bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Challenges in collecting clinical samples for research from pregnant women of South Asian origin: evidence from a UK study
Authors: Neelotpol Sharmind , Hay Alastair W M , Jolly A Jim , Woolridge Mike W
Published: September 2016

Objective

To recruit South Asian pregnant women, living in the UK, into a clinicoepidemiological study for the collection of lifestyle survey data and antenatal blood and to retain the women for the later collection of cord blood and meconium samples from their babies for biochemical analysis.

Design

A longitudinal study recruiting pregnant women of South Asian and Caucasian origin living in the UK.

Setting

Recruitment of the participants, collection of clinical samples and survey data took place at the 2 sites within a single UK Northern Hospital Trust.

Participants

Pregnant women of South Asian origin (study group, n=98) and of Caucasian origin (comparison group, n=38) living in Leeds, UK.

Results

Among the participants approached, 81% agreed to take part in the study while a ‘direct approach’ method was followed. The retention rate of the participants was a remarkable 93.4%. The main challenges in recruiting the ethnic minority participants were their cultural and religious conservativeness, language barrier, lack of interest and feeling of extra ‘stress’ in taking part in research. The chief investigator developed an innovative participant retention method, associated with the women's cultural and religious practices. The method proved useful in retaining the participants for about 5 months and in enabling successful collection of clinical samples from the same mother–baby pairs. The collection of clinical samples and lifestyle data exceeded the calculated sample size required to give the study sufficient power. The numbers of samples obtained were: maternal blood (n=171), cord blood (n=38), meconium (n=176), lifestyle questionnaire data (n=136) and postnatal records (n=136).

Conclusions

Recruitment and retention of participants, according to the calculated sample size, ensured sufficient power and success for a clinicoepidemiological study. Results suggest that development of trust and confidence between the participant and the researcher is the key to the success of a clinical and epidemiological study involving ethnic minorities.
Relationship among diet habit and lower urinary tract symptoms and sexual function in outpatient-based males with LUTS/BPH: a multiregional and cross-sectional study in China
Authors: Chen Yuke , Yu Wei , Zhou Liqun , Wu Shiliang , Yang Yang , Wang Jianye , Tian Ye , He Dalin , Xu Yong , Huang Jian , Wang Xiaofeng , Gao Xin , Li Hanzhong , Ma Lulin , Zhang Ning , Zhao Shengtian , Jin Xunbo
Published: September 2016

Objectives

This study assessed the effect of diet habits on lower urinary tract symptoms (LUTS) and sexual function in Chinese men with LUTS/benign prostatic hypertrophy (LUTS/BPH).

Setting

Multicentre study conducted between July 2013 and December 2013 in 11 hospitals in 3 geographic regions in China.

Participants

Overall, participants with LUTS/BPH accounted for 61.4% (2584/4208) of the respondents, whose data were processed in the following statistical analysis.

Primary and secondary outcome measures

LUTS and sexual function were assessed based on the International Prostate Symptom Score (IPSS) and the International Index of Erectile Function 5 (IIEF-5) score. Prostate volume (PV) was determined by ultrasound.

Results

A total of 4208 participants met the inclusion criteria. The average age of the whole participants was 65.8±7.7 years. Overall, participants with LUTS/BPH accounted for 61.4% (2584/4208) of the respondents, whose data were processed in the following statistical analysis. Generally, prostate enlargement was greatest in south China. LUTS and male sexual dysfunction (MSD) were most severe in northwest China. Based on multivariable analysis, PV enlarged as the age (p<0.001), body mass index (BMI; p<0.001) and vegetable intake (p<0.001) increased. Age (p<0.001) and BMI (p<0.05) independently increased the IPSS. A higher level of education (p<0.001) and more frequent meat, fish and egg intake (p<0.05) decreased the IPSS. Age (p<0.001), BMI (p<0.001), low education level (p<0.05), vegetable intake (p=0.001), and milk and dairy product intake (p=0.001) decreased the IIEF-5 score.

Conclusions

In addition to factors including age, obesity and level of education, dietary habits and geographic difference might also play an important role in the variation of PV, LUTS and MSD for Chinese men with LUTS/BPH.
Weight for gestational age and metabolically healthy obesity in adults from the Haguenau cohort
Authors: Matta Joane , Carette Claire , Levy Marchal Claire , Bertrand Julien , Pétéra Mélanie , Zins Marie , Pujos-Guillot Estelle , Comte Blandine , Czernichow Sébastien
Published: September 2016

Background

An obesity subphenotype, named ‘metabolically healthy obese’ (MHO) has been recently defined to characterise a subgroup of obese individuals with less risk for cardiometabolic abnormalities. To date no data are available on participants born with small weight for gestational age (SGA) and the risk of metabolically unhealthy obesity (MUHO).

Objective

Assess the risk of MUHO in SGA versus appropriate for gestational age (AGA) adult participants.

