The morphology observed in the brain of patients a ected by Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the contribution of di erent biological processes such as the normal aging and the AD-speci c pathological matter loss. The ability to di erentiate these complementary biological factors is fundamental in order to reliably evaluate the pathological AD related structural changes, especially at the earliest phase of the disease, at prodromal and pre-clinical stages. We propose a method based on non-rigid registration to estimate the di erent contributions of these complementary factors, and to identify the brain structural changes which are speci c for the pathological component. The experimental results provide a description of the anatomical changes observed across the AD time span: normal aging, normal aging at risk, conversion to MCI and latest AD stages. More advanced AD stages are associated to "virtually older" brains, and to increased speci c morphological changes that are not related to the normal aging. These results provide new insights that can lead to new understandings of the AD dynamics, and to novel techniques for the modeling and the early detection of the disease.


Gorgeous creatives, designed for North Memorial Health Care in Minnesota, prove effective and useful during a high-visibility fundraiser for breast cancer at Saks Fifth Avenue. They're recycled for later use in the hospital.


! The importance of preprosthetic orthodontic treatment is increasing. One treatment option for the improvement of a prosthodontic situation is the forced eruption of teeth. The indications are on one hand before implant placement using " hopeless " teeth for ridge augmentation. After orthodontic extrusion the tooth is extracted and replaced by an implant. The other indication is to save teeth with a deep carious lesion in a strategic important position, which otherwise could not be treated prosthodontically without a surgical crown lengthening procedure. Different mechanics can be used for forced eruption. Three cases illustrate the treatment indications and the procedures.


Adopting a food product flow chart, author attempts to redesign the phase of production activity. He makes a systemization analysis at the point of production stage, the most vulnerable stage in operating Food & Beverage department in hotel management. The scheme was presented to minimize the function of the production stage which requires of vast space, equipments and manpower required for production activity by maximizing the use of food materials in semi prepared, R-T-C and R-T-S states. Another scheme is to consider numerous food-service facilities of many kinds as one system and to minimize the production activities in the outlet kitchen by transforming the function of production kitchen into that of the central kitchen or commissary.


This study assessed the reciprocal predictive relation between multiple domains of health and academic performance (AP) in elementary schoolchildren through autoregressive models. A school-based longitudinal observational study was carried out, with a baseline measurement in 2014 and a follow-up at 12 and 24 months, in an Argentine sample of 533 children aged 9-13 years. Health was measured by self-administration of the KIDSCREEN-52 child version in the classroom, which evaluates 10 dimensions of health. AP was established with the final grades in language and mathematics obtained from the school records. Other variables collected were sex, mother's educational level, socioeconomic status, and intellectual capability. To examine the interdependencies between different health domains and AP, autoregressive and cross-lag coefficients between adjacent time points were calculated with structural equation modeling. A substantial portion of AP individual differences was explained by AP in the previous wave (β above .790). Conversely, health measures were not as stable between different waves (β around .400). Cross-lag path coefficients showed a significant dependence on health of previous-year AP, as can be seen in the physical well-being, psychological well-being, school environment, and social acceptance dimensions of health. AP also was influenced by previous-year health, as occurs with the self-perception, mood and emotions, and school environment health dimensions that significantly predict the next AP. These results are consistent with a positive two-way association between health and AP in childhood. This analysis is important to identify priority areas of intervention that could to improve both children's AP and well-being. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).


Improving the efficiency of training of specialists with higher education who have a high level of professional qualification and are able to take an active position in their professional activities at the present stage is one of the primary strategic objectives of the educational policy and the main goal of higher physical education institutions. The leading place in the system of training specialists in this area is occupied by pedagogical disciplines, the study of which lays the foundations of pedagogical skills, which determine the professional and pedagogical readiness of graduates for future activities. On the other hand, the postmodernist paradigm of education is a cross-cultural and synchronously oriented phenomenon, an important component of which is world physical culture and sports, which adds relevance to the study. The author's technique for formation of pedagogical skill in future teachers of physical culture on the basis of integrated development is stated in the article.


Field observations often show a considerable variation in mean grain size along the coastal profile. Under high waves in shallow water, bed ripples are washed out, and sheet flow becomes the dominant transport mode: large amounts of sand are transported in a thin layer close to the bed, i.e., the sheet flow layer. This paper focuses on grain size influences on transport processes in oscillatory sheet flow. Experiments were carried out in the Large Oscillating Water Tunnel (LOWT) of Delft Hydraulics, in which near-bed orbital velocities in combination with a net current can be simulated at full scale. Three uniform sands with different mean grain size were used. It was found that in contradiction to expressions found in literature, both the erosion depth and the sheet flow layer thickness are larger for fine sand (D 50 = 0.13 mm) than for coarser sand (D 50 ≥ 0.21 mm). Measured time-averaged velocity and concentration profiles indicate that the presence of a sheet flow layer leads to an increased flow resistance and to damping of turbulence and that these effects are stronger for a thicker sheet flow layer (i.e., for fine sand). These mobile-bed effects are analyzed further by comparing the measurements with the results of a one-dimensional vertical advection-diffusion boundary layer model. Simulating the mobile-bed effects in the model by introducing an increased roughness height and a reduced turbulent eddy viscosity showed that the roughness height is of the order of the sheet flow layer thickness and that turbulence damping increases for a decreasing grain size.


Purpose: This study investigated the methods of assessing clinical competence of physiotherapy undergraduates in Nigeria. Relevance: Practical clinical examinations are of key importance in the assessment of clinical competence of physiotherapy undergraduates all over the world. Participants: Forty-seven (35males, 12females) physiotherapy educators recruited from all seven academic institutions where physiotherapy is taught in Nigeria, participated in this cross-sectional population-based survey. Methods: A self-developed validated questionnaire was used to assess the methods of clinical examinations used in physiotherapy undergraduate training in Nigeria. Items on the developed questionnaires were devised through a review of literature of the components of the different methods of clinical examinations. Questionnaire was administered through a purposive sampling method. Analysis: Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics of mean, standard deviation and percentages. Results: Participants were aged 40.9±8.6 years. Majority (89.4%) of the participants had postgraduate qualifications. Nineteen (40.4%) participants reported that they had received formal training on methods of clinical assessment prior to this study. Only 4 (8.5%) of the participants reported that the long case was the method of assessing clinical competence. The OSLER was reported by 6 (12.8%) of the participants. PACES was reported by 7 participants (14.9%) while 6 participants (12.8%) reported the use of OSCE as their assessment method. Conclusions: It can be concluded from this study that many physiotherapy educators had not received formal training in the assessment of clinical competence of their students. There is no exclusive method of assessing clinical competence of physiotherapy undergraduates in Nigeria. Implications: Efforts should be made by management of the various academic institutions to organise workshops and training programmes for the educators who had no formal training and retrain those who have had formal training. This is hoped to translate into better clinical education of physiotherapy students in training. Keywords: Clinical competence, Assessment, Undergraduate students, Physiotherapy education. Funding: This study was unfunded.


Objective: To determine the prevalence of cognitive (memory or confusion) complaints in older adults with visual impairment (VI). Method: We assessed the relationship between VI (corrected visual acuity [VA] < 20/40) and self-reported confusion or problems with memory among participants aged 60 years to 85 years in the 1999-2006 cycles of National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (n = 5,795). Prevalence estimates of cognitive complaints were calculated using Current Population Surveys. Results: Memory/confusion complaints were reported in 22% of the VI group and 11% of the no VI group (p < .001). In individuals aged ≥ 80 years, 30% of those with VI reported cognitive complaints, as compared with 19% with no VI (p = .003). In fully adjusted models, individuals with VI were more likely (OR = 1.3, p = .049) to report cognitive complaints as compared with those without VI. Conclusion: Subjective reports of memory or confusion are highly prevalent in older individuals with VI.


The external Ne impurity seeding has been applied to reduce the heat flux to the divertor target as well as plasma temperature to prolong the lifetime of the EAST upper tungsten (W) target. The erosion of the W target during the Ne seeding in different divertor operation regimes has been assessed by using the semi-empirical formula, while the plasma background was provided by SOLPS modeling. The simulation results showed that the Ne impurity played a critical role in the W erosion, which depended strongly on the operation regimes. By increasing the Ne seeding rate, the discharge regime was varied from the attached to detached condition. During the attached regime, the insufficient seeded Ne impurity could reduce the heat flux to the target, but the erosion of the W target was obviously enhanced, which may shorten the target lifetime. By the sufficient impurity seeding, the detached condition could be achieved, and the W target erosion was obviously suppressed. The high-power discharge brings great challenge to the W target lifetime, and the erosion is mainly induced by Ne and D ions. The contribution of each species changes greatly with different Ne seeding rates. In addition, the lifetime of the EAST upper W divertor has also been evaluated in different operation regimes during high input power discharge.


We study the existence and nonexistence of the positive solutions for the integral boundary value problem of the fractional differential equations with the disturbance parameter in the boundary conditions and the impact of the disturbance parameter on the existence of positive solutions. By using the upper and lower solutions method, fixed point index theory and the Schauder fixed point theorem, we obtain sufficient conditions for that the problem has at least one positive solution, two positive solutions and no solutions. Under certain conditions, we also obtain the demarcation point which divides the disturbance parameters into two subintervals such that the boundary value problem has positive solutions for the disturbance parameter in one subinterval while no positive solutions in the other.


