Agglomeration is an attraction of fine particles for one another due to their high surface energy, leading to formation of particle colonies known as agglomerates. When a polymeric or metallic matrix is reinforced with particles, agglomerates usually create regions of discontinuity or weak particle adhesion within the matrix and degrade mechanical properties of the resulting composites. In ball-milling synthesis of nanoparticles, formation of agglomerates can be controlled through optimisation of milling parameters. In this study, coconut shell (lignocellulosic) nanoparticles were synthesised by varying the charge ratios from 2.5 to 40 at constant milling duration (70 hours), speed in terms of drum/vial rotation (194 revolution per minute) and ball sizes (5- 60 mm). Assessment of the effects of charge ratios (CRs) on the morphologies and particles sizes of uncarbonised coconut shell nanoparticles (UCSnp) was studied. The synthesised UCSnp were characterised using electron microscopy and X-ray diffractometry (XRD). The results showed various morphologies and orientations of UCSnp with changes in the CRs. Size determination using XRD and SEM revealed a reduction in particle size as the CR increased up to a value of 10. At higher CRs, further reduction in the average particle size was not observable. This could be linked to a balance between particle refinement and agglomeration at these higher CRs. Although particle agglomeration was apparent above CR values of 10, sizes of the UCSnp obtained above this CRs were much smaller than the initial size (37 μm) of the coconut shell precursor particles. This affirmed the ball milling synthesis as a particle refinement process, but not a coarsening/agglomeration process. The results obtained from statistical analyses show agreement with experimental results.


An experiment was conducted during summer season of 1997 and 1998 revealed that liming upto both 25% lime requirement (25% LR) and 50% lime requirement (50% LR) increased significantly yield attributing characters, pod yield and oil yield of groundnut. However, application of 25% LR had a lead for almost aU the yield attributes and yield. Significant increase in yield attributes and yield were noted upto 50 kg P2O5/ha only.


We report anesthetic management of a patient suspected of malignant hyperthermia with difficult tracheal intubation. A 64-year-old man was scheduled for a fixation of humerus bone fractures in prone position. He had a history of difficult tracheal intubation due to masseter spasm, and his niece was suspected to be malignant hyperthermia. Anesthesia was induced with propofol using a target controlled infusion. No muscle relaxant was given and spontaneous breathing was maintained. Trials for tracheal intubation failed whenever using a standard laryngoscope, a bronchofiberscope, a laryngeal mask airway or an intubating laryngeal mask airway. Resecting the epiglottic elevating bar of an intubating laryngeal mask airway enabled fiberoptic tracheal intubation. No symptom suggesting malignant hyperthermia developed.


Hypertension is a disease that can cause complications towards other organs, and it will be more dangerous if the sufferer is classified as an adult. From 15 health centers in Sukabumi, Sukabumi Health Center occupies high number of hypertension cases at adult age about 706 or 16.3%. The purpose of this study is to determine the correlation between lifestyle and hypertension at adult age.
Hypertension is a condition when blood pressure systole is 140 mmHg or higher and diastolic blood pressure is 90 mmHg or higher. One of the factors that influence the incidence of hypertension is lifestyle.
This study used the type of correlational research with cross sectional approach. The population was 8,403 people with 383 people as the sample. Cluster Random Sampling was conducted to take the samples. The result of validity test of the lifestyle variable on 20 items was valid since the reliability was 0.787. The statistical analysis used Chi Square.
The results showed that healthy lifestyles was 52.5%, the incidence of non-hypertensive hypertension was 50.4%. There was correlation between lifestyle and the incidence of hypertension at adult age because it has p-value of 0.00.


This is a review of the lecture Does Bilingualism Affect Cognitive and Brain Structures? Facts and Fictions by Ellen Bialystok on June 30, 2020 for Abralin. Aspects of bilingualism, inhibition and selective attention are examined to demonstrate where research shows positive correlations (life endpoints: infancy and old age) and where it remains unclear (young adults). Reasons for this are examined and the unity and diversity model upon which predictions have been made is disputed. A contention for a different outlook in research on bilingualism posits that better explanations can be found in looking at attentional network reconfiguration and neuroplasticity adaptations.


Bone proteomics is an expanding field for understanding protein changes associated with disease as well as characterizing and detecting proteins preserved in fossil bone. Most previous studies have utilized a protocol with demineralization and extraction approach to isolate and characterize proteins from bone. Through near-complete EDTA demineralization, followed by solid digestion of the remaining bone pseudomorph, a total of 92 protein accessions were detected from dog bone. In the EDTA, 14 unique proteins were found, including osteocalcin, an important bone protein. Osteocalcin was not found in the solid digestion samples, demonstrating the importance of examining the demineralization supernatant. The solid-digestion samples were analyzed both with (11 unique accessions) and without (16 unique accessions) alkylation, resulting in a total of 78 protein accessions. In addition to the diversity of proteins detected, various post-translational modifications were observed, including phosphorylation and glycosylation. The solid-digestion approach will allow for characterization of proteins that are insoluble and would otherwise be missed by traditional bone protein extraction alone. All data are available at ftp://massive.ucsd.edu/MSV000081399 .


The adoption of dicamba-tolerant (DT) soybean in the United States resulted in extensive off-target dicamba damage to non-DT vegetation across soybean-producing states. Although soybeans are highly sensitive to dicamba, the intensity of observed symptoms and yield losses are affected by the genetic background of genotypes. Thus, the objective of this study was to detect novel marker-trait associations and expand on previously identified genomic regions related to soybean response to off-target dicamba. A total of 551 non-DT advanced breeding lines derived from 232 unique bi-parental populations were phenotyped for off-target dicamba across nine environments for three years. Breeding lines were genotyped using the Illumina Infinium BARCSoySNP6K BeadChip. Filtered SNPs were included as predictors in Random Forest (RF) and Support Vector Machine (SVM) models in a forward stepwise selection loop to identify the combination of SNPs yielding the highest classification accuracy. Both RF and SVM models yielded high classification accuracies (0.76 and 0.79, respectively) with minor extreme misclassifications (observed tolerant predicted as susceptible, and vice-versa). Eight genomic regions associated with off-target dicamba tolerance were identified on chromosomes 6 [Linkage Group (LG) C2], 8 (LG A2), 9 (LG K), 10 (LG O), and 19 (LG L). Although the genetic architecture of tolerance is complex, high classification accuracies were obtained when including the major effect SNP identified on chromosome 6 as the sole predictor. In addition, candidate genes with annotated functions associated with phases II (conjugation of hydroxylated herbicides to endogenous sugar molecules) and III (transportation of herbicide conjugates into the vacuole) of herbicide detoxification in plants were co-localized with significant markers within each genomic region. Genomic prediction models, as reported in this study, can greatly facilitate the identification of genotypes with superior tolerance to off-target dicamba.


In the present study, we investigated the effect of CDK inhibitors (ribociclib, palbociclib, seliciclib, AZD5438, and dinaciclib) on malignant human glioma cells for cell viability, apoptosis, oxidative stress, and mitochondrial function using various assays. None of the CDK inhibitors induced cell death at a clinically relevant concentration. However, low nanomolar concentrations of dinaciclib showed higher cytotoxic activity against Bcl‐xL silenced cells in a time‐ and concentration‐dependent manner. This effect was not seen with other CDK inhibitors. The apoptosis‐inducing capability of dinaciclib in Bcl‐xL silenced cells was evidenced by cell shrinkage, mitochondrial dysfunction, DNA damage, and increased phosphatidylserine externalization. Dinaciclib was found to disrupt mitochondrial membrane potential, resulting in the release of cytochrome c, AIF, and smac/DIABLO into the cytoplasm. This was accompanied by the downregulation of cyclin‐D1, D3, and total Rb. Dinaciclib caused cell cycle arrest in a time‐ and concentration‐dependent manner and with accumulation of cells in the sub‐G1 phase. Our results also revealed that dinaciclib, but not ribociclib or palbociclib or seliciclib or AZD5438 induced intrinsic apoptosis via upregulation of the levels of pro‐apoptotic proteins (Bax and Bak), resulting in the activation of caspases and cleavage of PARP. We also found an additional mechanism for the dinaciclib‐induced augmentation of apoptosis due to abrogation RAD51‐cyclin D1 interaction, specifically proteolysis of the DNA repair proteins RAD51 and Ku80. Our results suggest that successfully interfering with Bcl‐xL function may restore sensitivity to dinaciclib and could hold the promise for an effective combination therapeutic strategy.


Abstract Background and Objective: Coagulase-negative staphylococci are both an important cause of nosocomial bloodstream infections and the most common contaminants of blood cultures. Judging the clinical significance of coagulase-negative staphylococci is vital but often difficult and can have a profound impact on an institution's bloodstream infection rates. Our objective was to develop an algorithm to assist in determining the clinical significance of coagulase-negative staphylococci. Design: A single experienced reviewer examined the medical records of 960 consecutive patients with positive blood cultures in a tertiary-care referral teaching hospital. Four hundred five of the cultures contained coagulase-negative staphylococci. A determination of clinical significance was made and the performances of various published algorithms that contained readily available clinical and laboratory data were compared. Results: Eighty-nine (22%) of the episodes were considered significant, whereas 316 were contaminants. Patients with bacteremia were significantly more likely to be neutropenic and exhibit signs of sepsis syndrome. The algorithm with the best combined sensitivity (62%) and specificity (91%) for determining the clinical significance of coagulase-negative staphylococci was defined as at least two blood cultures positive for coagulase-negative staphylococci within 5 days, or one positive blood culture plus clinical evidence of infection, which includes abnormal white blood cell count and temperature or blood pressure. Conclusion: Use of this algorithm could potentially reduce misclassification of nosocomial bloodstream infections and inappropriate use of vancomycin for positive blood cultures likely to represent contamination (Infect Control Hosp Epidemiol 2005;26:559-566).


