bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025_split huggingface dataset:
Hospital discharge among frail elderly people: a pilot study in Sweden
Authors: Söderback Ingrid 
Published: December 2007

AbstractA conceptual framework for the hospital discharge process was designed. It was intended to measure frail elderly people's experience of their quality of care in terms of satisfaction and trustworthiness during their hospital discharge and their experience at home. The present pilot study aimed at evaluating the viability of an occupational therapy clinical tool. Nine frail elderly Swedish individuals reported the quality of their care as mostly satisfactory and trustworthy, according to their responses to the Discharged Patients' Enquiry Questionnaire (DPEQ). However, the participants were not satisfied with the non‐continuity among the home‐helpers, the lack of rehabilitation services and the non‐availability of professional help, for example occupational therapy for increasing social contacts. The participant's responses indicated that occupational therapy interventions, that is, assessment of home environment (n = 6), improvement of housing accessibility (n = 3) and prescription of assistive devices (n = 4), contributed to their ability to live at home. The results are limited owing to the small number of participants. Future investigations of the care that patients discharged from hospitals receive are recommended to explore supplementary assessments of spouses' care burden and participants' quality of life, and the psychometric functions of the conceptual framework. In summary, the conceptual framework described may be a viable tool for evaluating the discharge process among frail elderly people discharged from hospitals to their homes. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
New developments in flame retardancy of styrene thermoplastics and foams
Authors: Levchik Sergei V , Weil Edward D 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThis review provides an insight into new developments in flame retardancy of the broad class of styrenic polymers but mostly focuses on commercially important styrene thermoplastics, on some blends based on polystyrene as well as on polystyrene foams. Although halogen‐based systems continue to dominate in flame retardancy of styrenic polymers, various alternative systems are being developed. Especially, activity is observed with phosphorus‐based flame retardants, where some systems are already commercially available. There is also significant activity with nanocomposites, where good results in retarding flame spread have been achieved, but the problem of ignition resistance has not been solved yet. Critical discussion of various flame‐retardant systems developed for styrenics is given. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Design of holographic polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals based on solubility parameters
Authors: Kim Eun Hee , Woo Ju Yeon , Cho Yeong Hee , Kim Byung Kyu 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: A slight change of polymer structure leads to a significantly different solubility parameter (SP), which is related to incompatibility and interface anchoring energy between a polymer and a liquid crystal (LC).RESULTS: Holographic gratings in polymer‐dispersed liquid crystals have been fabricated based on various urethane acrylate oligomer sizes and type of reactive diluent at two LC loadings. A large SP gap, using N‐vinylpyrrolidone as reactive diluent, gave much faster saturation of diffraction efficiency at higher level, but the grating failed to operate. On the contrary, films having a small SP gap, using 2‐ethylhexyl acrylate, operated under 20 V with a response time of about 10 ms, although their saturation of diffraction efficiency was relatively low. The results were interpreted in terms of morphology (determined using scanning electron microscopy), anchoring energy and resin elasticity.CONCLUSION: Low driving voltage and high diffraction efficiency are obtained by controlling the SP gap between LC and polymer. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Spectroscopic and thermal studies of poly[(N‐vinylimidazole)‐co‐(maleic acid)] hydrogel and its quaternized form
