Healthcare organizations are increasingly spending and allocating huge budgets in embracing modern technology innovations and ways of dealing with healthcare related issues. While modern technology benefits cannot be disputed they however come at an expense and require a rigorous process before adopting the innovation. Studies done indicated Health care organizations find the process a rigmarole and opt for easier ways to incorporate or adopt the innovations, these usually results to a collapse or bottlenecks in the outputs of the innovations, in fact, majority of organizations have abandoned their ultra-modern system only to go back to their old manual system. The main objective of the study was to determine Organizational factors associated with implementation of a Health Management information Systems among healthcare workers at Kenyatta National Hospital. The research was conducted at KNH and adopted a cross-sectional study design. The target population of the study were 4,900 healthcare workers at KNH who were involved in implementing HMIS. The sample techniques used were mixed method sampling of stratified sampling, snowball sampling and convenience sampling. A sample total of 263 respondents was calculated for the quantitative study. The study utilized a questionnaire and a key informant interview schedule. Before processing the quantitative data, the data collected from the field was cleaned, coded, entered into a computer software and analyzed using SPSS version 21 while qualitative data was manually analyzed based on themes that were developed from responses (thematic analysis). Data presentation from the quantitative data was in form of quantitative statistics such as frequency distribution, percentages, tables, use of chi square for analysis, p values and odds ratios. Qualitative findings were presented in verbatim form. This study was submitted to KNH/UON Ethical Review Committee for ethical approval. Consenting was sought from individuals. Results indicated that majority of those interviewed were of the opinion that HMIS had improved services delivery by effecting efficiency especially in accident and emergency department, the wards and reception areas, generally there was improved efficiency in information handling  in that, it had helped to identify patients in and through the system and there was reduction in costs. However, a few respondents were of the view that, HMIS had not improved efficiency to a larger extent since a lot of things were still done manually, no proper training and the system not fully implemented. Main challenges included, lack of technical assistance which led to loss of data which had never been recovered to date and scarce resources. In relation to the cadre of the hospital, the systems were quite complex, inadequate healthcare staff experience, scarcity of infrastructure and shortage of ICT technicians to assist in trouble shooting. There were very many refunds to patients by finance, resistance by users due to the perception that, it was a business-oriented system rather than goal oriented. Results show that the ratio of males to females was 1:1, 133(50.6%) and females 129(49.4%) thus gender balanced. A greater number of the respondents were aged between 26-35, 91 (34.6%), followed closely by the age bracket 36-45, 74(28.1%), the minority were aged 55 and above, 12(4.6%). In Kenyatta more than half of the respondent's education level was college, 160(60.8%) with very few at secondary, 5(1.9%). population age, level of education and duration worked at KNH, (p value 0.008, 0.050 and 0.004). KNH might not be where they want or need to be as far as HMIS is concerned but they have made strides towards the right direction. Technologically, HIMS have already taken a vital role in the healthcare industry and are obliged to be organizational tools meant to create a better healthcare environment. It is essential for the KNH management to ensure that there is a systems thinking where each and every individual staff is not only motivated but also feels part and parcel of the HIMS process. KNH needs to devise a HIMS specifically for their clientele


The Genetic Epistemology argues that the individual goes through various stages of development throughout his life. The development is seen by the overlap of the balance between assimilation and accommodation, resulting in adaptation. Thus, in this formulation humans assimilate the data they obtain from the outside, but once they already have a mental structure that is not "empty", they must adapt these data to the existing mental structure. The process of change itself is called accommodation. This scheme reveals that no knowledge comes from outside without suffering any change by the individual, and everything that is learned is influenced by what was learned. Assimilation occurs when information is incorporated into pre-existing structures in this dynamic cognitive structure, while the conversion occurs when the organism is changed in some way to incorporate the new information dynamically. Finally, a modern thought that seeking the unusual synthesis between the biological and logical-mathematical seems to find its limits in the deconstruction even more unusual that tends systematically all thought at present: the self developing in a essentially clarified way.


Following recent reports of the successful low-temperature synthesis of high quality and single-crystal CdS quantum nanostructures, attention has turned toward identifying the critical factors affecting the preferred shape and surface structure of these important nanomaterials. Presented here are the results of first principles calculations, examining the surface structure, surface energy, and isotropic surface stress of clean reconstructed CdS low index surfaces. These results have been used as input for a shape-dependent thermodynamic model to determine the equilibrium shapes and aspect ratio of CdS nanostructures over a range of experimentally relevant sizes. The predicted shape is also directly compared with experimental results for CdS nanorods prepared using hydrothermal synthesis methods.


An experiment was undertaken to study the effect of the dinoseb-acetate (Aretit) herbicide, administered in drinking water at a concentration of 100 and 200 mg x 1(-1) for four days, on the activity of transaminases (GOT and GPT) in the blood serum and muscle of the Japanese quail (Coturnix coturnix japonica). GOT had higher activity values in the blood serum and muscle of the control and test birds, as compared with GPT. The herbicide increases GOT activity in the blood serum, whereas the GPT value remains unchanged. In muscle, the activity of GOT decreases as a result of the action of dinoseb-acetate and GPT activity remains unchanged. Under in vitro conditions, dinoseb-acetate (concentrated 0.01 to 1000 mg x 1(-1)) increases GOT activity in the blood serum and muscle, GPT activity remaining the same. It is assumed that transaminases are specifically involved in the adaptation mechanisms of the animals to dinoseb-acetate intoxication.


: This chapter focuses on deradicalisation, a concept and a practice that has become popular in initiatives that seek to govern Muslims in the Sahel. A key element in the vocabulary of the state and international organisations oper-ating in the region, deradicalisation emerged in the last decade as a major social engineering project intended to reform Muslims and to rebirth them to positive values and norms. To this end, the deradicalised subjects are expected to "clean up", "be treated", "relax their views", and embrace responsible citizenship. Espousing a developmentalist agenda and philosophy, deradicalisation trans-lates into a strategy that tackles Jihadism and restores good Islam . Both curative and preventive, it is understood as the clinical intervention on both an ailing social body and a lunatic individual subject. That is why it targets individuals and specific groups, such as Imams, preachers, disenfranchised youth, and jihadi prisoners who are perceived as the social base and the main agents of radicalisation. What is the content of this curative intervention? How did this social engineering programme come to represent one of the main lenses through which Muslims are perceived today and in turn experience state policies? What is the interest of examining deradicalisation for an anthropology of Islam and Muslim life in the region? The chapter contends that Sahelian states have embarked on an Islamic reform project through deradicalisation programmes.


THESIS: The Stratification of Mapleton-Fall Creek: Community Disinvestment in an Indianapolis, Indiana Streetcar Suburb STUDENT: Melissa Frances Wortman DEGREE: Master of Science COLLEGE: Architecture and Planning DATE: May, 2011 The Mapleton-Fall Creek neighborhood was and early twentieth century street suburb in Indianapolis, Indiana. As the city grew, the neighborhood became surrounded by development, leading many residents to move further into the suburbs. The result was a distressed inner city community plagued by blight and crime. A subsection of the neighborhood known as Meridian Park became a National Register Historic District in 1990 after renewed interest in the distinctive architectural character of the area. While Meridian Park has thrived, the surrounding neighborhood has continued to struggle. The goal of my thesis is explore the federal loan insurance programs, integration challenges at Shortridge High School and in the city of Indianapolis, and differences in housing stock as the three major causes for the race and class stratification that has occurred in the Mapleton-Fall Creek neighborhood.


In radioimmunotherapy of tumors, uptake of the monoclonal antibody (MAb) used is often too low in relation to its uptake in normal tissues. The purpose of these studies was to improve experimental tumor radioimmunotargeting with (a) extracorporeal immunoadsorption (ECIA), where excess of radiolabeled MAbs circulating in blood is removed, (b) or by preload with unlabeled MAb prior to injection of radiolabeled MAb, (c) or by a combination of these. ECIA based on the avidin-biotin concept enables direct adsorption of radiolabeled and biotinylated MAb from blood and increases the tumor-to-normal tissue (T/N) uptake ratio by reducing background radioactivity in radiosensitive organs. 267 rats (athymic or Brown Norwegian) grafted with human adenocarcinoma or rat colon adenocarcinoma tumors intramuscularly, and beneath the kidney or liver capsule were included in the studies. Of these rats, 82 were subjected to ECIA. Two radioiodinated and biotinylated MAbs, murine L6 or chimeric BR96, were used and evaluated. (I) Using 50 µg dosage of L6, ECIA reduced whole body and plasma activity as well as improved the detectability of subrenal capsule tumors. T/N uptake ratios were increased on average 3 times. (II) The efficacy of ECIA in removing different injected amounts of L6 from plasma was similar. The highest T/N ratios persisting 24h after start of the ECIA were obtained by using 10 µg of 125I-L6-biotin. (III) The efficacy of preload in enhancing tumor uptake and simultaneously decreasing uptake in normal tissues was obtained with 250µg of 125I-L6 preceded by a preload of 50µg unlabeled L6 only. (IV) The effects on radioimmunotargeting of preload and ECIA in combination were synergistic and improved T/N uptake ratios up to 17 times. (V) As compared with ECIA, a new method of whole blood immunoadsorption (WBIA) was technically easier to perform, safer and more reliable, but of approx. comparable efficiency. (VI) WBIA was even applicable on the internalizing and highly tumor selective 125I-BR96-biotin MAb, resulting in manifestly improved T/N ratios.


: Antibacterial gels are great for carrying and you can take them just about anywhere. The alcohol and other agents excellent for killing germs can easily be used as disinfectants. In this study, we defined and evaluated an antimicrobial gel of tinidazole capable of inhibiting the growth of bacteria. In the present work gel of Tinidazole were prepared and evaluated. Tinidazole (TZ) is an antibacterial drug used for treatment of Bacterial vaginosis. Different gel formulations were prepared using the bio adhesive polymers like carbopol 974, sodium alginate and sodium carboxy methyl cellulose.


