bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Net energy system of feed formulation with or without enzyme supplementation in growing-finishing pigs fed barley-based diets with alternative feed ingredients
Authors: Velayudhan D.E. , Nyachoti C.M.
Published: March 2016

The aim of this study was to determine the growth performance and carcass characteristics of growing-finishing pigs fed diets formulated on net energy (NE) basis with or without exogenous enzyme supplementation. Twenty-four pigs with an initial body weight (BW) of 25 kg were randomly allotted one of three treatments; a barley-based control diet formulated on a digestible energy (DE) basis (Diet A), control diet formulated on an NE basis (Diet B), and Diet B + multicarbohydrase enzyme (Diet C). Pigs were offered their respective diets in a 3-phase feeding program. Individual pig BW and feed disappearance were monitored once every 2 wk. Pigs were slaughtered when they reached 100 kg BW to determine carcass characteristics. During phase 1, an improvement (P = 0.02) in feed intake was observed in pigs fed Diet C compared with Diet B. In phase 3, pigs fed Diet B showed improvement in daily gain (P = 0.02) and feed efficiency (P = 0.05) compared with Diet A. Overall, when compared with control diet, pigs fed Diet B showed significant improvement in daily gain (P = 0.05) and feed efficiency (P = 0.01). In conclusion, the results indicate a better growth performance with diets formulated using the NE system. Moreover, enzyme supplementation had no effect on the overall performance of pigs.
Ground state calculations of the confined molecular ions H2+ and HeH++ using variational Monte Carlo method
Authors: Doma Salah B. , El-Gammal Fatma N. , Amer Asmaa A.
Published: March 2016

The ground state energy of hydrogen molecular ion [Formula: see text] confined by a hard prolate spheroidal cavity is calculated. The case in which the nuclear positions are clamped at the foci is considered. Our calculations are based on using the variational Monte Carlo method with an accurate trial wave function depending on many variational parameters. The results were extended to also include the HeH++ molecular ion. The obtained results are in good agreement with the most recent results.
Factors affecting mycelium pigmentation and pathogenicity ofSclerotinia sclerotiorumon Valencia peanut
Authors: Lujan P. , Sanogo S. , Puppala N. , Randall J.
Published: March 2016

Sclerotinia sclerotiorum infects a broad range of plant hosts, and is typically identified by the production of white mycelium and black sclerotia on infected plants and culture. Isolates of S. sclerotiorum with darkly-pigmented mycelium have been reported on Valencia peanut in New Mexico and Texas. This study was conducted to determine the relationship between dark pigmentation in mycelium, oxalic acid production, and pathogenicity of S. sclerotiorum on Valencia peanut. A darkly-pigmented (SD) and a mutant, non-pigmented (SW) isolate of S. sclerotiorum were compared for vegetative growth on various growth media under different environmental conditions, and for pathogenicity on peanut. The SD isolate became darker in mycelium pigmentation as temperature increased beyond 20 °C and at pH between 5.0 and 6.0. Pigmentation in the SW isolate remained unaffected. Oxalic acid production did not increase in either SD or SW isolates when grown on media amended with pure oxalic acid or its precursor arabinose. The SD isolate caused peanut plant death and necrotic lesions on leaflets, while the SW isolate did not cause any symptoms. The differential behavior of SD and SW isolates in pathogenicity does not appear to be associated with mycelium pigmentation.
Evidence of a union between organic carbon and water content in soil
Authors: Manns Hida R. , Parkin Gary W. , Martin Ralph C.
Published: March 2016

Soil organic matter, comprising ∼58% soil organic carbon (SOC), is attributed with increased water holding capacity in the surface horizon of agricultural soil. This paper addresses the role of SOC as a component of a common functional unit in soil from analysis within a single field and over multiple fields. Soil data measured on the fields during the SMAPVEX12 satellite prelaunch algorithm development campaign exhibited high correlation among SOC, field-mean soil water content (SWC), bulk density, and soil texture. The analysis extended over a wide range of soil texture and wetness in the top 5 cm of soil over 50 agricultural fields covering ∼400 km2 of southern Manitoba. Data collected over a much smaller area from Ontario silt loam soils at the Elora Research Centre demonstrated a similar correlation between SOC and SWC in intensive field sampling. This intercorrelation of SOC and SWC is examined with partial least-squares regression, principal component analysis, and geostatistical semivariograms. A model is proposed to interpret the feedback process between SOC and SWC to explain the persistent correlation. Further work to substantiate the strengths and limits of the relationship between SOC and SWC may be beneficial for estimating SWC for remote sensing, agriculture, hydrology, and ecosystem function.
Breakage–fusion–bridge cycles and de novo telomere formation on broken chromosomes in maize callus cultures
Authors: Santos-Serejo Janay A. , Aguiar-Perecin Margarida L.R.
Published: March 2016

