bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Investigating the Transit Oriented Development in New Urbanism, Case Study: Subway Stations Development in Mashhad
Authors: Kakhki Saeid Rezvani , Shokouhi Mohammad Ajza
Published: November 2016

New urbanism aims to reform the constructed cities as it seeks to create new and complete cities. The main idea of transit oriented development (TOD) is manly based on the public railroad transportation as the quickest and most effective tool in competition with automobiles (car) in order to cause an effective change in the transportation style and decrease the dependence on cars and horizontal growth of the city. In the current study, the experiences of the development corridors are analyzed after investigating the transit oriented development using applied descriptive method and the planning, capitalization and implementation methods are examined based on the corridor development theory. Types of land use suitable for development including residential, commercial, educational, leisure time and so are evaluated in terms of establishment and location. Next, the feasibility of implementation of this method in new spaces created by subway lines in the Mashhad city is studied. Investigation of one of the urban train lines shows that a station named Koohestan Park (mountain-park) located in the Vakil Abad Boulevard has appropriate potentials and advantages for corridor development and urban investments and can contain diverse land uses for orientation toward sustainable objectives. Finally, land use and market activity in the area around this station are investigated using the SWOT model and the necessity of investment and creation of corridor development unit is evaluated.
Numerical and Experimental Test on an Innovative Device Based on Multiple Rotors in Line to Tap Clean Energy from Tidal and River Current
Authors: Coiro D.P. , Scherillo F. , G. Troise G. , Bizzarrini N. , Calise G.
Published: November 2016

The main object of this paper is to present the design and the results of an experimental test campaign on an innovative device for the exploitation of marine and river currents. The basic idea is to lay together one or more series of horizontal axis turbines in rows, each one connected to a generator placed on board a ship or a float. The whole system is sustained by a series of buoys, in this way is possible to avoid expensive submarine installations. All the work has been carried out at the Department of Industrial Engineering of the University of Naples "Federico II" and the test campaign has been first performed in the naval towing tank belonging to the same Department and then in real conditions in Messina Strait between Sicily island and mainland. This location is the only one in Italy suitable as test site thanks to a highly regular tidal current reaching a maximum speed of 3 m/s. The turbine's blade was first carefully designed with particular care for the cavitation problems. Two different series of experimental tests on a reduced scale model in the naval tank aimed to optimize the general layout of the device and the tests performed in Messina Strait mainly aimed to confirm the feasibility of the system and to evaluate its response in real operating conditions. The tests have confirmed the good dynamic behavior of the whole system and its feasibility to be scaled up to real scale.
A preliminary approach on the stress assessment through harmless procedures in farmed seabream (Sparus aurata)
Authors: Herrera M , López J , Herves A
Published: November 2016

Fish welfare is a key factor in ensuring successful cultures. Farmed fish that are stressed have been shown to be susceptible to pathologies and present lower growth rates. The present work seeks to check the efficacy of faecal cortisol as a non-invasive method of assessing acute stress in a commercial cultured fish, the gilthead seabream (Sparus aurata). Typical stress markers (plasma cortisol, glucose and lactate) and faecal cortisol were measured in basal and post-stress (air exposure) state. Plasma and faecal cortisol, and plasma lactate after acute stress varied significantly compared to basal levels. Moreover, faecal cortisol showed a significant correlation with plasma cortisol and lactate. In conclusion, this work describes an easy, non-invasive and practical technique to assess acute stress in farmed fish. Further studies are needed to focus on other practical procedures for chronic stress measurements in sea-farms in order to improve the welfare of these animals.
Forensic excavations and burials in Uruguay, 2004–10
Authors: López Mazz Jose
Published: November 2016

This article will describe the contemporary scientific techniques used to excavate and
identify the dead bodies of disappeared detainees from the Uruguayan dictatorship. It will
highlight the developments that have led to increased success by forensic anthropologists
and archaeologists in uncovering human remains, as well as their effects, both social and
political, on promoting the right to the truth and mechanisms of transitional justice.
The molecular mechanism by which saturated lysophosphatidylcholine attenuates the metastatic capacity of melanoma cells
Authors: Ross Thomas , Jakubzig Bastian , Grundmann Manuel , Massing Ulrich , Kostenis Evi , Schlesinger Martin , Bendas Gerd
Published: November 2016

