1. Melibe leonina is a large carnivorous Nudibranch reaching sometimes 14 centimeters in total length; it is an actively predaceous animal; it practically gorges itself, feeding mainly on small Crustacea; it is gregarious. 2. It seems to live more than one year; its recurrence is spasmodic. 3. It swims freely in the water, backward, upward or downward; it crawls on the surface by the surface tension, and on sea-weeds, by the help of its highly ciliated foot. 4. Its defensive means are an offensive odor and death feigning. 5. It drops to deeper water by relaxation of its muscles. 6. It collects in groups among sea-weeds, where copulation takes place. 7. Mutual insemination does not seem to be simultaneous. 8. It spawns as early as March and as late as July; sexual maturity is reached quite early, as young ones two centimeters long were found with ripe spermatozoa. 9. Spermatozoa from another individual are stored in the ovo-spermatotheca but wander up the uterus as far as the prostate. 10. Eggs are also stored in the spermatotheca, hence the name ovo-spermatotheca. 11. Copulating individuals are of the same relative size. 12. The same individual deposits more than one nidosome, after insemination; spermatozoa may be carried over in the ovo-spermatotheca at least two weeks. 13. The eggs are deposited in capsules, normally containing from 15 to 22 eggs. The capsules are arranged in rows within a gelatinous mass, sometimes quite regularly; the gelatinous mass is formed into a belt from 3 to 5 cm. wide; the mucous flow is greater in one side of the belt than in the other, so that one side of the belt is shorter than the other, and the belt curves into a funnel-shaped mass, the apex adhering to some sea-weed, near the surface of the water. 14. Eggs may become incapsulated without being fertilized; no cleavage of such eggs follows. 15. Normally the embryo develops within two weeks.


CO2 is an environmentally friendly refrigerant that has a no global warming potential when used as refrigerant. The current refrigerants used for air conditioning in public transport are chemical components, and have a high global warming impact. The possibility of replacing the conventional refrigerants by CO2 is investigated for various parts of the transport sector. A possible CO2system for heating and cooling for public transport has been modeled and simulated. This system is a turntable prototype which is reversing the airflows to provide either cooling or heating. It has two gascoolers and two evaporators for separate treatment of ambient and recycled air. The plate is rotated 180˚ to switch from heating to cooling mode. CO2 has large potential for expansion work, due to the normally large throttling losses for high ambient temperatures. An ejector has therefore been implemented in the heat pump circuit. The turntable prototype is modeled by the simulation tool Modelica, and it is investigated how this ejector system adjusts to varying ambient conditions and power demand. Weather data from the climate database Meteonorm was used as a basis for calculation of heating and cooling demand for a train compartment in five different cities, covering a variety of climates. A case study was performed based on an occupancy rate profile and operative hours of the heat pump for the compartment. Simulations were performed of the air reversing heat pump based on the heating -and cooling demand calculations for the five cities. The COP values obtained are very positive, and they are in general higher for heating than cooling mode. The COP is depending on the load, and decreases with reduced occupancy rate. For cooling mode the COP ranged from 3.1 to 6. For heating mode it ranged from 8.2 to 2.8. With the occupancy rate chosen, the annual energy savings is about 80% for all the 5 cities of the study. The fan work of the heat pumps was also included for 4 different operating modes. This reduced the total COP by between 10 to 40%, depending on heating and cooling power requirement and ambient conditions. The fin and tube gas coolers that were used in the Modelica model were compared to a set of MPE gas coolers. The total mass of the heat exchangers was reduced by 50%. One would still have to weigh the reduced mass and increased LCCP performance against the increased investment cost of the MPE heat exchangers.


An overview of recent advances in theoretical analyses of supercritical droplet vaporization and combustion is conducted. Both hydrocarbon and cryogenic liquid droplets over a wide range of thermodynamic states are considered. Various important high-pressure effects on droplet behavior, such as thermodynamic non-ideality, transport anomaly, and property variation, are reviewed. Results indicate that the ambient gas pressure exerts significant control of droplet gasification and burning processes through its influence on fluid transport, gas-liquid interfacial thermodynamics, and chemical reactions. The droplet gasification rate increases progressively with pressure. However, the data for the overall burnout time exhibit a considerable change in the combustion mechanism at the criticl pressure, mainly as a result of reduced mass diffusivity and latent heat of vaporization with increased pressure. The influence of droplet size on the burning characteristics is also noted.


likely to be an error of diagnosis as an indication that hypertension is ever "self terminating." It is therefore dangerous to assume that the evidence provided in this short report proves that treatment can be stopped in patients who have genuine hypertension. We agree that further, larger studies are needed, but not necessarily of stopping treatment-rather, perhaps, of when to start. The problems of overdiagnosing hypertension have been recognised for some time.5 Perhaps the criteria for making a diagnosis should be stricter. Although the British Hypertension Society has laid down some guidelines,6 including the recommendation that several readings should be taken before the diagnosis is made, the period over which these readings should be taken was left rather vague. Perhaps hypertension should not be diagnosed in anyone until the blood pressure has been persistently raised for over one year. The benefits of treatment far outlast a year or two, while there is little to be lost by delaying treatment in the short term. We would make a plea that anyone who has been diagnosed as hypertensive at some time is evaluated at regular intervals indefinitely, regardless of whether treatment is continued or not.


This is a personal spoken word piece dedicated to my mother. The piece is an ode to both her sacrifices as a single mother as well as her journey as a Palestinian-Syrian refugee turned Canadian immigrant, in addition to my own feelings of displacement as a Muslim Palestinian-Syrian of colour dwelling in the lands of Turtle Island. The piece strives to make space for the pain that comes with being a child of diaspora; recognizing one's loss of cultural knowledge, familial connections, mother tongue, and connection to a land never seen. The piece explores how coming to know about one's roots and histories in relation to one's homeland, is a form of resistance to the erasure of a people, in this case – the Palestinian people. The feelings encapsulated within the piece, whether it be of rage, hope or desperation, are driven by the love one has for one's faith, land and people.


Herein, novel biodegradable, stimulus-responsive, chemically cross-linked and porous hydrogel has been synthesized to evaluate its applicability as an efficient carrier for sustained release of ornidazole and ciprofloxacin. The cross-linked hydrogel (c-Dxt/pAA) has been developed from dextrin and poly(acrylic acid) using N,N'-methylene bis(acrylamide) cross-linker via Michael-type addition reaction. With the variation of reaction parameters, various c-Dxt/pAA hydrogels have been synthesized to optimize the best one. c-Dxt/pAA hydrogel has been characterized using various physicochemical characterization techniques. The hydrogel demonstrates significant pH and temperature sensitivity. Gel characteristics and gel kinetics have been performed through the measurement of rheological parameters. The hydrogel shows noncytotoxic behavior toward human mesenchymal stem cells. Biodegradation study predicts that c-Dxt/pAA is degradable in nature. The in vitro release of ornidazole and ciprofloxacin suggests that the hydrogel released both the drugs in a controlled manner with extensive stability up to 3 months. The results suggest that c-Dxt/pAA is probably a promising candidate for controlled release of ornidazole and ciprofloxacin.


B-SCP is a promising framework addressing alignment of IT with business strategy from a requirements engineering persective. A problem with the B-SCP framework is that it is extremely difficult to track dependencies between requirements in a project of realistic complexity. We discuss how the RDF data model with OWL semantics, will greatly benefit an implementation using B-SCP. Our contribution is to extend B-SCP by describing an ontology data structure for representing the requirements and the complex rules which map them together. Seven Eleven-Japan is used as an exemplar to demonstrate improved productivity and consistency of B-SCP.


INTRODUCTION
Community-acquired pneumonia is a common cause of morbidity and mortality throughout the world. Moxifloxacin, a new generation fluoroquinolone have become an attractive therapeutic alternative in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia because of its excellent pharmacokinetic parameters and wide antimicrobial spectrum.

AIMS
The authors reviewed the role of moxifloxacin in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia based on their experience and the data of the literature.

METHODS
The authors studied the clinical outcome of the patients treated with moxifloxacin due to community-acquired pneumonia in their hospital ward between May 1, 2002 and May 1, 2003.

RESULTS
Four patients with pneumonia were treated ineffectively by moxifloxacin during a year. Serious clinical and radiological progression occurred to each patient despite moxifloxacin therapy, and two patients had to be admitted to intensive care unit. Three patients were successfully treated by 2nd or 3rd generation cephalosporin and clarithromycin, but one patient died.

CONCLUSIONS
The authors call attention with these cases to the fact that in clinical trials oral moxifloxacin therapy was not more efficient either clinically or microbiologically than standard therapy in the treatment of community-acquired pneumonia. Moxifloxacin therapy is recommended to be reserved to patients allergic or not responsive to other antibiotics, and in the case of infections due to penicillin-resistant pneumococci.


Background: Bevacizumab and dexamethasone are commonly administered to patients with brain tumors, and may alter the central nervous system penetration of concurrently administered chemotherapeutic agents by affecting vascular permeability and blood brain barrier (BBB) composition. We compared plasma UF and CSF PKs of intravenously (IV) administered carboplatin given alone and in combination with dexamethasone or bevacizumab in a non-tumor bearing NHP model, that has been predictive of human PKs of anti-cancer drugs. Methods: Carboplatin (8.75 mg/kg IV over 1 hour) combined with bevacizumab (12.5 mg/kg IV over 1 hour immediately prior to carboplatin) or dexamethasone (0.4 mg/kg IV bolus given 24 hours and immediately prior to carboplatin), was administered on separate occasions to each of three adult rhesus monkeys. Each monkey received carboplatin alone as control. Serial paired plasma and CSF samples were obtained over 24 hours. Plasma UFs were prepared immediately. Platinum was quantified using a validated atomic absorption spectroscopy assay with a lower limit of quantitation of 0.03 μM. Area under concentration x time curves (AUC) were derived using the linear trapezoidal method. CSF penetration (ratio of CSF AUC 0-∞ : plasma UF AUC 0-∞ ) and CSF penetration relative to control (ratio of the CSF penetration of carboplatin with bevacizumab or dexamethasone to the CSF penetration of carboplatin alone) were calculated. Results: Conclusions: Plasma UF and CSF PK of carboplatin in NHP were similar to previous reports and showed limited inter-subject variability. Bevacizumab and dexamethasone consistently decreased the CSF penetration of carboplatin (median decrease 22% and 12% respectively). In patients with brain tumors and disrupted BBB, these differences may be larger and could be clinically relevant. Citation Format: Srivandana Akshintala, Cynthia M. Lester-McCully, Robert F. Murphy, Brigitte C. Widemann, Katherine E. Warren. Effect of bevacizumab and dexamethasone on plasma ultrafiltrate (UF) and cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) pharmacokinetics (PKs) of carboplatin in a non-human primate (NHP) model. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 104th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2013 Apr 6-10; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2013;73(8 Suppl):Abstract nr 3374. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2013-3374


Ideally, studies of women's mental health would include a core data set that would be comparable across studies. There is general agreement that this data set should include a characterization of the clinical features of all current conditions and of past mental disorders and syndromes. The family history of mental disorders is also needed. Unfortunately, none of the currently available procedures covers all of the agreed on areas of interest, but with some supplementation, many are available to help approximate such a core data set. Greater content specificity is needed before efforts to develop new or modified procedures can be focused on such an effort.


