Light microscopy is an essential tool in biological research. However, the spatial resolution of light microscopy, classically limited by diffraction to a few hundred nanometers, is substantially larger than typical molecular length scales in cells. Hence many subcellular structures cannot be resolved by conventional light microscopy. We recently developed a new form of super-resolution fluorescence microscopy, stochastic optical reconstruction microscopy (STORM), that breaks the diffraction limit. STORM uses single-molecule imaging and photo-switchable fluorescent probes to temporally separate the spatially overlapping images of individual molecules. This approach allows the localization of fluorescent probes with nanometer precision and the construction of sub-diffraction-limit images. Using this method, we have achieved multicolor and three-dimensional (3-D) imaging of live cells and tissues with nanometer-scale resolution. In this talk, I will discuss the general concept, recent technological advances and biological applications of STORM. Citation Format: Xiaowei Zhuang. Super-resolution fluorescence microscopy of cells and tissues [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Special Conference on Chemical Systems Biology: Assembling and Interrogating Computational Models of the Cancer Cell by Chemical Perturbations; 2012 Jun 27-30; Boston, MA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2012;72(13 Suppl):Abstract nr IA13.


About 20 per cent of patients with carcinoma of the colon or rectum present with metastatic disease. Surgeons are frequently asked to consider resection or other operative procedures in these patients for palliation. We performed this review to determine whether patients presenting with known metastatic colorectal cancer derive benefit from surgical intervention. We performed a retrospective review of all patients with Ml carcinoma of the colon or rectum who were identified from the University of Mississippi Medical Center Cancer Registry from April 1985 through February 2003. Patients who underwent hepatic and/or pulmonary resection with curative intent were excluded from analysis, as were patients with metachronous metastases. Eighty patients with Ml colorectal cancer who did not undergo surgery with curative intent were identified, and in 74 of these, complete medical records and follow-up were available. Forty-nine of the 74 patients (66%) underwent an operation, and 25 were managed nonoperatively. Indications for surgery included bowel obstruction, active hemorrhage, severe anemia from gastrointestinal bleeding with requirement for blood transfusions, intractable pain, and perforation of the colon. Average survival was 11.2 months for operative patients versus 6.5 months for nonoperative patients (P < 0.05). Thirty-six patients who underwent resectional procedures had a postoperative hospitalization of 7.5 days and a median survival of 11.5 months. Thirteen patients who had a nonresectional procedure had an average postoperative stay of 9 days and a median survival of 4 months. Median survival in those who did not undergo an operation was 4.8 months. Although metastatic colorectal carcinoma cannot usually be cured by surgical intervention, many patients who present with metastatic disease will benefit from palliative operations with relatively short hospitalizations and reasonable survival. Those who are not candidates for resection of the primary tumor have shorter survival times. Surgery can alleviate many of the distressing symptoms in patients with metastatic colorectal carcinoma.


Malaysia is a food lover's paradise and Malaysians in general enjoy the diverse culinary heritage of its multicultural society. Although divided by belief, culture and creed, Malaysians are united in their love for the country's multicultural cuisine. Food is an integral factor in bringing Malaysians together and in allowing Malaysians to learn about each other's cultures and traditions but it can also be a source of contestation and ethnic tensions. This paper explores the multifaceted functions of food in two Malaysian literary works. The paper aims to identify the role of food in the Malaysian multicultural context at both the individual and communal level. Food references, imagery, metaphors and symbols are analysed through multicultural, transcultural lenses and the postcolonial theory of the Third Space. A novel by Adibah Amin, This End of the Rainbow set in pre-independence Malaysia, and a contemporary short story Deep Fried Devils by Shih-Li Kow, are examined to investigate the transformative roles of food in the Malaysian multicultural context. These texts demonstrate the integral role of food in eliciting nostalgia of happy childhood and family memories and in forging personal and communal friendships and inter-ethnic relationships. Both the novel and short story reveal the strong connection between food and cultural identity and show how food can bring about a sense of pride and possessiveness in individuals and cultural groups and at the same time evoke power struggles and identity conflicts in a multicultural and transcultural context. Keywords: food; identity; Malaysia, multiculturalism; transculturalism


Background: Anticoagulants are highly effective in preventing venous thromboembolism and remains the main stay of treatment. However, strict adherence to medication is essential for maximizing treatment.Objectives: the objectives of this study, were to determine the adherence rate and factors that may influence adherence to anticoagulant therapy among patients on anticoagulant at a tertiary healthcare facility in Uyo, Nigeria.Methodology: This was a cross-sectional study. Fifty-nine consented adult patients on anticoagulant therapy were recruited consecutively into the study. A structured self-administered questionnaire was used to obtain information on respondents sociodemographic characteristics, indications for anticoagulation and types of anticoagulant used. An 8-item Morisky Medication Adherence Scale (MMAS-8) was used to assess patient's adherence to anticoagulation therapy.Results: The mean age of respondents was 55.4±13.5 years. Thirty-three (55.9%) were males while 26 (44.1%) were females. The most common indication for anticoagulant use was for treatment of deep vein thrombosis (78%). The direct oral anticoagulant (DOAC) was the most frequently used anticoagulant (76.3%), and majority (44.1%) had treatment for 3 months. Overall, 49.1% of the respondents had unacceptably low level of adherence while 10% had high level adherence to anticoagulant use. The female gender and the duration of anticoagulant were significantly associated with the level of adherence.Conclusion: Adherence to anticoagulant use among respondents in this study was suboptimal. The female gender and the duration of anticoagulant were significantly associated with the level of adherence.


Experimental measurements of the particle pressure were obtained for a liquid fluidized bed and for a vertical gravity driven liquid-solid flow. The particle, or granular, pressure is defined as the extra pressure generated by the action of particles in a particulate multi-phase flow. Using a high-frequency-response pressure transducer, individual collisions of particles were collected and measured to obtain a time-averaged particle pressure. Results were obtained for a number of different particles and for two different test section diameters. Results show that the particle pressure experiences a maximum at intermediate concentrations, and that its magnitude is scaled with the particle density and the square of the terminal velocity of the particles. The particle pressure was found to be composed of two main contributions: one from pressure pulses generated by direct collisions of particles against the containing walls (direct component), and a second one from pressure pulses due to collisions between individual particles that are transmitted through the liquid (radiated component).

The direct component of the particle pressure was studied by an analysis of particle collisions submerged in a liquid. A simple pendulum experiment provides controlled impacts in which measurements are made of the particle trajectories for different particles immersed in water. The velocity of the approaching particle is measured using a high speed digital camera; the magnitude of the collision is quantified using a high frequency response pressure transducer at the colliding surface. The measurements show that most of the particle deceleration occurs at less than half a particle diameter away from the wall. The measured collision pressure appears to increase with the impact velocity. Comparisons are drawn between the measured pressures and the predictions by Hertzian theory. A simple control-volume model is proposed to account for the effects of fluid inertia and viscosity. The pressure profile is estimated, and then integrated over the surface of the particle to obtain a force. The model predicts a critical Reynolds number at which the particle reaches the wall with zero velocity. Comparisons between the proposed model and the experimental measurements show qualitative agreement.

Experiments involving binary collisions of particles were performed to investigate the radiated component of the particle pressure. This component results from the pressure front generated by the impulsive motion of a fluid resulting from a collision of particles in a liquid. When the two particles come into contact, the impulsive acceleration due to the elastic rebound produces a pressure pulse, which is transmitted through the fluid. A simple dual pendulum experiment was set up to generate controlled collisions. Measurements were obtained for a range of impact velocities, angles of incidence, and distances away from the wall for different pairs of particles. The magnitude of the impulse pressure appears to scale with the particle impact velocity and the density of the fluid. Based on the impulse pressure theory, a prediction for pressure generated due to the collision can be obtained. The model appears to agree well with the experimental measurements.

The fluctuating component of the solid fraction was studied, as one of the sources of the particle pressure. The instantaneous cross-sectional averaged solid fraction was measured using an impedance meter. The root-mean square fluctuation of the solid fraction signal was measured in a liquid fluidized bed and a vertical gravity-driven flow, for different particle sizes and densities. Two types of fluctuations were identified: low-frequency large-scale fluctuations which dominate at high concentrations, and high-frequency small-scale fluctuations which are dominant at intermediate solid fractions. The effect of each type was isolated by filtering. When the large-scale fluctuations were present, the magnitude of the rms fluctuation was found to scale with particle diameter, but when eliminated the mean fluctuation appeared to scale with the particle mass instead.


Noir City has become one of San Francisco's most popular film festivals with residents and visitors alike. Moreover, the event has been franchised and now takes place in other major US cities: Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, Seattle, Portland, Kansas, Austin and Washington D.C. This research project explores fan engagement with film noir through the festival, deploying a participant-observational approach which is primarily immersive. The investigation explores the appeal of a sub-genre which typically features characters in dark urban settings on the margins of society, distinguished by their ability to navigate the threatening underbelly of the city. We draw on recent scholarship on participatory cultures such as Paul Booth's work on games (2015), in which he argues that the construction of 'detailed worlds...strengthen and cohere these cult worlds (and) can actually make these storyworlds more real' (177, emphasis in the original). The objective has been to identify the unique package of attractions film noir and events like Noir City pose for the fan. What is it that appeals in the 'typical' noir universe? To what extent do they identify and engage with a 'typical' noir world? We speak to actual fans and participants at a number of events to get their view of film noir as, to adapt Umberto Eco's concept (1987) a 'living text' that continues to resonate far beyond the classic era.


