bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Studies of advanced glycation end products and oxidation biomarkers for type 2 diabetes
Authors: Chiu Chung‐Jung , Rabbani Naila , Rowan Sheldon , Chang Min‐Lee , Sawyer Sherilyn , Hu Frank B. , Willett Walter , Thornalley Paul J. , Anwar Attia , Bar Liliana , Kang Jae H. , Taylor Allen 
Published: May 2018

AbstractAdvanced glycation end products (AGEs) are formed upon nonenzymatic reactions of sugars or their metabolites with proteins and other cellular constituents. Many AGEs are long lived. Recent findings suggest that AGEs may predict diabetes and its complications and thus may warrant further study. The objective of this study was to assess the validity of our experimental procedures for measuring AGEs in stored blood sample and to conduct a pilot study for developing AGE biomarkers for diabetes and/or age‐related changes of glucose metabolism. We conducted a reliability study of the samples and methods using liquid chromatography–tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS)/MS assays for 10 AGEs (including methylglyoxal‐derived hydroimidazolone (MG‐H1), glucosepane (GSP) and two oxidation measures, in stored repository blood samples from the Nurses' Health Study and the Health Professionals Follow‐up Study. We also analyzed data relating blood GSP levels to type 2 diabetes status in a case‐control study (25 cases and 15 controls). Among the AGEs, GSP, and MG‐H1 showed the highest reliability across the various measures: reliability in duplicate samples and stability with delayed processing and storage over 1–2 year period. Furthermore, plasma GSP was associated with older age (P = 0.04) and type 2 diabetes status (age‐adjusted P = 0.0475). Our findings suggest that analysis of these AGEs may be developed as biomarkers for diabetes and/or age‐related changes of glucose metabolism. © 2018 BioFactors, 44(3):281–288, 2018
D‐cycloserine‐augmented one‐session treatment of specific phobias in children and adolescents
Authors: Farrell Lara J. , Waters Allison M. , Oar Ella L. , Tiralongo Evelin , Garbharran Vinay , Alston‐Knox Clair , McConnell Harry , Collings Nigel , Zimmer‐Gembeck Melanie , Donovan Caroline L. , Testa Chris , Storch Eric A. , Ollendick Thomas H. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractBackgroundD‐Cycloserine has potential to enhance exposure therapy outcomes. The current study presents a preliminary randomized, placebo‐controlled double‐blind pilot trial of DCS‐augmented one‐session treatment (OST) for youth (7–14 years) with specific phobia. A secondary aim of this pilot study was to explore the effects of youth age and within‐session fear reduction as potential moderators of DCS outcomes in order to generate hypotheses for a larger trial. It was hypothesized that DCS would be associated with greater improvements than placebo, that children (7–10 years) would have greater benefits than adolescents (11–14 years), and that DCS effects would be stronger for participants with the greater within‐session fear reduction during the OST.MethodsThirty‐five children and adolescents were randomized to either OST combined with DCS (n = 17), or OST combined with placebo (PBO; n = 18) and assessed at 1 week, 1 month, and 3 month following treatment.ResultsThere were no significant pre‐ to post‐treatment or follow‐up benefits of DCS relative to placebo. Secondary analyses of age indicated that relative to PBO, DCS was associated with greater improvements for children (but not adolescents) on measures of severity at 1‐month follow‐up. Children in the DCS condition also showed significantly greater improvement to 1 month on global functioning relative to other groups. Conversely, adolescents had significant post‐treatment benefits in the PBO condition on symptom severity measures relative to DCS, and adolescents in the DCS condition had significantly poorer functioning at 3 months relative to all other groups. Finally, there was a trend for within‐session fear reduction to be associated with moderating effects of DCS, whereby greater reduction in fear was associated with greater functioning at one‐month follow‐up for children who received DCS, relative to PBO.LimitationsThe study sample was small and therefore conclusions are tentative and require replication.ConclusionsAge and within‐session fear reduction may be important moderators of DCS‐augmented one‐session exposure therapy, which requires testing in a fully powered randomized controlled trial.
Encountered‐type haptic display for large VR environment using per‐plane reachability maps
Authors: Kim Yaesol , Kim Hyun Jung , Kim Young J. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractWe show a novel encountered‐type haptic system, H‐Wall, to enable haptic feedback using a manipulator of seven degrees of freedom suitable for simulating indoor virtual reality environments, which are characterized and confined by a set of vertical walls and revolving doors. At runtime, our system tracks hand motion using a red–green–blue depth sensor and locates its configuration. Then, the robotic manipulator plans a trajectory for the end effector, attached to a rectangular rigid board, to make contact with the hand to deliver a sense of touch as long as the perceived hand contact force is substantial. The force feedback is generated in a passive sense for static walls that the rigid board, corresponding to a vertical wall, holds its position as long as the perceived hand contact force is substantial. For a revolving door, the force feedback is generated in an active sense based on impedance control. In order to address the issue of limited workspace, we also propose a new reachability map, called per‐plane reachability map, that is optimized to answer whether passive haptic feedback can be generated by a manipulator when the user touches a vertical wall at a given orientation. We successfully demonstrate our system to provide an illusion to the user in a virtual environment with touch sensation to the surrounding environment.
Mesh denoising via total variation and weighted Laplacian regularizations
Authors: Zhong Saishang , Xie Zhong , Wang Weina , Liu Zheng , Liu Ligang 
Published: May 2018