The proposal is thus to have a (physical) Congress in 2022 in Nice, France, six years after the Prague Congress of 2016. ISPRS Cycle of Congresses and Mid-term Symposia Changed Due to the Covid-19 pandemic, the XXIVth ISPRS International Congress, already postponed from June 2020 until July 2021, has been delayed again (other than as an online-only event) as a physical Congress until June 2022 (see below in our normal chronological order). [Extracted from the article] Copyright of Photogrammetric Record is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full . (Copyright applies to all s.)


Automated Metering Infrastructure (AMI) is a technology that would allow consumers to exhibit price elasticity of demand under smart-grid environments. The market power of the generation and transmission companies can be mitigated when consumers respond to price signals. Such responses by consumers can also result in reductions in price spikes, consumer energy bills, and emissions of greenhouse gases and other pollutants. In this paper, we use the Electricity Market Complex Adaptive System (EMCAS), an agent-based model that simulates restructured electricity markets, to explore the impact of consumers' price elasticity of demand on the performance of the electricity market. An 11-node test network with eight generation companies and five aggregated consumers is simulated for a period of one month. Results are provided and discussed for a case study based on the Korean power system.


AIM
To assess the significance of phosphatidylinositol 3-kinase (PI3K) in colorectal cancer (CRC) and toxicity of LY294002 in CRC cells with different metastatic abilities.

METHODS
Sixty formalin-fixed and paraffin-embedded CRC tumor specimens were investigated. Adjacent normal colonic mucosa specimens from 10 of these cases were selected as controls. PI3K protein was detected by immunohistochemistry and PIK3CA mutations were investigated by gene sequencing analysis. A flow-cytometry-based apoptosis detection kit was used to determine PI3K inhibitor-induced apoptosis in CRC cell lines SW480 and SW620. Expression of phosphorylated protein kinase B in CRC cell lines was detected by Western blotting.

RESULTS
There was a significant difference in the proportion of primary lesions (30%, 18/60) vs metastatic lesions (46.7%, 28/60) that were positive for PI3K (P < 0.05). Mutations were detected in exon 9 (13.3%) and exon 20 (8.3%). Out of 60 cases, seven mutations were identified: two hotspot mutations, C.1633G>A resulting in E545A, and C.3140A>G resulting in H1047R; two novel missense mutations C.1624G>A and C.3079G>A; and three synonymous mutations (C.1641G>A, C.1581C>T and C.3027T>A). Exposure of SW480 cells to PI3K inhibitor for 48 h resulted in a significant increase of apoptotic cells in a dose-dependent manner [3.2% apoptotic cells in 0 μmol/L, 4.3% in 5 μmol/L, 6.3% in 10 μmol/L (P < 0.05), and 6.7% in 20 μmol/L (P < 0.05)]. Moreover, PI3K inhibitor induced a similar significant increase of apoptotic cells in the SW620 cell line for 48 h [3.3% apoptotic cells in 0 μmol/L, 13.3% in 5 μmol/L (P < 0.01), 19.2% in 10 μmol/L (P < 0.01), and 21.3% in 20 μmol/L (P < 0.01)].

CONCLUSION
High PI3K expression is associated with CRC metastasis. PI3K inhibitor induced apoptosis in CRC cells and displayed strong cytotoxicity for highly metastatic cells. PI3K inhibition may be an effective treatment for CRC.


Schizophrenia is the most common form of psychotic mental disorder, with a point prevalence generally estimated to lie between 0.6–1.0%. Genetically informative studies have indicated a multifactorial aetiology, with an important heritable (genetic) component, but with environmental exposures also undoubtedly relevant. The "neurodevelopmental hypothesis" has informed a body of research that fairly consistently identifies birth complications as a risk factor for the later onset of schizophrenia.1,2

Injury to the head or brain after birth and beyond has been posited as a risk factor for psychosis for many decades but has enjoyed little systematic research (see Lishman,3 van Reekum et al ,4 and Fujii and Ahmed5 for reviews). The purpose of this article is to review this information systematically. Computerised databases including Medline and PsychInfo were searched using head/brain injury and psychosis or schizophrenia as search terms, covering the period from 1966 to end 2003. Citations from published reviews were also retrieved and yielded important articles and monographs, some published more than two decades ago, not included in these databases.

Four types of study design have been used to assess the relation between head injury and schizophrenia: the case report; the long term follow up of series of head injured persons; the cross sectional survey; and the case–control study.

Case reports document individual unusual clinical events or episodes. The report from O'Callahan and colleagues6 is a good recent case in point. The striking circumstance here was the onset of schizophrenia in a previously well 16 year old, with no other risk factors, two years after a significant head injury involving a blow to the left frontotemporal region. His parents commented that "he was never the same since the accident". However, it is possible that the onset of schizophrenia was incidental to the head injury, and …


Abstract Teachers' language practice during shared book reading may significantly affect the rate and outcome of early language proficiency. The current study has focused on 37 kindergarten teachers and 440 4- to 5-year-old kindergartners during their shared book reading sessions in Singapore, exploring teachers' variation in instructional strategies and linguistic features, and its relations with children's language development and teacher's background. Results demonstrated that teacher's language strategies and linguistic features varied considerably. Instructional strategies with a medium level of cognitive load were found to be positively related to children's growth in receptive vocabulary and word reading skills. Teacher's lexical sophistication was found to be positively associated with children's vocabulary size. Years of teaching experience was revealed to predict teacher's variation in medium-level instructions.


Abstract Aims Bidirectional and durable block of mitral isthmus (MI) is essential for catheter ablation of persistent atrial fibrillation (PeAF) and perimitral flutter (PMF), but it remains a challenge. The aim of this study was to create a simple anatomical ablation strategy with minimal fluoroscopy that would yield a high success rate for MI block. Methods and results Patients with PeAF or PMF were included. Mitral isthmus was ablated in a stepwise strategy. In Step 1, endocardial MI linear ablation was performed; in Step 2, ablation was targeted to the posterolateral portion of the left atrium along the MI line; in Step 3, epicardial ablation within the coronary sinus (CS) was performed across the MI line to the ostium of the vein of Marshall (VOM) or performed within the VOM if available; in Step 4, the catheter was rotated and ablated in the CS to isolate the CS; and in Step 5, the early activation site with complex component potential above the MI line during distal CS pacing was considered as the ablation target. All patients were followed up. A total of 178 (17 patients with mechanical prosthetic mitral valve) were included. One hundred and sixty-six patients achieved a confirmed MI bidirectional conduction block (93%). One patient had cardiac tamponade. Four patients showed re-conduction across the MI line during a repeated ablation. In the latest follow-up [12 (7, 16) months], 161 of 178 (90%) patients maintained their sinus rhythm. Conclusion A simple stepwise anatomical ablation strategy for MI shows a high success rate with low fluoroscopy exposure.


[ANGLES] Nowadays, the number of wireless devices connected to the internet is rowing quite fast. However, the available spectrum will remain the same. Consequently, the next generation of mobile communications (5G) is driven by more spectral efficient waveforms. There are a number of candidate waveforms for 5G. One of them is the Filter Bank Multi-Carrier (FBMC) with Offset Quadrature Amplitude Modulation (OQAM) which is a variant of the current Orthogonal Frequency Division Multiplex (OFDM). The FBMC/OQAM is not only suitable for providing higher rates but also for having a better spectral efficiency than OFDM. In other words, in FBMC/OQAM the adjacent channel interference is reduced and consequently more users can be using the spectrum simultaneously. This project constitutes an experience of prototyping FBMC/OQAM for the FPGA based platform miniBEE. Which does not only provides the hardware platform but also a useful set of tools for Software Defined Radio (SDR) development.


Abstract In specimens of Mn skarn from the type locality of Långban, hyalotekite, (Ba,Pb,K)4Ca2− (Si,B,Be)12O28F, occurs in a matrix consisting mostly of aegirine (⩽22 mol.% CaMnSi2O6), andradite (⩽27 mol.% Mn3Fe2Si3O12), hematite, pectolite, quartz, calcite, baryte, barylite, and hedyphane. Melanotekite, plumbian taramellite, ferrian K-feldspar (to 6.5 wt.% Fe2O3), rhodonite, a talc-like mineral, apophyllite, and several Pb-As-Sb-O minerals are found in trace amounts. In a single specimen of reedmergnerite-microcline pegmatite from Dara-i-Pioz, hyalotekite occurs in close association with microcline. Other accessory minerals are albite, aegirine, pyrochlore, eudialyte, and polylithionite. The optical constants for hyalotekite from Långban and Dara-i-Pioz are, respectively, α = 1.656, 1.646, β = 1.659–1.660, 1.649, γ = 1.670–1.671, 1.659 (all ± 0.002), 2Vγ (mcas) = 57.2–60.5 ± 0.5°, 57.0 ± 1.1°(λ = 589 nm). Cell parameters of the Dara-i-Pioz hyalotekite for a body-centred triclinic cell are: a = 11.284(2), b = 10.930(1), c = 10.272(8) Å, α = 90.35(2)°, β = 90.11(3)°, γ = 89.98(1)°. Electron and ion microprobe data show that Långban hyalotekite is heterogeneous even within a given sample; the most important substitutions are Pb = Ba, K and coupled B = Si and B = Be. Minor constituents include Mn in the Långban hyalotekite and Na in the Dara-i-Pioz hyalotekite, which also differs in its significantly higher Ba/Pb ratio. Conditions suggested for hyalotekite formation at Långban and Dara-i-Pioz are P ⩽ 4 kbar, T ⩾ 500°C, silica saturation, peralkalinity, and relatively high oxygen fugacities and low sulphur fugacities. These temperatures must have been sufficiently high to allow for miscibility of Pb with Ba (and K) despite the lone pair of electrons of Pb2+.


