Conventionally, Eucalyptus grandis × E. urophylla (GU) hybrid material is first tested as seedlings in progeny trials for at least four years before ortets are selected and ramets of the selected ortets are propagated to test in clonal trials. The primary constraint with this 'conventional hybrid breeding strategy' (CHBS) is the time required to first test the hybrid material as seedlings. In order to address this, an 'accelerated hybrid breeding strategy' (AHBS) was investigated to reduce the time spent on testing GU hybrid material as seedlings. However, it is of utmost importance to quantify the impact the AHBS might have on genetic gains and genetic information. With this in mind, two clonal populations have been established with genetic material that derived from the CHBS and the AHBS. The main purpose of this study was to do a comparative study between the CHBS and AHBS, firstly to quantify the genetic gains per unit time for GU hybrid clonal populations that have been derived from the CHBS and AHBS respectively, and secondly to obtain genetic parameters such as heritabilities, the ratio of dominance, clonal within family variance, and the proportion of additive and non-additive genetic variance. The results indicated that the percentage realised volume gains per year was higher for the AHBS (3.7%) than for the CHBS (1.9%) when compared with the GU commercial clone. Thus, shortening the testing time of GU seedlings had a positive impact on volume gains per year. With regard to genetic parameters, both the AHBS and CHBS clonal populations indicated that non-additive genetic variation explained the majority (88% and 71%, respectively) of the genetic variation. Due to the pre-eminence of non-additive genetic variation, the narrow-sense heritabilties for the female and male effects were negligible for both clonal populations. Overall, the majority of the non-additive genetic variation was explained by the proportion of dominance variance, and less by the clone within family effect. These results suggest that, firstly, the time spent on testing GU hybrid material as seedlings should be minimised and, secondly, a hybrid breeding strategy to capture non-additive genetic variation should be adopted.


Time in treatment is considered an important predictor of good outcomes for drug abuse treatment. Patient retention would be of particular concern for low-service types of treatment. Interim methadone maintenance was developed as an alternative to waiting lists and as a method of providing HIV risk-reduction services to heroin addicts waiting for treatment, and does not include the regular counseling required in comprehensive methadone treatment. This analysis compares the retention of patients first admitted to an interim methadone clinic versus that of patients admitted directly to a comprehensive methadone clinic. The two groups did not differ with regard to demographic characteristics and drug of abuse at the time of admission. The two groups did not differ with respect to demographics. The three-, six-, and 12-month retention rates of patients first admitted to the interim clinic were 78%, 69%, and 62%, respectively. The three-, six-, and 12-month retention rates for patients admitted directly to a traditional methadone clinic were 84%, 76%, and 68%, respectively. Life-table analysis revealed that the two groups did not differ significantly with regard to retention (p = 0.17). Interim treatment does not appear to adversely affect overall retention in treatment. Three- and six-month retention rates of interim clinic patients fall within the range of six-month nationwide retention rates reported by the GAO. Factors associated with discharge from treatment are examined for both groups.


This paper focuses on the land cover/usage area classification problem by using local averaging for feature extraction method. In hyperspectral image classification tasks, spatial information is also useful as much as spectral information. A pipeline of methods is utilized using Fisher's discriminant analysis for dimension reduction, z-score value for central limiting and support vector machines and extreme learning machines for classification. The classification accuracies on transformed data set are outperforming previous works by achieving %99.51 success ratio on for support vector machines and %99.73 for extreme learning machines on 10-fold cross validation. the proposed method increases classification accuracy significantly while reducing the dimension of the original data by %95.


Background: During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, rapid and reliable diagnosis of COVID-19 is paramount for clinical and infection control reasons. Real-time reverse transcriptase–polymerase chain reaction (rRT-PCR) is considered the gold standard to confirm clinical suspicion. Nasopharyngeal swab (NFS) is commonly used but bronchoalveolar lavage (BAL) specimens show the highest positivity rates of rRT-PCR. Due to its aerosol-generating characteristics, it is advised to postpone bronchoscopy to avoid contamination of healthcare workers. Therefore, little is known about its diagnostic value. Objective: To assess the added diagnostic value of bronchoscopy in COVID-19 patients. Methods: A retrospective analysis of added diagnostic certainty of bronchoscopies carried out at Ghent University Hospital during the epidemic peak in Belgium. Rule in/rule out [Ri/Ro] bronchoscopies in patients with diagnostic uncertainty (repetitive negative NSF swab but high clinical suspicion for COVID-19) were withheld, as well as bronchoscopies in known COVID-19 [Cov+] but suspicious of alternative pathology. Results: Of 31 bronchoscopies performed for diagnostic uncertainty between 19/3 and 30/4/2020, 29 yielded additional diagnostic certainty. Of 26 [Ri/Ro] patients, BAL revealed rRT-PCR positivity in 7, confirmed rRT-PCR negativity in 7 and yielded an alternative microbiological diagnosis in 12. Of 5 [Cov+] patients, 3 had additional microbiological diagnosis. No bronchoscopy-related adverse events or transmission towards involved staff was reported. Conclusion: In suspected COVID-19 cases with diagnostic uncertainty bronchoscopy has an additional diagnostic value with therapeutic consequences provided safety standards are ensured.


ABSTRACT The Ggnbp2 null mutant embryos died in utero between Embryonic Days 13.5 to 15.5 with dysmorphic placentae, characterized by excessive nonvascular cell nests consisting of proliferative trophoblastic tissue and abundant trophoblast stem cells (TSCs) in the labyrinth. Lethality of Ggnbp2 null embryos was caused by insufficient placental perfusion as a result of remarkable decreases in both fetal and maternal blood vessels in the labyrinth. These defects were accompanied by a significant elevation of c-Met expression and phosphorylation and its downstream effector Stat3 activation. Knockdown of Ggnbp2 in wild-type TSCs in vitro provoked the proliferation but delayed the differentiation with an upregulation of c-Met expression and an enhanced phosphorylation of c-Met and Stat3. In contrast, overexpression of Ggnbp2 in wild-type TSCs exhibited completely opposite effects compared to knockdown TSCs. These results suggest that loss of GGNBP2 in the placenta aberrantly overactivates c-Met-Stat3 signaling, alters TSC proliferation and differentiation, and ultimately compromises the structure of placental vascular labyrinth. Our studies for the first time demonstrate that GGNBP2 is an essential factor for pregnancy success acting through the maintenance of a balance of TSC proliferation and differentiation during placental development.


In order to study the mechanism of selective-area growth in metalorganic molecular beam epitaxy (MOMBE), we examined the difference in the scattering of a pulsed trimethylgallium (TMG) beam from a clean (epitaxially prepared) GaAs surface and an oxidized GaAs surface, which is effective as a mask for selective-area epitaxy. Although a long surface residence ( 896 µs at 546 K) was necessary to interpret the time-of-flight (TOF) spectrum of TMG scattered from a clean GaAs surface, the TOF spectra of TMG scattered from an oxidized surface were well reproduced only by a translationally drifting Maxwellian velocity distribution (without a surface residence). We consider that the difference in the surface residence time during scattering causes the decomposition selectivity of a metalorganic source on clean and oxidized surfaces, which is the essence of selective-area growth. We also observed that the energy exchange between the mask surface and incident TMG molecules during scattering is small when the mask is effective for selective-area growth.


Purpose: To quantitatively describe passive lower extremity range of motion in participants with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) types 2 and 3, and to establish preliminary thresholds to identify individuals at risk for performing poorly on disease-specific motor function outcome measures. Methods: Eighty participants with SMA types 2 and 3, enrolled in an international multicenter natural history study, were evaluated with lower extremity range of motion testing and the Hammersmith Functional Motor Scale-Expanded. Results: A hip extension joint angle of −7.5° or less for SMA type 2 and 0° or less for SMA type 3 identified diminished motor ability with good sensitivity. For knee extension, a joint angle of −9.0° or less for SMA type 2 or 0° or less for SMA type 3 was similarly sensitive. Conclusions: Minimal hip and knee joint contractures were associated with diminished motor ability. Clinical trial designs should consider the effect of contractures on motor function.


Biomass conversion is largely impacted by the cost of transporting biomass
 materials. As a result, businesses need optimization solutions to optimize
 their transport operations, allocate resources effectively, and reduce their
 environmental impact. As part of the process of biomass conversion, this
 paper discusses the transport and biomass optimization problem in detail.
 The paper presents optimization of transportation cost of two biomass
 products, natural gas, and bio fuel during the process of biomass conversion
 final products depending on the transport routes and other factors.


In this paper we study the switching lattice synthesis of a special class of regular Boolean functions called D-reducible functions. D-reducible functions are functions whose points are completely contained in an affine space A strictly smaller than the whole Boolean cube {0, 1}n. The D-reducibility of a function f can be exploited in the lattice synthesis process: the idea is to independently find lattice implementations for the characteristic function of the subspace A and for the projection of f onto A, and to compose them in order to construct the lattice for f. The overall lattice area can be further reduced exploiting the peculiar structure of the affine subspaces of {0, 1}n. To this aim, we propose a method for implementing compact lattice representations of affine subspaces whose characteristic function is represented by the product of single literals and EXOR factors of two literals. The experimental results validate the proposed approach.


