bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Experimental Investigation of the VAPEX Process in Vuggy Porous Media
Authors: Rezaei N.. , Mohammadzadeh O.. , James L.A.. A. , Chatzis I..
Published: May 2013

In this paper, the application of the vapor extraction (VAPEX) process was investigated to recover Cold Lake bitumen from vuggy porous media with n-pentane as the hydrocarbon solvent. Seven different sintered glass-bead models were designed and fabricated—four of which were vugular media with different vuggy- to total-pore-volume (PV) ratios. The vugs were arranged in aligned and staggered configurations. Three homogeneous sintered glass-bead models of different permeability and porosity were also fabricated to serve as baselines. The vug sizes were controlled in a narrow size-distribution range by embedding wood particles of uniform volumes (20 mm3 each) in the packing of the glass-bead continuum, sandwiched between two parallel glass plates. The packing assembly was then sintered in the muffle furnace. For each particular VAPEX experiment, the oil-recovery performance was characterized by measurements [e.g., live-oil and dead-oil production rates, live-oil solvent content, and Residual Oil Saturation (ROS) (in the invaded area of the models)]. It was observed that the vugs significantly facilitated the live-oil production from the vuggy models compared with the corresponding homogeneous baseline model with the same matrix permeability. The increase in the vug porosity of the porous space significantly increased the live- and dead-oil production rates, and it slightly decreased the extent of ROS in the model. Unlike the sintered homogeneous models for which the live-oil-production rate remains reasonably constant during the lateral spreading phase of the VAPEX process, the vuggy-porosity models displayed a boost in the live-oil production rate when several vugs were being invaded by the solvent vapor. This behavior was more pronounced in the case of aligned vugs in which the vugs were closer to each other, and more vugs were invaded simultaneously compared with the case of a staggered-vug configuration. The enhanced pore-level mixing of solvent with bitumen, the improved petrophysical properties of the porous medium, and the flow communication of matrix with the vugs were found to enhance the live oil drainage towards the production well.
Nitrous Oxide Emissions from a Clay Soil Receiving Granular Urea Formulations and Dairy Manure
Authors: Asgedom Haben , Tenuta Mario , Flaten Donald N. , Gao Xiaopeng , Kebreab Ermias
Published: May 2013

Soil N2O emissions vary with N source. A study was undertaken on a clay soil in the Red River Valley, Manitoba, Canada, to determine the effect of granular N fertilizers and dairy manure on N2O emissions from a field cropped to rapeseed (Brassica napus L.) in 2009 and spring wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) in 2010. Treatments included an unamended control, granular urea, controlled‐release urea (ESN), stabilized urea (SuperU), and solid dairy manure added at rates to achieve a total of 140 kg available N ha−1 (product plus soil N test). The N fertilizers were broadcast and shallowly incorporated each spring before planting; the manure was broadcast incorporated the previous fall. Nitrous oxide emissions were monitored from planting to freeze in fall and during spring thaw in 2011 using static‐vented chambers. In both years, N2O emissions occurred within 4 to 5 wk of planting but not in fall after manure application. Area‐scale cumulative N2O emissions (∑N2O, kg N ha−1) from planting to freeze were control < ESN = manure < urea = SuperU. Nitrous oxide emission factors were 0.017 kg N2O‐N kg−1 available N added for urea and SuperU and 0.007 kg N2O‐N kg−1 available N for ESN. Seventy‐eight percent of the variation in ∑N2O could be explained by NO3− intensity, an integration of soil NO3− concentrations during the study periods. Greater ∑N2O were also associated with higher yields. These findings suggest that N release rates, as indicated by NO3− intensity and yield, determined N2O emissions. The results highlight the challenge of meeting crop demand yet reducing N2O emissions by selection of an N source.
Preeclampsia and Prevalence of Microalbuminuria 10 Years Later
Authors: Sandvik Miriam Kristine , Hallan Stein , Svarstad Einar , Vikse Bjørn Egil
Published: May 2013

Background and objectives

A recent meta-analysis found that about 30% of women with a previous preeclamptic pregnancy had persistent microalbuminuria at follow-up. The analysis was, however, based on small studies, and more data are needed.

Design, setting, participants, & measurements

Using data from the Medical Birth Registry in Norway, this study identified women with or without preeclampsia in their first pregnancy 9–11 years previously (1998–2000). Women with diabetes, rheumatic disease, essential hypertension, or renal disease before first pregnancy and/or preeclampsia in later pregnancies were excluded. Eighty-nine women with and 69 women without preeclampsia participated in the study. Urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (ACR) was measured in three morning urine samples. Estimated GFR (eGFR) was calculated using the CKD-Epidemiology Collaboration formula.

Results

Median urinary ACR in follow-up urine samples was 0.53 mg/mmol for women with and 0.50 mg/mmol for women without preeclampsia (P=0.54). Only one woman (1%) with previous preeclampsia had urinary ACR >2.5 mg/mmol in two of three urine samples. Preeclampsia was not associated with urinary ACR above the 75th percentile. Women with preeclampsia did not have significantly higher eGFR than women without preeclampsia (107.9 versus 104.9 ml/min per 1.73 m2;P=0.12), but preterm preeclampsia was significantly associated with eGFR above the 75th percentile (P=0.03).