Methods

129 young obese individuals (body mass index ≥30 kg/m²) from data of an 8-year follow-up Haguenau cohort (France), were identified out of 1308 participants and were divided into 2 groups: SGA (n=72) and AGA (n=57). Metabolic characteristics were analysed and compared using unpaired t-test. The HOMA-IR index was determined for the population and divided into quartiles. Obese participants within the first 3 quartiles were considered as MHO and those in the fourth quartile as MUHO. Relative risks (RRs) and 95% CI for being MUHO in SGA versus AGA participants were computed.

Results

The SGA-obese group had a higher risk of MUHO versus the AGA-obese group: RR=1.27 (95% CI 1.10 to 1.6) independently of age and sex.

Conclusions

In case of obesity, SGA might confer a higher risk of MUHO compared with AGA.
Radiology of the equine hock and proximal cannon
Authors: Jacklin Ben
Published: September 2016

Lameness associated with the hock (tarsus) and proximal cannon (metatarsus) is not uncommon in both performance and leisure horses, and radiographic evaluation is frequently indicated. In the hock, developmental orthopaedic disease predominates in juveniles, while mature animals more commonly present with degenerative or traumatic lesions. Radiographic pathology of the proximal metatarsus consists largely of traumatic injuries to the vestigial metatarsal bones and entheseous changes associated with the origin of a diseased suspensory ligament. Irrespective of the presenting complaint, a standardised, complete and accurate radiographic assessment should be undertaken where indicated. This article describes how this is best achieved and gives examples of some of the more common abnormalities encountered.
Goat health planning
Authors: Harwood David
Published: September 2016

The veterinary profession has been at the forefront of ensuring that health planning is now widely adopted in the farm animal sector; however, health planning is not widely undertaken in the goat sector. This may in part be due to the relatively small number of goats kept in the UK, but also to the wide variety of reasons for which goats are kept, from commercial dairy herds to hobby purposes. This article describes the areas that should be considered when constructing a health plan for goats.
Checklists and clinical governance: learning from the NHS
Authors: Oxtoby Catherine , Mossop Liz
Published: September 2016

As healthcare professions, medicine and veterinary medicine share many similarities. While the knowledge base and skills required may have fundamental species differences, the delivery of clinical care by vets and doctors is a very similar process, be it to a human or an animal. Here Catherine Oxtoby and Liz Mossop discuss clinical governance and the use of checklists in human medicine and the lessons for veterinary practice. A second article, to be published in a forthcoming issue of In Practice, will look at how checklists can be applied in a veterinary context.
Mobile veterinary service: an alternative business model
Authors: Forster Daniel , Forster Kirsty
Published: September 2016

Daniel and Kirsty Forster recently won a Queen's Award for Innovation for a mobile veterinary service on the Isle of Wight. Here they describe what led them to set up the service along with what was involved.
Can Lumbar Spine Bone Mineral Density Predict Readmission in Denosumab-Treated Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease?
Authors: Cheng Ben-Chung , Chen Ying-Chou
Published: September 2016

This study investigated whether bone mineral density (BMD) affects readmission risk in patients with chronic kidney diseases (CKD) who received denosumab therapy. The study design was a retrospective case review of patients with CKD. Baseline age, sex, and body mass index were recorded for all patients included in the study. All comorbidities were recorded. All subjects underwent dual energy X-ray absorptiometry assay of the lumbar spine and right hip for BMD. The primary outcome was readmission. Predictive variables were categorized and compared between readmitted and non-readmitted patients. Logistic regression was used for multivariable analysis. A total of 121 patients with CKD who received denosumab therapy were enrolled. Of these, 29 were readmitted within 2 years, and 92 had no readmission. The lumbar BMD differed between the readmission (−2.94±0.68) and non-readmission (−2.09±1.48) groups. The readmission group had a lower T score than the non-readmission group. When adjusted for potential confounding factors, a decreased lumbar BMD had a higher readmission risk. When the cut-off points determined by receiver operating characteristic curve analysis were applied, the most precise point was set at a T score of −3. Osteoporosis in patients with CKD is associated with a high risk of readmission; the best predictor after denosumab therapy was the lumbar spine T score. A lower T score (especially if <−3) was associated with a higher probability of fracture readmission. It is essential to optimize primary and secondary prevention in these patients to improve their quality of life.
Deployment technique that takes advantage of the characteristics of Enterprise VRD2: an in vitro study
Authors: Chihara Hideo , Ishii Akira , Kikuchi Takayuki , Ikeda Hiroyuki , Arai Daisuke , Miyamoto Susumu
Published: September 2016

Background

Enterprise VRD, a stent frequently used to assist coil embolization of cerebral aneurysms, has been upgraded to reduce the risk of incomplete stent apposition (ISA), a known risk factor for thromboembolic complications.

Objective

To compare the performances of Enterprise VRD and Enterprise VRD2 in curved vessels, and to investigate a deployment method that takes advantage of the features of Enterprise VRD2 to achieve better vessel wall apposition.

Materials and methods

A silicone vascular model connected to a temperature-adjustable perfusion circuit was used. First, Enterprise VRD and Enterprise VRD2 were deployed under fluoroscopy and then ISA was evaluated as the stent cross-sectional area ratio at the curved segment of the vessel. For the measurements, each stent was deployed in vessels with different angles of curvature. Second, the incidence of ISA after insertion of Enterprise VRD2 by the ‘pushing over outer curve technique’, in which stents are deployed along the outer curve of vessels with continuous wire advancement, was compared with ‘Heller's push and pull technique’.

