Search

This study presents high precision Zn stable isotope analyses for lower crustal rocks (9 granulites from Archean terrains and 30 lower crustal xenoliths) from the north margin of the North China Craton (NCC) to understand the behavior of Zn isotopes during deep crustal processes and the Zn isotopic composition of the lower continental crust (LCC). The lower crustal xenoliths range in composition from mafic to felsic with MgO contents of between 0.4 to 20.2 wt.%. The δ66Zn (the permil deviation of the 66Zn/64Zn ratio from the JMC-Lyon standard) values of lower crustal xenoliths range from −0.17‰ to 0.38‰. The lack of clear correlation of δ66Zn with geochemical indicators (e.g., Al2O3, Cr, Ba/La, 87Sr/86Sr and 143Nd/144Nd) indicates that assimilation of Precambrian lower crust, fluid metasomatism, and accumulation of pyroxene and plagioclase had a limited effect on Zn isotopic compositions of these lower crustal xenoliths. The δ66Zn values (0.18‰ to 0.34‰) of garnet-bearing mafic granulites decrease with increasing FeO(T) and V contents, which are likely results of the accumulation of Fe-Ti oxides. The average δ66Zn of the lower continental crust is estimated to be 0.29 ± 0.02‰ (95% SE) using lower crustal xenoliths from the Neogene Hannuoba basalts. This δ66Zn value is similar to the estimated value (0.28 ± 0.04‰, 95% SE) obtained from the granulites from Archean terrains, suggesting that there is no significant difference in the Zn isotopic composition between the Archean and present-day lower continental crust. Combining the δ66Zn data of the lower crustal xenoliths and granulite terrains and different weighting methods, the Zn isotopic composition of the lower continental crust is estimated to be 0.28 ± 0.04‰ (95% SE).

Variations of the stable Ca isotopic compositions (noted as δ44/40Ca relative to the SRM915a standard) of basalts are interpreted as effects of mantle sources. Mantle pyroxenites are a minor but integral part of the mantle and, as fusible components, they are important source rocks to understand chemical and isotopic heterogeneity in mantle-derived magmas. However, the effect of pyroxenites on the Ca isotopic composition of the mantle has been poorly constrained. To which extent mantle pyroxenites and their formation processes such as melt-peridotite reaction, particularly involving recycled crustal materials, lead to heterogeneity in δ44/40Ca of the mantle is unknown. Here, we report δ44/40Ca of different types of pyroxenites (spinel pyroxenites, garnet pyroxenites, and phlogopite-bearing spinel clinopyroxenites) and minerals separates, along with surrounding peridotites from Hannuoba xenoliths, North China Craton to address the issue. Initial 87Sr/86Sr ratio indicates that recycled crustal materials were incorporated into parental magmas of garnet pyroxenites (0.70391–0.70715) and phlogopite-bearing clinopyroxenites (0.7142–0.7149), consistent with previous conclusions from Sr-Nd isotopes. Overall, the δ44/40Ca of garnet pyroxenites ranges from 0.86‰ to 0.98‰ (average 0.90 ± 0.05‰, n = 10) and the host peridotites affected by the infiltrating melts from 0.87‰ to 0.93‰ (0.89 ± 0.04‰, n = 8). Each pair (n = 8) of garnet pyroxenite and host peridotite displays no measurable difference in δ44/40Ca. The spinel pyroxenites and phlogopite-bearing spinel clinopyroxenites also show similar δ44/40Ca (0.94 ± 0.06‰ and 0.98 ± 0.05‰, respectively). The indistinguishable δ44/40Ca among these different types of pyroxenites and surrounding peridotites suggest no obvious Ca isotope variations during silicate melt-peridotite interaction and fractional crystallization, even if recycled silicate materials were involved. These results indicate that the mantle source with variable proportions of pyroxenites in equilibrium conditions overall would show uniform δ44/40Ca. It implies that the basic magmas derived from such peridotite-pyroxenite source would display limited variations in δ44/40Ca, even if their radiogenic isotopes show strong heterogeneity. The conclusion is consistent with no systematic variations in the available δ44/40Ca of different basalt types such as DMM, EM1 and HIMU. However, garnets in mantle rocks of recent work and this study generally display heavier δ44/40Ca than co-existing clinopyroxenes, implying that melts generated by partial melting of mantle sources with abundant residual garnets may show lighter δ44/40Ca values than MORBs.

Calcium isotope data ( δ 44 Ca , μ 42 / 44 Ca , and μ 48 / 44 Ca ) are reported for high-temperature metamorphic rocks and minerals, and compared with density-functional theory (DFT) estimates of equilibrium Ca isotope fractionation factors for plagioclase, garnet, clinopyroxene, orthopyroxene, olivine, and apatite. The data and calculations are used to evaluate equilibrium and kinetic fractionation effects that apply to high-temperature metamorphism, where extended residence at high temperature should promote equilibration, but where centimeter-to-meter scale Ca transport could produce diffusive kinetic effects. At upper-granulite facies conditions (T ≥ ∼900 °C), DFT-predicted equilibrium fractionations between minerals are ≤0.8‰, decreasing to ca. 0.6‰ at 1100 °C. We find much larger δ 44 Ca variations in both whole-rock samples (range of ∼4‰) and individual minerals (range of ∼8‰), and large variations in the Ca isotope fractionation between mineral pairs (e.g. Δ 44 Ca grt-plag from −1.5 to +1.5‰). Deviations from equilibrium tend to be larger in concert with indications of higher temperature, such as increasing whole-rock Mg#, plagioclase anorthite content, orthopyroxene Ca/Mg, and garnet Mg#. These large variations are inferred to be due to intragranular or grain-boundary diffusion during metamorphism, as this is the only mechanism that can produce such large isotopic variations. We can confirm the kinetic origin of the variations using measurements of μ 48 / 44 Ca by MC-ICP-MS to distinguish kinetic from equilibrium fractionation processes using a triple-isotope approach. A new variable ( Δ 48 Ca ′ ) quantifies deviations from the Ca-isotope equilibrium slope on a plot of 48Ca/44Ca vs. 42Ca/44Ca. Available geochronological constraints and numerical modeling indicate that observed kinetic isotope fractionations between adjacent high and low Ca rock layers require effective Ca diffusivities of 10−10 to 10−7 m2/yr, and a ratio of Ca isotope diffusivities of D 44 / D 40 ≈ 0.99. The diffusivities are consistent with Ca transport by volume- and grain-boundary diffusion. The apparent contrast in isotopic diffusivities is large and more consistent with silicate liquids than aqueous fluids. This study confirms that kinetic Ca isotope effects are abundant in nature and can overwrite small equilibrium effects, even at high temperatures and even when other techniques (such as Fe-Mg exchange and Ca-in-Opx thermometry) suggest the establishment of chemical equilibrium. Our results imply that kinetic fractionation effects may complicate the use of δ 44 Ca measurements for geothermometry or as a tracer of carbonate recycling into the mantle.

WOS: 000464089800042, Two new organic compounds based on 8-hydroxyquinoline have been successfully synthesized, and characterized by FT-IR, 1H, C-13 NMR and Elemental analysis. The synthesized compounds namely tert-butyl((8-hydroxyquinolin-5-yl)-methyl)-carbamate (BHQC) and Ethyl 3-(((8-hydroxyquinolin-5-yl)-methyl)-amino)-3-oxopropanoate (EHQP) are evaluated as corrosion inhibitors for carbon steel (CS) in 1 M HCl solution using electrochemical techniques, UV - visible and SEM at 298 K. Electrochemical measurements showed that these organic compounds are mixed type inhibitors. The adsorption of both inhibitors on the carbon steel surface followed Langmuir adsorption isotherm. Furthermore, DFT calculations and Monte Carlo simulation were performed to theoretically establish the relationship between molecular structure and inhibition efficiency. (C) 2019 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000457328100119, PubMed ID: 30399469, BACKGROUND: Epidural fibrosis is a major problem after spine surgery, with some patients having recurrent symptoms secondary to excessive formation of scar tissue resulting in neurologic compression. We used a rat laminectomy model to determine if topical application of boric acid could be helpful in the prevention of epidural fibrosis. METHODS: Rats were randomly assigned to 2 control and 2 experimental groups (n = 8 for each group). The negative control group received no surgery, and the positive control group underwent laminectomy only. Experimental groups were classified according to the study agents applied onto the dura mater after laminectomy at the L3 level: 2.5% boric acid solution and 5% boric acid solution. The extent of epidural fibrosis was assessed 4 weeks later macroscopically and histopathologically. RESULTS: Boric acid reduced epidural fibrosis in rats after laminectomy. The effect of 5% boric acid solution was more pronounced (P < 0.05) compared with the 2.5% solution. CONCLUSIONS: The antifibrotic effect of boric acid solution for the prevention of epidural fibrosis suggests that boric acid should be further evaluated in future studies for the prevention of epidural fibrosis.

