bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A DFT study of O2 and Cl2 adsorption onto Al12N12 fullerene‐like nanocluster
Authors: Shokuhi Rad Ali , Bagheri Novir Samaneh , Mohseni Soheil , Ramezani Cherati Nadia , Mirabi Ali 
Published: October 2017

AbstractIn this study, the adsorption and dissociation of chlorine and oxygen molecules on the surface of Al12N12 nanocluster have been investigated by density functional theory (DFT). Traditional B3LYP and dispersion‐corrected (ωB97XD) functionals have been used to optimize the studied structures. One relaxed structure for adsorbed Cl2 and two for adsorbed O2 (denoted as P1 and P2 configurations) have been found. Both functionals showed strong chemisorption of O2 compared to Cl2 on nanocluster. The dispersion‐corrected (ωB97XD) binding energies of Cl2 and O2 (P1 and P2) on Al12N12 are calculated to be −32.4 (−29.1 BSSE corrected), −60.6 (−47.0 BSSE corrected), and −217.8 (−191.4 BSSE corrected) kJ/mol, respectively. We can conclude that in the suitable configuration, the adsorption of O2 associates with significant charge transfer as well as dissociation. The Gibbs free energies of all adsorptions were calculated and their values confirm exothermic spontaneous adsorption of both molecules on nanocluster.
Determinants of bed net policy implementation: A case study of Southern Benin
Authors: Danhoundo Georges , Wiktorowicz Mary E. , Premji Shahirose Sadrudin , Nasiri Khalidha 
Published: October 2017

SummaryBackgroundMalaria is a major global health challenge. This study aims to clarify the manner in which contextual factors determine the use and maintenance of bed nets and the extent to which malaria prevention policy is responsive to them in Southern Benin.MethodsSemi‐structured interviews and direct observations were undertaken with 30 pregnant women in the municipality of So‐Ava from June to August 2015. Key informants in the Ministry of Health and local community health workers were also interviewed regarding malaria prevention policy formation, and the monitoring and evaluation of bed net interventions, respectively. Data were analyzed through categorical content analysis and grouped into themes.ResultsThe majority of pregnant women participants (80%) declared non‐adherence to instructions for hanging and maintaining insecticide‐treated nets (ITNs). The distributed bed nets were washed like clothes, which affected their bio‐efficacy, and were in poor condition (ie, torn or had holes). Multiple factors contributed to the poor condition of ITNs: Pregnant women's limited understanding of risk including their inability to connect the key environmental factors to personal risk, gendered responsibility for installing bed nets, and lack of public measures that would enable women to re‐treat or access new bed nets as needed. Poverty that determined structural aspects of housing such as the size and quality of homes and access to bed nets exacerbated the challenges.ConclusionInstitutionalizing an iterative process of monitoring, review, and responsive adaptation throughout the entire policymaking cycle would better support malaria preventive policy implementation in Benin.
Protective effect of metoclopramide against organophosphate‐induced apoptosis in the murine skin fibroblast L929
Authors: Jaber Basem M. , Petroianu Georg A. , Rizvi Syed A. , Borai Anwar , Saleh Nada A. , Hala Sharif M. , Saleh Ayman M. 
Published: October 2017

AbstractThis study was performed to evaluate the protective efficacy of metoclopramide (MCP) against the organophosphates paraoxon (POX)‐ and malathion (MLT)‐induced apoptosis in the murine L929 skin fibroblasts. L929 cells were exposed to either POX (10 nm) or 1.0 μm MLT in the absence and presence of increased concentrations of MCP. The protective effect of MCP on these organophosphate‐stimulated apoptotic events was evaluated by flow cytometry analysis after staining with annexin‐V/propidium iodide, processing and activation of the executioner caspase‐3, cleavage of the poly‐ADP ribose polymerase, fragmentation of the nucleosomal DNA and disruption of the mitochondrial membrane potential (Δψ). Our results showed that increased doses of MCP alone (≥10 μm) did not induce apoptosis or activation of caspase‐3. Pretreatment of the cells with MCP attenuated all the apoptotic events triggered by the organophosphate compounds in a dose‐dependent manner reaching ~70–80% protection when they were preincubated at 1 and 5 μm of the drug before the addition of POX and MLT, respectively. Interestingly, MCP did not offer a significant protective effect against the cytotoxicity of tumor necrosis factor‐α, cisplatinum, etoposide or paclitaxel, which stimulate apoptosis by various mechanisms, suggesting that the anti‐apoptotic effect of the drug is specific to organophosphates. The strong and specific anti‐apoptotic activity of subclinical doses of MCP against the cytotoxicity of organophosphate compounds suggests its potential clinical application in treating their poisoning.
Evaluation of short‐ and long‐term efficacy of chemoradiotherapy for advanced cervical cancer using HSP70 protein combined with multimodal MRI
Authors: Qi Yun‐Xiang , Liu Kun , Yin Jun , Li Lu 
Published: October 2017

