bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
SmartDEMAP: A Smart Contract Deployment and Management Platform
Authors: Knecht Markus , Stiller Burkhard 
Published: June 2017

AbstractSmart contracts on a blockchain behave exactly as specified by their code. To be sure that a smart contract behaves as expected, the end-user has to either analyze its code or trust a potentially anonymous developer or auditor to do so. This approach proposes a smart contract deployment and management platform that can execute development tools and code quality tools in a trusted way and uses this to reduce the trust required into the smart contract developer or auditor. Additionally, such a platform can provide new capabilities for developers aiding them in the creation of smart contracts.
Achieving Reproducible Network Environments with INSALATA
Authors: Herold Nadine , Wachs Matthias , Dorfhuber Marko , Rudolf Christoph , Liebald Stefan , Carle Georg 
Published: June 2017

AbstractAnalyzing network environments for security flaws and assessing new service and infrastructure configurations in general are dangerous and error-prone when done in operational networks. Therefore, cloning such networks into a dedicated test environment is beneficial for comprehensive testing and analysis without impacting the operational network. To automate this reproduction of a network environment in a physical or virtualized testbed, several key features are required: (a) a suitable network model to describe network environments, (b) an automated acquisition process to instantiate this model for the respective network environment, and (c) an automated setup process to deploy the instance to the testbed.With this work, we present INSALATA, an automated and extensible framework to reproduce physical or virtualized network environments in network testbeds. INSALATA employs a modular approach for data acquisition and deployment, resolves interdependencies in the setup process, and supports just-in-time reproduction of network environments. INSALATA is open source and available on Github. To highlight its applicability, we present a real world case study utilizing INSALATA.
Towards Internet Scale Quality-of-Experience Measurement with Twitter
Authors: Kergl Dennis , Roedler Robert , Rodosek Gabi Dreo 
Published: June 2017

AbstractAt present, Quality of Experience (QoE) measurements are accomplished by interrogating users for the perceived quality of a service they just have used. Influenced by many factors and often limited by domain or geographical region, this technique has several drawbacks when a general state of QoE for the internet as a whole is prospected. To achieve such a general metric, we leverage user complaints that we observe in real-time in social media. Such approaches have been successfully applied for the monitoring of specific and single services. We aim to extend existing methods in order to create an overall metric, define an internet wide QoE baseline, monitor changes and hence, provide a context for assessing smaller scale findings against a ground truth. The contribution of this work is to demonstrate the feasibility of using social media analysis for generating a meaningful value for quantifying the actual QoE of the internet.
Preparation of Modified Reduced Graphene Oxide nanosheet with Cationic Surfactant and its Dye Adsorption Ability from Colored Wastewater
Authors: Mahmoodi Niyaz Mohammad , Maroofi Seyyed Mohammad , Mazarji Mahmoud , Nabi‐Bidhendi Gholamreza 
Published: June 2017

AbstractIn this paper, reduced graphene oxide (rGO) nanosheet from graphite was synthesized using the top‐down approach. The surface of rGO was modified by cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) to prepare rGO/CTAB adsorbent for anionic dye removal. The prepared rGO/CTAB was characterized by XRD, FTIR, FE‐SEM and TGA. The operation parameters (surfactant concentration, adsorbent dosage, pH and initial concentration of dye solution) affecting the batch adsorption process to remove direct red 80 (DR80) and direct red 23 (DR23) were studied in detail. The dye adsorption capacity of rGO/CTAB was 213 and 79 mg/g for DR80 and DR23, respectively. In addition, dye removal followed the Langmuir isotherm with pseudo‐second order reaction kinetics.
Hypotonicity-induced cell swelling activates TRPA1
Authors: Fujita Fumitaka , Uchida Kunitoshi , Takayama Yasunori , Suzuki Yoshiro , Takaishi Masayuki , Tominaga Makoto 
Published: June 2017

