OBJECTIVE To determine the effect of a campus critical care simulation on anxiety of nursing students in the clinical intensive care unit. DESIGN Quasi-experimental pretest-posttest design using a sample of convenience. SETTING Large Midwestern university. SUBJECTS Second semester, junior level nursing students enrolled in a generic baccalaureate nursing program. Students currently enrolled in an adult medical-nursing course with one allotted day for a campus critical care laboratory and a clinical day in affiliated community hospitals. OUTCOME MEASURES Reduction in anxiety, as measured by the Spielberger State-Trait Anxiety Inventory, related to psychomotor skill performance in a highly technological clinical setting. INTERVENTION Campus critical care simulation laboratory, which provided time for information, demonstration, discussion, practice, and validation of performance skills associated with technology in a usual critical care setting. RESULTS There was no significant difference in anxiety scores of subjects who received a campus critical care simulation before attending an actual clinical critical care experience versus those students who did not (t = 1.70, p = 0.094). There was no significant difference in anxiety scores of the experimental group after attending a campus simulation (t = 1.18, p = 0.250). Attending a campus critical care experience did not result in a decrease in critical care clinical setting anxiety. CONCLUSIONS There are numerous reasons why students experience anxiety in the clinical setting, one of which is anxiety related to task performance. Although familiarity with psychomotor skills is beneficial, study findings indicate that familiarity with psychomotor skills is not sufficient to decrease anxiety in the critical care clinical setting.


Based on an in-depth qualitative study of Russian and Ukrainian immigrants living in the metropolitan area of Lisbon (2003-2007), the article shows the combination of processes involved in constructing and reconstructing belonging and difference in their definitions of 'Us' and 'Others' (the Portuguese). The immigrants represent themselves as culturally different to the majority society, citing their distinct values (relating to work, for instance) and cultural practices at the level of interaction. While keenly aware of the stereotyped and prejudiced views others have of them, they also reveal their own preconceptions concerning this surrounding majority. This research material allows us to apprehend the attributes and stereotypes projected by the 'Others' - key elements in terms of comprehending the levels of distance and proximity between the minority groups under study and the wider Portuguese population.


Flash memory is hugely been using for small handheld to large enterprise applications due to its attractive features. However, flash hardware characteristics like erase-before-write and limited- erase-cycles are becoming big hurdle for researchers to provide reliable and performance oriented system softwares. The effective way to mitigate the impacts of flash drawbacks is to manage the data by its access patterns. But, as a side affect, such approach imposes the demand of high main memory space and lengthy time for initialization. This book provides the work toward reliable data management for NAND flash memory based storage systems. Empirical framework classifies data intellectually according to their access frequencies and proves the efficiency and effectiveness for data and memory management on all levels of system operations. Meticulous analytical discussions and comprehensive experimental results demonstrate the highly improved system performance achieved by considering the diverse natures of data.


Imbalanced data classification problem has always been a popular topic in the field of machine learning research. In order to balance the samples between majority and minority class. Oversampling algorithm is used to synthesize new minority class samples, but it could bring in noise. Pointing to the noise problems, this paper proposed a denoising autoencoder neural network (DAE) algorithm which can not only oversample minority class sample through misclassification cost, but it can denoise and classify the sampled dataset. Through experiments, compared with the denoising autoencoder neural network (DAE) with oversampling process and traditional fully connected neural networks, the results showed the proposed algorithm improves the classification accuracy of minority class of imbalanced datasets.


Trifluoperazine, a commonly used antipsychotic drug, has been known to induce QT prolongation and torsades de pointes, which can cause sudden death. We studied the effects of trifluoperazine on the human ether-a-go-go-related gene (HERG) channel expressed in Xenopus oocytes and on the delayed rectifier K+ current of guinea pig cardiomyocytes. The application of trifluoperazine showed a dose-dependent decrease in current amplitudes at the end of voltage steps and tail currents of HERG. The IC50 for a trifluoperazine block of HERG current progressively decreased according to depolarization: IC50 values at –40, 0, and +40 mV were 21.6, 16.6, and 9.29 μM, respectively. The voltage dependence of the block could be fitted with a monoexponential function, and the fractional electrical distance was estimated to be δ = 0.65. The block of HERG by trifluoperazine was use-dependent, exhibiting more rapid onset and greater steady-state block at higher frequencies of activation; there was partial relief of the block with decreasing frequency. In guinea pig ventricular myocytes, bath applications of 0.5 and 2 μM trifluoperazine at 36°C blocked the rapidly activating delayed rectifier K+ current by 32.4 and 72.9%, respectively; however, the same concentrations of trifluoperazine failed to significantly block the slowly activating delayed rectifier K+ current. Our findings suggest the arrhythmogenic side effect of trifluoperazine is caused by a blockade of HERG and the rapid component of the delayed rectifier K+ current rather than by the blockade of the slow component.


In this paper, small data transmission at the detached machine-type-communication (MTC) device in 3GPP LTE environment is investigated. A cell-based dynamic preamble grouping mechanism is proposed to suppress the collision probability in the random access process for small data transmission based on the realistic distribution of MTC devices in each LTE cell. The related signaling messages are discussed. It has been shown that the proposed method can significantly reduce the collision probability and provide a potentiality to support more classes of small data services. Energy at MTC devices hence can be utilized in a more efficient manner.


Public work programs (PWPs) gained increasing recognition among governments and international development agencies for their contributions towards women's empowerment, combining aspects of (1) job creation, (2) skills development, (3) income generation, (4) service provision, and (5) credit from social protection into a single scheme. Of particular interest to the PWP community, consisting of development agencies, government agencies, donors, policy makers, community-based organisations, planners and evaluators, is the extent to which a social care agenda increases the gender responsiveness of PWPs in the Global South. I seek to investigate the above issue through examining the unique case of South Africa's home community-based care (HCBC) programme, a social care service implemented as part of South Africa's Expanded Public Works Programme (EPWP).
South Africa's EPWP is a pioneer in (and to date one of very few cases) adopting a social service dimension through the HCBC and Early Childhood Development (ECD) interventions. In this study, I question the impact of HCBC on community caregivers' (mostly females) empowerment. Triangulating a systematic review of the literature against findings from my semi-structured interviews collected in Cape Town, South Africa, and background data from government reports, I evaluate the extent to which HCBC achieved its five action areas targeting women's empowerment, in particular increased (1) access to employment opportunities, (2) employability, (3) income generation which promotes poverty alleviation, (4) community participation, and (5) access to service provision. My findings show the HCBC's capacity to promote women's economic and political empowerment to be constrained, albeit providing a partial route to socio-psychological empowerment through increasing women's visibility and social recognition within the community and women's self-esteem.


In this paper, a three-dimensional CMOS technology is proposed and implemented using stacked Fin-CMOS (SF-CMOS) architecture. The technology is based on a double layer silicon-on-insulator wafer formed by two oxygen implants to create two single-crystal silicon films with an oxide isolation layer in between. The proposed approach achieves a 50% area reduction and significant shortening of the wiring distance between active devices through vertical connection when compared with conventional planar CMOS technology. The SF-CMOS technology also inherits the scalability and two-dimensional processing compatibility of the FinFET structure. SF-CMOS devices and simple circuits were fabricated and characterized.


The thermodynamic parameters, deltaG, deltaH, and deltaS characterizing the tight binding of methotrexate, folates, and pyridine nucleotides to chicken liver dihydrofolate reductase (5,6,7,8-tetrahydrofolate: NADP+ oxidoreductase, EC 188.8.131.52) have been determined from calorimetric and fluorescence measurements. At 25 degrees the binding of NADPH and NADP+ is characterized by small negative enthalpies and large positive entropies whereas the binding of the folates and methotrexate is accompanied by large negative enthalpies and small negative entropies. In addition, the enthalpy of methotrexate-enzyme interaction demonstrates a proton transfer associated with binding; this is not the case with folate and dihydrofolate, thus confirming the conclusions drawn from the observed difference spectra characteristic of the interaction of methotrexate and substrates with the enzyme. The implications of these results are discussed in terms of the nature of the binding process, conformational changes in the enzyme, and the nature of the active site region.


Abstract Single crystals of the new intermetallic compound La16Al13 were obtained by thermal treatment of (La3O)Al in sealed Ta ampoules at 973 K, powder material for physical properties measurements from melt beads of appropriate composition at 773 K, well below the peritectic temperature of 978 K of the decomposition into LaAl and liquid. La16Al13 crystallizes hexagonal (space group P-62m, a = 918.3(2) pm, c = 1123.8(3) pm, Rgt(F) = 0.0293, Rall(F) = 0.0299, wR(F2) = 0.0621) with one formula unit per unit cell. The crystal structure can be described as built from layers of face-sharing Edshammar polyhedra (AlLa2La9/2)2 alternating with layers of barrelane-like Al11 cages linked by La. La16Al13 is a Pauli-paramagnet with metallic electrical resistivity. Electron localization function calculation reveals covalent interactions within the Al11 cages. The resulting large number of the 'free' charge carriers explains the metal-like transport and magnetic properties in good agreement with the experiments and electronic band-structure calculation.