Mr=393.26, monoclinic, P2 1/ c, a=13.8937 (14), b=9.6258 (7), c=10.9127 (7) Aring, beta=95.66 (1)deg, V=1452.3 (2) Aring 3, T=295K [the cell parameters were determined from the refinement of 39 theta values from a Guinier-Hagg X-ray powder film (Cr Kalpha radiation, lambda=2.28975 Aring, using a CoP 3 standard: a=7.70778 Aring)], Z=4, Dx=1.80 Mg m -3, final Rw( F2)=0.069 for all 4480 independent reflections collected out to sintheta/lambda=0.69 Aring -1. The crystal structure of Al(NO 3) 3.9D 2O has been studied by three-dimensional neutron diffraction data collected at 295K. The asymmetric unit contains Al(D 2O) 63+ octahedra, NO 3- ions and three D 2O molecules which are not coordinated to Al 3+ ions. All nine water molecules in the formula unit are crystallographically independent and the 19 hydrogen bonds donated have O...O distances in the range 2.650 (2)-3.054 (2) Aring. The hydrogen bonds donated by the D 2O molecules which are coordinated to Al 3+ ions are shorter than the other hydrogen bonds. A distinct correlation exists between the O-D and D...O distances.


The increased demands for foreign language learning and the dwindling number of contact hours have urged teachers to look for innovative methods of instruction such as blended learning (BL). A study was conducted at a Russian university (The National Research University Higher School of Economics) in order to explore the attitudes and perceptions of the students toward blended learning in the English language classroom. The research instruments were tests and questionnaires administered to students before and after the course. The online portion of the course was realized through the corporate learning management system (LMS). The study revealed a noticeable evolution in students' perceptions and attitudes towards using blended learning in foreign language instruction. This shift and the consequential outcomes of the study are discussed. https://doi.org/10.34105/j.kmel.2017.09.003


In 1969 Congress amended the Internal Revenue Code to create a marriage penalty. The penalty was not felt by all married couples: Only those couples in which spouses earned roughly equal amounts and who filed joint tax returns paid a penalty. Thus, the 1969 change in law had a gendered effect of discouraging some wives from earning income, but the alternative was not without its own gendered results. If gender marks the impact of the 1969 legislation, was gender what motived the change in law? It would be easy to assume that at the end of the 1960s, a socially conservative legislature reacted to a developing women's movement. From the legislative debates, sexism certainly pervaded congressional discussion of women's role in the family and the economy. However, this only tells part of the story and does so by focusing on the result that remains of interest today. Economic forces were a larger part of the story. The context of the 1969 revision shows it as part of an economic movement evolving since the end of World War II as policymakers adopted tax legislation in an attempt to improve the economy and fight the Cold War. Not only policymakers in Washington but also many women's groups shared this focus on national economics. The focus on economic issues resulted in a lack of analysis of how this change in tax policy would affect various groups of women. The development of the marriage penalty highlights the need to consider the consequences of legislation prior to its enactment. In this case, particular concerns (largely economic) drove legislation that imposed most of its cost on a segment of society that was not focused on this issue.


Natural Resources Conservation Service, STATSGO metadata reports- "This data set is a digital general soil association map developed by the National Cooperative Soil Survey. It consists of a broad based inventory of soils and nonsoil areas that occur in a repeatable pattern on the landscape and that can be cartographically shown at the scale mapped. The soil maps for STATSGO are compiled by generalizing more detailed soil survey maps. Where more detailed soil survey maps are not available, data on geology, topography, vegetation, and climate are assembled, together with Land Remote Sensing Satellite (LANDSAT) images. Soils of like areas are studied, and the probable classification and extent of the soils are determined."


Inspired by Aumann and Serrano (2008) and Foster and Hart (2009), we propose risk-neutral options' implied measures of riskiness and investigate their significance in predicting the cross section of expected returns per unit of risk. The empirical analyses indicate a negative and significant link between the forward looking options' implied measures of riskiness and future stock returns. Stocks in the lowest riskiness portfolio have economically and statistically higher risk-adjusted returns than those in the highest riskiness portfolio. These results are robust to controls for market beta, size, book-to-market, momentum, short-term reversal, and liquidity of individual stocks. Controlling for the risk-neutral measure of skewness and the widely used measures of volatility and downside risk (value-at-risk and expected shortfall) does not affect the significant predictive power of riskiness. The paper also introduces alternative measures of riskiness for the aggregate stock market and shows that aggregate riskiness successfully predicts future economic downturns.


Coupled multiproxy indicators (pollen, stable isotopes and charcoal) reconstructed from annually laminated lake sediments from Nar Gölü in Cappadocia (central Turkey) complemented by documentary and archaeological evidence provide a detailed record of environmental changes and their causes from late Antiquity (AD 300) to the present day. Stable isotope data indicate marked shifts in the variability in summer drought intensity and winter—spring rainfall, but these did not coincide in time with changes in vegetation and land use shown by pollen data. Rather, human impacts appear to have been the main driver of landscape ecological changes in Cappadocia over the last two millennia. Pollen and charcoal data indicate four principal land-use phases: (i) an early Byzantine agrarian landscape characterized by cereals and tree crops, and marking the later part of the so-called Beyşehir Occupation phase; (ii) a period of landscape abandonment and the establishment of secondary woodland from AD 670 to 950 coinciding with the Arab invasions of Anatolia and marking the transition from late Antiquity to the middle Byzantine period; (iii) the re-establishment of cereal-based agriculture and pastoralism from c. AD 950, with this cultural landscape being maintained through the Byzantine `Golden Age', the Seljuk and Ottoman Empires; and (iv) agricultural intensification during the late Ottoman era and the Turkish Republic (AD 1830 to present). Charcoal fluxes indicate that prior to the twentieth century, landscape burning was most frequent at times of diminished human impact when fuel biomass increased. Pollen and historical data show remarkably close agreement in terms of the timing of landscape change, and the former suggest that rural cultural traditions were able to survive largely intact through short-lived periods of socio-political dislocation such as the sixth century Justinian plague and the thirteenth century Mongol invasions.


Spain is one of the European countries where immigration flows during the last decade have increased most noticeably. Spanish labor market institutions and Spanish immigration policy exhibit some peculiarities which may be relevant when analyzing the impact of immigration. This paper provides a first approximation to the labor market effects of immigrants in Spain during the second half of the 1990s, the period in which immigration flows to Spain accelerated. By using alternative datasets, we estimate both the impact of legal and total immigration flows on the employment rates of native workers, with and without the implications of the occupational and geographical mobility of immigrants and native-born workers. Using different samples and estimation procedures, we have not found a significant negative effect of immigration on the employment rates of native workers. The corresponding estimated elasticity is around -0.17, when considering only legal immigrants, and is not significant when considering both legal and illegal immigrants.


In 1990, a long-term program was established in order to monitor the status of the Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) population within the National Marine Park of Alonnissos, Northern Sporades, Greece. The methodology used for monitoring the population consisted of surveying all 35 seal-shelters found within the study area. Especially during the breeding season (July December), the frequency of the surveys and the ability to exhaustively cover all shelters within a 24 hour period, provided the opportunity to estimate the date of birth (+/5 days) of each newborn pup encountered. During the study period (1990 1998), 243 different encounters with monk seal pups were recorded. From these observations, 56 different individual newborn pups were identified and monitored during the first months of their development. In 71 cases, involving 27 different pups, external morphological features and their modification over time were recorded. These features are: the existence of the umbilical cord and/or the status of the umbilicus, the condition of the fur and the condition and shape of the animal's body. Based on these features and on their variation in relation to the increasing age of the animals, the data collected were categorized into four distinct morphological/age classes: Thin-newly born / age 0-10 days old ● Spindle-wooly coat / age 10-30 days old ● Spindle-patchy coat (molting) / age 30-50 days old ● Fat-short coat (fully molted) / age 50+ days old ● The above classes may be used as a field method for age estimation of newborn pups, that could be applied in other areas of the species' range. An important element of such noninvasive methodology is that it can be applied from a distance, not requiring handling or restraining of the animals. Introduction The Mediterranean monk seal (Monachus monachus) is considered to be a critically endangered species (IUCN, 1996). Its world population consists of several hundred individuals, while in Greece, based on data from sections of the country's coastline, it has been estimated that approximately 250 animals are found. The area of N. Sporades islands, N. Aegean, Greece, holds one of the largest breeding monk seal populations. In 1992 the area was officially declared a National Marine Park. The protected area covers 2200 km2 and includes 17 islands, most of which are uninhabited. In 1990, a long-term program was established in order to monitor the status of the monk seal population in the area (HSSPMS, 1995). An important part of this program was to monitor the newborn pups in the area and especially to identify them individually, to estimate the population's annual productivity, to determine the distribution of births in time and space and to collect data on the development and behavior of monk seal pups during the first months of their life. From the data collected through this work, it became evident that a non-invasive field method for estimating the age of newborn pups could be developed. Methods The methodology used for monitoring the seal population consisted of surveys of all 35 different shelters found within the study area (Dendrinos et al, 1996) Especially during the breeding season (July December) the frequency of the surveys and the ability to exhaustively cover all monk seal shelters within an island in a very short time (1-2 hrs) provide the opportunity to estimate the date of birth of each newborn pup encountered within a 10 day range. Direct observations, the use of photographic cameras by the researchers during the surveys, and the application of pre-programmed automatic cameras, installed in several shelters within the study area, provided the data used for the identification of individual pups. The fact that all newborn pups encountered exhibited dark body coloration with a characteristic unique in shape, yellowish-white patch on the abdomen allowed the accurate identification of all pups in the study area. Results During the study period (September 1990 December 1998) 243 different encounters with monk seal pups were recorded. From the analysis of the above data 56 different individual newborn pups were identified and monitored during the first months of their development. During this study it became evident that monk seal pups exhibit a distinct change in their overall external morphology which varied in accordance with their age. The external features that were found to vary with time and which are possible to observe from a distance, are the condition of the animal's fur, the condition and shape of the animal's body and the existence of its umbilical cord and/or the status of its umbilicus. From the 243 observations, in 71 cases, involving 27 different pups, all the above morphological features were observed and recorded and thus only these cases were used in the development of the field age estimation method. Based on these morphological features and on their variation through the age of the animals, all pups observed could be classified into the following morphological categories: Stage A Thin-Newly Born. Age: 0-10 Days Old Pups in this age category were observed 27 different times. In all cases their fur appearance was characterized by having the typical dark colored lanugo fur (long wooly coat of 2cm length) but the texture of the hair is in clumps and has a wet appearance even when dry. The patch in the belly area in the animals of this age appears yellowish-orange in coloration, possibly due to the amniotic fluids. In terms of the animal's body shape, it appears skinny, in such a way that the skeletal features (skull, neck, scapula-humerus joint and the femur-tibia/fibula joint) are visible. Furthermore, in all cases part of the umbilical cord was still attached to the abdomen or the umbilicus was still not healed completely having a fresh pink coloration. Stage B Spindle-Wooly Coat. Age: 10-30 Days Old Pups in this age category were observed 15 different times. With respect to their fur, they also had the dark gray to black lanugo fur, but its appearance and texture was wooly, even and fluffy when dry. Even when wet it still had an even and uniform appearance. The patch of the animal did not change in shape but the coloration became yellowish white. The body became clearly spindle shaped, and well rounded, while the skeletal features (neck, scapula-humerus joint and the femur-tibia/fibula joint) were no longer evident. In all the cases when the abdomen of the animals was evident, the umbilical cord had dropped and the umbilicus was healed. Stage C Spindle-Patchy Coat. Age: 30-50 Days Old Pups of this age were observed on 16 different occasions. The animals observed were undergoing their fur molt. The appearance of their fur was very irregular and patchy, since parts of their body were covered by the lanugo, while others were covered by the new fur (shorter in length and lighter in coloration). Relative to their body shape, all the animals observed exhibited again the spindle shape and were well rounded and their umbilicus was completely healed. In only one of the cases observed, an animal 40-50 days old had similar to the above features but its body shape was so round and fat that it appeared as bloated, a characteristic which was commonly observed in the next age group. Stage D Fat-Short Coat. Age: 50+ Days Old Animals of age more than 50 days old were observed on 13 different occasions. In all these cases the animals had similar appearance. They had completed their molt and were covered by a new short fur, of grayish coloration, dark dorsally and distinctly lighter ventrally. Their bodies were more developed and fat, giving the impression of being bloated. It is of interest to note that in the animals of this age, the characteristic abdominal patch is less distinct and is clearly identifiable only at the lateral borders where it meets the dark dorsal coloration. In certain cases it appears that the patch has completely faded away. This overall appearance may remain as such for several months, since in certain cases where animals of 4 to 5 months in age were observed, they exhibited all the above morphological characteristics. Conclusion The above four distinct morphological categories, that appear consecutively as a monk seal newborn pup develops, form a relatively easy to use field method for estimating the age of pups. Such a method may be quite useful for researchers in cases where no additional information is available with respect to the individual history of an animal. The fact that this methodology is not invasive, since it is based on visual and photographic evidence, and does not require the handling or restraining of the animals, provides an additional advantage to its use in the field.


