bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
SYNJ1 gene associated with neonatal onset of neurodegenerative disorder and intractable seizure
Authors: Al Zaabi Nuha , Al Menhali Noora , Al‐Jasmi Fatma
Published: November 2017

Background

Synaptojanin 1 is encoded by the SYNJ1(MIM 604297) and plays a major role in phosphorylation and recycling of synaptic vesicles. Mutation of SYNJ1 is associated with two distinct phenotypes; a known homozygous missense mutation (p.Arg258Gln) associated with early‐onset Parkinson disease (MIM 615530), whereas mutation with complete loss of SYNJ1 function result in a lethal neurodegenerative disease with intractable seizure and tauopathies (MIM 617389).

Methods

We report two related children from consanguineous family presented with intractable seizure, profound developmental delay, failure to thrive, acquired microcephaly, and hypotonia. The brain MRI is normal and EEG showed hypsarrhythmia.

Result

The diagnosis was achieved via whole‐genome sequencing which showed homozygous mutation in SYNJ1 (c.709C>T, p.Gln237*).

Conclusion

A clinical pattern of neonatal‐onset intractable seizure, profound developmental delay, muscular hypotonia, hypsarrhythmia, and no focal abnormality of brain MRI should prompt initiation of molecular genetic analysis of SYNJ1. Establishment of the diagnosis permits genetic counseling, prevents patients undergoing unhelpful diagnostic procedures and allows for accurate prognosis.
Reconstruction of elbow skin and soft tissue defects using perforator‐pedicled propeller flaps
Authors: Nakao Junichi , Umezawa Hiroki , Ogawa Rei , Mateev Musa A.
Published: November 2017

Background

The elbow is a challenging region to reconstruct functionally. Several closure methods for elbow wounds have been reported, including flap surgery. Here, we present the results obtained using a propeller flap pedicled by a posterior ulnar recurrence artery perforator (PURAP) or a radial collateral artery perforator (RCAP) for functional reconstruction of soft tissue defects in elbows.

Methods

Twenty‐four patients with an average age of 27.0 years (range, 9–52 years) underwent elbow soft tissue reconstructions between 2005 and 2015. Twenty‐one patients were male and three were female. Among them, 18 patients received a PURAP flap transfer and six received a RCAP flap transfer. The frequent soft tissue defects were due to release of a postburn scar contracture in 12 patients, trauma in ten patients. Functional results were obtained by measuring range of motion (ROM).

Results

The mean follow up time was 10.1 months (range, 4–22 months). The flaps ranged in size from 3 × 5 cm to 16 × 6 cm. Nearly all flaps survived with only one showing partial necrosis. 16 and 8 patients achieved ranges of motions of 0–5 and 6–15 degree extension and 130–145 degree flexion.

Conclusions

With the aims of easy flap harvest, primary donor site closure, skin texture match, and avoiding vascular anastomosis, both PURAP and RCAP were employed. Both flap transfer techniques were safe and effective for elbow soft tissue reconstruction. It is important to ensure that the skin defect and flap design are closely matched.
IBVPs for scalar conservation laws with time discontinuous fluxes
Authors: Colombo Rinaldo M. , Rossi Elena
Published: November 2017

The initial boundary value problem for a class of scalar nonautonomous conservation laws in 1 space dimension is proved to be well posed and stable with respect to variations in the flux. Targeting applications to traffic, the regularity assumptions on the flow are extended to a merely
dependence on time. These results ensure, for instance, the well‐posedness of a class of vehicular traffic models with time‐dependent speed limits. A traffic management problem is then shown to admit an optimal solution.
Output tracking control of Boolean control networks with impulsive effects
Authors: Xu Xiaojing , Li Haitao , Li Yalu , Alsaadi Fuad E.
Published: November 2017

This paper studies the output tracking problem of Boolean control networks (BCNs) with impulsive effects via the algebraic state‐space representation approach. The dynamics of BCNs with impulsive effects is converted to an algebraic form. Based on the algebraic form, some necessary and sufficient conditions are presented for the feedback output tracking control of BCNs with impulsive effects. These conditions contain constant reference signal case and time‐varying reference signal case. The study of an illustrative example shows that the obtained new results are effective.
Direct and inverse problems for prestressed functionally graded plates in the framework of the Timoshenko model
Authors: Nedin Rostislav D. , Vatulyan Alexandr O. , Bogachev Ivan V.
Published: November 2017

In this study, modelling and identification of prestress state in functionally graded plate within the framework of the Timoshenko theory are discussed. With the help of variational principles, statements of boundary problems for stationary vibration of inhomogeneous prestressed plates have been derived taking into account various factors of prestress state. The comparative analysis of classical and nonclassical models has been conducted. The effect of the prestress state factors on the solution characteristics has been estimated. New approaches to solving the inverse problems on a reconstruction of inhomogeneous prestress functions in a functionally graded plate have been proposed on the basis of derivation of reciprocity relations and iterative regularization. The results of numerical reconstruction experiments are presented; practical recommendations on a selection of frequency range for the purpose of getting the highest reconstruction accuracy are given.
Local conservation laws, symmetries, and exact solutions for a Kudryashov‐Sinelshchikov equation
Authors: Bruzón M. S. , Recio E. , de la Rosa R. , Gandarias M. L.
Published: November 2017

