bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Políticas Educacionais para a educação superior e os dilemas das licenciaturas: questões curriculares
Authors: Cavalcante Guedes Neide , De Cássia Prazeres Frangella Rita
Published: October 2017

O presente artigo objetiva discutir como as politicas educacionais para o ensino superior tratam os dilemas enfrentados pelos cursos de licenciaturas, considerando que compete à Universidade como lócus de formação, garantir aos futuros profissionais a integração ensino, pesquisa e extensão. Tomamos como foco de investigação as Diretrizes Curriculares para a formação inicial e continuada definidas na Resolução Nº 2, de 1º de julho de 2015. Para o desenvolvimento do estudo apresentamos os aportes teóricos que subsidiaram nossas discussões, dando destaque a Lopes e Macedo (2011) e Frangella (2016) a partir das quais assumimos a compreensão sobre o currículo como um processo dialógico cujos sentidos não são e nunca serão transparentes, pois são produzidos em meio à negociação, à articulação. Argumentamos que essa perspectiva nos orienta a empreender análises que, para além de binarismo e dicotomias, se voltem para a articulação, deslocamento entre as diferentes esferas observando como as relações inter e intracontextuais operam.
A democratização do acesso à educação superior no Brasil
Authors: Filipak Sirley Terezinha , Hennerich Pacheco Eduardo Felipe
Published: October 2017

O presente artigo tem como objetivo discutir a temática da democratização do acesso à educação superior no Brasil com base na atual configuração desse nível de ensino. Tendo em vista a complexidade da temática, optou-se em discutir a democratização da educação superior brasileira a partir dos dados divulgados pelo Instituto Nacional de Estudos e Pesquisas Educacionais Anísio Teixeira (INEP) e analisar se a meta 12 do Plano Nacional de Educação (PNE 2014-2024) poderá ser atendida no período proposto. A metodologia da análise se orientou na pesquisa documental e bibliográfica. Os resultados apontam que, historicamente, a Educação Superior foi privilégio de uma elite detentora de um poder político e econômico e que, apesar de na contemporaneidade existirem políticas públicas educacionais, de ações afirmativas e que objetivam a democratização desse nível de ensino, os números ainda são insuficientes considerando o total da população brasileira que possui a idade entre 18 a 24 anos. A democratização do acesso à educação superior deve ser considerada um tema indispensável na agenda política do país, sobretudo se levarmos em conta o cenário de construção da chamada “sociedade do conhecimento” e, ainda, as mudanças do mundo de trabalho, o processo de mundialização do capital e as alterações que vêm ocorrendo no papel do Estado. Garantir o acesso, a permanência e o êxito acadêmico dos estudantes devem ser considerados aspectos indispensáveis para a construção de uma sociedade mais justa, igualitária e democrática.
The Effects of Perceptions of Economic Inequality on Policy Preferences: Evidence from Michigan
Authors: BALLARD CHARLES L. , DUFF JEREMY F.
Published: October 2017

Using survey data from a random sample of the Michigan adult population, we investigate the relationship between individuals' perceptions of income inequality, economic mobility, and labor-market discrimination, and their preferences regarding a wide variety of public policies. These include policies (such as cash payments for the poor) that are economic in nature, as well as other policies (such as abortion and the death penalty) that are not narrowly economic. Our results indicate that perceptions of income inequality, economic mobility, and labor-market discrimination play an important role in explaining the variation in policy preferences. These effects tend to be more important for issues on which the degree of political polarization is relatively small. However, in many cases, these perceptions also have significant effects for issues that are more polarized. Self-reported ideology has no significant effects on preferences toward the policies for which polarization is small, but ideology has large and significant effects for the more highly polarized variables.
Elevated serum osteoprotegerin may predict peripheral arterial disease after kidney transplantation: a single-center prospective cross-sectional study in Taiwan
Authors: Chen Yen-Cheng , Hsu Bang-Gee , Ho Ching-Chun , Lee Chung-Jen , Lee Ming-Che
Published: October 2017

Background

Osteoprotegerin (OPG) is a potential biomarker for severity and complications of cardiovascular diseases. Peripheral arterial disease (PAD) is associated with an increased risk of death in kidney transplantation (KT) patients. This prospective cross-sectional study evaluated the relationship between serum OPG and PAD in KT patients.

Methods

Seventy-four KT patients were enrolled for this PAD study. Fasting blood samples were obtained to measure serum OPG levels by using enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kits. The ankle-brachial index (ABI) of less than 0.9 was applied for PAD diagnosis.

Results

Thirteen patients (17.6%) were diagnosed with PAD. Diabetes (P = 0.025), smoking (P = 0.010), and increased OPG levels (P = 0.001) were significantly more frequent in the PAD group. Multivariate logistic regression analysis showed that serum OPG (odds ratio [OR], 1.336; 95% CI [1.108–1.611]; P = 0.002) and diabetes (OR, 7.120; 95% CI [1.080–46.940]; P = 0.041) were independent predictors of PAD in KT patients. The area under the receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve determined that the probability of a serum OPG level of 7.117 pg/L in predicting PAD in KT patients was 0.799 (95% CI [0.690–0.884]; P < 0.001).

