bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
High‐speed atmospheric atomic layer deposition of ultra thin amorphous TiO2 blocking layers at 100 °C for inverted bulk heterojunction solar cells
Authors: Muñoz‐Rojas David , Sun Haiyan , Iza Diana C. , Weickert Jonas , Chen Li , Wang Haiyan , Schmidt‐Mende Lukas , MacManus‐Driscoll Judith L.
Published: April 2013

Ultrafast, spatial atmospheric atomic layer deposition, which does not involve vacuum steps and is compatible with roll‐to‐roll processing, is used to grow high quality TiO2 blocking layers for organic solar cells. Dense, uniform thin TiO2 films are grown at temperatures as low as 100 °C in only 37 s (~20 nm/min growth rate). Incorporation of these films in P3HT‐PCBM‐based solar cells shows performances comparable with cells made using TiO2 films deposited with much longer processing times and/or higher temperatures. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Elucidation of in situ polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon degradation by functional metaproteomics (protein‐SIP)
Authors: Herbst Florian‐Alexander , Bahr Arne , Duarte Marcia , Pieper Dietmar H. , Richnow Hans‐Hermann , von Bergen Martin , Seifert Jana , Bombach Petra
Published: April 2013

Current knowledge of the physiology and phylogeny of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) degrading bacteria often relies on laboratory enrichments and isolations. In the present study, in situ microcosms consisting of activated carbon pellets (BACTRAP®s) were loaded with either 13C‐naphthalene or 13C‐fluorene and were subsequently exposed in the contaminant source and plume fringe region of a PAH‐contaminated aquifer. Metaproteomic analysis and protein‐stable isotope probing revealed Burkholderiales, Actinomycetales, and Rhizobiales as the most active microorganisms in the groundwater communities. Proteins identified of the naphthalene degradation pathway showed a relative 13C isotope abundance of approximately 50 atom% demonstrating that the identified naphthalene‐degrading bacteria gained at least 80% of their carbon by PAH degradation. Although the microbial community grown on the fluorene‐BACTRAPs showed a structure similar to the naphthalene‐BACTRAPs, the identification of fluorene degraders and degradation pathways failed in situ. In complementary laboratory microcosms, a clear enrichment in proteins related to Rhodococcus and possible fluorene degradation enzymes was observed. This result demonstrates the impact of laboratory conditions on microbial community structure and activity of certain species and underlines the need on in situ exploration of microbial community functions. In situ microcosms in combination with protein‐stable isotope probing may be a significant tool for in situ identification of metabolic key players as well as degradation pathways.
Kinetics and mechanism of the reaction of alkoxymethylidene malonate and malononitrile with hydrazines and anilines
Authors: Tarabová Denisa , Milata Viktor , Hanusek Jiří
Published: April 2013

The kinetics and mechanism of the nucleophilic vinylic substitution of dialkyl (alkoxymethylidene)malonates (alkyl: methyl, ethyl) and (ethoxymethylidene)malononitrile with substituted hydrazines and anilines R1–NH2 (R1: (CH3)2N, CH3NH, NH2, C6H5NH, CH3CONH, 4‐CH3C6H4SO2NH, 3‐ and 4‐X‐C6H4; X: H, 4‐Br, 4‐CH3, 4‐CH3O, 3‐Cl) were studied at 25 °C in methanol. It was found that the reactions with all hydrazines (the only exception was the reaction of (ethoxymethylidene)malononitrile with N,N‐dimethylhydrazine) showed overall second‐order kinetics and kobs were linearly dependent on the hydrazine concentration which is consistent with the rate‐limiting attack of the hydrazine on the double bond of the substrate. Corresponding Brønsted plots are linear (without deviating N‐methyl and N,N‐dimethylhydrazine), and their slopes (βNuc) gradually increase from 0.59 to 0.71 which reflects gradually increasing order of the C–N bond formed in the transition state. The deviation of both methylated hydrazines is probably caused by the different site of nucleophilicity/basicity in these compounds (tertiary/secondary vs. primary nitrogen). A somewhat different situation was observed with the anilines (and once with N,N‐dimethylhydrazine) where parabolic dependences of the kinetics gradually changing to linear dependences as the concentration of nucleophile/base increases. The second‐order term in the nucleophile indicates the presence of a steady‐state intermediate ‐ most probably T±. Brønsted and Hammett plots gave βNuc = 1.08 and ρ = −3.7 which is consistent with a late transition state whose structure resembles T±. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Anomalies in high‐field growth of aluminium oxide using pulse anodizing
Authors: Schneider M. , Lämmel C. , Heubner C. , Michaelis A.
Published: April 2013

The present work is motivated by own studies about the heat impact during hard anodizing where the influence of voltage pulse modulation on the temperature development inside anodic films was investigated. For a better understanding of the interplay between pulse modulation and oxide formation, pulse experiments were carried out in an acetate buffer electrolyte with varying pulse parameters. Under these conditions, the oxide film only consists of a pore free barrier layer. The authors started from the presumption that the oxide film formation follows the high‐field mechanism that is well evidenced for single pulse experiments. The oxide properties were characterized by electrochemical experiments. The authors found significant differences of the oxide properties depending on the pulse parameters that cannot be explained by high‐field law of oxide formation. The results suggest a changing in the oxide properties (density, short‐range order and content of electrolyte species) generated by pulse anodizing. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Beta prime regression with application to risky behavior frequency screening
Authors: Tulupyev Alexander , Suvorova Alena , Sousa Jennifer , Zelterman Daniel
Published: April 2013

