bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Electronic and lattice dynamical properties of II‐IV‐N2 semiconductors
Authors: Punya Atchara , Paudel Tula R. , Lambrecht Walter R. L. 
Published: June 2011

AbstractThe II‐IV‐N2 semiconductors constitute a family of heterovalent ternary semiconductors with properties closely related to those of the III‐Nitrides. We here focus on Zn‐IV‐N2 semiconductors with the group IV‐element Si, Ge and Sn. We present results on their electronic band structures obtained with the quasiparticle self‐consistent GW method and the full‐potential linearized muffin‐tin orbital method.The latter is also used to calculate the energies of formation of these compounds from the constituent elements. The lattice dynamical properties were presented earlier in a series of papers and the main properties are briefly reviewed here. We emphasize the trends in the family of materials compared to those of the III‐N and discuss the experimental data for the phonons. (© 2011 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
An evaluation of FY‐3A satellite data for numerical weather prediction
Authors: Lu Qifeng , Bell W. , Bauer P. , Bormann N. , Peubey C. 
Published: June 2011

AbstractFY‐3A, launched in May 2008, is the first in a series of seven polar‐orbiting meteorological satellites due to be launched by China's Meteorological Administration in the period leading up to 2020. The FY‐3A payload includes four instruments of particular interest for numerical weather prediction (NWP): microwave temperature and humidity sounders, a microwave imager, and an infrared sounder. The main features of these instruments are described. Data from the calibration–validation phase of the FY‐3A mission were introduced into the ECMWF Integrated Forecasting System in order to assess the data quality and the influence of the data on analyses and forecasts. An analysis of first‐guess departures has shown the data to be of good quality overall. Several issues with instrument performance and ground segment processing have been identified. The most serious of these are: uncertainties in the temperature sounder passbands on‐orbit, orbital biases in the infrared instrument affecting the highest peaking channels, and scan biases in the microwave humidity sounder. Variational bias correction partially corrects for these errors, but more work remains to be done to correct the problems before the full benefit of the data is realised. In observing system experiments, the FY‐3A instruments, both individually and as a package, show considerable skill when added to observation depleted control experiments. When added to a full observing system, the impacts are neutral to slightly positive, as expected. These initial results are encouraging and build confidence that the following series of FY‐3 instruments will be widely used in NWP data assimilation systems. Copyright © 2011 Royal Meteorological Society
Genetic heterogeneity in natural beds of the razor clamEnsis siliquarevealed by microsatellites
Authors: Varela Miguel A. , Martínez-Lage Andrés , González-Tizón Ana M. 
Published: June 2011

The aim of this study was to analyse the genetic diversity and population structure in the razor clamEnsis siliquaalong the European Atlantic coast taking into account their recent history of exploitation and the ‘Prestige' oil spill. To this end we examined the genetic variability of microsatellite markers in 211 razor clams from five populations in Ireland, Portugal and Spain. Microsatellite data revealed a low genetic differentiation between the Spanish and Portuguese populations (FST = 0–0.032) and a moderate differentiation of these populations and the Irish samples (FST = 0.071–0.100). Although we observed changes in genetic diversity in accordance with the level of exploitation and the distribution of the oil spill, these changes were mild and not significant after Bonferroni correction. This could be the result of a genuine low impact, lack of statistical power and/or the capacity of this species to recolonize quickly after the impact of anthropogenic stressors. Supporting the latter argument we found a significant temporal heterogeneity of allelic frequencies in samples coming from the same sampling locality that could be attributed to the movement of adults or larvae from unaffected source populations.
Adolescents in the United States can identify familiar foods at the time of consumption and when prompted with an image 14 h postprandial, but poorly estimate portions
Authors: Schap TusaRebecca E , Six Bethany L , Delp Edward J , Ebert David S , Kerr Deborah A , Boushey Carol J 
Published: June 2011

