bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Occupation and suicide: Colorado, 2004–2006
Authors: Stallones Lorann , Doenges Timothy , Dik Bryan J. , Valley Morgan A. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractBackgroundOccupation has been identified as a risk factor for suicide. Changes in work environments over time suggest occupations at high risk of suicide may also change. Therefore, periodic examination of suicide by occupation is warranted. The purpose of this article is to describe suicide rates by occupation, sex, and means used in Colorado for the period 2004–2006.MethodsTo provide information useful in designing suicide prevention programs, the methods used in suicide across occupational groups also are examined. Data from the Colorado Violent Death Reporting System (COVDRS) were obtained for suicides that occurred between 2004 and 2006. Denominators to calculate rates by age, sex, and race used are from the 2000 US Census of the Population data.ResultsMen had higher suicide rates than women in all occupation categories except computers and mathematics. Among men, those in farming, fishing, and forestry (475.6 per 100,000) had the highest age‐adjusted suicide rates. Among women, workers with the highest suicide rates were in construction and extraction (134.3 per 100,000). The examination of lethal means showed that workers in farming, fishing, and forestry had higher rates of suicide by firearms (50.18 per 100,000) compared with other workers. Healthcare practitioners and technicians had the highest rate of suicide by poisoning (14.25 per 100,000). Workers involved in construction and extraction (26.43 per 100,000) had higher rates of suicide by hanging, suffocation, or strangling.ConclusionsSignificant differences in means of suicide were seen by occupation, which could guide future suicide prevention interventions that may decrease work‐related suicide risks. Am. J. Ind. Med. 56:1290–1295, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Mechanical and thermal properties of compatibilized polypropylene reinforced by woven doum
Authors: Malha Mustapha , Nekhlaoui Souad , Essabir Hamid , Benmoussa Khalid , Bensalah Mohammed‐Ouadi , Arrakhiz Fatima‐Ezzahra , Bouhfid Rachid , Qaiss Abouelkacem 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTIn this work, the development and the mechanical characterization of a doum textile composite based on a polypropylene matrix were carried out. Mechanical and rheological tests were effectuated, to illustrate the effect of woven fibers on the mechanical and viscoelastic properties at 0°, 15°, 30°, and 45° directions. The woven fibers were treated and the matrix was melted to a coupling agent to assure compatibility between the fibers and the polymer. The composites with long fiber are generally used as film and the main properties is the tensile. In this study, our goal was to improve the tensile properties. Results have shown that tensile properties exhibited a significant increase when compared to the polypropylene. However, it was observed that the stress direction has no influence on the thermal properties of the composite. Also, this article evaluates models that predict the stiffness of the composites at different stress directions to be compared to the experiments. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4347–4356, 2013
Effects of copolymer microstructure on the properties of electrospun poly(l‐lactide‐co‐ε‐caprolactone) absorbable nerve guide tubes
Authors: Thapsukhon Boontharika , Thadavirul Napaphat , Supaphol Pitt , Meepowpan Puttinan , Molloy Robert , Punyodom Winita 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThe main objective of this work has been to study the effects of copolymer microstructure, both chemical and physical, on the microporosity,in vitrohydrolytic degradability and biocompatibility of electrospun poly(l‐lactide‐co‐ε‐caprolactone), PLC, copolymer tubes for potential use as absorbable nerve guides. PLC copolymers with L : C compositions of 50 : 50 and 67 : 33 mol % were synthesized via the ring‐opening copolymerization ofl‐lactide (L) and ε‐caprolactone (C) at 120°C for 72 h using stannous octoate (tin(II) 2‐ethylhexanoate) andn‐hexanol as the initiating system. Electrospinning was carried out from solution in a dichloromethane/dimethylformamide (7 : 3 v/v) mixed solvent at room temperature. Thein vitrohydrolytic degradation of the electrospun PLC tubes was studied in phosphate buffer saline over a period of 36 weeks. The microporous tubes were found to be gradually degradable by a simple hydrolysis mechanism leading to random chain scission. At the end of the degradation period, the % weight retentions of the PLC 50 : 50 and 67 : 33 tubes were 15.6% and 70.2%, respectively. Pore stability during storage as well as cell attachment and proliferation of mouse fibroblast cells (L929) showed the greater potential of the PLC 67 : 33 tubes for use as temporary scaffolds in reconstructive nerve surgery. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4357–4366, 2013
