bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Induction of ulcerative colitis in mice influences the course of infection with the nematode Trichuris muris
Authors: Vegas-Sánchez M.C. , Rollán-Landeras E. , García-Rodríguez J.J. , Bolás-Fernández F. 
Published: July 2014

AbstractThe aim of this study was to assess the effect of infection with the nematode whipworm Trichuris muris on the course of chemically induced acute ulcerative colitis in CBA/J mice, a strain proven to be highly resistant to infection with T. muris. Each mouse was infected with 50 embryonated eggs of T. muris by oral gavage. Acute colitis was triggered by administering 4% dextran sulphate sodium (DSS) in the drinking water for nine consecutive days at different times after infection. Concurrent infection and DSS administration exacerbate the severity of the colitis while favouring the permanence of parasites in the intestine. The induction of ulcerative colitis from days 54 to 62 post-infection (p.i.), when all worms had been expelled, ameliorated the course of the inflammatory disease. When ulcerative colitis was triggered earlier on, from days 27 to 35 p.i., the beneficial effects on inflammatory events were clearly shown with signs of mucosal epithelization and regeneration as early as day 1 after DSS administration. Previous infections by T. muris therefore accelerate recovery from subsequently induced inflammatory bowel disease and such an effect assists the nematode to persist in the intestinal niche.
The helminth community of the wood mouseApodemus sylvaticusfrom the Erro River valley, Navarre, Spain
Authors: Debenedetti A.L. , Sainz-Elipe S. , Sáez-Durán S. , Galicia D. , Imaz A. , Galán-Puchades M.T. , Fuentes M.V. 
Published: July 2014

AbstractThe helminth fauna of the wood mouse,Apodemus sylvaticus, in the Erro River valley (Navarre, Spain) was investigated from a total of 150 mice between February 2001 and July 2002. An overall prevalence of 90.7% was recorded and up to 14 helminth species identified. The most prevalent species was the nematodeHeligmosomoidespolygyrus(78.0%), whereasSyphacia stromawas the species with the highest median abundance (19.8). The detection ofCalodium hepaticum,Rodentolepis stramineaand the larvae ofHydatigera taeniaeformisare significant, since these helminth species could be considered potential human parasites. The helminth infracommunity comprised no more than five species. A significant predominance of monoxenous species was detected. Statistically significant differences were also found between prevalences, helminth abundance, species richness and helminth diversity of sub-populations of the wood mouse determined by host age and season of capture, which agree with most of the studies carried out on this host. This study will shed light on the helminth community of the wood mouse from a region of Spain which has not previously been documented.
Characteristics analysis and stabilization of a planar 2R underactuated manipulator
Authors: He Guang-Ping , Wang Zhi-Lü , Zhang Jie , Geng Zhi-Yong 
Published: July 2014

SUMMARYThe weightless planar 2R underactuated manipulators with passive last joint are considered in this paper for investigating a feasible method to stabilize the system, which is a second-order nonholonomic-constraint mechanical system with drifts. The characteristics including the controllability of the linear approximation model, the minimum phase property, the Small Time Local Controllability (STLC), the differential flatness, and the exactly nilpotentizable properties, are analyzed. Unfortunately, these negative characteristics indicate that the simplest underactuated mechanical system is difficult to design a stable closed-loop control system. In this paper, nilpotent approximation and iterative steering methods are utilized to solve the problem. A globally effective nilpotent approximation model is developed and the parameterized polynomial input is adopted to stabilize the system to its non-singularity equilibrium configuration. In accordance with this scheme, it is shown that designing a stable closed-loop control system for the underactuated mechanical system can be ascribed to solving a set of nonlinear algebraic equations. If the nonlinear algebraic equations are solvable, then the controller is asymptotically stable. Some numerical simulations demonstrate the effectiveness of the presented approach.
Redundantly actuated 3-RRR spherical parallel manipulator used as a haptic device: improving dexterity and eliminating singularity
Authors: Saafi Houssem , Laribi Med Amine , Zeghloul Said 
Published: July 2014

