bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Recent advances in single‐molecule detection on micro‐ and nano‐fluidic devices
Authors: Liu Chang , Qu Yueyang , Luo Yong , Fang Ning 
Published: December 2011

AbstractSingle‐molecule detection (SMD) allows static and dynamic heterogeneities from seemingly equal molecules to be revealed in the studies of molecular structures and intra‐ and inter‐molecular interactions. Micro‐ and nanometer‐sized structures, including channels, chambers, droplets, etc., in microfluidic and nanofluidic devices allow diffusion‐controlled reactions to be accelerated and provide high signal‐to‐noise ratio for optical signals. These two active research frontiers have been combined to provide unprecedented capabilities for chemical and biological studies. This review summarizes the advances of SMD performed on microfluidic and nanofluidic devices published in the past five years. The latest developments on optical SMD methods, microfluidic SMD platforms, and on‐chip SMD applications are discussed herein and future development directions are also envisioned.
Microfluidic chip‐capillary electrophoresis with dynamic multi‐segment standard addition for rapidly identifying nephrolithiasis markers in urine
Authors: Guo Wen Peng , Fung Ying Sing 
Published: December 2011

AbstractA microchip‐CE device was fabricated for bed‐side monitoring of nephrolithiasis biomarkers in urine by incorporating on‐chip continuous passive mixing and standard addition to reduce sample matrix interference, increase sample throughput and eliminate accessories for active mixing. Under optimized conditions with buffer containing 20 mM borate and 0.5 mM CTAB at pH 10.3, sample and standards injected electrokinetically at −350 V for 10 s for online mixing in a Y‐merging flow microchannel prior to CE separation and UV detection at 210 nm, both inhibitors (citrate, CA) and promoters (oxalate, OA and uric acid, UA) for nephrolithiasis can be separated and determined in human urine in a single run completed within 10 min after a simple 50‐fold sample dilution and filtering. Satisfactory working ranges from 0.13–40, 0.25–40 and 0.025–40 mM, LOD 2.6, 6.1 and 0.7 μM, repeatability (%RSD, n=5) for migration time 1.40, 1.43, 0.47 and peak area 4.46, 6.10, 1.98, respectively, for CA, OA and UA are obtained for urine samples. The use of on‐chip standard addition is shown to improve repeatability of the migration time, assist the identification of nephrolithiasis markers from difficult samples with noisy baseline and enlarge the working range for nephrolithiasis marker determination. The device developed can be used for both routine and emergency monitoring to deliver results on demand for bedside monitoring and public health protection. It provides an early detection of nephrolithiasis to enable timely treatments, ease anxiety of parents for neonates consuming suspected contaminated food, and quick results for patients in a critical condition.
PDMS microchip coated with polydopamine/gold nanoparticles hybrid for efficient electrophoresis separation of amino acids
Authors: Liang Ru‐Ping , Meng Xiang‐Ying , Liu Chun‐Ming , Qiu Jian‐Ding 
Published: December 2011

AbstractIn this paper, a novel, simple, economical and environmentally friendly method based on in situ chemically induced synthesis strategy was designed and developed for the modification of a poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) microchip channel with polydopamine/gold nanoparticles (PDA/Au NPs) to create a hydrophilic and biofouling resistant surface. Dopamine as a reductant and a monomer, and HAuCl4 as an oxidant to trigger dopamine polymerization and the source of metallic nanoparticles, were filled into the PDMS microchannel to yield in situ a well‐distributed and robust PDA/Au NP coating. Au NPs were highly and uniformly dispersed in/on the PDA matrix with a narrow size distribution, as verified by scanning electron microscopy and UV‐vis spectra. Compared with the native PDMS microchannel, the modified surfaces exhibited much better wettability, high stability and suppressed electroosmotic mobility, and less nonspecific adsorption towards biomolecules. The water contact angle and EOF of PDA/Au NP‐coated PDMS microchip were measured to be 13° and 4.17×10−4 cm2/V s, compared to those of 111° and 5.33×10−4 cm2/V s from the native one, respectively. Fast and efficient separations of five amino acids such as arginine, proline, histidine, valine and threonine suggested greatly improved electrophoretic performance of the PDA/Au NP‐functionalized PDMS microchips. This one‐step procedure offers an effective approach for a biomimetic surface design on microfluidic chips, which is promising in high‐throughput and complex biological analysis.
Influence of moisture on the availability and persistence of clotrimazole and fluconazole in sludge-amended soil
Authors: García-Valcárcel Ana I. , Tadeo José L. 
Published: December 2011

