bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Influence of Poly(acrylic acid) on the Mechanical Properties of Composite Hydrogels
Authors: Faturechi Rahim , Karimi Alireza , Hashemi Ata , Yousefi Hossein , Navidbakhsh Mahdi 
Published: October 2014

ABSTRACTGelatin (Gel) and poly(acrylic acid) (PAA) have so many applications in wound dressing, drug release, and tissue engineering on the basis of their easy availability, biocompatibility, and biodegradability. A composition of Gel/PAA hydrogel is widely used as a biological glue of soft tissues. However, the influence of PAA on the mechanical properties of this composite hydrogel so far has not been determined. In this study, gel hydrogels were prepared at various PAA content, i.e., 10, 20, and 30 wt%, using a thermal‐initiated redox polymerization method. Afterward, as=prepared cylindrical hydrogel samples were subjected to a series of compressive loading to measure their linear elastic (elastic modulus, maximum stress and strain) and nonlinear hyperelastic (hyperelastic coefficients) mechanical properties. The potential ability of the Yeoh material model to closely address the nonlinear mechanical behavior of the hydrogel was verified using finite element (FE) modeling of the compression test. The results showed that the addition of PAA (>10 wt%) invokes a significant decrease in the Young's modulus and maximum stress of the hydrogels whereas a significant increase in the maximum strain. The highest Young's modulus (25 MPa) and maximum stress (12 MPa) were observed in the hydrogels with PAA (10 wt%), whereas the highest maximum strain (43%) was detected in the Gel/PAA (30 wt%) samples. The experimental results were well compared to those anticipated by the Yeoh and FE models. The results suggested that an optimum addition of PAA not only could enhance the mechanical strength of the hydrogels but also provide a nonlinear behavior of composite hydrogels, which is suitable for soft tissue engineering.
Antibacterial properties of hemp hurd powder against E. coli
Authors: Khan Belas Ahmed , Wang Jing , Warner Philip , Wang Hao 
Published: October 2014

ABSTRACTHemp (Cannabis sativa L.) is an eco‐friendly and multifunctional plant. Hemp hurd is a by‐product of hemp plant during hemp fiber separation. Although hemp hurd is repeatedly announced owing antibacterial activity, it has never been systematically investigated and reported. In this study, the antibacterial activity of hemp hurd powder against Escherichia coli is investigated. This article reveals antibacterial activity of hemp hurd where hemp hurd powder inhibits the growth of E. coli. Meanwhile, the self‐contamination (forming during retting process) inside hemp hurd has dramatic impact on the antibacterial performance. To achieve better antibacterial activity, hemp hurd was heat treated to eliminate self‐contaminations. The impact of the particle sizes and heat treatment on the antibacterial effectiveness was evaluated. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J. Appl. Polym. Sci. 2015, 132, 41588.
Comparative studies on the interaction of cefixime with bovine serum albumin by fluorescence quenching spectroscopy and synchronous fluorescence spectroscopy
Authors: Zhang Lihui , Liu Baosheng , Li Zhiyun , Guo Ying 
Published: October 2014

AbstractUnder simulated physiological conditions, the reaction mechanism between cefixime and bovine serum albumin at different temperatures (293, 303 and 310 K) was investigated using a fluorescence quenching method and synchronous fluorescence method, respectively. The results indicated that the fluorescence intensity and synchronous fluorescence intensity of bovine serum albumin decreased regularly on the addition of cefixime. In addition, the quenching mechanism, binding constants, number of binding sites, type of interaction force and energy‐transfer parameters of cefixime with bovine serum albumin obtained from two methods using the same equation were consistent. The results indicated that the synchronous fluorescence spectrometry could be used to study the binding mechanism between drug and protein, and was a useful supplement to the conventional method. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Luminescence in Li2BaP2O7
Authors: Hatwar L. R. , Wankhede S. P. , Moharil S. V. , Muthal P. L. , Dhopte S. M. 
Published: October 2014