Hayha, Laura. China's Economic, Environmental and Social Development in Crossfire – Province-specific Analysis of China's Ecological Modernization and Sustainability. Master thesis. Autumn 2014. Supervisor: Pertti Jokivuori. Sociology. University of Jyvaskyla. Pages 89 + 1 appendix. This study concentrated to examine ecological modernization process and sustainability of Chinese provinces. The examination focused on the differences between the westernmost and the easternmost China. Data of Chinese Statistical Yearbook was used during the years 2001–2010. Analyses were implemented with SPSS 20. and Excel 2010. Among general statistical analysis, Principal Component Analysis and a relatively new sustainability window analysis were carried out in this study. The new sustainability method was used to determine the minimum (socially sustainable) and maximum (environmentally sustainable) economic growth level in certain sociotechno-economic production system. Among sustainability analysis of the provinces, other purpose of the study was to test the sustainability window assessment tool at provincial level (earlier applied at national comparisons). Sustainability assessment was done for 25 provinces, which were located in the westernmost and the easternmost China. The sustainability assessment concentrated to study changes in socio-techno-economic production systems of each provinces. The method can produce three different outputs of analysed regions: socially and environmentally sustainable regions; only socially sustainable, but environmentally unsustainable regions; socially and environmentally unsustainable regions. The method aimed to examine ecological modernization process of provinces and this meant that three dimensions of sustainable development (economic, environmental, socio-cultural) were taken into account in the analyses. In practice, the analyses were implemented by using GDP as economic dimension, SO2 emissions to illustrate environmental dimension, and composite indicator of social well-being (consisted of private owned vehicles, employment and literacy) reflecting socio-cultural dimension of sustainable development. The composite indicator was built based on the analysis of the Principal Component Analysis. Main results can be divided into three different categories: the easternmost provinces with sustainability window and actual economic growth in side of the window (totally sustainable regions), the easternmost provinces with sustainability window and economic growth outside of it (only socially sustainable regions), and the westernmost provinces without sustainability window (unsustainable regions). As a summary, the first group of division had relatively succeeded ecological modernization process and, their sociotechno-economic production systems were able to change into sustainable. In the second group, ecological modernization process succeeded to change tracks of socio-technoeconomic production systems towards sustainable direction, but efficiency the systems weren't enough for sustainable economic growth. The third group of provinces had very inefficient socio-techno-economic production systems, and the whole structure of the system wasn't proper for sustainable economic growth.


We used the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (Add Health) to examine the social and psychological well-being of multiracial adolescents. Using two different measures of multiracial identity, we investigated the ways in which these adolescents compare to their monoracial counterparts on five outcomes: depression, seriously considering suicide, feeling socially accepted, feeling close to others at school, and participating in extracurricular activities. We found that multiracial adolescents as a group experience some negative outcomes compared to white adolescents, but that this finding is driven by negative outcomes for those with American Indian and white heritage. We found no consistent evidence, however, that multiracial adolescents as a group face more difficulty in adolescence than members of other racial and ethnic minority groups. The results were similar, whether the multiracial population is defined by self-identification or by their parents' racial identifications.


Aim The aim of the EMPATHIC-30 Poland study was to implement a validated parent satisfaction questionnaire. Material and method The EMPATHIC-30 questionnaire was used with a written permission of author. The study has been performed at the 10 beds PICU. Inclusion criteria were all parents whose child was admitted to the PICU for at least 24 h and not died in this unit. Results During 4 months 62 children (including 10 deaths) have been discharged from the PICU. There were 2 parents who refused to take part in the study, another 3 parents were not present during hospitalisation. Twenty five questionnaires have been collected (response rate 53%). Among patients there were 18 infants and toddlers, 3 children and 4 adolescents. Mean length of stay in the PICU was 11 days, 60% of admissions were unplanned. Questionnaires were completed mainly by mothers (84%). Not satisfactory opinions have been given manly for understandable information on examinations and tests (12%) and on possibility to stay close to the child during intensive procedures (16%). All of parents declared that the team worked efficiently and the team showed respect for the patients but only 72% of parents responded that during stay in the PICU the staff regularly asked for parent's experiences. Conclusions The EMPATHIC-30 empowers parents to provide feedback on their experiences in paediatric intensive care and may facilitate health care professionals to improve quality of care. Following a single centre experience the EMPATHIC 30 Poland study should be continued as a national project.


OBJECTIVE
This study examined the association between counseling rapport and drug abuse treatment outcomes.

METHODS
Two cohorts of outpatients who were being treated with methadone in four cities were studied. Cohort 1 comprised 354 patients in community-based nonprofit programs, and cohort 2 comprised 223 patients from a private for-profit program. Logistic regression analyses were used to assess the importance of counseling rapport as a predictor of drug use and criminality relative to treatment retention in the index treatment, satisfaction with treatment, and whether additional treatment was received after the index treatment.

RESULTS
In both cohorts, ratings made by counselors, during treatment, of therapeutic involvement and relationships with patients provided a useful measure of counseling rapport. A lower level of rapport during treatment predicted worse post-index treatment outcomes, including more cocaine use and criminality, both by itself and after adjustment for treatment retention, satisfaction with treatment, and post-index treatment status. Counseling strategies were associated with the development of counseling rapport.

CONCLUSIONS
Counseling rapport is a vital part of the therapeutic process and helps explain why and when treatment is effective. It contributes explicitly to the prediction of outcomes, apart from treatment retention, and accounts in part for the usual association between treatment retention and outcomes.


Head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC) is the most prevalent cancer affecting the upper aerodigestive tract, with an annual incidence of 600,000 patients and a five year survival of approximately 60% worldwide. Molecular mechanisms driving the development of HNSCC have recently begun to be discovered, with The Cancer Genome Atlas (TCGA) uncovering the genomic landscape of 279 cases of HNSCC. Alterations in cell death pathways were commonly found in the TCGA analysis, with ∼30% of samples harboring 11q13/22 amplifications and overexpression of genes encoding for Fas-associated death domain (FADD) and/or cellular Inhibitor of Apoptosis Proteins 1/2 (cIAP1/2). While overexpression of cIAP1 has been implicated in resistance to cytotoxic therapies, the role of FADD amplification as a target for therapy and in mechanisms of cell death is not well understood. Birinapant is a novel second mitochondria-derived activator of caspases (SMAC)-mimetic that targets and promotes degradation of cIAPs. Its clinical efficacy is currently being investigated in phase II trials of patients with ovarian cancer and leukemia. However, its preclinical and clinical efficacies have not been tested in HNSCC and genomic markers of sensitivity remain to be defined. Here we hypothesized that overexpression of FADD and cIAP1/2 could modulate birinapant sensitivity in HNSCC. To test this hypothesis, we have treated a panel of 11 HPV(-) and 8 HPV(+) HNSCC cell lines with birinapant alone and in combination with death agonists TNFα or TRAIL. UMSCC-46, an HPV(-) cell line which possesses high FADD expression, was the only cell line to reach half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC50) 72 hours post treatment with birinapant alone (IC50 = 10.7 nM); however, 8 of 11 HPV(-) cell lines and all 8 HPV(+) cell lines attained an IC50 (range: 0.1 - 794 nM) when treated with birinapant in combination with either TNFα or TRAIL. We further demonstrated that forced FADD overexpression in a previously resistant cell line (UMSCC-38) led to sensitization when treated with birinapant and TNFα. In vivo, two FADD/cIAP1 overexpressing murine xenograft models of HNSCC, UMSCC-46 and UMSCC-11B, were treated with birinapant at 15 mg/kg or 30 mg/kg every 3 days for a total of 10 treatments. The single modality regimen led to tumor growth inhibition and prolonged host survival. Additionally, combination treatment with birinapant 15 mg/kg and radiation 2Gy/day M-F for 2 weeks synergistically induced TNFα and led to a cure of animals bearing UMSCC-46 xenografts. Mechanistically, birinapant enhanced degradation of cIAP1 and modulated caspase apoptotic or MLKL necroptotic cell death markers in vitro and in vivo. These results suggest that patients harboring genomic alterations in FADD and/or cIAP overexpression may be candidates for treatment with birinapant and radiation. Supported by NIDCD intramural projects ZIA-DC-000073, and 74. Citation Format: Adeeb Derakhshan, Danielle Eytan, Grace Snow, Sophie Carlson, Anthony Saleh, Hui Cheng, Stephen Schiltz, Suresh Mohan, Shaleeka Cornelius, Jamie Coupar, Anastasia Sowers, Lydia Hernandez, James Mitchell, Christina Annunziata, Zhong Chen, Carter Van Waes. Targeted therapy for head and neck squamous cell carcinoma using the novel SMAC-mimetic birinapant. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 107th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2016 Apr 16-20; New Orleans, LA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2016;76(14 Suppl):Abstract nr 3821.


Cotgrove and Duff, among others, suggest that planned human behaviour, both personal and collective, is influenced by values. Therefore any change or discrepancy in value systems might provide a major key to understanding social and personality change. Previous empirical research has shown values, for example, to be determinant of managerial practices, to influence managerial decisions, to affect organisational goals and strategy, to be related to motivation, and work satisfaction. The study of values enables researchers to deal with the individual in society and to analyse social process and structure. Furthermore, extensive evidence suggests that the understanding and monitoring of values associated with the work environment is a critical influence on organisational efficiency and effectiveness.


Fiscal year 1996 has been a year of significant change for the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory (LLNL) in general and for Engineering in particular. Among these changes, the Laboratory`s national security mission was better defined, the stockpile stewardship program objectives became crisper, LLNL`s investment in high-performance computing was re-emphasized with the procurement of a $100 million supercomputer for the Laboratory`s Accelerated Strategic Computing Initiative (ASCI) program, two major Laser programs (the National Ignition Facility and Atomic Vapor Laser Isotope Separation) expanded significantly, and DOE`s human genome efforts moved to the next phase of development. In the area of business operations, LLNL`s Cost Cutting Initiative Program (CCIP) was completed and the Laboratory restructured its workforce using a Voluntary Separation Incentive Program (VSIP). Engineering similarly also saw many technical and programmatic successes, as well as changes, starting with completion of its strategic plan, significant consolidation of its facilities, restructuring of its workforce, reduction of its overhead costs, substantial transfers of staff between programs, and finally my personal arrival at Livermore. This report is the first opportunity to capture some of Engineering`s FY96 activities and accomplishments in a succinct fashion, and to relate these to our strategic plan.