AbstractMesh denoising is a fundamental problem in geometry processing. The main challenge is to preserve sharp features (such as edges and corners) and smooth regions (such as smoothly curved regions and fine details) while removing the noise. State‐of‐the‐art denoising methods still struggle with this issue. In this paper, we first propose a new variational model combining total variation and anisotropic Laplacian regularization to filter the normal vector field of the mesh. This model can preserve sharp features and simultaneously handle smooth regions well. Then, a new vertex updating scheme is presented to reconstruct the mesh according to the filtered face normals. It prevents the orientation ambiguity problem introduced by existing schemes. Experiments show that our denoising method outperforms all compared methods visually and quantitatively, especially for meshes consisting of both sharp features and smooth regions.
Protective effect of retinoic acid receptor α on hypoxia‐induced epithelial to mesenchymal transition of renal tubular epithelial cells associated with TGF‐β/MMP‐9 pathway
Authors: Gong Ling , Jiang Ling , Qin Yuanhan , Jiang Xingbo , Song Kunling , Yu Xueyun 
Published: May 2018

AbstractRetinoic acid receptor α (RARα), a member of family of the nuclear retinoic acid receptors (RARs), plays an essential role in various chronic kidney diseases (CKD). Renal tubular epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) is a common mechanism of progression of renal interstitial fibrosis (RIF). Hypoxia has been extensively considered as one of major inducers of renal tubular EMT. However, the effects of RARα on hypoxia‐induced EMT have not yet been described so far. The aim of the present study was to explore the roles and potential mechanisms of RARα in hypoxia‐induced EMT of renal tubular epithelial cells (RTECs). Our results showed that expression of RARα in RTECs subjected to hypoxia significantly was reduced, accompanied by decreased expression level of the epithelial marker E‐cadherin, and increased expression levels of the mesenchymal markers α‐smooth muscle actin (α‐SMA) and vimentin, in accord with EMT. Meanwhile, hypoxia could cause RTECs to obviously express TGF‐β and matrix metalloproteinase‐9 (MMP‐9). Furthermore, using lentivirus‐based delivery vectors to overexpress RARα in RTECs, we demonstrated that RARα alleviated hypoxia‐induced EMT of RTECs and downregulated the expression levels of TGF‐β and MMP‐9. In a word, RARα protects RTECs against EMT induced by hypoxia associated with TGF‐β/MMP‐9 pathway.
Highly Networked Platinum–Tin Nanowires as Highly Active and Selective Catalysts towards the Semihydrogenation of Unsaturated Aldehydes
Authors: Zhu Meiwu , Huang Bin , Shao Qi , Pi Yecan , Qian Yong , Huang Xiaoqing 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe selective hydrogenation of α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes to unsaturated alcohols is an important process for many industrial applications, whereas the realization of excellent conversion efficiency and selectivity remains a significant challenge. Herein, we report the preparation of a class of networked Pt–Sn nanowires (Pt–Sn NWs) for the selective hydrogenation of unsaturated aldehydes to the desired unsaturated alcohols. The optimized Pt1.5Sn NWs delivered a high conversion efficiency (98.1 %) for the hydrogenation of cinnamaldehyde (CAL) and excellent selectivity to cinnamyl alcohol (COL) (90.6 %); thus, they outperformed Pt1.5Sn nanoparticles (NPs) as well as Pt NPs. The high performance of the Pt1.5Sn NWs was expanded to the hydrogenation of other α,β‐unsaturated aldehydes. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy revealed that a high ratio of metallic Pt in the Pt1.5Sn NWs boosted the conversion of CAL and that a high Sn content favored the hydrogenation of the C=O bond, both of which lead to excellent activity and selectivity.
Bench‐Stable N‐Heterocyclic Carbene Nickel Precatalysts for C−C and C−N Bond‐Forming Reactions
Authors: Strieth‐Kalthoff Felix , Longstreet Ashley R. , Weber Jessica M. , Jamison Timothy F. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractHerein, we introduce a new class of bench‐stable N‐heterocyclic carbene (NHC) nickel‐precatalysts for homogeneous nickel‐catalysis. The nickel(II) complexes are readily activated to Ni0 in situ under mild conditions, via a proposed Heck‐type mechanism. The precatalysts are shown to facilitate carbonyl‐ene, hydroalkenylation, and amination reactions.
Heat Transfer Characteristics of CO2 Desorption from N‐Methyldiethanolamine Solution in a Microchannel Reactor
Authors: Liu Hongchen , Yao Chaoqun , Zhao Yuchao , Chen Guangwen 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe heat transfer performance and energy consumption of CO2 desorption from rich N‐methyldiethanolamine (MDEA) solution were determined experimentally in a straight microchannel reactor. Nucleate boiling was found to be the dominant heat transfer mechanism in this experiment. The heat transfer coefficients were strongly dependent on the heat flux. The solution flow rate was the most influential factor on the heat flux, followed by desorption temperature, MDEA concentration, and CO2 loading. In addition, an empirical correlation was proposed to predict the experimental heat transfer coefficients.
Heterolytic Si−H Bond Cleavage at a Molybdenum‐Oxido‐Based Lewis Pair
Authors: Zwettler Niklas , Walg Simon P. , Belaj Ferdinand , Mösch‐Zanetti Nadia C. 
Published: May 2018

