bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Influence of pH and organic modifiers on the dissociation constants of selected drugs using reversed‐phase thin‐layer chromatography: Comparison with other techniques and computational tools
Authors: Bhatt Nejal M. , Chavada Vijay D. , Sanyal Mallika , Shrivastav Pranav S. 
Published: July 2019

AbstractKnowledge of the acid–base dissociation constants of drugs is the key to understanding their biopharmaceutical characteristics. In the present work, the effect of pH and organic modifiers (acetonitrile and methanol) was investigated in the determination of dissociation constants (pKa) of nine representative drugs (atenolol, betahistine, clarithromycin, deferiprone, diclofenac, ibuprofen, metoprolol, naproxen and propranolol) using reversed‐phase thin‐layer chromatography. Mobile phase consisting of various buffers and methanol–acetonitrile (10, 20, 30, 40, 50 and 60%, v/v) was used to evaluate the retention pattern on reversed‐phase plates. Compared with methanol, acetonitrile gave better results for the experimentally determined pKa values by extrapolation to zero organic modifier volume fractions. To assess the effectiveness of the developed method the results were correlated using principal component analysis and hierarchical cluster analysis. The calculated values of the aqueous dissociation constant were compared with those reported previously using potentiometry and capillary electrophoresis and also with different computational platforms like ACD/Lab, ChemAxon and Jchem calculator. The results obtained by the RPTLC method were in good agreement with potentiometric methods for pKa determination.
Impact of the type of microcarrier and agitation modes on the expansion performances of mesenchymal stem cells derived from umbilical cord
Authors: Loubière Céline , Sion Caroline , De Isla Natalia , Reppel Loic , Guedon Emmanuel , Chevalot Isabelle , Olmos Eric 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThe present study proposed to compare the impact of agitation mode (static, orbital, and mechanical) on the culture of mesenchymal stem cells extracted from the Wharton's jelly of umbilical cords (WJ‐MSC), in a clinical grade culture medium, using human platelet lysate and different xeno‐free microcarriers. Attachment, expansion, and detachment performances were characterized by a new dedicated tool of microscopic image posttreatment, allowing an in situ cell counting without detachment step. Results showed that performances in static mode were not necessarily representative of those obtained in dynamic mode. Moreover, impacts on nutrient consumptions and metabolite productions were identified, such as a higher glutamine consumption when Cytodex‐1 microcarriers were used. The detachment strategy used was relatively efficient for Star‐Plus, Plastic‐Plus, and Hillex II, but not sufficient for Cytodex‐1. Despite Cytodex‐1 presented promising attachment and expansion performances, Star‐Plus and Plastic‐Plus showed a better compromise, respectively, for the orbital and the mechanical agitation modes.
Comparative effectiveness of palliative chemotherapy versus neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radical cystectomy versus cystectomy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy versus cystectomy for regional node‐positive bladder cancer: A retrospective analysis: KCSG GU 17‐03
Authors: Bae Woo Kyun , Lee Hyo Jin , Park Se Hoon , Kim Jung Hoon , Kim Hee Jun , Maeng Chi Hoon , Park Inkeun , Sohn Byeong Seok , Kim Jung A. , Lee Kyung Hee , Lim Do Hyoung , Chang Hyun , Kim Sung Min , Kim Ho Young , Song Hunho , Lim Seungtaek , Byun Jae Ho , Jung Hyun Ae 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThe regional lymph node‐positive bladder cancer was classified as stage IV in the AJCC 7th edition but was changed to stage IIIB in the 8th edition, revised in 2018. Among the various studies involving immune checkpoint inhibitors, groups that had only lymph node metastasis showed better outcomes than those with distant metastasis. Therefore, it is necessary to rethink the treatment strategy for lymph node‐positive bladder cancer. The aim of this study was to compare the treatment outcomes of chemotherapy, surgery, and combination therapy in patients with lymph node‐positive bladder cancer. From 1 January 2010 to 31 December 2015, patients with bladder cancer presenting local lymph node metastasis at the time of diagnosis were treated with a single treatment strategy, with either radical cystectomy or chemotherapy or with a combined strategy using both. Treatment outcomes were retrospectively analyzed on the basis of clinical indices and survival time. Out of 230 patients with bladder cancer, 44 (19.1%) were treated with palliative chemotherapy, 30 (13.0%) with neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by cystectomy, 129 (56.1%) with cystectomy followed by adjuvant chemotherapy, and 27 (11.7%) with cystectomy alone. Median survival among all groups was 30.4 months. For each group, median overall survival was 19.3, 49.1, 42.6, and 11.2 months, respectively. This study represents an advancement in understanding the impact of clinical treatment patterns of lymph node‐positive bladder cancer through comparison of survival data of patients treated with different therapeutic strategies. Combined treatment resulted in better outcomes than did single treatments.
Technological and sensorial quality of berry‐enriched pasta
Authors: Bustos Mariela C. , Paesani Candela , Quiroga Fernanda , León Alberto Edel 
Published: July 2019

