bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Clinical evaluation of neoadjuvant chemotherapy followed by radical surgery in the management of stage IB2–IIB cervical cancer
Authors: Gong Lin , Lou Jian‐Yan , Wang Ping , Zhang Jia‐Wen , Liu Hui , Peng Zhi‐Lan 
Published: January 2012

AbstractObjectiveTo evaluate clinical efficacy, toxicity, and survival outcomes of neoadjuvant chemotherapy (NACT) followed by radical surgery (RS) among patients with cervical cancer stage IB2–IIB.MethodsIn a retrospective clinical study at West China Second Hospital, Chengdu, data were analyzed from 414 patients who underwent NACT followed by radical surgery (NACT–RS) or RS alone between January 2008 and November 2009.ResultsThe clinical response for NACT was 90%. Lymph node metastasis (25% versus 48%, P < 0.05) and deep cervical stromal invasion more than 0.5, (68% versus 91%, P < 0.05) were significantly lower among responders than among non‐responders, respectively, in the NACT–RS group. The 2‐year progression‐free survival and 2‐year overall survival were 93.0% and 95.5% in the NACT–RS group, and 94.5% and 97.1% in the RS group (P > 0.05). Parametric infiltration (hazard ratio [HR], 7.668; P < 0.05) and lymph node metastasis (HR, 7.714; P < 0.05) were independent risk factors for all study patients.ConclusionCompared with RS, NACT–RS did not show a significant advantage for patients with locally advanced cervical cancer. However, the data provide the rationale for assessing NACT–RS in a multicenter randomized clinical trial setting. NACT may be considered as an alternative treatment when radiotherapy is not available.
The link between supply chain fit and financial performance of the firm⋆
Authors: Wagner Stephan M. , Grosse‐Ruyken Pan Theo , Erhun Feryal 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThe bottom‐line financial impact of supply chain management has been of continuing interest. Building on the operations strategy literature, Fisher's (1997) conceptual framework, a survey of 259 U.S. and European manufacturing firms, and secondary financial data, we investigate the relationship between supply chain fit (i.e., strategic consistencies between the products’ supply and demand uncertainty and the underlying supply chain design) and the financial performance of the firm. The findings indicate that the higher the supply chain fit, the higher the Return on Assets (ROA) of the firm, and that firms with a negative misfit show a lower performance than firms with a positive misfit.
Tail structure and bed friction velocity distribution of gravity currents propagating over an array of obstacles
Authors: Tokyay Talia , Constantinescu George , Meiburg Eckart 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThe bed friction velocity distribution and sediment entrainment potential of Boussinesq compositional gravity currents propagating over a series of obstacles and over a smooth surface, respectively, are analysed based on high-resolution, three-dimensional large-eddy simulations. The investigation focuses on the parameter regime for which currents with a high volume of release go through an extended slumping phase with approximately constant front velocity (Tokyay, Constantinescu & Meiburg, J. Fluid Mech., vol. 672, 2011, 570–605). Under these conditions, a quasi-steady regime is reached between consecutive obstacles that is similar to the steady regime observed for constant-density channel flows over bottom obstacles. At a given location, this quasi-steady regime is reached in the tail of the current after the passage of the front and the associated hydraulic jumps reflected from the first few downstream obstacles. A double-averaging procedure is employed to characterize the global changes in the structure of the tail region between currents with a high volume of release propagating over smooth surfaces and over obstacles. Reynolds-number-induced scale effects on the flow and turbulence structure within the tail region are discussed in some detail. The presence of this quasi-steady regime is significant, since the simulations with obstacles show that most of the sediment is entrained by the tail of the current, rather than by its front. A detailed analysis of the effects of the obstacle shape on the quasi-steady mean flow and turbulence structure is presented, which provides insight into why gravity currents over dunes can entrain more sediment than gravity currents over ribs of comparable size. Finally, the bed friction velocity distributions and the potential to entrain sediment are compared for a compositional current with a high volume of release during the slumping phase, and a current with a low volume of release for which transition to the buoyancy–inertia phase occurs a short time after the release of the lock gate.
A Blessing or a Curse? State Support for Terrorist Groups
Authors: Carter David B. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractLittle existing work has systematically examined the factors that help terrorist groups survive or contribute to their failure. State support for terrorist groups is commonly thought to be a factor that helps groups to survive. I demonstrate with newly collected data that state sponsorship is not always helpful to terrorist groups. The resources provided by sponsors increase a group's ability to maintain itself internally. However, when a group has a sponsor that provides it with safe haven, the risk of the group being forcefully eliminated by the target increases. I argue that sponsors that provide safe haven can have incentives to provide information to the target about the groups to avoid potential costs from target military operations within their territory. The key empirical findings suggest that state sponsorship is a less serious problem for target states than many previously thought.
Democratic Reliability, Precommitment of Successor Governments, and the Choice of Alliance Commitment
Authors: Mattes Michaela 
Published: January 2012