Discussion

Exploration of reliable biomarkers for early identification of vascular risk is crucial for KT patients. Elevated serum OPG levels may predict PAD in KT patients with cutoff value of 7.117 pg/L.
Evidence for a Localized Source of the Argon in the Lunar Exosphere
Authors: Kegerreis Jacob A. , Eke Vincent R. , Massey Richard J. , Beaumont Simon K. , Elphic Rick C. , Teodoro Luís F.
Published: October 2017

We perform the first tests of various proposed explanations for observed features of the Moon's argon exosphere, including models of the following: spatially varying surface interactions; a source that reflects the lunar near‐surface potassium distribution; and temporally varying cold trap areas. Measurements from the Lunar Atmosphere and Dust Environment Explorer (LADEE) and the Lunar Atmosphere Composition Experiment (LACE) are used to test whether these models can reproduce the data. The spatially varying surface interactions hypothesized in previous work cannot reproduce the persistent argon enhancement observed over the western maria. They also fail to match the observed local time of the near‐sunrise peak in argon density, which is the same for the highland and mare regions and is well reproduced by simple surface interactions with a ubiquitous desorption energy of 28 kJ mol−1. A localized source can explain the observations, with a trade‐off between an unexpectedly localized source or an unexpectedly brief lifetime of argon atoms in the exosphere. To match the observations, a point‐like source requires source and loss rates of ∼1.9 × 1021 atoms s−1. A more diffuse source, weighted by the near‐surface potassium, requires much higher rates of ∼1.1 × 1022 atoms s−1, corresponding to a mean lifetime of just 1.4 lunar days. We do not address the mechanism for producing a localized source, but demonstrate that this appears to be the only model that can reproduce the observations. Large, seasonally varying cold traps could explain the long‐term fluctuation in the global argon density observed by LADEE, but not that by LACE.
Synthesis, Characterization and Catalytic Application of Pyridine‐Bridged N‐Heterocyclic Carbene–Ruthenium Complexes in the Hydrogenation of Carbonates
Authors: Chen Jiangbo , Zhu Haibo , Chen Jinjin , Le Zhang‐Gao , Tu Tao
Published: October 2017

A series of bulky pyridine‐bridged NHC–Ru complexes have been rationally designed and synthesized; these exhibited very high catalytic activity in the hydrogenation of cyclic and linear carbonates under mild reaction conditions. In the presence of catalytic amounts of a weak base, a broad range of substrates with different ring size and steric bulk were well tolerated, providing methanol and the corresponding diols in excellent yields with a catalyst loading as low as 0.5 mol %.
Preparation of Silver Nanocap Arrays and Their Surface‐enhanced Raman Scattering Activity
Authors: Wang Chunxu , Xu Duo , Wang Yuhai , Wang Li , Chen Lei , Xue Xiangxin , Qin Zhengkun
Published: October 2017

In this article, a surface‐enhanced Raman scattering (SERS) substrate of silver nanocap arrays was reported. With increasing the size of nanocaps, the localized surface plasmon resonance (LSPR) of the arrays exhibited tunable ability in the visible spectral region. The optical response of the nanocap arrays stimulated their use in SERS experiments. The assessment of SERS activity of the nanocap arrays was performed by using the 514.5 nm excitation line, and different average enhancement factor (EF) values were obtained. The good tunability of LSPR, relatively high average EF values and long‐range order of these substrates suggest that the silver nanocap arrays have promising applications as functional components in spectroscopy, immunoassay, biosensors, and biochips.
Thorough QT/QTc Evaluation of the Cardiac Safety of Secnidazole at Therapeutic and Supratherapeutic Doses in Healthy Individuals
Authors: Darpo Borje , Xue Hongqi , Adetoro Nikki , Matthews Barbara G. , Pentikis Helen S.
Published: October 2017

SYM‐1219, a novel oral granule formulation of secnidazole, is under development as single‐dose treatment for bacterial vaginosis. This 4‐way, randomized, crossover study evaluated the effects of SYM‐1219 on electrocardiographic (ECG) parameters in 52 healthy subjects. Subjects were administered single doses of SYM‐1219, 2 g (proposed therapeutic dose), 6 g (supratherapeutic dose), placebo, and moxifloxacin (positive control). Serial digital 12‐lead ECGs were recorded pre‐ and postdose; blood samples were taken to determine plasma secnidazole concentrations. A high‐precision QT technique measured ECGs. The primary end point was change from baseline QTcF (∆QTcF); data were analyzed with the objective of excluding QT effects >10 milliseconds at postdosing time points and with exposure‐response analysis. Safety and tolerability were assessed. Single doses of 2 g and 6 g SYM‐1219 did not have a clinically relevant effect on the QTcF interval; an effect >10 milliseconds could be excluded at all postdosing time points. A shallow slope of the exposure‐response relationship was seen (0.058 millisecond per μg/mL; 90%CI 0.042, 0.073); in this model, the effect on QTc can be predicted to be <10 milliseconds up to a secnidazole plasma concentration of ∼125 μg/mL, approximately 3.4‐fold higher than anticipated peak therapeutic plasma levels. The moxifloxacin QT response demonstrated assay sensitivity. The most frequently reported treatment‐emergent adverse events with SYM‐1219 were headache, dizziness, and nausea. This thorough QT study demonstrated that SYM‐1219 in doses and plasma concentrations up to 3‐fold above therapeutically relevant levels does not have a clinically concerning effect on ECG parameters, including the QT interval.
Synthesis, Structures, and Properties of Lanthanide Complexes with Pyrimidine‐2‐carboxylic Acid
Authors: Wang Panpan , Chen Wenlan , Xia Jun
Published: October 2017