AbstractBackground and objectivesThe objective of this research was to study the effect on technological quality and acceptability of adding dry berries to pasta. Raspberry (RB), boysenberry (BB), blackcurrant (BC), and redcurrant (RC) were dehydrated by freeze‐dried (FD) and air‐dried (D) methods and added to pasta at 2.5% and 7.5%.FindingsFreeze‐dried and D berries increased cooking loss; D‐BB and D‐RC fruits (≈5.8 g/100 g pasta) caused the slightest changes. Berry‐enriched pasta showed a decrease in firmness, adhesiveness, and chewiness, with FD berries having the highest detrimental effect. Pasta with FD berries showed higher polyphenol and anthocyanins than that with D berries. ABTS cation radical scavenging activity showed the highest values in pasta with 7.5% of BB and BC. Samples of berry‐enriched pasta were preferred by over 70% of consumers compared to those of control pasta; descriptors were tasty, fruity, al dente, and nice color.ConclusionsThe addition of 2.5% of air‐dried berries into pasta yielded a product with acceptable technological quality and distinctive sensorial attributes, with an effectively enhanced polyphenol, anthocyanin, and antioxidant activity content.Significance and noveltyThese results evidence that it is possible to develop pasta with great acceptability and high antioxidant activity through the incorporation of air‐dried berries.
Blunt cardiac rupture due to kicking on the lateral side of the right chest
Authors: Akishima Shinji , Takeyasu Noriyuki 
Published: July 2019

AbstractBlunt cardiac rupture can be caused by an indirect blow to the heart during sports. Clinicians should consider the possibility of cardiac injury regardless of the severity of trauma. Confirming the diagnosis and reaching a decision to operate as soon as possible is the only way to rescue the patient.
Mordenite Nanorods Prepared by an Inexpensive Pyrrolidine‐based Mesoporogen for Alkane Hydroisomerization
Authors: Bolshakov Aleksei , Romero Hidalgo Douglas E. , van Hoof Arno J. F. , Kosinov Nikolay , Hensen Emiel J. M. 
Published: July 2019

AbstractThe front cover artwork for Issue 12/2019 is provided by researchers from the group of Inorganic Materials and Catalysis, Eindhoven University of Technology (The Netherlands). The image shows how a novel surfactant based on methylpiperidine modified by a hydrophobic tail (C16NMP) can downsize the synthesis of mordenite zeolite from massive crystals into more accessible nanorods. See the Full Paper itself at https://doi.org/10.1002/cctc.201900298.
Estimation of predictive performance for test data in applicability domains using y‐randomization
Authors: Kaneko Hiromasa 
Published: July 2019

AbstractA new measure of predictive performance for objective variables in regression analysis is proposed, enabling the y‐errors of new samples or test samples to be estimated in the applicability domains (ADs) of regression models. The proposed measure, based on y‐randomization, considers chance correlations and is calculated using only training data. This chance correlation‐excluded mean absolute error (MAECCE) can estimate the y‐errors of new samples considering the influence of chance correlations in the given dataset on the regression models. Experiments using numerical simulation, quantitative structure‐activity relationship, and quantitative structure‐property relationship datasets confirm that MAECCE can estimate the distribution of y‐errors of new samples in ADs for various training datasets, descriptor sets, and regression analysis methods, enabling chance correlations to be eliminated from data analysis. Python and MATLAB codes for the proposed algorithm are available at https://github.com/hkaneko1985/maecce.
α‐Fetoprotein as a predictor of outcome for children with germ cell tumors: A report from the Malignant Germ Cell International Consortium
Authors: O’Neill Allison F. , Xia Caihong , Krailo Mark D. , Shaikh Furqan , Pashankar Farzana D. , Billmire Deborah F. , Olson Thomas A. , Amatruda Jim F. , Villaluna Doojduen , Huang Li , Malogolowkin Marcio , Rodriguez‐Galindo Carlos , Frazier A. Lindsay 
Published: July 2019

