bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Competition for microsites during recruitment in semiarid annual plant communities
Authors: Boeken Bertrand R. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractThe concept of microsites for recruitment is central to plant ecology, but it is unclear whether these sites are abstract constructs or real entities. I hypothesize that, in generally microsite‐limited communities, microsites comprise a limiting physical resource for which different species compete. I tested this hypothesis on winter‐annual communities on biocrust in the semiarid Northern Negev of Israel, in which most species are microsite‐limited, while the dominant grass (Stipa capensis) has overcome this limitation by efficient microsite acquisition and a lack of secondary seed dormancy. I tested whether the dominant suppresses the subordinate species, collectively, during recruitment, rather than during growth. To this end, I conducted a field experiment with three blocks of six plots (6 m × 6 m) with two treatments – mowing in spring 2006 (intershrub, intershrub + shrub patches, and none) and shrub‐patch removal (0% or 50% of the patches). I collected data from four seed traps per plot before spring 2007 and from five plant samples per plot at the end of spring. Mowing significantly reduced both seed and plant density of the dominant species, reflecting seed‐limited recruitment, and increased subordinate plant density by competitive release. Multiple regressions of per‐plant and per‐gram effects and responses showed that competition was a direct effect of the dominant's density. Total and per‐group biomass was proportional to density, implying density‐independent per capita growth. Subordinate species number also increased with their density, due to the sample‐size effect. These findings indicate that the seed‐limited dominant diffusely suppresses the subordinates during recruitment, supporting the microsite competition hypothesis. The shift from growth resources to microsites extends the role of inter‐specific competition along productivity and disturbance gradients, and highlights the asymmetric relationship between the two kinds of competition, as microsite competition is only observable if initial abundances are not overshadowed by density‐dependent growth and mortality. The findings also demonstrate that (1) lacking secondary seed dormancy is an evolutionarily stable strategy in dryland annuals, alongside seed dormancy in microsite‐limited species, and (2) biomass removal (e.g., by herbivory) increases small‐scale biodiversity, enhancing the sustainability of dryland grazing, but without compensatory growth.
A Supramolecular Gel Based on 12‐Hydroxystearic Acid/Virgin Coconut Oil for Injectable Drug Delivery
Authors: Tantishaiyakul Vimon , Ouiyangkul Passaporn , Wajasat Makawan , Pawisat Tasana , Hirun Namon , Sangfai Tanatchaporn 
Published: August 2018

A supramolecular organogel based on 3 wt% of 12‐hydroxystearic acid (HSA) and virgin coconut oil (oil) in the presence of a gel inhibitor, 4 wt% ethanol (EtOH), is developed and investigated for injectable implant delivery. Gel formation is observed by the test tube tilting method. The characteristic properties of the sol‐gel system are determined using rheological, thermal, and turbidity analyses. The in vitro releases of piroxicam (PX) and diclofenac acid (DFA), the models for hydrophilic and lipophilic drugs, respectively, are performed. Characterization of the blends from the three methods are comparable and indicate that the systems of HSA/oil, PX/HSA/oil, and DFA/HSA/oil gel at about 36–39 °C upon cooling and the gel turns to a sol at a temperature higher than 50 °C upon heating at a rate of 2 °C min−1. Isothermal measurements reveals that HSA/EtOH/oil, PX/HSA/EtOH/oil, and DFA/HSA/EtOH/oil remain as a sol for about 18 min at room temperature (25 °C). Both PX and DFA show a sustained release from HSA/oil and HSA/EtOH/oil.Practical Applications: The presence of ethanol which is a hydrophilic molecule can disrupt the interaction between HSA molecules and suppress gel formation at the low temperature that the system normally forms gel. This HSA/EtOH/oil system might be injectable at room temperature and become gels at the site of injection when EtOH is diffused to other tissues in the body. This system is beneficial for use as an injectable implant system for a sustained delivery of both hydrophilic and hydrophobic drugs.12‐hydroxystearic acid (HSA) and virgin coconut oil (oil) can form gels at body and lower temperatures e.g., room temperatures. The sol‐gel system is characterized using rheological, thermal, and turbidity methods. Ethanol inhibits gel formation at room temperature to facilitate injection. The mixture of HSA, ethanol, and oil might be used as an injectable implantation. Two hydrophobic (diclofenac) and hydrophilic (piroxicam) model drugs show sustained releases from HSA/oil and HSA/ethanol/oil.
Concentration of Gamma‐Linolenic and Stearidonic Acids as Free Fatty Acids and Ethyl Esters from Viper's Bugloss Seed Oil by Urea Complexation
Authors: Rincón‐Cervera Miguel Ángel , Galleguillos‐Fernández Raúl , González‐Barriga Valeria , Valenzuela Rodrigo , Valenzuela Alfonso 
Published: August 2018