Abstract
Hypotonic solutions can cause painful sensations in nasal and ocular mucosa through molecular mechanisms that are not entirely understood. We clarified the ability of human TRPA1 (hTRPA1) to respond to physical stimulus, and evaluated the response of hTRPA1 to cell swelling under hypotonic conditions. Using a Ca2+-imaging method, we found that modulation of AITC-induced hTRPA1 activity occurred under hypotonic conditions. Moreover, cell swelling in hypotonic conditions evoked single-channel activation of hTRPA1 in a cell-attached mode when the patch pipette was attached after cell swelling under hypotonic conditions, but not before swelling. Single-channel currents activated by cell swelling were also inhibited by a known hTRPA1 blocker. Since pre-application of thapsigargin or pretreatment with the calcium chelator BAPTA did not affect the single-channel activation induced by cell swelling, changes in intracellular calcium concentrations are likely not related to hTRPA1 activation induced by physical stimuli.
Enzymatic saccharification of pretreated rice straw by cellulases from Aspergillus niger BK01
Authors: Aggarwal Neeraj Kumar , Goyal Varsha , Saini Anita , Yadav Anita , Gupta Ranjan 
Published: June 2017

Abstract
Alkali-assisted acid pretreated rice straw was saccharified using cellulase from Aspergillus niger BK01. The cellulase production by the fungus was enhanced by parametric optimization using solid-state fermentation conditions. Maximum cellulase production (12.0 U/gds of carboxymethyl cellulase, CMCase) was achieved in 96 h, using 6.0% substrate concentration, 7.5% inoculum concentration, 1:2 solid to liquid ratio, at pH 5.5, and temperature 28 °C, by supplementation of the fermentation medium with 0.1% carboxymethylcellulose and 0.1% ammonium nitrate. Characterization of crude cellulases showed that highest CMCase activity was observed at pH 4.8 and temperature 40 °C. The CMCase was stable from pH 4.8–5.5 and at a temperature range of 35–50 °C. The pretreated biomass was subjected to hydrolysis with the fungal cellulases. The saccharification optimization studies showed that 2% (v/v) enzyme concentration and hydrolysis time of 2.5 h were optimum for maximum yield, i.e, 23.78% sugars and 35.96% saccharification value.
An efficient process for the transformation of betulin to betulinic acid by a strain of Bacillus megaterium
Authors: Kumar Dhirendra , Dubey Kashyap Kumar 
Published: June 2017

Abstract
Betulinic acid as a derivative of betulin is widely reported for its anti-HIV and antitumor activities. Betulin has three most significant positions, i.e., primary hydroxyl group at position C-28, secondary hydroxyl group at position C-3, and alkene moiety at position C-20, where chemical modifications were performed to yield pharmacologically more active derivatives. Bioconversion optimization was performed for the enhancement in the percentage of conversion using statistical approach by opting temperature, pH and betulin concentration as independent variables. Three hundred fifty isolates were screened from natural sources under selective medium containing up to 3 g/l of betulin for their tolerance and bioconversion efficiency. Isolate KD235 was found to grow in 3 g/l betulin with 23.34 ± 0.57 g/l biomass and 0.67 ± 0.06 g/l betulinic acid production. New isolate KD235 was characterized by molecular analysis and named as Bacillus megaterium KD235. Molecular characterization of a potentially active isolate for the transformation of betulin to betulinic acid was suggested as isolate Bacillus megaterium KD235. Maximum bioconversion (22 ± 1.5%) was found at optimized conditions, i.e., pH 6.5, temperature 30 °C and at 3 g/l betulin. Validations of experiments as ~11% more bioconversion i.e., 1 ± 0.1 g/l betulinic acid were obtained using 5 l lab fermenter as compared to shake flask.
Study of platelet activation, hypercoagulable state, and the association with pulmonary hypertension in children with b-thalassemia
Authors: Fayed Mahmoud Alhosiny , El-Sayed Abdel-Hady Hesham , Mohammed Hafez Mona , Saad Salama Osama , Abdelhalim Al-Tonbary Youssef 
Published: June 2017

Background:
The increased survival rate of thalassemic patients has led to unmasking of management related complications which were infrequently encountered.

Objective:
Study the increased coagulation and platelet activation in children with β-thalassemia, to analyze the factors that lead to such hypercoagulable state and to study pulmonary hypertension (PH) in conjunction with platelet activation and hypercoagulable state in children with β-thalassemia.

Methods:
36 Egyptian children with β-thalassemia with a mean age of 9.9 years (±4.7 SD). In addition, 20 healthy Egyptian children matched for age and sex were enrolled as a control group. Both were subjected to clinical and laboratory assessments. Echocardiography was done to the patient group and PH was diagnosed based on calculated mean pulmonary artery pressure [MPAP] >25 mmHg.