Protein granule development in the starchy endosperm of normal maize (inbred line, W46A) was studied with optical and electron microscopy. The granules were first observed 12 days after pollination as spherical deposits, usually single, within an enclosing membrane. They developed from vesicles produced by the endoplasmic reticulum and were formed both as small localized cisternal dilations and as enlargements at the ends of endoplasmic reticulum. Dictyosomes also appear to proliferate protein granule vesicles. The protein accumulated in the granules appears to be synthesized outside the membranes. Once initiated, the granules rapidly increase in size and number as the kernel develops; their final diameter ranges up to 2 IA. Immature granules stain with a variety of biological dyes in aqueous solution as well as with metal stains; mature granules stain lightly or not at all. At kernel maturity, the protein granules are embedded in a protein


Measurements of relaxation rates in the rotating frame with spin‐locking techniques are sensitive to substances with exchanging protons with appropriate chemical shifts. The authors develop a novel approach to exchange‐rate selective imaging based on measured T1ρ dispersion with applied locking field strength, and demonstrate the method on samples containing the X‐ray contrast agent Iohexol with and without cross‐linked bovine serum albumin. T1ρ dispersion of water in the phantoms was measured with a Varian 9.4‐T magnet by an on‐resonance spin‐locking pulse with fast spin‐echo readout, and the results used to estimate exchange rates. The Iohexol phantom alone gave a fitted exchange rate of ∼1 kHz, bovine serum albumin alone was ∼11 kHz, and in combination gave rates in between. By using these estimated rates, we demonstrate how a novel spin‐locking imaging method may be used to enhance contrast due to the presence of a contrast agent whose protons have specific exchange rates. Magn Reson Med, 2012. © 2011 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


Campylobacter jejuni is a gram-negative thermotolerant microaerobic pathogen that causes human gastroenteritis worldwide. The production of extracellular polymeric substances to create a biofilm is a mechanism by which C. jejuni can protect itself from unfavourable environments, and is a contributory factor to the survival and transmission of the organism to farms animals and into the human food chain. Bacteriophages are natural predators of bacteria that have the potential for use as targeted biocontrol agents with the advantage that they can penetrate and affect bacteria embedded in biofilms. The effects of virulent Campylobacter-specific bacteriophages CP8 and CP30 on C. jejuni biofilms formed on glass by strains NCTC 11168, PT14 and HPC5 at 37 °C under microaerobic conditions were investigated. Independent bacteriophage treatment led to 1 to 3 Log10 CFU/cm2 reductions in the viable count 24 h postinfection compared with control levels. In contrast, bacteriophage applied under these conditions effected a reduction of less than 1 Log10 CFU/ml in planktonic cells. Resistance to bacteriophage in bacteria surviving bacteriphage treatment of C. jejuni NCTC 11168 biofilms was >80%, whereas bacteriophage resistance was not found in similarly recovered C. jejuni PT14 cells. Concomitant dispersal of the biofilm matrix by bacteriophage was demonstrated by crystal violet staining and transmission electron microscopy (TEM).
The resistant survivors of bacteriophage treatment of biofilms formed by HPC5 and PT14 remained closely associated with the phage but not NCTC 11168. Analysis of the DNA contents of these isolates by PFGE and Southern transfer confirmed the presence of phage genomic DNA (approximately 140 kb) leading to the conclusion that these strains represent examples of the carrier state life cycle (CSLC) reported for other bacterial species. TEMs of CSLC cultures demonstrated the association of bacteriophage particles with Campylobacter cells that were devoid of flagella. Physiological studies of the CSLC strains showed the bacteria were non-motile but able to grow at a similar rate to parental cultures until reaching the phage proliferation threshold (7 Log10 CFU/ml) when growth rate declined and the phage titre increased. Of further note the CSLC strains had a greater capacity to survive atmospheric oxygen under nutrient limited conditions. CSLC phages exhibited differences in host binding, efficiency of plating and host range. Transcriptome analyses of CSLC strains harvested from microaerobic cultures at early exponential phase prior to phage proliferation were performed using DNA microarrays to demonstrate changes in host gene expression as compared with parental cultures. Notably genes involved in metabolism and the modification of macromolecules were up-regulated and specific flagella biosynthesis functions down-regulated in the CSLC strains.


The minimum fluidization velocity is an important parameter in the design and operation of an industrial unit of fluidization. In the present work the minimum fluidization velocities of fine particles were obtained through two experimental methodologies. The first one is the classic procedure to determine that parameter analyzing the diagram of medium pressure drop in the bed in function of the superficial gas velocity, during the defluidization of the bed. And the second is the technique of identifying the minimum fluidization velocity interpreting the behavior of the normalized standard deviation of the pressure drop in the bed. A cylindrical bed of transparent acrylic was used in the process and the used particles were glass spheres, FCC and zinc powder. To compare the precision of the two methodologies some equations that predict the minimum fluidization velocity were used.


This paper presents a method for the, three-dimensional (3-D) visualization of device parameters to help identify potential regions of operation as well as highlighting process interactions. The results of the visualization are color-coded mappings of the device parameters and regions that meet the required specification, both showing three process parameters simultaneously. The mappings can be presented as rotating volumes (cubes) and slice plot. They can be obtained with relative ease using commercially available software, and the approach could easily be integrated into existing simulation software.


Abstract We conducted a randomised single-blinded clinical trial of 100 cholera patients in Port-au-Prince, Haiti to determine if the probiotic Saccharomyces cerevisiae var. boulardii and the anti-diarrhoeal drug bismuth subsalicylate (BS) were able to reduce the duration and severity of cholera. Subjects received either: S. boulardii 250 mg, S. boulardii 250 mg capsule plus BS 524 mg tablet, BS 524 mg, or two placebo capsules every 6 hours alongside standard treatment for cholera. The length of hospitalisation plus the number and volume of emesis, stool and urine were recorded every 6 hours until the study subject was discharged (n = 83), left against medical advice (n = 11), or requested removal from the study (n = 6). There were no reported deaths or adverse study-related events. There were no statistically significant differences between the study arms and the outcomes of interest.


Impacts of international airline bilateral liberalization on demand, fares, accessibility, and consumer welfare in the North Atlantic are studied, based on data for markets between the United States and five European countries. A demand model, estimated at the country-pair level, suggests that demand is slightly fare inelastic (e ~= -0.9), and that demand has responded positively, though inelastically (e~=0.2), to changes in accessibility (A measure of how much non-stop service is available). A yield model is estimated to assess the impact of bilateral liberalization status on fares, and it is found that liberal bilaterals have resulted in fare reductions of approximately 40 per cent. A similar analysis concerning accessibility reveals that liberalization increased this variable 55 per cent. In the case of both yield and accessibility, liberalization of a bilateral with one country was found to produce impacts on neighboring countries with restrictive bilaterals, suggesting that fear of traffic diversion influenced regulatory policy. Combining the estimated demand elasticities with the estimated impacts of liberalization on yields and accessibility, we estimate that, in the year 1989, passenger traffic between the U.S. and the five countries studied is 40-60 per cent greater as a result of liberalization, and that liberalization has produced consumer welfare increases of $3-5 billion, or $400-600 per traveler.


The cylindrical wave decomposition of fields from a normal-to-cylinder point source is derived using a modified addition theorem. The fields scattered from a lossy cylinder, as an approximation of the human body, are also calculated and tabulated for use in an integral equation study of dipoles. The transmittance between two optimized radially polarized dipoles is evaluated on the body trunk surface, using the method of moments (MoM) in the 2.45 GHz ISM band. An anechoic chamber measurement is performed and the measured transmittance between two dipoles on the human body has been compared to the simulated one on the lossy cylinder. Although the abdominal cross section of the body does not have exactly a circular shape, strong similarities have been observed in their path-loss trends around the body. A very good agreement has been obtained between the dipoles transmittances provided by the analytical/MoM model, CST Microwave Studio simulations, and experiments, including interference effects attributed to the body-attached radiating waves.


This study presents results obtained from a remarkably small-scale helicopter airborne electromagnetic (AEM) survey of a closed landfill. The landfill, occupying a former quarry, is situated among shallow, worked-out coal seams (pillar and stall workings) and was located over at least two mineshafts that occupied the quarry floor. The landfill was known to be leaking from an extensive borehole investigation that took place in the 1970's, when the landfill was active. Redevelopment issues and associated, proposed surface extraction of coals have renewed interest in the possible pollution threat of waste products. Of particular concern is the extent to which pollution has, potentially, transgressed a fault to the north and entered the area of proposed regeneration. The airborne survey data (EM and magnetic) were obtained using the six-frequency RESOLVE bird using a flight line spacing of 40 m. The data acquired have been subjected to 1D regularized inversion to enable a 3D conductivity model to be assessed. The model clearly identifies the landfill as a source term of highly conductive materials. At conductivities that are a factor of 3 above background, evidence for a variety of vertically compact, lateral migration pathways, largely below the base of the quarry, is obtained.


A number of renewable electricity generating technologies have not reached grid-parity in terms of cost. These include solar photovoltaic, solar thermal, tidal, wave, ocean, onshore wind and offshore wind power (new renewables henceforth). It is noticeable that the share of electricity from these new renewables is globally increasing and it is also noticeable that countries' share of electricity from these new renewables differ significantly. The objective of this study is to analyze the importance of energy security, climate change mitigation and income levels in explaining these differences. The author proposes a measure of energy security depending on the role of inputs (coal and gas) in electricity generation as well as a measure of the potential of a country to mitigate climate change. Results from weighted least squares on 107 middle and high income economies show that energy security and climate change mitigation add up in the case of imported coal for electricity generation purposes resulting in a shift towards new renewables. Large economically recoverable fossil fuel reserves are found to be preventing the diffusion into wider use of the new renewables. Rich countries largely relying on coal imports to generate their electricity are those achieving the highest shares of new renewables.