Copper(I) iodide and other copper(I) salts (CuX) react with amines and sulfides (L) in their gas phase to form luminescent rhomboid Cu2(�2-X)2L4 and/or cubane Cu4(�3-X)4L4 complexes. This work reports this spontaneous reaction occuring at the surface of CuI powder, pressed CuI pellets, CuI-impregnated polymer films, and CuI-embedded polypropylene plates. An LED fiber optic fluorimeter was used to monitor the reaction of gaseous pyridine (Py) or other nucleophile with CuI-impregnated PVC films. Known Py vapor pressures were established in a sealed chamber through gas-phase dilutions and correlated to luminescence emission response. Detectability of Py was established at vapor pressures as low as 0.001 Torr. Surface phases of CuI-Py were identified through X-ray powder diffraction. Initial formation of dimer Cu2(�2-I)2Py4 (emission l = 520 nm) quickly gives way to tetramer Cu4(�3-I)4Py4 (emission l = 580 nm).


Alternative splicing (AS) is a highly conserved mechanism that allows to expand the coding capacity of the genome, by modifying how multiple isoforms are expressed or used to generate different phenotypes. Despite its importance in physiology and disease, genome-wide studies of AS are lacking in most insects, including mosquitoes. Even for model organisms, chromatin associated processes involved in the regulation AS are poorly known. In this study, we investigated AS in the mosquito Anopheles gambiae in the context of tissue-specific gene expression and mosquito responses to a Plasmodium falciparum infection, as well as the relationship between patterns of differential isoform expression and usage with chromatin accessibility changes. For this, we combined RNA-seq and ATAC-seq data from A. gambiae midguts and salivary glands, and from infected and non-infected midguts. We report differences between tissues in the expression of 456 isoforms and in the use of 211 isoforms. Secondly, we find a clear and significant association between chromatin accessibility states and tissue-specific patterns of AS. The analysis of differential accessible regions located at splicing sites permitted the identification of several motifs resembling the binding sites of Drosophila transcription factors. Finally, the genome-wide analysis of tissue-dependent enhancer activity revealed that approximately 20% of A. gambiae transcriptional enhancers annotate to a differentially expressed or used isoform and that their activation status is linked to AS differences between tissues. This research illuminates the role of AS in gene expression in vector mosquitoes, and identifies regulatory regions potentially involved in AS regulation, which could reveal novel strategies for vector control.


Conventional methods to measure accessibility in cost-benefit analysis are not capable of measuring all accessibility benefits of integrated land-use/transport strategies. Conventional methods are here defined by the frequently applied rule-of-half project appraisal method in combination with changes in travel times (or congestion time). Such an approach is incapableof calculating all the accessibility effects of land-use policies, as it does not value changes in the land-use pattern. The land-use effects are only indirectly valued as they affect travel production or times/costs, which seems to be an implausible approximation for these benefits as it does not address in a direct way changes in the travel opportunities at the locations. It should be noted that current practice is also not fully measuring the impacts of transport policies as land-use effects resulting from such a policy are not valued. This paper first presents an approach to calculate the accessibility effects of integrated land-use and transport strategies. In a second step, these accessibility effects are converted into monetary costs or benefits. The method has been applied within a large-scale policy study to evaluate the accessibility effects of several integrated land-use and transport strategies in the Netherlands. In the first step thechanges in accessibility are calculated by the TIGRIS XL model; an integrated land use and transport model that has been developed for the Transport Research Centre in the Netherlands. The land-use model uses discrete time steps of one year to generate population segmentation and employment figures by zone. The land use model incorporates four components: a demography module, a land-use and real estate market module, a housing market module and a labour market module. Every five years a dynamic integration is made with the National Model System (NMS), the transport model for the Netherlands. The NMS is a discrete choice type of transport model based on micro-economic utility theory. With such a model it is possible to generate a logsum value for each tour, an aggregate value expressing the utility fromalternative modes and characteristics of the destination locations. This logsum represents the accessibility impacts of changes in land-use patterns, which is an important advantage of the logsum method compared to conventional project appraisal using travel speeds or costs in combination with the rule-of-half method. A second advantage of the presented framework is that the use of a land-use and transport interaction model makes it possible to extend traditional accessibility indicators by including changes in land-use as a result of the strategy. The logsum change, defined as the difference between the expected utility of a variant and the reference case,represents the change in the consumer surplus. To value the change in consumer surplus (utility), the standard set of values of time used in project appraisal can be used (e.g. from stated preference studies). An alternative valuation method is to use the set of values of time that is implied by the utility coefficients of the NMS itself, which might be preferred forreasons of consistency. However in this study the standard set has been used to make the findings of the logsum approach more comparable with thoseof the conventional method (that uses the same set of values of time). Inthe application of TIGRIS XL for the spatial impressions project for the Netherlands Environmental Assessment Agency (MNP) the accessibility impacts of several land-use and transport strategies have been calculated and expressed in monetary terms. These include a retreat variant, which basically means no growth in the Western part of the Netherlands, and an urban concentration variant with a concentrated development in and around existing urban centres. Furthermore several transport strategies have been tested in combination with the urban concentration variant, such as an infrastructure construction program, a congestion charging strategy or a combination of both. For all strategies the impacts have been calculated by applying the rule-of-half method as well as the logsum method. Preliminary conclusions are that: Land-use policies do have a substantial impact on accessibility measures and should not be ignored in the evaluation; the rule-of-half method is not capable of addressing these effects of land-use policies on accessibility; the application illustrates that the rule-of-half method can result in effects with the wrong sign. For the covering abstract see ITRD E137145.


An inductively coupled plasma (ICP) spectrometer equipped with pneumatic nebulization sample introduction requires mL volumes of sample. For direct elemental analysis of small amounts of solids, an ICP equipped either with a direct sample insertion (DSI) or with an electro-thermal vaporization (ETV) sample introduction system would typically require mg amounts of sample. In my laboratories, we have been developing and characterizing a new sample introduction system we call in-torch vaporization (ITV). The ITV sample introduction system improved significantly the detection limits of ICP spectrometry (both atomic emission and mass spectrometry), thus enabling determinations for micro- and sub-micro size liquid or solid samples. In some cases, even microscopic, nano-size samples were successfully analyzed. In the first part of this paper, development of ITV-ICP for both Atomic Emission Spectrometry (AES) and Mass Spectrometry (MS) will be described. It will be shown that ITV has the potential to cause a paradigm shift in classical elemental analysis by ICP spectrometry by taking analysts from the milli-size (e.g., mg or mL) to the micro-size (e.g., microgram of microL), sub-micro and even nano-sample size-regime. Despite the success of ITV with tiny amounts of sample, such samples must still be collected in the field and must be brought to the laboratory (albeit in smaller containers) for elemental analysis by ICP spectrometry. Would it not be ideal if we could bring an ICP spectrometer to the sample, thus obtaining analytical results in the field (i.e., on-site) and in (near) real-time? Since the typical ICP spectrometer is bulky and heavy and has kWatt power requirements, it is nearly always tethered to a wall socket and it is not usually taken out to the field. Do we need such a large instrument to analyze such tiny samples? In the second part of this paper, current research in my laboratories toward the conceptual goal of miniaturizing elemental analysis instrumentation will be presented. For this, development and characterization of a portable, battery-operated instrument for (near) real-time Hg determination in the field from gases and from liquid and solid micro-samples will be used as an example. Future portable elemental analysis micro-instruments that can be taken out of the lab and into the field are poised to cause another paradigm shift in classical elemental analysis by allowing analysts to bring (part of) the lab to the sample.


The risk assessment of sex offenders has evolved rapidly over a 20-year period. However, there is still disparity between empirically evaluated approaches and the needs within the applied context. This article discusses the division between the current needs in the applied setting of sex offender risk assessment, and the existing approaches to risk assessment. It highlights key needs that ought to be responded to, to continue the evolution of sex offender risk assessment (i.e., increased automation of processes, additional emphasis on early identification and prevention, and the targeting of resources towards risk). A new risk assessment model termed the Threat Matrix is introduced as a proposed response to these needs. The new model uses information derived from police systems to make proactive assessments of those who may pose a risk of sexual violence, but who have not been convicted of sexual offences. The practical and ethical implications of implementing and testing this model are discussed.


The emerging technology of harvesting environmental energy using hydrovoltaic devices enriches the conversion forms of renewable energy. It provides more concepts for power supply in micro/nano systems, and hydrovoltaic technology with high performance, usability, and integration is essential for achieving sustainable green energy. Comparing the discovery of multiscale nanomaterials, working layers with innovative microstructures have gradually become the dominant trend in the construction of graphene-based hydrovoltaic devices. However, reports on promoting ion/electron redistribution at the solid-liquid interface through the substrate effect of graphene are accompanied by tedious procedures, nondiverse substrates, and monolithic regulation of enhancement mechanisms. Here, the electrophoretic deposition (EPD)-driven SiC whiskers (SiCw)-assisted graphene transfer process is adopted to alleviate the complexity of the device fabrication caused by graphene transfer. The resulting output performance of the graphene/SiCw (GS) mesh films is significantly boosted. The high integrity of graphene and prominent negative surface charge near the graphene-droplet interface are derived from the overlayer and underlayer inside the graphene-based mixed-dimensional van der Waals (vdW) heterostructures, respectively. Additionally, a self-powered desalination-monitoring system is designed based on integrated hydrovoltaic devices. Electricity harvested from the ionic solutions is reused for deionization, representing an efficient strategy for energy conversion and utilization.


