bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Defining reference intervals for a serum growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15) assay in a Caucasian population and its potential utility in diabetic kidney disease (DKD)
Authors: Hamon Siobhan M. , Griffin Tomás P. , Islam Md Nahidul , Wall Deirdre , Griffin Matthew D. , O’Shea Paula M. 
Published: September 2018

Abstract

Background:
Growth differentiation factor-15 (GDF-15), a stress responsive cytokine, is a promising biomarker of renal functional decline in diabetic kidney disease (DKD). This study aimed primarily to establish normative data and secondarily to evaluate the potential utility of GDF-15 in DKD using Roche Diagnostics electrochemiluminescence immunoassay (ECLIA) in an Irish Caucasian population.

Methods:
Following informed consent, 188 healthy volunteers and 128 participants with diabetes (72 with and 56 without DKD) were recruited to a cross-sectional study. Baseline demographics, anthropometric measurements and laboratory measurements were recorded. Blood for GDF-15 measurement was collected into plain specimen tubes kept at room temperature and processed (centrifugation, separation of serum, freezing at −80 °C) within 1 h of phlebotomy pending batch analyses. Reference intervals were determined using the 2.5th and 97.5th percentiles for serum GDF-15 concentration.

Results:
Of 188 healthy participants, 63 failed to meet study inclusion criteria. The reference interval for serum GDF-15 was 399 ng/L (90% confidence interval [CI]: 399–399) – 1335 ng/L (90% CI: 1152–1445). Receiver operator characteristics (ROC) curve analysis for DKD determined the area under the ROC curve to be 0.931 (95% CI: 0.893–0.959; p<0.001). The optimum GDF-15 cutoff for predicting DKD was >1136 ng/L providing a diagnostic sensitivity and specificity of 94.4% and 79%, respectively, and positive likelihood ratio of 4.5:1 (95% CI: 3.4–6.0).

Conclusions:
The reference interval for serum GDF-15 in a healthy Irish Caucasian population using Roche Diagnostics ECLIA was established and a preliminary determination of the potential of GDF-15 as a screening test for DKD was made. Further prospective validation with a larger DKD cohort will be required before the cutoff presented here is recommended for clinical use.
A patient focused relationship for specialists in laboratory medicine
Authors: Watson Ian D. 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
Technological change is driving individualized healthcare delivery including laboratory medicine. Ensuring patients gain from their empowerment it is essential that they access data that enables them to utilize reliable information. The potential difficulties of comprehension, information retention and imperfect modes of communication can significantly impair utilization of information by patients. Support for understanding and decision-making needs to be clinically competent and integrated within the healthcare team. Specialists in laboratory medicine are well placed to undertake such a role, the issues around this are explored and proposals for better direct engagement with patients made.
Simulation of Carbon Isotope Excursion Events at the Permian-Triassic Boundary Based on GEOCARB
Authors: Zhong Y. J. , Huang K. K. , Lan Y. F. , Chen A. Q. 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
The biggest Phanerozoic mass extinctionoccurred at the Permian-Triassic boundary and resulted in the loss of about 95% or more of all marine species. For quite some time, many kinds of abnormal environmental events were adopted to explain the abnormal reduction of carbon isotope at the Permian-Triassic boundary, however there still has not been a unified opinion. In this paper, based on the carbon cycle balance model of the earth under a long-period scale, the contributions of possible cataclysm events at the Permian-Triassic boundary to the carbon isotope records in carbonates were quantitatively simulated. The results proved that a single event, such as volcanism, terrestrial ecosystem collapse or another factor, was not strong enough to lead to the negative bias of carbon isotope at the Permian-Triassic boundary. Even though the release of methane hydrate can result in a comparably large negative excursion of inorganic carbon, this explanation becomes unsuitable when both the shifting Permian-Triassic boundary and the fluctuation record of other inorganic carbon isotopes in the early Triassic as a whole are considered. Therefore, it is suggested that the dynamic equilibrium between inorganic carbon reserves and organic carbon reserves was possibly disturbed by a superimposed effect of multiple events.
Benefits of computed tomography in reducing mortality in emergency medicine
Authors: Imai Shinya , Akahane Manabu , Konishi Yuto , Imamura Tomoaki 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
Performing accurate diagnosis using computed tomography (CT) in emergency medicine may reduce mortality rates in various diseases. In this observational, correlational and cross-sectional study, we conducted multiple regression analyses to investigate the relationship between CT utilization rates and mortality. In addition, we estimated the annual net profits from CT to show the profitability of introducing a CT system in each Japanese prefecture.
We conducted a multiple regression analysis to investigate correlations between CT utilization rates and mortality from each disease adjusted for the population density, number of doctors, as well as transportation time to the medical institution.
The results of multiple regression analysis showed that traffic accident mortality was related to CT utilization rate and population density. Extrinsic death such as mortality due to falling, drowning and asphyxia was related to CT utilization, indicating that CT in emergency medicine reduced mortality. Moreover, the annual net profit from multi-slice CT (MSCT) was estimated as positive.
Our study clearly demonstrates that CT utilization rates relate to a reduction in mortality from accidents, indicating that screening patients with CT in the emergency room has a beneficial effect and reduces mortality. Therefore, CT equipment has a beneficial effect in both emergency medicine and hospital management.
Hyperlocal Language Revalorization in Verona, Italy
Authors: Leone-Pizzighella Andrea 
Published: September 2018

