bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Forecasting the progress towards the target of Millennium Development Goal 1C in children under 5 years of age in Bangladesh
Authors: Hasan Md Tanvir , Soares Magalhaes Ricardo J , Williams Gail M , Mamun Abdullah A 
Published: February 2015

AbstractObjectiveTo estimate the average annual rates of reduction of stunting, underweight and wasting for the period 1996 to 2011, and to evaluate whether Bangladesh will be expected to achieve the target of Millennium Development Goal 1C of reducing the prevalence of underweight by half by 2015.DesignWe used five nationwide, cross-sectional, Demographic and Health Survey data sets to estimate prevalence of undernutrition defined by stunting, underweight and wasting among children under 5 years of age using the WHO child growth standards. We then computed the average annual rates of reduction of prevalence of undernutrition using the formula derived by UNICEF. Finally, we projected the prevalence of undernutrition for the year 2015 using the estimated average annual rates of reduction.SettingNationwide covering Bangladesh.SubjectsChildren under 5 years of age (n 28 941).ResultsThe prevalence of stunting decreased by 18·8 % (from 60·0 % to 41·2 %), underweight by 16·0 % (from 52·2 % to 36·2 %) and wasting by 5·1 % (from 20·6 % to 15·5 %) during 1996 to 2011. The overall average annual rates of reduction were 2·84 %, 2·69 % and 2·47 %, respectively, for stunting, underweight and wasting. We forecast that in 2015, the prevalence of stunting, underweight and wasting will be 36·7 %, 32·5 % and 14·0 %, respectively, at the national level. The prevalence of undernutrition is likely to remain high in rural areas, in the Sylhet division and in the poorest wealth quintile.ConclusionsBangladesh is likely to achieve the Millennium Development Goal 1C target of reducing the prevalence of underweight by half by 2015. However, it is falling behind in reducing stunting and further investment is needed to reduce individual, household and environmental determinants of stunting in Bangladesh.
Evaluation of a brief intervention to assist health visitors and community practitioners to engage with fathers as part of the healthy child initiative
Authors: Humphries Heatha , Nolan Mary 
Published: February 2015

AimsTo improve engagement of Health Visitors and Community Practitioners delivering the Healthy Child Programme with fathers. To evaluate a one-day, father-focused workshop with a supporting handbook for Practitioners. To identify institutional and organisational barriers to engagement with fathers.BackgroundThe UK government policy encourages health professionals to engage with fathers. This derives from robust evidence that fathers’ early involvement with their children impacts positively on emotional, behavioural and educational development. Yet, there is little evidence that the importance of engaging fathers is reflected in Health Visitor training or that primary-care services are wholly embracing father-inclusive practice. The Fatherhood Institute (FI), a UK charity, has developed a workshop for Practitioners delivering the Healthy Child Programme.MethodA ‘before and after’ evaluation study, comprising a survey followed by telephone interviews, evaluated the impact of the FI workshop on Health Visitors’ and Community Practitioners’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in practice. A total of 134 Health Visitors and Community Practitioners from eight NHS Trusts in England attended the workshop from November 2011 to January 2014 at 12 sites. A specially constructed survey, incorporating a validated questionnaire, was administered before the workshop, immediately afterwards and three months later. Telephone interviews further explored participants’ responses.FindingsAnalysis of the questionnaire data showed that the workshop and handbook improved participants’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviour in practice. This was sustained over a three-month period. In telephone interviews, most participants said that the workshop had raised their awareness of engaging fathers and offered them helpful strategies. However, they also spoke of barriers to engagement with fathers. NHS Trusts need to review the training and education of Health Visitors and Community Practitioners and take a more strategic approach towards father-inclusive practice and extend services to meet the needs of fathers.
The Poetic Mingus and the Politics of Genre in String Quartet No. 1
Authors: AASLID VILDE 
Published: February 2015

