Marble goby Oxyeleotris marmoratus, is a popular aquaculture target in Southeast Asia. Although marble goby is a freshwater species, some are known to stay in brackish water during their early life stage. Also, it has been reported that growth and survival of artificial produced larvae is better in 10 psu than in freshwater (FW). However, the suitable conditions for embryonic development and early larval stage remained unknown. To improve hatching and early larval rearing technique, a series of experiments was carried out to determine the optimum salinity and temperature for eggs and larvae.
In the experiment 1, hatching rate and larval deformation rate were first compared in eggs incubated in FW, 5, 10, 15, 20 and 30 psu diluted seawater (SW). Marble goby's eggs tolerated salinities from FW to 15 psu SW with the highest hatching rate at 10 psu SW (60.0±2.0%, mean±SD). To understand this phenomena, egg development, hatching periods, hatching rate, larval deformation rate and survival rate were then compared between FW and 10 psu SW. In 10 psu SW, significantly higher hatching rates and lower deformation rates were observed compared to FW. Embryonic development was similar in both salinities, but in FW, hatching was delayed and all larvae died by 10 days after fertilization (dAF). Peak hatching in 10 psu SW (33.1±5.6%) and FW (10.6±3.4%) were observed in 48-60 and 72-84 hAF, respectively. Larvae hatched in later period had higher deformation rates. The eggs incubated in 10 psu SW had a shorter hatching period, higher hatching rate and better larval survival. The results suggested egg incubation in 10 psu SW for seed production of marble goby.
In the experiment 2, I compared the developments of morphology, sensory organs and behavioural changes of larvae reared in FW and 10 psu SW to determine the cause of larval mortality in FW. Newly hatched larvae weresimilar in size in both salinities; 3.0±0.1 mm in length with yolk sac volume 0.052±0.005 mm3 at 1 day after hatching (dAH). There was no apparent difference in larval morphology and behaviour in both waters during the first three days. Remarkable changes were noticed after first feeding was commenced. Larvae in FW become inactive and were unable to feed while larvae in 10 psu actively foraged and fed. These larvae showed similar development in sensory organs. Histological analyses of gut epithelium of larvae at 9 dAH revealed remarkable difference in two salinities. The gut of larvae reared in FW was significantly thinner (9.0±2.8 µm) compared to those in 10 psu SW (23.7±3.3 µm). All larvae in FW died at 9 dAH while the survival rate in 10 psu SW was 69.0±2.0%. The results indicated that larvae in FW were unable to feed as well as the larvae did in 10 psu SW and the larvae were considered required brackish water physiologically.
In the experiment 3, I compared embryo mortality, hatching rates, deformation rates, hatching periods, and larval growth and survival at different temperatures. Over 70% eggs died in 24 °C, but normal development and hatching was observed in temperature from 26°C to 32°C. Hatching period negatively correlated with incubation temperature with the fastest hatching period of 48 hours at 32°C. Higher temperatures hastened the egg development, hatching time and period. The highest survival was observed at 28°C (56.0±4.0%), followed by 30 °C (46.0±2.0%), then significantly lower at 26 °C (30.0±2.0%) and 32 °C (26.0±3.6%). These results showed the suitable incubation temperature ranged from 28 to 32 °C and early larval rearing at 28°C was recommended for marble goby.
These experiment results indicated that egg incubation and larviculture of marble goby should be conducted using 10 psu SW with temperature between 28°C to 32°C, preferably 28°C for early larval rearing. Both methods are applicable on egg and larval survival and contributed to enhance the seed production of marble goby. However, the result is based on the eggs and larvae obtained from the brood stock captured in the river. The landlocked population may require different salinity and/or temperature for embryonic and larval development. Determination of population is likely important for application of the present data in egg incubation and larviculture of marble goby.


In this paper, a real-time communication method using a PICNET-NP(Plant instrumentation and Control Network for Nuclear Power plant) is proposed with an analysis of the control network requirements of DCS(Distributed Control System) in nuclear power plants. The method satisfies deadline in case of worst data traffics by considering aperiodic and periodic real-time data and others. In addition, the method was used to analyze the data characteristics of the DCS in existing nuclear power plant. The result shows that use of this method meets the response time requirement(100ms).


As authors of a book on information systems development methodologies* it is sometimes assumed that we (the Editors) are avid proponents of methodologies in all circumstances. This is far from the case and in general we advocate a contingent approach to their use. We recognise their strengths and potential benefits but are also acutely aware of their weaknesses and limitations. This issue of the Journal provides us with the opportunity to extend the debate on methodologies which has recently seen what has been described as a backlash against their use with two papers which present a critical view of methodologies. The first by Brian Fitzgerald suggests that the solution to the software crisis should not necessarily be seen to lie in increased control and the more widespread adoption of rigorous and formalized methodologies. The paper stresses the problems associated with methodologies. It suggests that the pressures in favour of formalized methodologies are more to do with literature bias than actual experience. Arguments against these formalized methodologies include a lack of agreement of what exactly constitutes a methodology, a lack of adequate conceptual and empirical foundations in the generalizations made in methodology design, the assumption that there is orderly rational processes associated with systems development which is reflected in methodologies but is not well based in experience, and the fact that methodologies do not cater for factors critical to successful development such as individual creativity, intuition and learning over time. The paper concludes by arguing that there may be alternatives to the use of formal methodologies when developing information systems. David Wastell's paper suggests that the widely championed methodologies, particularly structured approaches, encourage a rigid and mechanical approach to information systems development which inhibits creative thinking. Wastell argues that they are used as a social defence, rather than contributing to better information systems. A case study is used in the paper to highlight the potential debilitating effects of using an information systemsmethodology. Wastell suggests that such methodologies are more about the aesthetics of diagramming rather than the meaning behind the diagrams. In other words concentrating on `doing the thing right' instead of `doing the right things'. Again, the much heralded user contribution focuses on details of the diagramming rather than the broader issues, and in the case study this leads to user disenchantment and dismay at the quality of the work. The methodology is used to provide a relief against anxiety, but the end result is to increase it in the long run. The third paper by Arthur ter Hofstede and Denis Verhoef is also critical of aspects of information systems development, in particular, the current generation of CASE tools. They argue that these are too inflexible to provide the modelling support that is required. They consider the case shells which are heralded as being potentially the solution to this problem. More frequently, CASE tools are sold to support a particular information systems development 1 Info Systems J (1996) 6, 1±2


Types I and II organophosphorus compound-induced delayed neurotoxicity (OPIDN) is characterized by axonal degeneration. Type II compounds, however, uniquely cause cell body damage. Primary cultures of bovine adrenomedullary chromaffin cells were used to investigate and assess biochemically the cell body effects of the Type II compound triphenyl phosphite (TPP). Exocytotic secretion of neurotransmitter was measured to determine whether the cytotoxic action of TPP compromised synaptic events. TPP inhibited catecholamine secretion in both a time- and dose-dependent manner. By 4 h, TPP had inhibited nicotine-induced secretion by about 85%. TPP inhibited catecholamine secretion by about 35% as early as 15 min. The IC50 for TPP was about 45 microM. TPP inhibited secretion regardless of the secretagogue used, although nicotine-induced secretion was inhibited to the greatest extent. The Type I OPIDN diisopropyl phosphorofluoridate (DFP) and the nondelayed-type neurotoxic organophosphorus compound O,O-diethyl-O-4-nitrophenyl phosphate (paraoxon) did not inhibit catecholamine secretion from these cells. In contrast, when high potassium was used to induce secretion, significant stimulation was observed in the presence of DFP and paraoxon. Since Ca2+ homeostasis plays a key role in both exocytosis and neuronal necrosis, its uptake into the cells was measured radiometrically in the presence of TPP or DFP. Incubation with 100 microM TPP for 4 h resulted in the inhibition of 45Ca2+ uptake evoked either by nicotine or K+. No significant inhibition of 45Ca2+ uptake was observed in the presence of DFP. TPP and DFP produced 95% and 88% inhibition, respectively, of the activity of the neurotoxic esterase enzyme (NTE), a putative target for OPIDN. Results suggest that these changes in the secretory mechanisms of the cell may be involved in the TPP-induced pathological alterations in chromaffin cells.


We report the techniques for measuring optical properties of a single nanometer-sized diamond. The electron beam (e-beam) lithography defined coordination markers on a silicon wafer provide us a convenient tool for allocating a single nanodiamond immobilized on the surface. By combining a confocal microscope with the e-beam lithography patterned smart substrate, we are able to measure the Raman and photoluminescence spectra from a single nanodiamond with a size less than 100 nm.


The objectives of the Federal Wind Energy Program, managed by the US Department of Energy (DOE), are (1) to assist industry and utilities in achieving a multi-regional US market penetration of wind systems, and (2) to establish the United States as the world leader in the development of advanced wind turbine technology. In 1984, the program conducted a series of planning workshops with representatives from the wind energy industry to obtain input on the Five-Year Research Plan then being prepared by DOE. One specific suggestion that came out of these meetings was that the federal program should conduct cooperative research tests with industry to enhance the technology transfer process. It was also felt that the active involvement of industry in DOE-funded research would improve the state of the art of wind turbine technology. DOE established the Cooperative Field Test Program (CFTP) in response to that suggestion. This program was one of the first in DOE to feature joint industry-government research test teams working toward common objectives.


In recent years software has become integral part of our lives. From product software has become a service now. Software industry has undergone a shift in paradigm. Companies look into every aspect for effective project management. Practitioners have started considering human aspect equally important in the product, process, people triad. Human aspect has become top concern for companies' management since companies have realized that software is a product which is completely people driven. Recently, there has been a growing interest in the data mining area, where the objective is the discovery of knowledge that is correct and of high benefit for management. In this paper, we propose a model for high capability performance. This approach has proven to have positive impact on software development. It is a experimental and empirically driven model that builds a project team capability to achieve the desired software quality within the time and cost constraints. It is integration of personnel capability and post training. The capability and training are co-supportive and work in conjunction to ensure project success.


