bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Quasiparity‐Time Symmetric Microdisk Laser
Authors: Zhang Nan , Gu Zhiyuan , Wang Kaiyang , Li Meng , Ge Li , Xiao Shumin , Song Qinghai 
Published: September 2017

AbstractRecent developments in parity‐time (PT) symmetric systems have ushered in unique photonic devices with enhanced functionalities. While single‐mode laser emission has been demonstrated in such systems, the current designs face severe challenges in applications, either due to their stringent requirement on fabrication precision or nonscalability to larger devices. Here, we demonstrate a general mechanism to achieve single‐mode lasing in coupled cavities, which relies on external mode coupling and overcomes these drawbacks. We find significant gain enhancement for selected modes by external coupling, and our experiments have confirmed the resulting single‐mode laser emission in size‐mismatched photonic molecules (PMs), when only one constituent cavity is pumped. This behavior persists for a wide range of pump power, from transparent threshold to gain saturation, and it is highly tolerant of fabrication imprecisions. In addition, the output intensity of such single‐mode lasers also displays enhancement when compared with the same PMs under uniformly pumping. We believe our results will both advance the understanding of different coupling scenarios in coupled cavities and improve the characteristics of onchip laser sources for practical applications.
The TRANSFoRm project: Experience and lessons learned regarding functional and interoperability requirements to support primary care
Authors: Ethier Jean‐François , McGilchrist Mark , Barton Adrien , Cloutier Anne‐Marie , Curcin Vasa , Delaney Brendan C. , Burgun Anita 
Published: September 2017

AbstractIntroductionThe current model of medical knowledge production, transfer, and application suffers from serious shortcomings. Learning health systems (LHS) have recently emerged as a potential solution—systems in which health information generated from patients is continuously analyzed to improve knowledge that will be transferred to patient care.MethodVarious approaches of data integration already exist and could be considered for the implementation of a LHS. We discuss what are the possible informatics approaches to address the functional requirements of LHS, in the specific context of primary care, and present the experience and lessons learned from the TRANSFoRm project.ResultImplemented in 4 countries around 5 systems, TRANSFoRm is based on a local‐as‐view data mediation approach integrating the structural and terminological models in the same framework. It clearly demonstrated that it has the potential to address the requirements for a LHS in primary care, by dealing with data fragmented across multiple points of service. Also, it has the potential to support the generation of hypotheses from the context of clinical care, retrospective and prospective research, and decision support systems that improve the relevance of medical decisions.ConclusionThe LHS approach embodies a shift from an institution‐centered to a patient‐centered perspective in knowledge production and transfer and can address important challenges in the primary care setting.
Essential and continuous spectrum of symmetric difference equations
Authors: Nyamwala Fredrick Oluoch 
Published: September 2017

AbstractEssential and continuous spectrum of symmetric difference equations have been investigated. It has been shown that the deficiency indices and the existence of these components of the spectrum are determined by the growth conditions of the coefficients. In particular, the deficiency indices are superimposition of those clusters determined by the coefficient growth. Finally, we have proved the neccessary and sufficient conditions for the existence of essential spectrum of selfadjoint subspace extensions using subspace theory and asymtotic summation.
Necessary and sufficient conditions for existence of blow‐up solutions for elliptic problems in Orlicz–Sobolev spaces
Authors: Santos Carlos Alberto , Zhou Jiazheng , Abrantes Santos Jefferson 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThis paper is principally devoted to revisit the remarkable works of Keller and Osserman and generalize some previous results related to the those for the class of quasilinear elliptic problem
urn:x-wiley:0025584X:media:mana201600231:mana201600231-math-0001where either with is a smooth bounded domain or . The function ϕ includes special cases appearing in mathematical models in nonlinear elasticity, plasticity, generalized Newtonian fluids, and in quantum physics. The proofs are based on comparison principle, variational methods and topological arguments on the Orlicz–Sobolev spaces.
Lung field segmentation using weighted sparse shape composition with robust initialization
Authors: Xiong Junfeng , Shao Yeqin , Ma Jingchen , Ren Yacheng , Wang Qian , Zhao Jun 
Published: September 2017

PurposeLung field segmentation for chest radiography is critical to pulmonary disease diagnosis. In this paper, we propose a new deformable model using weighted sparse shape composition with robust initialization to achieve robust and accurate lung field segmentation.MethodsOur method consists of three steps: initialization, deformation and regularization. The steps of deformation and regularization are iteratively employed until convergence. First, since a deformable model is sensitive to the initial shape, a robust initialization is obtained by using a novel voting strategy, which allows the reliable patches on the image to vote for each landmark of the initial shape. Then, each point of the initial shape independently deforms to the lung boundary under the guidance of the appearance model, which can distinguish lung tissues from nonlung tissues near the boundary. Finally, the deformed shape is regularized by weighted sparse shape composition (SSC) model, which is constrained by both boundary information and the correlations between each point of the deformed shape.ResultsOur method has been evaluated on 247 chest radiographs from well‐known dataset Japanese Society of Radiological Technology (JSRT) and achieved high overlap scores (0.955 ± 0.021).ConclusionsThe experimental results show that the proposed deformable segmentation model is more robust and accurate than the traditional appearance and shape model on the JSRT database. Our method also shows higher accuracy than most state‐of‐the‐art methods.
Cutaneous silent period in myofascial pain syndrome
Authors: Kilinc Ozden , Sencan Savas , Ercalik Tulay , Koytak Pinar Kahraman , Alibas Hande , Gunduz Osman Hakan , Tanridag Tulin , Uluc Kayihan 
Published: September 2017

ABSTRACTIntroduction: An increased response to painful stimuli without spontaneous pain suggests a role of central hyperexcitability of pain pathways in the pathogenesis of myofascial pain syndrome (MPS). In this study we aimed to test the hypothesis that spinal pain pathways are affected in MPS. We used cutaneous silent period (CSP) parameters to demonstrate the hyperexcitability of spinal pain pathways in MPS. Methods: Twenty‐nine patients diagnosed with MPS and 30 healthy volunteers were included in the study. The CSP recordings were performed in the right upper and left lower extremities. Results: In both upper and lower extremities, patients had prolonged CSP latencies (P = 0.034 and P = 0.049 respectively) and shortened CSP durations (P = 0.009 and P = 0.008, respectively). Discussion: Delayed and shortened CSP in MPS patients implies dysfunction in the inhibitory mechanism of the spinal/supraspinal pain pathways, suggesting central sensitization in the pathogenesis of MPS and supporting our research hypothesis. Muscle Nerve 57: E24–E28, 2018
Treatment with liraglutide may improve markers of CVD reflected by reduced levels of apoB
Authors: Engelbrechtsen L. , Lundgren J. , Wewer Albrechtsen N. J. , Mahendran Y. , Iepsen E. W. , Finocchietto P. , Jonsson A. E. , Madsbad S. , Holst J. J. , Vestergaard H. , Hansen T. , Torekov S. S. 
Published: September 2017

SummaryBackgroundDislipidaemia and increased levels of apolipoprotein B (apoB) in individuals with obesity are risk factors for development of cardiovascular disease (CVD). The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of weight loss and weight maintenance with and without liraglutide treatment on plasma lipid profiles and apoB.MethodsFifty‐eight individuals with obesity (body mass index 34.5 ± 3.0 kg/m2 [mean ± SD]) were included in this study. After 8 weeks on a very low‐calorie diet (800 kcal/day), participants were randomized to weight maintenance with meal replacements with or without liraglutide (1.2 mg daily) for 1 year. Plasma samples from before and after weight loss and after 1 year of weight maintenance were subjected to nuclear magnetic resonance‐based lipidomics analysis.ResultsAfter an 8‐week low‐calorie diet, study participants lost 12.0 ± 2.9 kg (mean ± SD) of their body weight, which was reflected in their lipid profiles (80 out of 124 lipids changed significantly), including reduced levels of apoB, total cholesterol, free cholesterol, remnant cholesterol, triglycerides, low‐density lipoprotein and very low‐density lipoprotein subclasses. After 1 year of maintained weight loss, the majority of the lipids had returned to pre‐weight loss levels even though weight loss was successfully maintained in both groups. Interestingly, apoB levels remained low in the liraglutide treated group (apoB change: 0.03 ± 0.02 mmol/L, p = 0.4) in contrast to an increase in the control group (apoB change: 0.06 ± 0.07 mmol/L, p = 0.02).ConclusionAn 8‐week low‐calorie diet, in individuals with obesity, reduced plasma levels of lipids and the atherogenic marker apoB. After 1 year of weight maintenance, only study participants treated with liraglutide maintained reduced levels of apoB, despite similar body weight maintenance. Treatment with liraglutide may therefore reduce apoB levels and thus reflect lower CVD risk. Including apoB measurements in clinical practice when monitoring patients with dislipidemia or CVD might prove to be useful.
Association of clinical trial enrollment and survival using contemporary therapy for pediatric acute lymphoblastic leukemia
Authors: Moke Diana J. , Oberley Matthew J. , Bhojwani Deepa , Parekh Chintan , Orgel Etan 
Published: September 2017

