bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Tunable electroluminescence from low‐threshold voltage LED structure based on electrodeposited Zn1−xCdxO‐nanorods/p‐GaN heterojunction
Authors: Pauporté Th. , Lupan O. , Viana B. 
Published: October 2011

AbstractViolet light‐emitting diode (LED) structures based on Cd‐alloyed zinc oxide (Zn1−xCdxO) nanorods (NRs)/p‐GaN heterojunction have been fabricated by epitaxial electrodeposition at low temperatures in an aqueous soft bath followed by a mild thermal annealing. The ultraviolet (UV) room‐temperature emission peak at around 397 nm with a full width at half‐maximum (FWHM) of 10 nm observed from pure ZnO‐NRs/p‐GaN at room temperature was shifted to 417 nm with FWHM of 14 nm by employing a Zn0.92Cd0.08O‐NRs/p‐GaN heterojunction. The emission threshold voltage was low at about 5.0 V and the electroluminescence (EL) intensity rapidly increased with the applied forward‐bias voltage. The emission wavelength increased with the Cd content in the alloy. The EL physics mechanism in LED structures of the heterojunctions is discussed.
Coherent imaging at the Diamond beamline I13
Authors: Rau Christoph , Wagner Ulrich , Pešić Zoran , De Fanis Alberto 
Published: October 2011

AbstractThe Diamond beamline I13 for imaging and coherence applications is dedicated to hard X‐ray imaging on the micro and nano‐lengthscale. Two independent stations will be operated in a separate building at a distance of 250 m from the source. The imaging branch will perform in‐line phase contrast imaging and tomography over a large field of view in the 6–35 keV energy range. In addition it will be possible to switch to full‐field microscopy with 50 nm spatial resolution. Other microscopies will be developed according to the scientific needs. Resolution beyond the limitations given by the detector and X‐ray optics will be achieved on the ‘coherence’ branch. Techniques working in the far field such as Coherent X‐Ray Diffraction and other Coherent Diffraction Imaging techniques such as ptychography will be implemented. Typical applications cover different fields such as bio‐medicine, materials science, geo‐ and astrophysics or even cultural heritage. The beamline hosts a number of innovative features such as the so‐called ‘mini‐beta’ layout for electron optics in the storage ring or new concepts for beamline instrumentation. The stations will be operational in 2011.
Analysis of resonant MEMS based on high‐electron mobility transistor‐like structure
Authors: Khmyrova Irina , Yamase Ryosuke , Watanabe Norikazu , Maeda Takao , Shestakova Elena , Polushkin Evgeny , Kovalchuk Anatoly , Shapoval Sergei 
Published: November 2011

AbstractWe develop an analytical model for the resonant MEMS with electrical readout in which electrostatically actuated micromachined cantilever oscillates over the two‐dimensional electron gas (2DEG) channel and controls the current flowing along it. The model accounts for the impact of electric field fringing on spatial distribution of sheet electron density along the 2DEG channel.Nonuniform spatial distribution of sheet electron density results in distributed resistance of the 2DEG channel. Amplitude of the ac component of the source‐drain current is evaluated and compared with that one estimated using ideal model without fringing. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Impurity‐band conduction in polycrystalline films of GaSb and GaSbAs grown by molecular‐beam deposition
Authors: Kajikawa Y. , Okamura K. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractPolycrystalline films of undoped GaSb, GaSb0.86As0.14, and GaSb0.8As0.2 were grown on glass substrates by molecular‐beam deposition. Hall‐effect measurements were performed in the temperature range of 10‐400 K. Temperature dependences of concentration and mobility of holes at low temperatures were well explained in terms of two‐band conduction consisting of impurity‐band and valence‐band conduction which is limited predominantly by potential barriers at grain boundaries. The procedure for analyzing the Hall‐effect data is extended to be applicable to the sample involving not only the impurity band but also an additional deep acceptor level as well as a compensating donor level, so that the experimental results at high temperatures can also be well simulated. (© 2012 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Review of massively parallel DNA sequencing technologies
Authors: Moorthie Sowmiya , Mattocks Christopher J. , Wright Caroline F. 
Published: October 2011