A 39-year-old man with a recent diagnosis of AIDS (CD4 cell count, 13 cells/μL) was admitted to the hospital for diarrhea and dehydration and was noted to have an intensely pruritic rash with diffuse crust and scale. Dolutegravir and emtricitabine/tenofovir were continued, and diphenhydramine was prescribed for pruritus. On day 3 of hospitalization, the dermatology service was consulted.

The patient had a history of mild psoriasis, which significantly worsened 1 year prior to presentation, necessitating treatment with systemic agents and ultimately leading to a diagnosis of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Physical examination was remarkable for severe cachexia and diffuse plaques of thick, tan scale (Figure 1). Hyperkeratotic areas were verrucous and fissured over bony prominences, including the elbows, knees, ribs, and clavicles. Linear excoriations were noted diffusely. Unroofed crust revealed a smooth, red, moist undersurface.


Political science is generally thought of as a discipline with strong divisions and often intense patterns of disagreement, most of which are driven by political scientists' subfield and methodological orientations. In this address I explore subfield and methodological cleavages in political science as they relate to patterns of scholarly communication—in particular, in how political scientists differ in the value that they give to various political science journals. Using survey data on political scientists' assessments of quality, familiarity, and impact for 115 political science journals (Garand and Giles, 2003), I find that political scientists differ in their rankings of the elite journals in the discipline, depending on subfield and, to a lesser extent, methodological approach. However, based on correlations and factor analyses, there is strong coherence in how political scientists from different subfield and methodological groups rank the full range of political science journals. Finally, I model journal evaluations and familiarity as a function of subfield and methodology variables. These results suggest that there are moderate subfield and methodology effects in how political scientists evaluate political science journals, but there are stronger effects of these variables in terms of political scientists' levels of familiarity with these journals. I conclude by discussing the implications of observed cleavages in scholarly communication for the fragmentation and integration of the political science discipline.


A method of introducing pinning sites in TbFeCo film by the using of focused ion beam was presented. The formed bulges in the film surface by discontinuous scan of light-dose focused ion beam have been proved to enhance the film's coercivity effectively. Coercivity increases almost linearly with the bulge density, giving the evidence of pinning effect contributed from those bulges predicted by domain wall pinning mechanism. Compared with the traditional way of etching the film for adjusting the coercivity, the method presented here shows superiority on reducing magnetic damage to film caused by the focused ion beam irradiation.


Introduction Emergency endotracheal intubation (ETI) is a high-risk procedure. Some of its adverse events are life-threatening, and guidelines emphasize the need to anticipate complications by thorough preparation. The emergency department (ED) can be an unpredictable environment, and we tested the hypothesis that a cognitive aid would help the emergency practitioners better follow guidelines. The main objective of this study was to determine whether the use of a cognitive aid focusing on both preintubation and postintubation items could improve ETI preparation and implementation in the ED resuscitation room regarding adherence to guidelines. The secondary objective was to measure and describe procedure times. Methods We conducted a single-blind randomized controlled trial with manikin-based in situ simulation. The participants were not aware of the purpose of the study. The cognitive aid was developed using national guidelines and current scientific literature. The most relevant items were the preparation and implementation of a rapid sequence induction for ETI followed by mechanical ventilation. Emergency department physician-nurse pairs were randomized into a "cognitive aid" group and a "control" group. All pairs completed the same scenario that led to ETI in their own resuscitation room. An adherence to guidelines score of 30, derived from the 30 items of the cognitive aid (1 point per item), and preparation and intubation times were collected. Results Seventeen pairs were included in each group. Adherence to guidelines scores were significantly higher in the cognitive aid group than in the control group (median = 28 of 30, interquartile range = 25–28, vs. median = 24 of 30, interquartile range = 21–26, respectively, P < 0.01). Preparation, intubation, and total procedure times were slightly longer in the cognitive aid group, but these results were not significant. Conclusions In an in situ simulation, a cognitive aid for the preparation and implementation of an emergency intubation procedure in the ED resuscitation room significantly improved adherence to guidelines without increasing procedure times. Further work is needed in a larger sample and in different settings to evaluate the optimal use of cognitive aids in critical situations.


Analytical expressions for the magnetization and the longitudinal conductivity of nanowires are derived in a magnetic field, B. We show that the interplay between size and magnetic field energy-level quantizations manifests itself through novel magnetic quantum oscillations in metallic nanowires. There are three characteristic frequencies of de Haas-van Alphen (dHvA) and Shubnikov-de Haas (SdH) oscillations, F = F(0)/(1 + gamma)(3/2), and F(+/-) = 2F(0)/|1 + gamma +/- (1 + gamma)(1/2)|, in contrast with a single frequency F(0) = S(F)plankc/(2pie) in simple bulk metals. The amplitude of oscillations is strongly enhanced in some magic magnetic fields. The wire cross-section area S can be measured using the oscillations as S = 4pi(2)S(F)plank(2)c(2)/(gammae(2)B(2)) along with the Fermi-surface cross-section area, S(F).


We report on a patient originally diagnosed as having monoclonal gammopathy of undetermined significance (MGUS) who progressed to develop Waldenström's macroglobulinaemia (WM) after 3 years. Four years later he developed chronic myelomonocytic leukaemia (CMMoL) which terminated in acute myeloid leukaemia (AML) after another year. We also review published reports of similar cases.


Voltage source converter (VSC) based high-voltage direct current (HVDC) system is an emerging technology in high-power applications. Previous research has shown that VSCs, with commonly used vector current control (VCC) technique, cannot transmit more than 0.4 p.u. of active power when connected to a very weak ac grid. This paper presents a virtual synchronous generator (VSG) control strategy integrated with VCC to allow stable power transfer for very weak ac grid integration. Impedance analysis is used to analyze the designed controller in various scenarios. In addition, sensitivity analysis is performed to study the effect of virtual inertia gains on system stability. Time-domain simulation results using MATLAB/Simscape Power System toolbox show the effectiveness of the developed controller in very weak ac grid integration of VSC-HVDC systems.


Impressive reductions of up to 29% in maternal deaths may be expected from satisfying unmet need for contraception as shown in a recent analysis covering 172 countries (Ahmed et al. 2012). Despite the cost-effectiveness of family planning (Prata et al. 2010) investments remain low (Osotimehin 2012) a concern declared under Goal 5 on the UN Millennium Development Goals website 'Inadequate funding for family planning is a major failure in fulfilling commitments to improving women's reproductive health.' Alongside investment and political commitment clear indicators for the coverage and quality of family planning services are required to design and implement strategies to improve family planning. However the evidence used in planning and monitoring of family planning is often suboptimal and poses a serious problem for effective efficient responses to scale up these services. The 2012 London Summit on Family Planning signalled renewed interest in this important intervention by the global community. Large investments were pledged and ambitious targets of access to contraception for 120 million women and girls by 2020 were set. This has also prompted the Alliance for Reproductive Maternal and Newborn Health to work with WHO and development partners to facilitate a prioritisation of the family planning research agenda. With a view to informing these discussions we were commissioned by the Australian Agency for International Development (AusAID) to identify the key knowledge gaps for evidence-based planning and budgeting for family planning. As part of a multicountry initiative working with policy makers to effect a more rational use of resources for reproductive maternal newborn and child health (Jimenez-Soto et al. 2012) we collated the data necessary to inform local decision-making on scaling up family planning services. Our work highlighted major evidence gaps that have the potential to undermine efforts to plan and invest in family planning and interfere with monitoring progress. The seven leading knowledge gaps identified are outlined in this short paper and provide an essential 'front-line' perspective to inform research priorities for effective scaling-up of family planning. We draw on examples from our study sites in four countries: two districts and two cities in Indonesia two provinces and one city in the Philippines three clusters of districts in Nepal two districts in the Indian state of Orissa and two districts in the state of Uttar Pradesh. We believe that this view from the front line provides a much-needed link between global agendas and the realities of implementation at a local level. (excerpt)


The paper sets up and studies the model of the telecommunication queue servicing system with variable input tariff rates, which can relieve the crowding system traffic flows during the busy hour to enhance the utilizing rate of the telecom's resources.


Presented paper deals with experimental study on compressive properties of auxetics with controlled stiffness of strut joints. The variable strut joints properties were simulated by adding extra amount of material in the struts' intersection regions. Four groups of inverted honeycomb structures were prepared by multi-jet 3D printing and tested in quasi-static compression. The structure collapsed gradually, however after the first collapse, failure in entire cross-section occurred due to the brittle nature of the base material. The behavior up to the first collapse was consistent among the specimens within each group, while differed slightly subsequently. With higher reinforcement in the joints, results showed increasing stress at the first collapse (ultimate compressive stress) while the strain at the first collapse remained unchanged. The auxetic behaviour became less significant with increasing joints' reinforcement.


Along with the rapid growth of nanoscience research and the wide application of nanotechnology into various industrial fields, the innovation patterns and co-evolutionary natures of multiple nano industrial sectors has drawn much attention from scholars. Based on a continuously updated nano-publication database, this paper explores the learning and integrative dynamics in nano industrial sectors through the means of co-word analysis, citation distribution across sectors and institutional cooperation. We argue that the general trend of integration in nano sectors is converging in the long run, although the degree of this convergence depends greatly on the indicators one chooses. Our results show that nano technologies applied in the five studied nano industries become more diverse over time. One sector learns more and more related technologies from other sectors. The publication and citation analysis also proves that nano technology has developed to a relatively mature stage and has become a standardized and codified technology.


Background An association between coronary heart disease (CHD) and clinically diagnosed periodontitis has been found in several epidemiological studies. However, seroepidemiologic evidence based on prospective data on this association is totally lacking. Design The aim of the study was to investigate serum antibodies to major periodontal pathogens for their prediction of myocardial infarction (MI) in men free of CHD at baseline. Methods Cases and controls were ascertained from a random population sample of 4255 men aged 30 to 59 years at baseline. The study cases included 63 men with nonfatal MI or coronary death within the follow-up time of 10 years. Age-matched control subjects (n = 63) were randomly chosen from the same cohort. Serum antibody levels to two major periodontopathogenic bacteria, Actinobacillus actinomycetemcomitans and Porphyromonas gingivalis, were determined. Results There was no significant association between the risk for MI and IgG- or IgA-class antibody levels to A. actinomycetemcomitans or IgG-class antibody levels to P. gingivalis. However, a high P. gingivalis IgA-class antibody level predicted MI independently of classical cardiovascular risk factors. The risk for MI increased by increasing quartiles of antibody levels (P for the trend 0.021). Compared with the first quartile, the multivariate odds ratios of MI in the second, third and fourth quartiles were 2.47 (95% CI 0.75-8.11), 3.30 (1.03-10.58) and 3.99 (1.22-13.10), respectively. Conclusion The study provides serological evidence that an infection caused by the periodontal pathogen, P. gingivalis, increases the risk for MI.