Our aim is to model the frequency of certain behavioral acts, especially those that are likely to transmit communicable diseases between persons. We develop a generalized linear model on the basis of the beta prime distribution to model the responses to a survey question of the form, ‘When was the last time that you engaged in this behavior?’ Intuitively, individuals reporting more recent events are more likely to have greater frequency of the risky behavior. The beta prime distribution is especially suited to this application because of its long tail. We adjust for length‐biased sampling. We show how to use this distribution as the basis of a linear regression model that accounts for differences in demographic and psychological characteristics of the respondents. We discuss estimation of parameters, residuals, tests for heterogeneity of these parameters, and jackknife measures of influence. We apply the methods to a survey of alcohol abuse use among individuals who are at high risk for spreading HIV and other communicable diseases in a study conducted in Saint Petersburg, Russia. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Relationship between Recent Stressful Life Events, Personality Traits, Perceived Family Functioning and Internet Addiction among College Students
Authors: Yan Wansen , Li Yonghui , Sui Nan
Published: April 2013

Internet addiction (IA) is an emerging social and mental health issue among youths. Analysis of risk factors, as well as their interactions, is crucial for understanding the development of IA. This study investigated the relationship between recent stressful life events, personality traits, perceived family functioning and IA in 892 college students. Subjects were classified into categories (non‐addicted, mild IA or severe IA) using the Chen Internet Addiction Scale. Stressful life events, personality traits and family functioning were assessed using the Adolescent Self‐Rating Life Events Checklist, the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire, and the Family Adaptability and Cohesion Scale, respectively. The results indicated that compared with non‐addicted subjects, subjects with severe IA (9.98%) had lower family functioning, lower extraversion, higher neuroticism and psychoticism, and more stressful life events, and subjects with mild IA (11.21%) had higher neuroticism and more health and adaptation problems. Neuroticism and health and adaptation problems were potential predictors of IA. An interaction effect between psychoticism and total life stress on IA was also found. These findings highlight the role of personality traits and life stress and their interactions in college students' IA. Further research should explore the mechanisms underlying the interaction effect of psychoticism with life stress on IA. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Laux‐type Oxidation of In0 Nanoparticles to In2O3 Retaining Particle Size and Colloidal Stability
Authors: Hammarberg Elin , Feldmann Claus
Published: April 2013

As a conceptual study, In0 nanoparticles are obtained by NaBH4‐driven reduction of InCl3 · 4H2O and transferred from a polar/hydrophilic diethylene glycol phase to a non‐polar hydrophobic dodecane phase for purification and stabilization. Finally, the In0 nanoparticles are oxidized via a Laux‐like reaction with nitrobenzene to In2O3 nanoparticles. The challenge of the reaction is to perform the final oxidation to In2O3 under mild conditions with the colloidal stability, particle size and particle size distribution of the initial In0 nanoparticles retained. To this concern, the mean diameter of the initial In0 nanoparticles changed from 11(1) to 14(2) nm of the oxidized In2O3 nanoparticles. Such multi‐step reaction, including reduction, nucleation, phase transfer, exchange of surface capping and oxidation are of increasing importance for nanoparticles. Especially, Laux‐type conditions with nitrobenzene as a molecular oxidizing agent of nanoparticles have not been used till now. Particle size, size distribution and chemical composition of the In0 and In2O3 nanoparticles are analyzed by DLS, SEM, XRD, FT‐IR and HRTEM.
Effectiveness of 2‥ CHG Cloth Bathing for Reducing Surgical Site Infections
Authors: Graling Paula R. , Vasaly Frances W.
Published: April 2013

We conducted a prospective cohort study on the effectiveness of preoperative bathing with chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) cloths for reducing surgical site infections. We hypothesized that use of CHG cloths as an adjunct to surgical prep would significantly reduce the endogenous flora of surgical patients and therefore reduce surgical site infections. Data from a control group of patients who had undergone general, vascular, and orthopedic surgery were used for comparison. Results indicated an overall reduction of infection in the group that received a 2% CHG bath before surgery. There also was a possible reduction in postoperative organ space infection, although the sample numbers were extremely small. To reduce surgical site infections, we suggest a nursing protocol of preoperative bathing with a 2% CHG cloth for patients undergoing general and vascular surgery, and an additional trial to investigate the use of preoperative CHG cloth baths in all surgical patient populations.
Quality Improvement: Single‐Field Sterile Scrub, Prep, and Dwell for Laparoscopic Hysterectomy
Authors: O'Hanlan Katherine A. , McCutcheon Stacey Paris , McCutcheon John G. , Charvonia Beth E.
Published: April 2013

The vulva and vaginal interior are considered a contaminated surgical area, and current OR guidelines require surgeons who are gloved and gowned at the abdominal field to avoid contact with the urethral catheter, the uterine manipulator, and the introitus or to change their gloves and even regown if contact occurs. It is our belief that the perception of the vaginal field as contaminated reflects a lack of specific standards for the preoperative cleansing of the deeper vagina and a lack of preoperative prep instructions for the combined fields. We developed a comprehensive single‐field prep technique designed to improve surgical efficiency and prevent contamination of the sterile field. Combining a methodical scrub, prep, and dwell, this technique allows the entire abdomino‐perineovaginal field to be treated as a single sterile field for laparoscopic procedures. Our surgical site infection rate of 1.8% when using this single‐field prep technique and the subsequent surgical treatment of the abdominal, vaginal, and perineal fields as a single sterile field is well within reported norms.
Differences in Intraoperative Prep Solutions: A Retrospective Chart Review
Authors: Zinn Jennifer , Jenkins Jeanne B. , Harrelson Beverly , Wrenn Cynthia , Haynes Elisa , Small Nicole
Published: April 2013

