bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Design and characterization of PNVCL‐based nanofibers and evaluation of their potential applications as scaffolds for surface drug delivery of hydrophobic drugs
Authors: Sta Marwa , Aguiar Graziele , Forni Abilio A. J. , Medeiros Simone F. , Santos Amilton M. , Demarquette Nicole R. 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACTIn this work, nanofiber scaffolds for surface drug delivery applications were obtained by electrospinning poly(N‐vinylcaprolactam) (PNVCL) and its blends with poly(ε‐caprolactone) and poly(N‐vinylcaprolactam)‐b‐poly(ε‐caprolactone). The process parameters to obtain smooth and beadless PNVCL fibers were optimized. The average fibers diameter was less than 1 μm, and it was determined by scanning electron microscopy analyses. Their affinity toward water was evaluated by measuring the contact angle with water. The ketoprofen release behavior from the fibers was analyzed using independent and model‐dependent approaches. The low values of the release exponent (n< 0.5) obtained for 20 and 42 °C, indicating a Fickian diffusion mechanism for all formulations. Dissolution efficiencies (DEs) revealed the effect of polymer composition, methodology used in the electrospinning process, and temperature on the release rate of ketoprofen. PNVCL/poly(N‐vinylcaprolactam)‐b‐poly(ε‐caprolactone)‐based nanofibers showed greater ability to control thein vitrorelease of ketoprofen, in view of reduced kinetic constant and DE, making this material promising system for controlling release of hydrophobic drugs. © 2019 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci.2020,137, 48472.
Bite Force and Masticatory Muscle Architecture Adaptations in the Dietarily Diverse Musteloidea (Carnivora)
Authors: Hartstone‐Rose Adam , Hertzig Isabella , Dickinson Edwin 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACTDietary ecology and its relationship with both muscle architecture and bite force potential has been studied in many mammalian (and non‐mammalian) taxa. However, despite the diversity of dietary niches that characterizes the superfamily Musteloidea, the masticatory muscle fiber architecture of its members has yet to be investigated anatomically. In this study, we present myological data from the jaw adductors in combination with biomechanical data derived from craniomandibular measurements for 17 species representing all four families (Ailuridae, Mephitidae, Mustelidae, and Procyonidae) of Musteloid. These data are combined to calculate bite force potential at each of three bite points along the dental row. Across our sample as a whole, masticatory muscle mass scaled with isometry or slight positive allometry against both body mass and skull size (measured via a cranial geometric mean). Total jaw adductor physiological cross‐sectional area scaled with positive allometry against both body mass and skull size, while weighted fiber length scaled with negative allometry. From a dietary perspective, fiber length is strongly correlated with dietary size such that taxa that exploit larger foods demonstrated myological adaptations toward gape maximization. However, no consistent relationship between bite force potential and dietary mechanical resistance was observed. These trends confirm previous findings observed within the carnivoran family Felidae (as well as within primates), suggesting that the mechanisms by which masticatory anatomy adapts to dietary ecology may be more universally consistent than previously recognized. Anat Rec, 302:2287–2299, 2019. © 2019 American Association for Anatomy
The Claustrum in the Squirrel Monkey
Authors: Baizer Joan S. , Webster Charles J. , Baker James F. 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACTThe claustrum (CLA) is a subcortical structure that is reciprocally and topographically connected with the cerebral cortex. The complexity of the cerebral cortex varies dramatically across mammals, raising the question of whether there might also be differences in CLA organization, circuitry, and function. Species variations in the shape of the CLA are well documented. Studies in multiple species have identified subsets of neurochemically distinct interneurons; some data suggest species variations in the nature, distribution, and numbers of different neurochemically identified neuronal types. We have studied the CLA in a smooth‐brained primate, the squirrel monkey, using Nissl‐stained sections and immunohistochemistry. We found that the shape of the CLA is different from that in other primates. We found several different neurochemically defined populations of neurons equally distributed throughout the CLA. Immunoreactivity to GAD65/67and GABAAreceptors suggest that GABAergic interneurons provide widespread inhibitory input to CLA neurons. Immunoreactivity to glutamate transporters suggests widespread and overlapping excitatory input from cortical and possibly subcortical sources. Comparison of CLA organization in different species suggests that there may be major species differences both in the organization and in the functions of the CLA. Anat Rec, 303:1439–1454, 2020. © 2019 American Association for Anatomy
Vertebromedullary Topography of the Red‐Rumped Agouti (Dasyprocta leporina Linnaeus, 1758)
Authors: Araújo Júnior Hélio N. , Oliveira Gleidson B. , Costa Herson S. , Oliveira Radan E.M. , Lopes Igor R.G. , Klem Marcius A.P. , Paula Valéria V. , Oliveira Moacir F. 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACTThe agouti is a wild rodent located almost throughout the Brazilian territory, with great scientific importance and high reproductive potential when farmed. In the clinical routine, clinical and surgical procedures are performed on the nervous system of these animals, such as epidural anesthesia and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) collection; however, data available are limited in literature on the main points of these procedures in this species. In this aspect, the objective was to describe the vertebromedullary topography of the agouti in order to identify and quantify it, with the intention of expanding the information regarding the clinical‐surgical procedures in this system. Ten animals were incised longitudinally in the dorsal median line, removing the skin, the musculature, and dorsal fascia of the vertebral column; then, removed the vertebral arches and consequent exposure of the spinal cord and meninges. The morphometry of the animals was done by obtaining the total length, body length, and crown‐rump length, as well as the total length of the spinal cord and its segments. The cervical intumescence in the agouti is located between C4‐T1 and measures 2.45 cm. The lumbar intumescence is between L5‐L7 and is 2.52 cm long. The cauda equina arises from S2 and the filum terminale from S3. As for the medullary cone, it is located between L7‐S1 and is 2.52 cm long. The suggested localization for epidural anesthesia or CSF puncture for laboratory tests in agoutis is the lumbosacral space, with the insertion of the needle to be carried out at angle of 90° in the sphinx position. Anat Rec, 303:1472–1477, 2020. © 2019 American Association for Anatomy
The Forearm Musculature of the Gray Mouse Lemur (Microcebus murinus): An Ontogenetic Study
Authors: Boettcher Marissa L. , Leonard Kaitlyn C. , Dickinson Edwin , Aujard Fabienne , Herrel Anthony , Hartstone‐Rose Adam 
Published: September 2019

