bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Blends of Plasticized Polyvinyl Butyral and Polyvinyl Chloride: Morphology Analysis in View of Recycling
Authors: Bendaoud Amine , Carrot Christian , Charbonnier Jordan , Pillon Caroline 
Published: May 2013

AbstractThe morphology development of blends of plasticized polyvinyl butyral (PVB) with plasticized polyvinyl chloride (PVC) is studied to obtain a droplet‐in‐matrix morphology. Such blends can be used for recycling wastes of plasticized PVB in PVC for flooring because migration of the plasticizer of PVB towards the surface is reduced. Model systems of PVC plasticized with diisodecyl phthalate (DIDP) and of PVB plasticized with dibutyl sebecate (DBS) are used as representatives of common compositions. The percolation threshold of the PVB phase occurs at 22 vol% of plasticized PVB. The morphology results of an equilibrium between break‐up and coalescence. The dependence of the characteristic dimension upon the volume fraction is described by a power‐law with exponent 1.5 slightly larger than the theoretical value.
UV‐Cured Epoxy–Zno Composites: Preparation and Characterization
Authors: Sangermano Marco , Sordo Federica , Giovine Mario , Kortaberria Galder 
Published: May 2013

AbstractEpoxy–ZnO composites are prepared via UV‐induced cationic polymerization. Complete unsoluble materials are achieved after 10 min of irradiation. Thermal analyses shows an increase of Tg in the presence of the ZnO attributable to a strong hindrance effect of the polymer chain mobility. Electrical characterization of the cured materials shows the decrease of the real part of permittivity with frequency. Both permittivity and AC conductivity values increase with nanofiller content, especially for the highest contents. This is described as typical behavior of nanocomposites made from polymers and fillers with higher permittivity and conductivity values, in accordance with previous data reported in literature for similar composites.
Fabrication and Characterisation of Microgel/Polymer Composite Microfibres
Authors: Kehren Dominic , Pich Andrij 
Published: May 2013

AbstractIn this work microgel‐PVA composite fibres are prepared by means of an electrospinning process using aqueous solutions of poly(vinyl alcohol) (PVA) and poly(N‐vinylcaprolactam)‐based microgels. The optimal parameters are defined to fabricate homogenous composite fibres in which the microgels are embedded into a PVA matrix. It is demonstrated that the fibres can be physically and chemically crosslinked. The fibre morphology is visualised and its properties investigated by differential scanning calorimetry, DSC, thermo‐gravimetric analysis, TGA, and isothermal moisture sorption analysis. The results show that the thermo‐sensitive properties of the microgels are retained inside the fibres and that the degree of swelling and the moisture sorption kinetics can be tuned by changing the temperature.
Poly(2‐vinylpyridine)‐block ‐Poly(ϵ‐caprolactone) Single Crystals in Micellar Solution
Authors: Su Mei , Huang Haiying , Ma Xiaojing , Wang Qian , Su Zhaohui 
Published: May 2013

AbstractSelf‐assembly of poly(2‐vinylpyridine)‐block‐poly(ϵ‐caprolactone) (P2VP‐b‐PCL) diblock copolymer in the presence of a selective solvent is investigated by transmission electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy. Addition of water into a P2VP‐b‐PCL solution in N,N‐dimethylformamide at 20 °C produces elongated truncated lozenge shaped single crystals of uniform size and shape in large quantities. The single crystals are composed of PCL single‐crystal layer sandwiched between two P2VP layers tethered on the top and bottom basal surfaces. The formation of the single crystals is found to depend on the temperature. These findings provide a facile approach to the preparation of uniform single crystals in large quantities.magnified image
Phenethyl isothiocyanate inhibits androgen receptor‐regulated transcriptional activity in prostate cancer cells through suppressing PCAF
Authors: Yu Chunguang , Gong Ai‐Yu , Chen Dongqing , Solelo Leon Daniel , Young Charles YF , Chen Xian‐Ming 
Published: May 2013