Ion-implantation offers numerous advantages (i.e., single-side precise control and reproducibility of the dopant, simultaneous SiO2 passivation during annealing, no phosphosilicate glass formation) for solar cell manufacturing. Canadian Solar Inc. has developed an average efficiency 19.23% blank emitter solar cell (156 mm Cz) process using a high-throughput Varian (Applied Materials) Solion ion-implant tool. In order to improve solar cell efficiency, focus is placed on the well-known advanced passivated emitter and rear cell solar cell architecture with optimized backside passivation. The approach is to combine the surface passivation provided by a thin atomic layer deposition aluminum oxide layer grown after the post implantation annealing process with a deposited capping silicon nitride layer. Laser ablation and proper aluminum paste is also used to locally remove the dielectric layers and to form local contact. Based on this development, implanted emitter and local Al-BSF with Al2O3/SiNx back passivation are integrated in solar cells, reaching an average efficiency of 19.96% and champion 20.12%.


The tuberous sclerosis complex (TSC) is caused by defects in one of two tumor suppressor genes, TSC-1 or TSC-2. The TSC-2 gene encodes tuberin, a protein involved in the pathogenesis of kidney tumors, both angiomyolipomas and renal cell carcinomas. We investigated a potential role for tuberin in regulating a key DNA repair pathway. Downregulation of tuberin in human renal epithelial cells using siRNA resulted in a marked decrease in the abundance of the 8-oxoG-DNA glycosylase (OGG1). Mouse embryonic fibroblasts deficient in tuberin (TSC2(-/-) and TSC2(+/-)) also had markedly decreased OGG1 mRNA and protein expression, as well as undetectable OGG1 activity accompanied by accumulation of 8-oxodG. Gel shift analyses and chromatin immunoprecipatation identified the transcription factor NF-YA as a regulator of OGG1 activity. The binding of NF-YA to the OGG1 promoter was significantly reduced in TSC2(-/-) compared with TSC2(+/+) cells. Introduction of TSC2 cDNA into the tuberin-deficient cells restored NF-YA and OGG1 expression. Transcriptional activity of the OGG1 promoter was also decreased in tuberin-null cells. In addition, mutation of both CAAT boxes, the sites to which NF-YA binds, completely inhibits OGG1 promoter activity. These data provide the first evidence that tuberin regulates a specific DNA repair enzyme, OGG1. This regulation may be important in the pathogenesis of kidney tumors in patients with TSC.


ABSTRACT Social capital has been identified as one of the ways in which mental health concerns may be mitigated – by ensuring that systems are in place at the micro (cognitive), meso (social interaction), and macro (institutional) levels to support individuals as they seek assistance with and recovery from mental health concerns. One area that deserves further research, however, is how social capital is created communicatively online for these purposes. This study outlines the creation of social capital through interviews with five personal bloggers, analysis of six additional personal blogs with mental health content, and analysis of 878 reader comments to blog posts. Social capital creation is found in three levels, with: (1) coping with mental illness present at the cognitive level, (2) fostering supportive community at the social interaction level, and (3) fighting against stereotypes at the institutional level.


Wilhelm Weike's journals provide a unique perspective on early European anthropological research on Baffin Island. Employed by Franz Boaz, who would later become a noted anthropologist at Columbia University, Weike was asked by his employer to keep a journal of his travels for Boaz's future use. As such, Weike's work provides a unique historical source, useful both to those interested in understanding Boaz better and as a German ''everyman'' perspective on both whaling and Inuit culture on Baffin Island. For the casual reader, it may be slow. For historians and other scholars, maybe just right. The book is split into two parts. First is the edited version of Weike's journal and letters, and second is a biography of Weike's life by Müller-Wille and Gieseking. When Weike joined Boaz's expedition, he was 23, and Boaz only 24. They would travel across the Atlantic, along the coast of Greenland and on to Baffin Island aboard the ship Germania. On Baffin Island they ventured among whalers and Inuit, continued on to the Cumberland Sound sea ice, and then by dog sled across Baffin Island and along the coast of Davis Strait before boarding a whaling ship headed for Newfoundland, and eventually home to Germany. The second part offers greater context on the life of Weike and on his travels with Boaz. This section could easily be read before diving into the actual journal accounts to aid in the reading of the primary sources. Perhaps the most compelling part of the book comes from the juxtaposition of Wieke's upbringing and training with that of Franz Boaz. Weike was a servant in Boaz's father's household; Boaz, a newly minted doctor of philosophy with training in physics, geography, and philosophy. Some of the book's most interesting sections are in fact where the editors insert excerpts from Boaz's journal alongside Weike's. In one such example, Boaz waxes on 'my' Kant (referring to a book of philosophy he was traveling with written by Immanuel Kant) and discusses how rough and deprived conditions are in the field. For Weike, it was just another day of work. As a primary source document, it is apparent that the book's editors and translator have lovingly compiled a useful document for historians. For the more casual reader, the book for the most part lacks compelling storylines that draw one's interest in. However, within the journal and letters there are interesting accounts to read. For example, Weike's descriptions of Inuit burial and grieving practices for a deceased family member are touching, well written, and provide descriptions of traditions not often read about. But one must sift through much of Weike's writing to find accounts worth waiting for. As has been noted in the introduction by Müller-Wille and Gieseking, the ''social distance,'' between Boaz and Wieke


We have been investigating a new class of antiviral compounds effective against herpes simplex virus (HSV) in vitro and in vivo. Antiviral activity results from inhibition of HSV ribonucleotide reductase (RR). The inhibitors are designed as mimics of the RR small subunit C-terminus, a region essential for RR subunit association and consequently enzymatic activity. Inhibition results from specific binding of the inhibitor to the HSV RR large subunit thereby preventing subunit association. This report details the structure--activity studies that lead to the indentification of BILD 1263, a potent inhibitor of HSV RR subunit association (IC50, 0.2 nM) that also inhibits the replication of HSV types 1 and 2 in cell culture (EC50, 3 and 4 microM) and reduces the severity of HSV-1-induced keratitis in a murine ocular model. The discovery of inhibitors with in vitro antiviral results from a combination of improving inhibitor potency in a RR binding assay and modifying inhibitor physicochemical properties. The importance and possible role of the new structural modifications introduced into this inhibitor series is discussed.


Horizontal axis tidal turbines have attracted more and more attentions nowadays, because of their convenience and low expense in construction and high efficiency in extracting tidal energy. The present study numerically investigates the flow motion and performance of a horizontal axis tidal turbine with a supporting vertical cylinder under steady current. In the numerical model, the continuous equation and incompressible Reynolds-averaged Navier-Stokes equations are solved, and the volume of fluid method is employed to track free surface motion. The RNG k-e model is adopted to calculate turbulence transport while the fractional area/volume obstacle representation method is used to describe turbine characteristics and movement. The effects of installation elevation of tidal turbine and inlet velocity on the water elevation, and current velocity, rotating speed and resultant force on turbine are discussed. Based on the comparison of the numerical results, a better understanding of flow structure around horizontal axis tidal turbine and turbine performance is achieved.


