Researchers have made a distinction between disability and its social and psychological consequences, now known as handicap, both conceptually and in terms of intervention. More work is needed in standardizing and refining the assessment of handicap and in highlighting risk factors for its development. Epidemiology has major contributions to make in understanding handicap in both aging and young populations. Data on the prevalence and incidence of handicap are scarce and difficult to obtain. Efforts are needed in the following areas: 1) contributing to the methodology of handicap assessment through the provision of valid and reliable scales; 2) defining and identifying risk factors for handicap formation, which underscores the need for analytic studies in this regard; 3) understanding the dynamics of these factors in the production of disadvantage, which calls for more qualitative and in-depth interviews with persons with handicaps; and 4) formulating critical points of intervention at the personal and community levels for handicap prevention. Such efforts will assist policy-makers in formulating appropriate and acceptable policies for safeguarding the opportunities of people with disabilities, ensuring their optimal participation in society, and enabling them to lead independent and self-sufficient lives. Efforts to evaluate the effect of legislation, both existing and recent, on handicap development are also called for. These efforts may help to reduce the gap between disabled and nondisabled people and improve the quality of life for people with disabilities and their families.


An MRI of the brain and spine of an 11-year-old male revealed the following abnormality which is consistent with his chronic condition.


Generally, a camera isn`t located at the center of display in a tele-presence system and it causes an incorrect eye contact between speakers which reduce the realistic feeling during the conversation. To solve this incorrect eye contact problem, we newly propose an intermediate view reconstruction algorithm using both a color camera and a depth camera and applying for the depth image based rendering (DIBR) algorithm. In the proposed algorithm, an efficient hole filling method using the arithmetic mean value of neighbor pixels and an efficient boundary noise removal method by expanding the edge region of depth image are included. We show that the generated eye-contacted image has good quality through experiments.


The purpose of this study was to parameterize TOF image quality improvement over non-TOF PET using small lesions in a tapering phantom that represents a range of body sizes. A set of 46 1.0-cm spherical inserts was divided into 6 groups and positioned in a fillable, tapered phantom that represents a range of body dimensions (an oval cross section from 38.5 cm × 49.5 cm to 6.8 cm × 17.8 cm with a length of 51.1 cm). The hot spheres were positioned in a uniform warm background (8:1 radioactivity concentration) and were distributed in 6 regions of different cross-sectional areas: 6 spheres at 306 cm2, and 8 spheres at 426, 574, 754, 964, and 1187 cm2. The PET/CT study was acquired on a Discovery 690 PET/CT (GE Healthcare), which uses LYSO crystals (4.25 × 6.3 × 25 mm3) in three rings of 6 × 9 blocks. Six frames, with a different set of spheres centered for each frame, were each acquired. Images were reconstructed with and without TOF information using 3D OSEM with 8 subsets and 1–20 iterations. The 50-cm field of view (FOV) was reconstructed to a 128×128 matrix with attenuation, normalization, decay, scatter, singles-based random corrections, and z-axis smoothing, but no post-filter was applied. An automated algorithm was used to locate and place regions of interest on the hot spheres in the CT, and then apply the ROIs to the PET images to measure signal and background variability (image noise). When both TOF and non-TOF images are near convergence, the ratio of contrast recovery for TOF to non-TOF is ~1.0 for small body sizes, but the CRC increase ranges from 10%–25% for body sizes with diameters >30.0 cm. When comparing the small lesion signal-to-noise ratios between TOF and non-TOF images, the square of the SNR ratios for TOF to non-TOF was a function of body size and timing resolution with an offset of -1.36.


Mathematical expressions are derived for the shape of multiple-beam Fizeau fringes crossing a multi-layer fibre with irregular transverse section. The area enclosed under the interference fringe shifts as it crosses the fibre and represents the optical path difference integrated across the fibre. These expressions lead to the determination of refractive indices and birefringence of polymer fibres.


The efficiency and scalability of early efforts to parallelize molecular dynamics calculations on shared-memory systems using OpenMP have been limited by attempts to avoid data race. Recent work has produced better performance, but involves significant revisions to the serial code. A new algorithm addresses these limitations.


Unprecedented bismuth complexes, based on the rarely used ditopic ligand N-oxide-2,2'-bipyridine (bp2mo), crystallizing as three polymorphs, α- (), β- () and γ-[BiBr3(bp2mo)2] (), exhibit phosphorescence with a quantum yield up to 17% for the crystal phase (), while the complex displays a weak fluorescence in solution. A study of the luminescence properties combined with DFT/TDDFT calculations reveals that the lighting phenomenon originated by aggregation induced phosphorescence correlated with the weak intermolecular interactions present in the different crystal phases.


Streptococci related to Streptococcus sanguis were shown to represent a major segment of the bacterial flora of certain soils. Upon initial isolation, these streptococci were quite pleomorphic and displayed morphological characteristics common to several other genera of bacteria, but after prolonged cultivation on laboratory media the isolates demonstrated a typical streptococcal morphology. It was proposed that a requirement for correction of the control mechanisms affecting growth rate and cell wall synthesis in part might explain the difficulty encountered in isolation of these organisms from soil and their initial pleomorphism and cultural instability. The possible role of these soil organisms as etiological agents of disease and the occurrence of other groups of streptococci in soil were discussed. Images


Background: We investigated whether (1) monocrotaline(MCT)-induced right ventricular (RV) dilatation is associated with re-expression of myocardial tenascin-C (TNC), (2) elevated plasma TNC levels can be used as a marker of ventricular dilatation, and (3) MCT-induced RV dilatation is associated with alterations of other remodeling-related proteins. Methods: Rats were treated with MCT in low dose (30 mg/kg, MCT30, n=10) to induce compensated RV hypertrophy, in high dose (80 mg/kg, MCT80, n=11) to induce RV failure, and with saline as control (CONT, n=9). After 4 weeks, RV function was assessed. TNC gene expression, protein levels, and plasma levels were assayed. Myocardial gene expression of integrin subunit α6 and β1, and myocardial proMMP2 and proMMP9 levels were assessed. Results: TNC gene expression in the RV of MCT80 rats was significantly upregulated compared with RV of CONT (4-fold, p<0.001) and MCT30 rats (3-fold, p<0.01), whereas TNC gene expression was very low in LV and IVS of MCT80 rats, and absent in those of CONT and MCT30 rats. Myocardial TNC protein levels were only observed in MCT80 rats, and were higher in RV (0.62±0.64 ng/mg) than in LV (0.21±0.44 ng/mg) or IVS (0.21±0.09 ng/mg) (p<0.01, RV vs LV and IVS). Plasma levels of TNC were significantly elevated in MCT80 rats compared with CONT (p<0.05). RV volumes correlated positively with TNC plasma levels and RV ejection fraction correlated negatively with TNC plasma levels. MCT-induced RV failure was also associated with a significant downregulation of integrin α6 gene expression (by 48%, p<0.01). Conclusions: MCT-induced RV failure is associated with an upregulation of TNC gene expression, resulting in re-expression of myocardial TNC protein levels, and elevated TNC plasma levels. As RV ejection fraction correlated significantly with TNC plasma levels, TNC plasma levels may serve as a marker of ventricular failure. De-adhesive properties of TNC in combination with a downregulation of integrin α6 may have caused cardiomyocyte slippage, leading to adverse ventricular remodeling.


The study has made an attempt to examine the various dimensions of tax reforms in India since 1991. By using the Economic Survey data of the Government of India for the period of 1990-91 to 2006-07 time series analysis technique has been used to highlight the levels and trends of tax revenue of India, and correlation and multiple regression analysis techniques have been used to examine the effects of the taxes on gross tax revenue of India for the period of 1990-91 to 2006-07. The present study shows that there has been a significant progress in tax reforms in India in the recent years and that has help to enhance the tax-GDP ratio close to the levels that prevailed prior to significant reduction in customs. The tax system has great positive implications for India's economy and the tax reforms would help reduce revenue deficit and lower fiscal deficit. However, the implementation of the tax and fiscal reforms should reduce both the tax evasion and cost compliance that should eliminate most of the distorted behaviour coming from the tax avoidance in India for achieving the targets of implications of the tax reforms in India.


Many traditional medicines are obtained mainly from medicinal plants, minerals and organic matter. During the past many years, there has been increasing interest among the uses of various medicinal plants from the traditional system of medicine for the treatment of different ailments. Coccinia indica is one such important medicinal plant which belongs to the family Cucurbitaceae. It is extensively used as a vegetable and grown widely throughout the Indian Subcontinent. It is commonly called 'Kundra' in India. Traditionally different parts of this plant namely the roots, leaves and fruits are utilized in folklore medicine for several purposes, especially for hypoglycemia and skin diseases. There are many patented formulations derived from Coccinia indica plant. This plant is a primary source from where we get different phytochemicals which are utilized as the main constituent in numerous formulations endorsed for several ailments. Coccinia indica plant possesses many therapeutic activities like antidiabetic, hypolipidemic, hepatoprotective, larvicidal, anti-inflammatory, analgesic and antipyretic activities. The present review provides adequate information, photochemistry and various medicinal uses of Coccinia indica plant.


We studied in pregnant Rat the effect of 1,25-dihydroxycholecalciferol (1,25(OH)2D3) alone or associated with calcitonin on fetal bone resorption measured by organ culture. 1,25(OH)2D3 (0.1 microgram per day) reduced fetal weight and increased fetal bone resorption. Calcitonin (30 mU/hr.) alone had no significant effects but, associated with 1,25(OH)2D3, it protected mother and foetus against the effect of the vitamin D3 metabolite.


