Educational progress in America is seriously threatened by the well defined tendency, which has accompanied the reaction following the war, to retrench on expenditures for public schools. It is obvious that the present efficiency of the schools cannot be maintained if teachers' salaries are reduced, and it is probable that they will have to be increased still further even in the face of decreases in the cost of living. Until 1921 increases in salaries for teachers lagged a long way behind the increased cost of Jiving. Only recently have increases in pay put the teaching profession in an economic position as favorable as that which existed before the war. From an economic standpoint, however, the teaching profession has not yet received a benefit from increases in salary. In 1922 high school teachers are working upon salaries which in dollars represent an increase of 57.2 per cent. -over what they received in 1918. In 1916 the average teacher's salary, high school and elementary grades, was $563 a year; in 1918 it was $635 a year; for later years exact figures are not yet available, but it is estimated that the average salary is still not over S900 a year. Contrasted with the present tendency to skimp on education, was the movement of distinct educational progress during the war period. Recent laws in many states increasing the school age and demanding regular attendance, notable improvement III rural education, the fixing of higher standards of ability for supervisors and administrators, and pronounced emphasis on training teachers of vocational subjects. Consolidation of rural schools is growing rapidly with the result that country children in. larger numbers than ever before are getting equal educational adrantages with city children. There are now in America 13,000 consolidated schools, and these enroll more than 750,000 children. In 1920 there were eighteen states which had no laws providing for consolidation. Now all states have such laws, and seventeen of them provide state aid to encourage consolidation. Notable advances in extending high school opportunities to children in rural districts have accompanied the consolidation movement.


An experiment was conducted to evaluate the growth of Chlorella ellipsoidea in three different media viz,. medium I (pulse bran), medium II (soil extract) and medium III (inorganic) under the natural environmental conditions. The alga, C. ellipsoidea, reached maximum cell density of 56.32 × 106 cells ml -1 in 10 days in medium I (pulse bran), maximum cell density of 102.99 × 106 cells ml -1 in 11 days in medium II (soil extract) and maximum cell density of 64.23 × 106 cells ml -1 in 12 days in medium III (inorganic medium). The ranges of water temperature, air temperature and light intensity were 22 to 32oC, 22 to 34oC and 2.11 to 4.31 (× 103) lux, respectively during the culture period. The average sunshine period was 7.65 ± 1.57 hours. Total alkalinity, free CO 2 , pH, NO 3 -N, PO 4 - P of algal culture medium I, medium II and medium III were 220, 200 and 150 mg L -1 ; 26, 9 and 19 mg L -1 ; 7.9, 7.6 and 7.5; 45, 45 and 133.33 mg L -1 ; 10.9, 15.1 and 37.06 mg L -1 , respectively. Cell densities of cultures of C. ellipsoidea under three treatments I, II and III, it can be concluded that cell densities under 3 treatments are significantly different (F=39.78) and treatment II (soil extract medium) is the best for algal (C. ellipsoidea) culture among three treatments. DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.3329/ijarit.v4i2.22636 Int. J. Agril. Res. Innov. & Tech. 4 (2): 6-10, December, 2014


Nutritional and metabolic changes in the avian pipping muscle have been discussed by previous researchers. However, there are no reports in the literature on the histology of the embryonic pipping muscle in modern broiler strains. Therefore, the current experiment was conducted to examine histological changes in the embryonic pipping muscle of a modern broiler strain between d 15 and 19 of incubation. Ross x Ross 708 broiler hatching eggs were incubated on 8 replicate tray levels of an incubator. On d 15 and 19 of incubation, 2 embryos per level were extracted and their head and neck portions were preserved. The tissues were processed and stained using standard histological techniques. Subsequently, longitudinal and transverse sections of the embryonic pipping muscles on each of those days were examined under 2x, 4x, 10x, 20x and 40x magnifications. In preparation for hatch between d 15 and 19 of incubation, muscle fiber thickness increased, suggesting protein accretion and nutrient accumulation in the individual muscle fibers. Intra-fascicular muscle fiber density decreased and the inter-fascicular spaces widened and were filled with more cellular and fluid components, suggesting the active and selective infiltration of lymph into the pipping muscle from the surrounding lymph glands. In addition, the inter-fascicular spaces were filled with more cellular debris, which may be a result of muscle cell degeneration, necrosis, or associated apoptotic changes in the actively growing pipping muscle. Results of the current experiment provide an insight into the morphological changes in the pipping muscle during embryogenesis in a modern broiler strain. These together with the other associated changes in the nutritional profiles and the proteome compositions of the pipping muscle, as previously reported from our laboratory, facilitate a more detailed and comprehensive understanding of the various orchestrated cellular, metabolic and physiological events that occur in the pipping muscle of a modern broiler strain during the later part of incubation as the embryo prepares for hatch.


This paper is concerned with the problem of asynchronous H∞ filtering for a class of discrete-time Takagi-Sugeno fuzzy affine systems against time-varying signal transmission delays and measurement quantization. The asynchrony refers to the situation that the plant state and the filter state belong to different local state space regions, and the quantization density can be adjusted to satisfy different performance requirements at different time instants. By transforming the filtering error system into an input-output form consisting of two interconnected subsystems, sufficient conditions on the existence of the desired asynchronous filter are established via the scaled small gain theorem to ensure that the closed-loop system is asymptotically stable with a prescribed H∞ performance index with the aid of a novel piecewise Lyapunov-Krasovskii functional and the S-procedure approach. Finally, a practical example of cart-pendulum with a modified model is provided to illustrate the effectiveness of the obtained theoretical results.


A two-layer shallow water equation model is used to investigate the linear stability of a coastal upwelling front. The model features a surface front parallel to a coastal boundary and bottom topography which is an arbitrary function of the cross-shelf coordinate. Global conservation statements for energy, momentum and potential vorticity are examined to help elucidate the instability mechanism. By combining these conservation statements, a general stability theorem is established which allows the a priori determination of the stability of a coastal upwelling front. The necessary conditions for instability derived for these ageostrophic flows differ from traditional quasi-geostrophic criteria. The stability theorem suggests that a coastal upwelling front may be unstable no matter what the basic state flow configuration is. ConFn-mation of the existence of these unstable waves, a description of their characteristics and a comparison of their properties to observations are presented in a companion paper.


We investigate the collective dynamics of self-propelled particles able to probe and anticipate the orientation of their neighbors. We show that a simple anticipation strategy hinders the emergence of homogeneous flocking patterns. Yet anticipation promotes two other forms of self-organization: collective spinning and swarming. In the spinning phase, all particles follow synchronous circular orbits, while in the swarming phase, the population condensates into a single compact swarm that cruises coherently without requiring any cohesive interactions. We quantitatively characterize and rationalize these phases of polar active matter and discuss potential applications to the design of swarming robots.


Cocrystal nanofibres of cobalt octaethylporphyrin and tetracyanoquinodimethane were prepared by a facile solution method and fully characterized by SEM, AFM, XRD, Raman, EDX, and UV-vis-NIR. The as-prepared cocrystal nanofibres had smooth surfaces and uniform dimension. When incorporated into prototype devices, they exhibited good photoresponse at ambient conditions. Additionally, the phototransistor characteristics with a maximum I(on)/I(off) ratio of -460 was demonstrated. The facile synthesis and good photoresponse may boost the potential applications of cocrystal-based nanostructures in future miniaturized devices.


Retinopathy of Prematurity (ROP) is a fibrovascular proliferative disorder, which affects the developing peripheral retinal vasculature of premature infants. Early detection of ROP is possible in stage 1 and stage 2 characterized by demarcation line and ridge with width which separates vascularised retina and the peripheral retina. To detect demarcation line/ ridge from neonatal retinal images is a complex task because of low contrast images. In this paper we focus on detection of ridge, the important landmark in ROP diagnosis, using Convolutional Neural Network(CNN). Our contribution is to use a CNN-based model Mask R-CNN for demarcation line/ridge detection allowing clinicians to detect ROP stage 2 better. The proposed system applies a pre-processing step of image enhancement to overcome poor image quality. In this study we use labelled neonatal images and we explore the use of CNN to localize ridge in these images. We used a dataset of 220 images of 45 babies from the KIDROP project. The system was trained on 175 retinal images with ground truth segmentation of ridge region. The system was tested on 45 images and reached detection accuracy of 0.88, showing that deep learning detection with pre-processing by image normalization allows robust detection of ROP in early stages.


Background: Following the high rate of consumption of Cola nitida (cola nut) among the male population in Nigeria, this study seeks to determine the effects of consumption of Cola nitida on serum reproductive hormones and sperm count, which are major determinants of male fertility. Materials and Methods: Thirty-two male albino wistar rats weighing 180-220 g were used for this study and were divided into 4 groups of eight animals each. Group 1 served as control, group 2 received 2 mg/kg Cola nitida extract (Test 1), group 3 received 6 mg/kg Cola nitida extract (Test 2) and group 4 received 10 mg/kg Cola nitida extract (Test 3). After 6 weeks of treatment, reproductive hormonal assay was carried out using the rat serum. Epididymal spermatozoa were collected and sperm count determined. Results: Serum concentrations of luteinizing hormone (LH) and testosterone were significantly (P < 0.05) reduced in test 2 and 3, compared with control. Sperm count was significantly lower in test group 1 (P < 0.05), 2 (P < 0.001) and 3 (P < 0.001) compared with control, with test 3 significantly (P < 0.05) lower compared with test 1. There was no significant difference in testicular and epididymis weight in the different experimental groups studied. Conclusion: Aqueous seed extract of Cola nitida rubra resulted in reduced serum reproductive hormone concentrations and sperm count in male wistar rats, and may therefore be detrimental to reproductive health, hence the need for regulation of its consumption.