AbstractGiven frequent leadership turnover and leaders' need to appeal to voters, democracies should face difficulties in maintaining their alliance commitments. Yet the empirical evidence predominantly shows that they do make reliable allies. Democratic governments can increase reliability by binding future administrations through the choice of alliance commitment. While defense pacts precommit future leaders to close military cooperation with an ally, consultation pacts leave more room for discretion. This research note examines when precommitment through a defense pact is likely to occur. A government should be more likely to conclude a defense pact if potential successors have different preferences regarding the alliance, if the government believes that it will lose power soon, and if the costs of precommitment are not too high. I test the theoretical expectations using the Alliance Treaty Obligations and Provisions (ATOP) data between 1945 and 2003. The findings support the argument and suggest an answer to the puzzle of why states sometimes conclude whole-hearted commitments and other times seemingly half-hearted ones.
Paths to Financial Policy Diffusion: Statist Legacies in Latin America's Globalization
Authors: Brooks Sarah M. , Kurtz Marcus J. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThe dominant approaches to the study of capital account liberalization have highlighted institutional barriers to reform and have also demonstrated an important role for interdependence, or the diffusion of a policy innovation from one country to another, as a causal force. Our approach contrasts with the institutional approach and seeks to clarify the political mechanisms of international policy diffusion. Specifically, we develop and test hypotheses that posit that structural economic legacies of the pre–reform era both condition the way in which international diffusion operates, and create the societal and economic interests that help produce varying capital account policy outcomes in the domestic political sphere. Analysis of capital account liberalization strategies in post–debt-crisis Latin America (1983–2007) reveals that capital account opening and the channels through which this innovation diffuses are conditioned by the legacy of a country's pre–debt crisis economic development model. Specifically, the degree to which advanced import-substituting industrialization was pursued prior to the reform era affects capital account policy by shaping both the relevant international peer groups through which policy models diffuse, and the sorts of domestic interests that are likely to influence the liberalization process. International diffusion also varies in its impact depending on domestic political and economic conditions.
Performing International Systems: Two East-Asian Alternatives to the Westphalian Order
Authors: Ringmar Erik 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThis article provides a framework for the comparative study of international systems. By analyzing how international systems are framed, scripted, and performed, it is possible to understand how interstate relations are interpreted in different historical periods and parts of the world. But such an investigation also has general implications—inter alia for a study of the nature of power, the role of emotions in foreign policymaking, and public opinion formation. Case studies are provided by the Sino-centric, the Tokugawa, and the Westphalian systems. As this study shows, the two East Asian systems were in several respects better adapted than the Westphalian to the realities of international politics in the twenty-first century.
Surgical tracheostomy in morbidly obese patients: technical considerations and a two-flap technique for access
Authors: Khoo S G , Rajaretnam N 
Published: January 2012

AbstractObjective:In an era in which percutaneous tracheostomies are frequently performed in ‘suitable’ necks, more technically complex cases are referred to the otolaryngologist. We describe the surgical technique used and close cooperation required in securing the airway of a morbidly obese patient.Case report:A 52-year-old, morbidly obese man with significant comorbidities was referred for surgical tracheostomy following spinal fractures. This was complicated by a previous percutaneous dilatational tracheostomy scar. Tension-free skin advancement was not possible with a deeply plunging trachea; a vertical skin incision was dropped inferiorly to the sternum for access. A size 8 Shiley XLT Proximal Extension cuffed tracheostomy tube was inserted successfully.Conclusion:We describe safe airway surgery in a morbidly obese man, and outline requirements including the use of a specially designed operating table, the need for an elongated proximal limb tracheostomy tube, and the use of a distal two-flap technique for access to a deeply plunging trachea.
Three positive solutions for semilinear elliptic problems involving concave and convex nonlinearities
Authors: Hsu Tsing-San , Lin Huei-li 
Published: January 2012