PURPOSE
To determine the efficacy and safety of hyperbaric oxygen therapy (HBO) for overt mandibular osteoradionecrosis.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
This prospective, multicenter, randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled trial was conducted at 12 university hospitals. Ambulatory adults with overt osteoradionecrosis of the mandible were assigned to receive 30 HBO exposures preoperatively at 2.4 absolute atmosphere for 90 minutes or a placebo, and 10 additional HBO dives postoperatively or a placebo. The main outcome measure was 1-year recovery rate from osteoradionecrosis. Secondary end points included time to treatment failure, time to pain relief, 1-year mortality rate, and treatment safety.

RESULTS
At the time of the second interim analysis, based on the triangular test, the study was stopped for potentially worse outcomes in the HBO arm. A total of 68 patients were enrolled and analyzed. At 1 year, six (19%) of 31 patients had recovered in the HBO arm and 12 (32%) of 37 in the placebo arm (relative risk = 0.60; 95% CI, 0.25 to 1.41; P = .23). Time to treatment failure (hazard ratio = 1.33; 95% CI, 0.68 to 2.60; P = .41) and time to pain relief (hazard ratio = 1.00; 95% CI, 0.52 to 1.89; P = .99) were similar between the two treatment arms.

CONCLUSION
Patients with overt mandibular osteoradionecrosis did not benefit from hyperbaric oxygenation.


Introduction: One of the most common sites of skin cancer is the nose, and because of its distinct three-dimensional structure, reconstruction of the nasal tip support is challenging for plastic surgeons. Methods: This article presents an alternative option for total nasal reconstruction using the bilateral frontal flap and the block bilateral auricular cartilage graft. We present an account of the use of the "sandwich technique", consisting of two frontal flaps interspersed by auricular cartilage. While the first flap gives rise to the new roof of the nasal fossa, the cartilage configures the threedimensional shape and provides support for the new nasal structure. The second flap is then responsible for the outer coverage. Results: In this case, both the minimal morbidity of the donor area and excellent perfusion of the autonomized flaps were verified, leading to a largely satisfactory result. Conclusions: Although total nasal reconstruction is an infrequent procedure in the career of a plastic surgeon, the technique described here is a viable option for these cases. ■ ABSTRACT


Granulomatosis with polyangiitis (Wegener's) (GPA) is a necrotizing granulomatous vasculitis affecting the upper and lower respiratory tract, kidneys, and other small vessels throughout multiple organ systems. Recently, classification criteria for childhood GPA have been proposed and include the addition of airway stenosis. Airway inflammation occurs more frequently in children than adults and often proves difficult to diagnose and treat. Our objectives were to 1) determine the frequency of airway involvement in a cohort of children with GPA as defined by the European League Against Rheumatism/Paediatric Rheumatology International Trials Organisation/Pediatric Rheumatology European Society (EULAR/PRINTO/PRES) criteria, 2) document the frequency of specific airway findings, and 3) review our treatment approach to children with GPA‐related airway disease.


A method for accurately evaluating the Sommerfeld integral for conductive media at low frequencies that is commonly encountered in geophysics is presented. The motivation is that when we subtract an asymptotic function to the integrand, the new integral will converge much faster than the original Sommerfeld integral, which can be computed numerically while the asymptotic function can be integrated analytically by a Laplace transform. Numerical results that quantify the performance of the proposed method are presented.


The forced vibrational tests were carried out by using small scale two-dimensional models to investigate the vibrational characteristics of the support post structure in HTTR. Experimental results have been compared with analytical ones obtained from the Lagrange's equation to verify the analytical model. Effects of the support post structure on the vibrational behavior of the core column have been estimated by the analytical results using the model connecting the support post structure with the one region core column. The following conclusions are derived:


BACKGROUND
The use of a tourniquet during total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is controversial. Pain and return to function are believed, by some, to be influenced by the use of a tourniquet. The hypothesis of this study was that use of a tourniquet would delay postoperative functional recovery and increase pain as compared with no tourniquet use.

METHODS
Two hundred patients were recruited for this prospective, double-blinded, randomized controlled trial. Patients were randomized to undergo TKA either with a tourniquet (100 patients) or without one (100 patients) and blinded to group allocation. Primary outcome measures were functional assessment testing using the Timed Up & Go (TUG) test and visual analog scale (VAS) pain scores. Secondary outcome measures included the stair-climb test, blood loss, surgical field visualization, and range of motion. Outcome measures were completed preoperatively, in the hospital, and postoperatively at a first and a second follow-up. The minimal detectable change, Student t test, Fisher exact test, and nonasymptotic chi-square analysis with an alpha of p < 0.05 were used to determine significance.

RESULTS
The no-tourniquet group had more calculated blood loss (1,148.02 mL compared with 966.64 mL; p < 0.001) and more difficulty with surgical field visualization (p < 0.0001). The tourniquet group had greater knee extension at the first follow-up (-7° compared with -9°; p = 0.044).

CONCLUSIONS
Tourniquet use during TKA significantly decreases blood loss and does not adversely affect early postoperative outcomes. Tourniquet use during routine TKA is safe and effective, and concerns about deleterious effects on function and pain may not be justified.

LEVEL OF EVIDENCE
Therapeutic Level I. See Instructions for Authors for a complete description of levels of evidence.


Background and Aims

A hybrid grapevine biparental mapping population was evaluated for resistance to grape phylloxera (Daktulosphaira vitifoliae Fitch) in the greenhouse and in the field. The family (n = 125) was derived from a cross of two University of Minnesota breeding selections from a complex pedigree with multiple Vitis species.
Methods and Results

The vines were evaluated for foliar phylloxera severity using visual rating in the field for multiple years. In the greenhouse, a replicated experimental design was used to quantify phylloxera severity using different traits including number of galls per plant, area under the disease progress curve, proportion of leaves with galls, average number of galls per leaf and visual rating. The plants used in the greenhouse experiment were also visually rated for root infestation.
Conclusions

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) mapping for the foliar resistance traits (reduced severity) routinely identified the region spanning ~10 to 30 cM on linkage group (LG) 14 to be associated with resistance, and inherited from the mother parent MN1264. The plants used in the greenhouse experiment were also visually rated for root infestation, and subsequent QTL mapping identified regions on LG 5 of the maternal map and LG 10 of the paternal map (MN1246) associated with root resistance.
Significance of the Study

The new QTLs identified in this report are potential novel sources of resistance and the first report of QTL for foliar phylloxera resistance in a hybrid grapegrowing region of North America. Molecular markers linked to resistance can be utilised in marker‐assisted breeding.


The power transfer of a dual active bridge (DAB) dc–dc converter is not linearly proportional to the phase shift between the two active bridges. When the DAB converter controller receives the power reference, the phase shift needs to be obtained by either solving a quadratic equation online or looking up from a table. The online calculation method is computationally inefficient. The lookup table method has only limited operating points. In addition, when using interpolation to find missing operating points from the table, the control accuracy will be reduced. This letter proposes a simple phase-shift modulation using a parabolic carrier. The proposed method converts the power command into phase shift by modulation. Therefore, the solving of the quadratic equation can be eliminated. The Verilog results are provided to verify the proposed parabolic carrier. A case study of DAB with sinusoidal ripple current charging concept is provided to demonstrate the advantage of the proposed method.


About 30 percent of all overhead power distribution outages are caused by failing electrical equipment. Arc and partial-arc sources predict an eventual outage. Replacing failing equipment reduces all reliability index figures. The novel sensing device discussed accurately determines the Global Positioning System (GPS) location of an arc source from moving vehicles. It can be called an outage-avoidance system.


In the present days, for the human body anatomical study and for the treatment planning medical science very much depend on the medical imaging technology and medical images. Specifically for the human brain, MRI widely prefers and using for the imaging. But by nature medical images are complex and noisy.This leads to the necessity of processes that reduces difficulties in analysis and improves quality of output.This paper discuss about an improved segmentation algorithm for infarct detection in brain MRI and have compared the performance of this method with conventional method. This Proposed algorithm offers the advantages of producing good quality segmentation and also easily visualizes the segmented region in 3 Dimensional views. Keywords-Magnetic Resonance Imaging; Image segmentation; volume visualization


Until recently, acquisition of accurate data concerning tumor anatomy lagged behind other developments in radiotherapy. With the advent of computed tomography (CT), these data can be displayed and transmitted to a treatment planning computer. CT information concerning tumor location, irradiated volume, and dosimetry were compared with results obtained by traditional methods. Of 201 consecutive patients examined, CT was found to be helpful in 36% (pelvic tumors, 48%; chest wall tumors, 2%; intrathoracic tumors, 54%; palliative treatment, 27%).


quasi-one-dimensional (1D) titania nanostructures - single-walled nanotubes formed by rolling [101] planes of TiO$_2$ (anatase phase) are modeled and their electronic properties and bond orders indices are studied using the tight-binding band theory. We show that all zigzag (n,0)- and armchair (n,n)-like nanotubes are uniformly semiconducting, and the band gap trends to vanish as the tube diameters decrease. It was established that the zigzag (n,0) nanotubes configurations are more likely to form when the diameters are larger 1 nm. The Ti-O covalent bonds were found to be the strongest interactions in TiO$_2$ tubes, whereas Ti-Ti bonds proved to be much weaker.