Results

For all stents, the cross-sectional area ratio decreased with acute curvature of the vessel. Comparisons of the two stents showed that Enterprise VRD2 was better than Enterprise VRD in maintaining a greater cross-sectional area ratio in curved vessels. In addition, kinking with an acute curvature was also minimized with Enterprise VRD2. Furthermore, ISA was reduced using our technique with Enterprise VRD2.

Conclusions

Enterprise VRD2 is superior to Enterprise VRD in reducing ISA in curved vessels and can alter ISA according to the deployment technique used.
The road less traveled: transarterial embolization of dural arteriovenous fistulas via the ascending pharyngeal artery
Authors: Gross Bradley A , Albuquerque Felipe C , Moon Karam , McDougall Cameron G
Published: September 2016

Background

With the introduction of Onyx, transarterial embolization has become the most common endovascular approach to treating dural arteriovenous fistulas (dAVFs), often via the middle meningeal or occipital arteries. The ascending pharyngeal artery (APA) is a less frequently explored transarterial route because of its small caliber, potential anastomoses to the internal carotid and vertebral arteries, and vital supply to lower cranial nerves.

Objective

To review our institutional experience and highlight the prevalence of APA supply to dAVFs and cases where it is a safe and effective pedicle for embolization.

Methods

We reviewed our endovascular database (January 1, 1996 to March 1, 2016) for cranial dAVFs, evaluating dAVF characteristics and embolization results for those treated transarterially via the APA.

Results

Of 267 endovascularly treated dAVFs, 68 had APA supply (25%). Of these 68 dAVFs, embolization was carried out via this pedicle in 8 (12%) and 7 were ultimately occluded. No complications, including post-treatment cranial neuropathies or radiographic evidence of non-target embolization, were found. For 5 dAVFs, the APA was selected as the initial pedicle for embolization (two marginal sinus, one distal sigmoid, one cavernous, one tentorial). In four of these five cases, dAVF occlusion was achieved via the initial APA feeding artery pedicle. In one case, near-complete, stagnant occlusion was achieved after APA embolization; complete occlusion was achieved after adjunctive embolization of a single additional middle meningeal artery pedicle. In three other cases of complex transverse/sigmoid dAVFs, the APA was used after multiple attempts via middle meningeal and occipital artery pedicles. Occlusion was not achieved transarterially; two of these three dAVFs were ultimately occluded transvenously.

Conclusions

In rare, select cases, the APA is an excellent route for transarterial embolization of cranial dAVFs.
Endovascular thrombectomy for stroke: current best practice and future goals
Authors: Campbell Bruce C V , Donnan Geoffrey A , Mitchell Peter J , Davis Stephen M
Published: September 2016

Endovascular thrombectomy for large vessel ischaemic stroke substantially reduces disability, with recent positive randomised trials leading to guideline changes worldwide. This review discusses in detail the evidence provided by recent randomised trials and meta-analyses, the remaining areas of uncertainty and the future directions for research. The data from existing trials have demonstrated the robust benefit of endovascular thrombectomy for internal carotid and proximal middle cerebral artery occlusions. Uncertainty remains for more distal occlusions where the efficacy of alteplase is greater, less tissue is at risk and the safety of endovascular procedures is less established. Basilar artery occlusion was excluded from the trials, but with a dire natural history and proof of principle that rapid reperfusion is effective, it seems reasonable to continue treating these patients pending ongoing trial results. There has been no evidence of heterogeneity in treatment effect in clinically defined subgroups by age, indeed, those aged >80 years have at least as great an overall reduction in disability and reduced mortality. Similarly there was no heterogeneity across the range of baseline stroke severities included in the trials. Evidence that routine use of general anaesthesia reduces the benefit of endovascular thrombectomy is increasing and conscious sedation is generally preferred unless severe agitation or airway compromise is present. The impact of time delays has become clearer with description of onset to imaging and imaging to reperfusion epochs. Delays in the onset to imaging reduce the proportion of patients with salvageable brain tissue. However, in the presence of favourable imaging, rapid treatment appears beneficial regardless of the onset to imaging time elapsed. Imaging to reperfusion delays lead to decay in the clinical benefit achieved, particularly in those with less robust collateral flow. The brain imaging options to assess prognosis have various advantages and disadvantages, but whatever strategy is employed must be fast. Ongoing trials are investigating extended time windows, using advanced brain imaging selection. There is also a need for further technical advances to maximise rates of complete reperfusion in the minimum time.
A CBIR System for Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Images Using Endmember Extraction
Authors: Zhang Jing , Zhou Qianlan , Zhuo Li , Geng Wenhao , Wang Suyu
Published: September 2016