Introduction: Nurse is the first member of the healthcare team to begin mobilizing the patient. There was little knowledge about nursing decisions on whether to ambulate, how they ambulate, and when they ambulate older hospitalized patients and also lack of knowledge and training. The most important change to improve time starts their first postoperative activity. Dangling the client the of surgery day to enhance the benefits of the early mobility and have to decreased the time from 16.8 to 6 hours with no side effects of client consequences. Methods: An experimental study which was conducted in a tertiary care hospital about improving nurses knowledge and attitude regarding early mobilization of post-operative patients in Lahore, Pakistan. This was a quality improvement project utilized a pre-survey, educational intervention, post survey design. The educational intervention integrated knowledge obtained from the review of literature in the form of a 25 minute Power Point presentation. Pre and post-survey included knowledge-based questions and opinion-based questions. Results: The data was collected from 109 participants from different surgical department's nurses. It was consist into 2 section pre and post survey, eight multiple choice question knowledge based and five opinion-based statements answered by marking a visual analogue scale. The gander of the surgical nurses all were female and age group was up to 20 years, education of surgical nurses in general nursing was 50.5%, BS Nursing (Generic) was 4.6%, BS Nursing ( Post RN) was 26.6%, Specialization was 18.3%. Marital status of surgical nurses those who married was 54.1% and unmarried was 44.9%. Nursing experience of surgical Nurses was more than 6 months and Department of surgical Nurses in general surgery was 28.4%, ICU was 33.0%, urology was 16.5%, Gynae was 20.2% and neurosurgery was 5.5%. Conclusions: All nurses was correctly responded in both the pre-survey and post-survey to questions regarding the complications of immobility and the positive effect of early mobilization of the postoperative patient. An evaluation piece such as chart reviews at a future date was provided the opportunity to ensure change had embedded into practice, becoming the new status quo.  The Advanced Practice Nurse was the ability to devise, implement, and evaluate such initiatives with the purpose of achieving integration of evidence based knowledge into practice and improving patient outcomes. Keywords : Knowledge, Nurses, Early, Mobilization, Post-Operative, Attitude, Patients


The purpose of the investment is to bring benefits to the owners and sustainable development for the local community and for future generations. Arbitration is the process of resolving legal disputes between individuals, groups and countries. Every investment activity must ensure sustainable development to respect the rights of future generations. However; Canadian zinc smelting companies emit sulfur dioxide and cause air pollution in the United States. This created a dispute between Canada and the United States, then they agreed to settle it through a neutral arbitration court. As a result, this arbitration court ruling creates two principles of international environmental law primarily; the polluter pays the principle and obligation of the state not to damage the environment outside its jurisdiction. This arbitration award establishes the concept of Harm across borders and the principle of polluter pays to ensure the sovereignty of international environmental law. Therefore; if disputes arise between countries, they can resolve them through peaceful dispute resolution mechanisms such as negotiation, mediation and arbitration.


The Brazilian Amazon contains the largest remaining contiguous forest in the tropics, but also faces strong development pressures and one of the highest rates of deforestation in the world. In the 30 years since the murder of the rubber tapper leader Chico Mendes and the subsequent creation of Extractive Reserves (ERs), this protected area model continues to be a conservation and development strategy that strives to secure land for forest-dependent smallholders and stem the advance of large-scale deforestation in the region. As of August 2018, 76 federal and state ERs have been created in the Brazilian Amazon, spanning over 14 million ha. Despite three decades of ER implementation and its importance to people-based conservation, there has not yet been a region-wide analysis of this model. In order to fill this gap, we analyze the spatial and temporal trajectory of ERs and how the implementation of this policy played out differently across Amazonian states. Grounded in a political ecology framework, we identify four phases of ERs implementation (inception, consolidation, expansion, and stagnation). We assess the land allotted in each state to ER protection and examine the federal and state-level political and institutional dynamics that may have favored or limited the growth of the ER model. Although ERs made an impressive impact, and remain in the spotlight of environmental policy debates in Brazil, challenges remain to combat continued pressures at Amazon development frontiers. This paper contributes to better understanding the current condition of the ER model and provides lessons for its continued implementation in the Brazilian Amazon, and its role in forest conservation.


The aim of this work was to assess the effect of different stabilizing agents, for example, polyethylenimine (PEI) and polyvinylpyrrolidone (PVP), on gold nanoparticles (AuNPs) and their influence on equine platelet activation and release of particular growth factors. The gold nanoparticles were produced by chemical reduction of chloroauric acid. UV-Vis spectroscopy confirmed the presence of gold nanoparticles in investigated solutions. The AuNPs were incubated with whole blood at various concentrations. The morphology of platelets in PRP prepared from the blood incubated with AuNPs was characterized by scanning transmission electron microscopy, whereas the concentrations of growth factors and cytokines were evaluated by ELISA assays. The most promising results were obtained with equine platelets incubated with 5% AuNPs stabilized by PEI, which lead to secretion of bone morphogenetic protein 2 (BMP-2), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), and fibroblast growth factor 1 (FGF-1) and simultaneously cause decrease in concentration of interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1α). The qRT-PCR confirmed ELISA test results. The incubation with 5% AuNPs stabilized by PEI leads to upregulation of BMP-2 and VEGF transcripts of mRNA level and to downregulating expression of interleukin-6 (IL-6). Obtained data shed a promising light on gold nanoparticle application for future regenerative medicine application.


The notion of "paired" fermions is central to important condensed matter phenomena such as superconductivity and superfluidity. While the concept is widely used and its physical meaning is clear there exists no systematic and mathematical theory of pairing which would allow to unambiguously characterize and systematically detect paired states. We propose a definition of pairing and develop methods for its detection and quantification applicable to current experimental setups. Pairing is shown to be a quantum correlation different from entanglement, giving further understanding in the structure of highly correlated quantum systems. In addition, we will show the resource character of paired states for precision metrology, proving that the BCS states allow phase measurements at the Heisenberg limit.


Fresh fruits and vegetables are increasingly recognized as a source of salmonellosis outbreaks in many parts of the world. Such products are always eaten raw or with minimal processing and if contaminated with Salmonella, they may represent a health hazard to the consumers. The public health importance of Salmonella in man led the present study to determine the prevalence and quantity of Salmonella spp., Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium in sliced fruits. In domestic kitchen, the food contact surfaces are sometimes improperly cleaned which ease the formation of biofilm by Salmonella. Subsequent detachment from the biofilm layer can be at risk for contamination of fresh fruits and vegetables. Hence, the quantification of biofilm formed by Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium on plastic cutting board used in domestic kitchen was determined in this study prior to analyzing the transfer rate of these two pathogens to the fruit model.
The most probable number (MPN)-multiplex polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was used for the prevalence and quantification studies. A multiplex PCR was optimized for the simultaneous detection of Salmonella spp., Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium in sliced papaya, watermelon, mango, sapodilla, jackfruit, dragon fruit and honeydew. The prevalence of Salmonella spp., Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium in 210 samples of sliced fruits examined were 23.3%, 7.6% and 3.8%, respectively with estimated quantity varied from 0 to 19 MPN/g. On the other hand, the prevalence of Salmonella spp. discovered from the total sliced fruits of hawker stalls were three times higher than those from hypermarkets at 30% and 10% respectively at p<0.05. Salmonella spp. were detected in 23.3% fruit samples using MPN-multiplex PCR and at 9.5% using MPN-plating method.
Out of the seven types of fruits examined, dragon fruit from hawker stalls showed the highest prevalence of contamination with 75% Salmonella spp., 40% Salmonella Typhi and 25% Salmonella Typhimurium. Hence, it was used as the fruit model to study the biofilm formation by Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium on plastic cutting board and their subsequent transfer to dragon fruit. By using crystal violet assay, it was found that biofilm formation of Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium on plastic cutting board was the highest at 12 h when they are incubated in physiological saline solution at 28°C. On the transfer of these two pathogens from plastic cutting board to dragon fruit, results showed their mean transfer percentages were 92.38 and 91.30%respectively for Salmonella Typhi and Salmonella Typhimurium. These highlighted that biofilm can cross-contaminate dragon fruit and contribute to cross-infection. As a conclusion, there is a need for the health authority to look into the risk assessment of sliced fruits in Malaysia. The risk of microbial transfer from food contact surface to fresh fruits should also be of concern to prevent foodborne disease outbreaks.


Preterm birth is the leading cause of mortality and morbidity in infants. Its etiology is multifactorial with genes and immune homeostasis. The authors investigated whether prostaglandin (PG) synthesis related single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) PLA2G4C rs1366442 and PLA2G4D rs4924618 were associated with the risk of spontaneous preterm birth (SPTB) in a Chinese population of 114 cases of SPTB and 250 controls of term delivery. The risk associations were determined by odds ratios (ORs) and their 95% confidence intervals (CIs) calculated using multivariate logistic regression. Homology modeling was performed to elucidate potential mechanism of the SNP function. The maternal AT/TT genotype of PLA2G4D rs4924618 was associated with a reduced risk of SPTB (OR, 0.61; 95% CI, 0.37–0.99), while no significant association between PLA2G4C rs1366442 and SPTB risk was identified. Structure and sequence analysis revealed that the amino acid substitution introduced by this SNP located at the conserved central core of the catalytic domain of cytosolic phospholipase A2 δ and was close to the active site. These findings suggested that the polymorphism of PLA2G4D rs4924618 may have a protective influence on the SPTB susceptibility in a Chinese population, supporting a role for genetics in the association between PG synthesis and preterm birth.


Contrary to the premise that military historians tend to regard the Battle of Doornkraal as a minor skirmish of the Second Anglo-Boer War, this article expounds the view that the outcome of this brief but violent encounter had far-reaching implications. A detailed account of the events leading up to the British surprise attack on General De Wet's commando forces at dawn on 6th November 1900 is given. As the author points out, De Wet had ample warning of his foe's intentions: his narrow escape at Rensburgdrift was almost a full dress-rehearsal for the tragic act to be played out at Doornkraal. De Wet did not heed this warning, thereby committing perhaps the greatest tactical blunder of his military career. For the British Doornkraal was a major victory, but one for which they had to pay dearly. As things turned out, they lost a few able officers and a tailor-made opportunity to capture President M.T. Steyn and General De Wet. The Boer general swore revenge, and the British had to suffer humiliation and defeat until the end of the war.