ABSTRACTAlthough studies have sought to characterize variation in forearm muscular anatomy across the primate order, none have attempted to quantify ontogenetic changes in forearm myology within a single taxon. Herein, we present muscle architecture data for the forearm musculature (flexors and extensors of the wrist and digits) of Microcebus murinus, a small Lemuroid that has been the focus of several developmental studies. A quadratic curvilinear model described ontogenetic changes in muscle mass and fascicle length; however, fascicle lengths reached peak levels at an earlier age and showed a stronger decline during senescence. Conversely, physiological cross‐sectional area followed a more linear trend, increasing steadily throughout life. As previous studies into the functional role of the primate forelimb emphasize the importance of long muscle fascicles within arboreal taxa in order to maximize mobility and flexibility, the early attainment of peak fascicle lengths may consequently reflect the importance of agility within this mobile and highly arboreal species. Similarly, observed myological trends in forearm strength are supported by previous in vivo data on grip strength within M. murinus in which senescent individuals showed no decline in forearm force relative to prime age individuals. This trend is interpreted to reflect compensation for the previously reported decline in hind limb grip strength in the hind limb with age, such that older individuals are able to maintain arboreal stability. Interestingly, the ontogenetic trajectory of each architectural variable mirrored previous observations of the masticatory musculature in M. murinus, suggesting that ontogenetic trends are relatively conserved between anatomical regions. Anat Rec, 303:1354–1363, 2020. © 2019 American Association for Anatomy
Spontaneous Pulmonary Hypertension Associated With Systemic Sclerosis in P‐Selectin Glycoprotein Ligand 1–Deficient Mice
Authors: González‐Tajuelo Rafael , de la Fuente‐Fernández María , Morales‐Cano Daniel , Muñoz‐Callejas Antonio , González‐Sánchez Elena , Silván Javier , Serrador Juan Manuel , Cadenas Susana , Barreira Bianca , Espartero‐Santos Marina , Gamallo Carlos , Vicente‐Rabaneda Esther F. , Castañeda Santos , Pérez‐Vizcaíno Francisco , Cogolludo Ángel , Jiménez‐Borreguero Luis Jesús , Urzainqui Ana 
Published: September 2019

ObjectivePulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH), one of the major complications of systemic sclerosis (SSc), is a rare disease with unknown etiopathogenesis and noncurative treatments. As mice deficient in P‐selectin glycoprotein ligand 1 (PSGL‐1) develop a spontaneous SSc‐like syndrome, we undertook this study to analyze whether they develop PAH and to examine the molecular mechanisms involved.MethodsDoppler echocardiography was used to estimate pulmonary pressure, immunohistochemistry was used to assess vascular remodeling, and myography of dissected pulmonary artery rings was used to analyze vascular reactivity. Angiotensin II (Ang II) levels were quantified by enzyme‐linked immunosorbent assay, and Western blotting was used to measure Ang II type 1 receptor (AT1R), AT2R, endothelial cell nitric oxide synthase (eNOS), and phosphorylated eNOS expression in lung lysates. Flow cytometry allowed us to determine cytokine production by immune cells and NO production by endothelial cells. In all cases, there were 4–8 mice per experimental group.ResultsPSGL‐1−/− mice showed lung vessel wall remodeling and a reduced mean ± SD expression of pulmonary AT2R (expression ratio [relative to β‐actin] in female mice age >18 months: wild‐type mice 0.799 ± 0.508 versus knockout mice 0.346 ± 0.229). With aging, female PSGL‐1−/− mice had impaired up‐regulation of estrogen receptor α (ERα) and developed lung vascular endothelial dysfunction coinciding with an increase in mean ± SEM pulmonary Ang II levels (wild‐type 48.70 ± 5.13 pg/gm lung tissue versus knockout 78.02 ± 28.09 pg/gm lung tissue) and a decrease in eNOS phosphorylation, leading to reduced endothelial NO production. These events led to a reduction in the pulmonary artery acceleration time:ejection time ratio in 33% of aged female PSGL‐1−/− mice, indicating pulmonary hypertension. Importantly, we found expanded populations of interferon‐γ–producing PSGL‐1−/− T cells and B cells and a reduced presence of regulatory T cells.ConclusionThe absence of PSGL‐1 induces a reduction in Treg cells, NO production, and ERα expression and causes an increase in Ang II in the lungs of female mice, favoring the development of PAH.
Adaptive fault‐tolerant control of an axially moving system with time‐varying constraints
Authors: Yue Xinling 
Published: September 2019

AbstractIn this paper, for an axially moving system, with the purpose of suppressing vibration, an adaptive fault‐tolerant control method with time‐varying constraints is investigated. The dynamics of the system are comprised of an ordinary differential equation coupled with a partial differential equation. The method used in our study is known as fault‐tolerant control to process affairs of actuator failures occur. Actual control substitutes for ideal control to regulate the vibration when the actuator occurs undesired failures. Time‐varying constraints are appropriate to cope with the variation range of the performance. Lyapunov function has proven that the adaptive control law is feasible, as well as verifying the exponential stability of the system. Eventually, simulations we have done suggest that the effectiveness of the designed control is feasible.
Model reduction based on limited‐time interval impulse response Gramians
Authors: Kumar Deepak , Jazlan Ahmad , Sreeram Victor 
Published: September 2019