Objective(s): This study evaluated the effect of swimming exercise during spontaneous methamphetamine (METH) withdrawal on the anxiety, depression, obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD) and voluntary METH consumption in METH-dependent rats. Materials and Methods: Male Wistar rats were repeatedly administered with bi-daily doses of METH (2 mg/kg, subcutaneous) over a period of 14 days. Exercised rats were submitted to swimming sessions (45 min/day, five days per week, for 14 days) during spontaneous METH-withdrawal. Then, all animals were tested for the assessment of anxiety by using the elevated plus-maze (EPM), the grooming behaviors (OCD), and depression using forced swimming test (FST) and voluntary METH consumption using a two-bottle choice (TBC) paradigm for the assessment of craving. Results: The results showed that the swimmer METH-withdrawn rats exhibited an increase in EPM open arm time and entries and a reduction of immobility and grooming behaviors compared with the sedentary METH groups. Also, voluntary METH consumption was less in the swimmer METH-withdrawn rats than the sedentary METH groups throughout 5–8 days. Conclusion: This study showed that regular swimming exercise reduced voluntary METH consumption in animal models of craving by reducing anxiety, OCD, and depression in the METH-withdrawn rats. Thus, physical training may be ameliorating some of the withdrawal behavioral consequences of METH.


Trends and Dilemmas in the Utilization of Renewable Energy Sources.Due to the efforts in the interests of achieving the sustainable development several legislation have been born supporting the utilization of the renewable energy sources and within that the usage of biomass as a conditionally renewable energy source. At the time of creation of the directives there were less available practical experience. After consulting the studies published in our country and abroad in this line in this article we presented the changes of attitudes and opinions due to the expansion of knowledge. The purpose of this study is to present the local and global consequences of em-phasizing the utilization of the biomass as a conditionally renewable energy source and how much does it affect the fulfilment of the originally set goals.To prepare the study we used international and national publications as well as legal and statistical data published by the European Union and the United Nations on this subject.


Recently, there is a heightened level of awareness towards energy efficiency in high-performance data centers both to reduce environmental pollution and save cost. Such data centers consume massive amount of energy for processing huge computational requirements from users. These supercomputers demand a constant supply of electricity to be available 24/7 for both its core computing functions as well as cooling the data center. Previously, researchers had introduced various strategies for achieving energy efficiency. However, in order to achieve a truly effective energy management, factors that influence energy usages must also be taken into consideration. The failure to manage such factors leads to excessive energy consumption. In this work, we shall focus on factors relevant to running the operation of high-performance data centers. We reconstructed and analyzed such factors or attributes based on the universally accepted Reduce, Reuse and Recycle Concept (3R). We recategorized energy attributes of the existing Energy Efficient Data Center Frameworks (EEDCFs) to be aligned with 3R. Then, we developed energy-saving algorithms in response to the concept. Our framework was then measured according to the performance metrics namely power usage effectiveness (PUE), energy reuse effectiveness (ERE) and carbon usage effectiveness (CUE) against variability size of data center. The simulation results of our EEDCF showed that better energy saving is achieved in comparison to the existing EEDCFs. This signifies that the application of the 3R concept in energy consumption yielded a promising result as a platform for other researchers to explore more on energy renewal initiatives and embrace it for future application.


Web search engines are powerful tools used to satisfy specific information needs on the web. Their purpose is to maximize user satisfaction when performing this task. Although there are other sources of evidence, besides text, to characterize document relevance for a specific need, especially for HTML documents, current search engines do not allow users to explore these features when posing a query. Search engine queries are based almost exclusively on keywords. We believe that it is possible to improve user satisfaction if HTML tags and document metadata are available to users at query time. In this paper we present Xearch, a meta-search system that wraps public search engines in a framework that improves both the expressiveness of the language available for the user to specify information needs and the control over the answer format. Xearch converts HTML pages to a specific XML Schema, covering text and metadata derived from HTML. User queries are then submitted on this schema and can be specified through keywords but also explore documents' HTML tags and metadata. Results from our experimental evaluation confirm that it is possible to improve the answer quality with this framework.


QoS Routing Algorithm is a routing algorithm for finding the shortest path that satisfies the QoS requirements of the end users. While finding the shortest path this uses some of improved ideas for effectively finding the shortest path with required QoS measures. Exactly the QoS routing algorithm is a kind of multi constrained routing algorithm where more than one link components are taken into considerations. The path, which is considered as shortest path in this situation, is the one that has minimal value in all case of the components. As a multi constrained algorithm it may suffer to NP complete problem in which the solution space increases exponentially when the problem parameter increases. To make an ideal solution for these kinds of problems this algorithm has some improvements. The first preventive measure is defining a non — linear path length for the shortest path. Then for reducing the polynomial time of the solution driving procedure the problem space is reduced by the introduction of k — shortest path where the queue size is varied at different nodes based on the resource availability and the node requirements. We can also reduce the queue capacity by deleting the non — dominated paths. To increase the speed of algorithm look ahead concept is also bound so that instead of finding the next path to next node a wider range of prior decision is taking place about the path to destination. In this paper, we have concerns only on the state space reduction or also called as multi constrained relaxation in which the queue size is reduced by eliminating the dominated paths from the queue where they are not capable of being the sub path for the shortest path. After that some sorts of modules, where the dominated paths are identified and removed from the queue, analyze the queue. At the last the modified queue is returned to the caller for further usage of the queue. While modifying the queue modules takes one parameter that is a threshold value. When the link components are compared this value is used as reference where if the difference between the link components exceeds then it is considered that it is not further required and marked for removal. The difference is calculated by comparing the link components.


Atmospheric emissions from nuclear power plants in the Federal Republic of Germany are monitored to ascertain that levels of radioactive particulates, I, 14C, 3H, noble gases and alpha -emitters remain below legal limits. Quality control is maintained through a programme of intercomparisons of data taken by plant operators and by Federal Health Office scientists, and by comparisons of short-term measurements with the results of analyses of composite samples representing a longer period. The monitoring programme is evolving as new needs become apparent and new techniques are developed. As an example of the measurements of this programme, the 1987 round-robin test results are discussed.


We study the Einstein Yang-Mills Higgs equations in the SO(3) representation on a isotropic and homogeneous flat Universe, in the presence of radiation and matter fluids. We map the equations of motion into an autonomous dynamical system of first-order differential equations and we find the equilibrium points. We show that there is only one stable fixed point that corresponds to an accelerated expanding Universe in the future. In the past, instead, there is an unstable fixed point that implies a stiff-matter domination. In between, we find three other unstable fixed points, corresponding, in chronological order, to radiation domination, to matter domination, and, finally, to a transition from decelerated expansion to accelerated expansion. We solve the system numerically and we confirm that there are smooth trajectories that correctly describe the evolution of the Universe, from a remote past dominated by radiation to a remote future dominated by dark energy, passing through a matter-dominated phase.


In recent years, deep learning-based methods have achieved remarkable progress in multi-exposure image fusion. However, existing methods rely on aligned image pairs, inevitably generating artifacts when faced with device shaking in real-world scenarios. Moreover, these learning-based methods are built on handcrafted architectures and operations by increasing network depth or width, neglecting different exposure characteristics. As a result, these direct cascaded architectures with redundant parameters fail to achieve highly effective inference time and lead to massive computation. To alleviate these issues, in this paper, we propose a search-based paradigm, involving self-alignment and detail repletion modules for robust multi-exposure image fusion. By utilizing scene relighting and deformable convolutions, the self-alignment module can accurately align images despite camera movement. Furthermore, by imposing a hardware-sensitive constraint, we introduce neural architecture search to discover compact and efficient networks, investigating effective feature representation for fusion. We realize the state-of-the-art performance in comparison to various competitive schemes, yielding a 4.02% and 29.34% improvement in PSNR for general and misaligned scenarios, respectively, while reducing inference time by 68.1%. The source code will be available at https://github.com/LiuZhu-CV/CRMEF.


The available experimental data on the mobilities at low field strengths of ions in unlike gases are analyzed on the basis of a simple theoretical description. Some of the earlier conclusions are modified and the current discrepancies between theory and experiment are emphasized. It is shown that most of the measurements can be explained by classical theory on the assumption that the interaction between an ion and a gas particle is due to the polarization of the gas particle, but that there appears to be a consistent discrepancy of about 8 % between theoretical predictions and the series of measurements by the Bristol group. For gases of low polarizability or at high temperatures, the contribution of the repulsive forces must be considered and the case of Li+ in He is investigated in detail, an interaction being derived from which the observed variation of mobility with temperature may be reproduced.


The RET proto‐oncogene encodes a receptor with tyrosine kinase activity (RET) that is involved in several neoplastic and non‐neoplastic diseases. Oncogenic activation of RET, achieved by different mechanisms, is detected in a sizeable fraction of human thyroid tumors, as well as in multiple endocrine neoplasia types 2A and 2B (MEN2A and MEN2B) and familial medullary thyroid carcinoma tumoral syndromes. Germline mutations of RET have also been associated with a non‐neoplastic disease, the congenital colonic aganglionosis, i.e. Hirschsprung's disease (HSCR). To analyse the impact of HSCR mutations on RET function, we have introduced into wild‐type RET and activated RET(MEN2A) and RET(MEN2B) alleles three missense mutations associated with HSCR. Here we show that the three mutations caused a loss of function of RET when assayed in two model cell systems, NIH 3T3 and PC12 cells. The effect of different HSCR mutations was due to different molecular mechanisms. The HSCR972 (Arg972–>Gly) mutation, mapping in the intracytoplasmic region of RET, impaired its tyrosine kinase activity, while two extracellular mutations, HSCR32 (Ser32–>Leu) and HSCR393 (Phe393–>Leu), inhibited the biological activity of RET by impairing the correct maturation of the RET protein and its transport to the cell surface.