Lysophophatidylcholine (LysoPC) is an abundant constituent in human plasma. Patients with malignant cancer diseases have attenuated LysoPC plasma levels, and thus LysoPC has been examined as a metabolic biomarker for cancer prediction. Preclinical studies have shown that solid tumor cells drastically degrade LysoPCs by incorporating their free fatty acids into cell membrane phospholipids. In this way, LysoPC C18:0 reduced the metastatic spread of murine melanoma B16.F10 cells in mice. Although membrane rigidification may have a key role in the attenuation of metastasis, evidence for this has yet to be shown. Therefore, the present study aimed to determine how LysoPC reduces the metastatic capacity of B16.F10 cells. Following cellular preincubation with LysoPC C18:0 at increasing concentrations and lengths of time, cell migration was most significantly attenuated with 450 μm LysoPC C18:0 at 72 h. Biosensor measurements suggest that, despite their abundance in B16.F10 cells, LysoPC‐sensitive G protein‐coupled receptors do not appear to contribute to this effect. Instead, the attenuated migration appears to result from changes in cell membrane properties and their effect on underlying signaling pathways, most likely the formation of focal adhesion complexes. Treatment with 450 μm LysoPC C18:0 activates protein kinase C (PKC)δ to phosphorylate syndecan‐4, accompanied by deactivation of PKCα. Subsequently, focal adhesion complex formation was attenuated, as confirmed by the reduced activity of focal adhesion kinase (FAK). Interestingly, 450 μm LysoPC C18:1 did not affect FAK activity, explaining its lower propensity to affect migration and metastasis. Therefore, membrane rigidification by LysoPC C18:0 appears to prevent the formation of focal adhesion complexes, thus affecting integrin activity as a key for metastatic melanoma spread.
An Attachment‐Based Theory of the Aetiology of Affiliative Child Molestation
Authors: Marshall William L. , Marshall Liam E.
Published: November 2016

This chapter outlines an attachment‐based theory of the aetiology of affiliative child molesters. This theory attempts to address some of the observed failings of our earlier versions by limiting its scope to those sex offenders who molest children known to them, and by spelling out its implications for treatment. The theory attempts to integrate knowledge of the factors that are known to create resilience and vulnerabilities. These factors, primarily problems in attachment relations, are addressed across life‐span developmental stages in order to account for the observation that child molestation appears to onset in different offenders at different points in each offender's life.
Theories of Empathy Deficits in Sexual Offenders
Authors: Barnett Georgia D. , Mann Ruth E.
Published: November 2016

This chapter considers the relationship between empathy and sexual offending, as this type of offending has generated by far the largest literature on empathy, and sets out to review theories of empathy deficits and sexual offending. After examining the concept of empathy, proposing a definition based on a review of theoretical perspectives of this construct, the evidence for different types of empathy deficit in sexual offenders is then reviewed. The chapter concludes by proposing a new model of empathy deficits in sexual offending, and sets out its implications for practice in the rehabilitation of sexual offenders.
Situational Theories
Authors: Smallbone Stephen , Cale Jesse
Published: November 2016

This chapter examines historical and current developments in situational approaches to sexual offending. We consider the implications of situational theories for clinical and risk management responses to known sexual offenders, and more widely for the prevention of sexual offending. We conclude that situational factors are a theoretically and practically crucial, but widely neglected, aspect of sexual offending. In our view, neither dispositional nor situational factors alone are sufficient to explain sexual offending. Rather, sexual offences always occur as a result of proximal interactions between individual and situational factors.
Theories of the Offence and Relapse Process
Authors: Polaschek Devon L. L.
Published: November 2016

Offence process theories are distinct in their temporal focus on how the offence unfolds over time. In meta‐theoretical terms, they are Level III microtheories. The treatment of sexual offending during the 1980s and 1990s was shaped by one of these theories, the Relapse Model, which derived from the relapse prevention model of substance abuse. Its inaccuracies and shortcomings led it to be superseded by the Self‐Regulation Model, which drew on self‐regulation theory to outline distinct offence pathways. In addition to these two offence theories, several descriptive models of the offence process have also been developed, for child‐sex offences, and for rape. This chapter describes and critiques each of these theories, concluding that although these models are useful in clinical practice, more research, particularly on the theoretically rich Self‐Regulation Model, would increase confidence in their utility.
Models of Modus Operandi in Sexual Offending
Authors: Beauregard Eric , Proulx Jean
Published: November 2016

The term ‘modus operandi’ – which designates the pattern of actions and behaviours prior to, during, and following the commission of an illicit act – has been adopted by researchers in the field of sexual aggression. Although no integrated theory of modus operandi exists, typologies of sexual aggressors have been developed that take into account the relationship between modus operandi characteristics and offender characteristics. This chapter presents the dominant typologies of sexual offenders, followed by a discussion of the rational choice perspective, a theoretical approach traditionally used in criminology that is well suited to the study and exploration of modus operandi, and a presentation of some descriptive models of the modus operandi of sex offenders in terms of it. Finally, we discuss a new model of the crime‐commission process that highlights the factors determining different profiles of modus operandi.
Strengths‐Based Theories and Sexual Offending
Authors: Willis Gwenda M. , Yates Pamela M.
Published: November 2016

Strengths‐based theories of sexual offending are consistent with a positive psychological approach to understanding and treating sexually abusive behaviour. The Good Lives Model is a comprehensive strengths‐based theory of offender rehabilitation, and consequently the focus of this chapter. First, an overview is presented of the general principles of rehabilitation and causes of offending proposed by the Good Lives Model. Next, the integration of the Good Lives Model with the Self‐Regulation Model – Revised, an empirically validated model of the offence process in sexual offenders, is described. Finally, practice implications of the Good Lives Model are summarized, and examples of Good Lives Model‐derived interventions are provided. Throughout the chapter, reference is made to emerging empirical research on the Good Lives Model and sexual offending.
The Risk–Need–Responsivity Model
Authors: Abracen Jeffrey , Looman Jan
Published: November 2016

