bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
A novel MAC protocol for IDMA‐based multi‐beam satellite communication systems
Authors: Ge Xin , Liu Gongliang , Leung Victor C.M. , Zhang Naitong 
Published: July 2013

SUMMARYConsidering the limitations of satellite communication systems and advantages of new emerging interleave‐division multiple access (IDMA) technology, IDMA is introduced into the satellite systems, providing a new solution for multiple access techniques of satellite systems. To further validate the IDMA into satellite systems, a novel medium access control (MAC) scheme is proposed. In the random access channel, the interleave‐division slotted ALOHA method is adopted to alleviate the collision of access requests. Furthermore, a novel minimum power allocation scheme based on signal‐to‐interference‐plus‐noise ratio (SINR) evolution is proposed to maximize the capacity of such an interference‐sensitive system. By virtue of SINR evolution, our proposed scheme can accurately estimate multi‐user detection efficiency with low computational cost and further reduce the transmitted power, illustrating the high power efficiency of IDMA. To further enhance the performance of the MAC protocol, an effective call admission control scheme considering the effect of power control error is designed and combined into our MAC protocol. Analysis and simulation results show that, by taking full advantage of the chip‐by‐chip multi‐user detection technique, the proposed IDMA MAC protocol achieves high throughput and low average packet delay simultaneously, with low onboard processing complexity in the multi‐beam satellite communication systems. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
An energy‐saving algorithm for cloud resource management using a Kalman filter
Authors: Zhang‐Jian Da‐Jing , Lee Chung‐Nan , Hwang Ren‐Hung 
Published: July 2013

SUMMARYCloud computing has emerged as a promising technique to provide storage and computing component on‐demand services over a network. In this paper, we present an energy‐saving algorithm using the Kalman filter for cloud resource management to predict the workload and to further achieve high resource availability with low service level agreement. Using the proposed algorithm, one can estimate the potential future workload trend then predict the computing component workload utilizations and further retrench energy consumption and achieve load balancing in a cloud system. Experimental results show that the proposed algorithm achieves more than 92.22% accuracy in the computing component workload prediction, improves 55.11% energy in energy consumption, and has 3.71% in power prediction error rate, respectively. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The Vaginal Microbiome: New Findings Bring New Opportunities
Authors: Linhares Iara M. , Kanninen Tomi T. , Orfanelli Theofano , Jayaram Aswathi , Doulaveris Georgios , Witkin Steven S. 
Published: July 2013

Abstract

Preclinical Research

As a result of exposure to the external environment, the human vagina is home to many diverse bacterial species. The composition of the latter varies according to the life stage of the individual female due to differences in hormone production and lifestyle. Advances in bacterial detection using culture‐independent methods have greatly altered our knowledge of the composition of the vaginal microbiome especially in nonpregnant reproductive age women. The vaginae of approximately 80% of healthy women are dominated by one of four species of Lactobacillus: L. crispatus, L. iners, L. gasseri, and L. jensenii. The remaining 20% are dominated by a diverse group of anaerobic and facultative bacteria. A predominant characteristic of all bacterial populations in healthy women is the production of lactic acid. The resulting acidification of the vagina retards or prevents the growth of other potentially pathogenic bacteria. Lactic acid also has specific effects on vaginal epithelial cells and immune cells to further protect against pathogen establishment. The interactions between bacterial species as well as their ability to produce various metabolites also influences the composition of the host vaginal immune and biochemical milieu and influences susceptibility to various lower genital tract infections as well as the capability of bacteria to transcend the cervical barrier and invade the upper genital tract. In pregnant women migration of bacteria from the vagina to the uterus is a major cause of preterm birth. A more complete understanding of the composition of the vaginal microbiome and its influence on host processes will lead to development of new protocols utilizing novel reagents to improve the health of pregnant as well as nonpregnant women.
Determination of hypoglycaemia induced by insulin or its synthetic analogues post mortem
Authors: Hess C. , Madea B. , Daldrup T. , Musshoff F. 
Published: July 2013