Six lanthanide complexes [Ln(pmc)2NO3]n [Hpmc = pyrimidine‐2‐carboxylic acid, Ln = La (1), Pr (2)], [Ln(pmc)2(H2O)3]NO3·H2O [Ln = Eu (3), Tb (4) Dy (5), Er (6)] were synthesized by the reactions of lanthanide nitrate and pyrimidine‐2‐carboxylic acid in water at room temperature. These complexes were characterized by single‐crystal X‐ray diffraction analysis, elemental analysis, IR, circular dichroism (CD) and fluorescence spectra. Structure analysis shows that complexes 1 and 2 are isostructural with P43212 space group, whereas isostructural complexes 3–6 belong to the P21/c space group. In complexes 1 and 2, the central metal atoms are coordinated by nitrates and pmc–, which are self‐assembled to construct a 3D porous network with 62.62.62.62.62.62 (66) topology. In complexes 3–6, H2O and pmc– ligands are coordinated and the complexes exhibit a one‐dimensional zigzag chain, which is further expanded into a 3D structure by hydrogen bonding. In addition, the circular dichroism of 1 and 2 proves that the two complexes are both chiral with achiral ligand of Hpmc. Luminescent measurements of compounds 3–5 indicate that the characteristic fluorescence of Eu3+, Tb3+, and Dy3+ are observed.
Synthesis, Characterization, and Chemical Bonding Analysis of the Lithium Alkaline‐earth Metal Gallide Nitrides Li2(Ca3N)2[Ga4] and Li2(Sr3N)2[Ga4]
Authors: Pathak Manisha , Stoiber Dominik , Bobnar Matej , Ovchinnikov Alexander , Ormeci Alim , Niewa Rainer , Höhn Peter
Published: October 2017

Large single crystals of Li2(Ca3N)2[Ga4] and Li2(Sr3N)2[Ga4] up to several mm in size were grown from mixtures of the respective elements and binary alkaline‐earth metal nitrides in reactive lithium melts employing a modified high‐temperature centrifugation‐aided filtration (HTCAF) technique. The main structural features of these isotypic phases are stella quadrangula building units [Ga4]Li4/2 and octahedra (Nae6/2), which form two independent interpenetrating networks. The phases crystallize in the η‐carbide structure and represent diamagnetic small bandgap semiconductors. Real‐space chemical bonding analysis indicates predominantly ionic bonding.
Nitrogen Transfer between Solid Phases in the System Mn‐N Detected via in situ Neutron Diffraction
Authors: Widenmeyer Marc , Hansen Thomas C. , Leineweber Andreas , Weidenkaff Anke , Niewa Rainer
Published: October 2017

The thermochemical properties of θ‐Mn6N5+x and ζ‐Mn2N1–w were investigated by thermal analysis in inert and oxidizing atmospheres. The obtained phase transformation temperatures were used to design an in situ neutron diffraction experiment on the reaction of α‐Mn and flowing NH3. During this in situ experiment, initially a nitrogen‐poor anti‐perovskite type phase ε‐Mn4Ny [0.70(3) ≤ y ≤ 0.93(3)] was formed, indicating the lowest required nitridation potential necessary for formation of this phase within the binary manganese nitrides. At slightly higher temperatures the γ‐ and β‐type superstructured polymorphs of ζ‐Mn2N1–w were observed. In the same temperature region the formation of η‐Mn3N2 [up to 26(2) wt %] at ambient pressure conditions was noticed. For the first time, a direct evidence for the high‐temperature transformation of η‐Mn3N2 was obtained. At 928 K the nuclear and magnetic superstructures simultaneously collapse and a cubic MnNx phase [0.56(6) ≤ x ≤ 0.70(3)] with defect rock salt structure was generated. Clear indications for the preferred transfer of N between the different above mentioned solid state nitride phases rather than direct release to the surrounding atmosphere during temperature increase were achieved from the compositions of the coexisting phases. An updated phase diagram is suggested.
Unemployment, Nonstandard Employment, and Fertility: Insights From Japan’s “Lost 20 Years”
Authors: Raymo James M. , Shibata Akihisa
Published: October 2017

In this study, we examine relationships of unemployment and nonstandard employment with fertility. We focus on Japan, a country characterized by a prolonged economic downturn, significant increases in both unemployment and nonstandard employment, a strong link between marriage and childbearing, and pronounced gender differences in economic roles and opportunities. Analyses of retrospective employment, marriage, and fertility data for the period 1990–2006 indicate that changing employment circumstances for men are associated with lower levels of marriage, while changes in women’s employment are associated with higher levels of marital fertility. The latter association outweighs the former, and results of counterfactual standardization analyses indicate that Japan’s total fertility rate would have been 10 % to 20 % lower than the observed rate after 1995 if aggregate- and individual-level employment conditions had remained unchanged from the 1980s. We discuss the implications of these results in light of ongoing policy efforts to promote family formation and research on temporal and regional variation in men’s and women’s roles within the family.
Humanitarian Intervention: Time for Better Law
Authors: Koh Harold Hongju
Published: October 2017