Until recently, weight loss in the elderly obese was feared due to ensuing muscle loss and frailty. Facing overall increasing longevity, high rates of obesity in older subjects (≥65 years) and a growing recognition of the health and functional cost of the number of obesity years, abetted by evidence that intentional weight loss in older obese subjects is safe, this approach is gradually, but not unanimously, being replaced by more active principles. Lifestyle interventions that include reduced but sufficient energy intake, age-adequate protein and micronutrient intake, coupled with aerobic and resistance exercise tailored to personal limitations can induce weight loss with improvement in frailty indices. Sustained weight loss in this age can prevent/ameliorate diabetes. More active steps are controversial. The use of weight loss medications, particularly GLP-1 analogs (liraglutide as the first example), provides an additional treatment tier. Its safety and cardiovascular health benefits have been convincingly shown in elderly obese subjects with type 2 diabetes. In our opinion, this option should not be denied to obese subjects with prediabetes or other obesity-related comorbidities based on age. Finally, many reports now provide evidence that bariatric surgery can be safely performed in older subjects as the last treatment tier. Risk-benefit issues should be considered with extreme care and disclosed to candidates. The selection process requires good presurgical functional status, individualized consideration of the sequels of obesity and reliance on centers which are highly experienced in the surgical procedure as well as short and long term subsequent comprehensive care and support.


This article examines four ways in which special education teachers assisted students' development in literacy events. These include the teacher's role as a more knowledgeable member of the classroom who (1) uses dialogue to scaffold performance, (2) nurtures the dialogical relationship that underlies the discourse in classrooms, (3) uses procedural facilitation to make complex processes accessible to students and gives them a language for talking about spoken and written text, and (4) transfers increasing levels of control and responsibility to students for regulating their own learning.


The purpose of the study is a comparison of respiratory metabolic rates and anaerobic glycolytic activity (lactate accumulation) in homogenates of epididymides from normal, orchidectomized and testosterone replaced-orchidectomized mice. Animals subjected to vasa efferentiectomy were used to furnish sperm free homogenates as controls for the homogenates from orchidectomized animals, and to furnish estimates of the contribution of the spermatozoa to these metabolic parameters in homogenates of normal epididymides.

Efferentiectomized mice yield homogenates with a significantly lowered rate of respiratory activity (30%). Experiments with fractions of these homogenates showed this reduction in activity to be equivalent to the contribution of the spermatozoa in homogenates from normal mice. No significant difference in the rate of respiratory metabolism was observed among homogenates obtained from efferentiectomized, orchidectomized, testosterone replaced-orchidectomized, or testosterone injected-efferentiectomized mice.

Efferentiectomy also resulted in a lowered rate of anaerobic glycolytic activity in vitro. No further reduction or elevation of this activity was observed in homogenates from orchidectomized or testosterone injected animals. Further study indicated this loss following efferentiectomy to be due to a reduced glycolytic activity in the epididymal epithelium rather than to the absence of spermatozoan contribution to the metabolism.

The evidence presented supports the hypothesis that the presence of some component of the spermatozoa or the fluids in which they reside controls the activation or inhibition of a segment of the lactic dehydrogenase activity which is responsible for the secretion of lactic acid into the epididymal canal for spermatozoan utilization.


A Staff Training Plan on Screening African Americans for Prediabetes by Valerie Berry MSN, Walden University, 2014 BSN, University of Phoenix, 2012 Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice Walden University November 2019 Abstract African American adults have higher risks of undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes, uncontrolled Type 2 diabetes, and complications from Type 2 diabetes than members of other racial groups. Health care providers in rural Tennessee lack staff training plans for prediabetes screening of older African American adults. In addition, few rural Tennessee health care providers have programs in place to train staff in prediabetes screening, screening instrument use, and interventions for Type 2 diabetes prevention. The focus of this DNP project was on developing an evidence-based staff training program designed to improve knowledge regarding prediabetes screening in older African American adults. Concepts informing the doctoral project were Knowles' adult learning theory and the Joanna Briggs Institute's levels of evidence model. This project involved development of a staff training plan for using the American Diabetes Association Risk Calculator to screen for prediabetes. Three stakeholders at a rural Tennessee health care facility (one physician and two nurse practitioners) reviewed the staff training plan and provided feedback on its appropriateness and efficacy. The stakeholders unanimously approved the training plan, finding it an appropriate means of teaching their staff to use the American Diabetes Association Risk Calculator in screening high-risk patients for prediabetes. Once implemented, this staff training plan should contribute to positive social change by improving health outcomes for older African American adults with diabetes in rural Tennessee.African American adults have higher risks of undiagnosed Type 2 diabetes, uncontrolled Type 2 diabetes, and complications from Type 2 diabetes than members of other racial groups. Health care providers in rural Tennessee lack staff training plans for prediabetes screening of older African American adults. In addition, few rural Tennessee health care providers have programs in place to train staff in prediabetes screening, screening instrument use, and interventions for Type 2 diabetes prevention. The focus of this DNP project was on developing an evidence-based staff training program designed to improve knowledge regarding prediabetes screening in older African American adults. Concepts informing the doctoral project were Knowles' adult learning theory and the Joanna Briggs Institute's levels of evidence model. This project involved development of a staff training plan for using the American Diabetes Association Risk Calculator to screen for prediabetes. Three stakeholders at a rural Tennessee health care facility (one physician and two nurse practitioners) reviewed the staff training plan and provided feedback on its appropriateness and efficacy. The stakeholders unanimously approved the training plan, finding it an appropriate means of teaching their staff to use the American Diabetes Association Risk Calculator in screening high-risk patients for prediabetes. Once implemented, this staff training plan should contribute to positive social change by improving health outcomes for older African American adults with diabetes in rural Tennessee. A Staff Training Plan on Screening African Americans for Prediabetes by Valerie Berry MSN, Walden University, 2014 BSN, University of Phoenix, 2012 Project Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Nursing Practice Walden University November 2019 Dedication This project is dedicated to my parents, my family, and especially my mom and daughter, who provided me with the motivation and time needed to complete this journey.


In this paper, the principle and method of the electron temperature measurement by means of electron cyclotron emission (ECE) have been discribed. Several results under different conditions on HL-1M tokamak have been given. The hollow profile of electron temperature appears in some stages, such as current rising, pellet injection and impurity concentration in the plasma centre. When the bias voltage is applied, the electron temperature profile become steeper. All of the phenomena are related with the transport in plasma centre.


Quantum chemical calculations were employed to get insight into the mechanisms involved in plasma-induced nitridation of gate oxide that will suppress boron penetration. The roles played by the nitrogen cations and atoms were explored. It was shown that B interaction with siloxane rings that contain incorporated nitrogen yielded a larger energy gain than rings without nitrogen. This explains the chemical nature of the nitrogen-induced barrier effect. Monte Carlo simulations were used to simulate the necessary energy of incident N2 cations to produce the bond cleavage down to a particular depth in the amorphous SiO2 layer. A combination of the hybrid plasma equipment model and plasma chemistry Monte Carlo codes was used to simulate nitrogen atomic and cation fluxes and their angular and energy distributions at the water surface. Combining simulated cation energies with PROMIS Monte Carlo simulation results makes it possible to derive plasma process parameters that will permit a desired level of nitridation...


A role for neurotrophins in regulating cortical developmental plasticity has clearly emerged in these last years. In this review we first present a summary of the early data on the action of NGF in visual cortical development and plasticity in the rat and of the actions of the other neurotrophins in the visual cortex of other mammals. In addition, in order to clarify the differences in the results obtained with the various neurotrophins in different animal preparations we also report new data on the action of NGF, BDNF, NT3 and NT4 in the same preparation, namely the visual cortex of the rat. We discuss old and new results in a physiological model where different neurotrophins play different roles in regulating visual cortical development and plasticity by acting on different neural targets, such as LGN afferents, intracortical circuitry and subcortical afferents and propose a tentative scheme summarizing these actions.


OBJECTIVE
Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is an effective treatment for pediatric high-risk acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) survivors. Still, both the disease and treatment often impair cognitive and motor functions, and HSCT is a risk factor for long-term deficits. The study aimed at investigating the effect of HSCT on cognitive, motor, and visual-motor functions. Two groups were enrolled: The first group received HSCT treatment, and the second group did not.

METHOD
Sixty-five ALL survivors participated in the study (ages: 7-17). Twenty-one of participants who underwent HSCT comprised the first group. We implemented tests from Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery, Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children, and Test of Memory and Learning to estimate cognitive functions, Bruininks-Oseretsky Test of Motor Proficiency to estimate motor functions, and Beery-Buktenica Developmental Test to estimate visual perceptual and visual motor functions. As independent variables for analysis we chose group (HSCT+/-), age at diagnosis, and current age.

RESULTS
MANCOVA test demonstrated significant effect of current age on cognitive functions (partial η2 = 0.55) and significant effect of HSCT treatment on motor functions (partial η2 = 0.19). Current age also had moderate effect on visual-motor functions (partial η2 = 0.11). Significant differences were found in most cognitive, motor, and visual-motor tests' results between the two groups, with HSCT+ group demonstrating poorer performance.