Abstract
Since the development of technologies that can determine the base-pair sequence of DNA, the ability to sequence genes has contributed much to science and medicine. However, it has remained a relatively costly and laborious process, hindering its use as a routine biomedical tool. Recent times are seeing rapid developments in this field, both in the availability of novel sequencing platforms, as well as supporting technologies involved in processes such as targeting and data analysis. This is leading to significant reductions in the cost of sequencing a human genome and the potential for its use as a routine biomedical tool. This review is a snapshot of this rapidly moving field examining the current state of the art, forthcoming developments and some of the issues still to be resolved prior to the use of new sequencing technologies in routine clinical diagnosis.
Fish Oil Normalizes Plasma Glucose Levels and Improves Liver Carbohydrate Metabolism in Rats Fed a Sucrose‐Rich Diet
Authors: Hein Gustavo J. , Chicco Adriana , Lombardo Yolanda B. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractA sucrose‐rich diet (SRD) induces insulin resistance and dyslipidemia with impaired hepatic glucose production and gluconeogenesis, accompanied by altered post‐receptor insulin signaling steps. The aim of this study was to examine the effectiveness of fish oil (FO) to reverse or improve the impaired hepatic glucose metabolism once installed in rats fed 8 months a SRD. In the liver of rats fed SRD in which FO replaced corn‐oil during the last 2 months, as dietary fat, several key enzyme activities and metabolites involved in glucose metabolisms (phosphorylation, glycolysis, gluconeogenesis and oxidative and non oxidative glucose pathway) were measured. The protein mass levels of IRS‐1 and αp85 PI‐3K at basal conditions were also analyzed. FO improved the altered activities of some enzymes involved in the glycolytic and oxidative pathways observed in the liver of SRD fed rats but was unable to restore the impaired capacity of glucose phosphorylation. Moreover, FO reversed the increase in PEPCK and G‐6‐Pase and reduced the G‐6‐Pase/GK ratio. Glycogen concentration and GSa activity returned to levels similar to those observed in the liver of the control‐fed rats. Besides, FO did not modify the altered protein mass levels of IRS‐1 and αp85 PI‐3K. Finally, dietary FO was effective in reversing or improving the impaired activities of several key enzymes of hepatic carbohydrate metabolism contributing, at least in part, to the normalization of plasma glucose levels in the SRD‐fed rats. However, these positive effects of FO were not observed under basal conditions in the early steps of insulin signaling transduction.
Influence of age and fall type on head injuries in infants and toddlers
Authors: Ibrahim Nicole G. , Wood Joanne , Margulies Susan S. , Christian Cindy W. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractAge‐based differences in fall type and neuroanatomy in infants and toddlers may affect clinical presentations and injury patterns.ObjectiveOur goal is to understand the influence of fall type and age on injuries to help guide clinical evaluation.Design/Setting/ParticipantsRetrospectively, 285 children 0–48 months with accidental head injury from a fall and brain imaging between 2000 and 2006 were categorized by age (infan ≤ 1 year and toddler = 1–4 years) and fall type: low (≤3 ft), intermediate (>3 and <10 ft), high height falls (≥10 ft) and stair falls.Outcome MeasuresClinical manifestations were noted and head injuries separated into primary (bleeding) and secondary (hypoxia, edema). The influence of age and fall type on head injuries sustained was evaluated.ResultsInjury patterns in children <4 years varied with age. Despite similar injury severity scores, infants sustained more skull fractures than toddlers (71% vs. 39%). Of children with skull fractures, 11% had no evidence of scalp/facial soft tissue swelling. Of the patients with primary intracranial injury, 30% had no skull fracture and 8% had neither skull fracture nor cranial soft tissue injury. Low height falls resulted in primary intracranial injury without soft tissue or skull injury in infants (6%) and toddlers (16%).ConclusionsWithin a given fall type, age‐related differences in injuries exist between infants and toddlers. When interpreting a fall history, clinicians must consider the fall type and influence of age on resulting injury. For young children, intracranial injury is not always accompanied by external manifestations of their injury.
Dipeptidyl peptidase IV inhibition improves cardiorenal function in overpacing‐induced heart failure
Authors: Gomez Nelson , Touihri Karim , Matheeussen Veerle , Da Costa Agnès Mendes , Mahmoudabady Maryam , Mathieu Myrielle , Baerts Lesley , Peace Aaron , Lybaert Pascale , Scharpé Simon , De Meester Ingrid , Bartunek Jozef , Vanderheyden Marc , McEntee Kathleen 
Published: November 2011

