bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Phytoremediation of Chromium and some chemical parameters from Tannery effluent by using water Hyacinth (Eichhornia craassipes)
Authors: Chakrabarty Trina , Afrin Rezuana , Mia Md Younus , Hossen Md Zakir
Published: December 2017

The present study was conducted to explore the efficiency of water hyacinth (Eichhornia crassipes) to cleanup of tannery effluent in terms of pH, TDS, EC, BOD and most importantly Cr. The study period was from November, 2013 to April, 2014. After 7 days of treatment by water hyacinth, the removal rates were: 68.15% for BOD, 59.82% for TDS and 46.56% for EC, where the corresponding rates after 15 days were: 81.73% for BOD, 67.15% for TDS and 61.93% for EC. After treatment with water hyacinth, pH of effluent reached to nearly neutral level from alkaline condition. In this study, major focus was on Cr removal and the treatment of tannery effluent using water hyacinth resulted in 32.42% reduction of Cr after 7 days and 54.72% after 15 days. The present results revealed that water hyacinth had the strong capability of absorbing Cr. On the other hand, the reduction rates after 15 days for sedimentation were: 54.23% for BOD, 30.21% for TDS, 22.28% for EC and 14.37% for Cr. After comparing the two treatment processes, it was found that the reduction rate by phytoremediation process was much higher than that of sedimentation process. This result reflected the high efficiency of water hyacinth to reduce pollutant especially Cr from tannery effluent as eco-friendly sustainable technology.Res. Agric., Livest. Fish.4(3): 151-156, December 2017
Role of salicylic acid as foliar spray on hydride rice (BRRI Hybrid dhan3) cultivation in Bangladesh
Authors: Issak Mohammad , Khatun Most Moslama , Sultana Amena
Published: December 2017

The experiment was conducted to study the effect of salicylic acid (SA) as foliar spray on yield and yield contributing characters of BRRI Hybrid dhan3.The experiment was laid out in a randomized complete block design (RCBD) with three replications and six treatment combinations as, T1: 0 μM SA, T2: 200 μM SA, T3: 400 μM SA, T4: 600 μM SA, T5: 800 μM SA and T6: 1000 μM SA. The results revealed that biomass production, dry matter production and yield and yield contributing characters were significantly increased due to the foliar application of SA. At the maximum tillering (MT) stage, the highest biomass production (15.0 t/ha) and dry matter production was observed in T3 treatment. Treatments T4, T5 and T6 showed significant variation on the effective tillers/hill. The maximum effective tillers/hill were found in the treatment T6. The percentages of spikelet sterility were decreased with increasing the level of SA and the percentage of filled grains/panicle were increased with increasing level of SA. The insect infestation was reduced with increasing level of SA to up to 1000 μM. The maximum grain yield (9.21 t/ha) and straw yield (9.22 t/ha) was found in the treatment T6 which was identical to T5. On the other hand, in all cases the lowest results were found in the control treatment. The result showed that grain yield of rice increased with increasing level of SA to up to 1000 μM (T6 treatment). Our results suggest that foliar spray of SA might be applied to increase the yield of hybrid rice in Bangladesh.Res. Agric., Livest. Fish.4(3): 157-164, December 2017
Evaluation of different premedicants in canine anaesthesia
Authors: Billah AKM Muktadir , Sultana Sharmin , Hossain Md Akhtar , Hashim Mirza Abul , Begum Tahmina , Rahman Bayzer , Rashid Maksudur
Published: December 2017

Fifteen experimental trials were made in fifteen dogs in three different groups to study the degree of sedation produced by different premedicants, to evaluate and to compare their effects on various clinical parameters including different reflexes in dogs. These animals were premedicated with xylazine (1.1mg/kg), atropine (0.05mg/kg)-xylazine (1.1mg/kg) and diazepam (0.2mg/kg)-xylazine (1.1mg/kg) to observe their effect on different clinical and anaesthetic parameters. Diazepam-xylazine combination produced deep sedation while mild sedation was recorded with atropine-xylazine premedication. Respiration rate, heart rate and rectal temperature significantly decreased (P<0.05) in dogs of all three groups after fifteen minutes of premedication. Diazepam-xylazine produced marked reduction (P<0.05) on clinical parameters while atropine-xylazine produced mild to moderate reduction (P<0.05) on clinical parameters in dogs. All experimental dogs in different groups were anaesthetized with ketamine hydrochloride after fifteen minutes of premedication. The respiration rate, heart rate and rectal temperature reduced significantly (P<0.05) in xylazine-ketamine, atropinexylazine- ketamine and diazepam-xylazine-ketamine combination at 5, 10 and 15 min after induction when compared with pre-induction control values. The longest duration of anaesthesia (61.6 minutes) was obtained with diazepam-xylazine-ketamine combination while the shortest anaesthetic period (28.4 minutes) was observed in xylazine-ketamine combination. Diazepam-xylazine-ketamine combination produced longest recovery period (56.4 minutes) while the shortest recovery period (46.2 minutes) was observed with xylazineketamine combination. Atropine-xylazine-ketamine combination appears to be a safe combination for anaesthesia in dogs.Res. Agric. Livest. Fish.4(3): 209-214, December 2017
Ovarian Cancer Screening: Lessons about Effectiveness
Authors: Pavlik Edward
Published: December 2017