AbstractThis study aims to evaluate the efficacy of chemoradiotherapy for advanced cervical cancer using heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) combined with multimodal MRI. The protein expressions of HSP70 in biopsy specimens obtained from 101 patients with cervical cancer were detected by immunohistochemistry. Plain MRI scan, DWI, DCE‐MR, and MRS were performed before and after a period of 6 months of chemoradiotherapy. All patients were assigned into the complete response (CR) and partial response (PR) groups. HSP70 protein expression, tumor diameter, and tumor volume were lower in the CR group than in the PR group. The rate of tumor shrinkage, relative positive enhancement integral (rPEI), relative maximum slope of decrease (rMSD), relative signal enhancement ratio at 60 s (rSER60) and maximum SER (rSERmax), mean apparent diffusion coefficient (ADCmean) and minimum ADC value (ADCmin) values in the CR group were higher than those in the PR group. Tumor diameter and volume, rSER15 and rSER30 were reduced after chemoradiotherapy, while rMSD, rSERmax, time to peak (TTP), ADCmean and ADCmin were higher after the treatment. The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves indicated that HSP70 expression, tumor diameter, rPEI, ADCmean and Cho peak showed the better chemoradiotherapy efficacy. Our data demonstrates that HSP70 protein combined with multimodal MRI may accurately evaluate the chemoradiotherapy efficacy of patients with advanced cervical cancer. The recurrence of cervical cancer significantly decreased in patients with negative expression of HSP70 and HSP70 protein detection provides potential therapy for the prevention, diagnosis, and prognosis of cervical cancer.
Hydrodynamic simulations and biological modelling of an Anammox reactor
Authors: Vilà‐Rovira Albert , Ruscalleda Maël , Balaguer M Dolors , Colprim Jesús 
Published: October 2017

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe design of anammox process reactors should be addressed to obtain maximum sludge retention and maximum removal efficiency, and also prevent the inhibition of microorganisms. The conventional biological models (activated sludge models, ASM) are only focused to test the influence of operational parameters on the biological performance. This study integrated computational fluid dynamics (CFD) and biological modelling (ASM) for the description of a novel anammox reactor configuration.RESULTSA full description of the hydrodynamics, the mixing degree of the system and biological performance within the overall reactor domain was obtained. The strong recirculation of the system and the internal plates favoured correct mixing of the overall system, despite a particular point having a preferred flow in the inlet stream of the reactor. From the removal rates distributions calculated with the model, it was feasible to demonstrate that 45% of the domain had a zero reaction order with respect to the ammonium substrate (nitrite was in excess).CONCLUSIONSModel integration was demonstrated to be a powerful tool for the design of an anammox reactor. It was useful to obtain information about the overall mixing in the system, determine death zones of flow, and points of maximum and minimum removal efficiency. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry
The effect of different thermal treatment on the physical properties of PGA/PCL copolymer suture material
Authors: El‐Farahaty K. A. , El‐Bakary M. A. , El‐Sayed N. M. 
Published: October 2017

AbstractSamples of polyglycolic acid PGA/polycaprolactone PCL copolymer absorbable suture materials, which is called Poliglecaprone PGC copolymer suture, were thermally treated by two different processes. The first method is the direct heat exposure, from 20 to 38 °C, in the surrounding medium. Which is an environmental study. The other method is the annealing process at temperatures ranged from 65, 80, 100, 120, and 140 °C, for two different duration periods 60 and 120 min. This is an extensive technical study. The refractive indices of thermally treated PGA/PCL copolymer sutures were measured using multiple‐beam Fizeau fringes. The birefringence profiles across the suture cross‐sections were studied for different annealing conditions. The effect of heat on the polarizabilty per unit volume, dielectric properties, and suture diameter were investigated. The activation energy for the heating processes was calculated using Arrhenius equation. Microinterferograms are given for illustration.
Uncertainties of gridded precipitation observations in characterizing spatio‐temporal drought and wetness over Vietnam
Authors: Vu Tue M. , Raghavan Srivatsan V. , Liong Shie‐Yui , Mishra Ashok K. 
Published: October 2017

