This study aimed to evaluate the therapeutic effect and toxicity of proton beam therapy in combination with intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy in patients with squamous cell carcinoma of the maxillary gingiva. Between December 2010 and March 2016, 30 patients with T4 squamous cell carcinoma of the maxillary gingiva were treated with radiotherapy and retrograde intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy using cisplatin (20–40 mg/m2, 4–6 times). Radiotherapy was basically administered using boost proton beam therapy for primary tumor and neck lymph node tumors, following 36–40 Gy photon radiation therapy delivered to the prophylactic area, to a total dose of 70.4–74.8 Gy. The median follow-up was 33 months. The 3-year local control and overall survival rates were 69% and 59%, respectively. Major grade 3 or higher acute toxicities included mucositis, neutropenia, and dermatitis in 12 (40%), 5 (17%), and 3 (10%) patients, respectively. No grade 3 or higher late toxicities were observed. These results suggested that proton beam therapy in combination with intra-arterial infusion chemotherapy was not inferior to other treatment protocols and should be considered as a safe and effective option in patients with T4 squamous cell carcinoma of the maxillary gingiva.


ABSTRACT William Gladstone's views on slavery and the slave trade have received little attention from historians, although he spent much of his early years in parliament dealing with issues related to that subject. His stance on slavery echoed that of his father, who was one of the largest slave owners in the British West Indies, and on whom he was dependent for financial support. Gladstone opposed the slave trade but he wanted to improve the condition of the slaves before they were liberated. In 1833, he accepted emancipation because it was accompanied by a period of apprenticeship for the ex-slaves and by financial compensation for the planters. In the 1840s, his defence of the economic interests of the British planters was again evident in his opposition to the foreign slave trade and slave-grown sugar. By the 1850s, however, he believed that the best way to end the slave trade was by persuasion, rather than by force, and that conviction influenced his attitude to the American Civil War and to British colonial policy. As leader of the Liberal party, Gladstone, unlike many of his supporters, showed no enthusiasm for an anti-slavery crusade in Africa. His passionate commitment to liberty for oppressed peoples was seldom evident in his attitude to slavery.


Abstract We consider a special version of random sequential adsorption (RSA) with nearest-neighbor interaction on infinite tree graphs. In classical RSA, starting with a graph with initially inactive nodes, each of the nodes of the graph is inspected in a random order and is irreversibly activated if none of its nearest neighbors are active yet. We generalize this nearest-neighbor blocking effect to a degree-dependent threshold-based blocking effect. That is, each node of the graph is assumed to have its own degree-dependent threshold and if, upon inspection of a node, the number of active direct neighbors is less than that node's threshold, the node will become irreversibly active. We analyze the activation probability of nodes on an infinite tree graph, given the degree distribution of the tree and the degree-dependent thresholds. We also show how to calculate the correlation between the activity of nodes as a function of their distance. Finally, we propose an algorithm which can be used to solve the inverse problem of determining how to set the degree-dependent thresholds in infinite tree graphs in order to reach some desired activation probabilities.


Hyperlipidemia, especially hypercholesterolemia is one of the most important risk factors for coronary heart disease. Now it is well recognized that aggressive lipid-lowering drug treatment in high-risk individuals reduces coronary heart disease morbidity and mortality rates and increases overall survival. Hypertriglyceridemia has now been recognized as another important risk factor for coronary heart disease. Recently, much attention has been focused on the atherogenesis of small, dense LDL, remnant lipoprotein and isolated hypoalphalipoproteinemia. Hypertriglyceridemia is known to be deeply involved in the pathogenesis of all of these abnormal lipoprotein profiles. Therefore, treatment of hypertriglyceridemia as well as hypercholesterolemia must be fully discussed. In this issue, I will talk about new insights into treatment of dyslipidemia by changing the life style and/or by various hypolipidemic drugs.


Abstract Backgrounds The placement of a self-expandable metal stent (SEMS) is widely used in patients with unresectable malignant biliary obstructions, but SEMSs are susceptible to occlusion by tumor ingrowth or overgrowth. The efficacy and safety of a novel paclitaxel-eluting biliary metal stent incorporating sodium caprate (MSCPM-III) were compared prospectively with those of a covered metal stent (CMS) in patients with malignant biliary obstructions. Methods Patients with unresectable distal malignant biliary obstructions (n = 106) were prospectively enrolled in this study at multiple treatment centers. Stents were placed endoscopically: MSCPM-III in 54 patients and CMS in 51 patients. The patients received systemic chemotherapy regimens according to their disease characteristics. Results The two groups did not differ significantly in basic characteristics or mean follow-up period. Stent occlusion occurred in 14 patients who received MSCPM-III and in 11 patients who received CMS. Time to recurrent biliary obstruction (RBO) and survival time did not differ significantly between the two groups (P  = 0.84 and P = 0.29, respectively). However, tumor size at 2 months after stent insertion was significantly decreased in patients in the MSCPM-III group with bile duct cancers or those who experienced stent migration compared with the CMS group. Complications, including cholangitis and pancreatitis, were found to be acceptable in both groups. Conclusions Although compared with a CMS the MSCPM-III did not significantly influence time to RBO or survival duration in patients with malignant biliary obstructions, MSCPM-III reduced tumor volume and was used safely in humans.


Although tht: integrated and comprehensive care of individual residents is the ultimate goal of every geriatric program, its realization is not always easy in Welfare Homes because of limited facilities and/or budgets. Fragmentation is especially likely to occur in large metropolitan areas where the acutely ill geriatric patient must be admitted to whatever hospital has an available bed. These factors finally led to the conclusion that one ward with ready access to investigative and therapeutic procedures would have definite advantages to the patient, the professional staff of the ward and the Welfare Department, and also would serve for the collection of valuable clinical data. Through the co-operation and financial support of the Ontario Department of Welfare, a 42-bed unit was built and equipped especially for the geriatric patient in the Toronto Western Hospital. It functions as the second phase of a totalcare program that can be broken down into four phases: 1) domiciliary care of the healthy person, 2) intensive treatment of the acutely ill, 3) supervised care of the convalescent) and 4) care of the chronically ill. More than 90 per cent of the patients are admitted from the Metropolitan Welfare Homes for the Aged or from low-rental housing developments for senior citizens. These admissions are of two types: 1) direct from the home as an emergency) or 2) elective) with a preliminary assessment having been carried out in the central Geriatric Centre by one of the 14 geriatric consultants-most of whom are on the teaching staff of this hospital. An analysis of the first years of operation has produced many data that are interesting and valuable but are neither reproducible nor entirely adequate as an appraisal of the benefits of the ward. From these general statistics a few relevant facts have been selected. Also, a single group of patients is reviewed in detail to illustrstte the experience of the ward.


Metabolites of a G protein-coupled receptor modulator containing 1,2,4-oxadiazole and piperazine substructures were identified in vitro in human, rat, and dog hepatocyte incubates and in vivo in rat plasma, bile, urine, and feces by using 14C-radiolabeled parent compound. Exposure coverage for the major circulating metabolites in humans at steady state and in preclinical species used in drug safety assessments was determined by using pooled plasma samples collected from a human multiple ascending dose study and a 3-month rat toxicokinetic study. Metabolites M1 and M2, which were formed by opening of the 1,2,4-oxadiazole ring, were observed as major metabolites both in vitro and in vivo across species. The carboxylic acid metabolite M2 was presumably formed through reductive N-O bond cleavage of the oxadiazole ring and subsequent hydrolysis. However, the mechanism for the formation of the unusual N-cyanoamide metabolite M1 remains uncertain. Neither M1 nor M2 had any target activity, as did parent drug P. In rat bile, rearranged Cys-piperazine and Gly-Cys-piperazine adducts, involving the formation of a five-membered heteroaromatic imidazole derivative from a six-membered piperazine ring, were observed as minor metabolites. These findings support a previously reported mechanism regarding glutathione detoxification for piperazine bioactivation products.


The power characteristics of system-on-chips (SoCs) in nanoscale technologies are significantly impacted by manufacturing process variations, making it important to consider these effects during system-level power analysis and optimization. In this paper, we identify and address the problem of designing effective power management schemes in the presence of such variations. In particular, we demonstrate that conventional power management schemes, which are designed without considering the impact of variations, can result in substantial power wastage. We therefore propose two approaches to variation-aware power management, namely, design-specific and chip-specific approaches. In each of these approaches, the goal is to consider the impact of variations while deriving power management policy parameters, in order to optimize metrics that are relevant under variations. We motivate and introduce these metrics, and present both exact and heuristic approaches to optimize them. The methods are designed and implemented in the context of two power management frameworks, namely an ideal oracle-based framework and a timeout-based framework. We experimentally evaluate the proposed ideas using an ARM946 processor core model. For the oracle-based framework, variation-aware power management can result in improvements of upto 59% for mu+sigma , and upto 55% for 95th percentile of the energy distribution, over conventional power management schemes that do not consider variations. For the timeout-based framework, we obtain reductions of upto 43% in mu+sigma and upto 55% in the 99th percentile of the energy distribution.


In the kidney, the collecting duct (CD) is composed of at least four cell types: principal, type-A intercalated cells (IC), type-B IC, and non-A and non-B IC. Although this heterogeneous composition has been recognized since the end of the nineteenth century, the physiological role of the various cell types in the CD continues to be deciphered as of today. Principal and ICs are essential in ion-water balance and acid-base homeostasis, respectively. However, recent research has revealed a striking interplay and overlap between the specific functions of these cell types. This review summarizes the recent findings on CD cells and their role in multiple pathophysiologies.


This research project is concerned with investigating 'catalyst behaviours', which is the idea that taking-up a new behaviour (such as recycling) may cause people to start another, or many more, pro-environmental behaviours. These could be closely related behaviours or exist across a broader range of lifestyle activities. Research was conducted in two phases in order to clarify the evidence. The work programme comprised an extensive literature review; followed by a small scale, pilot qualitative exercise to explore the links that the public makes between pro-environmental behaviours, the processes that drive these links (or categorisations), and how these processes may or may not relate to underlying psychological or sociological factors. The project aims were to understand:
• Is there plausible evidence that catalyst based behaviour change occurs?
• If it does occur, how does the process or mechanism work, and does it only work for specific behaviours, specific groups of people, or under certain conditions?
• If the process occurs, how can it be stimulated?


