1,721,056 research outputs found
Functionalized Multi-Walled Carbon Nanotube Enhanced Myogenic Differentiation for Aligned Topography-Induced Skeletal Muscle Engineering
Full text linkSkeletal muscle engineering utilizing bio-activators and myogenic cells to regenerate tissues for volumetric muscle loss offers a promising alternative to tissue grafts. Modified biointerfaces with aligned micro-scale topography and electroconductivity are critical for directing cellular behavior toward functional muscle constructs. This study modified polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) with aligned surface topography and functionalized multi-walled carbon nanotubes (fCNTs), creating a conductive scaffold (0.11 mu Scm(-1) vs original 0.51 nScm(-1)) with regulated hydrophilicity (76 +/- 2 degrees vs original 50 +/- 10 degrees in water contact angle) and enhanced protein absorption. The fCNT-wrinkled surfaces maintained >90% cell viability while promoting aligned myotube formation. Specifically, fCNT integration with aligned topography increased myotube length from 303.74 +/- 27.61 mu m to 441.63 +/- 10.27 mu m and elevated fusion index to 40.43% +/- 2.67% within three differentiation days. Immunostaining confirmed enhanced myogenic maturation through improved cell alignment and nuclei organization. These biophysical modifications synergistically accelerated myoblast differentiation while maintaining cytocompatibility by combining electrical conductivity, optimized wettability, and directional cues. The demonstrated capacity to physiologically mimic native muscle microenvironments highlights this strategy's potential for improving muscle regeneration therapies through precise control of surface-electrotopographical properties
Curved Amphipathic Oligothiophenes: Curvature directed S.A. with applications in energy transfer systems and membrane curvature detection in living cells
No full textWe have designed and synthesised a new class of molecules which self-assemble based on hydrophobic interactions with an additional driving force for influencing the overall aggregate morphology, namely, molecular curvature. The structure is build from subunits which are substituted with either hydrophilic or hydrophobic substituents. In water, the different substituents on the connected sub-units of the molecule reorient and create a curved structure. This curvature is an additional tool to direct the self-assembly process and it was found that indeed the conventional packing of the molecules can be “disturbed” by the implementation of this curvature. The backbone itself is build from a conjugated oligothiophene structure and therefore it possesses electronic- and photo-physical properties in the form of conductivity, the ability to absorb and emit photonic energy and the ability to have electronic interactions with other electronically active molecular species. These properties have been utilised for the fabrication of self-assembled light harvesting systems in water which not only displayed energy transfer and transport but also charge separation which is a key component in converting solar energy into a useful form of energy. Also the curvature could be utilised as a surface sensor in aqueous systems by changes in the curved molecular structure which could be read in the form of fluorescence output.ChemEApplied Science
Going Beyond Counting First Authors in Author Co-citation Analysis
Full text linkThe present study examines one of the fundamental aspects of author co-citation analysis (ACA) - the way co-citation
counts are defined. Co-citation counting provides the data on which all subsequent statistical analyses and mappings
are based, and we compare ACA results based on two different types of co-citation counting - the traditional type that
only counts the first one among a cited work's authors on the one hand and a non-traditional type that takes into
account the first 5 authors of a cited work on the other hand. Results indicate that the picture produced through this non-traditional author co-citation counting contains more coherent author groups and is therefore considerably clearer. However, this picture represents fewer specialties in the research field being studied than that produced through the traditional first-author co-citation counting when the same number of top-ranked authors is selected and analyzed. Reasons for these effects are discussed
Variations on the Author
Full text link“Variations on the Author” discusses two of Eduardo Coutinho’s recent films (Um Dia na Vida, from 2010, and Últimas Conversas, posthumously released in 2015) and their contribution to the general question of documentary authorship. The director’s filmography is characterized by a consistent yet self-effacing form of authorial self-inscription: Coutinho often features as an interviewer that rather than express opinions propels discourses; an interviewer that is good at listening. This mode of self-inscription characterizes him as an author who is not expressive but who is nonetheless markedly present on the screen. In Um Dia na Vida, however, Coutinho is completely absent form the image, while Últimas Conversas, on the contrary, includes a confessional prologue that moves the director from the margins to the center of his films. This article examines the ways in which these works stand out in the filmography of a director who offers new insights into the notion of cinematic authorship
Appropriate Similarity Measures for Author Cocitation Analysis
Full text linkWe provide a number of new insights into the methodological discussion about author cocitation analysis. We first argue that the use of the Pearson correlation for measuring the similarity between authors’ cocitation profiles is not very satisfactory. We then discuss what kind of similarity measures may be used as an alternative to the Pearson correlation. We consider three similarity measures in particular. One is the well-known cosine. The other two similarity measures have not been used before in the bibliometric literature. Finally, we show by means of an example that our findings have a high practical relevance.information science;Pearson correlation;cosine;similarity measure;author cocitation analysis
Dispelling the Myths Behind First-author Citation Counts
Full text linkWe conducted a full-scale evaluative citation analysis study of scholars in the XML research field to explore just how different from each other author rankings resulting from different citation counting methods actually are, and to demonstrate the capability of emerging data and tools on the Web in supporting more realistic citation counting methods. Our results contest some common arguments for the continued
use of first-author citation counts in the evaluation of scholars, such as high correlations between author rankings by first-author citation counts and other citation
counting methods, and high costs of using more realistic citation counting methods that are not well-supported by the ISI databases. It is argued that increasingly available digital full text research papers make it possible for citation analysis studies to go beyond what the ISI databases have directly supported and to employ more
sophisticated methods
Insects and globalization: sustainable control of exotic species in Italian agro-forestry ecosystems
No full textOne of the negative consequences of globalization is the increased introduction of exotic pests into new areas. Italy, in particular, is at high risk of introduction, because of its geographical position and climate, which allows the settlement of (even subtropical) exotic species. In this context, native natural enemies may play a major role in the biological control of exotic species. The mechanisms involved in adaptation processes, which are crucial in studies of biological invasions, are only partially known. A joint effort by researchers operating in Italy and abroad is needed to deeply investigate this phenomenon and to develop appropriate strategies for sustainable control of exotic species. The present work illustrates the objectives and preliminary results of the project “Insects and globalization: sustainable control of exotic species in agro-forestry ecosystems (GEISCA)” focused on control of exotic species by native entomophagous insects. The overall goal of the project is to gain, at the end of three years, useful knowledge on the development of appropriate procedures for sustainable control of target pest species
koamabayili/VECTRON-author-checklist: VECTRON author checklist
No full textWe have done our best to complete the author checklist relating to the use of animals in the hut study. Note that the objective for the hut study was to evaluate the IRS treatment applications for residual efficacy against Anopheles mosquitoes, including the local An. coluzzii mosquito population. Cows were only used to attract mosquitoes into the huts and no tests were carried out directly on the cows. The author checklist is intended for use with studies where experiments are carried out on animals, which is why we have had such difficulty in completing this for the hut study, as many of the questions do not relate to how the cows were used
- …
