ABSTRACT This research assessed the influence of various heel elevation conditions on spinal kinematic and kinetic data during loaded (25% and 50% of body weight) high-bar back squats. Ten novice (mass 67.6 ± 12.4 kg, height 1.73 ± 0.10 m) and ten regular weight trainers (mass 66.0 ± 10.7 kg, height 1.71 ± 0.09 m) completed eight repetitions at each load wearing conventional training shoes standing on the flat level floor (LF) and on an inclined board (EH). The regular weight training group performed an additional eight repetitions wearing weightlifting shoes (WS). Statistical parametric mapping (SPM1D) and repeated measures analysis of variance were used to assess differences in spinal curvature and kinetics across the shoe/floor conditions and loads. SPM1D analyses indicated that during the LF condition the novice weight trainers had greater moments around L4/L5 than the regular weight trainers during the last 20% of the lift (P < 0.05), with this difference becoming non-significant during the EH condition. This study indicates that from a perspective of spinal safety, it appears advantageous for novice weight trainers to perform back squats with their heels slightly elevated, while regular weight trainers appear to realize only limited benefits performing back squats with either EH or WS.


This study is conducted at Dabong which is located at Kuala Krai, Kelantan. The objective of this research are to identify types of geology structure exist in the study area and to analyze geology structure. The study began with the interpretation of aerial photographs to determine the lineament structure of Dabong area and followed by field mapping. For the present study, several methods are used such as geological mapping and thin sectioning. Dabong composed of four type of lithologies which are andesite, slate, sandstone and limestone. All of these lithologies are grouped in Paleozoic era and Mesozoic era. Gua Ikan and Gua Pagar had karst features such as sinkholes, stalactites and stalagmites. Structure in Dabong would be analyzed based on field observation and stereonet analysis. Stereonet analysis and rose diagram was used as a method to know the direction of force (σ₃) and tension stress (σ₁). Normal fault was found both in small scale or even on a large scale. The direction of forces for lineament analysis are from the NNW-SSE of the study area. Besides that, the direction of force for normal fault is Southwest while the directions of the force for folding in the study area are NWN-ESE and WNW-SES. The structure of folding is determined based on change-oriented foliations formed in the study area. Joint can be found in all types of rock and five analysis of joint with different locations have been done to know the maximum stress force and minimum extensional stress force. The presence of tectonic structures such as lineation, fault, folding and joint proved that the study area has experienced a great deformation. In conclusion, the geological structure of the study area is composite and has experienced great tectonic.


Phytocystatins are a well-characterized class of naturally occurring protease inhibitors that function by preventing the catalysis of papain-like cysteine proteases. The action of cystatins in biotic stress resistance has been studied intensively, but relatively little is known about their functions in plant growth and defence responses to abiotic stresses, such as drought. Extreme weather events, such as drought and flooding, will have negative impacts on the yields of crop plants, particularly grain legumes. The concepts that changes in cellular protein content and composition are required for acclimation to different abiotic stresses, and that these adjustments are achieved through regulation of proteolysis, are widely accepted. However, the nature and regulation of the protein turnover machinery that underpins essential stress-induced cellular restructuring remain poorly characterized. Cysteine proteases are intrinsic to the genetic programmes that underpin plant development and senescence, but their functions in stress-induced senescence are not well defined. Transgenic plants including soybean that have been engineered to constitutively express phytocystatins show enhanced tolerance to a range of different abiotic stresses including drought, suggesting that manipulation of cysteine protease activities by altered phytocystatin expression in crop plants might be used to improve resilience and quality in the face of climate change.


School based management (SBM) has been introduced recently in public schools of Oman. The aim of this policy is to decentralize the authorities from Ministry of Education to the local schools. In line with this aim, this study had the attempt to investigate the views of school community regarding SBM as a management tool. This paper used the qualitative approach, using multiple- case study in which data were collected through interviews, observation and documents analysis. The participants in this study were school community (principals assistant, senior teachers, and teachers) of four purposefully selected schools in Batinah Governorate of Oman. Data revealed that participants expressed divergent views concerning the SBM system in Oman. They considered the SBM system is a complex and multifaceted concept comprising many elements and these elements can be interpreted differently, have different emphasis and serve different purposes.


This chapter addresses the potential and challenges of green bonds to finance ecologically sustainable investments. Governments, investors and the media have hailed green bonds as a key instrument of climate finance because of their prospects for tapping the trillions of dollars held in global bonds markets and by institutional investors. Does the explosive issuance of green bonds mean that bonds markets are 'greening'? This chapter details the growth of the green bonds market, the appeal of green bonds to investors and challenges to the market's development. One major conclusion is that a weak governance framework limits how much green bonds can contribute to sustainable development. In order to ensure that the green bonds market matures with integrity, weaknesses in governance structures must be addressed. The chapter concludes by providing policy recommendations for developing the green bonds market.


We present a motion-based method to extract the multiple 3D crack surfaces from a sequence of 3D X-ray microtomographic mortar images. We verify the correctness and accuracy of results by ground truth obtained with simulated cracks in real specimens. We provide several three-dimensional measures of crack surface, including the number of cracks, surface area, volume, tortuosity, and permeability.


To name Paul Ehrlich in connection with dermatosyphilology at once calls up his most important practical achievement, the development and introduction of "606" (Salvarsan, or arsphenamine). This drug gave the syphilalogist the most potent weapon devised up to that time against any infectious disease. It put him into the enviable position of being able to arrest and often cure one of the great scourges of mankind. That the administration of old arsphenamine and even of neoarsphenamine and later drugs required a great deal of technical skill and specialized judgment also enhanced the standing of our specialty in the profession. Our knowledge of syphilis in its many ramifications widened the horizon of our endeavors by emphasizing the systemic implications, not only of this disease, but of other cutaneous disorders as well. The story of arsphenamine is common knowledge. As its practical usefulness is dwindling since the introduction


An 82-year-old man had a diagnosis of prostate cancer and underwent curative radiotherapy. During the oncological follow-up, the patient showed biochemical relapse and underwent whole-body Cu-prostate-specific membrane antigen PET/CT for restaging purpose. Cu-prostate-specific membrane antigen PET/CT showed a pathological uptake in left iliac venous axis, subsequently confirmed as venous thrombosis.


Aim. To study the role of CT perfusion in the differential diagnosis of histological subtypes of supratentorial malignant gliomas and to determine the degree of their malignancy. Materials and methods. The study included 34 patients (20 men and 14 women, with an average age of 52 years) with newly detected supratenorial glial tumors, who subsequently underwent neurosurgical treatment in the NMIC of neurosurgery with histological verification of the diagnosis. Depending on the histological diagnosis, three groups of patients were identified: 1) anaplastic astrocytomas, 2) glioblastomas, 3) anaplastic oligodendrogliomas. The CT-perfusion protocol was performed on a 64-slice Optima 660 (GE) scanner and consisted of three separate parts: a low-dose axial CT of the brain with a slice thickness of 5 mm (90 kV), a perfusion protocol performed according to a prolonged scheme, with two consecutive continuous series of scans, and a post-contrast series of CT images in a spiral scanning mode. In addition, all patients underwent an MRI examination (using a Signa Hdxt 3.0 T (GE) MR scanner, in T2, T2-FLAIR, SWAN, DWI, and T1 modes before and after contrast enhancement).Results. The study demonstrated that anaplastic astrocytomas are characterized by significantly low absolute and normalized hemodynamics parameters (BF, BV, PS) when compared with glioblastomas, and significantly low absolute maximum values of blood flow (BF) and blood volume (BV) when compared with the group of anaplastic oligodendrogliomas. CT perfusion using the normalized permeability index (PS) can reliably differentiate glioblastomas and anaplastic oligodendrogliomas. Perfusion parameters, both absolute and normalized, did not show statistically significant differences in the differential diagnosis of various molecular and genetic subtypes of anaplastic astrocytomas.Conclusion. CT perfusion using all hemodynamic parameters demonstrated high reliability and efficacy in distinguishing between glioblastomas and anaplastic astrocytomas. Further research is required to evaluate the effectiveness of the method in distinguishing glioblastomas from anaplastic oligodendrogliomas.


The hyphenation of capillary electrophoresis (CE) with mass spectrometry (MS) is a powerful method to obtain high efficient, sensitive, and selective analyses. The successful coupling with electrospray ionization (ESI) source requires closed electric circuits for both the CE separation and the ESI processes. A wide range of interfaces has been proposed to satisfy this requirement. Among them, the new high sensitivity porous sprayer based on a porous tip achieves the electric connection by inserting the capillary outlet made of a porous material into an ESI needle filled with a conductive liquid and independently grounded. This device is compatible with the minute flow rates exhibited in CE and therefore makes possible the use of a nano‐electrospray behavior. In this work, this interface was evaluated for hyphenating a CE with a single quadrupole MS instrument for low molecular weight analytes. Investigations aimed at highlighting the most influent parameters thanks to a design of experiments, reaching the best performance in terms of sensitivity and stability. MS signal intensities of various pharmaceutical compounds (e.g. amphetamines, β‐blockers) emphasized high sensitivity and efficiency, while repeatability, expressed as relative standard deviation of corrected heights and areas, was suitable for quantitative purposes (<5%).


We have investigated the conductance spectra of Sn-Bi2Se3 interface junctions down to 250mK and in different magnetic fields. A number of conductance anomalies were observed below the superconducting transition temperature of Sn, including a small gap that is different from that of Sn, and a zero-bias conductance peak that increases at lower temperatures. We discussed the possible origins of the smaller gap and the zero-bias conductance peak. These phenomena support the idea that a proximity-effect-induced chiral superconducting phase is formed at the interface between the superconducting Sn and the strong spin-orbit coupling material Bi2Se3.