Vaccines are very sensitive to temperature, needing to be held between 2 and 80C to maintain potency. In developing countries where electricity and fuel supplies are unreliable, many vaccines are ruined due to thermal exposure. These are also the locations where vaccines are needed the most, yet often many of the vaccines given are ineffectve. Long holdover vaccine coolers are designed to maintain a proper internal temperature during long periods of power loss. The most prevalent technology is the ice-lined cooler, but in the field these often have problem with freezing the vaccines. A vaccine cooler was designed that modifies the ice-jacket idea by separating the ice compartment and the vaccine chamber, connecting them through a heat transfer regulating device. The objective of this research is to design and prototype the heat transfer regulating device. After several design iterations a cooling loop filled with R-134a made of 1/8 piping, a 0.055 in ID capillary, and a Clippard normally-closed valve was combined with a modified car thermostat, using peanut oil as its working fluid, to create a thermosyphon type heat transfer device with a safety shutoff to prevent freezing. The prototype was manufactured and tested. It was found that with the proper amount of working fluid, it is possible to run the cooling loop at 4°C and pull heat from the vaccine chamber side to the ice. The peanut oil thermostat was tested and was found to open at a slightly lower temperature than expected, 2.5 0C, but still within range. These results indicate that the concept is viable and should be tested in the vaccine cooler. Thesis Supervisor: John G Brisson II Title: Associate Professor of Mechanical Engineering


In this paper we present selected assumptions general philosophy and theory of music of St Augustine. In the writings of the Father of the Church we find many important wording for the contemporary music. Selected aspects of Augustine's thought will be presented in the context of teaching.


Abstract Many biological processes are partitioned among organs and tissues, necessitating tissue-specific or organ-specific analysis (particularly for comparative -omics studies). Standardised techniques for tissue identification and dissection are therefore imperative for comparing among studies. Here we describe dissection protocols for isolating six key tissues/organs from larvae of the Asian longhorned beetle, Anoplophora glabripennis (Motschulsky) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae): the supraoesophageal ganglion, posterior midgut, hindgut, Malpighian tubules, fat body, and thoracic muscle. We also describe how to extract haemolymph and preserve whole larvae for measurements such as protein, lipid, and carbohydrate content. We include dissection protocols for both fresh-killed and previously frozen specimens. Although this protocol is developed for A. glabripennis, it should allow standardised tissue collection from larvae of other cerambycids and be readily transferrable to other beetle taxa with similar larval morphology.


Objective Comparison of uptake of dried blood spot testing (DBST) for hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection between community pharmacies and established services. Design Quantitative evaluation of a service development with qualitative process evaluation undertaken in parallel. Setting Six pharmacies from 36 community pharmacies within Dundee City, a large urban settlement with high levels of socioeconomic deprivation. Participants Patients in receipt of opioid substitution therapy (OST) not tested for HCV within 12 months. The 6 pharmacies provided OST for approximately 363 patients from a cohort of 1385 patients within Dundee City. Intervention Provision of DBST by pharmacists. Main outcome measure Receipt of DBST between January and December 2014. Results 43 of 143 service users with no record of testing from the 6 community pharmacies accepted DBST. Of 561 from the remaining 1022 service users with no record of testing, 75 were tested for HCV (30% vs 13%). The OR for increased uptake of testing within the 6 pharmacies was 2.25 (95% CI 1.48 to 3.41, Z statistic=3.81, p=<0.0001) compared with other services. The DBST taken by the pharmacies provided 12 patients with a reactive test. The process evaluation identified key themes important to staff and recipients of the service. A logic model was constructed. Limitations Non-experimental service evaluation performed in community pharmacies records service activity in one location across a single time period. Interpretation Some evidence that DBST from community pharmacies may be feasible. Service users received the service positively. Staff reported that DBST was straightforward and achievable.


[Purpose] The purpose of this study was to verify the effects of Gong's Mobilization on shoulder abduction range of motion (ROM). [Subjects] In this study, 57 male and female adults whose shoulder abduction ROM was limited to 120 degree or less were selected and separated into a Gong's Mobilization group (n=28) and anterior to posterior gliding group (n=29). [Methods] Gong's Mobilization and an anterior to posterior gliding were repeated 10-15 times. A goniometer was used to measure the shoulder abduction ROM. [Results] Both Gong's Mobilization and anterior to posterior gliding were effective in increasing shoulder abduction ROM, but the effect of Gong's Mobilization was greater. [Conclusion] Gong's Mobilization is a useful treatment alternative in the clinical setting because it has an immediate effect and it can be done in the sitting position.


Coupled continuity equations for silver-atom and vacancy fluxes are solved to obtain theoretical fits to the Ag Auger profiles in Ag-Ni layered systems, measured at different temperatures. It is observed that silver atoms are trapped by vacancies at higher temperatures. This phenomenon sharpens the Ag profile measured at 603 K. It is argued that this sharpening of Ag profile at higher temperatures cannot be interpreted as being due to a negative activation energy at atomic transport processes.


Tableware hygiene is poor have an important role in the growth of the spread of germs and poisoning. For that food equipment must be kept clean, in order to avoid contamination of pathogenic bacteria Escherichia coli is one of them as well as other contaminants. The purpose of this study was to determine the number of bacteria and Escherichia coli in the tableware used by Jombang Restorant Tikala Manado. The method used in this research is descriptive by laboratory analysis to determine the numbers and Escherichia coli bacteria on utensils used by Jombang Restorant Tikala Manado. The results showed that the results of laboratory examination of samples of tableware used by Jombang Restorant Tikala Manado, do not meet health requirements in accordance with RI Permenkes No.1098/Menkes/SK/VII/2003 on Hygiene Sanitation Requirements Restaurant. Of the 16 samples examined laboratory utensils all Not Eligible. Based on these results in the seller's expected to further improve food hygiene / sanitation, food hygiene, especially in the washing process of tableware and cutlery storage small so the likelihood of contamination in foods.


Mannosyl binding sites were detected "in vitro" on cardiomyocytes (CM) surface using horseradish peroxidase (HRP) as the ligand. Binding assays revealed a specific recognition system, which was time- and concentration-dependent. The binding required physiological pH and was inhibited by EDTA and trypsin treatments. HRP binding was reduced by pre-incubations with low concentrations of D-mannose. Ultrastructural analysis of the endocytic process was followed using HRP coupled to colloidal gold particles (HRP-Au). The tracer was found within caveolae characterizing early steps of the receptor-mediated endocytosis. The addition of 10 mM D-mannose to the interaction medium blocked Trypanosoma cruzi uptake by CM. The labeling of CM with a subsaturating concentration of HRP-Au before their infection showed, by ultrastructural studies, that its association with trypomastigote forms occurred frequently near to HRP-gold particles that could also be seen to comprise the parasitophorous vacuole. After infection of CM with T. cruzi, a considerable reduction on HRP binding was noticed. Binding was almost completely restored by treating the infected cultures with the trypanocidal drug Nifurtimox. Our "in vitro" findings suggest that cardiomyocyte's mannose receptors localized at the sarcolemma mediates T. cruzi recognition and can be down-modulated by parasite infection.


Context
Growth hormone (GH) is prescribed for an increasing range of indications, but there has been concern that it might raise cancer risk. Published data are limited.

Objective
To examine cancer risks in relation to GH treatment.

Design
Cohort study.

Setting
Population-based.

Patients
Cohort of 23,984 patients treated with recombinant human GH (r-hGH) in eight European countries since this treatment was first used in 1984. Cancer expectations from country-specific national population statistics.

Main Outcome Measures
Cancer incidence and cancer mortality.

Results
Incidence and mortality risks in the cohort were raised for several cancer sites, largely consequent on second primary malignancies in patients given r-hGH after cancer treatment. There was no clear raised risk in patients with growth failure without other major disease. Only for bone and bladder cancers was incidence significantly raised in GH-treated patients without previous cancer. Cancer risk was unrelated to duration or cumulative dose of r-hGH treatment, but for patients treated after previous cancer, cancer mortality risk increased significantly with increasing daily r-hGH dose (P trend < 0.001). Hodgkin lymphoma (HL) incidence increased significantly with longer follow-up (P trend = 0.001 for patients overall and 0.002 for patients without previous cancer).

Conclusions
Our results do not generally support a carcinogenic effect of r-hGH, but the unexplained trend in cancer mortality risk in relation to GH dose in patients with previous cancer, and the indication of possible effects on bone cancer, bladder cancer, and HL risks, need further investigation.


Sirs, I read with interest the recently published 'guidelines' for appropriate use of non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs), cyclo-oxygenase-2-specific (COX-2) inhibitors, and proton pump inhibitors (PPIs) in chronic NSAID users. The authors are to be congratulated for clearly identifying the background of the study and the support for the project. It is implied that the drug company sponsor's motivation was primarily altruistic leading them to invest the large sums required to host the meeting, to select a scientificwriting group to record and draft the manuscript, and pay honorarium and travel for the participants. The guidelines are described as 'evidence-based', which implies the presence of analyzable data and a knowledgeable and unbiased group of judges. The small group of nine participants were chosen to minimize bias based on speciality, practice environment, or region as they generally practiced in different specialties and different parts of the country. One wonders how the nine participants was selected, and how the proportions of specialist and academic physician were arrived. It is not clear that they were either representative of the general medical community or free of major conflicts of interest. Risk reduction requires defining risk. The authors' citation for reduction in risk in the introduction ('which similarly reduces the gastrointestinal risk') is the Acid Suppression Trial: Ranitidine vs. Omeprazole for NSAIDassociated Ulcer Treatment (ASTRONAUT) study which did not assess risk in terms of clinical events such as bleeding or perforation. Unfortunately, to date all of the large drug company sponsored studies regarding PPI use for prevention of NSAID-induced gastroduodenal damage have used surrogate endpoints (often as composite endpoints that included endoscopic ulcers, erosions, and symptoms) rather than clinical endpoints such as hemorrhage. In addition the published trials have often used 'unfair' comparisons. For example, in the ASTRONAUT study and the Omeprazole vs. Misoprostol for NSAID-induced Ulcer Management (OMNIUM) study, omeprazole was compared with standard-dose ranitidine (150 mg b.d.) (which parenthetically had repeatedly been shown to be ineffective for NSAID ulcer prevention) and to half-dose misoprostol (200 lg b.d.) (equivalent to approximately 600 mg of cimetidine as an antisecretory drug). Post hoc analysis of these studies separating the results for those with and without Helicobacter pylori infection showed that the majority of the advantage among omeprazole users was in the H. pylori infected patients and half-dose misoprostol was actually superior to omeprazole for both healing and prevention of gastric ulcers among those without H. pylori infection. The significant advantage for omeprazole over standarddose ranitidine (ASTRONAUT) was lost in the H. pylori negative patients with rates for gastric ulcer being 21 vs. 30 per 100 patient years and for duodenal ulcer 2.4 vs. 4.2 per 100 patient years). These results were confirmed comparing full dose misoprostol and lansoprazole. There are no large randomized trials showing a significant reduction in clinical events with a PPI and use of a COX-2 inhibitor alone or the combination of a PPI and a traditional NSAID resulted in an unacceptably low reduction in clinical events among high-risk patients, e.g. those with a recent non-H. pylori NSAIDinduced upper gastrointestinal (UGI) bleed? Why not misoprostol instead? One wonders whether the 'guidelines' have been different if sponsored by the manufacturer of misoprostol. Although misoprostol has a higher potential for side effects, it is important to remember that it was taken successfully by the majority of participants in the large clinical trials. Why not an H2-receptor antagonist, or even sucralfate? Was the focus on a PPI at all related to the sponsor's new combination product consisting of naproxen and lansoprazole (NaproPak)? Academic physicians are often chosen to 'edit' and participate in the manuscript development possibly to Aliment Pharmacol Ther 2004; 19: 1323–1325. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2036.2004.01950.x