A simple, rapid, economic, accurate, and precise method for the estimation of rifampicin in a mixture of isoniazid and pyrazinamide by UV spectrophotometeric technique (guided by the theoretical investigation of physicochemical properties) was developed and validated. Theoretical investigations revealed that isoniazid and pyrazinamide both were freely soluble in water and slightly soluble in ethyl acetate whereas rifampicin was practically insoluble in water but freely soluble in ethyl acetate. This indicates that ethyl acetate is an effective solvent for the extraction of rifampicin from a water mixture of isoniazid and pyrazinamide. Computational study indicated that pH range of 6.0–8.0 would favor the extraction of rifampicin. Rifampicin is separated from isoniazid and pyrazinamide at pH 7.4 ± 0.1 by extracting with ethyl acetate. The ethyl acetate was then analyzed at λmax of 344.0 nm. The developed method was validated for linearity, accuracy and precision according to ICH guidelines. The proposed method exhibited good linearity over the concentration range of 2.5–35.0 μg/mL. The intraday and inter-day precision in terms of % RSD ranged from 1.09 to 1.70% and 1.63 to 2.99%, respectively. The accuracy (in terms of recovery) of the method varied from of 96.7 ± 0.9 to 101.1 ± 0.4%. The LOD and LOQ were found to be 0.83 and 2.52 μg/mL, respectively. In addition, the developed method was successfully applied to determine rifampicin combination (isoniazid and pyrazinamide) brands available in Bangladesh.


Cytology is a simple, fast, and inexpensive procedure yielding a high degree of diagnostic accuracy-provided the examiner has a good deal of experience. It has not yet become generally accepted in the diagnosis of skin diseases, since biopsies are very easy to perform, and histopathology is still more reliable than cytology. Modern techniques such as electron microscopy, immunofluorescence, immunocytochemistry with polyclonal and monoclonal antibodies, immunoelectron microscopy, DNA flow cytometry, and in situ hybridization have considerably increased the potentials of cytology and will certainly help to win general recognition in dermatology, as well.


BRCA1 splice isoforms {Delta}11 and {Delta}11q can contribute to PARP inhibitor (PARPi) resistance by splicing-out mutation-containing exons, producing truncated, partially-functional proteins. However, the clinical impact and underlying drivers of BRCA1 exon skipping remain undetermined. We analyzed nine ovarian and breast cancer patient derived xenografts (PDX) with BRCA1 exon 11 frameshift mutations for splice isoform expression and therapy response. This included a matched PDX pair derived from a patient pre- and post-chemotherapy/PARPi regimen. BRCA1 exon 11-deficient isoform expression was generally elevated in PARPi resistant PDX tumors. Two independent PDX models acquired secondary BRCA1 splice site mutations (SSMs), predicted in silico to drive exon skipping. Predictions were confirmed using qRT-PCR, RNA sequencing, western blots and BRCA1 minigene modelling. SSMs were also enriched in post-PARPi OC patient cohorts from the ARIEL2 and ARIEL4 clinical trials. We demonstrate that SSMs drive BRCA1 exon 11 skipping and PARPi resistance, and should be clinically monitored, along with frame-restoring secondary mutations.


A study was carried out that compared Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA) 2003 Mathematics results with Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2003 Grade 8 Mathematics results (Wu, 2009). It was found that Western countries generally performed better in PISA than in TIMSS, and Eastern European and Asian countries generally performed better in TIMSS than in PISA. In this paper, TIMSS released items are divided into two sets: one that fits the PISA framework and one that does not. In particular, many geometry and algebra items in TIMSS are "inner mathematics" (mathematics without a real-life context), and such items do not appear in the PISA test. Differential performances of six countries on each set of items are examined. In this way, the relative strengths and weaknesses of Western and Asian countries are identified. These strengths and weaknesses are then linked back to the contents of the PISA and TIMSS tests. There is strong evidence that differential performance between Western and Asian countries in PISA and TIMSS can be directly attributed to the types of items in the respective tests.


Protein tyrosine phosphatases (PTPs) constitute a family of key homeostatic regulators, with wide implications on physiology and disease. Recent findings have unveiled that the biological activity of PTPs goes beyond the dephosphorylation of phospho-proteins to shut down protein tyrosine kinase-driven signaling cascades. Substrates dephosphorylated by clinically relevant PTPs extend to phospholipids and phosphorylated carbohydrates as well. In addition, non-catalytic functions are also used by PTPs to regulate essential cellular functions. Consequently, PTPs have emerged as novel potential therapeutic targets for human diseases, including cancer predispositions, myopathies and neuropathies. In this review, we highlight recent advances on the multifaceted role of lipid-phosphatase PTPs in human pathology, with an emphasis on hereditary diseases. The involved PTP regulatory networks and PTP modulatory strategies with potential therapeutic application are discussed.


drugs have appeared in letters published in the medical journals, and that there is no evidence that the journals have ever hesitated to publish such letters. Indeed, before the institution of the Committee on Safety of Drugs this was the main channel by which such information reached the professions. Moreover, in recent years the British Medical Journal has given generous space, for example, to articles on thromboembolic accidents in women taking the oral contraceptive, and the Lancet to studies of haemolytic anaemia in patients taking methyldopa. What I had foremost in mind was the fact that it is still not uncommon to see in the medical journals advertisements which ignore or minimize the adverse effects of drugs or recommend drugs which are not free from danger for illnesses of a mild or trivial kind. This point is made in the Sainsbury Report, 1967, paras. 226 and 227. I support the view of this committee that present arrangements for supplying the medical and dental professions with unbiased information about drugs are not satisfactory, and I conclude, as they did, that this is something which should be provided for by the new Medicines Commission. In my opinion it would require a unit which contained not only medical journalists but also experts in the art of visual presentation of data, and market researchers to see that the information was being received on the target.-I am, etc., L. J. WITTS. Oxford.


Baddeleyite is a frequently found accessory mineral in silica-undersaturated lavas. Because it is typically enriched in uranium, while having low initial lead, baddeleyite has long been a prime target for U-Pb geochronology for mafic rocks. The difficulties in retrieving small baddeleyite grains from volcanic samples and the lack of a detailed understanding of baddeleyite occurrence, however, have limited baddeleyite chronology largely to coarse-grained mafic intrusive rocks. In this thesis, the development of U-Th in-situ baddeleyite analysis using Secondary Ionization Mass Spectrometry (SIMS) is presented together with an assessment of baddeleyite occurrence in Quaternary silica-undersaturated lavas. Samples studied include the Cathedral Crag and Burroughs Mountain lava flows of Cascade arc volcanoes Mt. Baker and Mt. Rainier (Washington, USA), respectively, and Accademia, Punta Marmolite and Cuma lava domes of the Campi Flegrei caldera (Naples, Italy). Baddeleyite crystals were initially identified in cut and polished rock billets using scanning electron microscope (SEM) backscatter imaging and energy dispersive x-ray analysis, before they were separated by diamond-drilling for SIMS analysis. A total of 62 and 52 baddeleyite crystals were documented from Cathedral and Burroughs Mountain lava flows; 205, 42 and 15 baddeleyite crystals were documented from Accademia, Punta Marmolite and Cuma lava domes, respectively. U-Th baddeleyite isochron ages range between near secular equilibrium for Cathedral Crag lava flow: 404.5 - 197.8 + i ka (MSWD = 0.88; n = 3); and 4.36 - 1.12 + 1.13 ka (MSWD = 2.9; n = 24) for the Accademia lava dome. The ages for Punta Marmolite ( 62.4 - 3.9 + 3.8 ka; MSWD = 1.2; n = 11) and Cuma ( 45.9 - 3.5 + 3.6 ka; MSWD = 2.2; n = 11) fall in between, and are in a favorable age range for U-Th dating approximately near one half-life of 230 Th (~75.69 ka). Burroughs Mountain lava was not dated because it is expected to be in secular equilibrium, but it was used to monitor the abundance of baddeleyite in basaltic andesite from an arc volcano. The U-Th baddeleyite ages generally agree with previously reported K-Ar ages, except for the Punta Marmolite lava flow, which has a significantly older U-Th baddeleyite age compared to the K-Ar age. The age comparisons suggest that baddeleyite overwhelmingly crystallized near the time of eruption, in contrast to the frequently observed protracted pre-eruptive residence of zircon in silicic volcanic rocks. Near-eruption crystallization is supported by observations that ~50% of baddeleyite crystals occur at the walls of vesicles in most lavas studied here, including Punta Marmolite lava flow. The apparent hiatus between baddeleyite crystallization and eruption in Punta Marmolite thus could reflect a bias in the K-Ar age. U-Th baddeleyite dating is demonstrated to be a reliable chronometer for Quaternary silica-undersaturated volcanic rocks, and thus can be the primary dating technique for rocks that lack other datable minerals.