Use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to provide on-demand communications has been receiving growing interest, especially for use in remote and hard-to-reach areas. Also, the use of light-emitting diode -based lighting in UAVs has opened opportunities for data transmission through visible-light communications. To manage multi-user interference while avoiding complex handover procedures, we consider the use of zero forcing (ZF) pre-coding. Since the performance of ZF pre-coding depends on the correlation between channel gains of users, we propose in this letter to reduce it by means of location optimization of UAVs. More specifically, we use particle swarm optimization with the objective of maximizing the overall achievable network throughput. Furthermore, to relax the optimization requirements at UAVs, we investigate the case when the optimization is performed at a specific rate under different mobility conditions.


Information and Communication Technology (ICT) research projects engage stakeholders who contribute towards different aspects of research and innovation. One of the aspects that stakeholders contribute towards in ICT research projects is responsibility. There is a need for those engaged in ICT research projects to take into consideration the impacts of their activities on society as part of responsible research and innovation (RRI) through finding solutions to emerging societal problems and developing sustainable processes of carrying out research and innovation. In this paper, the focus is two-fold. Firstly, I focus on understanding how stakeholders are identified to contribute towards responsibility in ICT research projects and secondly, I focus on how stakeholders contribute towards responsibility in such projects. I conducted an interpretive case study in which data were collected by semi-structured interviews with 11 stakeholders from two ICT research projects. Through thematic data analysis, their perceptions and understanding of their contribution towards responsibility were conceived. From the study findings, I established that there are problems in understanding the meaning of term 'responsibility' among stakeholders which later affects the identification of roles that deal with it. Despite the ambiguity of the meaning, I found that stakeholders contribute towards responsibility in many ways although there are barriers that affect their contribution.


The central themes of this article, family reunification in general, and DNA testing in particular, came to the fore during a research project about young Somalians in Finland. Since 1996, I have been conducting ethnographic research - in schools, youth clubs, streets and cafes - with youngsters from Somalia who arrived in Finland around 1994, and who attend Finnish schools in the suburbs of Helsinki. My general interest in this longitudinal study was to learn about the experiences of coming of age in highly dispersed settings, not only in the vein of a local host country, but also culturally and transnationally. Here, growing up is seen not as a simple biological question. It is a social process in which relationships such as kinship ties are constituted, experienced, and contested. These are powerful relations for individual and social identifications. DNA-testing may both symbolically and physically violate this social process of intimate identifications and personal integrity.


An optical sensing technique is described and evaluated for sensitivity to changes in refractive index and absorbance of model sample matrices. A binary dielectric/metal transmission diffraction grating is placed in contact with a sample and utilized in reflection mode; thus, the light captured and analyzed does not pass through the sample. This particular condition creates thresholds at which a particular transmitted diffraction order is transformed from a traveling wave to an evanescent one. The positions of these thresholds depend upon the complex dielectric function of the sample, the period of the grating, and the wavelength and incident angle of light striking the grating. Experimental evidence directly supports the theoretical predictions regarding responses to both the real and imaginary portions of the refractive index:  the reflection coefficient derivative wavelength peak position shifts linearly with changes in the real part of the refractive index, and the derivative peak amplitudes exhibit a square-root dependence on absorbance. Refractive index sensitivity to a series of ethanol/water solutions is demonstrated with detectable changes in index as small as 2 × 10(-)(6). Absorbance sensitivity is shown via the differentiation of methylene blue samples having equivalent 1 cm path length absorbances between 0.459 and 244 AU. In a single reflection measurement, GLRS offers a large dynamic range for absorbance detection, allows simultaneous determination of bulk refractive index in optically dense media, and provides a platform for performing continuous process analysis.


Introduction: Cognitive deficits impact the ability to perform instrumental activities of daily living (IADL) in patients diagnosed with Parkinson's disease (PD). Improved IADL measurement plays an important role in the assessment of functional independence and new cognition-enhancing treatments in PD. The purpose of this study was to translate and investigate the face and content validity of Penn Parkinson's Daily Activities Questionnaire-15 in Persian. Materials and Methods: This was a methodological study where the forward-backward method was used for the translation process. Face validity by 15 knowledgeable informants (KI) of PD participants and content validity by 15 occupational therapists were evaluated. Face validity was measured using quantitative and qualitative approaches, and quantitative content validity was determined by calculating Content Validity Ratio (CVR) and Content Validity Index (CVI). Results: Face validity was high (2/92-5), and all items were reported to be acceptable and understandable by KI, except for one question that needed to be explained to them with an example. Final corrections were done. Also, CVR (0.73-1) and CVI (0.86-1) were found to be within the acceptable range. Discussion: The Persian version of PDAQ-15 shows strong psychometric properties and also appears suitable for use as a clinical and research tool to evaluate daily cognitive functioning in PD patients. Key words: Parkinson's disease, instrumental activities of daily living, cognition, face validity, content validity


Recent social media fundraising success stories like the No Make-up Selfie and Ice Bucket Challenge campaigns, which raised millions of pounds for charities in just days, have been hailed as a new method of fundraising in a new, networked society. They also, at a first glance, appear to support claims by various scholars that social capital is on the rise because of the pervasiveness of online social networking sites (SNSs). However, SNS fundraising is still at its infancy and few professionals in the sector understand why and how it works, while guidance from academic research studies has hitherto been scarce.

Inspired by a twin interest in the dynamics of communication on social networking sites and philanthropy, this study employs a multi-disciplinary approach in analysing how good will is accumulated and mobilised in support of a charitable cause in an SNS environment – an area that has been hugely neglected in computer-mediated communication (CMC) research. Drawing on social capital theory, and the concepts of mass interpersonal persuasion and online collective action, it generates a refined framework that aims to produce a rich and insightful analysis of a type of communication that is largely unexplored.

A case study approach is used to collect both qualitative and quantitative data, in order to examine the dynamics of charitable asking in an SNS environment and provide a precise theoretical explanation of the ways in which social capital, as redefined by this thesis, is manifest in this context. By examining what works and why in SNS fundraising, this study is also designed to produce results that can help charities mobilise their online communities more effectively in fundraising, making a practical, as well as a theoretical contribution to knowledge.

Finally, Reinventing the Rattling Tin lays claim to a few methodological innovations. It is the first UK study, for example, to use web content analysis to code the content of charity Facebook pages, and the first to devise and use a 'shareability' metric to measure the success of fundraising posts. It also uses a novel technique of recruiting participants for the online survey, treating online social networking as a methodological tool, as well as a research topic.

This thesis finds that social capital does accrue to charities as institutional actors via their investment in SNS-mediated relationships with supporters. It presents evidence that charities invest in social capital by fostering trust, obligations, identification and social interaction, thus strengthening relationships with supporters; and mobilise social capital mainly by tapping into social influence dynamics and by reducing the cost of taking action. The most common outcome of this investment process is public endorsement of charities' fundraising posts via sharing, and this outcome can be converted to economic capital using easy giving mechanisms like mobile text to donate codes. The four-stage process of investment-mobilisation-outcome realisation-conversion is proposed as a revised social capital framework for the study of SNS-mediated communication.


Magnetization AC losses in striated YBCO conductors in a perpendicular applied AC magnetic field were investigated with special regard to the coupling current AC loss (CCAC). The AC loss of YBCO samples of different length L was measured by using rectangular-shaped pick-up coils. The AC losses distribution along the length of the tapes was investigated by using short pick-up coils. It was found that CCAC loss per unit length does not depend on the position of the pick-up coil (with respect to the sample centre) and its length. The CCAC loss per unit length scales with the square of the sample length L2 up to the maximal value of longitudinal coupling current of about 0.1•Ic (Ic – critical current).


This study was carried out to investigate the effects of the addition of red wine on the quality characteristics and free amino acid content of seasoned pork meat. Seasoned pork meat was prepared using three variation: pork meat containing 25% water (T0), pork meat containing a combination of 20% water and 5% red wine (T1), pork meat containing a combination of 15% water and 10% red wine (T2), and pork meat containing a combination of 10% water and 15% red wine (T3). There were no significant differences in moisture, crude protein, crude fat, crude ash, a * value, rheological properties, pH, VBN content, saturated fatty acid or unsaturated fatty acid among T0, T1, T2 and T3. The L * and b * value of seasoned pork meat was higher in T2 and T3 than in T0 and T1 (p<0.05). The TBARS value was highest in T0 (p<0.05). The free amino acid content was higher in T2 and T3 than in T0 (p<0.05).


We study the properties of the median rule for the collective choice of resource allocation under a budget constraint: Each individual submits a proposal and the feasible allocations are ranked according to the sum of their distances in the l1-metric to the individual proposals. One of the allocations with minimal aggregate distance is chosen. This rule is shown to be remarkably robust against strategic manipulation. In particular, it is strategy-proof if all individuals have 'metrically single-peaked' preferences. The theoretical analysis of the median rule is complemented by simulation studies.


Introduction. The main objective of the professional standard, systematizing the work function of a teacher, is to describe not personal qualities of teachers but the process and outcome of their activities. The logic of the development of the professional standard involves the analysis of teaching activities and evaluation of its results, which should possess the properties of measurability and diagnosability. The aim of the present publication is to identify praxiological foundations of the professional standard of the teacher via a comparative analysis of the requirements and fundamental concepts of praxeology – a General theory of successful activities developed by domestic and foreign authors and reflected in monographic and dissertation researches. Methodology and methods of research. Methodological basis of research is the ideas of system, activity and praxiological approaches. Results. The authors prove that pedagogical praxeology as the science and practice of effective organization of pedagogical activity is a new mechanism to describe the characteristics of pedagogical activity and formation of complex of professional portrait of the teacher. Pedagogical praxeology as the mechanism: establishes the framework of competences of the teacher; defines the requirements for structured content, conditions and quality of work of the teacher, their qualifications and competences in the field of professional activity; provides the necessary compliance awareness of teacher's requirements; describes methods of assessing the development of competencies of teachers; promotes the involvement of the teacher in the task of improving the quality of education; serves as the basis for constructing a continuous trajectory of increasing level of professional training of each teacher. Scientific novelty. The content of professional standards from the standpoint of the praxiological approach is investigated; conceptual ideas of praxeology, defining role and position of praxiocentralism in the professional standard are highlighted; criteria and indicators of an estimation of labour activity of the teacher from the point of view of its efficiency and effectiveness are given. Practical significance. This study contributes to the solution of theoretical and practical problems of correlation existing Federal educational state standards (FESS) and professional standards. This is especially important due to the possibility of subsequent approval and implementation into the pedagogical practices of the next generation of FESS developed on the basis of professional standards.