ScopeAndrogen receptor (AR) signaling is critical for all aspects of prostate growth and tumorigenesis. The glucosinolate‐derived phenethyl isothiocyanate (PEITC) has recently been demonstrated to reduce the risk of prostate cancer (PCa) and inhibit PCa cell growth. We previously reported that p300/CBP‐associated factor (PCAF), a co‐regulator for AR, is upregulated in PCa cells through suppression of the mir‐17 gene. Here, we assessed the effects of PEITC on PCAF expression and AR‐regulated transcriptional activity in PCa cells.Methods and resultsUsing AR‐responsive LNCaP cells, we observed the inhibitory effects of PEITC on the dihydrotestosterone‐stimulated AR transcriptional activity and cell growth of PCa cells. Interestingly, overexpression of PCAF attenuated the inhibitory effects of PEITC on dihydrotestosterone‐stimulated AR transcriptional activity. Expression of PCAF was upregulated in PCa cells through suppression of miR‐17. PEITC treatment significantly decreased PCAF expression and promoted transcription of miR‐17 in LNCaP cells. Functional inhibition of miR‐17 attenuated the suppression of PCAF in cells treated by PEITC.ConclusionOur results indicate that PEITC inhibits AR‐regulated transcriptional activity and cell growth of PCa cells through miR‐17‐mediated suppression of PCAF, suggesting a new mechanism by which PEITC modulates PCa cell growth.
Human sperm CRISP2 is released from the acrosome during the acrosome reaction and re‐associates at the equatorial segment
Authors: Nimlamool Wutigri , Bean Barry S. , Lowe‐Krentz Linda J. 
Published: May 2013

SUMMARYSperm CRISP2 has been proposed to be involved in sperm–egg fusion. After the acrosome reaction, it appears at the equatorial segment (EqS) of human sperm; the mechanism underlying the appearance of CRISP2 at the EqS remains unknown, though. Here, we provide evidence showing the re‐association of sperm acrosomal CRISP2 at the EqS during the acrosome reaction. Results showed that F‐actin is not involved in the relocalization of CRISP2. We found that basic, but not acidic, conditions can solubilize CRISP2 from sperm cells, suggesting that CRISP2 is a component of the acrosome and that it is released from the acrosome during the acrosome reaction. Purified, biotinylated human sperm acrosomal CRISP2 binds to the EqS of acrosome‐reacted sperm in a dose‐dependent manner, revealing that CRISP2 detected at the EqS of acrosome‐reacted sperm comes from the population stored in the acrosome. The association of CRISP2 at the EqS is very strong, and does not depend on ionic interactions or intermolecular disulfide bonds. Interestingly, the restriction of CRISP2 at the EqS was diminished when EGTA was present in the media, indicating that Ca2+ is required for maintaining CRISP2 at the EqS. This study supports the possibility that CRISP2 may help modify the EqS membrane to make this domain fusion‐competent. Mol. Reprod. Dev. 80: 488–502, 2013. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Indexed distribution analysis for improved significance testing of spatially heterogeneous parameter maps: Application to dynamic contrast‐enhanced MRI biomarkers
Authors: Rose Chris J. , O'Connor James P. B. , Cootes Tim F. , Taylor Chris J. , Jayson Gordon C. , Parker Geoff J. M. , Waterton John C. 
Published: May 2013

PurposeTo develop significance testing methodology applicable to spatially heterogeneous parametric maps of biophysical and physiological measurements arising from imaging studies.TheoryHeterogeneity can confound statistical analyses. Indexed distribution analysis (IDA) transforms a reference distribution, establishing correspondences across parameter maps to which significance tests are applied.MethodsWell‐controlled simulated and clinical Ktrans data from a dynamic contrast‐enhanced magnetic resonance imaging study of bevacizumab were analyzed using conventional significance tests of parameter averages, histogram analysis, and IDA. Repeated pretreatment scans provided negative control; a post treatment scan provided positive control.ResultsHistogram analysis was insensitive to simulated and known effects. Simulation: conventional analysis identified treatment effect (P ≈ 5 × 10−4) and direction, but underestimated magnitude (relative error 67–81%); IDA identified treatment effect (P = 0.001), magnitude, direction, and spatial extent (100% accuracy). Bevacizumab: conventional analysis was sensitive to treatment effect (P = 0.01; 95% confidence interval on Ktrans decrease: 23–37%); IDA was sensitive to treatment effect (P < 0.05; Ktrans decrease approximately 25%), inferred its spatial extent to be 94–96%, and inferred that Ktrans decrease is independent of baseline value, an inference that conventional and histogram analyses cannot make.ConclusionsIn the presence of heterogeneity, IDA can accurately infer the magnitude, direction, and spatial extent of between samples of parametric maps, which can be visualized spatially with respect to the original parameter maps. Magn Reson Med 71:1299–1311, 2014. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Simple anthropometrics are more correlated with health variables than are estimates of body composition in Yup'ik people
Authors: Bray Maria , Pomeroy Jeremy , Knowler William C. , Bersamin Andrea , Hopkins Scarlett , Brage S⊘ren , Stanhope Kimber , Havel Peter J. , Boyer Bert B. 
Published: May 2013