This paper evaluates the crop diversification natures in terms of the variations in cropping pattern with respect to land and productive resource distribution. Both the aspects of acreage and production, it is detected that with the time span of last three decades the cropping pattern in West Bengal is progressively lead by paddy both aus and boro, rapeseed and mustard jute, potato. Pulses crop as a total, have lost both in terms of area and productivity in West Bengal. The Technical efficiency (TE), allocative efficiency (AE) and economic efficiency (EE) are evaluated with the help of DEA software under the conjecture of Variable returns to scale and (Table 9.1). The EE scores for crops grown under rainfed condition range from 0.03 in the case of cowpea to 0.85 for Sugarcane. The TE scores for rainfed condition ranged from 0.46 in the case of cowpea to 0.98 in the case of Sugarcane. The EE scores for crops grown under irrigated condition range from 0.10 in the case of red gram and green gram to 0.57 for Paddy. The TE scores for irrigated condition ranged from 0.41 in the case of greengram to 0.97 in the case of paddy.


Predation has been recognized as a major selective force in the evolution of behavioural characteristics of mammals. As a consequence of local predator extinction, prey may lose knowledge about natural predators but usually express behavioural adjustments after return of predators. Human harvest may replace natural predation but prey selection may differ from that of natural predators leading to a change in the behavioural response of prey. We show that hunting success (HS) of re-colonizing wolves (Canis lupus) on moose (Alces alces) in Scandinavia was higher than reported in North America, where moose have been continuously exposed to wolves and grizzly bears. We found no evidence that moose expressed behavioural adjustments that lowered the HS of wolves in territories that had been occupied by wolves for up to 21 years. Moose behaviour towards wolves and humans typically differs in Scandinavia compared to North America. We explain the differences found to be caused by variation in predation pressure by large carnivores and the rate, and mode, of human harvest during the twentieth century.


Multidrug resistance (MDR) remains a serious impediment to successful tumor chemotherapy. Despite considerable efforts to address MDR, limited approaches have been successful in the clinic to date. Here, we have developed pH/redox cascade-sensitive multiscale nanoparticles (DMA-NPs) with size- and charge-changeable properties for the efficient delivery of a non-P-glycoprotein substrate anticancer drug (podophyllotoxin, PPT) to combat MDR. DMA-NPs are composed of a charge-reversible polymer (PEG-PAH-DMA) shell and a redox-sensitive small-sized dendrimeric PPT-prodrug (PAMAM-ss-PPT) core. The PEG-PAH-DMA polymer shell on DMA-NPs maintains a negative charge in a normal environment, which reverts to a positive charge in a mildly acidic tumor environment (pH 6.5), leading to the release of positive PAMAM-ss-PPT via electrostatic repulsion. PAMAM-ss-PPT completely releases PPT under elevated intracellular glutathione (GSH) conditions in tumors. Several properties facilitate the hierarchical transport of DMA-NPs across multiple drug resistance pathological obstacles, including long blood circulation times, significant accumulation in tumors, deep tumor permeation, cancer cell internalization, and rapid and complete drug release. Experimental evaluations, both in vitro and in vivo, collectively indicate that nanomedicines can effectively penetrate xenografted A549 paclitaxel-resistant lung cancer cells and inhibit tumor proliferation with negligible toxicity. The current study presents a novel nanoparticle-based therapeutic strategy aimed at overcoming MDR.


The usage of hypotonic irrigation solution during hysteroscopy and laparoscopy can cause systemic fluid absorption and complications such as hyponatremia, fluid overload, and cerebral edema. Moreover, Trendelenburg position on gynecologic laparoscopy with a long duration can increase intracranial pressure and decrease cerebral perfusion pressure. A woman, 39 years old, suffered from severe hyponatremia and cerebral edema after hysteroscopy myomectomy, laparoscopic salpingectomy, adenomyosis resection, and adhesiolysis procedure. Water for injection was used as an irrigation solution during the procedure, totaling 20 L. The position of the procedure was supine, Trendelenburg, with a procedure duration of 4 h 50 min. A spontaneous respiratory trigger was not found for about 1 h during extubation. We found anisochoric pupil 5/4 mm without direct and indirect light reflex on physical examination. From the laboratory result, the sodium level was 118. Brain CT scan with contrast showed cerebral edema. Sodium correction was given using NaCl 3%, 500 mL/24 h IV drip. Sodium was corrected slowly and cautiously to prevent cerebral pontine myelinolysis. In the ICU, the sodium level was increased to a normal level. But, the light reflex was still absent, and the pupil was anisochoric. Brain MRI showed diffuse cerebral edema.


The authors describe a challenging case of unilateral retinoblastoma in a patient referred for xanthocoria. A 3-year-old boy was referred for unilateral xanthocoria and disordered retinal vasculature, suggestive of Coats disease. Further investigation revealed diffuse subretinal tumor seeding and areas of calcification, consistent with retinoblastoma. Enucleation was performed and histopathology confirmed exophytic retinoblastoma. This case highlights that xanthocoria, although often encountered in patients with Coats disease, can sometimes be associated with retinoblastoma. As such, retinoblastoma should be considered in the differential diagnosis for children with both leukocoria and xanthocoria. [J Pediatr Ophthalmol Strabismus. 2022;59(X):e32-e34.].


Volatile markets, challenging consumer demands, and the technological disruptions resulting from digitization and Industry 4.0 are producing unprecedented rates of change. In response, companies have worked to increase organizational agility, hoping to foster innovation and shorten go-to market cycles. Yet organizational experiences and sociological conditioning often impede true agility. As a result, many of these efforts fall short of their objective to manage the uncertainty generated by change. But another movement—mindfulness—will help companies overcome these challenges.


Eye movements reflect the visual process of humans' perception and cognition. In the field of medical imaging, the diagnosis rendered by radiologists is closely related to their eye movements when reading radiological images. It is beneficial to study the eye movements of radiologists to improve the diagnostic performance. However, existing studies are mainly focused on the radiologists' fixations but rarely on their saccade patterns. Moreover, these studies are almost based on limited datasets. In this paper, we present a quantitative study of the gaze behavior of radiologists from the perspective of saccade patterns on a large-scale dataset. The dataset comprises of the eye-tracking data of 10 expert radiologists reading 196 mammograms. By analyzing the saccade amplitude, direction, and bias of radiologists, we found that radiologists have specific saccade patterns in image reading and the saccade patterns are significantly affected by the different reading phases, working experience, and orientations of the mammograms.


Fucoidan, a natural sulfated polysaccharide found in the extracellular matrix of brown algae, is rich in L-fucose and sulfate. Fucoidan has a variety of biological actions, including anti-oxidative, anti-coagulative, anti-cancer, and antiin ammatory activity. However, the cellular molecular mechanism underlying the anti-inflammatory effects of fucoidan remains poorly understood. Rheumatoid arthritis (RA) is a chronic inflammatory disease that causes synovitis and progressive joint destruction. Interleukin (IL)-1β, one of the important mediators involved in the pathogenesis of RA, is known to activate various intracellular signaling pathways. Therefore, in the present study we investigated the inhibitory effects of fucoidan on IL-1β-induced inflammation in human synovial (SW982) cells. SW982 cells were pretreated with fucoidan (100μg / mL) for 1 h before cotreatment with 5 ng / mL IL-1β plus fucoidan for periods ranging from 20 min to 24 h. Levels of the proin ammatory mediators IL-6, tumor necrosis factor-α, and cyclooxygenase-2 were then determined. We also assayed translocation of nuclear factor (NF)-κB into the nucleus and activation of mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK). Significant increases in the production of proinflammatory mediators were observed from 6 to 24 h of IL-1β treatment. The translocation of NF-κB into the nucleus peaked after approximately 6 h incubation. After 20 min incubation, IL-1β activated c-jun N-terminal kinase and p38 MAPK in SW982 cells. This effect was ameliorated by the coincubation of cells with fucoidan. These results suggest that fucoidan exerts its anti-inflammatory effect by regulating the gene expression of proin ammatory mediators by suppressing the activity of transcription factors and MAPK. Thus, fucoidan may have therapeutic potential for the treatment of RA.


Dissolved methane concentrations in the ocean are close to equilibrium with the atmosphere. Because methane is only sparingly soluble in seawater, measuring it without contamination is challenging for samples collected and processed in the presence of air. Several methods for analyzing dissolved methane are described in the literature, yet none has conducted a thorough assessment of the method yield, contamination issues during collection, transport and storage, and the effect of temperature changes and preservative. Previous extraction methods transfer methane from water to gas by either a "sparge and trap" or a "headspace equilibration" technique. The gas is then analyzed for methane by gas chromatography. Here, we revisit the headspace equilibration technique and describe a simple, inexpensive, and reliable method to measure methane in fresh and seawater, regardless of concentration. Within the range of concentrations typically found in surface seawaters (2‐1000 nmol L‐1), the yield of the method nears 100% of what is expected from solubility calculation following the addition of known amount of methane. In addition to being sensitive (detection limit of 0.1 ppmv, or 0.74 nmol L‐1), this method requires less than 10 min per sample, and does not use highly toxic chemicals. It can be conducted with minimum materials and does not require the use of a gas chromatograph at the collection site. It can therefore be used in various remote working environments and conditions.


High incidence of acute respiratory infections (ARI) in immunocompromised frequently ill children with chronic Epstein–Barr infection forces the prescription of drugs with complex antivirus and immunocorrecting effect. The objective: to study the efficacy of inosine pranobex (Isoprinosine) in treatment of active Epstein–Barr virus infection in frequently ill children. Methods: patients were randomized in group of standard treatment (n = 24) and standard treatment + inosine pranobex 50 mg/kg of body weight divided to 3–4 parts daily (3 courses of 10 days every other 10 days). Primary efficacy criterion was the incidence of ARI episodes during 12 months of observation. Results: the treatment with inosine pranobex resulted in decrease of incidence (4 and 25%) and duration of ARI (5.6 ± 1.2 and 8.8 ± 3.3 days) compared to standard treatment. Besides, inosine pranobex decreased the frequency of lymphoproliferation, arthralgic and cardiac syndromes, favored to rapid elimination of serologic markers of Epstein–Barr virus replication and normalization of blood concentrations of interferon _ and interleukine 4. Side effects of treatment with inosine pranobex were not registered. Conclusion: inosine pranobex is efficient and safe drug in treatment of active form of chronic Epstein–Barr virus infection in frequently ill children. Key words: frequently ill children, Epstein–Barr virus, inosine pranobex, treatment.