The determination of human insulin or its synthetic analogues in post‐mortem specimens represents a challenge for forensic toxicologists due to its proven instability in post‐mortem blood. We present two cases of an insulin‐induced hypoglycaemia. In the first case, ante‐mortem material was available for the detection of an injection with human insulin. Human insulin was detected by immunopurification with magnetic beads and liquid chromatography‐tandem mass spectrometry (LC‐MS/MS) analyses at a concentration of 5180 μU/ml. The molar ratio human insulin:C‐peptide was 111. The second case describes a suicide by self‐injection of Insulin lispro and determination of the drug after pre‐extraction with methanol and immunopurification by LC‐MS/MS at the injection site, in vitreous humour and organs. Apart from the well‐known matrices – femoral blood and urine –	the specimen vitreous humour and the injection site promise the best possibilities for a proof of insulin at autopsy. In addition to insulin analyses, the parameters C‐peptide, proinsulin, glucose, lactate, and sulfonylureas should be measured in case of suspected fatal hypoglycaemia. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Motivation to change in the eating disorders: A systematic review
Authors: Clausen Loa , Lübeck Marlene , Jones Allan 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTObjectiveThe aim of the study was to review the eating disorder literature in order to examine the effect of pretreatment autonomous/level of motivation to change on treatment outcome as measured by change in eating disorder pathology.MethodRelevant databases were systematically searched for studies in which motivation to change prior to treatment was examined in relation to treatment outcome.ResultsPretreatment autonomous/level of motivation were associated with change in restrictive eating behaviors, bingeing behaviors, and cognitive/affective measures of eating disorder pathology. There was mixed support for the effect of motivation to change on global measures of eating disorder symptoms and virtually no support for the effect of motivation to change on purging behavior.DiscussionThe level of pretreatment motivation the person exhibits prior to commencement of treatment appears to be helpful in predicting treatment outcome. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2013; 46:755–763)
When message tailoring backfires: The role of initial attitudes in affect–cognition matching
Authors: See Ya Hui Michelle , Valenti Greta , Ho Angeline Y. Y. , Tan Michelle S. Q. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractThis research explores when and how tailoring messages to attitudinal bases backfires. Study 1 demonstrated that for attitudes (toward education subsidies) that were based more on beliefs than emotions, recipients whose initial attitudes were incongruent with the message position (i.e., message opponents) showed mismatching effects, such that the affective message was more persuasive than the cognitive message. Study 2 replicated these mismatching effects among message opponents for attitudes (toward a rival university) that were primarily affective. Study 3 controlled for effects of initial attitude certainty and replicated the mismatching effects of Study 2 for affective attitudes toward an increase in tuition. Finally, Study 4 suggested a potential mechanism for mismatching effects, revealing that for attitudes (toward an online course management system) that were based more on beliefs than emotions, message opponents counter‐argued with the cognitive appeal more intensely than the affective appeal. Contrary to the notion in the extant literature that mismatching effects are relatively rare compared with matching effects, the current research suggests that mismatching effects occur for both primarily affective and cognitive attitudes when the recipient is highly opposed to the message position. The present findings also demonstrate the utility of examining attitudinal bases at the object level in the context of message tailoring. Implications for message tailoring and for affective versus cognitive attitudes are discussed. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Knowledge‐based replica deletion scheme using directional anti‐packets for vehicular delay‐tolerant networks
Authors: Tang Xiaolan , Pu Juhua , Gao Yang , Alshehri Mohammad Aziz Z. , Xiong Zhang , Wan Yueliang 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTAs stable end‐to‐end paths seldom exist in vehicular delay‐tolerant networks, replication‐based opportunistic routing protocols are often utilised to improve the data delivery ratio and decrease the transfer delay. However, the network load increases heavily because of numerous data replicas. In this paper, we propose a knowledge‐based replica deletion Scheme using Directional Anti‐packets (SuDAs), in order to reduce the transmission of anti‐packets by considering vehicle contact statistics. We firstly use the contact judgment algorithm to avoid invalid anti‐packet transmissions and select better forwarder for the anti‐packets to reach each relay node, which has redundant data replica. Then, in the directional anti‐packet transmission algorithm, we set different anti‐packet transmission thresholds according to different requirements for the quality of replica deletion in the network. Formal validations and extensive simulations evaluate the performance of our scheme, which show that SuDA has a distinct advantage over others in striking a balance between the replica deletion delay and the anti‐packet overhead. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
THE EFFECT OF DIABETES COMPLICATIONS ON HEALTH‐RELATED QUALITY OF LIFE: THE IMPORTANCE OF LONGITUDINAL DATA TO ADDRESS PATIENT HETEROGENEITY
Authors: Alva Maria , Gray Alastair , Mihaylova Borislava , Clarke Philip 
Published: July 2013