Abstract:  Methamphetamine (METH) is a potent psychostimulant drug that may cause neuronal cell degeneration. The underlying mechanisms of METH‐induced neuronal toxicity remains poorly understood. In this study, we investigated an important role of calpain‐dependent cascades in methamphetamine‐induced toxicity in human dopaminergic neuroblastoma SH‐SY5Y cultured cell lines. In addition, the protective effect of melatonin against METH‐induced calpain‐dependent death pathway was also investigated. The results of this study show that METH significantly decreased cell viability and tyrosine hydroxylase phosphorylation in SH‐SY5Y cultured cells. Melatonin reversed the toxic effect of METH by inducing cell viability. In addition, melatonin was able to restore the reduction in mitochondrial function and phosphorylation of tyrosine hydroxylase in SH‐SY5Y treated cells. An induction of calpain expression and activity but a reduction of calpain inhibitor (calpastatin) protein levels were observed in SH‐SY5Y cells treated with METH but these effects were diminished by melatonin. These results implicated calpain‐dependent death pathways in the processes of METH‐induced toxicity and also indicated that melatonin has the capacity to reverse this toxic effect in SH‐SY5Y cultured cells.


Cyberterrorism has not occurred. Furthermore, the definitional parameters of cyberterrorism have not been conclusively defined by either policymakers or academia. However, in 2010 the threat posed by the terrorist application of cyber weaponry to target British critical national infrastructure became a 'Tier One' threat to the UK. This thesis is the first comprehensive mapping and analysis of the official British construction of the threat of cyberterrorism between 12th May 2010 and 24th June 2016. By using interpretive discourse analysis, this thesis identifies 'strands' from a comprehensive corpus of policy documents, statements and speeches from Ministers, MPs and Peers. This thesis examines how the threat of cyberterrorism was constructed in the UK, and what this securitisation has made possible. In addition, this thesis makes novel contributions to the Copenhagen School's 'securitisation theory' framework. Accordingly: this thesis outlines the framework for a 'tiered', rather than monolithic audience; refines the 'temporal' and 'spatial' conditioning of securitisation with reference to the unique characteristics of cyberterrorism; and lastly, details the way in which popular fiction can be ascribed agency in securitising moves to 'fill in' a lack of case studies threat with gripping vicarious fictional narratives. It is identified that the 2010 British Coalition Government's classification of cyberterrorism as a 'Tier One' threat created central strand upon which discursive securitisation was established. Despite the absence of a 'cyberterrorist' incident across period under scrutiny, the securitisation did not recede. The threat posed by cyberterrorism was articulated partially within a 'New Terrorism' frame, and it was deemed by Ministers, MPs Lords to be a threat that was likely to escalate in both severity and possibility over time. A notable finding is the positioning of securitisation against a particular 'cyberterrorist' identity epitomised by social actors using cyberspace, rather than the tangible environments or cyberspace.


OBJECTIVE
Selective serotonin reuptake inhibitors (SSRIs) are recommended for treatment of affect lability, impulsivity, and aggression in patients with borderline personality disorder. This recommendation is based on positive findings in at least 10 open studies and one small double-blind study of SSRIs for patients with borderline personality disorder and one study of impulsive aggressive patients with different personality disorders. A randomized, placebo-controlled SSRI study with borderline personality disorder patients, however, provided inconclusive results because of a large response to placebo. It was, therefore, decided to conduct a new randomized trial with a larger study group.

METHOD
A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial using the SSRI fluvoxamine for 6 weeks followed by a blind half-crossover for 6 weeks and an open follow-up for another 12 weeks was conducted with 38 nonschizophrenic, nonbipolar female patients with borderline personality disorder. The outcome measures were the rapid mood shift, impulsivity, and aggression subscales from the Borderline Personality Disorder Severity Index.

RESULTS
Fluvoxamine but not placebo produced a robust and long-lasting reduction in the scores on the subscale for rapid mood shifts. In contrast, no difference between the fluvoxamine and placebo groups was observed in the effect on the impulsivity and aggression scores.

CONCLUSIONS
In this study, fluvoxamine significantly improved rapid mood shifts in female borderline patients, but not impulsivity and aggression. This latter finding may be due to gender-specific differences in impulsivity and aggression.


Background: Wheatgrass is known to have antioxidant, antiaging, and anti-inflammatory effect. However, its protective effect against hypoxia is not yet evaluated. Objective: In this study, we evaluated the protective and anti-inflammatory effect of wheatgrass against the hypoxia in airway epithelial cells. Materials and Methods: A549 human lung adenocarcinoma cells were incubated in a hypoxic condition (CO2 5%/O2 1%) for 24 hr in the presence of different concentration of wheatgrass 50, 75, 100, and 150 μg/mL, and the magnitude of each immunologic response produced by the A549 cells was compared. The mRNA expression level of mucin gene (MUC), 5A, 5B, 8, GM-CSF, TNF-α, and VEGF were evaluated by using real-time polymerase chain reaction. The MUC proteins level before and after knocking out the hypoxia-inducible factor (hif)-1α via short interfering (si) RNA transfection were assessed by immunoblot analysis. Accordingly, the involved cell signaling pathway was evaluated by immunoblot analysis. Results: The inflammatory cytokines (GM-CSF, TNF- α) and the expressions of MUC 5A, 5B, and 8 were augmented by hypoxia. The augmented MUC expression was decreased by the wheatgrass extract administration. Hif-1α gene expression after hypoxia exposure was decreased by wheatgrass. Knockdown of hif-1α by siRNA reduced the mucin gene expression and which was more enhanced by wheatgrass extract. Conclusion: Theses results suggest that wheatgrass may be useful in the treatment of sinonasal disease by inhibiting mucus hypersecretion in airway epithelium. Abbreviations used: A549: human lung adenocarcinoma cells, GM-CSF: granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor, HIF: hypoxia inducible factor, IL: interleukin, MUC: mucin, MTT: 3-(4,5-dimethylthiazol-2-yl)-2,5-diphenyltetrazolium bromide, TNF: tumor necrosis factors, VEGF: vascular endothelial growth factor, si RNA: short interfering RNA


Recently, two-dimensional gallium and aluminum nitrides have triggered a vast interest in their tunable optical and electronic properties. Continuation of this research requires a detailed understanding of their atomic structure. Here, by using first-principles calculations we reported a systematic study of phase stability of 2D-GaN and 2D-AlN. We showed that the films undergo a phase transition from a graphene-like to a wurtzite structure with a thickness increase, whereas the early reported body-centered-tetragonal phase requires specific conditions for stabilization. Additionally, we studied how the functionalization of the surface can modify the film structure as exemplified by hydrogenation.


Pronounced seasonality in photoperiod and phytoplankton availability drives key physiological processes in many Antarctic primary consumers. To test the hypothesis that carnivores would be less markedly affected by environmental seasonality than benthic 'herbivores', we measured faecal egestion, oxygen consumption and nitrogen excretion every 2 to 3 mo for 18 mo in 5 benthic predators and scavengers common around Adelaide Island (West Antarctic Peninsula): the fish Harpagifer antarcticus, the brittle star Ophionotus victoriae, the nemertean Parborlasia corrugatus, the amphipod Paraceradocus miersii and the nudibranch Doris kerguelenensis. The degree of seasonality varied between species and was not consistent across the physiological parameters measured. Faecal egestion varied strongly between species and individuals. All species except Paraceradocus miersii ceased feeding for several months. No consistent seasonality in metabolic activity (oxygen consumption and nitrogen excretion) was observed, and seasonal factorial changes in oxygen consumption were less than in primary consumers. Use of metabolic substrates changed between seasons, particularly in H. antarcticus, which switched from a balanced diet to mainly protein utilisation at the start of winter. O. victoriae had the highest O:N ratio (232) and Parborlasia corrugatus the lowest (9), suggesting the latter species is the most exclusive carnivore. We conclude that food availability and quality is also variable for Antarctic secondary consumers but that this variation is not as tightly coupled to the environmental seasonality as in primary consumers. Other factors, such as reproductive activity, that are indirectly coupled to seasonal signals may have also been causing this variability.


N‐myc expression in the mouse embryo was examined in its organogenesis period. Northern blot analysis of total RNA of embryos from 9.5 days to 17.5 days of gestation indicated that N‐myc mRNA level was the highest at 9.5 days and decreased as development proceeded. Tissue distribution of N‐myc expression in 9.5 day embryos was histologically analyzed by in situ hybridization of the transcripts and immunofluorescent staining of N‐myc protein. In addition to the central nervous system indicated in previous studies on embryos of different stages, we found N‐myc expression in various developing tissues. Neural crest‐derived tissues generally expressed N‐myc transcripts and proteins to significant levels, e.g. facial primordia, visceral arches and dorsal root ganglia. Among mesodermal tissues, N‐myc expression was especially high in the migrating sclerotomes derived from caudal halves of the somites, primitive nephric tubules, and mesenchymes condensed around the digestive tract and in the limb buds. Expression in endodermal tissues, however, was very low. In situ hybridization and immunohistology gave consistent results, confirming the authenticity of the detection of N‐myc expression.


In this paper, we describe the solution to the QQ Browser 2021 Ai Algorithm Competition (AIAC) Track 1. We use the multi-modal transformer model for the video embedding extraction. In the pretrain phase, we train the model with three tasks, (1) Video Tag Classification (VTC), (2) Mask Language Modeling (MLM) and (3) Mask Frame Modeling (MFM). In the finetune phase, we train the model with video similarity based on rank normalized human labels. Our full pipeline, after ensembling several models, scores 0.852 on the leaderboard, which we achieved the 1st place in the competition. The source codes have been released at Github.