Breakpoints involved in chromosome alterations associated with heterochromatin have been detected in maize plants regenerated from callus culture. A cytogenetic analysis of plants regenerated from a maize callus was performed aiming to analyze the stability of a chromosome 7 bearing a deficiency-duplication (Df-Dp), which was interpreted as derived from a chromatid type breakage–fusion–bridge (BFB) cycle. The Df-Dp chromosome 7 was stable in mitotic and meiotic cells of the regenerated plants. Fluorescence in situ hybridization showed signals of telomeric sequences on the broken chromosome arm and provided evidence of de novo telomere formation. The stability of two types of altered chromosome 7 was investigated in C-banded metaphases from samples of the original callus that were collected during a period of 30–42 months after culture initiation. New alterations involving heterochromatic knobs of chromosomes 7 and 9 were observed. The aberrant chromosomes were stable in the subcultures, thus providing evidence of broken chromosome healing. The examination of anaphases showed the presence of bridges, which was consistent with the occurrence of BFB cycles. De novo telomere formation occurred in euchromatic and heterochromatic chromosome termini. The results point to events of chromosomal evolution that might occur in plants.
EDZL Scheduling and Schedulability Analysis for Performance Asymmetric Multiprocessors
Authors: Wu Peng , Ryu Minsoo
Published: March 2016

Heterogeneous multiprocessor architectures allow embedded real-time systems to better match computing resources to each application's needs and dynamic workload requirements, thereby providing many opportunities for improved performance with reduced power consumption. Unfortunately, guaranteeing real-time requirements on heterogeneous multiprocessors remains a critical problem due to the lack of appropriate scheduling algorithms and analysis methods. In this paper, we consider EDZL (Earliest Deadline First until Zero-Laxity) for performance asymmetric multiprocessor scheduling. EDZL has been shown to outperform other scheduling policies such as global EDF on identical multiprocessors. We show that EDZL is still effective on performance asymmetric multi-processors, and present an efficient EDZL schedulability test. Experimental results show that EDZL scheduling is able to schedule up to 20% more task sets than global EDF and that our new EDZL schedulability test can accept up to 30% more schedulable task sets than a presently exiting one.
Efficient Certificateless Proxy Signature Scheme
Authors: Deng Lunzhi , Zeng Jiwen , Huang Huawei
Published: March 2016

A proxy signature scheme allows a proxy signer to sign messages on behalf of an original signer within a given context. We propose a certificateless proxy signature (CLPS) scheme, and prove it's security under a stronger security model. Although some good results were achieved in speeding up the computation of pairing function in recent years, it is still interesting to design cryptosystem with less pairing operations. Taken into account the computational costs, our scheme only requires 2 pairing operations in delegation and signing, respectively.
Curves with canonical models on scrolls
Authors: Lara Danielle , Marchesi Simone , Martins Renato Vidal
Published: March 2016

Let [Formula: see text] be an integral and projective curve whose canonical model [Formula: see text] lies on a rational normal scroll [Formula: see text] of dimension [Formula: see text]. We mainly study some properties on [Formula: see text], such as gonality and the kind of singularities, in the case where [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] is non-Gorenstein, and in the case where [Formula: see text], the scroll [Formula: see text] is smooth, and [Formula: see text] is a local complete intersection inside [Formula: see text]. We also prove that the canonical model of a rational monomial curve with just one singular point lies on a surface scroll if and only if the gonality of the curve is at most [Formula: see text], and that it lies on a threefold scroll if and only if the gonality is at most [Formula: see text].
Low redshift universe and a varying ghost dark energy
Authors: Khurshudyan M.
Published: March 2016

Recently, a phenomenological modification of ghost dark energy has been suggested and appropriate models of low redshift universe have been constructed. In this paper, we will consider a model of low redshift universe in General Relativity containing another model of varying ghost dark energy. In this model, an effective fluid is a radiation-like fluid in an early universe and evolves to quintessence dark energy in large scale universe. Cosmographic analysis of new model is performed and appropriate constraints on the parameters of the model are obtained. We have a look at suggested model via statefinder hierarchy in addition to thermodynamical description of it. We also study massless particle creation possibility in a radiation dominated universe of our cosmological model. According to our theoretical results, massless particle production is possible. To study particle creation, a straight analogy between quantization in Minkowski background and canonical quantization of a scalar field in curved dynamical backgrounds is taken into account.
Lepton mass and mixing in a neutrino mass model based onS4flavor symmetry
Authors: Vien V. V.
Published: March 2016

We study a neutrino mass model based on [Formula: see text] flavor symmetry which accommodates lepton mass, mixing with nonzero [Formula: see text] and CP violation phase. The spontaneous symmetry breaking in the model is imposed to obtain the realistic neutrino mass and mixing pattern at the tree-level with renormalizable interactions. Indeed, the neutrinos get small masses from one [Formula: see text] doublet and two [Formula: see text] singlets in which one being in [Formula: see text] and the two others in [Formula: see text] under [Formula: see text] with both the breakings [Formula: see text] and [Formula: see text] are taken place in charged lepton sector and [Formula: see text] in neutrino sector. The model also gives a remarkable prediction of Dirac CP violation [Formula: see text] or [Formula: see text] in both the normal and inverted spectrum which is still missing in the neutrino mixing matrix. The relation between lepton mixing angles is also represented.
Toward a quantum theory of tachyon fields
Authors: Schwartz Charles
Published: March 2016