The future mobile communication system will be distinguished by high integration of services, flexibility and higher throughput. Thus, the rapid growth in traffic volume and increase in new services has begun to change the configuration and structure of wireless networks. In the past, WiMAX has gained lot of interest for providing broadband communication. The present demand in the field of wireless communication is not only to provide data communication when the user is mobile, but also to provide high data rate by consuming less bandwidth. To meet these requirements, WiMAX provides specification for FEC (forward error correction), and optional schemes like advanced antenna systems (AAS), space time code (STC) and multiple input multiple output (MIMO) systems. Also it includes two MIMO profiles, which can be used for different purposes including diversity, spatial multiplexing and interference reduction. MIMO in conjunction with OFDMA promises to provide massive amelioration in system throughput. The objective of the paper is to propound a unified guideline for choosing optimal schemes for different scenario in WiMAX OFDMA systems. In this paper, a simple technique to switch between diversity and multiplexing has been proposed. It is discerned through simulations that the proposed scheme achieves significant performance improvement than that can be obtained with either multiplexing or diversity alone.


BackgroundAbnormal depolarization-repolarization in patients with repaired tetralogy of Fallot (TOF) is a risk factor for malignant ventricular tachycardia and sudden death. It is unclear whether ECG abnormalities are associated with abnormal regional right ventricular (RV) function. Methods and ResultsSeventy-four patients (37 patients <18 and 37 >18 years old) who had had TOF repair at 4.0 years old (0.1 to 47 years old) were examined when they were 18.7 years old (1.7 to 61.1 years old), as were 112 control subjects with normal hearts. Regional function was evaluated with tissue Doppler imaging of the RV and left ventricular (LV) free wall and the septum. Myocardial velocities were sampled continuously from base to apex. Synchronous ECG was analyzed for QRS, QT, and JT duration and QRS, QT, and JT dispersion. All 74 TOF patients had normal LV myocardial velocities. Forty-eight patients (24 patients <18 and 24 >18 years old) had reversed myocardial velocities in diastole in the RV free wall, which were associated with reversed systolic myocardial velocities in 22 and additional reverse diastolic myocardial velocities in the septum in 19. Those 48 patients had a longer QRS duration (151±31 versus 124±27 ms) and greater QRS (47±18 versus 29±12 ms), QT (73±27 versus 52±22 ms), and JT (96±31 versus 67±35 ms) dispersion. Compared with normal control subjects, all 74 TOF patients had decreased systolic and diastolic myocardial velocities and a longer isovolumic relaxation time. ConclusionsRV wall-motion abnormalities are a common finding late after TOF repair and are associated with repolarization-depolarization abnormalities. These data further underscore a likely mechanoelectrical interaction as an important part of the pathogenesis of RV disease in these patients.


It was the aim of this study to design mouse monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) that can inhibit the invasion of breast cancer cells in the host tissue. Therefore, MAbs were raised against epitopes on the extracellular domain of SK-BR-3 human breast cancer cells, and biological assays were performed to test the capability of the MAbs to inhibit cell substrate adhesion. MAb 14C5 bound an extracellular plasma membrane antigen of SK-BR-3 and MCF-7 human breast cancer cells and inhibited the cell substrate adhesion of these cells in vitro. The MAb delayed the adhesion of MCF-7 and SK-BR-3 cells on precultured embryonic heart fragments (PHFS). It inhibited the destruction of the PHF by MCF-7 cells and the invasion of the PHF by SK-BR-3 cells. The MAb reacted with an epitope on the cell membrane of in situ and invasive ductal carcinomas of the breast in immunohistochemistry. Poorly differentiated, highly invasive ductal carcinomas show extensive staining of long plasma membrane extensions. Normal multilayered epithelia, normal connective tissue, and tumors derived from these tissues as well as normal breast tissue were negative. From both cell lines a protein complex consisting of two subunits with molecular weight of 50 and 90 kd, respectively, was immunoprecipitated. It is concluded that the 14C5 antigen plays a role in cell substrate adhesion and subsequently also in invasion of breast cancer cells. The 14C5 MAb was able to inhibit cell substrate adhesion and invasion in vitro of breast cancer cells.


The purpose of this paper is to reveal the relations between the Democratic Party (DP) which came into power in 1950 and the press of the period and examine the concept of the partisan press. In that period during which DP was in power, the world was going through a transformation and Turkey was affected by that transformation both socially and politically. There was an emphasis on DP's activities and their press policies in the power they came into with the statements of liberal, democratic order and liberal economy. The period between 1950 and 1954 represents a critical phase in terms of both democratization and economy. Negativities which emerged after 1954 and DP's unjust relations with the press were in play. The subject of this study includes the fact that the press, which had been in the struggle for rights and freedoms for years, were liberated with the freedom promised by DP but how short that period was, the emergence of the concept of partisan press and its reflections today. There are several studies regarding the Democratic Party Era; however, the number of papers specifically addressing the partisan press is very few. Thus, this study will make an imperative contribution to the literature. The study is composed of three titles. It was conducted as a result of a broad literature review.


This work presents MemX: a biologically-inspired attention-aware eyewear system developed with the goal of pursuing the long-awaited vision of a personalized visual Memex. MemX captures human visual attention on the fly, analyzes the salient visual content, and records moments of personal interest in the form of compact video snippets. Accurate attentive scene detection and analysis on resource-constrained platforms is challenging because these tasks are computation and energy intensive. We propose a new temporal visual attention network that unifies human visual attention tracking and salient visual content analysis. Attention tracking focuses computation-intensive video analysis on salient regions, while video analysis makes human attention detection and tracking more accurate. Using the YouTube-VIS dataset and 30 participants, we experimentally show that MemX significantly improves the attention tracking accuracy over the eye-tracking-alone method, while maintaining high system energy efficiency. We have also conducted 11 in-field pilot studies across a range of daily usage scenarios, which demonstrate the feasibility and potential benefits of MemX.


The increasing penetration
of renewable energy resources via power-electronic converters
is turning the modern power grid into a multiple-converter
system (MCS). In a MCS, the dynamics of converter-based resources (CBRs) are different from those
of traditional synchronous machines, which poses
great challenges to the grid planning and operation. One of the
major challenges is the emerging small-signal stability problems resulting from
the interaction between CBRs and the power network. These small-signal
stability problems endanger the reliable and stable grid operation. To maintain
grid stability, the capacity of CBR generation in the grid may be limited, which impedes
the progress towards a sustainable future. To enhance the grid-accommodable
capacity (GAC) of renewable generation while maintaining grid stability, this
paper presents a semi-definite programming
(SDP)-based method to assess GAC with small-signal
stability constraints (GAC-SSSC) in a MCS. In the proposed method, the
small-signal stability constraints are formulated by the smallest
eigenvalue of a pertinent weighted Laplacian matrix of power network, so that
the assessment complexity of GAC-SSSC is significantly reduced for a MCS with large-scale CBRs.
It is theoretically proved that the derived SDP can find the optimal solution. The efficacy of the proposed method is demonstrated on
a 39-bus test system.


Background: SOLE efficacy results presented at ASCO 2017 showed that extended intermittent vs continuous letrozole for 5 years did not improve disease-free survival in postmenopausal women who had received 4-6 years of adjuvant endocrine therapy for hormone-receptor positive (HR+), lymph-node positive breast cancer. Previous studies showed that the burden by symptoms related to endocrine therapy can be substantial. Even if symptoms improve during the treatment course, extending treatment implies continuation of symptoms. We compared differences in patient-reported symptoms (PRS) and quality of life (QoL) between extended continuous and intermittent letrozole over the first two years of trial treatment. Methods: From Nov 2007 to Dec 2010, 956 postmenopausal women who were disease-free following 4-6 years of prior adjuvant endocrine therapy for HR+, node-positive breast cancer were enrolled in the QoL substudy of the randomized phase III trial SOLE at selected centers. Patients receive extended continuous letrozole (2.5 mg daily) for 5 years or intermittent letrozole, taken for the first 9 months of years 1-4, and 12 months in year 5. 955 patients completed the 18-item Breast Cancer Prevention Trial (BCPT) Symptom Scales and further symptom-specific and global QoL indicators at baseline, and at 6, 12, 18 and 24 months after randomization. Differences in change of PRS and QoL from baseline between the two administration schedules were tested at 12 and 24 months for 8 symptom scales, 4 additional symptom and 4 global QoL indicators using mixed models with repeated measures. Results: Small changes in PRS and QoL scores were observed between baseline and 12 months after randomization, i.e. at the end of the first treatment-free interval in the intermittent arm. These changes showed a consistent pattern of greater worsening for patients receiving continuous compared to patients receiving intermittent letrozole. Patients receiving continuous letrozole reported a significantly greater worsening in vaginal problems (p Conclusion: Although changes in PRS and QoL were small, there was a consistent pattern favoring the intermittent arm. For several symptoms and global QoL indicators, significantly less worsening was observed with the intermittent administration, mainly during the first year of extended treatment, due to small improvements during the treatment-free interval. Froma QoL perspective, women who suffer from endocrine side-effects in the extended setting may benefit from an intermittent administration. Citation Format: Ribi K, Luo W, Colleoni M, Karlsson P, Chirgwin J, Aebi S, Jerusalem G, Neven P, Di Lauro V, Gomez HL, Ruhstaller T, Abdi E, Di Leo A, Muller B, Maibach R, Gelber RD, Goldhirsch A, Coates AS, Regan MM, Bernhard J. Extended continuous vs intermittent adjuvant letrozole in postmenopausal women with lymph node-positive, early breast cancer (IBCSG 37-05/BIG 1-07 SOLE): Impact on patient-reported symptoms and quality of life [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the 2017 San Antonio Breast Cancer Symposium; 2017 Dec 5-9; San Antonio, TX. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Res 2018;78(4 Suppl):Abstract nr P5-18-01.


OBJECTIVE
To determine in patients with systemic lupus erythematosus (SLE) (1) the frequency of antiprolactin (anti-PRL) autoantibodies, and (2) the relationships among anti-PRL autoantibodies, serum prolactin (PRL) levels, and lupus activity.

METHODS
In a cross sectional study 259 consecutive patients with SLE were tested for serum PRL levels and anti-PRL autoantibodies based on disease activity.

