bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Solvent‐Controlled Synthesis of Highly Luminescent Carbon Dots with a Wide Color Gamut and Narrowed Emission Peak Widths
Authors: Ding Hui , Wei Ji‐Shi , Zhang Peng , Zhou Zi‐Yuan , Gao Qing‐Yu , Xiong Huan‐Ming 
Published: April 2018

AbstractCarbon dots (CDs) have tremendous potential applications in bioimaging, biomedicine, and optoelectronics. By far, it is still difficult to produce photoluminescence (PL) tunable CDs with high quantum yield (QY) across the entire visible spectrum and narrow the emission peak widths of CDs close to those of typical quantum dots. In this work, a series of CDs with tunable emission from 443 to 745 nm, quantum yield within 13–54%, and narrowed full width at half maximum (FWHM) from 108 to 55 nm, are obtained by only adjusting the reaction solvents in a one‐pot solvothermal route. The distinct optical features of these CDs are based on their differences in the particle size, and the content of graphitic nitrogen and oxygen‐containing functional groups, which can be modulated by controlling the dehydration and carbonization processes during solvothermal reactions. Blue, green, yellow, red, and even pure white light emitting films (Commission Internationale de L'Eclairage (CIE)= 0.33, 0.33, QY = 39%) are prepared by dispersing one or three kinds of CDs into polyvinyl alcohol with appropriate ratios. The near‐infrared emissive CDs are excellent fluorescent probes for both in vitro and in vivo bioimaging because of their high QY in water, long‐term stability, and low cytotoxicity.
A Novel Approach to Realize Si‐Based Porous Wire‐In‐Tube Nanostructures for High‐Performance Lithium‐Ion Batteries
Authors: Sadeghipari Mehrnoosh , Mohajerzadeh Mohammad Ala , Hajmirzaheydarali Mohammadreza , Mashayekhi Alireza , Mohajerzadeh Shamsoddin 
Published: April 2018

AbstractHollow inorganic nanostructures have drawn great attention due to their fascinating features, such as large surface area, high loading capacity, and high permeability. The formation, characterization, and application of partially and entirely hollow structure by applying a Si‐based reactive ion deposition and etching method on silicon nanowire as a template are reported. This fabrication technique is extended to a stainless steel substrate to be used as the binder‐free anode for high capacity and high rate lithium‐ion batteries. The electrochemical analyses exhibit that in addition to the high initial discharge capacity of 4125 mAh g−1 at a rate of C/16, the best performing electrode shows discharge/charge capacity of as high as 3302.14/2832.1 mAh g−1, respectively, with an excellent charge capacity retention of 96.7% over 100 cycles at a rate density of 1 C. Even at a rate of 12 C, the as‐designed structure is still able to deliver an impressive 1553 mAh g−1, which probably is attributed to fast lithium diffusion in its hollow part and high porosity of Si and alumina layer. It is proved that the change in hollowness ratio significantly affects capacity retention and average coulombic efficiency of the lithium‐ion cells.
Peptide‐Based Nanocarriers for Cancer Therapy
Authors: Wei Guoqing , Wang Yi , Huang Xuehui , Hou Huabo , Zhou Shaobing 
Published: April 2018

AbstractPeptides, which are made up of amino acids, are an excellent candidate as a composition component of a nanocarrier for drug delivery due to their biocompatibility, bioavailability, and stability in vivo. Here, the progress in peptides as nanocarriers for applications in cancer therapy are summarized, including as a nanocarrier matrix for self‐assembled nanoparticles, as surface modification moieties of nanocarriers for targeting and/or penetrating function, and as enzyme‐responsive linkers of nanoparticles for triggering drug release. Peptide‐based nanocarriers should receive more attention, and they have great potential in biomedical applications.
Strategies to Overcome the Limitations of AIEgens in Biomedical Applications
Authors: Gu Bobo , Yong Ken‐Tye , Liu Bin 
Published: April 2018

