bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Understanding the Antibacterial Mechanism of CuO Nanoparticles: Revealing the Route of Induced Oxidative Stress
Authors: Applerot Guy , Lellouche Jonathan , Lipovsky Anat , Nitzan Yeshayahu , Lubart Rachel , Gedanken Aharon , Banin Ehud 
Published: August 2012

AbstractTo date, there is still a lack of definite knowledge regarding the interaction of CuO nanoparticles with bacteria and the possible permeation of the nanoparticles into bacterial cells. This study was aimed at shedding light on the size‐dependent (from the microscale down to the small nanoscale) antibacterial activity of CuO. The potent antibacterial activity of CuO nanoparticles was found to be due to ROS‐generation by the nanoparticles attached to the bacterial cells, which in turn provoked an enhancement of the intracellular oxidative stress. This paradigm was confirmed by several assays such as lipid peroxidation and reporter strains of oxidative stress. Furthermore, electron microscopy indicated that the small nanoparticles of CuO penetrated the cells. Collectively, the results reported herein may reconcile conflicting concepts in the literature concerning the antibacterial mechanism of CuO nanoparticles, as well as highlight the potential for developing sustainable CuO nanoparticles‐based devices for inhibiting bacterial infections.
Software quality metrics aggregation in industry
Authors: Mordal Karine , Anquetil Nicolas , Laval Jannik , Serebrenik Alexander , Vasilescu Bogdan , Ducasse Stéphane 
Published: August 2012

SUMMARYWith the growing need for quality assessment of entire software systems in the industry, new issues are emerging. First, because most software quality metrics are defined at the level of individual software components, there is a need for aggregation methods to summarize the results at the system level. Second, because a software evaluation requires the use of different metrics, with possibly widely varying output ranges, there is a need to combine these results into a unified quality assessment. In this paper we derive, from our experience on real industrial cases and from the scientific literature, requirements for an aggregation method. We then present a solution through the Squale model for metric aggregation, a model specifically designed to address the needs of practitioners. We empirically validate the adequacy of Squale through experiments on Eclipse. Additionally, we compare the Squale model to both traditional aggregation techniques (e.g., the arithmetic mean), and to econometric inequality indices (e.g., the Gini or the Theil indices), recently applied to aggregation of software metrics. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Automated evaluation of website navigability: an empirical validation of multilevel quality models
Authors: Vaucher Stéphane , Moulart Antoine , Sahraoui Houari , Habra Naji 
Published: August 2012

ABSTRACTWebsites are an important and efficient means of communication for companies wishing to interact with their clients. Therefore, research has focused on evaluating how websites should be structured to ensure their quality. The majority of this research has focused on evaluating the quality of individual pages or that of a site as a whole. In this article, we propose the use of two‐level models that combine evaluations at the page level with evaluations at the site level, and applied them to the problem of evaluating the navigability of websites. To test our models, we conducted a study with 21 subjects who had to complete navigation tasks on several websites, and compared their quality judgments to those produced by single and two‐level quality models. We found that two‐level models are better predictors of navigability. Finally, we show how two‐level models are able to suggest modifications to improve site navigability. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Clinical Experience with Primary Hepatic Epithelioid Hemangioendothelioma: Retrospective Study of 33 Patients
Authors: Wang Long‐Rong , Zhou Jia‐Min , Zhao Yi‐Ming , He Hong‐Wei , Chai Zong‐Tao , Wang Miao , Ji Yuan , Chen Yi , Liu Chen , Sun Hui‐Chuan , Wu Wei‐Zhong , Ye Qing‐Hai , Zhou Jian , Fan Jia , Tang Zhao‐You , Wang Lu 
Published: August 2012