RESULTS
The frequency of anti-PRL was 5% (13/259), and all SLE patients with anti-PRL had hyperprolactinemia. There was lupus activity in 110 patients (42.5%) and there was no significant difference in frequency of anti-PRL autoantibodies between patients with or without lupus activity (5.5 vs 4.7%; p = 0.99). Only a high level of serum PRL was associated with lupus activity independent from other studied variables (p = 0.024). There was a negative but nonsignificant correlation between the titers of anti-PRL autoantibody and SLEDAI (r(s) = -0.16, p = 0.59). Anti-PRL positive patients had higher levels of serum PRL than anti-PRL negative patients (33.2+/-13.8 vs 11.6+/-13.2 ng/ml; p = 0.0001) and a significantly different frequency of hyperprolactinemia (100 vs 11.4%; p = 0.00001).

CONCLUSION
The presence of anti-PRL autoantibodies was associated with hyperprolactinemic status and high serum PRL levels; these data suggest that anti-PRL autoantibodies could be the cause of hyperprolactinemia in a subset of patients with SLE. An increase in serum PRL levels proved to be an important independent factor related to lupus activity, but there was no relationship between anti-PRL autoantibodies and lupus activity.


The impact of forest management activities on the ability of forest ecosystems to sequester and store atmospheric carbon is of increasing scientific and social concern. This research estimated the aboveground carbon stocks and carbon sequestration rates of forests under various management regimes in the Churia region of Nepal. We used tree data from 469 permanent sample plots distributed across the region from the data archive of Forest Research and Training Centre for the study. The data from 2012 and 2017 were used. The volumes of individual trees were calculated using species–specific allometric equations, which were then converted to biomasses using their respective wood densities. The carbon content was calculated by multiplying the biomass by 0.47 and was converted to the amount of sequestrated CO2 by multiplying by 3.67. We found that the average estimated  aboveground carbon stock increased from 78.43 t ha–1 in 2012 to 89.20 t ha–1 in 2017, resulting in an average annual carbon sequestration rate of 5.34 t ha–1 yr–1 (i.e. 7.90 t CO2 ha–1 yr–1). The results showed significant differences in aboveground carbon stocks and annual carbon sequestration rates among different forest management regimes in the region. Generally, aboveground carbon stock was found to be the highest in protected areas in both years whereas, the annual carbon sequestration rate was found to be the highest in government–managed forests. It can be concluded that the Churia region has great potential in terms of carbon sequestration. The evidence of the strong association of carbon stock and sequestration rate with management regimes provides valuable information for policymakers to maintain and further enhance carbon storage in a geographically vulnerable region like Churia.


Grain yield in wheat, similar to other plants, is a complex trait that is directly and indirectly influenced by other plant's characteristics. One of the main goals in wheat breeding programs is to increase the grain yield.Considering the role of crop rotation in the increase of wheat yield, in order to study variations in direct and indirect effects in different rotations, an experiment was conducted with six rotation types as treatments, in six replications, as randomized complete block design. The six rotation types included: wheat-wheat-wheat (without rotation), wheat-canola-wheat, wheat-chickpea-wheat, wheat-cotton-wheat, wheat-watermelon-wheat and wheat-sunflower-wheat. This study was implemented during 2004 to 2009 in the north of Iran, at the research station of Gonbad in Golestan province of Iran. Also, at the end of trial, wheat was cultivated in all experimental units in 2010. The results showed although in all the rotations, the spike numbers in m2, kernel number per spike and kernel weight were important traits determining grain yield, crop rotations affected on type and amount of direct and indirect effect of yield components. Furthermore, the selection of different traits depending on the rotation's condition can change in the selection. According to the results in wheat-wheat-wheat (without rotation) and wheat-watermelon-wheat and wheat-sunflower-wheat rotations, kernel weight, grain filling periods and vegetative period are useful for selection breeding strategy, while in wheat-canola-wheat and wheat-chickpea-wheat number kernel per spike, number spike, grain filling periods and vegetative period could be useful.

 Key words: Breeding, grain yield, path analysis, selection.


Various complications of Le Fort osteotomies have been reported. We describe a lethal complication of Le Fort III osteotomy we encountered in a 9-year-old boy with Crouzon syndrome. A standard Le Fort III osteotomy, including pterygomaxillary dysjunction with a curved osteotome and down-fracture manipulation, was performed uneventfully. When the intraoral buccal wound was closed after fixation of the external midface distraction devices, we discovered hemorrhage originating from the right posterior maxillary region. Although it was stopped with pressure on the osteotomized maxilla, the volume of intraoperative blood loss was nearly 2,000 ml. During the observation period in the intensive care unit, the patient suffered brain death, and he died 3 months later. A computed tomography scan obtained the day after surgery revealed vigorous subarachnoid and intraventricular hemorrhage and transverse fracture of the middle cranial fossa. This skull base fracture was believed to result from intraoperative maneuvers, including the pterygomaxillary dysjunction and down-fracture manipulation. We emphasize the risk of intracranial hemorrhage with Le Fort osteotomy and advise discussing this risk with patients and family members during preoperative consultations.


Isoproterenol (IPR) administered to rats in a dose of 5 mg/kg for seven days induces cardiomegaly. To determine the degree of myocardial enlargement, wet and dry heart weight, myocardial RNA, DNA, protein content and protein synthesis were measured. Wet and dry heart weight, and the level of cardiac RNA, DNA and protein were augmented by IPR treatment, with RNA increasing more than DNA and protein. Incorporation of 14C-leucine into the protein of the heart was enhanced by IPR. Thus the IPR-induced cardiomegaly may serve as a model for studying the development of cardiac hypertrophy under various conditions.


The quantification and control of reactive species (RS) in atmospheric pressure plasmas (APPs) is of great interest for their technological applications, in particular in biomedicine. Of key importance in simulating the densities of these species are fundamental data on their production and destruction. In particular, data concerning particle-surface reaction probabilities in APPs are scarce, with most of these probabilities measured in low-pressure systems. In this work, the role of surface reaction probabilities, γ, of reactive neutral species (H, O and OH) on neutral particle densities in a He–H2O radio-frequency micro APP jet (COST-mAPPJ) are investigated using a global model. It is found that the choice of γ, particularly for low-mass species having large diffusivities, such as H, can change computed species densities significantly. The importance of γ even at elevated pressures offers potential for tailoring the RS composition of atmospheric pressure microplasmas by choosing different wall materials or plasma geometries.


In this paper, the research focuses on the evolutio n of the GDP in recent years. The data are collected from official sources , mainly the publications of the National Institute of Statistics. The research also emphasizes the role of resources and utilizations as factors that determine the modi fication of the GDP across a given time period.


We have recently identified that the ligand of natural cytotoxicity triggering receptor 2 (NCR2, best known as NKp44) is expressed on a large panel of malignant cells. This ligand provides a new tool to investigate how stressed cells are recognized and eliminated by natural killer (NK) cells, and to develop novel immunotherapeutic paradigms against cancer.


Rock selection in modeling and simulation studies is usually based on two techniques; routinely defined rock types and those defined by special core analysis (SCAL). The challenge in utilizing these two techniques is that they are frequently assumed to be the same, but in practice, static rock-types (routinely defined) are not always representative of dynamic rock-types (SCAL defined) in the real reservoir. There is also no significant link between these two techniques. To fill this gap, we integrate the well log data for identification of the optimal number of rock-types, and SCAL data with its high interpretive potential in a given reservoir zonation. In this paper, we propose a method in one of Iranian offshore oil reservoir with a tight carbonate formation for dynamic rock type characterization. In this method, with the integration of well logs and core description data using multivariate statistical methods, different static rock-types can be identified, but these rock types cannot be assigned for fluid flow simulation. So, with our approach based on capillary pressure curves, different flow behavior can be classified. This technique can be done by using integration of similar capillary pressure curves due to the inlet pressure corresponding to the log parameters. Finally, with integration of capillary pressure and well log data, two different dynamic rock-types with distinct flow behavior were identified. This method can be used for the development of rock-type characterization and deriving of saturation height functions for calculation of initial water saturation in any heterogonous reservoir and it is an applicable solution for inputs in Geomodel and also simulation models.


The Sabine absorption coefficients of finite absorbers are measured in a reverberation chamber according to the international standard ISO 354. They vary with the specimen size essentially due to diffraction at the specimen edges, which can be seen as the radiation impedance differing from the infinite case. Thus, in order to predict the Sabine absorption coefficients of finite porous samples, one can incorporate models of the radiation impedance. In this study, different radiation impedance models are compared with two experimental examples. Thomasson's model is compared to Rhazi's method when coupled to the transfer matrix method (TMM). These methods are found to yield comparable results when predicting the Sabine absorption coefficients of finite porous materials. Discrepancies with measurement results can essentially be explained by the unbalance between grazing and non-grazing sound field in the reverberation chamber. A better agreement is found when incorporating the modal decomposition method to the models.


BACKGROUND
Inbred mouse strains are differentially sensitive to the acute effects of ethanol (EtOH) and are useful tools for examining how unique genomes differentially affect alcohol-related behaviors and physiology. DBA/2J mice have been shown to be sensitive to the acute anxiolytic effects of alcohol as well as the anxiogenic effects of withdrawal from chronic alcohol exposure, while B6 mice are resistant to both. Considering that the basolateral amygdala (BLA) is an important brain region for the acute and chronic effects of EtOH on fear and anxiety related behaviors, we hypothesized that there would be strain-dependent differences in the acute effects of EtOH in BLA slices.

METHODS
We utilized patch clamp electrophysiology in BLA coronal slices from 4 inbred mouse strains (A/J, BALBcJ, C57BL/6J, and DBA/2J) to examine how genetic background influences acute EtOH effects on synaptic vesicle recycling and post-tetanic potentiation (PTP) in response to low (2 Hz)- and high (40 Hz)-frequency stimulation.