SUMMARYThis paper discusses the study of a spherical parallel manipulator (SPM) used as a haptic device for tele-operation applications. The SPM presents poor behavior in singular configurations. Redundancy is used to eliminate the parallel singularity without major changes in the mechanical structure. Comparisons in terms of kinematic and dynamic behavior between the non-redundant and redundant SPM are presented. The results prove the advantage of introducing redundancy in the actuator and sensor to improve the behavior of the SPM. A new control strategy for the redundant SPM is also proposed. The control strategy has been successfully tested and validated on a SimMechanics model.
Optimal synthesis of a spherical parallel mechanism for medical application
Authors: Essomba T. , Laribi M. A. , Zeghloul S. , Poisson G. 
Published: July 2014

SUMMARYThis paper introduces the design and the optimization of a probe holder robot for tele-echography applications. To define its kinematic architecture, an approach based on motion capture of an expert's gestures during ultrasound examinations was proposed. The medical gestures analyzed consisted of ultrasound probe movements and were used to characterize the kinematic specifications of the proposed manipulator. The selected architecture was a Spherical Parallel Mechanism (SPM) with 3 degrees of freedom (DoF) and its optimal synthesis was performed using real-coded Genetic Algorithms (GA). The optimization criteria and constraints were established thanks to the collaboration of medical experts and were successively formulated and solved using mono-objective and multi-objective functions.
Taylor coefficients of mock-Jacobi forms and moments of partition statistics
Authors: BRINGMANN KATHRIN , MAHLBURG KARL , RHOADES ROBERT C. 
Published: July 2014

AbstractWe develop a new technique for deriving asymptotic series expansions for moments of combinatorial generating functions that uses the transformation theory of Jacobi forms and “mock” Jacobi forms, as well as the Hardy-Ramanujan Circle Method. The approach builds on a suggestion of Zagier, who observed that the moments of a combinatorial statistic can be simultaneously encoded as the Taylor coefficients of a function that transforms as a Jacobi form. Our use of Jacobi transformations is a novel development in the subject, as previous results on the asymptotic behavior of the Taylor coefficients of Jacobi forms have involved the study of each such coefficient individually using the theory of quasimodular forms and quasimock modular forms.As an application, we find asymptotic series for the moments of the partition rank and crank statistics. Although the coefficients are exponentially large, the error in the series expansions is polynomial, and have the same order as the coefficients of the residual Eisenstein series that are undetectable by the Circle Method. We also prove asymptotic series expansions for the symmetrized rank and crank moments introduced by Andrews and Garvan, respectively. Equivalently, the former gives asymptotic series for the enumeration of Andrews k-marked Durfee symbols.
QuickSelect Tree Process Convergence, With an Application to Distributional Convergence for the Number of Symbol Comparisons Used by Worst-Case Find
Authors: FILL JAMES ALLEN , MATTERER JASON 
Published: July 2014

We define a sequence of tree-indexed processes closely related to the operation of the QuickSelect search algorithm (also known as Find) for all the various values of n (the number of input keys) and m (the rank of the desired order statistic among the keys). As a ‘master theorem’ we establish convergence of these processes in a certain Banach space, from which known distributional convergence results as n → ∞ about
(1)the number of key comparisons requiredare easily recovered
(a)when m/n → α ∈ [0, 1], and(b)in the worst case over the choice of m.
From the master theorem it is also easy, for distributional convergence of(2)the number of symbol comparisons required,
both to recover the known result in the case (a) of fixed quantile α and to establish our main new result in the case (b) of worst-case Find.Our techniques allow us to unify the treatment of cases (1) and (2) and indeed to consider many other cost functions as well. Further, all our results provide a stronger mode of convergence (namely, convergence in Lp or almost surely) than convergence in distribution. Extensions to MultipleQuickSelect are discussed briefly.
Asymptotic Properties of Some Minor-Closed Classes of Graphs
Authors: BOUSQUET-MÉLOU MIREILLE , WELLER KERSTIN 
Published: July 2014

