bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Phytochemical, Antibacterial and Toxicity Study of Leaf Extracts of Vernonia amygdalina, Delile on Salmonella Species
Authors: Farouq A. A. , Muomara G. D. , Magashi A. M. , Jodi S. M. , Nata’ala M. K. , Habibu K. B. 
Published: April 2019

Aim: The aim of the study is to evaluate the bioactive compounds, toxicity and anti-bacterial activities of leaf extract of Vernonia amygdalina.
Methodology: The phytochemical analysis of Vernonia amygdalina to detect the presence of bioactive compounds (oxalate, tannins, saponins, flavonoid, cardiac glycoside, alkaloids, steroid, balsams, essential oil and saponin glycoside) was performed using standard methods. The antibacterial activity of the leaf extracts was determined using agar well diffusion method against clinical isolates of Salmonella typhi and Salmonella paratyphi. The toxicity testing was carried out with albino rats using standard method.
Results: Different secondary metabolites were found to be present in the leaf extracts after the phytochemical screening. They include tannins, saponins, flavonoids, cardiac glycosides, alkaloids, glycosides, steroid, saponin glycoside, volatile oil and Balsams. Highest zone of inhibition of 10.0 mm and 20.0 mm was recorded against S. typhi and S. paratyphi aqueous and ethanolic extracts of the leaves respectively. Minimum Inhibitory Concentration (MIC) of 100 mg/ml of the aqueous extract was recorded against S. typhi and S. paratyphi. A MIC of 25 mg/ml of the ethanolic extract was recorded against S. typhi and S. paratyphi. The acute toxicity tests reveal no occurrence of death after 2 weeks of administering 5000 mg/kg body weight of the extracts to the albino rats.
Conclusion: The results revealed promising potentials of the leaves of V. amygdalina in the treatment of infectious diseases, due to its low toxicity. However, further studies need to be conducted to isolate and characterize the active metabolites present in the leaves.
Planting Spacing of Cultivated Soybean Intercropped with Cover Plants
Authors: Santos Thatyele Sousa dos , Albuquerque José de Anchieta Alves de , Medeiros Roberto Dantas de , Rocha Paulo Roberto Ribeiro , Alves José Maria Arcanjo , Castro Thaís Santiago , Gonçalves Anderson Carlos de Melo , Melo Ana Karyne Pereira 
Published: April 2019

Aims: The objective of this work was to evaluate the influence of planting spacing in soybean intercropped with covering species in the Roraima savanna.
Study Design: The experimental design was a randomized complete block design with four replications.
Place and Duration of Study: The experiments were conducted at Embrapa Roraima, in Campo Experimental Água Boa, municipality of Boa Vista - Roraima state, in 2015 and 2016.
Methodology: Plots consisted in the spacing (0.45, 0.55 and 0.65 m) and the subplots were constituted by the cover plant species Urocloa brizantha, Urocloa ruziziensis, Panicum maximum and the treatment without intercropping. The used soybean cultivar was BRS Tracajá in two crops. The following variables had evaluated: plant height, number of grains per pod, number of pods per plant, 100-grain weight, plant dry matter, insertion of the first pod, grain yield, and dry matter of the covering species and of spontaneous vegetation.
Results: Cover plants affected the plant height, number of pods per plant, insertion of the first pod, dry matter of cover species and yield of grains in soybean. The spacing did not influence the growth and production of the soybean crop, except positively in the number of pods per plant with the increased of spacing. The interaction of cover plants and spacing affected the weight of 100 grains, the insertion of the first pod and the dry mass of the cover species. Number of grains per pod and the dry mass of the soybean plants were not affected by the cover plants and by the spacing.
Conclusion: The U. brizantha species provids the highest production of dry matter intercropped with soybean, however, the yield of the crop decrease. The U. ruziziensis species is the most suitable for the cultivation intercropped with the crop. The used spacing do not influence the productivity.
Cr3+‐Doped Broadband NIR Garnet Phosphor with Enhanced Luminescence and its Application in NIR Spectroscopy
Authors: Zhang Liangliang , Wang Dandan , Hao Zhendong , Zhang Xia , Pan Guo‐hui , Wu Huajun , Zhang Jiahua 
Published: April 2019