The goal of this paper is to propose a classification of the syntactic alternations admitted by the most frequent Italian verbs. The data-driven two-steps procedure exploited and the structure of the identified classes of alternations are presented in depth and discussed. Even if this classification has been developed with a practical application in mind, namely the semi-automatic building of a VerbNet-like lexicon for Italian verbs, partly following the methodology proposed in the context of the VerbNet project, its availability may have a positive impact on several related research topics and Natural Language Processing tasks


OBJECTIVE
Serotonin-releasing agents prescribed as weight-loss medications have been implicated as a cause of acquired aortic and mitral valve abnormalities. Sibutramine hydrochloride (MERIDIA) is a serotonin and norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor with proven efficacy of weight reduction. The purpose of this study was to determine the incidence of cardiac valve disease in sibutraminetreated patients.

RESEARCH METHODS AND PROCEDURES
Obese patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus enrolled in an ongoing double-blind, placebo-controlled, parallel-arm, 12-month study of sibutramine (followed by a 12-month open label extension) underwent transthoracic echocardiographic imaging and color Doppler interrogation for assessment of cardiac valve anatomy and function.

RESULTS
A total of 210 patients were evaluated. Of these, 133 were receiving sibutramine (72 in the double-blind period), and 77 were receiving placebo. The mean+/-Standard Deviation age was 54+/-9 years, and the mean duration of treatment was 229+/-117 days (approximately 7.6 months). The prevalence of left-sided cardiac valve dysfunction was low and similar for the two treatment groups (sibutramine 3/133, or 2.3%; placebo 2/77, or 2.6%). All five cases were cases of aortic insufficiency; four were mild, one was severe (in a placebo patient). All three sibutramine cases were patients over age 50; two had a history of systemic hypertension.

CONCLUSION
The prevalence of left-sided cardiac valve dysfunction was not higher than background in obese patients treated with sibutramine for an average of 7.6 months.


Measuring territorial disparities is the first step in studies aiming to improve territorial cohesion. As intraregional disparities are often higher than inter-regional ones, an analysis of development at local level is needed in order to define areas of intervention for specific targeted policies. The aim of this study is to individualise deprived areas in Romania's South West region through the use of the Principal Component Analysis run on 15 social, economic, demographic and physical indicators defined at local level (LAU 2 units). By computing a global index of deprived areas, 13 areas were individualised at regional level, with the results being compared with other studies on deprived areas (Romania's poverty map, Social Development Index and Less-favoured areas). The final output showcased the differences in defining deprived areas according to the used methodology, with a need to standardise such methods for policy targeting in the future while also considering environmental quality factors.


The investigation of Protein A and antibody adsorption on surfaces in a biological environment is an important and fundamental step for increasing biosensor sensitivity and specificity. The atomic force microscope (AFM) is a powerful tool that is frequently used to characterize surfaces coated with a variety of molecules. We used AFM in conjunction with scanning electron microscopy to characterize the attachment of protein A and its subsequent binding to the antibody and Salmonella bacteria using a gold quartz crystal. The rms roughness of the base gold surface was determined to be approximately 1.30 nm. The average step height change between the solid gold and protein A layer was approximately 3.0 ± 1.0 nm, while the average step height of the protein A with attached antibody was approximately 6.0 ± 1.0 nm. We found that the antibodies did not completely cover the protein A layer, instead the attachment follows an island model. Salt crystals and water trapped under the protein A layer were also observed. The uneven adsorption of antibodies onto the biosensor surface might have led to a decrease in the sensitivity of the biosensor. The presence of salt crystals and water under the protein A layer may deteriorate the sensor specificity. In this report, we have discussed the application and characterization of protein A bound to antibodies which can be used to detect bacterial and viral pathogens. Biotechnol. Bioeng. 2008;99: 949–959. © 2007 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.


We propose a plan adaptation method for fast treatment plan generation in scanned ion beam therapy. Analysis of optimized treatment plans with carbon ions indicates that the particle number modulation of consecutive rasterspots in depth shows little variation throughout target volumes with convex shape. Thus, we extract a depth-modulation curve (DMC) from existing reference plans and adapt it for creation of new plans in similar treatment situations. The proposed method is tested with seven CT serials of prostate patients and three digital phantom datasets generated with the MATLAB code. Plans are generated with a treatment planning software developed by GSI using single-field uniform dose optimization for all the CT datasets to serve as reference plans and 'gold standard'. The adapted plans are generated based on the DMC derived from the reference plans of the same patient (intra-patient), different patient (inter-patient) and phantoms (phantom-patient). They are compared with the reference plans and a re-positioning strategy. Generally, in 1 min on a standard PC, either a physical plan or a biological plan can be generated with the adaptive method provided that the new target contour is available. In all the cases, the V95 values of the adapted plans can achieve 97% for either physical or biological plans. V107 is always 0 indicating no overdosage, and target dose homogeneity is above 0.98 in all cases. The dose received by the organs at risk is comparable to the optimized plans. The plan adaptation method has the potential for on-line adaptation to deal with inter-fractional motion, as well as fast off-line treatment planning, with either the prescribed physical dose or the RBE-weighted dose.


Herbal extracts are one of the herbal preparations obtained by the extraction method. There has been an increasing trend of application of herbal extracts to replace traditional medicinal herbs in using and manufacturing of drug dosage forms. The quality characteristics of herbal extracts roots from their multi-components nature, leading to multiple targets and mechanisms of action. Thus hindering the development of quality assessment systems and also the application of pharmaceutical technologies in the development of modern dosage forms, leading to a decrease in therapeutic efficacy in clinical practice. This review systematizes some information related to herbal extracts: the position and importance of herbal extracts in drug research and development, classification, characteristics, and quality control strategies. The purpose of this review is to consolidate and expand the general understanding of the "pharmaceutical nature" of herbal extracts and to provide some quality control strategies using markers and reference materials
Keywords
Herbal extracts, quality characteristics, classification, quality control, pharmaceutical nature.


This paper is intended to do a comparative analysis of the urban growth of Turin, both those pragmatically focused on the future of the city and those critically and dangerously unable to be a strong guide for the transformation of the city. The paper talks about Turin as being the capital of the Reign of Italy, when urban plans changed the exterior of the city and defined the economical basis of Turin for centuries; then it focuses on Turin as an industrial city, strictly of car making. Secondarily, the paper discusses the decline of the industrial sector, which caused the decline of the city and its energy. Thanks to the Olympic Games, the city had an occasion of renewal, provided it is able to take advantage of the economical and financial resources that every city carries as a result of the Olympic Games. Is the renewal plan for Turin able to change the perspectives of the city's decline? Most planned changes are punctual, isolated and are disjointed, so we can say that these changes are difficult to rescue the city from its decline, and are probably unable to improve the city over the long-term and to guide it through the post-industrial era, as many other cities did.


Rhythmic gymnastics (RG) is an aesthetic sport. An eating disorder in RG athletes can lead to a decline in sports performance and impair health. This review addresses the implications of an eating disorder on bone health in RG athletes. In general, RG athletes have poor energy intake compared to their energy expenditure, which can lead to Ca intake deficiency or low estradiol levels. Additionally, RG is a weight-dependent sport and requires a graceful physique such as for ballet. Therefore, eating disorders among RG athletes have become a concern. Nutritional information and knowledge are important for bone health and for preventing eating disorders in RG athletes.


Sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS) was introduced as an esterase inhibitor in the determination of two extremely labile, ultrashort-acting beta-blockers-esmolol and flumolol--in whole blood. SDS was much more efficient than previously used agents in preventing hydrolysis. The assay comprises solvent extraction, perfluoroacylation, and capillary gas-chromatography with electron-capture detection. The limit of detection (the concentration at which the coefficient of variation is 10-15%) for the drugs is 5 nmol/L of whole blood.


Abstract. Recently, various models have been developed, including the fractional Brownian motion (fBm), to analyse the stochastic properties of geodetic time series together with the estimated geophysical signals. The noise spectrum of these time series is generally modelled as a mixed spectrum, with a sum of white and coloured noise. Here, we are interested in modelling the residual time series after deterministically subtracting geophysical signals from the observations. This residual time series is then assumed to be a sum of three stochastic processes, including the family of Lévy processes. The introduction of a third stochastic term models the remaining residual signals and other correlated processes. Via simulations and real time series, we identify three classes of Lévy processes, namely Gaussian, fractional and stable. In the first case, residuals are predominantly constituted of short-memory processes. The fractional Lévy process can be an alternative model to the fBm in the presence of long-term correlations and self-similarity properties. The stable process is here restrained to the special case of infinite variance, which can be only satisfied in the case of heavy-tailed distributions in the application to geodetic time series. Therefore, the model implies potential anxiety in the functional model selection, where missing geophysical information can generate such residual time series.


Killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptors (KIR) are a family of inhibitory and activatory receptors and are expressed by most NK cells. The interaction between KIR and human leukocyte antigen (HLA) molecules expressed on target cells is known to modulate the cytolytic activity of NK cells. At present, seventeen KIR genes have been identified, and the number of KIR gene loci has been reported to vary among individuals, resulting in a heterogeneous array of KIR genes in different populations. KIR haplotypes are divided into two distinctive groups based on their gene contents. Ruggeri, et al, first reported that KIR-ligand mismatch can alleviate aGVHD, reduce relapse and improve disease-free survival in mismatched hematopoietic stem cell transplants, while some studies show that this kind of mismatch is deleterious. Now the effect of NK cells alloreactivity on outcome of hematopoietic stem cell transplantation remains controversial. Our study is to analyze the KIR gene contents and investigate the impact of KIR-ligand mismatch on outcome following hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in Chinese population. METHODS: 203 cases of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation between Jan. 2001 to May. 2008 were involved in the study. KIR genes were typed by using PCR-SSP, and HLA-A, -B and -C loci genes were used by PCR-SSP or PCR-SSO technology. KIR-ligand incompatibility were assessed based on HLA-Cw (divided into C1 and C2 group) and three major inhibiting KIR genotypes (KIR2DL1, KIR2DL2 and KIR2DL3) of 203 donor/recipient pairs. These patients received myeloablative (n=180) or nonmyeloablative (n=23, with ATG) conditioning followed by hematopoietic stem cell transplantation from HLA matched (n=164) or mismatched (n=39) donors. All patients received mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) combined with CsA and short course MTX regimen as prophylaxis for aGVHD. RESULTS: All seventeen KIR genes were observed in the Chinese population. Framework genes KIR3DL3, KIR3DP1, KIR2DL4 and KIR3DL2 were present in all individuals. The most frequent non-framework KIR genes were: KIR2DL1 (99.5%), KIR3DL1 (97.0%), KIR 2DS4 (97.5%), KIR2DL3 (99.5%) and KIR2DP1 (99.5%). The other gene frequencies were KIR2DS2 (25.1%), KIR2DL2 (25.6%), KIR2DL5A (32.5%), KIR2DL5B (30.0%), KIR2DS5 (23.6%), KIR2DS1 (43.8%), KIR2DS3 (21.2%) and KIR3DS1 (34.0%). The most prevalent haplotype group found in the population was A haplotype. Group A haplotypes outnumbered group B haplotypes in frequency by approximately 3:1, with individuals having two group A haplotypes accounting for 48.8% (99/203). HLA genotyping showed that 156 out of 203 (76.8%) donor-recipient pairs could be characterized by lack of recipient HLA-Cw ligand for donor KIR2DL1, KIR2DL2/2DL3. KIR-ligand mismatch was not associated with any deleterious or beneficial influence on relapse or overall survival (OS) in Chinese population with hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. But KIR-ligand mismatch could lead to a decreased incidence of aGVHD (36.1% vs 56.3%, P=0.018). When donor NK cells had KIR2DS2 gene, the recipient acquired a decreased incidence of aGVHD (13.2% vs 49.3%, P CONCLUSION: Our data demonstrated that Chinese population was distinct in KIR gene frequencies and putative KIR haplotypes in comparison to some other populations. KIR-HLA mismatch was not any better effect on relapse, OS, but it had a better effect on aGVHD. Donors with gene KIR2DS2 or KIR2DS5 were associated with lower incidence of aGVHD in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.


Tracking and vertexing in future High-Energy Physics (HEP) experiments involves construction of detectors composed of up to a few billions of channels. Readout electronics must record the position and time of each measurement with the highest achievable precision. This paper reviews a prototype of the first 3D readout chip for HEP, designed for a vertex detector at the International Linear Collider. The prototype features 20 × 20 ¿m2 pixels, laid out in an array of 64 × 64 elements and was fabricated in a 3-tier 0.18 ¿m Fully Depleted SOI CMOS process at MIT-Lincoln Laboratory. The tests showed correct functional operation of the structure. The chip performs a zero-suppressed readout.


The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness of a web-based breast cancer educational program which consists of special features such as flash animations and online counseling as well as 7 different categories of information on breast cancer. The effectiveness of the program was analyzed in terms of its function and content. A total of 147 women with breast cancer who visited the website for at least 30 minutes and a minimum of 3 visits, participated in the survey. In the satisfaction evaluation of web-based educational program, usefulness of information, system efficiency, adequacy of information and convenience of use all received positive evaluation and showed even distribution of 49.14 (±6.05) points out of 64 points total. In the usefulness evaluation, the subcategories had following scores from the highest to the lowest; understanding of breast cancer was 3.34 (±0.51), life after treatment (3.21±0.58), early detection and examination (3.20±0.60), chemotherapy and hormonal therapy (3.18±0.55), related factors and prevention (3.16±0.59), treatments (3.13±0.53), and diagnosis (3.02±0.56). Factors affecting the satisfaction of the program were age, religion, income, stage of disease at diagnosis, source of health information, duration of Internet usage, and whether the patient performs breast self-examination. Factors that affect the usefulness of the program were religion, period since diagnosis, source of health information, frequency of Internet usage, recurrence of breast cancer, and family history. Although the program was evaluated as somewhat useful and satisfactory, it should be improved upon by providing in-depth and cutting edge breast health information especially for women from a higher educational and income background.


Background Dexmedetomidine extends the duration of nerve block when administered perineurally together with local anesthetics by central and/or peripheral action. In this study, we compared the duration of nerve block between dexmedetomidine and epinephrine as an adjuvant to 1% mepivacaine in infraclavicular brachial plexus block. Methods Thirty patients, scheduled for upper limb surgery were assigned randomly to 3 groups of 10 patients each. We performed brachial plexus block using a nerve stimulator. In the control group (group C), patients received 40 ml of 1% mepivacaine. In group E, patients received 40 ml of 1% mepivacaine containing 200 µg of epinephrine as an adjuvant. In group D, patients received 40 ml of 1% mepivacaine containing 1 µg/kg of dexmedetomidine as an adjuvant. Sensory block duration, motor block duration, time to sense pain, and onset time were assessed. We also monitored blood pressure, heart rate, oxygen saturation and bispectral index. Results In group D and group E, sensory block duration, motor block duration and time to sense first pain were prolonged significantly compared to group C. However, there was no significant difference between group D and group E. Conclusions Perineural 1 µg/kg of dexmedetomidine similarly prolonged nerve block duration compared to 200 µg of epinephrine, but slowed heart rate. Thus, dexmedetomidine is expected to be a good alternative as an adjuvant to local anesthesia in patients who are cautioned against epinephrine.


The success of machine learning-based studies is largely subjected to accessing a large amount of data. However, accessing such data is typically not feasible within a single health system/hospital. Although multicenter studies are the most effective way to access a vast amount of data, sharing data outside the institutes involves legal, business, and technical challenges. Federated learning (FL) is a newly proposed machine learning framework for multicenter studies, tackling data-sharing issues across participant institutes. The promise of FL is simple. FL facilitates multicenter studies without losing data access control and allows the construction of a global model by aggregating local models trained from participant institutes. This article reviewed recently published studies that utilized FL in clinical studies with structured medical data. In addition, challenges and open questions in FL in clinical studies with structured medical data were discussed.


OBJECTIVE
To compare the ability of acetaminophen-codeine (AC; 15.5 to 18.5 mg/kg and 1.6 to 2.0 mg/kg, respectively) or carprofen (4.2 to 4.5 mg/kg) administered PO to attenuate experimentally induced lameness in dogs.

ANIMALS
7 purpose-bred dogs.

PROCEDURES
A blinded crossover study was performed. Dogs were randomly assigned to receive AC or carprofen treatment first and then the alternate treatment a minimum of 21 days later. Synovitis was induced in 1 stifle joint during each treatment by intra-articular injection of sodium urate (SU). Ground reaction forces were assessed, and clinical lameness was scored at baseline (before lameness induction) and 3, 6, 9, 12, 24, 36, and 48 hours after SU injection. Plasma concentrations of acetaminophen, carprofen, codeine, and morphine were measured at various points. Data were compared between and within treatments by repeated-measures ANOVA.

RESULTS
During AC treatment, dogs had significantly higher lameness scores than during carprofen treatment at 3, 6, and 9 hours after SU injection. Peak vertical force and vertical impulse during AC treatment were significantly lower than values during carprofen treatment at 3, 6, and 9 hours. Plasma concentrations of carprofen (R)- and (S)-enantiomers ranged from 2.5 to 19.2 μg/mL and 4.6 to 25.0 μg/mL, respectively, over a 24-hour period. Plasma acetaminophen concentrations ranged from 0.14 to 4.6 μg/mL and codeine concentrations from 7.0 to 26.8 ng/mL, whereas plasma morphine concentrations ranged from 4.0 to 58.6 ng/mL.

CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE
Carprofen as administered was more effective than AC at attenuating SU-induced lameness in dogs.


Salmonella infections remain a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in patients with sickle cell disease. In Jamaica, 16 episodes of systemic Salmonella infection were recognized in 308 children with sickle cell disease followed prospectively in a cohort study from birth. There were eight cases with osteomyelitis, seven with septicaemia, and one with meningitis. Salmonella dactylitis was the commonest presentation of osteomyelitis in the young child. Comparison of clinical features between children with Salmonella dactylitis and dactylitis owing to avascular bone necrosis showed that children with osteomyelitis had significantly higher fever, prolonged history and fluctuant swellings. Fever above 38.5 degrees C occurred in four of five children with Salmonella dactylitis, but in only one of 59 with uncomplicated dactylitis (P = 0.01). Chloramphenicol and co-trimoxazole were both effective for systemic infection, and ampicillin alone was inadequate. Three deaths occurred, two from septicaemia and one from meningitis.


Vitamin K2 (menaquinone-4: MK4) has been reported to inhibit cell growth and induce apoptosis in various tumor cells. We examined the effects of MK4 using three types of colon cancer cell lines: PMCO1, COLO201, and DLD-1. Exposure to MK4 was at concentrations from 5 to 50 microM, growth inhibitory effects were observed dose-dependently in COLO201 and PMCO1, whereas the growth inhibition observed in DLD-1 was minimal. Comparison of COLO201 and PMCO1 cells exhibiting distinct growth inhibitory effects showed that cell death via apoptosis accompanied by activation of caspase-3 was induced in PMCO1, while apoptosis was not induced in COLO201. On the contrary, immunoblot assay using an anti-LC3B antibody showed autophagy induction by addition of MK4 and incubation in all three types of colon cancer cell lines. Addition of 3-methyladenine (3-MA) attenuated the growth inhibitory effect of MK4 in COLO201, whereas no influence of 3-MA was noted in PCMO1. Electron microscopy images of COLO201 showed that addition of MK4 induced an increased number of cytoplasmic autophagosomes and autolysosomes as well as morphological changes including scantiness of cytoplasm accompanied by loss of cell organelles, nuclear shrinkage, and fragmentation of cytoplasmic membrane in some cells, indicating the induction of cell death via autophagy not accompanied by the formation of apoptotic bodies in COLO201 cells. These results suggested that the response to MK4 and the way of induction of cell death vary in different colon cancer cell lines.