The EPR spectra of radical surfactant probes embedded in cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTAB) and trimethylbenzene (TMB) stable water emulsions (TMB/CTAB = 13) were analyzed to provide information on the kinetics of formation of micelle-templated silicoaluminas (MTSA) at 343 K, obtained by means of silica and alumina, solved in alkaline solutions, at different Si/Al ratios. Textural (surface area, pore volume, pore size, surfactant content) and structural characterization of both as-synthesized and calcined MTSA were performed by means of nitrogen sorption isotherms, TEM, and chemical analysis. This analysis showed that TMB worked as a swelling agent of the CTAB micelles, providing large-pore homogeneous and stable MTSA at TMB/CTAB = 13 for Si/Al from infinity to 10. A demixing of the emulsion occurs at Si/Al < 10: at Si/Al = 7, a double wide-and-narrow pore structure was formed; then, at Si/Al = 5, an amorphous material was obtained. At Si/Al > or = 10, the computer-aided analysis of the EPR spectra as a function of the synthesis time indicated the distribution of the probes in two different environments: "micellar" probes inserted in the surfactant aggregates, whose mobility decreases over the synthesis time, thus reporting on the progressive modification of the surfactant aggregates structure and the solid condensation, and "interacting" probes due to probe-surfactant heads electrostatically interacting with the charged surface sites induced by alumina incorporation in the silica network. This last fraction increases its relative amount over the synthesis time, informing about the condensation and structuration of the MTSA. Without alumina, the "interacting" component is absent in the EPR spectra because TMB preferentially interacts with the surfactant headgroups by cation-pi interactions, thus preventing the interactions of these headgroups with silanols. When alumina is added, the negatively charged silicoaluminate at the surface promotes the interaction of the ammonium headgroups with the surface, and some Na+ cations also interact with TMB by cation-pi interaction and contribute to decreasing the interaction of the headgroups with TMB. Therefore, increasing alumina contents promote electrostatic interactions between the positively charged surfactant heads and the negatively charged silicoaluminate groups. The strong interaction of the surfactants with the silicoaluminate surface allows the formation of a monolayerlike structure of surfactant, which is not observed in the absence of alumina. The synthesis is slowed by increasing alumina contents due to a destructuration effect of alumina in the MTSA formation.


Background: Patients with gastrointestinal stenosis, Barrett's oesophagus, and vomiting during endoscopic preconditioning or after general anaesthesia may develop spontaneous oesophageal rupture in the literature. However, we found an unusual case in which oral sulfate solution triggered oesophageal perforation. Additionally, the oesophageal chasm uncommonly presented at the right wall, while most ruptures are located in the left wall of the oesophagus, and the unexplained and rapidly progressive right-sided pleural effusion in this patient could be associated with this entity. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first published case of oesophageal rupture of the right wall after oral administration of sulfate solution in the literature.Case presentation: For this patient, he suffered from acute onset of unbearable epigastric pain and compression pain in the right chest, with dyspnea, chest tightness and palpitation, after severe nausea and vomiting following oral administration of sulfate solution, and findings from imaging and gastroscopy eventually confirmed oesophageal rupture. Anti-infective treatments, pleural drainage, rehydration and total parenteral nutrition were administered immediately; subsequently, we used a total of seven titanium clips to close the oesophageal rupture under gastroscopic guidance. Eventually, he demonstrated good evolution after the operation and was discharged after recovery. Conclusions: This case emphasizes the importance of considering BS when dealing with patients with severe vomiting, acute chest pain, or dyspnea, especially after administration of sulfate solution for bowel cleansing.


BACKGROUND
Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is a chronic liver disease which refers to the presence of hepatic steatosis. Breast cancer is now the most common cancer in women and is the leading cause of death from cancer among women.

OBJECTIVES
To assess the relationship between NAFLD and newly diagnosed cases of breast cancer.

METHODS
The results of mammography screening examinations in women referred to the Breast Center, Holy Family Hospital, Nazareth during a 4 year period were collected. We identified cases of women who were newly diagnosed with breast cancer and who underwent abdominal computed tomography (CT) within 1 month of the diagnosis. The control group comprised 73 women with normal mammography and breast ultrasonography who underwent abdominal CT within 3 months from the date of the breast cancer screening during the same study period. The control cases were matched by age and body mass index (BMI). We compared the cases with the controls in terms of the presence of diffuse hepatic fatty liver and other known risk factors for breast cancer.

RESULTS
Of the 133 women who were screened, 73 with new diagnosis of breast cancer were eligible for the study. NAFLD was found in 33 of the women with breast cancer and in 12 in the control group (45.2% vs.16.4%, respectively, P = 0.002). Multivariate analysis showed NAFLD (odds ratio 2.82, 95% confidence interval 1.2-5.5, P = 0.016) to be associated with breast cancer.

CONCLUSIONS
NAFLD is associated with breast cancer.


This paper is concerned with the properties of complex propagating nonlinear tropospheric disturbances observed near Tennant Creek in the arid interior of the Northern Territory of Australia. Many of these unusual atmospheric disturbances resemble the well-known internal undular surges observed in the oceans and in inland stratified bodies of water. A description is presented of a wide variety of observations of solitary-wave-dominated evolving density intrusions, and it is shown that many of the features of these unique disturbances are in qualitative agreement with the predictions of nonlinear dispersive wave theory. In particular, it is shown that the evolutionary behavior of these disturbances is governed by the Benjamin-Ono equation and that intrusive motions of this type play an important role in the generation of boundary layer solitary atmospheric waves. Existing experimental evidence indicates that these disturbances originate primarily in the interaction of katabatic flows, propagating sea breeze vortices, and 'morning glory' phenomena with the stably stratified nocturnal radiation inversion.


Revised Pipeline On-bottom Stability computer program suite. Updated Pipeline On-bottom Stability user guideline. Brief report on indicating possible objectives for further revisions to the analysis tools and user guideline. This report includes reconsideration of the objectives and issues excluded from this program as well as the results of Objective 8 regarding flows at a very low angle of incidence to the alignment of the pipeline.


Agglutinating antibody responses of several Atlantic bottlenose dolphins were measured after exposure to live and killed Erysipebot/irix r/iusiopathiae vaccines. The live product was found to stimulate antibody production better than the killed bacterin. An immunization schedule utilizing an initial exposure to the bacterin with subsequent exposures with the live vaccine product is proposed.


Sequences of configurations of linearised Regge calculus converging to plane wave solutions are constructed to illustrate an earlier result on convergence. It is shown that, for these examples, the convergence criterion filters out the solutions which do not satisfy Einstein's equations from those which do.


Background: Patients with uveal melanoma (UM) are known to have quality of life (QOL) issues after treatment, but QOL concerns after initial diagnosis are ill-defined. Objectives: We studied the QOL concerns of patients with UM after initial diagnosis to identify factors associated with QOL. Method: Between September 2011 and May 2016, UM planning to undergo radiotherapy completed the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer (EORTC) core quality of life questionnaire (QLQ)-C30, as well as the Ophthalmic Oncology module, QLQ-OPT30. Demographic, ophthalmic, and tumor related characteristics were recorded. The primary outcome was the QOL score and fraction of patients reporting any or severe symptoms. A multiple stepwise regression model investigated the association of demographic, ophthalmic, and tumor characteristics with QOL. Results: QOL concerns were assessed in 201 subjects. The majority (51/60) of QOL items had a high response rate (≥90%), and internal consistency on scales (median Cronbach α = 0.85) with the most common severe QOL concern being worry about disease recurrence (41%). The most common ophthalmic symptoms reported were vision impairment (81%) and ocular irritation (66%). Multivariable regression modeling demonstrated several significant associations. Conclusions: Severe worry about UM recurrence, ocular irritation, and vision impairment was reported by many patients. Clinicians should be aware of these concerns and implement management strategies.


Thermodynamic principles are described with a new point of view. In present study, the interaction between two systems is focused instead of the behavior of a system in conventional thermodynamics. The state change of a system cannot occur by itself but it is the result of the interaction between systems. However, the interaction itself is also the result of another kind of interaction, the interaction between two interactions. To reconstruct thermodynamics with such a point of view, the reversible world is imagined, in which conservations and measurements are discussed. There exists a conserved quantity for each mode of reversible interaction. The conserved transferring quantity in the interaction between interactions is the effective work, which is supposed to be measurable and conserved in reversible world. Effective work is the primary concepts of energy. It is the key factor to explain measurements, energy conservation and energy dissipation. The concepts developed in reversible world are applied to the real world in which irreversible phenomena may occur. Irreversibility is the result of effective energy dissipation, in which effective work irreversibly changes into entropy. A quantitative relation between the disappearing effective work and the generated entropy is dissipation equation which is given by experiments. A special temperature scale to give a very simple type of the dissipation equation is the absolute temperature scale, which gives the conventional conservation of energy.


We describe a modified [from Anal. Chem. 36, 2099 (1964)] procedure for determining diazepam and its pharmacologically active metabolite, desmethyldiazepam, in plasma, with use of a nitrogen-sensitive detector in the gas-liquid chromatography. We used medazepam as the internal reference standard. Diazepam and desmethyldiazepam are converted to their respective benzophenones by mineral acid hydrolysis. With this procedure, as little as 100 muL of plasma can be used to determine the drug in concentrations as low as 10 microgram/L, accurately, reproducibly, and quickly. Within-run and between-run CVs for 100 microgram/L concentrations of the two compounds were 5 and 7%, respectively.


Active center fractions have been prepared from Rhodopseudomonas spheroides strain Y. (de Klerk) using the cationic detergent cetyltrimethyl ammonium bromide and light particles from bacteria grown in two media differing in iron content. Spectral properties and composition of the fractions are presented.


