bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Synthesis of Potassium‐Modified Graphene and Its Application in Nitrite‐Selective Sensing
Authors: Li Xiao‐Rong , Kong Fen‐Ying , Liu Jing , Liang Tong‐Ming , Xu Jing‐Juan , Chen Hong‐Yuan 
Published: February 2012

AbstractChemical modification with foreign atoms is a leading strategy to intrinsically modify the properties of host materials. Among them, potassium (K) modification plays a critical role in adjusting the electronic properties of carbon materials. Graphene, a true 2D carbon material, has shown fascinating applications in electrochemical sensing and biosensing. In this work, a facile and mild strategy to K‐modifying in graphene at room‐temperature is reported for the first time. X‐ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS), atomic force microscopy (AFM), transmission electron microscopy (TEM), Raman spectra, and cyclic voltammetry are used to characterize this K‐modified graphene. The K‐modified graphene is capable of acting as an electron transfer medium and more efficiently promotes charge transfer than unmodified graphene. A highly sensitive and stable amperometric sensor based on its excellent electrocatalytic activity toward the oxidation of NO2− is proposed. The sensor shows a linear range from 0.5 μM to 7.8 mM with a detection limit of 0.2 μM at a signal‐to‐noise ratio of 3. The modified electrode has excellent analytical performance and can be successfully applied in the determination of NO2− released from liver cancer and leukemia cells and shows good application potential in biological systems.
Growth and Device Application of CdSe Nanostructures
Authors: Zhao Lijuan , Hu Linfeng , Fang Xiaosheng 
Published: February 2012

AbstractInorganic semiconductor nanostructures have attracted increasing interest in recent years because of their distinguishable role in fundamental studies and technical applications, mainly due to their size‐ and shape‐dependent properties and flexible processing methods. The use of such nanostructures in optic, optoelectric, and piezoelectric prospects is expected to play a crucial role in future nanoscale devices. Cadmium selenide (CdSe), a well‐known direct bandgap II‐VI semiconductor in which the bandgap favors absorption over a wide range of the visible spectrum, has been a promising material for applications in such fields as photodetectors, field‐effect transistors (FETs), field emitters, solar cells, light‐emitting diodes (LEDs), memory devices, biosensors, and biomedical imaging. The research on CdSe nanostructures has made remarkable progress in the last few years. The research activities on CdSe nanostructures including various methods for the synthesis of CdSe nanostructures and the unique properties and device applications of these nanostructures are reviewed. Potential future directions of this research area are also highlighted.
Sexual dimorphism in body composition across human populations: Associations with climate and proxies for short‐ and long‐term energy supply
Authors: Wells Jonathan C.K. 
Published: February 2012

AbstractObjectives:Sexual dimorphism in human stature, physique, and adiposity is well established, but the ecological factors that account for its variability remain unknown. This study aimed to describe population variability in body composition dimorphism, and to test whether annual temperature and proxies for population energy supply accounted for this variability.Methods:Data on sex‐specific anthropometry (weight, stature, triceps, and subscapular skinfolds) and mean annual temperature were collated for 96 nonindustrialized populations. Lean mass and fat mass were calculated. Sexual dimorphism was expressed in sympercents. Sex‐averaged skinfolds and stature were used as proxies for short‐term and long‐term energy supply, respectively.Results:All outcomes showed significant mean dimorphism except body mass index. The magnitude of dimorphism was not randomly distributed across global regions, being lowest in African and Asian populations and greatest in Arctic populations. There was a negative correlation across populations between lean mass dimorphism and adiposity dimorphism, independent of temperature. With decreasing temperature, dimorphism in both lean mass and adiposity increased. Dimorphism increased in fatter but not taller populations, independently of temperature.Conclusions:The inverse correlation between lean mass dimorphism and adiposity dimorphism indicates a sex‐trade‐off between these two tissue accretion strategies. At colder temperatures, females invest disproportionately more in adiposity, and males disproportionately more in lean mass. Dimorphism also increased in proportion to proxies for short‐term but not long‐term energy availability. These findings suggest that phenotypic plasticity contributes to variability in body composition dimorphism, and that the occupation of dimorphic niches regarding reproductive energetics may be important. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2012. © 2012Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Do economic constraints on food choice make people fat? A critical review of two hypotheses for the poverty–obesity paradox
Authors: Hruschka Daniel J. 
Published: February 2012