Conclusions

In this population-based study of otherwise healthy women, preeclampsia 10 years earlier was not associated with increased risk of persisting microalbuminuria. Estimated GFR was not significantly different between women with and those without preeclampsia, but preterm preeclampsia was associated with high normal eGFR.
Free-end saddle length influence on stress level in unilateral complex partial denture abutment teeth and retention elements
Authors: Patrnogic Vesna , Todorovic Aleksandar , Scepanovic Miodrag , Radovic Katarina , Vesnic Jelena , Grbovic Aleksandar
Published: May 2013

Background/Aim. Different types of dental restorations are used for the
therapy of unilateral free-end saddle edentulism. Unilateral complex partial
denture is one of the indications for the Kennedy class II partial
edentulism. The abscence of major connector and denture plate is an
advantage compared to the conventional restorations, because of better
comfort and shorter period of adaptation. The aim of the study was to
analyse the influence of free-end saddle length change on the behaviour of
unilateral complex partial denture supporting structures. Methods. Stress
levels of the canine and the first premolar as retentional teeth and the
attachments were tested under the influence of physiological forces with the
loading point shifting distally in relation to the saddle length change. A
virtual real size 3D model of the fixed part of the restoration (the canine
and the first premolar with milled crowns) was created using the CATIA
computer program. It was connected to the mobile part of partial denture
with the SD snap in latch attachment. Mobile part of the restoration was
designed in the region of 2, 3 and 4 lateral teeth (second premolar, first,
second and third molar). By using the finite element method (FEM) stress
levels analysis was performed under the load of physiological forces of 150
N in the free-end saddle teeth zone. Results. The results of analysis show
that physiological forces cause a different stress distribution on the
abutment teeth and the attachment, depending on the saddle length.
Conclusion. The stress level values obtained for the abutment teeth as well
as the attachment are far lower than the marginal ones. The behaviour of the
system changes under this defined stress, but no plastic deformation occurs.
Fulminant Wegener's granulomatosis: A case report
Authors: Dinic Miroslav , Kandolf-Sekulovic Lidija , Zolotarevski Lidija , Zecevic Rados
Published: May 2013

Introduction. Granulomatosis Wegener is anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic
antibodies (ANCAs)-associated systemic vasculitis of unknown etiology. It is
manifested as granulomatous necrotizing inflammation of the upper and lower
parts of the respiratory tract, glomerulonephritis and systemic vasculitis
involving most frequently the skin and oral mucous membrane. Sera markers of
this disease are c-ANCA and p-ANCA. Case report. We presented a female
patient aged 52 years with purpuric spots that had appeared on the lower
legs ten months before admission to our hospital. The disease ran an
aggressive course, and a month before admission hemorrhagic bullae, skin
ulcers, hoarseness, dyspnea, generalized arthralgia, fatigue and fever had
rapidly developed. Histopathological examination of a skin sample revealed
necrotizing vasculitis, so that sera markers concentrations were elevated
(c-ANCA, p-ANCA). There was a perforation of the nasal septum found on
rhinoscopy. During hospitalization acute abdominal pain occurred, a possible
tumor in the small intestine and possible granulomas in the liver were seen
by multislice computed tomography (MSCT) examination, with normal findings
on the lungs and kidneys. The treatment started with methylprednisolone: 500
mg/d i.v. infusion for consecutive 3 days, then 60 mg/d. On exploratory
laparotomy small bowel perforation and diffuse peritonitis were found.
Unstable in the postoperative period, the patient died on the day 12 of
hospitalization. Conclusion. The reported patient was with fulminant
Wegener?s granulomatosis, dominantly with skin changes and with
gastrointestinal manifestation. This case accents the need for rapid
systemic clinical evaluation in a severely ill patient with unclear
diagnosis.
Effect of cephalograms on decisions for early orthodontic treatment
Authors: Ritschel Robert , Bechtold Till E. , Berneburg Mirjam
Published: May 2013

Objective:

To assess the extent to which cephalograms modify therapeutic decisions related to early orthodontic treatment.

Materials and Methods:

Diagnostic records of six patients requiring early treatment were digitized for this purpose. A total of 234 orthodontists were then asked to select therapeutic measures on a treatment-planning sheet at two different times (T1 and T2). Three groups of orthodontists were formed and were provided with case-specific records either including or not including cephalograms and the appended tracing values. Forty-seven orthodontists completed all phases of the questions.

Results:

Statistical analysis revealed only two statistically significant differences between the first (T1) and second (T2) treatment plans, both concerning options of transverse treatment. None of the other results showed any significant changes from T1 to T2 treatment planning.

Conclusion:

It follows that cephalograms did not influence therapeutic decisions for early orthodontic treatment and should not be routinely used in very young patients.
No Racial Differences in the Association of Glycated Hemoglobin With Kidney Disease and Cardiovascular Outcomes
Authors: Selvin Elizabeth , Rawlings Andreea M. , Bergenstal Richard M. , Coresh Josef , Brancati Frederick L.
Published: May 2013

OBJECTIVE

There is debate regarding the clinical significance of well-established racial differences in HbA1c. We compared the associations of diabetes diagnostic categories for HbA1c and fasting glucose with clinical outcomes in black and white persons in the community.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

We conducted a prospective cohort analysis of participants without diabetes or cardiovascular disease from the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities study. We examined the associations of clinical categories of HbA1c (<5.7%, 5.7–6.4%, ≥6.5%) and fasting glucose (<100, 100–125, ≥126 mg/dL) with outcomes separately among 2,484 black and 8,593 white participants and tested for race interactions.