Let${\cal A}$be a minor-closed class of labelled graphs, and let${\cal G}_{n}$be a random graph sampled uniformly from the set ofn-vertex graphs of${\cal A}$. Whennis large, what is the probability that${\cal G}_{n}$is connected? How many components does it have? How large is its biggest component? Thanks to the work of McDiarmid and his collaborators, these questions are now solved when all excluded minors are 2-connected.Using exact enumeration, we study a collection of classes${\cal A}$excluding non-2-connected minors, and show that their asymptotic behaviour may be rather different from the 2-connected case. This behaviour largely depends on the nature of the dominant singularity of the generating functionC(z) that counts connected graphs of${\cal A}$. We classify our examples accordingly, thus taking a first step towards a classification of minor-closed classes of graphs. Furthermore, we investigate a parameter that has not received any attention in this context yet: the size of the root component. It follows non-Gaussian limit laws (Beta and Gamma), and clearly merits a systematic investigation.
Approximately Counting Embeddings into Random Graphs
Authors: FÜRER MARTIN , KASIVISWANATHAN SHIVA PRASAD 
Published: July 2014

LetHbe a graph, and letCH(G) be the number of (subgraph isomorphic) copies ofHcontained in a graphG. We investigate the fundamental problem of estimatingCH(G). Previous results cover only a few specific instances of this general problem, for example the case whenHhas degree at most one (the monomer-dimer problem). In this paper we present the first general subcase of the subgraph isomorphism counting problem, which is almost always efficiently approximable. The results rely on a new graph decomposition technique. Informally, the decomposition is a labelling of the vertices such that every edge is between vertices with different labels, and for every vertex all neighbours with a higher label have identical labels. The labelling implicitly generates a sequence of bipartite graphs, which permits us to break the problem of counting embeddings of large subgraphs into that of counting embeddings of small subgraphs. Using this method, we present a simple randomized algorithm for the counting problem. For all decomposable graphsHand all graphsG, the algorithm is an unbiased estimator. Furthermore, for all graphsHhaving a decomposition where each of the bipartite graphs generated is small and almost all graphsG, the algorithm is a fully polynomial randomized approximation scheme.We show that the graph classes ofHfor which we obtain a fully polynomial randomized approximation scheme for almost allGincludes graphs of degree at most two, bounded-degree forests, bounded-width grid graphs, subdivision of bounded-degree graphs, and major subclasses of outerplanar graphs, series-parallel graphs and planar graphs of large girth, whereas unbounded-width grid graphs are excluded. Moreover, our general technique can easily be applied to proving many more similar results.
Hospital Preparedness in Advance of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil
Authors: Shoaf Kimberley , Osorio de Castro Claudia G.S. , Miranda Elaine Silva 
Published: July 2014

AbstractIntroductionRegardless of the capacity of the health care system of the host nation, mass gatherings require special planning and preparedness efforts within the health system. Brazil will host the 2014 Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) World Cup and the 2016 Olympics. This paper represents the first results from Project “Prepara Brasil,” which is investigating the preparedness of the health sector and pharmaceutical services for these events.Hypothesis/ProblemThis study was designed to identify the efforts engaged in to prepare the health sector in Brazil for the FIFA World Cup 2014 event, as well as the 2016 Summer Olympics.MethodsKey informant interviews were conducted with representatives of both the municipality and hospital sectors in each of the 12 host cities where matches will be played. A semi-structured key informant interview guide was developed, with sections for each type of participant. One of each municipality's reference hospitals was identified and seven additional general hospitals were randomly selected from all of the inpatient facilities in each municipality. The interviewers were instructed to contact a reference hospital, and two of the other hospitals, in the jurisdiction for participation in the study. Questions were asked about plans for mass-gathering events, the interaction between hospitals and government officials in preparation for the World Cup, and their perceptions of their surge capacity to meet the potential demands generated by the presence of the World Cup events in their municipalities.ResultsIn all, 11 representatives of the sampled reference hospitals, and 24 representatives of other general private and public hospitals in the municipalities, were interviewed. Most of the hospitals had some interaction with government officials in preparation for the World Cup 2014. Approximately one-third (34%) received training activities from the government. Fifty-four percent (54%) of hospitals had no specific plans for communicating with the government or other agencies during the World Cup. Approximately half (51%) had plans for surge capacity during the event, but only 27% had any surge capacity for isolation of potentially infectious patients.ConclusionOverall, although there has been mention of a great deal of planning on the part of the government officials for the World Cup 2014, hospital surge to meet the potential increase in demand still falls short.ShoafK, Osorio de CastroCGS, MirandaES. Hospital preparedness in advance of the 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2014;29(4):1-4.
Willingness of International Delegations to be Deployed to Areas With High Risk of Radiation
Authors: Shenhar Gilead , Radomislensky Irina , Rosenfeld Michael , Peleg Kobi 
Published: July 2014