Objectives To describe the use of echocardiography in patients hospitalised with suspected coronavirus infection and to assess its impact on clinical management. Methods We studied 79 adults from a prospective registry of inpatients with suspected coronavirus infection at a single academic centre. Echocardiographic indications included abnormal biomarkers, shock, cardiac symptoms, arrhythmia, worsening hypoxaemia or clinical deterioration. Study type (limited or complete) was assessed for each patient. The primary outcome measure was echocardiography-related change in clinical management, defined as intensive care transfer, medication changes, altered ventilation parameters or subsequent cardiac procedures within 24 hours of echocardiography. Coronavirus-positive versus coronavirus-negative patient groups were compared. The relationship between echocardiographic findings and coronavirus mortality was assessed. Results 56 patients were coronavirus-positive and 23 patients were coronavirus-negative with symptoms attributed to other diagnoses. Coronavirus-positive patients more often received limited echocardiograms (70% vs 26%, p=0.001). The echocardiographic indication for coronavirus-infected patients was frequently worsening hypoxaemia (43% vs 4%) versus chest pain, syncope or clinical heart failure (23% vs 44%). Echocardiography changed management less frequently in coronavirus-positive patients (18% vs 48%, p=0.01). Among coronavirus-positive patients, 14 of 56 (25.0%) died during hospitalisation. Those who died more often had echocardiography to evaluate clinical deterioration (71% vs 24%) and had elevated right ventricular systolic pressures (37 mm Hg vs 25 mm Hg), but other parameters were similar to survivors. Conclusions Echocardiograms performed on hospitalised patients with coronavirus infection were often technically limited, and their findings altered patient management in a minority of patients.


Iterative error-detection codes are applied to a decision-feedback communication system employing a noisy binary-symmetric forward channel and a noise-free feedback channel. The optimum (maximum information rate) code is shown to be one in which only a single parity check is made at each stage of the iteration. This code is referred to as the SPC code. For this code, the probability of an undetected error P_M tends to zero algebraically, rather than exponentially, with block length. However, the complexity of the necessary decoder grows only as log \log 1/P_M , a drastic improvement over the \log 1/P_M growth encountered in error-correction systems. The behavior of the SPC code under a memory (blocklength) constraint is also investigated, and the optimum length of each stage of the iteration is determined. The results have considerable practical import--modest memory size can be used with little adverse effect on information rate and with very small probability of undetected error. The over-all performance of the SPC code and decision feedback system is considered when the binary symmetric forward channel is imbedded in an additive Gaussian channel. The Gaussian channel bandwidth that maximizes information rate in bits per second is determined, under the constraint of iow error probability, and the efficiency of the code (ratio of information rate to infinite-bandwidth Gaussian channel capacity) is found to be 27 per cent, two or three times the efficiency obtainable with single-stage error-detection-only codes. Plots are provided of the variation in rate of specific SPC codes when the Gaussian channel is subject to slow fades.


We report the mechanism of the concentration-dependent self-assembly of a tetrapeptide. Peptide Boc-Trp-Leu-Trp-Leu-OMe self-assembles to form discrete nanospheres at a low concentration. Tryptophan side chains point outwards of the nanospheres while leucine side chains point towards the core of the nanospheres. The nanospheres fuse together to become microspheres with the increase in the peptide concentration. At higher concentrations of the peptide, the microspheres start clustering. This is stabilized by the aromatic interactions between the side chains of the tryptophan residues that cover the outer surface of the peptide microspheres. In addition to behaving like the conventional hollow sphere-based drug delivery vehicles which entraps the drug and performs stimuli-responsive release, this prototype can interact, stabilize, and intercalate hydrophobic dye carboxyfluorescein and anti-cancer drug curcumin even on the surface through aromatic interactions. The dye/drug can be released in acidic pH and in the presence of physiologically relevant ions such as potassium.


In this paper, an overview of an application, which aims to make significant improvements on access methods to the online shopping catalogs, is presented. In current online shopping sites, only browsing and semantic based retrieval are provided to the users. In this work, a system is constructed on content based retrieval methods in order to allow users to find a clothing item that they are searching within the online catalogs. The results have came out to be impressive when they are examined by the human eye. This work makes use of existing computer vision techniques and applies them to the area of clothing and shopping to provide users with a useful application.


Today we know a great deal about viruses, which exist in vast profusion. Many are pathogenic, inducing diseases in man, lower animals, and plants. Many are nonpathogenic. We know that the viruses bear intimate relation to the basic processes of life. Many different disciplines have contributed to our knowledge, which, in the aggregate, is impressive indeed. This knowledge has had an almost explosive development, dating back, in essence, only to the 1890s. The concept of a virus as a distinct entity rested on evidence that accumulated at first rather slowly. Each new datum had to come to terms with the existing framework of knowledge, ie, had to harmonize somehow with existing concepts. As a result many of the new data remained poorly explained until enough evidence had accumulated to bring about the birth of a new concept. This made investigators realize how sharply this new category of infectious agent differed


This work aims at describing a particular case of Budd-Chiari syndrome in a ten-year-old girl. In our patient, the subjective and objective features of this disease, which is already rare during childhood, are associated with a well-assessed polyposis in the blind intestine (intestinum caecum). In our opinion, a possible connection between these two pathological events, a connection unheard of in the literature so far, is an interesting issue to be dealt with in this case report. The follow-up of our patient took place at the Pediatric Hospital of the University of Rome "La Sapienza" and lasted an overall period of 6 months. The girl was hospitalized twice and she underwent a large number of radiological and laboratory tests. The therapy consisted only of medical treatment and support measures. Liver transplant is regarded as the only chance to obtain a full recovery, but it has not yet been performed on our patient. It is by comparing those researches carried out on similar cases with the outcome of our personal study, that we come to the conclusion that, as for our patient, the Budd-Chiari syndrome can be classified as an idiopathic syndrome. Moreover, the fact that this syndrome and the polyposis of caecum occur at the same time in a patient can probably be considered as a coincidence.


Pharmaceutical proteins, compared to small molecular weight drugs, are relatively fragile molecules, thus necessitating monitoring protein unfolding and aggregation during production and post-marketing. Currently, many analytical techniques take offline measurements, which cannot directly assess protein folding during production and unfolding during processing and storage. In addition, several orthogonal techniques are needed during production and market surveillance. In this study, we introduce the use of time-gated Raman spectroscopy to identify molecular descriptors of protein unfolding. Raman spectroscopy can measure the unfolding of proteins in-line and in real-time without labels. Using K-means clustering and PCA analysis, we could correlate local unfolding events with traditional analytical methods. This is the first step toward predictive modeling of unfolding events of proteins during production and storage.


Genotyping old grapevine samples, in particular cultivar identification via microsatellite profiling, is not yet routine. Success depends on several factors, the age of the investigated material being the most obvious. In addition, the amount and integrity of DNA depends on specimen storage/preservation history. Moreover, conta-mination and fragmentation processes make the isolated DNA a difficult template for PCR amplification. Three old grapevine specimens were investigated in this study. Two derived from a 90-year-old Croatian grapevine herbarium collection: cv. ?Tribidrag? and cv. ?Brzamin?. Both are indigenous Croatian grapevine cultivars not present in contemporary germplasm collections. The third was a 2000-year-old archeological underwater grapevine specimen. Several different approaches for DNA isolation were tested. A commercial plant DNA isolation kit was the best choice in terms of avoiding contamination with contemporary grapevine DNA. Initial attempts to PCR-amplify standard grapevine microsatellite loci from isolated DNA did not work satisfactory. Therefore, a whole genome amplification (WGA) kit was applied to overcome this problem. The WGA performed well with the cv. ?Tribidrag? herbarium sample and the 2000-year-old archeological specimen. While the amplified, cloned and sequenced DNA from the archeological specimen was from origins other than grapevine, indicating contamination of the specimen, clones deriving from the cv. ?Tribidrag? corresponded to different grapevine chromosomes. Therefore, we used the cv. ?Tribidrag? DNA for successful amplification of the VVS2 microsatellite locus by PCR, thereby demonstrating the proof of principle. Eventually we genotyped the cv. ?Tribidrag? specimen at six standard microsatellite loci. The SSR profile obtained was identical to that of ?Zinfandel?/?Primitivo?/?Crljenak kastelanski?. These results are in line with the previously proposed Croatian origin of ?Zinfandel?. This time we identi¬fied the name ?Tribidrag? as the most ancient name for cv. ?Zinfandel?, which has been cultivated in Croatia, according to several historical documents, since the beginning of the 15th century.


A novel measurement and post-processing technique for estimating if impulsive noise is capable of degrading the performance of digital communication systems (DCS) is presented. It is based on the well-known capability of the amplitude probability distribution (APD) to estimate the bit-error-rate of digital communication system in the presence of electromagnetic interferences. However, the APD shall be computed from measurements taken in the absence of the useful signal of the communication system, which is a strong handicap for in-situ measurements. The main contribution of the work presented is the combination of time domain EMI measurements and decomposition techniques for separating the impulsive noise from the narrow band signals of the digital communication systems. Therefore, although the communication system signal is present at the test site, the APD diagram is obtained without the influence of the communication system, which is crucial to directly relate the shape of the diagram with the bit-error-rate introduced by the impulsive noise. This is an important step forward compared with the traditional approach as it offers the possibility to study the impact of impulsive interferences although DCS, such as broadcasting services, are present at interference scenarios.


[Objective] The aim was to evaluate the feasibility of biotechnology fulvic acid produced by microbial community LCM9 by the use of corn straws as substrate and its application effect.[Method]Microbial community was obtained from the nature samples,and corn straws were used as fermentation substrate.The yield of biotechnology fulvic acid and its application effect was evaluated.[Result]The yield of biotechnology fulvic acid was up to 15.7% when the water content was 75.0% and fermented after 7 d using corn straws as the only source of nutrition.After 500 mg/kg of biotechnology fulvic acid was added for 5 d,the root length and bud length could be increased by 59.1% and 97.1%,respectively.[Conclusion]A higher yield of biotechnology fulvic acid could be obtained by the method in this experiment and the product could enhance the growth of wheat seedlings.