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate adolescents’ abilities to identify foods and estimate the portion size of foods consumed in order to inform development of the mobile telephone food record (mpFR).DesignData were collected from two samples of adolescents (11–18 years). Adolescents in sample 1 participated in one lunch (n 63) and fifty-five of the sixty-three adolescents (87 %) returned for breakfast the next morning. Sample 2 volunteers received all meals and snacks for a 24 h period. At mealtime, sample 1 participants were asked to write down the names of the foods. Sample 2 participants identified foods in an image of their meal 10–14 h postprandial. Adolescents in sample 2 also estimated portion sizes of their breakfast foods and snacks.ResultsSample 1 identified thirty of the thirty-eight food items correctly, and of the misidentified foods all were identified within the correct major food group. For sample 2, eleven of the thirteen food items were identified correctly 100 % of the time. Half of the breakfast and snack foods had at least one portion size estimate within 10 % of the true amount using a variety of measurement descriptors.ConclusionsThe results provide evidence that adolescents can correctly identify familiar foods and they can look at an image of their meal and identify the foods in the image up to 14·5 h postprandial. The results of the present study not only inform the development of the mpFR but also provide strong evidence of the use of digital images of eating occasions in research and clinical settings.
Always look at the bright side of non-delivery: WTO and Preferential Trade Agreements, yesterday and today
Authors: MAVROIDIS PETROS C. 
Published: June 2011

AbstractThe disciplining of Preferential Trade Agreements (PTAs) by the WTO has been ‘relaxed’ recently as a result of the new context (theTransparency Mechanism) within which notified PTAs are being multilaterally reviewed. This is probably a blessing for a number of reasons, including the success of the multilateral trading system in bringing tariffs down over the years (and the ensuing reduced trade diversion), the fact that modern PTAs deal with many non-trade issues as well (for which no WTO disciplines exist), and the recent empirical literature suggesting overall positive welfare implications for those participating in similar schemes. This paper discusses these and other reasons to support the view that the WTO should rather focus on the multilateral agenda instead of diverting its attention towards disciplining PTAs. In more concrete terms, this paper argues in support of the thesis that theTransparency Mechanismshould not be simply ade factosubstitute of the previous regime (where outlawing a PTA could nota prioribe excluded), but thede jurenew forum to discuss PTAs within the multilateral trading system, at least for the time being. A first do-no-harm-policy is one of the rationales for the thesis advocated here.
Regulation of growth factor receptor degradation by ADP-ribosylation factor domain protein (ARD) 1
Authors: Meza-Carmen Victor , Pacheco-Rodriguez Gustavo , Kang Gi Soo , Kato Jiro , Donati Chiara , Zhang Chun-Yi , Vichi Alessandro , Payne D. Michael , El-Chemaly Souheil , Stylianou Mario , Moss Joel , Vaughan Martha 
Published: June 2011

ADP-ribosylation factor domain protein 1 (ARD1) is a 64-kDa protein containing a functional ADP-ribosylation factor (GTP hydrolase, GTPase), GTPase-activating protein, and E3 ubiquitin ligase domains. ARD1 activation by the guanine nucleotide-exchange factor cytohesin-1 was known. GTPase and E3 ligase activities of ARD1 suggest roles in protein transport and turnover. To explore this hypothesis, we used mouse embryo fibroblasts (MEFs) from ARD1-/- mice stably transfected with plasmids for inducible expression of wild-type ARD1 protein (KO-WT), or ARD1 protein with inactivating mutations in E3 ligase domain (KO-E3), or containing persistently active GTP-bound (KO-GTP), or inactive GDP-bound (KO-GDP) GTPase domains. Inhibition of proteasomal proteases in mifepristone-induced KO-WT, KO-GDP, or KO-GTP MEFs resulted in accumulation of these ARD1 proteins, whereas KO-E3 accumulated without inhibitors. All data were consistent with the conclusion that ARD1 regulates its own steady-state levels in cells by autoubiquitination. Based on reported growth factor receptor-cytohesin interactions, EGF receptor (EGFR) was investigated in induced MEFs. Amounts of cell-surface and total EGFR were higher in KO-GDP and lower in KO-GTP than in KO-WT MEFs, with levels in both mutants greater (
p
= 0.001) after proteasomal inhibition. Significant differences among MEF lines in content of TGF-β receptor III were similar to those in EGFR, albeit not as large. Differences in amounts of insulin receptor mirrored those in EGFR, but did not reach statistical significance. Overall, the capacity of ARD1 GTPase to cycle between active and inactive forms and its autoubiquitination both appear to be necessary for the appropriate turnover of EGFR and perhaps additional growth factor receptors.
Prediction of transporter targets using efficient RBF networks with PSSM profiles and biochemical properties
Authors: Chen Shu-An , Ou Yu-Yen , Lee Tzong-Yi , Gromiha M. Michael 
Published: June 2011