With the rapid development of remote sensing technology, searching the similar image is a challenge for hyperspectral remote sensing image processing. Meanwhile, the dramatic growth in the amount of hyperspectral remote sensing data has stimulated considerable research on content-based image retrieval (CBIR) in the field of remote sensing technology. Although many CBIR systems have been developed, few studies focused on the hyperspectral remote sensing images. A CBIR system for hyperspectral remote sensing image using endmember extraction is proposed in this paper. The main contributions of our method are that: (1) the endmembers as the spectral features are extracted from hyperspectral remote sensing image by improved automatic pixel purity index (APPI) algorithm; (2) the spectral information divergence and spectral angle match (SID–SAM) mixed measure method is utilized as a similarity measurement between hyperspectral remote sensing images. At last, the images are ranked with descending and the top-[Formula: see text] retrieved images are returned. The experimental results on NASA datasets show that our system can yield a superior performance.
Moving Least Squares (MLS) Method for the Nonlinear Hyperbolic Telegraph Equation with Variable Coefficients
Authors: Mardani A. , Hooshmandasl M. R. , Hosseini M. M. , Heydari M. H.
Published: September 2016

Telegraph equation which widely used for modeling many engineering and physical phenomena has considered by some researchers in recent years. In this paper, a numerical scheme based on the moving least squares (MLS) approximation and finite difference method (FDM) is proposed for solving a class of the nonlinear hyperbolic telegraph equation with variable coefficients. In the new developed scheme, we use collocation points and approximate solution of the problem under study by using MLS approximation. The MLS method is a meshless approach and does not need any background mesh structure. A time stepping approach is employed for the first- and second-order time derivatives. The proposed method provides a semi-discrete solutions for the problems under study. In space domain, the MLS approximation and in time domain, the finite difference technique are employed. This method after discretization leads to a linear system of algebraic equations. Some numerical results are given and compared with analytical solutions to demonstrate the validity and efficiency of the proposed technique.
Coprecipitation Synthesis of Fe-doped ZnO Powders with Enhanced Microwave Absorption Properties
Authors: Shu Ruiwen , Wang Xin , Yang Yingying , Tang Xiayu , Zhou Xian , Cheng Yangfan
Published: September 2016

In this work, the Fe-doped ZnO powders have been synthesized by a facile chemical coprecipitation method. The structure, morphology and magnetic properties of the as-prepared powders were characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), energy dispersive X-ray spectrum (EDS), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and vibrating sample magnetometer (VSM). The results showed that the Fe ions were well incorporated into the crystal lattice of ZnO and had a valence state of [Formula: see text]. The magnetization curves indicated the Fe-doped ZnO presented the ferromagnetic behavior at room temperature. Moreover, the electromagnetic (EM) parameters and microwave absorption properties of Fe-doped ZnO/paraffin wax in the frequency range of 2–18[Formula: see text]GHz were explored. The minimum reflection loss reached [Formula: see text] dB at 6.6 GHz, and the reflection loss less than [Formula: see text] dB was 4.0 GHz (from 11.0[Formula: see text]GHz to 15.0[Formula: see text]GHz) with a thickness of only 2.5 mm. Significantly, the enhanced microwave absorption of the as-prepared powders could be achieved by doping with Fe[Formula: see text] ions or varying the thickness of the absorbers. The mechanism of microwave absorption were attributed to the good impedance matching, the dielectric loss resulted from the crystal lattice defects and the magnetic loss originated from the natural resonance. It is believed that the Fe-doped ZnO powders could be used as potential microwave absorbers.
Facile Synthesis of Fluorine Doped Graphitic Carbon Nitride with Enhanced Visible Light Photocatalytic Activity
Authors: Xu Mengqiu , Chai Bo , Yan Juntao , Wang Haibo , Ren Zhandong , Paik Kyung-Wook
Published: September 2016

Fluorine doped graphitic carbon nitride (g-C3N4) was successfully synthesized by a convenient co-polycondensation of urea and ammonium fluoride (NH4F) mixtures, and characterized by X-ray diffraction (XRD), field emission scanning electron microscopy (FESEM), X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), Fourier transform infrared spectra (FTIR), UV-Vis diffuse reflectance absorption spectra (UV-DRS), nitrogen adsorption–desorption, photoelectrochemical measurement and photoluminescence (PL) spectra. The photocatalytic activities of fluorine doped g-C3N4 samples were evaluated by the degradation of Rhodamine B (RhB) solution under visible light irradiation. The results showed that the fluorine doped g-C3N4 had a better photocatalytic activity than that of undoped g-C3N4, which was attributed to the favorable textural, optical and electronic properties derived from the fluorine atoms substituting nitrogen atoms of g-C3N4 frameworks. The photoelectrochemical measurements confirmed that the charges separation efficiency was improved by fluorine doping g-C3N4. Moreover, the tests of radical scavengers demonstrated that the holes (h[Formula: see text]) and superoxide radicals ([Formula: see text]O[Formula: see text]) were the main active species for the degradation of RhB.
Two-Dimensional Materials Beyond Graphene: Emerging Opportunities for Biomedicine
Authors: Qiu Yang
Published: September 2016