We construct momentum space expansions for the wave functions that solve the Klein–Gordon and Dirac equations for tachyons, recognizing that the mass shell for such fields is very different from what we are used to for ordinary (slower than light) particles. We find that we can postulate commutation or anticommutation rules for the operators that lead to physically sensible results: causality, for tachyon fields, means that there is no connection between space–time points separated by a timelike interval. Calculating the conserved charge and four-momentum for these fields allows us to interpret the number operators for particles and antiparticles in a consistent manner; and we see that helicity plays a critical role for the spinor field. Some questions about Lorentz invariance are addressed and some remain unresolved; and we show how to handle the group representation for tachyon spinors.
Chiral Fermion and boundary state formulation: Resonant point-contact tunneling
Authors: Lee Taejin
Published: March 2016

We study a model of resonant point-contact tunneling of a single Luttinger-liquid lead, using the boundary state formulation. The model is described by a single chiral Fermion in one-dimensional space with one point contact interaction at the origin. It is the simplest model of this type. By folding the infinite line, we map the model onto a nonchiral model on the half infinite line and transcribe the point-contact tunneling interaction into a boundary interaction. The tunneling interaction yields a nonlocal effective action at the boundary. We explicitly construct the boundary state and evaluate the current correlation functions. The contact interaction is shown to act on the lower frequency modes more strongly.
Error Awareness by Lower and Upper Bounds in Ensemble Learning
Authors: Liu Yong
Published: March 2016

Ensemble learning systems could lower down the risk of overfitting that often appears in a single learning model. Different to those ensemble learning approaches by re-sampling, negative correlation learning trains all learners in an ensemble simultaneously and cooperatively. However, overfitting had sometimes been observed in negative correlation learning. Two error bounds are therefore introduced into negative correlation learning for preventing overfitting. One is the upper bound of error output (UBEO) which divides the training data into two groups based on the distances between the data and the formed decision boundary. The other is the lower bound of error rate (LBER) which is set as a learning switch. Before the performance measured by error rates is higher than LBER, negative correlation learning is applied on the whole training set. As soon as the performance is lower than LBER, negative correlation learning will only be applied to the group of data whose distances to the current decision boundary are within the range of UBEO. The other group of data outside of this range will not be learned anymore. Further learning on the data points in the later group would make the learned decision boundary too complex to classify the unseen data well. Experimental results would explore how LBER and UBEO would lead negative correlation learning towards a robust decision boundary.
A Software Reliability Model for Cloud-Based Software Rejuvenation Using Dynamic Fault Trees
Authors: Rahme Jean , Xu Haiping
Published: March 2016

Correctly measuring the reliability and availability of a cloud-based system is critical for evaluating its system performance. Due to the promised high reliability of physical facilities provided for cloud services, software faults have become one of the major factors for the failures of cloud-based systems. In this paper, we focus on the software aging phenomenon where system performance may be progressively degraded due to exhaustion of system resources, fragmentation and accumulation of errors. We use a proactive technique, called software rejuvenation, to counteract the software aging problem. The dynamic fault tree (DFT) formalism is adopted to model the system reliability before and during a software rejuvenation process in an aging cloud-based system. A novel analytical approach is presented to derive the reliability function of a cloud-based Hot SPare (HSP) gate, which is further verified using Continuous Time Markov Chains (CTMC) for its correctness. We use a case study of a cloud-based system to illustrate the validity of our approach. Based on the reliability analytical results, we show how cost-effective software rejuvenation schedules can be created to keep the system reliability consistently staying above a predefined critical level.
Evaluating Architectural Design Decision Paradigms in Global Software Development
Authors: Che Meiru , Perry Dewayne E. , Yang Guowei
Published: March 2016

Global software development (GSD) is considered as the coordinated activities of software development that are geographically and temporally distributed. The management of architectural knowledge, specifically, architectural design decisions (ADDs), becomes important in GSD due to the geographical, temporal, and cultural challenges in global environments. Based on our previous work on ADD management in localized software development, we present five ADD paradigms for GSD projects with different organizational structures. We also investigate the benefits and the challenges of these ADD paradigms by conducting an evaluation of the paradigms using extensive archived semi-structured interview data from industrial GSD projects. We aim to provide a fundamental framework for managing ADD documentation and evolution in GSD, as well as offer useful insights into managing architectural knowledge in a global setting.
Unanticipated Software Evolution: Evaluating the Impact on Development Cost and Quality
Authors: Vilar Rodrigo A. , Lima Anderson A. , Almeida Hyggo O. , Perkusich Angelo
Published: March 2016

Unanticipated Software Evolution (USE) techniques enable developers to easily change any element of the software without being obligated to anticipate and isolate extension points. However, we have not found empirical validations of the impact of USE on development cost and quality. In this work, we design and execute an experiment for USE, in order to compare its resulting metrics — time, lines of code, test coverage and complexity — using OO systems as baseline. 30 undergraduate students were subjects in this experiment. The results suggest that USE has significant impact on the lines of code and complexity metrics, reducing the amount of lines changed and the McCabe cyclomatic complexity on software evolution.
Investigating the Impact of Stakeholders’ Commitment on Requirements Elicitation
Authors: Burnay Corentin , Jureta Ivan J. , Faulkner Stéphane
Published: March 2016