AbstractIn Verona, Northern Italy, a music group is revalorizing a localdialetto(‘dialect’) by putting it to music. By both reviving hundred-year old songs and writing their own music and lyrics, they are widening the cultural reach that this language has and they are finding contemporary ways for people to engage with it. Unlike political groups and their related language activists in the region of Veneto, this music group does not have secessionist ideals or a pan-Veneto rallying cry behind their lyrics. Instead, they are decidedly apolitical and are focused on the hyperlocal dimension of language and musical tradition: like the Slow Food movement and the Km 0 movement, the music group Contrada Lorì makes music with local resources (such as their localdialetto) and local knowledge for a local crowd. This article considers the role ofdialettoin the band’s musical portrayal of place and personhood, and considers the language ideological underpinnings of the group’s quest to balance hyperlocal linguistic authenticity and cosmopolitan innovation through music.
Policy and pedagogical pliability: Enrichment in Võro-language revitalization in Estonia
Authors: Brown Kara D. 
Published: September 2018

AbstractThis article explores policy and pedagogical pliability as strategies for perpetuating and protecting regional languages, like Võro, in the twenty-first century. The concept of pliability, as I develop it in this article, refers to the flexibility and adaptability of policies that are free from prescriptive and strict mandates. By examining this case from Estonia, I posit that the notion of enrichment plays a significant role in shaping the pliability and durability of contemporary Estonian regional-language policy. Whether an intentional or accidental approach on the part of Võro-language supporters, an emphasis on enrichment effectively helps to position the regional-language speakers with the national majority and establish proximity to their political and cultural interests. The data for this analysis were gathered during a diachronic, qualitative yearlong, school-based ethnography of Võro-language teachers in southeastern Estonia in 2001–2002 and 2013–2014. As a result of this ethnographic analysis, I find that enrichment as an ideology carries significant implications across macro and micro levels of language planning for revitalization including contributing to the curtailment of possibilities for long-term legal recognition for the language, perpetuating a classroom emphasis on oral skills over written skills, and emphasizing the arts- and performance-based value of language learning. The article concludes with lessons learned from the pliability of policy and pedagogy for language revitalization efforts elsewhere in Europe and beyond.
Education and Participation in Political Violence: A Look into Non-Linear Associational Patterns
Authors: Saeed Luqman 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
This paper presents empirical evidence for nonlinear relationship between education attainment and participation in political violence. The results are based on unweighted and weighted Probit estimations using a consolidated dataset of 200 militants and representative sample of over 13,000 Pakistanis. The results reveal that likelihood of participation in political violence increases with education attainment. However, the response of education attainment to political violence is diverse and those with education around high school are more likely to engage in political violence than any other level of education. At no level of education, the likelihood for participation in political violence is found to be negative. Hence, while political violence seems to be associated with literacy, there are noteworthy variations in the extent to which literacy affects political violence.
