Background
 Diffuse large B-cell lymphomas (DLBCL) can be divided into subtypes that relate to their cell-of-origin: germinal center B-cell (GCB) and activated B-cell (ABC). These clinically distinct subtypes were originally discovered based on their unique transcriptional signatures, but they also harbor distinct genetic aberrations and epigenetic profiles. We previously showed the utility of genetic mutations in circulating tumor DNA (ctDNA) for DLBCL subtyping using cancer personalized profiling by deep sequencing (CAPP-Seq) [Scherer et al., Sci Transl Med 2016, Newman et al., Nat Med 2014]. Here, we assess epigenetic information encoded in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) for addressing this distinction.
 Methods
 We extended recent observations revealing nucleosome depletion at transcription start sites (TSS) of highly expressed genes within cfDNA [Snyder et al. 2016 Cell and Ulz et al. 2016 Nat Genetics]. Specifically, to overcome the inherent sensitivity limitations of cfDNA whole genome sequencing (WGS), we focused on 32 genes differentially expressed between DLBCL subtypes (as well as 70 control genes). We targeted 2 kb regions flanking each TSS for these genes by CAPP-Seq [Newman et al. 2014 Nature Med]. Plasma samples were collected from 41 individuals and cfDNA subjected to ultra-deep sequencing (~4000x) by CAPP-Seq. DLBCL cases were labeled as either ABC or GCB based on gene expression in tumor biopsies.
 Results
 We observed significant heterogeneity in the TSS profiles of individual genes. Despite this variation, many genes in our targeted panel exhibited discriminatory profiles. For example, CD20 (MS4A1), reliably distinguished DLBCL cases from control subjects in nucleosome depletion at the TSS as expected (p= 1.5e-05, Fig1a). Remarkably, when considering 32 genes differentially expressed between DLBCL subtypes, we observed significant differences in their TSS profiles in plasma from patients with GCB vs ABC DLBCL (p=0.0002, Fig 1b). For the majority of the subtype-specific genes, the pattern of nucleosome depletion at the TSS was consistent with expected expression (Fig 1b). Specifically, genes typically over-expressed in GCB DLBCL (e.g., CD10/MME, LMO2, SERPINA9), had significantly more TSS nucleosome depletion in cfDNA from GCB-like DLBCL patients. Conversely, we observed significantly more nucleosome depletion in cfDNA of ABC DLBCL patients at the TSS of genes known to be transcriptionally more active in ABC DLBCL (e.g., IRF4, PIM1, CCND2 and IL16). When aggregating the epigenetic profiles across these genes into a single cell-of-origin score, we observed significant stratification of patients with distinct DLBCL subtypes (Fig 1c, p=0.008). Across the cohort, this epigenetic cell-of-origin score from cfDNA showed significant correlation (Spearman rho=0.67, p=0.05) with a score derived from somatic mutations genotyped from ctDNA [Scherer et al. 2016 Sci Transl Med].
 Conclusions
 Lymphoma subtypes exhibit distinct chromatin accessibility profiles that can be captured by targeted cell free DNA profiling, and that can serve as surrogates for expected gene expression differences. These epigenetic features can be used to noninvasively classify DLBCL molecular subtypes using blood plasma and should be readily extensible to other cancer classification problems. Extension of this approach to other epigenetic features could serve to further refine potential applications.
 Figure legend.
 Figure 1. (A) Sequencing coverage around the TSS of the B-cell antigen CD20 (MS4A1) is shown for three representative DLBCL patients (red) and three normal controls (gray). The boxplot shows summary of normalized depth across all samples (n=10 DLBCL, n=31 control). (B) The y-axis shows 32 genes with known ABC-favoring (blue) and GCB-favoring (orange) expression. The x-axis shows a delta score defined as log2( mean normalized depth across GCB samples - mean normalized depth across GCB samples). (C) Boxplot of the GCBness score obtained by subtracting the overall depth around the TSSs of a set of GCB-genes from the same metric for a set of ABC-genes.

 No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


Death Penalty is one of the most common punishments that have existed throughout history and was considered an effective measure to reduce criminal activities. Capital Punishment is being viewed as a violation of humanistic approach which guides the foundational infrastructure of International Organization like United Nations establishing regimes on the grounds that negate violation of right to life. United Nations Resolution 62/149 calls for removal of Death Penalty, or imposing moratorium on death penalty as part of its adherence to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Nevertheless, there are domestic compulsions which may push the states to lift moratorium on Death penalty despite their adoption of UDHR and considering right to life as fundamental human right established in their constitutional law. There are two different approaches to view this dichotomy, on one hand adoption of moratorium on death penalty is considered humane, while on the other hand it is a burden on a state's counter terrorism mechanism which requires a decisive action against the terrorists. The researcher has conducted a qualitative & descriptive research. Both primary & secondary data has been utilized in order to draw results about the impact of moratorium on death penalty in the context of terrorism specifically in Pakistan. The research concludes that lifting of moratorium on death penalty and establishing death penalty as a punishment to deter crime and violence has not proven successful as there are several other factors that are also crucial in reduction of violence.


The present report deals with low-temperature thermochemical storage for space heating, which is based on the principles of vapour adsorption onto solid adsorbents. With the aim of obtaining comprehensive information on the rationalized selection of adsorbents for heat storage in open sorption systems operating in the moist-air flow mode, various materials reported up to now in the literature are reviewed by referring strictly to the possible mechanisms of water vapour adsorption, as well as practical aspects of their preparation or their application under particular operating conditions. It seems reasonable to suggest that, on the basis of the current state-of-the-art, the adsorption phenomenon may be rather exploited in the auxiliary heating systems, which provide additional heat during winter's coldest days.


Demonstrating compelling causal evidence of the existence and strength of peer to peer influence has become the holy grail of modern research in online social networks. In these networks, it has been consistently demonstrated that user characteristics and behavior tend to cluster both in space and in time. There are multiple well-known rival mechanisms that compete to be the explanation for this observed clustering. These range from peer influence to homophily to other unobservable external stimuli. These multiple mechanisms lead to similar observational data, yet have vastly different policy implications. In this paper, we present a novel randomized experiment that tests the existence of causal peer influence in the general population -- one that did not involve subject recruitment for experimentation -- of a particular large-scale online social network. We utilize a unique social feature to exogenously induce adoption of a paid service amongst a group of randomly selected users, and in the process develop a clean exogenous randomization of treatment and control groups. A variety of nonparametric, semiparametric and parametric approaches, ranging from resampling-based inference to ego-level random effects to logistic regression to survival models, yield close to identical, statistically and economically significant estimates of peer influence in the general population of a freemium social network. Our estimates show that peer influence causes more than a 60% increase in odds of buying the service due to the influence coming from an adopting friend. In addition, we find that users with a smaller number of friends experience stronger relative increase in the adoption likelihood due to influence from their peers as compared to the users with a larger number of friends. Our nonparametric resampling procedure based estimates are helpful in situations of networked data that violate independence assumptions. We establish that peer influence is a powerful force in getting users from free to premium levels, a known challenge in freemium communities.


Precise spatiotemporal sequences of action potentials are observed in many brain areas and are thought to be involved in the neural processing of sensory stimuli. Here, we examine the ability of spiking neural networks to propagate stably a spatiotemporal sequence of spikes in the limit where each neuron fires only one spike. In contrast to previous studies on propagation in neural networks, we assume only homogeneous connectivity and do not use the continuum approximation. When the propagation is associated with a simple traveling wave, or a one-spike sequence, we derive some analytical results for the wave speed and show that its stability is determined by the Schur criterion. The propagation of a sequence of several spikes corresponds to the existence of stable composite waves, i.e., stable spatiotemporal periodic traveling waves. The stability of composite waves is related to the roots of a system of multivariate polynomials. Using the simplest synaptic architecture that supports composite waves, a three nearest-neighbor coupling feedforward network, we analytically and numerically investigate the propagation of 2-composite waves, i.e., two-spike sequence propagation. The influence of the synaptic coupling, stochastic perturbations, and neuron parameters on the propagation of larger sequences is also investigated.


The structural properties of a system of ionic microgels under the influence of an alternating electric field are investigated both theoretically and experimentally. This combined investigation aims to shed light on the structural transitions that can be induced by changing either the driving frequency or the strength of the applied field, which range from string-like formation along the field to crystal-like structures across the orthogonal plane. In order to highlight the physical mechanisms responsible for the observed particle self-assembly, we develop a coarse-grained description, in which effective interactions among the charged microgels are induced by both equilibrium ionic distributions and their time-averaged hydrodynamic responses to the applied field. These contributions are modeled by the buildup of an effective dipole moment at the microgels backbones, which is partially screened by their ionic double layer. We show that this description is able to capture the structural properties of this system, allowing for very good agreement with the experimental results. The model coarse-graining parameters are indirectly obtained via the measured pair distribution functions and then further assigned with a clear physical interpretation, allowing us to highlight the main physical mechanisms accounting for the observed self-assembly behavior.


The authors present the clinical results of 558 patients, with peptic ulcer vagotomised between January 1966 and December 1977. Characteristic intraoperative and early postoperative complications of vagotomy were more frequent in the beginning. Best results were obtained by vagotomy and antrectomy or by vagotomy and pyloroplasty. Comparing the clinical results of vagotomy and partial gastrectomy (Billroth II) the authors found no significant difference.