AbstractSummary: Transporters are proteins that are involved in the movement of ions or molecules across biological membranes. Currently, our knowledge about the functions of transporters is limited due to the paucity of their 3D structures. Hence, computational techniques are necessary to annotate the functions of transporters. In this work, we focused on an important functional aspect of transporters, namely annotation of targets for transport proteins. We have systematically analyzed four major classes of transporters with different transporter targets: (i) electron, (ii) protein/mRNA, (iii) ion and (iv) others, using amino acid properties. We have developed a radial basis function network-based method for predicting transport targets with amino acid properties and position specific scoring matrix profiles. Our method showed a 10-fold cross-validation accuracy of 90.1, 80.1, 70.3 and 82.3% for electron transporters, protein/mRNA transporters, ion transporters and others, respectively, in a dataset of 543 transporters. We have also evaluated the performance of the method with an independent dataset of 108 proteins and we obtained similar accuracy. We suggest that our method could be an effective tool for functional annotation of transport proteins.Availability: http://rbf.bioinfo.tw/~sachen/ttrbf.htmlContact: yien@csie.org; gromiha@iitm.ac.inSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Data collection on the small-scale fisheries of México
Authors: Ramírez-Rodríguez Mauricio 
Published: June 2011

Abstract
Ramírez-Rodríguez, M. 2011. Data collection on the small-scale fisheries of México. – ICES Journal of Marine Science, 68: 1611–1614. To improve data collection and analysis of basic fishery statistics provided by Mexican small-scale fishers, the official fishery-information system was modified by codes for fishing sites and species that facilitate data handling when used for estimating exploitation patterns related to fleet behaviour (zones/seasons) and production (catch and value per species). This is exemplified by analysing the relative importance of 14 fisheries and the dynamics of the black ark fishery in Bahia Magdalena, Baja California Sur, México.
Genetic variants in the serotonin transporter influence the efficacy of bupropion and nortriptyline in smoking cessation
Authors: Quaak Marieke , van Schayck Constant P. , Postma Dirkje S. , Wagena Edwin J. , van Schooten Frederik J. 
Published: June 2011

ABSTRACTAims  We investigated whether variants in the serotonin transporter gene (SLC6A4) influence smoking cessation rates using antidepressant therapy (i.e. bupropion and nortriptyline).Design  Pharmacogenetic (secondary) analysis of a randomized, placebo‐controlled efficacy trial of bupropion and nortriptyline for smoking cessation.Setting  Single‐centre study, Maastricht University, the Netherlands.Participants  A total of 214 of 255 (84%) current daily smokers participating in a randomized controlled efficacy trial.Measurements  Subjects were genotyped for three functional variants in SLC6A4 (5‐HTTLPR, STin2, rs25531). Primary outcome measures were prolonged abstinence from weeks 4–12, 4–26 and 4–52. Secondary outcome measures included 7‐day point prevalence abstinence at weeks 4, 12, 26 and 52.Findings  Carriers of the 5‐HTTLPR high‐activity L‐variant had higher prolonged cessation rates with bupropion than placebo [odds ratio (OR) = 1.44, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.01–2.05, P = 0.04]. Combining the three variants resulted in increased prolonged cessation rates for both bupropion and nortriptyline among carriers of four to five high‐activity variants (bupropion: OR = 2.00, 95% CI = 1.21–3.29, P = 0.01; nortriptyline: OR = 1.91, 95% CI = 1.02–3.56, P = 0.04). Similar results were found for point prevalence abstinence.Conclusions  Bupropion and nortriptyline seem to be more effective in smoking cessation among SLC6A4 high‐activity variant carriers, probably by blocking the increased serotonin transporter activity, thereby increasing serotonin levels. Prospective studies have to assess if this can improve cessation rates when treatment is targeted at individuals based on their genotypes.
Association of participation in a mindfulness programme with bowel symptoms, gastrointestinal symptom‐specific anxiety and quality of life
Authors: Kearney D. J. , McDermott K. , Martinez M. , Simpson T. L. 
Published: June 2011

Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2011; 34: 363–373SummaryBackground  Stress perception and GI‐specific anxiety play key roles in irritable bowel syndrome (IBS). Mindfulness‐based stress reduction (MBSR) is a widely available stress reduction course, which has not been evaluated for IBS.Aim  To determine whether participation in MBSR is associated with improvement in bowel symptoms, GI‐specific anxiety, and IBS‐Quality of Life.Methods  This is a prospective study of 93 participants in MBSR. We applied measures of Rome III IBS status, bowel symptoms (IBS‐Severity Scoring System, IBS‐SSS), IBS‐Quality of Life (IBS‐QOL), GI‐specific anxiety (Visceral Sensitivity Index, VSI), mindfulness (Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire‐FFMQ), and functional status (SF‐8) at baseline and 2 and 6 months after enrolment.Results  At 2 months, participation in MBSR was associated with small nonsignificant changes in IBS‐SSS, IBS‐QOL and VSI: d = −0.25, d = 0.08, d = −0.16, respectively. At 6 months, there was no significant change in IBS‐SSS (d = −0.36); whereas for IBS‐QOL and VSI there were significant improvements (IBS‐QOL: d = 0.33, P = 0.044; VSI: d = −0.40, P = 0.014). For patients meeting Rome III IBS criteria (n = 43), changes in IBS‐SSS, IBS‐QOL and VSI were not statistically significant, but there was a significant correlation between the change in VSI and the change in FFMQ across the three time periods (r = 0.33).Conclusions  Participation in MBSR is associated with improvement IBS‐related quality of life and GI‐specific anxiety. Randomised controlled trials are warranted to further assess the role of MBSR for IBS symptomatology.
Nutritional and sensory properties of a maize‐based snack food (kokoro) supplemented with treated Distillers’ spent grain (DSG)
Authors: Awoyale Wasiu , Maziya‐Dixon Busie , Sanni Lateef O. , Shittu Taofik A. 
Published: June 2011

SummaryThe effect of treated Distillers’ spent grain (DSG) supplementation on the nutritional and sensory properties of kokoro, a maize‐based snack, was investigated. Treated DSG was used to replace 5%, 10%, 15%, 20%, 25%, 30% and 35% of maize flour. Mean water absorption capacity of DSG was 291%, swelling capacity 2.27 bulk density was 58%, oil absorption capacity 216, protein content of 27% and a total dietary fibre content 24.2%. The swelling, water and oil absorption capacities of the flour blends increased while bulk density decreased significantly. The ash, fat, protein, insoluble and total dietary fibre and total nonessential and essential amino acids contents of the flour blends increased with DSG inclusion. Processing the flour blends to kokoro slightly increased the ash, fat and protein contents, while the total nonessential and essential amino acids, total sugar and total dietary fibre decreased. The addition of DSG increased the lysine and tryptophan contents of kokoro. Although the sensory evaluation results indicate that kokoro with 5%, 10% and 15% DSG were well accepted and compared favourably with those made from whole maize for overall acceptability, it was observed that generally, there is a consumer dislike of the new product as the amount of DSG added increased.
The efficacy of chest radiographs in detecting parapneumonic effusions
Authors: BRIXEY ANUPAMA G. , LUO YIFENG , SKOURAS VASILEIOS , AWDANKIEWICZ ANNA , LIGHT RICHARD W. 
Published: June 2011

ABSTRACTBackground and objective:  Current guidelines recommend parapneumonic effusions (PPEs) with a thickness of ≥ 10 mm be sampled via thoracentesis. We hypothesized that anteroposterior (AP) CXRs are not as sensitive as posteroanterior (PA) and lateral radiographs in identifying PPEs and should not be routinely used in patients with suspected pneumonia.Methods:  Sixty‐one hospitalized patients with pneumonia and PPE were retrospectively studied, all of whom had a CXR and CT scan within 24 h of each other. The CXRs of these patients were independently read by three pulmonologists for an effusion in each hemithorax, which was correlated with measured pleural fluid thickness on chest CT.Results:  Lateral, PA and AP radiographs were equivalent in identifying the presence of PPEs. All three views missed more than 10% of PPEs. The sensitivities of lateral, PA and AP CXRs were 85.7%, 82.1% and 78.4%, respectively (P = 0.749); the specificity was 87.5%, 81.3% and 76.4%, respectively (P = 0.198). The majority of effusions missed in each view were on films with lower lobe consolidation.Conclusions:  All three CXR views missed effusions of a size significant enough to warrant thoracentesis. Consideration should be given to obtaining additional imaging at the time patients present with pneumonia, particularly in those with lower lobe consolidation.
The effect of vitamin D receptor BsmI genotype on the response to osteoporosis treatment in postmenopausal women: A pilot study
Authors: Creatsa Maria , Pliatsika Paraskevi , Kaparos George , Antoniou Aristidis , Armeni Eleni , Tsakonas Efstratios , Panoulis Costantinos , Alexandrou Andreas , Dimitraki Evangelia , Christodoulakos George , Lambrinoudaki Irene 
Published: June 2011