Authors: Pekel Nursel , Güven Olgun 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: In this study, poly[(N‐vinylimidazole)‐co‐(maleic acid)] (poly(VIm/MA)) hydrogels were prepared by γ‐irradiation of ternary mixtures of N‐vinylimidazole–maleic acid–water using a 60Co γ‐source. Spectroscopic and thermal analyses of these hydrogels as a function of protonation showed that the results are consistent with the existence of an H‐bridged complex when the imidazole rings are partially protonated. Finally, the efficiency and binding trends of Cu2+, Co2+, Cd2+ and Pb2+ ions with both protonated and unprotonated poly(VIm/MA) hydrogels were determined.RESULTS: Gelation of 90% was reached at around 180 kGy dose at the end of irradiation. The poly(VIm/MA) hydrogels synthesized were further protonated in HCl solutions with different concentrations. Hydrogels originally showed 450% volumetric swelling; this ratio reached 1900% after protonation at pH = 5.0. Fourier transform infrared spectral changes in the +NH stretching region (3200–3600 and 1173 cm−1) and the ring mode deformation at 915 cm−1 are consistent with the formation of an H‐bridged complex between the protonated and unprotonated imidazole rings upon partial protonation. Similar changes were obtained from NMR spectra of both the protonated and unprotonated forms of the hydrogels.CONCLUSION: Protonated and unprotonated hydrogels have been used in heavy metal ion adsorption studies for environmental purposes. Adsorption decreased with decreasing pH value due to the protonation of the VIm ring. The adsorption of Me2+ ions decreased in the order Cu2+ > Co2+ > Cd2+ > Pb2+, which is related to the complexation stability as well as the ionic radius of the metal ions. These results show that P(VIm/MA) hydrogels can be used efficiently to remove heavy metal ions from aqueous solutions. However, the protonated form is a bad choice for heavy metal ion adsorption due to electrostatic repulsion forces; it can nevertheless be assumed to be a good choice for anion adsorption from environmental waste water systems. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Gold electrodes modified with poly(4‐aminophenol): incorporation of nitrogenated bases and an oligonucleotide
Authors: Ferreira Lucas F , Boodts Julien FC , Brito‐Madurro Ana G , Madurro João M 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: Investigations of chemical modification of electrode surfaces and immobilization of nitrogenated bases and oligonucleotides are considered essential for the construction of DNA electrochemical nanodevices. Modification of gold electrode surfaces with poly(4‐aminophenol) was carried out in order to produce polymers capable of immobilizing purine bases and oligonucleotides.RESULTS: Gold electrodes coated with poly(4‐aminophenol) showed improved analytical characteristics and considerably enhanced the electrochemical signals associated with the detection of adenine and guanine by factors of ca 3 and ca 6, respectively, when compared with non‐coated gold surfaces. Impedance studies indicated higher charge transfer impedance to modified electrodes containing adenosine monophosphate. Atomic force microscopy images showed that nitrogenated bases have a strong influence over the morphology of the modified electrode surface. It was observed that the modified electrode containing guanine presents globular morphology.CONCLUSION: The modified electrodes increased the amplitude of the current signal of nitrogenated bases when compared to non‐coated gold surfaces and produced good response and peaks to the detection of an oligonucleotide. This work presents, for the first time, the electropolymerization of 4‐aminophenol on gold electrodes, as well as the detection of nitrogenated bases and an oligonucleotide incorporated on these modified electrodes. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
New approaches for designing ‘programmable’ microfluidic devices
Authors: Balazs Anna C 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBy exploiting the inherent interactions between soft particles and patterned substrates, researchers are developing new methods for controlling the motion of microcarriers and cells in microchannels. Anna Balazs reveals how these could be used to control precisely reactions on the microscale. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Solar cell efficiency tables (Version 31)
Authors: Green Martin A. , Emery Keith , Hishikawa Yoshihiro , Warta Wilhelm 
Published: December 2007

AbstractConsolidated tables showing an extensive listing of the highest independently confirmed efficiencies for solar cells and modules are presented. Guidelines for inclusion of results into these tables are outlined and new entries since July, 2008 are reviewed. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Solvent effects on chemical processes: new solvents designed on the basis of the molecular–microscopic properties of (molecular solvent + 1,3‐dialkylimidazolium) binary mixtures