We study the existence and multiplicity of positive solutions for the Dirichlet problemwhere λ > 0, 1 < q < 2, p = 2* = 2N/(N − 2), 0 ε Ω ⊂ ℝN, N ≥ 3, is a bounded domain with smooth boundary ∂Ω and f is a non-negative continuous function on $\bar{\varOmega}$. Assuming that f satisfies some hypothesis, we prove that the equation admits at least three positive solutions for sufficiently small λ.
Multiple existence of solutions for a singularly perturbed nonlinear elliptic problem on a Riemannian manifold
Authors: Hirano Norimichi 
Published: January 2012

Let (M, g) be a compact smooth N-dimensional Riemannian manifold without boundary. We consider the multiple existence of positive solutions of the problemwhere Δg stands for the Laplacian in M and f ε C2(M).
An analysis of embryo development in palm: interactions between dry matter accumulation and water relations in Pritchardia remota (Arecaceae)
Authors: Pérez Hector E. , Hill Lisa M. , Walters Christina 
Published: January 2012

AbstractAssessments of seed storage physiology among Arecaceae (palm) species are often inconclusive because seeds exhibit diverse responses to low temperature and moisture conditions. Interrelationships between dry matter accumulation, cell structure and water relations during seed development of the endangered Hawaiian endemic palm, Pritchardia remota, suggest that damage from drying results from mechanical strain. Endosperm and fruits accumulate dry mass through most of the 400 d gestation period, but embryos reached maximum dry mass about 250 d post-anthesis (DPA). Mostly sucrose and some triacylglycerols accumulated in the cytoplasm and vacuoles of embryo cells, and organelles in mature embryo cells de-differentiated. Water content and water potential decreased as embryos matured and embryos contained about 0.45 g H2O (g dry mass)− 1 ( − 26 MPa) at shedding. Mature embryos survived drying to 0.16 g g− 1 ( − 49 MPa), but further drying was lethal. A model of allowable cell shrinkage is consistent with the substantial, but incomplete, desiccation tolerance acquired in P. remota embryos, and provides a new framework to explain variation in critical water contents as embryos develop. We suggest that desiccation tolerance, which distinguishes recalcitrant and orthodox physiologies among seeds, can be quantified by mechanical strain when embryo cells shrink during drying.
Slot coupled patch antenna in MCM-D for millimeter wave detector matrix applications
Authors: Tavakol Vahid , Qi Feng , Ocket Ilja , Schreurs Dominique , De Raedt Walter , Nauwelaers Bart 
Published: January 2012

In this work we assess the feasibility of fabricating a matrix of antennas for the millimeter (mm)-wave band using the “Multi Chip Module – Deposited (MCM-D)” process. The main focus of the design is to minimize the cross coupling between the antennas fabricated on the common substrate. We investigate the use of a virtual cavity formed by metalized vias in order to reduce the cross coupling to the neighboring cells. The radiation efficiency is analyzed in detail, and experimental results of a 2 × 2 array are presented.
Historical temporal trends in groundwater levels from British Columbia, Canada
Authors: Rayne Sierra , Forest Kaya 
Published: January 2012