AbstractIn low income countries worldwide, rising standards of living have spurred an unprecedented rise in obesity. However, in numerous wealthy countries the trend frequently reverses with poorer and less educated women more likely to be overweight than their wealthier compatriots. One prominent explanation for this reverse gradient is that economic deprivation leads to food choices which paradoxically increase energy intake. If true, this would challenge current evolutionary accounts for the modern obesity epidemic and have serious implications for how policy makers tackle increasing obesity in the US and worldwide. In this article, we critically review the hypothesis that deprivation leads people to choose cheaper foods which in turn foster overconsumption of energy. Though the hypothesis is consistent with numerous cross‐sectional studies, available longitudinal studies from high‐, middle‐, and low‐income countries show the reverse—that when populations experience resource declines, they experience either declines in BMI or decelerations in BMI growth. Most notably, the recent recession in the US coincides with a clear deceleration in women's obesity across income groups. We conclude by briefly reviewing other plausible explanations for the reverse gradient among women in developing countries. Finally, we discuss how theoretical perspectives and comparative, historical approaches from human biology are useful tools for examining the current wealth of hypotheses about obesity in population health. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Explicit versus implicit fat‐stigma
Authors: Brewis Alexandra A. , Wutich Amber 
Published: February 2012

AbstractObjectives:Human biologists are increasingly engaging with current global trends toward obesity. However, little is considered about how variation in cultural views of “fat” might shape the biology of obesity, such as through pathways related to socially induced stress. Recent research indicates elevated levels of explicit fat‐stigma in middle income nations, suggesting potentially high levels of psychosocial stress around “being fat.” We use the case of Paraguay to test if high levels of explicit prejudice around “being fat” also suggest internalization of those ideas in ways that might predict stress effects.Methods:Using a sample of women in Paraguay (N = 200), we test if the statement of anti‐fat beliefs on standard scales correlates with similarly strong level of cognitive bias against fat based on an implicit association test. We confirm reasonable comparability of the findings to prior published studies by collecting data for U.S. undergraduates (N = 66) using the same set of tools.Results:Women in Paraguay reveal high levels of explicit anti‐fat bias in an interview on a standard (Attitudes to Obese People) scale, suggesting a shared cultural norm of fat‐is‐bad. However, Paraguayan women display, on average, no anti‐fat stigma in cognitive testing.Conclusion:In contrast to what has been observed in industrialized nations, the high levels of explicit fat‐stigma does not necessarily correlate with high levels of implicit fat‐stigma. This means that pathways between obesity, psychosocial stress, and health outcomes may be very different across socioecological contexts. Am. J. Hum. Biol. 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
No changes in weight and body fat in lactating adolescent and adult women from Mexico
Authors: Caire‐Juvera Graciela , Casanueva Esther , Bolaños‐Villar Adriana Verónica , De Regil Luz María , De la barca Ana María Calderón 
Published: February 2012