AbstractIn 1972, the Whitney Museum of American Art commissioned new musical settings of poems by Frank O'Hara for a concert honoring the late poet. Among pieces by Virgil Thomson and Ned Rorem, the program featured a new work by Charles Mingus: his String Quartet No. 1. Mingus's piece was performed only once, at that concert, and was never recorded. It survives only in manuscript form.String Quartet No. 1 thwarts nearly all expectations of a piece by Mingus. Scored for strings and voice, the work's modernist approach to rhythm and pitch is unprecedented for the composer. Mingus chafed at being categorized as a “jazz” composer, and String Quartet No. 1's style is both a bid for and an undermining of the prestige of the high art world. Faced with primitivist discourses that characterized jazz musicians as unschooled and nonverbal, Mingus deployed poetry as a mode of resistance. He worked with poetic texts throughout his life, often writing the poetry himself. Mingus's sensitive setting of O'Hara's text in String Quartet No. 1 points to the centrality of poetry to Mingus's artistic and political project, and suggests that the piece's anomalous style can be partially understood as his response to O'Hara's text.
Spatiotemporal noise characterization for chirped-pulse amplification systems
Authors: Ma Jingui , Yuan Peng , Wang Jing , Wang Yongzhi , Xie Guoqiang , Zhu Heyuan , Qian Liejia 
Published: February 2015

AbstractOptical noise, the core of the pulse-contrast challenge for ultra-high peak power femtosecond lasers, exhibits spatiotemporal (ST) coupling induced by angular dispersion. Full characterization of such ST noise requires two-dimensional measurements in the ST domain. Thus far, all noise measurements have been made only in the temporal domain. Here we report the experimental characterization of the ST noise, which is made feasible by extending cross-correlation from the temporal domain to the ST domain. We experimentally demonstrate that the ST noise originates from the optical surface imperfections in the pulse stretcher/compressor and exhibits a linear ST coupling in the far-field plane. The contrast on the far-field axis, underestimated in the conventional measurements, is further improved by avoiding the far-field optics in the stretcher. These results enhance our understanding of the pulse contrast with respect to its ST-coupling nature and pave the way toward the design of high-contrast ultra-high peak power lasers.
Hierarchical ZnO Nanostructures with Blooming Flowers Driven by Screw Dislocations
Authors: Huang Chengzi , Shi Run , Amini Abbas , Wu Zefei , Xu Shuigang , Zhang Linfei , Cao Wei , Feng Jiangwei , Song Haisheng , Shi Yantao , Wang Ning , Cheng Chun 
Published: February 2015

AbstractHierarchical ZnO nanostructures with a large yield were fabricated by a simple thermal evaporation method. For the first time, novel ZnO flowers were observed blooming at certain sites of a variety of spines, identified as Zn-terminated polar (0001) planes or tips. The spines for as-synthesized hierarchical structures can be nanowires, nanobelts, nanodendrites, nanobrushes, etc. This growth phenomenon determines the key role of polar sites in the fabrication of hierarchical structures. The spiral feature of ZnO flowers indicates an unusual screw dislocation driven growth mechanism, which is attributed to a high concentration of Zn vapor.
Co-overexpression of geraniol-10-hydroxylase and strictosidine synthase improves anti-cancer drug camptothecin accumulation in Ophiorrhiza pumila
Authors: Cui Lijie , Ni Xiaoling , Ji Qian , Teng Xiaojuan , Yang Yanru , Wu Chao , Zekria David , Zhang Dasheng , Kai Guoyin 
Published: February 2015

AbstractCamptothecin (CPT) belongs to a group of monoterpenoidindole alkaloids (TIAs) and its derivatives such as irinothecan and topothecan have been widely used worldwide for the treatment of cancer, giving rise to rapidly increasing market demands. Genes from Catharanthus roseus encoding strictosidine synthase (STR) and geraniol 10-hydroxylase (G10H), were separately and simultaneously introduced into Ophiorrhiza pumila hairy roots. Overexpression of individual G10H (G lines) significantly improved CPT production with respect to non-transgenic hairy root cultures (NC line) and single STR overexpressing lines (S lines), indicating that G10H plays a more important role in stimulating CPT accumulation than STR in O. pumila. Furthermore, co-overexpression of G10H and STR genes (SG Lines) caused a 56% increase on the yields of CPT compared to NC line and single gene transgenic lines, showed that simultaneous introduction of G10H and STR can produce a synergistic effect on CPT biosynthesis in O. pumila. The MTT assay results indicated that CPT extracted from different lines showed similar anti-tumor activity, suggesting that transgenic O. pumila hairy root lines could be an alternative approach to obtain CPT. To our knowledge, this is the first report on the enhancement of CPT production in O. pumila employing a metabolic engineering strategy.
Expression of Cystatin SN significantly correlates with recurrence, metastasis and survival duration in surgically resected non-small cell lung cancer patients
Authors: Cao Xun , Li Yong , Luo Rong-Zhen , Zhang Lin , Zhang Song-Liang , Zeng Jun , Han Yu-Jing , Wen Zhe-Sheng 
Published: February 2015

