bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Highly porous silica‐polyaniline nanocomposite as a novel solid‐phase microextraction fiber coating
Authors: Gholivand Mohammad B. , Abolghasemi Mir M. , Fattahpour Peyman 
Published: December 2011

AbstractA highly porous fiber‐coated SBA‐15/polyaniline material was prepared for solid‐phase microextraction (SPME). The SBA‐15/polyaniline nanocomposite was synthesized via chemical polymerization. The prepared SBA‐15/polyaniline particles were analyzed by scanning electron microscopy analysis. The prepared nanomaterial was immobilized onto a stainless steel wire for fabrication of the SPME fiber. The fiber was evaluated for the extraction of some polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from aqueous sample solutions in combination with gas chromatography‐mass spectrometry (GC‐MS). In optimum conditions (extraction temperature 60°C, extraction time 40 min, ionic strength 20%, stirring rate: 500 rpm, desorption temperature 260°C, desorption time 2 min), the repeatability for one fiber (n=3), expressed as relative standard deviation (RSD%), was between 5.3 and 8.6% for the test compounds. For deionized water, spiked with selected PAHs, the detection limits for the studied compounds were between 2 and 20 pg/mL.
Estimating the probability of illegal desert tortoise collection in the Sonoran Desert
Authors: Grandmaison David D. , Frary Vincent J. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThe expansion of road networks in desert tortoise (Gopherus agassizii) habitat in the Sonoran Desert has raised questions concerning appropriate mitigation to reduce impacts at the population level. Although some effects, namely road‐kill and habitat loss, have been well documented, illegal tortoise collection has been insufficiently addressed. It has become increasingly important for wildlife and land‐use managers to understand the cumulative impacts of roads on tortoises and the effect that those impacts have on population persistence. We estimated the probability of desert tortoise detection and collection along 2‐lane paved, maintained gravel, and non‐maintained gravel roads to evaluate whether collection probabilities were related to road type. Although collection probability did not vary by road type, the probability of desert tortoise detection by passing motorists was greatest on maintained gravel roads and fewest on non‐maintained gravel and paved roads. These results have implications for effectively mitigating the impacts of roads on desert tortoises. Published 2011. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA.
“One‐step” Preparation of Thiol‐Ene Clickable PEG‐Based Thermoresponsive Hyperbranched Copolymer for In Situ Crosslinking Hybrid Hydrogel
Authors: Dong Yixiao , Saeed Aram Omer , Hassan Waqar , Keigher Catherine , Zheng Yu , Tai Hongyun , Pandit Abhay , Wang Wenxin 
Published: December 2011