With the rise of graphene, there is growing attention on two-dimensional (2D) materials in the physical science community during the last decade. Most studies to date focus on the rich set of their superior electrical, optical, catalytic and electrochemical properties and highlight the encouraging opportunities for developing next generation electronics, optoelectronics, catalysis, and energy storage technologies. On the contrary, the biomedicine community has barely recognized the potential of these materials other than graphene. There are very limited published studies on these materials’ biological effects and biomedical applications. Here, we present a brief overview of 2D materials and discuss their potential for biomedical applications in hope of raising biomedical researchers’ awareness of the great opportunities associated with these materials. We first discuss the emergence of 2D materials and review two most important prerequisites for 2D materials’ biomedical applications, synthesis and biocompatibility. We then categorize the existing studies on 2D materials’ biomedical applications into biosensing, drug/gene delivery, antimicrobial, bioimaging and multimode therapeutic applications. We would put special emphasis on the great flexibility of various rational combinations of 2D material superior properties for the design and construction of assorted forms of reagents or devices with highly effective simultaneous diagnostic and therapeutic functions (or theranostics functions). At last, the newly emerging 2D black phosphorous with very rare and interesting properties is introduced as the next promising and important 2D materials to study in the upcoming years.
Strategy for the engineering integration of the ESS accelerator
Authors: Gazis Nikolaos , McGinnis David , Molloy Stephen , Tanke Eugene , Hardh Carl-Johan , Lundgren Daniel
Published: September 2016

The European Spallation Source (ESS), currently under construction in Lund, Sweden, will be the world’s most powerful source of neutrons. The goal is to deliver neutrons to users in 2019 and reach full power sometime in the middle of the following decade. One of the key issues for ESS is to develop a strategy, along with the proper innovative tools, to efficiently communicate and smoothly collaborate between divisions and groups inside ESS and with its outside collaborators, so-called In-Kind Contributors (IKC). Technical requirements related to the scope to be delivered are among the most important technical information to be exchanged. This information exchange is facilitated by using a commercial requirements management database that is accessible through the web. The physics multidisciplinary needs are linked with the engineering integration through LinacLego, which is a tool that provides all updated lattice data for the accelerator. The lattice information is then gathered and utilized to control the physical positioning of the mechanical engineering components for the accelerator. The precision for this operation is provided by a dedicated mechanical design skeleton in a Computer Aided Design (CAD) environment. Finally, the realization of all these steps is supervised in detail and continuously evaluated. In this way the required ESS machine design can be delivered, both in terms of the engineering and the physics aspects.
Generation of high-energy neutron beam by fragmentation of relativistic heavy nuclei
Authors: Yurevich Vladimir
Published: September 2016

The phenomenon of multiple production of neutrons in reactions with heavy nuclei induced by high-energy protons and light nuclei is analyzed using a Moving Source Model. The Lorentz transformation of the obtained neutron distributions is used to study the neutron characteristics in the inverse kinematics where relativistic heavy nuclei bombard a light-mass target. The neutron beam generated at 0[Formula: see text]has a Gaussian shape with a maximum at the energy of the projectile nucleons and an energy resolution [Formula: see text]/[Formula: see text] above 6 GeV.
Use of linear regression models to determine influence factors on the concentration levels of radon in occupied houses
Authors: Buermeyer Jonas , Gundlach Matthias , Grund Anna-Lisa , Grimm Volker , Spizyn Alexander , Breckow Joachim
Published: September 2016

This work is part of the analysis of the effects of constructional energy-saving measures to radon concentration levels in dwellings performed on behalf of the German Federal Office for Radiation Protection. In parallel to radon measurements for five buildings, both meteorological data outside the buildings and the indoor climate factors were recorded. In order to access effects of inhabited buildings, the amount of carbon dioxide (CO[Formula: see text] was measured. For a statistical linear regression model, the data of one object was chosen as an example. Three dummy variables were extracted from the process of the CO2 concentration to provide information on the usage and ventilation of the room. The analysis revealed a highly autoregressive model for the radon concentration with additional influence by the natural environmental factors. The autoregression implies a strong dependency on a radon source since it reflects a backward dependency in time. At this point of the investigation, it cannot be determined whether the influence by outside factors affects the source of radon or the habitant’s ventilation behavior resulting in variation of the occurring concentration levels. In any case, the regression analysis might provide further information that would help to distinguish these effects. In the next step, the influence factors will be weighted according to their impact on the concentration levels. This might lead to a model that enables the prediction of radon concentration levels based on the measurement of CO2 in combination with environmental parameters, as well as the development of advices for ventilation.
A new compact neutron/gamma ray scintillation detector
Authors: Buffler A. , Comrie A. C. , Smit F. D. , Wörtche H. J.
Published: September 2016

Progress towards the realization of a new compact neutron spectrometer is described. The detector is based on EJ299-33 plastic scintillator coupled to silicon photomultipliers, and a digital implementation of pulse shape discrimination is used to separate events associated with neutrons from those associated with gamma rays. The spectrometer will be suitable over the neutron energy range 1–100 MeV, illustrated in this work with measurements made using an AmBe radioisotopic source and quasi-monoenergetic neutron beams produced using a cyclotron.
Standardized terminology and test methods for sulphur mineral phases for the assessment of construction materials and aggressive ground
Authors: Czerewko M. A. , Longworth I. , Reid J. M. , Cripps J. C.
Published: September 2016