This chapter reviews the available research related to both the Risk–Need–Responsivity (RNR) and Good Lives Models (GLM) of offender rehabilitation. Although it is concluded that both of these models have made contributions to the literature, neither fully accounts for the realities of working with groups of high‐risk, high‐need offenders from the authors' perspective. A revision to the RNR model, based on an integrated approach to assessment and treatment, which we have called the RNR‐I, is proposed. The model accounts for such issues as history of trauma and serious mental illness, issues which are frequently encountered when working with such groups of offenders. The details of this model are described, as are a variety of outcome research by our team which supports the utility of this perspective.
Theoretical Approaches for Sexual Offenders with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
Authors: Lindsay William R.
Published: November 2016

The primary theoretical contribution for sex offenders with intellectual disability (ID) has been the Counterfeit Deviance (CD) hypothesis, which suggests that men with ID may commit inappropriate sexual behaviour (ISB) because of a poor appreciation of appropriate behaviour, poor sexual knowledge, and inadequate understanding of moral conventions. The evidence supporting the hypothesis has been reviewed and the CD hypothesis revised. The revision takes into account the fact that sex offenders with ID tend to have better sexual knowledge. Even though sex offenders may have better appreciation of sexual and societal factors, their understanding is still poor. If they have better access to prosocial influences (through the Good Lives Model) and a realistic concept of the way in which society views ISB then this explains (1) the way in which ISB is committed and (2) certain unusual research findings, and (3) provides a sound theoretical basis for treatment.
Applying Sexual Offence Theory to Online Sex Offenders
Authors: Elliott Ian A.
Published: November 2016

Over the past two decades, there has been a concerted effort to establish the psychological characteristics of individuals who commit sex offences against children using online technologies and environments. This chapter seeks to explore overlaps between pre‐existing theories of the aetiology of sexual offending and the sexual offence process and the extant research on the characteristics of these ‘Internet offenders’. It examines the development of problematic sexual behaviours online, the various clinical symptoms thought to present in this population, the forms in which online offences manifest, and if and how online offences/offenders differ from long‐established descriptions of child molestation and the perpetrators of those offences.
Looking to the Future
Authors: Ward Tony , Beech Anthony R.
Published: November 2016

This chapter identifies four current urgent theoretical tasks for sexual offending researchers. First, a critical task is to build multilevel and interfield theories that are directly responsive to the complex nature of human functioning and psychological architecture. Second, we must take seriously the level of human agency and mental state psychological explanations of action. Third, we need to shift our attention from construct validity procedures and look to understand underlying causal processes. A preoccupation with measurement may trap us into surface‐level explanations. Fourth, some degree of integration should be attempted between research and conceptual work on dynamic risk factors and that on aetiological theories. The chapter discusses this fourth issue in some detail.
Trends Over Time in Clinical Assessment Practices with Individuals Who Have Sexually Offended
Authors: Langton Calvin M. , Worling James R.
Published: November 2016

Assessment work with individuals who sexually harm others is a challenging task, requiring specialized skills ands tools. This chapter provides an overview of assessment practices with adolescents and adults who have committed sexual offences. We consider interviewing and the use of self‐report questionnaires; psychophysiological technologies, specifically phallometry, polygraphy, and measures of cognitive processing; and the assessment of risk for recidivism. We draw on large‐scale survey data collected over almost one‐quarter of a century from North American service providers to consider trends over time in these formats and methodologies, and we frame our discussion with reference to criteria underpinning evidence‐based assessment practices. Although progress has been made over the past three decades in establishing the evidence base for much of what is undertaken in applied settings, the need for more research is evident, most urgently to establish more firmly the reliability, validity, and clinical utility of current widespread practices.
Actuarial Risk Assessment of Sexual Offenders
Authors: Rettenberger Martin , Craig Leam A.
Published: November 2016

The development and promulgation of the actuarial risk assessment methodology are certainly one of the most important advances in forensic and criminological psychology in the last few decades. Actuarial risk assessment instruments (ARAIs) represent highly structured risk assessment scales using combinations of empirically determined and thoroughly operationalized predictor variables. Two further core variables of ARAIs are that they use explicit methods of combining the risk factors, and that the total score is linked to an empirically derived probability figure. Based on Meehl's seminal work in 1954, it is today the most replicated result of psychological assessment research that ARAIs usually yield better predictive accuracy than alternative prognostic approaches. Furthermore, following the Risk–Need–Responsivity (RNR) model about the effectiveness of offender rehabilitation programmes proposed by Andrews and Bonta in 2006, ARAIs have to be regarded as an integral part of successful rehabilitation and treatment programmes. This chapter gives an overview of the internationally most important ARAIs for sexual offenders and the current state of research on ARAIs, and discusses the strengths, opportunities, and also potential problems in the application of ARAIs.
The Forensic Relevance of Paedophilia in the Assessment of Child Molesters
Authors: Eher Reinhard
Published: November 2016