AbstractThe photo‐, thermo‐ and optically stimulated luminescence in Li2BaP2O7 activated with Eu2+/Cu+ are reported. Strong thermoluminescence, which is about two times greater than LiF‐TLD 100 was observed in the Eu2+‐activated sample. It also exhibited optically stimulated luminescence sensitivity of ~20% that of commercial Al2O3:C phosphor. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Enhancing Catalytic Efficiency of Hollow Palladium Nanoparticles by Photothermal Heating of Gold Nanoparticles Added to the Cavity: Palladium–Gold Nanorattles
Authors: Mahmoud Mahmoud A. , El‐Sayed Mostafa A. 
Published: October 2014

AbstractHollow nanocatalysts, such as palladium nanoshells, have high catalytic efficiency. Gold nanospheres, which generate photothermal heat when photoexcited, have been synthesized inside palladium nanoshells to form palladium–gold nanorattles (PdAuNRTs). The efficiency of the catalytic reduction of 4‐nitrophenol by borohydride can be enhanced upon optical excitation of the gold nanospheres when using the PdAuNRTs as a catalyst for the reaction. The efficiency of this catalytic process was shown to be sensitive to the relative size of the gold nanosphere and that of the hollow palladium nanocage.
Comparison of benazepril and other antihypertensive agents alone and in combination with the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide
Authors: Dequattro Vincent 
Published: October 2014

AbstractThe safety and efficacy of benazepril, as monotherapy or as part of combination therapy with the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide, have been assessed in a number of studies, including comparative trials with the antihypertensive agents propranolol and nifedipine. These studies have included over 1300 patients with mild‐to‐moderate hypertension. Comparisons of the efficacy of benazepril and hydrochlorothiazide alone and in combination have shown that benazepril 20 mg once daily is as effective as or more effective in lowering diastolic blood pressure than hydrochlorothiazide 25 mg once daily and that the combination of benazepril 20 mg and hydrochlorothiazide 25 mg has a possibly synergistic effect on diastolic blood pressure. The results of comparative trials of benazepril with propranolol and nifedipine suggest that benazepril, administered alone or with the diuretic hydrochlorothiazide, is as effective as the other antihypertensive agents alone or in combination with hydrochlorothiazide. An additional study demonstrated that the combination of benazepril and nifedipine further lowered diastolic blood pressure in patients not responding to monotherapy with these agents. The safety of monotherapy with benazepril was found to be similar to that of the other antihypertensive agents. Safety of the combination of benazepril and hydrochlorothiazide was shown to be better than that of the combination of propranolol and hydrochlorothiazide. An attenuation of adverse experiences observed during nifedipine monotherapy was obtained when benazepril was added to the nifedipine regimen.
Singular Value Decomposition of a Finite Hilbert Transform Defined on Several Intervals and the Interior Problem of Tomography: The Riemann‐Hilbert Problem Approach
Authors: Bertola Marco , Katsevich Alexander , Tovbis Alexander 
Published: October 2014

AbstractWe study the asymptotics of singular values and singular functions of a finite Hilbert transform (FHT), which is defined on several intervals. Transforms of this kind arise in the study of the interior problem of tomography. We suggest a novel approach based on the technique of the matrix Riemann‐Hilbert problem (RHP) and the steepest‐descent method of Deift‐Zhou. We obtain a family of matrix RHPs depending on the spectral parameter λ and show that the singular values of the FHT coincide with the values of λ for which the RHP is not solvable. Expressing the leading‐order solution as λ → 0 of the RHP in terms of the Riemann Theta functions, we prove that the asymptotics of the singular values can be obtained by studying the intersections of the locus of zeroes of a certain Theta function with a straight line. This line can be calculated explicitly, and it depends on the geometry of the intervals that define the FHT. The leading‐order asymptotics of the singular functions and singular values are explicitly expressed in terms of the Riemann Theta functions and of the period matrix of the corresponding normalized differentials, respectively. We also obtain the error estimates for our asymptotic results. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
A QoS‐aware green cooperative compressed sensing scheme in IEEE 802.22 WRAN
Authors: Shan Baokun , Li Xi , Ji Hong , Li Yi 
Published: October 2014

