bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Water Distribution of Traditional Karez Irrigation Systems in Afghanistan
Authors: Khan M. J. , Pacha G. , Shahzad Khattak M. , Oad R. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractRealizing the importance of Karez irrigation systems, field research was conducted in the district of Khwaja Omari of Ghazni (Afghanistan) to assess traditional water management practices in three selected Karez irrigation systems. In the Karez irrigation system, an informal water users’ association performs the function of water allocation, distribution, operation and maintenance of the physical infrastructure. Water is distributed on a rotational basis and each plot receives their due share of water once in the water distribution cycle that ranges from 6 to 12 days. The available flow discharges of three sampled Karez irrigation systems were measured that ranged from 6.30 to 9.28 l s−1 during the months of June to October and served cropped areas that varied from 12.53 to 24.15 ha. Conveyance losses measured in unlined irrigation canals varied from 21.9 to 32.7% km−1 with an overall average of 26.0% km−1. In general, crop water demands exceed available irrigation supplies particularly during the months of July and August. It may be concluded that water distribution is reasonable but can be improved further by considering the conveyance losses in these systems which will improve the overall productivity. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Management of Knowledge Sources Supported by Domain Ontologies: Building and Construction Case Studys
Authors: Costa Ruben , Lima Celson 
Published: March 2015

SummaryThis paper introduces a novel conceptual framework to support the creation of knowledge representations based on enriched semantic vectors, using the classical vector space model approach extended with ontological support. This work is focused on collaborative engineering projects where knowledge plays a key role in the process. Collaboration is the arena, engineering projects are the target and knowledge is the currency used to provide harmony into the arena since it can potentially support innovation and, hence, a successful collaboration. The test bed for the assessment of the approach comes from the Building and Construction sector, which is challenged with significant problems for exchanging, sharing and integrating information among actors. Semantic gaps or lack of meaning definition at the conceptual and technical levels, for example, are problems fundamentally originated through the employment of representations to map the ‘world’ into models in an endeavour to anticipate other actors’ views, vocabulary and even motivations. One of the primary research challenges addressed in this work relates to the process of formalization and representation of document contents, where most existing approaches are limited and only take into account the explicit, word‐based information in the document. The research described in this paper explores how traditional knowledge representations can be enriched through incorporation of implicit information derived from the complex relationships (semantic associations) modelled by domain ontologies with the addition of information presented in documents, by providing a baseline for facilitating knowledge interpretation and sharing between humans and machines. Preliminary results were collected using a clustering algorithm for document classification, which indicates that the proposed approach does improve the precision and recall of classifications. Future work and open issues are also discussed. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Differential Susceptibility of Human Pleural and Peritoneal Mesothelial Cells to Asbestos Exposure
Authors: Dragon Julie , Thompson Joyce , MacPherson Maximilian , Shukla Arti 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTMalignant mesothelioma (MM) is an aggressive cancer of mesothelial cells of pleural and peritoneal cavities. In 85% of cases both pleural and peritoneal MM is caused by asbestos exposure. Although both are asbestos‐induced cancers, the incidence of pleural MM is significantly higher (85%) than peritoneal MM (15%). It has been proposed that carcinogenesis is a result of asbestos‐induced inflammation but it is not clear what contributes to the differences observed between incidences of these two cancers. We hypothesize that the observed differences in incidences of pleural and peritoneal MM are the result of differences in the direct response of these cell types to asbestos rather than to differences mediated by the in vivo microenvironment. To test this hypothesis we characterized cellular responses to asbestos in a controlled environment. We found significantly greater changes in genome‐wide expression in response to asbestos exposure in pleural mesothelial cells as compared to peritoneal mesothelial cells. In particular, a greater response in many common genes (IL‐8, ATF3, CXCL2, CXCL3, IL‐6, GOS2) was seen in pleural mesothelial cells as compared to peritoneal mesothelial cells. Unique genes expressed in pleural mesothelial cells were mainly pro‐inflammatory (G‐CSF, IL‐1β, IL‐1α, GREM1) and have previously been shown to be involved in development of MM. Our results are consistent with the hypothesis that differences in incidences of pleural and peritoneal MM upon exposure to asbestos are the result of differences in mesothelial cell physiology that lead to differences in the inflammatory response, which leads to cancer. J. Cell. Biochem. 116: 1540–1552, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Artemisinin Represses Telomerase Subunits and Induces Apoptosis in HPV‐39 Infected Human Cervical Cancer Cells