The United States’ April 6, 2017 missile strikes against Syria raise three fundamental questions about how we should assess military interventions taken for humanitarian ends but without Security Council authorization: First, is unilateral humanitarian intervention per se illegal under international and domestic law—what I call the “never/never rule”? Second, were the Trump Administration's April 6, 2017 strikes per se illegal under international and domestic law? And third, going forward, can we live with the status quo, where in state practice, unilateral humanitarian intervention seems to occur regularly, without being formally justified in law?
Investigation of Stress-Strain Constitutive Behavior of Intermetallic Alloys
Authors: Cheng H. C. , Hu H. C. , Hong R. Y. , Chen W. H.
Published: October 2017

The study aims to estimate the stress-strain constitutive behavior of intermetallic compounds (IMCs) observed in a solder interconnect from experimental nanoindentation responses through a modified analysis procedure for improved solution robustness based on Cheng and Cheng's and Dao et al.'s models. On the basis of parametric finite element nanoindentation simulation and dimensional analysis together with the concept of representative strain, a set of universal dimensionless functions are established, by which a forward and reverse analysis algorithm are created to predict nanoindentation responses from given elastoplastic properties and vice versa, respectively. The proposed analysis procedure is validated through comparison with the experimental nanoindentation responses and limited literature data. The results show that the proposed analysis procedure is an effective means for plastic property characterization of micro/nanoscale IMCs. The representative strain is found to be 0.056, which differs from the Dao et al.'s and Giannakopoulos and Suresh's estimate. Besides, though generally brittle and hard in nature, the IMCs in a micro/nanoscale thickness show high plasticity, and comprise a yield strength surpassing most typical engineering metals.
Three-Dimensional Elastic Analysis of Transversely-Isotropic Composites
Authors: Tokovyy Yu. V. , Ma C. C.
Published: October 2017

An exact analytical solution to the three-dimensional elasticity problem for a transversely-isotropic composite layer is constructed by making use of the direct integration method along with the Fourier double-integral transform. The original problem is reduced to a system of governing partial-differential equations for separate stress-tensor components. The governing equations are accompanied with corresponding local and integral boundary conditions, obtained on the basis of the original local boundary conditions imposing the normal and shearing forces on the limiting planes of the layer. The numerical analysis of the obtained solution is presented for certain transversely-isotropic composite materials.
The Fascist anti-mafia operation in Campania, 1926-1927
Authors: Castellano Carolina
Published: October 2017

The anti-mafia operation undertaken in Sicily by the fledgling Fascist government had a powerful symbolic meaning in the construction of the ‘new state’. As a result, it left behind a wealth of sources: from the diaries of the prefect Cesare Mori and Alfredo Cucco, the Fascist Party’s representative in Sicily, to the many trials against ‘criminal associations’ from 1927 onwards. These sources are at the centre of a historiographical debate that dates back to the 1980s, and which has recently brought to light numerous elements of the complex relationship between Fascism and the Sicilian Mafia. In contrast, despite a similar level of publicity, the law and order operation launched in the same year of 1926 in Campania, in the province of Caserta, has largely been forgotten, and has received little historical analysis. This article presents the early results of research into the Fascist suppression of the mafia in Campania in 1926 and 1927, focusing on the city of Naples and the province of Caserta (Terra di Lavoro). An initial study of judicial sources suggests that, unlike Sicily, the notion of ‘organised crime’ that underpinned the inquiries was largely denied in the final verdicts.
Psychotic patients who used cannabis frequently before illness onset have higher genetic predisposition to schizophrenia than those who did not
Authors: Aas M. , Melle I. , Bettella F. , Djurovic S. , Le Hellard S. , Bjella T. , Ringen P. A. , Lagerberg T. V. , Smeland O. B. , Agartz I. , Andreassen O. A. , Tesli M.
Published: October 2017

Background

Schizophrenia (SZ) and bipolar disorder (BD) are heritable, polygenic disorders with shared clinical and genetic components, suggesting a psychosis continuum. Cannabis use is a well-documented environmental risk factor in psychotic disorders. In the current study, we investigated the relationship between SZ genetic load and cannabis use before illness onset in SZ and BD spectrums. Since frequent early cannabis use (age <18 years) is believed to increase the risk of developing psychosis more than later use, follow-up analyses were conducted comparing early use to later use and no use.

Methods

We assigned a SZ-polygenic risk score (PGRS) to each individual in our independent sample (N= 381 SZ spectrum cases, 220 BD spectrum cases and 415 healthy controls), calculated from the results of the Psychiatric Genomics Consortium (PGC) SZ case–control study (N= 81 535). SZ-PGRS in patients who used cannabis weekly to daily in the period before first illness episode was compared with that of those who never or infrequently used cannabis.

Results

Patients with weekly to daily cannabis use before illness onset had the highest SZ-PGRS (p= 0.02, Cohen'sd= 0.33). The largest difference was found between patients with daily or weekly cannabis use before illness onset <18 years of age and patients with no or infrequent use of cannabis (p= 0.003, Cohen'sd= 0.42).