A total number of 37 cattle of both sexes predominantly of while Fulani breed and some white Fulani crosses selected from two herds reared under nomadic Fulani traditional management in South Western Nigeria were used in this study. The cattle were divided into two groups (I and II) depending on the trypanocide (lsometamidium chloride (Samorin)(R) or Diminazene aceturate (Berenil)(R) administered. The antigen - trapping enzyme linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) technique was used to determine the level of trypanosomal antigen in the blood of the cattle. The presence of trypanosomes was demonstrated by light microscopy of buffy coat obtained from centrifuged blood samples some few minutes before and 5 months after treatment. The packed cell volume (PCV), serum albumin and globulin levels were determined for the pre-and post-treatment periods. The prevalence of animal trypanosomiasis in the herds surveyed was 63% - 72% Hypoalbuminaemia, hypergfobulinaemia and low PCV values (anaemia) were observed as consistent features of the disease. Five months post-treatment with Samorin and Berenil, the prevalence dropped to 0 - 11% and the serum albumin, globulin and PCV levels were restored to normal. The differences in the pre- and post-treatment values were statistically significant (P<0. 05) for all the measurements evaluated. It was discovered that Samorin and Berenil are quite effective and beneficial as trypanocidal drugs in the traditional nomadic cattle industry despite the problem of translocation inherent in this form of cattle management. Samorin appeared to be much more effective than Berenil because it tremendously suppressed re-infection for up to five months post-treatment whereas some traceable level of re-infection was recorded for the Berenil treated group. The serious problem of continuity or lad of follow up treatment precipitated by the nomadic lifestyle of the Fulani herdsmen is highlighted in this study. Keywords: Efficacy, samorin, berenil, nomadic cattle, South Western Nigeria


We propose a fast volume rendering scheme that greatly reduces ray-casting overheads by adaptive block subdivision. We first apply a uniform space subdivision for constructing the adaptively subdivided volume. Then we merge coherent uniform blocks to generate adaptive-sized blocks that are efficient for leaping space. To accomplish this, an efficient block merging algorithm based on a boundary following and scan-filling strategy is proposed. Experimental results show that our fast volume rendering scheme is superior to other schemes in constructing a data structure for fast rendering; due to its simple construction approach, construction speed is more than three times faster than a hierarchical data structure, the octree. A 25% to 70% performance gain in rendering time over the octree is also exhibited. The additional advantages of our scheme are a stable acceleration for animation and an associativity with a compression-based volume rendering.


SUMMARY 1. In an attempt to discern long-term regional patterns in phytoplankton community composition we analysed data from five deep peri-alpine lake basins that have been included in long-term monitoring programmes since the beginning of the 1970s. Local management measures have led to synchronous declines in phosphorus concentrations by more than 50% in all four lakes. Their trophic state now ranges from mesotrophic to oligotrophic. 2. No coherence in phytoplankton biomass was observed among lakes, or any significant decrease in response to phosphorus (P)-reduction (oligotrophication), except in Lakes Constance and Walen. 3. Multivariate analyses identified long-term changes in phytoplankton composition, which occurred coherently in all lakes despite the differing absolute phosphorus concentrations. 4. In all lakes, the phytoplankton species benefiting from oligotrophication included mixotrophic species and/or species indicative of oligo-mesotrophic conditions. 5. A major change in community composition occurred in all lakes at the end of the 1980s. During this period there was also a major shift in climatic conditions during winter and early spring, suggesting an impact of climatic factors. 6. Our results provide evidence that synchronous long-term changes in geographically separated phytoplankton communities may occur even when overall biomass changes are not synchronous.


The purpose of this study is to assess immediate outcome and long term results in unselected consecutive patients (pts) representing a spectrum of clinical and angiographic subgroups and stent designs. RESULTS: From first implantation in November 1989 through to October 1995, 243 pts underwent coronary stent insertion (307 stents, males n=188, females n=55, mean age 57.8 years. Palmaz-Schatz stents were implanted in 210 pts, Wiktor in 30 pts, both in 3. Bailout stenting was performed in 11 patients. Overall procedural success was 97%. Complete revascularization was achieved in 155 (64%) patients. Stenting of an infarct-related artery within 6 hours of an acute myocardial infarction was performed in 6 patients, and for unstable angina in 107. Pre-procedure 223 (92%) pts had class III/IV angina. Stenting of 11 vein grafts and 5 left main arteries was performed. Subacute stent thrombosis occurred in 13 (5%) pts while 6 (2.5%) pts died in hospital, and 8 (3%) had a Q-wave myocardial infarction. At a mean (SD) 7.3 (12.9) months follow-up 233 (96%) pts were alive, 213 (91%) had no or mild angina. Angiographic follow-up in 201 (83%) pts at 19 (30) weeks showed a 13% in stent restenosis rate. CONCLUSIONS: In an unselected, consecutive series of patients undergoing coronary stenting, mortality was low, procedural success was high and late clinical and angiographic results were satisfactory. Subacute stent thrombosis, though uncommon remains a challenge.


The pace and scope of changing technologies are constantly challenging social structures and the need for dexterous policy framework is becoming more and more indispensable. While technological evolution and market forces have driven the information and communication revolution, the European Union has played a significant role in creating an effective framework for the maintenance and development of this progress. In order to regulate the market and keep pace with the ICT (Information and Communications Technology) environment, the EU has introduced rules that ensure fair access to all EU citizens and stimulate competition for companies. The Body of European Regulators for Electronic Communications (BEREC) serves entirely this function, becoming a pan-European regulatory agency. Aside the regulatory role, EU's economic growth strategy involves a great number of policies and measures to capitalize on digital revolution. The Digital Agenda for Europe (DAE) targets not only on citizens, but businesses of Europe as well, to benefit from the technological revolution. The former and the new goals of the renewed agenda raise the bar of smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Finally, to ensure the maximization of use of information technologies, EU has supported the expansion of e-business and online public services. E-government services have facilitated interaction between government, citizens and businesses, while it simplified all facets of operations of governmental organisations. This article is looking at EU's role in digital environments, examining the three initiatives as platforms of technological evolution in Europe. The three case studies used, the BEREC, DAE and e-Government initiatives, will provide an analysis of the services with a prospective evaluation of the technological strategies involved, while the qualitative and quantitative data in each case will help us analyse the quota and draw conclusions on the functionality and effectiveness of the services. We expect to evaluate the levels of digital growth and online adaptation of the Union and/or the need for further expansion. The study is discussing EU's technological competiveness and the analysis targets the policy initiatives taken towards this direction, while it provides multipolar, but useful information for EU citizens and businesses.


The mating-type locus of Neurospora crassa regulates mating identity and entry into the sexual cycle. The mat A idiomorph encodes three genes, mat A-1, mat A-2, and mat A-3. Mutations in mat A-1 result in strains that have lost mating identity and vegetative incompatibility with mat a strains. A strain containing mutations in both mat A-2 and mat A-3 is able to mate, but forms few ascospores. In this study, we describe the isolation and characterization of a mutant deleted for mat (deltamatA), as well as mutants in either mat A-2 or mat A-3. The deltamatA strain is morphologically wild type during vegetative growth, but it is sterile and heterokaryon compatible with both mat A and mat a strains. The mat A-2 and mat A-3 mutants are also normal during vegetative growth, mate as a mat A strain, and produce abundant biparental asci in crosses with mat a, and are thus indistinguishable from a wild-type mat A strain. These data and the fact that the mat A-2 mat A-3 double mutant makes few asci with ascospores indicate that MAT A-2 and MAT A-3 are redundant and may function in the same pathway. Analysis of the expression of two genes (sdv-1 and sdv-4) in the various mat mutants suggests that the mat A polypeptides function in concert to regulate the expression of some sexual development genes.


Isolating an animal refers to the situation where the animal is physically fully demarcated from conspecifics without physical, visual, olfactory and auditory contact. Animals housed in separate cages in the same room are, although deprived of physical and visual contact, still in olfactory and auditory contact, and thus not totally isolated. During the fifties and sixties several studies claimed to show physiological and behavioural differences between individually and group housed rats and mice. The so-called 'Isolation Syndrome' characterised by changes in corticosterone levels, metabolism, growth, and behaviour was introduced, rather as a model for psychoneurosis than through any concern for animal welfare. Today, it is often stated as common knowledge in laboratory animal science textbooks that individual housing as well as isolation of rats and mice has an effect on physiology and behaviour. It is, however, unclear whether this effect actually impairs animal welfare.The aim of this paper is to analyse studies on individual housing of mice and rats to evaluate whether there is documented proof that individual housing affects welfare, and, alternatively whether it is possible to house these animals individually without negative impact on welfare, eg by providing special housing improvements.A range of studies have shown that individual housing or isolation has effects on corticosterone, the open field behaviour, barbiturate sleeping time and the metabolism of different pharmaceuticals in the animals. However, this review of 37 studies in rats and 17 studies in mice showed divergence in test results difficult to explain, as many studies lacked basal information about the study, eg information on genetic strains and housing conditions, such as bedding, enrichment and cage sizes. Furthermore, test and control groups most frequently differed in cage sizes and stocking densities, and behavioural tests differed in ways which may very well explain the differences in results. Overall, there seemed to be an effect of individual housing, although it may be small, and it seems reasonable to assume that, through making small changes in the procedures and housing environments, the effects can be minimised or even eliminated. More well-controlled and standardised studies are needed to give more specific answers to the questions this issue poses.


The analysis of x-ray pictures of tubular bones stops of the person from 42 men and 23 women in the age of 20-90 years without attributes of a vascular pathology is resulted. Measurements of the roentgenoostheometrics parameters of tubular bones stops of the person were carried out on standard parameters: length of a bone, width of a distal epiphysis, width of a proximal epiphysis, width of a diaphys, the width of the marrowy channel. It is shown, that on roentgenograms stop in researched group of people without attributes of a vascular pathology, obviously expressed and unidirectional law in change of parameters of processes of ageing for bones of the metatarsus and proximal phalanxes II and V beams, medial phalanx V of a beam and distal phalanxes of all fingers statistically significantly is defined. These processes consist in decrease with the years an index compactisation of the average phalanx V of a beam and increase with the years the width sizes of a body proximal phalanxes of II beam, the 2-nd distal epiphysis , lengths and the bases of the 5-th metatarsus bones, the change of the form distal prominence all nail phalanxes from smooth up to fungus.