We totally agree with Drs Birch, Jeffrey, and Andrews on the utility of alcian blue as a method of marking breast biopsy specimens and wish to describe a local modification. This entails placing the dipped specimen on a locally produced grid to allow the appropriate sectors for block selection to be chosen and sampled after specimen mammography. This grid is similar to the previously described grid.2 Covering the grid with kitchen plastic wrap prevents the specimen from moving on the grid before block selection and allows macroscopic description of margins selected to be compared with the radiographic margins: this avoids some of the problems encountered when a grid is not used. We consider that this simple method allows inexperienced staff to carry out handling with-


ABSTRACT From respectively 1852–1938 and 1863–1897, Guyana and New Caledonia received tens of thousands of men and hundreds of women sentenced to hard labour, deportation or relegation on their soil. This article aims to compare the social history of these two penal colonies, something which has never been done specifically. Transportation and its effects on the populating of both countries are here analysed in context: in the colonial situation experienced by the two territories, in contact with other populations, whether indigenous, imported or colonial. Subjected to the same rural utopia defended by the 1854 act on convict transportation, the two colonies nonetheless evolved very differently. It is this we shall be investigating in a close field study. With this 'ground level' approach, we hope to reveal how original colonial societies were formed out of these particular and remarkable penal experiments.


A cell line producing monoclonal antibodies directed against a lipopolysaccharide component of Neisseria meningitidis group A has been established. These antibodies reacted with only one of three lipopolysaccharide serotyping strains of group A meningococci by coagglutination, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, and Western blotting techniques. A Western blot analysis showed that a NaOH digest of lipopolysaccharide was detectable by the serotype-specific antibody. The monoclonal antibodies cross-reacted with a group B meningococcal strain in an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay. The immunoblotting analysis also showed that these antibodies reacted with the lipopolysaccharides of a group B meningococcus as well as Haemophilus influenzae type B, but not with the lipopolysaccharides of several strains of Salmonella typhi, Escherichia coli, Streptococcus pneumoniae, and Neisseria gonorrhoeae.


Large-language models have recently demonstrated impressive zero-shot capabilities in a variety of natural language tasks such as summa-rization, dialogue generation, and question-answering. Despite many promising applications in clinical medicine (e.g. medical record doc-umentation, treatment guideline-lookup), adoption of these models in real-world settings has been largely limited by their tendency to generate factually incorrect and sometimes even toxic statements. In this paper we explore the ability of large-language models to facilitate and streamline medical guidelines and recommendation referencing: by enabling these model to access external point-of-care tools in response to physician queries, we demonstrate significantly improved factual grounding, helpfulness, and safety in a variety of clinical scenarios.


This prospective study aimed to determine the prevalence of Helicobacter pylori infection in relation to the occurrence and severity of NSAIDs induced gastropathy. A total of 111 patients were studied-66 were taking NSAIDs and 45 were control patients. All patients underwent endoscopy during which antral biopsy specimens were taken to determine H pylori status (Gram and Giemsa staining, urease test, and cultures). The NSAID group comprised: group I, patients without mucosal damage (n = 28); group II, patients with gastropathy (n = 26); and group III, patients with bleeding associated with NSAID induced gastropathy (n = 12). Control patients had neither dyspeptic symptoms nor endoscopic lesions. There were no differences in age, sex ratio, or presence of H pylori (26% v 24%) between the NSAID and the control groups. Among patients taking NSAIDs, H pylori infection was more frequently (p < 0.02) diagnosed in those who presented with gastropathy (groups II and III: 37%) than in those without lesions (group I: 11%). The frequency of H pylori infection increased significantly with the severity of gastropathy (group I = 11%; group II = 31%; group III = 50%; p < 0.03). H pylori infection was associated with chronic active gastritis (group I = 21%; group II = 35%; group III = 67%; p < 0.05). These data suggest that H pylori may be a risk factor of NSAID induced gastropathy.


To obtain the flow stress data under varying conditions of strain, strain rate and temperature, hot compression experiments are conducted on 30 MnSi steel specimens using a GLEEBLE 1500 thermal simulator. To more accurately predict flow stress, ELS-SVM-MM - the method combining evolutionary least squares-support vector machines (ELS-SVM) with mathematical models is proposed. In ELS-SVM, the optimal parameters for LS-SVM are obtained by particle swarm optimization (PSO). The study represents the application of ESL-SVM-MM in the flow stress prediction. The experiment results have showed that this method can correctly recur to the flow stress in the sample data and it can also predict well the non-sample data. The efficiency and accuracy of the predicted flow stress using the method are better than those with the method combining BP neural networks with mathematical models (BPN-MM). Especially, the generalization performance of the network is improved


Preeclampsia (PE) is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy associated with activated CD4+ T cells and autoantibodies to angiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1-AA). We have previously shown that CD4+ T cells isolated from women with PE cause hypertension, increased tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNF-α), endothelin-1, and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) when injected into pregnant nude-athymic rats compared to CD4+ T cells from normal pregnant (NP) women. However, the role of PE CD4+ T cells to cause AT1-AA as a mechanism of hypertension is not known. Aim: Our goal was to determine if PE CD4+ T cells stimulate AT1-AA in pregnant nude-athymic rats. CD4+ T cells were isolated from human NP and PE placentasand injected into nude-athymic rats on gestational day (GD) 12. In order to examine the role of the PE CD4+ T cells to stimulate B cell secretion of AT1-AA, a subset of the rats receiving PE CD4+ T cells were treated with rituximab on GD 14 or anti-CD40 ligand (anti-CD40L) on GD 12. On GD 19, mean arterial pressure (MAP) and tissues were obtained MAP [114 ± 1 mmHg (n = 9)] and AT1-AA [19.8 ± 0.9 beats per minute (bpm, n = 4)] were increased in NP nude + PE CD4+ T cells compared to NP nude + NP CD4+ T cells [98 ± 2 mmHg (n = 7, P < 0.05) and 1.3 ± 0.9 bpm (n = 5, P < 0.05)]. Rituximab (103 ± 2 mmHg, n = 3, P < 0.05) and anti-CD40L (102 ± 1 mmHg, n = 3, P < 0.05) lowered MAP compared to NP nude + PE CD4+ T cells. Circulating a proliferation-inducing ligand (APRIL) and placental angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE-2) activity was increased in response to PE CD4+ T cells. These results show that placental CD4+ T cells play an important role in the pathophysiology of PE, by activating B cells secreting AT1-AA to cause hypertension during pregnancy.


The view of a 1870-1913 expanding European economy providing increasing welfare to everybody has been challenged by many, then and now. We focus on the amazing growth that was experienced, its diffusion and its sources, in the context of the permanent competition among European nation states. During 1870-193 the globalized European economy reached a "silver age". GDP growth was quite rapid (2.15% per annum) and diffused all over Europe. Even discounting the high rates of population growth (1.06%), per capita growth was left at a respectable 1.08%. Income per capita was rising in every country, and the rates of improvement were quite similar. This was a major achievement after two generations of highly localized growth, both geographically and socially. Growth was based on the increased use of labour and capital, but a good part of growth (73 per cent for the weighted average of the best documented European countries) came out of total factor productivity –efficiency gains resulting from not well specified ultimate sources of growth. This proportion suggests that the European economy was growing at full capacity –at its production frontier. It would have been very difficult to improve its performance. Within Europe, convergence was limited, and it only was in motion after 1900. What happened was more the end of the era of big divergence rather than an era of convergence.


Cancer resection specimens are usually reported using standardised proformas that consist of a list of elements, which include core (required) and non-core (recommended) items. Although all elements are generally included in the reports, the clinical importance of a particular parameter often depends on a variety of factors, including the clinical setting, local management guidelines and other pathological parameters. In this review, we briefly outline how histopathology data are used to guide management of patients with endometrial and tubo-ovarian cancers, the most common gynaecological malignancies, and provide advice as to which data elements are important in particular scenarios.


The appearance of late motor complications is the major drawback of long term levodopa therapy in patients with Parkinson's disease. Although disease progression may be a factor in the aetiology of these complications, unfavourable properties of levodopa may promote their development. These include competition with amino acids for gastrointestinal absorption and passage through the blood-brain barrier; and a short duration of action with a rapid peak plasma concentration and rapid clearance, producing strong receptor stimulation that rapidly alternates with neurotransmitter vacancy and nonselective stimulation of all dopamine receptors. Moreover, advanced neurodegeneration results in loss of the anatomical substrate responsible for dopamine uptake and transport, whereas the postsynaptic dopamine receptors (the therapeutic target of dopamine agonists) are relatively spared. In theory, long-acting direct dopamine D2 receptor agonists that also stimulate the D1 receptor should provide a satisfactory alternative to levodopa without the above-mentioned drawbacks. Cabergoline possesses all the prerequisites for testing the hypothesis that steady stimulation of D2 receptors may be able to minimise the development of late motor complications in patients with Parkinson's disease. It has an appropriate receptor affinity profile, with potent and long-lasting dopaminergic stimulatory effects in 6-hydroxydopamine-lesioned rats and in MPTP (1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,5,6-tetrahydropyridine)-lesioned primates; it has a consistent pharmacokinetic profile, with a very long mean plasma elimination half-life of 65 to 110 hours, and its absorption and excretion are unaffected by food, age or renal or hepatic disease; moreover, when given concomitantly, cabergoline does not influence levodopa pharmacokinetics. Initial clinical studies have demonstrated that the efficacy of cabergoline is comparable to that of levodopa in patients with Parkinson's disease. The preliminary results of a long term study of initiation of treatment with cabergoline or levodopa in patients with Parkinson's disease are in keeping with the hypothesis that steady receptor stimulation diminishes late motor complications.


Newberry, Volcano, a large Quaternary volcano located about 60 km east of the axis of the High Cascades volcanoes in central Oregon, has a coincident positive residual gravity anomaly of about 12 mGals. Model calculations of the gravity anomaly field suggest that the volcano is underlain by an intrusive complex of mafic composition of about 20-km diameter and 2-km thickness, at depths above 4 km below sea level. However, uplifted basement in a northwest trending ridge may form part of the underlying excess mass, thus reducing the volume of the subvolcanic intrusive. A ring dike of mafic composition is inferred to intrude to near-surface levels along the caldera ring fractures, and low-density fill of the caldera floor probably has a thickness of 0.7--0.9 km. The gravity anomaly attributable to the volcano is reduced to the east across a north-northwest trending gravity anomaly gradient through Newberry caldera and suggests that normal, perhaps extensional, faulting has occurred subsequent to caldera formation and may have controlled the location of some late-stage basaltic and rhyolitic eruptions. Significant amounts of felsic intrusive material may exist above the mafic intrusive zone but cannot be resolved by the gravity data.