Introduction: OPKO Biologics is a clinical-stage public company developing bio-better long-acting versions of existing therapeutic proteins, utilizing a technology termed CTP. The technology involves fusion of the C-terminal peptide of hCG to a target protein. The aim of this work was to comprehensively assess the feasibility of intravenous (IV) or subcutaneous (SC) administration of FVIIa-CTP (MOD-5014) utilizing the most relevant in vivo pre-clinical models, and to characterize the FVIIa-CTP mechanism of action in preparation for an on-going clinical study. Methods: FVII-CTP was expressed in CHO cells, purified and activated utilizing a CTP-specific purification process. FVIIa-CTP9s pharmacokinetics (PK), pharmacodynamics (PD), long-term hemostatic effect and safety parameters were extensively characterized following SC and IV administration in transient FVII-/- rats and FVIII-/- mice. In addition, the long-term hemostatic effect of FVIIa-CTP was evaluated following a bleeding challenge and compared to commercial rFVIIa. Finally, interaction with co-factors, activity, and the off-target effect of FVIIa-CTP was comprehensively characterized. Results: The studies demonstrated that FVIIa-CTP provides long-term exposure (AUC) and half-life that are significantly superior to those of rFVIIa, and consistent with the prolonged half-life of FVIIa-CTP (at an average of 3- and 5-fold, respectively) when compared to IV or SC administration of FVIIa. In addition, a 30% increase in bioavailability was observed relative to commercial FVIIa. A profound improvement in clotting parameters and survival rate following TVT, as well as a reduction of bleeding duration and intensity in tail-clip studies were obtained for both routes of administration for up to 48 hours. Moreover, the safety profile of FVIIa-CTP was further confirmed. Conclusion: Attachments of CTP to FVIIa led to a pronounced enhancement of PK and PD, increased exposure as reflected by AUC, elevated half-life, and improved recovery in mice, rats and pigs following SC and IV administration. FVIIa-CTP injection resulted in an improved bioavailability that translated to a marked in vivo hemostatic effect. Our data suggest that CTP-fused FVIIa can potentially provide a novel approach for IV or SC prophylactic treatment of hemophilic patients (both pediatric and adult), with the major benefit of significant improvement in quality of life. Disclosures No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Differential diagnostics of very complex disorders in the acid-base status and in the accompanying electrolyte balance belongs to the most difficult diagnostic procedures in clinical practice. The goal of our study was to create computer genetic programs, able to aid the diagnostics of acid-base disorders, taking into account a set of laboratory gasometric and electrolyte measurements. Seven (7) single acid-base disorders, eleven (11) double acid-base disorders and six (6) triple complicated disorders with accompanying anion gap alterations were approached by our study. A set of simulated laboratory measurements was prepared, providing 250 results for the evaluation of the fitness function of the designed computer genetic programs, plus some additional results for testing.


ABSTRACT In parametric design environments, the use of Artificial Neural Networks (ANNs) promises greater feasibility than simulations in exploring the performance of solution spaces due to a reduction in overall computation time. This is because ANNs, once trained on selected input and output patterns, enable instantaneous predictions for new unseen input. In this study, ANNs were trained on simulation data to learn the relationship between design parameters and the resulting daylight performance. The ANNs were trained with selected input-output patterns generated from a reduced set of simulations in order to predict daylight performance for a hypercube of design solutions. This work demonstrates the integration of ANNs in a case study exploring designs for the central atrium of a school building. The study discusses the obtained design results and highlights the efficacy of the proposed method. Conclusions are drawn on the advantages of brute-force based daylight design explorations and an ANN-integrated design approach.


Most political parties operate on several territorial levels, but we have only limited theoretical understanding of multi-level party dynamics. This article presents a delegation framework for studying the interaction between the national leadership and regional branches in state-wide parties. Assuming a principal—agent relationship, the national leadership can obtain benefits from delegating tasks to a regional branch, but also faces possible costs in doing this. The rules and conventions regulating the multi-level interaction in parties are possible mechanisms by which to control the actions and policies of regional branches. These include formal party rules, informal party procedures and conventions, and state laws affecting party organizations. The framework provides an agenda and hypotheses for empirical research, research that should focus on crisis situations in parties, on what regional branches cannot do (instead of just documenting the activities of branches), and on the role of parties in shaping state laws and regulations.


The article describes a series of tests on oil circuit breakers and disconnecting switches to determine their strength at brush contacts and supports in withstanding the mechanical stresses engendered by the magnetic flux due to the flow of large currents of the order of 100,000 amperes, as may exist at times of short circuits on large systems. Other tests were made on current transformers and potential transformer fuses. For the first time, a synchronized motion picture machine and an oscillograph, were coupled to reproduce the coincident actions of the apparatus tested, and the variations of voltage and current in the circuit. The tests proved that practically all the circuit breakers then on the market had the brush contact placed in the wrong position, creating arcing before the operating mechanism had sufficient time to perform its function. The tests emphasized the importance of strong locks for disconnecting switches. Only single-turn primary-type current transformers and potential transformer fuses with resistance in series, were found adequate to give the service requirements.


Background: To evaluate the predictive significance of C- reactive protein in spontaneous preterm delivery. Methods: A group of 280 pregnant women between 12-22 weeks of gestational age attending antenatal clinic were included in a prospective cohort and followed through the pregnancy, delivery and early puerperium till discharge. Finally details of 250 women were available for analysis. CRP estimation in early pregnancy is done. Patients followed up to delivery. Gestational age determined by LMP or ultrasound estimation. Status of the newborn at birth, and at discharge, and its gestational age is noted. Data were analyzed by descriptive statistics like chi-square test, p -value and odds ratio. Main outcome measures gestational age at delivery and neonatal condition at discharge. Results: Out of 250 patients, 78 (31.2%) were CRP positive and 172 (68.8%) were CRP negative. CRP positivity showed positive association with preterm labour with odds ratio 2.384 (95% CI: 1.153-4.928 & p value 0.01). Neonatal morbidity & mortality was also higher in newborns of CRP positive mothers. Conclusions: CRP positivity in early pregnancy is associated with nearly a two fold increased risk of preterm delivery. Neonatal complications like preterm, low birth weight, septicaemia, birth asphyxia and others are more common in CRP positive mothers.


Abstract Background Exposure to childhood trauma (CT) is a global major public-health and social-welfare problem worldwide. CT increases the vulnerability to major psychiatric conditions including psychosis and is associated with poorer clinical outcome. CT affects the development of brain structures such as hippocampus, possibly through oxidative stress and neuroinflammation, two mechanisms linked to psychosis. We therefore hypothesized that there is an interplay between oxidative stress and CT in psychosis patients. We thus explored in early psychosis patients the relationships between CT and i) hippocampal volume, ii) antioxidant systems; and iii) clinical and cognitive outcomes. Methods We studied a cohort of 118 early psychosis patients, 36 were exposed to CT (experiences of physical, sexual, or emotional abuse/neglect before16 years old). In a subgroup of 48 patients (18 CT), hippocampal volume was determined by MRI. Antioxidant systems were quantified in blood for the whole cohort. Markers were: glutathione peroxidases (GPx) activity which appeared as a peripheral correlate of brain GSH levels (Xin &al, 2016); peroxiredoxine levels (Prx); Thioredoxine (Trx). Psychopathology (PANSS) and neuropsychology (MCCB) were assessed. The various groups were segregated by linear discriminant analysis. Results The previously observed decreased hippocampal volume in patients and association of small hippocampal volume with high blood GPx activity (reflecting high oxidative status) (Baumann &al, 2016) was due to the contribution of the traumatized group. Indeed, this association was absent in the no-trauma group, suggesting that the smaller hippocampus is linked to a redox dysregulation. To explore that point further, four groups were then formed, according to trauma and oxidative status: (i) noCT-lowGPx, (ii) noCT-highGPx, (iii) CT-lowGPx and (iv) CT-highGPx. Group CT-highGPx only had smaller hippocampi. In CT patients, small hippocampal volume was associated with high GPx activity, while hippocampal volume was similar in CT patients with low GPx activity (CT-lowGPx) and in patients not exposed to CT. Interestingly, other antioxidant defense systems such as Trx and oxidized Prx levels correlated negatively with GPx in CT-lowGPx group, suggesting that the Trx/Prx system is able to compensate for changes/decreases in GPx activity. Moreover, CT-lowGPx patients perform better than the other patients on speed of processing, verbal memory and attention tests. In contrast, hippocampal volume was decreased in CT patients with high GPx activity (CT-highGPx) compared with CT-lowGPx patients and patients not exposed to CT. There was no correlation between GPx and Trx/Prx system in this group. CT-highGPx patients had more severe positive, negative and disorganized symptoms than the other patients. Discussion We report that traumatized psychosis patients with high peripheral oxidation status (high GPx) had smaller hippocampal volumes and more severe clinical symptoms, while those with lower oxidation status (low GPx) had better cognition and appear to activate a compensatory antioxidant regulation by the Trx/Prx system. These results suggest that, in early psychosis patients, traumatic experiences during childhood interact with different redox systems and have long term neuroanatomical and clinical impacts. Therefore, redox pathways such as GPx, Trx and Prx systems represent important translational biomarkers for patient selection and stratification in order to aid in diagnostics and treatment decision at early stages of the disease.


Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are one of the main sources of air pollution, which are of wide concern because of their toxicity and serious threat to the environment and human health. Catalytic oxidation has been proven to be a promising and effective technology for VOCs abatement in the presence of heat or light. As environmentally friendly and low-cost materials, manganese-based oxides are the most competitive and promising candidates for the catalytic degradation of VOCs in thermocatalysis or photo/thermocatalysis. This article summarizes the research and development on various manganese-based oxide catalysts, with emphasis on their thermocatalytic and photo/thermocatalytic purification of VOCs in recent years in detail. Single manganese oxides, manganese-based oxide composites, as well as improving strategies such as morphology regulation, heterojunction engineering, and surface decoration by metal doping or universal acid treatment are reviewed. Besides, manganese-based monoliths for practical VOCs abatementare also discussed. Meanwhile, relevant catalytic mechanisms are also summarized. Finally, the existing problems and prospect of manganese-based oxide catalysts for catalyzing combustion of VOCs are proposed.