In this paper, we consider a Kudryashov‐Sinelshchikov equation that describes pressure waves in a mixture of a liquid and gas bubbles taking into consideration the viscosity of liquid and the heat transfer between liquid and gas bubbles. We show that this equation is rich in conservation laws. These conservation laws have been found by using the direct method of the multipliers. We apply the Lie group method to derive the symmetries of this equation. Then, by using the optimal system of 1‐dimensional subalgebras we reduce the equation to ordinary differential equations. Finally, some exact wave solutions are obtained by applying the simplest equation method.
Invariant color features–based foreground segmentation for human‐computer interaction
Authors: Elmezain Mahmoud
Published: November 2017

Foreground segmentation is a critical early step in most human‐computer interaction applications notably in action and gesture recognition domain. In this paper, an approach to model background which based on luminance‐invariant color with an adaptive Gaussian mixture is proposed to discriminate foreground object from their background in complex scene. Firstly, the background model is learned based on the spectral properties of shadows and scene activity. Secondly, the shadow with the hypotheses on color invariance is adaptively set up and updated. Finally, the log‐likelihood measurement is to conduct the adaptation. Our experiments are performed on a wide range of practical applications of gesture and action recognition videos. Additionally, the proposed approach is efficient and more robust than premature state‐of‐the‐art with no sacrificing real‐time performance.
A finite‐time blow‐up result for a class of solutions with positive initial energy for coupled system of heat equations with memories
Authors: Braik Abdelkader , Miloudi Yamina , Zennir Khaled
Published: November 2017

In this article, we are interested by a system of heat equations with initial condition and zero Dirichlet boundary conditions. We prove a finite‐time blow‐up result for a large class of solutions with positive initial energy.
Developing and characterizing MR/CT‐visible materials used in QA phantoms for MRgRT systems
Authors: Steinmann Angela , Stafford R. Jason , Sawakuchi Gabriel , Wen Zhifei , Court Laurence , Fuller Clifton D. , Followill David
Published: November 2017

Purpose

Synthetic tissue equivalent (STE) materials currently used to simulate tumor and surrounding tissues for IROC‐Houston's anthropomorphic head and thorax QA phantoms cannot be visualized using magnetic resonance (MR) imaging. The purpose of this study was to characterize dual MR/CT‐visible STE materials that can be used in an end‐to‐end QA phantom for MR‐guided radiotherapy (MRgRT) modalities.

Methods

Over 80 materials’ MR, CT, and dosimetric STE properties were investigated for use in MRgRT QA phantoms. The materials tested included homogeneous and heterogeneous materials to simulate soft tissue/tumor and lung tissues. Materials were scanned on a Siemens’ Magnetom Espree 1.5 T using four sequences, which showed the materials visual contrast between T1‐ and T2‐weighted images. Each material's Hounsfield number and electron density data was collected using a GE's CT Lightspeed Simulator. Dosimetric properties were examined by constructing a 10 × 10 × 20 cm3 phantom of the selected STE materials that was divided into three sections: anterior, middle, and posterior. Anterior and posterior pieces were composed of polystyrene, whereas the middle section was substituted with the selected STE materials. EBT3 film was inserted into the phantom's midline and was irradiated using an Elekta's Versa 6 MV beam with a prescription of 6 Gy at 1.5 cm and varying field size of: 10 × 10 cm2, 6 × 6 cm2, and 3 × 3 cm2. Measured film PDD curves were compared to planning system calculations and conventional STE materials’ percent depth dose (PDD) curves.

Results

The majority of the tested materials showed comparable CT attenuation properties to their respective organ site; however, most of the tested materials were not visible on either T1‐ or T2‐weighted MR images. Silicone, hydrocarbon, synthetic gelatin, and liquid PVC plastic‐based materials showed good MR image contrast. In‐house lung equivalent materials made with either silicone‐ or hydrocarbon‐based materials had HUs ranging from: −978 to −117 and −667 to −593, respectively. Synthetic gelatin and PVC plastic‐based materials resembled soft tissue/tumor equivalent materials and had HUs of: −175 to −170 and −29 to 32, respectively.

PDD curves of the selected MR/CT‐visible materials were comparable to IROC‐Houston's conventional phantom STE materials. The smallest field size showed the largest disagreements, where the average discrepancies between calculated and measured PDD curves were 1.8% and 5.9% for homogeneous and heterogeneous testing materials, respectively.

Conclusions

Gelatin, liquid plastic, and hydrocarbon‐based materials were determined as alternative STE substitutes for MRgRT QA phantoms.
ARID1A, a component of SWI/SNF chromatin remodeling complexes, is required for porcine embryo development
Authors: Tseng Yu‐Chun , Cabot Birgit , Cabot Ryan A.
Published: November 2017