Shooting accuracy is one of the important indicators of remote controlled weapon station. Based on the dynamics analysis software adams, a virtual prototype of a remote weapon station was established estimate the influence of control system error on system accuracy. simulation and analysis of dynamic characteristics of shooting. Verify the structure and principle of the system. inspection of fire control performance and obtain the shooting accuracy of the weapon system. Comparing with the firing accuracy of live ammunition. The correctness of theoretical and simulation analysis is verified. The research and improvement of firing accuracy of the weapon system has certain guiding significance, and has certain reference value for the design and research of modern digital weapon system.


The sarcoma virus oncogene (Src) tyrosine kinase, a nonreceptor protein-tyrosine kinase, plays a crucial role in cell survival, migration, differentiation and proliferation. The study of Src has developed considerably since it was first discovered as a proto-oncogene. Src has also been associated with inflammation and bone-related diseases. Src inhibitors (bosutinib, ponatinib, dasatinib, and vandetanib) have been put into clinical use. However, their side effects and cardiovascular toxicity may be a concern. There is an urgent need to explore new Src inhibitors. Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM), which has a vast history, can provide a broad resource base. Many natural compounds and TCM extracts have the potential for anti-Src treatment. This article describes the natural compounds and extracts from TCM.


In compliance with the stringent BS-VI emission norms, control of particulate matter in diesel engine exhaust emission is currently achieved through diesel particulate filters, catalytic convertors, and baffle filters of various designs. In the present study a device comprised of a spiral duct with an increasing cross-sectional area over the length is designed and developed. The duct has a lining of heat-resistant and porous material fixed along the inside walls. The inlet of the devices is connected to the outlet of the tailpipe of the exhaust system. The device will collect the particulate matter in the heat-resistant porous lining along the walls of the spiral. The developed device is simple, economical and easily serviceable. The developed spiral duct particulate matter separator was tested on diesel vehicles, and the smoke density of tailpipe emission was measured in terms of the light absorption coefficient. During the analysis it was found that there is a reduction in light absorption coefficient by 25.37%. The developed design also overcomes the clogging problem of the exhaust system, which is a cause of backpressure in the case of conventional particulate filters. The design of the device is such that it can be easily retrofitted in the existing fleet of vehicles, making them compliant with stringent statuary emission norms.


Corporate Social Responsibility Disclosure (CSRD) Guidelines (2012) constituted by the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) for all listed companies in Pakistan. The purpose of this study is to explore post guidelines effects over firms' CSRD level as well as CSRD association with financial performance of Pakistan's automobile sector from 2013-2019.  CSRD has been measured by developing CSRD index of 45 items from six CSR dimensions (employee, customer, community, environment, energy and investor). Financial performance has been measured by return on assets (ROA), return on equity (ROE) and Tobin's Q (TBQ). Study considered firm age, firm size and financial leverage as control variables. Descriptive statistics has applied for measuring CSRD level. The association between CSRD and financial performance has measured by multiple regression models. Findings of the study show an increasing trend in the CSRD level during the study time period except 2019. Study also provides an evidence of significant positive association of CSRD with financial performance with all financial performance measures.


Objective: To assess outcomes of neonates born to mothers who were COVID-19 positive.
Study Design: Prospective observational study.
Place and Duration of Study: Secondary and Tertiary Care Hospitals of the Armed Forces, Pakistan, from Apr to Aug 2020.
Methodology: We studied 106 pregnant women who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2. Stable asymptomatic newborn babies were kept in SARS-CoV-2 specified incubators, at specially designated areas for observation. Nasopharyngeal swabs were taken at first 24 hours and if negative, babies were handed over to clinically stable mothers who were educated regarding use of facemasks and proper hand washing. Neonates who tested positive for SARS-CoV-2 were evaluated for SARS-CoV-2 again at 48 hours and then every 48-72 hours, until found to be negative.
Results: Total 106 women were found to be SARS-CoV-2 positive during the study period. All the women delivered singleton babies. Of the 106 babies, 5 (4.71%) were found to be positive for SARS-CoV-2 at 24 hours and only 1 (0.94%) baby was found to be positive at 48 hours and then tested negative at 7th day.
Conclusion: Babies born to SARS-CoV-2 mothers were mostly asymptomatic and there was no increased risk of morbidity or mortality to the neonates suffering from the infection.


A BSTRACT : Heterogeneous sandstones in upper to middle Miocene lobes of the Mahakam Delta are prolific hydrocarbon reservoirs in the lower Kutei Basin, offshore East Kalimantan, Indonesia. At Attaka and Serang fields, more than 99 million cubic meters (627 million barrels) of oil and 37 billion cubic meters (1.3 trillion cubic ft) of gas have been produced from sandstones that we interpret as delta-front bars and tidal/fluvial distributary channels. Sand bodies of the modern Mahakam delta are analogs for many of these reservoirs. Delta-front bars are burrowed to laminated, fine-grained sandstones that form equant to somewhat dip-elongate bodies that range in thickness from < 1 m to 5 m and may exceed several kilometers in width. Cross-stratified, coarse- to fine-grained tidal/fluvial distributary channel sandstones are 3 to 17 m thick and narrow (< 1.5 km wide). Distributary-channel sandstones are typically highly porous (20–35%) and permeable (100–10,000 md), although tidal distributaries exhibit permeability heterogeneity, due to mud drapes and local burrows. Delta-front sandstones, although areally extensive, have generally poorer reservoir quality than the distributary channel sandstones ( k = < 0.1–1000 md; porosity = 10–25%). Also, the delta-front sands exhibit major centimeter- to decimeter-scale variations in permeability, which are related to variations in clay content and intensity of burrowing.Stacked, distributary-channel reservoirs are especially well developed in the Upper Miocene "Main Deltaics" interval, which we interpret as a succession of lowstand deltaic lobes. The coarsest-grained and thickest deltaic sandstones typically accumulate during relative lowstands, times when deltas have prograded long distances across marine shelves. Such lowstand sandstones also form the most porous and permeable hydrocarbon reservoirs. Thin-bedded sandstones and burrowed sandstones are common in distal deltaic deposits, which were probably deposited during times of somewhat higher relative sea level. Such sandstones may form low-resistivity reservoirs, which can, if recognized, contribute substantially to hydrocarbon production.


Fibroid, also called leiomyomas, is common tumor of the uterus. Usually, women of reproductive age are at risk of getting it. However, majority of these women develop fibroid (s) by the age of 50 years. This condition usually causes painful and unpleasant symptoms such as; heavy bleeding, prolonged periods, inter-menstrual bleeding, abdominal pain and cramps, anemia, pelvic pain and pain during sexual intercourse, among others. Abnormal bleeding, such as bleeding that occurs with fibroids and heavy periods, often lasts more than 10 days per month. This fibroid symptom involves persistent bleeding between cycles, which can severely impact one's quality of life. Abnormal bleeding, especially in fibroids, can be taken as missing three or more periods in a woman who had been having regular monthly period, or periods that last less than 21 days or more than 35 days apart from each other. Another indication of an abnormal period is bleeding through multiple pads and tampons in a short amount of time.


This paper describes the design, implementation and test results of a battery-operated wireless airflow sensor for use in mining applications. The sensor uses ultrasonic transducers for flow estimation and the ISA100 standard for wireless communication. The work demonstrates the feasibility of the solution and identifies the remaining work needed to obtain a commercial product.


Hyperphosphataemia in patients with chronic renal failure has traditionally been treated with calcium- and aluminium-containing phosphate binders. This article briefly discusses the rationale and complications of these treatments and reviews sevelamer that is a novel non-calcium-, non-aluminium-containing phosphate binder and the evidence to support its use in clinical practice.


Rehabilitation is a medical intervention implemented mainly by therapists under the prescription orders of medical doctors in hospitals. It is difficult to standardize rehabilitation intervention processes because they largely depend on individual therapists rather than medicines or instruments, and there are few quantitative clinical indicators. In such situations, there are differences in intervention processes and outcomes between therapists and hospitals. In this study, we aim to develop a method for standardization of rehabilitation intervention processes based on actual clinical data. In our method, we firstly prepare a standard intervention process that could include the differences between therapists and hospitals. Second, we prepare an investigation sheet, which is designed to record information on intervention, outcome, and patient background. Third, we accumulate actual clinical data on the standard intervention process. Fourth, we analyze the accumulated clinical data, based on the evaluation structure designed for the target rehabilitation intervention. Finally, we try to standardize the intervention processes based on the results of analysis among therapists and hospitals. We applied our method to 87 total cases of dysphagia rehabilitation for cerebral stroke patients at three hospitals as the first cycle of standardization, and 130 cases as the second cycle. We thus designed a standard intervention process to record the clinical processes actually implemented in three hospitals. In addition, we obtained findings both on the effects of patient background and on effective intervention which supported the validity of our proposal.