AimsRecent studies indicate that brain natriuretic peptide (BNP1–32) may be truncated into BNP3–32 by dipeptidyl peptidase IV (DPP4) and that BNP3–32 has reduced biological activities compared with BNP1–32. We investigated if DPP4 contributes to the cardiorenal alterations and to the attenuated response to BNP seen in heart failure.Methods and resultsHaemodynamic and renal assessment was performed in 12 pigs at baseline, 4 weeks after pacing‐induced heart failure, and during BNP infusion. They were randomized to either placebo or treatment with a DPP4 inhibitor, sitagliptin. After 4 weeks of pacing, heart rate was reduced compared with baseline in the sitagliptin group (60 ± 2 vs. 95 ± 16 b.p.m., P < 0.01), and an increase in stroke volume was observed in the sitagliptin group compared with placebo (+24 ± 6% vs. –17 ± 7%, P < 0.01). Glomerular filtration rate declined at week 4 compared with baseline in the placebo group (1.3 ± 0.4 vs. 2.3 ± 0.3 mL/kg/min, P < 0.01) but remained preserved in the sitagliptin group [1.8 ± 0.2 vs. 2.0 ± 0.3 mL/kg/min, P = NS (non‐significant)]. In the sitagliptin group, BNP infusion improved end‐systolic elastance (68 ± 5 vs. 31 ± 4 mmHg/kg/mL, P < 0.05), ventricular–arterial coupling, and mechanical efficiency. Compared with controls (n = 6), myocardial gene expression of BNP, interleukin‐6, Na+–Ca2+ exchanger, and calmodulin was up‐regulated in the placebo group, but not in the sitagliptin group.ConclusionIn pacing‐induced heart failure, DPP4 inhibition preserves the glomerular filtration rate, modulates stroke volume and heart rate, and potentiates the positive inotropic effect of exogenous BNP at no energy expense.
Health‐related quality of life in patients with atopic dermatitis
Authors: MAKSIMOVIĆ Nataša , JANKOVIĆ Slavenka , MARINKOVIĆ Jelena , SEKULOVIĆ Lidija K. , ŽIVKOVIĆ Zorica , SPIRIĆ Vesna T. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractAtopic dermatitis (AD) is a chronic relapsing condition that can have considerable effects on the patients’ quality of life (QOL). The aim of this study was to measure the health‐related QOL in patients with AD, using generic and specific instruments, to compare the scores obtained by different instruments and to verify the relationship between them. We conducted a cross‐sectional study of 132 outpatients with AD. To assess the QOL, Short Form 36 (SF‐36), Dermatology Life Quality Index (DLQI) and Children’s Dermatology Life Quality Index (CDLQI) were administered. In order to assess the disease severity of AD, we used the Eczema Area and Severity Index (EASI) and physician assessment of disease severity. Stressful life events during the last 12 months were assessed with Paykel’s Interview for Recent Life Events. Patients with AD had inferior social functioning and mental health scores compared with the general population. The correlations between the DLQI and SF‐36 were found for the mental components of the QOL. Increasing disease severity was associated with greater impairment in QOL in both, children and adults. Our study found the influence of the stressful life events on the role emotional of AD patients. These results demonstrate that AD influences health‐related QOL, especially in children. This study supports the decision to use both generic and skin‐specific instruments to assess the impact of AD on QOL.
Unexpected frequent hepatotoxicity of a prescription drug, flupirtine, marketed for about 30 years
Authors: Michel Martin C. , Radziszewski Piotr , Falconer Christian , Marschall‐Kehrel Daniela , Blot Koenraad 
Published: November 2011