Abstract. Modeling of Near-Surface Temperature Lapse Rate (NSTLR) is very important in various environmental applications. The Land Surface Temperature (LST) is influenced by many properties and conditions including surface biophysical and topographic characteristics. Some researches have considered the LST - Digital Elevation Model (DEM) feature space to model NSTLR. However, the influence of detailed surface characteristics is rare. This study investigated the impact of surface characteristics on the LST-DEM feature space for NSTLR modeling. A set of remote sensing data including Landsat 8 images, MODIS products, and surface features including DEM and land use of the Balikhli-Chay on 01/07/2018, 18/08/2018 and 03/09/2018 were collected and used in this study. First, Split Window (SW) algorithm was used to estimate LST, and spectral indices were employed to model surface biophysical characteristics. Owing to the impact of surface biophysical and topographic characteristics on the LST-DEM feature space, the NSTLR was calculated for different classes of surface biophysical characteristics, land use, and solar local incident angle. The modeled NSTLR values based on the LST-DEM feature space on 01/07/2018, 18/08/2018 and 03/09/2018 were 8.5, 1.5 and 2.4 °C Km−1; respectively. The NSTLR in different classes of surface biophysical characteristics, land use type and topographical parameters were variable between 0.5 to 14 °C Km−1. This clearly showed the dependence of NSTLR on topographic and biophysical conditions. This provides a new way of calculating surface characteristic specific NSTLR.


A theoretical model representing blunting of a crack tip radius through diffusion of vacancies is presented. The model serves as the basis for a computer program which calculates changes, due to successive weld heat passes, in the ultimate tensile strength of 2219-T81 aluminum. In order for the model to yield changes of the same order in the ultimate tensile strength as that observed experimentally, a crack tip radius of the order of .001 microns is required. Such sharp cracks could arise in the fusion zone of a weld from shrinkage cavities or decohered phase boundaries between dendrites and the eutectic phase, or, possibly, from plastic deformation due to thermal stresses encountered during the welding process. Microstructural observations up to X2000 (resolution of about .1 micron) did not, in the fusion zone, show structural details which changed significantly under the influence of a heat pass, with the exception of possible small changes in the configuration of the interdendritic eutectic and in porosity build-up in the remelt zone.


Summary: Genome-wide association studies (GWAS) have revealed hundreds of loci associated with common human genetic diseases and traits. We have developed a web-based plotting tool that provides fast visual display of GWAS results in a publication-ready format. LocusZoom visually displays regional information such as the strength and extent of the association signal relative to genomic position, local linkage disequilibrium (LD) and recombination patterns and the positions of genes in the region. Availability: LocusZoom can be accessed from a web interface at http://csg.sph.umich.edu/locuszoom. Users may generate a single plot using a web form, or many plots using batch mode. The software utilizes LD information from HapMap Phase II (CEU, YRI and JPT+CHB) or 1000 Genomes (CEU) and gene information from the UCSC browser, and will accept SNP identifiers in dbSNP or 1000 Genomes format. Single plots are generated in ∼20 s. Source code and associated databases are available for download and local installation, and full documentation is available online. Contact: email@example.com


From a content perspective, Simulation-Based Many-Objective Optimisation with a posteriori decision analysis is a promising method in analysing and solving semi-structured process improvement problems. From a process management perspective, the use of MOO can be perceived difficult; the optimisation process requires a structured problem formulation and the output of the optimisation can cause information overload for the decision makers. This paper presents a decision aiding approach with Simulation-Based Many Objective Optimisation to demonstrate that these burdens can be overcome and that the approach can be not only of added value for the content of the decision making, but also has a strategic role in the decision making process. The decision aiding approach can lead to (1) increased trust in the optimisation results, (2) more awareness about the preferences of other stakeholders, (3) faster convergence of the preferences of the decision makers and thus more progress in the decision making process and (4) increased support for the selected solution. Future research can focus on the application of the decision aiding approach to ill-structured problems where decision makers from different organisations are involved.


Shortly after the introduction of cocain as a local anesthetic, Dr. J. Leonard Corning, of New York, demonstrated that it was possible, under its influence, to remove large tumors and perform amputations. Continuing his researches, he developed, in 1885, a method of injecting the drug into the vertebral canal between the spinous processes where it "should become absorbed by the minute plexuses of veins and so carried to the cord." Quite recently, Professor Bier, of Kiel, has advanced one step in this practice and deposited a solution of cocain within the subarachnoid space. His example was speedily followed by Oberst, Seldovitch and other European surgeons, and, above all, by Tuffier. This practice is now extending to the United States and other countries. Various reports have been published, narrating its successful application in major operations involving the lower extremities, genital organs and abdominal cavity. Anesthesia ensues within five to ten minutes


A 49-year-old woman presented with a 1-month history of abdominal pain. The symptom became aggravated in the past day. Abdominal contrast enhanced CT showed classic "Bulls eye" appearance with concentric rings on axial image. Coronal and sagittal reconstruction revealed intussusception, with the proximal intussusceptum invaginating into the adjacent distal intussuscepiens. A fat density tumor of about 5.0 cm in diamater was also detected in the hepatic flexure. Colonoscopy showed a cauliflower-like tumor with a rough surface in the hepatic flexure, measuring 5.0 cm in diameter. Laparoscopic findings confirmed ascending colonic tumor accompanied by intussusception and an radical right hemicolectomy was performed. Histopathology confirmed a 4.0 × 4.0 × 4.5 cm submucosal lipoma in the ascending colon.


This perspective article introduces an innovative roadmap for research and farm application based on optimizing rumen microbial circadian biology to help minimize metabolic disorders and foodproducing ruminant health and efficiency. Suitable feedstuffs must be fed at optimal times of the circadian phase in optimal relation to milking and housing management. Certain microbial populations may be negatively sensitive to given combinations of sugars, starches, proteins and fats. Discovering optimal harmonies amongst circadian rhythms of ruminant, rumen, and their environmental management is key towards improving food safety and security for humans in the new era.


The purpose of this experiment was to investigate the survival and biomass accumulation of wetland plant species under different water depths in controlled microcosms. In the greenhouse, two-weekold seedlings were randomly assigned to one of seven water-depth treatments (−6, −4, −2, 0, +2, +4, and +6 cm relative to the soil surface) and allowed to grow for six months. Species included five perennial sedges, four perennial and one annual grasses, and two perennial and two annual forbs. Twelve of the species had their lowest biomass and lowest survivorship at water depths greater than 0 cm. The root:shoot ratio, however, did not change across water-depth treatments. Biomass accumulation differed by plant form (sedges>forbs>grasses). Annuals had the greatest biomass values across the widest range of water depths compared to perennials. Of the fourteen plants tested, Lythrum salicaria (purple loosestrife), one of the two invasive, non-native species tested, had the greatest biomass at water depths from −6 to +2, whereas Phalaris arundinacea (reed canarygrass), the other invasive, had comparatively small mean biomass values. Ranking of biomass between species was highly concordant between non-flooded treatments but not significantly concordant between flooded treatments indicating that plant species have distinct responses to flooding. This research suggests that newly established plant seedlings in wetland restorations should not be submerged, or if submergence is unavoidable, annuals and sedges may be more tolerant of prolonged flooding.


This study aims to determine the variation of Javanese consonants in the lower-class community in RT 34-35 Giwangan Village, Umbulharjo District, Special Region of Yogyakarta. This type of research is a case study, data obtained utilizing interviews and literature study. The study results indicate that there are variations in consonants that occur in the lower society. The consonant variations are a form of neutral in the word pairs /b/ and /p/, which occurs in the word "landep", which means sharp; in the word pairs /d/ and /t/ occurs in the word "reged" which in Indonesian means dirty, and the word pairs /g/ and /k/ occurs in the word "ambleg" which means to fall. The next variation is the insertion and addition of consonants /n/, /ŋ/, and /m/in the word "montor", which means motorbikes. The next variation is the insertion of semi-vowels /w/ and /y/, which occurs in the word "kebuwang", which means wasted, and in the word "lagèYane", which has the meaning of style. The next variation is the variation of the consonants /z/, /dz/ and /v/, /f/ that occurs in the word "jikir", which means remembrance and the word TV, which is pronounced by with the word "tipi". Next is a shortening variation that occurs in the sentence "no money", which is pronounced by "ra de det" or "ora nduwe duwit". The last consonant variation is the omission of sounds that occur in the word "government", which means government.


Abstract : Numerical schemes based on the vortex-lattice concept have had considerable success in treating the fully three-dimensional separated potential flow over low aspect-ratio thin wings at high incidence and the attached potential flow over bodies of more general shape. In principle, the vortex-lattice method is not limited in application ao long as convection dominates vorticity diffusion. A non-linear 3-D vortex-lattice method was developed which treats the steady separated flow over prolate bodies with open separation moving through an inviscid incompressible fluid. The strength and position of the body wake were found as part of the solution. Flows with smooth-surface separation were considered as opposed to flows with sharp-edge separation treated with the vortex-lattice concept in the past. Results for flow over an inclined ogive-cylinder demonstrated the technique. For attached flow, comparisons are presented of the results from the vortex-lattice method using optimal and average control point locations with the results of the source-distribution method and with experimental data. The same panel arrangement was used calculating both methods. The results of the present method are somewhat more sensitive to panel arrangement than are those for the source-distribution method. Also, the effect of control point location varies dramatically as the incidence of the body is changed. For separated flow, results of the vortex-lattice method were compared with experimental data and with the results of a typical 2-D analogy. The present method agrees favorably with the experimental data windward of a separation line.


Hemorrhage in the midbrain and/or pons in patients is often associated with increased metabolism, resulting in hyperthermia. We have recently reported that hyperthermia develops in anesthetized rats following prepontine knife-cuts or procaine microinjections into the midbrain or upper pontine region. It was concluded that the hyperthermia in the animals was caused by the removal of a tonic inhibitor mechanism of heat production that exists in the lower midbrain. The present paper proposes a new hypothesis that the hyperthermia in patients with brainstem hemorrhage is caused by disinhibition of heat production due to the release of such a Iower-midbrain mechanism.