ABSTRACTPrecipitation is an important climate variable to investigate extreme events (e.g. drought and flood) as well as to develop robust strategies for water resources planning and management. Lack of adequate and robust information on precipitation poses great difficulties in understanding the observed climate as well as to validate climate model outputs. To overcome this limitation gridded precipitation data sets have been constructed to supplement the lack of in situ data. This study compares five popular gridded precipitation data sets to evaluate their performance in terms of drought and wetness over Vietnam. These five gridded data sets include: (1) Asian Precipitation Highly Resolved Observational Data Integration Towards the Evaluation of Water Resources (APHRODITE), (2) Climate Precipitation Center (CPC), (3) Climate Research Unit (CRU), (4) Global Precipitation Climatology Center (GPCC) and (5) University of Delaware (UDEL). The recently developed gridded precipitation observational data ‘VnGP’ from Vietnam is used as the reference data set to assess the performance of these five gridded precipitation products. The Standardized Precipitation Index (SPI) is used to quantify drought and wetness. GPCC and APHRODITE performed reasonably well in reproducing spatial and temporal precipitation patterns. GPCC performs consistently better than APHRODITE in all the statistical tests. Except for UDEL, other gridded data sets able to exhibit the characteristics of drought/wetness (e.g. the percentage of drought events and severity) during strong El Nino Southern Oscillation (ENSO) events. However, higher uncertainty exists to quantify drought inter‐arrival time in most of the data sets. Furthermore, trend analysis was performed to evaluate the comparative performance of gridded data sets to quantify drought (wet) spells at annual and seasonal time scales. Although the gauge‐based and hybrid satellite–gauge merged products use partly ground truth data, the different interpolation techniques and merging algorithms may contribute to large uncertainties.
Effects of dietary hop (Humulus lupulus L.) β‐acids on quality attributes, composition and oxidative stability of pork meat
Authors: Sbardella Maicon , Racanicci Aline MC , Gois Franz D , de Lima Cristiane B , Migotto Dannielle L , Costa Leandro B , Miyada Valdomiro S 
Published: October 2017

AbstractBACKGROUNDThe effects of dietary levels of hop β‐acids on physical attributes, lipid oxidation and chemical composition of pork meat were evaluated. Thirty‐two castrated male pigs obtained from a complete block design feeding experiment (6.23 ± 0.42 kg initial body weight (BW) to 20.45 ± 0.95 kg final BW) and fed diets supplemented with 0, 120, 240 or 360 mg kg−1 hop β‐acids during 35 days were slaughtered to sample longissimus dorsi muscle for meat analysis.RESULTSNo effects (P > 0.05) of dietary hop β‐acids were observed on meat physical attributes. Quadratic effects (P < 0.05) of hop β‐acids were observed on lipid and protein contents and on thiobarbituric acid‐reactive substance (TBARS) values of meatballs, whose equations allowed the estimation of dietary hop β‐acid levels of 176, 169 and 181 mg kg−1 to provide up to 16.20% lipid reduction, 1.95% protein accretion and 23.31% TBARS reduction respectively.CONCLUSIONDietary hop β‐acids fed to pigs might reduce lipid, increase protein and reduce lipid oxidation without affecting physical attributes of the pork meat. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry
Influence of genotype and crop year in the chemometrics of almond and pistachio oils
Authors: Rabadán Adrián , Álvarez‐Ortí Manuel , Gómez Ricardo , de Miguel Concepción , Pardo José E 
Published: October 2017

