Parvovirus B19 was discovered in 1974 by Cossart et al; is a single stranded unenveloped DNA virus, which virion is isometric, uniform and has icosagedral symmetry. B19 infection has been found in all countries, it is almost certainly world-wide in distribution. Infections occurs most frequently in late winter, spring and early summer months and are transmitted by respiratory route. Erythema infectiosum is the most common manifestation of human parvovirus B19 infection, is most commonly acquired between 4 and 10 years of age and at least 60% of adults are seropositive. Erythema Infectiosum is characterized by three stages of rash that involves the face and may also involves trunk and extremities. In adult patients, particularly women, arthralgia or arthritis have been associated with up to 80% of Erythema Infectiosum casually starts in the small joints of the hand. Maternal parvovirus B19 infection with or without rash, can affect fetus. Transient aplastic crisis can be caused by HPV B19 in patient who have increased rate of RBC destruction or loss. Others diseases or symptoms complexes may be associated with B19 infection in the coming years as this virus and its infections continues being an interesting field of investigation.


Abstract Research on the effectiveness of robotic therapy for the paretic upper limb after stroke has shown statistically significant reductions in motor impairment during both acute and chronic phases of recovery. Despite growing empirical support for this technology and a stronger focus on optimizing rehabilitation outcomes and productivity, there continues to be a disconnect between research and clinical practice. We review studies on the use of robot-aided neurorehabilitation for the paretic arm after stroke and discuss ways in which this technology may provide opportunities for intensive training that complement more conventional therapy methods.


Magnetic properties and magnetic entropy changes of La(Fe1−xMnx)11.5Si1.5Hy compounds are investigated. Their Curie temperatures are adjusted to room temperature by partial Mn substitution for Fe and hydrogen absorption in 1-atm (1 atm = 1.01325 × 105 Pa) hydrogen gas. Under a field change from 0 T to 2 T, the maximum magnetic entropy change for La(Fe0.99Mn0.01)11.5Si1.5H1.61 is −11.5 J/kg. The suitable Curie temperature and large value of ΔSm make it an attractive potential candidate for the room temperature magnetic refrigeration application.


East Nusa Tenggara Province (NTT) is one of the endemic areas with the number of filariasis cases increasing from year to year. There are two types of filarial worms, Wuchereria bancrofti, and Brugia timori. Filariasis cases in NTT Province up to January 2013 were as many as 925 cases with a prevalence of 0.20 ‰. Research Objectives to determine the distribution of filariasis cases in East Nusa Tenggara Province in 2008 - 2012. Types of Descriptive Research with secondary data study methods. The results of the research data were analyzed descriptively and presented the data using tables and map images. The results of the study are expected to provide information to educational institutions and health agencies regarding the distribution of filariasis cases in East Nusa Tenggara Province in 2008 - 2012. The results showed that there were 12 districts (57%) found filariasis cases in East Nusa Tenggara Province in 2008 - 2012 with a prevalence of 0.02 ‰ - 4.37 ‰. Age> 15 years are the most sufferers (84.93%), and men are the most sufferers (66.31%). Central Sumba Regency, Rote Ndao District, and Alor Regency have mass treatment in total population (100%), and nine districts are still under 85%. To improve the clinical case finding of filariasis, it is necessary to improve the surveillance performance of cases, among others by increasing the discovery and confirmation of cases and conducting refresher training/training for surveillance officers in the area. In the District Health Office, it is necessary to validate the reported case data.


To evaluate reclamation success on the Wooley Valley phosphate mine in southeastern Idaho, we compared vegetation structure and soil physical, chemical, and elemental properties of several different reclamation treatments with those of a nearby reference area (a native Artemisia tridentata vaseyana/Festuca idahoensis association) after 14 years. Vegetation data had been collected four years after reclamation, and we were able to compare differences in biomass and species composition between dates on the reclaimed area. Four years after reclamation there were no differences in total biomass between topsoil or spoil or between seed only, seed + mulch, or control treatments on the different soil types. Most treatments were dominated by seeded perennial grasses. Fourteen years after reclamation there were no differences in biomass or cover between spoil and topsoil plots, but on spoil plots the seeded and mulched treatment had higher total biomass and vegetation cover than on control or seed-only treatments. The seeded perennial legume Medicago sativa was codominant with the seeded forage grasses on all of the treatments. High initial fertilization rates probably facilitated the early establishment and dominance of the forage grasses; once nutrient levels, especially nitrogen, began to decline, the legume increased in abundance. Similarity between the reclaimed area and the reference or native area was low. Reclaimed treatments had higher biomass but lower species richness. The topsoil and spoil plots had similar soil texture, bulk density, pH, cation exchange capacity, electrical conductivity, and phosphorus. Differences in organic carbon, total nitrogen, carbon: nitrogen ratios, and available moisture were related more to treatments than to soil type. High biomass and, thus, litter input on the seed + mulch treatment on spoil plots resulted in both higher OC and TN than any on other soil/treatment combination. The reclaimed area had lower OC, TN, and available moisture than did the reference area on all but seed + mulch spoil plots. Bulk density was higher on reclaimed plots. The long-term differences observed between the reclaimed and reference areas parallel those obtained for other western reclamation sites. Although successional trajectories depend on the attribute measured, similarity to native reference areas depends on the initial reclamation methods. We discuss reclamation methods that would increase the structural and functional similarity of reclaimed and reference areas on the Wooley Valley phosphate mine.


Diminished oxygen availability (hypoxia) is a hallmark of the tumor microenvironment. A major regulator of cellular adaptation to hypoxia is the hypoxia-inducible factor (HIF) family of transcription factors, which play key roles in many crucial aspects of cancer biology including angiogenesis, stem cell maintenance, metabolic reprogramming, resistance to apoptosis, autocrine growth factor signaling, the EMT program, invasion and metastasis.
Resistance to chemotherapy/radiotherapy is the primary cause for treatment failure in clinical oncology. Hypoxia and accumulation of hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs) in solid tumors have been associated with resistance to treatment and poor prognosis. HIFs causes autophagy establishment to promote survival of cancer cells, and is also associated with the promotion and maintenance of cancer stem cells, a minority subpopulation within the tumor responsible for tumor recurrence and resistance to chemotherapy.
In this review, we provide a concise comparative description of the structure, regulation, transcribed genes and roles played by each HIFα subunit in coordinating the transcriptional responses to hypoxia and on the roles they play in the promotion of resistance to anti-cancer therapy.


Surface plasmon polaritons (SPPs) are viable candidates for integration into on‐chip nano‐circuitry that allow access to high data bandwidths and low energy consumption. Metal–insulator–metal tunneling junctions (MIM‐TJs) have recently been shown to excite and detect SPPs electrically; however, experimentally measured efficiencies and outcoupling mechanisms are not fully understood. It is shown that the MIM‐TJ cavity SPP mode (MIM‐SPP) can outcouple via three pathways to i) photons via scattering of MIM‐SPP at the MIM–TJ interfaces, ii) SPPs at the metal–dielectric interfaces (bound‐SPPs) by mode coupling through the electrodes, and iii) photons and bound‐SPP modes by mode coupling at the MIM‐TJ edges. It is also shown that, for Al‐AlOx‐Cr‐Au MIM‐TJs on glass, the MIM‐SPP mode outcouples efficiently to bound‐SPPs through either electrode (pathway 2); this outcoupling pathway can be selectively turned on and off by changing the respective electrode thickness. Outcoupling at the MIM‐TJ edges (pathway 3) is efficient and sensitive to the edge topography, whereas most light emission originates from roughness‐induced scattering of the MIM‐SPP mode (pathway 1). Using an arbitrary roughness profile, it is demonstrated that various roughness facets can raise MIM‐SPP outcoupling efficiencies to 0.62%. These results pave the way for understanding the topographical parameters needed to develop CMOS‐compatible plasmonic circuitry elements.


This paper presents an analytic solution for aerodynamic noise generated by an unsteady wall pressure gust interacting with a spanwise-variable trailing edge in a background steady uniform flow. Viscous and nonlinear effects are neglected. The Wiener–Hopf method is used in conjunction with a non-orthogonal coordinate transformation and separation of variables to permit analytical progress. The solution is obtained in terms of a tailored modal expansion in the spanwise coordinate; however, only finitely many modes are cut-on, therefore the far-field noise can be quickly evaluated. The solution gives insight into the potential mechanisms behind the reduction of noise for plates with serrated trailing edges compared to those with straight edges. The two mechanisms behind the noise reduction are an increased destructive interference in the far field, and a redistribution of acoustic energy from low cut-on modes to higher cut-off modes. Five different test-case trailing-edge geometries are considered. The analytic solution identifies which geometries are most effective in different frequency ranges: geometries which promote destructive interference are best at low frequencies, whilst geometries which promote a redistribution of energy are better at high frequencies.


Purpose The dacryoendoscope is a practical instrument for the examination and the treatment of lacrimal duct obstruction. Nevertheless, as it is a rigid fiberscope, manipulation of the endoscope is somewhat affected by the patient's lacrimal duct alignment and the skeletal structure of the face. The morphology and inclination of the lacrimal duct vary among individuals and ethnic groups. We aimed to evaluate the alignment of the lacrimal duct from the perspective of endoscopic maneuverability in a Japanese population. Methods This retrospective study analyzed the cone-beam computed tomography dacryocystography (CBCT-DCG) images of 102 patients diagnosed with unilateral primary acquired nasolacrimal duct obstruction (PANDO) at Ehime University Hospital from December 2015 to May 2021. The following parameters of the lacrimal duct on the contralateral side of unilateral PANDO were investigated: (1) angle formed by the superior orbital rim–internal common punctum–nasolacrimal duct opening, (2) angle formed by the lacrimal sac and the nasolacrimal duct, (3) length of the lacrimal sac, and (4) length of the nasolacrimal duct. Results Measurements of the above parameters were (1) 10.2° ± 7.8° (range, −11° to +27°), (2) −6.3° ± 14.1° (range, −43° to +40°), (3) 8.9 ± 2.3 mm (range, 4.3–17.1), and (4) 13.2 ± 2.7 mm (range, 5.7–20.7), respectively. The Shapiro–Wilk test demonstrated that the values of all parameters, except (3), followed a normal distribution (p = 0.55, 0.30, 0.0002, and 0.39, respectively). No significant difference was found between the female and male groups (p > 0.05). Conclusion This study reported anthropometric analysis data of the morphology of the lacrimal ducts using CBCT-DCG in a Japanese population. In our cohort, the line from the superior orbital rim through the internal common punctum to the nasolacrimal duct opening inclined anteriorly in 92% of the patients.