There is no simple diagnostic method to measure the arterial behavior in the baroreflex system. Presently, we report the development of a method and associated hardware that enables the diagnosis of baroreflex sensitivity by measuring the responses of artery. In this system, the measurements are obtained by monitoring ECG and a pulse wave recorded from the radial artery. The arterial responses were measured in terms of the pulse wave velocity (PWV) calculated from the pulse wave transmission time (PTT) from the heart to the artery. Changes in the PTT in response to blood pressure changes were observed. A significant correlation was observed in the time sequence between blood pressure change and PTT change after calculating the delay time by cross-correlation. The slope of these parameter changes demonstrated the sensitivity of the baroreflex system of an artery. When tested clinically, decreased sensitivity of the baroreflex system in hypertensive patients was observed. This system may be useful when we consider the ideal treatment and follow-up of the patients with hypertension.


The possible role of viruses in the etiology of malignant neoplasms has long been a subject for discussion and experimentation. Since a review of this literature is beyond the scope of this brief paper, it must suffice to mention previous pertinent reports.

In 1936 Rous and Kidd found that intravenous injection of Shope rabbit papilloma virus activated tar warts on rabbits' ears to malignant degeneration. Andrewes, Ahlstrom, Foulds, and Gye in 1937 showed that rabbits injected intramuscularly with tar and then intravenously with the infectious fibroma virus (Shope) developed generalized fibromatosis, a phenomenon not observed in animals not treated with tar. Similar results were obtained when 3:4 benzpyrene was substituted for tar. Lacassagne and Nyka in a small series of animals observed that intravenous injection of Shope papilloma virus intensified the growth of cutaneous benzpyrene tumors (carcinoma) in rabbits. This effect was not obtained in rabbits in which the hypophysis was destroyed.

In the following series of experiments the writers endeavored to determine whether injections of saline extracts from the common human wart, verruca vulgaris, might intensify the growth of and hasten malignant degeneration of benzpyrene warts on the ears of rabbits. Verruca vulgaris is classified as a virus disease and has been shown to be transmissible in man by injection of Berkefeld filtrates of the lesions.


The purpose of this book is to provide optimal imaging options for patient care management. This is a concise, timely guide in this era of improving the quality of health care, reducing health care costs, and improving health outcomes. The book is divided into 7 chapters addressing organ systems rather than body parts. Chapter 1 discusses the various imaging modalities and contrast agents. Advantages, disadvantages, and limitations are tabulated. Risk factors and adverse effects from the use of contrast media are also discussed. Chapters 2 through 6 are dedicated to neurologic, cardiothoracic, breast, abdominal, and musculoskeletal imaging. Algorithmic approaches and guidelines are provided for commonly encountered medical problems. Chapter 7 is dedicated to vascular imaging. The advantages and disadvantages of the various imaging modalities are described, along with first-line and second-line diagnostic imaging tests. The chapters are well written, concise, easy to read, and userfriendly. The use of an algorithmic approach to the medical problem allows for rapid decision making. Well-designed tables are also provided. I can recommend a few improvements for future editions. First, on page 69 there is an algorithm for evaluation of a solitary pulmonary nodule, yet the legend describes the approach for a pulmonary embolus in a pregnant patient. Second, the book needs to cover several additional topics: the use of sedation and anesthesia in pediatric and adult patients who need to undergo certain imaging modalities; the use of glomerular filtration rate as a more sensitive test than creatinine; and the appropriate use of molecular imaging, such as PET/CT and SPECT. Third, the font needs to be enlarged in Figure 6.7, which involves the work-up of a focal bone lesion. This book is recommended for physicians not familiar with the various imaging modalities and their appropriate use. Others who can benefit from this book are physician assistants, advanced nurse practitioners, nonradiology residents and fellows, and medical students. As the title states, this is a guide and not an encompassing resource. Other recommended resources include the published "ACR Appropriateness Criteria," Evidence-Based Imaging: Improving the Quality of Imaging in Patient Care, Evidence-Based Imaging: Optimizing Imaging in Patient Care, and EvidenceBased Imaging in Pediatrics: Improving the Quality of Imaging in Patient Care. The last three are edited by Medina et al. and published by Springer. Third-party imaging guidelines are also provided by UnitedHealthcareOnline.com. These imaging tests must be approved for payment, and hence third-party payers have their guidelines, which at times can be frustrating in managing patient care.


The laser excitation spectrum of the 327 nm band system of CoCl2, formed in a free-jet expansion, has been recorded at a rotational temperature of approximately 10 K. The spectrum is congested and suffers extensive perturbations. A progression in the excited state symmetric stretching vibration has been identified. The decrease in the symmetric stretching vibrational wave number on excitation is considerable [nu1 '=195.7(12), nu1 (")=358.1(17) cm(-1)]. Despite widespread perturbations in the rotational structure of these vibronic bands, they can be confidently assigned to a parallel Omega=72-72 transition, consistent with an inverted 4Deltag ground electronic state. The rotational constant for Co35Cl2 in the ground state is determined to be 0.056 65(11) cm(-1), which corresponds to a value for the zero-point averaged Co-Cl bond length r0 of 2.062 8(40) A. The perturbations are found to be strongly isotopomer dependent.


In the title problem, the temperature satisfies Laplac's equation within the solid and liquid, and Newton's law of cooling at the liquid–vapour phase interface. That boundary condition defines a length L ∼ 10nm on which the interface changes from being, in effect, adiabatic at the contact line to isothermal at infinity. We give an exact solution showing how this change affects the temperature field when the solid occupies a half–space, and the liquid a quarter–space (so the liquid–solid contact angle θ=π/2); the liquid–solid conductivity ratio k is arbitrary. We use this solution to verify the predictions of existing analysis of the limit ? → 0 with θ fixed but arbitrary. In the limit r/L → 0 of vanishing distance from the contact line, the new solution reduces to an existing local solution.


Ultrasound elastography is a modality that is uniquely suited to augment conventional B-mode ultrasound for various clinical applications. Motion tracking plays a critically important role during image formation for ultrasound elastography. In this study, the accuracy of four motion tracking methods tailored for acoustic radiation force-based elastography (e.g. acoustic radiation force imaging, shear wave elastography) is compared. In these elastography methods, external mechanical excitation results in small tissue displacements (i.e. 5-10 micrometers). This paper compares four published motion tracking methods: a quadratic sub-sample estimation method, a coupled sub-sample estimation method, a 2-D spline-based estimator, and a 2-D autocorrelation-based motion estimator. Those four methods are evaluated using computer-simulated and tissue-mimicking phantom data. Based on our preliminary data, we find that the autocorrelation-based method is the preferred estimator without considering the lateral displacement. Overall, the spline-based estimator is superior to the other two competitors when both axial and lateral displacements are estimated. Since the spline-based estimation algorithm is considerably time-intensive, the coupled sub-sample estimation method becomes a practical alternative.


Caco-2 cells are traditionally used to construct in vitro models of the intestinal barrier. One of the characteristics of the mature intestine is the presence of villi, outgrowths of connective tissue covered with epithelial cells. Recently it has been shown that during prolonged cultivation Caco-2 cells form structures resembling intestinal villi. Here, using transcriptome analysis, we showed that BMP and PDGF signaling involved in the formation of villi in vivo significantly altered during the differentiation of Caco-2 cells and, thus, can participate in the formation of similar structures in vitro. In particular, a significant decrease in the expression of the BMP4, BMP7, and BMP8A genes in differentiated cells compared to undifferentiated ones was found. Periodic fluctuations in transepithelial resistance during the differentiation of Caco-2 cells have been discovered for the first time. The period of observed fluctuations indicates that they can arise in the result of cell proliferation during the formation of villi. According to the period of observed fluctuations, one can suppose that they arise in the result of cell proliferation during the formation of villi.

impedance spectroscopy, intestine, villi, TEER, BMP, PDGF

The study was funded by the Russian Science Foundation (project 16-19-10597).


Topical therapies are appropriate for most patients with psoriasis. These therapies frequently are used as first-line agents for mild and moderate disease and as an adjuvant to phototherapy or systemic treatment. In Europe, vitamin D3 analogues (e.g., calcipotriene) are preferred as first-line therapies and often are used in combination with potent topical corticosteroids. Because calcipotriene and corticosteroids have different mechanisms of action, superior efficacy and reduced side effects can be achieved by their combined use; however, chemical incompatibility prevents combined application. This incompatibility has been overcome by the recent development of a stable formulation of calcipotriene and betamethasone dipropionate. In 7 clinical trials, more than 3000 subjects received once-daily or twice-daily treatment with the 2-compound ointment for 4- to 52-week periods. The overall results indicate that the 2-compound ointment elicits rapid and substantial reductions in Psoriasis Area and Severity Index (PASI) scores. The treatment Calso is well-tolerated.


We enjoyed the company of Bogdan Bogdanović a few times. He told us about his life and his work, among other things. This article is to a large extent a result of those pleasant meetings. Everyone needs to be alone from time to time; to be alone in the open air, away from their own private room and from the public street. And in the same way as two people can be alone in the same place without disturbing each other, the public space for being alone is not only a necessity but also a possibility. But all that is fairly fragile. It is difficult to design spaces for solitude, and it is particularly difficult to make them work. Sometimes, perhaps, the places preferred by people on their own are just a matter of chance. Moreover, they can easily disappear. Three of such spaces: so fragile and so fascinating, are the subject of this study. They are memorials for Prilep, Travnik and Vukovar, all works of Bogdan Bogdanović. Each of them is a drop of culture in a desert. Corresponding author / University of Sydney original scientific article approval date 01 04 2011 UDK BROJEVI: 72.071.1 Богдановић Б. ; 725.945"19" ID BROJ: 183734284


TiO2 thin film enhanced by diethanolamine (DEA) and MCM-41 (D-TiO2/MCM-41) was successfully synthesized by sol-gel dip coating technique on glass slides. The roles of DEA and MCM-41 on physical and photocatalytic characteristics of the films were studied using various techniques such as x-ray defraction (XRD), fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), ultra violet-visible (UV-Vis) spectrometry, Brunauer, Emmett and Teller (BET) surface area analysis and field emission scanning electron microscope (FESEM). The XRD results showed that the thin film contained almost 100% anatase phase and the crystal size of TiO2 was in the range of 4-8 nm. The FTIR spectra indicated the formation of Ti-O-Si and Si-O-Si linkages due to interaction of TiO2 and MCM-41. The surface area of TiO2 was increased significantly when MCM-41 was added. The use DEA and MCM-41 caused slight increase in visible light absorption but UV absorption was decreased. The photocatalytic reactivity of the thin film was tested by photocatalytic degradation of methylene blue under visible light. The addition of DEA as a nitrogen source was beneficial not only for obtaining stable/smooth surface of the thin film but also for enhancing photocatalysis of methylene blue by preventing charge carrier recombination. While MCM-41 played important functions in improving porosity and hydrophilicity of the film. The photodegradation of methylene blue was obtained up to 35% of its original concentration when 1M DEA and 0.3M MCM-41 were incorporated in TiO2 thin film. The overall enhancement of photocatalytic activity of the film was a result of nitrogen doping, increased surface area as well as increased hydrophilicity provided by MCM-41.