AbstractObjective:To evaluate changes in weight and body fat of Mexican adolescent compared to those of adult lactating women from the Northwest (NM) and Central (CM) regions of Mexico in the first trimester postpartum.Methods:A prospective design was used to evaluate 41 exclusively breastfeeding women (21 adolescents and 20 adults) recruited 1–2 days after delivering a healthy singleton at the Hospital Infantil del Estado de Sonora (Northwest Mexico) and Instituto Nacional de Perinatología, in Mexico City. Socioeconomic status, height, body weight and composition, dietary intake, physical activity, and milk volume (quantified by deuterium dilution method) were measured at the 1st and 3rd month postpartum.Results:Women did not lose weight throughout the first trimester postpartum. Mean postpartum weight retention at the end of the study was 3.8 kg. No differences in weight and body mass index (BMI) were found between adolescent and adult women in both periods. Energy and macronutrient intakes, physical activity and milk volume were similar between the two groups of women. In both periods, adolescents from the CM region had lower weight, BMI, and body fat than adolescents from the NM region (P<0.05). At the 3rd month, pregestational weight (P < 0.0001) was a predictor of BMI, and region (P < 0.05) and milk volume (P < 0.01) were associated with percentage of body fat.Conclusions:Exclusively breastfeeding for 3 months did not reduce weight or body fat in the Mexican population of this study. Efforts to avoid weight retention in the lactation period may contribute to prevent overweight and obesity in women. Am. J. Hum. Biol., 2012. © 2012Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
The application of palaeolimnology to evidence‐based lake management and conservation: examples from UK lakes
Authors: Sayer Carl D. , Bennion Helen , Davidson Thomas A. , Burgess Amy , Clarke Gina , Hoare Daniel , Frings Patrick , Hatton‐Ellis Tristan 
Published: February 2012

ABSTRACT

To help meet the requirements of water legislation, palaeolimnology has been widely used to establish ‘reference conditions’ and restoration targets for lakes. However, its potential for assessing the necessity and appropriateness of different lake management activities has been less publicized.
With reference to selected case studies covering consultancy projects commissioned by UK conservation agencies, this study highlights the important applied role of palaeolimnology. Using varying combinations of diatom, plant macrofossil and cladoceran analysis, the degree, timing and in many cases the likely drivers of ecological change were inferred for several lake sites.
From this basis advice was given on a range of lake management issues, including the need for sediment removal to combat eutrophication and/or the necessity of other nutrient reduction measures (Case study 1), the depth of sediment to be removed to maximize restoration potential through exposure of dormant banks of characean oospores (Case study 2), the requirement for fish management (Case study 3), and advice regarding fish farm expansion and licensing (Case study 4). Where possible management responses to the recommendations are outlined including any major outcomes.
All case studies illustrate the advantages, for lake management and conservation decision‐making, of placing current lake ecological conditions in the context of long‐term change. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Operational performance comparison of four unconventional intersection designs using micro‐simulation
Authors: Autey Jarvis , Sayed Tarek , El Esawey Mohamed 
Published: February 2012

SUMMARYSeveral unconventional intersection designs have been proposed as an innovative approach to mitigate congestion at heavily congested at‐grade signalized intersections. Many of these unconventional designs were shown to outperform conventional intersections in terms of the average control delay and the overall intersection capacity. Little research has been conducted to compare the performance of these unconventional intersections to each other under different volume conditions. This study evaluated and compared the operational performance of four unconventional intersection schemes: the crossover displaced left‐turn (XDL), the upstream signalized crossover (USC), the double crossover intersection (DXI) (i.e., half USC), and the median U‐turn (MUT). The micro‐simulation software vissim (PTV Planung Transport Verkehr AG, Karlsruhe, Germany) was used to model and analyze the four unconventional intersections as well as a counterpart conventional one. The results showed that the XDL intersection constantly exhibited the lowest delays at nearly all tested balanced and unbalanced volume levels. The operational performance of both the USC and the DXI was similar in most volume conditions. The MUT design, on the other hand, was unable to accommodate high approach volumes and heavy left‐turn traffic. The capacity of the XDL intersection was found to be 99% higher than that of the conventional intersection, whereas the capacity of the USC and the DXI intersections was about 50% higher than that of the conventional intersection. The results of this study can provide guidance on choosing among alternative unconventional designs according to the prevailing traffic conditions at an intersection. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Collaborative and role‐play strategies in software engineering learning with web 2.0 tools
Authors: Díaz Redondo Rebeca P. , Fernández Vilas Ana , Pazos Arias José J. , Gil Solla Alberto 
Published: February 2012