IMPORTANCE
Nonfunctioning pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors (NF-PanNETs) are often indolent neoplasms without lymph node (LN) metastasis at diagnosis. Therefore, in patients with low risk of LN metastasis, the extent of surgery and lymphadenectomy could be limited and follow-up adjusted to the very low risk of relapse.

OBJECTIVE
To construct a predicting model to assess the risk of pN+ prior to surgical resection for NF-PanNETs using preoperative retrievable variables.

DESIGN
Retrospective review using multiple logistic regression analysis to construct predictive model of pN+ based on preoperatively available data.

SETTING
The combined prospective databases of the Surgical Departments of the University of Verona, Verona, Italy, and Beaujon Hospital, Clichy, France, were queried for clinical and pathological data.

PARTICIPANTS
All patients with resected (R0 or R1), pathologically confirmed NF-PanNETs between January 1, 1993 and December 31, 2009.

MAIN OUTCOME AND MEASURE
Risk of lymph node metastases in patients with pancreatic neuroendocrine tumors.

RESULTS
Among 181 patients, nodal metastases were reported in 55 patients (30%) and were associated with decreased 5-year disease-free survival (70% vs 97%, P < .001). Multivariable analysis showed that independent factors associated with nodal metastasis were radiological nodal status (rN) (odds ratio [OR], 5.58; P < .001) and tumor grade (NET-G2 vs NET-G1: OR, 4.87; P < .001) (first model). When the tumor grade was excluded, rN (OR, 4.73; P = .001) and radiological tumor size larger than 4 cm (OR, 2.67; P = .03) were independent predictors of nodal metastasis (second model). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for the first and second models were 80% and 74%, respectively.

CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE
Patients with NF-PanNET-G1 have a very low risk of pN+ in the absence of radiological signs of node involvement. When preoperative grading assessment is not achieved, the radiological size of the lesion is a powerful alternative predictor of pN+. The risk of pathological nodal involvement in patients with NF-PanNETs can be accurately estimated by a clinical predictive model.


It remains a big challenge to develop non-precious metal catalysts for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) in energy storage and conversion systems. Herein, a facile and cost-effective strategy is employed to in situ prepare the Ni/Fe oxyhydroxide anchored on nitrogen-doped carbon aerogel (NiFeOx(OH)y@NCA) for OER electrocatalysis. The as-prepared electrocatalyst displays a typical aerogel porous structure composed of interconnected nanoparticles with a large BET specific surface area of 231.16 m2·g−1. In addition, the resulting NiFeOx(OH)y@NCA exhibits excellent OER performance with a low overpotential of 304 mV at 10 mA·cm−2, a small Tafel slope of 72 mV·dec−1, and excellent stability after 2000 CV cycles, which is superior to the commercial RuO2 catalyst. The much enhanced OER performance is mainly derived from the abundant active sites, the high electrical conductivity of the Ni/Fe oxyhydroxide, and the efficient electronic transfer of the NCA structure. Density functional theory (DFT) calculations reveal that the introduction of the NCA regulates the surface electronic structure of Ni/Fe oxyhydroxide and increases the binding energy of intermediates as indicated by the d-band center theory. This work provides a new method for the construction of advanced aerogel-based materials for energy conversion and storage.


The objective of this study was to explore the effect of goserellin on the levels of serum vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), anti-endometrial antibody (EMAb) and sex hormone in patients with endometriosis. Participants in the study, 92 patients with endometriosis admitted from June 2016 to May 2017 to our hospital, randomly were divided into control group and study group (46 cases in each group). The control group was given routine treatment such as medroxyprogesterone acetate tablet, and the study group was given injection of goserellin on the basis of the control group. The changes of serum VEGF, EMAb, CA125 and sex hormones (FSH, LH, E2, P) were compared before and after treatment. Adverse reactions were recorded during the treatment The occurrence and recurrence were followed up for 1 year. After treatment, the total effective rate of the study group was 95.65%, which was significantly higher than the control group of 80.43% (P <0.05). After treatment, the VEGF level in the study group was significantly lower than the control group, and the EMAb, CA125 levels, and EMAb positive rates were significantly higher In the control group, the difference was statistically significant (P <0.05); after treatment, the levels of FSH, LH, E2, and P in the study group were significantly lower than those in the control group (P <0.05); there was no statistically significant difference in the incidence of adverse reactions between the two groups; After a 1-year follow-up, the relapse rate in the study group was 8.69%, which was significantly lower than the control group's 52.17%. It was concluded that Goserellin has a definite clinical effect in the treatment of endometriosis. It can significantly reduce the levels of VEGF, EMAb and CA125 in serum, regulate the level of sex hormone, inhibit the growth of endometriosis, reduce the recurrence rate, and have a high safety.


In nature, there are many processes, which their dynamics depend on more than one independent variable (e.g. thermal processes and long transmission lines (Kaczorek, 1985)). These processes are called multi-dimensional systems. Two Dimensional (2-D) systems are mostly investigated in the literature as a multi-dimensional system. 2-D systems are often applied to theoretical aspects like filter design, image processing, and recently, Iterative Learning Control methods (see for example Roesser, 1975; Hinamoto, 1993; Whalley, 1990; Al-Towaim, 2004; Hladowski et al., 2008). Over the past two decades, the stability of multidimensional systems in various models has been a point of high interest among researchers (Anderson et al., 1986; Kar, 2008; Singh, 2008; Bose, 1994; Kar & Singh, 1997; Lu, 1994). Some new results on the stability of 2-D systems have been presented – specifically with regard to the Lyapunov stability condition which has been developed for RM (Lu, 1994). Then, robust stability problem (Wang & Liu, 2003) and optimal guaranteed cost control of the uncertain 2-D systems (Guan et al., 2001; Du & Xie, 2001; Du et al., 2000 ) came to be the area of interest. In addition, an adaptive control method for SISO 2-D systems has been presented (Fan & Wen, 2003). However, in many physical systems, the goal of control design is not only to satisfy the stability conditions but also to have a system that takes its trajectory in the predetermined hyperplane. An interesting approach to stabilize the systems and keep their states on the predetermined desired trajectory is the sliding mode control method. Generally speaking, SMC is a robust control design, which yields substantial results in invariant control systems (Hung et al., 1993). The term invariant means that the system is robust against model uncertainties and exogenous disturbances. The behaviour of the underlying SMC of systems is indeed divided into two parts. In the first part, which is called reaching mode, system states are driven to a predetermined stable switching surface. And in the second part, the system states move across or intersect the switching surface while always staying there. The latter is called sliding mode. At a glance in the literature, it is understood that there are many works in the field of SMC for 1-D continuous and discrete time systems. (see Utkin, 1977; Asada & Slotine, 1986; Hung et al., 1993; DeCarlo et al., 1988; Wu and Gao, 2008; Furuta, 1990; Gao et al., 1995; Wu & Juang, 2008; Lai et al., 2006; Young et al., 1999; Furuta & Pan, 2000; Proca et al., 2003; Choa et al., 2007; Li & Wikander, 2004; Hsiao et al., 2008; Salarieh & Alasty, 2008) Furthermore SMC has been contributed to various control methods (see for example Hsiao et al., 2008; Salarieh & Alasty, 2008) and several experimental works (Proca et al., 2003). Recently, a SMC design for a 2-D system in RM


Selective deposition of powdered passivating glass on either insulating or conducting regions of a device wafer can be accomplished by first depositing ions from a corona discharge on the insulating regions of the device wafer and then immersing the wafer in an insulating liquid containing a charged suspension of the powdered glass. The method is fast (about 15 s per wafer) and both sides can be coated simultaneously. Advantages compared to other methods are listed. The wafer charging process and the glass deposition process are discussed in terms of the relevant process parameters. Thus far, the main application has been deposition of glass in the grooves of mesa-type thyristors and rectifiers.


This study aims to describe the types of difficulties and factors causing the undergraduate students of Mathematics Education to have difficulty to understand materials of 2nd Calculus. This research is descriptive research with quantitative and qualitative approach. The research instruments used were tests and interview guides. The data analysis techniques consisted of three stages, namely: data reduction, data presentation and conclusions. The results of his research are the types of difficulties faced by students of S1 Mathematics Education in understanding 2nd Calculus  lecture material, namely: Difficulties in the stage of understanding, Difficulties in the transformation phase, Difficulties in the process skills stage, Difficulties at the stage of writing answers / solutions and the factors that caused by intellectual factors, namely: students do not understand the integral concept of substitution, Students do not understand the concept of trigonometric comparisons, students do not understand how to make an integral substitution example and do the substitution substitution into an integral form whose solution is to be sought, students do not understand about decomposition in trigonometry and do not understand which one decomposes and which one decreases, students do not know the formulas commonly used in trigonometry.


This paper proposes a design approach that addresses the surface cleanability as a critical aspect of the architectural context, especially concerning the maintenance of architecture for health and hygiene purposes. The surface cleanability could be achieved through the design of surfaces in the environment where hygiene is essential. Digital design technology could contribute to the modelling, simulation and fabrication process during the development of surface forms in architecture. The study developed a digital design workflow that incorporates skeletal implicit modelling techniques as an attempt to develop the forms of surfaces. It allows the generation of a smooth and seamless surface that allows the maintenance to ensure the cleanliness of the environment. The proposed workflow also allows the iterative process to be performed between the modelling and simulation analysis to enable the evaluation of the cleanability performance of the surface. The workflow could become the basis for the development of architectural forms that appropriately address the requirement of maintenance of architectural spaces.


