bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Exploring the Structural Space of the Galectin‐1–Ligand Interaction
Authors: Bertleff‐Zieschang Nadja , Bechold Julian , Grimm Clemens , Reutlinger Michael , Schneider Petra , Schneider Gisbert , Seibel Jürgen 
Published: May 2017

AbstractGalectin‐1 is a tumor‐associated protein recognizing the Galβ1‐4GlcNAc motif of cell‐surface glycoconjugates. Herein, we report the stepwise expansion of a multifunctional natural scaffold based on N‐acetyllactosamine (LacNAc). We obtained a LacNAc mimetic equipped with an alkynyl function on the 3′‐hydroxy group of the disaccharide facing towards a binding pocket adjacent to the carbohydrate‐recognition domain. It served as an anchor motif for further expansion by the Sharpless–Huisgen–Meldal reaction, which resulted in ligands with a binding mode almost identical to that of the natural carbohydrate template. X‐ray crystallography provided a structural understanding of the galectin‐1–ligand interactions. The results of this study enable the development of bespoke ligands for members of the galectin target family.
Experimental Assessment of an Innovative Device to Mimic Bubble Swarm Turbulence
Authors: Mießner Ulrich , Kück Ulf D. , Haase Katharina , Kähler Christian J. , Fritsching Udo , Thöming Jorg 
Published: May 2017

AbstractThe local mass transfer of a bubble under swarm turbulence influence is the key to the performance of gas‐liquid contactors. For measurements, optical accessibility is reduced due to an increased void fraction. The performance of a flexible grid of rigid particles to mimic the hydrodynamic conditions of bubble‐induced swarm turbulence is assessed using spectral energy density distribution and an approach to connect the turbulent intensity to the according length scale of the flow. Despite the significant physical property differences to real bubbly flow the flexible grid is found to realistically mimic the swarm turbulence of a cocurrent bubble column. Hence, a single bubble approaching the proposed flexible grid experiences hydrodynamic conditions comparable to real bubble‐induced turbulence.
Visible Light Induced Organic Transformations Using Metal‐Organic‐Frameworks (MOFs)
Authors: Deng Xiaoyu , Li Zhaohui , García Hermenegildo 
Published: May 2017

AbstractWith the aim of developing renewable energy based processes, researchers are paying increasing interest to light induced organic transformations. Metal‐organic frameworks (MOFs), a class of micro‐/mesoporous hybrid materials, are recently emerging as a new type of photoactive materials for organic syntheses due to their unique structural characteristics. In this Review, we summarized the recent applications of MOFs as photocatalysts for light induced organic transformations, including (1) oxidation of alcohols, amines, alkene, alkanes and sulfides; (2) hydroxylation of aromatic compounds like benzene; (3) activation of the C−H bonds to construct new C−C or C−X bonds; (4) atom‐transfer radical polymerization (ATRP). This Review starts with general background information of using MOFs in photocatalysis, followed by a description of light induced organic transformations promoted by photoactive inorganic nodes and photocatalytic active ligands in MOFs, respectively. Thereafter, the use of MOFs as multifunctional catalysts for light induced organic transformations via an efficient merge of the metal/ligand/guest based catalysis where the photocatalytic activity of MOFs plays a key role are discussed. Finally, the limitations, challenges and the future perspective of the application of MOFs for light induced organic transformations were addressed. The objective of this Review is to serve as a starting point for other researchers to get into this largely unexplored field. It is also our goal to stimulate intensive research in this field for rational designing of MOF materials to overcome their current limitations in photocatalysis, which can lead to more creative visible‐light‐induced organic transformations.
Naphthalimide‐Based Polyammonium Chemosensors for Anions: Study of Binding Properties and Sensing Mechanisms
Authors: Oshchepkov Aleksandr S. , Mittapalli Ramana R. , Fedorova Olga A. , Kataev Evgeny A. 
Published: May 2017