Copolymers of glycerol and propylene glycol diglycidyl ethers with aromatic dithiols
Authors: Kasetaite Sigita , Ostrauskaite Jolita , Grazuleviciene Violeta , Svediene Jurgita , Bridziuviene Danguole 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTMonomers derived from renewable recourses have the potential to become the biobased alternatives for petroleum derived chemicals in the production of polymers. Glycerol, the byproduct of biodiesel refining, and propylene glycol derived from glycerol are promising candidates which can be used in the synthesis of polymers as they are or after chemical modification. The new copolymers of glycerol and propylene glycol diglycidyl ethers with aromatic dithiols were synthesized and investigated in this study. Their chemical structures were confirmed by IR, 1H‐NMR spectroscopy, and gel permeation chromatography. The dependencies of the mechanical, thermal properties, swelling in the different solvents, biodegradability, and bioresistance of synthesized copolymers on their chemical structures were studied. The properties of some synthesized copolymer films were found to be comparable with those of commodity polymer films. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4367–4374, 2013
Investigation of a postprocessing method to tailor the mechanical properties of carbon nanotube/polyamide fibers
Authors: Palardy Genevieve , Trudel‐Boucher David , Hubert Pascal 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThe incorporation of carbon nanotubes to thermoplastic fibers can potentially improve mechanical, thermal and electrical properties. In this article, a methodology to tailor the mechanical properties of carbon nanotube/nylon fibers is presented. Multiwalled nanotubes (MWNT) were combined to polyamide 12 through melt compounding and twin‐screw extrusion. Pellets containing between 0 and 5.0 wt % MWNT were extruded and subsequently melt spun with a capillary rheometer to produce filaments. To further promote the alignment of the polymer chains and MWNTs, postdrawing parameters were systematically investigated: temperature, drawing speed and elongation. The best improvements in terms of elastic modulus and yield strength were measured at 140°C and 500% elongation, whereas drawing speed was shown to have a negligible effect. It was confirmed through electron microscopy and X‐ray diffraction that these enhancements were mainly induced by the alignment of the polymer chains along the fibers' axis. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4375–4382, 2013
Aluminum silicate fibers impregnated acrylonitrile butadiene rubber composites: Ablation, thermal transport/stability, and mechanical inspection
Authors: Iqbal Nadeem , Sagar Sadia , Khan Mohammad Bilal , Bassyouni Mohamed Ismail , Khan Zaffar M. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTVariant concentrations of ceramic fibers (CerFs) were incorporated into acrylonitrile butadiene rubber (NBR) to fabricate elastomeric ablative composites for ultrahigh temperature applications. The CerFs introduction into the polymer matrix has enhanced the ablation resistance up to 59% and successfully reduced the backface temperature of the polymer composite up to 110oC during the ultrahigh temperature ablation investigation. Thermal decomposition of the polymer composites was diminished up to 10% with increasing fiber concentration in the rubber matrix. Thermal conductivity was reduced equal to 63% while thermal impedance was enhanced up to 84% with the utmost fiber incorporation into the NBR matrix. The CerFs have adversely affected the mechanical properties of NBR matrix due to their brittle/inert nature and weak interface bonding with the host matrix. Scanning electron microscopy along with the energy dispersive x‐ray spectroscopy was used to examine the ablated specimens and the fiber dispersion within the host matrix. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4392–4400, 2013
Nanoindentation response of poly(ether ether ketone) surfaces—A semicrystalline bimodal behavior