Surgical site infections (SSIs) are the most common type of health care‐associated infection in surgical patients. We wanted to identify which intraoperative prep solution used in our health network for adult open abdominal surgical procedures resulted in the lowest incidence of SSI 30 days after surgery. In addition, we wanted to know specifically how parachoroxylenol compared with chlorhexidine gluconate, povidone‐iodine, and 0.7% iodine and 74% isopropyl alcohol as an intraoperative prep solution. We conducted a retrospective medical record review of 162 consecutive patients ages 18 years and older who had undergone elective open abdominal procedures from December 2008 to December 2010 at four acute care community hospitals within an integrated, tertiary health network in the southeastern United States. No SSIs occurred after procedures in which parachoroxylenol intraoperative prep solution was used (n = 71), whereas five SSIs occurred after procedures in which other prep solutions (ie, chlorhexidine gluconate [no SSIs], povidone‐iodine [two SSIs], and 0.7% iodine and 74% isopropyl alcohol [three SSIs]) were used (n = 91). A chi‐square test indicated a significant difference in the incidence of SSIs among patients prepped with parachoroxylenol intraoperative prep solution compared to patients prepped with the other solutions.
Effect of Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055 in fermented milk on abdominal adiposity in adults in a randomised controlled trial
Authors: Kadooka Yukio , Sato Masao , Ogawa Akihiro , Miyoshi Masaya , Uenishi Hiroshi , Ogawa Hitomi , Ikuyama Ken , Kagoshima Masatoyo , Tsuchida Takashi
Published: April 2013

Consumption of fermented milk (FM) containing a probiotic, Lactobacillus gasseri SBT2055 (LG2055), previously showed a reduction in abdominal adiposity in a randomised controlled trial (RCT) using FM with 108 colony-forming units (cfu) of LG2055/g. However, whether the effectiveness is observed at lower concentrations, the recommended minimum or intermediate levels of probiotics (106 or 107cfu/g, respectively), remains to be examined. A multi-centre, double-blind, parallel-group RCT was conducted using 210 healthy Japanese adults with large visceral fat areas (80·2–187·8 cm2). They were balanced for their baseline characteristics and randomly assigned to three groups receiving FM containing 107, 106 or 0 (control) cfu LG2055/g of FM, and were asked to consume 200 g FM/d for 12 weeks. Abdominal visceral fat areas, which were determined by computed tomography, at week 12, changed from baseline by an average of − 8·5 % (95 % CI − 11·9, − 5·1; P< 0·01) in the 107 dose group, and by − 8·2 % (95 % CI − 10·8, − 5·7; P< 0·01) in the 106 dose group. Other measures including BMI, waist and hip circumferences, and body fat mass were also significantly decreased from baseline at week 12 in both groups; interestingly, the cessation of taking FM for 4 weeks attenuated these effects. In the control group, none of these parameters significantly decreased from baseline. These findings demonstrate that consumption of LG2055 at doses as low as the order of 108cfu/d exhibited a significant lowering effect on abdominal adiposity, and suggest that constant consumption might be needed to maintain the effect.
Introduction: Curiosities of Middle East Studies in Queer Times
Authors: Amar Paul , El Shakry Omnia
Published: April 2013

Starting in 2010, movements of transformation, spaces of sociability, relations of power, and economies of affect in the Middle East plunged into a time of radical dislocation. Fearless, dissident solidarities challenged patterns of identity, normativity, and authority that had constituted the region for more than a generation. One epoch ended, in which struggles over power seemed all too often restricted to constrained contests between nongovernmental organizations, religious dissidents, and security-state repressors. In their place new insurgencies came to question the narratives, binaries, and regimes of feeling pinned to “identity politics” as defined by categories of class, gender, sexuality, and religion. Curious forms of revolutionary social uprising exploded among gender, labor, and community dissidents at street level, generating novel popular cultures, rebel counterpublics, and carnivals of new-media experimentation.
Queering Citizenship, Queering Middle East Studies
Authors: Mikdashi Maya
Published: April 2013

Critical citizenship studies have argued that researchers should not take the myth of the universal unmarked citizen to heart, but rather focus on the distance between the ideal of citizenship and its everyday embodied practices and on what the citizen and the state do rather than on the state's narration of itself. As Partha Chatterjee writes in his critique of Benedict Anderson, to endorse “unbound serialities” such as the universal and anonymous citizen is to imagine that nationalism and state practices can function without governmentality. In fact, the state's job is to organize and regulate the shared life of its structurally and practically unequal citizens and residents. Normative political theory of citizenship elides the ways that governmentality and biopower produceeachcitizen (as well as groups of citizens) as a particular derivation from the norm. It is with each iteration of these technologies that the state comes into view as a bounded entity.
A COMMENT ON EDWARD J. ERIKSON'S REVIEW OF YÜCEL GÜÇLÜ, ARMENIANS AND THE ALLIES IN CILICIA, 1914–1923 (IJMES 44 [2012]: 353–55)
Authors: Arkun Aram
Published: April 2013