AbstractInvited for the cover of this issue is the group of Nadia C. Mösch‐Zanetti at the University of Graz. The image depicts the victorious boron getting the hydride while the defeated molybdenum oxide is left with the silyl cation. Read the full text of the article at 10.1002/chem.201800226.
meso‐Modified Cobalamins: Synthesis, Structure, and Properties
Authors: Wierzba Aleksandra J. , Wincenciuk Aleksandra , Karczewski Maksymilian , Vullev Valentine I. , Gryko Dorota 
Published: May 2018

AbstractVitamin B12 and its derivatives present excellent paradigms for bioinspired catalysis. The inherent challenges for derivatizing cobalamins, such as vitamin B12, to incorporate them in supramolecular designs and materials, limit the range of their utility and applications. Herein, we present a synthetic approach toward derivatives of vitamin B12 possessing electron‐donating and ‐withdrawing substituents at the meso position (C10). Spectroscopic and cyclic voltammetry studies reveal that changes in the substitution pattern on the equatorial ligand have a significant impact on the electronic and optical properties of the cobalamin. These synthetic methods, therefore, provide invaluable routes not only for covalent linking to other structures, but also for attaining a wide range of functionalities for the derivatives of vitamin B12.
An experimental approach to investigating permeability reduction caused by solvent‐induced asphaltene deposition in porous media
Authors: Kordestany Amin , Hassanzadeh Hassan , Abedi Jalal 
Published: May 2018