Diagnostic criteria for paedophilia (or paedophilic disorder) have repeatedly been reported not to meet the requirements of reliability and validity. This seriously diminishes the putative relevance of the diagnosis given by some diagnosticians and decision‐makers. Other clinicians, on the other hand, may virtually ignore paedophilia as a risk‐relevant disorder, or may simply qualify the diagnosis based solely on the fact that a person has committed sexual offences against minors. Not only have the diagnostic criteria been criticized for lacking a logical conception, but the forensic relevance of the diagnosis has also been seriously questioned. Studies investigating the discriminant and predictive validity of the diagnosis of paedophilia have produced ambiguous results. In this chapter, the most current research is reviewed, focusing on clinical, psychometric, physiological, and latency‐based methods for defining paedophilia. Findings are presented with a special emphasis on their relevance for risk assessment and risk management.
Use of the
DSM
‐5 Paraphilias Taxonomy and its Residual Categories in Sexually Violent Predator Evaluations
Authors: Wollert Richard , Frances Allen
Published: November 2016

Evaluators have used the taxonomy for the paraphilias and residual paraphilias from the
Diagnostic and Statistical Manual
of the American Psychiatric Association (APA) for 20 years to make mental abnormality determinations in sexually violent predator (SVP) cases. There are serious problems with including residual paraphilias in SVP evaluations. This chapter considers these issues from taxonometric, historical, and contemporary perspectives. It also describes details in DSM‐5 that bear on SVP and sex offender evaluations. We discourage assigning residual diagnoses for various reasons. Two are that they are characterized by great reliability deficiencies that produce high levels of diagnostic uncertainty. Most damning is APA's explicit rejection of proposals to include paraphilic coercive disorder (rape), hebephilia, and hypersexuality in DSM‐5. These labels were inappropriately included in SVP evaluations as residual paraphilias. Evaluators should warn the courts about the conceptual limits of using the paraphilias taxonomy to locate sex offenders on legal taxonomies.
Structural and Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Assessing Sexual Preference
Authors: Jordan Kirsten , Fromberger Peter , Müller Jürgen L.
Published: November 2016

The assessment of deviant sexual preference has a long tradition in forensic psychiatry and psychology, as it is one of the strongest predictors for sexual offence recidivism. So far, however, the development of a reliable clinical tool for assessing sexual preference based on brain imaging methods has been unsuccessful. Predicated on the extensive research in basic science, this chapter provides an overview of the current knowledge in measuring sexual arousal and sexual preference in healthy subjects and paraphilic patients using functional brain imaging methods. After a description of the most common methods and experimental designs, studies with healthy subjects are discussed, showing a relatively clear network evoked by sexual arousing stimuli. Furthermore, with respect to the main focus of the chapter, imaging studies on assessing sexual preference are of interest. In the following section, neurobiological models of paraphilia, especially paedophilia, are described, and also studies focusing on structural brain abnormalities in paraphilic patients. Moreover, methods for and results of functional brain imaging studies are discussed that address the question of the underlying neuronal basis of sexual preference in paraphilic subjects. Finally, the potential and limitations of the assessment of (deviant) sexual preference using functional magnetic resonance imaging are critically discussed.
Indirect Measures of Deviant Sexual Interest
Authors: Bartels Ross M. , Gray Nicola S. , Snowden Robert J.
Published: November 2016

Latency‐ and accuracy‐based indirect measures have become of increasing interest to researchers and clinicians who work with sexual offenders. Most notably, they have been regarded as a useful tool for measuring deviant sexual interests, as they are thought to circumvent many of the issues associated with existing assessment tools. Thus, a number of tasks have been adapted indirectly assess deviant sexual interest and an increasing body of research detailing their utility and psychometric properties has amassed. This chapter examines this literature, providing a comprehensive overview that it is hoped will prove useful for both clinicians and researchers. Specifically, details on how each measure works, their underlying rationale, their validity and reliability, and their limitations are discussed. Suggestions for future research are also offered throughout the chapter.
Internet Offenders
Authors: Quayle Ethel
Published: November 2016

This chapter considers the historical development of typologies of Internet sex offenders, and frameworks for measuring both their behaviour and the risk posed for future offending. What can be seen from the review of the extant literature is a growing knowledge about these crimes and the people who commit them that allows a differentiation of offending behaviours and motivations. This has led to a differentiation between those who use the Internet to enable sexual fantasy, through either the use and exchange of images or sexual engagement online with young people, and those whose use of technology is primarily motivated by a bid to commit contact offences against children in their more immediate social environment. What has yet to be fully understood is the potentially unique role that technology plays in these offences, both in setting the scene for the onset of the offence and in acting as a facilitator for future offending.
Mentally Ill Sex Offenders
Authors: Brink Johann , Chu Karen
Published: November 2016

The identification, assessment, treatment, and community management of two distinct but overlapping criminal justice populations have mustered over the past two decades the increased interest of clinicians, researchers, policy‐makers, and politicians: those with major mental illness and those who have committed a sexual offence. Although much is known about the clinical characteristics of offenders with major mental illness and best management of sex offenders, a body of research has only recently evolved that addresses the clinical, legal, and policy‐related aspects regarding mentally ill sex offenders. This chapter examines the extant scientific literature on the co‐occurrence of major mental illness and sexual offending, identifies knowledge gaps, and explores public policy and mental health responses and implications for clinical excellence and public safety.
Risk Assessment for Sexual Offenders
Authors: Craig Leam A. , Rettenberger Martin
Published: November 2016