Mammalian embryos undergo dramatic epigenetic remodeling that can have a profound impact on both gene transcription and overall embryo developmental competence. Members of the SWI/SNF (Switch/Sucrose non‐fermentable) family of chromatin‐remodeling complexes reposition nucleosomes and alter transcription factor accessibility. These large, multi‐protein complexes possess an SNF2‐type ATPase (either SMARCA4 or SMARCA2) as their core catalytic subunit, and are directed to specific loci by associated subunits. Little is known about the identity of specific SWI/SNF complexes that serve regulatory roles during cleavage development. ARID1A, one of the SWI/SNF complex subunits, can affect histone methylation in somatic cells; here, we determined the developmental requirements of ARID1A in porcine oocytes and embryos. We found ARID1A transcript levels were significantly reduced in 4‐cell porcine embryos as compared to germinal vesicle‐stage oocytes, suggesting that ARID1A would be required for porcine cleavage‐stage development. Indeed, injecting in vitro‐matured and fertilized porcine oocytes with double‐stranded interfering RNAs that target ARID1A, and evaluating their phenotype after seven days, revealed that the depletion of ARID1A results in significantly fewer cells than their respective control groups (p < 0.001).
Spring–damper equivalents of the fractional, poroelastic, and poroviscoelastic models for elastography
Authors: Holm Sverre
Published: November 2017

In MR elastography, it is common to use an elastic model for the tissue's response in order to interpret the results properly. More complex models, such as viscoelastic, fractional viscoelastic, poroelastic, or poroviscoelastic ones, are also used. These models appear at first sight to be very different, but here it is shown that they may all be expressed in terms of elementary viscoelastic models.

For a medium expressed with fractional models, many elementary spring–damper combinations are added, each of them weighted according to a long‐tailed distribution of time constants or relaxation frequencies. This may open up a more physical interpretation of fractional models.

The shear‐wave component of the poroelastic model is shown to be modeled exactly by a three‐component Zener model. The extended poroviscoelastic model is found to be equivalent to what is called a non‐standard four‐parameter model. Accordingly, the large number of parameters in the porous models can be reduced to the same number as in their viscoelastic equivalents. While the individual displacements from the solid and fluid parts cannot be measured individually, the main use of the poro(visco)elastic models is therefore as a physics‐based method for determining parameters in a viscoelastic model.
Renal parenchyma impairment characterization in partial unilateral ureteral obstruction in mice with intravoxel incoherent motion‐MRI
Authors: Pons Maguelonne , Leporq Benjamin , Ali Liza , Alison Marianne , Albuquerque Miguel , Peuchmaur Michel , Poli Mérol Marie‐Laurence , Blank Ulrich , Lambert Simon A. , El Ghoneimi Alaa
Published: November 2017

Ureteropelvic junction obstruction constitutes a major cause of progressive pediatric renal disease. The biological mechanisms underlying the renal response to obstruction can be investigated using a clinically relevant mouse model of partial unilateral ureteral obstruction (pUUO). Renal function and kidney morphology data can be evaluated using renal ultrasound, scintigraphy and uro‐magnetic resonance imaging (uro‐MRI), but these methods are poorly linked to histological change and not all are quantitative. Here, we propose to investigate pUUO for the first time using an intravoxel incoherent motion diffusion sequence. The aim of this study was to quantitatively characterize impairment of the kidney parenchyma in the pUUO model. This quantitative MRI method was able to assess the perfusion and microstructure of the kidney without requiring the injection of a contrast agent. The results suggest that a perfusion fraction (f) reduction is associated with a decrease in the volume of the renal parenchyma, which could be related to decreased renal vascularization. The latter may occur before impairment by fibrosis and the findings are in accordance with the literature using the UUO mice model and, more specifically, on pUUO. Further investigation is required before this technique can be made available for the diagnosis and management of children with antenatal hydronephrosis and to select the optimal timing of surgery if required.
Spectral technique for solving variable‐order fractional Volterra integro‐differential equations
Authors: Doha E. H. , Abdelkawy M. A. , Amin A. Z. M. , Baleanu D.
Published: November 2017

This article, presented a shifted Legendre Gauss‐Lobatto collocation (SL‐GL‐C) method which is introduced for solving variable‐order fractional Volterra integro‐differential equation (VO‐FVIDEs) subject to initial or nonlocal conditions. Based on shifted Legendre Gauss‐Lobatto (SL‐GL) quadrature, we treat with integral term in the aforementioned problems. Via the current approach, we convert such problem into a system of algebraic equations. After that we obtain the spectral solution directly for the proposed problem. The high accuracy of the method was proved by several illustrative examples.
Origin of clear cell carcinoma: nature or nurture?
Authors: Kolin David L , Dinulescu Daniela M , Crum Christopher P
Published: November 2017

A rare but serious complication of endometriosis is the development of carcinoma, and clear cell and endometrioid carcinomas of the ovary are the two most common malignancies which arise from endometriosis. They are distinct diseases, characterized by unique morphologies, immunohistochemical profiles, and responses to treatment. However, both arise in endometriosis and can share common mutations. The overlapping mutational profiles of clear cell and endometrioid carcinomas suggest that their varied histologies may be due to a different cell of origin which gives rise to each type of cancer. Cochrane and colleagues address this question in a recent article in this journal. They show that a marker of ovarian clear cell carcinoma, cystathionine gamma lyase, is expressed in ciliated cells. Similarly, they show that markers of secretory cells (estrogen receptor and methylenetetrahydrofolate dehydrogenase 1) are expressed in ovarian endometrioid carcinoma. Taken together, they suggest that endometrioid and clear cell carcinomas arise from cells related to secretory and ciliated cells, respectively. We discuss Cochrane et al's work in the context of other efforts to determine the cell of origin of gynecological malignancies, with an emphasis on recent developments and challenges unique to the area. These limitations complicate our interpretation of tumor differentiation; does it reflect nature imposed by a specific cell of origin or nurture, by either mutation(s) or environment? Copyright © 2017 Pathological Society of Great Britain and Ireland. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Magneto‐mechanical properties of polydimethylsiloxane composites with a binary magnetic filler system
Authors: Gao Wei , Wang Xingzhe , Xu Wenhan
Published: November 2017