Authors: Mancini P. M. , Fortunato G. G. , Adam C. G. , Vottero L. R. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe purpose of this work was to analyze the microscopic feature of binary solvent systems formed by a molecular solvent (acetonitrile or dimethylformamide or methanol) and an ionic liquid (IL) cosolvent [1‐(1‐butyl)‐3‐methylimidazolium tetrafluoroborate or 1‐(1‐butyl)‐3‐methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate]. The empirical solvatochromic solvent parameters ET(30), π*, α, and β were determined from the solvatochromic shifts of adequate indicators. The behavior of the solvent systems was analyzed according to their deviation from ideality. The study focused on the identification of solvent mixtures with relevant solvating properties in order to select mixed solvents with particular characteristics. The comparison of the molecular–microscopic solvent parameters corresponding to the selected binary mixtures with both ILs considered at similar mixed‐solvent composition revealed that the difference is centered on the basic character of them. A kinetic study of a nucleophilic aromatic substitution reaction between 1‐fluoro‐2,4‐dinitrobenzene (FDNB) and 1‐butylamine (BU) developed in (acetonitrile or dimethylformamide + IL) solvent mixtures is presented in order to investigate and compare the solvent effects on a chemical process. For the explored reactive systems the solvation behavior is dominated by both the dipolarity/polarizability and the basicity of the media, contributing these solvent properties to accelerating the chemical process. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The control of Asian rust by glyphosate in glyphosate‐resistant soybeans
Authors: Feng Paul CC , Clark Celeste , Andrade Gabriella C , Balbi Maria C , Caldwell Pat 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: Glyphosate is a widely used broad‐spectrum herbicide. Recent studies in glyphosate‐resistant (GR) crops have shown that, in addition to its herbicidal activity, glyphosate exhibits activity against fungi, thereby providing disease control benefits. In GR wheat, glyphosate has shown both preventive and curative activities against Puccinia striiformis f. sp. tritici (Erikss) CO Johnston and Puccinia triticina Erikss, which cause stripe and leaf rusts respectively.RESULTS: Laboratory studies confirmed earlier observations that glyphosate has activity against Phakopsora pachyrhizi Syd & P Syd which causes Asian soybean rust (ASR) in GR soybeans. The results showed that glyphosate at rates between 0.84 and 1.68 kg ha−1 delayed the onset of ASR in GR soybeans. However, field trials conducted in Argentina and Brazil under natural infestations showed variable ASR control from application of glyphosate in GR soybeans. Further field studies are ongoing to define the activity of glyphosate against ASR.CONCLUSIONS: These results demonstrate the disease control activities of glyphosate against rust diseases in GR wheat and GR soybeans. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Dose–response effects of clove oil from Syzygium aromaticum on the root‐knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita
Authors: Meyer Susan LF , Lakshman Dilip K , Zasada Inga A , Vinyard Bryan T , Chitwood David J 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: Clove oil, derived from the plant Syzygium aromaticum (L.) Merr. & Perry, is active against various organisms, and was prepared in a soy lecithin/detergent formulation to determine concentrations active against the root‐knot nematode Meloidogyne incognita (Kofoid and White) Chitwood.RESULTS: In microwell assays, the mean effective clove oil concentration that reduced egg hatch by 50% (EC50) was 0.097% (v/v) clove oil; the EC50 for second‐stage juvenile (J2) viability was 0.145% clove oil (compared with carrier control treatments). Volatiles from 5.0% clove oil reduced nematode egg hatch in water by 30%, and decreased viability of hatched J2 by as much as 100%. Reductions were not as large with nematodes in carrier. In soil trials with J2 recovered from Baermann funnels, the EC50 = 0.192% clove oil (compared with water controls).CONCLUSION: The results demonstrated that the tested formulation is active against M. incognita eggs and J2, that the EC50 values for J2 in the microwell studies and the soil recovery tests were similar to each other and that direct contact with the clove oil is needed for optimal management results with this natural product. Published in 2007 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Differential expression of cytochrome P450 genes between bromadiolone‐resistant and anticoagulant‐susceptible Norway rats: a possible role for pharmacokinetics in bromadiolone resistance
Authors: Markussen Mette DK , Heiberg Ann‐Charlotte , Fredholm Merete , Kristensen Michael 
Published: December 2007