AbstractBackgroundThis multicenter‐based retrospective study aimed to investigate the prognostic factors and report our experiences with the diagnosis and treatment of hepatic epithelioid hemangioendothelioma (HEHE), a rare malignant vascular tumor.MethodsA total of 33 patients with HEHE from two centers between 2004 and 2011 were retrospectively reviewed with respect to their clinical, radiologic, and pathologic characteristics; treatment modalities and outcomes; and potential prognostic factors.ResultsA total of 17 patients underwent liver resections (LRs) alone, 12 patients had transcatheter arterial chemoembolization (TACE) alone, three patients had LR followed by TACE, and one patient underwent liver transplantation (LT). The difference of overall survival (OS) between LR and TACE was not significant (p = 0.499). Older patients [≥47 years, n = 17; p = 0.035, hazard ratio (HR) = 7.0), those with symptoms (n = 17; p = 0.001, HR = 86.5], and those with an elevated serum CA19‐9 level (>37 U/ml, n = 5; p = 0.018, HR = 5.0) had a poorer OS, according to univariate analysis. The presence of symptoms was validated as a prognostic factor (p = 0.012) by multivariate analysis.ConclusionsLiver resection and TACE have comparable outcomes in HEHE patients. The presence of symptoms indicates a poor prognosis. Older age and elevated serum CA19‐9 are potential negative impact factors on outcome.
Factors associated with the success of the Rigo System Chêneau brace in treating mild to moderate adolescent idiopathic scoliosis
Authors: Ovadia Dror , Eylon Sharon , Mashiah Avraham , Wientroub Shlomo , Lebel Eduard David 
Published: August 2012

Background Adolescent idiopathic scoliosis (AIS) is the most prevalent spine deformity within the pediatric population. Orthosis is the mainstay of conservative treatment for mild to moderate AIS. The Rigo System Chêneau (RSC) brace is a custom-made thoracolumbar sacral orthosis (TLSO) based on a three-dimensional correction concept. The purpose of this study was to identify factors that could predict the therapeutic success/failure of the RSC brace. Materials and methods A retrospective cohort study was performed on all consecutive patients according to the Scoliosis Research Society (SRS) criteria for the success of conservative treatment. Participants had a 2-year follow-up beyond the termination of brace treatment. All patients were treated with the RSC orthotic device. Results Ninety-three patients met the inclusion criteria. At treatment onset, their average age was 12.9 years, average Cobb angle 31.97°, Risser score 1.07, and the mean angle of thoracic rotation (ATR) was 10.2°. The mean brace treatment period was 36 months. Treatment was successful in 83.8 % of these patients ( n = 79). The average final Cobb angle was 28.97°, Risser score 4.88, and ATR 8.09°. The pre-treatment factors associated with the success of applying the RSC brace were a high Risser score [odds ratio (OR) = 2.97, 95 % confidence interval [CI] 1.18–7.44; p = 0.02), a low Cobb angle (OR = 0.92, 95 % CI 0.85–0.99; p = 0.02), and low ATR (OR = 0.86, 95 % CI 0.75–0.99; p = 0.04). Conclusions The treatment of mild to moderate AIS with the RSC brace provides excellent clinical results. Its added benefit is enabling a three-dimensional correction of a three-dimensional deformity. Pre-treatment high Risser score, low Cobb angles, and low ATRs are associated with treatment success. Level of evidence Retrospective analysis, Level III.
Maternal mortality in Eritrea: Improvements associated with centralization of obstetric services
Authors: Holzgreve Wolfgang , Greiner Dorothea , Schwidtal Peter 
Published: August 2012

AbstractTo reduce maternal mortality and move more effectively toward achieving Millennium Development Goal (MDG) 5 it is important to learn from positive national experiences and to try to isolate the significant factors that were successful. Maternal mortality in Eritrea is still high, but within the period since the country's independence in 1991, the Eritrean Government has received support to improve maternal health from two German nongovernmental organizations: the Hammer Forum and Archemed. This support has focused on prenatal care, contraception counseling, postabortion care, and most notably the centralization of obstetric and neonatal services in the capital, Asmara, and in the second biggest city, Keren. It is now possible to tentatively evaluate the effect of this approach. National data show that the maternal mortality ratio declined from 998 per 100 000 live births in 1995 to 486 in 2010. Although the positive effect of skilled birth attendants in the periphery is also well documented, the centralization of obstetric services in Eritrea seems to have been a major factor in the country's considerable progress toward achieving MDG 5.
Russia under Putin: Titanic looking for its iceberg?
Authors: Shevtsova Lilia 
Published: August 2012