AbstractWhile early studies reported superior survival for cancer patients enrolled on clinical trials, recent findings are inconclusive. We investigated the association between enrollment on contemporary trials and event‐free survival (EFS) in pediatric B‐cell acute lymphoblastic leukemia (B‐ALL). In a retrospective cohort of 274 children (1–21 years) treated for B‐ALL from 2008 to 2015, 55.5% enrolled with no disparity in enrollment by age, sex, or ethnicity. Three‐year EFS was similar for enrolled and not enrolled patients (90.1% [95% CI, 82.5–94.5] versus 86.5% [95% CI, 77.7–92.0]). Clinical trial enrollment did not affect pediatric B‐ALL survival, albeit in a limited‐size cohort treated at a single academic institution.
Pleistocene Involutions and Patterned Ground in France: Examples and Analysis Using a GIS Database
Authors: Bertran Pascal , Andrieux Eric , Antoine Pierre , Deschodt Laurent , Font Marianne , Sicilia Deborah 
Published: September 2017

AbstractA georeferenced database is used to analyse the distribution of Quaternary soft‐sediment deformation structures across France. They include features visible in aerial photographs (soil stripes and cells) and features described in cross‐section (involutions). Overall, there is no clear relation between the distribution of features and the locations of known faults and earthquakes in available databases. In contrast, the distribution agrees with that of Pleistocene periglacial structures. Most of the soil stripes and cells are located north of 47.5°N, i.e. in the zone of ice‐wedge pseudomorphs, and can be interpreted as deformation structures of an active layer in permafrost terrain. The height of the involutions is influenced by the nature of the filling, the substrate and latitude. Deformation structures are larger in coarse material, reflecting the role of drainage and thermal conductivity. Their height increases northward to ca. 2 m at 48°N. This is thought to reflect the increase in thickness of the layer subjected to freeze–thaw cycles. Bowl‐shaped structures separated by coarse pillars, which correspond to soil stripes seen in section, have formed on slopes in settings unfavourable to the generation of high pore‐water pressure. Their genesis is probably related to differential frost heave. Ball‐and‐pillow structures and diapirs are common in flat and poorly drained terrain, and formed by liquefaction and sometimes fluidisation in a periglacial setting. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Room for Manoeuvre: Rethinking the Intersections Between Migration and the Informal Economy in Post‐Industrial Economies
Authors: Anne Visser M. , Guarnizo Luis E. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractDominant scholarly and policy discourse implicitly connect growth in immigration to growth in the informal economy and negative socio‐economic outcomes in post‐industrial societies. In this introduction, we highlight some of the broader questions and implications raised by the multidisciplinary work of our contributors that challenge this immigration‐informality hypothesis. We argue that existing studies of the informal economy in post‐industrial societies underscore the multiscalar economic, social, and political facets and dimensions that shape the intersection between migration and the spread of informal economic practices in the global north. However, this body of work does not adequately connect the ways in which these processes influence immigrants' economic and labour market integration. The contributions to this special issue focus on these dimensions seeking to identify how they are constructed and the opportunities, challenges, and possibilities they present for migrant workers and migrant‐receiving societies. Collectively, the contributions challenge dominant narratives surrounding the relationship between migration and the informal economy and contribute to theorise them as co‐constituted at multiscalar relational processes. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A Bayesian analysis of reliability improvement experiments
Authors: Yu I‐Tang 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThe number of effects can be studied in a log‐location‐scale regression model used in analyzing a reliability improvement experiment is restricted to the number of runs, which is usually small. In many real examples, only the main effects and a few 2‐factor interactions are considered. In this work, we propose using a Bayesian approach to analyze reliability improvement experiments. By specifying a prior on the effects, the number of effects can be studied is no longer restricted to the number of runs, and aliased effects can all be identified and estimated simultaneously. We analyze 2 real data sets to demonstrate the proposed approach. The results show that when complex interactions are present, the proposed approach can provide a more reliable result.
In‐Hospital Mortality for Hepatic Portal Venous Gas: Analysis of 1590 Patients Using a Japanese National Inpatient Database
Authors: Koizumi Chie , Michihata Nobuaki , Matsui Hiroki , Fushimi Kiyohide , Yasunaga Hideo 
Published: September 2017