AbstractCystatin SN has been considered to be involved in human cancer, but its clinical significance in non-small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) has not been elucidated. The aim of this study was to evaluate the clinical value of Cystatin SN expression in patients with surgically resected NSCLCs. A retrospective analysis of 174 patients with surgically resected NSCLCs from April 2002 to March 2005 was performed with immunohistochemistry and fluorescence in situ hybridization to analyze the protein expression and amplification of Cystatin SN. The associations between Cystatin SN expression and recurrence, metastasis and survival were investigated. In recurrence and metastasis analysis, compared with low-Cystatin SN expression NSCLCs, high expression tumors were more likely to recur and metastasize (P < 0.001). Disease-free survival (DFS) and overall survival (OS) were significantly prolonged in the low-Cystatin SN expression subgroup compared with the high-Cystatin SN expression subgroup (DFS, P < 0.001; OS, P = 0.001). A multivariate analysis confirmed that high expression of Cystatin SN was associated with poor survival (DFS, P = 0.001; OS, P = 0.006) and was an independent prognostic indicator. The present study indicates that high expression of Cystatin SN is a significant prognostic indicator of a higher rate of recurrence, metastatic risk and poor survival in patients with surgically resected NSCLCs.
A consensus linkage map of oil palm and a major QTL for stem height
Authors: Lee May , Xia Jun Hong , Zou Zhongwei , Ye Jian , Rahmadsyah  , Alfiko Yuzer , Jin Jingjing , Lieando Jessica Virginia , Purnamasari Maria Indah , Lim Chin Huat , Suwanto Antonius , Wong Limsoon , Chua Nam-Hai , Yue Gen Hua 
Published: February 2015

AbstractOil palm (Elaeis guinensis Jacquin) is the most important source of vegetable oil and fat. Several linkage maps had been constructed using dominant and co-dominant markers to facilitate mapping of QTL. However, dominant markers are not easily transferable among different laboratories. We constructed a consensus linkage map for oil palm using co-dominant markers (i.e. microsatellite and SNPs) and two F1 breeding populations generated by crossing Dura and Pisifera individuals. Four hundreds and forty-four microsatellites and 36 SNPs were mapped onto 16 linkage groups. The map length was 1565.6 cM, with an average marker space of 3.72 cM. A genome-wide scan of QTL identified a major QTL for stem height on the linkage group 5, which explained 51% of the phenotypic variation. Genes in the QTL were predicted using the palm genome sequence and bioinformatic tools. The linkage map supplies a base for mapping QTL for accelerating the genetic improvement and will be also useful in the improvement of the assembly of the genome sequences. Markers linked to the QTL may be used in selecting dwarf trees. Genes within the QTL will be characterized to understand the mechanisms underlying dwarfing.
Extended Loop Region of Hcp1 is Critical for the Assembly and Function of Type VI Secretion System in Burkholderia pseudomallei
Authors: Lim Yan Ting , Jobichen Chacko , Wong Jocelyn , Limmathurotsakul Direk , Li Shaowei , Chen Yahua , Raida Manfred , Srinivasan Nalini , MacAry Paul Anthony , Sivaraman J. , Gan Yunn-Hwen 
Published: February 2015

AbstractThe Type VI Secretion System cluster 1 (T6SS1) is essential for the pathogenesis of Burkholderia pseudomallei, the causative agent of melioidosis, a disease endemic in the tropics. Inside host cells, B. pseudomallei escapes into the cytosol and through T6SS1, induces multinucleated giant cell (MNGC) formation that is thought to be important for bacterial cell to cell spread. The hemolysin-coregulated protein (Hcp) is both a T6SS substrate, as well as postulated to form part of the T6SS secretion tube. Our structural study reveals that Hcp1 forms hexameric rings similar to the other Hcp homologs but has an extended loop (Asp40-Arg56) that deviates significantly in position compared to other Hcp structures and may act as a key contact point between adjacent hexameric rings. When two residues within the loop were mutated, the mutant proteins were unable to stack as dodecamers, suggesting defective tube assembly. Moreover, infection with a bacterial mutant containing in situ substitution of these hcp1 residues abolishes Hcp1 secretion inside infected cells and MNGC formation. We further show that Hcp has the ability to preferentially bind to the surface of antigen-presenting cells, which may contribute to its immunogenicity in inducing high titers of antibodies seen in melioidosis patients.
Dimming Titan Revealed by the Cassini Observations
Authors: Li Liming 
Published: February 2015