AbstractA well‐defined poly(ethylene glycol) based hyperbranched thermoresponsive copolymer with high content of acrylate vinyl groups was synthesized via a “one‐pot and one‐step” deactivation enhanced atom transfer radical polymerization approach, which provided an injectable and in situ crosslinkable system via Michael‐type thiol‐ene reaction with a thiol‐modified hyaluronan biopolymer. The hyperbranched structure, molecular weight, and percentage of vinyl content of the copolymer were characterized by gel permeation chromatography and 1H NMR. The lower critical solution temperature of this copolymer is close to body temperature, which can result in a rapid thermal gelation at 37 °C. The scanning electron microscopy analysis of crosslinked hydrogel showed the network formation with porous structure, and 3D cell culture study demonstrated the good cell viability after the cells were embedded inside the hydrogel. This injectable and in situ crosslinking hybrid hydrogel system offers great promise as a new class of hybrid biomaterials for tissue engineering.
Testing the Short and Screener versions of the Social Adjustment Scale – Self‐report (SAS‐SR)
Authors: Gameroff Marc J. , Wickramaratne Priya , Weissman Myrna M. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThe 54‐item Social Adjustment Scale – Self‐report (SAS‐SR) is a measure of social functioning used in research studies and clinical practice. Two shortened versions were recently developed: the 24‐item SAS‐SR: Short and the 14‐item SAS‐SR: Screener. We briefly describe the development of the shortened scales and then assess their reliability and validity in comparison to the full SAS‐SR in new analyses from two separate samples of convenience from a family study and from a primary care clinic.Compared to the full SAS‐SR, the shortened scales performed well, exhibiting high correlations with full SAS‐SR scores (r values between 0.81 and 0.95); significant correlations with health‐related quality of life as measured by the Short Form 36 Health Survey; the ability to distinguish subjects with major depression versus other psychiatric disorders versus no mental disorders; and sensitivity to change in clinical status as measured longitudinally with the Symptom Checklist‐90 and Global Assessment Scale.The SAS‐SR: Short and SAS‐SR: Screener retained the areas assessed by the full SAS‐SR with fewer items in each area, and appear to be promising replacements for the full scale when a shorter administration time is desired and detailed information on performance in different areas is not required. Further work is needed to test the validity of the shortened measures. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Functional magnetic resonance imaging using PROPELLER‐EPI
Authors: Krämer Martin , Jochimsen Thies H. , Reichenbach Jürgen R. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractPeriodically rotated overlapping parallel lines with enhanced reconstruction‐echo‐planar imaging (PROPELLER‐EPI) is a multishot technique that samples k‐space by acquisition of narrow blades, which are subsequently rotated until the entire k‐space is filled. It has the unique advantage that the center of k‐space, and thus the area containing the majority of functional MRI signal changes, is sampled with each shot. This continuous refreshing of the k‐space center by each acquired blade enables not only sliding‐window but also keyhole reconstruction. Combining PROPELLER‐EPI with a fast gradient‐echo readout scheme allows for high spatial resolutions to be achieved while maintaining a temporal resolution, which is suitable for functional MRI experiments. Functional data acquired with a novel interlaced sequence that samples both single‐shot EPI and blades in an alternating fashion suggest that PROPELLER‐EPI can achieve comparable functional MRI results. PROPELLER‐EPI, however, features different spatiotemporal characteristics than single‐shot EPI, which not only enables keyhole reconstruction but also makes it an interesting alternative for many functional MRI applications. Magn Reson Med, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Muscle velocity recovery cycles: Effects of repetitive stimulation on two muscles
Authors: BoËRio Delphine , Z'graggen Werner J. , Tan S. Veronica , Guetg Andri , Ackermann Karin , Bostock Hugh 
Published: December 2011