Background. Designing a permanent magnet synchronous motor (PMSM) of a winch drive needs to take into account the features of this machine. The engine has an inverted design with limited dimensions, is powered by a frequency converter, runs at the nominal power frequency and nominal load without using the damping winding and frequency start, and provides the required range of rope winding speeds. There is no specialized engineering design methodology for the winch drive PMSM. It is required to make changes and additions to the existing methods of designing synchronous machines when solving the problem of designing a winch drive PMSM. Materials and methods. Design and validation calculations were performed in the Mathcad environment based on the technique of designing machines with V.A. Balagurov's permanent magnets and methods of designing general-purpose industrial synchronous machines with electromagnetic excitation. Field models of PMSM were used for modelling electromechanical processes and thermal status. Results. The developed technique of designing the winch drive permanent magnet inverted motor is different from the known methods and due to this allows accounting for the design features of PMSM in the calculation of the size of the machine, the magnets, the stator core, the choice of electromagnetic loads, the design of the stator winding, the choice of the cooling system and the steel grade of the stator core. The specific requirements of the technical specification are taken into account when calculating the number of poles and the frequency of the supply voltage. A design project of the inverted PMSM of the winch drive has been developed. And the paper presents the design and verification calculations results. Conclusions. The reliability of the results was checked by field modeling of electromechanical processes and the thermal state of the PMSM. The study has solved the problem of no specialized engineering design techniques of the winch drive PMSM. The technique can be used by electromechanical engineers in solving the problem of designing winch drive PMSM as it allows making a design project of the PMSM corresponding to the requirements of the technical specifications and operation feature.


Mutations of the Eda gene, which encodes for ectodysplasin-A1, result in X-linked hypohydrotic ectodermal dysplasia (XLHED). This pathology may lead to severe oligodontia, subsequently requiring implant therapy. Since Eda is suspected to participate in bone development, the jaw bone status was investigated in XLHED patients in order to adjust the surgical protocol. Using computed tomography, densitometric profiles and 3D reconstructions, the bone structure was analyzed and compared to that of control individuals; our results showed that the morphological changes comprised mandibular bone flattening. Craniofacial CT scans showed medullary bone hyperdensity, including in the mandibular symphysis area, where implants must be placed. These alterations in bone structure were also observed in locations where the presence/absence of teeth cannot interfere. If the changes in jaw bone morphology can be a consequence of oligodontia, the changes in bone structure seem to be tooth-independent and suggest a direct effect of the mutation on bone formation and/or remodeling.


An empirical research was done to examine and analyze the crucial domains in the organizational culture of world-ranked or premier universities in Malaysia, particularly in terms of their core values, direction, management effectiveness, innovation, customer focus, and institutional policies. The research employed a survey instrument on organizational culture and involved 1440 university students who were randomly selected from different faculties at four premier universities in the vicinity of Kuala Lumpur region in Malaysia. As highlights of this paper, the research found that the crucial cultural domains of premier universities were institutional policies, empowerment issue, team orientation behavior, and capability development of students. It was also found that students in premier public universities were more satisfied with their campus culture than students in premier private universities. Besides that, the important institutional policies were equality, academic integrity, and multiculturalism. Consequently, in terms of significance, new colleges and universities in Malaysia or other countries, whether public or private, may use the results and findings of this research for upgrading their organizational culture in order to achieve global ranking in the future.


THE lambing ewe in difficulty represents the most common ovine patient, although the numbers seen by practices may range from one or two animals from the local city farm to the queues of patients commonly presented to farm practices in areas with high sheep populations. Shepherds' skills vary markedly. Many are very experienced (often more so than the veterinarian who sees only a few lambings each year) and their cases will tend to be those requiring a caesarean section. Others are totally inexperienced and may call for help with the simplest lambing. In some instances attempts by one or more people will have gone on for far too long, risking the lives of the ewe and lamb(s). Whatever the circumstances, management of dystocia in the ewe depends vitally on making a quick and accurate assessment of the case.


We consider two problems of estimation in high-dimensional Gaussian models. The first problem is that of estimating a linear functional of the means of $n$ independent $p$-dimensional Gaussian vectors, under the assumption that most of these means are equal to zero. We show that, up to a logarithmic factor, the minimax rate of estimation in squared Euclidean norm is between $(s^2\wedge n) +sp$ and $(s^2\wedge np)+sp$. The estimator that attains the upper bound being computationally demanding, we investigate suitable versions of group thresholding estimators that are efficiently computable even when the dimension and the sample size are very large. An interesting new phenomenon revealed by this investigation is that the group thresholding leads to a substantial improvement in the rate as compared to the element-wise thresholding. Thus, the rate of the group thresholding is $s^2\sqrt{p}+sp$, while the element-wise thresholding has an error of order $s^2p+sp$. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first known setting in which leveraging the group structure leads to a polynomial improvement in the rate.
The second problem studied in this work is the estimation of the common $p$-dimensional mean of the inliers among $n$ independent Gaussian vectors. We show that there is a strong analogy between this problem and the first one. Exploiting it, we propose new strategies of robust estimation that are computationally tractable and have better rates of convergence than the other computationally tractable robust (with respect to the presence of the outliers in the data) estimators studied in the literature. However, this tractability comes with a loss of the minimax-rate-optimality in some regimes.


Scope – This research focused on the development of a tailorable framework of practices for Maintenance Delivery (MD): i.e. a flexible business process design tool which was developed in order to resolve a series of specific gaps identified in the sponsor's Asset Management System (AMS).

Methodology – The framework was developed in two stages: firstly via a systematic review of existing MD practices from the literature in order to establish a preliminary version; this was then developed further via a Delphi study utilising the opinion of experts from industry to critique and improve the initial framework design.

Key Findings – The framework was implemented and tested in the sponsor company in order to demonstrate its ability to successfully improve MD practices across multiple sites in different industry contexts. A post-implementation assessment demonstrated significant improvement, sufficient to close all of the high-risk gaps that were originally identified.

Contribution to Industry – The framework covers the entire subject area of MD in detail and offers a wide range of optional practices throughout, complete with expert guidance to facilitate the decision-making process. This means it can be utilised by any business to design an effective MD process that is tailored to suit their specific context. Alongside a tailored MD process, the framework will also generate a fully aligned implementation specification for the supporting CMMS (Computerised Maintenance Management System), which is also tailored according to the same contextual requirements. This will enable the end user of the framework to procure, implement and configure a CMMS that has the complete range of functionality required to fully support their business requirements.

Innovation – A tailorable framework that is flexible enough to be utilised in many different industries is novel, because existing MD processes are generally designed for a single, specific case and cannot adapt to different contexts. The size and scope of the framework also validates the innovation claim – i.e. a series of flowcharts covering multiple AM subject areas, with 157 core process steps, 109 contextual options, and 30,000+ words of guidance. The fact that framework has already been successfully utilised to develop and implement an effective MD process in a very specific context (i.e. a maintenance-intensive, highly regulated nuclear site with a relatively small workforce) further strengthens the claim for innovation.


This study compared the following effects of two vaccine information flyers—one developed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) versus one adapted from this information to a comic medium (comic)—on adults: (a) attitude toward the flyer; (b) perceived informativeness of the flyer; (c) intention to seek more information about adult immunizations after viewing the flyer; and (d) intention to get immunized after viewing the flyer. A between-group, randomized trial was used to randomly assign adults (age 18 years or older) at an ambulatory care center to review the CDC or comic flyer. Participants were asked to complete a survey to measure several outcome variables. Items were measured using a 7-point semantic differential scale. Independent-samples t-test was used for comparisons. A total of 265 surveys (CDC n = 132 vs comic n = 133) were analyzed. The comic flyer had a statistically significant effect on participants' attitudes and their perception of the flyer's informativeness compared to the CDC flyer. Flyer type did not have a statistically significant effect on intention-related variables. The study findings showed that the comic flyer was positively evaluated compared to the CDC flyer. These findings could provide a new direction for developing adult educational materials.


Effective thermal conductivity of granular porous media is investigated by experimental and numerical methods. Using the unsteady heat conduction formula of semi-infinite body, effective thermal conductivity is obtained by measuring temperature field of the experimental system. In this experiment, solid particle is pebble and pore fluid is water or brine with salinity of 20.2%. Granular porous media is not applicable for fractal method, therefore based on structural character of granular porous media; two-dimensional cylinder model is used to calculate effective thermal conductivity of granular porous media in this paper. The simulation results correspond well with the experimental results. This proves that calculating effective thermal conductivity of granular porous media by using this two-dimensional model is accurate. This model could be extrapolated to unsaturated porous media. Research shows that effective thermal conductivity increases logarithmically with the increasing of saturation.


Generally, research has shown pregnant women have a more negative body image pre-pregnancy and early pregnancy compared to mid-to-late pregnancy. Negative body image in this population has been linked to several important pregnancy-related behaviours and poorer mental health that may put the mother's and baby's health at risk. In regards to positive body image, there has been a lack of research investigating how positive body image constructs such as body appreciation and embodiment change, and little work has examined how self-objectification changes. In nonpregnant populations, positive body image has been linked to several health behaviours and outcome; thus, it is important to determine if pregnant women experience positive body image during their pregnancy. In addition, participation in physical activity has been linked to improvements in body image via an increase in embodiment and a decrease in selfobjectification in young adult women. Whether this is true for the pregnant population is unknown. The overall purpose of this study was to understand the relationship between positive body image and physical activity in pregnant women. The first purpose was to determine whether body appreciation, embodiment, and self-objectification levels differ across trimester. The second purpose was to determine if physical activity was associated with body appreciation, and if this relationship was mediated by an increase in embodiment and a decrease in selfobjectification. Thirty-one women in the first trimester, 55 in the second trimester, and 75 in the third trimester completed measures of body appreciation, embodiment, self-objectification, and physical activity online. Multivariate analysis of covariance showed all measures differed by trimester. Post-hoc tests showed body appreciation (M = 3.79; SE = 0.08) and embodiment (M = 2.92; SE = 0.05) were higher and self-objectification (M = 3.86; SE = 0.14) lower in third trimester compared to first trimester (M = 3.37; SE = 0.12; M = 2.56; SE = 0.09; M = 4.54; SE = 0.22). Embodiment was also higher in the third trimester (M = 2.92; SE = 0.05) compared to the second trimester (M = 2.67; SE = 0.06). Serial mediation analysis revealed physical activity was associated with body appreciation through an increase in embodiment and a decrease in selfobjectification. The findings from this study indicate positive body image improves across pregnancy and physical activity could be one way to improve positive body image in pregnant women.