AbstractIn this paper, three new Gramians are introduced namely ‐ limited‐time interval impulse response Gramians (LTIRG), generalized limited‐time Gramians (GLTG) and generalized limited‐time impulse response Gramians (GLTIRG). GLTG and GLTIRG are applicable to both unstable systems and also to systems which have eigenvalues of opposite polarities and equal magnitude. The concept of these Gramians is utilized to develop model reduction algorithms for linear time‐invariant continuous‐time single‐input single‐output (SISO) systems. In the cases of GLTIRG and GLTG based model reduction, the standard time‐limited Gramians are generalized to be applied to unstable systems by transforming the original system into a new system which requires the solution of two Riccati equations. Two numerical examples are included to illustrate the proposed methods. The results are also compared with standard techniques.
Visual and Proprioceptive Influences on Tactile Spatial Processing in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorders
Authors: Hense Marlene , Badde Stephanie , Köhne Svenja , Dziobek Isabel , Röder Brigitte 
Published: September 2019

Children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs) often exhibit altered representations of the external world. Consistently, when localizing touch, children with ASDs were less influenced than their peers by changes of the stimulated limb's location in external space [Wada et al., Scientific Reports 2015, 4(1), 5985]. However, given the protracted development of an external‐spatial dominance in tactile processing in typically developing children, this difference might reflect a developmental delay rather than a set suppression of external space in ASDs. Here, adults with ASDs and matched control‐participants completed (a) the tactile temporal order judgment (TOJ) task previously used to test external‐spatial representation of touch in children with ASDs and (b) a tactile‐visual cross‐modal congruency (CC) task which assesses benefits of task‐irrelevant visual stimuli on tactile localization in external space. In both experiments, participants localized tactile stimuli to the fingers of each hand, while holding their hands either crossed or uncrossed. Performance differences between hand postures reflect the influence of external‐spatial codes. In both groups, tactile TOJ‐performance markedly decreased when participants crossed their hands and CC‐effects were especially large if the visual stimulus was presented at the same side of external space as the task‐relevant touch. The absence of group differences was statistically confirmed using Bayesian statistical modeling: adults with ASDs weighted external‐spatial codes comparable to typically developed adults during tactile and visual‐tactile spatio‐temporal tasks. Thus, atypicalities in the spatial coding of touch for children with ASDs appear to reflect a developmental delay rather than a stable characteristic of ASD. Autism Res 2019, 12: 1745–1757. © 2019 International Society for Autism Research, Wiley Periodicals, Inc.Lay SummaryA touched limb's location can be described twofold, with respect to the body (right hand) or the external world (right side). Children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) reportedly rely less than their peers on the external world. Here, adults with and without ASDs completed two tactile localization tasks. Both groups relied to the same degree on external world locations. This opens the possibility that the tendency to relate touch to the external world is typical in individuals with ASDs but emerges with a delay.
A highly selective aggregation‐induced emission fluorogen for sensitive detection of Al3+ in living cells
Authors: Xie Ya , Li Xueming , Yan Liqiang , Li Jianping 
Published: September 2019

AbstractA Schiff's base derivative was synthesized using a condensation reaction between 8‐formyl‐7‐hydroxy‐4‐methylcoumarin and furan‐2‐carbohydrazide that produced marked aggregation‐induced emission and had excellent ability to specifically recognize aluminium ions (Al3+). This compound displayed faint fluorescence in the benign solvent dimethyl formamide, and exhibited obvious green fluorescence following addition of specific amounts of water. Moreover, it exhibited strong blue fluorescence after combination with Al3+ even in the presence of other interfering ions. These experimental results demonstrated that this derivative could be used as a fluorescence probe for Al3+. The advantages, including significant fluorescence change, high selectivity and sensitivity, and fast response, meant that this probe could be used both to detect Al3+ in water samples and for fluorescence imaging in living cells.
Beneficial Effect of a Secondary Ligand on the Catalytic Difunctionalization of Vinyl Arenes with Boron and CO2
Authors: Perrone Trina M. , Gregory Amy S. , Knowlden Steven W. , Ziemer Natalie R. , Alsulami Rabah N. , Petersen Jeffrey L. , Popp Brian V. 
Published: September 2019