ABSTRACTSoftware development processes are inherently complex and require the collaboration and coordination of expert teams. The acquisition of both analysis and design competences as well as social skills should thus be the leitmotiv of courses devoted to software engineering learning. However, these aspects are often ignored and excessive importance is attached to the implementation stage. The learning framework described in this article was designed to teach students these competences and skills by means of an immersive learning experience where, working in a team, each student has to play the role of a software developer and address problems linked to requirements specification, design, and the software development process as a whole. Collaborative strategies of this kind have proven to be very successful in active learning processes, to which we have added continuous assessment mechanisms based on rubrics to provide early feedback to students. Additionally, and taking into account the characteristics of the new European Space for Higher Education, we have designed an online personal learning environment (PLE) that facilitates anytime–anywhere communications and provides a suitable social space for the exchange of information, which is crucial to the success of any teamwork effort. More specifically, we propose a learning activity based on Web 2.0 services and adapted to this particular PLE.© 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Comput Appl Eng Educ 22:658–668, 2014; View this article online at wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/cae; DOI 10.1002/cae.21557
Flexible and General Synthesis of Functionalized Phosphoisoprenoids for the Study of Prenylation in vivo and in vitro
Authors: Das Debapratim , Tnimov Zakir , Nguyen Uyen T. T. , Thimmaiah Govindaraju , Lo Harriet , Abankwa Daniel , Wu Yaowen , Goody Roger S. , Waldmann Herbert , Alexandrov Kirill 
Published: February 2012

AbstractProtein modification with isoprenoid lipids affects hundreds of signaling proteins in eukaryotic cells. Modification of isoprenoids with reporter groups is the main approach for the creation of probes for the analysis of protein prenylation in vitro and in vivo. Here, we describe a new strategy for the synthesis of functionalized phosphoisoprenoids that uses an aminederivatized isoprenoid scaffold as a starting point for the synthesis of functionalized phosphoisoprenoid libraries. This overcomes a long‐standing problem in the field, where multistep synthesis had to be carried out for each individual isoprenoid analogue. The described approach enabled us to synthesize a range of new compounds, including two novel fluorescent isoprenoids that previously could not be generated by conventional means. The fluorescent probes that were developed using the described approach possess significant spectroscopic advantages to all previously generated fluorescent isoprenoid analogue. Using these analogues for flow cytometry and cell imaging, we analyzed the uptake of isoprenoids by mammalian cells and zebrafish embryos. Furthermore, we demonstrate that derivatization of the scaffold can be coupled in a one‐pot reaction to enzymatic incorporation of the resulting isoprenoid group into proteins. This enables rapid evaluation of functional groups for compatibility with individual prenyltransferases and identification of the prenyltransferase specific substrates.
Conductivity and permittivity imaging at 3.0 t
Authors: Bulumulla S.B. , Lee S.K. , Yeo D.T.B. 
Published: February 2012

AbstractTissue conductivity and permittivity are critical to understanding radio frequency (RF) power deposition during magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). These electrical properties are also important in treatment planning of RF thermotherapy methods (e.g., RF hyperthermia). The electrical properties may also have diagnostic value as malignant tissues have been reported to have higher conductivity and higher relative permittivity than surrounding healthy tissue. In this study, we consider imaging conductivity and permittivity using MRI transmit field maps (B1+ maps) at 3.0 T. We formulate efficient methods to calculate conductivity and relative permittivity from two‐dimensional B1+ data and validate the methods with simulated B1+ maps, generated at 128 MHz. Next, we use the recently introduced Bloch‐Siegert shift B1+ mapping method to acquire B1+ maps at 3.0 T and demonstrate conductivity and relative permittivity images that successfully identify contrast in electrical properties. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part B (Magn Reson Engineering) 41B: 13–21, 2012
Magnetic susceptibility derived from T2 and T‐weighted magnetic resonance magnitude images
Authors: Vegh Viktor , Kording Fabian , Venkatachalam Taracad K. , Reutens David C. 
Published: February 2012