Polymer composites embedded with ferromagnetic particles are widely applied in many engineering areas and have been extensively investigated for the past decade because of their outstanding magneto‐dependent properties. In this article, a series of addition cured polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) composites with a mixture of carbonyl iron and cobalt particles at a given weight amount were prepared for the first time. Influences of the mass ratios of two additives on thermal stability, magnetic, mechanical properties, and magnetic actuating performance were studied experimentally. Experiment results demonstrated that the PDMS composite reinforced by carbonyl iron granule has a high thermal stability and saturation magnetization, and there is an optimal mixture ratio for the large and small particles. However, the loss factor is increased with an increase in Co contents for the binary blend system of RDE/Co and RXE/Co, respectively. For a comprehensive evaluation, the magnetoelastic ratios of all samples are obtained to demonstrate that the samples filled with carbonyl iron particles are easy to produce bending deflection in a uniform magnetic field. Under the influence of gradient magnetic field, the bending deflection of rectangular magnetized samples including Co particles show dependence on the direction of applied magnetic field, even, bidirectional and reversible responsive behavior are possible appearing for some special cases. These obtained results will provide some basic guidelines for selecting the proper materials to develop novel actuators. POLYM. COMPOS., 40:337–345, 2019. © 2017 Society of Plastics Engineers
Understanding the light‐induced degradation at elevated temperatures: Similarities between multicrystalline and floatzone p‐type silicon
Authors: Niewelt Tim , Schindler Florian , Kwapil Wolfram , Eberle Rebekka , Schön Jonas , Schubert Martin C.
Published: November 2017

This paper discusses degradation phenomena in crystalline silicon. We present new investigations of the light‐ and elevated temperature‐induced degradation of multicrystalline silicon. The investigations provide insights into the defect parameters as well as the diffusivity and solubility of impurity species contributing to the defect. We discuss possible defect precursor species and can rule out several metallic impurities. We find that an involvement of hydrogen in the defect could explain the characteristic observations for light‐ and elevated temperature‐induced degradation. Furthermore, we demonstrate analogies to the light‐induced degradation mechanisms at elevated temperatures observed in floatzone silicon, where several experimental results also indicate an involvement of hydrogen in the defect. Based on the similarities between multicrystalline and floatzone silicon, we suggest that both degradation phenomena might be caused by the same or similar defects. As we do not expect large concentrations of metals in floatzone silicon, we suggest that complexes of hydrogen and a species introduced during crystal growth might cause both degradation phenomena.
Outcomes of an enhancement study with additional psychoeducational sessions for healthy siblings of a child with cancer during inpatient family‐oriented rehabilitation
Authors: Niemitz Mandy , Goldbeck Lutz
Published: November 2017

Objective

Chronic illness of a child puts healthy children of the family at risk of distress. Previous studies have demonstrated that healthy children's psychological symptoms can be reduced when the child knows more about the disease. So far, there is limited evidence of the effectiveness of psychoeducational interventions for healthy children.

Aims

To compare the effectiveness of an inpatient family‐oriented rehabilitation program with vs without additional psychoeducational sessions for healthy children of families with children with cancer.

Patients and methods

We performed a controlled study in 4 German family‐oriented rehabilitation clinics. The outcomes of n = 73 healthy children (mean age: M = 9.55; SD = 3.14; range: 4–18), who participated in 5 additional psychoeducational sessions, were compared with the outcomes of n = 111 healthy children (mean age: M = 8.85; SD = 3.28; range: 4–17), who underwent the usual inpatient rehabilitation program. Primary outcomes were the healthy children's cancer‐specific knowledge and their emotional symptoms. Secondary outcomes were family satisfaction and quality of life.

Results

Intention‐to‐treat analyses showed that both groups improved significantly from preintervention to postintervention. Improvements comprised knowledge about cancer (F(1,174) = 11.03, p < 0.001), self‐reported emotional symptoms (F(1,135) = 31.68, p < 0.001), and parent‐proxy‐reported emotional symptoms (F(1,179) = 37.07, p < 0.001). The additional psycho‐educational program did not significantly enhance the outcomes. The same pattern of significant improvement in both conditions emerged for all secondary outcomes. The immediate effects of the intervention persisted until 2 months after discharge from the rehabilitation program.

