bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
QF‐PCR rapid aneuploidy screen and aCGH analysis of cell free fetal (cff) DNA in supernatant of compromised amniotic fluids (AF)
Authors: Madjunkova Svetlana , Tong Li Christine , Vlasschaert Matthew , Adams Mark , Chitayat David , Maire Georges , Kolomietz Elena 
Published: May 2014

ABSTRACTObjectiveThe aim of this study was to determine whether cell free fetal (cff) DNA in residual amniotic fluid (AF) supernatant obtained from bloody, low‐volume and late gestation samples can be used for prenatal diagnosis by quantitative fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (QF‐PCR) and array comparative genomic hybridization (aCGH).MethodA total of 49 compromised AFs were analyzed in this case–control, double‐blinded study. The samples were processed through: a conventional cytogenetic approach utilizing Fluorescence in situ Hybridization and/or karyotype (Approach I); QF‐PCR analysis to establish the presence of maternal cell contamination (MCC) (Approach II) and a newly proposed approach using AF supernatant cff DNA (Approach III). Data on clinical impact and turn‐around‐time was collected.ResultsEvidence of MCC was not detected in any of the cff DNA samples, and informative results were provided for all cases, including nine aneuploidies. In contrast, the conventional approach (I) failed to provide results either due to MCC or culture failure in a significant proportion of cases. An adequate amount of quality cff DNA was obtained for successful aCGH testing.ConclusionWe have shown that it is feasible to isolate pure cff DNA from routinely discarded AF supernatant to perform QF‐PCR and microarray analyses, providing timely and informative results even for problematic grossly bloody and otherwise compromised AF samples or culture failures. © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
A shortcut to general tree‐level scattering amplitudes in \documentclass{article}\usepackage{amssymb}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \mathcal{N} = 4$\end{document} SYM via integrability
Authors: Kanning N. , Łukowski T. , Staudacher M. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractWe combine recent applications of the two‐dimensional quantum inverse scattering method to the scattering amplitude problem in four‐dimensional \documentclass{article}\usepackage{amssymb}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \mathcal{N} = 4$\end{document} Super Yang‐Mills theory. Integrability allows us to obtain a general, explicit method for the derivation of the Yangian invariants relevant for tree‐level scattering amplitudes in the \documentclass{article}\usepackage{amssymb}\pagestyle{empty}\begin{document}$ \mathcal{N} = 4$\end{document}model.
Hydroxyethyl starch as an effective methotrexate carrier in anticancer therapy
Authors: Goszczyński T. M. , Filip‐Psurska B. , Kempińska K. , Wietrzyk J. , Boratyński J. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractAt present, effective anticancer therapy remains one of the most challenging tasks facing the scientific community. A major limitation to most conventional low‐molecular weight anticancer chemotherapeutics is their unfavourable uptake by healthy tissue, fast metabolism and lack of tumour cell selectivity. One way to solve this problem is the application of hybrid nanoparticles containing widely known therapeutic substances. This study was performed with the aim of investigating the potential of use hydroxyethyl starch (HES) as a high‐molecular weight carrier for anticancer drug (methotrexate, MTX). HES‐MTX conjugates were characterized in terms of MTX content, hydrodynamic size, zeta potential, and drug release kinetics. In vitro biological characteristics were determined using different cancer cell lines. The antitumor effect in vivo was tested in NOD/SCID mice subcutaneously inoculated with MV‐4‐11 human leukaemia cells and CDF1 mice intraperitoneally inoculated with P388 murine leukaemia cells. The in vivo experiments revealed the considerably higher antitumor efficacy of HES‐MTX conjugates in comparison to unconjugated drug. The results presented in this article demonstrate that the application of HES as an anticancer drug carrier can improve the treatment efficacy and have significant implications for the future design and implementation of drug‐carrier conjugates. The study should help create new opportunities in the design of HES‐based innovative drug‐carrier conjugates.
Radio frequency magnetron sputtered epitaxial Cu2ZnSnS4 thin film on ZnS(100)
Authors: Song Ning , Li Wei , Hao Xiaojing , Huang Yidan , Green Martin A. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractHeteroepitaxial growth of kesterite Cu2ZnSnS4 (CZTS) thin film on cubic ZnS(100) single crystal substrate was achieved by radio frequency magnetron sputtering from a single CZTS target. An optimal substrate temperature in the range of 470–500 °C is found suitable for this epitaxial growth. The growth of CZTS was confirmed to be along a‐axis. The sputtered CZTS thin film is homogeneous throughout the whole film. The band gap of the film is found to be approximately 1.51 eV, i.e., promising for high efficiency thin film solar cells.magnified imageCross‐sectional high resolution TEM image recorded at the interface region of epitaxial CZTS and ZnS(100) substrate.(© 2014 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Adaptive backstepping output feedback control of DC motor actuator with friction and load uncertainty compensation
Authors: Ahmed Fayez Shakil , Laghrouche Salah , Harmouche Mohamed 
Published: May 2014