WOS: 000457344000037 The aim of this research was to evaluate the potential use of in situ gel formulations for voriconazole ocular delivery as fungal keratitis treatment. The in situ gelling system was applied to increase residence time and the bioavailability of voriconazole in the ocular mucosa. Temperature-triggered in situ gel formulations were prepared by cold method. Poloxamer 188, poloxamer 407 and carboxymethylcellulose were used for the preparation of thermosensitive in situ ocular gel. Voriconazole concentration in formulations was 0.1% (w/w). The prepared gels were evaluated for clarity, sol-gel transition temperature, gelling capacity, pH, viscosity, FT-IR and drug content. The gelation temperatures of all the formulations were within the range of 29-34 degrees C. All formulations exhibited fairly uniform drug content. Furthermore, sterility, antifungal activity, stability, in vitro drug release, ex vivo permeation, and penetration and in vivo study of these formulations were also examined. Drug release results indicated that all formulations showed sustained release properties. Irritation studies showed that no ocular damage or clinically abnormal signs were observed in the cornea, conjunctiva or iris upon administration of the formulation. In conclusion, voriconazole loaded in situ gels could be offered as a promising strategy as ocular carriers for the treatment of fungal keratitis.

WOS: 000457720900013, We have investigated the binding energies of the s-symmetric ground and first excited shallow donor impurity states and the total 1s -> 2s absorption coefficient, including the first and third order corrections, in "12-6" tuned GaAs/GaAlAs double quantum well as a function of the impurity position, size of the structure, and the electric and magnetic field intensities. The obtained results show that the electronic and optical properties of tuned GaAs/GaAlAs double quantum well can be adjustable by an appropriate choice of the sample geometry, material parameters and applied external fields which will lead to new potential applications in optoelectronics., Colombian Agency: CODI-Universidad de Antioquia (Estrategia de Sostenibilidad de la Universidad de Antioquia); Colombian Agency: Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales-Universidad de Antioquia (CAD-exclusive dedication project 2017-2018); Cumhuriyet University (CUBAP) [F-557], This research was partially supported by Colombian Agencies: CODI-Universidad de Antioquia (Estrategia de Sostenibilidad de la Universidad de Antioquia) and Facultad de Ciencias Exactas y Naturales-Universidad de Antioquia (CAD-exclusive dedication project 2017-2018). This work used resources of the Centro Nacional de Processamento de Alto Desempenho em Sao Paulo (CENAPAD-SP). The authors are grateful to The Scientific Research Project Fund of Cumhuriyet University (CUBAP) under the project number F-557.

WOS: 000462810600047, In the present paper, we theoretically investigate the effect of applied external fields, such as electric, magnetic, and intense terahertz laser fields on the optical absorption and the relative refractive index change coefficients of triple delta-doped quantum well structures. To investigate the applied external field effects, we perform the calculation of the allowed subband energy levels and their corresponding eigen-functions using the diagonalization method within the framework of the effective-mass approximation. The effects of the applied external fields on the nonlinear optical properties of the quantum well structure are treated within the compact-density-matrix approach via the iterative method. The numerical results obtained are presented for two different values of electric, magnetic, and intense terahertz laser fields. These results show that changing the intensity of the external electric, magnetic, and intense terahertz laser field. It is concluded that the nonlinear optical response of the triple delta-doped structure can be significantly changed through the changes in the configuration of the external probes.

WOS: 000459528600053, Silica based SBA-15 nanoparticles functionalized with aminopropyl-trimethoxysilane (AP) groups were prepared, and then Cu2+ ions were decorated onto them via AP (Cu+2-SBA-15), and calculated by ICP-OES as 137.9 mg/g nanoparticles. The characterizations of SBA-15 and SBA-15-AP were examined by XRD, FTIR and BET analysis. Prepared Cu+2-SBA-15 nanoparticles were embedded into cryogel column (Cu+2-SBA-15 NEC) photographed by SEM, and tried to investigate some adsorption parameters against to lysozyme selected as model protein. Lysozyme adsorption studies were conducted in a continuous system. The maximum adsorption capacity (1275.2 mg/g particles) of Cu+2-SBA-15 nanoparticles was obtained at phosphate buffer of pH 7.0 with initial lysozyme concentration of 1 mg/mL. According to examined Langmuir and Freundlich adsorption isotherms, Langmuir isotherm was fitted the best to this study. Composite cryogels were also used for 30 times in adsorption-desorption experiments. Purification capability of matrix was expressed as 88.5% with 913 purification yield from hen egg white (HEW) by means of SDS-PAGE. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Introduction: The objective of the present work is to investigate the prospective associations between physical fitness components (cardiorespiratory fitness, motor fitness, and muscular strength) and two domains of executive function (working memory and inhibitory control) in adolescents. Methods: A total of 422 Spanish adolescents (13.35 ± 1.54 years, at baseline) from the UP&DOWN study with assessments at baseline and at 2-year follow-up were included in the analysis. Physical fitness was assessed using the ALPHA Fitness Test Battery. Working memory was measured by the n-back task and inhibitory control by the go/no-go task. Relationships of physical fitness components with working memory and inhibitory control were examined using linear regression models, adjusted for confounders. Results: Higher baseline levels of the three physical fitness components (cardiorespiratory fitness, motor fitness, and muscular strength) individually predicted better performance on the working memory (βranged, from .159 to .207; all p < .012) and inhibitory control (βranged, from 0.168 to 0.263; all p < .004) tasks at the 2-year follow-up. Muscular strength was the only component associated with inhibitory control independent of the other 2 physical fitness components (β = 0.266; p = .005). Conclusions: All components of adolescents’ physical fitness at baseline were individually associated with better working memory and inhibitory control at 2-year follow-up. Specifically, our results revealed that muscular strength was the component showing the strongest association with executive function, and even the only fitness component associated with inhibitory control independent of the other fitness components. These findings may have important public health and educational implication, since promoting exercise programs that improve physical fitness, and particularly, muscular strength, may positively influence cognitive health., Spanish Government DEP 2010-21662-C04-00 CAS19/00265 RYC2019-027287-I, National Health and Medical Research Council (NHMRC) of Australia APP 1176885 Spanish Government IJC2018-038008-I

WOS: 000448098000077, Pumice-TiO2 was synthesized through simple sol-gel method. The successful synthesis of the catalyst was verified by SEM, EDS, XRF, FT-IR and BET techniques. Then, a sonocatalytic process was performed to degrade famotidine in the presence of the synthesized catalyst and under ultrasonic irradiation. The removal efficiency of the sonocatalytic process with pumice TiO2, TiO2, pumice and sonolysis within 70 min was 71.1%, 33.9%, 31.1% and 8.9%, respectively. The main operational parameters which were examined in this study were catalyst dosage, pH, famotidine concentration and ultrasonic power which were optimized as 1.5 g/L, 5, 20 mg/L and 150 W, respectively. Moreover, the addition of radical scavengers (EDTA, Na2SO4 and 1, 4 benzoquinone) and enhancers (H2O2 and K2S2O8) which can affect the removal efficiency were investigated. Diverse degradation by-products were identified using GC-MS analysis. Eventually, the reusability tests confirmed that the synthesized pumice TiO2 catalyst had significant stability after 5 consecutive runs. (C) 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Aksaray university [2017-042], The authors would like to appreciate the University of Tabriz (Iran) for all the supports prepared. This work has been supported by Research Fund of Aksaray university Project Number 2017-042.