SUMMARYDistributed antennas (DAs) are introduced into IEEE 802.22 wireless regional area network (WRAN) in order to improve consumer premise equipment (CPE) access in high density or large scale network scenario. However, guaranteeing the CPEs' QoS in DA‐WRAN in the process of spectrum sensing is largely ignored. In this paper, we introduce compressed sensing theory into DA‐WRAN and propose a QoS‐Aware Green Cooperative Compressed Sensing scheme, which aims to maximize energy efficiency of DA‐WRAN under its basic QoS constraints of packet drop probability, sensing delay and total throughput. In the proposed scheme, the expression for accuracy of compressed signal recovery under certain sparsity is fitted into exponential function, and the number of compressed samples number is taken into account during the energy efficiency optimization for the first time. To solve the formulated nonlinear multivariate optimal problem, a sub‐optimal algorithm based on particle swarm optimization is presented. At last, the performances of the proposed scheme are simulated and discussed. The simulation results show that the performance on energy efficiency of proposed scheme is better than contrasting algorithms without compromising CPEs' QoS. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Analytical performance of cervista HPV 16/18 in SurePath pap specimens
Authors: Guo Ming , Khanna Abha , Feng Jie , Patel Shobha , Zhang Wei , Gong Yun , Huo Lei , Staerkel Gregg 
Published: October 2014

BackgroundTo evaluate the performance of Cervista HPV 16/18 in SurePath specimens, we compared the analytical sensitivity of Cervista HPV 16/18 with that of a previously validated PCR‐based, commercially available HPV genotyping assay, EasyChip HPV Blot, in residual specimens collected after routine Pap tests at our cancer center.MethodsWe retrospectively selected 79 consecutive Cervista HPV HR (high risk)‐positive SurePath residual Pap specimens. The cytology results for these specimens comprised 42 negative, 22 ASC‐US/ASC‐H, 10 low‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesions, and 5 high‐grade squamous intraepithelial lesions. HPV 16/18 genotypes of the 79 specimens were analyzed by Cervista HPV 16/18 assay and EasyChip genotyping assay and compared with the patient's follow‐up results.ResultsOf the 79 cases, 33 (42%) were positive for HPV16/18 by Cervista HPV 16/18 and 37 (47%) were positive by EasyChip. The overall agreement between the 2 assays, at 85% (67/79), was good (kappa = 0.698, 95% CI: 0.541–0.855). In the 65 patients with follow‐up results, the sensitivity for predicting cervical intraepithelial neoplasia grade 2 or higher (CIN2+) was 77% for Cervista HPV 16/18 assay and 69% for EasyChip. The predictive values for CIN2+ in cases stratified by Pap results were highly consistent between the Cervista HPV16/18 and EasyChip assays; there was one false negative HPV16 result, in a specimen identified as NILM by EasyChip.ConclusionOur findings support use of the Cervista HPV 16/18 assay for HPV16/18 genotyping in SurePath Pap specimens. However, further studies of larger cohorts with clinical follow‐up data are required to verify the efficacy of Cervista HPV16/18 assay in SurePath Pap specimens. Diagn. Cytopathol. 2015;43:301–306. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Effects of social conditions during adolescence on courtship and aggressive behavior are not abolished by adult social experience
Authors: Ruploh Tim , Henning Miriam , Bischof Hans‐Joachim , von Engelhardt Nikolaus 
Published: October 2014

ABSTRACTSocial experience during adolescence has long‐lasting consequences for adult social behavior in many species. In zebra finches, individuals reared in pairs during adolescence start to court females faster, sing more courtship motifs to females and are more aggressive compared with group‐reared males. We investigated whether such differences are stable during adulthood or can be abolished by novel social experience after adolescence by giving all birds extensive experience with group life during adulthood. Courtship and aggressiveness increased in all males, but pair‐reared males still had a higher motif rate and were more aggressive than group‐reared males. Males no longer differed in courtship latency. In addition to the stable treatment differences, individual differences in behavior remained stable over time. Our results show that differences in behavior acquired during adolescence are preserved into adulthood, although adults still change their social behavior. Adolescence can thus be seen as a sensitive period during which social conditions have a lasting effect on adult behavior. © 2014Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Dev Psychobiol 57: 73–82, 2015.
Metal Mixtures Modeling Evaluation project: 1. Background
Authors: Meyer Joseph S. , Farley Kevin J. , Garman Emily R. 
Published: October 2014