December 2011 protests in Russia, the largest after the collapse of the Soviet Union, shattered the status quo that had taken shape over the last decade and signaled that Russia is entering turbulent waters. Russia found itself caught in a trap: the 2011–2012 elections perpetuate a personalized power system that became the source of decay. The top-down rule and its “personificator” – Vladimir Putin – are already rejected by the most dynamic and educated urban population. However, no clear political alternative with a broad social support has yet emerged to replace the old Russian matrix.
In terms of strategic significance, Putin’s regime will most certainly unravel in the fore-seeable perspective. But it is hard to predict what consequences this will have: the system’s disintegration and even collapse of the state, growing rot and atrophy, or the last grasp in the life of personalized power and transformation that will set Russia on a new foundation. One thing is apparent: transformation will not happen in the form of reform from above and within, and if it does occur, it will be the result of the deepening crisis and society’s pressure.
Linear stability of magnetohydrodynamic flow in a perfectly conducting rectangular duct
Authors: Priede Jānis , Aleksandrova Svetlana , Molokov Sergei 
Published: August 2012

AbstractWe analyse numerically the linear stability of a liquid-metal flow in a rectangular duct with perfectly electrically conducting walls subject to a uniform transverse magnetic field. A non-standard three-dimensional vector stream-function/vorticity formulation is used with a Chebyshev collocation method to solve the eigenvalue problem for small-amplitude perturbations. A relatively weak magnetic field is found to render the flow linearly unstable as two weak jets appear close to the centre of the duct at the Hartmann number $\mathit{Ha}\approx 9. 6. $ In a sufficiently strong magnetic field, the instability following the jets becomes confined in the layers of characteristic thickness $\delta \ensuremath{\sim} {\mathit{Ha}}^{\ensuremath{-} 1/ 2} $ located at the walls parallel to the magnetic field. In this case the instability is determined by $\delta , $ which results in both the critical Reynolds number and wavenumber scaling as ${\ensuremath{\sim} }{\delta }^{\ensuremath{-} 1} . $ Instability modes can have one of the four different symmetry combinations along and across the magnetic field. The most unstable is a pair of modes with an even distribution of vorticity along the magnetic field. These two modes represent strongly non-uniform vortices aligned with the magnetic field, which rotate either in the same or opposite senses across the magnetic field. The former enhance while the latter weaken one another provided that the magnetic field is not too strong or the walls parallel to the field are not too far apart. In a strong magnetic field, when the vortices at the opposite walls are well separated by the core flow, the critical Reynolds number and wavenumber for both of these instability modes are the same: ${\mathit{Re}}_{c} \approx 642{\mathit{Ha}}^{1/ 2} + 8. 9\ensuremath{\times} 1{0}^{3} {\mathit{Ha}}^{\ensuremath{-} 1/ 2} $ and ${k}_{c} \approx 0. 477{\mathit{Ha}}^{1/ 2} . $ The other pair of modes, which differs from the previous one by an odd distribution of vorticity along the magnetic field, is more stable with an approximately four times higher critical Reynolds number.
Yield and grain quality of wheat in response to increased temperatures at key periods for grain number and grain weight determination: considerations for the climatic change scenarios of Chile
Authors: LIZANA X. C. , CALDERINI D. F. 
Published: August 2012