Ovarian cancer screening has been described in scientific reports [1–4], as well as in reviews and summaries[...]
Leakage Evaluation by Virtual Entropy Generation (VEG) Method
Authors: Zhang Zhichao , Drapaca Corina , Zhang Zhifeng , Zhang Shuaifang , Sun Shimei , Liu Hui
Published: December 2017

Leakage through microscale or nanoscale cracks is usually hard to observe, difficult to control, and causes significant economic loss. In the present research, the leakage in a pipe was evaluated by the virtual entropy generation (VEG) method. In virtual entropy generation method, the “measured entropy generation” is forced to follow the “experimental second law of thermodynamics”. Taking the leakage as the source virtual entropy generation, a new pipe leakage evaluation criterion was analytically derived, which indicates that the mass leakage rate should be smaller than the pressure drop rate inside a pipe. A numerical study based on computational fluid dynamics showed the existence of an unrealistic virtual entropy generation at a high mass leakage rate. Finally, the new criterion was used in the evaluation of leakage available in the literature. These results could be useful for leakage control or industry criteria design in the future.
A Liquid Desiccant Enhanced Two Stage Evaporative Cooling System—Development and Performance Evaluation of a Test Rig
Authors: Rafique M. , Rehman Shafiqur , Alhems Luai , Ali Shakir Muhammad
Published: December 2017

Desiccant technology is found to be a good alternative to conventional cooling systems. It can provide better thermal comfort under hot and humid climatic conditions. The major component of a liquid desiccant cooling system is the desiccant dehumidifier which controls the latent cooling load. In this paper, a newly developed liquid desiccant enhanced evaporative cooling system has been tested experimentally. The effects of ambient conditions and other parameters on the performance of the system are investigated. The system performance curves which help to determine the air outlet conditions and coefficient of performance (COP) of the system are drawn for a wide range of ambient air humidity ratios (0.010–0.026 kg/kg), ambient air temperature (25–40 °C), process air flow rate (1.5–8.0 kg/m2·s), regeneration air flow rate (1.5–4.5 kg/m2·s), and regeneration temperature (55–85 °C). The results showed that better supply air conditions are achieved for hot and humid climatic conditions with effectiveness of the system largely dependent on process and regeneration air flow rates, regeneration temperature, and humidity ratio of process air. The dehumidification performance is increased by 62% for a change of ambient air humidity ratio from 0.01 to 0.025 kg/kg. The thermal coefficient of performance improved by 50% for the above variation in humidity ratio. This shows that such thermally activated systems are feasible options for hot and humid climatic conditions as indicated by better performance under these conditions.
Estimation for Expected Energy Not Served of Power Systems Using the Screening Methodology of Cascading Outages in South Korea
Authors: Goo Bokyung , Hur Jin
Published: December 2017

The uncertainty of complex power systems increases the possibility of large blackouts due to the expectations of physical events, such as equipment failures, protection failures, control actions failure, operator error, and cyber-attacks. Cascading outage is a sequence of dependent failures of individual components that successively weaken the power system. A procedure to identify and evaluate the initiating events and perform sequential cascading analysis is needed. In this paper, we propose a new screening methodology based on sequential contingency simulation of cascading outages, including probabilistic analysis and visualization model. Performance of a detail cascading analysis using practical power systems is suggested and discussed. The proposed screening methodology will play a key role in identifying the uncontrolled successive loss of system elements.
The Integrated System of Hydrological Forecasting in the Ussuri River Basin Based on the ECOMAG Model
Authors: Bugaets Andrei , Gartsman Boris , Gelfan Alexander , Motovilov Yury , Sokolov Oleg , Gonchukov Leonid , Kalugin Andrei , Moreido Vsevolod , Suchilina Zoya , Fingert Evgeniya
Published: December 2017

This paper considers the main principles and technologies used in developing the operational modeling system for the Ussuri River Basin of 24,400 km2 based on the automated system of hydrological monitoring and data management (ASHM), the physical-mathematical model with distributed parameters ECOMAG (ECOlogical Model for Applied Geophysics) and the numerical mesoscale atmosphere model WRF (Weather Research and Forecasting Model). The system is designed as a freely combined tool that allows flexible changing of the forecasting and informational components. The technology of inter-model and cross-platform interoperability is based on the use of the Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) web services and the Open Geospatial Consortium Open Modelling Interface (OGC OpenMI) standard. The system demonstrates good performance in short-term forecast of rainfall floods and reproduces complex spatio-temporal structure for the runoff formation during extreme rainfall.
Measuring Outcomes of Psychological Well-Being within Paediatric Health Settings
Authors: Flannery Halina , Glew Sarah , Brewster Aylana , Christie Deborah
Published: December 2017

There are many widely used, validated patient reported outcome measures for physical and mental health. However, capturing outcomes from young people living with chronic health conditions presents a challenge, needing to take the complex interplay of physical and mental health into consideration. The authors found that regularly used outcome measures for child and adolescent emotional well-being in paediatric settings largely fall into two groups: paediatric quality of life and child and adolescent mental health measures. The applicability and potential for use of these measures within this context is discussed. Whilst offering some utility, neither approach leaves sufficient space for young people’s individual experiences of illness and treatment. The scope of using alternative qualitative approaches that capture the rich stories and experiences of young people living with chronic illnesses is considered.
Estimating the Excess Mortality Risk during Two Red Alert Periods in Beijing, China
Authors: Zeng Weilin , Lang Lingling , Li Yue , Guo Lingchuan , Lin Hualiang , Zhang Yonghui , Liu Tao , Xiao Jianpeng , Li Xing , Xu Yanjun , Xu Xiaojun , Arnold Lauren , Nelson Erik , Qian Zhengmin , Ma Wenjun
Published: December 2017