Conclusions

Inpatient family‐oriented rehabilitation is effective in improving multiple psychosocial outcomes of healthy children in families which have a child with cancer. Additional psycho‐educational sessions did not show any substantial additional improvement.
Effect of the afterglows of low pressure Ar/N2‐O2 surface‐wave microwave discharges on barley and maize seeds
Authors: Szőke Csaba , Nagy Zoltán , Gierczik Krisztián , Székely András , Spitkól Tamás , Zsuboril Zsuzsanna T. , Galiba Gábor , Marton Csaba L. , Kutasi Kinga
Published: November 2017

Non‐infected and infected cereal crops, respectively, are treated in the afterglow of Ar/N2‐O2 surface‐wave microwave discharges at 2–8 mbar pressure. It is shown, that the germination and vigour of non‐infected seeds are not significantly effected, when barley is treated max 120 s at 2 mbar and maize 240 s at 4 mbar. On the other hand, seeds can be disinfected from the germination inhibitors Fusarium graminearum and Fusarium verticillioides. The most efficient treatment, which also increases the germination of infected seeds above 80%, for barley is the 3 min Ar‐20%O2 afterglow at 4 mbar, while for maize the 4 min Ar‐20%O2 + 2 min N2‐2%O2 at 8 mbar. The high NO content mixtures and the heating of seed surface by the recombination of O and N‐atoms inhibit barley germination.
Methacholine challenge test: Comparison of tidal breathing and dosimeter methods in children
Authors: Mazi Ahlam , Lands Larry C. , Zielinski David
Published: November 2017

Introduction

Methacholine Challenge Test (MCT) is used to confirm, assess the severity and/or rule out asthma. Two MCT methods are described as equivalent by the American Thoracic Society (ATS), the tidal breathing and the dosimeter methods. However, the majority of adult studies suggest that individuals with asthma do not react at the same PC20 between the two methods. Additionally, the nebulizers used are no longer available and studies suggest current nebulizers are not equivalent to these. Our study investigates the difference in positive MCT tests between three methods in a pediatric population.

Methods

A retrospective, chart review of all MCT performed with spirometry at the Montreal Children's Hospital from January 2006 to March 2016. A comparison of the percentage positive MCT tests with three methods, tidal breathing, APS dosimeter and dose adjusted DA‐dosimeter, was performed at different cutoff points up to 8 mg/mL.

Results

A total of 747 subjects performed the tidal breathing method, 920 subjects the APS dosimeter method, and 200 subjects the DA‐dosimeter method. At a PC20 cutoff ≤4 mg/mL, the percentage positive MCT was significantly higher using the tidal breathing method (76.3%) compared to the APS dosimeter (45.1%) and DA‐dosimeter (65%) methods (P < 0.0001).

Conclusion

The choice of nebulizer and technique significantly impacts the rate of positivity when using MCT to diagnose and assess asthma. Lack of direct comparison of techniques within the same individuals and clinical assessment should be addressed in future studies to standardize MCT methodology in children.
Template‐based quaternary structure prediction of proteins using enhanced profile–profile alignments
Authors: Nakamura Tsukasa , Oda Toshiyuki , Fukasawa Yoshinori , Tomii Kentaro
Published: November 2017

Proteins often exist as their multimeric forms when they function as so‐called biological assemblies consisting of the specific number and arrangement of protein subunits. Consequently, elucidating biological assemblies is necessary to improve understanding of protein function. Template‐Based Modeling (TBM), based on known protein structures, has been used widely for protein structure prediction. Actually, TBM has become an increasingly useful approach in recent years because of the increased amounts of information related to protein amino acid sequences and three‐dimensional structures. An apparently similar situation exists for biological assembly structure prediction as protein complex structures in the PDB increase, although the inference of biological assemblies is not a trivial task. Many methods using TBM, including ours, have been developed for protein structure prediction. Using enhanced profile–profile alignments, we participated in the 12th Community Wide Experiment on the Critical Assessment of Techniques for Protein Structure Prediction (CASP12), as the FONT team (Group # 480). Herein, we present experimental procedures and results of retrospective analyses using our approach for the Quaternary Structure Prediction category of CASP12. We performed profile–profile alignments of several types, based on FORTE, our profile–profile alignment algorithm, to identify suitable templates. Results show that these alignment results enable us to find templates in almost all possible cases. Moreover, we have come to understand the necessity of developing a model selection method that provides improved accuracy. Results also demonstrate that, to some extent, finding templates of protein complexes is useful even for MEDIUM and HARD assembly prediction.
Energetic and Electronic Properties of (0001) Inversion Domain Boundaries in ZnO
Authors: Li Siqian , Lei Huaping , Wang Zhuo , Chen Jun , Ruterana Pierre
Published: November 2017

In this work, the eight possible configurations of (0001) inversion domain boundaries (IDBs) in wurtzite ZnO have been investigated systematically by first‐principle calculations based on density‐functional theory (DFT). The energetic stability revealed that H4 are the most stable among the Head‐to‐Head type (H) IDBs, whereas for the Tail‐to‐Tail type (T) IDBs, T1 and T2 IDBs have lower formation energies. Their electronic properties were investigated using the electron localization function (ELF) and the projected density of states (PDOS). The results revealed that all the boundaries present a metallic character with the hybridization bands crossing the Fermi level; they are mainly dominated by Zn:3d and O:2p states in H IDBs and Zn:4s states in T IDBs, respectively. In particular, owing to the polarization discontinuity, electron accumulation occurs at all the T IDB regions with the conduction band minimum (CBM) shifting down below the Fermi level.
Estimation of discrete survival function for error‐prone diagnostic tests
Authors: Adeniji Abidemi K. , Hsu Jesse Y. , Wahed Abdus S.
Published: November 2017