Authors: Mondal Anushree , Chatterji Urmi 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTArtemisinin, a plant‐derived antimalarial drug with relatively low toxicity on normal cells in humans, has selective anticancer activities in various types of cancers, both in vitro and in vivo. In the present study, we have investigated the anticancer effects of artemisinin in human cervical cancer cells, with special emphasis on its role in inducing apoptosis and repressing cell proliferation by inhibiting the telomerase subunits, ERα which is essential for maintenance of the cervix, and downstream components like VEGF, which is known to activate angiogenesis. Effects of artemisinin on apoptosis of ME‐180 cells were measured by flow cytometry, DAPI, and annexin V staining. Expression of genes and proteins related to cell proliferation and apoptosis was quantified both at the transcriptional and translational levels by semi‐quantitative RT‐PCR and western blot analysis, respectively. Our findings demonstrated that artemisinin significantly downregulated the expression of ERα and its downstream component, VEGF. Antiproliferative activity was also supported by decreased telomerase activity and reduced expression of hTR and hTERT subunits. Additionally, artemisinin reduced the expression of the HPV‐39 viral E6 and E7 components. Artemisinin‐induced apoptosis was confirmed by FACS, nuclear chromatin condensation, annexin V staining. Increased expression of p53 with concomitant decrease in expression of the p53 inhibitor Mdm2 further supported that artemisinin‐induced apoptosis was p53‐dependent. The results clearly indicate that artemisinin induces antiproliferative and proapoptotic effects in HPV‐39‐infected ME‐180 cells, and warrants further trial as an effective anticancer drug. J. Cell. Biochem. 116: 1968–1981, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Leptin Modulates Mitochondrial Function, Dynamics and Biogenesis in MCF‐7 Cells
Authors: Blanquer‐Rosselló M Mar , Santandreu Francisca M. , Oliver Jordi , Roca Pilar , Valle Adamo 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTThe adipokine leptin, known for its key role in the control of energy metabolism, has been shown to be involved in both normal and tumoral mammary growth. One of the hallmarks of cancer is an alteration of tumor metabolism since cancerous cells must rewire metabolism to satisfy the demands of growth and proliferation. Considering the sensibility of breast cancer cells to leptin, the objective of this study was to explore the effects of this adipokine on their metabolism. To this aim, we treated the MCF‐7 breast cancer cell line with 50 ng/mL leptin and analyzed several features related to cellular and mitochondrial metabolism. As a result, leptin increased cell proliferation, shifted ATP production from glycolysis to mitochondria and decreased the levels of the glycolytic end‐product lactate. We observed an improvement in ADP‐dependent oxygen consumption and an amelioration of oxidative stress without changes in total mitochondrial mass or specific oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complexes. Furthermore, RT‐PCR and western blot showed an up‐regulation for genes and proteins related to biogenesis and mitochondrial dynamics. This expression signature, together with an increased mitophagy observed by confocal microscopy suggests that leptin may improve mitochondrial quality and function. Taken together, our results propose that leptin may improve bioenergetic efficiency by avoiding the production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) and conferring benefits for growth and survival of MCF‐7 breast cancer cells. J. Cell. Biochem. 116: 2039–2048, 2015. © 2015 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Influence of trickling liquid velocity and flow pattern in the improvement of oxygen transport in aerobic biotrickling filters for biogas desulfurization
Authors: López Luis R , Bezerra Tercia , Mora Mabel , Lafuente Javier , Gabriel David 
Published: March 2015

AbstractBACKGROUNDBiological oxidation in biotrickling filters of high H2S loads contained in biogas streams still requires further study to reduce elemental sulfur accumulation due to limited gas–liquid oxygen mass transfer inside biotrickling filter beds. Reduction of elemental sulfur accumulation may be improved by regulating the main manipulated variables related to oxygen mass transfer efficiency during biological hydrogen sulfide removal in biotrickling filters.RESULTSTrickling liquid velocity and co‐current flow were selected as the most appropriate manipulated variable and flow pattern configuration compared with manipulating the air supply flow rate and a counter‐current flow pattern in order to improve gas–liquid oxygen mass transfer in abiotic conditions. The influence of trickling liquid velocity on the performance of a lab‐scale biotrickling filter treating high loads of H2S in a biogas mimic and operating in co‐current flow at neutral pH and packed with plastic pall rings was investigated.CONCLUSIONSThe effect of trickling liquid velocity modulation between 4.4 and 18.9 m h−1 in biotrickling filter performance was compared with operation without trickling liquid velocity regulation. Velocity regulation resulted in an improvement of 10% in the elimination capacity and, most importantly, a 9% increase in product selectivity to sulfate at a loading rate of 283.8 g S‐H2S m−3 h−1. Concentration profiles along the biotrickling filter height evidenced that trickling liquid velocity regulation progressively led to better dissolved oxygen distribution and, thus, enhanced overall biotrickling filter performance. © 2015 Society of Chemical Industry