The magnitude of excess mortality risk due to exposures to heavy air pollution during the red alert periods in Beijing remains unknown. A health impact assessment tool combined with the PM2.5-mortality relationship was applied to estimate the number of excess deaths due to high air pollution exposure during two red alert periods in Beijing, China in December 2015. Daily PM2.5 concentration increased from 80.2 µg/m3 to 159.8 µg/m3 during the first red alert period and from 61.9 µg/m3 to 226 µg/m3 during the second period in 2015 when compared to daily PM2.5 concentrations during the same calendar date of 2013 and 2014. It was estimated that 26 to 42 excessive deaths (including 14 to 34 cardiovascular deaths, and four to 16 respiratory deaths) occurred during the first period, and 40 to 65 excessive deaths (22 to 53 cardiovascular deaths, and six to 13 respiratory deaths) occurred during the second period. The results show that heavy smog may have substantially increased the mortality risk in Beijing, suggesting more stringent air pollution controlling measures should be implemented to protect the public health.
Transcriptomic Profiling and Physiological Analysis of Haloxylon ammodendron in Response to Osmotic Stress
Authors: Gao Hui-Juan , Lü Xin-Pei , Zhang Ling , Qiao Yan , Zhao Qi , Wang Yong-Ping , Li Meng-Fei , Zhang Jin-Lin
Published: December 2017

Haloxylon ammodendron, a perennial xero-halophyte, is an essential species for investigating the effects of drought on desert tree. To gain a comprehensive knowledge on the responses of H. ammodendron to drought stress, we specially performed the molecular and physiological analysis of H. ammodendron in response to −0.75 MPa osmotic stress for six and 24 h in lab condition via RNA-seq and digital gene expression (DGE). In total, 87,109 unigenes with a mean length of 680 bp and 13,486 potential simple sequence repeats (SSRs) were generated, and 3353 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in shoots and 4564 in roots were identified under stress. These DEGs were mainly related to ion transporters, signal transduction, ROS-scavenging, photosynthesis, cell wall organization, membrane stabilization and hormones. Moreover, the physiological changes of inorganic ions and organic solute content, peroxidase (POD) activity and osmotic potential were in accordance with dynamic transcript profiles of the relevant genes. In this study, a detailed investigation of the pathways and candidate genes identified promote the research on the molecular mechanisms of abiotic stress tolerance in the xero-halophytic species. Our data provides valuable genetic resources for future improvement of forage and crop species for better adaptation to abiotic stresses.
MicroRNA-27b Depletion Enhances Endotrophic and Intravascular Lipid Accumulation and Induces Adipocyte Hyperplasia in Zebrafish
Authors: Hsu Chia-Chun , Lai Chi-Yu , Lin Chiu-Ya , Yeh Kun-Yun , Her Guor
Published: December 2017

miR-27b has emerged as a regulatory hub in cholesterol and lipid metabolism, and as a potential therapeutic target for treating atherosclerosis and obesity. However, the impact of miR-27b on lipid levels in vivo remains to be determined. Zebrafish lipids are normally stored as triacylglycerols (TGs) and their main storage sites are visceral, intramuscular, and subcutaneous lipid depots, and not blood vessels and liver. In this study, we applied microRNA-sponge (miR-SP) technology and generated zebrafish expressing transgenic miR-27b-SP (C27bSPs), which disrupted endogenous miR-27b activity and induced intravascular lipid accumulation (hyperlipidemia) and the early onset of nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH). Oil Red O staining predominantly increased in the blood vessels and livers of larvae and juvenile C27bSPs, indicating that miR-27b depletion functionally promoted lipid accumulation. C27bSPs also showed an increased weight gain with larger fat pads, resulting from adipocyte hyperplasia. Molecular analysis revealed that miR-27b depletion increased the expression of genes that are associated with lipogenesis and the endoplasmic reticulum (ER). Moreover, miR-27b-SP increased peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor γ (PPAR-γ), CCAAT enhancer binding protein-α (C/EBP-α, and sterol regulatory element binding transcription factor 1c (SREBP-1c) expression and contributed to lipogenesis and adipogenesis. Conclusion: Our results suggest that miR-27b-SP acts as a lipid enhancer by directly increasing the expression of several lipogenic/adipogenic transcriptional factors, resulting in increased lipogenesis and adipogenesis. In this study, miR-27b expression improved lipid metabolism in C27bSPs, which suggests that miR-27b is an important lipogenic factor in regulating early onset of hyperlipidemia and adipogenesis in zebrafish.
Evolution and Virulence of Influenza A Virus Protein PB1-F2
Authors: Kamal Ram , Alymova Irina , York Ian
Published: December 2017

PB1-F2 is an accessory protein of most human, avian, swine, equine, and canine influenza A viruses (IAVs). Although it is dispensable for virus replication and growth, it plays significant roles in pathogenesis by interfering with the host innate immune response, inducing death in immune and epithelial cells, altering inflammatory responses, and promoting secondary bacterial pneumonia. The effects of PB1-F2 differ between virus strains and host species. This can at least partially be explained by the presence of multiple PB1-F2 sequence variants, including premature stop codons that lead to the expression of truncated PB1-F2 proteins of different lengths and specific virulence-associated residues that enhance susceptibility to bacterial superinfection. Although there has been a tendency for human seasonal IAV to gradually reduce the number of virulence-associated residues, zoonotic IAVs contain a reservoir of PB1-F2 proteins with full length, virulence-associated sequences. Here, we review the molecular mechanisms by which PB1-F2 may affect influenza virulence, and factors associated with the evolution and selection of this protein.
Entity Attribute Value Style Modeling Approach for Archetype Based Data
Authors: Batra Shivani , Sachdeva Shelly , Bhalla Subhash
Published: December 2017