Objectives: To identify genetic determinants of susceptibility to clinical vertebral fractures, an 102 important complication of osteoporosis. Methods: Here we conduct a genome-wide 103 association study in 1,553 postmenopausal women with clinical vertebral fractures and 4,340 104 controls, with a 2-stage replication involving 1,028 cases and 3,762 controls. Potentially causal 105 variants were identified using eQTL data from transiliac bone biopsies and bioinformatic 106 studies. Results: A locus tagged by rs10190845 was identified on chromosome 2q13 which 107 was significantly associated with clinical vertebral fracture (p=1.04x10 -9 ) with a large effect 108 size (odds ratio 1.74, 95% CI 1.06 – 2.6). Bioinformatic analysis of this locus identified several 109 potentially functional SNPs which are associated with expression of the positional candidate 110 genes TTL (Tubulin Tyrosine Ligase) and SLC20A1 (Solute Carrier Family 20 Member 1). 111 Three other suggestive loci were identified on chromosomes 1p31, 11q12 and 15q11. All these 112 loci were novel and had not previously been associated with BMD or clinical fractures. 113 Conclusion: We have identified a novel genetic variant that is associated with clinical vertebral 114 fractures by mechanisms that are independent of BMD. Further studies are now in progress to 115 validate this association and evaluate the underlying mechanism. 116 117 118


This paper presents the work of the 'Salford Dementia Associate Panel', based at the Salford Institute for Dementia, Salford University (UK). We discuss the roles of the Dementia Associates, in particular around the areas of engagement and research. The panel is made up of people living with dementia, and current and former care partners. It highlights the development of this group over a four-year period and demonstrates over time how the role of a Dementia Associate member has evolved. The panel is involved in research, education and public engagement activities conducted by staff and students within the Institute. The motivations for becoming involved are clearly articulated and demonstrate how the personal backgrounds of individuals have driven the collective involvement and desire to bring about change. The benefits and challenges associated with working as part of a panel are discussed. We conclude by bringing together our experiences as a set of suggestions for others who may wish to create a similar forum to promote the involvement of people living with dementia and former and current care partners.


CLINICAL TRIALS • A National Study of the Chronic Disease Self-Management Program, Not Recruiting • Active Living Tool Kit for Chronic Conditions, Not Recruiting • Arthritis Self-Management Education Program, Not Recruiting • Building Better Caregivers Online: An Online Workshop for Caregivers of Those With Traumatic Brain Injury, Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, or Alzheimer's or Other Dementia, Not Recruiting


Capparis with about 142 taxa is the largest genus in the angiosperm family Capparaceae, and is of high medicinal and economic importance. Several taxa such as C. cartilaginea, C. cleghornii, C. incanescens, C. moonii, C. roxburghii, C. sepiaria, C. spinosa and C. spinosa subsp. himalayensis are difficult to distinguish from each other based on morphology, and they all have partly overlapping geographic distributions. This study assesses the potential of four plastidial loci (rbcL, matK, trnL-trnF, and psbA-trnH) to resolve three species complexes in Capparis. Successful amplification and sequencing, as well as statistical analyses, revealed matK, trnL-trnF, and their combination to be the most effective DNA markers. With these markers we were able to distinguish different Capparis taxa collected from their natural habitats and from the crude drug market. The species rank of C. himalayensis was reinstated based on morphology and molecular data. The phylogenetic relationships of the poorly known C. danielii and C. incanescens with C. sepiaria were clarified.


In the book Sexual Science and the Law Andrew Green tackles sex-linked themes that have become overburdened with stereotypical, intuitive, ill-informed, uninformed, and often alarmist legal reactions conditioned by conservative, parentalistic (usually paternalistic) attitudes. His review of the characteristics and origins of sexual behaviours, their consequences, and how courts have responded to them provides rich material for reflection on how courts reach decisions, the range of legitimate speculation that should influence judicial dispositions, and how laws might be reformed in light of what is known about human behaviour concerning sexual and related matters. The book also offers students and practitioners of family, criminal, and medical law a good sense of the type of expert testimony that may be invoked to explain backgrounds to events, and the foreseeable consequences of the different orders that judges can make.


Abstract Background The Irish National Orthopaedic Register (INOR) provides a national mechanism for managing data on THA and TKA in Ireland, including a detailed implant record populated by intraoperative implant bar code scanning. It is critically important that implant details are recorded accurately for longitudinal outcome studies, implant recalls, and revision surgery planning. Before INOR's 2014 launch, Irish hospitals maintained separate, local institutional arthroplasty databases. These individual databases typically took the form of hardcopy operating room (OR) logbooks with handwritten patient details alongside the descriptive stickers from the implant packaging and/or individual institution electronic records using manual electronic implant data input. With the introduction of the INOR, a single, unifying national database was established with the ability to instead collect implant data using bar code scanning at time of implant unpackaging in the OR. We observed that bar code data entry represented a novel and potentially substantial change to implant recording methods at our institution and so sought to examine the potential effect on implant data quality. Questions/purposes We compared the new bar code scanning method of implant data collection used by the INOR to the previously employed recording methods at our institution (in our case, the previous methods included both an electronic operation note database [Bluespier software] and a duplicate hardcopy OR logbook) and asked (1) Does bar code scanning improve the completeness of implant records? (2) Does bar code scanning improve the accuracy of implant records? Methods Although the INOR was launched in 2014, our institution went live with it in 2019. To avoid any potential recording issues that may have occurred during the 2019 introduction of the novel system, a clear period before the introduction of INOR was selected at our institution to represent an era of manual data input to Bluespier software: July 2018. Although we initially aimed for 2 months of data from July 1, 2018, to August 31, 2018 (n = 247), we decided to proceed to 250 consecutive, primary THAs or TKAs for clarity of results. No procedure meeting these criteria was excluded. A second recent period, January 2021, was identified to represent an era of bar code data input; 250 consecutive, primary THAs or TKAs were also included from this date (to February 15, 2021). No case meeting these criteria was excluded. A total of 4244 implant parameters from these 500 primary THAs or TKAs were manually cross-referenced for missing or incorrect data. Eleven THA and six TKA parameters were chosen for comparison, including implant names and component sizes. For each case, either the 2018 Bluespier electronic record or the 2021 INOR electronic record was manually interrogated, and implant details were recorded by two authors before they were compared against the duplicate record for every case (the reference-standard OR logbook containing the corresponding implant product stickers) for both completeness and accuracy. Completeness was defined binarily as the implant parameter being either present or absent; we did likewise for accuracy, either that parameter was correct or incorrect. The OR logbooks were chosen as the reference standard because we felt the risk of product stickers containing errors (inaccuracies) was negligible, and in our collective experience, missing stickers (incompleteness) has not been encountered. Logbook case completeness was also confirmed by comparison to our inpatient management system. Results With the introduction of the automated bar code data entry in the INOR, the proportion of missing data declined from 7% (135 of 2051) to 0% (0 of 2193), and the proportion of incorrectly recorded implant parameters declined from 2% (45 of 2051) to 0% (0 of 2193). The proportion of procedures with entirely accurate implant records rose from 53% (133 of 250) to 100% (250 of 250). Conclusion The completeness and accuracy of implant data capture was improved after the introduction of a contemporary electronic national arthroplasty registry that utilizes bar code data entry. Clinical Relevance Based on the results of this study, other local and national registers may consider bar code data entry in the OR to achieve excellent implant data quality. Future studies may examine implant data quality at a national level to validate the bar code–populated data of the INOR.


The paper proposes an ancient landscape design as an example of graphic design for an age and place where no written documents existed. It is created by a network of earthworks, which constitute the remains of an extensive ancient agricultural system. It can be seen by means of the Google satellite imagery on the Peruvian region near the Titicaca Lake, as a texture superimposed to the background landform. In this texture, many drawings (geoglyphs) can be observed.


Abstract The eriophyid mite Leipothrix dipsacivagus Petanovic et Rector provokes severe malformations to its host plant, cut-leaf teasel (Dipsacus laciniatus L.), in the field. These injuries were examined at the morpho-anatomical level in infested plants collected in the field and experimentally infested plants kept under controlled laboratory conditions. A number of symptoms were observed including reduced growth, internode shortening, leaf rolling and wrinkling, and shrunken inflorescences. After severe attack, the leaves of bolted plants became chlorotic with necrotic spots and started to wilt. Young rosettes died. Morphometric analysis revealed significant differences between infested and healthy field-collected bolting plants. Infested plants were significantly shorter than healthy plants, with smaller leaves and flower heads. Striking injuries were also observed on young leaves of experimentally infested plants. It is expected that further investigations will elucidate the full extent of the damage to aboveground parts of D. laciniatus due to infestation by L. dipsacivagus.


Visualization of large vector line data is a core task in geographic and cartographic systems. Vector maps are often displayed at different cartographic generalization levels, traditionally by using several discrete levels‐of‐detail (LODs). This limits the generalization levels to a fixed and predefined set of LODs, and generally does not support smooth LOD transitions. However, fast GPUs and novel line rendering techniques can be exploited to integrate dynamic vector map LOD management into GPU‐based algorithms for locally‐adaptive line simplification and real‐time rendering. We propose a new technique that interactively visualizes large line vector datasets at variable LODs. It is based on the Douglas‐Peucker line simplification principle, generating an exhaustive set of line segments whose specific subsets represent the lines at any variable LOD. At run time, an appropriate and view‐dependent error metric supports screen‐space adaptive LOD levels and the display of the correct subset of line segments accordingly. Our implementation shows that we can simplify and display large line datasets interactively. We can successfully apply line style patterns, dynamic LOD selection lenses, and anti‐aliasing techniques to our line rendering.


Some Rajiformes species among the cartilaginous fish (Chondrichthyes) that are distributed on the west coast of the Gulf of Iskenderun were seasonally obtained by bottom trawling from 2 different depth layers between the years 2004 and 2011. The spatiotemporal changes in catch per unit effort (CPUE) values were investigated by considering 2 depth contours (10 and 20 m). Six species belonging to 6 different Rajiformes families were identified during the sampling period, including Dasyatis pastinaca (common stingray), Gymnura altavela (spiny butterfly ray), Rhinobatos rhinobatos (common guitarfish), Raja radula (rough ray), Myliobatis aquila (common eagle ray), and Torpedo marmorata (marbled electric ray). A general linear model was used to analyze the changes in the total and separate weights of cartilaginous fish. For this purpose, the logarithms of CPUE values in weight were classed according to the depth, season, and years. Seasonal variations and year–season 2-way interactions were found to be highly significant for total cartilaginous CPUE values (P < 0.01). The annual changes in R. rhinobatos were the only significant annual difference (P < 0.05), while the year–season interactions of D. pastinaca were found to be significant (P < 0.01). The seasonal variations of D. pastinaca and G. altavela were also highly significant (P < 0.01).