Given the Laplace transform F(s) of a function f(t), we develop a new algorithm to find an approximation to f(t) by the use of the classical Laguerre polynomials. The main contribution of our work is the development of a new and very effective method to evaluate the Laguerre coefficients with the use of the Riemann zeta function. Some examples are illustrated.


The purpose of this paper is to assess whether the gender composition of the board of directors affects the sensitivity to gender issues in defining university strategies and therefore strategic plans.,The authors conducted an ordinary least square regression to test the relationship between gender sensitivity approach and board composition in Italian state universities (ISUs). The authors measured the gender sensitivity approach of each university by an index (gender sensitivity approach index) determined based on content analysis. Gender board composition is, instead, analyzed by heterogeneity (homogeneity) index (Herfindahl–Hirschman Index) of the board.,The finding suggests that, if the board has a certain level of heterogeneity, then university strategic plan (USP) is a more gender-sensitive approach.,The study analyses only the 2018 USPs of ISUs and considers the presence of women within the board, and not their actual role and their position in the university hierarchy.,The practical implication of this study is that if universities want to guarantee gender equality, they should open their boards more widely to women.,To the best of the authors' knowledge, this is the first work that analyzes the relationships between board composition and sensitivity to gender issues within the USPs. The paper therefore contributes to the literature on governance in the public sector, particularly in universities. Moreover, it stimulates the accounting debate on gender issue and highlights that gender issues cannot be taken up by decision-making bodies that are not heterogeneous enough.


OBJECTIVES: To explore the microendoscopic discectomy technique and inclusion criteria for the treatment of recurrent lumbar disc herniation and to supply feasible criteria and technical notes to avoid complications and to increase the therapeutic effect. METHODS: A consecutive series of 25 patients who underwent posterior microendoscopic discectomy for recurrent lumbar disc herniation were included. The inclusion criteria were as follows: no severe pain in the lumbar region, no lumbar instability observed by flexion-extension radiography and no intervertebral discitis or endplate damage observed by magnetic resonance imaging. All patients were diagnosed by clinical manifestations and imaging examinations. RESULTS: Follow-up visits were carried out in all cases. Complications, such as nerve injuries, were not observed. The follow-up outcomes were graded using the MacNab criteria. A grade of excellent was given to 12 patients, good to 12 patients and fair to 1 patient. A grade of excellent or good occurred in 96% of cases. One patient relapsed 3 months after surgery and then underwent lumbar interbody fusion and inner fixation. The numerical rating scale of preoperative leg pain was 7.4± 1.5, whereas it decreased to 2.1±0.8 at 7 days after surgery. The preoperative Oswestry disability index of lumbar function was 57.5±10.0, whereas it was 26.0±8.5 at 7 days after surgery. CONCLUSION: In these cases, microendoscopic discectomy was able to achieve satisfactory clinical results. Furthermore, it has advantages over other methods because of its smaller incision, reduced bleeding and more efficient recovery.


This book describes the Singapore Chinese Chamber of Commerce's changing relationship with the state and with businesses in the region. Some of the wealthiest and most influential businessmen in Singapore and Malaysia have served as leaders of the Chamber. Drawing on archival materials and extensive interviews, Visscher provides lively biographical sketches that highlight the circumstances and personal values that propelled these and other leading Chinese businessmen to success and to prominence. He also examines Chinese business practices, considering cultural elements as well as state and market forces, and highlights unique features of the Chinese experience in Singapore. By viewing Singapore from the perspective of a well established non-governmental organisation as it struggled, negotiated and cooperated with the state, this book offers an alternative to conventional political histories.


The present study compared the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory-2 (MMPI-2) clinical and content scale profiles of a group of adult women (N = 73) charged with either murder of their child (filicide) (n = 30), their partner (mariticide) (n = 19), or an unrelated adult (homicide) (n = 24). No significant differences were seen among the three groups on either the MMPI-2 clinical or content scales. Clinical inspection of the 53 valid MMPI-2 profiles (F < 110T) revealed a 6-8 mean profile for the filicidal women, a 2-6 mean profile for the mariticidal women, and a 4-8 mean profile for the homicidal women. Application of the data for criminal forensic psychological evaluations is discussed.


Background The Psoriasis Symptom Inventory (PSI) is an 8-item patient-reported outcome measure of psoriasis symptom severity. Data from a Phase 2 study of Brodalumab in subjects with plaque psoriasis demonstrated that the PSI has good reliability, validity, and ability to detect change.1 Psoriasis related symptoms are an important component of psoriatic arthritis (PsA). However, the measurement properties of the PSI have not been evaluated in the PsA population. Objectives To evaluate the reliability and construct validity of the PSI in subjects with PsA. Methods This was a secondary analysis of pooled data from treatment arms of a Phase 2 clinical trial (NCT01516957) evaluating the efficacy of Brodalumab, an anti-IL-17 R monoclonal antibody in subjects with PsA. Confirmatory factor analysis (CFA) and Rasch analysis were used to assess the dimensionality of the PSI. Item evaluation and internal consistency (Cronbach's α) were conducted on baseline PSI data. Test-retest reliability was assessed using intraclass correlation coefficients (ICC) between PSI scores at week 2 and week 4 in stable subjects (i.e., -1≤ change ≤1 on the subject global assessment of disease [SGA]). Construct validity was evaluated based on correlations between PSI scores and body surface area (BSA) affected by psoriasis, and selected domains of the SF-36. Known groups validity was explored based on BSA severity categories (<5%, 5-10%, >10%) using analysis of variance. Ability to detect change was explored using t-tests comparing mean PSI scores in subjects reporting ≥30% versus <30% improvement from baseline to week 12 on the SGA. Results The analysis sample included 154 subjects; 93.5% White, 63.0% females, mean (SD) age was 52.2 (11.47) years. Mean (SD) duration of PsA and BSA at baseline was 8.8 (7.84) years and 10.4% (15.61%) respectively. At baseline, 12% of subjects had no skin involvement and 63% had ≤5% skin involvement. Mean (SD) PSI total score at baseline was 12.2 (7.89). CFA and Rasch analysis supported unidimensionality. Rasch analysis also indicated good item fit and correctly ordered categories. The PSI had excellent internal consistency (α=0.95) and good test-retest reliability (ICC=0.70 for total scores and ranging from 0.67 to 0.81 for items). Convergent validity was supported by moderate correlations with BSA (r=0.50). Discriminant validity was supported by small correlations (r<-0.3) for SF-36 domains of mental health and role emotions. Known groups validity was supported by significantly lower mean PSI scores (p<0.001) between subjects with BSA<5% compared to those with BSA>10%). Mean change in PSI score was significantly greater (p<0.001) in subjects with ≥30% SGA improvement than subjects with <30% SGA improvement. Conclusions This study provides evidence that the PSI is unidimensional, with excellent internal consistency, good test-retest reliability, construct validity, and ability to detect change in subjects with PsA. Based on the findings, the PSI is a robust yet simple and practical measure of psoriasis-related symptoms for use in PsA clinical trials. References Revicki DA et al. Reliability and validity of the psoriasis symptom inventory in patients with moderate-to-severe psoriasis. J Dermatolog Treat. 2013:Epub 1-7. Disclosure of Interest P. Mease Grant/research support: Received Research grants from Abbvie, Amgen, BiogenIdec, BMS, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Lilly, Merck, Norvatis, Pfizer, UCB, Vertex., Consultant for: Received consulting fees from Abbvie, Amgen, BiogenIdec, BMS, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Lilly, Merck, Norvatis, Pfizer, UCB, Vertex., Speakers bureau: Received speaker honoraria from Abbvie, Amgen, BiogenIdec, BMS, Celgene, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen, Lilly, Merck, Norvatis, Pfizer, UCB, Vertex., M. Genovese Grant/research support: Received research grants from Amgen Inc., A. Mutebi Shareholder of: Amgen Inc., Employee of: Amgen Inc., H. Wilson Consultant for: Received consulting fees from Amgen Inc., D. Revicki Consultant for: Received consulting fees from Amgen Inc., N. Erondu Shareholder of: Amgen Inc., Employee of: Amgen Inc., A. Nirula Shareholder of: Amgen Inc., Employee of: Amgen Inc., J. Feng Shareholder of: Amgen Inc., Employee of: Amgen Inc., H. Viswanathan Shareholder of: Amgen Inc., Employee of: Amgen Inc. DOI 10.1136/annrheumdis-2014-eular.3778


Abstract : This paper describes the techniques used to optimize relational queries in the SDD-1, distributed database system. Queries are submitted to SDD- 1 in a high-level procedural language called Datalanguage. Optimization begins by translating each Datalanguage query into a relational calculus form called an envelope, which is essentially an aggregate-free QUEL query. This paper is primarily concerned with the optimization of envelopes. Envelopes are processed in two phases. The first phase executes relational operations at various sites of the distributed database in order to delimit a subset of the database that contains all data relevant to the envelope. This subset is called a reduction of the database. The second phase transmits the reduction to one designated site, and the query is executed locally at that site. The critical optimization problem is to perform the reduction phase efficiently. Success depends on designing a good repertoire of operators to use during this phase, and an effective algorithm for deciding which of these operators to use in processing a given envelope against a given database. The principal reduction operator that we employ is called semi-join. In this paper we define the semi-join operator, explain why semi-join is an effective reduction operator, and present an algorithm that constructs a cost effective program of semi-joins given an envelope and a database.


Sequential band-6 imagery of the Zambesi Basin of southern Africa recorded substantial changes in burn patterns resulting from late dry season grass fires. One example from northern Botswana, indicates that a fire consumed approximately 70 square miles of grassland over a 24-hour period. Another example from western Zambia indicates increased fire activity over a 19-day period. Other examples clearly define the area of widespread grass fires in Angola, Botswana, Rhodesia and Zambia. From the fire patterns visible on the sequential portions of the imagery, and the time intervals involved, the rates of spread of the fires are estimated and compared with estimates derived from experimental burning plots in Zambia and Canada. It is concluded that sequential ERTS-1 imagery, of the quality studied, clearly provides the information needed to detect and map grass fires and to monitor their rates of spread in this region during the late dry season.