BACKGROUND
Vasculogenic mimicry (VM) plays an important role in invasion and metastasis of malignant tumor. High expression of vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cahderin) in malignant tumor cells can promote the formation of VM. High expression of SOX4 (sex-determining region Y-related high-mobility group box 4) was found in esophageal squamous cell carcinoma (ESCC). It can promote the development of epithelial stromal transformation. Then, SOX4 can promote the formation of VM in ESCC.

METHODS
Paraffin-embedded specimens of ESCC (with complete clinicopathological data) and normal esophageal mucosa adjacent to carcinoma (> 5 cm) were collected from January to December 2013. CD34/PAS was used to detect VM. The expression of VE-cadherin and SOX4 was used by immunohistochemistry. The patients were followed up in detail (survival time and survival status).

RESULTS
SOX4, VM, and VE-cadherin were highly expressed in ESCC. Moreover, they were positively correlated. Survival analysis shows that the expressions of SOX4, VM, and VE-cadherin are associated with the patient's prognosis and can be independent prognostic factors for ESCC.

CONCLUSIONS
Studies suggests that SOX4, which is highly expressed in ESCC, is involved in the formation of VM. The combined detection of SOX4, VE-cadherin and VM expression can be used as biomarkers for invasion and metastasis of ESCC. These three markers can be used as powerful prognostic factors in patients with ESCC.


Automatic screening of atrial fibrillation (AF) in the out-of-clinic environment is potentially an effective method for early detection of this life-threatening arrhythmia which is often paroxysmal and asymptomatic. Different technologies such as modified blood pressure monitor, single lead ECG-based finger-probe, and smartphone using plethysmogram signal have been emerging for this purpose. All these technologies use irregularity of RR interval (RRI) as a feature for AF detection. For real-time applications scalar feature is extracted from RRI signal and classified with a threshold. In this work, we have introduced multi-parametric RRI feature yielding a multidimensional feature vector. We used machine learning technique to learn the optimal decision boundary. The proposed method was tested with a publicly available landmark database. Initial experiments show promising AF detection performances comparable to those of state-of-the-art methods. Development and implementation of such a method in existing screen devices such a smartphone could be important for prevention of AFrelated risk of stroke, dementia, and death.


A huge amount of audio data is accessible to everyone by on-line or off-line information services and it is necessary to develop techniques to automatically describe and deal with this data in a meaningful way. In the particular context of music content processing it is important to take into account the melodic aspects of the sound. The goal of this article is to review the different techniques proposed for melodic description and extraction. Some ideas around the concept of melody are first presented. Then, an overview of the different ways of describing melody is done. As a third step, an analysis of the methods proposed for melody extraction is made, including pitch detection algorithms. Finally, techniques for melodic pattern induction and matching are also studied, and some useful melodic transformations are reviewed.


Bursting X-ray binaries in globular clusters are ideal sources for measuring neutron star masses and radii, and hence, for determining the equation of state of cold, ultradense matter. We use time-resolved spectroscopic data from EXO 1745−248 during thermonuclear bursts that show strong evidence for photospheric radius expansion to measure the Eddington flux and the apparent surface area of the neutron star. We combine this with the recent measurement of the distance to the globular cluster Terzan 5, where this source resides, to measure the neutron star mass and radius. We find tightly constrained pairs of values for the mass and radius, which are centered around M = 1.4 M☉ and R = 11 km or around M = 1.7 M☉ and R = 9 km. These values favor nucleonic equations of state with symmetry energy that is relatively low and has a weak dependence on density.


Human sperm karyotypes can be prepared after fusion of human sperm with Golden hamster oocytes. Most laboratories use one of two methods of sperm capacitation: incubation of freshly-ejaculated sperm in Biggers, Whitten, and Whittingham (BWW) medium for 5-7 h at 37 degrees C or sperm storage in (N-tris [hydroxymethyl]methyl-2-aminoethanesulfonic acid; 2-([2-hydroxy-1,1-bis(hydroxymethyl)ethyl]amino)ethanesulfonic acid) (TES)-Tris yolk buffer (TYB) for 1-3 days at 4 degrees C. Since there have been conflicting reports as to whether there is a difference in the frequency of structural chromosomal abnormalities between BWW capacitation and storage in TYB for 2 days, we analyzed a larger number of karyotypes (8974) from 136 donors to determine if there was any difference in the frequency or type of chromosomal abnormalities in sperm treated by fresh BWW capacitation, storage in TYB for 1 day (TYB-1), or storage in TYB for 2 days (TYB-2). There was no difference in the frequency of numerical chromosomal abnormalities or sex ratio in any of the three treatment groups. However, there was a significantly increased frequency of structural chromosomal abnormalities after storage in TYB-1 and TYB-2. There was no difference in the frequency or type of structural chromosomal abnormalities after sperm storage in TYB-1 compared to TYB-2.


Transcranial direct current stimulation (tDCS) is a non-invasive brain stimulation technique which provides unique potential to directly improve human capability on a temporary, at needs, basis. The purpose of this paper is to consider the utility of tDCS through analysis of the potential risks and benefits in the context of defence service personnel. First, we look at the potential benefits, focusing primarily on warfighter survivability and enriching cognition quality in support of command and control. Second, we look at the potential detriments to tDCS military use, focusing on adverse effects, safety considerations, and risk. Third, we examine how the level of risk can be mitigated through military doctrine development focusing on safety parameters and exclusion criteria. Finally, we explore the future prospects of military tDCS use, particularly in terms of addressing gaps in the literature so that tDCS can be used ethically and efficaciously at the level of individual personnel.


Volumetric video is fully three-dimensional and provides users with highly immersive and interactive experience. However, it is difficult to stream volumetric video over the Internet due to sheer video size and limited network bandwidth. Existing solutions suffered from poor perceptual quality and low coding efficiency. In this paper, we first conduct a comprehensive user study to understand the effectiveness of popular perceptual quality metrics for volumetric video. It is observed that those metrics cannot well capture the impact of user viewing behaviors. Considering the findings that users are more sensitive to the distortion of 2D image rendered from 3D point cloud, a new metric called Volu-FMAF is proposed to better represent perceptual quality of volumetric video. Next, we propose a novel neural-based volumetric video streaming framework RenderVolu and design a distortion-aware rendered image super-resolution network, called RenDA-Net, to further improve user perceptual quality. Last, we conduct extensive experiments with real datasets to validate our proposed method, and the results show that our method can boost the perceptual quality of volumetric video by 171% to 190%, and achieves a speedup of 108x in terms of decoding efficiency compared to the state-of-the-art approaches.


Abstract. To address the multi-modal spatio-temporal data efficient scheduling problem of the diverse and highly concurrent visualization applications in cloud-edge-terminal environment, this paper systematically studies the cloud-edge-terminal integrated scheduling model of multi-level visualization tasks of multi-modal spatio-temporal data. By accurately defining the hierarchical semantic mapping relationship between the diverse visual application requirements of different terminals and scheduling tasks, we propose a multi-level task-driven cloud-edge-terminal multi-granularity storage-computing-rendering resource collaborative scheduling method. Based on the workflow, the flexible allocation strategy of cloud-edge-terminal scheduling service chain that consider the characteristics of spatio-temporal task is constructed. Finally, we established a cloud-edge-terminal scheduling adaptive optimization mechanism based on the service quality evaluation model, and developed a prototype system. Experiments are conducted with the urban construction and construction management, the results show that the new method breaks through the bottleneck of traditional spatio-temporal data visualization scheduling, and it can provide theoretical and methodological support for the visualization and scheduling of spatio-temporal big data.


The ever-increasing computational and storage requirements of modern applications and the slowdown of technology scaling pose major challenges to designing and implementing efficient computer architectures. In this paper, we leverage the architectural balance principle to alleviate the bandwidth bottleneck at the L1 data memory boundary of a tightly-coupled cluster of processing elements (PEs). We thus explore coupling each PE with an L0 memory, namely a private register file implemented as Standard Cell Memory (SCM). Architecturally, the SCM is the Vector Register File (VRF) of Spatz, a compact 64-bit floating-point-capable vector processor based on RISC-V's Vector Extension Zve64d. Unlike typical vector processors, whose VRF are hundreds of KiB large, we prove that Spatz can achieve peak energy efficiency with a VRF of only 2 KiB. An implementation of the Spatz-based cluster in GlobalFoundries' 12LPP process with eight double-precision Floating Point Units (FPUs) achieves an FPU utilization just 3.4% lower than the ideal upper bound on a double-precision, floating-point matrix multiplication. The cluster reaches 7.7 FMA/cycle, corresponding to 15.7 GFLOPS-DP and 95.7 GFLOPS-DP/W at 1 GHz and nominal operating conditions (TT, 0.80V, 25^oC) with more than 55% of the power spent on the FPUs. Furthermore, the optimally-balanced Spatz-based cluster reaches a 95.0% FPU utilization (7.6 FMA/cycle), 15.2 GFLOPS-DP, and 99.3 GFLOPS-DP/W (61% of the power spent in the FPU) on a 2D workload with a 7x7 kernel, resulting in an outstanding area/energy efficiency of 171 GFLOPS-DP/W/mm^2. At equi-area, our computing cluster built upon compact vector processors reaches a 30% higher energy efficiency than a cluster with the same FPU count built upon scalar cores specialized for stream-based floating-point computation.