This chapter begins with a review of the literature on the current methods used to assess sexual recidivism risk in sexual offenders based on the presence of static and dynamic risk factors. We consider the development of actuarial risk assessment instruments and structured dynamic frameworks and describe approaches used to assess treatment targets and areas of intervention currently used by the National Offender Management Service (NOMS) in England and Wales. Recent developments in structured dynamic assessment processes emphasize the inclusion of protective factors making more explicit issues of responsivity and also factors of desistance part of a more balanced assessment framework. We then consider emerging research that suggests functional links between static and dynamic risk factors which may be better understood as artefacts of the same behavioural and psychological vulnerabilities acting as markers for underlying dispositions. We conclude by discussing the current definitions of dynamic risk and suggest that viewing dynamic factors as clinical symptoms of psychological vulnerabilities may lead to improvements in risk assessment and in the composition of treatment programmes.
Treatment of Persons with Intellectual Disabilities and Problematic Sexual Behaviours
Authors: Boer Douglas P.
Published: November 2016

This chapter reviews the primary treatment models for persons with intellectual disabilities and problematic sexual behaviours. Most current programmes include practical applications of combinations of current treatment models and also special therapeutic considerations seen as core to the responsivity issues of such individuals. In addition, logical additions to these treatment models from a current dynamic risk/strengths assessment instrument and a protective factor model were suggested as means to help formulate treatment targets and also guide intervention and case management. Treatment should be based on core theoretical principles including a focus on criminogenic needs (i.e., dynamic risk issues), keeping in mind the offender's risk levels to ensure appropriate programme intensity, while addressing responsivity issues (i.e., learning styles and ability level of the client), and focusing on increasing client strengths and protective environmental factors.
The Risk–Need–Responsivity Model
Authors: Olver Mark E.
Published: November 2016

This chapter provides an illustration of the application of the risk–need–responsivity (RNR) principles to sex offender treatment, through a review and synthesis of the extant literature. The chapter begins with a brief overview of sex offender treatment outcome research via the results of meta‐analysis and then follows with the description and application of each of the three major principles as it applies to sex offender treatment. The RNR principles are nested within a general personality and cognitive social learning theory of criminal behaviour in addition to an expanded 18‐principle model that includes, among other things, the assessment and integration of client strengths into service delivery. These organizing principles are interwoven throughout the chapter to illustrate applications to sex offender treatment.
Psychoanalytic Treatment of Sex Offenders
Authors: Pfäfflin Friedemann
Published: November 2016

This chapter describes the origins of psychotherapy for sex offenders initiated by the social worker and psychoanalyst August Aichhorn in Vienna in the first quarter of the last century. It then focuses on the development of psychodynamic treatment in psychiatry at large, and in forensic psychiatry specifically, before discussing the challenges posed by behavioural and cognitive–behavioural alternatives. Finally, it discusses some aspects of psychodynamic treatment for sex offenders.
Responding to Categorical Denial, Refusal, and Treatment Drop‐Out
Authors: Ware Jayson , Blagden Nicholas
Published: November 2016

This chapter examines the reasons why sex offenders refuse to participate in or drop out of treatment, or maintain their denial of responsibility. Our argument is that there are most often understandable reasons for each of these offender responses and that, with this knowledge, a number of strategies can be used to respond to sex offender denial, refusal, and treatment drop‐out. The strategies outlined include modifications to the context or setting within which treatment is available and responding to the individual sex offender.
Where to from Here?
Authors: Marshall Liam E.
Published: November 2016

This chapter offers suggestions for the future of treatment of and research on sex offenders. Although many positive gains have been made in the sex offender field, there is still much work to be done. Suggestions for the future focus on effective tracking of participation in groups in order to inform research and improve treatment delivery.
Anisotropic Sliding of Water Droplets on the Superhydrophobic Surfaces with Anisotropic Groove‐Like Micro/Nano Structures
Authors: Long Jiangyou , Fan Peixun , Jiang Dafa , Han Jinpeng , Lin Yi , Cai Mingyong , Zhang Hongjun , Zhong Minlin
Published: November 2016

Former studies have found that water droplets on the rice leaves exhibit anisotropic sliding behavior, which is mainly caused by the anisotropic groove‐like surface microstructures. Similar groove‐like surface microstructures and anisotropic sliding behavior of water droplets can also be found on some other plants, such as the reed leaves. In this paper, biomimetic groove‐like surface microstructures are fabricated on copper surfaces by femtosecond laser micromachining. Thanks to the flexibility of this method, the period and height of the periodic micro‐grooves can be precisely controlled, and the nanoscale surface roughness can also be regulated. The influences of these surface morphologies on the wetting state and anisotropic sliding behavior of water droplets are studied systematically, and theoretic analyses are also conducted. Our results prove that the anisotropic sliding behavior is mainly decided by the wetting state of external water droplets. Besides, plenty of surface nanostructures have no benefits to the anisotropic sliding behavior of surface water droplets.
Renoprotection From Diabetic Complications in OVE Transgenic Mice by Endothelial Cell Specific Overexpression of Metallothionein: A TEM Stereological Analysis
Authors: Carlson Edward C. , Chhoun Jennifer M. , Grove Bryon D. , Laturnus Donna I. , Zheng Shirong , Epstein Paul N. , Tan Yi
Published: November 2016