RESULTS
We found that EtOH inhibited synaptic vesicle recycling in a strain- and stimulation frequency-dependent manner. Vesicle recycling in DBA/2J and BALBcJ cells was inhibited by acute EtOH during both low- and high-frequency stimulation, while recycling measured from A/J cells was sensitive only during high-frequency stimulation. Recycling at C57BL/6J synapses was insensitive to EtOH regardless of stimulation frequency. We additionally found that cells from DBA/2J and BALBcJ mice were sensitive to EtOH-mediated inhibition of PTP.

CONCLUSIONS
Acute EtOH application inhibited vesicle recycling and PTP at glutamatergic synapses in both a strain- and frequency-dependent fashion. Several presynaptic proteins that contribute to synaptic vesicle priming in addition to PTP have been implicated in alcohol-related behaviors, including Munc13, Munc18, and RIM proteins, making them potential candidates for the molecular mechanism controlling these effects.


Resource managers lack an inexpensive and quantifiable method to detect lynx presence across large landscapes. We tested efficacy of a protocol based on hair snagging to detect presence of lynx (Lynx canadensis). We tested 2 key elements of the protocol: 1) a hair-snaring device and 2) commercial lures used to attract and elicit rubbing behavior in lynx. The commercial lures we tested included: 1) beaver (Castor canadensis) castoreum and catnip oil, 2) Cat Passion, 3) Pacific Call, 4) Hawbacker's Cat lure #1) and 5) BB1. To compare detection rates among lures, we randomly placed lures at scent stations along 78 transects; each transect contained all 5 lures. We detected lynx at 45% of transects, and detections varied significantly among lures (x2/4= 13.4, P=0.009}. Hair snares baited with castoreum and catnip oil were used significantly more than expected (P= 0.002). The relatively high overall detection rate demonstrated that deploying an effective lure along transects is an effective method to detect presence or absence.


Help of satellite radar interferometry for urban subsidence observation has been demonstrated for several years now. This monitoring tool is able to provide an assessment of the ground motion with a millimetric accuracy and a large spatial coverage. We present here a result of this technique applied to the monitoring of a small area : the «Grand Littoral» shopping centre complex and cinema multiplex in Marseilles, France. This construction work was one of the most important construction site of this last few years in France. Inaugurated in October, 1997, the multiplex had to close 6 of its 15 cinemas five months later because of collapsing risks due to important ground movements. It has been totally closed in July, 1999. The multiplex building demolition is currently under way. Finally, this "flop" represents a cost of 30 millions euros. 14 ERS images acquired between 1992 and 2000 had been processed in order to produce a set of 105 differential interferograms. We performed a recursive correction of orbital and topographic fringes using a FFT computation and a Digital Elevation Model provided by the French National Institute (IGN). The analysis of the interferograms series has allowed to detect unambiguously a signature of few pixels corresponding to the ground movement. From this study, we observed a ground deformation during 1997 to 1998, an overall stability during late 1998 to 1999 and again a deformation during late 1999 to 2000. This study shows that, in specific cases, traditional InSAR is able to provide valuable information on very localised ground deformation. It also shows the interest of a comprehensive study of the full ERS archive of this site in order to assess the stability of the ground before, when no ground-based measurements were available, during, and after the construction works.


Objective: To determine the most appropriate thiamine replacement regimen by evaluating safety and efficacy of the drug specific to alcohol-induced Wernicke's encephalopathy (WE). Data Sources: A comprehensive literature search was conducted using PubMed, MEDLINE, Scopus, and ProQuest between January and August 2020 using the following keyword and Boolean search terminology: "thiamine" AND "alcohol" AND (encephalopathy OR korsakoff). Study Selection and Data Extraction: Randomized control trials; prospective, observational, and retrospective cohort analyses; and case reports and series were included in this evaluation. A confirmed diagnosis of alcohol-induced WE and treatment with parenteral or intramuscular (IM) thiamine were required for inclusion. Data Synthesis: Six publications composed of 138 patients were evaluated in this review, in which a wide variety of thiamine supplementation strategies were employed. Clinical diagnostic criteria varied significantly between publications. Doses ranged from 100 to 1500 mg intravenous thiamine and up to 300 mg IM thiamine, with no apparent difference in patient outcomes. All patients who received thiamine experienced symptom improvement, and adverse drug events were minimal. Conclusions: Despite the clinical controversy regarding the appropriate thiamine supplementation regimen, the heterogeneity of published works combined with symptom resolution across the gamut of dosing strategies makes a definitive consensus elusive. Clinicians should continue to provide parenteral or IM thiamine in doses of ≥100 mg to patients with confirmed alcohol-induced WE.


Hurrell MA, Chapman BA, Wilson IR. Variation in the estimation of gallbladder volume using the sum-of-cylinders method. Invest Radiol 1994;29:536-539. RATIONALE AND OBJECTIVES.Gallbladder contraction was measured by ultrasound, using the sum-of-cylinders method, as part of a study of the effects of lipid-lowering drugs. Although this method of measurement has been validated in the literature, paired measurements were obtained to provide an additional check on reproducibility. METHODS.A total of 136 pairs of gallbladder measurements were made on 17 patients using the sum-of-cylinders method of calculating gallbladder volume. Each pair comprised a left posterior oblique and a supine measurement performed at the same ultrasound examination to assess measurement error. RESULTS.There was a large average coefficient of variation of 21%. CONCLUSIONS.Marked measurement variability limited the ability of the sum-of-cylinders technique to detect even modest alterations in gallbladder contractility, at least in this population subgroup.


Here are twenty devotional messages on the universal appeal of Christ as set forth for the most part in the various metaphors used to express his character and relation to the world. He is the chief cornerstone, the Living Bread, the Sure Foundation, the Great Physician, etc. One finds throughout the book striking, if sometimes perhaps a little strained, expansions of the analogies and many suggestive illustrations of the sufficiency of Christ for all human need. J. B. WEATHERSPOON


Background: Risks of mortality for women and their babies are highest at the time of birth and statistics show that approximately 536,000 women of reproductive age die each year due to pregnancy-related complications. Over 20 million girls and women suffer from morbidities arising from childbirth annually with more than half of these occurring in Africa. The key to reducing maternal deaths not only lies in the treatment of the main causes but in preventing and providing quality and timely health care to pregnant women. Objective: This study sought to assess the perception of pregnant women on the urgency to seek treatment if symptoms of risk medical disorders of pregnancy were observed. Methodology: This was a prospective study where 397 expectant clients were selected from those attending antenatal services at Njoro, Nessuit, Huruma and P.C.E.A health centers in Njoro Division, Nakuru County in Kenya. Results: A high percentage of women attending antenatal clinics had good perception on urgency to seek treatment in regard to obstetric emergences and fetal wellbeing. On a scale of 1 to 4 where for is very urgent need and 1 not urgent the scores were 2.81 for reduced fetal movement, 3.44 for lack of fetal movement, 3.71 for antepartum haemorrhage and 3.49 for premature rupture of membranes. They however had poor perception on urgency to seek treatment relating to medical disorders in pregnancy with scores of 2.19 for anaemia, 1.93 for deep venous thrombosis, 1.36 for diabetes mellitus, 2.60 for preeclampsia and 3.04 for urinary tract infection symptoms. Conclusions: Antenatal education is vital and need to be delivered by qualified personnel in small focused groups to allow clients knowledge acquisition and behaviour modification. The health providers should be equipped with education skills especially for adult learners to achieve this. More research is required to understand the optimal learning environment that will have significant impact on outcome of the pregnancy. Keywords: Perception, Treatment, Risk medical disorders, Pregnancy


No long-term exercise training regimen with high adherence and effectiveness in middle-aged and older people is broadly available in the field. We assessed the adherence to, and effects of, our long-term training program comprising an interval walking training (IWT) and an information technology network system and the factors affecting adherence. Middle-aged and older men and women [n = 696, aged 65 ± 7(SD) yr] underwent IWT. The subjects were instructed to repeat five or more sets of fast and slow walking for 3 min each at ≥70 and 40% peak aerobic capacity for walking (V̇O2peak), respectively, per day ≥4 days/wk for 22 mo. Adherence was assessed as training days accomplished relative to the target of 4 days/wk over 22 mo. The effects on the V̇O2peak and lifestyle-related disease score were evaluated every 6 mo. The independent factors affecting adherence were assessed by multiple-regression analysis after adjustment for baseline physical characteristics and other possible covariates, including vasopressin V1a receptor polymorphisms. The adherence over 22 mo averaged 70% and was highly correlated with a 13% reduction in the lifestyle-related disease score (R(2) = 0.94, P = 0.006) and with a 12% increase in V̇O2peak (R(2) = 0.94, P = 0.006). The major determinant of higher adherence was lower baseline body mass index (BMI) (P < 0.0001) and male sex (P < 0.0001). For men, in addition to BMI, nonsmokers (P = 0.031) and V1a receptor polymorphisms (P = 0.033) were independent determinants of higher adherence. Thus the long-term IWT program is an effective regimen. Moreover, baseline BMI and sex for all subjects, and smoking and V1a receptor polymorphisms for men, were associated with adherence.


The effects of finite on the toroidal ion temperature gradient mode has been investigated by a multi-pole fluid model. Experimental data from the Joint European Torus (JET) have been used to ensure the relevance to experiments. The mode is strongly stabilized by finite- effects well below the MHD ballooning mode stability threshold.


The linear and nonlinear properties of ion acoustic excitations propagating in warm dense electron-positron-ion plasma are investigated. Electrons and positrons are assumed relativistic and degenerate, following the Fermi-Dirac statistics, whereas the warm ions are described by a set of classical fluid equations. A linear dispersion relation is derived in the linear approximation. Adopting a reductive perturbation method, the Korteweg-de Vries equation is derived, which admits a localized wave solution in the form of a small-amplitude weakly super-acoustic pulse-shaped soliton. The analysis is extended to account for arbitrary amplitude solitary waves, by deriving a pseudoenergy-balance like equation, involving a Sagdeev-type pseudopotential. It is shown that the two approaches agree exactly in the small-amplitude weakly super-acoustic limit. The range of allowed values of the pulse soliton speed (Mach number), wherein solitary waves may exist, is determined. The effects of the key plasma configuration parameters, namely, the electron relativistic degeneracy parameter, the ion (thermal)-to-the electron (Fermi) temperature ratio, and the positron-to-electron density ratio, on the soliton characteristics and existence domain, are studied in detail. Our results aim at elucidating the characteristics of ion acoustic excitations in relativistic degenerate plasmas, e.g., in dense astrophysical objects, where degenerate electrons and positrons may occur.