Social innovation is on the rise as a mode of governance through which to address societal challenges. Seeking to empower SI initiatives, researchers and policy makers are concerned with the development of supportive "ecosystems". This concept usefully calls attention to the distributed nature of SI agency, but many questions remain on the kinds of network constellations involved. This contribution unpacks the "SI ecosystems" concept, specifying how the empowerment afforded through SI networks rests on (1) local embedding, (2) transnational connectivity and (3) discursive resonance. Charting the variety of network constellations as studied in an international comparison of 20 transnational SI networks, a typology of SI ecosystems is constructed. Distinguishing five SI ecosystem ideal-types ranging from loosely integrated and locally focused co-creation hubs to globally connected and widely resonating political movements, the typology informs a differentiated approach to their understanding and development.


The objective of this study was to evaluate the hospital course of the patients who had cataract extraction and IOL implantation in Paholpolpayuhasena hospital. A tatal of 70 cases were female for 55.71%, age 60-79 years for 70%, income 1,001-2,000 baht per month 70% and total cost of 20,001 -30,000 baht in 50% of cases. There were no intra operative and immediate post operative complication, when compare duration of hospital course with age, sex, occupation, living place, knowledge and type of cataract, there were no statistical significant.


The management of construction and demolition waste (CDW) is the main tool for construction housing sustainably. This article presents a diagnosis of the management of CDW and their environmental impacts in the municipality of Caruaru, Pernambuco. The construction and demolition waste management Index (CDWMI) was calculated. This index uses the environmental sustainability indicators: management instruments, management programs, collection and screening, and treatment and disposition of the CDW. The results of this research were compared with the results of six municipalities in the metropolitan region of Recife (MRR). The evaluation of the management of the municipality of Caruaru regarding the CDW indicated the low performance of the municipality since, of the four groups of instruments used, three of them were low grades, and only in the indicators of instruments for policies obtained the average grade. With the diagnosis of a low degree of sustainability in relation to the management of CDW, it is evident that there must be a restructuring in the management of the municipality so that what is established and agreed upon in the Municipal Solid Waste Plan (MSWP) is commenced.


Although behavioral problems are a central feature of Alzheimer's disease (AD), measurement of these behavioral problems has been limited in most studies to retrospective reports of the frequency of behaviors by caregivers. In the present study, 32 caregivers of AD patients completed detailed behavioral logs of their patients' adaptive and ineffective behaviors over a 48-hr period; these logs were then compared with more widely used instruments assessing patients' cognitive functioning, self-care, and behavioral problems. Results illustrate the nature of common behavioral problems in dementia, provide information on the time distribution of behavioral problems, and support the convergent and discriminant validity of one widely used measure of behavioral problems, the Memory and Behavior Problems Checklist. Potential clinical and research uses of the behavioral-log method are discussed.


Background: The aim of our study was to investigate biochemical properties of triacylglycerol acylhydrolase in the microvillous plasma membrane of macrosomic babies' placentas. Materials and methods: Fifteen placentas of mothers of macrosomic babies were included in this study and compared to 15 placentas of mothers of normal weight babies.  We included singleton pregnancies who delivered between 36 and 41 completed weeks gestation. Macrosomia was confirmed by birth weight > 4 kg. We focused on a triacylglycerol lipase of placental villi which may be involved in the development of fetal macrosomia. Results: A true lipase (EC.126.96.36.199) was isolated from placentas of women with normal fetal weights (the controls), and those of macrosomic babies. Placental microvillus enzyme was active at 37°C and pH 7.4 for both groups. The specific activity of the enzyme was higher in the macrosomic babies' placentas than those of controls. Enzymatic activity was enhanced in the presence of calcium by a factor of 2.  We also observed the tendency of the enzyme to aggregation when loading the purified extract onto a DEAE-cellulose ion exchange column. Conclusion: The detected enzyme in macrosomic babies' placentas showed a higher specific activity which could be related to lipid transfer disorder across the placenta in macrosomia.


In this paper, a novel strategy for designing the heterogeneous tree multiplexer is proposed. The authors build the multiplexer delay model by curve fitting and then formulate the heterogeneous tree multiplexer design problem as a special type of optimization problem called mixed-integer nonlinear programming (MINLP). A new design parameter, the switch size in each stage, is introduced to improve the speed of the heterogeneous tree multiplexer. The proposed strategy can determine the multiplexer architecture and the switch size in each stage simultaneously. Three optimization methods are provided to synthesize the heterogeneous tree multiplexer according to the design specifications.


This paper details the design of rear upright for a JCU Tec-NQ (JTR) Racing Motorsport, Formula Society of Automotive Engineers (FSAE) race car using Aluminium Alloy 7075-T6 through the use of a track simulator developed by RMIT Racing, forces on the upright were calculated and an upright was designed in SolidWorks. To ensure optimal design with the aid of Finite Element Analysis using ANSYS workbench, three main load cases with combination of drive cases (acceleration, braking, and left and right turn) were used to evaluate performance of the rear upright. They include fatigue of upright, single bump loads and the zero-based fatigue loading of the calliper-mounting bracket. For the fatigue loading of the whole upright, it was observed that the greatest stress throughout the four drive cases occurred in a left hand turn. For single bump loads, the upright could withstand a vertical bump load of stress value significantly lower than the ultimate tensile strength. For the fatigue analysis on the brake calliper mount, the resulting safety factor plot presented a minimum factor of three for infinite life. Other relevant analysis were presented, such as sphere of influence and exaggerated deformation which showed that the upright will experience a maximum deformation of 0.132mm during the worst case lap scenario (left hand turn). The material considered for the design of the rear upright was Aluminium Alloy 7075-T6 as it has superior mechanical properties in terms of stiffness, fatigue and tensile strength for the application compared to both the Alumec alloy and Aluminium Alloy 6061-T6 considered in this paper.


Hypertension is one of the important risk factors of chronic non-communicable diseases such as stroke, myocardial infarction, heart failure and so on. It seriously affects heart, brain, kidney and other vital organs of the structure and function. In recent years, prevalence of hypertension in China is growing rapidly. The natural process of hypertension is changed directly because of constantly optimizing and widely using antihypertensive drugs, which results in the change of evolution law in traditional Chinese medicine pathology correspondingly. Kidney deficiency is the key pathology of hypertension nowadays. It is demonstrated that hypertension could be treated by the therapeutic principle of tonifying kidney.


Rationale Immunosuppression was associated with adverse events for idiopathic pulmonary fibrosis (IPF) patients in the PANTHER-IPF trial. The reason why some IPF patients experience harm is unknown. Objectives We sought to determine if leukocyte telomere length (LTL) was associated with the harmful effect of immunosuppression in IPF patients. Methods LTL was measured from available DNA samples from PANTHER-IPF (interim analysis, n=79; final analysis, n=118). Replication cohorts included ACE-IPF (n=101) and an independent observational cohort (UTSW-IPF, n=170). LTL-stratified and medication-stratified survival analyses were performed using multivariable Cox regression models for composite endpoint-free survival. Measurements and Main Results Of the subjects enrolled in the PANTHER-IPF and ACE-IPF, 62% (49/79) and 56% (28/50) had a LTL <10th percentile of normal, respectively. In PANTHER-IPF, exposure to prednisone/azathioprine/N-acetylcysteine was associated with a higher composite endpoint of death, lung transplantation, hospitalization, or forced vital capacity (FVC) decline for those with a LTL <10th percentile (HR 2.84, 95% CI 1.02-7.87, p=0.045). This finding was replicated in the placebo arm of ACE-IPF for those exposed to immunosuppression (HR 7.18, 95% CI 1.52-33.84, p=0.013). A propensity-matched UTSW IPF cohort showed a similar association between immunosuppression and composite endpoints (death, lung transplantation or FVC decline) for those with a LTL <10th percentile (HR 3.79, 95% CI 1.73-8.30, p=0.00085). An interaction was found between immunosuppression and LTL for the combined PANTHER-IPF and ACE-IPF clinical trials (pinteraction=0.048), as well as the UTSW IPF cohort (pinteraction=0.00049). Conclusions LTL is a biomarker that may identify IPF patients at risk for poor outcomes when exposed to immunosuppression.


This study proposes the adaption of the harmonic control array (HCA) technique to control a single-phase stand-alone inverter system. The HCA method is recently proposed as an efficient scheme to control the systems with periodic references or disturbances. The HCA appropriately adjusts the harmonic components of the control signal to obtain a zero steady-state error. Since the signals and parameters involved in this method are complex valued, a discrete time implementation is presented for applying the method through a digital platform. The design procedure of the controller parameters are also presented by details. To confirm the theoretical achievements, experimental results for the prototype system are presented in this study. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed control scheme.