This paper analyses the competitive trends of the South African citrus industry, making use of the relative trade advantage model to calculate such competitive trends over time. The data to measure competitive performance was obtained from the Food and Agricultural Organization and the International Trade Centre. Results reveal that the industry is competitive and has maintained positive figures since the early 1960s. Results also indicate that, when compared with global competitors, it is being challenged by the most powerful nations in both southern and northern hemispheres, and this indicates the need for the industry to develop meaningful strategies that can enhance the its competitive performance.


INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: The efficacy of Extracorporeal Shockwave Lithotripsy (ESWL) is influenced by the time spent delivering focused energy to the stone. Manual targeting occurs at the start of the procedure, but subsequent respiration and movement significantly reduce the time that the stone is in the crosshairs. Radiographic appearance varies between stones and may change during treatment which makes targeting difficult. These effects result in increased radiation exposure and operative duration with increased shockwave exposure to surrounding structures in addition to decreased efficacy of stone fragmentation. There is a need for improved stone targeting to improve care. We propose a computer vision algorithm to locate stones during ESWL treatment. METHODS: 2413 fluoroscopic images from n=102 subjects that underwent ESWL were manually annotated followed by secondary review for annotation agreement (CL, CF, DH). A bounding box was drawn around any stone present. The algorithm RetinaNet was trained using a random split of n=90 subjects and tested on n=12. This was repeated for 10 unique splits. The mean Average Precision (AP) and stone detection time are reported. RESULTS: Over 10 trials, the mean (+/- stdev) AP was 0.7 ± 0.1, indicating that in 1 of every 1.4 images the algorithm was able to locate the stone to within 50% of the annotation. Detection failure was attributed to small target size (<5% of image) or blurry image due to machine motion. The average (+/- stdev) detection time was 63 ± 1ms. CONCLUSIONS: An algorithm to automatically detect urinary tract stones during ESWL is presented, achieving ample precision to further develop an active targeting system. This work will be integrated into a broader artificial intelligence system for stone detection, automatic targeting and real-time in-procedure ESWL tracking for optimized outcomes. Source of Funding: none


Depression is the most important mental illness in this day and age. While its existence has been widespread since ancient times, according to historical sources, today millions of people worldwide are being afflicted with depressive disorders. In addition, it is known that depression tends to be a major cause of morbidity in the elderly, affecting their daily lives and leading them to marginalization and stigmatization. The aim of this thesis is to investigate the associations of certain occupational and demographic factors, health related variables and socio-economic level with depression, among people who are 50 years or more across Greece and Europe. Our analysis is based on data of the second wave of the interdisciplinary and longitudinal Survey of Health, Aging and Retirement in Europe (SHARE). The first chapter includes important information on the different types of depression as they emerged through the fourth edition of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM-IV), while the second chapter presents the depression disorder among the elderly. In particular, in chapter 2 are mentioned the risk factors, the symptomatology, the prevalence, the consequences, as well as the appropriate ways the older adults can deal with depression . At the same time, a concise reference is made to all those factors that contribute to the emergence of clinical depression. The third chapter separates the concepts of "work anxiety" and "professional burnout", while emphasizing the impact of the burnout syndrome on all aspects of a person's life and especially on mental health. Chapter 4 contains the descriptive analysis of the data provided through the second wave of SHARE. The analysis includes fourteen countries and its main finding is the one described above: the majority of the sample that has taken part in this research feels healthy, judging the level of its physical and mental health as satisfactory. That means that it does not suffer from a serious chronic disease, mobility restriction or mental illness which impedes its autonomy and functionality. The fifth chapter investigates whether and to what extent depression is associated with a variety of demographic, socio-economic, occupational factors and morbidity factors, noting that poor physical health, chronic illnesses, mobility constraints etc., contribute in a significant way to the onset of depression. Last but not least, chapter 6 explores the effect of all the aforementioned factors on the appearance or not of depression with the most important results being included in the seventh chapter where it appears that gender, marital status, the satisfaction or not that a person draws from his working environment, as well as his desire for early retirement are only some of the factors that affect the occurrence of this mental illness.


This paper bridges the understanding of power in the global value chain literature and the analysis of market power and barriers to entry in competition economics. It draws on competition economics to provide a better understanding of the ways in which bargaining power between firms shapes patterns of value creation and capture along value chains. It also considers the influence which competition laws have on the conduct of large and powerful firms. Through the case studies of supermarkets and petrochemicals in South Africa, the paper shows how the dominant bargaining power of lead firms owes much to the historical impact of government regulations and industrial policy, including those enforced by competition authorities. We conclude by highlighting that choices regarding the type of competition rules to be adopted have important implications for the ability of supplier firms to build capabilities and to upgrade in value chains.


To investigate the relationship between plasma neuropeptide Y (NPY) concentrations and blood pressure in haemodialysis (HD), we measured plasma immunoreactive neuropeptide Y (IR-NPY) concentrations and blood pressure before and after HD in 71 patients undergoing maintenance HD. Plasma IR-NPY concentrations were measured by radioimmunoassay after extraction with Sep-Pak C18 cartridges. We corrected the plasma IR-NPY values after HD by reference to the ratio of the plasma total protein levels before HD to the levels after HD, in order to exclude the influence of the haemoconcentration caused by HD. Plasma IR-NPY concentrations before and after HD in 71 patients undergoing maintenance HD were 413 +/- 94 pg/ml and 340 +/- 90 pg/ml (mean +/- SD), respectively. Plasma IR-NPY concentrations before HD in 28 hypertensive patients with HD (398 +/- 91 pg/ml) were not significantly different from those in 40 normotensive (427 +/- 98 pg/ml) and 3 hypotensive (372 +/- 21 pg/ml) patients with HD (P greater than 0.1). Plasma IR-NPY concentrations after HD in 9 patients whose systolic blood pressure fell more than 30 mmHg during HD (409 +/- 52 pg/ml) were significantly higher than those in the other patients (P less than 0.025). These findings suggest that the release of NPY is increased when the blood pressure falls during HD in patients undergoing maintenance HD.


A discriminant function was generated to determine the sexes of great skuas on Foula, Shetland from external measurements. The accuracy of the function was assessed and its possible future applications were discussed. Changes in the breeding ecology of great skuas on Foula were examined over a sixteen year period covering a major reduction in stocks of sandeels around Shetland. Results were discussed with particular reference to the predictions of life history theory. Ring recovery data and annual returns of colour-ringed adults to the great skua colony on Foula were used to examine possible changes in survivorship over the period of declining sandeel stocks. Data from breeding adults of known age were used to assess whether breeding performance improved with age during a period of food shortage, and to test predictions of life history theory concerning age-specific differences in reproductive effort. Several hypotheses were tested concerning individual, seasonal and year to year variation in the aggression displayed by great skuas during brood defence. Samples of feathers taken from breeding adults were used to examine whether accumulation of mercury by great skuas on Foula effected their breeding performance or success during a period of food shortage. The results were discussed in terms of possible implications for future work on the effects of pollutants upon breeding performance.


Significance of performance evaluation in an organization, for sustainable growth and development, has been recognized since long. This calls for a system that first measures and evaluates the performance, and then brings out the strengths and weaknesses of the organization for the purpose of further improvement. It has been observed that the evaluation of the financial performance alone is not sufficient for the present day organizations. The situation is not different even for financial institutions like banks. This paper attempts to describe the need for more modern performance evaluation systems for Indian banks.


This paper presents a practical emulator of a generalised fractional-order model for gene regulation process, in an analog platform. The presented emulator is based on the second-generation current conveyor (CCII) and implemented using AD844 chips. The emulator realises a proposed generalised mathematical model for gene expression. The model sums up three different single models; the constitutive gene model, the induced gene expression under the effect of activators and repressors models. The generalised model is based on fractional-order differential equations where the concentration of the mRNA and the Protein expressed are the model variables. The study of model dynamics is detailed, and the experimental results are presented to confirm the accuracy between the practical emulator and the theoretical models. With the aid of fractional-order parameters, the proposed emulator helps test and analyse the gene regulation process. The management of drug doses and forecast of the exact timing to kill cancer cells is just an example of how to benefit from this emulator without practical animal or human tests.


The pressure on the universities to take a visible place in the rankings has caused anachronistic policies and practices in evaluating the performance of universities. The value attributed to the rankings results in policies prioritizing the criteria imposed by rankings while evaluating the performance of academics, which successively causes several issues in assessing the real impact of the academic practices. Considering these criticisms and concerns about the impact assessment, this study aimed at exploring the perceptions of academics about the impact of their academic practices. Adapting the interpretive phenomenological design, the data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 20 participants from the field of education in five flagship universities of Turkey. The findings of the study revealed that, although impact assessment understanding of the academics and their institutions go parallel with covering the practices around three basic missions of the university, many activities go in between without recognition by the same impact assessment practices. Interestingly, the academics exhibited their commitment to institutional policies in impact assessment practices; however, they exhibit resentment for the same policies due to failing to recognize the localized mission of the university, threatening the deeply rooted values of the academy, fouling the academy with ethical violations, and causing further detachment between academic practices and societal needs. The concerns and criticism of the current impact assessment are likely to alter the priorities of the universities and push them to adapt an impact assessment, which is less relevant to the local needs of their societies.


Any trajectory of a diffusing particle making a transition between two end points of an interval can be divided into two segments, which we call direct-transit and looping parts. The former is the final segment of the trajectory, when the particle goes from one end point of the interval to the opposite end point, without retouching the starting point. The rest of the trajectory is the looping part. We study mean durations of the two parts in the presence of a symmetric linear cusp potential which, depending on the parameter values, forms either a barrier or a well between the end points. For the cusp barrier, we find that the mean direct-transit time decreases as the barrier height increases at a fixed interval length. This happens because the increase in the barrier height results in the increase of the magnitude of the force acting on the particle on both sides of the barrier. Interestingly, though the mean looping and direct-transit times are different in the case of the barrier and well potentials with equal height and depth, respectively, the mean first-passage times for the two cases are identical.