Requirements Elicitation (RE) consists of collecting requirements for a future system. It involves engineers who are eliciting information, and stakeholders who are involved in the project to provide information. This research note aims to stimulate research about the impact of stakeholders’ commitment on RE. We define commitment, discuss how it can be measured during RE, and present a first exploratory study that we conducted to build a prototype “commitment matrix”. The matrix aims to clarify what engineers may expect during RE when involving stakeholders who are more or less committed.
CARE: A Computer-Aided Requirements Engineering Tool for Problem-Oriented Software Development
Authors: Liu Guoyuan , Li Zhi , Huang Shilang , Ouyang Zhaofeng , Liu Zhe
Published: March 2016

This paper presents a set of computer-aided tools for problem analysis in the software development process. Jackson’s problem diagrams are used to model the problem owners’ needs and relevant contexts for the software to be built. An algorithm based on three classes of rules is provided for the systematic transformation of these models into behavioral descriptions of the software. This work is part of our long-term research efforts aiming at embedding and empirically evaluating Jackson’s Problem Frames framework (PF) in requirements engineering practice.
Roger and Yang’s Kauffman bracket arc algebra is finitely generated
Authors: Bobb Martin , Kennedy Stephen , Wong Helen , Peifer Dylan
Published: March 2016

Generalizing the construction of the Kauffman bracket skein algebra, Roger and Yang defined the Kauffman bracket arc algebra of a punctured surface, so that it is a quantization of the decorated Teichmüller space. We provide an explicit, finite set of generators for their algebra.
IDENTIFICATION OF NOVEL GENES RELATED TO DIABETIC RETINOPATHY USING PROTEIN–PROTEIN INTERACTION NETWORK AND GENE ONTOLOGIES
Authors: UMADEVI S. , PREMKUMAR K. , VALARMATHI S. , AYYASAMY P. M. , RAJAKUMAR S.
Published: March 2016

Diabetic retinopathy is the most common cause of blindness, associated with many biochemical pathways mediated by several genes and proteins. Disease gene identification can be achieved through several approaches but still it is a challenging task. This study, aimed to find out the novel genes associated with diabetic retinopathy. In this study, all the well-known genes associated with diabetic retinopathy were collected from databases and the protein interaction partners were identified. The interacting candidate genes were chosen by chromosomal locations, sharing with disease genes. The protein–protein interaction network was constructed and the key nodes (genes) were identified by degree, betweenness centrality, closeness centrality and eccentricity centrality. Further, the ontological terms, molecular function, biological process and cellular components were related with that of the disease genes with p-value [Formula: see text]. The genes UBC, FOS, ITGB1, FOXA2, CCND1, FOSL1, RXRA and NCAM1 were identified as potential genes associated with diabetic retinopathy. The molecular functions of these genes include protein binding, receptor activity, receptor binding, oxidoreductase activity, protein kinase activity, serine-type peptidase activity and growth factor. Many of the identified genes were clinically related as evidence by the literature.
Thermal Effects on Parametric Instability of Delaminated Woven Fabric Composite Curved Panels
Authors: Panda H. S. , Sahu S. K. , Parhi P. K.
Published: March 2016

The present study highlights the parametric instability characteristics of delaminated woven fabric composite curved panels under in-plane harmonic loadings exposed to the thermal environment. The equation of motion of the delaminated curved panel is reduced to a system of Mathieu–Hill equations with periodic coefficients. The development of the region of instability arises from Floquet’s theory and the solution is obtained using Bolotin’s approach by the finite element method (FEM). An eight-noded isoparametric finite element is developed considering the effects of delamination and thermal exposure of the composite panel for predicting the dynamic instability regions (DIRs). The first-order shear deformation theory (FSDT) is used for all the numerical computations. The results predicted from the present finite element analysis are validated with those available in the literature. The effects of static load factor, curvature, delamination, temperature and boundary conditions on the DIRs of curved composite panels are investigated. Noteworthy effects of these parameters on the parametric instability of composite panels are witnessed and discussed.
A generally relativistic gauge classification of the Dirac fields
Authors: Fabbri Luca
Published: March 2016

We consider generally relativistic gauge transformations for the spinorial fields finding two mutually exclusive but together exhaustive classes in which fermions are placed adding supplementary information to the results obtained by Lounesto, and identifying quantities analogous to the momentum vector and the Pauli–Lubanski axial vector. We discuss how our results are similar to those obtained by Wigner by taking into account the system of Dirac field equations. We will investigate the consequences for the dynamics and in particular we shall address the problem of getting the nonrelativistic approximation in a consistent way. We are going to comment on extensions.
The Stable Behavior of the Augmentation Quotients of the Groups of Order p5, I
Authors: Wang Xiulan
Published: March 2016

In this article we describe the stable behavior of the augmentation quotients Qn(G) for the groups G of order p5 with even numbers of generators, where p is an odd prime.
N-Derivations for Finitely Generated Graded Lie Algebras
Authors: Lian Haifeng , Chen Cui
Published: March 2016

The N-derivation is a natural generalization of derivation and triple derivation. Let [Formula: see text] be a finitely generated Lie algebra graded by a finite-dimensional Cartan subalgebra. In this paper, a sufficient condition for the Lie N-derivation algebra of [Formula: see text] coinciding with the Lie derivation algebra of [Formula: see text] is given. As applications, any N-derivation of the Schrödinger-Virasoro algebra, generalized Witt algebra, Kac-Moody algebra or their Borel subalgebra is a derivation.
Two-parameter Quantum Superalgebras and PBW Theorem
Authors: Ai Chunrui , Yang Shilin
Published: March 2016