The present study was carried out to investigate the effect of copper sulfate
(CUSO₄) exposure on cholinesterase (ChE) activity, histology, and proteome of
Punt ius javanicus liver. Acute toxicity test to obtain lethal concentration (LC) values
(LC₅₀o and LC10) of CUSO₄ was initially done by exposing eight groups of fish for 96
hours with 2.0, 4.0, 6.0, 8.0, 10, 13, 15 and 20 mg/L of CUSO₄, respectively. Based
on Finney method (Probit analysis) of calculation, LC₅o and LC10 of CUSO₄ were
determined as at 10.30 mg/L and 6.11 mg/L, respectively. Sublethal CUSO₄
concentrations of 0, 0.1,0.3, 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0 mg/L (Lower than LC10 value i.e. with
100% fish survival) were used to treat six groups of P. javanicus fish including a
control for 96 hours. The liver of each treated and control fish was subjected to
cholinesterase activity test, histology, and proteomic studies. For ChE activity study,
an optimal assay condition of purified ChE was determined as at the pH 7.5 and at
the temperature in the range of 25 to 35°C in 0.1M Sodium Phosphate buffer. As
compared to other synthetic substrate, butyrylthiocholine iodide (BTCi) was selected
as ChE specific substrate with the highest maximal activity (Vmax), lowest
biomolecular constant (Km) and the highest catalytic efficiency ratio at the value of
53.49 (50.12 to 56.87)µmol/min/mg, 0.23 (0.16 to 0.31) mM, and 232.57,
respectively. Storage condition showed that ChE need to be preserved in
refrigerated condition. Metal ion in-vitro test showed that Cu, chromium and
mercury had the capability to lowering the activity of ChE more than 50%. The
combination of pairwise metal ion enhanced the inhibitory effect of more than 60%.
Half inhibitory effect (IC₅o) of Cu ion towards the ChE In vitro was found as at
0.0948 (0.06797 to 0.1628) mg/L. In vivo effect showed that at 0.1 mg/L of CUSO₄,
the activity of ChE was increased significantly (p<0.05) by 6% compared to the
control. However, the percentage activity of ChE was decreased to 95.41, 87.60,
84.60 and 73.00 % at the Cu concentration treatment of 0.3, 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0 mg/L,
respectively. The toxicity effect of Cu on P. javanicus liver was visualized using light
microscope and transmission electron microscope (TEM). Histology on the affected
cells showed abnormalities of nucleus polygonal shape along with' parenchymal
vacuolation, dilation and congestion of sinusoid. At the higher CUSO₄ exposure (0.5,
1.0 and 5.0 mg/l), hepatostructure was significantly affected as indicated by the
increasing number of dilation and congestion of sinusoids, vacuolation, macrophage
activities and peliosis. The damage level and HSI value were increased and in
contrast the number of hepatic nuclei per mm2 were decreased as again associated
with the increasing Cu treatment concentrations. Through an observation of
selected hepatocyte ultrastructure (liver of treated goups with 0.5, 1.0 and 5.0 mg/l
CUS04) using TEM, other abnormalities i.e. the development of pyknotic nucleus
along with damaged organelles such as mitochondria, Golgi apparatus and
endoplasmic reticulum disorientation were determined. Irreversible cell injury was
also determined, in which hepatic nuclei had seen to undergo for karyorrhexis with
the formation of apoptotic body that consisted of free scattered damaged
organelles. Proteomic study based on second dimension electrophoresis (2D-PAGE)
was performed whereby the patterns of resolved protein spots on the gels were
visualized using calibrated densitometer G-800 after stained with a modified silver
staining method. The estimated total number of protein spots of 1791 were
matched and compared among the control and treated gels. Subsequently, 10
unique protein spots on the coomasie blue G-250 stained gels were selected (based
on fold change more than 2.0) and subjected to identificaton by using MALDI-TOF-TOF
mass spectrometry combined with data mining in SwissProt, UniProt and
NCBlnr. The identity and putative function of five upregulated (Gastrotropin, VAT-1L,
hemogobin-!3, two subunit of hemoglobin-a), four downregulated (Trypsin,
ZC4H2, Islet-2A and hemoglobin-s AlB) and one up and downregulated
(Parvalbumin) protein spots were determined in this study as shown in their
individual bracket, respectively. In conclusion, Cu is evident to significantly affects
the ChE activity, histology and proteome of P.javanicus liver. This study has
generated several novel fundamental knowledge of the adverse effects of Cu on a
fish model, which is potentially being used in future as an alternative biomarker or
biosensor for the presence of contaminant especially Cu in the environment.


In this article we unify a series of recent studies on bio- and chemosensors under a single signaling strategy: signal amplification by allosteric catalysis (SAAC). The SAAC strategy mimics biological signal transduction processes, where molecular recognition between an external signal and a protein receptor is allosterically transduced into catalytically amplified chemical information (usually second messengers). Several recent biosensing and chemosensing studies apply this nature-inspired strategy by using engineered allosteric enzymes, ribozymes, or regulatable organic catalysts. The factors pertinent to achieving high sensitivity and specificity in SAAC strategies are analyzed. The authors believe that these early studies from a variety of research groups have opened up a new venue for the development of sensing technologies where molecular recognition and catalysis can be coupled for practical purposes.


The results of block model calculations for multiple discretizations of a dielectric sphere and circular cylinder suggest that it is essential that the cells must be arranged for a best-fit of the body being modeled, the matrix elements must be reasonably accurate, and the cells must be small enough so that the pulse-function basis approximation is not blatantly unreasonable. When these criteria are approximately satisfied the remaining errors appear to be mainly due to imperfect representation of the shape of the object being modeled. It appears that the accuracy can be improved by using discretizations having cells of reduced size near the surface of the object. Geometric factors are defined which allow testing the potential accuracy of a solution without dimensioning or inverting a large matrix. Several unique procedures for discretization are also described that have the potential of partially mitigating the errors due to inaccurate representation of the shape of a scatterer.


This article examines the effect of privatization on the use of inputs and hence on labour, capital and other supplies in 11 firms which were privatized in the UK in the 1980s. Privatization has been associated with higher productivity and labour does seem to have lost out in terms of income shares, though to a lesser degree in terms of employment and wage relativities. There is no evidence that continued state regulation has caused firms to behave differently from other privatized companies.


DRESS syndrome is an idiosyncratic reaction to drugs, which can occur in both adults and children. To date there is no agreed upon criteria for its diagnosis; there is even less consensus on its management. We report the case of a 14- year-old boy with carbamazepine induced DRESS syndrome, predominantly involving the liver. He responded rapidly to high dose pulsed intravenous corticosteroids.


We analyze —for a large set of stocks comprising four financial indices— the annual logarithmic growth rate R and the firm size, quantified by the market capitalization MC. For the Nasdaq Composite and the New York Stock Exchange Composite we find that the probability density functions of growth rates are Laplace ones in the broad central region, where the standard deviation σ(R), as a measure of risk, decreases with the MC as a power law σ(R)∼(MC)- β. For both the Nasdaq Composite and the S&P 500, we find that the average growth rate ⟨R⟩ decreases faster than σ(R) with MC, implying that the return-to-risk ratio ⟨R⟩/σ(R) also decreases with MC. For the S&P 500, ⟨R⟩ and ⟨R⟩/σ(R) also follow power laws. For a 20-year time horizon, for the Nasdaq Composite we find that σ(R) vs. MC exhibits a functional form called a volatility smile, while for the NYSE Composite, we find power law stability between σ(r) and MC.


This in-depth study offers a new examination of a region that is often overlooked in political histories of the Bluegrass State. George G. Humphreys traces the arc of politics and the economy in western Kentucky from avid support of the Democratic Party to its present-day Republican identity. He demonstrates that, despite its relative geographic isolation, the region west of the eastern boundary of Hancock, Ohio, Butler, Warren, and Simpson Counties to the Mississippi River played significant roles in state and national politics during the New Deal and postwar eras.
Drawing on extensive archival research and oral history interviews, Humphreys explores the area's political transformation from a solid Democratic voting block to a conservative stronghold by examining how developments such as advances in agriculture, the diversification of the economy, and the civil rights movement affected the region. Addressing notable deficiencies in the existing literature, this impressively researched study will leave readers with a deeper understanding of post–1945 Kentucky politics.


This paper develops a model to predict the number of good integrated circuits (the yield) from a semiconductor wafer processing line. The model is different from other published models and predicts observed outcomes better. Many models tend to predict lower yields than those actually achieved because those models are inherently incapable of predicting the average number of good chips per wafer. The model developed in this paper is based on combinatorial analysis and considers the number of die sites on the wafer and the total number of yield detracting defects on the wafer. In contrast the other models referenced require at least two parameters as input data: the area of one die site or chip and the average defect density. A third parameter, the Cdf of the defect density is often implied by the selection of the model.


This study was carried out to evaluate the potential of plantain peel meal as a replacement for maize in the diet of Clarias gariepinus. Triplicate groups of fish were fed five diets which were formulated to contain graded levels of plantain peel meal replacing 0, 25, 50, 75, and 100% of maize. The feeding trial lasted 12 weeks. The results showed that the diets significantly (P < 0.05) affected fish performance. Percentage weight gain (PWG) was 602% in fish fed the control diet (without plantain peel meal). A consistent decrease in PWG with increase in plantain peel meal was observed, with PWG at 222% in fish fed the diet with 100% supplementation of maize with plantain peel meal. Protein efficiency ratio (PER) and protein productive value (PPV) were reduced with increasing content of plantain peel meal. Least carcass protein (13.4% wet weight) was observed for fish fed the highest plantain peel meal level and there was a steady significant increase in carcass protein with decrease in plantain peel meal. The data indicated that C. gariepinus did not favourably tolerate diets containing high levels of plantain peel meal.


Abstract
 Access management is widely defined as the planning, design and implementation of land-use and transportation strategies that control the flow of traffic between roads and surrounding land. Previous studies focus mainly on the positive benefits of access management on safety and traffic flow. To ensure optimal transportation design, the design process must be based on a sound understanding of the issues perceived to be important by businesses, residences and other users. This study explores how businesses perceive the economic impacts of access management, along with safety and congestion impacts. About 280 businesses along six major commercial corridors in Western Washington State were surveyed. The analytical framework was developed using the simultaneous logit model, which allows the simultaneous modeling of perceptions of different performance metrics, through an endogenous relationship. The findings show that significant factors affecting business perceptions include business type and operational variables, corridor and street environment variables, as well as willingness-to-pay (WTP) measures.


Selections from Papers of the MASAL--Vol. 19 – Page 1 of 31 Previous publications of The Michigan Academy of Science now known as The Michigan Academy of Science, Arts and Letters, were issued under the title, Annual Report of the Michigan Academy of Science. Twenty-two volumes were published, of which those numbered 1, 21 and 22 are out of print. Copies of the other volumes are still available for distribution and will be sent on exchange so long as the editions last. Applications for copies should be addressed to the Librarian of the University of Michigan.