The therapeutic effects of lisuride hydrogen maleate, a central dopamine agonist, were examined in 15 patients with advanced Parkinson's disease no longer satisfactorily responding to levodopa. A significant improvement (p less than 0.01) in the total Parkinson's disease disability score was obtained by the addition of lisuride to levodopa therapy. The clinical assessment in the follow-up was performed with 2 different disability scales that yielded a more precise evaluation of the efficacy of lisuride, an efficacy that, as with other dopaminergic drugs, showed a slight decrease in time after a mean of 3 months. No important adverse effects were noticed. The only limitation of the use of lisuride was the occurrence of reversible psychic disturbances. It is concluded from this study that lisuride is a valuable tool in the management of advanced Parkinson's disease that allows for a reduction of the side effects of levodopa therapy in the long-term treatment of the disease.


The importance of in situ lymphocyte proliferation for net accumulation of lung lymphocytes during pulmonary immune responses and in immunologic lung diseases remains uncertain. Accordingly, we studied the experimental pulmonary immune response of antigen-primed C57BL/6 mice to intratracheal challenge with the particulate antigen sheep red blood cells. Uptake of nucleotide analogs (bromodeoxyuridine in vivo and tritiated thymidine in vitro), expression of the cell activation antigens CD25 and CD69 by flow cytometry, and response to the antimitotic agent hydroxyurea (in vivo) were measured. Although many lung lymphocytes and CD4+ T cells were CD25+ and CD69+, indicating recent activation, all techniques demonstrated that lung lymphocytes proliferated minimally in vivo. Blockade of cell division by hydroxyurea administration for 24 h did not significantly decrease lung lymphocyte accumulation on Day 3 after challenge. Lung lymphocytes also proliferated minimally in vitro (even on macrophage removal and despite addition of exogenous interleukin [IL]-2 or IL-4). However, lung lymphocytes responded vigorously to mitogens (immobilized anti-CD3, phytohemagglutinin, or concanavalin A), excluding global unresponsiveness to restimulation. Thus, in this model of pulmonary immunity, accumulation of lung lymphocytes does not require local T-cell proliferation and presumably depends instead on recruitment.


We report a case of gastrocolic fistula following a benign gastric ulcer, which is now a truly exceptional finding, due to the widespread use of H2-receptor antagonists and proton- pump inhibitors. A review of the literature shows that this condition warrants a complete diagnostic work-up to exclude more ominous underlying diseases. Careful attention to the symptoms of peptic ulcer and particular care with patients undergoing long-term treatments with drugs potentially harmful for the stomach are recommended.


We propose a simple discrete-time host–parasitoid model to investigate the impact of external input of parasitoids upon the host–parasitoid interactions. It is proved that the input of the external parasitoids can eventually eliminate the host population if it is above a threshold and it also decreases the host population level in the unique interior equilibrium. It can simplify the host–parasitoid dynamics when the host population practices contest competition. We then consider a corresponding optimal control problem over a finite time period. We also derive an optimal control model using a chemical as a control for the hosts. Applying the forward–backward sweep method, we solve the optimal control problems numerically and compare the optimal host populations with the host populations when no control is applied. Our study concludes that applying a chemical to eliminate the hosts directly may be a more effective control strategy than using the parasitoids to indirectly suppress the hosts.


PURPOSES: This study is to investigate the consideration which relates with a disaster from route alignment process and proposed the method it will be able to evaluate a disaster danger fixed quantity. METHODS: Use the landslide disaster probabilistic map of GIS based and in about landslide occurrence of the route alignment at the time of neighboring area after evaluating a risk fixed quantity, it compared LCC expense in about each alternative route. It developed the system it will be able to analyze a LCC and a disaster risk in about the alternative route. In order to verify a risk analytical algorithm and the system which are developed it selected national road 59 lines on the demonstrative route and it analyzed a disaster risk. RESULTS: Demonstrative route not only the disaster risk to be it will be able to compare a disaster risk fixed quantity like the economical efficiency degree in compliance with LCC expense productions it compared and there being the designer will be able to decide the alternative route, it confirmed. CONCLUSIONS: Roads can be designed by considering occurs repeatedly landslides and debris flow caused by disasters in advance and expect to be able to effect that can reduce the overall cost to recover losses caused by the disaster, and temporally loss is expected.


[Shoreline Changes Analysis of West Pasaman Regency, West Sumatera] According to the Hazard Vulnerability Index from BNPB, Indonesia's National Disaster Management Authority, West Pasaman Regency is one of the area with high vulnerability index located in West Sumatra Province, where all of its coastal areas are adjacent with The Indian Ocean. Coastal erosion and extreme waves have been reported to be the most prominent hazards, beside anthropogenic factors, along West Pasaman coastal area. This research was conducted to estimate the loss of shoreline in the area, and how far it has been shifted over the years. Thus, to achieve the objective, the dynamic of shorelines from different time scales was analyzed using quantitative data (satellite images, Netherland Map of Indonesia, and Indonesia topography map), and the statistical output of DSAS (Digital Shoreline Analysis System). The results were validated by a field survey in 2011 and interviewed local people in 2015. We found the highest erosion, about 8.44 m/y, has been occurring in Sasak Ranah Pasisie District, which separate 14 Km from where the highest accretion, about 23.7 m/y, in Kinali District took place.


Introduction Perimesencephalic nonaneurysmal subarachnoid hemorrhage (PNSH) is a distinct type of subarachnoid hemorrhage with a characteristic bleeding pattern, and an excellent clinical outcome. However, the clinical course of patients presenting with a perimesencephalic nonaneurysmal bleeding pattern and intraventricular blood has not yet been investigated. Materials and Methods In this retrospective study we describe the cisternal blood distribution and the clinical course of 34 PNSH patients with (10 patients) and without (24 patients) intraventricular blood. Results/Discussion Patients without intraventricular blood were in good clinical condition on admission; the in-hospital course was uneventful except for acute hydrocephalus, which was detected in two cases and improved spontaneously in both patients. All patients resumed their previous lifestyles. In contrast, two patients with PNSH and intraventricular blood were drowsy and had focal neurologic deficits on admission. Four patients developed an acute hydrocephalus, and two of these patients needed ventricular shunting. There was evidence for delayed cerebral ischemia in one of these patients. Outcome was excellent in eight cases, and one patient was moderately and one patient was severely disabled at dismissal from the hospital. Rebleeding did not occur in all patients, and repeated four-vessel angiography did not reveal the source of bleeding in any of our patients. Conclusion Our data indicate that the presence of intraventricular blood may be a good indicator for the development of acute hydrocephalus in PNSH. Moreover, our results suggest that PNSH patients with ventricular blood may have a higher complication rate and a poorer outcome compared with PNSH patients without intraventricular blood.


E-marketplaces are trading platforms that offer e-commerce online trade between several buying and selling companies. They enable good trading possibilities by supporting different business models such as multi-supplier catalog-based e-sales and e-procurement, pinboard or exchange system as well as several types of auctions. E-marketplaces give their participants the ability on the one side to acquire new trading partners or even new markets and on the other side to simplify their procurement and sales processes for reducing costs. This sector of e-commerce is growing rapidly and is predicted to reach 37 percent of overall e-commerce, generating total revenues up to 6 trillion US dollars worldwide by the end of 2004 [ 22, 26]. The main goal of e-marketplaces in their formation phase from the end of 1995 to 1998 was to bring different trading partners together. However, the requirements on e-marketplaces already increased within this phase. Companies demand additional features for lowering costs and for automation and optimization of their business processes. According to this, the ostensible task for e-marketplaces in the second phase from 1998 to 2001 was to offer more value adding services through intensively support the value chain such as with offering services for initiation, fulfillment, and completion of trading transactions including shipment, payment and logistic services. Nevertheless, today's e-marketplaces lack of fully automated business processes and still require a significant manual effort by human users. The mobile agent technology might take e-commerce trading to the next phase. Mobile agents are intelligent, independent, and pro active electronic representatives of businesses such as buyers, suppliers, customers, or even whole companies which can relieve marketplace participants from lots of routine works. The mobile agent technology can be a suitable approach for resolving the given problems. On the one hand intelligent stationary agents add automated trading capabilities and intelligent negotiation models for example for auctions, request for quotes, and request for proposals and on the other hand mobile agents can easily offer connections to mobile devices such as personal digital assistants or mobile phones. Besides, mobile agents add even more business opportunities because they can represent a company on different marketplaces everywhere in the world at the same time without human involvement. This can lead to a new quality of saving costs while expanding business activities. The following document describes the requirements for a new approach of an e-marketplace called InterMarket, which integrates the mobile agent technology. A feasibility study, made for two existing software applications, the mobile-agent system Tracy and the e-commerce platform Enfinity, investigates the ability to combine both solutions to form the new agent-based e-marketplace. In conclusion, recommendations are made for not yet fulfilled features to reach the identified requirements. Finally, a general architecture should be the foundation for further refinement and for a possible research project.