SUMMARYAgricultural systems are challenged by global climatic change in a scenario of increasing food demand by a growing population. The increase in average temperature will be the main environmental factor affecting the crop development and productivity worldwide, although changes in carbon dioxide (CO2) concentration and rainfall are also expected. Global warming in the range of moderately high temperatures (15–32°C) is projected for temperate environments such as that of central-southern Chile, where grain crops such as wheat are widely grown. The present study assessed the impact of moderately high temperatures on both yield and quality traits of wheat during key stages for grain number and grain weight determination. Two cultivars of spring wheat (Pandora INIA and Huayún INIA) were grown under field conditions during two cropping seasons (2006/07 and 2007/08) under different thermal regimes, consisting of a combination of three temperatures (a control at ambient temperature and two increased temperature treatments, ranging from 2·6 to 11·7°C above the control) and two (3–15 and 20–32 days after anthesis) or three (booting to anthesis (Bo-At), 3–15 and 20–32 days after anthesis) timing regimes. The data recorded showed that the extent of yield reduction was strongly dependent on the timing of the heat treatments. Increased temperature at pre- (Bo-At) or early post-anthesis (3–15 days after anthesis) affected grain yield the most (reducing it by 8–30%). In light of these results, yield reductions of up to 18% can be expected when the crop undergoes average temperature increase of 2·8°C at Bo-At. In this study, the negative effect of increasing temperature on grain yield was associated with both grain number and grain weight reductions; however, different sensitivities to higher temperatures were found between cultivars. Although protein concentration of grains was not affected by higher temperatures, other negative effects on industrial quality traits are important, considering the impact of thermal treatments on grain size of both cultivars.
Ageing and taste
Authors: Methven Lisa , Allen Victoria J. , Withers Caroline A. , Gosney Margot A. 
Published: August 2012

Taste perception has been studied frequently in young and older adult groups. This paper systematically reviews these studies to determine the effect of ageing on taste perception and establish the reported extent of sensory decline. Five databases were searched from 1900 to April 2012. Articles relating to healthy ageing in human subjects were included, reviewed and rated (Downs and Black scoring system). Sixty-nine studies investigated the effect of ageing on taste perception; forty examined detection thresholds of which twenty-three provided sufficient data for meta-analysis, eighteen reported identification thresholds and twenty-five considered supra-threshold intensity perception. Researchers investigating detection thresholds considered between one and thirteen taste compounds per paper. Overall, the consensus was that taste detection thresholds increased with age (Hedges’g = 0·91,P < 0·001), across all taste modalities. Identification thresholds were reported to be higher for older adults in seventeen out of eighteen studies. Sixteen out of twenty-five studies reported perception of taste intensity at supra-threshold levels to be significantly lower for older adults. However, six out of nine studies concerning sucrose found perceived intensity of sweet taste not to diminish with age. The findings of this systematic review suggest taste perception declines during the healthy ageing process, although the extent of decline varies between studies. Overall, the studies reviewed had low Downs and Black scores (mean 16 (SD 2)) highlighting the need for more robust large scale and longitudinal studies monitoring the impact of ageing on the sensory system, and how this influences the perception of foods and beverages.
Acute Q fever in northern Queensland: variation in incidence related to rainfall and geographical location
Authors: HARRIS P. , EALES K. M. , SQUIRES R. , GOVAN B. , NORTON R. 
Published: August 2012

SUMMARYThe aims of this study were to define the basic epidemiology of serologically confirmed acute Q fever in patients tested via the Townsville Hospital laboratory from 2000 to 2010 and to determine the impact of geographical location and seasonality on the incidence of acute cases in the Townsville region. Seven Statistical Local Areas (SLA) were identified as having an incidence higher than the average Queensland incidence over the study period. The SLA with the highest incidence was Woodstock-Ross with 24·9 cases/100 000. A clear seasonal peak was found, with the greatest number of cases observed in May, 3 months following the peak in rainfall in February. We hypothesize that an increase in wildlife numbers and drier conditions seen immediately following the wet season is the reason for the seasonal peak of human acute Q fever cases in Townsville.
Effects of different forms of monocular deprivation on primary visual cortex maps
Authors: JAFFER SAJJIDA , VOROBYOV VASILY , SENGPIEL FRANK 
Published: August 2012