CONCLUSIONS
This study has several limitations, including small sample size, potentially mismatched groups, imbalanced gender ratio. Still, the findings underline the importance of considering late effects of HSCT, and age when designing rehabilitation programs.


Background: Mucociliary clearance is one of the most important protective functions of the airway. Previous studies, checking the influence of allergic rhinitis (AR) on mucociliary clearance time (MCT), were made on small patient groups and brought contradictive results. Objectives: The aim of the study is to confirm whether AR in children influences MCT. Methods: The examined group consisted of 842 AR children. A total of 96 children with no history of allergy rhinitis served as a comparative group. All patients underwent saccharin and skin prick tests and tests for blood eosinophilia, nasal eosinophilia, vitamin D3 serum concentration, total and specific IgE serum concentration. Results: Nasal MCT was significantly longer in AR patients (mean ± SD: 10.5 ± 5.65 min) compared to controls (mean ± SD: 7.25 ± 4.3 min). Percentage of eosinophils in nasal smears in patients was significantly higher compared to controls and a weak, but significant positive correlation was observed between the percentage and MCT (r > 0.10, p < 0.008). Patients with intermittent and persistent moderate/ severe AR had significantly longer MCT and higher eosinophilia in nasal smears compared both to patients with intermittent and persistent mild RA and controls. No correlation was observed between MCT and: participant's age, total serum IgE, vitamin D3 serum concentration, absolute number or percentage of eosinophils in blood, prick test results or duration of illness. Conclusions: AR affects the mucociliary clearance in children, and its deterioration is related to more severe rhinitis with higher intensity of local nasal inflammation, reflected in nasal smear eosinophilia.


Background: Proficiency testing (PT) is a key component of Quality assurance to evaluate the laboratory performance. Although HBV testing has rapidly expanded worldwide, but in resource limited settings (RLS) like India there is still a lacunae in PT programs to monitor and improve the quality of testing. Conventional PT programs use serum or plasma specimens that require strict settings for storage and transportation. Thus the aim was to standardize dried tube specimens (DTS) technique for stability studies of HBV specimens as has been done for PT programs in HIV-EQAS. Methods: Dried tube specimens, an unusual, simple and easy to use technique, were standardized that can help assessing the quality of Hepatitis B Surface Antigen (HBsAg) testing in RLS. DTS were prepared by drying 30l of samples mixed with 0.1% of green dye, left overnight at room temperature. The DTS were rehydrated with 250l of PBSTween buffer before testing. Twenty DTS samples (09 HBV positive and 11 negative) were used for performing ELISA and rapid tests at weekly interval for Dried tube specimens stored at 4C, 25C, 37C & 45C. Results: Stability studies showed that HBsAg in the DTS specimens were stable upto 28 days at temperature 4C, 25C, 37C & 45C. We observed consistent and expected results for all the DTS samples by ELISA and rapid tests for the different durations and temperatures. No difference in the qualitative nature of the HBV reactive and non-reactive samples were observed for Dried tube specimens over 28 days duration and stored at 4C, 25C, 37C & 45C temperatures. However, a decline in HBsAg levels were observed after four weeks (28days) for a few specimens stored at 45C. Conclusion: Stability results of this preliminary study indicate that the reactivity status was unchanged and maintained for HBV plasma samples upto 28 days at temperatures (4C, 25C 37C& 45C) in the dried tube specimens. Further we found DTS is an easy and simple method to prepare and transport quality control specimens for effective implementation of PT programs to monitor HBV testing in India.


Either ricin A chain (RAC) or Pseudomonas exotoxin (PE) was conjugated with a murine monoclonal antibody (0.5 beta) directed against an external envelope glycoprotein (gp120) of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). Effects of the immunotoxins produced against infected cells were evaluated. Selective inhibition of the proliferation and killing of chronically HIV infected cells were observed in the presence of the immunotoxins. To determine the feasibility of the immunotoxins against the infected cells in seropositive subjects, we attempted to detect gp120-bearing cells in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBM) by cytofluorography. Cells in the monocyte/macrophage region of 2 of 10 PBM samples from HIV-infected individuals were found to react with 0.5 beta (18.1% and 12.8%). Furthermore, the cell population which was reactive with 0.5 beta was also susceptible to RAC conjugated with 0.5 beta. These results suggest that the strategy of using anti-gp120 immunotoxin to eliminate HIV-infected cells may be feasible in infected individuals.


Dementia is one of the most devastating mental illnesses that affect older adults, accounting for a large proportion of new cases of mental illness in old age and causing significant distress to individuals and their families. This paper provides a review of research on the frequency of dementia and the factors that put people at risk, with implications for prevention and intervention. Where possible, we address ethnic or cultural differences. However, while ethnic minority elders are a rapidly growing group in the United States, too little research has been conducted about dementia in these groups, including differences in rates of the disorder and risk-factor profiles. DEFINITION AND PREVALENCE According to the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual/Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), dementia is a decline in memory and other cognitive abilities whereby the decline interferes with daily, social, and occupational functioning (American Psychiatric Association, 1994). Other cognitive disturbances include aphasia (especially problems remembering names of people or things), apraxia (impaired physical movements despite intact physical capability), agnosia (trouble identifying objects), and problems with executive functioning (e.g., difficulty with planning or thinking abstractly). Dementia has a number of causes, which makes this complex disorder difficult to diagnose. For diagnosis, it is important to rule out other reasons for cognitive impairment such as delirium, depression, malnutrition, medication side effects, alcohol abuse, and infections. The overall prevalence of dementia in adults aged 65 and older ranges from 1.8 percent to 6.7 percent (Chui, 1998). The prevalence of dementia increases with age, doubling every 5. years until age 95 (Jorm, Korten, and Henderson, 1987). The two most common types of dementia are Alzheimer's disease and vascular dementia. Alzheimer's disease is a brain disorder that impairs multiple areas of cognitive functioning and worsens over time. Onset of the disease is typically insidious, usually beginning with loss of recent memory, then progressively affecting other areas of cognition such as language production and comprehension. The clinical diagnosis typically entails a neurological examination, neuropsychological assessment, evaluation of the course of cognitive and behavioral impairments, neuroimaging, and exclusion of other potential causes of cognitive impairment (Reisberg et al., 1997). Vascular dementia is based on the understanding that cerebrovascular types of diseases like stroke can cause brain injury and lead to cognitive impairment. A diagnosis of vascular dementia requires the following: (i) the presence of dementia, (2) evidence of cerebrovascular disease, and (3) onset of the dementia soon after a vascular "event" (Roman et al., 1993). Unlike the course of Alzheimer's disease, the course of vascular dementia may not be smoothly progressive but rather may be characterized by plateaus. Researchers have observed ethnic and crossnational differences in the frequency of these types of dementia. In general, overall rates of dementia are similar cross-nationally and crossculturally, but notable differences exist in rates of different subtypes of dementia. For example, in the United States and Northern Europe, Alzheimer's disease is the most common type of dementia, followed by vascular dementia (Skoog, 1998), whereas Japan and China have higher rates of vascular dementia, followed by Alzheimer's disease (Joan, iggi; Yoshitake et al., 1995). Within ethnic groups in the United States, African Americans tend to have higher rates of vascular dementia than whites (Yeo, Gallagher-- Thompson, and Lieberman,1996). In addition, mixed dementia (with features of both vascular dementia and Alzheimer's disease) may be more common among African Americans than among whites. Some findings suggest that rates of different types of dementia vary by gender. …


The deployment of a complete carbon-capture and storage chain requires a focus upon the hazards posed by the operation of CO2 pipelines, and the consequences of accidental release must be considered as an integral part of the design process. CO2 poses a number of dangers upon release due to its physical properties, and modelling of the fluid dynamics of such poses a unique set of problems due to its unusual phase transition behaviour. Additionally, few experimental observations have been made with regard to CO2 releases to date, and so the physics and thermochemistry of such systems are not well understood. The current work has involved state-of-the-art mathematical modelling and experimental measurement to further advances in this area of research, and presented here are results from both. The performance of the mathematical models is elucidated with the use of the experimental data, and avenues for future developments are presented.


Goal: New and improved treatments depend on the completion of successful clinical trials. Our goal is to impact all aspects of the clinical trial process to enhance accrual and outcomes. 1) To provide patient focused feedback at the design phase of clinical trials 2) To increase health literacy about clinical trials at both the national and community level 3) To provide decision aids for individual trials 4) To provide patient focused staff communication trainings Strategy: CISN principals are currently working with the following groups National Clinical Trial Network Academic Medical Centers: UCSF and Mayo Industry: Genentech, Pfizer, Novartis, and Lilly Nonprofit Organizations: AACR, Faster Cures, Susan G. Komen, SOCRA CISN principals are working within the NCTN to accomplish strategies one and two. The goal is to branch out to more community venues in the future. A 2001 study by Lara et. al. reported that the consent process with its legalistic and confusing forms is itself a barrier to patient participation with 49% of eligible patients declining enrollment. We address these concerns by accomplishing strategies 3 and 4 above. Action Taken CISN is introducing the medical community to an array of issues affecting patients considering participation in clinical trials. They are also developing patient-centered, study specific, educational materials included as part of the informed consent process. These interventions may enhance patient literacy, improve patient satisfaction and advance public trust in the research enterprise, leading to responsible increased accrual and retention. Additionally, CISN has worked as a contractor for several biotech companies to develop patient educational materials for several studies. Work done at the Clinical Trial Summit documented that 67% of professionals consenting patients have less than 6 hours of psychosocial training. To address that issue, CISN developed a training program for those professionals who administer consent. Two PhD psychologists where brought onboard as consultants to assist in the development of the training. To date CISN has conducted many trainings for various groups and will soon submit grants to partner with other organizations to translate the materials into Spanish and work with patient navigators to further ensure proper training in all communities. Outcome Interest in our methods and materials continues to grow. CISN was identified by Faster Cures as having "best practice" methods in the area of informed consent. We work closely with academic, government, other non-profits and industry researchers to help foster public awareness about the importance of medical research to daily life. CISN addresses these issues and presents various strategies that might be applied to NCI network group and industry trials so as to bridge the research gap, move research forward, and adopt the best course to serve the needs of the community, researchers and patients. Citation Format: Spears PA, Devine P, Finestone S, Carbine N. Clinical trials: "A holistic approach". [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the Thirty-Eighth Annual CTRC-AACR San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium: 2015 Dec 8-12; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P5-10-02.