Photodiodes for optical radiation measurements are used without reverse bias in most ap‐ plications since this operation yields the lowest dark current. To obtain photodiodes that op‐ erate at a low bias and have a low dark current, it is necessary to produce epitaxial layers that are pure and have few defects (such as dislocations, point defects, and impurity precipi‐ tates). Furthermore, a planar device structure requires that a guard ring be used to keep the electric field around the photoreceptive area from increasing too much. Fabrication and processing technologies such as impurity diffusion, ion implantation, and passivation play important roles in the production of reliable photodetectors.


There is evidence that a proportion of human monocytes can proliferate in vitro in response to colony-stimulating factor-1 (CSF-1, also known as M-CSF) and granulocyte-macrophage CSF (GM-CSF). To determine whether there are differences in DNA synthesis responses to these CSF, a large study using purified human peripheral blood monocytes from 45 donors was performed under optimized culture conditions. In contrast to the consistent response to CSF-1, approximately 20% of donors have monocytes that do not respond or have a minimal DNA synthesis response to GM-CSF stimulation. However, analysis demonstrated that no statistically significant differences exist in the levels of CSF-1 and GM-CSF-stimulated proliferation in monocytes. In addition, CSF-1 receptor (CSF-1R) blocking experiments indicated that a proportion of the GM-CSF-induced DNA synthesis is due to endogenous levels of CSF-1. As a further comparison of the actions of the two CSFs, CSF-1R and GM-CSFR levels were measured by flow cytometry, and it was shown that GM-CSFR levels decreased within 5 days of culture, independent of the conditions examined. In contrast, CSF-1R levels at day 5 approximated those measured in uncultured monocytes. Whether the proliferating subpopulation(s) express one or both CSF receptors at the beginning or at the end of culture is as yet unknown. The information obtained in this study will be useful for the design of strategies to enrich for the subpopulation in question based on CSF receptor expression.


【Malling culture, which refers to the enjoyment of shopping in multi-complex malls with shopping, cultural, and leisure facilities, has emerged as a major trend in society. However, few studies have researched malling culture in depth. This study classified people who go to multi-complex shopping malls as belonging to the baby-boom generation, X-generation, or Y-generation to investigate consumer culture in malls, with an emphasis on user satisfaction and entertainment experiences. Consumers who had shopped in a multi-complex shopping mall during the last 6 months were surveyed. Data were collected through a research company, and responses from 417 subjects were used in the analysis. Among the 417 subjects, 130 were baby-boomers, 136 were from the X-generation, and 151 were from the Y-generation. Investigating the components of multi-complex shopping malls that stimulate entertainment experiences, this study found that exploratory, emotional, and leisure experiences were enhanced when users were more satisfied with the image, atmosphere, and events of shopping malls. In addition, mall image and atmosphere contributed to the improvement of social experiences. With regard to generation, baby-boomers and subjects from the X-generation were generally more satisfied with mall atmosphere, image, and events and had more exploratory and leisure experiences. This study holds significance in that it examined malling culture from a wider perspective than simply the younger generation and presented scholarly and marketing implications based on insights into generational malling culture.】


Large distributed generation (DG) penetration into the power system needs to be accompanied by proper planning to maximize the benefits and minimize the negative effects that may arise on the system. Determining the location and size of DGs in power systems is a complex issue because it involves hundreds or even thousands of buses and lines distribution. Various studies have been conducted to overcome these problems, including by developing existing methods or even discovering new methods. This study deals with location optimization and sizing DG in the radial distribution system to minimize power loss and voltage deviation. The location of the DG is identified using a loss reduction sensitivity factor (LRSF) while the size of the DG is determined using the improved method of symbiotic organisms search (SOS) called New Enhanced SOS (NeSOS). There are two methods developed in the NeSOS, namely random weighted inverse vector (RWIV) and dual-phase parasitism (DPP). DPP consists of classic parasitism (CP) and random weight parasitism (RWP). The NeSOS is programmed under MATLAB software and validated using 26 mathematical benchmark functions. NeSOS also tested on IEEE 33 and IEEE 69 bus test system and compared with other methods. The simulation results show that the convergence rate of NeSOS is 30% faster than SOS. NeSOS also provides an average power loss of 1.53% lower than other methods.


Thirty per cent of the patients with spinal injuries present chronical urinary problems. For these, G.S. Brindley's technique represents an important progress. It includes a section of posterior roots to control detrusor hyperexcitability and a stimulation of anterior roots to empty the bladder. The equipment is now perfectly reliable and the technique has been defined. Indications are essentially unstable bladders with incontinence and certain hypoactive bladders. The following results were obtained: continence is obtained in 90% of patients; complete bladder emptying in the majority of cases with very marked reduction of urinary infections; improvement of erection and regularization of intestinal transit. The complications of the surgery are uncommon but serious (CSF leaks, postoperative denervations, sepsis and material failure).


INTRODUCTION
Nontuberculous mycobacteria can be saprophytic, pathogenic or opportunistic. The most common diseases produced by these microorganisms are the post-surgical infections due to anesthetic procedures, infections associated with catheters, disseminated cutaneous diseases and pulmonary and central nervous system diseases that especially affect HIV patients. Identification of the nontuberculous mycobacteria can take several weeks and even then, differentiation of complex members is not possible.

OBJECTIVE
The PCR-restriction analysis (PRA) technique was evaluated as a method for genotypic identification of nontuberculous mycobacteria isolated of clinical samples located in the culture collection of the Instituto Nacional de Salud (National Institute of Health), Bogotá, Colombia.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
Seventy clinical isolates of nontuberculous mycobacteria stored in 50% glycerol at -70 degrees C were identified by phenotypic techniques. The genotypic identification was made using the PCR-restriction analysis (PRA) using the restriction enzymes BstEII and HseIII, the restriction products were visualized on gels of agarose to 3%, and the concordance between the methodologies was evaluated.

RESULTS
A matching of 100% was obtained in the identification of Mycobacterium terrae, M. szulgai, M. avium, M. chelonae and M. scrofulaceum, the matching between M. fortuitum species, M. abscessus, M. gordonae and M. intracellulare varied from 44 to 89%; there was no concurrence in the identification of species M. flavescens and M. malmoense.

CONCLUSIONS
PRA provided a fast, inexpensive and accurate alternative for the identification of nontuberculous mycobacteria that permited the differentiation among species of a complex and determining the subtype of each species sample.


The authors report two cases of the Shulman's syndrome. Twenty one cases of this new entity are found in the literature. The main signs are the acute painful onset after an unusual physical exertion, the development of fasciitis, and (or) myositis, and (or) scleroderma of limbs, the absence of Raynaud's phenomenon, visceral involvement, constant eosinophilia and hypergammaglobulinemia; the prognosis is good with an improvement sometimes spontaneous or coincident with prednisone therapy. One of the observations is interesting by the association with Gougerot-Sjogren's syndrome, and a familial case of morphea. The prognosis in this case is mediocre: failure of corticotherapy, and incomplete remission with cyclophosphamide.


Silicon synthesis in high-temperature hydrogen burning environments presents one possible avenue for the study of abundance anomalies in globular clusters. This was suggested in a previous study, which found that the large uncertainties associated with the $^{30}$Si(p,$\gamma$)$^{31}$P reaction rate preclude a firm understanding of the stellar conditions that give rise to the Mg-K anti-correlation observed in the globular cluster NGC 2419. In an effort to improve the reaction rate, we present new strength measurements of the $E_r^{lab} = 435$ keV and $E_r^{lab} = 501$ keV resonances in $^{30}$Si(p,$\gamma$)$^{31}$P. For the former, which was previously unobserved, we obtain a resonance strength of $\omega\gamma = (1.28 \pm 0.25$) $\times 10^{-4}$ eV. For the latter, we obtain a value of $\omega\gamma = (1.88 \pm 0.14)$ $\times 10^{-1}$ eV, which has a smaller uncertainty compared to previously measured strengths. Based on these results, the thermonuclear reaction rate has been re-evaluated. The impact of the new measurements is to lower the reaction rate by a factor of $\approx$10 at temperatures important to the study of NGC 2419. The rate uncertainty at these temperatures has also been reduced significantly.


We present in this paper the description of the Duke storage ring tune measurements system. An unusual feature of this system is the use of synchrotron radiation to sense oscillation of the electron beam. This system includes a lens, a razor blade placed at the focus and a photomultiplier. Our experience shows that this system can operate on -70 dBm level and detect electron beam oscillations as small as one micron.