AbstractWe estimate the impact of six diabetes‐related complications (myocardial infarction, ischaemic heart disease, stroke, heart failure, amputation and visual acuity) on quality of life, using seven rounds of EQ‐5D questionnaires administered between 1997 and 2007 in the UK Prospective Diabetes Study. The use of cross‐sectional data to make such estimates is widespread in the literature, being less expensive and easier to collect than repeated‐measures data. However, analysis of this dataset suggests that cross‐sectional analysis could produce biased estimates of the effect of complications on QoL. Using fixed effects estimators, we show that variation in the quality of life between patients is strongly influenced by time‐invariant patient characteristics. Our results highlight the importance of studying quality‐of‐life changes over time to distinguish between time‐invariant determinants of QoL and the effect on QoL of specific events such as diabetes complications. © 2013 The Authors. Health Economics Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.
INCREASING OUR UNDERSTANDING OF THE HEALTH‐INCOME GRADIENT IN CHILDREN
Authors: Fletcher Jason , Wolfe Barbara 
Published: July 2013

ABSTRACTThere have been numerous attempts to both document the income‐health gradient in children and to understand the nature of the tie. In this paper, we review and summarize existing studies, and then use a unique school‐based panel data set from the USA to attempt to further our understanding of the relationship. The long duration (5 observations, 9 years) allows us to add to the understanding of the pattern of the tie, through our ability to test for changes in health status and multiple measures of income, and the school‐based nature of the data allow us to add community socioeconomic status to the model. Increasing understanding of the income‐health gradient has clear policy implications in terms of effective targeting of interventions to decrease the gradient and hence decrease health disparities among children. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Gully erosion reduces carbon and nitrogen storage and mineralization fluxes in a headwater catchment of south‐eastern Queensland, Australia
Authors: Garzon‐Garcia Alexandra , Olley Jon M. , Bunn Stuart E. , Moody Philip 
Published: July 2013

AbstractIncreased erosion associated with land use change often alters the flux of sediments and nutrients, but few studies have looked at the interaction between these disrupted cycles. We studied the effects of gully erosion on carbon and nitrogen storage in surface soil/sediment and herbaceous vegetation and on C and N mineralization in a headwater catchment used for cattle grazing. We found significantly lower C and N stored in an incising gully compared with an intact valley. This storage was significantly higher in an adjacent stabilizing gully, although not to the levels found in the intact valley. The intact valley had two to four times higher soil/sediment concentrations of total organic C, total N and Colwell extractable P than the incising gully. Lower storage was not explained by differences in vegetation biomass density or silt and clay content. Vegetation accounted for only 8% of C and 2% of N storage. Although not a significant store in itself, vegetation has an important indirect role in restoring and maintaining soil/sediment C and N stocks in eroding areas. We found significant linear relationships between C and N mineralization rates and soil/sediment C and N content, with lower rates occurring in the eroded sediment. These findings support our initial hypothesis that gully erosion reduces C and N storage and mineralization rates in eroding catchments. The implications of this study include a change to the quality of eroded sediments in headwater catchments, causing C‐poorer and N‐poorer sediments to be exported but overall loads to increase. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Dynamics of a headwater system and peatland under current conditions and with climate change
Authors: Levison J. , Larocque M. , Fournier V. , Gagné S. , Pellerin S. , Ouellet M.A. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractInteractions between headwater aquifers and peatlands have received limited scientific attention. Hydrological stresses, including those related to climate change, may adversely impact these interactions. In this study, the dynamics of a southern Québec headwater system where a peatland is present is simulated under current conditions and with climate change. The model is calibrated in steady state on field‐measured data and provides satisfactory results for transient‐state conditions. Under current conditions, simulations confirm that the peatland is fed by the fractured bedrock aquifer year‐round and provides continuous baseflow to its outlets. Climate change is simulated through its impact on groundwater recharge. Predicted precipitation and temperature data from a suite of regional climate model scenarios provide a net precipitation variation range from +10% to −30% for the 2041–2070 horizon. Calibrated recharge is modified within this range to perform a sensitivity analysis of the headwater model to recharge variations (+10%, −15% and −30%). Total contribution from the aquifer to rivers and streams varies from +14% to −44% of the baseline for +10% to −30% recharge changes from spring 2010 data, for example. With higher recharge, the peatland receives more groundwater, which could significantly change its vegetation pattern and eventually ecosystem functions. For a −30% recharge, the peatland becomes perched above the aquifer during the summer, fall and winter. Recharge reductions also induce sharp declines in groundwater levels and drying streams. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
FORECASTING FIRM RISK IN THE EMERGING MARKET OF CHINA WITH SEQUENTIAL OPTIMIZATION OF INFLUENCE FACTORS ON PERFORMANCE OF CASE‐BASED REASONING: AN EMPIRICAL STUDY WITH IMBALANCED SAMPLES
Authors: Li Hui , Yu Jun‐Ling , Zhou Qing , Cai Jian‐Hu 
Published: July 2013