Authors: Iqbal Tanveer , Briscoe Brian J. , Yasin Saima , Luckham Paul F. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTIndentation is a relatively simple and virtually nondestructive technique of assessing mechanical properties of materials by an indenter inducing localized deformation into a solid surface. The load–displacement curves, the hardness, and the elastic modulus data together with associated analysis for poly(ether ether ketone) (PEEK) surfaces are presented as a function of contact displacement. The major conclusions are that nanoindentation into the polymer show a surface hardening response that is dependent upon the contact conditions. PEEK, a semicrystalline polymer, has bimodal nanoindentation characteristics because of the presence of hard crystalline lamella within a softer amorphous phase. The bimodal character is confirmed by the load–displacement, the hardness, and the elastic modulus data. The semicrystalline polymer exhibits periodic fluctuations in mechanical properties with the increasing penetration depth. Finally, the nanoindentation is found to be a convenient method to estimate the degree of crystallinity of semicrystalline polymers. The technique may provide a convenient means to understand morphological description of the polymeric surfaces. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4401–4409, 2013
Dual application of cryogel as solid support in peptide synthesis and subsequent protein‐capture
Authors: Jespersen Gry Ravn , Nielsen Anders Lærke , Matthiesen Finn , Andersen Henrik Sune , Kirsebom Harald 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThe use of a cryogel in a combined application as a solid support for automated synthesis of a peptide ligand followed by affinity chromatography of a target protein is evaluated. The advantage, of synthesizing the ligand directly on the cryogel, is the circumvention of the standard process of synthesizing a peptide on a solid support, followed by cleavage, purification, analysis, and finally immobilization on the cryogel. To demonstrate the application, a peptide affinity ligand is synthesized directly on a cryogel with a yield of 28.4 μmol g−1 dry polymer and purity of 45% of crude product. The affinity capture of an antipeptide antibody reveals a specific binding capacity of 0.86 mg g−1 dry polymer. To further elucidate the general availability of a peptide ligand to a macromolecular interaction, a trypsin substrate is synthesized on a cryogel. Trypsin cleavage of immobilized substrate is determined to 1.5 μmol g−1 dry polymer. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 130: 4383–4391, 2013
Assessment of CYP3A‐mediated drug–drug interaction potential for victim drugs using an in vivo rat model
Authors: Rioux Nathalie , Bellavance Edith , Bourg Serge , Garneau Michel , Ribadeneira Maria D. , Duan Jianmin 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThe present study aims to determine if an in vivo rat model of drug–drug interaction (DDI) could be useful to discriminate a sensitive (buspirone) from a ‘non‐sensitive’ (verapamil) CYP3A substrate, using ketoconazole and ritonavir as perpetrator drugs. Prior to in vivo studies, ketoconazole and ritonavir were shown to inhibit midazolam hydroxylation with IC50 values of 350 ± 60 nm and 11 ± 3 nm, respectively, in rat liver microsomes (RLM). Buspirone and verapamil were also shown to be substrates of recombinant rat CYP3A1/3A2. In the rat model, the mean plasma AUC0‐inf of buspirone (10 mg/kg, p.o.) was increased by 7.4‐fold and 12.8‐fold after co‐administration with ketoconazole and ritonavir (20 mg/kg, p.o.), respectively. The mean plasma AUC0‐inf of verapamil (10 mg/kg, p.o.) was increased by 3.0‐fold and 4.8‐fold after co‐administration with ketoconazole and ritonavir (20 mg/kg, p.o.), respectively. Thus, the rat DDI model correctly identified buspirone as a sensitive CYP3A substrate (>5‐fold AUC change) in contrast to verapamil. In addition, for both victim drugs, the extent of DDI when co‐administered was greater with ritonavir compared with ketoconazole, in line with their in vitro CYP3A inhibition potency in RLM. In conclusion, our study extended the rat DDI model applicability to two additional victim/perpetrator pairs. In addition, we suggest that use of this model would increase our confidence in estimation of the DDI potential for victim drugs in early discovery. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Enantioselective Uptake and Translocation of a Novel Chiral Neonicotinoid Insecticide Cycloxaprid in Youdonger (Brassica campestris subsp. Chinensis)