AbstractBackgroundAn earthquake of 9.0 magnitude, followed by a tsunami, hit Japan in 2011 causing widespread destruction. Fukushima Nuclear Power Plant had been damaged, causing a spread of radioactive materials.ObjectivesThe aim of this study was to assess personal willingness to respond to a disaster as a part of an international delegation, to an area with unknown and unclear risk of radioactive materials. The Israeli delegation to the Japan 2011 earthquake had been chosen as a case study.MethodThe survey was conducted during the first two weeks after the tsunami in Japan. The population was selected randomly. After distributing the survey form, 94 anonymous answers were received, which give a 69% participation rate. The sample was divided into two groups (participated or didn't participate in an international delegation in the past).ResultsIt was found that as the situation on the ground became worse, the willingness to be deployed dropped dramatically, although no significant difference was found in willingness between the two study groups. When both groups were combined into one group, significant differences were found in their willingness to be deployed in a delegation between the three levels (no radioactive leak, possible radioactive leak, and uncontrolled leak).ConclusionsThe willingness to serve on a delegation that responds to a scene with a potential radioactive leak will be dramatically influenced by the risk at the site.ShenharG, RadomislenskyI, RosenfeldM, PelegK. Willingness of international delegations to be deployed to areas with high risk of radiation. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2014;29(4):1-5.
A case report of long-term survival of metastatic extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma treated with surgery and hypofractionated radiotherapy
Authors: Qiu Haoming , Hare Mary , Chen Yuhchyau 
Published: July 2014

AbstractWe describe the case of a patient with a 10-year history of metastatic extraskeletal myxoid chondrosarcoma (EMC), who underwent repeated surgical excision and ten courses of hypofractionated radiotherapy to locally recurrent or metastatic disease. We review the literature on EMC’s and propose that surgery and radiotherapy can be used to control disease progression and palliate symptoms for extended periods of time with acceptable toxicity profiles.
Interaction Effects of the COMT and DRD4 Genes with Anxiety-Related Traits on Selective Attention
Authors: Alfimova Margarita , Korovaitseva Galina , Lezheiko Tatiana , Golimbet Vera 
Published: July 2014

AbstractThe study investigated whether the DRD4 and COMT genes can modify relations between trait anxiety and selective attention. Two hundreds and sixty-six subjects performed a visual search task in which they had to find words looking through a sheet with rows of letters. After finishing the first sheet the subject was presented the second one, this time with an instruction to perform the task as quickly and accurate as possible. To study top-down attention, the number of correctly identified words (accuracy) and the time for completion of each trial were analyzed. To study bottom-up attention, the letters ‘o’ and ‘n’ were written in green, whilst the others were in black, and subjects were asked whether they had noticed that 2–3 minutes after the task completion. Genotypes for the COMT Val158Met and DRD4 VNTR-48 polymorphisms and TCI Harm Avoidance and MMPI Depression scales’ scores were obtained as well. High anxious individuals showed a more pronounced increase in accuracy in the second trial and more profound processing of irrelevant stimuli (colored letters). There was a significant interaction effect of DRD4 and Harm avoidance on the accuracy dynamics F(1, 210), = 7.65, p = .006, η2 = .04. Among DRD4 long allele carriers, high anxious subjects significantly improved accuracy (p = .013) and tended to slow speed, while those with lower Harm avoidance demonstrated the opposite trend. These effects were more robust in less educated individuals. It was concluded that the DRD4 polymorphism may modify the influence of trait anxiety on the speed-accuracy tradeoff.
The Influence of Culture of Honor and Emotional Intelligence in the Acculturation of Moroccan Immigrant Women
Authors: Lopez-Zafra Esther , El Ghoudani Karima 
Published: July 2014

