Porous Beta‐Tricalcium Phosphate/Hydroxyapatite (60/40) Composite as a Bone Graft Extender Using Rat Calvarial Bone Defect Model
Authors: Lee Jae Hyup , Ryu Mi Young , Baek Hae-Ri , Lee Kyung Mee , Seo Jun-Hyuk , Lee Hyun-Kyung
Published: December 2013

Beta‐tricalcium phosphate (β‐TCP) and hydroxyapatite (HA) are widely used as bone graft extenders due to their osteoconductivity and high bioactivity. This study aims to evaluate the possibility of using porous substrate with composite ceramics (β‐TCP: HA = 60% : 40%, 60TCP40HA) as a bone graft extender and comparing it with Bio‐Oss. Interconnectivity and macroporosity of β‐TCP porous substrate were 99.9% and 83%, respectively, and the macro‐porosity of packed granule after crushing was 69%. Calvarial defect model with 8 mm diameter was generated with male Sprague‐Dawley rats and 60TCP40HA was implanted. Bio‐Oss was implanted for a control group and micro‐CT and histology were performed at 4 and 8 weeks after implantation. The 60TCP40HA group showed better new bone formation than the Bio‐Oss group and the bone formation at central area of bone defect was increased at 8 weeks in micro‐CT and histology. The percent bone volume and trabecular number of the 60TCP40HA group were significantly higher than those of Bio‐Oss group. This study confirms the usefulness of the porous 60TCP40HA composite as a bone graft extender by showing increased new bone formation in the calvarial defect model and improved bone formation both quantitatively and qualitatively when compared to Bio‐Oss.
Unsteady Hydromagnetic Rotating Flow through an Oscillating Porous Plate Embedded in a Porous Medium
Authors: Khan I. , Khan A. , Farhad A. , Qasim M. , Sharidan S.
Published: December 2013

This paper investigates unsteady hydromagnetic flow of a viscous fluid in a rotating frame. The fluid is bounded by an oscillating porous plate embedded in a porous medium. The Laplace transform and Fourier sine transform methods are employed to find the exact solutions. They satisfy all imposed initial and boundary conditions and as special cases are reduced to some published results from the literature. The graphical results are plotted for different values of pertinent parameters and some interesting conclusions are made.
A Dual-Wideband Double-Layer Magnetoelectric Dipole Antenna with a Modified Horned Reflector for 2G/3G/LTE Applications
Authors: Feng Botao , Hong Weijun , Li Shufang , An Wenxing , Yin Sixing
Published: December 2013

A novel dual-wideband double-layer magnetoelectric dipole unidirectional antenna with a modified horned reflector for 2G/3G/LTE applications is proposed. Firstly, a double-layer electric dipole structure is presented to provide a dualwideband, whose folded lower layer mainly serves the lower frequency band while the inclined upper layer works for the upper frequency band. In addition, to reduce the size of the antenna and improve impedance matching, a new feeding structure designed with inverted U-shaped and tapered line is introduced. Finally, a modified horn-shaped reflector, instead of a ground plane, is employed to achieve stable and high gains. The antenna prototype can achieve a bandwidth of 24.4% (790 MHz–1010 MHz) with a stable gain of 7.2 ± 0.6 dBi for the lower band, and a bandwidth of 67.3% (1.38 GHz–2.78 GHz) with a gain of 7.5 ± 0.8 dBi for the upper band covering all the frequency bands for 2G/3G/LTE systems. To the best of our knowledge, it is the first double-layer magnetoelectric dipole antenna proposed. Compared with the existing ME dipole antennas, the proposed antenna, which is completely made of copper, can be easily fabricated at low cost and thus is practicable for 2G/3G/LTE applications.
On Compact and Noncompact Structures for the Improved Boussinesq Water Equations
Authors: Yin Jun , Chen Hongyi
Published: December 2013

The nonlinear variants of the generalized Boussinesq water equations with positive and negative exponents are studied in this paper. The analytic expressions of the compactons, solitons, solitary patterns, and periodic solutions for the equations are obtained by using a technique based on the reduction of order of differential equations. It is shown that the nonlinear variants, or nonlinear variants together with the wave numbers, directly lead to the qualitative change in the physical structures of the solutions.
Relativistic Fermion on a Ring: Energy Spectrum and Persistent Current
Authors: Ghosh Sumit
Published: December 2013

The energy and persistent current spectra for a relativistic fermion on a ring are studied in detail. The nonlinear nature of persistent current in relativistic regime and its dependence on particle mass and ring radius are analysed thoroughly. For a particular ring radius, we find the existence of a critical mass at which the single ring current does not depend on the flux. In lower mass regime, the total current spectrum shows plateaus at different height which appears periodically. The susceptibility as well shows periodic nature with amplitude depending on particle mass. As we move from higher mass to lower mass regime, we find that the system turns into paramagnetic from diamagnetic. We also show that same behaviour is observed if one vary the radius of the ring for a fixed particle mass. Hence the larger ring will be diamagnetic while the smaller one will be paramagnetic. Finally we propose an experiment to verify our findings.