Simultaneous Adaptation of AHP and Fuzzy AHP to Evaluate Outsourcing Service in East and Southeast Asia
Authors: Pham Van Kien , Wong Wing-Keung , Moslehpour Massoud , Musyoki Dennis 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
To sustain a competitive advantage, nowadays more than ever, outsourcing is crucially important for international and domestic firms. However, making the right outsourcing decision is not just a simple task; rather, it is a multiple-factor decision-making issue. This article attempts to aid decision makers in solving such difficult problems. We suggest an outsourcing hierarchy model based on the concept of the analytic hierarchy process with four levels of the most concerned attributes: competitiveness, human resources, business environment, and government policies. With respect to these factors, six typical alternatives in the Southeast Asia region are selected and compared with those in China. We investigate the best outsourcing service destination among these seven typical outsourcing services. Our findings show that China is the optimal outsourcing service destination. Other Southeast Asian nations, such as Vietnam, Thailand, or the Philippines, are emerging as attractive alternative locations. We found that cost competitiveness is the most important attribute. Furthermore, the comparison between the analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and Fuzzy AHP show some significant differences but lead to similar conclusions. This study bridges the existing gap in the literature to provide decision makers an outsourcing hierarchy model based on the AHP and Fuzzy AHP approach with the most concerned factors.
Study on the Bending Performance of Composite H-Shaped Piles
Authors: Jeong Je-Pyong , Kang Dae-Hung 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
There has been a great increase in the number of structural members composed of two or more materials with different stress–strain distributions. This study investigated the bending performance of composite H-shaped piles subjected to bending moments. Load–displacement hysteresis curves were analyzed using limit state analysis, and eight specimens—six composite H-shaped piles made of reinforced concrete and H-shaped steel beams (i.e., composite H-shaped piles) and two conventional H-shaped steel piles—were tested using a loading apparatus. The test results show that the ductility capacity of the composite H-shaped pile is 138 % more than that of the conventional H-shaped steel pile.
Gamma Shielding Properties of Erbium Zinc Tellurite Glass System Using Monte Carlo Method
Authors: Tekin Huseyin Ozan , Singh Vishwanath P. , Altunsoy Elif Ebru , Karahan Mesut , Sayyed M. I. , Erguzel Turker Tekin , Serdaroglu Kasikci Emel , Konuk Muhsin 
Published: September 2018

Abstract
This study aimed to determine the gamma shielding parameters of an Erbium Zinc Tellurite Glass System. The mass attenuation coefficients of Erbium Zinc Tellurite Glass System xEr2O3:20ZnO : (80-x) TeO2 were computed using Monte Carlo simulation at photon energies 20, 30, and 40 keV and 60, 356, 662, 1,173, 1,274, and 1,332 keV. The half-value layer thickness was calculated using the mass attenuation coefficients. The obtained results were compared to standard XCOM data and found comparable. It was found that the erbium zinc tellurite glass with a higher content of erbium is superior shielding material to other glasses. Thus, the validation of a generated Monte Carlo N-Particle Transport Code System-Extended simulation setup has been provided. It can be concluded that results of the present investigation would be very useful for applications of medical diagnostic and nuclear technology.
Telomerase activity in patients with neurofibromatosis type-1
Authors: KÜPELİ Serhan , ARKAN Ayçin , İNCECİK Faruk , ALTUNBAŞAK Şakir 
Published: September 2018