Germ cell tumors (GCT) are the most common malignancies in males between 15 and 35 years of age. Despite the high cure rate, achieved through chemotherapy and/or surgery, the molecular basis of GCT etiology is still largely obscure. Here, we show a positive correlation between MAPK15 (ERK8; ERK7) expression and specific GCT subtypes, with the highest levels found in the aggressive embryonal carcinomas (EC). Indeed, in corresponding cellular models for EC, MAPK15 enhanced tumorigenicity in vivo and promoted cell proliferation in vitro, supporting a role for this kinase in human GCT. At molecular level, we demonstrated that endogenous MAPK15 is necessary to sustain cell cycle progression of EC cells, by limiting p53 activation and preventing the triggering of p53-dependent mechanisms resulting in cell cycle arrest. To understand MAPK15-dependent mechanisms impinging on p53 activation, we demonstrate that this kinase efficiently protects cells from DNA damage. Moreover, we show that the ability of MAPK15 to control the autophagic process is necessary for basal management of DNA damage and for tumor formation controlled by the kinase. In conclusion, our findings suggest that MAPK15 overexpression may contribute to the malignant transformation of germ cells by controlling a "stress support" autophagic pathway, able to prevent DNA damage and the consequent activation of the p53 tumor suppressor. Moreover, in light of these results, MAPK15-specific inhibitors might represent new tools to enhance the therapeutic index of cytotoxic therapy in GCT treatment, and to increase the sensitivity to DNA-damaging drugs in other chemotherapy-resistant human tumors.


This chapter is an up-to-date survey of the state-of-the art in consumer demand analysis. We review (and evaluate) advances in a number of related areas, in the spirit of the recent survey paper by Barnett and Serletis (2008). In doing so, we only deal with consumer choice in a static framework, ignoring a number of important issues, such as, the effects of demographic or other variables that affect demand, welfare comparisons across households (equivalence scales), and the many issues concerning aggregation across consumers.


This paper explores the extent to which current interpretations of the notion of agency, as traditionally perceived under human rights law, pose challenges to human rights protection in light of algorithmic surveillance. After examining the notion of agency under the European Convention on Human Rights as a criterion for applications' admissibility, the paper looks into the safeguards of notification and of redress – crucial safeguards developed by the Court in secret surveillance cases – which are used as examples to illustrate their insufficiency in light of algorithmic surveillance. The use of algorithms creates new surveillance methods and challenges fundamental presuppositions on the notion of agency in human rights protection. Focusing on the victim status does not provide a viable solution to problems arising from the use of Artificial Intelligence in state surveillance. The paper thus raises questions for further research concluding that a new way of thinking about agency for the protection of human rights in the context of algorithmic surveillance is needed in order to offer effective protection to individuals.


Abstract The gut microbiota is directly influenced by dietary components, and it plays critical roles in chronic diseases. Excessive consumption of trans-fatty acids (TFA) is associated with obesity induced by alterations in gut microbiota, but the links between obesity and gut microbiota remain unclear. Therefore, studies examining the impact of TFA on intestinal microflora are essential. In our study, we performed 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing on faecal samples from Sprague–Dawley rats fed a basal diet (control (CON) group), high-fat (HF) diet (diet-induced obesity (DIO) group) or TFA diets (1 % TFA group and 8 % TFA group) for 8 weeks to investigate the effects of TFA/HF diets on obesity and gut microbiota composition. We found that the TFA/HF diets significantly induced obesity and changes in blood and brain physiological parameters of the rats. The relative abundance of the phyla Firmicutes and Bacteroidetes was inversely altered in the three test groups compared with the CON group. Proteobacteria increased slightly in the DIO, 1 % TFA and 8 % TFA groups. The genus Bacteroides increased in the DIO and 1 % TFA groups, but Muribaculaceae decreased in all experimental groups compared with the CON group. Moreover, significant differences were observed among clusters of orthologous group functional categories of the four dietary groups. Our observations suggested that the TFA/HF diets induced obesity and dysfunction of gut microbiota. Gut dysbiosis might mediate the obesity effects of TFA/HF diets.


Resonant-cavity InGaN/GaN quantum well light emitting diodes have been fabricated. Nitride layers were grown by molecular beam epitaxy on Si (111). We fabricated the structures using a combination of Si substrate etching, GaN etching and dielectric (Ta2O5/SiO2) mirror deposition. The electroluminescence spectra show that the emission within the distributed Bragg reflector stop band is enhanced in the membrane microcavity. The cavity modes are broadened by some cavity length non-uniformity that is introduced when the GaN is back etched to adjust the cavity length. This process does not need any transfer on an intermediate host substrate and is fully compatible with large area semiconductor processing.


Electron microscope studies on self-annealed intact single strands and on partially denatured molecules show that herpes simplex virus 1 DNA consists of two unequal regions, each bounded by inverted redundant sequences. Thus the region L (70 percent of the contour length of the DNA) separates the left terminal region a1b from its inverted repeat b'a'1, each of which comprises 6 percent of the DNA. The region S (9.4 percent of DNA) separates the right terminal region cas (4.3 percent of the DNA) from its inverted repeat a'sc'. The regions of the two termini which are inverted and repeated itnernally differ in topology. Thus, cas is guanine plus cytosine rich, whereas only the terminal 1 percent of the a1b region, designated as subregion a1, is guanine plus cytosine rich.


As part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the Canadian Corporation for Studies in Religion (CCSR), this article provides a reflection on the past, present, and future of the Canadian Society for the Study of Religion (CSSR). CSSR members were given the space to outline their thoughts and experiences of over 50 years of Religious Studies in Canada. This collaborative article tracks the development of the discipline through the 1970s from theology to comparative religion, to the transformation of the 1980 -90s with an interdisciplinary and critical engagement, to the new millennium infusion of socio-political research, critical self-reflexivity, and lived religion work. We also focus on the role of the CSSR in shaping and promoting Religious Studies in Canada through its various academic activities as well as observing the fragmentation and decline of Religious Studies programs in Canadian universities. And finally, we look to the future questioning how the CSSR and Religious Studies can remain relevant against a backdrop of institutional changes due to funding austerity and the COVID global pandemic to supporting Religious Studies inside and outside of academia. This article is not intended as a detailed history of the CSSR, but an opportunity to see a representation of our experiences and hopes for Religious Studies in Canada.


A Virus is an individual that cannot be described as an animal or a plant. If animals and plants contain two nucleic acids (DNA and RNA), on the contrary, the virus only has one of them. These nucleic acids can stimulate a complete virus replication cycle. The virus can only replicate and live on a living host if the host is finally dead, then the virus will move on the cells that are still alive. The virus has genetic material which is a protective protein coat called a capsid. Viruses can infect various varieties of organisms, both eukaryotes (animals, plants, protists, and fungi) and prokaryotes (bacteria and archaea). The Virus infects bacteria known as bacteriophage (phage). The Virus can cause serious diseases for humans such as AIDS, HIV, rabies, etc. Dogs belonging to Canidae family are the sibling of wolves, foxes and raccoon dogs. Among all members of Canidae, dogs have the most closely related to wolves which are the ancestors of dogs. The Canidae family generally has a small elongated body, sharp ear and muzzle, sharp smelling, can run fast and can swim. Dogs are human best friends. While taking care of the dogs, they can be attacked by various diseases. The closeness of the relationship between humans and dogs raises the potential for disease transmission, especially zoonosis and pandemics viruses.
Keywords:  Canis lupus familiaris, Carier, Influenza, virus


Family-group names proposed for beetles belonging to the family Cerambycidae are catalogued and their availability is determined using the rules of the current International Code of Zoological Nomenclature. A synoptic classification of the family summarizes the validity of the names. Type genera of all family-group names are listed and the type species and stems of genera of available family-group names are included. A new family-group name, Elytracanthinini Bousquet (type genus: Elytracanthina Monn, 2005, a replacement name for Elytracantha Lane, 1955) is proposed for Elytracanthinae Lane, 1955. Ichthyosoma armatum Montrouzier, 1855 is designated as type species of Icthyosoma Boisduval, 1835. Reversal of precedence is used to preserve the validity of the following family-group names: Anaglyptides Lacordaire, 1868 (over Anaglyptisidae Gistel, 1848 [Buprestidae]); Dryobiini Arnett, 1962 (over Dryobiadae Gistel, 1856 [Ptinidae]); Hemilophitae Thomson, 1868 (over Amphionychitae Thomson, 1860) and Heteropsides Lacordaire, 1869 (over Dichophyiaeidae Gistel, 1848). The following family-group names, although junior synonyms, are preserved as valid until an application is submitted to the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature; in these cases a reversal of precedence could not be applied: Eurypodini Gahan, 1906 (over Zaracinae Pascoe, 1869); Macronides Lacordaire, 1868 (over Enchapteritae Thomson, 1861); Pyresthides Lacordaire, 1868 (over Pseudolepturitae Thomson, 1861 and Erythrinae Pascoe, 1866) and Stenoderinae Pascoe, 1867 (over Syllitae Thomson, 1864). A total of 238 valid cerambycid family-group names (413 available names) are recognized in the following 13 subfamilies: Vesperinae (1 valid family-group name), Oxypeltinae (1), Disteniinae (4), Anoplodermatinae (3), Philinae (1), Parandrinae (2), Prioninae (24), Spondylidinae (5), Necydalinae (1), Lepturinae (8), Lamiinae (80), Dorcasominae (1), and Cerambycinae (107).


Roughstalk bluegrass (Poa trivialis L.) contamination is problematic on golf course fairways from the Midwest to the mid-Atlantic regions of the United States. Bispyribac-sodium and sulfosulfuron have potential to selectively control roughstalk bluegrass. Our objectives were to determine the most effective herbicide treatments for short- and long-term roughstalk bluegrass control and to determine if interseeding with creeping bentgrass (Agrostis stolonifera L.) after herbicide treatments will improve long-term control of roughstalk bluegrass or conversion to creeping bentgrass. Plots were treated with bispyribac-sodium or sulfosulfuron and then half of each plot was interseeded with creeping bentgrass in early August, 2 weeks after the final herbicide application in 2006, 2007, and 2008 in Indiana. Roughstalk bluegrass cover reduction was highest when treated with bispyribac-sodium at 56 or 74 g·ha -1 a.i. applied four times or sulfosulfuron at 27 g·ha -1 a.i. applied three times. Interseeding with creeping bentgrass improved long-term roughstalk bluegrass control and quickened conversion to creeping bentgrass. Furthermore, bispyribac-sodium and sulfosulfuron appeared to be more effective in the first 2 years of the study when seasonal heat stress was greater, which appeared to improve long-term roughstalk bluegrass control and promoted creeping bentgrass establishment. Chemical names used: {2,6-bis[(4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl)oxy] benzoic acid} (bispyribac-sodium), {1-[4,6-dimethoxypyrimidin-2-yl]-3-[2-ethanesulfonyl-imidazo(1,2-a)pyridine-3-yl) sulfonyl]urea} (sulfosulfuron).