BackgroundThere are several studies describing the correlation between unsatisfactory tumor marker decline and a poor prognosis for adult patients treated for germ cell tumors. In pediatric patients, the data are limited. Therefore, this study retrospectively analyzed data from Children's Oncology Group (COG) protocol AGCT0132 to determine whether a relationship exists between α‐fetoprotein (AFP) decline and outcome.MethodsOne hundred thirty‐one patients with germ cell tumors who were enrolled in COG protocol AGCT0132 were eligible for this analysis of AFP decline. The serum AFP half‐life was calculated from levels collected postoperatively as a baseline and after the start of chemotherapy. AFP decline was defined as automatically satisfactory (AFP normalized within the first 2 AFP measures after the start of chemotherapy), calculated satisfactory (AFP half‐life ≤7 days after the start of chemotherapy), and unsatisfactory.ResultsThe 3‐year cumulative incidence of relapse was 11% (95% confidence interval [CI], 6.0%‐18%) for patients with a satisfactory decline and 38% (95% CI, 13%‐64%) for patients with an unsatisfactory decline (P = .006). In stratified analyses, this effect was limited to patients who were 11 years of age or older and had standard risk 2 (SR2) disease (P = .004 and P = .007, respectively). Three‐year overall survival (OS) for patients with a satisfactory decline versus an unsatisfactory decline was not statistically significant.ConclusionsThis study is the first to show an association between AFP decline and the cumulative incidence of relapse in pediatric patients treated for germ cell tumors. Recognition of patients at high risk for relapse may allow for early intensification of therapy, which could affect future clinical trial design.
Isolation: Inexpensively separating cold data via garbage collection to improve the lifetime and performance of NAND flash SSDs
Authors: Zhou Bin , Wan Shenggang , Xie Changsheng 
Published: July 2019

SummaryAn effective way to mitigate the lifetime and performance problems of NAND flash SSDs induced by garbage collection is separating the cold data and hot data. However, all existing solutions do this separation from the viewpoint of the hot data and thus suffer from expensive cost on monitoring the update behaviors of workloads. Different from the conventional wisdom, we propose to do the separation from the viewpoint of the cold data, which is rooted on the following two dedicated observations. First, the data migrated by garbage collection demonstrate a cold property compared with the other data. Second, it is inexpensive to separate the former data from the latter data. In the proposed method, named Isolation, we inexpensively separate the cold data via garbage collection. More specifically, through writing the data migrated by garbage collection (cold data) to dedicated blocks and writing the other data (hot data) to other blocks, the separation is done naturally. To evaluate Isolation, we conduct extensive trace‐driven simulations under seven typical workloads. The simulation results demonstrate the effectiveness and efficiency of Isolation. In most cases, Isolation can reduce the number of erasures and average I/O response time up to 47.3% and 80.1%, respectively. Existing approaches integrated with Isolation can further reduce the number of erasures and average I/O response time up to 7.8%‐18.5% and 10.7%‐41.4%, respectively.
Exposure–Response Relationships for Efficacy and Safety of Risankizumab in Phase II and III Trials in Psoriasis Patients
Authors: Khatri Amit , Suleiman Ahmed A. , Polepally Akshanth R. , Othman Ahmed A. 
Published: July 2019

Risankizumab has demonstrated efficacy in phase III trials in patients with moderate‐to‐severe plaque psoriasis. The exposure–response relationships for risankizumab efficacy (Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI)75, PASI90, PASI100, and static Physician's Global Assessment (sPGA)0/1) at week 16 (N = 1,732) and week 52 (N = 598) as well as safety (incidence of any adverse event, serious adverse event, infection and infestation, or serious infection) over up to 52 weeks were characterized using the data from risankizumab phase II and III clinical trials in patients with moderate‐to‐severe plaque psoriasis. Impact of clinically relevant covariates was evaluated. Risankizumab phase III regimen (150 mg subcutaneously at weeks 0, 4, and every 12 weeks thereafter) achieved the plateau of the exposure–efficacy relationships with model‐estimated PASI90 and sPGA0/1 response probabilities of 77%, and 87%, respectively, at week 16 and 85%, and 88%, respectively, at week 52. There was no apparent relationship between risankizumab plasma exposure and the evaluated safety variables.
Efficiency improvement for LLC converter based on automatic tuning of blanking time
Authors: Hwu Kuo‐Ing , Guo Yi‐Siang 
Published: July 2019