We have investigated photon stimulated ion desorption from physisorbed on highly oriented pyrolytic graphite using VUV synchrotron radiation in the energy range 13 - 40 eV. In contrast with gas phase photodissociation measurements, only ions are detected. This result is attributed to the image potential barrier to desorption from the surface and the unequal distribution of kinetic energy amongst the molecular photofragments. The yield of desorbed ions shows a threshold at 20.5 eV and a resonance at 24 eV and appears to be enhanced in the monolayer regime. This behaviour differs significantly from that of the gas phase, and is attributed to selective quenching of excited molecular electronic states on the surface and to chemical reactions between specific molecular dissociated fragments and the substrate.


This chapter examines the history how eye tracking came to stand in
 as a measurement for what people pay attention to. I argue that this
 connection between eye movement and attention is problematic and may
 lead to undesirable developments in the contemporary attention economy
 as it is implemented across digital platforms and smartphone apps in
 the near future—e.g., ads that pause playing when you look away from
 the screen. The chapter traces the emergence of eye tracking technology
 in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries and shows how
 its implementation to measure attention in the mid twentieth century
 cemented its purpose and has driven its development ever since.


The study sought to establish the effect of sustainable supply chain management practices on innovative performance of manufacturing firms in Nigeria. The precise goals were to evaluate how Nigerian manufacturing companies performed in terms of innovation in relation to economic, environmental, and social dimension of sustainability. The Transaction Cost Economics (TCE) Theory and the Stakeholder Theory were both used in the study. The study employed a descriptive survey approach, with three Nigerian manufacturing companies as the target population. The study used a purposeful sampling strategy, and the researcher decided that a sample size of 120 was manageable. A pilot study was conducted to evaluate the validity and reliability of the research instrument prior to the collection of data. A 91% response rate was obtained, and the results were displayed in tables using percentages. The analysis showed that sustainable supply chain management practices had a positive and significant impact on the innovative performance of manufacturing companies in Nigeria, demonstrating that economic, environmental, and social dimension of sustainability all had a significant positive impact on this performance. The research consequently advises manufacturing companies to engage in more sustainable operations so as boost their competitive edge.


Cardiovascular complications associated with 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA, ecstasy) abuse have increasingly been reported. The indirect effect of MDMA mediated by a sustained high level of circulating biogenic amines may contribute to the cardiotoxic effects, but other factors, like the direct toxic effects of MDMA and its metabolites in cardiac cells, remain to be investigated. Thus, the objective of the present in vitro study was to evaluate the potential cardiotoxic effects of MDMA and its major metabolites 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), N-methyl-alpha-methyldopamine (N-Me-alpha-MeDA), and alpha-methyldopamine (alpha-MeDA) using freshly isolated adult rat cardiomyocytes. The cell suspensions were incubated with these compounds in the final concentrations of 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, 0.8, and 1.6 mM for 4 h. alpha-MeDA, N-Me-alpha-MeDA, and their respective aminochromes (oxidation products) were quantified in cell suspensions by HPLC-DAD. The toxic effects were evaluated at hourly intervals for 4 h by measuring the percentage of cells with normal morphology, glutathione (GSH), and glutathione disulfide (GSSG); intracellular Ca(2+), ATP, and ADP; and the cellular activities of glutathione peroxidase, glutathione reductase, and glutathione-S-transferase. No toxic effects were found after exposure of rat cardiomyocytes to MDMA or MDA at any of the tested concentrations for 4 h. In contrast, their catechol metabolites N-Me-alpha-MeDA and alpha-MeDA induced significant toxicity in rat cardiomyocytes. The toxic effects were characterized by a loss of normal cell morphology, which was preceded by a loss of GSH homeostasis due to conjugation of GSH with N-Me-alpha-MeDA and alpha-MeDA, sustained increase of intracellular Ca(2+) levels, ATP depletion, and decreases in the antioxidant enzyme activities. The oxidation of N-Me-alpha-MeDA and alpha-MeDA into the toxic compounds N-methyl-alpha-methyldopaminochrome and alpha-methyldopaminochrome, respectively, was also verified in cell suspensions incubated with these MDMA metabolites. The results obtained in this study provide evidence that the metabolism of MDMA into N-Me-alpha-MeDA and alpha-MeDA is required for the expression of MDMA-induced cardiotoxicity in vitro, being N-Me-alpha-MeDA the most toxic of the studied metabolites.


In a horizontal feedwater heater with a partial length subcooling zone the end plate located at the entrance to the subcooling zone is the only non-welded barrier that prevents the condensing zone steam from entering the subcooling zone. The end plate is usually two or three inches thick and the tube holes in the end plate are drilled to tolerances similar to that of the tubesheet. As the steam from condensing zone tries to enter the subcooling zone it condenses in the tight spaces between the active tube and the tube hole in the end plate forming a liquid barrier that prevents further ingress of steam into the subcooling zone. With usage and wear the gap between the active tube and the tube hole in the end plate increases thereby weakening the liquid barrier. The liquid barrier is completely lost when the tubes are plugged. Steam from condensing zone enters the subcooling zone and disrupts the performance of the subcooling zone, the performance of the feedwater heater and the efficiency of the power plant. This problem is faced by all horizontal feedwater heaters with subcooling zones that are in operation in power plants worldwide.This loss of performance can be eliminated by employing the patent pending Maarky concept of "dual end plate subcooling zone with a water seal". The "dual end plate subcooling zone with water seal" concept comprises of two end plates separated by a short distance. The gap between the two end plates is filled with condensate thereby forming a triple barrier to ingress of condensing zone steam into the subcooling zone. The performance of the subcooling zone and the longevity of the heater are preserved.This paper discusses the design of subcooling zone in present day feedwater heaters, degradation of performance of subcooling zone and the improvements brought about by the patent pending Maarky concept of "dual end plate subcooling zone with water seal".Copyright © 2015 by ASME


Casuarina cunninghamiana specimens were exposed to gamma-radiation doses ranging from 10 4 to 10 8 rad and tested in compression and tension parallel to grain. The percentage values of the irradiated specimens relative to that of the matched control (Y) were determined. The relationship between (Y) and log gamma radiation dose (X) was represented mathematically by the equation: Y = aX b c x . This equation described the change in compressive and tensile strength very well as was detected from the high correlation coefficients. Generally these properties increased slightly at low levels of radiation, reached a maximum, then decreased gradually thereafter. The reduction in tensile strength was more pronounced than in compressive strength. The threshold dose, i.e., the dose beyond which the properties began to decrease, was calculated. This dose ranged from 3.69 x 10 6 to 3.76 x 10 6 rad for compressive strength properties and from 1.51 x 10 6 to 1.70 x 10 6 rad for tensile strength properties. This indicated that irradiated casuarina wood had a greater resistance to compression than to tension.


Long-term steroid therapy is associated with production of a posterior subcapsular cataract (PSC). Five steroid-associated cataractous lenses were studied, using light, scanning, and transmission electron microscopy. Anterior, equatorial, and posterior regions were examined. Findings were compared with five age-matched senile PSCs and five nuclear cataractous lenses with no cortical opacities. The posterior polar region of steroid-associated cataractous lenses consists of (1) a superficial zone of liquefaction and (2) a deep zone of segmentally swollen lens fibers. Nucleated lens fibers are present in posterior cortical regions. Cytoplasm at knob and socket junctions had become lucent and plasma membranes were disappearing, leaving empty spaces. Laminated membranous configurations were seen. Although the same basic histopathologic abnormalities were found in steroid-associated cataracts and in nonsteroid senile PSCs, it is their organization and localization that may be the distinguishing characteristics of the steroid-associated cataract.


H3.3K27M is a newly identified molecular pathology marker in glioma and is especially correlated with the malignancy of diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG). In recent years, accumulating research has revealed that other types of glioma also contain the H3.3K27M mutation. However, the role of H3.3K27M in high-grade adult glioma, which is the most malignant glioma, has not been investigated. In this study, we focused on exploring the expression and function of H3.3K27M in high-grade adult glioma patients. We found that H3.3K27M is partly highly expressed in high-grade glioma tissues. Then, we introduced H3.3K27M into H3.3 wild-type glioma cells, U87 cells and LN229 cells. We found that H3.3K27M did not regulate the growth of glioma in vitro and in vivo; however, the survival of mice with transplanted tumors was significantly reduced. Further investigation revealed that H3.3K27M expression mainly promoted the migration and invasion of glioma cells. Moreover, we certified that H3.3K27M overexpression enhanced the protein levels of ꞵ-catenin and p-ꞵ-catenin, the protein and mRNA levels of ubiquitin-specific protease 1 (USP1), and the protein level of enhancer of zeste homolog 2 (EZH2). Importantly, the ꞵ-catenin inhibitor XAV-939 significantly attenuated the upregulation of the aforementioned proteins. Overall, the H3.3K27M mutation is present in a certain proportion of high-grade glioma patients and facilitates a poor prognosis by promoting the metastasis of glioma by regulating the ꞵ-catenin/USP1/EZH2 pathway.


A method of rehabilitation therapy and development training named "patterning" has been considered. The theories upon which the method is based and the findings which have stemmed from its application have both been analyzed.
 It has been concluded that the data thus far advanced are insufficient to justify affirmative conclusions about the system of treatment. Consideration of the statistics of individual case reports suggest that the changes obtained may reflect normal growth and development occurring independently of the method applied, or the inadvertent consequence of social stimulation and environmental change inherent in, or resulting from, the application of almost any method. We have also noted evidence that is available that justifies questioning the theoretical premises of the method.
 The problem of selecting optimal therapy for patients with brain damage and cerebral dysfunction is complicated by the finding that sensory and motor function are not affected in a uniform and consistent manner by damage to the central nervous system. Lack of understanding of the fundamental mechanisms which integrate sensory and motor activities continues to make the selection of a therapy most difficult. Until we gain a greater understanding of sensory and motor integrative mechanisms, scientific (statistically corroborated) proof is needed before "patterning" or any other method may claim sufficient universal applicability to serve as the sole therapeutic approach to one or more disturbances of intellectual and motor function.