In this work, gamma‐linolenic acid (GLA) and stearidonic acid (SDA) are successfully concentrated as free fatty acids (FFA) and ethyl esters (EE) using the urea complexation method at room temperature and two sources of these fatty acids: commercial Echium plantagineum seed oil as well as extracted oil from this species which is grown in Chile. Concentration factors (% fatty acid in the concentrate/% fatty acid in the original oil) for both fatty acids are found to be between 2.35 and 2.65, although they are more efficiently concentrated as FFA than as EE using both commercial and extracted oils. This is the first work which reports the use of Echium plantagineum seed oil from Chilean origin to produce GLA and SDA concentrates as FFA and EE, with similar results that those obtained with commercial Echium oil.Practical Applications: The interest for GLA and SDA as functional ingredients is increasing in the last few years because of their beneficial effects for human health and their plant origin, as they are mainly provided by seed oils from some Boraginaceae species. In this work, GLA and SDA are selectively concentrated from the rest of fatty acids contained in Echium seed oil by the urea method at room temperature, which is a cheap, safe, and easily scalable process. These concentrates, especially as FFA because of their nutritional characteristics versus EE, may become high added‐value ingredients to be incorporated to functional oils or even substrates for the enzymatic synthesis of structured lipids providing GLA and SDA with a higher bioefficiency than currently available oils.Operational scheme developed in this work which consists of: 1) derivatization of Echium plantagineum oil from two origins (extracted from Chilean seeds and commercial oil) to free fatty acids (FFA) and ethyl esters (EE) and 2) processing of FFA and EE by urea at room temperature to concentrate GLA and SDA.
European Pain Federation (EFIC) position paper on appropriate use of cannabis‐based medicines and medical cannabis for chronic pain management
Authors: Häuser Winfried , Finn David P. , Kalso Eija , Krcevski‐Skvarc Nevenka , Kress Hans‐Georg , Morlion Bart , Perrot Serge , Schäfer Michael , Wells Chris , Brill Silviu 
Published: August 2018

AbstractCannabis‐based medicines are being approved for pain management in an increasing number of European countries. There are uncertainties and controversies on the role and appropriate use of cannabis‐based medicines for the management of chronic pain. EFIC convened a European group of experts, drawn from a diverse range of basic science and relevant clinical disciplines, to prepare a position paper to empower and inform specialist and nonspecialist prescribers on appropriate use of cannabis‐based medicines for chronic pain. The expert panel reviewed the available literature and harnessed the clinical experience to produce these series of recommendations. Therapy with cannabis‐based medicines should only be considered by experienced clinicians as part of a multidisciplinary treatment and preferably as adjunctive medication if guideline‐recommended first‐ and second‐line therapies have not provided sufficient efficacy or tolerability. The quantity and quality of evidence are such that cannabis‐based medicines may be reasonably considered for chronic neuropathic pain. For all other chronic pain conditions (cancer, non‐neuropathic noncancer pain), the use of cannabis‐based medicines should be regarded as an individual therapeutic trial. Realistic goals of therapy have to be defined. All patients must be kept under close clinical surveillance. As with any other medical therapy, if the treatment fails to reach the predefined goals and/or the patient is additionally burdened by an unacceptable level of adverse effects and/or there are signs of abuse and misuse of the drug by the patient, therapy with cannabis‐based medicines should be terminated.SignificanceThis position paper provides expert recommendations for nonspecialist and specialist healthcare professionals in Europe, on the importance and the appropriate use of cannabis‐based medicines as part of a multidisciplinary approach to pain management, in properly selected and supervised patients.
A carbon nanoparticles‐based solid‐phase purification method facilitating sensitive MALDI–MS analysis of permethylated N‐glycans
Authors: Zhong Jieqiang , Banazadeh Alireza , Peng Wenjing , Mechref Yehia 
Published: August 2018