The experiment reported here used time-compressed speech to handicap the process of listening comprehension in an attempt to observe aural processing strategy differences among groups of native English speakers and high- and medium-level skill groups learning the language. The participants were asked to immediately recall 5 time-compressed recordings each of 16 simple English sentences; the 5 replays represented decreasing rates of time-compression ranging from 40% to 90% normal playing time. Group performances were compared for the 5 rates of compression with regard to overall sentence recall as well as to the recall of specific parts of speech. Results showed both quantitative and qualitative differences among the three test groups. Overall recall of the time-compressed sentences decreased with decreasing proficiency in the language. Furthermore, whereas native listeners demonstrated a strategy of concentrating on key content words in the stimulus, both learner groups tended to recall more words they had heard in initial or final sentence position.


This paper develops novel broadcast algorithms for mobile ad hoc networks to improve efficiency and provide guarantee for full delivery of broadcasting. An important objective is to reduce broadcast redundancy and to avoid the broadcast storm problem. It proposes two broadcasting algorithms such as, Sender based algorithm and Receiver based algorithm. The proposed Sender based algorithm selects subset of forwarding nodes using 1-hop neighbor information. It can reduce both the computational complexity of selecting the forwarding nodes and the maximum number of selected nodes in the worst case. The proposed receiver based broadcasting algorithm can significantly reduce redundant broadcasts in the network. It decides whether or not to broadcast the message. The probability of two neighbor nodes broadcasting the same message exponentially decreases when the distance between them decreases or when the node density increases. The receiver based algorithm uses the Responsibility based scheme which further reduces the redundancy. The proposed algorithms improve the efficiency and also guarantee full delivery.


Diterima: 10 Juni 2018 Disetujui: 4 Oktober 2018 Abstract: The study consists of two parts. The first is to describe the moves, the language function, the most dominant language function, and verbs of process function in the abstracts. The second is to explain how the linguistic elements (grammatical categories), three modalities (certain, probable, and possible), and the non-linguistic elements support the rhetorical and logical moves and the language functions operating in the abstracts. As it is a genre analysis of international conference paper abstracts, the data were taken from the specific discourse community of international conference paper abstracts of SEAAIR conference. Theoretically, this study contributes to a fuller understanding of research on genre of international conference paper abstracts, particularly written by the discourse community of SEAAIR.


One of the great challenges in membrane biophysics is to find a means to foster the transport of drugs across complex membrane structures. In this spirit, we elucidate methodological challenges associated with free energy computations of complex chainlike molecules across lipid membranes. As an appropriate standard molecule to this end, we consider 7-nitrobenz-2-oxa-1,3-diazol-4-yl-labeled fatty amine, NBD-Cn, which is here dealt with as a homologous series with varying chain lengths. We found the membrane-water interface region to be highly sensitive to details in free energy computations. Despite considerable simulation times, we observed substantial hysteresis, the cause being the small frequency of insertion/desorption events of the amphiphile's alkyl chain in the membrane interface. The hysteresis was most pronounced when the amphiphile was pulled from water to the membrane and compromised the data that were not in line with experiments. The subtleties in umbrella sampling for computing distance along the transition path were also observed to be potential causes of artifacts. With the PGD (pull geometry distance) scheme, in which the distance from the molecule was computed to a reference plane determined by an average over all lipids in the membrane, we found marked deformations in membrane structure when the amphiphile was close to the membrane. The deformations were weaker with the PGC (pull geometry cylinder) method, where the reference plane is chosen based on lipids that are within a cylinder of radius 1.7 nm from the amphiphile. Importantly, the free energy results given by PGC were found to be qualitatively consistent with experimental data, while the PGD results were not. We conclude that with long amphiphiles there is reason for concern with regard to computations of their free energy profiles. The membrane-water interface is the region where the greatest care is warranted.


This thesis investigated the influence of format (static vs. dynamic) and relevance (relevant vs. not relevant) on the creation of effective Web site header displays. Through evaluation of current trends in header display design, the aim of this research was to offer plausible explanatory mechanisms within the perceptual and visual systems, along with practical recommendations for both users and designers alike. While presenting 100 undergraduate students with simplified Web page interfaces containing only a header and paragraph text, looking time was measured followed by score on a set of text-comprehension questions. Score was then considered as a function of header characteristics such as format and relevance to determine any notable effects. Results revealed a negative relationship between scores in the relevant and irrelevant conditions, suggesting an influence of header relevance on subsequent text-comprehension.


An analytic Fourier method is used to calculate magnetic fields and forces between magnet arrays for a number of arrangements, with particular application to magnetic levitation by superconductors. It is shown that the maximum clearance between a levitated magnet and superconductor is about 24 cm. Using sinusoidal current sheets the attenuation of the effect of inhomgeneities in a magnet by adding a thin permeable sheet is found. By adding further harmonics the forces and stiffnesses for two-dimensional arrays of magnets are calculated. The advantage of this method is that the effects of magnet shape, strength, size and distance to the superconductor are separated which allows us to draw general conclusions about the best design.


The topic of innovative work behavior has recently received an increased amount of attention due to a highly competitive, complex, and dynamic economic environment. This paper examines the effect of the leadership styles (transformational and transactional) on innovative work behavior. Moreover, the study explores moderation effects of internal and external locus of control in the relationship between transformational and transactional leadership and innovative work behavior. The findings indicate the importance of alignment of the transformational and transactional leadership styles with employees' locus of control while aiming to transform organizational and individual resources into innovative outcomes. More specifically, the results show that contingent reward has stronger relationship with internal locus of control, whereas passive management by exception has stronger relation to external locus of control proving that enhancement of external employee motivation may boost employee innovative work behavior. Therefore, this study confirms that different leadership practices show specific linkage to certain locus of control type subordinates, meaning that their effectiveness can rise, if applied to this specific type of individuals. The research contributes to the existing knowledge of leadership styles and locus of control role in managing innovative work behavior and overall to the knowledge about how innovation can be managed in modern organizations.


Autonomic personal computing is personal computing on autonomic computing platforms. Its goals combine those of personal computing with those of autonomic computing. The challenge of personal autonomic computing is to simplify and enhance the end-user experience, delighting the user by anticipating his or her needs in the face of a complex, dynamic, and uncertain environment. In this paper we identify the key technologies that enable autonomic behavior as distinguished from fault-tolerant behavior. We give some examples of current autonomic behavior and some general considerations for an architecture that supports autonomic personal computing. We identify its challenges to standards and technology developers and conclude with some guidance for future work.


The influence of doping lanthana on valent state of CeO2 surface has been studied by using x-ray photoelectron spectrascopy. It was found that La3+ doping in host CeO2 lattice can promote to convert Ce4+ into Ce3+ and enhance adsorbing-carbonyl capacity of the materials. However, the inversion of Ce4+ to Ce3+ is depressed by dopant La3+ during argon ion bombardment.


We analyze the effects of a recent piece of consumer protection regulation -- Dodd-Frank -- on mortgage originations. Dodd-Frank aimed at reducing mortgage fees and abuses against vulnerable borrowers, but increased the costs of originating mortgages. We find it triggered a substantial redistribution of credit from middle-class households to wealthy households. Lenders reduced credit to middle-class households by 15%, and increased it to wealthy households by 21%, after controlling for drivers of the demand for housing, local house prices, and foreclosures. Large lenders found it less costly to react to Dodd-Frank. We thus instrument households' exposure to Dodd-Frank with the pre-crisis share of mortgages originated by large lenders in each county. The redistribution of credit from the middle-class to the wealthy was higher in counties more exposed to large lenders, which are similar to other counties. Results hold at the individual-loan level and zip-code level, at the intensive margin (amount lent) and extensive margin (number of loans originated), and for accepted and rejected loans. Changes in the distribution of refinancing loans do not explain the results.


A new method for determining the temporal evolution of plasma rotation is reported in this work. The method is based upon the detection of two different portions of the spectral profile of a plasma impurity line, using a monochromator with two photomultipliers installed at the exit slits. The plasma rotation velocity is determined by the ratio of the two detected signals. The measured toroidal rotation velocities of C III (4647.4 Å) and C VI (5290.6 Å), at different radial positions in TCABR discharges, show good agreement, within experimental uncertainty, with previous results (Severo et al 2003 Nucl. Fusion 43 1047). In particular, they confirm that the plasma core rotates in the direction opposite to the plasma current, while near the plasma edge (r/a > 0.9) the rotation is in the same direction. This technique was also used to investigate the dependence of toroidal rotation on the poloidal position of gas puffing. The results show that there is no dependence for the plasma core, while for plasma edge (r/a > 0.9) some dependence is observed.