Newborn mouse glomeruli are still immature with a morphological feature of an early capillary loop stage, but infant mice do not manifest proteinuria. Little is known about the molecular mechanism whereby infant mice are resistant to proteinuria. Nephrin and synaptopodin are crucial for slit diaphragm and foot process (FP) formation for avoiding proteinuria. Nephrin tyrosine phosphorylation means a transient biological signaling required for FP repair or extension during nephrotic disease. Using an immunohistochemical technique, we examined the natural course of nephrin, Wilms' tumor-1 (WT1) and synaptopodin at 16.5 days of embryonic age (E16.5d) and E19.5d, 7 days of post-neonatal age (P7d) and P42d during renal development of mice. As a result, nephrin and synaptopodin were detected at E19.5d in S-shaped bodies. WT1, a transcriptional factor for nephrin, was detected in nucleus in podocyte-like cells in all stages. Nephrin tyrosine phosphorylation was evident in glomeruli at P7d, and this was associated with an early-stage of FP extension. Inversely, nephrin phosphorylation became faint at P42d, along with maturated FP. Based on the present results, we suggest the sequential molecular mechanism to protect growing mice from proteinuria: (i) WT1-induced nephrin production by podocytes in S-shaped bodies at E19.5d; (ii) Synchronized induction of synaptopodin at the same period; and (iii) FP extension is initiated at a milk-suckling stage under a nephrin tyrosine-phosphorylated condition, while it is arrested at an adult stage, associated with a loss of nephrin-based signaling.


This article first explains where Argentina fits in the common law-civil law divide of legal families. A proper understanding of the Argentine legal system regarding precedent makes it necessary to next elaborate on the distinction between the horizontal and the vertical dimensions of stare decisis. In a final section I examine the relevance of political interferences for compliance by other courts both in the horizontal and in the vertical dimensions just alluded.


The aim of this retrospective study was to evaluate the frequency of the occurrence of taurodontism in a Turkish population with using panoromic radiographs. A retrospective study was performed using full-mouth periapical and panoramic radiographs of 6912 patients (3860 females and 3052 males) ranging in age from 15 to 50. A total of 97362 posterior (including third molars) were evaluated. A chi-square test was used to determine the difference in the prevalence of tauorodntism between genders. Eighteen patients were found to have a taurodont molar (10 women and 8 men [P = 0.98]). The overall incidence of patients with taurodont molars was 0.26 % and the prevalence of taurodont molars from all teeth examined was 0.024%, and the prevalence taurodonts were significantly more common in the mandibula compared with the maxilla (71.0% cf 29.0% respectively, P < 0.05). It was almost equally distributed between males and females. Taurodontism is not uncommon in Turkish population but further larger scale studies are required to assess its prevalence in the general population to compare it with other ethnic groups.


A simple approach to prepare arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles by using Au-loaded block copolymers as templates combined with a sol-gel process is described. The organic-inorganic hybrid films with closely packed inorganic nanodomains in organic matrix are produced by spin coating the mixtures of polystyrene-block-poly(ethylene oxide) (PS-b-PEO)/HAuCl4 solution and sol-gel precursor solution. After removal of the organic matrix with deep UV irradiation, arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles with different compositions or particle sizes can be easily produced. Different photoluminescence (PL) emission spectra from an organic-inorganic hybrid film and arrays of Au/TiO2 composite nanoparticles indicate that TiO2 and Au components exist as separate state in the initial hybrid film and form composite nanoparticles after the removal of the block copolymer matrix.


INTRODUCTION
Triage is the most important tool for clinical risk management in emergency departments (ED). The timing measurement of its phases is fundamental to establish indicators and standards for the optimization of the system.

OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the duration time of the phases of triage; to evaluate some variables exerting influence on nurses' performance.

METHOD
prospective descriptive study performed in the ED of Careggi Teaching Hospital in Florence.

SAMPLE
14 nurses enrolled by stratified randomization proportion (1/3 of the whole staff ), according to classes of length of service.

RESULTS
Triage processes on 150 adult patients were recorded. The mean age of nurses was 39.7 years (SD ± 5.2, range 29-50); the average length of service was 10.3 years (SD ± 4.4, range 3-18); average of triage experience was 8.6 years (SD ± 4.3, range 2-13). The median time from patient's arrival to the end of the triage process was 04': 04" (range 00':47"- 18':08"); the median duration of triage was 01':11" (range 00':07" -11':27"). The length of service and triage experience did not influence the medians of recorded intervals of time, but there were some limitations due to the low sample size. Interruptions were observed 111 (74%) of triage cases.

CONCLUSION
the recorded triage time intervals were similar to those reported in international literature. Actions are needed to reduce the impact of interruptions on triage process' times.


In current bridge design specifications and evaluation manuals from the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO LRFD) (AASHTO, 2018), the detail category for base metal at the toe of transverse stiffener-to-flange fillet welds and transverse stiffener-to-web fillet welds to the direction of the web and hence, the primary stress) is Category C′. In skewed bridges or various other applications, there is sometimes a need to place the stiffener or a connection plate at an angle that is not at 90 degrees to the web. As the plate is rotated away from being 90 degrees to the web, the effective "length" of the stiffener in the longitudinal direction increases. However, AASHTO is currently silent on how to address the possible effects on fatigue performance for other angles in between these two extremes. This report summarizes an FEA study that was conducted in order to investigate and determine the fatigue category for welded attachments that are placed at angles other than 0 or 90 degrees for various stiffener geometries and thicknesses. Recommendations on how to incorporate the results into the AASHTO LRFD Bridge Design Specifications are included in this report.


The refractive index (RI) of liquids is a key physical property of molecular compounds and materials. In addition to its ubiquitous role in physics, it is also exploited to impart specific optical properties (transparency, opacity, and gloss) to materials and various end-use products. Since few methods exist to accurately estimate this property, we have designed a graph machine model (GMM) capable of predicting the RI of liquid organic compounds containing up to 16 different types of atoms and effective in discriminating between stereoisomers. Using 8267 carefully checked RI values from the literature and the corresponding 2D organic structures, the GMM provides a training root mean square relative error of less than 0.5%, i.e., an RMSE of 0.004 for the estimation of the refractive index of the 8267 compounds. The GMM predictive ability is also compared to that obtained by several fragment-based approaches. Finally, a Docker-based tool is proposed to predict the RI of organic compounds solely from their SMILES code. The GMM developed is easy to apply, as shown by the video tutorials provided on YouTube.


The adaptive integral method is applied to electromagnetic scattering from relatively flat, perfectly conducting surfaces. It is demonstrated that for nearly flat scatterers, as is the case with corrugated geometries and rough surfaces, the memory requirements and complexity of the technique are extremely low. Furthermore, for such geometries the algorithm can be effectively parallelized without excessive effort. Several numerical results are included, proving the accuracy and computational efficiency of the method.


The selection of structural design schemes consists of generation, evaluation and finalization of structural design schemes, and for evaluation of structural design schemes, a hierarchical structure must be es- tablished with all the factors having effect on the attributes of structural designs taken into consideration so that specific values can be worked out using data analysis and expertise as the bases for the decision-making process. The index system, weights and experts' comments used for evaluation of structural design schemes in- volve a lot of fuzzy information, and these fuzzy design information can be efficiently processed using fuzzy set theory and fuzzy inference. A fuzzy inference system (FIS) has been proposed for evaluation of structural design schemes. The construction and inference process is illustrated by the evaluation of high-rise building structural design schemes.


Abstract Over the past decade, there has been a tremendous increase in the development of field AI services in the majority of countries concerned with pig production. The objective of this paper is to review: (a) the current status of swine AI in the world, (b) significance and limitation of AI with liquid and frozen semen, (c) the biological traits of porcine semen in relation to in vitro sperm storage, (d) the criteria used for selection of a boar stud as a semen supplier, (e) how to process boar semen for liquid and frozen storage in the commercial settings and (f) how to improve fertility and prolificacy of boar semen. More than 99% of the inseminations conducted worldwide are made with liquid-stored semen. AI with frozen semen is used only for upgrading the genetic base in a particular country or herd. Determining the initial quality of semen ejaculates along with the selection of the optimum storage extender has a profound effect on the quality and fertility of AI doses. Different procedures have been used for improving the fertility of preserved spermatozoa including colloidal centrifugation of the semen, intrauterine insemination and modulation of the uterine defense mechanism after AI. Development of an efficient protocol for synchronizing the time of ovulation in sows and gilts coupled with improving uterine horn insemination technique will make a breakthrough in the commercial use of frozen boar semen.


Enrique Martinez Celaya's art brings to mind Wittgenstein's observation that "I am not a religious man but I cannot help seeing everything from a religious point of view." This essay explores Martinez Celaya's religious point of view through an in-depth analysis of a single painting, Thing and Deception, which depicts a gigantic chocolate Easter bunny wrapped in a veil with the statement "Needed Proof " inscribed below the image. Thing and Deception incarnates. It incarnates art and it incarnates belief. The power of art relies on the belief that smelly oils, rough canvas, graphite marks, and other banal materials can provide a profound aesthetic experience. Can this image be a vehicle for a profound aesthetic experience? Can a painting of an Easter bunny be a "religious" or a "spiritual" painting? Thing and Deception narrows the gap between belief and unbelief, banal and profound, art and religion, sacred and secular, truth and superstition, revealing each to be two sides of the same precious coin.