Conclusions

Our study supports an association between high SZ-PGRS and frequent cannabis use before illness onset in psychosis continuum disorders.
International organisations and human rights: What direct authority needs for its legitimation
Authors: Heupel Monika , Hirschmann Gisela , Zürn Michael
Published: October 2017

Human rights violations by international organisations (IOs) are a possible side effect of their growing authority. Recent examples are the cases of sexual exploitation by UN peacekeepers and violations caused by IMF austerity measures. In response, IOs increasingly develop safeguards to protect human rights from being violated through their policies to regain legitimacy. We argue that this development can be accounted for by a mechanism we call ‘authority-legitimation mechanism’. We test this theoretical expectation against ten case studies on UN and EU sanctions policies, UN and NATO peacekeeping and World Bank and IMF lending. Next, we demonstrate inductively that the authority-legitimation mechanism can evolve through different pathways, depending on which actors get engaged. We label these pathwayslegislative institution-buildingif parliaments in member states put pressure on their governments to campaign for human rights safeguards in IOs,judicial institution-buildingif courts demand human rights safeguards,like-minded institution-buildingif civil society organisations, middle powers and IO bodies with little formal power push for human rights safeguards, oranticipatory institution-buildingif IOs adopt such safeguards from other IOs without having violated human rights themselves. Finally, we argue that which of these pathways are activated and how effective they are depends on specific conditions.
THE POLITICAL ECONOMY OF INCLUSION: THE RISE AND FALL OF THE WORKHOUSE SYSTEM
Authors: Orsi Cosma
Published: October 2017

The aim of this article is to describe the rise and fall of the workhouse system in connection with the developments that took place in economic thought in the transition from mercantilism to the Classical tradition. By examining the economic debate about wages, efficiency, labor market, workers’ mobility, and unemployment, we discuss whether the social policy shift epitomized by institutional reforms like the Gilbert Act (1782), the Rose Act (1793), and the Speenhamland system (1795) was accompanied and eventually inspired by a change in the perception of major political economy issues. In doing so, we review the writings of Jacob Vanderlint (d. 1740), George Berkeley (1685–1753), Malachy Postlethwayt (1707?–1767), Josiah Tucker (1713–1799), David Hume (1711–1776), and Adam Smith (1723-1790), among others. Although a direct influence by these writers cannot be proven, the originality of the present work rests on the effort to put into perspective the arguments elaborated by economic thinkers and the proposals made by social reformers so as to identify possible connections between economic theorizing and social legislation.
The duty to rescue at sea, in peacetime and in war: A general overview
Authors: Papanicolopulu Irini
Published: October 2017

The duty to rescue persons in distress at sea is a fundamental rule of international law. It has been incorporated in international treaties and forms the content of a norm of customary international law. It applies both during peacetime and during wartime, albeit with the necessary adjustments to take into account the different circumstances. States are also under the duty to provide search and rescue services. This article discusses the content and limitations of these provisions and assesses their potential to ensure the protection of human lives at sea. Furthermore, the article suggests that reference to the right to life, as protected in international human rights law, may be useful in further safeguarding human life and ensuring compliance by States with their duties.
Deconstructing a multiple antibiotic resistance regulation through the quantification of its input function
Authors: Rodrigo Guillermo , Bajić Djordje , Elola Ignacio , Poyatos Juan F.
Published: October 2017

Many essential bacterial responses present complex transcriptional regulation of gene expression. To what extent can the study of these responses substantiate the logic of their regulation? Here, we show how the input function of the genes constituting the response, i.e., the information of how their transcription rates change as function of the signals acting on the regulators, can serve as a quantitative tool to deconstruct the corresponding regulatory logic. To demonstrate this approach, we consider the multiple antibiotic resistance (mar) response in Escherichia coli. By characterizing the input function of its representative genes in wild-type and mutant bacteria, we recognize a dual autoregulation motif as main determinant of the response, which is further adjusted by the interplay with other regulators. We show that basic attributes, like its reaction to a wide range of stress or its moderate expression change, are associated with a strong negative autoregulation, while others, like the buffering of metabolic signals or the lack of memory to previous stress, are related to a weak positive autoregulation. With a mathematical model of the input functions, we identify some constraints fixing the molecular attributes of the regulators, and also notice the relevance of the bicystronic architecture harboring the dual autoregulation that is unique in E. coli. The input function emerges then as a tool to disentangle the rationale behind most of the attributes defining the mar phenotype. Overall, the present study supports the value of characterizing input functions to deconstruct the complexity of regulatory architectures in prokaryotic and eukaryotic systems.
Broadband reconfigurable logic gates in phonon waveguides
Authors: Hatanaka D. , Darras T. , Mahboob I. , Onomitsu K. , Yamaguchi H.
Published: October 2017

The high-quality-factor mechanical resonator in electromechanical systems has facilitated dynamic control of phonons via parametric nonlinear processes and paved the development of mechanical logic-elements. However, the narrow spectral bandwidth of the resonating element constrains the available nonlinear phenomena thus limiting the functionality of the device as well as the switching speeds. Here we have developed phonon waveguides, with a two-octave-wide phonon transmission band, in which mechanical four-wave-like mixing is demonstrated that enables the frequency of phonon waves to be converted over 1 MHz. We harness this platform to execute multiple binary mechanical logic gates in parallel, via frequency division multiplexing in this broadband, where each gate can be independently reconfigured. The fidelity of the binary gates is verified via temporal measurements yielding eye diagrams which confirm the availability of high speed logic operations. The phonon waveguide architecture thus offers the broadband functionality that is essential to realising mechanical signal processors.
Post-fire carbon and nitrogen accumulation and succession in Central Siberia
Authors: Larjavaara Markku , Berninger Frank , Palviainen Marjo , Prokushkin Anatoly , Wallenius Tuomo
Published: October 2017