SummaryIn this paper, we present an output feedback backstepping controller for mechatronic actuators with dynamic adaptive parameters for friction and load compensation. The targeted application is angular position control of automotive mechatronic valves, which possess nonlinear dynamics due to friction. The proposed controller requires only position measurement. The velocity, current, and friction dynamics are obtained by estimation and observation. The adaptive control law compensates the variations in friction behavior and load torque variation, which are common in real life applications. Lyapunov analysis has been used to show the asymptotic convergence of the closed‐loop system to zero. Simulation and laboratory experimental results illustrate the effectiveness and robustness of the controller. Further experiments on an engine test bench demonstrate the applicability of this controller in commercial engines, as well as its effectiveness as compared with conventional PI controllers.Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Gaucher iPSC-Derived Macrophages Produce Elevated Levels of Inflammatory Mediators and Serve as a New Platform for Therapeutic Development
Authors: Panicker Leelamma M. , Miller Diana , Awad Ola , Bose Vivek , Lun Yu , Park Tea Soon , Zambidis Elias T. , Sgambato Judi A. , Feldman Ricardo A. 
Published: May 2014

Abstract
Gaucher disease (GD) is an autosomal recessive disorder caused by mutations in the acid β-glucocerebrosidase (GCase; GBA) gene. The hallmark of GD is the presence of lipid-laden Gaucher macrophages, which infiltrate bone marrow and other organs. These pathological macrophages are believed to be the sources of elevated levels of inflammatory mediators present in the serum of GD patients. The alteration in the immune environment caused by GD is believed to play a role in the increased risk of developing multiple myeloma and other malignancies in GD patients. To determine directly whether Gaucher macrophages are abnormally activated and whether their functional defects can be reversed by pharmacological intervention, we generated GD macrophages by directed differentiation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSC) derived from patients with types 1, 2, and 3 GD. GD hiPSC-derived macrophages expressed higher levels of tumor necrosis factor α, IL-6, and IL-1β than control cells, and this phenotype was exacerbated by treatment with lipopolysaccharide. In addition, GD hiPSC macrophages exhibited a striking delay in clearance of phagocytosed red blood cells, recapitulating the presence of red blood cell remnants in Gaucher macrophages from bone marrow aspirates. Incubation of GD hiPSC macrophages with recombinant GCase, or with the chaperones isofagomine and ambroxol, corrected the abnormal phenotypes of GD macrophages to an extent that reflected their known clinical efficacies. We conclude that Gaucher macrophages are the likely source of the elevated levels of inflammatory mediators in the serum of GD patients and that GD hiPSC are valuable new tools for studying disease mechanisms and drug discovery. Stem Cells 2014;32:2338–2349
The synergistic effect of affective factors on student learning outcomes
Authors: Jack Brady Michael , Lin Huann‐shyang , Yore Larry D. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractThis study investigates how affective and self‐related factors impact participation in science learning and environmental awareness and responsibility. Using PISA 2006 datasets from Taiwan and Canada having similar level of science competency, the model for this study verifies and expands an earlier model by examining the relationships among science‐related interest, enjoyment, self‐efficacy, self‐concept, leisure time engagement, and future intended interest in science and how these relationships synergistically interact with environmental awareness and responsibility. The most consistent finding revealed that students' science self‐concept in both groups was weakly associated with future intended interest and engagement in science learning and with their sense of environmental awareness and responsibility. Reasons for this phenomenon and possible causes underlying why students' science self‐concept was weakly connected to their future intended interest in science learning are also presented. Finally, how the results of this study are important to science education instruction and research are forwarded in which students' identity and beliefs about self in science need to part of the next generation of science education reforms. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Res Sci Teach 51: 1084–1101, 2014
Toxicological effects of nickel chloride on the cytokine mRNA expression and protein levels in intestinal mucosal immunity of broilers
Authors: Wu Bangyuan , Cui Hengmin , Peng Xi , Fang Jing , Zuo Zhicai , Deng Junliang , Wang Xun , Huang Jianying 
Published: May 2014