We demonstrate a simple method to direct the self-assembly of ZnO nanorods on flat and curved surfaces in hydrothermal synthesis by precoating the substrate with a thin film of aluminum (Al). The Al was transformed in the alkali hydrothermal environment into hydrotalcite-like zinc aluminum carbonate sheets, which provide a lattice-matched substrate for the self-assembly of ZnO nanorods. Selective growth of ZnO nanorods on the Al-patterned substrate as well as the high-density coating of carbon nanotubes by ZnO nanorods along the tangential and radial walls has been demonstrated using hydrothermal synthesis. The interfacial chemistry involved in the growth of ZnO and hydrotalcite-like zinc aluminum carbonate sheets is also discussed.


In this paper, we propose a vehicle type classification method using a semisupervised convolutional neural network from vehicle frontal-view images. In order to capture rich and discrimi- native information of vehicles, we introduce sparse Laplacian filter learning to obtain the filters of the network with large amounts of unlabeled data. Serving as the output layer of the network, the softmax classifier is trained by multitask learning with small amounts of labeled data. For a given vehicle image, the network can provide the probability of each type to which the vehicle belongs. Unlike traditional methods by using handcrafted visual features, our method is able to automatically learn good features for the classification task. The learned features are discriminative enough to work well in complex scenes. We build the challeng- ing BIT-Vehicle dataset, including 9850 high-resolution vehicle frontal-view images. Experimental results on our own dataset and a public dataset demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.


There is growing interest from research and conservation groups in the potential for using small unoccupied aerial vehicles (UAVs; <2 kg) to conduct wildlife surveys because they are affordable, easy to use, readily available and reliable. However, limitations such as short flight endurance, and in many situations, aviation regulations, have constrained the use of small UAVs in survey applications. Thus, there is a need to refine survey methods adapted to small UAVs that conform to standard operations within aviation law. We developed a novel survey approach based on a grid sampling design using two multirotor UAVs (Phantom 4 Pros) flying simultaneously, within visual line of sight, from our vessel base-station. We used this approach to assess the fine-scale distribution and abundance of dugongs (Dugong dugon) in the remote waters of the Pilbara, Western Australia during three field seasons across 2 years. We surveyed 64 non-overlapping survey cells in random order one or more times and obtained complete image coverage of each surveyed cell of our 31 km2 survey area. Our sampling design maximizes sampling effort while limiting survey time by surveying four cells, two at a time, from one location. Overall, we conducted 240 flights with up to 17 flights per day (mean = 14 flights per day) and could obtain complete coverage of up to 11.36 km2per day. A total of 149 dugongs were sighted within the 50,482 images which we manually reviewed. Spatially-explicit models of dugong density distribution (corrected for availability and perception bias) were produced using general additive models to identify areas more or less used by dugongs (range of corrected dugong densities across all field season = 0.002–1.79 dugongs per 0.04 km2). Dugong abundance estimates ranged from 47 individuals in June 2019 (CV = 0.17) to 103 individuals in May 2018 (CV = 0.36). Our method, which proved convincing in a real-word application by its feasibility, ease of implementation, and achievable surface coverage has the potential to be used in a wide range of applications from community-based local-scale surveys, to long-term repeated/intensive surveys, and impact assessments and environmental monitoring studies.


Prior research has demonstrated that in companies with low managerial ownership managers exploit the latitude available in generally accepted accounting principles to alleviate contractual constraints, presumably to ensure job preservation (annual salary) and maximize incentive compensation (annual bonus). The result is accounting information that is less informative in low managerial ownership companies compared to companies with higher levels of managerial ownership. We hypothesize that in companies with low managerial ownership, higher levels of stock ownership relative to annual salary and bonus (i.e., the ratio of the market value of managerial ownership to annual compensation) mitigate managerial incentives to exploit accounting choices. Our findings are consistent with this hypothesis and suggest that greater managerial wealth tied to the long-term performance of the company through stock ownership versus short-term performance horizons (annual salary and bonus) results in more informative accounting earnings and lower discretionary accounting accrual adjustments in low managerial ownership companies.


Therapeutic communication is communication consciously planned, aimed and focused on the patient's recovery. Therapeutic communication leads to a form of interpersonal communication. Therapeutic communication skills is the ability or midwife to help patients adapt to stress, cope with psychological disorders, and learning how to relate to others. Therapeutic communication is interpersonal relationship between the midwife with the patient, in this connection midwife and patient gain a shared learning experience in order to improve the patient's emotional experience. This research is an analytic cross sectional approach, conducted at room Midwifery and Maternity Hospital Regional General Bojonegoro from 12 until August 21, 2015. The population in this study were all birth mothers are treated in Obstetrics and Maternity totaled Sigli General Hospital 57. The method of determining the sample in this study was accidental sampling which amounted to 57 respondents. Data collection is an interview using a questionnaire containing 30 questions about communication teurapetik midwives and maternal anxiety levels. The results showed that there is a relationship between midwives teurapetik communication with maternal anxiety levels in the obstetrics and maternity Regional General Hospital Bojonegoro Year 2015 (P value = 0.004). The final conclusion is that the communication teurapetik performed by a midwife can reduce the anxiety of the mother in childbirth. There needs to be improvement of quality of care in hospitals and the increased capacity of midwives in communication and counseling more optimal, increasing labor companion and complementary facilities that can give rise to positive psychological effect, so as to give a spirit and a sense of calm for mothers.


A three-dimensional model of a dielectric-loaded rectangular Cerenkov maser with a sheet electron beam for the beam-wave interaction is proposed. Based on this model, the hybrid-mode dispersion equation is derived with the Borgnis potential function by using the field-matching method. Its approximate solution is obtained under the assumption of a dilute electron beam. By using the Ansoft high frequency structural simulator (HFSS) code, the electromagnetic field distribution in the interaction structure is given. Through numerical calculations, the effects of beam thickness, beam and dielectric-layer gap distance, beam voltage, and current density on the resonant growth rate are analysed in detail.


We found that 8 weeks after myocardial infarction (MI) female, but not male rats showed deficits in extinction of conditioned fear (P<0.05). Small hairpin RNA‐mediated knockdown of corticotropin releasing hormone receptor 1 (CRF1) around the rostral locus coeruleus (rLC) reversed deficits in fear extinction. Female and male rats subjected to MI and sham knockdown showed reduced CRF1 mRNA levels 24 hours after extinction training compared to sham MI/sham knockdown controls (P<0.01). CRF1 mRNA levels in the rLC region were directly related to the extent of freezing observed during extinction trials in rats subjected to sham knockdown (P<0.05). These findings suggest either that exposure to feared cues during extinction contributed to acute reductions in CRF1 mRNA in the rLC region, or that chronic reductions in CRF1 mRNA levels resulted from MI. Here, we determined if CRF1 mRNA levels in the rLC region were reduced after MI in male rats. Fresh frozen brains of rats exposed to coronary artery ligation (n=4) or sham surgery (n=3) 8 weeks prior to euthanasia were processed for fluorescent in situ hybridization. Brain sections containing the rLC were processed for detection of CRF1‐, vesicular glutamate transporter 2‐ (VGLUT2, a glutamatergic cell marker) and glutamate decarboxylase 2 mRNA (GAD2, a GABAergic cell marker). Assessments from the medial parabrachial nucleus to the lateral border of the posterodorsal tegmental nucleus and ventral border of Barrington's nucleus were performed. Cells were counted bilaterally and averaged within rat. No differences in CRF1 mRNA were observed between groups. A small number of CRF1 mRNA positive cells (39±6) close to the rLC did not show VGLUT2 or GAD2 mRNA label. Numbers of GAD2‐ (90±15) and VGLUT2 mRNA‐positive cells (365±30) did not differ between groups. CRF1‐ and VGLUT2 mRNA‐positive cells were found in high density in the medial parabrachial nucleus and in the lateral dorsal tegmental nucleus. CRF1‐ and GAD2 mRNA‐positive cells were found medially, near the posterodorsal tegmental nucleus. The percent of VGLUT2 mRNA‐positive cells (72±4) that co‐expressed CRF1 mRNA was greater than the percent of GAD2 mRNA‐positive cells that co‐expressed CRF1 mRNA (60±5, p<0.001). The integrated density of CRF1 mRNA fluorescence was greater in VGLUT2 mRNA‐positive cells than in GAD2 mRNA‐positive cells (P<0.05). The data indicate that CRF1 mRNA is expressed primarily by glutamatergic cells in the rLC region of the male rat and that reductions in CRF1 mRNA levels observed in the rLC region 24 hours after extinction in MI rats are likely due to stress responses during fear extinction rather than to chronic effects of MI.


The palpable observation in the sex bias of disease prevalence in the CNS has fascinated scientists for several generations. Brain sex dimorphism has been visualized by imaging and analytical tools at the tissue, cellular, and molecular levels. Recent work highlighted the specificity of such sex bias in the brain and its subregions, offering a unique lens through which disease pathogenesis can be investigated. The brain is the largest consumer of energy in the body and provides a unique metabolic environment for diverse lineages of cells. Immune cells are increasingly recognized as an integral part of brain physiology, and their function depends on metabolic homeostasis. This review focuses on metabolic sex dimorphism in brain tissue, resident, and infiltrating immune cells. In this context, we highlight the relevance of recent advances in metabolomics and RNA sequencing technologies at the single cell resolution and the development of novel computational approaches.