Abstract
Applying sewage sludge to soil is a common practice in many parts of the world. Thus, pharmaceutical compounds, such as azoles, can be released into the environment after sludge is applied to soil. To understand the fate of clotrimazole and fluconazole (pharmaceuticals used as antifungals in humans) in soil after its amendment with sludge, a reliable and sensitive method has been developed to determine these compounds in the solid and aqueous phases of soil. Desorption of clotrimazole from soil amended with sludge was negligible, whereas a rapid desorption of fluconazole was observed. Dissipation rates of these azoles were determined in amended soil incubated at 25°C with moisture contents ranging from 4.5 to 20%. Clotrimazole was more persistent than fluconazole in dry soil, whereas the contrary occurred in wet soil. Partitioning soil:soil solution of these azoles varied with time and moisture contents. Clotrimazole was found in soil with negligible amounts in soil solution, whereas fluconazole was approximately partitioned 50:50 during the assay time (60 d) at any soil moisture content. Occasional rainfall coupled with a relatively low binding soil capacity can result in the contamination of surface and groundwaters by fluconazole, whereas clotrimazole will remain in the soil. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 2012;31:501–507. © 2011 SETAC
Stability of leaf form and size during specimen preparation of herbarium specimens
Authors: Volkova Polina A. , Kasatskaya Sof'ya A. , Boiko Anna A. , Shipunov Alexey B. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractIt is common to draw taxonomic conclusions from the analysis of herbarium material and then apply them to living, fresh material. However, some widely used morphological characters are changed during the preparation of specimens and therefore the applicability of morphometric data obtained from the measurement of dried plants is not universal. We tried to estimate quantatively how different leaf characters change during drying. Fresh and dried leaves of ten plant species were measured and scanned to determine how the stability of commonly used absolute (e.g., leaf length) characters, relative characters (e.g., relative position of maximal width) and leaf contour. For the latter, we employed landmark‐based thin plate spline (TPS) analysis. We found that all absolute sizes differed significantly after drying (typically decrease original size 0.9–0.8 times), whereas leaf shape did not differ significantly between fresh and dried leaves of most species. Relative characters were more stable then absolute ones but less stable than a form as a whole. We argue that it is essential to provide measures, contours and/or photographs of fresh leaves together with herbarium material, all the more so because in two cases (20%) leaf contour also significantly changed after drying (© 2010 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Neubau der Niedernfelder Brücken – Optimierte Rohrpfahlgründungen und ihre Tragfähigkeitsanalyse im Rahmen der Auswertung von dynamischen Probebelastungen
Authors: Höhmann Sebastian , Schau Dieter , Vater Christoph 
Published: December 2011

AbstractGründungen mittels gerammter Stahlrohrpfähle werden aufgrund ihrer hohen Tragfähig‐und Wirtschaftlichkeit vielfach eingesetzt. Jedoch ist das Tragverhalten dieses Pfahltyps, trotz zahlreicher Forschungsarbeiten und langjähriger Erfahrungen, noch nicht eindeutig geklärt. Im Rahmen des Neubaus der Niedernfelder Brücken im Hamburger Hafen konnten umfangreiche Untersuchungen an verstärkten und unverstärkten Stahlrohrpfählen durchgeführt werden. Die dadurch gewonnenen Erkenntnisse, in Verknüpfung mit Erfahrungen aus anderen Bauvorhaben, werden im Folgenden kurz vorgestellt.Construction of the new “Niedernfelder Brücken” – Optimized tubular pile foundations and their bearing capacity, analyzed by dynamic pile load tests. Due to their high bearing capacity, their economic efficiency and their flexible operation conditions driven open ended piles are a commonly used foundation type. Notwithstanding a wide experience regarding this type of pile, the bearing behavior is not explicitly known. During the construction of the bridges “Niedernfelder Brücken” in the port of Hamburg extensive dynamic pile load tests were carried out at open ended piles with and without reinforcement. The resulting data and experiences gained in this project will be summarized in this paper.
DGGT‐Mitteilungen geotechnik 4/2011
Authors: Laackmann Kirsten 
Published: December 2011