Tributyltin (TBT) is an environmental contaminant that has been used for several industrial, agricultural and household purposes. Despite limited bans on the usage of Tributyltin, the stability and toxicity of the compound may prove to have negative effects on immune function in terrestrial mammals. Studies show that there is an increase in the incidences of tumors and decreased immune cell function in TBT-exposed mammals. TBT interferes with the ability of human natural killer (NK) cells to lyse target cells; it also alters the secretion of the pro-inflammatory cytokines Interferon gamma (IFNγ) and Tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα) from human immune cells ex vivo. Any dysregulation of the cytokine communication network may have detrimental effects on immune function, as cytokines play a key role in the regulation of immune responsiveness. There have been no in vivo studies on the effects of exposure to TBT on the cytokine communication network. The effects of 24 hour exposure to TBT on the production of IFNγ and TNFα from human immune cells were analyzed in an ex vivo system using western blotting. The serum of TBT-exposed mice was analyzed for changes in the levels of cytokine secretion and production using a Milliplex mouse cytokine/chemokine magnetic bead premixed 32 plex kit and western blotting; the effects of TBT-exposure was assessed using a time curve of 6h, 12h, 24h, 48h and control. TBT increased the levels of the cytokines IFNγ, TNFα, IL1β, IL5, IL7, IL12βp40, IL13, IL15, MIP1β, MIP2 and RANTES in the serum at a minimum of one time point. IFNγ and TNFα secretion and production from human cells also increased, showing striking agreement in the response to TBT between the human and mouse systems. Supported by: NIH grant 5U54CA163066-03 Citation Format: Shanieek T. Lawrence, Margaret Whalen, Samuel Pellom, Anil Shanker. Tributyltin alters the production and secretion of inflammatory cytokines from human and mouse immune cells. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 106th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2015 Apr 18-22; Philadelphia, PA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2015;75(15 Suppl):Abstract nr 2735. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2015-2735


In his greatest article, Finance Capital , Hilferding develops the process in which banks, as financial companies, generate the integration of industrial and commercial companies to form monopolic consortia, which control various companies in order to impose their prices and market conditions. This can come about in two ways: Assuming the physical property of multiple companies, or having proprietary control of these, without possessing them physically, only controlling their capital. In both cases, the inexistence of free competition -- the concept that is the foundation of classic and neoclassic economic theory--, is confirmed.


Background: Proper nutrition is an important factor in maintaining health and preventing disease development
or progression regardless of age, but is especially relevant for elderly people. Seniors rarely follow nutritional
and life-style guidelines, which may correlate with poor health, multiple morbidities, polypharmacy and
premature death.
Aim of the study: The aim of this study was to evaluate the nutritional pattern, food choices, knowledge about
healthy eating, body mass and health issues among men and women over 80 years of age living in a rural area
of south-west Poland.
Material and methods: 100 participants, women and men, aged 79.6–93.3 years, responded to a questionnaire
on nutritional choices. Anthropomorphic measurements were also taken.
Results: Only 40% of responders declared drinking 2 litres of water daily. Fruit and vegetables were eaten in
inadequate quantities: only 10% of responders declared eating fruit and vegetables at least twice a day. Wholegrain
products were regularly chosen by 30%. Dairy products were eaten once daily by 50% of seniors. 45% of
the elderly chose meat, including red meat and its products, three to four times a week, and 66% chose fish only
once a week. Almost 50% of responders ate only three meals a day. All participants declared suffering from at
least one disease (chronic or acute). 45% of seniors had never heard of any nutritional guidelines.
Conclusions: Based on this study most responders do not follow the nutritional guidelines for elderly people.
Intake of water, dairy products, fruit and vegetables was inadequate. These food choices by the elderly may
impact on their health and well-being.


The use of medicinal plants is as old as human life. Old documents of medicine and Pharmacy are include experiences and valuable information of treatment plant. Until the last few decades what was used as medicine came mainly from plant and natural resources. Iranian traditional medicine Mainly based on the use of medicinal plants. Medicinal plants are rooted in our tradition, Development of traditional medicine in the country is not only a strategy for development of medicinal plants industry, But also according to the recommendations of the World Health Organization as one of the suitable methods for the public easy access to medicine is safe and cheap prices. One of the ways you can get valuable information regarding medicinal plants is review of the regional flora and evaluation of Ethnobotany. In this study, we have collected and identified the plants in Gardaneh Rokh in Charmahal and Bakhtiari Province. To this end, during 2012 to 2014,the plants of this region where collected and systematically identified. furthermore traditional applications of the collected plants were recorded through interviewing the native people of the region. the result indicated that most plants of the region are valuable medicinal plants. Therefore, it seems that plants of the region deserves further studies.


OBJECTIVE
In pharmaceutical clinical trials, quantitative measurements on medical images are often conducted to confirm drug efficacy. This study aims to compare the quantitative image analysis performance of an off-site core laboratory with the performance of investigators from multiple clinical sites.

MATERIALS AND METHODS
In a phase I clinical trial, 25 healthy subjects underwent dynamic brain single-photon emission computed tomography (SPECT) scintigraphy with 123I-Altropane, a cocaine analogue with high affinity and selectivity for dopamine transporter sites in the striatum. In 20 patients examined on-site and off-site, a total of 80 measurements were made to calculate the drug's binding potential. A trained technologist off-site at a central core laboratory and on-site investigators at different clinical sites performed the image analysis. These results were compared with measurements made by a subspecialty radiologist whose assessments were the reference standard. Statistical analysis was performed using multiple regression analysis.

RESULTS
Measurements from the central core laboratory (off-site) highly correlated (r = 0.95) with measurements of the reference standard. Measurements from the clinical sites (on-site) grouped together had lower correlation (r = 0.84) with the reference standard. This difference was statistically significant (p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
Training and experience in the specific type of image analysis are critical in obtaining consistent data. Quantitative analysis by dedicated personnel at a core laboratory provides highly reproducible results. The findings support off-site assessment of medical images in pharmaceutical clinical trials.


It is necessary for the Power load operators and regulators to manage distribution services efficiently to maintain reliability of the power system. Frequency regulation is one of the distribution services to be supplied by the electricity market participants. The only way to regulate frequency is to maintain the balance between demand and supply in real time. In India, it is achieved through a regulatory approach. In this Paper, an investigation is made on Free Governor Mode of Operation to demonstrate Frequency Regulation by adopting Free Governor Mode of Operation. Simulation is a powerful technique used to predict the performance or analyze the behaviour of any closed loop control system. It is also used to tune the controller gains or to design a control system. Development of mathematical model is the first step in the simulation study. Matlab and Simulink of Mathworks Inc. are widely used in the academic and industrial world. A simple model of a speed governing system of the steam turbine is taken for illustrating the dynamic simulation.


In the article an economic and mathematical model is developed for creating a parametric range of competitive military products and dual-use products, since when determining its competitiveness, it is necessary to give it a quantitative assessment. It is proposed to classify new products into two groups, according to their purpose: the first group includes products designed to meet the new needs of society; the second group includes products intended to replace obsolete products. At the same time, the methodology for calculating the set of parameters (tactical and technical characteristics) of a new product is proposed for use in the context of applying the end-to-end planning principle in the "science - production" cycle. The process of updating the range of competitive products, mass-produced for five years, is visually (graphically) represented. In addition, mathematical dependencies have been developed to optimize the cost of an updated sample at the stage of its development, that is, when technical and design capabilities are evaluated for subsequent modernization.


Saturated soft soils can be strengthened by several methods such as dewatering or adding suitable chemicals. Introduction of chemicals through electrokinetic (EK) process to strengthen a residual soil was investigated. The results of chemical tests on an elecrokinetically-treated tropical residual soil are presented. The chemical substances used as electrolytes in the experiments were
aluminum chloride (Al), calcium chloride (Ca) and phosphoric acid (PA) in addition to distilled water (DW). Four different opened-anode and opened-cathode electrokinetic systems were employed in this study, namely DW-DW, Al-DW, Ca-DW and DW-PA. A constant voltage of 30 V was applied for
168 hours to each of the opened-anode and opened-cathode configuration system. It was observed that the quantities and directions of electroosmotic flows were dependent upon the types of electrolyte. The chemical contents of the treated samples were position dependent and influenced
by both the electrolyte types and electroosmotic flows.


Recently, hyperbolic space has risen as a promising alternative for semi-supervised graph representation learning. Many efforts have been made to design hyperbolic versions of neural network operations. However, the inspiring geometric properties of this unique geometry have not been fully explored yet. The potency of graph models powered by the hyperbolic space is still largely underestimated. Besides, the rich information carried by abundant unlabelled samples is also not well utilized. Inspired by the recently active and emerging self-supervised learning, in this study, we attempt to enhance the representation power of hyperbolic graph models by drawing upon the advantages of contrastive learning. More specifically, we put forward a novel Hyperbolic Graph Contrastive Learning (HGCL) framework which learns node representations through multiple hyperbolic spaces to implicitly capture the hierarchical structure shared between different views. Then, we design a hyperbolic position consistency (HPC) constraint based on hyperbolic distance and the homophily assumption to make contrastive learning fit into hyperbolic space. Experimental results on multiple real-world datasets demonstrate the superiority of the proposed HGCL as it consistently outperforms competing methods by considerable margins for the node classification task.


The upcoming suite of Sentinel satellites in combination with their free and open access data policy will open new perspectives for establishing a spatially and temporally detailed monitoring of the Earth's surface. The Sentinel fleet will provide a so-far unique coverage with Earth observation (EO) data and new possibilities with respect to the implementation of innovative methodologies, techniques and geo-information products and services. However, the capability to effectively and efficiently access, process, analyze and distribute the mass data streams from the Sentinels and high-level information products derived from them poses a key challenge. This is also true with respect to the necessity of flexibly adapting the processing and analysis procedures to new or changing user requirements and technical developments. Hence, the implementation of operational, modular and highly automated processing chains, embedded in powerful hard- and software environments and linked with effective distribution functionalities, is of central importance.

This contribution introduces the TEP Urban project that aims at the utilization of modern information technology functionalities and services to bridge the gap between the technology-driven EO sector and the information needs of environmental science, planning, and policy. Key components of such a system are currently developed in the TEP Urban project. This includes the implementation of an open, web-based platform employing distributed high-level computing infrastructures (Platform as a Service – PaaS) as well as providing key functionalities for i) high-performance access to thematic data (Information as a Service – InaaS), ii) modular and generic state-of-the art pre-processing, analysis, and visualization (Software as a Service – SaaS), iii) customized development and dissemination of algorithms, products and services, and iv) networking and communication. These services and functionalities are supposed to enable any interested user to easily exploit and generate thematic information on the status and development of the environment based on EO data and technologies.