ABSTRACTThe purpose of this study was to examine the toxicological effects of nickel chloride (NiCl2; 300, 600, and 900 mg kg−1 diet) on the cytokine mRNA expression and protein levels in the intestinal mucosa and cecal tonsil, and on the ileac and cecal tonsil T cells in broilers by the methods of qRT‐PCR, flow cytometry and ELISA for 42 days. Results showed that the IL‐2, IL‐6, IL‐10, IL‐17, IFN‐γ, and TNF‐α (LITAF) cytokine mRNA expression and protein levels were lower (P < 0.05 or P < 0.01) and the percentages of T‐cell subsets were also lower in the 300, 600, and 900 mg kg−1 groups than in the control group. It was concluded that dietary NiCl2 in excess of 300 mg kg−1 could reduce cytokine mRNA expression and protein levels in the intestinal mucosa and cecal tonsil, and the percentages of ileac and cecal tonsil T‐cell subsets. Decreasing in cytokine mRNA expression and protein levels of intestinal mucosa and cecal tonsil induced by NiCl2 was closely related to the reduction of T‐cell population. Thus, the abnormal expression of these cytokines impacts the intestinal mucosal immune function by the pathways of reducing of lymphocyte population and activation. Also, this study first proved that NiCl2 at higher levels has the toxicological effects on intestinal mucosal immunity. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Environ Toxicol 30: 1309–1321, 2015.
Assembly of Cadmium(II)‐Terpyridine Coordination Frameworks by Different Multicarboxylate Ancillary Ligands
Authors: An Dao‐Li , Chen Yong‐Qiang , Tian Yuan 
Published: May 2014

AbstractFour cadmium coordination frameworks, namely, {[Cd(L1)(1,4‐ndc)]·1.5H2O}n (1), {[Cd(L1)(2,5‐tpdc)]·H2O}n (2), {[Cd2(L1)2(btc)(Ac)]·8H2O}n (3), and [Cd2(L1)(sdba)2]n (4) [L1 = 4′‐(4‐pyridyl)‐4,2′:6′,4′′‐terpyridine, 1,4‐H2ndc = 1,4‐naphthalene‐dicarboxylic acid, 2,5‐H2tpdc = 2,5‐thiophenedicarboxylic acid, H3btc = benzene‐1,3,5‐tricarboxylic acid, Ac– = acetate, and H2sdba = 4,4′‐sulfonyldicarboxylic acid], were synthesized under hydrothermal/solvothermal conditions. Structural analyses revealed that the four complexes have different three‐dimensional (3D) frameworks due to the different CdII‐multicarboxylate subnets and the coordination modes of the ligand L1. Moreover, the fluorescence properties of 1, 2, and 4 are reported herein.
Trends in Demographics and Management of Obstructing Colorectal Cancer
Authors: Moolla Zaheer , Madiba Thandinkosi E. 
Published: May 2014

AbstractIntroductionObstructing colorectal cancer (CRC) has an aggressive clinical course and poorer prognosis. With the increasing incidence and differing clinical and pathologic spectrum of CRC among Black patients, as well as a paucity of African studies, regional analysis is required. Our aim was to describe the demographics and management of obstructing CRC among the different racial groups in South Africa and to compare these parameters with international standards.Patients and methodsPatients referred to Inkosi Albert Luthuli Central Hospital, Durban, South Africa, with CRC between 2000 and 2012 were followed prospectively. Demographic information, site of obstruction, and management of patients who underwent emergency surgery for malignant large bowel obstruction were analyzed separately.ResultsCRC was diagnosed in 1,425 patients. A total of 203 three patients (14.3 %) required emergent treatment for acute large bowel obstruction. The mean age at presentation with obstructing CRC was 59 years. Black patients presented significantly younger (50 years) than White (64), Indian (60), or Colored (61) patients (p < 0.001). The most common sites of obstruction were the sigmoid colon and rectum. A total of 58 patients (29 %) had concomitant metastatic disease. No difference was found between race, sex, and sex per race in patients with concurrent metastatic disease (p = 0.227, p = 0.415, p = 0.798, respectively). Of the 203 patients, 128 (63 %) were managed by resection, 37 (18 %) by colonic stenting, 35 (17 %) by colostomy, and 3 (2 %) by colonic bypass. Stenting was unsuccessful in six patients.ConclusionTumor location of patients presenting with obstruction is comparable to that cited in international literature; however, the age of presentation among Black patients is more than a decade earlier than in other ethnic groups. Surgical management should be individualized. Stenting remains a reliable alternative in select cases.
Non-noxious skin stimulation activates the nucleus basalis of Meynert and promotes NGF secretion in the parietal cortex via nicotinic ACh receptors
Authors: Hotta Harumi , Watanabe Nobuhiro , Piché Mathieu , Hara Sanae , Yokawa Takashi , Uchida Sae 
Published: May 2014