Abstract

Despite more than 5 decades of aquatic toxicity tests conducted with metal mixtures, there is still a need to understand how metals interact in mixtures and to predict their toxicity more accurately than what is currently done. The present study provides a background for understanding the terminology, regulatory framework, qualitative and quantitative concepts, experimental approaches, and visualization and data-analysis methods for chemical mixtures, with an emphasis on bioavailability and metal–metal interactions in mixtures of waterborne metals. In addition, a Monte Carlo–type randomization statistical approach to test for nonadditive toxicity is presented, and an example with a binary-metal toxicity data set demonstrates the challenge involved in inferring statistically significant nonadditive toxicity. This background sets the stage for the toxicity results, data analyses, and bioavailability models related to metal mixtures that are described in the remaining articles in this special section from the Metal Mixture Modeling Evaluation project and workshop. It is concluded that although qualitative terminology such as additive and nonadditive toxicity can be useful to convey general concepts, failure to expand beyond that limited perspective could impede progress in understanding and predicting metal mixture toxicity. Instead of focusing on whether a given metal mixture causes additive or nonadditive toxicity, effort should be directed to develop models that can accurately predict the toxicity of metal mixtures. Environ Toxicol Chem 2015;34:726–740. © 2014 SETAC
Experimental study of the burning behavior of n‐heptane pool fires at high altitude
Authors: Zhou Zhihui , Yao Wei , Hu Xiaokang , Yuen Richard , Wang Jian 
Published: October 2014

SummaryThe same configured calorimeters were built in Hefei (99.8 kPa) and Lhasa (66.5 kPa), respectively. Four sizes of round pans with diameters of 10, 15, 20, and 25 cm were adopted to study the effect of high altitude on the burning behavior of liquid pool fires. Analysis on the burning rate obtained in this study and in the literature at different altitudes indicates that pressure fire modeling performs better than radiation fire modeling in correlating the burning intensity (burning rate per unit area) with pressure and pool diameter for cases under low ambient pressure. The study also shows that heat release rate and combustion efficiency decrease at higher altitude. For medium pool fires, the burning intensity and heat release rate are proportional to D5/2, thus the combustion efficiency being independent on pool sizes but decreases at higher altitude by a factor approximate to the pressure ratio. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Contribution of groundwater to the outflow from ungauged glacierized catchments: a multi‐site study in the tropical Cordillera Blanca, Peru
Authors: Baraer Michel , McKenzie Jeffrey , Mark Bryan G. , Gordon Ryan , Bury Jeffrey , Condom Thomas , Gomez Jesus , Knox Sara , Fortner Sarah K. 
Published: October 2014

AbstractThe rapid retreat of the glaciers of the Cordillera Blanca is having a noticeable impact on the downstream hydrology. Although groundwater is a critical hydrologic component that sustains stream flows during the dry season, its characteristics and its contribution to downstream hydrology remain poorly understood. In this study, we analyse the hydrochemical and isotopic properties of potential hydrologic sources mixing in surface streams to characterize the proglacial hydrology in four glacially fed watersheds within the Cordillera Blanca, Peru. Water samples from streams, glacial melt and groundwater were collected in 2008 and 2009 and analysed for major ions and stable isotopes (δ18O and δ2H). Multivariate analysis of variance was used first to identify the hydrochemical and isotopic characteristics (tracers) of the water samples that depend primarily on the water source. Then several analyses, including hierarchical cluster analysis and mixing diagrams, were performed using these source‐dependent tracers, enabling a qualitative description of the key hydrological mechanisms that characterize the study watersheds. Finally, we applied a multi‐component spatial mixing model, the hydrochemical basin characterization method, to quantify the contributions of different water sources to the outflow from the four watersheds. The hydrochemical basin characterization method results show that groundwater is a major component of the discharge during the dry season and that the groundwater contribution to outflow is greater than 24% in all of the valleys. The results are used to develop a conceptual proglacial hydrological model of the Cordillera Blanca valleys. Talus and avalanche cones are identified as key components of the hydrology of the valleys. The talus deposits collect precipitation and runoff from higher elevations (approximately 400 m above the valley floor) and have a residence time that is long enough to actively release substantial volumes of water throughout the dry season. Copyright © 2014 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Impaired arousal at initial presentation predicts 6‐month mortality: An analysis of 1084 acutely ill older patients
Authors: Han Jin H. , Vasilevskis Eduard E. , Shintani Ayumi , Graves Amy J. , Schnelle John F. , Dittus Robert S. , Powers James S. , Wilson Amanda , Storrow Alan B. , Ely E. Wesley 
Published: October 2014