This study aims to analyze Turkey's current tourism development plan (Turkey Tourism Strategy Plan 2023) from the perspective of climate change management , and to identify the gaps in the plan and provide an alternative framework for the climate change responsive tourism development plan. In order to achieve these targets, the study is constructed on 3 steps; i) defining key factors in climate change management in the tourism industry by in-depth literature review, ii) examining the Turkey Tourism Strategy Plan 2023 to reveal the gaps iii) providing a roadmap for climate change responsive tourism development. Firstly, the study looks  deeply at  the literature on tourism development and climate change impact management with a focus  on mitigation of and adaptation to , climate change in the tourism industry. Regarding climate change management literature, the key factors are defined as ; i) Sustainability, ii) Mitigation options, iii) Climate change assessment , iv) Adaptation options, v) Key actors . Secondly, based on these key factors compiled from the literature, the Turkey Tourism Strategy Plan 2023 is analyzed and it is considered whether it includes strategies in correlation  with these key factors or not. Finally, a conceptual framework of climate change management in the tourism  industry is provided. The results of this analysis sheds light on  the gaps in the plan and considering these gaps a new climate change responsive strategic development plan framework has been suggested for further planning practices. The results of the plan analysis show that there are some important strategies in the plan that will contribute to eliminating  climate change impacts , however, these efforts  may not be sufficient in the long term when climate change impacts are more destructive. There is an urgent need for revision, which can be enhanced by the suggested strategic plan framework. This study is significant in defining the gaps in Turkey's tourism development strategies. It is also important for providing suggestions for the future climate-proof tourism development in Turkey.


Hierarchical carbon nanostructures based on ultra-long carbon nanofibers (CNF) decorated with carbon nanotubes (CNT) have been prepared using plasma processes. The nickel/carbon composite nanofibers, used as a support for the growth of CNT, were deposited on nanopatterned silicon substrate by a hybrid plasma process, combining magnetron sputtering and plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD). Transmission electron microscopy revealed the presence of spherical nanoparticles randomly dispersed within the carbon nanofibers. The nickel nanoparticles have been used as a catalyst to initiate the growth of CNT by PECVD at 600 °C. After the growth of CNT onto the ultra-long CNF, SEM imaging revealed the formation of hierarchical carbon nanostructures which consist of CNF sheathed with CNTs. Furthermore, we demonstrate that reducing the growth temperature of CNT to less than 500 °C leads to the formation of carbon nanowalls on the CNF instead of CNT. This simple fabrication method allows an easy preparation of hierarchical carbon nanostructures over a large surface area, as well as a simple manipulation of such material in order to integrate it into nanodevices.


OK-432, a multicytokine inducer and clinically used as an immunopotentiating anti-cancer agent, is known to induce IL-1 and TNF-alpha. The suppressive effect of IL-1 and TNF-alpha on erythropoiesis could limit the clinical use of OK-432 in cancer treatment, especially when combined with radiotherapy. In this study, the effect of OK-432 on normal and X-ray impaired erythropoiesis was examined. C57BL/6J mice were injected with a single dose of OK-432 (5.0 KE). Erythropoietic activity was measured by 59Fe incorporation into circulating erythrocytes and the heme iron fraction of erythropoietic tissue. When irradiated with 662 cGy of X-rays, OK-432 prolonged the survival of mice. No significant change in erythropoiesis was observed when normal mice were treated with OK-432. When treated with OK-432, the recovery of erythropoiesis after irradiation was promoted as judged by the uptake of 59Fe into erythrocytes. This promotion was observed when OK-432 was injected within 1 day before or within 3 hours after the irradiation with 284 cGy of X-rays. This promoting effect, however, appeared to be limited to the spleen. Whether the combination of OK-432 with radiotherapy has the potential to improve the treatment of malignant tumors is still a subject of controversy. The present results, nevertheless, suggest that when combined with radiotherapy, OK-432, at the very least, may have no adverse effects on erythropoiesis.


Text simplification is a method for improving the accessibility of text by converting complex sentences into simple sentences. Multiple studies have been done to create datasets for text simplification. However, most of these datasets focus on high-resource languages only. In this work, we proposed a complex word dataset for Hindi, a language largely ignored in text simplification literature. We used various Hindi knowledge annotators for annotation to capture the annotator's language knowledge. Our analysis shows a significant difference between native and non-native annotators' perception of word complexity. We also built an automatic complex word classifier using a soft voting approach based on the predictions from tree-based ensemble classifiers. These models behave differently for annotations made by different categories of users, such as native and non-native speakers. Our dataset and analysis will help simplify Hindi text depending on the user's language understanding. The dataset is available at https://zenodo.org/record/5229160.


In inverse problems we often need to solve numerically unstable problems that are very sensitive to noise. One of the approaches to such type of problems is classical regularization theory for Hilbert spaces. In the talk I plan to show connections between this theory and the theory of real interpolation, give di®erent examples and discuss a non - Hilbert case - the couple (L2;BV ).


Social media has brought to light the role of authenticity in influencing decision-making, but little work has examined specific authenticity cues that might impact purchase. In other words, does authenticity influence consumer actions? In this paper, we examine an e-commerce platform that leverages influencers to sell beauty products, and examine how two authenticity cues – explicit transparency (#ad) and implicit authenticity (photo originality) – impact purchase decisions. We draw from expectation-confirmation theory and suggest that the impact that perceived authenticity has on purchase decisions and post-purchase satisfaction depends on the type of authenticity cue and is shaped by the expectation of the consumer. We further argue that expectations vary depending on the consumer experience with an influencer and therefore explore the moderation effect of customer loyalty. Our findings suggest that consumers have different reactions depending on the authenticity cues – their purchase probability decreases with transparency but increases with photo originality. We see that with greater loyalty, consumers are more negatively impacted by the #ad tag and are less positively influenced by the originality of the photo. On the other hand, purchase depth—loyalty to one influencer—mitigates the negative effect of the #ad tag and heightens the positive impact of photo originality. We suggest that experience with the influencer provides evidence that the higher the expectation for authenticity (depth) the higher the negative impact of in-authenticity. We also discuss limitations and implications of our work.


Low doses of gamma radiation were given to four different solvents containing C5-BTBP and CyMe4-BTBP, each molecule dissolved both in cyclohexanone and hexanol. Four corresponding solvents were kept unirradiated and used as references for the extraction experiments. Multiple samples were taken from both the irradiated solutions and the reference solutions at certain time intervals. The samples were used in extraction experiments with the radionuclides 241Am and 152Eu. The protection against radiolysis of the extracting molecules by the diluent used for dissolution without adding a scavenger molecule was checked. The interplay between the diluent and the side group of the extracting molecule for protection against radiolysis was also studied by keeping the same type of core molecule for binding to the metal ions and varying the diluent and side group. The results were unexpected. The presence of a cyclic molecule as both a side group or diluent seems to keep the extraction of europium almost unaffected by radiolysis, while americium behaves differently from solvent to solvent. The diluent alone does not protect the extracting molecule. In some of the studied systems there is a distinct change in the extraction behaviour of Am between the irradiated and reference solutions, an effect that is however only present at the beginning of the experimental series. At later times the difference in distribution ratios between the irradiated and reference solution is constant. This phenomenon is found only when the side group and diluent are structurally dissimilar.


This study investigates whether accounting irregularity and improper revenue recognition are associated with the probability that an auditor will be sued for a defective audit of a client. We focus on accounting irregularity and improper revenue recognition given that they are accounting misstatement characteristics that could have severe valuation consequences on shareholder wealth and signal intentional misstatement. Using litigation data from the Stanford Securities Class Action Clearinghouse database and logistic regressions, we find that external auditors are more likely to be sued when audit clients improperly recognize revenues and the accounting misstatement is due to an accounting irregularity. We also find that external auditors are more likely to be sued by shareholders when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) initiates an enforcement action through a court filing or an administrative proceeding. Our results suggest that revenue misstatement, accounting irregularity and SEC enforcement actions appear to be indicators of audit failure. Our results also imply that auditors could reduce the risk of litigation by averting accounting irregularity and improper revenue recognition in audited financial statements. The results should be of interest to regulators and other stakeholders who are concerned with improving audit quality.


Lithium fluoride (activated) crystals were prepared by the Bridgeman-Stockbarger and Czochralski methods. Measurements have been made on the scintillation response of a LiF crystal to photon energies between 8 and 1333 keV. The tissue dose in rads was calculated and compared to the response of the LiF crystal over the same energy range. The response of a single titanium-activated LiF crystal was compared to the response of a NE 109 air-equivalent scintillator at 60Co energies. The absorption and emission spectra of the LiF crystal were obtained.


A kind of CWAO catalyst, RuO 2/γ-Al 2O 3, was prepared by dipping Al 2O 3 into aqueous solution composed of RuCl 3. Taking phenol as organic substrate,the influences of the initial pH of the feed solution and degradation temperatures on the stability and the activity of RuO 2/γ-Al 2O 3 catalyst were investigated. Results showed that leaching of Ru and Al existed in the process of CWAO of phenol and the amount of leached Ru and Al increased with decreasing initial pH of the feed solution, but phenol removal was higher in the acidic feed solution than that in the alkaline feed solution. The amount of leached Ru and Al decreased and phenol removal was higher with increasing degradation temperature. The influences of Ce and Zr added to RuO 2/γ-Al 2O 3 catalyst on the stability and the activity of the catalyst were also studied. The result showed that doping of Ce and Zr into RuO 2/γ-Al 2O 3 catalyst can promote the stability and activity of the catalyst prepared.


OBJECTIVE
To develop a practical strategy that facilitates the management of patients with the irritable bowel syndrome (IBS).

STUDY SELECTION AND DATA EXTRACTION
Review of the pertinent literature published in major English-language journals for the last 25 years, describing the pathophysiology and treatment of subgroups of patients with IBS.