For the interior design of a flight simulator, the ergonomic software MDHMS has been used to test different interior layout issues. The MDHMS program includes an accommodation analysis capability, which generates a digital sample of the specific target group. This report shows the data required for this analysis. Since there are just a few reference files available for only parts of the Dutch population, some methods to derive data from related files in order to make the chart complete are presented.


This article analyzes Joris-Karl Huysmans's essay on French poster designer Jules Chéret (1836-1932) as an early example of art criticism devoted to mass-produced advertising posters. Huysmans's "Chéret" essay, published in the collection of art criticism, Certains (1889), interpreted late nineteenth-century poster imagery as capturing the sexual allure of the female figures represented. In doing so, Huysmans, a dénicheur—or cultivator of unconventional interpretations of popular culture—wedded decadent themes of the comic and sexuality in order to challenge bourgeois morality and capitalist forms of culture.


Leg blood flow, blood pressure and metabolic responses were evaluated in six men during incremental one-legged dynamic knee extension exercise tests (no load exercise-40 W); one performed with voluntary contractions (VOL) and one with electrically induced contractions (EMS). Pulmonary oxygen uptake was the same in both exercise modes, but the ventilatory coefficient was 2-5 L per L O2 higher in EMS than VOL (P < 0.05). Heart rate and mean arterial pressure were slightly higher with EMS than VOL at all exercise intensities reaching 138 (EMS) and 126 bpm (VOL), as well as 148 (EMS) and 137 mmHg (VOL) at 40 W, respectively (P < 0.05). Leg blood flow, oxygen uptake and conductance were similar in the two exercise modes. At 40 W, mean muscle blood flow was close to 200 (range: 165-220) mL 100 g-1 min-1, mean peak muscle oxygen uptake reached 230 mL kg-1 min-1, and mean conductance became as high as around 45 mL min-1 mmHg-1, and normalized for muscle size and arterial pressure it approached 100 mL min-1 100 g-1 100 mmHg-1. Lactate and ammonia efflux from the leg were higher with EMS than with VOL and the difference became larger with increasing exercise intensity (P < 0.05). Muscle glucose uptake was the same in each exercise mode. Femoral venous K+ concentration increased with exercise intensity and was higher with EMS than with VOL, reaching 5.1 (EMS) and 4.7 mmol L-1 (VOL) at 40 W (P < 0.05).(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)


One hundred patients with node-negative breast cancer were examined to analyze the influence of tumor size, nuclear grade, and DNA content determined by flow cytometry on overall survival. Patients with diploid cancers lived significantly longer than those with aneuploid cancers (126 +/- 8 vs 80 +/- 11 months). Patients with an S-phase fraction less than 10% lived significantly longer than those with S-phase fractions 10% or greater (122 +/- 8 vs 85 +/- 10 months). Tumor size had the major impact on survival, and multivariate analysis of variance by the Cox proportional hazards model showed the greatest effect on prognosis. Tumor grade did not significantly influence overall survival.


Glioblastoma (GBM) is an incurable brain cancer that is associated with severe peripheral immunosuppression. This immunosuppression is a critical barrier to patient survival and the success of immunotherapies. C57BL/6 mice harboring GL261 gliomas present with the hallmark features of peripheral immunosuppression observed in GBM patients, including T cell lymphopenia. We determined that peripheral immunosuppression involves release of non-steroidal soluble factors with large molecular weight that are found in sera of glioma-bearing mice. Sera of glioma-bearing mice inhibits T cell proliferation ex vivo. To determine the identity of the immunosuppressive molecules in serum, we used two parallel approaches: 1.) evaluation of abundant macromolecules and 2.) proteomics analysis using tandem mass tag mass-spectrometry (TMT-MS). We determined that serum of glioma-bearing mice contains significantly higher levels of cell free DNA (cfDNA) compared to controls. TMT-MS identified histones as a highly abundant protein in serum, further implicating DNA-histone complexes as top candidates. DNAse treatment of sera isolated from GL261 glioma-bearing mice reduced the suppressive effect on T cell proliferation. We next performed T cell proliferation assays in the presence of pure cfDNA isolated from sera of glioma-bearing mice while genomic DNA was used as control. cfDNA from serum potently inhibited T cell proliferation while control genomic DNA did not. These results were AIM2 independent implicating a novel pathway of DNA sensing in T cells. We contend that cfDNA induces immunosuppressive effects in experimental GBM. Devising strategies to reverse immunosuppression through targeting cfDNA could improve outcomes in GBM patients.
 Supported by grants from NIH (K99NS117799-01A1 (KA), R01NS103212 (AJJ), and RF1NS122174(AJJ) and Brains Together for a Cure Foundation (KA).


Research Findings: Interpersonal relationships among staff caregivers, parents, and children have been recommended as essential aspects of early childhood intervention. This study explored the associations of these relationships with program outcomes for children and parents in 3 Early Head Start programs. A total of 71 children (8–35 months, M = 20), their parents, and 33 program caregivers participated. The results showed that caregiver–child relationships were moderately positive, secure, and interactive and improved in quality over 6 months, whereas caregiver–parent relationships were generally positive and temporally stable. Caregiver–child relationships were more positive for girls, younger children, and those in home-visiting programs. Caregiver–parent relationships were more positive when parents had higher education levels and when staff had more years of experience, had more positive work environments, or had attained a Child Development Associate credential or associate's level of education rather than a 4-year academic degree. Hierarchical linear modeling analysis suggested that the quality of the caregiver–parent relationship was a stronger predictor of both child and parent outcomes than was the quality of the caregiver–child relationship. There were also moderation effects: Stronger associations of caregiver–parent relationships with observed positive parenting were seen in parents with lower education levels and when program caregivers had higher levels of education. Practice or Policy: The results support the importance of caregiver–family relationships in early intervention programs and suggest that staff need to be prepared to build relationships with children and families in individualized ways. Limitations of this study and implications for program improvements and future research are discussed.


A new method combining axisymmetric drop shape analysis (ADSA) and a captive bubble (CB) is proposed to study the effect of surfactant on interfacial gas transfer. In this method, gas transfer from a static CB to the surrounding quiescent liquid is continuously recorded for a short period (i.e., 5 min). By photographical analysis, ADSA-CB is capable of yielding detailed information pertinent to the surface tension and geometry of the CB, e.g., bubble area, volume, curvature at the apex, and the contact radius and height of the bubble. A steady-state mass transfer model is established to evaluate the mass transfer coefficient on the basis of the output of ADSA-CB. In this way, we are able to develop a working prototype capable of simultaneously measuring dynamic surface tension and interfacial gas transfer. Other advantages of this method are that it allows for the study of very low surface tensions (<5 mJ/m2) and does not require equilibrium of gas transfer. Consequently, reproducible experimental results can be obtained in a relatively short time. As a demonstration, this method was used to study the effect of lung surfactant on oxygen transfer. It was found that the adsorbed lung surfactant film shows a retardation effect on oxygen transfer, similar to the behavior of a pure DPPC film. However, this retardation effect at low surface tensions is less than that of a pure DPPC film.


BACKGROUND
Cognitive impairment in remitted late-life depression varies and might be associated with greater risk of dementia in some individuals. This study aimed to classify the subtypes of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) in late-life major depressive disorder in remission and to examine their clinical correlates and structural magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) features.

METHODS
Elderly patients with major depressive disorder in remission and elderly comparisons were examined by a comprehensive battery of cognitive tasks. Proposed diagnostic criteria were used for MCI classification, and the degree of brain atrophy and white matter hyperintensity on MRI were evaluated.

RESULTS
We found information-processing speed and memory were independent cognitive domains associated with late-life remitted major depressive disorder. Of the study cohort, 52.3% met the definition of MCI, including 28.5% with amnestic MCI (aMCI) and 23.8% with nonamnestic MCI (naMCI). A clinical correlate of aMCI was the late-onset of disorder (OR = 4.76; 95% CI = 1.57, 14.40) and of naMCI was a higher score on the Framingham stroke risk scale (OR = 1.39; 95% CI = 1.12, 1.72). The odds ratio of highest quartile of ventricular atrophy for aMCI compared to the comparisons was 3.65 (95% CI = 1.22, 10.96).

CONCLUSIONS
The central cognitive impairments among the elderly with major depressive disorder in remission were memory and information-processing speed, and over half of the subjects met the MCI diagnostic criteria. Different risk factors existed for the subtypes of aMCI and naMCI. Later-age onset of first episode and ventricular atrophy were associated with aMCI, whereas vascular risk factor were associated with naMCI. We suggest there were different pathogeneses between aMCI and naMCI in late-life major depressive disorder.


To exit the Great Recession and initiate the transition towards a low carbon economy, we propose a public-private investment plan in the energetic transition of about 2 points per year of European GDP. The key concept of this plan is the opportunity to reconsider the criteria for public finances using, as the goal of stability a concept of public debt net of created public assets (in percent of GDP), instead of gross public debt. An impartial body (eg the European Commission) could assess ex post and ex ante the value of investments, creating the incentives for coherent and effective public expenditure policies.


This paper presents the results of an all-day-long pedestrian classification system based on an AdaBoost cascade meta-algorithm. The underlying idea is to use a Haar-features-based AdaBoost together with an ad-hoc-features-based AdaBoost system in order to reach a better pedestrian classification. A specific night-time pedestrian classification is developed in order to obtain a system that can be used also in poorly illuminated environments. These classifiers are joined together using a cascade AdaBoost system that uses the output of the previous classifiers to obtain a final classification for the area. In the paper the night time and the ad-hoc features systems are presented together with the cascade classification and quantitative results.