Improved understanding of carbon (C) accumulation after a boreal fire enables more accurate quantification of the C implications caused by potential fire regime shifts. We coupled results from a fire history study with biomass and soil sampling in a remote and little-studied region that represents a vast area of boreal taiga. We used an inventory approach based on predefined plot locations, thus avoiding problems potentially causing bias related to the standard chronosequence approach. The disadvantage of our inventory approach is that more plots are needed to expose trends. Because of this we could not expose clear trends, despite laborious sampling. We found some support for increasing C and nitrogen (N) stored in living trees and dead wood with increasing time since the previous fire or time since the previous stand-replacing fire. Surprisingly, we did not gain support for the well-established paradigm on successional patterns, beginning with angiosperms and leading, if fires are absent, to dominance of Picea. Despite the lack of clear trends in our data, we encourage fire historians and ecosystem scientists to join forces and use even larger data sets to study C accumulation since fire in the complex Eurasian boreal landscapes.
Quantitation of putative colorectal cancer biomarker candidates in serum extracellular vesicles by targeted proteomics
Authors: Shiromizu Takashi , Kume Hideaki , Ishida Mimiko , Adachi Jun , Kano Masayuki , Matsubara Hisahiro , Tomonaga Takeshi
Published: October 2017

At the moment, there is no sensitive clinical test for detecting early-stage colorectal cancer (CRC). Target proteomics has enabled high-throughput verification of hundreds of biomarker candidate proteins. Using this technology, we verified 725 previously reported CRC biomarker candidate proteins that are functionally correlated with CRC in extracellular vesicles (EVs) from patients. Of these, 356 proteins were quantified, and 34 peptides (22 proteins) showed significant differences in the serum EVs between healthy controls and CRC patients of two independent cohorts (n = 77 and 84). These peptides were evaluated as single or multiple markers, and four single peptides in annexin family proteins and eight combinations of peptides showed area under the curve > 0.9 for discriminating between healthy controls and CRC patients. The sensitivities of annexins A3, A4, and A11 peptides for detecting early-stage CRC greatly exceed those of carcinoembryonic antigen. These peptides are promising biomarkers for early detection of CRC.
1700 nm and 1800 nm band tunable thulium doped mode-locked fiber lasers
Authors: Emami Siamak Dawazdah , Dashtabi Mahdi Mozdoor , Lee Hui Jing , Arabanian Atoosa Sadat , Rashid Hairul Azhar Abdul
Published: October 2017

This paper presents short wavelength operation of tunable thulium-doped mode-locked lasers with sweep ranges of 1702 to 1764 nm and 1788 to 1831 nm. This operation is realized by a combination of the partial amplified spontaneous emission suppression method, the bidirectional pumping mechanism and the nonlinear polarization rotation (NPR) technique. Lasing at emission bands lower than the 1800 nm wavelength in thulium-doped fiber lasers is achieved using mode confinement loss in a specially designed photonic crystal fiber (PCF). The enlargement of the first outer ring air holes around the core region of the PCF attenuates emissions above the cut-off wavelength and dominates the active region. This amplified spontaneous emission (ASE) suppression using our presented PCF is applied to a mode-locked laser cavity and is demonstrated to be a simple and compact solution to widely tunable all-fiber lasers.
High performance carbon-coated hollow Ni12P5 nanocrystals decorated on GNS as advanced anodes for lithium and sodium storage
Authors: Guo Huinan , Chen Chengcheng , Chen Kai , Cai Haichao , Chang Xiaoya , Liu Song , Li Weiqin , Wang Yijing , Wang Caiyun
Published: October 2017

The hollow structure of Ni12P5@C/GNS shortens ion transport paths and provides ample room to accommodate volume expansion, indicating its overwhelming superiority in applications.
The efficient photodesorption of nitric oxide (NO) ices
Authors: Dupuy R. , Féraud G. , Bertin M. , Michaut X. , Putaud T. , Jeseck P. , Philippe L. , Romanzin C. , Baglin V. , Cimino R. , Fillion J.-H.
Published: October 2017

The study and quantification of UV photon-induced desorption of frozen molecules furthers our understanding of the chemical evolution of cold interstellar regions. Nitric oxide (NO) is an important intermediate species in both gas-phase and solid-phase chemical networks. In this work, we present quantitative measurements of the photodesorption of a pure NO ice. We used the tunable monochromatic synchrotron light of the DESIRS beamline of the SOLEIL facility near Paris to irradiate NO ices in the 6–13.6 eV range and measured desorption by quadrupole mass spectrometry. We find that NO photodesorption is very efficient, its yield being around 10-2 molecule per incident photon for UV fields relevant to the diffuse and dense interstellar medium. We discuss the extrapolation of our results to an astrophysical context and we compare photodesorption of NO to previously studied molecules.
Identification of Two Tobacco rattle virus Variants Associated with Line Pattern Disease of Bleeding Heart in Ohio
Authors: Fisher John R.
Published: October 2017

Tobacco rattle virus (TRV) is a member of the Tobravirus genus and has a broad host range including weeds, vegetables, and ornamentals. Several bleeding heart (Lamprocapnos spectabilis) plants showing a yellow line pattern symptom were negative for the Potyvirus group, Alfalfa mosaic, Arabis mosaic, Cucumber mosaic, Impatiens necrotic spot, Tobacco mosaic, Tobacco ringspot, Tomato ringspot, and Tomato spotted wilt viruses by ELISA. cDNAs synthesized from dsRNA template and immunocaptured virions from symptomatic and asymptomatic bleeding heart amplified clear products with Tobravirus group and TRV specific primers targeted at regions in the 194 kDa open reading frame 1 on RNA 1. Cloned amplicon sequences demonstrated two distinct populations of sequences for both primer pairs and the two populations correlated with symptoms, or lack thereof, on bleeding heart. These results represent the first confirmed report of TRV associated with line pattern disease on bleeding heart in Ohio.