Breeding on the extreme edge: Modulation of the adrenocortical response to acute stress in two High Arctic passerines
Authors: Walker Brian G. , Meddle Simone L. , Romero L. Michael , Landys Meta M. , Reneerkens Jeroen , Wingfield John C. 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTArctic weather in spring is unpredictable and can also be extreme, so Arctic‐breeding birds must be flexible in their breeding to deal with such variability. Unpredictability in weather conditions will only intensify with climate change and this in turn could affect reproductive capability of migratory birds. Adjustments to coping strategies are therefore crucial, so here we examined the plasticity of the adrenocorticotropic stress response in two Arctic songbird species—the snow bunting (Plectrophenax nivalis) and Lapland longspur (Calcarius lapponicus)—breeding in northwest Greenland. Across the breeding season, the stress response was strongest at arrival and least robust during molt in male snow buntings. Snow bunting females had higher baseline but similar stress‐induced corticosterone levels compared to males. Modification of the stress response was not due to adrenal insensitivity, but likely regulated at the anterior pituitary gland. Compared to independent nestlings and adult snow buntings, parental‐dependent chicks had a more robust stress response. For Lapland longspurs, baseline corticosterone was highest at arrival in both male and females, and arriving males displayed a higher stress response compared to arriving females. Comparison of male corticosterone profiles collected at arrival in Greenland (76°N) and Alaska (67–71°N;) reveal that both species have higher stress responses at the more northern location. Flexibility in the stress response may be typical for birds nesting at the leading edges of their range and this ability will become more relevant as global climate change results in major shifts of breeding habitat and phenology for migratory birds. J. Exp. Zool. 323A: 266–275, 2015. © 2015 The Authors. J. Exp. Zool. published by Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
MOTEDAS: a new monthly temperature database for mainland Spain and the trend in temperature (1951–2010)
Authors: Gonzalez‐Hidalgo José Carlos , Peña‐Angulo Dhais , Brunetti Michele , Cortesi Nicola 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTWe have developed a new monthly temperature database for mainland Spain by using the complete holding of maximum and minimum monthly mean values stored at the Spanish National Meteorological Agency (AEMet). After an exhaustive quality control exercise, the data set includes 1358 complete series, and a high‐resolution grid (0.1° × 0.1°) was calculated to analyse monthly trends. There has been an uneven increase in the mean values of maximum and minimum temperatures in the Spanish mainland from 1951 to 2010. The maximum monthly mean temperature values have risen mostly in late winter/early spring and the summer, while the minimum monthly mean temperature values have increased in summer, spring and autumn in southern areas. The spatial pattern of the diurnal temperature range shows a clear north–south gradient in summer, with positive trends in the north and negative trends in the south; furthermore, a negative pattern has been detected in the south in spring and autumn. These areas, particularly the Mediterranean coastland, have been subject to dramatic urbanization and land use changes during the past 30 years that may have affected nocturnal temperatures, in particular. Thus, warming processes in the Iberian Peninsula appear to be influenced both by global factors and more local ones, and their effects should be differentiated spatially.
A combined weather generator and K‐nearest‐neighbour approach for assessing climate change impact on regional rainfall extremes
Authors: Lu Y. , Qin X. S. , Mandapaka P. V. 
Published: March 2015

ABSTRACTA novel combined statistical downscaling and disaggregation framework (CSDD) based on Long Ashton Research Station‐Weather Generator (LARS‐WG) and K‐nearest neighbour (KNN) was proposed to examine the climate change impact on regional extreme rainfall in Singapore. The approach could generate high‐resolution rainfall sequences both spatially (e.g. station level) and temporally (e.g. 5‐min) based on 12 emission scenarios under 4 general circulation models. Three different routes were proposed to generate high‐resolution synthetic rainfall time series: (1) the rainfall records at all stations were combined and treated as one station (Route 1); (2) the rainfall record at each station was treated individually (Route 2); and (3) the total areal rainfall at daily and hourly timescales was used to keep inter‐site correlations (Route 3). The results indicated that all routes under CSDD framework could effectively reproduce the regional rainfall at various timescales. This study further examined the impacts of climate change on regional extremes. The results show that the maximum increase rates of 100‐year extremes at the end of this century at durations of 24‐h, 1‐h and 5‐min would be 14.8, 16.3 and 16.8%, respectively. The proposed framework takes the full advantage of both LARS‐WG and KNN and could effectively help provide continuous high‐resolution synthetic rainfall data (with consideration of spatial dependence and uncertainty) under climate‐change conditions for hydrological impact study.
Prescription and over‐the‐counter pain medication in arthritis: awareness of active ingredients and attitudes to medication borrowing and sharing
Authors: Ellis Janette , Mullan Judy R. , Weston Kathryn M. , Rich Warren , Lethbridge Alistair , Worsley Anthony , Pai Nagesh B. 