RESULTS

Baseline characteristics differed significantly in blacks compared with whites, including HbA1c (5.8 vs. 5.4%; P < 0.001). During 18 years of follow-up, there were trends of increased risk of kidney disease, fatal and nonfatal coronary heart disease, and stroke across categories of HbA1c in both blacks and whites. The adjusted hazard ratios for each outcome across categories of HbA1c were similar in blacks and whites (P for interaction >0.05) except for all-cause mortality. Patterns of association were similar, but weaker, for fasting glucose. HbA1c and fasting glucose both were more strongly associated with all-cause mortality in whites compared with blacks, largely explained by racial differences in the rate of cardiovascular deaths.

CONCLUSIONS

HbA1c is a risk factor for vascular outcomes and mortality in both black and white adults. Patterns of association for HbA1c were similar to or stronger than those for fasting glucose. With respect to long-term outcomes, our findings support a similar interpretation of HbA1c in blacks and whites for diagnosis and treatment of diabetes mellitus.
Rapid Increase in Diabetes Incidence Among Chinese Canadians Between 1996 and 2005
Authors: Alangh Avreet , Chiu Maria , Shah Baiju R.
Published: May 2013

OBJECTIVE

To examine trends in diabetes incidence among Ontario residents with Chinese and European origins.

RESEARCH DESIGN AND METHODS

Respondents to population-based health surveys in 1996, 2001, 2003, and 2005 who were aged ≥30 years, who did not have diabetes, and who self-identified as having European (n = 76,285) or Chinese (n = 1,041) origins were followed for diabetes incidence through a validated administrative data–derived diabetes registry.

RESULTS

Age- and sex-standardized diabetes incidence increased from 1.3 to 19.6 per 1,000 person-years in the Chinese population and from 7.8 to 10.0 in the European population. Relative to the 1996 European population, the adjusted hazard ratio for diabetes was 4.50 (95% CI 1.89–7.49) for the 2005 Chinese population and 1.22 (1.05–1.39) for the 2005 European population.

CONCLUSIONS

Diabetes incidence increased much more rapidly between 1996 and 2005 in the Chinese population than in the European population, independent of age, obesity, and other risk factors.
Structural and functional cardiovascular changes and their consequences following interventional patent ductus arteriosus occlusion in dogs: 24 cases (2000–2006)
Authors: Stauthammer Christopher D. , Tobias Anthony H. , Leeder Damon B. , Krüger Maxie U.
Published: May 2013

Objective—To investigate cardiovascular changes and survival times following complete interventional device occlusion of uncomplicated left-to-right shunting patent ductus arteriosus in dogs.

Design—Retrospective cohort study.

Animals—24 dogs with uncomplicated patent ductus arteriosus that was fully occluded and reevaluated within 24 hours, approximately 3 months, and 1 year after the procedure.

Procedures—Information on medical history, diagnostic imaging findings, treatment received, and survival times were obtained from medical records. Patients were allocated into 2 groups on the basis of age (< 1 year [n = 14] and ≥ 1 year [10]) at the time of the procedure. Additional follow-up information was obtained through interviews of owners and referral veterinarians.

Results—Following ductal occlusion, decreases were detected in vertebral heart scale size, left ventricular chamber diameter in diastole and in systole, left atrial dimension, fractional shortening, aortic velocity, and ventricular wall thickness. There were no differences between age groups for postocclusion changes except vertebral heart scale size. Systolic dysfunction was detected in 14 (58%) patients on the final visit. Median survival time for all dogs after ductal occlusion was > 11.5 years.

Conclusions and Clinical Relevance—Complete ductal occlusion resulted in immediate removal of the volume overload state and eventual return of cardiac chamber dimensions to reference range, suggesting regression of eccentric hypertrophy. Systolic dysfunction persisted in some dogs but appeared to be clinically unimportant. Most cardiovascular changes were independent of patient age at the time of the procedure.
The first synthesis of 3-deoxyoripavine and its utilization in the preparation of 10-deoxyaporphines and cyprodime
Authors: Sipos Attila , Udvardy Antal , Bényei Attila , Berényi Sándor
Published: May 2013

The synthesis of 3-deoxyoripavine (7) was realized as a novel and promising intermediate towards the synthesis of the important class of dopaminergic and/or serotonergic 10-deoxyaporphines and the special pharmacological tool µ opioid antagonist cyprodime. Generally, the preparation of these valuable biologically active compounds was achieved in remarkable yields.
A simple TLC and HPTLC method for separation of selected steroid drugs
Authors: Nowakowska Joanna , Pikul Piotr , Ciura Krzesimir , Piotrowicz Jakub
Published: May 2013