The unique combination of processing power, memory capacity, and I/O bandwidth found in the IBM POWER Visualization System (PVS) makes it an ideal tool for high‐end, format and resolution‐independent, digital postproduction applications. From computer graphics rendering to video editing, rotoscoping, and special effects, the versatile nature of this general‐purpose computer allows it to adapt constantly to the specific tasks required during almost any phase of the postproduction process. In this articles, we first examine the hardware architecture of the PVS with specific attention paid to the different subsystems and peripherals which provide the large computational power and bandwidth necessary to do HDTV editing and effects work. Next, we describe the PVS system software layer which enables application level software to fully use all of the capabilities of the hardware. We then explore a novel on‐line, nonlinear editing and effects environment available for the PVS, which allows HDTV resolution material to be digitally edited and processed at full resolution. Finally, we conclude by describing some of the applications of the PVS which allow it to be used in a variety of other ways.©1994 John Wiley & Sons Inc


We have searched for optical identifications for 39 Chandra X-ray sources that lie within the 1.′9 half-mass radius of the nearby ( ), core-collapsed globular cluster, NGC 6752, using deep Hubble Space Telescope ACS/WFC imaging in B435, , and Hα. Photometry of these images allows us to classify candidate counterparts based primarily on color–magnitude and color–color diagram location. The color–color diagram is particularly useful for quantifying the Hα-line equivalent width. In addition to recovering 11 previously detected optical counterparts, we propose 20 new optical IDs. In total, there are 16 likely or less certain cataclysmic variables (CVs), 9 likely or less certain chromospherically active binaries, 3 galaxies, and 3 active galactic nuclei. The latter three sources, which had been identified as likely CVs by previous investigations, now appear to be extragalactic objects based on their proper motions. As we previously found for NGC 6397, the CV candidates in NGC 6752 fall into a bright group that is centrally concentrated relative to the turnoff-mass stars and a faint group that has a spatial distribution that is more similar to that of the turnoff-mass stars. This is consistent with an evolutionary scenario in which CVs are produced by dynamical interactions near the cluster center and diffuse to larger radius orbits as they age.


Background Non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) is an important public health problem and a significant cause of morbidity and mortality. Little is known about the relation between food insecurity and NAFLD. This study aimed to assess the relationship between food insecurity, risk factors associated with food insecurity, and NAFLD prevalence in a sample of Iranian adults.Methods In this age-matched and gender-matched case–control study, 210 subjects were recruited. NAFLD diagnosis was performed by a single expert radiologist using ultrasonography. The demographic and socioeconomic characteristics, anthropometric indices, body composition, along with food insecurity and depression status were assessed. Blood samples were collected to determine the lipid profile parameters. Chi-square, independent samples t-test, and uni-and multi-variate logistic regression tests were used. Data were analysed using SPSS V.23.0.Results The prevalence of food insecurity was 56.8% and 26.1% in cases and controls ( P<0.001 ), respectively. According to final analysis model, food insecurity, depression, number of children ≥ 4, overweight, and obesity were identified as significant independent risk factors for NAFLD. The chance of NAFLD in the food insecure, depressed, overweight, and obese subjects was 2.2 (95%CI: 1.12-3.43), 1.9 (95%CI: 1.02-3.62), 2.6 (95%CI: 1.81-3.92), and 2.9 (95%CI: 2.02- 5.34) times higher, respectively. Additionally, a higher waist circumference (men, OR = 2.9, P < 0.001 ; women, OR= 2.6, P< 0.001 ), an elevated waist-to-hip ratio (men, OR=2.3, P<0.001 ; women, OR=2.7, P<0.001 ), an increased waist-to-height ratio (OR=2.9, P<0.001 ), and a higher body fat percentage (men, OR=3.0, P<0.001 ; women, OR=3.3, P<0.001 ) were independently associated with an increased risk of NAFLD. The odds of NAFLD increased by increment in serum triglyceride (TG) levels (OR=2.6, P<0.001 ) and decreased by increase in serum high-density lipoprotein cholesterol (HDL-C) (OR=0.34, P<0.001 ). Compared to controls, NAFLD patients were more likely to have higher TG/HDL-C ratio (OR =3.3, P<0.001 ).Conclusions The prevalence of food insecurity in patients with NAFLD was significantly higher compared to controls. Food insecurity was associated with an increased risk of NAFLD, even after adjusting for potential confounding factors. Additionally, NAFLD was significantly related to some indicators of dyslipidemia.


With the development of cloud computing, the growth in information technology has led to serious security issues. For this reason, a lot of multimedia files are stored in encrypted forms. Methods of reversible data hiding in encrypted images (RDHEI) have been designed to provide authentication and integrity in the encrypted domain. The original image is firstly encrypted to ensure confidentiality, by making the content unreadable. A secret message is then embedded in the encrypted image, without the need of the encryption key or any access to the clear content. The challenge lies in finding the best trade-off between embedding capacity and quality of the reconstructed image. In 2008, Puech et al. suggested using the AES algorithm to encrypt an original image and to embed one bit in each block of 16 pixels (payload = 0.0625 bpp) [12]. During the decryption phase, the original image is reconstructed by measuring the standard deviation into each block. In this paper, we propose an improvement to this method, by performing an adaptive local entropy measurement. We can achieve a larger payload without altering the recovered image quality. Our obtained results are very good and better than most of the modern state-of-the-art methods, whilst offering an improved security level with the use of the AES algorithm, defined as the encryption standard by the NIST.


This article explores how the Versailles Treaty was shaped by the effects of economic warfare 1914–1919. The First World War was in part an Allied economic war waged against the Central Powers in conditions of advanced economic and financial globalization. This was reflected in the treaty's expropriation mechanisms, which were used to take control of German property, rights, and interests around the world. Whereas Articles 297 and 298 of the treaty legalized wartime seizures, the Reparations Section of the treaty also contained a provision, paragraph 18, that gave the Allies far-reaching confiscatory powers in the future. The article places these mechanisms in a wider political, legal and economic context, and traces how they became a bone of contention among the former belligerents in the interwar period.


The method of doubled pulses was used to achieve pulsed lasing due to the 5d106p2P3/2—5d96s2 2D5/2 transition in the mercury ion (λ = 398 nm), similar to efficient lasing transitions in copper and gold atoms. Discharge tubes with inner diameters 4 and 8 mm and 30 cm long were used. They were filled with neon or helium as the buffer gases. There was a significant difference between lasing in the narrow and wide tubes. In the wide tube it was possible to observe lasing only when the delay between the pulses was short; the beam was not ring-shaped, contrary to what was found earlier for the narrow tube. Lasing was observed even when the delay between the two pulses was less than 5 μs, but lasing disappeared when heating of the tube became stronger as the pulse repetition frequency was increased. Possible population and inversion mechanisms were analysed.


Abstract. Near-infrared (NIR) (650 to 1000 nm) optical properties of turbid media can be quantified accurately and noninvasively using methods based on diffuse reflectance or transmittance, such as frequency-domain photon migration (FDPM). Conventional FDPM techniques based on white-light steady-state (SS) spectral measurements in conjunction with the acquisition of frequency-domain (FD) data at selected wavelengths using laser diodes are used to measure broadband NIR scattering-corrected absorption spectra of turbid media. These techniques are limited by the number of wavelength points used to obtain FD data and by the sweeping technique used to collect FD data over a relatively large range. We have developed a method that introduces several improvements in the acquisition of optical parameters, based on the digital parallel acquisition of a comb of frequencies and on the use of a white laser as a single light source for both FD and SS measurements. The source, due to the high brightness, allows a higher penetration depth with an extremely low power on the sample. The parallel acquisition decreases the time required by standard serial systems that scan through a range of modulation frequencies. Furthermore, all-digital acquisition removes analog noise, avoids the analog mixer, and does not create radiofrequency interference or emission.


In this paper we propose an Ising model on an infinite ladder lattice, which is made of two infinite Ising spin chains with interactions. It is essentially a quasi-one-dimessional Ising model because the length of the ladder lattice is infinite, while its width is finite. We investigate the phase transition and dynamic behavior of Ising model on this quasi-one-dimessional system. We use the generalized transfer matrix method to investigate the phase transition of the system. It is found that there is no nonzero temperature phase transition in this system. At the same time, we are interested in Glauber dynamics. Based on that, we obtain the time evolution of the local spin magnetization by exactly solving a set of master equations.


Abstract The decisive source of air pollution emissions in ports is the berthed ships. This is primarily caused by the work of ship's autonomous generator sets. One way of reducing the air pollution emissions in ports is the supply of ships from electricity inland system. The main problem connected with the power connection of ships to the inland network is caused by different values of levels and frequencies of voltages in these networks (in various countries) in relation to different values of levels and frequencies of voltages present in the ship's network. It is also important that the source power can range from a few hundred kW up to several MW. In order to realize a universal "Shore to Ship" system that allows the connection of ships to the electricity inland network, the international standardization is necessary. This article presents the current recommendations, standards and regulations for the design of "Shore to Ship" systems.