RESULTS
A stepwise approach for practical management of patients with suspected IBS is identified. The first step includes a combination of positive diagnosis of symptoms with limited investigations to exclude underlying structural or biochemical disorders. In the second step, therapeutic trials focus on alleviating the predominant symptoms. For patients with intractable symptoms, the third step combines novel tests to assess altered function and therapeutic trials to correct the dysfunction identified in the individual patient.

CONCLUSIONS
A practical approach has been developed for management of IBS. It is based on advances in our understanding of the mechanisms resulting in IBS and on targeting therapy to correct the dysfunctions in these patients.


This article focuses on the experiences and strategies of members of Sociologists for Women in Society (SWS) who strive to bridge the worlds of social activism and academia. It concerns the International Committee's work at the United Nations (UN), specifically at the annual Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) meeting. It builds on transnational feminist literature that has discussed the UN as stage for a diverse global women's movement and provider of global gender equality norms that, if utilized, advance gender equality in its member states. I analyze themes that emerged from a sample of in-depth interviews with current or former UN scholar-activists within SWS from a larger ethnographic study, and present experiences and challenges of SWS members' engagement with UN politics and policy development since the mid-nineties. I demonstrate that SWS does justice to its mission of serving as an activist organization through its work in the global arena. Analysis of interviews, observations, and archival material demonstrates that SWS's UN scholar- activism is increasing the visibility and applicability of feminist sociology. While this activism critically examines the discourse, it also disrupts hegemonic discourse and offers opportunities for concrete social change, particularly through linking activism, mentoring, and teaching.


The incidence of breast cancer in African American women (AAW) is much lower than those of their Caucasian counterparts. However, the age adjusted mortality rates are much greater for AAW compared to Caucasian American women (CAW). These differences in survival between AAW and CAW were attributed to socioeconomic factors and access to health care. Yet, after adjusting these differences, AAW still had lower survival rates than CAW. Genetic and immunohistochemical studies have revealed that biological variations may account for this disparity. These studies have suggested as a causative: a higher prevalence of basal-like tumors in premenopausal AAW and low prevalence of luminal tumor. These are characterized by being high-grade aggressive tumors that are estrogen receptor negative (ER-), progesterone receptor negative (PR-), human epidermal growth factor receptor-2 (HER-2) +/-; with high rate of lymph node involvement. Despite this understanding, there is little evidence to indicate which genetic or non-genetic factors contribute to causing aggressive breast cancer thereby limiting the development of prevention and treatment option. We proposed that the phenotypic diversity of breast cancer might be accompanied by a corresponding diversity in protein expression patterns that can be reveal using proteomic technologies. We hypothesized that in addition to ER- and PR-, and the absence in expression of HER-2, the protein composition of triple-negative tumors varies among African-American and Caucasian. Two-dimensional gel electrophoresis, mass spectrophotometry and data analysis of protein from breast cancer tissues were used to identify differentially expressed proteins from African American and Caucasian women. Western blot of luminal and TNBC cell lines were used to confirm the expression of identified proteins. We have found that many proteins were differentially expressed in AAW breast cancer tissues compared to CAW. One of these is lactate dehydrogenase which was found to be overexpressed in tissues from AAW. Western blot analysis confirmed expression. Citation Format: Odalys J. Torres-Luquis, Sulma Mohammed. Lactate dehydrogenase expression in African American women with triple-negative breast cancer [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the American Association for Cancer Research Annual Meeting 2017; 2017 Apr 1-5; Washington, DC. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2017;77(13 Suppl):Abstract nr 1132. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2017-1132


Context: Fahr's syndrome is a clinical entity of primary or secondary causes characterized by neurological and/or psychiatric symptoms associated with abnormal calcifications in basal ganglia, cerebellum and cerebral cortex. Case report: G.M.A, female, 49 years-old, presented athetosis in the distal extremity of the right upper limb (RUL) in December 2020, without seeking for medical help. Known to be diabetic, hypertensive and with diastolic heart failure (HF), in February 2021 she presented decompensated HF associated with worsening of involuntary movements in the RUL. During investigation, abnormalities in serum levels of parathormone (PTH) and calcium were observed, in addition to bilateral calcifications in basal ganglia and thalamus in brain computed tomography (CT) without contrast. In March 2021, she was admitted to the University Hospital of the Federal University of Piauí, with maintenance of athetosis at the distal extremity of the RUL, in addition to oromandibular dyskinesia. Laboratory profile compatible with primary hypoparathyroidism and new brain CT without contrast with calcifications in basal ganglia and pulvinar of the thalamus, bilaterally, were confirmed. Intravenous calcium replacement and use of calcitriol were performed, with partial clinical improvement. Conclusions: Fahr's syndrome is characterized by the presence of movement disorders (with highlights for parkinsonism and athetosis) and psychiatric symptoms (depression most commonly). Possible etiologies are primary (genetic) and secondary (mainly idiopathic or secondary hypoparathyroidism). Classic finding of symmetrical calcifications in base nuclei is seen on brain CT. Treatment is symptomatic and control of the underlying disease.


Mortality associated with anaerobic infections approximates 20%. Resistance of anaerobic bacteria to commonly used antimicrobials has been increasingly reported. The aim of this study was to describe antimicrobial susceptibility patterns of anaerobic bacteria isolated from clinical samples using a gradient diffusion method, E test (bioMérieux), in Victoria, Australia. Metronidazole, meropenem and amoxycillin-clavulanate were found to be active against almost all isolates tested. Most Gram positive anaerobic cocci (GPAC), except Peptostreptococcus anaerobius (64.6% penicillin-susceptible), remained susceptible to penicillin. All Clostridium perfringens isolates tested were penicillin, metronidazole and meropenem susceptible. Of B. fragilis isolates tested, 5% and 0.83% were meropenem and metronidazole non-susceptible, respectively. Clindamycin susceptibility in anaerobes other than the GPAC is approximately 75% and therefore should not be used as empirical treatment in the absence of susceptibility testing. Considering the global trend of antibiotic resistance among anaerobic bacteria, routine susceptibility testing of anaerobic bacteria, particularly when isolated from critical sites, as well as surveillance of local resistance trends is strongly encouraged. Gradient diffusion MIC determination of anaerobic bacteria is feasible in a clinical diagnostic laboratory and should be more widely utilised.


Technical innovation provides new ways to upgrade the future cockpit systems of smart cars. It caused that auto companies equipped more functions of SCS (smart cockpit systems) with wonderful visual and tactile effects aiming to enhance the humanization of their interactive systems and achieve better interaction effects. However, the increased functionality of the SCS did not show significant effect on enhancing the UX (User Experience), for the reason of the chaotic functional logic, the lack of perception of the system and friendly human-computer interaction. To resolve these problems, this paper aims to present a new method for the upgrade of new SCS design on UX research that can analyze problems systematically and evaluate the variability of perceptual degree. This research proposes a human affairs centered design framework and evaluation model for managing UX within SCS. The elements of the affair can be abstracted on seven levels: subjects, objects, time, space, message, interaction and meaning. Since the new SCS is more inclined to human-robot interaction (HRI), both users and systems can be treated as subjects and objects simultaneously, which indicates that the framework contains dual subject and dual object. Furthermore, the evaluation model on the elements on these levels is composed of a horizontal dimension: perceptual degree of design, and a vertical dimension: variability of perceptual degree. The horizontal dimension is used to evaluate the various elements in the affair based on the products in the design phase, while the vertical dimension is based on the result of UX research. The hypothesis is that the framework can help the design and valuation of UX focusing on humanization and perception within the smart cockpit systems' design. Validation occurred through a field study performed in a smart car in the design phase, where the basic functions of the prototype has already been realized. Preliminary results validate the usability of the framework and efficiency of the method, thus laying the ground for further research and discussions.


An introduction is given to the use of spectral methods in numerical plasma simulation. As examples of the use of spectral methods, solutions to the two-dimensional Euler equations in both a simple, doubly periodic region, and on an annulus will be shown. In the first case, the solution is expanded in a two-dimensional Fourier series, while a Chebyshev-Fourier expansion is employed in the second case. A new, efficient algorithm for the solution of Poisson's equation on an annulus is introduced. Problems connected to aliasing and to short wavelength noise generated by gradient steepening are discussed.


Activity recognition plays a key role in providing information for context-aware applications. When attempting to model activities, some researchers have looked towards Activity Theory, which theorizes that activities have objectives and are accomplished through tools and objects. The goal of this paper is to determine if hand posture can be used as a cue to determine the types of interactions a user has with objects in a desk/office environment. Furthermore, we wish to determine if hand posture is user-independent across all users when interacting with the same objects in a natural manner. Our initial experiments indicate that a) hand posture can be used to determine object interaction, with accuracy rates above 94% for a user-dependent system, and b) hand posture is dependent upon the individual user when users are allowed to interact with objects as they would naturally.


Background With the evolving nature of telehealth services being supported across graduate medical programs, understanding changing attitudes among program directors is essential for training future physicians. Objective This 5-year longitudinal survey analysis provides details regarding the knowledge, skills, competency, and confidence levels present among program directors and the ways telehealth training (didactic and experiential) supports resident education. Methods A longitudinal observation survey was sent to 77 program directors (48% completion) from an academic health system. Data were compared from survey responses from 2016 to 2021 with additional information collected about current training processes in 2021. Paired sample t-tests, quantitative data analysis, and qualitative thematic analysis results are reported based on a convenience sampling of all program and fellowship directors. Results Results show that while telehealth knowledge and use increased among program director faculty, systemic concerns about the feasibility of telehealth from a time and cost perspective remain high. In 2016 and 2021, most of those surveyed (28.9% and 37.1%, respectively) were concerned about reimbursement. Directors remain committed to telehealth resident education, with over 60% stating that it is "essential to future practice". The qualitative thematic analysis highlighted the need for additional resources and support to conduct telehealth and the variability within disciplines of the use, therefore modeling, of telehealth in clinical settings. Conclusions The overall utilization of telehealth by graduate medical education programs has increased along with the continued need for training to prepare residents for current and future practice.