Chromatographic properties of five steroid drugs: cortisone, hydrocortisone, methylprednisolone, prednisolone and norgestrel have been studied by normal-, reversed-phase and hydrophilic neutral cyano-bonded silica stationary phase with five binary mobile phases (acetonitrile-water, acetonitrile-DMSO, acetonitrile-methanol, acetone-petroleum ether, acetone-water) in which the concentration of organic modifier was varied from 0 to 100% (v/v). This study reports the optimization of steroid hormones separation. Chromatographic retention data and possible retention mechanisms are discussed. Separation abilities of mobile and stationary phases were studied using the principal component analysis method. The best separation of methylprednisolone and prednisolone is with a chromatographic system included silica gel as stationary phase and mixture of acetonitrile and DMSO (10:90 v/v). These two anti-inflammatory drugs can be fast separated from norgestrel when CN is used as stationary phase and acetone and water (40:60 v/v) as mobile phase. The highest values of the parameter Δ(ΔG°) and alfa for cortisone and hydrocortisone was observed in case of using CN as stationary phase and water-acetonitryle (40:60 v/v) as mobile phase.
Evaluation of the ONIOM(B3PW91:HF) hybrid method for modeling butyltin chlorides
Authors: Matczak Piotr
Published: May 2013

The ONIOM(B3PW91:HF) hybrid method has been evaluated for the purposes of modeling butyltin chlorides, XnSnCl4-n (X = n-butyl, sec-butyl, isobutyl, tert-butyl; n = 1, 2, 3). Three different partitioning schemes of a molecule within ONIOM(B3PW91:HF) were taken into account. For each of these partitioning schemes, conformational analyses of the XnSnCl4-n molecules were performed and then several molecular properties of the resulting rotamers were calculated. The values of molecular properties obtained by ONIOM(B3PW91:HF) were compared in a statistical manner with the reference values calculated by B3PW91. A careful choice of partitioning scheme for XnSnCl4-n allowed ONIOM(B3PW91:HF) to achieve a significant saving in computational cost, together with a relatively small decrease in the accuracy of the XnSnCl4-n molecular properties routinely obtained from conformational analysis (structural parameters, etc.). Unfortunately, the hybrid method turned out to be ineffective in reproducing the 1H, 13C and 119Sn NMR chemical shifts in XnSnCl4-n accurately.
Analysis of the main conjugated linoleic acid (CLA) precursors (C18:2 n-6 and C18:3 n-3) in Brachiaria ruzizienses by capillary zone electrophoresis
Authors: Jesus Coelho Castro Renata , Sobrinho Fausto , Sundfeld da Gama Marco , Castro Barra Patrícia , Antoniassi Rosemar , Oliveira Marcone
Published: May 2013

An alternative method for extraction optimization of C18:2 n-6 and C18:3 n-3, the main precursors for the synthesis of conjugated linoleic acid (CLA), in Brachiaria ruzizienses forages was proposed. Three methods of lipid extraction were tested: 1. Hara & Radin, 2. Micro Folch and 3. Bligh & Dyer. The preliminary test showed the Hara & Radin method as the most promising procedure. Then, a 33 Box Behnken design with triplicate in the central point was applied in Hara & Radin method in order to optimize the extraction procedure. The optimization extraction was monitored by quantification of C18:2 n-6 and C18:3 n-3 through capillary zone electrophoresis (CZE). The results obtained by CZE were compared to gas chromatography (AOCS official method) in real samples using the paired t-test. No significant difference between methods was found within a 95% confidence interval (p-value= 0.937). The alternative CZE method for Brachiaria ruzizienses forages analysis has some advantages in comparison with official GC method such as, short analysis time (10 min), no derivatization step for sample preparation, absence of specific separation columns, lower analytical cost and high throughput.
Determination of some frequently used antibiotics in waste waters using solid phase extraction followed by high performance liquid chromatography with diode array and mass spectrometry detection
Authors: Opriş Ocsana , Soran Maria-Loredana , Coman Virginia , Copaciu Florina , Ristoiu Dumitru
Published: May 2013

This study is focused on the determination of some important antibiotics from different classes in waste water samples using solid phase extraction followed by high performance liquid chromatography with two detectors, diode array and mass spectrometer in positive ionisation mode. The investigated antibiotics include three penicillins (amoxicillin, ampicillin, penicillin G), two cephalosporins (ceftazidime, ceftriaxone), and two tetracyclines (tetracycline, doxycycline). The studied antibiotics were extracted from waste water samples using hydrophilic-lipophilic balanced cartridges. The extraction of antibiotics from water matrices was tested at several pH values. The best recoveries were obtained at pH 3 and 7 respectively. Depending on the nature of antibiotic, the limits of detection and quantification were obtained in the range of 0.07–0.92 µg mL−1 and 0.21–2.77 µg mL−1 respectively. Influent and effluent waste water samples were collected from a Waste Water Treatment Plant from Romania in order to detect the studied antibiotics. The antibiotics detected in the influent waste water samples were ceftriaxone (334 µg L−1), tetracycline (146 µg L−1) and doxycycline (110 µg L−1). In effluent waste water samples no target antibiotics were detected.
Properties of sodium phosphate-hydroxy ethanolamide gemini surfactant synthesized from the seed oil of Luffa cylindrical
Authors: Adewuyi Adewale , Göpfert Andrea , Wolff Thomas
Published: May 2013