In this article I consider what Pope Francis's 2015 special criticism for "any form of gnostic spiritualism" may mean for educating college students about Catholic social teaching. The argument unfolds in two parts. I begin by offering a framework for my ideas. This part consists of my teaching situation and teaching philosophy. In the second part of the article I invite the reader to consider some of my teaching insights and tactics. Before the article ends, I share two learning exercises I employ to develop deeper understanding of compassion and solidarity.


Hydrolysis resistance and mechanism of reaction products of hydroxymethylated 2-substituted (X) 4,6-diamino-s-triazines (MXT) with cotton fabrics has been studied. Finishing reagents used were MXT having the following substituents: X = CH3O (MMT), (CH3)2CHO (MIPT), CH3 (MAG), C2H5NH (MEM), HOC2H4NH (MHEM), and (HOC2H4)2N (MBHEM). For comparison, trimethylolmelamine (TMM), dimethylolurea (DMU), dimethylolethyleneurea (DMEU), and dimethylol-ethyltriazone (DMET) were used. Hydrolysis was carried out in buffer and NaOH solutions of various pH's for 30 min at 80°C. The order of hydrolysis resistance of crosslinked reagents was determined from the nitrogen contents retained. It was as follows: pH 1, MROT MRT > MRNT; pH ≦ 13, MROT > MRNT; pH 14, MROT < MRT < MRNT, where MROT is hydroxymethylated 2-alkoxy (MMT, MIPT), MRT is hydroxymethylated 2-alkyl (MAG), and MRNT is hydroxymethylated 2-alkylamino-4,6-diamino-s-triazine (MEM, MHEM, MBHEM). This fact can be explained in terms of the basicity constant (pKb) of crosslinked MXT with cotton (approximately pKb) of 2-substituted 4,6-diamino-s-triazine (XT). The hydrolysis rates of crosslinked MMT, MAG, and MEM were determined at pH 2. The activation energies were 21.8 for MMT, 20.9 for MAG, and 21.0 kcal/mole for MEM.


Due to the proliferation of actors involved, the expansion in mandated tasks, and the general complexity of conflict dynamics, partnerships are increasingly a fact of life for UN peace operations. However, partnership creates additional challenges – strategic ambiguity, an over-emphasis on process, weakened command and control and unequal burden-sharing – that cannot be eliminated, but rather need to be managed. This article suggests a framework to help guide the UN towards applying specific approaches – power, management, leadership or culture – depending on the varying level of agreement between two partners, with the goal of making partnership more manageable.


Snow algae occupy a unique habitat in high altitude and polar environments. These algae are often subject to extremes in nutrient availability, acidity, solar irradiance, desiccation, and ambient temperature. This report documents the accumulation of secondary carotenoids by snow algae in response to the availability of nitrogenous nutrients. Unusually large accumulations of astaxanthin esters in extra‐chloroplastic lipid globules produce the characteristics red pigmentation typical of some snow algae (e.g. Chlamydomonas nivalis (Bauer) Wille). Consequently these compounds greatly reduce the amount of light available for absorption by the light‐harvesting pigment‐protein complexes, thus potentially limiting photoinhibition and photodamage caused by intense solar radiation. The esterification of astaxnthin with fatty acids represents a possible mechanism by which this chromophore can be concentrated within cytoplasmic globules to maximize its photoprotective efficiency.


In Swedish national transport policy is freight transport regarded as a major facilitator for economic development on all geographical levels. At the same time it is noted that methods and data on business location and transportation is not adequate in order to follow-up transport policy objectives. This paper reports on a pilot study on the potential to develop accessibility measures to support and follow up policy objectives in Swedish context. The concept of accessibility and its practical use in concrete measures is discussed and problematized. A number of practical examples from Region Vastra Gotaland are used as illustrations. In terms of results the study identifies a number of potentials and limitations of using accessibility measures for freight transport issues. The usefulness is mainly driven by the integration capability of transport and land-use. This opens up for more complex questions and measures and thus supports the integration between planning specialisations. Limitations are to a large extent related to data availability and quality and to the degree of which models are possible to communicate to non-experts. The concluding discussion highlights how the policy and governance context is key in understanding how to best utilise the potential strengths of the accessibility concept and measures.


This research was aim as to study (1) the purpose of distance learning of leadership (2) the administration of the private university in Thailand, the data analysis was by from book in the library Thailand and interview the Head of Department in the University, the university of study was set Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU), it found as (1) The distance learning and open learning system characteristics, media and instructional delivery modes, and academic and technological supports. Since there is no unique way of organizing and providing for distance education, we turn our attention to the concept of open learning systems and a provision of flexibility. The chapter also includes a history of knowledge, the various meanings of open learning and distance education systems and perspectives, and typology of institutions. (2) The private university in Thailand Administration of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) is under the responsibility of the President, assisted by a number and seek the Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University (STOU) Council's approval for the implementations of any major policies. The administration of the state universities are operating individually, in which the institutions must be controlled by either the academic quality or curricula under the rules and regulations of Ministry of University Affairs.


The study aimed at determining the prevalence, risk factors, perinatal transmission, and serotypes of Group B Streptococcus (GBS) among pregnant women and their newborns in Beirut, Lebanon. This was a cross‐sectional study of all pregnant women admitted from February to September 2006 to three major hospitals. Overall, 137 of 775 (17.7%) mothers and 50 of 682 newborns (7.3%) tested positive for GBS. Maternal colonization was not associated with maternal age, household income, gravidity, intrapartum fever, preterm labor, or premature rupture of membrane. Transmission rate was 40/120 (30%). Serotype 5 (24.1%) was the most common followed by serotype 1a (15.0%), 3 (14.4%), 2 (11.8%) and 1b (7.5%). Pregnant women in Lebanon appear to have a relatively high prevalence of GBS colonization with no identifiable risk factors for its acquisition. These results could provide basis for the institution of a national policy for universal maternal GBS screening to reduce neonatal morbidity and mortality.


Background/Aims: Vascular calcification (VC), a major complication in humans and animals with chronic kidney disease (CKD), is influenced by changes in acid-base balance. The purpose of this study was to describe the acid-base balance in uremic rats with VC and to correlate the parameters that define acid-base equilibrium with VC. Methods: Twenty-two rats with CKD induced by 5/6 nephrectomy (5/6 Nx) and 10 nonuremic control rats were studied. Results: The 5/6 Nx rats showed extensive VC as evidenced by a high aortic calcium (9.2 ± 1.7 mg/g of tissue) and phosphorus (20.6 ± 4.9 mg/g of tissue) content. Uremic rats had an increased pH level (7.57 ± 0.03) as a consequence of both respiratory (PaCO2 = 28.4 ± 2.1 mm Hg) and, to a lesser degree, metabolic (base excess = 4.1 ± 1 mmol/l) derangements. A high positive correlation between both anion gap (AG) and strong ion difference (SID) with aortic calcium (AG: r = 0.604, p = 0.02; SID: r = 0.647, p = 0.01) and with aortic phosphorus (AG: r = 0.684, p = 0.007; SID: r = 0.785, p = 0.01) was detected. Conclusions: In an experimental model of uremic rats, VC showed high positive correlation with AG and SID.


PURPOSE
Clinical trials require significant resources, but benefits are only realized after trial completion and dissemination of results. We comprehensively assessed early discontinuation, registry results reporting, and publication by trial sponsor and subspecialty in urology trials.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
We assessed trial registrations from 2007-2019 on ClinicalTrials.gov and publication data from PubMed/MEDLINE. Associations between sponsor or subspecialty with early discontinuation were assessed using Cox Proportional Hazards and results reporting or publication with logistic regression at three years after completion.

RESULTS
Of 8,636 trials, 3,541 (41.0%) were completed while 999 (11.6%) were discontinued. 26.9% of completed trials reported results, and 21.6% were published. Sponsors included Academic institutions (53.1%), Industry (37.1%), or US Government (9.8%). Academic-sponsored (adjusted hazard ratio (aHR):0.81, 95% Confidence Interval (CI):0.69-0.96, p=0.012) and Government-sponsored trials (aHR:0.62, 95%CI:0.49-0.78, p <0.001) were less likely than Industry to discontinue early. Government-sponsored trials were more likely to report (adjusted odds ratio (aOR):1.72, 95%CI:1.17-2.54, p=0.006) and publish (aOR:1.89, 95%CI:1.23-2.89, p=0.004). Academic-sponsored were less likely to report (aOR:0.65, CI:0.48-0.88, p=0.006) but more likely to publish (aOR:1.72, 95%CI:1.25-2.37, p <0.001). These outcomes were similar across subspecialties; however, endourology was more likely to discontinue early (aHR:2.00, 95%CI:1.53-2.95, p <0.001), general urology more likely to report results (aOR:1.54, 95%CI:1.13-2.11, p=0.006), and andrology less likely to publish (aOR:0.53, 95%CI:0.35-0.81, p=0.003).

CONCLUSIONS
Sponsor type is significantly associated with trial completion and dissemination; Government-sponsored trials had the best performance while Industry and Academic-sponsored lagged in trial completion and results reporting, respectively. Subspecialty played a lesser role. Lack of dissemination remains a problem for urology trials.


Domestic sheep (Ovis aries) is descendant from Asian mouflon and was domesticated in the Near East. Later, sheep began its dissemination to West Africa, where it is believed that the ancestry of Pelibuey sheep came from. Pelibuey sheep were brought to America by the Spaniards to feed the crew of the boats. It is unclear whether these animals came directly from West Africa or from the Canary Islands. It is considered that Pelibuey sheep entered to Mexico between 1930 and 1940, although some authors think that this breed already existed in the country in the late nineteenth century. Since 1963, Pelibuey sheep has been the most studied breed in Mexico, due to its ability to produce in tropics, as well as its high adaptability to most agro-ecological zones of the country. A brief review about productive and reproductive traits in current Pelibuey herds, allowed to conclude that they are very similar to those of the first sheep studied almost 50 years ago. Currently, the breed has been subjected to  non-planned crosses with other breeds to increase productivity, which puts in risk this important genetic resource. Therefore, there is a need to realize the conservation of the breed.