AbstractBackgroundHepatic portal venous gas (HPVG) is rare but potentially serious condition. Main cause of HPVG is bowel ischemia, while detection of HPVG without bowel ischemia may have been increasing possibly due to widespread use of computed tomography. However, little is known about variation in etiologies of HPVG and mortality of HPVG with each etiology. We examined patient backgrounds, underlying diseases, and in‐hospital mortality of HPVG patients using a national inpatient database.MethodsUsing the Diagnosis Procedure Combination database in Japan, we identified inpatients diagnosed with HPVG from July 1, 2010 to March 31, 2015. Patients’ data included age, sex, comorbidities at admission, complications after admission, body mass index, surgical procedures, medications, and discharge status. In‐hospital mortality was compared between the subgroups divided by the patient backgrounds and underlying diseases.ResultsA total of 1590 patients were identified during the study period. The mean age was 79.3 years old and the proportion of bowel ischemia was 53%. The overall in‐hospital mortality was 27.3%. In‐hospital mortality of HPVG with bowel ischemia, gastrointestinal tract (GIT) obstruction or dilation, GIT perforation, GIT infection, or sepsis was 26.8, 31.1, 33.3, 13.6, or 56.4%, respectively. Among patients with bowel ischemia, 32.2% patients received operation and their in‐hospital mortality was 16.5%.ConclusionsHPVG patients in the present study were relatively older but less likely to die than those in previous studies. Attention should be paid to the fact that mortality of HPVG without bowel ischemia was not always lower compared to that with bowel ischemia.
Determination of Fecal Sterols Following a Diet with and without Plant Sterols
Authors: Cuevas‐Tena María , Alegría Amparo , Lagarda María Jesús 
Published: September 2017

AbstractThe aim of this study was to develop a method for neutral fecal sterols determination in subjects receiving a normal diet with or without a plant sterols‐enriched beverage using gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Sample preparation conditions (homogenization of lyophilized feces with water) were evaluated. Sterol determination required direct hot saponification, unsaponifiable extraction with hexane, and the formation of trimethylsilyl (TMS) ether derivatives. The method allows the quantification of cholesterol, plant sterols and their metabolites (coprostanol, coprostanone, cholestanol, cholestanone, methylcoprostanol, methylcoprostanone, ethylcoprostenol, stigmastenol, ethylcoprostanol and ethylcoprostanone). Good linearity was obtained (r > 0.96) and interference was only observed for coprostanone, where the standard addition method proved necessary for quantification. The limits of detection (LOD) ranged from 0.10 to 3.88 µg/g dry feces and the limits of quantitation (LOQ) from 0.34 to 12.94 µg/g dry feces. Intra‐ and inter‐assay precision (RSD %) were 0.9–9.2 and 2.1–11.3, respectively. Accuracy, expressed as percentage recovery (80–119%) was obtained for all determined sterols.
Children and Careers: How Family Size Affects Parents’ Labor Market Outcomes in the Long Run
Authors: Cools Sara , Markussen Simen , Strøm Marte 
Published: September 2017