AbstractNew naphthalimide‐based receptors for anions have been synthesized. Efficient synthetic routes have been discovered to functionalize the naphthalimide core with branched polyamines. Binding and sensing properties of the receptors were studied by potentiometric, NMR and fluorescence titrations. The receptors bind selectively to the pyrophosphate anion in buffered aqueous solutions. The receptors with more than six amine groups in the structure demonstrated the highest affinities for pyrophosphate. The fluorescence response towards anions was found to be dependent on the position of the amine groups relative to the naphthalimide core, and on the pH of the buffered solution. Three sensing mechanisms have been found that explain fluorescence responses of receptors towards anions in an aqueous solution.
Study of the Aggregation of DNA‐Capped Gold Nanoparticles: A Smart and Flexible Aptasensor for Spermine Sensing
Authors: Tsoi Tik‐Hung , Gu Yan‐Juan , Lo Wai‐Sum , Wong Wai‐Ting , Wong Wing‐Tak , Ng Chi‐Fai , Lee Chi‐Sing , Wong Ka‐Leung 
Published: May 2017

AbstractA smart gold nanoparticle based aptasensor is developed for the sensing of this biomarker in a convenient and fast manner. A comprehensive study was performed to elucidate the driving force of DNA adsorption, different factors’ effects, such as gold nanoparticle size, DNA length, concentration, and working pH towards spermine sensing by using UV/Vis absorption spectroscopy and isothermal titration calorimetry. It was found that the developed aptasensor could detect spermine by two different sensing mechanisms simply by adjusting the DNA concentration without complicated procedures. Good performance in complicated matrices was proven by the satisfactory results obtained in the spike analysis of both artificial urine and clinical urine samples. Such a flexible and smart approach described here would provide a useful tool for the fast sensing of spermine and prostate cancer screening.
Quasi‐Customary Dispute Resolution Mechanisms in Israel's Darfuri Refugees
Authors: Pely Doron 
Published: May 2017

About 3,500 Darfuri male (and a few female) asylum seekers live in Israel. The majority are 25 to 40 years old. Older men, including village and community dignitaries, stand little chance of surviving the brutal trek.In Darfur, where most inhabitants live in small villages, inter‐ and intracommunal conflicts are traditionally resolved through the customary justice process of Judiya. But in Israel, Darfuri asylum seekers no longer reside with their kin groups (villages, tribes, clans); instead they often cohabit with asylum seekers from other tribes, clans, and villages, living in crowded conditions, mostly in the poor south side of Tel Aviv—a situation that gives rise to multiple small conflicts.In the absence of their familiar tribal structure, dignitaries, and other interveners, the refugees have no access to the traditional dispute resolution mechanisms they have grown up with. Furthermore, these asylum seekers avoid bringing their conflicts to the attention of the Israeli authorities, for fear of endangering their asylum petitions. The result is that this community finds itself trying to cope with difficult, intracommunal, conflict‐rich conditions, without being able to use either traditional conflict resolution mechanisms or local formal justice processes.The response of the Darfuri asylum seekers community to this circumstance has been to develop their own multitier, quasi‐customary intracommunal dispute resolution mechanism. This new mechanism combines elements of their traditional, Darfur‐based processes, along with newly constructed modifications designed to compensate for the missing elements (e.g., lack of village elders) and make use of available resources (e.g., young community activists).This article employs analysis of multiple interviews and review of relevant literature to identify and describe the unique, informal dispute resolution mechanism that the Darfuri community developed in Israel.Insights developed in this article may help community activists, municipalities, policy makers, nongovernmental organizations, and other individuals and organizations in understanding and facilitating alternative dispute resolution mechanisms within similarly structured and similarly affected displaced persons and asylum seeker communities around the world.
Cooperative Action Acquisition Based on Intention Estimation in a Multi‐Agent Reinforcement Learning System
Authors: TSUBAKIMOTO TATSUYA , KOBAYASHI KUNIKAZU 
Published: May 2017