We previously demonstrated that OVE transgenic diabetic mice are susceptible to chronic complications of diabetic nephropathy (DN) including substantial oxidative damage to the renal glomerular filtration barrier (GFB). Importantly, the damage was mitigated significantly by overexpression of the powerful antioxidant, metallothionein (MT) in podocytes. To test our hypothesis that GFB damage in OVE mice is the result of endothelial oxidative insult, a new JTMT transgenic mouse was designed in which MT overexpression was targeted specifically to endothelial cells. At 60 days of age, JTMT mice were crossed with age‐matched OVE diabetic mice to produce bi‐transgenic OVE‐JTMT diabetic progeny that carried the endothelial targeted JTMT transgene. Renal tissues from the OVE‐JTMT progeny were examined by unbiased TEM stereometry for possible GFB damage and other alterations from chronic complications of DN. In 150 day‐old OVE‐JTMT mice, blood glucose and HbA1c were indistinguishable from age‐matched OVE mice. However, endothelial‐specific MT overexpression in OVE‐JTMT mice mitigated several DN complications including significantly increased non‐fenestrated glomerular endothelial area, and elimination of glomerular basement membrane thickening. Significant renoprotection was also observed outside of endothelial cells, including reduced podocyte effacement, and increased podocyte and total glomerular cell densities. Moreover, when compared to OVE diabetic animals, OVE‐JTMT mice showed significant mitigation of nephromegaly, glomerular hypertrophy, increased mesangial cell numbers and increased total glomerular cell numbers. These results confirm the importance of oxidative stress to glomerular damage in DN, and show the central role of endothelial cell injury to the pathogenesis of chronic complications of diabetes. Anat Rec, 2017. © 2017 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Anat Rec, 300:560–576, 2017. © 2016 The Authors. The Anatomical Record published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc. on behalf of American Association of Anatomists.
Solvent‐Dependent Delamination, Restacking, and Ferroelectric Behavior in a New Charge‐Separated Layered Compound: [NH4][Ag3(C9H5NO4S)2(C13H14N2)2]⋅8 H2O
Authors: Sushrutha Sringeri Ramesh , Mohana Shivanna , Pal Somnath , Natarajan Srinivasan
Published: November 2016

A new anionic coordination polymer, [NH4][Ag3(C9H5NO4S)2(C13H14N2)2]⋅8 H2O, with a two‐dimensional structure, has been synthesized by a reaction between silver nitrate, 8‐hydroxyquinoline‐5‐sulfonic acid (HQS), and 4,4′‐trimethylene dipyridine (TMDP). The compound stabilizes in a noncentrosymmetric space group, and the lattice water molecules and the charge‐compensating [NH4]+ group occupy the inter‐lamellar spaces. The lattice water molecules can be fully removed and reinserted, which is accompanied by a crystalline–amorphous–crystalline transformation. This transformation resembles the collapse/delamination and restacking of the layers. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first observation of delamination and restacking in an inorganic coordination polymer that contains silver. The presence of a natural dipole (the anionic framework and cationic ammonium ions) along with the noncentrosymmetric space group gives rise to the room‐temperature ferroelectric behavior of the compound. The ferroelectric behavior is also water‐dependent and exhibits a ferroelectric–paraelectric transformation. The temperature‐dependent dielectric measurements indicate that the ferroelectric/ paraelectric transformation occurs at 320 K. This transformation has also been investigated by using in‐situ IR spectroscopy and PXRD studies. The second‐harmonic generation (SHG) study indicated values that are comparable to some of the known SHG solids, such as potassium dihydrogen phosphate (KDP) and urea.
Thermodynamic activity‐based intrinsic enzyme kinetic sheds light on enzyme–solvent interactions
Authors: Grosch Jan‐Hendrik , Wagner David , Nistelkas Vasilios , Spieß Antje C.
Published: November 2016

The reaction medium has major impact on biocatalytic reaction systems and on their economic significance. To allow for tailored medium engineering, thermodynamic phenomena, intrinsic enzyme kinetics, and enzyme–solvent interactions have to be discriminated. To this end, enzyme reaction kinetic modeling was coupled with thermodynamic calculations based on investigations of the alcohol dehydrogenase from Lactobacillus brevis (LbADH) in monophasic water/methyl tert‐butyl ether (MTBE) mixtures as a model solvent. Substrate concentrations and substrate thermodynamic activities were varied separately to identify the individual thermodynamic and kinetic effects on the enzyme activity. Microkinetic parameters based on concentration and thermodynamic activity were derived to successfully identify a positive effect of MTBE on the availability of the substrate to the enzyme, but a negative effect on the enzyme performance. In conclusion, thermodynamic activity‐based kinetic modeling might be a suitable tool to initially curtail the type of enzyme–solvent interactions and thus, a powerful first step to potentially understand the phenomena that occur in nonconventional media in more detail. © 2016 American Institute of Chemical Engineers Biotechnol. Prog., 33:96–103, 2017
Scheduling of directed acyclic graphs by a genetic algorithm with a repairing mechanism
Authors: Amirjanov Adil , Sobolev Konstantin
Published: November 2016