AbstractHere we report the temporal variation of Titan's emitted energy with the Cassini/CIRS observations. In the northern hemisphere, the hemispheric-average emitted power decreased from 2007 to 2009 and increased from 2009 to 2012–13, which make the net change insignificant (0.1 ± 0.2%) during the period 2007–2013. The decrease from 2007 to 2009 is mainly due to the cooling around the stratospause and the increase from 2009 to 2012–13 is probably related to temporal variation of atmospheric temperature around the tropopuase in the northern hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere, the emitted power continuously decreased by 5.0 ± 0.6% from 2.40 ± 0.01 W/m2 in 2007 to 2.28 ± 0.01 in 2012–13, which is mainly related to Titan's seasonal variation. The asymmetry in the temporal variation between the two hemispheres results in the global-average emitted power decreasing by 2.5 ± 0.6% from 2.41 ± 0.01 W/m2 in 2007 to 2.35 ± 0.01 W/m2 in 2012–13. The solar constant at Titan decreased by ~13.0% in the same period 2007–2013, which is much stronger than the temporal variation of emitted power. The measurements of Titan's absorbed solar power are needed to determine the temporal variation of the global energy budget.
Synthesis and Verification of Biobased Terephthalic Acid from Furfural
Authors: Tachibana Yuya , Kimura Saori , Kasuya Ken-ichi 
Published: February 2015

AbstractExploiting biomass as an alternative to petrochemicals for the production of commodity plastics is vitally important if we are to become a more sustainable society. Here, we report a synthetic route for the production of terephthalic acid (TPA), the monomer of the widely used thermoplastic polymer poly(ethylene terephthalate) (PET), from the biomass-derived starting material furfural. Biobased furfural was oxidised and dehydrated to give maleic anhydride, which was further reacted with biobased furan to give its Diels-Alder (DA) adduct. The dehydration of the DA adduct gave phthalic anhydride, which was converted via phthalic acid and dipotassium phthalate to TPA. The biobased carbon content of the TPA was measured by accelerator mass spectroscopy and the TPA was found to be made of 100% biobased carbon.
Core – shell upconversion nanoparticle – semiconductor heterostructures for photodynamic therapy
Authors: Dou Qing Qing , Rengaramchandran Adith , Selvan Subramanian Tamil , Paulmurugan Ramasamy , Zhang Yong 
Published: February 2015

AbstractCore-shell nanoparticles (CSNPs) with diverse chemical compositions have been attracting greater attention in recent years. However, it has been a challenge to develop CSNPs with different crystal structures due to the lattice mismatch of the nanocrystals. Here we report a rational design of core-shell heterostructure consisting of NaYF4:Yb,Tm upconversion nanoparticle (UCN) as the core and ZnO semiconductor as the shell for potential application in photodynamic therapy (PDT). The core-shell architecture (confirmed by TEM and STEM) enables for improving the loading efficiency of photosensitizer (ZnO) as the semiconductor is directly coated on the UCN core. Importantly, UCN acts as a transducer to sensitize ZnO and trigger the generation of cytotoxic reactive oxygen species (ROS) to induce cancer cell death. We also present a firefly luciferase (FLuc) reporter gene based molecular biosensor (ARE-FLuc) to measure the antioxidant signaling response activated in cells during the release of ROS in response to the exposure of CSNPs under 980 nm NIR light. The breast cancer cells (MDA-MB-231 and 4T1) exposed to CSNPs showed significant release of ROS as measured by aminophenyl fluorescein (APF) and ARE-FLuc luciferase assays and ~45% cancer cell death as measured by MTT assay, when illuminated with 980 nm NIR light.
The contribution of PA-X to the virulence of pandemic 2009 H1N1 and highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza viruses
Authors: Gao Huijie , Sun Yipeng , Hu Jiao , Qi Lu , Wang Jinliang , Xiong Xin , Wang Yu , He Qiming , Lin Yang , Kong Weili , Seng Lai-Giea , Sun Honglei , Pu Juan , Chang Kin-Chow , Liu Xiufan , Liu Jinhua 
Published: February 2015