Purpose: In various studies low telomerase activity have been shown to have a protective role in some types of cancer. Patients with neurofibromatosis type-1 (NF1) are at risk of developing certain types of cancer. Prognosis is generally better in patients with NF1 than those without NF1. In the present study, we aimed to measure telomerase activity in patients with NF1 and in controls.Materials and Methods: Telomerase activity was investigated in peripheral blood samples with human telomerase reverse transcriptase (hTERT) mRNA by using real time reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) method and Light Cycler 480 system.Results: hTERT expression was investigated in blood samples of 48 patients with a diagnosis of NF1 and in 37 controls. Telomerase activity was positive in 36 of 48 (75%) patients with NF1 and 23 of 37 patients (73%) without NF1. Telomerase activity was positive in 31 of 36 patients (86%) with NF1 having a benign or malignant tumor, whereas it was positive in 5 of 12 NF1 patients (41.6%) without a tumor. Conclusion: Detection of hTERT expression in patients with NF1 can be used as a useful marker for tumorigenesis. Additional studies need to be done to know whether detection of hTERT expression in low-grade tumors would help predict progression to high-grade tumors.
Review of “Good Question: Arts-based approaches to collaborative research with children and youth” edited by Michael J. Emme and Anna Kirova (2017)
Authors: McLeod Heather Skye 
Published: September 2018

In this edited volume published as an e-book, Good Question: Arts-based Approaches to Collaborative Research With Children and Youth, Michael Emme and Anna Kirova wonder whether communities of adult researchers, artists, educators, and youth working in collaborative and playful ways can co-construct inquiry practices which support young people to lead their own research investigations. The collection is composed of three parts. The first part, “Comics,” focuses on research methods designed for children and youth. The second and third parts, entitled “Collaborations” and “Theory” respectively, include chapters written by new and experienced researchers/scholars who elaborate examples of collaborative arts-based research with children and youth. The design of Emme and Kirova’s contribution to the literature is highly imaginative. In a time of burgeoning interest in arts-based research approaches, the volume has earned a key place. It will no doubt become an essential work for those interested in such innovative research with children and youth.
INFLUENCE OF NANO Al2O3 TO IMPROVE THE YIELD OF DOUBLE SLOPE SOLAR STILL
Authors: Robert Rees Alexa , Kaithari Dinesh Keloth , Mirza M. Mumtaz , Bhambare Parimal Sharad 
Published: September 2018

Purpose:The supply of pure fresh water is becoming a rising issue is many areas of the world. Clean water being a basic requirement is still unavailable to a large number of people. The fast development and growth in population and agriculture has helped to increase the need of clean water. The solar distillation is one of the most cost efficient ways to accomplish this.
Methodology:When water evaporates from the basin of the still, it leaves the various impurities behind resulting in clean palatable water. Solar stills have a comparatively low yield but can be used to provide safe water options to rural areas of the world. To increase the yield of the solar still nano Al2O3 fluid is used,which is prepared using a dispersant of Sodium Dodecyl Benzene Sulphonate (SDBS). The still is a double slope basin type solar still with black paint coating on the inside and external reflecting mirrors, to enhance the yield.
Main Findings:This project compares the efficiency and output of double slope solar still with and without the nanofluid. The single basin double slope solar still was fabricated using low cost durable materials and the 0.01 vol. % Al2O3 water based nanofluid was prepared. The results showed a positive outcome of a 15% increase in the rate of distillate collected with the use of nanofluids. The payback period was calculated to be less than 2 weeks without nanofluid and one week with the use of nanofluid.
Implications:The present study is useful for obtaining pure drinking water at remote locations in Sultanate of Oman where solar energy is abundance.
Novelty of Study: Nanofluids are used to enhance the distillation rate when compared to the conventional solar stills.
ISLAM DI AFRIKA UTARA BAGIAN BARAT (AL MURABITUN)
Authors: Ayuarini Rina Dewi 
Published: September 2018