WOS: 000442193700030, The optimized molecular geometry, vibrational assessments, natural bond orbital (NBO) analyses for Tetra chloro p-xylene (TCPX) and Tetra chloro m-xylene (TCMX) were performed by B3LYP/6-311++G (d,p) functional. The experimental vibrational frequencies were compared with scaled vibrational wave numbers. Average local ionization energy (ALIE), Fukui functions and bond dissociation energies (BDE) were used to determine reactivity sites of TCPX and TCMX. BDE for hydrogen abstraction helped us to investigate the possibility for autoxidation mechanism of the investigated molecules. Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations were utilized to find out the exact atom of both TCPX and TCMX molecules have the tendency to bind preferably with water molecules. The molecular electrostatic potential (MEP) and global reactivity descriptor parameters were also established. Molecular docking studies were performed on Auto Dock-Vina software. The thermodynamical properties of title compounds have been calculated using B3LYP/6-311++G (d,p) functional. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Schrodinger Inc.; Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of Serbia [III41017], Part of this work has been performed thanks to the support received from Schrodinger Inc. Part of this study was conducted within the project funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technological Development of Serbia, grant number III41017.

WOS: 000438484600010, Three novel azo-azomethine ligands have been synthesized in an accomplished one-pot synthesis protocol. The mononuclear Ru(II) complexes of these azo-azomethine dyes were prepared and characterized by the combination of elemental analyses, IR, UV-Visible spectroscopy and H-1-C-13 NMR spectra. Solid state structures of 3, 4 and 7 were determined by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. The electrochemical and photoluminescence properties of the compounds were studied. The 1931 CIE (x, y) chromaticity coordinates of the ligands and their metal complexes were investigated and the x, y values of the compounds were found to be close to the National Television Standard Committee (NTSC) standard. Quantum chemical calculation of related ligands and complexes are performed at B3LYP/6-31G(d, p) and B3LYP/6-31G(d, p) (LANL2DZ) level in vacuum. In addition, the azo-azomethine ligands and their Ru(II) complexes were evaluated for both their in-vitro antibacterial activity by the disc diffusion method and antioxidant properties using ferric reduction power, DPPH free radical, and ABTS cation radical scavenging activities as in vitro. Radical scavenging activities of compounds 5-7 were found higher than BHT, BHA, and Trolox used as positive controls. Compounds 2-4 antioxidant capacities were lower than the positive controls. Finally, the new azoazomethine dyes and their Ru(II) complexes were investigated for their in vitro antiproliferative activities against non-small cell lung cancer cells (H2126), prostate adenocarcinoma cells (PC3) and breast cancer cells (MCF7) in vitro. Cell proliferation test were performed as dose-dependent assays at 200 mu M. The new azo-azomethine ligands and their Ru(II) complexes have shown anticancer activity on the studied cell lines after 24 h exposure to 200 mu M compounds. However, the activities of the compounds are much lower than 5-Fu. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Unit of Coordination of Scientific Research Projects, Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University, Kahramanmaras, Turkey [2015/1-16YLS], This work was financially supported by the Unit of Coordination of Scientific Research Projects, Kahramanmaras Sutcu Imam University, Kahramanmaras, Turkey (Project no: 2015/1-16YLS).

WOS: 000449621100040, A theoretical study of the effects of non-resonant intense laser field on the optical response in a Gaussian potential quantum well is performed in the framework of the effective mass approximation. The obtained results indicate that, the depth and range of the considered confinement potential and intense laser field intensity has a significant effect on the optical properties in Gaussian potential quantum wells. Also it was found that the laser field is more effective on the optical response in Gaussian potential quantum wells with smaller range.

WOS: 000444622300033, In this study, the energy eigenvalues and eigenfunctions of the ground and excited states of a spherical quantum dot are calculated by using the Quantum Genetic algorithm (QGA) and Hartree-Eock Roothaan (HFR) method. Based on the calculated energies and wave functions, the static and dynamic dipole polarizabilities, the quadrupole polarizability, dipole and quadrupole oscillator strengths of spherical quantum dot are carried out as a function of dot size and the confining potential as perturbative. The results show that dot size and confining potential have a great influence on the polarizability and oscillator strength. It is found that the polarizability increases due to the spatial confinement effect in the strong confinement region. In the weak confinement region, the polarizability increases again until it reaches the saturation value. In addition, the peak positions of the dipole and quadrupole oscillator strengths shift toward smaller dot radii with the increases of the potential well depth., Research Fund of Aksaray University [2017-028]; Selcuk University BAP office, This work has been supported by Research Fund of Aksaray University-Project Number: 2017-028. And also, it has been partially supported by Selcuk University BAP office.

International audience; Micelles of poly(epsilon-caprolactone)-b-poly(N,N-diethylaminoethyl methacrylate)/(N-(3-sulfopropyl-N-methacryloxyethy-N,N-diethylammonium betaine)) (PCL-PDEAPS) and poly(epsilon-caprolactone)-b-poly(ethylene glycol) (PCL-PEG) were prepared and characterized. The interactions of micelles with model proteins such as bovine serum albumin (BSA), lysozyme (Ly), fibrinogen (Fg) and plasma were studied from adsorption quantity, micelle size, polydispersity index (PDI) and zeta-potential measurements. The adsorption quantity of negatively charged proteins on PCL-PDEAPS micelles containing zwitterionic sulfobetaine is larger than on non-ionic PEG-PCL micelles. The adsorption amount increases with the increase of zwitterionic content. And the quantity of adsorbed Fg is much higher than that of BSA because the former is much larger than the latter. In contrast, adsorption of positively charged Ly on copolymer micelle is very low. The interactions between micelles and model proteins are not only dependent on the hydration of zwitterions in PCL-PDEAPS micelles, but also on the electrostatic effect between proteins and micelles. Moreover, the adsorption of three model proteins on the mixed micelles of PCL-PDEAPS and PCL-PEG copolymers is related to the ratio of two copolymers. Denaturation of the proteins is not detected during adsorption and detachment process. PCL-PDEAPS micelles with positive charge are not swallowed by the macrophages after plasma absorption, in contrast to PCL-PEG micelles. (C) 2018 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000436912800012 Purpose: This study was designed to examine the effects of drug pricing and reimbursement politics on drug expenditures from January 2007 to September 2013, with a focus on internal reference pricing in Turkey. Method: Data used in this study are from January 2007 to September 2013, which includes five drug clusters involving original drugs and the first generic drug (equivalent of the original drug) that was available on the market in 2010 and 2011. The effect of the first generic drug that entered the market on original drug use was analyzed using the time-series analysis method. To account for the absence of generic drugs in the market, original drug consumption was estimated and compared with original drug consumption following generic drug entry. Winters' Additive was selected as the most suitable method to estimate the consumption amount of the original drug in the five equivalent groups. Results: From 2007 to 2012, the consumption of prescribed drugs in the hypertension group increased about 63% and hypertension drug expenditures of the Social Security Institute (SSI) increased almost 82%. Between 2007 and 2012, the increase in hypertension drug consumption not included in the equivalent group was 83%, whereas it was calculated as 61% for drugs in the equivalent group. The prices of the original and generic drugs were similar as time went by and after regulation by authorities. Conclusion: The generic drug market in Turkey has not reached its full potential. Original pharmaceuticals still dominate most of the market. The internal reference pricing system in Turkey has not been able to encourage price competitiveness and price reductions. (C) 2018 Fellowship of Postgraduate Medicine. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey Direct Institute Doctorate Scholarship Program [1649B031000021] The data used in this study was obtained from the doctorate thesis study entitled "Effects of Reimbursement Reference Pricing in Hypertension Pharmaceutical Expenditure: 2007-2012 Period Evaluation". This thesis was supported by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey Direct Institute Doctorate Scholarship Program (Grant no. 1649B031000021) (TUBITAK Dogrudan Yurt Ici Doktora Burs Programs). Thesis detail: "Effects of Reimbursement Reference Pricing in Hypertension Pharmaceutical Expenditure: 2007-2012 Period Evaluation". Doctoral Thesis, Hacettepe University, Social Sciences Institute, Ankara, Turkey, 2015.

WOS: 000428134900002, This work describes the successful performance of saccharinate molecule as an ecological corrosion inhibitor for carbon steel in 3% NaCl solution. A combination of experimental results such as (XPS, Raman, OCP, EIS, and potentiodynamic polarization) and other theoretical (DFT and molecular dynamic simulation) show that saccharinate ions provide very acceptable protection against corrosion of carbon steel. The behavior of carbon steel in the presence of different concentrations of saccharinate shows the high protective effect of this inhibitor against the corrosion of steel. These inhibitors act as mixed inhibitors with a stronger effect on the anodic side.