The paper deals with the use of formant features in dynamic time warping based speech recognition. These features can be simply visualized and give a new insight into understanding the reasons of speech recognition errors. The formant feature extraction method, based on the singular prediction polynomials, has been applied in recognition of isolated words. However, the speech recognition performance depends on the order of singular prediction polynomials, whether symmetric or antisymmetric singular prediction polynomials are used for recognition and as well on the fact even or odd order of these polynomials is chosen. Also, it is important to know how informative separate formants are, how the speech recognition results depend on other parameters of the recognition system such as: analysis frame length, number of the formants used in recognition, frequency scale used for representation of formant features, and the preemphasis filter parameters. Properly choosing the processing parameters, it is possible to optimize the speech recognition performance.

The aim of our current investigation is to optimize formant feature based isolated word recognition performance by varying processing parameters of the recognition system as well as to find improvements of the recognition system which could make it more robust to white noise. The optimization experiments were carried out using speech records of 111 Lithuanian words. The speech signals were recorded in the conventional room environment (SNR = 30 dB). Then the white noise was generated at a predefined level (65 dB, 60 dB and 55 dB) and added to the test utterances. The recognition performance was evaluated at various noise levels.

The optimization experiments allowed us to improve considerably the performance of the formant feature based speech recognition system and made the system more robust to white noise.


The paper's focus is on the methodology developed in ESOC for the process of experts knowledge capture. The papers first objective is to illustrate the different techniques used for knowledge capture, emphasising the challenges posed by some of these techniques, such as: capturing key content in a limited time, conveying the value of the content, determining the appropriate role for video recording the process, determining what is the most valuable information to be shared, making the information available to the largest number of potential users, determining the extent and frequency of the interviews, encouraging the review of the draft captured materials. The papers second objective is to describe the steps which have been identified for the knowledge capture process: setting expectations and communication rules, structuring and conducting the interviews, preparing the list of questions to encourage the sharing of the tacit knowledge and reviewing the recorded material. Different approaches for the capture of tacit knowledge are investigated as this type of knowledge is the result of human experience and intuition and therefore adaptations of capturing techniques are needed to cope with the different cultural backgrounds of individuals. The different solutions are then negotiated with each interviewee concerning the objectives, the availability, the number of sessions to be performed, the nature and depth of materials to be prepared for further distribution, locations of interviews and many more considerations.


The software industry is growing rapidly and gaining importance all over the world. Nearly all companies and institutions from various industries have software projects to develop new applications and platforms. As required with every project, accurate effort estimation has become a crucial problem for the companies, especially for project managers. Since 1970s different methods and models have been developed for estimating software projects' efforts. The first milestone model was COCOMO, which is a constructive method proposed in the late 1970s. Many different models followed, the most popular and usable models being Function Point and Use Case Point. After 2000s, due to advances in technology, Artificial Neural Networks has gained in importance especially among the problem domains that benefit from data analysis and self-learning. Software development effort estimation also share similar characteristics as there is typically old projects' data on hand that should help foresee new projects' efforts. Therefore, in this paper we build a software estimation model by using neural network methodology. The features for the network were chosen as a result of an extensive survey. The applicability of the methodology is demonstrated via real-life software project data provided by one of the largest banks in Turkey.


This paper analyses the types of social capital present in the Capeverdean associational movement of the Greater Lisbon Area (GLA) and its rela- tion to political involvement and mobilization. The notion of social capital («fea- tures of social organization such as networks, norms and social trust that facilitate coordination and co-operation for mutual benefit» - Putnam, 1993: 26) is explored in its two basic components - bonding (internal links of individuals and institutions) and bridging social capital (external connections, that also entail the long distance relations with the other diaspora nuclei) -, following the research principles expressed in the work of Fennema and Tillie (2000, 2001). The research goals are achieved through interviews and questionnaires to the major Capeverdean associations of Lisbon, Amadora and Oeiras, focusing on its orga- nizational structure and on the density of their organizational network, that is the web of inter and intra-organizational relations and transnational links that might be read as forms of bridging and bonding social capital. We also focussed on the politi- cal activities of organisations, looking at ethnic civic engagement and exploring the extent to which social trust in the form of social capital is converted into political involvement. Major results show that associations of Oeiras and Amadora are mainly grass- roots based organisations that privilege neighbourhood-bonding ties, whereas Lisbon's associations assume a structural/"umbrella-like" role in the institutional Capeverdean fabric. In addition, the density of institutional relations is much higher at the inter- nal level (with other Capeverdean organisations) than at the external level. The excep- tion concerns the relevance of the international links with other Capeverdean asso- ciations. Finally, the findings show that associations with higher social capital that is with the densest network of organizational relations are also those that participate more actively in political activities.


The CD4 molecule plays a key role in the development and activation of helper T cells. Dimerization and oligomerization is often a necessary step in the function of several cell surface receptors. Herein, we provide direct biochemical evidence confirming the presence of CD4 as dimers in transfected cells from hemopoetic and fibroblastic origin as well as in primary T cells. Such dimers are also observed with murine CD4 confirming selective pressure during evolution to maintain such a structure. Using a series of point mutations, we have precisely mapped the dimerization site at residues K318 and Q344 within the fourth extracellular domain of CD4. These residues are highly conserved and their mutation results in interference with dimer formation. More importantly, we demonstrate that dimer formation is essential for the coligand and coreceptor functions of CD4 in T cell activation. These data strongly suggest that CD4 dimerization is necessary for helper T cell function.


Stapling devices have been introduced for safety and to reduce the overall operative time in many surgical procedures. In hepatobiliary surgery, i.e. liver resection, several types of staplers are in use. While transection of hepatic vessels with vascular staplers is well established, their use in dissecting hepatic parenchyma has only been assessed recently. Its advantages were especially a low rate of biliary complications (i.e., bile fistulas, bilioma) and reduced bleeding. As expected, the operative time was decreased dramatically while both the complication rate in general and the overall costs for stapler hepatectomy were comparable with other techniques used in high-volume centers. Thus, endo-GIA vascular staplers can be safely used to dissect the hepatic parenchyma in a routine clinical setting with low incidence of surgical complications.


Supplemental Digital Content is available in the text Objective: To measure associations between participation in community-based microfinance groups, retention in HIV care, and death among people with HIV (PWH) in low-resource settings. Design and methods: We prospectively analyzed data from 3609 patients enrolled in an HIV care program in western Kenya. HIV patients who were eligible and chose to participate in a Group Integrated Savings for Health Empowerment (GISHE) microfinance group were matched 1 : 2 on age, sex, year of enrollment in HIV care, and location of initial HIV clinic visit to patients not participating in GISHE. Follow-up data were abstracted from medical records from January 2018 through February 2020. Logistic regression analysis examined associations between GISHE participation and two outcomes: retention in HIV care (i.e. >1 HIV care visit attended within 6 months prior to the end of follow-up) and death. Socioeconomic factors associated with HIV outcomes were included in adjusted models. Results: The study population was majority women (78.3%) with a median age of 37.4 years. Microfinance group participants were more likely to be retained in care relative to HIV patients not participating in a microfinance group [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 1.31, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.01–1.71; P = 0.046]. Participation in group microfinance was associated with a reduced odds of death during the follow-up period (aOR = 0.57, 95% CI 0.28–1.09; P = 0.105). Conclusion: Participation in group-based microfinance appears to be associated with better HIV treatment outcomes. A randomized trial is needed to assess whether microfinance groups can improve clinical and socioeconomic outcomes among PWH in similar settings.


Alpha-interferon (alpha-IFN) therapy may induce, reveal or exacerbate various autoimmune-related disorders. The most common is the development of autoantibodies, while clinically overt autoimmune diseases are rare. We describe a 49-year-old woman who developed seronegative rheumatoid-like arthritis and autoimmune hypothyroidism after 7 months of human lymphoblastoid alpha-IFN therapy given for hepatitis C virus-related chronic active hepatitis (CAH-HCV). There was no family or personal history of autoimmune, thyroid or articular diseases. Our patient required continuous therapy for arthritis and hypothyroidism despite discontinuation of alpha-IFN. This suggests that alpha-IFN therapy may induce the contemporary appearance of two different persistent autoimmune-related diseases in the same patient. However, chronic HCV infection may play an important adjuvant role in the development of these diseases.


Curcumin is a bioactive constituent isolated from turmeric that has historically been used as a seasoning, pigment, and herbal medicine in food. Recently, it has become one of the most commonly studied nutraceuticals in the pharmaceutical, supplement, and food areas because of its myriad of potential health benefits. For instance, it is claimed to exhibit antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, antimicrobial, antiparasite, and anticancer activities when ingested as a drug, supplement, or food. Toxicity studies suggest that it is safe to consume, even at relatively high levels. Its broad-spectrum biological activities and low toxicity have meant that it has been widely explored as a nutraceutical ingredient for application in functional foods. However, there are several hurdles that formulators must overcome when incorporating curcumin into commercial products, such as its low water solubility (especially under acidic and neutral conditions), chemical instability (especially under neutral and alkaline conditions), rapid metabolism by enzymes in the human body, and limited bioavailability. As a result, only a small fraction of ingested curcumin is actually absorbed into the bloodstream. These hurdles can be at least partially overcome by using encapsulation technologies, which involve trapping the curcumin within small particles. Some of the most commonly used edible microparticles or nanoparticles utilized for this purpose are micelles, liposomes, emulsions, solid lipid particles, and biopolymer particles. Each of these encapsulation technologies has its own benefits and limitations for particular product applications and it is important to select the most appropriate one.


On 15 February 2013 around 03:20:00 UTC, the largest meteor reported since the 1908 Tunguska event was observed as a fireball traveling through the Earth's atmosphere, exploding in an air burst near the city of Chelyabinsk, Russia. The rarity of such an event provides a unique window on the physics of meteoroid collision. We report the fine seismic detection of Rayleigh waves produced by the coupling of ground motion with the incident shock wave at distances up to 4000 km from the event. Combining information from seismic beam‐forming analysis, reconstructed trajectory from casual video records, and remote sensing, we identify the Rayleigh waves as being initiated by the shock wave produced by the main blast that occasioned damages and injuries in Chelyabinsk. From the Rayleigh wave observations, we report a magnitude Ms∼3.7 seismic source.