<p>The objective of this study is to describe the formation process of al Murabitun dynasty, and also discussing on the prosperity, the decrease, and the destruction of al Murabi tun dynasty. Al Murabitun dynasty was the unique dynasty as it was built based on the spirit of religiousity. And also the existance of the dynasty has been wellknown as it had wide area covering all of Africa and Spain. At the following time, the dynasty experienced the decrease after it had been lead by the third last king, until finally it faced the destruction period. The main cause of the down of the dynasty was a movement which was known as al-Muwahhidun dynasty. The destruction the dynasty caused by its poioer which was not in line with the attitude of tolerance of the society. The exploration on the spam of the dynasty will, then, strengthen our point of view on the ups and downs side dynasties in Islam as this is meaningful resource for Islamic scholars.</p><p> </p><p>Tujuan dari penelitian ini adalah untuk menggambarkan proses pembentukan dari dinasti al Murabitun, dan juga membahas tentang kemakmuran, yang menurun, dan penghancuran dinasti al Murabi tun. Al Murabitun<br />dinasti adalah dinasti yang unik karena dibangun berdasarkan semangat agama. Dan juga keberadaan dinasti telah diketahui dengan baik karena luasnya mencakup seluruh Afrika dan Spanyol. Pada waktu berikutnya, dinasti mengalami penurunan setelah itu dipimpin oleh raja terakhir ketiga, hingga akhirnya menghadapi periode penghancuran.<br />Penyebab utama turunnya dinasti adalah sebuah gerakan yang dikenal sebagai dinasti al-Muwahhidun. Penghancuran dinasti disebabkan pelopornya yang tidak sejalan dengan sikap toleransi dari masyarakat. Eksplorasi pada spam dari dinasti akan, kemudian, memperkuat sudut pandang kita pada dinamika sisi naik dan turun di Islam karena ini adalah sumber yang berarti bagi para ilmuwan Islam.</p>
STUDY AND MODELING OF SOLVENT INFLUENCE ON ISOSALIPURPOSIDE EXTRACTION FROM HELICHRYSI ARENARII FLOWERS
Authors: Boyko N. N. , Pisarev D. I. , Zhilyakova E. T. , Novikov O. O. 
Published: September 2018

This article presents results of the study and modeling of solvent influence on isosalipurposide extraction from Helichrysi Arenarii flowers.The aimof this work is to study the influence of the solvent on isosalipurposide extraction from Helichrysi arenarii flowers and suggest a theoretical model for description of the results obtained.Materials and methods. The basic materials were: a ground plant raw material of Helichrysi arenarii flowers. water solutions of ethanol (26, 43, 59, 72, 81, 97±1% v/v.), methanol, 1-propanol, 2-propanol, acetone and ethyl acetate. The extracts were obtained from the plant raw materials / solvent at the ratio of 1:5 (wt./vol.) by maceration for 24 hours at the temperature of 24±1°С. The analysis of the extracts was carried out by reversed-phase high performance liquid chromatography and isosalipurposide reference substance.Results and discussion. A dependence of isosalipurposide concentration in ethanol-water extracts on ethanol concentration in the solution was studied. It has been found out that maximum concentration of isosalipurposide is observed in the solutions with ethanol concentration of 75±5% v/v. This range of ethanol concentrations corresponds to solvent’s dielectric constant value of 38±3 units. The regression equation of dependence between isosalipurposide concentration in the extract and dielectric constant of ethanol-water solution has been obtained. Optimal concentration of the solvent has been theoretically predicted and experimentally verified as in the case of water solutions of methanol, acetone, 1-propanol, and 2-propanol.Conclusion. It has been determined that solvent’s dielectric constant has the most significant influence on the extraction process of phytocompound from the plant raw material. A mathematical model for description of the dependence of isosalipurposide concentration on dielectric constant of ethanol-water solutions has been substantiated theoretically and tested. The optimal range of solvent’s dielectric constant to obtain maximum concentration of isosalipurposide in the extract has been found.