WOS: 000413387400014, Two new copper(II) and nickel(II) complexes [M(NC-C6H4COO)2(C6H6N2O)(2)(H20)(2)] (where M:Cu and Ni) have been synthesized and characterized by elemental analysis, FT-IR and UV Vis spectroscopy, spectroscopic ellipsometer (SE), X-ray crystallography, thermal analysis and molar conductivity. X-ray measurements showed that both of the complexes crystallized in triclinic system with the space group P-1. The isostructure complexes have distorted octahedral geometry around the metal atom center. In both of the crystal structures, the metal atoms are coordinated by two nitrogen atoms from two different nicotinamide ligands, two carboxyl oxygen atoms from two different 4-cyanobenzoate anions and two oxygen atoms from two different water molecules. From the linear absorption spectra and spectroscopic ellipsometer measurements, it was observed that these complexes showed different optical behaviors. (C) 2017 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Kafkas University Research Fund [2016-FM-49], The authors thank the Kafkas University Research Fund for financial support under Grant No. 2016-FM-49.

WOS: 000408476400013, The specific adsorption effect of halide ions (i.e., Cl-, Br-, I-) on the surface of mild steel in acid media has been explored by electrochemical and Monte Carlo simulating methods. The electrochemical impedance spectroscopy (EIS) and Tafel polarization results demonstated that the mild steel was protected from corrsion to some extent when KX (X=Cl, Br, I) exist. The absorption strength was determined by calculating a customized parameter, namely, adsorption efficiency, which suggest that absorption ability, in descending order of magnitude, was I-, Br-, and Cl-. Moreover, Monte Carlo simulation was employed to look for the most stable adsorption configurations of halide ions onto Fe(110) surface. Our experimental findings were in accordance with the theoretical analysis., Science and Technology Program of Guizhou Province [QKHJC2016-1149]; Guizhou Provincial Department of Education Fundation [QJHKYZ2016-105, 2016-009]; Material Corrosion and Protection Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province [2016CL06]; Guizhou Provincial Department of Education 125 Major Project Fundation [QJH2013-027]; Tongren University [trxyDH1510]; Student's Platform for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program [2016106665]; Chongqing Municipal Education Commission [KJ1500910, KJ1500942], This research was sponsored by the Science and Technology Program of Guizhou Province (QKHJC2016-1149), the Guizhou Provincial Department of Education Fundation (QJHKYZ2016-105, 2016-009), the Opening Project of Material Corrosion and Protection Key Laboratory of Sichuan Province (2016CL06), the Guizhou Provincial Department of Education 125 Major Project Fundation (QJH2013-027), the Research Fund for the Doctoral Program of Tongren University (trxyDH1510), the Student's Platform for Innovation and Entrepreneurship Training Program (2016106665), and the Scientific and Technological Research Program of Chongqing Municipal Education Commission (KJ1500910, KJ1500942).

WOS: 000398055300002, We investigate theoretically the intense laser-induced optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes in a two-dimensional quantum pseudodot system under an uniform magnetic field. The effects of non-resonant, monochromatic intense laser field upon the system are treated within the framework of high-frequency Floquet approach in which the system is supposed to be governed by a laser-dressed potential. Linear and nonlinear absorption coefficients and relative changes in the refractive index are obtained by means of the compact-density matrix approach and iterative method. The results of numerical calculations for a typical GaAs quantum dot reveal that the optical response depends strongly on the magnitude of external magnetic field and characteristic parameters of the confinement potential. Moreover, we have demonstrated that the intense laser field modifies the confinement and thereby causes remarkable changes in the linear and nonlinear optical properties of the system.

WOS: 000390671400013, Secondary compounds in higher plants have great diversity in terms of biologic activity. Most of them are used for the defense by plants. This study aims to investigate the effects of benzoic acid, salicylic acid, and Persica vulgaris Mill. (Peach) on the germination of the seeds of cultivated plants such as Triticum aestivum L. (wheat), Zeamays L. (corn), Cicer arietinum L. (chickpea), as well as weeds such as Lepidium campestre (L.) R. Br. and Convolvulus arvensis L. Method 1, in which benzoic acid, salicylic acid, and Persica vulgaris Mill. are added to the germination environment at different doses, and Method 2, in which they are mixed with the irrigation water at the specified doses, have been employed in this study. As a result of this study, it has been determined that the leaf extract of P. vulgaris Mill., Benzoic acid, and salicylic acid prevent the growth of the root and stem in all seeds at high doses in both methods, and they increase the growth at low doses. According to the GC-MS results of the leaf extract of P. vulgaris Mill., benzoic acid has been determined to be at the highest rate. No difference has been found between months as a result of the HPLC analysis of the amounts of benzoic acid. The determination of negative effects of benzoic acid, salicylic acid, and peach leaf extract both on cultivated plants and weeds at high doses will repress the development of cultivated plants as well as weeds. Growing cultivated plants in places with peach trees may decrease the yield. The leaves should not be let decompose on the soil in defoliation season, and fallen leaves should be collected. Not collecting all of the leaves and leaving some of them may increase the development of weeds in the surrounding area since it may cause a low dose effect. (C) 2016 SAAB. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000443278800024, We have computed the ground and excited state energies and the wave functions of a spherical quantum dot with finite potential barrier in the presence of magnetic field. The oscillator strength, the static dipole polarizability and the refractive index changes are investigated as a function of dot radius and magnetic field strength. The results show that the energy state, the oscillator strength, the static dipole polarizability and the refractive index changes are strongly affected by the magnetic field strength and dot size. It is found that while the magnetic field strength increases, the static polarizability decreases strongly., Research Fund of Aksaray University [2017-028]; Selcuk University BAP office, This work has been supported by Research Fund of Aksaray University - Project Number: 2017-028. And also, it has been partially supported by Selcuk University BAP office.

WOS: 000388049900020, Globally, many women continue to face economic and technological challenges. To complicate matters, more than half of the population has no access to the internet. These issues have drawn international attention leading to global efforts by U.S. tech giants to provide world-wide access to the internet. Do social technologies play into the equation of economic development and empowerment for women? This paper reports results from studies conducted in Taiwan and Turkey regarding the use of five different social technologies platforms. Facebook-the largest social network worldwide-also is the most widely used platform in Taiwan and Turkey according to this research. Differences appeared between the two countries among the usage of other social platforms studied including Twitter, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Google+. Implications of this data-and data from other countries under study by the authors-will provide answers to women's empowerment and economic development in both developing and developed countries. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Four new callipeltin A derivatives (N-Q) have been isolated from the Solomon Island marine sponge Asteropus sp. Their structures were established by spectroscopic techniques followed by acid hydrolysis and derivatisation of the free amino acids, and subsequent LCMS analysis of the derivatives. The compounds were evaluated for their activity against cancer cell lines A2058 (melanoma), HT-29 (colorectal adenocarcinoma) and MCF-7 (breast adenocarcinoma) and non-malignant MRC-5 fibroblast cells. While the acyclic callipeltins P and Q were inactive the cyclic callipeltins N and O showed significant cytotoxicity against all exposed cell lines with IC50 values as low as 0.16 mu M confirming the role of cyclic configuration in biological activity. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000388046800055, This study consists of two parts. In the first part, the inhibitive performance of six mono-azo dye (MAD_ 1 6 ) derivatives was investigated experimentally (gravimetric, thermometric, UVvisible spec-trophotometric and electrochemical potentiostatic methods) and computationally against corrosion of Fe metal in 2 M HNO3 and 2 M NaOH solutions. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations and molec-ular dynamics simulation (MDS) approach were performed. Quantum chemical parameters such as the highest occupied molecular orbital energy (E-HOMO ), lowest unoccupied molecular orbital energy (E-LUMO), the energy gap between E-LUMO and E-HOMO (Delta E ), dipole moment (D ), chemical hardness (eta), softness (sigma), electronegativity (chi), proton affinity, global electrophilicity (omega), global nucleophilicity (epsilon) and total energy (sum of electronic and zero-point energies) were calculated and discussed with the help of HF/SDD, HF/6-311 G, HF/6-31++G, B3LYP/SDD, B3LYP/6-311 G and B3LYP/6-31++G methods. Polarization measurements indicate that (MAD) compounds are of mixed-type inhibitor in acidic, act mainly as cathodic in alkaline solution. Kinetic model involving binding constant (K-b ), active sites (1/y) and standard free energy values of adsorption (Delta G degrees) were compared with the parameters of equilibrium constant (K-ads ), lateral interac-tion (f ) and (Delta G degrees), that obtained from Frumkin adsorption isotherm model. Then, we calculated binding energies on Fe (110) surface of the inhibitors. The theoretical data obtained are in good agreement with the experimental inhibition efficiency results., Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry at Baljarashi, Al-Baha University, (Saudi Arabia); Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry at Cumhuriyet University (Turkey); Faculty of Science, Department of Chemistry at Tongren University (China), I gratefully acknowledge Faculties of Science, Departments of Chemistry at Baljarashi, Al-Baha University, (Saudi Arabia), Cumhuriyet University (Turkey), and Tongren University (China), for the financial assistance and facilitation of our research.