The production of surfactant from biological and renewable sources is important as this reduces environmental hazards since the products are highly biodegradable. Oil extracted from the seed of Luffa cylindrica using hexane in a soxhlet extractor was used in the synthesis of sodium phosphate-hydroxy ethanolamide via a simple reaction mechanism. The progress of the reaction was monitored and confirmed by FTIR, 1HNMR and 13CNMR. The process used gave a yield of 88.46% of sodium phosphate-hydroxy ethanolamide. The properties of this compound were compared with those of sodium dodecyl sulphate (SDS) used as a known reference surfactant. Important properties of sodium phosphate-hydroxy ethanolamide such as foam stability, wetting power and surface tension turned out superior to those of the known reference surfactant (SDS).
Reflections on Writing The Disappeared
Authors: Lin(Kim Echlin) Ching Ai
Published: May 2013

abstract

Novelist Kim Echlin reflects on the process and conditions that led her to write The Disappeared, a novel as much about the Cambodian genocide as about love. She discusses the role of memory, empathy, and translation as they relate to her understanding of the other and her own otherness as well as the need to access the truth about the violence and loss that accompanies violent regimes.
Witnessing Cambodia’s Disappeared
Authors: Troeung Y-Dang
Published: May 2013

abstract

Representing the first two sustained literary treatments of the Cambodian genocide in Canadian literature, Kim Echlin’s The Disappeared and Madeleine Thien’s Dogs at the Perimeter employ the genre of fiction to contribute to the testimonial archive of the atrocities committed by Pol Pot’s Khmer Rouge regime while simultaneously deconstructing the foreignness of this historical trauma in relation to Canada’s past. Mobilizing an aesthetics of entwined responsibility that claims Cambodia’s history as a part of Canada’s international history, the novels of Echlin and Thien prompt a consideration of the role of novels written by non-Cambodians in confronting issues of Western complicity in foreign human rights abuses and in mediating questions about alternative epistemologies of healing and trauma recovery in the aftermath of mass violence. This essay suggests that the failure of justice and accountability that has characterized Cambodia’s international human rights movement speaks to the urgency and importance of such acts of literary responsibility.
Troping the Foreign in P.K. Page’s ‘Questions and Images’
Authors: McGregor Hannah
Published: May 2013

abstract

The years that poet P.K. Page spent in Brazil as wife of the Canadian ambassador are widely considered to be a transformative episode in her literary career, marking a dramatic shift in her aesthetics. Critical work on Brazil’s influence on Page tends, however, to deploy Brazil as a trope of the foreign, eliding her affiliation with the Canadian embassy. This construction of Brazil mirrors Page’s own narrativization of her time there, exemplified in her 1969 essay ‘Questions and Images,’ originally published in a special tenth anniversary issue of Canadian Literature but most frequently cited in its 1991 republication in The Glass Air: Poems Selected and New. This essay examines the different print contexts of ‘Questions and Images’ to call for a rereading of Page’s Brazilian work that is more attentive to the geopolitical realities of Canadian-Brazilian relations and the alignment of Page’s travels with a particular moment in Canadian cultural nationalism.
Settler Nationalism and the Foreign: The Representation of the Exogene in Ernest Thompson Seton’sTwo Little Savagesand Dionne Brand’sWhat We All Long For
Authors: Frew Lee
Published: May 2013

abstract

The privilege afforded to anglophone whiteness in English Canada would seem to be at odds with the cliché that Canadian national identity is elusive. As a settler society, English Canada imagines itself relative to the others it defines within a complex process of indigenization. Critical attention has usually focused on the way the indigenous is represented to insist upon the seamless integration of settler cultures into their physical environments and to exonerate them from traumatic colonial histories. Viewing indigenization as a simultaneous abnegation of foreign traits, this essay investigates the signifying process as it relates to ‘exogeneity’, or foreign otherness, in English Canada. A comparative analysis of Ernest Thompson Seton’s Two Little Savages (1903) and Dionne Brand’s What We All Long For (2005) reveals the way in which consistent representations of the foreign – the ‘exogene’ and the ‘exogenous’ – remain integral to the articulation of national identity in English Canada.
‘Putting the strange in the stranger’
Authors: Helm Michael , Kamboureli Smaro , McGregor Hannah
Published: May 2013

abstract

Michael Helm’s most recent novel, Cities of Refuge (2010), takes as its starting point an act of violence that reverberates through, and intertwines, the lives of a group of disparate people living in Toronto. Raising questions about contemporary regimes of racialization, art’s capacity to respond to violence, and the ethical ambiguity of fiction’s attempts to account for historical and political atrocities, the novel constitutes a challenge to familiar notions of family, justice, and truth. In this interview, Helm addresses the ‘resistance’ of nontransparent language and the power of literature to lift readers out of the ‘white noise’ of culture.
Foreign Encounters: The Political and Visual Aesthetics of Humanitarianism in Contemporary Canadian Film Culture
Authors: Härting Heike
Published: May 2013

abstract

This essay examines the visual politics of Patrick Reed’s documentary Triage: Dr. James Orbinski’s Humanitarian Dilemma (2008) and Larysa Kondracki’s feature film The Whistleblower (2010). Both of these films investigate the relationship between aesthetics and politics, the encounter with the other, and what Jacques Rancière calls ‘the distribution of the sensible.’ In contrast to Rancière, this essay explores how the redistribution of the sensible operates through the highly racialized, gendered, and spectacular technologies of humanitarian film productions. It examines what it means to encounter the other not as a human being but as a visual image, and explores the relationship between the economics of the image (the abject as coded in the trafficked foreign female body) and the consumers and agents of visual abjection in the context of humanitarian interventionism. It rereads Rancière’s notion of dissensus in gendered terms, and thus seeks to unsettle given modes of the humanitarian spectacle.
Attenuation of neurological injury with early baicalein treatment following subarachnoid hemorrhage in rats
Authors: Kuo Chang-Po , Wen Li-Li , Chen Chun-Mei , Huh Billy , Cherng Chen-Hwan , Wong Chih-Shung , Liaw Wen-Jinn , Yeh Chun-Chang , Lin Bo-Feng , Wu Ching-Tang
Published: May 2013

Object

Baicalein has been shown to offer neuroprotection in the ischemic brain, but its effect in subarachnoid hemorrhage (SAH) is unknown. The authors used a double-hemorrhage model to study the role of early baicalein treatment in SAH.