Reported here is a laboratory in vitro evolution (LIVE) experiment based on an artificially expanded genetic information system (AEGIS). This experiment delivers the first example of an AEGIS aptamer that binds to an isolated protein target, the first whose structural contact with its target has been outlined and the first to inhibit biologically important activities of its target, the protective antigen from Bacillus anthracis. We show how rational design based on secondary structure predictions can also direct the use of AEGIS to improve the stability and binding of the aptamer to its target. The final aptamer has a dissociation constant of ∼35 nM. These results illustrate the value of AEGIS-LIVE for those seeking to obtain receptors and ligands without the complexities of medicinal chemistry, and also challenge the biophysical community to develop new tools to analyze the spectroscopic signatures of new DNA folds that will emerge in synthetic genetic systems replacing standard DNA and RNA as platforms for LIVE.


A number of proteins are able to enter cells from the extracellular environment, including protein toxins, growth factors, viral proteins, homeoproteins, and others. Many such translocating proteins, or parts of them, appear to be able to carry with them cargo into the cell, and a basic sequence from the HIV-1 Tat protein has been reported to provide intracellular delivery of several fused proteins. For evaluating the efficiency of translocation to the cytosol, this TAT-peptide was fused to the diphtheria toxin A-fragment (dtA), an extremely potent inhibitor of protein synthesis which normally is delivered efficiently to the cytosol by the toxin B-fragment. The fusion of the TAT-peptide to dtA converted the protein to a heparin-binding protein that bound avidly to the cell surface. However, no cytotoxicity of this protein was detected, indicating that the TAT-peptide is unable to efficiently deliver enzymatically active dtA to the cytosol. Interestingly, the fused TAT-peptide potentiated the binding and cytotoxic effect of the corresponding holotoxin. We made a fusion protein between VP22, another membrane-permeant protein, and dtA, and also in this case we detected association with cells in the absence of a cytotoxic effect. The data indicate that transport of dtA into the cell by the TAT-peptide and VP22 is inefficient.


Despite the business risks involved in the introduction of digital video and interactive television, vigorous investments made by the telecommunication industries and content owners clearly demonstrate the belief that such services are going to happen. In this paper, a complete scenario for the provision of interactive multimedia services from the residential user's point of view is considered, focusing on software components. Initially, a reference architecture configuration, based on the DAVIC paradigm, suitable for the provision of residential interactive broadband services is presented. In addition to hardware capabilities, the system will be considered successful only if it is easy to learn, worth the time and cost-effective. Consequently, a set of possible service requirements is introduced and a development process for distributed interactive multimedia applications is proposed. Finally, based on experience gained from the implementation of applications in different residential trials throughout Europe, guidelines and methodologies for user interface design are illustrated.


Since the current transportation sector is the largest consumer of oil, and subsequently responsible for major air pollutants, it is inevitable to use alternative renewable sources of energies for vehicular applications. The hydrogen energy seems to be a promising candidate. To explore the possibility of achieving a solid-state high-capacity storage of hydrogen for onboard applications, we have performed first-principles density functional theoretical calculations of hydrogen storage properties of beryllium oxide clusters (BeO)n (n = 2–8). We observed that a polar BeO bond is responsible for H2 adsorption. The problem of cohesion of beryllium atoms does not arise, as they are an integral part of BeO clusters. The (BeO)n (n = 2–8) adsorbs 8–12 H2 molecules with an adsorption energy in the desirable range of reversible hydrogen storage. The gravimetric density of H2 adsorbed on BeO clusters meets the ultimate 7.5 wt % limit, recommended for onboard practical applications. In conclusion, beryllium oxide clus...


The hard X-ray sky has tremendous potential for future discoveries and is one of the last electromagnetic regimes without a sensitive all-sky survey. A new approach to such a survey is to utilize the Moon as an occulting disk. The Lunar Occultation Observer (LOCO) mission concept, based on this Lunar Occultation Technique (LOT) and incorporating advanced inorganic scintillators as a detection medium, represents a sensitive and cost effective option for NASA's Beyond Einstein Black Hole Finder Probe or a future Explorer-class mission. We present the motivating factors for the LOT, outline developmental details and simulation results, as well as give preliminary estimates for source detection sensitivity.


Peculiarities of the clinical picture of schizophrenia were studied in a group of patients in which less than a half (785) patients had the aggravating fact and in two hereditary-aggravated groups: siblings (109 patients) and parents--children (118 pairs). Prognostic significance of the genetic factor, sex and age was studied as related to peculiarities of the clinical picture of schizophrenia. Hereditary aggravation is shown to be of a decisive importance for schizophrenia prognosis.


'Disintegration' and 'dissolution' of solid drug dosage forms are considered as partial processes of drug liberation. Besides the (apparent) disintegration time that is determined in the official disintegration tester, there is a second (intrinsic) disintegration time which can be deduced from the experimental dissolution data, but shows only limited correlation with the former. Various methods for the graphical resolution of dissolution data and the calculation of the intrinsic disintegration time therefrom are discussed. For the simultaneous determination of disintegration and dissolution, the approved rotating flask method is recommended.


For a holomorphic vector bundle $E$ over a polarised K\"ahler manifold, we establish a direct link between the slope stability of $E$ and the asymptotic behaviour of Donaldson's functional, by defining the Quot-scheme limit of Fubini-Study metrics. In particular, we provide an explicit estimate which proves that Donaldson's functional is coercive on the set of Fubini-Study metrics if $E$ is slope stable, and give a new proof of Hermitian-Einstein metrics implying slope stability.


In the article a mathematical description of interaction of the special-purpose freight wagon wheel and rail is proposed, in so doing a special configuration of the tread contact surface of wheel is under consideration. The results of simulation of vehicle motion using the variant of wheelset with counterflange for non-mainline special-purpose freight wagons are proposed.


A study has been made of the mechanical deformation properties of β-HMX, an important secondary explosive. It is shown that under compressive loading twinning takes place on the (101)-plane. At low loads, this twinning is elastic and usually precedes fracture. Cleavage in β-HMX takes place on the {011}-planes. The fracture surface energy of 0.06 J m-2 has been determined by a micro-indentation technique. This compares with a value of 0.045 J m-2 obtained for the thermodynamic surface energy from contact-angle measurements. The values suggest that there is relatively little energy loss by plastic deformation associated with crack propagation in HMX compared with, for example, the secondary explosives PETN and RDX. Despite this brittleness the twin deformation allows β-HMX to undergo large changes of shape: the significance of this in plastic-bonded explosives is commented on.


INTRODUCTION
Different results have been achieved in the evaluation of antiparasitic drug activity in Mongolian jirds, hamsters, and BALB/c mice infected with Babesia microti. The aims of the present study were to find a preferable method for drug screening and to re-evaluate the activity of several drugs against B. microti.

METHODOLOGY
The activity of 19 drugs on B. microti-infected BALB/c mice was evaluated. The study was built on Peters' four-day suppressive test, and the pathogenicity of the blood from the treated mice was also used as indicator.

RESULTS
The results showed that 15 of the 19 drugs had little or no in vivo effect against B. microti. The inhibitory rates of atovaquone and azithromycin were high at all doses, but the microscopy-negative blood of recovered mice was still infectious. Similar to robenidine hydrochloride at 25 and 50 mg/kg, primaquine at 100 mg/kg had a 100% inhibitory rate. Robenidine hydrochloride achieved a 100% inhibitory rate at 100 mg/kg, and the blood of recovered mice did not result in parasitemia in subpassage experiments. Parasite-negative blood from mice treated with antimalarial drugs (clinically used for babesiosis) still caused parasitemia in subpassage experiments. This suggests that these drugs cannot eradicate the parasites.

CONCLUSIONS
Peters' four-day suppressive test and the pathogenicity of the blood from the treated mice are suitable methods for preliminary investigating possible drugs against B. microti. Considering that robenidine hydrochloride achieved the best activity against B. microti in BALB/c mice in our study, further studies are needed.


Vitrovariations have been tentatively used by plant breeders, but there are relatively few documented examples of variant traits being stabilized through sexual reproduction. Neoformed tomato plants were regenerated after vitroculture of calli inoculated with Pseudomonas solanacearum, the causal agent of bacterial wilt. Surviving resistant calli gave variant plants exhibiting tolerance to bacterial wilt, although the initial tomato lines were susceptible. The first and second selfed generations from these variant plants were experimentally contaminated and tested in plots. They exhibited the same level of field tolerance as the initial regenerated variant plant. There was no segregation among the progeny (see Tables 1 and 2). Several hypotheses are proposed to explain these results. As tomato is an autogamous species (naturally reproduced by selfing), tolerant familles could hopefully be the source of new tomato varieties with sustainable tolerance to bacterial wilt.


This paper examines changes in young women's contraceptive use over nine years in relation to a range of reproductive life events using longitudinal data from the Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health (ALSWH). Little previous research has examined changes in young women's contraceptive use after significant reproductive or health life events. Some research has examined the reasons that women might discontinue contraceptive use in general and there has been some work investigating contraceptive use after the birth of a child and after the termination of a pregnancy. However other events may also cause a woman to re-evaluate her contraception, for example, the diagnosis of an STD, or having an abnormal pap test. The Australian Longitudinal Study on Women's Health is a broad-ranging project which examines relationships between many biological, physiological, social and lifestyle factors and women's physical health, emotional well-being, and use of and satisfaction with health services. Women were selected from the Medicare database which includes all citizens and permanent residents using stratified random sampling, with systematic over-sampling of women from rural and remote areas. This paper presents data from 6716 women who completed a self-report survey in 1996 when they were aged 18-23, and again in 1999, 2002 and 2005. Multinomial analysis is used to explore patterns of contraceptive use before and after events related to pregnancy and birth (pregnancy, live birth, miscarriage and termination of pregnancy) and health (diagnosis with a sexually-transmitted infection and abnormal Pap test) and the factors associated with changes in contraceptive use. The ALSWH provides an exciting opportunity to examine patterns of contraceptive use over time among women of reproductive age.