ObjectivesTo (1) evaluate the relationships between several indices of obesity with obesity‐related risk factors; (2) compare the accuracy of body composition estimates derived from anthropometry and bioimpedance analysis (BIA) to estimates of body composition assessed by doubly‐labeled water (DLW); and (3) establish equations for estimating fat mass (FM), fat‐free mass (FFM), and percent body fat (PBF) in Yup'ik people.Design and MethodsParticipants included 1,056 adult Yup'ik people from 11 communities in Southwestern Alaska. In a sub‐study of 30 participants, we developed population‐specific linear regression models for estimating FM, FFM, and PBF from anthropometrics, age, sex, and BIA against criterion measures derived from total body water assessed with DLW. These models were then used with the population cohort and we analyzed the relationships between obesity indices and several health‐related and disease status variables: (1) fasting plasma lipids, (2) glucose, (3) HbA1c, (4) adiponectin, (5) blood pressure, (6) diabetes (DM), and (7) cerebrocoronary vascular disease (CCVD) which includes stroke and heart disease.ResultsThe best model for estimating FM in the sub‐study used only three variables—sex, waist circumference (WC), and hip circumference and had multiple R2 = 0.9730. FFM and PBF were calculated from FM and body weight.ConclusionWC and other anthropometrics were more highly correlated with a number of obesity‐related risk factors than were direct estimates of body composition. Body composition in Yup'ik people can be accurately estimated from simple anthropometrics.
Global Partnerships for International Fieldwork in Occupational Therapy: Reflection and Innovation
Authors: Cameron Debra , Cockburn Lynn , Nixon Stephanie , Parnes Penny , Garcia Lesley , Leotaud Jacqui , MacPherson Kristina , Mashaka Peter A. , Mlay Ruth , Wango Julius , Williams Trish 
Published: May 2013

AbstractInternational fieldwork placements (IFPs) have become very popular among healthcare students including those in occupational therapy programmes. There are many potential benefits that can accrue to the students; however, there are critiques of international placements especially for students going to underserviced areas. The purpose of this paper is to provide a case study/model programme description that critically reflects on six partnerships in three underserviced countries that provide IFPs to students from one Canadian university. The personal opinions of each partner were collected verbally, by email and by a qualitative review of the past 10 years of partnership interaction. Some of the benefits reported by partners include the development of an increased number of sustainable long‐term quality placements, orientation materials, student supports and the involvement of university faculty in research and capacity building projects in partner countries. A number of challenges were identified including the need for an expanded formal agreement, more bilateral feedback and examination of supervision models. This paper examines a limited number of partnerships with only one Canadian partner. Direct input of students is not utilized, although feedback given to co‐authors by students is reflected. More research is needed on perspectives of partners in IFPs, impact of IFPs on clinical practice in student's home countries, impact of IFPS on underserviced areas and effective strategies for debriefing. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Gas Temperature Effect on Reactive Species Generation from the Atmospheric Pressure Air Plasma
Authors: Kim Ho Young , Kang Sung Kil , Kwon Hyoung Cheol , Lee Hyun Woo , Lee Jae Koo 
Published: May 2013

AbstractUsing surface type air atmospheric pressure plasma, we investigated the amount of ozone and other reactive species generation with variations of the surface temperature of an electrode through an optical emission spectrum and a tube type gas detector. Reduced version of global model (GM) was employed to complement these experimental observations. The results of the model matched well with the experimental data. The amount of ozone generated from the surface type air plasma device was dramatically reduced with increasing temperature. Atomic oxygen (O) and nitric oxide (NO) radicals, which are important agents for biomedical applications, proportionally increased with increasing temperature. We also elucidated the dominant reaction related to the generation or loss of these radicals based on temperature variation through our GM.
The highly dynamic oligomeric structure of bradavidin II is unique among avidin proteins
Authors: Leppiniemi Jenni , Meir Amit , Kähkönen Niklas , Kukkurainen Sampo , Määttä Juha A. , Ojanen Markus , Jänis Janne , Kulomaa Markku S. , Livnah Oded , Hytönen Vesa P. 
Published: May 2013