A polypeptide of identical molecular mass (Mr 83,000) and charge to desmosomal plakoglobin from bovine snout epidermis was identified in soluble and pelletable fractions from diverse tissues and cells of different mammalian species, including cells and tissues devoid of desmosomes (e.g. endothelial, retinal, lenticular cells, fibroblasts). The protein, however, was not detected in erythrocytes and platelets and in myeloma cells, nor in smooth muscle tissue. In all cells examined, the plakoglobin soluble upon cell lysis in buffers of near-physiological pH and ionic strength (21-31% of the total plakoglobin in the different cell types) was found to exist in a distinct molecular form. On sucrose gradient centrifugation it appeared at about 7 S and gel filtration chromatography revealed a Stokes radius of about 5.0 nm, from which an Mr of about 170,000 was estimated. By using isoelectric focusing under non-denaturing conditions, soluble approximately equal to 7-S plakoglobin had an isoelectric point at about pH 5.3. The plaque-bound and the soluble form of plakoglobin were indistinguishable by electrical charge and molecular mass, regardless of the source, indicating molecular identity. Cross-linking of soluble proteins with cupric 1,10-phenanthroline resulted in the formaton of a cross-linked product of plakoglobin with similar physical properties as the native approximately equal to 7-S particle, which is compatible with the interpretation that the soluble plakoglobin particle is a dimer. While a major proportion of the plakoglobin in the desmosomal plaque was resistant to various extraction procedures, plakoglobin present in the plaques of non-desmosome-containing cells and tissues was readily extractable under low and high salt conditions. This indicates that differences exist in the binding of plakoglobin to desmosomal plaques and the plaques of non-demosomal junctions.


The microscopic structure and thermodynamic properties of liquid-vapor and liquid-liquid interfaces in Ising fluids are studied using an integral equation approach. The calculations are performed in the absence and presence of an external magnetic field by solving the corresponding set of Lovett-Mou-Buff-Wertheim integrodifferential equations for the one-particle density distribution functions. The two-particle inhomogeneous direct correlation functions are consistently constructed by nonlinear interpolation between the bulk ones. The bulk correlation functions of the coexisting phases are obtained from the Ornstein-Zernike equations with a modified soft mean spherical approximation for the closure relation. As a result, the density and magnetization profiles at liquid-vapor and liquid-liquid interfaces as well as the surface tension and adsorption coefficients are evaluated in a wide temperature range including subcritical regions. The influence of an external magnetic field on the liquid-vapor interfaces is also considered.


The aim of this work was to compare the prevalence of physical activity level, nutrition state and abdominal obesity in physical education professors from the University Autonomus of Sinaloa (UAS) Mexico and Huelva University (UHU) Spain, 52 professors were studied, in order to classify the physical activity level the International Physical Activity Questionannaire (IPAQ) short version was applied. To determine the nutrition state and abdominal obesity, anthropometric measurements were taken (weight, stature and waist circumference). Resulting whith similar prevalence of high and moderate physical activity, the prevalence of combined overweight and obesity was considerly higher in UAS profesors (90.6%) than UHU professors (37.5%), the same way in the prevalence of abdominal obesity 30.6% to 12.5%. The findings of this study shows subjects physically active, but for other side this study shows in both university professors high prevalence of overweight and obesity even higher than their respective people average country. We can conclude that in these subjects efforts should be made to develop nutritions programs to help stem rates of overweight and obesity.


The ubiquitousness of information systems means that more and more areas of the company's activity are moving into the virtual sphere. IT systems take over most of the complicated tasks performed by people, which has a positive impact on time and costs incurred for the implementation of these tasks. One of the areas in which IT systems are used is the area of financial management, and thus the management of the financial condition of the unit. This article aims to test the suitability of expert systems as tools that can support the analysis and assessment of the financial condition of business units. The theoretical part discusses the essence of IT systems, theoretical foundations of expert systems and their advantages and disadvantages. The research part shows the use of an expert system to conduct the analysis of the financial condition of selected enterprises based on data from the financial statements of these units from 2015. The expert system provided information on the financial condition of selected companies. These results were compared with the results of the analysis carried out in the traditional way. This confirmed the author's assumption that it is possible to replace the financial analysis carried out with traditional methods by using a properly prepared expert system.


Subject. The article discusses the development of small businesses in the USA though supporting measures.
Objectives. We suggest how small businesses should be supported and developed by analyzing the relevant practices in the USA. We also identify and analyze factors and conditions that contribute to the development of small businesses through supportive measures taken in the USA.
Methods. We use the methods of analysis, synthesis and logic research through the creative data approach.
Results. In this article we analyze the specifics of tax treatment of business and small business, first of all, in Foreign Trade Zones and in the USA as a whole. We reveal special tax regimes in the USA, referring to the business environment of SME in Russia just for the sake of comparison. Having analyzed relevant positive practices in the USA, we suggest how small businesses should be supported and developed in Russia, which is the novelty of this study.
Conclusions and Relevance. We conclude that the apparatus the USA uses to bring its small business sector to the international market and expand its operations, helps businessmen increase their profit and sales, get more free from seasonal fluctuations and turbulence in the domestic market and receive real financial aid. Supporting the small business, the State should prioritize ensuring sufficient jobs for the people, including the creation of additional ones.


This paper concerns an optimal control problem for an elliptic variational inequality with controls appearing in coefficients, right hand sides and convex sets of states as well. The existence of an optimal control is verified and necessary optimality conditions are derived. The application to the optimal design of an elastic plate with an obstacle is presented.


We report the first case of AIDS-associated Kaposi's Sarcoma in a 35 year old Indian female, a commercial sex worker, with lesions involving skin and mucous membranes. Diagnosis was confirmed on histopathology, electron microscopy, seropositivity, (ELISA and Western Blot) as well as Pepti-LAV test and viral culture. Antibodies to human immunodeficiency virus, both HIV-1 & 2, were present. HLA DR5,7 was positive on oligotyping. Genetic predisposition, therefore, may be suspected.


Purpose To study the effect of autogenous fascia lata sling (AFLS) versus Gore-Tex suspension (GTS) regarding the functional and aesthetic outcomes in patients with bilateral congenital ptosis. Patients and methods A prospective comparative randomized single-center study enrolled 110 patients with bilateral congenital ptosis. One group (n=55) underwent AFLS and the second group (n=55) underwent GTS. Exclusion criteria were good levator function, absent Bell's phenomenon, and abnormal ocular motility. Follow-up period was 2 years. Functional outcome was measured from digital photos by analysis of upper eyelid margin position relative to the superior limbus and classified as very good (<3 mm), good (3–5 mm), poor (>5 mm), and recurrent. Aesthetic outcome was assessed in terms of lid contour, symmetry of eyelid height, and lid crease presence. Complications were also reported. Results Failure rate (recurrence and complications) was less in AFLS (P=0.035). Symmetrical lid height and good contour were more frequently attained by AFLS (P=0.007 and 0.047, respectively). However, the frequency of very good, good, poor, recurrence, lagopthalmos, ectropion, infection, and formed lid crease individually showed no statistically significant difference (P=0.252, 0.482, 1, 0.489, 0.438, 1, 0.618, and 0.506, respectively). Conclusion AFLS is a better choice in surgery for patients with bilateral congenital ptosis because it has fewer complications and a lesser recurrence rate than GTS.


In the past decade, institutional investors have become more active in monitoring management and voting the shares they control. The California Public Employees' Retirement System (CalPERS) was a leader in this wave of activism. This study investigates the long-term returns an investor with public information could earn by buying a portfolio of firms targeted by CalPERS and whether the success of CalPERS' activism depends on the aggressiveness of the targeting. The evidence supports the idea that visible and aggressive activism leads to substantial increases in shareholder wealth while a quieter activism does not.


ABSTRACT Guo, H.W.; Zhou, Y.H., and Cui, W., 2020. An empirical study on the financial development differences of Chinese port cities along the New Maritime Silk Road. In: Qiu, Y.; Zhu, H., and Fang, X. (eds.), Current Advancements in Marine and Coastal Research for Technological and Sociological Applications. Journal of Coastal Research, Special Issue No. 107, pp. 341-346. Coconut Creek (Florida), ISSN 0749-0208. The financial development of coastal port cities plays a crucial role in their economic development. This paper uses 18 indicators of 16 Chinese port cities along the "New Maritime Silk Road" in the 2018 China Statistical Yearbook to reflect the level of financial development and financial development environment, AHP is used to determine the weight of each indicator, cluster analysis is used to classify the cities according to the financial development level, and then principal component analysis is used to analyze the indicators, so as to get the score ranking of each city's financial development level, find out the reasons for the differences in financial development of port cities. The result shows that the financial industry strength and development speed of Shanghai, Guangzhou and Shenzhen are in the forefront due to historical accumulation factors and long-term national policy support. Cluster analysis further proves that the financial development of each port city has significant differences, and the influencing factors also have regional differences, among which the economic development level, economic growth level and the development of banking and insurance industry have a greater impact on the financial development of the city.


OBJECTIVE
Internal "anorexic voices" are commonly described by individuals with eating disorders. This study examines whether the perceived power and nature of that voice are related to eating pathology in anorexia nervosa.

METHOD
Sixty-three women and one man with an ICD-10 diagnosis of anorexia nervosa participated in this study (mean age = 27.3 years; mean BMI = 16.0). Participants completed questionnaires measuring severity of eating pathology, perceived voice power, and beliefs about voices, either at the start or during treatment.

RESULTS
A more powerful anorexic voice was associated with more negative eating attitudes in this clinical group. However, BMI was related to a moderating effect, with the interaction of greater voice power and malevolence being associated with a lower BMI.

DISCUSSION
These findings suggest the anorexic voice may function as a maintenance factor in anorexia nervosa. Cognitive models of hearing voices may be applicable to disorders other than psychosis. Further explorations are warranted. © 2016 Wiley Periodicals, Inc. (Int J Eat Disord 2016; 49:622-625).