AbstractPermeability reduction resulting from asphaltene deposition in porous media needs to be accounted for by reservoir simulators. Two questions have to be answered in order to quantify the reduction in permeability. The first question is how much asphaltene is deposited in porous media and the second one is how much permeability reduction is associated with a certain amount of asphaltene deposition. This article focuses on answering the latter by conducting laboratory experiments. Sand packs with known porosity, permeability, and sand grain size distribution were saturated with oil. Heptane was used to flood the oil‐saturated sand packs. After flooding with heptane, each sand pack was divided into ten smaller sand packs and the permeability of each small sand pack as well as the amount of deposited asphaltene in each one of them were measured. A method was developed to quantify the amount of deposited asphaltene within different cross sections of the sand packs. Results have been reported in terms of the mass of asphaltene in milligrams deposited on one gram of sand grain. The formation damage factor for each sand pack segment has been reported as the ratio between the permeability of the segment before extracting asphaltene to its permeability after extracting asphaltene. This ratio varied between 0.4–0.9. Asphaltene deposition varied between 1–20 mg/1 g of sand grain. Comparing the experimental results with the result predicted by one of the current correlations showed that the correlation does not accurately predict permeability reduction.
Study of the coke distribution in MTO fluidized bed reactor with MP‐PIC approach
Authors: Yuan Xiaoshuai , Li Hua , Ye Mao , Liu Zhongmin 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe methanol to olefins (MTO) process has received considerable interest due to its importance in transforming abundant resources such as coal, natural gas, and biomass to widely‐demanded light olefins. In the MTO process, the coke deposited on the catalyst governs the catalyst activity and product selectivity, and thus is critical to the reaction behaviour. In the industrial processes, the residence time and coke content of catalyst particles in the reactor show a certain distribution due to the continuous outflow of spent catalyst and inflow of regenerated catalyst, which need further attention. The multi‐phase particle‐in‐cell (MP‐PIC) approach was used in the current work to simulate the catalyst residence time and coke content distribution. The effect of gas‐solid flow patterns, reactor structure, and average catalyst residence time on the residence time and coke content distribution was investigated. It was found that at high superficial velocities, the coke content distributions obtained with the MP‐PIC method are consistent with the distribution deduced from the ideally mixed flow assumption of catalyst particles. The results suggested that it is possible to simulate large‐scale MTO reactors by use of the coke distribution. In particular, by incorporating an initial coke distribution, the time needed to reach steady state in the MTO reactor simulations could be greatly reduced.
Thermal behaviour of convective‐radiative porous fins under periodic thermal conditions
Authors: Mehraban Majid , Khosravi‐Nikou Mohammad Reza , Shaahmadi Fariborz 
Published: May 2018

AbstractIn the present study, the effects of non‐Fourier, convection, and radiation heat transfer are investigated in a porous fin under periodic thermal conditions. The porosity effect on the fin that allows the flow to infiltrate is formulated using Darcy's model. A nonlinear partial differential equation has been obtained by energy balance for the porous fin solved by a numerical method. The effects of buoyancy or natural convection parameter (Np), the radiation parameter (Nr), the convection parameter (Nc), dimensionless relaxation time (Ψ), and dimensionless frequency of the base temperature oscillation (ω) on temperature distribution are studied. Increasing the values of Ψ, as the non‐Fourier condition of heat transfer, led to a discontinuity in the dimensionless temperature distribution with smaller values of η. The heat transfer rate of the porous fin has been increased by increasing Nc, Nr, and Np, of which the Nr had the strongest effect on heat transfer in comparison with other parameters.
Preferred Orientation of Porous Si3N4 Ceramics by Gel‐Casting in a Longitudinal Rotating Magnetic Field
Authors: Yang Zhigang , Yu Jianbo , Deng Kang , Zhong Yunbo , Ren Zhongming , Fu Hua , Wu Hongya , Yu Gang 
Published: May 2018

AbstractPreferred orientation of porous Si3N4 ceramics with β‐Si3N4 powders as raw material is obtained by gel‐casting in a longitudinal rotating magnetic field and subsequent pressureless sintering. The effects of rotational speed on crystal orientation and properties of porous Si3N4 ceramics are analyzed. The results show that the c‐axis of β‐Si3N4 grains tended to align along the direction of the rotation axis. The degree of orientation in the samples increases with the increasing rotational speed. The textured porous samples show higher bending strength than that of untextured porous samples owing to the integrative effect of the grain orientation and pores.
Corporate social responsibility disclosure: Evidence from BRICS nations
Authors: Arrive Jean Tsitaire , Feng Mei 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThis study evaluates the quality of corporate social responsibility (CSR) compliance and disclosure practices of companies in BRICS countries while considering the imposition of business laws and regulations under different management systems. The 20 largest corporations listed on the stock exchange of each sampled country were examined, and 62 practices suggested by the CSR assessment in BRICS countries were used as a framework. It was observed that India and Brazil have the most significant median (with a value of 15) of all firms disclosing CSR practices, followed by South Africa with 14, China with 12 and Russia with 8. This study has implications for different audiences, such as internal and external stakeholders, and can help them better understand the importance of improving the acceptance of CSR initiatives and disclosures.
Aerobic Oxidation of Xylose to Xylaric Acid in Water over Pt Catalysts
Authors: Sadula Sunitha , Saha Basudeb 
Published: May 2018