WOS: 000378835200012, In this study, manganese (Mn) doped Calcium Tetraborate (CaB4O7) samples were prepared by the wet chemical method. Under beta irradiated, CaB4O7:Mn showed thermally stimulated luminescence (TSL) glow peaks at approximately 85 degrees C and 220 degrees C with a heating rate of 5 degrees C/s. Peak shape (PS) and various heating rates (VHR) methods were applied for determining the trap parameters such as order of kinetic (b), activation energy (E) and frequency factor (s). The results indicate that the main dosimetric peak of CaB4O7:Mn follows the second-order kinetic model. The thermal fading ratio of the material is around 15% at the end of one month period of storage. The results of the TL studies carried out on the CaB4O7:Mn dosimeter revealed that it has high sensitivity, which makes it very valuable in various dosimetric applications like space, medical, personal dosimetry and dating. Radioluminescence (RL) of CaB4O7:Mn was also studied. It is shown that the RL spectrum contains a wide band centered at 530 nm assigned to Mn2+ ion emission. A broad band emission feature peaked at 350 nm assigned to the non-bridging oxygen hole center (NBOHC) is also discussed and a model is proposed to explain this broad band feature. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000374426800009, This study presents elemental abundances of the early A-type supergiant HD 80057 and the late A type supergiant HD 80404. High resolution and high signal-to-noise ratio spectra published by the UVES Paranal Observatory Project (Bagnulo et al., 2003)(1) were analyzed to compute their elemental abundances using ATLAS9 (Kurucz, 1993; 2005; Sbordone et al., 2004). In our analysis we assumed local thermodynamic equilibrium. The atmospheric parameters of HD 80057 used in this study are from Firnstein and Przybilla (2012), and that of HD 80404 are derived from spectral energy distribution, ionization equilibria of Cr and Fe I/II, the fits to the wings of Balmer and Paschen lines as T-eff = 7700 +/- 150 K and log g = 1.60 +/- 0.15 (in cgs). The microturbulent velocities of HD 80057 and HD 80404 have been determined as 4.3 +/- 0.1 and 2.2 +/- 0.0 km s(-1), respectively. The rotational velocities are 15 +/- 1 and 7 +/- 2 km s(-1) and their macroturbulence velocities are 24 +/- 2 and 2 +/- 1 km s(-1). We have given the abundances of 25 ions of 19 elements for HD 80057 and 36 ions of 25 elements for HD 80404. The abundances are close to solar values, except for some elements (Na, Sc, Ti, V, Ba, and Sr). We have found the metallicities [M/H] for HD 80057 and HD 80404 as -0.16 +/- 0.24 and -0.04 +/- 0.16 dex, respectively. The evolutionary status of these stars are discussed and their nitrogen-to-carbon (N/C) and nitrogen-to oxygen (N/O) ratios show that they are in their blue supergiant phase before the red supergiant region. (C) 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., UVES Paranal Observatory Project (ESO DDT Program) [266.D-5655], This research utilized the SIMBAD database, which is operated at CDS, Strasbourg, France. This work, made use of the MAST-IUE archive (http://archive.stsci.edu/iue/) of SAO/NASA ADS, is based on data obtained from UVES Paranal Observatory Project (ESO DDT Program ID 266.D-5655), of the VALD database, operated at Uppsala University, the Institute of Astronomy RAS in Moscow, and the University of Vienna. Atomic data compiled in the DREAM data base (E. Biemont, P. Palmeri & P. Quinet, Astrophys. Space Sci. 269-270, 635, 1999) were extracted via VALD (Kupka et al., 1999, and references therein). The authors thank the anonymous referee, whose useful comments helped to improve this work.

WOS: 000380624500053, The adsorption and corrosion inhibition properties of three piperidine derivatives namely, (1-(5-fluoro-2-(methylthio) pyrimidine-4-yl) piperidine 4 yl) 2,5-dimethoxybenzenesulfonamide (FMPPDBS), (1-(5-fluoro-2-(methylthio) pyrimidine-4-yl) piperidine-4-yl)-4-nitrobenzenesulfonamide (FMPPNBS), (1-(5-fluoro-2-(methylthio) pyrimidine-4-yl) piperidine-4-yl)-3-methoxybenzenesulfonamide (FMPPMBS) on the corrosion of iron were investigated by performing quantum chemical calculations and molecular dynamics simulations. Global reactivity parameters such as E-HOMO, E-LUMO, HOMO-LUMO energy gap (Delta E), chemical hardness, softness, electronegativity, proton affinity, electrophilicity and nucleophilicity have been calculated and discussed. The adsorption behaviors of these piperidine derivatives on Fe(110), Fe(100) and Fe(111) surfaces were investigated using molecular dynamics simulation. The binding energies on metal surface of studied compounds followed the order: FMPPDBS > FMPPMBS> FMPPNBS and this ranking obtained is consistent with the experimental data. (C) 2016 Taiwan Institute of Chemical Engineers. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000375896000026, PubMed ID: 27001602, The isolation of populations in the Iberian, Italian and Balkan peninsulas during the ice ages define four main paradigms that explain much of the known distribution of intraspecific genetic diversity in Europe. In this study we investigated the phylogeography of a wide-spread bat species, the bent-winged bat, Miniopterus schreibersii around the Mediterranean basin and in the Caucasus. Environmental Niche Modeling (ENM) analysis was applied to predict both the current distribution of the species and its distribution during the last glacial maximum (LGM). The combination of genetics and ENM results suggest that the populations of M. schreibersii in Europe, the Caucasus and Anatolia went extinct during the LGM, and the refugium for the species was a relatively small area to the east of the Levantine Sea, corresponding to the Mediterranean coasts of present-day Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and northeastern and northwestern Egypt. Subsequently the species first repopulated Anatolia, diversified there, and afterwards expanded into the Caucasus, continental Europe and North Africa after the end of the LGM. The fossil record in Iberia and the ENM results indicate continuous presence of Miniopterus in this peninsula that most probably was related to the Maghrebian lineage during the LGM, which did not persist afterwards. Using our results combined with similar findings in previous studies, we propose a new paradigm explaining the general distribution of genetic diversity in Europe involving the recolonization of the continent, with the main contribution from refugial populations in Anatolia and the Middle East. The study shows how genetics and ENM approaches can complement each other in providing a more detailed picture of intraspecific evolution. (C) 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved., Research Fund of Bogazici University, Istanbul [08M104, 09S101, 11Y00P2]; Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, TUBITAK [112T698]; Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia [IF/0497/2013]; IRCSET-Marie Curie International Mobility Fellowship in Science, Engineering and Technology; Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic [DKRVO 00023272], We would like to thank Elizabeth Hemond and three anonymous reviewers for their comments on an earlier version of the manuscript. We also would like to thank Simos Demetropoulos, Petros Lymperakis, Dina Kovac, Vida Zrncic, Darija Josic, Sanja Drakulic, Tea Knapic, Yannis Kazoglou, Elena Papadatou, Xavier Gremillet, Monika Podgorelec, Peter Vallo, Thierry Disca, Vincent Prie, members of the Win-timdouine expedition (Morocco), Wassim M. Hizem, Pr. Said Nouira, and the "Direction generale des fork de Tunisie" for their assistance with the fieldwork. This study was supported by grants from the Research Fund of Bogazici University, Istanbul (08M104, 09S101 and 11Y00P2) and the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey, TUBITAK (112T698) to RB, from Fundacao para a Ciencia e Tecnologia (research contract IF/0497/2013) to HR, from the IRCSET-Marie Curie International Mobility Fellowship in Science, Engineering and Technology to SJP, and from the Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic (# DKRVO 00023272) to PB.

