bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Alone in the Crowd: I Failed the ABGC Certification Exam
Authors: Colón Christine 
Published: December 2015

AbstractThe American Board of Genetic Counseling (ABGC) certification examination (often referred to as “the board exam”) has become a milestone within the field of genetic counseling. For many, it is the final standardized test taken and indicates the examinee has met “the standards of minimal competence to practice as a genetic counselor” (Bulletin2015). Although voluntary, certification is strongly encouraged, and in some employment situations, required. Although recent statistics indicate the majority of those who take the test pass, each year there are those who sit for the test unsuccessfully. Despite this fact, exam failure and tools for dealing with this experience are not often broached in the literature. This essay recalls my experiences with a failed exam attempt and the subsequent emotional turmoil. It also aims to start the conversation regarding the difficulty of coping with the “secret” shame of public, professional failure, and suggests there is room for further discussion and resource development in this area.
Pioneers of Gentrification: Transformation in Global Neighborhoods in Urban America in the Late Twentieth Century
Authors: Hwang Jackelyn 
Published: December 2015

AbstractFew studies have considered the role of immigration in the rise of gentrification in the late twentieth century. Analysis of U.S. Census and American Community Survey data over 24 years and field surveys of gentrification in low-income neighborhoods across 23 U.S. cities reveal that most gentrifying neighborhoods were “global” in the 1970s or became so over time. An early presence of Asians was positively associated with gentrification; and an early presence of Hispanics was positively associated with gentrification in neighborhoods with substantial shares of blacks and negatively associated with gentrification in cities with high Hispanic growth, where ethnic enclaves were more likely to form. Low-income, predominantly black neighborhoods and neighborhoods that became Asian and Hispanic destinations remained ungentrified despite the growth of gentrification during the late twentieth century. The findings suggest that the rise of immigration after 1965 brought pioneers to many low-income central-city neighborhoods, spurring gentrification in some neighborhoods and forming ethnic enclaves in others.
Endoscopic submucosal tunnel dissection for a large esophageal subepithelial leiomyoma to prevent postprocedural stenosis
Authors: Hsu Wen‐Hsin , Sun Meng‐Shun , Lo Hoi‐Wan , Tsai Ching‐Yang , Tsai Yu‐Jou 
Published: December 2015

SummaryA 27‐year‐old man with a huge esophageal leiomyoma, 4.5 cm in size, at the distal esophagus suffered from postprandial belching and chest discomfort. Endoscopic submucosal tunnel dissection was implemented to resect his leiomyoma. His symptoms resolved after tumor resection without any sequelae, such as luminal stricture that often occurs after large‐size esophageal lesion resection. Endoscopic submucosal tunnel dissection has been reported to be a useful method for the resection of esophageal submucosal tumors; however, such large‐size tumors are rare.
Using quantile regression to create baseline norms for neuropsychological tests
Authors: Sherwood Ben , Zhou Andrew Xiao‐Hua , Weintraub Sandra , Wang Lan 
Published: December 2015

AbstractIntroductionThe Uniform Data Set (UDS) contains neuropsychological test scores and demographic information for participants at Alzheimer's disease centers across the United States funded by the National Institute on Aging. Mean regression analysis of neuropsychological tests has been proposed to detect cognitive decline, but the approach requires stringent assumptions.MethodsWe propose using quantile regression to directly model conditional percentiles of neuropsychological test scores. An online application allows users to easily implement the proposed method.ResultsScores from 13 different neuropsychological tests were analyzed for 5413 cognitively normal participants in the UDS. Quantile and mean regression models were fit using age, gender, and years of education. Differences between the mean and quantile regression estimates were found on the individual measures.DiscussionQuantile regression provides more robust estimates of baseline percentiles for cognitively normal adults. This can then serve as standards against which to detect individual cognitive decline.
Microscopic analysis of patients with chronic diarrhea without macroscopic disease
Authors: Silva Ary Santos , dos Reis Lima Doryane Maria 
Published: December 2015