AbstractBACKGROUND: Anticoagulant resistance in Norway rats, Rattus norvegicus (Berk.), has been suggested to be conferred by mutations in the VKORC1 gene, encoding the target protein of anticoagulant rodenticides. Other factors, e.g. pharmacokinetics, may also contribute to resistance, however. To examine the involvement of pharmacokinetics in bromadiolone resistance in male and female rats, liver expression profiles of seven cytochrome P450 genes from a Danish bromadiolone‐resistant rat strain (with an Y139C‐VKORC1 mutation) were compared with profiles from an anticoagulant‐susceptible strain.RESULTS: In the presence of bromadiolone, the Cyp2e1, Cyp2c13, Cyp3a2 and Cyp3a3 genes were significantly overexpressed, while Cyp2c12 expression was suppressed in resistant female rats compared with susceptible females. Relative to susceptible males, resistant males showed significant overexpression of the Cyp2a1, Cyp2e1, Cyp3a2 and Cyp3a3 genes. On exposure to bromadiolone, females had higher Cyp2e1 expression than males, which possibly explains why female rats are generally more tolerant to anticoagulants than male rats.CONCLUSION: Results suggest that bromadiolone resistance in a Danish strain of Norway rats involves enhanced anticoagulant metabolism catalysed by cytochrome P450‐2e1, ‐3a2 and ‐3a3. This pharmacokinetically based bromadiolone resistance is to some extent sex differentiated, as female resistance furthermore seems to involve overexpression of cytochrome P450‐2c13 and suppression of P450‐2c12, whereas male resistance appears to involve P450‐2a1 overexpression. Copyright © 2007 Society of Chemical Industry
Functional and structural characterization of apidaecin and its N‐terminal and C‐terminal fragments
Authors: ZHOU XU‐XIA , LI WEI‐FEN , PAN YUAN‐JIANG 
Published: December 2007

AbstractTwo aspects were studied to elucidate the functional and structural characterization of apidaecin and its N‐terminal and C‐terminal fragments: (i) Functions of the N‐terminal and C‐terminal fragments of apidaecin were first studied by measuring their antibacterial activity, their ability to enter Escherichia coli cells and their effects on the activities of β‐galactosidase and alkaline phosphatase. The results indicate that neither the N‐terminal nor the C‐terminal of apidaecin contains intracellular delivery unit or active segment. (ii) The effect of apidaecin on the ATPase activity of DnaK, and the interactions of apidaecin with E.coli lidless DnaK and DnaK D‐E helix were studied. Results showed that apidaecin could interact with the E.coli lidless DnaK protein and stimulate its ATPase activity, but not with E.coli DnaK D‐E helix. This indicated that the antimicrobial activity of apidaecin may be shown by stimulating the ATPase activity of DnaK by binding to its conventional substrate‐binding site, to decrease its cellular concentration of DnaK by competing with natural substrates and inhibit the enzymes' activities of E. coli cells. It is the first study to suggest that the apidaecin‐binding site of DnaK is the conventional substrate binging site. Copyright © 2007 European Peptide Society and John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
The in‐plane magnetic anisotropy of RF‐sputtered FeNiN thin films
Authors: Wang X. F. , Wu P. , Liu X. J. , Chen X. S. , Li Z. Q. , Bai H. L. , Jiang E. Y. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractFeNiN thin films were synthesized on Si(100) substrates at room temperature by RF magnetron sputtering. The nitrogen concentration dependence of their phase structure and magnetic properties was systematically investigated. With increasing nitrogen partial pressure (P), the FeNiN thin films successively showed a α‐Fe phase at P ≤ 5.0%, then a pure ε‐Fe3N phase at P = 25.0%, and then a ζ‐(Fe,Ni)2N phase at P = 25.0%, but there was no γ′‐(Fe,Ni)4N phase in the whole P range. These films with various phases presented different magnetic properties, which can be ascribed to the strong effects of nitrogen content. The optimum soft magnetic properties with Ms of ∼1721 emu/cm3 and HC of <4 Oe were obtained at P = 3.0% at room temperature. In particular, we experimentally found that the nitrogen atoms play a key role in controlling the in‐plane magnetic anisotropy, and the evolution of the in‐plane anisotropy derives from the combined effects of internal stress, shape anisotropy, and induced anisotropy. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Silver‐assisted electroless etching mechanism of silicon