WOS: 000374605100014, PubMed ID: 26943903, In this paper, the influence of a series of rare earth (Eu, Tm, Nd) and Cr ion doping on the optical properties of BGO was investigated by means of photoluminescence (PL) from visible to IR region in the 10-300 K temperature range using different types of detectors, namely, photomultiplier tube (PMT), InGaAs (IGA), and Si. Several samples were investigated having dopants concentrations of 03 wt%Nd, 0.4 wt%Tm, 0.06 wt% Cr and 3 ppm Eu. The PL spectra of the samples showed different luminescence behaviour which is assigned to the 4f intra shell transition from rare earth ions. The temperature dependence of the PL from rare earth doped BGO crystals is also examined. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

WOS: 000376213000005, We investigate the effects of Rashba spin-orbit interaction on the optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes associated with transitions between the first two lower-lying electronic levels in double quantum wire. The wire system represented by a symmetric, double quartic-well confinement potential is subjected to a perpendicular magnetic field. The analytical expressions of the linear and third-order nonlinear optical absorption coefficients and refractive index changes are obtained by using the compact density matrix formalism and iterative scheme. Optical properties are investigated as a function of structural parameter, magnetic field, Rashba spin-orbit interaction and photon energies. Numerical results reveal that competing effects between spin-orbit interaction and magnetic field modify strongly the optical properties and can be altered by these parameters. (C) 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey [TUBITAK BIDEB 2211], The authors Y. Karaaslan and B. Gisi would like to thank the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK BIDEB 2211) for doctoral scholarship.

WOS: 000372559600045, We investigate the electronic structure, spin and transport properties of double quantum wires formed by a symmetric, double quartic-well potential subjected to an in-plane magnetic field by taking into account Rashba and Dresselhaus spin-orbit couplings. The energy dispersion relation of the system is analyzed for different strengths of spin-orbit interactions, magnitude and direction of magnetic field. Our numerical results reveal that the existence of aforementioned parameters modifies strongly the energy band structure, introduces a wave vector dependence to energies and also leads to crossings and anticrossings between subbands. This complex structure of energy dispersion gives rise to the appearance of square-wave like oscillations in the conductance. The spin-orbit couplings, magnetic field, potential profile and Fermi energy of an electron significantly affect the depth and width of conductance steps. Moreover, we found that the competing effect between spin-orbit couplings and magnetic field leaves its marks on the spin texturing. (C) 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved., Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey [TUBITAK BIDEB 2211], The authors B. Gisi and Y. Karaaslan would like to thank the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK BIDEB 2211) for doctoral scholarship. This work has been completed at the Dokuz Eylul University, Graduate School of Natural and Applied Sciences and is the subject of the forthcoming Ph.D. Thesis of Bircan Gisi.

WOS: 000370464200004, PubMed ID: 26515518, Two complete mitogenomes of the stem borers, Calameuta filiformis and Calameuta idolon, and the complete A + T-rich region of Trachelus iudaicus (Hymenoptera: Cephidae), are reported. The mitogenomes of these species are the longest reported from hymenopterans to date. A remarkable increase in length of the A + T-rich region, the longest for Hymenoptera, was found and compared across the tribe Cephini. The presence of the tRNA- and rRNA-like sequences were reported in the A + T-rich region of sawflies and they were suggested to play a role in replication and/or transcription. The long and short tandem repeats were orderly located in both sides of the A + T-rich region producing stable secondary structures. We suggest that the short tandem repeats are likely to function as a replication fork barrier. (c) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) [112T418], The financial support of the study was provided by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) via a research project with grant number 112T418. We are indebted to Dr. Stephen L Cameron (Queensland University of Technology, Australia) for his critical reading and his valuable comments on the manuscript. We express our sincere thanks to Miss Ozgal Dogan and Mr. H. Bilal Aydemir for their enormous effort and time in visualising and drawing some of the figures and helping with data presentation. We also thank the member of Cumhuriyet University Molecular Systematics Research Group (CUMSAG) for their help in every stages of laboratory work.

WOS: 000389770300045 In this study, praseodymium barium cobalt oxide nanofiber interfacial layer was sandwiched between Au and n-Si. Frequency and voltage dependence of epsilon', epsilon', tan delta, electric modulus (M' and M '') and sigma(ac) of PrBaCoO nanofiber capacitor have been investigated by using impedance spectroscopy method. The obtained experimental results show that the values of epsilon', epsilon', tand, M', M '' and sigma(ac) of the PrBaCoO nanofiber capacitor are strongly dependent on frequency of applied bias voltage. The values of epsilon', epsilon '' and tand show a steep decrease with increasing frequency for each forward bias voltage, whereas the values of sigma(ac) and the electric modulus increase with increasing frequency. The high dispersion in epsilon' and epsilon '' values at low frequencies may be attributed to the Maxwell-Wagner and space charge polarization. The high values of epsilon' may be due to the interfacial effects within the material, PrBaCoO nanofibers interfacial layer and electron effect. The values of M ' and M '' reach a maximum constant value corresponding to M-infinity approximate to 1/epsilon(infinity) due to the relaxation process at high frequencies, but both the values of M ' and M '' approach almost to zero at low frequencies. The changes in the dielectric and electrical properties with frequency can be also attributed to the existence of N-ss and R-s of the capacitors. As a result, the change in the epsilon', epsilon '', tan delta, M', M '' and ac electric conductivity (sigma(ac)) is a result of restructuring and reordering of charges at the PrBaCoO/n-Si interface under an external electric field or voltage and interface polarization. (C) 2016 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

WOS: 000362305000018, PubMed: 26232334, Up-regulation of ADAMTS genes with proinflammatory cytokines is important for some pathological conditions such as osteoarthritis (OA) that is a disease based on ECM degradation in cartilage. IL-1 alpha is a proinflammatory cytokine and important both to normal and pathophysiologic conditions in cartilage and bone. Effects of some proinflammatory cytokines such as TNF-alpha and IL-1 beta on the some members of ADAMTS family have been investigated in some chondrocyte tissues or cell lines. However the effect of the IL-1 alpha on the expression of ADAMTS-2 and ADAMTS-3 gene expression in osteoblast like cell lines, remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study is to investigate the effect of IL-1 alpha on ADAMTS-2 and ADAMTS-3 gene expression in osteoblast like cells, Saos-2 and MG-63. The present study, for the first time, demonstrated that IL-1 alpha increases ADAMTS-2 and ADAMTS-3 gene expressions in both Saos-2 and MG-63 cells. Having correlation to mRNA induction, the upregulation of ADAMTS-2,-3 protein levels by IL-1 alpha stimulation is also observed. The inhibition studies showed that this upregulation occurred at the level of transcription, and there was no effect of IL-1 alpha on ADAMTS-2 mRNA half-life in Saos-2 cells. Transactivation potential of IL-1 alpha on ADAMTS-2 promoter was investigated by transient transfection assay. Specifically, IL-1 alpha strongly increased -658/+112 and -530/+112 ADAMTS-2 promoter constructs. Further, we analyzed signaling pathways involved in ADAMTS-2 induction. Pathway inhibition studies revealed that this upregulation depends on the activation of MEK, JNK and PI3K pathways. These findings suggested that IL-1 alpha is a strong positive regulator of ADAMTS-2 and ADAMTS-3 expression. These findings would provide novel insight into the pathophysiology of OA. (C) 2015 Published by Elsevier B.V., Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) [212T200]; Balikesir University Scientific Research Projects Unit (BAP) [2010/39], This work was supported mainly by the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) (212T200) and partially by the Balikesir University Scientific Research Projects Unit (BAP) (2010/39). Saos-2 cells were kindly provided by Dr. Kenneth Wann (Cardiff, School of Biosciences, Cardiff UK).