AbstractAim:  The purpose of our study was to investigate the possible effect of BsmI vitamin D receptor (VDR's) polymorphism on changes in bone mineral density (BMD) and bone turnover markers in postmenopausal women receiving different treatments.Material and Methods:  This pilot study included 42 postmenopausal women with elevated fracture risk, randomized into 1‐year treatment with weekly oral alendronate or daily subcutaneous teriparatide. Both groups received daily supplements of 1000 mg calcium and 800 IU vitamin D. Blood samples were obtained for biochemical evaluation and genotyping. BMD at the lumbar spine and femoral neck were assessed with dual energy X‐ray absorptiometry. Baseline, follow‐up BMD and markers of bone turnover were assessed according to the BsmI genotype.Results:  BMD at the lumbar spine increased in patients carrying at least one b allele, while it decreased in patients with the BB genotype (P = 0.041). Whereas no gene‐treatment interaction was observed in teriparatide‐receiving patients, women with the BB genotype receiving alendronate resulted in negative BMD (−0.056 ± 0.032 g/m2) and T‐score (−0.295 ± 0.190) gradient, compared to carriers of the b allele (BMD: +0.020 ± 0.017 g/m2, P = 0.054; T‐score: +0.217 ± 0.100, P = 0.030). No effect of genotype was apparent with respect to gradients of biochemical bone markers.Conclusions:  These preliminary results indicate that alendronate has a differential effect on BMD, depending on the VDR genotype. Carriers of the b allele may be more responsive to treatment compared to patients with the BB genotype. The interaction of VDR's BsmI polymorphism with the efficacy of the anti‐osteoporotic treatment needs further investigation by larger prospective studies.
Using the Facebook group as a learning management system: An exploratory study
Authors: Wang Qiyun , Woo Huay Lit , Quek Choon Lang , Yang Yuqin , Liu Mei 
Published: June 2011

AbstractFacebook is a popular social networking site. It, like many other new technologies, has potential for teaching and learning because of its unique built‐in functions that offer pedagogical, social and technological affordances. In this study, the Facebook group was used as a learning management system (LMS) in two courses for putting up announcements, sharing resources, organizing weekly tutorials and conducting online discussions at a teacher education institute in Singapore. This study explores using the Facebook group as an LMS and the students' perceptions of using it in their courses. Results showed that students were basically satisfied with the affordances of Facebook as the fundamental functions of an LMS could be easily implemented in the Facebook group. However, using the Facebook group as an LMS has certain limitations. It did not support other format files to be uploaded directly, and the discussion was not organized in a threaded structure. Also, the students did not feel safe and comfortable as their privacy might be revealed. Constraints of using the Facebook group as an LMS, implications for practice and limitations of this study are discussed.Practitioner notesWhat is already known about this topic
Facebook has been popularly used by tertiary students, but many students do not want their teachers to be friends on Facebook
Teacher's self‐disclosure on Facebook can promote classroom atmosphere, teacher's credibility and student–teacher relationship
Commercial learning management systems (LMSs) have limitations
What this paper adds
The Facebook group can be used an LMS as it has certain pedagogical, social and technological affordances
Students are satisfied with the way of using the Facebook group as an LMS
Younger students are more acceptable with the idea of using the Facebook group as an LMS
Using the Facebook group as an LMS has limitations: it does not support other format files; its discussions are not listed in threads; and it is not perceived as a safe environment
Implications for practice and/or policy
The Facebook group can be used an LMS substitute or supplement
Third‐party applications are needed to extend the capability of the Facebook group as an LMS
Using Facebook seems to be more appropriate for young learners than adults
Teachers do not have to be students' friends on Facebook.