Given the current conditions of intensifying sanctions, scarcity of resources and the start of a structural transformation of the Russian economy, the task of a reassessment of the efficiency of existing tools of economic policy, so that these tools can be realigned, becomes vital. In this publication, we study the influence of intergovernmental budget transfers, subsidies in particular, on regional economic growth in Russia. We perform the analysis on the full sample of relevant Russian regions and on three subsamples of regions, differing in the degrees of regional budgets' reliance on transfers. Additionally, we divide regions into two groups, based on the shares of natural resources extraction in their economies. Our analysis shows that increases in the shares of incoming transfers in regional budgets are followed by increases in the rates of growth of GRP per capita – however, this works only for regions with a medium degree of transfer reliance. Such regions having high shares of employment in extraction intensifies the positive effect of transfers. Increases in subsidies to regional budgets are also followed by faster growth – but only in regions with a medium to high reliance on incoming transfers; for regions with a low reliance on transfers the effect of subsidies is insignificant. Among the control variables we use, the share of capital investment in GRP and the share of employed with a higher education also correspond to higher rates of economic growth, but again – only for regions with a medium degree of reliance on incoming transfers. Using the spatial Durbin model, we control for spatial effects between regions. Overall, our analysis shows that the system of intergovernmental transfers currently in place in Russia promotes growth only for regions with a medium level of reliance on transfers


BACKGROUND
Cancer progression depend on the immune and endocrine status of the patients. In particular, it has been observed that abnormally high levels of cortisol and/or an altered circadian secretion are associated with a poor prognosis in advanced cancer patients. The present study was performed to establish whether cancer-induced hypercortisolemia depends on an activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis or on a direct adrenal stimulation by inflammatory cytokines, such as IL-6, which have been proven to induce cortisol secretion.

PATIENTS AND METHODS
The study included 50 metastatic solid tumor patients, who were evaluated before the onset of chemotherapy. Venous blood samples were collected in the morning to measure IL-10, IL-6, ACTH and cortisol serum levels. Moreover, to analyze its circadian secretion, cortisol levels were also evaluated on venous blood samples collected at 4.00 p.m.

RESULTS
Abnormally high morning levels of cortisol were observed in 19/50 (38%) patients. Moreover, a lack of a normal circadian rhythm of cortisol was seen in 8/50 (16%) patients. None of the patients showed high levels of ACTH. Abnormally high concentrations of IL-6 and IL-10 were present in 21/50 (42%) and in 14/50 (28%) patients, respectively. Mean serum levels of both IL-6 and IL-10 were significantly higher in patients with hypercortisolemia than in those with normal cortisol values (p<0.005 and p<0.001, respectively). According to previous clinical studies, these results confirm that the advanced neoplastic disease may be associated with enhanced cortisol levels and alterations of its circadian secretion. The lack of enhanced ACTH secretion excludes the possibility that the abnormal cortisol production is due to the activation of the hypothalamic-pituitary axis. On the contrary, the evidence of significantly higher concentrations of IL-6 in hypercortisolemic patients would suggest that cancer-related enhanced cortisol production may depend on a direct adrenal stimulation by IL-6 itself The well-demonstrated stimulatory role of cortisol on IL-10 production would explain the enhanced IL-10 secretion in hypercortisolemic patients.

CONCLUSION
Cancer-related hypercortisolemia would seem to depend on alterations of the feedback mechanisms between endocrine and cytokine secretions, occurring in the neoplastic disease.


Introduction: In the globalizing world; the concept of medical tourism comes to the fore with the increase in travel freedoms between countries, easier transportation facilities, and the increased quality of healthcare services in different countries. This study aims to examine the barriers to developing medical tourism and prioritize the factors to give an insight on where to allocate resources in the scope of a conceptual framework on medical tourism. Methods: Barriers to medical tourism in Turkey were identified based on the literature and experts' opinions. As a result of the expert opinions, 23 factors were identified and grouped under five main categories. The analytical hierarchy process method was used to prioritize the factors. A pair-wise comparison form was prepared by the researcher and sent to experts. The data obtained from these forms was analyzed and weights were calculated. Results: The factors were ranked from most important to least important as follows: negative corporate image (w=0.319), quality of healthcare (w=0.198), incompatible regulations/law (w=0.177), human resources (w=0.163), and underdeveloped infrastructure (w=0.142). Conclusion: It was determined that the development of medical tourism is not sufficient, despite the great potential of Turkey in terms of technological healthcare services and attractiveness of tourism destinations. Major attempts should be made in marketing to attract medical tourists.


Based on data in the literature and his own experience, the author presents modern views on angina pectoris. He discusses anamnestic signs of typical and atypical angina and non-anginous chest pain. He mentions the pathogenesis and clinical picture of stable angina (secondary and mixed angina, syndrome X), unstable angina (mixed and primary angina) and silent ischaemia. As to examinations, he emphasizes in addition to the case-history the importance of the objective finding and stress tests. On the latter indications for invasive examinations are based. The author recapitulates treatment, prognosis an assessment.


The objective of this experiment was to determine if pregnancy rates following first services would be improved by supplementing lactating dairy cows with progesterone during two phases after insemination. Cows were inseminated at estrus (day 0), and progesterone was administered via a progesterone-releasing intravaginal device (PRID) from days 5 to 13 or days 13 to 21 after first service with untreated cows serving as controls. Pregnancy rates at first services were unaffected by the progesterone treatments whether the cows received a PRID from days 5 to 13 (13/36 or 36%), a PRID from days 13 to 21 (18/36 or 50%), or no PRID (39/92 or 42%). Fewer nonpregnant cows receiving the PRID returned to estrus 17 to 27 days after the first service compared to the controls (27 vs. 49%). However, this apparently was not associated with improved embryonic survival in the cows receiving progesterone because the pattern of cows returning to estrus after first service was similar, except for 17 to 27-day period cited above. Supplementing progesterone to lactating dairy cows after first services did not seem to improve fertility.


The Chao Phraya River in Thailand has been greatly affected by climate change and the occurrence of extreme flood events, hindering its economic development. This study assessed the hydrological responses of the Chao Phraya River basin under several climate sensitivity and greenhouse gas emission scenarios. The Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) model was applied to simulate the streamflow using meteorological and observed data over a nine-year period from 2003 to 2011. The SWAT model produced an acceptable performance for calibration and validation, yielding Nash-Sutcliffe efficiency (NSE) values greater than 0.5. Precipitation scenarios yielded streamflow variations that corresponded to the change of rainfall intensity and amount of rainfall, while scenarios with increased air temperatures predicted future water shortages. High CO2 concentration scenarios incorporated plant responses that led to a dramatic increase in streamflow. The greenhouse gas emission scenarios increased the streamflow variations to 6.8%, 41.9%, and 38.4% from the reference period (2003–2011). This study also provided a framework upon which the peak flow can be managed to control the nonpoint sources during wet season. We hope that the future climate scenarios presented in this study could provide predictive information for the river basin.


In the collective aggression, the group's supervision and leadership activity is coordinated by a single person, whom all other individuals focus on, due to the domination, prestige and influence of the person on the collectivity. The intellectual factor of the leader lies in the way of conceiving the model of leading society and dominating the social movements. The volitional factor indicates the energetic-dynamic dimension of the leader's personality, as well as the support of the intellectual element through which the meditative approach is conceived as a non-retroviral movement. The psychic identity of the leader has a unique structure, because the component elements determine the consciousness of personal identity. The behavior of the criminal leader is dynamic, his thinking and affectivity mobilizing the personality system. The criminal leader imposes on the group its own needs. In terms of association, the conduct of the members of the criminal group is different, so there are common elements of the subjective aspects specific to the offenses, an agreement of will, interests, respectively coinciding. However, committing a crime by a member of the criminal group does not automatically entail the criminal liability of all members of the criminal, aggressive group.


Sm1+xBa2−xCu3Oz (SmBCO) single crystals were grown under atmospheric ambient by the top-seeded solution growth method. Inductively coupled plasma results indicate that there is negligible Sm substitution for Ba sites in the grown SmBCO crystals, although they crystallized from different Ba–Cu–O solvents with a wide composition range (Ba/Cu ratio of 0.5–0.6). As a result, these crystals show high superconducting critical transition temperature values (Tc) of over 93 K with a sharp transition width after oxygenation. A large-sized crystal with an a–b plane of 23 × 22 mm2 and a c-axis of 19 mm was obtained at a high growth rate of nearly 0.13 mm h−1. In short, with more controllable thermodynamic parameters, SmBCO single crystals can readily achieve both large size and high superconducting properties.


This study aims to test the economic consequences of the tournament incentive. First, we investigate the impact of the pay gap among top executives and the pay gap between executives and employees on audit pricing using a large sample of Chinese listed firms from 2008 to 2019. Then, we test the moderating role of ownership property, technological complexity and corporate governance in the association between the executive pay gap and audit fees. Findings indicate that the executive pay gap is positively associated with audit fees. The positive association between the executive pay gap and audit fees is more pronounced in private firms, firms with fewer R&D expenditures, and firms with smaller proportion of independent directors. Further studies suggest that large executive pay gap motivates managerial opportunistic behaviors, resulting in more accrual-based earnings management and real activities manipulation. Our results, consistent with managerial power theory, show that auditors assess firms with large executive pay gap as high risk and incorporate the audit risk and audit business risk associated with the executive pay gap into audit pricing. The results provide further evidence for regulators to strengthen supervision on the executive compensation, especially the executive compensation of state-owned enterprises and firms with weak corporate governance.


Food security is one of the key global challenges in this century. In Singapore, our research team has been using novel aeroponic technology to produce fresh vegetables since 1997. Aeroponic systems allow for year-round production of not only tropical, but also sub-tropical and temperate fresh vegetables, by simply cooling the roots suspended in aeroponic systems while the aerial parts grow under tropical ambient environments. It has also been used to investigate the impacts of root-zone CO2 on vegetables by enriching root-zone CO2 while their aerial portions were subjected to constant atmospheric CO2. To compensate for the lack of available land, Singapore also needs to develop a farming system that can increase productivity per unit land area by many-fold. Over the past 10 years, my research team has established a commercially viable LED integrated vertical aeroponic farming system to grow different leafy vegetables under different LED spectra, intensities, and durations in the tropical greenhouse. The results demonstrate that it is possible to increase shoot production and rate of shoot production of leafy vegetables by increasing light intensity and extending the photoperiod under effective LED lighting. Furthermore, temperate vegetable crops such as lettuce were able to acclimate to high light intensity under supplementary LED lights to natural sunlight in the greenhouse. Supplementary LED lightings promote both leaf initiation and expansion with increased photo synthetic pigments, higher Cyt b6f and Rubisco protein contents on a per area basis and thus improve photosynthetic capacity and enhance productivity. Plants sense and respond to changes in their immediate environments (microclimate), manipulating the root zone temperature (RZT) and water supply will impact not only their growth and development but also their nutritional quality. Our on-going research aims to investigate if the nutritional quality of leafy vegetables could be improved under suboptimal RZT and mild water deficit through deficit irrigation. If substantial energy and water savings in urban farming can be achieved without substantial yield penalty but with higher nutritional quality, the amount of water and energy saved can bring substantial benefits to society.