Abstract12th Baltic Sea Geotechnical Conference 2012 in Rostock32. Baugrundtagung 2012 in Mainz10. ICG und 33. Baugrundtagung 2014 in BerlinExkursionen zu Baustellen der Außerordentlichen MitgliederHTG‐DGGT‐DVWG‐Veranstaltung über Projekt “JadeWeserPort”Initiative Praxisgerechte Regelwerke im Bauwesen – Projektgruppe 6 hat ihre Arbeit aufgenommenInternational Society for Soil Mechanics and Geotechnical EngineeringInternational Society for Rock MechanicsInternational Geosynthetics SocietyNeuer Arbeitskreis “Forschung in der Geotechnik”Fachsektion FelsmechanikDGGT‐Geschäftsstelle
Associations among parenting experiences during childhood and adolescence, hypothalamus‐pituitary‐adrenal axis hypoactivity, and hippocampal gray matter volume reduction in young adults
Authors: Narita Kosuke , Fujihara Kazuyuki , Takei Yuichi , Suda Masashi , Aoyama Yoshiyuki , Uehara Toru , Majima Takehiko , Kosaka Hirotaka , Amanuma Makoto , Fukuda Masato , Mikuni Masahiko 
Published: December 2011

AbstractRecent human studies have indicated that adverse parenting experiences during childhood and adolescence are associated with adulthood hypothalamus‐pituitary‐adrenal (HPA) axis hypoactivity. Chronic HPA axis hypoactivity inhibits hippocampal gray matter (GM) development, as shown by animal studies. However, associations among adverse parenting experiences during childhood and adolescence, HPA axis activity, and brain development, particularly hippocampal development, are insufficiently investigated in humans. In this voxel‐based structural magnetic resonance imaging study, using a cross‐sectional design, we examined the associations among the scores of parental bonding instrument (PBI; a self‐report scale to rate the attitudes of parents during the first 16 years), cortisol response determined by the dexamethasone/corticotropin‐releasing hormone test, and regional or total hippocampal GM volume in forty healthy young adults with the following features: aged between 18 and 35 years, no cortisol hypersecretion in response to the dexamethasone test, no history of traumatic events, or no past or current conditions of significant medical illness or neuropsychiatric disorders. As a result, parental overprotection scores significantly negatively correlated with cortisol response. Additionally, a significant positive association was found between cortisol response and total or regional hippocampal GM volume. No significant association was observed between PBI scores and total or regional hippocampal GM volume. In conclusion, statistical associations were found between parental overprotection during childhood and adolescence and adulthood HPA axis hypoactivity, and between HPA axis hypoactivity and hippocampal GM volume reduction in healthy young adults, but no significant relationship was observed between any PBI scores and adulthood hippocampal GM volume. Hum Brain Mapp 33:2211–2223, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Diagnosis and treatment of minimal hepatic encephalopathy to prevent motor vehicle accidents: A cost-effectiveness analysis
Authors: Bajaj Jasmohan S. , Pinkerton Steven D. , Sanyal Arun J. , Heuman Douglas M. 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Minimal hepatic encephalopathy (MHE) in cirrhosis is associated with impaired driving skills and increased risk of motor vehicle accidents (MVAs). Detection and treatment of MHE has the potential to reduce costs and morbidity associated with MVAs. We conducted a cost-effectiveness analysis to assess the benefits of different strategies of MHE diagnosis and treatment for reducing MVA-related societal costs. The analyses compared five MHE management strategies: (1) presumptive treatment of all cirrhosis patients; (2) diagnosis by neuropsychological exam (NPE) with treatment; (3) diagnosis by standard psychometric tests (SPTs) with treatment; (4) diagnosis by rapid screening using inhibitory control test (ICT) with treatment; and (5) no MHE diagnosis or treatment (status quo). Treatments considered were lactulose or rifaximin, which were assumed to reduce the MVA rate to the level of similarly aged noncirrhosis patients with benefit adjusted for treatment compliance. A Markov model followed a simulated cohort of 1,000 cirrhosis patients without overt hepatic encephalopathy (OHE), from entry into treatment, through MHE development, and later OHE, when they exited the modeled cohort. Follow-up was for 5 years and included biannual MHE testing. The societal cost of a single MVA was estimated at $42,100. All four strategies with lactulose were cost-saving compared with the status quo. Diagnosis with ICT and lactulose was the most cost-effective approach (cost/MVA prevented: $24,454 ICT; $25,470 SPT; $30,469 presumptive treatment and $33,742 NPE). Net program savings over 5 years ranged from $1.7 to 3.6 million depending on the strategy. Rifaximin therapy was not cost-saving at current prices but would become so at a monthly cost of <$353. Conclusion: Detection of MHE, especially using the ICT, and subsequent treatment with lactulose could substantially reduce societal costs by preventing MVAs. (Hepatology 2012)
Economic model of a birth cohort screening program for hepatitis C virus
Authors: McGarry Lisa J. , Pawar Vivek S. , Panchmatia Hemangi R. , Rubin Jaime L. , Davis Gary L. , Younossi Zobair M. , Capretta James C. , O'Grady Michael J. , Weinstein Milton C. 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Recent research has identified high hepatitis C virus (HCV) prevalence among older U.S. residents who contracted HCV decades ago and may no longer be recognized as high risk. We assessed the cost-effectiveness of screening 100% of U.S. residents born 1946-1970 over 5 years (birth-cohort screening), compared with current risk-based screening, by projecting costs and outcomes of screening over the remaining lifetime of this birth cohort. A Markov model of the natural history of HCV was developed using data synthesized from surveillance data, published literature, expert opinion, and other secondary sources. We assumed eligible patients were treated with pegylated interferon plus ribavirin, with genotype 1 patients receiving a direct-acting antiviral in combination. The target population is U.S. residents born 1946-1970 with no previous HCV diagnosis. Among the estimated 102 million (1.6 million chronically HCV infected) eligible for screening, birth-cohort screening leads to 84,000 fewer cases of decompensated cirrhosis, 46,000 fewer cases of hepatocellular carcinoma, 10,000 fewer liver transplants, and 78,000 fewer HCV-related deaths. Birth-cohort screening leads to higher overall costs than risk-based screening ($80.4 billion versus $53.7 billion), but yields lower costs related to advanced liver disease ($31.2 billion versus $39.8 billion); birth-cohort screening produces an incremental cost-effectiveness ratio (ICER) of $37,700 per quality-adjusted life year gained versus risk-based screening. Sensitivity analyses showed that reducing the time horizon during which health and economic consequences are evaluated increases the ICER; similarly, decreasing the treatment rates and efficacy increases the ICER. Model results were relatively insensitive to other inputs.