Authors: Zhang Jianbo , Fu Qiuguo , Wang Haiyan , Li Juying , Wang Wei , Yang Zhen , Zhang Sufen , Ye Qingfu , Li Chao , Li Zhong 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTFor a novel potential commercial chiral pesticide, an independent study on the fate characteristics and residues of each stereoisomer is essential if the application rates for the pesticide and human exposure are to be reduced. The absorption and translocation behavior of a chiral insecticide, cycloxaprid, in plants treated by root immersion and blade smearing was studied using 14C‐labeling tracer techniques. With the root treatment, total absorption of (1R;8S)‐cycloxaprid (RS) (12.39%) was much greater than that of (1S;8R)‐cycloxaprid (SR) (3.31%) at 192 h after treatment (HAT). The mass concentrations (RS/SR) of cycloxaprid in the roots, cotyledons, leaf 1, leaf 2, and leaf 3 were 37.0/16.8, 8.3/2.8, 11.7/6.5, 5.1/4.8, and 8.0/4.7 mg kg‐1 (fresh weight), respectively, at 192 HAT at an initial concentration 1.6 mg kg‐1. With the foliar application treatment, no significant difference was observed between the total absorption of RS (3.11%) and SR (4.03%) at the end of the treatment. Both acropetal and basipetal transport of absorbed 14C occurred and more than 71.83% of absorbed RS and 82.42% of SR remained in the treated leaf. Stereoselective absorption was observed during root uptake but not during foliar absorption. Chirality 25:686–691, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Orientational Fluctuations Near the Smectic A to Smectic C Phase Transition in Two “de Vries”‐Type Liquid Crystals
Authors: Nonnenmacher Dorothee , Jagiella Stefan , Song Qingxiang , Lemieux Robert P. , Giesselmann Frank 
Published: July 2013

AbstractOn the basis of thorough analysis of 2D X‐ray diffraction patterns from smectic monodomains, we examine the influence of orientational fluctuations on the weakly first‐order smectic A (SmA) to smectic C (SmC) transitions in two nonchiral organosiloxane “de Vries”‐type liquid crystals. We find that these materials exhibit very large molecular tilt fluctuations with magnitudes of up to 35°—thus larger than the average tilt itself. This is essential to understand the underlying molecular mechanism behind the practical absence of smectic layer contraction in these materials: in the SmA phase, the nematic order parameter is very low (molecular fluctuations correspondingly high), and the expected layer shrinkage at the SmA to SmC transition is almost fully compensated by the increase in orientational order, as the fluctuations diminish with decreasing temperature. In addition to the general tilt fluctuations, we observe intrinsic soft‐mode fluctuations. They have a λ‐shaped temperature dependence that peaks at the SmA—SmC transition with a maximum amplitude of about 2°.
Improving the Overall Efficiency of Front‐End Power Supplies by Surge Energy Recycling
Authors: Okubo Toshikazu , Shoji Hiroyuki , Yamamura Hideho , Irikura Shinobu , Maru Naoki 
Published: July 2013

SummaryIn this paper, the authors propose a surge energy recycling converter. The proposed circuit is able to reduce the surge voltage of the secondary side and to recycle the surge energy in a DC‐DC converter stage of a conventional front‐end power supply. Thus, the use of low‐blocking‐voltage rectifier elements is possible, and the conduction loss is decreased. Further, the amount of surge energy that is wasted in a snubber circuit is decreased. As a result, the efficiency of the DC‐DC converter stage is improved by about 1 percentage point.
Forecasting the Effects of a Canada–US Currency Union on Output and Prices: A Counterfactual Analysis
Authors: Mahdi Barakchian S. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThis paper is a counterfactual analysis investigating the consequences of the formation of a currency union for Canada and the USA: whether outputs increase and prices decrease if these countries form a currency union. We use a two‐country cointegrated model to conduct the counterfactual analysis, where the conditional forecasts are generated based on the Gaussian assumption. To deal with structural breaks and model uncertainty, conditional forecasts are generated from different models/estimation windows and the model‐averaging technique is used to combine the forecasts. We also examine the robustness of our results to parameter uncertainty using the wild bootstrap method. The results show that forming the currency union would probably boost the Canadian economy, whereas it would not have significant effects on US output or Canadian and US price levels. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Term Structure Forecasting of Government Bond Yields with Latent and Macroeconomic Factors: Do Macroeconomic Factors Imply Better Out‐of‐Sample Forecasts?