AbstractMotivated by the demand for high‐performance tools for biomedical applications, numerous new luminescent nanomaterials with advanced functionalities are synthesized in recent years. Conventional fluorophores generally suffer from the notorious aggregation‐caused quenching effect that deteriorates their practical performance. The recently emerged fluorogens with aggregation‐induced emission (AIE) characteristics (AIEgen) have generated a new avenue for biomedical applications due to their unique optical properties, flexible designability, and multifunctional potential. However, the inherent characteristics of AIEgens, including short wavelength absorption, broad emission, and aggregation‐dependent brightness indirectly limit their practical performance in the biomedical field. Here, the recent development of AIEgens for biomedical applications is summarized and novel strategies to overcome their limitations are proposed. Furthermore, the strategies and guidelines for the rational design of AIEgens, preparation of water‐dispersible AIE nanoparticles, and selection of the excitation/emission methods, which enable AIEgens to be useful in a broader range of biomedical applications, are discussed.
Shaking table tests of RC frame structure across the earth fissure under earthquake
Authors: Xiong Zhongming , Chen Xuan , Zhang Chao , Huo Xiaopeng , Zhuge Yan 
Published: April 2018

SummaryTo investigate the behavior of a reinforced concrete (RC) frame structure across earth fissure under strong earthquake, a series of shaking table tests on a scaled model were designed and conducted. Three earthquake motion records were selected as input excitations, and the Jiangyou motion has a dramatically greater dynamic effect on the structure mainly due to its inherent rich low‐frequency component. The structural acceleration amplification factor gradually decreased as the peak ground acceleration of input motions increased, implying the progressive degradation of the structure stiffness. The results indicated that the earth fissure site has amplification effect on acceleration of the soil, and the displacement response of frame across the earth fissure was different to that of a typical RC frame structure. The ground floor was the most vulnerable story of the RC frame across the earth fissure.
Spatial trends in rainfall seasonality: a case study in Jharkhand, India
Authors: Sharma Shonam , Singh Prasoon Kumar 
Published: April 2018

AbstractThis study aims to analyse the seasonality of rainfall for Jharkhand State, India over the period of the last 102 years. Rainfall seasonality index and individual seasonality index values were calculated, and trend analysis was performed on yearly data for the individual seasonality index, using the Mann–Kendall test, the sequential Mann–Kendall test and Sen's slope method (also known as the Theil–Sen estimator). The value of the mean individual seasonality index varied from 0.815378 to 0.977228, which indicates that rainfall in Jharkhand is markedly seasonal, with a long dry season. The results of the Mann–Kendall trend test revealed a significant decreasing trend in individual seasonality index over Deoghar, Dumka, Godda, Pakaur and Sahebganj; however, the magnitude of this trend was found to be close to negligible. This decreasing trend could have a pronounced effect on agricultural activities.
Making Tobacco Control Policy Work: Rules of the Game
Authors: Willemsen Marc C. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractTobacco policy is made by actors who operate in an institutional environment with specific characteristics (Scharpf, 1997), and differences in these characteristics can explain much of the variation in tobacco control between countries. Governments and parliaments, and their bureaucracies, have formal and informal “rules of the game.” Informal rules include conventions, unwritten procedures, and expectations. Formal rules are official and legal procedures. While the contextual factors discussed in Chap. 4 are relatively dynamic and amenable to change by tobacco control interest groups, the rules of the game that are the subject of the current chapter are more static. In terms of the Advocacy Coalition Framework, they are the constitutional structural factors (Breton, Richard, Gagnon, Jacques, & Bergeron, 2008; Sabatier, 2007) which determine how countries differ from each other—less about how countries change over time, although institutional factors and conditions can gradually change. Knowledge of these factors is not only key to understanding why tobacco policymaking is most of the time a tedious and slow process; it also helps to understand how tobacco interest groups may influence policymaking and why some groups are more successful at this than others.
The International Context: EU and WHO
Authors: Willemsen Marc C. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractSince the 1960s, governments around the world have been developing policies to control tobacco. Countries have employed different combinations of measures (World Bank, 1999), taking national circumstances into account. For example, the United Kingdom attached importance to building a national infrastructure of smoking cessation support in combination with having the highest cigarette prices in Europe, while Australia invested in mass media campaigns and was at the forefront of pictorial health warnings and plain packaging, in addition to high tobacco taxes. In contrast, the United States combined strong smoking bans to protect non-smokers, with restrictions on the sale of tobacco to youth and a long history of litigation against the tobacco industry, but has relatively low cigarette taxes, modest health warnings on cigarette packs, and weak advertising restrictions (Kagan & Nelson, 2001). Despite such differences, there is an increasing convergence of strategies across countries (Studlar, 2006). There are two aspects to this. The first is the process of governments and tobacco control coalitions becoming inspired by countries that lead the way, facilitated by increased levels of corporation and coordination of tobacco control advocacy at the international level. The second is the emergence of “hard” international law to which national governments need to abide. This is facilitated by supranational legislation from the EU and WHO forcing countries to adopt similar policies. In Europe these processes add two extra layers of governance above the national and sub-national levels, and as a result tobacco control policymaking has become the outcome of a continuous negotiation among nested governments at several tiers, a process which has been described as multi-level governance (Asare, Cairney, & Studlar, 2009; Marks & Hooghe, 2003).
Two-loop integrals for CP-even heavy quarkonium production and decays: elliptic sectors
Authors: Chen Long-Bin , Jiang Jun , Qiao Cong-Feng 
Published: April 2018