AbstractBradavidin II is a biotin‐binding protein from Bradyrhizobium japonicum that resembles chicken avidin and bacterial streptavidin. A biophysical characterization was carried out using dynamic light scattering, native mass spectrometry, differential scanning calorimetry, and isothermal titration calorimetry combined with structural characterization using X‐ray crystallography. These observations revealed that bradavidin II differs from canonical homotetrameric avidin protein family members in its quaternary structure. In contrast with the other avidins, bradavidin II appears to have a dynamic (transient) oligomeric state in solution. It is monomeric at low protein concentrations but forms higher oligomeric assemblies at higher concentrations. The crystal structure of bradavidin II revealed an important role for Phe42 in shielding the bound ligand from surrounding water molecules, thus functionally replacing the L7,8 loop essential for tight ligand binding in avidin and streptavidin. This bradavidin II characterization opens new avenues for oligomerization‐independent biotin‐binding protein development.
Physics and paintings – a note on the cover
Authors: Bucklow Spike 
Published: May 2013

AbstractA basic understanding of the physical composition of historic works of art, such as Old Master paintings, is essential for their long‐term preservation. Such a broad understanding has largely been obtained over the last fifty years. However, a more sophisticated understanding of paintings' complex structures can also provide evidence of their modes of production. Such research can offer insights into historic technologies, of which surviving paintings are some of the finest products. This paper is an overview that uses a few examples to illustrate the sophisticated scientific and technological infrastructures that supported the creation of European art up to the 17th century. It briefly indicates how knowledge about material behaviour was transmitted and then lost. It treats great paintings as engineered structures made to the most exacting specifications and suggests that the physical nature of artworks offers researchers significant challenges.
Sparse inverse kernel Gaussian Process regression
Authors: Das Kamalika , Srivastava Ashok N. 
Published: May 2013

AbstractRegression problems on massive data sets are ubiquitous in many application domains including the Internet, earth and space sciences, and finances. Gaussian Process regression (GPR) is a popular technique for modeling the input–output relations of a set of variables under the assumption that the weight vector has a Gaussian prior. However, it is challenging to apply GPR to large data sets since prediction based on the learned model requires inversion of an ordernkernel matrix. Approximate solutions for sparse Gaussian Processes have been proposed for sparse problems. However, in almost all cases, these solution techniques are agnostic to the input domain and do not preserve the similarity structure in the data. As a result, although these solutions sometimes provide excellent accuracy, the models do not have interpretability. Such interpretable sparsity patterns are very important for many applications. We propose a new technique for sparse GPR that allows us to compute a parsimonious model while preserving the interpretability of the sparsity structure in the data. We discuss how the inverse kernel matrix used in Gaussian Process prediction gives valuable domain information and then adapt the inverse covariance estimation from Gaussian graphical models to estimate the Gaussian kernel. We solve the optimization problem using the alternating direction method of multipliers that is amenable to parallel computation. We compare the performance of this algorithm to different existing methods for sparse covariance regression in terms of both speed and accuracy. We demonstrate the performance of our method in terms of accuracy, scalability, and interpretability on two different satellite data sets from the climate domain. © 2013 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Statistical Analysis and Data Mining 6: 205–220, 2013
Secure transmission for big data based on nested sampling and coprime sampling with spectrum efficiency
Authors: Chen Junjie , Liang Qilian , Wang Jie 
Published: May 2013

AbstractBig data presents critical requirements for security in data collection and transmission of selected data through a communication network. This paper presents a new secure transmission for big data based on nested sparse sampling and coprime sampling. With nested sampling and coprime sampling, besides the advantage of higher spectrum efficiency, big data could also achieve higher power spectral density for binary frequency shift keying (BFSK) signal. When the sampling spacing pairs are big enough, the spectrum of BFSK signal performs like frequency hopping. This property has great advantage in the security of big data collection and transmission using FH/BFSK, as it could achieve low error probability. With the same multitone interfering signal added to FH/BFSK, the error probability becomes much lower using nested sampling and coprime sampling compared with the original FH/BFSK signal. This proves that both nested sampling and coprime sampling could be used in big data transmission to resist interference, while guaranteeing the transmission performance. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Photosensitizer–Gold Nanorod Composite for Targeted Multimodal Therapy
Authors: Wang Jian , You Mingxu , Zhu Guizhi , Shukoor Mohammed Ibrahim , Chen Zhuo , Zhao Zilong , Altman Meghan B. , Yuan Quan , Zhu Zhi , Chen Yan , Huang Cheng Zhi , Tan Weihong 
Published: May 2013