Using quantile regression analyses, this study examines gender gaps in mathematics, science, and reading in Azerbaijan, Indonesia, Jordan, the Kyrgyz Republic, Qatar, Tunisia, and Turkey among 15-year-old students. The analyses show that girls in Azerbaijan achieve as well as boys in mathematics and science and overachieve in reading. In Jordan, girls achieve as well as boys in all subjects. In Qatar and Turkey, girls underachieve in mathematics, achieve as well as boys in science and overachieve in reading. In Indonesia, the Kyrgyz Republic, and Tunisia, girls underachieve in mathematics and science but overachieve in reading. On the basis of the analyses, two generalizations can be made. First, key country-level economic and social characteristics appear unrelated to achievement gender gaps. Second, the overachievement of girls in reading and underachievement in mathematics and science are similar to findings from non-Muslim industrialized countries.


In this paper we describe a quantitative study of a group-to-group videoconferencing environment called GColl that provides a compromise between the need for preserving non-verbal cues and the requirements of low-cost and flexibility. We have compared the task process and outcome of participants interacting over an environment analogous to common commodity solutions, those using face-to-face communication, and groups communicating over GColl. Our results demonstrate that it is possible to design a group-to-group collaboration environment with modest technical requirements and low overall cost that still shows measurable advantages over the common environment in its ability to support trust in social dilemma games.


Summary The slow Wallerian degeneration mouse, C57BL/WldS, carries a dominant mutation which delays Wallerian degeneration in the distal stump of an injured axons for several weeks in both central and peripheral nervous system (CNS and PNS). A highly unusual 85 kb tandem triplication was previously identified in the WldS mouse and during the period of my PhD work was shown to be the causative mutation, acting through a Ube4b/Nmnat chimeric gene contained within it. The aims of project described in this thesis were 1) to develop a suitable method to track the inheritance of the 85 kb tandem triplication WldS allele; 2) to investigate the instability of 85 kb triplication at the chromosomal level; 3) to explore whether WldS could alleviate or rescue axon loss in PNS and CNS neurodegenerative disease by crossing WldS with mouse models of neurological disorders; 4) to characterize WldS protein and 5) to investigate the possible mechanism involving in delaying Wallerian degeneration. Three genotyping methods for WldS were developed, namely PCR, Southern blotting and pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) (Chapter 3). The relative merits of these three methods for genotyping of WldS are discussed: PFGE is the only qualitative method to distinguish homozygotes from heterozygotes, but usually needs to be done post-mortem; PCR is a quick assay, however it is difficult to distinguish homozygotes from heterozygotes, or wild-type from false negative; Southern blotting could resolve the false negative problem in PCR with a constant wild-type band as an internal control, but could only distinguish homozygotes from heterozygotes partially by the relative strength of WldS-specific band and the constant band. The PFGE method was used to look for any possible instability of the 85 kb tandem triplication in WldS at the chromosome level (Chapter 4). In total 180 chromosomes of WldS from three divergent breeding colonies at different ages have been examined and all found to carry the triplication. Thus, the triplication mutation is stable during both mitosis and meiosis. Such a study almost rules out instability as a source of phenotypic variation. It is essential to know this for accurate interpretation of studies the effect of WldS on neurodegenerative phenotypes (see Chapter 5). At the outset of this work, the effect of WldS on axon degeneration in disease, as opposed to injury, was completely unknown. I collaborated with the group of Rudolf Martini (University of Wurzburg) in a study showing that WldS protects axons in a myelin-related peripheral neuropathy (the P0-/- mouse)(Chapter 3). Simultaneously, work in another collaborating group revealed a similar protective effect in progressive motor neuronopathy (pmn). To investigate whether WldS has effect on axonal loss in CNS neurological disorders, I crossed WldS with gad (gracile axonal dystrophy) mice (Chapter 5), a simple genetic mouse model (with a defect in Uchl1, ubiquitin carboxy-terminal hydrolase l1) of CNS neurodegenerative disease with a defect in ubiquitin system and axonal spheroid pathology in CNS. WldS significantly reduced axonal spheroid numbers and secondary pathology (myelin loss and astrocyte activation). However, neuromuscular synapse pathology still developed with age, leading probably to the complex behavioral changes observed. The observations that WldS can alleviate axonal spheroid pathology in gad mice in our study and also delay axon loss in PNS disorders with dying-back axon degeneration in our collaborators' studies, suggest that formation of distal axonal spheroids shares a regulatory step with Wallerian degeneration and 'dying-back' axon loss without spheroids, and that WldS delays a central step of such axon pathology. Ube4b/Nmnat (WldS) is known to delay Wallerian degeneration, however the protective mechanism is unknown. I also contributed to studies to characterize WldS and its role in delaying Wallerian degeneration. Firstly, I generated recombinant protein and polyclonal antiserum that were used to show that WldS protein is predominantly nuclear. Secondly, I generated transgenic mice carrying the N-terminal 70 amino acid (N70) of WldS fused with nuclear localization signal (NLS) or nuclear export signal (NES) to test whether the N70 was sufficient for the WldS phenotype and in which intracellular compartment it has to be located. The phenotype was analyzed by examining the preservation of neurofilament protein in lesioned nerves by western blotting or axonal integrity using a YFP marker protein. Transgenic N70-NLS or N70-NES heterozygotes / homozygotes did not show WldS phenotype, however there was not detectable N70-NLS or N70-NES protein expression level by western blotting. In conclusion, pulsed field gel electrophoresis (PFGE) is the only qualitative method to distinguish WldS homozygotes from heterozygotes comparing to the alternatives of PCR and Southern blotting. The WldS triplication is stable under normal conditions and is the predominant, and possibly exclusive, allele in the current WldS breeding colonies. WldS alleviates chromic PNS and CNS axon pathology in gad mice. Formation of distal axonal spheroids shares a regulatory step with Wallerian degeneration and 'dying-back' axon loss without spheroids. The N70-NLS or N70-NES experiments were inconclusive with the existing transgenic lines but WldS was shown to be a predominantly nuclear protein using the antiserum that I generated.


Structure-activity studies were performed to compare the biological and chemical activities of five methylnitrosoureas, including four compounds with substitution of the 1methyl-1-nitrosoureido group onto the carbon-1 or carbon2 position of glucose or galactose. Following equimolar i.p. injections to mice of doses that were lethal in 10% of them, all four sugar-containing analogs were found to have re duced myelosuppressive activity as compared to a 54% reduction in the absolute peripheral neutrophile count pro duced by 1-methyl-1-nitrosourea (MNU). Two days after i.p. implantation of 1 x 10s L1210 leukemia cells, treatment with MNU resulted in a 50% increased life-span, whereas the carbon-1 and carbon-2 glucose or galactose analogs pro duced only a 7 to 25% increased life-span, compared to untreated controls. The relative in vitro carbamoylating activity of each com pound did not correlate with either its antitumor activity or its toxicity in mice. The carbon-1-substituted glucose or galactose analogs and MNU have similar carbamoylating activity, approximately 45% of total equimolar radioactive lysine. In contrast, the carbon-2-substituted glucose or ga lactose methylnitrosoureas demonstrated negligible carba moylating activity. In addition, three compounds with equiv alent in vitro carbamoylating activity but divergent in vitro colorimetrie alkylating activity, 1-(2-chloroethyl)-1-nitrosourea, MNU, and potassium cyanate, have significantly differ ent molar doses lethal to 10% of the mice, myelotoxicity, and antitumor activity in mice. The in vitro colorimetrie alkylating activity of all compounds tested correlated well with their relative antitumor activity. Cell suspensions of murine bone marrow and L1210 leu kemia cells were incubated in vitro with 0.5 mM [methyl14C]MNU or [meffty/-14C]streptozotocin, a carbon-2-substi-


Despite the complexity and structural sophistication that 3D organoid models provide, their lack of vascularization and perfusion limit the capability of these models to recapitulate organ physiology effectively. A microfluidic platform named IFlowPlate is engineered, which can be used to culture up to 128 independently perfused and vascularized colon organoids in vitro. Unlike traditional microfluidic devices, the vascularized organoid‐on‐chip device with an "open‐well" design does not require any external pumping systems and allows tissue extraction for downstream analyses, such as histochemistry or even in vivo transplantation. By optimizing both the extracellular matrix (ECM) and the culture media formulation, patient‐derived colon organoids are co‐cultured successfully within a self‐assembled vascular network, and it is found that the colon organoids grow significantly better in the platform under constant perfusion versus conventional static condition. Furthermore, a colon inflammation model with an innate immune function where circulating monocytes can be recruited from the vasculature, differentiate into macrophage, and infiltrate the colon organoids in response to tumor necrosis factor (TNF)‐ inflammatory cytokine stimulation is developed using the platform. With the ability to grow vascularized colon organoids under intravascular perfusion, the IFlowPlate platform could unlock new possibilities for screening potential therapeutic targets or modeling relevant diseases.


Objectives: Ghost cell odontogenic carcinoma is a rare condition characterized by ameloblastic-like islands of epithelial cells with aberrant keratinitation in the form of Ghost cell with varying amounts of dysplastic dentina. Material and Methods: We report a case of a 70 year-old woman with a rapid onset of painful swelling right maxillary tumor. Magnetic resonance showed a huge tumor dependent on the right half of the right hard palate with invasion of the pterygoid process and focally to the second branch of the trigeminal. Radiological stage was T4N0. The patient underwent a right subtotal maxillectomy with clear margins. Adjuvant radiotherapy was given. The patient was free of residual or recurrent disease 12 months after surgery. Results: The tumor was 3,9cm in diameter. It was spongy and whitish gray. Microscopically the tumor was arranged in nets and trabeculae, occasionally forming palisade. Tumoral cells had clear cytoplasm with vesicular nuclei. There was atipia and mitosi with vascular and perineural invasion. The excised tumor was diagnosed as a GCOC. Conclusions: Ghost cell carcinoma is a rare odontogenic carcinoma. Its course is unpredictable, ranging from locally invasive tumors of slow growth to highly aggressive and infiltrative ones. Wide surgical excision with clean margins is the treatment of choice although its combination with postoperative radiation therapy, with or without chemotherapy, remains controversial. Key words:Ameloblastic carcinoma, calcifying odontogenic cyst, Ghost cell carcinoma, keratinizing epithelial odontogenic cyst, maxillary tumor, odontogenic carcinoma.