Conclusion:

Birth-cohort screening for HCV is likely to provide important health benefits by reducing lifetime cases of advanced liver disease and HCV-related deaths and is cost-effective at conventional willingness-to-pay thresholds. (Hepatology 2012)
Comparative analysis of portal cell infiltrates in antimitochondrial autoantibody–positive versus antimitochondrial autoantibody–negative primary biliary cirrhosis
Authors: Jin Qinglong , Moritoki Yuki , Lleo Ana , Tsuneyama Koichi , Invernizzi Pietro , Moritoki Hitoshi , Kikuchi Kentaro , Lian Zhe-Xiong , Hirschfield Gideon M. , Ansari Aftab A. , Coppel Ross L. , Gershwin Eric M. , Niu Junqi 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Substantial evidence supports dysregulated B-cell immune responses in patients with primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC), including the presence of serum antimitochondrial antibodies (AMAs). However, recent reports from murine models of PBC suggest that B cells may also provide regulatory function, and indeed the absence of B cells in such models leads to exacerbation of disease. The vast majority of patients with PBC have readily detectable AMAs, but a minority (<5%) are AMA negative (AMA−), even with recombinant diagnostic technology. This issue prompted us to examine the nature of B-cell infiltrates surrounding the portal areas in AMA-positive (AMA+) and AMA− patients, because they display indistinguishable clinical features. Of importance was the finding that the degree of bile duct damage around the portal areas was significantly milder in AMA+ PBC than those observed in AMA− PBC patients. The portal areas from AMA− patients had a significant increase of cluster of differentiation (CD)5+ cells infiltrating the ductal regions, and the levels of B-cell infiltrates were worse in the early phase of bile duct damage. The frequency of positive portal areas and the magnitude of CD5+ and CD20+ cellular infiltrates within areas of ductal invasion is associated with the first evidence of damage of biliary duct epithelia, but becomes reduced in the ductopenia stage, with the exception of CD5+ cells, which remain sustained and predominate over CD20+ cells.