SUMMARYIn this paper, we propose a method to acquire a series of cooperative actions to reach an appropriate goal without the designer controlling the reward. To accomplish this, we introduce a new concept of “reward interpretation.” This is the idea that an agent can increase or decrease the reward given by the environment through the reward interpretation on its won. We applied this idea to the Q‐learning method. The simulation results show that the proposed method is superior to a standard Q‐learning method and a Q‐learning method with cooperation in terms of the number of successful instances of cooperation.
A Study of Relationship between Link Length Configuration and Foot Positioning Accuracy of Leg Extender Exoskeleton
Authors: TATENO SABURO , MINAKATA HIDEAKI 
Published: May 2017

SUMMARYWe developed a leg extender exoskeleton that extends leg length by 40 cm. We also propose a linearity index to evaluate the feeling of operating the exoskeleton. We developed an evaluation method for the foot positioning accuracy of the leg extender exoskeleton. This method uses three types of target marker trajectories to consider various walking situations. We performed a real‐world experiment using four types of link configurations. The foot positioning accuracy was measured and evaluated according to the linearity index for each exoskeleton. The results showed that an exoskeleton with good linearity provides better foot positioning accuracy.
Sampling‐Based Motion Planning with a Prediction Model using Fast Gaussian Process Regression
Authors: OKADOME YUTA , NAKAMURA YUTAKA , ISHIGURO HIROSHI 
Published: May 2017

SUMMARYRecently, motion/path planning methods have become popular and been put to use in practical applications such as autonomous cars. Most studies focus on planning based on a given mathematical model, but the development of the data‐driven system identification method is also crucial for practical applications, because the precise model of a control target is not always available in advance. In this research, we propose a motion planning method where a fast Gaussian process regression is used as a model of the control target, since Gaussian process regression is a powerful nonparametric method that is widely used in various practical and complicated applications. Thanks to the Bayesian property of Gaussian process regression, our method can deal with uncertainty in the predictions. We apply our method to the control problem of simple‐pendulum with nonlinearity, and complete the swing‐up task.
Finger Joint Angle Estimation from Electrical Contact Resistance
Authors: KAWAGUCHI JUNKI , YOSHIMOTO SHUNSUKE , IMURA MASATAKA , OSHIRO OSAMU 
Published: May 2017

SUMMARYHand motion capture is an important topic for understanding the mechanism of the hand. General hand motion capture methods using cameras or bent sensors can capture the limited action in the restricted environments. This study proposes a novel hand motion capture method without restrictions of usage environment and user’ action. The proposed method is based on the electrical contact resistance between the wrist skin and the electrode to measure the deformation of the wrist which is related to the hand motion. We fabricate the contact resistance measurement circuit consists of three electrodes and a multiplexer. The output voltage corresponding to each contact resistance of the electrode is measured with the circuit by switching the working electrode temporally. We confirm that the output voltage is related to the wrist shape and changes according to the hand posture. Furthermore, the result suggests that the finger joint angles can be estimated from the output voltage due to the correlation between them.
Relationships between gas field development and the presence and abundance of pygmy rabbits in southwestern Wyoming
Authors: Germaine Stephen S. , Carter Sarah K. , Ignizio Drew A. , Freeman Aaron T. 
Published: May 2017