We measure and compare the coherence properties of 2 times 1 arrays of photonic crystal vertical-cavity surface-emitting lasers. Antenna array theory applied to the measured far field intensity patterns is used to determine the phase of the complex degree of coherence, which is found to vary with current injection. The amplitude of the complex degree of coherence is determined by calculating the visibility from the far field patterns and making near field measurements of the relative intensities between lasing defects. We find that the amplitude and phase of the complex degree of coherence are correlated, such that coherence is maximized near in-phase and out-of-phase coupling conditions, and controllable by independent current injection to each array element


To produce aromatic hydrocarbons from biomass, a novel route is reported for one-pot selective hydrodeoxygenation of a lignin derived aryl ether mixture to C6–C9 aromatic hydrocarbons over Ru/sulfate zirconia in the aqueous phase. The cascade steps undergo the initial precise cleavage of the Caliphatic–O bond of phenolic dimers or Caromatic–OCH3 of phenolic monomers, as well as the full blockage of benzene-ring and cyclic-alkene hydrogenation to realize nearly quantitative aromatic hydrocarbon formation at 240 °C in the presence of low pressurized H2 (2–8 bar). With a Ru catalyst, the primary and competitive steps in hydrogenolysis of the C–O bond and hydrogenation of the benzene ring are shown to be sensitive to temperature and hydrogen pressure, which can subtly modify the concentration and spatial distribution of the surface adsorbed H˙. A high temperature and a low hydrogen pressure are found to be essential for hydrogenolysis, since the H˙ species nearby the oxygen atom are more strongly adsorbed under such conditions and thus preferred to be retained on the Ru surface. Herein it is defined as the "atom-induced H sorption effect", probably resulting from the analogous hydrogen-bond force between the adsorbed H˙ and the adjacent oxygen atom on the metal surface. Besides the initial step, another key point for aromatic hydrocarbon formation is to optimize the target route of cycloalkene dehydrogenation, but suppress the parallel hydrogenation pathway to saturated cycloalkanes. It is found that the produced phenol intermediate serves as a suitable H-acceptor for the selected catalytic system during the whole conversion, via fast consumption of the in situ produced H˙ from cyclohexene dehydrogenation. Such an interesting phenomenon of internal hydrogen transfer not only promotes the dehydrogenation and hydrogenation equilibrium of cyclohexene but also lowers the in situ H˙ concentration on the Ru surface, both of which would be beneficial for reaching a high benzene yield. This hypothesis for internal hydrogen transfer is further confirmed by separate experiments and density functional theory modelling results.


Store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) is a fundamental mechanism of calcium signaling. The mechanisms linking store depletion to SOCE remain controversial, hypothetically involving both diffusible messengers and conformational coupling of stores to channels. Sphingosine 1-phosphate (S1P) is a bioactive sphingolipid that can signal via cell surface G-protein-coupled receptors, but S1P can also act as a second messenger, mobilizing calcium directly via unknown mechanisms. We show here that S1P opens calcium entry channels in human neutrophils (PMNs) and HL60 cells without prior store depletion, independent of G-proteins and of phospholipase C. S1P-mediated entry has the typical divalent cation permeability profile and inhibitor profile of SOCE in PMNs, is fully inhibited by 1 μm Gd3+, and is independent of [Ca2+]i. Depletion of PMN calcium stores by thapsigargin induces S1P synthesis. Inhibition of S1P synthesis by dimethylsphingosine blocks thapsigargin-, ionomycin-, and platelet-activating factor-mediated SOCE despite normal store depletion. We propose that S1P is a "calcium influx factor," linking calcium store depletion to downstream SOCE.


Background: In women, body hamstring is more vulnerable muscle to be tight. There are many factors and reasons for reduced joint ROM one of which is muscular tightness. Tightness of hamstring muscle leads to loss of hip ROM and increase the risk of injury. There for the study is to find the effect of active versus passive stretching to increase hamstring muscle flexibility in house wives. Methodology: Study design: Cross sectional study Inclusion criteria: housewives age of 30 to 50 years. Exclusion criteria: History of hospitalization in last one year Sample size: 30 house wives Sampling: Convenient sampling Study Setting: Stuti physiotherapy clinic, Ahmedabad. Procedure: Subject will be analysed by pre assessment of SLR (hip and knee 90 ̊-90 ̊) ROM and sit and reach flexibility test. All the subjects will treat under active and passive stretching of hamstring. Then pre and post assessment were analysed by SLR (hip and knee 90 ̊-90 ̊) ROM and sit and reach flexibility test. Conclusion: There is improvement in hamstring muscle flexibility within an active and passive stretching. But there is no significant difference in improvement of hamstring muscle flexibility between active and passive stretching.


There are frequent reports of the challenges to teacher professionalism associated with high stakes and mandated testing (McNeil, 2000). So, we were not surprised in this year-long study of two elementary schools in upstate New York to hear teachers talk about the many ways the 4th grade tests in English Language Arts, Mathematics and Science undermine their ability to do their jobs with integrity. We came to understand in more nuanced ways the ongoing tension created by teachers' desires to be professionals, to act with integrity, and at the same time to give every child a chance to succeed. What we found in these schools is that the high stakes tests continually forced teachers to act in ways they did not think were professional and often resulted in creating instructional environments that teachers did not think were conducive to student success. The teachers at these elementary schools are not radicals. They do not seek complete autonomy, they do not eschew the need for accountability (even bureaucratic accountability), they find some virtue in state mandated tests, they are content within centralized systems that proscribe some aspects of their work. But, they also perceive themselves as professionals with both the responsibility and capability of doing their jobs well and in the best interests of their students. New York State's outcomes based bureaucratic accountability system tests their resolve, makes them angry or frustrated, and requires unnecessary compromises in their work.


This article starts from the critical review of the concept of financial capital. I consider it is necessary not to confuse this category with of financialization, which has acquired a certificate of naturalization from the rise of neoliberalism. Although financial monopoly-financial capital is the hegemonic segment of the bourgeoisie in the major capitalist countries, their dominance does not imply, a fortiori, financialization of economic activity, since it depends of the conditions of the process reproduction of capital. The emergence of joint stock companies modified the formation of the average rate of profit. The "promoter profit" becomes one of the main forms of income of monopoly-financial capital. It is postulated that financial profit is a kind of "extraordinary surplus-value" which is appropriated by monopoly-financial capital by means of the monopolistic control it exerts on the issue and circulation of fictitious capital.


The long-planned and much-needed merger of EnviroCAT into the Materials Research Collaborative Access Team (MR-CAT) will provide dedicated state-of-the-art facilities that are critical to research on a broad range of issues in environmental sciences. These CATs will focus on developing a bending magnet (BM) beamline for x-ray absorption fine structure (XAFS) and micro x-ray analysis of environmental samples through integration with existing insertion device (ID) capabilities in XAFS, micro x-ray analysis, and x-ray scattering. In addition, the expanded MR-CAT will serve as the hub of personnel and laboratory infrastructure support for molecular environmental science and biogeochemical science at the Advanced Photon Source (APS). In conjunction with the merger of EnviroCAT into MR-CAT, the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will become a member institution of MR-CAT, joining the present members (University of Notre Dame, Illinois Institute of Technology, University of Florida, British Petroleum, and Argonne's Chemical Engineering and Biosciences Division). The motivation for blending capabilities meeting the needs of EnviroCAT users into the MR-CAT facilities is the explosion of synchrotron-radiation-based research in the field known as molecular environmental science (MES). This research is driven largely by the need to remediate contaminated environmental materials and to understand the scientific foundations that governmore » contaminant transport in the environment. Synchrotron radiation is playing a crucial role in solving environmental science problems by offering x-ray-based analytical techniques for detailed molecular- and atomic-level studies of these systems. This document focuses on the scientific justification for developing a specific type of BM beamline capability at Sector 10 for XAFS and micro x-ray analysis to support the growing MES community. However, the modification of Sector 10 will meet other future needs by providing (1) an existing undulator beamline with an experimental station for bulk XAFS applications and x-ray microbeam applications (XRF, XAFS, and XRD) and (2) a BM beamline with an experimental station for large-sample XAFS spectroscopy and XRF elemental mapping on submillimeter to centimeter length scales.« less


The first mass Chinese immigration to Australia occurred in the 19th century, with approximately 100,000 Chinese arriving between the 1840s and 1901 (Fitzgerald 2007; Ho 2007), during which questions were raised both in relation to the Chinese rights of migration and settlement in Australia, and the validity of the government's actions against the Chinese. The latter question was in fact considered in the colonial courts (Cronin 1993; Lake and Reynolds 2008). Since then, the Chinese in Australia have never shied away from taking various legal actions, although they are normally seen as people who keep to themselves. Australia abandoned its 'White Australia' policy in 1974, and lately Australia has placed more emphasis on skilled and business migration. As a result, many believe that Chinese migrants have come to Australia under its normal skilled, business or family migration programs, which ignores the fact that a high proportion of them have obtained their chance to stay in Australia directly or indirectly through a series of legal battles. This paper contributes to the discussion of the Chinese in Australian political life by looking at how the Chinese have fought in the Courts in the post-White Australia era in past decades, and the key features of their unique experiences. This is a different type of political activism, characterising the lives of many Australian Chinese, their engagement with the Australian political system, and becoming part of the background of their identity, transnationality, socio-political attitudes and behaviour and many other traits.