WOS: 000355127300031, A new macrocyclic Schiff-base ligand, L, was synthesized by condensation reaction of 1,4-bis(2-formylphenyl) homopiperazine and 1,3-diaminopropane in acetonitrile. The Schiff-base ligand was characterized by using elemental analyses, IR, and mass spectroscopic techniques. Four new Ni(II), Cu(II), Co(II) and Zn(II) complexes of ligand, [NiLCl]ClO4, [CuLCl](ClO4), [CoLCl]ClO4 and [ZnLCl]ClO4 were prepared and characterized by elemental analyses and IR spectroscopy. X-ray crystal structure of [ZnLCl]ClO4 showed that the complex contains Zn(II) in a distorted square pyramidal geometry with a N4Cl core. In addition, structural parameters, vibration frequencies, frontier molecular orbitals (FMOs), UV bands and biological activity ranking of mentioned complexes are investigated as theoretically for all complexes. Computational studies of the relevant complexes are performed with the aid of density functional theory (DFT). (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Faculty of Chemistry of Bu-Ali Sina University, Ministry of Science, Research and Technology of Iran; State of Planning Organization [2010K120480]; office of scientific research projects of Cumhuriyet University [F-426], We are grateful to the Faculty of Chemistry of Bu-Ali Sina University, Ministry of Science, Research and Technology of Iran for financial support and the Aksaray University, Science and Technology Application and Research Center, Turkey, for the use of the Bruker Smart Breeze CCD diffractometer (purchased under grant 2010K120480 of the State of Planning Organization). We are also grateful of the office of scientific research projects of Cumhuriyet University (Project No. F-426) for financial supports. This research is made possible by TUBITAK ULAKBIM, High Performance and Grid Computing Center (TR-Grid e-Infrastructure).

WOS: 000352663500055, The physical characterization and phosphor emission spectra are presented for CaSO4 doped with Tm and Cu. All spectral wavelengths are related to electronic transitions of Tm3+ ions. The powder X-ray diffraction pattern showed that the compound exhibits orthorhombic structure and all reflections were indexed without any other secondary impurity phases. Chemical and structural properties of the samples have been characterized by means of Raman spectroscopy and environmental scanning electron microscope (ESEM) with an attached X-ray energy dispersive system (EDS). Group frequencies concept is essential point to the interpretation of the bands due to the main SO4 vibrational units and these displayed main characteristic intensive Raman bands including typical strong intensity at 1016 cm(-1) that corresponds to v(1)SO(4) vibrational mode. From the spatially-resolved cathodoluminescence (CL) spectrum, main emission bands of Tm3+ centered at 346, 362, and 452 nm, due to the respective transitions of P-3(0) -> H-3(4), D-1(2) -> H-3(6), D-1(2) -> F-3(4) were clearly identified. The study is novel as no such CL-ESEM data are available for this doped compound. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., TUBITAK - HAS European Scientific Exchange Program [2227], This research is partly supported by the grants from TUBITAK - HAS European Scientific Exchange Program (2227). The authors would like to thank Dr. I. Kasa from Centre for Energy Research, Hungary for the phosphor materials.

WOS: 000350388900035, In the present work, the effect of heat treatments on the microhardness and tensile properties of the Al-0.25 Zr (wt.%) alloy have been investigated. The Al-0.25 Zr (wt.%) alloy was melted in a vacuum furnace, and the molten alloy was poured into crucibles held in a hot filing furnace. Then, the samples were directionally solidified from bottom to top and aged isothermally and isochronally in a muffle furnace. Aging was performed in two ways: using a wide range of temperatures (350-600 degrees C) with a constant aging time (100 h) and a wide range of aging times (3-240 h) with a constant temperature (400 degrees C). The dependence of the microhardness (HV) and ultimate tensile strength (sigma(UTS)) on the aging temperatures and aging times was determined. According to the experimental results, the HV and sigma(UTS) values of the aged samples increase at a certain aging temperature and aging time values, reaching peak values at specific temperatures and aging times. The microhardness and ultimate tensile strength decreased with further increase of aging temperatures and aging times. The microscopic fracture surfaces of the aged samples under different aging conditions were observed using scanning electron microscopy. Fractographic analysis of the tensile fracture surfaces shows that the type of fracture changed significantly from ductile to brittle depending on the aging times. Transmission electron microscopy was also used to characterize the precipitation processes in an Al-0.25 Zr (wt.%) alloy aged at 400 degrees C for 120 h. (C) 2015 Elsevier B. V. All rights reserved., Ministry of Science Industry and Technology [00303, STZ 2008-2]; Erciyes University (ERU) Scientific Research Project Unit [FOA-2014-5195]; Ministry of Science Industry and Technology; ERU Scientific Research Project Unit, This project was supported by the Ministry of Science Industry and Technology under Contract No: 00303, STZ 2008-2 and Erciyes University (ERU) Scientific Research Project Unit under Contract No: FOA-2014-5195. The authors would like to thank Ministry of Science Industry and Technology and ERU Scientific Research Project Unit for financial support.

WOS: 000350089300011, PubMed ID: 25576223, Two nearly complete mitochondrial genomes (mitogenomes) of wheat stem borers, Cephus pygmeus and Cephus sareptanus (Hymenoptera: Cephidae), were sequenced, characterised and compared with the previously known mitogenome of Cephus cinctus. The gene orders are mostly conserved, except for translocation of trnM and swapped position often! and trnQ. An A + T bias was found, but a deviation from strand asymmetry was also detected on the J strand. All protein coding genes (PCGs) are initiated by ATN codons, except for nad1, nad2 and atp8, and all are terminated with TAA, TA- or T- as a stop codon. The predicted secondary structures of rrnS and rrnL. genes are mostly consistent with reported hymenopteran species. However, an unusual elongation in rrnS, not know elsewhere in the order, was discovered in Cephus species. Three autonomous sequences detected in domains I and II are mainly responsible for the length expansions. (C) 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) [112T418], We are grateful to Dr. Donald L.J. Quicke for his critical reading and commenting on the manuscript. The financial support of the study provided by The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK) via a research project with grant number 112T418. We thank Mr. H. Bilal Aydemir for visualising and drawing some of the figures. We also thank the member of Cumhuriyet University Molecular Systematics Research Group (CUMSAG) for their help in every stages of laboratory work. We would like to thank the anonymous reviewers for their constructive comments and suggestions.

5th International Conference on New Horizons in Education (INTE) -- JUN 25-27, 2014 -- Paris, FRANCE, WOS: 000383740201133, The quality of accounting education is under the factors such as insructive facts, physical facilities, interest and ability of students, implementation of different learning techniques transferring the theory to the practice and etc. In accounting courses, the personal factors such as the student's ability and interest, individual and collective work in or off classroom, using different materials written-visual, etc. and internships and so on are also important for both the success of the student and increasing the quality of the education. In the study, basically, it is aimed to determine the factors that affect the success of students in accounting education and thereby measure the effects of anxiety that reveal in low, medium and high levels. In this context, the study makes recommendations about specifying and moderating the major causes of anxiety. In the study we implement a survey of five-point Likert-type scale on the students who take the accounting lessons. The findings are analyzed by SPSS package program. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.

International Conference on Nanoscale Magnetism (ICNM-2013) -- SEP 02-06, 2013 -- Istanbul, TURKEY, WOS: 000343799300046, As a continuation of our recently published work, we have used the pair approximation in Kikuchi version to investigate martensitic and austenitic transformations in homogeneous (HM) and composite (CM) cubic nanoparticles (CNPs) based on the Blume-Emery-Griffiths model. A single cubic nanoparticle made of a core surrounded by a surface is considered as shaped in two dimensional (2D) square arrays instead of hexagonal array. From the phase diagrams of HM and CM-CNPs it has been observed that the martensitic-austenitic transformations (MT-AT) occurred. The influence of the exchange coupling and single-ion anisotropy parameters in the model Hamiltonian on the MT-AT is studied and analyzed in comparison with the results for hexagonal nanoparticles. Significant changes of the phase transition points and hysteresis behaviours depending upon the particle structure have been discussed. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

International audience; This paper presents a new one-dimensional finite elements' family for the analysis of wrinkling in stiff thin films resting on a thick elastic substrate. Euler-Bernoulli's theory is used for the thin film, whereas the substrate is ideally divided into two parts: 1. a core layer in the neighbourhood of the film where the displacement field presents high gradients (where an higher-order approximation is required) and 2. the remaining part of the substrate or bottom layer where displacements change very slowly. Low-order models allow an accurate yet efficient description of this latter part. Due to its versatility and generality, Carrera's Unified Formulation is used to develop the proposed elements' family. Governing equations' weak form is derived by means of the principle of virtual displacements and discretised in a finite element sense. The asymptotic numerical method is used to solve the resulting non-linear equations' system. Numerical investigations show that the proposed one-dimensional elements are able to capture the instability phenomena in film-substrate systems. In order to validate the proposed finite element models, the critical loads and half-wave numbers predicted by the one-dimensional elements are compared with those obtained via two-dimensional finite element analyses and a very good agreement is found.