Recent satellite missions have provided and continue to provide us with vast amounts of data on radiation measurements that generally present themselves as superpositions of various cosmological sources, most importantly cosmic microwave background (CMB) radiation and other galactic and extragalactic sources. We would like to obtain the estimates of these sources separately since they carry vital information of cosmological significance about our Universe. Although initial attempts to obtain sources have utilized blind estimation techniques, the presence of important astrophysical prior information and the demanding nature of the problem makes the use of informed techniques possible and indispensable. In this article, our objective is to present a formulation of the problem in Bayesian framework for the signal processing community and to provide a panorama of Bayesian source separation techniques for the estimation of cosmological components from the observation mixtures.


BACKGROUND
Presbyacusis is the most common type of hearing loss, often having profound effects on the quality of life in old age. The objectives of this study were: To analyse of the effect of demographic factors on presbyacusis in Sri Lanka.To quantify the effect of non-demographic risk factors on presbyacusis.

METHOD
An observational cross-sectional study was carried out involving all the patients who presented to the National Hospital ENT clinic with hearing loss between April 2007 and April 2010. Patients whose pure-tone audiometry results were suggestive of sensorineural hearing deficit and whose tympanometry testing did not show any middle ear problems were assessed using an interviewer-administered questionnaire.

RESULTS
Among the 567 participants studied, the mean age was 63.4yrs. Fifty eight percent were females. The majority of the patients were from the Colombo district (59.3%), however, participants came from ten districts of Sri Lanka. Most of the study participants (64.2%) were married and living with their partners, but 24.7% were widowed and the rest were either unmarried or divorced. 6.1% had communication difficulties leading to disrupted social relationships and 21% felt that hearing impairment (HI) had adversely affected their psychological well-being. The onset of impaired hearing, as perceived by the patients initially and later confirmed by pure-tone audiometry and tymanometry, had occurred at an average age of 62.9yrs.

CONCLUSION
There was no significant association between presbyacusis and other demographic factors such as gender, education level and marital status. A significant proportion of the participants had been widowed and that fact, too, can reduce their quality of life.


The announcement of the cancer diagnosis, an important moment in the set up of the doctor/patient relationship, must come together, if possible, with a quality of communication. This announcement is never insignificant, often traumatic both for the one who receives it and sometimes for the person who provides it. It must observe some rules of temporality, in its enunciation and take into account the psychological defences of patient's mechanisms. More accessible, but also more complex medical information is supposed to be more transparent, taking into account the wishes of patients considered as full actors of their health. As such, the announcement of bad news is in a relationship of care, trust represents the start of a full therapeutic act. One of the challenges of the diagnosis announcement remains the education of patients and physicians to encourage better adaptation to the disease and its treatments. This education can only take place in a pluridisciplinarity in order to optimize care. The diagnosis announcement must continuously oscillate between fair distance and proximity while respecting the autonomy, dignity and freedom of patient's choice. The respect of ethical principles will prevent incomprehension phenomena and seal the pact of trust between doctors and patients.


The kinetics of the chiral phase transition is studied within a linear quark-meson-σ model, using a Monte-Carlo approach to semiclassical particle-field dynamics. The meson fields are described on the mean-field level and quarks and antiquarks as ensembles of test particles. Collisions between quarks and antiquarks as well as the annihilation to σ mesons and the decay of σ mesons is treated, using the corresponding transition-matrix elements from the underlying quantum field theory, obeying strictly the rule of detailed balance and energy-momentum conservation. The approach allows to study fluctuations without making ad hoc assumptions concerning the statistical nature of the random process as necessary in Langevin-Fokker-Planck frameworks.


The calpain system originally comprised three molecules: two Ca2+-dependent proteases, mu-calpain and m-calpain, and a third polypeptide, calpastatin, whose only known function is to inhibit the two calpains. Both mu- and m-calpain are heterodimers containing an identical 28-kDa subunit and an 80-kDa subunit that shares 55-65% sequence homology between the two proteases. The crystallographic structure of m-calpain reveals six "domains" in the 80-kDa subunit: 1). a 19-amino acid NH2-terminal sequence; 2). and 3). two domains that constitute the active site, IIa and IIb; 4). domain III; 5). an 18-amino acid extended sequence linking domain III to domain IV; and 6). domain IV, which resembles the penta EF-hand family of polypeptides. The single calpastatin gene can produce eight or more calpastatin polypeptides ranging from 17 to 85 kDa by use of different promoters and alternative splicing events. The physiological significance of these different calpastatins is unclear, although all bind to three different places on the calpain molecule; binding to at least two of the sites is Ca2+ dependent. Since 1989, cDNA cloning has identified 12 additional mRNAs in mammals that encode polypeptides homologous to domains IIa and IIb of the 80-kDa subunit of mu- and m-calpain, and calpain-like mRNAs have been identified in other organisms. The molecules encoded by these mRNAs have not been isolated, so little is known about their properties. How calpain activity is regulated in cells is still unclear, but the calpains ostensibly participate in a variety of cellular processes including remodeling of cytoskeletal/membrane attachments, different signal transduction pathways, and apoptosis. Deregulated calpain activity following loss of Ca2+ homeostasis results in tissue damage in response to events such as myocardial infarcts, stroke, and brain trauma.


Summary Studies of the popularity of Hallyu concentrate almost exclusively upon Northeast Asian nations, disregarding their popularity within Southeast Asia, an area still defined as 'Asian' yet often ignored in favor of the more economically prominent East Asian nations. This article attempts to expand discussions of Hallyu through an analysis of the reception of South Korean television dramas among different consumers in Thailand. It draws upon evidence gathered from qualitative interviews with Thai fans to illustrate how diverse consumers use these foreign products as a means to assess and critique their own position within contemporary Thailand and actively engage with changing constructions of Koreanness, Thainess and Asianness as a means to do so.


The development of cyberspace law poses a challenge to the traditional borders of law. The increase of activities and business deals on the internet has awakened the interest of lawyers, civil servants, businessmen, and scholars regarding the manner on how to determine internet jurisdiction. The goal of this paper is to establish the criteria for determining jurisdiction that are being used by courts when they have to resolve cases on the internet. The paper analyses academic literature and selected cases in the US, Europe, Colombia, and the world with qualitative and inductive method, using primary and secondary sources, documentary review, and direct observation techniques. The conclusions are that: 1) Differences between common or civil law systems seem to be disappearing when new rules emerge to establish jurisdiction on the internet; 2) An alternative use of both new online and traditional offline rules is observed in resolving cases by the courts, especially in the US; 3) International cases suggest that courts have applied traditional rules rather than online rules like the Zippo test, Calder tests, or the mere accessibility among others; 4) European (Germany, Netherlands) and the Colombian cases show that they prefer use offline criteria, although we can find some online rules.


Through flow cytometry cells are investigated by optical, electrical and electronic components. On a rate of several hundred cells per second, quantitative multiparametric cells studies are realized on a cell by cell basis. Cells in monodisperse suspension are drawn by a stream of fluid which aligns them before their interception by a beam of light, generally produced by Laser. The generated optical signals (diffused lights and emitted fluorescences), related to biological properties of the cells, are conveyed to photomultipliers which transform light energy into electric currents. The signals are quantified by electronic and processing components which can drive cell sorting. Flow cytometry is playing an increasingly significant role in the practice of the clinical laboratory in several areas i.e. oncology (DNA content measurement) or immunology (lymphocytes phenotyping).


An automatic weather station (AWS) or data collection platform (DCP) is a rugged, environmentally qualified system of sensors, computers and communication equipment, which automatically and continuously measures real time surface weather conditions and three times hourly sends the observed meteorological parameters to the central station through a satellite link in a self-timed pseudo random manner in its prescribed 10 minute time slot within the 60 minutes before the next observation takes place. Loss of AWS data is due to the collision of data bursts transmitted simultaneously by any two or more AWS. Generally, the collision of AWS data bursts depends upon the transmission time or transmission baud rate, number of AWS in a network, and total number of bits in the AWS data burst. This paper describes the influence of data burst collisions on pseudo random burst sequence (PRBS) transmission through satellite.


244Pu has recently been discovered in deep-sea deposits spanning the past 10 Myr, a period that includes two 60Fe pulses from nearby supernovae. 244Pu is among the heaviest r-process products, and we consider whether it was created in supernovae, which is disfavored by nucleosynthesis simulations, or in an earlier kilonova event that seeded the nearby interstellar medium with 244Pu that was subsequently swept up by the supernova debris. We discuss how these possibilities can be probed by measuring 244Pu and other r-process radioisotopes such as 129I and 182Hf, both in lunar regolith samples returned to Earth by missions such as Chang'e and Artemis, and in deep-sea deposits.


Introduction Metabolic Syndrome (MS) is a construct relating to a series of metabolic dysfunctions attributable to insulin resistance and obesity. Here, we estimate the incidence of MS according to their individual components using a Mexican open-population cohort. Methods We evaluated data of 6144 Mexicans amongst whom 3340 did not have MS either by IDF or ATP-III definitions using data from an open-population cohort. We estimated the incidence of MS and each of its traits after a median follow-up of 2.24 (IQR 2.05–2.58) years and evaluated risk factors for MS incidence and each of its traits. We also explored individuals without any MS trait to evaluate trait and MS incidence after follow-up. Results We observed a high incidence of MS-IDF (115.11 cases per 1000 person-years, 95% CI 107.76–122.47), followed by MS-ATP-III (75.77 cases per 1000 person-years, 95% CI). The MS traits with the highest incidence were low HDL-C and abdominal obesity, which was consistent for subjects without MS and those without any MS trait. When assessing predictors of MS incidence, obesity, insulin resistance, and increased apolipoprotein B levels predicted MS incidence. Weight loss >5% of body weight and physical activity were the main protective factors. Obesity was a main determinant for incident MS traits in our population, with weight loss being also a protective factor for most MS traits. Conclusion We observed a high incidence of MS in apparently healthy Mexican adults. Low HDL-C and abdominal obesity were the most frequent incident MS traits, with obesity being the main determinant of its incidence.