Entity Attribute Value (EAV) storage model is extensively used to manage healthcare data in existing systems, however it lacks search efficiency. This study examines an entity attribute value style modeling approach for standardized Electronic Health Records (EHRs) database. It sustains qualities of EAV (i.e., handling sparseness and frequent schema evolution) and provides better performance for queries in comparison to EAV. It is termed as the Two Dimensional Entity Attribute Value (2D EAV) model. Support for ad-hoc queries is provided through a user interface for better user-interaction. 2D EAV focuses on how to handle template-centric queries as well as other health query scenarios. 2D EAV is analyzed (in terms of minimum non-null density) to make a judgment about the adoption of 2D EAV over n-ary storage model of RDBMS. The primary aim of current research is to handle sparseness, frequent schema evolution, and efficient query support altogether for standardized EHRs. 2D EAV will benefit data administrators to handle standardized heterogeneous data that demands high search efficiency. It will also benefit both skilled and semi-skilled database users (such as, doctors, nurses, and patients) by providing a global semantic interoperable mechanism of data retrieval.
Pentacoordinated Chloro-Iron(III) Complexes with Unsymmetrically Substituted N2O2 Quadridentate Schiff-Base Ligands: Syntheses, Structures, Magnetic and Redox Properties
Authors: Cisterna Jonathan , Artigas Vania , Fuentealba Mauricio , Hamon Paul , Manzur Carolina , Hamon Jean-René , Carrillo David
Published: December 2017

Since their development in the 1930s, Schiff-base complexes have played an important role in the field of coordination chemistry. Here, we report the synthetic, spectral, structural, magnetic and electrochemical studies of two new pentacoordinated neutral chloro-iron(III) complexes (3,5) supported by dianionic [N2O2]2− tetradentate Schiff-base ligands unsymmetrically substituted by either a pair of acceptor (F and NO2) or donor (ferrocenyl and OCH3) groups. The electron-withdrawing Schiff-base proligand 2 and the complexes 3 and 5 were prepared in good yields (79–86%). Complex 3 was readily obtained upon reaction of 2 with anhydrous iron chloride under basic conditions, while the bimetallic derivative 5 was synthesized by condensation of the free amino group of the ferrocenyl-containing O,N,N-tridentate half-unit 4 with 5-methoxysalicylaldehyde in the presence of FeCl3. The three new compounds were characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR, UV–Vis, mass spectrometry and in the case of 2 by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy. The crystal structures of 3 and 5 revealed that in the two five-coordinate monomers, the iron atom showed distorted square-pyramidal geometry, with the N and O atoms of the Schiff-base ligand occupying the basal sites and the chlorine atom at the apex of the pyramid. Magnetic measurements showed a high-spin configuration (S = 5/2) for the Fe(III) ion in 3 and 5. Reduction associated with the Fe(III)/Fe(II) redox couple occurred at −0.464 and −0.764 V vs. Ag/Ag+, and oxidation taking place at the Schiff-base ligand was observed at 1.300 and 0.942 V vs. Ag/Ag+ for 3 and 5, respectively. A high-electronic delocalization of the Schiff-base ligand substituted by fluoro and nitro groups stabilizes the Fe(II) oxidation state and shifts the redox potential anodically.
Impacts of Additive Manufacturing on Supply Chain Flow: A Simulation Approach in Healthcare Industry
Authors: Özceylan Eren , Çetinkaya Cihan , Demirel Neslihan , Sabırlıoğlu Ozan
Published: December 2017

Additive manufacturing (AM) can lead to innovative solutions in traditional supply chain networks (TSCN), which contains very complicated and -hard to manage- chains. With 3D printing technology, a design file can transform directly to a product, skipping many traditional manufacturing steps. Thus, this new application can affect all logistics and supply chain activities positively. The research problem of this paper is to search and assess supply chain changes associated with 3D printing technology adoption to identify the potential impact of AM. To do so, two different supply chain networks, which are TSCN and 3D printing supply chain network (3DPSCN) for healthcare industry are considered. A simulation model is developed to evaluate the potential impact of 3D printing improvements on the configuration of orthopedic insole supply chains. The main contribution of this paper is proposing a simulation model for a healthcare company to compare its 3DPSCN structure with its TSCN version. The results show the concrete benefits such as lead-time and number of customers that can be achieved by 3DPSCN compared to TSCN.
Structural and Electrochemical Characterization of Zn1−xFexO—Effect of Aliovalent Doping on the Li+ Storage Mechanism
Authors: Giuli Gabriele , Eisenmann Tobias , Bresser Dominic , Trapananti Angela , Asenbauer Jakob , Mueller Franziska , Passerini Stefano
Published: December 2017