AbstractPA-X is a novel protein encoded by PA mRNA and is found to decrease the pathogenicity of pandemic 1918 H1N1 virus in mice. However, the importance of PA-X proteins in current epidemiologically important influenza A virus strains is not known. In this study, we report on the pathogenicity and pathological effects of PA-X deficient 2009 pandemic H1N1 (pH1N1) and highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 viruses. We found that loss of PA-X expression in pH1N1 and H5N1 viruses increased viral replication and apoptosis in A549 cells and increased virulence and host inflammatory response in mice. In addition, PA-X deficient pH1N1 and H5N1 viruses up-regulated PA mRNA and protein synthesis and increased viral polymerase activity. Loss of PA-X was also accompanied by accelerated nuclear accumulation of PA protein and reduced suppression of PA on non-viral protein expression. Our study highlights the effects of PA-X on the moderation of viral pathogenesis and pathogenicity.
Hollow screw-like drill in plasma using an intense Laguerre–Gaussian laser
Authors: Wang Wenpeng , Shen Baifei , Zhang Xiaomei , Zhang Lingang , Shi Yin , Xu Zhizhan 
Published: February 2015

AbstractWith the development of ultra-intense laser technology, MeV ions can be obtained from laser–foil interactions in the laboratory. These energetic ion beams can be applied in fast ignition for inertial confinement fusion, medical therapy and proton imaging. However, these ions are mainly accelerated in the laser propagation direction. Ion acceleration in an azimuthal orientation was scarcely studied. In this research, a doughnut Laguerre–Gaussian (LG) laser is used for the first time to examine laser–plasma interaction in the relativistic intensity regime in three-dimensional particle-in-cell simulations. Studies have shown that a novel rotation of the plasma is produced from the hollow screw-like drill of an "Equation missing" mode laser. The angular momentum of particles in the longitudinal direction produced by the LG laser is enhanced compared with that produced by the usual laser pulses, such as linearly and circularly polarized Gaussian pulses. Moreover, the particles (including electrons and ions) can be trapped and uniformly compressed in the dark central minimum of the doughnut LG pulse. The hollow-structured LG laser has potential applications in the generation of x-rays with orbital angular momentum, plasma accelerators, fast ignition for inertial confinement fusion and pulsars in the astrophysical environment.
Targeted Sequencing in Chromosome 17q Linkage Region Identifies Familial Glioma Candidates in the Gliogene Consortium
Authors: Jalali Ali , Amirian E. Susan , Bainbridge Matthew N. , Armstrong Georgina N. , Liu Yanhong , Tsavachidis Spyros , Jhangiani Shalini N. , Plon Sharon E. , Lau Ching C. , Claus Elizabeth B. , Barnholtz-Sloan Jill S. , Il'yasova Dora , Schildkraut Joellen , Ali-Osman Francis , Sadetzki Siegal , Johansen Christoffer , Houlston Richard S. , Jenkins Robert B. , Lachance Daniel , Olson Sara H. , Bernstein Jonine L. , Merrell Ryan T. , Wrensch Margaret R. , Davis Faith G. , Lai Rose , Shete Sanjay , Aldape Kenneth , Amos Christopher I. , Muzny Donna M. , Gibbs Richard A. , Melin Beatrice S. , Bondy Melissa L. 
Published: February 2015

AbstractGlioma is a rare, but highly fatal, cancer that accounts for the majority of malignant primary brain tumors. Inherited predisposition to glioma has been consistently observed within non-syndromic families. Our previous studies, which involved non-parametric and parametric linkage analyses, both yielded significant linkage peaks on chromosome 17q. Here, we use data from next generation and Sanger sequencing to identify familial glioma candidate genes and variants on chromosome 17q for further investigation. We applied a filtering schema to narrow the original list of 4830 annotated variants down to 21 very rare (<0.1% frequency), non-synonymous variants. Our findings implicate the MYO19 and KIF18B genes and rare variants in SPAG9 and RUNDC1 as candidates worthy of further investigation. Burden testing and functional studies are planned.