AbstractBroadband near‐infrared (NIR) phosphor‐converted light emitting diode (pc‐LED) is demanded for wearable biosensing devices, but it suffers from low efficiency and low radiance. This study reports a broadband NIR Ca3‐xLuxHf2Al2+xSi1−xO12:Cr3+ garnet phosphor with emission intensity enhanced by 81.5 times. Chemical unit co‐substitution of [Lu3+−Al3+] for [Ca2+−Si4+] is responsible for the luminescence enhancement and further alters the crystal structure and electronic properties of the garnet. Using the optimized phosphor, a NIR pc‐LED with photoelectric efficiencies of 21.28%@10 mA, 15.75%@100 mA and NIR output powers of 46.09 mW@100 mA, 54.29 mW@130 mA is fabricated. The high power NIR light is observed to penetrate upper arms (≈8 cm). For application in NIR spectroscopy, the NIR pc‐LED is used as light source to measure transmission spectra of water, alcohol, and bovine hemoglobin solution. These results indicate the NIR garnet phosphor to be a promising candidate for NIR pc‐LED.
Chemoenzymatic Approach to (S)‐1,2,3,4‐Tetrahydroisoquinoline Carboxylic Acids Employing D‐Amino Acid Oxidase
Authors: Ju Shuyun , Qian Mingxin , Xu Gang , Yang Lirong , Wu Jianping 
Published: April 2019

AbstractOptically pure 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline carboxylic acids constitute an important class of building blocks for the synthesis of natural products and synthetic pharmaceuticals. However, redox deracemization of racemic 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline carboxylic acids as an attractive method is still challenging for the lack of suitable oxidoreductases. Herein, a D‐amino acid oxidase from Fusarium solani M‐0718 (FsDAAO) with broad substrate scope and excellent enantioselectivity was exploited through genome mining, and applied for the kinetic resolution of a number of racemic 1‐ and 3‐carboxyl substituted tetrahydroisoquinolines to yield the corresponding (S)‐enantiomers with excellent enantiomeric excess (ee) values (up to >99%). By using FsDAAO in combination with ammonia‐borane in one pot, deracemization of these racemic carboxyl‐substituted tetrahydroisoquinolines was achieved with conversions up to >98% and >99% ee. Preparative‐scale deracemization of racemic 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline‐1‐carboxylic acid and 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline‐3‐carboxylic acid was also demonstrated with good isolated yields (82% and 73%, respectively) and ee>99%. Our study provides an effective method for the synthesis of enantiomeric pure 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroisoquinoline carboxylic acids. This method is expected to provide access to chiral carboxyl‐substituted 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydroquinolines and 1,2,3,4‐tetrahydro‐ß‐carbolines.magnified image
Transition Metal Dichalcogenide Anchored in 3D Nickel Framework with Graphene Support for Efficient Electrocatalytic Hydrogen Evolution
Authors: Narasimman Rajaram , Waldiya Manmohansingh , Karthik Esakki , Mukhopadhyay Indrajit , Ray Abhijit 
Published: April 2019

AbstractTransition metal dichalcogenides (TMDCs), MoS2, and WS2 have emerged as low‐cost and earth‐abundant electrocatalysts for hydrogen evolution reaction (HER). In this work, electrocatalytic HER performance of these TMDCs, supported by few layered graphene and loaded on a 3D framework of Ni foam (Gr/NF), is reported. The graphene in Gr/NF is prepared from inexpensive camphor by atmospheric pressure chemical vapor deposition. The graphene‐supported TMDCs anchored on the Ni foam are demonstrated with a low overpotential for HER below 200 mV at a current density of 10 mA cm−2 which is comparable to their edge terminated counterparts and surpassing that of unsupported bulk or amorphous TMDCs. In addition, their small Tafel slopes (95 and 83 mV dec−1 for MoS2‐ and WS2‐based Gr/NF electrocatalysts, respectively), charge transfer resistance, and long‐term stability make them promising non‐noble electrocatalysts. First principle investigations of the (Mo/W)S2/Gr/NF heterostructure shows that their enhanced electrocatalytic activity can be attributed to the d‐band shift in the transition metals, Mo/W (a larger shift for WS2) by Ni, promoting unoccupied antibonding orbitals which facilitate the hydrogen adsorption–desorption process.
Finite time stable attitude estimation of rigid bodies with unknown dynamics
Authors: Warier Rakesh R. , Sanyal Amit K. , Viswanathan Sasi Prabhakaran 
Published: April 2019