AbstractA time trend study of groundwater monitoring well levels was conducted in British Columbia, Canada. Trend data was available for a total of 210 groundwater monitoring well stations throughout the province with end-of-month water levels over the period of record. Significant temporal trends in groundwater levels were found at 67 stations (40.4% of all stations amenable to statistical examination, and 31.9% of all available stations). Of these 67 stations, 10 had increasing groundwater level trends and the remaining 57 had declining groundwater level trends. Thus, 34.3% of stations with a sufficiently long time series for analysis displayed declining groundwater level trends, while 6.0% have increasing trends, and 59.6% of these stations appear to have no significant temporal variation in groundwater levels. Geographic distinctions in groundwater level time trends are difficult to make owing to the unbalanced distribution of monitoring sites throughout the province. Based on percentages of total stations with a sufficiently long monitoring record for statistical analysis, it appears that the semi-arid Thompson/Nicola and Okanagan zones of British Columbia are most likely to have declining groundwater levels. Overall, a substantial proportion of groundwater monitoring wells in British Columbia - which have been operated with varying record lengths dating from recent installations to sites with records back to the 1950s - are exhibiting declining levels. At a significant number of other sites in the monitoring network, records are too short and/or poorly populated to facilitate statistical analysis.
Smoltification in an Impounded, Adfluvial Redband Trout Population Upstream from an Impassable Dam: Does It Persist?
Authors: Holecek Dean E. , Scarnecchia Dennis L. , Miller Shannon E. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractThis study evaluated whether a population of adfluvial redband trout Oncorhynchus mykiss gairdnerii (a subspecies of rainbow trout) in Mann Creek and Reservoir, southwestern Idaho, continues to undergo smoltification. This population had an anadromous component before the construction of main‐stem and tributary dams in 1958 and 1967, respectively. Smoltification was assessed by quantifying the proportion of juvenile migrants that displayed high skin reflectance, comparing mean gill Na+,K+‐ATPase activity among migrants, and examining migration timing compared with that of neighboring steelhead (anadromous rainbow trout) populations. Approximately one‐quarter of the 1,502 juvenile migrants trapped and examined displayed the intermediate or high skin reflectance (nonbanded silvery coloration) characteristic of smolts; the other fish maintained a banded coloration more typical of resident fish. For 78 samples of gill filaments over the course of the migration season (18 March to 3 June), Na+,K+‐ATPase activity varied considerably among fish (0.95–5.81 μmol Pi · h−1 · mg protein−1) and doubled in nonbanded fish over the course of the migration period. ATPase activity was significantly higher for nonbanded fish than for banded fish at the end of the migration period (21 May – 4 June). Juvenile adfluvial redband trout migrated from Mann Creek in approximate synchrony with neighboring steelhead populations. These results suggest the possibility that in areas in the Snake River drainage where steelhead have been extirpated as a result of artificial barriers, remnant populations retain the potential for anadromy.
Effect of Experience with Predators on the Behavior and Survival of Muskellunge and Tiger Muskellunge
Authors: Wahl David H. , Einfalt Lisa M. , Wojcieszak Douglas B. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractWe assessed predator acclimation as a technique to improve the poststocking survival of juvenile muskellunge Esox masquinongy and tiger muskellunge (muskellunge × northern pike E. lucius) in laboratory, pond, and lake experiments. For all experiments, a subset of esocids was exposed to feeding largemouth bass Micropterus salmoides (250–300 mm total length). In laboratory pools containing simulated vegetation (50% of pool), we tested the vulnerability of predator‐acclimated and naive muskellunge and tiger muskellunge to largemouth bass predation. For both species, survival rates were similar regardless of predator experience. Predator‐acclimated esocids, however, spent more time in the vegetation, indicating that exposure to predators may alter some behaviors. We also introduced equal numbers of naive and predator‐acclimated tiger muskellunge into ponds and lakes containing largemouth bass. To determine the number of surviving fish, ponds were drained after 7 d, whereas lakes were sampled immediately after stocking and throughout the fall. We found similar survival rates between naive and predator‐acclimated individuals, suggesting that predator acclimation techniques that are successful with other species are not effective in reducing losses of stocked muskellunge and tiger muskellunge.
SynaptomeDB: an ontology-based knowledgebase for synaptic genes
Authors: Pirooznia Mehdi , Wang Tao , Avramopoulos Dimitrios , Valle David , Thomas Gareth , Huganir Richard L. , Goes Fernando S. , Potash James B. , Zandi Peter P. 
Published: January 2012