Dr. Yücel Güçlü, a career diplomat in the Turkish Foreign Ministry, has written a study of what he calls “the Armenian events” in Cilicia between 1914 and 1923. The author makes it clear in the introduction to the book that his intent is to challenge the idea that the Armenians were subjected to genocide during and after World War I. To achieve this goal he frames the issue in terms of “Armenian revolutionary and separatist movements,” countered by “the Turkish measures of self-defense,” but complicated by “Allied schemes” (p. 2).
Comanaging small-scale sea cucumber fisheries in New Caledonia and Vanuatu using stock biomass estimates to set spatial catch quotas
Authors: LÉOPOLD M. , CORNUET N. , ANDRÉFOUËT S. , MOENTEAPO Z. , DUVAUCHELLE C. , RAUBANI J. , HAM J. , DUMAS P.
Published: April 2013

Many sea cucumber fisheries have dramatically declined worldwide due to rapid overexploitation and ineffective management. This study designed an innovative management strategy for small-scale, data-limited sea cucumber fisheries in Pacific Island countries. Firstly, a local quota-based comanagement system was implemented in New Caledonia to manage a small-scale sandfishHolothuria scabrafishery. A habitat map derived from high-resolution satellite imagery was used to stratify survey sampling and assess the harvestable stock biomass. The latter has been monitored as the reference biomass (RB) since 2008 and repeatedly used by the local fishers’ organization and Fisheries Department officers to set adaptive total allowable catches and regulations of fishing effort. Results showed the excellent performance of this fishery between 2008 and 2012, both biologically (167% increase in total stock biomass) and economically (146% increase in annual returns from catches). Secondly, the assessment of the RB was generalized to multispecies sea cucumber fisheries in Vanuatu in 2011 before the proposed lifting of a five-year national moratorium. Building upon these practical case studies in New Caledonia and Vanuatu, this paper outlines an operational framework to inform sea cucumber fisheries policy in these two countries and discusses the upscaling of the proposed management strategy.
Einstellungen von Grundschulkindern zu Nahrungsmitteln
Authors: Heim-Dreger Uwe , Eschenbeck Heike , Kohlmann Carl-Walter
Published: April 2013

In der Studie wurde untersucht, ob Geschmackspräferenzen für gesunde und ungesunde Nahrungsmittel sowie implizite Einstellungen zu Nahrungsmitteln bei Kindern im Grundschulalter Zusammenhänge mit dem Body Mass Index (BMI-SDS) aufweisen. 148 Kinder der dritten Klasse im Alter zwischen 7 und 10 Jahren nahmen an der Studie teil. Die Geschmackspräferenzen wurden mit Ratingskalen im Selbstbericht erfasst, die impliziten Einstellungen mit einem idiografischen Impliziten Assoziationstest (IAT). Im IAT wurden alle Stimuli der Konzepte (ich versus andere, gesunde Nahrungsmittel versus ungesunde Nahrungsmittel) mit Fotografien präsentiert. Die Ergebnisse zeigten, dass der IAT-Index zur Prädiktion des BMI einen signifikanten Beitrag leistet. Kinder, bei denen die Konzepte ich und ungesunde Nahrungsmittel stärker assoziiert waren, wiesen auch einen höheren BMI-SDS auf. Hingegen leisteten die expliziten Maße keinen signifikanten Beitrag zur Vorhersage des BMI. Die Befunde werden im Kontext des noch inkonsistenten Forschungsstandes diskutiert.
Kann man Popularität und Freundschaft essen?
Authors: Giese Helge , Juhász Rita , Schupp Harald , Renner Britta
Published: April 2013

Warum Kinder und Jugendliche bestimmte Nahrungsmittel bevorzugen, ist eine zentrale Forschungsfrage. Da die Akzeptanz durch die Peers in diesem Lebensalter eine zentrale Entwicklungsaufgabe darstellt, untersucht die vorliegende Studie, wie das Ernährungsverhalten von sozial positiv und negativ bewerteten Peers wahrgenommen wird und wie das eigene Ernährungsverhalten der Kinder und Jugendlichen damit assoziiert ist. Ferner wird untersucht, inwieweit dieser Zusammenhang von der sozialen Nähe (eigene Freunde vs. populäre Kinder aus der eigenen Klasse) abhängt. Insgesamt 70 Kinder und Jugendliche einer Konstanzer Grund- und Realschule schätzten ein, wie häufig ihre Peers gesunde und ungesunde Speisen konsumierten. Außerdem wurden sie zu ihren eigenen Nahrungsmittelpräferenzen und ihrem eigenen Ernährungsverhalten befragt. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass die Kinder und Jugendlichen populären und sympathischen Peers ein signifikant gesünderes Ernährungsverhalten zuschrieben als sozial negativ bewerteten Peers. Interessanterweise war jedoch vor allem das wahrgenommene ungesunde Ernährungsverhalten der populären und sympathischen Peers mit der eigenen Nahrungsmittelpräferenz und dem eigenen Ernährungsverhalten assoziiert. Je häufiger populäre oder sympathische Peers nach Ansicht der Kinder und Jugendlichen ungesund aßen, desto häufiger präferierten die Kinder und Jugendlichen die ungesündere Alternative in der Präferenzaufgabe und desto weniger ungesund aßen sie selbst. Dabei waren die Effekte für Kinder, die als populär wahrgenommen wurden, stärker als für sympathische Kinder. Mögliche Gründe für den Zusammenhang von Popularität und Sympathie von Peers und dem Ernährungsverhalten von Kindern und Jugendlichen werden diskutiert.
Cognitive Components of Ingroup Projection
Authors: Machunsky Maya , Meiser Thorsten
Published: April 2013