While the prevalence of visually impaired children constitutes a small portion of the visually impaired population, it is important to determine whether the low vision services available are utilised by these children. This is important as previous studies have shown that children have a very high rate of successful low vision device use compared to adults. This was a cross sectional retrospective study. Fifty nine low vision clinic children records were evaluated. The results showed that 25.4% of the children were categorised as with moderate low vision, 30.5% with severe low vision and 40.7% were categorised as blind. The major causes of low vision were congenital cataract, congenital nystagmus, congenital glaucoma, macular degeneration and retinitis pigmentosa. Low vision rehabilitation for near work using magnifiers improved the vision of 30.5% of the low vision children. This finding suggests that 1/3 of low vision children could benefit from low vision rehabilitation. The low vision devices most commonly prescribed to the children in this study were stand magnifiers, hand-held magnifiers and spectacles. This study illustrates the key role of optometrists in the management of visual impairment in Malaysian children. It would appear that the establishment of low vision services in government hospitals using trained optometrists is a cost effective method of service delivery. Therefore more low vision children would have access to proper low vision rehabilitation and through that rehabilitation, their quality of life can be improved.


The aim of this study was to describe the anatomy and ontogeny of Pterodon emarginatus seed using the usual techniques. The ovules are campilotropous, crassinucelate, and bitegmic. The following processes occur during integument development: anticlinal divisions and phenolic compound accumulations in the exotesta, whose cells become palisade; predominantly periclinal divisions and cell expansion in the mesotesta, where the rapheal bundle differentiates; differentiation of the hourglass-cell layer adjacent to the palisade; fusion of outer and inner integuments, which remain individualized structures only at the micropylar end; and intense pectin impregnation in the mesotesta thicker walls with lignification restricted to the xylem. At the hilar pole, the Faboideae seed characteristic structure develops, with double palisade layer, subhilar parenchyma, and tracheid bar. The younger nucellus shows thicker pectic cell walls and is consumed during seed formation. The endosperm is nuclear and, after cellularization, shows peripheral cells with dense lipid content; the seeds are albuminous. The axial embryo shows fleshy cotyledons, which accumulate lipid and protein reserves; starch is rare. Although the seed structure is characteristic of the Fabaceae, the inner integument coalesces into the outer integument without being reabsorbed.


The commercially available optical coherence tomogram (Stratus OCT III) designed for posterior segment imaging can be used for central corneal thickness (CCT) measurement. The aim of the study was to determine the accuracy and reliability of CCT measurements using Stratus OCT III versus ultrasound pachymetry. CCT using Stratus OCT III (CCT oct) was taken and averaged. The focusing system had to be defocused near the maximum to relay the image of the OCT beam onto the cornea. CCT was then determined using the ultrasound pachymeter (CCT usg). Thirty white volunteers (12 male, 18 female) participated in this study. The mean CCToct was 522.33+/-34.44 microns. The mean CCTusg was 547.37+/-33.08 microns. The mean differences between CCTusg and CCToct was 25.04+/-11.67. CCT usg was found to be highly correlated with CCToct (P < 0.001) The relation can be represented by the equation. CCToct = 0.98 (CCTusg) - 13.9. The Stratus OCT III gave reliable readings of CCT and is a novel, reliable and accurate way to measure CCT.


This exploratory investigation examined health concerns of adolescents and their perceptions of their peers' health concerns. Data were collected from a convenient sample of 419 high school students in rural southern Illinois in May 1990, using the Adolescent Health Concerns Inventory (AHCI). The AHCI contains 150 health-related items, grouped into 12 topical subscales. Analysis of the 150 items found statistically significant differences for all but 2 items: use of alcohol and acne. Analysis of the 12 subscales found that students believed other teenagers were concerned more about issues related to substance use and abuse, human sexuality, and personal health than about the issues they reported as concerns for themselves or their best friends. These findings indicate what health issues students are personally concerned about. They also suggest that students believe their personal health concerns differ from the health concerns of their best friends and other teenagers.


Hypertension is a significant cause of morbidity and mortality in childhood. Endocrine-related hypertension is rare in children. Hypercalcmia due to hyperparathyroidism is a rare cause of endocrine-related hypertension in childhood. We present a patient with severe headache, who was diagnosed with hypertension due to hyperparathyroidism. Hyperparathyroidism should be kept in mind in children with hypertension accompanied by hypercalcemia and hypophosphatemia.


Premise of the study: Microsatellite markers were isolated and characterized in Shorea platyclados (Dipterocarpaceae) for DNA profiling and genetic diversity assessment of this tropical timber species. Methods and Results: Fifteen polymorphic microsatellite loci were developed and characterized in S. platyclados using a genomic library enriched for dinucleotide (CT) repeats. The primers amplified dinucleotide repeats with 3–14 alleles per locus across four natural populations. The observed and expected heterozygosities ranged from 0.292 to 1.000 and from 0.301 to 0.894, respectively. No significant deviation from Hardy–Weinberg equilibrium was detected in the 15 loci. Four loci pairs displayed linkage disequilibrium. Conclusions: These highly polymorphic markers are adequate for DNA profiling and studies of population genetics in S. platyclados.


At the IAU XXVI General Assembly in 2006, the Division I decided to create the Working Group on Astrometry by Small Ground-Based Telescopes (WG-ASGBT). Its scientic goals are to foster the follow-up of small bodies detected by the large surveys including the NEOs; to set-up a dedicated observation network for the follow-up of objects which will be detected by Gaia; to contribute to the observation campaigns of the mutual events of natural satellites, stellar occultations, and binary asteroids; and to encourage teaching astrometry for the next generation. The present report gives the main activities carried out in these areas with small telescopes (diameter less than 2m).


We have previously developed the recombinant fusion protein, HerPBK10, for ligand-directed targeting and penetration of HER2+ breast cancer. HerPBK10 contains a ten lysine (K10) carboxy [C] -terminal tail that allows it to non-covalently bind anionic payloads, such as nucleic acids, by electrophilic interaction. In this study, a modified siRNA capable of both gene silencing and immunostimulation is the payload. Here, we test the hypothesis that ligand-directed, protein-based nanoparticles delivering siRNA launch a three-pronged attack on tumors by combining missile-like targeting (known as "transductional targeting") with siRNA-mediated gene silencing, and cytokine-mediated cell death. The latter effect will be accomplished by taking advantage of the normally undesirable cytokine-mediated cytotoxicity induced by epigenetic modifications on certain forms of siRNA, and delivering this to tumors. Here we will deliver siRNA produced by T7 phage polymerase transcription, which introduces a 5′ triphosphate cap that triggers cytokine-mediated toxicity within host cells. So far, in vitro data has shown that this approach is more effective in reducing cell proliferation than synthetic siRNA against the same gene. Furthermore, in vivo xenograft data shows that this strategy can control and ablate the growth of HER2+ tumors. Future directions include IHC investigation of resected tumors and testing this hypothesis in an immunocompetent in vivo setting where we envision this immune-sensitive strategy having even greater efficacy. Citation Format: Felix Alonso-Valenteen, Medina-Kauwe. Nanoparticle-delivered T7-synthesized siRNA enhances cell killing in HER-2 (+) breast cancer. [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 105th Annual Meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research; 2014 Apr 5-9; San Diego, CA. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2014;74(19 Suppl):Abstract nr 3653. doi:10.1158/1538-7445.AM2014-3653


Mean field analysis of FKBP12 complexes with FK506 and rapamycin has been performed by using structures obtained from molecular docking simulations on a simple, yet robust molecular recognition energy landscape. When crystallographic water molecules are included in the simulations as an extension of the FKBP12 protein surface, there is an appreciable stability gap between the energy of the native FKBP12–FK506 complex and energies of conformations with the "native‐like" binding mode. By contrast, the energy spectrum of the FKBP12–rapamycin complex is dense regardless of the presence of the water molecules. The stability gap in the FKBP12–FK506 system is determined by two critical water molecules from the effector region that participate in a network of specific hydrogen bond interactions. This interaction pattern protects the integrity and precision of the composite ligand‐protein effector surface in the binary FKBP12–FK506 complex and is preserved in the crystal structure of the FKBP12–FK506–calcineurin ternary complex. These features of the binding energy landscapes provide useful insights into specific and nonspecific aspects of FK506 and rapamycin recognition. Proteins 28:313–324, 1997. © 1997 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.


Dr. Gerard-Andre Capolino, IEEE Fellow and 2012-2013 Industrial Electronics Society (IES) president from the University of Picardie "Jules Verne," Amiens, France, was invited by the Singapore Institute of Manufacturing Technology (SIMTech) to give an IES distinguished lecture (DL) on 25 May 2012, as well as to visit the institute and some laboratories at the Nanyang University of Technology. Dr. Capolino's DL was titled "Condition Monitoring and Fault Detection in Complex Electromechanical Systems - Example of a Traction System." Condition monitoring and fault detection are key issues for electricity production and use. After presenting the structure of the electrical engineering research lab at the University of Picardie, Dr. Capolino went on to present different techniques that have been developed since the 1980s. His DL started by presenting a modeling approach for electromechanical systems with multiple mechanical and electrical faults. After that, classical and new signal-processing techniques for condition monitoring were presented, as well as suitable instrumentations to be implemented in realworld systems. All modern techniques related to condition monitoring in industrial applications for early fault detection in different areas such as railway traction systems, cranes, and wind turbine generators were focused on. The example of a high-speed train traction system was developed and analyzed from the point of view of condition monitoring. The DL, which lasted an hour and a half, was attended by more than 100 participants.


Stochastic gradient descent (SGD), which updates the model parameters by adding a local gradient times a learning rate at each step, is widely used in model training of machine learning algorithms such as neural networks. It is observed that the models trained by SGD are sensitive to learning rates and good learning rates are problem specific. We propose an algorithm to automatically learn learning rates using neural network based actor-critic methods from deep reinforcement learning (RL).In particular, we train a policy network called actor to decide the learning rate at each step during training, and a value network called critic to give feedback about quality of the decision (e.g., the goodness of the learning rate outputted by the actor) that the actor made. The introduction of auxiliary actor and critic networks helps the main network achieve better performance. Experiments on different datasets and network architectures show that our approach leads to better convergence of SGD than human-designed competitors.