SummaryAs for the traditional LLC converter, there is a problem in efficiency at light load. In order to keep the output voltage of this converter constant at a given value at light load, the switching frequency will be increased, and hence, the efficiency would be degraded. Consequently, based on the inherent frequency modulation and from the point of view of blanking time tuning, the efficiency at light load will be further improved due to circular current reduction, and at the same time, the efficiencies under other operating conditions are also enhanced. In this paper, the strategy for automatically adjusting the blanking time is described and analyzed. Afterwards, the digital signal processor (DSP) is used as a circuit control kernel, and an experimental setup, with input voltage of 400 ± 10 V, rated output voltage of 12 V, and rated output current of 20 A, is provided to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed strategy.
To burn or not to burn: Comparing reintroducing fire with cutting an encroaching conifer for conservation of an imperiled shrub‐steppe
Authors: Davies Kirk W. , Rios Roxanne C. , Bates Jon D. , Johnson Dustin D. , Kerby Jay , Boyd Chad S. 
Published: July 2019

AbstractWoody vegetation has increased on rangelands worldwide for the past 100–200 years, often because of reduced fire frequency. However, there is a general aversion to reintroducing fire, and therefore, fire surrogates are often used in its place to reverse woody plant encroachment. Determining the conservation effectiveness of reintroducing fire compared with fire surrogates over different time scales is needed to improve conservation efforts. We evaluated the conservation effectiveness of reintroducing fire with a fire surrogate (cutting) applied over the last ~30 years to control juniper (Juniperus occidentalis Hook.) encroachment on 77 sagebrush‐steppe sites. Critical to conservation of this imperiled ecosystem is to limit juniper, not encourage exotic annual grasses, and promote sagebrush dominance of the overstory. Reintroducing fire was more effective than cutting at reducing juniper abundance and extending the period of time that juniper was not dominating the plant community. Sagebrush was reduced more with burning than cutting. Sagebrush, however, was predicted to be a substantial component of the overstory longer in burned than cut areas because of more effective juniper control. Variation in exotic annual grass cover was explained by environmental variables and perennial grass abundance, but not treatment, with annual grasses being problematic on hotter and drier sites with less perennial grass. This suggests that ecological memory varies along an environmental gradient. Reintroducing fire was more effective than cutting at conserving sagebrush‐steppe encroached by juniper over extended time frames; however, cutting was more effective for short‐term conservation. This suggests fire and fire surrogates both have critical roles in conservation of imperiled ecosystems.
A high performance liquid chromatography method for simultaneous detection of 20 bioactive components in tea extracts
Authors: Nian Bo , Chen Lijiao , Yi Chao , Shi Xingyun , Jiang Bin , Jiao Wenwen , Liu Qianting , Lv Caiyou , Ma Yan , Zhao Ming 
Published: July 2019

AbstractTea is the second most widely consumed beverage and contains various bioactive compounds. A simple method to analyze these compounds is of great scientific and commercial interest. In this work, a 30 min HPLC method was developed using a simple gradient elution system, and the mobile phases and elution gradients were optimized. This method separated 17 polyphenols and three alkaloid compounds in tea extracts, including catechins, alkaloids, phenolic acids, flavonols, and flavone, which are responsible for the bioactivity and flavor of tea. Excellent linearity was observed for all standard calibration curves, and correlation coefficients were above 0.9994. Heatmap analysis demonstrated significant separation between green, black, and pu‐erh tea samples. The method described here is accurate and sensitive enough for the determination of active components in tea and could potentially be applied to other food products for the comprehensive investigation of their quality.
A heat recovery unit with phase change material for combi‐boilers
Authors: Balci Ozan M , Ezan Mehmet A , Turhan Kutbettin Z 
Published: July 2019