Factors causing a low soybean productivity in Indonesia among the others is the inoptimum availability of nutrients. Report had indicated that the N, P, and K nutrients balance in soybean production centers of lowlands tend to be negative, caused by inbalance fertilization practices and habit of the farmers to take the entire crop harvest off the land. It was estimated that deficit at 45 to 50 kg N, 0 to 4 kg of P, and 0 to 30 kg K/ha happened when rice was harvested, crop yielded 6 t/ha in low land. From an average soybean yields of 1 t/ha, it took nutrient off the land of about 70 kg N, 7 kg P, and 43 kg K/ha. There is an indication the occurance of the hidden hunger symptoms of N and P in some farmers' lands. Fertilization of N and P had increased grain yield, but the increase was not high enough to convince farmers. For that reason, usually N and P fertilization was not applied. Farmers also choose not to fertilize the soybean crop, because it is not profitable. The policy of not recommending fertilization on to the hidden hunger lands needs to be revised, because in the long run it will not beneficial for the sustainability of the soil fertility and productive farming. The principle of optimization of N, P, and K fertilization is to apply fertilizers as much as plants' need to reach the targeted yield and to conserve the nutrient status in the soil. Thus, it could result in soybean yield increases and maintains soil fertility. The recommendation of N, P, and K optimization on soybean plants can be performed: 1) based on the analysis of the status of N, P, and K soil, 2) optimization of fertilization of N, P, and K based on the agronomic efficiency of N, P, and K.


The protective role of vitamin E against free-radical-mediated oxidations is discussed. In spite of the presence of vitamin E in cell membranes, as structural complex with polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) of phospholipids, the question arises whether high PUFA containing diets, producing high deposition of PUFA in the tissues, can nevertheless lead to peroxidations in the body. It has been suggested that large amounts of dietary PUFA increase the requirement for vitamin E and deplete its tissue stores, particularly when PUFA are discontinued in the diet, also because of their longer half-life time than tocopherols. However, in physiological conditions, linoleic acid up to 10% of caloric intake seems to have no effects on vitamin E requirement. In contrast, in essential fatty acid (EFA) deficient animals, also the addition of small amounts of dietary EFA, by resulting in a proportional increase in PUFA content of membrane structural lipids, is associated with an increased need for vitamin E. This becomes particularly important in the case of dietary fish oils or other poorly protected fats.


In Nepal, the value and price of land in urban areas is very high. Due to the scale constraint, the cadastral maps prepared by graphical cadastral surveying method does not satisfy the land owners as they are asking for the accuracy of centimeter of land in the front face of their land parcel. The land owners are also asking for the recording and documentation of 3D real estate objects. Considering these facts, Cadastral Survey Branch under Survey Department has initiated digital cadastre program focusing on the urban land areas. Last year, the piloting of this program has been successfully completed to prepare digital cadastral database in ward number six of Banepa Municipality, Nepal. After the success of digital cadastral mapping, the programme has been continued and some observations are made. Some lessons have been learned from this programme for the cadastral information system (CIS) development in Nepal. There are various ways to evaluate the cadastral projects. In this paper an attempt has been done to evaluate the digital cadastre programme from Cadastre 2014 perspectives.


The democratic system based on political consultation and the people's congress in PRC belongs to the category of indirect democracy, in which the key is to guarantee those in power represent the public's interests. The Cultural Revolution was an attempt for this purpose and gave Chinese people a chance to experience some practices of mass democracy, including the democratic supervision in the form of mass criticism, the democratic governance in the form of rebellion and usurping, and the democratic participation in the form of Trinity. However, the Culture Revolution became a national disaster. With lessons learned, the Chinese leadership recognized the importance of the rule of law.


OBJECTIVE
. To assess the prevalence of HER-2/neu testing in a community-based health care system shortly after the approval of several laboratory kits for HER-2/neu testing for diagnostic purposes by the US Food and Drug Administration and to discern the best discriminating variables for inclusion of the test in the diagnostic workup of breast cancer patients.

DESIGN
A retrospective cross-sectional study was designed to analyze data for the period beginning 1 January 1999 and ending 31 December 2000.

SETTING
Henry Ford Health System, the largest health care system in southeastern Michigan, is a comprehensive, self-contained system.

STUDY PARTICIPANTS
Four hundred and fifty-one women diagnosed with primary invasive breast cancers were consecutively sampled from the tumor registry of the Henry Ford Health System.

RESULTS
The proportion of women tested for HER-2/neu increased by 2-fold during year 2 of the observation. Absence of estrogen receptors (OR = 1.96, 95% CI 1.15-3.21), physicians with specialty in surgery (OR = 6.21, 95% CI 2.88-13.33, P = 0.0001), and having a capitated insurance (OR = 1.59, 95% CI 1.06-2.44, P = 0.027) were associated with HER-2/neu testing.

CONCLUSION
Absence of estrogen receptors was the only pathological characteristic associated with HER-2/neu testing. The effect of specialization in surgery on the increased likelihood of HER-2/neu testing can be explained mostly by the 'patient volume effect'. The observed disparity in the delivery of innovative diagnostic approaches to cancer patients was influenced by the type of health insurance. Implementation of institutional policies can improve in providing universal quality of care for all patients regardless of their health insurance.


Sustainable Certificate of PT Diamond Raya Timber: Asset or Liability?Several environmental non-government organizations and green parties pursue various strategies to promote sustainable management of forest resource. Due to the increasing environment awareness of some segments of timber users, they have established a certification body and developed a set of criteria and indicators, against which the performance of participating forest companies will be assessed. Early experiences in Indonesia showed that certification received warm welcome from several forest companies, as there is no question that they saw the attraction of being certified. However, it appears that their enthusiasm was dampened by the experience of a certified company. Certification might have been seen as more of a liability than an asset as the economic benefits from market access became less clear, while the costs became more apparent. The use of rigid standards might result in "negative" responses from forest companies. More proactive approaches might encourage the companies to join certification.


Neutrinos produced in the atmosphere by the interactions of cosmic rays, a background to the detection of an astrophysical neutrino signal, have also been one of the several ways to reveal the massive nature of neutrinos. In recent years, it has been realised that in the few-GeV range, this flux also holds a key to resolve a fundamental question of particle physics: that of the neutrino mass hierarchy, i.e. whether the mass eigenstate n3 is heavier (normal hierarchy) or lighter (inverted hierarchy) than the n1 and n2 states. The influence of the mass hierarchy on neutrino oscillations in matter leaves its imprint on the atmospheric neutrino flux via the characteristic appearance/disappearance patterns of different neutrino types as a function of energy and path through the Earth. ORCA - Oscillations Research with Cosmics in the Abyss -, of the KM3NET research infrastructure, will be a dense underwater telescope, optimised for studying the interactions of neutrinos in seawater at low energies. To be deployed at the French KM3NET site, ORCA's multi-PMT optical modules will take advantage of the excellent optical properties of deep seawater to accurately reconstruct both cascade and track events with a few GeV of energy. This contribution reviews these methods and technology, and compares ORCA's power for not only determining the neutrino mass hierarchy, but placing new constraints on other key parameters such as q23.


Abstract The mechanism by which secondary porosity in sandstone reservoirs is produced is poorly understood. Previous hypotheses to account for the increased dissolution of framework silicates have invoked the introduction of acidic and/or organic-rich fluids capable of complexing metals. In order to evaluate the relative effects of these factors, the rates of K-feldspar dissolution have been measured at 70°C and 95°C, at pH values of 1, 4, and 9, with and without oxalic acid, at a total pressure of 50 MPa, using direct sampling autoclaves. The presence of oxalic acid increased the dissolution rate of Kfeldspar at pH 4 and 9, but decreased the rate at pH 1 at both temperatures. The maximum increase in dissolution rate was observed at pH 4, 95°C by a factor ∼4. In oxalic-free experiments, the rate of dissolution increased an order of magnitude with each unit decrease in pH in the pH regime 1–4. In the presence of oxalic acid, this dependency of dissolution upon pH decreased to approximately an order of magnitude increase with each decrease in pH by 2pH units. The dissolution process was observed to be stoichiometric under all conditions, indicating that the mechanism by which rates are increased was not due to preferential complexation of aluminium, but rather by an increase in the overall solubility of feldspar in the neutral pH region. This regime of increased rate of reaction of feldspar coincides with that expected to be naturally buffered by the introduction of organic acids into a sandstone reservoir system.


The creation of a web-based information system at the North Jakarta Sunter branch of Kumon tutoring is intended to improve service quality and quality in the implementation of teaching and learning activities. Based on this, this study will develop a web-based information system that includes an interface design, namely the main page, login, subjects, schedule of subjects, and grades. Making this system an effort to optimize service performance to students. Keywords: Web Design Application, Design and Implementation Application Information Systems


Abstract Objectives: Venlafaxine is an antidepressant, categorized as a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI) with suspected metabolic side effects. The aim of our study was to assess these metabolic effects in rats, using two different doses of venlafaxine. Materials: Three groups of Wistar rats have been treated with venlafaxine during seven weeks. The rats have received a daily dose of 10mg/kg (D1) and 40 mg/kg (D2) while the control group (Dc) has received no treatment. Rats were given "ad libitum" access to food and water. The rats were weighted at treatment day 0, 7, 14, 21, 28, 35, 42 and 49. After completion of venlafaxine treatment, the rats were sacrificed, blood was harvested and the following biochemical parameters have been determined from the centrifuged plasma: triglycerides, glucose and total cholesterol levels. Results: Both the 10 mg/kg and the 40 mg/kg dose venlafaxine therapy resulted in a highly significant increase of rat's weight. Compared with the control group the mean weight of D1 group has increased with 130.5 ±21.79 g (<0.01) while the mean weight of the second group increased with 94±24.16 g (p<0.01). In addition weight gain of D1 group was significantly higher than that of D2 group (p<0.01). Venlafaxine therapy induced significant increase in serum triglyceride levels (140.04±55.46 mg/dL p<0.01, 83.59±52.85 mg/dL p=0.05). This metabolic effect has been shown to be more evident in case of 10mg/kg dose therapy (p=0.03). Simultaneously, serum cholesterol levels have been reduced, however this decrease proved to be significant only in case of group D2 (p=0.03). Despite of increased triglyceride values, glucose levels were significantly decreased in both treated groups (133.33±36.18mg/dL p=0.05, 118.10±51.98 mg/dL p=0.02). Conclusions: Our results suggest that venlafaxine administrated to rats has unwished dose related metabolic effects such as significant increase in weight and hypertriglyceridemia, however serum cholesterol and plasma glucose levels appears to be decreased by this medication.