Purpose

One of the most important issues multinational corporations (MNCs) face in their global operations is expatriate failure. It is estimated that between 10 and 80 percent of expatriates sent on overseas assignments return home early. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the impact of cross-cultural training (CCT) on different facets of expatriate managers' adjustment in Nigeria.

Design/methodology/approach

A sample of 212 western expatriate managers working in Nigeria was surveyed. Respondents were selected from four cities where they had been working for at least one year.

Findings

The main finding of this study was that expatriates' adjustment could be predicted from different types of CCT. The findings of this research confirm the view expressed by researchers over the last two decades that both conventional and specific experimental CCT have positive effect on the facets of cross-cultural adjustment.

Research limitations/implications

Given that the authors did not collect their data over time, the cross-sectional nature of the design limits them from making definitive causal statements. In the future, more resources and efforts could be applied to safeguard larger samples of respondents, thus potentially resulting in better statistical power. A longitudinal approach could be used; such an approach may have generated a richer data source, where different patterns of adjustment could have been identified and compared over time. Data for the study were collected through questionnaire, thus any observed relations might be due in part to common method effects. Since the data were collected from four cities, there may be some concern as to the generalizability of the findings to expatriates working in other cities in Nigeria.

Practical implications

MNCs should pay more attention to CCT and management development. Ineffective CCT and management development have an adverse impact on MNCs' effectiveness. Developing CCT programs could add value to corporations and employees especially employees who are destined for foreign assignments. In addition, developing CCT for expatriates' spouses and children would facilitate adjustment process and may reduce failure rate.

Originality/value

Once corroborated by further studies, this exploratory research may contribute to the understanding of the adjustment of western expatriates in Nigeria. Few, if any, prior studies, have examined CCT and expatriate adjustment in Nigeria.


After polymerization via polycondensation of catechin units in the acetone extract of peanut (arachis hypogaea L.) testa (PTE) using phosphorus oxychloride (POCl3) as a crosslinking agent, POCl3-crosslinked PTE (Crosslinked-PPTE) was functionalized by etherification (PC-PTE) using monochloroacetic acid (MCAA) in the presence of an alkali according to the method of Williamson ether synthesis. Subsequent to characterization by Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopy (FTIR) as well as physical properties, Crosslinked-PPTE was assessed for cation exchange capacity (CEC) and pH at point of zero charge (ZPHC) following demonstrated capacity to remove heavy metal ions in single and multi-elements aqueous solutions by Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (AAS) technique while functionalized (carboxymethylated) Crosslinked-PPTE (PC-PTE) was further characterized by degree of substitution (DS). FTIR absorption bands due to -C-O-P=O, -P=O, P-O-C- and R-O-P-OH stretching vibrations were seen at 1350/1250, 1244/1246, 997/993 cm-1 respectively. Asymmetric and symmetric stretching vibrations of the -C=O of a COOH, Ar-O-C- of an aromatic ether as well as -P-O-C - of an aromatic PO43-, R-P=O of a -PO43-, -R-O-P- and R-O-P-OH of a PO43- ester created by crosslinked and carboxymethylated PTE respectively were seen at 1743, 1377, 1278, 1190, 1062 and 823 cm-1. The results obtained showed that 0.6 was the DS of PC-PTE while 6.72 meq/g and 3.57 defined the CEC and pH (zpc) respectively of Crosslinked-PPTE. Quantitative removal of Fe2+, Ni2+, Pb2+, Cu2+ and Zn2+ in laboratory simulated metal ion wastewater (LSW) to the levels of 84.4, 81.7, 76.5, 72.0 and 75.1% respectively was achieved using Crosslinked-PPTE resin in batch adsorption experiments in which the efficiency was found to depend significantly on the temperature and pH of the water as well as initial adsorbate concentration and contact time but partially on the amount of adsorbent used was observed to be independent of the speed of stirring of the wastewater. Stable, Matakana and fine powder crosslinked-PPTE which is insoluble in water and common laboratory solvents holds great potential in the purification of heavy metal ions polluted water


Objectives: Vascular endothelial growth factor A (VEGF-A) is important in the angiogenic response for wound healing. This study investigated whether VEGF-A may play a role in the pathogenesis of acquired airway stenosis. Methods: Eight lesions from 5 pediatric patients with subglottic stenosis after airway reconstruction (N = 4) or prolonged intubation (N = 1) and normal laryngeal tissue from 5 autopsy patients were included. Formalin-fixed sections of subglottic tissue from each patient were examined by in situ hybridization for the presence of messenger RNA (mRNA) for VEGF-A, vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 1 (VEGFR-1), and vascular endothelial growth factor receptor 2 (VEGFR-2). Results: Strong expression of VEGF-A mRNA was noted in hyperplastic squamous epithelium overlying granulation tissue. Strong expression of VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 was noted in the endothelial cells within granulation tissue. No strong labeling of VEGF-A mRNA or its receptors was noted in 2 specimens with mature scar tissue or in the control specimens. Conclusions: The angiogenic growth factor VEGF-A is strongly expressed in hyperplastic epithelium overlying granulation tissue in airway stenosis. Also, VEGFR-1 and VEGFR-2 mRNAs are strongly expressed in the endothelial cells of granulation tissue. This finding suggests an important role of VEGF-A in the pathogenesis of airway scar formation and stenosis.


The tumor microenvironment (TME) plays an essential role in the development, proliferation, and survival of leukemic blasts in acute myeloid leukemia (AML). Within the bone marrow and peripheral blood, various phenotypically and functionally altered cells in the TME provide critical signals to suppress the anti-tumor immune response, allowing tumor cells to evade elimination. Thus, unraveling the complex interplay between AML and its microenvironment may have important clinical implications and are essential to directing the development of novel targeted therapies. This review summarizes recent advancements in our understanding of the AML TME and its ramifications on current immunotherapeutic strategies. We further review the role of natural products in modulating the TME to enhance response to immunotherapy.


Backgroud: Severe aortic stenosis (SOS) shares risk factors with coronary artery disease (CAD); however its prevalence has not been determined with precision. Objectives: To determine the prevalence of coronary artery disease in patients with severe aortic stenosis, risk factors, and the association between severe aortic stenosis classical symptoms and the presence of coronary artery disease. Design: Cross sectional quantitative observational study. Setting: Cardiology Department, Hospital Nacional Edgardo Rebagliati Martins, EsSalud, Lima, Peru. Participants: Patients with diagnosis of SOS who were catheterized. Interventions: We reviewed clinical charts and angiograms of 92 patients with diagnosis of SOS catheterized between January 2006 and December 2008, determining risk factors for CAD, symptoms and maximal aortic gradient; by using angiography we quantified the number of arteries with significant lesions as well as CAD severity by Gensini's score in a randomized sample of 40 patients. Main outcome measures: CAD risk factors and correlation between CAD severity and maximal aortic gradient. Results: Age of the 92 patients averaged 69,8 years; 68,5% presented at least one risk factor for CAD with 16,3% prevalence. The only factor determining CAD in SOS patients was age (adjusted OR = 1,19; p=0,04). No classical SOS symptom was associated with CAD (p>0,05). There was no correlation between CAD severity –as determined by Gensini's score- and maximal aortic gradient. Conclusions: Prevalence of coronary artery disease was16%; the only one factor associated to coronary artery disease was age and there was no association between any symptom and coronary artery disease.


In this paper, a position regulation control strategy is developed for a platform mounted laser operating in the presence of a bounded, periodic disturbance. Specifically, the proposed control method utilizes an iterative learning estimator that is designed in order to promote system stability and asymptotically regulate the laser's target position to a desired location. The learning estimator requires that the disturbance be bounded and its period to be known. Simulation and experimental results are provided to demonstrate the efficacy of the proposed method.© 2012 ASME


Abstract The prevalence of menometrorrhagia in fertile women is 11.4–13.2% and increases with aging. The presence of metrorrhagia is a relatively common cause of concern among adolescents and their parents, as well as a frequent cause of visits to emergency departments, gynaecologists, and pediatricians. Clomiphene is a selective estrogen receptor modulator (SERM) that increases the production of gonadotropins by inhibiting negative feedback on the hypothalamus. Clomiphene is primarily used in the treatment of female infertility for ovulation induction to reverse oligoovulation or anovulation, as occurs in polycystic ovary syndrome. Objective: The aim of our study was to evaluate the use of clomiphene citrate in ovulation induction, and therefore, in the cessation of bleeding in adolescents with menometrorrhagia in the absence of uterine, ovarian, or systemic pathologies. Design: Cohort study. Materials and methods: The study group was comprised of 50 subjects (age range, 13–16 years) with menometrorrhagia (bleeding >7 days in length with an average blood loss >80 ml). The treatment with clomiphene citrate at a dose of 50 mg/day for 5 days during the attack cycle, and from days 3 to 7 of three subsequent cycles, was offered to the patients. Results: After three cycles of therapy, all patients had resolution of the menometrorrhagia and resumption of ovulatory cycles. No patient reported unwanted side effects. Conclusion: We propose that low-dose clomiphene should be the first step in the treatment of adolescent dysfunctional bleeding (DUB).