The development of the shariah compliant companies provides an alternative option for stakeholders to invest in accordance with shariah principles. Disclosure of Islamic social reporting (ISR) is an important point for shariah company to demonstrate its performance to stakeholders and also the extent to which companies carry out activities in accordance with shariah. This study examines the factors that affect the disclosure of ISR on companies listed in the List of Islamic Securities (DES) in 2014. The variables are leverage, liquidity, supporting bank, women in board of commissioners and the educational background of the board of commissioners (BOC). This research is conducted using ISR index developed by Hanifa and Hudaib (2007), which consist of four dimensions and 59 items. Statistical tests find empirical evidence that liquidity and educational background of BOC have positive effect on ISR disclosure, leverage and women in BOC has negative effect while supporting banks have no effect on the disclosure of ISR.


Analysis of flutter of flat rectangular panels at low supersonic mach numbers using air forces from exact linearized potential-flow theory


Complexity of fluid flow in a rough fracture is induced by the complex configurations of opening areas between the fracture planes. In this study, we model fluid flow in an evolvable real rock joint structure, which under certain normal load is sheared. In an experimental study, information regarding about apertures of the rock joint during consecutive 20 mm displacements and fluid flow (permeability) in different pressure heads have been recorded by a scanner laser. Our aim in this study is to simulate the fluid flow in the mentioned complex geometries using the lattice Boltzmann method (LBM), while the characteristics of the aperture field will be compared with the modeled fluid flow permeability To characterize the aperture, we use a new concept in the graph theory, namely: complex networks and motif analysis of the corresponding networks. In this approach, the similar aperture profile along the fluid flow direction is mapped in to a network space. The modeled permeability using the LBM shows good correlation with the experimental measured values. Furthermore, the two main characters of the obtained networks, i.e., characteristic length and number of edges show the same evolutionary trend with the modeled permeability values. Analysis of motifs through the obtained networks showed the most transient sub-graphs are much more frequent in residual stages. This coincides with nearly stable fluid flow and high permeability values.


Most legislation, whether international or national, deals with electronic agents in a way that does not reflect the certainty of their features. In the past, only a human being could perform the functions that electronic agents do at present. Such electronic agents that are considered 'Intelligent' ramble quickly into various places, search for information, and carry out various stages of a transaction from product and merchant brokering through to negotiation, sales, distribution and payment. Nevertheless, legislations have classified them as communication tools. Perhaps such terminology has been chosen because of the lack of difficulty in its implementation or lack of legislation having the legal tools to recognize clearly the acts of electronic agents. In this paper, the concept 'electronic agent' is scrutinized and the feasibility of granting them 'legal personality' investigated, particularly under Islamic law. In particular, the question is asked: does the concept 'legal personality' really exist under Islamic law? If so, then how is it defined? In addition, in light of the definition(s) presented, how can 'legal personality' be attributed to electronic agents?


A three-dimensional, linear finite element model was generated for an intact plexiglass tube with an attached six-hole stainless steel compression plate. We examined external forces representing axial, off-center axial, and four-point bending, along with superimposed plate and screw pretension. Strain gage experiments were conducted to test model validity and the finite element results were contrasted to a composite beam theory solution. Excellent correspondence was observed between finite element and strain gage data for the most significant strain components. Composite beam theory tended to overestimate the neutral axis shift which results from plate application. The model also demonstrated fracture site distraction due to plate pretension, and the tendency for outer screw failure for the combination of bending-closed with a preload in the plate and screws.


BACKGROUND
The effectiveness of community services in reducing recidivism by men in the 'dangerous and severe personality disorder' framework--with personality disorder and at high risk of recidivism--is unknown.

AIMS
To conduct a preliminary examination of the characteristics and reconviction rates of male offenders with personality disorder accessing two South London community dangerous and severe personality disorder pilot outpatient services and to evaluate the role of supported housing for them.

METHODS
Reoffending outcomes of 107 high risk offenders with personality disorder were assessed using a cross-sectional cohort study design. Participants were allocated to outpatient only (non-residential) or outpatient with supported housing groups. Self-reported, collateral and criminal justice data and Offender Group Reconviction Scale III predictors of reoffending were used to describe the samples.

RESULTS
The overall reconviction rate over the entire study period was 11%. At 12 months following acceptance to the service, reoffending for the entire sample was significantly lower (5%) than mean Offender Group Reconviction Scale III scores predicted (51%). Multivariate analyses confirmed that those also in receipt of supportive housing were significantly less likely to reoffend than those without. Although there was no difference between groups in violent reconviction specifically, only five men in total reoffended violently.

CONCLUSIONS
Although findings appear promising, this was a naturalistic study. The sample size was small, but represented all men accepted into the two pilot services. Further evaluation of the role of supported housing and perhaps other details of community supervision should follow.


Thanks to the recent developments, the superconducting cables using high-temperature superconducting (HTS) materials are now expected to reduce feeding losses in the power supply network for DC electric railways. However, by connecting the HTS cables with the normal conducting wires electrically, heat intrusion is inevitable; to suppress heat intrusion to an acceptable level, interconnection becomes a large and costly installation. This means that the use of HTS cables as the replacement for normal conducting feeder wires in the DC railway feeding network is unrealistic because of the need for frequent interconnections between the feeder and contact wires. By combining the results obtained by a number of cases of multi-train simulation and a preliminary estimate of the refrigeration losses, the author shows that, by using HTS cables to replace some of the feeding substations, rather than the feeder wires, the introduction of HTS cables in the feeding network of DC electric railways may have positive effects of saving energy.


The acoustic emanations from keyboards provide a side-channel attack from which an attacker can recover sensitive user information, such as passwords and personally identifiable information. Previous work has shown the feasibility of these attacks given isolated key strokes, but has not demonstrated robust keystroke detection and segmentation in the presence of realistic noise and fast typing speeds. Common problems include noises like doors closing or speech as well as overlapping keystroke waveforms. Prior work has assumed that isolating the waveform of individual key strokes can be achieved with near 100% accuracy, but we show that these techniques generate a large number of misses and false positives, drastically impacting the downstream keystroke classification task. To solve this problem, we present a deep learning system, leveraging related state-of-the-art techniques from speech transcription, that performs end-to-end, audio-to-keystroke transcription with superior performance. The recurrent architecture enables it to robustly handle overlapping waveforms and adapt to local noise profiles. Furthermore, the joint approach to keystroke detection and classification enables us to both train without ground truth keystroke timings and outperform standard classification approaches even when they have ground truth timings. Due to the paucity of existing datasets, we collected a novel acoustic and keylogger dataset comprising 17 users and 86k keystrokes across various real-world typing tasks. On this dataset, we reduce the end-to-end character error rate on English text from 36.0% to 7.41% for known typists and 41.3% to 15.41% for unknown typists. The keystroke acoustic side-channel attack remains dangerously feasible.


In the Eastern Highlands of Papua New Guinea 46 men and 24 women with chronic lung disease underwent clinical and lung function investigations. In all cases the sole or predominant abnormality was irreversible airways obstruction, probably from chronic bronchitis with variable amounts of acompanying emphysema. There were close similarities to chronic obstructife lung disease in European populations in terms of symptoms, airways obstruction, transfer factor, and radiographic emphysema and inflammatory changes. Bronchiectasis and local fibrosis were present in a few subjects, but previous reports that pulmonary and pleural fibrosis are features of the disease were not confirmed. Possibly environmental and genetic factors may increase the associated blood gas disturbances leading to pulmonary hypertension. Unlike chronic obstructive lung disease in European populations, tobacco smoking is not an important aetiological factor. Although there is no direct evidence, the most likely possibilities are domestic wood smoke and acute chest infections.


Author(s): McLean, Robert G. | Abstract: Since the invasion of the mosquito-borne, West Nile virus (WNv) into North America in New York City (NYC) in 1999, the distribution of the virus has expanded throughout most of the continent during the ensuing years, causing mortality in hundreds of thousands of native and exotic birds and producing tens of thousands of equine and human cases. The initial outbreaks in the NYC area in 1999 were intense in local bird populations, with small outbreaks in humans and equines. Then, WNv spread north and south from this focal area during the next 2 years. The northward and southward sequence of dissemination continued as WNv began to encompass the remainder of the continent. Migrating birds are thought to be the one of the major contributors to the rapid dissemination of this mosquito-borne virus. The temporal and spatial pattern and rapidity of the continental spread of WNv, as detected by the national surveillance system, match the semi-annual migratory movements of hundreds of millions of North American birds. The subsequent dissemination of the virus to Canada, the Caribbean, Mexico, Central America, and now South America fits this method of spread as well. The strain of WNv introduced into the U.S. had increased virulence for North American birds, which quickly became apparent after its introduction and from the subsequent avian epizootics it caused. More than 200 species of birds experienced mortality, especially corvid species such as the American crow, blue jay, and several species of magpies, and recently the greater sage grouse. These species were particularly susceptible to this virulent strain of virus, as demonstrated in experimental studies and from dramatic die-offs during the summer virus transmission seasons. Bird mortality from WNv peaks during August-September at the height of the mosquito-transmission period but extends from April to November each year in some states. This mortality in crows and other corvid species was used as a sensitive sentinel system to detect the presence and movement of the virus through a public health reporting and laboratory testing national surveillance program. Mammal species were frequently infected, and some suffered mortality. The nationwide bird mortality from WNv infections was dramatic in North America during the last 7 years, but the actual impact of the mortality on bird populations is not known because of the insensitivity of national population data available on birds. Few regional declines in bird populations have been detected; however, the impact of WNv on local populations of crows and sage grouse has been observed in some localities. The geographical distribution of WNv activity is not continuous across local landscapes, and unexposed birds can then serve as a source to repopulate local impacted areas when overall populations are high. West Nile virus persists through the winter periods and reappears annually in the spring in temperate regions of the continent. The mechanisms responsible for this recrudescence are unique and largely unknown. Focusing on these overwintering locations with targeted mosquito control could suppress early season initiation of virus transmission and possibly prevent subsequent summer amplification. Integrated pest management aimed at controlling mosquito populations is currently the only effective approach to control this disease.