The product limit or Kaplan‐Meier (KM) estimator is commonly used to estimate the survival function in the presence of incomplete time to event. Application of this method assumes inherently that the occurrence of an event is known with certainty. However, the clinical diagnosis of an event is often subject to misclassification due to assay error or adjudication error, by which the event is assessed with some uncertainty. In the presence of such errors, the true distribution of the time to first event would not be estimated accurately using the KM method. We develop a method to estimate the true survival distribution by incorporating negative predictive values and positive predictive values, into a KM‐like method of estimation. This allows us to quantify the bias in the KM survival estimates due to the presence of misclassified events in the observed data. We present an unbiased estimator of the true survival function and its variance. Asymptotic properties of the proposed estimators are provided, and these properties are examined through simulations. We demonstrate our methods using data from the Viral Resistance to Antiviral Therapy of Hepatitis C study.
Recursive filtering for state‐saturated systems with randomly occurring nonlinearities and missing measurements
Authors: Wen Chuanbo , Wang Zidong , Hu Jun , Liu Qinyuan , Alsaadi Fuad E.
Published: November 2017

This paper deals with the filtering problem for a class of discrete‐time state‐saturated systems subject to randomly occurring nonlinearities and missing measurements. A set of mutually independent Bernoulli random variables is used to describe the random occurrence of the missing measurements. Due to the simultaneous consideration of the state saturation, the randomly occurring nonlinearities, and the missing measurements, it is extremely hard to calculate the actual filtering error covariance in a closed form. As such, the objective of this paper is to construct an upper bound for the filtering error covariance and then design the filter parameters to minimize such an upper bound. The performance of the proposed filters is analyzed in terms of boundedness and monotonicity. Specially, we have shown that the minimum upper bound is always bounded under a mild assumption. Moreover, the relationship between the estimator performance and the arrival probability of the measurements is discussed. A numerical simulation is used to demonstrate the effectiveness of the filtering method.
H∞ model predictive control for constrained discrete‐time piecewise affine systems
Authors: Sindareh Esfahani Peyman , Pieper Jeffery Kurt
Published: November 2017

This paper investigates
stability analysis for piecewise affine (PWA) systems and specifically contributes a new
robust model predictive control strategy for PWA systems in the presence of constraints on the states and inputs and with l2 or norm‐bounded disturbances. The proposed controller is based on piecewise quadratic Lyapunov functions. The problem of minimization of the cost function for model predictive control design is changed to minimization of the worst case of the cost function. Then, this objective is reduced to minimization of a supremum of the cost function subject to a terminal inequality by considering the induced l2‐norm. Finally, the predictive controller design problem is turned into a linear matrix inequality feasibility exercise with constraints on the input signal and state variables. It is shown that the closed‐loop system is asymptotically stable with guaranteed robust
performance. The validity of the proposed method is verified through 3 well‐known examples of PWA systems. Simulation results are provided to show good convergence properties along with capability of the proposed controller to reject disturbances.
Adaptive‐impulsive consensus of multiagent systems
Authors: Ma Tiedong , Li Teng , Cui Bing
Published: November 2017

This paper studies the leader‐following consensus problem of multiagent nonlinear systems with uncertain parameters and control gain error. On the basis of the theory of impulsive differential equations, the adaptive control technique, and the Lyapunov stability theory, some novel adaptive‐impulsive consensus conditions are given to realize the consensus of a class of multiagent nonlinear systems. Compared with the existing investigations on the impulsive consensus of multiagent systems, the proposed impulsive control protocol with uncertain parameters and control gain error is more rigorous and effective in practical systems. Four numerical simulations are verified to confirm the effectiveness of the proposed methods.
An efficient method for stochastic optimal control with joint chance constraints for nonlinear systems
Authors: Paulson Joel A. , Mesbah Ali
Published: November 2017

Stochastic model predictive control hinges on the online solution of a stochastic optimal control problem. This paper presents a computationally efficient solution method for stochastic optimal control for nonlinear systems subject to (time‐varying) stochastic disturbances and (time‐invariant) probabilistic model uncertainty in initial conditions and parameters. To this end, new methods are presented for joint propagation of time‐varying and time‐invariant probabilistic uncertainty and the nonconservative approximation of joint chance constraint (JCC) on the system state. The proposed uncertainty propagation method relies on generalized polynomial chaos and conditional probability rules to obtain tractable expressions for the state mean and covariance matrix. A moment‐based surrogate is presented for JCC approximation to circumvent construction of the full probability distribution of the state or the use of integer variables as required when using the sample average approximation. The proposed solution method for stochastic optimal control is illustrated on a nonlinear semibatch reactor case study in the presence of probabilistic model uncertainty and stochastic disturbances. It is shown that the proposed solution method is significantly superior to a standard random sampling method for stochastic optimal control in terms of computational requirements. Furthermore, the moment‐based surrogate for the JCC is shown to be substantially less conservative than the widely used distributionally robust Cantelli‐Chebyshev inequality for chance constraint approximation.
On the K‐sat model with large number of clauses
Authors: Panchenko Dmitry
Published: November 2017