WHAT IS ALREADY KNOWN ABOUT THIS SUBJECT• Flupirtine has been on the market for about 30 years in several European countries as an analgesic. This use has not resulted in regulatory action concerning hepatotoxicity.WHAT THIS STUDY ADDS• When used in a novel indication, hepatotoxicity was frequent with flupirtine, questioning the general assumption that the safety profile in one indication can be extrapolated to other indications.AIMSTo determine efficacy of the analgesic flupirtine in the treatment of overactive bladder syndrome in a proof‐of‐concept study.METHODSDouble‐blind, double‐dummy, three‐armed comparison of flupirtine extended release (400 mg/day, titrated to 600 mg/day), tolterodine extended release (4 mg/day) and placebo for 12 weeks.RESULTSWhen major elevations of liver enzymes (more than three times the upper normal limit) were detected in several flupirtine‐exposed patients, the study was prematurely discontinued. Based on study‐end data, hepatotoxicity was detected in 31% of patients receiving flupirtine for ≥6 weeks.CONCLUSIONSUnexpected frequent and relevant toxicity can occur when testing an established drug for a new indication.
Modelling mortality causes in longitudinal data in the presence of tag loss: application to raptor poisoning and electrocution
Authors: Tavecchia Giacomo , Adrover Jaume , Navarro Antoni Muñoz , Pradel Roger 
Published: November 2011

Summary1. A first step for the effective management of vulnerable populations is to identify population threats and measure their relative impact on population fluctuations. The relative importance of proximate causes of mortality can be calculated from longitudinal data using capture–mark–recapture models. If marks are lost or cease to function, survival is underestimated.2. We provide an analytical framework based on conditional probabilities to obtain a robust estimate of the contribution of multiple sources of mortality while accounting for tag loss and imperfect detection.3. We applied this approach to radiotracking and wing tags‐resighting data of red kites Milvus milvus to estimate the impact of illegal poisoning and the mortality by electrocution on power lines in the island of Mallorca (Spain).4. Illegal poisoning was responsible for 53% of the total mortality and electrocution on power lines for 12%. Results indicated that poisoning‐related mortality was higher in immature birds, probably due to their more wide‐ranging prospective behaviour.5. Assuming the two human‐related mortalities are additive, the survival probability of kites would increase by 17% (from 0·76 to 0·91) if both threats were removed.6. Synthesis and applications. We present a new approach to estimate the contribution of different sources of mortality accounting for tag loss, state uncertainty and detection failures in wildlife populations. Our results will allow the demographic consequences of human‐related mortality in threatened populations to be refined. The approach is suitable for the study of multiplicative latent processes in a vast range of applied conservation studies such as, for example, wildlife epidemiology.
Practical aspects of a visual aid to decision making
Authors: Fisher Z. , Bailey R. , Willner P. 
Published: November 2011

AbstractBackground Previous research has demonstrated that people with mild intellectual disabilities (ID) have difficulty in ‘weighing up’ information, defined as integrating disparate items of information in order to reach a decision. However, this problem could be overcome by the use of a visual aid to decision making. In an earlier study, participants were taught to translate information about the pros and cons of different choices into a single evaluative dimension, by manipulating green (good) and red (bad) bars of varying lengths (corresponding to the value ascribed). Use of the visual calculator increased the consistency of performance (and decreased impulsive responding) in a temporal discounting task, and increased the amount of information that participants provided to justify their decisions in scenario‐based financial decision‐making tasks.Methods The present study examined some practical aspects of visual calculator training, using a pen‐and‐paper version of two temporal discounting tasks. Participants with mild ID were tested, individually and in a group setting, before and after training in the group setting, and 2 months later.Results (i) The visual aid improved temporal discounting performance using pen‐and‐paper presentation in a group setting as effectively as previously demonstrated using computer‐based individual presentation. (ii) Following withdrawal of the aid, improvements in temporal discounting performance were maintained at 1 day post training, but lost following a 2‐month hiatus; however, participants showed perfect retention, over 2 months, of how to use the aid. (iii) In addition to decreasing impulsivity in a hypothetical task, as previously demonstrated, use of the visual calculator also increased the ability of impulsive participants to wait in real time.Conclusion The results suggest that the visual calculator has practical applicability to support decision making by people with mild ID in community settings.
The forgotten whale: a bibliometric analysis and literature review of the North Atlantic sei whale Balaenoptera borealis
Authors: PRIETO Rui , JANIGER David , SILVA Mónica A. , WARING Gordon T. , GONÇALVES João M. 
Published: October 2011