The TEP Urban platform is supposed to initiate a step change in the use of EO data by providing an open and participatory platform based on modern ICT technologies and services that enables any interested user to easily exploit and generate thematic information on the status and development of the built environment.


While the most compelling levels of evidence for the use of Yttrium-90 (90Y) radioembolization are in patients with hepatocellular carcinoma and hepatic metastases from colorectal cancer, a growing body of literature supports its use in other primary and secondary hepatic malignancies. This includes intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma, as well as hepatic metastases from neuroendocrine cancer, ocular melanoma, and breast cancer. While is it not feasible to conduct prospective, randomized trials for radioembolization in the setting of these malignancies due to the low overall prevalence of liver-only disease, numerous single-arm studies in the last several years make a compelling argument for its use in select situations. This clinical update summarizes those findings.


In the present study, the expression of P53 and MDM2 proteins were examined in specimens from a group of 20 patients (9 with primary hepatocellular carcinoma HCC and 11 with liver cirrhosis LC, linked to HBV infections as a major aetiologic factor) by immunohistochemistry. The immunostaining findings were correlated with P53 mutation analysis using PCR-SSCP, PCR-HDF and direct sequencing, and MDM2 amplification studies by differential PCR. P53 immunopositivity was found in 9 out of the 20 (45.0%) cases. Mutations of the P53 gene were detected in 5 (55%) tumors and 3 (27%) LC samples; 7 of these cases revealed P53 immunoreactivity. The mutations were base transitions at codons 175, 245 and 273; no changes were observed at codon 249, characteristic for aflatoxins action. MDM2 immunopositivity was revealed in 9 out of 20 (45.0%) specimens. MDM2 amplification occurred in 4 (44.4%) and 1 (9.1%) cases, HCC and LC specimens respectively; only in 2 tumors (10.0%), which exhibited MDM2 immunoreactivity. Overall, MDM2 positivity was not associated with MDM2 amplification in 7 out of the 20 studied samples (35.0%). Two HCC patients were found to have both gene abnormalities. Either the mutation rate of the P53 gene as well as the amplification level of the MDM2 gene was higher in HCC than in precancerous liver tissue stages. These results support the notion that besides P53 alterations, MDM2 gene deregulation seems to be an important event in hepatocarcinogenesis. Additionally, the mechanism of MDM2-mediated degradation of P53 protein, without involving stabilization and inactivation of P53 gene, should be considered for the understanding of all features of tumor progression processes.


OBJECTIVE
We sought to describe how the sensory processing of adults with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) differs from that of the general population within the context of Dunn's (1997) model of sensory processing and to evaluate the discriminant validity of the Adolescent/Adult Sensory Profile (AASP).

METHOD
Using unequal variance ttests, the AASP results of 51 adults with OCD were compared with the means of the AASP standardization study's adult age group.

RESULTS
Adults with OCD scored higher than the means of the AASP standardization study's adult age group on sensory sensitivity and sensation avoiding, consistent with predictions based on the OCD literature. Adults with OCD also scored higher on low registration and lower on sensation seeking.

CONCLUSIONS
The results provide a preliminary description of how the sensory processing of adults with OCD differs from that of the general population and preliminary support for the AASP's discriminant validity.


In the software and system modeling community, research on domain-specific modeling languages (DSMLs) is focused on providing technologies for developing languages and tools that allow domain experts to develop system solutions efficiently. Unfortunately, the current lack of support for explicitly relating concepts expressed in different DSMLs makes it very difficult for software and system engineers to reason about information spread across models describing different system aspects. As a particular challenge, we present in this paper how we dealt with relationships between heterogeneous behavioral models to support their concurrent and coordinated execution. This was achieved by providing dedicated meta-language to define the behavioral semantics of DSMLs and their coordination. The approach made explicit a formal model of the control flow (MoCC); domain-specific actions (DSA) and a well-defined protocol between them (incl., mapping, feedback and callback) reified through explicit domain-specific events (DSE). The protocol is then used to infer a relevant behavioral language interface for specifying coordination patterns to be applied on conforming executable models. As a result, heterogeneous languages and their relationships can be developed in the GEMOC studio, which provides extensive support to run and debug heterogeneous models. This is outlined in the paper on the definition of the Marked Graph language and its coordination with a scenario language.


Since its inception in 2013, the Travelling Thief Problem (TTP) has been widely studied as an example of problems with multiple interconnected sub-problems. The dependency in this model arises when tying the travelling time of the "thief" to the weight of the knapsack. However, other forms of dependency as well as combinations of dependencies should be considered for investigation, as they are often found in complex real-world problems. Our goal is to study the impact of different forms of dependency in the TTP using a simple local search algorithm. To achieve this, we use Local Optima Networks, a technique for analysing the fitness landscape.


Excess iron ions are harmful to human health; therefore, it is essential to develop efficient methods to detect Fe3+. Herein, a new aggregation-induced emission (AIE) ligand (L), 4,4′-((9H-fluoren-9-ylidene)-methylene)dipyridine, was successfully synthesized and applied to construct a luminescent Cd(II)–organic framework [Cd(NDA)(L)(H2O)2]n (1) with a two-dimensional architecture (H2NDA = 1,4-naphthalenedicarboxylic acid). Specially, 1 possesses good water stability and exhibits superior luminescence enhancement ("turn-on") sensing of Fe3+ with high sensitivity and selectivity in a water suspension. This represents the first example of a LMOF-based "turn-on" Fe3+ sensor in aqueous medium.


BACKGROUND
Metabolic bone disease (MBD) of prematurity is a complication of multifactorial aetiology, which has been increasing, due to progressive decrease in mortality of preterm newborns. The aim of the study was to analyze risk factors of severe MBD and its analytical markers.

PATIENTS AND METHOD
Retrospective study involving preterm infants less than 32 weeks gestational age and/or weight less tan 1,500 g born between january 2012 and december 2014. Comparison was made according to the presence of severe MBD.

RESULTS
139 patients were recruited. Mean value of 25(OH)D3 was 70.68 ± 25.20 nmol/L, being higher in patients born in spring-summer than in autumn-winter (80.94 ± 25.33 vs 61.13 ± 21.07; p = 0.000). Levels of 25(OH)D3 were similar in patients with severe MBD compared with the rest of patients (65.61 ± 26.49 vs 72.07 ± 24.89, P = 0.283). Higher levels of alkaline phosphatase (AP, IU/L ) (1314.19 ± 506.67 vs 476.56 ± 188.85; p = 0.000) were found in these patients. Cutoff point of AP 796.5 IU/L (S 95.2%, specificity 92.4%) was calculated by ROC curve. The risk factors most associated to severe EMO were restricted fetal growth, birth weight, duration of ventilation therapy and parenteral nutrition.

CONCLUSIONS
AP levels were the best marker of severe MBD development. EMO risk increases with the number of risk factors and lower levels of 25(OH)D3. Levels of 25(OH)D3 higher than 70nmol/L appear to protect from the development of severe MBD, even in patients with multiple risk factors.


Data Library: Breast cancer survival rates are going up, largely due to early detection and diagnosis. Surgery remains a mainstay of treatment, most often by a modified radical mastectomy but increasingly by the less drastic partial mastectomy, or lumpectomy. This MetLife analysis of charges and utilization for radical and partial mastectomy reveals some noteworthy geographic variations.


Millimeter-wave (mm-wave) technology is emerging as a de facto enabler for next-generation high-rate communications. We propose that a unified mm-wave system for combined communication and robust sensing will turbocharge the capabilities of application domains from in-home digital health to new possibilities for building analytics.


Quinine (QU) is the principal alkaloid derived from the bark of the Cinchona tree and has been used worldwide in the suppression and treatment of malaria for more than 350 years. Though other anti-malaria drugs have superseded QU, however, as a result of the development of resistance to chloroquine and other drugs, QU has again become an important anti-malaria agent. The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of short term administration of QU on the seminiferous tubules of rats. Thirty six adult (6-8 weeks old) male Sprague-Dawley rats weighing between 160 and 180g (at the beginning of the study) were used for the experiments. The animals were randomly divided into 3 groups of 12 rats each. Groups 1 and 2 animals had QU, 30 mg/kg body weight (kbw) daily for 7 days. While those in group 1 were sacrificed on the 7th day those in group 2 were sacrificed on the 56th day. The group 3 animals constituted the controls. They had equal volume of physiologic saline for 7 days and half of them were sacrificed on the 7th day while the other half were sacrificed on the 56th day. The testes were carefully dissected out, their volumes measured, weighed and histological sections prepared. Morphometry was carried out by assessing the diameter, cross-sectional area, number of profiles per unit area, numerical density and volume density of the seminiferous tubules, and the relative and absolute volume of the seminiferous epithelium, stroma and lumen of the tubules. The results showed that there was a general destruction coupled with degeneration of cells of the seminiferous epithelium secondary to short term administration of QU. We concluded that QU has a deleterious effect on the testis and may possibly disrupt spermatogenesis.
KEYWORDS: Quinine, testis, seminiferous tubules
 Nig. Jnl Health & Biomed. Sciences Vol.3(1) 2004: 1-7


Respect is a central concept in nursing care but is not well defined. Lack of respect for patients dehumanises them and may contribute to abuse and ill treatment. Transcultural care should be based on an understanding of the concept of respect which is shared by all concerned.


Speaking about professionals, working with children at child care homes in Lithuania, first of all we encounter a problem of terminology. This problem rises, because in various countries and languages we call these professionals differently. In Lithuania we call them "aukletojai". We also use the word "aukletojas" when speaking about both professionals, working directly with children at kindergartens, and parents, as all parents are educators of their children. We suppose, that the word "aukletojas" corresponds to the German "erzieher", and "aukleti" to "erziehen". Every "aukletojas" in Lithuania clearly realizes, that he is a pedagogue, because in this country every professional, involved in educational work with children – an "aukletojas", a teacher, a social pedagogue and a special pedagogue – is called a pedagogue. In this context it is essential to conceive that in Lithuania an "educator" and a "social pedagogue" are different pedagogical professions and that none of the "aukletojas" identify himself as a social pedagogue.