AbstractA method of measuring absolute magnetic susceptibility using T2 and T‐weighted magnetic resonance images is described. We used magnitude images derived from spin echo and gradient echo acquisitions, without the use of phase information. The findings are validated analytically and also using experimental phantoms. We show that a combination of magnetic resonance images can provide information needed to deduce the absolute susceptibility of the sample. Careful consideration of sample relaxation times and image acquisition parameters is required to ensure that calculations are accurate. We conducted an investigation of optimal imaging parameters and validated our results. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Concepts Magn Reson Part B (Magn Reson Engineering) 41B: 28–36, 2012
Neuropil distribution in the cerebral cortex differs between humans and chimpanzees
Authors: Spocter Muhammad A. , Hopkins William D. , Barks Sarah K. , Bianchi Serena , Hehmeyer Abigail E. , Anderson Sarah M. , Stimpson Cheryl D. , Fobbs Archibald J. , Hof Patrick R. , Sherwood Chet C. 
Published: February 2012

AbstractIncreased connectivity of high‐order association regions in the neocortex has been proposed as a defining feature of human brain evolution. At present, however, there are limited comparative data to examine this claim fully. We tested the hypothesis that the distribution of neuropil across areas of the neocortex of humans differs from that of one of our closest living relatives, the common chimpanzee. The neuropil provides a proxy measure of total connectivity within a local region because it is composed mostly of dendrites, axons, and synapses. Using image analysis techniques, we quantified the neuropil fraction from both hemispheres in six cytoarchitectonically defined regions including frontopolar cortex (area 10), Broca's area (area 45), frontoinsular cortex (area FI), primary motor cortex (area 4), primary auditory cortex (area 41/42), and the planum temporale (area 22). Our results demonstrate that humans exhibit a unique distribution of neuropil in the neocortex compared to chimpanzees. In particular, the human frontopolar cortex and the frontoinsular cortex had a significantly higher neuropil fraction than the other areas. In chimpanzees these prefrontal regions did not display significantly more neuropil, but the primary auditory cortex had a lower neuropil fraction than other areas. Our results support the conclusion that enhanced connectivity in the prefrontal cortex accompanied the evolution of the human brain. These species differences in neuropil distribution may offer insight into the neural basis of human cognition, reflecting enhancement of the integrative capacity of the prefrontal cortex. J. Comp. Neurol. 520:2917–2929, 2012. © 2012 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.
Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Borderline Personality Disorder
Authors: Bateman Anthony W. 
Published: February 2012

This paper outlines an approach to the treatment of borderline personality disorder (BPD) based on principles of interpersonal psychotherapy. The rationale for using a modified version of interpersonal psychotherapy (IPT) is described—BPD is a disorder of attachment, depression is commonly associated with BPD and the primary symptoms of BPD such as rapid mood fluctuations, impulsivity and cognitive distortions are manifested within interpersonal relationships. A focus on interpersonal dysfunction between self and others may improve the quality of relationships for these patients and improve their capacity to manage the instability engendered by depressed mood. It is argued that the normal structure of IPT meets the basic requirements of any psychotherapy for BPD but that the current four foci of IPT are inadequate to address the complexity of the problems of the person with BPD. A case is made to extend the focal areas of IPT to increase the specificity of treatment tailoring it to the core pathology of the disorder. It is suggested that consideration of regulation of the self within interpersonal interactions becomes the primary focus for treatment. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Key Practitioner Message

Borderline personality disorder is manifested through problems on interpersonal relationships.
Interpersonal psychotherapy may be a useful treatment for BPD.
Interpersonal psychotherapy uses a focus for treatment. A new focus of problems of self/other regulation is suggested.
Further research is needed to determine if this approach is effective.