This research investigated whether relative ingroup prototypicality (i.e., the tendency to perceive one’s own ingroup as more prototypical of a superordinate category than the outgroup) can result from a prototype-based versus exemplar-based mental representation of social categories, rather than from ingroup membership per se as previously suggested by the ingroup projection model. Experiments 1 and 2 showed that a prototype-based group was perceived as more prototypical of a superordinate category than an exemplar-based group supporting the hypothesis that an intergroup context is not necessary for biased prototypicality judgments. Experiment 3 introduced an intergroup context in a minimal-group-like paradigm. The findings demonstrated that both the kind of cognitive representation and motivational processes contribute to biased prototypicality judgments in intergroup settings.
Effects of Asymmetric Questions on Impression Formation
Authors: Sacchi Simona , Rusconi Patrice , Bonomi Mattia , Cherubini Paolo
Published: April 2013

When examining social targets, people may ask asymmetric questions, that is, questions for which “yes” and “no” answers are neither equally diagnostic nor equally frequent. The consequences of this information-gathering strategy on impression formation deserve empirical investigation. The present work explored the role played by the trade-off between the diagnosticity and frequency of answers that follow asymmetric questions. In Study 1, participants received answers to symmetric/asymmetric questions on an anonymous social target. In Study 2, participants read answers to a specific symmetric/asymmetric question provided by different group members. Overall, the results of both studies indicate that asymmetric questions had less impact on impressions than did symmetric questions, suggesting that individuals are more sensitive to data frequency than diagnosticity when forming impressions.
The Myb-p300-CREB axis modulates intestine homeostasis, radiosensitivity and tumorigenesis
Authors: Sampurno S , Bijenhof A , Cheasley D , Xu H , Robine S , Hilton D , Alexander W S , Pereira L , Mantamadiotis T , Malaterre J , Ramsay R G
Published: April 2013

The gastrointestinal (GI) epithelium is constantly renewing, depending upon the intestinal stem cells (ISC) regulated by a spectrum of transcription factors (TFs), including Myb. We noted previously in mice with a p300 mutation (plt6) within the Myb-interaction-domain phenocopied Myb hypomorphic mutant mice with regard to thrombopoiesis, and here, changes in GI homeostasis. p300 is a transcriptional coactivator for many TFs, most prominently cyclic-AMP response element-binding protein (CREB), and also Myb. Studies have highlighted the importance of CREB in proliferation and radiosensitivity, but not in the GI. This prompted us to directly investigate the p300–Myb–CREB axis in the GI. Here, the role of CREB has been defined by generating GI-specific inducible creb knockout (KO) mice. KO mice show efficient and specific deletion of CREB, with no evident compensation by CREM and ATF1. Despite complete KO, only modest effects on proliferation, radiosensitivity and differentiation in the GI under homeostatic or stress conditions were evident, even though CREB target gene pcna (proliferating cell nuclear antigen) was downregulated. creb and p300 mutant lines show increased goblet cells, whereas a reduction in enteroendocrine cells was apparent only in the p300 line, further resembling the Myb hypomorphs. When propagated in vitro, crebKO ISC were defective in organoid formation, suggesting that the GI stroma compensates for CREB loss in vivo, unlike in MybKO studies. Thus, it appears that p300 regulates GI differentiation primarily through Myb, rather than CREB. Finally, active pCREB is elevated in colorectal cancer (CRC) cells and adenomas, and is required for the expression of drug transporter, MRP2, associated with resistance to Oxaliplatin as well as several chromatin cohesion protein that are relevant to CRC therapy. These data raise the prospect that CREB may have a role in GI malignancy as it does in other cancer types, but unlike Myb, is not critical for GI homeostasis.
Quantum-dot supercrystals for future nanophotonics
Authors: Baimuratov Anvar S. , Rukhlenko Ivan D. , Turkov Vadim K. , Baranov Alexander V. , Fedorov Anatoly V.
Published: April 2013

The study of supercrystals made of periodically arranged semiconductor quantum dots is essential for the advancement of emerging nanophotonics technologies. By combining the strong spatial confinement of elementary excitations inside quantum dots and exceptional design flexibility, quantum-dot supercrystals provide broad opportunities for engineering desired optical responses and developing superior light manipulation techniques on the nanoscale. Here we suggest tailoring the energy spectrum and wave functions of the supercrystals' collective excitations through the variation of different structural and material parameters. In particular, by calculating the excitonic spectra of quantum dots assembled in two-dimensional Bravais lattices we demonstrate a wide variety of spectrum transformation scenarios upon alterations in the quantum dot arrangement. This feature offers unprecedented control over the supercrystal's electromagnetic properties and enables the development of new nanophotonics materials and devices.
Abelian periods, partial words, and an extension of a theorem
of Fine and Wilf
Authors: Blanchet-Sadri Francine , Simmons Sean , Tebbe Amelia , Veprauskas Amy
Published: April 2013