Abstract Extensive overwash occurred along the Florida coast during the passage of four strong hurricanes in 2004, providing an excellent opportunity to study the spatial patterns and sedimentary architecture of washover deposits. Detailed 3D sedimentological characteristics of two of the over-wash fans were studied through coring, trenching, and ground penetration radar surveys. The first washover-fan complex, deposited by hurricanes Frances and Jeanne is located on the Atlantic facing Hutchinson Island in southeastern Florida. The second fan, deposited by hurricane Ivan is located on the Gulf-facing Santa Rosa Island in northwestern Florida. Subsurface imaging using a 250 MHz Ground penetrating radar profiling system correlated well with bedding features observed in cores and trenches; while the Ground penetrating radar profiling provided greater spatial coverage. The internal architecture of the overwash lobes is generally characterized by: (1) planar horizontal to sub-horizontal stratification resulting from sheet flow regime overwashing a subaerial surface, and (2) steeply landward dipping tabular foresets, formed during landward progradation and subaqueous deposition, likely into a washover pond or lagoon. Associated local features such as truncated inclined bedding, scour holes, and truncated dunes are also common to washover sediment deposits.


Abstract 2585 Poster Board II-561 A high prevalence of depression has been described in both chronic diseases and diseases associated with chronic pain. Sickle cell disease (SCD) is a congenital and lifelong complex hematological illness in which both acute and chronic pain are described as hallmarks. Depression prevalence has also been reported as high in SCD. Clinical depression may lead to decreased compliance with prescribed medical treatments, and thus deteriorating function and health status. Furthermore, depressed patients report more frequent painful episodes. Pain and depression can also both have negative effects on health-related quality of life (QoL) measures in a chronically ill population. Methods: We performed an analytic epidemiologic prospective study to determine the prevalence of depression (as measured by the Beck Depression Inventory [BDI]) in 70 adult SCD patients at baseline (no pain episodes within 30 days) who receive their SCD disease-related care primarily from our clinic. We also assessed the association between the prevalence of depression, QoL, and severity scores measuring end organ damage as previously described (Afenyi-Annan et al. 2008). To measure mental and physical QoL domains, patients were administered the SF36 QoL scale. A short computerized test, "CNS Vital Signs," was used to assess patients9 neurocognitive function. Pain diaries were used to determine the use of short-term and long-term narcotics. Results: The sample included 38 females and 32 males, ages 19 – 76 years (mean 36). Mean severity score was 1.61 (SD 1.1; range 0–4). Nineteen patients (27%) had clinical depression by BDI. Nine of them (47%) were classified as severe. The gender ratio was 2:1 F:M. Patients with depression were significantly older (mean age 39.8 vs. 35.0 yrs, p Summary: We conclude that there is likely a complex and thus far poorly understood interaction between multiple SCD cofactors and the presence of depression in this patient population. QoL rather than disease severity is the measure most strongly related to depression in our study. Disclosures: No relevant conflicts of interest to declare.


In a combined theoretical and experimental study, we give evidence that the self-organized electric potential in tapered glass capillaries has the strength to focus a low-energy ion beam. Similar to Einzel lenses, the on-axis injected beam is focused by an axis-symmetric potential, generated by the charge accumulated in the insulating capillary. We argue that for capillaries with large aspect ratio, the mechanism responsible for the focusing in our experiment is different from the one shown in earlier experiments. We found that the potential inside the capillary had to reach about 70% of the extraction potential of the ion source in order to be strong enough to focus the beam through the capillary. With increasing injected current intensities, the transmitted current density is shown to increase up to a factor 10 with respect to the injected one. An original experimental setup is used to monitor the accumulated total charge in the capillary linking the latter to the transmitted fraction of the beam. This way, we can clearly identify the different stages of the transmission in real time, and in particular the Coulomb blocking, and explain why it occurred inevitable in this setup. The experimental data are corroborated by our simulations, which allow a valuable and comprehensive insight into the dynamics of the self-organized Coulomb potential. The latter controls the focusing effect and explains many features such as why the transmitted fraction increases with the injected intensity.


The massive use of artificial neural networks (ANNs), increasingly popular in many areas of scientific computing, rapidly increases the energy consumption of modern high-performance computing systems. An appealing and possibly more sustainable alternative is provided by novel neuromorphic paradigms, which directly implement ANNs in hardware. However, little is known about the actual benefits of running ANNs on neuromorphic hardware for use cases in scientific computing. Here, we present a methodology for measuring the energy cost and compute time for inference tasks with ANNs on conventional hardware. In addition, we have designed an architecture for these tasks and estimate the same metrics based on a state-of-the-art analog in-memory computing (AIMC) platform, one of the key paradigms in neuromorphic computing. Both methodologies are compared for a use case in quantum many-body physics in two-dimensional condensed matter systems and for anomaly detection at 40 MHz rates at the Large Hadron Collider in particle physics. We find that AIMC can achieve up to one order of magnitude shorter computation times than conventional hardware at an energy cost that is up to three orders of magnitude smaller. This suggests great potential for faster and more sustainable scientific computing with neuromorphic hardware.


A girl with the Cohen syndrome and isolated growth hormone deficiency is described. Treatment with biosynthetic human growth hormone resulted in marked catch up growth to normal stature. It is concluded that growth hormone deficiency should be ruled out in patients with the Cohen syndrome and small stature.


Usual untransposed three-phase overhead lines are, by nature, unbalanced structures. For phase-conductors protection against lightning most of these lines include in their configuration one or two grounded earth wires. The presence of these wires naturally leads to a modification of line parameters and concomitantly to an alteration of the line imbalance. In this paper we analyze how the imbalance depends on the earth wires position; more specifically, our goal is to find out whether an optimal positioning for the earth wires exists such that line imbalance minimization can be achieved. Application examples provided in the paper focus on horizontal line configurations.


The selection and evaluation of suppliers requires high quality quantitative decisions. The objective of supplier evaluation is to rank suppliers with the highest potential for implementing a supply chain's requirement consistently. The detail of information to indicate these potential suppliers may vary depending on a supply chain member's requirement. Therefore, the evaluation for suppliers should pay close attention to the impacts of associations among these indicators of suppliers.  However, the simple AHP-based evaluation method for suppliers has the defects of association of indicators. Therefore, this presentation proposes an integrated method for supplier evaluation with AHP and grey association. The integrated evaluation method proposes a hierarchical indictor model for suppliers and constructs the discriminant matrix of indicator in DELPHI process, and ranks these indicators with AHP.  Then the discriminant matrix of grey association is computed on the basis of the supplier rank vector computed in the AHP phase. In the final step of the integrated evaluation, the synthesized supplier rank is obtained with the discriminate matrix of grey association. Finally, this presentation presents an empirical demonstration. As shown by the demonstration, the proposed method has a good determined structure in quantitative evaluation to mitigate the risk of subjective interferes.


The purpose of this study was to identify how safety awareness and self-efficacy affect the safety practice with elementary school students. The participants were 369 elementary school students(4~6th grade) in Changwon city. Data were collected using self-report questionnaires and analyzed with the SPSSWIN 22.0 program. Analysis methods were t-test, one way ANOVA, Scheffe test, Pearsons correlation coefficient and multiple linear regression. As a results, safety awareness was an average 2.97 point which was moderate levels and self-efficacy was on over intermediate level of an average 3.73 point. Safety practice was an 3.00 point. Safety practice had statistically significant difference according to grade, number of family, mother's education, character and school life attitude. Safety awareness(r=.41, p<.001) and self-efficacy(r=.39, p<.001) was significant correlation with safety practice. Fire safety( =.22, t=3.56) and β self-efficacy( =.27, t=5.32) were significantly influenced safety practice and explaining 24.0% of the β variance. From the results of this study, I proposed the education programs to increase safety practice in elementary school students that emphasizes self-efficacy and safety awareness.


This article investigates the effects of and interactions among the three prototypical control mechanisms of outcome control, process control, and clan control. Outcome control refers to the specification and evaluation of desired outputs that employees should deliver. Process control concerns mechanisms that specify which behaviors are appropriate, and clan control relies on socialization processes among organizational members. The authors argue that, whereas previous research has generally treated the control mechanisms in isolation, the different control mechanisms are interdependent and act as complements or substitutes in their influence on process performance, product concept effectiveness, and financial performance. The authors collected data through an online survey on 148 new product development projects conducted by high-tech companies located in the Netherlands. The results show that the combination of different controls may lead to synergistic or conflicting effects for the different new product development project outcomes. Outcome controls and clan controls synergistically increase process performance. This implies that the benefit of increasing goal clarity and project team autonomy through outcome controls can be strengthened by supporting it with social cohesion. In contrast, process controls hamper the effectiveness of clan controls in their positive effect on process performance. Potentially, the combination of these relatively information-intensive controls leads to a redundancy in communication that decreases process efficiency. In contrast to expectations, outcome and clan control only independently affect product concept effectiveness. Finally, the results show that outcome control and process control negatively interact in their impact on financial performance. This suggests that the installation of highly strict control systems that combine high levels of both outcome and process controls may lead to lower financial performance. The authors conclude that neglecting the interdependencies between different controls may lead to an incomplete insight into how firms can most effectively manage their new product development processes.


Response of plane targets to the action of intense proton beam (KALIF) has been investigated using time-resolved 1D and 2D laser Doppler velocimeter ORVIS with sub-nanosecond temporal resolution. A new method for shock compressibility (Hugoniot) measurements with micron-thick impactor and transparent barriers has been used. Results of experimental measurements of velocity histories have been compared with numerical simulations accounting for thermal conductivity, equation of state and stopping power of dense strongly coupled plasma.