A class of two-parameter quantum algebras [Formula: see text] is constructed. It is shown that [Formula: see text] is a Hopf superalgebra. Then the PBW basis of [Formula: see text] is described. For this purpose, some commutative relations of root vectors of [Formula: see text] are given.
Preparation, Characterization and Photocatalytic Activity of Sodium Humate/Nano-TiO2 Coating on Glass Spheres for Flue Gas Denitrification
Authors: Sun Zhiguo , Yang Jitao , Zhang Li , Xie Hongyong
Published: March 2016

A new photocatalyst of sodium humate (HA–Na)/Nano-TiO2 coating on the glass spheres for flue gas denitrification (DeNOx) was prepared using the impregnation method. The HA–Na/TiO2 is characterized by Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET), Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and scanning electron microscope (SEM). The photocatalytic activity of HA–Na/TiO2 on removing NOx was investigated in a self-designed photocatalytic reactor. The synergistic mechanism of HA–Na and TiO2 on DeNOx is also proposed and demonstrated. The experimental results indicate that specific surface area and average pore size of HA–Na are improved owing to the mixed TiO2 nanoparticles. The crystal structure of TiO2 has little change after mixing with HA–Na. Due to high photocatalytic performance of TiO2, NO was oxidized to NO2 and HNO3 eventually. On the other hand, HA–Na support can absorb and react with HNO3, which accelerates 10% of the catalytic reaction of TiO2 and the utilization of light source. The chemical and physiological activity of oxidized HA–Na are improved than the original humate. The HA–Na/TiO2 photocatalysts show great property on eliminating NOx because of the promoting effect between HA–Na and TiO2, and the NO removal efficiency can reach to 80% at the optimum condition.
A Comparative Study on Ternary Low-Platinum Catalysts with Various Constructions for Oxygen Reduction and Methanol Oxidation Reactions
Authors: Wu Yan Ni , Guo Hai Fu , Hu Peng , Xiao Xiao Peng , Xiao Zhao Wang , Liao Shi Jun
Published: March 2016

Three types of ternary low-platinum nanocatalysts, alloy PdPtIr/C, core–shell PdPt@PtIr/C and Pd@PtIr/C, have been prepared, and their catalytic behaviors toward methanol oxidation reaction (MOR)/oxygen reduction reaction (ORR) are comparatively investigated via cyclic voltammetry and chronoamperometry analysis in an acidic medium. Through a two-step colloidal technique, the synthesized core–shell structured catalyst PtPd@PtIr/C with alloy core and alloy shell show the best catalytic activity toward MOR and the best poisoning tolerance. The alloy PdPtIr/C catalyst prepared via a one-step colloidal technique exhibits the best performance toward ORR among the three catalysts. All the three catalysts are characterized by transmission electron microscopy (TEM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and other characterization techniques.
DIC imaging for identification of motor and sensory nerves
Authors: Chen Dayu , Wu Yuxiang , Sui Tao , Zeng Shaoqun , Cao Xiaojian , Lv Xiaohua
Published: March 2016

Identification of motor and sensory nerves is important in applications such as nerve injury repair. Conventional practice relies on time consuming staining methods for this purpose. Here, we use laser scanning infrared differential interference contrast (IR-DIC) microscopy for label-free observation of the two types of nerve. Ventral and dorsal nerve roots of adult beagle dogs were collected and sections of different thicknesses were imaged with an IR-DIC microscope. Different texture patterns of the IR-DIC images of the motor and sensory nerve can be distinguished when the section thickness increases to 40[Formula: see text][Formula: see text]m. This suggests that nerve fibers in motor and sensory nerves have different distribution patterns. The result hints a potential new way for more rapid identification of nerve type in peripheral nerve repair surgery.
CLIMATE IMPACT ON ENERGY DEMAND FOR SPACE HEATING IN ICELAND
Authors: FAZELI REZA , DAVIDSDOTTIR BRYNHILDUR , HALLGRIMSSON JONAS HLYNUR
Published: March 2016

A major impact of climate change is expected to materialize on energy demand for space heating and cooling needs in the residential sector. To quantify this impact, a set of regression models were tested to study the relation between residential energy demand for space heating in Iceland and explanatory variables such as Heating Degree Days and GDP per capita. Considering the nonstationarity of the time-series, three methods were studied to cope with this condition: Cointegration, differencing and detrending.