Google has become very successful by developing an efficient search engine running on commodity hardware.  It no longer uses the old model of putting all its resource onto one super computer, but rather it spreads that processing onto a cluster of smaller machines running in parallel to form a grid.  Gordon Moore made an observation in 1965 predicting that the number of transistors per square inch used on computers would double every year.  This trend has become law and continues to elevate the ubiquitous and relatively inexpensive desktop and laptop computers.  This paper will discuss how you can cluster computers in a grid to optimize the execution of SAS programs.  Some of the techniques discussed include: • Implementing supercomputer power with commodity hardware • Submitting SAS programs sequentially while maintaining inter program dependencies • Threading multiple groups of programs for optimal performance • Measuring SAS performance with StatmarkTM, a standard metric for a cross platform benchmarking for SAS processing • Scheduling the execution of programs in a grid environment In the world of Mooreʹs law, it makes less sense to lay out large capital investment for a server.  Clustering inexpensive smaller machines and dynamically adding new computers to this architecture within a grid can scale your SAS computing resources to become the Google of search engines. INTRODUCTION In the space of analytics as statistical models get more sophisticated and the datasets gets larger, computing resources is much needed engine that delivers results.  SAS has evolved along with hardware systems to utilize the horse power needed to crunch the statistical models and data manipulations.  When I first started working with SAS, it was on a main frame computer system running TSO.  This was centrally controlled with very limited user customization from a dumb terminal.  As computing chips got smaller, the processing of SAS started to move toward smaller UNIX servers.  Then the introduction of SAS on personal computers dramatically changed how most users performed their data exploration.  Users were testing out their data models and reports on their PCs, although they still executed things on a networked server for production jobs. This evolution is continuing as the desktop is becoming more powerful.  With maturing technologies used to connect these desktop computers, PC desktops are beginning to form computing grids that can outperform the traditional servers.  The forces that drive this include the shrinking size and cost of computer chips while performance is increasing.  This is coupled with the lowering cost of memory and storage.  These combined elements supply analytical tools such as SAS with greater abundance of computing resources.  We are at a juncture in this evolutionary stage where the ways the computing resources are utilized can be more important than just obtaining the resources. IT managers need to evaluate the cost of the lifetime of a server since the price to performance ratio of the computing resources would diminish over time.  It is similar to purchasing a car in that the performance of the car does not go any faster but the value of the car is constantly going down.  Computing resources have an even lower return on investment in that they become obsolete very quickly as the next model is usually cheaper, yet outperforms the current server model.  It is therefore not always prudent to put out large capital expenditures on a piece of hardware when its performance to price ratio will diminish in such short spans of time.  Grid computing offers a different model in that commodity hardware can be expensed with less cost.  There is greater flexibility in that the grid can scale to match the performance of a growing group without necessarily throwing out the old server for replacement of the new.  Nodes can be added and older nodes can be taken off like a living organism shedding dead skin.  In the Grid, the newer nodes have the advantage of obtaining the fastest computing power for the cost at that time.  This spreading out of the capital expenses on computing resources is analogous to the time valued benefits of spreading out your investments and investing small amounts over your lifetime to form a balanced portfolio instead of putting one big sum investment into a single stock.  It acts as a buffer towards the ups and downs of the markets.  In this case, it is not the financial market but rather the market of computing hardware cost.  As hardware costs


A central question in molecular evolution concerns the nature of phenotypic transitions, in particular, if neutral mutations hamper or somehow facilitate adaptability of proteins to new requirements. Proteins have been found to fluctuate between different structures, with frequencies of structures being proportional to their stability. Therefore, functional promiscuity may correspond to different structures with energies close to the ground state which then represent multiple selectable traits. We here postulate that these near‐ground‐state structures facilitate smooth transitions between phenotypes. Using a biophysical heteropolymer model with exhaustive mappings of sequences onto structures, we demonstrate that this is indeed possible because of a smooth gradient of stability along which any structural phenotype can be optimized and also because of mutational proximity of similar phenotypes in genotype space. Our model provides a biophysical rationalization of the intriguing, and otherwise puzzling experimental observation that adaptation to new requirements, e.g., latent function of a promiscuous enzyme, can proceed while the "old," phenotypically dominant function is maintained along a series of seemingly neutral mutations (see accompanying article). Thus pleiotropy may facilitate adaptation of latent traits before gene duplications and increase the effective adaptability of proteins.


Atrial Fibrillation (AF) is the most common sustained cardiac arrhythmia and is a significant risk factor for Stroke. AF is even more prevalent among patients with respiratory disease; it is therefore important that we anticoagulate this group of patients when indicated. The National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) provides guidance on Stroke prevention in non valvular AF (CG 180). The Aim of this Audit was to improve our current anticoagulation practice in patients with respiratory disease and co-existing AF. The objectives were to Identify respiratory patients with non-valvular AF. In those already anti-coagulated, we aimed identify which anticoagulant was in use. In appropriate patients not previously anticoagulated and new paroxysmal AF patients, we determined whether the patient was anti-coagulated by the respiratory firm. Data was collected directly from patient casenotes on two respiratory wards in November 2015 and February 2016. There were 24 patients with included in the first round of data collection, and 26 in the second. Anticoagulation coverage of patients with non-valvular AF was intitally poor (20%). Furthermore, documentation with regards to anticoagulation decisions was lacking (10%). With increased awareness (ward posters) and the implementation of an ECG review system on patient arrival to the ward, coverage of suitable AF patients with anticoagulation has improved (90% vs 20%), as has decision documentation (75% vs 10%). A further result of the audit has been clarification of the management of 9First AF9, often a source of confusion for the non-cardiologist. This definition we aim to include in an updated version of the trust guidelines.


BACKGROUND
the term prostatic hyperplasia is most frequently used to describe the benign prostatic growth, this being a widely prevalent disorder associated with age that affects most men as they age. The association between prostate growth and urinary obstruction in older adults is well documented.

OBJECTIVE
large benign prostatic hyperplasia is rare and few cases have been published and should be taken into account during the study of tumors of the pelvic cavity.

CLINICAL CASE
we report the case of an 81-year-old who had significant symptoms relating to storage and bladder emptying, with no significant elevation of prostate specific antigen.

CONCLUSIONS
this is a rare condition but it is still important to diagnose and treat as it may be related to severe obstructive uropathy and chronic renal failure. In our institution, cases of large prostatic hyperplasia that are solved by suprapubic adenomectomy are less than 3%.


ASTRONOMYTOKYO-- This week, Japanese astronomers hope to capture the first scientific images from the country's new Subaru Telescope atop Mauna Kea in Hawaii. Its 8.3-meter mirror makes it the world's largest single-mirror telescope, and one of a handful of telescopes globally in the 8- to 10-meter range. As the country's first major scientific project ever built on foreign soil, Subaru also marks Japan's entry into the top tier of scientific nations with a global scientific reach.


BACKGROUND
Feedback is imperative for academic success, learning, and professional growth. Faculty competence to provide constructive feedback is a cornerstone in the educational process, environment, and outcomes.

METHODS
This cross-sectional study evaluated the quantity, quality, timing, and utilization of feedback among 38 Bachelor of Science in Nursing students. An assessment experience questionnaire was used to collected data.

RESULTS
The majority of students (n = 27 [71%]) expressed that the timing of feedback is critical; 21 (55%) students reported feedback threatened their self-esteem, 19 (50%) students perceived feedback did not help in completing assignments, and 24 (63%) students reported feedback did not help in understanding assignments. Students reported the negative impact of feedback resulted in feeling discouraged regarding reflection (n = 20 [53%]) and self-regulation (n = 21 [55%]).

CONCLUSION
Although feedback is imperative for academic success and professional development, the quantity and quality affects students' utilization of feedback. [J Nurs Educ. 2021;60(10):577-581.].


Code-Division Multiple-Access (CDMA) [1] is widely used in both civil and military applications. It does take advantages from the system characteristics. For example, higher data rate and user capacity, better multipath resolution [2] and resistance to jamming, low probability of interception, accurate timing and ranging, and more importantly, stronger ability to suppress interference and jamming. To airborne applications, such as air traffic control, the use of CDMA as an alternative is highly suggested [3]. The reasons to do so are as follows. First, radio systems are spectrum sensitive, especially to the airborne environments. Careful spectrum regulation is needed. Second, most of current systems available are narrowband. Adding new system to limited spectrum resources is very difficult. Third, CDMA is wideband in nature. The signal power is spread and hides below the white noise level. As a result, its interference to narrowband systems is marginal. Fourth, CDMA receivers [4] by proper design have the ability of suppressing narrowband interference and Multiple Access Interference (MAI). Fifth, adaptive filter algorithms can provide excellent tracking performance to airborne dynamics. Sixth, incorporating the use of antenna arrays [5] may further improve the performance to interference suppression and user capacity. In this paper, proposed is an adaptive DS-CDMA receiver with antenna arrays and blind adaptation. This receiver structure assumes the same amount of information as the conventional matched filter receiver, namely, the signature sequence and the synchronization information (the timing and the carrier phase) of the desired user. In reality, the signature sequence is usually available at the receiver, while the code timing [6] and the carrier phase have to be estimated. As a consequence, the development of reliable and efficient code acquisition algorithm to the proposed receiver structure is important. The novelty of this algorithm is that the estimator is based on processing the weight vector of the adaptive receiver and the only side information the receiver requires in order to form its estimate is the spreading sequence of the desired user.