Purpose

This paper aims to explore the concept of information in records and archives management (RAM) from a fresh, visual perspective by using arts-informed methodology and the draw-and-write technique.

Design/methodology/approach

Students and practitioners of RAM in Australia were asked to answer the question, "what is information?" in a drawing and then to describe the drawing in words. This produced a data set of 255 drawings of information or "iSquares", for short. Compositional interpretation and a framework of graphic representations by Engelhardt were applied to determine how participants envision information and what the renderings imply for RAM.

Findings

The images reveal an overwhelming recognition in RAM of the diversity of media formats of information and the hyperconnectivity of information in networked information systems; and illustrate the central place of human beings within these systems. These findings offer striking, accessible illustrations of major concepts in RAM and enable new understandings through the construction of stories.

Practical implications

There are both pedagogical applications and practical implications of this work for students, practitioners and knowledge workers. The graphical representations of information in this research deepen the understanding of textual definitions of information. The data set of iSquares provides opportunities to create new storyboards to explain information definitions, practices and phenomena in RAM disciplines, and, to explain related concepts such as data, information, knowledge and wisdom hierarchy.

Originality/value

This is the first study in RAM disciplines to provide visual illustrations of information using graphical image representations.


Friction buffer stops are the favoured construction of buffer stop, mainly due to its high resistance and variety of layout. Last but not least is its manner of deceleration induced upon impact and during the braking what makes it smart solution in railway transport safety. The general approach of designing buffer stops is via usage of the kinetic energy and its conversion into work. Paper describes input parameters such as train velocity or buffer stop vicinity which is expressed by the safety coefficient implanted within the calculation. Furthermore, the paper shows the principle of calculation the friction buffer stop work, or to be more precise, the work of its braking jaws and optionally the work of additional braking jaws located behind the buffer stop. Last section of the paper is focused on the examples of designing friction buffer stops, points out the main complications and shows the charts of relation amongst braking distance, kinetic energy and braking force and the charts of relation between deceleration rate and braking distance.


The predictive value of quantitated tumor volume for the prognosis of the individual patient with prostate cancer has been established in analysis of more than 500 radical prostatectomy specimens at Stanford Medical Center. The Stanford technique for detailed tissue sectioning involves considerable time and expense plus computer planimetry. Therefore we have developed two simplified protocols which are suitable to routine diagnostic pathology. Histologic slides of 145 radical prostatectomy specimens, as evaluated by the Stanford technique, were reviewed and a selection of slides was made in a systematic fashion according to two protocols ("bilateral" and "parasagittal"). Tumor volume was estimated manually from this reduced sample of slides by comparing cancer areas to a millimeter grid. The bilateral protocol used an average of 11.7 slides per case (range 8-20), the parasagittal protocol used an average of 8.8 slides per case (range 6-15) versus an average of 26.2 slides per case (range 16-67) by the original Stanford technique. Volume estimates were within +/- 20% of true (computer) volume in 96% and 89% of cases, respectively. A simplified tissue sampling technique can yield accurate cancer volume determinations in radical prostatectomy specimens with reduced time and expense.


Abstract The purpose of this article is to explore current practice regarding family involvement in long-term care facilities and the role social workers play in these facilities. Questionnaires were received from 87 long-term care facilities surveyed throughout the Midwest. Family members can provide the long-term care center with an invaluable resource while assisting the resident with adaptation to this new life phase. Only 36% of facilities employ a qualified social worker as defined by NASW. Future research needs to be aimed at educating owners and directors of long-term care facilities of the importance of recruiting and retaining qualified, degreed social workers to care for the residents and families.


We consider the problem of modeling TCP over multi-hop wireless networks using the IEEE 802.11 protocol. By identifying suitable regeneration instants, we are able to apply the standard technique of regenerative processes to compute the long term average throughput achieved by a single TCP session. Simulation results show that the proposed model predicts the TCP throughput to a very high level of accuracy. We then discuss how to extend this model to more general situations.


Introduction Community detection of mild cognitive impairment (MCI) and Alzheimer's disease and related disorders (ADRD) is a challenge. While Gold Standard assessments are commonly used in research centers, these methods are time consuming, require extensive training, and are not practical in most clinical settings or in community-based research projects. Many of these methods require an informant (e.g., spouse, adult child) to provide ratings of the patients' cognitive and functional abilities. A patient-reported outcome that captures the presence of cognitive impairment and corresponds to Gold Standard assessments could improve case ascertainment, clinical care, and recruitment into clinical research. We tested the patient version of the Quick Dementia Rating System (QDRS) as a patient-reported outcome to detect MCI and ADRD. Methods The patient QDRS was validated in a sample of 261 consecutive patient-caregiver dyads compared with the informant version of the QDRS, the Clinical Dementia Rating (CDR), neuropsychological tests, and Gold Standard measures of function, behavior, and mood. Psychometric properties including item variability, floor and ceiling effects, construct, concurrent, and known-groups validity, and internal consistency were determined. Results The patient QDRS strongly correlated with Gold Standard measures of cognition, function, mood, behavior, and global staging methods (p-values < .001) and had strong psychometric properties with excellent data quality and internal consistency (Cronbach alpha = 0.923, 95%CI:0.91–0.94). The patient QDRS had excellent agreement with the informant QDRS, the CDR and its sum of boxes (Intraclass Correlation Coefficients: 9.781–0.876). Receiver operator characteristic curves showed excellent discrimination between normal controls from CDR 0.5 (AUC:0.820;95% CI: 0.74–0.90) and for normal controls from any cognitive impairment (AUC:0.885;95% CI: 0.83–0.94). Discussion The patient QDRS validly and reliably differentiates individuals with and without cognitive impairment and can be completed by patients through all stages of dementia. The patient QDRS is highly correlated with Gold Standard measures of cognitive, function, behavior, and global staging. The patient QDRS provides a rapid method to screen patients for MCI and ADRD in clinical practice, determine study eligibility, improve case ascertainment in community studies.


The place of the school library in Minas Gerais between 1920 and 1940 is discussed. The statements of the New School Movement are evaluated, namely, setting up and structuring of school libraries, reading modes and textbook setup. Current article analyzes laws, government decrees, letters, board reports and inspection books and codices. It also discusses articles on school library, reading and books, published by the Revista do Ensino. Results show that the school library complied to Republican and Modernist ideas, or rather, the hygienist and New School ideal in its practice, space and book collections.


24 We previously reported that the cardiomyocyte-specific protein, Leucine-rich 25 repeat containing 10 (LRRC10), has critical functions in the mammalian heart. Here, we 26 tested the role of LRRC10 in the response of the heart to biomechanical stress by 27 performing transverse aortic constriction on Lrrc10 null (Lrrc10) mice. Mild pressure 28 overload induces severe cardiac dysfunction and ventricular dilation in Lrrc10 mice as 29 compared to controls. In addition to dilation and cardiomyopathy, Lrrc10 mice showed 30 a pronounced increase in heart weight with pressure overload stimulation and a more 31 dramatic loss of cardiac ventricular performance, collectively suggesting that the absence 32 of LRRC10 renders the heart more disease prone with greater hypertrophy and structural 33 remodeling, although rates of cardiac fibrosis and myocyte drop-out were not different 34 from control. Lrrc10 cardiomyocytes also exhibit reduced contractility in response to β35 adrenergic stimulation, consistent with loss of cardiac ventricular performance after 36 pressure overload. We have previously shown that LRRC10 interacts with actin in the 37 heart. Here, we show that histidine 150 of LRRC10 is required for interaction with actin 38 and this interaction is reduced after pressure overload, suggesting an integral role for 39 LRRC10 in the response of the heart to mechanical stress. Importantly, these studies 40 demonstrate that LRRC10 is required to maintain cardiac performance in response to 41 pressure overload and suggest that dysregulated expression or mutation of LRRC10 may 42 greatly sensitize human patients to more severe cardiac disease in conditions such as 43 chronic hypertension or aortic stenosis. 44 45


This paper compares different nominal anchors to promote internal and external competitiveness in the case of a fixed exchange rate regime for the future single regional currency of the Economic Community of the West African States (ECOWAS). We use counterfactual analyses and estimate a model of dependent economy for small commodity exporting countries. We consider four foreign anchor currencies: the US dollar, the euro, the yen and the yuan. Our simulations show little support for a dominant peg in the ECOWAS area if they pursue several goals: maximizing the export revenues, minimizing their variability, stabilizing them and minimizing the real exchange rate misalignments from the fundamental value.


ABSTRACT The purpose of this article is to explore the development of the knowledge base on middle leadership in schools. Since the seminal reviews conducted by Bennett a contemporary scan only of the scholarly literature on middle leaders/leadership in schools has not been undertaken. Consequently, this article looks at outputs relating to this topic by examining research papers indexed in the Web of Science and in SCOPUS between 2003 and 2017. The prime purpose of this review is to offer some reflections on the development of the empirical base on middle leadership in schools since 2003 and to highlight some of the implications for future research. The article concludes that middle leadership in schools remains an ongoing focus of research inquiry in a growing number of countries but suggests that the knowledge base would benefit from more sophisticated empirical studies and greater theoretical analysis.