This study has developed a genetic algorithm (GA) approach to the problem of task scheduling for multiprocessor systems. The proposed GA implements the local repairing mechanism and the penalty method, and it does not need tuning of any parameters for high performance. Comparison with other scheduling methods, based on a GA approach, indicates that the proposed GA is competitive in solution quality and also computational cost.
An evaluation of analytical queries on CPUs and coupled GPUs
Authors: Luan Hua , Chang Lei
Published: November 2016

Recently, the mainstream hardware vendors such as Intel and AMD have made significant efforts to integrate the central processing unit (CPU) and the graphics processing unit (GPU) into a single chip, which forms a coupled CPU‐GPU architecture. Data transfer between the CPU and the GPU through a Peripheral Component Interconnect Express bus is eliminated on this architecture, which provides new opportunities for database community to optimize query processing. Because of the lack of comprehensive evaluation of database systems on coupled CPU‐GPU platforms, it is difficult for academic and industry researchers to make appropriate decisions on improvement and optimization directions. In this paper, we conduct an extensive experimental study to evaluate an online analytical processing system on Intel and AMD machines. The performance difference is measured and analyzed when executing queries on integrated GPUs and multicore CPUs. The impacts of various parameters, data sizes, and optimization techniques on performance are also investigated. The results provide preliminary insights into database query and operator behaviors on state‐of‐the‐art coupled CPU‐GPU architectures.
Sensitivity analysis on HPC systems with Scalarm platform
Authors: Bachniak Daniel , Rauch Lukasz , Król Dariusz , Liput Jakub , Słota Renata , Kitowski Jacek , Pietrzyk Maciej
Published: November 2016

Sensitivity analysis is widely used in numerical simulations applied in industry. The robustness of such applications is crucial, which means they have to be fast and precise at the same time. However, the conventional approach to sensitivity analysis assumes realization of multiple execution of computationally intensive simulations to discover input/output dependencies. In this paper, we present a novel computational approach for performing large‐scale sensitivity analysis integrated with an extended platform for parameter studies – Scalarm – to make use of modern e‐infrastructures for distribution and parallelization purposes, profitable for complicated industrial problems. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Insights into mildly dilated cardiomyopathy: temporal evolution and long‐term prognosis
Authors: Gigli Marta , Stolfo Davide , Merlo Marco , Barbati Giulia , Ramani Federica , Brun Francesca , Pinamonti Bruno , Sinagra Gianfranco
Published: November 2016

Aims

Mildly dilated cardiomyopathy (MDCM) has been proposed as a subtype of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) characterized by systolic dysfunction in the absence of significant LV dilatation. Few data on the characteristics and outcomes of MDCM patients are available. We sought to assess the main features and the long‐term natural history of MDCM.

Methods and results

From 1988 to 2010 we analysed all DCM patients consecutively evaluated at our Institution. MDCM was defined as LVEF <45% and LV end‐diastolic volume index (LVEDVI) ≤70 mL/m2 in women and ≤89 mL/m2 in men. Among a total population of 638 patients, 226 (35%) fulfilled the criteria for MDCM. Compared with the other patients, they presented features of a less advanced disease and an overall long‐term lower rate of all‐cause mortality/heart transplantation (D/HTx; total events = 209; 144 deaths, 65 HTx): D/HTx at 10 years 15% in MDCM vs. 30% in DCM (P < 0.001). However, throughout the follow‐up, 55 MDCM patients (24%) evolved to DCM by increasing LVEDVI, consistently worsening their long‐term prognosis. Among persistent MDCM patients, a restrictive filling pattern [hazard ratio (HR) 5.30; 95% confidence interval (CI) 2.34–12.01, P < 0.001] and non‐sustained ventricular tachycardia (HR 2.21; 95% CI 1.003–5.11, P = 0.047), but not LVEF, were independently associated with D/HTx at multivariate analysis [time‐dependent receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve: area under the curve (AUC) 0.80, 95% CI 0.65–0.94, P = 0.003].

Conclusions

MDCM identifies a consistent subgroup of DCMs diagnosed in an earlier stage and presenting an apparent better evolution. However, some MDCMs evolve into DCM despite medical therapy, whereas persistent MDCMs with non‐sustained ventricular arrhythmias and restrictive filling pattern are characterized by a very poor outcome.
Truncating titin mutations are associated with a mild and treatable form of dilated cardiomyopathy
Authors: Jansweijer Joeri A. , Nieuwhof Karin , Russo Francesco , Hoorntje Edgar T. , Jongbloed Jan D.H. , Lekanne Deprez Ronald H. , Postma Alex V. , Bronk Marieke , van Rijsingen Ingrid A.W. , de Haij Simone , Biagini Elena , van Haelst Paul L. , van Wijngaarden Jan , van den Berg Maarten P. , Wilde Arthur A.M. , Mannens Marcel M.A.M. , de Boer Rudolf A. , van Spaendonck‐Zwarts Karin Y. , van Tintelen J. Peter , Pinto Yigal M.
Published: November 2016

Aims

Truncating titin mutations (tTTN) occur in 25% of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM) cases, but the phenotype and severity of disease they cause have not yet been systematically studied. We studied whether tTTN variants are associated with a clinically distinguishable form of DCM.