AbstractMore than 5957 km2 in southwestern Wyoming is currently covered by operational gas fields, and further development is projected through 2030. Gas fields fragment landscapes through conversion of native vegetation to roads, well pads, pipeline corridors, and other infrastructure elements. The sagebrush steppe landscape where most of this development is occurring harbors 24 sagebrush‐associated species of greatest conservation need, but the effects of gas energy development on most of these species are unknown. Pygmy rabbits (Brachylagus idahoensis) are one such species. In 2011, we began collecting three years of survey data to examine the relationship between gas field development density and pygmy rabbit site occupancy patterns on four major Wyoming gas fields (Continental Divide–Creston–Blue Gap, Jonah, Moxa Arch, Pinedale Anticline Project Area). We surveyed 120 plots across four gas fields, with plots distributed across the density gradient of gas well pads on each field. In a 1 km radius around the center of each plot, we measured the area covered by each of 10 gas field infrastructure elements and by shrub cover using 2012 National Agriculture Imagery Program imagery. We then modeled the relationship between gas field elements, pygmy rabbit presence, and two indices of pygmy rabbit abundance. Gas field infrastructure elements—specifically buried utility corridors and a complex of gas well pads, adjacent disturbed areas, and well pad access roads—were negatively correlated with pygmy rabbit presence and abundance indices, with sharp declines apparent after approximately 2% of the area consisted of gas field infrastructure. We conclude that pygmy rabbits in southwestern Wyoming may be sensitive to gas field development at levels similar to those observed for greater sage‐grouse, and may suffer local population declines at lower levels of development than are allowed in existing plans and policies designed to conserve greater sage‐grouse by limiting the surface footprint of energy development. Buried utilities, gas well pads, areas adjacent to well pads, and well pad access roads had the strongest negative correlation with pygmy rabbit presence and abundance. Minimizing the surface footprint of these elements may reduce negative impacts of gas energy development on pygmy rabbits.
Differential effects of temperature and precipitation on early‐ vs. late‐flowering species
Authors: Moore Lynn M. , Lauenroth William K. 
Published: May 2017

AbstractShifts in flowering dates have been associated with climate change and warming temperatures. However, the influence of temperature and precipitation on annual phenology patterns in semiarid ecosystems is not well understood. We observed the flowering stages of 21 shortgrass steppe species from 1995 to 2014. We compared first and last flowering dates and used climatic data to interpret relationships between the timing of flowering and temperature and precipitation. On average, the first flowering dates of 21 species advanced 0.53 d over the 20‐yr period. This advance was significantly related to an increase in annual March–September mean temperature in that first flowering date advanced at the rate of 7.5 d°C−1. The advance of the first flowering date was significantly related to increased spring temperatures in early‐season species. Late‐blooming species flowered longer; this delay in end of flowering was significantly related to wetter conditions. Significant advances in first flowering date were related to increasing temperatures over time, suggesting a response to climate change. In the water‐limited shortgrass steppe, the effect of the environment on flowering phenology is controlled by warmer temperatures early in the growing season and precipitation later in the growing season.
Low‐seismic damage strategies for infilled RC frames: shake‐table tests
Authors: Zhang Hanhui , Kuang J.S. , Yuen Terry Y.P. 
Published: May 2017

SummaryUnreinforced masonry (URM) infill panels are widely used as partitions in RC frames and typically considered as non‐structural elements in the design process. However, observations from recent major earthquakes have shown that under seismic excitation, the structural interaction between columns and infill walls can significantly alter the structural behaviour, thus causing catastrophic consequences. The purpose of this research was to propose and test an innovative low seismic damage detailing method, which isolates the infill panel from bounding columns with finite width vertical gaps during the infill panel construction phase and deploys steel wire connections in mortar layers anchored to columns. Taking into account the similitude requirements, a total of six one‐third scale, single‐storey single‐bay RC frames with different infill configurations and flexible connection details were carefully designed and tested on a shake‐table. Three real earthquake records were selected and scaled to ascending intensity levels and used as input signals. A series of thorough investigations including dynamic characteristics, hysteretic behaviour, failure mechanisms, out‐of‐plane vulnerabilities and the effect of different gap filling materials and load transfer mechanisms were rigorously studied. The experimental results indicate that the undesirable interaction between infill panels and bounding frame is significantly reduced using the proposed low seismic damage detailing concept. Direct shear failure of columns at an early stage is prevented, and structural redundancy at high levels of excitation can be provided. In general, the structural stability and integrity, and displacement ductility of infilled RC frames can remarkably be improved. Copyright © 2017 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A low‐complexity QoS aware resource allocation algorithm for multi pair device‐to‐device (D2D) communications
Authors: Bagheri Hamidreza , Miranda Bonomi Fernando Alberto , Katz Marcos 
Published: May 2017