Methods

Subarachnoid hemorrhage was induced in male Wistar rats through a repeat injection of autologous blood at a 48-hour interval. Rats subjected or not subjected to SAH received a 30-mg/kg baicalein injection 3 hours after SAH and daily for 6 consecutive days, and results were compared with those obtained in vehicle-treated control rats. Mortality of the rats was recorded. Neurological outcome was assessed daily. Cerebrospinal fluid dialysates were collected and examined for glutamate concentrations. Cerebral vasospasm (CVS), brain water content, neuron variability, expression of glutamate transporter–1 (GLT-1), immunoreactivity of astrocyte, and level of malondialdehyde, activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), and catalase in brain tissues content were determined on post-SAH Day 7.

Results

Mortality rate, neuronal degeneration, brain water content, and CVS were decreased and neurological function improved in the baicalein-treated rats. Baicalein increased astrocyte activity and preserved GLT-1, which attenuated the glutamate surge after SAH. Baicalein also provided antioxidative stress by preserving activities of SOD and catalase and decreased malondialdehydelevel after SAH. The glutamate, body weight, neurological scores, and glial fibrillary acidic protein activity were significantly correlated. The CVS was correlated with neuronal degeneration, and GLT-1 was correlated with oxidative stress.

Conclusions

Early baicalein treatment attenuated CVS and limited neurological injury following SAH. These data may indicate clinical utility for baicalein as an adjunct therapy to reduce brain injury and improve patient outcomes.
Accuracy of deep brain stimulation electrode placement using intraoperative computed tomography without microelectrode recording
Authors: Burchiel Kim J. , McCartney Shirley , Lee Albert , Raslan Ahmed M.
Published: May 2013

Object

In this prospective study the authors' objective was to evaluate the accuracy of deep brain stimulation (DBS) electrode placement using image guidance for direct anatomical targeting with intraoperative CT.

Methods

Preoperative 3-T MR images were merged with intraoperative CT images for planning. Electrode targets were anatomical, based on the MR images. A skull-mounted NexFrame system was used for electrode placement, and all procedures were performed under general anesthesia. After electrode placement, intraoperative CT images were merged with trajectory planning images to calculate accuracy. Accuracy was assessed by both vector error and deviation off the planned trajectory.

Results

Sixty patients (33 with Parkinson disease, 26 with essential tremor, and 1 with dystonia) underwent the procedure. Patient's mean age was 64 ± 9.5 years. Over an 18-month period, 119 electrodes were placed (all bilateral, except one). Electrode implant locations were the ventral intermediate nucleus (VIM), globus pallidus internus (GPI), and subthalamic nucleus (STN) in 25, 23, and 12 patients, respectively. Target accuracy measurements were as follows: mean vector error 1.59 ± 1.11 mm and mean deviation off trajectory 1.24 ± 0.87 mm. There was no statistically significant difference between the accuracy of left and right brain electrodes. There was a statistically significant (negative) correlation between the distance of the closest approach of the electrode trajectory to the ventricular wall of the lateral ventricle and vector error (r2 = −0.339, p < 0.05, n = 76), and the deviation from the planned trajectory (r2 = −0.325, p < 0.05, n = 77). Furthermore, when the distance from the electrode trajectory and the ventricular wall was < 4 mm, the correlation of the ventricular distance to the deviation from the planned trajectory was stronger (r2 = −0.419, p = 0.05, n = 19). Electrodes placed in the GPI were significantly more accurate than those placed in the VIM (p < 0.05). Only 1 of 119 electrodes required intraoperative replacement due to a vector error > 3 mm. In this series there was one infection and no intraparenchymal hemorrhages.

Conclusions

Placement of DBS electrodes using an intraoperative CT scanner and the NexFrame achieves an accuracy that is at least comparable to other methods.
Assessment of the Presence of Pharmaceutical Compounds in Seawater Samples from Coastal Area of Gran Canaria Island (Spain)
Authors: Afonso-Olivares Cristina , Torres-Padrón Mª , Sosa-Ferrera Zoraida , Santana-Rodríguez José
Published: May 2013

This study presents the evaluation of seven pharmaceutical compounds belonging to different commonly used therapeutic classes in seawater samples from coastal areas of Gran Canaria Island. The target compounds include atenolol (antihypertensive), acetaminophen (analgesic), norfloxacin and ciprofloxacin (antibiotics), carbamazepine (antiepileptic) and ketoprofen and diclofenac (anti-inflammatory). Solid phase extraction (SPE) was used for the extraction and preconcentration of the samples, and liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) was used for the determination of the compounds. Under optimal conditions, the recoveries obtained were in the range of 78.3% to 98.2%, and the relative standard deviations were less than 11.8%. The detection and quantification limits of the method were in the ranges of 0.1–2.8 and 0.3–9.3 ng·L−1, respectively. The developed method was applied to evaluate the presence of these pharmaceutical compounds in seawater from four outfalls in Gran Canaria Island (Spain) during one year. Ciprofloxacin and norfloxacin were found in a large number of samples in a concentration range of 9.0–3551.7 ng·L−1. Low levels of diclofenac, acetaminophen and ketoprofen were found sporadically.
Systems Biology: The Role of Engineering in the Reverse Engineering of Biological Signaling
Authors: Iglesias Pablo
Published: May 2013