BACKGROUND
Amyloid-β (Aβ), which derives from the amyloid-β protein precursor (AβPP), forms plaques and serves as a fluid biomarker in Alzheimer's disease (AD). How Aβ forms from AβPP is known, but questions relating to AβPP and Aβ biology remain unanswered. AD patients show mitochondrial dysfunction, and an Aβ/AβPP mitochondria relationship exists.

OBJECTIVE
We considered how mitochondrial biology may impact AβPP and Aβ biology.

METHODS
SH-SY5Y cells were transfected AβPP constructs. After treatment with FCCP (uncoupler), Oligomycin (ATP synthase inhibitor), or starvation Aβ levels were measured. β-secretase (BACE1) expression was measured. Mitochondrial localized full-length AβPP was also measured. All parameters listed were measured in ρ0 cells on an SH-SY5Y background. iPSC derived neurons were also used to verify key results.

RESULTS
We showed that mitochondrial depolarization routes AβPP to, while hyperpolarization routes AβPP away from, the organelle. Mitochondrial AβPP and cell Aβ secretion inversely correlate, as cells with more mitochondrial AβPP secrete less Aβ, and cells with less mitochondrial AβPP secrete more Aβ. An inverse relationship between secreted/extracellular Aβ and intracellular Aβ was observed.

CONCLUSION
Our findings indicate mitochondrial function alters AβPP localization and suggest enhanced mitochondrial activity promote Aβ secretion while depressed mitochondrial activity minimize Aβ secretion. Our data complement other studies that indicate a mitochondrial, AβPP, and Aβ nexus, and could help explain why cerebrospinal fluid Aβ is lower in those with AD. Our data further suggest Aβ secretion could serve as a biomarker of cell or tissue mitochondrial function.


Esophageal varices develop in 30-70% of patients with liver cirrhosis. One-third of these varices will eventually bleed and first episode could be fatal in 40-50% of patients. Because of this, primary prophylaxis can be justified if patients at high risk of bleeding can be identified. Many endoscopic findings can identify the patients likely to bleed in near future. The results of primary prophylaxis with portacaval shunts and endoscopic sclerotherapy have been disappointing. Nonselective betablockers have been found effective in preventing bleeding from varices and their use is justified for this purpose.


Banking and Financial Institutions are facing the pressure of increased defaults by individuals and firms in the last few years repercussions due to fraudulent activities. It is not only adversely affecting banks but also other financial sectors which depend on them. This makes it imperative to study the ways to prevent them rather than curing the situations. However, banks face two challenges in identifying NPAs and Wilful defaults. The first one is the due diligence of firms/individuals before an extension of the loan. The second one is, need for the placement of automated safeguards to reduce frauds originating out from human behavior. The wilful defaults are committed mainly in loan and credit services for personal benefits and are getting converted into bad loans. Bad loans are the Non-Performing Assets (NPAs) and wilful defaults are a subset of these. Hence, it is very important to control NPAs. The objective of the paper is to design and evaluate machine learning based supervised models for NPA detection. To design models, the entire historical and current data needs to be considered, which requires, faster access to large volumes of heterogeneous data. Hence, the supervised models are implemented using big data techniques for fraud detection and analytics. The various supervised models namely Logistic Regression, Support Vector Machine, Random Forest, Neural Network, and Naive Bayes are designed for loan data and experimented using Map Reduce on Hadoop platform. These models are evaluated considering various performance metrics. The empirical result shows that the Neural Network model performs best considering precision, recall, relative commission error, and kappa statistics for NPA prediction. The best-performed model can be integrated into the existing loan management system for the early identification of NPA cases.


ABSTRACT Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) are a global health burden that affects a broad scope of individuals worldwide. Pharmacists, as members of the multidisciplinary team, play a significant role in promoting public awareness towards potential risk factors for NCDs. This study aims to gauge the knowledge of NCDs risk factors among pharmacy students of a Malaysian public university. This paper also outlines perspectives of pharmacy students on the strategies to raise the awareness of NCDs risk factors. A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in the Faculty of Pharmacy, International Islamic University Malaysia. Self-administered questionnaires were pretested and validated before being distributed to pharmacy students across different years of study. The data indicated an average level of knowledge towards risk factors of NCDs among study participants with no significant differences in knowledge between male and female genders (p = 0.583). However, there is a significant difference in knowledge concerning the year of study (p < 0.001); as positive correlation can be seen between the level of education and the knowledge of NCDs risk factor. Most of the students (75%) were unaware of the planning by the Ministry of Health (MOH) to control NCDs. Reinforcement of NCDs-related education activities is imperative in order to increase the overall awareness concerning the risk factors of NCDs among future pharmacy practitioners. Further collaborations between educational institutions and the MOH were proposed to help raise awareness of NCDs risk factors among the younger population.


Bioassay of Ureaplasma urealyticum is necessary for detection as well as determination of pathogenic factors in order to understand the pathogenesis of diseases associate with ureaplasma infection. Cultivation and verification of ureaplasma is the first step of this study in the purpose of discovering sensitive method for ureaplasma detection. Cultivation of ureaplasma either in liquid or in solid media are able to detect the existence of ureaplasma in samples analyzed. However, application of PCR using specific primers to be compatible with urease gene (ure) would confirm the presence of ureaplasma. The pathogenicity of ureaplasma is potentially monitored using reporter gene as a marker for gene expression. IceC was chosen as reporter gene for ureaplasma pathogenic determination as the gene has great sensitivity, easily detectable and quantitated in simple method of ice nucleation assay. Transposon 916 (Tn916) was selected as a vector for iceC gene to transform ureaplasma. The application of recombinant Tn916-iceC which is considered as pUI, allow detection of ureaplasma activities when transform ureaplasma is tested by ice nucleation assay. It was expected that ureaplasma transformation is the manifestation of mutagenesis which interfere genes responsible for bacterial pathogenicity, in order pathogenesis of bacterial infection to be analyzed accurately. IgA1 protease is considered to be an important factor for ureaplasma pathogenicity as the enzyme is required for successful colonization. Identification of iga gene and  determination of IgA1 protease activity are important for understanding the pathogenesis of ureaplasma infection. Putative iga gene of Mycoplasma genitalium was used as a reference to identify the presence of iga nucleotide sequence in U. urealyticum. Convincing evidence were obtained after PCR amplification of ureaplasma DNA using primers designed to be compatible with putative iga gene of M. genitalium followed by the discovery of 100% sequence homology of amplified  ureaplasma iga gene and iga gene of M. genitalium mentioned in establish data. IgA1 protease activity of U. urealytium has been detectable in the cell rather than in media culture,  suggesting that IgA1 protease is not secreted out of cell. It was proofed that IgA1 protease is membrane bound enzyme capable of digesting IgA1 in mucosal tissues of various organs and considered as potential virulence factor for ureaplasma that cause disease or gain entry to mucosal membrane. The existence of IgA1 protease activity in bacterial plasma membrane would have implication in ureaplasma management such as diagnosis and therapy of ureaplasma infection. (Med J Indones 2005;14: 204-14) Keywords: Ureaplasma detection, Ureaplasma pathogenicity, IceC reporter gene, IgA1 protease, M. genitalium putative gene.


The most suitable STI filling process has been developed for 45nm-node SoC platform. We found that the stress induced anti-isotropic impurity diffusion, which causes the Vth lowering. This novel phenomenon has been controlled by optimizing the SOD/HDP-CVD hybrid STI filling structure. At the same time, 20% drive current improvements of nFET and pFET have been obtained.


The interest in the utilization of bio-fillers in thermoplastics has increased recently, mainly due to the need in overcoming the environmental problems caused by the agricultural by products. Polypropylene is an outstanding commercially available important thermoplastic material with wide range of applications in various fields because of its balanced chemical and mechanical properties. The incorporation of the bio fillers at compositions ranging from 10-30% was carried out by melt compounding in segmented single screw extruder and then injection molded into standard test samples. Mechanical, thermal and morphological characteristics of the blend systems were studied to evaluate the effect of filler content on polypropylene. It has been found that while there is a slight decrease in tensile strength and elongation, the tensile modulus was found to be increased with the filler content. There is a good dispersion of both the filler materials in PP matrix. The thermal stability of the PP matrix is found to be increased significantly by the presence of filler.


Weak signal identification and inference are very important in the area of penalized model selection, yet they are underdeveloped and not well-studied. Existing inference procedures for penalized estimators are mainly focused on strong signals. In this paper, we propose an identification procedure for weak signals in finite samples, and provide a transition phase in-between noise and strong signal strengths. We also introduce a new two-step inferential method to construct better confidence intervals for the identified weak signals. Both theory and numerical studies indicate that the proposed method leads to better confidence coverage for weak signals, compared with those using asymptotic inference. In addition, the proposed method out performs the perturbation and bootstrap resampling approaches. We illustrate our method for HIV antiretroviral drug susceptibility data to identify genetic mutations associated with HIV drug resistance.