Laser modeling activity is described which involved addition of an option allowing N/sub 2/ as a second diatomic gas. This option is now operational and a few test cases involving N/sub 2//CO mixtures were run. Results from these initial test cases are summarized. In the laboratory, a cw double-discharge test facility was constructed and tested. Features include: water-cooled removable electrodes, O-ring construction to facilitate cleaning and design modifications, increased discharge length, and addition of a post-discharge observation section. Preliminary tests with this facility using N/sub 2/ yielded higher power loadings than obtained in the first-generation facility. Another test-section modification, recently made and as yet untested, will permit injection of secondary gases into the cathode boundary layer. The objective will be to vary and enhance the UV emission spectrum from the auxiliary discharge, thereby influencing the level of photoionization in the main discharge region. (GRA)


Langerhans cells are the antigen-presenting cells of the skin, belonging to the family of dendritic cells, which present exogenous antigens in the context of major histocompatibility complex class II (MHC-II) molecules to CD4+ T lymphocytes. Langerhans cells are potent stimulators of different T-cell responses including primary immune responses. Culturing of Langerhans cells leads to modulation of their phenotype and function, as they seem more capable of activating T cells, whereas freshly isolated Langerhans cells are specialized in the endocytosing and processing of antigen. We studied the intracellular distribution of MHC-II molecules and invariant chain (I-chain) in resident Langerhans cells using immunogold labeling of ultrathin cryosections of human epidermis and found the majority of intracellular MHC-II molecules present on membranes of rough endoplasmic reticulum and in so-called MHC-II-enriched compartments (MIIC). The MIIC appeared to be negative for the cation-independent mannose 6-phosphate receptor and positive for the lysosomal enzyme beta-hexosaminidase and acquired the endocytotic tracer, cationized horseradish peroxidase, only after 60 min of internalization. Taken together, these data show that MIIC in Langerhans cells share characteristics with lysosomes. I-chain, which is associated with MHC-II molecules in early biosynthetic compartments, was found in the rough endoplasmic reticulum and Golgi complex, but was detected only occasionally in MIIC and at the plasma membrane. MIIC with internal membrane vesicles showed some I-chain labeling, suggesting that these are newly formed MIIC in which degradation of the I-chain is not yet complete.


In this article we explore the amount of energy that can be produced from Christmas spirit. We investigated an event shown in the movie 'Elf ' where Santa Claus' sleigh needs the energy of Christmas spirit to raise it off the ground and back into the air. We found that to raise the sleigh required a total Christmas spirit of 4.51 × 10^14 J which is a significant amount. We find that each person shown in the film would need to produce 2.89 × 10^12 J, yet if this Christmas spirit was shared amongst everyone in the world they would only need to produce 71.0 kJ.


This paper explores the performance of the two types of services supported by the Differentiated services - Assured Service and Premium service. It focuses on the mechanisms used for implementation of the Expedited Forwarding Per-Hop Behavior (EF PHB) and Assured Forwarding PHB (AF PHB), analyzing them with respect to the main QoS parameters: throughput, delay and drop rate. The impact of the scheduling algorithms and also the impact Of AF (Assured Forwarding) and EF (Expedited Forwarding) on the BE (Best Effort) traffic is investigated. Simulations were carried out under different traffic conditions (different levels of burstiness, packet sizes and traffic service types) and different parameters.


Abstract A new 4.6-GHz lower hybrid (LH) current drive (CD) (LHCD) launcher has been successfully developed in the Experimental Advanced Superconducting Tokamak (EAST) to achieve long-pulse high-performance plasma. It is capable of coupling up to 6 MW of LH power into the plasma with a parallel index N// from 1.79 to 2.23. Before manufacturing the launcher, key component mock-ups were fabricated and tested to validate the radio-frequency (RF) design and the process feasibility. Test results show good agreement with the design value. So far, up to 3.5 MW of net LHCD power was injected into the plasma, and long-pulse operation capability has been demonstrated: 1.26 MW and 100.4 s, suggesting that the new launcher can effectively couple the microwave energy into plasma, to drive current and extend the high-performance plasma. In this paper, some of the RF design, construction, testing, and recent experimental results of the new launcher are presented.


OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the metal-ceramic bond strength of a selective laser melting Co-Cr alloy.

METHODS
Twelve Co-Cr metal bars were prepared according to the ISO 9693 standard with Vita porcelain fused onto the centre of each bar. Then the sample bars were divided into two groups of six each. The control group was made by traditional cast process (cast group), and the experimental group was processed by selective laser melting (SLM) technology (SLM group). Metal-ceramic bonding strength and fracture mode were assessed using three-point bending test. Fracture mode analysis was determined by scanning electronic microscope/energy dispersive spectroscopy. Student's t-test was used to analyze the data in SPSS 13.0.

RESULTS
The metal-ceramic bond strength value of the cast group was (33.45 ± 2.34) MPa, and that of the SLM group was (31.62 ± 2.34) MPa (t = 0.79, P > 0.05). A mixed fracture mode on the debonding interface of all specimens was observed, while little porcelain was reserved.

CONCLUSIONS
The metal-ceramic system processed by SLM exhibited a bonding strength that satisfies the requirement of clinical application.


Background [11C]RO-963, [11C]RO-643 and [18F]RO-948 (previously referred as [11C]RO6924963, [11C]RO6931643, and [18F]RO6958948, respectively) have been reported as promising PET tracers for tau imaging based on in vitro and preclinical PET data (1,2). Here we describe the first human evaluation of these novel radiotracers. Methods Amyloid PET positive Alzheimer's disease (AD) patients and young healthy subjects (YC) each received two different tau tracers. Dynamic 90 min scans were obtained after bolus injection of [11C]RO-963, [11C]RO-643 or [18F]RO-948. Arterial blood sampling was performed in 11 healthy controls (HC) and 11 AD. Regions were defined on MRI, and PET data were quantified by plasma reference graphical analysis (for VT) and target cerebellum ratio (SUVR60-90). SUVR images were also analyzed voxelwise. Five older healthy subjects (OC) each received two scans with [18F]RO-948 for evaluation of test-retest variability. Four AD subjects received a repeat [18F]RO-948 scan over about 1 year. Six additional HC (3M: 3F; 41-67y) each received one whole body dosimetry scan with [18F]RO-948. Results In YC, peak SUV values were observed in the temporal lobe with values of approximately 3.0 for [11C]RO-963, 1.5 for [11C]RO-643 and 3.5 for [18F]RO-948. Over all brain regions and subjects, the trend was that [18F]RO-948 had the highest peak SUV value, followed by [11C]RO-963, and then [11C]RO-643. Regional analysis of SUVR and VT for [11C]RO-643 and [18F]RO-948 clearly discriminated AD and HC groups. Compartmental modeling confirmed that [11C]RO-643 had lower brain entry than both [18F]RO-963 and [18F]RO-948, and [18F]RO-948 showed a better contrast between (predicted) areas of high vs low tau accumulation. Thus, our subsequent analysis focused on [18F]RO-948. Both voxelwise and region-based analysis of [18F]RO-948 binding in HC vs AD revealed multiple areas where AD and HC significantly differed. Of 22 high-binding regions, 13 showed significant group difference (following ANOVA, F=45, p<10-5). Voxelwise analysis also revealed a set of symmetrical clusters where AD>HC (threshold of p<0.001, cluster size k>50). Conclusions [18F]RO-948 demonstrates superior characteristics to [11C]RO-643 and [18F]RO-963 for characterization of tau pathology in AD. Regional binding data and kinetic properties of RO-948 compare favorably with existing other tau PET tracers.


The politics of succession in post-independence West Africa has left much to be desired and, by extension, has affected the quality of democracy and human security in the sub-region. This article briefly assesses succession politics in Togo, a small West African nation of approximately 5 million people, following the death of President Gnassingbe Eyadema, one of Africa's longest serving dictators. The author describes the military takeover and subsequent election that legitimized the illegal take over of power by Eyadema's son despite sustained domestic opposition from politicians and civil society, as well as sub-regional, regional and international condemnation of a Constitutional "coup d'etat" in Togo. The article concludes that the succession crisis in Togo is far from over, given the continuing manipulation of what the author calls the geo-ethnic divide in that country.


Maintaining information that documents damages that natural disasters cause to infrastructure and documenting the efforts to rebuild it, is essential for future infrastructure mitigation and reconstruction actions. To address this, we have developed the Interdisciplinary Research Network Extension (IReNE) aimed to keep record and centralize data relevant to cases in Puerto Rico. IReNE has been conceptualized following the case study methodology and it has been designed to fit and scaffold the Resilient Infrastructure and Sustainability Education – Undergraduate Program (RISE-UP), following the four stages defined by the Depth of Knowledge (DOK) model and a Project Based Learning approach. This paper presents the development of IReNE and presents case study examples of its current use for supporting the RISE-UP teaching model. IReNE was designed as an open-source platform that will be timely available to researchers, academics, and practitioners. We also expect their conceptual and applied developments to be replicated in other academic contexts, and therefore contributing on documenting, systematizing, and disseminating the impact of natural events on infrastructure.


Plug-in electric vehicles (PEVs) can serve in discharge mode as distributed energy and power resources operating as vehicle-to-grid (V2G) devices and in charge mode as loads or grid-to-vehicle devices. It has been documented that PEVs serving as V2G systems can offer possible backup for renewable power sources, can provide reactive power support, active power regulation, load balancing, peak load shaving, can reduce utility operating costs and can generate revenue. Here we show that PEVs can even improve power grid transient stability, that is, stability when the power grid is subjected to large disturbances, including bus faults, generator and branch tripping, and sudden large load changes. A control strategy that regulates the power output of a fleet of PEVs based on the speed of generator turbines is proposed and tested on the New England 10-unit 39-bus power system. By regulating the power output of the PEVs we show that (1) speed and voltage fluctuations resulting from large disturbances can be significantly reduced up to five times, and (2) the critical clearing time can be extended by 20–40%. Overall, the PEVs control strategy makes the power grid more robust.


Background: To compare the volume-controlled and pressure-controlled ventilation modes with near infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) cerebral oximetry and blood gas status in laparoscopic cholecystectomyMethods: Seventy patients (n=70), who underwent elective laparoscopic cholecystectomy operation were randomized into two groups (volume control ventilation - group V, pressure control ventilation - group P). Demographic data (age, gender, body mass index) and operative data (anesthesia, surgery, and insufflation durations) were recorded. Patients' single derivation electrocardiogram, pulse oximetry, non-invasive arterial pressure, NIRS cerebral oximetry and end-tidal CO2 parameters were recorded. Measurements were done at the start of anesthesia (T0), at the end of intubation (T1), 5 minutes after the insufflation (T2), at the time just before desufflation (T3) and 5 minutes after desufflation (T4).The patients' heart rate, systolic and diastolic arterial pressure, saturation of pulse oximetry, and NIRS values were recorded for time points. Additionally, arterial gas results and mechanical ventilation parameters were recorded as well. Results: No significant difference was found in age, sex, body mass index. Operation, anesthesia and insufflation durations were similar for the groups. In Group P, NIRS right T1-2-3 averages and NIRS left T2-3 averages were significantly higher than Group V (p=0.030, p=0.001, p=0.001, p=0.006, p=0.002 respectively). In Group P T1-T2-T4, mean peak pressures and mean plateau pressures were significantly lower than Group V (p=0.003, p=0.001, p<0.001, p=0.011, p=0.001, p<0.001 respectively).Conclusion: Mechanical ventilation that performed in pressure-control ventilation mode is resulted with better tissue oxygenation than volume-control ventilation mode. In pressure-control ventilation mode, peak pressure and plateau pressure were lower.Registration of study at ClinicalTrials.gov was made at 25/01/2021 with the NCT04723043 number.