Accepted for publication 19 December 2012. Published 25 March 2013.
Screening Selected Gulf Coast and Southeastern Forest Species for Susceptibility to Phytophthora ramorum
Authors: Preuett Jason A. , Collins Daniel J. , Luster Douglas , Widmer Timothy L.
Published: October 2017

Phytophthora ramorum, the causal agent of sudden oak death, poses a threat to woody plants in the rest of the United States. Several plant species native to Gulf Coast and southeastern US forests were tested for reaction to P. ramorum, including eastern baccharis (Baccharis halmifolia), spicebush (Lindera benzoin), yaupon (Ilex vomitoria), southern magnolia (Magnolia grandiflora), sweetbay magnolia (M. virginiana), Virginia creeper (Parthenocissus quinquefolia), black willow (Salix nigra), and baldcypress (Taxodium distichum). The foliage of each species was inoculated with a zoospore suspension and placed in a dew chamber for 5 days. The average percentage of leaf area necrosis was 0.2, 4.9, 27.9, 32.1, 8.6, 1.5, 1.1, 0.2, and 5.0% for inoculated eastern baccharis, spicebush, yaupon, southern magnolia, sweetbay magnolia, Virginia creeper (Louisiana), Virginia creeper (Maryland), black willow, and baldcypress, respectively. Comparison of the percent necrotic leaf area between inoculated and non-inoculated plants showed significant differences (P ≤ 0.05) for yaupon (P = 0.0008), southern magnolia (P = 0.001), and sweetbay magnolia (P = 0.0009). The other species did not show significant differences although infection was confirmed on spicebush, Virginia creeper, and baldcypress. This is a first report of yaupon, sweetbay magnolia, and baldcypress being hosts of P. ramorum.

Accepted for publication 2 April 2013. Published 30 July 2013.
Comparison of Seed Transmission and Survival of Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli and Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans in Common Bean Seeds
Authors: He Y. , Munkvold G. P.
Published: October 2017

Xanthomonas axonopodis pv. phaseoli (Smith) Vauterin (Xap) and Xanthomonas fuscans subsp. fuscans Schaad et al. (Xff) cause indistinguishable symptoms known as common bacterial blight of bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.). These results confirm a higher disease incidence and seed transmission frequency of Xff compared to Xap and reinforce the need for seed health tests that can differentiate the two species.

Accepted for publication 21 August 2013. Published 23 September 2013.
The 12th I. E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium: Host Plant Resistance and Disease Management, Current Status, and Future Outlook
Authors: Kousik C. S.
Published: October 2017

The 12th I. E. Melhus Graduate Student Symposium was held at the 2012 annual meeting of the American Phytopathological Society in Providence, RI. Its theme was “Host Plant Resistance and Disease Management: Current Status and Future Outlook.” The symposium featured four graduate student presentations highlighting research that leads to a better understanding of host plant resistance, resistance breeding, and disease management.

Accepted for publication 6 November 2013. Published 25 November 2013.
Dispatcher-Assisted Telephone Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation Using a French-Language Compression-Ventilation Pediatric Protocol
Authors: Peters Michael , Stipulante Samuel , Delfosse Anne-Sophie , Schumacher Katarina , Mulder André , Lebrun Frédéric , Donneau Anne-Françoise , Ghuysen Alexandre
Published: October 2017

Objective

Out-of-hospital cardiac arrest (OHCA) in pediatrics is a devastating event associated with poor survival rates. Although telephone dispatcher-assisted cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR; T-CPR) instructions improve the frequency and quality of bystander CPR for OHCA in adults, this support remains undeveloped in children. Our objective was to assess the effectiveness of a pediatric T-CPR protocol in untrained and trained bystanders. Secondarily, we sought to determine the feasibility and the effectiveness of ventilation in such a protocol.

Methods

Eligible adults with no CPR experience were recruited in a movie theater in Liege, as well as bachelor nursing students in Liege. All volunteers were randomly assigned either to T-CPR or to no–T-CPR using randomization. The volunteers were exposed to a pediatric manikin model cardiac arrest. On the basis of Cardiff evaluation test, data were collected to evaluate CPR performance.

Results

A total of 115 volunteers were assigned to 4 groups: untrained nonguided group (n = 27), untrained guided group (n = 32), trained nonguided group (n = 26), and trained guided group (n = 30). We found an improvement in CPR performance in the guided groups. Most volunteers (81.2%) in untrained guided group and 83.3% in the trained guided group were able to give 2 ventilations after each compressions cycle.

Conclusions

In a pediatric manikin model of OHCA, T-CPR instructions including mouth-to-mouth ventilations and chest compressions produced a significant increase in resuscitation performance not only among previously untrained but also among trained volunteers.
How is structural divergence related to evolutionary information?
Authors: Zea Diego Javier , Monzon Alexander Miguel , Parisi Gustavo , Marino-Buslje Cristina
Published: October 2017

Conservation and covariation measures, as other evolutionary analysis, require a high number of distant homologous sequences, therefore a lot of structural divergence can be expected in such divergent alignments. However, most works linking evolutionary and structural information use a single structure ignoring the structural variability inside a protein family. That common practice seems unrealistic to the light of this work.