AbstractBACKGROUNDAlmond and pistachio oils can be considered as interesting products to produce and commercialize owing to their health‐promoting properties. However, these properties are not consistent because of the differences that appear in oils as a result of the genotype and the crop year. The analysis of these variations and their origin is decisive in ensuring the commercial future prospects of these nut oils.RESULTSAlthough significant variability has been reported in almond and pistachio oils as a result of the crop year and the interaction between crop year and genotype, the genotype itself remains the main factor determining oil chemometrics. Oil fatty acid profile has been mainly determined by the genotype, with the exception of palmitic fatty acid in pistachio oil. However, the crop year affects the concentration of some minor components of crucial nutritional interest as total polyphenols and phytosterols.CONCLUSIONRegarding reported differences in oil, some almond and pistachio genotypes should be prioritized for oil extraction. Breeding programmes focused on the improvement of specific characteristics of almond and pistachio oils should focus on chemical parameters mainly determined by the genotype. © 2017 Society of Chemical Industry
Comparative Study of Abdominal Muscle Thickness on Ultrasonography in Healthy Adolescents and Patients With Low Back Pain
Authors: Rahmani Nahid , Mohseni‐Bandpei Mohammad Ali , Salavati Mahyar , Vameghi Roshanak , Abdollahi Iraj 
Published: October 2017

ObjectivesLow back pain (LBP) is a common musculoskeletal disorder among different age groups, including adolescents. The purpose of this study was to compare the abdominal muscle thickness between healthy adolescents and those with LBP.MethodsOne hundred sixty healthy high school adolescents and 80 high school adolescents with LBP participated in the study. All participants were asked to complete a demographic questionnaire and also a visual analog scale and the Oswestry Disability Questionnaire to evaluate the pain intensity and functional disability. Then abdominal muscle thickness was examined with ultrasonography.ResultsThe healthy high adolescents included 80 boys and 80 girls, and the adolescents with LBP included 40 boys and 40 girls. The results showed a significant difference between healthy adolescents and those with LBP in terms of abdominal muscle thickness (P < .05). Patients with LBP had smaller abdominal muscles compared with healthy adolescents. No significant difference was found between the groups in terms of the subcutaneous fat dimension (P > .05).ConclusionsThe thickness of abdominal muscles was lower in adolescents with LBP. Future studies with a larger sample and a wider age range are recommended to support the results of this study.
Ultrasound‐Guided Posterior Femoral Cutaneous Nerve Block: A Cadaveric Study
Authors: Johnson Christopher S. , Johnson Rebecca L. , Niesen Adam D. , Stoike David E. , Pawlina Wojciech 
Published: October 2017

ObjectivesTo identify any anatomic barriers to local anesthetic spread between the sciatic nerve (SN) and the posterior femoral cutaneous nerve (PFCN) at the level of the infragluteal crease and to describe a potential technique for an ultrasound (US)‐guided subgluteal PFCN block in a cadaveric model.MethodsBilateral US‐guided subgluteal injections of a colored latex solution were performed around the SN (15 mL) and PFCN (10 mL) in 4 unembalmed cadavers, for a total of 8 cadaver thighs. The specimens were dissected after latex polymerization to observe the spread of the latex solutions.ResultsWith US guidance, the PFCN was visualized deep to the gluteus maximus and slightly superficial or lateral to the SN at the level of the infragluteal crease. The SN and PFCN were found on dissection to be coated with their respective colored latex in all 8 thighs. The SN and PFCN were consistently separated by the deep investing muscular fascia of the thigh, with only 2 thighs showing substantial mixing of latex injectates.ConclusionsThe deep investing muscular fascia of the thigh appears to impede the spread of injectate between the SN and PFCN in a most unembalmed cadaver specimens. A US‐guided subgluteal PFCN blockade may be a feasible technique to complement an SN block when complete anesthesia of the posterior thigh is required.
Comparing Crystallization Kinetics between Polyamide 6 and Polyketone via Chip‐Calorimeter Measurement
Authors: He Yucheng , Luo Ruiqi , Li Zhaolei , Lv Ruihua , Zhou Dongshan , Lim Soonho , Ren Xiaoning , Gao Hongxu , Hu Wenbing 
Published: October 2017

AbstractPolyamide 6 and aliphatic polyketone exhibit similar melting points and heats of fusion, which expose the kinetic effects of intermolecular interactions on their crystallization kinetics. The commercial chip‐calorimeter Flash DSC1 is employed to measure their crystallization rates in a broad temperature range. The results show that polyamide crystallizes faster than polyketone at high temperatures, but slower at low temperatures. The faster crystallization is attributed to a lower lateral‐surface free energy for crystal nucleation at high temperatures on account of the sheet‐like hydrogen bonding in polyamide crystals. The slower crystallization is attributed to the lower molecular mobility for crystal nucleation at low temperatures on account of the higher glass transition temperature of polyamide.
Polydopamine Particles Reinforced Poly(vinyl alcohol) Hydrogel with NIR Light Triggered Shape Memory and Self‐Healing Capability
Authors: Yang Li , Wang Zhanhua , Fei Guoxia , Xia Hesheng 
Published: October 2017