AbstractIn this work, a DNA inter‐strand replacement strategy for therapeutic activity is successfully designed for multimodal therapy. In this multimodal therapy, chlorin e6 (Ce6) photosensitizer molecules are used for photodynamic therapy (PDT), while aptamer‐AuNRs, are used for selective binding to target cancer cells and for photothermal therapy (PTT) with near infrared laser irradiation. Aptamer Sgc8, which specifically targets leukemia T cells, is conjugated to an AuNR by a thiol‐Au covalent bond and then hybridized with a Ce6‐labeled photosensitizer/reporter to form a DNA double helix. When target cancer cells are absent, Ce6 is quenched and shows no PDT effect. However, when target cancer cells are present, the aptamer changes structure to release Ce6 to produce singlet oxygen for PDT upon light irradiation. Importantly, by combining photosensitizer and photothermal agents, PTT/PDT dual therapy supplies a more effective therapeutic outcome than either therapeutic modality alone.
Formation of Heteroepitaxy in Different Shapes of Au–CdSe Metal–Semiconductor Hybrid Nanostructures
Authors: Haldar Krishna Kanta , Pradhan Narayan , Patra Amitava 
Published: May 2013

AbstractFormation of heteroepitaxy and designing different‐shaped heterostructured nanomaterials of metal and semiconductor in solution remains a frontier area of research. However, it is evident that the synthesis of such materials is not straightforward and needs a selective approach to retain both metal and semiconductor identities in the reaction system during heterostructure formation. Herein, the epitaxial growth of semiconductor CdSe on selected facets of metal Au seeds is reported and different shapes (flower, tetrapod, and core/shell) hetero‐nanostructures are designed. These results are achieved by controlling the reaction parameters, and by changing the sequence and timing for introduction of different reactant precursors. Direct evidence of the formation of heteroepitaxy between {111} facets of Au and (0001) of wurtzite CdSe is observed during the formation of these three heterostructures. The mechanism of the evolution of these hetero‐nanostructures and formation of their heteroepitaxy with the planes having minimum lattice mismatch are also discussed. This shape‐control growth mechanism in hetero‐nanostructures should be helpful to provide more information for establishing the fundamental study of heteroepitaxial growth for designing new nanomaterials. Such metal–semiconductor nanostructures may have great potential for nonlinear optical properties, in photovoltaic devices, and as chemical sensors.
An E3‐14.7K Peptide that Promotes Microtubules‐Mediated Transport of Plasmid DNA Increases Polyplexes Transfection Efficiency
Authors: Pigeon Lucie , Gonçalves Cristine , Gosset David , Pichon Chantal , Midoux Patrick 
Published: May 2013

AbstractChemical vectors as cationic polymers and cationic lipids are promising alternatives to viral vectors for gene therapy. Beside endosome escape and nuclear import, plasmid DNA (pDNA) migration in the cytosol toward the nuclear envelope is also regarded as a limiting step for efficient DNA transfection with non‐viral vectors. Here, the interaction between E3‐14.7K and FIP‐1 to favor migration of pDNA along microtubules is exploited. E3‐14.7K is an early protein of human adenoviruses that interacts via FIP‐1 (Fourteen.7K Interacting Protein 1) protein with the light‐chain components of the human microtubule motor protein dynein (TCTEL1). This peptide is conjugated with pDNA and mediates interaction of pDNA in vitro with isolated microtubules as well as with microtubules in cellulo. Videomicroscopy and tracking treatment of images clearly demonstrate that P79‐98/pDNA conjugate exhibits a linear transport with large amplitude along microtubules upon 2 h transfection with polyplexes whereas control pDNA conjugate exhibits small non‐directional movements in the cytoplasm. Remarkably, P79‐98/peGFP polyplexes enhance by a factor 2.5 (up to 76%) the number of transfected cells. The results demonstrate, for the first time, that the transfection efficiency of polyplexes can be drastically increased when the microtubules migration of pDNA is facilitated by a peptide allowing pDNA docking to TCTEL1. This is a real breakthrough in the non viral gene delivery field that opens hope to build artificial viruses.