AbstractIntroduction:We sought to characterize the excitability properties of tibialis anterior (TA) and brachioradialis (BR) muscles at rest and during electrically induced muscle activation in normal subjects.Methods:Two centers recruited 10 subjects each. Multi‐fiber velocity recovery cycles (VRCs) were recorded from TA (both centers) and BR (one center). VRCs were assessed at rest and during repetitive stimulation (intermittent 20 Hz for 6 min). Changes in latency and peak amplitude of the muscle action potential induced by a frequency ramp to 30 Hz were also characterized.Results:Excitability properties recorded from TA were very similar between centers. Repetitive stimulation generated marked excitability changes, which were similar between TA and BR.Conclusions:Standardized tests of muscle VRCs and responses to repetitive stimulation can provide consistent measures of membrane function and may encourage their wider use in clinical neurophysiology to investigate the pathophysiology of neuromuscular disorders. Muscle Nerve 46: 102–111, 2012
Myotonia associated with caveolin‐3 mutation
Authors: Milone Margherita , Mcevoy Kathleen M. , Sorenson Eric J. , Daube Jasper R. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractIntroduction: Caveolin‐3 is a major component of the caveolae in skeletal and cardiac muscle.Mutations in the caveolin‐3 gene (CAV3) lead to a spectrum of clinical phenotypes including limb‐girdle muscular dystrophy 1C, distal myopathy, rippling muscle disease, isolated hyperCKemia, and cardiomyopathy. Case Report: A 24‐year‐old man with myalgia, muscle stiffness, and fatigue has normal strength and prominent myotonic discharges in the gastrocnemius. He also has epilepsy. He harbors a heterozygous CAV3 mutation, p.V57M. He has no mutations in CLCN1 and SCN4A, and he had normal genetic testing for myotonic dystrophy type 1 and type 2. Conclusions: Mutations in CAV3, and in particular p.V57M in CAV3, previously reported in isolated familial hyperCKemia, can be associated with electrical myotonia. Muscle Nerve 45: 897‐900, 2012
Production and Characterization of crosslinked low‐density polyethylene foams using waste of foams with the same composition
Authors: Saiz‐Arroyo C. , de Saja J.A. , Rodríguez‐Pérez M.A. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractA process to recover residues of crosslinked polyolefin foams is described in this paper. Low‐density foam scraps coming from discarded products or cuts from secondary manufacturing processes are heated and pressed to obtain a new material. The main target to reach with the used recovering process was to keep the density of the recycled specimens as low as possible, and similar to that of the starting products. The structure and properties of both recovered and virgin commercial materials with similar densities have been analyzed. It has been found that due to the recovering process cell size slightly decreased and at the same time the cells become orientated. Mechanical properties of recovered foams were lower than those of commercial products, even though thermal conductivity remained in the range of the values presented by virgin products, and recovered products were better sound absorbers than virgin foams. It is concluded that due to its low density and good balance of properties the recovered materials can substitute virgin materials in applications in which the key properties are excellent thermal insulation, good acoustic absorption, and medium compressive strength. POLYM. ENG. SCI., 2011. © 2011 Society of Plastics Engineers
Gender differences in rat plasma proteome in response to high‐fat diet
Authors: Liu Hao , Choi Jung‐Won , Yun Jong Won 
Published: December 2011

AbstractKnowledge of gender differences is important because nutritional recommendations on the basis of data collected using predominantly male subjects may not be valid for women. In the present study, we performed proteomic analysis in plasma of rats fed a high‐fat diet (HFD) using 2‐DE combined with MALDI‐TOF‐MS for analysis of differential regulation patterns between male and female plasma proteins. Male rats gained more body weight with increased values of biochemical parameters than female rats. Image analysis and further statistical analysis allowed detection and identification of 31 proteins that were significantly modulated in a gender‐dependent manner in response to HFD. Those differential expressed proteins were classified into three groups based on their regulation patterns in response to diet and gender. Consequently, we found 13 proteins showing gender‐different regulation in both normal diet (ND) and HFD, where 9 proteins showed identical regulation patterns (Group I) and 4 proteins exhibited opposite regulation mode (Group II) between the genders. Eighteen proteins showed no gender‐difference but HFD‐responsive regulation (Group III). Of these, Apo A‐IV, CRP precursor, Hp precursor, and FGG showed a clear gender difference in both ND and HFD, with the same regulation patterns. Present proteomic research into gender‐dimorphic protein modulation in plasma would aid in improvement of gender awareness in the health care system and in implementation of evidence‐based gender‐specific clinical recommendations.
Potential role of Hsp25 in calcium‐modulated cardiomyocytes
Authors: Das Tanuza , Yoo Young Sook , Rhim Hyewhon , Song Eun Joo 
Published: December 2011