Authors: Ullah Wali , Tsukuda Yoshihiko , Matsuda Yasumasa 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThis study empirically examines the role of macroeconomic and stock market variables in the dynamic Nelson–Siegel framework with the purpose of fitting and forecasting the term structure of interest rate on the Japanese government bond market. The Nelson–Siegel type models in state‐space framework considerably outperform the benchmark simple time series forecast models such as an AR(1) and a random walk. The yields‐macro model incorporating macroeconomic factors leads to a better in‐sample fit of the term structure than the yields‐only model. The out‐of‐sample predictability of the former for short‐horizon forecasts is superior to the latter for all maturities examined in this study, and for longer horizons the former is still compatible to the latter. Inclusion of macroeconomic factors can dramatically reduce the autocorrelation of forecast errors, which has been a common phenomenon of statistical analysis in previous term structure models. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Finding Novel Genes by Testing G × E Interactions in a Genome‐Wide Association Study
Authors: Gauderman W. James , Zhang Pingye , Morrison John L. , Lewinger Juan Pablo 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTIn a genome‐wide association study (GWAS), investigators typically focus their primary analysis on the direct (marginal) associations of each single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) with the trait. Some SNPs that are truly associated with the trait may not be identified in this scan if they have a weak marginal effect and thus low power to be detected. However, these SNPs may be quite important in subgroups of the population defined by an environmental or personal factor, and may be detectable if such a factor is carefully considered in a gene–environment (G × E) interaction analysis. We address the question “Using a genome wide interaction scan (GWIS), can we find new genes that were not found in the primary GWAS scan?” We review commonly used approaches for conducting a GWIS in case‐control studies, and propose a new two‐step screening and testing method (EDG×E) that is optimized to find genes with a weak marginal effect. We simulate several scenarios in which our two‐step method provides 70–80% power to detect a disease locus while a marginal scan provides less than 5% power. We also provide simulations demonstrating that the EDG×E method outperforms other GWIS approaches (including case only and previously proposed two‐step methods) for finding genes with a weak marginal effect. Application of this method to a G × Sex scan for childhood asthma reveals two potentially interesting SNPs that were not identified in the marginal‐association scan. We distribute a new software program (G×Escan, available at http://biostats.usc.edu/software) that implements this new method as well as several other GWIS approaches.
Electrocatalytic Fast and Efficient Multicomponent Approach to Medicinally Relevant (2‐Amino‐4H‐chromen‐4‐yl) phosphonate Scaffold
Authors: Elinson Michail N. , Nasybullin Ruslan F. , Nikishin Gennady I. 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACT‘One‐pot’ electrocatalytic transformation of salicylaldehydes, malononitrile, and triethyl phosphite in an undivided cell results in the formation of diethyl (2‐amino‐3‐cyano‐4H‐chromen‐4‐yl)phosphonates in 88–93% substance yields and 880–930% current efficiency via complex multicomponent process. This novel electrocatalytic chain process opens an effective, fast, and convenient way to cyano‐functionalized (2‐amino‐4H‐chromen‐4‐yl)phosphonate systems which are promising compounds for biomedical applications. This efficient electrocatalytic approach to the (2‐amino‐4H‐chromen‐4‐yl)phosphonate scaffold represents novel synthetic concept for multicomponent reactions (MCR) strategy and allows to combine the synthetic virtues of conventional MCR with ecological benefits and convenience of facile electrocatalytic procedure.
Exposure to Nitrofurantoin During the First Trimester of Pregnancy and the Risk for Major Malformations
Authors: Goldberg Ori , Koren Gideon , Landau Daniella , Lunenfeld Eitan , Matok Ilan , Levy Amalia 
Published: July 2013

AbstractAntibacterial drugs are among the most common medications used by pregnant women. While medical literature generally defines nitrofurantoin as an antibiotic that is safe for use during the first trimester of pregnancy, new concerns about a possible association between congenital malformations following exposure to nitrofurantoin during the first trimester of pregnancy have recently surfaced. To address these concerns, we conducted a large population‐based retrospective cohort study to assess this possible association (including cases of medical terminations of pregnancy or stillbirth) and congenital malformations. A computerized database for medications dispensed to pregnant women in southern Israel was linked with records from the district hospital. Associations between exposure to nitrofurantoin during the first trimester and major malformations were assessed. Our research included a total of 105,492 pregnancies, 1,112 of which involved pregnancy terminations for medical reasons. A total of 1,329 infants and abortuses had been exposed to nitrofurantoin during the first trimester of pregnancy. Exposure to nitrofurantoin was not associated with increased risk of major malformations in general (adjusted OR = 0.85, 95% CI 0.67–1.08) or with specific malformations. First trimester exposure to nitrofurantoin was not associated with increased risk for total major congenital malformations or with specific malformations.