Abstract
Background Colonoscopy is part of the current diagnostic armamentarium. However, in some patients with chronic diarrhea, a colonoscopy may show normal mucosa; in these cases, serial biopsies can provide important information for the diagnosis and treatment of patients.
Aim To analyze patients with chronic diarrhea having a macroscopically normal colonoscopy, by evaluating histological changes.
Methods 30 patients with chronic diarrhea and normal colonoscopy were prospectively evaluated and submitted to serial biopsies of the terminal ileum, ascending colon and rectum.
Results The sample of 30 patients showed a ratio of 18 men (60%) and 12 women (40%). On histological types, it was found that 13 patients (43.3%) had lymphoid hyperplasia, eosinophilic inflammation in 4 (13.3%), nonspecific inflammation in 4 (13.3%), regenerative changes in 3 (10%), lymphocytic colitis in 2 (6.6%) and changes consistent with Crohn's disease in 1 (3.3%).
Conclusions One can observe that even chronic diarrhea patients, without other associated factors, benefited from colonoscopy with biopsy, because it held the etiologic diagnosis in some cases as also excluded by histopathology. It was noticed that the frequency of patients with altered biopsy and less dragged diarrheal episodes (84.2%) was large, should consider their achievement.
Can Hypernorms Be Justified? Insights From A Discourse–Ethical Perspective
Authors: Scherer Andreas Georg 
Published: December 2015

ABSTRACT:
I explore the role of hypernorms in the Integrative Social Contracts Theory (ISCT) of Thomas Donaldson and Thomas W. Dunfee, who suggested that hypernorms are a necessary condition for the rejection of cultural relativism and justification of moral norms within and across social communities. Hypernorms are, thus, a significant part of a conception of international business ethics. I highlight philosophical problems that emerge in attempts to identify and justify hypernorms. These problems have not been sufficiently addressed in the ISCT; therefore, I will discuss the discourse–ethical contributions of contemporary German philosophers toward resolving the justification problem with regards to universal norms. Discourse ethics builds on the linguistic and the pragmatic turns in philosophy and develops procedural rules for the assessment of norms. I explore variants of discourse ethics with regards to their concept of justification and discuss the implications of discourse ethical procedures for the justification of norms and actions.
From margarine to butter: predictors of changing bread spread in an 11-year population follow-up
Authors: Prättälä Ritva , Levälahti Esko , Lallukka Tea , Männistö Satu , Paalanen Laura , Raulio Susanna , Roos Eva , Suominen Sakari , Mäki-Opas Tomi 
Published: December 2015

AbstractObjectiveFinland is known for a sharp decrease in the intake of saturated fat and cardiovascular mortality. Since 2000, however, the consumption of butter-containing spreads – an important source of saturated fats – has increased. We examined social and health-related predictors of the increase among Finnish men and women.DesignAn 11-year population follow-up.SettingA representative random sample of adult Finns, invited to a health survey in 2000.SubjectsAltogether 5414 persons aged 30–64 years at baseline in 2000 were re-invited in 2011. Of men 1529 (59 %) and of women 1853 (66 %) answered the questions on bread spreads at both time points. Respondents reported the use of bread spreads by choosing one of the following alternatives: no fat, soft margarine, butter–vegetable oil mixture and butter, which were later categorized into margarine/no spread and butter/butter–vegetable oil mixture (= butter). The predictors included gender, age, marital status, education, employment status, place of residence, health behaviours, BMI and health. Multinomial regression models were fitted.ResultsOf the 2582 baseline margarine/no spread users, 24.6% shifted to butter. Only a few of the baseline sociodemographic or health-related determinants predicted the change. Finnish women were more likely to change to butter than men. Living with a spouse predicted the change among men.ConclusionsThe change from margarine to butter between 2000 and 2011 seemed not to be a matter of compliance with official nutrition recommendations. Further longitudinal studies on social, behavioural and motivational predictors of dietary changes are needed.
Endothelial protein kinase MAP4K4 promotes vascular inflammation and atherosclerosis
Authors: Roth Flach Rachel J. , Skoura Athanasia , Matevossian Anouch , Danai Laura V. , Zheng Wei , Cortes Christian , Bhattacharya Samit K. , Aouadi Myriam , Hagan Nana , Yawe Joseph C. , Vangala Pranitha , Menendez Lorena Garcia , Cooper Marcus P. , Fitzgibbons Timothy P. , Buckbinder Leonard , Czech Michael P. 
Published: December 2015