AbstractA novel heat exchanger (HEX) with phase change material (PCM) is proposed to recover the waste heat from the flue gas of a combi‐boiler. The thermal energy that is recovered from the flue gas is stored within the PCM‐HEX when the combi‐boiler works in the central heating mode. The stored thermal energy is then released to pre‐heat the domestic water so that the combi‐boiler provides the domestic water at a required temperature more rapidly even in eco‐mode. A mathematical model is developed, and the discharging process of the PCM‐HEX is considered. The transient analyses are conducted to reveal the influences of the mass of PCM, the phase change temperature of the PCM, and the flow rate of the domestic water. It is found that the PCM‐HEX integrated combi‐boiler increases the domestic water temperature in the early period of the hot water demand. Results show that the water temperature increases as much as ΔT = 9.3°C and 19.2°C for the flow rates of 10 L/min and 3 L/min, respectively. Increasing the water temperature with the PCM‐HEX not only helps to reduce the waiting time of the end‐user but also improves the efficiency of the combi‐boiler and reduces the energy consumption.
Self‐adaptive online virtual network migration in network virtualization environments
Authors: Zangiabady Mahboobeh , Garcia‐Robledo Alberto , Gorricho Juan‐Luis , Serrat‐Fernandez Joan , Rubio‐Loyola Javier 
Published: July 2019

AbstractIn Network Virtualization Environments, the capability of operators to allocate resources in the Substrate Network (SN) to support Virtual Networks (VNs) in an optimal manner is known as Virtual Network Embedding (VNE). In the same context, online VN migration is the process meant to reallocate components of a VN, or even an entire VN among elements of the SN in real time and seamlessly to end‐users. Online VNE without VN migration may lead to either over‐ or under‐utilization of the SN resources. However, VN migration is challenging due to its computational cost and the service disruption inherent to VN components reallocation. Online VN migration can reduce migration costs insofar it is triggered proactively, not reactively, at critical times, avoiding the negative effects of both under‐ and over‐triggering. This paper presents a novel online cost‐efficient mechanism that self‐adaptively learns the exact moments when triggering VN migration is likely to be profitable in the long term. We propose a novel self‐adaptive mechanism based on Reinforcement Learning that determines the right trigger online VN migration times, leading to the minimization of migration costs while simultaneously considering the online VNE acceptance ratio.
Finding the polygon hull of a network without conditions on the starting vertex
Authors: Bounceur Ahcène , Bezoui Madani , Hammoudeh Mohammad , Lagadec Loïc , Euler Reinhardt 
Published: July 2019

AbstractMany real‐life problems arising within the fields of wireless communication, image processing, combinatorial optimization, etc, can be modeled by means of Euclidean graphs. In the case of wireless sensor networks, the overall topology of the graph is not known because sensor nodes are often randomly deployed. One of the significant problems in this field is the search for boundary nodes. This problem is important in cases such as the surveillance of an area of interest, image contour reconstruction, graph matching problems, routing or clustering data, etc. In the literature, many algorithms are proposed to solve this problem, a recent one of which is the least polar‐angle connected node (LPCN) algorithm and its distributed version D‐LPCN, which are both based on the concept of a polar angle visit. An inconvenience of these algorithms is the determination of the starting vertex. In effect, the point with the minimum x‐coordinate is a possible starting point, but it has to be known at the beginning, which considerably increases the algorithms' complexity. In this article, we propose a new method called RRLPCN (reset and restart with least polar‐angle connected node), which is based on the LPCN algorithm to find the boundary vertices of a Euclidean graph. The main idea is to start the LPCN algorithm from an arbitrary vertex, and whenever it finds a vertex with an x‐coordinate smaller than that of the starting one, LPCN is reset and restarted from this new vertex. The algorithm stops as soon as it visits the same edge for the second time in the same direction. In addition to finding the boundary vertices, RRLPCN also finds the vertex with minimum x‐coordinate, which is the last starting point of our algorithm. The distributed version of the proposed algorithm, called D‐RRLPCN, is then applied to boundary node detection in the wireless sensor network. It has been implemented using real sensor nodes (Arduino/XBee and TelosB). The simulation results have shown our algorithm to be very effective in comparison to other algorithms.