Survival of Escherichia coli O157:H7 in apple cider containing no preservatives, 0.025% dimethyl dicarbonate (DMDC), 0.045% sodium benzoate (SB), 0.0046% sodium bisulfite (NaS; 65.5% sulfur dioxide), or a combination of NaS and SB (NaS/SB) and stored at 4, 10, and 25°C was evaluated. E. coli O157:H7 survived for up to 18 days at 4, 10, and 25°C in unpreserved apple cider. At 4 and 10°C, DMDC was most efficient at inactivating E. coll O157:H7, generally followed by NaS/SB SB, and NaS (P<0.05). E. coli O157:H7 was more resistant to preservatives at 4°C than at 25°C (P < 0.05). E. coli O157:H7 was sublethally injured in cider containing preservatives, and to a lesser extent, in unpreserved cider. Generally, injury was more pronounced in cider containing DMDC, followed by NaS/ SB, SB, and NaS (P<0.05).


Computational environments are characterized by islands of information. Data is spread throughout the computational system nodes and is controlled by several different data management systems. However, application programs require an integrated view of such data. Thus, it is necessary to build bridges to connect these information islands. Heterogeneous database systems, especially those object-oriented based have been referred to as one of the most viable solutions to the problem of system integration in heterogeneous distributed environments (HDDS). The implementation of such systems is still challenging. This work presents an experience of implementing one of such systems using the CORBA standard as the communication basis in an architecture that uses the concept of HDDS.


Background: Obesity has been recognised as a major risk factor in the pathogenesis of cardiovascular disease. The aim of this study is to determine the prevalence of central obesity [using waist–hip ratio (WHR) as an indicator] and the correlation between central obesity and blood pressure (BP) in adults seen in a Nigerian tertiary health facility. Materials and methods: The study was a cross-sectional design carried out between February and November 2015 at the General Outpatient Clinic of the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri, Nigeria. A total of 482 consenting adults aged 16–40 years formed the study population. Consecutive sampling was used in the recruitment of subjects, whereas data were collected by the use of an interviewer-administered questionnaire. Results: The mean age of the study population was 25.37 ± 5.49, whereas the mean WHR for men and women was 0.83 ± 0.04 and 0.82 ± 0.05, respectively. The prevalence of central obesity in the study population was 39.4% ( n = 190). Female respondents had a higher prevalence (59.2%) than male respondents (8.5%), and the relationship between central obesity and sex was statistically significant ( p = 0.001). Correlation analysis showed a positive correlation between WHR and BP (diastolic BP: r = 0.122, p = 0.008; systolic BP: r = 0.015, p = 0.742) in both sexes. Obese respondents were observed to be more likely to develop hypertension than the non-obese respondents. Conclusion: This study showed a correlation between central obesity and BP in adults aged 16–40 years.


Allen-Zhu, Gelashvili, Micali, and Shavit construct a sparse, sign-consistent Johnson-Lindenstrauss distribution, and prove that this distribution yields an essentially optimal dimension for the correct choice of sparsity. However, their analysis of the upper bound on the dimension and sparsity requires a complicated combinatorial graph-based argument similar to Kane and Nelson's analysis of sparse JL. We present a simple, combinatorics-free analysis of sparse, sign-consistent JL that yields the same dimension and sparsity upper bounds as the original analysis. Our analysis also yields dimension/sparsity tradeoffs, which were not previously known.
As with previous proofs in this area, our analysis is based on applying Markov's inequality to the pth moment of an error term that can be expressed as a quadratic form of Rademacher variables. Interestingly, we show that, unlike in previous work in the area, the traditionally used Hanson-Wright bound is not strong enough to yield our desired result. Indeed, although the Hanson-Wright bound is known to be optimal for gaussian degree-2 chaos, it was already shown to be suboptimal for Rademachers. Surprisingly, we are able to show a simple moment bound for quadratic forms of Rademachers that is sufficiently tight to achieve our desired result, which given the ubiquity of moment and tail bounds in theoretical computer science, is likely to be of broader interest.


We theoretically detail and explain how to control unwanted excess gain for higher order modes in cladding-pumped large-core ytterbium-doped fiber amplifiers operating on the fundamental mode by using a small inner cladding and pumping close to the emission wavelength in a so-called tandem-pump configuration. Such excess gain can otherwise limit the core size. We study this experimentally by comparing the level of amplified spontaneous emission at the edge of the core in a conventional diode-pumped and tandem-pumped large-core ytterbium-doped multimode fiber. We also discuss the potential benefits of tandem pumping in reducing fiber photodarkening.


Master files scanned at 600 ppi (24-bit Color) using Capture Perfect 3.0 on a Canon DR-9080C in TIF format. PDF derivative scanned at 300 ppi (24-bit Color) using Capture Perfect 3.0 and OmniPage Professional 15.0 for textual OCR on a Canon DR-9080C.


We employ the holographic method to study fluctuations and dissipation of an $n$-dimensional moving mirror coupled to quantum critical theories in $d$ spacetime dimensions. The bulk counterpart of the mirror with perfect reflection is a D$(n+1)$ brane in the Lifshitz geometry of $d+1$ dimensions. The motion of the mirror can be realized from the dynamics of the brane at the boundary of the bulk. The excited modes of the brane in the bulk render the mirror undergoing Brownian motion. For small displacement of the mirror, we derive the analytical results of the correlation functions and response functions. The dynamics of the mirror due to small fluctuations around the brane vacuum state in the bulk is found supraohmic so that after initial growth, the velocity fluctuations approach a saturated value at late time with a power-law behavior. On the contrary, in the Lifshitz black hole background, the mirror in thermal fluctuations shows that its relaxation dynamics becomes ohmic, and the saturation of velocity fluctuations is reached exponentially in time. Finally a comparison is made with the result of a moving mirror driven by free fields.


Postprocessing contamination of cured meats with Listeria monocytogenes has become a major concern for the meat processing industry and an important food safety issue. This study evaluated aqueous dipping solutions of organic acids (2.5 or 5% lactic or acetic acid) or salts (2.5 or 5% sodium acetate or sodium diacetate, 5 or 10% sodium lactate, 5% potassium sorbate or potassium benzoate) to control L. monocytogenes on sliced, vacuum-packaged bologna stored at 4 degrees C for up to 120 days. Organic acids and salts were applied by immersing (1 min) in each solution inoculated (10(2) to 10(3) CFU/cm2) slices of bologna before vacuum packaging. Growth of L. monocytogenes (PALCAM agar) on inoculated bologna slices without treatment exceeded 7 log CFU/cm2 (P < 0.05) at 20 days of storage. No significant (P > 0.05) increase in L. monocytogenes populations occurred on bologna slices treated with 2.5 or 5% acetic acid, 5% sodium diacetate, or 5% potassium benzoate from day 0 to 120. Products treated with 5% potassium sorbate and 5% lactic acid were stored for 50 and 90 days, respectively, before a significant (P < 0.05) increase in L. monocytogenes occurred. All other treatments permitted growth of the pathogen at earlier days of storage, with sodium lactate (5 or 10%) permitting growth within 20 to 35 days. Extent of bacterial growth on trypticase soy agar plus 0.6% yeast extract (TSAYE) was similar to that on PALCAM, indicating that the major part of total bacteria grown on TSAYE agar plates incubated at 30 degrees C was L. monocytogenes. Further studies are needed to evaluate organic acids and salts as dipping solutions at abusive temperatures of retail storage, to optimize their concentrations in terms of product sensory quality, and to evaluate their effects against various other types of microorganisms and on product shelf life. In addition, technologies for the commercial application of postprocessing antimicrobial solutions in meat plants need to be developed.


Abstract Tropical forests are very rich in biological diversity and form an important economic and ecological resource. This biodiversity is of great value for communities living in or near these forests as a ready source of subsistence and cash income, and for the world at large as a source of tropical timber and non-timber products and a repository of genetic and chemical information. However, this biological complexity is diminishing rapidly. We analyze the main human (anthropogenic) actions causing loss of tropical forest biodiversity along with the strategies of management for forest biodiversity. Not only is the biophysical component important in management for biodiversity, but the action participation and support of local people, the national government and international cooperation as a whole, arc essential for an effective and sustainable development of tropical forests. This integrated development strategy ensures that socio-economic and environmental benefits are provided for present and futur...


Growing evidence supports the use of physical training interventions to improve both physical and cognitive performances in healthy older adults. Few studies have examined the impact of aerobic exercise on Stroop task performance, a measure of executive functions. In the current 3-month aerobic training study, 50 older adults (mean age = 67.96 ± 6.25 years) were randomly assigned to either a three-month physical training group or to a control group (waiting list). Training sessions were 3 times per week for 60 minutes. All participants completed pre- and post-test measures of cognitive performance using the modified Stroop task and physical performance (Rockport one-mile test). Compared to controls, the training group showed significant improvements in physical capacity (P < 0.001) and enhanced Stroop performance, but only in the inhibition/switching condition (P < 0.03). Furthermore, the increase in aerobic capacity induced by the training regimen correlated negatively with reaction time in the inhibition/switching condition of the Stroop task at posttest (r = −0.538; P = 0.007). Importantly, the reported gains in cognitive performance were observed after only three months of physical training. Taken together, the results suggest that even short-term physical interventions can enhance older adults' executive functions.