Abstract #78 Background: Taxane based adjuvant chemotherapy (CHT) is standard of care in node-positive breast cancer. Several pre-planned subgroup analyses detected the maximum benefit from taxanes in patients with 1-3 positive lymph nodes (LN).
 According to the St. Gallen consensus CHT in endocrine responsive tumors is optional in these patients. Recently the ABCSG reported excellent survival data after endocrine therapy +/- bisphosphonates without CHT in low to intermediate risk breast cancer (Gnant et al., ASCO 2008). The EC-Doc trial compares a modern sequential taxane-based regimen with standard FE100C in patients with 1-3 positive LN.
 Methods: Patients from 18 to 65 years with primary breast cancer and 1 to 3 positive LN were eligible if they had operable breast cancer with histologically confirmed free margins. M0 status was assessed by conventional staging. 2011 patients were randomized to a phase III trial comparing 4 cycles E90C600 q3w followed by 4 cycles of Docetaxel100 q3w (n=1008) (Arm A) versus 6 cycles of F500E100C500 q3w (n=828) or C600M40F600 d1, 8 q4w (n=175) (Arm B). The primary endpoint is EFS. Secondary endpoints are OS, toxicity and quality of life.
 Results: Baseline characteristics were well balanced between both study arms. Arm A/B: mean age 51.5/51.5 years, median tumor size 2.0/2.0, HR positive 77.7% / 78.3%, G3 34.1% / 34.4%. Toxicity data from the EC-Doc trial were recently presented (Nitz et al. , ASCO 2008). After a median follow up of 41 months both estimated 5-year EFS (91% vs. 86%, p=0.005) and OS (95% vs. 90%, p=0.004) were significantly better in the EC-Doc arm.
 For the comparison of EC-Doc vs. FE100C the respective values were: HR 0.58, p=0.004, estimated 5 year EFS 91% / 85% and 5 year estimated OS 95% / 91% (p =0.03). For the hormone receptor positive subpopulation the HR was 0.51 in favour of EC-Doc (p= 0.007).
 Conclusions: Our study indicates a superiority of sequential taxane-based EC-Doc CHT in terms of EFS and OS over standard FE100C in an intermediate risk group. The addition of modern third generation taxane based CHT to conventional endocrine treatment is associated with excellent EFS and OS in patients with 1-3 positive LN.
 As shown even for the subgroup of patients with HR positive disease the benefit from third generation taxane based CHT is substantial so that an endocrine only adjuvant strategy may result in undertreatment. With respect to the excellent survival rates prospective randomized trials testing the existing genetic tests are mandatory.
 Updated survival and efficacy analysis in distinct molecular subtypes (Her-2/neu, triple-negative) will be presented. Citation Information: Cancer Res 2009;69(2 Suppl):Abstract nr 78.


John Skelton's writing career took place roughly between 1488 and 1528, years that straddle two centuries and, most awkwardly, two epochs. Perhaps because of that awkwardness he has been a poet marginalized in our literary histories and critical discourse until quite recently. This overview essay suggests that to re-engage Skelton is to test alternative literary histories that think beyond the fifteenth century as a merely transitional moment and that put into play methodologies flexible enough to accommodate inter-related notions of aesthetics and context. This essay traces Skelton's critical tradition as a series of perspectives on the poet's own nimble engagements with form and history. The first section follows the story of formalist and historicist approaches to Skelton working in tension up until the last part of the twentieth century. The second section explores the interventions of the new Skelton scholars. The third and final sections speculate briefly about fresh directions in Skelton scholarship, noticing that many of the themes and questions raised around Skelton over the past century remain open for more extensive development.


Giant cell tumor (GCT) is a relatively common primary bone tumor that typically develops in young adults between the ages of 20 and 40 years. Our archives contain 1,183 cases of histologically proved and radiographically correlated GCTs, collected in consultation over 40 years. From this large series, we identified 243 lesions (21% of GCTs) arising in the upper extremity distal to the scapula. This report demonstrates the spectrum of radiologic findings of GCT of the upper extremity, augmented where appropriate by accompanying pathologic material.


This paper presents an approach towards VLSI implemention of the Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWT) for image compression . The design follows the JPEG2000 standard and can be used for both lossy and lossless compression. In order to reduce complexities of the design, linear algebra view of DWT and IDWT has been used in this paper. This design can be used for image compression in a robotic system.


In this paper the Cournot oligopoly under uncertainty is analyzed by means of the Choquet Expected Utility (CEU) theory. Firms are supposed to be either optimistic (CEU maximizers who hold concave capacities) or pessimistic (convex capacities). Reaction functions, equilibrium quantities, prices and profits are derived and compared for different degrees of uncertainty and uncertainty attitude (optimism or pessimism). It is proved that optimists make higher profits than pessimists whenever uncertainty is sufficiently low. If it is high just optimists participate in the market making losses. An interpretation of the main results in terms of the market's level of maturity is provided.


The dynamic response of a direct lube, 5-pad, rocker-back pivot tilting pad bearing is characterized in a controlled motion (component level) test rig, and in a spin bunker (full system level) using a dummy rotor mounted on two identical bearings. In the component level test, the force coefficients (stiffness, damping, mass) are identified from pseudorandom excitations using a 2-DOF model. N-DOF system including the pad motions has been shown to yield frequency dependent coefficients that warrant the use of asynchronous coefficients for stability analysis in centrifugal compressors. However, experimental results showed that the real part of the dynamic stiffness is well represented as a constant stiffness and mass coefficients while the imaginary part yields a constant damping coefficient (i.e. frequency independent).In the system level test, a dedicated dummy rotor (representative of a high speed centrifugal compressor rotor) is excited by a magnetic shaker throughout a frequency range covering the rotor modes of interest while spinning at constant speed. From the rotor harmonic response the damping of each mode is extracted using a curve-fitting method based on a 1-DOF model for a given set of speeds.The dummy rotor test provides reference values for system logarithmic decrement and further validates the component level test results. The logarithmic decrement prediction using identified bearing force coefficients are in good agreement with the experimental results. In addition, using for prediction identified coefficients in a classical K-C-M or synchronous K-C form yields similar results (within 15%). This indicates that for the given bearing geometry (clearance, offset and size) and operating conditions, synchronously reduced force coefficients are adequate for stability analysis. Comparison of the identified force coefficients with results from commercially available code yielded reasonable agreement on direct coefficients while some discrepancies are highlighted on the cross-coupled coefficients.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


The first part of the paper describes some of the most important theoretical concepts of
European public sphere and Europeanization of national media. Also it gives an overview
of Estonians opinions and attitudes associated with the EU. A common thesis in research
is that a European public sphere can be constituted via the Europeanization of reporting
in the national media.
This paper aims to answer the question whether such Europeanization is taking place in
Estonian print media. On the basis of content analysis of three newspapers- the largest
quality daily, tabloid daily and the largest local newspaper- the paper investigates
whether various forms of Europeanization in Estonian print media are on the rise.
This paper uses the same methodology that was used in international research program
Adequate Information Management in Europe (AIM). Results of the content analysis are
compared to the findings of the news agenda analysis of ten European countries in March
2005.
Major conclusions about EU coverage in Estonian newspapers are as follows: EU topics
account for an extremely small proportion of the reporting and there is no active debate
or discussion of European issues in Estonian print media. But the number of articles
where EU has major prominence is rising and the EU coverage in Estonia has now more
similarities to other European countries than it did two years ago.
Although there are lack of competent journalists specialised in EU issues and limited
space for EU news, the developmental tendencies towards a Europeanization of the
Estonian print media do exists.


Over sixty percent of patients with melanoma have the activating B-RAFV600E mutation leading to increased activation of the mitogen activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway. The downstream effects of MAPK pathway activation are increased proliferation, invasiveness, and survival through the regulation of down-stream targets such as the pro-apoptotic protein BIM. Prior studies have shown that inhibiting MAPK kinase (MEK), downstream of constitutively active B-RAF, can up-regulate BIM, leading to increased apoptosis in melanoma cell lines. However, single agent MEK inhibition has had limited effectiveness in the clinical setting for late-stage melanoma patients, likely due to an inadequate induction of apoptosis. We hypothesized that combining the clinically relevant MEK inhibitor, AZD6244 (ARRY142886) with a BCL-2 inhibitor, ABT-737, would lead to increased apoptosis over single agent therapies in melanoma cells via BIM activation and pan-BCL-2 inhibition. We compared single treatments of AZD6244 and ABT737 to the combination of these agents in a panel of melanoma tumor cell lines chosen by mutational status in both a monolayer system and an anchorage independent system. The combination of AZD6244 and ABT-737 had a synergistic effect on decreasing cell viability and increasing apoptosis compared to single agent treatments regardless of B-RAF mutational status. Western blotting revealed dramatic increases in cleaved caspase 3 and PARP with combinational treatment compared to single agent therapy. These early pre-clinical experiments indicate that AZD6244 combined with ABT-737 may be an effective combination therapy for patients with late-stage melanoma. Currently, we have plans to conduct in vivo studies to translate these results into the clinic. Citation Format: {Authors}. {Abstract title} [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR-NCI-EORTC International Conference: Molecular Targets and Cancer Therapeutics; 2011 Nov 12-16; San Francisco, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Mol Cancer Ther 2011;10(11 Suppl):Abstract nr A28.


Apoptosis occurs as a physiologic process in the ovarian life cycle. Staurosporine, a protein kinase inhibitor, is reported to induce apoptosis. Here, we hypothesize that staurosporine will induce apoptosis in human luteinized granulosa cells and that mitochondria and the caspase cascade participate in this process. Luteinized granulosa cells isolated from in vitro fertilization patients were treated with staurosporine. Microscopy revealed that staurosporine treatment resulted in cells exhibiting evidence of apoptosis, including cell detachment, loss of cell processes, membrane shrinkage, and formation of apoptotic bodies. In the staurosporine-treated cells, flow cytometry and confocal microscopy showed a decrease in the mitochondrial cardiolipin levels. Western analysis showed cleavage of caspase-9, an initiator caspase, of caspase-3, an executioner caspase, and of a caspase substrate, poly-(ADP-ribose)-polymerase (PARP) in staurosporine-treated cells. These data support our hypothesis and that this is the first demonstration of the involvement of mitochondria and of cleavage of caspases in human luteinized granulosa cell apoptosis. This may serve as a useful model to delineate the mechanism of apoptosis in the ovary, such as corpus luteum regression.