Results:
We found that, mean ± SD serum P-selectin level (platelet activator marker) was significantly higher in thalassemic patients (2337 ± 566 pg/ml) in comparison to controls (1467 ± 247 pg/ml) (P < 0.001). Mean serum protein-C and antithrombin-IN levels were significantly lower in thalassemic patients (1.2 ±1.3 μg/ml, 27.3 ± 7.5 mg/dl) in comparison to controls (2.3 ±1.3 μg/ml, 35.1 ±4.1 mg/dl) (P = 0.003 and <0.001) respectively. PH was detected in 17 (47.2%) patients and it was significantly associated with splenectomy (P = 0.01) and nontransfusion dependent thalassemia (NTDT) (P = 0.04). PH was positively correlated with serum levels of P-selectin (r = 0.38, P = 0.02), fibrinogen (r = 0.41, P = 0.01) and negatively correlated with serum protein-C level (r = -0.48, P = 0.003).

Conclusion:
A chronic hypercoagulable state and platelet activation is present in children with β-thalassemia. Splenectomy and transfusion infrequency are the main risk factors noted to be associated with such hypercoagulable state and platelet activation and consequently the PH among our thalassemic patients.
Hematological parameters and red blood cell morphological abnormality of Glucose-6-Phosphate dehydrogenase deficiency co-inherited with thalassemia
Authors: Pengon Jutharat , Svasti Saovaros , Kamchonwongpaisan Sumalee , Vattanaviboon Phantip 
Published: June 2017

Objective/Background:
Glucose-6-phosphate dehydrogenase (G-6-PD) deficiency and thalassemia are genetically independent hemolytic disorders. Co-inheritance of both disorders may affect red blood cell pathology to a greater extent than normally seen in either disorder alone. This study determines the prevalence and evaluates hematological changes of G-6-PD deficiency and thalassemia co-inheritance.

Methods:
G-6-PD deficiency was screened from 200 male thalassemia blood samples using a fluorescent spot test. Hematological parameters and red blood cell morphology were evaluated among G-6-PD deficiency/thalassemia co-inheritance, G-6-PD deficiency alone, thalassemia alone, and normal individuals.

Results:
G-6-PD deficiency was detected together with hemoglobin (Hb) E heterozygote, Hb E homozygote, β-thalassemia trait, and β-thalassemia/Hb E, α-thalassemia-2 trait, and Hb H disease. Hb level, hematocrit, mean cell volume, and mean cell Hb of G-6-PD deficiency co-inherited with asymptomatic thalassemia carriers show significantly lower mean values compared to carriers with only the same thalassemia genotypes. Higher mean red blood cell distribution width was observed in G-6-PD deficiency co-inherited with Hb E heterozygote, as with numbers of hemighost cells in G-6-PD deficiency/thalassemia co-inheritance compared to those with either disorder. Apart from Hb level, hematological parameters of co-inheritance disorders were not different from individuals with a single thalassemia disease.

Conclusion:
G-6-PD deficiency co-inherited with thalassemia in males was present in 10% of the participants, resulting in worsening of red blood cell pathology compared with inheritance of thalassemia alone.
Large-amplitude acoustic solitary waves in a Yukawa chain
Authors: Sheridan T. E. , Gallagher James C. 
Published: June 2017

We experimentally study the excitation and propagation of acoustic solitary waves in a one-dimensional dusty plasma (i.e. a Yukawa chain) with $n=65$ particles interacting through a screened Coulomb potential. The lattice constant $a=1.02\pm 0.02$ mm. Waves are launched by applying a 100 mW laser pulse to one end of the chain for laser pulse durations from 0.10 to 2.0 s. We observe damped solitary waves which propagate for distances ${\gtrsim}30a$ with an acoustic speed $c_{s}=11.5\pm 0.2~\text{mm}~\text{s}^{-1}$. The maximum velocity perturbation increases with laser pulse duration for durations ${\leqslant}0.5$ s and then saturates at ${\approx}15\,\%$. The wave speed is found to be independent of the maximum amplitude, indicating that the formation of nonlinear solitons is prevented by neutral-gas damping.
Long-term results of percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty in neonatal critical pulmonary valve stenosis: a 20-year, single-centre experience
Authors: Loureiro Petra , Cardoso Barbara , Gomes Inês B. , Martins José F. , Pinto Fátima F. 
Published: June 2017