Enterprise Java Bean (EJB) application servers are gaining more and more importance for implementing business-critical applications. For an effective service-level management (SLM), an instrumentation must offer a fine-grained picture of the real system performance. For reasons of efficiency and practicability, the instrumentation has to be performed automatically in order to assure complete and comparable measurements. This paper presents a new approach for an automatic and generic performance instrumentation of EJB applications by instrumenting the EJB server. The approach defines a generic CIM model for EJB applications. From an application developer's point of view, the instrumentation is completely transparent. It is realised using the Java Management Extensions (JMX). The performance measurements are implemented using Application Response Measurement (ARM). The prototype is integrated into a WBEM/CIM object manager.


The Yolla Bolly terrane of the Franciscan assemblage in northern California is a typical subduction complex that has undergone penetrative deformation and metamorphism to the high-pressure/low-temperature blueschist facies. Detailed mapping combined with sedimentologic analysis has enabled us to: (1) reconstruct a probable paleosedimentary environment; (2) analyze the interaction between deformation and metamorphism during and after subduction; and (3) speculate on subsequent deformational history including tectonic accretion to North America. The Yolla Bolly terrane consists of several thrust-bound lithologic units: a lower unit of disrupted mudstone and thin-bedded sandstone (broken formation) containing scarce volcanic flows and beds of radiolarian chert; a middle unit of predominantly thick-bedded to massive sandstone (metagraywacke) that includes several zones of radiolarian chert; and an upper unit of mudstone and thin-bedded sandstone (broken formation) containing numerous intrusive and extrusive volcanic rocks as well as rare radiolarian chert. Coeval ages (Tithonian to Valanginian) on radiolarians from all three units, together with the sedimentologic data, suggest that the rocks represent a continent-derived submarine fan, deposited in a complex transform graben possibly similar to the present-day Gulf of Californ a or basins in the California continental borderland. Radiometric ages of approximately 100 m.y. on metagraywacke containing lawsonite and aragonite indicate that these rocks were subducted and metamorphosed to a high-pressure/low-temperature mineral assemblage about 30 m.y. after they were formed. Closely following subduction, the rocks were probably involved in a collision that imbricated and tectonically returned the subduction complex to the surface. End_of_Article - Last_Page 902------------


Magnesium batteries have attracted great attention as an alternative to Li-ion batteries but still suffer from limited choice of positive electrode materials. V2O5 exhibits high theoretical capacities, but previous studies have been mostly limited to α-V2O5. Herein, we report on the β-V2O5 polymorph as a Mg intercalation electrode. The structural changes associated with the Mg2+ (de-) intercalation were analyzed by a combination of several characterization techniques: in situ high resolution X-ray diffraction, scanning transmission electron microscopy, electron energy-loss spectroscopy, and X-ray absorption spectroscopy. The reversible capacity reached 361 mAh g–1, the highest value found at room temperature for V2O5 polymorphs.


Floor finishes are stripped or deep scrubbed using a floor stripper/cleaner composition containing a phenyl-substituted alkyl alcohol, an oxygenated swelling solvent other than the phenyl-substituted alkyl alcohol, water, sufficient coupler so that the composition has a single phase, and sufficient saponification agent comprising the reaction product of a fatty acid or fatty ester with a stoichiometric excess of an alkali metal hydroxide or ammonium hydroxide so that the composition has an alkaline pH and has a reduced oily residue after stripping when compared to an otherwise similar composition that does not contain the saponification agent. The composition is useful for removing ultradurable (e.g., crosslinked) floor finishes, especially on flooring substrates that are susceptible to chemical attack.


Three children with ALL having poor prognostic features developed clinical and laboratory evidence of disseminated intravascular coagulation (DIC). Two developed a bleeding diathesis associated temporally with a rapid drop in blast cell counts during induction therapy with L‐asparaginase, prednisone, and vincristine. One of these children died of massive cerebral hemorrhage. The third patient developed episodes of superficial thrombophlebitis associated with relapses and rising blast cell counts which responded to chemotherapy and treatment with heparin. The unusual association of ALL with DIC and the fact that all 3 patients had multiple poor prognostic signs have led us to monitor carefully the coagulation system and withhold L‐asparaginase in patients with massive disease until the white cell count and organomegaly have responded to prednisone and vincristine. The more common association of DIC with nonlymphocytic leukemia and recent reports of the presence of the Ph' chromosome in children with leukemia morphologically resembling ALL suggest that chromosomal evaluation be done in selected leukemic patients.


Recently, the more potential waste sites are being required as increasing the demand of better human life. But the construction of waste disposals has many restrictions because of lack of good quality clay and high cost of liners. So, in this study, we studied the liner materials to develop more cheaper soil liner that can be satisfied the environmental criterion for the coefficient of permeability and shear strength. A series of compaction test and triaxial (consolidation, permeability, and shear) tests were performed to obtain the optimized weight ratio of Bentonite-Soil mixture (B/S) including the least amount of bentonite. A series of soil tests were performed to acquire the appropriate weathered granite soil-bentonite mixture that is satisfied the environmental criterion of soil liner(k=1×10??㎝/sec). At first, weathered granite soils were classified with four different particle-size soils, and B/S ratio was increased as 5% step for each particle-size. The test results showed that in case of weathered granite soil passing through No. 100 sieve, B/S=15% satisfied the soil liner criterion. The measured coefficient of permeability and the Chapuis's two equations were also compared. And a predicting equation for the coefficient of permeability was suggested, which is suitable for the mixture soil with the B/S ratio used in this study. The optimal weight ratio for the mixture soils used in this study was 15% in the both cases of permeability and shear strength.


Resource constraints in the Canadian publicly funded healthcare system have created a need for more volunteer leaders to effectively manage other volunteers. Self-concept theory has been conceptualized and applied within a volunteer context, and the views of healthcare stakeholders, such as volunteers, volunteer leaders, and supervisors, triangulated to form an understanding of the attitudes and behaviors of volunteer leaders. We propose that leaders are differentiated from others by how they view their roles in the organization and their ability to make a difference in these roles. This interpretation can be informed by self-concept theory because each individual's notion of self-concept influences how employees see themselves, how they react to experiences, and how they allow these experiences to shape their motivation. A small case study profiles a volunteer leader self-concept that includes a proactive, learning-oriented attitude, capitalizing on significant prior work experience to fulfill a sense of obligation to the institution and its patients, and demands a high level of respect from paid employees.


BAFF (B cell activating factor of the TNF family, also known as BlyS and TALL-1), a TNF family cytokine critical for the development and function of B cells, has been reported to bind to three receptors, BCMA (B cell maturation protein), TACI (transmembrane activator and CAML [calcium-modulator and cyclophilin ligand] interactor), and BAFFR (BAFF receptor), but with widely conflicting values for the affinity and selectivity of binding. BCMA and TACI additionally bind APRIL (a proliferation-inducing ligand), the TNF family ligand most homologous to BAFF. Using soluble, monomeric forms of the receptors, we demonstrate that BAFFR binds BAFF with K(D) approximately 16 nM, while BCMA binds with K(D) approximately 1.6 microM, indicating a approximately 100-fold selectivity for binding to BAFFR over BCMA. APRIL shows the opposite selectivity, binding to BCMA with K(D) approximately 16 nM while showing no detectable affinity for BAFFR (K(D) > 3 microM). The binding of BAFF or APRIL to these receptors is highly sensitive to assay-dependent avidity effects, likely explaining the widely ranging affinity values reported in the literature. Binding of BAFF to BCMA-Fc, a bivalent fusion protein consisting of the extracellular domain of BCMA fused to the hinge and CH1 and CH2 domains of human IgG1, in solution or coated onto an ELISA plate gave apparent binding affinities of approximately 0.63 and approximately 0.15 nM, respectively, compared to values of K(D(app)) <or= 30 and approximately 100 pM for the corresponding BAFFR/IgG1 fusion protein, BAFFR-Fc. The high selectivity of BAFF for BAFFR versus BCMA is thus partly obscured in these multivalent assays. The intrinsically high selectivity inferred from the measurements with monomeric receptor correlates well with in vivo data from knockout mice, providing a possible explanation for the observations that interruption of the BAFFR gene in the A/WySnJ mouse produces a phenotype similar to the BAFF knockout mouse, while the BCMA knockout mouse has no discernible B cell phenotype.


Background: Sexual satisfaction (SS) is defined as one of the individual needs and interpersonal interactions closely connected with the health of human and society. The present research aims to review the predictors of women's sexual satisfaction. Materials and Methods: The researchers have conducted computer search by the key words: "female sexual satisfaction", "predictors", in public web sites including Google Scholar Search, and the exclusive ones as ProQuest, SCOPUS, PubMed, ISI Web of, Science Direct, and the domestic journals such as: SID. 151 papers have been investigated. The studies have been screened based on inclusion and exclusion criteria. And ultimately 57 papers have been applied. Results: Reviewing the articles' results has led to organizing the issues in three general categories of interconnected factors with SS, socio-demographic factors, general-health related, interpersonal interactions and marital relation associated factors. The most prevalent socio-demographic variables predicting SS include age, the number of children and marriage duration. The most crucial factors linked with general health category are couple's physical and mental health, sexual relation continuation, and the experience of orgasm. SS has been reported higher among the women who are mentally healthy and, on the other hand intimate with their spouses in all sexual and non-sexual affairs. Conclusion: This study's findings showed those socio-demographic variables, physical and mental health and intimacy with sexual partner accompanied with healthy sexual function and the experience of orgasm are the predictors of female sexual satisfaction. These findings are applied to promote the couple consulting services in order to improve SS.