Damage to buried structures caused by the oxidation of pyrite in structural backfill and the surrounding natural ground affected a number of British highway schemes during the late 1990s. Although the levels of sulphate in these materials had been determined prior to construction by the methods current at that time, the potential for sulphate that was subsequently generated by the oxidation of pyrite was not adequately assessed. Accordingly, new test methods, guidance and appraisal strategies were developed for assessing structural backfills and soil stabilization materials and potentially aggressive ground. This included defining a series of parameters that were then used in the classification and assessment of the natural ground and geomaterials in contact with structures. The experience of the authors has indicated that many practitioners do not to fully appreciate the chemical origin of the sulphur species or the precise meaning of the terminology, leading to misuse of the terminology. There is much scope for confusion and significant risk both that materials will be needlessly rejected and that inappropriate materials or construction practices will be used. The potential effects of recent changes to the test methods for sulphur compounds in the UK Specification for Highway Works provide additional justification for practitioners and researchers to understand what the tests measure and how to use the results. The aim of this paper is to provide a clear explanation of the sulphur chemistry and terminology for use in ground engineering.
A Novel Embedded Interpolation Algorithm with Negative Squared Distance for Real-Time Endomicroscopy
Authors: Chiew Wei Ming , Lin Feng , Seah Hock Soon
Published: September 2016

Interpolation is the most executed operation and one of the main bottlenecks in embedded imaging, registration, and rendering systems. Existing methods either lack parallelization and scalability capabilities or are too computationally complex to execute efficiently. Acknowledging that improving execution time leads to degradation in image quality, we formulate a novel Negative Squared Distance (NSD) interpolation method that exhibits excellent performance by exploiting Look-Up Table (LUT) optimization for Field Programmable Gate Array (FPGA) speedup, with a balanced trade-off in quality in our embedded endomicroscopic imaging system. Quantitative analysis on performance and resource utilization of NSD against existing methods is reported through an implementation on a Xilinx ML605 platform. Functional validation using practical image resizing and rotation applications to compare qualitative performance against existing algorithms is performed and presented with visual and numerical results. Our method is shown to have a smaller design size and produces a maximum throughput of over twofold against trilinear interpolation with on-par image quality as the baseline method.
VecRA
Authors: You Yi-Ping , Chen Szu-Chien
Published: September 2016

Graphics processing units (GPUs) are now widely used in embedded systems for manipulating computer graphics and even for general-purpose computation. However, many embedded systems have to manage highly restricted hardware resources in order to achieve high performance or energy efficiency. The number of registers is one of the common limiting factors in an embedded GPU design. Programs that run with a low number of registers may suffer from high register pressure if register allocation is not properly designed, especially on a GPU in which a register is divided into four elements and each element can be accessed separately, because allocating a register for a vector-type variable that does not contain values in all elements wastes register spaces. In this article, we present a
vector-aware register allocation
framework to improve register utilization on shader architectures. The framework involves two major components: (1)
element-based register allocation
that allocates registers based on the element requirement of variables and (2)
register packing
that rearranges elements of registers in order to increase the number of contiguous free elements, thereby keeping more live variables in registers. Experimental results on a cycle-approximate simulator showed that the proposed framework decreased 92% of register spills in total and made 91.7% of 14 common shader programs spill free. These results indicate an opportunity for energy management of the space that is used for storing spilled variables, with the framework improving the performance by a geometric mean of 8.3%, 16.3%, and 29.2% for general shader processors in which variables are spilled to memory with 5-, 10-, and 20-cycle access latencies, respectively. Furthermore, the reduction in the register requirement of programs enabled another 11 programs with high register pressure to be runnable on a lightweight GPU.
Reliability-Aware Adaptations for Shared Last-Level Caches in Multi-Cores
Authors: Kriebel Florian , Rehman Semeen , Subramaniyan Arun , Ahandagbe Segnon Jean Bruno , Shafique Muhammad , Henkel Jörg
Published: September 2016

On account of their large footprint, on-chip last-level caches in multi-core systems are one of the most vulnerable components to soft errors. However, vulnerability to soft errors highly depends on the configuration and parameters of the last-level cache, especially when executing different applications concurrently. In this article we propose a novel reliability-aware reconfigurable last-level cache architecture (R
2
Cache) and cache vulnerability model for multi-cores. R
2
Cache supports various reliability-wise efficient cache configurations (i.e., cache parameter selection and cache partitioning) for different concurrently executing applications. The proposed vulnerability model takes into account the vulnerability of both the
data
and
tag
arrays as well as the active cache area for applications in different execution phases. To enable runtime adaptations, we introduce a lightweight online vulnerability predictor that exploits the knowledge of performance metrics like number of L2 misses to accurately estimate the cache vulnerability to soft errors. Based on the predicted vulnerabilities of different concurrently executing applications in the current execution epoch, our runtime reliability manager reconfigures the cache such that, for the next execution epoch, the total vulnerability for all concurrently executing applications is minimized under user-provided tolerable performance/energy overheads. In scenarios where single-bit error correction for cache lines may be afforded, vulnerability-aware reconfigurations can be leveraged to increase the reliability of the last-level cache against multi-bit errors. Compared to state-of-the-art vulnerability-minimizing and reconfigurable caches, the proposed architecture provides 35.27% and 23.42% vulnerability savings, respectively, when averaged across numerous experiments, while reducing the vulnerability by more than 65% and 60%, respectively, for selected applications and application phases.
Guest Column
Authors: Kopparty Swastik , Saraf Shubhangi
Published: September 2016