Aim: To investigate pituitary gland deformation (PGD) in high altitude (HA) immigrants and determine if a correlation exists between PGD with headache and the ratio of brain volume to total intracranial volume (BV/TIV), and to investigate whether PGD can be used as an objective indicator of headache in HA immigrants.Methods: A total of 34 male HA immigrants and 60 age- and gender-matched sea-level (SL) residents were enrolled in this study. 3D T1 weighted brain MRI scans and headache scales were acquired. HA participants were classified into headache positive (HA[+]) and headache negative (HA[-]) subgroups. PGD was graded visually on mid-sagittal images of the pituitary gland. All continuous variables and categorical variables were compared using Student's t-test or Mann-Whitney test and the χ2 or Fisher exact tests, respectively. Kendall's tau rank correlation coefficient and Spearman's rho were used to investigate the relationship between PGD and headache or BV/TIV, respectively. Receiver operating characteristic (ROC) analysis was used to evaluate whether PGD can be used as an objective indicator of headache in HA immigrants.Results: A higher proportion of HA participants had PGD (54.8%) than SL residents (23.3%) (p=0.005). The proportion of HA(-) participants with PGD (68.2%) was higher than that of HA(+) participants (22.2%) (p=0.044). PGD was negatively correlated with headache (Kendall's tau=-0.323, p=0.0097) and positively correlated with BV/TIV (r=0.454, p=0.010). The presence of PGD was an indicator of headache in HA immigrants (area under the ROC curve=0.712, p= 0.038, sensitivity=0.778, specificity=0.682). Conclusion: A greater proportion of HA immigrants had PGD, which is an adaptation to chronically altered ICP or compliance. The presence of PGD indicated a restoration of spatial compensatory capacity and compliance of intracranial system, leading to headache relief. PGD is a potential indicator of headache in HA immigrants.


The reduction of extracellular matrix (ECM) degradation in kidney is taken as the morphological features and pathological base in renal injury in chronic kidney disease (CKD). ECM degradation is controlled by the catabolic enzyme systems in glomerulus and renal interstitium, in which matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) play a key role. The expression and activity of MMPs are regulated by the classical pathway, such as the genic transcription, the activation of zymogen, and the specific inhibitor. The previous studies showed that, Uremic Clearance granule, as a representation, and other prescriptions of Chinese herbal medicine, as well as some extracts from Chinese herbal medicine could intervene the pathway of ECM degradation through promoting the degradation of ECM components, affecting the expression of catabolic enzymes, regulating the genetic transcription of MMPs, and inhibiting the relative signaling transduction of MMPs.


To select the antagonistic microorganisms against Salmonella gallinarum causing fowl typhoid, 31 strains were isolated from the gut of Korean native chicken. Among these, six strains could inhibit the growth of S. gallinarum. Strain BP6, which had strong inhibition activity against S. gallinarum, was identified as Bacillus subtilis BP6 by Biolog system and 16s rDNA sequencing. B. subtilis BP6 had antimicrobial activity toward various food-born pathogen such as Micrococcus luteus, B. cereus, Vibrio parahaemoliticus, Staphylococcus aureus, Listeria monocytogenes, and Escherichia coli O-157. The purified bacteriocin BP6 showed a single band of 20.7 kDa on sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis. Furthermore, low (<10 kDa) and high molecular weight (>10 kDa) substances from culture supernatant also inhibited the growth of S. gallinarum simultaneously. When the purified bacteriocin BP6 and n-butanol extract of non-peptide antibiotic-like substances were treated with protease, proteinase K, and trypsin, the antimicrobial activity of purified bacteriocin BP6 was lost, whereas that of n-butanol extract was not. The antimicrobial activity of purified bacteriocin BP6, however, was not affected by the α-amylase treatment. The bacteriocin BP6 was heat-stable and had a bacteriolytic mode of action resulting in the degradation of the S. gallinarum cell wall, suggesting the bacteriocin-producing bacterium B. subtilis BP6 could be a non-antibiotic probiotic for prevention of chicken or duck typhus.


Objectives: To determine fetomaternal outcome in patients undergoing planned vaginal breech delivery at term. Methods: It was a descriptive cross sectional study conducted at Lady Aitchison hospital, Lahore for one and a half year from July 2012 to December 2013. All patients presenting with term breech presentation were included. Fetomaternal outcome in terms of successful vaginal delivery, maternal complications of operative delivery, PPH, wound infection and fetal complications of apgar score of less than five minutes, nursery admission, trauma during delivery (bone fracture, intra cranial hemorrhage) and perinatal mortality was studied. Results:   375 patients delivered as breech presentation during the study period. Out of 375 patients, 155 patients were selected for vaginal birth. Out of these, 65% had successful vaginal delivery, rest had emergency caesarean section due to fetal distress, cord prolapse dysfunctional labour. 6.4% patients had wound infection and 3.2% had PPH. Booking status was significantly important in patients who had successful vaginal delivery as 80% were booked (p = 0.001). There was no maternal mortality in these patients. Perinatal outcome was good in 87% of patients. 20 fetuses had Apgar score less than 7/min and required nursery admission. Two babies expired due to birth asphyxia and rest were discharged home in satisfactory condition. Conclusion: Although delivery of breech remains a dilemma, the plan of delivery should be individualized. Proper selection of cases with proper antenatal and intrapartum care can result in successful breech vaginal delivery without compromising feto maternal wellbeing and curtailing the percentage of caesarean being done for this malpresentation.


ABSTRACT Introduction: Myelofibrosis (MF) is characterized by bone marrow fibrosis, abnormalities in peripheral counts, extramedullary hematopoiesis, splenomegaly and an increased risk of transformation to acute myeloid leukaemia. The disease course is often heterogeneous and management can range from observation alone through to allogeneic stem cell transplantation. As of 2017, the only approved medication for MF remains the JAK Inhibitor (JAKi), ruxolitinib (Novartis Pharmaceuticals, Basel, Switzerland; Incyte, Wilmington, Detroit, USA) although several others have reached advanced stages of clinical trials. Areas covered: In this review, we focus on the management of both common and uncommon side effects arising from the use of currently approved and clinical trial JAKi. Most of the discussion concerns ruxolitinib although we also cover both pacritinib (CTI BioPharma) and momelotinib (Gilead Sciences, Foster City, California) which have been in recent large, multinational phase III trials. The various approaches to management of JAKi-related side effects are discussed – with particular emphasis to anaemia, thrombocytopaenia and infection risk. Expert commentary: JAK inhibitors are effective in many individuals with MF and have revolutionized the current treatment paradigm. The side effect profile, in the most, is predictable and manageable with high degrees of clinical surveillance and dose modifications.


Starting from the enantiopure precursors, a pair of chiral macrocyclic arenes named helic[1]triptycene[3]arenes were conveniently synthesized. The circular dichroism (CD) spectra of the enantiomeric macrocyclic arenes exhibited mirror images, and the X-ray single crystal structures confirmed their absolute conformations as well. Moreover, the macrocyclic arenes showed strong complexation with secondary ammonium and primary ammonium salts containing aminoindan groups. In particular, the chiral macrocyclic arenes exhibited enantioselective recognition ability towards the chiral secondary ammonium salts containing aminoindan groups with an enantioselective ratio up to 3.89.


Considering historical development and expansion of World Wide Web, it is obvious that there is no unique tendency in terms of supporting software technologies. Moreover, vast amount of different technologies has emerged because the system as a whole became quite complex and diverse. Heterogeneity, which is characteristic of distributed systems based on Web, is one of the main challenges which system designer may encounter. The paper presents and discusses a software solution proposal which mainly relies on widely deployed Internet stack protocols and REST (Representational State Transfer) style of Web services. Further, the paper compares standardized approach based on SOAP (Simple Object Access Protocol) to a proposed one based on REST. As a result, the implementation represents a control component with broker architecture.


This paper presents a Format preserving encryption algorithm using Feistel Cipher. Cryptography is a useful technique to transmit large amount of data in a secured way through an internet. In Cryptography, Encryption is used to convert the original information (Plain text) to unreadable intelligent form (Cipher text). Format Preserving Encryption is used to maintain the length and format of the cipher text as plaintext after encryption. Refer ences


We explore various formality and finiteness properties in the differential graded algebra models for the Sullivan algebra of piecewise polynomial rational forms on a space. The 1-formality property of the space may be reinterpreted in terms of the filtered and graded formality properties of the Malcev Lie algebra of its fundamental group, while some of the finiteness properties of the space are mirrored in the finiteness properties of algebraic models associated with it. In turn, the formality and finiteness properties of algebraic models have strong implications on the geometry of the cohomology jump loci of the space. We illustrate the theory with examples drawn from complex algebraic geometry, actions of compact Lie groups, and 3-dimensional manifolds.


Genome-wide mutational screens are central to understanding the genetic underpinnings of evolved and engineered phenotypes. The widespread adoption of CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing has enabled such screens in many organisms, but identifying functional sgRNAs still remains a challenge. To address this limitation, we developed a methodology to quantify the cutting efficiency of each sgRNA in a genome-scale library in the biotechnologically important yeast Yarrowia lipolytica. Screening in the presence and absence of native DNA repair enabled high-throughput quantification of sgRNA function leading to the identification of high efficiency sgRNAs that cover 94% of genes. Library validation enhanced the classification of essential genes by identifying inactive guides that create false negatives and mask the effects of successful disruptions. Quantification of guide effectiveness also creates a dataset from which functional determinants of CRISPR-Cas9 can be identified. Finally, application of the library identified mutations that led to high lipid accumulation and eliminated pseudohyphal morphology.


With adequate indication, PTA is an effective technique for eliminating functional restrictions of hemodialysis shunts. PTA is indicated both in stenoses which occur above all at the venous shunt arm near to fistula and in occlusions over short distances. In thrombotic occlusions over long distances, PTA is indicated when prior thrombectomy did not produce any improvement of shunt function and dilatation should eliminate a causal stenosis. Stenoses of the arterial side of the shunt can also be successfully dilated: the dilation catheter should be introduced via the venous arm of the shunt in order to avoid damage to the proximal brachial artery. PTA is not indicated in all primarily insufficient shunts.


A novel high-resolution and large-range autocollimator measurement system for roll angle is proposed. The system retains the basic internal structure of the traditional autocollimator (AC), which only uses a novel non-standard cylindrical cube-corner reflector (CCCR) instead of the planar reflector. In the article, the mathematical relationship between the structure of this special reflector and the spatial coordinate vector change of the reflected beam is deduced, and the measurement formula of the roll angle autocollimator (RAC) measurement system is established based on this mathematical relationship. The effectiveness of the measurement system and method is verified by experiments. Experimental results show that this method can effectively enhance the range to ±20°, and the whole measurement accuracy is 6.1", the measuring resolution is 1".