AbstractBy employing the differential equations, we compute analytically the elliptic sectors of two-loop master integrals appearing in the NNLO QCD corrections to CP-even\ heavy quarkonium exclusive production and decays, which turns out to be the last and toughest part in the relevant calculation. The integrals are found can be expressed as Goncharov polylogarithms and iterative integrals over elliptic functions. The master integrals may be applied to some other NNLO QCD calculations about heavy quarkonium exclusive production, like$$ {\gamma}^{\ast}\gamma \to Q\overline{Q} $$γ∗γ→QQ¯,$$ {e}^{+}{e}^{-}\to \gamma +Q\overline{Q} $$e+e−→γ+QQ¯, and$$ H/{Z}^0\to \gamma +Q\overline{Q} $$H/Z0→γ+QQ¯, heavy quarkonium exclusive decays, and also the CP-even heavy quarkonium inclusive production and decays.
The Effects of Exposure to Mephedrone During Adolescence on Brain Neurotransmission and Neurotoxicity in Adult Rats
Authors: Kamińska Katarzyna , Noworyta-Sokołowska Karolina , Górska Anna , Rzemieniec Joanna , Wnuk Agnieszka , Wojtas Adam , Kreiner Grzegorz , Kajta Małgorzata , Gołembiowska Krystyna 
Published: April 2018

Abstract
According to the European Drug Report (2016), the use of synthetic cathinones, such as mephedrone, among young people has rapidly increased in the last years. Studies in humans indicate that psychostimulant drug use in adolescence increases risk of drug abuse in adulthood. Mephedrone by its interaction with transporters for dopamine (DAT) and serotonin (SERT) stimulates their release to the synaptic cleft. In animal studies, high repeated doses of mephedrone given to adolescent but not adult mice or rats induced toxic changes in 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) neurons. The aim of our study was to investigate the effects of mephedrone given in adolescence on brain neurotransmission and possible neuronal injury in adult rats. Adolescent male rats were given mephedrone (5 mg/kg) for 8 days. In vivo microdialysis in adult rats showed an increase in dopamine (DA), 5-HT, and glutamate release in the nucleus accumbens and frontal cortex but not in the striatum in response to challenge dose in animals pretreated with mephedrone in adolescence. The 5-HT and 5-hydroxyindoleacetic acid contents decreased in the striatum and nucleus accumbens while DA turnover rates were decreased in the striatum and nucleus accumbens. The oxidative damage of DNA assessed with the alkaline comet assay was found in the cortex of adult rats. Therefore, the administration of repeated low doses of mephedrone during adolescence does not seem to induce injury to 5-HT and DA neurons. The oxidative stress seems to be responsible for possible damage of cortical cell bodies which causes maladaptive changes in serotonergic and dopaminergic neurons.
A prospective study of efficacy and safety of rubber band ligation in the treatment of Grade II and III hemorrhoids – a western Indian experience
Authors: Nikam Vinayak , Deshpande Aparna , Chandorkar Iti , Sahoo Siddharth 
Published: April 2018