Significant heaving has been observed over time at chromite ore processing residue (COPR) deposition sites in Maryland and New Jersey. Confined swell tests were employed in order to investigate the geochemical mechanisms that lead to the manifestation of heave in COPR. Ettringite, a known heave culprit in cement and soil-related literature, was identified in numerous samples across the sites and was therefore considered as the primary heaving mechanism in COPR. In addition, other possible mechanisms, such as brownmillerite hydration to hydrogarnets, carbonation reactions, calcium aluminum chromium oxide hydrate (CAC) formation, and change of hydration state were also investigated. The confined swell tests were conducted under wet/dry cycles. Sulfate, carbonate, and chromate solutions were introduced to the samples during wet cycles in order to validate the different heaving hypotheses associated with phase transformations. The test results showed that swell development occurred only in COPR upon 0.7 mole/l sulfate addition. Furthermore, x-ray diffraction analyses confirmed the formation of ettringite in the COPR sample following the addition of sulfate. Conversely, carbonation reactions led to no height change or even to consolidation, while the formation of hydrogarnets and CACs could not be established. It was, therefore, demonstrated that ettringite formation is a thermodynamically powerful reaction and also a viable expansion and failure mechanism in COPR.


ABSTRACT This research investigates the learning progress and bottlenecks of students during learning via an immersive virtual reality environment. At the planning stage of this action research, an immersive virtual reality learning environment – myVOR- was designed and developed to teach concepts and procedures. myVOR was developed using the Unity game engine. Depth-camera integrated Head Mounted Display was used to support the skill training of learners via intuitive gesture interaction. In the action stage, myVOR was applied to fourteen 3rd year nursing students, once a week for a month. Qualitative and quantitative data were gathered to analyse learning status and, the fluctuation among sessions concerning behaviours, attitudes, reactions. Data were collected from video recordings, myVOR logs, interviews, and an information exam. The results indicated that myVOR was sufficient to teach concepts and complex procedures. However, the learners experienced problems before adapting the used technology, and this affected their behaviours and attitudes during training. The findings of this research support the requirement for a comprehensive needs analysis before designing immersive virtual reality learning environments.


This paper proposes and compares three multi- rate receiver structures with post-fast Fourier transform (FFT) type and the pre-FFT type for orthogonal frequency division multiplexing code-division multiple access (OFDM-CDMA) communication systems. In multipath fading channel, the transmitted signal suffers from the effects of inter-chip interference (ICI) and multiple access interference (MAI). In order to solve these problems and support multimedia traffic, we propose three multi- rate methodologies- variable processing gain (VPG), variable chip rate (VCR) and multi-code systems to investigate the performance of the OFDM-CDMA communications in multipath fading environments. Simulations confirm the good performance of the proposed receiver structures.


R5 is an assessment procedure for the high temperature response of structures and R5 Volume 7 specifies the creep crack growth assessment for low alloy welds.For high temperature low alloy butt welds, the effects of the welding residual stresses on the creep crack growth for a circumferential defect has been investigated by Shi under a constant temperature of 532.7°C.In addition to the welding residual stresses, it is well known that temperatures also affect significantly creep deformation, creep rupture and accordingly creep crack growth. Hence, in this paper an investigation for the effects of temperature changes on the creep crack growth and also on component remnant lives has been carried out.In this paper, for a typical low alloy butt weld in ½Cr½Mo¼V ('½CMV') pipework with 2¼Cr weld metal under a given internal pressure and a bending welding residual stress of 60MPa, a series of creep crack growth analyses have been conducted using the R5 Volume 7 assessment procedure, assuming different operating temperatures during different operating periods. A postulated internal circumferential defect (semi-elliptical surface-breaking surface defect) of 2.3 mm deep by 15 mm long has been used.The investigation results are presented by a series of graphs which show the effects of the temperature changes on the creep crack growth and plant remnant lives for the weld studied. After a detailed discussion, conclusions can be drawn.Copyright © 2013 by ASME


This study was conducted to investigate antioxidative and physiological activities of two stage fermented Chinese Yam (TSFCY) by Monascus sp. MK2 and Lactobacillus brevis HLJ59. The extracts from TSFCY were measured to examine pigments, monacolin K contents, total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, DPPH radical scavenging activity, reducing power, ACE inhibitory activity and GABA contents. In this study, the results show that Monascussp. MK2 and Lactobacillus brevis HLJ59, with Dioscorea batatas Dence. As the substrate can produce pigments (yellow, orange and red), monacolin K contents, total polyphenol and flavonoid contents, DPPH radical scavenging activity, reducing power, ACE inhibitory activity, and GABA contents at 14.03 (yellow), 13.88 (orange), 15.71 (red), 487.9 (MK, mg/kg), 723.8 (TP, mg/kg), 326.4 (TF, mg/kg), 81.7 (DPPH, %), and 1.5 (RP, O.D), respectively. In addition, the showed ACE inhibitory activity and GABA contents was 86.9% and 977.4 mg/kg in EtOH extract, respectively.


Aims: Chronic and debilitating diseases have numerous psychiatric consequences. Renal diseases and following that dialysis and kidney transplantation, strongly affects physical and mental health of patients. The aim of this study was to comparison anxiety, stress and depression between hemodialysis and kidney transplantation patients. Methods: In a descriptive-comparative study, 147 hemodialysis and 146 kidney transplantation patients were selected by purposeful sampling method from one hospital and some private clinics of Tehran in 2009. The equipment of measuring psychological signs in the patients was "21questioned depression, anxiety and stress scale" (DASS21) standard questionnaire. Data was analyzed by using SPSS 17 software and Chi square and Man-Whitney tests. Results: 63.9% of hemodialysis patients had anxiety, 60.5% had depression and 51.7% had stress. Meanwhile, in kidney transplantation group they were 48.6, 39 and 38.4%, respectively. The mean score of anxiety and depression in hemodialysis group was significantly more than kidney transplantation group, but there was no significant difference in stress field score. Conclusion: Prevalence of anxiety, depression and stress is high in hemodialysis and kidney transplantation patients and it is higher in hemodialysis patients.


The first reference to the rigidity of frameworks in the mathematical literature occurs in a problem posed by Euler in 1776, see [8]. Consider a polyhedron P in 3-space. We view P as a ' panel-and-hinge framework' in which the faces are 2-dimensional panels and the edges are 1-dimensional hinges. The panels are free to move continuously in 3-space, subject to the constraints that the shapes of the panels and the adjacencies between pairs of panels are preserved, and that the relative motion between pairs of adjacent panels is a rotation about their common hinge. The polyhedron P is rigid if every such motion results in a polyhedron which is congruent to P . Euler's conjecture was that every polyhedron is rigid. The conjecture was verified for the case when P is convex by Cauchy [3] in 1813. Indeed Cauchy proved an even stronger result. Suppose P1 and P2 are two convex polyhedra. If there is a bijection between the faces of P1 and P2 which preserves both the shapes of faces and the adjacencies between pairs of faces, then P1 and P2 are congruent. Cauchy's strengthening of Euler's conjecture is not true for all polyhedra, however. Consider the icosahedron, P1. We can reflect one of the vertices of P1 in the plane containing it's five neighbouring vertices to obtain a non-convex polyhedron P2 with the same faces and adjacencies between faces as P1. Clearly P1 and P2 are not congruent. This example is not a counterexample to Euler's original conjecture since the reflection is not a continous motion from P1 to P2. Gluck [9] showed in 1975 that Euler's conjecture is true when P is a 'generic' polyhedron i.e. there are no algebraic dependencies between the coordinates of the vertices of P . It follows that 'almost all' polyhedra are


Using a two-phase research methodology, this study investigates the relationship between salespeople's intraorganizational network embeddedness and their sales effectiveness. Following the findings of the exploratory research, we first distinguish salespeople's intraorganizational networks on the basis of their content — work versus social networks — and their tie activation frequency. Next, we focus on three main sales tasks, opportunity-identification, solution-creation, and closing the deal, and uncover that overcoming the challenges of each sales task requires mobilizing particular intraorganizational resources. We show that work and social networks give access to different sets of resources, and we develop a contingency model that explains which networks and network ties are likely to be more instrumental for salespeople's effectiveness at each sales task. In the second phase of the research, we test the contingency model using a sociometric method. The results indicate that for effectiveness in opportunity-identification, social as opposed to work networks are most instrumental. For effectiveness in solution-creation, work rather than social networks are more critical. And for closing the deal, both work networks and social networks are important. Furthermore, salespeople who have frequently activated network ties are consistently more effective than salespeople who may have many ties but who activate them less frequently.


In 17 cases of advanced colorectal carcinoma with accessible metastatic lesions, a low dose of leucovorin (LV, 30 mg/body) + 5-fluorouracil (5-FU 500 - 750 mg/body) was administered intravenously as a bolus injection, or by injection into the hepatic artery from a reservoir. Two of the 12 patients (16.7%) who received intravenous injection, and one of the five cases who received intra-hepatic artery injection showed partial response (PR). The side effect of this treatment was mild, and the performance status of the patients was excellent. This article deals with 3 PR cases. Case 1 had a bipulmonary multiple metastasis. When LV + 5-FU was administered intravenously, a reduction rate of 87% was obtained, and the patient survived for 27 more months. Case 2 had paraaortic lymph node metastasis. When LV + 5-FU was administered intravenously, a reduction rate of 59% was obtained, but the patient died after 9 months. Case 3 had a multiple liver metastasis. LV + 5-FU was administered intravenously in the liver, and a reduction rate of 69% was achieved. The patient survived for 30 months from the administration. LV + 5-FU is an effective treatment for advanced colorectal cancer. In the future, more research should be conducted to study the amount and method of administration, and combined treatment, to increase the response rate and to extend the period of good health.


Two cases of gouty tenosynovitis were associated with carpal tunnel syndrome. Both patients had carpal tunnel release with good relief of symptoms. In one patient, gout was not suspected before operation; this patient developed wound dehiscence with tophaceous urate crystal drainage that eventually disappeared. Proper preoperative antigout therapy may have prevented this complication. Carpal tunnel syndrome associated with gout is rare. Preoperative investigations for gout may be indicated in patients with carpal tunnel syndrome.