We survey the state of the art in constructions of locally testable codes, locally decodable codes and locally correctable codes of high rate.
Online Algorithms with Advice: A Survey
Authors: Boyar Joan , Favrholdt Lene M. , Kudahl Christian , Larsen Kim S. , Mikkelsen Jesper W.
Published: September 2016

Online algorithms with advice is an area of research where one attempts to measure how much knowledge of the future is necessary to achieve a given competitive ratio. The lower bound results give robust bounds on what is possible using semi-online algorithms. On the other hand, when the advice is of an obtainable form, algorithms using advice can lead to semi-online algorithms. There are strong relationships between advice complexity and randomization, and advice complexity has led to the introduction of the first complexity classes for online problems.

This survey concerning online algorithms with advice explains the models, motivates the study in general, presents some examples of the work that has been carried out, and includes a fairly complete set of references, organized by problem studied.
Rethinking glomerular basement membrane thickening in diabetic nephropathy: adaptive or pathogenic?
Authors: Marshall Caroline B.
Published: September 2016

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is the leading cause of chronic kidney disease in the United States and is a major cause of cardiovascular disease and death. DN develops insidiously over a span of years before clinical manifestations, including microalbuminuria and declining glomerular filtration rate (GFR), are evident. During the clinically silent period, structural lesions develop, including glomerular basement membrane (GBM) thickening, mesangial expansion, and glomerulosclerosis. Once microalbuminuria is clinically apparent, structural lesions are often considerably advanced, and GFR decline may then proceed rapidly toward end-stage kidney disease. Given the current lack of sensitive biomarkers for detecting early DN, a shift in focus toward examining the cellular and molecular basis for the earliest structural change in DN, i.e., GBM thickening, may be warranted. Observed within one to two years following the onset of diabetes, GBM thickening precedes clinically evident albuminuria. In the mature glomerulus, the podocyte is likely key in modifying the GBM, synthesizing and assembling matrix components, both in physiological and pathological states. Podocytes also secrete matrix metalloproteinases, crucial mediators in extracellular matrix turnover. Studies have shown that the critical podocyte-GBM interface is disrupted in the diabetic milieu. Just as healthy podocytes are essential for maintaining the normal GBM structure and function, injured podocytes likely have a fundamental role in upsetting the balance between the GBM's synthetic and degradative pathways. This article will explore the biological significance of GBM thickening in DN by reviewing what is known about the GBM's formation, its maintenance during health, and its disruption in DN.
Optical coherence tomography in the assessment of acute changes in cutaneous vascular diameter induced by heat stress
Authors: Carter Howard H. , Gong Peijun , Kirk Rodney W. , Es'haghian Shaghayegh , Atkinson Ceri L. , Sampson David D. , Green Daniel J. , McLaughlin Robert A.
Published: September 2016

There are limited imaging technologies available that can accurately assess or provide surrogate markers of the in vivo cutaneous microvessel network in humans. In this study, we establish the use of optical coherence tomography (OCT) as a novel imaging technique to assess acute changes in cutaneous microvessel area density and diameter in humans. OCT speckle decorrelation images of the skin on the ventral side of the forearm up to a depth of 500 μm were obtained prior to and following 20-25 min of lower limb heating in eight healthy men [30.3 ± 7.6 (SD) yr]. Skin red blood cell flux was also collected using laser Doppler flowmetry probes immediately adjacent to the OCT skin sites, along with skin temperature. OCT speckle decorrelation images were obtained at both baseline and heating time points. Forearm skin flux increased significantly (0.20 ± 0.15 to 1.75 ± 0.38 cutaneous vascular conductance, P < 0.01), along with forearm skin temperature (32.0 ± 1.2 to 34.3 ± 1.0°C, P < 0.01). Quantitative differences in the automated calculation of vascular area densities (26 ± 9 to 49 ± 19%, P < 0.01) and individual microvessel diameters (68 ± 17 to 105 ± 25 μm, P < 0.01) were evident following the heating session. This is the first in vivo within-subject assessment of acute changes in the cutaneous microvasculature in response to heating in humans and highlights the use of OCT as an exciting new imaging approach for skin physiology and clinical research.
Feedforward compensation for novel dynamics depends on force field orientation but is similar for the left and right arms
Authors: Reuter Eva-Maria , Cunnington Ross , Mattingley Jason B. , Riek Stephan , Carroll Timothy J.
Published: September 2016