AbstractAn almost global finite time stable attitude estimation scheme for a rigid body that does not require the knowledge of the dynamics or the probability distribution of the sensor noise is presented. The attitude of the rigid body is estimated from measurements of at least two linearly independent known vectors and the angular velocity in the body‐fixed frame. The estimation scheme is shown to be almost globally finite time stable using a Lyapunov analysis in the absence of measurement errors. A generalized Wahba's cost function, designed to be a Morse function on SO(3), is used to derive the nonlinear estimation scheme and show its stability. The proposed scheme is discretized as a geometric variational integrator for digital implementation. The stability and convergence of the estimation scheme are shown analytically, and validated through numerical simulations.
New methods to realize the cluster consensus for multi‐agent networks
Authors: Guo Xing , Liang Jinling , Fardoun Habib M. 
Published: April 2019

AbstractThis paper investigates the cluster consensus problem for multi‐agent networks via a new method. Firstly, a distributed cluster consensus protocol is proposed by constructing a new Laplacian matrix, which is not required to be row‐zero‐sum. It is shown that the cluster consensus of directed multi‐agent networks can be achieved under the presented protocol, and the final cluster consensus values of the considered system are also given in this paper, which only depend on the initial states of all agents. Next, a pinning cluster consensus law is provided to force the dynamics of the agents to the desired trajectory. Furthermore, it is found that the cluster consensus of directed networks can be reached even in presence of arbitrary finite communication delays. Finally, effectiveness of the obtained results is demonstrated by numerical examples.
Organizational democracy and employee outcomes: The mediating role of organizational justice
Authors: Ahmed Kaleem , Adeel Ahmad , Ali Rizwan , Rehman Ramiz Ur 
Published: April 2019

AbstractIn the last two decades, scholars have proposed that implementing democratic practices and ideas in organizations results in significant improvements in employees' attitude and behavior. Using two widely advocated and debated dimensions of organizational democracy (empowerment and communication), the present study provides empirical evidence of this mentioned relationship between organizational democracy and employee outcomes (commitment, citizenship behavior, and turnover intentions) under mediating role of organizational justice. Based on the data of 262 employees working in fan manufacturing companies, structural equation modeling was employed to estimate the results. Results suggest that bringing democratization at workplace enhance employee commitment and citizenship behavior and reduce intentions to leave the organization. Furthermore, the study also supports organizational justice as a mediator, suggesting that the relationship between organizational democracy and employee outcomes becomes more strengthened once justice is introduced. The study provides empirical evidence to ideas and prepositions of many organizational democracy researchers working for decades.
Mortality of lung cancer as a second primary malignancy: A population‐based cohort study
Authors: Deng Lei , Harðardottír Hrönn , Song Huan , Xiao Zhengrui , Jiang Changchuan , Wang Qian , Valdimarsdóttir Unnur , Cheng Haiying , Loo Billy W. , Lu Donghao 
Published: April 2019

AbstractLung cancer as a second primary malignancy (lung‐2) is increasingly common, but its prognosis is poorly understood. This study aims to examine the overall and cancer‐specific survival of patients diagnosed with lung‐2 compared to lung‐1. Primary lung cancer patients diagnosed from 1988 to 2014 in the Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER) program were included. Lung‐2 was identified in patients with a previous diagnosis of nonlung primary malignancy in SEER. Hazard ratios (HRs) of overall and lung cancer‐specific mortality were estimated among patients with lung‐2 compared to lung‐1, adjusting for age and calendar period at diagnosis, sex, race, socioeconomic status, tumor stage, histology, tumor grade, and treatment. A total of 679 541 and 85 758 patients were identified as lung‐1 and lung‐2, respectively. Compared to lung‐1, patients with lung‐2 were more likely to be diagnosed at localized stage, with smaller primary tumor, and treated with surgery. Lung‐2 patients were at lower risk of lung cancer‐specific mortality in the first 5 years (HR, 0.77; 95% CI, 0.76‐0.78 at <1 year; HR, 0.87; 95% CI, 0.86‐0.89 from 1 to <5 years) but at higher risk thereafter (HR, 1.32; 95% CI, 1.27‐1.37 from 5 to 10 years), independent of tumor characteristics and cancer treatment. Similar pattern was found for overall mortality, although the survival benefit was restricted to the first year after diagnosis. Patients diagnosed with lung‐2 face a favorable lung cancer‐specific survival within the early period after diagnosis. A conservative approach to manage lung‐2 solely based on malignancy history is not supported.
Diffuse alveolar hemorrhage caused by IgA deposition associated with multiple myeloma
Authors: Furube Atsuki , Kagiyama Naho , Ishiguro Takashi , Takaku Yotaro , Kurashima Kazuyoshi , Shimizu Yoshihiko , Takayanagi Noboru 
Published: April 2019