Melese-d'Hospital and Wilkins have recently found bounds for the error involved in replacing the maximum temperature in some geometrically simple regions, containing a nonuniformly distributed heat source, by the maximum temperature in the same region containing a uniform heat source. In this paper we present the formal mathematical reasoning in a general framework suitable for other applications.


A novel descriptor for protein structure is examined here that goes beyond predictions of the average fractional components (FC) of a few conformational types and represents the number and interconnection of segments of continuous, well-defined secondary structural elements such as alpha-helices and beta-sheets. This matrix descriptor can be predicted from optical spectra using neural network methods. The new matrix plus traditional FC descriptors can be quickly and generally obtained to provide a level of detail not previously derived from optical spectra and a discrimination between proteins that might otherwise be viewed as being very similar using just the FC descriptor. As an example of its potential utilization, this matrix descriptor approach was applied to an analysis of both the native state and the reversible thermal denaturation of ribonuclease T1 in H2O. Analyses of the FTIR spectral data indicate initial loss of the major helical segment at 50-55 degrees C but with little accompanying change in the number of sheet segments or the sheet FC values. Circular dichroism (CD) and vibrational CD data are also used to support this interpretation based on FC changes with temperature. Parallel analysis of the corresponding data for this protein in D2O demonstrates that the method is sensitive to the match between the degree of H-D exchange used to prepare samples for the unknown and the reference data set.


Background: Stroke is the third cause of mortality and leading cause of disability regarding the World Health Organization data. Cryptogenic stroke encompasses 40% of young adults with ischemic stroke. The relationship between patent foramen ovale and cryptogenic stroke has been established in patients younger than 55 years. Furthermore, stronger correlation was found between ischemic stroke and patent foramen ovale in patients with atrial septum aneurysm. Conclusions: Patency of foramen ovale can be demonstrated using echocardiography. Transesophageal echocardiography is superior to transthoracic approach because the transducer is very close to the heart and there is less interference with the ultrasound beam. Gold standard in diagnosis of patent foramen ovale is contrast echocardiography with the transesophageal approach. Transcranial Doppler can be used to detect right to left shunt. Studies have shown that transcranial Doppler using echo contrast medium can be used for screening of patents with patent foramen ovale. Antiplatelet therapy is appropriate treatment for patients with patent foramen ovale who suffered from cryptogenic stroke. Anticoagulant treatment is justified when additional indication for such therapy exists like atrial septum aneurysm. Percutaneous closure of foramen ovale is a new method for secondary stroke prevention with no conclusive data on its effectiveness. Studies on percutaneous closure are still ongoing. In secondary stroke prevention percutaneous closure has to be done without residual shunt.


Orthogonal Matching Pursuit (OMP) plays an important role in data science and its applications such as sparse subspace clustering and image processing. However, the existing OMP-based approaches lack of data adaptiveness so that the data cannot be represented well enough and may lose the accuracy. This paper proposes a novel approach to enhance the data-adaptive capability for OMP-based sparse subspace clustering. In our method a parameter selection process is developed to adjust the parameters based on the data distribution for information representation. Our theoretical analysis indicates that the parameter selection process can efficiently coordinate with any OMP-based methods to improve the clustering performance. Also a new Self-Expressive-Affinity (SEA) ratio metric is defined to measure the sparse representation conversion efficiency for spectral clustering to obtain data segmentations. Our experiments show that proposed approach can achieve better performances compared with other OMP-based sparse subspace clustering algorithms in terms of clustering accuracy, SEA ratio and representation quality, also keep the time efficiency and anti-noise ability.


Polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) has been widely applied as a biomaterial owing to its good stability and bioinertness. A PDA/TiO2 composite film was prepared on the surface of PTFE substrate through polydopamine (PDA) assisted in-situ co-deposition, so that the hydrophilicity and cellular responses could be improved. It was found that the film consists of PDA and TiO2. The content of TiO2 in the film can be controlled through the amount of TiO2 sol added in the deposition solution. The film is bonded to the substrate strongly. The shear strength reaches 23.5 MPa. Fibroblasts and osteoblasts are seeded on the surface of the modified substrate, and one-day cell adhesion and three-day proliferation experiments show that the cellular response of the modified substrate are significantly improved. Such deposition method is simple and easy, exhibiting wide potential in surface modification of PTFE for biomedical application.


Chronic inhalation of titanium dioxide or carbon black by rats at concentrations which overload lung particle clearance can result in lung cancer. Based on this rat lung response, IARC, NIOSH, and ECHA classified titanium dioxide, and IARC classified carbon black, as potential human carcinogens. These classifications have been questioned based on an extensive data base demonstrating: the rat lung cancer occurred only under conditions of extreme lung particle overload; the lung cancer response in rats has not been seen in other animal species; and studies in titanium dioxide and carbon black exposed human populations have not shown an increased incidence of cancer. In 2019 an international panel of science and regulatory experts was convened to document the state of the science on lung particle overload and rat lung cancer after exposure to poorly soluble low toxicity particles. Regarding hazard identification, the expert panel concluded, in the absence of supporting data from other species, lung particle overload-associated rat lung cancer does not imply a cancer hazard for humans. Regarding high to low dose extrapolation, the expert panel concluded rat lung tumors occurring only under conditions of lung particle overload are not relevant to humans exposed under non-overloading conditions. The conclusions of the Edinburgh Expert Panel directly conflict with IARC, ECHA and NIOSH's extrapolation of lung particle overload associated rat lung cancer to hazard for humans. The hazard classifications for titanium dioxide and carbon black inhalation should be assessed considering the state-of-the-science on lung particle overload and rat lung cancer.


Background: As a newly discovered lncRNA, lncRNA High expression in hepatocellular carcinoma (HEIH) has been reported to correlate with poor clinical outcomes in several different cancers, In addition, studies have shown that HEIH is overexpressed in a variety of cancers and plays an oncogenic role. The present meta-analysis aims to elucidate the relationship between HEIH expression and prognosis and clinicopathological features among cancer patients. Methods: PubMed, Web of Science, Cochrane Library, and EMBASE database were comprehensively and systematically searched. pooled odds ratios (ORs) and hazard ratios (HRs) with 95% confidence interval (CI) were employed to assess the relationship between HEIH expression and clinical outcomes and clinicopathological features in cancer patients. Conclusion: The present study finally enrolled 11 studies which included 1227 cancer patients. The combined results indicated that HEIH overexpression was significantly associated with shorter overall survival (OS) (pooled HR = 2.03, 95% CI 1.74–2.38, P < .00001).Meanwhile, regarding clinicopathology of cancer patients, upregulated HEIH expression was closely related to larger tumor size (OR = 2.65, 95% CI: 1.52–4.65, P = .0006), advanced tumor T stage (OR = 2.41, 95 % CI: 1.54–3.77, P = .0001), advanced TNM stage (OR = 4.76, 95% CI: 2.73–8.29, P < .00001), distant metastasis (OR = 2.94, 95% CI: 1.75–4.96, P < .0001) and lymph node metastasis (OR = 2.07, 95% CI: 1.05–4.07, P = .04), respectively. Conclusions: High expression of HEIH in some cancers predicts shorter overall survival and higher clinical stage as well as larger tumor size. HEIH has great potential to become a prognostic marker for cancer patients.


Control of domiciliated Triatoma infestans, the major Chagas disease vector in southern South America, is currently achieved by indoor residual spraying of infested houses with chemical insecticides. However, in recent years this strategy has been threatened by the emergence of pyrethroid-resistant bug populations. As an alternative approach, we have previously demonstrated the efficacy of the entomopathogenic fungus Beauveria bassiana to control T. infestans bugs regardless of their pyrethroid susceptibility. In this work, we tested the virulence and residual activity of a powdered fungal formulation, and studied the significance of the horizontal transmission process (autodissemination) to fungal infection of bugs. The B. bassiana-based formulation was highly virulent against all T. infestans stages, and maintained its insecticidal capability for at least 5 months under natural ambient conditions. We showed that horizontal transmission of conidia is associated to bug density, and contributes significantly to the overall population infection event.


A theoretical time-dependent analysis of a high-average power copper HyBrID laser is proposed, pointing out the time-varying properties of beam quality parameters and brightness. Numerical data are compared to experimental measurements performed on a 80 W average power copper HyBrID laser. A significant improvement of the beam quality with time is put in evidence.


This study presents a novel benchmarking methodology for Data Acquisition System (DAS) types to support industrial community characteristics in designing and implementing the advanced driver assistance systems within vehicles, which is considered multicriteria decision-making (MCDM) problems. Four issues support this claim. Multiple criteria need to be considered in the evaluation, data variation, trade-off and conflict. Thus, an MCDM solution is essential to overcome problem complexity. In the last years, MCDM developed methods have been studied and criticised from different theoretical aspects. The most recent method, fuzzy decision by opinion score method (FDOSM), has proven its power in solving other methods challenges. However, the FDOSM technique and its extension were based on traditional fuzzy set theory, which is limited and unable to deal with the membership and non-membership hesitation simultaneously and that affect the accuracy of final decision especial among the group of decision-makers. Therefore, this study extended FDOSM into an intuitionistic fuzzy environment that considers the hesitation index in the membership definition, then discuss the power of such membership in evaluating and benchmarking the DAS systems. The proposed methodology comprises two consecutive phases. In the first phase, a decision matrix is formulated based on the crossover of the 'DAS systems' and 'multiple evaluation criteria'. In the second phase, the new method (the intuitionistic FDOSM method) has two main stages (i.e. data transformation unit and data processing). The dataset was used to prove the concept. A total of 39 DASs were evaluated based on 14 DASs criteria, involving seven sub-criteria for "comprehensive complexity assessment" purpose and eight sub-criteria for "design and implementation" purpose, which highly affected the design of DAS when implantation occurred by industrial communities. The results of this study are as follows: (1) Individual results of benchmarking, which used three decision-makers are broad, with consensus on the DAS#1 system ranked as the best. (2) The results of the proposed GDMs proved quality in DASs benchmarking, and the DAS#1 system is also the best. (3) Intuitionistic FDOSM can deal with hesitation and uncertainty problems properly. (4) Significant differences were indicated among the groups' scores, which proves the validity of the intuitionistic FDOSM results.