OBJECTIVESImpaired arousal signifies underlying brain dysfunction, but its clinical significance outside the intensive care unit remains unclear. We sought to determine if impaired arousal at initial presentation was associated with higher 6‐month mortality and if this relationship existed in the absence of delirium.DESIGNProspective cohort study.SETTINGAn emergency department located within an academic, tertiary care hospital.PARTICIPANTSA total of 1084 noncomatose patients who were aged 65 years or older.MEASUREMENTSThe Richmond Agitation‐Sedation Scale (RASS) is a 10‐second arousal scale; a score of 0 indicates normal arousal. Cox proportional hazard regression was performed adjusting for patient characteristics, admission status, and psychoactive medication administration. To determine if impaired arousal in the absence of delirium was associated with 6‐month mortality, Cox proportional hazard regression was performed in a subset of 406 patients who received a psychiatric assessment; the inverse weighted propensity score method was used to minimize residual confounding. Hazard ratios (HR) with their 95% confidence intervals (95% CI) were reported.RESULTSPatients with impaired arousal were 73% more likely to die within 6 months (HR: 1.73, 95% CI: 1.21‐2.49). Even in the absence of delirium, patients with an abnormal RASS were more likely to die within 6 months (HR: 2.20, 95% CI: 1.10‐4.41).CONCLUSIONImpaired arousal at initial presentation is an independent predictor of death within 6 months in a diverse group of acutely ill older patients, even in the absence of delirium. Routine RASS assessment of arousal during clinical care may be warranted as it correlates with prognosis. Journal of Hospital Medicine 2014;9:772–778. © 2014 Society of Hospital Medicine
Is human T‐lymphotropic virus type 1 infection associated with hearing loss?
Authors: Bakhshaee Mehdi , Sorouri Amirhossein , Shoeibi Ali , Boustani Reza , Golhasani‐Keshtan Farideh , Amali Amin , Rajati Mohsen 
Published: October 2014

Objectives/HypothesisHuman T‐lymphotropic virus type 1 (HTLV‐1) infection is endemic in the northeast area of Iran. Although various neurological disturbances have been reported in HTLV‐1 infection, possible audiovestibular involvement during this infection has not yet been studied.Study DesignCase control study.MethodsSixty‐eight cases in three groups including 24 HTLV‐1–infected patients with HTLV‐1– associated myelopathy/tropical spastic paraparesis (HAM/TSP) (group 1), 23 HTLV‐1–infected cases without clinical presentation (group 2), and 21 normal individuals (group 3) entered our study. A complete history of hearing‐related disorders and a profile of audiologic tests, including pure‐tone audiometry (PTA) with high frequencies, speech reception threshold (SRT), and auditory brainstem response (ABR) were taken.ResultsSubjective audiovestibular complaints of participants showed a significant difference among HAM/TSP patients and the two other groups regarding hearing loss and tinnitus, but not vertigo or aural fullness. Hearing evaluation by SRT and PTA in all frequencies showed a significant difference between HAM/TSP patients (group 1) and the controls (group 3). The difference was also significant between asymptomatic cases (group 2) and the controls only in PTA frequencies above 4 kHz. Auditory brainstem‐evoked potential did not show any significant differences among the groups regarding latency of I, III, and V waves and interwave differences.ConclusionsHTLV‐1 infection, particularly in those with a clinical presentation, appears to accompany hearing loss. Based on the results of PTA and ABR tests, this study may suggest a cochlear source of hearing impairment rather than neural problems.Level of Evidence3b. Laryngoscope, 125:956–960, 2015