The evaluation statistics of the three models for the validation period showed that the modified detrending approach is the most reliable method. It became obvious that including the seasonal dummy variables and AR component significantly improve the power of the model to predict monthly energy demand for residential space heating in Iceland. The developed model can be used to project climate related changes in demand for low-geothermal heat.
A hybrid neural interface optrode with a polycrystalline diamond heat spreader for optogenetics
Authors: Fan Bin , Kwon Ki-Yong , Rechenberg Robert , Becker Michael F. , Weber Arthur J. , Li Wen
Published: March 2016

This paper reports a hybrid optrode combining light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and microelectrodes on a polycrystalline diamond (PCD) substrate, for optogenetic stimulation and electrical recording of neural activity. Thermally conductive PCD can dissipate the Joule heat to surrounding areas, and thus reduce the risk of thermal damage to nerve tissues. During repetitive optical stimulation, the maximum temperature rise of the PCD optrode was less 1.3°C. The functionality of the PCD probe was tested in vivo where light-evoked action potentials were successfully detected.
Understanding the mechanics of the bladder through experiments and theoretical models: Where we started and where we are heading
Authors: Roccabianca Sara , Bush Tamara Reid
Published: March 2016

Bladder control problems affect both men and women and range from an overactive bladder, to urinary incontinence, to bladder obstruction and cancer. These disorders affect more than 200 million people worldwide. Loss of bladder function significantly affects the quality of life, both physically and psychologically, and also has a large impact on the healthcare system, i.e., the incurring costs related to diagnosis, treatment and medical/nursing care. Improvements in diagnostic capabilities and disease management are essential to improve patient care and quality of life and reduce the economic burden associated with bladder disorders. This paper summarizes some of the key contributions to understanding the mechanics of the bladder ranging from work conducted in the 1970s through the present time with a focus on material testing and theoretical modeling. Advancements have been made in these areas and a significant contribution to these changes was related to technological improvements.
Interaction of crustal heterogeneity and lithospheric processes in determining passive margin architecture on the southern Namibian margin
Authors: Mohammed M. , Paton D. , Collier R. E. L. , Hodgson N. , Negonga M.
Published: March 2016

The influence of pre-rift crustal heterogeneity and structure on the evolution of a continental rift and its subsequent passive margin is explored. The absence of thick Aptian salts in the Namibian South Atlantic allows imaging of sufficient resolution to distinguish different pre-rift basement seismic facies. Aspects of the pre-rift basement geometry were characterized and compared with the geometries of the Cretaceous rift basin structure and with subsequent post-rift margin architectural elements. Half-graben depocentres migrated westwards within the continental synrift phase at the same time as basin-bounding faults became established as hard-linked arrays with lengths of
c.
100 km. The rift–drift transition phase, marked by seaward-dipping reflectors, gave way to the early post-rift progradation of clastic sediments off the Namibian coast. In the Late Cretaceous, these shelf clastic sediments were much thicker in the south, reflecting the dominance of the newly formed Orange River catchment as the main entry point for sediments on the South African–Namibian margin. Tertiary clastic sediments largely bypassed the pre-existing shelf area, revealing a marked basinwards shift in sedimentation. The thickness of post-rift megasequences does not vary simply according to the location of synrift half-graben and thinned continental crust. Instead, the Namibian margin exemplifies a margin influenced by a complex interplay of crustal thinning, pre-rift basement heterogeneity, volcanic bodies and transient dynamic uplift events on the evolution of lithospheric strain and depositional architecture.
The C-terminal tail of polycystin-1 regulates complement factor B expression by signal transducer and activator of transcription 1
Authors: Wu Ming , Chen Meihan , Jing Ying , Gu Junhui , Mei Shuqin , Yao Qing , Zhou Jie , Yang Ming , Sun Lijun , Wang Wutao , Hu Huimin , Wüthrich Rudolf P. , Mei Changlin
Published: March 2016

Inhibition of the overactivated alternative complement pathway in autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) retards disease progression in animal models; however, it remains unknown how complement factor B (CFB) is upregulated in ADPKD. Here, we showed that the overexpression of CFB in cystic kidneys is associated with increased JAK2/STAT1 activity and enhanced expression of the polycystin-1 C-terminal tail (PC1-CTT). Overexpression or blockage of STAT1 increased or decreased CFB expression and CFB promoter activity. Moreover, overexpression of PC1-CTT induced JAK2/STAT1 activation and CFB upregulation in renal tubular epithelial cells. Furthermore, PC1-CTT overexpression increased human CFB promoter activity, whereas dominant negative STAT1 plasmids or mutation of putative STAT1 responsive elements decreased PC1-CTT-induced CFB promoter activity. The effect of CFB on macrophage differentiation was tested on a mouse macrophage cell line. Bioactive CFB dose dependently promoted macrophage M2 phenotype conversion. In addition, conditioned media from renal epithelial cells promoted macrophage M2 phenotype conversion which was blocked by STAT1 inhibition in a dose-dependent manner. Conditioned media from PC1-CTT-transfected renal epithelial cells further promoted macrophage M2 phenotype conversion, which was suppressed by fludarabine or a CFB antibody. In addition, we show that NF-κB acts downstream of PC1-CTT and may partly mediate PC1-CTT-induced CFB expression. In conclusion, our study reveals possible mechanisms of CFB upregulation in ADPKD and a novel role of PC1-CTT in ADPKD-associated inflammation. Furthermore, our study suggests that targeting STAT1 may be a new strategy to prevent inflammation in the kidney of patients with ADPKD.
COX-2 gene dosage-dependent defects in kidney development
Authors: Slattery Patrick , Frölich Stefanie , Schreiber Yannik , Nüsing Rolf M.
Published: March 2016