Pathological aspects in 100 cases of operated A.P. different in severity are not strictly related to aetiological conditions. Clinical observations have suggested some components of pathogenesis: obstruction of bilio-pancreatic inflow in duodenum at the beginning of the attack, bilio-pancreatic reflux on cholangiograms, strong secretory digestive stimulation before attack. Some experimental animals models (dogs) which can mimic pathogenic mechanism (obstruction of pancreatic flow, common bilio-pancreatic duct, closed duodenal loop, acute cholecystitis) have revealed characteristic pathological changes depending on the initiating process. Our conclusion that severity of pathological changes in A.P. are determined by the initiating mechanisms which may differ in some aetiological condition or may be common for different ones.


Purpose: The purpose of this paper is to provide an understanding of principal preparation and training in China by providing a background discussion of principal preparation in a number of countries. As an illustration, it provides an overview of the curriculum used in the initial preparation of school principals at Beijing Normal University.-----Design/methodology/approach: The paper draws mainly on writing and research from China, Australia and the USA to explore principal preparation and training in China.-----Findings: In addition to providing a rich description of principal preparation in China, the paper's main findings comprise seven key challenges that confront China as it endeavours to provide quality principal preparation. These challenges include China's diversity and uneven social, cultural and educational development; limited resources in some regions throughout China; the place and importance of study tours for principal preparation; the teaching approach used to train principals; the process used for assessing principal learning during their training programs; the limited transfer of learning from the classroom to the school environment; and the timing of training for principals.-----Practical implications: Each of the challenges arising here raises important practical implications for developers of principal training programs.-----Originality/value: The paper paints a picture of principal preparation in China and raises a number of issues and challenges with which it continues to grapple. Of note is that China is not alone in facing some of these ongoing concerns.


Raman light scattering, infrared reflection, and infrared absorption spectra are reported for the mineral pollucite and other cesium aluminosilicate formulations of interest to the beneficial use program of Sandia Laboratories. In addition, Raman spectra of crystals of a pure-phase pollucite are presented. Assignment of the active normal modes is made; a resonance at 200 cm/sup -1/ is tentatively assigned to a Cs cage mode; the remaining resonances are assigned to oxygen stretching vibrations of the Al-0 and Si-0 bonds, external vibrations of the aluminosilicate framework, and to more complex vibrations involving all of the atoms of the crystal. It is shown that by using a reference crystalline spectrum, oher cesium aluminosilicate structures can be identified as polycrystalline in nature with a makeup similar to pollucite. Structural alterations (broken bonds) as well as state changes (crystalline to amorphous) can also be ascertained by Raman spectroscopy. Water is found only in mineral pollucite, where it exists as a monomer, hydrogen-bonded to oxygen atoms that form its cage. Satisfactory results were obtained from a range of materials; black to milky to clear in appearance.


BACKGROUND
A more comprehensive characterization of total work-related injury burden would ideally include all levels of medical care. Additionally, studies have suggested differential utilization of medical care among various socioeconomic groups, and it is unclear how this translates to work-related injuries.

METHODS
The 2004-2016 National Health Interview Survey data were used to estimate all levels of care utilized by the individual for each injury episode. A multivariable logistic regression model based on 2004-2014 data was developed to investigate the relationship of low income and level of medical care used by the injured worker.

RESULTS
Around 53.1% of occupational injury were exclusively treated outside of a hospital setting and never captured by hospital/emergency department data systems, which comprises 40% (3.0 million) of total missed days of work and 44% ($452 million) of total cost of lost productivity among full-time workers. Patients with work-related injuries are less likely to stay overnight in hospital compared with those with nonwork-related injuries (adjusted odds ration [aOR]: 0.6, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 0.5-0.7), however among work-related injuries, low-income patients are more likely to use medical care in a hospital setting compared with patients with income higher than poverty threshold (hospitalization: aOR: 1.9, 95% CI: 1.1-3.3; emergency room: aOR: 1.5, 95% CI: 1.1-2.0).

CONCLUSIONS
These "minor work-related injuries" exclusively treated outside hospital tend to be ignored when defining national injury prevention priorities, but this analysis indicates that such an approach fails to capture a large portion of injuries significant enough to result in missed days of work and cost of lost productivity.


OBJECTIVE
To assess whether visual impairment contributes to average length of stay (ALOS) within inpatient care facilities.

METHODS
We used the New York State Department of Health's Statewide Planning and Research Cooperative System (SPARCS) data for 1993, containing 1 principal diagnosis code and up to 8 secondary diagnosis codes for approximately 2.6 million hospital discharges. We evaluated ALOS differences in patients with and without visual impairment and in patients with eye pathologic conditions, including eye surgery. Visual impairment is not a primary admitting diagnosis, but may be coded as a secondary diagnosis. Eye pathology comprises a large variety of conditions, including corneal ulcers, abscesses, corneal deposits, edema, cataracts, vitreous hemorrhages, and many other eye disorders (ICD-9-CM codes 360-368.9 and 370-379).

RESULTS
The ALOS was 13.4 days for patients with visual impairment (N = 5764), 11.9 days for patients with either eye pathology or visual impairment (N = 60,085), and 8.2 days for patients with no visual impairment (N = 2,546,586). Using a series of multivariate models that controlled for the variables of age, sex, and payer source, as well as disease, disorders, and ophthalmology procedures, we found that the existence of visual impairment added 2.4 days to the ALOS (P<.001), while eye pathology combined with a secondary diagnosis of visual impairment added 1.8 days to the ALOS (P<.001).

CONCLUSIONS
Visual impairment contributes significantly to hospital length of stay. A better understanding of the functional care needs of patients with visual impairment in an acute care setting and at the time of discharge from the hospital may contribute to reducing excess ALOS and its related costs while improving the quality of patient care.


This paper presented a high-sensitivity temperature sensor based on photonic crystal fiber fully coated with gold and PDMS films. For the convenience of production, gold film is coated outside the fiber cladding, and it is used to excite the surface plasmon resonance (SPR) effect. In addition, the temperature response has been effectively improved by depositing poly-dimethylsiloxane (PDMS) layer outside the gold film. This fully coated structure on the outside of PCF enables temperature-sensitive medium to be in direct contact with the environment, which reduces the difficulty of internal coating and filling. The influences of the parameters on the sensing characteristics are investigated by using the finite element method (FEM). Simulation results show that the average temperature sensitivity is up to 9.287 nm/℃ in the range of -20℃-40℃. Moreover, compared with other designs, the optimized process of structure in this study provides an effective method, which shows a wide application prospect to overcome the difficulty of filling liquid in the air holes.


We describe nanosphere@nanorod hybrid arrays constructed on substrates by a one-pot method. ZnO nanorods and Er incorporated ZnO nanospheres, both with tunable sizes, were simultaneously grown on substrates. Furthermore, we systematically investigated and optimized the size and morphology of such hybrid nanostructures by adjusting the conditions including reaction temperature, PEI content, precursor concentration, precursor composition and reaction time. The formation mechanism of the hybrid arrays has thus been elucidated. The as-grown hybrid nanostructures showed excellent anti-reflective properties in the wavelength range of 400–1100 nm. When such hybrid nanostructures were applied on the front surface of silicon solar cells, the average total reflectance decreased from 15.05% to 4.14% which thus improved the short-circuit current density from 33.59 to 36.54 mA cm−2.


Abstract Objective: The aim of the study was to enhance the transdermal delivery of diclofenac potassium (DP) from hydrogels by constant voltage iontophoresis (CVI). The other objective was to establish the safety and efficacy of CVI in rats. Materials and methods: Hydrogels of DP were developed using hydroxyethyl cellulose as matrix material and geraniol, l-menthol and thymol as iontophoretic efficiency enhancers (IEE). In vitro permeation of hydrogels under CVI (1.5 V) was performed in Franz diffusion cells across porcine skin. The ability of CVI to deliver therapeutic amount of DP in vivo was assessed in rat paw edema model. Results: CVI significantly (p < 0.05) increased the steady state flux of DP compared to the passive. The hydrogels containing geraniol and l-menthol enhanced the iontophoretic flux of DP by ∼4.75 and ∼4.49 fold, respectively compared to passive control. The in vivo studies indicated that CVI in combination with IEE, significantly reduced (p < 0.05) area under the curve (AUC) of % inflammation compared to passive treatment. An excellent correlation (r = 0.996) was noted between in vitro flux values and AUC of % inflammation. Conclusion: The preclinical studies conclusively demonstrated that CVI in combination with IEE's such as geraniol or l-menthol has the potential to safely deliver therapeutic amounts of DP.


The cellular machine Cdc48 functions in multiple biological pathways by segregating its protein substrates from a variety of stable environments such as organelles or multi-subunit complexes. Despite extensive studies, the mechanism of Cdc48 has remained obscure, and its reported structures are inconsistent with models of substrate translocation proposed for other AAA+ ATPases (adenosine triphosphatases). Here, we report a 3.7-angstrom-resolution structure of Cdc48 in complex with an adaptor protein and a native substrate. Cdc48 engages substrate by adopting a helical configuration of substrate-binding residues that extends through the central pore of both of the ATPase rings. These findings indicate a unified hand-over-hand mechanism of protein translocation by Cdc48 and other AAA+ ATPases.


BACKGROUND
The level of sympathetic nervous activity is a major determinant of prognosis in patients with heart failure.

OBJECTIVE
The purpose of this investigation was to perform a proof-of-principle trial of therapeutic endoscopic left thoracic sympathetic blockade in heart failure patients to assess safety and immediate effects.

METHODS
Fifteen patients with dilated cardiomyopathy and left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) < 40%, New York Heart Association functional class II or III, and heart rate > 65 bpm, despite either adequate betablocker use or intolerant to it, were enrolled. Ten patients underwent left infra-stellate ganglion plus T3-T4 interspinal space clipping through videothoracoscopy, while the other five patients were randomized to a control group.