Abstract There is a growing recognition of the importance of evidence to support allocative policy decisions in health care. This study is based on interviews with politicians in four regional health authorities in Sweden. Drawing on theories of strategic use of knowledge, the article analyses how politicians perceive and make use of expert knowledge represented by the National Guidelines, embracing both a scientific and a political rationale. As health care is an organisation with a dual basis for legitimacy – at the same time a political and an action organisation – it affects knowledge use. We investigate how the context of health care priority setting influences the conditions for knowledge use among regional politicians. Our findings illustrate the dilemma of political decision-makers and how they prefer to use expert knowledge. The politicians use this policy instrument in a legitimising fashion, as it will fit into the current political debate on more equal care. As an instrument for resource allocation the politicians noted that 'facts' per se could not provide them with a sufficient basis for legitimising their governing of health care. The dualistic organisational context makes knowledge important as a political weapon in negotiations with the medical profession.


Many philosophers posit abstract entities ? where something is abstract if it is acausal and lacks spatio-temporal location. Theories, types, characteristics, meanings, values and responsibilities are all good candidates for abstractness. Such things raise an epistemological puzzle: if they are abstract, then how can we have any epistemic access to how they are? If they are invisible, intangible and never make anything happen, then how can we ever discover anything about them? In this article, I critically examine epistemological objections to belief in abstract objects offered by Paul Benacerraf, Colin Cheyne and Hartry Field.


Proceedings: AACR Annual Meeting 2014; April 5-9, 2014; San Diego, CA

Background: Literature addressing metformin exposure post diagnosis of breast cancer hints at a potential protective association on mortality outcomes, although findings have been inconclusive. In this research, we contribute to this body of evidence by using robust clinical indicators to focus on subgroups of breast cancer patients that might be most appropriate for potential metformin treatment.

Methods: Robust breast cancer staging, treatment, and medication exposure attributes were compiled from Mayo Clinic Electronic Health Records and Breast Cancer Registry using a combination of structured queries and natural language processing of clinical notes. A cohort of female Breast Cancer Registry patients having type II diabetes mellitus (T2DM) at breast cancer diagnosis with a median follow-up period of 79.0 months after breast cancer diagnosis was identified (N=350). Univariate and multivariate cox proportional hazard regression analysis were used to model characteristics of BMI at diagnosis, age at diagnosis, metformin, insulin, thiazolidinedione, and sulfonylurea exposure after diagnosis, cancer grade, cancer stage, chemotherapy, hormone therapy, radiotherapy, lumpectomy, and mastectomy. Patients presenting with metastatic breast cancer at diagnosis, receiving immunotherapy for breast cancer treatment, and concurrent metformin and insulin exposure for T2DM treatments were excluded from the analysis cohort.

Results: Univariate analysis independently identified metformin exposure (HR=0.243,p=0.0016), insulin exposure (HR=3.481,p=0.0210), age at breast cancer diagnosis (HR=1.075,p=0.0001), and targeted radiotherapy (HR=0.337,p=0.0082) as having a significant association with all-cause mortality. The multivariate model of metformin exposure (HR=0.274,p=0.0123), insulin exposure (HR=2.502,p=0.1160), age at breast cancer diagnosis (HR=1.043,p=0.0480), and targeted radiotherapy (HR=0.303,p=0.0044) on all-cause mortality demonstrated significant associations for all variables (Wald Chi-Square=25.2916,p<0.0001). A parallel multivariate model demonstrated metformin exposure (HR=0.101,p=0.0323), insulin exposure (HR=5.241,p=0.0265), and targeted radiotherapy (HR=0.292,p=0.0520) as having significant associations with breast cancer-specific mortality.

Discussion: These findings suggest a protective association for metformin and a potential detrimental association for insulin therapy on all-cause and breast cancer-specific mortality amongst non-metastatic breast cancer patients with T2DM. The findings presented include robust clinical indicators for BMI, stage, and grade at diagnosis, post-diagnosis diabetes medication exposure, and endpoints of all cause and breast cancer specific mortality that have not been available in larger population studies. Our findings have potential pharmacogenetic implications for inhibition of localized breast cancer cell growth by targeting downstream components of the adenosine monophosphate-activated protein kinase pathway, the insulin/insulin-like growth factor-1 signaling pathway, and directly and indirectly via additional metabolic pathways with specific drug therapy combinations.

Citation Format: Matthew K. Breitenstein, Leiwei Wang, Richard M. Weinshilboum, Jyotishman Pathak. Metformin exposure on survival in localized breast cancer patients with type II diabetes mellitus using electronic health records. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr LB-278. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-LB-278


This perusal attempts to model and interpret the entropy generation analysis and the flow field of 2-D, steady, viscous, incompressible and laminar boundary layer and forced convection heat transport of micropolar ferrofluid past a stretching sheet including suction and normal magnetic field effects. The porous sheet's velocity and temperature are presumed to change linearly. Exact explicit solutions of the velocity, angular velocity and temperature distributions have been derived. The impacts of physical parameters on the local skin friction coefficient, the local Nusselt number, the entropy generation number further the velocities and temperature distributions are analyzed by tables and graphs. The angular velocity has more value than velocity for the least value of the magnetic and material parameters. The entropy generation number has a direct relation with material parameter and Brinkman either Reynolds numbers. Moreover, an inverse relation with the Prandtl number.


The ability of Mycobacterium tuberculosis (Mtb) to adapt to its surrounding environment is critical for the bacterium to successfully colonize its host. Transcriptional changes are a vital mechanism by which Mtb responds to key environmental signals experienced, such as pH, chloride (Cl-), nitric oxide (NO), and hypoxia. However, much remains unknown regarding how Mtb coordinates its response to the disparate signals seen during infection. Utilizing a transcription factor (TF) overexpression plasmid library in combination with a pH/Cl--responsive luciferase reporter, we identified the essential TF, PrrA, part of the PrrAB two-component system, as a TF involved in modulation of Mtb response to pH and Cl-. Further studies revealed that PrrA also affected Mtb response to NO and hypoxia, with prrA overexpression dampening induction of NO and hypoxia- responsive genes. PrrA is phosphorylated not just by its cognate sensor histidine kinase PrrB, but also by serine/threonine protein kinases (STPKs) at a second distinct site. Strikingly, a STPK phosphoablative PrrA variant was significantly dampened in its response to NO versus wild type Mtb, disrupted in its ability to adaptively enter a non-replicative state upon extended NO exposure, and attenuated for in vivo colonization. Together, our results reveal PrrA as an important regulator of Mtb response to multiple environmental signals, and uncover a critical role of STPK regulation of PrrA in its function.


Observations of the Vela pulsar region with the Chandra X-Ray Observatory have revealed the fine structure of its synchrotron pulsar-wind nebula (PWN), which showed an overall similarity with the Crab PWN. However, contrary to the Crab, no firm detection of the Vela PWN in optical has been reported yet. To search for the optical counterpart of the X-ray PWN, we analyzed deep optical observations performed with different telescopes. We compared the optical images with those obtained with the Chandra ACIS to search for extended emission patterns that could be identified as counterparts of the X-ray nebula elements. Although some features are seen in the optical images, we find no correlation with the X-ray structure. Thus, we conclude that the diffuse optical emission is more likely associated with filaments in the host Vela supernova remnant. The derived upper limits on the optical flux from the PWN are compatible, within the uncertainties, with the values expected on the basis of the extrapolations of the X-ray data.


In this study, centrifugal microfluidics with a simple geometry of U-shaped structure was designed, fabricated and analyzed to attain rapid and efficient fluid mixing. Visualization experiments together with numerical simulations were carried out to investigate the mixing behavior for the microfluidics with single, double and triple U-shaped structures, where each of the U-structures consisted of four consecutive 90° bends. It is found that the U-shaped structure markedly enhances mixing by transverse secondary flow that is originated from the Coriolis-induced vortices and further intensified by the Dean force generated as the stream turns along the 90° bends. The secondary flow becomes stronger with increasing rotational speed and with more U-shaped structures, hence higher mixing performance. The mixing efficiency measured for the three types of mixers shows a sharp increase with increasing rotational speed in the lower range. As the rotational speed further increases, nearly complete mixing can be achieved at 600 rpm for the triple-U mixer and at 720 rpm for the double-U mixer, while a maximum efficiency level of 83–86% is reached for the single-U mixer. The simulation results that reveal detailed characteristics of the flow and concentration fields are in good agreement with the experiments.


A flexible SoC architecture and its hardware implementation targeting advanced MPEG-4 video coding and region-of-interest detection (ROI) is presented. The multi-core architecture integrates three fully programmable processor cores and various interfaces onto a single chip, all tied to a 64-bit AMBA AHB bus. The processor cores are individually optimized to different computational characteristics, complementing each other to deliver high performance levels with high flexibility at reduced system cost. The SoC is fabricated in a 0.18 /spl mu/m 6LM standard-cell technology, occupies about 82 mm/sup 2/, and operates at 145 MHz. A surveillance application example includes a MPEG-4 Simple Profile encoder with preceding ROI detection for superior compression results in full TV resolution.


Gully erosion is caused by several factors such as heavy rainfall, industrial construction, poor drainage system and deforestation were overtime resulted in loosening the soil structure and expose it to vagaries of agents of erosion. The study was aimed at assessing the effect of gully erosion menace on urban infrastructures in Calabar metropolis. Data for the research were collected using a structured questionnaire, handheld, measuring tape, leveling staff and rope. The coordinates of gully erosion sites and the affected infrastructure were obtained from the field using the Global positioning system (GPS). Findings revealed that the total length and average width of each of the gullies as at 2015 were 385m and 20m for Ikot Anwantim, 1925m and 43m for Ikot Udauk, 3995m and 68m for Ikot Nkebre, 721m and 40 for Etinym Abasi, 1430m and 48m for EdimOtop and 1700m and 28m for Ekeya respectively. Also 18 houses were destroyed at Ekeya gully site. Seventy respondents attributed the impact of gully erosion menace in urban infrastructure to be the collapse of buildings with 35 percent. The researcher recommended that public awareness programme sensitization be undertaken to discourage the inhabitants from developing areas prone to gully erosion.