Abstract. Prabawati G, Herlinda S, Pujiastuti Y. 2019. A comparative study on the arboreal arthropod abundance of rice fields between applied with fungal bioinsecticides and abamectin in the freshwater swamp of South Sumatra, Indonesia (Study case in the main and ratoon rice fields). Biodiversitas 20: 2921-2930. Ratoon rice has been cultivated by local farmers in South Sumatra and can be a source of habitat and niches for the main rice arthropods. The study aimed to compare the abundance of arthropods between main and rationed rice field applied with fungal bioinsecticides and abamectin. This study used bioinsecticides from fungi of Beauveria bassiana, Metarhizium anisopliae, and Cordyceps militaris and control using abamectin. Arboreal arthropods sampled using a sweep net. The abundance of arthropods in the main rice tends to be higher than in ratoon. Spiders found during the two rice seasons were Araneidae, Linyphiidae, Lycosidae, Oxyopidae, Salticidae, Theridiidae, Tetragnathidae, Theridiosomatidae, while predatory insects found were Mantidae, Coenagrionidae, Staphylinidae, Anthicidae, Latridiidae, Formicidae, Coccinellidae, Coccinellidae, Tettigoniidae, Miridae, Carabidae. The fungal bioinsecticides did not reduce the predatory arthropod abundance but the abamectin caused a decrease in the abundance of all guilds. The most drastic decrease was found in web-building spiders. The movement of hunting spiders and the predatory insects of the main to ratoon rice was faster than that of web-building spiders. The existence of ratoon rice could become habitats and niches for arthropods from the main rice. For this reason, controlling the herbivore insects could use bioinsecticides derived from entomopathogenic fungi.


Identifying factors affecting juvenile survival is important to understanding the dynamics of populations and may also provide insights into life history theory and the selective forces shaping evolution. Quantifying the relative influence of the various potential selective forces for the post-birth, maternal dependency, and independent periods is difficult and often limits investigators to estimating a single juvenile survival rate for the first year of life, or from birth to recruitment. We examined survival of individually marked Weddell seal Leptonychotes weddellii pups during the maternal dependency period in Erebus Bay, Antarctica from 2005-2007. We used mark-recapture models to evaluate competing a priori hypotheses regarding variation in daily pre-weaning survival rates (ϕ) during the first 42 days of age. The a priori model receiving the most support from the data supported several of our predictions: ϕ increased with pup age and was higher for pups born later in the season and to older mothers. Increases in ϕ with increasing pup age may have been due to improved resilience to the environment, phenotypic selection against the frailest pups, or both. Maternal age was more important to ϕ than was maternal experience or age of primiparity, potentially indicating that age-related increases in body mass allow greater offspring provisioning, or age-related improvements in competitive abilities benefit offspring during the period of maternal care. Depending on the timing of birth and the age of the mother, ϕ 42 days ranged from 0.79 (SE = 0.05) to 0.98 (SE = 0.01). These exceptionally high pre-weaning survival rates contrast with estimates from other large terrestrial and marine mammal species where neonate survival is considerably lower and suggest that in species with similar life histories, pre-weaning survival probability may be buffered from both predators and environmental fluctuations during the period of maternal nutritional dependency. Climatic changes affecting stability of ice used for pupping substrate or extent of fast-ice buffering pupping colonies from predators have the potential to reduce pre-weaning survival and may have important implications for population growth rates.


Borophene is a monolayer materials made of boron. A perfect planar boropehene called $\beta_{12}$ borophene has Dirac cones and they are well reproduced by a tight-binding model according to recent experimental and first-principles calculation results. We explicitly derive a Dirac theory for them. Dirac cones are gapless when the inversion symmetry exists, while they are gapped when it is broken. In addition, three-band touching points emerge together with pseudospin triplet fermions when all transfer energy is equal and all on-site energy is equal. The three-band touching is slightly resolved otherwise. We construct effective three-band theories for triplet fermions. We also study the edge states of borophene nanoribbons, which show various behaviors depending on the way of edge terminations.


Music therapy principle is based upon a holistic approach through the stimulation of sensory, cognitive, behavioral and psycho-social aspects. Music therapy improves physiological parameters such as heart rate, respiratory rate, and blood pressure.Music therapy via specific software or trained practitioners is increasingly used in adult and neonatal ICU. This review presents the indications and the effects of this approach: anxiety and pain management in intubated patients. The experience in pediatric intensive care unit is still embryonic.An observational study including 21 children suggests that the implantation of this technique is possible in the PICU during the daily procedures such the toilet.


A method was developed for the determination of residual monomers in polymer water treatment chemicals (sodium of polyepoxysuccinic acid (PESA), acrylic acid/maleic anhydride copolymer (AA/MA), polyacrylic acid (PAA), sodium of hydrolyzed polymaleic acid (HPMA), and maleic anhydride/acrylic acid/methyl acrylate copolymer (MA/AA/MAc) using high performance liquid chromatography. The separation was performed on a ZORBAX 300SB-C18 column (5 microm, 150 mm x 4.6 mm). The mobile phase was 0.01 mol/L KH2PO4 (pH 2.3, adjusted by 5% H3PO4)-methanol (95 : 5, v/v) with a flow rate of 0.6 mL/min. The detection wavelength was set at 210 nm and the column temperature was 30 degrees C. The sample was diluted by the mobile phase and filtrated for analysis. The residual monomers of maleic acid, fumaric acid and acrylic acid were completely separated and determined in 10 min, and the limits of detection were 0.5, 0.5, and 0.2 mg/L, respectively. The average recoveries were 98.9% - 103.7% with the relative standard deviations of 1.09% - 1.69%. The correlation coefficients for the linear equations were 0.999 6 - 0.999 9. These results demonstrate that the proposed method is simple, sensitive and reliable for the determination of the residual monomers in five polymer water treatment chemicals.


[Reaction: see text] Practical asymmetric synthesis of functionalized aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives possessing quaternary stereocenters has been achieved by the phase-transfer-catalyzed alkylation of 2 or 3 using chiral quaternary ammonium bromide 1 as catalyst. Subsequent reduction and alkylation of the 3-keto carbonyl moiety of 4 proceeded with complete diastereochemical control to afford the corresponding beta-hydroxy aza-cyclic alpha-amino acid derivatives having stereochemically defined consecutive quaternary carbon centers.


The objective of this study was to investigate the gross and histo-pathological changes caused by the presence of plastic bags in the rumen of goats. Sixteen castrated one-year old small East African goats were used for the study. The animals were divided into 4 groups, of 4 goats (n=4). Three groups were implanted with 129g, 258g and 387g of plastic bags, respectively, introduced into the rumen through rumenotomy, while the fourth group without implants served as control. All goats with or without plastic bags were observed daily for 6 weeks following implantation. Dead and surviving goats euthanized after the 6-week period were subjected to postmortem and histopathological examination. Gross pathological lesions observed were atrophy of the muscle and body fat, and atrophy and fibrosis of the spleen, liver, kidneys and hydropericardium. Lesions on the rumen epithelium included stunting, atrophy, thinning and loss of ruminal papillae, erosion, ulcerations and nodular formations on the ruminal mucosa. The histopathological examination revealed atrophy, erosion, ulceration, and disruptions of the stratified epithelial layer of the papillae. Other changes included parakeratosis, hyperkeratosis, prominent rete pegs, oedema and severe hydrophic degeneration of different parts of the mucosal layer. There were areas of increased mononuclear cell infiltration, increase in the number of lymphatic vessels and lymphangiectasis in the submucosa, and oedema in the muscularis and serosal layers. The pathological changes observed may interfere with the digestion and absorption of nutrients, resulting in poor animal condition, overall productivity and production.


Recently, instructional videos are widely being used in educational settings. Many researches have proposed the construction of video-based learning environments that reflect Cognitive Load Theory. In this study, we examined the effects of cognitive load induced by the speed of video playing in an interactive video-based learning environment. The experimental results showed that increasing or decreasing cognitive load affected the learners' selection of problem solving strategies, but did not provide learning effects. The results also indicated that learners showed adaptive behaviors for adjusting cognitive load depending on learning situations.


This paper describes the use of an X ray computerized tomography scanner for noninvasive, three-dimensional, high-resolution imaging of air distribution patterns during air sparging in water-saturated sandpacks. Experiments were performed in Plexiglas cylindrical cells using well-defined Ottawa sands. The reconstructed images provide detailed porosity and air saturation distributions previously unavailable. Two classes of behavior were observed. In high-permeability (106 darcy) uniform sandpacks a relatively few, discrete, and tortuous air pathways were formed. Steady state was rapidly attained, and the intrachannel air saturations were low (0.10). In contrast, low-permeability (3 darcy) sandpacks increased the breadth of air contact, delayed attainment of steady state, and displayed high air saturations (0.50). The concept of a hydrodynamic stagnation saturation and standard one-dimensional fractional flow theory proved useful in explaining the experiments. Numerical simulation confirms the explanations, even when capillary pressure and compressibility effects are included.


: External secretion of the pancreas was studied in 123 patients suffering ulcerous disease of the stomach and duodenum, in whom gastric resection was performed. The best indices of external secretion in patients operated upon after the Hofmeister-Finsterer technic seem to be conditioned by the fact that in such operative technic no abducent loop syndrome or duodenostasis develop, aggravating the function of the whole hepato-pancreato-duodenal system.


Obesity is an important risk factor for insulin resistance and hypertension and plays a central role in the metabolic syndrome. Insight into the pathophysiology of this syndrome may lead to new treatments. This paper has reviewed the evidence for an important role for the microcirculation as a possible link between obesity, insulin resistance and hypertension.