AbstractIn recent decades, MALDI–MS has been extensively used for the analysis of glycans. However, native glycans usually have low ionization efficiency in MS, which hinders the direct analysis. Permethylation of glycans is a solution for this issue, but a significant amount of salt is introduced during this process, which can further suppress the MS signals. Thus, it is necessary to purify the glycans prior to MALDI–MS analysis. In this study, we developed a carbon nanoparticles‐based solid‐phase purification method to enable direct MALDI–MS analysis of permethylated glycans. Two carbon nanomaterials, carbon nanoparticles (CNPs) and graphene nanosheets (GNs), and two conventional carbon materials, activated charcoal and porous graphitic carbon (PGC), were investigated as sorbents to purify permethylated N‐glycans derived from ribonuclease B and fetuin. The results confirmed the superior performance of CNPs over the other carbon materials. Additionally, our method was also employed to purify glycans released from human sera in different esophageal disease stages. The obtained data confirmed 16 and 18 structures in adenocarcinoma and Barret's sera with significantly different relative intensities versus disease‐free sera. Comparing the performance of CNPs‐based solid‐phase purification method employed in this study to online purification suggested more than 97% recovery rate. The results of this study demonstrate that CNPs have the potential to be a better alternative to existing solid‐phase purification sorbents.
A digest of capillary electrophoretic methods applied to lipid analyzes
Authors: Poinsot Véréna , Ta Hai Yen , Meang Varravaddheay Ong , Perquis Lucie , Gavard Pierre , Pipy Bernard , Couderc François 
Published: August 2018

AbstractLipids are naturally occurring organic compounds that can be classified into a number of types based on their solubility in nonpolar organic solvents, and are generally insoluble in water. The great structural variety of these various types of lipids has led them to be components of many different biological substances such as oils, waxes, cellular membranes, tissues and biological fluids. The use of capillary electrophoresis (CE) for the study of lipids during the past 30 years has been relatively rare when compared to its use for other classes of biomolecules, primarily due to their insolubility in water. However, a number of interesting studies have been conducted, and as part of this review, we will present the different approaches that were used, which mainly consist of micellar kinetic chromatography and non‐aqueous CE. The main advantages of the use of these techniques compared to GC is the very simple sample preparation that is required and, compared to LC, the very robust and quick separations that can be obtained. In this review, we present the various methods that have been reported in the literature that have been used for the study of fatty acids, phospholipids, glycerides, eicosanoids and sterols, with the inclusion of various tables presenting descriptions of the CE methods used as well as the methods of detection, including UV absorbance, fluorescence, mass spectrometry, and conductivity. This review aims to demonstrate that CE can be easily used for the analysis of lipids.
Caloric Effects in Ferroic Materials: New Concepts for Cooling
Authors: Fähler Sebastian 
Published: August 2018

AbstractRefrigeration is one of the primary uses for electrical energy and an important contributor to worldwide CO2 emissions. Both of these issues can be mitigated if caloric effects in solid materials are fully utilized. In particular, materials with ferroic phase transitions, which give rise to magneto‐, electro‐, and elasto‐caloric effects, are promising candidates. Because these refrigerants are in the solid state, the corresponding cooling technology also eliminates the need for halo‐carbon refrigerants with high global warming potential. This Special Issue gives an overview on recent breakthroughs in the research on magnetocaloric, elastocaloric, and electrocaloric materials and their implementation in more efficient cooling devices, as obtained within the German Priority Program Ferroic Cooling (SPP 1599). As a brief introduction to the in‐depth Reviews and Full Papers included in the Special Issue, a ferroic cooling cycle is sketched and the influences of magnetic, electric, and stress fields on ferroic materials are summarized in this Editorial.
Operational Stability of a LOHC‐Based Hot Pressure Swing Reactor for Hydrogen Storage
Authors: Jorschick H. , Dürr S. , Preuster P. , Bösmann A. , Wasserscheid P. 
Published: August 2018