In order to further improve the energy and power density of state-of-the-art lithium-ion batteries (LIBs), new cell chemistries and, therefore, new active materials with alternative storage mechanisms are needed. Herein, we report on the structural and electrochemical characterization of Fe-doped ZnO samples with varying dopant concentrations, potentially serving as anode for LIBs (Rechargeable lithium-ion batteries). The wurtzite structure of the Zn1−xFexO samples (with x ranging from 0 to 0.12) has been refined via the Rietveld method. Cell parameters change only slightly with the Fe content, whereas the crystallinity is strongly affected, presumably due to the presence of defects induced by the Fe3+ substitution for Zn2+. XANES (X-ray absorption near edge structure) data recorded ex situ for Zn0.9Fe0.1O electrodes at different states of charge indicated that Fe, dominantly trivalent in the pristine anode, partially reduces to Fe2+ upon discharge. This finding was supported by a detailed galvanostatic and potentiodynamic investigation of Zn1−xFexO-based electrodes, confirming such an initial reduction of Fe3+ to Fe2+ at potentials higher than 1.2 V (vs. Li+/Li) upon the initial lithiation, i.e., discharge. Both structural and electrochemical data strongly suggest the presence of cationic vacancies at the tetrahedral sites, induced by the presence of Fe3+ (i.e., one cationic vacancy for every two Fe3+ present in the sample), allowing for the initial Li+ insertion into the ZnO lattice prior to the subsequent conversion and alloying reaction.
Power Spectral Density Evaluation of Laser Milled Surfaces
Authors: Lorbeer Raoul-Amadeus , Pastow Jan , Sawannia Michael , Klinkenberg Peter , Förster Daniel , Eckel Hans-Albert
Published: December 2017

Ablating surfaces with a pulsed laser system in milling processes often leads to surface changes depending on the milling depth. Especially if a constant surface roughness and evenness is essential to the process, structural degradation may advance until the process fails. The process investigated is the generation of precise thrust by laser ablation. Here, it is essential to predict or rather control the evolution of the surfaces roughness. Laser ablative milling with a short pulse laser system in vacuum (≈1 Pa) were performed over depths of several 10 µm documenting the evolution of surface roughness and unevenness with a white light interference microscope. Power spectral density analysis of the generated surface data reveals a strong influence of the crystalline structure of the solid. Furthermore, it was possible to demonstrate that this effect could be suppressed for gold.
Formation Mechanism and Dispersion of Pseudo-Tetragonal BaTiO3-PVP Nanoparticles from Different Titanium Precursors: TiCl4 and TiO2
Authors: Li Jinhui , Inukai Koji , Takahashi Yosuke , Tsuruta Akihiro , Shin Woosuck
Published: December 2017

Nano-sized tetragonal BaTiO3 (BT) particles that are well dispersed in solution are essential for the dielectric layer in multilayer ceramic capacitor technology. A hydrothermal process using TiCl4 and BaCl2, as source of Ti and Ba, respectively, or the precursor TiO2 as seed for the formation of BT, and poly(vinylpyrrolidone) (PVP) as a surfactant, was employed in this study to enhance both the dispersibility and tetragonality (c/a) simultaneously in a single reaction process. The process parameters, i.e., the ratio of TiO2 substitution of TiCl4, the reaction time, and PVP content were systematically studied, and the growth mechanism and relation between the tetragonality and the particle size are discussed. Dynamic light scattering (DLS) analysis was used to show that truncated pseudo-tetragonal BT-PVP particles with an average size of 100 nm, having a narrow size distribution and a coefficient of variation (CV) as low as 20% and being mono-dispersed in water, were produced. The narrow particle size distribution is attributed to the ability of PVP to inhibit the growth of BT particles, and the high c/a of BT-PVP to heterogeneous particle growth using TiO2 seeds.
Pinnatifidenyne-Derived Ethynyl Oxirane Acetogenins from Laurencia viridis
Authors: Morales-Amador Adrián , De Vera Caterina , Márquez-Fernández Olivia , Hernández Daranas Antonio , Padrón José , Fernández José , Souto María , Norte Manuel
Published: December 2017

Red algae of Laurencia continue to provide wide structural diversity and complexity of halogenated C15 acetogenin medium-ring ethers. Here, we described the isolation of three new C15 acetogenins (3–5), and one truncated derivative (6) from Laurencia viridis collected on the Canary Islands. These compounds are interesting variations on the pinnatifidenyne structure that included the first examples of ethynyl oxirane derivatives (3–4). The structures were elucidated by extensive study of NMR (Nuclear Magnetic Resonance) data, J-based configuration analysis and DFT (Density Functional Theory) calculations. Their antiproliferative activity against six human solid tumor cell lines was evaluated.
Controllable Swarming and Assembly of Micro/Nanomachines
Authors: Liu Conghui , Xu Tailin , Xu Li-Ping , Zhang Xueji
Published: December 2017

Motion is a common phenomenon in biological processes. Major advances have been made in designing various self-propelled micromachines that harvest different types of energies into mechanical movement to achieve biomedicine and biological applications. Inspired by fascinating self-organization motion of natural creatures, the swarming or assembly of synthetic micro/nanomachines (often referred to micro/nanoswimmers, micro/nanorobots, micro/nanomachines, or micro/nanomotors), are able to mimic these amazing natural systems to help humanity accomplishing complex biological tasks. This review described the fuel induced methods (enzyme, hydrogen peroxide, hydrazine, et al.) and fuel-free induced approaches (electric, ultrasound, light, and magnetic) that led to control the assembly and swarming of synthetic micro/nanomachines. Such behavior is of fundamental importance in improving our understanding of self-assembly processes that are occurring on molecular to macroscopic length scales.
Microwave Wire Interrogation Method Mapping Pressure under High Temperatures
Authors: Chen Xiaoyong , Yan Dan , Hong Yingping , Liang Ting , Xiong Jijun
Published: December 2017