Abstract
Background Hemorrhoids are one of the most frequent diseases of the anal region with high prevalence involving all age groups. Multiple treatment options exist with none being perfect. Rubber band ligation of hemorrhoids is a non-operative treatment which can be performed on outpatient basis.
Objective The study was undertaken to determine efficacy of banding in treatment of Grade II and III hemorrhoids and to follow-up patients treated by banding to evaluate for symptomatic relief, recurrence and complications.
Study design A prospective, interventional study with clearance from the institutional ethics committee was undertaken over the period of 2 years in a tertiary referral center with a sample size of 60.
Result Out of 60 patients, 41 patients (68.30%) had Grade II and 19 patients (31.7%) had Grade III hemorrhoids. At first follow up, success rate for Grade II hemorrhoids was 85% (35/41) as compared to 21% (4/19) in Grade III. The unsuccessful 20 patients were re-banded, however only 2 of them responded to procedure. At the end of 6 weeks, 36 patients with Grade II hemorrhoids (88%) were cured. Failure rate was higher for Grade III hemorrhoids (68.42%, n = 13). Success rate was 86.6% for single hemorrhoid. There were no major complications. Anemia reverted significantly with successful band ligation.
Conclusion Rubber band ligation is a simple, safe and effective method for treating symptomatic second and third degree hemorrhoids as an outpatient procedure. It gives better results for Grade II and single hemorrhoids. Recurrence rate after successful band ligation is low.
Effect of blood purification on serum miR‐126 and VEGF levels in the process of atherosclerosis in uremic patients under maintenance hemodialysis
Authors: Zhao Dong , Shao Hong 
Published: April 2018

AbstractThis study aims to study the influence of different blood purification approaches on the expression of miR‐126 and VEGF serum levels in the development of atherosclerosis in uremic patients under maintenance hemodialysis (MHD). A total of 207 MHD patients with uremia were divided into HD (hemodialysis, n = 60), HDF (hemodiafiltration, n = 72), and HD + HP (hemodialysis + hemoperfusion, n = 75) groups based on different purification approaches. Eighty individuals who underwent physical examinations during the same period constituted the healthy controls. The serum levels of miR‐126 and VEGF were examined by qRT‐PCR and ELISA both before and after treatment, and the intima media thickness (IMT) value and plaque area were evaluated by color Doppler ultrasound. The serum miR‐126 level was down‐regulated in MHD patients compared with healthy controls, and this was negatively linked to VEGF. The post‐treatment expression level of serum miR‐126 in the HDF and HD + HP groups was remarkably increased, but VEGF was decreased in MHD patients, and especially significantly in the HDF group. In addition, IMT and plaque area were obviously improved in the HD group after treatment. Pearson correlation analysis showed a negative correlation of miR‐126 with IMT and plaque area, but a positive association between VEGF and IMT and plaque area. miR‐126 and VEGF are expected to become a valuable biomarker for monitoring the progression of atherosclerosis in uremic patients undergoing MHD.
Money, Mobile Money and Rituals in Western Kenya: The Contingency Fund and the Thirteenth Cow
Authors: Kusimba Sibel 
Published: April 2018

Abstract:This article, based on fieldwork in Western Kenya from 2012 to 2016, describes how life cycle rituals collect and distribute different forms of money, including land, property, personhood, animals, cash, and digital moneys. It specifically examines a ritual coming of age for adolescent boys. By organizing multiple forms of money relative to the phases of a human life, the past, and the future, these rituals serve to manage and transfer wealth across generations and to give these transfers social and moral dimensions. The study provokes a critique of financial initiatives in the Global South that often assume that the financial goals of the poor are short-term.
‘Good Muslim women’ at work: An Islamic and postcolonial perspective on ethnic privilege
Authors: Ali Faiza , Syed Jawad 
Published: April 2018