AbstractMigration is a normal process of people seeking new opportunities, work, or leisure in societies. The way people adapt to a new country (acculturation) is a complex process in which immigrants’ evaluations about the culture of origin and their perceptions of the host country interact. The combination of these two factors produces four types of acculturation: separation, assimilation, integration, and marginalization. Several variables, such as personality, attitudes, and emotional intelligence, have been studied to help explain this process. However, the impact of a culture of honor and its interaction with other variables remains an open question that may help to explain how migrants can better adjust to their host culture. In this study, we examine the influence of the culture of honor (social) and emotional intelligence (individual) on acculturation. In a sample of 129 Moroccan women (mean age = 29, SD = 9.40) immigrants in Spain (mean time in Spain = 6 years, SD = 3.60), we investigated the relations among the variables of interest. Our results show that no significant differences emerged in the scores given for culture of honor (CH) and the acculturation strategies of the Moroccan immigrant women F(3, 99) = .233; p = .87. However women who preferred the integration strategy scored highest on emotional intelligence (EI), whereas the assimilated immigrants showed the lowest scores for EI F(3, 92) = 4.63; p = .005. Additionally, only in the case of integration does EI mediate between CH and the value given to the immigrant’s own and host cultures (p <.001).
Mechanistic Modeling Reveals the Critical Knowledge Gaps in Bile Acid–Mediated DILI
Authors: Woodhead JL , Yang K , Brouwer KLR , Siler SQ , Stahl SH , Ambroso JL , Baker D , Watkins PB , Howell BA 
Published: July 2014

Bile salt export pump (BSEP) inhibition has been proposed to be an important mechanism for drug‐induced liver injury (DILI). Modeling can prioritize knowledge gaps concerning bile acid (BA) homeostasis and thus help guide experimentation. A submodel of BA homeostasis in rats and humans was constructed within DILIsym, a mechanistic model of DILI. In vivo experiments in rats with glibenclamide were conducted, and data from these experiments were used to validate the model. The behavior of DILIsym was analyzed in the presence of a simulated theoretical BSEP inhibitor. BSEP inhibition in humans is predicted to increase liver concentrations of conjugated chenodeoxycholic acid (CDCA) and sulfate‐conjugated lithocholic acid (LCA) while the concentration of other liver BAs remains constant or decreases. On the basis of a sensitivity analysis, the most important unknowns are the level of BSEP expression, the amount of intestinal synthesis of LCA, and the magnitude of farnesoid‐X nuclear receptor (FXR)‐mediated regulation.CPT Pharmacometrics Syst. Pharmacol. (2014) 3, e123; doi:10.1038/psp.2014.21; published online 09 July 2014
Imaging With Nature: Compressive Imaging Using a Multiply Scattering Medium
Authors: Liutkus Antoine , Martina David , Popoff Sébastien , Chardon Gilles , Katz Ori , Lerosey Geoffroy , Gigan Sylvain , Daudet Laurent , Carron Igor 
Published: July 2014

AbstractThe recent theory of compressive sensing leverages upon the structure of signals to acquire them with much fewer measurements than was previously thought necessary and certainly well below the traditional Nyquist-Shannon sampling rate. However, most implementations developed to take advantage of this framework revolve around controlling the measurements with carefully engineered material or acquisition sequences. Instead, we use the natural randomness of wave propagation through multiply scattering media as an optimal and instantaneous compressive imaging mechanism. Waves reflected from an object are detected after propagation through a well-characterized complex medium. Each local measurement thus contains global information about the object, yielding a purely analog compressive sensing method. We experimentally demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach for optical imaging by using a 300-micrometer thick layer of white paint as the compressive imaging device. Scattering media are thus promising candidates for designing efficient and compact compressive imagers.