Recently, Constantinescu and Ilie proved a variant of the well-known periodicity theorem
of Fine and Wilf in the case of two relatively prime abelian periods and conjectured a
result for the case of two non-relatively prime abelian periods. In this paper, we answer
some open problems they suggested. We show that their conjecture is false but we give
bounds, that depend on the two abelian periods, such that the conjecture is true for all
words having length at least those bounds and show that some of them are optimal. We also
extend their study to the context of partial words, giving optimal lengths and describing
an algorithm for constructing optimal words.
Biologically Based Therapy for the Intervertebral Disk: who is the Patient?
Authors: Erwin William Mark
Published: April 2013

The intervertebral disk (IVD) is a fascinating and resilient tissue compartment given the myriad of functions that it performs as well as its unique anatomy. The IVD must tolerate immense loads, protect the spinal cord, and contribute considerable flexibility and strength to the spinal column. In addition, as a consequence of its anatomical and physiological configuration, a unique characteristic of the IVD is that it also provides a barrier to metastatic disease. However, when injured and/or the subject of significant degenerative change, the IVD can be the source of substantial pain and disability. Considerable efforts have been made over the past several decades with respect to regenerating or at least modulating degenerative changes affecting the IVD through the use of many biological agents such as growth factors, hydrogels, and the use of plant sterols and even spices common to Ayurvedic medicine. More recently stem/progenitor and autologous chondrocytes have been used mostly in animal models of disk disease but also a few trials involving humans. At the end of the day if biological therapies are to offer benefit to the patient, the outcomes must be improved function and/or less pain and also must be improvements upon measures that are already in clinical practice. Here some of the challenges posed by the degenerative IVD and a summary of some of the regenerative attempts both in vitro and in vivo are discussed within the context of the vital question: “Who is the patient?”
Boundaries of the critical state stability in a hard superconductor Nb3Al in the H–T plane
Authors: Chabanenko V. V. , Vasiliev S. V. , Nabiałek A. , Shishmakov A. S. , Pérez-Rodríguez F. , Rusakov V. F. , Szewczyk A. , Kodess B. N. , Gutowska M. , Wieckowski J. , Szymczak H.
Published: April 2013

The instability of the critical state in a type-II superconductor Nb3Al is studied for the first time for simultaneous consideration of real dependences of thermal and conductive properties of the material on temperature T and magnetic field He. To do this the dependences of specific heat C(T,Hе), magnetization M(T,He) and magnetostriction ΔL(T,He) of the superconductor were investigated experimentally in a strong magnetic field (up to 12 T). The gap width, the coefficient of the linear term, which determines the electronic contribution to the specific heat, the Debye temperature, and other parameters were found using experimental data on the heat capacity in a wide range of temperatures and magnetic fields Hc1 ≤ He ≤ Hc2. From experimental studies of magnetization the dependences of the critical current of the superconductor, Jc(T,He), were reconstructed. The hysteresis loops of magnetization and magnetostriction were calculated using experimental data for temperature and field dependences of the thermal and conductive properties.
Flow-based structured illumination
Authors: Lu Chien-Hung , Pégard Nicolas C. , Fleischer Jason W.
Published: April 2013

We apply the principle of structured illumination microscopy to a fluidic imaging device. The necessary phase shifts are no longer obtained by controlled displacement of the illumination pattern but by flowing the sample itself. The resulting scheme retains all the benefits of fluid systems while enabling easy integration with existing microscopes, flow cytometers, and aquatic imagers. We present the theory of flow-based structured illumination and demonstrate the technique experimentally by reconstructing super-resolved images of yeast cells.
The random dipolar-field approximation for systems of interacting magnetic particles
Authors: Landi Gabriel T.
Published: April 2013

The dipolar interaction is known to play an important role on the magnetic properties of small magnetic particles. For moderate concentrations the most noticeable effect is an increase of the relaxation time, whereas for sufficiently dense systems some degree of correlational order may be observed. In this paper, a mean-field approximation is introduced to correctly account for these changes. It is based on the interpretation of the dipolar field, produced by an ensemble of particles, as a random field acting on a reference particle. This field contains the statistical moments of the magnetisation of the reference particle and is computed assuming a random spatial distribution of the particles. The result is a new term in the free energy of the reference particle, expressed as a cumulant expansion of the random field, carried up to fourth-order. This model correctly predicts both the increase in the relaxation time and a phase transition to a ferromagnetic state for sufficiently dense systems. The dynamics is also studied by introducing this new free energy into the Fokker-Planck equation for the single-particle magnetic moment. The result is a non-linear Fokker-Planck equation, which is solved numerically to illustrate the divergence of the relaxation time at the phase transition.
Dissipative time-dependent quantum transport theory
Authors: Zhang Yu , Yam Chi Yung , Chen GuanHua
Published: April 2013