Abstract
The effects of non-noxious skin stimulation on nerve growth factor (NGF) secretion in the parietal cortex were examined in anesthetized rats. Innocuous skin stimulation was delivered to the left hindlimb with a soft-hair brush. Extracellular NGF in the right parietal cortex was collected by microdialysis methods using a protein-permeable probe and was measured using an enzyme-linked immune-sorbent assay. Brushing produced a significant increase in extracellular NGF levels. This NGF response was not observed in rats pretreated with a nicotinic ACh receptor (nAChR) antagonist mecamylamine. We further examined whether brushing could activate the basal forebrain nucleus (nucleus basalis of Meynert, NBM), which is the main source of cholinergic fibers in the cerebral cortex, by means of functional MRI. The blood oxygen level-dependent signal in the right NBM was significantly higher during brushing compared to baseline. The results suggest that non-noxious skin stimulation activates NBM and promotes NGF secretion in the parietal cortex via nAChRs.
How Resource Dynamics Explain Accumulating Developmental and Health Disparities for Teen Parents’ Children
Authors: Mollborn Stefanie , Lawrence Elizabeth , James-Hawkins Laurie , Fomby Paula 
Published: May 2014

Abstract
This study examines the puzzle of disparities experienced by U.S. teen parents’ young children, whose health and development increasingly lag behind those of peers while their parents are simultaneously experiencing socioeconomic improvements. Using the nationally representative Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (2001–2007; N ≈ 8,600), we assess four dynamic patterns in socioeconomic resources that might account for these growing developmental and health disparities throughout early childhood and then test them in multilevel growth curve models. Persistently low socioeconomic resources constituted the strongest explanation, given that consistently low income, maternal education, and assets fully or partially account for growth in cognitive, behavioral, and health disparities experienced by teen parents’ children from infancy through kindergarten. That is, although teen parents gained socioeconomic resources over time, those resources remained relatively low, and the duration of exposure to limited resources explains observed growing disparities. Results suggest that policy interventions addressing the time dynamics of low socioeconomic resources in a household, in terms of both duration and developmental timing, are promising for reducing disparities experienced by teen parents’ children.
Labor Relations in Zimbabwe from 1900 to 2000: Sources, Interpretations, and Understandings
Authors: Pilossof Rory 
Published: May 2014

AbstractThis article looks at the shifts and continuities in labor relations in Zimbabwe from c. 1900–2000. It does so by looking at three cross sections (1904, 1951, and 2002) to examine the changes that have taken place. By exploring the continuities (subsistence agriculture) and shifts (limited industrialization and urbanization) of labor relations over this period, it is hoped that the article provides a comprehensive account of the rapid and radical changes Zimbabwe underwent during the twentieth century and the impacts these have had on the peoples and economies within the southern African nation.
Drops and bubbles in wedges
Authors: Reyssat Etienne 
Published: May 2014