Published: March 2015

AbstractBackgroundMany Australians with arthritis self‐manage their pain with prescription and/or over‐the‐counter pain medications, containing paracetamol. If taken appropriately, these medications are relatively safe; however, if mismanaged through patients’ inability to understand medication labels and instructions, these medications may cause adverse drug events and/or toxicities.AimThis study explored the prescription and over‐the‐counter pain medications most commonly used by people with arthritis and the ability of these patients to correctly identify paracetamol as an active ingredient in commonly available preparations. The study also investigated the functional health literacy of these patients and their inclination to borrow and/or share pain medications.MethodAdult participants diagnosed with arthritis were invited to complete an anonymous survey which included questions about their prescription and over‐the‐counter pain medications; their medication borrowing and sharing behaviours; their functional health literacy; and their knowledge about preparations containing paracetamol as an active ingredient.ResultsMost of the 254 participants used analgesic agents containing paracetamol, as combination tablets (paracetamol 500 mg and codeine 30 mg) or paracetamol‐only tablets (paracetamol 665 mg) to self‐manage their pain. Respondents with low functional health literacy scores were significantly less likely to identify paracetamol as an active ingredient in both combination and paracetamol‐only pharmaceutical products, and were more likely to guess or did not know how to identify that paracetamol was an active ingredient in these products. Almost 30% of the respondents indicated that they had and/or intended to borrow/share their over‐the‐counter pain medications whereas less than 10% suggested that they had and/or intended to borrow/share their prescription pain medication.ConclusionAustralians with arthritis, especially those with low functional health literacy scores, self‐managing their pain with paracetamol‐containing products, do not always recognise paracetamol as an active ingredient in combination products, and may risk potential paracetamol‐related adverse effects and/or toxicities.
Destination Attractiveness Drivers among Urban Hostel Tourists: An Analysis of Frustrators and Delighters
Authors: Mikulić Josip , Krešić Damir , Miličević Katarina , Šerić Maja , Ćurković Božena 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThis study is based on data from 679 tourists staying at hostel accommodation facilities in Zagreb, a propulsive city‐break destination in Central Europe. Besides providing insight into the socio‐demographic and behavioural characteristics of hostel tourists, this study uncovers determinant destination attributes influencing their perceptions of destination attractiveness. In particular, impact asymmetry analysis identified potential sources of delight and frustration among hostel tourists. Since the hostel tourist segment, as such, is almost completely unconsidered in contemporary tourism research, partly covered only by a few studies on youth travellers and backpackers, the results of this case study are valuable to both practitioners and researchers related to the hostelling industry and city destination marketing organizations. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Stille Catalyst‐Transfer Polycondensation Using Pd‐PEPPSI‐IPr for High‐Molecular‐Weight Regioregular Poly(3‐hexylthiophene)
Authors: Qiu Yunyan , Mohin Jacob , Tsai Chia‐Hua , Tristram‐Nagle Stephanie , Gil Roberto R. , Kowalewski Tomasz , Noonan Kevin J. T. 
Published: March 2015

A commercially available palladium N‐heterocyclic carbene (Pd‐NHC) precatalyst is used to initiate chain‐growth polymerization of 2‐bromo‐3‐hexyl‐5‐trimethylstannylthiophene. The molecular weight of the resultant poly(3‐hexylthiophene) can be modulated (7 to 73 kDa, Đ = 1.14 to 1.53) by varying the catalyst concentration. Mass spectrometry data confirm control over the polymer end groups and 1H NMR spectroscopy reveals that the palladium catalyst is capable of “ring‐walking”. A linear relationship between Mn and monomer conversion is observed. Atomic force microscopy and X‐ray scattering verify the regioregular nature of the resultant polythiophene.
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CS‐MINER: A Tool for Association Mining in Binding‐Database
Authors: Mani‐Varnosfaderani Ahmad , Valadkhani Abolfazl , Jalali‐Heravi Mehdi 
Published: March 2015

AbstractThis paper introduces the algorithms, implementation strategies, features, and applications of CS‐MINER, a tool for visualization and analysis of drug‐like chemical space. The CS‐MINER is the abstract abbreviation for Chemical Space Miner and correlates the medicinal target space and chemical space, in a systematic way. The database in this software consists of a large collection of drug‐like molecules. To prepare this database, a large number of molecules for 110 important biological targets were collected from Binding‐DB. A total of 1497 physicochemical properties were calculated for each molecule. The CS‐MINER uses the discriminant analysis techniques for tracing the collected data and finally separates the molecules based on their therapeutic targets and activities. The developed multivariate classifiers can be used for ligand‐based virtual screening of more than 0.5 million random molecules of PubChem and ZINC databases. In order to validate the models, selected subspaces in CS‐MINER were compared with DrugBank molecules. At the end of the analysis, the software provides an interactive environment for visualization of the selected chemical subspaces in the form of 2‐ and 3‐dimensional plots. In general, CS‐MINER is a tool for comparing the relative position of active biosimilar molecules in chemical space and is freely available at www.csminer.com.