Learning English grammar is difficult and boring for most students. Therefore,
English teachers should use some effective techniques in the classroom. This final
project mainly aims at finding out the effectiveness of random sounds game in
teaching simple past tense on the tenth grade students of SMA N 1 Batang.
Random sounds game is a game to speculate orally and/or in writing about
the sources of sounds, in using simple past, expressions of uncertainty and/or
expressions of speculation. This game demands the learner to identify the sounds
that they heard when they closed their eyes for two or three minutes, and then
write down.
In order to achieve the objective of this research, the writer designed an
experimental study. The subject of this study was 56 students of the tenth grade of
SMA N 1 Batang; 28 students acted as the experimental group to be taught simple
past tense by using random sounds game and the other 28 students as the control
group to be taught simple past tense by using conventional method. There were
four meetings during the experiment. Before the experiment was conducted, a pre-
test was given to both groups. A post test was given after the experiment was
done. The test was first tried out to check the validity and reliability.
The result of this study can be seen in the following data: the mean score
of pre-test of the experimental group is 55.00, while that of the control group is
55.14. In post-test, the mean score of experimental group is 71.29 and the control
group is 67.00. There is a good improvement between the results of pre-test and
post-test score. In analysing the data, the writer used t-test formula. After the
calculation in t-value measurement, the result showed that the t-value score is
6.30.
Based on the result above, it means that the t-value score is higher than the
critical value. Therefore, it can be concluded that random sounds game is effective
as a learning strategy in teaching simple past tense. It is suggested that teachers
use random sounds game as one of techniques in teaching simple past tense.


Improved survival of low birth weight, premature babies in India has increased the incidence of retinopathy of prematurity. Western reports describe screening criteria to pick up babies most at risk. However, our population of at-risk neonates is likely to be different, as most nurseries in India are not very well equipped. Our aim was to develop a screening strategy appropriate for our conditions. Ophthalmic records of 60 neonates with gestational age < or =35 weeks and/or birth weight < or =1500 g, born over a 1-year period, were retrospectively reviewed. Laterality, location and stage of retinopathy of prematurity were recorded. Age at detection, at threshold disease and at maximum stage was recorded, and progression or regression of retinopathy noted. The incidence of retinopathy was 13/60 (21.7%) and of threshold disease was 3/60 (5.0%). Threshold disease was never seen before 5.5 weeks PNA. Zone I disease invariably, zone II disease in 12.5% cases and zone III disease never progressed to threshold stage. Most (10/13; 76.9%) cases regressed without treatment. Screening for retinopathy should commence at 4 weeks PNA (post-neonatal age). Screening time, discomfort to the baby and complications can be reduced by examining temporal retina first. If normal, the nasal retina need not be examined. Also, babies with zone III disease need not be followed up to complete visualization. Retinal vascular dilatation, resistance to pupillary dilation and persistence of tunica vasculosa lentis can be indicators of intensive screening.


INTRODUCTION
The aim of this study was to evaluate the frequency of unexplained pulmonary hypertension (PHT) among patients on hemodialysis at 2 centers and to evaluate possible predisposing factors.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
In this cross-sectional study, PHT was screened by Doppler echocardiography on the day after dialysis in 62 patients with end-stage renal disease receiving maintenance hemodialysis via arteriovenous access. Pulmonary hypertension was defined as a systolic pulmonary arterial pressure (PAP) higher than 35 mm Hg, and the systolic PAP was calculated using the modified Bernoulli equation. Clinical variables were compared between patients with and without PHT.

RESULTS
A PAP higher than 35 mm Hg was found in 32 patients (49.3%) receiving hemodialysis, with a mean systolic PAP of 39.58 +/- 13.27 mm Hg. Blood hemoglobin level was significantly lower in the patients with PHT than those without PHT (9.8 +/- 1.97 g/dL versus 11.07 +/- 1.86 g/dL; P = .01). In addition, serum levels of albumin was lower in these patients (3.38 +/- 0.32 g/dL versus 3.75 +/- 0.44 g/dL; P = .02).

CONCLUSIONS
This study demonstrates a surprisingly high prevalence of PHT among patients with end-stage renal disease receiving hemodialysis. We concluded that the best approach to this unrecognized complication that is associated with reduced survival is keeping it in mind and looking for it in the management of patients on dialysis.


A novel algorithm for the mobile station (MS) location estimation with none line of sight (NLOS) error in wireless network is proposed in this paper. In the proposed algorithm, the MS location estimation problem is formulated as a simple linear approximation problem in vector space with the data corrupted by the NLOS errors. The M-estimator is employed to eliminate the NLOS errors, and a recursive algorithm is developed to solve the M-estimation normal equations. Compared to the conventional algorithms, the proposed algorithm does not rely on the prior knowledge of the statistical model of the measurement noise. Another advantage is that the proposed algorithm can track the slow moment of MS due to the recursive nature, which is hardly to achieve in other algorithms. The algorithm also possesses low arithmetic complexity. Effectiveness of the proposed algorithm is verified by the numerical simulations.


Purpose Mental disorders are associated with several work-related outcomes such as loss of income. Not much is known about how this varies with migrant background. This study investigated the change in work-related income following the uptake of outpatient mental healthcare (OPMH) treatment, a proxy for mental disorder, in young women with and without migrant background. Additionally, we looked at how the association varied by income levelMethods Using data from four national registries, the study population consisted of women aged 23-40 years residing in Norway for at least three consecutive years between 2006 and 2013 (N=640,527). By using a stratified linear regression with individual fixed effects, we investigated differences between majority women, descendants and eight migrant groups. Interaction analysis was conducted in order to examine differences in income loss following the uptake of OPMH treatment among women with and without migrant background. Results OPMH treatment was associated with a decrease in income for all groups. However, the negative effect was stronger among those with low income. Only migrant women from EU Eastern Europe with a high income were not significantly affected following OPMH treatment. Conclusion Experiencing a mental disorder during a critical age for establishment in the labour market may not only affect income but also subsequent workforce participation and dependency on social welfare services, regardless of migrant background, resulting in large economic costs for both the individual and for society as a whole.


Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome (WAS) is an X-linked primary immunodeficiency characterized by recurrent infections, and a marked predisposition to develop autoimmune phenomena. The disease is caused by mutations in WASp, a key regulator of actin polymerization expressed only in hematopoietic cells. A general impairment of hematopoietic cell functions contributes to the pathogenesis of the disease. Neutrophils, B cells, T cells and DCs deficient for WASp were all shown to have impaired homing ability, a cellular function that strictly depends on spatio-temporal regulation of actin polymerization. WASp null T cells present severe impairment in coupling TCR stimulation to proliferation and fail to organize signaling molecules within the immunological synapse (Badour et al., 2004; Dupre et al., 2002; Sims et al., 2007). B cells intrinsic defects include altered B cell receptor clustering, defective homeostasis of mature B cells and a specific reduction in the expression of the complement receptor (Park et al., 2005; Simon et al., 1992; Westerberg et al., 2001). WASp null DCs fail to assemble podosomes and display late migration from the periphery to lymph nodes (de Noronha et al., 2005). Moreover, WASp expression in DCs is critical to organize the dynamic cytoskeletal changes that facilitate DC-T cell interaction during antigen presentation (Pulecio et al., 2008; Bouma et al., 2011). Together, these cellular alterations provided clues to understand the reduced response to pathogens and the immunodeficiency of WAS patients. However, the mechanisms by which perturbation of actin dynamics promote autoimmune phenomena are less clear. Autoimmune complications occur in 40-72% of children with severe WAS phenotype. The most common autoimmune features that develop in WAS patients include hemolytic anemia, vasculitis, renal disease, and arthritis (Dupuis-Girod et al., 2003; Sullivan et al., 1994; Humbletbaron et al., 2007). Impairment of T and B cell tolerance have been reported in WAS patients and in Was -/mice, but the exact cellular mechanisms that link loss of WASp function to autoimmunity have not been fully elucidated yet (Becker-Herman et al., 2011; Recher et al., 2012; Marangoni et al., 2007; Maillard et al., 2007; Humblet-Baron et al., 2007). It is increasingly recognized that excessive activation of pDCs and elevated type-I interferon (IFN) levels are pathogenic in several human autoimmune diseases such as SLE, psoriasis, Sjogren's syndrome. Since WAS autoimmune manifestations partially overlap with those of type-I IFN diseases, we hypothesized that pDCs/IFN-α axis may have a role in WAS-associated autoimmunity.  In the first part of results we present the analysis of the pDC compartment in a mouse model of the disease, a mouse knock-out for WASp (WKO mice). We show that pDCs from WKO animals are chronically activated, secrete type-I IFN constitutively and become refractory to further stimulation in vivo. By depleting WASp expression or by interfering with actin dynamics in pDCs we prove that WASp-mediated actin dynamics control the activation of the TLR9/IFN-α pathway in a cell autonomous fashion.  Based on the results of previous section, we speculated that WASp may regulate IFN-α production by controlling the correct organization of the endocytic pathway. It is well known, in fact, that type-I IFN production relies on spatio-temporal regulation of TLR9 signaling in the endocytic pathway, at the same time, it is largely established that many steps of the endocytosis are regulated by actin regulatory proteins of the WASp family. Therefore, we proceed presenting a series of experiments exploring the role of WASp in mediating signaling downstream TLR9 activation in pDCs. Tracking of TLR9 agonist in pDCs show that WASp controls cellular architecture and early endosomes size leading to accumulation of large aggregates of TLR9 agonist in WASp-deficient cells.  To demonstrate a link between the alteration in the pDCs/IFN-α axis found in WKO mice and the pathogenesis of WAS autoimmunity, we first analyzed the presence in patients of clinical aspects known to be associated with type-I IFN diseases. We report that WAS patients display a moderate type-I interferon signature, indicating an exposure to elevated levels of this cytokine. Finally, we moved back to the mouse model of WAS to start investigating the presence of alterations of innate/adaptive immunity classically attributed to unrestrained type-I IFN production. In line with the well known inducing effects of systemic type-I IFNs, our preliminary data illustrate a generally more activated phenotype of immunocytes in WKO mice. In sum, our work provide 1) the first demonstration of an altered pDCs/IFN-α axis in WAS, 2) the existence of a cell intrinsic mechanism of increased pDCs activation in WASp-null pDC, and 3) a new role for actin in restraining excessive activation of TLR9 in pDCs. These observations add a new layer of complexity to our understanding of the pathophysiology of WAS, and raise important considerations about the treatment of patients with autoimmune phenomena.