Methods and results

We compared clinical data on DCM probands and relatives with a tTTN mutation (n = 45, n = 73), LMNA mutation (n = 28, n = 29), and probands who tested negative for both genes [idiopathic DCM (iDCM); n = 60]. Median follow‐up was at least 2.5 years in each group. TTN subjects presented with DCM at higher age than LMNA subjects (probands 47.9 vs. 40.4 years, P = 0.004; relatives 59.8 vs. 47.0 years, P = 0.01), less often developed LVEF <35% [probands hazard ratio (HR) 0.38, P = 0.002], had higher age of death (probands 70.4 vs. 59.4 years, P < 0.001; relatives 74.1 vs. 58.4 years, P = 0.008), and had better composite outcome (malignant ventricular arrhythmia, heart transplantation, or death; probands HR 0.09, P < 0.001; relatives HR 0.21, P = 0.02) than LMNA subjects and iDCM subjects (HR 0.36, P = 0.07). An LVEF increase of at least 10% occurred in 46.9% of TTN subjects after initiation of standard heart failure treatment, while this only occurred in 6.5% of LMNA subjects (P < 0.001) and 18.5% of iDCM subjects (P = 0.02). This was confirmed in families with co‐segregation, in which the 10% point LVEF increase occurred in 55.6% of subjects (P = 0.003 vs. LMNA, P = 0.079 vs. iDCM).

Conclusions

This study shows that tTTN‐associated DCM is less severe at presentation and more amenable to standard therapy than LMNA mutation‐induced DCM or iDCM.
Safety and efficacy of nivolumab in the treatment of cancers: A meta‐analysis of 27 prospective clinical trials
Authors: Tie Yan , Ma Xuelei , Zhu Chenjing , Mao Ye , Shen Kai , Wei Xiawei , Chen Yan , Zheng Heng
Published: November 2016

Immune checkpoint inhibition therapy has benefited people and shown powerful anti‐tumor activity during the past several years. Nivolumab, a fully human IgG4 monoclonal antibody against PD‐1, is a widely studied immune checkpoint inhibitor for the treatment of cancers. To assess the safety and efficacy of nivolumab, 27 clinical trials on nivolumab were analyzed. Results showed that the summary risks of all grade adverse effects (AEs) and grade ≥3 AEs were 0.65 and 0.12. The rate of nivolumab‐related death was 0.25%. The most common any grade AEs were fatigue (25.1%), rush (13.0%), pruritus (12.5%), diarrhea (12.1%), nausea (11.8%) and asthenia (10.4%). The most common grade ≥3 AEs were hypophosphatemia (only 2.3%) and lymphopenia (only 2.1%). The pooled objective response rate (ORR), 6‐month progression‐free survival (PFS) rate and 1‐year overall survival (OS) rate were 0.26, 0.40 and 0.52, respectively. The odds ratio of ORR between PD‐L1 positive and negative was 2.34 (95% CI 1.77–3.10, p < 0.0001). The odds ratios of ORR, 6‐month PFS rate and 1‐year OS rate between nivolumab and chemotherapeutics were 2.77 (95% CI 1.69–4.56, p < 0.0001), 1.97 (95% CI 1.02–3.81, p = 0.04) and 1.87 (95% CI 1.46–2.40, p <0.0001), respectively. In conclusion, nivolumab has durable outcomes with tolerable AEs and drug‐related deaths in cancer patients. Nivolumab monotherapy has better treatment response compared with chemotherapy, whereas chemotherapeutics have significantly higher risk of adverse effects than nivolumab.
Developmental toxicity of auranofin in zebrafish embryos
Authors: Gao Xiao‐Yan , Li Kang , Jiang Ling‐Ling , He Ming‐Fang , Pu Cun‐Hai , Kang Dongzhou , Xie Jingjing
Published: November 2016

Auranofin (AF) is used in clinic for the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis, repurposing of AF as an anticancer drug has just finished a phase I/II clinical trial, but the developmental toxicity of AF remains obscure. This study focused on its developmental toxicity by using zebrafish embryos. Zebrafish embryos were exposed to different concentrations (1, 2.5, 5, 10 μm) of AF from 2 h post‐fertilization (hpf) to 72 hpf. At 72 hpf, two major developmental defects caused by AF were found, namely severe pericardial edema and hypopigmentation, when embryos were exposed to concentrations higher than 2.5 μm. Biochemical detection of oxidative stress enzyme combined with expressions of a series of genes related to oxidative stress, cardiac, metal stress and pigment formation were subsequently tested. The superoxide dismutase activity was decreased while malondialdehyde content was accumulated by AF treatment. The expression of oxidative stress‐related genes (sod1, gpx1a, gst), pigment‐related genes (mitfb, trp‐1a) and one metal stress‐related gene ctr1 were all decreased by AF exposure. The expressions of cardiac‐related genes (amhc, vmhc) and one metal‐related gene hsp70 were found to be significantly upregulated by AF exposure. These findings indicated the potential developmental toxicity of AF on zebrafish early development. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.