We show that in the K‐sat model with N variables and αN clauses, the expected ratio of the smallest number of unsatisfied clauses to the number of variables is up to smaller order terms as uniformly in N, where is the expected normalized maximum energy of some specific mixed p‐spin spin glass model. The formula for the limit of is well known in the theory of spin glasses.
Smart gateways switching control algorithms based on tropospheric propagation forecasts
Authors: Jeannin Nicolas , Castanet Laurent , Dahman Isabelle , Pourret Vivien , Pouponneau Béatrice
Published: November 2017

The use Q/V band spectrum for the feeder links of high throughput satellites and the need to cope with the significant propagation impairments at those frequencies motivate the development of smart diversity techniques. Those techniques aim at improving the availability level of the overall feeder link with a limited level of redundancy. The combinatorial gain of availability provided by those techniques can be obtained only if efficient switching methodologies are developed, performing the best trade‐off between system flexibility and channel prediction accuracy. This paper proposes various propagation forecast mechanisms for the control of switching between gateways in smart diversity, corresponding to various system assumptions in terms of required anticipation time for the triggering of the switches. The performances of those algorithms are then assessed against measured attenuation and meteorological data. It enables to evaluate the performance degradation regarding an idealized case.
Ideal Dimers of Gold Nanospheres for Precision Plasmonics: Synthesis and Characterization at the Single‐Particle Level for Identification of Higher Order Modes
Authors: Yoon Jun Hee , Selbach Florian , Langolf Ludmilla , Schlücker Sebastian
Published: November 2017

Ideal dimers comprising gold nanoparticles with a smooth surface and high sphericity are synthesized by a substrate‐based assembly strategy with efficient cetyltrimethylammonium bromide removal. An unprecedented structural and plasmonic uniformity at the single‐particle level is observed since inhomogeneities resulting from variations in gap morphology are eliminated. Single ideal dimers are analyzed by polarization‐resolved dark‐field scattering spectroscopy. Contributions from transverse as well as quadrupolar and octupolar longitudinal plasmon coupling modes can be discriminated because of their orthogonal polarization behavior. The assignment of these higher order coupling modes is supported by computer simulations.
A novel approach for generic home emergency management and remote monitoring
Authors: Tiberkak Allal , Lemlouma Tayeb , Belkhir Abdelkader , Bouabdallah Ahmed , Hentout Abdelfetah
Published: November 2017

This paper presents a novel home emergency management system (HEMS) for managing home emergency situations. The proposed solution is a generic and based on normalized technologies. First, we have identified a set of requirements that a robust HEMS should satisfy (interoperability, security, mobility, etc). Then, we have opted for an extended finite‐state machine to detect and manage emergency situations. We also adopted WebRTC to enable communication in an interoperable manner. For securing our HEMS, we have used HTTPS, password, contextual role–based access control, and we have finally installed all the public servers into a protected area. The result obtained from the test‐bed demonstrates that the proposed HEMS fills all the listed requirements. Furthermore, it gives very interesting results in terms of round‐trip delay time and scalability.
Effect of Ti–Mg Treatment on the Impact Toughness of Heat Affected Zone in 0.15%C–1.31%Mn Steel
Authors: Song Ming‐Ming , Hu Chun‐Lin , Song Bo , Zhu Hang‐Yu , Xue Zheng‐Liang , Xu Run‐Sheng
Published: November 2017

The influence of Ti–Mg and Ti on the impact toughness of the heat affected zone in steel has been studied comparatively. The changes of microstructure and grain size in the heat affected zone are analyzed. It has been found that the content of acicular ferrite in the steel treated by Ti–Mg is more than that in the steel treated by Ti. The size of the primary austenite grain in Ti–Mg treated steel is smaller than that in the steel treated by Ti. During the welding thermal cycle, the second phase particles in steel can be re‐dissolved and coarsened. After welding, the second phase particles in Ti–Mg treated steel are smaller than those in Ti treated steel, and the number of the second phase particles in Ti–Mg treated steel is more than that in Ti treated steel. The pinning effect of the second phase particles in Ti–Mg treated steel is obvious stronger than that in Ti treated steel. The impact toughness of the heat affected zone has a significant improvement after the addition of Ti–Mg.
Concise Review: The Use of Stem Cells for Understanding and Treating Huntington's Disease
Authors: Connor Bronwen
Published: November 2017

Two decades ago, researchers identified that a CAG expansion mutation in the huntingtin (HTT) gene was involved in the pathogenesis of Huntington's disease (HD). However, since the identification of the HTT gene, there has been no advance in the development of therapeutic strategies to prevent or reduce the progression of HD. With the recent advances in stem cell biology and human cell reprogramming technologies, several novel and exciting pathways have emerged allowing researchers to enhance their understanding of the pathogenesis of HD, to identify and screen potential drug targets, and to explore alternative donor cell sources for cell replacement therapy. This review will discuss the role of compensatory neurogenesis in the HD brain, the use of stem cell-based therapies for HD to replace or prevent cell loss, and the recent advance of cell reprogramming to model and/or treat HD. These new technologies, coupled with advances in genome editing herald a promising new era for HD research with the potential to identify a therapeutic strategy to alleviate this debilitating disorder.
The outdoor thermal climate conditions at a historical mountainous tuberculosis sanatorium site in Greece
Authors: Droulia Fotoula E. , Tsiros Ioannis X.
Published: November 2017