One of the principle tasks of systems biology has been the reverse engineering of signaling networks. Because of the striking similarities to engineering systems, a number of analysis and design tools from engineering disciplines have been used in this process. This review looks at several examples including the analysis of homeostasis using control theory, the attenuation of noise using signal processing, statistical inference and the use of information theory to understand both binary decision systems and the response of eukaryotic chemotactic cells.
Structural Features That Stabilize ZnO Clusters: An Electronic Structure Approach
Authors: Szakacs Csaba , Merschrod S. Erika , Poduska Kristin
Published: May 2013

We show that a simple approach to building small computationally inexpensive clusters offers insights on specific structural motifs that stabilize the electronic structure of ZnO. All-electron calculations on ZniOi needle (i = 6, 9, 12, 15, and 18) and plate (i = 9 and 18) clusters within the density functional theory (DFT) formalism show a higher stability for ZnO needles that increases with length. Puckering of the rings to achieve a more wurtzite-like structure destabilizes the needles, although this destabilization is reduced by going to infinite needles (calculated using periodic boundary conditions). Calculations of density of states (DOS) curves and band gaps for finite clusters and infinite needles highlight opportunities for band-gap tuning through kinetic control of nanocrystal growth.
Perinatal Outcomes of Uninsured Immigrant, Refugee and Migrant Mothers and Newborns Living in Toronto, Canada
Authors: Wilson-Mitchell Karline , Rummens Joanna
Published: May 2013

Canadian healthcare insurance is not universal for all newcomer populations. New immigrant, refugee claimant, and migrant women face various barriers to healthcare due to the lack of public health insurance coverage. This retrospective study explored the relationships between insurance status and various perinatal outcomes. Researchers examined and compared perinatal outcomes for 453 uninsured and provincially insured women who delivered at two general hospitals in the Greater Toronto Area between 2007 and 2010. Data on key perinatal health indicators were collected via chart review of hospital medical records. Comparisons were made with regional statistics and professional guidelines where available. Four-in-five uninsured pregnant women received less-than-adequate prenatal care. More than half of them received clearly inadequate prenatal care, and 6.5% received no prenatal care at all. Insurance status was also related to the type of health care provider, reason for caesarean section, neonatal resuscitation rates, and maternal length of hospital stay. Uninsured mothers experienced a higher percentage of caesarian sections due to abnormal fetal heart rates and required more neonatal resuscitations. No significant difference was found for low birth weight, preterm birth, NCIU admissions, postpartum hemorrhage, breast feeding, or intrapartum care provided.
SAHBNET, an Accessible Surface-Based Elastic Network: An Application to Membrane Protein
Authors: Dony Nicolas , Crowet Jean , Joris Bernard , Brasseur Robert , Lins Laurence
Published: May 2013

Molecular Dynamics is a method of choice for membrane simulations and the rising of coarse-grained forcefields has opened the way to longer simulations with reduced calculations times. Here, we present an elastic network, SAHBNET (Surface Accessibility Hydrogen-Bonds elastic NETwork), that will maintain the structure of soluble or membrane proteins based on the hydrogen bonds present in the atomistic structure and the proximity between buried residues. This network is applied on the coarse-grained beads defined by the MARTINI model, and was designed to be more physics-based than a simple elastic network. The SAHBNET model is evaluated against atomistic simulations, and compared with ELNEDYN models. The SAHBNET is then used to simulate two membrane proteins inserted in complex lipid bilayers. These bilayers are formed by self-assembly and the use of a modified version of the GROMACS tool genbox (which is accessible through the gcgs.gembloux.ulg.ac.be website). The results show that SAHBNET keeps the structure close to the atomistic one and is successfully used for the simulation of membrane proteins.
Towards a Molecular Understanding of the Biosynthesis of Amaryllidaceae Alkaloids in Support of Their Expanding Medical Use
Authors: Takos Adam , Rook Fred
Published: May 2013

The alkaloids characteristically produced by the subfamily Amaryllidoideae of the Amaryllidaceae, bulbous plant species that include well know genera such as Narcissus (daffodils) and Galanthus (snowdrops), are a source of new pharmaceutical compounds. Presently, only the Amaryllidaceae alkaloid galanthamine, an acetylcholinesterase inhibitor used to treat symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease, is produced commercially as a drug from cultivated plants. However, several Amaryllidaceae alkaloids have shown great promise as anti-cancer drugs, but their further clinical development is restricted by their limited commercial availability. Amaryllidaceae species have a long history of cultivation and breeding as ornamental bulbs, and phytochemical research has focussed on the diversity in alkaloid content and composition. In contrast to the available pharmacological and phytochemical data, ecological, physiological and molecular aspects of the Amaryllidaceae and their alkaloids are much less explored and the identity of the alkaloid biosynthetic genes is presently unknown. An improved molecular understanding of Amaryllidaceae alkaloid biosynthesis would greatly benefit the rational design of breeding programs to produce cultivars optimised for the production of pharmaceutical compounds and enable biotechnology based approaches.
Evolutionary Origin of the Proepicardium
Authors: Cano Elena , Carmona Rita , Muñoz-Chápuli Ramón
Published: May 2013