In this work we studied how structural divergence affects conservation and covariation estimations. We uncover that, within a protein family, ~51% of multiple sequence alignment columns change their exposed/buried status between structures. Also, ~53% of residue pairs that are in contact in one structure are not in contact in another structure from the same family. We found out that residue conservation is not directly related to the relative solvent accessible surface area of a single protein structure. Using information from all the available structures rather than from a single representative structure gives more confidence in the structural interpretation of the evolutionary signals. That is particularly important for diverse multiple sequence alignments, where structures can drastically differ. High covariation scores tend to indicate residue contacts that are conserved in the family, therefore, are not suitable to find protein/conformer specific contacts.

Our results suggest that structural divergence should be considered for a better understanding of protein function, to transfer annotation by homology and to model protein evolution.
Relating C-reactive Protein to Psychopathology after Cardiac Surgery and Intensive Care Unit Admission: A Mendelian Randomization Study
Authors: Kok Lotte , Lin Bochao Danae , Broersen Juliette , Bekema Erwin , Medic Jelena , van Eijk Kristel R , Hillegers Manon H , Veldhuijzen Dieuwke S , Luykx Jurjen J
Published: October 2017

Patients admitted to an intensive care unit (ICU) are subjected to a high burden of stress, rendering them prone to develop stress-related psychopathology. Dysregulation of inflammation and, more specifically, upregulation of inflammatory markers such as C-reactive protein (CRP) is potentially key in development of post-ICU psychopathology.

To investigate the effects of state-independent CRP on symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depression after ICU admission, we analysed the three leading single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) of loci most strongly associated with blood CRP levels (i.e. rs2794520, rs4420638, and rs1183910) in an ICU survivor cohort. Genetic association was estimated by linear and logistical regression models of individual SNPs and genetic risk score (GRS) profiling. Mendelian Randomization (MR) was used to investigate potential causal relationships.

Single-SNP analyses were non-significant for both quantitative and binary trait analyses after correction for multiple testing. In addition, GRS results were non-significant and explained little variance in psychopathology. Moreover, MR analysis did not reveal any causality and MR-Egger regression showed no evidence of pleiotropic effects (p-pleiotropy >0.05). Furthermore, estimation of causality between these loci and other psychiatric disorders was similarly non-significant.

In conclusion, by applying a range of statistical models we demonstrate that the strongest plasma CRP-influencing genetic loci are not associated with post-ICU PTSD and depressive symptoms. Our findings add to an expanding body of literature on the absence of associations between trait CRP and neuropsychiatric phenotypes.
Exchange protein directly activated by cAMP plays a critical role in regulation of vascular fibrinolysis
Authors: He Xi , Drelich Aleksandra , Chang Qing , Gong Dejun , Zhou Yixuan , Qu Yue , Yu Shangyi , Yuan Yang , Qian Jiao , Qiu Yuan , Tang Shao-Jun , Gaitas Angelo , Ksiazek Thomas , Xu Zhiyun , Wakamiya Maki , Lu Fanglin , Gong Bin
Published: October 2017

Rationale

To maintain vascular patency, endothelial cells (ECs) actively regulate hemostasis. Among the myriad of pathways by which they control both fibrin formation and fibrinolysis is EC expression of annexin A2 (ANXA2) in a heterotetrameric complex with S100A10 [(ANXA2-S100A10)2]. This complex is a well-recognized endothelial surface platform for the activation of plasminogen by tissue plasminogen activator. A noteworthy advance in this field came about when it was shown that the cAMP pathway is linked to the regulation of (ANXA2-S100A10)2in ECs.

Objective

These findings prompted us to determine whether a druggable target, namely the exchangeprotein directlyactivated bycAMP (EPAC) pathway, plays a role in vascular luminal fibrinolysis.

Methods and Results

Taking advantage of our Epac1-null mouse model, we found that depletion ofEpac1results in fibrin deposition, fibrinolytic dysfunction, and decreased endothelial surface ANXA2 in mice, which are similar to phenomena discovered inANXA2-null andS100A10-null mice. We observed upregulation of EPAC1 and downregulation of fibrin in endocardial tissues beneath atrial mural thrombi in humans. Of note, our thrombosis model revealed that dysfunction of fibrinolysis inEPAC1-null mice can be ameliorated by recombinant ANXA2. Furthermore, we demonstrated that suppression of EPAC1 using a small-molecule inhibitor (ESI09) reduces the expression of ANXA2 in lipid rafts and impedes ANXA2 association with S100A10. Endothelial apical surface expression of both ANXA2 and S100A10 were markedly decreased in ESI09-treated ECs, which was corroborated by results from a nanoforce spectroscopy study. Moreover, inactivation of EPAC1 decreases tyrosine 23 phosphorylation of ANXA2 in the cell membrane compartment.

Conclusions

Our data reveal a novel role for EPAC1 in vascular fibrinolysis, by showing that EPAC1 is responsible for the translocation of ANXA2 to the EC surface. This process promotes conversion of plasminogen to plasmin, thereby enhancing local fibrinolytic activity.