Introduction: The threat of Invasive fungal infections has been increasing in the contemporary health care scenarios, with candidal infections being the most common. Candidal bloodstream infections (BSIs) account for one‐fourth of the nosocomial BSIs. Candida albicans once the most common has now been replaced by nonalbicans Candida (NAC), accounting for majority of cases of candidal infections. The knowledge and understanding of specific risk factors, epidemiology, prophylactic measures, and outcomes with relation to speciation are changing rapidly. Emergence of antifungal resistance is a cause of concern. With this background, a retrospective study was undertaken. Aims and Objectives: To isolate Candida spp. from blood cultures of patients with clinically diagnosed or suspected septicemia; to determine incidence of candidemia; to identify and speciate Candida isolates and carry out the antifungal susceptibility test. Materials and Methods: This retrospective study was conducted at the Department of Microbiology, CMC and Hospital, Ludhiana from January 2014 to December 2020. Blood cultures received during this period by BACTEC automated culture system; Becton Dickinson were included in the study. The positive blood culture bottles were cultured on Sabouraud dextrose agar. Recovered Candida isolates were speciated and antifungal susceptibility testing was performed as per Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute guideline (CLSI). Results: A total of 396 out of 52, 066 blood cultures were culture positive for Candida species. Therefore the overall prevalence rate of isolation of Candida species was 0.76% in our study. The incidence of blood stream infection caused by Non albicans Candida species (72.98%) was higher than Candida albicans (27.02%). Among NAC spp. Candida tropicalis (28.28%) was the most common, followed by Candida parapsilosis (18.94%), Candida glabrata (11.87%), Candida krusei (9.09%), and Candida gullermondii (4.30%) and Candida dubliniensis (0.5%). Candida spp. demonstrated higher resistance to azole group of antifungal agents, as compared to amphotericin B. Resistance was significantly higher among NAC spp., Itraconazole, Clotrimazole, Fluconazole, Ketoconazole and Amphotericin B46.37%, 42.21% 39.10%, 34.60%, and 4.15%, respectively. Conclusion: Species-level identification of Candida and their antifungal sensitivity testing should to be performed to achieve better clinical result and to select an appropriate and effective antifungal therapy. High resistance to antifungal agents is an alarming sign to the healthcare professionals.


Gene prioritization based on background knowledge mined from literature has become an important method for the analysis of results from high-throughput experimental assays such as gene expression microarrays, RNAi screens and genomewide association studies. We apply our gene mention identifier, which achieved the best result of over 80% in the BioCreative II text-mining challenge [HPR08], and show how text-mined associations can be complemented using guilt-by-association on high confidence protein interaction networks. First, we predict hand-curated gene-disease relationships in the OMIM database, Entrez Gene summaries and GeneRIFs with 37% success rate. Second, we confirm 24% of novel cell-cycle genes identified in a recent RNAi screen [KPH07] by using text-mining and high confidence protein interactions. Moreover, we show how 71% of GOA cell-cycle annotations can be automatically recovered. Third, we devise a method to rank genes based on novelty, increasing interest, impact, and popularity.


GUI test automation is a major challenge for software testing and test automation. Most of the current GUI test automation tools are partially automated. They require the involvement of the users in several stages of the testing process. This research is about developing a framework and an application for user interface testing with the least user involvement. Fully user interface testing that does not need user supervision is not a practical solution. Users can be involved and are required to test some aspects of the user interface validation. GUI?s code has some characteristics that distinguish it from the rest of the project code. Generating test cases from the GUI code requires different algorithms from those usually applied in test-case generation. We developed several GUI test generation automated algorithms that do not need any user involvement and that ensure code or branch coverage in the generated test cases. The test cases are generated from an XML GUI model or tree that represents the GUI structure. GUI execution and verification is accomplished through simulating the user interactions and then comparing the output of the execution to the input.


1. More than half of all Australian bandicoot species (family Peramelidae) are listed by the IUCN as extinct or threatened and changed fire regimes in arid and semi-arid Australia have been identified as an important agent in their decline. The northern brown bandicoot is currently one of Australia's most common bandicoots, but their continued persistence in the tropical savannas cannot be taken for granted. Previous studies in Kakadu National Park, Northern Territory have shown this species to be prone to sudden declines in abundance, possibly linked to the occurrence of intense fires. 2. Here we examine the impact of four experimental fire management regimes (fire prevention, early dry season burning, late dry season burning and progressive burning several times through the dry season) on survival of the northern brown bandicoot. The analysis is based on capture-mark-recapture data obtained during a landscape-scale fire experiment conducted at Kapalga, in Kakadu National Park from 1989 to 1995. 3. All experimental fire treatments (including total fire exclusion) were associated with decline in survival rates over time, indicating that none of the tested approaches were appropriate for this species. Burning in the late dry season or progressively throughout the dry season produced substantially more severe declines in survival than did early dry season fires or fire exclusion. 4. Fire regime was found to be the most important determinant of bandicoot survival, far exceeding other factors such as gender, age, vegetation type, rainfall and season, all of which had comparatively little influence. The results demonstrate the importance of the frequency and seasonal timing of fires in determining the survival of bandicoots and suggest that spatially uniform and temporally invariant fire regimes are inappropriate for bandicoot conservation in the north Australian savannas.


This paper examines whether firms engage in consistent pattern of management earnings forecast characteristics and which determinants most likely explain the phenomenon. Building on previous literature on guidance characteristics, I develop a measure of consistency considering three attributes: precision, level of disaggregation and additional qualitative information. I classify firm as "consistent" based on persistence of characteristics over time. The paper investigates management earnings forecasts from a cross-sectional perspective and attempts to shed new light on the iterative nature of management earnings forecasts characteristics, which appear to be the least well-understood component of the forecasting activity. Preliminary results suggest that CEO experience, industry competition as well as firm's size contribute to explain the stickiness of forecasts characteristics measured from a level-based perspective. Among the factors responsible of earnings forecasts consistency at the individual characteristic level, firm's size is a common determinant for all characteristics specifications. Consistency in precision is driven by performance. Consistency in disaggregation is determined by litigations risk, uncertainty and analyst coverage, while consistency in additional information depends on the experience accumulated by the CEO and the level of uncertainty in firms' environment.


This paper presents a novel data-driven approach for detecting cracks in reciprocating compressor valves by analyzing vibration data. The main idea is that the time-frequency representation will show typical patterns, depending on the fault state and other variables. The problem of detecting these patterns reliably is solved by taking a detour via two dimensional autocorrelation. This emphasizes the patterns and reduces noise effects, thus identifying appropriate features becomes easier. The features are then classified using well known pattern recognition approaches. The methods performance is validated by analyzing real world measurement data.Copyright © 2012 by ASME


The report evaluates the Scottish Adult Literacy and Numeracy (ALN) Strategy through a survey of a sample of literacy and numeracy learners and ALN tutors within 9 geographical areas in Scotland.


This study investigates influence of newspaper towards the development of students' reading culture in two Nigerian libraries. Descriptive survey design was adopted for this study and the population consisted of students who read newspaper in the serials section of the library. Simple random sampling technique was employed to select a sample size of 200 and questionnaire was the major instrument used for data collection. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics consisting of tables of frequency and percentage. The findings revealed that newspaper were available in both university libraries, majority of the respondents 61(73.5%) and 75(75.0%) from UI and TASUED indicated that guardian and punch newspaper were available in their libraries. Most of the respondents 35(42.2%) from UI and 55(55.0%) from TASUED read newspaper on daily basis, while 33(39.8%) and 24(24.0%) read newspaper occasionally. Lack of personnel in attending to library users, inadequate access to and use of newspapers were some of the challenges encountered by the students. Recommendations were therefore put forward. Keywords: Library, Newspaper, Reading Culture, University.


OBJECTIVES
Mortality rates from breast cancer are approximately 25% higher for women in the northeastern United States than for women in the South or West. This study examined the hypothesis that the elevation is due to decreased survival rather than increased incidence.

METHODS
Data on breast cancer incidence, treatment, and mortality were reviewed.

RESULTS
The elevated mortality in the Northeast is apparent only in older women. For women aged 65 years and older, breast cancer mortality is 26% higher in New England than in the South, while incidence is only 3% higher. Breast cancer mortality for older women by state correlates poorly with incidence (r = 0.28).

CONCLUSIONS
Those seeking to explain the excess breast cancer mortality in the Northeast should assess survival and should examine differences in cancer control practices that affect survival.


We present a framework for the design of a compliant system, i.e., the concurrent design of a compliant mechanism with embedded actuators and sensors. Our methods simultaneously synthesize optimal structural topology and component placement for maximum energy efficiency and adaptive performance, while satisfying various weight and performance constraints. The goal of this research is to lay an algorithmic framework for distributed actuation and sensing within a compliant active structure. Key features of the methodology include (1) the simultaneous optimization of the location, orientation, and size of actuators (and sensors) concurrent with the compliant transmission topology, and (2) the implementation of controllability and observability concepts (both arising from consideration of control) in compliant systems design. The methods used include genetic algorithms, graph searches for connectivity, and multiple load cases implemented with linear finite element analysis. Actuators, modeled as both force generators and structural compliant elements, are included as topology variables in the optimization. The results from the controllability problem are used to motivate and describe the analogous extension to observability for sensing. Results are provided for several studies, including (1) concurrent actuator placement and topology design for a compliant amplifier, (2) a shape-morphing aircraft wing demonstration with three controlled output nodes, and (3) a load-distribution sensing wing structure with internal sensors. Central to this method is the concept of structure/component orthogonality, which refers to the unique system response for each component (actuator or sensor) it contains.


REASONS FOR PERFORMING STUDY
Wounds are one of the primary welfare concerns of working equids and are often related to harness or load-bearing packs.

OBJECTIVES
To identify and quantify factors associated with the presence of pack wounds in donkeys and mules working in the wood trade in the Midelt (Northern High Atlas) region of Morocco, and to compare wounds of these donkeys and mules to those working in other trades.

METHODS
The study population comprised equids working in the Midelt region involved in the wood trade. Comparison populations were comprised of equids working in other trades, in the same region and in Khemmiset region (lowlands of Central Morocco). Wounds were numbered and scored according to their severity. Questionnaires were used to gather data from owners, and objective data regarding the animal, berdaa (back-pack) and load were collected. Data were analysed using multilevel uniand multivariable regression models to allow for clustering of wound sites within an equid.