Key Clinical MessageWe report a man with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage caused by multiple myeloma who was diagnosed with the aid of bronchoalveolar lavage and transbronchial lung biopsy. Multiple myeloma should be considered as an important differential diagnosis in patients with diffuse alveolar hemorrhage, and bronchoscopy may help to differentiate the cause.
Efficient Stereoselective Synthesis of Structurally Diverse γ‐ and δ‐Lactones Using an Engineered Carbonyl Reductase
Authors: Chen Meng , Zhang Xiao‐Yan , Xing Chen‐Guang , Zhang Chao , Zheng Yu‐Cong , Pan Jiang , Xu Jian‐He , Bai Yun‐Peng 
Published: April 2019

AbstractStructurally diverse γ‐ and δ‐lactones were efficiently synthesized stereoselectively using an engineered carbonyl reductase from Serratia marcescens (SmCRV4). SmCRV4 exhibited improved activity (up to 500‐fold) and thermostability toward 14 γ‐/δ‐keto acids and esters, compared with the wild‐type enzyme, with 110‐fold enhancement in catalytic efficiency (kcat/Km) toward methyl 4‐oxodecanoate. The preparative synthesis of alkyl and aromatic γ‐ and δ‐lactones with 95 %–>99 % ee and 78 %–90 % yields was demonstrated. The highest space‐time yield, 1175 g L−1 d−1, was achieved for (R)‐γ‐decalactone.
Coordination‐Assembled Lanthanide‐Organic Ln3L3 Sandwiches or Ln4L4 Tetrahedron: Structural Transformation and Luminescence Modulation
Authors: Hu Shao‐Jun , Guo Xiao‐Qing , Zhou Li‐Peng , Cai Li‐Xuan , Sun Qing‐Fu 
Published: April 2019

Summary of main observation and conclusionPhoto‐functional supramolecular lanthanides assemblies have shown great potential in the materials and biomedical fields. Two new tri(tridentate) ligands (L3 and L4) highlighting small variation of the connection position to the central tridentate linkers have been designed, which leads to the emergent formation of either Ln3L3‐type sandwich structures or Ln4L4‐type tetrahedral cages. Moreover, nonlinear enhancement of lanthanide luminescence based on the modulation of inter‐ligand charge‐transfer states has been revealed on the mix‐ligand Ln3L3 sandwiches. Our results provide important guidance for structure‐design and photoluminescence optimization of supramolecular lanthanide‐organic assemblies.
Motion data acquisition method for motion analysis in golf
Authors: Hwang Syehyun , Ko Kyeong‐Ri , Pan Sung Bum 
Published: April 2019

SummaryAs golf becomes more popular, interest in the analysis and correction of golf swing postures increases. Thus, various methods for analyzing the golf swing have been studied. Methods have recently been extended to 3D analysis systems, using motion capture technology beyond 2D analysis using cameras. The inertial sensor is one of the sensors used in 3D analysis. It is mainly used in the motion capture system, because it is cheap and has negligible space limitations. However, the motion capture system using the inertial sensor has some disadvantages in that it cannot identify body characteristics, such as joint length or the subject's initial direction, which are required to accurately analyze the swing data of the subject in golf, where the initial posture is important. This study proposes a system that obtains the same motion as the actual one by acquiring information on the motion of the subject using 15 inertial sensors and using information on the actual joint length and initial direction of the subject extracted from a depth camera. Experimental results show that the measurement error of information on the joint length and the foot stance of subjects extracted through the depth camera ranges from a minimum of 4.4% to a maximum of 6.94%. The acquired motion data from the proposed system confirms that the motion is the same as the one taken by the subject.
A high‐performance IoT solution to reduce frost damages in stone fruits
Authors: Guillén‐Navarro Miguel A. , Martínez‐España Raquel , López Belén , Cecilia José M. 
Published: April 2019