AbstractSignalling pathways that control endothelial cell (EC) permeability, leukocyte adhesion and inflammation are pivotal for atherosclerosis initiation and progression. Here we demonstrate that the Sterile-20-like mitogen-activated protein kinase kinase kinase kinase 4 (MAP4K4), which has been implicated in inflammation, is abundantly expressed in ECs and in atherosclerotic plaques from mice and humans. On the basis of endothelial-specific MAP4K4 gene silencing and gene ablation experiments in Apoe−/− mice, we show that MAP4K4 in ECs markedly promotes Western diet-induced aortic macrophage accumulation and atherosclerotic plaque development. Treatment of Apoe−/− and Ldlr−/− mice with a selective small-molecule MAP4K4 inhibitor also markedly reduces atherosclerotic lesion area. MAP4K4 silencing in cultured ECs attenuates cell surface adhesion molecule expression while reducing nuclear localization and activity of NFκB, which is critical for promoting EC activation and atherosclerosis. Taken together, these results reveal that MAP4K4 is a key signalling node that promotes immune cell recruitment in atherosclerosis.
Co-dispersal of the blood fluke Schistosoma japonicum and Homo sapiens in the Neolithic Age
Authors: Yin Mingbo , Zheng Hong-Xiang , Su Jing , Feng Zheng , McManus Donald P. , Zhou Xiao-Nong , Jin Li , Hu Wei 
Published: December 2015

AbstractThe global spread of human infectious diseases is of considerable public health and biomedical interest. Little is known about the relationship between the distribution of ancient parasites and that of their human hosts. Schistosoma japonicum is one of the three major species of schistosome blood flukes causing the disease of schistosomiasis in humans. The parasite is prevalent in East and Southeast Asia, including the People’s Republic of China, the Philippines and Indonesia. We studied the co-expansion of S. japonicum and its human definitive host. Phylogenetic reconstruction based on complete mitochondrial genome sequences showed that S. japonicum radiated from the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze River to the mountainous areas of China, Japan and Southeast Asia. In addition, the parasite experienced two population expansions during the Neolithic agriculture era, coinciding with human migration and population growth. The data indicate that the advent of rice planting likely played a key role in the spread of schistosomiasis in Asia. Moreover, the presence of different subspecies of Oncomelania hupensis intermediate host snails in different localities in Asia allowed S. japonicum to survive in new rice-planting areas and concurrently drove the intraspecies divergence of the parasite.
A Novel Recombinant Enterovirus Type EV-A89 with Low Epidemic Strength in Xinjiang, China
Authors: Fan Qin , Zhang Yong , Hu Lan , Sun Qiang , Cui Hui , Yan Dongmei , Sikandaner Huerxidan , Tang Haishu , Wang Dongyan , Zhu Zhen , Zhu Shuangli , Xu Wenbo 
Published: December 2015

AbstractEnterovirus A89 (EV-A89) is a novel member of the EV-A species. To date, only one full-length genome sequence (the prototype strain) has been published. Here, we report the molecular identification and genomic characterization of a Chinese EV-A89 strain, KSYPH-TRMH22F/XJ/CHN/2011, isolated in 2011 from a contact of an acute flaccid paralysis (AFP) patient during AFP case surveillance in Xinjiang China. This was the first report of EV-A89 in China. The VP1 coding sequence of this strain demonstrated 93.2% nucleotide and 99.3% amino acid identity with the EV-A89 prototype strain. In the P2 and P3 regions, the Chinese EV-A89 strain demonstrated markedly higher identity than the prototype strains of EV-A76, EV-A90 and EV-A91, indicating that one or more recombination events between EV-A89 and these EV-A types might have occurred. Long-term evolution of these EV types originated from the same ancestor provides the spatial and temporal circumstances for recombination to occur. An antibody sero-prevalence survey against EV-A89 in two Xinjiang prefectures demonstrated low positive rates and low titres of EV-A89 neutralization antibody, suggesting limited range of transmission and exposure to the population. This study provides a solid foundation for further studies on the biological and pathogenic properties of EV-A89.
Shear-mediated contributions to the effective properties of soft acoustic metamaterials including negative index
Authors: Forrester Derek Michael , Pinfield Valerie J. 
Published: December 2015

AbstractHere we show that, for sub-wavelength particles in a fluid, viscous losses due to shear waves and their influence on neighbouring particles significantly modify the effective acoustic properties and thereby the conditions at which negative acoustic refraction occurs. Building upon earlier single particle scattering work, we adopt a multiple scattering approach to derive the effective properties (density, bulk modulus, wavenumber). We show,through theoretical prediction, the implications for the design of “soft” (ultrasonic) metamaterials based on locally-resonant sub-wavelength porous rubber particles, through selection of particle size and concentration and demonstrate tunability of the negative speed zones by modifying the viscosity of the suspending medium. For these lossy materials with complex effective properties, we confirm the use of phase angles to define the backward propagation condition in preference to “single-” and “double-negative” designations.
Lignocellulose-based analytical devices: bamboo as an analytical platform for chemical detection
Authors: Kuan Chen-Meng , York Roger L. , Cheng Chao-Min 
Published: December 2015