SUMMARYWith the development of the Chinese economy, how to make the right decision regarding firms’ risk is becoming more and more important. Case‐based reasoning (CBR) is a potential method that can help forecast business risk status in advance; it is easy to apply and is able to provide good explanations of output. In order to obtain more accurate prediction with CBR, it is essential to investigate factors that influence CBR's performance, and to optimize these factors sequentially for the improvement of CBR's performance in firm risk prediction in emerging markets under a more practicable assumption. We verified that sequential optimization of feature selection, feature weighting, instance selection and the number of nearest neighbours is a possible alternative for improving predictive performance of CBR forecasting under the assumption that the number of failed samples is smaller than that of nonfailed samples. The detailed implementation includes: (1) selecting significant features through a correlation matrix and reducing feature dimensions with factor analysis; (2) using variance contribution ratios of features from factor analysis as feature weights; (3) eliminating noisy cases via a state matrix; and (4) obtaining the optimal number of nearest neighbours from empirical results among different numbers of nearest neighbours. To validate the usefulness of the sequential optimization approach, we applied it to a real‐world case: firm risk prediction with imbalanced data from the emerging market of China. Experimental results show that predictive accuracy of CBR applied in the emerging market was improved with the sequential optimization approach. Insightful thoughts from the results of the sequential optimization of the CBR forecasting system on modelling social tasks are also provided. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Nuclear receptors and epigenetic signaling: Novel regulators of glycogen metabolism in skeletal muscle
Authors: Wang Shu‐Ching Mary , Muscat George E.O. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractGlycogen is an energy storage depot for the mammalian species. This review focuses on recent developments that have identified the role of nuclear hormone receptor (NR) signaling and epigenomic control in the regulation of important genes that modulate glycogen metabolism. Specifically, new studies have revealed that the NR4A subgroup (of the NR superfamily) are strikingly sensitive to beta‐adrenergic stimulation in skeletal muscle, and transgenic studies in mice have revealed the expression of these NRs affects endurance and glycogen levels in muscle. Furthermore, other studies have demonstrated that one of the NR coregulator class of enzymes that mediate chromatin remodeling, the histone methyltransferases (for example, protein arginine methyltransferase 4) regulates the expression of several genes involved in glycogen metabolism and glycogen storage diseases in skeletal muscle. Importantly, NRs and histone methyltransferases, have the potential to be pharmacologically exploited and may provide novel targets in the quest to treat disorders of glycogen storage. © 2013 IUBMB Life, 65(8):657–664, 2013
The role of signalling in cellular cholesterol homeostasis
Authors: Luu Winnie , Sharpe Laura J. , Gelissen Ingrid C. , Brown Andrew J. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractCholesterol is a vital lipid and performs diverse functions on a whole body and cellular level. However, excess cellular cholesterol is toxic, and thus, elegant mechanisms have evolved to tightly regulate this important lipid. The regulation of cholesterol homeostasis is an area of intense research, and the role that signalling plays is gradually becoming more widely recognised. Cholesterol homeostasis is achieved through intricate mechanisms involving synthesis, uptake, and efflux. Although there is a large body of work elucidating these cholesterol‐related pathways, less is known about the role of signalling in these processes. Here, we discuss the variety of ways that signalling impacts on these modes and levels of cholesterol homeostasis, including transcriptional regulation. Most work thus far has investigated the role of kinases in cholesterol efflux (especially on ATP‐binding cassette transporter A1, ABCA1), and therefore constitutes a major focus of this review. We also indicate further avenues to explore in the area of signalling in cellular cholesterol homeostasis. © 2013 IUBMB Life, 65(8):675–684, 2013
(–)‐Epicatechin reduces blood pressure and improves vasorelaxation in spontaneously hypertensive rats by NO‐mediated mechanism
Authors: Galleano Monica , Bernatova Iveta , Puzserova Angelika , Balis Peter , Sestakova Natalia , Pechanova Olga , Fraga Cesar G. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractStudies in humans have found consumption of certain flavanoid‐containing foods to be associated with improvement in endothelial function and with reduction of blood pressure (BP). (–)‐Epicatechin is a compound representative of the flavanols (a subfamily of flavonoids), abundant in cocoa seeds, which is preserved during the industrialization process to chocolate. The antihypertensive effect of dietary (–)‐epicatechin was investigated on spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHRs). Consumption of (–)‐epicatechin‐supplemented diet (3 g (–)‐epicatechin/kg diet) decreased BP in SHR by 27 and 23 mm Hg on days 2 and 6, respectively. On day 6, a 173% increase of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity was observed in the aorta of EPI‐SHR as compared to nonsupplemented SHR (P < 0.05). Responses to acetylcholine (ACh) were then examined in femoral arteries in the absence and the presence of L‐NAME, a nonselective NOS inhibitor, to assess the ACh‐mediated relaxation ascribed to NO‐dependent and ‐independent mechanisms. Acetylcholine‐induced endothelium‐dependent relaxation in the femoral artery was significantly higher in EPI‐SHR than in SHR, with a predominance of the NO‐dependent component of this relaxation. The endothelium‐independent relaxation, assayed by using the NO donor sodium nitroprusside, resulted in nonsignificant difference in the three experimental groups, demonstrating an unaffected function of vascular smooth muscle cells. These results give further support to the concept that (–)‐epicatechin can modulate BP in hypertension by increasing NO levels in the vasculature. © 2013 IUBMB Life, 65(8):710–715, 2013
Caffeic acid phenethyl ester, a promising component of propolis with a plethora of biological activities: A review on its anti‐inflammatory, neuroprotective, hepatoprotective, and cardioprotective effects
Authors: Tolba Mai F. , Azab Samar S. , Khalifa Amani E. , Abdel‐Rahman Sherif Z. , Abdel‐Naim Ashraf B. 
Published: July 2013

AbstractCaffeic acid phenethyl ester (CAPE) is an important active component of honey bee propolis that possesses a plethora of biological activities. Propolis is used safely in traditional medicine as a dietary supplement for its therapeutic benefits. This review highlights the recently published data about CAPE bioavailability, anti‐inflammatory, neuroprotective; hepatoprotective and cardioprotective activities. CAPE showed promising efficacy both in vitro and in vivo studies in animal models with minimum adverse effects. Its effectiveness was demonstrated in multiple target organs. Despite this fact, it has not been yet investigated as a protective agent or a potential therapy in humans. Investigation of CAPE efficacy in clinical trials is strongly encouraged to elucidate its therapeutic benefit for different human diseases after performing full preclinical toxicological studies and gaining more insights into its pharmacokinetics. © 2013 IUBMB Life, 65(8):699–709, 2013