A dissipative time-dependent quantum transport theory is developed to treat the transient current through molecular or nanoscopic devices in presence of electron-phonon interaction. The dissipation via phonon is taken into account by introducing a self-energy for the electron-phonon coupling in addition to the self-energy caused by the electrodes. Based on this, a numerical method is proposed. For practical implementation, the lowest order expansion is employed for the weak electron-phonon coupling case and the wide-band limit approximation is adopted for device and electrodes coupling. The corresponding hierarchical equation of motion is derived, which leads to an efficient and accurate time-dependent treatment of inelastic effect on transport for the weak electron-phonon interaction. The resulting method is applied to a one-level model system and a gold wire described by tight-binding model to demonstrate its validity and the importance of electron-phonon interaction for the quantum transport. As it is based on the effective single-electron model, the method can be readily extended to time-dependent density functional theory.
Electron and hole mobility in solution-processed small molecule-fullerene blend: Dependence on the fullerene content
Authors: Ko Ko Kyaw Aung , Hwan Wang Dong , Tseng Hsin-Rong , Zhang Jie , Bazan Guillermo C. , Heeger Alan J.
Published: April 2013

We present a study of electron and hole mobility in blends of the solution-processed small molecule (DTS(PTTh2)2):fullerene as a function of the fullerene content. The mobilities are measured using the Field–Effect Transistor device configuration with the blend as the material in the channel. The hole mobility of the small molecule increases when about 10% of [6-6]-phenyl C71 butyric acid methyl ester (PC70BM) is added and then decreases at higher fullerene content. The electron mobility always increases as the fullerene content increases. Balanced charge transport occurred at 70:30 and 60:40 donor to acceptor ratios in the DTS(PTTh2)2:PC70BM system. The observation of balanced charge mobility agrees well with the reported solar cell performance.
Periodically patterned columnar thin films as blazed diffraction gratings
Authors: Dutta Jhuma , Anantha Ramakrishna S. , Lakhtakia Akhlesh
Published: April 2013

Periodically patterned columnar thin films (PP-CTFs) were made by evaporating CaF2 and directing the vapor flux obliquely towards lithographically fabricated micrometer/sub-micrometer gratings. The growth of the PP-CTFs was controlled by the deposition rate to form prismatic air cavities within them. These PP-CTFs function like blazed diffraction gratings with asymmetric diffraction patterns and diffraction efficiencies up to 80% in transmission at ultraviolet-visible wavelengths. Diffraction theory adequately establishes that the blazing action arises due to the prismatic cavities and explains the measured diffraction efficiencies.
Characterizing formation of interfacial domain wall and exchange coupling strength in laminated exchange coupled composites
Authors: Hou H.-C. , Kirby B. J. , Gao K. Z. , Lai C.-H.
Published: April 2013

We have studied the N-dependent switching behavior of composite magnets, comprised of a hard CoPtCr-SiO2 (CPCS) film and a laminated soft [Pt/CPCS]N multilayer. First order reversal curve magnetometry provides evidence of interfacial domain wall (iDW) assisted reversal for N ≥ 5. The magnetic depth profiles determined from polarized neutron reflectometry (PNR) explicitly demonstrate that the composite magnets are more rigidly coupled for N = 3 than for N = 7, and suggest that for N = 7 reversal occurs via formation of iDW. By fitting the PNR profile into the energy surface calculations, we can further deduce the vertical coupling strength in the laminated soft layer.
Global Environmental Governance and North—South Dynamics: The Case of the Cites
Authors: Duffy Rosaleen
Published: April 2013

This paper addresses a gap in our understanding of how links between states and nonstate actors intersect with North—South dynamics. It draws together the literatures on NGOs with the debates on privatised forms of global governance to provide a deeper understanding of the growing role of nonstate actors in managing transnational environmental issues. I argue that the inclusion of nonstate actors can serve to reinforce and deepen existing global inequalities. I use the example of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) to shed light on the complex dynamics that surround (apparently) interstate environmental governance mechanisms. The CITES is one of the earliest examples of engagement with nonstate actors as shapers and drivers of environmental governance. As such, it provides us with important lessons about the problems associated with including a wider range of actors in global environmental governance mechanisms, especially engagement with Southern partners.
‘Communities with Oomph’? Exploring the Potential for Stronger Social Ties to Revitalise Disadvantaged Neighbourhoods
Authors: Crisp Richard
Published: April 2013

Successive governments in the UK have claimed that strengthening social ties can revitalise the fortunes of disadvantaged areas. This claim has been critiqued extensively by urban scholars for failing to understand the nature of lived urban social relations. However, less attention has been given to mapping out the terrain of this criticism, despite the different positions adopted by scholars and, by extension, the divergent implications for public policy. With this paper I address this gap by identifying and reflecting on two of the most prominent frameworks of critique. I draw on empirical research of social ties in two deprived neighbourhoods in England to assess the validity of these frameworks and their applicability in different spatial contexts. I conclude that both provide useful insights into the dynamics of change and the limits of existing policy but, also, that the specificity of each account is perhaps overlooked.
Analysing Urban Governance Networks: Bringing Regime Theory Back in
Authors: Blanco Ismael
Published: April 2013

A substantial body of literature has addressed the emergence of new forms of network governance in the urban realm. Whilst some authors tend to consider network governance practices as intimately linked to neoliberalism, others celebrate them as a Third Way between markets and hierarchies. Bringing urban regime analysis back into this debate can be important for three main reasons: first, this theoretical approach invites us to interrogate narratives of transformation, arguing that ‘governance’ and ‘networks’ have always been integral to governing and, therefore, forcing governance theory to clarify what is new in the network paradigm; second, urban regime analysis highlights a fact that is often neglected in the network governance literature—that, in reality, the agendas and participants of governance networks can be very different in different places and that this can lead to different types of socioeconomic outcomes; third, urban regime analysis focuses our attention on the interplay between political economic structures and local political activities in particular places, helping us to understand how local governance decisions are taken in the face of global structural pressures. The comparison between two cases of neighbourhood regeneration in Barcelona permits us to illustrate what is new in the ‘network governance’ era; the diversity of urban policy practices that the ‘network paradigm’ can encompass; as well the influence of locally specific circumstances and of local actors' policy choices on the practice of network governance.
Living Multiculture: Understanding the New Spatial and Social Relations of Ethnicity and Multiculture in England
Authors: Neal Sarah , Bennett Katy , Cochrane Allan , Mohan Giles
Published: April 2013