AbstractThis article describes the development of lignocellulose-based analytical devices (LADs) for rapid bioanalysis in low-resource settings. LADs are constructed using either a single lignocellulose or a hybrid design consisting of multiple types of lignocellulose. LADs are simple, low-cost, easy to use, provide rapid response and do not require external instrumentation during operation. Here, we demonstrate the implementation of LADs for food and water safety (i.e., nitrite assay in hot-pot soup, bacterial detection in water and resazurin assay in milk) and urinalysis (i.e., nitrite, urobilinogen and pH assays in human urine). Notably, we created a unique approach using simple chemicals to achieve sensitivity similar to that of commercially available immunochromatographic strips that is low-cost and provides on-site, rapid detection, for instance, of Eschericia coli (E. coli) in water.
The temporal topography of the N-Methyl- N-nitrosourea induced photoreceptor degeneration in mouse retina
Authors: Tao Ye , Chen Tao , Fang Wei , Peng Guanghua , Wang liqiang , Qin Limin , Liu Bei , Fei Huang Yi 
Published: December 2015

AbstractRetinitis pigmentosa (RP) is a group of inherited neurodegenerative diseases characterized by the progressive photoreceptors apoptosis. The N-Methyl- N-nitrosourea (MNU) is an alkylating toxicant which could induce photoreceptor apoptosis resembling that of the hereditary RP. However, the detailed process pattern of this degeneration remains poorly characterized. We systemically explored the topography of the photoreceptor degeneration in the MNU treated mouse and related these spatial data with the time-dependent characteristics of retinal pathology. These temporal topographic data delineated sequential scenes of the progressive photoreceptor degeneration in the MNU treated retinas: focal photoreceptors showed different vulnerabilities to the MNU toxicity and displayed a distinctive spatial- and time-dependent progression. Moreover, the positional asymmetry between the retinal quadrants firstly provided instructive information about the unique toxicology properties of the MNU. Further mechanism study suggested that the up-regulation of Bax and Calpain-2, rather than the Caspase-3, should be responsible for the asymmetry in the MNU induced photoreceptor degeneration. Together with the comparative sensitivities to the neurotoxicity of MNU between two photoreceptor populations, these topographic data would facilitate the standardization of analytic parameters related to the MNU induced RP model and enhance its application in the therapeutic explorations of human RP.
Phosphorous Diffuser Diverged Blue Laser Diode for Indoor Lighting and Communication
Authors: Chi Yu-Chieh , Hsieh Dan-Hua , Lin Chung-Yu , Chen Hsiang-Yu , Huang Chia-Yen , He Jr-Hau , Ooi Boon , DenBaars Steven P. , Nakamura Shuji , Kuo Hao-Chung , Lin Gong-Ru 
Published: December 2015

AbstractAn advanced light-fidelity (Li-Fi) system based on the blue Gallium nitride (GaN) laser diode (LD) with a compact white-light phosphorous diffuser is demonstrated for fusing the indoor white-lighting and visible light communication (VLC). The phosphorous diffuser adhered blue GaN LD broadens luminescent spectrum and diverges beam spot to provide ample functionality including the completeness of Li-Fi feature and the quality of white-lighting. The phosphorous diffuser diverged white-light spot covers a radiant angle up to 120o with CIE coordinates of (0.34, 0.37). On the other hand, the degradation on throughput frequency response of the blue LD is mainly attributed to the self-feedback caused by the reflection from the phosphor-air interface. It represents the current state-of-the-art performance on carrying 5.2-Gbit/s orthogonal frequency-division multiplexed 16-quadrature-amplitude modulation (16-QAM OFDM) data with a bit error rate (BER) of 3.1 × 10−3 over a 60-cm free-space link. This work aims to explore the plausibility of the phosphorous diffuser diverged blue GaN LD for future hybrid white-lighting and VLC systems.
Human placenta-derived stromal cells decrease inflammation, placental injury and blood pressure in hypertensive pregnant mice
Authors: Chatterjee Piyali , Chiasson Valorie L. , Pinzur Lena , Raveh Shani , Abraham Eytan , Jones Kathleen A. , Bounds Kelsey R. , Ofir Racheli , Flaishon Liat , Chajut Ayelet , Mitchell Brett M. 
Published: December 2015