ABSTRACT
A bibliometric analysis of the literature on the sei whale Balaenoptera borealis is presented. Research output on the species is quantified and compared with research on four other whale species. The results show a significant increase in research for all species except the sei whale. Research output is characterized chronologically and by oceanic basin.
The species' distribution, movements, stock structure, feeding, reproduction, abundance, acoustics, mortality and threats are reviewed for the North Atlantic, and the review is complemented with previously unpublished data.
Knowledge on the distribution and movements of the sei whale in the North Atlantic is still mainly derived from whaling records. Movement patterns and winter distribution are not clear. Surveys in some known summering areas show that the species has changed its distribution in parts of its previously known range.
With the present information, it is impossible to determine whether or not the North Atlantic sei whale population is subdivided into biological units. Abundance estimates are fragmentary and cover a restricted part of the summering habitat.
In the North Atlantic, sei whales seem to be stenophagous, feeding almost exclusively on calanoid copepods and euphausiids. On feeding grounds, they are associated with oceanic frontal systems, but how they find and explore these structures has not been fully investigated.
The available data on vital rates are based on whaling‐derived studies and are 25 years old or older. Despite increasing human and environmentally induced pressures, there are no current estimates for mortality and population trends.
Current research needs include the clear definition of stock units, reliable abundance estimates, studies of distribution and migration that incorporate the identification of wintering areas, acquisition of up‐to‐date data on reproduction and mortality, and investigations into the consequences of environmental changes for the species.
Sortase enzymes in Gram‐positive bacteria
Authors: Spirig Thomas , Weiner Ethan M. , Clubb Robert T. 
Published: October 2011

SummaryIn Gram‐positive bacteria proteins are displayed on the cell surface using sortase enzymes. These cysteine transpeptidases join proteins bearing an appropriate sorting signal to strategically positioned amino groups on the cell surface. Working alone, or in concert with other enzymes, sortases either attach proteins to the cross‐bridge peptide of the cell wall or they link proteins together to form pili. Because surface proteins play a fundamental role in microbial physiology and are frequently virulence factors, sortase enzymes have been intensely studied since their discovery a little more than a decade ago. Based on their primary sequences and functions sortases can be partitioned into distinct families called class A to F enzymes. Most bacteria elaborate their surfaces using more than one type of sortase that function non‐redundantly by recognizing unique sorting signals within their protein substrates. Here we review what is known about the functions of these enzymes and the molecular basis of catalysis. Particular emphasis is placed on ‘pilin’ specific class C sortases that construct structurally complex pili. Exciting new data have revealed that these enzymes are amazingly promiscuous in the substrates that they can employ and that there is a startling degree of diversity in their mechanism of action. We also review recent data that suggest that sortases are targeted to specific sites on the cell surface where they work with other sortases and accessory factors to properly function.
55.1, a gene of unknown function of phage T4, impacts on Escherichia coli folate metabolism and blocks DNA repair by the NER
Authors: Mattenberger Yves , Mattson Shawn , Métrailler Johann , Silva Filo , Belin Dominique 
Published: October 2011

SummaryPhage T4, the archetype of lytic bacterial viruses, needs only 62 genes to propagate under standard laboratory conditions. Interestingly, the T4 genome contains more than 100 putative genes of unknown function, with few detectable homologues in cellular genomes. To characterize this uncharted territory of genetic information, we have identified several T4 genes that prevent bacterial growth when expressed from plasmids under inducible conditions. Here, we report on the various phenotypes and molecular characterization of 55.1, one of the genes of unknown function. High‐level expression from the arabinose‐inducible PBAD promoter is toxic to the bacteria and delays the intracellular accumulation of phage without affecting the final burst size. Low‐level expression from T4 promoter(s) renders bacteria highly sensitive to UV irradiation and hypersensitive to trimethoprim, an inhibitor of dihydrofolate reductase. The delay in intracellular phage accumulation requires UvsW, a T4 helicase that is also a suppressor of 55.1‐induced toxicity and UV sensitivity. Genetic and biochemical experiments demonstrate that gp55.1 binds to FolD, a key enzyme of the folate metabolism and suppressor of 55.1. Finally, we show that gp55.1 prevents the repair of UV‐induced DNA photoproducts by the nucleotide excision repair (NER) pathway through interaction with the UvrA and UvrB proteins.