An automated electrolytic sensing zone (electrozone) method was developed to determine the particle-size distribution of milled and micronized pharmaceutical powders. The powdered drugs obeyed log-normal statistics, and the distributions were well defined by thier geometric volume mean diameter and the geometric standard deviation. The results show that accurate data can be obtained between 2 and 80 micron with a precision of approximately 0.5 micron. Pulse-width analyses were performed to determine the feasibility of using a pulse-width discrimination program. However, in this case, the program discriminates against real particles and, therefore, its usefulness is limited. Milled and micronized materials are described adequately by a spherical diameter, and the automated electrozone system described is an excellent method for quality control purposes.


Banned Books Week is an annual event celebrating the freedom to read. OCCC celebrates each year at the end of September.


SUMMARY A review of the old and new literature on animal morphology/embryology and molecular studies has led me to the following scenario for the early evolution of the metazoans. The metazoan ancestor, "choanoblastaea," was a pelagic sphere consisting of choanocytes. The evolution of multicellularity enabled division of labor between cells, and an "advanced choanoblastaea" consisted of choanocytes and nonfeeding cells. Polarity became established, and an adult, sessile stage developed. Choanocytes of the upper side became arranged in a groove with the cilia pumping water along the groove. Cells overarched the groove so that a choanocyte chamber was formed, establishing the body plan of an adult sponge; the pelagic larval stage was retained but became lecithotrophic. The sponges radiated into monophyletic Silicea, Calcarea, and Homoscleromorpha. Homoscleromorph larvae show cell layers resembling true, sealed epithelia. A homoscleromorph‐like larva developed an archenteron, and the sealed epithelium made extracellular digestion possible in this isolated space. This larva became sexually mature, and the adult sponge‐stage was abandoned in an extreme progenesis. This eumetazoan ancestor, "gastraea," corresponds to Haeckel's gastraea. Trichoplax represents this stage, but with the blastopore spread out so that the endoderm has become the underside of the creeping animal. Another lineage developed a nervous system; this "neurogastraea" is the ancestor of the Neuralia. Cnidarians have retained this organization, whereas the Triploblastica (Ctenophora+Bilateria), have developed the mesoderm. The bilaterians developed bilaterality in a primitive form in the Acoelomorpha and in an advanced form with tubular gut and long Hox cluster in the Eubilateria (Protostomia+Deuterostomia).


Background Chronic lumbar pain rests an expensive condition including direct and indirect costs. The most costly patients are them with a long sick-leave for more than 6 months, and with increasing time it is more and more difficult it is to bring them back to work. In this situation, several treatment possibilities exist, but with long standing work absences a multidisciplinary group program has the best possibilities to function. When treating on the deconditioning situation there should be an increase of the return to work. Objectives The aim of this study is to analyze the return to work, considering the psychological changes and the work status. Methods We have studied the results of 300 of our patients that have accomplished a multi-disciplinary program and that have been followed over 24 months. The program contained physical training, occupational work hardening the hole in a cogntivo-comportemental approach. We have analyzed the relationship between to the work capacity and its correlation with different pain questionnaires (VAS, Oswestry; Roland –Morris, Dallas pain questionnaire; SF-36, HADS and FABQ). Results The first and most important parameter was the work capacity, comparing it before inclusion and at 24 months after completing the program. There was a clear increase, from 48% to 80.4% (p<0.01). Associated with this work capacity, we saw a real decrease in apprehensions and pain functioning. There were a positive relationship between on pain questionnaires, with an Oswestry going from 36 to 14% at 24 months. The return to work was not associated to an increase in physical performances but in an increase in apprehension. Conclusions In chronic low back patients, with repeated work absences, a multidisciplinary rehabilitation program, with 72% that returned to work, with a global work capacity of 80.4%. The correlation was presented on the psychological part, with less apprehension and also increased global SF 36 values. Then an increase in body confidence rests the important factor in these functional programs. Disclosure of Interest None Declared


BACKGROUND
The purpose of these experiments was to provide an initial investigation into ethanol self-administration elicited in the schedule-induced polydipsia (SIP) paradigm.

METHODS
Mature male mice were food deprived to between 80 and 85% of their baseline weight and received 20 daily 1 hr SIP test sessions in which a food pellet (20 mg) was delivered on a fixed-time 60 sec schedule. In different groups, the acquisition of drinking 5% (v/v) ethanol solution (experiment 1) or water (experiment 2) was recorded along with other behaviors that occurred in the test chambers.

RESULTS
Results indicated that C57BL/6J mice drank significantly more ethanol than DBA/2J mice and that C57 mice achieved blood alcohol concentrations as high as 300 mg/dl. Blood alcohol concentrations were consistently correlated with g/kg ethanol intake. The groups did not differ in consumption of water. SIP test sessions using higher concentrations of ethanol (10-20% v/v, experiment 1) or sucrose solutions (0.1-2% w/v, experiment 2) then were performed. Group differences in ethanol consumption were maintained at all ethanol concentrations. Although DBAs drank more of a low concentration of sucrose (0.1%), when expressed as g/kg, sucrose intake was equivalent in the two strains at all concentrations. Analysis of the time course of drinking clearly showed that this behavior was adjunctive in nature.

CONCLUSION
These results demonstrate the effectiveness of this procedure in inducing ethanol self-administration and its utility for investigating the genetic bases of vulnerability toward excessive ethanol consumption.


Current smoothed particle dynamics discretizations for macroscopic and mesoscopic viscous flows usually do not conserve angular momentum. Angular-momentum conservation, however, potentially stabilizes the solution for long-time simulations. We show that a simple angular-momentum conservative formulation of the viscous force, which was proposed previously based on empirical findings, can be derived theoretically under the condition of incompressible flow. The properties of this formulation are asserted by numerical simulations of two-dimensional Taylor-Green flow.


BACKGROUND
The health care system in Nigeria has been developed at three levels, the extension of health care to all people has been an objective of all National Health Systems for many years since the Alma - Ata conference on Primary Health Care (PHC) in 1978. Decades after the take off of PHC in all parts of this country, the goal of health for all and beyond is still far from being attained.

METHOD
The management activities of Primary Health Care Facilities in Plateau State were investigated. A multistage sampling method was used to select 30 PHC facilities from 10 randomly selected LGAs out of the 17 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Plateau State. All the heads, the secretaries and the chief matrons of the selected facilities were interviewed using self-administered structured questionnaires. Responses were scored using a dichotomous scale and categorized into poor, fair, good and excellent performances, and analyzed using Epi info 2.3.05 2003 statistical software.

RESULTS
Out of the 90 workers interviewed, 68.9% were females and 85.6% were married. Seventy four point four percent of the respondents were between 30-44 years of age, and 43.3% of the workers worked at the Basic Health Clinics (BHCs) while 20% of them worked in Comprehensive Health Centre (CHCs). Up to 40% of the LGAs had poor management performance, while the remaining 60% performed only fairly. Overall, PHC facilities in Langtang north did better in management of their facilities, while Shendam LGA scored least in management performance. In this study, no significant difference in scores of the various management activities between the LGAs was observed (F = 7.084, p > 0.05). However, a statistically significant difference in scores of management activities between the various types of PHC facilities was observed (F = 2.81, p < 0.05).

CONCLUSION
The management staff in most of the primary health care facilities lack resources at their disposal and this hinders the efficient and effective running of the facilities. Lack of transportation and poor maintenance of those available would seem to be the major constraint to the effective running of the health facilities.


Manganese nanoparticles have been produced using the inert gas condensation technique. XRD has been used to analyse the particles, which contain a mixture of Mn-Mn oxide phases. Too few isolated reflections from any one phase have meant that broadening measurements are limited, and strain measurements are unreliable. Another way to measure strain in a sample is through analysis of lattice images taken using TEM. Observation of strains over long atomic distances can prove difficult, but a method of magnifying strain is by the optical moire technique. A crystal lattice image with a grating superimposed over the top creates dark bands due to interference between the two. These dark bands are called moire fringes and they can occur as an artefact in TEM images due to interference between two real crystal lattices. Here though they are implemented using a synthetic grating where the strain in crystalline solids can be studied. The manganese nanoparticle samples have been found to contain fully oxidised particles below 20nm diameter, and core shell particles above 20nm diameter. The technique has been used to study the core-shell particles, which consist of a β-Mn core and an oxide shell. The core is a single crystal and the moire fringes show that there is no strain in that region. The oxide crystals in the shell are too fine for the technique to work, and so any strain in them must be measured using a different method.