WOS: 000346845200009, Frequency-dependent capacitance (C) and conductance (C) characteristics of the Au/Ni/n-GaN/undoped GaN device have been investigated in the reverse bias voltage range of 0.00-0.40 V. The GaN films have been epitaxially grown by metal organic chemical vapor deposition on c-plane Al2O3 substrate. The measurement frequency (f) ranges from 1.0 kHz to 10 MHz. The slow and fast interface states with two time constants differing by about two orders of magnitude have been calculated from analysis of the reverse bias C-f and C-f characteristics. The interface state density has values of 10(10)-10(11) eV(-1) cm(-2) and time constant has taken the values which change in range of 10(-5)-10(-7) s. The phase angle versus bias voltage curves have shown at four different frequencies at the room temperature that the device behaves more capacitive at the reverse bias region rather than the forward bias region at 100 and 200 kHz. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved

2nd Global Conference on Business, Economics and Management and Tourism (BEMTUR) -- OCT 29-31, 2014 -- Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC, WOS: 000360103600085, The cause of global financial crisis in the world in 2007 - 2008 is the mortgage crisis in USA in August, 2007. The crisis caused an immense instability in markets and gradually became global. Effects of this crisis upon some countries were deeper and more destroying. Greece is one of these countries. It is seen that Greece has an economic structure consisting of high debt level, high budget deficit, low competitive power and unstable political structure. At the end of 2009, the political and economic crisis in Greece, which began as a debt crisis, turned out to be a Euro Zone crisis. In this context, this study seeks to examine effects of incorrect economic and political decisions, and dishonest statements about their results on the progress of the crisis and on Greece economy and to propose solutions. (C) 2015 The Authors. Published by Elsevier B.V.

WOS: 000343613000026 PubMed ID: 25256476 We report on a facile and robust method by which surface of electrospun cellulose acetate (CA) nanofibers can be chemically modified with cationic polymer brushes for DNA adsorption. The surface of CA nanofibers was functionalized by growing poly[(ar-vinylbenzyl)trimethylammonium chloride)] [poly(VBTAC)] brushes through a multi-step chemical sequence that ensures retention of mechanically robust nanofibers. Initially, the surface of the CA nanofibers was modified with RAFT chain transfer agent. Poly(VBTAC) brushes were then prepared via RAFT-mediated polymerization from the nanofiber surface. DNA adsorption capacity of CA nanofibrous web surface functionalized with cationic poly(VBTAC) brushes was demonstrated. The reusability of these webs was investigated by measuring the adsorption capacity for target DNA in a cyclic manner. In brief, CA nanofibers surface-modified with cationic polymer brushes can be suitable as membrane materials for filtration, purification, and/or separation processes for DNA. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. EU FP7-PEOPLE-RG Marie Curie-IRG (NANOWEB) [PIRG06-GA-2009-256428]; Turkish Academy of Sciences - Outstanding Young Scientists Award Program (TUBA-GEBIP); TUBITAK-BIDEB Dr T. Uyar acknowledges EU FP7-PEOPLE-2009-RG Marie Curie-IRG (NANOWEB, PIRG06-GA-2009-256428) and The Turkish Academy of Sciences - Outstanding Young Scientists Award Program (TUBA-GEBIP) for partial funding. A. Celebioglu acknowledges TUBITAK-BIDEB for the national PhD study scholarship.

WOS: 000343613400042, The electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR) of gamma-irradiated single crystals of cholesteryl methyl carbonate (C29H48O3) has been studied for different orientations of the crystals in a magnetic field. EPR spectra of cholesteryl methyl carbonate (C29H48O3 irradiated by Co-60-gamma were recorded between 125 K and 300 K for different orientations of the crystal in the magnetic field. The spectra were found to be temperature independent. In C29H48O3 single crystal,. the radiation damage centers caused by a Co-60-gamma source were determined as CH3CH2CH radical. For CH3CH2CH radical, a value of spectroscopic splitting factor g was calculated and experimentally results were supported by simulation program (WinEPR). (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved., Scientific Research Projects coordination center of Nigde University, Nigde/Turkey, This study was partially supported by the Scientific Research Projects coordination center of Nigde University, Nigde/Turkey.

2nd International Conference on Strategic Innovative Marketing (IC-SIM) -- SEP 13-17, 2013 -- Prague, CZECH REPUBLIC, WOS: 000346116000080, The main purpose of the present study is to reveal the effects of economic policies, as one of the macro environmental factors that affect the marketing, on the sale of automobiles. Eight different data sets, which include totally 72 months belonged to 2005-2010 years has been used. These data have analyzed by multiple regression and neural network method. The variables like as euro exchange, the vehicle loans rate presented by the banks and tax deduction made by the government for the automobile sector has affected the sale of automobiles; besides, the inflation rate, automobile and oil prices, income of the consumers and advertising expenditures of the businesses have no effects on the sales. In addition that multiple regression and nueral network analysis was compared with each other. Finally, neural network has better performance in the selling prediction than regression model. It is an original study that measures the effects of the macro environmental factors on the sales of automobile enterprises in Turkey. (C) 2014 Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/).

WOS: 000336525400080 Beta-cyclodextrin (p-CD) functionalized cellulose acetate (CA) nanofibers have been successfully prepared by combining electrospinning and "click" reaction. Initially, p-CD and electrospun CA nanofibers were modified so as to be azide-p-CD and propargyl-terminated CA nanofibers, respectively. Then, "click" reaction was performed between modified CD molecules and CA nanofibers to obtain permanent grafting of CDs onto nanofibers surface. It was observed from the SEM image that, while CA nanofibers have smooth surface, there were some irregularities and roughness at nanofibers morphology after the modification. Yet, the fibrous structure was still protected. ATR-FTIR and XPS revealed that, CD molecules were successfully grafted onto surface of CA nanofibers. The adsorption capacity of p-CD-functionalized CA (CA-CD) nanofibers was also determined by removing phenanthrene (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, PAH) from its aqueous solution. Our results indicate that CA-CD nanofibers have potential to be used as molecular filters for the purpose of water purification and waste water treatment by integrating the high surface area of nanofibers with inclusion complexation property of CD molecules. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved. UBITAK-The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey [110M612]; U FP7-PEOPLE-2009RG Marie Curie-IRG (NANOWEB) [PIRG06-GA-2009-256428]; Turkish Academy of Sciences - Outstanding Young Scientists Award Program (TUBA-GEBIP) Dr. T. Uyar acknowledges TUBITAK-The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (project #110M612) for funding the research. Dr. T. Uyar also acknowledges EU FP7-PEOPLE-2009RG Marie Curie-IRG (NANOWEB, PIRG06-GA-2009-256428) and The Turkish Academy of Sciences - Outstanding Young Scientists Award Program (TUBA-GEBIP) for partial funding. A. Celebioglu acknowledges TUBITAK-BIDEB for the national Ph.D. scholarship.

WOS: 000334092900073, PubMed: 24530368, Spiders are a huge group which includes more than 44,000 species. But there has been no study of the chitin structure of spiders. In this study we physicochemically characterized chitin structure of two common spider species (Geolycosa vultuosa and Hogna radiata). Chitin content was determined as 8-8.5% for G. vultuosa and 6.5-7% for H. radiata. FTIR, TGA and XRD results showed that the chitin structures are in a-form. Environmental scanning electron microscopy (ESEM) revealed that the surface morphology of each species is different. Chitin yielded from G. vultuosa has two different pore structures. The type one pore is rarely sequenced and its size ranges between 190 and 240 nm, while the type two pore is tightly sequenced and its size ranges between 11 and 32 nm. There is no information in previous studies about the chitin structure with two different pore morphologies. A new chitin surface morphology has been determined in G. vultuosa. The chitin isolated from H. radiata, has classic morphology: nanofibre structures (10-17 nm) and 195-260 nm sized pores. Acetylation degree of the chitin samples was calculated as 97% for G. vultuosa and 99% for H. radiata in accordance with elemental analysis results. (C) 2014 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.