AbstractIntroductionPercutaneous balloon valvuloplasty is the primary treatment for critical pulmonary valve stenosis in neonates. Thus far, a few studies have reported long-term results of this technique in neonatal critical pulmonary valve stenosis.MethodsWe carried out a retrospective study of all consecutive newborns with critical pulmonary valve stenosis subjected to percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty at a single centre, between 1994 and 2014, to assess its immediate and long-term safety and efficacy.ResultsA total of 24 neonates presented with critical pulmonary valve stenosis. The mean diameter of the pulmonary annulus was 7 mm (±1.19); 33.3% had a dysplastic pulmonary valve, and 92% were started on prostaglandin E1 treatment. Percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty was performed at a mean age of 4.0±4.3 days using, on average, a balloon-to-pulmonary annulus ratio of 1.18 mm (with a range from 0.9 to 1.43). Immediate success was achieved in 22/24 patients (92%) with a reduction in the pulmonary transvalvular peak gradient (p<0.05) and in the right ventricle/systemic pressure ratio (p<0.05). There was one death (4%) 6 days after the procedure, and 29.2% of them had transient rhythm complications. For a mean follow-up time of 8.4 years, the re-intervention rate was 42.9%. In total, 14 re-interventions were performed in nine neonates, including surgery in six. Freedom from re-intervention was 50% at 8 years and 43% at 10 and 15 years.ConclusionThis series, to the best of our knowledge, has had the longest follow-up of neonates with critical pulmonary valve stenosis. Percutaneous balloon valvuloplasty is a safe and effective treatment, and in our study 75% of the patients were exclusively treated using this technique.
Mittendrin oder nur dabei? Zum Zusammenhang zwischen sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarf und sozialer Partizipation von Grundschülerinnen und Grundschülern
Authors: Henke Thorsten , Bosse Stefanie , Lambrecht Jennifer , Jäntsch Christian , Jaeuthe Jessica , Spörer Nadine 
Published: June 2017

Zusammenfassung. In der vorliegenden Studie wurde das Ausmaß der sozialen Partizipation von Grundschülerinnen und Grundschülern mit einem und ohne festgestelltem sonderpädagogischem Förderbedarf (SPF) untersucht. Insgesamt wurden N = 1436 Schüler der 2. und 3. Jahrgangsstufe mittels Fragebögen zum peerbezogenen Klassenklima, zur Einschätzung der eigenen sozialen Integration, zum Gefühl des Angenommen-Seins durch die Lehrkraft und zur Anzahl ihrer Freundschaften befragt. Mithilfe des Propensity Score Matching-Verfahrens wurden den Schülern mit einem festgestellten SPF in den Bereichen Lernen, emotionale und soziale Entwicklung oder Sprache (N = 91) basierend auf theoretisch und empirisch abgeleiteten Hintergrundvariablen statistische Zwillinge ohne SPF zugeordnet. Zu den Hintergrundvariablen zählten familiäre, leistungs- und verhaltensbezogene Merkmale. Der Vergleich der Schüler mit einem festgestellten SPF mit ihren statistischen Zwillingen ohne SPF lieferte keine Hinweise auf einen Zusammenhang zwischen dem Status eines SPF und der sozialen Partizipation.
MicroRNA-26a and -26b inhibit lens fibrosis and cataract by negatively regulating Jagged-1/Notch signaling pathway
Authors: Chen Xiaoyun , Xiao Wei , Chen Weirong , Liu Xialin , Wu Mingxing , Bo Qu , Luo Yan , Ye Shaobi , Cao Yihai , Liu Yizhi 
Published: June 2017

Abstract
Fibrosis is a chronic process involving development and progression of multiple diseases in various organs and is responsible for almost half of all known deaths. Epithelial–mesenchymal transition (EMT) is the vital process in organ fibrosis. Lens is an elegant biological tool to investigate the fibrosis process because of its unique biological properties. Using gain- and loss-of-function assays, and different lens fibrosis models, here we demonstrated that microRNA (miR)-26a and miR-26b, members of the miR-26 family have key roles in EMT and fibrosis. They can significantly inhibit proliferation, migration, EMT of lens epithelial cells and lens fibrosis in vitro and in vivo. Interestingly, we revealed that the mechanisms of anti-EMT effects of miR-26a and -26b are via directly targeting Jagged-1 and suppressing Jagged-1/Notch signaling. Furthermore, we provided in vitro and in vivo evidence that Jagged-1/Notch signaling is activated in TGFβ2-stimulated EMT, and blockade of Notch signaling can reverse lens epithelial cells (LECs) EMT and lens fibrosis. Given the general involvement of EMT in most fibrotic diseases, cancer metastasis and recurrence, miR-26 family and Notch pathway may have therapeutic uses in treating fibrotic diseases and cancers.
Dependence of the shape of graphene nanobubbles on trapped substance
Authors: Ghorbanfekr-Kalashami H. , Vasu K. S. , Nair R. R. , Peeters François M. , Neek-Amal M. 
Published: June 2017