Outer hair cell electromotility, driven by prestin, is essential for mammalian cochlear amplification. Here, we report the cryo-EM structures of thermostabilized human prestin (hPresTS), complexed with chloride, sulfate, or salicylate at 3.52–3.61 Å resolutions, revealing a crossed dimeric arrangement. The central positively-charged cavity allows flexible binding of various anion species, resulting in distinct modulations of nonlinear capacitance (NLC), playing an important role in electromotility. Comparisons of these hPresTS structures suggest rigid-body movement between the core and gate domains, and provide mechanistic insight into prestin inhibition by salicylate. Mutations at the dimeric interface severely diminished NLC, suggesting that stabilization of the gate domain facilitates core domain movement, thereby contributing to the expression of NLC. These findings advance our understanding of the molecular mechanism underlying mammalian cochlear amplification.


This paper demonstrates settling and further consolidation behaviour of dredged clayey soils during land filling. The effects of initial moisture content, electrolyte type and concentration on settling and consolidation behaviour were examined and evaluated by laboratory column tests. Electrokinetic tests were carried out with modified settling column to compare the soil behaviour under the gravity. From the testing results, the settling velocity increased due to the effects of cations in the electrolyte solution, and electrically induced settlements were found to be greater than those under the gravity.


In the focus of my attention there are six German-language textbooks in logic published in the second half of the eighteenth century. What distinguishes these books is that they were all written specially for women. While such works were fairly common in France and Italy during this period, they had something of an exotic character in the German-speaking world. Today these works and their authors are generally seen as secondary and marginal. Nevertheless, they may be of substantial interest in the study of the history of the formation of logic, a fundamental and still relevant discipline in university education. What is the status of logic for women? Is it a kind of publishing by-product paraphrasing classical logic textbooks under a new and unusual title or do they represent a new independent branch? To answer these questions I analyse the chosen works on logic and the reviews which they prompted. I demonstrate that logic manuals for women published in Germany in the second half of the eighteenth century constitute one of the numerous varieties of the popular philosophy genre. Simple language, dialogic or epistolary form, practical orientation and eclecticism — all this brings logic within the intellectual reach of any civilised person, providing him/her with an instrument of performing their own mission, i. e. the employment of their reason. The very fact that the content of logic for women is practically no different from the content of classical compendiums was a revolutionary development, a practical implementation of the postulate that logic is universal and can be understood by everyone, a principle formulated earlier in the works of C. Thomasius and C. Wolff.


This paper explores the use of deixis in the Armenian translation of the Greek New Testament, with a focus on the medial deictic forms in the gospel of Matthew. Against the two-way deictic distinction in New Testament Greek with proximal οὗτος and distal ἐκεῖνος, the three-way system in Armenian based on the proximal -s-, medial -d- and distal -n- raises questions of how and why the Armenian medial forms are used. Through comparison with Latin, which also has a three-way system (proximal hic, medial iste, and distal ille), and close analysis of key passages, this paper highlights both the semantic values of the Armenian medial forms and the issues of translation that arise as a result of their employment.


The present investigation demonstrates renewable cardanol-based polyol for the formulation of nanocomposite polyurethane (PU) coatings. The functional and structural features of cardanol polyol and nanoparticles were studied using FT-IR and 1H NMR spectroscopic techniques. The magnetic hydroxyapatite nanoparticles (MHAPs) were dispersed 1–5% in PU formulations to develop nanocomposite anticorrosive coatings. An increase in the strength of MHAP increased the anticorrosive performance as examined by immersion and electrochemical methods. The nanocomposite PU coatings showed good coating properties, viz., gloss, pencil hardness, flexibility, cross-cut adhesion, and chemical resistance. Additionally, the coatings were also studied for surface morphology, wetting, and thermal properties by scanning electron microscope (SEM), contact angle, and thermogravimetric analysis (TGA), respectively. The hydrophobic nature of PU coatings increased by the addition of MHAP, and an optimum result (105°) was observed in 3% loading. The developed coatings revealed its hydrophobic nature with excellent anticorrosive performance.


In most urban and suburban areas, pole-like structures such as tree trunks or utility poles are ubiquitous. These structural landmarks are very useful for the localization of autonomous vehicles given their geometrical locations in maps and measurements from sensors. In this work, we aim at creating an accurate map for autonomous vehicles or robots with pole-like structures as the dominant localization landmarks, hence called pole-map. In contrast to the previous pole-based mapping or localization methods, we exploit the semantics of pole-like structures. Specifically, semantic segmentation is achieved by a new mask-range transformer network in a mask-classfication paradigm. With the semantics extracted for the pole-like structures in each frame, a multi-layer semantic pole-map is created by aggregating the detected pole-like structures from all frames. Given the semantic pole-map, we propose a semantic particle-filtering localization scheme for vehicle localization. Theoretically, we have analyzed why the semantic information can benefit the particle-filter localization, and empirically it is validated on the public SemanticKITTI dataset that the particle-filtering localization with semantics achieves much better performance than the counterpart without semantics when each particle's odometry prediction and/or the online observation is subject to uncertainties at significant levels.


Within the past few months, several papers reporting epidemiological studies of cell-phone use and brain tumors have appeared in scientific journals. Several other related manuscripts are likely to appear, in print, in the not too distant future. If one wonders about the timing, it is very simple: a multi-year, international research effort, the INTERPHONE Project, is approaching its final phase. This human health project is being conducted with 13 participating countries.


This paper presents a wavelength coded optical time-domain reflectometry based on optical heterodyne technique. In this scheme, the probe and reference optical pulses have different wavelengths. This enables optical heterodyne detection to be used to improve the system performances significantly. We demonstrate a spatial resolution of 2.5 m within a range of 60 km in weak-reflection signal detection and direct observation of Brillouin scattering over a long optical fiber, suggesting online fiber sensing possible. The principle of wavelength coding is applicable to other systems like lidar and radar to increase receiver sensitivity and simplify system structure.


In cases with a proximal aneurysm neck diameter of higher than 28 mm, standard endovascular aneurysm repair is considered inappropriate. In the present study, we report a successful endovascular treatment using overlapped thoracic and abdominal grafts technique in a patient whose infrarenal aneurysm neck diameter is 38.1 mm.


The paper describes on the possibility of detecting photons using the proposed setup. Different channels of the setup are adjustable by means of a variable ratio coupler. Photon number distribution may be estimated using the maximum likelihood method. The information obtained may then quantified using the Fisher information. Equivalent efficiency of an ideal photodetector that can be associated with realistic detection is defined.


On the basis of textural features and spatial distributions, both supergene and hypogene origins have been proposed for alunite in sediment-hosted micron gold deposits. If alunite is indeed primary, its presence provides important constraints on the chemistry of the ore fluid. Thus, determination of the genesis of alunite is critical to the understanding of the geologic history of these ore deposits.At the Post deposit in Nevada K/Ar ages of alunite are much younger than the age of mineralization. Sulfur isotope compositions of alunite from several sediment-hosted micron gold deposits are virtually identical to those of sulfides, suggesting that alunite sulfur came from quantitative (closed-system) oxidation of primary sulfide minerals during weathering. Sulfur and oxygen isotope compositions of barite are markedly different from those of alunite. The oxygen and hydrogen isotope compositions of alunite fall in the supergene alunite fields; data for cogenetic kaolinitc fall on the kaolinitc line, whereas those for hypogene kaolinite do not. From all available petrographic and geochemical data, it would appear that alunite in the micron gold deposits of Nevada is entirely of secondary supergene origin.


In this paper the author considers the various types of completeness for di-uniform texture spaces and especially for complemented ones. Following that, the relationships between completeness of uniform spaces and these types of completeness for complemented di-uniform texture spaces are investigated in a categorical setting, just as interrelations between quasi-uniform spaces and di-uniform texture spaces are pointed out insofar as completeness is concerned. Additionally, useful requirements among the various types of completeness of a di-uniformity and real dicompactness of the uniform ditopological space generated by that di-uniformity are presented as a diagram.


Purpose of review To summarize current knowledge about premature ovarian failure (POF) with an emphasis on recent developments regarding its management. Recent findings The incidence of POF is increasing largely due to improved survival rates of cancer patients treated with radiation and chemotherapy. Delayed diagnosis and management of POF leads to suboptimal outcomes. Anticipation and early detection of this condition in high-risk women by means of ovarian function testing, followed by early institution of appropriate management could improve outcomes. Choice of strategies should vary depending on the age of onset, associated symptoms and fertility aspirations of the individual, and should change with the patient's advancing age. Summary Early assessment of the individual's risk of developing POF, development of a strategic management plan, and timely commencement of infertility and hormone deficiency treatment, together with counselling in an integrated management plan should improve both the short and long-term health of those with POF.


0\. Title Page and Table of Contents 1\. Introduction 1
2\. Work Stress and Coping Research: Challenges and Advances 7
3\. Theory 65
4\. Coping with Stress at Work: A longitudinal Study on Health Outcomes and
Quality of Life 103
4.1 Purpose of the Study 103
4.2 Research Questions 105
4.3 Hypotheses 107
4.4 Method 116
5\. Results 135
6\. Discussion 199
7\. References 227
8\. Appendices
Appendix A 253
Appendix B 267
Appendix C 285


In the single-screw extruder, the vibration force field is applied to the solids conveying process by the axial vibration of the screw and the novel concept on the solids conveying process being strengthened with the vibration force field has been brought forward in this study. We establish the mathematical model that describes the solids conveying process with the vibration force field and obtain the approximative analytical solutions of the pressure and velocity of the solids conveying in the down-channel. In the new theory, if the screw has no axial vibration the solids conveying pressure is the same as that of the Darnell and Mol theory, but the density and velocity of solids conveying along the screw channel is variable, which has modified the Darnell and Mol theory in which the density and velocity of the solids conveying along the screw channel was considered invariable. The results reveal that the axial vibration of the screw can increase the average pressure of solids conveying, decrease the channel length of the solids conveying section and increase the solids conveying angle. © 2006 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. J Appl Polym Sci 102: 2998–3007, 2006


A class of mechanical metamaterials with scalable tristable elements was developed to offer programmable multistability. Multistable mechanical metamaterials are artificial materials whose microarchitectures offer more than two different stable configurations. Existing multistable mechanical metamaterials mainly rely on origami/kirigami-inspired designs, snap-through instability, and microstructured soft mechanisms, with mostly bistable fundamental unit cells. Scalable, tristable structural elements that can be built up to form mechanical metamaterials with an extremely large number of programmable stable configurations remains illusive. Here, we harness the elastic tensile/compressive asymmetry of kirigami microstructures to design a class of scalable X-shaped tristable structures. Using these structure as building block elements, hierarchical mechanical metamaterials with one-dimensional (1D) cylindrical geometries, 2D square lattices, and 3D cubic/octahedral lattices are designed and demonstrated, with capabilities of torsional multistability or independent controlled multidirectional multistability. The number of stable states increases exponentially with the cell number of mechanical metamaterials. The versatile multistability and structural diversity allow demonstrative applications in mechanical ternary logic operators and amplitude modulators with unusual functionalities.