Folliculitis decalvans (FD) is a rare variant of primary cicatricial alopecia, for which the etiopathogenesis remains unclear. Our purpose was to evaluate whether certain immunologic mechanisms might have a significant role in the pathogenesis of FD. Lesional scalp biopsy specimens from 7 patients with FD, 7 with lichen planopilaris, and 4 with alopecia areata were studied immunohistochemically by using monoclonal antibodies to CD1a, CD3, CD4, CD8, CD20, CD25, HLA-DR, interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-4, IL-8, interferon gamma, tumor necrosis factor alpha, basic fibroblast growth factor (b-FGF), transforming growth factor (TGF)-beta, endothelial leukocyte adhesion molecule 1, intercellular adhesion molecule (ICAM)-1, and vascular cell adhesion molecule. We showed that early FD lesions are characterized by an infiltration of activated T-helper cells, featuring mixed TH1/TH2 polarization. IL-8 and ICAM-1 may contribute to the infiltration of neutrophils, whereas b-FGF and TGF-beta may represent important mediators of the fibrosis that characterizes late-phase FD.


This study describes an evaluation of a wearable prototype for urinary catheterisation training. The prototype described in this study was developed in response to concerns about the limitations of existing commercial urinary catheterisation trainers. The authors saw an opportunity to address these problems through the development of a new wearable catheterisation trainer using a novel elastomeric polymer. The Griffith Enterprise Innovation Fund supported the project. Following creation of the prototype, a preliminary evaluation of its realism, ease of use and training attributes compared to current commercial trainers was undertaken. Second year medical students were invited to participate in the evaluation. Participants were randomised by coin-toss to practice with either the prototype first then an existing commercial part-task trainer or vice versa. They completed questionnaires before and after each practice session. 105 students participated. Participants rated the prototype as being much more accurate in simulating performance of the procedure on a real patient (mean score 7.12 cm vs 3.90 cm on a 10cm visual analogue scale [VAS], p<0.0001) and their randomisation arm did not impact significantly on participants' ratings. Among 92 participants who offered an opinion on which better simulated the human dimensions of the procedure, 100% nominated the prototype. Other data collected and the participants' textual comments indicate that both better simulation of human tissues and the trainer's wearability by a live simulated patient contributed to participants' preference for the prototype. The prototype offers better simulation of urinary catheterisation in relation to both realism and the human dimensions of the procedure. The improved simulator offers the potential for students performing the procedure for the first time on hospital patients to be better prepared.


Abstract: Is technoscience magic, and how can such an arcane and archaic practice as magic be relevant to what is considered as totally modern, rational and emancipatory, namely science and technology? Starting from Vincenzo Susca's book "Gioia tragica", the debate shows all of the continuities between technics and magics, so much so that it is possible to talk about to the term "technomagic". Such continuities are framed within an STS perspective by Giuseppina Pellegrino. The concept of technomagic is then contextualized in relation to the "society of the spectacle", whose latest development is the web 2.0 (Attimonelli); to the cinema as an immersive medium (De Ruggieri); to the ambivalence of technics, which is subjected to a permanent back-and-forth between obsolescence and reenchantment (Susca). Keywords: magic, technoscience, technomagic, body, quasi-objects, web 2.0, media


Labour policies and labour laws in India are focused rather narrowly on the 8 per cent organized labour. In the pre-liberalization era labour was protected in labour markets and capital in product markets. In the post-liberalization era both remain less protected, if not altogether unprotected. The shift in focus from labour markets to product markets in the context of liberalization is viewed with concern by organized labour. For over three decades comprehensive labour reforms have eluded India. The need for aligning labour laws with industrial policies is recognized, but the government is hesitant to take political risks. Unions want more protection, while employers want greater freedom and flexibility in dealing with labour. This paper exposes six myths, identifies key concerns and presents an agenda for labour reform.


Background: Maternal childbirth expectations play an important role in determining a woman's response to her childbirth experience. Women need to be helped to develop realistic and positive expectations and identify the factors that influence these expectations. Objective: The aim of this study was to compare woman's expectations and experiences of childbirth. Methods: This descriptive-comparative study was carried out in Tabriz Alzahra Hospital from 2006 to 2007. For this purpose, a total of 600 primiparas and multiparas women who were candidates for vaginal delivery, were randomly selected and interviewed. The data were collected by questionnaire. Results: Comparison of the means of mothers expectation and experience of labor and birth between the two groups demonstrated a statistically significant difference (p<0.05). The findings indicated a number of differences exist between primiparas and multiparas women in relation to expectations and experiences of birth when compare two groups. The majority of women had negative expectations and experiences of childbirth. Conclusion: The evaluation and understanding of birth expectations and experiences as positive and negative is priority of maternity system. Antenatal educators need to ensure that pregnant women are appropriately prepared for what might actually happen to limit this expectation-experience gap. Health-care providers should improve the quality of antenatal care which can change negative childbirth expectations and experiences of women Journal of Kathmandu Medical College, Vol. 4(1) 2015, 16-25


Recent work suggests that Oxygen Minimum Zones (OMZs) are sustained by the supply of oxygen‐poor waters rather than the export of organic matter from the local surface layer and its subsequent remineralization inside OMZs. However, the mechanisms that form and maintain OMZs are not well constrained, such as the origin of the oxygen that oxygenates OMZs, and the locations where oxygen consumption occurs. Here we use an observation‐based transport matrix to determine the origins of open ocean OMZs in terms of 1) OMZ volume, 2) oxygen that survives remineralization and oxygenates OMZs, and 3) oxygen utilization in the interior ocean that contributes to the oxygen‐deficit of OMZs. We also determine where the utilization of oxygen occurs along the pathways that ventilate the OMZs. Our results show that about half of the volume of OMZ waters originate in high‐latitude regions, but most of their oxygen is utilized for remineralization before they reach OMZs. Instead, OMZs are mostly oxygenated by tropical, subtropical and intermediate waters formed in nearby regions. More than half of the utilization of oxygen occurs in the tropics and subtropics, while less than a third occurs within the OMZs themselves. We therefore suggest that, in steady‐state, OMZs are primarily set by ocean circulation pathways that high‐latitude deep and old water upwards, with relatively low oxygen content.


BACKGROUND
A major portion of prostate-specific antigen exists in circulation as a complex with alpha(1)-antichymotrypsin (PSA-ACT), whereas a minor part is free (fPSA). The proportion of PSA-ACT is increased in prostate cancer (PCa), but immunologic determination of PSA-ACT is hampered by a background produced by nonspecific adsorption of ACT to the solid phase. To reduce the nonspecific interference, we produced an antibody specific for complexed ACT and developed immunofluorometric assays (IFMAs) for simultaneous measurement of fPSA + PSA-ACT (fPSA/PSA-ACT) and PSA-ACT + total PSA (tPSA, PSA-ACT/tPSA).

METHODS
Monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) were produced by immunization with PSA-ACT. The dual-label time-resolved IFMAs for fPSA/PSA-ACT and PSA-ACT/tPSA used a capture MAb to tPSA, an Eu(3+)-labeled MAb to fPSA or complexed ACT, and an Sm(3+)-labeled MAb to complexed ACT or to tPSA as tracer antibodies. The clinical utility was evaluated using serum samples from individuals with or without PCa with PSA concentrations of 2.0-20.0 micro g/L.

RESULTS
One MAb (1D10) showed low cross-reactivity with free ACT and cathepsin G-ACT. A sandwich assay for PSA-ACT with 1D10 as tracer had a detection limit of 0.05 micro g/L, and with this assay, PSA-ACT was undetectable in female sera. The detection limit for fPSA was 0.004 micro g/L. Determinations of the ratio of fPSA to PSA-ACT and the proportions of fPSA/tPSA and PSA-ACT/tPSA provided the same clinical specificity for PCa and provided significantly better clinical specificity than did tPSA.

CONCLUSIONS
Background problems observed in earlier PSA-ACT assays are eliminated by the use of a MAb specific for complexed ACT as a tracer. The same clinical validity can be obtained by determination of fPSA or PSA-ACT together or in combination with tPSA.


Background: Inhalation represents the best choice of administration for the delivery of drugs to treat respiratory disorders such as asthma. Thus, the correct inhaler technique is required to ensure optimal clinical outcomes and improve the quality of life. Community pharmacists are responsible for counseling patients and their knowledge and skills of inhalers. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and skills of community pharmacists in demonstrating different inhalation device techniques in Khartoum locality. Methods: This was a cross-sectional observational study concerning Khartoum locality pharmacies using a mystery patient method. The data were collected using a checklist for each device, which was filled by the investigator after visiting the pharmacy, and then the data were analyzed descriptively using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences. Results: The study covered 232 pharmacies. Most of the pharmacists get the score of an adequate level of knowledge and skills; the percentage levels for each device were as 58.2%, 65.7%, and 58.8% for pressurized metered-dose inhaler (Ventolin®), dry powder inhaler (Turbuhaler™, Symbicort®), and dry powder inhaler (Diskus™, Seretide®), respectively. However, some of the pharmacists get the score of "don't know." Although most pharmacists achieve an adequate score, they were varying in percentage when demonstrating critical steps for each device. Conclusion: The community pharmacists who are expected to educate asthmatic patients on how to deal with their inhaler's devices scored an adequate level of knowledge and skill on demonstrating different inhaler's device, so an extra effort should be made to level them up in that area through regular training programs.