Deletion of cyclooxygenase (COX)-2 causes impairment of kidney development, including hypothrophic glomeruli and cortical thinning. A critical role for COX-2 is seen 4–8 days postnatally. The present study was aimed at answering whether different COX-2 gene dosage and partial pharmacological COX-2 inhibition impairs kidney development. We studied kidney development in COX-2+/+, COX-2+/−, and COX-2−/− mice as well as in C57Bl6 mice treated postnatally with low (5 mg·kg−1·day−1) and high (10 mg·kg−1·day−1) doses of the selective COX-2 inhibitor SC-236. COX-2+/− mice exhibit impaired kidney development leading to reduced glomerular size but, in contrast to COX-2−/− mice, only marginal cortical thinning. Moreover, in COX-2+/− and COX-2−/− kidneys, juxtamedullary glomeruli, which develop in the very early stages of nephrogenesis, also showed a size reduction. In COX-2+/− kidneys at the age of 8 days, we observed significantly less expression of COX-2 mRNA and protein and less PGE2 and PGI2 synthetic activity compared with COX-2+/+ kidneys. The renal defects in COX-2−/− and COX-2+/− kidneys could be mimicked by high and low doses of SC-236, respectively. In aged COX-2+/− kidneys, glomerulosclerosis was observed; however, in contrast to COX-2−/− kidneys, periglomerular fibrosis was absent. COX-2+/− mice showed signs of kidney insufficiency, demonstrated by enhanced serum creatinine levels, quite similar to COX-2−/− mice, but, in contrast, serum urea remained at the control level. In summary, function of both COX-2 gene alleles is absolutely necessary to ensure physiological development of the mouse kidney. Loss of one copy of the COX-2 gene or partial COX-2 inhibition is associated with distinct renal damage and reduced kidney function.
Effects of exercise training on urinary tract function after spinal cord injury
Authors: Hubscher Charles H. , Montgomery Lynnette R. , Fell Jason D. , Armstrong James E. , Poudyal Pradeepa , Herrity April N. , Harkema Susan J.
Published: March 2016

Spinal cord injury (SCI) causes dramatic changes in the quality of life, including coping with bladder dysfunction which requires repeated daily and nightly catheterizations. Our laboratory has recently demonstrated in a rat SCI model that repetitive sensory information generated through task-specific stepping and/or loading can improve nonlocomotor functions, including bladder function (Ward PJ, Herrity AN, Smith RR, Willhite A, Harrison BJ, Petruska JC, Harkema SJ, Hubscher CH. J Neurotrauma 31: 819–833, 2014). To target potential underlying mechanisms, the current study included a forelimb-only exercise group to ascertain whether improvements may be attributed to general activity effects that impact target organ-neural interactions or to plasticity of the lumbosacral circuitry that receives convergent somatovisceral inputs. Male Wistar rats received a T9 contusion injury and were randomly assigned to three groups 2 wk postinjury: quadrupedal locomotion, forelimb exercise, or a nontrained group. Throughout the study (including preinjury), all animals were placed in metabolic cages once a week for 24 h to monitor water intake and urine output. Following the 10-wk period of daily 1-h treadmill training, awake cystometry data were collected and bladder and kidney tissue harvested for analysis. Metabolic cage frequency-volume measurements of voiding and cystometry reveal an impact of exercise training on multiple SCI-induced impairments related to various aspects of urinary tract function. Improvements in both the quadrupedal and forelimb-trained groups implicate underlying mechanisms beyond repetitive sensory information from the hindlimbs driving spinal network excitability of the lumbosacral urogenital neural circuitry. Furthermore, the impact of exercise training on the upper urinary tract (kidney) underscores the health benefit of activity-based training on the entire urinary system within the SCI population.
Pulse Diagnosis Signals Analysis of Fatty Liver Disease and Cirrhosis Patients by Using Machine Learning
Authors: Nanyue Wang , Youhua Yu , Dawei Huang , Bin Xu , Jia Liu , Tongda Li , Liyuan Xue , Zengyu Shan , Yanping Chen , Jia Wang
Published: March 2016

Objective. To compare the signals of pulse diagnosis of fatty liver disease (FLD) patients and cirrhosis patients. Methods. After collecting the pulse waves of patients with fatty liver disease, cirrhosis patients, and healthy volunteers, we do pretreatment and parameters extracting based on harmonic fitting, modeling, and identification by unsupervised learning Principal Component Analysis (PCA) and supervised learning Least squares Regression (LS) and Least Absolute Shrinkage and Selection Operator (LASSO) with cross‐validation step by step for analysis. Results. There is significant difference between the pulse diagnosis signals of healthy volunteers and patients with FLD and cirrhosis, and the result was confirmed by 3 analysis methods. The identification accuracy of the 1st principal component is about 75% without any classification formation by PCA, and supervised learning’s accuracy (LS and LASSO) was even more than 93% when 7 parameters were used and was 84% when only 2 parameters were used. Conclusion. The method we built in this study based on the combination of unsupervised learning PCA and supervised learning LS and LASSO might offer some confidence for the realization of computer‐aided diagnosis by pulse diagnosis in TCM. In addition, this study might offer some important evidence for the science of pulse diagnosis in TCM clinical diagnosis.
Reduced Numbers and Impaired Function of Regulatory T Cells in Peripheral Blood of Ischemic Stroke Patients
Authors: Ruhnau Johanna , Schulze Juliane , von Sarnowski Bettina , Heinrich Marie , Langner Sönke , Pötschke Christian , Wilden Anika , Kessler Christof , Bröker Barbara M. , Vogelgesang Antje , Dressel Alexander
Published: March 2016