Do trade-labour linkages improve the conditions and rights of workers in low-wage countries? We consider this question in Vietnam, a market economy with socialist orientation that has seen rapid growth in export manufacturing and foreign direct investment, while signing regional trade agreements, which include labour rights provisions, with high-income trading partners. Our paper focuses on two such agreements – the Trans-Pacific Partnership and the European Union-Vietnam Free Trade Agreement. We ask how, if at all, these negotiations have influenced changes in Vietnam's labour regime, particularly regarding the representation and participation of workers in the country's system of industrial relations. Comparing binding and nonbinding provisions, we find that the effects of trade-labour linkages are mediated by their enforceability, and prospects for strengthening associational rights are improved by the possibility of commercial sanction. Overall, we find that gains for workers in Vietnam continue to be made by collective action, despite a context hostile to freedom of association, and that external influences to improve labour standards and conditions have had a minimal effect.


Amniotic disease or congenital skin sulci disease is a clinical entity covering a broad spectrum of malformations, usually involving the limbs, skull and face. This malformation is exceptional in the thorax. The authors report the case of a 22 year old woman with sequelae of thoracic amniotic disease, consisting of unilateral mammary aplasia, atrophy of the pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi muscles and deformity of the homolateral thoracic skeleton. They describe the breast reconstruction performed by tissue expansion in this patient.


Seedlings of wind-pollinated families from 6 sources of slash pine (Pinus elliottii var. elliottii and var. densa) were tested for development of fusiform rust disease using 2 sources of Cronartium quercuum f. sp. fusiforme inocula. The seed source origins ranged from 24.5°N latitude at the southern tip of Florida (P. e. densa), to 30.25 °N latitude, in north central Florida (P. e. elliottii). All seedlings received basidiospores of both inocula; inoculum of each source was applied to a single, separate shoot. Differences among varieties of slash pine were significant, with less pycnial sporulation present on seedlings from southern seed sources. Differences between inocula were significant within P. e. elliottii only, suggesting increased specificity for P. e. elliottii hosts and these inocula, although inocula x family-within-seed-source interactions were not significant. Heritability estimates for infection or sporulation on an individual seedling basis ranged from 0 to 0.45 within P. e. densa and from 0.20 to 0.59 within P. e. elliottii. On a family mean basis, heritability estimates were higher, ranging up to 0.58 within P. e. densa and 0.71 within P. e. elliottii. Diverse sources of reaction to C. q. fusiforme appear to be present in P. e. densa, suggesting a backcross breeding approach in which genes for reaction are introgressed into fast-growing populations of P. e. elliottii. The relatively large individual tree-based heritability estimates in P. e. elliottii should help to expedite the introgression process.


Background B/T cell aggregates in the salivary glands (SG) of Sjögren's syndrome (SS) can give rise to ectopic lymphoid structures (ELS) forming ectopic germinal centers (GCs), which has been linked to the development of MALT lymphoma (MALT-L). T follicular-helper cells (Tfh) and T follicular-regulatory cells (Tfr) are specialized CD4+ T-cells that positively and negatively regulate, respectively, the magnitude of the GCs response and the onset of autoimmunity. Objectives To characterize the infiltration of Tfh and Tfr in the SG infiltrates of patients with SS in the context of the presence/absence of ectopic GCs and in subjects with MALT-L. Methods SG biopsies with matching histology and RNA from 37 SS and 38 non-specific chronic sialadenitis (NSCS) patients were stratified as ELS-/ELS+ based on CD3/CD20/CD21/CD138 immunostaining (IHC). Histological samples and mRNA from 12 parotid MALT-L were also studied. Gene expression was measured by Taqman rt-PCR. Multicolor immunofluorescence/confocal microscopy for CD3, CD4, CD45RO, ICOS, PD1, BCL6 and FoxP3 was used to identify Tfh and Tfr. Results Tfh (CD4+CD45RO+PD1+ICOS+FoxP3-) cells and Tfr (CD4+CD45RO+PD1+ICOS+FoxP3+) cells were strongly enriched in ELS+ vs ELS- SS samples. The Tfh:Tfr ratio in ELS+ SG was approximately 2:1. Interestingly, while in tonsils Tfr were routinely detected within GCs, in ELS+ SG Tfr were predominantly excluded from the B cell follicles and accumulated in the T cell rich areas at the periphery of the lymphoid aggregates. Conversely, Tfh densely infiltrated the B cell rich areas and, within ectopic GCs, acquired BCL6. Furthermore, Tfh infiltration closely correlated with SG IL-21 mRNA expression, which in turn was strongly correlated with CD3, CD20 and CD138 IHC scores and with CXCL13, LTb, BAFF, AID and Pax5 gene expression. Finally, MALT-L samples displayed 10-fold higher IL-21 mRNA and twice as much PD1+ICOS+BCL6+ Tfh-cells/field compared to ELS+ SS samples. Conclusions Within the SG of SS patients Tfh cells closely segregate with lesional IL-21 expression, localize within ELS and are strongly enriched during MALT-L development. Conversely, although Tfr cells are also recruited to ELS+ SG in SS patients, we consistently demonstrated follicular exclusion of this subset from ectopic GCs. This suggests that Tfr in SS SG fail to exert their physiological immunoregulatory properties in controlling the magnitude of the GCs response and B cell autoreactivity, as observed in tonsils. Acknowledgements This work was supported by project grants from the Medical Research Council (MR/N003063/1 to MB) and Arthritis Research UK (grant 20089 to MB). Disclosure of Interest E. Pontarini: None declared, W. Murray-Brown: None declared, C. Croia: None declared, E. Astorri: None declared, D. Lucchesi: None declared, N. Lepse: None declared, N. Sutcliffe: None declared, A. Tappuni: None declared, C. Pitzalis: None declared, M. Bombardieri Consultant for: Amgen/Medimmune, GSK and UCB


BACKGROUND
There is considerable interest in the pharmaceutical industry today in both development of therapeutic proteins as viable biopharmaceutical agents as well as the implementation of microsampling techniques, such as dried blood spots (DBS), as an alternative to current sample collection and handling procedures for biological samples generated in drug discovery and development studies. We have demonstrated that these two techniques can be integrated by developing bioanalytical methods that simultaneously determine the concentrations of unique therapeutic protein constructs, using LC-MS-based detection of multiple surrogate peptides following direct trypsin digestion of DBS.

RESULTS
Bioanalytical methods were developed for the simultaneous determination of two structurally different therapeutic proteins (PEGylated-Adnectin™-1, MW 11,144 amu and an Fc-fusion protein, MW 67,082 amu) in a single DBS sample using LC-MS-based detection of multiple peptides generated from different regions of the proteins following trypsin digestion. The same methodology was applied to the analysis of DBS samples collected following dosing of a third unique protein (PEGylated-Adnectin-2) to mice. Although these initial DBS methods were slightly less sensitive than those developed specifically for each individual protein in plasma or serum, the generic digestion procedure yielded sufficient accuracy, precision and an extended linear dynamic range to justify their further evaluation in pharmacokinetic, pharmacodynamic and toxicological studies of selected therapeutic proteins following dosing in preclinical discovery studies. Additionally, DBS samples may offer a convenient, generic platform approach for direct enzymatic digestion and sample preparation for LC-MS-based quantitation of proteins. DBS samples prepared for two of the therapeutic proteins were also stable for at least 2 weeks when stored at room temperature.

CONCLUSION
Although the same clarification and interpretation of DBS results will be required (e.g., blood vs plasma levels, hematocrit effects on DBS determinations and red blood cell partitioning) as for small-molecules, there still remains the potential to further develop and expand this strategy with appropriate proteins of interest. While additional studies will be required to validate this approach in specific applications, we have demonstrated the feasibility of using DBS sampling to directly quantify structurally different types of therapeutic proteins in blood in discovery studies and present the potential to simultaneously measure other proteins, such as biomarkers, to augment and integrate data generated from in vivo studies.


The Large Volume Detector (LVD) in the Gran Sasso Laboratory of INFN is an observatory mainly devoted to the search of neutrinos from core collapse supernovae. In this letter we present the possibility for LVD to work both as a passive shield and moderator for the low energy gamma and neutron background and as an active veto for muons and higher energy neutrons. An inner region inside the LVD structure (``VD Core Facility'') can be identified, with a volume of about 30m3, with the neutron background typical of an underground laboratory placed at a much deeper site. This region can be realized with a negligible impact on LVD operation and sensitive mass. The LVD Core Facility could be effectively exploited by a compact experiment for the search of rare events, such as double beta decay or dark matter.


This paper develops a dynamic model of service performance and service quality and shows that the non-profit healthcare sector in Turkey, which performs a useful function of providing affordable healthcare services to low-income people, is trapped into a stable intertemporal equilibrium characterized by low levels of service performance and service quality. The model enables us to present an empirically demonstrated solution to this problem of low performance-low quality trap. The solution, which stipulates a particular policy for the supplier's provision of services, helps the sector to move from the low performance-low quality equilibrium to a high performance-high quality equilibrium.


In this work we have developed and suggested new control strategies for the fully coordinated and synchronized power generation on a distributed power grid station utilizing different renewable energy sources. The strategies are based on Digital controller and can easily be implemented on any digital device such as FPGA, CPLD, and PC or even in software environment. The techniques focus on the regulation of the load voltage and current and coordinated effective operation of various energy sources including Solar Cells, Fuel Cells and Wind Turbine. The battery bank is charged using the collaborative operation of the sources and controller and the power conversion process is simulated in SimPowerSystems.


The medical field has long endured the destructive forces of personal harassment in work environments. Personal harassment, often called workplace bullying, has historically been kept quiet. The targets of personal harassment suffered in silence. Many of the targets either left the organization or became passive-aggressive members of the work team. Personal harassment is no longer tucked away in the shadows, however. This issue is now being cited as a major cause of low morale, high employee turnover, and increased workplace violence. The intent of this article is to provide an awareness of personal harassment and how it has had a catastrophic impact on the medical field. Awareness of this issue is the first step toward its prevention. Medical practitioners, leaders, and employees must commit to addressing this issue before it can adversely impact their organizations.