AbstractThis study focuses on developing a facile approach to prepare biocompatible poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) composite hydrogels containing polydopamine particles (PDAPs) with ultrafast near‐infrared (NIR) light‐triggered shape memory and self‐healing capability. The PVA‐PDAPs composite hydrogels with excellent mechanical properties can be achieved after freezing/thawing treatment, and the formation of physically cross‐linked networks from the hydrogen bonding (H‐bonding) between PVA and PDAPs. Due to the excellent photothermal effect of polydopamine, the composited hydrogel can achieve rapid shape recovery and efficient self‐healing properties under NIR light exposure in a short time. With the excellent shape memory performance, good biocompatibility, and self‐healing property, this hydrogel should have great potential in biomedical fields such as tissue engineering, arthrodial cartilage, and artificial skin.
Monomer Protonation‐Dependent Surface Polymerization to Achieve One‐Step Grafting Cross‐Linked Poly(4‐Vinylpyridine) Onto Core–Shell Fe3O4@SiO2 Nanoparticles
Authors: Tian Kesong , Li Ruifei , Wang Haiyan , Chen Yan , Guo Wanchun , Wang Yaqi , Xu Zhaopeng 
Published: October 2017

AbstractFunctional polymer‐grafting silica nanoparticles hold great promise in diverse applications such as molecule recognition, drug delivery, and heterogeneous catalysis due to high density and uniform distribution of functional groups and their tunable spatial distance. However, conventional grafting methods from monomers mainly consist of one or more extra surface modification steps and a subsequent surface polymerization step. A monomer protonation‐dependent surface polymerization strategy is proposed to achieve one‐step uniform surface grafting of cross‐linked poly(4‐vinylpyridine) (P4VP) onto core–shell Fe3O4@SiO2 nanostructures. At an approximate pH, partially protonated 4VP sites in aqueous solution can be strongly adsorbed onto deprotonated silanol groups (SiO−) onto Fe3O4@SiO2 nanospheres to ensure prior polymerization of these protonated 4VP sites exclusively onto Fe3O4@SiO2 nanoparticles and subsequent polymerization of other 4VP and divinylbenzene monomers harvested by these protonated 4VP monomers onto Fe3O4@SiO2 nanoparticles, thereby achieving direct grafting of cross‐linked P4VP macromolecules onto Fe3O4@SiO2 nanoparticles.
Conjugated Polymers Via Direct Arylation Polymerization in Continuous Flow: Minimizing the Cost and Batch‐to‐Batch Variations for High‐Throughput Energy Conversion
Authors: Gobalasingham Nemal S. , Carlé Jon E. , Krebs Frederik C. , Thompson Barry C. , Bundgaard Eva , Helgesen Martin 
Published: October 2017

AbstractContinuous flow methods are utilized in conjunction with direct arylation polymerization (DArP) for the scaled synthesis of the roll‐to‐roll compatible polymer, poly[(2,5‐bis(2‐hexyldecyloxy)phenylene)‐alt‐(4,7‐di(thiophen‐2‐yl)‐benzo[c][1,2,5]thiadiazole)] (PPDTBT). PPDTBT is based on simple, inexpensive, and scalable monomers using thienyl‐flanked benzothiadiazole as the acceptor, which is the first β‐unprotected substrate to be used in continuous flow via DArP, enabling critical evaluation of the suitability of this emerging synthetic method for minimizing defects and for the scaled synthesis of high‐performance materials. To demonstrate the usefulness of the method, DArP‐prepared PPDTBT via continuous flow synthesis is employed for the preparation of indium tin oxide (ITO)‐free and flexible roll‐coated solar cells to achieve a power conversion efficiency of 3.5% for 1 cm2 devices, which is comparable to the performance of PPDTBT polymerized through Stille cross coupling. These efforts demonstrate the distinct advantages of the continuous flow protocol with DArP avoiding use of toxic tin chemicals, reducing the associated costs of polymer upscaling, and minimizing batch‐to‐batch variations for high‐quality material.