This study aimed to determine the effect of concentration of honey on masculinization of nile tilapia female. The study had four treatments, each with three replications. The experimental design used was completely randomized design (RAL).  Data was analyse using Analysis Of Variance (ANOVA) followed by LSD at 5% and 1%.  Broodstock was  soaked in 1 L of water with treatment A 0 mL (without honey), B (5 mL honey), C (10 mL honey), D (15 mL honey) for 10 hours. After soaking, fish was reared in pan for one month. The percentage of male was determine by comparing the length and width of the red blood cells under a microscope.  The results showed the the use of honey had significant effect on female masculinization.  The percentage of male larvae tended to increase with the increase of honey dose. The highest percentage of male was obtained in treatment D (15 ml) that was 80%. Keywords : Honey, masculinization, larvae, Oreochromis niloticus


BACKGROUND
During the last decade, coagulase-negative staphylococci (CoNS) have emerged as a major cause of nosocomial infections. They constitute a major component of the normal skin and mucosal microflora, and are particularly responsible for catheter- and medical device-related sepsis. They present unique problems in diagnosis and treatment of infections.

PURPOSE
The present study has been designed to evaluate phenotypic and genotypic characteristics of CoNS among nosocomial isolates.

SETTING AND DESIGN
This study was carried out in a tertiary care hospital. Data from 150 samples collected from 73 hospitalized patients and 15 healthy volunteers between October 2003 and May 2005 were analyzed.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
A total of 100 CoNS strains responsible for sepsis or implant-associated infections and 50 saprophytic strains were studied. Invasive CoNS strains were selected on the basis of different colony morphologies, drug resistance patterns, and biofilm formation. The same criteria were used to select saprophytic isolates. Multiplex PCR was used to explore the ica, mecA, and atlE genes, which might contribute to the pathogenicity of CoNS and the formation of biofilms.

RESULTS
Most of the invasive strains that formed the biofilm were resistant to multiple antibiotics, with more than 80% resistant to methicillin. ica and mecA genes were detected significantly in pathogenic strains (chi-square test, P<0.0001) whereas atlE was ubiquitously amplified in all the strains. All those strains which had ica and mecA genes were resistant to multiple antibiotics and were positive for biofilm formation.

CONCLUSION
These genetic markers thus appear to discriminate between potential invasive virulent and saprophytic strains of CoNS.


Lower-extremity vascular surgery is most often indicated for patients with critical leg ischemia but has increasingly been used for patients with disabling intermittent claudication. This article reviews indications, follow-up protocols, and procedure-related outcomes including perioperative and late mortality, complications, and long-term patency rates, which vary with patient risk factors, vascular disease severity, and hospital volume. Population-based studies have yet to establish whether rates of limb-preserving bypass surgery are related to overall amputation rates, partly because of the continued high rate of primary amputation. The functional benefits of vascular surgery have been traditionally assessed by treadmill protocols and batteries of physical tests. Claudication treatment is increasingly being measured by both generic and disease-specific functional and health-related quality-of-life questionnaires. Patient self-reported measures of physical functioning and walking ability are reviewed. Finally, conclusions are presented about trends in lower-extremity bypass surgery rates.


This paper examines the effects of decoupling policies on Greek cotton production under the hypothesis that producers face uncertainty about output price and quantity. Using our estimation results we simulate the effects on cotton production under four alternative policy scenarios: the 'Old' CAP regime (i.e. the policy practiced until 2005), the Mid Term Review regime, a fully decoupled policy regime and a free trade-no policy scenario. Our results indicate the decoupled payment will have two contradictious effects on risk aversion. Producers become less risk averse through the wealth effect but more risk averse because of the increased output variance. The overall result of these two effects depends on the degree of risk aversion by farmers. We found that when the degree of risk aversion is high the wealth effect is positive. However, in the case of low risk aversion, the wealth disappears in practice and as a result the decoupled payments become production neutral.


The spatial-temporal echo phenomenon, excited by external perturbations localized in both space and time, has been studied. The authors chose external perturbations with frequencies lower than the ion gyrofrequency, so the signals of the electron and ion echoes were spatially dispersed. It is shown that there is a possibility of measuring the anisotropic electron and ion temperature components perpendicular to the uniform magnetic field by using the ratio of the amplitudes of the echo signals arising at different points. Moreover, one can find the shape of the ion distribution over longitudinal velocities from the dependence of the echo signal amplitude on the delay time between two pulses of external perturbations.


This study demonstrates that three subjects traditionally discussed separately - prostitution, hysteria and the popular novel - share a discourse of marginality and of female marginality in particular, central to the 19th-century experience in France. Studying representations of female sexuality and the obsession with it in 19th-century France, Matlock scrutinizes contemporary debates on: tolerated prostitution; sexual continence; the relationship of female sexuality to madness; the dangers of literature. The contemporary fascination with prostitution provides a model for understanding the relationship between novel-reading and female sexuality in a world where the novel was considered dangerous, because it would awaken affections and introduce women to the world of sexual experience. Matlock uses studies of prostitution, trial reports, advice manuals and novels by Balzac, Dumas, Soulie and Sue to analyze the social, political, medical and literary issues supposedly evoked by female sexuality.


Effects of dietary fat, protein, and methionine levels and the type of dietary grain in nicarbazin-containing diets on the growth response of broiler chicks were evaluated in five experiments in a factorial design. Nicarbazin at levels ranging from 100 to 200 mg/kg significantly (P less than .05) depressed weight gain and feed efficiency. Feed intake was significantly reduced only when nicarbazin was used at levels of 150 and 200 mg/kg. The latter concentration also significantly decreased water intake and water:feed ratio. Nicarbazin, at a level of 150 mg/kg, did not affect dietary metabolizable energy content or the retention of nitrogen and dry matter. A higher level of soybean oil (3.5 vs. .5 or 1.0%) did not counteract the growth-depressing effects of 100, 150, and 200 mg nicarbazin/kg. The growth-depressing effect of the highest dose also was not affected by increasing the protein level from 18.2 to 20.4%. Neither type of dietary grains (corn vs. sorghum) nor supplemental methionine level affected the toxicity of 125 mg nicarbazin/kg. Water intake and water:feed ratio were significantly increased due to elevation of dietary protein and fat levels. It was concluded that the severity of the growth-depressing effect of nicarbazin on chicks was not dependent on the levels of dietary unsaturated fat, protein, and methionine.


In March 2020, universities in Norway and many other countries shut down due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The students lost access to classrooms, libraries, study halls, and laboratories. Studying turned digital. Because it is unclear when this pandemic will cease to affect students and because we cannot know whether or when a new pandemic occurs, we need to find ways to improve digital study-life for students. An important step in this direction is to understand the students' experiences and perspectives regarding how the digitalization affected their study-life both in structured learning arenas and their self-study. Therefore, we interviewed 12 students in an introductory mechanics course at a Norwegian university in June of 2020. Through a thematic analysis, we identified four broad categories in the students' different experiences and reflections, namely that digitalization: (a) provides benefits, e.g. the flexibility inherent in online video lectures; (b) incurs learning costs, e.g. students reducing their study effort; (c) incurs social costs, e.g. missing being around other students; and (d) increases the need for structure, e.g. wanting to be arranged in digital groups to solve mandatory tasks. We also found that the 2019 students on average scored significantly better on the final exam than the 2020 students, d = 0.31, but we discuss why this result should be interpreted with caution. We provide suggestions for how to adapt courses to make students' digital studying more socially stimulating and effective. Furthermore, this study is a contribution to the historical documentation of the Covid-19 pandemic.


It was shown that the penetration depth could can be two times decreased when non-magnetic wire parent metal was are used at submerged arc welding


Currently, the intervention models for individuals with Developmental Disabilities (DD) focus on Quality of Life outcomes (QOL). The goal of this study was to analyze the QOL of adults and to determine the influence of personal and dis-ability factors in QOL. A sample of 119 adults with DD (91 male and 28 female; age: M = 45.68; SD = 12.57) participated in the study. The QOL was assessed by the Escala INICO-FEAPS. T contrast were conducted to compare outcomes in adults with DD with the norm, and ANOVAs to examine the differences between the dimensions of QOL and the incidence of the studied factors. Outcomes show that adult people with DD informed low levels of QOL, specifically in Interpersonal Relationship, Social In-clusion, and Self-determination. The most factor that influence on QOL perception was the level of dependence. In conclusion, the results show that professionals assess better the QOL than the own individuals with DD.


Heart failure is the leading cause of hospitalizations in the USA, and is associated with significant morbidity, mortality and resource utilization. Established therapies for chronic heart failure have been shown to improve outcomes, but treatment for decompensated heart failure remains largely empiric. Nesiritide (Natrecor®) is a synthetic analog of human B-type natriuretic peptide, a peptide released by the ventricular myocardium in response to increased wall tension. The physiologic effects of human B-type natriuretic peptide include natriuresis, vasodilation and neurohormonal modulation. In clinical trials, nesiritide has been shown to decrease cardiac filling pressures, increase cardiac index, and improve the clinical status of patients with acute decompensated heart failure. Compared with other available intravenous agents for heart failure, nesiritide is effective, generally well-tolerated with few adverse effects, and does not require invasive monitoring during administration. Nesiritide has proven to be an effective new treatment for patients with decompensated heart failure.


This paper deals with the problem of lossy video object shape coding. This problem belongs to the area of video object-based coder. Our approach proposes to exploit spatio temporal correlation. This is done by considering the contour evolution and dealing with occultation phenomenon. The novelty lies in a fine mapping of consecutive contours and in the contour padding in occulted parts. Once a group of contours is processed, wavelet transformations with a predictive IPB (Intra, simple Prediction, Bidirectional prediction) scheme is used to encode it. Experimental results show significant improvement at very low bit rate. Moreover, the bitstream is fully progressive.