Background and Purpose. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) have been suggested to modulate stroke-induced immune responses. However, analyses of Tregs in patients and in experimental stroke have yielded contradictory findings. We performed the current study to assess the regulation and function of Tregs in peripheral blood of stroke patients. Age dependent expression of CD39 on Tregs was quantified in mice and men. Methods. Total FoxP3+ Tregs and CD39+FoxP3+ Tregs were quantified by flow cytometry in controls and stroke patients on admission and on days 1, 3, 5, and 7 thereafter. Treg function was assessed by quantifying the inhibition of activation-induced expression of CD69 and CD154 on T effector cells (Teffs). Results. Total Tregs accounted for 5.0% of CD4+ T cells in controls and <2.8% in stroke patients on admission. They remained below control values until day 7. CD39+ Tregs were most strongly reduced in stroke patients. On day 3 the Treg-mediated inhibition of CD154 upregulation on CD4+ Teff was impaired in stroke patients. CD39 expression on Treg increased with age in peripheral blood of mice and men. Conclusion. We demonstrate a loss of active FoxP3+CD39+ Tregs from stroke patient’s peripheral blood. The suppressive Treg function of remaining Tregs is impaired after stroke.
Surgical Treatment of an Infected Nonunion of the Middle Third of the Femur Associated with Femoral Shortening in a Hemophilia Patient
Authors: Salduz Ahmet , Kaya Özcan , Balci Halil İbrahim , Akgul Turgut , Dikici Fatih , Zülfikar Bülent , Kocaoğlu Mehmet
Published: March 2016

The management of nonunion and limb length discrepancy has remained a constant challenge in hemophilic patients. In this study, we aimed to present the treatment of femur infected nonunion and limb length discrepancy in a twenty-seven-year-old patient with hemophilia type A. A 27-year-old male patient with hemophilia type A referred to our institution for the treatment of right femur infected nonunion and 10 cm shortness of the femur. Resection of the nonunion site and bone-to-bone fixation with autologous bone grafting were performed. Compression to the pseudoarthrosis site and distraction from new osteotomy site were applied with the unilateral external fixator. Union was achieved, and 6 cm lengthening was obtained according to the initial length. Patient was followed up for 7 years. After this treatment, the patient is able to walk with full weight bearing on the affected extremity with 4 cm shortening which is compensated by the heel lift. The results of this case indicate that limb lengthening and treatment of nonunion with the external fixation could be reliable and effective method for hemophilic patients.
Cloning and Expression of theγ-Polyglutamic Acid Synthetase GenepgsBCA inBacillus subtilisWB600
Authors: Lin Biaosheng , Li Zhijuan , Zhang Huixia , Wu Jiangwen , Luo Maochun
Published: March 2016

To clone and express theγ-polyglutamic acid (γ-PGA) synthetase genepgsBCA inBacillus subtilis, a pWB980 plasmid was used to construct and transfect the recombinant expression vector pWB980-pgsBCA intoBacillus subtilisWB600.PgsBCAwas expressed under the action of a P43 promoter in the pWB980 plasmid. Our results showed that the recombinant bacteria had the capacity to synthesizeγ-PGA. The expression product was secreted extracellularly into the fermentation broth, with a product yield of 1.74 g/L or higher.γ-PGA samples from the fermentation broth were purified and characterized. Hydrolysates ofγ-PGA presented in single form, constituting simple glutamic acid only, which matched the characteristics of the infrared spectra of theγ-PGA standard, and presented as multimolecular aggregates with a molecular weight within the range of 500–600 kDa. Expressing theγ-PGA synthetase genepgsBCAinB. subtilissystem has potential industrial applications.
Amyloid-β-Induced Dysregulation of AMPA Receptor Trafficking
Authors: Guntupalli Sumasri , Widagdo Jocelyn , Anggono Victor
Published: March 2016

Evidence from neuropathological, genetic, animal model, and biochemical studies has indicated that the accumulation of amyloid-beta (Aβ) is associated with, and probably induces, profound neuronal changes in brain regions critical for memory and cognition in the development of Alzheimer’s disease (AD). There is considerable evidence that synapses are particularly vulnerable to AD, establishing synaptic dysfunction as one of the earliest events in pathogenesis, prior to neuronal loss. It is clear that excessive Aβlevels can disrupt excitatory synaptic transmission and plasticity, mainly due to dysregulation of the AMPA and NMDA glutamate receptors in the brain. Importantly, AMPA receptors are the principal glutamate receptors that mediate fast excitatory neurotransmission. This is essential for synaptic plasticity, a cellular correlate of learning and memory, which are the cognitive functions that are most disrupted in AD. Here we review recent advances in the field and provide insights into the molecular mechanisms that underlie Aβ-induced dysfunction of AMPA receptor trafficking. This review focuses primarily on NMDA receptor- and metabotropic glutamate receptor-mediated signaling. In particular, we highlight several mechanisms that underlie synaptic long-term depression as common signaling pathways that are hijacked by the neurotoxic effects of Aβ.