There are well-documented differences in the way that people typically perform identical motor tasks with their dominant and the nondominant arms. According to Yadav and Sainburg's ( Neuroscience 196: 153–167, 2011) hybrid-control model, this is because the two arms rely to different degrees on impedance control versus predictive control processes. Here, we assessed whether differences in limb control mechanisms influence the rate of feedforward compensation to a novel dynamic environment. Seventy-five healthy, right-handed participants, divided into four subsamples depending on the arm (left, right) and direction of the force field (ipsilateral, contralateral), reached to central targets in velocity-dependent curl force fields. We assessed the rate at which participants developed predictive compensation for the force field using intermittent error-clamp trials and assessed both kinematic errors and initial aiming angles in the field trials. Participants who were exposed to fields that pushed the limb toward ipsilateral space reduced kinematic errors more slowly, built up less predictive field compensation, and relied more on strategic reaiming than those exposed to contralateral fields. However, there were no significant differences in predictive field compensation or kinematic errors between limbs, suggesting that participants using either the left or the right arm could adapt equally well to novel dynamics. It therefore appears that the distinct preferences in control mechanisms typically observed for the dominant and nondominant arms reflect a default mode that is based on habitual functional requirements rather than an absolute limit in capacity to access the controller specialized for the opposite limb.
Robust modulation of arousal regulation, performance, and frontostriatal activity through central thalamic deep brain stimulation in healthy nonhuman primates
Authors: Baker Jonathan L. , Ryou Jae-Wook , Wei Xuefeng F. , Butson Christopher R. , Schiff Nicholas D. , Purpura Keith P.
Published: September 2016

The central thalamus (CT) is a key component of the brain-wide network underlying arousal regulation and sensory-motor integration during wakefulness in the mammalian brain. Dysfunction of the CT, typically a result of severe brain injury (SBI), leads to long-lasting impairments in arousal regulation and subsequent deficits in cognition. Central thalamic deep brain stimulation (CT-DBS) is proposed as a therapy to reestablish and maintain arousal regulation to improve cognition in select SBI patients. However, a mechanistic understanding of CT-DBS and an optimal method of implementing this promising therapy are unknown. Here we demonstrate in two healthy nonhuman primates (NHPs), Macaca mulatta, that location-specific CT-DBS improves performance in visuomotor tasks and is associated with physiological effects consistent with enhancement of endogenous arousal. Specifically, CT-DBS within the lateral wing of the central lateral nucleus and the surrounding medial dorsal thalamic tegmental tract (DTTm) produces a rapid and robust modulation of performance and arousal, as measured by neuronal activity in the frontal cortex and striatum. Notably, the most robust and reliable behavioral and physiological responses resulted when we implemented a novel method of CT-DBS that orients and shapes the electric field within the DTTm using spatially separated DBS leads. Collectively, our results demonstrate that selective activation within the DTTm of the CT robustly regulates endogenous arousal and enhances cognitive performance in the intact NHP; these findings provide insights into the mechanism of CT-DBS and further support the development of CT-DBS as a therapy for reestablishing arousal regulation to support cognition in SBI patients.
Investigation of Free Particle Propagator with Generalized Uncertainty Problem
Authors: Ghobakhloo F. , Hassanabadi H.
Published: September 2016

We consider the Schrödinger equation with a generalized uncertainty principle for a free particle. We then transform the problem into a second-order ordinary differential equation and thereby obtain the corresponding propagator. The result of ordinary quantum mechanics is recovered for vanishing minimal length parameter.
Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing Determination of Distinctive DNA Hypermethylated Genes in the Progression to Colon Cancer in African Americans
Authors: Ashktorab Hassan , Shakoori Afnan , Zarnogi Shatha , Sun Xueguang , Varma Sudhir , Lee Edward , Shokrani Babak , Laiyemo Adeyinka O. , Washington Kareem , Brim Hassan
Published: September 2016

Background and Aims. Many studies have focused on the determination of methylated targets in colorectal cancer. However, few analyzed the progressive methylation in the sequence from normal to adenoma and ultimately to malignant tumors. This is of utmost importance especially in populations such as African Americans who generally display aggressive tumors at diagnosis and for whom markers of early neoplasia are needed. We aimed to determine methylated targets in the path to colon cancer in African American patients using Reduced Representation Bisulfite Sequencing (RRBS).Methods. Genomic DNA was isolated from fresh frozen tissues of patients with different colon lesions: normal, a tubular adenoma, a tubulovillous adenoma, and five cancers. RRBS was performed on these DNA samples to identify hypermethylation. Alignment, mapping, and confirmed CpG methylation analyses were performed. Preferential hypermethylated pathways were determined using Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA).Results. We identified hypermethylated CpG sites in the following genes:L3MBTL1, NKX6-2, PREX1, TRAF7, PRDM14, andNEFMwith the number of CpG sites being 14, 17, 10, 16, 6, and 6, respectively, after pairwise analysis of normal versus adenoma, adenoma versus cancer, and normal versus cancer. IPA mapped the above-mentioned hypermethylated genes to the Wnt/β-catenin, PI3k/AKT, VEGF, and JAK/STAT3 signaling pathways.Conclusion. This work provides insight into novel differential CpGs hypermethylation sites in colorectal carcinogenesis. Functional analysis of the novel gene targets is needed to confirm their roles in their associated carcinogenic pathways.