AbstractMonocular deprivation (MD) by lid suture is one of the classic paradigms for the study of developmental plasticity in the cerebral cortex, and we have detailed knowledge of its anatomical and physiological consequences as well as underlying molecular and cellular mechanisms. However, the effects of other forms of manipulating visual input through one eye on the functional architecture of the primary visual cortex (V1) have not yet been examined directly. We compared MD by lid suture with the effects of daily monocular lens wear using either a frosted lens or a neutral density (ND) filter. We used optical imaging of intrinsic signals and visually evoked potentials (VEPs) to assess responses in V1 to monocular stimulation. We found that loss of stimulus contrast through monocular frosted lens wear resulted in marked takeover of cortical territory by the nondeprived eye (NDE) similar to that caused by classic MD, and in virtual absence of orientation-selective responses following stimulation of the deprived eye (DE). Furthermore, amplitudes of VEPs in response to gratings of a range of spatial frequencies were significantly reduced in the DE compared to the NDE. In contrast, differences in luminance between two eyes caused by an ND filter in front of one eye did not affect ocular dominance and orientation maps, and there was no significant difference in the amplitude of VEPs elicited through the two eyes. Our results are consistent with previous electrophysiological studies in demonstrating that binocular pattern information is necessary to maintain normal functional maps in both eyes, while reduced luminance in one eye has little effect on the overall functional architecture and visual responses in V1.
Medical Consequences of Terrorism, Conflict and Civil Unrest
Authors: Sidenberg Barry S. 
Published: August 2012

There are over 25 active insurgencies in progress worldwide today. Terrorism is often part of these actions. But terrorism is also found worldwide in areas where no active insurgency exists. There has been a sharp rise in terrorist activities in the last five years, and there will continue to be an increase in such activities in the future.Bombs, in various assortments, are the favorite weapons of terrorists. When guns are utilized, they are often of the military type and produce subsequent high velocity missile injuries which have entirely different characteristics than the normal type of handgun injury encountered in the civilian practice of medicine. The type of wounds produced by bombings include blast injuries, burns, multiple fragment injuries, blunt trauma, and major mutilation to include amputation. High velocity missile injuries produced by the use of various military rifles and submachine guns require treatment by a surgeon knowledgeable in the care of such wounds. Surgical lessons learned by military surgeons dating back to the time of Napoleon's surgeon Larrey are discussed in some detail in the article. Special considerations attending to medical care associated with terrorist activities are highlighted. Such consequences include multi-system trauma to an individual, trauma to large numbers of individuals at one time, massive trauma to individuals, and the difficulty in treating and evacuating victims who are trapped in rubble.
Disaster Management: An Introduction to the Incident Command System (ICS)
Authors: D'Acchioli Ronald L. 
Published: August 2012

SUMMARYThe Incident Command System is a personnel and resource management scheme which has several interactive components which make it an effective plan.This system is being used effectively in the State of California for the control of large scale incidents on a daily basis. Dr. Rodney Herbert of London advised us not long ago, during his presentation of the “Moorgate Incident”, an event in which he participated, that a valuable lesson was learned as that catastrophe unfolded and was managed by local emergency services agencies. The lesson learned was that “special plans” for disaster management which sit on a shelf to collect dust while awaiting the event soon become of little use through inactivity. His message was that the protocols used by emergency services agencies for disaster management should merely be an extension of the day-to-day activities of that agency.
The U.S. National Disaster Medical System
Authors: Mahoney Louis E. , Esch Victor H. 
Published: August 2012

SUMMARYWe believe the National Disaster Medical System is of benefit to each participant, to his community, and to the nation. The National Disaster Medical System will enhance local, State, and national ability to respond to emergencies. The system is now under development with the support of the health care professions and institutions of the country.
Role of the Anti Poison Center in Disasters
Authors: De Giacomo M. , Addario C. , Magalini S.I. 
Published: August 2012

The constant increase of accidental and selfpoisoning has become one of the most important problems of clinical practice and the institution of specialized centers for the care and prevention of these cases has become necessary.The problems of providing information for clinical, diagnostic, and therapeutic uses are several:— the number of data required to identify a poison— the synonyms of generic products and commercial preparations— the need for a data bank with continuous updating— the need to provide the information in real timeThe use of a computer in an anti-poison center has been potentially rewarding for solving these problems.