Monitoring and predicting the displacement of concrete dams is one of the most crucial considerations for ensuring their long‐term safe operation. Most existing models are designed for dams subjected to common structural and environmental conditions, with little attention paid to atypical operational conditions, such as structural strengthening or sudden changes in the external environment. The motivation for this work is to develop a reliable prediction model for displacement behavior of concrete dams subjected to irregular upstream water‐level fluctuations. In our study, a reconstruction method for unevenly sampled time series is presented to analyze such data. Then, an improved model, factor weighted support vector regression (FWSVR), which differentiates various factors and their effects through a weighting matrix, is theoretically derived. The weights are determined by the RReliefF algorithm, and together with FWSVR form the final RReliefF‐based FWSVR (RFWSVR) model. In particular, the hyperparameters involved in the above modeling strategy are optimized by the Grey Wolf Optimizer. Eventually, the prediction robustness of the developed model was verified on the data from four representative monitoring points of a real‐world dam, where its accuracy was compared to classical dam behavior modeling methods, FWSVR models using other weighting methods, and an ensemble learning algorithm. Comparative evaluation of the performance of the different methods was conducted with the help of recognized statistical indices. The evaluation results show that the overall performance of the proposed RFWSVR model is optimal for the displacement prediction at the selected points when the dam case is subjected to irregular water‐level changes. This novel modeling approach may be generalized for modeling the evolution behavior of other civil or hydraulic structures.


The purpose of this paper is to extend the emerging empirical literature on the firm-level impact of organizational High Performance Work Systems. We refer to this relationship as the strategic impact of human resources (HR) and our results suggest that the impact of such systems on firm performance is both economically and statistically significant. The analyses validate earlier work by Huselid (1995) and extends this work with a broader measure of the HR system in a new sample of 740 publicly-held firms. Our estimates suggest that a one-standard deviation change in a firm's High Performance Work System has a per employee impact on firm market value of $38,000 $73,000. Moreover, changes in the HR system yield substantially greater benefits when the improvements occur at either the low or the high end of the distribution.


We recorded bat activity simultaneously at ground level and 30 m height using Anabat II bat detectors and Anabat ZCAIM recording units mounted on masts at seven sites of varying habitat type in eastern England. At the lower detectors 6194 passes were recorded; 90.02% of calls were from Pipistrellus; 6.91% were from Nyctalus/Eptesicus; 1.70% were Myotis/Plecotus; 0.13% were Barbastella and 1.24% could not be determined to species. At the higher detectors 484 passes were recorded from Pipistrellus (65.08%) and Nyctalus/Eptesicus (34.09%) and 0.83% were not determined to species. Total bat passes and the number of Pipistrellus passes were significantly higher on the lower detectors compared with the upper detectors. The difference between numbers of passes of Nyctalus/Eptesicus at the upper and lower detectors was not significant, despite proportionally more passes of these species being recorded at height. No extra species groups were recorded at height than were recorded at ground level except at one site where closed canopy broadleaved woodland surrounded the mast. Here, Nyctalus/Eptesicus species were recorded only at height. Overall, 28% of Nyctalus/Eptesicus passes and 5% of Pipistrellus passes were recorded exclusively at height, and not at ground level. Assessing bat activity levels from ground level detectors only can therefore be misleading, particularly when surveying high-flying species that are most likely to be at risk from wind turbine developments.


Background: Living in Nigerian environment is enough stress. In our time, many students could not cope with the stress of school environment like ours and others are still suffering from different health problems attributed to stress. Based on this, we investigated the effect of music therapy with relaxation technique on stress management among university students in southeastern Nigeria. Methods: Participants for the study were 142 university students in the Southeastern Nigeria. Perceived stress scale (PSS) was used to measure the symptoms of stress. Statistical tool used was repeated measures with analysis of variance (ANOVA) to ascertain the effectiveness of music therapy with relaxation. Among other tools used was Partial &eegr;2 to examine the effect sizes and level of changes inthemanagement of stress across groups. Results: The finding indicated that there were no baseline differences in levels of stress management between participants in the treatment and waitlist control conditions. Results revealed significant improvement in stress management for participants in the music therapy with relaxation group, whereas the waitlist control group showed no significant change in their score over the same period. Furthermore, the positive effect of music therapy with relaxation was maintained at follow-up. Conclusion: The findings of this study suggest that the efficacy of music therapy with relaxation technique for improving the students' stress management can be consistent at follow-up. Hence, music therapists, counsellors and psychotherapists should continue to investigate the beneficial effects of music therapy with relaxation on stress management among university students in every part of the world.


Background: Several studies have reported a common proline-to-alanine substitution (P12A) in the peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) gene to be invariably associated with obesity, insulin resistance, type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) and dyslipidemia. The purpose of this study was to determine whether the PPARγ gene (P12A) polymorphism contributes to susceptibility to T2DM and central obesity in Khatri Sikh community from India. Methods: We studied 1711 subjects comprising 1186 individuals from 324 families and 525 unrelated nondiabetic controls. We tested the association between T2D and P12A polymorphism using logistic regression before and after adjusting for age, gender, and other covariates. We also examined the impact of these variants on obesity, glucose homeostasis and lipid traits using multiple linear regression analysis. Results: Our findings could not confirm the association of PPARγ polymorphism with T2DM in this familybased sample. However, the comparison of unrelated controls with affected relatives (n=537) revealed a marginally significant association with this locus with T2DM (odds ratio (OR) 1.48, P=0.016). However, in the data stratified by traits related to abdominal obesity, there was a significant increase in T2DM risk in the individuals with waist circumference (>37 inches, OR 3.51, P=0.005) and waist to hip ratio (>0.95, OR 3.02, P= 0.003) in younger relatives. Conclusions: PPARγ (P12A) locus appears to have profound influence in promoting insulin sensitivity through its interaction with central obesity particularly at younger age.


Approximately 20 inherited disorders of kidney transport occurring in man have so far been defined. Most of these diseases have characteristic clinical profiles. They can be divided into four groups: 1) the amino acid transport mutations which include the cystinurias, hyperdibasicaminoaciduria, Joseph syndrome, Hartnup disease, and the methionine malabsorption syndrome: 2) the sugar transport mutations characterized by glucose (renal glucosuria), and glucose-galactose malabsorption; 3) the electrolyte and water transport disorders, among which are familial hypophosphatemic rickets, vitamin D-dependent rickets, pseudohypoparathyroidism, proximal and distal renal tubular acidosis, and nephrogenic diabetes insipidus; and 4) the "mixed" kidney transport mutations such as the "Busby", Fanconi, Lowe, Luder-Sheldon syndromes, and glucoglycinuria.


We report a case of ocular drug toxicity consistent with bilateral Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada (VKH) like disease in a patient with cutaneous melanoma treated with Dabrafenib/Trametinib therapy. A 53-year-old man with a history of metastatic cutaneous melanoma, treated with Dabrafenib/Trametinib, developed a severe acute panuveitis with granulomatous anterior uveitis and multiple serous retinal detachments. The ocular inflammatory reaction was classified as a bilateral Vogt-Koyanagi-Harada disease. Intraocular inflammation resolved after discontinuation of chemotherapeutic agents and aggressive topical and systemic corticosteroid therapy. The present case outlines the importance of recognizing VKH-like syndrome as a possible consequence of therapy with dabrafenib and trametinib.


Abstract During initial stages of hemorrhage in the rat, cardiovascular compensation leads to a tachycardia (mean ± SE, 5.2 ± 0.7%; n = 23) that helps prevent a large fall in blood pressure. This compensatory phase is followed by a decompensatory phase in which mean arterial pressure and heart rate fall. A rise in arginine vasopressin (AVP) levels has been postulated as the cause of this hemorrhage-induced bradycardia (HIB). The object of the present study was to determine whether interference with AVP release by alcohol anesthesia or neurohypophysectomy or by blockade of AVP receptors in the plasma or cerebral spinal fluid could attenuate HIB. Male Wistar rats were anesthetized with pentobarbital, surgically prepared, and bled to maintain a blood pressure of 40-50 mm Hg. After hemorrhage, heart rate decreased 15 ± 2% (n = 6) with alcohol anesthesia compared with 32 ± 3% (n = 7) with pentobarbital. After neurohypophysectomy, however, HIB remained unchanged (-15 ± 2%; n = 5) compared with sham-operated controls (-19 ± 3%; n = 6). Peripheral administration of two nonselective V1/V2 antagonists and one V2 antagonist had no effect on HIB, whereas a V1 antagonist significantly attenuated the heart rate decrease (−15 ± 4%; n = 6) compared with controls (-32 ± 3%; n = 7). None of the AVP antagonists tested at one tenth the peripheral dose had any effect on HIB when administered into the lateral ventricle of the brain, although a mixed serotonin, dopamine, and catecholamine antagonist, spiperone, potentiated the response. It was concluded that although peripheral release of AVP may be partially involved in the heart rate response to hemorrhage, central AVP release and central AVP receptors were not involved in HIB.


For pulsed corona plasma applications, it becomes important to develop pilot systems with large average power and high-energy conversion efficiency. Since the beginning of 2000, we have been working on an industrial corona plasma system with tasks of 10-30 kW in average power and higher than 90% of total energy conversion efficiency. The pulsed-power source should have the following specifications: rise time of 10-25 ns, pulsewidth of 50-150 ns, pulse repetition rate of up to 1000 pulses per second, peak voltage pulse of 70 kV, peak current of 3.5 kA, dc bias voltage of 10-35 kV, and energy per pulse of up to 30 J. Sixteen parallel wire cylinder reactors are used to match the source. Gas and reactor temperatures can be controlled individually with water flow around the outside of those cylinders. The system is designed for gaseous oxidation and electrostatic dust precipitation. The system has been used for up to 17 kW in average power. This paper reports the system in detail, discusses issues related to the matching between the source and the reactor, and presents an example of industrial demonstrations on odor abatement at 1000 m3/h. Finally, this paper also gives a general guideline for design of corona plasma systems


Kisan Mobile Advisory Service (KMAS) delivers real-time agricultural information and customized knowledge to improve farmers' decision-making ability so that they may enable to increase their production and productivity, better aligning the farm output to market demands; securing better quality and improved price recovery in a globally competitive agrarian economy. The study was conducted at Kolar district of Karnataka state. A total of 120 farmers who had registered under KMAS were selected randomly for the study. Ex-post facto research design was used for the study. Usefulness of KMAS was measured by employing the scale developed by Singh (2012) with due modifi cations. Majority of the registered farmers perceived KMAS messages as 'most useful' and 'regularly utilized' the information sent by KMAS.