The development of heart failure (HF) is characterised by adverse remodelling events such as hypertrophy, fibrosis, and apoptosis, which together can alter the size, shape, and function of the heart. Identification of new factors that are involved in these processes is important in developing new strategies for HF therapy. Pontin (RUVBL1) is a member of the AAA+ protein family that regulates embryonic zebrafish heart development; however, its role in the adult mammalian heart is unknown. Our previous studies have found that Pontin can induce the activity of the major downstream effector of the Hippo pathway YAP, which is known to play an essential role in mediating cardiac remodelling. Thus, in this study, we aim to investigate the roles of Pontin in mediating adverse cardiac remodelling. Pontin knock-down (KD) and overexpression (OE) in primary neonatal rat cardiomyocytes (NRCM) were achieved by siRNA-mediated gene silencing and adenoviralmediated overexpression, respectively. We found that Pontin KD negatively modulates NRCM proliferation, represented by a significant reduction in Ki67-positive cells and EdU-incorporation compared to control. Moreover, Pontin KD significantly reduces the level of active YAP, nuclear YAP localisation, and YAP transcriptional activity in NRCM. In contrast, Pontin OE induced NRCM proliferation by approximately 1.6 folds as determined by Ki67 staining and EdU incorporation assay. YAP activity and nuclear translocation were also significantly increased following Pontin OE. We also found that Pontin OE reduced cardiomyocyte hypertrophy and apoptosis (TUNEL staining) in response to Angiotensin II stimulation, whereas KD of Pontin increased Angiotensin-stimulated hypertrophy and apoptosis. To study the role of Pontin in vivo, we generated a mouse model with an inducible cardiomyocyte-specific knockout of Pontin (PontinicKO) by crossing Pontinflox/flox mice with aMHC-MerCreMer transgenic mice. Induction of Pontin ablation was achieved by intraperitoneal injection with tamoxifen. We found that PontinicKO mice exhibited a severe cardiomyopathy phenotype at four weeks after tamoxifen injection, which was characterised by a significant reduction of ejection fraction, increased cardiac fibrosis and hypertrophy, and profound cardiomyocyte apoptosis. In conclusion, our study has identified Pontin as a key regulator of cardiac remodelling, likely by modulating the Hippo pathway. Further studies are needed to explore the therapeutic potentials of Pontin in controlling cardiac remodelling. Conflict of Interest None


Death during and following myocardial infarction can arise from a number of different causes. Some of them, such as early ventricular fibrillation and cardiac rupture, seem unrelated to infarct size. However, deaths occurring later during the course of infarction do seem to be related to the extent of myocardial damage and to such phenomena as infarct extension and expansion, and the mechanisms involved include cardiac failure and shock, and late arrhythmias. Preventive measures must be directed at the various mechanisms involved. Thrombolytic drugs, by limiting infarct size, prevent death from several causes, whereas β-blockers seem mainly to operate by preventing early rupture, reinfarction, and late ventricular fibrillation. Aspirin prevents reinfarction. Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors may prove to have a beneficial role in the early phase by unloading the heart and later by preventing infarct expansion and subsequent cardiac failure.


This chapter reviews various elastic matching techniques for handwritten character recognition. Elastic matching is formulated as an optimization problem of planar matching, or pixel-to-pixel correspondence, between two character images under a certain matching model, such as affine and nonlinear. Use of elastic matching instead of rigid matching improves the robustness of recognition systems against geometric deformations in handwritten character images. In addition, the optimized matching itself represents the deformation of handwritten characters and thus is useful for statistical analysis of the deformation. This chapter argues that the general property of elastic matching techniques and their classification by matching models and optimization strategies. It also argues various topics and future work related to elastic matching for emphasizing theoretical and practical importance of elastic matching.


Disease processes or events that accompany acute alcohol withdrawal (AW) can cause significant illness and death. Some patients experience seizures, which may increase in severity with subsequent AW episodes. Another potential AW complication is delirium tremens, characterized by hallucinations, mental confusion, and disorientation. Cognitive impairment and delirium may lead to a chronic memory disorder (i.e., Wernicke-Korsakoff syndrome). Psychiatric problems associated with withdrawal include anxiety, depression, and sleep disturbance. In addition, alterations in physiology, mood, and behavior may persist after acute withdrawal has subsided, motivating relapse to heavy drinking. Recent advances in neurobiology may support the development of improved medications to decrease the risk of AW complications and support long-term sobriety.


Two unannounced evacuations of Marks & Spencer stores were conducted in a large singlestory building at Sprucefield, Lisburn and in a three-storey building at Donegall Place, Belfast, Northern Ireland.

The purpose of this report was to collect, compile and evaluate human information with respect to its ability viz. computer simulation modelling, fire regulations and Fire Safety Engineering application.

The evacuations were recorded on video and the evacuees were invited to complete a survey to provide data for analysis. Before the evacuations only the Store manager, his Deputy and the Health & Safety manager in each store knew about the evacuations.

The first part of the study provides results of pre-movement times, occupants familiarity within the building, exit choice and walking speeds. Most results agreed with earlier studies related in the same area. The results may force that the pre-movement times in BSI have to be
discussed further.

The evacuations were simulated in computer model Simulex with the results of the first part as input. The second part of the study provides modifications to computer model Simulex that is under development. It also gives suggestions for future improvements of the model. Almost the same results as the real evacuations were obtained in both stores.


Face recognition performance depends upon the input variability as encountered during biometric data capture including occlusion and disguise. The challenge met in this paper is to expand the scope and utility of biometrics by discarding unwarranted assumptions regarding the completeness and quality of the data captured. Towards that end we propose a model-free and non-parametric component-based face recognition strategy with robust decisions for data fusion that are driven by transduction and boosting. The conceptual framework draws support throughout from discriminative methods using likelihood ratios. It links at the conceptual level forensics and biometrics, while at the implementation level it links the Bayesian framework and statistical learning theory (SLT). Feature selection of local patch instances and their corresponding high-order combinations, exemplar-based clustering (of patches) as components including the sharing (of exemplars) among components, and finally decision-making regarding authentication using boosting driven by components that play the role of weak-learners, are implemented in a similar fashion using transduction driven by a strangeness measure akin to typicality. The feasibility, reliability, and utility of the proposed open set face recognition architecture vis-a-vis adverse image capture conditions are illustrated using FRGC data. The potential for future developments concludes the paper.


Human Face Recognition is hastily improving in day-to-day life. Digital Image Processing (DIP) is a rapidly evolving field with blooming applications inScience and Engineering. The accuracy of human face recognition system is mostly affected by varying lighting conditions. To overcome the illumination invariant problems and different poses and details, wavelet decomposition method was used. At various scales and frequencies the facial features are extracted by multi-resolution property of Discrete Wavelet Transform (DWTs). The wavelet sub bands are used to represent the well-lit face images. Fusion of match scores depends on low and high frequency which is based on the human face representation to improve the accuracy in varying lighting conditions. For obtaining better performance and accuracy in human face recognition under different illumination conditions, here this project contributes by using adaptive face recognition. Wavelet decomposition was performed to attain the image accuracy and efficiency.  GLCM algorithm was enriched for calculating texture features of an image. For effective classification of different human faces, K-Nearest Neighbour classifier was used. The recognition rate of K-NN is 91%.


: Autonomous mobile devices, such as robots and unmanned aerial vehicles, as alternatives to humans, are expected to be applied to searching for and manipulating a variety of emergent events of which the location and number of occurrences are unknown. When an autonomous mobile device searches for an event, it needs to sense a physical signal emitted by an event, such as radio waves, smell or temperature. After a device finds an event, it must manipulate the event. We previously proposed Mobile Sensing Cluster (MSC), which applies swarm intelligence to multiple autonomous mobile devices to quickly search for and manipulate multiple events using dynamically formed multiple swarms of mobile devices. However, in an environment that the physical signal emitted by an event and sensed by a device includes some random noises, the behavior of swarms in MSC becomes unstable. As a result, MSC requires a long time to search and manipulate. In this paper, we propose a dynamic swarm spatial scaling MSC for improving the tolerance of MSC against such random noises, and show its e ff ectiveness.


The most important development of the last few years in the world is the rapid growth and spread of information and communications technology (ICT) in numerous areas. It is generally accepted that ICT increases materialistic and moral value, and is widely used in areas of education, economy, health, agriculture, social life, and entertainment. Therefore one can boldly say that the ICT is a key driver of economic growth. ICT access remains a serious problem in Papua New Guinea (PNG). The PNG has a very low density of personal computers and Internet. The purpose of this paper is to present a comprehensive theme of ICT and education in PNG. The PNG implements ICT in education as part of its educational development process. It examines the challenges that were and are faced by PNG and identifies the specific challenges of PNG IT education and provides some solutions. The study intends to contribute to the dialogue concerning ICT education.


MOOCs offer valuable learning experiences to students from all around the world. In addition to providing filmed lectures, readings, and problem sets, many MOOCs allow students to ask and answer questions about course materials with each other through interactive user forums. However, in current MOOCs, only 3 to 5 percent of those students interact in the user forum (Breslow 2013, Rosé et al. 2014) and more than 90 percent of students stop attending the course altogether (Jordan 2014). According to prior studies, this low level of social engagement in MOOCs may lead to student attrition and low performance (Ren et al. 2007). Hence, a natural question that arises then is, how can we promote interaction among students in MOOC discussion forums in order to reduce students' attrition and raise their performance? In this paper, we conduct a field experiment on the edX platform to identify factors that promote student engagement in MOOC discussion forums. Researchers have discovered that the number of people interacting in one online location (e.g. group, community or virtual classroom size) is a key characteristic mediating user engagement (Butler et. al 2014), and most prior works have shown that users in a smaller size group participate more per person. However, contrary to prior research, our results show that the students in larger size cohorts interact more per person and that this greater interaction in turn increases student retention and performance.


The purpose of this article is to compare personal resources of convicts serving the penalties in penitentiary isolation and those under the supervision of probation officers. The tests measuring selfefficacy, self-esteem, stress-coping, perceptual social support and ego resiliency have been employed to examine sixty-six convicts and sixty-eight supervised individuals. Contrary to expectations, the convicted are characterised by the fairly high level of most of the examined resources. At the same time, both groups proved to be so similar that statistically significant differences were revealed only as regards the level of self-esteem, cognitive support and strategies for coping with stress in the form of use of psychoactive substances. Positive correlations between the examined variables have been confirmed, and the analyses were supplemented by the structure of the subjective resources being studied in both groups. The paper presents limitations and directions for further research.


Unfair and deceptive marketing claims are becoming a mainstay of product liability litigation in the United States, and therefore, marketing experts will continue to play a significant role in these cases. Too often, judges permit individuals with no legitimate expertise in marketing to offer expert opinions about the intent and effect of a defendant company's advertisements. Many times, these opinions are premised on unscientific research or even no research at all. To protect the legitimacy of the marketing discipline, not to mention the litigation process, judges, lawyers, and marketing professionals should apply more stringent standards when determining who qualifies as a marketing expert and when assessing whether that expert's opinions have a legitimate basis.