RESULTS
None of the treated patients had any procedure-related adverse cardiovascular events at the perioperative period. Two patients from the surgical group died due to pulmonary thromboembolism or myocardial infarction within 6 months of the initial follow-up, while three patients from the control group had heart failure progression and died or developed cardiogenic shock during the same period. Treated patients presented improvement in quality of life, level of physical activity and LVEF (from 25 ± 9% to 32 ± 8%, p=0.024) at 6 months of follow-up, whereas these parameters did not change in control patients.

CONCLUSION
Endoscopic left thoracic sympathetic blockade is feasible and appears to be safe in severe heart failure patients. This initial study suggests that this procedure might be an effective alternative approach to sympathetic blockade in the treatment of dilated cardiomyopathies.


Carcinoembryonic antigen, epithelial membrane antigen, Keratin, Desmin, Vimentin, CD30, lysozyme, alpha 1-antitrypsin, alpha 1-antichymotrypsin, S-100 protein, somatostatin and glucagon were looked for using immunohistochemical methods in the epithelial component of 20 parotid gland cystadenolymphomas and 20 normal parotid glands. Carcino-embryonic antigen, ephithelial membrane antigen, S-100 protein, and somatostatin were found in the epithelial cells of most of the cystadenolymphomas. In normal parotid tissue, carcinoembryonic antigen, epithelial membrane antigen, Keratin, alpha 1-antitrypsin, alpha 1-antichymotrypsin, and S-100 protein were found in all three types of ductal cells, somatostatin only in intercalated and striated ductal cells, and lysozyme only in acinar and intercalated ductal cells. Desmin and CD30 were found in the epithelial component of seven of the 20 tumors versus none of the 20 normal parotid glands. Glucagon and Vimentin were negative both in tumor epithelial cells and in normal parotid ductal cells. Our results support the theory that cystadenolymphomas arise from epithelial cells. The presence of lysozyme in the epithelial tumor cells and in the intercalated ductal cells of normal parotid tissue suggest that cystadenolymphomas may arise from the intercalated ducts. The presence of S-100 and somatostatin may indicate that the tumor derives from neuroendocrine structures, but further studies are needed to clarify this point.


Background Mismatch repair deficiency (dMMR) is associated with endometrial cancers, yet it remains unknown how this information could be incorporated into adjuvant treatment paradigms. We performed this cohort study to identify the effect of dMMR status on the prognosis of patients with advanced endometrial cancer treated with PD-1 inhibitor and bevacizumab. Material/Methods We enrolled 93 patients with advanced endometrial cancer and divided them into an observation group (n=52) and a control group (n=41) according to the treatment. The control group was treated with bevacizumab combined with paclitaxel chemotherapy, while the observation group was treated with PD-1inhibitor combined with bevacizumab. The basic characteristics and overall survival times were compared between the 2 groups. Results There was no significant difference in age, course of disease, clinical stage, or pathological type. The proportion of patients with dMMR and high-level microsatellite instability (MSI-H) were balanced in the 2 groups. Patients in the observation group had longer overall survival than those in the control group (33.2 months vs 21.8 months). Moreover, in the observation group, the median OS of dMMR patients was not detected, while the median OS of PMMR patients was 29.2 months (P<0.01). In the control group, the median OS of dMMR patients was 12.4 months, and that of PMMR patients was 24.1 months (P<0.01). Conclusions Advanced endometrial cancer patients with dMMR/MSI-H treated with PD-1 inhibitor plus bevacizumab had longer overall survival (OS) than those treated with bevacizumab plus paclitaxel chemotherapy.


The purpose of this article is to deliver new estimates of the sacrifice ratio of Euro area countries. A high sacrifice ratio means a large loss of gross domestic product (GDP) or employment for a given reduction in inflation. In order to estimate the cost of adjustments in inflation rates by the sacrifice ratio, we apply, firstly, a structural vector autoregressive technique following Cecchetti and Rich (2001) and, secondly, one by Ball (1994) based on historical disinflationary episodes. Our findings indicate that most countries have sacrifice ratios of between -1 and 2 percent of real GDP for a reduction in inflation of one percentage point. In some cases, these estimates deliver negative sacrifice ratios.


A comparison of energy deposition profiles produced by Geant4-based simulations against calorimetric measurements is reported, specifically addressing the low energy range. The energy delivered by primary and secondary particles is analyzed as a function of the penetration depth. The experimental data concern electron beams of energy between approximately 50 keV and 1 MeV and several target materials of atomic number between 4 and 92. The simulations involve different sets of physics process models and versions of the Geant4 toolkit. The agreement between simulations and experimental data is evaluated quantitatively; the differences in accuracy observed between Geant4 models and versions are highlighted. The results document the accuracy achievable in use cases involving the simulation of low energy electrons with Geant4 and provide guidance to the experimental applications concerned.


This essay reviews recent literature on American economic policymaking. It first asks, what light can contemporary research on economic policymaking shed on current circumstances? Second, where do policy process researchers go from here? This paper explores the extant literature under three broad themes. The first will deal with the extensive research into income inequality. The second will discuss the electoral implications of economic conditions. The third will analyze the institutional responses to economic developments. The final section will offer suggestions for future scholarship.


To examine the symbiotic relationship between Dendrobium huoshanense and its endophytic fungi, a total of 168 endophytic fungi were isolated and classified into 18 genera and 36 species via using pure culture and techniques of molecular biology. Among them, Stagonosporopsis oculihominis, Alternaria eichhorniae, Phyllosticta aristolochiicola, Aspergillus flavus and Fusarium lactis were the dominant genera. Further, the secondary metabolites produced by the dominant genera were screened for antibacterial and anti-inflammatory activities. The secondary metabolites of Stagonosporopsis oculihominis showed good inhibitory activity against Staphylococcus aureus and the release of nitric oxide (NO). Three benzene ring derivatives were also identified using chromatographic and spectroscopic techniques, including (Z)-1- hydroxy-4-(2-nitroethenyl)-benzene (1), p-hydroxybenzaldehyde (2) and p-hydroxyphenylacetic acid (3). These findings indicated that the endophytic fungi of Dendrobium huoshanense are diverse and their dominant genera exert similar anti-inflammatory and antibacterial effects as those of the host plant, which provided a scientific basis for the subsequent investigation of the medicinal value of Dendrobium huoshanense.


We present a technique for mixing the fluids in a microchannel using ultrasonic waves. Acoustic mixing is driven by the acoustic body force, which depends on the density gradient and speed of the sound gradient of the inhomogeneous fluid domain. In this work, mixing of fluids in a microchannel is achieved via an alternating multinode mixing method, which employs acoustic multinode standing waves of time-varying wavelengths at regular time intervals. The proposed technique is rapid, efficient, and found to enhance the mixing of fluids significantly. It is shown that the mixing time due to acoustic mixing (2–3 s) is reduced by two orders of magnitude compared to the mixing time only due to diffusion (400 s). Furthermore, we investigate the effects of the acoustic mixing on different fluid flow configurations and sound wave propagation directions as they have a direct influence on mixing time and have rarely been addressed previously. Remarkably, it is found that mixing performance is strongly dependent on the direction of the acoustic wave propagation. The acoustic field propagated parallel to the fluid-fluid interface mixes fluids rapidly (2–3 s) as compared to the acoustic field propagated perpendicular to the fluid-fluid interface (40 s).We present a technique for mixing the fluids in a microchannel using ultrasonic waves. Acoustic mixing is driven by the acoustic body force, which depends on the density gradient and speed of the sound gradient of the inhomogeneous fluid domain. In this work, mixing of fluids in a microchannel is achieved via an alternating multinode mixing method, which employs acoustic multinode standing waves of time-varying wavelengths at regular time intervals. The proposed technique is rapid, efficient, and found to enhance the mixing of fluids significantly. It is shown that the mixing time due to acoustic mixing (2–3 s) is reduced by two orders of magnitude compared to the mixing time only due to diffusion (400 s). Furthermore, we investigate the effects of the acoustic mixing on different fluid flow configurations and sound wave propagation directions as they have a direct influence on mixing time and have rarely been addressed previously. Remarkably, it is found that mixing performance is strongly dependent on t...


Scholars have predicted that Sufism and other forms of traditional Islamic practices would disappear as modernity comes into society. Considering this view on religion and the modern, based on the literary study, this paper examines the historical development of Islam, Sufism, and pesantren in Indonesia, or previously known as Nusantara. Sufi preachers, known as walisongo, brought Islam to Indonesia and in a very short of time brought most of Indonesians into voluntary conversions. After walisongo , Indonesian ulama carried the dakwah Islamiyah through different Sufi networks and pesantrens. In the modern era, Sufism and other means of traditional practices face the challenges of disappearance and then transform themselves into neo-Sufism. The discussions in this paper show how Sufism, through its various ways, mingle with the different era in Indonesia and reshape the meaning of traditional and modern in Indonesia. Keywords: Islam Indonesia, Sufism, and pesantren,


Orientia tsutsugamushi is an obligate intracellular bacterium that causes scrub typhus in humans. Formerly thought to be confined to the "tsutsugamushi triangle" within the Asia-Pacific region, scrub typhus was recently identified in the Western Hemisphere. Moreover, a new species of Orientia bacterial genus was isolated from a patient in Dubai. This study investigated Orientia exposure in an African country, the Democratic Republic of Sao Tome and Principe. Two sets of samples were analyzed in the study: 240 dried blood spots (DBSs) collected in 2016 and 863 serum samples from 570 pregnant women in 2003. Antibodies against O. tsutsugamushi were examined by immunofluorescence assay (IFA) and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). The positive samples were further confirmed by Western blot. The results of IFA showed that 5.8% (14/240) of DBSs and 20.4% (116/570) of the serum samples contained reactive antibodies, whereas IgG ELISA yielded a positive rate of 15.4% (88/570) for the serum samples. These findings provided serologic evidence of potential Orientia exposure even though case of scrub typhus has never been diagnosed in the nation. Further studies are needed to determine the epidemiology and the burden of this neglected tropical disease in Africa.