Based on the Web of Science database,the paper collected the SSCI papers form 2003- 2012,of which the first author's units are in the central six provinces. The number of its distribution,cited cases,the first author and first author distribution,research orientation and periodicals were analyzed,in order to reflect the social scientific research international level in the six central provinces.


: The results of treatment of 100 patients with widespread forms of peritonitis were analyzed. In the control group of patients complications were diagnosed with the use of intraluminal pulsemotorography by Z.M. Sigal (1981) and assessment of the degree of endotoxicosis by the new original methodology. Intraperitoneal complications in the control group made up 8.0%, and extraperitoneal complications--2.0%. Intraperitoneal complications in the group of comparison made up 16.0%, and extraperitoneal complications--18.0%.


Context: Tuberculosis (TB) affects the economically productive age group and has emerged as a disease of significant socio-economic global burden. Aims: The aim of this study is to identify epidemiological factors responsible for TB and the clinico-social correlates influencing their compliance. Subjects and Methods: All new smear positive TB (NSP-TB) patients registered in Dhubri District Tuberculosis Center-Tuberculosis Unit during 2007 in Assam were included in this study. The study was performed by interview technique using a pre-tested questionnaire. Results: Nearly 90.76% of the participants were in the age group of 15-55 years and were predominantly unskilled workers and sole earning member of their family. 83.33% of the patients had symptoms of cough for more than 3 weeks and most of them (98.15%) lived in overcrowded houses. More than half of the patients had X-ray examination as their initial approach to diagnosis. More males (59.18%) than females (40.82%) reported to the health institution within first 6 weeks after the onset of symptom and among them 91.84% were declared cured after completion of therapy and while, only 40% of the patients initiating treatment after 6 weeks of the onset of symptoms were declared cured after completion of therapy. Conclusions: The prevalence of NSP-TB cases was more among the illiterate and underprivileged population who needs counseling and motivation for early intervention.


Knee replacement surgery is a common orthopaedic procedure that greatly benefits from a three-dimensional geometric representation of a patient's knee bone obtained from MR or CT data. The use of these image modalities pose the following challenges: (i) high imaging cost; (ii) long wait times; (iii) limited availability and (iv) in the latter, large exposure to ionizing radiation. Traditional approaches based on planar X-ray radiography are significantly less prone to these issues; however, they only provide two-dimensional information. This work presents a proof of concept study for generating patient-specific femoral bone shapes from a statistical shape atlas using anatomical features acquired from calibrated X-ray radiographs. Our hypothesis was: three-dimensional geometry can be reconstructed, within 2 millimeters RMS, by identifying features on two calibrated radiographs. We illustrate the feasibility of our approach with regards to acquiring features and the viability of reconstructing patient-specific bony anatomy. A set of reliable and relevant features is identified for which an acquisition protocol and user-interface was devised to minimize inter-observer variability. Both the data and methods used to construct the atlas are discussed as well generating shapes from features. The reconstructions accuracy was comparable to, albeit lower than, competing approaches that rely on two-dimensional bony contours. i


. The two dominant paradigms for graph databases, edge-labelled graphs and property graphs, may appear quite different. Yet, to the user, they have strong similarities. A usability study, comparing RDF-star / SPARQL-star and Cypher, found evidence for only limited differences in preferences between the modelling paradigms. This suggests the possibility of a convergence of the two paradigms; indeed in one case (Stardog) this is already happening. We also found little difference between the paradigms in users' ability to detect valid and non-valid queries. In one specific case, the use of a reverse arrow in Cypher was interpreted significantly more accurately than the ^ symbol in the SPARQL query language; this argues, where possible, for the more intuitive Cypher notation.


quences for volumes of trade, asset pricing, and welfare. This paper introduces an algorithm for the computation of equilibria in the general equilibrium model with incomplete asset markets and transaction costs. We show that economies with transaction costs can be analyzed with differentiable homotopy techniques and thus in the same framework as ftictionless economies despite the existence of non-differentiabilities of agents' asset demand functions and the existence of locally non-unique equilibria. We introduce an equilibrium selection concept into the computation of economic equilibria that picks out a specific equilibrium in the presence of a continuum of equilibria.


This special issue of Contemporary Issues in Technology and Teacher Education focuses on intercultural education and the role of technology to facilitate such education in formal courses of teacher education and in the lifelong reflective practice of educators. The role that information and communication technologies have in increasing the need for education related to globalization and to the increasing digital divide is also recognized. Intercultural education is a general term pertaining to the ability to understand, empathize with, and respect all ethnicities. Multicultural education, inclusive education, education for social justice, and international education are terms often associated with intercultural education. Niki Davis, the special issue editor, invited articles from a variety of perspectives, including those associated with intercultural education in specific disciplines and content areas, equity and social justice, and the use of technology to enhance multicultural and international education. Contributions to this special issue were sought worldwide, having been stimulated by the International Leadership for Educational Technology initiative (ILET; http://www.public.iastate.edu/~ilet) that is building a transatlantic doctoral community between six universities in four countries. This editorial introduces the challenges of applying technology to intercultural education using our ILET experience before using three complementary theoretical perspectives to introduce the articles in the special issue. The publication establishes a continuing opportunity for dialog and scholarship on intercultural education and technology due to this online journal's invitation to submit articles in response to articles. Please contribute!


Patients often feel that their experience of illness is not valued nor understood by others. However, there has been a growing recognition of the importance of the patient perspective and involvement in research, improving its methodology and outcomes. The European Medicines Agency has been involving patients' and consumers' representatives on their work since 2005. The "European League Against Rheumatism recommendations for the inclusion of patient representatives in scientific projects" have been published in the "Annals of the rheumatic diseases" in 2011. I was diagnosed with Juvenile Idiopathic Arthritis when I was 5 years old, back in 1977. Therefore, I have 40 years of experience of living with a Rheumatic and Musculoskeletal Disease (RMD), but no recollection of what my life was like "before" and "after" the diagnosis. I have learned to live and cope with my RMD, with a sense of being different from my peers. This sense of "uniqueness" was only disrupted when I realised that my experience of illness was quite common to other persons with a RMD. I can still remember my fascination, in a Patient Reported Outcomes workshop, by discovering that our experience as patients had a bigger relevance that the one we usually conceive. Then, I felt the need of understanding the research process and specific jargon, so I could relate them with my knowledge on living with a RMD. Otherwise, any insight on the patient perspective would be "lost in translation", due to an inability to establish a correspondence between the scientific terminology and mindset regarding the disease, and the experience of illness and sickness by the individuals. Training opportunities were also recognised as desirable by the above mentioned EULAR recommendations, to increase expertise and understanding of research methods and to promote the patients' self-confidence on their contribution to research. The Patient Research Partners (PRP) training by EULAR, in 2013, was the first step towards a better understanding of what could be the role of patients and on how to provide a meaningful input from the patients' perspective into research processes. It was followed in 2014 by the training provided by European Patients' Academy on Therapeutic Innovation (EUPATI) for Patient Expert on the Medicines Research and Development Process. This expert-level training was organized in a mixture of independent e-learning coursework and face-to-face training events over a 14-month period. The syllabus involved six modules: Discovery of Medicines & Planning of Medicine Development, Non-Clinical Testing and Pharmaceutical Development, Exploratory and Confirmatory Clinical Development, Clinical Trials, Regulatory Affairs, Medicinal Product Safety, Pharmacovigilance and Pharmaco-epidemiology, HTA principles and practices. Additionally, in 2016, I have attended the 1st EULAR course on Health Economics in Rheumatology. In the meantime, my background as an anthropologist led me to become interested in Medical Anthropology. Between 2007–2015 my academic research (MA Phil. and PhD) was oriented towards a specialization in Anthropology of Health, with a special interest in Anthropology of Pharmaceuticals. Based on my personal experience, on this lecture I will focus on the challenges of the role of the PRP trying to fill the gap between the mindsets and practices of different stakeholders. Navigating through different meanings of symptoms and treatments, the educated patient representative must act like a translator, decodifying the biologic impact of the disease and intervention over the experience of illness on the everyday aspects of living with a RMD. The biggest expectation and challenge might be to bring these aspects forward, as relevant for the other stakeholders, since they shape individual values and patient's preferences. Although recognised as having a pivotal role, patient's involvement in research may be limited by tokenism or by ineffective patients' participation. Patients' involvement is now a requirement and an added value to any project. But, is the project team ready and willing to listen to patients? Are PRP duly involved in the project, or are they just expected to be recipients without any input of their perspectives into the development and implementation of the research? The knowledge and education acquired to perform our task enables us to understand science enough to communicate the patient experience in a meaningful way, improving the research. Our added value is, undoubtedly, our experience with the disease, our understanding of the individual values and preferences shaped by the everyday aspects of living with a RMD. We should be taken more seriously, for the benefit of science and patients. Disclosure of Interest None declared


OBJECTIVE
To explore how frequently physicians lose medical malpractice cases despite providing standard care and to assess whether severity of patient injury influences the frequency of plaintiff payment.