Pre-eclampsia, the development of hypertension and proteinuria or end-organ damage during pregnancy, is a leading cause of both maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality, and there are no effective clinical treatments for pre-eclampsia aside from delivery. The development of pre-eclampsia is characterized by maladaptation of the maternal immune system, excessive inflammation and endothelial dysfunction. We have reported that detection of extracellular RNA by the Toll-like receptors (TLRs) 3 and 7 is a key initiating signal that contributes to the development of pre-eclampsia. PLacental eXpanded (PLX-PAD) cells are human placenta-derived, mesenchymal-like, adherent stromal cells that have anti-inflammatory, proangiogenic, cytoprotective and regenerative properties, secondary to paracrine secretion of various molecules in response to environmental stimulation. We hypothesized that PLX-PAD cells would reduce the associated inflammation and tissue damage and lower blood pressure in mice with pre-eclampsia induced by TLR3 or TLR7 activation. Injection of PLX-PAD cells on gestational day 14 significantly decreased systolic blood pressure by day 17 in TLR3-induced and TLR7-induced hypertensive mice (TLR3 144–111 mmHg; TLR7 145–106 mmHg; both P&lt;0.05), and also normalized their elevated urinary protein:creatinine ratios (TLR3 5.68–3.72; TLR7 5.57–3.84; both P&lt;0.05). On gestational day 17, aortic endothelium-dependent relaxation responses improved significantly in TLR3-induced and TLR7-induced hypertensive mice that received PLX-PAD cells on gestational day 14 (TLR3 35–65%; TLR7 37–63%; both P&lt;0.05). In addition, markers of systemic inflammation and placental injury, increased markedly in both groups of TLR-induced hypertensive mice, were reduced by PLX-PAD cells. Importantly, PLX-PAD cell therapy had no effects on these measures in pregnant control mice or on the fetuses. These data demonstrate that PLX-PAD cell therapy can safely reverse pre-eclampsia-like features during pregnancy and have a potential therapeutic role in pre-eclampsia treatment.
Al:ZnO top electrodes deposited with various oxygen pressures for ferroelectric (Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3 capacitors
Authors: Takada Y. , Okamoto N. , Saito T. , Kondo K. , Yoshimura T. , Fujimura N. , Higuchi K. , Kitajima A. 
Published: December 2015

Ferroelectric (Pb,La)(Zr,Ti)O3 capacitors were fabricated using chemical solution deposition with Al:ZnO (AZO) top electrodes that were deposited using pulsed laser deposition (PLD), where the oxygen pressure was varied systematically. The oxygen pressure during deposition of the AZO layer affected the surface morphology of the AZO top electrodes, as well as the ferroelectric properties of the capacitors. As the oxygen pressure increased, the AZO grains gradually appeared clearer in the SEM images, indicating less dense stacking, and the polarisation–voltage hysteresis loops expanded horizontally. The largest values of remnant polarisation and coercive voltage were obtained at 10 Pa. Appropriate ferroelectric properties were obtained for oxygen pressures in the range of 0.5–2.0 Pa. The hydrogen degradation resistance during annealing in 3% H2 200°C and 1 Torr was independent of oxygen pressure during PLD.
Frequency noise analysis of 1.55 µm indium arsenide/indium phosphide quantum dot lasers: impact of non‐linear gain and direct carrier transition
Authors: Sanaee Maryam , Zarifkar Abbas , Sheikhi Mohammad Hossein 
Published: December 2015

Frequency noise (FN) characteristic of 1.55 µm quantum dot (QD) lasers is investigated by introducing a theoretical model. A set of five rate equations are developed in presence of Langevin noise sources by writing a new equation for dynamics of the optical field phase. To investigate the effects of non‐linear gain and direct carrier transition on FN spectrum of QD lasers, the auto and cross‐correlation coefficients between carriers and photons have been calculated. Calculations demonstrate that the excited state and ground state (GS) carriers’ shot noises play dominant role on both the level and the resonance frequency of FN spectrum. Moreover, the level of FN declines by increasing the non‐linear gain coefficient. On the other hand, direct carrier transition from wetting layer to the lasing state of GS leads to lower‐frequency fluctuations. Finally, it is revealed that the linewidth of QD laser decreases by increasing the pumping current and its value is in the order of about 1 MHz.