Since 2001, as the social and spatial compositions of multiculture and migration have become more complicated and diverse, geography has moved back to the centre of policy, political, and academic arguments about cultural difference and ethnic diversity in England. This spatial turn is most obvious in preoccupations with notions of increasing ethnic segregation, but it is also apparent in discussions of the possibility of everyday multicultural exchanges in relationally understood places. Responding to the work of others on these questions and in these places, and informed by data from research exploring Ghanaian and Somali migrant settlement in Milton Keynes, we review some of the quantitative and qualitative evidence being drawn on in academic, policy, and political debates about contemporary multiculture. We problematise the dominance of the concept of segregation in these debates and examine the value of the concept of conviviality for understanding the ways in which multiculture is lived.
Governance over Land Development during Rapid Urbanization under Institutional Uncertainty, with Reference to Periurbanization in Guangzhou Metropolitan Region, China
Authors: Zhu Jieming
Published: April 2013

Institutional change in the context of gradualist reforms has stimulated economic growth without causing serious social instability in China. Nevertheless, institutional uncertainty has been brought about by the long continuous transition. Institutional uncertainty in the domain of rural collectives compromises the state governance. While the effective state governance over rapid urbanization is absent, and public goods are inadequate in the periurban areas as a result, private governance arises spontaneously in the form of gated supercommunities in the far suburbs. Though it has met the aspiration of a rising middle-income class for a decent living environment, social segregation and urban sprawl emerge and become serious challenges to society.
The mitochondrial Hsp70 chaperone Ssq1 facilitates Fe/S cluster transfer from Isu1 to Grx5 by complex formation
Authors: Uzarska Marta A. , Dutkiewicz Rafal , Freibert Sven-Andreas , Lill Roland , Mühlenhoff Ulrich
Published: April 2013

The mitochondrial Hsp70 chaperone Ssq1 plays a dedicated role in the maturation of iron–sulfur (Fe/S) proteins, an essential process of mitochondria. Similar to its bacterial orthologue HscA, Ssq1 binds to the scaffold protein Isu1, thereby facilitating dissociation of the newly synthesized Fe/S cluster on Isu1 and its transfer to target apoproteins. Here we use in vivo and in vitro approaches to show that Ssq1 also interacts with the monothiol glutaredoxin 5 (Grx5) at a binding site different from that of Isu1. Grx5 binding does not stimulate the ATPase activity of Ssq1 and is most pronounced for the ADP-bound form of Ssq1, which interacts with Isu1 most tightly. The vicinity of Isu1 and Grx5 on the Hsp70 chaperone facilitates rapid Fe/S cluster transfer from Isu1 to Grx5. Grx5 and its bound Fe/S cluster are required for maturation of all cellular Fe/S proteins, regardless of the type of bound Fe/S cofactor and subcellular localization. Hence Grx5 functions as a late-acting component of the core Fe/S cluster (ISC) assembly machinery linking the Fe/S cluster synthesis reaction on Isu1 with late assembly steps involving Fe/S cluster targeting to dedicated apoproteins.
Crucial function of vertebrate glutaredoxin 3 (PICOT) in iron homeostasis and hemoglobin maturation
Authors: Haunhorst Petra , Hanschmann Eva-Maria , Bräutigam Lars , Stehling Oliver , Hoffmann Bastian , Mühlenhoff Ulrich , Lill Roland , Berndt Carsten , Lillig Christopher Horst
Published: April 2013

The mechanisms by which eukaryotic cells handle and distribute the essential micronutrient iron within the cytosol and other cellular compartments are only beginning to emerge. The yeast monothiol multidomain glutaredoxins (Grx) 3 and 4 are essential for both transcriptional iron regulation and intracellular iron distribution. Despite the fact that the mechanisms of iron metabolism differ drastically in fungi and higher eukaryotes, the glutaredoxins are conserved, yet their precise function in vertebrates has remained elusive. Here we demonstrate a crucial role of the vertebrate-specific monothiol multidomain Grx3 (PICOT) in cellular iron homeostasis. During zebrafish embryonic development, depletion of Grx3 severely impairs the maturation of hemoglobin, the major iron-consuming process. Silencing of human Grx3 expression in HeLa cells decreases the activities of several cytosolic Fe/S proteins, for example, iron-regulatory protein 1, a major component of posttranscriptional iron regulation. As a consequence, Grx3-depleted cells show decreased levels of ferritin and increased levels of transferrin receptor, features characteristic of cellular iron starvation. Apparently, Grx3-deficient cells are unable to efficiently use iron, despite unimpaired cellular iron uptake. These data suggest an evolutionarily conserved role of cytosolic monothiol multidomain glutaredoxins in cellular iron metabolism pathways, including the biogenesis of Fe/S proteins and hemoglobin maturation.