Abstract
We estimate the effect of family size on various measures of labor market outcomes over the whole career until retirement, using instrumental variables estimation in data from Norwegian administrative registers. Parents’ number of children is instrumented with the sex mix of their first two children. We find that having additional children causes sizable reductions in labor supply for women, which fade as children mature and even turn positive for women without a college degree. Among women with a college degree, there is evidence of persistent and even increasing career penalties of family size. Having additional children reduces these women’s probability of being employed by higher-paying firms, their earnings rank within the employing firm, and their probability of being the top earner at the workplace. Some of the career effects persist long after labor supply is restored. We find no effect of family size on any of men’s labor market outcomes in either the short or long run.
Costs Associated with Ebola Preparedness at a Freestanding Pediatric Assessment Center
Authors: Simonsen Kari A. , Phipps Amber R. , Hall Mel , Heybrock Brenda , Hegemann Lindsay , Arnow Debra 
Published: September 2017

The 2014–2016 West Africa Ebola outbreak led US hospitals to prepare to treat Ebola patients, with significant attributable costs. A nationwide preparedness transition to a tiered approach allowed regional allocation of preparedness resources for Ebola frontline, assessment, and treatment hospitals. Preparedness costs for assessment centers were significant and largely uncompensated.Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2017;38:1367–1369
The hourglass effect in hierarchical dependency networks
Authors: SABRIN KAESER M. , DOVROLIS CONSTANTINE 
Published: September 2017

AbstractMany hierarchically modular systems are structured in a way that resembles an hourglass. This “hourglass effect” means that the system generates many outputs from many inputs through a relatively small number of intermediate modules that are critical for the operation of the entire system, referred to as the waist of the hourglass. We investigate the hourglass effect in general, not necessarily layered, hierarchical dependency networks. Our analysis focuses on the number of source-to-target dependency paths that traverse each vertex, and it identifies the core of a dependency network as the smallest set of vertices that collectively cover almost all dependency paths. We then examine if a given network exhibits the hourglass property or not, comparing its core size with a “flat” (i.e., non-hierarchical) network that preserves the source dependencies of each target in the original network. As a possible explanation for the hourglass effect, we propose theReuse Preferencemodel that captures the bias of new modules to reuse intermediate modules of similar complexity instead of connecting directly to sources or low complexity modules. We have applied the proposed framework in a diverse set of dependency networks from technological, natural, and information systems, showing that all these networks exhibit the general hourglass property but to a varying degree and with different waist characteristics.
Wheat germ supplementation alleviates insulin resistance and cardiac mitochondrial dysfunction in an animal model of diet-induced obesity
Authors: Ojo Babajide , Simenson Ashley J. , O’Hara Crystal , Wu Lei , Gou Xin , Peterson Sandra K. , Lin Daniel , Smith Brenda J. , Lucas Edralin A. 
Published: September 2017

AbstractObesity is strongly associated with insulin resistance (IR), along with mitochondrial dysfunction to metabolically active tissues and increased production of reactive O2 species (ROS). Foods rich in antioxidants such as wheat germ (WG), protect tissues from damage due to ROS and modulate some negative effects of obesity. This study examined the effects of WG supplementation on markers of IR, mitochondrial substrate metabolism and innate antioxidant markers in two metabolically active tissues (i.e. liver and heart) of C57BL/6 mice fed a high-fat–high-sucrose (HFS) diet. Male C57BL/6 mice, 6-week-old, were randomised into four dietary treatment groups (n 12 mice/group): control (C, 10 % fat kcal), C+10 % WG, HFS (60 % fat kcal) or HFS+10 % WG (HFS+WG). After 12 weeks of treatment, HFS+WG mice had significantly less visceral fat (−16 %, P=0·006) compared with the HFS group. WG significantly reduced serum insulin (P=0·009), the insulinotropic hormone, gastric inhibitory peptide (P=0·0003), and the surrogate measure of IR, homoeostatic model assessment of IR (P=0·006). HFS diet significantly elevated (45 %, P=0·02) cardiac complex 2 mitochondrial VO2, suggesting increased metabolic stress, whereas WG stabilised this effect to the level of control. Consequently, genes which mediate antioxidant defense and mitochondrial biogenesis (superoxide dismutase 2 (Sod2) and PPARγ coactivator 1-α (Pgc1a), respectively) were significantly reduced (P<0·05) in the heart of the HFS group, whereas WG supplementation tended to up-regulate both genes. WG significantly increased hepatic gene expression of Sod2 (P=0·048) but not Pgc1a. Together, these results showed that WG supplementation in HFS diet, reduced IR and improved cardiac mitochondrial metabolic functions.