It is widely accepted that wireless reading for in-situ mapping of pressure under high-temperature environments is the most feasible method, because it is not subject to frequent heterogeneous jointing failures and electrical conduction deteriorating, or even disappearing, under heat load. However, in this article, we successfully demonstrate an in-situ pressure sensor with wire interrogation for high-temperature applications. In this proof-of-concept study of the pressure sensor, we used a microwave resonator as a pressure-sensing component and a microwave transmission line as a pressure characteristic interrogation tunnel. In the sensor, the line and resonator are processed into a monolith, avoiding a heterogeneous jointing failure; further, microwave signal transmission does not depend on electrical conduction, and consequently, the sensor does not suffer from the heat load. We achieve pressure monitoring under 400 °C when employing the sensor simultaneously. Our sensor avoids restrictions that exist in wireless pressure interrogations, such as environmental noise and interference, signal leakage and security, low transfer efficiency, and so on.
A Graphene-Coated Mo Tip Array for Highly-Efficient Nanostructured Electron Field Emitters
Authors: Zhu Ningli , Chen Jing , Deng Hai , Di Yunsong
Published: December 2017

An efficient electron field emitter based on a monolayer graphene coated well aligned Mo tip array has been designed, fabricated, and evaluated. The advantages of this hybrid nanostructure film morphology are explored and discussed. Efficient and stable field emissions with low turn-on fields have been observed with the new devices. It is further found that the combination of graphene and Mo tip array leads to significant improvements in efficiency for the nanoscale heterostructure emitters.
Hydrazone Derivatives Enhance Antileishmanial Activity of Thiochroman-4-ones
Authors: Vargas Esteban , Echeverri Fernando , Upegui Yulieth , Robledo Sara , Quiñones Wiston
Published: December 2017

Cutaneous leishmaniasis (CL) is a neglected tropical disease, which causes severe skin lesions. Due to the lack of effective vaccines, and toxicity or reduced effectiveness of available drugs in addition to complex and prolonged treatments, there is an urgent need to develop alternatives for the treatment for CL with different mechanisms of action. In our effort to search for new promising hits against Leishmania parasites we prepared 18 acyl hydrazone derivatives of thiochroman-4-ones. Compounds were evaluated for their in vitro antileishmanial activity against the intracellular amastigote form of Leishmania panamensis and cytotoxic activity against human monocytes (U-937 ATCC CRL-1593.2). Our results show that derivatization of the thiochroman-4-ones with acyl hydrazones significantly enhances the antileishmanial activity. Among the compounds tested semicarbazone and thiosemicarbazone derivatives of thioflavanone 19 and 20 displayed the highest antileishmanial activities, with EC50 values of 5.4 and 5.1 µM and low cytotoxicities (100.2 and 50.1 µM respectively), resulting in higher indexes of selectivity (IS).
A Peptide Nucleic Acid against MicroRNA miR-145-5p Enhances the Expression of the Cystic Fibrosis Transmembrane Conductance Regulator (CFTR) in Calu-3 Cells
Authors: Fabbri Enrica , Tamanini Anna , Jakova Tiziana , Gasparello Jessica , Manicardi Alex , Corradini Roberto , Sabbioni Giuseppe , Finotti Alessia , Borgatti Monica , Lampronti Ilaria , Munari Silvia , Dechecchi Maria , Cabrini Giulio , Gambari Roberto
Published: December 2017

Peptide nucleic acids (PNAs) are very useful tools for gene regulation at different levels, but in particular in the last years their use for targeting microRNA (anti-miR PNAs) has provided impressive advancements. In this respect, microRNAs related to the repression of cystic fibrosis transmembrane conductance regulator (CFTR) gene, which is defective in cystic fibrosis, are of great importance in the development of new type of treatments. In this paper we propose the use of an anti-miR PNA for targeting miR-145, a microRNA reported to suppress CFTR expression. Octaarginine-anti-miR PNA conjugates were delivered to Calu-3 cells, exerting sequence dependent targeting of miR-145-5p. This allowed to enhance expression of the miR-145 regulated CFTR gene, analyzed at mRNA (RT-qPCR, Reverse Transcription quantitative Polymerase Chain Reaction) and CFTR protein (Western blotting) level.
PEG 400-Based Phase Change Materials Nano-Enhanced with Functionalized Graphene Nanoplatelets
Authors: Marcos Marco , Cabaleiro David , Guimarey María , Comuñas María , Fedele Laura , Fernández Josefa , Lugo Luis
Published: December 2017

This study presents new Nano-enhanced Phase Change Materials, NePCMs, formulated as dispersions of functionalized graphene nanoplatelets in a poly(ethylene glycol) with a mass-average molecular mass of 400 g·mol−1 for possible use in Thermal Energy Storage. Morphology, functionalization, purity, molecular mass and thermal stability of the graphene nanomaterial and/or the poly(ethylene glycol) were characterized. Design parameters of NePCMs were defined on the basis of a temporal stability study of nanoplatelet dispersions using dynamic light scattering. Influence of graphene loading on solid-liquid phase change transition temperature, latent heat of fusion, isobaric heat capacity, thermal conductivity, density, isobaric thermal expansivity, thermal diffusivity and dynamic viscosity were also investigated for designed dispersions. Graphene nanoplatelet loading leads to thermal conductivity enhancements up to 23% while the crystallization temperature reduces up to in 4 K. Finally, the heat storage capacities of base fluid and new designed NePCMs were examined by means of the thermophysical properties through Stefan and Rayleigh numbers. Functionalized graphene nanoplatelets leads to a slight increase in the Stefan number.
The Evolutionary unZIPping of a Dimerization Motif—A Comparison of ZIP and PrP Architectures
Authors: Hu Jian , Wille Holger , Schmitt-Ulms Gerold
Published: December 2017