AbstractApart from hydrogen logistics, stationary hydrogen storage applications using Liquid Organic Hydrogen Carrier (LOHC) systems are also of significant interest. In contrast to the traditional use of separate hydrogenation and dehydrogenation reactors, our so‐called oneReactor technology offers the advantages of a simpler storage unit layout and high dynamics in switching from hydrogen charging to hydrogen release. Here we report repeated hydrogenation and dehydrogenation cycles with one batch of liquid carrier for LOHC stability tests under defined hydrogenation and dehydrogenation conditions. We demonstrate up to 13 hydrogenation/dehydrogenation cycles over a total of 405 h of operation including two long dehydrogenation sequences over weekends. In general, longer dehydrogenation runs, i. e. exposure of the LOHC to catalyst at low hydrogen pressure and elevated temperatures (>280 °C), showed negative effects on both activity of the subsequent cycles and by‐product formation. Concerning catalyst activity and hydrogen productivity, stable productivity was achieved (within 3 to 9 cycles) under all conditions tested. Longer hydrogenation runs led to significantly higher stability of the reaction system.
Nitrogen‐Decorated Porous Carbon Supported AgPd Nanoparticles for Boosting Hydrogen Generation from Formic Acid
Authors: Zhang Xiaoyu , Shang Ningzhao , Shang Honglin , Du Tianxing , Zhou Xin , Feng Cheng , Gao Shutao , Wang Chun , Wang Zhi 
Published: August 2018

AbstractFormic acid (FA) decomposition to yield molecular H2 is a promising approach in hydrogen economy. Design of selective, efficient catalysts for dehydrogenation of formic acid remains a challenging topic. Here, nitrogen‐doped porous carbon (NPC) nanosheets were fabricated with glucose as carbon source and g‐C3N4 as both the nitrogen source and self‐sacrificial template. Highly dispersed AgPd nanoparticles were supported on NPC successfully by a simple liquid impregnation approach. The optimized catalyst Ag1Pd9@NPC exhibits high catalytic activity (total turnover frequency up to 3000 h−1) and 100 % hydrogen selectivity for the dehydrogenation reaction of FA at 50 °C. Our study demonstrated that the synergistic effects between the nitrogen‐doped carbon nanosheets support and AgPd nanoparticles play a pivotal role for the efficient catalytic dehydrogenation of formic acid.
Cellular antiseizure mechanisms of everolimus in pediatric tuberous sclerosis complex, cortical dysplasia, and non–mTOR‐mediated etiologies
Authors: Cepeda Carlos , Levinson Simon , Yazon Vannah‐Wila , Barry Joshua , Mathern Gary W. , Fallah Aria , Vinters Harry V. , Levine Michael S. , Wu Joyce Y. 
Published: August 2018

SummaryThe present study was designed to examine the potential cellular antiseizure mechanisms of everolimus, a mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) pathway blocker, in pediatric epilepsy cases. Cortical tissue samples obtained from pediatric patients (n = 11, ages 0.67–6.75 years) undergoing surgical resections for the treatment of their pharmacoresistant epilepsy were examined electrophysiologically in ex vivo slices. The cohort included mTOR‐mediated pathologies (tuberous sclerosis complex [TSC] and severe cortical dysplasia [CD]) as well as non–mTOR‐mediated pathologies (tumor and perinatal infarct). Bath application of everolimus (2 μm) had practically no effect on spontaneous inhibitory postsynaptic activity. In contrast, long‐term application of everolimus reduced spontaneous excitatory postsynaptic activity, burst discharges induced by blockade of γ‐aminobutyric acid A (GABAA) receptors, and epileptiform activity generated by 4‐aminopyridine, a K+ channel blocker. The antiseizure effects were more pronounced in TSC and CD cases, whereas in non–mTOR‐mediated pathologies, the effects were subtle at best. These results support further clinical trials of everolimus in mTOR pathway–mediated pathologies and emphasize that the effects require sustained exposure over time.
Optimal design and seismic performance of tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI) for structures with nonlinear base isolation systems
Authors: De Domenico Dario , Ricciardi Giuseppe 
Published: August 2018