SummaryAgriculture is one of the key sectors where technology is opening new opportunities to break up the market. The Internet of Things (IoT) could reduce the production costs and increase the product quality by providing intelligence services via IoT analytics. However, the hard weather conditions and the lack of connectivity in this field limit the successful deployment of such services as they require both, ie, fully connected infrastructures and highly computational resources. Edge computing has emerged as a solution to bring computing power in close proximity to the sensors, providing energy savings, highly responsive web services, and the ability to mask transient cloud outages. In this paper, we propose an IoT monitoring system to activate anti‐frost techniques to avoid crop loss, by defining two intelligent services to detect outliers caused by the sensor errors. The former is a nearest neighbor technique and the latter is the k‐means algorithm, which provides better quality results but it increases the computational cost. Cloud versus edge computing approaches are analyzed by targeting two different low‐power GPUs. Our experimental results show that cloud‐based approaches provides highest performance in general but edge computing is a compelling alternative to mask transient cloud outages and provide highly responsive data analytic services in technologically hostile environments.
Socially responsible investment: An analysis of the structure of preferences of savers
Authors: Chamorro‐Mera Antonio , Palacios‐González María Manuela 
Published: April 2019

AbstractEthical and charity financial products can be considered as a tool that drives the corporate social responsibility of the financial institutions and, indirectly, that of the companies that try to capture financial resources through them. The objective of this study is to identify the structure of preferences of savers to identify the relative importance of those attributes linked to socially responsible investment. The results allow for an estimation of the market potential of a socially responsible savings deposit and ethical banking.A survey was conducted on 415 Spanish savers, and the analysis has been carried out using conjoint analysis technique.Taking into account the characteristics of their preferences, four groups of savers have been identified: “potential socially responsible savers,” “charitable savers,” “savers focused on financial return,” and “conventional savers based on availability.” Some socio‐demographic variables are relevant when describing segments of savers: age, educational level, and income level.
Lead‐Free Cs3Bi2Br9 Perovskite as Photocatalyst for Ring‐Opening Reactions of Epoxides
Authors: Dai Yitao , Tüysüz Harun 
Published: April 2019

AbstractHerein, an innovative approach was developed by using stable, lead‐free halide perovskite for solar‐driven organic synthesis. The ring‐opening reaction of epoxides was chosen as a model system for the synthesis of value‐added β‐alkoxy alcohols, which require energy‐intensive process conditions and corrosive, strong acids for conventional synthesis. The developed concept included the in situ preparation of Cs3Bi2Br9 and its simultaneous application as photocatalyst for epoxide alcoholysis under visible‐light irradiation in air at 293 K, with exceptional high activity and selectivity ≥86 % for β‐alkoxy alcohols and thia‐compounds. The Cs3Bi2Br9 photocatalyst exhibited good stability and recyclability. In contrast, the lead‐based perovskite showed a conversion rate of only 1 %. The origin of the unexpected catalytic behavior was attributed to the combination of the photocatalytic process and the presence of suitable Lewis‐acidic centers on the surface of the bismuth halide perovskite photocatalyst.
Genetic risk, body mass index, and weight control behaviors: Unlocking the triad
Authors: Nagata Jason M. , Braudt David B. , Domingue Benjamin W. , Bibbins‐Domingo Kirsten , Garber Andrea K. , Griffiths Scott , Murray Stuart B. 
Published: April 2019

AbstractBackgroundThe relationship between genetic risk for body mass index (BMI) and weight control behaviors remains unknown. The objectives of this study were to determine the association between genetic risk for BMI and weight control behaviors in young adults, and to examine actual measured BMI as a potential mediator variable.MethodWe analyzed data from three data collection waves of the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health. The BMI polygenic score (PGS) was based on published genome‐wide association studies for BMI. BMI was collected at 11–18 years and 18–26 years. Weight control behaviors included self‐reported: (a) weight loss behaviors (dieting, vomiting, fasting/skipping meals, diet pills, laxatives, or diuretic use to lose weight) and (b) weight gain behaviors (eating more or different foods than normal, taking supplements to gain weight).ResultsAmong 4,397 participants, the BMI PGS was associated with higher odds of weight loss behaviors in females (OR 1.24, 95% CI 1.14–1.35) and males (OR 1.43, 95% CI 1.26–1.62), and this association was mediated by BMI (indirect effect 0.04, 95% CI 0.03–0.05 in females and 0.03, 95% CI 0.03–0.04 in males). The BMI PGS was associated with lower odds of weight gain behaviors in females and males, which was also mediated by actual BMI.ConclusionsThe BMI PGS was associated with weight loss behaviors in both males and females, and this association was mediated by actual measured BMI. Clinical interventions to prevent high BMI, particularly for individuals with genetic risk, may also prevent subsequent development of potentially unhealthy weight loss behaviors.