DESIGN
Retrospective cohort study.

SETTING
Physicians from the state of New Jersey insured by one insurance company from 1977 to 1992.

PARTICIPANTS
A total of 12,829 physicians involved in 8231 closed malpractice cases.

MEASUREMENTS
Physician care and claim severity were prospectively determined by the insurance company using a standard process.

RESULTS
Physician care was considered defensible in 62% of the cases and indefensible in 25% of the cases, in almost half of which the physician admitted error. In the remaining 13% of cases, it was unclear whether physician care was defensible. The plaintiff received a payment in 43% of all cases. Payment was made 21% of the time if physician care was considered defensible, 91% if considered indefensible, and 59% if considered unclear. The severity of the injury was classified as low, medium, or high in 28%, 47%, and 25% of the cases, respectively. Severity of injury had a small but significant association (P < 0.001) with the frequency of plaintiff payment (low severity, 39%; medium severity, 43%; and high severity, 47%). The severity of injury was not associated with the payment rate in cases resolved by a jury (low severity, 23%; medium severity, 25%; and high severity, 23%).

CONCLUSIONS
In malpractice cases, physicians provide care that is usually defensible. The defensibility of the case and not the severity of patient injury predominantly influences whether any payment is made. Even in cases that require a jury verdict, the severity of patient injury has little effect on whether any payment is made. Our findings suggest that unjustified payments are probably uncommon.


THE PROGNOSIS in acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) has greatly improved because of effective chemotherapy, irradiation, or both for the prevention of central nervous system (CNS) leukemia. As prolonged remissions become more frequent, larger concern now focuses on the undesirable consequences of therapy. 1 Immunosuppression is the most serious problem, since this is thought to lead to the fatal nonbacterial infections seen increasingly during remissions. 2 Treatment may also potentiate the development of a second neoplasm, as shown in the following case report. Report of a Case In December 1972, a 17-year-old boy found to have acute lymphoblastic leukemia was admitted to St. Agnes Hospital. Hematological remission was obtained with vincristine sulfate, prednisone, and daunorubicin. He also received three courses of methotrexate intrathecally and craniospinal irradiation to a total of 1,800 R as prophylaxis against CNS leukemia. Therapy was maintained with mercaptopurine and methotrexate, with periodic reinforcement by the three drugs


M. D. Gouldman Yehuda Z. Blum Legal Aspects of Town Planning in Israel, 1966. $4.00 / IL. 12.00. Consular Immunity from Judicial Process, 1966. $4.00 / IL. 12.00. Equitable Rights to Land and the Remedy of Specific Performance of Contracts for the Sale of Land. 1968. $4.00 / IL. 12.00. The Condominium Law: A Study of its Operation, 1970. $ 5.00 / IL. 15.00. Israeli Reports to the Eighth International Congress of Comparative Law (English, French and German), 1970. $8.00 / IL. 24.00. Israel Nationality Law, 1970. $6.00 / IL. 18.00. Secure Boundaries and Middle East Peace, 1971. $ 6.00 / IL. 18.00. Report of the Committee for the Preparation of a Government Corporations Bill, 1972. $6.00 / IL. 18.00. Judith Rommey Wegner A Bibliography of Israel Law in English and Other European Languages, 1972. $6.00 / IL. 18.00. Insider Trading in Israel and England, 1972. $ 7.00 / IL. 22.00. Reform of the Automobile Accident Compensation System, 1974. $2.00 / IL. 8.00. Israeli Reports to the Ninth International Congress of Comparative Law, 1974. $ 10.00 / IL. 30.00. Religious Law in the Israel Legal System, 1975. $12.00 / IL. 44.00. Aaron Yoran


Porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) can predispose pigs to the secondary respiratory infection with bacteria such as Haemophilus parasuis. Animals infected with both pathogens develop more severe clinical disease. Our study was aimed on immune response of porcine alveolar macrophages (PAMs) to simultaneous infection with PRRSV and H. parasuis in vitro, especially cytokine production, the expression of immunologically-relevant surface cell molecules and their functional and antimicrobial characteristics such as respiratory burst. Gene expression was measured by RT-PCR. Simultaneous infection with PRRSV and H. parasuis increased gene expression of pro-inflammatory cytokines (TNF-?, IL-1?, IL-8) in PAMs in comparison with PAMs infected with PRRSV or H. parasuis only, which was confirmed on protein level by ELISA. Synergistic effect of dual infection was also observed on mRNA production of co-stimulatory molecule CD80. This effect was not observed in the case of CD163 and MHCII. Production of reactive oxygen species (ROS) was measured by luminometry. PAMs infected with PRRSV increased production of ROS in comparison with non-infected PAMs. On the contrary, simultaneous infection of PAMs with PRRSV and H. parasuis decrease production of ROS indicating the presence of unspecified defence mechanism used by H. parasuis to defend itself against respiratory burst. Obtained data showed that simultaneous infection of PAMs with PRRSV and H. parasuis elicits strong pro-inflammatory immune response and that H. parasuis can probably protect itself against respiratory stress. Severe disease in natural conditions caused by both pathogens could be therefore consequence of pro-inflammatory mediated immunopathology. The study was supported by the Ministry of Agriculture of the Czech Republic (MZE0002716202, QJ1210120) and project AdmireVet (CZ 1.05/2.1.00/01.0006; ED0006/01/01).


Caesarean scar pregnancy is a rare form of an ectopic pregnancy that can lead to serious consequences like massive bleeding and uterine rupture. Although there is no consensus for treatment, many treatment options have been described. We present a female patient who had to undergo most of these available treatments due to unforeseen circumstances. These treatments include local injection of methotrexate and potassium chloride into the pregnancy, transcervical aspiration of the pregnancy under laparoscopic guidance, balloon occlusion of the internal iliac arteries and eventually a laparoscopic hysterectomy. She also developed a complication of vault dehiscence due to an abscess formation after her hysterectomy. Owing to the potential need for multiple interventions and admissions, adequate counselling is required for these patients to manage their expectations in what is usually a very difficult situation.


This article suggests that American sociology has developed a de facto tradition in the sociology of the marked that devotes greater epistemological attention to "politically salient" and "ontologically uncommon" features of social life. Although the "unmarked" comprises the vast majority of social life, the "marked" commands a disproportionate share of attention from sociologists. Since the marked already draws more attention within the general culture, social scientists contribute to re-marking and the reproduction of common-sense images of social reality. This has important analytic consequences. This article argues for developing a stronger tradition in a sociology of the unmarked that explicitly foregrounds "politically unnoticed" and taken-for-granted elements of social reality. Three strategies are proposed toward this end: (1) reversing conventional patterns of markedness to foreground what typically remains unnamed and implicit, (2) marking everything by filling in all the shades of social continua so that each shares the same degree of epistemological ornamentation, and (3) developing an analytically nomadic perspective that observes social phenomena from multiple vantage points.


Objectives: Obesity and related diseases are increasing and with the bariatric procedures both the excess weight and the prevalence of these related diseases are decreasing. Both obesity and related diseases lead to impairment on health-related quality of life of the patients. We aimed to evaluate the short-term effects of sleeve gastrectomy operation on health related quality of life in patients that were operated for morbid obesity. Methods:  Prospectively 62 patients that had sleeve gastrectomy operation enrolled in the study. The percentage of excess weight loss (%EWL) and the percentage of excess BMI loss (%EBMIL) were calculated 6 months after the operation. Anthropometric data and obesity-related co-morbidities were recorded. SF-36 questionnaire was used in order to evaluate the general health quality of the patients. Results:  The mean age of the patients was 37 years and the majority of the patients were female (74.2%). At the postoperative 6 th month, mean %EWL was calculated as 52.7% and mean %EBMIL was 60.1%. Six months after the operation, with the significant weight loss achieved, obesity-related co-morbidities were improved. Short Form-36 subscale scores at 6 months following the operation were observed, when compared with the preoperative scores (all p < 0.001). The mean physical health score significantly improved from 46.1 to 83.6 and the median mental health improved from 52 to 84, just 6 months after the sleeve gastrectomy operation. In multiple regression analysis %EWL was found to be a significant determinant of D Mental health ( B coefficient 0.490, p = 0.025) and D Physical health ( B coefficient 0.388, p = 0.047) after adjusting for gender, age, smoking, obstructive sleep apnea syndrome , hypertension, diabetes mellitus and coronary disease. Conclusions:  With the successive weight loss after sleeve gastrectomy, at the postoperative 6 th month, the physical and mental health-related quality of life was significantly improved. Early and expedited regain of this quality of life after the operation is important for the patients and their social surroundings. Moreover it is important for the countries to decrease the medical expenses and increase labour productivity.


Clinical acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) was correlated with alterations in PBL phenotype and skin immunohistology in 52 patients transplanted with HLA-identical bone marrow. Concurrent with the emergence of aGVHD, there was a profound decrease in absolute number of CD3- T cells and an increase in CD3-CD16+, CD56* (a subset of which coexpress CD8+ "dim") NK cells in the PBL. CD4+ T and CD20+ B lymphocytes failed to recover within 90 days in the patients with grades II-IV aGVHD. Ex vivo partial T cell depletion, in itself, did not significantly impair T cell recovery as compared to that in non-T-depleted recipients unless aGVHD occurred. Although leukocytic cellular infiltration in the skin was generally sparse, CD16+ NK lymphocytes were significantly increased in grades II—IV aGVHD. By contrast, there was no significant increase in CD3+, CD4+, or CD8+ lymphocytes in these lesions as compared to skin biopsies obtained from BMT patients without aGVHD or from normal skin. Taken together, these findings suggest that NK cells may be important in the pathogenesis of human aGVHD.