The cellular prion protein, notorious for its causative role in a range of fatal neurodegenerative diseases, evolved from a Zrt-/Irt-like Protein (ZIP) zinc transporter approximately 500 million years ago. Whilst atomic structures for recombinant prion protein (PrP) from various species have been available for some time, and are believed to stand for the structure of PrPC, the first structure of a ZIP zinc transporter ectodomain was reported only recently. Here, we compare this ectodomain structure to structures of recombinant PrP. A shared feature of both is a membrane-adjacent helix-turn-helix fold that is coded by a separate exon in the respective ZIP transporters and is stabilized by a disulfide bridge. A ‘CPALL’ amino acid motif within this cysteine-flanked core domain appears to be critical for dimerization and has undergone stepwise regression in fish and mammalian prion proteins. These insights are intriguing in the context of repeated observations of PrP dimers. Other structural elements of ZIP transporters and PrP are discussed with a view to distilling shared versus divergent biological functions.
Metal Free Reversible-Deactivation Radical Polymerizations: Advances, Challenges, and Opportunities
Authors: Kreutzer Johannes , Yagci Yusuf
Published: December 2017

A considerable amount of the worldwide industrial production of synthetic polymers is currently based on radical polymerization methods. The steadily increasing demand on high performance plastics and tailored polymers which serve specialized applications is driven by the development of new techniques to enable control of polymerization reactions on a molecular level. Contrary to conventional radical polymerization, reversible-deactivation radical polymerization (RDRP) techniques provide the possibility to prepare polymers with well-defined structures and functionalities. The review provides a comprehensive summary over the development of the three most important RDRP methods, which are nitroxide mediated radical polymerization, atom transfer radical polymerization and reversible addition fragmentation chain transfer polymerization. The focus thereby is set on the newest developments in transition metal free systems, which allow using these techniques for biological or biomedical applications. After each section selected examples from materials synthesis and application to biomedical materials are summarized.
Comparative Proteomics Analysis of Urine Reveals Down-Regulation of Acute Phase Response Signaling and LXR/RXR Activation Pathways in Prostate Cancer
Authors: Davalieva Katarina , Kiprijanovska Sanja , Maleva Kostovska Ivana , Stavridis Sotir , Stankov Oliver , Komina Selim , Petrusevska Gordana , Polenakovic Momir
Published: December 2017

Detecting prostate cancer (PCa) using non-invasive diagnostic markers still remains a challenge. The aim of this study was the identification of urine proteins that are sufficiently sensitive and specific to detect PCa in the early stages. Comparative proteomics profiling of urine from patients with PCa, benign prostate hyperplasia, bladder cancer, and renal cancer, coupled with bioinformatics analysis, were performed. Statistically significant difference in abundance showed 20 and 85 proteins in the 2-D DIGE/MS and label-free LC-MS/MS experiments, respectively. In silico analysis indicated activation, binding, and cell movement of subset of immune cells as the top affected cellular functions in PCa, together with the down-regulation of Acute Phase Response Signaling and Liver X Receptor/ Retinoid X Receptor (LXR/RXR) activation pathways. The most promising biomarkers were 35, altered in PCa when compared to more than one group. Half of these have confirmed localization in normal or PCa tissues. Twenty proteins (CD14, AHSG, ENO1, ANXA1, CLU, COL6A1, C3, FGA, FGG, HPX, PTGDS, S100A9, LMAN2, ITIH4, ACTA2, GRN, HBB, PEBP1, CTSB, SPP1) are oncogenes, tumor suppressors, and multifunctional proteins with highly confirmed involvement in PCa, while 9 (AZU1, IGHG1, RNASE2, PZP, REG1A, AMY1A, AMY2A, ACTG2, COL18A1) have been associated with different cancers, but not with PCa so far, and may represent novel findings. LC-MS/MS data are available via ProteomeXchange with identifier PXD008407.
Protestant Millennials, Religious Doubt, & the Local Church
Authors: Puffer Keith A.
Published: December 2017

Millennials are the most analyzed and populous generation in the United States. Collectively, they have been slowly re-shaping the American culture. Protestant Millennials, a subset of this generation, have been ruffling feathers in their local churches. Many, who once regularly attended, are leaving. Unwise responses by local church leaders to their young parishioners’ doubting habits significantly contributed to the departure. This study pursued a sample of college-aged Protestant Millennials to know them in a psychological sense. The intentions were twofold: to discover social personality traits that predict their doubting practices and to develop practical and proactive relational strategies for local church leaders. Self-report data on personality features and doubt phenomena were obtained from 532 religiously committed undergraduates in the United States. Results from multivariate regression procedures revealed three social personality dispositions contributed to the prediction of the doubt constructs. Implications and applications of the findings are discussed.
Effective Fusion of Multi-Modal Remote Sensing Data in a Fully Convolutional Network for Semantic Labeling
Authors: Zhang Wenkai , Huang Hai , Schmitz Matthias , Sun Xian , Wang Hongqi , Mayer Helmut
Published: December 2017