AbstractEnergy‐efficient catalytic conversion of biomass intermediates to functional chemicals can make bio‐products viable. Herein, we report an efficient and low temperature aerobic oxidation of xylose to xylaric acid, a promising bio‐based chemical for the production of glutaric acid, over commercial catalysts in water. Among several heterogeneous catalysts investigated, Pt/C exhibits the best activity. Systematic variation of reaction parameters in the pH range of 2.5 to 10 suggests that the reaction is fast at higher temperatures but high C−C scission of intermediate C5‐oxidized products to low carbon carboxylic acids undermines xylaric acid selectivity. The C−C cleavage is also high in basic solution. The oxidation at neutral pH and 60 °C achieves the highest xylaric acid yield (64 %). O2 pressure and Pt amount have significant influence on the reactivity. Decarboxylation of short chain carboxylic acids results in formation of CO2, causing some carbon loss; however, such decarboxylation is slow in the presence of xylose. The catalyst retained comparable activity, in terms of product selectivity, after five cycles with no sign of Pt leaching.
Selective Oxidation of Lignin Model Compounds
Authors: Gao Ruili , Li Yanding , Kim Hoon , Mobley Justin K. , Ralph John 
Published: May 2018

AbstractLignin, the planet's most abundant renewable source of aromatic compounds, is difficult to degrade efficiently to welldefined aromatics. We developed a microwave‐assisted catalytic Swern oxidation system using an easily prepared catalyst, MoO2Cl2(DMSO)2, and DMSO as the solvent and oxidant. It demonstrated high efficiency in transforming lignin model compounds containing the units and functional groups found in native lignins. The aromatic ring substituents strongly influenced the selectivity of β‐ether phenolic dimer cleavage to generate sinapaldehyde and coniferaldehyde, monomers not usually produced by oxidative methods. Time‐course studies on two key intermediates provided insight into the reaction pathway. Owing to the broad scope of this oxidation system and the insight gleaned with regard to its mechanism, this strategy could be adapted and applied in a general sense to the production of useful aromatic chemicals from phenolics and lignin.
Simultaneous Stabilization of LiNi0.76Mn0.14Co0.10O2 Cathode and Lithium Metal Anode by Lithium Bis(oxalato)borate as Additive
Authors: Zhao Wengao , Zou Lianfeng , Zheng Jianming , Jia Haiping , Song Junhua , Engelhard Mark H. , Wang Chongmin , Xu Wu , Yang Yong , Zhang Ji‐Guang 
Published: May 2018

AbstractThe long‐term cycling performance, rate capability, and voltage stability of lithium (Li) metal batteries with LiNi0.76Mn0.14Co0.10O2 (NMC76) cathodes is greatly enhanced by lithium bis(oxalato)borate (LiBOB) additive in the LiPF6‐based electrolyte. With 2 % LiBOB in the electrolyte, a Li∥NMC76 cell is able to achieve a high capacity retention of 96.8 % after 200 cycles at C/3 rate (1 C=200 mA g−1), which is the best result reported for a Ni‐rich NMC cathode coupled with Li metal anode. The significantly enhanced electrochemical performance can be ascribed to the stabilization of both the NMC76 cathode/electrolyte and Li‐metal‐anode/electrolyte interfaces. The LiBOB‐containing electrolyte not only facilitates the formation of a more compact solid–electrolyte interphase on the Li metal surface, it also forms a enhanced cathode electrolyte interface layer, which efficiently prevents the corrosion of the cathode interface and mitigates the formation of the disordered rock‐salt phase after cycling. The fundamental findings of this work highlight the importance of recognizing the dual effects of electrolyte additives in simultaneously stabilizing both cathode and anode interfaces, so as to enhance the long‐term cycle life of high‐energy‐density battery systems.
Continuous leakage–resilient IBE in cloud computing
Authors: Xiang Xinyin , Zhao Xingwen 
Published: May 2018

SummaryCloud computing is an efficient tool in which cloud storage shares plenty of encrypted data with other data owners. In existing cloud computing scenarios, it may suffer from some new attacks like side channel attacks. Therefore, we are eager to introduce a new cryptographic scheme that can resist these new attacks. In this work, we exploit a new technique to build leakage‐resilient identity‐based encryption and use the stronger existing partial leakage model, such as continual leakage model. More specifically, our proposal is based on the underlying decisional bilinear Diffie‐Hellman assumption, but proven adaptively secure against adaptive chosen ciphertext attack in the standard model. Above all, a continuous leakage–resilient IBE scheme with adaptive security meets cloud computing with stronger security.