Authors: Douani R. , Si‐Larbi K. , Hadjersi T. , Megouda N. , Manseri A. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThe morphology of metal‐assisted electroless etched n‐type silicon in HF–oxidizing agent–H2O etching system as a function of oxidizing type and etching time was studied. Three types of oxidizing agent were investigated: Na2S2O8, K2Cr2O7 and KMnO4. The layers formed on silicon were investigated by scanning electron microscopy and energy‐dispersive X‐ray analysis. It is shown that the morphology of the etched layers depends strongly on the type of oxidizing agent. The secondary ion mass spectra of the etched layers reveal that the deposited silver diffuses into the etched layers during etching. Finally, a discussion on the dissolution mechanism of silicon by silver‐assisted electroless etching is presented. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Scintillation properties of pure and Ca‐doped ZnWO4 crystals
Authors: Danevich F. A. , Henry S. , Kraus H. , McGowan R. , Mikhailik V. B. , Shkulkova O. G. , Telfer J. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractFollowing the investigations of the structure and scintillation properties of Ca‐doped zinc tungstate powder [phys. stat. sol. (a) 204, 730 (2007)] a single‐crystal of ZnWO4–Ca (0.5 mol%) was grown and characterised. The relative light output, energy resolution and decay characteristics were measured for pure and Ca‐doped ZnWO4 scintillators. An increase in the light yield of ∼40% compared with the undoped crystal, and an energy resolution 9.6% (137Cs) were obtained for Ca‐doped ZnWO4. The observed improvement is attributed to the reduction of self‐absorption (bleaching) of the crystal. The cause of bleaching as well as the possible contribution of scattering is discussed. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Fabrication and magnetic characterization of permalloy antidot arrays
Authors: Prieto P. , Pirota K. R. , Vazquez M. , Sanz J. M. 
Published: December 2007

AbstractOrdered nanoscale permalloy antidot arrays with different sizes and lattice geometries have been prepared on top of nanoporous alumina membranes (NAMs) used as templates and have been magnetically characterized. Two different NAMs with high order hexagonal symmetry have been used, i.e. NAMs with pore diameters ranging between 35 nm and 95 nm, but with a constant lattice parameter of 105 nm and NAMs with pore diameter of 180 nm and a lattice parameter of 500 nm. In addition we have also prepared antidot arrays where the antidot size has been changed by varying the thickness of the permalloy thin film grown on top of the NAM template. The results show a significative increase of the coercivity as well as a reduction of the remanence of the antidot arrays, as compared with their parent continuous film, that depends on the size and on the density of holes introduced in the permalloy thin film. (© 2008 WILEY‐VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)
Nonparametric inference on the E/O ratio in model validation
Authors: Qu Yongming , Wang Yanping 
Published: December 2007

AbstractIn preventing diseases such as cancers and osteoporosis, statistical models are often used to identify subjects with high risks. The ratio of the expected (or predicted) number of cases in the target population and the observed numbers of cases (the E/O ratio) is a useful quantity to evaluate the goodness of fit of the model. The model is usually evaluated on a sample taken from the target population and, in the literature, statistical inferences on the E/O ratio often assume that the expected number is a constant and the observed number follows a Poisson distribution. In this paper, we introduce a nonparametric method that takes into account the variability of the predicted number due to sampling and its correlation with the observed number. By estimating the variance of the estimated E/O ratio more accurately, this nonparametric approach offers better inferences. In addition, we propose to use an F‐statistic to test the goodness of a model across subgroups defined by certain risk factors. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Use Cases for Systems Engineering—An Approach and Empirical Evaluation
Authors: Eriksson Magnus , Borg Kjell , Börstler Jürgen 
Published: December 2007

AbstractThis paper describes a use case driven approach for functional analysis/allocation and requirements flowdown. The approach utilizes use cases and use case realizations for functional architecture modeling, which in turn form the basis for design synthesis and requirements flowdown. We refer to this approach as the FAR (Functional Architecture by use case Realizations) approach. The FAR approach is currently applied in several large‐scale defense projects within BAE Systems Hägglunds AB. This paper also presents an empirical study where FAR is applied and evaluated in two large‐scale defense projects. Our results indicate that the FAR approach performs better than the previously used document based approach in the organization. © 2007, Wiley Periodicals, Inc. Syst Eng