AbstractWe investigate experimentally the spontaneous motion of drops and bubbles confined between two plates forming a narrow wedge. Such discoidal objects migrate under the gradient in interfacial energy induced by the non-homogeneous confinement. The resulting capillary driving force is balanced by viscous resistance. The viscous friction on a drop bridging parallel plates is estimated by measuring its sliding velocity under gravity. The viscous forces are the sum of two contributions, from the bulk of the liquid and from contact lines, the relative strength of which depends on the drop size and velocity and the physical properties of the liquid. The balance of capillarity and viscosity quantitatively explains the dynamics of spontaneous migration of a drop in a wedge. Close the tip of the wedge, bulk dissipation dominates and the migrating velocity of drops is constant and independent of drop volume. The distance between the drop and the tip of the wedge is thus linear with time $t$, $x(t) \sim t_0-t$, where $t_0$ is the time at which the drop reaches the tip of the wedge. Far away from the apex, contact lines dominate the friction, the motion is accelerated toward the tip of the wedge and velocities are higher for larger drops. In this regime, it is shown that $x(t) \sim (t_0-t)^{4/13}$. The position and time of the crossover between the two dissipation regimes are used to write a dimensionless equation of motion. Plotted in rescaled variables, all experimental trajectories collapse to the prediction of our model. In contrast to drops, gas bubbles in a liquid-filled wedge behave as non-wetting objects. They thus escape the confinement of the wedge to reduce their surface area. The physical mechanisms involved are similar for drops and bubbles, so that the forces acting have the same mathematical structures in both cases, except for the sign of the capillary driving force and a numerical factor. We thus predict and show experimentally that the trajectories of drops and bubbles obey the same equation of motion, except for a change in the sign of $t_0-t$.
Decreased BDNF and TrkB mRNA expression in multiple cortical areas of patients with schizophrenia and mood disorders
Authors: Ray M T , Shannon Weickert C , Webster M J 
Published: May 2014

AbstractAbnormalities in brain-derived neurotrophic factor (BDNF)/trkB signaling have been implicated in the etiology of schizophrenia and mood disorders. Patients with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder (BPD) and major depression (MDD) have reduced levels of neurotrophins in their brains when compared with normal unaffected individuals; however, only a few brain areas have been examined to date. Owing to the broad range of symptoms manifested in these disorders, we hypothesized that multiple associative areas of the neocortex may be implicated and that the degree of change in BDNF and trkB−TK+ mRNA expression and the cortical region or layers involved may vary according to Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) diagnosis. We compared BDNF and trkB−TK+ mRNA levels across all layers of the prefrontal cortex (dorsolateral prefrontal cortex, DLPFC), orbital frontal cortex (OFC), anterior cingulate cortex (ACC), inferior temporal gyrus (ITG) and superior temporal gyrus (STG) in four groups: schizophrenia, BPD, MDD and unaffected controls (n=60). BDNF mRNA levels were significantly decreased in layers IV and V of DLPFC in schizophrenia patients, in layer VI of ACC in schizophrenia and MDD and in layer VI of ITG in schizophrenia, BPD and MDD. BDNF mRNA levels were also significantly decreased in layer V and/or VI of STG in schizophrenia, BPD and MDD. TrkB−TK+ mRNA levels were only significantly decreased in the cortical layer VI of OFC in BPD. The shared and distinct patterns of neurotrophin transcript reductions, with some specific to each group, may compromise the function and plasticity of distinct cortical areas to various degrees in the different groups and contribute to the range and overlap of symptoms manifested across the diagnoses.
Influences of Semantic and Prosodic Cues on Word Repetition and Categorization in Autism
Authors: Singh Leher , Harrow MariLouise S. 
Published: May 2014

PurposeTo investigate sensitivity to prosodic and semantic cues to emotion in individuals with high-functioning autism (HFA).MethodEmotional prosody and semantics were independently manipulated to assess the relative influence of prosody versus semantics on speech processing. A sample of 10-year-old typically developing children (n= 10) and children with HFA (n= 10) were asked to repeat words that were either emotionally congruent or incongruent in form and content (Experiment 1A). In a second task (Experiment 1B), the same participants were asked to classify stimuli on the basis of emotional prosody. A final experiment (Experiment 2) focused on sensitivity to congruence in a non-emotional source of variation: talker gender.ResultsThe results revealed a selective impairment in spontaneous integration of prosodic and semantic cues to emotion in HFA; however, the same participants were able to categorize emotions on the basis of prosody under reduced task demands. Individuals with HFA were highly sensitive to another surface characteristic in speech: talker gender.ConclusionsThe study reveals impairment in the spontaneous integration of prosodic and semantic cues to emotion in HFA; however, insensitivity to surface detail, such as prosody, in HFA appears to be highly task dependent and selective to the domain of emotion.