AbstractMotivation: The synapse is integral to the function of the brain and may be an important source of dysfunction underlying many neuropsychiatric disorders. Consequently, it is an excellent candidate for large-scale genomic and proteomic study. However, while the tools and databases available for the annotation of high-throughput DNA and protein are generally robust, a comprehensive resource dedicated to the integration of information about the synapse is lacking.Results: We present an integrated database, called SynaptomeDB, to retrieve and annotate genes comprising the synaptome. These genes encode components of the synapse including neurotransmitters and their receptors, adhesion/cytoskeletal proteins, scaffold proteins, membrane transporters. SynaptomeDB integrates various and complex data sources for synaptic genes and proteins.Availability: http://psychiatry.igm.jhmi.edu/SynaptomeDB/Contact: mpirooz1@jhmi.eduSupplementary information: Supplementary data are available at Bioinformatics online.
Glycolate Oxidase Modulates Reactive Oxygen Species–Mediated Signal Transduction during Nonhost Resistance in Nicotiana benthamiana and Arabidopsis
Authors: Rojas Clemencia M. , Senthil-Kumar Muthappa , Wang Keri , Ryu Choong-Min , Kaundal Amita , Mysore Kirankumar S. 
Published: January 2012

Abstract
In contrast to gene-for-gene disease resistance, nonhost resistance governs defense responses to a broad range of potential pathogen species. To identify specific genes involved in the signal transduction cascade associated with nonhost disease resistance, we used a virus-induced gene-silencing screen in Nicotiana benthamiana, and identified the peroxisomal enzyme glycolate oxidase (GOX) as an essential component of nonhost resistance. GOX-silenced N. benthamiana and Arabidopsis thaliana GOX T-DNA insertion mutants are compromised for nonhost resistance. Moreover, Arabidopsis gox mutants have lower H2O2 accumulation, reduced callose deposition, and reduced electrolyte leakage upon inoculation with hypersensitive response–causing nonhost pathogens. Arabidopsis gox mutants were not affected in NADPH oxidase activity, and silencing of a gene encoding NADPH oxidase (Respiratory burst oxidase homolog) in the gox mutants did not further increase susceptibility to nonhost pathogens, suggesting that GOX functions independently from NADPH oxidase. In the two gox mutants examined (haox2 and gox3), the expression of several defense-related genes upon nonhost pathogen inoculation was decreased compared with wild-type plants. Here we show that GOX is an alternative source for the production of H2O2 during both gene-for-gene and nonhost resistance responses.
Effect of pre‐harvest harpin and modified atmosphere packaging on quality of cherry tomato cultivars “Alona” and “Cluster”
Authors: Akbudak Bulent , Akbudak Nuray , Seniz Vedat , Eris Atilla 
Published: January 2012

PurposeThe aim of this research is to determine the effects of pre‐harvest harpin (H) and modified atmosphere packaging (MAP) on the storage and fruit quality of cherry tomato (Lycopersicon esculentum Mill. cvs. “Alona” and “Cluster”).Design/methodology/approachH was used at 50 g 100 l‐1 concentration. First application was done on the seedlings in 3‐4 leaf stages and the other four applications were repeated at 20‐day intervals. Then, treated and untreated fruits were stored in plastic film materials with various O2 and CO2 permeabilities.FindingsWeight loss was significantly higher in tomatoes stored under normal atmosphere (NA) compared to MAP. Initial total soluble solids of 3‐4 percent increased to 7‐9 percent in without H (WH)+NA. Firmness was measured as 0.44 (“Alona”) and 1.20 kg (“Cluster”) in H+NA and 0.17 (“Alona”) and 0.30 kg (“Cluster”) in WH+NA at the end of storage. The acidity and ascorbic acid contents of tomatoes decreased during storage. Between H and WH treatments the levels of lycopene and β‐carotene were different significantly. At the end of the study, H gave successful results in both cultivars. This success was even higher especially when the H was combined with MAP. This combination slowed down the changes in TSS, firmness values. Therefore, H+50μ PE (polyethylene) treatment was effective with regard to delaying the maturity along the storage and fruit quality in cherry tomatoes.Originality/valueHe is a plant activator. It is the first bacterial hypersensitive response (HR)‐elicitor characterized. Effectiveness of H is evaluated on quality changes in treated cherry tomato fruits.