AbstractThe boracarboxylation of vinyl arenes catalyzed by copper(I) is an alkene difunctionalization reaction that provides synthetically useful β‐boryl‐α‐aryl propanoic acid derivatives. Drawbacks of the original reaction methodology are high catalyst loading and vinyl arene scope limited largely to electron‐rich systems. Herein, we demonstrate that catalytic additives, specifically triphenylphosphine or electron‐rich styrene, leads to improved catalyst efficiency and broadening of substrate scope. With the addition of PPh3, comparable yields of previously reported boracarboxylated substrates as well as two novel β‐boronated non‐steroidal anti‐inflammatory drugs (bora‐fenoprofen and bora‐flurbiprofen) were achieved at lower catalyst loading. Boracarboxylation of electron‐deficient substrates could be achieved through superstoichiometric addition of vinyl arene or addition of secondary phosphine ligand. Reactivity optimization and competition experiments have provided preliminary insights into the ability of PPh3 to aid in the catalytic cycle, specifically carboxylation of electron‐rich benzyl‐copper(I) intermediate. Additional competition studies revealed that a catalytic amount of an electron‐rich vinyl arene could be used in addition to the copper(I) catalyst to promote boracarboxylation of an electron‐deficient styrene derivative.
Electrochemical Evaluation for Multiple Functions of Pt‐loaded TiO2 Nanoparticles Deposited on a Photocathode
Authors: Kageshima Yosuke , Fujita Takumi , Takagi Fumiaki , Minegishi Tsutomu , Teshima Katsuya , Domen Kazunari , Amao Yutaka , Nishikiori Hiromasa 
Published: September 2019

AbstractPt‐loaded TiO2 nanoparticles (Pt/TiO2) were deposited on a near‐infrared responsive photocathode as a reaction field for the photoelectrochemical (PEC) hydrogen evolution from water. The multiple functions of the Pt/TiO2 layer for improving the PEC performances were evaluated by electrochemical methods. Considering the electrochemically active surface area (ECSA) of Pt, the Pt/TiO2 surface modification was revealed to increase the number of active sites (Pt), resulting in a decreased current density per active site. Consequently, the potential of the Pt/TiO2‐modified photocathode surface during the PEC reaction was expected to be located around 38–46 mV vs. a reversible hydrogen electrode (mVRHE), while that of the unmodified one was negatively shifted to around 13 mVRHE. In addition, the TiO2 layer also functioned to block the migration of holes to the photocathode‐electrolyte interface due to its deep valence band position, as well as to improve the wettability of the photocathode surface during light irradiation. These combined effects of the TiO2, as a transparent and conductive support, enhanced the photocurrent, and stability of the photocathode.
Synthesis of Highly Monodisperse Cu2O Nanocrystals and Their Applications as Hole‐Transporting Layers in Solution‐Processed Light‐Emitting Diodes
Authors: Chen Desui , Li Yifei , Dai Xingliang , Du Hui , Lin Jian , Jin Yizheng 
Published: September 2019

AbstractThe synthesis of phase‐pure, narrow‐size‐distributed and highly stable Cu2O nanocrystals is reported, which can be processed as hole‐transporting layers (HTLs) in solution‐processed optoelectronic devices. The synthesis is based on a thermal decomposition process with a ligand protection strategy. The reactivity of precursor can be tuned by simply modulating the concentration of oleylamine in non‐coordinated solvent, resulting in effectively controlling the size and size distribution of Cu2O nanocrystals. Combined with ligand protection strategy of using lithium stearate and moderate reaction temperature of 170 °C, in situ aggregation of Cu2O nanocrystals could be inhibited, exhibiting excellent stability in hexane for several months. The resulting phase‐pure colloidal Cu2O particles (after ozone‐treatment) were applied as HTLs in polymer light‐emitting diodes, the performance of which are comparable to that of the poly(3,4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) based devices.