In the paper we develop an approach to fault diagnosis in combinational circuits yielding a new method based on an effect-cause analysis. In our method the circuit under test N* is studied by using a description of its behaviour called the operation map. Depending on the set of tests applied, this description may allow the fault in N* to be detected before, and independently of, being located. The elimination of inputs in the operation map allows us to find the fault situations in N* (causes) which are compatible with the applied test and the obtained response (the effect). The method presented does not require a fault dictionary, fault enumeration or knowledge of the values expected in the fault-free circuit, and it makes possible applications such as obtaining faults not detected by a given test (including redundant faults), the identification of faults which cannot be modelled as stuck-at faults and other applications characteristic of this type of analysis.


The Frequency Domain Expert (FDE) adaptive identification and control design algorithm will be applied to the Middeck Active Control Experiment (MACE) during a re-flight of the experiment. FDE was recently developed by the authors to address the need for an algorithm that requires only local measurement, has predictable convergence properties, and yields performance in terms easily understood by controls system engineers. Ground testing to date has produced FDE controllers that reduce line-of-sight error by more than 22 dB, only a few dB less than the best performance attained via offline, fixed-gain LQG controllers during the original MACE flight.


A linearly ordered tetraphosphine containing electron-withdrawing substituent groups on the outer phosphorus atoms, meso-bis[{di(3,5-difluorophenyl)phosphinomethyl}phenylphosphino]methane (dpmppmF2), was prepared and reacted with [Pd2(RNC)6](PF6)2 and Pd(dba)2 to afford tetranuclear palladium complexes, [Pd4(μ-dpmppmF2)2(RNC)3](PF6)2 (R = 2,6-xylyl (Xyl) (1), 2,4,6-mesityl (2), 2,6-diisopropylphenyl (3) and tert-butyl (4)), which involve an asymmetric {(RNC)Pd4(CNR)2}(2+) core supported by two dpmppmF2 ligands in anti-arrangement. Each terminal of the Pd4 chain was capped by terminal isocyanide and a semi-bridging RNC is introduced into one terminal Pd site. Mechanistic investigation suggested that the dipalladium(I) complex, [Pd2(μ-dpmppmF2)2(RNC)2](PF6)2 (R = Xyl (6)), was a key intermediate to trap Pd(0) species by the uncoordinated outer phosphine pendants with electron-withdrawing groups. Variable-temperature UV-vis and (31)P{(1)H}, (1)H NMR spectroscopic studies demonstrated that the tetrapalladium complexes are quite fluxional in the solution state at high temperature (>20 °C) relating to a symmetric structure of [Pd4(μ-dpmppmF2)2(RNC)2](PF6)2, and the asymmetric solid state structures are retained even in the solution at low temperature (<-60 °C). Theoretical calculations with DFT methods on the asymmetric (R = Xyl (1)) and symmetric (R = Xyl (1')) structures suggested that contribution of Pd(0)→Pd(I)-Pd(0)-Pd(I) with 60 cluster valence electrons (CVEs) would be dominant in 1, while the symmetric structure of 1' can be recognized as Pd(I)-Pd(0)-Pd(0)-Pd(I) with 58 CVEs. The new tetraphosphine dpmppmF2 was proven very effective in organizing dynamically flexible tetrapalladium chains.


The stated aim of the EU Single Electricity Market (ESEM) is to link together EU electricity markets and get a unique electricity price across the EU. This target will be met by promoting efficient trading between price zones. Jointly with the ESEM, the EU has set separate ambitious targets for greenhouse gas emissions and renewable energy use: for emissions reduction these are stated as 20% lower than 1990 levels by 2020, rising to 40% lower by 2030 and 85% lower by 2050 that will directly and indirectly promote the investment in renewables. By 2030, massive changes in EU electricity markets will take place. High investments in renewables associated with the necessity of efficient trades may result in network congestion, which rises the costs of the EU electricity system. In this work we use a PLEXOS model to verify the level of network congestion in 2030 and assuming interconnection according to the 10 year network development plan (TYNDP). We determine where further investment in interconnection can contribute to decreasing system costs at the EU level. The choice of the optimal investment is endogenised in the model. First we verify how the wholesale electricity prices change in EU countries. Second we check how profits are affected by the new investments. Finally we perform a welfare analysis including the emission savings achieved with the new investments in transmission networks. Our results indicate that individual interconnection upgrades reduce total system costs and therefore increase net welfare at the EU level. In addition, a shift from producer surplus to consumer surplus can be observed as a result of a higher level of interconnection.


Objectives: This study aims to investigate the diurnal variability of heart rate (HR) increment after standing (ΔHR) in pediatric postural tachycardia syndrome (POTS) and explore appropriate cutoff values of ΔHR at different times for the POTS diagnosis. Materials and Methods: Seventy-eight patients (9–14 years) who presented with orthostatic intolerance symptoms were enrolled. Forty-three patients were diagnosed as POTS (ΔHR ≥40 bpm), and 35 patients were assigned to the non-POTS group (ΔHR <40 bpm). Twenty-six healthy children served as the control group. All subjects completed three standing tests in the morning, afternoon, and evening. Orthostatic HR parameters were analyzed to predict the diagnosis of POTS. Additionally, 41 patients were recruited as an external validation group. Results: Orthostatic HR increments in both the POTS and non-POTS groups exhibited diurnal variability, which was markedly larger in the morning (P < 0.05), whereas it did not differ with the time of day in the control group. Among the POTS patients, 100% met the diagnostic criteria for POTS in the morning, 44.2% in the afternoon, and 27.9% in the evening. Almost half of the POTS patients (51.2%) displayed a positive result only in the morning standing test. However, in the three standing tests at different times, ΔHR from 1 to 10 min after standing and ΔHRmax were the highest in the POTS group compared with in the non-POTS and control groups (P < 0.05). Furthermore, the maximum ΔHR (ΔHRmax) and ΔHR at 5 and 10 min in the afternoon and evening standing tests yielded moderate predictive values for the POTS diagnosis. The external validation test showed that the afternoon ΔHRmax ≥30 bpm to diagnose POTS yielded sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 85, 71.4, and 78%, respectively, and the evening ΔHRmax ≥25 bpm yielded sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of 85, 76.2, and 80.5%, respectively. Conclusions: The orthostatic HR increment exhibits diurnal variability in children and adolescents with POTS that may affect the diagnosis of POTS. Supplementary criteria are proposed for the POTS diagnosis based on diurnal variability.


Abstract Background Primitive persistent trigeminal artery (PTA) is an uncommon embryologic vascular communication between the carotid and basilar arteries, which can be intimately involved by skull base tumors (SBT). Owing to its rarity, skull base surgeons should familiarize themselves with the anatomical variations of PTA to avoid catastrophic complications. Objective To appraise and summarize the available evidence of PTA involved by SBTs while advocating a standardized algorithm for the surgical planning of these patients. Methods MEDLINE and PubMed databases were searched using keywords pertaining to PTA and SBTs. Demographics, clinical presentation, radiographic findings, outcomes, and adverse events were extracted and analyzed. Results A total of 13 cases between 1973 and 2015 were identified. The mean patient age at presentation was 43 years with predilections toward females and pituitary adenomas. Headaches and endocrine abnormalities were the most common symptoms. The tumors were more frequently associated with Salas medial-type PTA (70%) and Saltzman type-I PTA (31%) than seen in the general population in angiographic studies. We also present a new case of atypical meningioma with Saltzman type-1 PTA. Conclusion With endoscopic approaches to SBTs becoming more commonplace, surgeons may encounter this anatomical abnormality more frequently. It is important for both otolaryngologists and neurosurgeons to gain a complete understanding of the anatomical variations and neurointerventional capabilities for the successful endoscopic management of these situations. Level of Evidence: 4.


Plasma volume (PV), extracellular fluid volume (ECV) serum electrolytes, renin and aldosterone were measured before and after 1 week and 4 months of hydrochlorothiazide (HCT) treatment, 50 mg twice daily, in nine male patients with uncomplicated essential hypertension. All studies were carried out under strictly standardized conditions in a metabolic ward. After 1 week of HCT treatment, significant reductions were found in PV and ECV, but after 4 months only ECV was significantly reduced. During HCT therapy, renin and aldosterone were permanently elevated whereas serum sodium and potassium were lowered. After 1 week, renin was inversely correlated with PV and ECV and directly correlated with heart rate. After 4 months, renin was inversely correlated with serum sodium. These results indicate a permanent decrease in ECV during long-term HCT therapy. It is further suggested that the mechanisms responsible for the renin response during short- and long-term HCT treatment are different, changes in body fluid volumes and increased neural activity being responsible for the initial rise in renin, and serum sodium being the predominant factor during chronic treatment.


A radiochemical method has been developed for the estimation of atmospheric mercury. When air containing mercury is passed through a solution of 203Hg-mercuric acetate and KCL, isotope exchange takes place so that the issuing air contains the same concentration of mercury, but labelled and with the same specific activity as the reagent solution. The 203Hg is absorbed on hopcalite and estimated by gamma scintillation counting. The standard deviation of the method is 0·004 μg.Hg/litre in concentrations up to 0·2 μg.Hg/litre, and is 0·075 μg.Hg/litre in the range 0·2-1·2 μg.Hg/litre concentration. The method is simple and can be used for snap or long-run sampling, and with continuous recording.