This work deals with the assessment of the outdoor environment of a sanatorium site in mountainous conditions which were historically considered favourable in the treatment of tuberculosis patients in the pre‐antibiotic era. Thermal climate conditions are estimated through application of the thermal climate index (THI) to site‐specific air temperature and relative humidity data along with kata‐thermometer data recorded at the balconies outside of patients’ rooms. Results show that the cold conditions dominate throughout the winter period at all observation times, whereas conditions of comfort prevail during summer, in morning and evening hours, and occur frequently in spring and autumn at noon.
Copper(II) Halide Complexes with 1‐tert‐Butyl‐1H‐1,2,4‐triazole and 1‐tert‐Butyl‐1H‐tetrazole
Authors: Voitekhovich Sergei V. , Degtyarik Mikhail M. , Lyakhov Alexander S. , Ivashkevich Ludmila S. , Ivashkevich Oleg A.
Published: November 2017

1‐tert‐Butyl‐1H‐1,2,4‐triazole (tbtr) was found to react with copper(II) chloride or bromide to give the complexes [Cu(tbtr)2X2]n and [Cu(tbtr)4X2] (X = Cl, Br). 1‐tert‐Butyl‐1H‐tetrazole (tbtt) reacts with copper(II) bromide resulting in the formation of the complex [Cu3(tbtt)6Br6]. The obtained crystalline complexes as well as free ligand tbtr were characterized by elemental analysis, IR spectroscopy, thermal and X‐ray analyses. For free ligand tbtr, 1H NMR and 13C NMR spectra were also recorded. In all the complexes, tbtr and tbtt act as monodentate ligands coordinated by CuII cations via the heteroring N4 atoms. The triazole complexes [Cu(tbtr)2Cl2]n and [Cu(tbtr)2Br2]n are isotypic, being 1D coordination polymers, formed at the expense of single halide bridges between neighboring copper(II) cations. The isotypic complexes [Cu(tbtr)4Cl2] and [Cu(tbtr)4Br2] reveal mononuclear centrosymmetric structure, with octahedral coordination of CuII cations. The tetrazole compound [Cu3(tbtt)6Br6] is a linear trinuclear complex, in which neighboring copper(II) cations are linked by single bromide bridges.
Rethinking Transforming Communications: An Introduction
Authors: Hepp Andreas , Breiter Andreas , Hasebrink Uwe
Published: November 2017

This chapter introduces the contributions to this volume in three stages. First, it is argued that when considering the present stage of deep mediatization, it is insufficient to concentrate solely on the media as such: one also has to consider how communication transforms with changing media. It is by virtue of the change in human communicative practices together with other social practices that processes of social construction change. This is what is called transforming communications. Second, the chapter outlines why it is helpful to take a figurational approach for researching such transforming communications. The term figuration goes back to Norbert Elias, who used it to describe structured interrelations between humans. However, for the analysis in question, it is extended to reflect questions of communication. Finally, this introduction provides an overview of the arguments presented in the following chapters.
Relating Face to Face. Communicative Practices and Political Decision-Making in a Changing Media Environment
Authors: Pritzlaff-Scheele Tanja , Nullmeier Frank
Published: November 2017

Why do decision interactions within the field of politics still rely on face-to-face communication? While vast areas of day-to-day political practices and routines are backed up or substituted by electronically mediated forms of communication, face-to-face communication manifests itself as the core medium of political decision-making. In a time of ‘deep mediatization’, figurations of political decision-making seem to resist transformation, although they are surrounded by a changing media environment. Moreover, within the field of politics, face-to-face interactions even seem to gain importance as core elements of decision processes. Following the concept of communicative figurations, this chapter takes a closer look at the construction of relations within actor constellations involved in decision-making processes. Based on a micro-analysis of face-to-face group experiments and a series of computer-mediated chat experiments, typical sequences of face-to-face interaction are identified as significant elements of successful decision-making processes. The aim of this chapter is to show that these sequences or patterns of interaction produce and reproduce forms of relatedness within figurations of political decision-making.
Researching Communicative Figurations: Necessities and Challenges for Empirical Research
Authors: Lohmeier Christine , Böhling Rieke
Published: November 2017

The chapter considers how the concept of communicative figurations can be employed in researching communities and collectivities in today’s deeply mediatized world. It does so by providing specific examples from previous projects and by mapping out different perspectives of thinking about empirical challenges. In a first step, we introduce the concept of communicative figurations and consider how this concept can be fruitful with regard to the necessities and challenges that pertain to two central steps of the research process: (1) approaching and conducting cross-media research and (2) defining the field of research and its limits. We consider both of these central steps as necessities as well as challenges when researching the life worlds of individuals and collectivites in today’s media environment empirically, and we argue that the concept of communicative figurations can provide a useful tool when dealing with some of the challenges. At the same time, it comes along with a set of necessities, which we address along the way. In the final section of the chapter, we then illustrate our considerations by giving the example of an ‘ideal’ study design that employs the concept of communicative figurations for a research project on the communicative construction of family memory. Again, we explain our conceptualization of this project along the lines of the necessities and the challenges of conducting cross-media research and delineating the boundaries of the research field.