SummaryThe tuned mass damper inerter (TMDI) couples the classical tuned mass damper (TMD) with an inerter, a mechanical device whose generated force is proportional to the relative acceleration between its terminals, thus providing beneficial mass‐amplification effects. This paper deals with a dynamic layout in which the TMDI is installed below the isolation floor of base‐isolated structures in order to enhance the earthquake resilience and reduce the displacement demand. Unlike most of the literature studies that assumed a linearized behavior of the isolators, the aim of this paper is to investigate the effectiveness of the TMDI while accounting for the nonlinearity of the isolators. Two nonlinear constitutive behaviors are considered, a Coulomb friction model and a Bouc‐Wen hysteretic model, representative of friction pendulum and of lead‐rubber‐bearing isolators, respectively. Optimal design is based on the stochastic dynamic analysis of the system, by modeling the base acceleration as a Kanai‐Tajimi filtered stationary random process and resorting to the stochastic linearization technique to handle the nonlinear terms. Different tuning criteria based on displacement, acceleration, and energy‐based performance indices are defined, and their implications in a design process are discussed. It is proven that the improved robustness of the TMDI reduces its performance sensitivity to the tuning frequency and to the earthquake frequency content, which are well‐known shortcomings of TMD‐like systems. This important feature makes the TMDI particularly suitable for nonlinear base‐isolated structures that are affected by unavoidable uncertainties in the isolators' properties and that may experience changes of isolators effective stiffness depending on the excitation level.
Landslide shape, ellipticity and length‐to‐width ratios
Authors: Taylor Faith E. , Malamud Bruce D. , Witt Annette , Guzzetti Fausto 
Published: August 2018

AbstractThis paper presents a new methodology to systematically quantify the shape of landslides by their ellipticity (eL) and length‐to‐width ratio (ΛL), along with variability in these measures over different geomorphic settings. Two large substantially complete triggered‐event landslide inventories (source area and runout) are used: (i) 11 111 earthquake‐triggered landslides (1994 Northridge, USA); and (ii) 9594 rainfall‐triggered landslides (1998, Guatemala). Three methods are trialled to abstract landslide shapes to ellipses. The best method fits a convex hull to each landslide shape, approximates an ellipse with the equivalent convex hull area and perimeter, and scales this ellipse to match the original landslide area. An ellipticity index (eL) is used based on the intersection of the original landslide shape and the elliptical approximation. We consider an ellipse a reasonable approximation of landslide shape if eL ≥ 0.5 (>80% of landslides in each of the two landslide inventories). Landslides with eL < 0.5 reflect processes such as coalescence. We calculate for each landslide an ellipse length‐to‐width ratio (ΛE), finding 1.2 ≤ ΛE ≤ 15.1. The statistical distributions of ΛE are examined for ten categories of landslide area (AL). An inverse‐Gamma probability density function is found to be a good statistical model for landslide ΛE, with model parameters dependent on landslide area category. As landslide area AL increases, ΛE tends to decrease for the Northridge (earthquake‐triggered) inventory and increase for Guatemala (rainfall‐triggered). In three additional (rainfall‐triggered) landslide inventories, ΛE trends are similar to Guatemala. Our findings show that (i) an ellipse is a reasonable model for >80% of landslide shapes across different geomorphic settings, (ii) those landslides significantly deviating from an ellipse can be related to landscape processes, (iii) the length‐to‐width ratios of ellipses are non‐normally distributed, with implications for modelling landslide hazard and risk. Supporting information includes code so that the new methodology may be applied more widely. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.