For illumination-grade applications, the spatial homogeneity of the white light emitted is an important issue which is directly associated with the geometry and the composition of the color conversion layer in phosphor-converted LEDs. In order to create a phosphor coating of high quality surrounding the LED chip surface, an improved slurry method with self-exposure technique was applied and investigated. The conformal phosphor layer of self-adaptability to angular intensity distribution of LED emitting light was realized. Plasma treatment was introduced to improve the aging performance of white LEDs with this advanced slurry method. The effect of the self-adaptive coating on the improvement of angular color uniformity of white LEDs was measured and discussed.


A mixed retention mechanism was studied in gas-liquid chromatography of some hydrocarbons and dialkyl ethers using packed columns of silica gel beads coated with different amounts of tricresyl phosphate (TCP). Two adsorption equilibria, on solid surface of silica gel and on organic surface of a monolayer of TCP dominantly contribute to solute retention until the silica gel surface is completely covered with a monolayer of TCP. For hydrocarbons, adsorption on solid surface of silica gel is promoted by formation of a weak 1:1 solute-TCP adduct through lateral interaction between adsorbed solute and TCP molecules. An excess of TCP over an amount necessary for formation of the monolayer on the whole of silica gel surface forms a bulk liquid on the deactivated surface of silica gel, so that bulk solution partition concurrently contributes to solute retention, together with adsorption on the TCP monolayer. Distribution constants of these sorption equilibria could be calculated as reasonable values for any solute.


Systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) is chronic autoimmune disease with various autoantibodies, which are involved in tissue damage. Fc gamma receptors (FcγRs) bind the constant region of the immunoglobulin G and transmit stimulatory or inhibitory signal to immune cells. The FcγR genes map to 1q23, a susceptible locus for SLE. We have screened single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) in one of FcγR gene, FcγRIIB, which is the only inhibitory receptor, after considering gene map and reported SNPs. There were 3 SNPs in FcγRIIB: 10849 T>C (rs1050501) in exon 5 and 10950 T>G (rs6666965) and 11045 G>T (rs12117530) in intron 5 in Koreans. The frequency of the minor allele (T) of rs12117530 was significantly higher in SLE patients (50 patients, 20.4%) than healthy controls (17 patients, 12%, p = 0.041). Leukopenia occurred more frequently in SLE patients carrying the minor allele (T) of rs12117530 (p = 0.032). Among 5 haplotypes, the frequency of decreased complement was significantly lower in SLE patients with haplotype 1 [TTG] (p = 0.045). Nephritis, lymphopenia and anti-dsDNA antibody were significantly less frequent in SLE patients with haplotype 2 [TGG] (p = 0.046, p = 0.018, p = 0.002, respectively). The frequency of thrombocytopenia and anti-dsDNA antibody was significantly higher in SLE patients with haplotype 3 [CTG] (p < 0.001, p = 0.04, respectively). These data reveal that genetic polymorphisms within FcγRIIB are associated with disease susceptibility and phenotypes of SLE in Koreans. Furthermore, FcγRIIB rs12117530 polymorphism (T allele) may be an important risk factor in SLE.


Economic analyses rarely consider the importance of the high concentration of Russia's economic and social potential in the hundred so-called regional capitals (administrative centers of constituents of the Federation) and other large cities. This phenomenon, which strongly influences the course of economic, social and even political processes in Russia, is unparalleled in developed countries. It is very important to assess the causes, scale, and consequences of this phenomenon against the overall background of reforms that have occurred in the country's economy in the past fifteen years.


Heat treatment of milk signifies a certain degree of protein denaturation, which modifies the functional properties of dairy products. Traditional methods for detecting and quantifying the denaturation of whey proteins are slow, complex and require sample preparation and qualified staff. The world's current trend is to develop rapid, real-time analytical methods that do not destroy the sample and can be applied on/in-line during processing. This review presents the rapid methods that are being studied, developed and/or applied to determine and quantify the thermal denaturation of whey proteins, including spectroscopic, electrochemical and miniaturized methods. The selected methods save a significant amount of time and money compared to the traditional ones. In addition, the review emphasizes the methods being applied directly to milk and/or that have potential for on/in/at-line application. There are interesting options to quantify thermal denaturation of whey proteins such as biosensors, nanosensors and microchips, which have fast responses and could be automated. In addition, electrochemical sensors are simple to use and portable, while spectroscopy alternatives are suitable for on/in/at-line process.


Higher education institutions in South Africa are faced with low throughput rates, and the need to enhance students' interest in their studies is a key objective for higher education institutions. Student engagement is one of the factors shown empirically to enhance student success at higher education institutions. The paper reports on the potential of digital storytelling in enhancing student engagement with their studies, amongst 29 final year pre-service student teachers at a large University of Technology in South Africa, as part of their assessment in their final year professional course. The reason for doing this research was due to the limited adoption of digital storytelling in conventional educational settings globally and the fact that little research has been done internationally and particularly in South Africa, into how digital storytelling can be a vehicle for expanding learning. The study was framed around the engagement construct involving qualitative methods of collecting data. Focus group interviews were conducted with the students and the facilitators of the project to elicit whether the production of digital stories led to student engagement. Focus group interviews were analyzed using inductive strategy. Results showed that the production of digital stories enhanced student engagement with their studies which led to high levels of reflection on the subject matter, which as a result led to a deep understanding of the subject matter. Findings of this study will contribute knowledge in the field which may be valuable in increasing student engagement with their studies.


A new technique is reported for the treatment of hepatic metastases using sonography-directed percutaneous placement of a 14-gauge needle applicator and a high-intensity "remote afterloading" iridium-192 (Ir-192) source for interstitial radiation therapy. The results with six patients show that the procedure is easily performed, patient tolerance is good, and there is minimal disruption of the patient's lifestyle. Hospitalizations have been less than 24 hr. Partial response or stable disease in the liver was observed in all six patients. Tumoricidal doses up to 5000 rad (cGy) in a single treatment with durations from 7 to 41 min were achieved in small volumes (less than 25 cm3) with no clinically significant toxicity on follow-up evaluations from 2-6 months. The technique appears to ablate discrete metastatic tumor deposits in the liver.


Shamir's secret sharing scheme is widely used in many cryptographic protocols such as secure multi-party computation. It allows a secret to be distributed to $n$ parties such that any $t$ parties learn no information about the secret, whereas any $t+1$ parties can recover the secret. However, the worst-case recovery guarantees come at the price of $O(n^{2})$ computation cost. This quadratic cost limits its scalability to applications involving only a small number of participants. This paper presents a framework, called FastShare, for designing secret sharing schemes that ensures worst-case security guarantees at a lower computation cost by relaxing the recovery constraint from worst-case to average-case in a statistical sense. In particular, FastShare considers the setup where each party takes part in the recovery process with some probability $\rho$, independently of others. The core idea of FastShare is to construct a 'signal' using the secret and random masks by inserting zeros at judiciously chosen locations, and take its finite field fast Fourier transform (FFT) to generate the shares. We present a scheme designed using FastShare where the judicious zero placement ensures that the shares form a codeword of a locally recoverable code. The locality property along with the FFT allows us to recover the secret with $O(n\log n)$ computational complexity, from a 'random' subset of shares of large enough size. We analyze its security and recovery thresholds, and characterize a trade-off between $\rho$ and the probability of successfully recovering the secret. Further, we carry out numerical simulations to demonstrate the applicability of the proposed scheme for a wide range of values of $n$.


Computer simulations are used to design more hydrated bilayers, formed from amine-modified porphyrin-phospholipids (PoPs). Experiments confirm that the new constructs give rise to bilayers with greater water content. When chelated with manganese, amine-modified PoPs provide improved contrast for magnetic resonance and are safely used for imaging in vivo.


Inflammatory bowel disease (IBD) has been referred to as the "green cancer," and its progression to colorectal cancer (CRC) poses a significant challenge for the medical community. A common factor in their development is glycolysis, a crucial metabolic mechanism of living organisms, which is also involved in other diseases. In IBD, glycolysis affects gastrointestinal components such as the intestinal microbiota, mucosal barrier function, and the immune system, including macrophages, dendritic cells, T cells, and neutrophils, while in CRC, it is linked to various pathways, such as phosphatidylinositol-3-kinase (PI3K)/AKT, AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK), mammalian target of rapamycin (mTOR), and transcription factors such as p53, Hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF), and c-Myc. Thus, a comprehensive study of glycolysis is essential for a better understanding of the pathogenesis and therapeutic targets of both IBD and CRC. This paper reviews the role of glycolysis in diseases, particularly IBD and CRC, via its effects on the intestinal microbiota, immunity, barrier integrity, signaling pathways, transcription factors and some therapeutic strategies targeting glycolytic enzymes.


Person detection from vehicles has made rapid progress recently with the advent of multiple high‐quality datasets of urban and highway driving, yet no large‐scale benchmark is available for the same problem in off‐road or agricultural environments. Here we present the National Robotics Engineering Center (NREC) Agricultural Person‐Detection Dataset to spur research in these environments. It consists of labeled stereo video of people in orange and apple orchards taken from two perception platforms (a tractor and a pickup truck), along with vehicle position data from Real Time Kinetic (RTK) GPS. We define a benchmark on part of the dataset that combines a total of 76k labeled person images and 19k sampled person‐free images. The dataset highlights several key challenges of the domain, including varying environment, substantial occlusion by vegetation, people in motion and in nonstandard poses, and people seen from a variety of distances; metadata are included to allow targeted evaluation of each of these effects. Finally, we present baseline detection performance results for three leading approaches from urban pedestrian detection and our own convolutional neural network approach that benefits from the incorporation of additional image context. We show that the success of existing approaches on urban data does not transfer directly to this domain.