AbstractVan der Waals (vdW) interaction between two-dimensional crystals (2D) can trap substances in high pressurized (of order 1 GPa) on nanobubbles. Increasing the adhesion between the 2D crystals further enhances the pressure and can lead to a phase transition of the trapped material. We found that the shape of the nanobubble can depend critically on the properties of the trapped substance. In the absence of any residual strain in the top 2D crystal, flat nanobubbles can be formed by trapped long hydrocarbons (that is, hexadecane). For large nanobubbles with radius 130 nm, our atomic force microscopy measurements show nanobubbles filled with hydrocarbons (water) have a cylindrical symmetry (asymmetric) shape which is in good agreement with our molecular dynamics simulations. This study provides insights into the effects of the specific material and the vdW pressure on the microscopic details of graphene bubbles.
Bending strain engineering in quantum spin hall system for controlling spin currents
Authors: Huang Bing , Jin Kyung-Hwan , Cui Bin , Zhai Feng , Mei Jiawei , Liu Feng 
Published: June 2017

AbstractQuantum spin Hall system can exhibit exotic spin transport phenomena, mediated by its topological edge states. Here the concept of bending strain engineering to tune the spin transport properties of a quantum spin Hall system is demonstrated. We show that bending strain can be used to control the spin orientation of counter-propagating edge states of a quantum spin system to generate a non-zero spin current. This physics mechanism can be applied to effectively tune the spin current and pure spin current decoupled from charge current in a quantum spin Hall system by control of its bending curvature. Furthermore, the curved quantum spin Hall system can be achieved by the concept of topological nanomechanical architecture in a controllable way, as demonstrated by the material example of Bi/Cl/Si(111) nanofilm. This concept of bending strain engineering of spins via topological nanomechanical architecture affords a promising route towards the realization of topological nano-mechanospintronics.
Directed self-assembly of liquid crystalline blue-phases into ideal single-crystals
Authors: Martínez-González Jose A. , Li Xiao , Sadati Monirosadat , Zhou Ye , Zhang Rui , Nealey Paul F. , de Pablo Juan J. 
Published: June 2017

AbstractChiral nematic liquid crystals are known to form blue phases—liquid states of matter that exhibit ordered cubic arrangements of topological defects. Blue-phase specimens, however, are generally polycrystalline, consisting of randomly oriented domains that limit their performance in applications. A strategy that relies on nano-patterned substrates is presented here for preparation of stable, macroscopic single-crystal blue-phase materials. Different template designs are conceived to exert control over different planes of the blue-phase lattice orientation with respect to the underlying substrate. Experiments are then used to demonstrate that it is indeed possible to create stable single-crystal blue-phase domains with the desired orientation over large regions. These results provide a potential avenue to fully exploit the electro-optical properties of blue phases, which have been hindered by the existence of grain boundaries.
Telomere Length and Bipolar Disorder
Authors: Powell Timothy R , Dima Danai , Frangou Sophia , Breen Gerome 
Published: June 2017

AbstractVariation in telomere length is heritable and is currently considered a promising biomarker of susceptibility for neuropsychiatric disorders, particularly because of its association with memory function and hippocampal morphology. Here, we investigate telomere length in connection to familial risk and disease expression in bipolar disorder (BD). We used quantitative PCRs and a telomere-sequence to single-copy-gene-sequence ratio method to determine telomere length in genomic DNA extracted from buccal smears from 63 patients with BD, 74 first-degree relatives (49 relatives had no lifetime psychopathology and 25 had a non-BD mood disorder), and 80 unrelated healthy individuals. Participants also underwent magnetic resonance imaging to determine hippocampal volumes and cognitive assessment to evaluate episodic memory using the verbal paired associates test. Telomere length was shorter in psychiatrically well relatives (p=0.007) compared with unrelated healthy participants. Telomere length was also shorter in relatives (regardless of psychiatric status; p<0.01) and patients with BD not on lithium (p=0.02) compared with lithium-treated patients with BD. In the entire sample, telomere length was positively associated with left and right hippocampal volume and with delayed recall. This study provides evidence that shortened telomere length is associated with familial risk for BD. Lithium may have neuroprotective properties that require further investigation using prospective designs.