Asthma remains a global health problem and, therefore, more effective pharmacotherapy is needed. This is particularly true for chronic and severe asthma. In these clinical phenotypes, chronic inflammation involving neutrophils is likely to play a pathogenic role, making it interesting to target cytokine signalling involved in the accumulation of neutrophils. Therefore, it is of interest that the archetype T-helper 17 cell cytokine interleukin (IL)-17A, perhaps also IL-17F, controls neutrophil accumulation, mucus secretion, macrophage mobilisation and smooth muscle reactivity in various experimental airway models. However, much less is known about the involvement of signalling via IL-17 cytokines in humans with asthma. Existing evidence suggests that these cytokines are released from several types of immune cells in asthma and, for IL-17A, there is a local increase associated with disease severity, with the mobilisation of neutrophils and smooth muscle cells locally in the airways. Even though the causative role of IL-17 cytokines remains unclear, there is potential for clinical utility in targeting IL-17A specifically in patients with moderate-to-severe asthma and high reversibility. There is a need for new and well-powered clinical investigations of signalling via IL-17 cytokines in this clinical phenotype. There is potential utility for drugs targeting IL-17 cytokine signalling in a sub-group of patients with asthma http://ow.ly/wPw5p


Policy highlights: If evaluation is defined as "a systematic determination of a subject's merit, worth and significance, using criteria governed by a set of standards", there is no evaluation without an evaluative framework specifying these criteria and standards. On the other hand, evaluative informetrics itself, defined as the study of evaluative aspects of science and scholarship using citation analysis, altmetrics and other indicators, does not evaluate. However, informetric indicators are often used in research assessment processes. To obtain a better understanding of their role, the links between evaluative informetrics and 'values' are investigated, and a series of practical guidelines are proposed. Informetricians should maintain in their evaluative informetric studies a neutral position toward the policy issues addressed and the criteria specified in an evaluative framework. As professional experts, informetricians' competence lies primarily in the development and application of analytical models within the context of a given evaluative framework. Informetric researchers could propose that evaluators and policy makers incorporate fundamental scientific values such as openness and adopting a critical attitude in assessment processes. Informetricians could also promote and participate in an overall discussion within the academic community and the research policy domain about the objectives and criteria in research assessment processes and the role of informetric tools therein. Evaluative informetrics is defined as the study of evaluative aspects of science and scholarship using informetric data and methodologies, such as citation analysis and altmetrics. Following the main lines of an article by the Dutch philosopher O.D. Duintjer, nine interfaces are distinguished between quantitative science studies, especially evaluative informetrics, and the domain of values, including scientific, socio-historical, political, ethical and personal norms and objectives. Special attention is given to the "principle of value neutrality" at the meta-level of methodological rules guiding scientific inquiry and to the crucial, independent role of evaluative frameworks in research evaluation. The implications of the various relationships between science and values for research practices in evaluative informetrics and for its application in research assessment are considered.


Damping modification factors (DMFs) are used to scale the 5%-damped response spectra for the seismic design of structures with different damping ratios. However, there is no DMF model for offshore engineering response spectra at present. Using 892 offshore and 4033 onshore ground-motion records from the Kyoshin net, the difference between offshore and onshore DMFs are revealed by DMF ratios and t tests and whether site conditions need to be incorporated in offshore DMF models are determined. The between-event residual distribution shows that DMFs depend on the focal depth. The results show that the DMFs from the offshore and onshore ground motions differ significantly for most spectral periods, and the impact of the site condition on offshore DMF is very slight. The offshore DMF models for the horizontal and vertical acceleration spectra from the Japan Sagami Bay region are presented from spectra of 34 spectral periods and 10 damping ratios, in which only spectral periods and damping ratios are considered as variables. The uncertainty in the DMF model mainly depends on the path and site effects, and the standard deviations of DMFs for the vertical component are slightly less than those for the horizontal component. All standard deviations are modeled by a set of quadratic functions related to damping ratios. A comparison between the offshore DMF model in this study and those derived from onshore ground motions indicates that the differences are significant. The spectra from the Hu et al. (2020) study for offshore ground motions adjusted by the DMF models are used as our example applications.


Objective. Assess the level of knowledge that the staff of the first health care level of the Peruvian Ministry of Health on educational methodology for adults training. Material and methods. Cross-sectional study conducted with a probability sample of 650 health workers from health centers of the 34 regional health directorates in the country. We used a structured questionnaire addressed the themes of planning, development and evaluation of educational activities aimed at adults. Results. The median knowledge was 12 on a possible maximum score of 20 (12/20). In the area of planning was a median of 6 / 9, developed in a median of 4 / 8 and assessment 2 / 3. Both overall and by each topic, the Tacna region had the highest score, median 16. The Lima region received a median of 10. There weren't evident differences among medical professionals and non-physicians (mean = 13.9), but if there were differences with the technical staff which had a low average score (mean = 9.4). 32% of respondents received training in the field and they obtained higher scores than those who did not receive. People with more than 10 years of service and appointed staff have lower scores on a global level. Conclusions. Level of knowledge of educational methodology for adults training in the study population is below the target. Political regions, employment status, length of service, having received training in the area are associated with scores of knowledge on adult educational methodology in the study population.


Skills and development: The way undergraduate dental students have been taught and their methods of learning have evolved over decades. Education methods and needs: Perhaps the most rapid and exponential changes have been in the last two decades with the introduction and utilisation of digital media platforms and social media capabilities. Academic and clinical aspects of dentistry are divided within the curriculum, but less consideration and logic are exercised when focusing on the methods of delivering education and the students' own preferences, capabilities and adaptation towards learning. Technology and dental education and what we believe: In higher education, closed questionnaires were provided to both dental students (50) and teachers (10) relating to delivery methods and their beliefs regarding education techniques available. Opinions regarding these methods still differ amongst dental teachers and students, with an affinity from the dental students towards the use of emerging technology available in dentistry. However, the questionnaires revealed both groups preferred education via direct care on patients more than any other method of education. Conclusion: The literature would indicate some progress made within the dental profession relating to the use of digital media, advanced technology and improved dental software, however, this has not yet been transferred to dental higher education, despite an accessible and obvious availability of modern resources and techniques.


A general proposal for predicting the joint effect of endocrine disrupting chemicals by examining binding energy models was developed in this study. 2,2-bis(4-hydroxyphenyl)propane (BPA) and 11 of its analogs were chosen, and the estrogenic activity of each compound was measured by determining its EC50 value using a recombinant gene yeast assay. Binding energies (BEs) were calculated using Surflex-Docking software. The analysis of the relationship between EC50 values and BEs showed that there is a linear correlation between the BEs and EC50 values. Furthermore, the analysis of the given binary and quaternary mixtures of BPA and three of its analogs showed that the joint effects of the mixtures were affected by the proportions of the chemicals in each mixture and their relative binding energy. The correlation between the joint effects of mixtures and the binding energy of the individual compounds has been described using one formula, which can be used to predict the joint effects of other mixtures.


Transition data has been computed in the MCHF + Breit-Pauli approximation for a number of the low lying triplets in O III. Special attention was given to the 2p3p 3P-2p3d 3P transition which is a primary cascade for the Bowen fluorescence mechanism in O III. The relativistic, largely spin-orbit, effect on the intensity ratio of primary decays was found to be as large as 50%, whereas the effect on secondary cascades was less than 30%. Agreement with astrophysically observed intensity ratios is excellent. There also is good agreement between the present liftimes and the beam-foil mean lifetimes obtained by Pinnington et al., though for 2p3p 3D and 3S the theoretical lifetimes are considerably shorter.


AbstractSeveral studies have indicated that air pollution induces systemic as well as tissue-specific inflammation. Chronic inflammatory diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease reduce bone mineral density (BMD), leading to increased release of immune cells from the bone marrow. However, the association between air pollution and osteoporosis remains poorly defined. Therefore, we conducted this population-based retrospective cohort study to evaluate the risk of osteoporosis in Taiwanese residents exposed to air pollution.We combined 2 nationwide databases in this study. The National Health Insurance Research Database of Taiwan was available from 2000 to 2010. Detailed daily data on air pollution were collected by Taiwan Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from 1998 to 2010. We calculated the yearly average concentrations of air pollutants from the study start to the date of osteoporosis occurrence, or withdrawal from the NHI program, or December 31, 2010. The yearly average concentrations of air pollutants were categorized into quartiles, and the risks of osteoporosis were evaluated among 4 stages of air pollutants.Among Q1, Q2, Q3, and Q4 of pollutants in all subjects, the adjusted hazard ratios (HRs) of osteoporosis in Q2, Q3, and Q4 were compared with Q1. For carbon monoxide (CO), the adjusted HRs were 1.05 (95% confidence interval [CI], 0.97–1.14), 1.78 (95% CI, 1.65–1.92), and 1.84 (95% CI, 1.71–1.98), respectively. For nitrogen dioxide (NO2), the adjusted HRs were 1.35 (95% CI, 1.25–1.45), 1.24 (95% CI, 1.15–1.35), and 1.60 (95% CI, 1.48–1.73), respectively, in all subjects.The findings of the present study show that CO and NO2 exposure is associated with an increased risk of osteoporosis in the Taiwanese population.


Moral and prejudicial beliefs have affected the control of venereal disease throughout history. Such victim-blaming attitudes are impediments to the implementation of an effective control program based on epidemiological concepts and findings. A host-oriented focus in control programs deflects critical attention away from deficiencies in responses of physicians and governments to disease intervention, which may well account for the continuing high disease rates.


In ATM networks the usage parameter control function must be defined very carefully to avoid network congestion due to users violating their negotiated traffic contract intentionally or unintentionally. This control function operates on the basis of connection traffic descriptors and is located at the network access. Connection traffic descriptors, which describe the characteristics of a source, are parameters such as the peak cell rate and the cell delay variation tolerance as well as the sustainable cell rate and the burst tolerance. To monitor these cell rates, the generic cell rate algorithm was proposed. Since a user can specify the peak and the sustainable cell rate together, different structural monitoring schemes exist for the enforcement of these rates. The authors present exact analyses of four monitoring schemes. Numerical results show that the structure of the scheme has only a minor influence on the resulting cell rejection probability. However, some general statements about the performance and the practical applicability of the schemes are given.