AbstractWithin sparse studies available on ethnic privilege at work, the emphasis is dominantly on ethnic privileges available to white, Anglo-Saxon, Protestant, heterosexual men and to a lesser extent white women. This paper presents and develops an Islamic and postcolonial perspective on ethnic privilege, which is unique not only due to contextual and cultural differences but also due to its postcolonial nature and composition. By postcolonial, the paper refers to cultural legacies of Arab colonialism and ideology in South Asia and elsewhere. Drawing on a qualitative study of Muslim female employees in Pakistan, the paper shows that religio-ethnic privilege represents postcolonial influences of a foreign (Arab-Salafi, ultra-orthodox Islamist) culture on a (non-Arab Muslim) society, and as such does not represent ethnic norms of a local mainstream society. The paper investigates the case of religio-ethnic privilege and female employment in Pakistan and examines how a foreign-influenced stereotype of female modesty is used to benchmark and preferentially treat ‘good Muslim women.’ The analysis shows that an Islamic and postcolonial lens may be needed to understand the nature and implications of religio-ethnic privilege at work in Muslim majority countries and societies.
Cooperation, Conflict, and the Costs of Anarchy
Authors: Fearon James D. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractI consider a model in which two states choose how much to arm and whether to attack in successive periods. Arms are useful not only for deterrence or taking territory, but also because they influence the resolution of a set of disputed issues. States can cooperate on the issues by limiting military competition, but only as far as an endogenous “war constraint” allows. Factors determining the tightness of the war constraint imply hypotheses about the international determinants of military effort and thus the costs of anarchy. The strategic logic differs from standard security-dilemma arguments, in which the costs of anarchy are associated with conflict between status quo states that are uncertain about others' territorial revisionism. Here, inefficiency arises because arming to deter lowers a state's value for living with the status quo, which creates a security externality and a feedback loop. The model both synthesizes and revises a range of theoretical arguments about the determinants of interstate cooperation and conflict.
Consonant age of acquisition effects are robust in children's nonword repetition performance
Authors: MOORE MICHELLE W. 
Published: April 2018

ABSTRACTThe underlying processes of nonword repetition (NWR) have been studied extensively in both typical and atypical development. Most of the research examining long-term memory effects on NWR has focused on lexical and sublexical variables that can only be computed relative to the lexicon of a specific language (e.g., phonotactic probability). Sublexical variables that can be defined without reference to the lexicon (e.g., consonant age of acquisition; CAoA) have received little attention, although recent work has shown a CAoA effect on NWR in young adults by measuring performance differences when the stimuli comprise consonants acquired later versus earlier in speech development. The purpose of this study was to identify whether this sublexical effect occurs earlier in development. Thirty-one typically developing first and second graders completed NWR, nonword reading, and auditory lexical decision tasks. Nonword accuracy and word–nonword discriminability were consistently lower for items comprising later versus earlier acquired phonemes, even after controlling for vocabulary knowledge, but there were no differences in speed measures. Patterns of performance were similar to the CAoA effects observed in young adults from previous work. Results indicate that the sensitivity of NWR performance to these sublexical long-term memory effects occurs in childhood and reflects adultlike patterns of performance.
Phenotypical resistance correlation networks for 10 non-typhoidalSalmonellasubpopulations in an active antimicrobial surveillance programme
Authors: Love W. J. , Zawack K. A. , Booth J. G. , Gröhn Y. T. , Lanzas C. 
Published: April 2018

AbstractAntimicrobials play a critical role in treating cases of invasive non-typhoidal salmonellosis (iNTS) and other diseases, but efficacy is hindered by resistant pathogens. Selection for phenotypical resistance may occur via several mechanisms. The current study aims to identify correlations that would allow indirect selection of increased resistance to ceftriaxone, ciprofloxacin and azithromycin to improve antimicrobial stewardship. These are medically important antibiotics for treating iNTS, but these resistances persist in non-TyphiSalmonellaserotypes even though they are not licensed for use in US food animals. A set of 2875Salmonella entericaisolates collected from animal sources by the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System were stratified in to 10 subpopulations based on serotype and host species. Collateral resistances in each subpopulation were estimated as network models of minimum inhibitory concentration partial correlations. Ceftriaxone sensitivity was correlated with otherβ-lactam resistances, and less commonly resistances to tetracycline, trimethoprim-sulfamethoxazole or kanamycin. Azithromycin resistance was frequently correlated with chloramphenicol resistance. Indirect selection for ciprofloxacin resistance via collateral selection appears unlikely. Density of the ACSSuT subgraph resistance aligned well with the phenotypical frequency. The current study identifies several important resistances in iNTS serotypes and further research is needed to identify the causative genetic correlations.