AbstractCardiac muscle contraction is initiated by the entry of Ca2+ ions from the extracellular spaces and the Ca2+ stores in the sarcoplasmic reticulum into the myoplasm. Calcium signaling is the most important factor in cardiac cell homeostasis. In this study, we investigated the effect of caffeine, an inducer of intracellular Ca2+ accumulation, on HL‐1 cardiomyocytes by using a proteomic approach. Following the separation of the cell lysates and visualization of the protein spots using two‐dimensional gel electrophoresis and silver staining, respectively, we identified 24 differentially expressed protein spots in the caffeine‐treated group as compared with the controls by using MALDI‐TOF/TOF MS. Of these 24 spots, 8 proteins were up‐regulated and 16 proteins were down‐regulated. These differentially expressed proteins are predominantly involved in cellular metabolism, cellular organization, and ion/protein transport. Furthermore, we found that Hsp25, one of the differentially expressed proteins, is modified by caffeine treatment. Depletion of Hsp25 transcripts by siRNA increased caffeine‐mediated signaling, including ERK activation, and decreased the Ca2+ transient peak and expression of calsequestrin 2 in HL‐1 cardiomyocytes. These results suggest that proteins having various functions are involved in the regulation of Ca2+ homeostasis, and that Hsp25 plays an important role in regulating cardiac function during caffeine response.
How do thermophilic proteins resist aggregation?
Authors: Thangakani Anthony Mary , Kumar Sandeep , Velmurugan Devadasan , Gromiha Maria Siluvay Michael 
Published: December 2011

AbstractAggregation is an ancient threat that must be overcome by proteins from all organisms to maintain their native functional states. This is essential for the maintenance of metabolic flux and viability of their cellular machineries. Here, we compare the aggregation‐resistance strategies adapted by the thermophilic proteins and their mesophilic homologs using a dataset of 373 protein families. Like their mesophilic homologs, the thermophilic protein sequences also contain potential aggregation prone regions (APRs), capable of forming cross‐β motif and amyloid‐like fibrils. Tetrapeptide and hexapeptide amyloid‐like fibril forming sequence patterns and experimentally proven amyloid‐like fibril forming peptide sequences were also detected in the thermophilic proteins. Both the thermophilic and the mesophilic proteins use similar strategies to resist aggregation. However, the thermophilic proteins show superior utilization of these strategies. The thermophilic protein monomers show greater ability to “stow away” the APRs in the hydrophobic cores to protect them from solvent exposure. The thermophilic proteins are also better at gatekeeping the APRs by surrounding them with charged residues (Asp, Glu, Lys, and Arg) and Pro to a greater extent. While thermophilic and mesophilic proteins in our dataset are highly homologous and show strong overall sequence conservation, the APRs are not conserved between the homologs. These findings indicate that evolution is working to avoid amyloidogenic regions in proteins. Our results are also consistent with the observation that thermophilic cells often accumulate small molecule osmolytes capable of stabilizing their proteins and other macromolecules. This study has important implications for rational design and formulation of therapeutic proteins and antibodies. Proteins 2012; © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Conformational dynamics of capping protein and interaction partners: Simulation studies
Authors: Lukman Suryani , Robinson Robert C. , Wales David , Verma Chandra S. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractCapping protein (CP) is important for the regulation of actin polymerization. CP binds to the barbed end of the actin filament and prevents actin polymerization. This interaction is modulated through competitive binding by regulatory proteins such as myotrophin (V‐1) and the capping protein interacting (CPI) motif from CARMIL. The binding site of myotrophin overlaps with the region of CP that binds to the barbed end of actin filament, whereas CPI binds at a distant site. The binding of CPI to the myotrophin‐CP complex dissociates myotrophin from CP. Detailed multicopy molecular dynamics simulations suggest that the binding of CPI shifts the conformational equilibria of CP away from states that favor myotrophin binding. This shift is underpinned by allosteric effects where CPI inhibits CP through suppression of flexibility and disruption of concerted motions that appear to mediate myotrophin binding. Accompanying these effects are changes in electrostatic interactions, notably those involving residue K142β, which appears to play a critical role in regulating flexibility. In addition, accessibility of the site on CP for binding the key hydrophobic residue W8 of myotrophin is modulated by CPI. These results provide insights into the modulation of CP by CPI and myotrophin and indicate the mechanism by which CPI drives the dissociation of the myotrophin‐CP complex. Proteins 2012;. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The CEO Performance Effect: Statistical Issues and a Complex Fit Perspective
Authors: Blettner Daniela P. , Chaddad Fernando R. , Bettis Richard A. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractHow CEOs affect strategy and performance is important to strategic management research. We show that sophisticated statistical analysis alone is problematic for establishing the magnitude and causes of CEO impact on performance. We discuss three problem areas that substantially distort the measurement and sources of a CEO performance effect: (1) the nature of performance time series, (2) confounding and (3) the discovery of many interactions associated with the CEO performance effect. We show that the aggregate of empirical research implies complex interdependency as the driver of the CEO performance effect. This suggests a ‘fit’ model requiring new research approaches. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Early development of cephalochordates (amphioxus)
Authors: Holland Linda Z. , Onai Takayuki 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThe Phylum Chordata includes three groups—Vertebrata, Tunicata, and Cephalochordata. In cephalochordates, commonly called amphioxus or lancelets, which are basal in the Chordata, the eggs are small and relatively non‐yolky. As in vertebrates, cleavage is indeterminate with cell fates determined gradually as development proceeds. The oocytes are attached to the ovarian follicle at the animal pole, where the oocyte nucleus is located. The cytoplasm at the opposite side of the egg, the vegetal pole, contains the future germ plasm or pole plasm, which includes determinants of the germline. After fertilization, additional asymmetries are established by movements of the egg and sperm nuclei, resulting in a concentration of mitochondria at one side of the animal hemisphere. This may be related to establishment of the dorsal/ventral axis. Patterning along the embryonic axes is mediated by secreted signaling proteins. Dorsal identity is specified by Nodal/Vg1 signaling, while during the gastrula stage, opposition between Nodal/Vg1 and BMP signaling establishes dorsal/anterior (i.e., head) and ventral/posterior (i.e., trunk/tail) identities, respectively. Wnt/β‐catenin signaling specifies posterior identity while retinoic acid signaling specifies positions along the anterior/posterior axis. These signals are further modulated by a number of secreted antagonists. This fundamental patterning mechanism is conserved, with some modifications, in vertebrates. WIREs Dev Biol 2012, 1:167–183. doi: 10.1002/wdev.11This article is categorized under:

Signaling Pathways > Global Signaling Mechanisms
Early Embryonic Development > Fertilization to Gastrulation
Early Embryonic Development > Gastrulation and Neurulation
Comparative Development and Evolution > Body Plan Evolution
Fixed and random effects models
Authors: Gurka Matthew J. , Kelley George A. , Edwards Lloyd J. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractTraditional linear regression at the level taught in most introductory statistics courses involves the use of ‘fixed effects’ as predictors of a particular outcome. This treatment of the independent variable is often sufficient. However, as research questions have become more sophisticated, coupled with the rapid advancement in computational abilities, the use of random effects in statistical modeling has become more commonplace. Treating predictors in a model as a random effect allows for more general conclusions—a great example being the treatment of the studies that comprise a meta‐analysis as random rather than fixed. In addition, utilization of random effects allows for more accurate representation of data that arise from complicated study designs, such as multilevel and longitudinal studies, which in turn allows for more accurate inference on the fixed effects that tend to be of primary interest. It is important to note the distinctions between fixed and random effects in the most general of settings, while also knowing the benefits and risks to their simultaneous use in specific yet common situations. WIREs Comput Stat 2012, 4:181–190. doi: 10.1002/wics.201This article is categorized under:

Statistical Models > Linear Models
Statistical Models > Classification Models
32.—Some Ocean Tide Measurements of the Eighteenth Century, and their Relevance Today
Authors: Cartwright D. E. 
Published: December 2011

SynopsisAfter an introductory survey of seventeenth-century approaches to the subject, two important examples of tide-measuring activity in the eighteenth-century are described. The five years’ continuous observations at Brest, 1711–16, involved great perseverence in effort and accuracy. The treatment of the records by Cassini and their later retrieval by Lalande affords an interesting lesson in the publication of scientific data. The observations made at St Helena in 1761 are remarkable for having been made with high precision by leading astronomers in difficult swell conditions. Finally, a method is described of using these data to search for small differences in the oceanic tides between the eighteenth-century and the present, with a brief discussion of the results.