The oxygen of the source waters that feed the upwelling in the California Current System shows prominent multidecadal fluctuations that are not significantly correlated with the dominant modes of Pacific climate variability. By combining observations and ocean reanalysis products between 1950 and 2010, we show that decadal changes in oxygen are linked to subsurface salinity variability and primarily controlled by ocean circulation dynamics. We find that subsurface anomalies in the core of the North Pacific Current propagate the oxygen signal downstream into the coastal upwelling system following the path of the mean gyre circulation with a time scale of 10 years. These results suggest that decadal variability in the ocean subsurface is a key process for understanding, and potentially predicting, hypoxia and other biogeochemical tracers in upwelling systems. According to the current sign of the subsurface tracer anomalies in the gyre, California may experience a new period of strong decline in oxygen by 2020.


In general, a yawing motion concept is used for the lateral control of one wheel robot where the gimbal system is located horizontally. In this paper, another concept of the vertically located gimbal system is presented for the same purpose. Although the vertical concept undergoes an instability more easily than the horizontal one, the pitching motion of the gyroscopic effect is considered. Firstly, the trade-off relation between two balancing concepts are investigated by comparing the gyroscopic mechanism. Secondly, the dynamic model for the problem of the proposed concept is derived using the oscillatory inverted stick model. Thirdly, the stability of the model is analyzed using the phase trajectory method. Finally, the control performance of the system by a vibration controller is simulated.


Chang-Kang-Fang formula (CKF), a multi-herb traditional Chinese medicinal formula, has been clinically used for treatment of irritable bowel syndrome with diarrhea (IBS-D). Though we have reported the compounds of CKF and their therapeutic effect on IBS-D rats, the exact underlying mechanism is still not clear. The aim of this study was to clearly define the effect of CKF on IBS-D by regulating gut microbiota and promoting intestinal barrier. IBS-D rats were established by psychosocial stress (restraint) combined with the peripheral stimulation (senna leaf gavage) stress. The changes of body weight and the number of fecal pellets were investigated during the experiment. The effect on intestinal sensitivity was assessed based on the abdominal withdrawal reflex (AWR) scores and the intestinal permeability, the expression of zona occludens 1 (ZO-1), measured by immunohistochemistry. The composition of gut microbiota was detected through 16S rRNA. The administration of CKF significantly had therapeutic effects on IBS-D rats based on the decreased AWR scores and the increased number of pellets. However, the changes of body weight were not observed. In addition, CKF could up-regulate the expression of ZO-1 in the colon and rebalance the gut microbiota of IBS-D by increasing the abundance of Lactobacillus, Allobaculum, Roseburia, and Lachnospiraceae_NK4A136. CKF potentially alleviated IBS-D through regulating gut microbiota and improving the intestinal barrier function.


The technique of frequency warping for the estimation of power spectra of random signals with a nonlinear frequency scale is treated. The frequency spacing of the spectral estimates obtained via nonlinear frequency warping is compared to constant Q analysis. A procedure for reduction of the variance of the spectral estimators is described, a relationship is derived for this variance, and experimental verification is provided. Finally, example spectrograms are presented depicting applications of the technique.


The consequences for adolescent health due to early life exposure to natural disasters combined with war are not known. We collected data from adolescents aged 12-13 years in Sri Lanka whose mothers were pregnant during the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004 in a tsunami-affected region (n = 22), conflict-affected region (n = 35), conflict-plus-tsunami-affected region (n = 29), or controls in areas unaffected by either (n = 24). Adjusted body mass index (BMI)-for-age z-scores were 1.3, 1.0 and 2.0 for conflict, tsunami, and conflict-plus-tsunami, respectively, compared with the control group. Greater skinfold thickness and higher diastolic blood pressure were found in adolescents born in the conflict zone but no differences were found in height, head circumference, and waist circumference, or blood results, with the exception of serum insulin. Being born after a natural disaster or during conflict was associated with increased BMI and body fat during adolescent, which are associated with longer-term risk of noncommunicable disease.


Multivariate extensions of univariate measures of association that are employed in comparative experiments are reviewed. Two of these are generalizations of the correlation ratio, and the third is a generalization of Hays' omega. The numerical values of these three indices are empirically compared along with a fourth index, the proportion of correct classifications, using two sets of data and various numbers of predictor variables. As in the univariate case, the values of the correlational indices are nearly the same in all situations investigated. The use of a correlational index versus the proportion of correct classifications depends upon the intent of the researcher.


In this research, we propose a method to calculate the phase delay angle of the reflected wave compared to the wave emitted from the interdigital transducer (IDT) of a passive wireless surface acoustic wave (SAW) sensor by combining simulation of the finite element method (FEM) and MATLAB. Based on the result, we consider the influence of the reflector position on the phase delay of the SAW sensor consisting of an IDT and three equally spaced reflectors. The distances between the IDT and the first reflector are 870 micrometers, 939.6 micrometers, and 1009.2 micrometers, and the distances between the reflector positions are 452.4 micrometers, 522 micrometers, and 591.6 micrometers. The outputs of the FEM simulation, including delay time, amplitude loss, and the length of the reflected wave are put into the model in MATLAB to determine the phase delay of the response waves. The obtained phase delay results show that as the distance between the IDT and the reflectors increases, the phase delay angle increases to 4.49 degrees, 5.39 degrees, and 5.78 degrees, respectively.


Bone marrow cells may be a useful vehicle for pretransplant delivery of alloantigen to induce tolerance in vivo. However, infusion of fully allogeneic bone marrow cells carries the risk of graft-versus-host disease. In order to reduce this risk while retaining the tolerogenic potential of the bone marrow infusion, we have investigated the ability of recipient bone marrow cells expressing a single donor MHC class I antigen to induce specific unresponsiveness in vivo. We show that 5x10(7) and 5x10(6) bone marrow cells from a transgenic strain of CBA mice, CBK, that express a single donor class I MHC gene, H2Kb (H2k + H2Kb), were able to induce long term survival of a fully allogeneic C57BL/10 (H2b) cardiac allograft in 80% and 20% of unmanipulated CBA (H2k) recipients, respectively, when administered intravenousely on the day of transplantation. In contrast, the same doses of fully allogeneic C57BL/10 donor bone marrow were completely ineffective at prolonging graft survival. When the interval between bone marrow infusion and transplantation was increased to 14 days, CBK bone marrow at either dose (5x10(6) and 5x10(7)) induced long term survival of C57BL/10 cardiac allografts in all recipients (MST>100 days) while fully allogeneic donor bone marrow was ineffective (MST=7, 5x10(6) cells; MST=6, 5x10(7)). Only when 27 or 42 days had elapsed between bone marrow infusion and transplantation did fully allogeneic bone marrow exert a beneficial effect on graft survival. Administration of 5x10(6) C57BL/10 bone marrow cells 27 and 42 days before transplantation resulted in long term survival of C57BL/10 hearts in 67% and 75% of CBA recipients. Next, we investigated whether manipulating the periphery of the recipient with a depleting anti-Cd4(4) monoclonal antibody before bone marrow infusion would facilitate the induction of unresponsiveness. When pretreatment with bone marrow cells was combined with anti-Cd4 monoclonal antibody 28 days before transplantation, a 10-fold reduction in the number of either C57BL/10 or CBK bone marrow cells required to induce tolerance was observed. These data confirm that bone marrow is a suitable vehicle for alloantigen delivery at the time of, or before, transplantation, on its own or in combination with anti-Cd4. The use of recipient type bone marrow cells expressing one or more donor MHC genes may be more effective than fully allogeneic, donor bone marrow cells in inducing tolerance in vivo. This difference may have important clinical implications for the current trials of donor bone marrow given at the time of transplantation in order to augment chimerism and to prolong graft survival.


To the Editor.— We report a case of mycosis fungoides that cleared with carmustine treatment administered in an unconventional fashion. Report of a Case.— A 72-year-old woman was seen in our office with a four-month history of generalized involvement of the skin with erythematous, scaly infiltrated plaques on her scalp, extremities, trunk, and palms. There was no adenopathy. The lesions were pruritic and recalcitrant to topical and oral corticosteroids. A biopsy specimen obtained in October 1986 showed chronic, perivascular dermatitis with eosinophilia and epidermal spongiosis. Her antihypertensive medication was discontinued to eliminate the possibility of a drug hypersensitivity. However, she continued to have severe pruritus. There were no poikilodermatous changes to suggest parapsoriasis. Another biopsy specimen was obtained one month later to rule out mycosis fungoides. Analysis of the biopsy specimen showed an atypical lymphohistiocytic infiltrate with Pautrier's microabscesses. The patient lived in the mountainous area of Kentucky 120 miles


The brain visual cortical simple cells have strong response to notable edges with directivity and contrast of light and dark, as well as the non-classical receptive fields of the neurons in visual cortex that have inhibition function to small light-spot stimulation. Because of this property, human vision system contrast sensitivity tends to dynamic videos. This paper, based on biological visual features, constructs an energy-computing model for dynamic video behaviors analysis, and designs computing methods for strengthening selectivity to directions of edges and inhibiting energy of non-significant areas in the images. The experiment is conducted on 30,000 frames of dynamic behaviors in video and shows 90% accuracy, which proves that the proposed method is capable to simulate the function of visual cortex simple cells, i.e. the enhancement to directional selection, and the inhabitation function of non-classical receptive fields, as well as extract energy features of dynamic behaviors in video. This contributes a choice for computer image processing and improves the understanding of machine vision.


Peripartum cardiomyopathy is a serious, potentially life-threatening heart disease of uncertain aetiology in previously healthy women. We report a morbidly obese woman who presented with peripartum shortness of breath. We discuss the differential diagnosis of dyspnoea in pregnancy and highlight the complexity of care of the morbidly obese woman.