OBJECTIVES
Opioids are commonly used in the management of acute pancreatitis (AP). Inpatient opioid exposure is known to increase the risk of chronic opioid use after discharge. Prescription patterns for opioids at discharge for AP are unknown.

METHODS
Medical records of adult AP patients who presented to the emergency department from September 1, 2013, to August 31, 2016, were reviewed. Opioid prescription at discharge was defined as a prescription for opioids in a patient who was opioid naive at admission. Multivariable logistic regression was performed to identify predictors of opioid prescription at discharge.

RESULTS
A total of 259 opioid-naive AP patients were identified. Of these, 108 (41.6%) of 259 were discharged with an opioid prescription and 61 (56.5%) of 108 had discharge pain scores of 3 or lower. Two hundred twenty-two (85.7%) received opioids during admission and 105 (47.3%) of 222 were discharged with an opioid prescription. On multivariable analysis, predictors of discharge opioid prescription included inpatient use of opioids, female sex, and discharge pain score greater than 3.

CONCLUSIONS
In opioid-naive AP patients, 41.6% were discharged from the hospital with a new prescription for opioids, even though a significant proportion had pain scores of 3 or lower. Guidelines are needed for opioid prescriptions at discharge for AP.


An article that departs from ideas in analyzing modernization in the context of education, especially in Islamic education in Indonesia. This research was assisted by library research methods (library research). In obtaining research data, researchers collect, analyze, and organize, sources from articles. The research results show that Islamic philosophy developed until new religious concepts emerged in the Muslim world. Because of how these ideas developed, it is clear how the social, political, and cultural life of Muslims was significantly influenced by their movement patterns and world views. Religious education and beliefs influence the way people act and think. The Syafi'i school of thought dominates the religious worldview of Muslims who are developing in Indonesia. Indonesian Muslims in general still adhere to the texts of the mujtahid school of thought (the quality school), and they have not received methodological education (the school), which means they advocate law according to the mujtahid mindset, which has been produced by the school's imam.


The present result showed that human beta-globin gene has been integrated into amphotropic packaging cell line PA317 in 5/13 clones of PA317 beta and 1/14 clone of PA317 beta E0.4. Retrovirus titers of amphotropic recombinant retrovirus ranged from 10(3) to 10(4) CFU/ml. MEL cells were transfected by supernant of PA317 beta and PA317 beta E0.4. Northern blot showed that the expression of human beta-globin gene in MEL beta E0.4 was significantly higher than MEL beta in mRNA level. This result indicated that an enhancer which comes from HS II of human LCR can increase human beta-globin gene mRNA expression in transfected MEL. However, the retrovirus titers of PA317 beta and PA317 beta E0.4 in our experiment were low. When large fragment enhancer (0.4 kb) was inserted into retrovirus vector, it could bring about the human beta-globin gene deletion in amphotropic packing cells.


Determination of effective diffusivity of a substrate in biocatalyst particles is a key requirement in modeling heterogeneous reactions. The diffusivity is mainly controlled by the molecular-diffusion characteristics of the substrate, the tortuousness of the diffusion path within the biocatalyst, and the void fraction of particle volume available for diffusion. A general numerical model describing reactions in a biocatalyst particle following zero-order, first-order, and Michaelis-Menten kinetics was developed. Finite volume method was used to discretize the nonlinear second-order differential equation, and tridiagonal matrix algorithm was applied to solve the algebraic equation iteratively after discretization. Computer codes were written for calculating the diffusivity under specified boundary conditions. The numerical solution of the diffusion-reaction equations was validated against the experimental data from literatures. The model was further calibrated with experimental data obtained from fungal pellet experiments and then verified using additional data. The results show that the inverse methodology developed in this study was capable of predicting diffusivity in biocatalyst particles. Based on the predicted diffusivity, oxygen consumption by an individual pellet was simulated, oxygen consumptions by small versus large pellets were compared, and the effect of reaction rate on oxygen consumption was evaluated. © 2008 American Institute of Chemical Engineers AIChE J, 2008


Most protozoans that have been cultivated recently from high salinity waters appear to be obligate halophiles. Phylogenetic analyses indicate that these species mostly represent independent lineages. Here, we report the cultivation, morphological characterization, and phylogenetic analysis of two strains (XLG1 and HLM‐8) of a new extremely halotolerant heterolobosean amoeboflagellate. This species is closely related to the obligate halophiles Tulamoeba peronaphora and Pleurostomum flabellatum, and more specifically to the former. Like Tulamoeba, the new species has a monopodial limax amoeba stage, however, its cyst stage lacks an intrusive pore plug. The flagellate stage bears a combination of a planar spiral feeding apparatus and unequal heterodynamic flagella that discriminates it from described Pleurostomum species. Strain XLG1 grows at salinities from 35‰ to 225‰. This degree of halotolerance is uncommon in protozoa, as most species showing growth in seawater are unable to grow at 200‰ salinity. The unrelatedness of most halophilic protozoa suggested that independent colonization of the hypersaline environment is more common than speciation within it. However, this study supports the idea that the Tulamoeba–Pleurostomum clade underwent an adaptive radiation within the hypersaline environment. A new species Tulamoeba bucina n. sp. is described, with Tulamoebidae n. fam. proposed for the Tulamoeba–Pleurostomum clade.


Huntington's Disease (HD) is a genetic disorder that causes the progressive breakdown of nerve cells in the brain, reducing an individual's ability to reason, walk, and speak. Due to its severity, new approaches are important for the development of methods that contribute to the correct classification of this disease. In this paper, we propose an automatic method for diagnosing Huntington's Disease using gait dynamics information. Our approach is divided into a four-stage pipeline: preprocessing, feature extraction, classification, and diagnosis output. We evaluate the performance of our proposed method through well-known classifiers that are commonly used in machine learning problems. A publicly available database on Gait Dynamics in Neuro-Degenerative Disease is used, and the experimental results show that both Support Vector Machines (SVM) and Decision Tree (DT) were able to achieve an average accuracy of 100:0%, representing an improvement in the field.


Computerized tomography (CT) plays an important role in the diagnosis of pulmonary nocardiosis (PN), allowing earlier detection and better characterization of the abnormalities than does chest radiography. The aim of the present study was to review reported radiographic clues to the diagnosis of PN at the time of initial presentation. A computerized database search was performed to find all cases of PN, confirmed positive culture, in patients at our institution over the last 11 years. Twenty six patients (n=26) with PN were identified. Patients without CT scan available at initial presentation (n=2) and patients with concurrent diseases involving the lungs and pleura were excluded (n=2). For the remaining 22 patients [median age: 46 years (range, 21 to72 y)], standardized radiographic features were recorded. Some form of immunosuppression was present in 95 % of the cases. Preexisting structural abnormalities of the lung were uncommon (COPD : 2). CT features of PN included one or more nodules/ masses (16 patients, 73%), airspace consolidation / infiltrates (12 patients, 55 %), pleural effusion/ thickening (9 patients, 41%), mediastinal lymphadenopathy (6 patients, 27%), diffuse interstitial pattern (4 patients, 18%), chest wall extension (2 patients, 9%). Cavitary lesions with /without internal low attenuation including nodules, masses, or airspace disease, occurred in 64 % of the patients. CT findings of PN in immunocompromised patients are pleomorphic and not specific. CT findings consist predominantly of nodules/ masses and cavitary lesions without any significant zonal or anatomic distribution. Diffuse interstitial patterns also occur. Pleural effusions are quite common, and lymph nodes may be enlarged.


Objective
Abnormally increased somatic cell counts in milk is usually a sign of bovine subclinical mastitis. Mutual interaction between the host and its associated microbiota plays an important role in developing such diseases. The main objective of this study was to explore the difference between cows with elevated somatic cell counts and healthy cattle from the perspective of host-microbe interplay.

Methods
A total of 31 milk samples and 23 bovine peripheral blood samples were collected from Holstein dairy cattle to conduct an integrated analysis of transcriptomic and metagenomics.

Results
The results showed that Ralstonia and Sphingomonas were enriched in cows with subclinical mastitis. The relative abundance of the two bacteria was positively correlated with the expression level of bovine TCN1 (Transcobalamin 1 encoding gene) and UPP1 (uridine phosphorylase 1 encoding gene). Moreover, functional analysis revealed a distinct alternation in some important microbial biological processes.

Conclusion
These results reveal the relative abundance of Ralstonia and Sphingomonas other than common mastitis-causing pathogens varied from healthy cows to those with subclinical mastitis and might be associated with elevated SCC. Potential association was observed between bovine milk microbiota composition and the transcriptional pattern of some genes, thus providing new insights to understand homeostasis of bovine udder.


Aim. To assess the efficacy and safety of using the homeopathic drug Mastopol for the relief of mastalgia in women with infertility, including those associated with endometriosis, as well as to study the drug tolerability and adherence to the treatment, as well as to determine its antiproliferative and analgesic effects in patients of the study cohort. Study design: open-label, randomized, non-comparative, observational study.
Material and methods. 79 infertile women with mastalgia (67 with cyclic mastalgia and 12 with acyclic mastalgia) were examined and treated with Mastopol. Mastopol was prescribed 1 tablet 3 times a day sublingually. The course of treatment was 8 weeks. The efficacy of mastalgia relief was assessed using a Visual Analogue Scale (VAS). Treatment outcomes were considered good if pain severity by the VAS decreased by 4 or more points from the baseline levels at the end of Mastopol treatment course.
Results. One Mastopol treatment course provided good treatment outcomes in 76,2% of patients with cyclic mastalgia and in 33,3% of patients with acyclic mastalgia. There were no adverse reactions or complications in patients treated with Mastopol.
Conclusions. Mastopol has established itself as a quite effective and safe drug in patients of the study cohort; if there is an insufficient effect, Mastopol can supplement traditional pharmacological agents recorded in the current clinical guidelines.