RESULTS
Analysis showed an overall pack wound prevalence of 54% (n=80/147). The most common site was the withers. Equids working in the wood trade were at increased risk of suffering pack wounds. Equids in the lowland study population were at increased risk of developing pack wounds, and donkeys were at increased risk of suffering pack wounds compared to mules both overall and within the wood trade. Other factors affecting the prevalence of wounds included the cleanliness of the berdaa and the frequency and distances of work imposed on the equid.

CONCLUSION
Pack wounds in donkeys and mules are common in the 2 study regions of Morocco and appear to be associated with work factors including the trade the equids work in, the frequency and distances of work imposed and cleanliness of the pack. Donkeys are more susceptible than mules to developing pack wounds.

POTENTIAL RELEVANCE
These results allow recommendations to be made to owners of equids that may decrease the prevalence of wounds and, therefore, improve welfare and working capability of these equids. Research is required to identify reasons for regional difference in prevalence of pack wounds in equids not working in the wood trade.


This paper presents a model to predict the probability that a lightning flash will lead to a detectable fire. This is done by estimating the probability of the lightning flash having a long-continuing current, the probability of ignition, the probability of survival, and the probability of arrival. Individual probabilities are calculated using the lightning, noon weather, and forest inventory data and combined to predict the number of ignitions, holdovers, and detectable fires within a region. The model was run for six fire seasons in Saskatchewan and predicted results were compared with the actual number of fires for that season. The model successfully predicted the number of fires on 55.7% of the days with a 64.8% detection rate and a false alarm rate of 29.7%. The model was found to be highly sensitive to moisture conditions, resulting in some unusually high predictions under dry conditions.


This paper aims at investigating the current situation of rural development perspective based on knowledge of the human factor in Olt County. The first and most important observation is the repercussions on the demographics of rural population structure and balance in Olt County where it appears on one side of its unevenness, with a trend of diminishing the employment, hence the number of employees. The analysis of agricultural density, represented by the area in hectares / capita reveals the existence of a low level of rural population pressure on agricultural space. On the structure of agricultural branches it was surprised on one hand the annual variation in levels of achievement, but on the other hand the share of services which is insignificant. All this contributes to the low attractiveness of agriculture for young people in the rural county of Olt.


Aggressive fibromatosis (also called desmoid tumor) is a benign, locally invasive, soft tissue tumor composed of cells with mesenchymal characteristics. These tumors are characterized by increased levels of beta-catenin-mediated T-cell factor (TCF)-dependent transcriptional activation. We found that type 1 IFN signaling is activated in human and murine aggressive fibromatosis tumors and that the expression of associated response genes is regulated by beta-catenin. When mice deficient for the type 1 IFN receptor (Ifnar1-/-) were crossed with mice predisposed to developing aggressive fibromatosis tumors (Apc/Apc1638N), a significant decrease in aggressive fibromatosis tumor formation was observed compared with littermate controls, showing a novel role for type 1 IFN signaling in promoting tumor formation. Type 1 IFN activation inhibits cell proliferation but does not alter cell apoptosis or the level of beta-catenin-mediated TCF-dependent transcriptional activation in aggressive fibromatosis cell cultures. Thus, these changes cannot explain our in vivo results. Intriguingly, Ifnar1-/- mice have smaller numbers of mesenchymal progenitor cells compared with littermate controls, and treatment of aggressive fibromatosis cell cultures with IFN increases the proportion of cells that exclude Hoechst dye and sort to the side population, raising the possibility that type 1 IFN signaling regulates the number of precursor cells present that drive aggressive fibromatosis tumor formation and maintenance. This study identified a novel role for IFN type 1 signaling as a positive regulator of neoplasia and suggests that IFN treatment is a less than optimal therapy for this tumor type.


A new combined cw single-frequency dye/Ti:sapphire laser with a ring resonator located in the horizontal plane and improved radiation frequency stability is developed. The short-term radiation linewidth does not exceed 10 kHz for the Ti:sapphire laser and is smaller than 100 kHz for the dye laser. The drift velocity of the emission line does not exceed 25 MHz h-1. The scheme and design of the developed laser are presented which allow convenient switching of the laser between its solid-state and dye configurations.


In this article, the comprehensive evaluation of water resource carrying capacity (for short WRCC) in Shiyang River Basin is the objective. Based on the comprehensive evaluation model of regional WRCC, the spatial and temporal change characteristics of the WRCC in Shiyang River Basin in 2007, 2011 and 2016 have been analyzed. Moreover, the influence elements of water resource carrying capacity in Shiyang River Basin are detected by the geographical detector. The results show that: (1) In terms of the spatial dimension, water resources in Shiyang River Basin are not in accordance with the distribution of social and economic development and population distribution, presenting a prominent contradiction between supply and demand of water resources; (2) in terms of the temporal dimension, the pressure on water resources in Shiyang River Basin has gradually increased, and the area of overload, light overload and serious overload has been augmented; (3) the geographical detector indicates that the influences of the water resources system and coordinating system factors are declining, and the influences of the social economy system and ecological factor are obviously increasing. The influences of the interaction with any two factors are stronger than that of a single factor, and the synergistic influences of two factors are aggravated.


The aim in the study was to examine the proposition that religiosity and the related factor, spirituality, contribute to lower personal distress among students. The sample comprised 624 students: 314 Grade 12 secondary school students and 310 third-year social science university students in South Africa. Results indicate that the majority of the students show a high degree of religious belief and religious involvement. Some religious variables − such as being a born-again Christian and considering religion as important − were associated with decreased perceived stress. Minor psychiatric morbidity as measured with the Self-reporting Questionnaire (SRQ; WHO, 1994) was positively associated with some religious beliefs and involvement, while meaning and direction in life was inversely associated with the SRQ score. All 3 religious coping styles were inversely associated with perceived stress. Contrary to expectations it was found that some of the religious coping styles were positively associated with minor psychiatric morbidity, especially the depression scores of the SRQ. Findings show that some religious variables were positively associated with mental health while others were inversely or not related, thus only partially supporting the religion-mental health link.


Background/Aims: To compile a database on content of individual glucosinolates in food and to describe the dietary intake of individual glucosinolates in a German population. Methods: Studies analysing the content of individual glucosinolates in food were aggregated to form a database of 26 individual glucosinolates in 18 vegetables and condiments consumed in Germany. This database was linked to food intake data derived from 24-hour diet recalls of 2,121 participants of the EPIC-Heidelberg cohort study. Results: Mean total glucosinolate intake (±standard error) was 14.2 (±1.1) mg/day for men and 14.8 (±1.3) mg/day for women. The intake increased with age and education; smokers ingested less glucosinolates than never or former smokers. The quantitatively most important individual glucosinolates were glucobrassicin and sinigrin with mean daily intakes of 3.5 (±0.3) and 1.7 (±0.2) mg/day for men, and 4.2 (±0.4) and 2.5 (±0.4) mg/day for women, respectively. Broccoli, Brussels sprouts and cauliflower contributed most to the total glucosinolate intake in this population. Conclusions: The established database allowed for the first time the estimation of dietary intake of individual glucosinolates. The database can be used for epidemiological research on the role of glucosinolates in health and disease.


A 69-year-old man was admitted to our hospital because of massive hemoptysis. Bronchial arteriography showed no abnormal findings. Bronchoscopic findings revealed a small, reddish elevated lesion on the posterior surface of the left upper lobe bronchus. Since the patient developed massive hemoptysis four times in a month, he underwent ligation and transection of the left bronchial artery, and bronchoplasty. Histopathologically, the resected tissue showed a bronchial arterial aneurysm without any inflammatory changes. We concluded that the aneurysm had developed in a malformed vessel.


has become the fourth leading life-threatening opportunistic infection in patients with AIDS, but also occurs in non-AIDS patients. In view of the increasing numbers of infection during last decade in Iran, use of rapid, sensitive and specific test for diagnosis of cryptococcal disease has become important than ever. We aimed to produce the reagents for latex cryptococcal antigen test. The antigen was prepared from NCPF 3168 strain of Cryptococcus neoformans. Anticapsu- lar antiserum of C. neoformans raised in rabbits and latex carboxylate- modified beads were coated with antiserum. The maximally- reactive globulin dilution was obtained at dilution of 1:400. For evaluation of efficacy of reagents, challenged 38 BALB/C mice and other 38 mice were used as controls. The mice were bled and autopsied. Brain, heart and lung were checked by direct, histopathological and cultural examination for cryptococcosis. The sera from case and control mice were tested with Immunomycologic (Immy) kit and also our produced reagents (OPR) for detection of cryptococcal antigen. Moreover, 15 cerebrospinal fluid and 15 serum samples from patients with cryptococcal meningitis, 30 with aspergillosis, 30 with suspected other fungal infections, and 30 from healthy individuals were tested as well. The results showed that the sensitivity (97.3%) and specificity (100%) of OPR was quite comparable with those of Immy kit . Therefore, it could be regarded as a substitute for commercial kits.


Pine wilt disease was detected in Galicia (North West of Spain) in 2010. Two-year-old seedlings of seven pine species were inoculated with B. xylophilus, and three different groups were stablished: non-susceptible (P. canariensis, P. taeda, P. halepensis, and P. pinea); susceptible (P. pinaster, P. radiata), and highly-susceptible (P. sylvestris). We aimed to determine the interspecific variation of constitutive compounds levels, groups and species, and their relationships with nematode multiplication and mortality. Needles of the non-susceptible group had significantly less water and more nitrogen, potassium, iron, and starch than the others groups; the cortex and phloem of the non-susceptible group had more nitrogen, phosphorus, manganese, and starch, and less potassium, calcium, iron, total polyphenols, condensed tannins and liposoluble substances than the highly susceptible group. The xylem of the non-susceptible group had more N, P, Mg, Mn, total polyphenols, and starch than the other groups. Higher levels of constitutive N and/or starch in any tissue was related with less mortality and nematode multiplication; higher P in the three tissues was also correlated with less nematode multiplication. Moreover, liposoluble substances, soluble carbohydrates and condensed tannin concentration in the needles were negatively correlated with nematode multiplication. On the contrary, in the needles, water content and K were positively correlated with mortality and nematode invasion.