This study describes the effects of bounce, brake, and roll behavior of a bus toward its leaf spring suspension systems. Parabolic leaf springs are designed based on vertical deflection and stress; however, loads are practically derived from various modes especially under harsh road drives or emergency braking. Parabolic leaf springs must sustain these loads without failing to ensure bus and passenger safety. In this study, the explicit nonlinear dynamic finite element (FE) method is implemented because of the complexity of experimental testing A series of load cases; namely, vertical push, wind-up, and suspension roll are introduced for the simulations. The vertical stiffness of the parabolic leaf springs is related to the vehicle load-carrying capability, whereas the wind-up stiffness is associated with vehicle braking. The roll stiffness of the parabolic leaf springs is correlated with the vehicle roll stability. To obtain a better bus performance, two new parabolic leaf spring designs are proposed and simulated. The stress level during the loadings is observed and compared with its design limit. Results indicate that the newly designed high vertical stiffness parabolic spring provides the bus a greater roll stability and a lower stress value compared with the original design. Bus safety and stability is promoted, as well as the load carrying capability.


This paper builds on Ferguson's important contribution to the debate on personalization in social work that appeared in the British Journal of Social Work in 2007. Whereas Ferguson approached the topic through the lens of political philosophy, the account below draws on critical social theory to examine not only the nature of personalization, but also its supportive pillar of individualization. In particular, Axel Honneth's critique of individualization in modern society is presented before setting out his ideas on the need for self-realization through inter-subjective recognition. The implications of Honneth's position are then considered in terms of four interrelated dimensions of social work practice, namely: (i) social work as symbolic interaction; (ii) social work as care; (iii) social work as respect; and (iv) social work as validation. It is argued that this constellation of practices poses a direct and necessary challenge to a social work of personalization.


The Lower Ariyalur Stage (Upper Cretaceous) cropping out in the north of Vridhachalam, has been sampled for detailed foraminiferal study. Nine species and subspecies and one new species of the genus Globotrunrana and several benthonic species are identified. On the basis of the vertical distribution of these species, the Lower Ariyalur Stage, earlier described as a [single uniform formation, is subdivided into five biostratigraphic zones and subzones, 'commencing from the? Late Turonian and continuing up to the Lower Maestrichtian. This sequence of strata is correlated with the well known Upper Cretaceous formations of North America, Trinidad, Middle East, Europe and Australia. The systematic description and evolutionary trends of the species and subspecies of Globutruncana are given. On the basis of percentage distribution of the planktonic forms, the depth of the basin is calculated. There is indication of a shallowing of the Upper Cretaceous sea at the end of the Globutruncana linneiana trlcarinata zone (Lower Maestrichtian).


Using the term "neutral" as an example, this discussion examines difficulties that chemistry students face when trying to contextualize chemical terminology. Interview responses of 20 undergraduate students (majors in either chemistry or biology) indicate that some of students' context-based interpretations of neutral are shared, although up to half of the context-specific interpretations of the term differ from the scientifically accepted meaning of neutral implied by the sample contexts. Most evident is the association of the word "neutral" in a scientific context with the words "unreactive" or "equilibrium".


Illicit use of intellectual property violates the rights of the person/company that owns it. The expertise of intellectual property in many ways helps to restore justice in cases of rights violation. To conduct such expertise the knowledge of not only the intellectual property rights is required, but also of the activity to which the disputed intellectual property belongs. The article discusses some approaches to assessment of the market value of intellectual property, for instance it is assumed that when calculating the discount rate of intellectual property (for example, a brand), a company's weighted average cost of capital (WACC) can be used. A hypothesis is substantiated that the methodology for determining discount rates using the "traditional" approach, when the discount rate takes all risks into account and is applied to the most probable values of the income measure, is based on the direct observations on the capital value market for a business. It is noted that the discount rate for intangible assets not necessarily should differ from that for a business. Thus, WACC assessment method is a discount rate for the invested capital. The method of estimating the discount rate based on WACC, shows the rate of return to be paid for the use of investment capital. The latter may consist of two sources of financing: own capital and debt capital. The article provides a thorough and detailed analysis of the WACC and notes that it can be used in both financial and investment analysis to assess future returns on investments, considering the initial conditions for profitability of investment capital.


This article describes an object perception system for autonomous robots performing everyday manipulation tasks in kitchen environments. The perception system gains its strengths by exploiting that the robots are to perform the same kinds of tasks with the same objects over and over again. It does so by learning the object representations necessary for the recognition and reconstruction in the context of pick and place tasks. The system employs a library of specialized perception routines that solve different, well-defined perceptual sub-tasks and can be combined into composite perceptual activities including the construction of an object model database, multi-modal object classification, and object model reconstruction for grasping. We evaluate the effectiveness of our methods, and give examples of application scenarios using our personal robotic assistants acting in a human living environment.


Increasing of traffic intensity due to technology advancement in heavy axle vehicles affects overall integrity of highway bridges. Along with the traffic intensity, aging of structural elements leads to distress of structure. Due to distressing in structural elements, stiffness gets reduced. Research studies based on vibration test methodology shows that change in fundamental frequency of any structures is directly related to overall stiffness of the structure. Therefore, many research studies have been carried out across the globe by researchers in the field of vibration based monitoring of the structure to identify dynamic behaviour by using properties such as natural frequencies, mode shapes and modal damping ratios. In this paper, ambient vibration test on a bridge where measurements taken with instrumentation of acceleration sensors on the bridge span. For the study, concrete I girder bridge on the ring road over Sabarmati River near Ahmedabad City is selected. The bridge is characterized by a system of post-tensioned I girder simply supported beams with span. The dynamic characteristics of the bridge were computed by using Stochastic subspace identification (SSI) method and Least squares complex frequency domain (LSCF) Method, which is further used to study fundamental frequency of bridge.


To study the contribution of different surface feature properties in improving vascular endothelial cell adhesion, rationally designed nano/sub-micron patterns with various dimensions were created on titanium surfaces in this study. In vitro results indicated that endothelial cell adhesion was improved when the titanium pattern dimensions decreased into the nano-scale. Specifically, endothelial cells preferred to adhere on sub-micron and nano rough titanium substrates compared to flat titanium. Moreover, titanium with nano and sub-micron roughness and with the same chemistry as compared to flat titanium, had significantly greater surface energy. Thus, the present study indicated the strong potential of surface nanotopography and nano/sub-micron roughness for improving current vascular stent design.


The success of an apicoectomy with a retrofilling is dependent upon obtaining an acceptable apical seal. The placement of the variously approved retrograde materials requires adequate access, visibility, lighting, and a sterile dry environment. There are instances, however, in which it is difficult to use the rubber dam. One such instance is during retrograde filling. This case report highlights an innovative technique for rubber dam isolation of root end retrograde filling.


1. Guanine deaminase [EC 184.108.40.206] was purified to a homogeneous state from rat brain by a procedure involving ammonium sulfate fractionation, DE-52 column chromatography, hydroxylapatite column chromatography, gel filtration on ACA-34 and isoelectric focusing. Homogeneity was shown by polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis in the presence and absence of SDS. 2. The molecular weight of the enzyme was determined by gel filtration (105,000), and that of its subunit by SDS-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (52,000). From these findings, we concluded that the native enzyme consisted of two identical subunits. 3. The Km values for guanine and 8-azaguanine were calculated to be 0.17 mM and 0.67 mM, respectively. This enzyme was markedly inhibited by 5-amino 4-imidazolecarboxamide (AICA), a precursor of purine nucleotide synthesis, with a K1 value of 82 micrometer. 4. Guanine deaminase was purified from rat liver by the procedure used for purification of the brain enzyme and anti-liver enzyme serum was raised in rabbits. This antiserum cross-reacted with the brain enzyme without spur formation in the Ouchterlony double diffusion test. 5. The gamma-globulin fraction of the anti-guanine deaminase serum and AICA inhibited more than 50% of the ammoniagenesis in the brain system in which the purine nucleotide cycle operates. It was also shown that guanine nucleotides were degraded via guanosine and guanine liberating ammonia in the same brain system when substrates for the purine nucleotide cycle were omitted. On the basis of these findings it is suggested that guanine deaminase contributes to ammoniagenesis in the brain.


In this study, it is aimed to determine the heavy metal pollution caused by wastewaters of leather factory in Keban Dam Lake (Agın region). For this purpose, water samples were taken monthly during one year from the selected stations (wastewater of leather factory, wastewater discharged region and open water region). The concentrations of some heavy metals (Cu, Fe, Zn, Cr, Ni, Cd, As and Hg) were determined in water samples. The ranges of elements were found as Cu=11.71-19.14; Fe=82.03-169.92; Zn=39.06-70.31; Cr=58.59-82.03; Ni=2.5-10.25; Cd=45-72.5 mg/L; As=43.57-76.0 and Hg=0.42-0.76 µg/L in wastewater; Cu=6.25-9.74; Fe=42.96-87.89; Zn=16,21-42,96; Cr=39,06-58.59; Ni=1.22-7.25; Cd=23.75-45.0 mg/L; As=20.32-37.92 and Hg=0.19-0.38 µg/L in discharged water to dam lake, Cu=0.31-0.52; Fe=0.24-0.54; Zn=0.43-0.67; Cr=0.05-1.12; Ni=0.002-0.004 and Cd=0.009-0.02 mg/L in open water respectively. It has been determined that heavy metal pollution is very high in the wastewater of leather factory and discharged water to Dam Lake. Among these heavy metals, the most accumulated metal was chromium. In all three regions, the lowest concentrations were found in winter and the highest concentrations were found in summer. The results were compared with tolerable values for heavy metals provided from the WHO, EC and USEPA standards for freshwater. Cu, Fe, Zn, Cr and Ni concentrations in the wastewater and discharged water to the Dam Lake were found above the standard values given by WHO, EC and USEPA.