【Thirty four dogs presented with generalized progressive retinal atrophy(gPRA) from September 2002 to April 2004 were reviewed to characterize signalments and prevalence rate in Korea. Mean age was 6.3 $\pm$ 2.7 years-old and 59% was less than six years old. The most prevalent breed was Miniature Schnauzer (50%) and the affected mean age was slightly earlier (4.4 $\pm$ 1.1 years-old). However, there was no sex predisposition. Cataract was confirmed in 15 dogs (44%) and 67% was bilateral.】


This case report presents the dental management of a 13-year-old girl with mosaic trisomy 9. She had: (1) severe psychomotor retardation; (2) short stature; (3) progressive microcephaly; (4) flat feet; (5) genu valgum; and (6) severe kyphoscoliosis. Dysmorphic facial features included: (1) maxillary prognathism; (2) narrow high-arched palate; (3) short philtrum; (4) small low posterior dysplastic ears; and (5) down slanting palpebral fissures with right eye ptosis. The case report describes initial treatment under general anesthesia and further treatments using conscious sedation. Emphasis was placed on the need to adjust the treatment to patient's skeletal malformations and respiratory problems by adjusting her ability to sit in the dental chair in an upright position. Supernumerary premolars and opalescent changes of the maxillary incisors might be part of the clinical features related to trisomy 9 mosaic syndrome.


1Landessternwarte, Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg, Königstuhl 12, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany 2Max-Planck-Institute for Astronomy, Königstuhl 17, 69117, Heidelberg, Germany 3Department of Physics, University of Notre Dame, 225 Nieuwland Science Hall, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA 4Institute of Microstructure Technology (IMT), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany 5Institute of Photonics and Quantum Electronics (IPQ), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology (KIT), Engesserstr. 5, 76131 Karlsruhe, Germany 6Vanguard Photonics GmbH, Hermann-von-Helmholtz-Platz 1, 76344 Eggenstein-Leopoldshafen, Germany 7Department of Physics, Durham University, South Road, Durham, DH1 3LE, UK 8Institute for System Dynamics, University of Stuttgart, Waldburgstr. 19, 70563 Stuttgart, Germany 9Large Binocular Telescope Observatory, 933 N. Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721-0009, U.S.A. *firstname.lastname@example.com © 2021 Optical Society of America]. One print or electronic copy may be made for personal use only. Systematic reproduction and distribution, duplication of any material in this paper for a fee or for commercial purposes, or modifications of the content of this paper are prohibited.


In this article is elaborated the actually question which is developed and discussed it the European Union is the European Social Model (ESM). It is a vision of society that combines sustainable economic growth with ever-improving living and working conditions. This implies full employment, good quality jobs, equal opportunities, social protection for all, social inclusion, and involving citizens in the decisions that affect them. As the Euro-zone is struggling to move away from a dramatic slump in its economy, and while the Lisbon Strategy and its potential for economic growth, strongly needs reactivation, the debates over the Europe have raised again the issue of a sustain-able social agenda for the European Union. Recently, Europes political leaders defined the ESM, specifying that it is based on good economic performance, a high level of social protection and education and social dialogue. An important topic of the discussion nowadays is the Directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on ser-vices in the internal market so called Bolkestein directive. The importance of this article is to give us the answer to the following question: would we have French goods available in French supermarkets all over Poland and no Polish services allowed in France? The EU would be unthinkable without the full implementation of the four freedoms. This is a good directive, going in the good direction.


Behaviour cloning is a commonly used strategy for imitation learning and can be extremely effective in constrained domains. However, in cases where the dynamics of an environment may be state dependent and varying, behaviour cloning places a burden on model capacity and the number of demonstrations required. This paper introduces switching density networks, which rely on a categorical reparametrisation for hybrid system identification. This results in a network comprising a classification layer that is followed by a regression layer. We use switching density networks to predict the parameters of hybrid control laws, which are toggled by a switching layer to produce different controller outputs, when conditioned on an input state. This work shows how switching density networks can be used for hybrid system identification in a variety of tasks, successfully identifying the key joint angle goals that make up manipulation tasks, while simultaneously learning image-based goal classifiers and regression networks that predict joint angles from images. We also show that they can cluster the phase space of an inverted pendulum, identifying the balance, spin and pump controllers required to solve this task. Switching density networks can be difficult to train, but we introduce a cross entropy regularisation loss that stabilises training.


Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) have been extensively developed in the past few years. The OLED displays have advantages over other displays, such as CRT, LCD, and PDP in thickness, weight, brightness, response time, viewing angle, contrast, driving power, flexibility, and capability of self-emission. In this work, the optical and electronic properties of multilayer OLED devices are numerically studied with an APSYS (Advanced Physical Model of Semiconductor Devices) simulation program. Specifically, the emission and absorption spectra of the Alq3, DCM, PBD, and SA light-emitting layers, and energy band diagrams, electron-hole recombination rates, and current-voltage characteristics of the simulated OLED devices, typically with a multilayer structure of metal/Alq3/EML/TPD/ITO constructed by Lim et al., are investigated and compared to the experimental results. The physical models utilized in this work are similar to those presented by Ruhstaller et al. and Hoffmann et al. The simulated results indicate that the emission spectra of the Alq3, DCM, PBD, and SA light-emitting layers obtained in this study are in good agreement with those obtained experimentally by Zugang et al. Optimization of the optical and electronic performance of the multilayer OLED devices are attempted. In order to further promote the research results, the whole numerical simulation process for optimizing the design of OLED devices has been applied to a project-based course of OLED device design to enhance the students' skills in photonics device design at the Graduate Institute of Photonics of National Changhua University of Education in Taiwan. In the meantime, the effectiveness of the course has been proved by various assessments. The application of the results is a useful point of reference for the research on photonics device design and engineering education. Therefore, it proffers a synthetic effect between innovation and practical application.


Building new space for institutional theory, we propose how the severity of formal and informal institutional voids shapes the productivity of entrepreneurial activities within society. Our theory makes the key assumptions that voids can exist in both formal and informal institutions and that they are capable of hindering entrepreneurial behavior that is favorable to development progress. We extend new theoretical domains by conceptualizing informal institutional voids and proposing how both formal and informal institutional voids and their interaction influence two qualitative outcomes within localities: (1) the unique forms of entrepreneurial activity, and (2) the objectives underlying this entrepreneurial activity.


In this paper the use of the Preisach model in magnetodynamic field computations is discussed. The discussion is restricted to soft magnetic laminations of silicon iron. For some materials the hysteresis effects vary considerably with the frequency. Therefore, a generalised, rate-dependent Preisach model is adopted. A method is presented that allows the computation of the magnetodynamic fields inside the laminations in presence of this model. The results of these computations show a remarkable agreement with the measurements. >


Citicoline (exogenous CDP‐choline) is a nontoxic and well‐tolerated drug used in pharmacotherapy of brain insufficiency and some other neurological disorders, such as stroke, brain trauma, and Parkinson's disease. A few reports indicate that citicoline treatment may also be beneficial in glaucoma. Currently glaucoma is considered a neurodegenerative disease in which retinal ganglion cells (RGC) slowly die, likely in the apoptotic mechanism. Endogenous CDP‐choline is a natural precursor of cellular synthesis of phospholipids, mainly phosphatydylcholine (PtdCho). Enhancement of PtdCho synthesis may counteract neuronal apoptosis and provide neuroprotection. Citicoline, when administered, undergoes a quick transformation to cytidine and choline, which are believed to enter brain cells separately and provide neuroprotection by enhancing PtdCho synthesis; similar effect may be expected to occur in glaucomatous RGC. Furthermore, citicoline stimulates some brain neurotransmitter systems, including the dopaminergic system, and dopamine is known as a major neurotransmitter in retina and postretinal visual pathways. In a double‐blind, placebo‐controlled study, treatment of glaucoma resulted in functional improvement in the visual system noted with electrophysiological methods. Development of citicoline as a treatment for glaucoma is indicated. © 2002 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


In the previous molecular cloning study from human salivary gland cDNA library a novel clone (C77-091) was known as a candidate gene for antimicrobial protein by GenBank database search and RNA in situ hybridization. This study is aimed to identify the molecular characteristics of C77-091 protein, which showed an antimicrobial activity on E.coli, thereby named as salivary antimicrobial protein (SAMP). SAMP consisted of a typical hydrophobic amino acid rich domain in the N-terminus, a cluster of basic amino acids, carbohydrate attachment site, a possible transglutaminase catalyzed cross-linking site, and multiple consensus sequences of phosphorylation site in the C-terminus. Western blot analysis of human organs and tissue with the monospecific antibody to the synthetic SAMP peptide showed strong interacting protein from the extracts from submandibular gland and parotid saliva but absent in the mixed saliva, and the immunohistochemical staining detected a strong positive regions in the secretory granules in the luminal cytoplasm of interlobular ductal cells of salivary gland. The SAMP was also distributed in the human sebaceous gland and prostate. These data suggest that C77-091 named SAMP gene is a novel antimicrobial protein in human salivary gland, which may play a role for the innate immunity by protecting and stabilizing the mucosal epithelium to maintain homeostasis of oral mucosa.


This report validates the use and limitations of the Nonin Pulse Oximeter for measuring heart rate and oxygen saturation in rats. Eight anesthetized Sprague-Dawley rats were intubated and catheterized. Oxygen saturation was directly measured from arterial blood by using a Radiometer OSM3 Hemoximeter adjusted for rat blood as well as indirectly by using the Nonin Pulse Oximeter. Oxygen saturation was changed by varying the level of inhaled oxygen. Heart rate was measured in two ways: 1) by using the signal from the Nonin Pulse Oximeter and 2) by counting the pressure pulses from the transduced blood pressure. There was excellent agreement between heart rate values measured by the Nonin Pulse Oximeter and that measured by counting the pulses from the arterial blood pressure recording. The Nonin Pulse Oximeter underestimated oxygen saturations by about 3% to 5% compared to the Hemoximeter. Overall, the pulse oximeter reflected important trends in oxygen saturations, making it a useful tool for laboratory animal medicine.