Blue photoluminescence (PL) in hydrothermally prepared porous silicon (PS) was found to be insensitive to the composition of silicon oxide, and the peak position of the blue band changes with changing excitation wavelength. All these factors suggested that silicon oxide cannot be responsible for the blue PL. High-density quantum dots were observed in the PS layer by high-resolution electron microscopy (HREM) analysis, and were suggested to be responsible for the emission.


Abstract Objectives: Recent advances in catheter-based intervention in patients with symptomatic peripheral arterial disease (PAD) have halved mortality. Mortality of PAD patients still remains high compared to other clinical forms of atherosclerosis. Intensified patient care might increase adherence to medical management and benefit the survival of PAD patients. Methods: Two patient cohorts were compared in a longitudinal prospective follow-up study. 370 PAD patients were included in the intensified center-based vascular medicine group (VMC group) and 332 PAD patients were treated by their usual primary care physician (PCP group). Survival in both groups was compared by Kaplan–Meier and Cox-regression analyses after 5 years. Results: Survival of patients in the VMC group was 90.8% compared to 66% in the PCP group. Thus, survival was improved by 24.9% by center-based care (absolute risk CI: 19–30.7%; 38% relative risk). PCP treatment increased all-cause mortality by a hazard ratio of 3.7 (95% CI: 2.5–5.5; p < .001). Mortality in the VMC group was significantly associated with the non-modifiable risk factors age, C-reactive protein, and nephropathy in multivariable analyses. Conclusion: These data imply that multi-morbid elderly PAD patients still benefit by intensified specialist care compared to the usual primary care setting. KEY MESSAGES Center-based patient care improves survival in patients with peripheral arterial disease; mortality was reduced from 82 to 21 events per 1000 patient-years (rate ratio 0.26). Mortality was related to age (HR 1.46), CRP (HR 1.36), and nephropathy (HR 2.7). A multifactorial approach combining adequate drug prescription, accomplishment of agreed goals and repetitive training to initiate, implement, and persist treatment adaptations was applied.


Introduction Paramedics play a vital role in the healthcare system by providing professional support in situations of direct threat to patient health and life. They experience numerous difficulties during their work, which result in occupational stress. During the COVID-19 pandemic, their work has become even more demanding. The aim of the current study was to examine the role of resilience in the subjective experience of stress among paramedics during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and methods The study was carried out in two phases, in October-November 2019 (N = 75) and in May-June 2020 (N = 84), using the Sense of Stress Questionnaire (Skala Poczucia Stresu) and the Resilience Scale (Skala Pomiaru Prężności). Results Paramedics exhibited higher intrapsychic stress before the COVID-19 pandemic. Tolerance of failure and treating life as a challenge were higher during the pandemic, in contrast to optimism and the ability to mobilize in difficult situations. Paramedics who were in contact with patients with COVID-19 experienced higher stress. Perseverance and determination, openness to new experiences and sense of humor, as well as competences and tolerance of negative emotions were revealed to play a key part in mitigating subjectively experienced stress. Conclusion Paramedics' subjectively experienced stress was lower during the COVID-19 pandemic. Paramedics who were in direct contact with patients with COVID-19 experienced higher stress. They had sufficient psychological resources, in the form of resilience (perseverance and determination, openness to new experiences, sense of humor, and competences and tolerance of negative emotions), which allowed them to cope with the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic.


In this paper, Generator Maintenance Scheduling (GMS) in a vertically integrated power system is considered. The objective of the GMS problem is to find the particular time interval for maintenance of power generating units with an intention of maximizing the security of the power system. In this paper, scheduling of generating units for planned preventive maintenance is formulated as a mixed integer optimization problem by considering maximizing the average value of reliability index subject to a set of nonlinear constraints. Integer Coded Differential Evolution (ICDE) algorithm is developed to solve the GMS problem. The Lagrange Multiplier method is used to find the overall production cost for the maintenance schedule that is obtained using ICDE algorithm. To demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach, two test systems are considered and are validated by comparing results obtained with that of Integer Coded Particle Swarm Optimization. The test results reveal the capability of the proposed ICDE algorithm in finding optimal maintenance schedule for the generator maintenance scheduling problem.


ObjectiveTo assess the effects of proprotein convertase subtilisin/kexin type 9 (PCSK9) inhibitor (evolocumab) on blood lipid level, lipoprotein particles, and their subfractions with Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy in patients with acute coronary syndromes(ACS). MethodsA total of 99 consecutive patients with ACS and poor lipid control were enrolled and assigned to either the experimental group (n = 54) or the control group (n = 45). The combination therapy of PCSK9 inhibitor (Repatha®, 140mg, q2w) and moderate statin (rosuvastatin, 10 mg, qn) was administered in the experimental group, with moderate statin therapy (rosuvastatin, 10 mg, qn) alone in the control group. The therapeutic effects on blood lipid levels and lipoprotein particle subfractions were assessed with NMR spectroscopy after eight weeks of treatment, and the achievement of LDL-C treatment target in both groups was analyzed. ResultsIn the experimental group, after eight weeks of evolocumab and moderate statin combination therapy, the level of blood lipids (TC, LDL-C and its subfractions [LDL-1 to 6], VLDL-C and its subfractions [VLDL-1 to 5], IDL-C, and HDL-C), lipoprotein particles, and their subfractions (VLDL-P, IDL-P, LDL-P, and its subfractions [LDL-P1 to 6], apoB, and LP(a)) demonstrated therapeutic benefits with statistical significance (P < 0.05). Lowered level of LDL-P was attributed to the significant decrease of small LDL-P (LDL-P5+6), which was significantly more prominent than the decrease in medium LDL-P (LDL-P3+4) and large LDL-P (LDL-P1+2) (P < 0.001). According to lipid control target recommended by the latest China Cholesterol Education Program (CCEP) Expert Consensus in 2019, the percentage of patients reaching the treatment target differed significantly between the experimental group and the control group (96.3% and 13.3%, respectively, P < 0.001). ConclusionsPCSK9 inhibitor treatment for 8 weeks could significantly improve the plasma lipid profiles in ACS patients with poor lipid control, and significantly decrease the concentration of lipoprotein particles which could result in atherosclerosis.


In the Igherm inlier (western Anti-Atlas, Morocco) doleritic dyke swarms with various directions and gabbroic intrusive bodies were emplaced during Neoproterozoic times, cutting across either Eburnean micaschists and granites or Panafrican limestones and quartzites. All these rocks were deformed by the main Panafrican schistosity and covered by molassic and volcanic Upper Neoproterozoic series. The primary mineralogical assemblages (plagioclase, augite, olivine...) of the mafic rocks are nearly completely replaced by secondary assemblages (albite, actinolite, chlorite, epidote, calcite, quartz, leucoxene, magnetite, hematite...). However, three main groups have been recognized by the means of relative chronology and petrography. The group 1 is earlier, as shown by the intrusive character of the dykes of the other two groups into its gabbroic bodies. Using incompatible trace elements and rare earth elements it appears that this magmatism is truly heterogeneous and that the three groups have different magmatic affinities. The group 1 corresponds to tholeiitic dolerites and gabbros characterized by intersertal and ophitic textures and by high contents in Fe 2 O 3 (12.16 to 16.64%), TiO 2 (1.46 to 2.5%), Zr (90 to 174 ppm), Nb (7 to 13 ppm), Y (21.68 to 38.74 ppm) and V (264 to 419 ppm). The REE contents are low (Sigma REE = 49 to 137 ppm) and the REE patterns are flat [1.99 Eu/Eu (super *) <1.11). These features as the TiO 2 vs FeO (super *) /MgO and V vs Ti/1000 diagrams are characteristic of anorogenic intraplate magmas. The group 2 corresponds to calc-alkaline dolerites and gabbros showing fine-grained intersertal textures and high contents of Al 2 O 3 (14.10 to 20.64%) and low contents of Fe 2 O 3 (8.35 to 12.91%), TiO 2 (0.68 to 1.41%), Zr (66 to 106 ppm), Nb (5 to 7 ppm), Y (16.41 to 20.75 ppm) and V (144 to 264 ppm). The REE contents vary from 67 to 155 ppm and the REE patterns are fractionated (2.78<(La/Yb) N <6.62) with a strong enrichment in LREE. The slight positive Eu anomaly (0.91<Eu/Eu (super *) <1.37) is related to the wealth of plagioclases frequently observed in these rocks. The TiO 2 contents of these rocks and their low FeO (super *) /MgO ratios give them a calc-alkaline affinity similar to that of calc-alkaline orogenic basalts related to an oceanic subduction. The group 3 corresponds to alkaline dolerites characterized by fine-grained intersertal textures with high contents of TiO 2 (3.85 to 3.97%), P 2 O 5 (0.66 to 0.77%), Nb (33 to 39 ppm), Zr (262 to 287 ppm), Y (39.6 to 47.7 ppm) and REE (Sigma REE = 205 to 218 ppm). The REE patterns are fractionated (7.77<La/Yb) N <6.65) without no Eu anomaly (0.99<Eu/Eu (super *) <1.02). The Ti/V and Y/Nb ratios (65.26 to 74.95 and 1.19 to 1.22, respectively) are those of alkaline rocks found in intraplate environments. The detailed petrographical, geochemical and field studies of the Igherm inlier show that the mafic magmatism is more complex than previously described. The mafic tholeiitic and alkaline magmatism occurring in the Igherm inlier is also present in the other inliers of the Moroccan Anti-Atlas during Neoproterozoic times. On the other hand the calc-alkaline Neoproterozoic mafic magmatism is very rare elsewhere in the Anti-Atlas except in the Siroua Massif and locally in the Bas Draa and Tagragra d'Akka inliers (western Anti-Atlas). The geodynamical environment of this mafic magmatism is linked to a strong extensional tectonic regime occurring at the northern border of the West African craton during Neoproterozoic times. This regime is related to the oceanic opening described in Central Anti-Atlas and to the emplacement of the ophiolites of Bou Azzer and Siroua or occurs immediately after the oceanic opening. The chemical heterogeneities observed in the three defined groups can be related to heterogeneities of mantellic sources and/or various partial melting ratios of the sub-continental mantle. We can assume that this major fissural magmatic event, not precisely dated, is equivalent to that observed in the other Neoproterozoic provinces in Hoggar, Cameroon, north America and Brazil.