In recent years, Fully Convolutional Networks (FCN) have led to a great improvement of semantic labeling for various applications including multi-modal remote sensing data. Although different fusion strategies have been reported for multi-modal data, there is no in-depth study of the reasons of performance limits. For example, it is unclear, why an early fusion of multi-modal data in FCN does not lead to a satisfying result. In this paper, we investigate the contribution of individual layers inside FCN and propose an effective fusion strategy for the semantic labeling of color or infrared imagery together with elevation (e.g., Digital Surface Models). The sensitivity and contribution of layers concerning classes and multi-modal data are quantified by recall and descent rate of recall in a multi-resolution model. The contribution of different modalities to the pixel-wise prediction is analyzed explaining the reason of the poor performance caused by the plain concatenation of different modalities. Finally, based on the analysis an optimized scheme for the fusion of layers with image and elevation information into a single FCN model is derived. Experiments are performed on the ISPRS Vaihingen 2D Semantic Labeling dataset (infrared and RGB imagery as well as elevation) and the Potsdam dataset (RGB imagery and elevation). Comprehensive evaluations demonstrate the potential of the proposed approach.
Real-Time Detection of Sporadic Meteors in the Intensified TV Imaging Systems
Authors: Vítek Stanislav , Nasyrova Maria
Published: December 2017

The automatic observation of the night sky through wide-angle video systems with the aim of detecting meteor and fireballs is currently among routine astronomical observations. The observation is usually done in multi-station or network mode, so it is possible to estimate the direction and the speed of the body flight. The high velocity of the meteorite flying through the atmosphere determines the important features of the camera systems, namely the high frame rate. Thanks to high frame rates, such imaging systems produce a large amount of data, of which only a small fragment has scientific potential. This paper focuses on methods for the real-time detection of fast moving objects in the video sequences recorded by intensified TV systems with frame rates of about 60 frames per second. The goal of our effort is to remove all unnecessary data during the daytime and make free hard-drive capacity for the next observation. The processing of data from the MAIA (Meteor Automatic Imager and Analyzer) system is demonstrated in the paper.
Integration of Distributed Services and Hybrid Models Based on Process Choreography to Predict and Detect Type 2 Diabetes
Authors: Martinez-Millana Antonio , Bayo-Monton Jose-Luis , Argente-Pla María , Fernandez-Llatas Carlos , Merino-Torres Juan , Traver-Salcedo Vicente
Published: December 2017

Life expectancy is increasing and, so, the years that patients have to live with chronic diseases and co-morbidities. Type 2 diabetes is one of the most prevalent chronic diseases, specifically linked to being overweight and ages over sixty. Recent studies have demonstrated the effectiveness of new strategies to delay and even prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes by a combination of active and healthy lifestyle on cohorts of mid to high risk subjects. Prospective research has been driven on large groups of the population to build risk scores that aim to obtain a rule for the classification of patients according to the odds for developing the disease. Currently, there are more than two hundred models and risk scores for doing this, but a few have been properly evaluated in external groups and integrated into a clinical application for decision support. In this paper, we present a novel system architecture based on service choreography and hybrid modeling, which enables a distributed integration of clinical databases, statistical and mathematical engines and web interfaces to be deployed in a clinical setting. The system was assessed during an eight-week continuous period with eight endocrinologists of a hospital who evaluated up to 8080 patients with seven different type 2 diabetes risk models implemented in two mathematical engines. Throughput was assessed as a matter of technical key performance indicators, confirming the reliability and efficiency of the proposed architecture to integrate hybrid artificial intelligence tools into daily clinical routine to identify high risk subjects.
Assessment of the Possibility of Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs) for the Documentation of Hiking Trails in Alpine Areas
Authors: Ćwiąkała Paweł , Kocierz Rafał , Puniach Edyta , Nędzka Michał , Mamczarz Karolina , Niewiem Witold , Wiącek Paweł
Published: December 2017

The research described in this paper deals with the documentation of hiking trails in alpine areas. The study presents a novel research topic, applying up-to-date survey techniques and top quality equipment with practical applications in nature conservation. The research presents the initial part of the process—capturing imagery, photogrammetric processing, quality checking, and a discussion on possibilities of the further data analysis. The research described in this article was conducted in the Tatra National Park (TNP) in Poland, which is considered as one of the most-visited national parks in Europe. The exceptional popularity of this place is responsible for intensification of morphogenetic processes, resulting in the development of numerous forms of erosion. This article presents the outcomes of research, whose purpose was to verify the usability of UAVs to check the condition of hiking trails in alpine areas. An octocopter equipped with a non-metric camera was used for measurements. Unlike traditional methods of measuring landscape features, such a solution facilitates acquisition of quasi-continuous data that has uniform resolution throughout the study area and high spatial accuracy. It is also a relatively cheap technology, which is its main advantage over equally popular laser scanning. The paper presents the complete methodology of data acquisition in harsh conditions and demanding locations of hiking trails on steep Tatra slopes. The paper also describes stages that lead to the elaboration of basic photogrammetric products relying on structure from motion (SfM) technology and evaluates the accuracy of the materials obtained. Finally, it shows the applicability of the prepared products to the evaluation of the spatial reach and intensity of erosion along hiking trails, and to the study of plant succession or tree stand condition in the area located next to hiking trails.