Conclusion:

Our data suggest a putative role of B-cell autoimmunity in regulating the portal destruction characteristic of PBC. (Hepatology 2012)
Variants in ABCB1 , TGFB1 , and XRCC1 genes and susceptibility to viral hepatitis A infection in Mexican Americans
Authors: Zhang Lyna , Yesupriya Ajay , Hu Dale J. , Chang Man-huei , Dowling Nicole F. , Ned Renée M. , Udhayakumar Venkatachalam , Lou Lindegren Mary , Khudyakov Yury 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Hepatitis A vaccination has dramatically reduced the incidence of hepatitis A virus (HAV) infection, but new infections continue to occur. To identify human genetic variants conferring a risk for HAV infection among the three major racial/ethnic populations in the United States, we assessed associations between 67 genetic variants (single nucleotide polymorphisms [SNPs]) among 31 candidate genes and serologic evidence of prior HAV infection using a population-based, cross-sectional study of 6,779 participants, including 2,619 non-Hispanic whites, 2,095 non-Hispanic blacks, and 2,065 Mexican Americans enrolled in phase 2 (1991–1994) of the Third National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey. Among the three racial/ethnic groups, the number (weighted frequency) of seropositivity for antibody to HAV was 958 (24.9%), 802 (39.2%), and 1540 (71.5%), respectively. No significant associations with any of the 67 SNPs were observed among non-Hispanic whites or non-Hispanic blacks. In contrast, among Mexican Americans, variants in two genes were found to be associated with an increased risk of HAV infection: TGFB1 rs1800469 (adjusted odds ratio [OR], 1.38; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.14–1.68; P value adjusted for false discovery rate [FDR-P] = 0.017) and XRCC1 rs1799782 (OR, 1.57; 95% CI, 1.27–1.94; FDR-P = 0.0007). A decreased risk was found with ABCB1 rs1045642 (OR, 0.79; 95% CI, 0.71–0.89; FDR-P = 0.0007). Conclusion: Genetic variants in ABCB1, TGFB1, and XRCC1 appear to be associated with susceptibility to HAV infection among Mexican Americans. Replication studies involving larger population samples are warranted. (Hepatology 2012)
The cyclophilin inhibitor alisporivir prevents hepatitis C virus–mediated mitochondrial dysfunction
Authors: Quarato Giovanni , D'Aprile Annamaria , Gavillet Bruno , Vuagniaux Grégoire , Moradpour Darius , Capitanio Nazzareno , Piccoli Claudia 
Published: December 2011

Abstract

Alisporivir (Debio-025) is an analogue of cyclosporine A and represents the prototype of a new class of non-immunosuppressive cyclophilin inhibitors.

In vitro

and

in vivo

studies have shown that alisporivir inhibits hepatitis C virus (HCV) replication, and ongoing clinical trials are exploring its therapeutic potential in patients with chronic hepatitis C. Recent data suggest that the antiviral effect is mediated by inhibition of cyclophilin A, which is an essential host factor in the HCV life cycle. However, alisporivir also inhibits mitochondrial permeability transition by binding to cyclophilin D. Because HCV is known to affect mitochondrial function, we explored the effect of alisporivir on HCV protein-mediated mitochondrial dysfunction. Through the use of inducible cell lines, which allow to investigate the effects of HCV polyprotein expression independent from viral RNA replication and which recapitulate the major alterations of mitochondrial bioenergetics observed in infectious cell systems, we show that alisporivir prevents HCV protein-mediated decrease of cell respiration, collapse of mitochondrial membrane potential, overproduction of reactive oxygen species and mitochondrial calcium overload. Strikingly, some of the HCV-mediated mitochondrial dysfunctions could even be rescued by alisporivir.

Conclusion:

These observations provide new insights into the pathogenesis of HCV-related liver disease and reveal an additional mechanism of action of alisporivir that is likely beneficial in the treatment of chronic hepatitis C. (Hepatology 2012)
Radiation transfer in participating medium interacting with variable property natural convection subjected to collimated/diffused irradiation at boundary—A critical appraisal
Authors: Mahapatra S.K. , Dandapat B.K. , Sarkar A. 
Published: December 2011

AbstractThe current study addresses the interaction phenomenon of combined natural convection with radiation in the presence of radiatively active gray medium inside a two‐dimensional enclosure. The left wall is radiatively considered to be semitransparent and is subjected to collimated irradiation. All gray walls of the enclosure are assumed to diffuse, except the semitransparent wall which is considered to be specular in nature. Investigation is done for the flow which is considered to be steady, laminar, and two‐dimensional. The variation of properties (k, ρ, μ) with temperature has been taken into consideration to make the investigation realistic. The radiation modeling has been done with the higher order discrete ordinate radiation method (DOM). The finite volume discretization has been adopted for numerical simulation. The effect of varying properties has been delineated and its due consideration while modeling has been realized. The results are depicted through isotherm and streamline patterns. The effects of influencing parameters on the Nusselt number have also been illustrated. A critical appraisal is made examining the suitability of the radiation models starting from S4 to S32, for different situations. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Heat Trans Asian Res; Published online in Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/htj). DOI 10.1002/htj.20403