AbstractDevice‐to‐device (D2D) communication underlaying cellular networks is considered a promising technology to enhance network throughput, spectral efficiency, and performance of next generation networks. However, these potential gains hinge on the exploiting mechanism for resource sharing between cellular users (CUs) and D2D pairs. In this paper, we analytically formulate the problem of resource sharing as an optimization problem to maximize network throughput while guaranteeing the required quality‐of‐service (QoS) for both cellular and D2D users. We propose a low‐complexity four‐step resource allocation algorithm to address the optimization problem. We exploit a distance‐based method to derive a resource reuse candidacy graph (RCG) and three exclusive regions (ERs) to evaluate the suitability of resource sharing between each CU and D2D pair. Then, we use a paring mechanism to find the optimal set of D2D pairs for spectrum sharing with each CU to maximize network throughput. The performance of the proposed algorithm is investigated in terms of network throughput, outage probability, and computational complexity. Numerical results show that the proposed algorithm provides high throughput and spectrum utilization with low complexity while efficiently guaranteeing QoS for CUs and D2D pairs.
Lactadherin orthologs inhibit migration of human, porcine and murine intestinal epithelial cells
Authors: Nyegaard Steffen , Andreasen Trine , Rasmussen Jan Trige 
Published: May 2017

AbstractLactadherin was originally described due to its appearance in milk, but is abundantly expressed especially by professional and nonprofessional phagocytes. The proteins has been shown to have a multitude of bioactive effects, including inhibition of inflammatory phospholipases, induction of effero‐ and phagocytosis, prevent rotavirus induced gastroenteritis, and modulate intestinal homeostasis by regulating epithelial cell migration. The level of expression seems to be important in a row of serious pathologies linked to the intestinal epithelial barrier function, vascular‐ and autoimmune disease. This study examines the ability of lactadherin to modulate migration of intestinal epithelium. A cell exclusion assay is used to quantify the ability of human, bovine and murine lactadherin orthologs to affect migration of primary small intestine epithelium cells. Previous reports show that recombinant murine lactadherin stimulate rat small intestine cell migration. The present study could not confirm this. Conversely, 10 μg/ml lactadherin inhibits migration. Therefore, as lactadherins enteroprotective properties is well established using in vivo models we conclude that the protective effects are linked to lactadherins ability operate as an opsonin, or other modulating effects, and not a direct lactadherin‐cell induction of migration. Thus, the molecular mechanism behind the enteroprotective role of lactadherin remains to be established.
Diagnosis and treatment of cervical papillary squamous cell carcinoma with unknown depth of stromal invasion
Authors: Zhang Xuyin , Ding Jingxin , Tao Xiang , Qian Huijun , Hua Keqin 
Published: May 2017

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate the diagnosis and treatment of papillary squamous cell carcinoma (PSCC) of the uterine cervix with unknown depth of stromal invasion.MethodsIn a retrospective study, the diagnostic and treatment strategies after colposcopy‐guided biopsy sampling were assessed among patients seen at a university hospital in Shanghai, China, in 2008–2015.ResultsAmong 55 patients, 29 with clinically visible lesions underwent radical hysterectomy; the final pathologic diagnosis was invasive squamous cell carcinoma in all patients. Of these patients, eight had undergone loop electrosurgical excision procedure (LEEP) and two had undergone a second biopsy sampling before radical hysterectomy was performed. Of the 26 patients with no clinically visible lesions, 17 had cervical lesions as confirmed by medical imaging and 12 of these patients underwent LEEP. The pathologic examination showed lesions of varying severity but no cancer in situ. The remaining five patients underwent radical hysterectomy; one of these patients was found to have micro‐invasive cancer.ConclusionPatients with PSCC with unknown depth of stromal invasion and clinically visible lesions receive radical hysterectomy rather than undergoing a second biopsy sampling or LEEP. Less invasive surgery is recommended for patients with no clinically visible lesions.