The embryonic epicardium and the cardiac mesenchyme derived from it are critical to heart development. The embryonic epicardium arises from an extracardiac progenitor tissue called the proepicardium, a proliferation of coelomic cells located at the limit between the liver and the sinus venosus. A proepicardium has not been described in invertebrates, and the evolutionary origin of this structure in vertebrates is unknown. We herein suggest that the proepicardium might be regarded as an evolutionary derivative from an ancient pronephric external glomerulus that has lost its excretory role. In fact, we previously described that the epicardium arises by cell migration from the primordia of the right pronephric external glomerulus in a representative of the most primitive vertebrate lineage, the lamprey Petromyzon marinus. In this review, we emphasize the striking similarities between the gene expression profiles of the proepicardium and the developing kidneys, as well as the parallelisms in the signaling mechanisms involved in both cases. We show some preliminary evidence about the existence of an inhibitory mechanism blocking glomerular differentiation in the proepicardium. We speculate as to the possibility that this developmental link between heart and kidney can be revealing a phylogenetically deeper association, supported by the existence of a heart-kidney complex in Hemichordates. Finally, we suggest that primitive hematopoiesis could be related with this heart-kidney complex, thus accounting for the current anatomical association of the hematopoietic stem cells with an aorta-gonad-mesonephros area. In summary, we think that our hypothesis can provide new perspectives on the evolutionary origin of the vertebrate heart.
High Pressure Compression-Molding of α-Cellulose and Effects of Operating Conditions
Authors: Pintiaux Thibaud , Viet David , Vandenbossche Virginie , Rigal Luc , Rouilly Antoine
Published: May 2013

Commercial α-cellulose was compression-molded to produce 1A dog-bone specimens under various operating conditions without any additive. The resulting agromaterials exhibited a smooth, plastic-like surface, and constituted a suitable target as replacement for plastic materials. Tensile and three-points bending tests were conducted according to ISO standards related to the evaluation of plastic materials. The specimens had strengths comparable to classical petroleum-based thermoplastics. They also exhibited high moduli, which is characteristic of brittle materials. A higher temperature and higher pressure rate produced specimens with higher mechanical properties while low moisture content produced weaker specimens. Generally, the strong specimen had higher specific gravity and lower moisture content. However, some parameters did not follow the general trend e.g., thinner specimen showed much higher Young’s Modulus, although their specific gravity and moisture content remained similar to control, revealing a marked skin-effect which was confirmed by SEM observations.
Plasma Enhanced Chemical Vapour Deposition of Horizontally Aligned Carbon Nanotubes
Authors: Cole Matthew , Milne William
Published: May 2013

A plasma-enhanced chemical vapour deposition reactor has been developed to synthesis horizontally aligned carbon nanotubes. The width of the aligning sheath was modelled based on a collisionless, quasi-neutral, Child’s law ion sheath where these estimates were empirically validated by direct Langmuir probe measurements, thereby confirming the proposed reactors ability to extend the existing sheath fields by up to 7 mm. A 7 mbar growth atmosphere combined with a 25 W plasma permitted the concurrent growth and alignment of carbon nanotubes with electric fields of the order of 0.04 V μm−1 with linear packing densities of up to ~5 × 104 cm−1. These results open up the potential for multi-directional in situ alignment of carbon nanotubes providing one viable route to the fabrication of many novel optoelectronic devices.
Multiple Roles of Photosynthetic and Sunscreen Pigments in Cyanobacteria Focusing on the Oxidative Stress
Authors: Wada Naoki , Sakamoto Toshio , Matsugo Seiichi
Published: May 2013

Cyanobacteria have two types of sunscreen pigments, scytonemin and mycosporine-like amino acids (MAAs). These secondary metabolites are thought to play multiple roles against several environmental stresses such as UV radiation and desiccation. Not only the large molar absorption coefficients of these sunscreen pigments, but also their antioxidative properties may be necessary for the protection of biological molecules against the oxidative damages induced by UV radiation. The antioxidant activity and vitrification property of these pigments are thought to be requisite for the desiccation and rehydration processes in anhydrobiotes. In this review, the multiple roles of photosynthetic pigments and sunscreen pigments on stress resistance, especially from the viewpoint of their structures, biosynthetic pathway, and in vitro studies of their antioxidant activity, will be discussed.
Design, Synthesis and Evaluation of Dual-Modality Glyco-Nanoparticles for Tumor Imaging
Authors: Zhu Hua , Zhao Jun , Lin Xinfeng , Hong Ye , Li Chun , Yang Zhi
Published: May 2013

d-Glucosamine (DG) was conjugated to a core-cross linked polymeric micelle (CCPM) system equipped with both a near-infrared fluorophore (NIRF) and a gamma emitter (111In). The resultant nano-scale tumor-targeting imaging tracer, 111In-DG-NIRF-CCPM, selectively accumulated in a human epithelial carcinoma A-431 xenograft model in mice. At 24 hrs post injection, the tumor uptake was 2.62 ± 0.80 % of the injected dose per gram of tissue (%ID/g). Tumors were clearly delineated in both single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) and optical imaging. The results suggest that the prepared imaging tracer is a promising agent for tumor diagnosis.